#its literally built in to our brains
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I got political whiplash on Threads. First, everyone was screaming, “All is lost!” I came back an hour later, and everyone was screaming, “We Ride at Dawn!”
The right-wingers are in panic mode. Steven Miller was practically screaming on Feckless news. 🤣
I mean. The right-wingers' entire mentality, the fuel for the January 6 attempted coup, the recent SCOTUS President God-King Immunity ruling, and all the rest, is premised on the simple fact that the president is indeed, Almighty God King who serves for life and will never, ever willingly give up his power. So that's how I can guarantee that the GOP, because they are short-sighted fascist morons, did not plan for this. Their entire strategy was built around attacking Biden, because they hate him. Like, really hate him. He defeated Trump the first time and there was still a good chance that he could do it again. Trump got impeached the first time for trying to extort Zelenskyy for dirt on Biden, because he didn't want to face him. That's why they went after Hunter on largely bogus charges, tossed around the idea of impeaching Biden, actually (uselessly) impeached Mayorkas, etc.
And yet, because Biden (even if he was forced to do it) decided to step away and voluntarily give up his presidential power instead of wrecking American democracy to hold onto it, that has broken their little shriveled fascist brains. They literally can't comprehend it, and I can guarantee they're now shit scared about having to face Kamala, a brown woman, who is the epitome of everything their tiny evil brains hate. As noted by those bangin' fundraising numbers, there is also a lot of excitement around her. And suddenly, after MONTHS of "this election is a referendum on which old and mentally declining man you hate more," that has been removed as a factor. (Watch the media suddenly forget all about age and/or mental competency as a factor now that Biden is out. Does it apply to Trump, you ask? CRICKETS.)
Kamala is going to mop the f'n floor with Trump at the next presidential debate, and I guarantee that the GOP knows that too. Because yes, if Biden had another bad debate, or if he has a bad case of COVID that might end up giving him long-covid symptoms or keeping him off the trail for days or weeks, that would have been very, very hard to recover from. Now the GOP is the one stuck with an old, mentally baffled, virulently hated presidential candidate and the most pro-Russia, anti-woman, demonstrable-sellout whitebread VP pick imaginable, that they had to choose because Trump nearly got the last one killed and he wasn't interested in the job again, for some weird reason. And as we have pointed out before, this is the last-chance saloon for Trump in any number of ways, and he has been demonstrably overconfident the last few weeks as the media was consumed with discussion of Biden's stumbles rather than Trump's manifold unfitness, treason, felonies, and all the rest.
I don't agree with Biden on everything he has ever done in his long career in public service, but I will say that I don't think he would have actually done this if he wasn't eventually convinced, for whatever reason that might be, that it was the right decision. And my one big fear about him stepping down was that the party would instantly fracture, people would start flogging unrealistic Magical White Boy replacements, and otherwise insist on an "open mini-primary!" or some other fucking bullshit. Now, there are still a few idiots trying that, but by and large, the Democratic power apparatus has instantly thrown its weight behind Kamala. That doesn't excuse them for the weeks of wibbling Anonymous Sources self-sabotage beforehand, and I still vote that we destroy the billionaires at our next opportunity, but if we can stick with that and keep up those mongo fundraising numbers, we might indeed actually have a better chance than before, and that was what this was all about.
As I noted yesterday, Black women have been disproportionately influential in taking Trump down (think Leticia James, Fani Willis, etc) and there is undoubtedly a huge, HUGE amount of poetic justice if Kamala can be the one to stick the knife in his greasy orange gut once and for all. I can likewise guarantee the GOP is well aware of that, and the fact that while they can yell even louder and trot out the same old racist, sexist, misogynist fearmongering dirtbag attacks they used on HRC, that is a strategy with demonstrably diminishing returns (it sure as hell isn't going to help them win any more female or suburban or black voters or anyone else we always hear about how they're Making Inroads with). And we're not going to talk about how it's Obvious that America would never elect a black female president. Obama won two terms. Even with all that weight of frothing misogyny and DECADES of Republican smear machines, HRC won the popular vote and was ratfucked out of the Electoral College by the slimmest of margins, after a massive interference campaign by the Russians. It is fucking possible, we are going to do it, and the Republicans are so, SO FUCKING SCARED of having to live in an America run by a brown woman, that can only be for the good.
Kamala Harris 2024. Let's go.
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as someone who has been chronically homeless for 9 years due to severe disability, the way housing is managed in america is just a joke. it's all about the profits for the landlord, nothing else matters. credit checks are a gate to keep out poor people. deposits are a gate to keep out poor people. you wanna apply for a low-income housing program? you HAVE to have a "severe" disability diagnosis and proof that you're too disabled to afford or apply for "normal" housing. this is a gate to keep out poor people.
people in positions to help house homeless people don't care because they're housed. there's no sense of urgency. they don't have to think about what it's like to go without a roof over their head. they get paid tens of dollars an hour to sit there and scoff at all of the "lazy poor and disabled people who should just get jobs and stop whining and expecting to have things handed to them." they get paid to ignore emails and take 2 hour long lunches to forget about how hard and scary the world really is.
how the FUCK are you supposed to work when you don't have a place to sleep at night, shower, or eat? come the fuck on. use your goddamn brain. this system is built off of abuse, lying and torture. nobody earns an "honest" day's pay, none of this is "honest" work. it's all built off of the backs of lying and stealing from someone who needs it more. jobs aren't given to the person who's the most qualified- they're given to the person who lied the most to make themselves sound good during the interview. jobs are given to people who are good at interviews, NOT people who are GOOD at what they do.
i don't know how to tell you that when the average person isn't making enough to eat, fuel their car or pay for their phone, they also can't afford the roof over their head. disabled people and low-income people are struggling even worse with this. i don't know how to tell people that you should care about this.
we are literally all the same species. we are all humans. you cannot look down on disabled, poor and addicted people because we're "scum" and "less than human". we're not. that's a lie you're being fed by capitalism to feel better about yourself so you'll keep blindly working. wake up. this is not how humans behave. you're being brainwashed. everyone needs a stable home. EVERYONE. especially if you want them to contribute to your stupid money machine.
capitalism makes no fucking sense. give people homes or get the fuck out of our way, because we're about to just start taking them. this is unsustainable. this is unliveable. this system doesn't fucking work. a system that leaves its people to starve and die while apartments, homes, condos, and hotel rooms stay empty and collect dust doesn't work. none of this shit works. fuck this fascist system. none of us are free.
#homelessness#housing#human rights#punk#trans punx#trans punks#queer punks#cripplepunk#cripple punk#crip punk#cpunk#our writing#about us#anticapitalism#antiwork#anti capitalism#anti work
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Another fact about me is that I looooove winter sports. And today my two braincells touched and I experienced a thought: What if the cold boys liked the ice. The ice liked them. Terror modern AU winter sports edition!!!
(Did a bunch of sketches before I realized they all wear protective headgear (obviously) and it's kinda not fun if you can't even see who it is. So I just colored the sketches where you could see ppls face)
Jopson and Gore are doing biathlon (couldn't be bothered to figure out how to draw the guns that's none of my business)
Charles De Voeux does as well <3 (I hate him)
Tozer does alpine skiing (I'm deliberately ignoring the fact he's canonically good at shooting he's built like the guys who do alpine skiing so)
Blanky is a retired professional alpine skiing athlete as well, he still roams around the slopes bc the ppl love him still although he's kinda weird (he loves to fuck with Tozer)
Thomas Hartnell does snowboarding (idk it just felt right)
Armitage, Peglar (our short king) and Fairholme do ski jumping (I forgot that Armitages job is literally something something weapons but idc he has scrawny ski jumper vibes)
Ned does Skeleton (?? idk about this one) (dont pay attention to the arms pay attention to his handsome face)
Hodge and Jirv pilot a bobsleigh
And my magnum opus big brain idea: FITZCONTE ICE SKATING AU?????? HELLO???????????????
Feel free to add your own takes on who would do what if you have any opinion at all bc I feel like its a very niche european thing to be this serious about winter sports avshhshs
#another one from the category “a post made for exactly 3 ppl that get ir”#everyday i wake up and i lie bc everyday i say “im gonna take a little break guys the worms in my brain arent doing too hot”#and then 2 hrs later i get possesed and draw something#was this just an excuse to draw the boys in tight ish outfits? maybe (terror discord you know whats up)#the terror#the terror amc#thomas jopson#graham gore#charles des voeux#solomon tozer#thomas blanky#edward little#george hodgson#john irving#james fitzjames#henry le vesconte#fitzconte#tom hartnell#froggerart
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Hello, a request, please from the Furin boys x reader, the Furin boys discover that their girlfriend buys Sanrio plushies that look like them (they put an image of Hello Kitty's friends and the Furin boys, but according to me Ume looks like Cinnamonroll, not Kitty)
Hellooo! I loved this collab tbh so here it is !! ALSO RHANKS FOR ALL THE LIKESSS i love y'all
♡ Pure fluff - Female reader !! - Hello kitty replaced by Cinnamonroll <3 - Small revision
☆ Characters - Haruka Sakura, Hajime Umemiya, Suo Hayato, Nirei Akihiko, Kyotaro Sugishita
!! You were the literal definition of what TikTok calls a "Sanrio Girl." It was almost like you were born to live and breathe it! TikTok is freaking out over the hunt of a limited-edition Hello Kitty purse from the 2010s? Yeah, it’s just sitting there in your wardrobe. People are debating the existence of a discontinued Sanrio character that only three people in the world probably know about? You’re definitely one of them. That being said, your boyfriend had no idea about your little... obsession. You kept it pretty low-key in public, and he’d never been over to your place before. But lately, you couldn’t help noticing some uncanny similarities between him and one of your Sanrio plushies! So, you finally invited him over for the first time, ready to reveal your little collector’s hobby—and to prove your point about the similarities between them!
◇♡ ~ H A R U K A S A K U R A
• He was STUNNED.
• and confused too- how did you sleep on that bed packed of plushies?? Was that even your bed? Or a bed for the plushies...?
• dont think he didnt notice you like cute things but this- how arent you broke from so much things??
He tensed slightly, his brows furrowed and cheeks flushed, as you grabbed a plushie and held it up in front of him, comparing the two with intense focus to confirm your theory.
"The fuck-"
"Shut up, im thinking!" - Haruka grumbled at that answer with a small blush but listened to you
• When you compared them, he inmediately huffed embarassed of your decision, didnt you have something better than a dog?? was that supposed to say he was an animal? He isnt too good with this weird comparations you make..
"Why are you comparing me to a DAMN DOG!? is it- IS IT MY HAIR!?" - You smiled softly at his words and camed slightly closer explaining yourself before he explodes from embarassment.-
"Basically yes, but did you know that Pochacco sometimes is clumsy and sticks his nose where he shouldnt?" - She leaves a small laugh and feels happy that he is still hearing her even if she is basically talking about a topic people consider for a younger audience. - "Just like you the other day! You decided to see what was happening with Anzai even if you could just shrugged it as a problem of him only" - She smiles sweetly at his boyfriend who frowns even more, a tight line on his lips and a blush that almost emanated heat. He can bark all he wants, but you know in the inside he has a good heart that doesnt bite-
"Im not clum- i dont- ugh, im just doing what the captain of the class is supossed to do!" - He growls but shuts himself with her small kiss on his lips, rubbing his neck embarassed he surrenders. Maybe if he buys you more cute things you'll shut up about it? he isnt trying to spoil you of course !!
• If you’re worried about him finding it weird, don’t be. He might make a passing comment about you having too much stuff, but deep down, he doesn’t think it’s weird at all. If it makes you happy, that’s all that matters to him! Honestly, he’ll probably start thinking of you whenever he spots something with Pochacco or Hello Kitty. Just don’t expect him to learn all the names—his brain isn’t built for keeping track of all that!
• now, if you call the Pochacco plushie "our son"... you just made him stop working for the rest of the day. He will scream its not but in the inside he will like it
• if you convice him to bring atleast one of your Pochacco's plushies to his house so he sleeps with it when youre not there, he wont refuse but at first he will say its stupid. After some days, he isnt sure if you made a spell or something on that thing because now he cant sleep without hugging it when youre not around. he wont tell you that tho
☆ H A J I M E U M E M I Y A
• He will be excited to know your hobby even if he didnt understand at first what it was, a serie? a collection? a game? yeeeaah! it doesnt matter, if youre happy he is too. • He would tell you all the plushies you have are like his vegetables, their little babies! You two made the deal that now he has to take care of your things not getting dust if you arent around while you will take care of the plants not dying • When you compare him to Cinnamoroll, he hums looking at the plusie sweetly, how could he deny something to you? He was curious where did you finded them similar tho, it seems you love this plushies a lot. "You think so?" - Umemiya leaves a small laugh and grins posing with the plushie close to his face- "He has my haircolor!" "Yeah! But Cinnamoroll is a bit calmer than you… Still, you two totally look alike!" you say, happy to see that your boyfriend seems comfortable and not at all weirded out by your hobby. • When you tell him that Cinnamoroll is a dog and not a bunny HE IS SHOCKED. He will make a dramatic act apologizing to the plushie ngl he seems more eager to take care of it than you • When you ask him if he wants to bring it to his house, he shakes his head saying - "If you ever miss me and im not here, think of that little guy as me!" - He will accept a white shirt of Cinnamon tho, he wouldnt be embarassed to use it • Just imagine the heavenly kings seeing Umemiya talking about a problem of the town while he has a cinnamoroll shirt, he isnt even picking up why Hiragi has a different frown than usual ☆ S U O H A Y A T O • To be honest, he would be kinda surprised, but he wouldnt show it that much. His quick reaction is just blinking amused and smile to not worry you about him finding it weird "Oh dear, why have you been keeping this hobby as a secret? Its kinda cute..." - He says peeking around your room and taking by himself one of the plushies that called his attention, Kuromi. "Ah, Suo! that is-" - You were about to talk explaining the similarities between them but someway he is more fast than you. - "You sleep with this plushie? Hm...could it be that it reminds you of me?" - He ask on a certain mocking but lovely tone. When you ask him how does he know, he just shrugs it off and calls it "Boyfriend instict" • He would be totally fine with your little hobby, he just thinks about it as another thing to tease you about and see your cute face twitch a little. And also as an idea for future gifts "Why are you comparing me to a little jester bunny, love? Hm? Am I really that mocking to you...?" - he asks dramatically, letting out a small laugh.
• He’d love listening to you ramble about Sanrio for hours—he doesn’t mind you talking his ear off while he sips on some tea. Sometimes, he’d even try to argue with you about a fact (even if your version is correct) just because he enjoys seeing you get a little annoyed. Though he’d kiss you right after to make it up to you! • Just like Umemiya, he would let the plushie with you, so he can tease you about it when he remembers it in your usual morning walks together. "So, how was the night with my mini version? Did you sleep well, sweetheart?" ☆ N I R E I A K I H I K O • Just like Sakura, he was surprised to see your big collection of Sanrio things. What he would probably do the first time he sees this, is take out his notebook and quickly take notes of it so he has an idea of next gifts for you • When you tell him he looks like Pompompurin and show him the plushie, a blush creeps onto his face with a nervous smile, leaving him visibly embarrassed. He wouldnt deny it, but he'd definitely wonder why you think that. When you explain its because of his hair and his golden-retriever-like personality when he gets excited talking, he’d only look more confused.
• Yapper x Yapper type of relationship LITERALLY. While you ramble about Sanrio and Pompompurin similarities with him, he would yap you about Furin, a perfect balance between you two! • He would also find pretty funny finding similarities of sanrio characters with people of Furin, like a form of combine your two favourite things! "So hear me out on this one- Sakura looks like Pochacco!" - You say to Nirei with a convicing smile, showing him your plushie of Pochacco, Nirei just gasp and takes notes of it nodding at your such expert level of analysis. • Nirei would gladly accept you giving him Pompompurin to take care of at his house. He’d probably even send you random photos of Pompompurin in different spots around his place every hour Nirei: "Look! Purin is preparing himself to sleep" *one attached image* - Such a silly dog, you two go to sleep for tomorrow <3 • Such sweet parents for the plushie ngl ☆ K Y O T A R O S U G I S H I T A
• Yeaaahhh, he isnt seeing your vision on the similarities...what does he has to do with a blue penguin called Tuxedo Sam? • At first, he wouldnt understand your obsession over Sanrio, but he wouldnt question you about it ever. After all, his grandma teached him to be a gentleman and he wouldnt want to make you two angry! "So, i think you look like this little guy!" - You said to him directly since Sugishita isnt a fan of overly complicated or unnecessarily long explanations. He blinked, confused, as he grabbed the plushie without thinking much about it. He didnt really see your point, but he didn’t want to upset you either, so he did his best to say something nice. "I-I like it! This penguin is... good!" - You sighed, crossing your arms but smiling at his effort. "Don’t force yourself, dummy..."
• If you start talking about Sanrio and your reasons for thinking he’s similar to Tuxedo Sam, he’ll probably just nod along to everything you say, even if he gets lost after your second explanation. Honestly, he might even fall asleep—but dont blame him, thats just something he tends to do! "Soooo, i thinked of Tuxedo as you because he doesnt like intruders and problems just like you with people that want to fight Umemiya! and...Are you awake-?" - If you get angry at him falling asleep he would try his best to make you feel better once he wakes up. • He wouldnt bring the plushie to his house, but a random day without you noticing he would take the size of the plushie to make custom outfits for Tuxedo. That would probably make you happy right? He asked his grandma for help pls like it
#wind breaker#wind breaker x reader#Haruka Sakura#Sakura Haruka x reader#Haruka Sakura x reader#kyotaro sugishita#kyotaro sugishita x reader#hayato suo#hayato suo x reader#nirei akihiko#nirei akihiko x reader#umemiya hajime#hajime umemiya#hajime umemiya x reader
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You talk about getting rid of the psychiatric system. But what do you propose should be done instead? /gen
I'm going to tell you a story . I once knew someone called Tim. When I met him he had already spent most of his life in drug addiction treatment centres, psych wards and prisons until he later ended up in a forensic psych ward. After he did LSD he 'never came down from his bad trip' and got diagnosed w schizophrenia. This diagnosis +the addict - diagnosis justified so many fucking human rights violations - it got him locked up, drugged up, strip searched, his privacy violated on a daily basis, isolated away from society and everyone he knew because apparently he needed to be 'saved from this illness in his brain that makes him do/think/feel' things he otherwise wouldnt and because he needed to be 'punished' into being a 'functioning', 'productive' (read: profit-generating) member of 'society' (read: hegemonic cultural norms & forms.) This is what psychiatry does - it doesnt help, it locks us up and tortures us. I dont need to be able to name alternatives to this lol . This is the worst possible way of treating anyone ever. It would help immensely to literally just STOP doing this. Even 'sane' people would go insane in places like these.
So the alternative to acting like an absolute asshole towards people who struggle severely and who dont have a place in society would be to 1)not isolate them away from society and 2)not torture them 🙏 . It would be to get rid off the psychologists' individual and the psychiatric systems' general saviour complex that only results in abusing people bc they act like the people who are labelled as mentally ill are (=their minds/brains) responsible for at fault for their own struggles. Instead we could show solidarity with each other and try to built a world where everyone has a place in and is valued as a person and where the suffering/madness of an individual is not seen as an incentive to literally abuse and socially ostracize them.
And @ everyone dont come at me w 'not everyone has these experiences w psychiatry' - any time you talk about systemic criticism you have to look at the most marginalized experiences. When talking about police defunding/prison abolition we also talk about police brutality that black disabled poor people face . And yes not everyone has bad experiences w every single cop , still ACAB . ALSO dont come at me with 'I know there ar GOOD psychologists who Actually want to help' ,1) fuck their savior complex 2)what individuals motives are for joining this system of oppression isnt necessarily the purpose of a system. The purpose of a system is what it does. The police isnt there to protect us, psychiatry isnt there to help us. We only have each other.
So, what you can do right now to get rid off the psychiatric system in your community? How can we stop relying on this authoritarian system that abuses and incarcerates so many of us ??
I think its important to educate each other on our rights. Because then we have the knowledge on what not to say in a therapy session so we dont get incarcerated or what to do when we are questioned by cops/psychs to see if we are 'at risk' or what to do when we or friends of us are already incarcerated so they can get out of there as fast as possible. Also educating your friends/family on psychiatric propaganda helps - a common myth is that if you dont 'look for signs' and call the cops to institutionalize a friend they might kill themselves. All while institutionalization/incarceration increases the risk of suicide extremely. This is important to know so no one in our communities calls the cops on us when we're doing really bad. Also educating each other on the biomedical model so everyone understands that we dont have an illness that we need to be 'saved from' (depression for example) or 'punished for' (aspd, drug addiction) and that we (=our minds/brains) arent to blame for our struggles Etc.
If you know that youre sometimes in extreme mental distress/pain you could also make a crisis plan with friends so you dont need to rely on the psych system - like for example the plan could be that a friend calls in sick for work/university and then stays at your place for 3-4days and is there for you/drinks tea w you, goes for a walk together w you, smokes a joint with you together until you feel better and arent acutely suicidal anymore. (Its also best to include several people in this plan bc it can get really overwhelming for 1 person). You can als include things in the plan like asking your friends to take away all knives in your apartment if you want to. Or if its a more permanent 'crisis' then a plan on how to move together with friends to get away from your nuclear family/abusive partner (just as an example).
Access to medication, knowledge on how to get off of them if you dont want to take them anymore and freedom and proper education in your decision on taking, weaning off or on staying on medication is not given in the psych system. So how do we change that? A common reason for 'crisis' is trying to wean off of psychiatric drugs (a lot of people get suicidal or psychotic bc of the withdrawal for example - depends on the meds, dosis and since how long youve been taking them though). You could plan when to do this together w friends. Theres anti psych guidelines on how to do this safely - a lot of psychiatrists tell you that you need to stay on meds no matter if you want to or not and they often dont know how to wean off of them or think youre 'at risk' and incarcerate you if you mention that you want to stop taking your meds -this highly depends on how stigmatizing your diagnosis is (=schizophrenia/bipolar are good examples for highly stigmatized ones) or if youre sb who get racialized for example (bc then psychs immediatly perceive you as more of 'a risk'). You could make a plan for example where you ask your friends to stay w you through this by living at your apartment w you for a few days, cooking meals for you and keeping your apartment clean. And then another friend of you could come by each day after work (for example) and also be there since its probably a lot for one person. Also LYING to psychiatrists is always a good idea. For example when youre trans and want to access gender affirming care its important not to mention any diagnoses in general but especially diagnoses like autism, schizophrenia, psychosis or PDs and then literally lie about yourself if necessary. You always know who you are and what you need best. Also dont blindly trust your psych on what medications go well together - look it up yourself !!! Theres a 'drug interaction checker' online where you can see if it might be dangerous to take certain meds at the same time. Also READ on what side effects are possible - make a diary for when you start your medication on how youre feeling/doing . Some changes are awful but still hard to notice bc youre thinking that it could also be a 'normal' worsening of your mental state that you think you might also have without meds. Also depending on what physical conditions you have/had you cant take some medications without it being dangerous - READ the whole instruction paper thing that always comes with your meds and/or google it !!
Also literally just sharing/collecting tips on how to cope w different struggles + harm reduction guides (suicidality, drug addiction, ...) is very helpful. There is a lot of community sourced material already out there.
I understand that the reason most people are severely struggling is because they dont have a community (=like when you only have 1 partner or 1 friend ,because youre (still) legal property of your parents, because youre stuck in a nuclear family,...) and not only because psychiatry divides our communities by blaming us for our struggles and isolating and stigmatizing us. Building community and relying on each other is the only way to get rid off the psychiatric system in the end. If we already had a real community that we could rely on, all the psych wards would be empty and therapists wouldnt exist. This is not the first step, its the solution.
Als there are already alternative institutions (that are already in practice) that are a replacement for psychiatry.
This is probably the answer that youre looking for 😂. I dont really care about these kind of anti psych concepts and practices since they seem out of my reach atm. Ik that theres an anti psych house in berlin whos guiding principles are 1)community care /peer support 2)full autonomy for everyone there and its specifically for people who are running away from psychiatric violence.
Other alternatives that I havent really looked into yet are : bethel house , peer respites, new models of therapy
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Homicipher Theory
Mr. Hood: The Dishonored Samurai
Don’t turn your nose up yet, hear me out. Maybe it’s a stretch, maybe it makes sense, maybe it’s just a damn good (or delusional) headcanon, you decide.
Homicipher/Mr. Hood Route Spoilers Below!!!!
I established in an earlier theory that the “Ghost Apartments” is a pocket of the spirit realm on haunted grounds where a hospital and subway line were once located but destroyed in an earthquake, after which, an apartment building was built and then abandoned.
But I have a theory that the history of the haunted grounds goes even further back. Perhaps as far as Edo-era feudal Japan. Why? I’m inclined to believe that Mr. Crawling is from that era, but that’s a whole different theory I still need to mull over.
Suppose it’s true—that the cursed land that has accumulated hundreds of vengeful and lost spirits became haunted hundreds of years ago. Perhaps, it became cursed and haunted due to war in this time period. Whatever the case, operating under the premise that its history is this old, I want to take a look at helpful Mr. Hood.
Mr. Hood
He’s the first face we see after waking up in the spirit realm (not counting our startling run-in with Mr. Crawling). You could consider him our Toriel. He gives us the basics, enough info, or lack thereof, to begin our exploration. He tries to teach us some words: light, dark, sound, door, not, maybe “container” if we’re smart. We take this knowledge, leave him in the room behind us, and proceed to immediately get our hearts eaten by Mr. Gap.
But who, or what, is Mr. Hood?
The only thing we learn about him from our brief introduction is that he’s a man of few words, mysterious, monotone, and he’s…literally just a guy in a hood. Oh, and he’s got a big fuck-off axe for seemingly no reason at all.
From what I’ve played of the game so far, it seems we’re unlikely to ever see him again unless some really bizarre and specific conditions are met.
If those conditions are met, we wind up being Alice-in-Wonderlanded into a miniature version of ourselves, and Mr Hood makes an unexpected appearance to help us try to find the magical potion to make us normal again.
During our adventure with him, we…don’t learn much. Kind of the ongoing theme of this game, actually. Get used to perpetually knowing nothing and being confused by what you do know.
We do learn a few key things, though.
First, man has a deft hand with an axe. In fact, he can flawlessly execute any ghost he deems to be a threat, without a moment’s hesitation, and with the badassery to act totally calm and say only “they’re dead” when you interrogate him about it.
Second, there’s nothing under the hood. After escaping a brutal entity, he sits with his hood pulled back, revealing nothingness. Unlike the Bride, though, he prefers to mask this feature. When we comment on his lack of a head, he quickly pulls the hood back up.
Third, he has a body. Although lacking a head, we know that there’s something solid under the cloak, because he hides us in it and we comment on the err…texture of his insides(?).
Fourth, he is some kind of executioner. This is perfectly apparent design-wise. Hooded and carrying a massive axe that he employs with perfect ease. Some speculation, but he seems to specifically serve the purpose of executioner in this land of ghosts. He’s very adept at detecting a threat and differentiating between good and evil (wish the same could be said for our himbo-brained Mr. Crawling, but I digress). In fact, while we're taking a nap, he evidently leaves to a different room to hunt and kill another ghost.
Fifth, he goes where he’s needed. He comes off as someone strictly bound by his duty. At least, this is what I infer rather than him being a wandering spirit in these halls. It’s why, when we’re reunited with Mr. Crawling and the others, Mr. Hood leaves us. We don’t need him anymore, and he can’t accept that we want him with us just because we like him. In fact, he tells us not to say things like that, or depending on your interpretation, that he has nothing to say to that before he abandons us.
So, what does this all mean (apart from making him the sexiest and most mysterious hooded figure I’ve ever known cough)?
My theory is that, in life, Mr. Hood was a samurai who committed some great treason and thus endured the ritual of hara-kiri (seppuku) for his execution.
Hara-kiri was a form of ritualistic suicide where a samurai would take a blade and slice open his stomach, after which, an executioner would decapitate him. An honorable death was when the executioner left just a bit of the criminal’s neck during the slice, not quite severing it completely. A dishonorable death meant the whole head came off, which was embarrassing for the deceased samurai and his family.
If Mr. Hood was a samurai, his prowess with a weapon and calculating attitude towards fulfilling his duty and cutting down enemies makes a lot of sense.
If he was a dishonored samurai, then his reclusive manner and the shame of having no head also makes sense. Not that I think the ghosts retain memories of their life (Mr Gap excluded), but he could be carrying residual shame and dishonor from his death. He could be forever trapped trying to repent for his sins by executing evil, to make up for whatever treason he committed.
I think it’s further evidenced by our description of his insides. Slimy. It’s a grotesque thought, but if we’re being held against a gutted and sliced open stomach, this description makes sense, too.
Additionally, the shame and self-loathing would help explain why he rejects our confession of affection towards him. He’s not worthy of that affection, nor of companionship. He can’t even fathom our interest in him.
(Edit: some below translations aren’t great, I’m still ironing them out. As I’ve seen now, the best translations show us saying “Love you,” and Mr. Hood replying with “not understand,” indicating her can’t grasp our love for him, which still lines up with everything I said!)
I personally am really obsessed with this concept and have adopted it as my headcanon because I think it makes it all the sweeter when he comes back to save us and decides to carry us for all eternity (which, btw, I squealed when I realized that we were no longer small when he picked us up with this objective in mind, so we’re spending our afterlife being bridal-style carried by this man). We are, after all, the first person to care for him since his humiliating death. The first person to like him. The first person to give him purpose beyond routine and mindless execution of dark spirits. We give him a new duty, something to protect and cherish.
And idc what you say, that’s goddamn romantic for this vaguely romantic horror game.
#I think I might be obsessed oops#homicipher#mr hood#mr hood x you#homicipher mr hood#homicipher spoilers#homicipher game#mr crawling#mr gap#mr hood homicipher
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Because I've really enjoyed Peaceful Property and contributed to the discourse on here around it, I want to spend some time exploring the thoughtful critiques of the show by @bengiyo, @lurkingshan, @twig-tea, @respectthepetty, @my-rose-tinted-glasses, and @one-of-tankhuns-neurons. I started writing this out but then it got all annoying and academic so imma just list rant with the utmost respect for everyone's thoughts for making me think so much about this show.
1.I wondered about what shows might be examples of class division themes done with an orientation toward the lived experiences of the working class in BL, cuz honestly it's just not super prominent and well-done in much of media anywhere. The Aof series where he takes screenwriting credit seem to be the best representatives: ATOTS and Moonlight Chicken, especially, but he touches on macro and micro economic issues in all his works. Aof's really willing to depict the hardships and compromises required when living with less financial security, and I can def agree that Peaceful Property is not offering that. I just personally feel okay with that, because I see the latter show as doing a more theoretical and symbolic narrative about economics, and overt symbolism seems pretty in-line with the ghost story horror genre its using.
2. To me, I see Peaceful Property's main critique of class issues as being about Marxist alienation. So we've got our first two ghosts being really literal with this, where they have a labor they do and a final product that they don't get to partake in. Builder wants to have a meal in the house he built. Wig maker wants to wear the luxury wig she sewed. Then, with rider, we get a lil more abstract with him wanting him and his delivery to be recognized and build a meaningful relationship with someone. And since then we've been getting more and more abstract about people finding personal meaning and supporting others through their labor. But all of it still connects back to this idea of alienation from their labor, the magician, Chef Hong, and Peach are all prevented from performing the labor that brings them fulfillment by different circumstances.
3. For my reading, the queerness is very much part and parcel of its capitalism critique. Agree with it or not, but man x man loving stories have been used historically to run counter to the competition between men fighting for the top spot encouraged by capitalism. Maurice is a pretty prime example of this, where Maurice, instead of pining upward for Clive, ends up choosing the lower-class Alex and running away to be happy together. Pat and Pran's love in the face of their family's business related feud in Bud Buddy is an even closer example to how I think Peaceful Property is contrasting queer love and capitalistic competition. There's a few signals for me that Peaceful Property plans to explore this a bit more. The Cok Long sign reminds me way too much of the slang of "dick measuring competitions" and I don't think they gave us a character named 'Best,' who has reappeared a couple of times for no reason. With the magician, Pang, and Chef Hong, we also have a repeating motif of lost assistants who made the work meaningful and possible, a socialist emphasis on the value of all workers and the need to connect with others to produce their labors of love, which we see thwarted for the queer story line. The fact that the Thai dancing was two men working together to create the art offers an alternative to a competition between men. And I want to say that I'm just talking about narrative devices here, not the reality of how capitalism works. We're very much in symbolist land, with this take. I'm just a sucker for symbolist land, and it's hard for me to watch horror especially without taking my brain there.
4. And then there's the way queerness alienates one from the accepted 'normal,' which has emerged as a dominant theme in the last few episodes. But if we take this theme and apply it back on previous episodes, we can see traces of it throughout the characters. Home's statements have been the most explicit in illustrating an internalized homophobia with his desire to be part of a 'normal family.' And the tensions with his family about whether he deserved to inherit the properties has queer connotations about queer people's inclusion in their families and the legal and financial repercussions of that (What Did You Eat Yesterday is the top tier of detailed impacts of queer rights in that vein). Peach's social anxieties and depressive behaviors, ostensibly related to his close call with death and ability to see ghosts, parallels queer experiences, too, and we see how it shapes his and his sister's financial predicaments. (Aside: I wonder, regarding some of the complaints about their behavior in the context of poverty, if we might better read the two of them as broke middle class characters. We don't have much context about their childhoods, but their behavior has never really presented as people familiar with getting by on a dime.) Queerness and the threats of financial insecurity have been articulated as interrelated by the series.
5. Home's redemption? We'll know more as things get revealed, but it seems that we're meant to see Home's biggest failing as the negligence that allowed him to hit Peace and his cowardice in not standing up to his family and taking responsibility for the harm he caused. If that is his chief issue, in my view of a restorative process (and thank you so much @respectthepetty for naming this aspect of the show!), the necessary amends are...
facing up to his family (partial check)
admitting his mistakes and seeking forgiveness from Peach (he was in the process of doing so in the latest ep)
addressing the distraction that led to his negligence so that he can attend to Peach and people like Peach so it does not occur again (hmmm...)
That last point is key because we still don't know why it was significant that he was on his busy ignoring the call of girlfriend number 32 or whatever. But I'm suspecting it will connect to Home's internalized homophobia (and @heretherebedork has done some great writing about that subtext). That would give the accident a significance regarding horizontal violence between gay men that the privileged can then run away from while others who can't escape have to suffer the consequences. There's lots of ways queer men can and have done this to one another in everyday life and hook-ups but at the most extreme historically we have the the AIDS crisis, where someone's negligence regarding sexual health inspired by the psychological fear induced by being in the closet could truly be a life-or-death matter with major financial ramifications. For Home to truly own his mistake he is going to have to risk his own financial security in standing up to his family, and he's going to have to stop hiding from himself so he can develop compassion for others in the world. And the last scene in which we see him in the same predicament as Home I saw less as a cop out so Peach and the audience would feel bad for him and forgive him and more as a representation of his ability now to truly understand what Peach has gone through.
6. Do I think this series is going to solve capitalism? This show is about the spiritual dimensions capitalism robs from people, and I think it has real answers about disrupting capitalism through reconnection with our relationships to our work and to other human beings. I'm not religious, but I respect religion's ability to help people find and emphasize a deeper meaning in life, and I think that that doesn't necessarily but can challenge capitalist practices. Peaceful Property is working to show how caring about spiritual well-being breaks up the automaticity of capitalism and has never let go of that thread. To discuss Peaceful Property's takes on class division without speaking about its religious elements seems disingenuous to its greater purpose and a bit disrespectful to the Thai culture the series is so infused with. I'm intrigued about how Kan's plot will play out with the Vimarnsukmun family and it's impact on their finances. What would actually disappoint me and run counter to the show's themes is if the gang somehow inherited the family's wealth or properties other than the ramshackle Cok Long Cocktail Lounge. In Aof's work and in Maurice, the endings involve a disinheritance to represent that life is about connection not financial gain, which contrasts philosophically with the upward fantasies of capitalism. So in ATOTS, Tian moves to the village, in Moonlight Chicken, Jim trades out his diner for a smaller food truck, etc. To find the true meaning of home, Home will need to release himself from his attachment to his inheritance of financial privilege. Of course, being dead might be an option for that lol, but we'll see how the rest of the series plays out.
#peaceful property#peaceful property the series#meta#just floored by how much good analysis is coming out of this show from everyone#thai bl#forcebook#taynew#homepeach
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The biggest Easter egg yet
I’ve been meaning to address this for a while now, but @camdenleisurepirates gave me the final push after reading my piece on Gabriel’s cross. Huge thanks for that morsel of motivation, my ADHD brain loves you.
This is going to be yet another long read, although not as extensive as my bookshop statues meta. Still, better get yourself some hot chocolate or another drink of your choice and make sure you’re comfortable!
Now, remember the X-Ray interview with Peter Anderson on Easter Eggs in the opening animation he created for the second season? Forget red herrings, apparently our fandom has a literal red phone box! I’m convinced that this whole scene is a one big — the biggest, actually — Easter Egg, and I’ll explain why step-by-step.
The red phone box Crowley used to warn Aziraphale about the Antichrist and the following Armageddon in S1, the exact one where he left change for an emergency call, seems important enough in terms of the future S3 plot, but there’s so much more going on in this frame. Not only the lift.
The angels
At the very start of this sequence we can see a fragment of an elaborate bridge guarded by cherubs sitting on two columns, maybe globes, leading to a distant structure built over a literal mountain of trash — all elements of the S1 and S2 openings which were consciously picked out by the animators and put together in a very ominous pile.
Ready for some scavenging?
In the Gabriel’s cross meta, I already mentioned the importance of Ponte Sant’Angelo in relation to the ex-Archangel’s statue. Now it’s time to widen our perspective and focus on the full picture — quite literally. Apparently the bridge from the opening sequence has ten statues of angels, exactly as the Italian historical monument.
First things first though: the two big cherubs guarding the entry to the bridge might seem familiar to some of you. While they’re obviously not copies of the same statue, a very similar pair of brass cherubs is placed in Aziraphale’s bookshop to symbolize Aziraphale and Crowley. And looking at the screenshot above and the way they sleep or sulk with their backs turned on each other, they are most certainly not talking. The addition of more than one set of eyes is a lovely reference to biblically accurate angel memes though.
If we assume the traditional left-right positioning of the characters, Aziraphale is on the left and Crowley is on the right. Directly behind Aziraphale we can see a ship named “Good Traits”, but in reverse — kinda sorta confirmed by the animator Peter Anderson to be connected to the concept of the seven deadly sins on Twitter. Same that was mentioned recently by Neil in one of his asks.
The presence of Gabriel — a renegade Archangel wielding a broken cross — on the right, Crowley’s side, seems to match this theory. It could also support one of the possible interpretations of the very last bookshop shot in the S2 finale.
Out of all ten statues, Angel Carrying the Cross by Ercole Ferrata is considered inferior to the others on the bridge in that it appears to be a two-dimensional relief sculpture rather than an unbounded three-dimensional artwork, which seems to match Gabriel’s first impression as a character.
The inscription on the statue reads, “Dominion rests on his shoulders" — that is the weight of the cross that Christ was forced to carry through Jerusalem before being crucified. Even though Gabriel’s burden partially disappeared, the whole bridge and its environment is covered with crosses. It’s clear that we’re looking at a direct parallel of Via Crucis, the Way of Sorrows.
Towering over the Italian bridge, at the very top of Castel Sant’Angelo, is a statue of Archangel Michael, seen as the golden angel on the top left part of the trash pile. Aziraphale’s side, perhaps as his assistant, perhaps a rival? Legends of the Jews mention Michael as the chief of a band of angels who questioned God's decision to create man on Earth. The entire band of angels, except for Michael, was condemned to Fall — which could explain why they have such a good access to the Grapevine That Obviously Doesn’t Exist. And whatever’s going on between Michael and Dagon, perhaps.
In Roman Catholic teachings, Michael has four main roles or offices. Their first role is the leader of the Army of God and the leader of Heaven's forces in the final triumph over the powers of Hell. Viewed as the angelic model for the virtues of the spiritual warrior, their conflict with evil taken as the battle within. The second and third roles of Michael deal with death. Their second role is that of an angel of death, carrying the souls of Christians to Heaven. Michael descends at the hour of death and gives each soul the chance to redeem itself before passing; thus throwing the devil and his minions into consternation. In their third role, Michael weights souls on perfectly balanced scales they are often depicted with as their attribute. In their fourth role, Michael appears as the guardian of the Church. Might be the reason why they’re the closest to the building on top of the mountain.
It looks like Michael lost their sword though, just like Gabriel lost a part of the cross he was supposed to carry. The sword in question was supposed to be used to slay the dragon — Satan, the Adversary — according to John of Patmos and his Book of Revelations.
Speak of the devil: interestingly, there are two copies of an anonymous variation of the Angel of Light statue appearing twice on both sides of the bridge. Both the title as well as the statue itself seem like obvious references to one (former) angel literally called the Lightbringer, Lucifer. Perhaps one of them is representing his son, the Antichrist, instead, with the both of them helping out the Ineffables on two opposing — or perhaps only parallel — sides of the bridge?
The light carried by Lucifer appears to be green, a color used in the series as a visual representation of Hell, but on the intertextual level might also serve as a reference to F. Scott Fitzgerald’s classic novel The Great Gatsby and the green light at the end of the Daisy’s dock symbolizing the undying love, desperation, and longing for an unattainable dream. In the story, the color represents the limitations of power and money. Not surprisingly, the novel appears on Jim’s bookshelf and is part of the Good Omens book club — a list of personal recommendations from Neil Gaiman and Douglas Mackinnon for the fans to catch up on before the next series.
Last but not least, the possible connection to Libertas as the inspiration for the Statue of Liberty, shown multiple times in S2 as a foreshadowing of our character’s trip to America in S3. The related quote of Patrick Henry “Give me liberty or give me death” becomes even more relevant if we consider how the motto of the French Revolution was sometimes written as Liberté, égalité, fraternité ou la mort (“Liberty, equality, fraternity or death”). A lesson surely learnt by a certain angel back in 1793, when he was held prisoner for the last time before being forcefully taken Upstairs in the Final Fifteen.
The bridge and the castle
Okay, these are the basic observations. Now a brief historical overview and we will reach the fun bit in a jiffy.
Have you ever wondered about the meaning of this whole complex? It wasn’t always angelic, but named after a Roman noble dynasty. The Aelian bridge was built by the Emperor Hadrian in 134 AD to span River Tiber from the city center to his mausoleum. With time, the remains of more emperors were put to rest in there, until it was plundered and destroyed in a war. Then the remaining structure was transformed into a military fortress and a castle serving as the papal residence in times of war.
The Papal State also used Sant'Angelo as a prison; the Renaissance philosopher Giordano Bruno was imprisoned there for six years. Executions of the inmates were performed in the small inner courtyard, but they weren’t the only deaths in the area. On the other side of the bridge, in the adjoining Piazza del Ponte, under the watchful eyes of the stone likenesses of two saints, the public executions were held, and the heads of the criminals were brought onto the bridge and exposed to public view there.
As a prison, the former mausoleum is also the setting for the third act of Giacomo Puccini's 1900 opera Tosca. Long story short, the eponymous heroine convinces her lover to feign death so that they can flee together. Unfortunately, they are betrayed and the firing squad shoots at him with real bullets instead of blanks. Tosca believes in the quality of his acting performance rather than the truth, and when the realization hits her, she leaps to her death from the Castel’s ramparts.
After Nero’s bridge was destroyed, the travelers were forced to cross this bridge as the only direct route to the Vatican and St Peter’s Basilica, earning it the nickname “the bridge of Saint Peter”. That’s why in the 16th century Pope Clement VII erected statues of Saints Peter and Paul at the ends of the bridge, guarding it as they are supposed to protect the entry to Heaven.
In 1688 the bridge was embellished with ten angel statues, five on each side of the bridge, carrying Arma Christi, the Instruments of the Passion. The Good Omens characters represented by those statues in the opening sequence might be other instruments of Christ’s suffering as parts of the system that needs to be overthrown or replaced.
One angel appears particularly important in the context of both the bridge and the Second Coming — Saint Michael the Archangel.
Legend holds that the Archangel Michael appeared atop Hadrian’s mausoleum, sheathing their sword as a sign of the end of the plague of 590, thus lending the castle its present name. A less charitable yet more apt elaboration of the legend, given the militant disposition of this particular Archangel, was heard by the 15th-century traveler who saw an angel statue on the castle roof. He recounts that during a prolonged season of the plague, Pope Gregory I heard that the populace, even Christians, had begun revering a pagan idol at the church of Santa Agata in Suburra. A vision urged the Pope to lead a procession to the church. Upon arriving, the idol miraculously fell apart with a clap of thunder. Returning to St Peter's by the Aelian Bridge, the Pope had another vision of an angel atop the castle, wiping the blood from his sword on his mantle, and then sheathing it. While the Pope interpreted this as a sign that God was appeased, this did not prevent Gregory from destroying more sites of pagan worship in Rome. In honor of the vision and Michael, the bridge was renamed in their name.
What if the procession from the opening sequence was meant to imitate the procession led by the Pope from the legend? What if Aziraphale, now officially a Supreme Archangel, Commander of the Heavenly Host, is the one actually leading it, with Crowley finally at his side as his partner and second in command, just like it was proposed by him in the Final Fifteen?*
What if by some reason, maybe personal ambition, maybe just a tragic coincidence or situational necessity, there really was an impostor in Heaven, and Metatron — the so called Voice of God who seemingly doesn’t speak up for Herself since Job’s test — has been playing a winged version of the Wizard of Oz all along?
It would make just the perfect sense if not for one tiny detail. The procession we see on the bridge is actually led by Crowley, which doesn’t fit the parallel at all — unless it’s actually a proof of an ongoing body swap, as the mismatched names of the actors could also suggest?
The mountain of trash and the bookshop
The symbolic mountain of trash we can see Aziraphale and Crowley climb is a reference in itself. To an actual mount called Zion, believed to be the place where Yahweh, the God of Israel, dwells (Isaiah 8:18; Psalm 74:2), the place where God is king (Isaiah 24:23) and where God has installed king David on his throne (Psalm 2:6).
In a literal sense, it’s a hill in Jerusalem, although the sources refer to three different locations in different contexts — although for the purpose of this meta the Upper Eastern Hill (Temple Mount) makes the most sense. Its highest part became the site of Solomon's Temple. The same King Solomon the rituals in Freemasonry refer to. Masonic buildings, where lodges and their members meet, are sometimes called "temples" specifically as an allegoric reference to King Solomon's Temple, not actual places of worship. And Aziraphale’s bookshop is built around Solomon’s Magic Circle.
In a metaphysical sense, and especially in the context of the Christian New Testament, it is also believed to be a part of Heaven — the heavenly Jerusalem, God's Holy, eternal city. Christians are said to have “(…) come to Mount Zion and to the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem, to an innumerable company of angels, to the general assembly and church of the firstborn who are registered in heaven” (Hebrews 12:22-23 cf. Revelation 14:1). Just like the procession were following in the opening sequence.
There’s been some speculation whether the lift on top of the mountain could symbolize Aziraphale’s bookshop, or, more specifically, the oculus in its centre. If you look closely at the enhanced screenshot, you can see that the dome isn’t made of glass and that it looks like a tower (a church’s bell tower, perhaps) more than a whole building.
And there is an actual doorway in there — not like the modern lift doors — opening up towards the source of that white, heavenly light. And what kind of enlightenment can you usually find up in the skies or heavens?
We’re welcomed to crack open the doors to the Heavenly Sanctuary — the Most Holy place, Sanctum Sanctorum, the Holy of Holies — to undraw the final curtain and finally stand eye to eye with God. Who knows, maybe even ask some questions or listen to some answers.
Or, at the very least, to meet one of Her forms known as Jesus Christ. Because that’s precisely where he serves as our (humanity’s) Mediator and the Holy Priest after his Ascension to Heaven. The structure at the top reminds of some temple architecture seen in Antiquity and Christianity.
The Catholic Church considers the Church tabernacle or its location (traditionally at the rear of the sanctuary) as the symbolic equivalent of the Holy of Holies, due to the storage of consecrated hosts in that vessel and their meaning as the Body of Christ. Tabernacle is commonly marked with a red light turned on and off depending on His presence or lack if it.
Looks like He’s already in the area, one way or another, keeping eye on some things.
Are we following a procession of believers happy to embrace their one and true Savior? Or are they actually protesters on their way to dethrone the authority and the system?
Guess we will have to wait and see.
#the good omens crew is unhinged#everything has a meaning#title sequence#angels everywhere#archangel fucking gabriel#gabriel’s statue#bookshop statues#statues update#ponte sant’angelo#let there be light#good omens analysis#good omens meta#bible fanfiction#yuri is doing her thing
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i hate the fact that no matter how canon byler gets, even if they get together in s5, get fucking married, m*levens STILL will call it ‘bad writing’ because there are ‘plot holes’ and its ‘forced representation’ because they won’t use their brains and open their minds for a second to even think about the possibility that there is so much proof for byler and the duffers have been writing FROM THE BEGINNING. (ahem, even one of the first scenes was mike-will centric).
funny how these are the same kind of people to completely disregard a ship because its queer, calling it ‘unrealistic’. as if thats literally not.. almost what the show is built around? the party literally don’t fit in. they are MADE to be ‘weird’. and, being gay in the 80s… well, is weird!
so no matter how much ‘plot holes’ and ‘bad writing’ and you’re shoving gay agenda down our throats!!!’, nothing will ever deny the fact that, if you think queer characters are the most unrealistic thing about a series with interdimensional monsters and sick shadow creatures, then you need to check yourself!
stay safe bylers 💙💛
#byler#stranger things#finn wolfhard#mike wheeler#byler nation#byler tumblr#will byers#byler endgame#noah schnapp#byler is canon#stranger things 5#stranger things analysis#byler is great
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Omg your Humans are space orcs/deathworlders + Transformers is just *d e l i c i o u s*. My complaints are pretty much the same, it seems that most humans on the franchise are just manufactured to be hated or simply annoying for being so useless. I want transformers to realize just how hard we have to work to simply stay alive *in our own planet*, with the sheer amount of diseases and poisonous animals and predators and weather and so much more, I want them to wonder how such seemingly fragile beings became the dominant species, how can we be so resilient yet so delicate... I'd like a transformer that particularly hates/is disgusted by humans to swap places with us for like a day or so, the first one that comes to mind is Starscream, I want him to get a glimpse at the daily fight for survival here on Earth and can't help but develop a tiny speck of respect for humans, not that he would ever admit it, even to himself, that he's secretly more mindful of where he steps when there are humans around ever since.
I literally just gave a rundown about this to a friend in a drunken rant the other night, so I am so ready for this.
Starscream wouldn’t be my first pick, based solely on the fact that I haven’t psycho-analyzed him the same way I have others, but imma do my best ~
For situation-sake so my writer brain doesn’t kill itself over context, imma do this in the form of Headcannons. Let’s say Starscream gets stuck in a human body and has to exist as such until he magically gets put back. Until then, he’s stuck with a human who is aware of what he is (vague gn oc/reader, up to whoever. Writing from the viewpoint of “one of us”).
(Also y’all can input any Starscream here cause imma write him in his basic form: whiney, stuck-up, clever little cunt).
- Bro is flabbergasted. Disgusted. Horrified. Out-of-his-mind losing it. Keeps praying to primus it’s a drug-induced hallucination or a dream.
- Wakes up on the soft cushions of a… couch? The word pops up in his head. He knew the basics from his overviews when their war traveled to earth. He brought his servos- No. Hands, up to his face, inspected his new honey, fleshy digits. The detail was too vivid to be a hallucination. Colors were both muted and bright. Starscream found himself automatically trying to adjust his optic intake. But nothing happened. Of course. Because fleshy organics can’t manually adjust their own sensory inputs.
- He curls his lips, and is instantly hit with the feeling of muscle contorting. Skin and flesh was an entirely different sensation from mesh and plating. It made his plating- damnit no, skin crawl. Another sensation trailed up the center of his back, spine and shiver popping up in his mind.
- Even the way his psyche worked was different. Like a new plane of existence. Thoughts were unorganized, uncalculated. Like something that squirmed out of his grasp as he tried to keep hold. Everything felt simplified, yet the awareness and sensations were overwhelming. His entire presence felt… hypocritical.
- Sounds distracted him from his insightful, yet horrific reverie. His gaze drifted to another area of the room, half-built walls sectioning it off, but with flat slabs atop. Counters. A face pops from behind the half-wall. Human eyes catch his, and the creature pulls its lips back to bare its teeth. To smile. Even though humans and cybertronians had similar facial anatomy, the little creatures were so ugly that it was hard to recognize similar expressions.
- “You good bud?” The thing asks. Starscream felt his new face twist into his casual sneer, one laced with aggravation and disgust.
- “Good? Is such a thing possible when you’re a skin bag of flesh and bones?” The humans only response was to broaden their grin.
-“Glad you haven’t lost the attitude. Means you’ll make it out alive.” The nonchalance threw the ex-cybertronian for a loop.
- “You… know me?” That grin turned into a smirk that made the non-energon in his lines boil.
- “You’re Starscream, second-in-command to Megatron, lord of the deceptions, yada yada yada… yeah I know who you are.” They leaned back against the wall, eyes boring into the deception. Starscream found himself wondering if human eyes were always so disturbingly piercing.
- “Wonderful.” He shoved the unsettled feeling to the back of his head, determined to figure out a solution and still be in control. “Then you can explain how and why I am in this disgusting organic form.”
- The smirk disappeared into an odd expression Starscream had never seen before. The human flattened their lips and pursed their… cheeks. It looked entirely stupid. But something in the back of his head whispered apologetic.
- “I’m not sure on the exact details, but I can tell you it won’t last long. I’m basically your caretaker until it wears off.”
- Instinctually, Starscream’s brows raised. “That’s it? Is this some new human weapon, cruel imprisonment within one your fleshy bodies?”
- The human tilted their head back and laughed, once again taking Starscream off guard. Their casual presence was so different from the fight-or-die everyday lifestyle that gripped his species.
- “Nope. Just a random accident that you’re the unfortunate victim of.” At the con’s bewildered stare, the human pushed their mouth outwards, changing the pitch of their voice as they said, “aww, poor baby. Don’t worry, you’re safe with me.” Then they whirled around and walked into the other room.
- Man is flabbergasted. Is out of his element and cannot function. Cue him trying to stand and do normal things, and bust his ass because the different sensations hitting him all at once. Organic nervous systems feel very different from techno ones.
- First thing he starts doing is eating and drinking. It takes a couple hours, but his “babysitter” eventually gets him to try something. Water first, of course (he refused any organic foods). The con is disgusted, but moderately pleased that the tasteless liquid isn’t slimy or thicker like he expected. It’s actually rather soothing to his human body.
- The first food he willingly tries is melon. Honeydew to be precise. Refused to touch meat, as the idea of eating actual organic flesh was unfathomable. He was pleasantly surprised to find the flavor of the fruit likable. Humans don’t taste things the same way cybertronians do. Whereas energon has a more electrical charge to it (to put it in human words), Earth flavors were smoother. Discovers he has a huge sweet tooth (as his “babysitter” put it).
- His human guardian took this opportunity to drag him out of their home and go shopping for more consumables. Let him pick things he found somewhat pleasing, but chose most others. Lots of fruit to try and other non-meats. Went in to try the other types of fruit. Has a preference for honeydew, strawberries, cantaloupe, watermelon, and grapes. Really likes (loves but won’t admit) pineapple and raspberries. The sour/sweetness is similar to energon. Citruses like oranges and mandarin are also similar, but he prefers more sweetness than straight sour. Kiwi is also a treat.
- (I headcannon that energon is similar to sour patch kids and skittles, super sweet and sour with an electric tang and texture. So all transformers would be immediate sweet lovers as humans because of the similarity).
- Hates anything dull or flavorless. Don’t try to feed this man spinach, he’ll call you grass-eating fleshbag.
- Drinks water only because he has too (stupid human body), but once he discovers those liquid flavors he can put in, it’s all he uses. Tried juices when he found out they were liquids derived from the fruit he likes. Got excited when it tasted almost like energon and tried to only consume juice from then on. His guardian explained that humans couldn’t only exist on juice, but of course he tried to argue that all he needed was nutrients in liquid. He then discovered smoothies. Nearly did the same thing until he actually tried them. Hated the thickness and gritty texture.
- A couple days go by and his guardian decides it’s time to get him tf out properly. Man is lounging around all the time. If he’s not on the couch making fun of human entertainment and politics, he’s following his guardian meatbag around and demanding answers for his current predicament.
- So his guardian starts small. Hauls his ass outside for a jog. This is where things really get interesting. Starscream is unaware of how human bodies work. When his guardian begins a slow run, he gets confused. Why would you run when you can walk fine? Where were they going? Leads to an explaination of exercise, which results in the con doing his usual snide shit of “you force yourselves to go through training otherwise your bodies become slow and unusable? How unsurprising.” And they’re like “yes and nooo, it’s so we can stay strong and get stronger as time goes on. Staying strong allows us to do cool things.”
- Cool things like what? Well his guardian gets an evil idea in their head. Starscream hates running. Hates using his legs and having nothing to do with his arms. Don’t even get them started on the tantrum he threw when he started sweating (fluids exiting one’s body? Horrifying).
- So his guardian introduces him to swimming. The con is a jet in his natural form, and the closest he’ll get to that as a human without a shit ton of equipment will be the water.
- Problem is the man has to learn to swim first. And willingly get in the water. Stays on the edge of the lap pool the first few times, watching with his nose turned up at the humans swimming.
- However, he starts to slowly dip his toes in the water. The sensation is… interesting. It’s not dislikable on human skin. In fact, on the hotter days it’s very soothing, like when he drinks water (finds out he can’t drink this kind tho, chemicals and bodies in it and such).
- Eventually he gets in, staying in the shallow area. His guardian helps him learn how to swim. It feels humiliating, learning to kick and tread water, while watching human children do it with relative ease. It feels strange to use his body in such ways. But with his guardian constantly reminding that none of his cybertronian peers knew or will know of his situation, AND their constant praise, he finds it in himself to continue.
- The praise he receives from his guardian is also something he’s not used to. As well as other humans willing to help him learn. It apparently wasn’t uncommon for many adult humans to not know how to swim or do other things, and gave him more confidence to learn. He’d never admit it, but he tried harder to learn just to hear the praise from others. It felt nice to be treated kindly. Better than nice. But again, he’d never admit it. He’d just respond with a clever quip. Never did anyone hear a thanks (but most quickly figured out he was grateful from the obvious burning red on his copper-toned neck and ears).
- Weeks drag on, and to distract himself from the impatience of going back to his normal, Starscream becomes an excellent swimmer. He finds it is like flying, the way the water holds up his body. When he holds his breath and dips under the surface, he can almost imagine his rocket boosters on his pedestal holding him aloft in the sky.
- From the work it took, he gained a slight appreciated for how his human body worked. At first he thought it was a hindrance. But as he worked with the others, he began to have an understanding that unsettled the cybertronian part of him.
- Humans were incredibly versatile. After he began to improve greatly at swimming, he asked about other activities humans did for exercise. The resulted in learning that humans didn’t always “exercise” to become strong. Many did it for fun. It was a hobby to them, and the exercise was a great benefit. It kept their minds clear, it kept their bodies healthy, and it satisfies a part of them that he was only beginning to discover.
- Starscream was aware of human creativity. It’s what had made their species a slight hindrance when they aided the autobots in the war, but because of their size, they were seen as nothing but bugs. Pests at the most. But as the con experienced this small bit of human life, he began to understand there was more to them than he’d like to admit. There was this drive to do things, to push themselves beyond their current capabilities.
- He learned of skills that human no longer needed but still learned to take pride in for fun. Swimming was only a base skill. There were humans that attempted to swim across the oceans just to see if they could, even with the high chance of death. Beyond swimming, there was running across land for days on end, jumping off cliffs and diving in spectacular ways, gliding across the sky’s on flimsy metal pipes and fabric, and so much more. Their adaptability to any environment was envious.
- It nearly terrified him, the thought of what if humans were the same size as cybertronians. What if they could acutally measure up to other species of their universe? They could do anything. They would be a real threat. Or the greatest ally any race could ask for.
- His lid has been flipped.
- Eventually he wakes up back in his habsuite in his normal body. The euphoria that rushes through him at the familiarity his nothing he’s ever experienced before. Checking his info screens, he discovers no time passed. As if he had dreamed all of it. But when he looks to his desk in the room, he sees it.
- Starscream picks the item up, inspecting it, and feels his spark skip a pulse. It’s a small ring and chain, attached to two metal objects. Both in the shape and color of a pineapple and raspberry.
#humans are space orcs#humans are crazy#humans are space australians#humans are deathworlders#humans are weird#transformers#transformers prime#shower thoughts#maccadam#starscream#transformers idw
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Dearest, I find myself once again on my knees, hoping to scratch your brain for any crumbs of The Old Way universe. Just, have you had any thoughts on that au of how the characters are, what they're up to, or what dynamics have been built or are/would be shaping up to be?
I'm the same anon that asked a while ago and truly ignore this if this too much or annoying. I was just hoping if you could spare any crumbs of your goregous, genius mind. ilysm 🧎♀️💕 (also I'm in love with how you wrote priest/vamp price, amazing work on that!)
Hey anon! I’m so glad you liked vampire priest price! He was a fun one.
As for The Old Way, boy howdy, do I have thoughts!
Cause like, chapter two is obviously a hyper realistic exposition on the actual tradition of the bonded mating ritual between reader and Price, right?
Maybe this is a hear me out moment, but Omegaverse fics intrigue me for three main reasons which I will outline below and elaborate on in way too much detail:
1. The fuck-or-die element of the heat/rut cycle
2. The fantastical/unrealistic physical stretch required to take a knot
3. The fantastical/unrealistic duration (and lack of a refractory period) that a knot remains inside of its hole
To clarify…
As for the first, this is the true animalistic element, imo. And what’s hotter than sexual need, right? Like the feeling of sexual starvation being sated??? It makes my brain turn into literal mush. The first bite of food after a fast. The first sip of cool water after a march through the desert. The first gasp of air after swimming up from the deepest depths. The first touch of skin on naked skin when you’ve been writhing and needing and alone. Ugh. Fuck me up with that shit.
As for the second, I mean this is sort of personal preference and self-explanatory but I’m a girth>length fan. As is immediately obvious when you read anything I’ve written. But specifically in this fic; here’s a man who feels unworthy of love. His fat monster cock hurt someone he cared for. As fun as it is to haul around the State Fair Blue Ribbon schlong, no one likes being left out (or 13th-wheeling in Price’s case). And when he finds his glass slipper of a mate, he feels whole again. She saves him, and she saves the day, and it’s the happily ever after of my dreams. Yay, love!
But. Here’s the kicker. Number three. Number three keeps me up at night, y’all. It plagues me. It’ll sneak into my thoughts while I’m in the middle of my daily tasks, sucker-punching me right in the chest. Idk about other Omegaverses, but the idea that we could be stretched out and stuck on John Price’s Texas-sized dong for hours (and that there is a fantastical/unrealistic element of a pain-free, pleasurable experience on our end?) is delicious. Imagine, he’s trapped himself deep within you, oozing hot come, giving you that incredible feeling of fullness, and you are just basking in it together, enjoying the sparkling electricity of every twitch and jerk of his phallus. He’s reading Yeats to you and you’re grooming his soft, curling hair, he’s keeping your energy up by feeding you grapes and honey and wine and mead, he’s sharing his hand-rolled cigars with you, letting you feel the high of the nicotine and kissing you languidly, his lips so soft and pliant that you feel as if your two bodies might melt together like smooth chocolate, homogeneous in a way that no one else will ever know. All the while, your womb is full of his heavy load, stuffed and ladden with his seed, making your belly just the slightest bit round. He feels it with his wide palm, and you can’t help but imagine how you might be thus revered when you’re heavy with his child instead.
And how long?? I mean, what’s possible here — even if we abandon plausible? An hour? Two? A night? And how often? Would his rut drive him to mate with you repeatedly in a self-sacrificing/mindless sex-driven fury? Would bonded mates be capable of something more than normal ones? What are your true powers as the Apex Omega? So many questions.
So anyway. Sorry for the hear-me-out. I recognize that not everyone is as zealously curious about the implications of an Omegaverse as I am. I just think there’s so many different ways it could go. The universe itself has so many variable possibilities and that makes it easy to create and to be creative with it. It becomes even more interesting when you compound the sexual complications with the socio-cultural context of a community dealing with that sort of hierarchical environment. Just a world of interesting knots to untangle (pun intended and weaponized).
But, I’d also like to explore the other interpersonal relationships between our lovable companions. What’s Johnny’s big loving family like? How do the kids interact with each other? Is there a leader emerging from the MacTavish clan? What about Gaz and his three Omegas? Ghost and his mini tactical squad? All of them together? What drives them to help other clans? What’s their underlying mission? How will they ensure peace across the land? How do they allocate the obviously limited resources?
It would be a fun project to navigate. I’ve written scenes here and there for it but I’ve gotta finish these other long WIPs before I start something else.
Thanks for asking! I hope this answered your question.
#cali answers asks#cali cat#the old way by the californicationist#the old way#omegaverse#alpha beta omega#call of duty fanfic#captain john price#call of duty#cod#john price#i dont know how to be different#i’m sorry#actually no im not sorry
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4 Minutes, Family, and Perceptions of Reality
Last week, before episode 6 aired, I was itching to pen some thoughts about breaking down family ties in 4 Minutes and how I thought themes like intergenerational trauma and filial piety (I stay so typical here on this blog) were affecting each character.
I'm glad I held off, and it's still probably just too soon to write this kind of analysis without knowing the entirety of the story. But this post by @cookie-kat777 about Great and possible present depression has me thinking at least about family, the way we are raised, and how our upbringings at least contribute to how we see the world as adults.
In this past Friday's episode, with @cookie-kat777's post on my mind, Great struck me as lonely and sociopathic -- and did Bible Wichapas ever do a HELL of a job acting out Great's generally questionable reactions as compared to everyday, normal social expectations of behavior surrounding INCREDIBLY intense and traumatic exposures to literal murder and/or death. At least we see him taking meds, but those giggles at the dinner table with his family were clearly off-putting and indicated that Great is not quite “there” in the head.
Even if Great didn't know about the illegal gambling business that built his wealthy lifestyle -- the choices, separately, that his father and his mother made to ensure their existence as a wealthy and important family certainly had brutal impacts on Great as he grew up, as well as, we assume, their emotional neglect of him during his upbringing.
(And, if I can bring up an example from the previous timeshift of earlier in the series, we know Great's parents used money to literally buy him happiness by way of toys that had no emotional meaning to him. Money may have bought him protection from consequences, but we've known from the start that it's never brought him happiness.)
Great's perception of what's SAFE and morally/ethically RIGHT, or at least, ACCEPTABLE, in the wider world, versus his own internal world, are UTTERLY OFF. While @cookie-kat777 absolutely lays out how that mental state could affect Great internally vis à vis depression, I'll also posit that it was Great's family environment -- his mother, his father, and Korn growing up knowing that he'd inherit at least some of the family business -- that also is fucking up his perception of the expected binary of "right" and "wrong" of society. We don't know quite how his mother clawed her way to Great's father's side, without Korn's mom present, but I'm going to guess it was brutal -- especially, as we see in this latest timeshift, Great's ability to walk away from death multiple times, and his father's angry ease in making death "go away," as it were (and let's throw Title in there, too).
A child's understanding of the world, how to go about in the world, how to interact in the world, how they relate to the external world, comes so much from their upbringing. An upbringing of a child creates relativity for that child. As children, we see the world as our caretakers interacted in it, and we're inclined to repeat that behavior -- until we are challenged by external forces to change our behavior and our viewpoints. Just as the four minutes from the time oxygen is cut off to a brain creates a new sense of perception, a specific upbringing of a child -- by parents, by grandparents, by a foster family, by an orphanage, etc. -- will have direct impacts on how that child grows up to relate to its world as an adult.
Tyme is the person that offers a challenge to Great's understanding of and relation to the external world and, subsequently, Great’s internal world as well. In this new timeshift of episode 6, I appreciate how Tyme seems so much more bitter, transactional, and "real" in straight-up using Great -- all while Great admires Tyme's tenacity to fuck with Great's family, as if Tyme were doing an action that Great has longed to do against his own family. Great ultimately does something, a one thing, in saving Tyme, but Tyme still walks away from Great, and Great is still left alone.
But in that process of being left alone, AGAIN, this time by someone who challenged him -- Great then moves forward to challenge his own existence and upbringing, confronting, finally, his parents for their decisions, and driving away from his mother. ...
... only to get shot by a grieving person in Tonkla, someone seeking revenge for a murdered brother that Tonkla simply loved. No matter where this story goes, at least we know that Tonkla loved Dome, to the extent of murdering others on Dome's behalf. While this storyline also isn't fully revealed, the Tonkla/Dome storyline narrates back to us, in another strange way, how family and familial ties can drive a person to go utterly haywire in their existence to survive and understand the world.
And, finally -- we learn that Tyme's parents were possibly the kingpins of the Sriwat illegal gambling business. How Tyme sees the world, in whatever timeshift he's in, has now also gotten jacked up with this piece of potential truth. What is his new reality vis à vis what he's been told? What is his capability to survive, especially after being saved by Great?
Like I said before, ha: I think it's too early to write this post without knowing if we'll be given a final, central narrative line about how all of these timeshifts link up. But I am LOVING, in this FABULOUS show, how we're being shown that the truths of how our families lived their lives can have such great impact on the way WE live OUR lives as adults, and I'm taking that theme away as something this show is commenting so very sophisticatedly on.
#4 minutes#4 minutes the series#4 minutes meta#4 minutes the series meta#greattyme#great x tyme#tyme x great#jesbible#jes jespipat#bible wichapas
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the outsiders headcanons !
(christmas edition)
darry:
- christmas always reminded him of his parents because it was their favourite holiday, but it was also his favourite holiday, so it was bittersweet.
- he started hauling out the christmas decorations a day after thanksgiving.
- both soda and ponyboy were as excited as fleas on a dogs arse when they started decorating
- EGGNOG WHORE. he drinks it by the litre.
- he insisted that he didn’t need any help when getting their tree, and nearly killed himself in the process
- “hey son, do you need any he-” “IM FINE!”
- unironically walks around in a santa hat during the entire month of december.
- even though money is tight, he makes sure to buy the gang gifts. besides his brothers, he especially focused on johnny because he knew that chances of his folks forgetting about him were pretty high.
soda:
- wakes everyone up at 6am to christmas carols. (darry nearly chucked a pillow at his head once)
- again. insanely excited to decorate.
- he’s literally 5 years old. he’d throw on his snow pants when it began to snow & he’d spend hours out there building snow forts, making snow angels, etc etc.
- once built a full force snow fortress in his front yard & the gang was like “????” because who the hell has that kind of time.
- only thing he hates ab christmas is that he gets sick INSANELY easily during the colder months…and he’s a total whiner, so you’ll hear about his minor cold (that he’ll talk about like its cancer) for WEEKS.
- makes stockings for everyone because he’s just so cutesy like that
- pretty lights make his brain go brrrr
pony:
- the first christmas they had together without their parents, darry made the mistake of not-so-hiding the presents marked with “santa” out in the open of his room, so pony just had to stand there and stare with his jaw dropped because WHAT DO YOU MEAN SANTA ISN’T REAL????
- it actually put him through quite a bit of distress.
- ugly christmas sweater LOVERRR
- they had a tradition since they were really young, that the youngest puts the star on top of the tree, so to carry out the tradition darry just casually throws pony on his back so he can put the tree topper on.
- ALSO drinks eggnog by the litre… he just manages to make himself sick
- will spend HOURS decorating a tree, its his favourite part about christmas.
- he’s also a whore for tinsel. he loves how it shines.
- soda thinks its really funny to put bows in his hair with the left-over gift wrap supplies. pony just stares at him with the 😠 face.
johnny:
- lowkey kind of hates christmas.
- before the gang, he’d be forced to sleep in his house a lot because it was far too cold in the lot, and that never ended well.
- they’d also hardly ever celebrate christmas, so he’d see his classmates talk about everything they got, and see all their new clothes, while he was just thankful his dad didn’t hit him that day.
- the gang definitely made up for it though, they helped him get into the spirit.
- darry & dally always buy him stuff for christmas, and he can’t help but feel insanely guilty. that adds to his disliking towards christmas.
- johnny does like looking at decorations, though. sometimes dally would walk around the neighborhood with him & just look at christmas lights together.
dally:
- dally was a big christmas fan… but he’d never let the gang know that. because HEAVEN FORBID dallas winston ever enjoys something in his life
- he thinks he’s the ultimate edgelord clearly.
- much like johnny, he didn’t grow up with a proper family to show him what christmas looks like, so he tried to stay around the curtis’ place as much as possible.
- sat there on the couch watching them decorate the house and it took every bone in his body not to take over the decorating and do it himself because GOD were they unorganized & uncoordinated.
- our little interior design queen 😋
- but REMEMBER… nobody’s allowed to know he actually enjoys christmas.
- eat sleep breathe candy cane hot chocolate (same dally dw)
- everyone thinks he takes johnny to see the lights just for him.. but little do they know dally absolutely loves them too.
- the first year darry bought dallas a gift he just sat there like “…? me? for me?” then had to excuse himself to the bathroom so he didn’t have a breakdown.
- proposed that they made a cigarette garland instead of popcorn.
steve:
- randomly appears with the weirdest decorations possible.
- he just casually brought a 12 foot train set to the curtis house and sat there for 2 hours assembling it on their livingroom floor.
- picks up every individual present and starts shaking it, listening like he can determine exactly what it is by the sound.
- “hey johnny! i think you’ve got a gold bar in here…. dallas. sounds like a big ole lump of coal for you pal.”
*cue angry dally noises*
two-bit:
- dressed up as santa & decided it’d be a fabulous idea to go door-to-door for a little meet and greet.
- a family called the fuzz on him & he’s never ditched a costume so fast in his life.
- walked around the streets whistling, and when the cops approached him & asked if he saw a guy that fit the description, he just pointed down the road & walked in the opposite direction.
- comes over to the curtis house on christmas just to eat their food & then leave
- raccoon core
#the outsiders headcanons#darry curtis#sodapop curtis#ponyboy curtis#johnny cade#dallas winston#steve randle#two bit mathews#christmas headcanons
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The Introduction
A (possible) brand new series featuring Robin Buckley x Reader set in ST4
Summary: When Vecna comes to town, Robin and her friends need all the help they can get in the final battle. The gang searches for an old friend she's never met before. But what Robin didn't know, was that the help would catch her attention in more ways than one.
Word Count: 4.1k
Warnings: canon deaths (mentions of vecna killings), reader appears at the end it is mostly a set up for the series, nothing really to report here tbh
[A/N: well hello there. I have *finally* storyboarded a new series that would be an episode by episode ST4 fic where Reader and Robin are endgame. It's something new and something I've been dying to create for a while now so I wanted to test the waters and see if anyone would be interested in reading this? I will literally take one person's yes and go with it, I am very persuadable]
The Introduction
Since when was it too much to ask for a normal spring break?
Robin had enough of the excitement in Hawkins last summer when she ended up in a secret Russian lab, tortured and shot full of some serum she was sure was unsanctioned.
The horrors of that day were flushed down that bathroom toilet along with those drugs, some kind of wave of reality hitting her hard when she realised she didn’t want to be alone anymore. She confided in her new friend, her closest friend, and hoped that it would end a horrible day with a weight off her shoulders.
And then she was crashing a car into a possessed guy and hurling fireworks at some freaky flesh monster. So, nothing good lasts forever.
But after that, it all had been pretty quiet. Robin worked Family Video every other evening and weekends, had Steve drive her to school for the first couple of weeks before it became a habit, secured her place in band and forgot that anything ever really happened. She didn’t want to remember. She wanted to graduate, to have that silly little crush on her bandmate, to save enough money to get out of Hawkins for good.
Then the first day of spring break hit. The first day. And she was stood there staring up at that TV, feeling nauseas in her uniform, knowing that the brutal death of a high school student wouldn’t be as simple as murder.
“So we got, uh, some good news and some bad news.” Dustin says awkwardly and Robin’s lips tighten, looking at where Eddie sat munching through Honeycomb cereal like it was his first meal in days. “How do you prefer it?”
“Bad news first, always.” Eddie responds with his mouth full.
Robin shifts on her feet. It would be dishonest to say that Dustin and Max dragged her into this. All they had done really was show up demanding their computers and a name. She didn’t have to help, or find the address, or go with them anywhere.
The urge to be a part of something always had been a habit of hers. The only reason she joined the marching band was because she figured she’d be safe there. The Russian radio communication was only of interest because she craved involvement. And now she had Steve, her best friend. Where he went, she followed. Which is why she was stood here now, contemplating her decisions.
She was scared, afraid that last year would have only been the baby of all problems she would have to face in Hawkins. And it was understandable, she wasn’t built for pressure situations. If anyone could take a look inside her brain, they’d be questioning why she was even here in the first place.
She has this theory where her mind and her body act completely differently. She’ll rethink everything until she’s overthinking it, but her body will never not react immediately. Whether its her mouth rambling or her legs running, her mind and body haven’t been in sync for a while now.
“Alright, bad news.” Dustin shifts in his seat and Robin exchanges a wary look with Steve. “We tapped into the Hawkins PD dispatch with our Cerebro, and they’re definitely looking for you.”
Eddie’s face falls and Robin hates seeing the way the light in his eyes dim even darker.
“Also, they’re, uh, pretty convinced you killed Chrissy.”
“Like, 100% kind of convinced.” Max chimes in.
“And the good news?” Eddie looks for Dustin’s answer but Robin spoke first.
“Your name hasn’t gone public yet.” She says, resting her arm against a shelf. She really felt for him. He didn’t deserve this. “But if we found out about you, it’s a matter of time before others do, too. And once that gets out, everyone and their shallow-minded mother is gonna be gunning for you.”
“Hunt the freak, right?” Eddie spits and Robin feels that little stab in her chest. Hunt the freak.
“Exactly.” She says and Eddie curses under his breath.
“So, before that happens, we need to find Vecna, kill him, and prove your innocence.” Dustin tries to bring a positive note, Eddie’s face remaining unswayed.
“That’s all, Dustin? That’s all?”
“Yeah, no, that’s pretty much it.” He concludes, the older boy looking very unconvinced. Robin can’t help but think that Dustin almost was as bad as she was in these situations.
“Listen, Eddie, I know everything Dustin is saying sounds totally delusional, but we’ve actually been through this kind of thing before. I mean, they have... a -a few times, and- and I have… once.” Robin adds, hoping that somewhere in her ramble there was a coherent message that he shouldn’t be afraid. “Mine was more human-flesh-based, and theirs was more smoke-related, but bottom line is, collectively, I really feel like we got this.”
“Yeah, see, we usually rely on this girl who has super powers.” Steve follows her direction and Robin nods, “But, uh, those went bye-bye, so…”
Everyone’s faces start to scrunch in realisation.
Robin searches for words. “So, we’re technically in- in more of the…”
“Kinda…”
“Brainstorming phase.” Max decides and they all hum in agreement.
“Brainstorming.” Steve snaps his fingers.
“There… there’s nothing to worry about.” Dustin splutters and Steve nods along with him.
If Eddie had been following on at all before, he was completely lost now, looking at them like they were maniacs. They tried their best, Robin thought just as a high-pitched noise started approaching in the distance. Sirens.
“Tarp.” Robin immediately says, pointing to Eddie. “Tarp. Tarp.”
Everyone starts scrambling to their feet and rushing to the windows, Robin’s heart rate unusually high. She hadn’t even experienced what she would assume to be the worst of it yet and she was already hating every second.
Her eyes follow the police cars and the ambulances drive directly past the boathouse, further down the road. Towards the trailer park.
“Trailer park.” Steve mutters, on the same page as her.
“They might have found something new.” Max suggests, looking at her friends in worry.
“Or someone new.” Robin grimaces and they all frown. “The ambulance.”
“Shit, okay, we need to-” Steve turns around, “Hey, Eddie.”
The tarp comes flying off once again, his hair looking a little dishevelled as he still tightly hugged the cereal box.
“You gonna be alright here?” He asks, and the boy simply shrugs.
“We’ll be back when we find out more.” Dustin promises, nodding. “With food.”
Either he didn’t mind or was too freaked out to argue, but Eddie remained impartial on their decision. It was a matter of time before they’re all clambering into Steve’s car, following the same route the police had taken earlier.
“What if the place is completely cornered off and we can’t see anything?” Robin voices her worry, Dustin’s eyes flickering to hers in the rear view mirror.
“It’s too early for that. Plus Max lives there, we can just say we’re dropping her off.”
The girl in question nods her head, her bottom lip stuck between her teeth.
“Doesn’t look like we need to worry about that.” Steve says and everyone’s heads turn to look ahead, focusing on a familiar girl stood among the cops, looking like she wanted to be anywhere else.
Once the car stops, their doors are opened and they all stand, patiently waiting. Even from a distance, Robin could see Nancy’s face light up with gratitude that she wasn’t alone.
Just as Nancy makes an excuse to walk over, Robin’s eyes are already scanning the place, actively ignoring the sheet covering something on the ground. There was this pit in her stomach, an unsettling mix of regret and panic. Whatever they were dealing with this time, she knew it was going to take more than an array of fireworks.
They were alone now, any help shipped away to California, and she was still barely caught up with their previous battles.
Robin really didn’t remember life before sitting around a picnic bench discussing freaky incidents that always seemed to link back to the Upside Down. Maybe that day in the lab had ruined her brain chemistry in a way that reduced her life before as meaningless. Or maybe her life before just wasn’t any better. Either way, a police report of a dead student wasn’t normally followed by a theory of some weird mind wizard from an alternate dimension. Then again, anything was possible in Hawkins.
“So you’re saying that this thing that killed Fred and Chrissy, it’s from the Upside Down?” Nancy asks, but it wasn’t the same scepticism Eddie had.
“If the shoe fits.” Steve raises his brow with a sigh.
“Our working theory is that he attacks with a spell, or... a curse.” Dustin says, “Now, whether or not he’s doing the bidding of the Mind Flayer or just loves killing teens, we don’t know.”
“All we know is this is something different.” Max frowns. “Something new.”
“Doesn’t make sense.” Nancy mutters beside her, looking down.
“It’s only a theory.” Dustin defends but Nancy shakes her head.
“No, Fred and Chrissy don’t make sense. I mean… why them?”
Dustin shrugs. “Maybe they were just in the wrong place? They were both at the game.”
“And near the trailer park.” Max cuts in.
“We’re at the trailer park.” Steve comments, looking around. “Uh… should we maybe not be here?”
A shiver rolls down Robin’s neck as she peers around, the wind picking up at the worst moment. It was eerie here, even without the knowledge of two murdered kids.
“There is something about this place.” Nancy shares, “Fred started acting weird the second we got here.”
Robin’s heart jumps. “Acting weird as in…?”
“Scared, on edge, upset.” Nancy explains, her brows permanently scrunched together.
“Max said Chrissy was upset too.” Dustin looks at her.
“Yeah, but not here.” She frowns. “She was crying in the bathroom at school.”
Robin’s mind began flittering around with theories, nonsensical ones for the most part until she pulled out something that felt comprehensible to their case.
“Serial killers stalk their prey before they strike, right?” Robin begins, forcing herself to reduce the speed of her words to ensure they were properly heard. “So, maybe Fred and Chrissy saw this Vecman.”
“Vecna.” Dustin corrects and she represses the urge to roll her eyes.
“I dunno about you guys, but if I saw some freaky wizard monster, I would mention it to someone.” Steve expresses.
“Maybe they did.” Max theorises, “I saw Chrissy leaving Ms Kelley’s office. If you saw a monster, you… you wouldn’t go to the police. They’d never believe you. But you might go to your-”
“Your shrink.” Robin finishes and the younger girl nods. “They keep files, right? Maybe something in Chrissy’s file will point us in the right direction of who, uh… Vecna is.”
“It’s worth a shot.” Max says and Dustin nods.
“But how are we meant to get it?” Steve frowns, “It’s the counsellor's office, wouldn’t they be locking that thing up tight? The whole school, even.”
“I can get the key.” Max says with confidence, “Ms Kelley said I could come to her house out of hours if I need it, maybe I can find where she keeps her keys and sneak out before she realises.”
Rather than question her alibi, it seemed like everyone was in agreement. They were off that bench in a second flat and following Steve to his car. Robin was trying to push away that fear of the unknown, the anxiety that they would find an answer they wouldn’t like.
She always loved puzzles, brain teasers, classic crosswords. Solving that Russian broadcast was a riddle she enjoyed, assuming it would be nothing but a small summer project to cure her boredom of the ice cream slinging world. But beyond games and word scrambles, she felt completely useless.
“Woah, woah, Nance.”
Robin snaps out of her haze to turn back around, her hand still steady on the passenger door.
“Nance!” Steve calls out and Nancy guiltily turns around from where she was straying from the group. “Nance, where you going?”
“Oh, there’s just something I wanna check on first.” She dismisses, her footsteps still leading her back to her own car. She looked like a woman on a mission.
“Something you maybe wanna share with the rest of us?” Dustin says and Nancy scrunches her face.
“I don’t wanna waste your time, it’s a real shot in the dark.”
“Yeah, okay. Are you out of your mind?” Steve expresses and Robin’s eyebrow raises. “Flying solo with this Vecna creep on the loose? No, it’s too dangerous. You need… you need someone to…”
There’s a pause and Robin’s mind is already drifting when keys are suddenly being hurled at her, only catching them in the last second.
“Here. I’ll stick with Nance, alright? You guys take the car, check out the shrink.” Steve says and she blinks at the metal in her palm.
“I don’t think you want me driving your car.” She points at it.
“Why?”
“I don’t have a license.”
“Why don’t you have a license?”
“I’m poor.”
“I can drive.” Max suggests and Steve is quick to protest.
“No, no, never again. Please. Anybody but you, no.” His eyes drift to Dustin’s smile. “No chance.”
“Look, if it helps, I’m not gonna be alone for very long, okay?” Nancy interjects with a smile. “I… I need to call in a favour.”
“Call in a favour?” Steve frowns, “Who?”
Nancy purses her lips and looks down, shrugging. Robin notices Steve’s stance shifting into one she had labelled ‘the annoyed babysitter’; hands on hips, a slight furrow in the brows and a pouty lip. She had to refrain from pointing it out as she had done many times before, usually resulting in a random object thrown at her head.
“Y/n.” Nancy eventually says and Steve groans.
“No, come on. Literally anyone else.” He protests, shoulders dropping in defeat.
“What’s wrong with Y/n?” Dustin frowns, shaking his head.
“She’s just…” Steve sighs, not bothering to finish the sentence. Robin mouths your name, no familiar face ringing a bell.
“Whatever she is, she’s saved our asses on multiple occasions.” Max spoke up, Dustin nodding in agreement.
“It’s…” Steve starts, shaking his head. “She’s not even in town, is she?”
“She’s visiting her grandparents.” Nancy shrugs. “Look, we don’t have time to argue about it, I’m heading to the library.”
“And what if you don’t make it there, huh?” Steve objects, “What if Y/n is busy? Do we really want to drag another person into this?”
“We need all the help we can get.” Nancy says.
“Do we really want to drag Y/n into this?” He rephrases and Robin watches Nancy’s eyes dart away. Whoever you were, you were a sore subject it seemed. But they didn’t have time to be arguing about this.
“All right, okay. This is stupid.” Robin finally breaks, snagging the exposed radio from Dustin’s backpack and thrusting Steve’s keys back at him. “Us ladies will stick together. Unless you think we need you to protect us.”
Steve pulls a face at her and she laughs, already walking away.
“Be careful!” He shouts after her and she throws up a peace sign.
In all honesty, she was relieved to be heading to a library instead of sitting around in a silent car with her own thoughts. Anything but that.
“So, um… who’s Y/n?” Robin queries as Nancy starts up the car.
“An old friend.” She explains briefly, waiting until the others had driven off before following them out.
“She wasn’t at Starcourt, right?” Robin frowns, repeating your name in her head over and over.
“Uh, no. I don’t think you would’ve met her. She was with me and Jonathan, at the hospital, and…” Her voice trailed off, lips tightening.
“And?” Robin prompts but Nancy simply shakes her head with a smile.
“It doesn’t matter.”
As she looked over, she could just read a hint of guilt on her expression, a hard stare on the road ahead as she turns towards the public library. Robin wasn’t always the greatest at reading social cues, only when she was rambling and paying more attention on getting her thoughts out than how people were receiving them. There was something different about the way they were talking about you, however, like there was something unspoken.
The first thing Nancy did was find a phone.
Robin could just make out Nancy’s expressions in the payphone as she stood waiting by the car, her brows scrunched and mouth constantly moving. When she finally hung up, she wrapped her arms around herself and headed back to the Robin, nodding.
“She’s meeting us in a few minutes.” She explained, and Robin figured she didn’t want to talk about it any further. So, as she made a turn to the library, Robin decided on a different bugging query.
“Okay so, help me get this straight.” She starts as they climb the steps, the bell tolling above the building. She was recalling Nancy’s brief summary on the drive over. “Eddie’s uncle, Wayne, thinks that Victor Creel escaped from Pennhurst Asylum and that he’s the one running around Hawkins committing all these murders?”
“Pretty much.” Nancy responds with a tight-lipped smile. Robin wasn’t finished.
“But Victor committed the eyeball murders, like, way back in the ‘50s.” Robin frowns and Nancy pulls open the door.
“Well, ‘59.” She says.
“So, that means these murders predate Eleven in the Upside Down by about 30 years?” She continued as they walk up to the librarian’s desk.
“Yeah.” Nancy responds bluntly.
“Which makes spooky Victor Creel like 70 years old.”
“Yep.” She reaches out and dings the bell.
“So…” Robin keeps talking, occupying her brain with this theory so she didn’t have to worry about anything else. “He’s a grandpa murderer who can turn invisible and lift people into the air.”
Nancy takes a breath. “It doesn’t make sense. I know. That’s why I said it was a shot in the dark.”
She rings the bell again and, once again, Robin doesn’t catch the hint Nancy’s throwing her way.
“I know. I just thought that by ‘shot in the dark’ you were being modest or hiding something super solid up your sleeve that you were gonna wow us with later.”
Nancy rings the bell twice this time but Robin barely registers it.
“But this is really, truly a shot in the dark. Like, we are snipers with blindfolds on who’ve been spun around 50 times.”
She starts ringing the bell rapidly and Robin looks down at it with a frown, finally realising she’s yet again talked too much.
“Coming!” The librarian calls out, carrying a stack of books.
“Hi, sorry, we’re in a bit of a rush.” Nancy smiles apologetically at her, “Could we get the keys to the basement archives?”
“Of course. Give me one sec.” The woman nods, turning away.
Robin stares down at her hands before the anxiety takes over.
“Did I come off mean or condescending or something?” She blurts and Nancy hesitates.
“No.”
“Right.” Robin sighs, still staring at her, “Sorry. It’s just, you seem annoyed. You don’t know me very well. I don’t really have a filter or a strong grasp of social cues.”
“Okay.” Nancy whispers.
“So if I say something that upsets you, just know that I know it’s a flaw. Believe me, my mother reminds me daily.”
Nancy nods quickly, pretending to be interested. “Got it.”
“Alright, ladies.” The librarian returns with a smile, holding out a set of keys. “Here you go. Have fun.”
“Yep.” Nancy accepts them, forcing a smile. “We’ll… try.”
She starts walking away while Robin remains there frozen, earning a grin from the woman opposite. Robin simply shrugs and begrudgingly follows Nancy.
The archive room was… dusty. A little too dusty to Robin’s liking. Everything was old and smelt weird. Nancy starting looking over some books, inspecting the covers before spotting the Microfilm Readers.
“We should probably get a start while we wait for Y/n.” Nancy says, sitting at the machine and Robin hesitantly leans against it, pursing her lips. Nancy notices and looks up at her, already anticipating another ramble. “Yes?”
“So… Y/n?” Robin holds out her hands, “I don’t want to keep being nosy but, uh… how does she fit into all of this?”
Nancy reluctantly turns towards her with a smile. “She’s been a part of our, uh, group for a while now. Since Will was possessed.”
Robin blinks. “Right.”
“She was the one who figured out heat was their weakness – the things that live in the Upside Down. I’ve known her since we were kids and she’s always been amazing at…” Nancy searches for a term, “Detective stuff.”
“Detective stuff, right.” Robin nods and Nancy slowly turns back to what she was doing. “So, like…”
Nancy sighs and Robin shuts her mouth.
“Sorry, I’ll shut up.” She raises her hands in surrender and Nancy scrunches her face.
“No, I’m sorry. It’s just… I haven’t seen her in a while so I… I’m not trying to be rude, there’s just a lot going on.” She explains apologetically, surrendering her attempt at scrolling through the machine. “I can’t believe I’m dragging her into this.”
“Why are you?” Robin asks genuinely and Nancy tilts her head in contemplation.
“She did a project a few years back on the Creels.” Nancy begins, resting her chin on her hand. “She was researching into small town murders. Y/n was obsessed with the unexplained ones. She likes uncovering truths, solving the mystery. I don’t remember how far she got with this but she’ll have more than enough information to get us started.”
“Right, right.” Robin slowly nods, thinking it all over. You weren’t the new addition she assumed you would be. In fact, she was the only one here who was really new to everything.“Should I be here?”
“Sorry?” Nancy frowns.
“I mean, it sounds like you two are pretty close. And I- I don’t want to ruin the reunion or whatever, I don’t even know how to- I suck at meeting new people, basically.” Robin stresses, holding up her hand when Nancy tries to protest, “I already know. Everyone I meet pretty much hates me from the get go. I’m already ruining it with you and we’ve literally met before. Briefly. But still, I- I don’t know this Y/n and I don’t want to annoy her out of helping you-”
“Robin.” Nancy laughs, “It’s fine. Y/n isn’t like that. To be honest… you’ll probably get along.”
“What does that-”
Her words are cut off by the sound of the door opening and slamming shut, the wooden steps creaking beneath the weight of descending footsteps. They both whip their heads to the noise to see someone stood there with a folder in their hands.
“Got here as fast as I could.” You say, letting out a breath and smiling Nancy. You quickly notice the girl standing beside her with a startled look on her face. “Oh, sorry, I didn’t mean to interrupt.”
“No, you- we were, just- I’m Robin.” She stuttered, her face flushing with embarrassment before she turns away from you. Calm down, she begs herself.
Nancy looks at her in confusion, “Are you-”
“I’m good.” She insists and Nancy shakes her head, getting up from her seat.
“Hi, Y/n.” She smiles, walking over to you. “Thank you for coming.”
“Of course.” You say, but your heart didn’t really feel in it. “I brought the project you wanted. It’s got the newspaper reports from the original killings. If that’s of any help.”
“It is, thank you so much.” Nancy takes it from your hands and starts flipping through, carefully reading each of your headings and findings.
You shift on your feet before glancing at Robin, her eyes widening slightly when you look at her.
“I’m Y/n.” You offer and she nods quickly.
“Yeah, I, uh, I know.” She laughs awkwardly, “Nice to put a face to the name.”
An incredibly gorgeous face, Robin screams inside. Of all the problems she was facing today, this shouldn’t be one of them. Monsters, Russians, that was pretty much up her alley right now. Sudden introductions of pretty girls that literally took her breath away? Not on her bingo card.
Robin noticed the tension in the air between you and Nancy, that same unspoken theory recycling in her mind. What happened last year? Why weren’t you there at Starcourt? Why were you back?
She didn’t really know if she would regret knowing the answers. All she knew was that you had been here all of two minutes and Robin already felt like you were going to change her life.
Because, you were. In more ways than one.
Update: The Pariahs That Saved The World
[if you want there to be more chapters, pls comment below or leave it in my asks to be added to a taglist, i don't want to post something no one wants to read <3]
#stranger things x reader#stranger things#fanfic#robin buckley#robin x reader#robin buckley x reader#robin buckley x you#robin buckley x female reader#robin buckley x y/n#stranger things reader insert#st4 fanfic#st4#sapphic#wlw
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Hello, all! As the time ticks away to another year, Team Top Hat has since reached 5ish years! To which, we think now is time for some transparency… As much as we hate to admit it, the game has now come to a complete crawl. We’ve come a decent way to get to where we are, in no small part thanks to those that have previously joined us and lent their help to shape everything from the story and world-building, to the puzzles, music, and programming of our engine: The Layton Editor.
Everything had fallen to silence once again, and for that, we truly apologize to those that have waited for any response from us.
Most would take near inactivity as a means to give up, but with a project that has gone on for a decent length and seeing its own rises and falls… we don’t simply wish to see this game die. It’s the culmination of everyone’s hopes and dreams for characters to have proper development and Layton himself to have more adventures. Especially, if those adventures can now be properly told on an engine that is quite literally built off of the original games.
And so, we call upon everyone that has an interest, everyone that has a love of a series that just recently revived itself once again… we want nothing more than to revive our team and finish this game for all the fans that want more stories for this top-hatted man!With that said, we’ll be explaining more of the story in the upcoming post, to give everyone an idea of what mysteries await those just seeing this post. If we have your interest… This will be a public call for several roles!
What we need:
Artists
Preferably those demonstrating an understanding of Layton’s designs.
This will consist of Character Designers, Puzzle Artists and Background Artists.
Storywriters
Preferably, people with a strong understanding of Layton's narrative, world building, and storytelling
Puzzle Creators
Those that know of the puzzle mechanics, picarat distribution, and display a creative prowess for brain teasers
Programmers
Preferably those experienced in Python, C/C++ and/or assembly[for NDS])
We hope that you consider applying but please only do so if you are available and willing to respond to progress reports!
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since it's the 21st night of September and i keep seeing all of the memes and gifs including my own, it's in my leftist nature to jump in with a bit of learning & essay material, so let's go ahead and get it out of the way.
to appreciate "September," you must appreciate the group who performed it: Earth, Wind & Fire.
Earth, Wind & Fire was headed by the legendary Maurice White, who wasn't just the heart and soul of the group, but he was also its driving force in so many ways, both literally & metaphorically. Maurice White wasn't just making music; he was making social statements, negotiating and navigating race relations, and tackling the music industry's problematic nature back in the 70s.
Mistah White (sorry, i had to), with his killer jazz drumming background, brought Earth, Wind & Fire into the spotlight at a time when music was getting pigeonholed by race. and they dominated both the R&B and pop charts. but the impact goes a little further than charts and accolades. no Maurice White? probably no "Thriller", no Outkast, no Pharrell, no Drake.
in the 70s, the big music labels that dominated the industry were just targeting white, middle-class youth. Maurice White looked at this scene and thought, "ok den bet" with Earth, Wind & Fire. he blended everything from Jazz in "Caribou" to Latin vibes in "Brazilian Rhyme.” the type of borrowed influence you hear in modern Pop, rap, and Hip Hop music is built mainly on the backs of artists like Maurice White. and he fought for his vision, pushing for his music to be promoted across the board, believing it had universal appeal.
you also can throw in the showmanship that Earth, Wind & Fire had; massive sets, fireworks, magic tricks (yes fucking magic tricks), and super iconic Afrocentric costumes. in a time when Black musicians were very much under pressure from the music industry, White used Earth, Wind & Fire's popularity to push for a deeper dialogue on race. bands like Earth, Wind & Fire also provided the soundtrack to the Black Power movement, which was in full swing around this time. another famous track they released, "Evil,” contains lyrics that hint toward Black musicians’ struggles in the 70s - the choice that wasn't a choice - to either be upbeat or stay silent.
Evil, runnin' through our brain We and evil's just about the same Bad blood through our body flows Where's the love nobody knows Nobody knows, nobody knows, nobody knows Beauty in our face you see Tryin' to hide all our misery Our misery, our misery, our misery
if you listen a bit closer with a racial context in mind, there’s an acute call for change in Earth, Wind & Fire's art, and a plea to make the world a better place. Maurice White's legacy is that he helped drive forward the progress of a cold, hard music industry and spin it into something more like gold.
thas' all. thanks for reading.
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