#just to virtually nut in a virtual character

[civilization-illstayrighthere]

i’m gonna be real w you guys seeing femme tavs w ast*rion reminds me of how women used to talk about marrying ricky martin or lance bass

[desertdragon]

This shit is so ass I just want it to be over

[kibbles-bits]

any voxval fics you’d recommend?

Ah, yes, voxval fics... The one ship that finally made me cave and read explicit stuff. I am now numb to everything.

Everything.

I'll only be posting completed fics. Warnings, almost all of these are explicit. A couple also have Angel, you know, suffering.

And please mind the tags.

First off is a couple of favs that I always go back for a reread:

Corrupted Love by DoveFactory (Words: 149,495)

In a moment of blind desperation to one-up Alastor, Vox puts himself in a compromising situation that leaves him worse for wear. His state triggers something in Valentino who decides to change the nature of their relationship.

The title and summary of this is so misleading I thought it was going to be a dark fic but nope. The Vees are a bunch of goobers and Valentino always wins. I would scream about this every time it updated. I love the characterizations and their banter it almost made me forget there's sex in like every chapter. Honestly I wish there was more tags referencing the character/story stuff.

Virtual Reality by passthevoxcord (Words: 7,634)

Vox gets tired of his cybernetic biology being a barrier to his sex life, so he starts a new project to fuck Valentino in VR. Val will try anything once, but he has something else in mind.

This one ends up being so sweet I want to die. passthevoxcord's other fic, Only a Shadow, drives me nuts but its a WIP and hasn't actually gotten to the voxval yet.

choke behind a smile by gloriousmonsters (Words: 19,881)

"I'm not scared by extreme, although I doubt I'll find it interesting. What is it?" Valentino's eyes narrow slyly over his smile. "If you aren't scared, why do you need a warning?" Vox has everything under control in his new business partnership with benefits. His emotions, his unfortunate desires, the little mind games they play. Even Valentino himself. When Val offers an invitation to a special show he's performing, Vox knows it's a dare, and knows he has to take it, show Val that he can't be scared or destabilized. He has no idea of how deep under his skin the show will get.

Everyone's so normal. I love this Valentino. There's another Valvel fic that has the same Valentino I also recommend called bad girls go backstage.

Great Expectations by MarenRose (Words: 11,280)

“It’s his goal. Those three simple words. If he could get to hear them once, could let the reality of their meaning and spoken existence occupy his mind for only a few indiscernible moments, then maybe, Vox could learn to see the appeal of this god forsaken holiday. He might even learn to ‘love’ it too.” Or: Vox hates Valentine’s Days. His prick of a ‘wife’ is just too damn hard to please.

This miiiight have been the fic that made me Lock In on voxval? I'm not sure. It's sweet. Alastor is hilarious.

biting keeps your words at bay by Subedarling (Words: 1,511)

“You can’t hit me,” Valentino says. He’s practically vibrating with rage. “You’re not allowed to—you can’t hit me!” Vox sneers, cruel and mocking and hopefully masking the way his heart is breaking apart inside his chest. “Baby, I can do whatever the hell I want.” A decade into their partnership, Vox and Valentino have their first and last physical fight.

This might be the only non-explicit fic in this list. I am all for Val being the worst just because he's Like That. But I will not say no to an implied tragic backstory. I read this one a lot and want to die. Can I draw this. I want to draw this. Oh my god I have free time I can totally draw this...

And my other recs:

Just For The Record by PeppermintWalrus (Words: 13,795)

Vox is thrilled about his new film enterprise with his business partner, ready to build a lucrative empire for the denizens of hell to experience true cinema, in the only genre their depraved minds desire. There’s just one problem that he finds out too late; Valentino has never filmed porn before. Vox decides that some... hands-on teaching, is necessary to save their production.

Yeah you read that right.

a putrid feeling that i've addressed by spoondrifts (Words: 5,162)

They weren’t a couple because Valentino was pathologically noncommittal and Vox simply knew better. He tried the whole romance thing with a certain radio demon a few decades back, and he’d learned his damn lesson. Hell just wasn’t the place for that sort of cutesy bullshit. Also, he was pretty sure that Valentino was straight up incapable of love, which was both par for the course for Vox’s friendships and amazingly convenient—things couldn’t get complicated if there was nothing to complicate in the first place. Or: Full Moon, Vox/Val edition.

Haha I love pain. I lied, this is the second non-explicit fic.

Little Miss Hellion by DoveFactory (Words: 10,657)

Hell’s worst married couple spends a day of family bonding at a beauty pageant doing whatever it takes to make sure their daughter takes home the crown, because failure is never an option for the Vees. Pilot AU where Vox and Valentino are married and Velvette is their adopted daughter.

It's more Vees than voxval but they're married so.

The Art of Pimping by MarenRose (Words: 9,161)

Desperate to close a deal with one of the most lucrative investors in Pride, Vox does the unthinkable and pimps out Valentino for a one-time date. What could go wrong?

Val's attitude in this one is funny and Vox. Yeah. Vox made a mistake.

You Found Me by passthevoxcord (Words: 4,338)

Long before Velvette came along, it was just them. Vox and Valentino. Valentino and Vox.

Sobbing.

Something Less Than Dishonest by daphnerunning, Galiko (Words: 33,931)

He isn’t expecting the way Valentino walks, for some reason. Maybe it’s the extra limbs. Maybe it’s the wings. Maybe it’s the heels. Vox had skipped briefly through a few of the slut’s movies, for research, and isn’t expecting the way Valentino moves in person to feel so… Different. “…You must be my four o’clock,” he says, standing and offering a hand. Oh, shit, he’s huge. Valentino towers over him, easily would without the stripper heels. Vox is not afraid of heights.

Vox is so offensive in this it loops back around to hilarious.

Red Skies and Valentino by alternatedoom (Words: 86,050)

"Vox and I are special friends, doll. Go give him a kiss," Val says to the boy.

Angel does not have a good time. But the Voxval is nice.

before you go by xoTsundoku (Words: 4,426)

Before Alastor came into their lives, Vox and Valentino were happy. Maybe they still can be.

A Farewell to Ghosts by Accidental_Ducky (Words: 37,149)

"What do you think that is," Vox demands, pointing at the new guy. Valentino turns, eyes raking greedily over the man's body. He's gorgeous, skinny in a heroin chic way with big blue eyes and blond hair that falls just so across his eyes. "Hot." "Don't fucking call the ghost hot!"

The only human AU I've liked so far. Love the character interactions. Vox and Val are hilarious.

God I hope I didn't miss any. There's definitely some good WIP ones out there.

[jbaileyfansite]

Interview with the Los Angeles Times (2024)

“This is where all the cruising happened.”

Jonathan Bailey and I are standing in Pershing Square on a bright, blustery spring afternoon, nearing the end of a homemade queer history tour of downtown L.A.: One Magazine, Cooper Do-Nuts/Nancy Valverde Square, the Dover bathhouse, the Biltmore Hotel and this, the city’s former Central Park, a haven, since before World War I, for “fairies” and “sissy boys,” servicemen on leave and beatniks on the road.

“Is it still happening now?” he asks.

“Probably not as much,” I venture.

“Well, you let me know if it’s happening,” he teases, a mischievous smile lighting up his face.

Bailey understands the uses of the charm offensive. As Sam, the handsome Lothario of Phoebe Waller-Bridge’s delightful pre-”Fleabag” curio, “Crashing”; Anthony, the romantic hero of “Bridgerton’s” second season; and John, the jerk of a protagonist in Mike Bartlett’s love triangle play “Cock,” the English actor, 36, has swaggered up to the precipice of superstardom. With roles in such studio tentpoles as “Wicked” and “Jurassic World” on the horizon, he may just break through. Yet he delivers career-best work in Showtime’s queer melodrama “Fellow Travelers,” as anti-Communist crusader-turned-gay rights activist Tim Laughlin, by leaving behind the self-assured rakes and tapping a new wellspring: soft power.

Tim may be, as Bailey puts it, “an open nerve,” but as it turns out, the devout Catholic and political naïf — who falls for suave State Department operative Hawkins “Hawk” Fuller (Matt Bomer) just as Sen. Joseph McCarthy tries to purge the federal government of LGBTQ people — is formidable indeed.

Stretching from the Lavender Scare to the depths of the AIDS crisis, in scenes of tenderness, cruelty and toe-curling sex, Bailey’s performance communicates that little-spoken truth of relationships: It takes more strength to submit than it does to control. The former demands discipline, courage, trust; the latter requires only force.

“In ‘Bridgerton,’ [Bailey] is like a Hawkins Fuller character — he is very sexy and has lots of power, has that kind of confident charisma that absolutely is not Tim at all,” says “Fellow Travelers” creator Ron Nyswaner.

But any doubt about Bailey’s ability to mesh with Bomer, who boarded the project early in development, was put to bed with the actors’ virtual rehearsal of a meeting on a park bench in the pilot. “‘Well, that’s a first,’” Nyswaner recalls an executive texting him. “I cried in a chemistry read.”

‘Am I inviting people in?’

Bailey grew up in a musical family in the Oxfordshire countryside outside London, and this, coupled with an appreciation for the morning prayers, choir practice and Mass he attended as a scholarship student at the local Catholic school, fed his precocious talents. (“I loved the performance of it,” he laughs. “Not to diminish the celebration of religious process, but I did love the idea of wearing a gown.”) By age 10, he’d appeared in the West End, playing Gavroche in a production of “Les Misérables,” an experience he now recognizes as an encounter with a queer found family — albeit one shadowed by the toll of the AIDS crisis, which peaked in the U.K. in the mid-1990s.

“When I’m asked about my childhood, there’s so much I don’t remember, and I think that’s true of anyone who’s been in fight or flight for 20 years,” he says. “I would have been in a cast of people whose friends would have died in the last seven years. I think of where I was seven years ago. I had all my gay friends then. It’s only retrospectively that I can retrofit a real gay community around me [in the theater], that I just wasn’t aware of [then].”

During the late 1990s and early 2000s, American and British culture presented queer adolescents with a bewildering array of mixed signals. As beloved celebrities came out in growing numbers, and the battle for marriage equality became a central locus of LGBTQ political organizing, the media continued to propagate harmful stereotypes of gay men as miserable, lonely, perverted or worse — and, Bailey remembers, callously turned George Michael, arrested on suspicion of cruising in a Beverly Hills restroom in 1998, and Irish pop star Stephen Gately, who revealed his sexuality in 1999, fearful he was about to be outed, into tabloid spectacles.

No wonder Bailey, like many LGBTQ people of his generation, should feel the “chemical” thrill of “validation and acceptance” during London Pride at age 18, then embark on a two-year relationship with a woman in his 20s.

“Dangerously, if you’re not exposed to people who can show you other examples of happiness, you think that’s the easiest way to live,” Bailey says. “It’s funny. You look back and you can tell the story in one way, which is that I always knew who I was and my sexuality and my identity within that. But obviously at times, it was really tough. I compromised my own happiness, for sure. And compromised other people’s happiness.”

Disclosures about his personal life have become particularly thorny for the actor since the premiere of “Bridgerton,” the blockbuster bodice-ripper from executive producer Shonda Rhimes.

“The Netflix effect does knock you off center completely,” he says, recalling the experience of finding a paparazzo waiting outside his new flat before he’d even moved in. “Suddenly, you do start having nightmares about people climbing in your windows... Even now, talking about it makes me feel like, ‘Am I inviting people in?’”

He is also critical of the media for churning out headlines about the smallest details of celebrities’ private lives, often detached from their original context. In an interview with the London Evening Standard published in December, Bailey described a harrowing encounter in a Washington, D.C., coffee shop in which a man threatened his life for being queer — and, in recounting the experience, offhandedly mentioned the “lovely man” he’d called, shaken, after it happened. Although Bailey acknowledges that the original story handled the subject with aplomb, he felt dismayed that more attention wasn’t paid to the intended warning about rising anti-LGBTQ sentiment: “The only thing that got syndicated from that story was that I had a boyfriend, and it wasn’t true,” he sighs. “It was kind of depressing, if I’m honest.”

Still, Bailey, who once turned down a role in a queer-themed TV series because it would have required him to speed along revelations about his personal life he wasn’t ready to make, is prepared to embrace the power of vulnerability when it feeds the work. Although a member of his inner circle expressed doubts about “Fellow Travelers’” steamy sex scenes, for instance, the actor intuited that they were what made the project worth doing: “I was like, ‘I’m telling you, they are the reason why this is going to be brilliant.’”

‘He’s changed my trajectory in my own life’

To those who would complain about the state of sex in film and TV, “Fellow Travelers” is the perfect riposte. All of it matters, from Tim’s first flirtation with Hawk to the finale’s closing minutes, because the series, at its core, is about the importance of soft power: the strength required to bend, but not break; to adapt, but not abandon oneself; to survive without shrinking to nothing in the process.And depicting that through sex, specifically gay sex, makes “Fellow Travelers” radical indeed.

Bailey understands that baring so much comes with certain risks. When I tell him that research for the story has filled my algorithmic “For You” feed on X (formerly Twitter) with speculation that his onscreen relationship with Bomer has a real-life element, he notes that “shipping” fictional couples and costars alike has long been part of Hollywood fantasy. But he bristles at the implication that he and Bomer are anything but skilled actors at work.

“I would love for people to know that the success of our chemistry isn’t based on us f—. It’s actually about us leaning into the craft,” he says. “It’s a vulnerable situation to be in, talking about it on record. I don’t want to rob people of their thoughts. But I do have a set of values, and as an artist, you don’t need to be f— to tell that love story.”

Underlying that craft, Bailey adds, is the confidence to speak up, as with one scene in “Fellow Travelers” that was adjusted because he said, “I don’t want to be naked today.” He learned to use his voice the hard way: In his early 20s, he recalls, he was once “bullied” on set when “someone was threatened” by him and vowed to himself, “I’m never going to do that to someone. I’m never going to allow that to happen.”

This impulse to direct his influence in support of others has blossomed further with “Fellow Travelers.” On the day of our interview, Bailey enthuses about an upcoming meeting with legendary gay rights activist Cleve Jones and shares his idea for a docuseries recording the stories of elders in the LGBTQ+ community while they are still here to tell them. He describes lying in a hospital bed on set on World AIDS Day, in character as Tim, surrounded by gay men who had lost friends and lovers during the crisis, and finding himself thinking, “What do I want to leave behind?”

“I think he’s changed my trajectory in my own life,” Bailey says.

This is, perhaps, the most common reaction I know to diving deep into queer history — the understanding that we, like our forerunners, are responsible for shaping the queer future, whether in politics, society or art. No one is going to do it on our behalf.

As we stand on the nondescript corner now named for her, I relate the story of the late queer activist Nancy Valverde, who was arrested repeatedly while a barber school student in the 1950s on suspicion of “masquerading” because of her preference for short hair and men’s clothing, and later successfully challenged her harassment by the police in court.

“What a hero!” Bailey exclaims, wondering at Valverde’s bravery. “The thing that’s so interesting with power battles is, ultimately, identity is the thing that gives you the most strength and power in your life, isn’t it?

“Because that’s one thing people can’t take away from you: who you are and how you express yourself.”

Source

[britt-kageryuu]

Donnie and Leo are streaming together, this stream is labeled as more Mature, but not necessarily for adults. So a very limited chat.

They're sitting on a couch with a virtual 'Hear Me Out' cake on a table infront of them. The 'cake' is purple on one half and blue on the other.

Donnie is in his purple/black tech wear, their mask has a glowing circuitry pattern on it.

Leo is in a loose blue yukata with a starry pattern, his mask tails were tied up with hair sticks going through the knot.

There was already Atomic Lass, Roxanne Wolf, a chunk of Uranium, and a vauge purple dragon on Donnies side.

On Leo's half there was a Turtle Alien from Jupiter Jim, Sun Wukong, LMK Macaque. And a cartoony Usagi as a cheat.

Leo was scrolling through his list to figure out who to add next, "So give me a minute, I want to find this one picture, the best one for explaining why I chose this guy."

Donnie was doing something similar, but he then pulls up a picture, and puts it on the cake. Leo looks up, and does a double take.

"Nifty?! From Hazbin Hotel?" Leo shouts, "I know cute but psycho is your type, but why?"

Donnie doesn't say anything just shrugs. Leo stares at his twin with an odd look, before putting a picture of a dragon.

It was Donnies turn to be a bit confused, "Paarthurnax?"

"Hey, you don't want to explain Nifty, I get to not explain Paarthurnax!" Leo shoots back at his twin.

The chat was still going a bit nuts about "Dees' Type", but some where actually begging for the explanations for both.

-----------------

Masterpost

I keep seeing stuff about people doing 'Hear Me Out' lists/cakes, and thought it would be fun to write Donnie and Leo doing that... then realized I don't have enough of a grasp on their characters to pick what they might actually have as a Hear Me Out.

I welcome criticism for this, because I kinda gave up on characters after looking at every book and game in my collection.

[spotlightlowlife]

Loona is a whole missed opportunity

Loona is Loona, someone who has had plenty of time to see her dads situation for what it is and she's old enough to understand, but this would deviated from the rude and sarcastic, edgy and always bored 20 something whoes minimal progress always gets squashed by her own attitude. Like Blitzø, Loona falls victim to 'had a hard life and that's the justification, oh and they're only ever punching up which is fine, oh and comic relief', but where Blitzø's words and actions make a some difference to the story, Loona's make none.

We know Loona to be an excellent tracker because she is a canine, she has something that is hers and hers alone, it would then fit that she would be the one to find runaway Octavia. Their heatt to heart consisted of guilt tripping Octavia, a child who had the right to be upset, for being too hard on her disinterested dad, this was hypocritical of Loona who mistreats her loving dad but so easily could have been growth for her.

Since she had just got done viciously physically attacking Blitzø, trashed his workplace and making a scene infront of their colleagues for discreetly attempting to address her intentional poor conduct at work, did her own advice to virtual strangers hit home and make her reflect? No, she kicked the worried Blitzø in the nuts, with no regard for Stolas or Octavia's presence, the fact that she has just pushed compassion on the reasonable teenager she influenced, no regard for how she looked in the least. Sensibility gone.

The episode were we meet Verosika and the gang end up on a beach showed us that Loona knows transformation magic, the first example of her having an important skill her team don't, yet when did she learn this skill no other leading character has? How is it possible that she has resorces Blitzø doesn't have? Why does she have more common sense than anyone else? What else does she get up to in her spare time? Why is this not a bigger deal?

This was her best episode because it raised questions that have yet to be answered about her, one being her lack of reaction to Verosika, which could have helped us build a timeline.

We would also learnt that she is friendless and not comfortable with this, she is no edgelord around a new peer but an awkward young woman who doesn't socialize much, helped and not helped by the person she's nervous around is someone she is clearly crushing on.

Loona also showed that she is capable of feeling guilt for her mean ways, but that was only because she got called out a little by this new peer she just met who she fancies, so it's hard to give her credit and many episodes later, it made no difference to her growth.

Loona finds out that the guy she just met has a girlfriend, which for her is a bummer, but he invites her to one of their parties where she can mingle, which is excellent. In a future episode Loona does attend the party but as expected she is unnecessarily rude to multiple party goers for no good reason, to no detriment.

She goes on to meet Bee, the host, who happens to be her crushed girlfriend, who happens to be high up royalty, a whole district leader and gluttony itself, instantly Loona is threatened because "she's hot" and it's not long before Loona is rude to Bee, as usual, to no detriment.

We actually had the opportunity to address the dog shelter Loona was living in, signed off on by queen Bee. Loona could have had a subplot that was just hers, but yet again, hierarchy means nothing, she doesn't know who Bee is and doesn't appear to have any political views.

Loona chooses to give the party another chance when another 'cute guy' approaches her, who we never see again, with Blitzø turning up for this party and receiving a positive reception, Loona is now happy to show him off as her dad, gets closer with him and goes on to show him kindness, but alas, this doesn't carry on to future episodes.

All these two episodes taught us was that though she's sad, she is a Pickme and like a school child will jump on the bandwagon of what will grant her instant popularity. These actually are not bad things, they're good, they are at the heart of a lot of people's failure to find themselves along with their crowd. If only we were allowed to explore her shallowness and loneliness more, her need to compete with other women and not be like other girls. This would start by her actions actually resulting in something.

There is an abundance of teen mean girls in media to study that could help give Loona more substance, explore the numberours things she may gave missed out on during her childhood.

Let her be a user, let her smugness at knowing she gets away with her horrible ways be challenged by maybe revisiting her work 'assessment' and addressing her fat jokes at Moxxie, maybe we could know what it is she's constantly viewing on her phone too? Just look at how Stolas validated his feelings with the dramatic telenovela in that tiny little scene.

The episode where Blitzø and Moxxie were abducted gave us a level headed Loona who got along fine with Millie dispite being rude to her for mo reason, it made it clear they they don't talk at all, yet immediately and many episodes later nothing has come of their excellent team work and friendliness, nothing has come of level headed Loona, she has actually gotten more unpleasant. Sensibility gone again.

This latest episode, crescent moon, had us hear from Loona again for the first time in a while (personal reasons took the VA away from work) and what we got between Loona and Blitzø was a proof that they are no parent and child, smugly suggesting that Stolas is simply getting bored of Blitzø and that she too employs tactics of ignoring him shows us her level of immaturity, she is old enough to know what's going on and capable of empathy, her apathy and meanness is a choice, we saw her self censoring at Bee's party, we saw her trying to impress Tex, we saw her quickly get thought to Octavia who is nothing like her and it was Loona who was kind to Blitzø at their home when he was drunk, sad and opened up about being alone. Sensible and caring initiated because she was impressed which is a huge take away Loona? What did any of that matter? We can't have these aspects aswell as unbothered wise cracking Loona at the same time, even though character duality is out there, it's one or the other with this character and the other has to be prompted to suit the plot on the occasion something actually happens, one is an intention bully who is ignored, it's hard to say tolerated when her actions don't matter at all.

I guarantee Loona's character improve if this series stuck to the main plot more and we saw them working most of time?

Since she really could do with her own thing, the property damage she caused in crescent moon coming back to bite her would be the making of her best storyline to date. Community give back would let her learn new skills and mingle.

Lastly, she as good as throws on a cape for Stolas yet again. Since the tone is that Blitzø needs to come to his senses and hook up with his abuser, why not have Loona be part of this plot and let her commit to wanting a rich stepdad and the perceived popularity that comes with it?

[lover-of-mine]

I think part of the problem is the actor creating headcanon and if it were just that I would ignore it but no, he already said that we should leave Buddie aside and apparently what he says everyone should follow, he said this after 7x04 and I thought it was very wrong, he's just a guest, he doesn't have to say anything, everyone does that about the headcanons and it's fun, but as soon as someone tries to force that headcanon on you, the fun is lost. We're not making it up, we're not haters, but the show showed that Tommy abandoned Buck, made a joke, manipulated him a little to come out of the closet, it's not an invention, it's canon, it happened, it's more important than an actor's headcanon. I'm honestly muting everything on this subject because it's exhausting, it's horrible to hear that you're homophobic, it's horrible to doubt yourself, I'm a part of the community just because an actor decided to make up a story and say what people should do and create an army of people who bully virtually, No wonder Oliver doesn't participate in anything, it's a lack of respect for the fans who have been here for years and for his co-workers.

Sorry for my little rant but yeah

No, seriously, people are taking what Lou is saying too seriously. And the dude said T is someone for Buck to work out the kinks when it comes to liking men to get ready for Eddie too. Completely unprompted. Like? Of course the guy is gonna go nuts with the way people are reacting to bt, if bt is popular he might get to stay in the role longer, that means exposure, money, and the way he's doing the cameos, the guy is literally getting paid to feed into this madness, he's gonna say anything, but that doesn't mean it's what the show planned for him. The writers could wake up and decide to do anything with any character and to expect me to take what an actor is saying as canon is absolutely insane. T is a plot device. That's a fact. And I gotta be honest, dude is kinda mean to Buck and I don't see the effort people keep saying he's putting? He flew Eddie to Vegas for ringside seats for a sold out fight but he couldn't be bothered to put on a colorful shirt to pretend he was on the 80s theme for Buck. That's an actual thing that happened in canon. Like? Hello? Are we watching the same relationship unfold? Like, seriously, ship what you ship, write what you want, fanfic away, but people seriously need to stop trying to force people to accept this stuff as canon. Because the only thing that actually counts is what's happening on the show. And honestly, I have so many tags filtered but I am still getting the madness, and there's also the shit people send to me directly. It's hard to get away because the fandom went crazy.

[yukidragon]

Yesterday was Ian's birthday (March 3rd), and it got me thinking about expanding his childhood and family, much like I did with Shaun for the previous rambles.

It also got me thinking that Ian's mother needs an actual name for when she makes her presence known in Sunshine in Hell. It'll make it easier to discuss all the awful things she did and properly come up with a timeline of past events if I have a proper name and description for the character. While she might not be a major character, she plays a major role in Ian and Alice's backstory.

I kicked around various ideas such as Nancy, Bethel, or Ruth, but then I thought, wouldn't she go absolutely nuts if she found out that her name was used by the kids these days as a meme to describe an entitled, arrogant, and aggressive person?

Sometimes the names I give to characters are just meant to put a smile on my face, and maybe give me a giggle.

So, unless another name comes along and whaps me upside the head with how perfectly fitting it is for such a toxic character, Ian's mother shall now be known as Karen.

Content Warning: this post contains discussions of grooming (of an 18 year old), toxic relationships (romantic and familial), emotional abuse, child abuse, childhood trauma, religious trauma, weaponized religion, infidelity, slut shaming, body shaming, trauma bonding, and other such heavy topics.

Ian's story is a tale of the cycle of abuse and how difficult it is to escape.

Blaming the Innocent

Karen was a beauty in her youth, and she would argue that she still is today. She's in her mid to late 40s, but has done all she can to look at least 10 years younger. She's taken great care to preserve her appearance, both in terms of physical looks and in her reputation.

Unfortunately for Ian, when he was born, he was seen as a flaw against both.

Karen got pregnant with Ian when she was in her early twenties. She did her best to try and hide the pregnancy and rush the man she was seeing at the time to the altar so that the baby wouldn't be born out of wedlock, but it wasn't to be. Getting pregnant was the biggest regret in her life, and she blames Ian for every single woe and inconvenience she suffered through since he was conceived.

The man Karen was seeing at the time was, to put it mildly, absolute scum. He was a predator who intentionally targeted just barely legal young women who didn't know what to look out for with toxic, controlling relationships. He had a years of experience manipulating sheltered and naïve young women living off on her own for the first time. He played Karen like a fiddle, isolating her from her family and grooming her to be subservient to him in all things.

A lot of Karen's opinions about the sinful nature of men came from this man. He kept dangling promise after promise to her, but in the end, all he cared about was using her in every way possible. He wanted her body and obedience. When pregnancy made her less desirable in his eyes, he grew disinterested in her. He cheated on her repeatedly, eventually openly, and in the end left her for another freshly-turned 18-year-old woman he could manipulate.

Ian never knew his father. He never even got a name for the man. Even today, he still doesn't know who his father was. He was too young by the time his sperm donor ghosted them and disappeared for good. Still, even though he doesn't have a name or a face to put to the man, Ian heard about what kind of person his father was from his mom for virtually all of his life.

Karen would spit "your father" out as if it was a disgusting insult, along with other colorful language directed at the man. She would often vent her frustrations about the fights they used to have, the blatant disrespect the man showed her, the broken promises, and how he rejected her and left her alone and unmarried in a community that shamed single mothers harshly. If she wasn't degrading and insulting Ian, she was tearing down the memory of his father.

It was easier for Ian to hate his father along with his mother. It certainly was less painful than being the target of her resentment. Even if he felt guilty sometimes, at least he and his mom were on the same side for a change.

For those wondering, no, I'm not sticking with the old idea of Jean Laurent being Ian's dad. Though it's tempting for certain narrative possibilities, I really like the direction I've been developing now. As such, I've got to say, Jean Laurent... Ian is not your baby.

That's right, Jean isn't Ian's father in Sunshine in Hell. Maybe I'll flesh the baby daddy some more and give him a name someday, but at the moment, he's just a ghost of Karen's past who haunts Ian all his life through his mother's abuse. He's the embodiment of how sinful men are.

I don't see Ian seeking out such an awful person after what his mom put him through, so it's unlikely this character will actually appear in the story. All this man has left behind is a mark on Karen that influences the way she treated Ian all his life.

Of course, what Ian's father did to Karen can never justify the hell she put her innocent child through. Being a victim doesn't prevent someone from becoming the abuser.

Ian was forced to pay for his father's sins all his life and take care of his mother. Karen saw more and more of his father in him as he grew up, and he made sure to let him know how disgusting he was for that. Nothing Ian could do would ever atone for the sins of his father in his mother's eyes.

Karen turned to religion after she was left high and dry without any support and a baby to raise. She was shamed for being a single mother by those in the church, and she took out her frustrations on Ian.

Ian didn't escape shaming from the other members of his mother's faith either. Sundays were exhausting, filled with religious scriptures and judgmental people who hid their insults behind smiles and fake praise. It took him years to understand that the nice people at church really weren't as nice as he thought, and he eventually learned to read between the lines of their hypocrisy.

But Ian had to get along with these people. He had to conform and not "embarrass his mother more than he already does." Karen had an iron grip over Ian's life. Everywhere he went, who he spent his time with, how he dressed, his hobbies, his possessions, how he spoke... all of it had to be approved by her. She controlled her son far worse than her toxic ex ever controlled her life.

Ian doesn't have family as a support network either. Karen is estranged from her family and refuses to speak about them, and his father's family might as well not even exist at all. It's always been just him and his mother against the world, and choosing her side in all things was easier than being her target.

From an early age, Ian learned that he had to placate his mother in all things. He was always wrong and Karen was always right. He was trained to apologize for everything. Total submission and admission of guilt were the only things that seemed to mollify her anger.

It was only when Karen was happy that Ian was allowed to be happy too. Even when she was happy, he wasn't truly safe. He had to be careful not to make a mistake, or he would ruin everything and face her wrath.

Ian learned how to hide things from his mother, from his thoughts and feelings to prized possessions. Karen wasn't afraid to throw away his things if she disapproved of it, or even outright destroy them in front of him as punishment. It didn't matter what it was. Not even gifts from members of the church or his only friend were safe from being discarded from his life for good.

Interestingly enough, Karen did have positive feelings towards Alice when she was younger. In fact, Karen loved children. In public she put on this warm, motherly persona and was always speaking of what was best for the children. She painted herself as the saintly single mother who was a victim of circumstance, but perfect in every other respect. She went out of her way to treat children well and put on a perfect performance when others were around.

Karen used to be more fond of Alice than she was her own child. She viewed all men as lustful predators, and little Ian was no exception. One day Ian would become just as scummy as his father, of that she was certain. Alice was just another innocent little girl who would one day become a victim of men's lusts.

Of course, that opinion changed by the time Ian and Alice were at college. Alice helped Ian pull away from his mother and draw healthy boundaries. Karen couldn't handle losing control over Ian and his life, and she resented Alice for it. In Karen's eyes, Alice went from victim to whore, a succubus seducing her son into sin with her lustful ways.

Really, even if Karen treated others well, it was always in service to herself in the end.

Disentanglement

Karen was never privy to the goings on of Ian and Alice's relationship. Ian was too ashamed to admit his "sinful" desires to anyone, especially his mother. He tried to hide the fact that he and Alice were dating for as long as possible. As long as Karen believed that they were still nothing more than friends, then Ian could avoid setting off his mother's fury.

At first, Ian was successful in misdirecting his mother. Oh, the senior prom? That wasn't a date! Of course not! Karen knows Alice! Alice and Ian have been best friends since childhood - practically brother and sister! Karen herself said Alice was a good influence on Ian, right? They just went there together as friends. That's all. Nothing is going on between them at all.

Alice and Ian had hung out platonically for years, so they managed to keep their relationship hidden for at least a year. Ian was terrified of his mother learning the truth, even after they moved away to college. His paranoia would creep in every time the two did couple activities together or were intimate. He couldn't even shake it fully after they moved out of the college dorms into a place of their own.

It was this paranoia and his mother's meddling that prevented Alice and Ian from being roommates at the college dorms. Karen was holding the purse strings, and she meddled in Ian's life wherever she could. She wasn't about to let her son live in sin with a woman, no matter what "crazy woke nonsense" the college had about co-ed cohabitation.

Karen didn't believe for one second that Ian wouldn't turn into a horny predator the moment there was a pretty young thing alone with him. Alice flew under the radar only because Karen had known her for so long, and because Karen had a very low opinion of Alice's appearance.

Karen was a person who criticized and nitpicked the appearance of others behind their backs, and Ian's to his face. Alice was frequently the target of her criticism, even when Karen still thought of her fondly.

Ian never had the courage to stand up to his mother's criticism, even when it was to defend his partner from it.

It was when Ian and Alice earned enough money from their part-time jobs that they started really pulling him away from his mother's poisonous tendrils. They managed to move into their own apartment together, away from the prying eyes of Karen's flying monkeys. It was Ian's first real step to independence with the help of his best friend and partner.

Ian always clung to Alice as an escape from his mother's suffocating rule over him. At her house, he could simply be a normal child. He did what he wanted, played games, even enjoyed what it was like being a part of a healthy family. The King family treated him like a son since he was little, and he was forever grateful for that. Barbie, Coraline, Jem, and the rest were like his little siblings. They looked up to him.

Marrying Alice and becoming a part of her family for real was something Ian always imagined for himself, even if he never felt worthy of such a lofty dream. She was his hero, his sanctuary. He actually got to experience childhood and happy memories because of her, and he'll always be grateful to her.

But Ian was never far from his mother's grasp as long as he was in his hometown. Over the years, Karen had built up a lot of connections at her church. She became a pillar of the community and worked hard to cultivate her saintly image. She was the long suffering single mom, alone and in need, but always there to help out her community.

So of course Karen was only too eager to reach out to her community for help when she needed it.

When Ian dared to distance herself from Karen, she didn't hesitate to paint him as an ungrateful child to garner sympathy. To the community she surrounded herself with, Ian was troublemaker, often giving grief to his poor mother. Oh, the suffering she went through trying to keep him on the path of God and all that's good. She shed so many tears because of her wayward son.

Karen was just the poor mother who bemoaned the fact that her son was being led down a sinful path by bad influences. Alice and the rest of the King family had no real ties to her church, and as such she made for the perfect scapegoat. Alice was labeled a bad influence, isolating Ian from his only family and poisoning him against Karen.

Oh, how could Karen not have seen the signs? Alice wasn't a good Godly woman. Karen saw the little girl going down the wrong path in childhood and did her best to guide her to God, but, sadly, she only had so much power. Her parents clearly did Alice so, so wrong! Now Alice had become a godless, sinful harlot, leading Karen's poor baby boy down a path of sin and debauchery.

Over the years, Karen had learned how to use people and create the perfectly saintly image for herself. She spent many years surrounding herself with people who were only too eager to laud her as the saint she wanted to be.

Karen went nuts when Ian outright blocked her from calling him. She harassed him for weeks from new numbers and convinced others to call him as well on her behalf. The harassment only stopped when Alice convinced Ian to change his number completely and kept this new number a secret. His socials went private for a while at this time as well, even though his mother didn't really go online much.

Going to the college in California wasn't just to help Ian achieve his dream - it was his means of escape. If he could earn his scholarship there, he could cut ties with his mother for good.

Karen had paid for Ian's collage classes to keep a hold over him. She used her money as leverage to force him to keep in contact with her even after leaving her house. When Ian managed to get a part-time job and student loans to pay for his classes, he finally could cut the cord.

But that didn't stop Karen. She would use her flying monkeys to harass Ian and find out where he was to confront him herself, even in public settings.

Even though Ian was no longer under her roof, Karen still did everything she could to make his life hell.

Standing Alone on Unsteady Legs

A fresh start across the country to pursue his dreams seemed like Ian's only real way out. The only problem was that he would have to do it alone.

Ian nearly didn't even try, despite being urged by his teachers. It was a scary prospect to leave everything he knew behind for a place as intimidating as Los Angeles. The worst part was that he would have to do it on his own.

Ian didn't know how to handle being on his own.

Ian wanted Alice to go with him. He begged and cried... but it was impossible. Neither of them could afford the move. They could barely afford their apartment together. Ian only had the chance to go because of this potential scholarship, and Alice simply wasn't given the same offer.

Alice wasn't an actor or a model. She had been discouraged from even attempting that path. In fact, she wasn't sure what she wanted.

Chasing Ian's dream along with him was just unrealistic. It wasn't her dream to chase. Alice needed to find her own dream, and she wouldn't find it if she kept giving up everything for Ian.

It was a bitter pill for Ian to swallow. Maybe it would be better if he stayed. At least then they would be together. Maybe that's all he really needed.

If acting didn't work out - and why would it - they could just be together.

Just being with Alice didn't sound that bad to Ian at all, really. They did talk about marriage before. Maybe it was time to think about it more seriously.

Though even that scared Ian. The thought of becoming a father was terrifying. He tried not to think of it at all.

Alice wouldn't let Ian give up on his dream so easily or see himself in such a negative light. She gave him the push he needed to try his best, regardless of the outcome. No matter what happened, she would help him keep moving forward.

Despite all his pessimism and worries, Ian did it. He earned the scholarship. He earned his place at the school of his dreams.

The path leading to Ian's dreams was open to him.

For as much as Karen's abuse sabotaged Ian's dreams all his life, her harassment also served as a big push in the end. Leaving meant that could finally escape his toxic mother for good. He would finally be out of her and her flying monkeys' reach.

Even if it meant being alone, Ian would finally be free.

Alice promised that the long distance wouldn't change anything between them. She would call and text Ian every day, and they would visit when they could. Maybe, eventually, she could find a job in California and join him one day.

Alice always had a way of making Ian feel like things would be okay, no matter how bad it got. He needed that in a life that always felt like nothing he did was ever good enough. Karen made Ian feel so small and worthless, while Alice always managed to give him the strength to take his broken wings and dare to fly.

For all of Ian's life, he was taught to be dependent on the one who "loved" him and to question his own judgement in everything. Karen made him look to her for answers, using guilt and God to put herself eternally on a pedestal above him. He struggled to stand on his own. He never learned how to be independent, so he looked to others who he believed cared about him for guidance and support. First it was his mother, then it was Alice, and then it was his new friends at his new school.

Alice wasn't there in California to support Ian anymore after all. Though they kept in contact like she promised, it wasn't the same. Ian was so lonely, so unsure. He didn't know what to do alone.

Fortunately, Ian found new friends to guide him. They, like Alice, were helping him achieve his dreams, and they helped him experience new and exciting things. He relied on them to tell him what to do because he was never confident in his own decisions.

Unfortunately, much like Karen, those new friends didn't really have Ian's best interests at heart either. His affair partner in particular was only interested in his body and wrapping him around her little finger.

In a way, history repeated itself. Much like how Karen was isolated and used by someone who preyed on her inexperience and vulnerability to have access to her body and her compliance, her son was similarly preyed upon. The affair partner, who I will eventually come up with a name for, doesn't really love Ian, but loves the thrill of stealing him away from his partner and using him as she pleases.

Ian wanted to be loved by his mother all of his life. Her rejection, as well as the rejection of his peers, made him more desperate for the approval of others. Although he tried to run away from Karen, he still craved what he never got from his mother. Sadly, that just made him more vulnerable to those who knew how to paper over that hole in his heart and convince him that it was healing.

In some ways, the affair partner reminds Ian of his mother on a subconscious level. He doesn't realize just how alike they are in many ways...

Karen was the victim of a toxic person, but then became the abuser of her child. In turn she left behind the scars that would lead Ian to falling victim to the same sort of abuse she faced.

It also led to Ian leaving scars behind on the one person who always tried so hard to help him for most of his life.

Being a victim of toxic people does not make a person immune to becoming toxic to others. A victim can become an abuser when the opportunity presents itself. It's all too easy to fall into cycles of abuse that only leave behind more scars and more victims.

Oof, that's a pretty depressing note to leave this ramble on, huh? Still, Sunshine in Hell is a story of healing and learning how to be better despite the mistakes people have made in their past.

Will Karen redeem herself? Probably not, but at least Ian will eventually learn how to stand on his own two feet and walk away from her for good without looking back again.

Sometimes healing means cutting off those who have hurt us too badly. Ian will learn that applies both to what his mother did to him... and what he did to Alice.

When Ian learns to let go of the past he's so desperately holding onto and move forward on his own two feet, he and Alice will finally be able to heal. Only then will they finally be able to create the brighter future they've been looking for.

Even if that future isn't together like they imagined, Ian and Alice can still eventually achieve their dreams and be happy.

@channydraws @earthgirlaesthetic @sai-of-the-7-stars @cheriihoney @illary-kore @okamiliqueur @kurokrisps

[scotianostra]

On March 24th 2012, just two days after his 62nd birthday Scotland lost a legend when John Thomas "Jocky" Wilson passed away at his home in at Kirkcaldy.

Jocky spent most of his early life in orphanages after it was deemed his mother and father were unfit to bring him up, his jobs included a couple of years in the army, a coal delivery man, fish processor, and also a miner at Kirkcaldy's Seafield Colliery. He also worked for a time at the Lister Bar, the local where a 19-year-old Wilson first learned to play darts, he never thought when throwing those first arrows that he would ever become the champion of the world and a Scottish legend.

From his debut at the World Championship in 1979 until 1991, Wilson managed to reach at least the quarter-finals of the tournament on every occasion. Wilson also lifted the British Professional Championship four-times between 1981 and 1988, as well as the British Open and Matchplay titles.

Wilson was also generous with his time for charity and had a neat line in self-deprecation. He was known as 'Gumsy' because his constant sweet-eating and refusal to brush his teeth - 'my Gran told me the English poison the water' - meant that he had lost his last tooth by the age of 28. Following the 1982 triumph, Wilson paid £1,200 for dentures. But he never took to them. They made him belch when drinking, he complained. And once, celebrating a victory, they flew out of his mouth and on to the oche. In the end, they were employed as a ball marker in pool games with Bristow.

'People might think that having no teeth snookers you when it comes to eating,' Wilson wrote in his 1983 autobiography, Jocky. 'But I can manage just about anything with my gums. I can chew a steak provided it's well done. I can even eat apples. Great Yarmouth rock and nuts are the only two things that defeat me.'

Other tales include the time he kicked Bristow's shin before they were due to play each other - the Crafty Cockney, who became Wilson's firm friend, was forced to shake hands on stage with a bleeding shin. And after one defeat he fell off the stage.

Sadly after being diagnosed with diabetes Jocky gave it all up, he became bankrupt and spent the remainder of his life, with his Argentinian wife, Malvina in a council flat in the town he grew up in, as virtual recluse, shielded by his wife when visitors knocked on his door, be it journalists or just well wisher fans nobody got through the door.

I will always remember the early days of television darts and Wee Jocky, at the oche, a true character. When he won his first world title at Jollees Cabaret Club in Stoke, Sid Waddell announced him as "Jocky Wilson , The lad has the psychology of a claymore!”

RIP Jocky!

[greatwyrmgold]

are you gonna watch the Gnosia anime when it comes out?

Yes.

I feel like I shouldn't make a post that's just me saying "yes," so, um...I wonder how they're going to structure the anime.

For those who don't play Gnosia and have to infer its mechanics from the dozen-ish posts I've posted, it's basically a virtual game of Mafia/Werewolf with an overarching time-loop narrative.

In theory, you're trying to learn as much as you can about the other crew members by encountering them in a variety of situations created by the loops. In practice, you're really here because a virtual social deduction game sounds fun, and the snippets of lore and characterization are basically just icing on the cake.

But an anime where the main character does the same dance of trying to figure out who's Gnosia and who's a Bug and who's human without looking to suspicious, every single episode, with the story and character stuff layered on top? Would probably be boring and repetitive.

So the Gnosia anime needs to focus on the characters and overarching plot, find a way to put them at the center. But it still needs to preserve the time-loop social-deduction angle, both because that's core to the game's identity and because the plot doesn't really work without it. Removing the time loop element would mean not just removing the heart of the gameplay loop, but also destroying the whole conceit of the investigation and making its canon resolution impossible. I don't think I need to explain why that's not a real option.

And beyond the big-picture stuff, I'm also curious about the nuts and bolts. For instance, how many loops will they do per episode?

If we assume a typical one-cour season length, that's one episode for the tutorial loops and assorted introductions, then cram the entire story into eleven or twelve loops. By contrast, people trying to beat Gnosia in as few loops as possible usually take around a hundred, and the lowest I could find was seventy. Granted, it's unlikely that all of those loops had plot-critical events, and some of those events can be cut, but there are 82 notes to collect and it's hard to combine many of them, so I struggle to imagine how you'd cram all of that plus the endings into just a dozen loops.

If there are 2-3 loops per episode (after the first), then that's more reasonable; something like 35-50 loops total. But also, that would leave each loop with something like 7-12 minutes of screentime, and that's just absurdly fast, especially if you're trying to cram multiple events into each loop.

There are a few ways to resolve this problem, and none of them seem likely.

One would be completely reworking the plot, which invalidates some of my key assumptions, but I think I've explained why that seems unlikely.

Another option would be to trim down the cast; for all they add to the game, characters like Shigemichi and Comet and Chipie can be cut from the story without fundamentally changing it. But the anime key visuals imply the whole cast is going to be there, at least in the background, so we can rule that out.

Or they could simply make a bigger anime, with more or longer episodes. But they didn't do that for Medalist, which AFAICT is a much more popular IP.

One way they could sneak in a "bigger anime" plan would be to resolve part of the plot in season 1 and angle for another season or two to finish up the plot. The problem with that is that Gnosia's story lacks any mid-level structure.

There's structure to individual loops and events, and there's an overarching narrative and goal, but there's not much that needs to be analyzed in any specific order. Big spoiler-worthy reveals aren't uncovered through multiple loops of trial and error; they're discovered through being at the right place in the right timeline.

Moreover, while some of those reveals are more significant than others, it's hard to say that there's any Big Secrets worth building a mystery-box around. Maaaybe Manan? But that's not a status-quo-shaking Everything Is Different Now secret. It's more of an "Oh, that's why they're like this" secret.

Whatever they settle on will probably be interesting. Unless it's stupid.

[redbelles]

GET TO KNOW YOUR MUTUALS ✨

tagged by: @violaobanion 🩶

what's the origin of your blog title?

the neko case murder ballad, babey! extra 'e' added because someone swiped 'redbells' before i signed up for tumblr in [checks watch] the 2010s

otp(s) + shipname(s):

okay, listen, i've been in fandom for a solid two-thirds of my life i can't just casually list them all. that said: frank castle/karen page (kastle), jon snow/sansa stark (jonsa), zuko/katara (zutara), guts/casca (gutsca), etc.

favorite color:

the entire blue-purple swath of the color wheel

song stuck in your head:

i literally always have something stuck in my head; right now it's "atlantic city" by bruce springsteen

weirdest habit/trait:

hobbies:

reading, writing, giffing, gaming, hockey, in theory i want to learn to knit, planning out future travel, aviation + car maintenance, and someday i will get back to riding horses regularly

if you work, what's your profession?

graphic design is my passion.meme

if you could have any job you wish, what would it be?

someone either pays me to gif or i finally get off my ass and get that novel published*

*i am in fact actively working on option two, please @ me about it, i need to be whacked with a broom until it's done

something you're good at:

i'm an excellent writer and editor, i make very pretty gifs, and i think i'm a very good friend

something you hate:

the american political system and most of the fuckwads in it

i cannot stand clownery on gifs/fics/art/etc. someone took the time to make something, clearly cares about the material that inspired it, is proud of the finished product, and you want to run around shitting on it? absolutely the fuck not. drives me nuts.

something you collect:

mugs. hours spent in elden ring. flower-themed jewelry. i am also slowly amassing a cadre of friends whom i have lovingly bullied into either video games or sports (or both!)

something you forget:

to get the fucking mail! why do i keep forgetting to get the mail!

what's your love language:

standing up for my friends is the big one— swing at my friends and if they're cool with it you can count on me swinging back. beyond that: inside jokes and spending time (physical or virtual) with people!

favorite movie/show:

also: titanic, atonement, the mummy (1999), logan, sprited away, a streetcar named desire, etc.

tv shows: the punisher, sons of anarchy, generation kill, the gone, berserk (1997), avatar: the last airbender, castlevania, etc.

favorite food:

well right now i am absolutely craving shrimp scampi

favorite animal:

cats

what were you like as a child:

much like i am today: small and angry and very sure of myself

favorite subject at school:

history and english

least favorite subject:

math

what's your best character trait?

hands down it's my loyalty

what's your worst character trait?

i hold grudges like someone's paying me to

if you could change any detail of your life right now, what would it be?

if you could travel in time, who would you like to meet?

darkness on the edge of town-era bruce springsteen. for reasons.

tagging: @neuxue @sluttyhenley @ladywaffles @meyerlansky @pennywises and anyone else who wants a go ✨

[cringefaecompilation]

you dont have to post this but i am literally so glad im not the only one whos very ??? about how out of character the mighty nein have (mostly) been since the campaign ending. like whats happening here

IT'S SO WEIRD. I REWATCHED EPISODES FROM THE OG CAMPAIGN (ep 21, ep 48, ep86, ep114), JUST TO MAKE SURE I WASN'T GOING NUTS

mn reunited was fine! i saw some complaints with echoes of the solstice, and i chalked that up to people being frustrated at c3 getting cut off twice in a row because they all seemed fine to me in that one. veth was a little too "early mn" for me in episode 111 but episode 115 was downright awful for them. you could say it was because they just got off playing vox machina and needed to get back in the groove and were getting mixed up with filming the cartoon but bell's hells were awesome in this episode. in fact, this was probably one of the best episodes of the campaign for them.

only jester and caleb were really in character, everything else felt like they were just telling jokes to pass the time. i've already explained why making beau more rude and aggressive is bad but making her relationship with yasha into jokes about how horny and kinky they are makes it worse. they did do damage control at the end with beau and yasha saying they wanted to adopt kids but it still felt... bad.

and of course, travis making jokes about how fjord feels like he's trapped in a marriage to jester. this is the kinda stuff you read in wido/jest or beau/jes fics to make fjord look like a douche that abuses her for "annoying him" so one of them can swoop in and save her from a crappy boyfriend! why are we making "ha ha marriage is the end of your life, amirite fellas?! better run away from the ol' ball and chain!" wisecracks when FJORD WAS THE ONE WHO PROPOSED TO HER.

finally, their reaction to bell's hells not trusting the gods fully because of their personal relationships to them just felt like they were guilt-tripping the fuck out of bell's hells for not being devout enough. it was just a repeat of your average "pro-god" cr fan account saying "well, some people were blessed by the gods and love worshiping them so you're evil for taking away their right to choose!" which has virtually zero bearing on the themes of the campaign itself. you know it's bad when you can say "at least orym has an excuse" about it.

and i don't want it to feel this way. the vox machina episodes were great! a wonderful palate cleanser for everyone who disliked SUPEW SEWIOUS kiki and percy as played by matt or were disappointed at elements of the lovm cartoon. but this? this is key jingling, and it really puts me off watching episode 116.

[warrioreowynofrohan]

Would you do 3, 8, and 12 for the choose violence ask game, please?

3. worst take you’ve seen on tumblr

This gets the worst take award for someone making it up out of their own head and then treating it as canon. I have seen at least two people say they hate Thingol for ‘deliberately orchestrating the death of Denethor (king of the Green-elves) in order to incorporate the Green-elves into Doriath’s rule’. Something that never happened - Thingol and the Green-elves fought and defeated one orc-army but Denethor was cut off by another, and Thingol’s army was too late to rescue him when they came to defeat the second army. (This also gives the lie to the assertion/assumption that Thingol never fought and never left Doriath. He did both in the First Battle.)

The Green-elves, when they came to Beleriand, were welcomed by Thingol “as kin who long return”. Thingol arriving too late to save Denethor, but not too late to avenge him, is something that could foster as many tragic, heartbreaking imaginings as Maedhros being unable to reach or save Fingon at the Nirnaeth.

To give a sense of how bad this take is: imagine someone claimed they hated Maedhros because he deliberately abandoned Fingon in an attempt to gain the kingship of the Noldor. That would be a ludicrous misinterpretation of the Nirnaeth, but it would still have more evidence than the one about Thingol and Denethor. Thingol shows up; he defeats one army and then shows up to defeat the second one, but just too late to save his friend and ally. The Fëanoreans flee the Nirnaeth - all of them surviving - before they get anywhere near Fingon or his armies, and apparently also flee while their dwarven allies are still fighting (“the sons of Fëanor…drew together, and gathering a remnant of the Noldor and the Naugrim about them hewed a way out of the battle and escaped far away toward Mount Dolmed in the east. Last of all the eastern force to stand firm were the dwarves of Belegost…”).

Make up whatever headcanons you like, but “I think this character is awful and unsympathetic for [non-canon and counter-canonical thing I made up them doing]” is just nuts.

8. common fandom opinion everyone is wrong about

The typical (almost universal) characterization of Maedhros as 1) a master diplomat/politician; 2) a dad-figure to his brothers; and 3) extremely stoic and not given to showing his feelings, really has very little canon support, and most of what we do see of him indicates the opposite! A shortlist of things he is described as doing in canon:

Begging Fingon to kill him when he is chained to Thangorodrim

Again begging Fingon to kill him when Fingon can't cut him loose (the stoic, practical, ruthless type we see in most fanon would have come up with the 'cut my hand off' thing himself)

Seeking Fingolfin's pardon for the burning of the ships, and making what certainly comes across as a self-deprecating joke (calling Fingolfin "not the least wise" of the House of Finwë, implicitly in comparison to himself) in the process.

Defusing the tension around Thingol's limits on where the Noldor can settle by laughing at it.

Planning the Fifth Battle out of a sudden feeling of hope inspired by the success of Beren and Luthien's quest.

At the end, throwing himself into a fiery chasm in despair.

That's without even getting into the HoME material, where Maedhros' account of Morgoth's attack on Formenos is so melodramatic it circles around to being ridiculous.

This does not come across as a stoic person who continually conceals and buries his emotions. I don't have issues with that characterization existing, but it's strange for it to be so universal that you virtually never see a Maedhros who isn't defined by it.

With regard to his brothers, we definitely do see him engaging in deliberate brother-wrangling in Beleriand, because he needs to in order to keep the peace, but he's only successful at it as long as they're all in relatively close proximity (see, Celegorm and Curufin going off-leash in Nargothrond), and after the Nargothrond incident, not even then (see: Maedhros being unable to stop them from threatening to kill Thingol, and not substantively punishing them for anything they did). And the "team dad" thing is nowhere in evidence.

Lastly, I would say there's enough in the Silmarillion to say that Maedhros is at least decent at political management - and more importantly, that he has enough humility to do what's necessary to keep the Noldor united (first abdicating the kingship, and then moving his brothers to where they'll be in less contact with other people and make more trouble). But he doesn't consider whether a nominal acknowledgement of Thingol's kingship of Beleriand might smooth relations over at the start, he doesn't make any attempt to apologize or make restitution for the kinslaying even after Thingol learns about it, he at no point in canon attempts to negotiate for the Silmaril or offer anything in return for it (yes, the Oath is presumably involved in that). Treating the Nirnaeth of all things (a battle which is lost largely because a large part of his allies turn out to be traitors, and in which two of the largest kingdoms in Beleriand refuse to participate due to personal grievances against his family, and where his only major elven ally is the guy who's ride-or-die for him regardless of anything) as evidence of diplomatic skill is particularly strange! his sole wholly positive achievement re: the Union of Maedhros is the alliance with the dwarves. Which is not nothing, but also not enough to support the "master diplomat and would have been an awesome king" assumption. In terms of Noldor-Sindar relations, the ones who stand out are Finrod (of course) and, far less acknowledged, Turgon - Gondolin is a mix of Noldor and Sindar, and that the Sindar are willing to choose to follow him to a hidden kingdom even at a time when Beleriand is largely at peace says a lot.

I'm not actively opposed to the usual characterization of Maedhros, but I'm somewhat frustrated (and getting bored) with it being the only one we see when it seems almost entirely fanon-created and there's so much space for other portrayals.

12. unpopular character you like and why more people should like them

Mandos! It’s barely even really a case of fans emphasizing certain passages and detractors emphasizing others, many of the passages that make me like him are the ones other people dislike him for. I like what we see of him in "Laws and Customs of the Eldar". I like what he says regarding the Statute of Finwë and Míriel:

"We may indeed in counsel point to the higher road, but we cannot compel any free creature to walk upon it. That leadeth to tyranny, which disfigureth good and maketh it seem hateful. Healing by final Hope, as Manwë has spoken of it, is a law which one can give to oneself only; of others justice alone can be demanded. A ruler who discerning justice refuseth to it the sanction of law, demanding abnegation of rights and self-sacrifice, will not drive his subjects to these virtues, virtuous only if free, but by unnaturally making justice unlawful, will drive them rather to rebellion against all law. Not by such means will Arda be healed."

And, continuing from this, I like his reaction to Finwë's decision to stay in the Halls and allow Míriel to return to life:

"It is well that thou desirest not to return, for this I should have forbidden, until the present griefs are long passed. But it is better still that thou hast made this offer, to deprive thyself, of thy free will, and out of pity for another. This is a counsel of healing, out of which good may grow."

It's two sides of the same coin: that justice means working with a flawed world and giving people their due even if the choices they are making are not the ideal ones, because self-sacrifice is not something that can be compelled or demanded. But he's happy - we rarely see him happy, but he is happy about Finwë's decision - when people choose something better than mere justice. And that's not something seen in most literature from characters represented as the literal personification of Justice!

And, also in the Statue, I want to note what he says about Eärendil:

"I say to you that the children of Indis shall always be great, and the Tale of Arda more glorious because of their coming. And from them shall spring things so fair that no tears shall dim their beauty; in whose being the Valar, and the Kindreds both of Elves and Men that are to come shall all have part, and in whose deeds they shall rejoice. So that, long hence when all that here is and seemeth yet fair and impregnable, shall nonetheless have faded and passed away, the Light of Aman shall not wholly cease among the free peoples of Arda until the End. When he that shall be called Eärendil setteth foot upon the shores of Aman, ye shall remember my words."

And then people act like he's not pleased when Eärendil shows up! He very much is; it's his role to bring up the Doom so that it can at last be lifted, but he knows that this is the moment when it will be lifted through Eärendil's action.

I also have no issue with his "Not the first" line in response to Fëanor's line "I shall break my heard and I shall be slain; first of all the Eldar in Aman." I take it as a hint: You are not the only thing that matters in the world, think of something other than yourself for a second. There's nothing stopping Fëanor from turning around and saying "What do you mean by that?" and I think Mandos would give him an answer if he did - but Fëanor is too absorbed in the Silmarils to even consider what it might mean.

I moreover like the description of how Elves can return from the Halls: But his dooms in such matters are not uttered in haste; and even the most guilty are long tested, whether they may be healed or corrected, before any final doom is given. If an Elf is staying in the Halls permanently, it's not just a matter of their deeds in life, no matter how bad those are, but a matter of them sticking to those deeds and refusing to change or heal even when they're offered the opportunity.

[aventurineswife]

Has anyone done idol Reader, yet? How about virtual idol / vtuber Reader? No? Yes? Nevermind I’ll just go—

Welt and Reader legit looking up the second they hear from March and the Trailblazer that Dan Heng (somehow) landed in Charmony Academy (thanks to Mr. Reca).

Welt: 🥶 *internally panicking becuz he remembers having to dress up in idol attire and praying Dan Heng doesn’t suffer the same fate*

Reader, a veteran idol: 🤩😎 (I’m about to start this bitch’s whole career.) “Okay, but first, you should work on your cloudhymn.”

Dan Heng, a little scared from the way Reader’s looking at him: “Why? Didn’t you say you found Vidyadhara performances bland—?”

Reader: “What? No, none of that fake-ass, arm-waving Azura bs!”

(Azura: a character from Fire Emblem: Fates. Sorry, Azura fans. 😅)

Several weeks later, Dan Heng makes his debut, using cloudhymn to manifest crystal-like ice avatars as his backup dancers.

Something like this: https://youtu.be/LIOTD5ndZEE?si=aWhSqtuzxVuhwyJb

(If the link doesn’t work, search up “Mirage - Takanashi Kiara)

Reader trained him well in choreography, dresses him up in something you’d see with K/DA (something simple, yet form-fitting and accentuating) and Dan Heng goes viral overnight.

Chat is going absolutely nuts with reactions — and ofc the glowsticks.

“HELLO?!?!?!?!?”

“Pretty dragon boiiiiiiiii”

“His scales are so pretty!!!!!!!!”

“That outfit, holy—”

March: “YEAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA DAN HENG!!”

Trailblazer: 👀 “GYATT—”

“AYO PRESS 4”

“Press 4 for gyatt~!”

“Lesgoooooooo”

Firefly: “Go, Dan Heng!!” 🥳

Silver Wolf: “LITERALLY HIS DEBUT AND HE’S ALREADY KILLING IT WTF”

“Isn’t that the guy from the Astral Express??? The archivist—”

“AWOOOOOOOOOO”

“AIN’T NO WAY HE’S A ROOKIE HE HAS TO HAVE PRIOR EXPERIENCE”

“Does he have an old identity?”

Then Guinaifen comes across Dan Heng’s debut and shares it with Sushang, which then spreads to the Cloud Knights and then the rest of the Xianzhou—

And now Dan Heng has such a strong following among the Xianzhou’s younger audiences that when one of the older folks tries to point out Dan Heng’s old criminal background as Dan Feng, the previous Imbibitor Lunae, they’re only met with confusion — and maybe some mild annoyance like “Shaddup and let me be a degenerate.”

THIS. THIS RIGHT HERE IS ART.

Virtual Idol/Vtuber Reader dragging Dan Heng kicking and screaming into the glittery chaos of Charmony stardom is hands-down one of the best takes I’ve ever seen. Idol AU readers exist, sure—but virtual idol mentor Reader who trains a reluctant yet surprisingly graceful Dan Heng into an overnight sensation? Peak. Fiction.

Welt is not okay. The moment he hears “Charmony Academy,” he starts sweating bullets and praying Dan Heng doesn’t end up doing a Magical Girl transformation live on stage like he once did. Reader, meanwhile, sees this as an opportunity to unleash the dragon’s true potential.

“Work on your cloudhymn.”

“Why? Didn’t you say—?”

“None of that fake-ass arm-waving Azura BS.”

(Azura catching stray bullets from across universes like: wh–)

Then BAM: several weeks later Dan Heng emerges as a full-blown idol menace with shimmering crystal constructs backing him up, his outfit looking like a cross between K/DA, Final Fantasy elegance, and just enough skin to cause a social media meltdown. And it's not even Reader doing the performance—Dan Heng’s just that powerful when pushed by the right mentor.

The chat reactions are killing me:

"PRETTY DRAGON BOIIIIIIII"

"Gyatt" / "Press 4 for gyatt" is SO unnecessarily accurate. I’m in tears.

“Doesn’t he have an old identity—”

“Shaddup and let me be a degenerate.” So real for that.

The entire Xianzhou population now divided into:

Loyal old heads going, “But Dan Feng—”

Teens/young adults simping over Dan Heng doing hip rolls and cloudhymn twirls.

You know Yukong, Jing Yuan, and Fu Xuan are somewhere in the background watching this whole thing unfold like it’s a slow car crash they can’t stop. Fu Xuan 100% has her hands over her face groaning, but peeks through her fingers.

Jing Yuan: “Oh, he’s actually quite good…”

Blade, watching a holo-screen in silence: “…He didn’t do that when he was Dan Feng...”

Please tell me there's going to be merch. A gacha collab. Hologram concerts. Glowstick sales.

[jordan-the-pious]

Welcome

Hello my children. I am Jordan, many of you may know me. Sydney told me to make this account so that I could directly interact with you all and save your souls. Please use my "asking box" as a virtual confessional booth, and lay your sins bare so that they may be forgiven.

:OOC:

hi hello i decided to jump on this train cuz it seems so fun!!! Person behind this account is 21, so go nuts. Minors DNI if I catch you I will block you and I WILL be checking ;)

but yeah! have fun! i think my Jordan will be sorta both genders, so if you want a specific one to respond just make some sort of note in the ask otherwise I'll choose or I'll just leave them neutral! yeah!

DMs are open and encouraged! If you wanna do something fun with your character, reach out! If you wanna check if content is ok, reach out! If you wanna tell me how funny I am, reach out! I love talking about all of those things!

I am a full time student in my senior year of college, so I do get very busy. I am going to do my best to keep the queue stocked so y’all don’t run out of content, but things happen. This also means I might not get things posted as soon as you send the ask, and that it might end up being a bit before I can respond to DMs. I promise you I will get to them ASAP!!!!!!!

LINK TO THE BRIAR X JORDAN MASTER POST!!

https://www.tumblr.com/jordan-the-pious/740441605739315200/ooc

[kuramirocket]

"Primo," which premieres Friday on Amazon’s free streaming service, Freevee, formerly IMDb TV, is based on the life of journalist and author Shea Serrano, 41. He's the author of bestselling pop culture and sports books, including “The Rap Year Book” and “Basketball (and Other Things)” — former President Barack Obama chose the latter as one of his favorite reads in 2017. Both books were turned into docuseries for AMC and Hulu.

"Primo" follows Rafa, a young Mexican American high school student as he balances cultural norms, college aspirations, societal expectations and the hectic home life of being raised by his single mom and his five uncles, all with very different lives and perspectives on manhood.

Serrano, the first Mexican American to be a four-time New York Times bestselling writer, is one of "Primo's" showrunners and creators.

“I hope people, when they watch it, they just feel good and warm and demand 30 more seasons of it," said Serrano, who's also a screenwriter, podcaster and former teacher. “When we were writing the show, like, let’s just make it as specific as possible. And then let’s get a bunch of really talented people, make some room for them and let them go nuts."

In a virtual interview, Serrano said that while the show is based on a Latino character, it's not about having “to say that the family is Latino.”

“We were very aware of what we were wanting to do, and a lot of this stuff is, like, we don’t need to say every single thing; we just will exist, and it’ll be better that way," he said.

Serrano recently signed a television deal with Amazon Studios, the studio behind "Primo," to develop an original and limited podcast series.

He is also behind Netflix’s comedy series "Neon," as well as "Miguel Wants to Fight," his first feature film, which will premiere on Hulu this year. 

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