#like thats the vibes even if he IS incredibly intelligent

[cinnabeat]

I FIGURED OUT WHY I LIKE RANPO AND HATE DAZAI

[cherry-bomb-ships]

Ruby's F/o Tournament - Round 1 - Match 7

Vote based on whatever criteria you see fit; either the character you prefer, or ship you prefer, or even whoever you like the vibe of more! Propaganda below the cut. May the best f/o win! 🩵💜💚

Ace Ventura

This f/o has received no propaganda.

Notes from Ruby: Ace is a very fun f/o to me, for obvious reasons; he's just incredibly silly and always doing something ridiculous in small or big ways. The reason I love him so much for that is because he doesn't do so to make others laugh - in fact he's usually annoying people around him - but he's doing all of it just to entertain himself, and there's just something so powerful about that. Plus, he's actually an incredibly intelligent detective and cares so much for all animals! 🩵🩵🩵

The Grinch

This f/o has received no propaganda.

Notes from Ruby: I don't think the Grinch needs any type of introduction... but I'll try anyway! Sure, he may be a wretched creature that has an entire three-minute song just describing all of the ways that he's rude, mean, nasty and plain unenjoyable to be around. But that's what he's known for! Thats why we love him! And even the most vile of creatures deserve some love! 💚💚💚

Its not too late! Click here to submit propaganda for any f/o(s)!

[mejomonster]

Huai dao lb: still in chapter 1 (i know). Su Junzi and Sheng Yao are definitely idea templates that possibly inspired Luo Wenzhou and Fei Du. Su Junzi: family man, good father, older than 20s, friendly but able to be sharp, protective of people he cares about. Sheng Yao: description is a more everyday version of Fei Du with peach blossom eyes and being young and extremely flirty and provacative. Both of them have an easy dynamic bounce off of each other (and Yang-jie... which i guess if u stretch it couldve been using some generic Tao Ran traits). Thats not to say these arent unique characters. Priests pretty good even in this story, with making characters feel instantly Their Own character. So like, i mean generic in the sense that like... a lot of crime mystery danmei novels have characters with X trait. You have investigators who wont stop working even when injured (Shen Yexi in this, Tao Ran in Modu, protagonist in In The Dark, protagonist in Poyun, etc). You have beautiful playboy flirtatious types (sheng yao in this, fei du, zhao yunlan in guardian, protagonist in In The Dark). So what I mean is like... sheng yao isnt fei du 1.0. But its clear priest liked the key traits of flirty and young and beautiful, and decided to use them again for Fei Du and go more in depth to the extremes those traits might exist in.

For example like. Fei Du is flirtatious but its to maintain a persona as if he is like Zhang Donglai. His flirtation is motivated very little by spontaneous pleasure seeking, except maybe in a desire to be foolish and self destructive like Normal People and feel Normal and not a monster like Zhang Donglai. His flirtatiousness is dangerous, his youth is weaponized, his incredible wealth creates a power dynamic placing him in strength to be above pretty much the entire police force. Fei Du is incredibly intelligent and obsessive and strives to know as much as he can to manipulate enviornments hes in. Versus Sheng Yao here, who at least initial impressions is an average intelligence average wage cop whos a newbie and likes to have fun with life, who very much has no special preparation or obsession with his work beyond his colleagues. Su Junzi has some traits which will be utilized in Luo Wenzhou: extremely loving, protective of people he cares for, older in a parental role, easy going and forgiving but also capable of being in charge. But Luo Wenzhous, lets say character flaws or intensities, take those traits to areas I doubt Su Junzi's will go. Luo Wenzhou takes being unable to help a victim so personally he tries to save them, tries to interfere in their life, when its unprofessional and likely against recommendation - fei du. He comes from a priviledged family with influence over the police, so hes outspoken and brave to authority out of a knowledge he has some armor and therefore can afford to Push to better help his coworkers and civilians. Also means he can afford to bend rules/orders to his needs with less fear of obstruction or being restrained. His obsession with keeping loved ones safe, and failing innocent ppl, means hes full on afraid to start a real family. He crushes on a straight man (who is emotionally unavailable and also pushing romance away) to avoid the possibility of getting super close to someone he could let down, he considers tao ran a surrogate partner and fei du a surrogate kid to both justify his intense protectiveness (that can go controlling at times) and to give an artificial boundary for why they cant be even Closer as a lover. Luo Wenzhou takes those common traits of protective, family man, friendly but authoritative, to some extreme places (also no doubt a contributing factor to him and fei dus ongoing daddy kink).

Anyway. I am curious how sheng yao and su junzi will be even more distinct as things go on.

Also Jiang Hu... is giving very curious vibes. Not particularly similar to Guo Changcheng after all. Maybe more like L from death note if anything? Distinctly mm off compared to other psychologists Shen Yexi has met but not in a bad way. Its giving messy young man (L) who is probably more intelligent than the unorthodox behavior which is indicating amateur. Meaning either a. Jiang Hu's just a bit of an oddball (valid and very L like), or hes hiding a bit/giving off a persona on purpose (which would be more Shen Wei has a secret identity and motive Like).

[quarthly]

Twilight characters as random animals that I think are oddly fitting

(Also yes, I am roasting the animals as well)

Edward: He would be a Cheetah. Now I know, seems like a cop out just because of his speed but hear me out. Cheetahs are, at face value, pretty cool. They used to be my favorite animal as a child, but then I grew up.

Cheetahs, through no fault of their own, are severely inbred. Now thats mainly because of poaching, but the cheetas anxiety also comes into play. In captivity, cheetahs are usually given emotional support dogs. I will admit it is cute but it negatively affects the population. Excluding one in the wild, cheetas can be to anxious to breed and thats not good for conservation efforts.

Cheetahs can hit up to 80 miles per hour in a couple of seconds. They are designed for fast running and agility. Their claws are similar to that of a dogs for better traction and they have elongated spines for longer strides. They have a thin build, long legs and a long tail for balance.

This has downsides though. Many times after making a kill, it will get stolen for them by larger predators. Thats right, they get absolutely bodied by the other animals. I should probably make these shorter but I'm on a rant now, so I guess this will be semi educational.

Throughout the series, we see Edward over estimated his abilities and value, constantly getting bodied by others. He's essentially a perfect mormon, though thats on S'meyers. He constantly judges others, dehumanizing them to their baser flaws, without doing any self reflecting. Him viewing himself as a monster doesn't really count to me. While he definitely hates himself, the only thing he is truly demonizing is being a vampire.

Bella: Picking up from Edwards, Bella is a Chocolate Labrador. Yes, she is his therapy dog. I feel like this is really fitting for her. I know Golden retriever would make more sense, as thats the most common breed for service animals. However, I kind of focused on her appearance. Only at first though! I just know that Edward raved about her human qualities and that would pass over as animals as well. Her chocolate eyes and brown fur, very average and boring. Thats essentially Bella. Even Edward wasn't into her until he got a wiff. Labradors a very loyal dogs and while they have more personality than Bella, I just couldn't shake it. Their also very stupid. Ok that's kind of mean, they're not stupid but when it comes to love, then yeah they are stupid.

I used to have a lab, loved him to death, but god he was something else. Very much danger prone, from their own stupidity or their lack of survival instincts. I know that labs are almost aquatic. They love water, swimming, all that jazz. We can just say that bella has a few screws loose in her dna and is just "not like other labs."

Rosalie: Now she was hard. There are quite a few animals that I think would fit for her. I'll list the other ones, but that one I went with is the Swan. Like Edward, seems a little on the nose, but I have my reasoning.

I was going to pick a predator for her, as she is shown to be very vengeful and viscous. I would have pick some type of cat, most likely a purebred, from a rich family. It could still work, but the swan just speaks to me on this one.

Swan's are known for being beautiful, graceful, and are pictured as the symbol of love. They are also very vain. Edward constantly brings up Rosalies vanity. She was constantly valued for her beauty as a human, so of course that crossed over in the transformation. She was raised to be married into wealth, she was used as a bargaining chip to increase the family's standing.

Rose has a very strong character and makes her opinions known. She's assertive and aggressive at times. She's not afraid to get dirty.

Swans mate for life and like geese, are known for being great parents. I was also going to choose geese as an option for the maternal instincts. I was wary at first because swans can be really aggressive. Like actually, you think geece are bad? Yikes bestie...

I was conflicted because swans are known for drowning dogs and sometimes people. However, I can actually see Rose drowning Bella. It's not that unbelievable lmao.

Emmett: Now this one is just ironic. I only associate him with bears. Its inevitable, but picking a Grizzly or Black bear is too obvious. So I went a slightly different route...

So I was going to pick the Sun bear just because of looks alone. Like, I'm not exaggerating, it looks like someone wearing a bear costume. I don't think it fits him but I know for a fact that he would dress up as a sun bear and sneak into a zoo to see if anyone would notice. I'll put a pic of it here

Like look at this thing. I have no words...

Anyway, what I picked was a Sloth Bear. Now Sloth bears are mostly nocturnal, which either way works consider vamps don't sleep. Their diet is also odd but honestly so is the cullens. They're native to the Indian subcontinent, and are known for being aggressive towards humans. Its said that for the most part they're pretty calm, so I think its just fear of humans that make them act aggressively. Honestly, that's a good thing because they are listed as vulnerable on the IUCN Red list.

They have some similarities with sloths, which is where they get the name. They have long claws and unusual teeth. They are known to hang upside down from tree branches, and is described as having a messy appearance. Honestly, Emmitt has a messy personality. Sorry bestie but you're a lot of work.

Now heres the biggest reason for choosing this bear. Aside from Baloo from the jungle book being a sloth bear, they are known to run fades with Tigers. Honestly, how fucking badass is that!? Now I don't think there are recorded instances of a Sloth bear killing a Tiger, but when push comes to shove, they can hold their own and I find that incredibly impressive.

Carlisle: This one was somehow the easiest as well as the toughest. I know Owl seems like the obvious choice, and I can see it. However, I believe Carlisle values emotional intelligence as much or if not more than academic intelligence. He is so charismatic and values other's above himself. He might not be as Saint like as Edward thinks, but he does try and I think he genuinely cares about others. For that reason alone, I choose a Elephant.

Elephant's are very social animals and are extremely intelligent. I could rave about them for ages, I love them so much.

Now elephants live in a familial unit and are usually matriarchal. Bulls usually are on the outer edges of the herd or form little groups with other males. Honestly, they're not that bad aside from when their in musk.

In the group of males, the elder ones will teach the younger where to get the best food, water, how to use things as tools, and every other thing that will increase their odds of survival. This is really cute to me tbh, they do this because the females usually choose the older males because they've proved that they are intelligent and strong, that they have survived and will continue to for awhile. Teaching the younger males these things are to make the odds of them getting chosen to mate more likely. The whole unit just reminds me of a father that has to deal with rowdy teens.

Carlisle likes to take in strays, he might not have a herd but he will make one and teach them to thrive. That's how he envisions it anyway. He just has a found family and is trying his best.

Esme: Now this might seem like an insult, but I promise it's not! This is in no way misogynistic. I love cattle and ever since I took animal science in highschool, I have appreciated these grass puppies like they deserve. Call me Castro because I love cows.

Yup! I chose a Cow for her. Specifically a beef cow. That might sound weird but its because beef cows have higher maternal instinct than dairy cows. I'm thinking Scottish Highland based on vibes alone.

They are nicknamed the Gentle Giants of Scotland. Super maternal and sweet and ugh look how cute they are!

Esme came from a abusive marriage and had just lost her child, she was depressed and desperate. Her changing was, in a way, salvation. She just fits in. She adopts all these strays along with him and will protect them to the death. She might be gentle by nature, but don't fuck with her family. She lost her first one and she isn't going to lose this one.

Alice: She's an odd one. There are so many possibilities and maybe I'm biased, but I feel like she would be a Crow.

Ok listen, I'm definitely biased but it just feels right. Crows get a bad rap, they are so cool! They are so intelligent and have the ability to actually sit and think about the past, prest, and future. I forget what its called, but this was only seem in humans! Maybe other apes, I can't remember exactly, but either way its awesome. They do live in groups, or murders, and remember people and faces. They remember locations and are able to pass down information through generations. They essentially have their own language! They are able to use tools too!

Alice's story is really sad. When we first meets her, it revolves around the death of her mother and her institutionalized. She was essentially tortured and forgot everything from her past. All she had was the future and even that wasn't constant. Crows a often viewed as omens, they are associated with death. I personally believe that instead of being the cause, they just know something is going to happen. They are very inquisitive and can be creative.

If you befriend a murder of crows, sometimes, depends or the group, they will bring gifts. Its can range from food to shiny metals and colorful plastic. Hell, I think I've seen a post of one stealing things from people just to gift it to their human.

Alice's love language is gifts. Even if they are focused around fashion, she still goes out of her way to get something that will look good and at least be a little comfortable. By that I mean she tends to forget peoples comfort zones, but she means well.

Jasper: Honestly not to sure what to put for him. I know a predator would be more fitting, but for some reason I can see a donkey working. I know, seems like I'm clowning on the confederate. Fair, but I'm serious about the donkey thing. Honestly, it would be perfect if it wasn't a herbivore. Porcupine would also work.

Being a predator would make more sense. Given his backstory and his characterization, it wouldn't make sense for him to be a prey animal. Usually I wouldn't count this, but given his gore filled past and trouble with the diet, it seemed fitting.

I see him as a Big Cat. Honestly, vamps in general just give cat vibes. Jasper though especially have some cat like qualities, which originates from hunting and being a soldier.

I specifically see him as a Mountain Lion. Aside from him being blonde, he just has the predatory stealth to him. In midnight sun, we see him use his gift to make the nomads overlook him. He's honestly really powerful.

Mountain lions are known for being stealthy with an air of grace and power to them. They are stong animals. And I mean strong. They can jump 40-45 feet.

They're very elusive and quite. They stalk their prey and tend to attack from behind but don't think they won't hold their ground if need be.

Jasper was changed during the Civil War and forced to fight in the Newborn wars. He was a soldier as a human and as a vampire. He's able to feel and manipulate others emotions. He's covered in scars and is very intimidating.

He still struggles with the diet and honestly I hate how the others handle it. Like they have no room to talk. I don't want to defend the confederate but it just pisses me off. He has to deal with his hunger on top of everyone else's. Like damn, besties always on edge! Everyone doubts him which I don't think helps any.

Also, Mountain lions and Cheetahs can purr!

@aquanova99 I'll do a Volturi one too. That one will be fun lmao

[growling]

@alfiely-art :333333 idk how well this'll be articulated but heres the kiibo moments/traits that made me think "the woke agenda is turning computers into narcissists":

Hardly ever passes up the opportunity to boast about himself and his "amazing" functions and how unique and special he truly is, expects/wants others to admire his abilities, etc. While also being very fragile abt this. He is Exceptional and confident until somebody denies this or doesn't act impressed at all and he gets very upset, and outright offended at Saihara implying he's "normal"

Low empathy, doesn't really "get" most of other's emotions (or sometimes just doesn't care) during the killing game and often says inappropriate things at wrong times due to it

That one Souda + Kiibo interaction in the UTDP where Souda just starts poking and harassing him over being a robot, and Kiibo is offended up until the moment Souda exclaims that he's amazing and compliments his functions, to which Kiibo drops every ounce of anger he had in his body and with with his most emotional, tearing-up-but-like-dryly sprite says quote "o-oh… oh my… th-this is the first time anyone has ever understood just how incredible i am…! if i had the ability to cry… i would be weeping twin waterfalls of joy right now!" (of course Souda screws that up like 0.002 seconds later, though)

The. The Kiibo FTE's finale. you know what I'll just paste it on here first.

kiibo: thank you so much! I'm truly grateful… To think I'd feel such gratitute toward you… What a serendipitous miscalculation. saihara: hardly, kiibo. You were the onr who told me that only I could help you. kiibo: oh, that was a logical decision on my part. Because… It's dangerous to expose your weaknesses to an equal, but not to someone who is beneath you. saihara:… :/ [internally: so thats why he was always talking down to me!] kiibo: but our relationship is different now. I feel that you an I are equals… No, I have decided that we are equals, due to our special relationship. Ah, yes. This probably intuition.

^^^^^continuing from this, re: Kiibo apparently perceiving Saihara as inferior to him up until they get that close enough, and beforehand giving off the vibes of instead viewing him as a source of supply (basically meaning anything that keeps your ego high and boosts it, can be anything like words of affirmation, gifts, touch, compliments, it really varies on the person. not having enough supply can lead to a npd crash, kinda like a breakdown) -- after all Saihara really did (aside from uh Iruma) compliment and affirm him the most out of the cast ("you really are the ultimate robot" / "you should think of yourself as merely 'ordinary'") -- before starting to see him as an outright equal. which btw is in my opinion the highest honor a narcissist can bestow that I'm unsure if Saihara is deserving of but. anyway.

smaller detail than the former two, but that one moment before his FTE's when he's upset over his lab being sci-fi themed, and upon noticing Saihara "seeming rather unperturbed by this" he took, like, GREAT offense to this. Don't u care about me Saihara can't you see how much I'm suffering right now and you jsut idly stand aside and watch .

In the FTE's got real preoccupied with his expectations/fantasies of his ideal perfect Miscallenous Robot Business Plan that's definitely gonna happen easily and give him tons of Recognition and Affirmation He's Not ""Ordinary"" <- happens to the best of us sighing emoji thats like in the diagnostic criteria lmao. He does everything in his power to be "more than just an ordinary robot" like going as far as to literally wanting to rewrite his backstory to be more tragic cause its not Interesting enough apparently.

this might go into headcanon territory (i don't remember most his v3 scenes very clearly) but he gives off the vibes of feeling like he's more intelligent or just better than everybody else in the killing game which might not even be a stretch to declare true i mean have you seen half of these assholes

suffered more than jesus christ on the cross

It's so heartwarming how professor Iidabashi in a truly commendable show of his support for neurodivergent people and destigmatization of mental disorders chose to intentionally program npd traits in his robot son

[dasibom]

hi alina! who do you think is the prettiest in shinee and why is it all of them👀? also I hope you're having a great day💖

IT IS ALL OF THEM! i already answered one shinee so i'll talk about all of them... wow this turned out very long but i guess i just had a lot to say?

first off jinki! i didn't really start paying attention to him until recently but he's very good looking.. 😳 strong arms i find it very cool he just does wood work thats a real cool hand craft. we love a multi talented man. love his smile too, the eye smile!!!! and he has a very comforting presence to me, i do love his lame jokes as well 🥺🥺 he takes great care of shinee and everyone around him! you can really see it in how people interact with him 🥺

okay now jjong... motherfucker his energy... he goes on stage does his sexy little (sometimes a little homoerotic which is cool very much respect thats the vibe) dances and that's amazing and you just CAN'T look away. then THE EMOTION AND FRAGILITY AND CERTAIN KIND OF OPENESS HE CAN PUT INTO HIS WORK AND PERFORMANCE! his writing is just out of this world and not only can he do a real good pop song a cool little banger he can also do the most vulnerable and beautiful and sincere shit out there in the industry. like having that kind of mind is just extremely sexy to me. obviously this goes for all of the artists that have been influential and a source of comfort and security and acceptance growing up but i simply feel so lucky and grateful to have witnessed his work. to have existed at the same time as him. it's still hard to talk about how influential he and his art has been for me but i genuinely think i would not be the person i am if he hadn't been part of my life. i love all parts of him and i wish that i'll be able to talk about him openly in the future because he was such a wonderful human and i think everyone should know it.

kibum!! my beloved!! he's one of those idols i wish i could like have a conversation with!! i would love to hear what he thinks about so many things. and from what i have seen of him he seems incredibly emotionally intelligent. his fashion sense is really good i really admire that. also how he's literally designed clothes? made art that made it to a shinee album cover? is there anything this man can't do? while he was in the army i missed him so much, just him on amazing saturday every week, he posting his instagram posts, having lives, being with the rest of shinee. he's always so supportive of all of his members and friends and colleagues in the industry and it's wonderful to see.

minho... he is full of love. i want to tell him that he is loved. the way you cannot help but smile when you see him and love him. there is just something about him i CANNOT describe, i have no words for it. he is also so beautiful!!! his smile makes me feel warm inside. he keeps posting on instagram at 5.25 TELL ME THAT ISN'T THE MOST ADORABLE THING YOU'VE EVER HEARD!!! all these small things 🥺 getting gifts for his members, coming straight from being discharged to taemins back room at a music show!! just to name a few recent things... also how he is with children ❣️ it's so adorable its so cute and the kids also LOVE him like you can really tell a lot from a person from that. if he ever has children he will make a great dad and i'll support him 100%. i also have to say that he's so underappreciated as a singer just listen to i'm home. there's so much affection i have for this man.

oh taemin oh my god i miss him so bad. obviously we have many years of age difference but it has felt like i've grown up with him. the beauty he puts into everything he does is so incredible!!! it's so beautiful how he inspires people too like which idol isn't inspired by him? he's so hard working i can't believe it. i don't think he's that popular and loved for nothing. he's come so far from not even having his voice recorded on replay to having one of the most successful and long solo careers (obviously while being incredibly popular in shinee too). even how in the recent years he's started writing his own lyrics which just makes me so proud. something else that just fjdudolsheheh makes me feel feelings is how he always keeps his art very genderless and wants to break the gender roles and expectations. he's truly been, might i say, paving the way, for (especially sm emts) solo artists and especially idols focused in dancing... i am so incredibly proud of him and i admire him and his hard work and love for what he does. i miss him already and i hope that he's doing well and having fun. i do also worry for him a little, he works so much and now he went straight from promotions to the army like pls take a holiday 😖 he's worked so hard, non stop, since he was a child and come so far, he really deserves to take a moment to rest. i miss this silly little man i miss his lives i miss seeing him say weird things i miss seeing him performing and i'm so thankful that he shares his art with us. he deserves every bit of his success and achievements and above all, happiness.

this answer got a little long i just felt like talking about shinee a little <3 thank u sm alex for sending me this ask thinking about shinee was very nice ❣️���

[zinzinina]

Hello Sam my beloved!!!!💕 Congrats on your 500 followers! Thats amazing and your writing is so fantastic and you're so sweet, you deserve them all!!🎉🎉 💕💕

I would like to apply to your matchmaking service please 😌

If I was an animal, I would be a housecat who gets waited on and spoiled and just sits and judges everyone.

My ideal night out would be going out with friends to a pub or bar with live music and good food and drinks! My ideal day in involves sleeping in and staying in bed all day relaxing.

Three main qualities I look for are humour, good morals/caring about the same issues as me, and intelligence

A song to listen to while planning my date: Rasputin by Boney M is the exact vibe any date of mine needs to have (or every other freckle by alt j if you want a serious answer I GUESS)

My personal idea of hell is going to a restaurant and them being out of garlic bread. Alternatively: being stuck in a room with some entitled guy who likes to play devils advocate and wants to debate you and mansplains women's issues to you lmfao

Congrats again my friend!!! 💕

-@mandaloriandin

Hi Kylie! Here’s your match:

Wolffe is sometimes misunderstood. His moral code is central to who he is, but he isn’t as inflexible as you might think. He’s a smart man and he believes in educating and challenging himself; even when it’s scary, or others may not see where he’s coming from. He’s very much a secret softie. His sense of humour can be a bit gruff (and friends might think of it as affectionate bullying at times) but he’s one of the most fiercely loyal men in the galaxy when it comes to defending his loved ones. Break down those barriers with him and you’ll have a partner who’d go to the ends of the known universe for you. Oh, and uh, he matches the vibe of your alt-J song perfectly if you get my drift. He would very much like to devour you.

For your date, I’m sending you somewhere a little more luxe. You see, Wolffe likes his creature comforts. If he had money, he’d definitely have expensive taste (but for now he settles for freshly customised armour). Lucky for you both, I’m footing the bill!* So you’re off to the extremely exclusive spa resort in one of the orbiting station-cities off the surface of Ojom. Your Besalisk attendants are known the galaxy over for their massage skills, and when the two of you are feeling truly pampered, you’ll find your suite has the most incredible views of the moonrise. The surface of Ojom is ice, so the reflections of the light are all you’ll need to illuminate the space — just the two of you, and plenty of free time.

Thank you for using Sam’s Star Wars Matchmaking Service™️! *Costs not included. Bill will be charged at the end of your stay. May the Spires Keep You!

[maniacalmagician]

EVERHOOD: Pinocchio in Psychedelic Purgatory: the Rock Opera Adventure. OR: I walked backwards into hell, and felt euphoria as I became privvy to the Divine Truths

Hello tumblr people. I’ve been Away. I played a game recently and I wanted to talk about it.   damnit i really wanted to put pictures into this mini essay. ive been away from this garbage site for too long, i dont know how to do it lol.  ok anyway    First, I want to say to the developers and anyone else that this has quickly become one of my all time favorite games. Currently writing I have personally never felt a greater emotional attachment to an experience with a piece of software. Perhaps it is the extreme idiosyncratic nature of it, perhaps it is the deeply intriguing storyline, mostly however it is a combination of those in addition to some of the most outstanding psychedelic visuals I have ever seen, particularly in the finale sequence, and a killer soundtrack that combines many genres but focuses mostly to being as bangers as possible. I will be upfront and say this game comes with a boatload of trigger warnings, and thus the aforementioned idiosyncratic nature of it may not appeal to everyone, however I feel it necessary to indicate potential content warnings here as I would hate for people to be triggered: epilepsy is the big one, I myself have mild stutter based epilepsy and it didn't cause health problems or anything but my case is not universal. Anyway. That is a hard warning on epilepsy. I do it because The Incredibles 2 did not, lmao (that's an example of the kind of visuals that trigger me personally. An aside ) Other things include (spoilers): arachnophobia, misophonia (screeches, unsettling sounds), themes of death, immortality, suicide. Some game mechanics are not immediately intuitive and puzzles require some pretty clever but sometimes obtuse solutions. Direction is not always super clear either. People have complained of performance issues but I am leaving this review after playing the switch port, which played smoothly other than some awkwardly long loading times here and there. What I have played of PC so far runs smooth but as of writing, performance for me was fine (my pc is a lowend budget build). There is a difficulty to it. Even playing on easier modes, it can be quite unforgiving. If you're a fan of hard games (I am but I suck at them) and rhythm games (this is, uh, Not? That? Almost functions as half walking sim, half rhythm Game, dodgy shoot em up kinda feels. Truly unique gameplay I think. Constantly switches things up, too. But yes I also adore rhythm games, and yes i also do suck at those too.), half of it is that. The devs troll you with puzzles. It's truly a wild experience as it advertises, one of a kind. And yet, however.... This game wears, much like its heart,, its references, on its sleeve. If you are not into that kind of thing, you will probably be annoyed by this game. It also loves to delv into meta, as many puzzles and interactions are references to the UI of the game itself. Personally, I'm not wild about meta but I appreciate the ernestness here, so I'm willing to roll with whatever this game throws at me because every turn feels unexpected, fresh, funky, somber, and wildly intelligent, with boldly sincere ludonarrative choices, script and art direction. If you like Geno from super Mario Brothers, which, guess what, narrator here LOVES Geno from Super Mario Brothers, this is functionally the game you've always wanted that Nintendo could never make because Square has held Geno hostage in some kind of underground torture facility since 1995. Turns out they were rather right to do so, because when that puppet is out serving a higher authroity, he can be quite dangerous. Narrarively it borrows much from its sources but I would argue there's proof the writers have spent time thinking about the implications of their source materials worlds, and that reflection casts itself back to create this, experience that is wholly unique even if we know Red is Geno and "Gaster" (who was based on Uboa from Yume Nikki or princess mononokes forest spirits), and some kind of disco Marceline character who changes their identity frequently, skeleton brothers- well undead brothers, really - We have to remember in the creation and consumption of media sometimes, influences and archetypes are ever present and Everhood almost itself is a realm that would indulge in the idea of self referential material. It makes for this very Jungian experience of friendly archetypes we're familiar with, which works well with this setting of an immortal realm. Thats not to say the personalities we do meet aren't expounded upon - they are, heavily, and become uniquely their own. (Spoiler) if my theory is to be believed this world is a purgatory where people have made their own artificial vessels and as time has made them bored (though some seem to be having a good time) while typical strains of the Pinocchio myth are thrown in about questions of identity and death - and probably even more so towards Timothy Learys concept of the Ego Death, or the return to the collective soup of unconcious being. Undertale will probably always be a reccomendation even by its own reference to it so comparisons to it will be littered through here. It feels like the developers were emboldened by Toby Foxs spirit in game development (his creative energy is rather infectious) and shared many similar ideas, but this feels far more aimed towards a maturer audience (references to the things I mentioned in the trigger warning list) and focused on achieving this feeling that its predecesors have as well. Yume nikki. Lisa. Earthbound. Toby's games. super Mario rpg in its humor, Cat Soup in its psychedellic depressive vibes, all this cool indie cult classicy kinda mash up soup.  bizarre antics and then these characters who have surprising depth the further you go. It has been 6 years since Undertale came out, and the developers for Everhood have called a lot of the "what ifs" that fans of that game ask, an answer in their own game. (What if No Mercy was forced, for example? What if going against destiny is the wrong thing to do? Why is Death such a Bad Thing? etc!) And the further along you progress, the smarter the story gets, the more complex the narrative threads and characters. This game knows how to write compelling literature and that wasn't an element I expecting but god am I so glad for it. Literally my pea brain saw Red's design flipping around some frets on a streamers videocapture (shoutout to based fellow tampa native Charles White, thank you for being witty and having good taste and your Floridian comisery.) one night and went "oh i like." But the experience I got in exchange was, so, so much more than that (but the tetris effect won't let that image disappear from my eyelids quite yet haha.) I hear there are multiple endings and one requires a 3 hour long trek. I'm not done with the game at the time of reviewing. You bet your sweet ass I am going to find out the Ultimate Truth. I found a way to deal with some of the bullshit in other games, I may not be great at games but I want to see whatever imagery these guys put on screen so it compels me to seek out all the alternative routes. I am going to be following these developers projects very closely. If this is their debut, their next project will be ... ... I would hate to force expectations, like if you just made a magnum opus like this it'd be perfectly alright to retire, but I just once again want to say thank you to the developers for putting your heart on display for the world to see. I see it. I have dealt with struggles similar to the ones in the stories this game articulates about anxiety and depression, existentialism and dread, dissociation and all the heavy themes that were risky to include narratively - I'm certaintly glad you took the risks you did. May update this review as I get further along the story but yeah. Tl;dr: haha pinocchio myth done well make brain go brrr. 9.99999999999998/10. I am taking an infitisimal fraction of a point off because of the ♥♥♥♥♥♥♥ spider in the monster maze. that thing was abhorrent, but I won't let it deter anyone else who wants to play.

[techni-kolor]

May I propose Web!Sasha ???

Bear with me, it's 2am, BUT I have thoughts??? (And I apologize if this is incoherent)

First off, Sasha is shown as being a fairly chill overall, she's not neurotic like Jon, or anxious like Martin, or even extraordinarily social like Tim. But she is INTELLIGENT. Massively intelligent from what we can gather from the podcast. Ex. Working with highly dangerous artefacts without injuries (that we know about), being able to hack into almost anything, working in the Research department in general.

And secondly, DETAILED. Incrediblely, indisputably detailed. Ex. Spotting the single frame of the eye in the case of Gerry's disappearance, checking the path through the 3 counties and finding that it wasn't at all possible to go that way, multiple accounts of reading through police reports.

Both traits of what we have seen of The Web, and things associated with it.

And I know that the popular idea is Spiral!Sasha which I very much enjoy!

But how important could it have been that Sasha was secretly an agent of The Web (avatar or simply aligned with it) ?

Well it could be the reason she had been meeting with The Distortion. Because The Distortion knew that she was going to have a major impact in any way that the events played out and that it wanted to have a hand in it. And preying on her inate curiosity and affinity for secrets (that we have seen in the past with her hacking into the institute's server to figure out that Martin lied on his CV) it sought to influence her in its way with those secret meetings.

She ALSO was close to Jon, being one of the people he at least seemed to tolerate in the early seasons if not be fond of, and Jon we know has been followed by the Web all of his life, from the leitner, to Annabelle, to him ending up where he was overall, and that of course plays into the bigger picture of everything when you involve The Archivist.

I propose not only could Sasha have been Web!Sasha, but that she was meant to influence Jon and The Archives to the Web agenda and that was then killed off either directly or indirectly by The Spiral (who we know has been in and around the archives, including around dangerous arfecacts before) in order to stop the interference of The Web and further its own agenda in the apocalypse!

First reason! The Spiral and The Stranger, for lack of a better term, (its 2am) have similar vibes. The Distortion being majorly associated with Fake Friends, and The Stranger replacing friends. What's more fake than a friend you thought you loved being someone completely different than who you thought they were? Especially when she was likely the most even keeled of the three assistants and could have majority swayed the events that then occurred with her friendship with Jon. (Thats another post lol)

Second reason! She was killed by an artefact, not just one that combines the powers of the Web and The Stranger, but also the fact that she worked with dangerous arefacts for MONTHS in her career and should have known how to avoid them and at least been able to get out once she realized that it was an extremely dangerous one and instead was almost lead to it (as if she had taken the wrong door somewhere) and was then devoured by it.

Third reason, all of this kicks off bc Jon was trying to kill a SPIDER

(Please forgive me if this makes NO sense but I fell down a bit of a rabbit hole !!!)

And one last thought ?? Maybe the Spiral only killed her after she refused to cooperate with its trickery and that it showing her the guy with the worms (my timeline is a bit shaky here) was almost like a twisted version of a warning ?

[forgedarcana]

Apprentice Malon  Main six / L.I relationships

I was possessed by inspiration and im about to make it everyone elses problem shjdjfhsdhf. but Here’s Mals relationships with major and minor characters, excluding the Arcana.

Asra:  Best friends. Fellow goofballs, They both can go on their odd way with no question from the other. Their vibes just flow well together. Asra is happy to try and teach mal a little more about using magic, and Mal is happy to help man the shop while Asra’s out. She doesnt question his decisions often, assuming that he, like herself, just has his reasons for what and how he does.

Nadia: Tentative Romance. Nadia didnt understand Mal at first. Malon was unrefined, distracted, and hard to comprehend often. But with time, Nadia came to understand Mals hidden language. The why’s to her whats, the roundabout ways things made sense to her, and, how in her own way Mal was still helping, even if Nadia wasnt seeing up front results. It took some time, and many late nights opening up to each other. Likewise, Mal at first struggled with understanding Nadia, with accepting the finer lifestyle. She truly began to bond with Nadia when they came to an understanding about the deeper aspects of eachother, that Nadia was more than money and style, that she was adventurous, creative, intelligent, and incredibly strong, inside and out.

Muriel: Muriel wasnt a fan of Mal at first. Mal was too hands on, too energetic, too much. Her background in the coliseum didnt help much either, despite Asra’s initial thought that maybe it was something they could relate with together. They truly began to get along when Asra’s interventions lessened, letting them adjust to each other naturally.It also helped that Mal got along well with his chickens, and that she responded well to local wildlife. The two of them bonded the most over nature, over herbs and creatures, especially once Mal understood that she had to calm herself a little more around Muriel. Mal tends to relax and open up around Muriel, feeling free of judgement despite his grumpy disposition.

Portia: These two were on special wavelength almost immediately. The moment they began their shenanigans together, the two of them were tight as crossed fingers. Blatantly affectionate, goofy, and curious together, whether Mal romances Nadia, Portia, or the both together, Mal and Portia build a strong bond together. Theres a special tenderness between the two of them, a sort of affectionate calm that theyre allowed to have in private, whether its cuddling at Portias home, talking together in the library, or in the garden, where Mal is making up names for every plant despite knowing each one by name. It gets a laugh, and thats what matters~

Julian: For a while, Malon didnt know how to feel about Julian. Picking up weird vibes between him and Asra, Mal had mixed feelings for a bit. However, upon getting to know him more personally (thanks to a chance meeting at the tavern and a night of drinking, revelry, and shenanigans) Malon and Julian came to be actually decent friends~ She took exceptional interest in his understanding of medicine and science, and his recounting of the plague, and caught him off guard with rather insightful theories about the plague. Most often their time together is spent at the Rowdy Raven, talking, drinking, and most definitely embellishing stories for eachother.

Lucio: Catch these hands, goat man. Okay but truly....Malon is not a fan of him. Never is Mal more contradictory, insufferable, and difficult than when interacting with Lucio. While she not privy to his personal backstory, no matter which route you take with her, she understands that a lot of pain in the people she cares about has been caused by him, and she does not have an interest in redeeming him.

Bonus Round

-Faust: Baby girl. baby. Mal is gonna smooch this little snake. 

-Morga: Mal kinda has a crush on her, in the way one just really gayly admires someone while having no wish to try romancing them. She admires the strength and the straight forwardness of her. Mal is most likely to behave, becoming more honest and straightforward herself in the presence of Morga

-Valerius: oh this man is fucked. He has no issue upending a wine glass all over her, she has no issue dumping the contents of a plate in his lap.

-Volta: Even Mal struggles to understand where all that food goes. More than anything, she’s impressed, but something about Volta still unsettles her.

-Vulgora: Another “catch these hands on sight”. Vulgora activates fight or flight in Mal, but unfortunately She’s more Fight than flight, and she’s about to try making it Vulgora’s problem.

-Valdemar:  Valdemar also unsettles Mal, but her want to learn what they know tends to overpower her apprehension, to their annoyance. There's a part of valdemar that appreciates a curious mind, but nowhere near enough to ever build any form of partnership or long-term interaction between them.

-Vlastomil: Too many worms, even for ‘one with nature’ Malon. He holds the sense of rot and sickness, and like the other courtiers, he brings with him an unsettling feeling that puts Mal on edge.

Other Mc’s:  I dont know, why dont you tell me? 👀👀

[normal-thoughts-official]

I'm ignoring my responsibilities in favor of watching the All Malec Moments video compilation so get ready for a livewatch no one asked for

Hodge is so incredibly wrong about everything he says about Magnus and it's kind of impressive because all he says is heavily supported by the Clave's files, which. Is proof of how great Magnus is at manipulating them and having them think exactly what he wants them to, tbh. Especially considering that as much as Magnus closes off emotionally, he was always very caring and kind to all other downworlders and warlocks, like, they all know they can trust him, he was named HWoB, he has a thousand kids, he took them all into hiding, etc. But the Clave and circle members are still 100% sure he's a super greedy lothario who's good for nothing but partying, and like. Obviously it's because they racist but they have an intelligence system and a file full of pictures and information and it all seems to support what Hodge is saying about him. So like Magnus was quite literally living a double life, with a whole personality he put up for shadowhunters and enemies, and another for his allies and friends, and even that one isnt 100% him because he was still trying to protect himself by closing himself off from relationships. and thats fucking impressive like my man is so smart i love him

Their first official talk is so funny magnus literally goes "I'm magnus" and Alec goes "Alec" and then he smiles and then he just goes. "Oh yeah right we should uh we should go to the hmm youhavebeautifuleyes what's it called hm" and its hilarious because they exchanged three (3) words and Alec is already all lost because Magnus is just That Beautiful. also all Magnus has to do is introduce himself and Alec smiles for the first time in 4 episodes like bro. bro. seriously. help him

he's SO frustrated when Alec doesn't get the "i love a dirty lair" flirt like he does that little eyebrow raise and hes just like "what the hell i thought that was GOOD" but Alec's head is legit playing wii music

Magnus pays izzy for "defending the warlocks" i had forgotten about that and it makes me so soft ;-;

Magnus and Izzy were just vibing with magnus asking her what presents Alec likes and clary immediately interrupts to ask about the memory demon like homophobic from day one i guess

Magnus is positively impressed by the way Clary goes "I'll do anything to save my mother" you can see how much he values loyalty right then have i mentioned that i love him

we talk about the "I'm talking to you" part a lot but we never mention how Magnus just throws that one and yeets off with clary not even waiting for a reaction he's just like that's RIGHT bitch you have beautiful hazel eyes too! do with that what you will i am now summoning a demon goodbye forever

the second him and Clary are away from the rest he tells her not to trust anyone and to be careful, like... ugh he cares so much it's unreal and again very deliberate, flirt a little, give izzy a necklace, throw in some innuendos, make it seem like it's all very innocuous so no one bothers to follow them or listen in when he goes away with Clary alone, and then immediately warn her about the clave when he gets away from the others. like he cares so much and he's so good at keeping that visible only for those he wants to it's astounding, my man is so talented and i hate that he had to learn to do that to survive but god i admire him and how committed he is to helping others too. like he could say "welp who cares it's dangerous imma go fuck off" like ragnor did but not only did he stay but he had a huge vulnerability with all his generosity and he never gave that up not for a second, even as he closed himself off from having any close friends or family or lovers, he never was anything if not generous and kind

the way he deliberately calls Jace shadowhunter in the most uninterested and even lowkey condescending way after the "pretty boy" incident idndjdndi we stan a king

the way Alec and magnus hold hands to summon the demon and even Magnus seems a bit shocked at the intensity of the sound and the bond that they make like. obviously they have their little staring contest and Alec is doing the Lightwood Intensity™ thing but like you can see Magnus frown just slightly and be a little confused because it was so strong right off the bat. even the sound of when they hold hands is louder than when the others do, like you can just feel their connection and the way magnus' magic flows so freely through Alec like god the soulmate energy tbh

Alec has a full body jerk when they hold hands too and he's the only one like damn we get it u 2 r vibin get a room

Izzy going "you ppl are pathetic" straight to the hets is so funny especially after Alec reacted to holding magnus' hand like he had gotten a 1000W electric shock or something. but i get the feel maybe she did that deliberately so they wouldnt pay as much attention to Alec's reaction too

the special effects were truly so bad like we all knew this but damn

Jace is such an asshole like Alec made it to kill the demon because it was you know about to seriously hurt them all and Magnus had just said that he couldn't contain the demon for longer (and like we know that Alec is the only one who ever cared if Magnus overexerted himself out of the shadowhunters but like bro this affects you) and Jace just???? shoved him??????? against the wall???? like a fucking piece of shit??? they should have let valak kill him tbh

the first time magnus calls him Alexander is when he calls Alec to see if he wants a drink and it's just like very clearly a thing that's supposed to be between them two? like he never did it when there were others nearby and i dig that

the fact that when asking Alec out he said "it was nice getting to know you, you seem sympathetic" like he could have gone with a lot of better more flirty adjectives but for a second the truth slipped out and he said what he thought - that while Alec was objectively you know tall and strong and all what really attracted him was the way Alec clearly gave a fuck whether or not Magnus was struggling with his magic to keep the damn demon at bay. and that was before the magic sharing shit too when Alec proved him right by cleaning up his things and saying that he had exerted himself enough for one day. like so many ppl see Magnus as the All Powerful Son Of Asmodeus Who's Also There To Service Shadowhunters and Alec just shows the faintest signs of caring about his wellbeing and he's immediately drawn to him like damn Im sad

also maybe this might be why he asked Alec to come so he could draw from his strength specifically, like he knew from the little hand holding thing that Alec was open and receptive to his magic (which probably adds to the "sympathetic" stuff like the fact that Alec had such an intense reaction to his magic and yet didnt try to push it back or draw away from it basically shows that he's open to Magnus if that makes sense? not only because magic is a part of warlocks but also because shadowhunters are all taught that magic is like, dirty and evil, so it would be instinctive for Alec to be resistant to demonic magic in his body, but he wasn't, he accepted it so readily and intensely it was a shock to the both of them) and also that he cared enough to support him. he kinda had Magnus' back from the beginning, first killing that circle member in the club before Magnus even saw him, then helping Magnus kill the other, then immediately making it to kill the demon when Magnus said he couldn't hold him back for long. like im aware I'm reading too much into this but s1 malec was very kept to the between-the-lines and its very interesting to me to think what Magnus was thinking, even if obviously on a subconscious level. Alec was showing himself to be open, reliable and caring, and magnus values that, and hes attracted to him and he hasnt had that in a while, because he wouldnt allow himself, but now he's healing and the pull he feels when he finally gets that while being emotionally available enough to accept these little gestures of caring is really strong. love that for him tbh

i go FERAL over everything about the magic sharing shit okay i always have. the way alec shows up and Magnus is kind of falling over, exhausted from trying to hold onto luke, and Alec immediately runs to support his weight and make sure hes okay? and magnus even as he was about to fall over never had his magic falter, my man couldn't keep his balance but still wouldnt come close to stumbling and risking luke's life further for even a second. so when Alec gets there he's just quite literally having his back, supporting his weight, when even Magnus didnt care about that (which like. unhealthy) and was focused on luke? and like Magnus can focus on luke because Alec is there to give him his support and make sure he's fine and how long's it been since he last had someone to do that?? and it's clearly alec's first instinct and like we know Jace or even Clary wouldnt fucking react like that. and then they have this ridiculous fucking staring contest again like we get it alec you're gay panicking at Magnus' beautiful eyes but like pls? and then we get to the most important part which is TAKE WHAT YOU NEED

like JDNDJSNSKDNDJDBSHSBSUSNSISNSIBSZJBZUZBSJSBSISNSSINSIS *SCREAMS INTO OBLIVION, SENDING SELF OUT OF EARTH'S GRAVITY ZONE*

his reaction is just SO intense and immediate he's just like "take what you need" he just offers himself fully to help Magnus just like that, no hesitation, and like Magnus is literally drawing from Alec's strength/life force, there should be some kind of resistance, even from a regular person or a friend, like its a very natural instinct. but Alec just grabs his hand and goes take what you need and he doesn't resist he just lets him do it and lets Magnus take his strength, because he genuinely worries about his wellbeing and safety just because he does, he believes in protecting others and being there for them, same as Magnus, and to Alec it's the most natural thing in the world but to Magnus it's shocking because he's always been self reliant, he has to be, he's been alone too many times and he's been used too many times and he's scared of what he'll let people take from him if he opens himself up because he always gives and gives, and he hasnt even let anyone be there for him to have his back and give him support when he needed in these last few centuries, not fully, not since Camille. but Alec shows up and just immediately cares for him in both small (like later when he refuses to let Magnus clean his couch magically because he knows he's tired and does it himself) and huge (like literally not hesitating before letting Magnus use a super intimate and presumably draining spell on him without putting any kind of limit, so Magnus can not overexert himself like he always does) ways and it means so much to him? and hes just so drawn and attracted to him and suddenly he realizes he's catching feelings that he had forgotten how to, because of course he had been healing and opening up, but he still kept people at some kind of length that didnt allow them to take care of him even if they wanted to, but Alec got that opening and he dived right in, and Magnus realizes how starved he's been for this kind of care and support that he's been denying himself and he decides to chase this, take it seriously, and i just aaaAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA

and like again Alec doesn't even think twice about it, because he's always been the protector and the support anyway, and he doesn't want to let anyone struggle and also most of that is just him being a Decent Human Being, but just like he got that opening that no one else did before, he met Magnus at the right time and he was sympathetic and caring and that sparked so much in Magnus, made him realize just how much he's been craving affection and care and close contact with people, and being vulnerable emotionally, and all of that that he's been denying himself. obviously magnus is romantically attracted to him but right then Alec is unlocking honesty with himself inside of magnus, he's unlocking vulnerability and not using it against him but really making a good thing out of it, and magnus' forgotten it could feel like this, safe and nice instead of hurting and scary. and again it's such a simple gesture but fuck my boy's been starved!! for so long!!! okay! and he can't help but want to desperately clutch to that feeling because against all odds he trusts alec to see his vulnerability right then (and he deliberately lets him see it further when he gives Alec that drink, tells him he's been closed off, that alec's unlocked something in him. you can see all the sadness and hope and vulnerability in his eyes right then, pretty much for the first time in the show, hes just so open and vulnerable and that's deliberate! first time was a fluke but second time he's choosing to because he wants to see where this goes, and if the magic sharing scene is the spark, the drinking scene is the fire, because they're not in a life or death situation anymore, Magnus is choosing to give Alec a chance by showing him a glimpse of his insecurities and Alec answers in kind, letting Magnus see his own confusion and want, and also again shows his caring and doesn't betray or use magnus' vulnerability and fuck!!! Magnus falls in love right then because this boy stays with him all night and talks, and he sees Magnus look at him with shiny eyes and admit that he's been scared of relationships, and he tells magnus not to overexert himself, and they click and Alec is open to his magic and hes funny and hes compassionate and also passionate about what he believes in, and they have so much in common with the way they hide and care so deeply and protect others always and are so loyal and i just. udndjdndidjdjxnxjxnskxndk SOULMATES god)

I need to lie down actually this was a bad idea I'm not strong enough I'm too feral

Might continue this later who knows. I'll be tagging malec livewatch and also long post as always if you want to filter this nonsense out

[astrologysvt]

i think you may be talking about this seventeen fortune video, just search up yonghada seventeen. thoughts on it?

ugh didn’t mean to have the whole post under a tag i hate tumblr

ooo dope thank you! so i mean i def find korean shamanism super interesting both in terms of fortune telling/mediums as well as just culturally. it always gets me thinking because, while i don’t particularly believe in clairvoyance or psychics, i do think there is something about being sensitive to less tangible things, being able to read people well, and generally being open to receiving and feeling out energies. and i certainly think things like shamanism kind of represent that, regardless of someone’s beliefs. i also always think that when you’re doing readings like how they do them where they’re very specific and predictive, you can try and get as specific as possible in any type of reading, but essentially what you’re working off of is far less tangible and more up for interpretation. so seeing this, even as i’m disagreeing with things, i’m thinking that maybe the things they’re noticing are valid in and of themselves even if i don’t agree with the interpretation. 

i thought them saying how cheol helps make the group work well made a lot of sense, i thought that was a very specific and accurate dynamic they picked up on.

i also love how they mentioned that jeonghan as a very soft and gentle aura but is incredibly determined and stubborn.

also the concept of him just following opinions felt incredibly relevant, and something i haven’t really gotten into in my readings but we kind of caught a glimpse into in the mbti episode and is generally very relevant for libras. he’s very divisive and assertive with certain things, but ultimately is so sensitive to others that he’s far more yielding and impressionable than i think he gives the impression of. 

i thought it was so interesting that they compared joshua to cheol, especially given both of their cap influences. picking up on joshua being more meticulous felt super on point as well. 

SAYING JOSHUA SAVES MONEY WELL ugh i laughed that was so on point, even if caps splurge every once in awhile they tend to be very good at stowing away emergency funds. they naturally accrue money sometimes. 

i really don’t have many thoughts on their reading of jun, i just thought it was so interesting. especially the fact they say he could go into business and that he’s not really destined to live as a celebrity to the end. 

THEM MENTIONING HIS NECK/THROAT THO taurus rules the neck and he has a taurus mars so mentioning throat problems is so fascinating. 

makes me wonder where his mars is in the houses now, maybe 6th. or maybe he has his saturn in 2nd house. 

i loved their reading on hoshi i get very similar vibes from him

i also loved how they mentioned how intelligent he is and how analytical and strategic he can be, this is something i made note of with his 6th house placements. very smart, not wasteful. 

i can also see soonyoung punching someone lmfao thats not predictive i just think if he were in that situation, it’d be very hard to turn himself away from it. 

i don’t really know what they were picking up on wonwoo, especially with the predictive. maybe i’d have a better idea of i had his full chart, but i don’t really see a whole lot of what they’re saying. 

i thought it was interesting how they mentioned woozi could succeed in any field. i think thats a mix of his sag and virgo coming thru. 

i thought it was cool how they talked about how straight forward he is, he certainly has a very frank and severe chart mixed with that playfulness. 

again, i don’t really know what they’re picking up predictively with dk since i don’t have his full chart. and even if i were doing a predictive reading, i try and avoid anything that could instill more fear than anything. 

tho 100% yes dk genius, i think he’s genuinely such a clever guy and deserves more credit for how he handles people. i really think he takes care of jeonghan just as much as jeonghan takes care of him. 

i swear them saying mingyu was a monk is straight up his pisces moon, pisces influences just have that zen vibe

i think it’s generally interesting how they keep on mentioning money for the members with cap/taurus. 

lmfao hao the trouble maker of svt. 

i don’t really think he’d cause any problems based off his chart, tho i can certainly see what they mean by self-assertion. 

he is a very severe and serious person, and he comes across far more severe than he may intend. can end up being a polarizing person if he’s not careful, though i think he’s a very sensitive and gentle person by nature.

ENTREPRENEURIAL HEAD SAY IT AGAIN FOR THE PEOPLE IN THE BACK totally, i think i’ve said entrepreneurial/enterprising for like every reading ive done for him so far and if i haven’t then i SHOULD HAVE. 

mentioning health is super interesting for seungkwan. 

the moment you mention health i think virgo and 6th house. i wonder whats in his 6th house. 

saying seungkwan isn’t so much an entertainer but someone who makes good things happen makes a lot of sense. he’s a very proactive guy and opportunistic, i even talked about that in his chart first impressions i think.

again, mentioning business and money for the caps. 

i think their reading of vernon is very interesting. i agree he has a potential of being very stubborn, especially with something thats directly affecting him and his mindset on something. 

lmfao yes ambition for dino makes a lot of sense. 

tho nothing in astrology says he can’t drive cars in june! at least not to my knowledge! 

this was honestly so interesting, i wasn’t expecting to notice so many consistencies with astrology. again, idk about their specific interpretations but i loved seeing what they had to say! 

[laiqart]

The Untamed vs MDZS Anime: Which is better?

Going to japan now. Currently in the plane. The in flight tv is broken. So... ive been watching mdzs on youtube!

Hot damn the animation is beautiful. Every frame is a work of art. How the hell. Its so beautiful. I mean they use 3D a lot for the backgrounds and boats but its still gorgeous and not too jarring. The lighting is so realistic, scenery too. All the fighting choreography is beautiful. The way the swords swing in the air looks so fluid, and when swords clash its in flashes of light the color of their sword. Such a tasteful yet stylistic choice. Everyone's, esp wwx, hair is so flowy, so detailed every strand sways in the wind. The waves reflect light and move smoothly. How the hell did they do that. How. I was thinking of doing those screencap redraw thingy with the scene when wwx whacks lwj's boat. (they also emphasised how far lwj's boat was sinking into the water, which makes it more convincing how wwx can deduce that theres something underneath vs the live action where lwj's boat looked normal..) it was damn beautiful. The thing is, the point of these redraws is that the animation looks simple, so the redraw would enhance the scene. But for mdzs, everything is already in peak quality, redrawing it will only look worse. Its like writing fanfiction of books. The original writing is so damn beautiful, fan fiction ends up being such a stark difference that the reader cant help but compare the 2.

Drama, as everyone says, shows better facial expressions due to the live actors, so emotions hit harder. But anime def LOOKs way better in all action scenes. Angles that follow the characters are used to emphasise scale between enemy and chracters, and all the movements feel so dynamic, and i love how when they use talisman spell thingies they got a circle of light in an intricate pattern thats super beautiful. In the drama, its just a piece of paper.

However, i prefer drama's lwj. Maybe cos wyb looks so young, its more believable when he freaks out over the adult book that wwx gives him in the library scene. In the anime, he looks 20+-30+. Its a bit hard to believe that he'd be worried over that. Idk theres a kind of innocence and naivety that leads to the stubborn refusal to express emotion that young lwj is plagued with that we have in the untamed (was this intentional on wyb's part or is it because the teenage lwj wig made his eyes look floaty, so he seems more like a teenager and naive, less experienced as a cultivator vs lwj 13 years later? Dk but it works!). In the anime, he looks like an adult thats calm and level headed already from the get-go. Idk maybe i just havent watched enough (only seen up til the water demons in caiyi town). In both anime and drama, everyone and i mean EVERYONE besides the fricking babies looks the same 13/16 years later. It doesn't feel like time has passed at all. I wish they would have maybe a change in costume, or hairstyle in the anime. The drama at least changes their costumes a little and neatens the hairstyle of jiang cheng and lwj to indicate maturity.

Btw i love that in the anime for the water demons section they had wwx and jc casually chatting (though its a blatant cornetto ad which is fricking weird. How can there be frozen treats back in those days), then wwx beautifully catapulting himself onto a boat and rowing away showing the unique and romantic af mode of transport in caiyi town, then smoothly transitioning to the lan bros on the bridge right above them with lwj asking why lxc decided to bring them along. Its just tying together so many scenes, quickening the plot along and yet doing it so naturally and seamlessly compared with the novel and drama.

Though i like that the drama involved wn and wq and have wwx save wn, and makes way more sense why wn would want to risk his life to help wwx recover his parents fricking corpse illegally right under the nose of wen chao and wen zhuliu.

The anime removed the entire mystery plot of a yan and the fairy goddess statue and thats honestly the best best best choice to make. In the drama, it was one of the worse sections ever cos i didnt understand who all these random ass characters were (it was one of the first mysteries in the drama) and yet it didnt go into detail like they did in the novel, so not only did i not know what was going on, i also didnt give a single shit about the characters. When i saw that they completely did away with the random passer bys who screwed around with the fairy statue, i was thoroughly impressed.

I liked that the drama let nhs have his own trouble making moments tho, like having him sneak a live bird into class. It makes it more convincing that wwx would be friends with him because they both have a mischievous side that they can both appreciate in each other. In the anime, nhs just looks like a loser nerd thats weak in swordplay and does wwx's homework for him, without a will of his own. It doesnt make sense why wwx would keep him around. Then again, maybe itll make the reveal that nhs is a conniving mastermind more impactful for the anime, oh well only time will tell.

I liked that lxc and lwj look similar in the anime. Its more convincing when people call them the twin jades of the lan clan. In the drama, they hardly looked like brothers. Lxc looks more like lwj's mentor or teacher rather than an older brother. In the anime, they look more siblingy.

I miss drama wen ning. I rmb when he looked so fierce and terrifying in his first appearance. I was legit intimidated. Oh how hes changed! Hes so fluffy now. In the anime hes equally menacing. His fight scene with the statue goddess was so beautiful. Doesnt it take a long time to animate the chains moving so fluidly yet dynamically yet somehow looks like it can disintegrate rock in an instant? The lighting on it too, how it reflected the fire of the forest around them. Have i mentioned how beautiful having that fight scene at night was? It was dark and ominous looking, yet the fire cast an epic looking light over the scene with warm orange glows. And the animators had that fiery light reflected in anything they could find: eyes, chains, swords.

Ooh but jiang cheng's whip looked prettier in the drama than in the anime, which is kind of weird given they were both cgi-ed. Somehow the lighting of the whip in the drama was brighter, looked more like real lightning vs the whip in the anime looking a little dull, like they colored it then added a gray filter. This is kinda bizarre given the laughably bad effects of the effects for everything else in the drama. Visuals for non human things is not the drama's strong suit, so it makes u wonder what happened for the anime whip. Maybe in the dark, the lightning would have to look hella bright and reflect on the surroundings (tedious to color) more so than in the day, hence why it looked worse in anime vs drama. Oh well.

As for lan sizhui, its weird that his voice is so deep in the anime (and audio drama!). Ive always seen him as a kiddo thanks to the live action, so hearing him sound mature is kinda off-putting. He sounds like a leader, and gives off lwj vibes vs in the live action where he gives a goody two shoes studious nerd vibe, whos just trying his best. Maybe this is better, he feels way more like a lwj-raised child(serious and business-like) which makes more sense. Live action lsz feels like a wwx(optimistic and intelligent) AND lwj(well-behaved and sensible)-raised child. Anime lsz looks like hes got his shit together. Jinling is fairly similar in both, maybe less prideful in the anime (in live action theres the scene where im pretty sure he indirectly kills one of his men by wishing for the fairy goddess statue to come to life. That was a hella asshole move. This was omitted in the anime.) Jingyi in the anime somehow looks snarkier. Maybe cos he straight up duels with jinling and kicks him down a dark cave. Ive been wondering why all the tumblr posts depict ljy as this sassy ass short tempered kid when he was quite tame (though sassy by lan standards) in the live action. Now i know.

The costumes for the drama is better, more detailed though thats expected i guess. I just love that they have little white gusu lan clan uniforms that wwx jc and friendos are required to wear. Its so cute and such a cool detail. In anime, theyre all in their usual garb, and they just look like random people who decided to turn up at lan qirens class. In the drama, it looks more like a school that they have to attend for half a year and it feels characteristic that gusu lan clan would require their students to have a uniform, given their incredibly strict regime type. It also serves to separate the happy carefree school days from all the other tragic af events in wwx's life. His costume starts out white showing innocence and purity of his naiive teenage years who had yet to experience hardship and still feels invincible as a youth. After school, he wears dark blue, as he goes on an adventure with lanzhan and experience how important the yin iron is (gives up the joking light hearted nature as a teenager by realizing the gravity of situation if the wen clan gets their hands on it) and maybe that hes not truly part of the jiang clan who wears purple. Then his costume eventually becomes black as he experiences his first life and death situation that he isnt sure he can handle. That child like assurance that "oh the seniors will let me off" or "im sure jiang fengmian will come to my rescue" gets demolished when he undergoes cruel indoctrination at the wen clans. This visual development may be a bit on the nose, but personally i love subtle representations.

Overall, the anime does do a better of job of explaining the world's mechanics, which is quite important. The drama is quite faithful to the book, at times even more so than the anime, so it irks me that this is the one thing they decide to skim on. The god damn premise, the first thing the audience needs: why the hell is wwx alive again and what is mo xuanyu doing?? I guess the drama thought that it explains itself but it doesnt really. It was really confusing. The anime, though somehow faster than the drama, still has the time to properly explain mxy. A technique ive noticed is that they do exposition during the fight scenes, which is so ingenius. Its visually appealing, as always, so its not boring, the viewers gets to understand whats going on AND it gives the sense that the characters are so skilled that they carry causal conversations while fighting supposedly weak enemies like zombies and water ghosts, which is accurate seeing how wwx and lwj and friends are supposed to be one of the most powerful cultivators.

TL;DR both are good lol

[the-holos-dimension-blog]

stand and personality update

so, i looked over the old personalities. some still kinda apply, some are a little bit different, i kinda questioned myself when thinking about them, so idecided it would be good to refresh. plus, i this is a good opportunity to establish their ground as well. red: hes harsh and strict. he’s bold, works hard, and has an authority above many of the holos. he’s usually busy working alongside silhouette orange: he’s very reserved and anxious. he stands on the lower half in terms of authority, but the civilians love him for his kind nature.  yellow: he’s industrious and hardworking. he isnt very intimidating, and hes super forgetful. this scientist is more of the ‘nice guy’ in the group per say, and doesnt start fights.  green: green isnt stand-offish, but more of, if he doesnt like you, he’ll completely ignore you. he has his ,morals set, but is very passive aggressive. blue: blue is both depressing and dramatic. he seems not to have opinions on many things, but thats only because hes observant. he puts on a gloomy outer-face and doesnt interact with others unless he’s spoken to under most circumstances. purple: purple is very energetic and unpredictable. they loves to be chaotic in a fun way. they like to hang around everyone and light up the room. they stands in the middle in terms of strength and authority pink: pink is openly aggressive and has alot of anger problems, but can have a soft side in certain situations. he’s only intimidating to easily scared holo’s, and doesnt have much authority because of his bad habits. silver: silver is a complete workaholic and extremely hardworking. he doesnt like to take breaks, and he doesnt smile often. he’s good with children and animals, and is on the higher side of authority. he doesnt freak out often, but when he does, you know its serious. gold: gold is a very kind holo that treats everyone nicely, and spreads positive vibes wherever he goes. he’s kind of introverted, but he opens up to those who are close to him. in terms of authority and strength, he’s on the higher side, but a little in the middle. cyan: cyan is kinda edgy, but a little bit of a trickster. he has a ‘no fucks given’ additude. he doesnt like getting dragged into stuff, and will fight you if you keep messing with him. though, if youre friends with him, he’s not as harsh. he has medium-high authority and is actually pretty strong. rainbow: rainbow is a really fun holo to be around and likes to kinda vibe in a chaotic neutral way. he occasionally flirts, but doesnt force it onto people. he likes to be hip and cool, wearing sunglasses and “trying” to rap. he acts like this alot, but can be serious when something serious happens. galaxy: galaxy is very level headed and has a calm nature. they dont fight with others and theyre very spiritual in a sense. they are incredibly intelligent and know things that most of the other leaders would never know. he works alone most of the time, but also with silhouette. he has very high authority over nearly everyone. silhouette: silhouette is insanely intimidating and hard to talk to, even if he knows you personally. he has the most authority of the leaders. he never leaves his district, let alone his “office” unless absolutely necessary. he doesnt like casual conversation and doesnt take shit from anyone. white: white is very open and energetic on the surface. he always has a wide smile on his face and talks in upbeat tones, though he’s manipulative and dodgy on the inside, he has his goals, an will sacrafice anything for them. he gives an insane bill cipher vibe. strength:??? authority: ???

[byjove-cannibalcove]

Thing 87 i like about the Hannibal Shows reimagining of the books:

Freddie Lounds

In the books Freddie was largely treated as a snivelling, pathetic character. He got in the way of the investigation by pretending to be the Red Dragon in order to gather information on the case through the anonymous tip line.

It was horrible, and the character was irritating, but the reaction was very nearly overblown in the scale of things, and overall you can say that he made up for it

(clears throat)

But you know what? For all the shit he got he handled his kidnapping incredibly well, and afterwards you are left with the idea that the man had hidden depths, intelligence and capability. Not to mention that you find out that he was in a very loving and real relationship with a (iirc) stripper who he poured his tabloid money into helping her open her own bar. She seemed properly upset when he died, and im left feeling like outside the huge and romantic story of the dragon and will, Lounds’ main problem in life was never being good enough to be notice.

“He had worked in straight journalism for ten years when he realized that no one would ever send him to the White House. He saw that his publishers would wear his legs out, use him until it was time for him to become a broken-down old drunk manning a dead-end desk, drifting inevitably toward cirrhosis or a mattress fire. They wanted the information he could get, but they didn't want Freddy. They paid him top scale, which is not very much money if you have to buy women. They patted his back and told him he had a lot of balls and they refused to put his name on a parking place “

At the core, what im saying here is that this character is interesting, intelligent, capable, well rounded, and in both movies was entirely underused. 

So now lets look at NBC Hannibals Freddie Lounds

Much like the movie adaptations, the show doesn't go into a lot of detail about her personal life, so we have to make some inferences here

Freddie Lounds in Hannibal TV isnt a tabloid journalist. No, even worse, she is a blogger. This woman has a blogspot. It is entirely done by her, exclusively. She doesnt have an editor, an assistant, she doesnt have a parking spot with her name on it, her only income seems to be ad revenue (i think we all know thats pretty minimal) and tshirt sales.

She is not powerful in any sense. Even when Will is his most angry with her, she’s a mosquito buzzing in his ear. Utterly unimportant i the grand scheme of things. 

Does she fucking give off any sort of vibe as though this is the case? Hell no! She’s vicious, shes smart, shes fast. She puts her head in the guillotene so that she can snap a picture of the basket, fully confident in her ability to duck away at the less second.

And her style??

She will not allow you not to notice her. 

She refuses to fade into the background, to take part (even visually) in the dark, desaturated, somber tone of will and hannibal's lives. She is the main character of her story and she refuses to be a bit part in anyone else's.

Now is this book accurate? Absolutely not. Is it cool and do i love it? 

ITS COOL AS FUCK AND I LOVE IT

FREDDIE LOUNDS IS ONE OF THE COOLEST CHARACTERS IN THIS SHOW. She fucking stepped right the hell over her own death scene and refused to participate in it. 

Anyways that all

Shitty and unethical? Definitely. 

Strong memorable cool character? abso-fuckin-luteley

[maggotmouth]

         hello, its nora again ( she/her, gmt ) n this is the ethereal but spoiled alma olive putnam (she goes by all 3 names cos she’s pretentious as fuck).  ive never used anya taylor joy as her fc before but anya has a smile that looks like she knows something u dont and thats completely alma’s vibe so we’re gonna try it out. she was raised in a farmhouse in vermont, big horse girl energy. very hungry for everything life has to offer. wakes up and smells the success in her blood. luvs the smell of libraries and listening to french music from a tinny record player in knee socks. here is pinterest. bio is below the cut, like this post to be bombarded with plotting messages but i might forget or get shy tho so pls message me x

application template.

ANYA TAYLOR - JOY   ,   CIS-FEMALE   ,   SHE/HER         →         according   to   the   school   records   ,   ALMA OLIVE PUTNAM   has   been   attending   sacred   heart   for   the   past   three   years   .   i   last   saw   them   hanging   around  the  sacred   heart   cathedral   ;   i   think   they   were   studying   the   stations   of   the   cross   with   a   smile   like   a   well - kept   secret.   at   twenty   -   one   years   old   ,   alma   has   been   studying   classics   and   get   this   ,   i   heard   that   she   has   made   a   fortune   on   the   black   market   by   forging   renaissance   art   to   sell   to   collectors   —   figure   it’s   true   ?   everyone   around   here   always   associates   them   with    neck   scarves   tied   around   your   throat   the   way   they   do   in   french   new   wave   films , running   barefoot   through   the   woods   drunk   on  red  wine   and  untapped   power , a  smile  like  a   locked   door   that   speaks   only  in   riddles  .   in   the   time   since   these   strange   happenings   ,   they   have   have   encountered   any   unexplained   occurrences   .         (   written   by   nora   ,   24   ,   she/her   ,   gmt   )

aesthetics.

a red beret nestled on top of bright platimum locks, neck scarves tied around your throat the way they do it in french new wave films, running barefoot through the woods in feckless hedonism, china dolls with porcelain faces lined against the walls of your room, the mona lisa smile, knee-socks tugged over the hockey grazes on your knees, a forged botticelli drying on your easel, ophelia floating in the middle of a lake.

proceed w caution, tw for death, drugs, alcohol, violence

the short form. (still long af tbh)

— studying classics cos she thinks it makes her sound smart, but actually hates fuckin latin and just loves learning about feckless hedonism and the festivals of bacchus and writing about how all women in myth are literally forgotten. was expelled from princeton in her first year so her parents basically paid her way into sacred heart and the board really liked her in her interview. i think the governors kind of expect to see her in the supreme court one day or st

—  born in vermont in a big old farmhouse. her great-great-grandfather moved to america as an immigrant and worked on a plantation, made his way up cos he could speak a lot of languages and therefore win more people over. for the last two generations, putnam men have owned the farm and do little of the dirty work. big in the meat industry.

— both her parents had large personalities, so alma’s never really been shy around adults, even as a kid she’d speak to them in a forthright, confident manner, and because she was always surrounded by adults, she’s always seemed a bit wise beyond her years.

— very much a consolidation of every character in the secret history. has a morbid longing for the picturesque at all costs. obsessed with w.h. auden and the beat poets. — ”aestheticism is the only thing worth pursuing and even that is pointless” — is majoring in classical civilisation. can read ancient greek and latin. also speaks french.

— studies hard and plays hard. she gets top marks but it’s because academia is literally her life, she loves the smell of libraries, the ancient smoke of learning, of feeling like old wine in a new bottle reincarnated from the bones of some old, dead witchy woman who invented a cure for cowpox or somethin.

— isn’t a foward-planner, however. alma prefers to leave her options open, play the field, live in a spontaneous manner so her study style is mostly cramming a few days before a test, or staying up all night writing an essay on a massive adrenaline boost powered by red bull or probably adderall, scribbling (or typing) furiously into the night.

— pretentious motherfucker. loves poetry, especially the romantics, loves morbid ones too, edgar allen poe, sylvia plath, allen ginsberg, she just loves them all. can’t get enough. her favourite films are like…. wanky artfilm independent european cinema. especially french new wave. “what do you think of goddard’s work??” while snorting a line off someone’s sink at 5am on a school night, but you can bet she’ll make it to that 9am class. — very intelligent and beautiful and knows both of those facts. plays devil’s advocate. humanitarian, vegan. — judgemental but takes great care not to appear so. petty and vindictive

— obsessively devours mystery and thriller novels. she herself is a gillian flynn book waiting to happen. — tries to be an enigma. wants to be mysterious and unreadable because that’s what books have taught her makes women desirable and interesting and cool. very amy dunne in the way she expertly reinvents herself to suit her audience, when she wants to impress

—  an incredibly talented dancer. she was accepted to juliard to study ballet, but after an injury to her foot she had to refuse her place, something that she’s incredibly bitter about. she went to princeton instead to study classics for a semester, before being expelled. 

— alma comes from a family of high-end art dealers. while her parents paid her way into the school, that was mostly due to previous expulsions, not low intelligence. she’s incredibly intelligent but will only put in effort when she deems the cause worthy. she’s frustrating to teach, because she requires evidence, truth, in order to accept something as worthwhile. she plays devil’s advocate, but academically she’s brilliant. 

—  she can recognise any renaissance artist just by their brush strokes. her aunt and uncle deal antiques and art, and from an internship with them after her expulsion from princeton, she learned how to market and sell art, how to recognise originals in contrast to fakes. from this, alma began to produce counterfeit art and sell it off as the original work to the contacts she had made in her internship. it’s disloyal, but it’s powerful.

— act like the flower but be the serpent under it. is a user. manipulative. leads people on. will throw another student under the bus to demonstrate her own intelligence and integrity — heavily involved in the theatre society. loves attention. — has an addictive personality. seems unable to do anything in a small dose, she has to let it utterly consume her. with sports, she’s fiercely competitive, runs track, played lacrosse at school, now is a cheerleader probably. with alcohol, it’s never a shot, it’s a whole bottle – wine or whiskey – she’ll be table dancing before the night’s up and making out with someone she’ll regret in the morning.

— her clothing style is like…. vintage thrift store but make it preppy. berets and cute hats, neck scarves, large fluffy cardigans or like those leathery jackets with big suede fringes on them, mini skirts (very 70s), and knee-high socks or boots. quite often she’ll be in sports kit, maybe a cute tennis skirt, n when she’s feeling casual she’ll wear like, a talking heads tshirt with a pair of mom jeans and converse, but otherwise, the library is her catwalk. — relates to ophelia from hamlet and sibyl vane in dorian gray. weirdly obsessed with women who commit suicide. loves jackson pollock paintings and abstract art. – likes old things. old books, old music, old houses, it reminds her of happier times like when she wasn’t alive. buys all her music on vinyl and has a gramophone because “the sound quality is better” kfdsjj.

plots.

here are some generic wanted plots but by all means message me so we can flesh them out more if any strike ur interest:

study buddies !! someone who is equally unprepared and so spends all night in the library with alma before a big deadline, maybe they even met in the library

if they’re from new england or vermont, then cousins . second cousins / extended family / family friends –  probably spat volavons on your character once as children, omg childhood friends !

honestly someone who is fully in love with her or crushing on her that she can just break would be sweet :/ or on the other hand someone she unexpectedly gets feelings for and actually wants to guage her own  eyeballs out bc of it

frinds !! unlikely friends !! toxic friends !! former best friends separated by sporting or academic rivalries !

hockey / cheer friends who are on other teams but who she absolutely loves playin against!!!

fellow academics who like meeting up to discuss latin and greek ! gimme a secret society bonding by their love of ancient learning

i reckon she’s in a lot of societies, definitely the film club, maybe works as a projectionist at the uni cinema if they have one so give me ppl affiliated with that, give me fellow wanky pretentious art-lovers and poets and historians who will go to museums and galleries with her and listen to the velvet underground on vinyl

people she gets mortally fucked off her tits with at parties

people who think she is throwing her academic potential away by caving to hedonistic impulse

a secret society !!! honestly i would die for a slug club esque thing in which the children of notable families are invited to dinners or alma’s also an art forger, so maybe like a club of students set up to basically forge paintings and documents from the university special collections

people she has drunkenly made out with, hooked up with, or regularly sleeps with casually, maybe even a friend w benefits she is repressing feelings for, i love angst,

people she used to date or unrequitedly likes, but to them it’s just a physical thing, give me all the thirsty angst plots, and maybe some softness too, i need some religion in this girls life, she is a roman catholic after all

full biography.

alma olive putnam.

intro.

        the girl is a knife. razor-sharp, double-edged, the bright shine of a two-faced, lovely thing. silver like the secrets you magpie thief from other heads. you’re a scavenger of knowledge, of tidbits, of gossip to lock away for later use and late-night re-inspection. a mind is like a clock if you get to learn the pieces. bit by bit, you dismantle the inner workings of the brains that tick around you – how easy it is to change it’s path, how words and their meanings can make a person laugh or cry in an instant. to have the power to control that is to be a god. it’s the power trip you crave wielding pom-poms in your hands; a possessive need for control that a younger you, small and weak, never had as a child. small lips, smaller smile, a doll clutched in your too-hungry fingers, hard enough to shatter the bones of a real infant. you cut your hair with your mother’s kitchen scissors before the autumn falls, rendering you out of season, unfit for the cold weather that beats against the nape of your neck, where a stick-and-poke marks the star you were born under ; the bull. “mama, when will i be a queen?” as soon as they find a crown small enough not to slip from your head.

biography.

        if you get hungry enough, they say, you start eating your own heart. hands red, stained by pomegranate seeds, the empty pulp of its shell splattered on your thighs you find yourself wondering – what would it be like to want? in the beginning, you never knew hunger. twins, born under the same star, you first, him second – a nuclear family. never a sister to compete with, you were always the cherry pie of your parents’ hearts. white-haired, blue-eyed, beautiful baby of mine. the townhouse in vermont and the summer house in lyon, you wanted for nought, showered with attention, saddled with gifts - hardly a wonder you came to rely on such affection as a confirmation of your own worth.

        at eight years old you first met death, blood on a gingham-print dress, a smear of it over your cheekbone and the pulp of a mangled animal at your feet murdered by the hands of a stable boy. “alma, my precious baby, you get away from that filth,” your mama would cry from the upstairs balcony – cigar in one hand and a bloody mary in the other – though whether the filth she referred to was the dead pig or the boy with a kernel of corn in his mouth, you never did find out.

        your family earned their keeps in farming, great-grandfather wolfgang hildegarde a german immigrant, great-grandmother maura lisbon a prairie girl. they fell hopelessly in love between troughs and pig-shit, working for three dollars a day at a farm their descendants would later own, trade deals with the indians, vacations to calcutta, your father todd putnam in the kind of sheepskin coat his father’s father could only dream of owning. he worked hard so that you’d never have to. your mama once asked – you heard it through the window, rounding cartwheels across the picket-fenced lawn – could he not find a respectable career rather than selling shrink-wrapped pork for a dime a dozen? that blood money had no business raising a child. you look far back enough, edie, your father had said in his low, strong voice that could bring a civil war to silence, and i think you’ll find that all money is blood money.

        language was never fickle on your tongue, french dinner time talk by the time you were out of your hush puppy shoes, your mama fixing the au pair a smile as she fixed herself another martini. you learned the clarinet at four and how to dance with the grace of a swansong at six, ethereal under a spotlight, an audience captive in the palm of your hand. by eight you knew that you’d always been destined to be loved. loved so hard they would want to taste you, bite into the soft plump of your cheek and eat you alive. that was how magnetic you wanted to feel. but mother hamsters eat their own young when penned in together too long, and soon you became too wild, too restless, another package on your father’s delivery invoice, box-shipped out to english boarding school.

        fitting in had never been something you had to concern yourself with. you were always the shiny new toy the other girls wanted to play with, bright like a dropped coin from a magpie’s beak. wherever you went, you seemed to leave a trail of awe, pig-tailed harriet’s adoring you, imitating you, teachers forgiving your class-time chatter for the sake of your wild heart and the restless spirit you possessed. tell us what it’s like in the states, alma. they’d coo, enamoured by your hollywood drawl. does your father own a gun? you hardly knew. barely even knew the colour of his hair, for the scarce amount of times he’d stoop to kiss your cheek, though you’d tell silver-tongued tales if it’d guaranteed you an audience. when you learned how to smile at the right times, and that flattery would get you everywhere, it soon became apparent that charm would pave the yellow brick road to success even when your lack of drive couldn’t.

        the road you followed – gum-snapping, roller-blading, friendship bands all up your arm – eventually led you to sacred heart. bright-eyed and gingham skirted, you’d always known you were more. there was a hunger in you to be something extraordinary, a want so adamant to be imagined and desired that it was almost savage. in leather-bound volumes and a circle of stones, you were helen of troy, the girl for whom they’d launch a thousand ships. but there’s so much rage within you, collecting like sawdust in cavernous parts. hockey helped. there was something grounding about the feeling of a stick clasped in your hands. sweat. stiff knuckles. feet pounding the earth. the smash of wood against flesh in the scram of a game, passed off as mere enthusiasm. “slipped, sorry.” hockey is the one thing you had that was yours alone – a feral instinct that motivates you to play; something primitive within you that sparks an energy like no other. on the pitch, you feel alive. you feel like a god.