#little bit of a tangent but like yeah it’s not the end of the world

[sweetest-honeybee]

Don't beat yourself up! Honestly, it's fine if a commission takes a little long, the last thing I'd want is the person I commission to stress themselves over a piece and getting frustrated. In my opinion I rather wait as long as possible for something that had time and effort put into it then receive a product the artist didn't have a good time working on!

I really appreciate it! It’s not for everyone to wait and that’s alright but genuinely, a lot of my best work comes out of patience and enjoyment. I put in a LOT of effort and fun details and take my sweet time cleaning up the piece when I know I’m gonna enjoy taking all that time to do it

Like hell, how I did the entire second version of that piece of the one oc and Frank? I had so much fun doing it and adding details that were harder to notice and taking the time to throw on some more layers to make a creepy one and I hardly minded taking that extra time to do it because I was in the zone and having fun 😌

[misc-obeyme]

Lesson 36 spoilers below, including the locked lesson & hard lesson...

Sorry it's a little screenshot heavy but there was a lot happening in this lesson and I was having a lot of feelings. I think I screenshotted my way through the whole thing lol.

SO. MUCH. LORE.

We got so much lore!??!?!

Things I'm freaking out about:

Mephisto's whole lecture about the underworld and its rings

the fact that trains were seen as commoner's transportation 'cause they were used by demons who couldn't fly

SOLOMON (as if he wasn't hot enough) walking through all the rings of the underworld

Solomon just kinda laughing about it and then agreeing that it's really just a tourist attraction now???? THAT'S THE UNDERWORLD YOU'RE TALKING ABOUT.

He talks about the city of Dis which is straight up from the Divine Comedy. Does this mean Dante has been their resource all along?! That could explain Diavolo's Italian name...

Because he also talks about Minos who also made an appearance in the Divine Comedy... I'm just sayin!!

They said they're taking Lucifer to Cocytus?!? (Which is also in... you guessed it, the Divine Comedy. Where it's stated to be the home of traitors.)

Isn't that the same thing as the River of Lamentation?!?!

What're they gonna do, drown him???

Okay okay my list should have ended several bullet points ago.

(Though on that last one, if they're going full Dante, then they'll bury him in ice instead.)

ANYWAY.

Mephisto buying all those sweets for his little brother was the cutest thing ever. He needs to stop being precious. I was resisting so well and then he had to go and be a good brother and also be concerned about MC and ask if they were all right and yeah he's annoying but it's kind of endearing too....????

This whole part where he was just asking MC questions & worrying about them being hurt. STOP THAT. This is exactly the kind of thing I live for, you're doing on purpose, aren't you??

You are not supposed to care!

I warned you before to stop making me like you...

THAT'S IT. HE'S A KEEPER.

Also do you think that when they say commoners are demons that can't fly... are they saying that demons with wings are the only ones that can be nobles? Or are they saying demons with enough power to fly whether that's with wings or not? Because isn't Barbatos actually like a duke or something? Are you really gonna tell me that guy is a commoner? Even if he does work as a butler... maybe it doesn't count 'cause he can portal himself around?

But also! We know Mephisto is a noble so does this mean his demon form has wings? I thought for sure they were going to go with a tail.

BUT ALSO ALSO do the bros not count? They should all be nobles, but they clearly aren't, but they also aren't commoners? Maybe they're neither 'cause they're fallen angels? And we know three of them have tails, so...? I'M CONFUSED ABOUT HOW THIS WORKS.

Okay, sorry I'm getting off on a bit of a tangent here. There's just so much info that we suddenly got in this lesson about the world! And while I've been wanting more such stuff, I was hoping it would clarify some things not make things more confusing.

So anyway, there's a whole lot of underworld which they've mentioned before but only briefly, so it was cool to get more info on that!

Don't worry, Luci. MC has to travel through time as well as space and I don't think a trip through the underworld is going to cut it. I like it when you compliment Solomon, though.

I don't know how to tell you guys that the idea of Solomon walking through the underworld and laughing about it later makes me insane. So I'm just telling you straight out. I'm insane about it.

Are we still talking about the underworld? Because when I hear "tourist attraction" I tend to think of things like the world's largest ball of twine, not playing chess with Minos, Judge of the Damned.

That whole phone conversation with him was just so good. I know I recently wrote a whole post about him being sus and he still is because it's him, but do not misunderstand me because I love that man. I love his cute little laugh that he always does.

Then again, he's clearly terrible at lying. Good at just not saying stuff maybe, but lying directly? I'm not so sure...

So anyway, Lucifer's gonna be executed, huh? I like how both he and Mephi were like nope Diavolo is gonna fix this. They have such unwavering faith in him, it's precious.

Also, I LOVED THIS ENTIRE PART.

Lucifer saying he knows? He knows, but this is home now for him and his brothers? And then MEPHISTO coming right back with then you should understand why MC wants to go home??

I was not expecting Mephistopheles to understand and be concerned about MC wanting to go home like that. It wasn't something like yeah you should go home you're a human and don't belong here. He didn't say anything like that at all. It was just immediately like you must miss your family. Mephisto confirmed family man!

HARD LESSON: Solomon was being a complete menace. He locked Lucifer's brothers in a room??? What's he gonna make them do!? Eat his cooking?? No, he gives his cooking to people because he loves them and wants to make them happy. So it can't be that. My mind... it goes to dangerous places... why did they have to cut off the lesson without telling us what Solomon's intentions were??

...

I wouldn't mind being locked in that room with them all, though.

Please take this selection of screenshots of him being insufferable with that cute lil smile on his face.

To be fair, he's not wrong... it was pretty funny.

I CAN'T.

Also in the LOCKED LESSON: Barbatos my true love. This whole interaction was amazing. Simeon and Luke are so cute. Diavolo clearly doesn't know Lucifer super well yet and it's so adorable watching him figure it out. And now he's all like Barbatos how can I fix this? And Barb is just like sorry it's too late. LOL he's so strict.

Dadbatos mode activated.

Luke my sweet baby angel, never change!

Diavolo's sad face is so cute, I don't know how Barb ever manages to resist it. I'd just give in to everything he ever wanted all the time. I also love how he is straight up calling Barb mean lol.

They both look so serious. Cut him some slack, Barb!

And lastly, I only wish to leave you with this:

Everybody knows nobody can make tea as good as Barbatos does. Not even Lucifer.

Don't be angry, Luci. You're no Barbatos, but I'm sure your tea is delicious.

[wilsonphiggs]

I fucking hate mcsm btw (lying)

hey guys so I thought a bit too hard and I was thinking about how I would rewrite the story. one of my gripes specifically being with how they handled lukas and axel’s relationship. I went on a really long tangent on how I would’ve fixed it and I’ll paste it under the cut. (WARNING: IT’S A REALLY LONG RANT.)

so, I didn’t really like how they treated their dynamic. axel was so concerned for petra—and that’s understandable, considering she’s a friend—but they never gave a reason as to why axel SPECIFICALLY was worried so much, which caused him to lash out more. therefore, resulting in him mad at lukas for getting scared, along with the fact that he was the leader of the ocelots, yatta yatta etc. etc.

but my main point is: their mutual disdain for each other not only felt forced, but artificial. it felt so unreasonable, with axel shoving lukas around for seemingly no reason at times. not only that, but axel was just generally an asshole of a character. I get having someone joke around a little rudely if it’s all jokes and you know that—my friend group and I are like that all the time. but there’s a fine line between crude humor and outright bullying your “friends” or allies. not to mention he was just a frustrating character. “but… finders keepers!” when EVERYONE is in danger and he just refuses to give up the thing that would stop the witherstorm? a dick move.

and apologies, but lukas felt a little TOO nice at times in the first one or two episodes. yes, he’s generally a nice guy. and yes, he’s had some moments of getting frustrated or prickly. but considering that he was rivals with this group for so long, admitted that he didn’t really think highly of them for a while, AND petra herself called him arrogant? you can’t blame me for thinking that he was a bit too kind, even if he was trying to stay on good terms with everyone while the world was seemingly ending. yeah, he was awkward. and no, I don’t think he should’ve been outwardly hostile. but I don’t think he should’ve been quite as friendly as he was.

they should both have little quirks and flaws, but they should also both be lovable characters in their OWN ways. this is honestly how I would’ve written it:

it would’ve been better to make axel really stand off-ish because he doesn’t know how to really act around someone who was once “bad” in his eyes, but is now suddenly “good.” especially when the change is so sudden. distrusting, awkward, unpleasant interactions would feel much more natural rather than downright antagonizing lukas at every turn.

axel is really awkward and is a little distrustful of him because of so many factors, but maybe lukas interprets that as aloofness and detachment. lukas tries not to really disrupt conversations because he feels as though he’s intruding, but axel perhaps interprets that as arrogance and conceit. miscommunication, misinterpretation—these are much more natural ways of having animosity grow between two parties.

and hey, even better! this could allow you to have a choice ACTUALLY make a difference TELLTALE GAMES. (the company infamous for having choices in games that don’t Actually matter!)

maybe if you have axel stay behind with lukas to fortify the temple while also getting magnus, MAYBE you can see them actually visibly get along better! even if axel went off on his own to get magnus—which was him straying from the plan—maybe they agreed and decided it was for the better to get the order together again rather than just a few members. maybe you can see them having similar ideas, talking more, etc. etc.

and on the other hand, if you go with axel for magnus and choose olivia to stay, maybe axel feels a little more bitter towards lukas since olivia went off to get ellagaard. he feels bitter since he just let her go instead of convincing her to just STAY and wait for petra like the original plan was (even though he knows he would’ve broken that himself to go out for magnus, but moral highgrounds and such.)

yeah, sure. it’ll end in you getting both members of the order anyway. that won’t change. BUT, it still affects the characters! it fleshes out the characters more. makes them both have perks AND flaws! it HUMANIZES them, makes them more realistic.

and MAYBE, JUST MAYBE, if the conflict between them builds up enough, you might have to choose one side or the other at some point in the story! there could be several decisions that alter their relationship and how they function! one of your lifelong best friends who has ADMITTED that you’re one of his only friends, and you can tell he cares about everyone there (even if not entirely obvious,) or a friend that, while you once bickered a ton with in the past, is now genuinely making an effort to change and care and seems generally more agreeable now? they both love you and your friends, undoubtedly, but they’re too bitter to be around one another. there isn’t enough room for the both of them. one has to go, jesse. so, who’ll it be?

in fact, maybe there’s a scene where lukas and axel are in danger. in the ellagaard route (followed by more good decision making,) one actually saves the other from said situation and everyone lives. in the magnus route (followed by more bad decision making,) they both intentionally sabotage each other and you have to choose to save ONE. either that, or it’s as originally said, where there’s a story-changing fight and you have to choose one or the other.

this is a minor thing but I could not stop thinking about it. but oh well them’s the breaks pal /ref

[gold-rhine]

(can answer privately if u want)

how did you manage to write enjou stirring shit up. i need to know for Reasons

(Reasons being: i wanna write him doing that as well so i need to know how you figured that specific brand of Manipulation out)

oh, i love talking about Enjou, he's so fun to write.

Okay, Enjou's main rule is that he doesn't *technically* lie. If you've ever written fae with no-lie rules it should be similar. Everything he says should be true, even if he's seemingly joking - like when he tells traveler you never know what can happen in magic rituals, I could turn into a flame-throwing monster haha! He only lies by omission or by using leading questions. He often answers direct questions with his own questions, which lets him evade, or by what he makes look like a joke.

Like in Enka when traveler arrived and asked him who he is, he asked question in return, like Didn't they tell you there's gonna be a priest who will guide you? Traveler went yeah, they did. Enjou was like Great! You can't be expected to learn new language haha! i'm here to help translate.

He didn't say "I'm the priest who Kokomi said will help you," he asked a leading question to make traveler think about the priest with connection traveler trusted, then he didn't directly confirm he IS the priest and instead re-directed to his function "I'll help to translate", which is true!

Enjou's second rule is that he's a little shit and also a corny nerd. Like there's often a boring stereotype of manipulators being cool and sleek and charismatic, but Enjou is not that. He's a jokerified librarian. He consciously acts lame and corny to make the other person underestimate him and roll their eyes. He loves repeating how he's just a weak bookworm. He will go on info-dumping tangents to bury the lead of manipulation.

He also loves playing with his food, burying little inside jokes which only make sense in hindsight, like "I could turn into a flame-throwing monster". He likes doing the weak nerd routine, he enjoys watching the other person feel superior to him, while knowing he's in control of a situation, and he says corny shit on purpose to make it more pronounced. He should sound corny and just a bit unhinged. He says shit like "Exactomundo". I had to physically restrain myself, bc Enjou absolutely would say Exactomundo while watching a man's world crumbling before him, but I didn't want to ruin the tone for the reader.

So, to write Enjou's brand of manipulation you need to first formulate his end-goal, like what is the purpose of this manipulation? I assume you read my fic since you reference me writing enjou stirring shit up, so i'll use it as example of my thought process. One of the examples in my fic, he wants to convince rizzley that Neuvi gave him the title to buy his loyalty. What are the true facts here? Neuvi did fight hard to give rizzley the title, he says it in his own voice lines. What do we need to add? Malicious intent.

Enjou can't say "Your title was a bribe", bc that's a lie. Instead, he starts with "you know what I would do if *I* was the Hydro Sovereign with an ability to take human form? <...>I’d make sure I have people loyal to me in some key positions. Such as Royal Duelist… and the Warden of the Fortress.” It's not a lie, bc if Enjou was a sovereign, he'd probably really do that. On paper, he's talking about himself, but in context of overall conversation it will be obviously extrapolated to Neuvi. This is a form of switching the goal posts from Enjou to Neuvi without outright saying so.

Then, he says true facts:

“He didn’t make me the Warden,” Wriothesley gritted out. 

“No, but he did make you the Duke, didn’t he?” Enjou smirked with a wink. “Our sources say the Court was not thrilled to give the highest noble title to you. And if the Iudex did not throw his own weight behind it, it would have never come to pass. How generous of him.”

It's true, it was actually generous, he doesn't lie. But in context of previous implied accusation, it will be read as sarcastic, as saying it was done with selfish reasons.

And then he reinforces with “Ah, you’re starting to get it, don’t you?”, which is a leading question that again, doesn't say anything false outright.

he should also offer the person hes manipulating to beat him up repeatedly, bc hes a freak.

[askuemki]

So I have no idea if I’ll keep this post up, but…

A little rant abt re8?? (And cod.. kinda) maybe venting (just a mess :,)

Disclaimer, take my opinions with a grain of salt I just wanna ramble lmao

Also spoilers, maybe (update, definitely)

So I’ve been having fun dipping my toes into Donna Beneviento (god her last name is hard to spell) content. After watching the gameplays and to at least have a basic understanding for the game, I find myself really drawn to her, maybe more than Alcina tbh

By no means i’m a diehard fan or anything, recently it’s been hard to find a new fandom to get attached towards. As much as I adore cod, there isnt really much to get attached too… like sure, task 141 is a fun group and the there is some GREAT art about the ships- but I only got attached because of Valeria, I won’t deny it at all. I’m a diehard lesbian, but there isn’t really much cannon content of her?? It’s really damn disappointing sometimes, man… same with Laswell. I appreciate all of the fanartists out there though, I adore all of the content here, fanfics or fan art. With Farah, she’s a diffrent story.. personally I never really got attached to her, but as a character she’s pretty neat. Her story sort of brings to light the horrors happening today which is a bit of a benefit…?? But ever since I found out things about both Valeria’s and Farah’s actors I’ve been a little off about things here and there. I don’t think I’ll stop posting Valeria content at all, it just might be a little less offen to indulge in different things.

Some personal things have been happening to make me feel really disconnected from like.. fucking everything for some reason?? Like I’m drifting away from fandoms, I’m drifting away from people and I’m like alone again.. I’m lost in a damn dumpster fire. AI art doesn’t help with this at all.. like why do I draw?? I’ve been drawing since I was in kindergarten like I never really thought of the specifics of perusing art, more or so just that I want to. Like hey, I wanna make a game or movie series, and something in me doesn’t realize I need to put in the effort to learn shit with just ends up in me doing nothing but self pitting on something I can change and ugh.. wish I can slap myself to get out of it.

So I think I’ve been kind of finding myself relating to Donna. Not in her extreme way, more or so just her aspect of being isolated, and just being known primarily for one thing. Like.. our side of art? Damn. Shit. I think I’m worth nothing.. and with Donna we don’t really know much about her besides her being a cursed Dollmaker, and the bare bones of her past. And we both barely fucking speak man… both hide our faces too !! maybe I kin this woman or something I don’t know

But as I was looking through her tumblr tag, I saw a rant about how headcannons and stuff has been stripping away the interesting stuff about the re8 villains… and with the things I’ve seen so far?? I can kinda agree, honestly.

Don’t get me wrong, if it’s not too.. insane? (I know those boundaries are hard to define at times, but maybe REALLY immoral shit for our “normal” world) and people aren’t forcing these headcannons into other people? I don’t mind headcannons. You do you, boo!

But the fan content I’ve seen, people reduce Donna and Alcina (I’m surprised it was pronounced as AlCHIna and not AlSIna, but side tangent over) from the potential they really have. Yeah it’s definitely nice to see Donna more, especially in those intimate moments.. but sometimes I feel like people just depict her as some shy, easily gullible, girl, and not really the mentally deprived woman she is. Like I’d love to see ideas of the different dolls Donna could create, or unique imagery of her mental state outside of having porcelain skin. What about the kinds of plants she takes care of? Or the dolls she makes? I’d love to see more of it, whether she has favorites, or if it’s a situation where she has doll replicas of her deceased family. Man, I really wanna see Donna do more creepy shit, basically.

With Alcina however? She’s kind of reduced to that (I’m going to cringe at these words so terribly, god help me) “hot vampire mommy”.. I’ll take fault for not looking into her content as much, I’m sure there’s great content out there !! (I’m not sure if anyone would do this but.. feel free to send me any fic recommendations or art) With what I want to see for her? I’ve heard from the rant post as a man-hating woman she had primarily female statues in her castle, it would be fun to see what else she has cause of this worldview, as well as more whitty remarks from her; I really enjoy her throwback with Heisenberg. Just in general.. her being a comical villain.

Okay so, the reason why I made this post in the first place before all of this shit threw up from my brain. Belladonna. At first, this ship really interested me, I like the character dynamics, the art was neat. But then something came up in my mind.. (as well as another rant post on the ship..) isn’t the Dimitrescu bloodline related with Donna? Both are failed experiments from Mother Miranda, and technically adopted by her. Though from what I know, Donna is the only one officially adopted. So would that be family..? I’ve seen a few places where Alcina called Donna her sister, and it makes me feel really off.

And I’ve seen in a few fanarts, Donna technically older than the Dimitrescu sisters posed next to them like another sibling??

I would like to endorse the ship, but just the morality of everything is off centered for me. I rather not support weird incest…

So please if people could maybe clarify for me whether it would technically be okay for support this ship.. I’d appreciate it. If it isn’t okay, I have plans on making a fan character anyways, or I can take current characters and make a resident evil au or something, and ship them when Donna. (I have a character that honestly looks like a mix of Alcina and Bela, but by no means she’s relates to the franchise, lmao)

By no means I’m experienced in resident evil lore or the fandom, this is just coming from a newer fan of the series, and what I’ve seen so far.

If you read all of this.. thank you?? I apologize if I sound ridiculous here, this is like the only place I can rant abt things without being brushed off for other shit

Good night now!!! I need to stop pushing my sleep boundaries ugh

[king-candybug-backup]

Going to gush a little about a couple Kill Switch scenes that I appreciate because I think you're being too hard on yourself about whatever pacing issues you think you have :)

Every night, after the arcade had closed and the random roster race was concluded, Vanellope would sneak a heal kit out of Hero’s Duty, gather up some food, and then come to see him for a few hours. 

Whatever true reasons she must’ve had, she’d always hide them under the guise of ‘keeping him company’. Perhaps it was her sneaky way of torturing him, forcing him to listen to her ear-gratingly-annoying voice every night. If this little brat weren’t his only ticket out of here, he’d have tried to kill her a hundred times over by now.

This part I particularly love because it does a really good job at communicating how King Candy thinks in such a small, casual paragraph! He's only ever used kindness as a manipulation tactic, so it makes total sense that he'd see Vanellope's kindness as the same thing; not true kindness, but some sort of means to an end, something she must be doing to get one over on him somehow. He's completely and totally wrong of course but this small thought process fits his character really well! There's so much I could say about just this part if I were better at wording things, but ye, I just love this!

His head arose at the sound, blinking a few times to squint at her, as though he couldn’t tell if he’d actually woken up yet. “... You’re back?” 

“Well, yeah, obviously.” She replied, hoisting her haul against the bars of the cage. “If it took threats of violence to get ridda me, I’d’ve just left ya trapped in Diet Cola Mountain.”

Completely baffled, he just stared at her, slack-jawed. She really was a lot stupider than he initially thought.

This part I really like because I think it's another short but effective way to show how his thought process is going to develop about the situation. He keeps seeing her nice gestures as her being foolish and dumb, which I think will let his guard down more as time goes on and he sees this more and more as "oh she'll be EASY to manipulate" even though Vanellope is actually smart and knows full well to be wary of him, and he just can't process how her kindness does not equal stupidity, so his flawed world view there is pretty much setting himself up for failure if he misleads himself into thinking she's a lot dumber than she actually is (That is, if I'm reading into that part correctly. Mayby I'm overthinking a little bit there. xD Bad at wording things)

She shot a snarky look his way. “Also, you literally tried to kill me in Rainbow Lane, I don’t think you have much room to judge, there.”

He looked as though he were about to object, took a second to think about it, then shrugged in a surprisingly nonchalant manner. “True.”

Vanellope rolled her eyes before continuing on her original tangent. “So, what, d’you think every single other racer on the track suddenly doesn’t matter if they don’t win every single time?” When she saw King Candy open his mouth to respond, she quickly held up her hand, remembering who it was she’d been speaking to. “Actually, don’t answer that.” 

And this part I don't have much to say about I just like because it's funny xD

Brb, gotta go have a cry real quick 😭

But seriously, thank you, that's so sweet! :') I'm honestly blown away by how much people seem to be liking the fic so far, it makes me really happy that you're enjoying it! 💗 Your ask honestly just made my day, like, THIS FANDOM IS SO NICE, WHAT IS HAPPENING

It also makes me very very happy to know that people are picking up on the vibes I am putting down, thank you very muchly

And what I mean by the whole "pacing issues" thing is really just, like, there were a couple of parts that simply didn't transition between scenes very smoothly, and it comes off as a little jarring (in my opinion). I didn't have the chance to finish the edits yesterday as originally planned, but basically all I'm going to do is add a scene with Candy and Vanellope talking a little bit more before the Sinistar attack, because I feel like that part happened too quickly before they had a chance to build up a bit more of a consistent dynamic, and I'm also going to add a scene before Candy tries to attack her to show his anger growing a bit more naturally, as I feel like that part was glossed over a little too much. Like, he went from "I'm going to bide my time and wait for an opportune moment" to "Actually f#@% everything I'm going to stab this child right now" without exploring his worsening emotional state enough, lol. Those were really the only two issues that were bothering me about it. Like I know it's not the HUGEST deal, but I feel like I can make it better, so I wanna try, lmao

[trainingdummyrabbit]

ayin. i'm curious

one question in and im already having to pull up the cutscene dialogue. god. ok listen this is the most bullyable man in the whole entire world and he makes it so easy, but also I Do Fucking Love This Guy. i need to study him so bad its unreal.

im always a sucker for characters introduced as a "yeah theyre totally a player stand-in dont worry about it ^_^" and then they kick you in the fucking shins halfway through. and he is no exception. i am Notoriously endeared by characters with any amount of weird identity fuckery going on and Jesus Fucking Christ Dude.

the way that he is so solidly rooted in the core of everything that goes down in lobcorp, and yet how certain bits of his attitude and Personality are Wholly lost. how most of what we know of him is through secondhand accounts and recollections, and yet he refuses to let on anything about himself in his own memory of things. his perception revolves entirely around the people around him to a very, Very stark degree. im not sure if its just a side effect of the genre and execution of this story in particular or if im just making shit up, but.

hes not a loud character. something about that in tangent with how he completely splinters himself over and over in conjunction with the things that happened to them, its all very compelling. the way he tackles problems with this sort of analytical distance, unaware of or perhaps intentionally separating his own mess from what he feels he has to do-- while at the same time having it be so inextricably intertwined with Everything. he feels like the type of character to desperately want to simply point a direction and shoot, yet he gets in his own way time and time again, simultaneously on accident And on purpose. avoidant of And conscious of.

ill be real im just kind of spitballing the vague Idea of him in hopes of reaching something concrete. he's so intent on the straightforward "any means necessary," yet he sabotages himself every step of the way. its fascinating. such a strange form of self-destruction.

i wonder how he really feels about everything. how he felt, and then, what exactly it is that changed in him after the SoL project "completion". what exactly did he come to terms with through the course of ruina? was it something new he hadn't the room to process until then, or was it simply an understanding that he'd had for longer than that, that he'd simply never had the mind to voice it?

and then! the way he feels about the rest of the team-- how little he seems to speak of any particular bond between himself and them, and yet (iirc) he has photos of them all up in his office. how much of him is means to an end, and how much is compartmentalization of what he might actually feel? which does he want to be true?

does that cohere? he's such a messy tangle of things that never get spoken-- on purpose and otherwise-- that it makes him so difficult to Actually Read, and yet... and yet! what im saying is that benjamin saw something in him, and that is something worth studying-- not because of doubt, but because of a desire to truly Understand. something about the metaphor between Sun and Shadow, seeing things in the gaps burned between photos. fascinating specimen. i need to put him into a blender.

also hes one of the few characters capable of making me lose it just by seeing his basic png which has to count for something i guess

[electricbluebutterflies]

“did you ever stop and think that maybe just maybe the person you’re looking for is me?” + eddie/chrissy

PG-ish and also on ao3. I haven't written these little bbys in a hot minute and I missed them.

Chrissy floats, after.

It makes an amount of sense. Something happened – she’s still not totally sure what happened – and she spent the end of senior year in the hospital, and now-

She’s not sure who she is anymore, but nothing will ever be the same.

No one from her old life wants to talk to her that summer, she knows that much. The circumstances of the incident are too damning, and she can’t say she blames them, but also screw them all, and-

At least she has the boy who was there when it happened. The boy who most of the nurses thought was her boyfriend, apparently, and she’s pieced together bits of what happened when her consciousness wasn’t reliable and it’s all so sweet and-

Boys like that don’t actually fall in love with girls like her. Chrissy knows how the world works better than that. She’s a little uncertain of herself right now but she can’t imagine she’ll stray too far from what she’s been, whereas he’s…

If she admits to herself that she’s had a secret crush for a couple years, that makes it worse, but she’s ignoring the issue there.

Regardless, there’s also the thing where Eddie is one of the few people in her life who doesn’t treat her weird now, and if anything he’s just… decided to stay present, probably out of some weird sense of obligation but whatever. Chrissy is a little too desperate to question this, and it’s nice to have someone go out of their way for her, ask her to meet him in safe neutral places and they just talk and-

He’s midway through one of his big daydream tangents, mid-afternoon at the overgrown park that’s becoming their spot, and she could listen to him for hours and she has so often and-

Summer is almost over. She’s almost stable enough to start trying to have a normal life again, and she thinks she’d be a decent receptionist since there’s no way she’s going away for college now that she’s fragile, and she doesn’t know what he’s doing and it doesn’t seem like he knows what he’s doing either, and she feels like they’re running out of time, and-

“Did you ever stop and think that maybe, just maybe, the person you’re looking for is me?”

She broke him. That’s her first thought. Eddie Munson, infamous for having no idea when to shut up (among other things), is currently looking at her like some wire got snipped in his brain and-

“Is that… an option?”

She’d kiss him if she thought that’d get her anywhere, and she thinks she’d like kissing him, he wouldn’t be weird about it like other boys, but it would be too soon and sudden and Chrissy has spent most of her life being told not to be that way and-

“Do you want it to be?”

“Weird enough you even hang out with me, so…”

Chrissy laughs, and she knows he thinks she’s extra-cute when she does that and it’s not the point and it’s entirely the point, and-

“You saved my life. Isn’t that already the most fairytale thing you’ve ever heard?”

“You don’t owe me-“

“I know. But it got me thinking about what I want, and… you’re sweet to me, you’re a good person…”

“You really-“

Okay, now she needs to kiss him. She does, most of her body leaning across the picnic table, and it’s awkward in the way that first kisses are always awkward but also fluttery like she’s never really had before and-

“I want that,” she says like it’s the most real thing in the world. “And we can figure out everything else later, and-“

“Okay if I move over there so we can hold hands?”

“Yeah. Please.”

[miserablekingsteve]

A romcom au that no one asked for that will be multiple parts, the hook line being; Was Eddie Munson ready to be Steve Harrington’s wing man? Hell no. Had he somehow promised this to Steve? Absolutely. With Steve being who he was, somehow he was going to help Eddie find a date too. Unbeknownst to the former king, the person Eddie wanted was right there.

Look, if someone told Eddie he would be turned away from every job he applied for 6 months ago—sure he would’ve laughed. But because he was a third year senior with loads of petty crimes logged in the Hawkins police bank. Not because he was a ‘once believed satanic murderer turned messiah’. It was ever more frustrating than the petty theft shit and all that. The pitying looks and the—

“Alright, Munson. I let you drink here for free the first couple of times but I’m running a tab now,” Jen, the lovely lovely bar maid cut him off mid tangent. Guilt overrid his gut and he sighed, she was right, after all of it, she wasn’t paid to listen to his pity party.

“Well, that was your first mistake, Jen,” Eddie swirled the dead foam in his beer, “never let a man drink for free. Ever.”

“Lest a naive little girl like me never make that mistake again,” Jen rolled her eyes while she dried a glass. He grinned at her, sucking back the last bits of free beer.

“You’re anything but, Jen. But I think you already knew that,” Eddie blindly searched for his jacket under the bar so he could take on the walk to his new government enstated hole.

“Don’t worry, next rounds on me,” A very familiar voice said from Eddie’s right.

“The worlds not ending anymore. I don’t need you swooping in to save me like a knight in shining armour, Harrington.”

There the former King was leaning against the bar with a soft smirk painted on his lips. He was decked out in a nice grey blouse which was tucked into his usual tight Levi’s, the dim bar light hitting the streaks of blond which had formed from the summer sun.

“Yeah, well, just this once?” Steve formed it almost as a question, eyes big and yearning. Eddie let out a long winded sigh and dropped his coat back on the hook.

“You got me,” Damn, this wasn’t the first time Steve came and found him in a place of vulnerability. It was annoying and very persistent. Eddie only allowed himself to say no 3 times, and he still hadn’t cashed in on any of those.

“And, just like that ladies and gentlemen. The paper man crumbles. You’re all theatrics, Eddie,” Steve whistled, a jovial grin plastered on his dumb pretty face, “Don’t let these hardened workers see that, they’ll ravage you alive.

There was a pause before he barked out a laugh as Steve pointedly looked between both of their torsos. Jen curiously eyed them up, before dropping their new beers on fresh coasters and promptly left them alone.

“So, what brings you to the Hideout of all places, Steve?” Eddie grasped the pint with a clammy hand, an excuse to do something with his nervous limbs.

“Oh, you know. I heard a really good band plays here sometimes,” Steve grinned, before his wall faltered and he looked wistfully at his own beer, “I, actually was supposed to meet a date here. Got stood up, I guess.”

“Damn, that rut is ever present, eh?”

Eddie’s stool rattled from where Steve kicked the legs. He flipped Steve off around his glass, taking a large gulp hiding the smirk that fought its way onto his lips.

The younger man sighed and leaned back, “Yeah, it’s so weird, man. In high school I never had this much trouble, like I’d at least get one date under my belt, yknow.”

Eddie raised an eyebrow, “Actually, no. I don’t know.”

Steve turned and looked at him in confusion, a hot blush spread over Eddie’s cheeks after he realized the hole he dug himself into.

“You mean to tell me, that Eddie Munson, Jean vest, ripped jeans and suave cool guy. Has never been on a date?”

Against Eddie’s will, the flush on his cheeks flared, fighting for nonchalance he chuckled into his hand, deciding what to lay bare for Steve, “Ahem, yeah. Not many people I’ve-uh-been interested in. Well, not here anyway.”

A look of disbelief crossed Steve’s face, but he shrugged in understanding, “I guess… I get it?”

Eddie erupted into laughter, shaking out his curls, “Hey, thanks for trying at least.”

Comfortable silence fell over the two men as they sat, nursing their respective beers. Eddie tried to keep a hold on the erratic laughter that threatened to pool out into the bar. What? Was he just supposed to outwardly just tell Steve he appreciated the company of men. With the musk, sweat, and usually disgusting habits the same sex tended to participate in. Not the soft, flush skin of a woman. Yeah, he was able to see the beauty of a woman. But there was something about the coarse hair of a treasure trail that made Eddie’s collar tighten.

“Sooo, what’s your type, Munson?”

Aw fuck was Steve for real. Eddie thought, eyes widening, the grip on his beer almost painful.

“Oh, yknow, brunettes with a bit of a bitch underneath.”

Steve laughed at that, nodding his head in agreement. No recognition of the fact T hat steve fit the bill almost too perfectly.

“I get it, I’d say I’m in the same boat,” Steve threw back, a grin spreading secretly over his lips.

Now, Eddie had since given up on his little crush on Steve long ago, but even with his high school days far behind him, he was still appreciative of the man. He let his eyes trail down the side of Steve’s face and focused on the two moles that were tucked secretly under his jaw.

“Well, I don’t know what idiot you got stood up by but she doesn’t deserve you,” Eddie stated. A snort came from Steve and he shook his head, “Nah, stop doing that man. You’re under selling yourself. Come on, try whatever you did with her on me. I’ll give you some tips!”

Careful where you put your foot, Munson.

Thankfully, Steve seemed interested in his idea, straightening out his back and turning to face Eddie head on. Okay, strong start. It was good.

“Hey, you’ve got pretty good taste in movies—,”

Eddie cut Steve off before he continued, “Ah, ah, ah. See that’s your problem, don’t pick up chicks at work, it’s Family Video, for fucks sake!”

Steve floundered but Eddie held up his hand to stave off the earful he knew the man wanted to give him, “No, here. You may meet them at work, but don’t ask them out there! You can’t gauge anything from the interaction, especially at Family Video.”

“Oh, yeah sure. You know where to pick up chicks, Mr. I’ve never been on a date.”

“Touché,” Eddie nodded, “I may not have a bunch of chicks in my phone book. But at least I have common sense.”

“Hey!”

“Dude, it’s true! Not only do you have Robin breathing over your shoulder, %100 scaring away your ‘conquests’. But on the off chance she’s not there, you’ve got Creepy Keith. Start going out and doing things.”

Steve almost interrupted him but then shut his mouth quickly at the mention of Keith, “Yeah you’ve got a point. But where do I go, where it’s not like overbearing and verging on creep behaviour.”

“Now, I actually can help you there,” Eddie smirked and lifted his beer to take a long swig, “I still have my side business, and with the start of summer, I’ve got loads of jobs lined up. You should come?”

Eddie’s stomach did a backflip at the way Steve’s face lit up like a god damn candle.

“Dude are you serious? That would be amazing,” Eddie laughed at his enthusiasm.

“Now, I gotta figure out some way to help you,” Steve’s brow furrowed, deep in thought. Shit, Eddie wasn’t prepared for that response.

“Ehh, don’t sweat it man, that’s what friends do.”

“Exactly! And I wanna help you. Get you one date, at least!” Steve proclaimed, eyes filled with excitement.

Eddie crumpled under the look. Because he’d actually love to go on a date, have someone take him out to a show or something, “Pfft, fine. Twist my arm, Harrington.”

“Okay. I come out to parties with you to find dates—instead of family video—and I help you, uh, find out how and who you want to take out. Deal?”

Eddie eyed Steve’s outstretched hand nervously, before smiling and smacking his own palm into the bond, “Deal!”

They grinned at each other, throwing back the last drags of their beers, Jen called out last call and Steve dropped a couple of bills on the bar.

“Alright, I’ll stop by to give you details on the whereabouts of my illegal handlings,” Eddie shoved an arm through the worn leather sleeve of his jacket.

“See ya then, Munson,” Steve grinned, hands shoved into those stupid blue jeans, “I look forward to it.”

Shit.

Steve sauntered out of the bar, a little bit more pep in his step than when he’d hunched in next to Eddie. What the fuck was he doing?

“You alright, kid?” Jen asked, many questions left on her tongue.

Eddie rubbed a hand over his face abrasively, “Yeah, yeah. Definitely.”

Stay tuned for the next part 😉

[lewis-winters]

i do feel like we’re giving band of brothers a bit too much credit here. there is still a very deep undercurrent of “america is the best country on earth and yeah the war was bad but in the end we were a big ol’ Band of Brothers.” there’s a reason a lot of actual vets of recent American imperial wars thing TP is better

I mean... yeah? that's what I meant by "WW2 Nostalgia Propaganda of the Bush Regime (that the US government used to fuel the war on terror) and that's why I said The Pacific is a critique of that specifically.

my posts' point wasn't "which show is better than the other (i.e. BoB vs GenKill vs TP)" in terms of "what show has less america-first propaganda"? my posts' point is: the writing of BoB, GenKill, and TP are far superior to MotA simply by having a point/something to say about war that goes beyond "this shit sucks" and "💫cinema💫"

and if this is in reply to my "oh i hate hbo war it makes me want to examine the american public's relationship to war and how it's depicted in their war media" uuuuhhhh. i IMPLORE you to read that post again. properly this time?

............ sorry, that was snippy. just. reading comprehension's your friend, buddy.

anyway, if you wanna have that convo by all means we can have it. Though anything I can say about it has already been said better by Christopher Hayes and his essay The Good War on Terror (that you can find an EXCELLENT zine on, over here) and the journal article Operation Enduring Analogy: World War II, the War on Terror, and the Uses of Historical Memory by David Hoogland Noon, which is also very good. I sound like a broken record recommending them so much, BUT THEY JUST GET IT OK.

If you want a more contemporary essay try this one by the Washington Post The Danger of American Nostalgia for World War II by Robert G. Kaiser. This has a whole section ripping into BoB the show and Ambrose's work. Alas. It is behind a paywall. But there are ways around that *wink wink.*

edit: ok, sorry I'm being a little mean and a lot snippy HAHAHAHA but I really do feel like you're shouting this argument from the other side of the room-- meaning, it has its place as a conversation, but maybe not in the conversation that was already happening (i.e. why MotA's writing sucks). next time, I think we'd both benefit if you yelled 'SIDE-BAR' or 'WAIT, CHANGE SUBJECT' first before launching into a new tangent. kisses to you anon, I'm not mad, I promise. I have tone problems.

[princess-of-the-corner]

I am so sorry for this ask, I promise:

But I'm curious how the whole Rekindling scenario might be different in olor.

Like, a big part of the omegaverse is that kinks are kinda more acceptable and seen as normal since you all have a period of time where your sex drive can turn you lowkey insane.

I get the sense that while the kids may have a similar reaction on the "WAIT YOU TWO ARE FUCKING AGAIN?" front, I'm really not sure how they'd react to the exact nature of the fucking in olor.

Although. Bonus points for all of them being able to SMELL that Rei and Enji have "rekindled" and Shoto, oblivious bean that he is, still has no idea what that smell MEANS. And nobody wants to explain it to him.

Cue many an awkward moment where upperclassmen were getting teased after smelling weird being recontextualized, and now Shoto REALLY needs some brain bleach.

Oh so there's multiple things with this and I'm gonna go on tangents so!

So while some aspects of the Omegaverse are ofc horny on main, discovering kinks isn't necessarily something that would happen on its own.

Like. How does one discover kinks if you're not the type to actively look at kink content that may introduce you? Mostly by accident.

Taking Enji and Rei as an example. They have very little knowledge of kind outside of a basic 'it exists' and maybe a few baseline things like bondage. But while one may learn about handcuffs and realize they like that, unless they look into it they're not going to really think 'hey get some ropes and tie me up like a Christmas ham'(shibari) on their own.

On the other hand, they'll run into other kinks by nature. For example: both have a temperature play kink. It came free with their Quirk. But at the same time neither really /knows/ that temperature play is a common kink that people can be into .

Of course there's another category that I don't quite think applies to these two but is a real-world thing of 'hey why does this episode of Totally Spies turn me on?' so ya know.

Multiple ways to figure out kinks but the baseline 'really horny' isn't one of them.

Anyway onto the scent stuff:

I debate on whether there's a specific scent to sex stuff past like. Heat/rut blasting pheromones to entice a partner. Which is kinda different.

But it's more like. The fact that while they've been co-habitating for a while and while living together does get their scents on each other, it's faint and you'd have to be actively looking for it. But then suddenly their scents are so strongly all over the other. Add in being bad at hiding bite marks and... yeah. Figured it out.

Re: Shoto being able to connect the dots or not: In both mainline CC and olor, they wouldn't be at the 'rekindling point until probably at least Shoto's third year of high school. And at that point between living in the UA dorms and his own experiences he's not exactly clueless to the 'oh y'all are hooking up' signs.

that said!

One of my favorite shifts in dynamics that olor brings to the table is actually in the /before/ part of the relationship, not the afterward Rekindling part.

Like

This is a plot bit I kinda did in Road to Hell, it's just elongated and different in olor. But also I don't think it got across in full in Road to Hell because it's Enji's pov and he didn't notice.

But it takes a bit for Rei to really actually trust Enji at all. Even with the things he says, she's suspicious. She's not used to people who would treat her like a person. She expected to end up with a husband who would expect her to be at his beck and call. And who wouldn't take 'no' for an answer if she refused.

So when she ends up living with Enji, though he did some things different, she still expects the same treatment. So she plays into it at first. This leads to their talk in the kitchen in Road to Hell where he does his best to assure her that he wants to help her above anything else.

And while this intrigues her and she wants to trust that he's a decent man who didn't know what he was getting into with her and all...... that hasn't been her experience so she's skeptical until he proves himself.

In Road to Hell this happens quicker, as we have the 'engagment party' bit where Kaito took Enji out for a drink. Rei's too filled with anxiety because while the man can play whatever role he wants sober, who knows what he'll do when drunk.

And she anxieties herself into it. Unable to sleep. Waiting up. Preparing herself for something awful....... Only to have him ramble about liking her and try to ask her on a date.

It clicks in her head that 'oh. He actually means this. He's not going to hurt me like that.'. Ofc it doesn't get rid of /all/ of Rei's issues. Even if she logically knows what kind of man he is now, it doesn't stop years of conditionng and expectations and fear that one slip will change things

Anyway:

In olor, this goes on a bit longer. Because one aspect of the Omegaverse is 'using heats/ruts to justify sexual assault'. So it's not a 'how does he act when drunk' question for her, it's a 'how does he act when heats/ruts are in play?'.

And Rei avoids this for a bit. First heat when they're living together, she avoids him altogether. Makes an excuse of not feeling well.

That doesn't last of course. Anyone with basic sex ed knows heats are a monthly thing so if she's 'sick' every month.... yeah he'll eventually connect the dots.

Which yeah eventually it does get to a point of noticing and being in proximity and.... nothing happens. Oh sure, he definitely notices. Reacts with interest. But he doesn't make any moves.

Even so, Rei's still on edge until the roles are flipped. When dealing with his rut instead. She tries to avoid him but he's not making an effort to avoid her. And it's the same thing as before: clear interest. This time a bit more forward, as his thoughts are hazed. But the second Rei pulls back, so does he.

It's only now that it clicks. She's safe here.

[yakuzabrainrotlive]

So uhhh. Saejima's part. Yeah. How do I put this...

It really didn't do it for me, personally? 😭 There are some very good moments there, truly! I just. Don't have a lot so say about it. I played 'till before the kidnapping thing.

First, we gotta get the most important part out of the way:

Saejima's lucky plushie for the game will be Donpen-kun!

Somehow ended up going on a big tangent about Majima's situation right at the beginning.

I guess this crisis is understandable, though. Tojo is (at least outwardly) bigger than ever, the Hills project is done, Saejima's not on death row anymore and knows the story behind '85. He's at a crossroads right now; what does he want to do now? He lived for more than two decades waiting for this whole thing to come to a head, it did, and now there's... options. And time is ticking - they're not getting any younger. And there's no going back to how things were before shit it the fan, so something new is gonna have to happen.

Kiryu's midlife crisis? Kinda expected. Majima's midlife crisis? Did NOT expect it. I love these moments where we get to hear what's truly going on in his head, even just a little bit. He's a deeper thinker than the people around him would ever give him credit for.

I mean.... not sure if Majima is talking about physical or mental slowness taking over, probably both? He's so used to there constantly being a big stressor somewhere, always having so much to do, having to be on guard. When it's all starting to simmer down after all those years and there's this stability (though it's fragile), I feel like everything WOULD start to catch up to him and he'd really start to FEEL those years. Stress has such a massive effect on your physical and mental well-being that I shouldn't really be surprised this kind of crash is happening.

Physical side? He canonically doesn't eat very well (at least not in Kiwami, he says he practically lives on fast food) and he probably kept having nightmares like in Y0, so sleep is probably not good either. I'm also a firm believer that the year in The Hole left a physical impact as well, maybe some chronic pain that's really making itself known as he's aged? All that on top of, well, just natural aging.

I can see why he'd feel he's no longer got the same OOMPH as before. And while I can't relate to this in terms of aging, my own chronic illness has significant effects on my ability to function at times, and it can be very frustrating to feel your body just... not doing as well as before.

I'm eager to see how this develops.

OKAY, SAEJIMA. Uhhh. Prison! The Joint! Not gonna lie, I was kind of... bored with the prison section.

I like the fact that the game took the time to address the anxiety of prisoners who are getting out after long sentences. They have no idea what kind of world is waiting out there. Will they manage to get a job? Will they become homeless? That's terrifying!

But in terms of the rest of it... Personally I didn't really click with Saejima's cellmates and it was a whole lot of... running around this empty map. If I'd managed to grow fond of, say Baba, the whole stabbing mystery would have kept me more engaged. They did add those dream/imagination sequences, but it was. Ehhh.

WE GOT SAEJIMA KAROKE!! And I did somehow get the Bakamitai full score while on that imagination date with Kaguya! Saejima's singing voice is gorgeous.

When the plot kicked in, it got interesting for a bit. They're really trying to get rid of all the past and current MVPs of the Tojo Clan real fast. Very aggressive, feels more and more like Omi is behind this and one of them is pulling strings in the Tojo side of things.

Thank you for everything Kosaka, my king. You will not be forgotten🫡

Lord almighty, up in the heavens... you better not make me drive this contraption or I swear-

*inhuman screeching sound* NOOOOOOOOOOO 😭😭😭😭😭

Huh. Honestly at a loss for words, here. That's a whole bear.

...

I mean, sure!! Why not! Kiryu took on tigers while healing from a stab wound, this might as well happen.

VERY niche reference that only people from the Nordics will probably understand, but. A huge man-eating bear terrorizing a remote village? And a badass, gruff loner of an old hunter has beef with that specific bear? What's next, a young akita inu comes to fight it with a pack of 1000+ fellow dogs and eventually lops its head off with a supernatural technique?

please watch the Silver Fang anime it's nuts

I honestly don't have ANYTHING else to say about the hunting village section😭 We hunted, we talked, we left. We chilled. Literally and in terms of vibes.

I LOVED the look of Tsukimino! My favourite town in terms of looks and vibe this far. But then I realized how hellish that town is to move around in because of all the narrow streets and only being able to move across roads in specific spots and angles. Made the town feel very small. It's a shame.

Bear 2 was a very funny addition. Got a genuine laugh out of me. I guess it's only fair; Kiryu fought two tigers, why should Saejima get away with only one bear?

Kidnapping plot is sounding INSANE right now, how the HELL will they pull this one off.

[shitpostingkats]

8 and 18 for the YGO ask meme? P.S. Helloooooo ^.^

8. Favorite antagonist/villain

You know? Shoutouts to Brron! He doesn't get enough love. I really love his design and they way he's animated in the show, this sort of creaky dusty mummy that doesn't have any bones and joints in all the Wrong places.

18. A random headcanon

Ooh I can't narrow it down to just one so I'll do some for each series I've seen.

DM: Atem is stupid nearsighted and this is why he does the squinty squinty whenever he takes over. This is really impressive because he's the one who actually passed the drivers test for Yugi (Yugi's a fine driver, he just couldn't get through the exam without having a panic attack) and to this day no one knows how he did it because the man is coke-bottle-glasses-blind and needs help crossing the street most days. Yes, this means Yugi has technically driving illegally his entire life. No, he doesn't feel one bit bad about it.

GX: Listen to me. I am looking directly in your face. Tyranno Hassleberry would be an amazing principal/chancellor of duel academy. He's a friendly leader type who loves learning and being in charge of rowdy hooligans. He effortlessly takes command of the student body like three times in the series. He's weird and fun and would be utterly beloved by his students because yeah he talks like a retired army colonel but he also goes off on hours long tangents on the cretaceous period and lets any student who wants avoid going home over the holidays tag along on his archeology digs and/or camping trips. He seems to be friends with the entire work force of pro duelists and duel historians and duel physicists and regularly invites them to the island to give presentations. I know Shepard set the bar low but Tyranno Hassleberry is going to raise it.

5Ds: I haven't posted any art of it, but I like to draw Yusei with tattoos! He gets a new one for every person that's important to him, so he has a full sleeve on his right arm (though his tattoo for Martha is right over the scar on his stomach) and even gets the dragon head inked back on after the end of the series. Also as stated previously I fully believe in my heart of hearts that Carly Carmine is a lesbian. And I believe with certainty that she should go on a date with Stephanie (the server from blue eyes coffee). Stephanie opens up her own little queer coffee shop called "Les Bean" or smth and Carly becomes a full on investigative reporter who keeps getting in trouble with the cops because she and her six foot tall emotional support himbo investigate leads by picking fights with violent criminals and there's really nothing anyone can do about it.

Zexal: I haven't finished with the series yet but I am full to bursting with headcanons for what astral world is like and if the show wants to contradict me it is welcome to try. I think astral world is completely underwater and filled with bioluminescence and weird deep sea creatures. Everything is floaty and sways in the currents and an astral's hair is like the fronds of a sea anemone and it is customary/fashionable to have schools of fish swimming around in it. Some astrals decorate their bodies with coral and plants and are floating ecosystems. There's a good deal of Societal Value attached to how many creatures you are in symbiosis with. Astral himself doesn't know exactly why he feels so grief stricken when he sees Yuma fiddle with the beads in his hair, or feels so lonely when he looks in an aquarium, but he's working on it, and as far as he's got Yuma, then he's not alone at all :)

[turtlemagnum]

so is there any actual, quantifiable evidence for multiverse theory or is it just the result of some guy with an esoteric degree going "wouldn't that be cool"? because don't get me wrong it's a cool as hell concept, but given how i'm not a quantum physicist and i'm pretty sure none of the actual proponents of the theory i've personally talked to were either i've gotta wonder if it's just some kinda pop science thing so far removed from its original context that it's basically meaningless at this point. like obviously quantum theory is real, i'd seriously doubt that quantum computers would physically function if it didn't... ok so tangent, this is a bit of an obscure story, but the guy who designed the tommy gun didn't really understand the science behind designing guns and the operating mechanism he came up with was pseudoscientific bullshit, but by sheer luck he managed to make a functioning gun, albeit with the simplest, most primitive possible operating mechanism. either quantum theory is real, or quantum computers were designed like that, and something tells me that quantum theory's probably real because computers are a lot more complicated than guns. there's a reason one's been around for about a hundred years and the other's been around for about a thousand, y'know.

anyways this got away from me and i really hope this doesn't come off as anti-intellectual, but the last time i asked somebody about multiverse theory they recorded a little video where they drew lines and said that it was a representation of dimensions beyond 3d, but when i asked what that meant they couldn't really come up with an answer. like they didn't even grasp at straws like a conspiracy theorist would, they just sorta went "huh, yeah i dunno man". i'm fully willing to accept the possibility that it's real and that i've just encountered amateurs at this point, i know that someone explaining something ineffectively doesn't actually mean it's false, i just haven't seen any Actual Scientist talk about it as anything more than a thought experiment.

i actually recently watched an almost 8 hour video about flat earthers, and i think it definitely increased my scientific knowledge. i honestly didn't know the actual definition of theory vs law in scientific jargon as opposed to the common use meaning, i just knew that there was in fact a difference and that they're a lot more rigorous than when some guy on the internet says they have a theory about a piece of fiction. it gave me a lot to think about. to my current understanding, a theory is something in science that tries to explain why things are the way they are, while a law is just an explanation of how things are. the difference being is that the law of gravity is just an observation of how the universe functions, meanwhile a theory would be trying to understand why the law of gravity functions how it does. now, i've always heard it either described as some variation starting with either many worlds or multiverse and ending with theory or interpretation. now, given how scientists at the very least consider it to have the legitimacy to refer to it as a theory (at least sometimes), i'd assume that on some level it actually explains something. i think it's also a decent assumption to make that i don't know nearly enough about quantum mechanics to understand what it's even trying to explain, so i dunno. i'm probably missing something. i feel like if i try to research into this enough it's eventually gonna get into math, and me and math go together about as well as water being tossed in boiling oil. i'm definitely a layman, so please lemme know if i got something wrong/how stupid of an idiot i am! anons are on for a reason, after all

[qqueenofhades]

I hope this isn’t weird or something that I should just deal with on my own and all that, so I apologize in advance because this is incredibly recent and I’m still hurting and trying to figure out what to do next.

One of my friends of quite a while now turned out to be a massive fuckin transphobe. Yippie. The thing is, he’s fully in support of the non-straight side of the queer community, always has been, but apparently that’s where he draws the line, and I just learned that today, and it sucks. It sucks so much that someone I really cared about turns out to be a kinda terrible person who ended up saying some incredibly hurtful and disrespectful things when it all came to light.

But the thing is, while the trans hatred is DEFINITELY there, it all seems to be stemming from a place of generational hatred and ignorance because he just can’t see how his actions and words are hurtful. It turns malicious when he’s pushed, as I learned the hard way, but I feel the root of it is simply ignorance.

We got in an argument via text, which, of course, is always the worst way to do things but it was a normal conversation that went downhill incredibly quickly and I’m like 3+ hours away so we can’t hash it out in person and I wasn’t willing to just go and call.

For your uh. Viewing displeasure. I’d send screenshots (and can, if you’d like additional context) but people who have a stake in this are very likely to see this and I don’t particularly want my name attached without anon.

I didn't say that transgender people are mistakes, and I didn't mean to suggest that. People can make the mistake into believing that they are who they are not

Yes, I don't believe a transwoman is a real woman. They are biological differences between both man and woman that can't be changed

Cue me going on a bit of a tangent about suicide rates, Trevor project, intersex people being a thing, what transitioning is like, etc etc. I was pissed, I was hurt, and I admit my first reaction was anger but I also think I did a very good job of keeping calm, explaining things, while also trying to impress upon him just how incredibly shitty saying those things is

Why are you so mad? I just wanted to open up to you. I didn't mean to sound rude or anything like that

Upon which I explained that I’ve lost friends to suicide and yet again how problematic some of his statements have been

I think we both need some time to think about this

I don't. I know exactly where I stand with this issue and who I care for and what it means to me personally. You're more than welcome to call so we can talk about it that way, if that's what you'd prefer or what would help you

It seems like things right now are a bit heated, I just want to talk about when things have calmed down

If that's what you need in order to decide whether you support trans people or not, go ahead. As I said, I know exactly what my opinion on this is, and it's on the side of the people whose beliefs don't disrespect certain people's existence

I respect and love everybody, but I'm not going to change my values or beliefs because they "disrespect" other people's values or beliefs

Which… yeah. That’s where it left off. Other shit was said, other shit went down, and I stand by everything and don’t regret it, even if this guy used to be my friend.

But as I said, I very much feel that this is coming from a place of ignorance and having been taught by religious, queerphobic parents, having very little experience to the queer world and having no understanding of our history, our pain, and the battles we’re still fighting. I believe he genuinely doesn’t see how his words are hurtful and how his actions genuinely cause issues and how his words are the things that drive trans people to suicide and hatred.

Which is what I’m reaching out for, what can I do, I don’t want to cut him off because I don’t want to abandon him to be a hateful person because I believe everyone, however horrible their beliefs, can learn and grow and change, and I want to know any sort of resources or help or advice you have, anything to try to fight that ignorance-based disrespect and make him realize that they’re not just words and that his behavior isn’t just his personal beliefs, that his beliefs are genuinely harming other people.

Thank you, and much love to you. We all need a bit more kindness and love and acceptance right now with this world we live in.

I'm sorry to hear about your friend, and it's understandable that you feel deeply upset and betrayed. At this time, however, I don't think you have any obligation to "educate" him or do more than you have already done. If this is a friendship-ending issue, well... it sucks, but it is what it is. If you want to, you can communicate that he's welcome to reach out to you again if his feelings change. Otherwise, it's not your responsibility to continue or spend extra time trying to talk him around. It's something that people either accept or they don't, and while feelings can evolve, it's usually something that will happen with time and space and on their own accord. So yeah. It's up to you whether you want to signal that you're up for further communication or not, if you want to take some time to let feelings heal, or if you don't want to continue being friends with someone who feels that way. Either way, it's not your responsibility to endlessly try to talk him around. Make a decision about what you feel comfortable with, set that boundary, and do your best. It sucks, but such is life sometimes. Alas.

[transxfiles]

gonna go on a little mini tangent about nimona movie adaptation. it's gonna include lots of spoilers for the graphic novel so if you haven't read it yet (and you should!!) you can just scroll past spoiler free <3 anyways,

first off i am SO fucking pumped up about the nimona movie this is doing things to my middle school heart you have no idea <3 <3 <3 they're definitely branding it in the area of that kind of edgy but family friendly movie vibe that's been popular with certain projects lately (low key some parts of the trailer were giving me mitchells versus the machines while others were giving me the same energy as the bad guys, which is an interesting mix imo they're both good animated movies from the recent past but at the same time they're both tonally different in many ways not to mention very different tonally from the original nimona comic imo) and basically where i'm going with this is i hope they keep the original tone of the comic. the graphic novel does a really great job of shifting between lighthearted comedy and the complex emotions of the characters really well, especially with the twist at the end where we find out that nimona has been lying about her past the entire time (OGH that ending is SO GOOD it gives me chills just remembering the panel where we find out the story about the dragonslayer going after the shapeshifter and the rumors that the shapeshifter TOOK THE DRAGONSLAYERS PLACE??? AUGH those panels are burned into my mind forever). basically i am a little worried because of the marketing that they might soften the darkness associated with nimona's past/backstory or even change it entirely, but of course that's all speculation bc they could literally just be doing what the comic did which was market itself as really upbeat and silly modern fairytale twist and then turn around and make everything really fucking dark as the novel approaches the end of the second act and the beginning of the first act.

also when it comes to the character designs i am OBSESSED with blackheart and goldenloin the designs are SO!!!! not to mention the setting itself, they're definitely leaning into the futuristic aspect but i hope they keep a lot of the down to earth fantasy elements from the comic as well, i feel like nate did a really great job creating a world that is such a unique blend of ren fair fantasy tropes (for lack of a better term) and magical high tech inventions and it's something that i really hope doesn't get lost in the translation to the screen. obviously i can imagine that the show-y-ness of a cyberpunk-esque world is very visually appealing and also probably pretty fun to animate but i'm hoping they're teasing a lot of those dystopian sci fi visuals for the trailer because they get ppls attention and then they bring in a similar mix of the ren fair fantasy elements from the comic.

i hope they maintain nimona's whole gender vibe as the same sort of fluid energy that i got from her in the book, idk if it was just me but nimona reads as not only gnc but as a very nonbinary/genderfluid character and i always thought it was really cool how ready she was to shapeshift to different gender presentations in the comic.

this is more just on the curious musings side but i also wonder if they'll do the little bit where she dyes her hair purple?? its such a weird little moment in the comic i could see them deciding not to put it on screen but i think it'd be a cute nod to the book. or maybe they do a little bit of dialogue where she mentions to blackheart that she's thinking about changing her hair color and mentions purple, it'd just be cute i think <3

uhhh yeah i guess my biggest wonder about the movie rn is just how dark they're willing to take it, tonally? because the book gets DARK and ofc it's also aimed kinda at middle grade, just like the movie is, but what's allowed in middle grade books is very different from what's marketable in a middle grade family friend film. i really do hope they do the whole dark underbelly of the kingdom reveal, though, and the second act arc where nimona's true violent and chaotic nature starts to spiral out of ballister's control, and of course the unethical experimentation and the legend of the shapeshifter and nimona's entire story to ballister being a lie.....

AUGH i am going to get so emotional about this movie but yeah <3

basically. NIMONA MOVIE AT LAST!!!!!!!!!!