#makes me upset especially since the new champions have one big thing in common

[gensnix]

The real reason why Tulin is Link’s companion instead of Teba is cause Nintendo saw how overpowered the bird was in AOC and letting an avatar version of him run around with the small overpowered twunk no one would survive 

[justmesadgirl]

Yule Ball - Fred Weasley

Pairing: Fred Weasley x reader & kinda Draco Malfoy x reader

Warnings: angst, fluff

Words: 2.8k

Summary: Your best friend takes someone else to the Yule ball and you find another date that doesn't make him happy.

a/n: My first Fred imagine hope you like it! English isn’t my first laungage so sorry for all the mistakes! 

requests are open!

You and Hermione made your way to Hogsmeade planning on going dress shopping for the Yule Ball that was just a week away. As you two make your way into Gladrags Wizardwear you two are met by the sight of Harry, Ron, Fred and George trying on dress robes. Molly had bought all of them dress robes before coming to school but none of them were happy about them, especially Ron. All of them look great with the new dress robes on but your eyes found a certain Weasley.

“That color fits you well, Freddie.” You tell him with a smile as you walk up to him, scared looking Fred turns to face you not hearing or seeing you and Hermione coming into the shop.

“Bloody hell y/n! You scared me!” He tells you before wrapping hands around you and bringing you into a tight warm hug. You had been in love with Fred for years at this point. You were a year younger than the twins and a year older than the golden trio. You and Hermione had become friends after you two had started studying together in the library so she had introduced you to Harry and Ron which led you to meet the Weasley twins. You and Fred clicked right away and you two became inseparable.

“Sorry Fred.” You tell him as you pull away from the hug. “But you do look great!” You laugh as you turn to look at the other boys. “If you ask me you look the best.” You joke as your eyes land on George who is wearing the same thing as Fred. “Hey! I look better than him.” George insists as you just laugh at him.

“What are you doing here anyway?” As Fred speaks you turn to face him again.

“The same thing as you. Me and Hermione are here to look for dresses for the Yule Ball.” You let him know with a smioe as you make your way to the dresses to see what there is to offer. Hermione has already picked out three beautiful dresses. She had just waved and said “hi” to the boys because she was still upset that Ron hadn’t asked her to the ball. 

“You should talk to him you know?” You whisper to her as you pull a beautiful dark green dress out.

“As you should talk to Fred.” She tells you before walking to the dressing room to try on the dresses. You just shake your head at her words, at least you weren’t ignoring your best friend because he had asked someone else to the ball. You take a couple of other dresses with you as you run after Hermione.

Trying on the first dress. You look yourself in the mirror liking how the dress fits you just like a glove, it hugs you at all the right places and the green color brings out your eye color. You pull the curtain open to see Hermione already in a gorgeous blue dress.

“Wow, you look amazing Hermione!” You let the girl know as you walk closer to her to get a better look at the beautiful dress.

“So do you y/n, that’s the perfect dress for you.” She tells as she makes you turn around so she can see all of the dress.

“I have a really cute pink one too, let me show it to you too.” Hermione lets you know before disappearing back to her changing room. You look around the shop to see the twins at the cash register buying their dress robes.

“Freddie!” You call out wanting to show him the dress. Even if you weren’t going with him you still wanted him to think that you looked beautiful. Fred turns around, his mouth falling open as he stands there for a second looking you up and down making you blush. “So what do you think?” You ask him as you spin around. He shakes his head before walking up to you.

“I think you should just ask Hermione?” He suddenly tells you, it honestly hurt your feelings, why couldn’t he tell you what he thought of your dress.

“But I want to know what you think.” You tell him as you turn to look at yourself in the mirror. Maybe the dress was ugly and Fred just wanted to be nice and not tell you. You see that Fred looks into your dressing room and then back to you.

“They’re all green?” He asks you and you turn to face him nodding your head.

“Yeah, since I’m going with Malfoy, I figured…” Fred didn’t even let you finish your sentence before he angrily asks you “You’re going with Malfoy?” You look up at him with confused look, what did he mean by that? Did he think you were going alone?

“You are going with Angelina, why shouldn’t I?” You fight back, you didn’t want to go alone and Draco had asked you. He was cute and he sometimes knew how to be nice. Better with him than alone.

“You could’ve picked anyone else.” He sounds frustrated as he talks to you, his eyes never leaving yours. His long fingers running through his long red hair.

“And I could say the same, Freddie.” You huff out before walking into your changing room. Not wanting to continue the conversation with your best friend. Taking the beautiful green dress of your body angrily before putting on your own clothes not in the mood to continue dress shopping. When you walk out of the room Fred and George are long gone and Hermione is back in her normal clothes with a pink dress in her hand.

“Ready?” You ask her as you give her a tight lipped smile.

“Sorry for your fight with Fred.” She smiles at you before walking up to you. “That dress was beautiful on you. You should get it, Draco for sure will love it.” Her sweet words make you feel a little better.

“Sorry that I didn’t see that pink dress on you Mione.” You say to bher as you two make your way to the cash register. You both pay for your dresses, before making your way back to Hogwarts before that you two pick up son sweets for honeydukes. Still sad about your stupid fight with Fred as you and Hermione walk into the Gryffindor common room you can see Fred, Ron and Harry by the fire talking about something.

“I don’t feel well so I will just go to bed.” You let Hermione know before making your way to the girl’s dormitory not even turning to say hi to your other friends like you usually did, you just didn’t want to face Fred right now.

You and Fred hadn’t talked since your heated conversation at Gladrags Wizardwear. Both of you ignoring one another, not ready to talk about the conversation. Every night you would lay in your bed and stare out of the window thinking about it. Why was Fred so mad at you for accepting Draco’s invite to the ball. Why would you go alone and sit alone at a table to just watch all of your friends have fun and dance with their dates. You knew that Fred didn’t like Draco much because he bullied his family but Draco was nice to you and you had to admit to yourself that a big reason for saying yes to Draco was to make Fred jealous.

Before you knew it the days had rolled by so fast that you were already getting ready for the Yule ball. Looking at yourself in the bathroom mirror for the last time to see that everything was like you wanted it to be. You had curled your hair, put on some makeup and the green dress looked beautiful on you. Smiling to yourself before making your way out of your room heading down to the common room where you were supposed to meet Hermione so you two would make your way to the great hall to meet up with your dates. But as you search the room for your friend your eyes fall on Fred and Angelina. She looked beautiful in her purple velvet dress. They were talking about something but Fred quickly quiets down as his eyes meet yours. You just smile and give him a nod before you finally try to find Hermione when your eyes finally find her by the door already waiting for you.

“Oh wow Mione you look absolutely stunning.” You tell her as you bring her into a hug. She was right, the pink dress was really cute and looked great on her.

“You are the one talking?” She laughs as you make your way out of the common room, feeling eyes burning into the back of your head not sure if you were imagining it or if Fred really was still watching you. “Fred couldn’t keep his eyes off you.” She whispers to you when you two are out of the common room, you just laugh at her and pull her along with you. Not wanting to think about Fred when Draco was the one who was waiting for you.

You two make it to the great hall's doors when you see Viktor Krum already waiting for Hermione. As his eyes find you two his face breaks into a smile as he takes Hermione's hand. You just smile at  touching you, giving a bright smile to Draco when you see him.

“You look absolutely ravishing.” He whispers to your ear before kissing your cheek. “Ready to go in?”

“Well thank you, you clean up nice yourself.” You tell him as you two walk into the great hall. There were a lot of people in the room already but you only could focus on the decorations around your dining hall. It looked so beautiful that you almost lost your footing, but Draco's strong grip on your hand keeps you steady, you whisper a small thank you and squeeze his hand. Draco just smiles at you as he brings you to his friend group. Parkinson doesn't look happy at all about your presence and tries to act like you weren’t there with them. “So Draco want to dance with me?” Parkinson asks Draco with a honey sweet smile but the disgusted look Draco gives her makes her smile disappear.

“y/n, do you want to get a drink?” He just ignores Pansy and you can’t but just let out a small giggle at his reaction. At least Draco chose you over Pansy.

“Sure let’s go.” You two make your way to a table that has the drinks. He pours both of you a class as the music changes and the great hall’s doors open as the wizarding champions walk in. Hermione looked absolutely stunning and you couldn’t take your eyes off of her, feeling bad that Ron had to be so dump and not ask Hermione before Krum did, well Krum did ask her a couple of times before she said yes. You watch the champions dance with their partners and when they finally finish Draco takes your empty cup from your hand and places the cups on the table next to you.

“Ready for a dance?” He asks you with his signature smirk on his lips.

“I thought you would never ask.” You joke as you make your way to the dance floor. You didn’t expect Draco to be a great dancer but he was and you didn’t expect to have so much fun with him as you did. For the whole night Draco was right next to you and showered you in compliments that made you blush. You could see spending more time with him after the ball but you needed to make sure that he would leave your friends alone from now on.

You and Draco finish a dance as you see Draco looking at someone behind you with an annoyed look. “What do you want Weasley?” His words make you turn around to face the older twin.

“Can I have this dance?” Fred asks you ignoring Draco completely.

“Shouldn’t you be dancing with your date, Fred?” You ask him.

“Can’t I have one dance with my best friend?” He answers you. “And she is dancing with George right now.” He lets you know as your eyes find his twin and his date dancing. You turn to Draco.

“Is it okay if I dance with him? I’m sure Parkinson would like to dance with you.” You ask him with a sweet smile. Draco just hufs out an “okay”, before walking away.

“I take that as a yes.” Fred speaks up once again. You just smile at him and pull him closer to you as you two start swaying in the rhythm of the music. You had missed him, week without him. “You look so beautiful tonight… Well you always do, especially tonight.” Fred’s sweet words make you smile.

“You look handsome yourself too. Angelina is lucky to have you as her date.” You whisper the last part to him, not sure if you wanted him to hear it or not.

“Seems like she likes my brother a lot more than me.” He laughs, you could listen to him laugh for the rest of your life. How he could always be so positive about everything.

“Oh I’m sorry about that.” You tell him as you rest your head on his chest as the music changes into a slow one.

“Don’t be… to be honest.” you could hear him take a deep breath before continuing, “I’m happier here, here with you in my arms.” You turn to look at him again, not sure what he meant by that. If he wanted to be here with you why did he ask Angelina to the ball? His brown eyes are full of unfamiliar emotions.

“What do you mean by that Freddie?” You whisper out to him, scared to hear what he has to say.

“That I was a total arse for asking her to the ball instead of you when all I ever wanted was to take you.” He tells you with a sad smile resting on his face. “Why did you take her then?” You were so confused. If he really wanted to take you to the ball why would he have asked Angelina?

“I was scared that you didn’t want to go with me and then I kinda accidentally asked her to go with me…” He tells you but you just have to laugh at him. How do you even accidentally ask someone to the Yule ball? “Don’t laugh at me, love.”  

“To your knowledge I would definitely said yes if you had asked me.” You let him know as you rest your head on his chest again. “To be honest I was quite upset when I heard that you asked her.”

“Why would you be upset about it and why didn’t you say anything?” His fingers found your ching so he could make you look up at him at the same time you two stopped swaying to the music just standing there in the middle of the Yule ball looking at each other.

“Are you that blind?” You laugh. “I’m in love with you Fred Weasley, I have been since we met.” You realise what you had said too late, the truth was out now. You just told your best friend that you were in love with him.

“Y-you love me?” He whispers out in shock.

“Y-yes. Forget about it. I don’t know why I said anything. I know you don’t feel the same.” You tell him as you pull away from him. Not wanting to hear him tell you that he didn’t feel the same way. You make it two steps from him when you feel his hand on yours and he pulls you back to him. His hands quickly find your cheeks as he pulls you into a deep kiss. A kiss that made fireworks go off, a kiss full of love and passion. It felt just like you were dreaming. He slowly pulls away and you open your eyes to see a big smile on his lips. “I love you y/n y/l/n, more than anything.” He tells you before kissing you again. “I wanted to do this for so long.” You giggle at him before you wrap your hands around his neck and pull him into another kiss wanting to taste him again.

“Why haven’t you?” You finally ask as you pull away from him, your fingers playing with his hair.

“I have no clue honestly.” he laughs as he places a soft kiss on your forehead. “So love will you be my girlfriend?”

“Shouldn’t you take me on a date first?” You giggle at the face Fred makes at your words. “But yes Fred I will be your girlfriend.”

“Thank Merlin!” He yells out before pulling you into another passionate kiss. “I… love… you.” He whispers between the kisses. This is where you were meant to be, wrapped in Fred’s arms.

A/N: let me know what you think! 

permanent tag list:

@smexylemony  @alylanaeblack​  @dottirose​ @obviouslyoleff @sleepybesson @btzlc @judemoos @procrastinatingparker @spiderman-n @tomshufflepuff @marcymakemagic @joycelovedorial @wronglanemendes @lou-la-lou @spideyboix @nervouscafe@vibhati123 @ourkarlanicoleuniverse @whitoutsanity @spidey-holland7 @living-on-rice @emogril @joycelovedorial @biggraysonenergy @heartbeats-wildly @mendesilicious @heartbeats-wildly @dreaming-about-fanfictions

[yikestripes]

Turning Tables

authors notes: 

Back with another Richie imagine, because i’m tozier trash (HA!) unfortunately i do write my own material, which is why it’s half baked at best

shoutout to my best friend for the inspiration for this one

“Rich, you comin?” Richie mumbled a response, not exactly listening. He was lost deep in his thoughts, all of which pertain to you. Not that you knew of course, that was one secret it seemed Richie Tozier would never tell.

“Come on, R-r-richie. I p-promise, s-s-she feels the same w-way! She was t-telling me just l-l-last week t-that you’ve b-b-be-been distant, she was w-w-wondering what she did wrong.” Richie refused to meet Bill’s eyes.

“I don’t know what you’re talking about, dude. I don’t feel any certain way about her,” Richie hesitated, hoping Bill wouldn’t catch the insecurity in his voice.

You were gorgeous, especially in Richie’s eyes. You were kind, caring, enough to make any guy go crazy. Which they did, always. Every new boy you dated, every person to walk you from your locker to class, made Richie’s blood boil. His excuse always ran along the same lines, “He isn’t good enough for you, you’re way out of his league. He’s such a douchebag, why’re you even with him? You can do so much better!” As all the Losers got older, it quickly began to dawn on them what kind of game Richie was trying to play.

“Come on, (Y/N)! I promise it isn’t as scary as it looks.” Richie grinned as you looked over the edge of the cliff, leading to the bright blue water below.

“I don’t know, Richie. I really don’t like heights- or falling.” You said, nervousness lacing your voice.

“Do you want me to jump with you?” Richie extended his hand, and you took it gratefully.

“On 3….”

“ 2,1! Close your eyes!” Richie took off, pulling you off the edge with him, flying into nothingness.

You hit the water with a loud splash and resurfaced to find Richie smiling at you, wide.

“See! I told you you could do it!” You blushed a little bit, feeling your hand still in Richie’s, under the water.

He seemed to realize at the same time as you, and ripped his hand away.

“You do realize you can’t do this to her forever, right? She’s gonna get frustrated, man.” Bill bore holes into the back of Richie’s head as he stared off in a different direction.

“Who even cares, Bill? She can have anyone she wants! She doesn’t want some loser like me,” Richie paused. He couldn’t have this debate again. He had it enough in his own head, let alone out loud with one of his best friends.

The rock in Richie’s stomach seemed to weigh heavier today, the closer he and Bill got to the quarry. Tension had never been so high with you before, so Richie was even more stressed out than usual, especially since he knew he would be seeing you in your bathing suit.

When they’d gotten there, you were sunbathing on a rock, presumably waiting for the rest of the Losers to show up. You were always first to the quarry, because it was one of your favorite peaceful spots for thinking. Since it overlooked sky blue water, and was the optimal place to sunbathe and just feel the sun on your skin, you were consistently at ease being at the quarry. It was your sacred spot.

Originally, it had been yours AND Richie’s, but as you two grew apart, he stopped showing up. You usually came here when you couldn’t sleep at night, and staring at the night sky helped you to sort out your thoughts. It made you feel as if you were so small in the big wide world, that your problems could be sorted out much easier than if the world seemed so small. Richie could almost always find you out here, wearing one of his sweatshirts, in your pajamas. You would talk about anything and everything, from your day at school to how his parents were never home, and what he was going to do. Where he was going to go, what was life outside of Derry like? You almost never talked about the encounter with It last summer, it was too traumatic, even a year later. The worst part was that one of the terrible images It conjured up for Richie, was you. Dead. Richie refused to talk about it, even after you were the first to find him. Somehow he’d gotten separated from the rest of the group, and kept calling out to you.

Lo and behold, he found your body amidst some garbage in one of It’s caves. His stomach jumped into his throat and tears slipped down his face as he stared.

“(Y/N)?” Richie’s voice cracked as he dropped to his knees, about to throw up. “(Y/N)!”

Richie reached out to caress your cold cheek when your supposedly dead body sat up, and maniacally grinned at him.

“Hiya, Richie!” You said in a voice not your own. Richie fell back with his eyes wide, as you slowly stood up. “Miss me?” You laughed, something inhumane.

“Wh-what? I thought y-y-you were d-d-”

“Dead?” Yeah! You left me behind, Richie. Why didn’t you save me, Richie?” You frowned. “You were supposed to be my savior. Why did you let me die?”

Richie was full out sobbing now, and kept backing up until he felt his back hit the wall of the cave behind him, as your likeness approached. Distantly, he heard someone screaming his name, and when he looked back to where you came from, no one was there. Richie hugged his knees and wept until you found him, scaring the living shit out of him, causing him to sob louder and harder.

“Rich, it’s okay, I'm right here! I’m fine, it’s okay.” His eyes were red and puffy by the time the rest of the Losers found you, and no one asked questions. They all had an idea of what happened, since Richie wouldn’t let you more than 5 feet from him the rest of the battle.

“Hey guys!” You said brightly, lifting your sunglasses into your hair. Richie gave a half baked grin as he went to set his backpack down, and Bill smiled.

“Are Stan and Eds taking their time again?” Bev asked, coming out from behind a tree.

“They’re probably taking turns sanitizing each other in between layers of sunscreen,” You said, making Richie laugh.

“Wow, (Y/N) gets off a good one!” Richie said in between bouts of laughter.

You smiled proudly, despite feeling a knot form in your stomach. Making Richie laugh was hard to do on it’s own, but unfortunately, you couldn’t bask in your success for long. Once the others finally got there, you were planning on taking a spare moment to pull Richie aside, and see what the hell was going on with him.

For about the last month, he’d been avoiding you entirely. It started slow at first, making excuses as to why he couldn’t hang out. He was sick, he wasn’t feeling well. He had too much homework. His dad asked him to mow the lawn.

As the excuses became more common, and Richie became more quiet around you, you really started to notice something wasn’t right.

Was he mad at you? Had you upset him somehow, and you didn’t even know? Or did he not want to be your friend anymore, but had to because of the rest of the losers?

This weirdness had been going on for about a month, and you were quickly getting frustrated with it. You decided it was now or never; you would finally confess your feelings to him.

Stan and Eddie showed up about 15 minutes later with Mike and Ben in tow, and it was FINALLY time to get the party started.

You took turns chicken fighting one another, you on Richie’s shoulders, and then Eddie on yours. You were the reigning champion, having the most total knock-offs.

“Woah, you’re really strong!” Richie remarked, shaking out his wet hair like a dog when he resurfaced. Richie ran a hand through his wet curls and headed towards the shore.

“Hey, can we talk really quick?” You asked, swimming after him.

“Sure. What’s up?” Richie asked, making eye contact with Bill, who gave him a look before throwing an arm around Bev’s shoulders.

“I meant privately.” Your eyes hardened slightly.

“Oh. Uh, yeah. Lead the way.” He reached up to rub the back of his neck, an awkward tension had settled in the air.

You walked in the direction of the bonfire area, a ways away from the Losers in the water. They pretended not to notice you disappear, sharing one common thought.

“Why have you been avoiding me?” You asked.

Richie refused to make eye contact with you, picking at his cuticles instead.

“I don’t know.” He mumbled.

“What do you mean, “you don’t know”? You’ve literally been avoiding me for a month. You have to leave when I show up, you won’t return my phone calls, and you haven’t come to the cliff in weeks! What did I do, are you mad at me for some reason? Did I upset you somehow?”

“I mean I don’t know! I just can’t be in the same room with you sometimes, it’s like torture!” He snapped.

“What do you mean it’s torture? We were best friends 2 months ago, what the fuck happened?” Hot tears were streaming down your face as your voice cracked, giving way to your anger and sadness. Richie took a shaky breath to steady his voice.

“Fuck, alright. Listen, (Y/N), I have to tell you something. I-i wasn’t sure how to tell you, and I really didn’t realize how long I’d been fucking lying to myself until a few years ago.”

You raised an eyebrow.

“Fuck it. I-i don’t know how to say this, other than to just say it. I’ve been fucking in love with you since we were little kids.” Richie said quietly as tears spilled down his cheeks, still refusing to meet your eyes.

Your eyes widened.

“You what?” Your breath hitched in your throat.

“I was so afraid to tell you because I thought it was going to ruin our friendship and like you mean so much to me that I didn’t want to make things weir-”

You cut Richie off by crashing your lips onto his, so soft and familiar, but fireworks and your own heartbeat echoing in your ears all at the same time.

“Richie Tozier, you idiot, I’ve been waiting to hear you say that for 10 years.”

Richie’s eyes scanned your face for any sort of hint at a joke, or waiting to wake up from another sick Pennywise-induced nightmare.

“I didn’t realize it until recently, how much I loved you growing up. I never knew how to talk to you about it or bring it up, I didn’t want to make things weird between us. You were my best friend and I couldn’t bear the thought of losing you, especially because of something as stupid as me.”

You gave him a small smile, and kissed the corner of his mouth.

“Hey, don’t say that. You’ll never lose me.”

Richie broke out into a huge grin.

You raised your eyebrows as he kissed you again.

“Doing that is NOT gonna get old.”

[madstars-festival]

LUCIANA CANI, SAATCHI TOKYO: “PROJECTS DRIVEN BY THE HEART, NOT BY MONEY, EXCITE ME”

_@tokyo_bits

Brazilian creative Luciana Cani brings 23 years of experience across four different continents to her upcoming gig as a Final Judge at the AD STARS 2020. We are delighted to welcome her to this year’s jury!

In early 2019, Luciana Cani moved to Tokyo to join Saatchi & Saatchi Japan as Executive Creative Director, where she’s working with global brands like Expedia. Originally from Brazil, Cani has worked all over the globe from LAPIZ in Chicago, where she was senior vice president and executive creative director, to Leo Burnett Lisbon, which she helped to become one of the 10 most awarded agencies in the world. She appeared three times at the top of the rankings of the official Creative Club of Portugal.

Outside of advertising, Cani is a children’s book author and an avid photographer – she has been documenting her adventures in Japan on Instagram (@tokyo_bits). Her work has gained global recognition including awards from D&AD, Cannes, One Show, Clios, Eurobest and ADCE.

You are a Final Judge at AD STARS 2020. Why did you accept the invitation to join the jury this year?

It will be my first time judging AD STARS and to be invited to be part of this Festival is a tremendous opportunity to connect with more professionals and see the work in the region and the world. We always learn when we exchange experiences with new people. I am looking forward to it. Thank you for the invitation.

What is the creative culture like at Saatchi & Saatchi Tokyo – how does it match your own values as a creative?

Saatchi & Saatchi Tokyo is the international arm of Publicis Groupe in Japan. I’ve always believed that combining people from different cultures and backgrounds is the best way to produce good work. That’s the Saatchi approach here.

You joined Saatchi & Saatchi Tokyo as ECD in early 2019. Was it a culture shock moving to Tokyo from the USA?

Japan is the third country I’ve lived in as a foreigner. At this point, my experience showed me that the best way to embrace a new culture is to do it with an open heart and mind. I didn’t come here looking for things that would seem familiar to me. I did that in other countries before and I learned it just made my adaptation to a new culture a little bit slower. I moved to Tokyo feeling ready to embrace the differences.

My approach to deal with new work cultures is always to respect, learn and do my best to add some value that I can contribute from past experiences. I really respect the Japanese colleagues I work with.  I learn from them every day and hope they are also learning from me, with my different background and experiences before I moved here. It has been smooth so far. I feel good and welcome.

Are you working on any interesting projects right now?

One of the biggest Saatchi clients here is Expedia. We work closely with the global team and it has been very interesting to work with this big brand in a time like this. We have been very busy and I am learning a lot in the process.

You are from Brazil, and have lived in Portugal, the USA and Japan. Why have you always been curious to experience other cultures?

I was never one to see my professional life completely disconnected from my personal life. For me, it has always been a journey of pursuing growth on both sides. And I knew and hoped that this career could be a great way to see the world, meet great people and live amazing experiences. Traveling and getting to know other cultures was always a big dream of mine.

When I first moved from my home country to Portugal, I went there with the idea of a starting point, not a final destination. After that, other opportunities came by and I embraced them. And with them, came personal growth and the opportunity to work with brands on a global scale in different continents with great clients and colleagues.

Looking back, thanks to these experiences, I can understand better who I am as a creative. I know I can adapt, but I also know how I like to work, how I can perform better and what kind of work culture is the best for me.

You believe that ‘happy people produce better work’. Agencies are becoming more aware of their responsibility to look after the mental health of creatives: what is your approach as a creative leader?

I respect and believe that a competitive environment can bring results, sometimes very quick. But this is not my approach. The best work I produced was when I was happy working in a very collaborative environment.

I learned with a former boss I had that if you put the focus on the particular strength of every individual, he/she will perform happier and better. And you will probably retain that talent for a longer period.  It happened with me and it was a turning point in my career. Since then, I have this approach as my leadership model. Basically, the idea is to get to know all the members of your team and ensure that they can contribute with different skills in different parts of the process, regardless of their title.

When you force yourself to avoid seeing the members of your team through the lens of their specific title in the hierarchy — that makes all the difference. I also like to put myself in my team’s shoes all the time and ask myself the question: as a member of this team, would you like to be treated that way? If the answer is yes, I make the decision.

There are still fewer female ECDs in advertising than men; and now the industry is grappling with the Black Lives Matter movement, too. How can agencies do better at diversity?

Agencies are recruiting more diverse professionals. But the key thing is how to retain and help them grow. Retaining talent is crucial to consolidating change. Hiring is not enough. It’s the first step only. For example, what kind of environment are we championing to make these professionals an integral part of the agency?

I loved your article about being ‘monogamous’ with your chosen industry.  How are you keeping the “spark alive” in your advertising career right now?

In these 23 years, I’ve had many ups and downs. But I made peace with these low moments. I think it’s normal and more common than people like to admit. Sometimes things don’t go well, our best idea is not approved, we don’t win a pitch we worked on for months, the leadership of our agency changes and it doesn’t match our beliefs – there are so many things that can go wrong or sideways.

My way to keep the spark alive has been to sometimes concentrate and focus on side projects. These parallel projects allow me to unleash my creativity with no constraints. And it can be anything. In Lisbon, I published a children’s book. Here in Tokyo, I’ve created an Instagram account highlighting my experiences as a foreigner in Japan.  And now, during the quarantine, I have just started another children’s book based on a real story.

So if I am ever bored or frustrated, I turn my energy to these projects and then suddenly I feel happy and accomplished again. After a while, these side projects help me recharge so I can give everything to work again.

Do you have any rules or rituals that you live by?

I am an early bird. I absolutely love mornings. I feel productive and happy when I can do my personal things before work starts. In Tokyo it became harder, because of the time zone, all my friends are awake while I am sleeping. So I use the early mornings to catch up with friends and family too. I don’t use an alarm clock anymore and around 5:30 I am awake and active.

How did you find your voice as a creative? What makes you angry? What brings you joy? What sets your soul on fire?

I am constantly looking for inspiration outside of my field. Projects that are driven by the heart and not by money excite me. It can be a podcast or an Instagram account, any project that people do just because they feel like doing it. It inspires me and pushes me to overcome constraints and be the best creative I can. I don’t get angry easily, but some pitch processes can make me very upset. (It can be disrespectful sometimes.)

What kind of kid were you: studious, nerdy, curious, cheeky?? Who was your earliest creative influence?

I was very studious and responsible at school. I always loved books and authors. They were my passion, especially real stories and biographies. To this day I still think that I should have started as a copywriter.

Luciana Cani is judging the Interactive, Integrated, Innovation, Mobile, Data, Insights, Social & Influencer categories at AD STARS 2020. Winners will be revealed on Monday 7th September! Follow her on Instagram via @tokyo_bits

[icharchivist]

OKAY so a Champion of the Just completed later, after hearing a lot of people recommanding it over In Hushed Whispers because it's "better to play" i finished it and i must admit i'm disappointed.

Okay so big thoughts eventually, and it may be full of bad faith because I really like IHW and when people compare something i like to something I don't know my bias become stronger, but those were basically my Hot Takes (NOTE: all of it is biased af, i mean it as "pros for Me" "Cons for ME" this is not a judgement of the quality of the quest in general)

Also under the cut bc damn i love complaining

Pros:

-The Concept of Envy. As a demon, it is incredibly cool, and I am mesmerized by what it can mean, of how many Envy Demons may actually exist, this kind of things. The gameplay inside of Envy's world was amazing, and the scenes to manipulate the Inquisitor were all really, really chilling. (but i'll go back on it more later for others reasons). Makes me want to see another Envy Demon in game, in a plotline that is more accessible.

-Cole's scenes. Cole introduction was great, Cole coming to help was great, Cole coming at the war table was amazing. All was fun and I love how his speech patern present itself. He's such an interesting characters in general.

-Ser Barris. True mvp. He was sweet and kind and I feel like he represented more what the Order should have been about instead of what it ended up being. Although i'm upset he can legit die this easily fuck this.

-Overrall nothing new is learnt tbh, but I am chilled by the line about "they often make us test different kind of lyrium" about the templars habits. This bring a whole new level of fucked up to the whole thing.

-Some of Envy's manipulations were actually very insightful on my character and made me understand her a little better, which i always appreciate. Being able to explore my character is always a welcomed thing.

-Bull has a very funny line when it comes to talking about Envy when you don't take him along.

-Cole's feeling toward the breach are kind of interesting, and i don't think it's that much mentioned when he comes after you closed the breach in the IHW run.

Eehhhhs (Not Pros but Not Cons either):

-The whole gameplay with the Templars holding the barrers. I've seen people complain that IHW had a dull playthrough and i think it may be because it's compared to that. Indeed, that was an interesting idea, but i hate going against the clock and in the end it didn't bring anything too interesting.

-Thematically speaking, the Envy quest tries to do with Cullen what the Future Quest did with Leliana: ie, showing the player how they would react to catalystic events reminding them of desperate times. Leliana was her loss of faith after the tortures she endured and her "failure" (it's not your fault bby), and Cullen was how, after he rebelled against the Envy!Inquisitor he feels he deserves to suffer if it is that he was too blind to realize he was serving another tyrant.. Both are things that can resonate a lot with both of those characters. Thematically it's coherent.

The problem though is that for Leliana, it was the Future: it was FACTS. It was actually happening. And by sacrificing herself to have you get back in the past, she gained her faith, at least in you, again to help you.

For Cullen, it makes absolutly no sense Envy shows that (more in a moment) and it doesn't actually happen to Cullen but to an illusion. So the impact is completely dull, even if i think it was intended just as much as fact value as Leliana's.

Cons:

-Here I go: Envy is a freaking moron oh my god. That destroys absolutly the full amazing concept, Envy is so much a moron.

Envy is supposed to serve for exposition the same way the timetravel quest does, but it backfire so badly. Alexius ended up making you travel in time because he wanted to erase you from the timeline, and if i recall, you weren't sent too far in time thanks to Dorian. Anyway, Alexius didn't expect it to happen this way - what you learn in the future are actual facts of the plans of Corypheus: you learn that he murdered Celene, that he unleashed demons, ect... but you learn them because /It happened/. Plus there are the chilling moments with the sky being clearly opened. ("It used to be that only dwarves were afraid of the sky, now it's just common sense")

But in this plotline, Envy is just a goddamn moron??? the justification is that Envy wants to see how you'll react to the things he shows you so he can impersonate you better but..... Then.... he ends up revealing the whole plan of Corypheus... just to see your reaction... while he's still planning on being a tyran at your place anyway so it's not like he'll be in character doing that.

This is SO STUPID and it takes out of the experience completely to me. Because it's just that Envy is such a moron, how did Corypheus trust him with anything??? that's so stupid, oh my god, so stupid.

Like, I don't completely fault the writting per se, bc I do think Envy would be that stupid (the concept being that he always wants more to impersonate someone, ye, makes sense) but it removes a lot of the weight you get in IHW.

In IHW I was terrified that this future may happen. In CotJ I was just angry that Envy believed it could happen, and that he would think no one would notice him being an idiot.

-Cole's involvement. It kinda sucks since I just said i loved his scenes, but this is just..... so weird. Dorian was involved in the mage quest because his Master was the one who put this trouble, and he wanted to help the mages. Cole was there for reasons totally indepedant from the templars, and his involvement is completely about helping you against Envy and that's it. Even him coming back later feels a little out of place and a little forced?

Or at least it feels so when the alternative is known. IHW feels much, much more natural, with him coming because he realized the threats, felt it, and tbh I find him being confusing even worse when the Templars are basically assaulting us - and him being a support for Roderick makes so much poetic sense in a way that it wouldn't as much with Dorian (especially with Cole reminding Roderick his own thoughts and all).

So in CotJ it just feels.... a little out of place in general?

-The companions almost bring completely nothing to the plot orz. I had Cass, Viv and Solas and Cass and Viv had a few little sidecomments that were neat, but in comparaison to IHW this was lacking. 

-Hell the whole emotional impact of the Future of IHW is far better.

-The templars involvement was weird. The Red Templars were antagonists sure, but since the focus was so much on Envy it was really distracting from what was happening to the Templars. It was more balanced out in IHW.

-I still hate the Templar Order and this quest didn't make me like it at all. The result of having them joining the inquisition are underwhelming, but that's mostly bc i dismantled them. Still though I've never felt this disliked by the Advisors, yet three out of four of the advisors were against me allying with the mages and they were much more graceful about it than they were with the whole dismantling the Templars thing. 

-I went from them being sweet and soft with me to them being disappointed with me the templar run is hell.

-Speaking of bad, something i mentioned before, but ti's basically confirmed that even while dismantled the Templars are still looking for ways to controle the mages even against Cullen's and Cass's orders. I hate the Templars so damn much. It remplaces a scene which were just showing a mage complain because they were cold. Kinda shows their priorities.

Long story short, I think it is definitly worth a try in term of gameplay because there are some interesting stuff, but even without speaking about how i'm morally against the templars and that IHW is just more Morally Right, it just feels like it's less coherent in the narrative. Interesting to /play/ but not interesting to live in a timeline i'd say.

That's my Hot Take and i'm probably too harsh because I really liked IHW and saw a lot of people compare the two, and that i've played it non stop just to be just "that's.... it?" about it, so i guess i point out the flaws too much.

But ye, IHW ftw and now i get back to this real, better timeline thank u for your attention.

[maneaterwithtail]

Why the resistance to "fan girl" Ms. Marvel?

highlights of the discussion

Popesize1 day ago (edited)

For me, i guess it was the overexposure, and you must like her-attitude, that made me say no. Same with Captain Marvel as the new flagship. Her origin and faith never really mattered to me. I remember finding Dust in one of the young x-team (was it Hellions?) interesting. The obsessive nerd and fan-girling was a bit annoying, i can agree on that. Mostly because the fans i have come to know, never really behaved like that. But it might be more common with girls. What do i know? -But never the big tick-off

Dakina Demino1 day ago

I don't think its the character itself, but rather the relentless media worship of her as some kind of new age comic book Jesus that really took off five years ago. If you said anything that the pros and the media took as negative, you'd get called the usual things like nazi, racist and so on. You'd also get bot blocked on twitter and smeared in a closed community chat room. This has the side effect of reflecting back on Kamala who gets the reputation of being a progressive garbage character. A second point is that less than a year ago, the pros and media were still running smear campaigns against their own consumer bases, painting them as some vast army of zombie nazi kkk Trump voting hate mob made up of Russian cyber bots that wants to gun down immigrants. Kamala is polarizing in that game as she represents two things a lot of Marvel fans hate. One they got attacked by people claiming they are evil, anti minority, gate keeping old white fans and two, the character represents the catalyst of Marvel telling its own consumer base to f**k off in more of less that precise wording. As for me, I'm not angry at Kamala. I'm pissed off that an awesome cyperpunk game series like Dues Ex got axed so the studio could make a game that seems designed from the ground up to start shit and trigger outrage.

Nioh Arcadia1 day ago

As the Target Audience for Kamala I want to like her but (as of right now) I really fucking hate her 😡 She feels like the living embodiment of a subreddit and after G Willow she's Only written as a hyper Melenial 😒. Also like you said she feels like "hey you can see yourself can't you nerd?" It's pretty insulting and lazy. Also her being a mage fan of other Superheros makes her character less interesting because she lacks her own Agency. Now-a-days she's pretty boring and I or anyone else really couldn't give a shit

Raheil Rahman1 day ago

As a Muslim, the comic was groundbreaking. Grant Morrison's "Vinamarama" was the first book that spoke to my experience in my lifetime, but this was a pop extension of that. Her family life, her need to hide her identity from her conservative family, was a great update on Peter Parker. She was a nerdy fangirl, which was fun, and she was a very bubbly and enthusiastic character, which I found entertaining. For a time.

 I was turned off by the comic due to the very decompressed pace (obviously to pad a story and sell more issues) and the constant reboots. I haven't read the issues later when she was pushed into Avengers, but that's because all Marvel and DC comics are wearing thin with me. It's all reboots and re-mixes of familiar characters to push some marketing that has nothing to do with comics. I agree with [Comics, by Perch] on this.

 Kamala Khan was forced down the fans throats, but there were many fans of her that have nothing to do with her comics (which is the future of all IPs in this business, I think). The market isn't for comics, which I get is your focus, but she was made to be bigger than comics, like or not. 

 But I don't care, because Kamala Khan has allowed all of us to know and discuss things and issues that we have never done before. Particularly, the arc where they discuss Partition, the division of India into Pakistan and Bangledesh, a tragic event that my father experienced personally, was worth all the over-exposure of this character alone. This was a huge historical event that almost no one has heard of, and this book put a focus on it even among older people of the sub-continent who had never read a comic in their lives, the pages were being shared by email and on Facebook by people my father and mother's age.

Did it sell the comic? Hell no.

 But it was a good thing for the comic world, for the Pakistani world, for the American fans, on a whole.

 And to be honest Perch, I love your channel, but this very rant plays into the idea OG fans will reject this new character based on her background. Many people say her powers are boring, her character is mediocre, and they're all right, but they, and you, miss the point. I get she's been pushed down our throats and I agree that she isn't the best, but the fact that you relate to the kid who acts like a jerk, saying he represents the average comic fan (I don't relate to him, I relate to her, which might be the point of what I'm saying), while that scene is an over-exaggeration, like all superhero melodrama is, I have experienced exactly that kind of situation, being talked down to, and I've seen this happen a lot when it is a young girl and especially if it is a person of color. The fact this irks you is acceptable, but I see a lot of truth in it, even if it is over the top soap opera dialogue.

 I know you are going to say that you were only discussing how the industry, the fans of comics themselves reacted to it and her forcibly increased profile in the universe of comics, and as a fan of comics for almost 30 years, I see all your points. But I think you're reaction is an over-reaction, Kamala Khan is a small part of the Marvel universe, and if she is being artificially being pushed to the top, I personally, have no problem with that. I don't buy the comics, and no one else has to either. And if her inclusion in comics causes people to stop buying the comic, well, I have no problem with that either. Honestly, a lot of those books were never going to be bought no matter which version of Captain Marvel or Spider-Man you put into the book. 

you know nothing jon snowden1 day ago (edited)

It is somewhat insulting the bullying of her as some sort of crucial element of her origin. “What’s her pathos?” “Oppression from comicbook nerds.”

Eric D.1 day ago

Two of the best marvel titles - Daredevil and Immortal Hulk - have one very important thing in common. Consistent creative teams that are telling good stories within a larger story arc that is being told simultaneously. The issue with Kamala Khan is the same issue that Marvel has with a lot of their characters - creative teams on a revolving door and overuse of cross over events. In that shuffle, the core of a character gets lost and we end up with flat, uninteresting characters exactly like the version of Ms. Marvel that's presented in the new Avengers game. A lot of the "problems" in comics could be corrected if the industry returned to a consistent creative team model instead of this six-issue-expiration-date on creative teams and constant title cancelations and reboots that we see now.

KelpieTales1 day ago

Pretty much what others have said before: Kamala has/had potential, her concept is solid and has been done elsewhere so it can work, her early series wasn't bad but come Civil War II things started going downhill for her sadly especially with politics becoming all the more obvious of a driving force.

 What didn't also help was overexposure and the "You must love her or else!" Mentality behind her marketing and some fans as well being directly tied into two other franchises with the same problem: Carol Danvers as Captain Marvel and the Inhumans being made into knock-off X-Men. Since Disney got the rights to X-Men and shelves the Inhumans after the damage done to them I can see why they're quiet on Kamala being one. You also got a point on her surface traits being over exaggerated by other writers most specifically her being a Muslim and a Fangirl, with the rest kind of varying. One example is Waid's version of her is known for being so upset with how the Avengers wouldn't personally rebuild buildings destroyed in battle she left to form the Champions. First issue of her new series by Ahmed had her accidentally destroy a store and came off bratty to the justifiably angry owner. Some will see it as writers not doing their research which sadly happens quite a bit or worst case the character seen as  a hypocrite to some especially if they're a fairly new characters with other factors going against them. One thing that personally bothers me about her is how Marvel and certain media praise her as their "best thing since Spider-Man" when she hasn't really done much to earn that title in terms of personal accomplishments. She's made from a similar mold as Peter and there's nothing wrong with doing that kind of "ordinary kid becomes a superhero" with a different cultural twist to it but it felt like they handled Kamala (and other modern hyped, young characters) with kid gloves compared to their predecessors. I don't think she should see all her loved ones murdered in front of her but maybe at least building a rogues gallery that challenges her more other than simply "fascism" and "Islamaphobia" or something. Then again, this could be because her writers are afraid of getting called "bigots" if something bad happens to her even if it's something white guys routinely deal with I.e. recent Star Wars comic had Boba Fett kill a black woman, just like he killed so many others before, and suddenly SWHatesWomen is a trending tag. Kamala's books also seem more geared to a YA for nerd girls and maybe younger like other books out there like Squirrel Girl so I can see that as a rift between her series and the usual comic fanbase that tends to be teen boys and men. 

 Also, no qualms about the costume but I get how stretchy powers can be a little weird for some to get over or have a character be fun and creative with it.

 Also, that scene with the "real fans" bullies was eye roll worthy. I'm not denying fan elitism exists and I've seen it first hand from people of all walks of life. However, here it feels like it plays into the narrative of "fanboys are bigots who hate sharing their hobbies with girls/PoC/LGBT+" and of course, if you don't like characters like Kamala for any reason you're just like them. There's also how a lot of comic fans tend to just be super awkward, or even autistic, and just get carried away talking about their hobby while unintentionally coming off rude. I'll admit I've been there trying to talk to someone who acted like an authority on the comics when they didn't seem to ever read them and seemed to just watch the shows (while ironically talking down about others who watch superhero shows and don't read the books). Not to mention, the concern of hobbies being re-tooled to be more "inclusive" for people who never cared about them before while alienating the older fanbase.

Gabriel Hernandez1 day ago

Here's an anecdote that somewhat backs up your theory. Disney XD came out with Black Panther's Quest just after the release of the film. I remember hearing about it and thought it would be some light, fun entertainment. When the first episode came out (you can legit watch it here: https://youtu.be/0B9JOAX99pc), Ms. Marvel had as much dialog as Black Panther, certainly more than any other Avenger, and she was at the front of the team during the big fight scene in the first 5 minutes. I remember thinking "Why is this person here? Why is she getting so much attention in a Black Panther cartoon? Where's the Hulk? Why is Ms Marvel doing so much of the talking and in the same timeframe you have nothing from either Capt. America or Black Widow? What is this?" In other words, Ms Marvel was being shoved to the front and treated as a co-leader of the Avengers when - and here's the key - her canon and her powers weren't established enough to earn that spot. That's the difference. She didn't earn her place at the table, and it just comes off as forced and fake. Just my opinion.

Cole1 day ago

When I was in Washington DC last summer we visited American History Smithsonian and they unexpectedly had an exhibit on superheroes where they had some comics in a case and there was a Kamala khan Ms Marvel #1 next to a bunch of classic issues and first appearances. It puts things into perspective beyond a small internet troll bubble. That clip was kinda lame lol but the character has a large audience.

Ibena8271 day ago (edited)

I do disagree on the idea that people weren't ranting about her character when she first debut because they're were literal blogs and videos dedicated to bashing her character and her faith, and even those people who claim her comic was failing always forget to mention that while single issues weren't selling alot, her first volume actually sold remarkably well, making it the best selling series in that year. Although her character came from the all new and all different line-up there is a reason why unlike others like Riri Williams, America Chavez or even Nova she was able to go into other media so easily and it's simply because her character was able to appeal to new readers of comics with a young protagonist who held a more optimistic outlook on the Marvel universe as it was going into so much change at the time, it also helped that her story focus less on action and more on her daily life and how it involves into her heroic life. I could understand if people just don't like Ms. Marvel because she's just not their favorite type of hero but it would be weird to criticize the character for being comparable to her multiple relaunches "mentor" or with her being responsible for the decline of Marvel comics

Comics, by Perch1 day ago

I didn't say there were none... but if you look at the volume it was easily 1/20th of the volume of what occurred later in her run. For a period of time there were more articles condemning the insults than the insults themselves. Of course, that did change.

Horizon Brave1 day ago (edited)

I despise...DESPISE the fandom at times... This shouldn't even be a thing... I can guarantee you...promise you.... if Captain Marvel was not a teen girl, this conversation, this "agenda" that everyone spouts, this constant push back of anything about this character would not exist. Find it funny that all of the characters that create controversy and and bring out the cliche descriptors like SJW and MarySue are all women.  I have yet to hear anyone whine and bitch about male characters 'ruining' the story or pushing politics etc

inotaishu11 day ago

Ms. Marvel wasn't even the first muslim girl in the Marvel Universe. DUST came years before her. I think the problem with the character is that she was so long connected to something that looks like an agenda instead of having the character stand on her own.

Me

Once upon a time there was a online conflict called gamergate

 it was an outgrowth of the increased mainstreamification with it greater demographic Alteration of fandom. Where they were a vehicle for major studios putting things out as well as trying to chase different demographics and markets. 

alongside this is in fact a long-term attempt to make fandom much more female friendly. with, yes, pre-existing issues of sexism. With the sudden influx of this social capital some factions happily hook their train up either for validation, advancement, but especially social power. This all comes to a head through three major actions.

 you probably heard names like Zoe Quinn or Anita Sarkeesian.  needless to say fandom isn't just one thing. 

Stuff that happens in the game sphere creates an attitude because there are members who share multiple hobbies but especially with comics people wanted to act like they were social activists and one way they did that was by creating the bunch of traits that they knew what piss people off and then attack a group that they knew had less social capital.

 so in order to combat what was perceived as negative feelings for Muslims and girls with interest in geeky hobbies and or science fiction they created the polemic fangirl. Especially to the counter the nasty statements against then popular brown hair girls such as Bella Swan and Katniss Everdeen.

This was addressing a very real issue, much as was pointed out in the book Lovecraft Country

We had genre fiction that had, on its basis, racist assumptions ideas and so on whether that was Tarzan, John Carter of Mars, and yes Lovecraft. but much like the creation of Miles Morales and several other characters you couldn't help but feel, much as you noted with this latest version, that the point of the character wasn't to be a character to celebrate and build a relationship with audience and this genre, but to brow beat the audience. 

 This is especially with fangirl interests being lionized as a social good even when in many ways just as venal Petty and low-key  messed up. Something that nobody would own up to until it was socially advantaged to do so.  

As an example people constantly pointing out how mean male nerds are to female or anything that's associated with female or progressive or gay  fashions. Until suddenly they want to beat on those people then suddenly they can acknowledge the exact same traits those accused bigots with people were mad about as existing let alone allowing to be judged as flawed It's hilarious because I can point to things like people flipping out about the last Jedi and how people jump the gun on a character like admiral holdo. But then turn around and prosecute the in their name reylo fandom because they're all fighting against patriarchy. In short it's very clear when someone makes a character and they're meant to be a learning lesson for the audience

. And very deliberately from conception that was the point of Miles Morales and Kamala Khan. The only positive thing you could say at least with KK is that she was deliberately meant to be empathetic to that kind of girl. the problem is much like [Perch] said when they start saying she was the future it very much came with an implicit “you guys are the past and you guys sucked until we came here”

 It's with this attitude along with that, even though I don't have a problem reading the first three or so  of her trade, she's associated with the push of the inhumans which was very much more mandated by the fox marvel Disney pissing match; To the fact that she has Loki guest star along with agents of shield thus meaning that she was very much part of the then media tie in and fangirl gasm of pushing Loki which also fed into the idea of Loki as the best queer boyfriend; and they made it clear that this was going to be the future. basically they were going to be as Petty as they always were just aiming towards fangirl. as opposed to males’ preference  

 and then they were going to tell us how we were monsters for not going along with it. 

 And again those first three trades pretty well written and okay ish. They're all about character. which makes them kind of interesting but that doesn't change the fact that you can easily see what they're trying to do with having the literal villain called the inventor who's also Thomas Edison who's all about demoralizing and exploiting the younger generation, who all turn out to be super geniuses anyway,  All this and a wolverine cameo.

Added in like [Perch] noted that people who were not about comics couldn't shut up about praising her as the future of comics as if everything was crap until she showed up and it just hurt a lot. especially as you noted it was all this other mess going on but she was part of the initiative of streamlining marvel towards the media Disney push. and very deliberately made in order to push out everybody who would come before even down to the likes of the audience to push for a different audience who they said was a more moral audience 

So whether she was a hit outside of the morass of Marvel determined whether she’d be the new centralizing focus for it.

[torentialtribute]

VAR denied scintillating City their due against Tottenham

Now we can waste another week going around VAR, or consider one of the most amazing teams this country has seen – or probably will

Manchester City did not win on Saturday, but almost everything did it. They had 30 shots for the three of Tottenham ; they had ten on goal for the two of Tottenham; they had 52 hits to Tottenham & # 39; s five in the opposition's penalty area; and if expected goals are your thing, the Manchester City 3 Tottenham score was 0.22.

Apart from that, it wasn't because there is no such thing as expected goals. There is a score and it shows that for the first time since a 2-1 defeat on January 29 in Newcastle Manchester City dropped points in the Premier League

Manchester City feels robbed by VAR against Tottenham but their performance was

Nobody knew how they lost that night, just as nobody knew how they got here. Even Mauricio Pochettino did not try to confuse his audience with unsustainable claims of equality.

He admitted that City was the better side. How could he deny it? He saw the 90 minutes as we all did. This was one of the best performances of the Pep Guardiola team in England and in the given circumstances a draw felt like a defeat. Not only because it was a VAR call that took away two points in injury time, but because playing like City did and did not win was a travesty.

& # 39; Football is like that & # 39 ;, Guardiola said. It is the only sport where you can make 30 shots and the other team two and tie – or even lose. If you do what we have done in other sports – in basketball, tennis, golf – you win. That is why football is fascinating. & # 39;

That's one word for it. Another would be furious. Unfair, a third. For those who crave a little VAR chat, here's where it sucks. It signed City's winning goal for handball, and fair enough. But when Rodrigo was clearly knocked to the ground in the penalty area by Erik Lamela, and referee Michael Oliver missed it, nothing.

A few minutes later, Raheem Sterling was booked halfway through the field and Oliver gestured that he had his arms around his opponent. So if that was a violation – and a booking – what about the penalty? It was a clear and obvious error. Isn't that exactly what VAR is for?

Back to the city and strangely enough for a team that consistently scores scores, they sometimes have a problem with conversion rates. Those who invest in the concept of expected goals will claim that the close title of last season was actually a sham.

In theory, City approached eight points better than Liverpool and their points were only back what they earned. It was Liverpool who often defied their expected overall goal, finding ways of scoring and winning, while not always deserving of it.

The title race was exciting because Liverpool was getting closer than it should be; just like Tottenham on Saturday. Guardiola could easily worry about this development. After all, given last season, who knows if two drop points might be needed as May, but instead he saw his glass as half full.

The argument was simple: how could he condemn a team that created 30 goal chances against opponents playing the Champions League final three matches ago?

Pep Guardiola still reserved praise for Tottenham despite the feeling of being hurt by the late call

& # 39; I am also a spectator, & said Guardiola. & i am sitting at home watching games and enjoying – and today I am more than happy. From the first day I came here, my idea was to try and play as we played today, I think we are worthy of this sport, we are worthy of the people who pay to come and see us and to see how honest we are – we play for the people.

And above all I would like it if I have my period here to leave it. Especially the last two seasons we are an incredible team. I know who we played against today. Tottenham – a team with a top manager and players and what we have done, I don't know if teams can compete against them. & # 39;

He's right. Tottenham is an excellent group, Pochettino an excellent coach and no team – not Liverpool, not Ajax, not even Barcelona – have made City look like. There was a considerable gap – not in ambition, because Pochettino is a brave manager, which he demonstrated by introducing Lucas Moura for Harry Winks and being rewarded 19 seconds later with the tying goal.

No, the gap here was in the raw talent of individuals such as Kevin De Bruyne, Raheem Sterling and Bernardo Silva. Tottenham has very good players, but this trio distinguishes City. Van Bruyne in particular was exceptional – the creator of both city goals and, if done right, maybe two or three others.

When Pochettino talks about Tottenham who is at a different stage of development, this is what he means. He has players who keep going – Winks, Kyle Walker-Peters, even the big summer with Tanguy Ndombele. City had 399 international caps on the bank.

& # 39; If you face a team like Manchester City, you are exposed, & # 39; Pochettino admitted. & # 39; We know our level and it is hard to come face to face with a team that has been building to win in the last three seasons and is so clinical in the way they are active and players sign .

An upset Gabriel Jesus confronted Michael Oliver with the decision after the game

We stand in a different way. When Kyle Walker was with Tottenham and we sold it to Manchester City, Walker-Peters was a child, the fourth or fifth option. Now we have also sold Kieran Trippier and Walker-Peters is playing against Sterling. I think it is important that people build players and they are still young.

It is a very different process when compared to Manchester City. They are preparing to win. We sign players who have potential. Ndombele played only two seasons in Lyon, won nothing and we brought him here to try and make him a top player. Giovani Lo Celso is similar.

If you compare it to the teams that are in the same race as us, it is completely different. & # 39; It is also the reason why Pochettino is so opposed to the early deadline of the Premier League.

He feels a vulnerability to predators abroad who has no influence on a coach like Guardiola. Pochettino is rightly paranoid that his best plans could suddenly be overturned by a late move for Christian Eriksen, Toby Alderweireld or Jan Vertonghen. City would be confident or keep their team in similar circumstances, just like Manchester United or Liverpool.

Etihad erupted in a wild celebration extra time just to experience VAR heartbreak

Ironically, Tottenham chairman Daniel Levy was one of those who preferred closing the summer window before the new season started, although Pochettino believes that he has since changed his mind.

& # 39; I did not agree with the decision but they thought it was best for the clubs, & he said. & # 39; I think Daniel Levy and many people now realize that it was a huge mistake. I hope we solve the problem for the next season because I think we should go back and work in the same way as Europe.

I think it's huge if you start competing in the Europa League of Champions League and other Champions League teams can make you a problem. I can't be happy as a coach – in the last three weeks, clubs from Europe can disrupt my team.

It's not common sense to me and we have to go back soon, and I hope they have a good talk about that in the Premier League. & # 39;

But for the time being, Pochettino will have to hope that Tottenham is resilient in the light of international overtures as they were against City. It cannot afford to widen that gap. Indeed, nobody can.

Source link

[kpopdancings]

STEPHEN HAWKING & THE HYPOTHESIS 'GOD DID NOT CREATE THE UNIVERSE! '

New Post has been published on http://www.whatsupkpop.com/stephen-hawking-the-hypothesis-god-did-not-create-the-universe/

STEPHEN HAWKING & THE HYPOTHESIS 'GOD DID NOT CREATE THE UNIVERSE! '

STEPHEN HAWKING & THE HYPOTHESIS ‘GOD DID NOT CREATE THE UNIVERSE! ‘

Link Video:

  “Without God. Nobody created the universe and no one decided our destiny ”- the late physical genius Stephen Hawking once wrote.

It is a quote from the book “Brief Answers to the Big Questions”, the last publication of Stephen Hawking published by John Murray.

  In life, Hawking was a vocal champion of the Big Bang theory. The idea that the universe began by exploding suddenly out of a singularity that is extremely smaller than an atom. From this speck emerged all the matter, energy and empty space that the universe would ever contain, and all that raw material evolved into the cosmos we perceive today by following a strict set of scientific laws. To Hawking and many like-minded scientists, the combined laws of gravity, relativity, quantum physics and a few other rules could explain everything that ever happened or ever will happen in our known universe.

“For centuries, it was believed that disabled people like me were living under a curse that was inflicted by God. Well, I suppose it’s possible that I’ve upset someone up there, but I prefer to think that everything can be explained another way, by the laws of nature. If you believe in science, like I do, you believe that there are certain laws that are always obeyed. If you like, you can say the laws are the work of God, but that is more a definition of God than a proof of his existence,” Hawking wrote.

  With the universe running on a scientifically guided autopilot, the only role for an all-powerful deity might be setting the initial conditions of the universe. So that those laws could take shape a divine creator who caused the Big Bang to bang, then stepped back to behold “His work”.

“Did God create the quantum laws that allowed the Big Bang to occur?” Hawking wrote. “I have no desire to offend anyone of faith, but I think science has a more compelling explanation than a divine creator.”

  In his book written in 1988, A Brief History of Time, Hawking had seemed to accept the role of God in the creation of the universe. But in the new text, co-written with American physicist Leonard Mlodinow, he said new theories showed a creator is “not necessary”.

  In the past, Hawking almost never spoke directly about his religious views. However, he always said that humans are the pinnacle of evolution and needs to be perfected with the help of scientific and technical means such as automation, gene therapy …. In his books, Hawking often uses the word “god” to clarify what he presents.

But in the new text, co-writing with the American physicist Leonard Mlodinow, he said: “Due to the obvious existence of physical laws, such as gravity, the universe can and will continue to self-destruct. create it out of nothing. The spontaneous formation of the universe is the reason why the universe and people exist. It is therefore unnecessary to include God in the creation of the universe. ” Hawking wrote in the book.

  Hawking’s explanation begins with quantum mechanics, which explains how subatomic particles behave. In quantum studies, it’s common to see subatomic particles like protons and electrons seemingly appear out of nowhere, stick around for a while and then disappear again to a completely different location. Because the universe was once the size of a subatomic particle itself, it’s plausible that it behaved similarly during the Big Bang, Hawking wrote.

  That still doesn’t explain away the possibility that God created that proton-size singularity, then flipped the quantum- mechanical switch that allowed it to pop. But Hawking says science has an explanation here, too. To illustrate, he points to the physics of black holes — collapsed stars that are so dense, nothing, including light, can escape their pull.

Black holes, like the universe before the Big Bang, condense into a singularity. In this ultra-packed point of mass, gravity is so strong that it distorts time as well as light and space. Simply put, in the depths of a black hole, time does not exist.

Because the universe also began as a singularity, time itself could not have existed before the Big Bang. Hawking’s answer, then, to what happened before the Big Bang is, “there was no time before the Big Bang.”

“We have finally found something that doesn’t have a cause, because there was no time for a cause to exist in,” Hawking wrote. “For me this means that there is no possibility of a creator, because there is no time for a creator to have existed in.”

  Hawking says the first blow to Newton’s belief that the universe could not have arisen from chaos was the observation in 1992 of a planet orbiting a star other than our Sun. “That makes the coincidences of our planetary conditions – the single sun, the lucky combination of Earth-sun distance and solar mass – far less remarkable, and far less compelling as evidence that the Earth was carefully designed just to please us human beings,” he writes.

  Hawking explained that, since the universe has an infinite number of galaxies and each galaxy has an infinite number of planets, it is very likely that the earth is not the only place where life is present. Even our universe exists with many other universes. The other universes have the same laws of physics as ours, that is, they are also created out of nothing, not by the hand of God.

If God is human-oriented, wouldn’t you expect him to create a universe in which humans feature prominently? You’d expect humans to occupy most of the universe, existing across time. Yet that isn’t the kind of universe we live in. Humans are very small, and space, as Douglas Adams once put it, “is big, really really big”.

  Scientists estimate that the observable universe, the part of it we can see, is around 93 billion light years across. The whole universe is at least 250 times as large as the observable universe.

Our own planet is 150m kilometres away from the sun. Earth’s nearest stars, the Alpha Centauri system, are four light years away (that’s around 40 trillion kilometres). Our galaxy, the Milky Way, contains anywhere from 100 to 400 billion stars. The observable universe contains around 300 sextillion stars. Humans occupy the tiniest fraction of it. The landmass of planet Earth is a drop in this ocean of space.

Like Adams Centauri , the universe is really too old. Probably more than 13 billion years old. Earth is about 4 billion years old, and humans have evolved about 200,000 years ago. Temporarily speaking, man existed in the blink of an eye.

  In 2011, in the scientific film Curiosity for the Discovery channel, Hawking asked: “Did God create the universe?”. He affirmed that, in order to create the universe God “had no time,” since before the Big Bang happened, time did not exist …

  At Google’s Zeitgeist Conference in 2011, Hawking also said that “philosophy is dead.” Philosophy, he believes, “has not kept pace with the modern development of science”, and that scientists have become the leading torch bearers of the quest to discover knowledge. Hawking believes that philosophical problems can be answered by science, especially new scientific theories that will lead us to a very different new picture of the universe and our place in it …

  At the end of his lecture at the California Institute of Industry, the genius cosmologist made a point about saving humanity: “We need to continue to explore space for the future of humanity. I don’t think we will live a thousand years if we don’t finally run out of this fragile planet.

Hawking’s lecture in Caliphornia was very popular with the public. Although the subject of it was purely scientific, the people who wanted to listen to it were still very large and they lined up for a mile and a half. 

This argument will do little to persuade theistic believers, but that was never Hawking’s intent. As a scientist with a near-religious devotion to understanding the cosmos, Hawking sought to “know the mind of God” by learning everything he could about the self-sufficient universe around us. While his view of the universe might render a divine creator and the laws of nature incompatible, it still leaves ample space for faith, hope, wonder and, especially, gratitude.

  Stephen Hawking has been considered the king of theoretical physics of the world for many decades. He is famous for his studies on black holes in the universe. Hawking also pursued his goal of finding a “unifying theory” to resolve the contradictions between Albert Einstein’s theory of relativity and quantum theory. Hawking used to hold the position of Lucasian professor of mathematics at Cambridge University, England. This is also the title that Newton held.

  The book “A Brief History” is the most famous publication written by Professor Hawking in his lifetime, and has sold more than 13 million copies worldwide. At the age of 20, Hawking was diagnosed with motor neuron disease (MND), predicted only 2 years to live.As the years passed, he did not die, but his mobility and communication became increasingly limited, and he ended up living in a wheelchair and talking on a voice synthesizer.When he died at the age of 76, the scientist became the longest-lived MND patient ever.His war against illness was told vividly in the movie “Theory of Things” (2014) starring British actor Eddie Redmayne. Hawking’s role also brought the Oscar for Redmayne in 2015.