#may or may not be making a cardboard cutout of him. i just need this to be higher resolution but im too lazy to trace all that 😭

[shleemies]

Ive seen the new choso character design but haven't seen anyone post that they also redid his season 1 design in the new style. Found it on the official website character pages

[subarashiihibi]

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO MY BEAUTIFUL ANGEL WIFE IZAYA ORIHARA!!!!!!! 🥰😘👨‍❤️‍💋‍👨😭😎🔥🫶🩷

i can't quite put into words what exactly izaya has meant to me over the past 8 years. one, it sounds really corny and i go off into at least 30 different tangents about all the little things that make him so endearing to me, but also i just dont really know how to sound eloquent and stuff. that being said, a lot of the person i am today is (for better or for worse) thanks to izaya, so i think if i leave it at that you can at least get it a little bit. ^_^

i was really excited to set this year's display up. i changed the room i used this time, since i got a new desk, and it was...kind of a challenge at first, but after moving around a bunch of furniture and whatnot, i made it work...!

i had to forego putting up a few other things... namely the rest of my bromides and postcards, but also all my shikishi. i need to invest in some way to display them... i also had two(!!) dakimakura... i had to leave out this year. </3 and the cardboard cutout i made when i was 16. 😭

as usual, i have a lot of stuff to say about this entire thing and the stuff around it, so i... will leave my rambling under the cut. (^□^)

my god putting this thing together was hell. i said 'challenge' earlier no this shit was like a fucking war omfg. the clear files kept falling i was miserable and praying to god (im not even religious). and then i had to tape behind the big izaya balloon poster cause it's covering my doorway and it kept getting pulled back to the door...? and it looked stupid. 🤦‍♂️ i wasn't originally gonna put the tables in here either. i really wanted to be able to fit the bed sheets on the walls. but i couldn't... and i needed more room to put the pillows and stuff, so it ended up working out perfectly.

(the only reason i didn't want to use tables was cause i didn't want something covering up izaya's sexy exposed feet in the china poster... 😟)

i was (finally) gonna get a cake this year, but after having the stress of two exams back to back this week and exams next week, i...was too exhausted lol. hopefully next year i won't have an awful overnight job or school making me miserable. (as if i'm not still gonna be a student next year☠)

the amount of durarara merch that's come out the past few years has left me feeling so spoiled... i hope they do a mail order for the 20th anni merch... i want all the izaya stuff without the crazy markups from resellers online🤬

also plz don't judge my toploader deco skills too much... i am not very experienced... and i also don't have a lot of stickers to work with... 🥺

at any rate... at this exact time last year, i was suffering inside the confines of my local walmart... i was working overnight, and my break was at 12am, so as soon as it hit, i ran out to my car to excitedly celebrate the date changing to may 4th...!

and then during my lunch break, i drove to the whataburger next door and did another 10-pull on the izaya birthday kuji while in the drivethru.

i didn't realize this until i started taking stuff down in my room (this is my bedroom... i can't realistically keep two large tables in here and a poster covering my doorway. i had to crawl under the table just to get in and out. my knees still hurt.), but... i actually forgot something i wanted to include... my izaya lightstick... 💔💔💔 it's okay. i will live. i'm happy with my setup as a whole so i have no qualms with this. i just need to make sure i don't make the same mistake next year.

on a (slightly) unrelated note, yesterday (may 3) was the 19th birthday of my favorite album ever from my favorite band ever, fall out boy's from under the cork tree! i was so happy when i found out it's right before izaya's birthday cause fall out boy as a whole has so many izaya coded lyrics it's crazy. (btw, their debut album tttyg came out on the 6th as well...!)

and then tomorrow is cinco de mayo... it's not a coincidence... latina izaya truthers rise up...

anyways...! i'm finally learning how to draw properly. the reason i was always so miserable when i tried before was cause i never knew what i was doing. i didn't know where to start from. because...i didn't use references...so hopefully i can draw something cute for izaya's birthday next year. ^_^

that's all i have to say...! i woke up early this (yesterday) morning at 9am so i could be there at 10am when midnight hit in japan, and it's already 3am on the 4th, so i'm exhausted lol...

i was so excited seeing all the izaya bday fanart on twitter though. all the beautiful artists making beautiful art...

but i've spoken too much now. sorry. i'm going to spend the rest of my night listening to fall out boy before i eventually pass out. bye bye !!!! ^_^

[batchilla]

knight x princess Jason Todd opinion requests.

Normally, when writing, I have the readers family fairly absent just for convenience. Mentions are vague or not made, because I want to make projecting yourself into the story as easy as possible.

However as the Knight x Princess trope won the last poll and I am working on the fic, this Reader insert will need a family. So I ask you, Reader, how would you prefer to see this handled? I cannot promise that I will adhere to the result, as I may write myself into a situation where only one option makes sense, but I will take your opinions into account.

Poll is located and Options are expanded on under this cut:

Have her part of a DC family that already exists

Be aware that this may lead to an OOC version of this family / team, However I will do my best to make it work. I have things the royal family will need to do for plot reasons, which may be misaligned with most of the justice leagues morality, and they will have a more of 'period typical' views on women's rights. If you choose this option, let me know in the notes or tags who you picked. If enough people choose it I will possibly do a second poll to decide who.

Make a family of original characters

I worry that it may be odd to have an original character playing a major role in a fan fiction, and also, I would possibly struggle to have so many characters that I couldn't describe much without excluding readers who don't look like whatever I describe. However it would allow me to have them do what I need them to without being OOC.

Have her be Lex Luthor's daughter

He is the character I think I could most easily adapt to the role. I do understand however that it may not fit for many readers to have him as their father, so would probably throw in a line about how you closely resemble your deceased mother to avoid this.

Cardboard cutouts

Just have them super vague, no names used, just titles and 'mother', 'father', 'brother', and so on.

If you are one of the lovely people who re-blog my works frequently, feel free to let me know which your preference is, through notes or DMs, as I would like to give your votes a little more weight then someone who idly taps the poll while scrolling through the Jason Todd tag (not that there's anything wrong with that, just want to make sure the people most likely to engage with my work enjoy it).

[l0ves1ckf0ol]

hear me out! nevermore has a musical they produce for the spring. they they so happen to do Chicago, the reader is velma kelly and xavier falls in love with the reader while he is helping with set for the show.

CAUGHT IN THE ACT | xavier thorpe

"you're breaking character, xavier. "

also a bit of a disclaimer i only heard abt the summary and i have no time to watch the whole musical but imma just go with my common knowledge i have for this. SO MOSTLY ITSBJUST THEM AND LESS CHICAGO IM SORRY SHSGS

"damn! only got ensemble, what about you y/n?" enid groans, you smirk at her "i got velma kelly." you say a toothy grin growin on your face. wednesday frowned at the conversation, "remind me again, why are you doing this?" she sighs out to you, almost looking disappointed. "i may be the child of the poltergeist and yes i love to hide but y'know i have to try out stuff once in a while." you reply to her, "also it's because of principal weems. she said that i had to do this or else i won't be sleeping in my own dorm, i set one on fire by accident." you add as enid laughed, "you never try out these things, y/n. why the change of heart? also you could've spent beekeeping with me and ottinger rather than be in that horrific display of singing." wednesday wonders curiously, did she see right through you? "just trying things out, wednesday." you breathed out to her, trying to play it cool looking ahead of her to a specific long haired boy who was busy on his sketchbook.

-

you've never heard of a theatre within the school, but it certainly exists. it's just that it needs cleaning up. you were there for rehearsals, since it was a saturday morning everyone was either in jericho or lazing away in their dorms. principal weems was unsure if you were going to stay put in the school grounds but you stayed behind, truthfully. you suddenly begin to despise being the lead for this musical, the pressure was getting to you and you start to worry if you're going to screw up.

"okay, let's go again, lights-" you announce as you start pacing the stage, "camera- paint?" you notice xavier coming up to the stage with a small bucket of what looked like maroon paint. "sorry for interrupting, please continue." he says politely, walking over to the lousy background of the stage, it had a sickening yellow color to it with loads of crusty paint slipping off the cement. "wouldn't you be at jericho by now?" you ask him as he dipped his wide brush in the paint and started painting from below to above.

"nope, weems asked me this morning to make a good background for the musical, it needs to be barely noticeable because they're using cardboard cutouts as scenes. she said black but for interrupting my coffee hours, i'll go with maroon instead." xavier answered, "could've gone with neon instead to infuriate her more, no?" you offer, wiggling your eyebrows. xavier laughed, "then i'll feel bad." he replies. "you have a soft heart for someone who looks like they ate a piece of lemon." you mentioned to him, he looks at you for the first time he walks in the room with a downturned smile, if that made sense.

"well- don't tell anyone about that. that right there is my biggest secret." he jokes, shaking his head left to right with a scoff. "alright, it'll be our official secret."

- xavier's pov (?) -

xavier never thought of you, or even acknowledged you that much but for some reason, after that conversation at the theatre you were basically unforgettable. he said hi to you in the hallways, everything seemed so monochrome but when you walked in the same room as him? instant color. so whenever he was free, he would do at least something to see you. this had been going on for a good 2 weeks

a week before the final rehearsal, he brought wax because weems tasked him to wax the stage. as he was nearing the door your voice rang clearer and clearer. your beautiful voice. xavier sighs to himself, he was at a loss by now, he tried his best to sneak inside unnoticed but the poltergeist could spot a shadow moving a mile away. so you instantly stopped.

"xavier?"

"oh hey sorry, i came in here to uh... wax the stage." xavier mumbled timidly, finally getting up to his normal height. you frowned, "thought this school was rich enough for maintenance people." you told him, he was trying to find the answers, for a moment he thought you were about to catch him in the act. "or was this only an act of service to suck up to the principal?" he could almost sigh from relief, "um yeah, been failing ms. thornhill's class lately so." xavier lied, he was doing excellently in that subject. a firm "hm." said it all, you probably knew, you just didn't want to spoil the fun. while y/n was singing her lungs off, xavier was sure it had something to do with jazz, he wasn't familiar with the musical. he was pre occupied scrubbing the floors with wax, luckily he wasn't wearing his school uniform since it was after class hours, otherwise those sweet blue slacks were toast. you didn't leave until he finished, you had other plans, xavier was onto you. if you figured him out, xavier was dead to himself and his dignity, i mean he wasn't ashamed with liking you. you were amazing, he just wanted to be sure that he liked you. lies.

-

"you finished. now, walk me to my dorm will you?" you ask him as you picked up your things from one of the leather seats and went outside as he followed. xavier left the wax at the stage, he remembered to return it tomorrow. as you walked the only sounds both of you could hear were your steps against the cobblestone floor, this only happend for 3 minutes. "so uh-"

"do you like me, xavier?" xavier wanted the ground to swallow him up right now. he stops in his footsteps and you turned from your heel, with a raised eyebrow. testing him. for a moment xavier almost breaks but he endured "do i like you is the question, what do you think?" he said, now you were testing each other. "i think you have had a little crush on me, ever since you painted the maroon background at the theatre. i know the maintenance people here, and i know that weems would never leave out an assignment for them, especially since it's this heck of a theatre that has not been used for a decade." you point out to him, with a devious smirk on your face.

xavier tugged at his jacket and approached one step forward toward you, "we both know you're a lazy poltergeist, l/n. why do you have extra rehearsals every after rehearsal- alone in the theatre?" you scoffed at his accusation, placing a hand on his chest, leaning in slightly, this made xavier's stomach do a flip and made his knees weak. "since we both are onto each other, you and i know the answer." you whispered as you lean back with a teasing side smile, xavier sighs out through his nose, his cheeks could match the theatre background, a sign that he gave up. his slim hands went up to your cheeks, his thumb caressing it. his lips were practically brushing against yours now,

"may i kiss you?"

"you're breaking character, xavier." you smiled, pressing your lips on to his, giving him an answer.

[meekoftheweek]

**SPOILER WARNING FOR "SLAY THE PRINCESS"**

I know I said in my post from earlier that I didn't want to put anything out there that might be spoilers but I'm going more in depth because I can't just let these thoughts go away

the thing that resonated with me about this game and its characters and themes was the portrayal of gender roles and the way that they manifest in heterosexual relationships

now, I know that seems like weird connection to make and a bit out of left field but let me explain

we can start with a quick summary

you play as "The Long Quiet", who is told by his inner consciousness to seek out a princess, who we eventually discover is "The Shifting Mound"

Now, we have a man being told his only purpose has to come through a woman by his inner conscience, a predisposed expectation thrust upon our main character. Even worse, when attempting to leave this incredibly confined chain of events, the world collapses, unable to function without this key part of his destiny.

If we look at just the names of our two main characters, we can see that they fit nicely into the old fashioned problematic gender roles of men and women in a heterosexual relationship.

"The Long Quiet" never speaks a word throughout the game, his only form of communication is text based or inner monologue and although this may just be a tactic by the developers to make him more relatable to a wider audience I have trouble seeing this as non deliberate.

Although great progress has been made, men still struggle with talking openly and honestly about their feelings, dealing with the inner conflict of trying to tough things out and deal with their problems on their own and with their own experiences and wisdom instead of speaking up and asking for help. This is why the voices are such an important part of the story, they each represent a branch of possible advice for Quiet, a different perspective - commenting on what should happen next.

It is only through the use of the mirror that these inner voices dissapate, leaving us room to think about ourselves and the decisions we have made free of expectation and worry. It shows our true self and the consequences of our action, no good or bad biases.

Next, we get to "The Shifting Mound" dummed down and objectified as simply "The Princess" - already indicitve of the themes of pre assigned gender roles and ideas. We, as Quiet, in our very first run are encouraged to make a choice - kill or save the princess. It is through following the path of blind devotion and saving her without a second thought that we arrive at the path of The Smitten, a new voice that emerges within us that wants nothing more than to blindly love the princess for all of eternity. This kind of unhealthy attachment is directly addressed by the other voices and when we interact with the princess, she is shown to both physically and mentally simplify before our very eyes. In the mind of The Smitten, the princess is nothing more than a cardboard cutout, a vaugely womanly shaped being without an ounce of depth or meaning, and this is exactly what she becomes, through the conversation with her, she slowly begins to lose all of her meaning, loudly proclaiming after every question you ask that all she wants to do is make you happy - this eventually reaches a breaking point in which this is all she can say. becoming truly emotionless and void of any possible sign of humanity in order to fill our selfish idea of love.

this ties into her name and her role in the game - she's labelled as "The Shifting Mound" and depending on our choices - In another word "us", she will change her form and personailty in order to fit our expectations. This ties into the problematic old fashioned expectations of women to change themselves to fit the wants and needs of men, which cruelly removes them of the ability to genuinely express and be themselves. It is only through repeatedly exploring the different versions and facets of the princess that we eventually learn to truly love her, all of these parts must be accepted - the key to a healthy relationship being a mutual acceptance and understanding of both people involved - free of the societal expectations that bind the way we think and percieve one another.

this is why this game resonated so much with me. these beautiful themes of being more than your label and breaking free from the monotonous loop of holding yourself back in the case of Quiet or changing yourself in the case of Mound for the sake of your significant other I feel is a really important and valuable message, no mattter who you are.

anyway rant aside go play this game it's really good!

[bluebunnyears-08]

Why Nine is The Secondary Protagonist in Sonic Prime

I recently made an appreciation post about this edgy little fella, however, when I rewatch the show (yes I rewatch it several times daily, so what?) I feel the cogs in my brain turn and create several theories. Looking back at Nine, I realized he will be one of the BIG characters, not the big (relevant to the plot and development), but the BIG (really fucking important).

As in MIGHT BE THE DEUTERAGONIST type of BIG.

Sonic is the protagonist, as he usually is in his games, however, Nine is another huge character who is not only crucial to the plot but might also twist the plot as well.

A deuteragonist is an essential secondary character in a narrative, second only to the protagonist, and may act like a constant companion or someone who aids the protagonist. However, the deuteragonist can change from helping the protag to actively opposing them, depending on their own conflict or plot.

Nine already proves to be a huge character in Sonic Prime, however, in the first batch of episodes, Shadow does somewhat take up some of this role. However, he might change to become a tritagonist in future episodes. Someone who helps the protagonist, is the third most important character, and often the third member of the group.

So Nine might be the TRUE deuteragonist and I DO have a list of reasons why I think so.

So, with that said, let's begin.

1. He is already established to be an important character

From the first moment we meet him, we already know he's going to be a very important character in the plot. He fixes up Sonic's shoes and gloves figures out how to use a shard to open a portal, and is a very formidable ally. He is an important character to keep the plot going and to help explain the plot. However, it's not like those Sonic games, where he's just there to explain the plot. He HAS a character and personality, he's not just a cardboard cutout.

He HAS depth and complexity to him. Something I can appreciate considering the past media of any version of Tails the past years (not including Frontiers, that game was amazing). He's also obviously going to continue to be an important character in season two as well.

2. He's a very engaging character

Let's all admit it: Nine is the most interesting character in Sonic Prime. Not just because of his mindset of "get this however you can no matter what" and "do whatever it takes and needs to survive". Not just that but his snarky and cold personality combined with his nine-tailed badassery just makes him an engaging and enjoyable character.

The things he does can leave people scrambling for answers. Why exactly did he change his mind about helping the rebels? What is he planning? What is going on in that fluffy head of his?

So many questions that leave us waiting with anticipation for the next batch of episodes for answers.

3. People can relate to his trauma

Nine's backstory is what we expected, but that doesn't mean it holds back punches. Without Sonic to defend him from bullies, without Sonic to care for him and take him in, he learned to trust and look out only for himself. It's a sad backstory and it explains why he's so guarded and aloof all the time.

I've read posts that state they relate deeply to Nine and can immerse themselves in his character with empathy. I can confirm as being a victim of abuse. He's aggressive and snarky because he has walls, walls that he put up to never get hurt again. He doesn't try to justify himself in his backstory, stating he "wasn't minding his surroundings" instead of "I didn't know" or "it wasn't my fault" he shows signs of a sort of self-resentment. Again, I can relate SO MUCH to, thinking that I could've prevented it and holding myself responsible for not doing anything, that I could've stopped it from happening.

Those who suffer or have suffered can see themselves in Nine, and as a result, the sorrow we feel for him can hit harder if we know what it was like.

4. We don't know where his character is going to end up

Another bunch of posts I've seen about Nine is that we legitimately don't know where his character is going to end up. He's muddled deep in his mystery and inner turmoil that we can't see the deep end of what he's going to be. A hero? A villain? An Anti-hero?

Just what's going to happen to him?!

He has a plan but what is it?

5. He's the most controversial character

Nine's intentions and character have been put in many perspectives on what people think he's planning, what he's going to be, why he does certain things, whether he cares for Sonic or not, whether he trusts Sonic or not, and MORE.

He's been theorized and twisted into what people think about him and what he's going to do. In my opinion, if a character does this to a community, you KNOW you're doing something right. Controversial characters are very mysterious and morally ambiguous, you don't truly know why they do the things they do or what they plan, but you have your own ideas on what might happen and other people do too, despite them possibly being different from yours.

Controversy (WHEN NOT LEADING TO VIOLENCE AND DEATH THREATS) is very fun and interesting. Reading people's thoughts even if they differ from your own, with the possibility that they might change your own theories is a very enlightening and interesting thing!

6. He has a completely opposite goal to Sonic

It's very clear that Sonic and Nine have different goals that clash with each other. Sonic, being the all-loving hero he is, wants to return home and see his true friends again, not to mention help and protect the other shatter spaces. Nine on the other hand wants to make a new home, a world with just him and Sonic and nobody else, not caring for the other shatter spaces or anybody else.

Their goals clash with each other and can't be fulfilled at the same time. Nine's goal includes only him and Sonic and no one else. Sonic's goal includes others, not to mention these two are from two completely different universes.

It's clear these two, no matter how close they are, won't give up their goal for the other, so unless their willing to compromise, it might lead to something bigger.

7. His goal separates him from other variations of himself and others

While he is just another variation of one of the main characters, his goal of achieving something beyond his own universe along with keeping Sonic differentiated from the other main variations who want something within their own shatter space. Thorn wanted to keep the jungle from being destroyed, and Dread wanted the shard out of greed, the rebels want to put the council out of power and take back their land, the jungle variants wanted to eat and live among the jungle again, and the pirates are just typical pirates.

Unlike the others, whose goals can be achieved in their universes, Nine wants nothing to do with his own. Like Sonic, Nine's goal is related to the shatter space.

8. Nine truly has no one EXCEPT Sonic

Another thing to differentiate him from the other versions of himself and the main cast is how Nine has nothing to lose. Other versions of him have a group of the main cast, hell even Rusty Rose finds herself valued (not sentimentally but still) and useful to the council. Nine, however, has nobody until this bright blue hedgehog told him about a life he could've had, a life Sonic gave to his other self.

So it's no wonder he took the very person who can give him the same life to a new shatter space. He wants that desperately. It's no wonder he doesn't show an interest in getting Sonic home anymore, if he does that, the chance of having the life he always wanted, that hope, would be gone forever. I don't think Nine's going to let that happen easily.

9. Everyone roots for him and wants him to be happy

There are zero people that don't want him to achieve his goal of love and happiness. Not just for the fact that he's a version of a character we're already emotionally invested in, but also because Nine is his own person. He's still a person who was horribly abused to the point of being jaded and cold.

Seeing him smile or show comfort really melts my heart cause this kid deserves SO MUCH! I know you all agree. But it is depressing to remember that Sonic NEEDS to go back and restore his world, he'll have to leave Nine behind. I don't think they're going to go with Sonic taking Nine with him because of what might happen with the whole "they can't see each other" stuff.

And with how stubborn and desperate Nine is...

I'm curious about how they figure this out and resolve this.

10. He might affect the plot

A protagonist is not just the lead character who pushes the plot along, they also affect and can possibly change the plot as well. Sonic already kicked off the plot, it's possible for Nine to affect it in a BIG way. This can lead to a LOT of possibilities when you consider that. We KNOW he has a plan and it has something to do with the Chaos Council capturing him. This fact can lead to a LOT of interpretations.

Well, that was my list of how Nine might be the deuteragonist of Sonic Prime in the future. Thanks for reading and I hope you have a lovely day <3

[gyutarling]

CHASING THAT FUZZY FEELING

txt as my favourite shoegaze songs

♯ — txt x gn!reader ⋆ fluff ⋆ angst ⋆ blurbs

warnings! — cringe, cheesy, not proofread, lowercase intended, extremely corny

note — i'm not completely satisfied w soob's n tyun's T-T notes, reblogs, feedback always appreciated!

YEONJUN — lovely crawl by fleeting joys

"i’m looking for something that’s lost in the light"

yeonjun can be considered what some would call a hedonist. always looking for cheap thrills, things that numb and burn, that die out just as quickly as he does come morning time. everyone knows it, they pity him, and they pity you. you, who despite being aware of yeonjun’s ways, fell victim to his never-ending pursuit of pleasure. he’s here for a good time, you’re here for a long time. you thought you’d be content with the superficial affection he provides, but alas, you long for substance. constantly teetering on the edge of nothing and something, yeonjun only wants you at your best, and your best is when you’re igniting his flame of hedonism. it drowns you— the noise, the strobelights, the waiting. you’re always waiting for more, for something. but on fleeting occasions, when yeonjun’s not even conscious, passed out on the floor from the highs of self-indulgence from the night before, when it’s quiet. that’s when you can crawl up next to him, the physical closeness aids in the illusion of there being something more.

SOOBIN — bloom by glare

"your smile blooms one on me"

to say that soobin is the embodiment of a first love is like saying the sky is blue. but it’s not the exciting, puppy love type that people always say it is. falling for him is a slow descend, that budding feeling that grows, a kind of affection that’s been there all along, it just needed to sprout. soobin is a flower. a flower that opens up when the time is right, and when it is, he brings a soft hue of salvation to your bleak world. you may be fooled, because a beautiful flower can be admired by many, but you know that the blossoming emotions that soobin feels are true to only you. delicate but strong, he can withstand all the harsh conditions that the world rains down on him because you’re here, it’s a mutual assurance. it’s a love that’s gentle and nurturing, in the way that he makes you want to grow and become beautiful just like him. he supports you in every step of the way, with a smile, and it’s all you need, really.

BEOMGYU - mellow by whirr

"always between me and you"

beomgyu is aware of the ephemerality of life. he thinks there’s a certain beauty to it, honestly, how nothing lasts forever. that’s why he would consider himself a simple person, taking pleasure in the little things that make up the transience called happiness. but deep down, beomgyu is afraid. he has been loved before, and he has loved, too. he has loved too much, too intensely— but unfortunately, love is not an exception, regardless of how much beomgyu wished otherwise. so when you came into his life, beomgyu desperately hoped that nothing would take you away, that you’re not just a fleeting moment. no one gets him like you do, the way you just know. beomgyu thinks that you might just actually be his soulmate, because your connection transcends anything words can describe. he’s convinced that he must've been surrounded by cardboard cutouts his whole life, as no one but you has ever conveyed so much depth with their existence alone. monotony is beautiful with you— in fact, he would be content with just laying on the floor in your presence for eternity. so just this once, he wishes for you to be the exception.

TAEHYUN — angel by drop nineteens

"and i believe that dreams come true, cause you came when i wished for you"

“larger than life” is a phrase that would encompass taehyun’s existence perfectly. his genuine love for this cruel world impresses many, as if he knows of a transformative secret that is the key to living his life to the fullest. maybe it’s his vast curiosity, to want to know not only of the wonders of life, but also how he can get back up even after it knocks him down. taehyun believes that negativity is too draining, because of that, being with him is like a transformative experience in and of itself. he must be a higher being, an angel, 'cause even at your lowest, just one hint of a smile from him is enough for you to ascend to the clouds. that floating feeling never leaves you when you’re with him, it swallows you whole, and it makes you wonder how you could feel sad ever again. even when the clouds clear, when you two are at your most vulnerable, under the gaze of the stars, you’ll watch the skies in taehyun’s eyes instead, they shine brighter in there anyway.

HUENINGKAI — how fast can you love by pia fraus

"tomorrow, please love me"

kai has been patient his whole life. his passion drives him, he’s been walking a lonely road to achieve his dreams. he had always thought that he grew up too fast, no time for insignificant matters, kai’s world is a world in which he has to fight to survive. of course, that doesn’t mean that he’s completely immune to youthful desires, and kai wishes for nothing more than to turn back time so he could feel like a real person again, even just for a little while. and when you came into his life— a force to be reckoned with, you are, he thinks that letting himself indulge for once wouldn’t hurt. so he lets his passion consume him this time, and only then does he realise how lonely he has been all along. kai is tired of being patient, and it shows through his complete vulnerability when he’s with you. even though it’s hard, he’s so used to locking his emotions away in his heart-shaped box, you can tell he’s really trying. kai puts every ounce of himself in the potential of your love, because then he would finally have something to hope for, no matter how unsure he may be.

[tangerinecherrygal]

Thoughts on Bridgerton S3 so far.

Under the cut for the sake of my poor moots and for spoilers. And first and foremost, I am a hater, so I will have some complaints but most are positive.

Positives:

Developing Cressida’s character. I’ve wanted this since I started watching with season 2. I love that she isn’t a cardboard cutout mean girl bc she gets shat on (deservedly sometimes) a lot by the main characters. Also I’m not sure which way they want to go with her character but I don’t think she needs any kind of redemption, maybe just a softening of her character.

Disabled visibility. It’s very clunky, but it is a step in the right direction.Period pieces tend to be worse than other types of shows and movies at erasing disabled people. It’s easy to forget that disabled people did exist and were apart of society. I can’t speak much to how they were treated, but this is bridgerton so it is very possible to portray them in ways that are realistic to the more modern experience of, say, being in a wheelchair.

Portia Featherington. Send tweet.

Benedict being a fun little guy.

Sibling dynamics of the bridgertons are really sweet to see and always make me smile.

Penelope serving cunt, intellect and agency.

Thr Mondrich family being on screen more. I’d love a side show on them like Queen Charlotte. Their relationship is so sweet and I am observing 👀 with upmost respect.

I do like Colin’s new look buuut… we will come back to this.

Francesca’s new actress is so talented. The shy girl rep that I need. She looks a lot like Phoebe and fits in perfectly.

The other stuff (and how i would change it)

Penelope’s makeover seemed rushed. I think her transformation should’ve been gradual as she gains confidence. Almost like Kate’s last season. She starts to reflect her confidence e gains throughout the season and i’m thinking that a fanfic may be brewing oh no.

Colin’s makeover is needed bc they had to downplay the actors beauty in earlier seasons. But I don’t see him as a devilishly handsome rake all of a sudden. Luke Newton has a kind and approachable (kind of baby) face and I think that they should play on that. A pretty kind of handsome instead of trying to immitate the more masculine look that they used for anthony. I know it’s because he is putting on a performance but I think they could have gona another way. His look in season 2 is great in my opinion, maybe if his clothing was more relaxed but he kept the same hair then it would be perfect.

They’re trying to convince us that he’s suave and smooth with the ladies but it’s not consistent with his character

The threesome scenes? Not a hundred percent sure who that was for. Sapphics let me know if you appreciated those scenes because I know they weren’t doing that for their famously large straight male audience. I also saw someone say it reduces the sex workers to props but in context that kind of works into the story so idk.

Colin went from being lost at the end of last season to gaining a sense of identity that isn’t implied to be an act.

Lots of side stories make it seem messy and wastes time that can go into understanding Francesca, Penelope, and Colin. Instead of focusing on stories like Lady Bridgerton’s romantic story they really should make a QS 2 where they can explore the older cast of characters.

Paaaaacinnng. Everything is happening so fast and the side stories mean that Polin doesn’t even make much sense to me. I don’t feel any chemistry. I’m not going to count how long they’ve been on screen together this season, but it’s not enough for me to believe that Colin finally sees Pen in a romantic way. The helping Pen find a husband quest lasted for a second and immediately he realises his feelings. I just don’t buy it. I almost want to cut away to horny ass Kanthony to see actual chemistry.

if anybody reads this and has their own takes pls comment. I love talking about the show and hearing what other people thought.

[nono-uwu]

hi this is kind of random but. ive seen a few posts so far from people in the fandom expressing they don't like/aren't interested in mikayuu anymore and i was curious if you knew why? it's been like a long time since i was into ons (like 2018? 😭) so im pretty out of the loop and was wondering if smth crazy happened ig lol 😭

I'm more of a recent addition to the fandom (watched/read ons for the 1st time in 2021 lol) but here's what I observed I think (not sure if you've read the manga but just in case huge spoiler warning)(also I may or may not be biased against them since my favs are the vampires and shinoa squad without mikayuu lol):

- there is just too much of them. Obviously they're the main characters but ons always had a colorful cast of characters and a lot of them (mainly Shinoa squad tbh) were sidelined during the shibuya arc and basically turned into cardboard cutouts that shout "Yuu!" every few chapters. Though they did get their personalities back in ch 133, it took way too long imo.

- Mikayuu barley changed as people and their relationship stayed basically the same. Once they reunited and Mika 'joined' Shinoa squad their relationship dynamic could be boiled down to: Yuu is kinda stupid and wants to do smth bc fAmLIy or whatever, Mika disagrees, Yuu does the equivalent of puppy dog eyes, Mika begrudgingly agrees, Yuu gets what he wants with minimal consequenz. After a while it's just not interesting to have the main character constantly winning. Heck, Mika's 'death' and demon transformation barley did anything in the long run.

Like at one point, it got brought up that Mika is losing his emotions for everything except Yuu, which was a pretty interesting idea and could have brought conflict into their realtionship. But a few weeks later (in-story, took a few years irl lol) Mika gets turned into a demon, regains his emotions and the former conflict is left in the dust.

Now with Mika as a demon, he lost all of his agency. He is literally stuck to Yuu and the most he can do against him is refuse to give him power but Yuu can just force it out of him so. Pretty fucked.

After they split off from the main group post Shibuya arc, they once again have an inkling of a conflict.

For context, they split off bc Yuu had to either choose between resurrecting humanity or only Mika (at least that's how Guren phrased it). Yuu's gayass chose Mika and at first they had an argument bc Mika doesn't value his life and would rather have everyone revived at his expense. Yuu goes 'nuh-uh' and makes a run for it, devoures Asuramaru/Ashera in the process.

Once they've run off, Mika confornts Yuu and shouts at him, saying he should have a happy life with his human family instead of Mika. Yuu once again goes "nuh-uh" and decides to revive all of humanity, Mika included.

- They restate their goal, plans and whatnot too much. Ons is a monthly manga with ~35 pages per chapter. In Mikayuu centric chapters, almost half (if not all) are wasted on restating the goals they've stated LAST FUCKING CHAPTER. Maybe Kagami doesn't trust the readers memory but man, you didn't do this before, did you? Why now all of a sudden? There's plenty of plot to get through, we can reread old chapters if we forget something.

There's also way too much goofing around. Obviously down-time is needed in any action packed series but we've gotten so much random cut-ins of Yuu needing food in what are supposed to be tense moments. Also we do not need an entire chapter of them hunting, eating and talking about their plans and others plans.

-

This is all I remembered off the top of my head, anyone feel free to add more

[marya-blackbone]

part 3

part 1 part 2

True to their agreement, Robin doesn’t bring it up again until their next shared shift at Family Video. Mondays are always a bit slow, and they haven’t seen a customer for at least two hours, so she thinks now would be a great time to delicately broach the subject.

“So, tell me about your new squeeze,” she says without any lead-up.

“I’m going to pretend you didn’t just say that to me,” Steve says, making a face. “But I guess I owe you this much–”

He’s so tantalizingly close to spilling that when the door swings open, Robin actually snaps her pencil in half, her eyes boring into the skull of whoever dares interrupt the moment. Fortunately, it’s only Eddie and not some poor old lady looking to rent Roman Holiday or something, but that doesn’t stop her from telling him to clear off.

“Shoo! Go away – Steve’s about to tell me about the girl he was with on Friday, and if you’re here, he’s going to let you distract him from this. very. important. matter.” 

She tosses the pencil halves at him, and he lets them bounce off his Metallica T-shirt onto the floor, unimpressed. It’s not that she thinks Steve would be reticent around Eddie or anything, but it’s historically hard to hold Steve’s focus when Eddie’s in the room and she needs the man to stay on task or she will genuinely scream.

“Is that so?” Eddie asks – a sparkle of delight in his eyes, completely ignoring Robin’s totally reasonable request to get lost, and instead sauntering up to the counter and planting his elbows on the Formica. 

And yep, one glance tells her Steve’s gone – Robin may as well be one of the cardboard cutouts at the end of the aisles for all the attention she’s receiving. “Well don’t let me be the one to stop you,” he says, voice lilting. “Tell me, is she a total babe?”

And that throws Robin for a second because as a rule, Eddie doesn’t encourage Steve to talk about girls or dates or kisses. He’ll nearly always redirect, change the subject, and even talk over Steve if he’s in a mood. But this? This can only mean Eddie knows something Robin doesn’t. It means–

“You know who it is, don’t you?” It’s rhetorical, but Eddie’s shit-eating grin is answer enough. 

Robin rounds on Steve, slapping his arm. “What the hell, Dingus? You told Eddie before you talked to me?” And it’s nothing against Eddie – she likes Eddie, they’re tight and everything – but after watching Steve strike out countless times, and hearing about every failed date since last summer, she really thought that would earn her some privilege when it came to Steve’s love life. 

But apparently not.

Steve stops staring dumbly at Eddie, but he doesn’t look nearly as guilty as Robin feels he should. He uncrosses her arms for her and Robin lets him take her by the hands even though she’s still pouting something fierce.

“Hey, no. Robin, that’s not what happened. I haven’t told anyone.” A pause. “We haven’t told anyone,” Steve says, eyes returning to the metalhead and lingering meaningfully.

And then it clicks. “Ohmygod!”

[safyresky]

So, Season 2. It's. It's alright ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

But like...that's it, lmao.

I did enjoy it! I got WAY MORE genuine laughs out of these first two episodes than I did the entire first season. Magnus is hilarious, I love his whole vibe lmao. Fluffy's character, Kris, he's...man is really out here looking for a father figure and it is deffs biting him in the ASS.

The elves are top tier as per the usual! Betty and Noel are continuing to be THE power couple and I am SO HAPPY ABOUT IT, I love them to death 🥰🥰🥰

My fave thing about the season so far is just everyone out here like Scott wtf are you doing. Wtf, man. I yelled GET HIS ASS so many times lol. The official Get His Ass Count as of the end of Episode 2: 8. 8 whole GET HIS ASS moments. BLESS.

SO RIGHT. NITTY GRITTY. OKAY.

Episode 1

Scott sucked SO BAD this episode. He breaks the SOS on a worldwide level then gets upset when Cal is like "I love Riley! I wished her here! We're hanging out! Riley!! :D" and is like "Bro you should've dusted her."

OKAY SCOTT. WHAT ABOUT THE WHOLE WORLD, SCOTT, HMM? ARE WE DUSTING THEM??? HMM??? YEESH.

Scott aside (you know, his usual boomer-esque old guy who refuses to change shtick with BUT WHAT ABOUT FAMILY! And whatnot thing), everything else was. Mid, tbh. But fun! Santa being like "Are you gonna kill him?" With Carol being like "I can take care of Gary" was hilarious.

Betty and Noel, of course, SHINNED. I love them, they are SO CUTE. Cardboard face cutouts??? ICONIC. Nobody is doing it like them!

Now. Cal. aka, Buddy. I am very worried for him. Like, 4 episodes ago he was having ANXIETY about being Santa? And now this? Carol being like "what if he doesn't want it don't force him to follow in your footsteps" like. I AGREE. HE SHOULD GO OFF TO COLLEGE AND LIVE HIS LIFE!!!! I have a lot of thoughts there but it is late and I need to FOCUS because I need to yell about Cupid in a second, ANYWAY

Magnus Antas. I love this guy. I fucks with him. He takes a 700 year nap and is like "I'm fine" until his toxic bestie is like "I WANT TO KILL" and a kid sasses him for not being Santa/being OLD and he's like "Nevermind. I want to kill now too. Time to MURDER." He has VIBES and I like them!! He also seems like he's was over it until Olga was like "but what if" and some kid was mean to him and tbh, I can't even blame him for getting pissy at the kid lol. I'd also turna kid into "a Roblox" if I could (here for Gamer Mad Santa btw. I'd watch him stream on Twitch)

This is verging into Episode 2 territory, lol. May as well get there, then!

EPISODE 2

So, the LORE DROPS. Um. There was a LOT of it? And it seems to contradict itself/not quite equate with itself? If the NP is a utopia for magic, why is it like that? Was Magnus good, or not? Why do ALL the fairy creatures live there, when they come from so many diverse cuktures and backgrounds? That's a lil messed up! What the fuck happened with the gnomes becoming so (what's the phrase) PROMINENT for Santa? Will we get answers for all of these? Based on past season, PROBABLY NOT! BUT I HOPE WE DO! BC IT IS A BIT ALL OVER THE PLACE! AHH!

RIGHTO. SO SANDRA'S MAGIC. Love that for her! Love that they're actually devoting time to showing her interacting with La Befana and learning about herself and the pair of them discussing things!!! MUCH rather watch that than a 5 minute long auto-tuned elf song which is there just for a Santa/Satan joke! I'm excited to see how her whole arc goes--it looks like she's ACTUALLY GETTING ONE.

I wonder why Befana needs her to tell her parents, like, aside from obvious reasons. She was so insistent on Sandra making sure her parents knew she was training with Befana, that I'm wondering if there's something more to it a la "our powers don't work on other legendary figures". Like, was it to keep her mind clear? Is it like a past thing? Bc Witches are "scary" and often "bad" given that Santa calls Befana a "good one"?

That's another thign! Not sure I vibed with THAT whole thing. Both Claus's being like "yeah witches, they are deffs their stereotypes". Like. Idk. It sits. Not gr8 with me. Feels like performative activism, sorta, you know?

Which is also how I feel about the girl power moments, tbh. Like, it's nice to see them--Carol respecting Befana as a self-made woman, sister solidarity, etc. But it feels very performative! It feels very much like they are checking it off a list, you know? They're STILL like "Carol is trying to find a role for Mrs. Claus" and they go for COP? Wildin. Also wildin that the ELFS are COP EQUIVALENTS? Um, since WHEN?! They are funky little guys with jet packs and no regard for authority. Remember when they broke Santa out of jail and bullied the cop at the front desk? Remember that? YEAH.

OKAY SO NOW MY FAVOURITE PART TO TALK ABOUT. CUPID AND THE COUNCIL!

So as a classics major and a lover of the Cupid/Psyche myth (and personal bias from OCs made bc of said myth) I was unimpressed with the Mrs. Cupid convo. FIRST off, her name is PSYCHE so jot that down. SECONDLY. It was ONE ARROW MEANT FOR HER THAT SOMEHOW GOT LODGED INTO CUPID ACCIDENTALLY WHILE SENT ON AN ERRAND BY HIS MOTHER, VENUS, TO TAKE CARE OF (make her fall in love with a horrible monster/something/someone very ugly) PSYCHE BC SHE WAS SO BEAUTIFUL WORSHIP WAS DROPPING FOR VENUS AND GOING TO PSYCHE.

This resulted in Cupid and Psyche having a very strange romance/marriage in which Psyche's shitty sisters convince her to break Cupid's one rule (which was don't look at me) and he gets injured, HELD HOSTAGE by his mother, and Psyche has to go on a QUEST to free him that involves Venus making her do all sorts of shitty shenanigans, setting the personifications of sadness and despair on her, and trapping her in an eternal sleep. Cupid, afflcited by his own arrow, escapes his mother's house when he hears about this, finds her, and draws the sleep out of her, waking her up and reuniting them.

They then proceed to go to Zeus (not Jupiter despite Cupid being the Roman equivalent of Eros, and Venus roman of Aphrodite? It's interesting) like LOOK WHAT VENUS DID and Zeus goes "Wow, that's a little fucked up, actually. Listen, I'll make her a god and sanction your marriage and tell of your Mom IF you do something a little fucked up for me and help me get ANY woman I want" to which Cupid goes "Sure, that sounds reasonable and not fucked up at all" and then he and Psyche get married and have a fucking rager with the gods and have one kid, Pleasure, aka Hedone/Volupta, or in SOME iterations, THREE kids, Pleasure, Joy, and a third one who's name escapes me (Vanity I think) and presumably live happily ever after! READ FOR YOURSELF!

I am very passionate about this bc uh. this is uh. Dite's whole ass backstory? She is Hedone lmao so I've got some personal attachment here thanks to me own OCs lmao, ANYWAY

So YEAH that got me miffed. As did uh, the whole PEEKABOO and cupid making baby noises back at Riley. The ICK.

But you know what I DID love?? Cupid being like "I'm not spying but also, I am spying and also, the whole ass entire council is like BOI...WHAT THE FUCK". GET HIS ASS! CALL HIM OUT!! BC YEAH, WHAT THE FUCK SCOTT?? SEASON 1?? HELLO??? EVERYTHING BEFORE THAT??? VIOLATING THE SOS BY SHARING ALL THOSE SNOW GLOBES??? AHHHHHHH.

Cupid delivering that 3 month deadline and Council threat I was like. HERE for it. I was like. GET HIS ASS (this was one of the GHA counter moments tbh). Like, this dude is out of control! I think it's high time Scott meets the consequences for his actions! AH!

So YEAH. Excited to see Sandy and for New EB! I hope the whole Council comes back, even if they have to recast, that 5 minute scene would add YEARS to my life that Riley and Cal took away.

Because they are. So icky. I feel as though. There is a scale. And Marie is on one end, and Riley is on the other. This isn't just FIRST LOVE this is just DISGUSTING. Like it was cute at first last season but now Riley is honestly?? Sups annoying. You can tell that they're like, checking items off the list instead of actually putting more thought into them, because Riley is v much a stereotype and they have WAY UPPED her teenager levels. I need them to talk to actual teens. Nobody says OMG like that and also, she's bringing home BIKERS?????????? UM??????? It's like. Why are they so bad at writing love interests? You feel? Tho this could just be a me thing 🤔🤔🤔

They really should've socialized those kids, DAMN. Santa being like "And we all know how that [Romeo and Juliet] went" or whatever the line was had me like "FINALLY SCOTTY BOY. SOMETHING WE CAN AGREE ON!"

AND LAST ON MY LIST. THE SCOTT/SANDRA SCENE.

Finally. Finally. FINALLY. Some good parenting from Scott. FINALLY. Being sups understanding to Sandra? I actually loved it. He finally did ONE (1) GOOD THING. MAYBE HE IS? LEARNING? I DUNNO MAN! WE'LL SEE HOW IT GOES! But yeah, I did like that scene a lot. I'm just really here for Sandra getting her moment!

So YEAH. Overall, season 2 is okay. Gave me more laughs which is WELCOME, and I cannot wait to see how this develops. Especially since the lore was like, really thrown our way, you know? It was a lot for two episodes and again, did kind of contradict itself? Hopefully it clears up once Santa inevitably learns the truth about Mad Santa, probably mostly thanks to Carol who is DOING the MOST.

But yeah, I'm hoping to see the lore tidied/explained a bit better. Especially bc the whole elf lore opening, with the icy tunnels and drab vibes, didn't sit well with me? It...I didn't like it. Not my cup of tea. The lore in general isn't my cup of tea though it's fun to see it there finally, lol. Poor Toots, being named after a fart essentially (I went right to toilet humour, I'm sorry, I am so mature I promise i'm not)

Also, they really kinda. Throw around the head elf title, huh? It felt REALLY WEIRD to not see BMan there, and Toots just being thrown in? Weird it's WEIRD. I wouldn't bring B-Man back for it but MAN IS IT WEIRD. Especially since the new elves, as much as I ADORE THEM, don't have the same kind of like. Old feel to them? As the movie elves did? So I was like "they should NOT be there right now. They should NOT."

Righto. I am going to wrap this up bc I am INSANE and this is very very VERY long for a franchise like this 😅😅😅

[spinningbuster98]

As bad as it may sound, it really seems to me that N!Isaac and N!Annette have both been written as Perfect Minorities™.

OG Isaac was the perpetual second one. Not incompetent by any means, but you know the deal, he was salty as hell that Hector was just a tiny bit better :P In the show, the dynamic is flipped: it's Isaac who is Dracula's special babyboy. But he is the special babyboy to such an exaggerated degree that he makes Hector's inclusion not only completely useless, but even detrimental: why would Dracula bother to hire an average Devil Forgemaster, without a shred of physical prowess, who he considers to be "a child in a man's body", and who he had to resort to lie to (Hector literally shouts in the war room that he doesn't enjoy the needless suffering Dracula is causing)... when Isaac by all means is strong, smart (allegedly), much more efficient in Forging, and 100% on board with Dracula's extermination plans to the point of being the only person Dracula can trust?

The story would improve if Hector, again, was the better Devil Forgemaster, even with his pesky morals. But we can't have that, can we? They were absolutely adamant, for whatever reason, that Isaac had to be black, despite him being probably the worst character to make black and Muslim. And black people can't be inferior, right? They can't need the help of a white person lesser POC, right? So Isaac in the show has become literally untouchable by the narrative. He gets everything he wants. He gets all the sympathy, because boohoo don't you feel bad that the guards are a bit mean to him, of course he should kill them all and turn them into monsters. He gets all the badass scenes, hell he literally gets wounded once in the whole show. He gets to be Enlightened.

And Annette... well, we talked about it plenty of times. Annette has Special God Powers. Annette gets coddled by total strangers. Annette has the right to hurt Richter where it stings the most without anyone calling her out. No one dares to point out Annette's genuine mistakes or bad behavior, even the most confrontational character after herself, Maria. Annette gets to make a Rousing Revolutionary Speech to the same French people she looks down upon. Annette gets to have the most prominent character arc, while Richter is left bumbling around and gets one (1) cool scene.

Representation in NFCV seems to be limited to three characters: 1) the narrative's darlingest babies who can do no wrong because they need to be popular on twitblr, 2) cardboard cutouts with barely a speaking line to pretend our world is more complex than it actually is, and 3) jesus christ please think more than three seconds next time.

Let's be perfectly real here:

both Isaac and Annette are the way that they are to appeal to a very specific,wide and vocal crowd on social media, the same crowd who cries for representation, by which they usually mean utterly perfect characters who can do no wrong and can easily vent their frustrations on other cast members because people, through these characters, can feel vindicated for their own frustrations. Frustrations that can be justified in a way, especially where racism is involved, but it essentially means that characters like Annette and Isaac are not really characters, but rather they are meant to be power fantasies of sorts. They're there to be black characters who are very strong and look down on the white oppressors etc. And you know what? There's nothing wrong with power fantasies, but only as long as they're written competently. Otherwise you don't really have a power fantasy. You have a weird amalgamations of Mary Sues mixed with social media discourse

This is especially blatant with Annette since, at least with Isaac, I don't think he ever uses the color of his skin as a justification for his attitude (he uses his religion but that's another can of worms).

I am almost certain that characters like these are inserted partly because it's a no-lose scenario, because you absolutely cannot criticize them without being accused of bigotry. This is made all the worse by many ACTUAL bigots chiming in and making any actual discourse impossible. I'm sure that big corpos like Netflix know this by now: create a character who's a minority who the US public cares about (I need to specify that last part because I get the feeling that people would not get nearly as uppity about, oh I dunno, Roma characters? Native American characters? Because social justice is only about those "cool" minorities that the public has been taught to think are worth it, anyone else barely even registers on the radar), write them in a way that satisfies the social media pseudo activist crowd, wait for the bigots to show up in order to easily paint any detractor as a racist, thus creating a very easy equation of "show has representation= good. Bigotry= Bad. Hate the show= You're a bigot"

I say "almost" because there's always the possibility that the guys behind the wheel genuinely think they're doing a great job

This may sound crazy, but look at all the praise they get, look at how much encouragement they get. And all this goes beyond NFCV, this sort of phenomenon is very widespread so it wouldn't surprise me if even the Deats brothers think they're masters of representation who can do no wrong because if enough people keep saying one thing without pause then you're bound to think it's the truth.

For instance I am pretty certain that Deats and the gang genuinely don't think that Alucard's threesome is not rape, or Lenore's treatment of Hector. Because they're not conventional depictions of rape and if you go ask most people on social media, hell even on the street across your own home, they'll most likely tell you the same.

I hate NFCV but what I think I hate more is the overall social climate that lead to its creation

[sskurwysyn]

GOOD DAD DRAXUM AU GOOD DAD DRAXUM AU!!!! + Villain turtles (?)

So basically, what if Lou Jitsu didn't manage to snatch the turtles and they were raised by Baron Draxum

He's very very bad at parenting at first (he has exactly 0 knowledge on handling children)

Munnin and Huggin to the rescue!! (They don't know anything about parenting either but they do have something Barry lacks - common f-cking sense)

He was so happy his experiment worked out, he forgot to plan a bit ahead. In his mad scientist haze, he disregarded the fact he actually had to raise the specimens he made...

Actually their sentience was an accident! Draxum wanted mindless weapons (i physically cringed at that lol lfls gave me trauma), maybe pets, def not children. So at first he wasn't too happy with the outcome. But after realizing the possibilities their sentience opened, he was ecstatic, bragging to everyone that his experiment worked even better than planned.

He reads a lot of parenting books 👍

Barry has troubles with empathy, but he makes it up with a deep understanding of psychology and biology. He strives to bring out the most out of every turtle, so he tries to choose those training methods, that would actually WORK.

He read somewhere that children need physical touch at least four times a day to develop properly. He doesn't know what a hug is, so four times a day he just. Picks his children weapons up and holds them for a minute awkwardly. He eventually learned to be more casual when picking them up, but it took a while.

When the tots were still in their baby form, Draxum carried them on his shoulders instead of the gargoyles.

The tots really liked to sleep in the dog bed 🥺🥺 /bc of the fireplace/ Munnin and Huggin didn't mind, they either tried to squeeze themselves next to the turtles, or they just slept hanging upside down from something (like bats), keeping an eye on them.

They reclaim their bed happily when Draxum builds the tots a terrarium though.

Honestly those two go from evil henchmen to fulltime nannies in the matter of days and they enjoy it a lot, surpisingly.

The turtles enjoy Lou Jitsu movies very much, and they compare themselves to him all the time. He's basically their idol and they dream of meeting their DNA-dad. They idolize Lou even more than in canon, since they know that he's related to them from the get go.

Mike painted him on a cardboard. Now they have real life sized Lou Jitsu cardboard cutout just vibing around the house.

Draxum deems art an useless skill and a waste of time. So he and Mikey get into fights about it all the time.

Draxum may be emotionally distant, but he's much more interested in the boys' lives than Splinter ever was. Which, okay, it's good for the most part, but it shows to be problematic if his ideals don't align with the turtle's actions.

Donnie is his least favorite, only because he sees himself in the softshell too much and it makes him uncomfortable.

Mikey is his favorite, actually (because of the EXTREME potential he's hiding) but that just means he gets the most shit from Draxum, honestly.

The boys are muchhh much more rebellious and uh... morally questionable than in canon.

Remember lair games? Yeah. Remember when Leo accidentally caused Don to twist his ankle? Yeah. Let's just say, it wouldn't exactly be accidental in this AU.

Turtles have a deep dislike of humans, mostly caused by Draxum's views on them. They stick to the Undercity for the most part, unless they sneak out to NYC to cause some chaos. That's how they meet April, actually.

Yeah, they're not friends in this AU. Arch nemesis would be more accurate. Especially with Donnie. They hate each other with a burning passion.

"Stop mutating innocent citizens!!!" "Make me, hummie! (sfx: madman laugh)"

Yes turtles are personally involved in mutation of the villains from the show. I will not be elaborating.

Usagi and Gen are very important figures in this AU :DD probably as important as April and Splinter, honestly. (And i may or may not bring Jei into it as well... Still thinking about it)

I have more ideas but then this post would be insufferably long i mean its pretty long as it is

[coralcatsea]

How would you end XXX/Would you change the ending of XXX?

I feel Hetalia needs some kind of really nice, wholesome ending with the nations all doing something fun and silly with each other. They have many differences, but they can relate to and understand each other in ways no human can, which allows them to come together and feel a sense of belonging. They can't fix the world; it'll never be perfect, but there is hope for the future.

They could play games, sing songs, and reminisce on some Hetalia scenes from the past, like:

America: Remember when we sat around a campfire on that island? England kept chanting like he was trying to summon the devil!

England: That reminds me of when you prank called me and pretended to BE the devil!

Belarus: Sometimes I like to prank call Poland and just breathe into the phone.

Poland: That was you?!

China: On the topic of pranks, how about that crazy April Fools' Day where we all got blackmailed?

France: Hey, remember when I tried to trick you by pretending a marriage registration form was a calendar?

England: I don't know how you ever thought I would believe that!

Spain: Oh, when I tried proposing to Romano he gave me all these conditions!

Romano: There weren't that many!

England: Oh, I recall when America got upset because I didn't give him chocolates for Valentine's Day.

Italy: Haha! You proposed to him? Germany gave me a ring once on Valentine's Day! It turned out to be this whole big misunderstanding!

America: You're always giving me ice cream and chocolate bars and things! I just figured you would give me some then, too!

England: Well, I brought them later and you tried to play it off like it never happened!

America: Haha, did I do that?

Prussia: Oh, speaking of England giving out food, remember when I posted on my blog about how he made me food and everyone thought I died?? Not cool, guys! As if I would be defeated by that!

Germany: We were just concerned.

Prussia: Some of you got REALLY concerned! That was interesting!

Austria: Well, there's no need to be foolish!

Hungary: Yes, you may be a handful, but you have your good points! For one, there was that time you gave me a piece of fabric from your clothes to help me cover up...

Italy: He helped clean my house!

Romano: That idiot cheered me up once when I couldn't get a role in a movie.

America: I like to make movies! You can get a role in mine if you want! Maybe we can make it about...the Pictonian invasion!!

Prussia: Oh! What about a movie inspired by that fantasy game we all played together?

Estonia: Maybe it could be based on this dream I had where you all became women! It was really weird!

Japan: What–?

Russia: I think it would be nice to make a movie about some of the pleasant memories we've been discussing.

Spain: We should include the time I had turtles crawling all over the place!

Canada: Sometimes Cuba and I have ice cream together. That's a nice memory.

Japan: Learning English with England-san and German with Prussia-san.

England: There was that one time Germany and I stopped fighting on Christmas to play football...

Japan: Rooming with America.

Lithuania: Oh, yes, I liked staying with him, too.

Romano: I guess it was all right.

Belarus: ...I didn't like it much. But some parts were okay.

Russia: Don't worry, we can definitely skip all that!

America: How about that time Russia sent cardboard cutouts to everyone? That was hilarious!

Japan: Hmm...when we learned about America's Furbies?

Italy: When I wrote a song for Germany! That's a good memory!

Germany: ...When I first found you hiding in that tomato box.

It ends with them singing a new song, and then finally, Marukaite Chikyuu. Italy then says, "The series may be over, but history never ends!"

[crazycoke-addict]

The Smiling Critters Theory Part 1 (HoppyHop Scotch, PickyPiggy, Bubbaphant, beary bearhug)

This is a continuation from the last post. I wanna discuss the smiling critters and what I think what happened to them.

If you aren't aware, in Poppy playtime Chapter 3. A line of characters was introduced as the smiling critters. Their names are Bubba Bubbaphant, KickinChicken, Beary BearHug, PickyPiggy, HoppyHop Scotch, DogDay and Catnap. Not only we're they sold as toys with each of their signature scent. They were also given their very own tv show. However, parents start to express their concern about the catnap plushie because while making the toys instead of the lavender scent that catnap was supposed to have, instead, he was given a poppy scent That even the bigger body catnap has to make the kids go to sleep. Parents express their concerns because their kids kept having hallucigenic nightmares. We even hear this when a woman named Clare Harper talks about how one of the orphans, Marie, had a nightmare involving a colourless monster.

Just like how many of the toys were made by playtime Co. Each of them ended up being part of the bigger bodies initiative. We saw Catnap in that form as well as dogday, so it would be that far-fetched that the other smiling critters were bigger bodies as well. But the question is what happened to them since DogDay says that he is the last of the smiling critters.

We need to talk about where we found DogDay. After managing to get power back on for the school area. We manage to find ourselves in the playhouse. Ollie appears to not like the playhouse, and when we get there, we know why. While the other places have destroyed with blood stains all over. The playhouse looks unsettling, especially when we meet DogDay. He is chained to, but also, he's in a prison cell. The first time we saw the prison cells was a surveillance camera in project playtime. While finding DogDay, we do see some sort of underground lare, which is where catnap used to be in. This is where they kept the bigger bodies of the smiling critters.

Now, let's talk about what happened to each of them. During the playthrough, you come across a cardboard cutout of one of the smiling critters. It starts with them introducing themselves, and we get to know a little about their personality, but things take a dark turn where they say things that are unsettling. While cardboard cutouts have been there since the beginning that never really introduced themselves. Huggy Wuggy expresses the importance of hugs, CatBee makes bee puns, and Bunzo Bunny talks about birthdays.

The reason why this is important is because if you listen to their cardboard cutouts, you'll notice that it sounds like they are at the brink of insanity. Since CatNap was already devoted to the prototype since the prototype saved his life. He is pretty much aware that there is a plan since he tells Lieth Pierre about the prototype saving them. If you look at the promotion of the smiling critters. The other smiling critters express emotions even if they have grinning faces except for Catnap, which still keeps the same emotion. CatNap's personality revealed that he has a calming presence.

While Catnap does worship the prototype because of what he did for him. CatNap accepts the influence that the prototype has on him. Meanwhile, DogDay says that him and the other tried to resist the control of the prototype and how if someone disagrees with the prototype, Catnap eliminates them. The other smiling critters are trying to keep their personality intact, but because they are trying to resist the control of the prototype, their sanity becomes a problem.

The cut-outs even give us in-depth what happened to the smiling critters, and we may even figure out what happened afterwards. We'll start with hoppy hopscotch. She introduces herself and asks if we want to go jump on to the moon. This is basically a generic cartoon way since HoppyHop Scotch is described as being energetic and wants to go on adventures. However, the more we hear, the more it sounds like she is determined to jump on the moon. She's also appears frustrated with the player for supposedly messing it up and that looking at feet doesn't matter. When she does jump, you hear the sound of falling. Since we know that they were trying to resist the control of the prototype, it is likely that hoppyhop Scotch couldn't deal with it and she really want to go the moon so she unalive herself for the process.

Next up is PickyPiggy. Hers is interesting because It tells us what happened to 3 of the smiling critters but not hers. It is heavily implied that KickinChicken, Bubba Bubbaphant, and CraftyCorn were eaten by PickyPiggy herself. However, I see them as an offering by catnap since its a knowledge that pigs eat everything that they see as food. PickyPiggy talks about how she's still hungry despite eating an elephant. It is likely that picky piggy died of starvation because if she was eating her friends in front of her friends, they probably saw it as a punishment if they tried to escape.

Bobby BearHug is next on. We are going to look into it. Bobby BearHug is the compassionate of the smiling critters where she appears to care a lot about her friends. In her cardboard cut-out, it appears that she has abandonment issues where she asks the player if they are going to leave her. This is leaning towards that Bobby BearHug died of a broken heart. It is like that when some of the smiling critters tried to escape, which led to their deaths, they abandoned Bobby bearhug. While yes, it sounds absurd that a toy can die in such a way, but these toys have organs where they can eat, breathe, and even die. So, I don't think it would be out of the ordinary that a toy like Bobby bearhug who is known for her compassion but also trying to break free of the prototype's control would end up dying of a broken-heart.

Bubba Bubbaphant was the first cardboard cutout we saw in the game, and because of this, it is likely that he was the first to die. Bubba Bubbaphant's cardboard cutout doesn't act weird until the end when he is screaming. He expresses that he remembers the player, which could be because we know the main protagonist used to work here while also stating that elephants always remember. If you listen closely to his screams, it sounds like he's also laughing at the same time. The only time he's done this is when him and the smiling critters are given the red smoke at CatNap in that episode.

While Bubbaphant is laughing and screaming, it sounds like he's saying, "Grandma." I looked up, and grandmothers take the role as the matriarch of the elephant and make sure that the baby elephants grow into adulthood and that the mama elephant gets the support she needs. It's so interesting because it appears as though Bubba Bubbaphant was given the knowledge as an elephant itself. Since the red smoke is known for the person showing hallucinations. It is likely that when Bubba Bubbaphant got the red smoke, he may have been hallucinating an elderly female elephant, which was probably catnap in disguised, who ended up killing him and offered him to PickyPiggy.

[juicybiohazard]

Yes, finished my first playthrough of separate ways. The game is RE4 remake so I can't say anything about the gameplay that anyone doesn't already know, so... I'll talk about what I really care about here, the story, you see... Ada Wong and Albert Wesker happen to be my favorite characters in this series, I like the AWs yes. Naturally that means that I noticed how different both are from their original portrayals, listen there is a reason why in my mind the one true canon/continuity is the OG games and not the remakes, because its in those older games when I first experienced the RE world and ended up loving these people as they are, so how I could like these new versions of them when they are so different? they may as well be new characters. The appearance is the only thing they share, they are similar to the OGs on a superficial level but thats where similarities end, and of the two I think Wesker is the one that changed the most and not for the better, from little things like his voice not being so distinctive anymore and sounding generic af to his personality being a cardboard cutout of a cartoon villain, some might say, wasn't Wesker always like that? I mean you can choose to describe him as a cartoon villain but any older version of Wesker wouldn't admit to be willing to murder billions and reveal his plan to some random mercenary he doesn't know... he knows better. Even RE5 Wesker wouldn't do that, ever wondered what happened to the scientists that helped developed Uroboros? You get the general idea from multiple files, it looks like they all got killed and essentially they never even knew what they were doing and what was its true purpose

It goes beyond dialogue, even his mood is different, in the old games he is cool and collected in any situation in this game he is easily irritated by ANYTHING 😂 its kind funny how Ada seems to just exist and Albert huffs at her presence, seriously I could go on forever citing each and every single difference between the old Wesker we know and this new take on the character, but I'd rather end this post today

Like I said before in my little RE4 review, my only real dislikes of this game are the changes to Wesker and Ada, and subsequently Krauser. I loved the dynamic of these three in the old game and its completely gone now. They are no longer deeply connected like before, it's all superficial now, they just happen to be in the same place at the same time due to circumstances of fate, not because they know each other. You know what, that sucks, I don't like that one bit because it feels like taking things away just for the sake of making something different. Ada used to be a true grey character, remember Separate Ways was developed for the ps2 version of the game after it launched on GameCube so the times you saw Ada in the OG game where few, far between and the game gives you no reason to believe she isn't genuinely on Wesker's side. Maybe the devs always wanted her to end up betraying him but whatever the case I'd very much prefer if she wasn't just another good guy, we have enough of those and too many haven't returned for a long time (a lot of people still want Billy and Sheva to return). The amount of heroes in this series is astronomical, do we really need another one? why can't Ada at least be in-between? let her believe that ends justify the means at least, let her believe that some good can come out of eugenics, let her believe that the world needs an enema to erradicate true evil. I don't know I'm rambling here, but I hope this made a bit of sense, I always liked the idea of Ada and Wesker going way back and him being the reason she is alive today, meaning she feels she owes him and genuinely cares about him (I admit this might have never been on the table from the devs perspective so this is just how I wish things were for them) but it is what it is, story aside, the game is fun and this DLC is worth every peny

One last thing...

The post credits scene will live rent free in my head for the coming months, it seems more obvious than ever that RE5 remake is in the works, or it will be after RE9 is out. What a crazy time to be resi fan, it looks like capcom isn't going to stop giving us content. Can't complain about that one