#maybe a top 10 2024? that could be fun

[birdnoise]

Excuse me while I musicpost for a bit. I will preface this rant with a couple notes of interest.

1) I fucking LOVE metal. More than that, I love extreme music. Inaccessible music. Stuff that's hard to listen to, not because it's bad, but because it's abrasive on a sonic level.

2) This is just me yelling into the void, and most of this rant (review?? Idk) is pulled from a discussion I had with a friend. As such these are more or less just unfiltered thoughts that I texted him at 1am. They have been edited for grammar and readability.

3) I'm an opinionated asshole, and I care deeply about art. Specifically music. Very sorry in advance.

All that said, here is my first public music rant, about the recently released album titled "Absolute Elsewhere" by Blood Incantation. I have not been a fan of Blood Incantation, I did not like HHOTHR and I did not like Starspawn. I haven't bothered to listen to their other projects. Now, they just released a new album this year, and it's supposed to be really cool, they're shaking it up a bit. It comes highly reccomended from all my friends who know I don't like Blood Incant, and for good reason.

It's a collaboration with the electronic masterminds behind Tangerine Dream, who are a really cool proggy psyche kinda band from the 70's. Which is kind of a wild collaboration? Like what do you mean modern mid ass (opinion) tech death band collaborating with one of the progenitors of german new age/kosmiche?

That sounds like a cool idea, and it is. I'll bite.

But listening to the actual album just makes me feel like a huge fucking asshole, because the death metal part of this death metal album is just fucking boring. Like. How can it be boring?? You get the collab opportunity of your LIVES and you just write boring ass riffs?? AND THE WORST PART IS THAT THE SYNTH PASSAGES ARE GENUINELY INCREDIBLE.

When they pull it together and the synths layer over the clean guitars and they drop some sick ass death metal drumming underneath it? Marvelous. Beautiful. Ingenious. I feel like I'm levitating.

And then the riffs start. Bam. One way ticket to fucking snoozetown. It's just very boring. Nothing particularly notable, they're performed well and the production is great, but there's just nothing there on a musical level that is genuinely interesting. They're just the same old regurgitated death metal riffs that we've all been playing for the past 30 years. There's a reason I don't listen to Blood Incant, and it's because I expect more from the musicians I love. I try to live up to that expectation in my own works, and I don't listen to musicians who don't meet that (arbitrary) bar. So when a band tries really hard to create something cool - as Blood Incantation has on this album - but fails to meet the mark for a very critical part of their album, it is upsetting to me.

Again, the death metal on this death metal album is boring. Couldn't they come up with better riffs? I refuse to believe this is all they've got, they're good musicians. More than that, they're good artists, and if this album had held up to its own standard, it would actually be incredible. Maybe album of the year for me.

The album would genuinely be a masterpiece if they got rid of like a solid 75% of the death metal from their death metal album. Which makes me sad. I love death metal, but they dropped the ball here. How did they let this happen? The record SHINES during clean sections. It's like it wants to be two separate projects. One transcendental electronic ambient piece, the other being possibly the most boring technical death metal I've heard in years.

But in spite of all this, I genuinely reccomend sitting down and giving it a listen, because oh man do the clean passages just fucking SING man. Notable exceptions to the mid riffs are at the end of the second song and around 4 minutes in the last song, those are cool. I enjoy those, but none of the riffs are cooler than anything on any Cannibal Corpse (closest comparison I could come up with at 1am) album. Who do in fact have cool riffs, it's just that after 30 years, their bit is growing stale.

So yeah I highly recommend listening to Absolute Elsewhere by Blood Incantation exactly ONE (1) time. Very sorry if I trashed on your album of the year but I just really didn't enjoy the death metal bits of this death metal album, and I felt like sharing my thoughts. For what it's worth, I really wanted to love this album. I've already said that the clean sections are amazing but it's worth saying again, because they really are very good.

[pharawee]

I usually don't do yearly recaps because my memory sucks December is one of the busiest months for me and I'm lucky if I get to gif at all but this year I thought I'd take a look at all of the gifsets I did in 2024 and see which shows, pairings and moments I liked the most.

✨FAV BLS OF 2024

1000 Years Old: 2024 was supposed to be the year of vampire BL (going by all the announcements and pilot trailers) but in the end only this one aired (edit: wait, I forgot about OMG! Vampire to protect myself 🥴) - and it was neither spicy nor particularly spooky. Instead, it was all heart and quirkiness and when it was over I cried for a week because of the bittersweet ending.

Playboyy: This show is truly a masterpiece, with layers of subtext and social commentary. Also, it's fun and camp and sexy and ridiculous. I'm so glad it's going to get a second season.

Caged Again: How come that a little show about a penguin and a panther is legit one of the best - if not THE BEST - Thai BL of the year?

Knock Knock, Boys: I came for Best and Seng and Pak but then Almond and Latte bewitched me body and soul. Kongthup now owns me.

Every You, Every Me: I don't know what I was expecting (well, okay, a whole lot of Mick & Top - which is exactly what I got) but it surely wasn't crying my eyes out for two episodes right in the middle of the show.

Spare Me Your Mercy: Long awaited and currently still airing - I actually love this show a lot because it reminds me of all the detective dramas (esp Endeavour and Grantchester) I used to binge. Morse but make it queer is actually all I ever wanted.

7 Days Before Valentine: This show's depth and artistry and stageplay-like character absolutely blew me away.

I Saw You in My Dream: WeTV absolutely blew it out of the water this year with their many diverse productions, and this unassuming and charming little show with a supernatural twist (love me one of those!) was no exception.

Monster Next Door: Big Thanakorn in his first main role with his first acting partner in an extremely fun and all around lovely Kongthup/WeTV production. And I just love how nuanced it was when they could have just stuck with the whole introvert/extrovert cliché.

✨FAV PAIRINGS OF 2024

Hope x Save (Jack & Joker): These two completely took me by surprise, especially because I had such an intense reaction to Pee Phiravich's character in La Pluie. I had originally set my eyes on PromMark and while I definitely ate up their crumbs, HopeSave just checked all of my boxes: morally grey antagonists (at least for a while there), doomed by the narrative (until they actually got their happy ending, yay!) and ride and die for each other.

Pete x Kenta (Pit Babe): I'll be a PeteKenta truther until the day I die (see all of the checkboxes above), and if Change2561 didn't subscribe to the branded pair model, they'd agree with me. As things are I'm actually kind of meh about Pit Babe 2. I bet KentaKim won't have knives at each other's throats!! (PeteWay is delicious though.)

Prom x Nont (Playboyy): Uhhh, that's a lot of the same checked boxes. So maybe I have a type. Thanks 2024 for making me realise. Also, I hope these two make each other worse in season 2 (before they get their HEA because ultimately I'm vanilla like that).

Latte x Almond (Knock Knock, Boys!): Oh God, these two. I was prepared to be ride or die for Thanwa and Peak but then LatteAlmond barged in with a pink sex toy and it was over for me. They just have so much heart and so much sincerity between them (and while their dynamics are different in Caged Again I'm really enjoying Nokia and Jaonine there too for pretty much the same reason + their incredible comedic timing).

X x Namping (Every Me, Every You): It's probably a good thing we got these two for two episodes only because we might not have survived a whole 8 or 10 or even 12 episodes of them. Plus, the anthology-like character of the series made a sad ending possible in the first place, and I really appreciate it - even if it almost destroyed me.

✨FAV MOMENTS OF 2024

Twins: For a moment there we had FrameRyan and it was beautiful.

The Sign: Chalothorn stole the whole show for me and then when he inexplicably vanished I kind of stopped watching. Whoops.

Deep Night: I have seen the throuple light thanks to SeijiPanKen.

The Rebound: Frank Thanatsaran's acting (but also that scene...) overshadowing pretty much everything else (and now he's with Star Hunter which... you know... ehnnnn 🥲)

To Be Continued: Fluke Pongsapat and Junior Khajbhunditt starring in a way underrated 8-episode netflix show with one of the most beautiful love scenes ever, and I've been wanting more of them ever since.

Two Worlds: Kongthup giveth and Kongthup taketh away (aka for one and a half episodes I had Phupha and Khram and now I will never know peace).

Century of Love: Offroad Kantapon as a sultry fox spirit.

Sunset x Vibes: When Star Hunter remembered Fong and JJ exist and then they stole the whole entire show (there really wasn't much to steal though...).

The Sign: Whatever was going on between Heng Asavarid and Nat Sakdatorn in this scene BUT I NEED MORE (pls Idolfactory I'm begging you release Heng from his solo actor prison).

Two Worlds: Kongthup choosing violence by giving Pak and Mon one of the spiciest love scenes of the year.

The Rebound: THESE TWO (boxes checked!! But also I need more Nammon in my life).

Kidnap: GMMTV's strategic placement of Papang in a suit.

The Hidden Moon: Whenever that tiny low-budget show got surprisingly deep and artsy (and also spicy).

My Stand-In: When I watched a whole show for one (1) character that wasn't really a character at all. Oh, the tragedy of it all (and yes, I'm still scared of Ming).

Pit Babe: When I made several posts about the Pit Babe novel but then I actually ended up loving the villains more than the main characters. I'm watching Pit Babe 2 for them and them only. Winner of my heart here I come!

Aaand that's it, my first ever yearly (Thai) BL recap - which actually ended up way longer than planned (guess my memory isn't as bad as I thought. Then again, I had my gifs to fall back on).

2024 was an amazingly diverse year for Thai QL (along with the wonderful news of marriage equality in Thailand finally becoming a reality) and looking back I now realise (not that I was ever seriously worried) that gmmtv's monopoly is actually way more of a blessing than a curse because not only did it cause WeTV to heavily invest in their own productions, it also leaves more than enough room for innovation and creativity via smaller and indie companies (along with the truly big players finally paying more attention - see: Spare Me Your Mercy). Innovation which in turn enriches gmmtv's portfolio as well (judging by their line-up for 2025 the years to come). In short: the Thai BL ecosystem is truly thriving.

And with that, may 2025 be even queerer than 2024 with tons of marriage proposals and actual marriages (PorschArm here we go!), and a favourite little (or in gmmtv's case not so little lmao) BL niche for everyone.

I hope you had as much fun with BL in 2024 as I had. I really appreciate everyone's commentary posts and meta and fanart and gifsets and tag games and reaction posts, even if I didn't spend as much time on my dashboard this year as I wanted to. I'm so glad tumblr BL fandom exists. ILU guys. Only the bestest and kindest things for you in 2025!🌈✨

[fritzes]

i have a question - i've seen a few posts you've reblogged kinda allude to jannik and holger having a feud... if so, when did this happen exactly? i'm out of the loop on this lol

allow me to set the scene. imagine, if you will, that you are holger rune in the year 2022. your childhood friend carlos alcaraz who is almost exactly the same age as you has just won a grand slam, and you want more than anything to be on the same level as him. and during indoor hardcourt season, you lock the fuck in. you start in metz and lose in the quarterfinals – a bit lackluster for the standards you're trying to reach, but it's fine. you go to sofia and make your way to the semifinals, where you're up against world #10 jannik sinner. jannik, like you, is a young player hyped up to be the next great thing. if you beat this guy, you're gonna start being taken seriously in the conversation. he takes the first set, you take the second, and you're only one game away from victory when he retires from injury. a win is a win though... but you go on to lose the final in straight sets. but! never fear! you go to stockholm the next week and win it, beating the world #5 in the final. you make the final of basel, losing to the world #9. and then. and then. paris. you beat the world #10. you beat the world #9. you beat the world #1. you beat the world #8 (who just beat you in the basel final. and in the final, you play a close, tense three-setter against the world #7, the greatest of all time, novak djokovic. and you win. you just barely miss out on playing the atp finals, but you end the year just outside the top 10, well ahead of jannik sinner, who didn't win a single match since losing to you. you're so close to carlos, and you're surpassing the rest of your generation

fast forward to monte carlo 2023. after a bit of a turbulent start to the season, you make the semifinals with a win over the world #5. and who should you play but jannik sinner, who has propelled himself back into the top 10 and is just barely above you in the rankings. the match starts, and he flat out breadsticks you. the weather sucks. the crowd is cheering against you. and this guy, competing with you to be the rival to carlos, is beating you soundly. you're pissed, so you lean into that. you argue with the crowd, you fight the umpire, and you hit the ball as hard as you possibly can and while simultaneously hitting the most annoying drop shots ever. and it works. the calm, stoic jannik sinner is so fucking done with you. he's missing easy volleys everywhere, he can barely serve, and he's just frustrated. you, holger rune, have done the impossible and made jannik sinner lose his composure on court. and you win, and it's wonderful... and you lose in the final the next day. and right after you lose the final, this happens:

ouch.

you just barely make it to the atp finals (heavily benefitting off the extreme flop of one casper ruud, among others). you just barely lose your first match to novak, you get a walkover from tsitsipas, and on the final day you're set to play jannik sinner. in italy. this should be fun. now, jannik has just beaten novak for the first time ever, and if he loses to you, novak is eliminated from the tournament. if he wants to, he could tank to take out his toughest opponent. but does he do that? ohhh no. even when you're deep into a grueling third set, he doesn't give up. he wins, and the crowd is deafening and you're going home. you could be bitter about it, but instead you pour your heart and soul into a nice instagram story about it to cope, as you tend to do

and so it comes back to monte carlo in 2024. jannik sinner is now a grand slam champion and a 2x masters 1000 champion, surpassing everything you've done. he even passes carlos in the rankings, and you are just an afterthought compared to the two of them. their rivalry is the future of tennis, and you just haven't caught up, haven't met the expectations that everyone has set for you. but maybe here, you can turn things around. it's a struggle. the schedule is not on your side, and you get caught up in rain delays and having to play multiple matches on the same day. you barely survive your first match, you make it out of your second match through tiebreaks and sheer determination, and you're exhausted. so of course, you have to play jannik sinner, now world #2. it's like last year all over again. he takes the first set, everyone in the crowd on his side, and he's improved so much in the last year that it's like you're playing a completely different person. in the second set, you go down 0-40 on your serve twice, but you somehow manage to hold on to get to a tiebreak. while all of this is going on, you've slipped back into your "brat" ways. you're getting time violations, fighting the crowd, protesting against the umpire. at one point, you do a 🤏 at the crowd and receive a code violation that you do not agree with. you basically go on strike until the supervisor comes out, all while jannik sinner is just hanging out on his side of the court, smoothing out clay with his feet, infuriatingly calm. so you go into the tiebreak at your wits end, and you end up facing a match point. you save it. you face another one. you save it. and by some miracle, you win the set. it's going to a decider. and what do you know, you've done it again. jannik sinner, who almost never expresses his emotions during a match, is visibly annoyed at you. that might just be a victory in itself... which is a good thing, because you don't get a victory in the actual match. but you're not gonna go down without a fight. and when the atp social media wishes jannik "may the force be with you", you have some choice words...

jannik goes on to end the year as a clear world #1, with two slams and four masters 1000s to his name. you, on the other hand, don't even finish the year in the top 10. you're only 21, but the constant comparisons to jannik and carlos have left you seen as a one-hit wonder with unfulfilled potential. and part of that is you just couldn't beat jannik sinner when it mattered

[foolondahill17]

Fool’s Top 10 2024 Fanfics

My favorite stories written in 2024. If you don’t see your 2024 favorite, please add in a tag or reblog!

it dawns darling on the daffodil pastures by fleeceframe (@tasteslikevelvet)

Rated E, Destiel, porn with feelings, 20,669 words

Premise: Dean and Cas have some truly spectacular and emotional grace/soul sex.

Favorite part: At his sides, Dean’s hands shake. “You can kiss me. But just- just a little one, okay? I like it when…”

“You like it when what?”

“When you make me feel- When you treat me like I’m real fragile.” Dean tenses as soon as the words leave his mouth.

But Cas replies, “Things that are fragile are usually precious.”

Clutch, Bite by kalliel (@kalliel)

Rated T, gen, missing scene, 1,926 words

Premise: Dean tries not to kill himself after Sam’s death at the end of Swan Song.

Favorite part: It is the possibility of death that pulls him back to the truck, and maybe the whisper, Winter is ending. If he slips off the road without black ice in the picture, Sam will think it wasn't a mistake.

Thoughts: the return of my absolute favorite fic author. If I had the time to rec every single one of their works, I would.

sweet syncopation by enochianprayer (@chapeldean)

Rated M, Destiel, mid-season 15 one-shot, 12,252 words

Premise: Dean and Cas have a very messed up will-they-won’t-they situationship while Cas tries to stay within the bonds of his Empty deal.

Favorite part: “You know I can’t taste what you taste, Dean,” Castiel says softly. “I’m sorry.”

Dean rolls his eyes, licking the same wooden spoon he fed Castiel with before chucking it in the sink.

“Yeah, yeah. Whatever. But the molecules? They’re groovin’?” 

Flash of the Needle; Dark of the Dream by kayliemalinza (@kayliemalinza)

Rated T, Destiel, mid-season 9 one-shot, 4,514 words

Premise: Dean and Cas take shelter in a cabin as a snowstorm comes in. Dean cuts his hand on a broken window and needs stitches; Cas has trouble falling asleep.

Favorite part: I could tell him sometimes friends have sex in cabins, Dean thinks. He'd believe me. He doesn't know any better.

Paging Doctor Novak by Salamitsunami1 (@salamitsunami1)

Rate E, Destiel, Doctor Sexy/Grey’s Anatomy AU, 51,314 words

Premise: Dean Winchester is a nurse, Cas is a surgical intern. Rivals to friends to lovers.

Thoughts: a fun, hospital AU romp. I will warn for asshole!Gordon, however, for those who like to avoid that characterization.

Ten Minutes From Home: Lebanon Coda by disabled_dean (@disabled-dean)

Rated E, Destiel, canon-adjacent AU, WIP 65,828 but the posting schedule promises an end by December 31

Premise: In season 14, John Winchester comes back and knocks Dean’s world off its axis.

Favorite part: Mary says, “Breakfast.”

“What?”

“I'll make breakfast.” She stands from the table.

Dean follows her with his eyes, “You have got to be fucking kidding me.”

Mary opens the fridge, digging through the shelves, pulling out tupperware. She spreads it out across the table, and then doubles back for plates. Silverware.

“This is just breakfast from yesterday,” Dean points out, “I made this.” He gestures at the food, and then winces.

“I made you.” Mary tells him, but he can see the tension in her eyes. “Eat.”

Physical Graffiti by entropic_saudade (@entropic-saudade)

Rated E, Destiel, Sharp Objects-AU, 62,894 words

Premise: Sharp Objects by Gillian Flynn but make it Supernatural

Thoughts: “The purest form of family remains underground.” In turns eerie and painful but always captivating. Devoured this in one day, and it left me yearning for more.

Ninety One Whiskey Snippets by komodobits (@cuddlebabies)

Rated E, Destiel, World War II AU, 50,093 words

Premise: 17 delicious morsels from Komodobits’ excellent Ninety One Whiskey universe

Thoughts: not a single one didn’t make me cry. Ninety One Whiskey continues it’s well-deserved legacy as one of the best works of fiction I’ve ever read.

Perhaps the World Ends Here by Randomfandomwoman

Rated T, gen (implied Destiel), Supernatural/Criminal Minds AU. 26,919 words

Premise: JJ is rescued from a serial killer by another serial killer, Dean Winchester, and kidnapped for 24-hours in his underground headquarters for a cult that exceeds JJ’s wildest imaginations.

Thoughts: I’ve never seen a singular episode of Criminal Minds, but I’m somehow obsessed with reading crossovers. This story scratches my outsiders-POV itch like no other.

Riptide by luulapants (@luulapants)

Rated E, Dean/others, alternate season 2, WIP 23,214 words

Premise: the sequel to my favorite fic last year A Cliff That Knew Too Many Tides follows the events of the second season with a painfully closeted and traumatized Dean at the helm.

Favorite part:

Footsteps drew closer. Stopped. Dad asked, “Can I sit down?” Out of the corner of his eye, Dean saw him gesture toward the edge of the bed.

He knew why he had to ask now. He wouldn’t have asked before. And Dean knew, he knew…

A soft choking sound escaped his throat. Dean covered his eyes. He nodded. Dad would always have to ask now. Maybe sometimes he wouldn’t even ask, would just keep his distance. He’d thought, back when the shifter thing happened, that he and Dad would never be okay again, but they had been – just a different kind of okay. Now even that was gone.

[absolutebl]

This Week in BL - In Which None of You Should be Surprised by a MAJOR Upset in the Standings

Sorry this is so late. I had a pretty epic series of delays landing me at NRT for like 18 hours or something ridiculous. To be fair there are much worse airports to be stranded at.

Organized, in each category, with ones I'm enjoying most at the top.

June 2024 Week 4

Ongoing Series - Thai

The Rebound (Weds Gaga) ep 1 of 12 - Fuck all ya'all if you thought I had taste. MeenPing are topping this damn list because... have you any idea how LONG I have been waiting for a real sports centered BL starring at least one boy who actually played the flipping sport? My whole damn life. You ready for me to go into euphoric splooges all over your screens? I don't think you are. SUFFER! And now some splooging:

It’s off to a great start. Thank you, Rebound, for being exactly what I wanted. By which I mean Meen has his shirt off literally in the first two minutes of the show. Also it’s a bit of a childhood sweethearts reunion romance. There’s nothing wrong with this beginning. Fantastic. For a change, I even enjoy the intro music. Golf is directing MeenPing this time, so maybe something magical will happen. Frank is aging so pretty!!! How nice for all of us. Even the bb play is good. It’s a proper sports BL. I’m so damn happy right now. 

Wandee Goodday (Sat YT) ep 9 of 12 - I’m so tired of Ter, but everything else was lovely. Also they are SUCH boyfriends. 

Sunset X Vibes (Sat iQIYI) ep 3 of 12 - They are so cute in these roles. I don’t know why, I just like their vibe better here than in the previous show. (And I really enjoyed Big Dragon at the start.) This show is a lot more classic romance and kind of pat because of that. I do hope the ingénue character gets some kind of additional development and talent. But even if it stays mundane, these two have the chemistry to carry it. So I suspect I’ll keep enjoying it regardless. I am mildly intrigued by the spice of the PNR element, so I hope they run with that a bit more. I suspect they will have to, to extend the plot for 12 eps.

My Stand-In (Fri iQIYI) ep 10 of 12 - Ah Ming... famous last words. This one just makes me sigh a lot and whimper sadly. I don’t know where they’re going with this plot or how they’re gonna resolve it. Joe finally being the asshole Ming deserves is a lot of fun though (double entendre intended). I’m scared but it did make me cry... a lot. (That's fine, I'm a sap.)  

Imma say this because no one else has. Wardrobe is unilaterally terrible in this show. I mean Thailand is notoriously bad in general but this show, nash.

We Are Cute (Weds iQIYI) ep 13 of 16 - They are so fucking adorable. And so flirty! Also a crying kiss? My favorite! Chain’s little moment of "Cupid shoot thyself" was epic. ("Physician heal thyself" but for the BL world?) Honestly, I could watch a whole show about these two...

The Trainee (Sun YouTube) ep 1 of 12 - How does Gun still look like he’s just out of high school? Madness. Does the set for the print shop that he’s working in at the beginning remind anybody else of Mork’s dad’s place in ‘Cause He’s My Boy? I swear GMMTV has about 3 sets they rotate through.

To be brutally honest, I was not looking forward to the show at all. No idea why. OffGun aren’t my most favorite OG pair, but I respect them for their longevity, optics, acting shops, and enduring brand. Maybe I just needed more of a gap from Cooking Crush?

Whatever, I was absolutely riveted by this first episode. I’m enjoying The Trainee a lot. Like, a lot a lot.

My Love Mix-Up Th (Fri YT) ep 4 of 12 - This version did the "clear up of the inciting miscommunication" in such a sweet achey way. Frankly that "ache of first love" really plays to G4's strengths as a pair. This was a good ep and I’m now starting to enjoy this one for its own sake and get some distance from the JBL version. It's just there is A LOT of good stuff coming out of Thailand right now.

Love Sea (Sun iQIYI) ep 3 of 10 - I was inspired to write a Shakespearean style sonnet in this week's trash watch. Mame seems to believe that no character can have depth without suffering. And I found this episode both boring and rushed at the same time. Trash watch here. (This week's trash watch also VERY delayed.)

Knock Knock Boys (Thurs Gaga) ep 6 of 12 - It’s eminently missable... so I missed it this week in order to get this weekly update out. Next week will be a two in one. 

Only Boo! (Sun YT) ep 12fin - Okay, that’s it, I guess?

Summary:

An idol romance about a sunshine boy who dances good and wants to be a star and a reserved food stand vendor. Other side of the tracks, grumpy/sunshine pair who fall in love but, of course, to be an idol baby boy can't date. It wasn’t particularly bad, it wasn’t particularly good either. 7/10

Ongoing Series - Not Thai

I Hear the Sunspot AKA Hidamari ga Kikoeru (Japan Weds Gaga) Ep 1 of 10 - A new series adaptation of beloved yaoi I Hear the Sunspot (first adaptation was feature film Silhouette of Your Voice 2017).

I expected the soundscapes in this one to be fantastic, but I didn’t expect the filming to be something special too. But it really is. I’m not gonna lie, I'm nervous about this show because I love the manga and was disappointed by the film, but we were off to a really good start. First names already? So cute. I love them.

Takara's Treasure AKA Takara No Vidro (Japan Mon Gaga) ep 1 of 10 - Shy awkward Taishin goes to a Tokyo university in order to reunite with Takara, a stranger who consoled him over the loss of a parrot the year prior. He finally gets a chance to express his gratitude but is given the cold shoulder. (My thoughts this weekend's round up)

I can't believe Japan is holding it down for the non Thai BL. I mean to say.... JAPAN!!! What alt reality are we living in? It being Japan, I'm scared of the ending.

It's airing but...

Blue Boys is still going on and I'm still enjoying it (despite the cheating) but I don't know when it drops or where it's going, so I will report in at the end. When they tell me it's ended.

The Last Time (Thai Fri YT?) - Convoluted story of loss and possible reincarnation or something. Can't find it.

OMG Vampire (Thai Sun ???) 10 eps - I've put the search on hold for and y'all can let me know if it's worth tracking down once it ends?

In case you missed it

The Time of Fever AKA Unintentional Love Story 2 (Korea movie) trailer released to Korean theaters 5/25. HoTae & DongHee, side couple from Unintentional Love Story are back! Same actors, same character names. I love them. Devastated this hasn't had international distribution. I demand you tell me the moment you find it!

Next Week Looks Like This:

NO IMG - we half way through this week already - sorry.

Upcoming BLs for 2024 are listed here. This list is not kept updated, so please leave a comment if you know something new or RP with additions.

July Releases to Come

7/5 This Love Doesn't Have Long Beans (Thai iQIYI) - trailer here, The PittBabe team behind a new restaurant set BL full of hidden agendas and starring my new favorites SailubPon. Delightful!

7/10 Century of Love (Thai Gaga) 10 eps - trailer here, DaouOffroad are back, this time as fated mates in a quasi historical paranormal moment. San has spent many lifetimes waiting for his lost beloved, to reincarnate from her death a century ago. But if he fails to find her within this century's time window, he will succumb to a tragic death. And this time she's a boy. Very much Director Who Buys Me Dinner meets First Love Again, hopefully better than both. I love this pair and think they can handle the premise, it's whether the storytelling is up to the challenge. I'm curious to see but I have reservations.

7/26 4 Minutes (Thai Netflix or iQIYI?) - Great is a university student from Faculty of Business and the son of a wealthy business owner. Out of the blue, he gains the supernatural power to see four minutes into the future.

7/29 Battle of the Writers (Thai ????) - trailer here, TutorYim return and while I adore them, I really hope this is better than Middleman's Love. Won't be hard. However: that premise! Ugh. Something something authors fighting - save me. Why don't writers understand that nothing is more boring than writers?

THIS WEEK’S BEST MOMENTS

Defining @heretherebedork 's favorite endearment of "tiny idiot."

I love him. I also love what a class act they both were about this turn down. Thailand shows Korea how to handle a love triangle by NOT HAVING ONE.

Both We Are.

We stand a lap sit on this blog, but I think this is my first lap spin! I adored it! (Sunset X Vibes)

It's fun to watch them follow the original narrative but with these cute little Thai twists. Sometimes these are shifted for language reasons, sometimes for cultural, and sometimes I think just to draw a clear distinction from the JBL. I'm not mad about any of it. (My Love Mix Up)

Not just for you, honey. Truer words were never spoken. Yak is the biggest green flag ever to walk BL's verdant earth.

Linguistic corner!

I love this way of putting the translation. Usually, in Thai, the phrase used means "he's my happiness" (sounds like: kwamsook). To use sabai is different. Sabai more ubiquitous (sabai is one of the most commonly used phrases in Thailand) but also so different from the usual phrase we hear in ThBL at this moment. Thus, this execution is special, particularly from a doctor. I'm not quite sure how to put it but sabai can also be translated as feeling well, as in, not ill. So there is a way of looking at Wandee saying Yak is both his peace of mind and good for his health and well being.

(Last week)

Streaming services are listed by how I (usually) watch, which is with a USA based IP, and often offset by a day because time zones are a pain.

The tag BLigade: @doorajar @solitaryandwandering @my-rose-tinted-glasses @babymbbatinygirl @babymbbatinygirl @isisanna-blog @mmastertheone @pickletrip @aliceisathome @urikawa-miyuki @tokillamonger @sunflower-positiiivity @rocketturtle4 @blglplus @anythinggoesintheshire @everlightly @renafire @mestizashinrin @bl-bam-beyond @small-dark-and-delicious @saezurumurmurs

Sigh, Tumblr in it's infinite wisdom doesn't like too many tags.

There's these tricks, remember.

[mecachrome]

landoscar ao3 stats — 2023 overview

notes

retrieved ~sometime in march 2024

methodology: scraped metadata for every fic in the landoscar tag and...... that's it. however one important constraint is that all temporal data is date updated (not posted), so the above timeline isn't exactly a true representation of fic growth but rather how many fics were last-updated at that time. of course this is still its own reflection of fandom health in a way since dead fandoms don't update old fic but well... it's just not quite the same!

this is just info about general trends, fic content, tags etc... so nothing about kudos/comments or any authors specifically

i decided to focus solely on fics last-updated in 2023 (unless otherwise mentioned) because i wanted a tidy set that i can maybe compare & contrast in a year's time, because i expect a lot of details to look different then (tho as stated above this set isn't exactly static... 🤷‍♀️)

ngl i had to re-scrape a bunch of times because i forgot about it for like 3 weeks and then there were 100 new fics 😭 so if there are some minor discrepancies across the post it's because of that halfskh.

also i wanted to include more global comparisons (aka how 814 stack up against the f1 rpf tag in general), but this is also considerably difficult in some contexts since i can't exactly scrape 31,000+ fics can i... or i didn't even want to entertain the thought of trying to do so!!!

why did i do this? who knows.

anyway here's some viz T__T

ship growth

as evidenced in the opening graph, landoscar have been a very fast-growing ship over the past year — although interestingly enough they didn't really start growing substantially until july / the ~better half~ of the 2023 season. here are two views showing their "growth" (by date updated) alongside two other ships on the fringes of the f1 rpf top 10 (sebchal & galex):

landoscar are very much on-track to surpass them and officially enter the top 10 soon, likely before mid-april ❗️ :o

ship characteristics

onto the ship content — another thing i was mildly curious about was how landoscar differs in certain areas from other f1 ships, or the f1 rpf "global" average you could say. for example, here's a breakdown of rating popularity in their ao3 tag:

seeing as explicit is their most common rating, and that i don't necessarily expect this to be true for all ships/fandoms, i compared these percentages with the general f1 rpf tag to see whether some ratings are more commonly represented in 814 fic than average, which produced interesting results:

do lando ships simply skew more HornyTM in general? is it oscar? a secret third thing??? who knows... actually i think it would be fun to do more analysis in this direction but that can wait for another time!!!

similarly i also wanted to see which ships are the most "public" on ao3, as in have the highest share of fic that isn't user-locked... i will refrain from peppering in my feelings about the 4th wall too heavy-handedly but i was curious to see whether some sort of perhaps... er, generational gap (?) of sorts between ships that are more public vs. not could be identified. however i don't pretend to have any takeaways from this LOL i conclude absolutely nothing. (for ref landoscar is currently 72% public, vs. a global avg of 63%)

note that this graph is current stats, not filtered for 2023

looking at relationship tags, i also wanted to know whether landoscar suffer noticeably from Second-Ship Syndrome, so i tallied the first-tagged ship of every fic to find out. i know this doesn't necessarily mean that it's always the "main" ship but it's a good enough approximation. the results were quite positive!

filtered to top ships with count of >1 only

i then also calculated the number of ships tagged for each fic to discern the profile of multi-shipping in 814 ficdom; i did have to do a little bit of string standardization (all instances of implied / background / hinted collapsed to hinted for simplicity's sake + removal of other redundancies), but otherwise i left everything mostly untouched.

as you can see, landoscar also have a fairly promising amount of OTP: TRUE fic:

by the time you get to the fics with 10+ ships tagged, landoscar are less likely to be the primary ship, which makes sense just on a basic statistical level... this is also a very small sample size though

i also lazily tallied the 10 most common ships that weren't NOR/PIA or NOR & PIA to diff their shares of the 814 tag vs. of the general f1 rpf tag, to see which other pairings are more represented in the 814 tag than on average (because lestappen are the most popular by pure count but this is also true of fandom in general, so it would be a misrepresentation to say that their popularity is out of the ordinary):

maxiel's gap isn't really that surprising since i think that, generationally, in terms of when both pairings were teammates there is quite a gap; with carlando—actually let me tally this again but including all instances of "implied" and "past" as being part of the same ship, since that's how ao3 tag-wrangles as well:

Aha ! obviously as a direct ship there is competition between 814 and other lando or oscar ships, but this difference is somewhat less pronounced once we include all formats. tbh none of this really means anything but i thought i'd add it anyway... (it's also very possible that there are several errors in this, in which case my b 😔)

before we move on to additional tags, there are a few more basic characteristics of 814 fic we can calculate. i realize i never offered an overview of Super Basic Stats, so here are a few:

plus, looking at word counts, here is a distribution of those in 2023-updated fic, which shows that a majority of 814 fics were under the 5k mark:

85% of landoscar fics were under 10k & nearly 97% under 25k

i don't really have any reason to believe that landoscar's wc stats differ significantly from average ? so this is kind of just Data To Have Data, and it most likely reflects normal ao3 trends in general... but i thought i'd include it anyway because i already made it lol. similarly, here are word count distributions but stratified by rating:

& same info but heat map view:

i feel like this is also probably something you'd find across fandom in general — that gen fic is likely to have a higher share of under 1k works, since Building Up to sexual content often takes... Literal & Metaphorical Foreplay ! and the longer a fic is the more opportunities an author has to include a sex scene or other explicit content (ofc, not necessarily just porn but also graphic violence & so on). but i thought this was fun to visualize haha

additional tags & aus?

back in my old f1 rpf stats post, i made a table comparing fluff/angst "ratios" (not exactly a direct ratio because of how tag wrangling works, but an approximation) of the most popular f1 ships, and now that landoscar are somewhat popular i thought i'd first do an update:

also current data, not 2023 to make things easier

just like before, simi are one of the most fluffy ships and brocedes are by far the most angsty, but it's interesting to see 814 also extremely high up on the charts, with far and away the lowest % of angst. will be exciting 2 see how that holds or changes as the seasons progress !

finally, i also wanted to do a bit of au/additional tag analysis because you can kind of see this when you use additional filters on ao3 but the previews are limited and get bogged down by the prevalence of *checks notes* Fluff, Angst, PWP, Anal Sex and what have you. which are nice stats to have and all but what of the rest !

disclaimer that the set for these tables is a biiiit outdated because by the time i'd wrangled everything i was like I Am Not Changing It Again. unfortunately i clean my data with shoddy queries and regex functions in googsheetz...

there were 48 tags with at least 10 instances from 2023 fics, shown below, with ones that are (some ~vaguely) nsfw in red just to kind of get a rough sense of which tags get commonly used in M/E fic:

getting a bit too much into small sample size / specific fic territory so if you're an author i sincerely apologize for that... do not mean 2 put u on blast... TT__TT but i also tried to tally the most popular aus people write for 814, which is a bit dubious because people tag in really different ways and i had to accommodate for a lot of string formats but ... it's close enough ! (?)

i feel like this is very little interesting info but idk what else to add so i will stop here for now... well!!! if you made it to the end i hope u learned something or even vaguely enjoyed reading T__T and most of all thank you :')

[zylphiacrowley]

Hello everyone! I got bit by the nostalgia bug from doing and seeing everyone's 2024 GPOSE Wrapped sets so I decided I wanted to throw all my own shots into a ring and make them fight for a spot in a top 10 round-up for my personal favorite shots I've taken all year. So without further ado I present to you:

Honestly any one of the four Pride themed shots could've gone on this list since I still like all of them but Lyra doesn't show up anywhere else on this list (sorry sweet bean bun) so she can be my rep for this set. This whole set was just so much fun to do!

This shot I got by pure chance since I have idle cam on and it just happened to focus on my ErenviIIe retainer standing in my yard at the perfect time of day to capture this moment. I liked it so much I had to hop into gpose and get a proper shot of it. I used this one as my desktop background for a good while.

I can't believe I made an alt to go to an Eternal Bonding and ended up falling in love with them and creating an entire backstory and lore for them yes I can. While this one didn't turn out exactly as I had imagined it in my mind, I'm still pretty happy with it.

This shot is one of my earlier ones from this year. It's also one of my simpler shots. It ends up being this high on the list despite it being less impressive than some of the ones it beat out because it's probably the shot that really kicked off my love for gposing. This is also the shot that I felt was the point-of-no-return in my own mind for them as a couple.

This was another one of those test shots that I do pretty often. I had a concept in mind going into it that I still intend to use in a future set, but this was almost just a happy accident as I meant to get a different shot at the time but I can't help staring at him face sometimes...

From ErenWoL week. I ended up really liking the mood of this shot, but also I liked that I got to include both Lumi (X'vahl's chocobo) and Flag snoozing soundly beside the fire with them as well.

This is @ambalambs boy Miko! I really just absolutely adore him and I had this idea kicking around my brain for a while before I finally asked if I could pose the shots from this set. I am so happy with how they turned out and I'm glad that Lambs trusted me with her boy! ♥

The Combat Couple AU. I like ErenviIIe best as a non-combatant, but sometimes it's fun to think of what-if situations. For instance, "What if we kissed in the shared tankbuster?" (つω⊂* )

I am still just so happy with how this turned out! I love how the colors turned out (even if this shot doesn't have the rainbow that I waited almost an hour to come back in it OTL) Posing all the pixies whisking Feyrn away, maybe to a happier storyline. (╥ ᴗ ╥)

So what could possibly beat out this shot? (╭ರ_•́)

This is my absolute favorite shot from this whole year! I love the lighting, I love the pose, I love the way they're making eye contact, I love that I finally got the hat thing to work! I'm actually still using it as my desktop background. It'll be a challenge to get a better shot in 2025, but I'm excited to see if I can!

This was the first year that I really put myself out there and delved into gposing so I'm overall pretty happy with what I've done in my first year of doing it. But since this is my first year really getting into the gposing side of the community, it's also allowed me to make friends with lots of really incredible gposers out there who are doing some crazy impressive stuff and seeing their work always serves as an inspiration to me to keep learning and doing better myself.

I'm not going to make this into a tag game, but if anyone else feels like doing a personal countdown of your own work feel free to tag me in it. I'd love to see them!

[nocturnalfandomartist]

.⋆｡ﾟ Art vs Artist 2024! ⋆｡ﾟ☁︎｡⋆｡ ﾟ☾ ﾟ｡⋆

Click for better quality!

It's my first time doing art vs artist, but I thought it'd be a nice opportunity to see how it looks! My style has been so inconsistent this year (thanks multiple style crises), but I am proud of a few pieces. Mostly. I seem to use similar techniques and colors a lot, but I guess that's the point of an art style anyway. Everything up here is cropped a bit since I don't draw at a 1:1 ratio usually. If this is your first time seeing my work, I love The Legend of Zelda and Zelink!

Thanks for another fun year of art! ^^ Some stats below:

#1 | 1,943 notes | June 18, 2024

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༺ Top 10 posts by notes!

I remember drawing this on the announcement day, within a few hours! It's my first post to surpass 1k!

My second post to surpass 1k!

#2 | 1,197 notes | June 22, 2024

#3 | 694 notes | July 27, 2024

...trends work

i need to repost this with type instead of handwriting

#4 | 572 notes | August 3, 2024

I want to redraw this one, even if it's not very canon

#5 | 546 notes | July 28, 2024

#6 | 528 notes | August 5, 2024

I will continue to change how I draw her

#7 | 456 notes | Setember 19, 2024

I tried a slightly different look here, I think it's kinda cute!

A tie!

#8 | 456 notes | June 19, 2024

Two pieces are in this post! I love Classic Zelink, so I was trying to figure out how I wanted to draw them. :) I have a lot of drawings of them to come...

#9 | 355 notes | June 9, 2024

I've really been trying to figure out how I want to do backgrounds on my doodle pages. And how to draw TP Zelda properly. Still haven't figured either out, if you're wondering.

#10 | 353 notes | May 18, 2024

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

So much from EoW... I jumped on that hype so fast, it's the Zelda game I've only ever dreamed about!! ♡ Still kind of surprised nothing from Linktober is up here, though, considering it was all the better stuff. ^^" There are a few pieces I never finished this year, also... maybe 2025 will be their year!

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Small announcement - I got a private commission I'm working on at the moment, but soon they will be entirely open again! I do character art and designs if you're interested! ^^

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✦ Ko-Fi | ✧ Ao3 | ⟡ Bluesky

REBLOGGING IS ENCOURAGED, BUT DO NOT REPOST.

[valkyyriia]

Day 1 - Eternal Bonds

Kinktober 2024 Prompt List | Kinktober 2024 Masterlist

Words: 2121 CW: Bondage, Slight Femdom, Affectionate Intimacy Pairing: Comte de Saint-Germain x Reader Prompt(s): Bondage | Role Reversal

Notes: This is my first time participating in Kinktober! I’ve challenged myself to do 31 days of Comte smut to celebrate. Especially given 10/10 is my birthday, and 10/25 is Comte’s, I felt it a fitting way to celebrate us both.

That, and I just love Comte. Even if he does wear a stupid tie.

“Are you sure this is alright?” You asked, worrying your lip with your teeth.

When le Comte had asked you if you wanted to try something new tonight, this wasn’t exactly what you had thought he meant.

The vampire was sat in his desk chair. His long overcoat was off, discarded on the bed. His fashion crime of a clip-on tie was laid on top of it. Le Comte’s shirt was partially unbuttoned, the smooth skin underneath peeking out from the neck. His legs were fastened to the feet of the chair with golden silk. You were in the process of binding his wrists to the arms of the chair with another piece of silk.

The golden silk ties the nobleman had had custom made to use on you.

The golden silk ties he had not yet used on you.

Part of you had the inkling that maybe he hadn’t actually purchased them with you in mind at all.

“I told you, ma chérie, I want you to have complete control this evening,” he said, grinning coyly. “That sounds like fun, non? You get to do whatever you want to me. Use me as you see fit,” Comte added, a seductive purr to his voice.

Your cheeks flushed a rosy hue. “I mean…” You ran your fingers over the soft fabric, having already finished securing one of his wrists. “It just feels strange. I haven’t done anything like this before. And you’re so,” she trailed off, gesturing to him. “Plus, can’t you break out of these if you decided you wanted to?”

Le Comte reached out with his one free hand and took ahold of your cheek. You leaned into the touch and he rubbed his thumb across your cheekbone, the playful smirk replaced with something far more gentle and affectionate. “It’s alright, mon amour. If you don’t want to, that’s okay, too,” he said, voice dripping with sweetness. You had this eternal, centuries-old vampire wrapped around your little finger, and you both knew it. “It’s important that we’re both comfortable.” His thumb swept across your cheek again and he tapped your nose with the pad of it, drawing a small giggle out of you.

His eyes lit up at the sound of your laugh. “I could free myself if I needed to, yes,” he reassured you. “So you need not worry about hurting me, if that’s your concern. I just thought it may be fun for us both to try something new.” Le Comte’s smile was genuine. He wouldn’t insist on doing anything you didn’t want to do.

You inhaled deeply, offering a shy smile. “Okay. If you’re sure… I can try.”

“Parfait,” he said, dropping his hand after a moment. He smiled at you reassuringly.

With newfound confidence, you restrained the vampire’s other arm. Le Comte was still free to move his body, but all of his limbs were bound to the plush armchair at his desk.

Seeing him bound to his chair was a surprisingly arousing sight. You were starting to understand why he suggested it.

With a shaky exhale, you rested your hand on top of his and slowly slid your fingers up his forearm, lightly dragging your nails across the fabric. He shivered, hands tensing, his golden eyes fixed on your face.

You took a step back and slowly started to unbutton your blouse, maintaining eye contact with the vampire as you did so. You opted to leave the majority of the shirt on rather than take it off entirely. The opening of it gave just enough of a view to tease. He swallowed as he saw flashes of your skin and the outline of your breasts barely peeking through the fabric. You could imagine what he was thinking right now; he was aching to sink his fangs into the flesh there and taste everything about you.

Teasing a vampire was a dangerous game. That didn’t stop you from doing it, however.

Rather, it excited you. The danger sent arousal pooling in your stomach, giving you even more confidence.

Comte was a very physical man. He loved to touch you. Undressing you - and dressing you - was something Comte enjoyed thoroughly. You were absolutely certain the denial of one of his favorite parts of making love to you would drive him insane, which was probably why he had suggested doing this tonight.

Suddenly, a thought came to you. The idea was horribly naughty, but…

You bit your lip.

If your goal was to drive le Comte to the brink of his self control tonight, then…

You dragged your eyes over him, taking in his appearance.

He didn’t appear to be struggling much at first glance, but you had been with le Comte long enough to know how he was when he wanted you. His hands were tense, clawing at the arms of his chair. You could just barely make out the pointed tip of a fang peeking out from over his bottom lip. His golden eyes had a heat behind them as he watched your every movement.

Feeling a surge of bravado, you tilted your head coyly, smirking, and slowly dragged your panties down your hips, finally tossing them carelessly into his lap. His eyes widened and he looked down at the fabric. Swallowing hard, he dragged his gaze back up to yours. The heat in his eyes had kindled into a blaze, his eyes glowing with a supernatural golden light. He was breathing heavily and you could clearly see both of his fangs now.

That sight stoked a mirrored flame in your core. You took a couple of steps forward.

“You were right. This is fun,” you said cheekily.

Comte growled your name in response. “Ma chérie,” he said hoarsely. “Please.”

“Please what?” You asked innocently. “I can’t give you what you want if you don’t use your big boy words to tell me.”

He hissed, running his tongue over his fangs. After a momentary battle of wills, he managed to say, “Touch me. S’il vous plait. I don’t know if I can take much more.”

Oh.

Comte begging for your touch was not what you had expected from this.

That was new.

It was empowering. And hot.

You sighed in mock disappointment, trying to hide just how much you wanted to touch him, too. “I suppose I can. Since you asked me so nicely.”

You took two steps closer to him, leaning forward to kiss him as your fingers moved to unbutton his shirt the rest of the way. Le Comte responded eagerly, immediately sliding his tongue against your lips. You parted them for him, running your hands up the porcelain expanse of his chest as he lapped against your lips. Your nails lightly scratched against his nipples and he pulled away from you with another hiss, baring his fangs again. His breathing was ragged.

You were concerned for a moment that you had possibly pushed him too far. “Abel?”

“I’m fine,” he panted. “It’s just taking more restraint than I had originally thought.” Comte closed his eyes for a moment, grounding himself, and then he looked back up at you with the same smoldering heat you had seen before. “You have no idea how.. utterly séduisant you are right now, mon amour. How badly I want to pin you down and pierce the soft skin of your neck, dragging you into eternity with me. I want to taste you so badly, ma chérie.”

His honest admittance was possibly the most erotic thing you’d ever heard from le Comte’s mouth, which was saying a lot. The man spoke French in some of the naughtiest ways. You didn’t even have to know what he was saying to know what he was trying to say. But the raw honesty of how bad he wanted you.. that took the proverbial cake.

You decided to take pity on him then. You ran your hands back down his chest towards his pants, palming him through his trousers. He groaned at the contact, shifting his hips in an attempt for more.

You carefully unbuckled his belt and unbuttoned his pants, trying to avoid touching him as best you could.

“I fear I may have given you too much power,” he chuckled breathlessly. “You seem to be enjoying this a bit too much.”

You just grinned in response as you freed Comte’s erect cock from its confines and moved to hover in his lap, your knees on either side of his thighs. It wasn’t the most comfortable position, but you wanted to see his face and be able to kiss him as you rode him.

The vampire’s golden eyes looked up at you and through the corner of your eyes you could see him tightly grasping the arms of the chair in an effort to keep from ripping straight through the silk bonds. You shivered, realizing the only thing keeping him from grabbing ahold of you and spearing you on his cock was sheer willpower.

You wasted no time, leaning forward to kiss him as you slowly sunk down onto his length. You both moaned at the feeling. Comte immediately attempted to thrust into you but was somewhat stopped by the golden silk around his ankles. He groaned, leaning his head forward onto your shoulder and mouthing at the soft skin of your neck. The points of his fangs dragged against the skin there as you bounced up and down on his lap.

Comte tensed, and the tips of his fangs dug into your neck slightly, very nearly puncturing the skin there. You thought he was going to bite you for a moment. Your mind was too hazy with arousal to care right now, wanting nothing more than to just chase your high. God, you loved the feeling of his cock, and the added exhilaration of the pressure from his fangs just enhanced the experience.

To your vague disappointment, Comte pulled his fangs from your neck with a groan, instead sucking harshly on the skin. You gasped, hips stuttering to a stop in his lap as you came with a strangled moan.

Comte, however, wasn’t done. What little remained of his willpower finally shattered and he shredded the golden silk binding his wrists to the chair, firmly grasping your hips and lifting you up and down on his cock. The movement surprised you and you wrapped your arms around his neck for support. A broken mixture of English and French spilled from his lips as Comte slid your body on his lap, chasing his own release. He pulled his mouth from your skin, instead crashing them onto yours as he slammed you down with a half-crazed grunt, coming in thick spurts inside of you.

Finally spent, he released his death grip on your hips, instead caressing the skin there as if in apology. You would probably have bruises there later, but you couldn’t really bring yourself to care. You both sat there for a moment to catch your breath.

“I’m sorry I ruined the silk ties I had bought for you,” he apologized with a self-deprecating chuckle.

“I can’t say I didn’t expect it when you suggested using them on you,” you replied, amused, leaning your forehead against his and rubbing your noses together.

“I’ll buy you another set tomorrow,” He promised, kissing your forehead.

You laughed lightly. “For me or for you?”

“I don’t see why it can’t be both,” Comte replied elusively.

You leaned away from his face and stared at him, studying his face. He met your eyes and raised an eyebrow. The staring match continued for a few seconds before you both broke out into laughter, the absurdity of the conversation amusing you both.

When your giggles had finally quieted down, Comte leaned in for another kiss. Unlike the last few heavy, harsh kisses, this one was so sweet and passionate it still took your breath away. “Je t’aime,” he murmured. “So much.”

“I love you too,” you breathed, giving him a smile.

He leaned in for another kiss, holding you to him. As he kissed you, you could feel his arousal throb inside of you again.

Something told you you’d be up late again tonight and Comte would tell Sebastian you were unwell and needed rest.

Comte picked you up and carried you over to his bed, still kissing you.

You realized you didn’t really mind the idea of ditching work anymore as you sank into bliss with your vampire partner.

Dividers by @/natimiles

Taglist: @natimiles @queengiuliettafirstlady @candiedcoffeedrops @goddesswitchmother @candied-boys

@fang-and-feather @villain-hotline

Let me know if you'd like to be added!

[tubborucho]

A LOVE LETTER TO QSMPBLR

I saw my mutuals write those and decided that I also want to say a few words.

My whole life I loved being part of the communities. I’ve been heavily into fandoms since I was 10, and now 12 years later I can firmly state that QSMPblr community is definitely in my personal top 3 of all the fandoms I have been in.

It’s been such a fun and emotional and thrilling journey with so many ups and downs and I would never refuse to repeat it all over again. I met so many wonderful and incredible people because of this server that I can’t thank the universe enough.

All of my mutuals and followers made most of my 2023 so happy, and continue to do so in 2024, and I really need this joy with everything that happens outside the community itself.

(I am sorry this text is all over the place, I am struggling with concentration atm)

And I am so elated and a bit surprised for how many of you I became one of the favorites blogs here. I mean, I jumped from barely 150 followers to around 820 since september, and it’s all thanks to having so much fun liveblogging and theorizing with all of you.

Despite everything, I think Purgatory 1 was my favorite ever time period here. Yes, there was a lot of frustration and negativity but I don’t think I’ve ever felt such a comradery as back then, with my fellow Soulfire mains. I was in the post limit jail every single day, because I just could not stop chatting with all of you and reblogging incredible posts.

I also hold very dearly the moment, where Bad showed Tubbo the Soulfire Base Recreation. But the main reason is not even that this happened, but the fact that so many people on tumblr, in dms and even in Bad’s chat were LOOKING FOR ME, because they knew how much I’ve waited for that to happen. It was just so heartwarming to wake up to dozens of messages and mentions. I struggle with ‘nobody really cares if i am here or not’ syndrome a lot, so it made my day to see that people do.

I also want to say special thanks to some of you (even though each and single one of you deserve a separate paragraph). Under the cut:

@qtubbo and @mikaikaika. I love both of you so much, our 247 crew maybe on a kinda hiatus, but every moment we spent together is so special to me. We had so much fun, and I couldn’t ask for the batter gang to gash about the lore and cool posts together.

@lionheartedmusings. I am pretty sure you do not open tumblr these days, but if or when you see this: I am so glad that I got a chance to be your friend. We held so many incredible discussions together, and I am so proud to see your success and happy to be at least a small part of it.

@ultra-raging-ghost @dappersautismcreature @born-in-hell @comradeboyhalo @bigboobyhalo @mangofanarts @haloberry @halo-chainsaw @kadextra @skullhalo @aesthetic-gem and all the other ghosties here. Man, ghosties and tubblings alliance is honestly the best thing that ever happened to this community, and I loved all of your posts and liveblogging of Bad’s lore even when I didn’t have a clue what’s happening. You are all so smart and so great, ghosties never deserved all the hate them and the streamer got, I will fight for you always.

@terezicaptor you always match my freak. and that’s everything anyone in the fandom can ever ask for.

@itsbebebrainrotting @cheese-water @soulfireblue @galatoma @phatcatphergus @angelpaperclip @an0nfr0mth3d3n @flojouno @dozyrogue @charliecuntcicle @sweetmoons @kqluckity @h3xt0r @wackytheorist thank you for everything, i see you in my notes very often and most of you posted a lot about soulfire (which are always bonus points from me ahaha), and i am very glad you are here💛

@sweetie-peaches @routeriver @snopiah @thepenguisalive7 @piecanl @shumistar @diornies @flowerquib YOUR ART MY GOD YOUR ART OH GOD OH MAN OH GOD OH MYGOD SO GOOD SO INCREDIBLE OH MY GOD

@etoilesbienne and @pommunist i think both of you have the most based takes, and i almost feel smarter when i read your serious posts.

I definitely missed some people I would love to thank, but honestly, as I said, all of you deserve a special thank you. So if you read this, you are awesome and I love you.

I am not leaving the fandom. But it’s always nice to appreciate people around you.

💛💛💛

[oh-snapperss]

The Ultimate Guide to MCC!

New to watching mcc? Have no idea where to start? Or maybe you already watch mcc, and just want information all in one place?

Well, good news! I'm insane about MCC and made this massive post for no other reason! I plan to keep this updated as I think of other vods/clips and new stuff happens, so if you want to be sure you're reading the most up to date version of the post, click here.

With all that out of the way-

What is MCC?

MCC stands for Minecraft Championships and is an event organized by Noxcrew, who develop and test the games, and Scott Smajor, who makes the teams! The event takes place usually once a month, and 10 teams of 4 people compete to be the top two teams overall by playing eight minigames! The top two teams battle it out at the end by playing Dodgebolt (first to win three rounds takes the crown).

Noxcrew announces the teams and next date of the event on MCC's official twitter and their newsletter via email, although @mcc-updates posts the teams here as well after they're announced.

Some useful links and more information on the event:

mcc.live - Official site that updates live during the event! Team scores are updated live here, and links to all the streaming POV's are included. You can also find information on past MCC's and how an individual performed!

MCC Wiki - Community run wiki for the event! You can find information on any player that's ever been in an MCC, information about how the event works, and information on individual events.

A list of active games in the event, and how each are played can be found here!

Canon VS. Noncanon MCCs

Sometimes, Noxcrew decides to host an MCC that is considered "noncanon". Typically, this means that something about the event is different, and player's coins and stats for that MCC will not go into the overall average of their played events. Some examples of noncanon mccs:

MCC Pride (held once a year, typically raises money for the Trevor Project!

MCC Rising (only players who have never participated in an MCC before may be in it!)

MCC Scuffed (April Fools MCC, the entire event was scuffed on purpose, an incredibly funny overall event)

MCC All Stars (Only players who have won an MCC participate)

With all of that out of the way, some iconic and hilarious clips from across the events!

(note: where I could, I've included the vods that these clips came from!)

Grian's Iconic 1v3 Dodgebolt (MCC 17)

Jimmy Solidarity's 1v3 Dodgebolt (MCC 28)

Illumina EWW (MCC 15)

Purpled's nearly perfect Parkour Warrior run with Ranboo and Charlie losing their minds in the background (MCC 26)

Purpled's perfect Parkour Warrior Run (MCC 32)

Jojo's insane Sands of Time carry (MCC 31)

"Joel, I want a divorce!" (MCC 10)

"Sapnap I will eat your children!" (MCC 18)

Lord Grian Dreamslayer (MCC 9)

Michael Mcchill's Ace Race breakdown (MCC All Stars)

Purpled and Wallibear get in trouble for having "gay sex" in MCC pride (MCC Pride 2024)

Etho accidentally steals Tango's torches after Tango dies (MCC Kick Off, Hbomb's vod review)

MCC Iconic Vods/Fan Favorites!

Orange Ocelots MCC 17 - Grian, Falsesymmetry, Petezahutt and SB737

Orange Ocelots MCC 24 - Tubbo, Tommyinnit, Hbomb and Jack Manifold

Blue Bats MCC Scuffed - Smallishbeans, Smajor, Fwhip and Geminitay

Cyan Coyotes MCC 24 - PearlescentMoon, Aimsey, JojoSolos and Hannahxxrose

Blue Bats MCC 9 - Falsesymmetry, Rendog, Hbomb and Fruitberries

Pink Parrots MCC Kick Off - TangoTek, ImpulseSV, Ethoslab, and Skizzleman

If you want some other great channels and streams for MCC, I've listed some below!

All Things MCC is a channel hosted by Seapeekay and always uploads a video after each MCC featuring their picks for the top ten plays of the event! They also do team predictions + the occasional other video on MCC. Super fun, and a great way to catch some clips you may have missed during the event.

MCC Vault posts clips of various perspectives from various events--typically another way to see things you might not get to see otherwise.

Wolfeei Extras makes content about both MCCI and MCC, and has covered Etho's MCCI arc, MCC team predictions, and SandwichLord's leaderboard domination. Additionally, Wolfeei does content with participants of MCC, such as watchparties. Overall, a great channel to watch to stay in the loop of what's going on!

If you're a Sands of Time enjoyer, Hbomb94 usually goes live the day after the event and vod reviews at least one POV of Sands of Time from each team. Super entertaining, and a fun way to really get to know the strats for that game.

You may be thinking-wow, these games look really fun! Is there a way for anyone to play them?

The answer is yes-and no. While some of the games are not currently available for download, Noxcrew has a public minecraft server called MCC Island, available for anyone to join and play! As of right now, the available games to play on that server are:

Parkour Warrior (available in singleplayer mode and a fast paced competitive mode)

Sky Battle (eight teams compete instead of ten, and there are maps available that are not played in the main event!)

To Get To The Other Side (three rounds instead of six, uses a mixture of maps from the event and maps that are not played in the event)

Hole in the Wall (be warned--there are traps, different maps, and overall is a harder game on the island. My personal fav:D)

Battle Box (three rounds instead of nine, mixture of maps

Dynaball (Not a MCC-event game, but a team based game involving tnt!)

Rocket Spleef Rush (One round, different maps!)

Noxcrew has stated they plan on adding more games to the server, and there are events and other things happening too!

IP to join the server: play.mccisland.net

You can find more information and official forums here!

Additionally, you can download Terra Swoop Force and play it on a singleplayer world or put it in a server with your friends! Link for the download and instructions here.

Finally, Grid Runners is an available map on Bedrock edition only--I don't know much about bedrock, only that it is an option. Link to that info here.

I think that's about it for now! I'll update this as I think of things or am asked to add something:) Hopefully this helps a bit, cause I know coming into this stuff with no info can be overwhelming!

[polarmoon]

my top 24 screenshots of 2024 🌙

this year has been really big for me when it comes to getting back into simblr, after years of long breaks and inconsistency since 2020. i really feel like i'm back in the swing of things, and i'm really happy about it! i also hit 10 years on simblr this june which is wild, and i'm currently a few followers away from a huge milestone :') thank you guys for making this year so special and great!

@kari-sims tagged me! it was a fun little walk down memory lane. i'm not gonna tag anyone, but i do encourage ppl to do it regardless! it's really nice to look back and give your own screenshots some love. <3

i've played a ton of signal hill this year and there could definitely be more of them in this post, but all my favorite screenshots are unedited! i really have to get around to editing and posting those. maybe i'll do a big signal hill queue in january to get caught back up.

my biggest project this year has been rebooting the fitch legacy, which i started prepping in the spring and posting this summer. the prologue section was one of my more ambitious projects i've had on simblr believe it or not, probably since i did legit storytelling back in like 2014-2015 honestly

i'm super proud of how it turned out, even if i'd probably go back and refine my editing process now that i've learned more about what i like. going back and retelling the original first generation through an updated and realistic lens was so much fun!

playing with benji has made me learn to love ts4 again, which has been so rewarding. it's not perfect, but it's nice when you have a sim you actually care about, and benji is definitely that sim for me. i miss him and have been itching to get back into his save but i really want to see if a bands pack is coming next year first lmao

meanwhile my occult legacy has been a really good way to occupy myself while i wait to play the fitches again. it has gotten me out of my comfort zone a lot, and i'm having a ton of fun with a more casual but still challenging and interesting save. it will probably end up on the backburner eventually, but for now i'm really enjoying it and i'm excited to see where things go. i especially love percy, and i'm really excited for his generation, which has been keeping me motivated to play more!

and finally some misc shots. couldn't forget pippa, since her post blew up when i wasn't expecting it and so many people seemed to love her. what a creature. i should honestly upload her tray files or smth

bonus! some of my fav cas shots from this year :) im trying to experiment in cas more, and i think it's going okay. i also wanna just make some sims in ts2 for fun for once since i'm usually solely gameplay focused in ts2. and just posting more in general when im actively playing.

if you've read this far, ty for coming along for the ride, and happy holidays! <3

[forcebook]

Hello there, do you mind sharing your favorite bls of 2024? Thanks!

hi! honestly i suck at keeping track of shows and ranking them asdfghjkl i want to keep better track next year tho and maybe even make some celebratory gifsets but we shall see!

and since you asked for it, i decided to check mdl and do a deep dive on which shows have aged well in my mind and score lmao

my top rated dramas of 2024 are:

love for love’s sake

my only 5 stars drama of the year. doesn’t surprise me at all. this show took me completely my storm at the beginning of the year. it has such a compelling story and it’s so efficient on so many levels. but most importantly, it sticks the landing. it gives closure to a story that wasn’t even finished. and it does so well. the definition of lightning in a bottle!

love in the big city

this show made me feel emotions unknown to humanity so i get my rating asdfghjkl felt really personal to me. it is also incredibly efficient and very necessary!

knock knock boys!

i said it halfway through its run and i’ll say it again: one of the best bls of 2024. no wonder i rated it this high asdfghjkl within its premise it promised very little and delivered soooo much with some incredible takes. while i love when bls do new things, to me a story told well is fantastic regardless of how cliché it might be to some. and knock knock boys manages to feel very familiar but also very refreshing with the way it handled some topics. super funny and it stuck the landing to me. in a completely different way from love for love’s sake but very satisfying!

jack & joker: u steal my heart!

this is the thai bl of the year to me. for all the conversations it started, interesting characters, refreshing plot and also for existing purely on the love and dedication of its creators. while it is not perfect, i do hope that when we look back on 2024, we see it as the year of jack and joker

century of love

i’ve loved daouoffroad since love in translation. i was a bit skeptical of century of love at first but i ended up loving it a lot. i’m also not surprised at all this made my top 5 asdfghjkl

now i would like to add a few shows that haven’t finished airing yet but had most of their run in 2024 and i’m pretty sure they’re going to be in top rated dramas

miseinen (our youth)

it is the japanese bl of the year to me. hands down. i could rant but at the same time i have no words asdfghjkl this show goes beyond efficiency or even sticking the landing (which i hope they do), but it’s the whole vibe. because while incredibly sad, you can see how much love and care exists in it. the characters are so alive and so complex and beautiful and godddd i love them. 10/10 no notes

see your love

came out of nowhere promising very little and delivered one of the best bls of 2024 imo. i don’t even remember when was the last time i felt compelled to gif a taiwanese bl but this show is sooo inspiring and fun and important. i just love it

caged again

this show promised nothing except wacky plot and delivered such a hilarious and compelling and heartfelt story. i love when i get these little surprises. shall live on in my heart

honorable mentions:

let's eat together, aki and haru 2: more please!

my only other 5 stars of the year. but it’s a movie so i didn’t include it up there. still. it’s a nearly flawless execution of a beautiful genre that i love: queer stories revolving around food and domesticity. it delivered exactly what it promised efficiently and i loooooove it so much!!!!!

sugar dog life

also came out of nowhere promising nothing and delivered a really solid little story, also revolving around food and domesticity. can you tell i’m biased lmao

the rebound

BALL IS LIFE!!!!!! we need more bls about sports. asap. we don’t have enough!!!! and this show was a surprise to me. i ended up super invested for the most part and i do think it stands out in the tiny little corner of bl sports therefore it deserves an honorable mention

blue canvas of youthful days

chinese bls always have a special place in my heart for fighting so hard to exist. this one is no exception. it got taken down when it first started airing and i’m glad they managed to release all of it eventually. it’s far from being perfect but i was still thoroughly invested in it. i love the main couple with my entire heart. and i’m soooooo grateful they got their happy ending!!

monster next door

as a deeply introverted person, this is the representation i needed asdfghjkl it felt refreshing and a conversation worth having about respecting introverts and other people’s ways of living. plus diew is autistic to me (source: i’m autistic) and it was an overall good show!!! bigpark my beloveds!!

and that’s it! thank you for asking 💕

[indie-summer]

The Cycling RPF Rec List

for @wtfanworkclassification

(tagging the blogs of the authors I know!!)

1. Favorite smut: a vocabulary, expanding by @strigimorphaes

It’s almost unfair that I made myself choose only one for each category, but yes, if I must, this is The One Smut for me. To put it mildly, it makes me weak in the knees every time I read it. It must have been like five times by now. To be read with the AC on and a glass of water by your side. Gotta love p*rn with feelings.

2. Favorite multi chapter: Faking It by @goingslightlymads

Am I biased when talking about this fic? Yes, because it was one of my Secret Santa gifts. Do I think I am unfair? Nope, not at all! I’ve never had any other experience in Cycling RPF like when I read (scratch that, binged) this one: it made me laugh and cry and it had my heart racing and had me hugging pillows at 3am. What a ride.

3. Favorite Sci-fi AU: jonas vingegaard goes back to the sea by @bakurasilver

Beautiful and clever. A reflection on the meaning of life and love, undercover as sci-fi. Bawled my eyes out with this one.

4. Favorite Fantasy AU: Fierce Creatures by @inbetweenpages

Great world building, incredibly fun and hot. Come here for wouthieu and stay for mathsper friendship, a very mysterious vampire!Jonas and a sentient house.

5. Favorite fluff: Worth it by @ridingupsaturn

Melancholic fluff. My favorite kind of fluff. Read it about ten times and had my heart fluttering through all of them. Love is kind of awesome, isn’t it?

6. Favorite angst: Drought by booming_business (part 2 of the A Study in Water series)

Shoutout to sad carpenter!Jonas who made a complete wreck out of me. The entire series is excellent, but this fic in particular is a masterpiece on its own! Also foundational exes!tadejonas fic before it was even a thing. Groundbreaking!!

7. Favorite drabble: doing what heroes do by @etapereine

I have two favorite types of drabbles: the one in which you feel like you read an entire story in just 100 words and the one that immediately makes you feel in absolute need of a 50k story as a follow-up because of all the possibilities it introduces you to. This one is definitely the second kind. I really need a full Percy Jackson AU long fic on my desk in, like, a week ago. Olympian demigods at the Olympics maybe??? Someone please???

8. Favorite crack/comedy: The 2024 Paris-Roubaix mass heat incident by Anonymous

Top 5 funniest shit I’ve ever read in my life and I’m not even exaggerating.

9. Favorite non-cyclists AU: all hearts in love use their own tongues by @thedeadparrot

I’m sorry, I’m not really a well-studied person when it comes to English literature. This is the only way I could ever read Shakespeare. I regret nothing.

10. Favorite remix/fix-it: Unbelievable, or only in Gotham by Lili_Writes_Banhof

Yes I’m parcial yes of course I am biased because it’s fixing one of my fics, but I don’t care. It’s cute, it’s fun, it’s fluffy (like all the awesome works from this author), you should all immediately go read it!

11. Favorite Soulmate AU: All your life by @interdisciplinary-disaster

I never once had given any thoughts about geese before this fic. Also this is the only cycling fic where the main character is not one of the cyclists, but an adorably exhausted old goose (at least the way I see it, because frankly, what a scene stealer). It changed my core!!

12. Favorite rarepair: Jonas is the boss by @mundanememory

Because ok, now everyone loves Jonas/Matteo but back in April it was a rarepair!! And this fic is awesome and hot and clever and features little big boss being… erm, well treated by a lovable giant ginger, so it deserves a million recs!

[boxboxblog]

2024 Las Vegas GP: Winners and Losers

Alrighty everyone, this is not going to be a super interesting list because the race was not that interesting, but let's get into my winners podium and losers podium.

Winners:

Max Verstappen

Who else would be my number one winner than the guy who won his fourth title last night? Verstappen drove a great race even with all the troubles Red Bull were having this weekend (including but not limited too, poor straight speed, teh incorrect rear wing, etc). His quali was much better than people expected, he massively outperformed his teammate, and his finishing position secured him the title. Really, another race where he had a subpar car and was able to overcome the machinery to do what needed to be done. Other racers might have had better race results, but he had the best results in terms of his ultimate goals.

2. Lewis Hamilton

Maybe you are surprised that George Russell isn't in 2nd, but for me Hamilton drove a much more impressive race. Going from P10 up to 2nd is incredible, especially when you are battling with competitive cars like Ferrari and Max Verstappen. He drove cleanly, had absolutely brilliant overtakes, and just had a special spark at this race. Reminded me of prime Hamilton with his clean perfection, and it was fun to see him actually have a decent car for once. Those Mercedes seem to thrive in colder weather.

3. George Russell

Seeing Russell on the top step after the heartbreak of Spa many months ago was amazing. He dominated this race, and no one even came close. His start was clean, his pace was consistent, and it was just very impressive. His pure pace was just stellar this weekend. Since he was alone for so much of the race, i don't have much else to share, but all around great job George Russell.

Runner Ups: Hulkenberg (for a high finish), Perez (for a relatively decent race, and a brilliant double overtake), and Tsunoda (who finished above his teammate)

Losers

Ferrari

Another time when a team is on the top of my losers podium. Some of you may be surprised I wouldn't say Charles Leclerc or Carlos Sainz, but I will explain why. This whole thing has really shown us that old weakness Ferrari has. They make poor decisions, they do not handle driver egos well, and their actions only create more tension. Angering both drivers that much is an achievement. Sainz asking to pit and them not being ready. Leclerc being assured of team orders and then having them disregarded. Say what you will about either driver's actions/words, this is at its core a Ferrari problem. They still do not have the team mentality championship contenders need. Even though they achieved probably the best results they could have gotten last night, it pulled back the curtain a bit on the Ferrari Happy Family, and we all know how much they care about their public image. Rival teams also take advantage of this kind of weakness, as internal squabbling can often cost teams results.

2. Lance Stroll

Very tough weekend for Stroll, and entirely not his fault. The issues his cars had in the practices were extremely unfortunate, and the way they could barely get it ready for quali was painful. He was not able to properly warm up his tires or find a good lap, and qualified last due to it. Not his fault at all. But it got worse during the race, because apparently he had no team radio. Unsure if this was for the whole race or just part of it, but this is extremely dangerous. Communication is key in F1. On top of that his pit stop button did not work, so when he came in to pit they were not ready for him and it took them 10 seconds. A shame, especially because he pace was up there with his teammate this weekend. He could have gotten better results.

3. Gasly

Gasly is here because we went from a high-high to a low-low this weekend for him. His quali was brilliant, and everyone was shocked to see an Alpine start on the second row. His pace was great too, and while he was not on track to finish where he started, he would have had solid results. But an engine problem took him out, and he had to retire the car. Supremely unfortunate for Gasly, and made worse by how good he started.

Runner Ups: McLaren (uninspiring results from both), Ocon (bad quali compared to teammate, bad results), and Lawson (for almost playing it too safe).

As always no hate on drivers, but I am honest about their results. Yes hate on teams though. See you all next week for Qatar.

Cheers,

-B

[absolutebl]

This Week in BL - Must you, Japan? has become Thank You, Japan

Organized, in each category, with ones I'm enjoying most at the top.

BL OLYMPICS! Week 3

This is my last week of passing out metals in various sporting events, as part of the weekly updates.

Aug 2024 Week 2

Ongoing Series - Thai

Century of Love (Weds Gaga) eps 9-10fin - There were a lot more unnecessary dramatic speeches than there was practical medical aid being administered. Very extra, boys. I wonder how long it took them to get that "birds meet hug" shot? Meanwhile, great grandpa‘s attitude that he knows best in every way is thoroughly annoying, and yet absolutely appropriate to his age. My great gramps (RIP), had he had the body of a 20-year-old, would behave in exactly the same self-righteous know-it-all way. The doctor is great. I would like him to get his own romance please? What happens when you are the villain in someone else's reincarnation story? There's a whole fanfic there. And yes I cried. I am a sap for this kinda thing.

Final thoughts:

This is a great little show about a young man who fell in love with a pretty girl 100 years ago, and when she died in his arms, he was cursed to live until he could meet her reborn self. Only this time around, she’s reborn into the body of a man. I love it when Thailand gets all up in its own historical business and reincarnation and shizz. I like this pair (it’s not DaouOffroad’s fault I didn’t enjoy most of their first series.) Daou’s wushu is pretty snazzy and we got a fun meet cute. (Erm... Remeet cute? Meet cute 2.0?) Plus this is a very PRETTY show. Despite some ham handed comedy moments, this ultimately has more in common with something like I Feel You Linger in the Air meets First Love Again, then (as one might expect) Until We Meet Again or The Director Who Buys Me Dinner. The leads turned in great performances, although Daou outclassed everybody else on that screen. It’s a good story and a great BL. I’m not sure this is going in my rewatch rotation, but I can’t find any major faults with it beyond a certain level of camp that is sadly endemic to lackorns. Also I’m going to give it credit as the kind of BL that one could safely recommend to lovers of melodrama and historical romance, without having to qualify it as “good for a BL.” It was, to put it succinctly, simply a VERY ENJOYABLE show. 

Under those auspices I really can’t give it anything less than a 9/10. 

Bronze in Fencing

My Love Mix-Up Th (Fri YT) ep 10 of 12 - It’s cute. They were cute. I enjoyed it a lot. I talk quite a bit about why they're using nai as a you pronoun here:

This Love Doesn't Have Long Beans (Fri iQIYI) ep 6 of 8 - Honestly the side couple is truly stellar in this show. I wasn’t sure about them at first but now I absolutely love them. Not sure how they are going to resolve such intense dislike (from JJ) by the end of the series. But I’m interested to see them try.

Meanwhile, there isn’t anything else airing right now that makes me laugh as much as the behind-the-scenes from this show. Highly recommended.

Monster Next Door (Thai Thurs Gaga ) eps 1-2 of 12 - Oh it is so much fun. I’m particularly delighted that our musician is a drummer and I don’t have to listen to him sing... I hope. I’ve been waiting for Big to lead a BL forever. I’m disposed to enjoy this. We can all be confident in one thing, the kisses are going to be great. I like the side couple too, very indulgent daddy. While I am disturbed by the tortoise in the tiny tank, I love the extrovert friendship group. They remind me of my own college crew. It is a cute premise, but I will need them to actually be together in the same room, looking longingly at each other a smooching within the next couple of episodes.

YouTube served me both episodes 1 & 2, and I don’t think it was meant to. So this may be next week's review as well.

The Trainee (Sun YouTube) ep 6 of 12 - I wasn’t wild about this ep or where this show is going. But I enjoyed the language play. 

Gold in Linguistic Gymnastics

(my new favorite sport)

Sunset X Vibes (Sat iQIYI) ep 9 of 12 - Wow. Sam admitted it just out loud like that! Right after a betrayal? Balls on that boy. Worked on Yo tho. Too well, actually. I wish Yo had made him suffer and dragged him over the coals for a while. But I guess Yo really really likes him back. Meanwhile, the GL side plot also moved quite rapidly. A lot happened in this episode.

I Saw You in My Dream (Weds Gaga) ep 4 of 12 - Them ALL jumping into the water was totally ridiculous. It’s still a little slow, because it is a pulp, but I’m rather enjoying it.

Knock Knock Boys (Thurs Gaga) ep 12fin - Almond and Latte were cute. The breakfast with the four of them was funny. I did laugh a lot. Almond getting "first time" advice from his two resident gay dads (or at least trying to) was super sweet. Also I got a lot of smiley kisses. Nice final ep.

Ultimately how do I feel about this show?

A story about 4 boys of differing personalities who end up living together and pair up, falling in love. Slow moving and waffling, with some artificially generated family drama makes this a classic Thai pulp except that in general it's a smiley kiss of a show. It had plenty of good qualities like great communication and sexual rep (including toys, first time, safe sex, and sexual identities). The heat levels were on point and well executed, and the performances were good. It’s just that the script and the directing were lackluster, rendering it ultimately forgettable. Still, fine on a rainy afternoon with some camomile tea or whatever. 7/10 

Love Sea (Sun iQIYI) ep 9 of 10 - I’m getting some sort of PTSD from this show, It is making me feel like I’m the problem. Trash watch

Ongoing Series - Not Thai

Cosmetic Playlover (Japan Tues Gaga) eps 1-2 of 8 - Anyone surprised by this jump in the standings? Yeah, probubly not. Anygay... this show is GREAT. Warped af but great. Lemme try to explain.

I actually said out loud during ep 1, "Well this is boundary pushing." By which I mean mine and everybody elses. But it’s Japan, *checks watch* it’s about time they turned out something edging into unpalatable and kinky. And because it’s Japan, I’m more forgiving than I would be were this show nested in the clumsy hands of say... Thailand. So actually this being me, and me being of questionable taste, I’m enjoying this show a lot.

You want me to list the ways? Sure.

Younger seme with grabby hands.

The younger one identified the elder gay as his personal property and it’s now: single motivation, on target, against all odds.

Uke cares about his work and not much else.

Seme cares about the uke and not much else.

Uke is gonna make this boy WORK for it.

That one particularly Japanese style of obsession that I actually adore.

Passes the sniff test!

I’m being reminded of that KBL Love Mate. Which I believe I enjoyed but no one else did. For exactly this set of tropes. Only Japan is better suited to handle them. For me this is a case of:

Must you,Japan? = Oh yes? Well, thank you very much, Japan.  

I Hear the Sunspot AKA Hidamari ga Kikoeru (Japan Weds Gaga) ep 8 of 10 - enter the evil girl character. Yawn.

Takara's Treasure AKA Takara No Vidro (Japan Mon Gaga) ep 6 of 10 - It is what it is. 

It's airing but...

Battle of the Writers (Sun YT) ep 2 of 12 - I did not catch ep 2 before they took it down from USA YT. I don’t know why it’s down. Either they got a deal for distribution off YouTube or there’s some sort of scandal. Frankly, I wasn't particularly impressed with ep 1 so I’m not rabid to find wherever it’s gone or why. Still, perhaps someone will let us know the sitch in a comment? It's a me problem. I'm figuring it out.

Sugar Dog Life (Japan Sun ????) 10 eps - OMG a uni student who looks too young and a... COP. GAH. The subversion and kink of it all. Why can't I find it? Do I have to go grey?

4 Minutes (Thai Netflix/Grey) - A rich boy at uni suddenly gains the supernatural power to see four minutes into the future. I have a source, but I've decided to hold off and binge if it ends okay, since it's only 8 eps. I depend upon y'all to tell me if it's safe.

Meet You at the Blossom (China) - it's your funeral (or, more likely, one of the main characters'). You can argue but... statistics. You know my feelings on this matter. MY BLOG, remember?

In case you missed it

The Time of Fever AKA Unintentional Love Story 2 (Korea movie) trailer IS COMING IN SEPTEMBER!!!! (Yeah this is gonna sit here until then)

Next Week Looks Like This:

Ooo, nice spread.

Upcoming BLs for 2024 are listed here. This list is not kept updated, so please leave a comment if you know something new or RP with additions.

Still Coming This Month!

8/12 First Note Of Love (Taiwan Mon Gaga) 12 eps - About a singer with stage fright and his timid fan stars Charles (H4 the puppy one) and Michael Chang (the youngster in My Tooth Your Love), plus side couple featuring a Thai actor Jame (Koh in Gen Y) and Liu Min Ting (of Guardian fame). What a damn tean. I can't wait. With thier powers combined!

8/13 Addicted Heroin (Thai Tues YT) 10 eps - supposedly Jinlo with air this on their YT channel. Stars August (Love Sick) so I'm excited despite Jinlo's poor reputation. From the trailer it looks like it's following the original pretty closely... just Thai style. GIMMEEEEE!!!!

8/16 The Last Time (Thai Fri YT) ? eps - Convoluted story of loss and possible reincarnation or something.

8/22 The On1y One (Taiwan Thurs Gaga) 12 eps - announced in 2023 this one has a high school set stepbrothers trope and is reputed to be high heat. From Taiwan! It's made for me. Based on a novel Mou Mou from the Your Name Engraved Herein folks, so it could go dark. Still, I'm very excited.

8/22 The Paradise of Thorns (Thai movie) theater release - Jeff Satur is back but this does not look like a BL (the gay lover's death is the inciting event). More in Goodbye Mother vein. Looks dark and dramatic. He opposite and extremely well known actor Toey Pongsakorn who has never done gay before.

THIS WEEK’S BEST MOMENT

Linguistic flirting trope! One of my all time favorites. FANTASTIC. (I did keep hearing Gun yelling Papiiiiiii! in my head tho.)

(Last week)

Streaming services are listed by how I (usually) watch, which is with a USA based IP, and often offset by a day because time zones are a pain.

The tag BLigade: @doorajar @solitaryandwandering @my-rose-tinted-glasses @babymbbatinygirl @babymbbatinygirl @isisanna-blog @mmastertheone @pickletrip @aliceisathome @urikawa-miyuki @tokillamonger @sunflower-positiiivity @rocketturtle4 @blglplus @anythinggoesintheshire @everlightly @renafire @mestizashinrin @bl-bam-beyond @small-dark-and-delicious @saezurumurmurs

Sigh, Tumblr in its infinite wisdom doesn't like too many tags.