#my opinions on this have changed a lottt

[confirmeddead]

An Armandaniel confession 🙂

I don’t think Devil’s Minion happened in the 70s/80s. Not in the relationship sense.

I DO think Armand stalked Daniel and just watched his life get better/crumble/better/crumble over and over. “She wanted to say yes, but she didn’t trust you” because his ass was there in a big trench coat and sunglasses watching it all go down.

And now, after Daniel’s been turned, I think the reverse will happen. Daniel is searching for Armand. He’ll follow him.

[strewwwberry]

Okay so I reblogged

This post (go check I out 😋)

And started having ✨gossip girl shen yuan✨ thoughts

And now they won't stop so

Here's the reblog for context obvi, an now to continue lmao

So like shen yuan is like nice in a sorta Mean way ykwim, tsundere vibes galore (at least when he not fearing for hi life but that's a different pile o brainrot so I digress)

So like I also have feeling that he would just give money away to complete strangers as his "compensation" for well gossiping about them! Or at least he tells himself that he's doing it to basically have an "even trade", when the truth is he just feels really guilty and bad for them

(He's a rich kid this mans cability of empathy Is pity until his character growth)

(He's nice but refer back to his reaction to shen jius past, he nice but he has bias like crazy, he ain't changing his opinion unless its literally rammed into him, literally.)

So like he wouldn't feel badd but he would still feel badd, ykyk

So like he's gossiping about maybe someone who got their heart broken or someone who got kicked out, got sent to juvie etc etc

An all of a sudden he gets home and Is like, hmm well maybe I'll give them like a 5000 yuan or something (aprox £540) which for him is pocket change - rich second gen - just to "help out" and then boom!

More gossip about a mysterious guy on the internet just giving away tons of money to random people in relatively to extremely shitty situations for seemingly no reason

And ofc SY 's reaction is hmmmm I wonder who that person could be 🧐🧐

So yay! Sy is now spreading gossip about... Himself

This guy has a lovin family but goddamit this Neto baby had some drama in his life one way or another, but no he defo peaked in high school an then just fell off, it's why he became a Neto shut in 😍

Hope you enjoyed my 𝔀𝓸𝓻𝓭 𝓶𝓪𝓰𝓲𝓬

[lestats-ovaries]

putting in my two cents as an aroace hazbin fan to the whole alastor shipping debate (adding a cut below because this got long-)

before I start, it's important to remind everyone:

alastor is canonically ace and (semi)canonically aro, and that should be respected the same way we'd respect angel dust's identity as a gay man, or vaggie's as a sapphic woman.

"ace" and "aro", while also functioning as labels unto themselves, are umbrella terms for a lottt of identities. Some of which do include the ability to experience sexual and romantic attraction, in different ways and at different levels (demi, cupio, lith/lithro, grey, aro-and aceflux, the list goes on).

So, given all that, is it possible to interpret alastor as experiencing some level of romantic attraction, or sexual attraction? Of course, identities like the ones I listed above are just as valid as any other acespec and arospec identity.

So, what's the issue then? Right now, a lot of fans are using the breadth of aspec identities and experiences as a shield, to excuse them shipping him like they would an allosexual/alloromantic character.

Just to make it clear, that in itself is erasure. And I know that's a strong statement, and that there being such a broad aroace experience adds nuance to any statement you can make on that, but we have to acknowledge as a fandom that there are objectively wrong ways to handle aspec characters, both in the way we discuss them and in the way we portray them in fan works.

And before anyone says it, saying "alastor isn't real" or "fanon content won't change his canon sexuality" doesn't work when real life aspec people can't even look in a tag of a character that's supposed to represent them without seeing their identity erased. It's the way I feel attempting to engage with a lot of hazbin content, and I know a lot of my fellow aspec hazbin fans are feeling it as well.

So, what's the solution to all this? That's unfortunately kinda complicated. Everyone has a different opinion on what constitutes as erasure, what is good rep, how much benefit of the doubt we should give people, et cetera, and so everyone's solutions look different. In a way there also isn't a way to solve it, since aroace erasure is so normalized in fandom culture (not just the hazbin fandom; fandom culture as a whole) that there will always be a significant portion of fans who will ignore, erase, or otherwise deny alastor's or any other aroace character's sexuality.

So, to put my two cents on it:

My philosophy is that if you're going to ship alastor (or any aspec character for that matter), it's best to have an identity in mind for him to use as reference. For example, I think of alastor as sex-repulsed aroace, and I write him with that in mind. Whatever you pick can be a steadfast headcanon, an identity tailored to the story you want to tell, or one you want to explore in your fanwork, whether for fun or to educate yourself on it better.

What's better is that you don't even need to mention the sexuality itself in the work! Show don't tell is a great writing tool, and for alastor specifically, who canonically isn't aware of his sexuality, it works perfectly. Just simply creating with it in mind, asking yourself, "how would someone with [insert identity] experience this?" and going from there, makes a world of difference.

Just in terms of good fanfic etiquette, I'd also make sure to include it in the tags if you're posting it on ao3, just to make sure your readers know what's up and to help with filtering (I personally don't read any alastor ship fics that don't include the asexual or aromantic tag at this point). Bada bing bada boom, that's representation right there!

Since Alastor is one of very, very few ace characters in mainstream media, and even less aro characters in media period, us as a fandom creating good representation with him is really important, especially in terms of the breadth of aspec identities. We don't get much representation, so claiming he's definitively one label or another isn't productive, and hurts the community in the long run. Fanfiction is first and foremost an exploration of canon, so why not play around with what "aro" and "ace" can look like for him?

Case and point, I've seen some incredible ship fics that headcanon him as demisexual and/or demiromantic, and do a great job representing those identities. I've also seen some really good fics that portray him as sex-repulsed, and others that portray him as sex-neutral or positive. All of that is great, and again, even if it isn't directly mentioned: adding subtext, putting it in the tags, and even simply writing the fic with the sexuality in mind does wonders.

Me personally, I headcanon Alastor with the same identity as me; sex- and romance-repulsed aroace, but open to queerplatonic relationships. That doesn't mean fics that interpret him with a different aspec identity are less valid, or are interpreting him wrong. All of it is valid representation.

And that's not even getting into queerplatonic relationships, which is what I put Alastor into for my own headcanons (queerplatonic radioapple fic when). For that, please do your own research, but remember that queerplatonic relationships tend to look different for every couple. They can be poly, include kissing and physical intimacy, or look just like what most people would consider a regular friendship or regular romance.

So, can you ship aroace characters? Sure you can, as long as it isn't at the expense of their sexuality, or more accurately, the representation their sexuality gives to a historically underrepresented group.

That's pretty much it from me, please remember to support aspec fanartists and fanfic writers, and happy (early) aromantic spectrum awareness week for all my fellow arospecs!!

[malzykins]

GIVES US THE VOID HAND FREAKS LORE!!! (You dont have to if you dont want to)

OH BOY. well with a nice little request like that how can i say no 😇 

HUGE preface that this is very AU-heavy because. like I got no beef with the actual canon but I just want to play around with my favourite characters like little dollies if that is okay. :]

To even get to the freaks though we do have to start at the beginning of this for it all to make even a lick of sense and to me anyway it feels like a lot.. warning not one centimeter of this is without some form of mental degradation and shameless self-indulgence (<- failing to cope with the lasting effects of cringe culture)

absolutely MASSIVE text post belo im dead serious:

Nothing much really differs from the origin of the Operator/Drifter themselves, all the Zariman shit still happens etc. Operator was kind of a bastard child (shes 12 most of them are, but i digress LOL), very much the kinda person to stick their nose in everyone’s business and try to “fix” all their problems if she thought something could be gained from it (sound familiar?), be it a compensation from the people themselves or from her seniors getting basically surface-level information about it all and being like aww what a good kid!! and gassing her up with all this praise. Most other kids definitely knew what she was doing, or at least didnt like her or the vibe she put off, but it didnt really stop her cause that’s not whose opinion she necessarily cared about the most.

When the Zariman incident happened, her ENTIRE support group became her enemy and she was left with nothing. She got her just desserts alright and it broke her, like really broke her, like watching a spoiled brat finally get what’s coming to em and she genuinely did like a total heel-turn in terms of personality temperament etc. She became a lottt more prone to acting childish and favoured emotional outbursts over rational thinking, since she didnt have her people that she looked up to anymore, she didnt have her Glue so to speak. She went from main character syndrome to acting how a 12 year old would probably realistically act in a fr life-or-death scenario overnight

Being a child in a traumatizing situation she latched onto really anything she could get. any distraction. desperately wanting something or someone to trust. so when that damnable doppelganger shows its face, behaving exactly how she used to behave towards other kids (not that she had the self-awareness to deduce that at the time), she instantly ate from the hand that feeds. And there was that :)

Nothing strays from canon between this point and the First Dream. Shes still very much a petulant crybaby and kind of sucks at being a Tenno but thats neither here nor there,, in the Dream, though, is when things start to REALLY deviate.

During the years of war and strife and child-soldier-ism with everyone else, she had a lot of time to think. Shes well aware that all this void power shit wasnt possible before their time on the Zariman, and as far as she was aware she was pretty certain that didnt change the moment they boarded. Over time she fights the memory suppression of her traumas to dig up answers and narrows it right down to that moment she shook hands with herself, something clearly odd and nonsensical, now viewing it with a bit more clarity of mind and basically coming to the epiphany of Oh You Motherfucker. theres no way it was not you. theres no way ALL OF THIS (the existence of the tenno and by extension their eventual drafting into the war, and all of the bullshit that follows that) was not because of you. And when they get told that theyre all going to be put into a cryosleep, because theyre more trouble than theyre worth, really, to just to give everyone around them more peace of mind well. shes quite upset about it. She and other kids definitely try to fight their way out of it (they dont make it far) and rest assured theres no shortness of bawling and sobbing, but deep in there there is anger. She starts to get real pissed off about this whole ordeal and honestly just fucking everything that has lead to it, that piece of her old self that had the capacity for rage and ambition bubbling through the surface.

When she was placed into the First Dream, that quickly manifested well outside of her control. She herself was entirely lacking in conscience, but that essence of herself that existed just beyond her own grasp, that metaphorical spirit that whatever youd want to call it, began to fester in some crevice deep in the Void, not having truly left the place after the events of the Zariman unfolded. It festered and festered and grew until every horrible negative emotion that she Could Not experience in her current state snapped free and went on a violent witch hunt for exactly who the hell made her this way and WHEN she found It, that manifestation didnt relent in the slightest as it quite literally beat the absolute ever-loving dogshit out of the Indifference and (taking some of the various Murmur codex entries very literally) lashed its very flesh apart like a goddamn. kindergarten art project.

Once all of her anger was spent and she realized that didnt actually fix any of her problems, and the bastard was busy reeling for a while because, what in the fuck was all that about, she was left just a lonely, sad empty husk. And because of the Void’s receptivity with negative emotion, it did something with that, taking those lacerated fragments and turning them into something greater, turning them into companions to fill that lonely gap, into the Murmur. they are very No Thoughts creatures and dont understand what existence really is, and like most freshly borned creatures they imprint on the first thing they see (the Indifference) though they know at least the smell of who ultimately made them and are constantly chasing that trail to find the source (hence their appearance in reality in the albrecht labs because we dont really Know in canon what theyre looking for in there exactly (afaik) so I’m justttt rewriting that. for me 😇)

Once they inevitably have their cool reunion or whatever (which takes place a lot sooner than the normal story progression, I just am not sure on where to put a pin) Operator latches onto them just as much as they latch onto her, their Maker, and she ends up neglecting a lot of her responsibilities to just run and play with the little freaks all day ^-^ which really pisses off the Drifter. and makes HER take up the Operator’s mantle, a good chunk of the normal questline being done by her instead.

NOW. for what you ACTUALLY asked for. Im so sorry 😭

THESE three bastards: Prodah, Nahkip, Vedah, in that order. In this little AU thing, Murmur fragments have this little bit of individuality to them in the form of those lighter blue stripes or “veins”, which are more like indentations in their skin that faintly glow with their Void energy. The more a fragment has or the more unique they are, the more respected the individual is in a sort of innate social hierarchy system. If a fragment is born with no veins whatsoever, if they are unmarred and “perfect” so to speak, they are essentially bullied and outcasted to some unloved corner of the Great Indifference to wallow alone, and for a faction all about unity and working together that isnt very nice. :)

Vedah and Nahkip are the two I probably have the least juice for. Not that I dont like them (far from it) I just have yet to reeeeally get to them ;; I at LEAST have personalities and such down

Vedah is like a curious naive little dog. It’s very erratic and jumpy and is more often a follower than a leader. It loves games but gets bored easily, and loves trying to make friends. It definitely makes the most racket out of the three, big chatterbox this one (I love the sounds the fragments make... they are such screechy little creatures it's soooo cute)

Nahkip is probably the most “normal” out of them. It doesn’t vocalize often and carries itself in a bit of a high regard (not necessarily in a conceited way, moreso it is aware that it is of a somewhat higher caliber than most and incidentally behaves as such). It’ll politely listen to others and offer input when it’s spoken to, but once all is said and done, it returns to pretending you don’t exist, going about its own business.

Prodah, the last fellow, is (was?) one of those unfortunate veinless souls. It often found itself a victim of many fights, and it quickly learned that trying to defend itself only made matters substantially worse. In one particularly nasty scenario, its ring and pinky finger were completely snapped off by an attacker and ground to dust. It tried to fight its way out of exile often, but eventually succumbed to the hand it’d been dealt, fleeing to some unaccompanied outcropping overlooking the Void.

Vedah found it, eventually, having sniffed it out and tracked it from where it hid buried in the sand for god knows. Prodah of course, very angry and scared and traumatized all at once, didnt take too kindly to the ordeal, but Vedah’s “people skills” and a rare instance of patience helped bring the guy just enough out of its shell to at least stop regressing into fight-or-flight everytime it (Vedah) moved :] Still VERY skittery and non-trusting. just a bit more… tolerable.

Vedah and Nahkip are friends. or. at least Vedah sees it that way. Nahkip tolerates it but could really give or take. Vedah always wants to show around its new friends to its current friends, and Prodah is not an exception even if it really should be (hence the naivety; you can’t “look guys it’s cool dont be mean okay :D” your way out of everything girl)

LUCKILY Nahkip seems to not gaf. At least not in a bad way. No it actually definitely gaf because it’s been ages since it’s last seen a veinless fragment still kicking around (esp since there is essentially no reproduction of these creatures, whatever exists is all that will ever be (unless MITW feels like getting flayed again. for some reason) so once you’re killed or whatever it’s gg) and is very surprised that one is still alive, figured over time it should have just gone feral and torn itself apart from insanity or decomposed on its own, but it didn’t. and Nahkip is a bit of a studious fellow. so it is very interested in this creature.

There isn’t too much coherent lore after this.. lots of bits and bobs and meat and potatoes but not the most fleshed-out explanation for it all? At some point the three become close enough with one another (maybe more spiritually than anything, cause it likely isn’t so apparent from an outside perspective) that they form a Severed Warden like some sort of Digimon evolution or whatever 😇 There is some large gap of time where the Operator does not see them, the entire Prodah arc happening under her nose so when she next greets them they are together as the Warden and shes so proud of em ;; she doesnt really understand how it happened/works but she knows Vedah and Nahkip are in there and they do their best to introduce Prodah to her. After some coaxing it uncurls itself to meet her and she's absolutely appalled to see a friend in such a sorry state (being a Warden didn’t heal old scars), and figured that wasn’t any way for someone to live. so she removes her gloves and gently holds its hand in her own Void-corrupted ones (that I’m sure most Operators have anyway; shes extremely self-conscious about people seeing them but the Murmur are similar to her, in a way, so with them she relents) to offer that connection and comfort with it. In the same motion, some transfer of power takes place and after a brief moment, Prodah finds itself whole again with two new fingers to replace its lost ones, brimming with the light of Void energy. IN TURN, though, not such is without consequence, the Operator now missing those exact same digits that Prodah initially lacked. She quite literally gave it her own (which is why its lighter-colored fingers in the image do not have the standard issue Murmur claws. also this throws the Indifference for a loop because ??? bastard child I gave you that for YOU. not for you to just give handouts to thralls 😐). This is a complete heel turn for Prodah because while it was initially a perfect, veinless creature and demonized to all hell and back.. to receive marks from the Maker itself??? WILDLY different story. Okay we respect you now. like a lot. like A LOT a lot.

I absolutely had plans to include The Fragmented One in my little repertoire of creatures as well :3c For this I’m going to pull directly from my brief lore document instead of just reiterating what is perfectly fine to copy-paste instead, if no one minds:

“To make an example for the Operator, the Drifter assists Loid in secret in purging the Laboratories of Murmur presence, but ends up slaying the Warden of Vedah, Nahkip, and Prodah in the process. The Operator’s heartrending grief at their passing draws uneasiness from the Indifference itself, and her dormant, volatile energy involuntarily wrenches forth their fragments from the afterlife, as if they had never perished at all (this is unknown to her; her döppelganger is the one to impart this information, yet not knowledge of their whereabouts). She dedicates restless hours to searching for them, neglecting her own health, too nerve-wracked to properly eat or sleep. It is after a week’s passing that the Operator discovers an odd formation within The Great Indifference and, upon touching its surface, the structure breathes in new life, lost fragments rising from beneath the sand to create the One. Upon spotting Vedah, Nahkip, and Prodah atop the bow of the amalgamation, she becomes overjoyed at their revivification, triggering a transference of power between them; the Operator’s Void energy unknowingly begins to bleed over into the One, a deadly power donation creating an impossibly cataclysmic entity with capabilities yet to be measured. In anointment, the Operator honorably dubs the creature Fronrein—’tandem roar’—and it is forever at her beck and call.”

this Fragmented One is no stronger than the one you face normally. I just wanted to squeeze in something for my lore that could possibly explain why that fucker is SO god damn brutal in Steel Path.

Lastly (thank Christ right), something I haven’t yet fully fleshed out is that I want to pull the consciousness of the main fragments into the Operator’s warframes. Likely happened at some point during Fronrein’s birth. it’d be neat for these friends to exist in two places at once :) seems totally feasible to me given how freaky the Void gets. Vedah inhabits her Wisp, Nahkip her Protea, and Prodah her Harrow. None of this is planned, it just sort of Happens. the fourth arm of the One also gets dragged into this (dont have much for it. similar mannerisms to Nahkip I know at least), being placed into the Drifter’s Chroma, and she is NOT happy about it. very peeved actually. She hates these fucking things and to now have them basically be sentient frames walking and (telepathically) talking around the ship MUST be some sort of cruel divine punishment. She mellows out though, after some grueling amount of time, becoming a bit more platonic with her Chroma after slowly letting her own defenses down and just bonding and talking with the guy (now that these Murmurs can actually do that), but still is a bit standoffish with the Operator’s frames.

Operator thinks it’s cool as all hell. She’s brainstorming what all frames she could possibly get next and then try to shove Murmurs into those ones too. MUCH to the Drifter’s chagrin. god help them.

ANYWAY. I dont want to beta read this again I just hope it makes sense. Above all I hope it satisfies your ask ;; this is nearing 3,000 on the word count and actually took multiple days to write LOL /// thank you for giving me the opportunity to spill about these guys :’]

[lightwise]

Comparing Acolyte vs. Skeleton Crew - Eps 4 & 5

I am comparing and contrasting The Acolyte vs. Skeleton Crew episode by episode to figure out where Acolyte fell apart (for me) and failed to live up to its potential. There are three themes that I have pulled out of both shows: the perspectives and viewpoints of their child characters, the power struggle of light vs. dark in the galaxy, and specific viewpoints and opinions about the Jedi Order.

Read my intro post and recaps of Episodes 1 & 2 and Episode 3 from both shows first if you haven't already.

In both Acolyte and Skeleton Crew, episode 4 ended up being the weakest and most disjointed episodes in my opinion. There are decent aspects to them both but they are my least favorite in each season. However, they each set up episode 5, which in both shows is a pivotal, plot turning episode where a morally gray character enacts violence on children and changes the stakes and direction of the narrative. I think episodes 4 and 5 should have aired together in Acolyte without a week in between, so I rewatched them back to back.

Episode 4

Oh hey, we’re finally back on Khofar for a hot second. Why is Kelnacca always outside/returning to his house? What is he doing each day? Is he cooking something in this scene? We’re shown that he has carved and chalked symbols of the Brendok ascension and the witches’ moon-forged tattoos all over the walls of his shelter. Obviously he’s become a little obsessed with figuring out…something about their encounter with the witches on Brendok. But what? Sadly, we’ll never get to find out. 

I haven’t really mentioned it but one aspect of Acolyte that failed for me was the soundtrack. On my first watch I couldn’t even remember that there was a soundtrack, it was so lacking in any memorable motifs or themes. Paying attention to it now, it mostly seems to rely on very stereotypical “spooky” or suspenseful sounds but with no unique songs or strong connections to Star Wars themes in any of the episodes. I would guarantee that this contributed to the reception of the show as a whole, since music has always been such a defining feature of Star Wars storytelling. Skeleton Crew, on the other hand, has a very catchy and unique soundtrack that takes pirate and adventure sounding themes and anchors them in the original Star Wars motifs. 

There’s a lottt of exposition in this episode, and it doesn’t flow as well as the dialogue in the last episode did. Osha and Jecki’s premature goodbye is a bit awkward and Amandla is suddenly very stiff in her portrayal of Osha, while her portrayal of Mae later in the episode is finally much more loose and engaging. I don’t know how they broke up filming each episode but it’s almost like she has a hard time switching between her embodiment of each twin. I like seeing the bond that Osha and Jecki have formed, though. Jecki is the main person who has been able to see past Osha’s facade and acknowledge her complexities. 

This episode has a lot of cuts back and forth between scenes which also don’t do it any favors. 

Qimir’s little game of following Mae around is pretty obvious at this point. I was facepalming the rest of the episode at her inability to realize that he and her Master are the same person. Their conversations as they hunt down Kelnacca are both interesting and confusing. How did Mae and the Stranger originally meet? What exactly is the deal she made with him?

I liked seeing a small council of Jedi trying to solve a problem that’s not related to a clone wars battle. And I don’t mind the presence of Ki-Adi Mundi either. However, Vernestra continues to be a thorn in my side in this show. This could have been a perfect opportunity to tie this show in more thoroughly to the High Republic Era that preceded it, and mention the various dark side and alternative factions the Jedi dealt with in the centuries before. Here they automatically assume Mae was trained by a Jedi. Vernestra also immediately wants to keep the situation secret and says that informing the High Council would require informing the Senate as well. Has this always been the case, or has Senate oversight of the Order increased recently? As usual with her scenes, we have to take her statements at face value without being given the full context. 

The conversation that follows between Sol and Vernestra is much better executed. Given that Lee Jung-jae learned English for this role (which is impressive enough before we even take his acting ability into account), his inflections are masterful in scenes like this, and Vernestra conveys well her frustrations that she hid in front of their colleagues. Her concerns about Mae’s master and Sol’s involvement are well founded, though again a more blatant explanation of what their current knowledge of Dark side activity is could be helpful. 

This episode starts showcasing the theme of manipulation in this show. Vernestra hides her true feelings in front of most of the Jedi. Sol lies to her in order to keep himself on the mission to find Mae. Sol then leans into Osha’s feelings to get her to come with him as leverage. Qimir has been manipulating Mae’s perception of him since the beginning (although he’s somehow weirdly good at manipulating but terrible at actually lying with a straight face). Mae attempts to turn Qimir’s manipulation back onto him and thinks she succeeds, but unfortunately he’s still one step ahead. While in Skeleton Crew, manipulation and charm has been the main way that Jod has survived his whole life, and he uses those tactics on literally everyone he meets, even his own pirate crew and the kids. Even the kids use it to their advantage as well—Fern tells white lies to the adults in her life and to SM-33 to get what she wants and to keep the kids safe.  

Qimir waving a stick around to mimic a lightsaber is absolutely hilarious. 

“You want me to rejoin the Jedi?” Even though Osha herself walked away and has been refusing to think of herself as a Jedi since the show started, her hopefulness is almost startling here. Does she actually want to rejoin them that badly? Or is she just grasping for the sense of belonging that she lost, and really, has never been able to find in her life in the first place, even with her own twin and amongst her own people. This will set her up to be vulnerable to Qimir’s advances later. 

And now we come to another of my biggest issues with this show. I DETEST Bazil. Yeah, I said it. I think the character had literally nothing to contribute to the show, and the attempts at humor as well as pointed inclusionary language during scenes with him just fall completely flat for me. I’ve never really had a Star Wars creature that I felt was completely unnecessary but there’s a first time for everything. They could have used any other method for having the Jedi track Kelnacca down and run into Mae. 

What is this doubling down on civilians and allowing them weapons/having specific clothes for them? Is it a THR thing?

“Mae has always been your wound. Maybe Sol brought you here to face her, but maybe he brought you here to face yourself.” A really powerful statement from Yord that Sol will back up later. Osha has been completely closed off to the possibility of her sister still having some good in her, maybe because she has been unable to move past the ways in which darkness and resentment have hampered her own life. Jecki then gives an even stronger perspective that could have been a saving philosophy for Osha if she had accepted it: “We’re not defined by what we lose. We’re defined by what we survive.” This advice could have helped Jod in Skeleton Crew as well. I see a lot of parallels in the ways Jod has to face his own wounds and desires and how he buckles under them with how Osha is grappling with her experiences. 

I'm not a fan of this first encounter with the umbramoths. The tonal shifts between attempts at humor, attempts at drama, and attempts at philosophy are get more jarring rather than complementary as the show goes on. 

Why is Qimir in such a hurry to find Kelnacca? Does he know the Jedi are not far behind them? Or does he think that pushing Mae harder will stall her loyalty changing away from him? 

There’s some arguably poor writing here as Mae finally explains why her Master wants her to kill a Jedi without a weapon as a final lesson for herself and her commitment to the dark side. Usually, a commitment to the dark side involves being willing to kill an unarmed opponent or bystander, and it’s something that the Jedi expressly forbid. But here, Mae explains that her master wants *her* to be unarmed, but then explains the moral conundrum as though she’s supposed to be killing the Jedi while *they* are unarmed, which was already true of Torbin. Something is really off with the script here and what Headland was intending. That’s not how that moral quandary usually plays out. Plus we still don’t know why her master made it a requirement, only that it’s difficult to fulfill. 

Does Qimir offer to get Mae water because he genuinely wants her to get her strength back? Or does he see what her motivations are and is giving her enough of a leash to see if she’ll stay loyal to him or go running to the Jedi’s mercy, which is what she tries to do? 

I do need to pause and say that the Khofar set and production design was the best one in the show. It feels very lush and realistic and spooky and I appreciate that. 

“Osha being alive changes everything. My loyalty is to Osha, not your Master.” This is my favorite scene with Mae. For a moment she comes into her own and tries to do the right thing regardless of the consequences to her. Unfortunately, she realizes too late that she is backstabbing her Master to his face. Qimir also plays into his helplessness pretty well, and his surprise at being strung up is pretty convincing even if he was waiting to see if Mae would betray him. This was the moment that I knew without a doubt that he would turn out to be the Stranger. 

Now, here’s where we start running into some deeper plot issues.  The motivations and stakes keep changing each episode. While there is a natural progression to some of them, the way the story zigzags between each new direction every single episode is starting to give some whiplash and is not executed very well in my opinion, especially on a first watch. It also requires paying careful attention to a vast amount of sometimes confusing dialogue to keep up with where each character is at, which is not necessarily great:

1 - How is Mae supposed to tell the Jedi about her Master if Sol already searched her mind and determined she doesn’t know for sure who he is? 

2 - Mae has changed her mind about her loyalties (for now), and while that is not a true surprise based on the direction the story has been taking her, it does raise some conundrums. Why was she in a deal with her Master to kill the Brendok Jedi when that was her personal vendetta (in other words, why would he care if she abandons it), and why does the Stranger then make sure that Kelnacca dies before she can get to him, if he had no personal connections to him? She can still turn herself in, even if the Jedi will have a hard time believing that she isn’t responsible for this murder. It doesn’t do the Stranger any favors, really. 

3 - Sol is the first to sense the great darkness they are about to encounter, and gives his first real indication to Osha that he knows something about her past that she doesn’t. His motivations have been coming more into question this episode. 

4 - Osha is prepared to face her sister and potentially reconcile, and earlier in the episode she expressed excitement at the prospect of rejoining the Jedi. But her turn towards the light side of herself is about to be used as a bait and switch.  

The sheer waste of Kelnacca here makes me furious, honestly. He’s literally just a hairy prop. Yes, I know we still get to see him in action in the flashbacks of ep 7 but at this point in the release we didn’t know that. At least Indara got a decent fight scene and some speaking lines. Given that Carrie Ann and Joonas were the most heavily promoted actors and Jedi characters in the marketing, I remain very disappointed and how their characters were sidelined in the show itself. 

That being said, the sun slipping below the horizon as Mae finds his body and a look of horror floods her face is a nice touch. 

The foreshadowing around Osha being face to face with the Stranger and his red blade coming between them and illuminating her is also really great. She and Mae officially trade sides in this episode even though we won’t see the ramifications for a few more episodes. 

Episode 5

The redeeming quality of this episode is of course the action. The Stranger’s prowess and sheer animalistic fighting capability is astonishing, and all of the Jedi he is facing are highly skilled themselves, which makes him eviscerating 4-5 of them at a time even more impressive. The introduction of Cortosis is also freaking cool. 

The mechanics of Osha encountering everyone and then her and Yord being able to get away feel natural and give us a good sense of what is going on. Interestingly, the Stranger seems willing to kill her as he flings his lightsaber at her before Sol turns it into a boomerang. Was he really going to sacrifice her like that? 

“Master Sol. You don’t remember me?” This makes it seem like the Stranger was originally Sol’s padawan. Or is he referencing them meeting in the pharmacy shop in episode 2? Either way, I think he's a little jealous of him.

The cuts between scenes keep getting worse and worse. Action and dialogue are cut in very jarring places as the show goes on and it’s frustrating. 

Jecki and Mae’s fight is great, but I was already getting frustrated at the lack of clarity around Mae’s current motivations. What does she think she’s doing? She seemed to wholeheartedly want to throw herself on the mercy of the Jedi last episode. It’s understandable that her master showing up is frightening and might make her rethink her plans, but what does she think is going to happen? Is she anticipating that he will easily kill all the Jedi and then come after her too? Does she just want to get away now? Does she want to try and find/protect Osha? We have no idea why she’s resisting arrest so strongly now. 

“What master hides his face from his pupil?” “You tell me”. Not only are Mae and Osha undergoing a reversal of loyalty and motivation in these two episodes, but so are the Stranger and Sol. 

“And let you read my thoughts? No”. “He gets inside your head and stays there”. “My mother could do that. Get inside a Jedi’s head." This show is weirdly fixated on Jedi mind reading capabilities and it never explains why and I still think this usage of it isn’t supported by the rest of the franchise. It really serves no purpose. 

This is going to be one of two times that I actually gush about this show. The blocking, choreography, cinematography, and emotion of this episode are all stellar, and are at their peak in the fight sequences between Jecki and Qimir. It is heartbreaking to watch her fight him, to see how valiant of an effort she gives, how much she is able to both keep up with him and even put him back on his heel, as a young padawan, and to think what she could have become as a fully grown Jedi if she had survived this fight. But of course she doesn’t, and she has the dubious honor of being the one to reveal that the Stranger, Mae’s master, and Qimir are the same person—and to immediately be gutted for it. One of the few times that shock value in Star Wars actually felt appropriate in my opinion. 

“Was that it’s name” honestly felt kind of unnecessary. The rest of the show is about making Qimir more human and vulnerable, so I’m not sure why they felt the need to make him completely callous toward Jecki here. He’s already chillingly ruthless without that. “She was a child.” “You brought her here”.  Qimir is peeling back layer after layer of trauma on Sol and we’re starting to see the darkness that lies underneath in him. We will find out later that Qimir also has trauma, and it would have been nice to see it referenced here, because something to do with his childhood might have made his awful remarks about Jecki hold more weight, similar to how Jod’s eventual resentment towards the four children he’s been helping in Skeleton Crew says volumes about his own upbringing. 

Qimir’s explanation that he would be categorized as Sith by the Jedi, but he doesn’t claim that title for himself, and his desire to use his power as he wishes and train someone to follow in his footsteps, is a perfect reveal at this point in time. It still doesn’t answer the question of why he gave Mae this assignment in the first place, AND she hadn’t actually revealed him yet at all. But his need to wipe any evidence of his existence by killing everyone there (and punishing Mae for her disobedience), and his insistence that the only reason he has to do so in the first place is because the Jedi “make the rules”, makes sense when looked at from his point of view, even though it’s a horrific stance to take. Similarly, Jod’s betrayal of the kids at the end of episode 5 of Skeleton Crew, and his resulting behavior towards them, makes sense when viewed in the light of his ulterior motivations the show had already uncovered. Both men really don’t want to be doing what they are doing, they don’t necessarily want to hurt anyone or have to be violent—but they feel they have no choice in order to feel safe in their existence. 

Sol and Qimir are matched perfectly in anger and skill, and I love to see it. 

Osha ironically both prevents her sister from escaping by finally having the courage to stun her, AND saves Qimir’s life by preventing Sol from delivering a killing blow, even though she had just watched Qimir snap Yord’s neck and Sol would have been perfectly within his right to neutralize the threat that Qimir has presented. 

“I’ve accepted my darkness. What have you done with yours.” Incredible line. Stunning, honestly. It solidifies the show’s stance on the Jedi—that they have underlying darkness and issues that they refuse to accept. I’m not here to debate that as a point of view. I do want to talk about whether it’s being effectively communicated or not. Show and tell have to work together in a narrative to be effective. We know Sol has darkness in him by this point—his facial expressions, tone of voice, and actions have conveyed those hints at different points in the show. So when Qimir points it out verbally, it’s not an empty line. But when he talks about the Jedi not allowing him to exist, killing his dream, etc—we haven’t been shown that in this show, at all. Only told. The same way that we have only been told about, but not seen evidence of the politics around the Jedi Order’s current place and reputation in the Republic. Even with knowledge of other parts of the Star Wars universe, each individual story has to back up its own claims, and Acolyte has refused to do so with the larger narrative.

And now for the final major frustration I have with this episode. Calling back to this line: “You’ve always been weak”. Mae flopping around like a wet fish in the last two episodes is in complete disservice to her character and in my opinion the plot at this point. It’s true that her heart has always belonged to Osha before anything else, but her inability to see what’s right in front of her, as well as her continued back and forth, feels a little at odds with her stubbornness exhibited as a child. She finally has what she wants—she has Osha and they are both away from Sol and away from Qimir. Free to reconnect, run away, and start over. Of course Mae doesn’t realize what Osha’s lack of knowledge is around what happened on Brendok, although she should have anticipated it. And of course they start arguing because even if Osha had the full story, her sister still tried to strangle her ambitions and keep her at her side in a suffocating bond the last time they were together. And Mae exhibits the same toxic traits of controlling love mixed with real affection even now: “I did what I needed to do. For you. For our family. Please choose us.” However—NONE of that justifies her once again changing course without warning, abandoning her sister that she has been searching for for years, to go after Sol for—more revenge? To complete her assignment? To try and eliminate him from Osha’s perspective? While leaving Osha and having no idea where or when she might see her again after she’s claimed repeatedly that all she wants is to reunite with her? It’s completely nonsensical at this point in my opinion, and from here on out Mae just feels like a plot point being moved around on a chess board, rather than a grounded character who is making her own decisions.  

And finally, Bazil once again being a useless addition to the plot and achieving nothing with his presence 😬 Also not really sure what Qimir's final lines as he finds the unconscious Osha are really supposed to add.

Quality and Story

For both shows, the lowest and then some of the highest points occur in these episodes. Somewhat lackluster 4th episodes set the stage for incredibly important and well executed 5th episodes. When viewed back to back that's not as much of a problem. When the shows were airing and there was a week in between, the tone after the fourth episodes wasn't as appreciative due to not knowing where exactly the stories were heading.

At this point in Acolyte, I was becoming frustrated at the ever widening swings in quality, especially in the writing. Absolutely stunning lines could be delivered one minute and then very jarring, poorly acted attempts at humor the next. Parts of the story keep not making sense even as more and more dialogue is piled on trying to explain them. And yet the sets, the fights, and some of the more emotional conversations and character choices are all really gripping. I wish Headland could have taken the momentum she had in the smaller moments and truly been able to translate it to the larger ones without faltering. In episode 4, we think certain character directions and decisions are being set up, that explanations for the plot points so far will start to make sense--and some do, but others continue to become more and more entangled or contradictory.

For Skeleton Crew, I just didn't resonate as much with the setting and tone of episode 4, as it lands the kids on another of the At planets and has them each face some of their fears. The tone felt too sci-fi and too WWII, honestly, and the middle lagged. However, the choices each character makes in this episode set them up for Jod's ultimate betrayal in episode 5. While that episode was the most "meh" part of the show for me, it is still very high quality and still pushes forward the larger narrative, speaking to Skeleton Crew's overall consistency and quality. And of course the next episode then carries those directions and runs with them, building a layered and fracturing alliance between the kids, SM-33, and Jod until it finally snaps, while also threading other aspects of the narrative back in (the pirates, the kids' parents searching for them) to set in motion the rest of the story.

Children's POV

There are no flashbacks or children's POV in these episodes in Acolyte--but their absence is almost more intense. Generational wounding is driving the narrative at this point, with Mae and Osha's trauma, some unresolved conflict from Sol's past decisions, and Qimir's struggle for survival, all being passed down and not dealt with. Everyone's trauma really starts to come out and play here. In addition, Jecki, the youngest and brightest character in the story (visually, as well as serving as a metaphor for innocence, curiosity, and the next generation), is brutally murdered as the personification of the show's darkness is revealed in Qimir. Innocence and ignorance is put to death in these episodes, and the results are catastrophic for Sol, Mae, and Osha's decisions, and everyone else's lives.

Similarly, in Skeleton Crew, the children's naiveté, playfulness, and sheltered perspectives are slowly stripped away as they encounter the harsh, war-torn dynamics of At Achrann, are attacked by SM-33, and betrayed by Jod. Every adult presence they have begun to rely on fails them in one way or another, and they have to learn how to start pulling reserves of strength from within themselves and from each other. On At Achrann, children are treated as mini adults, and the facade of respect their parents/leaders give them really just puts them in harms way as they are trained for meaningless wars. By the end of the episode, Fern, Neel, and Wim to some degree have broken down a little and realize that the ways they have been approaching this journey are not working anymore. Once they arrive on Lanupa, Jod has to disguise the kids as adults because children are not allowed. Their continued childish behavior and their inability to defend themselves becomes a liability as they are tracked down by Jod's old pirate crew and ultimately betrayed by him. By the end, they only have each other to rely on.

Light vs. Dark

These two episodes in Acolyte are literally called Day and Night. Similarly, in Skeleton Crew, episode 4 takes place on a grey, foggy, grim, war-torn, apocalyptic partisan planet, and episode 5 takes place in a bright, sunny, golden, hedonistic luxury spa. Both shows also come to a tipping point for all the characters and starts pushing to the surface what their loyalties and beliefs are.

“I’ve accepted my darkness. What have you done with yours.” Incredible line. Stunning, honestly. It serves as the moral of the story for the show, however imperfectly it was applied. Every character that walks out of these episodes alive has to grapple with their inner motivations, their past choices, and their current actions in this harrowing 24 hours, and none of them walk out unchanged.

This same quote could be applied to Skeleton Crew. In episode 4, we think that Jod is finally making a turn towards becoming the good guy--he saves the kids multiple times even when he doesn't have to. But in episode 5, he is running away from his past, literally, by trying to avoid Pokkit and the rabble of pirates coming after him, and is then faced with his greatest weakness--the possibility of wealth. And unfortunately, he folds, and spends the rest of the show operating out of his weakest and darkest woundings. Similarly, Sol, Osha, and Mae all start to crumble under the darkness from their pasts they have refused to accept, whereas In contrast, the kids in Skeleton Crew and Qimir all will only get stronger from here on out in the story, because they have already, at least partially, faced their own fears and decided they want something different. And they all look towards connection as a source of that strength, which will play out in the next episode.

The Jedi

I'm going to repeat what I wrote above because I think it encompasses the crux of the matter: "I’ve accepted my darkness. What have you done with yours.” This line solidifies the Acolyte's stance on the Jedi—that they have underlying darkness and issues that they refuse to accept. I’m not here to debate that as a point of view. I do want to talk about whether it’s being effectively communicated or not. Show and tell have to work together in a narrative to be effective. We know Sol has darkness in him by this point—his facial expressions, tone of voice, and actions have conveyed those hints at different points in the show. Same with Osha and Mae. So when Qimir points it out verbally, it’s not an empty line. But when he talks about the Jedi not allowing him to exist, killing his dream, etc.—we haven’t been shown that in this show, at all. Only told. The same way that we have only been told about, but not seen evidence of the politics around the Jedi Order’s current place and reputation in the Republic. Even with knowledge of other parts of the Star Wars universe, each individual story has to back up its own claims, and Acolyte has refused to do so with the larger narrative.

In these episodes of Acolyte, lightsabers are used both as a symbol of the Jedi and Force users capabilities, and also as a tool of destruction. In Skeleton Crew, all of Wim's fantasies about being a Jedi suddenly seem to fall right in his lap, as he picks up a lightsaber laying in Tak Rennod's treasure vault and heroically tries to stand up to Jod. Unlike most entries in Star Wars canon, Skeleton Crew doesn't glamorize this moment but keeps it very realistic--Wim almost cuts his own foot off as the lightsaber ignites upside down and he drops it. By the end of the episode, that lightsaber is pulled into Jod's traitorous hands, and Wim's categorization of him as a Jedi becomes outwardly ironically true, although we know he won't be using the weapon for anything but nefarious purposes. Jod takes on the appearances of what we think of when the Jedi come to mind, while Wim will learn in the next episode that those external factors were never what made someone a true Jedi at all.

Read my recap of Episode 6 here.

[messrmoonyy]

Hey Messr!!

I was thinking about your opinion/some hcs on Tess's reaction when she first sees the reader (If you need some context: I imagined Tess, Ellie and Joel coming to Jackson and Maria sends someone to present the town for them the next day) How does Tess feel inside? Cause ber face doesnt say much, but Im sure she must feel a lottt

Hello my sweet!

Rambles below!

I have written something sortaaa along the lines of this in a fic I’ve not finished/posted yet. Because in my head there’s two ways this could go.

The first ( which is what I went with in my fic to add a little angst lmao ) is that Tess doesn’t like Jackson right away. And along with that doesn’t particularly like reader. Because it’s too unfamiliar, it’s such a huge dramatic change. And then you add in reader who is happy and joyful and wanting to welcome her? Yeah she wouldn’t vibe

BUT

We then have the cute fluffy side of the coin.

The side of the coin where she is smitten immediately. Like you gotta think that Tess at this point would’ve been on the road for months. And now she’s safe. And Ellie is safe and Joel is safe. And she hasn’t had sight nor sound of another woman that isn’t tryna murder her since leaving Boston. And then she sees you? She kinda would ignore it at first, but then she spends more time with you and she can’t help the way she’s feeling.

She would definitely not tell you though. Not at first. She wouldn’t say anything but inside she’s thrilled every time she’s paired up with you on runs, or when she bumps into you in the Bison. I have this reoccurring Hc that Tess really really mellows out in Jackson, soft Tess is my sweet baby girl and I love her

And when she doesn’t finally tell you honestly she’s terrified. Which confuses her so much because she’s never been worried or hesitant to go after what she wanted in the past. If she liked someone. She had them. But she’s scared with you. She’s scared you’re gonna reject her, or not believe her. And she’s overjoyed when you reciprocate. Because she finally had everything she needs. She’s safe. Her lil makeshift family is safe. And she’s in love. She has you.

[luckyyyduckyyy]

Oooh! A BATIM AU sounds like it could be a fun time!

I haven't been keeping up with ask blogs for a longgg time, (Undertale had me in a chokehold in middle school - I'm in college now lmao) so I can't be much help with that aspect, butttt what I'll put here will be from what I've personally observed from the DCA fandom itself, and from a writer and artist perspective. :)

Hope this will be some help! It's alright if ya don't take all that I suggest, they're all just my opinions in the end - Your AU can be made and handled however you'd like!

Memorable/unique design:

I know not all ask blogs use visuals to answer asks, but having at least a character reference sheet Pinned or easily accessible will get people more interested in the characters they're interacting with.

Especially since this is an AU, something that'll make Sun and Moon stand out from cannon and look separate from each other will get people interested! Looking at characters from BATIM they're usually dressed pretty simply, with their shape language doing most of the talking while the clothes/accessories imply their role.

So, if you want to do a simple design, you have a lottt of free wiggle room! A lot of people do tend to enjoy complicated designs too, and if you want to do one you totally have room to as well - just remember to have a focal point in mind! (Usually it's the face, but it can be an important element of the outfit too.)

Here's some AUs that I think have successful designs if you want some inspiration (Mix of simple and complicated!): GITM/Ghost In The Machine, Pluck Your Heartstrings, Harpy AU, Candy AU, Sleuth Jesters, LDR/Love Death Rollerskates, and any Mer/Mermay design honestly lol

(There are definitely many many mannnny more great designs out there, these are just off the top of my head!)

Specialized Stylization: (completely art based advice - you can skip if not relevant :) )

If you DO plan on answering asks with art/visuals, sometimes half of the appeal is just an artist's style! Don't be afraid to add your own flavor of shape language or color into it. Not only to make it your own, but to convey what kind of personalities/characters the audience is interacting with.

If you were to draw Bendy for example, maybe his small form would look round and cartoony, clean, have highlights, maybe even hints of blue in the ink black of his body. Then if you were to draw his brute/demon form, maybe the overall shape is more jagged and made of straight/scratchy lines that come to a point. The color could be pure black and dull or have hints of a red undertones. Even doing a slight background change (color, shading type, overall scene) between the two forms gives off different tones - I imagine even doing these slight differences can indirectly direct asks to point in ways you'd want them to go!

(I think it would be especially effective if you're planning on going into the horror aspect of both BATIM and FNAF. CREEPY BOIS!)

Mixed Plot Relevance:

This is more my personal tastes on crossover AUs and writing, so feel free to take this with a grain of salt!

In things like Crossovers, a reason as to why the characters are in this world and how their story has changed is a big deal. Wether it be that Sun and Moon got taken over by the ink as animatronics or that they were born from the ink can change the story and it's relevance to each other's worlds significantly. The best part about crossover AUs, in my opinion, is finding out how much of the story leans into the included franchises!

You could completely make it a BATIM world and just include the FNAF characters who would have an alternative background that spawn them from the ink machine or replace characters from BATIM. You could make it a FNAF based world and have the BATIM world bleed into it, almost like some sort of corruption. Any which way, it's a fascinating time to figure out how they'd all blend together and is certainly a good mystery for the audience. People love seeing iconic characters come up unexpectedly, or expectedly but having a postponed reveal - finding out everyone's roles in a new universe can really flesh out the world your characters live in!

You don't need a ton of characters though, even just mentioning their existence and relationships from time to time can be enough!

(Bonus points if you have special designs for them too, since more characters mean more for people to latch onto. I interact mostly with the art side of DCA Tumblr, so from that perspective, having characters for people to draw will give more chances of artists interacting :) )

Thats all I got! Hopefully you can take something away from this, and good luck with the ask blog!!! ^^

HELLO! I'm a sorta newer creator here and id like to know if anyone could give me some pointers on a AU I'm working on where Sundrop and Moondrop are in the Bendy And The Ink Machine universe! I would like to kno what could make this au more appealing and it will be a Ask blog so please if you want wanna see more of this give me a follow! Anyways thank you for your time!

[nanaloco]

Being best friends with Jaemin

"If y/n says the sky is pink, then the sky is pink 🙄"

Genre : fluff, Bestfriend!Jaemin x Gn!Reader

Warnings : none (I only write fluff)

What it would be like to be best friends with Jaemin (who you secretly like) [who secretly likes you too]

Appart of the : It's complicated series

• Very spontaneous

• Always checks if you're comfortable with something or if you like something

• He's just so himself and that's what makes him a people magnet

• He changes from soft and quiet to loud and chaotic  within minutes

• Normally ends up going w/ whatever you say

• If yall (group of friends) are arguing on what to get, if you suggest something, even if no one else wants it, you'll somehow all end up getting it

• "Y/n wants icecream so let's get icecream 🙄"

• Defends you in public no matter what!!!

• "If y/n says the sky is pink, then the sky is pink 🙄"

• Genuinely values your honest opinion

• You follow him everywhere,

• You love following him around so much to the point where he will tell you his plans for the day and ask if you want to come

• Will either complete errans together or on facetime

• Typical hangouts with jaemin would be

• Running errans, Cafe not really dates but kind of a date dates or going to try new things that you both suck at like pottery,

• You made matching mugs and they both sit on the shelf above his bed

• You also love baking/cooking together, definetly doing seasonal stuff together

• Like carving pumpkins or making ginger bread houses or buying and eating chocolate bunnies

• You follow him around but he equally if not more follows you around

• He's so whipped for you and will gladly show it cuz hes Na Jaemin

• Inseperable

• His friends call him your sidekick

• Because he will gladly do anything you ask him

• Therefore, you guys often do facemasks together

• Very affectionate

• Will hype you up and take LOTS of pictures of you and post them to his instagram

• Talks about you A LOTTT to his friends to the point where they all want to meet you

• The dreamies will have really random awkward chats with you saying that jaemin is a really good guy

• "You know Y/n, if my sister had to date ANY of my friends, It would definetly be Jaemin"

•"Have you ever considered Jaemin as...more than friends??"

• They can all tell jaemin likes you but you remain oblivious

• Sometimes he'll sit on the other side of the couch

• Others theres no space between you

• Random little dances he does which you find adorable

• If you catch him staring, he'll continue staring at you until you look away

• Will cook for you at any given time of the day

• "I'm hungry"

• "Omw rn!!"

• Randomly messages/calls you about cool things he discovers or 'fun facts'

• "Y/n! Guess what I just found out!"

• "Jaems, its 4am, why are you still up"

• Very expressive in how he speaks

• Large hand movements, crazy facial expressions

• You love him for it

• The type to yawn and put his arm over your shoulder

In a platonic way if thats even possible

• Once he knocks and you open the door, he either

• Hugs you immediately "did you miss me"

• Or waits for you to invite him in

• Aww what a gentleman Hyuck take notes  

.

.

.

.

Part 2 to my 'It's complicated' mutual pinning series where you're best friends :)

Might do a part 2 to when you actually start dating if enough people are interested❕

Thank you so much for reading ❕❕❕👾

@/hoshiiitrd on instagram and twitter [for mutual, friends or trades :)]

Ily guys!

REQUESTS ARE OPEN!💕👾

Starting an @ mention list so lmk if you want to be added

[egcdeath]

you trust my opinion and feedback i’m literally crying🥹

this is my opinion and feedback:

the reason i liked that one anon’s idea abt reader initiating the case was because to me it was abt reader coming to the final realization that nathan is at such a level of toxic it’s not fair to keep chloe around him more than necessary, and despite knowing that, i didn’t initially register nathan as abusive, i read him more as just not necessarily a good guy. but when i think about it for literally more than two seconds it’s so obvious that he’s emotionally abusive, manipulative and controlling, especially of the reader,, but i liked the idea that reader started the case being the protective mother she is,

HOWEVERRRRR: upon further reflection, it actually does make a LOT MORE sense (at least to me) for nathan to be going after custody of chloe to control reader, rather than reader trying to limit nathan’s access to chloe. bcos in my mind nathan isn’t really a threat to chloe, physically speaking, but he is unfortunately willing to use her in order to get to reader. so it makes a lot of sense that if he hears that reader and chloe are moving in with joel, nathan, either subconsciously or otherwise, realizes it would be even harder for him to control reader, and the only way he has any control over her is through chloe.

and, at least in his own twisted mind, he genuinely thinks he has a case because joel did punch him once (nathan was asking for itt,, i’m a joel defender and apologist literally no matter what) and from nathan’s pov, JOEL is the one trying to control reader and chloe (does that make sense?? i feel like i didn’t word that right but i hope my point got across) like obviously joel is very much NOT controlling anyone but nathan doesn’t see it that way

but yeah thinking about it more it makes a lottt more sense for nathan to have started the case and i like that more for the story, thematically AND based on the character development

anyways this is actually a full length essay MLA format and all, works cited page to follow ,,

-🍓

i love your feedback and opinions!! i feel like you giving me an avenue to talk about what i’m doing and why is so helpful for me to flesh out my characters, and it’s just helpful to hear an outside perspective!! 🫶🏽🫶🏽

i definitely see the appeal of both catalysts! i’m definitely biased towards nathan initiating it, mostly because i’ve already written a few thousand words around that lol

i think the reader definitely would initiate it if she had any hope that she would actually be able to take away custody from him, but i think she still feels pretty powerless a lot of the time when it comes to #that man and probably thinks that there’s no way she could get full custody. i also think that she doesn’t know how mid of a father nathan has been, other than not really showing up for her stuff. like i don’t think chloe has ever explicitly told her that she doesn’t like going over there because he’s just a deadbeat. like when they were married he was definitely doing Some fatherly duties because she convinced him to, but now he’s kinda just there. and chloe definitely notices. but because of that i don’t think she has any real reason to question his ability to parent to the point where he’d completely lose custody. let me also clarify that nathan never abused chloe. he also never did it in front of her (to his and the reader’s knowledge) so the reader doesn’t have any reason to think that would be going on either.

i definitely agree with your reasoning! nathan kinda just sees chloe as a means to an end, and the end is having control over the reader. i think nathan definitely views relationships as a sort of power game, where the man in the relationship basically owns his significant other. and i think nathan has already felt emasculated by joel, and now in his mind, joel has possession over HIS possession, and he will do anything to change that, even if it means having to take on a daughter he doesn’t really want to be responsible for.

i love a good full length essay!! i love hearing about other people’s thoughts and ideas but especially yours strawb!! thanks 🫶🏽🍓

[petewentzisblack1312]

I think going off of MANIA and people saying it’s a bad album I think they kinda knew people wouldn’t “get” it… and that’s why they put Wilson (Expensive Mistakes) on there and like. “if I could get my shit together I’m gonna run away and never see any of you again” and “I became such a strange shape from trying to fit in” and in the music video they are literally SELLING themselves (out) like!!! Their brains I can’t

But I think that song has a lot of similarities to Thriller like ���crowds are won and lost and won again but our hearts beat for the die hards” —> “There’s nothing more cruel to be loved by everybody but you” kinda feels connected to me in a way I can’t exactly explain. Idk. I feel like Wilson is also a hodgepodge of a lot of different stuff so it’s difficult to glean a meaning from it but I do feel like it’s trying to do what Thriller (and also The Take Over, Breaks Over tbh) was doing, a “fuck you, I’m changing my sound AGAIN, you all make me want to run away bc you can’t handle change for one second, life is chaos ANYWAY, let me be chaotic to help me deal” and idk. I feel like it’s the natural progression from those IOH songs, like “at this point I’m done with this shit, I’m too old to care, I’m not staying the same for your comfort”. I think that’s SUCH an important song on the album tho for that reason when they did like a full 180 from SRAR and AB/AP which were more similar than they were different in that they were both more mainstream pop rock albums for the most part. Like if FOB was just trying to cash in on trends lmao they would’ve done the EDM thing a lottt earlier since it was a lot bigger at the time they were doing the pop rock shtick in like 2013-2016. Which idk. I guess they’re still fundamentally pop rock but u know what I mean, they bent genre a lot for MANIA In ways they didn’t for the prior two albums.

Also I hope you are feeling better :)

1) im not quite better yet as you may be able to tell from my still being up at almost 2am but getting there

2) idk what to say except rt^ like id say fall out boy is, on average, alt rock, just because they pull from so many different genres that it feels limiting to pick any one prefix but ultimately fall out boy is fall out boy. they do what they want when they want and if their fans want to come along for the ride were welcome to. were also welcome to express dissatisfaction (iirc once a fan told patrick she was personally disappointed with his ep and he paid her back right then and there) so when they said "crowds are won and lost and won again but our hearts beat for the diehards" they really meant it.

i think youre right in saying mania is a more mature version of ioh, i feel like they both approach fame and mental illness, but they put emphasis in different places. ioh focuses on fame, because when youre young youre kind of a mirror and what people think of you matters a lot no matter what. but mania focuses on mental health because fame is just a part of life now, and when you get older you (should) learn that other people arent you, and you dont Have to take their opinion into account.

ultimately no notes anon great take

[tuffdyke]

3, 4, 5, 9, 10

3. What’s your favourite shirt?

it changes a lot but right now i’ve been wearing a lot of plain white tshirts that come in 5 packs from the target kids section. honorable mention goes to my black 924 gilman bro-tank 

4. Favourite pants?

these black skinny jeans made of raw denim that my mom bought me. they fit perfectly and they’re a lottt sturdier than the flimsy skinny jeans i’ve been wearing all my life 

5. Favourite boots/shoes?

my docs obviously. although it’s been so hot i’ve been more inclined to wear my vans lately. also today i found a pair of maroon adidas sambas at buffalo exchange that are about to be my shit 9. Opinion on snapbacks?

i’m more of a dad hat kinda gay. i wear them to work to keep the sun off my face. either my camo oakland A’s one (that’s a baseball team for all you nerds) or my black ben davis one. i feel like my head’s to small to look good in a more traditional wider brimmed snapback

10. Do you have any butch friends? How did you meet?

yes!! i love my butch friends with all my heart. met a really good butch friend @ezriorre on leftbook and i joke that it’s the only good thing that came out of leftbook. 3 of my coworkers are butch and i just got drinks with one of them (who i may or may not have a crush on shhhh). also my girlfriend and i have been becoming acquainted with some of the older butches at our local gay bar which is super rad

[cosmictulips]

hiii! i wanna pop in this ask before free readings close, so i want to know about my twin flame. did i meet them already or not and how they're like as a person. thank you so much for doing this!- A🤡

Hello =D You got a lottt of strong energy on this one. so I got Death, Judgement & Ace of Swords as the general reading. I also wanna mention Temperance. Strength is the overall energy.

soooooo I don’t think you know this person.  there’s going to be a heavyyyy connection with this person as soon as you meet them.   Judging by the ace of swords here, I think you two might meet online. or maybe where you work. like it seems like someone is going to come up to you and just start talking to you.  or perhaps you learn of the person by like being introduced to them, or someone mentions them to you or vice versa.  

I get the feeling they’ll be very intense. and you can feel it.  it might scare you honestly lol.  but it’ll be a strong connection.  like magnetic lol.  very piercing eyes. like I’m getting either a very light blue or like darrrkkk brown.  ya know?   very transformative kind of person.  they probably love to talk about all the “taboo” subjects and probably change their opinions and philosphies a lot. Will probably travel a lot to be honest.

they also... pass judgement on other people lol.  not to say they are judgemental but I feel like they are very good at giving people karma lol. i don’t think they physically like hurt people but I feel like their energy like manifests it if that makes sense. they’re probably very good at going through changes and at manifesting realities. karma is a bitch but this person is even more so lol I get the vibe that they are also very patient.  so it’s not like you’re going to see right away how angry they can get.  I feel like they would make a great teacher lol.  but like, they feel like they loom. maybe space out. their presence is just so strong, and they’re so confident but in a quiet way lol. 

if they ain’t a scorpio or a cap I’m going to be very surprised lol.  or like have them as strong energies in their chart. 

so be on the look out for this person.  I feel like you’re going to meet them thise year and be absolutely intimidated by them lol

I hope this helps =D

if you need anything, feel free to stop on by =D

[youll-be-fine]

Hey this is totally right, what you're feeling, i can't say that i fully can relate but i can relate to it a lot like aaaa lottt , but for your situation, you're absolutely correct that is too friggin much, like WTF,yes you're a responsible adult, yes you won't do shit, you can control yourself and they need to know this, step one ig should be telling this to all of your family together, if they're good enough to understand that what you feel what your opinion is i think they'll stop (but i don't really believe the fact that you haven't already tried this 😅 so if you haven't yet then try this, in a serious tone and in a normal tone don't get angry cuz calmly make them understand this, well that is if you already haven't)

step 2 might be, when you interact with your friends and they say they cry and stuff, ask them that do they not have emotions bring a little science in this, try to win every argument you can with FACTS 100% ACCURATR FACTS that'll shut them up ig and there they'll be able to see where they went wrong ig,

Step 3 also the last in my opinion will be to start doing whatever you feel like doing which isn't at all wromg like talking to male people and female people isn't wrong at all, like start doing it, and when they try to stop you tell them what is even wrong in that, if you're mentality is so sick that you can't stand the fact that two different genders can talk together then i don't even know what your mentality is, it's not even like I'm tryna be sticky to them i just making normal friends, and by that the topic normal comes, tell them that you forgot what normal really is, tell them that shit, cuz i really think you're forgetting what normal is, i as a young adult if i can't even make friends, how an i even gonna survive in this cruel world, like my mental illness ,adhd, anxiety disorder do y'all even know what that is and for the sake of god don't tell me y'all don't believe i have, cuz y'all have shut your eyes to my problems that you're not even able to rectify what you're doing, don't be so classic minded the work has changed open your eyes, take my illness seriouely otherwise it'll affect me in the future, i know if you cared enough for me you would've treated me right, and just make them open their eyes and see where THR world is now thazzit as per me

I am going to talk about something I just realized. They say, for people with controlling parents, you just need to wait until you complete school and join college and move out. Your life will be yours.

That is a illusion. Well for me it is. Parents still got the strings that pull us to act however they want us to.

Since young I have been conditioned to believe that what parents say is absolutely correct and any other way will always land me in trouble. Then if I got into trouble, it will be the end of the world for me. If I don't follow what they say, the society will hate me and exclude me.

Even my parents themselves say that only until college they are restraining me, after that they won't care about what I am doing anymore. This included my interpersonal relationships with people and my social presence.

But now when I am actually going, I get this threatening lecture from them on how to be isolated and not stand out and don't do things which attract guys(it's really derogatory for me, I literally spent my whole school life without romantic involvement with anyone, not just because it was prohibited but because I don't actually had interest in them in that way) and those things included laughing and getting friendly with them (ugh) and same with girls too, don't make friends and don't get all empathetic with crying people and make friends with losers just like how you did in school (eye roll) (I really hate when my parents insults my friends).

Okay I get it where they come from, but things start bothering or become dangerous when they at extreme levels and I don't really think I have given them the impression that I am the type to get in trouble over these things. They automatically assume the worst about me just like anyone else(aka the famous annoying relatives and community people)do in their generation, I really needed from them not to do it.

Back on how freedom is an illusion, I get the ultimatum to have zero to minimum social life and fun throughout my whole 5 years of college.

You know I was actually planning to just study and not get distracted but I am the type to go with the flow. If I am able to balance well between my studies and other things which are healthy then why not. But with this ultimatum, if I actually enjoy doing other stuff, I will always feel guilty and in a constant fear of that something bad will happen to me because I am not following what my parents instructed me.

I am an adult and I know the limits and my mental health and my well being. But it always boils down to "When you ll come at our age you ll understand, you'll look back and realize you wasted your time."

You know it's actually good I realized that I ll still be controlled and now try to break free from the notation fixed in my mind.

That's why I asked...."how to rebel in the safest way??"

[fuyuyuu]

Just ranting...

Haaa there’s a person on FB who I really hate because they are really insensitive, impolite, self-centered, irrational, etc and really... just thinking of them makes me feel uncomfortable...

If you wanna know how impolite they are, imagine having a heated conversation about your OTP with your circle of friends but suddenly a stranger pops in and says eww that’s their NOTP... and refuses to understand why the group are angry with them. 

In addition, after I unfriend and eventually block them since I can stand no more of their nonsense (guess what, they share the MekaDan’s daze poster I posted and said anything without Hiyori in it was trash), they friggin lie to others that the reason I block them was because that person loves Hiyori and I hate Hiyori... that I am not worth being friends with a ha... 

Maybe I’m one of the better case since I was not really fond of her and we didn’t talk that much from the beginning, but her old friends, who sometimes tried to support her in conflicts, had it much worst. Well for example, there’s someone who has played with them for 2/3 years before finally unable to bear their behaviors. When she posted a stat saying “though we were good friends for years, etc”, that person posted on their timeline something between the line of “we were never good friends don’t overestimate yourself”.  ~

How to put this... since I know they lie about me to people, and they are really outgoing and have a big circle... I am always scared that many will believe her lies and hate me... Since I am not just myself but an admin for pages and translator, I am scared people will turn to hate the characters or the works I love too...

Well and I myself am not a loveable person at first place. Most of the time, when I find something irritating or unjust, I can’t resist the urge to voice my complaints/opinions... Of course I try to pick lighter and less severe words from what I actually think *cough*, but later on when I read my words again I still think I am a little too harsh... The people who are neither stranger *on public pages* or close friends who I can almost always state my opinions or dislikes... but are in my friend list *since we like the same thing for example* are the hardest to deal with. Like... I may voice my opinion for a few times but what should I do if tons of things they post irritate me... and well sometimes it’s not that they are completely wrong, but it’s more like their attitudes/viewpoints that got on my nerve. Of course I am by no means some kind of yankee to suddenly go to people’s stat and yell “yooo kiddie I don’t like what ya say, go repent ur self and obey every word of mine from now on koraaaa!!”... so I usually try to ignore them. Sadly, there are times, especially when I’m stressed out, and I regard too many of their opinions about something I like completely unfair and unjust, I will be more attentive to that person than usual and a lot of things I would usually ignore became unbearable I don’t think I want to talk to this person anymore, I would unfriend them. 

Guess what... one day, several of my friends sent me screencaps of the person who I unfriended last week/two weeks (A) before or so talking to “that person” *who posted a status to badmouth me*, telling them she was disappointed in me - that even if she s uncomfortable with something a person posts she d not choose to unfriend/block them - that I also post what she felt uncomfortable with or a couple she doesn’t ship but chose to ignore me *I still never understand why she decided to bring up the couple thing btw* - that I once blocked her 2/3 years ago for a trivial reason *I block pretty much everyone who likes my gf’s anniversary post before me~ so that I can always be the first - ofc for who is close to me enough I will send a mes to tell them to please unlike it - but for s.o I rarely talk to, block is a given since I’ve warned about it countless times*. Well your tolerance may be high but mine is not and I feel the need to get rid of unnecessary stress.  Oh I forgot to mention... before I unfriended A, I wrote two (maybe three) rant stats about how A and co and another person irritates me to no ends. Of course I only refer to them as “the 1st/2nd person that I can hardly stand”. It was simply rant stats which I sometimes use to release stress. I don’t think anyone besides those I was talking about would realize it was them. A told “that person” that she knew it was her but couldn’t do anything because I’m some kind of all high and mighty people - what I say are always right - people will choose to believe me - such a lowclass as her wont stand a chance... Just because I’m older than you and I manage some FB fanpages, a simple task that everyone can easily carry out if they have access to the Internet and somehow you think I’m “highclass”? 

I’m sorry for anyone who still reads this for dragging on too long... but well “that person” of course wouln’t let the chance slide and replied I did that because I had no human heart and etc. 

Well I’m about to go off the track again but I’ve had bad impression with that A person for a long time... the reason why I felt maybe she had changed was because she once argued with “that person” and complained a lot about how unreasonable and “only say what suits them” “that person” was. Now look~ It strikes me that many people who are friends with “that person” may secretly have a bad impression of me. Usually they may still talk to me, but if I do something that offend them, they won’t hesitate to go to another one who hates me to share their hate together.

If someone who is friends with both choose to believe “that person’s” words... then it’s not a surprise if people who know her but not me view me as someone deplorable. 

~ So well... all what I listed above happened months/years ago but the reason I feel like writing this is because I was scrolling a page on FB and realized the admin was talking to “that person”... I feel scared. I know that they badmouth me and even randomly message people they shouldn’t get close to me/a friend of mine/a friend of mine.

Ahhhh I feel the urge to complain again sorry... I’ve realized again I am the better case. The two friends of mine included in “that person’s” dont-associate-with-these list seriously have helped them a lot, a whole lottt...!! I think the reason why I kinda had a bad impression on “that person” was because they caused too much troubles for my friends - asking too much help and acting like a poor child if not receiving the desired attention... I kinda dunno what happened but what... how could you do that to the two people you have depended on for such a long time??? 

I’m sleepy now so well, thank you anyone who has read this. I’m sorry for having wasted your time.