#my other parties aren't QUITE that silly but there's still a good bit of Shenanigans that go on

[yardsards]

huh. in most of the groups i've played in, there's just as much (if not more) rules-bending and dicking around as taz balance.

i would blame it on the fact that a lot of the friends i play with are *also* taz fans but... the worst offenders are actually the players in my irl group who have never listened to a single episode of taz

The opposite of the Mercer Effect (where people listen to critical role and have unrealistically high expectations for the immersiveness of a campaign and expect Matt Mercer's energy and skill) is what I experienced, the Mcelroy effect, where you listen to TAZ and expect there to be way less rules and a lot more fucking around

[atypical-artisan]

Abusing my birthday to talk about all the Burnt bread fics in the fandom yeehaw

(This is a preview for my next fic recs post btw lmao- hopefully it's out by april)

There aren't too many of these, excluding my own fics ofc, most of them are on ao3 so that's where all but 4 will be coming from. All are in order of release!

Starting with the sfw fics:

Written in Fine Print » by philosonica- Chapter 1/ Misunderstanding- 10/10. Fun fact, this fic got me SHIPPING these two goobers in the first place. Its a more introspective piece following Aran and his internal monologue thinking about how he struggles to get along with the other boxers and esp his one-sided crush/fascination with Joe. Its such well written angst and has informed some of my own writing by now. It hurt my heart so bad I wanted Aran to have a happy ending and Joe fall in love with him dhdbdb. It also hits close to home with my own personal struggles of socializing. Aran's also a bit of a weirdo asshole here, it made me cringe and squirm and I love it.

~

The Best in the Worst by gorebot/That-artsy-virgo- 8/10. This is a fic on ao3 under the "Punch out oneshots" name and on DA as it's own fic. It's an extremely cute high-school au (I believe) that follows Aran and Joe having a meet cute at a party and running from the cops. Aside from some minor spelling mistakes it's a cute little crumb of a fic and a charming read.

One Mistake by gorebot/That-artsy-virgo- 7/10. From the same ao3 fic as the previous and also on DA. It's a nice angsty oneshot following Joe finding out Aran is trans and trying to be supportive all while Aran is deeply upset. Overall cute! Some points subtracted because of odd wording/spelling that pulled me from the story but again still very nice!

~

Just a Sketchy Guy by Virdemption- 9/10. This one is honestly way too funny for its own good. From hinting that Kaiser got Joe into homestuck to Aran's shipping jokes it's VERY funny. At the same time it's an extremely cute look into Joe and Aran bonding over silly art. Shit like this makes me giggle ♡.

~

Act Out! by JesterrDraws- 6.5/10. An actor/filming au for punch out. The burnt bread here is very mild, only appearing in 3 chapters, and hasn't yet peeked into Aran's mind so it gets a lower rating. However the moments there are cute as hell! It mostly focuses on Joe having a little crush and Aran flirting a bit but still sweet and pleasant, I hope the op continues soon!

~

Punch Out Imagines, One-Shots, ETC by GoEatDoorMoss-

Secret admirer- 8.5/10. A cute oneshot I requested a while back and Matt did a fantastic job with the prompt! It changed what I asked for a little but in a way I was pleasantly surprised with! It follows Joe looking for a secret admirer leaving gifts in his locker week after week. Despite a few bits of clunky wording it's a very very cute story that I reread quite a few times a year.

The Claw- 10/10. Another request of mine on Matt's book. This one is longer and much cuter than the last as it follows Aran and Joe going on a date and encountering shenanigans. Its funny and sweet and a strong jump in quality from the previous fic! It also has art to go along with it so I had to give it extra points.

~

A Cheater's Reason (WIP) by K1TT3N69- 7/10. A fic with seriously good potential here!! It follows Aran and his life as a cheater until his mother passes. Its currently unfinished but still quite interesting imho! I adore the concept and the hints set up but it's very hard to read due to lack of formatting.

~

The Potluck by Tonitheloftwing- 8.5/10. Fun fic with a chapter dedicated to burnt bread!! It's mostly about mac recovering from top surgery and coming out to the other boxers but the hints at other ships and the burnt bread confession chapter was cute as hell.

~

a blue jean serenade by CobbleCritters- 10/10. While this is a mostly don/tiger centric fic it does feature burnt bread and boy howdy it does their relationship well! It's a cool little band au that has Aran as a drummer and Joe as a photographer. Their already in a relationship and we get to see cute moments of affection alongside hard lows between them. Its a really great and complex representation!!

~

Le Draguer by FauxFoe_Punch- 9.5/10. Its a bit hard to say what the fic is about since it's still unfinished, but it's a Burnt bread semi-slowburn! It's not only very very funny (made me laugh every chapter) but it's incredibly sweet and well written. So many of the lines and descriptions are beautifully absurd, i can't pick a favorite. The only complaint I have is that the chapter cutoffs feel off but otherwise a great fic i highly recommend!

~

Glass Cafe by Globofchaos- 6.5/10. Very cool concept of Joe joining an mma ring thanks to Mac and Aran. It has a lot of cool ideas like a Narcis and Joe rivalry, Mac being disabled, Joe being freshly immigrated. Cool stuff! It has a lot of formatting and spelling issues though so it's hard to read. But I'm excited to see where the story goes!

~

Never gonna change by Globofchaos- 7/10. Another super interesting concept, this time with glass Joe suddenly getting stronger and more intimidating. First chapter is very negative with Aran being casually mean, Joe being heartbroken, and the bruisers bullying Joe, though it does look up later in the chapter. The second chapter focuses on disco and don which was fun! It's still hard to read due to formatting and spelling errors but I'm interested to where this one would go too!

A sudden change by Globofchaos- 8/10. Only one chapter, i think it's meant to be a companion piece to 'never gonna change or perhaps the third chapter? Idk. Either way it felt much cleaner, half focusing on mac and Aran's sister talking about Joe and the last section having Aran propose a date. Cute and I'm excited to see more!

~

Smutty fics under the cut!!

Gap Year by BarginBin- 8/10. This fic is so cute (and horny lmao). It follows Joe taking Aran in after he's kicked out and taking a gap year in Paris together, Joe manages to get fat and they get horny about it. Fun read if ur into that stuff!

L’Oiseau D’Eau by Jacksfilmsgavememegalophobia- 10/10. This bad boy is about Aran and Joe getting stuck in traffic and Joe pissing himself, romantic and sexual tension ensue. As one comment so beautifully put it 'I never thought a fic about glass Joe pissing himself could be so beautifully written'- amen. Seriously it's very unhorny (For now) but it gets the kink across wonderfully and I highly recommend to those who like this sort of thing.

French Berry Press by YourLocalGarbageSkunkXOXO- 8/10. Joe turns into a Blueberry after eating a muffin and him and Aran fuck about it. What more can I say? This is just good, Kinky, fun tbh. It honestly makes me kick my feet and giggle not necessarily because it's full of jokes but because the premise is very silly and funny. The style all around is well written and sweet, the sex especially is fun! Has formatting issues and can be hard to read but not too bad.

That one wattpad fic that stole my works and others- 0/10. Ngl I'm still bitter abt this one. I won't share it's name since the plagiristic parts have been removed but I'm still so mad how the person not only stole my work but then tried to recton the shit they stole to make it not t4t and in an intersexist way too. The fic has stopped updating since I told them off and chewed them out on ao3 but it still hurt enough that I hid my work for a time.

Irish-French Rodeo by Anonymous- 10/10. Its literally just Joe being Tommy and eating Aran out. Its so fucking sexy and fun I love it to bits. Its got that perfect balance of descriptions, humor, and sexyiness that I can't get enough of. This is the quality I want out of my own work.