#not only am i cool as fuck i'm also smart as hell

[disruptxrr]

won a place at the silicon valley "future impact challenge" and got a medal at the nation-wide stem/innovation competition today .

[utilitycaster]

Do you think the god debate and narrative around it in C3 would be more compelling if Ludinus only focused on killing the Betrayer Gods a la Cassida? As many pointed out, the impact that Primes have on mortals is largely positive. Aside from cool abilities, they give healing, meaning and comfort to their followers. Up until very recently (Braius) we haven't seen Betrayers do much of that and their followers are, more often than not, people who would cause great harm to others.

I actually do not. There's multiple questions in here, and honestly I could probably write 5000 words on any of them, which I'm not going to do, but I will split this up into components.

First: I don't think Ludinus is the problem at all. He is unambiguously the villain, but he is always narratively compelling. It is fun to make fun of him because he is genuinely a fantastically crafted villain. When I dunk on villains who are boring, it's nowhere near as fun because all you can say is "wow what do you even do. boring-ass" whereas Ludinus is full of interesting possibilities and hooks to be like how can you be so smart and have lived for so long and seen so much and come to the fucking worst conclusions. There's a reason why people have been side-eyeing him consistently since at least his first speaking appearance in Campaign 2, if not his first appearance ever, in Felderwin, and it's because he's a great character who I hope dies horribly. So his motivations are fine. I'm not saying the possibility you suggest wouldn't be a very interesting different story, but my complaints about narrative and the gods debate do not require anything different from Ludinus, who has been a consistent bright spot within the muddied narrative by being a consistent blot on Exandria and also sometimes the moon.

The narrative and the god debate are intertwined - the issue is a dull indecision that plagues both of them - so I'm splitting this one up a little differently.

What do I as a viewer think is the most reasonable stance regarding the gods based on my understanding of the worldbuilding of Exandria?

What is interesting to watch?

And therein lies the problem. I, as a viewer, think that killing the gods is a bad idea, and I've articulated this in various spaces and am not going to write another 5000 words about it right now, but between the events of past campaigns; the events of this campaign including Downfall; who within the narrative supports the choice to not kill the gods; and the complete uncertainty regarding the fate of existence let alone mortaldom should they be killed or chased away I have come to this position. Any counter-argument tends to rely either on entirely false statements, or a nebulous "a better world is possible" without any assurances that the allegedly better world is, in fact, probable. Ironically enough, I am not willing to take a leap of faith.

But as for what's interesting to watch? That's an entirely different story. My issue with the the gods debates is that they are endless, circular, indecisive, and between the least informed group of PCs we've had by a large margin. They say the same 5 sentences in different words over and over. It's like watching a bunch of high people while you're sober. It only hits hard if you're stupid. For more on this see here and here. If Bells Hells had decided 30 or 40 episodes ago to side with Ludinus, or to try to only kill the Betrayers, or to oppose Ludinus but kill the gods? Great. Fantastic. I'm not saying I wouldn't have had my critiques of it given the worldbuilding setup as described above, but I think it would have held up infinitely better as a standalone story, at least, than it does now. My problem is that instead they had endless circular indecisive conversations during a bunch of (comparatively much more interesting) fetch quests, finally came to some kind of conclusion that gave the end game some structure and direction like 4 episodes ago, and then had yet another wrench thrown at them. And convention panels and Cooldown have consistently confirmed my suspicions about the lack of planning in the places where this campaign really needed it. In my conversations after the latest episode, multiple people independently used the term "sludge" to describe their feelings about the plot.

In actual play, I want characters who have clear conviction and make bold and decisive moves because handwringing forever in such a slow-moving medium is excruciatingly boring. Like, do I think Percy in the Briarwoods arc is making good, informed decisions that make him a moral person? Absolutely the fuck not. Do I think the story where he's shooting first and asking questions later is infinitely superior to one where Vox Machina can't decide what to do for 50 episodes? Yeah.

The god debates are ultimately a symptom of this narrative aimlessness. The lack of an answer is the problem, not what the answer is.

[brave-and-gentle]

EB I am curious!! I've always loved your hcs, so I wanted to ask: do you have any headcanons for jeanpiku's kids, esp in a modern setting? 🥹💜 I love seeing jean as a girl dad, but I'm always intrigued to hear other people's takes!

OOOO, ty for asking!! This was so fun because while I am constantly thinking about dilf Jean, I actually haven't thought as much about Jeanpiku as parents:

they have a ton of kids, it's a jeanpiku herd, i'm talking four kids MINIMUM. this is partially because they both come from smaller families, and were envious of the chaos of larger families. also jean thinks there's something very primal and so deeply attractive about pieck carrying their children, so once one's out, they can't help but think about the next. these two are so stupid horny for each other, they can't keep their pants on around each other for very long.

girl dad jean for life!!!! they have girl after girl for a while, and while they're both thrilled, they also kinda wanna keep going until maybe, just maybe, they have a son (yes they both know gender is fake and multiple times pieck's been like 'idk maybe we should just stop because one of our girls might not actually be a girl, who's to say??')

jean cries every single time another of their children is born, and pieck is like "boy wtf is wrong with you, were you just trying to squeeze their big heads out of you?? and it's your fault they have big heads!!"

regardless, they eventually do have a boy, poor kiddo, youngest boy with so many older sisters, who spoil him beyond belief so he ends up being just as weird and picky as his dad.

jean really is the best girl dad - he's learned how to brush and do all of their hair, to the point where once they're older, he does their hair for school dances. and for the younger ones, it's tea parties and dolls all day - he's *so there.*

pieck is the breadwinner, while jean is a stay at home dad for a while - he becomes the best cook on the block and everyone wants his scones at the school bake sale.

their son likes to stay home and help jean cook and clean while pieck plays HARD with their girls my god, she's that mom out on the playground with all of them covered in dirt and brings back cool things like bugs and frogs, and jean is mildly annoyed and eventually just fills up a little plastic pool with water in the backyard and insists pieck and the girls rinse off before stepping foot inside the house he just cleaned thank you very much (the bugs and frogs must stay outside or poor jean will have an aneurysm).

the moms at the playground are constantly hitting on jean, but he's so obsessed with pieck that he doesn't even realize it.

seeing the kirstein-finger family walk around together is so fucking funny because you have this hoard of small, dark haired women followed by two lanky looking dudes with sandy hair (though i imagine one of their daughters has lighter hair than the others).

when two of their children come out to their parents, jean and pieck look at each other, laugh, and say "lol yeah same."

mama kirstein is the BEST grandmother, she's loves having so many kiddos around and is constantly coming over with treats and handmade sweaters.

all in all, jean and pieck are fairly laid back parents (except if someone doesn't take their shoes off by the door, they have jean to fear). they trust their kids are doing their best, so while they're all pretty smart, there's nothing wrong with a B- grade. they even become the "cool weed house" when their oldest daughter is a teenager, but they insist on weed outside only.

hell seems like a nice place to be when jean finds out one of their daughters was broken up with, my god he's terrifying, ready to break someone's nose, so pieck has to calm him down and remind him that their daughter will be just fine and has to figure things out on her own.

[artemis-moonsilver]

Opinions No One Asked For™️: Palia NPC Edition

Auni: I love this kid. I want him to think of me as a cool older sister or cool aunt. I bring him bugs every chance I get

Ashura: I want him to be my dad. Genuinely love him. Serious contender to be my Shepp

Badruu: He really turned the puns up to 11. I love him. Also want him to be my dad. And possibly my Shepp

Caleri: I wasn't too sure about her, but after getting to know her, I feel like we have quite a few similarities. Definitely want to be her friend. Could she be my Shepp? 👀

Chayne: I find him so calming. He also feels dad-like to me. 100% want him as a support figure/father figure regardless of who I choose as my Shepp

Delaila: Love talking to her. Really want to get to know her better at this point (but 100% want her to win all the prizes at farmers markets/festivals)

Einar: Absolutely adorable and I love him. Only platonically tho. I will give him as many Gils and shiny rocks as he wants

Elouisa: I wasn't sure at first, but I LOVE her unhinged theories. I want to be her best friend. I will investigate all the paranormal things with her. Contender for my Shepp. Girl let's go ghost hunting

Eshe: So snobby. So bougie. So bitchy. I wish she could be my Shepp 😫 (if only because it would be entertaining)

Hassian: First impressions? What an asshole. After some time, I am...intrigued. I want to figure him out. I want to know why he is the way he is. Also fucking love Tau, the gooodest boi

Hekla: Honestly... she freaked me out a little for a long time. I'm slowly coming around though

Hodari: Listen, I get it. I see where you all are coming from. But man's just not my type 🤷🏻‍♀️

Jel: Oh Jel, my beloved. I'm not exactly subtle about it. This man is my husband. Sad, skinny, pathetic, dramatic, goth guys are My Type™️. Would marry him like, yesterday 🥀😫🪡🖤😍

Jina: At first I wasn't sure, but the more I talk to her, I'm like, "Jina, my bestie." I'm a PhD student. I feel you. Also, WOMEN IN STEM, HELL YEAH!!!! I have a feeling we're gonna be great friends

Kenji: Not a fan of your extremely privileged life ("Have you tried inheriting property?" 😐😐😐) or the invasive chapaa situation... but I also don't dislike him as much as I thought. I feel like he's playing a role he doesn't really want to, but still enjoying/expecting the high life for little to no effort

Kenyatta: She should be my best friend. I was put off at first, but she is the coolest. I see quite a few aspects of myself in her

Nai'O: I feel like he's the sweetest boi ever. I'm both like, "He deserves better than Kenyatta" and "Kenyatta is good for him." Perhaps the most wholesome NPC

Najuma: I also want to be the cool older sister and/or cool aunt that she never had. This kid is a badass and smart as hell. I wish my friendship with her was better already

Reth: This man. I love him. I'm not sure if it's platonic or romantic yet. All I know is he's one of my favourite NPCs to talk to. He's funny, he's flirty, he's got a Tragic Backstory™️. I'm here for this soup boi whether he wants it or not

Sifuu: Two words: Bad. Ass. It's a crime that we can't romance her. I really want to ask her to be my Shepp, but I'm not sure it's a good fit

Tamala: I'm sorry, Tamala besties, but I just don't like her 😭 I really wanted to like her so bad, but her aggressive flirting paired with her unwillingness to consider me a friend/equal just rubs me the wrong way

Tish: Absolutely beautiful person. I want to be her bffl. That is all

Zeki: Crime Cat, my beloved. He is the most entertaining Shepp option (imo). He's got an eye patch, a gold tooth, and shady practices. I find him amusing. I want him to like me. Share his (dubiously acquired) riches with me. Please accept me into the black market. I won't tell, but I can't promise I'll participate (I probably will 👀)

[brucewaynehater101]

HELLO LOVE <3333 kissing all ur posts on the head I'm loving loving the things u do on here !!! WOAHS !!! LIKE U ARE SO CREATIVE AND COOL bringing u silly flowers !!! Getting u a silly bouquet bouquet

:0 actually, I also wanted to hear what make you like Tim !!! What specifically makes him tick for you, what nuances you'd like people to understand about him and his story etc etc !!! I love hearing ppls interpretations (esp since I... myself am not particularly fond of him ;-; but !!!! I do do want to understand what makes people love him) so if you wouldn't mind :D that'd be swell to hear !!!! THANK U DEAR

You're so sweet, my lords. Thank you ^^ I appreciate the bouquet 💐

Also, I completely understand why some people don't like Tim. His 90's era chaotic self is fantastic, but also a bit misogynistic. DC also likes to throw him in every comic that has a Robin in it and try to smother him back into that role. I haven't seen this happening, but I've also heard that Tim fans can be assholes.

So yes. I 100% understand why some folk aren't the hugest fans.

Tim, for me, though, is so dear. Few reasons why:

His story is so fucking sad, my lords

His attitude is hilarious

He's badass and chaotic

He reminds me too much of my younger self

All the Bats are tragic. Ain't a single one who isn't. I typically like BAMF tragic characters.

Tim's story as Robin is fucking devastating. Hit after hit after hit he takes. Yet, he keeps going. I would not have survived what he did.

All the other batkids have sad stories, hilarious wit, are badass, and cause chaos. They share those wonderful qualities with Tim.

I also just really love how Tim's relationship with Bruce is different during his initial years as Robin (with only Steph and Duke being comparable). He wasn't Bruce's kid first. Tim didn't want nor need a parent. He also felt like he had to help Bruce (when a kid shouldn't be taking care of adults. Parentification sucks ass).

Tim became Robin for Bruce. The other Robins became Robin for themselves (which isn't bad! It's actually really rad how Robin helped them [and cursed them but whatever]).

Just... Tim didn't want to be Robin initially, and that strikes a chord. Then there's him working his ass off for that mantle. He's a little shit, but he's Tim.

There's also how YJ is treated by the other heroes.

There's Tim living in Jason and Dick's shadow.

It's the likeness to my younger self that really hits home.

If you don't want any personal details, the bottom line is that a lot of his history/characterization hits home.

Now... Tim is dear to me due to how much he resembles my younger self. I love Jason as well due to him representing more of my older self. However, Tim's thought processes are closer to mine. I also tend not to get angry often.

For history, my parents consistently chose work and alcohol over family. I had to take care of them. I often played mediator, family clown, or scapegoat (which is why I also relate to Jason [I go feral at those horrendous lines Bruce says to him. Have your parents ever stated regret for how they raised you? Have they ever hurt you and demanded you thank them? Fucking hell, Jason. I may not have died, but your relationship with Bruce is killing me]). I was considered "gifted" or smart in comparison to my siblings, despite them being extremely intelligent (they were in honor classes as well). I'm the middle kid, but I emotionally took care of my younger sibling after I turned fifteen (even though we used to get into horrendous fights).

Anyways, Tim has a pathetic mess of a background, but he's badass as well. He's self-sufficient because he had to be, and he's good at it.

I like smart characters that outwit their opponent. I like seeing Tim win.

[bloopitynoot]

Reading SVSSS: Chapter 15

For those who don't know, I am reading SVSSS for the first time and sharing my thoughts!

If you have not read it, there will be spoilers! Consider this a warning.

Also- if you want to follow along, I am aiming to post updates daily. You can find all the posts in the tag bloopitynoot reads SVSSS. You can also check out the intro post for context on my read.

It's chapter 15! Time to figure out what happened to SQQ in the latest cliff hangar.

Today no tea- but I did have a blackberry cider that was very tasty.

I also did impulse buy a baby's-first-fountain pen to get into my little writing flow and add to the ambiance of my note taking journey. So, pls ignore the worse-than-usual writing; I am learning to write with it.

let's goooooo!

Well, SQQ appears to be in a coffin? p29

fuck, i'm already smudging the ink with my new pen. The lefty curse of it all. IDK how much of this is going to be legible later. RIP

okay... but how long has he been in here? MXTX is describing everything as dusty as hell. p30 (resolved as I read further- not very long LOL)

and he has his original body! That's exciting! Who did it though?? p30

LOL SQQ has 0 chance with this "advanced level plot" p31. He is totally fucked for sure.

These 'blind corpses' sound like a walking horror show. I would be so scared omg. I don't know how far the animated series got- but if this is animated that would look cool as fuck. p32

okay! they're fueled by breath! that's really neat though! pp33-34 Scary, but cool.

I would die immediately in this situation. When the thing (blind corpses) that are already horrible and unbeatable are scared of something else -> absolutely no hope in surviving. p35

ah, it is our little snake-man. I had a suspicion this was related to him and Luo Binghe's dad. He probably took SQQ's corpse too and brought it here. p35

OMG LOL Luo Binghe's dad is awful, but also feels like a troll AND is serving dad jokes. Re: thinking back to when SQQ knocked on the coffin and he answered from inside LOOOL. p36

Listen. Can we just take a moment to appreciate the absolute DILF that is Luo Binghe's father? I am a whole lesbian but that character art cannot objectively argued as anything else. p37

and now SQQ is going on about Tianlang-jun having BDE (not those exact words but I mean when you say he's working that coffin like it's a Paris fashion week runway and Luo binghe - the man you are obsessed with- could NEVER, it says something.). p38

That fucking power move too! SQQ: seems you've waited a while to meet me, why don't you come out of there and do so. Tianlang-jun: *bats eyes* okay but only if you hold my hand and work for it p39

SQQ has this habit of getting kidnapped "for his own good" but no one ever tells him why it's good for him XD this entire situation is so annoying. Tianlang-jun did this all so that he could get him away from the sects he wanted to destroy. p43

OMG scratch that. He also wants to use him as bait to snatch his sons body as his own. p45.

aside: I'm going to have to organize these notes later- I'm not catching the nuance in the hand written notes LOL my brain is processing faster than my hand (you will notice that the last 2 points here do not match my hand written notes because they were a hot mess).

What an entrance Luo Binghe! p47

Yes SQQ! You rescue your man from his dad (RE: holding Zhuzhi lang hostage) p51

holy shit. Zhuzhi lang is WILD - he really was about to just die instead of be a hostage LOL p52 I want to know what his character motivation is. He's giving the same blind trust energy as The Core Melting Hand in MDZS. Both just so loyal to a fault/their own demise. Do we learn more? or is this it? (genuine question- don't tell me WHAT we learn, just yes/no if we learn more).

That was so smart to hit the anti-theft measures in the tomb p53

aaaaaaaand he snatched the wrong person on the escape. well, that's fantastic. p54

I am loving the traps in this mausoleum though! The face with the magma and then the various rooms. I want to know if this exists as a D&D dungeon crawl/anyone has made one, I think it would be so fun. p59

omg. I don't think that Luo Binghe realizes/knows that that was his own father and cousin. that's so terrible. Truly Luo Binghe was treated so fucking badly literally his entire life. His dad does not even give a shit. Honestly probably only had him for this situation - needing a new body. p61

:((((( Our boy, Luo Binghe is in a bad way rn. gah! so many cliff hangers. p63

MXTX Cliffhangar Lord

And now I have to wait until tomorrow to see if baby Luo Binghe makes it. I'm sure SQQ is going to do something about it but dang, he is not well.

[yourhighness6]

NATLA Debrief: Episode 3 (by yours truly)

Hi again! If any of ya'll are interested here's episodes 1 and 2. Thank you to those who have been following these deranged, unorganized posts, especially @phoebester (Just an fyi this will be hella long, just like the other two)

First of all, the way they framed the opening resistence scene was genuinely so cool because I immediately thought back to the cold open for the first episode. The streets are so similar that's where my mind went RIGHT AWAY and if that is not good set design and filming I don't know what is.

The resistance scene was so powerful for so many reasons besides those small details, too. The concept of a resistance within the FN was never addressed at all within the cartoon and I can't express how glad I am that they added this. It just makes logical sense that some people would resist, especially while so many are dying in war, and it really serves to humanize the FN people in a way that's reminiscent of book 3 ATLA. Perfect way to expand on the source material and introduce core themes earlier in the show (M Nite should be taking notes).

It was also a perfect way to introduce both Ozai and Azula's characters. Ozai is this menacing figure stepping out of the shadows (quite literally), an almost larger than life villain who seems to have every move planned and everything calculated. He's brutal and efficient and we can see that. Azula is conniving and smart, the kind of girl who can fool anyone and come out on top, but is ultimately still a weapon under her father's control. You can tell from the moment Ozai mentions Zuko that she is the underdog, but she is determined that it will not stay that way, and she seems just terrifying enough to succeed. (also idc what anyone says Elizabeth Yu has mastered Azula's look and general vibe. I feel like the whole 'miscasting' debacle was a mix of fatphobia and being shown the wrong stills before the show came out. She looked sort of sweet and innocent in those but I get absolutely none of that from this scene)

Ugh the exposition was great and then they have to give us this. What the absolute hell did they do to my Katara? Like there was a whole ass episode in the cartoon devoted to her getting mad because she wasn't progressing as fast as Aang and then in this fucking adaptation the maddest she sounds is when she emotionlessly declares, "I don't get it" to convey mild frustration. I'm sorry Kiawentiio, you're acting is great but the writers clearly have no fucking idea how to put your emotional range to good use. The same problem was present in the last episode and I just don't see them being able to fix it significantly enough at this point, even if they have a desire to. Not to undermine that, but there were a couple good points in this scene: Aang mentions something about bending being "beyond thought" which gives bending a more spiritual aspect that I like, and Katara's PTSD is brought up again in an intelligent way, but still, that doesn't matter if they're going to completely butcher her character. (side note: when is Aang going to learn waterbending? they haven't shown him training at all and I'm getting worried)

This scene was fine or whatever but what in the absolute fuck is going on with Zuko and Zhao? Are they not going to do the agni kai? Like I know there's still animosity there but they were really just sitting there (semi)-calmly enjoying a cup of tea and demonstrating only mild dislike for each other. All I have to say is if they remove the agni kai altogether I'm gonna be so fucking pissed it'll bug me forever and I'll be fucking insufferable.

Also Zuko is so mean to Luitenient Jee for no reason. I know it's because his abuse makes him see any kind of comradery as weakness so it's a good detail if that's what they're going for but ngl I also find it a bit funny. Like what did he ever do to you? And Zhao taking three tries to pass his officer exam is so perfect too like what a fucking looser lmao.

Ba Sing Se looks beautiful. There's something so mystical about it, especially in the way Aang describes it as they walk up to the gate. It's this hub of culture and science and art, but it's also incredibly militaristic and so changed due to war it's almost unrecognizable to someone who was there a hundred years ago. The adaptation of cultures during times of change is something ATLA does so well and I'm glad to see that it's continuing in the LA.

AHH Katara was so awkward during this whole scene and I loved it. For one thing Sokka's commentary was absolutely hilarious but it's also this reminder that Katara has been relatively isolated from other children her age and her brain is like "cute boy flirt how" and its so fucking funny. It might not be the same Katara as the cartoon who is effortlessly comfortable wherever she goes but this is so much more realistic and if she's going to be a bit different this is probably the best thing for them to change (now keep the awkwardness and give her back her anger Netflix I'm begging you)

I am slightly concerned because it looks to me like they're trying to condense at least four episodes into one and I'm not sure if that's going to be a cohesive plotline or a complete mess or not but if handled carefully I think they might be able to pull it off.

Ooooh the explosion was super unexpected and totally cray cray thanks for keeping me on my toes. I'm assuming it was Jet that planted the bomb although I cannot for the life of me think why. Anyways Teo was adorable I'm adopting him.

Also I am so so so happy that they gave him a little more depth beyond just 'happy glider kid' and gave a bit more nuance to his character. Of COURSE kids who grew up in war are going to be desensitized to the bloodshed OF COURSE they're going to be a little vengeful and be thinking about ways to win the war OF COURSE Aang is going to be uncomfortable with that because he didn't grow up with that militaristic mindset even if he did loose everything OF COURSE that's not going to change the fact that kids grow up hearing about death and experiencing loss as extremely young children versus Aang being suddenly thrust into this responsibility and grief because he didn't grow up like that he grew up in peacetime it just makes sense. Good job Netflix this was wonderful this was perfect I loved it.

Okay don't get me wrong I love the way Aang wears his heart on his sleeve I love how their in-the-face storytelling makes a bit more sense with how open and emotional of a person he is it's just part of his character that was improved upon by the LA in my opinion but this is also just... such a misunderstanding of the group dynamic. Like why isn't Katara seeing these people and thinking "I can help with this I have to help with this" and Aang giving this speech to Sokka jumping on the bandwagon? I would even accept them seeing the destruction together and mutually deciding that they need to help the people there (this would probably be best as it allows us to see both character's compassion) or Aang saying something about it and Katara immediately being like "ur absolutely right" but of course they can't do that all we need is a lengthy speech from the protagonist while Katara stands there like robot girl. My mistake.

STOP because her mocking face is so fucking perfect I love Elizabeth Yu she's perfect. Anyway, I think that they're kind of... adjusting her trauma a bit? I mentioned earlier how I feel like she's shown as a little more scrappy and an underdog as opposed to perfectly calculating and not a hair out of place, but after this scene I feel the need to expand on that. In the cartoon, Azula's abuse from her father centers around his unattainably high expectations for her that eventually cause her ultimate breakdown and the conclusion to her devastating character arc. But in the LA, they're portraying her as less of a prodigy and more of a hard worker. She still has incredibly high expectations, but in this version, she never meets them all the time. Her brother is almost leveraged against her in a way. Even if she feels like she is the best and has the constant need to prove she is the best to her father, there's always going to be this nagging insecurity that she won't be good enough to measure up to her brother. She's not being told she's worthless like Zuko, but she's not reaching every goal like cartoon Azula, either. This also might explain why she has arrows. In the cartoon, weapons are viewed with disdain by firebenders, making Zuko using them so controversial, but Azula definetely doesn't seem to be hiding her talent for the bow and arrow and even if it was a her-sneaking-away-to-practice sort of situation that's not very in character and I don't think she would do that. I think in this version she probably has them because she's trying to find every possible way to prove herself to her father beyond just firebending, and mastering a weapon is a way to do that. I'm not sure how I feel about these changes but she is clearly a different character in this version than in the cartoon and moving forward I'm going to treat her as such. (I've noticed this a bit with all of the characters except possibly Sokka: they're different people. I think this actually might be intentional. [even so I still don't like their characterization of Katara her trauma hasn't changed very much to my knowledge she should still have the same core drives and character traits])

As well done as Azula was, there was relatively nothing in the Ty Lee and Mai department. They're just kind of existing, watching her train. Ty Lee is vaguely cheerful (and her costume is great btw) and Mai has one line about exploring the world that gives a bit of insight into her character and has a monotone voice. They're both clearly a little scared of Azula but that's basically it. Hopefully we get more on them soon.

Back in Ba Sing Se, I noticed a bit of a parallel between Teo and Katara. The Mechanist mentions that they lost his mother due to the war, which reminded me specifically of Katara. Throughout this scene, we see that Teo remembers his mother's philosophy and adopts it into his own mindset far more than his father's. Their situation is different because while Katara is arguing for compassion Teo is arguing for fighting back, but they are both fundamentally saying the same thing. It's not enough just to accept their lot in life and try to survive or fight, it's about the big picture, and about defending the things they love. While Katara and Teo both approach this subject from a very different front, the core idea is the same. It's also telling how they are dismissed initially as idealistic for their values when they are really upholding what their mothers stood for in their eyes: for Teo, a symbol of hope in her retellings of the stories of the avatar, and for Katara, a symbol of kindness in her reminders to remain empathetic despite the horrors of war. Make of this what you will, I just thought it was a nice little parallel.

Anyway, allow me to have a few words on the whole Jet thing (in bullet points because I don't have enough brain power to do this)

I'm glad Jet got his freedom fighters outfit. I was a bit worried when I saw what he was wearing in the first scene he was in because the fit is iconic, and so are the swords

God he's so fucking dramatic "they call me Jet" while the sun glints off his swords and he turns slightly for affect it was so funny I laughed out loud

He and Kia have no on-screen chemistry I'm sorry. Like even the fight scene was so awkward and every time they speak to each other they sound so stiff. They're good actors independently but whoever was watching their chemistry check (I'm assuming they had one pre-production but judging by this crap I wouldn't be surprised if they didn't) was either asleep or it was their first day because there is NOTHING there

What the hell did they do to the Freedom Fighters? They're so cheesy and the costumes are so bad (especially Smellerbee's). Like seriously that entire fight scene was so awkward idk what the hell happened there but it was nowhere near the quality of the rest of the episode so far

Overall, I'm not a huge fan. Also where is Sokka I'm pretty sure he's supposed to be there somewhere

Okay here's Sokka finally. Are they just taking him out of the Jet shenanigans entirely? I wouldn't be surprised considering how many episodes they had to condense but still I would have liked to see that. Oh well, I guess they had to have Katara do something in this episode instead of just stand around while her brother and Aang have huge plot points. Anyway, this scene was very interesting to me. Sokka and the Mechanist bonded in the og but not to this extent, and I honestly liked that they did something a bit deeper with it considering they don't have as much screentime to establish Sokka's daddy issues (for lack of a better word). Anywho the Mechanist mentioning that there are other career paths to take besides just being a warrior was super cool and I think we can glean a lot from it about Sokka's future character arc. Maybe in this version he doesn't perfectly live up to his dad's expectations and instead finds his own way? It was nice to see Hakoda proud of him in the original but if they go down this path I definitely won't be mad. It's interesting while staying true to the character, it's just a different direction.

The scene with Aang and Teo was cute. They're both good actors who play off of each other nicely, and Teo talking about how he doesn't want to follow in his father's footsteps lends a bit of insight to the conversation the Mechanist had with Sokka. He probably mentioned Sokka's dad because he wondered if his parents were engineers too and maybe is looking for a bit of an apprentice since his son doesn't take after him as much. This is also another way Teo conflicts with the Mechanist's way of life and may be more similar to his mother.

The jetara scenes at the Freedom Fighter camp had a much better dynamic. I think the fight scene was probably just them figuring each other out as actors, it just sucks that it seeped into the final take. I confess I was a bit disappointed that the Freedom Fighters didn't live up in the trees, but I guess that would be a bit difficult to engineer. I also noticed how Jet repeated Teo's "if not us, then who?" statement, which is probably just your basic commentary on how the future generations are our hope blah blah blah. It's a major theme so I shouldn't be as disinterested as I am in it but as it stands I'm still not totally thrilled with the Jet plotline as a whole and I think that may be affecting it. I feel like Sokka should be here to add some variety and spice things up a bit it's kind of boring.

The last jetara scene was definitely the best yet. I can't get over how happy I was to hear Jet say his mother taught him to fight. So often we hear how dads or older brothers are teaching the women in their family to fight but here we have a canonically badass male character saying that an older female relative was the one who taught him. One of the major complaints I have from the cartoon was how for all its talk about women being able to fight and its supposed feminist message, there were no women of the older generation fighting at all except for Jun, who wasn't even a particularly moral character like all these older men. We do have to remember that the cartoon started production over twenty years ago so it is a product of its time, when feminist issues weren't very mainstream. Another factor that might have contributed to the lack of feminism in the original was the generational discrepancies; millennials were the first to have widely accepted equal educational opportunities in the US, and even though educational opportunities are still affected by sexism, college became the norm for both male and female students at that time. This isn't to say women older than millennials didn't go to college, but this is around the time women and men started to become relatively equal as of percentage seeking higher education. Basically, they were the first generation of women expected to have careers, and therefore the writer's minds were probably shaped alongside a similar number of female peers, but primarily by men. This could have contributed to the lack of older women, but as times changed, so to did the amount of older women in professional fields. This line is a reflection of that, and I hope we continue to see more badass older women and older warrior women and women in power as the LA continues.

Other than that, I did take my shipping goggles out during this scene at the "sunrise" bit, and it wasn't about jetara. I heard from other fans in the zutara tag that the "you rise with the moon, I rise with the sun" line was removed but I keep thinking about how Katara is legitimately drawing power from remembering the sun rising, a time when the opposite element, Zuko's element, becomes more powerful. I know I'm reaching, but while I mourn the loss of our beloved "you rise with the moon, I rise with the sun" I have to find a new version. Anyway I think we should call this sunrisegate lol

Also, the way Katara is extremely hesitant to talk about her trauma whereas Jet seems completely fine with being emotional and dumping out exactly what he was feeling may have been a device but it does remind me of something I read about how ppl with PTSD will often react very differently when sharing their trauma and the same is true for many other trauma induced disorders. It was probably unintentional but I still thought it was a nice detail.

Anyway on a less serious note Iroh and Zuko's dynamic is still top tier. I've seen a lot of people complaining about Iroh's character but I don't see anything wrong up to this point. I might be in for a shock in future episodes but I have genuinely no idea what they find so off putting. He's a great actor and the character has legitimately not changed. The line above was a bit undercut by the fact that he's standing in the middle of an enemy city with a cloth half wrapped around his face to keep part of his face from being seen, but I'm just gonna take it at face value (haha pun). I think the thing Zuko despises most is cowardice, and it affects his perception of the war in a huge way. He calls Aang a coward for escaping from prison because he was running away or whatever and I've never considered Zuko a particularly logical character but it's like... bruh he's outnumbered like fifty to one what he is gonna do? Anyway his definition of cowardice is directly tied to his honor and his perception of it in relation to his trauma and the way he held back in the agni kai and him perceiving that as cowardice maybe... Ya'll got me? This isn't fully formed because I obviously haven't seen this new rendition of the agni kai but I'm guessing the events are basically the same. Do with it what you will.

I skipped over the Azula and Zhao scene because I don't have any groundbreaking commentary except to say that I liked it. It ties Azula into the story nicely and gives Zhao something actually interesting about him (I don't hate him as much as I did in the cartoon so whenever he comes up on screen I just sort of yawn).

Anyway, it was nice to see Katara get a bit angry. I think this captured the gaang dynamic pretty well. Aang being relatively neutral/ quiet while the siblings argue and Katara gets twice as mad as Sokka. Also he may have had the last word but she had the last laugh:

Again, the sibling dynamic was really great but I didn't feel like Katara was carrying it as much as in previous episodes. Sokka actually played his part in making it interesting and realistic. I don't think this single argument is enough to redeem Katara's characterization in my eyes but at least we know now there is a little spark there.

AHH THE SCARF SCENE! Scarfgate was everything I could have asked for and more. Like why does he appear directly behind her like that unless he's trying to fight her? Why does he just let her go by like that? Why does he hold out his hand in the first place? Truly is the Watergate of our time it deserves that name. (also in the same episode as the whole sunrise thing? come on) I'm probably being baited but at least I'm enjoying it.

So I was right about the bombings! I can't believe all those cute little kids are terrorists but I couldn't believe it in the cartoon either so I guess that checks out. Either way I find the bombing far less forgivable than trying to take out the Mechanist. Innocent civilians were hurt and even though I know there was a real possibility that civilians could have been hurt in the attempted bombing for whatever reason it just seems... more brutal somehow. Like the first one was in the center of town, you know? Anyway terrorism is wrong I hope Jet finds his way.

(I was worried about how they were going to tie all the seemingly unrelated plotlines together but I think they pulled it off. Again my main problems were all concentrated around the Jet plotline but when the Mechanist was tied in it became a lot more interesting)

When I heard this I was like "son ur about to get ur ass kicked" but the funny part is he was kind of right. Like when neither of them were bending he was winning. I guess in all fairness he is a lot bigger than Aang but I don't feel like that was an accidental detail. Anyway, I think this fight scene was the most entertaining yet and so much better than jetara against the firebenders earlier. Maybe the affects for water are just worse than air and fire (it feels slower somehow) but I'm very partial to this fight. And that's saying something because I usually fast-forward through fight scenes or just kind of tune them out or barely watch, so you know it was really good.

I think the reason I liked it so much was that it was funny, honestly, not in the same way or to the same degree the cartoon was but I laughed out loud a couple times. For instance Zuko gets hit in the face three times in the span of ten seconds, once with a plate, once with a wicker basket, and once with his own little stick thing. Aang also put a basket over his head and some random ass lady started whacking him with a fan. Kudos to whoever choreographed that it was the best.

Also I liked how Sokka and Katara saved the day together. Cute sibling bonding excersize. And it ended on a cliffhanger with the characters separated! My favorite kind of cliffhanger! It definitely left me wanting more.

Anyway, to recap, things I didn't like:

No Zuko and Zhao agni kai

Mai and Ty Lee were just sort of there

Katara's characterization is still so-so

Jetara plot line was boring and chemistry was not the best

It was kind of a lot for one episode, even if they managed to do it well

Things I did like:

Opening scene

Azula characterization

Teo

The Mechanist plotline

Teo and Katara parallel

Katara DID actually seem a little bit more firey in this episode

SCARFGATE

Zuko and Aang fight scene

Surprisingly good handling of all those loose ends

Cliffhanger

Overall, I would give it a 9/10. That's the highest score I've given an episode so far and I'm standing by it. I know others might have a very different opinion on it since it was condensed so much and differed a lot from the cartoon, but I agreed with many of the changes they made. One thing I would urge everyone to remember is that these are different characters from the cartoon. They're going to act slightly different and have slightly different journys and that's okay. I think it is worth comparing to the original, as it is an adaptation, but we need to remember that an adaptation is not an exact replica, nor should it be. That in no way means that we should make allowances for anything we found negative or mediocre, but it is going to be different and change in it of itself isn't a bad thing. Anyway thank you guys so much for sticking with me! I'll probably have the next episode's debrief up by tomorrow.

[echoing-gravity]

MLB X MCU AU in which Marinette gets revealed as Multimouse to the entire world

Because Alya cant be trusted to be responsible with a camera.

Every-fucking-one knows now. hawkmoth. her PARENTS. Hell even TONY fucking STARK knows she was a hero.

and then her parents make/force her to take Style queens offer to intern in NYC, because, from their perspective she is not safe in paris. and like- the AVENGERS are in new york so surely it must be safe there. so they pack up and move their entire bakery business.

and she ends up going to midtown high-school, where not to her knowledge, fellow teenage superhero Peter parker aka "Your friendly neighborhood SPIDER-MAN" goes to school.

Cute adorable shipping commences.

peter is all like "omg another teenage super hero???!!! like me???? i thought i was the only one???? transferring to MY school?!!! SO COOL!!"

"marinette is super smart, marinette is pretty, she was one of THE Miraculous Ladybug's sidekicks how cool is that??!, marinette is COOL!! maybe we can be friends? how am i gonna talk to someone that cool though?? i cant tell her my secret identity!!!"

insta-crush. peter is a marinette SIMP

(and yo, dont get on my case about marinette being super fucking smart, this is the girl who figured out she was getting a birthday party from just seeing one of her friends holding a bike pump. that girl is a tactical genius! she just has self esteem issues. they are both nerd, their just nerds about differnt things, let the nerds date!!!!)

of course Marinette still has the ladybug miraculous -even tho everyone thinks she doesn't have the rat miraculous anymore- and the miracle box. so she can still fight hawkmoth because the horse is basically fast travel irl, Space miraculous super conveintent.

(also concerning the mirsacle box, im going with my headcanon/Unlucky 13 AU on what that looks like post "ladybug becomes guardain" because that egg thing from canon? fucking lame

These ones^^^)

It would be canon compliant till season 2 and most? of season 3? but like fuck miracle queen, season3 finale + truth made me stop watching the show. so like in this au, lets just assume Fu is dead, and ladybug has had the miracle box for some time now. and that they got the miraculous when they were 13, and are currently 15? yeah? okay.

(also prolly chat salt, it doesn't HAVE to be chat salt, but like- He. Keeps. Trying. To. Quit. And leave all the work to marinette!!!! its happened like 3?? times now? Marinette CANT quit!!! its literally "do this or lose all your memories!!!" she is being held hostage by a fucking magic box full of responsibilities no 15 year old should have to deal with.)

I headcanon that marinette stress-bakes, so like cute scene number #1 after peter and marinette become friends, could be something like "marientte stresses for a test, and then bakes to much food so her parents make her take it to school to share with her peers, and she ends up giving like- 1/2 of them to parker, becuz of his super high metabolism.

and how marinettes got her whole "i'm RESPONISBLE!!! for the whole fucking universe now, omfg i'm the reason fu is basically dead" angsty shit going on which kinda parallels peters whole "i have super powers, and if i dont do something to help then its my fault if someone gets hurt, like how my uncle died. With great power, comes great RESPONSIBLITY!!!" angst. maybe they could trauma bond. who doesn't like a good hurt comfort trauma bond fic?

marinette likes designing fashionable but also functional clothes.

peter likes designing gadgets and techy things. let them be nerds together!!! in love!!

i feel like they would be the kind of couple/friends to just ramble on about their passions and they would listen to each other even tho they dont know much about each others interests yet. (also hey what if marinette and peter co designed one of peters early suits pre-stark suit??? the fucking writing potential this ship has omfg c'mon ppl!!! why are we sleeping on this??)

oh! and maybe peter figures out that marinette is also ladybug -but later on- cuz like, he has superhearing? and tikki isn't as subtle as she thinks she is.

and then he's all in awe like "Wow holy shit!!! she made her ladybug secret identity FOOLPROOF!!!! no one would ever fucking suspect!! maybe she can help me with mine???"

Fox miraculous shenanaigans insue????? The daily Bugles next headline be like: "SPIDER-MAN SAVES SI INTERN PETER PARKER FROM ETC ETC"

( the media thinks Ladybug and Chat are 1000+ years old due to that thing alya found in that museum that one time. and the fact that people know that Thor and Loki are super old.

Ladybug's excuse to the public for letting a teenager, Nay! for letting a THIRTEEN YEAR OLD CHILD use an extremly dangerous magical artifact for a little over 2 years, goes something like this: "Marinette was the ONLY person in france- maybe in the whole world! that was compatible with the Rat miraculous, it takes a very smart person to be able to multitask like that, and marinette has a photographic/phonetic memory."

i headcannon that marinette photographic/phonetic memory, and that the Rat Miraculous is the math miraculous that was mentioned in the comics that one time, and that if an incompatible person were to try and use it they would at BEST develop a severe case of split personality disorder/ or schizophrenia, and at WORST their brain would- just- melt out of their ears. )

Also he calls her "Spots" or "LuckyBug" when shes in hero mode.

(i cant think of cute nicknames for peter, ugh "web head" is just something i cant picture marinette saying. what's the french word for spider? what's the french word for cobwebs??)

She prolly just calls him "Webs" or "Spidey"

[lady-of-ocs]

What's up Haikyuu Girlies

So, it's certainly been a day. What's up, tumblr?

I needed some happy chemicals in my brain so I watched the only English dub Haikyuu thing I could find (I am still anxiously searching for all four seasons because I know they exist, they just aren't on Netflix anymore), which was The Dumpster Battle movie. You could say I'm a fan.

I accidentally went on a tangent so I'll put a cut in here lmao

I have fairly limited knowledge of the characters because I've only really seen clips and scrolled through fanart and fics, but I am very attached to Kenma. That's my little guy. I adore him. He's such a scheming little punk <3 But anyway, he was a big part of why I enjoyed the movie. I loved his relationship with Kuroo (and I love Kuroo in general. New husband alert fr fr) and how motivated he is by Hinata. I feel like I got to see him grow just within the span of the movie (I was dancing around my room when he said he was having fun. So precious). He's also just so smart and getting to see his POV was cool as hell (I do see what people meant about the literal POV scene making them feel vaguely nauseous, though). I had seen fanart of the "thank you for teaching me to play volleyball scene" but seening the scene itself made me all emotional. Kuroo is literally me in this scene.

I have even more limited knowledge of Nekoma specifically and I'm really only familiar with Kenma (obviously), Kuroo, and a little bit of Lev and Yaku. I could sit here and type up an essay about Kenma in this movie but I won't because my stomach hurts.

So let me yap about Karasuno instead. Even as someone who hasn't watched the show in full, I am obsessed with them. Tsukki and Yamaguchi? I love them. Their small little moment in this movie made me so happy (you might find me on my other account gushing about them under fanart). Yes, I do like Tsukkiyama. And let the record show that I'm also a fan of Kuroken (what do you mean you fell for his flattery, Kenma??!!). Are you sensing a pattern? Can you tell I like childhood friends (or just friends) to lovers? Good! Tsukki didn't get a lot of moments in this movie but I really enjoyed the few he had. That's my favorite tall blonde, no I don't take criticism. I wish Yamaguchi got more time, but when you're trying to fit everything into a single hour and a half movie, some characters are bound to be pushed aside. I don't think Kiyoko even spoke in this movie and neither did any of those three second years that I can never remember the names of. Daichi, I loved you despite how few moments you had (affectionate bro hug with Kuroo at the end surprised and delighted me). I will enjoy you even more when I actually get the chance to sit and binge this show. SUGA!!!! SUGA IS MAMA! I FUCKING LOVE SUGA. He also didn't get a lot of time in the movie but he used his time well. I love this man. The mother of all time. Nishinoya and Asahi are another favorite duo of mine. I know bits of their relationship and history and it makes me weep. Someone hold my little Asanoya heart. Special Yachi shoutout because she's braver than I am. That ball went right past her face and I swear she didn't even flinch. Absolute queen shit right there. Bonus shoutout to Bokuto and Akaashi, who I like very much. Bokuto is a complete dumbass and I love him for it.

AND OF COURSE, you can't talk about Haikyuu or this movie without bringing up Hinata and Kageyama. LOOK AT THAT LITTLE BABY CROW FLY. LOOK HOW MUCH TRUST THERE IS. I LOVE THESE STUPID KIDS! I feel like a proud mama, they did so well. Also Hinata is also stronger than me because Kenma was putting him through the wringer and I'd have cried in the middle of the court. But Karasuno adapted and they flew! My amazing crows!!! Kageyama can't take a compliment and that's adorable. Bend down here you giant, I'm going to pinch your cheeks and coo at you.

But I don't think I'm saying anything that hasn't been said before (though I do have the weird perspective of this being the only content for it I've watched in full because my stupid ass doesn't enjoy subs as much-though I'll watch them if there's no other option, i.e. a lot of the movies won't have dubs at all or they just won't be offered, so I tend to watch those subbed) and I've been yapping for a while. So long that my laptop fucking died on me!

But anyway, if anyone wants to A. inform me of a good place to watch the dubbed show, or B. just chat Haikyuu with me, feel free to say something in the comments! And once again, I'm so sorry for whatever the hell this is.

[grigori77]

Critical Role, Campaign 3 Episode 105

Dirty ass voice actors! Yes indeed! XD

Nord VPN? Oh gods help us ... what the sweet fuck is THIS shit? Wow ... Liam, that is DISTURBING ... is that a Ferris Bueller reference, Sam? That was yet more weird shit from the most cringe of all the sponsors, definitely ... and yeah, I'm with you, Liam. That WAS unsettling ...

Marisha: "This is unhinged." Matt: "Now? Only now? To be honest I kicked it all off with dirty ass voice actors ..."

Oh yeah ... spin the bottle ... yeah ...

So ... yeah ... the cliffhanger ... so IS THIS really Liliana or not? Because we were DEEPLY suspicious ... something feels OFF ... The Shrine of Gilded Gifts? Hmmm ... DO WE believe this? Do we TRUST IT? I don't know. I don't LIKE IT, certainly ...

Wait ... the Weave Mind ARE here? "Terraforming"? Hmmmm ... I mean it makes sense, but ...

A memory? OH!!! Oh shit ... oh yeah, that makes a twisted kind of sense ... and yeah, SHE IS ridiculously OP'd ...

Okay, so if this IS real ... wow, this is SERIOUS, then ... of course SHE WOULD totally make a stand, definitely. It's for her little girl, she's definitely made it clear Imogen means more to her than anything else ...

History check? First roll of the evening ... Nat19 for a 23? ASHLEY JOHNSON ... very nice ...

The Pravienier ... interesting ... and NO, Chetney, that is NOT real Elvish ... XD ...

So, is it a trap or for real?

CAN THEY check in with Ira? I thought the connection was still TRICKY between here and Ruidus ...

"A hot spider"? Oh boy ... I mean yeah, Laudna definitely WOULD agree with that description of Ira, but still ... XD

Good point ... WHICH leyline nexus?

Recruit potential allies in the Seelie? Yeah, that has potential too ...

Whoa! There ARE Judicators here? Crazy ... that is ... a little disconcerting ... O.O

I love how Orym-wise 24 is considered LOW in Perception terms ... LOL

Okay, so ... a bit of pre-game prep, then ... hmmmm ... what to do? Yes ... work out what NOT TO SAY, definitely ... "the back door and your mom" ... yeah ...

Telepathic Bond? Smart move, Imogen ...

Taliesin: "What symbol is that?" Liam: "That's a pie." Taliesin: "Oh, that's a WHOLE pie. Now I'm hungry."

They have Monopoly in Exandria?

Is Fearne leaving her options open? That's interesting ... is it just because Braius is very large and hot? (I mean that DOES go a long way ...) Meanwhile Ashton is cracking up and I love it ... I think he's as curious as the rest of us on this, but then that's just the chaos gremlin in him ... XD "The little warrior"? Oh boy ... I mean HE IS hot too ...

Wow ... yeah, I agree ... IS THAT a redirect for Braius onto ASHTON? That should be interesting too ...

All the shippers are going INSANE right now ... LOL

Oh dear ... who was THAT sneaky individual? Could that be a problem? Apparently he looked a bit like Dorian ...

OH SHIT!!! Is it Dorian's DAD?!!!

Super fancy platinum golems? Fascinating ... OH!!! The silver dragon! Wow ... that is IMPRESSIVE ...

A tiny bit of pee comes out of Dorian when he casts See Invisibility ... O.O

Carkonos? Of the Fire Ashari! Aweome!

Athudashionus? Oh, the DRAGON?!!! Awesome name ... the whole room is Zone of Truthed? Cool ...

20 is the save to beat that shit? Crazy ... but Dorian Nat20s that shit, so ...

Thankfully, that was not Bolo ... XD

VOX MACHINA are going for the Malleus Key? Sweet! That's a potentially awesome one-shot I wouldn't mind seeing them play sometime ...

And the Mighty Nein are going after the Weave Mind ... sweet! That would ALSO be cool ... oh yeah, the Bright Queen would DEFINITELY be fully in support of THEM ... XD

Bells Hells for the final mission ... because nobody has a CLUE who THIS LOT are ... and now EVERYBODY is looking right at them ... oh boy ... O.O ... eep ...

Orym: "Time is short!" Ashton: "And so am I ... sorry, just couldn't hold it in!" Orym: "Careful, there's a lot of halflings in this room."

Oh yeah, Ashtong definitely ISN'T going to be finding it easy to hold his tongue right now in the face of THIS ... nice one, Dorian ...

Wow ... is Braius SERIOUSLY going to bluff and say he's a cleric of the Platinum Dragon? O.O ... oh fuck this is BOLD and seriously ballsy ... "and we have a guy who makes chairs" LOL ... ah yes, Seedling IS now a Vestige, after all ...

Gift of Gab? Oh dear ... that could have been so cool ... crap ... way to fumble the pass, Braius ...

Religion check ... well, I mean HE DID once serve the Platinum Dragon, so he COULD name a Saint ... come on Riegel ... The Fallen Saint? Saint Graham? Oh yes ... I mean that one DOES seem to fit with Braius' backstory ... and this boy clearly knows NO FUCKING SHAME AT ALL ...

A Deception check? Really? HOLY FUCK this is risky ... yeah, that really does sound like a HUGE FUCKING EPIC FAIL to me ... O.O ... yeah, good luck reading THAT mind, Imogen ... yeah, that sounds ... WORRYING ... hmmmmm ...

Oh, this douche is going after Laudna? SERIOUSLY?!!! You better fucking not ... but our girl is NOT one to just wither in response ... Persuasion check? Okay ... NAT20!!! IN YOUR FACE you stuck-up ASSHAT ...

Wow ... and then THE MATRON HERSELF comes to back her up? Oh that is SWEET ...

The Titans' powers? Oh boy ... Ashton KEEP YOUR FUCKING COOL right now ... oh shit ... all right then ... this might as well just fucking happen then ...

Yeah no, that was actually pretty good, actually ... Persuasion check, but using his STRENGTH modifier because it's Strength of Character ... okay then ... andc now Fearne's stepping up to back him up too ... even more okay than ... hmmmm ... O.O

And now they're just gonna do what they do, then ... Ashton is now Raging, and it's the Time-Bending thing ... oh boy ... and now he's HULKING OUT ... fuck, this is a WHOLE MESS OF CRAZY SHIT all unfolding at once right now ... wow ...

Meanwhile Fearne Flames On and does her thing too ... which is just all kinds of fucking HOT, of course ...

Now they're BOTH making Persuasion checks ... but VERY MUCH with advantage, then ... oof ... Ashley just COMPLETELY fucked THAT roll ... but at least Tal managed to hold up HIS end ...

So ... did that work? It's unclear ... ummmmm ... O.O

Fuck ... come on, Dorian ... get it together ... you're COOL ... and you're like VERY MUCH the heart of this crew ... YES!!! Use your words! Bard it up!

Oh, is he gonna GENUINELY Bard it up right now? YES!!! Do that! Express yourself THROUGH SONG!!! Oh ... oh, yeah, that's pretty impressive too ... that's really cool ... Coriolus? The great Equine Dragon? Sweet!

Liam: "Orym totally blue-screens." I fucking BET HE DOES ...

And now it's Chetney's turn ... oh boy ... well, he DOES have a long memory, I'll give him that ... maybe you should just WOLF OUT ... "tiny sexy breath" ... dear gods ... yeah, that's right. That's right, he DOES wolf out ... perfect ...

All that and Travis rolls a 12 on his Persuasion check ... oof ... Laura: "But it was so good!"

Come on Kiki ... bring it home for them all ...

Whoa ... a whole bunch of big fancy titles ... and yeah, OF COURSE the Saviour Blade makes his mistress DAMN FUCKING PROUD ...

Does anybody challenge? Oh fuck ... this could still go SO BAD ... O.O

Whoa ... so they actually PULLED THAT OFF?!!! Thank fuck for that ... I'm fucking DEAD y'all ...

Oh that musical cue was VERY WELL TIMED, Matthew Mercer ...

Fuck ... is Chetney a father? Is THAT what the fuck is happening right now? Bloody hell ... XD

And here comes Dorian's daddy, just as we expected ... AND NOW Mercer chooses to call it a break? YOU MONSTER!!!

"Bronte" ... oh yeah, I had all but forgotten Dorian's real name ... I still MUCH prefer Dorian Storm, though ...

Oh, I really don't like the way he said "it is your nature" ... that sounded all kinds of judgy and disapproving in THE WORST of ways ...

Fuck ... this just got unexpectedly emotional ... and doeshe even KNOW about their loss yet? I wonder how Dorian's even going to BROACH that subject ...

Shit ... he just dropped it ... he got angry and he DROPPED that bombshell ... meanwhile I can already see EXACTLY what his father's REALLY thinking, what he's gonna say ... yeah, I guess THAT ONE right on the nose ...

Honestly, I don't think Dorian REALLY needs to make an Insight check even if the Zone of Truth IS still up ... that sounded very honest to me and he IS a parent and he is going to play it AS SAFE AS HE POSSIBLY CAN ...

The sword? Holy shit ... his father's most holy ceremonial blade ... that is RIDICULOUSLY generous ... Gambolcleft the Vortex Blade? Holy shit ... sexy sexy scimitar ... very nice ...

Dorian (giving up the Gambler's Blade in return): "Here, a drunk old man who died while pissing gave this to me."

The acceptance Dorian's been chasing his whole life? Wow ... that was awkward and I was NOT fully convinced he was REALLY entirely selfless there, but still ... it was BLOODY EMOTIONAL too ...

Meanwhile with Chetney's Maybe Baby ... oh, so he's JUST A FAN ... Matt Mercver you FUCKING GIT ... that was SO MEAN ... I love that ... XD

Scalebearer Waylon ... hmmmm ... he's adorable, I swear ...

"THE C-POPPERS"?!!! Holy shit ... Chetney has a bona fide FANDOM ... I am DYING AGAIN I swear ... LOL

Oh wow Imogen ... poor sweet Imogen just got COMPLETELY BLANKED ... oof ...

Highbearer Vord comes to speak with Braius ... oh, this could be fucking awkward ... O.O

The Platinum House in Zadash ... ah crap ... here we go ... WHOA, he still has his old PD symbol? That's kinda heartbreaking ...

PIKE has come to his defence? Oh my sweet Lil' Monstah! We love you SO MUCH you darling wee lass! That's my girl! :3

Essentially he's just getting A PASS. That'll probably have to do ... wait ... is he getting an ACTUAL ARMOUR UPGRADE?!!! Holy fuck ... O.O ... bloody hell, this is some LEGACY SHIT right now ... Truthbearer? SHIIIIIIIIIIIIIIT ... O.O

Taliesin "He made the gift of a holy relic like an epic burn." Yeah, the Highbearer is kind of being a bit of a troll right now even in his grace and I love it ...

Shit ... that's a LONG PAPER too ...

Laudna wants to go with Chetney to see his fanboy's impressive collection of C-Pop Industries works ... wow ... this is gonna be a fucking TRIP ...

"How much Orym LOVES Dorian" ... Liam O'Brian out here feeding us more crumbs right now ... the slowburn game is FIERCE right now, damn it ... AND the wee man is swooning over the silver fox, too ... XD

Awwwww ... Ashton and Dorian are so sweet ... Ashton: "Stay soft. We need it. We lost ours." :3

Keyleth is being really kind to Imogen too ... and now she's letting HER know the truth about her mother in return ... yeah ... I mean if ANYONE can be understanding about THAT it's the Voice ... and now Imogen's just UNLOADING EVERYTHING to her ... wow ...

Keyleth: "Do you trust her?" OH BOY ...

Oh shit ... so Keyleth HASN'T talked to the other members of Vox Machina about this shit yet? FUCK ... that's ... BOLD ...

Still in full-blown FIRE GOD FORM, Fearne is now passed out in a chair ... O.O

I love how they were expecting another Keyfish there ... LOL ... that PERFECTLY derailed the moment, guys ...

So we have A WEEK to make arrangements ... okay ... so what to do, then?

Matt makes Laura do a random D20 roll ... what's THAT FOR, Mercer? I don't trust you at all ...

Yes. Ira for the Fey Realm shit. And Nana Mori. Very smart ...

Liam! Stop looking at other characters on your iPad right now!

Chetney, what are you doing? Nat19 on a Persuasion check? Nice ... he is a SNARKY LITTLE SHIT, this guard ... but that SEEMS to have worked ... an audience with the Bright Queen, then. DO NOT lose your head, Chet, I know she's a hottie ...

Oh, she is a TRICKY one. I love that ... XD ... Marisha: "Are you gonna fuck the Bright Queen?" Travis (as Chetney): "Who says I haven't already?" Matt: "She does."

Aha ... so she might still be willing to help ASHTON in this, at least ... okay ... oh, so ... is she trying to get Chetney to BETRAY Ashton instead? Fuck ... O.O

Liam: "That woman could dropkick you through time." Travis: "I'm well aware of that."

Full-on GOD MODE kiss between the two titans ... and Ashton takes SEVEN POINTS of Fire damage ... XD

Now ASHTON'S going to talk to the Bright Queen ... this will be interesting ...

"The smallest bead of light" ... ooooh, okay ... and it sounds like Ashton could actually PUNCH A WHOLE IN REALITY if he really tried ... wow ...

Chetney: "Is my calendar clear?" Ashton: "Is you collander what?"

Going after Waylon, then ... meanwhile Fearne is trying to establish if this is, in fact, A RUSE ... OH!!! WHISPERS!!! Nice ... I wonder where THAT'S going ...

This tiny wee man is TOO CUTE ... he's like A TOTAL NERD ... and now he's geeking out over the toys Chet made for the others ... a "macabre twist"? Oh my gods ... LOL

The "Chateau de C-Pop" ... oh boy ...

Holy fuck it's REAL. This kid is a MEGAFAN ... this is levels of nerd reserved for the genuine obssessive LUNATICS among fandom ... I would not be surprised if this guy has his own late mother stuffed in a rocking chair down in the cellar ... likely a rocking chair created by Chet himself ...

The safe ... of the safe ... that's the best of all ... and the egg ... sweet fuck what is THIS mad shit? O.O Oh my fucking GODS that is pretty fricking AWESOME actually ... Chetney you are a fucking GENIUS ...

THERE IS ANOTHER ... oh my fucking gods ... LOL

"An apprentice?" Waylon FAINTS. Of course he does ...

I'm sorry ... HOW MUCH?!!! O.O

Are there any fakes? Oh wow ... I am INTRIGUED ... where the fuck is this going? A perception check? Oh boy ...

Drixlitch ... GRRRRRRRRRRRR ...

Fuck ... Chetney MADE FUCKING BEDS ... this is getting truly BIZARRE ...

Chetney: "I create ... because I am." AGAIN. I'M FUCKING DYING. XD

POP-CON?!!! Dear fucking gods ...

Wow ... Braius just made it truly surreal ... I am now truly DEAD again ...

D&Dbay? Fuck ... XD

Matt: "And ... THAT is where we're gonna call it a night." Fuck ... that is just TOO MUCH for one night ...

Travis: "If we stay here ... what if I die in my sleep?"

[death-himself]

EPISODE 5 THOUGHTS LETS GO

this series just keeps getting better and better istg

(also I think the only spoilers for non-book readers are at the very end so feel free to read)

the switch to annabeth seeing the fates after thinking percy might've died is INCREDIBLE, I love that change. the fates always seemed a bit out of place in the book so it's nice to see them actually add something to the plot

percy acts kinda different after climbing out of the river, which makes sense, but it's weird seeing him kinda happier and more hopeful

was i the only one who thought that percabeth hug kinda paralleled percy and sally's hug in the first episode? maybe it was just one of them being soaking wet and the other being dry

them hiding when ares comes by because they're hiding from the police is funny

also them popping their heads up to talk to him was adorable

"gimme a second, I'm starting a fight on twitter" CRYING

not too big of a fan of gabe's portrayal in this episode, i feel like they should've kept in how quickly he moved onto another woman to up his shittiness in a disney-safe way

that "i really-we really loved that car" was funny tho, and does make him a bit shittier, so I'll give him that. the fake crying could have been more clearly fake, but that's probably just me being bad at reading emotions

when i saw the clip of grover having to stay behind i didn't really like that change, but now watching the episode i really like it. i loved the grover-ares interaction this episode

i love the whole theme park being made by hephaestus, idk why there's something really cool about that

also i really wanna go there i don't even really like amusement parks but that place looked cool as hell

annabeth getting distracted by how cool the mechanics are she's so adorable i love her so much

the explanation of celestial bronze felt a bit random but they needed to include it somewhere so I'm fine with it

what did ares mean when he said protestor?? there were protestors at the solstice?? what does that mean??

grover hyping ares up and getting on his good side to get information out of him loved that

BABY DON'T HURT ME PLAYING ON THE TUNNEL OF LOVE PLSSS

the tunnel of love showing the story of hephaestus's life is so funny to me, like damn ares and aphrodite went on the ride showing the sad life of the guy aphrodite's cheating on??

like that ride was definitely made with revenge on aphrodite in mind that's funny

"she was trying to keep me away from you guys" that adds something to someone's character and i love that. sally recognizing how terrible the gods are and never wanting percy to have to deal with that

also percy looking to annabeth when he said that. like he knows that she's also a part of this awful cycle of abuse, which adds even more to her rejecting that cycle later in the episode

in terms of casting hephaestus is my second favorite of the olympians aside from dionysus, purely because i've loved his outfit from the moment we got that first picture of him, so this episode is exciting for me

including the chair hephaestus built for hera, idk why but i love that so much. could go into how the gods traumatized hephaestus but i think the episode implies that enough

"was [athena] always like that?" i was expecting them to go into how athena might have also been traumatized by zeus but nope it just turned into a shit-on-athena round, which was objectively better

"if she's so smart explain the owl" i loved this conversation it's so fuckin funny

"and i (no owl) am not?!" they're making me love ares fuck

i know there's a reason behind it, but the back-to-back episodes of percy supposedly dying and sacrificing himself for annabeth felt a bit much. i feel like there should've been a bit more room between those, but that's just my opinion (i don't really know what they could've done instead that'd be better)

I DIDN'T EVEN CATCH THE FIRST SEAWEED BRAIN MY FIRST WATCH WAIT HOLD UP

"this isn't the arch seaweed brain, you aren't pushing me into the stairwell again" "yes i am" STOP I LOVE THEM

"you're better at this than me. you just are" CRYING STOP

i can already imagine the edits those are gonna break me

percy getting incased in gold looked so damn cool it felt so mechanical

annabeth not even going for the shield and immediately trying to get percy out

ngl i was fully expecting annabeth to be able to do it, i didn't even doubt her getting him out herself, so i was kinda thrown off by hephaestus showing up

annabeth and hephaestus's whole conversation was just incredible

"maybe i was that way once. but i don't wanna be that way anymore. i won't be like all of you" i can see the edits

"some of us don't like being that way either" i just love hephaestus i love how this episode implies that some of the gods are victims of the cycle of abuse too

the inside of the zoo truck looks waayyy more cramped than i was imagining it all these years

spoilers for people who haven't read the book past this point

grover knowing who the thief is?? he can't know who it actually is, that'd spoil the entire plot-twist, but then who would it be?? luke and clarisse are literally the only named campers not on the quest so far, so unless ares claimed his own daughter stole the bolt, there's no one else that would be a satisfying red herring

i trust this show to not give away luke being the thief until the last episode, so now I'm just very curious what grover's gonna say

i loved this episode so much, my only concern is they haven't mentioned the whole "gods don't have DNA thing" yet, and considering that they really leaned into the family dynamic thing, it's a bit concerning

like please, for the sake of the new fans and their percanny or smartwater, please tell them percy and annabeth aren't really related it's starting to get weird

[aachria]

AACHRIA.

WHAT.

WDYM ACE WAS STILL KIDNAPPED AND TAKEN AND MIGHT DIE.

☹️

im in so much agony.

what the hell man ☹️

ALSO SABO (semi, he never got clarification 💀) KNOWING LUFFY AND ED ARE MARRIED LETS GOOOO 🗣️🗣️🔥🔥🔥🔥⁉️⁉️⁉️

SABO AND ED DYNAMIC IM IN LOVE.

imma be so fr i understood maybe half the plan. like i got it, i kinda know whats happening, but thats only for phase one..... phase two and three im so fucking lost they both said sm and i felt my mind explode. i forgot to read half the sentences and my mind was so blown i just decided to not go back and read them even though they will probably fix me and make me realize exactly whats going on LMAO

i once again request a 10k chapter, although still no threats bc im scared of my weird dream curse 💔 which i still have..... its better tho- its evolved into tumblr becoming a weird celestial being because when it said ur discontinuing ur fic as an ad and caused chaos people ended up worshipping tumblr to try and get you to keep writing ur fic- so no longer a nightmare just a really weird dream.... 😭

UR SO AWESOME, AND SO COOL, AND I LOVED THIS CHAPTER, I READ IT INSIDE THE MOVIE THEATER FOR THE DEADPOOL AND WOLVERINE MOVIE BC I COULDNT WAIT (10/10 movie btw) UR FIC IS AMAZING 100000/10 MAKE ME SOB NEXT CHAPTER 💞💞

Teehee. Be so honest with me did you think I would just leave that prime angst real estate unpoked?

Poor Sabo will get real answers one day. Hopefully. He was so damn much fun to write I just love him. Him and Ed are the two smartest people you know who also happen to be the most unstable and likely to cause an international incident by being a lil silly and goofy.

That plan... oh that plan. Writing that plan was fun and I got very carried away. I was terribly proud of myself for remembering half the shit in there before I had to pull up the wiki, and the Enies Lobby bit will be my smartest move until the next time I do something remotely smart.

Baby I'm going to hold your hand as I say this because I am being so for real, at this point if you are still having this dream every night you need to genuinely consider seeking professional help. That's not normal or healthy. Talk to a therapist or guidance councilor or something.

I hope to god you mean before the movie started or when it was done because if you had your phone out while that movie was playing I will be very disappointed. I wanted to go see it this week with my mom but it didn't end up happening ✊😔 I did rewatch both Top Gun movies though. Love those.

[starrose17]

Finished Dragon Age: The Veilguard.

Spoilers below for my choice of ending, but then a general review of the game.

YES Solas FUCK you OUT SMARTED BY A MORTAL DAMN RIGHT!!! Chose to swap the daggers, the relieved happy smile on Solas' face as he's sucked back into the fade to spend eternity keeping up the Veil he tried so hard to destroy, that's fucking justice!

YES!!! Leave my Rook to spend his happily ever after with a sleeping Lucanis in his arms, you can stay alone in the fade and suffffffferrrrrrrr.

Well, that was one hell of a game. Different from other Dragon Age games, but then every Dragon Age game has been different from other Dragon Age games, and that doesn't mean it's a bad thing. I thoroughly enjoyed this game very much!!

I played it on Easy because I'm here for the story not the combat, but even so the combat is much more complicated than previous games and it took me a while to get into it really, but it is good in the end.

Story wise, holy fuck. Talk about an overwhelming amount of reveals, so much to take in, the blight being the severed dreams of the Titans, that was cool. It was all cool, got to re-write my brain into forgetting the lore I knew and replacing it with the truth revealed.

So in this game I only lost Harding (cried at that), it's gonna be a while before I can do a bad playthrough to see how many people I can really lose, so for now another good playthrough with different choices.

Also there's evidently a ton of stuff I missed. Even though I got the loyalty of all the Factions and all the companions, and found every treasure chest and every jump point, I am somehow only 50% give or take discovered each of the world maps???? How is that possible?!!?

I think this time I can do a slower playthrough and really search for absolutely everything. I'm going to be a human male warrior for the Mourn Watch. A himbo, who's happy to protect the mages at the Necropolis and respects their work even though he doesn't understand it, and does fall for Emmerich.

.....on the other hand I love my Shiryan de Riva elf he's so pretty I might make him again under a different faction and just change his hair colour ^^;

ONWARD TO A NEW GAME!

[hergan416]

20 Questions for Fic Writers

I was tagged by @leviathiane thank you for thinking of me 🥺 I barely even feel like a fic writer at this moment, even though I keep writing fic - I wonder what that says about me 😂

I will answer this across all pseuds, including my omorashi pseud.

1. How many works do you have on AO3?

72 (what the hell? when did I have time to write 72 things??)

2. What's your total AO3 word count?

277,511 I like statistics, so it's fun to me that that averages out to around 3850 words per fic. Nearly none (ok maybe 10ish?) of my fics are 4k words. Considering I have 18 fics under 1k and like 5 fics over 10k though - i see how this happened.

3. What fandoms do you write for?

I am currently only really actively writing for Moriarty the Patriot, and I have previously been active in One Piece and Yugioh. I do have at least one fic from each of those two fandoms that I hope to come back to and finish, so I'm not fully out - just not currently writing there. ...I also have a pseud that exclusively contains a failed attempt at chronicling my magical kitties save the day campaign. There are other fandoms on my AO3 account but these are either alternate universes for my fanfic for one of those three fandoms, or archived tumblr meta analysis.

4. What are your top 5 fics by kudos?

Well here is where the fandom bias comes in I think. Or... perhaps just that the small fandom I'm only consumed by very rare pairs. 5. Sanji's Respite (Rated T, cigarette smoke, platonic lawsan, One PIece 4. Shared Nightmares (Rated T, platonic lawbin, One Piece) 3. Doctor's Orders (Rated E, law/reader, omorashi, watersports, very inappropriate use of devil fruits (your organs be outside you now), D/s dynamic, One PIece) 2. Law's Introspection (Rated T, sequel to Sanji's Respite, please don't ask me how the sequel has more kudos than the first fic in the series, cigarette smoke, platonic lawsan, One Piece) 1. Conquest (Rated E, fighting marines as foreplay, competition, kidlaw, One Piece)

5. Do you respond to comments? Why or why not?

Yes! I love talking in the comment section as a reader or a writer - it's so fun to talk about the characters we love, and fic is a good place to do it. There are so many smart fic writers out there too just UGH I've gotten so many cool reading recommendations, both original and fan work from my readers, and honestly those conversations are a major draw to actually posting at all for me. I am a little shy, but if you are in my comment section, it feels like it's probably ok for me to talk to you.

6. What's the fic you wrote with the angstiest ending?

If I didn't write alternate endings for the Emergency Contact series and consider this the alt ending the "true" ending, I'd say "Choke on My Words, Swallow Them Faster." (T-rated bad ending hanahaki fic from MTP angst week) -- SO many dead characters. But I think that the real answer should be "Lex Talionis" (E-rated katamar 'temporary character death' fic for OP).

7. What's the fic you wrote with the happiest ending?

This was fucking hard. I don't know that I write particularly happy endings. There are fics with resolved sexual tension. Fluff fics where things weren't ever sad to begin with. And a LOT of hurt and angst and badwrong. BUT I think I'm going to go with "Date Night" (Rated T, bondson, Moriarty the Patriot). James might get shot and there might be some tension because of it, but overall it's actually pretty hopeful and cute, the plot elements are treated pretty lightly, especially for me, and James & Miss Hudson are honestly pretty cute together, even if the world might not protect them and they know that.

8. Do you get hate on fics?

I don't think I really get hate. I have had confusion/surprise before. I've had people who had wildly different interpretations of what I wrote than what I planned on writing. But never true hate.

9. Do you write smut? If so, what kind?

Bahhahahahahah do I write smut. DO I write smut? It's not like 35 of the 72 fics are rated Explicit and another 14 are rated Mature. I write SO much smut al;kjdflk; I .. do not know how to succinctly answer "what kind." Unless you want like M/M & multi but ALSO there is a little het in my x reader stuff. There is a fair amount of more normal smut, a good amount of omorashi, and LOT of violent/consent violating/incestuous smut that is designed to leave you horny and uncomfortable about it.

10. Do you write crossovers? What's the craziest one you've written?

Not usually as a rule but I do have a single true crossover between One Piece and Yugioh which is currently abandoned. I don't think it was particularly crazy, and it was my longest fic until Poison Paradise came around.

11. Have you ever had a fic stolen?

I don't think so. I don't know who the hell would be crazy enough for that tbh. I think if you are clout chasing you would choose something less fucked or more finished.

12. Have you had a fic translated?

Nope.

13. Have you ever co-written a fic before?

Yeah! I co wrote two fics for Sherly week this spring. @cawcawkarasu helped me with alpha reading and direction + art for the fashion prompt, and @vitya-nikiforova co-wrote the fic we submitted for the "indulgence" prompt (porn tea)

14. What's your all-time favorite ship?

Such an short, innocuous question. What the fuck. AHHHH NO don't DO this to me. Prideshipping, yugioh. katamar, one piece. FUCK don't make me choose just one moriarty the patriot ship - basically any combination of the moribros & holmes brothers that isn't mylock or sherliam could probably be a top ship. Willis? Alwill? Sherlilouis? Sherlouis? Something like that.

15. What's the WIP you want to finish but you doubt you ever will?

Hahahaha jokes on you that's so many wips. I guess I'll just list the one piece and yugioh fics I'm still holding out hope for: Chronology: A Case Study (the tattoo kaiba fic LITERALLY HAD THE LAST CHAPTER WRITTEN FIRST WHAT THE FUCK HERGAN. JUST FINISH IT ALREADY), Exothermic - I have a grand plan and it would be great to implement but I just don't have spoons for One Piece right now. Honestly Seek and Ye Shall Find also - it would be nice but i've given up. Live Stream too - the coding is just too much for me even though I know a lot of how it goes. And actually there is a yuumori fic here too: Welcome to Paradise. I suspect that I'm not going to want to return to pregnant Albert very often, unless somehow I get pregnant a second time and feel like I need to write about that experience. LOOK YOU ASKED A CHRONIC NOT FINISHER OF FICS WHAT WAS I SUPPOSED TO SAY

16. What are your writing strengths ?

I think my writing tends to focus well on individual experience. I like to use physical sensation and limited perspective a LOT in my writing, and I feel like it is often very vivid and compelling.

17. What are your writing weaknesses?

Sticking with it when it gets difficult/I lose interest? And also probably just "happy moments." I definitely am not a great tooth-rotting fluff writer.

18. Thoughts on writing dialogue in another language for a fic?

I don't mind the concept but I have had very little reason to do it. French would fit with the Victorians, but I just. am not a good French speaker. I don't think I would do it with any regularity.

19. First fandom you wrote for?

Uhhhh fuck if I know. Lemme check FFN. Dear god. Uhhh I guess its a poem for something called "Midnighters"? I don't remember writing that tbh Or even what that fandom was.

20. Favorite fic you have ever written?

Oh damn I read this as "best" fic that you have written when I read your responses Depths, and I was like "oh I know that answer" but favorite? Ugh why are these HARD You know what. Poison Paradise is my pet fic and it has so many more words than any other chapter fic i've attempted. I really really want this to be the on that I finish. So let's choose that.

Thank you so much for asking. If you have gotten to the end of this or if you are @user-needs-new-hyperfixation @eternallaughter or uhh idk who else to tag right now I've been writing this post for nearly 2 hours now & feel like it, go ahead and do it too.

[crankyweasel]

We're back my loves, and uff I am still in shock. So let's get started: Act II of Arcane

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I don't even know where to start, so I guess here?

Ambessa is tryna work arcane stuff but it really doesn't work, she is also apparently doing her very best to take over Piltover which is crazy. Her lt. Rictus has sort of a personality but he's kinda a terrorist (if evil why hot, don't like him tho). She was also trying her hardest to make Caitler her protégé - I'll talk about her too worry not. And let's not forget my most standing opinion of her, I hate her with burning passion. Good strategist, a solid con-woman, smart as all hell, terrible mama and apparently she had an affair with someone?

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Let's stick to the Medarda family for now, we got prison era Mel. She's one smart woman lemme say. We got a glimpse of how her brother - Kino - is/was supposed to be like, although he was a Black Rose apparition thingy (it was weird). Mel is, I suppose the affair baby, from which she has some sort of power or something? - Her arc confused me,

Though I am extremely excited to see what happens next with her, so there's that.

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Zaun is really coming together, with Jinx as their hero of sorts? It is, quite an interesting turnaround. (the second act feels like ww2 Germany and I'm scared of this revelation)

Zaunite people are uprising and working together which was nice to see. It's not the Undercity anymore, it's fully the nation of Zaun,

We also saw much more of mr. Firelight Man Scar, who is awesome and we love him in this household,

We also saw a glimpse of the tree community centre situation, which, was pretty bad. The tree is seemingly dying. A very sad and dire situation? - I would say.

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Moving on from Pola- I mean Zaun let's turn to our saviour Jinx!

She's a retired mama for a while which was strangely adorable to see. I swear on the humanity that I have left, that Isha is her kiddo,

Jinx is still kinda crazy which is character accurate I think. She's great tho, I really like her character turn, that and the small time we saw Sevika for she was a great second mama too. The crazy lil family. Perfect for them really,

Now for Isha. She's great. Very cute lil kiddo, though I do think she's either mute or just nonverbal (which, both is fine don't get me wrong). But, big BUT Isha you damn self-sacrificing idiot!? I genuinely teared up at the end - she sacrificed herself and killed lava-wick - what the fuck Isha?! All in all love her.

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The breakup really broke VI huh? Crazy.. but not really. It was genuinely cool tho to see such a drastic change after a relationship ending (I think many people could relate), I do like this phase tho. The apparent alcoholism, not so much but what can ya do?

We did get to see a glimpse of Vander knock-off ex-enforcer man but he didn't have a big role I guess,

The crazy-sister reunion wasn't on my bingo card but, well appreciated truly. The bickering, the fighting - true sisters here.

And oh my god. The lil family reunion with Vander-wick made me (also) genuinely tear up, like damn please stop playing with my emotions like this RIOT!

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After the dictatorship was chosen for Caitlin in the last act, we truly got to see Caitler at work huh. Also what the flying fuck was that with Maddie?! Didn't make a lot of sense to me but I do so love Riot embracing the whole lesbian thing,

Her dictator character arc didn't really move me in any direction, to me it was only "meh". Like yes, I know your mama was killed by Jinx and that made you vengeful, and that made her wanna get rid of Zaunite people (Caitler much?) but it wasn't that moving really. That and the moment she reunited with VI she dropped the dictatorship, like huh? - make up your mind woman. Also with that cape of her's, she looked like fucking Dracula. Weird aesthetic.

But the reunion was pretty nice, 15/10 reunion.

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Uhm the whole Jayce and Viktor thing was so crazy, holy hell,

So Vik fully embraced his hobo jesus Herald status, made a whole community out of it too. He really made his own holy church. Clever lil mighty Jimmy,

The Salo/Viktor thing freaked me the hell out, genuinely. It was a very weird thing to see. But I guess hobo boy Jayce didn't like it either because he killed Salo in cold blood - because apparently he's got that pure chaos in his mind? I mean Vik just say he's crazy, it's easier,

Then, because he's not done yet (what the hell man?) he goes to the land of salvation of hobo Herald and commits genocide. Committing war crimes must be fun, I'm sure Jayce could tell us.

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Next on our (my) list is the second individual whom I hate with burning passion, I give you - Singed!

He is apparently either a coward or just eighteen million steps ahead of people and the problem is I can't tell. Because locking himself in the cell after unleashing - our man, our myth, our legend - Warwick, is no doubt cowardly (I was like, "face the music bitch"), for which he was held accountable, but then he kind of wasn't? The fuck Ambessa?!

He's got a daughter I suppose who is either, genuinely dead or just very comatose, can't tell this one either, and his name is Reveck? What kinda name is that you old psycho-alchemist?!

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And for the last bit I chose Warwick, because I love him (not in-love with him mind you),

Thing is I always loved Warwick's character design even though I never really played L.O.L myself (I played for like a month). I think he's a fascinating character and I was super excited to see him in Arcane,

After realising that it was Vander who got turned into him was also very interesting. Because like, I did like Vander when he was alive, but back in my mind I always was thinking that he's either the Chekhov's gun type or he's just not that significant - which he really turned to be (not ignoring the pseudo-father situation),

This Arcane humanoid Vander-wick was an interesting choice as well, because I'm sure a lot of people will argue that it's not really the same character. But I personally really liked it, it's a nice change of pace. And this Vander-wick also has heterochromia which is just so cute, honestly, it shows his more human/sane mind,

The family hug, and Vander's memories were really trying to make me bawl, and honest to fuck they almost succeed,

The ending though, different situation. After the whole genocide thing, Vander-wick, not only going full Warwick but rather lava-wick?! The hell guys it was going so good and then BAM pure chaos. I hate every single person at Riot and I'll sue them for therapy money, I swear.

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Thank you for enduring the second rant about Arcane, I really like writing like this and I hope other people do as well.

Till next act loves, please have a lovely day everyone!

[lovinglin]

heyyy, lara heyy it's uhhh p.ico listen

I'm tryingmy best to type this properly butlike nen.e and ddarn.ell are behind my back. so sorry if this appears rushed n shit I CAN DO BETTER THAN THIS

those two goofheads want me to write a love letter to you I MEAN LIKE I can totally write one up for you IT'S JUST my brain is suddenly not working because they're behind my back and mentioning ALL the cute qualities about you and I'm on the verge of BREAKING THIS PHONE because I'm overwhelmed with embarassment but like you're also cute as fuck SORRY WAIT this is supposed to be FORMAL I'm already ruining this ANYWAYS

LARA look I love you a lot and I think you're so pretty and gorgeous and just the entire synonym dictionary of what I said. I can't believe I'm with a literal ANGEL (haha wink wonk I'm so smart) who loves me for who I am and what I am. genuinely. I still swear on my life that I'll make sure to keep you safe from danger and anything that bothers you. just come to me and say it and I'm right here, cool? yes? of course you understand - that's why we're still together haha <33

Wow that sounded so much better than what was going on in my head, they stopped bothering me now but seriously!

Lara, love you lots - you sweet sweet thing. Hope to see you soon!

- 🍎

( Lara is typing... )

Hey, didn't expect you to send such a long message (or letter in this case) but it's surely a welcome one haha <33

Trust me when I say I'm probably squealing like a schoolgirl irl—after I read what you sent—than what I'm showing here in text (talk about formalities amirite?) but anyway- I assume that you're doing alright, considering what you typed and how those two dorks made you send it. (I don't hold it against them LOL)

Honestly, where do I even start with this? It's so unexpected that I'm going speechless as well about you. I do love you a lot as well though- more than I can say, and no words could probably accurately describe that feeling but I'll still try.

Pico, if there's anyone in this world I'd go to hell and back for, then it'd probably be you- no, it's definitely you. I know you'd swear to protect me but I hope you know I'd do the same. I want you to be safe, more than anything. I want us to be safe.

Because I love you so much, and words really are failing me right now just when I needed them- but you get what I mean right? Sometimes it's moments like these that make me remember those nights where things get a little too overwhelming and the only thing that's keeping us grounded is being in each others arms. Remembering that made me a little teary eyed haha

Moving on, I just hope you know much I appreciate and adore you. Yes, even all your flaws... and stupidity, idiot (just kidding, you're the smartest person I know honestly PFFT). Where would I even be now without you?

Well this became a lot more lengthy than I expected- but can you blame me? No, don't even answer that, you prompted this the moment you sent this message and I WILL be returning the sentiment. Expect me to smother you with kisses the moment I see you again. Love you lots as well, Pico <3

With much love (and soon with kisses too),

Lara

(PS. Tell Nene and Darnell I said hi and that they have my thanks for making you be cheesy LMFAO)