#one of my favorite bits of ollie characterization

[teafourbirds]

Just Ollie Queen, singing the classics no matter the situation.

Smashing medieval alien monarchies:

Green Lantern (1960) #92

Perry Como and The Fontane Sisters - Hoop-Dee-Doo (1950)

Serving some time in jail:

World's Finest Comics #275

Nobody Knows the Trouble I've Seen - African-American spiritual dating back to the early 1800s, but here is Louis Armstrong in 1962:

Burying the hatchet (at least temporarily) with an antagonistic teammate:

Justice League (1960) #145

The Happiness Boys - Show Me the Way to Go Home (1925ish)

Stranded and making his way home via dogsled:

Green Arrow (1988) #8

Alaska's Hobo Jim - The Iditarod Trail Song (1982). This one would have been quite modern at the time!

Overcome by the musical he and Dinah just saw together:

Green Arrow (1988) #57

Gene Kelly - Singin' in the Rain (1952)

[pluckyredhead]

so what did you not like about worlds finest teen titans? There were a lot of dropped plot threads and bits I expected Waid to develop more (Roy and Ollie conflict, Roy, Garth and Wally never resolved their sleepover argument, Karen's reaction at the con to nearly being unmasked, Wally's parents, ect) and also the queerbaiting with garth (and his eyes changing colour halfway through???) was annoying. I thought it was cute overall but maybe I'm not familiar enough with some of the characters?

I held on to this ask because I was going to reread the miniseries to answer you more accurately, and then I decided to not put myself through that, so...hopefully my memory is accurate lol.

(I should note before I get into it that none of my quibbles are with Emanuela Lupacchino's art. She's a treasure and we're thrilled that she's here.)

But yeah, you've put the nail on the head with a lot of it. It was just terribly paced, like Waid didn't know how many issues he had or something. Aside from all the dropped threads you mentioned, it felt like the main bad guys were...pretty much hastily introduced, or at least assembled, in #5? There didn't seem to be any kind of...well, point to this miniseries. There was no theme. There was nothing Waid was trying to say, as far as I could tell, except "Fuck Roy Harper." (Oh, we'll get to that.) It wasn't an origin story for the team. It wasn't about adolescence or coming of age or learning who you are, except maybe a little bit for Garth. It was just...there.

And I want to be clear here: Mark Waid is one of my favorite comic book writers of all time. When he hits, he hits. The regular World's Finest book and his Shazam are wonderful. I just think this wasn't the right match of writer/characters, because he didn't handle these very well. Taking them one by one:

Dick: DC is fully in their "Dick the unbearable Mary Sue" era and this book is no exception. If I never see another comic where a whole team of experienced superheroes with major league powers and training stands around like incompetent jackasses until a Bat comes along and tells them what to do, it'll be too soon. I'm here to read about an ensemble book where everyone is a three-dimensional character, not The World's Most Perfect Boy and his loser sidekicks. Not only is it unfair to everyone else in the cast, it's doing a disservice to Dick, who is a much more interesting character than this book (or Tom Taylor, ahem) gives him credit for.

(There's also something very weird and inconsistent Waid is doing across his books with Dick - WF, WFTT, and BvR - where sometimes he's throwing a tantrum because he doesn't get to be a circus star with everyone looking at him all the time, and sometimes he's screaming at Roy for filming them, and both feel utterly arbitrary to me as well as contradictory.)

Donna: Donna's characterization in this was just...bizarre. I was a little worried about how Waid would handle her, since he has a tendency to turn more quote unquote "wholesome" female characters into the Mom Friend (see: his Champions run, where he tries to get away with it by having Kamala announce that she's not going to be the Mom Friend because she's the only girl on the team...and then immediately becoming the Mom Friend), and Donna's already very much a Mom Friend, and I didn't know what Mom Friend Squared would look like. But instead he went for this...Manic Pixie Nightmare Girl approach? Where she's really into bungee jumping and monster trucks? I'm not offended by it, it's just so utterly random. This isn't who Donna is? It's never been who she is? Baffling.

I am offended (I mean, mildly, but still) by the fact that she and Garth are shoehorned together in this. He's the only boy on the team she's never been romantically linked to, even in dreams/hallucinations/whatever, so completing the set feels very much like Donna's only narrative worth is in being a love interest, which...gross.

Garth: Garth probably got the best treatment of the bunch, to be honest. He was in character as the shy little weirdo he was in the Silver Age and in pretty much every flashback we've ever seen. He's smart and perceptive and bad at saying what he wants and generous towards those who have hurt him, all of which is very Garth. I have no complaints about him except the weird queerbaiting, and I'm not blaming Waid for that because from what I understand, solicits are written by editorial working off of a pitch, potentially before the comic is even written, so who knows what happened there? It might have been a stupid joke that didn't land, it might have been a story that was pitched and then a higher up vetoed it, it might have been a story Waid was going to write and then changed his mind. I'm not going to say it's his fault when I have no idea if that's true. Otherwise, I think he handled Garth well.

Wally: Wally was another one where I was just like ??? the whole time. He didn't feel like Wally, he felt like Bart. But, like, fanon's innocent child version of Bart and not the actual canon character, who has a lot more backbone. Why is he hero worshipping Dick like that? Why is he so docile? What was up with that weird line where Dick's like "you're the youngest?" Yes, historically Dick had already dropped out of college while Wally was still in high school, but otherwise they've always been portrayed as the same age. And if it's a reference to debut year, Donna's the youngest. It's such a random throwaway line dumped in at the very end for...why? Confusing me personally?

The worst, though, was whatever the hell was going on with Wally's parents. Wally's parents are not an idyllic suburban couple! They are not the Kents! Rudy West is only not classified as a supervillain because he doesn't have a costume! Even if he hadn't tried to kill Mary, sold the Earth out to alien robots, faked his own death, or run a deadly labor camp for children at this point in the timeline, he definitely hit Wally and, uh, poisoned Wally's Little League coach. I don't think Mary is as bad as some of fandom does, but she's certainly a difficult person. Wally was desperately unhappy at home as a child, which is why he latched on so hard to Barry and Iris. And Waid knows this, because he wrote a lot of that canon. If it's a retcon, it's such a strange, pointless one that makes all of them a lot less interesting. Just baffling.

Karen: I think it was a very smart choice to add Karen to the founding roster and make the team slightly more gender-balanced and not all-white. It's kind of a wasted choice, though, when she's so aggressively sidelined. All she does in this book is hang around with Mal and the support staff. She isn't looped into any of the major emotional conflicts - Garth and Donna, Dick and Roy, Roy and Wally and Garth. She's not treated as a headliner in the same way the others are, and that really sucks.

Roy: Hoo boy.

When Waid was announced as the writer of Batman vs. Robin, I was worried, because I had a feeling he didn't like Damian. I couldn't put my finger on why, it was just a feeling I had. And boy howdy, was I proved right! Damian is treated like shit in that book.

I had the same feeling with this book and Roy, and...let's just say I'm two for two, okay?

Here's the thing. I'm okay with Roy being written as kind of shitty, especially during his period of his life. Teen Titans: Year One writes him as an utter fuckboy, and I love that comic. The Mal and Karen issue of The Other History of the DC Universe retells the Bronze Age Titans era from their perspective, and it pulls absolutely no punches regarding Roy being, well, kind of an asshole...and it's right to do so, because it's drawing very directly from those 1970s comics, and he was often awful in those.

But Waid writes him as a generic 80s movie villain. He's a human popped collar. He's a stereotype of a bully. My problem isn't that I need him to never do anything wrong, it's that nothing in this book is specific to Roy, his history, or his established personality.

For instance, all of his bragging about how much money he has? He comes off like a kid who was born into wealth and has never known anything else, but that isn't true. He was at best middle class before Ollie, probably more likely working class given the economic situation on most reservations - but there's no indication that he's responding specifically to that shift in circumstances. He's just, like, Draco Malfoy with arrows. Also, Dick has a nearly identical history but none of the same issues. He even says "Roy and I have the same background but he sucks." Why is one of them a perfect angel untouched by filthy lucre, and the other is Bradley Uppercrust III?

And then there's the subplot with Ollie neglecting Roy, which fizzled out to a real wet fart of a resolution. But honestly, at no point did I know where Waid was going with that, because...well, if you know Roy's history, you know Ollie neglecting him is what leads directly to Roy getting into drugs. And like...first of all, the timeline here is off, because historically Ollie didn't ditch Roy until after he lost his money, and he still has it here. (How interesting would it have been to have Roy pretending he was still rich in addition to pretending Ollie was around?) But also, this comic ends on an "and now everything is fine!" note, but it isn't! It really, really isn't. So Ollie showing up at the end and being like "I'm here for you, buddy" doesn't ring true, because he is demonstrably not in this very comic, and we also know he won't be in the future. And Roy getting what he wants doesn't feel like a satisfying resolution either because we don't actually get to see changed behavior from him, and again, we know this won't last. (Again, TT:YO handles this dynamic very well, where we see that Ollie is an affectionate but negligent guardian who Roy is learning some very bad habits from.)

And to top it off, constantly contrasting Terrible Roy to Virtuous Dick and simultaneously pretending that Ollie was at this point a responsible guardian has the (I hope unintentional) effect of implying that Roy will eventually become an addict because he's just a bad and weak person, instead of a struggling teen who needed support and didn't get it. I would have actually preferred a story that hinted at the beginning of Roy's addiction and how he hides it from the Titans, because we've never had that story told in comics, but I don't think Waid's the one to write it. Instead we get a conflict that's out of character for Roy, a resolution that doesn't feel at all earned, and the looming threat of Roy's immediate future which Waid refuses to address.

In conclusion, this book was a mess, and you should all read Teen Titans: Year One instead.

[ad-hawkeye]

posing you a potentially difficult task:rate artem’s year three worst to best(when you get the time ofc)

anon this was difficult on my soul. but i did it. mostly. because there's one or two i haven't watched in full myself, and one of those i legit have heard nothing about in terms of quality, i will mark them with a star.

i will also be including some of the upcoming third year cards i've read the translations of.

with that disclaimer out of the way, here's my list! worst from best.

ocean’s enchantment [summer splash] - i have no clue how they made a card that i consider worse than artem's second anniversary card but. by god did they do it. never say anything is impossible. at least artem was dressed nice in his second anniversary card. and also shitfaced. literally nothing is in this card's favor. also artem knowing how to surf is mind numbingly stupid i'll say it. lavish invitation [second anniversary] - i've bitched and moaned about this card for nearly two years now. you all know the takes on this one. third anniversary - this one nearly put me to sleep! 2/10. despite some weird short lived ooc moments, not as bad as artem's second anniversary card. its main sin is being a chore to get through. i was fighting against the urge to skip forward. mediocre art. top up cello ssr - ugh. i got so annoyed by this one i stopped watching a few minutes before the end. it's yet another "omg no way artem is a master at this random ass hobby?!?!?!?!??" card that year three LOVES and the explanation for it is so convoluted. really pretty art though. always happy to see rosa's canonical violin skills mentioned. calm as the night [billiards] - this one was fine. i guess? first of the cards i don't actively dislike. epic highs (omg this part made me smile like a year one/two card!) and epic lows (why are they licking each other's arms) velocity of desire [racing]* - i'd rank this one equal to artem's billiards card. one of the ssrs i mentioned that i haven't actually read, but i've seen people have generally indifferent to positive commentary on. better handling of jealousy. the actual event this came with was super cute though. love for the ages [3rd birthday] - cute art, serviceable if not a teensy bit convoluted story. an enjoyable time. this ranking is NOT about the birthday event it came with which, imo, sucked major ass. enshrouded sunglow - to the surprise of no one the au cards are going to wind up topping this list. funny enough i think this is artem's weakest au card. it's afraid to take risks and was a bit more boring than the other aus. still ages better than most of year three though. cutie ollie - mind boggling how this card where artem "isn't used to this kind of physical touch" in regards to mc playing with his hair, comes AFTER the daddy dom sex god ssr. anyways this one is very cute. i'm convinced it was supposed to be a year two card bc the only mention of second anniversary is a quick mention of an engagement ring. lmao. stormy enigma [bakerlon] - bakerlon my beloved. save me bakerlon save me. one of artem's better au cards, but i still wouldn't rank it first. also celestine is in it! a win! belle nuit d'amour - further evidence to my claim that tot's personal story cards rarely if ever suck. some good character stuff, the closest we've seen to artem fucking up a case, really good art. would recommend. or maybe not idk i haven't actually read the global version but i can't imagine it's too different from the fan translation i read. dragonsbreath - this one ties with the weeds for my favorite artem au card story. neil is in this one. fun plot. good art. good characterization.

[UNRANKED] voice of comfort* - i have not read this one nor have i ever seen anyone talk about it like. ever. or maybe i did read it and just fucking forgot. idk. don't really have the energy to read it regardless. the art is kinda mid. if anyone wants to message me their thoughts on this one, i can tentatively adjust my ranking on it

*i have not personally read either of these. any ratings are done via word of mouth or summary. regard these ratings tentatively.

[leiflitter]

Hi! Hope your car is ok . Meanwhile...

Any YAH Felix sprog (Harry, Ru, Ellie) facts? Favorite vs hated things, things they do with Felix vs Oliver, how they are when they grow up, what they think about Ollie's family and Ollie himself, relationship/dynamic with each other, their grandparents,

Venetia, Farleigh and Lu (just anything you can imagine). Marcus facts would also be very welcome.

Would you ever continue any of your other fics or do you consider them a one-and-done because you've already said everything you had to say about that AU?

Any other Cattonquick plot bunnies?

If you read Saltburn fics, any favorites?

Favorite vs dreaded part of the writing process?

Parts you're especially happy with in your Saltburn fics? (a scene, foreshadowing, characterization, dialog, Ocs...)

Alright let's whack a cut in- gonna do these out of order for speed purposes! There's a lot here so I didn't answer everything, but there should be a lot to sink your teeth into!

Extending my oneshots- there may be scope for more on top of em when I am finished with YAH but I will probably leave them be. I'm a firm believer in that Felix and Oliver probably wouldn't work out if they got together younger, but it's still an interesting dynamic to play around with. If I was going to continue one, it'd probably be Hang Me Out To Dry, though.

Other fics- I actually haven't read any others, mostly because I am on that #grindset for YAH 😅 it's something I'm looking forward to when it's finished, being able to rummage about and find authors to hype up!

Best/worst bits of the writing process- worst is finding the starting sentence for the chapter. Once that pops into my head, it's fine. Also, when I'm trying to shove them towards a plot point but they won't get off of each other. Best is hittin' that flow state, brain go brrrrr and words happen. I honestly don't really edit that much, although I am slowly going back through and making lil tweaks, but even that is kinda satisfying.

My fave bits of YAH are:

Any of Felix's dumb lil one-liners, but especially, "runny eggs at mach five."

The Christmas Party.

Felix and Farleigh's heart to heart.

The bathroom chat with Jeff.

The Lucia foreshadowing for sure- that was so satisfying to see people going "OMG I SEE IT" in the comments.

I also really like my lil supporting cast, I hope they feel real and nuanced!

So gonna just do a big ol ramble on the Cattonlets, because I love these kids, but it may not cover everything because even I don't know all of it yet 😅

All of the kids go to/went to boarding school, but only because Lucia and Felix agreed that they need the best education possible. They're home as much as possible, but that means Saltburn is often pretty empty in term-time. The schools themselves are "sister schools" so although they aren't coed, there's plenty of chances to see each other in the week.

They have very different relationships with Felix and Lucia. Felix kinda threw himself into "parenting" in part as a rebellion- if I'm gonna be a dad, I'm going to be a DAD. They had nannies, but mostly to be backup instead of the primary caretakers. Lucia, on the other hand, was still a teenager when Harry was born (she was on her gap year when she and Felix met) and was so desperate to be accepted that she went hard into The Done Thing. This slowly turned her into a slightly distant figure- the kids love her, but they cherish the times when her mask slips and she can actually have fun with them. They'd all known that their parents are together out of duty, but things only started to get really unbearable when Aunty V got sick, because then Felix was stressed and as such couldn't just shrug off Lucia's annoyance any more.

They're all very different, but they're a tight-knit little bunch. Harry's the princess, Ru's the nerd and Ellie's the brains. They're all pretty popular, but they're not as cliquey as Felix was- in part because Felix wanted them Properly Socialised from a young age (hence getting The Help to bring their kids over for Saltburn Summers). He also really wanted to make sure they were more emotionally mature than he was. Felix saw how his "accident" hurt his parents, and once Harry was born he had a bit of a realisation that he really had not been prepared for anything bad to ever happen to him.

With Oliver, the main thing is that he makes Felix far happier than they've seen him in ages. There was absolutely a Cattonlet group chat about it. Their general consensus was that they probably wouldn't mind if Oliver came around more, but that dad probably wouldn't ever realise what was going on. Harry absolutely had a very small, situational, only-available-option crush on Oliver that started when they picked him up, but that absolutely vanished the night of the Alexander Dinner. She kept it to herself because although it wasn't really fair on mum, all three of the kids missed their actual, fun dad. She assumed that if she got them together, they'd keep it secret like everyone else's parents, and it'd be a win-win.

There's an initial shock, obviously, and Ellie takes it hardest because she still really hoped that her parents loved each other. She's the slowest to warm up to Oliver properly afterwards, but Harry and Ru help because Harry has Felix's five-second emotional memory and Ru... well. Ru feels absolutely betrayed by Lucia, which means he's suddenly Oliver's staunchest supporter. There will be more about this later, once YAH is done and I'm into less established territory.

Oliver as a step-parent is actually a far better foil to Felix than Lucia, primarily because while Lu was concerned with appearances, Oliver comes from the world of Consequences and will give better reasons than "it would look bad". Lucia is also a better parent after the split, because she can actually take time to find herself as an adult and take time doing stuff she likes. They actually end up being sort-of friends, although Lucia actually realises she likes Oliver better than Felix after a little while of coparenting.

Oliver's parents are a little intimidated by the Cattonlets- and remain intimidated by Harry- but they are actual, well-versed grandparents. They're initially nervous, because these kids are rich-rich, but that actually means that the little treats and outings they do are novelty. "What do you mean, you've never been to Knowsley Safari?" "You kids fancy mcdonalds?" "Off to a car boot sale- come off it, you must know what a car boot sale is..."

They do need to find out about Farleigh, but we will tackle that later.

Marcus. I love, love, love Marcus and he will be showing up in later stuff but...

He is the stability that Farleigh has always needed. Think Patrick from Schitt's Creek in private, he's a wry, solid figure that Farleigh can rage at or break down on or just be near. He exudes calm like one of those plugin things people use to chill their cats out.

In public, he is just there for The Farleigh Show. People think he's an accessory, but he's choosing to be one. He and Farleigh are actually intensely private about their actual relationship, in part because Farleigh's need to be detached manifests far more around others. They are non-monogamous, but they're highly, highly communicative about it.

He's a solid country boy from a small town in Ohio. He has one older brother, and was the only out gay guy in his school.

His family are, honestly, amazing. Farleigh loves them so hard, because they gave him the whole hearted love the Cattons couldn't. He buys Marcus's mom expensive, tacky handbags that she LOVES. His dad doesn't speak much, if at all, but he has a faded bumper sticker on his truck that says I LOVE MY GAY SON. PROBLEM? and a less faded one that says I LOVE MY GAY SON AND HIS PARTNER. PROBLEM? that Marcus had made specially for Christmas one year.

Marcus' father has absolutely knocked out teeth at a PTA meeting. The same with Marcus's big brother. For both Marcus' dad and his brother... think Wayne from Letterkenny.

You will not have a problem with Marcus, because then your bigger problem will be a broken jaw. If you have a problem with Marcus and Farleigh, especially if your problem is because Farleigh ain't white, you're gonna need to set up a gofundme because you sure don't have medical insurance. They do, because Marcus' lovely partner made sure of that.

Why are Marcus' parents so chill? Simple, really. Marcus had an uncle that he never met. Nobody knew that Stephen was queer that way until he... passed away. The letters he left behind broke his little brother's heart. When Marcus told his parents that he liked boys, there was no question about accepting him wholeheartedly. They'd already known anyway, ever since he was a little boy.

[aqua-dan]

World's Finest: Teen Titans #1 Review

Now that the first issue of the series has been out for a while and I'm less concerned about spoilers, I felt like now would be the time to say a few things about the start of the series and get some of my opinions out there. There's a lot to say, so I suppose I'll split it up into pros, cons, and general commentary.

Pros

On the positive side, it's genuinely nice to see the Fab 5 + Karen together in a group again! No matter how much time goes on and no matter how many interpersonal issues the group has, they're still my favorite team.

It's nice to see all the different little references to the original series -- from one of their fights being against the Separated Man to the picture of the Flips up on the wall of their base, it does feel pretty nostalgic to someone who is a big fan of Teen Titans vol. 1!

The art is overarchingly pretty nice (although I wish I could hit the colorist over the head and scream at them that Garth's eyes are purple! NOT BLUE!)

Despite my nostalgia for the original series, I am finding myself being more ok with the changed lineup than I originally thought I'd be. Now, this obviously messes with some Titans history that I'm reluctant to give up, but it is nice to see Karen highlighted especially! I also think the inclusion of Golden Eagle was nice! He's probably one of the lesser known Teen Titans, so even seeing him show up was surprisingly pleasant.

Despite the fact that I do also have a slight complaint about it, I do think it's nice that they are leaning into popular slang and what is "cool and hip with the teens." To be honest, I think it could even be dialed up a notch! Bring out your inner Bob Haney!!

The ending to the first issue was also interesting! I like that they are setting up the major conflict but keeping it vague for right now. I'm genuinely excited to see how that progresses!

Cons

On the more negative side, there is also a lot to say. Some of it might be nitpicking, but I feel it's worth putting out there anyways. My biggest issue with the series thus far is that it feels too self aware. I know it's only the first issue, and I know that I just praised the references to the original series in the "pros" section, but in many ways I can't help but feel that the series is superimposing later versions of these characters onto their younger selves despite the story-beats that would cause them to act that way not having happened yet.

Just for example's sake, I think the way Batman is acting is a decent showcase for this. Not to say that he entirely wasn't strict before a certain time, but the extremely controlling and closed off way he's acting is far more in-line with post Death in the Family characterization, and not the time period in which Teen Titans vol. 1 would take place.

Not all of the characterization in that regards is bad -- after all, those traits need a base to develop from -- but in some cases it really feels too aware of how these characters would later become. Because of that, a lot of the dialogue and interactions feel sort of hollow and don't allow for much natural or nuanced progression.

Besides that, this series has really made me confused on the DC comics timeline. With the constant mentions of social media, livestreaming, and modern slang, it reads like it should be something set in present time aka 2023. But considering how this is a flashback, shouldn't this be set in the time of, like... Myspace? Shouldn't the slang be ever so slightly dated, and social media NOT be such a ubiquitous thing? Maybe I'm wrong and the current DC timeline is actually taking place in the future, but still, the over-modern nature of the writing feels a little bit jarring to me.

Speaking of jarring, there are a few details that felt super weird throughout the issue. Roy's comment about Ollie "taking him in from the streets" is jarring since I guess that means they're sticking with the N52 backstory for Roy, which.... ugh. The other things I find jarring are honestly just nitpicks. Without going into it too much, there were just a lot of small details that make my brain go, "hey! That's not how that happened! That's not correct!" Regardless, I need to remember that this isn't a part of the old continuity, so changes can be made whether I like it or not.

General Commentary

All in all I don't think it's a bad start to the series. As it continues, I really hope that things start to feel more authentic so that the series is actually able to develop both its own identity and develop these characters further than they have been before without feeling redactive. I sort of miss the small, homegrown feel of the original series, and how going from smaller missions to world ending events was genuinely a big change for many of the Teen Titans. I'm hoping that there are some more small moments going forward that keep it from getting too big too fast.

I think it's too early to judge the series more heavily, so for now I'm just eagerly awaiting the next issue so we can see how it's going to hold up in the long run.

[lonniemachin]

lonnie for the character ask thing :)

always. always.

Sexuality Headcanon: i bounce back and forth between whether i think lonnie wouldn’t label his sexuality or whether the act of labeling his sexuality (+ gender for that matter) would be something that feels good for him, but i’d say what either describes it best or IS it is bi. im also fond of aromantic lonnie and both at the same time.

Gender Headcanon: transfem + genderfluid (i tend to use she/he interchangeably for her). and i read it into her narrative too. the way that she always felt a disconnect from her peers that tied into her apologizing to her parents that they weren’t able to bring up the “all-american boy” and the way that her parents emphasize that she’s different from other boys, how the anarky costume has a mask that reflects the faces of the people that look into it back outward + how i feel that through giving so much of her life to being anarky she’d get used to being this entity that’s referred to by terms other than just he and him and man and boy etc. until she unmasks and it defaults back. i think after a while there’d be a disconnect and it wouldn’t really hit until after red robin when she has to deal with just Being Lonnie (and Moneyspider) for longer than she’s ever had to after taking up her mission. and i think that gender fluidity of anarky, despite if she sticks with the identity or not, would be something she decides to embrace for herself as a person. i’ll stop there. but basically its real.

A ship I have with said character: i’ve already been over timlonnie on my tim post so i’ll make my stance clear right here, right now: i like stephlonnie but in my own “their characterizations align with how they were pre-flashpoint and rebirth never happened” way. i think the base concept of lonnie falling for steph is soooo cute and having it be her of all other gothamites would be very fitting. i think he and steph could also bond over quite a lot from the way they approach vigilantism to their complicated relationship with the bats and the joker paternity debacle vs. having the cluemaster as a chromosome donor.

A BROTP I have with said character: lonnie does not have many friends and that is a purposeful thing. i already mentioned tim on my tim post so instead of saying he + mia dearden, which is entirely made up in my own mind but nonetheless has me in a chokehold, i’ll say he and oliver queen, which is one of my favorite out of the… 3 big dynamics he has with other vigilantes. oliver is the one older person who, despite distrusting him at first, came to approach lonnie’s way of doing things with an open mind and actually teamed up with her twice. partnering with lonnie reminded ollie of the ideals he holds dear and of his younger self in a way that prompted good introspection. i think having someone like ollie around, who is an experienced leftist vigilante willing to see things her way while also providing a bit of natural guidance and even potentially a community would be good for lonnie… and i forever mourn the team-up comic that was proposed but never got made. hard traveling heroes 2 forever.

A NOTP I have with said character: ummmm. rebirth stephlonnie? born of horrid characterization. there are not many people he’s interacted with enough to ship him with. i guess i’ve seen people ship he and bruce in the far dark corners of earlier bat fandom which should go without saying but fucking sucks ❤️

A random headcanon: aside from her 12-year-old self’s job as a paperboy, she likes biking. being active in general too but she should probably slow down because there is no way 9+ hours of exercise a day is healthy

General Opinion over said character: my favorite comic book character and i can’t see that changing soon. lonnie means the absolute world to me and more. getting a little personal, i’ve met some of my best friends through liking and talking about anarky, and for that i’m forever thankful. digging into the history behind his creation and his use in the bat narrative revealed just how much passion was put into him as a character which makes him even better and more meaningful to me even if he went in a direction i wasn’t the biggest fan of. despite less than 100 appearances, she’s a complex character with some of my favorite comics under her belt and an unforgettable debut appearance. what she means when put up against bruce and the potential that held is something i never tire of discussing. i wish every single day that dc would stop marketing her as a batman villain. i think she should’ve been disabled and had what happened to her during Red Robin centered around her because i think it would’ve been an excellent way to both give her more prominence and develop her along more after such a period of being so isolated + putting her whole identity into her mission. i never get bored of reading through her comics over again, it makes me genuinely so happy to do so. machin nation forever and im serious.

[autisticempathydaemon]

Thank you for doing this! And also thank you for making me aware of the personality tests hehe :))

I got equal amounts type 4 and type 8 on the chart and I’m an INFP. (I don’t know what these mean I hope it isn’t bad 😭)

What is you go to way to fall asleep?

A lot of the time I stay up so late that I fall asleep without even meaning to but if I can’t sleep then sleep aids or sad music do the trick more often than not. And if we’re talking about positions I always sleep on my side with like one leg up. I know it’s bad for your back but it’s sooo comfy.

What redacted boy holds no appeal to you and why?

Ollie is probably my least listened to. He seems like a really sweet character but I just can’t seem to get into his videos, I would say it might be because they’re more mundane than the others but my other two least faves (out of the love interests) are probably Gavin and Vincent so that doesn’t add up.

Tell me about the one book/movie/tv show you know all the words too.

Bojack Horseman. I think the shows really clever and I often find myself rewatching and finding new details every-time. I think it’s a bit of a comfort which is strange since the main character is basically always in trouble for something but a lot of the characters talk about relatable things that I’d never seen anyone else mention before.

If you had to change your name what would it be and why?

Laurie. My mum wanted to name me that when I was born but my dad didn’t like it. I prefer it to my irl name so probably that. I’ve also always liked the name Parker.

Which Redacted boy are you platonically attracted too?

Huxley. I’m not too sure why I think it’s cause he’s so easy going. I love camping and also find myself a digging holes a lot so that could also be a reason lol but if I could hang out with any redacted character it would definitely be him.

Which song are you fixated on and why?

The boys are back in town by thin lizzy. There’s not a specific verse or anything it just came on randomly whilst I was running and now I can’t stop listening to it I’d completely forgotten it existed.

Do you have a go to thing you ramble about when tired?

If I’m tired I tend to not be very talkative at all. I prefer listening to other people talk but if I am in a rambling mood it would probably be about things that happened irl or Animals.

What is your favourite of redacted audios and why?

Besides my favourite characters entire playlist. I’d say either the inversion or Aaron’s sleep aid. I really like the inversion I just think the story telling and emotions are amazing and you get to hear so many different characters. And there’s just something about Aaron’s sleep aid that make me feel happy. I think it’s the way Smartass falls asleep in the chair with him.

I hope this isn’t too long and if you have a lot to do don’t worry about skipping this one! Happy time zone friend!!

Hmm, this was a thunker, since Four and Eight are a really interesting combination. What I think they have in common is an intelligent independence, a self-reliance that Elliott could really work with.

Both Fours and Eights seem to be characterized by a strong sense of identity- they have an unshakable confidence in who they are and who they want to be. Elliott strikes me as an excellent partner for this type of person, because he’s very supportive and loving in his own genial, earnest way, if you know what I mean? He would be neither overbearing nor neglectful. Elliott would just always be by your side, encouraging and kind and ready to support you however and whenever you may need.

Additionally, I think you and Elliott would like a lot of the same things~ You mentioned loving camping, which reminded me of the dreamscape he made with the campfire by the lake and made me picture of the two of you going together, fighting over who gets to control the aux cord on the way there. I can also see him coming over on another normal Friday night and ready to settle in for a night of watching your favorite show together.

Song:

I want the world in my hands/ I hate the beach/ But I stand in California with my toes in the sand/ Use the sleeves of my sweater/ Let's have an adventure

Elliott strikes me as a The Neighbourhood boy, and I cannot put into words why. He just is. I like this song for him in particular because the vibes and tone of it are so romantic and dreamy (pun intended). It’s the kind of song on the kind of playlist he’d have for your nights together- chill, lo-fi kind of tunes that would play while you talk through the night or fall asleep together.

Runner-Ups:

Damien was definitely a contender for runner-up. Other than the Enneagram type, where I think of Damien as a Six, I think y’all have a lot of similarities like your sleep hygiene and the type of shows you like. James strikes me as another good match because of his stable, solid temperament that I think would match well with a thoughtful, independent partner.

Note: thank you so much for waiting! The long distance bf flew into town, so I’ve been distracted, but I’m hoping to get back into the swing of things 💕

Read this post and send me an ask if you’d like a match-up of your own! 💌

[nikrei]

January Comics Round Up

Decided to do this monthly for my own edification

Green Arrow! Read a few golden age that were in the 70 year history, then the brave and bold 85, then did 70s green lantern/green arrow (76-128), then read the backups in action comics (421-458) and worlds finest (244-286). I had already read the backups in detective comics a couple months ago so just went straight to the 1983 mini and then longbow hunters (which is 1988 and therefore my stopping point).

I really enjoyed the first half of the green lantern/ green arrow run. Road trip with unlikely companions my beloved. Also snowbirds don't fly was a wildly good story for its time. Love Ollie as the activist hero for the downtrodden. It's really amusing to me that in fandom the pervasive idea of him being rich like Bruce is everywhere, but he spent all of the 70s and 80s totally broke working class. Maybe he gets his cash back in the 90s? I dunno yet. I was honestly not really a fan of the dark and gritty turn that longbow hunters took, and honestly I'm super pissed about how dirty it did Dinah.

The 70s Jubilee! Issues were read in 2 year chunks so I could stay chronological without having to switch around too much.

Justice League of America (75-186) (1969-1980)

Started reading at 75 cause I wanted to do a Dinah read and that meant JLA (having just said last month that i was Definitely Not going to read Justice League, no sir, too many other comics to read) JLA does a good job as an ensemble comic, which can get pretty confusing and surface level? the more people you add. Coincidentally my least favorite issues were the yearly crossovers with Justice Society, and it got even worse when they added a third team in just for funsies. My surprise fave is Red Tornado can't get enough of that robot being like, I can never understand human love (is a more caring partner and parent than 90% of humans). Any way when I started this I realized that as Barry was a major character I should prolly coread it with the flash...

The Flash (105-305) (1959-1982)

So I'm not really a silver age fan (bronze age woo!), it's always been a bit of a slog for me, but I couldn't figure out a good starting issue in the 70s so I decided to let the completionist in me win and started from Barry's beginning. Love this guy very much! It is wierd the sort of difference of characterization for Barry between JLA and Flash? Like JLA often has Barry being a bit more conservative and stayed, especially in comparison to Ollie. Diana has beef with him when she comes back to the team and he gets accused of being chauvinistic more than once. None of that going on in Flash.

Kirby's Fourth World!

Forever People (1-11) (1971-1972)

New Gods (1-19)(1971-1972, 1977-1978) and the finale issues in Adventure Comics

Mister Miracle (1-25)(1971-1974, 1977-1978)

New Gods and Mister Miracle were So Much Better with Kirby at helm omg. I was very very charmed by the Forever People and I'm sad that it ended like it did, shunting them off to never? be seen again. Also, I never before knew what the anti-life equation was all about! It's been mentioned in other comics and other mediums but I always thought it was a kill all life sort of thing, but it being a blind obedience sort of thing is waaay better!

The Demon (1-12) (1972-1974)

More Kirby. Fun to meet OG Jason Blood and Klarion. It's set in Gotham and a lot of the time I was wondering 'where's Bruce in all this?' The funny answer is that if it has to do with magic, He Does Not See.

Supergirl (1-10) (1972-1974)

Cute! It was sort of fun to read a comic that was clearly aimed at girls for once, even if the 4 different authors (for only 10 issues!) are all men and all have different ideas of what is important to girls. The last issue was a very inexplicable crossover with Prez (they're not supposed to be set on the same earth???? i think???)

Prez (1973)

Gave it a try. Wild and wacky is a way to describe it.

Swamp Thing (1-24)(1972-1976)

Read this one in the trade volumes so it included all of his other appearances too. Loved it, love this guy, really love the sort of bleakness but there's always hope vibes too it.

*siighh* The Joker (1-10) (1975-1976)

2 things: ha ha hacienda, and the joker RV.

Man Bat (1977)

Only two issues and I liked Kirk's stories in Batman Family so I gave them a read. Not really worth it, didn't have what I liked about the fam stories (hero for hire/private detective who has control over himself)

Black Lightning (1-11) (1977-1978) plus the trade volume that collects all his other appearances up to the 90s (except outsiders)

I already read the Outsiders so this was more backstory to me but it was good! Jeff Pierce is great i love him! The JLA did him v. dirty and he was right not to join.

Firestorm (1-5) (1978)

Firestorm started showing up as the backup in Flash so I figured I'd go read the intro comic. Ronnie is the most high-school boy ever, and the fact that he's a jock getting bullied by a nerd gives me real big dog vs little dog energy. Also rip professor stein ur life is terrible.

Got through the 70s Jubilee in January!! But that reading list only had 13 entries! The 80s Bonanza has more than twice that many!

[swordofazrael1992]

Hi what are your favorite green lantern comics? Or even dc in general. I'm kind of new to comic books and I'm looking for recommendations

ooh you're in luck because i have SEVERAL recommendations

my first recommendations for people looking to get into new characters, families, or dc in general is usually going to be the 80th anniversary specials. all of them are about 100 pages each, featuring multiple new storylines for each character. in addition, each story will usually correlate to a specific era for those characters, often inviting back writers and artists who were prominent or influential to the character during those times. my favorite specials are the green lantern and green arrow specials, although there are also some for robin, aquaman, catwoman, wonder woman, and... unfortunately the joker (derogatory)

i really really like these specials because they give you the opportunity to find out what parts/eras /characters you like and read from there. for example, the green lantern special covers alan scott, hal jordan, guy gardner & kilowog, john stewart, sinestro, the four corpsmen (hal, john, guy, kyle), the hard traveling heroes, jessica cruz, kyle rayner, and simon baz. it's a really good way to get into comics, because honestly? the best way to start reading comics is to find a character you like, find the comics they appear in, and read.

some specific series recommendations for the gl's are...

green lantern 1990 (my personal favorite)

green lantern: rebirth (2004) and green lantern (2005) (nowhere close to my favorites, but important to understanding modern gl worldbuilding)

convergence: green lantern/parallax (a two issue mini, basically a little bit of a redo on events in the 1990 series in line with the rest of the convergence story)

green lantern/flash: faster friends (two issue mini focusing on the meaning of legacy heroes and one of my favorite dynamics: wally and kyle)

flash & green lantern: the brave and the bold (six issue mini focusing on the friendship between barry allen and hal jordan)

hal jordan & the green lantern corps (i have my problems with this run, but it is overall an entertaining read)

far sector (i haven't gotten around to reading this yet, but i have heard very good things)

next, here are some general recommendations for the overall dcu

batman: the long halloween

robin 1993, batman & robin 2011, robin: son of batman, and robin 2021

batgirl 2000, batgirl 2009

batman & the signal

batwoman: elegy

birds of prey 1998

flash 1987 (specifically mark waid's run, which becomes continues at about issue #61, but he and messner-loeb alternated a lot before that)

impulse 1995

the flash 2016 (i haven't been able to make it all the way through this, but it has some storylines that i enjoy). at issue #768, wally wests 2nd flash run begins, and i am LOVING it so far. definitely recommend it

green arrow: year one (seven issue mini, covers oliver queen's time on the island)

green lantern and green arrow: hard traveling heroes (covers green lantern 1960 #76-87)

green arrow: the longbow hunters (another mini, this one three issues)

green arrow 1998 (if you want to read for ollie, read the first 100ish issues, if you want to read for connor, read the issues after that)

green arrow 2001 (however... i would recommend taking the winnick part of this run with a grain of salt if you do read it. it is. not the best characterization)

green arrow 2016 (i had to consciously forget that this was technically new52 ollie in order to get through it, but i did enjoy it. worth reading for emiko and dinahollie, at least)

i also enjoy team books with younger heroes, such as young justice 1998 and teen titans/titans runs

naomi 2019, and naomi: season two

these recommendations are very biased towards batfam, flash, and ga, because that is what i read the most, so if anybody who is a fan of different characters has recommendations feel free to add on!! i have also compiled an entire seperate, far more comprehensive rec list on the batfamily before, if anyone is interested in that

[slaapkat]

do you have a hal Jordan reading list? Also he's a character that's been around for agesss so I wanted to ask you about your favourite storylines/comic runs with him

WELL it's both a simple and complicated answer. the simple answer: read all of it! the complicated answer: still read all of it but technically not actually :/

1. Green Lantern (1960)

The Beginning. I personally recommend starting from #76 (the beginning of the famed Hard Traveling Heroes arc) and then just reading the whole rest of the run from there, and maybe going back to start from the actual very beginning later. Not that it's bad, per se, just... very notably from the time in both writing and art style and imo takes a little time to get used to. I will admit it's been a couple years since I read this run all the way through so I can't recommend any specific arcs, but as a whole I found it genuinely interesting to read and provides a nice chill way to get comfortable with the lore.

2. Action Comics (1938)

regrettably at the end of his original run gl does get canceled and hal gets booted to having a spot in Action Comics Weekly from #601-635. these are some of my favorites, though! hal's living in hotels, breaks up with arisia, and gets on oprah! a little sillier in places than his original run but overall entertaining and a nice bit of characterization.

INTERLUDE: THE HAL-OLLIE GOOD OL DAYS SPECTACTULAR

-Action Comics Weekly #606

-Green Arrow (1988) #20

-Secret Origins (1990) #50

-Green Arrow (1988) #69

-Green Arrow (1988) #96

YOU WANT THE PAIN OF LOST FRIENDSHIP? THE HURT OF WHAT MAYBE NEVER WAS AND DEFINITELY WILL NEVER BE AGAIN? TRY THIS ON FOR SIZE BABEYYYYY

3. Green Lantern (1990)

the end of acw happens to lead directly and nicely into the 90s gl run. hal's a bit older, a bit more abrasive, and clearly heading somewhere no one wants to go. #1-50 is all hal, and thereafter switches to kyle. i really enjoy this run because if you pay attention, hal's decent into parallax isn't nearly as much of a surprise as you might think. I may be a bit biased due to emerald twilight being one of my favorite arcs of all time, but what can you do.

for more specific recommendations regarding parallax, @ufonaut does have this handy dandy list available which I myself wholeheartedly recommend. It includes Zero Hour as well as Final Night, two major comic events whish are among my absolute favorites as well.

ADDENDUM: Day of Judgment (1999)

here is where hal jordan becomes the spectre. while he doesn't show up until about halfway through, i still find it to be a pretty good read. plus you get this

from here on out hal see's being the spectre solely as a punishment and never truly moves on from that, which contributes to his struggles of accepting his new identity and role.

ADDITIONALLY: I personally find DeMatteis' run on The Spectre to be pretty boring compared to the likes of Ostrander and even Moench, HOWEVER following his demise in Final Night and becoming the Spectre following the events of Day of Judgment, hal's initial period as the spirit of vengeance is.... tumultuous, to say the least. JLA (1997) #35, Green Lantern (1990) #119, and Legends of the DC Universe #33-36 detail that journey spectacularly. hal struggles hard with both becoming the spectre and with the guilt he still carries from parallax. It ultimately culminates in the arc Redemption Lost from JSA (1999) #60-62 in which all those struggles come to a head at once and force hal to give up his attempts at turning the spectre into a spirit of redemption and finally accept his ultimate purpose as the spirit of vengeance.

however! do not fret, as that last story came out in 2004, thus setting the stage for the next part of hal's life.

4. Green Lantern: Rebirth and Green Lantern (2005)

listed together because one is the prequel for the other. yes, I've come to really dislike geoff john and his work in the past year or so, but I unfortunately can't deny that his gl run is. good in places. yes geoff objectively reduces hal to boring space cop and absolves him of all guilt by blaming parallax on a whole separate entity all together. HOWEVER. the main three arcs, Sinestro Corps War (alternating Green Lantern #21–25, #26 and Green Lantern Corps #14–18), Blackest Night (primarily #43-52, but uhhh go here for absolutely everything it's insane), and War of the Green Lanterns (Green Lantern #63-67, Green Lantern Corps #58-60, Green Lantern: Emerald Warriors #8-10). while hal isn't necessarily the main focus in some of these crossover issues, I included them anyhow so you have the full story. if nothing else geoff manages to develop hal and sinestro's relationship EXTREMELY well throughout these arcs, a small favorite of mine being Rage of the Red Lanterns (Green Lantern #28, #36-38) and I regrettably must thank him for that.

5. Green Lantern (2011)

Main focus here is geoff's run, from #1-20. not that vendetti is a bad writer, just..... nothing really interesting happens after geoff leaves, imo. not bad, just not as exciting. hal ended the last run getting kicked out of the glc and has to deal with sinestro getting invited back in. Wrath of the First Lantern is all the more unfortunately probably one of my favorite arcs of all time, a lot of it dealing with how hal and sinestro are sooooo close to being friends yet still on opposite sides of a war. like fellas!!!

FELLAS!!!!!

reading after that is optional, everything in new52 is honestly unreadable and the rest of this run comes pretty close to it.

6. Hal Jordan and the Green Lantern Corps (2016)

honestly no real opinion unfortunately. vendetti is one of those writers who feels like he takes no risks and so most of his work comes off as a little too "safe". again, not bad. just. mostly boring. I can't remember anything of real note happening other than the beginning of it coming fresh off the heels of Cullen Bunn's Sinestro run and immediately throwing away and subsequently butchering any and all characterization made there for the sole purpose of making sinestro a one-note villain again.

7. The Green Lantern S1 (2018)/S2(2020)

Starts off great, ends kinda eh. I can appreciate morrison for tying in all the references to the classics but ultimately falls short. Fine for what it is, though. the Blackstars interlude is honestly the best part of it.

8. Green Lantern (2021)

YES it just started YES it's still REALLY good. you may say it's too early to tell but geoffery thorne is already starting to shine. admittedly hal IS taking a back seat to it all BUT I'm hardcore hoping all of thorne's ranting about how much hal sucks when he's not parallax goes. somewhere.

OPTIONAL: Green Lantern: Sleepers is a surprisingly good novel series by Christopher Priest. unfortunately while no digital copies exist (to my immediate knowledge) you can find the audiobook version on youtube here. book three is the one that focuses on hal specifically, but there are interludes in the first two books which include him still. they all can usually be found pretty cheap on thriftbooks and the like if you ever want a physical copy.

sorry this got so long, but unfortunately I'm.... just not a Specific Rec List sort of person. I find a character I like and consume content until there's absolutely nothing left. Here's hoping this at least gives you a good idea of what's in store for each chunk of hal's history. thank you!

[thequiver]

I was thinking of getting into Green Arrow comics (preferably more recent ones) and decided to read Rebirth but you made a post that seems to imply they aren't very good. Do you mind if I ask for recommendations?

Okay so I'm a little harsh on Rebirth. I do actually enjoy Rebirth and several of my headcanons are fueled directly by the Rebirth run- it's a fairly good introduction to Ollie, and it pulls a bit from the CW which makes it more accessible to people who are trying to get into comics from the show. (And despite hating the CW Show, I am actually okay with what they pulled from the CW for Rebirth, the Merlyn stuff was a good decision imo). I will say that when you've read older comics Rebirth Ollie feels a bit off- he's not as feral or as much of a bastard, they kinda turned him into a himbo, which is valid, but it misses a bit of the oomph for me. What I do dislike about Rebirth Ollie's characterization is that they seemed to take away his self awareness and sort of turned him into a bumbling idiot who had to be taught that he's the man and that his actions have consequences. I also didn't like what it did with Ollie and Roy's relationship, or that Roy was now from the Spokane tribe rather than from the Navajo because they basically treated indigenous tribes as interchangeable which is.... I shouldn't have to explain why that's bad. This being said by all means do read Rebirth! It's good fun, and it's an easy and enjoyable introduction to Green Arrow and I have recommended it as an entry point in the past.

Something else that's important to note is that some of the more recent writers have tried to assassinate Ollie's character. For this reason I tend to avoid Dixon and Winnick's GA Comics. This isn't to say that there aren't some good things in them, I just don't showcase them as introductions to GA because you can get a really.... wrong impression of Ollie as a character from them.

But as for other recommendations, and apologies that not all of these will be necessarily "recent" but they're some of my favorites and I do tend to recommend these to everyone I know. I am going to put the most recent ones at the top of the list though! These recs are focusing on Ollie specifically because I'm not sure how much you're looking for his family interactions, but I'm more than happy to talk about Ollie as a dad, and also Connor's GA run, etc. if you ever ask <3. Also I am willing to find links and help track down comics for you if you get stuck on finding any of these!

1. Green Arrow: Year One

2. Green Arrow: Quiver (it's a weird one, but it's close to my heart)

3. Green Lantern and Green Arrow: Hard Travelling Heroes (it's a classic and quintessential for a reason)

4. Green Arrow: The Longbow Hunters

5. Green Arrow: Hunter's Moon (honestly one of my all time faves)

6. Honestly the entire Grell run is worth a read, it's essentially the definitive characterization of Oliver Queen (at times I do read it and go "I diagnose you with written in the 80s" and there's certainly ample things in its writing that I criticize, but there's also so many things that are good about it that I have to recommend it, Hunter's Moon and Longbow Hunters were also written by Grell)

You are always more than welcome to come and ask me about particular comics, whether in an ask or in dms, and I really hope this list helped. I hope you enjoy them!

[feliciohno]

Cause we've been talking a lot about the good boy lately. Let's see Ollie.

general opinion: fall in a hole and die | don’t like them | eh | they’re fine I guess | like them! | love them | actual love of my life 

hotness level: get away from me | meh | neutral | theoretically hot but not my type | pretty hot | gorgeous! | 10/10 would bang 

hogwarts house: gryffindor | slytherin | ravenclaw | hufflepuff 

best quality: His baking of course! Ollie Ollie makes the BEST cupcakes and pastries! Also his style is always on point but we been know that 

worst quality: Can get a bit touchy about certain things. This isn’t exactly a bad thing per se, just a thing that he does that even if it doesn’t get on other people’s nerves it gets on his own. He wished he didn’t get so upset about certain things so easily. 

ship them with: Marcel (2p France), Arthur, Zao (2p China), Kuro (2p Japan), and not as much as the others but low key Alice (Nyo England), and Ophelia (2p Nyo England) 

brotp them with: Just about everyone! Who isn’t Oliver friends with! Of course, he’s closest with the other Englands and also the Americas and the Canadas. He’s also friends with the Frances and is probably more friendly towards Francis than Arthur is some days lmao 

needs to stay away from: Negativity. Of course, negativity is bound to happen in life, that’s just a fact. But Oliver does everything to keep as positive as he can. He fears losing himself in the negatives and the things that scare him. It’s a big reason why he always surrounds himself with bright colors, cute and warm things, and lots of friends! 

misc. thoughts: IK I’ve said this before but Oliver really is one of my favorites. When I was younger I didn’t like the 2ps cause I thought they all acted the same and I never have been a fan of the “evil polar opposite to the hero” character trope (You should see me rant and bitch about Negaduck LMAO). But for some reason I still loved Oliver. His aesthetic was so so good and something just clicked with him. However a good majority of the modern fandom has seemed to stray away from those versions of the 2ps so now I honestly ADORE the 2ps. I have so many thoughts and ideas about them and even though I have others I love to death Oliver will always be a favorite of mine. He’s someone I can relate to in a lot of ways especially in the way you (and some of the more modern fans) characterize him! Makes me happy uwu TL;DR love that pink boy 

SEND ME CHARACTERS IN MY ASKS

[nyarisu]

🎉 Ask game 😄 to shed some love and spotlight on the fics written in the fandom: make a list of one favorite story from every pairing in the band 💖 (those you read about anyway 😊 ) send this to someone else if you feel like it 🌟

You know, I kind of missed writing long ass lists (of fic recs XD). I will make another list with some new fics from both Ao3 and DeviantArt!

„those you read about anyway” you already know I read every pairing possible as long as the plot is good and I’m thirsty enough :)))) And I have to choose only ONE fic per pairing??? That’s not fair, that’s really not fair at all... This was very difficult to write because I have so many fics I utterly, absolutely love... SO MUCH!! (also I’m doing my usual fic description tho at this point everybody pretty much knows every fic mentioned here)

Not all of them are favourite pairings but I had some fics that just stuck with me and I had to mention.

Till/Richard: Mit Dir Bin Ich Auch Allein by struwwel – romance, slow burn, hurt/comfort, multi-chapter I dearly love. The characters are so well written and usHNSfejicfs everything is perfect.

Till/Schneider: I've Got You by Arrestzelle  – smut, BDSM, aftercare. Dear lord, this one is everything I want for sub!Till.

Till/Paul: das Feuer wäscht die Seele rein by moon_waves – romance and fluff. So pure. It’s the writing interpretation of this exact kaomoji:（=´∇｀=）

Till/Ollie: I FOUND IT!!! It’s Head scratches by r-s-anon. Short smut. I was so confused the first time I read it because I thought it was a band report or something that actually happened until I got to the humping part which left me wait. what? :)))

Till/Flake: Perfectly Nice Arguments by hwbswd – Till/Flake, lots of pining, funny and Till being sad. And kind of background pairings but not really? “He put his hands on Flake’s knees, and then slid them up his thighs, to his hips, around his back, and then pushed himself between Flake’s legs to tuck his head on his chest.”

Richard/Schneider: stroh wird gold und gold wird stein by moon_waves – making out, dom Schneider and sub RZK, really nice dynamic between the 2 and clever puns from the others XD

Richard/Ollie: Sehnsucht ist so grausam by moon_waves – pining, friends to lovers, fluff. It’s actually a bit of a multipair but it’s not convinient to me so I’m ignoring that but sdfghjkl the patting and the closeness and the end<3

Richard/Paul: Coming Back To You Universe series by CaptainSlow – smut, ummm... basically a lot happens over 7 or so lenghty fics. It’s Paulchard over the cours of years, before R+ even existet, so definitely a wild ride.

Richard/Flake: Kamelie Liebt Mich by Solitary_Shadow – flowers, deep stuff, early R+ and angst. I read it some times ago but the unusual pair left an impression on me and I really liked the interaction between the 2 of them.

Paul/Schneider: Constellations Behind Closed Eyes by Arrestzelle  – ( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°) smut, straight-up filthy smut. That’s all you need to know (also toys and multiple orgasm, have fun reading).

Paul/Flake: Heart On His Sleeve by Arrestzelle – Feeling B era, secret crush, cuddles, sleeping together, self-esteem issues, destroys your heart and mine too. If it gets continued, I’ll be the first one to read it because I love it so much.

Paul/Ollie: mir immer noch das Herz versengt by moon_waves – angst and self-esteem issues with a little bit of fluff. One of the best characterizations of in-band interaction I’v ever seeN HANDS DOWN (and funniest, even if nothing actually happens). „He is going to kill me. And Flake will help him bury my body” and „namely the fact that no one in the band could resist Till’s sad sad eyes when something upset him” have a special place in my heart now and forever.

Schneider/Ollie: du bist mir ans herz gewachsen by moon_waves – massage, fluff and some nice making out (also oblivious background Tillchard because of course they are being dumb).

(maybe don’t right so many good fics if you don’t wanna see me mentioning them with every chance I have??)

[lastweekseyeliner]

Best of Inhuman Izuku

 its ya gal sunny back at it again with the fic recs

the fics on this list are some personal favorites.  some are horror, some are fluff, all are about izuku being something more than human.  do note that he won’t be literally inhuman in all of these.

list under the cut.

Izuku is (Afraid) 

Rated M, Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings

Words:40998|Chapters:14|Complete

This is the first in a series of fics that start out quite vague and then move into the heavy action.  Thoroughly enjoyable thriller.

https://archiveofourown.org/works/11497428/chapters/25793157

To Not Be Bound 

Rated T, todobakudeku  

Words:11756|Chapters:4|Complete

A fantasy AU in a world where the gods walk among men.

https://archiveofourown.org/works/13988556/chapters/32208753

Eldritch 

Rated T, no pairings as of yet 

Izuku's body contains the void. 

https://archiveofourown.org/works/13982853/chapters/32194113

And In His Eyes, a Galaxy 

Rated M, Inko/Hisashi 

Words: 88721|Chapters: 21|ongoing 

Izuku's quirk allows him to act as a forge, and his passion turns to support work.  A light and enjoyable read with interesting concepts. 

https://archiveofourown.org/works/12313668/chapters/27993882

The Dark Below 

Rated M, Warnings for Graphic Depictions of Violence, creator chose not to use other archive warnings 

Words:392453|Chapters: 48/75 

Izuku's quirk allows him to return from death, but that's really just the tip of the iceberg.  The tiny, tiny, miniscule tip of the iceberg.  This fic really goes off the rocket into completely original worldbuilding.  It's worth reading for the imagery alone, although it does get a bit repetitive by the time you get to the newer chapters.  Includes bonus moral reasoning, information warfare, and political manuveuring. 

https://archiveofourown.org/works/14572500/chapters/33674223

Daymare 

Rated M, Warning for Graphic Depiction of Violence 

Words:262157|Chapters:56|Ongoing 

Probably everyone knows this one by now, but basically Izuku can turn into a horrific monster.  The problem is he can't control said monster.  I just think monsters are neat. 

https://archiveofourown.org/works/11277075/chapters/25222215

DNA That Binds 

Rated M, Warning for Graphic Depictions of Violence 

Words:38192|Chapters:12|Ongoing 

Inko has hidden her quirk from the world for a long time, and now that she's found a child with a similar one, she'll hide him too.  An absolutely fascinating quirk and dive into its possible applications. 

https://archiveofourown.org/works/17512769/chapters/41254289

I'm Friends with the Monster in my Closet 

Rated M, bakudeku, Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings 

Words:46477|Chapters:13|Ongoing 

Katsuki grows up with a strange friend who only gets stranger.  Slow horror, psychological thriller.  Can be extremely graphic. 

https://archiveofourown.org/works/12707958/chapters/28980039

Leviathan

Rated M, Graphic Depictions of Violence

Words:128756|Chapters:17|Ongoing

Another classic that everyone knows.  After a lethal incident in his childhood, Izuku struggles to hide his monstrous quirk at UA.  Excellent OCs.

https://archiveofourown.org/works/13216827/chapters/30232824

olly olly oxenfree 

Rated M, Graphic Depictions of Violence, tododeku 

Words:21616|Chapters:5|Abandoned 

This fic plaigiarized an original comic by an artist on tumblr that I could probably find with some time, but won't bother with for now.  After the first couple hundred words it becomes original, although the concept is still the same.  Izuku's quirk means that nobody can look at him.  Detective Tsukauchi gives him a home. 

https://archiveofourown.org/works/16016906/chapters/37377164

oyasumi midoriya 

Rated T, Graphic Depictions of Violence, Major Character Death

 Words:64367|Chapters:52|Ongoing 

The author claims inspiration from Serial Experiments Lain, and those who've watched it will immediately understand what that means.  It's a confusing ride, but absolutely fascinating.  Mind the warnings on this one. 

https://archiveofourown.org/works/16237514/chapters/37958840

Persephone 

Rated T, bakudeku 

Words:70788|Chapters:7|Complete 

Katsuki grows up knowing there's a boy next door he never sees.  Izuku's quirk is plant-based.  Extremely fluffy.  Floss with care.

https://archiveofourown.org/works/15159776/chapters/35156666

What I Am 

Rated M, Graphic Depictions of Violence, kirideku 

Words:40660|Chapters:3|Likely Abandoned 

Izuku might not have any human friends, but he has plenty of shadows.  Interesting characterization and compelling descriptions.

https://archiveofourown.org/works/14401665/chapters/33258333

when dead do walk, seek water's run 

Rated T, bakudeku, todomomo 

Words:8086|Chapters:6|Likely Abandoned 

Okay, I'm hitting a niche with this one, but it's an Abhorsen AU and I love it so, so much.  I would kill for more.  I would raise the victim from the dead and then kill them again for more. 

https://archiveofourown.org/works/15373695/chapters/35675283

OKAY AND THE FINALE.... THE SINGLE BEST PIECE OF HORROR IN THE BNHA FANDOM........

Never-living, Never-dead 

Rated T 

Words:7248|Chapters:1|Complete 

This is best read blind.

 https://archiveofourown.org/works/13938750

feel free to message me with fics you’d like to see included or reviewed more in-depth!

[itsladykit]

Fic reader prompt stuff: 1. Favorite fic: Atypical. Hands down, easy peasy. 11. Changed opinion on a character: Slim and Razz. They were both previously no-gos as far as reading went for me. Their characterization was too murky for me to get a good idea of who they were. You cleared that up for me loads. (Thanks!) 15. Tell you anything: Don't worry about us Sans lovers. I'm reading your stuff because I like it, not because I need to feel catered to with the Sanses. Do what makes you happy. :-)

Aw, thank you! ^_^ I love Atypical too. It’s just…it’s such a nice balance of fluff with small bits of angst thrown it. Sharp enough to hold my interest, but soft enough to be really easy to slip into.

I am so flattered to be the person that made Swapfell accessible for you. Especially since I was very anti-Swapfell for a very long time. It’s why they weren’t part of Broken Bones at first—I just had no idea what to do with them, or how to portray them. If I’d read some of @ollie-oxen-free‘s fics before starting work on BB, they might have played a larger role.

^_^ I’m perpetually shocked by how many Sans people read my fics, honestly. I’m one of those that is very niche in terms of interest—I always have been when it came to fanfic; if my favorite is not front and center, then I’m not interested—so I’m really flattered that you (and other Sans people) like my work well enough to read it despite the lack of Sans.

Thank you so much!!

(From this ask meme.)

[officialmaleclibrary]

This month we’re showcasing an author in the fandom who has written popular works such as Quite magical and A promise of forever. Pat is on ao3 as WendigoBaby and on tumblr as @maghnvsbane, and we’d like to thank her once again for taking part in the OML author showcase! 

1. When did you start writing fics? Tell us a little of your journey as a fic writer.

I believe I was 13 when I wrote my first ever piece of fiction (a really bad story about a lady assassin able to turn into a panther, don’t even ask) and it snowballed from there. For two or three years I used to do fics for this French cartoon called Code Lyoko, before moving to original stuff - it was a great exercise for keeping personalities and plot consistent, while also dabbling in character design. Then forth came Shadowhunters and I fell so hard for this show, that I’ve been stuck writing for it almost exclusively since the end of season one, with a small phase dedicated to The Raven Cycle.

2. What fic of yours are you most proud of and why?

My Simple blessings piece holds a special place in my heart, as I’ve poured a lot of emotion into it; the relief related to being able to love and be loved in return, the joy of domesticity and the intrinsic beauty of the world (or maybe I just love waxing poetic). The other one I’m proud of from a more practical standpoint is fire & gasoline; describing fighting is always a bit of a challenge, because you have to imagine all of the movements and stitch them all together into something that flows and reads comfortably, allowing the reader to imagine it all in their head. With that fic I feel like managed that quite decently and I'm proud of it.

3. Who is your favorite character to write and why? Which character do you find the most challenging to write?

My favourite is definitely Alec, since I relate to him in many aspects, both life and personality-wise: we’re both perfectionists, a little closed off and wary of newcomers, but tender and with a lot of love to give beneath a hard shell. Also we both love Magnus Bane, so there’s that. On the other hand, I feel like Simon is the most challenging one and it may be a strange answer, but his kindness and his specific kind of rambling, pop culture-related humour is hard to capture for someone more quiet like me.

4. What is the hardest part about being a fic author? The easiest?

Starting the fic and then bringing it to the finish line, definitely - the longer I work on a piece, the more doubts I get whether the idea is even worth the effort. Probably because the more I read over the same sentences, the more predictable they get and start to feel like boring writing, even when it’s only in my own head. I also get distracted fairly frequently by new concepts, which ends with me surrounded by half-finished fics that gather dust on my desktop. The easiest? Getting an idea - inspiration comes from anywhere and with time I start to hoard these little thoughts that one day may be born into full blown pieces - sometimes all it takes is half a sentence heard in a grocery store two aisles over.

5. What inspires you? Where do you find your muse?

Anywhere and everywhere, but most often from songs and aesthetic pictures I come across on tumblr. Other than that, it's movies, tv shows, video games, real-life conversations or even random things I dreamed about (although those tend to get a little strange and I don’t think should be turned into fanfiction).

6. How do you power through writer’s block?

I cry. No, to be honest, I just try to keep going. I write the most awful, kitschy sentences imagined and yell (complain and whine, more like) about them to my friends until it gets easier and my creativity flows again. If that doesn’t work, then I let myself take a day off, go outside, do something with my family or friends, or just start something new because pushing too hard for will just make everything  worse. Consuming new media also helps - going to the cinema, reading poetry or books, listening to music you'd never think you'd enjoy, anything to widen the horizon of your imagination and get yourself out of your comfort zone.

7. Do you have a favorite fic from another author?

Oh gosh, so many! Some Kind of Wonderful by magnusragnor/@magnusragnor (the best lifeguard au i’ve read ever, well-paced and characterized, I fell in love immediately and it’s one of the first fics that comes to my mind when someone asks for recommendations), and my heart is set on you, plus all of the single parent aus by @lightwoodlesbians /ohprongs (Charley has one of the most incredible styles with great natural humour and in-character writing; she is also one of the only people who can make me like children in fics), hold on to me (cause i’m a little unsteady) by ceciwrites/@daddariossmile (this just stuck with me, the soft way they interact, the whole concept of skating the way it’s used here, 10/10) and Appassionato by Chonideno (this moved me on a deeper level, the love of music included in this, passion written into every word, the original take on the concept of a first meeting, I love it all).

8. What’s something you’re looking forward to in season three of Shadowhunters?

As for Magnus and Alec, I’d love to see them have more conversations about the differences between them without death in the form of Valentine looming over their heads, as well as more casual intimacy and domesticity (hand holding, hello kisses, more hugs, a training scene, I’ll take anything). We’ve got a taste of Battle Couple, which I hope is just an introduction to more great scenes with them as a team. In general, I’m looking forward to Luke’s conflict with nosy Ollie (plus his hot date with Maryse) and more backstory on our favorite Downworlders - Simon and how he’ll get out of the Seelie Queen’s grasp, Maia’s and Bat’s growing connection. I miss this show already, I want to know everything!

9. Can you give us a sneak peek to what you’re writing next? Or at least any hints to what’s to come?

I tend to jump between ideas quite a lot and I like keeping them under wraps, so no sneak peeks from me! But as I’m looking at my to-write list, I can tell you to expect more domesticity, more canon fics with a sprinkle of aus and/or meet-cutes. The one I’m working on right now involves immortal husbands, pretty countrysides and a title inspired by one specific French song, maybe you can even guess which one it is?

10. Do you have advice for anyone who might be interested in writing fan fiction?

First - don't be afraid to start and second - keep going even if you don't feel like it. Writing good fan fiction takes a lot of trial and error as well as practice. My first fics were all around awkwardly written and as I continued with different ideas, I did get better. When it comes to finding the right balance for characters, it's good to read well-characterized fic from other writers plus meta posts as those tend to give an explained look into the character's personality. And if you're not sure about something, don't hesitate to ask others, just don't give up.

11. Does having English as a second language challenge you as a writer?

In some ways, yes. Although since I’ve been using English for about sixteen years of my life, it’s become almost like an extension of my thoughts. That doesn’t mean I don’t get things wrong, because I do, mostly in the department of grammar (all those pesky rules). Some words or expressions don’t translate well (or even don’t exist) in both languages, so as someone bilingual I have to maneuver my way around those obstacles either by looking through a thesaurus or a dictionary (I always have those two open when I write). Yet, beside grammatical nuances, strange expressions that make no sense when translated from Polish, and confusing words, the worst thing about being bilingual is forgetting the word I want to use in both languages at once. I wouldn't wish that on my worst enemy!