#origin of symmetry era

[cherrylng]

Memory of Muse 2000-2004 [STYLE Series #004 - Muse (August 2010)]

From the first visit to Japan to the 2004 Japan tour. How did Muse grow up after seeing them up close? We look back at how Matthew, Dom, and Chris were at that time, with some interesting episodes.

Conversation◎Yoshika Horita & Kaoru Abe pix Yoshika Horita

Yoshika Horita and Kaoru Abe, who had close encounters with Muse while working for Avex as their official photographer and interviewer, respectively. We asked them about their most memorable episodes, not only during their visits to Japan, but also during the many times they interacted with the members during on-site interviews. Please enjoy their memorable talks, which convey the individual personalities of the members, as well as their nostalgic memories.

[2000/First visit to Japan] Horita: I first met the three of them at ON AIR WEST. They were like three dark and friendly guys from the countryside, whispering in hushed tones about everything. They have very thick accents to begin with, so you can't hear them very well when they talk like that. Dom is the type who consciously tries to speak properly, so his English pronunciation is clear. Matthew is like a muffled machine gun and speaks very fast.

Abe: He wasn't so nervous at that time. He was being interviewed while lying on a gorgeous couch at Avex (laughs). Basically, [to them] it was like "I'm on a field trip!" and it was so pure.

Horita: At that time, they were accompanied by a manager who found them and was like a father figure.

Abe: Yes, it was like they were a local family. The show itself was very good, and they already had a certain style, but their usual behavior was not up to the level of their ability at all. Even in Tokyo, if they were to walk around Harajuku or Shibuya, they would look a bit out of place (laughs).

Horita: The way he dressed (laughs). I liked Matthew's cyber look at the time, but his shoes looked like something an old man would wear, and his denim was cut off at the hem! The uniqueness of Matthew's fashion came out at that time. But Dom is a bit of a fashionista. He was choosing what was appropriate for his height and weight. Chris doesn't care at all.

Abe: He (Matthew) talked a lot in the interview. He talked a lot about how they started the band because there was nothing to do in the countryside...... He talked a lot about things like that. But he would get bored in the middle of the interview (laughs). Then the three of them would get together again and start whispering in hushed tones. They didn't really have anything profound to say.

Horita: At that time, we even went to a music store to look at effectors.

Abe: It was their first time in Japan. 

Horita: Dom is Matthew's personal interpreter. Whenever Matthew needed something, he would call Dom and be like “Dom-Dom, Dom-Dom, you know....“ He always says “Dom-Dom” twice in succession (laughs). There was also a classmate of theirs named Tom (Kirk), and the four of them were originally best friends, but Tom went off to college and didn't play in the band. But they continued to be good friends, and eventually became like an external coordinator for Muse. You see, the world is closed, so they need that kind of existence (laughs).

Abe: Matthew is a little bit different. He is rather shy, so it would be difficult without Tom. Well, he's about as shy as I am. ...... So shy people interview each other and get interviewed by each other....... It's the worst (laughs).

Picture: Matthew cools off with a mini fan given to him by a fan. He said, “Back then, I would have gladly used any gift from my fans.”

[2000/Summer Sonic 2000] Horita: When Matthew had blue hair. Chris got a tattoo in Japan after his son Alfie was born. I went with him to Harajuku, and we went into a store owned by a very seedy foreigner, and he got it done by a female assistant who said she had just started working there (laughs). I was like, “Oh my God, are you sure this is a good place to get a tattoo?" She showed me a font sample book, and I just put the letters exactly as they were in the book. I wrote “Alfie” as “Zaibu Ryo” (在父良/Father-in-law) in big letters at ....... But he looks so happy!

Abe: That doesn't exist, does it? (laughs)

Horita: Matthew seemed to be very interested in it. I think that's why he let Chris try it out (laughs).

Abe: I didn't do any interviews at that time. I did see Summer Sonic, though. I remember they were already playing “Plug in Baby” at that time. It was the first show of the morning, and it was on a grand scale. It was so hot that I almost collapsed, but I heard that Matthew almost collapsed too.

Horita: Speaking of Summer Sonic, Coldplay['s Chris Martin] and Matthew were talking backstage at the Osaka show. Then one of the tour managers at the time asked me to take a picture of them. I was like, “Hey, let's take a picture now!“ And I thought to myself, “Well, Coldplay is in a higher position than Muse.“ They didn't really know each other that well, but Matthew, who was shy, talked a lot. Matthew is a very cunning guy (laughs), and he will go for anyone who benefits him or interests him. He is a surprisingly calculating man (laughs). Also, maybe it has something to do with the fact that his grandmother is a medium, but he seems to have a divine power or something out of the ordinary. There is a little bit of evil spirituality in him (laughs). It's great because that kind of thing is sublimated into the music!

Picture: At Kiyomizu-dera Temple in Kyoto, where we stopped by during the Osaka performance. These two are always a set.

[2001/London coverage] Abe: At that time, they did two days at the Brixton Academy and it was a great success. I think I went to see both days.

Horita: The first day was just the day I arrived or something, so I just went to see the show without any equipment. Matthew backstage was very funny. I think there was a tax accountant or someone in a suit there, and he was talking seriously about something like, “From now on, I'll take care of the money!“ As I said earlier, Matthew is very calculating and businessman-like. Their previous manager was someone who looked like someone from the industry, so I guess he thought he would be taken advantage of if things continued like this.

Abe: With all the money they had, they also bought a house to share among the three of them [Note: Presumably they're talking about Matt, Dom, and Tom's time of living together]. So, because of the formalities involved, we arrived very late to the hotel where the interview took place (laughs). During the interview, Matthew and Dom talked about the house all the time.

Horita: It was around this time that they suddenly became aware of themselves as members of society...... A tax accountant and a house! The next time I interviewed them in London, they had already moved to a different house (laughs).

Abe: Oh yes, it was a house with a studio. On the second day in Brixton, they had 2ManyDJs [aka Soulwax] in the afterparty, and it was Matthew's birthday party. 2ManyDJs at a live venue were still cute back then (laughs).

Picture: Matthew is not much of a drinker, but these two are the type that drink until morning. Chris in particular is the type that is easy to get along with.

[2001/performance in Japan] Horita: This was the time when the dark side of Muse was in full bloom. They were selling out at once, they had money coming in, and they had more than enough talent, especially Matthew (laughs). The number of groupies increased to the point where I wondered, “How many groupies are there nowadays?“ (laughs).

Abe: Chris was a serious guy and never played around...he lost his wedding ring at a show in 2004 and turned blue.

Horita: Oh yes, once Chris got very drunk and lightly kissed someone. The next day he was depressed and said, “What have I done? I'll never get drunk again!“ (laughs) It was painful to watch, but he was so cute.

Abe: Yes, he was. He really cherished his wife. Did he have his fifth child this year?

Horita: Yes, yes. His wife is a very plain, ordinary person. She is very different from Matthew, who is now a celebrity (laughs). Dom is a mystery! Even if he cheats on me, I feel like I'll never find out.  On the other hand, I don't think he is clean for sure.

Abe: Come to think of it, Dom is always clean [i.e. hygienic]. Chris is always clean, too. But Matthew never takes a shower even when he is sweaty at a show. (Laughs) Even when they play until morning.

Horita: Matthew's eccentricities are many. They were staying at the Nikko Hotel at the time, and when we were in the cafe on the first floor, he came down from his room in his hotel gown and slippers. When the hotel staff was upset with him, he told them that he was “dressed in African formal wear“, and they forgave him (laughs).

Abe: He had a look on his face that said, “If I say this, they will never be angry with me.“

Horita: He was once scolded for suddenly playing the transparent grand piano displayed at Kawai Omotesando without permission (laughs).

Abe: Well, even if he did that, it still looks good, in Matthew's case.

Horita: The thing about Matthew is that he is easily drawn to things like “white pianos” and “transparent pianos.” It's simple and cute in that way.

Abe: He likes to play the piano as soon as there is one. He must think “I'm so cool!” playing it more than the guitar (laughs).

Horita: On the piano, he can play Chopin and other pieces right away, but he's not actually that good at it. But on the guitar, even though he is so good, his movements are unique.

Abe: Speaking of Matthew, he always went back to the hotel after rehearsal. Dom and Chris stayed at the venue. I don't know what it is like now.

Horita: Yes, and that sometimes caused him to come back to the venue about 10 minutes before the show started, which made the people around him nervous. I don't know what he’s doing, but I really want to go back!

Abe: Is it some kind of ritual to concentrate?

Horita: Some kind of ritual to bring down the god of live performance? After all, he is a spiritual person (laughs).

Abe: Maybe he’s preparing confetti to be taken out of his pockets during the show (laughs).

Picture: The pass from the 2001 Brixton Academy show in London, which was attached to Abe-san's press notebook.

[2003/Reporting in London] Abe: Before [the release of] “Absolution,” we were in London again for an interview. At that time, they had a confident but calm impression. They took a long break before making the album, and all three of them had that good feeling. I would say that all three of them had grown up while still maintaining an aura of being rock stars. They also set up our own studio. It was just a renovated flat.

Horita: Yes, there were computers and office desks in one room, and a huge pile of equipment in the next room. There was a grand piano, so it was not small, but there was no table or anything like that, so it was just a place for recording as a hobby.

Abe: But he said he went there three to four times a week.

Horita: What surprised me was Matthew's new car. It was a very nice [Toyota] Solara, the kind of car that only [Japanese] yankees drive nowadays, and it was a white convertible (laughs)! It had a tachometer that looks like something you would never expect to see on a car like this (laughs).

Abe: But I was convinced. No matter how you try, only Matthew could drive a car like that!

Horita: It's the same as the idea of the white piano (laughs). Dom drove a maroon BMW or something, so he was totally normal. After the interview, they both said, “Goodbye,” and went home.

Abe: It was a bit of an inconvenient location, and we were at a loss because we couldn't get a cab. Dom said, “I'll wait with you until the car comes,” and bought us a drink at the pub next door! Really, Chris is like a good father and he is very kind.

[2004/performance in Japan] Horita: Before the Bay NK Hall show, I caught up with the guitar tech at the venue when the band members were not there, and he let me take pictures of the equipment. Matthew was just passing by and said, “You can film anything you want! There's no secrets.” When I first came to the show [back in 2000], he was very reluctant to have his effects equipment photographed, but I could see that he was gaining confidence. Matthew was wearing a weird “Matrix”-style coat and sunglasses, and there was a big fuss about “Take a picture! Take a picture!“ Matthew may be a dorky guy, but his personality and sense of aesthetics remain consistent. But that is out of tune with the world's sense of beauty (laughs).

Abe: He always likes things that are futuristic. He likes to wear a ring with a cybernetic design that was given to him by a Japanese fan. He was wearing it during the photo shoot, but I guess it wasn't fanservice, he really liked it.

[Thereafter.....] Abe: After they moved to Warner, we stopped doing interviews with this trio. They had a worldwide breakthrough and became an unreachable band.

Horita: They were five years after their debut... a country bumpkin who succeeds, falls to the dark side, and realizes who he really is... It was like the “Star Wars Trilogy” (laughs).

Abe: By making a good album, you grow as a person. That must have been how Matthew was able to make such a big leap forward.

Horita: I think Dom, Chris, and Tom were instrumental in that. If it had been just Matthew, he would have destroyed himself by not being able to use his abundant talent. Also, it was good that he didn't have any impatience like, “I want to sell [out] in America! I want to be big!“ Even though Coldplay had achieved success, they [Muse] were not in a hurry, and they worked slowly and deliberately, and finally achieved success. But he might have had a desire to play in a big venue and hypnotize everyone in the room......

Abe: Yes, he just needed a place to present his sense of aesthetics.

Horita: That hasn't changed. I haven't met him (Matthew) yet, so I can't tell you more about him. I met Chris and Tom when they came to Japan in January, and I was happy to see that they had not changed at all.

Abe: Well, I think I was very lucky to catch a glimpse of Muse, who have now become such a great band, on their way to the top, and I have really good memories of them. I would like to continue to support them from behind to see where they are headed.

Translator's Notes: This is actually one of my favourite and unique Muse interviews I encountered so far in the STYLE magazine, because it's an interview/conversation in the point of view of those who actually interviewed and photographed the band themselves and witnessed their growth over time in 5 years, and gives interesting insight of stuff that they picked up, such as:

-Matt calling for Dom's attention by going all "Dom-Dom, Dom-Dom!" and he does it twice in succession!

-Matt's sense of fashion in the past was just that... eccentric/bad enough that nobody could ignore it LOL

-Not even his choice of car was spared from Abe and Horita's low-key savage mocking LMAO

-The journalist and photographer are like "Yeah, Matthew is a weird dork, but that's what makes him so cute!" LMAO

-Matt's preference for white or transparent pianos were actually noticed since 2001.

-The true story behind Chris' first tattoo and the absolute horror by Horita at the choice of tattoo shop and being forced to pick the kanji letters that sound the closest to what 'Alfie' would be pronounced as.

-Matt actually enjoys receiving gifts from fans and would use/wear them.

-Their observation that Matt and Dom always stick together as a set. My heart...

-The imagery of the boys' first trip to Japan being like "I'm on a field trip!" to them shall live in my head rent free.

[forged-in-kaoss]

🎉[Muse :: Rock Im Park :: Nuremberg :: 2002] 🎉

+ bonus that one guy that got on stage to breakdance during Bliss

[sunburnacoustic]

I'd forgotten Chris had a red era too,

[killedbythegroove]

Origin of Symmetry Era

anyway he looks so good here

[supermassiveart]

[mcmansionhell]

the motel room, or: on datedness

I.

Often I find myself nostalgic for things that haven't disappeared yet. This feeling is enhanced by the strange conviction that once I stop looking at these things, I will never see them again, that I am living in the last moment of looking. This is sense is strongest for me in the interiors of buildings perhaps because, like items of clothing, they are of a fashionable nature, in other words, more impermanent than they probably should be.

As I get older, to stumble on something truly dated, once a drag, is now a gift. After over a decade of real estate aggregation and the havoc it's wreaked on how we as a society perceive and decorate houses, if you're going to Zillow to search for the dated (which used to be like shooting fish in a barrel), you'll be searching aimlessly, for hours, to increasingly no avail, even with all the filters engaged. (The only way to get around this is locational knowledge of datedness gleaned from the real world.) If you try to find images of the dated elsewhere on the internet, you will find that the search is not intuitive. In this day and age, you cannot simply Google "80s hotel room" anymore, what with the disintegration of the search engine ecosystem and the AI generated nonsense and the algorithmic preference for something popular (the same specific images collected over and over again on social media), recent, and usually a derivative of the original search query (in this case, finding material along the lines of r/nostalgia or the Backrooms.)

To find what one is looking for online, one must game the search engine with filters that only show content predating 2021, or, even better, use existing resources (or those previously discovered) both online and in print. In the physical world of interiors, to find what one is looking for one must also now lurk around obscure places, and often outside the realm of the domestic which is so beholden to and cursed by the churn of fashion and the logic of speculation. Our open world is rapidly closing, while, paradoxically, remaining ostensibly open. It's true, I can open Zillow. I can still search. In the curated, aggregated realm, it is becoming harder and harder to find, and ultimately, to look.

But what if, despite all these changes, datedness was never really searchable? This is a strange symmetry, one could say an obscurity, between interiors and online. It is perhaps unintentional, and it lurks in the places where searching doesn't work, one because no one is searching there, or two, because an aesthetic, for all our cataloguing, curation, aggregation, hoarding, is not inherently indexable and even if it was, there are vasts swaths of the internet and the world that are not categorized via certain - or any - parameters. The internet curator's job is to find them and aggregate them, but it becomes harder and harder to do. They can only be stumbled upon or known in an outside, offline, historical or situational way. If to index, to aggregate, is, or at least was for the last 30 years, to profit (whether monetarily or in likes), then to be dated, in many respects, is the aesthetic manifestation of barely breaking even. Of not starting, preserving, or reinventing but just doing a job.

We see this online as well. While the old-web Geocities look and later Blingee MySpace-era swag have become aestheticized and fetishized, a kind of naive art for a naive time, a great many old websites have not received the same treatment. These are no less naive but they are harder to repackage or commodify because they are simple and boring. They are not "core" enough.

As with interiors, web datedness can be found in part or as a whole. For example, sites like Imgur or Reddit are not in and of themselves dated but they are full of remnants, of 15-year old posts and their "you, sir, have won the internet" vernacular that certainly are. Other websites are dated because they were made a long time ago by and for a clientele that doesn't have a need or the skill to update (we see this often with Web 2.0 e-commerce sites that figured out how to do a basic mobile page and reckoned it was enough). The next language of datedness, like the all-white landlord-special interior, is the default, clean Squarespace restaurant page, a landing space that's the digital equivalent of a flyer, rarely gleaned unless someone needs a menu, has a food allergy or if information about the place is not available immediately from Google Maps. I say this only to maintain that there is a continuity in practices between the on- and off-line world beyond what we would immediately assume, and that we cannot blame everything on algorithms.

But now you may ask, what is, exactly, datedness? Having spent two days in a distinctly dated hotel room, I've decided to sit in utter boredom with the numinous past and try and pin it down.

II.

I am in an obscure place. I am in Saint-Georges, Quebec, Canada, on assignment. I am staying at a specific motel, the Voyageur. By my estimation the hotel was originally built in the late seventies and I'd be shocked if it was older than 1989. The hotel exterior was remodeled sometime in the 2000s with EIFS cladding and beige paint. Above is a picture of my room, which, forgive me, is in the process of being inhabited. American (and to a lesser extent Canadian) hotel rooms are some of the most churned through, renovated spaces in the world, and it's pretty rare, unless you're staying in either very small towns or are forced by economic necessity to stay at real holes in the wall, to find ones from this era. The last real hitter for me was a 90s Day's Inn in the meme-famous Breezewood, PA during the pandemic.

At first my reaction to seeing the room was cautionary. It was the last room in town, and certainly compared to other options, probably not the world's first choice. However, after staying in real, genuine European shitholes covering professional cycling I've become a class-A connoisseur of bad rooms. This one was definitively three stars. A mutter of "okay time to do a quick look through." But upon further inspection (post-bedbug paranoia) I came to the realization that maybe the always-new brainrot I'd been so critical of had seeped a teeny bit into my own subconscious and here I was snubbing my nose at a blessing in disguise. The room is not a bad room, nor is it unclean. It's just old. It's dated. We are sentimental about interiors like this now because they are disappearing, but they are for my parents what 2005 beige-core is for me and what 2010s greige will become for the generation after. When I'm writing about datedness, I'm writing in general using a previous era's examples because datedness, by its very nature, is a transitional status. Its end state is the mixed emotion of seeing things for what they are yet still appreciating them, expressed here.

Datedness is the period between vintage and contemporary. It is the sentiment between quotidian and subpar. It is uncurated and preserved only by way of inertia, not initiative. It gives us a specific feeling we don't necessarily like, one that is deliberately evoked in the media subcultures surrounding so-called "liminal" spaces: the fuguelike feeling of being spatially trapped in a time while our real time is passing. Datedness in the real world is not a curated experience, it is only what was. It is different from nostalgia because it is not deliberately remembered, yearned for or attached to sweetness. Instead, it is somehow annoying. It is like stumbling into the world of adults as a child, but now you're the adult and the child in you is disappointed. (The real child-you forgot a dull hotel room the moment something more interesting came along.) An image of my father puts his car keys on the table, looks around and says, "It'll do." We have an intolerance for datedness because it is the realization of what sufficed. Sufficiency in many ways implies lack.

However, for all its datedness, many, if not all, of the things in this room will never be seen again if the room is renovated. They will become unpurchaseable and extinct. Things like the bizarrely-patterned linoleum tile in the shower, the hose connecting to the specific faucet of the once-luxurious (or at least middling) jacuzzi tub whose jets haven't been exercised since the fall of the Berlin Wall. The wide berth of the tank on the toilet. There is nothing, really, worth saving about these things. Even the most sentimental among us wouldn't dare argue that the items and finishes in this room are particularly important from a design or historical standpoint. Not everything old has a patina. They're too cheaply made to salvage. Plastic tile. Bowed plywood. The image-artifacts of these rooms, gussied up for Booking dot com, will also, inevitably disappear, relegated to the dustheap of web caches and comments that say "it was ok kinda expensive but close to twon (sic)." You wouldn't be able to find them anyway unless you were looking for a room.

One does, of course, recognize a little bit of design in what's here. Signifiers of an era. The wood-veneer of the late 70s giving way to the pastel overtones of the 80s. Perhaps even a slow 90s. The all-in-one vanity floating above the floor, a modernist basement bathroom hallmark. White walls as a sign of cleanliness. Gestures, in the curved lines of the nightstands, towards postmodernity. Metallic lamp bases with wide-brimmed shades, a whisper of glamor. A kind of scalloped aura to the club chairs. The color teal mediated through hundreds if not thousands of shoes. Yellowing plastic, including the strips of "molding" that visually tie floor to wall. These are remnants (or are they intuitions?) of so many movements and micromovements, none of them definite enough to point to the influence of a single designer, hell, even of a single decade, just strands of past-ness accumulated into one thread, which is cheapness. Continuity exists in the materials only because everything was purchased as a set from a wholesale catalog.

In some way a hotel is supposed to be placeless. Anonymous. Everything tries to be that way now, even houses. Perhaps because we don't like the way we spy on ourselves and lease our images out to the world so we crave the specificity of hotel anonymity, of someplace we move through on our way to bigger, better or at least different things. The hotel was designed to be frictionless but because it is in a little town, it sees little use and because it sees little use, there are elements that can last far longer than they were intended and which inadvertently cause friction. (The janky door unlocks with a key. The shower hose keeps coming out of the faucet. It's deeply annoying.)

Lack of wear and lack of funds only keep them that way. Not even the paper goods of the eighties have been exhausted yet. Datedness is not a choice but an inevitability. Because it is not a choice, it is not advertised except in a utilitarian sense. It is kept subtle on the hotel websites, out of shame. Because it does not subscribe to an advertiser's economy of the now, of the curated type rather than the "here is my service" type, it disappears into the folds of the earth and cannot be searched for in the way "design" can. It can only be discovered by accident.

When I look at all of these objects and things, I do so knowing I will never see them again, at least not all here together like this, as a cohesive whole assembled for a specific purpose. I don't think I'll ever have reason to come back to this town or this place, which has given me an unexpected experience of being peevish in my father's time. Whenever I end up in a place like this, where all is as it was, I get the sense that it will take a very long time for others to experience this sensation again with the things my generation has made. The machinations of fashion work rapaciously to make sure that nothing is ever old, not people, not rooms, not items, not furniture, not fabrics, not even design, that old matron who loves to wax poetic about futurity and timelessness. The plastic-veneered particleboard used here is now the bedrock of countless landfills. Eventually it will become the chemical-laced soil upon which we build our condos. It is possible that we are standing now at the very last frontier of our prior datedness. The next one has not yet elided. It's a special place. Spend a night. Take pictures.

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[wangxianficfinder]

In the mood for...

~*~

1. Hii! This is my first time asking for a fic, well cause usually other fans ask the same thing.

Any fic with JC/Jiang Sect bashing in the canon era.

Thanks a lot! I love all the work you guys do! @ffaddictsrn

🧡 All will be well when the day is done by abCEE (T, 76k, wangxian, time travel, canon divergence, fix it, not YZY friendly, not Jiang friendly, butterfly effect, no sunshot, madam lan lives, lan WWX)

A Matter of Time series by mrcformoso (E, 84k, wangxian, time travel fix-it, graphic depictions of violence, underage, LWJ pov, JC pov, dark LWJ, manipulation, grooming, teen body adult mind for LWJ, happy ending for wangxian, problematic consensual underage sex, blood & violence, insane LWJ, manic LWJ) lwj is BRUTAL to jc

💖 Return to Sender by Thesaurus_with_no_words (M, 73k, wangxian, not JC friendly, Canon Divergence, BAMF WWX, Wangxian Get a Happy Ending, YLLZ WWX, Golden Core Transfer Fix-It, Not Everyone Dies AU, Temporary Amnesia, Partial Memory Loss, Literal Emotional Manipulation, Unreliable Narrator WWX, Burial Mounds Settlement Days, Canon-Typical Violence, Canon typical horror and gore, Slow Burn, WIP)

🔒💖 Resilience. by Vrishchika (T, 7k, wangxian, time travel, not JC friendly, golden core transfer fix-it)

🔒💖 After Truth Lies the Honest Path by Vrishchika (M, 10k, wangxian, WIP, Canon Divergence, Truth Serum, Angry WWX, Post-Sunshot Campaign, Mild Angst, Wangxian Get a Happy Ending, Everyone Lives AU, Getting Together)

🧡 Never Again by Hauntcats (T, 67k, WangXian, WWX & WQ & WN, Canon Divergence, Time Travel, Golden Core Transfer Fix-It, Angst, Not JC Friendly, BAMF WWX)

The Core Issue by Hauntcats (T, 21k, WangXian, Angst with a Happy Ending, Not JC Friendly, Canon Divergence)

Go Hiking With a Blindfold On by Hauntcats (M, 12k, wangxian, JC & WWX, WQ & WWX, not JC friendly, Time Travel Fix-It, No Golden Core Transfer)

Lay my body down by tawaen (M, 48k, WQ & WWX, WN & WWX, wangxian, JYL & WWX, Canon Divergence, Time Travel, Rogue Cultivator WWX, Eventual Wangxian, No Golden Core Transfer, Not Cultivation World Friendly, Canon-Typical Violence, Not JC Friendly, Tagged just in case because there is no redemption arc here, What if WWX saw the first siege of the burial mounds and said Nope to the war, Original Character(s), OC point-of-view for one chapter for plot reasons)

Symmetry by Vir_Abelasan (M, 13k, WangXian, LSZ & WWX, One-Sided ChengXian, One-Sided ChengZhui, Canon Divergence, LSZ is raised by wwx, Wwx still dies sorry, Revenge, Fake/Pretend Relationship, Dark LSZ, Manipulation, Power Imbalance, Torture, Not JC Friendly, JC’s Canonical 13 Years Murder Spree, BAMF LSZ, WangXian Get a Happy Ending, LSZ Gets to Go Apeshit)

🔒 The Second Hand Unwinds by trulywicked (E, 30k, wangxian, WIP, Time Travel Fix-It, Not JC friendly, Not Yúnmèng Jiāng Sect Friendly, Not Jiāng Family Friendly, Not YZY Friendly, Time Travelling LWJ, Protective LWJ, Fluff, Minor Angst, Minor Character Death, JGS is his own warning, ,Wooing, LWJ is romantic af, Inventor WWX, Genius WWX, Cloud Recesses Study Arc, Implied/Referenced Child Abuse, Protective Gūsū Lán Sect Supportive LXC, Good Uncle LQR, WWX Protection Squad) Has both JC being a little shit & the Lans finding out about WWX's treatment during CRSA

🔒 Instead by apathyinreverie (T, 27k, wangxian, fix-it, darker gusu lan, manipulative elders, but in a good way?, golden core transfer fix-it of sorts, not Jiang friendly, or anyone friendly, except wangxian, cultivation world critical, fluff, sunshot, politics, courting rituals, genius WWX, no demonic cultivation, talismans, possessive LWJ, protective LWJ, WIP)

Get it right (mdzs time travel) Series by AmiraAlzilu (M, 85k, WangXian, Angst with a Happy Ending, Hurt/Comfort, Suicidal Thoughts, Canonical Character Death, Temporary Character Death, Fluff, Not JC Friendly, Unreliable Narrator, Unreliable Narrator WWX, Getting Together, Time Travel Fix-It, Somebody Lives/Not Everyone Dies, Not Jiang Clan Friendly, Jiāng Family Bashing, Character Death Angst, Implied/Referenced Suicide, Grieving LXC, Grieving LQR, LQR Is So Done, Dead LWJ, Dead WWX) (link in #2)

~*~

2. heyyy thanks for all your hard work! itmf for fics that the lan clan finds out about wwx abuse from the jiang sect. thanks in advance!

🧡 All will be well when the day is done by abCEE (T, 76k, wangxian, time travel, canon divergence, fix it, not YZY friendly, not Jiang friendly, butterfly effect, no sunshot, madam lan lives, lan WWX) link in #1

🔒🧡 rain falls and soaks into the earth series by RoseThorne (T, 53k, WangXian, WIP, Near Death Experience, Attempt Drowning, Madam Yu Bashing, Recovery, No war AU)

🔒 The Second Hand Unwinds by trulywicked (E, 30k, wangxian, WIP, Time Travel Fix-It, Not JC friendly, Not Yúnmèng Jiāng Sect Friendly, Not Jiāng Family Friendly, Not YZY Friendly, Time Travelling LWJ, Protective LWJ, Fluff, Minor Angst, Minor Character Death, JGS is his own warning, ,Wooing, LWJ is romantic af, Inventor WWX, Genius WWX, Cloud Recesses Study Arc, Implied/Referenced Child Abuse, Protective Gūsū Lán Sect Supportive LXC, Good Uncle LQR, WWX Protection Squad) link in #1 Has both JC being a little shit & the Lans finding out about WWX's treatment during CRSA

🔒 Instead by apathyinreverie (T, 27k, wangxian, fix-it, darker gusu lan, manipulative elders, but in a good way?, golden core transfer fix-it of sorts, not Jiang friendly, or anyone friendly, except wangxian, cultivation world critical, fluff, sunshot, politics, courting rituals, genius WWX, no demonic cultivation, talismans, possessive LWJ, protective LWJ, WIP) link in #1

🧡 Company by WithBroomBefore (T, 29k, WangXian, Canon Divergence, Pre-Relationship, Getting Together, POV LWJ, Fix-It, Pre-Canon, at least to start, WWX goes to Cloud Recesses, But Not In The Usual Way, fear of character death, Everybody Lives, Hurt/Comfort, Happy Ending, Light Angst, good teacher LQR, Implied/Referenced Child Abuse, brief discussion of past minor character suicide, Kitten, Not YZY Friendly)

Get it right (mdzs time travel) Series by AmiraAlzilu (M, 85k, WangXian, Angst with a Happy Ending, Hurt/Comfort, Suicidal Thoughts, Canonical Character Death, Temporary Character Death, Fluff, Not JC Friendly, Unreliable Narrator, Unreliable Narrator WWX, Getting Together, Time Travel Fix-It, Somebody Lives/Not Everyone Dies, Not Jiang Clan Friendly, Jiāng Family Bashing, Character Death Angst, Implied/Referenced Suicide, Grieving LXC, Grieving LQR, LQR Is So Done, Dead LWJ, Dead WWX)

~*~

3. Hello!! Itmf/does anyone know of any canon-compliant fics where when WWX comes back to life it is like no time has passed for him so he still feels and acts like a teenager/young adult? Where he gets along better with the juniors rather than his generation because he still is young at heart? Thank you!

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4. heeyy mods, hope youre enjoying the holidays!!

this is for itmf

A) I recently read audience of one which is basically being XiCheng being sweet babies, so I would really love if someone could rec good XiCheng fics

B) are there any good modern wangxian detectives au!!?? @mercurygirlwt28

4B)

🧡 CSI: Gusu Edition Series by Stratisphyre (M, 39k, WangXian, WWX & LQR, Modern with Magic AU, College AU, Golden Core Reveal, Single parent WWX, Good Uncle LQR, Hospitalization, Allusions to violence and murder)

Moonlight as My Guide by BromeliadDreams (M, 32k, WangXian , Case Fic, Body Horror, Modern with Magic, Academia, (book) canon-typical desecration of the dead, actually far more soft domesticity than the previous tags imply, background/implied xiyao, grey-ace wwx)

~*~

5. hii, tje next Itmf can I ask for fics which feel the song. "dark red" by Steve Lacy.

thank you!!

~*~

6. Hola! for the next itmf, I have two requests please, they are kind of similar.

A) pls rec the good modern aus!! the fluffy, tje ones w angst, anything.

B) modern aus which also deal w depression.

6A)

🔒 Wangxian Tax Universe series by adrian_kres, RoseThorne (T, 5k, wangxian, modern, Getting Together, Americana, Family Dinners, Dysfunctional Family, Family Feels, Announcements, Therapy, POV Third Person, POV WWX, Crack, Fluff)

Extracts from the diaries of Lan Wangji and Wei Wuxian, relating to the case of Lan Zetian (Nov. 4 to Nov. 27) by Accidental_Child (T, 6k, wangxian, modern cultivation, Case Fic, Epistolaryish, Diary/Journal, WWX-centric, LWJ-centric, Slow Burn, (academic), Enemies to Lovers, academic rivals i guess?, Rivals to Lovers, Mentions of Murder, mentions of abuse, mentions of assult)

🔒 Standing By by Prince_kun (T, <;1k, wangxian, WIP, Modern, Mutual Pining, Getting to Know Each Other, Getting Together, Strangers to Lovers, Past WWX/Other(s), Airports, Airports can be romantic and not just meant for the dramatic breakup scene, Rich LWJ, CEO LWJ, Bisexual Disaster WWX, WWX is LSZ's Parent, Fluff, Light Angst, Everyone Lives AU, Developing Relationship)

Lessons in Belonging by Nyatci (M, 12k, wangxian, Modern, Childhood Friends to Lovers, POV LWJ, Implied/Referenced Child Abuse, Canonical Child Abuse, Bad Parents JFM & YZY, Not Jiāng Family Friendly, Implied/Referenced Homophobia, Homophobia, Good Uncle LQR, background 3zun, Hurt/Comfort, Angst with a Happy Ending, Assumed Asexuality, but it’s just an assumption, some mild non-overly-explicit smut, LWJ really wants to put a ring on it, so he does, Domestic Fluff, wangxian adopt a-yuan, 5+1 Things, softer than how the tags make it sound)

The extravagant wedding, the gorgeous brother, and other reasons you should listen to your uncle by deliciousblizzardshark (T, 5k, wangxian, Modern, Kid Fic, Soft Wangxian, Good Uncle LQR, Matchmaking, Fluff and Humor, shark week)

The Art of Communication by mrcformoso (G, 4k, WangXian, Modern AU, College/University, Tooth-Rotting Fluff, Meet-Cute, Engineering Student WWX, Music Student LWJ, Swimmer WWX, Martial Artist LWJ, POV Outsider, POV WWX, POV LWJ, Everything is Beautiful and Nothing Hurts, Communication Issues, But Wanxian Makes it Work, LWJ has limited words, WWX has too many words, Falling In Love, First Kiss, Love Confessions, Love Languages, Requited Love)

Just Ask Me To Stay by mrcformoso (M, 20k, WangXian, Modern AU, Former JZ/WWX, Minor NieLan, Minor XuanLi, No Powers, Dancer WWX, Musician LWJ, Roommates, Friends to Lovers, Break Up, Post-Break Up, Recovery, WWX Has Self-Esteem Issues, Sex as Self Worth Reaffirmation, Fluff, Light Angst, Anal Se,x Anal Fingering, Oral Sex, Domestic Fluff, LWJ Has a Big Dick, WWX Has a Breeding Kink, Size Queen WWX, Belly Bulge, Porn With Plot, WWX Has Friends, LWJ Has Friends, Hurt/Comfort, A lot of comfort, Romantic Comedy, Cuter story than the summary makes it out to be, Feel-good)

🧡 Hello, IT. Have You Tried Turning It Off and On Again? By overmountainandmeadow (T, 65k, WangXian, Modern AU, Office, Modern office AU, IT Director! LWJ, Graphic Designer! WWX, Father!LWJ, Fluff, Mutual Pining, Slow Burn, Juniors as interns, Light Angst, Mistaken Identity, Identity Porn, Rabbits, Cloud Recesses as a company, Happy Ending, Single Parent LWJ)

🧡 Yiling Salon: Hair, Nails and Piercing by TriviasFolly (T, 22k, WangXian, Modern AU, Hairstylist AU, Hairstylist WWX, 5+1 Things, Fluff, Experimental style)

leave all your love and your longing behind by ScarlettStorm (E, 143k, wangxian, modern, Meet-Ugly, Panic Attacks, autistic LWJ, neurodivergent WWX, the neighborhood asshole dog, if you've met one then you know, Hurt/Comfort, Pining, Minor Angst, major shenanigans, Happy Ending, for everyone including the asshole dog, setting out to make the neighborhood safer for your crush and accidentally building community, Eventual Smut, switch rights, Sex Toys, horny yearning, Masturbation, the chef's assortment of partnered sex acts) (link in #17)

🔒some things go forward by everythingispoetry (T, 73k, WangXian, Modern AU, Hospitals, Teenage Drama, Slow Burn, Hurt/Comfort, Fluff, Happy Ending)

oh brother by lanzhans_rbf (skzinger) (G, 5k, LXC & LWJ, WangXian, Modern AU, POV Outsider, Twin Jades of Lán Dynamics, Twin Jades of Lán Feels)

A Soft Storm by AvoOwO (Not rated, 47k, wangxian, modern, hurt WWX, LWJ pov, protective LWJ, not SS friendly, car accidents, hurt/comfort, heavy angst w happy ending, sexual harrasment, stalking, crying, blood & injury & gore, major character injury, college, slut shaming, insults)

Coincidence is Another Man's Fate by TriviasFolly (M, 164k, wangxian, rape/non-con, modern, ABO, Alpha LWJ, Omega WWX, Sexual Harassment, Implied/Referenced Sexual Harassment, WangXian play the long game, UNTIL THEY DON'T, Getting Together, fated pairs, Eventual Attempted Sexual Assult and Recovery, Office au, Mpreg)

I know what my heart wants by yakuso5u (Not Rated, 28k, WangXian, Modern AU, Single Father LWJ, Fluff, Mutual Pining, Getting Together, Accidental Child Acquisition, Domestic, Slice of Life, Christmas references)

flight of the birch tree by bleuett (T, 2k, WangXian, Modern AU, liminal spaces, Subways, dreamy vibes, Meet-Cute, kind of)

i know who i want to take me home by ScarlettStorm (E, 16k, wangxian, modern, bartender WWX, drunk LWJ, caretaking, meet-cute, fluff, comedy, smut, minor angst, major shenanigans)

spoke like we meant it by BlackWiresOnHerHead (T, 10k, WangXian, Modern AU, 5+1, Fluff, oh my god they were roommates, Friends to Lovers, Getting Together, Pining, Cuddling, Accidental Confession, Humor, Abandonment Issues, Light Angst)

Keep Track of Losing Days by giraffeter (T, 74k, WangXian, Modern AU, Case Fic, Police, Missing Persons, Mystery, Getting Together, Flashbacks, Rooftop Conversations, Detective LWJ, antifa WWX, Endgame NieLan, Angst with a Happy Ending, Sharing a Bed, First Kiss, First Meetings, Seattle, Mutual Pining, nonfatal car accident, mafia wens, Mild Hurt/Comfort, Friends to Lovers)

6B)

🔒 moonlight falls series by RoseThorne (M, 15k, wangxian, SL/XXC, JC & WWX, WQ & WWX, NHS & WWX, Found Family, Modern, Corporate Espionage, Bunnies, Adoption, Family, Family Feels, Family Fluff, References to Depression, Anxiety, Blind Character, POV Third Person, POV WWX, Confrontations, Bad Parent LQR, Pre-JC & WWX Reconciliation, Dissociation, Mental Health Issues, Anniversary, Food, Food as a Metaphor for Love, Emotional Constipation, Communication Failure, JC is Bad at Feelings, JC is Trying, WWX Needs a Hug, Implied/Referenced Sex, Food Sex, Friendship, Reconciliation, Psychological Trauma)

Welcome to the Family series by jiejieaini (E, 231k, wangxian, LXC/NMJ, JYL/JZX, modern, Wangixian Get a Happy Ending, LWJ is best dad, Bunnies, London, Implied/Referenced Child Abuse, Implied/Referenced Homophobia, Implied/Referenced Abuse, Adopted WWX, Fluff and Angst, Fluff and Smut, Hurt/Comfort, Reunions, Hand Jobs, Tears, Gay Sex, Consensual Non-Consent, Dom/sub Undertones, Blow Jobs, Anal Sex, Anal Fingering, Christmas, Praise Kink, Rough Sex, Rough Kissing, WWX & LWJ Have a Breeding Kink, First Time, Public Blow Jobs, High School, Implied/Referenced Domestic Violence, Implied/Referenced Suicide, Falling In Love, Love, Love Confessions, Birthdays, Blowjobs, Emotional/Psychological Abuse, Drowning, Canonical Character Death, Implied/Referenced Character Death, Implied/Referenced Alcohol Abuse/Alcoholism, Dubious Consent, Rimming, Panic Attacks, Anxiety, A-Yuan is adorable, Marriage Proposal, Weddings, Nightmares, Adoption, Pregnancy)

Lessons in Belonging by Nyatci (M, 12k, wangxian, Modern, Childhood Friends to Lovers, POV LWJ, Implied/Referenced Child Abuse, Canonical Child Abuse, Bad Parents JFM & YZY, Not Jiāng Family Friendly, Implied/Referenced Homophobia, Homophobia, Good Uncle LQR, background 3zun, Hurt/Comfort, Angst with a Happy Ending, Assumed Asexuality, but it’s just an assumption, some mild non-overly-explicit smut, LWJ really wants to put a ring on it, so he does, Domestic Fluff, wangxian adopt a-yuan, 5+1 Things, softer than how the tags make it sound) link in #6A

12 Hours In Hell and Paradise (Or: Lan Zhan’s Distinguished Guide to Seasonal Depression) by demonicsalad (T, 4k, wangxian, LXC & LWJ, Modern, Friends to Lovers, Developing Relationship, Mental Health Issues, Neurodiversity, Love Confessions, POV LWJ)

Just Ask Me To Stay by mrcformoso (M, 20k, WangXian, Modern AU, Former JZ/WWX, Minor NieLan, Minor XuanLi, No Powers, Dancer WWX, Musician LWJ, Roommates, Friends to Lovers, Break Up, Post-Break Up, Recovery, WWX Has Self-Esteem Issues, Sex as Self Worth Reaffirmation, Fluff, Light Angst, Anal Se,x Anal Fingering, Oral Sex, Domestic Fluff, LWJ Has a Big Dick, WWX Has a Breeding Kink, Size Queen WWX, Belly Bulge, Porn With Plot, WWX Has Friends, LWJ Has Friends, Hurt/Comfort, A lot of comfort, Romantic Comedy, Cuter story than the summary makes it out to be, Feel-good) (Iink in 6A)

💖 you are safe / loved / worthy / enough by everythingispoetry (T, 150k, wangxian, modern, College/University au, Social Media, Mental Health Issues, Healing, self-care, Anxiety, Hurt/Comfort, the mortifying ordeal of self-acceptance, Falling In Love, Depression, Slow Burn)

KILF (Knits I'd Like To Fuck in) by ScarlettStorm (E, 168k, wangxian, modern, sex work, fiber arts, 2nd in series)

Many happy returns. by orange_crushed (E, 25k, WangXian, Modern AU, Mistaken Identity, Misunderstandings, Grief/Mourning, Loss of Parent(s), Implied/Referenced Suicide, Past Suicide of a Parent, References to Depression, Anxiety, Therapy, References to Anti-Depressant Medications, Escort Service, Loneliness, Everybody’s Abandonment Issues, Angst and Fluff and Smut, Angst with a Happy Ending, Domestic Fluff, Moving In Together, Oral Sex, Penetrative Sex, Hopeful Ending, Recovery, References to Escorting/Sex Work but No Actual Escorting/Sex Work)

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7. Itmf some fics that are just plain funny! Rec me any fics that made you lol please @peebls

Lan Wangji Gets Harassed by a Pack of Children by hyacinth4maria (G, 9k, wangxian, CSSR & WWX & WCZ, CSSR/WCZ, Madam Lan & LWJ, LWJ meets the Wei family, the Wei family consists of OCs and strays, Modern, High School, Young Love, Fluff and Crack)

rerun from the outside by Eicas (T, 2k, wangxian, JC & WWX, Time Travel, POV Outsider, JC POV, Cloud Recesses Study Arc, WWX has timetravelled! unbeknownst to him so has LWJ!, JC gets to be there for the glorious moment when the penny drops, Mojo's post)

❤️ Wangxian’s Time-Travelling Shenanigans series by pupeez4eva (G, 18k, wangxian, time travel, love confessions, humor, Mojo's post)

The Twelve Days of Christmas, OR, How to Drive Your Brother-in-Law Insane by Following One Traditional Carol by Hobbsy3 (T, 3k, wangxian, modern, Fluff, Crack Treated Seriously, Twelve Days Of Christmas, sending someone six geese and seven swans is definitely not an act of love, OR IS IT, Christmas Fluff, JC is So Done, LWJ is a Little Shit) link in #16

Deep Dive by MimiSpearmint (E, 24k, wangxian, JC & WWX, modern, therapy au, twin prides of yunmeng feels, angst w/ happy ending, career ending injuries, counsellor LWJ, eventual smut, crack, discussion of domestic abuse)

Meng Yao vs. the Board of the Homeowner's Association Series by Ariaste (M/T, 119k, WIP, XiYao, WangXian, Modern AU, Established Relationship, xiyao and wangxian are both already married, Family Feels, Domestic Fluff, Family Bonding, Slice of Life, Discussions of Past Trauma, wwx's canonical kinks, HOAverse) there's a reason it's recced all the time!

To Woo a Yao by Iamnotawriter (G, 8k, WangXian, Some Humor, Investigations, Post-Canon, Canon Compliant, Secret Letters, Mystery, Crack)

WeHateDogs by trippednfell (T, 3k, WangXian, Modern AU, Inspired by Twitter, Social Media AU, WWX is a professional dog hater, Fluff and Crack)

our own kind of magic. by scarletwanlian (T, 18k, WangXian, 5+1 Things, Fluff, Humor, Mutual Pining, Friends to Lovers, Modern AU, Magic, Magical Realism, College/University, Slice of Life!, Witch!WWX, Banter)

~*~

8. Uhm hi. I’m looking for a fic where instead of Jiang Fengmian, Yu Ziyuan was thought to be Wei Ying’s parent. Or where yu ziyuan adopts Wei ying

Hope series by RoseThorne (T, 57k, wangxian, WWX & YZY, WWX & JFM, WWX & JYL, YZY/JFM, JC & WWX, LQR & WWX, LXC & JYL, Madam Jin & YZY, LQR & JFM, LXC & LWJ, Transmigration, Time Travel Fix-It, Illnesses, Family, Scars, Memory Loss, Angst, Crying, Music, Nosebleed, Fear, Recovery, Nightmares, Sharing a Bed, Flirting, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Good Parent YZY, Referenced Sexual Slavery, Blood and Gore, Monsters, Sexual Tension, betrothal, Arranged Marriage, Grief, Adoption, POV Third Person, POV Alternating, Implied/Referenced Abuse, Implied/Referenced Child Abuse, Good Parent LQR, Clairvoyance, Butterfly Effect, Kid Fic, Epistolary, Food, Secrets, Resentful Energy, Cultivation Sect Politics, Character Death)

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9. Hi! Do you have rec fics where Wwx has a sibling/sister? (This part added to FF) Thank youu!! @gideonmorningstar

We Meet at the Thousandth Step by Admiranda, Rynne (T, 163k, wangxian, CSSR/WCZ, WIP, Canon Divergence, No Sunshot Campaign, CSSR & WCX Live, Rogue Cultivator WWX, Different First Meeting, Night Hunts, Genius WWX, Inventor WWX, Plot, Romance, Drama, Fluff, Strangers to married, Unresolved Sexual Tension, Unresolved Romantic Tension, Everyone LivesAU, Developing Relationship, Minor Violence, Case Fic, Mystery, Flirting, WWX's Canon-Typical Flower Flirting, Arson, There Was Only One Bed, Getting Together, First Kiss, Meeting the Parents, Resolved Sexual Tension, Resolved Romantic Tension, WWX Is a Good Big Brother, New Relationship Bliss)

Lan Wangji Gets Harassed by a Pack of Children by hyacinth4maria (G, 9k, wangxian, CSSR & WWX & WCZ, CSSR/WCZ, Madam Lan & LWJ, LWJ meets the Wei family, the Wei family consists of OCs and strays, Modern, High School, Young Love, Fluff and Crack) link in #7

~*~

10. ITMF fics that changed your minds about tropes/settings/characters you had previously disliked? I am trying to try new things but I tend not to pick things for myself outside of plain plain status quo. TY!

mating rituals by detectorist (E, 16k, WangXian, XuanLi, Modern AU, College/University, Humour, Pining, Getting Together, Idiots in Love, The Rituals Are Intricate) Never cared about jzx until I read this fic

Coincidence is Another Man's Fate by TriviasFolly (M, 164k, WangXian, Modern AU, A/B/O Dynamics, Omegaverse, Alpha LWJ, Omega wwx, Sexual Harassment, Implied/Referenced Sexual Harassment, Getting Together, fated pairs, Eventual Attempted Sexual Assult and Recovery, Modern Setting - Office, Mpreg) This is the abo fic for anyone who’s never liked abo

symmetry by bleuett (M, 44k, WangXian, Space, Science Fiction, Happy Ending, Non-Sexual Intimacy, Holding Hands, Blow Jobs, Hand Feeding, Cultivation in Space, Yearning, Reunions, Hurt/Comfort, Family Feels, Canon-Typical Violence, Minor Injuries, Grief/Mourning, Unconventional Time Travel, Burial Mounds) Never liked fics set in space but this one was so good

Twin Demons of Mò by XiaoFeiFei (ArfBarkWoof) (M, 358k, MXY & WWX, wangxian, JL & MXY, XY & MXY, JGY & MXY, Implied/Referenced Suicide, Injury, Abuse, Death, Twin Demons of Mo, MXY Lives, Major Character Injury, Implied/Referenced Self-Harm, Minor Character Death, Angst with a Happy Ending, Character Death, Minor Implied/Referenced Incest, Implied/Referenced Torture, Near Death, Near Death Experiences, Canon Divergence, Self-Harm, Found Family, Sexual Abuse, Rape/Non-con Elements, POV Alternating) Twin Demons of Mo was my first foray into the super heavy angst that can pop up in the fandom, and since I'm very empathetic, heavy angst tends to be difficult for me to read, but TDOM was beautiful and now I can handle fics like Concord with more ease

TAKOYAKI by ariskamalt (E, 3k, wangxian, modern, Established Relationship, PWP, Tentacles, Tentacle Sex, First Time, Semi-Sentient Tentacles, Anal Sex, tentaclejobs?, Podfic Available) please don't let the tentacles scare you😆

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11. hello! i just finished this fic on ao3 called 'like speaking to my heart' by SnowshadowAO3.

it has suibian and bichen as daemons and i've really enjoyed reading it.

i wanted to ask if it's possible to find more fic's where suibian and bichen play a major role either in their sword forms or are like these aus where they take a different form.

(not really necessary but are there any fics where suibian and bichen share a really close bond with lwj and wwx, respectively, too?)

thank you so much!

🧡 Song of Suibian and Bichen: Or, the Greatest (And Only) Furby Master of Demonic Cultivation by moonwaif (T, 64k, WangXian, Fix-It of Sorts, canon adjacent, The spiritual weapons are furbies, Angst with a Happy Ending, The parent trap but make it WangXian with furbies, Mutual Pining, Taking my favorite parts of every adaptation and smashing them together)

~*~

12. hi hi! i'm in the mood for fics where lwj feels insecure over his "bland and stiff" personality and wwx reassures him

~*~

13. Could you suggest some multi-chapter fics of genre Fox Wei Wuxian and Dragon Lan Wangji. @lostsoul234

(Dreaming of) Being Human by Harleydoll (M, 109k, JC & WWX, NHS & WWX, LXC & WWX, LXC & LWJ, wangxian, JYL & WWX, Soft Wangxian, Pining, POV LWJ, Protective LWJ, Oblivious WWX, YLLZ WWX, Fox WWX, Canon Divergence, Canonical Character Death, Huli Jing, Cloud Recesses Study Arc, Cloud Recesses Shenanigans, Gūsū Lán Forehead Ribbon, Gūsū Lán Sect Rules, , Fluff, Angst, Hurt/Comfort, Implied/Referenced Child Abuse, Past Child Abuse, Cuddling & Snuggling, Sleepy Cuddles, Literal Sleeping Together, Sharing a Bed, Nudity, WWX is a Lán, WWX is Loved, Gremlin WWX, Shapeshifting, POV WWX, Qíshān Wēn Indoctrination, Not Lánlíng Jīn Sect Friendly, Burning of the Cloud Recesses, Post-Burning of the Cloud Recesses, Explicit Sexual Content, Oral Sex, First Time, First Kiss, Burial Mounds Settlement Days, Sunshot Campaign, Fox Spirit WWX, Canon Temporary Character Death, Not Really Character Death)

🔒Due Process by Kytrin, Mslead (E, 279k, WangXian, XiChengSang, Poly Junior Quartet, Modern AU, Foxxian, dragonji, Genderfluid WWX, WWX identifies as male, Organized Crime, Grief/Mourning, Hurt/Comfort, mentions of child abuse, Angst with a Happy Ending, Found Family, Reincarnation)

To lurk, to lie in wait by trippednfell (M, 124k, WangXian, Modern with Magic, Huli Jing, strangers to co-parents to lovers, Strangers to Lovers, Kid Fic, teenage juniors, background NieLan, Angst with a Happy Ending, Case Fic, Implied/Referenced Suicide, Hurt/Comfort, Implied/Referenced Character Death, Not Really Character Death, Fox Spirit WWX, Dragon LWJ, Blood and Injury)

The early bird gets the worm, the early fox gets the bird. But the dragon wakes the earliest of them all. by sekhmetpaws (E, 52k, WangXian, XiYao, Alpha/Beta/Omega Dynamics, Royalty, Prince LWJ, dragon lwj, fox wwx, dragonji, Arranged Marriage, but not really, Mistaken Identity, Omega WWX, Alpha LWJ, Foxxian, slowish burn)

~*~

14. ITMF a fic where wangxian bond over both being Chinese / having similar experiences?. It can just be a small moment in a bigger story or it can be whole story @zerokogane

Ticket to Ride Series by mistresscurvy (E, 21k, wangxian, modern, online dating, road trips, service top, phone sex, dick pics, wedding banquet, shower sex) Also it has a killer meet cute

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15. Hey!! I’m fairly new to the fandom and I’m still trying to navigate through your blog so idk if you’ve already done this ask but can you recommend a fic that follows the junior quad as they accidentally give travel back to Wangxian at cloud recess??

Thank you so muchhh

~*~

16. Hey any Christmas wangxian fics that are not too smutty and just wholesome and pure @veryfoxyfulwuji

The Twelve Days of Christmas, OR, How to Drive Your Brother-in-Law Insane by Following One Traditional Carol by Hobbsy3 (T, 3k, wangxian, modern, Fluff, Crack Treated Seriously, Twelve Days Of Christmas, sending someone six geese and seven swans is definitely not an act of love, OR IS IT, Christmas Fluff, JC is So Done, LWJ is a Little Shit)

Ornaments Under the Stars by trippednfell (M, 57k, wangxian, Modern, Inspired by Hallmark Christmas Movies, the wangxian Hallmark Movie AU no one asked for, plot and title were randomly generated, Kidfic, Disabled Character, debilitating injury as substitute for missing golden core, Additional Warnings In Author's Note, Angst with a Happy Ending, Guest starring LWJ's sky blue coat, The Coat deserves its own tag, disordered eating habits)

We Wish You A Logical Christmas by little_ogre (M, 9k, wangxian, Star Trek AU, Mutual Pining, Happy Ending, Going to Vulcan for Christmas, WWX is Vulcan, LWJ is human, what could go wrong, Pon Farr)

Christmas Eve at Number 16 by liulans (T, 9k, wangxian, Christmas Fluff, Modern, Getting Together, Mistletoe as an icebreaker, Fluff, neighbors to lovers, Friends to Lovers, Christmas Eve, snowstorm date)

~*~

17. Hi! I recently saw a DIY where they printed out their favorite fanfic and they (did book binding, sorry, I don’t what the English word for this is) so I wanted to ask if anyone could recommend fanfictions wich are 1. long enough (so it makes sense to bind it into a book) and 2. good/awesome/ wholesome,etc enough ( so I will actually want to bind it).

To keep it short, please recommend your favourite long fics. Thank you so much!

An addition to my ask because my dumbass accidentally send it before adding detail.

If anyone knows a fanfiction with a great plot, good writing or one you think deserves to be a book (because some of them honestly feel more professional than most real books do) I would be super thankful to them <;3 @desperation-is-my-middle-name

Twin Demons of Mò by XiaoFeiFei (ArfBarkWoof) (M, 358k, MXY & WWX, wangxian, JL & MXY, XY & MXY, JGY & MXY, Implied/Referenced Suicide, Injury, Abuse, Death, Twin Demons of Mo, MXY Lives, Major Character Injury, Implied/Referenced Self-Harm, Minor Character Death, Angst with a Happy Ending, Character Death, Minor Implied/Referenced Incest, Implied/Referenced Torture, Near Death, Near Death Experiences, Canon Divergence, Self-Harm, Found Family, Sexual Abuse, Rape/Non-con Elements, POV Alternating)

leave all your love and your longing behind by ScarlettStorm (E, 143k, wangxian, modern, Meet-Ugly, Panic Attacks, autistic LWJ, neurodivergent WWX, the neighborhood asshole dog, if you've met one then you know, Hurt/Comfort, Pining, Minor Angst, major shenanigans, Happy Ending, for everyone including the asshole dog, setting out to make the neighborhood safer for your crush and accidentally building community, Eventual Smut, switch rights, Sex Toys, horny yearning, Masturbation, the chef's assortment of partnered sex acts)

💖 Magical Marriage Ribbons series by starandrea (M, 1M, wangxian, animal transformations, weddings)

Fallen series by Jaywalker_Holmes (M, 150k, wangxian, major character death, underage, time travel)

💖 love, in fire and blood by cicer (E, 360k, wangxian, immortal WWX, slow burn, pining, arranged marriages)

The Scarlet Lotusby rainbowninja167 (M, 137k, WangXian, Marriage of Convenience, Secret Identity, Fix-It, Angst with a Happy Ending, It Gets Worse Before It Gets Better, Canon-Typical Violence, canon-typical war crimes, Yunmeng Bros, the mortifying ordeal of getting seduced by your own husband, nonlinear chronology we die like cql, just kidding nobody dies in this fic, Slow Burn, Mutual Pining, Miscommunication)

Twelve Moons and a Fortnight by stiltonbasket (M, 290k, WangXian, Humor, Slow Burn, Post-Canon Fix-It, Long-Distance Relationship, Epistolary, Love Letters, Family Feels, a-qing lives, teenage romance, Adoption, Romantic Comedy, Happy Ending, Weddings, Case Fic, Parenthood, Politics)

how to be a heartbreaker by sweetlolixo (E, 122k, wangxian, Sugar Daddy AU, Modern, Sugar Daddy LWJ, Sugar Baby WWX, Dark WWX, Dark LWJ, Pining LWJ, Possessive LWJ, Crossdressing WWX, Seductress WWX, Eventual Happy Ending, Dirty Talking LWJ, They Do Fall In Love and there’s Fluff, Dark Wangxian Power Couple, Off the Charts Sexual Tension, Size Kink, Daddy Kink, degradation kink)

🔒 Silver & Gold  by beeswaxing  (E, 162k, wangxian, post-canon, de-aging, fluff & angst, happy ending, fix-it of sorts, family bonding, established   relationship, non-sexual intimacy, BAMF WWX, pining, protective WWX)

A Matter of Time series by mrcformoso (E, 84k, wangxian, time travel fix-it, graphic depictions of violence, underage, LWJ pov, JC pov, dark LWJ, manipulation, grooming, teen body adult mind for LWJ, happy ending for wangxian, problematic consensual underage sex, blood & violence, insane LWJ, manic LWJ) link in #1

Meet Me Friday At Seven by craftyTrickster (luoxiaobai) (E, 128k, wangxian, modern, Fluff, Meet-Cute, Friends to Lovers, Blind Date, lots of texting, almost a chat fic, WC and WLJ aren’t evil but they are annoying, Kissing, Masturbation, Anal Sex, romantic sex, Bi WWX, bi nhs, Single Parent WWX, Slow Burn, Unreliable Narrator)

how to fall in love with a catfish: a guide by wei wuxian (disaster rat) by bwyn, Yuisaki (T, 54k, WangXian, Modern AU, College/University, Actors, Multimedia, Online Friendship, Drunken Shenanigans, Hijinks & Shenanigans, Underage Drinking, Drinking Games, Families of Choice, Ensemble Cast, Fluff and Angst, Slow Burn, Catfish AU)

finally safe (for me to fall) by sassybluee (E, 77k, wangxian, modern, sugar daddy au, age difference, sex work, rich WWX, older WWX, service top WWX, poor LWJ, single parent LWJ, sugar baby LWJ, family issues, hurt/comfort, angst w happy ending, slow burn, cockblocking, anal sex, blowjobs, no lube & lube, addiction, compulsory heterosexuality, implied/referenced abuse, wangxian + others)

it rains, it pours by jublis (Not Rated, 130k, WangXian, Hurt/Comfort, Humor, Food as a Metaphor for Love, Case Fic, Established Relationship, Angst with a Happy Ending, Soft WangXian, Canon Compliant, Post-Canon, The Junior Ensemble Love WWX, Protective LWJ, Protective WWX, WWX Needs a Hug, YLLZ WWX, Rogue Cultivator LQY, LQY & WWX Friendship, BAMF LQY, Horror, Friendship/Love, Junior Quartet Dynamics, Ambiguous/Open Ending, for the mystery, Our boys are fine) is dripping with atmosphere, and being able to hold a physical book and read it by the fire on a stormy night would enhance that so well

~*~

If you didn’t get an answer to your ask here, don’t forget to make use of @mdzs-kinkmeme and MDZS KINK MEME on Dreamwidth. Authors actually do use them for ideas. You may get what you order!***Your prompt doesn’t have to be kink! Fluff, crack, whatever - it’s all good!***

[alphynix]

Strange Symmetries #03: Eerie Early Echinoderms

Represented today by starfish, brittle stars, sea urchins, sea cucumbers, and crinoids, the echinoderms have a characteristic five-way radial symmetry that makes them barely even recognizable as bilaterians. Their true ancestry is only revealed by their genetics and their larvae, which still retain bilateral symmetry – and the way they metamorphose into adults is bizarre, essentially growing a whole new radial body from within the left side of their larval body.

(Sea cucumbers and sand dollars are superficially bilateral as adults, but evolved this secondarily on top of their existing radial symmetry. And some adult echinoderms like starfish also seem to retain a little bit of "behavioral bilaterism", generally preferring to move with a specific arm always acting as their "front" end.)

The first known echinoderms appeared in the fossil record during the early Cambrian, about 525 million years ago, but the common ancestor of the whole group probably actually originated a few tens of millions of years earlier in the mid-to-late Ediacaran. Early echinoderms seem to have started off as flattened animals that sat on the seafloor filter-feeding, and with this largely immobile way of life their bodies started to shift into asymmetry, no longer constrained by the locomotory advantages of being bilaterally symmetric.

In fact, for these early sedentary filter-feeders being radial was actually much more advantageous, able to distribute sense organs all around their bodies and grab food from any direction without having to reposition themselves, converging on the lifestyle of non-bilaterian cnidarian polyps. The evolutionary transition from bilateral to asymmetrical to pentaradial seems to have happened incredibly quickly during the Cambrian Explosion, and all modern echinoderms probably evolved from a group called the edrioasteroids, maintaining their new base body plan even when they later began taking up more mobile lifestyles again.

But during the process of all that some very alien-looking lineages split off at various stages of anatomical weirdness.

Stylophorans had asymmetrical bodies with a single feeding arm at the front, and varied from irregular boot-like shapes to almost bilateral heart shapes depending on their specific ecologies. The highly asymmetrical forms were probably spreading their weight out over soft soupy mud in quiet waters, while the more bilateral forms may have been more streamlined to deal with stronger water currents.

Sokkaejaecystis serrata was a stylophoran that lived during the late Cambrian, about 501-488 million years ago, in what is now South Korea. It was tiny, only about 1cm long (~0.4"), and its boot-shaped body was surrounded by spines and flanges that spread out its surface area and probably also made it much more awkward for small predators to attempt to eat.

———

Meanwhile the solutes started off as immobile animals living attached to the seafloor via a stalk-like appendage. But fairly early in their evolution they switched to a more active mode of life, modifying their stems into tail-like "steles" that were used to push themselves along.

Maennilia estonica lived in what is now Estonia during the late Ordovician, about 450 million years ago. It was quite large for a solute at about 12cm long (~4.7"), with a sort of vaguely-trapezoidal body, a short feeding arm, and a long thin stele.

Both of these strange early echinoderm lineages were surprisingly successful, surviving for a good chunk of the Paleozoic Era alongside their more familiar radial relatives. The solutes lasted until the early Devonian about 400 million years ago, and the stylophorans continued all the way into the late Carboniferous about 310 million years ago.

———

NixIllustration.com | Tumblr | Twitter | Patreon

[oliveroctavius]

I got this ask on main but thought I'd pick it up here, my comics history/fashion ramble blog. I'd been wondering this exact same thing recently, and Google initially wasn't much help—Rocketeer replica jackets describe themselves only as "Rocketeer jackets" and the one Lobster Johnson cosplay thread just suggested ordering one of those.

The most curious part is the double seam and horizonal row of buttons that mark out the entire front as possibly being an unbuttonable "bib", like a plastron front. (Please don't ask how late in the game I worked out that "plastron" is the right word for that.)

The closest genuine Golden Age example of a plastron jacket I found was the military tunic style uniform of Blackhawk, created in 1941.

(Pics from the '52 movie serial (right) really show how awkward it is to combine open lapels + plastron. On a double breasted coat, that chest panel IS the bottom lapel, folded shut.)

Here's the thing: This outfit mirrors that of the Nazi ace pilot he fights in the origin issue, von Tepp (middle). And compare further to the far right: real life WWI flying ace Manfred von Richthofen, AKA the Red Baron, in imperial German Uhlan (lance cavalry) uniform.

"The Germans had designed such great costumes, we decided to use them ourselves," co-creator Cuidera is quoted as saying in Steranko's History of Comics, which (more dubiously, in my opinion) compares the look to the Gestapo or SS. Breeches or jodhpurs weren't strictly a Nazi thing at the time, but they do add to the overall effect.

Compare two other military tunic themed costumes from 1940, on Captain Marvel and Bucky Barnes. These are asymmetrically buttoned, and switch to a more classic circus strongman look below the waist.

But somewhere around 1975, with the Invaders book, Bucky gets a buttoned bib! There's something infectious about it—the symmetry, maybe. (Even re: the characters we started with; Mignola didn't draw Lobster Johnson with buttons down the right side, but every artist after does. And Spider-Noir wore a sweater under his coat until Shattered Dimensions introduced the double-breasted vest.)

If it didn't reach his belt, Barnes' button-on front + shirt collar combo would resemble a bib-front western shirt, like the one that became the Rawhide Kid's signature look in '56. (Or Texas Twister's in '76.)

This shirt entered the old-West-obsessed public imagination in the 1940s/50s largely because John Wayne wore it in several cowboy movies. In reality it was rare among cowboys, more common with firefighters and civil war era militia.

Military tunics, Western shirts, alright, but does anything match the style and material and era, or are these jackets a total anachronism? I tried looking into 1930s leather flight jackets and was surprised when the closest-looking results were marked as Luftwaffe.

It took me a bit to work out why: USAF and RAF issued standard flight jackets with a center closure. The Luftwaffe instead let their pilots buy non-standardized ones. The 'weird' double-breasted black German flight jackets were in fact fairly normal (but repurposed) motorcycle racing jackets.

Far left is an English biker's jacket that dates back to the 1920s. Even without the bib, this may be as close as you'll get to an authentic Rocketeer. The jodhpurs were pretty common to complete the look. (What was an early motorcycle anyways, if not a weird metal horse?) The first biker jacket with the now iconic off-center diagonal zip was designed in America in 1928 and yet as far as I can tell, not a single actual pre-war pulp hero wore one.

The greatest weakness of this post is that I haven't been able to find any of these artists' notes on how, exactly, they arrived at similar versions of this iconic Pulp Front Panel Jacket. I'm sure I've missed some things. But as far as I can tell, this jacket is an odd bit of convergent stylistic evolution from the above influences that's picked up enough momentum to now be self-perpetuating.

The problem with pulp heroes is that for the most part, they just wore clothes. The appeal of this jacket is actually very similar to what the 1940s thought the appeal of the bib-front shirt in westerns was: It's alien enough to feel "old". It looks like something invented before zippers or synthetic fabrics. It looks formal and militant but also renegade, rebellious. It also looks a little mad-sciencey*. It's a costume, but you can nearly fool yourself into thinking the past was weird enough that you could find something this cool on the rack.

If I wanted to end on some grand point, I could try to argue that there's a thematic throughline between fascist fashion, John Wayne movies, and throwback pulp. A manufactured aesthetic valorizing the violence of a fictional golden age... but I think the noir stylings of the post-Rocketeer comics in this lineup mean that, at least on some level, they know the "good guys" didn't dress like this.

*If I had another couple weeks of time to burn, I'd try to trace the visual history of the Howie coat in popular culture and investigate its possible connections to this. Alas, I do actually have a life.

[talonabraxas]

The Flower of Life

There really is some deep rooted symbolism behind this captivating image. Some say it’s representative of the union of the sacred Masculine and the Divine Feminine, the connectedness of all living things, and others see it as the cycle of life, death and rebirth. Let’s explore the depths of the topic.

Origins & Symbolism The origins of the Flower of Life trace back to the dawn of civilisation, where it is believed to have emerged as a symbol of cosmic order and divine harmony. Its precise origins are shrouded in mystery, with some attributing its creation to ancient cultures such as the Egyptians, where it was found in the temple of Osiris and said to contain a ‘secret code’ (underpinning the basic building blocks of the universe), and also the Sumerians, and the Greeks.

At its core, the Flower of Life is composed of multiple evenly-spaced, overlapping circles, forming a mesmerising geometric pattern reminiscent of a flower in full bloom. Within this pattern lies a myriad of geometric shapes, including triangles, hexagons, and pentagons, each imbued with its own symbolic significance.

The Flower of Life is often associated with sacred geometry, a branch of mathematics concerned with the study of geometric forms and their spiritual, philosophical, and symbolic meanings. It is believed to represent the interconnectedness of all living beings, the fundamental unity of existence, and the underlying order of the universe.

Spiritual Significance In spiritual traditions around the world, the Flower of Life holds profound significance as a symbol of creation and interconnectedness. It is often regarded as a visual representation of the divine blueprint of the cosmos, with each circle representing a stage in the process of creation.

Within the Flower of Life, one can find various sacred symbols, including the Seed of Life, the Tree of Life, all 7 Chakra systems, and the Metatron's Cube, each carrying its own symbolic meaning and spiritual power. These symbols are believed to hold the keys to unlocking higher states of consciousness, facilitating spiritual growth, and connecting with the universal source of energy and wisdom.

Healing & Transformation Beyond its spiritual significance, the Flower of Life is also associated with healing and transformation. It is believed that meditating upon the pattern of the Flower of Life can help to harmonise the mind, body, and spirit, promoting health, balance, and inner peace.

In recent years, the Flower of Life has experienced a resurgence in popularity, with many people incorporating its imagery into their spiritual practices, artwork, and jewellery. Its intricate beauty and profound symbolism continue to inspire awe and fascination, serving as a potent reminder of the interconnectedness of all things and the infinite possibilities that lie within the universe.

Modern Interpretations In the modern era, scientists, mathematicians, and artists have continued to explore the mysteries of the Flower of Life, uncovering new insights into its geometric properties and mathematical significance. Through computer simulations and mathematical algorithms, researchers have gained a deeper understanding of the complex patterns and symmetries inherent in the Flower of Life, shedding light on its underlying principles of order and harmony.

Furthermore, the Flower of Life has found its way into various fields beyond spirituality and art, including architecture, design, and technology. Its geometric principles have been applied in the construction of sacred buildings, the development of advanced engineering techniques, and the design of innovative products and structures.

The Flower of Life: Mysteries of Sacred Geometry:

[cherrylng]

Muse - Origin of Symmetry promo pic [ROCKIN'ON (June 2001)]

No, I didn't figure out how to do a mirror image of the same page. These are literally a double-page spread that I saw as soon as I flipped open the magazine.

[forged-in-kaoss]

[Feeling Good :: Muse :: Rock Im Park :: Nuremberg :: 2002]

[boyfridged]

the brilliance of jay's progression in countdown is that it gives you a promise of positive character development, and then it breaks it. and it does so intentionally, in the most diverting way, to emphasize jason's inability to escape the cycle.

or, another post breaking down the series, where i repeat myself a lot but also make a clearer argument.

there are three notable events that happen at the beginning: the subtle showcase of jay's internal conflict considering his approach toward killing (the very first encounter with duela and the monitor), jay reaching out to donna in crisis ("i guess I just wanted to be around someone else who might know how it feels…"), and finally – his helmet shattering. these scenes tell you: jason's direction as a character is changing, and it seems, for the better. he's about to abandon his trauma-based (no matter how ironic, it does remain tied to his trauma) identity, he is connecting with people, and he seems to be on a brink of understanding that his moral standing does not provide easy answers or solutions either.

and for the most part of the series, we see that narrative unfolding (even if a bit non-linear, still innocently convincing way). it is, in many ways, supported by bringing up features of his characterisation from the 80s. jason remains, of course, still unpleasant in ways typical for this era of writing, and is conflicted and disagreeable, which makes sense for his utrh/post-utrh personality. however, there are also details that bring us back to his original robin run and his cameos on ntt – we see him being responsible (e.g. #43 – suggesting to bring in other superheroes in crisis, even though he clearly is not keen on the idea of working with them), determined (#16: “isn’t that your super-power, stupid boy? too stupid to ever give up?” “maybe it is”), sensitive (half of the whole storyline, really), caring for gotham (gotham by gaslight) and people-oriented (as early as #51).

the issue that particularly signals that jason is an inherently good person and externalizes his internal conflicts regarding classic heroic vigilantism vs his cynical approach is #30, where we meet batman of earth-15 –  alt jason, whom our jason attempts to punch in the face.

and on topic of batman – jason is always gravitating towards batman. in gotham by gaslight jay looks delighted to see (the foreign) bruce and suggests checking with the local bat. then, earth-51 arc arrives.

earth-51 arc (#16 - #13) is a culmination of a promise of catharsis for jason. we have already seen him as batman, as a confirmation that a different life for him is possible. and here he has a chance to come to terms with his past and overcome it. he meets a version of bruce who has done exactly what he wanted him to do in utrh: killed the joker and the rest of the rogue gallery. what is most important – he is disappointed with this version of his father. we realise that jason, deep down, has an intimate and intuitive understanding of what batman stands for; and that he shares most of his values. this is a truth that you can't ignore especially since jay is the one to inspire this hollow, cynical version of batman to go out and fight in a seemingly lost battle.

and then batman dies. right in front of him.

this is a central moment of the narrative, for many reasons, most strikingly:

the symmetry:, a premise known from the lost days, becomes literal. this "the father had lost a son, and now the son had lost the father" is a cruel parallel to a death in the family and bruce's grief. jason's death created a gap between them that jay has been desperately trying to close, with no avail – because in bruce's mind, jason remains dead. now that jason is grieving bruce, the connection closes on both sides, and there's no way for either of them to reconcile the mourning with the reality of the other being truly alive. in this sense, the arc solidifies that jason can never come home.

no good deed goes unpunished. as i have mentioned before, so far jason is established as someone good at heart, but confused; and the reader intuitively assumes that his better, honest side will win. yet, the moment jason gives in to hope, it victimises and retraumatizes him. this event, again, brings to mind his own death, when he tried his best to save sheila and ended up paying the highest price for it. so, narrative-wise, jason is always punished for his kindness.

perhaps because of the nonchalant act that jason pulls off, many readers seem to miss that everything that happens after that arc is an upshot that follows logically from it.

jason's immediate determination to leave – and later a short period of indecision that ends up with his dramatic exit, pushing his team away, makes perfect sense when you consider what intense trauma he has just gone through. admittedly, i'm not a fan of the notion that he would give up at all (i think he's always ready to give up on himself, but not on the world), but then on the other hand, if there's anything that would cause it, narrative-wise, witnessing batman dying does sound like a good incentive for that. (it also has to be pointed out that jason seems to be confident that the rest of the team can go into the final battle without him anyway; it's not like he would go back to his earth not even knowing if said earth will exist tomorrow).

it's crucial to notice that following that crisis of faith (faith in fighting for the world) is followed by him raising up for the challenge again, but now... worse and even more confused. in the final confrontation with donna, jason antagonizes the superhero community, and when we see him at the end of the series (#1) his monologue indicates that he believes the capes to be naive. (significantly, he also focuses on bruce and offends the memory of 51 earth-bruce by calling him crazy; an action that can be seen as suppression of his own guilt and invoking, once again, a cruel symmetry considering bruce's engagement in victim-blaming after jason's death). this, once again, is consistent with the "no good deed" reading – jason diminishes superhero values because he has been continuously punished for living by them. (and unlike other superheroes, he doesn't have a support system nor skills in compartmentalization that would help him deal with this trauma) every leap of hope re-traumatised him. hence, it seems to be no surprise that jason decides to abandon the mask, and in the closing scene we see him without it. the promise of the shattered helmet is pushed to an extreme – jason does not get a new alt identity. he denounces the idea of superheroism completely.

and yet, what is ultimately subversive about the ending, is that jay is not truly a civilian and he does not abandon vigilante ways. he does the same thing. we see him without a mask, but he is clearly working a case. he might have rejected the symbolic dimension of the vigilante work, but he still carries the same delusional hope for bettering the world and protecting people that the superhero community does. only now, he is even more isolated and doesn't have any identity to go by (as he is still legally dead).

as such, the ending opens a new question regarding jason's understanding of himself and vigilantism, or rather the lack thereof. is it possible that vigilantism is really at the core of jay's trauma? and why, potentially, is it something that is so destructive for him as a character specifically? (and i have some answers for that, but i'm not going to get into it here, as it's already a very long post)

so, tldr; the genius of countdown is that it establishes jay as sensitive, determined, and fundamentally good (this is what the purpose of seeing him as batman is!), and then it brutally reminds the reader that jason’s tragedy is that on this specific earth, in this specific timeline, his love doesn't matter in the grand scheme of things. the story goes on as it did; one way or another, jay is trapped in the cycle of his care ironically creating rifts between him and the others, and bringing him to his own downfall.

[sunburnacoustic]

I knew it was too late for me to really catch up to that level of technique to play those kinds of pieces [classical pieces by composers like Mozart, by the time Matt was 19/20]. But I just wanted to try and incorporate that kind of mystery [that artists like Phillip Glass, Rachmaninoff and Franz Liszt had] into the band. And something that has had such an emotional resonance through history that it’s managed to live nearly two hundred years. I think a little bit of that started to creep through the second album, Origin of Symmetry, and then the new album [Absolution] as well.

It's so fascinating to me to hear Matt thinks there's an age beyond which you cannot get into more technical classical music. This is also funny because he's regarded as one of the finest pianists in rock music. Guess the takeaway is, sometimes your self-assessment of your abilities aren't the most accurate, huh? Keep going!

Taken from "Innocence And Absolution", Keyboard Magazine, June 2005

[taylorswiftstylequestions]

Sarah, as Keeper of the Spreadsheets and the Sacred Fashion Texts, I wonder if you might know this, or at least have thoughts on the subject: I'm thinking ahead to the final Eras show in December, and how she will choose the costumes for that night. Her favorites? One final hurrah for ones that never quite got their due? Symmetry with opening night? An entirely new Rep outfit, with no announcement, just to f*%& with us?

Oh my god this message came through and when I tell you my eyeballs popped out of my head because I truly hadn't even considered this yet. I've been so focused on just trying to get tickets to my HOMETOWN SHOW where this incredible tour is concluding I haven't even given my brain a moment to catch up and consider the Implications of the clothes. !!!!!!!

I imagine we should look to LA 6 (the concluding night for the 2023 US Leg) and eventually London 8 (the concluding night for the European Leg) as barometers for how Vancouver 3 (the concluding night of the whole freaking tour IN MY BACKYARD) might go.

For LA 6 we got a string of original flavour outfits from Glendale 1 (Lover, Fearless, evermore, rep, RED) and a mix of new (folklore, Speak Now, 1989, acoustic) and existing (Anti-Hero dress, Karma jacket) outfits that supported her 1989 blue theme for the announcement. Which feels appropriate imo!

Tbh I would be 0% surprised if we got new costumes when the tour kicks back in for the US/Canada leg generally and I also wouldn't be surprised if Vancouver gets its own run of brand new costumes.*

[supermassiveart]