#part 2 is eight and neo

[iono---zone]

fucked up found family part 1

[teaboot]

holy moley the idea of alexander skarsgard as murderbot is irreconcilable in my head lol. when i read the book for my scifi class i pictured murderbot as more feminine in appearance tbh, and i thought it was weird that no one else in that class seemed to. i feel like i mightve missed something in the text bc i find it wild how widespread "murderbot looks like a man" is. or is their physical appearance more fleshed out in other books?

Murderbot (it/its so far as I've read) has so far been definitively described as having:

A Humanoid figure, with two arms and legs

A human face

Explicitly no genitalia, with none desired, and no primary or secondary sex characteristics noted

(In book one) Having hair only on its head, then eyelashes and eyebrows, being smooth everywhere else

Nonhuman features on its arms/legs that can be concealed under pants and long sleeves

Some kind of mechanical port on the back of its neck that is not uncommon on "augmented humans"

No distinct freckles, moles, or markings

An incomplete internal digestive system

By what isn't described I imagine we can safely assume that it has eight fingers and two thumbs in the usual formation, though wearing shoes I'm not sure about toes.

I also haven't heard anything apropos of scarring, except that it heals rapidly, so I imagine any distinguishing marks from injuries likely wouldn't last long.

Nobody as far as I've read has referred to it by any assumed binary or neo-pronouns, and as relatively progressive as the setting is in terms of queer and poly relationships I can easily imagine that agender humans with it/its pronouns wouldn't be too terribly strange in common company either.

So far, no third party characters have called it a "he" or "she", which could either mean that nobody in this universe adheres to our current rigid social view of the gender binary and masc/fem appearances, or that Murderbot is simply incredibly androgynous. As a reader, I like to think the reality is both- a secunit doesn't need to look distinctive or gendered or have any features it doesn't strictly need outside of its function. As it says in the book, it's not a sex-model, so it doesn't need sex-parts, and it wasn't made to be looked at.

I feel like the only reason anyone would read that and ascribe to it a male face and body is because our current western society tends to treat "white male" as the natural default setting, and anything else as "other".

We expect Murderbot to be a conventionally handsome white man because that's the popular view of neutral.

But there's no reason it couldn't be performed by an actor who is female, or Indigenous, or Korean, or anyone else from anywhere else

If our Pretty White Man isn't the default neutral in Murderbot's universe, and if there is no default neutral, then the Default Neutral Murderbot was designed to look like could be anyone

Provided, of course, that they 1. Have a human face 2. Have no freckles or moles (for book 1 at least) 3. Have two arms and legs, of some manner, and 4. Don't flash their junk on screen

Aa far as I'm concerned, that's all we need.

And you know what? I think the prospect of getting to choose any actor at all, point to them, and say "This person? They're the norm! They're unremarkable! They are a version of True Neutral, and they aren't a small-nosed blue-eyed white guy with abs!"... I think that's kind of exciting, and I sort of fear that it may be an overlooked opportunity to say something interesting

[gobblinhours]

SHIPS! I have a feeling we both like 'em!

So other than Three x Eight Any other ships you enjoy/Your squid squad are a part of?

In ascending order of interest:

Cuttletavio: I'm 50/50 on doing this, and that's only if it's doomed yaoi. They were besties. They loved eachother. They were split apart by war. 100 years hence and they're back on nonhostile terms but they can't go back to what they were before.

Calf1sh: I'm good with it. I don't 100% get it but I can think of a dynamic that works for me and is both funny and fluffy. What I don't get about it is all of the pre-SO stuff. Acht was literally a flesh robot that desired nothing more than to make music. They would literally only be useful for tax benefits I have no idea why it got so popular. I like it, but I can live without it.

I'm fine reading works without it, but I am completely set on integrating M4rie into my canon. However an actual relationship won't happen for a LONG time, seeing as how I have to finish conceptualizing Four's character arc. And write it. And write a good confession story. All that is concrete is that the relationship will happen in a nebulous timeframe somewhere between the end of Side Order and before Marie enters her mid-thirties. In-universe. I can't guarantee that I'll get it done before 2028. And don't worry internet puritans, they meet at 17 and 19, and the relationship starts at the absolute soonest at 24 and 26. I think that's safe enough.

I'm not an antishipper but if i see a fic with a Pearl/Marina ship that isn't Pearlina I ain't reading it even if it tells me how to find the Chaos Emeralds IRL. MarinAcht gets a pass but only if it's doomed yuri. One-sided attraction on Acht's side is also tolerated on principle but I still won't read that 90% of the time because OSA makes me want to shrivel. My opinion of you as a person has no relation to if you write non Pearlina ships but they are Married and Wifeys and that is TRUTH.

You may be wondering why Deep Cut and Neo aren't mentioned. I have reasons. I write Deep Cut as the comedy characters. I do that for Callie too, but she gets a character arc and trauma and stuff that makes her serious. Deep Cut's arc is that they get over their ocean racism. That's it. The closest thing to shipping is that Shiver flirts with people to get free stuff. They funny. They simple. They work best as three ride-or-die besties. I have no ill will towards anyone that ships them, but they are as romantically interested in eachother as Team Rocket.

Neo does have a ship planned, but I'm keeping her story locked up tighter than anyone else. You ask anything about the other agents and I will hint towards things. Ask about the wrong Neo lore and ▊▊▊▊▊▊ ▊▊▊▊▊▊

Little Buddy's ship is Him/The Hot Spinning Cone of Meat in the Greek Restaurant Next Door. He is 2 years old during RotM. He is hungy babey.

[drindrak-art]

Ruby and Company

Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4

Here's part 2 of my Ruby and Company AU! Sorry it took so long tumblr mobile is being a bitch lmao

"Alright, red, this is my weapon." Roman says, holding out his cane, "Its name is Melodic Cudgel."

Ruby eyes the cane in excitement, "Wow! What can it do? Is it also a gun?!"

"Of course it's also a gun!" He gives Neo a pouting frown, "Unlike Neo, I can appreciate the use of a proper gun!" Neo sticks her tongue out, twirling her parasol.

Ruby looks at Neo's weapon, "Wait, yours isn't a gun? Then what does it do?" Neo smirks, letting a sharp blade pop out of the parasol's tip. Ruby gasps, "Wow!"

"Hush is also bulletproof." Roman adds, leaning on his cane, "But enough about our weapons." He looks at Ruby, "You're, what, eight now? I say that's plenty old enough to have a weapon of your own!"

"Really!"

Roman grins, "Oh, yeah. But now's the hard part - what do you want?"

Ruby freezes, mind racing a mile a minute. What kind of weapon does she want? For the longest time, she wanted a scythe-sword like her uncle, but she's not dumb. She knows how hard such a thing would be to actually use without someone training her.

She looks back at Roman and Neo's weapons. Maybe… maybe something similar to theirs? She's not an umbrella kinda girl, though. So a cane? One that's also a gun - but has a hidden blade like Neo's! That would be cool! Maybe it could telescope out to get longer for bludgeoning but also get shorter to use like a dagger or a sickle! Or, or, the hidden blade could be in the grip of the cane. That way she can remove the telescoping to increase firepower! Yeah!

"I got it!" She smiles. Roman and Neo share a raised eyebrow.

"Lay it on us then, little red."

Her new weapon is delivered within a week, looking just like she'd described. Ruby pulls the cane from the case it was in, giving it an experimental twirl.

The cane is made of lightweight yet durable metals, with a wood-like texture for the grip. The shaft is mostly a metallic silver. Towards the bottom of the cane is a set of expertly disguised mech-shift, looking like a decorative red 'T' set in deep black. Its grip is faux wood painted with a glossy finish, with the very top painted bright red. The gun's trigger blends near perfectly into the black finish. Two hidden buttons are placed on both sides of the grip - one to release the hidden blade in the grip and the other to release the blades hidden along the bottom.

All in all, it's very close to what she had been imagining.

It's perfect.

"So, little red, what's its name?" Roman asks, leaning forward to get a good look. "Also, loving the fact that you based it off mine. Real ego boost there."

"A name…? I'm not sure…" Ruby frowns down at her new weapon. It's a gorgeous weapon, perfect in every way, but a name eludes her. How do people just come up with such cool names? Roman said he named Melodic Cudgel because he liked the screams of his foes when he hit them and Neo named hers Hush because it was perfect for a quiet death. Maybe… maybe something referencing her past? Or… her mother? Yeah. Something like -

A hand waves in front of her face, startling her.

"Red? You there?" Roman asks, snapping his fingers.

"Uh, yeah. Um, just thinking." She grips her weapon tighter, "I think I've got it." She takes a deep breath, "Rose's Promise."

Roman blinks, "Ah. Cool name. Uh, I'm assuming that's a personal thing then?"

"Y-Yeah. Um… my mom, you know?"

"Ah." Roman nods, "Well, awkward air aside, how about we start training!" He flicks her forehead with a smirk, "Gotta get you up to task 'fore you can do anything with us!"

--

This is how I picture Ruby's new weapon:

[ladylynse]

Part 2 of this untitled Doctor Who fic where 10 meets up with Grace Holloway again. Posted for @scaehime, who was interested in more.

EDIT: Now tweaked and expanded upon on the AO3.

-|-

The Doctor jolted awake. He tried to claw the oxygen mask off his face, but a pair of gloved hands held it more firmly in place. “Don’t worry, Mr. Smith,” someone said. “It’s simply a precaution. We—”

But the Doctor wasn’t willing to simply listen. “I’m not signing anything,” he said, albeit with difficulty, and his voice was muffled anyway. “I’m not going to let you do anything. No x-rays, no—”

“Mr. Smith, please remain calm.”

“Calm?” the Doctor repeated, anything but. “Calm? You’re trying to...you…you….” He trailed off. An oxygen mask, he’d thought. But then he’d breathed it, and analyzed it. And it wasn’t just oxygen. At least, not anymore. He had to wonder if he’d even said what he’d meant to say, whether or not it had been heard.

This time he did manage to get the mask off his face. “How long,” he gasped out, “have I been in here?”

“You were brought into emergency three hours ago,” came the steady reply. “You’re stable now. You were in shock. Do you remember what happened?”

“Partially,” the Doctor replied, looking distracted. “Did a Vera Taylor tell you who I was?”

“That’s right. Dr. Taylor has insisted that we treat you as we treated her.” A small laugh. “Like everyone else, in other words. We try to give the best treatment possible. You’re in good hands, Mr. Smith.”

The Doctor thought for a moment, cursing whatever they’d given him. He hated being slow on the uptake. “Did you say,” he finally asked, “that I’ve been here for three hours?” Without waiting for a reply, he continued, “And, oh, three hours is a long time, isn’t it? Lots of lovely tests you could run.” He sat up abruptly, wincing as his movement partially dislodged an IV from his arm. He pulled it out carefully and turned to assess the nurse who was taking care of him. He scrutinized her for a moment, seeing if he could place her face among his blurred recollections of the time he’d woken up on the operating table, but couldn’t. That was a bit of a relief.

“Mr. Smith, I have to ask you to—”

“Sorry,” he interrupted. He squinted at her nametag. “But, Rachel, I’m fine now. I don’t need oxygen, I don’t need an IV, and I don’t need whatever else you were going to give me.” He glanced down. “Though, I wouldn’t mind my clothes, bloodied or not.” He frowned. “That’ll take a bit of mending. Shame. I hate mending. I can take it to Neo-Sydney, I suppose. They’ve expert tailors there. Then again, the prices, and they don’t fancy taking….” He trailed off and cleared his throat. “Still. Better than making do with a costume again.”

“Mr. Smith—”

“Yes, I know, it’s against regulations and all that, but, without them, I can’t show you my ID to—” He stopped, frustrated. “Oh, what’s it matter. I can’t stay. I have more important things to be doing. I shouldn’t even have come in the first place.”

“Mr. Smith, your condition has stabilized for the moment, but I would advise not disregarding the doctor’s recommendations by—”

“Oh, but I wouldn’t be disregarding the Doctor’s recommendations,” the Doctor cut in. “Because I think I know my body a bit better than you, thanks.” He reached for the chart at the foot of the bed.

Rachel smirked at him. “So it’s true. Doctors are the worst patients.”

The Doctor, however, wasn’t paying attention. He flipped from one page to the next and back again, then skipped ahead and frowned. “You’ve scheduled me for an appointment with a cardiac specialist?” he asked slowly.

“Your heartbeat was erratic,” Rachel pointed out. “Even accounting for the shock, the range was worrisome.”

“Speeding up and slowing down,” the Doctor murmured, deciding he’d better not ramble too much in case she decided to have psychiatric check up on him. Twenty-eight beats a minute, then racing to well over a hundred and twenty-eight in an effort to compensate for the fact that his right heart still wasn’t beating. He was lucky he hadn’t slipped into a healing coma. He was liable to find himself locked up in the morgue again if he did.

At the very least, he was lucky they hadn’t cut him open with the intention of putting in a pacemaker or some such nonsense.

“Dr. Taylor was able to pull a few strings,” Rachel informed him, gently pulling the chart away from his hands. “Dr. Holloway will see to you herself.”

“Oh. Right.” The Doctor frowned. He’d managed to walk right into this, hadn’t he? Sure, he’d been debating having a quick conversation with her, and he had landed and set off, but if he was set to meet up with Grace again, this wasn’t what he’d pictured. Him tracking her down, yes, but if he went into the hospital, he wouldn’t have gone in as a patient. At least, not with injuries of this sort. Still, perhaps just bumping into her on the street would’ve been best. But not this. Well, could be worse, he supposed. He wasn’t on the operating table again.

Nearly had been, but wasn’t.

“Clothes?” he prompted, looking up at Rachel again.

“You’ll want someone to bring you a fresh set,” she admitted.

Oh, brilliant. They’d gone and cut them off him, then. He might just be reduced to making off with someone else’s. Again. What would it be now, the third time? There was his third regeneration, and his eighth, and—

“But my coat?” he asked. He didn’t want to lose his coat. He had important things in that coat. Come to that, he had important things in his suit pockets, too. “And, er, you haven’t disposed of my suit yet, have you?”

“Your things are safe, Mr. Smith.” Rachel stood up. “I’ll ask you to wait here while I call Dr. Miller in to speak with you personally.”

“If I'm going to talk to a doctor,” the Doctor replied, “I would prefer it to be Grace, if that’s possible. Is she free?”

“She didn’t—”

“Brilliant,” the Doctor interrupted. “Thank you. Off you go now, Rachel; time’s a-wasting.” He settled back into bed, waiting for her to leave. She looked startled, but she did as she was told.

The minute she was out the door, the Doctor allowed himself a small moan. Ooh, how humans could stand it with just one heart, he didn’t know. Though, he was lucky they hadn’t tried to give him anything. Probably had something to do with the good Dr. Taylor, that. She’d held up remarkably well, all things considered. She reminded him a bit of Grace. And even a little of Sarah Jane, come to think of it.

But he didn’t have time to think of it. He had to get out of here. They’d taken x-rays. And he wasn’t sure they’d just chalk it up to a double exposure again. He wasn’t even quite sure when he was—something he hated admitting; he had a reputation to uphold, after all—and he didn’t fancy going through anything like 2012 Utah again, to name one of the more recent unpleasant experiences he’d had on Earth. 

Now was not the time to draw attention to himself by trying to start up his right heart.

He slowly made his way down the hallway and a couple flights of stairs, alternately trying doors and dodging into rooms, occupied or otherwise, to avoid anyone who looked overtly official. He wasn’t sure how far he’d get, dressed as he was, but he was willing to give it a shot. And he could always pretend he was lost. It was fair enough, he figured, even if it was, likely as not, going to get him a ticket to psychiatric. Ah, well; he deserved a bit of fun. He hadn’t had as much as he liked lately. The last time he’d gone looking for it, things hadn’t exactly gone according to plan.

If hadn’t been for one wise, stubborn human, he would have knowingly destroyed an entire timeline.

Sure, it had reasserted himself, skirting around a few anomalies, but he’d been willing to…. He’d tried to sacrifice.... He’d….

“These are his things?”

“Yes. That’s all we found his pockets. No ID, no money—nothing to support his claims to Dr. Taylor.”

Grace. And someone he didn’t recognize. He’d better get out of here. Quickly. He could nip back and gather his things, then be on his way no worse for the wear. Grace might wonder, but he didn’t recall carrying anything on him now that she would recognize. He’d even had the locks changed; the TARDIS key was different. Though that was more because he couldn’t stand the constant reminder of Gallifrey than anything else. Still. New key, new sonic screwdriver….

New body.

Twice over.

And he had no right to ask. To ask would be to burden her with his problems, because she was the sort of person who would take the burden without being asked and wouldn’t lay it down, no matter what he told her. No matter how much he pleaded with her. And he had no right to do that. She’d built a wonderful life for herself. Moved on, just like she should have. Because she’d recognized—

The Doctor dashed into the nearest room. “Oh, hello,” he greeted cheerfully as a rather frail lady looked up at him. “I seem to have gotten the wrong room. I was looking for a Ms. Jones?” He phrased it as a question, but spent some time looking about the room, wandering deeper into it—and away from the doorway—and making it clear that he didn’t expect an answer. “Terribly sorry,” he added. “I’m the, ah, man from just down the hall. John Smith.” He stuck out his hand, grinning widely.

“Dorothy Mae,” the woman replied finally, taking his hand. “You shouldn’t be up and about, young man. I may not be a doctor, but I’m a mother and a grandmother, and you should be in bed. You’re too pale. Never mind that this is a hospital. I’m here after my hip replacement. You,” she added pointedly, looking him up and down again, “look like you got on the wrong side of a fight.” She didn’t sound particularly approving.

The Doctor tugged on an ear. “Yeah, well,” he said, shrugging his shoulders a bit. “Wasn’t intentional. Just trying to help, me. Nothing serious. They’ll be letting me out as soon as they can process the paperwork, I daresay. Need the beds, I think. But my friend—”

“If they’re going to release you when you look like that,” Dorothy Mae interrupted, “then I will be speaking with my doctor about the sort of care they’re giving here.”

The Doctor began to think that perhaps engaging the woman in conversation had not been his best idea. He pasted a smile on his face. “Oh, well, no, it’s not the care. I’m checking out. Against their recommendations, admittedly. But, really, it’s just a form or two to sign, and—”

“You,” declared the outspoken, if well-intentioned, Dorothy Mae, “ought to be ashamed of yourself. You’re liable to get yourself killed if you don’t smarten up.”

She looked like she could have berated him for longer, but the Doctor hastily began extracting himself from the conversation. “Yes, true enough; I will reconsider, I suppose, but I ought to go and tell them that, so I’ll just leave you be, won’t I?” He grinned at her and made his escape.

He bumped into someone and tried to continue on his way, but whoever it was caught his arm. “Mr. Smith,” drawled a man’s voice, “I believe you were assigned to room 403?”

“Dr. Miller, I presume?” the Doctor asked, trying not to look guilty. If he’d waited just one more minute.... “Yes. And may I ask why you are a full two floors from your assigned room?” Over Dr. Miller’s shoulder, the Doctor had watched Grace’s face fall. Perhaps she had thought to connect the dots. He didn’t recall telling her that regeneration worked more than once. Granted, he hadn’t exactly had time to explain anything. Common theme in his life, that.

“Oh, well,” he said slowly. “Fancied a bit of a jaunt, that’s all. Looking to see if I could get a cup of tea, to be honest.” Well, partially honest. He wouldn’t mind a cup of tea now. He needed something to clear his head. “And, I was wondering about my things. Could I have them back? Even the suit? I know an excellent tailor.”

“We can discuss this at a later time, once we have you back in your room.” Dr. Miller steered him towards the lift.

“I’ll join you when he’s settled,” Grace said shakily. The Doctor glanced over his shoulder to get a better look at her. She hadn’t changed, really. So perhaps it wasn’t that long after all. Blimey, it better not be before the millennium. He’d be in a spot then. But surely….

The Doctor accepted his scolding meekly, knowing that if he had any chance of getting out of here, it would be better to throw them off guard. And, sometimes, if you played your cards right, and you acted like you really needed something, they’d give it to you. Like shoes. Shoes would be an excellent thing right now. You can only make it so far without shoes. All right, last time he’d made it over to Grace’s house without shoes, but he’d needed the toe tag on as proof, hadn’t he?

The Doctor did his best to ensure that his conversation with Dr. Miller was short. Grace entered shortly after Dr. Miller had finished his scolding—well, chiding, more like, as if he were a child. But when she came in, holding his coat—and it would take a bit to get those stains out—and a small paper bag, presumably his other things, he almost didn’t want Dr. Miller to leave. He regretted being so apologetic and compliant. He might’ve bought more time if he hadn’t been.

Because, really…. He didn’t want to face her.

He shouldn’t have come.

“John Smith?” she asked softly, depositing his things at the foot of the bed and settling down on the chair by its head. He saw the sleeve of his suit jacket poking out from the bundle that was his coat. Excellent; she’d gotten that, too.

Still, he had to answer her question. He hesitated, and nodded once, sharply and definitively.

“Where are you from?” she asked, keeping her voice light.

“Nottingham,” he answered. “Brilliant place. You ought to visit it sometime.”

“And may I ask why you wanted to speak with me, and why you told Dr. Vera Taylor that I knew you?”

“Oh, well, I just….” The Doctor trailed off. Grace was smart, and lying wasn’t his forte in this regeneration. “It’s been a long while, that’s all. I knew you wouldn’t recognize me.”

She was thinking it. He could tell by the expression on her face. Blinking abruptly, she reached for his chart, scanning it. He watched her shoulders fall. “They want to keep you for monitoring,” she noted. “You’ve a bad heart.”

“It’s just overworked,” the Doctor said bluntly. “Temporary. A victim of circumstances, if you will.”

“X-rays inconclusive?” Grace repeated, looking up from the chart. “You’re due for another round, to make sure you didn’t crack a rib. First round was faulty.”

The Doctor was silent for a moment. “Grace,” he said, slowly, deliberately, “may I have my things?” He held out his hand. “Just the bag for now, if you will.”

“I’d prefer Dr. Holloway at the moment, Mr. Smith.”

“Doctor,” the Doctor corrected.

Grace smiled slightly. “Oh, yes,” she amended. “I do recall Vera mentioning that. Dr. Smith, then.”

“Doctor,” the Doctor repeated, watching her hand falter as she reached for the bag.

She turned back to look at him. “I’m afraid, Dr. Smith, that I do not take to calling anyone simply by their profession. Particularly those from Nottingham.” She passed the paper bag to him.

The Doctor took it and smiled. “Well, it’s a bit more than a profession.” He overturned the bag to see what he could find. They hadn’t found much. Sonic screwdriver, TARDIS key, wallet of currently blank psychic paper—pity, that; might be a bit harder to fool them, if they recognized the covering—and his spectacles. Just some surface things, nothing from too deep in his pockets.

And nothing Grace would recognize.

Though, he had to decide, now, whether or not he was going to go through with it. He’d meant to. But then, he thought maybe it would be best if he didn’t. Because the only reasons he’d meant to have any conversation at all with her were selfish reasons. He wanted to know what she’d seen, and how she’d recognized it—how she’d seen what he, and so many others, couldn’t.

A friend had once told him that if you could choose who lives and who dies, you would be a monster. And he’d agreed whole-heartedly at the time. It wasn’t even that long ago. How could he have forgotten that conversation? How could he have turned his back on that so utterly? How could he have disregarded everything and gone and done it anyhow?

He’d needed to be taken down a few pegs.

It hadn’t taken much.

But it was too much all the same.

One life had had to be ended to keep history on track.

And he hadn’t been the one to realize that.

He’d been the one to ignore it.

And then he’d been shown how important it all was, and how foolish and arrogant he’d been, and how wrong he’d been, to stray from that, even once. He’d seen what he’d become.

A monster.

“Dr. Smith? Are you all right?”

The Doctor blinked. Grace repeated her question, moving closer to check on him.

No. He couldn’t just leave. He’d come here, and the TARDIS had made sure he’d come this far, sneaky as she was. He wanted to run from this, like he’d run from everything else. But he couldn’t keep everything inside him forever, keeping silent. He had to tell some things to someone.

Someone who would listen.

Someone who might help him to understand.

Someone he’d touched but not destroyed.

“I’m always all right,” the Doctor croaked, pulling away from Grace. He reached instead for his coat, digging in the pockets. He had some in here, he was sure of it. He’d gotten them the same time he’d picked up that chocolate egg at Easter, since he hadn’t had any for years and he had had a bit of a liking for them. They wouldn’t be too old; a couple of months, that’s all.

“Dr. Smith, you should just relax. Your heart—”

Right. Dr. Miller had insisted on hooking him up to that again. Bother it all. “Is compensating,” the Doctor cut in. “That’s all. Temporary, like I said.”

“You’re not well.”

No, he wasn’t. But he was on the mend, now—if he could just stop running, just for a moment, long enough to have a conversation.

“Grace—”

“Dr. Holloway.”

“Grace,” the Doctor repeated, very deliberately, as his hand closed upon a small paper bag of candy. He pulled it out of his coat pocket and offered it to her. “Jelly baby?”

She looked at him uncertainly. “I was informed that they’d gone through your pockets.”

The Doctor shrugged. “They didn’t know what they were looking for. Would you like a jelly baby?”

Grace’s expression hardened. “Stop it,” she hissed.

The Doctor was taken aback. “What?” he asked, blinking at her. He hadn’t meant to actually offend her. Yet that was how she was acting.

“Who put you up to this?” she continued angrily. “I’m not having it, you hear? I’ve had enough with people laughing at me. I’m not telling that story anymore.”

Oh.

He hadn’t expected that.

Of course, he wasn’t entirely sure what he had expected.

He hadn’t thought about it all too much.

“What year is it?” he asked slowly.

Wrong question, it seemed, with what she thought of him now. “I’ll thank you not to persist in telling tales in an attempt to speak to me again,” she said sharply, rising to her feet. “Good day, Mr. Smith.”

“Doctor,” he corrected again.

She glared at him. “Dr. Smith, then. Good day.”

“I’d missed you, Grace,” he said truthfully. “But I’d still thought that I was doing the right thing by not coming back. After you’d made your choice, I mean.”

It wasn’t enough to catch her attention, and she started out the room, ignoring him.

And, well, now that he’d made the decision to talk to her, he wanted to talk to her.

So he made sure that he did catch her attention. “The Master survived, you know. Getting sucked into the Eye. But she’s closed now. Room’s locked, good and tight. Even I can’t get into it. Don’t think I will, unless circumstances change.”

She turned back at the doorway to look at him. “How long?” she asked, her voice still cold.

“Pardon?”

“How long have you spent listening to my stories, gathering every bit of information from every story I’ve ever told the children in the recovery ward? And why do you insist on patronizing me?”

She was defensive. Hurt.

Because of him.

Because she’d believed in him and had told her story.

He’d still managed to….

“I’m sorry,” he said, genuinely contrite. “I am so, so sorry, Grace. I didn’t know.”

“Dr. Holloway,” she corrected, but her voice had softened slightly.

And then she was gone.

(Part 3)

[yamayuandadu]

So like, where does the claim that Durga originates in Ishtar even come from?

Is there some super outdated scholarship article everyone is just plagiarizing like those Nanaya = Bibi Nani posts? Or is it the Occham's Razor of "Well they're vaguely similar as war goddesses so some people just connect them based on the vague similarities"?

Tbh I have no clue where it came from. Given how it makes no sense spatially or temporally, probably from the 19th century, from theosophy or from 1990s Helsinki. I’ve actually only seen Asko Parpola ever make such claims so it might very well be the last of these three options. To put it very lightly it makes no sense. More under the cut.

Based on Durga’s entry in Brill’s Encyclopedia of Hinduism, written by Hillary Rodrigues, the earliest textual references to her include short passages inserted into the Rigveda and various commentaries on this work like Bṛhaddevatā. Precise dating is difficult, but the second half of the first millennium BCE is a sensible estimate. However, it took until the Gupta period for her to become a popular deity across India. The earliest iconographic attestations of a Durga-like figure - a warlike goddess riding on a lion (or at least accompanied by this animal) slaying a demonic buffalo - come from the first century BCE or so from sites like Nagar in Rajasthan and Mathura in Uttar Pradesh. They come either from the Kushan period or slightly predate it. I don’t exactly think either the textual or iconographic attestations belong to a milieu in which one would expect to find Mesopotamian influence, to put it very lightly. Buffalo-slaying, which is an integral part of Durga’s character in the earliest sources already, is not exactly a characteristic activity of Ishtar (demon-slaying in general isn’t, really). It’s also hard to detect much of an overlap in character, considering Durga shares neither the sexual nor astral role. Even the association with warfare doesn’t really seem to have a particularly similar context. There’s obviously also the question why would Ishtar, not attested east of Susa in any period as far as I am aware, spread so far to the east at a time when Mesopotamian religion was already doing pretty poorly even back at home. As I mentioned previously, there is a possibility that the lion-riding form of Durga was an iconographic type directly borrowed from the Kushan version of Nanaya, though (accepted as a possibility by D. Potts and J. G. Westenholz). That would be as close as it gets to a connection between Durga and Ishtar: one of the theories about the origin of the distinct new image of Nanaya is that it was a late derivative of the Neo-Assyrian convention of depicting Ishtar(s) standing (but not riding the way Nanaya does in Central Asian art) on the back of a lion. However, it’s also distinctly possible that this iconographic type was instead borrowed from Hellenistic depictions of Dionysus or Cybele. The strength of theory 1 is obviously the well attested connection between Ishtar and Nanaya, the strength of theory 2 - arguably the more similar poses. I included relevant sources in the wiki article already so I hope it's ok if I'll skip repeating the list here.

I will note that based on Rodrigues’ article, the similarity of the possible early Durga to Central Asian depictions of Nanaya is not quite as close as I previously assumed. The attributes are different (vajra and shield or banner), and the North Indian goddess has between four and eight arms. In Nanaya’s case, eight arms would be unheard of, four is the maximum, and most of the four-armed examples are from Sogdia and Chorasmia; Kushan Nanaya generally lacks extra body parts. Furthermore, the lion seems to be optional, while the motif of the buffalo fight is apparently a mainstay. I still think influence is entirely possible, but I think some Nanaya researchers (like Potts, who generally went a bit too far and also looked for Nanaya on BMAC seals...), despite their overall credibility, might have slightly exaggerated the similarity. For what it’s worth, Rodrigues doesn’t bring the possible Nanaya parallels up at all, he only notes the clothing of the possible proto-Durga fits Kushan artistic conventions." Anyway, Nanaya digression aside. I’d hazard a guess the online claims of Ishtar-Durga connection are mostly misreadings of the proposed iconographic link between Nanaya and Durga or uncritical reliance on Asko Parpola (who also misinterprets Nanaya as Ishtar, lol). I have yet to find a single study of Durga which would as much as mention it. As for the history of contacts between Mesopotamia and India in general, there's a recent summary here (there's great critical evaluation of a selection of dodgy sources on p. 34; I think some of the rest might be -too- skeptical; in particular wrt Nanaya, as far as I am aware the notion of eastwards transfer is the consensus view and one source from the 1960s is not strong evidence on the contrary. I also have some qualms about the discussion of Enkidu but that's unrelated to the core topic here).

[nem0c]

me and a friend were having an argument- is patlabor cyberpunk? is lain?

excellent ask because it means I can complain about three things:

1. all transhumanist sf is cyberpunk now (actually New Weird stuff avoids this) This bothers me because there was a great deal of transhumanist fiction in the 60s and 70s which influenced cybperunk but often had a different imaginary wrt what new technologies would mean and how society could be organised. Examples: -Samuel Delany's Nova (one of Delany's least interesting so still better than most space opera) is one of the first sf novels to feature mind-machine interfaces and they exist specifically to end the social isolation of contemporary workers. As work is always social and mediated through machinery, they get to directly experience both their fellow workers and the thing they're working on - no longer a bit part of the process. -John Varley's Eight Worlds fiction in which mankind gets all sorts of future tech as a result of an alien invasion and promptly develops double welfare state plus libertarian socialism. Stories focus on the day-to-day problems of people in this post-scarcity society. Morphological freedom is a given, though this is the 70s so the exploration of this often gets about as far 'wouldn't it be cool to be a hot babe for a weekend?' -Whatever is going on with Cordwainer Smith -Also see Walter Jon Williams' Aristoi for an example of a cyberpunk author trying something different (transhumanist means-tested solar neoplatonist aristocracy wherein each aristocrat is a plural system of personalities)

2. Transhumanist film and videogames, due to big number investment and the necessity of mass-market returns, don't even copy the cool print cyberpunk works (exception for Caves of Qud because it's correctly copying Gamma World instead)

3. Post-cyberpunk wasn't/isn't what I want it to be. I agree we should question the humanist++ vision of transhumanism and the neo-noir story set-up of Corpos Are Evil (but provide actually good product and actually want to dismantle the nuclear family) but there is a street-level resistance composed of your stupidest speed dealer friend who's totally going to make it big this time. However, post-cyberpunk authors mostly have californian tech investor brain disease and were writing in the late 90s/early 00s and I can't really take 'silicon valley will save us, billions must prosper' seriously in 2024.

To answer your actual questions, genre is whatever is useful to discussion and I'm willing to call Lain and Patlabor 2 cybperpunk because of their thematic concerns with conspiracies, technological reimagining of the human, the breakdown of certainties in a world inundated with simulation, and a post-cold war post-nation state public/private hell co-operation politics.

What makes Patlabor 2 different is its complete rejection of -punk aesthetics and its associated political commitments. This is an anime about interdepartmental politics and middle-aged public servants rooting through paperwork, and there's no solid moral conflict. Much as in GitS:SAC 2nd, the fight is between the status quo and a slide into authoritarianism. It's barely even a mecha anime and Noa's repeated statements that she 'doesn't need it any more' and 'doesn't want to be remembered as the robo crazy chick' reinforces this.

Lain is a religious text and an initiation into a way of perception that only people who have been shut-in NEETs will understand. Lain is just like me frfr. Lain knows that the way out is through.

[space-woomy]

*throws pan at your head*

talk about it

please...

AUUUGH-

Okaysssssss Mooty

Basically the whole villain 4 stuff happens because Callie dies in Splat 2. Marie's low tide ink doesn't work, and agent 4 ends up using g the rainmaker, which really fucks up octavios robot...a bit too much... it explodes, and Callie ends up dieing in Fours arms.

Everyone's sad, and it hits Four the hardest. She believes that it's her fault entirely, and she quits the NSS. She eventually starts doing Grizzco jobs to distract herself. She realizes that "Ah fuck, this is like, genocide or whatever because this is a sentient species and all that." But continues anyways. She eventually makes her way up to the upperanks and meets Mr. Grizz (either through promotions or a some kinda coincidence or whatever). After a special interview, Grizz is like "wanna help me bring back Mammals? You seem like you hate the world." And Alex (4) is like "yeah. Yeah this world fucking sucks. We're obsessed with fashion, world ending threats happen every day, whole species is trapped underground, YOU'RE literally running a genocide company...fuck it, why not? I hate everyone." And they decide to help grizz with his mission.

O.E happens at the same time as this, and it plays out as it does in the games. Eight moves in with Alex, and she shows her around inkopolis and how to live in the city. Eight can practically taste all the nihilism and edge coming from her, but she sees the kindness and joy in her, and wants to pry it out of the shell of hopelessness.

Molly (3) also becomes friends with Alex, and gets a bit closer to her than 8 does. But the still has a shell up, and they still try to break through...

But before they can do that, the world tour happens! And she goes with Pearl and Marina. Alex also takes part in the memverse, with a piece of her soul getting trapped just like the game.

Now, return of the mammalians is going on, and it's all the same, except there is no Mr. Grizz...instead, there's a masked inkling that's at the top of the tower!!! Neo is able to hold them off until Cap (3) gets there, and they run away. In the end, they're able to stop the rocket from launching in the first place and they destroy it.

S.O starts more towards the end of ROTM, and ends well after it. And when 8 gets out, she can't find anyone belonging to the NSS. They've disappeared. She finds clues to go into the Grizzco headquarters. When she gets there, she finds Alex, having captured everyone in the NSS. Marie, Craig, Molly, and Neo are all tied up. Theyre all very bruised and beaten up too. There's also a big plush doll thing of Callie. Button eyes and everything.

Alex is fucking insane right now. They're all cocky and are acting like a typical Villain type. (Think Will Wood's "Main character" for this...thats...honestly what this entire thing spawned from...) and they fight eachother. There are MANY fuzzy octolings that they're fighting as well, and Alex is very dodgy and swift with fighting. It's revealed that their plan is to cover the world with fuzzy ooze with like, 12 rockets. The one in alterna was a test one.

Alex at this point has completely given up on everything, and thinks of herself as a "hero" in a twisted way. She's saving the world by destroying it, a big reset on everyone. Alex is all cocky and shit too, and is constantly talking and mocking them all. 8 eventually frees them all, but She's out if commission for a bit, and Molly steps up to take on Alex. Alex, frustrated with not being able to beat 8, has an idea. They basically Inject fuzzy ooze directly into herself, and gains claws, sharp teeth, heightend senses, she becomes digitigrade, and is stronger overall.

Now...there are 2 ways that this story goes........

""BAD"" ENDING

Molly and Alex fight, it's intense, and Molly is struggling. Alex is screaming and yelling shit like "YOU WERE ALWAYS THE BETTER AGENT WERENT YOU?!?! HUH!?!? LOOK AT YOU KNOW!!!! CANT EVEN STAND UP TO AN INFERIOUR AGENT" and "COME ON "LIVING TSUNAMI"! COME SPLAT ME!!!"

and Molly is like "...fuck dude...I really wish I talked to you more...man I Hate seeing you like this.. please...you were never the worst...why did this happen" in their head.

It ends up with Alex getting a chainsaw, and tackling Molly to the ground. She trys to push it into them, and manages to really fuck up their arm a bit, but Molly gets the strength to push it back...and gets Alex right in the neck...

She lives for a single second, with a smile on their face...and a single tear running down their face...

Molly and 8 now have double trauma. Yaaaaay!!!!!!!

Marie has even more trauma to!!!!!!

All of them do!!!!!

They stop grizzco, but they're not in that good of a mood for celebration...

(Also, I say "bad" ending because it's, like, a negative ending more like. A non-ideal ending really. I don't like "good" and "bad" endings or whatever...)

"GOOD" ENDING

Same shit happens, except Alex ends up breaking down more in the middle of the fight. She says more stuff that's more like her telling the truth about how she feels, instead of just taunting. At one point, Molly tackles her into a hug and says "Alex, it wasn't your fault! Inkopolis wouldve been attacked if you didn't stop them! Please! Callie wouldnt be mad at you!!!"

Alex breaks out, and they fight some more. Three's arm still gets fucked up, but Alex drops the chainsaw, and she dosent die!!! Yay :D!!!!!!

But she's got so much bottled up and fucked up trauma that they become physically ill afterwards. They beet grizz, and Fours recovery starts.

I've gotten all of this from Will Woods "Main character"

I keep imagining an animatic to the song where 8 and 4 fight with "main character"

And another one which is only the lyric portion of "Silly billy" from that hit single fnf mod. Those lyrics are F I R E

Thank you for hitting me with the pan AAAANDNSNFKFKKDNDNFBRBRNGLSLGJNRNSLALAKCNCNC. XBDJDJFJT9RIEIOEKSJELWLRJNFNFKVPXLABEBTKCKSNRNTJFHDHJFNFNFKGOGJVEAKFIJSHWMXNCNSHWI

If anyone has any questions, please ask!!!

[respectthepetty]

Since I decided the best way to make it through Our Skyy 2 with minimal damage is to drink my way through it, welcome to the fifth round of

CockTails in the Skyy!

GMMTV is taking the music club into the multiverse of cuteness, so this week's drink is For Goodness' Sake:

sake for Chinzhilla's hot pot adventure

more white wine for all the whining and pining the boys did

lemons, limes, oranges, grapes, and apple slices for the sweetness overload (I was going to comment about the variation of fruits, but I don't know the crowd's feelings on the word, so . . . *takes a big sip directly from the bottle*)

There will be a lot of singing. I fear sake was not the right choice. I did not think this through. I need something stronger like everclear, but it's too late now. *pushes the play button*

Bottoms up!

Glad to know that the gay sheets exist in every universe

And so does Scrabble-telling-the-plot

The colors being gray and brown so far better be a statement about how love brings color into our lives because these two were color-coded in the original, so if we can get The Gay Sheets™ and Scrabble in every universe, I want the colors in this one too!

That lion doll is the cutest merchandise, and I need it.

Oh, so Gun just gets the president position. Nepotism at its finest.

I know some people do not like the Our Skyy 2 theme song, but I LIVE FOR IT! It's Pitch Perfect but gayer.

Tinn's roar is adorable. Like a toddler, just looking cute and making cute sounds.

It's the first song, and it's barely the first part of the first episode. This is not looking good for me.

Damn! Tinn's mom did them like that?! Toto, I have a feeling we're not in Kansas in more.

Does Tinn already like Gun?! He gave him the cape thingy in the gym and now the shaved ice.

ANOTHER SONG! Is there going to be a song each part of this. *doing mental calculation* Are there going to be eight songs?!

I like Tinn's wiggle when he is singing about squishing the bullfrog.

This is how I like my animation.

Another blowing-in-someone's-ear GIF for my collection.

"We'll get to date at the water park" - - Based on a true story via Pond and Phuwin's Little BIG World.

What am I supposed to do with these colors?! Does Tinn already like Gun?! TELL ME! He does, right?!

A song while dancing makes sense, but I'm upset. In my DJ Khaled voice "another one."

Mark looks delicious in this tux with his hair like that. De. Lish.

If SoundWin hadn't ruined my Star in My Mind SeanMaithee agenda, I would be thrilled about them now in this episode. But I'm petty, so I'm going to stay mad.

But I am happy for the TiwsonPor crew.

Another For Goodness' Sake because this is a lot of singing.

Why is this man coming with the logic of throwing out the sake instead of drinking it? WE DON'T WASTE LIQUOR IN THIS CLUB!

Kajorn likes Pat's accent?! Babe, that's so gay of you.

Damn it! I should've named the drink For Love's Sake.

Mark jogging in these sunglasses with those shorts and jacket = Delicious. I'm so excited to see him be a slut and film a sex tape in Only Friends. I pray he blackmails Neo's character with it. I deserve that treat.

I have never experienced such a tensive piggyback ride as the one being depicted on my screen right now. God, just make out already!

Por saying "get out" in English is feeding my soul because it sounds like me telling people to leave my office: "Get out. Okay. Bye!"

Tinn's shirt reads "Happier Times Are Coming" yet I don't believe it because there will be more singing.

This SoundWin umbrella scene is trying to win me over. It's almost working.

I think I forgot pivotal moments of the original series because I don't remember Gun asking Tinn directly during the questions if Tinn liked him, yet here, Tinn directly asks Gun. I like this!

Tiwson and Por talking as boyfriends is giving me everything I didn't think I needed.

How dare this installment make me think Tinn's mom was a sick when she was just asleep!

Giving SoundWin and TiwsonPor some of Tinn and Gun's moments is genius, like Sound not wanting this kiss to be in act with the red and blues, and Por disclosing he is already dating Tiw.

Tinn and Gun running around looking for each other is top-tier romance.

The moms stay doing the heavy lifting in this show. Which is why the dad, who never had a name, is MIA in this installment.

The boyfriend question!!!!! WITH THE FRIEND ZONE BARRIER!

MSP got that Lay's money too! We are rich, fam!

Why did I not think there would singing during the Aof tribute?! It's a music video, so of course there would be singing.

I feel this is GMMTV's way of thanking Aof for keeping the lights on and the fridge stacked these past years because this man is giving this company its life!

I don't need these dolls, but gosh darn it do I want them!

My School President should get a sequel called My Doctor Boyfriend, and they should meet Tan and Bun of Manner of Death (WHERE IS TRANSPLANT?!).

I have no idea what was happening with the colors, which bothers me (and there was singing in a show about singing), but the salute to some of Aof's greatest hits with Tinn and Gun being Med and Thun were an excellent choice. Because of that, I'm going to give this installment the score Vice Versa's could've had before it decided to LIE!

9/10 CockTails for being a solid offering that delivered the same story but with a few twists.

Because A Boss & A Babe just ended last week, getting an Our Skyy feature immediately after feels like it didn't end, and we are simply getting another episode, so I'll be watching (and judging) this in its normal Friday slot before I watch Be My Favorite, that way I'll be too tipsy to care how either of them turn out.

Will we finally get to know the backstory about Jack's previous relationship?

[tilbageidanmark]

MOVIES I WATCHED THIS WEEK (#189):

Starting with some re-visits ♻️: That Obscure Object of Desire was Luis Buñuel last erotic film. Old businessman Fernando Rey falls in love and becomes mortally infatuated with a young flamenco dancer, who leads him astray. It's a story of uncontrollable obsession, and a dysfunctional power struggle between them. On the one hand, it's a straight-forward tale of murky motivations, told in a masterful, fluid style. On the other, there are little nuggets of dissonant surrealism: There's some old man carrying a burlap sack, going in and out of scenes without explanations. Or, Conchita, the elusive tease, is played interchangeably by two different actresses, Etc.

🍿

RIP, Gena Rowlands X 2 - (Incredible photo Above).

🍿 "You, banana, you..."

A Woman Under the Influence, hers and husband Guy Woodhouse's most acclaimed work together. A painful tour into the mind of a lonely housewife whose behavior is just a bit eccentric, and who maybe suffers from a bi-polar disorder. Peter Falk, her simple construction worker husband, loves her, but lacks the skills to deal with her, and her existential anguish eventually turns into a nervous breakdown. The general understanding of mental health in 1975 wasn't kind to 'differently-behaved' women, so no wonder she was misdiagnosed, committed and underwent electroshock therapy. A powerful performance that was hard to watch.

🍿 After this early clip of the taxi shoot-out, I also had to see Gloria. One of John Cassavetes' more commercial attempts, it was a strange neo-Noir bland of 'Running from the mob' action thriller, and Gena Rowlands as a bad-ass ex-girlfriend of Tanzinni the mafioso. The backstage of Late-70's NYC is fascinating to observe.

🍿

2 Bizarre Buck Henry-related shorts:

🍿 Buck Henry had an amazing career. In 'Gloria', he's playing the mob accountant whose killing jump starts the plot. I only discovered Kiss Kiss Fingerbang (2015) because it was the 85-year old Buck Henry's very last (cameo) role, and I only watched it because of the unusually-provocative name. But this erotic story about a girlfriend who likes it 'that way', was just plain stupid. [*Female Director*]

🍿 I miss Sonia Henie was a strange 'Yugoslav New Wave' diversion from 1971. Eight directors, including Dušan Makavejev, Frederick Wiseman (!), Paul Morrissey, Miloš Forman and Buck Henry were each tasked with coming up overnight with short avant-garde segments. Each was to be less than three minutes of film footage inside a bedroom with static shots that contains the phrase 'I Miss Sonja Henie'. The results were, as expected, experimentally-weird. The best part actually was the ending clip of the fabulous Norwegian ice skater dancing to the tune of 'The Blue Danube'. Still it was worth watching. (This is my second film by Slovenian Carpo Godina).

🍿

Close - The sad story of two 13 year old boys who love each other, but break up their friendship when their new classmates call them a "couple". Incredibly sensitive acting by the two boys. A subtle story, where nobody's able to express themselves in words, and in spite of the obvious affection that everybody has, nobody tells anybody 'I love you'. There are two themes that repeat: The flower fields, and the long bike rides home. And the breaking point, when one of the boys learns that tragedy struck, is at 44:00 min. in - exactly one hour before the end of the movie. 10/10. Re-watch ♻️.

Extra: Found a good video essay about the inability to communicate in the movie.

🍿

2 with Alice Lowe:

🍿 "Make Sanford Great Again!"...

I've watched Hot Fuzz a dozen times or more in the last few years, but it's never enough. Everything I felt and wrote about it before is still 100% accurate. So now I notice new, tiny details. F. ex. how cute is "Tina", the Supermarché announcer - "Mr. Skinner to the manager's office. Mr. Skinner to the manager's office." But really, every single actor here is absolutely perfect. The bloopers. I can't wait for Edgar Wright's 2 new films. 10/10. Another re-watch ♻️.

🍿 In Innocence (2019) Alice Lowe stars as a policewoman investigating a suspicious falling death, but except of the fact that it's a facility for patients with Downs Syndrome, and the main actor is one, it's doesn't stand out.

🍿

2 more with 100% rating on Rotten Tomatoes:

🍿 Big boys is a surprising coming of age story with a different twist. A shy, overweight 14-year-old boy, who's both ordinary and self-conscious, falls for his cousin's older boyfriend, while on a camping trip in Lake Arrowhead. It's told in a careful, hesitant, nearly European tone. Awkward and heart-felt, sweet and wholesome. 💯 score on Rotten Tomatoes. 8/10.

🍿 I could only watch Àma Gloria in the original French-Portuguese without subtitles, so I missed some of its subtext. Still it was powerfully sad and deeply moving. A 6-year-old girl, who lost her mother to cancer, is being taken care of by her Creole nanny. The nanny must return to her native Cape Verde, and the girl is allowed to come and visit her. The little girl who plays the part is truly incredible in the role. The trailer. 9/10.

It's another of the sub-genre of 'Domestic Workers' ('Roma', 'The second mother', 'The maid', 'Oli Ilo', 'Lina from Lima', 'The chambermaid', so many others.) [*Female Director*]

🍿

Ali Abbasi was born in Iran, and moved to Denmark about 15 years ago.

Holy spider is his grim police procedural based on a true story of an Iranian serial killer. It's like Fincher's 'Zodiac', except that the location is the dirty, primitive and oppressive "Holy city" of Mashhad. The killer is a family man but also a fanatical religious nut, who takes on a mission to cleanse his city of poor, drug-addicted prostitutes. The murders are chillingly ugly, but the rest of the story is captivating. 8/10.

While waiting for his anticipated Trump biography 'The Apprentice', I am going to watch the 2 other features he directed, 'Shelley' and 'Border'.

🍿

Let's Go with Pancho Villa (1936) was long considered to be one of the 'greatest Mexican films of all times'. It's a different anti-authoritarian and epic view of the 1910 Revolution. But it didn't speak to me. ¡VIVA MÉXICO!

🍿  

"The flower had not had a fair chance to bloom in the garden of life. The worm of poverty had entered the folded bud and spoiled it..."

Shoes (1916), my 2nd by silent pioneer Lois Weber (after ‘Suspense’). A poor young working girl, struggling to support her family on her meager salary, desperately needs a new pair of shoes, as her only pair literally fall apart. In desperation she 'sells her body', just to survive. A strong feminist message in a sad, realist settings. It was added to the 'National Firm Registry'. [*Female Director*]

🍿  

4 more from the 'Miu Miu Women's Tales' Series:

🍿 "The men are coming! Cover up, everyone! Cover up!" My first film from Saudi Arabian, The Wedding Singer’s Daughter (2018) by Haifaa Al-Mansour, one of the first female filmmakers from over there. Set in 1980, separated from the men, a group of female guests prepare the music and dance for a fancy wedding. Lovely.

🍿 Brigitte (2019), the only Lynne Ramsay film I haven't seen before. It's not the best of the bunch, but still fabulously artistic. A documentary portrait of portrait photographer Brigitte Lacombe in her rustic, cavernous photo studio.

🍿 Le Donne della Vucciria (2013), by my favorite Palestinian actress Hiam Abbass ("Marcia Roy"), and featuring my favorite Lebanese actress Lubna Azabal. An impressionistic Mediterranean mood piece about a dressmaker and a puppet-master, a group of singers down at the Piazza, a Vespa ride by the promenade when the morning comes. 8/10.

🍿 Shangri-La, a poetic confession of forbidden love between a Filipina woman and her white farmhand lover, (who's disguised as a catholic priest). Set up during the Depression, when such relationships were illegal. So-so. [*4 Female Directors*]

🍿

Timor's show (2016) is an interesting Israeli documentary. Timor is a 37-year-old naive emigrant from Russia, who works as a lowly dishwasher. In Baku he studied music at the academy, and he has a lovely baritone voice. But then he decides to put up a recital in a real concert hall, where for the first time in his life, he will sing in front of an audience some of his favorite arias. [*Female Director*]

🍿

2 horrible stinkers:

🍿 "Good luck, shithead"... First watch: Stupid B-monster survivor film Tremors (1990). I did finish it, but with difficulties. Why was it so awful, when all it wanted was to copy Jaws-5 but with Sand Worms instead? 1/10.

🍿 "Who wants some head?"

I can't believe that by now I've seen two movies with John Cena (The first one was 'Barbie'). What is wrong with me?!

But really, the only reason I watched the new "near future dystopian" Jackpot is because it was made by Paul Feig, who directed 'A simple Favor', my all-time favorite Anna Kendrick guilty pleasure. However, this one-note "action-comedy" was spectacularly dreadful. I hated myself for watching it. 1/10.

And now I read that 'Favor 2' is already filmed, and everybody of the original cast, including 'Darren' to 'Detective Summerville' are repeating their roles, and that fills me with dread. I hate sequels!

🍿  

4 short westerns by Michael Brian Rawlins:

🍿 Michael Brian Rawlins specializes in writing, directing and starring in light Western shorts (?). His The Dentist (2020) is the better one. Here he plays a traveling broke dentist being held up by a highway robber with an infected tooth. A perfect meeting.

🍿 The Deputy (2017) is more of a one big action scene, told in modern style.

🍿 In Two outlaws, a marshal forces two outlaws to play Russian Roulette against each other. It ends when they are both hanged by their neck, while Lakmé 'Flower Duet' is playing in the background.

🍿 Rivals too is in a similar vain, a romanticized vision of kids playing 'cowboys'. The whole thing is like a clean Disneyfied tourist version of what a modern western should be.

None of these though is as good as The Gunslinger!

🍿  

The Fleischer Brothers X 3:

🍿 Dizzy Dishes (1930), the very first cartoon with an appearance by Betty Boop. Primitive line drawings, still trying to figure out that new media.

🍿 Any Rags (1932) about a garbage man, collecting anything he can, then selling it.

🍿 Hold it (1938) is one of the Fleischer Studio's 'Color Classics' early use of Technicolor in animation. A bunch of cats against one sleeping dog.

🍿

3 by Illustrator Nate Milton:

🍿 Viewfinder (2023), an excellent impression of precise memory packs of what it meant to be a teenager in the 90's.

🍿 In Eli (2020), a boy is being interrogated at the City of Providence Psychiatric Hospital as to why he's there. The answer has to do with magical raccoons, meteor craters, government secret facilities, music and the evolution of all matter. 8/10.

🍿 Tank (2012), a simply-drawn story of a boy who finds a giant salamander. One of his 9 Vimeo Staff Awards film winners.

His shorts are also pretty dope. F. Ex. this 1986 interview with Miles Davis...

🍿

3 More Shorts:

🍿 To scale: Time was made by a couple of friends to demonstrate how long is it since the Big Bang. They constructed a 4.3 miles stretch of lights in the Mojave Desert, and our civilization is the last few inches...

🍿 Casino Moon (2012), my first by the other-other-other Coppola, Gia Coppola. A cute Vegas roulette dealer falls for a young loser at her table. What does she finds in him, is hard to see, but then I can't stand members of the Schwartzman clan myself (Except of mamma, Taila Shire, of course). Gambling cliches + Wong Kar-wai vibes. Not bad. [*Female Director*]

🍿 Cockatoo v human: Who will win? The opening-rubbish-bins arms race between cockatoos and humans. From the Australian documentary series, The Secret Lives Of Our Urban Birds.

🍿

Throw-back to the Adora Art project:  

Buñuel Adora.

🍿  

(My complete movie list is here).

[sailorsplatoon]

how would the other agent's and idols react to shina and marie?

Captain would be just a little less than annoyed at the fact that Four’s family is rapidly gaining new partners. She’s also a little impressed.

Eight, after having to be the fifth wheel now, is going to try his best to stay away from Marie and Shina when they’re together. He’s happy for them, but he can’t take any more flirting.

Neo just thinks “Oh carp now Agent 2 is becoming a part of my family. This could go bad really quickly.” As in it knows that its habits of not cleaning up after itself at all will get on Marie’s nerves and will result in her getting mad.

Pearl and Marina are impressed at Four’s family’s ability to get partners in the music industry so easily.

Deep Cut is still scared. They’ve never had to fight Shina, but they know Marie would kick their asses and assume that Shina could do the same. Four’s family is quickly becoming an unstoppable force against Deep Cut (or, more accurately, against Shiver and Frye).

Callie is just happy for Marie that she’s found love. She’s a little bit intimidated by Shina, but she thinks the two will be good together.

Thank you for the ask!!!

[librarisxng]

NCT U LINEUPS & SUB-UNITS I WANT

hi everyone! I’m bored at work and I know this is a khh/krnb blog but besides listening to that genre, I’m also an nctzen since 2016 so let me just do a random post of nct u lineups and sub-units I really want to see but most likely will never get.

one. before we ever got nct dojaejung, I wanted an nct 95 line sub-unit. just think about it, an album with just johnny, taeyong, and yuta would make my life complete. I know we got “hello” during their recent tour with mark but that’s not enough for me, I need an album with that trio. however, with taeyong’s enlistment coming up, the closest we’ll ever get to this is “hello” or a 127 b-side with just those three.

two. a 2000s line track. I wanted this back in 2020 and I still want it now. the power renjun, jeno, haechan, jaemin, and yangyang have is a force to be reckoned with. renjun’s and haechan’s vocals pair perfectly together and i would love to see the other three spitting some random but catchy bars. it would be absolutely better if shotaro was still in nct but I’m rooting for him in riize. I also want to see this as a 2000 child myself. the closest we’ve ever got to this was universe (let’s play ball) but hopefully we’ll get this lineup in their next collaborative album.

three. the youngest member lineup. I’m interested to see what would happen if you get all the youngest members from each unit: jungwoo, haechan, yangyang, jisung, and sakuya, and release a track. this track would have to be rap heavy for it to work which is usually the case for many of their songs.

four. the new axis lineup 2.0. get taeyong, mark, and yangyang together for another track but with riku. ever since the announcement of nct new team tentative name, I really wanted to see riku perform with the other rappers of nct - specifically those three. I would also like the misfit unit to come back with riku as well.

five. nct j. there I said it. I would love to see johnny, jaehyun, jungwoo, jeno, jaemin, and jisung in a song together. I know we’ve joked about this lineup but if you think about it, this lineup is pretty good. and no, I will not be adding mark jark in this lineup.

six. a performance unit consisting of taeyong, yuta, ten, winwin, mark, jisung, yushi, and ryo. not too sure why I want this unit but I would love to see yushi and ryo performing with them.

seven. bassbot lineup. this one requires no explanation, just get johnny, taeyong, yuta, ten, and jaehyun together on stage again. am I still mad after all these years that bassbot turned into “run back 2 u”? maybe.

eight. a pop ballad with kun, xiaojun, renjun, chenle, sion and daeyoung. this would be a good way for last two to showcase their vocals and see how they’ve improved from the lastart. I would add doyoung if they needed another neo but this looks good for now.

nine. the air signs of nct. literally get all the geminis, libras and aquariuses aka johnny, doyoung, jaehyun, hendery, haechan, yangyang, and jisung in a unit. I feel like this is already an existing lineup but I don’t think doyoung and hendery have been in the same song besides the obvious ones like “beautiful” and “golden age”.

ten. yuta and xiaojun. ever since their episode on awsaz, I want to see a duet from them. whether its a ballad or a hoe anthem, I just want to see those two perform together. I don’t think they would have a track with just the two on their future album but hopefully an sm station single one day.

if you made it this far to the list, I wanna say thank you for reading whatever this post was. it was literally just random thoughts in my head while I’m trying to get through the day and I might make a part 2 if I randomly think of more nct u lineups sm can use lmao sm you should hire me

[aesthetically-meme]

King Leviathan

Technically my first Splatoon oc as I wasn't aware they where a thing until Splatoon 2.

King is a hybrid between an Inkling and Octoling, with their parents being the respective species. Their last name actually comes from their own decision as a child, as their parents wanted them to choose their last name and they thought it was cool.

They main splatlings and chargers, specifically heavy splatlings and e-liters. Fun fact, back during Splatoon 2, maybe 2 years before Splatoon 3 was announced, I created a fun mechanic that only King knew. A Kraken Roll, as I called it. King, due to their small stature, could quickly kick up a small wall of ink while dodging. The wall would also be a shield and make them practically invisible for a split second. It was then announced 2 years later in Splatoon 3 that they would be adding squid rolls as a new movement mechanic.

Here is some old art of what it essentially looked like:

(Like I said, old art)

Over the course of Splatoon 2, they became enamored with a pink-tentacled inkling, who they would later know as Cherry. Cherry is their girlfriend who they love deeply and would do anything for.

They also have a step-brother who I originally named Leo but is now Eight due to...reasons :).

They lost contact with Leo several years prior to Splatoon 2 as he suddenly disappeared. He was working on DJ Octavio's bomb refuel squad during the fight between Agent 3 and DJ Octavio.

They're also part of a team, named Banger Team!

Basically they're what I usually am dressed. In Splatoon 2 they rocked the King facemask, Octoking HK Jersey and Friendship Bracelet.

Now in Splatoon 3 they wear the King Mesh Tee, Kick Dampeners and a mix between the Tentaclinger Earring, Order Earring Replica or Pearlescent Crown S.

In Splatoon 3, they are also Neo Agent 3, with Cherry being Captain 3! ;)

[spinningbuster98]

Mega Man Zero 3 Part 1: The Devil Reploid

Ok so Mega Man Zero 2 was a pretty damn solid game

Zero 3 is one of the best Mega Man games in general

First off: you no longer need to upgrade your skills over time, you already have all your moves from the start

The Cyber Elf system has been reworked: now you always have with you your entire collection of Cyber Elves (which will create balancing issues later in the game tbf but that’s for later).

Satellite Elves are 2 Elves that you can equip at the same time that will not knock points off of your end level score, some are Satellites from the start while others have to be made such by feeding them E Crystals

Now throughout stages and dropped by enemies are Secret Disks, which either contain Cyber Elves, E Crystals or character bios

This new Cyber Elf system grants you way more freedom and allows you to be way more creative with them

And as you’ll see later there are new types of upgrades for Zero in store

The Volcano level is very tough but also very slick and fun (that last section is going to kill you dozens of times I assure you). The Residential level is cool because if you have the Fire Chip you can burn away the plants, discovering hidden passages and shortcuts

Also I can’t get over how this level’s music track has guitars that genuinely sound real. On a GBA!

Fun fact: the main 8 bosses of this game are called Weil’s Numbers.

This is actually a reference to how Robot Master numbering works in Japanese: you see the term “Robot Master” was coined in the US, in Japan they have always been called Light/Wily Numbers.

Also fun fact: the reason why these guys start out in a humanoid form but then turn into monstrous robots is because they were originally the Eight Gentle Judges of Neo Arcadia who, according to external materials, were the ones who banished Dr.Weil away from civilization. Weil has brainwashed them and turned them into war machines. I guess this is his way of getting back at them

Oh and we finally meet Dr.Weil!

[dojae-huh]

Baggy jeans: MV

The MV

At first I wasn't impressed, but I told myself to rewatch a few times and try to get the director's vision. I'm not a fan of stripped down MVs in glaringly artificial sets, and as such I was prejudiced.

Soon I got accustomed to the sequences and stopped paying attention to the empty sets. The scenes change on bit, and there is escalation with special effects in the end, so, actually, the MV has decent pace and is rewatchable.

The clothes help a lot. They are attractive and fill in the frame, play a role (like Do's red bandana). I wonder if the stylist is the same as the one who worked on Simon Says. The layering looks familiar. I like those blue accesories on Jae's lapels (remind me of his Prada look and the turquoiss catterpillars, haha, but this time done right).

JaeDo on their own? We like to see it. It might be the first MV where Doyoung outshines everyone, even bubble gum haired Taeyong. He got all the juicy scenes, and the bandana and the mullet suit him a lot.

I actually like the lyrics. Not as smart as for Regular, but not as mediocre as 2 Baddies.

"Pocket" can mean "the place in a piece of music where the bit creates groove", as well as "a person who carries team to success/who does the most/the star". The innuendo is probably there (the old "is it a gun in your pocket or are you happy to see me"), but the lyricist should have mainly meant the musical term (as the song is all about the bit and the groove). Funnily enough, the second slang meaning also fits, heh.

Yet another meaning is getting the balls into the pockets in pool.

Details of the music video:

Mark stands on a CG looking (slightly melted) street light. Which continues the tradition of him sitting on high places. Are the neos in a video game/virtual reality or in a dream?

Who thought for a split second that all t7s were shirtless? Heh, no such thing for Christian boy Markie, shy Jae and modest Do. I remember Tae's fans talked how the evil stylists and SM make him wear crop tops, when he is evidently uncomfortable to show skin... how things have changed.

The shirtless backdancers are not cool enough, their pants aren't dropping.

Tenstagram (Ten's phone) with a picture of Ten from t7s era.

TaeTen stand on a blue-orange floor which later will change into a real sunset.

Ten's scarf is green, which reminds me about his association with plants. It has a clock stamped on it. WayV and Time reference?

The rest froze on Jae's "Ya'll freeze, outta way".

(I like the way Do claps during Jae's part, the way he does it).

What's the meaning of covering a car in jeans? How one comes up with such an idea? Just for the "Pray I' get to the final destination"?

(my favourite moment is that rotation of the neos back and forth)

Doyoung is in an impossible room with the walls and the ceiling being the floor. The room starts to melt.

The pool ball Jae took a bite of is number "8" = "eight"="ate". Also the importance of the 8 ball in the game.

Doyoung endlessly reflecting in the mirror is a reference to t7s. Althouth it can be named part of his ability. He duplicated in Superhuman as well.

Why did Taeyong pinned balloons with giant nails?

Can "jeans" be "material" = "matrix"? Neos can change dreams now, construct them. Those wavy glitches looked exactly like in Punch.

Tae's hair really suit this concept. Surprisingly so.

[denimbex1986]

'...2. 'Ripley' (2024)

Ripley is a gorgeously shot black and white neo-noir thriller from Netflix divided into eight parts. It's based on Patricia Highsmith's incredibly popular novel, The Talented Mr. Ripley. Andrew Scott (All of Us Strangers) stars in the title role as a clever con artist who murders a friend and assumes the friend's identity. Dakota Fanning (The Perfect Couple), Johnny Flynn (Emma), and Maurizio Lombardi (The Young Pope) costar.

The best part of the finale is the very end, when the twist is not revealed to the audience, but instead to the detective who has been searching for Tom Ripley. It's a brilliant "aha!" moment that feels immensely satisfying after the eight-episode cat-and-mouse game. Everything falls into place, and even though Tom has gotten away, it's a huge epiphany that is beautifully executed. It was nominated for 13 Emmy Awards and won four of them...'