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zepskies · 11 months ago

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Why We Love the Boys

As promised, here is my review of Supes Ain’t Always Heroes. I actually used to write book reviews in my high school journalism days, so here we go!

What this book is: A masterful deep dive. A study on character psychology, the source of the comic and show’s inspiration, and the narrative themes illustrated in The Boys that parallel American culture and our real lives.

It includes interviews from one of the comic’s creators, Darick Robertson, The Krip himself (Eric Kripke), and actors Jim Beaver (Robert Singer), Aya Cash (Stormfront), Chace Crawford (The Deep), Jessie T. Usher (A-Train), Nathan Mitchell (Black Noir), and of course, Jensen Ackles (Soldier Boy).

It also includes a small but significant ode to the creativity of fans and fandom (with a mention of fanfic writers)!

I’ll admit, I felt seen. 😊

Who wrote it: Psychologists Lynn S. Zubernis and Matthew Snyder. Zubernis is a self-proclaimed fangirl of not only this show, but Supernatural and Eric Kripke in general. (That aspect definitely comes through in her writing.)

She is also editor of Family Don’t End with Blood: Cast and Fans on How Supernatural Changes Lives and There’ll Be Peace When you Are Done: Actors and Fans Celebrate the Legacy of Supernatural. Both of which I now want to read.

Several other authors also contributed to this book, as their expertise and backgrounds lend to the subjects they’re covering, such as racism, sexism, the entertainment industry, the comic’s inception, and more.

Who wants to read this book: Anyone who enjoys learning about what makes characters tick. What drives their choices, their sense of morality and justice, and their trauma and strife that lead them to do heinous things. This book will help you better understand your favorite characters (and how to write about them).

Perhaps most importantly, this book is for anyone who wants to read it put into words, why many of us love The Boys, as well as Supernatural.

In a way, the latter is more escapism entertainment than The Boys. Because in this show, there isn’t much, if any escape.

Despite this being a “superhero show,” as we all know, it’s so much more than that. It’s a mirror held directly into our own faces: about why we enjoy heroes and antiheroes, and excuse the “bad behavior” of the ones we like.

About mental health, grief and loss, nature and nurture, coping mechanisms and the importance of choice in dealing with trauma; of racism, sexism, misogyny, weaponized social media, politics, corporate greed, and the power (and cruelty) of good marketing.

This book explores the true villain of the story (and it ain’t Homelander).

I’m going to get into my favorite aspects of this book—as well as an amazing chapter on Soldier Boy’s character study (and why we love him, perhaps too much).

Though in my opinion, it was missing one small, but key thing…

The Mirror of The Boys on Screen

This world is a gritty, bloody, and at times all-too realistic take on how superheroes would be if they lived in our world.

They are the worst of celebrities, professional athletes, and politicians all rolled into one. They are the shiny products of a company and are marketed as such. And they often buy into their own hype.

Some of my favorite quotes on this topic:

“The Boys often reflects darkness in our real world that is uncomfortable to watch. While we go through the tedium of our daily lives, trying to get by and using television or comics as an escape, it can feel difficult and overwhelming to confront the very real and insidious sources of authoritarianism, nationalism, and corporatism that are not just part of a story. “This show holds up a mirror and forces us to catch a glimpse of things we need to question, and asks us why we so easily believe the talking points of systems with marketing departments and press flacks behind them that carefully massage every word in order to get us to feel enamored with their product or policy.” (p. 227-228)

“The Boys works to reveal the nonaltruistic, sociopathic nature of contemporary US corporate culture. In a sense, The Boys uses the behavior of its characters to diagnose not an individual, but a culture.” (255)

In studying narrative I’ve learned that the best fiction and art serve to reflect the human experience. In this case, it’s something The Boys does expertly, even though it’s packaged in extreme, shocking, and often uncomfortable ways. But also in brutal, hilarious satire that’s fun to watch.

It “exposes real-world abuses, revealing many” of our own frustrations in American culture and in life in general (267).

Major Themes & Questions Explored

Several Boys themes are explored from a psychological, cultural, and narrative point of view, as I mentioned earlier. These are some of my favorite segments:

Toxic Masculinity & Narcissism

A whopper in The Boys, and the main theme of season 3. This book defines clearly what both of these words actually mean from a psychological point of view.

It also takes the bad taste out of your mouth that you might get from just hearing the words “toxic masculinity,” as it’s a phrase that can be carelessly thrown around to describe men and character traits that aren’t truly toxic.

How being emotionally available to your loved ones and not repressive of your feelings doesn’t make you weak, or less of a man. And how “being strong” doesn’t mean being physically violent and domineering. (AKA: the Big Swinging Dick™️ in the room.)

Narcissism is explored in a very interesting way. The book gives a diagram of different aspects of narcissists and how each character (Soldier Boy, Homelander, Butcher, and the Deep) falls into them.

Soldier Boy, for example, is classified as a “Classic Narcissist,” while Homelander a “Malignant Narcissist.” <- This will play into SB’s character study, and the main difference between SB and Homelander.

Butcher, however, displays narcissistic tendencies but is not, in fact, a narcissist. (More of an antisocial sociopath. Yay for him.)

Misogyny & Sexism

The classic superhero world of comics dates back to the 1930s and ‘40s. It has been, and in many respects still is a (White) male-dominated industry, where in narrative, female superheroes typically work under a male leading the team, as in Justice League, Teen Titans, and the Avengers.

As much as I love DC and Marvel comics, female characters have also been drawn wildly sexual for male readers and the male gaze, and non-supe characters have been written primarily as love interests and damsels for the hero to save. (Think Lois Lane, Lana Lang, and Mary Jane.)

Modern adaptions have given female characters more agency, but their foundations were rooted in underlying sexism and the mythic hero—an Odysseus-type with certain characteristics of male strength and heroism. And that goes all the way back to classic literature, like The Odyssey, Beowulf, and the Epic of Gilgamesh.

In The Boys, the female supes go through the same issues as their comic counterparts. And they are treated how women are treated in the real world—marketable as sexual objects. (Starlight’s forced costume change is a prime example.)

Author Danielle Turchiano argues in the book that the women in power at Vought (Madelyn Stillwell, later Ashley) are given only so much power as men like Stan Edgar and Homelander give to them.

Stillwell, Ashley, and even Stormfront “drink the Kool Aid” of the misogynistic infrastructure of Vought, but they’re not truly “powerful” in and of themselves. (112)

And I would add that the only female characters that have or find true agency are Grace Mallory, Annie January/Starlight, and Maggie Shaw/Queen Maeve. Even Victoria Neuman is trying to work the political schematic and Vought by operating “within the system” Vought has created.

Mental Health, Trauma & Unhealthy Coping Mechanisms

This is a huge section, and rightly so. It kind of spans throughout the book, really, because all of these characters have traumas that inform who they are as adults making the (often grotesque) choices they make.

For many of these characters, it stems from their upbringing and fraught relationships with their parents, whether explicitly or implicitly explored in the show.

Butcher: Is an antisocial sociopath with narcissistic tendencies. Arrogant, emotionally manipulative, violent, and obsessive. He was also physically and emotionally abused by his father, led to use drinking and violence as a means to cope and express himself. His rage is so deep under his skin—he loathes himself for it (and his father), but struggles immensely to escape it.

Homelander: A malignant narcissist, the height of arrogance, and emotionally manipulative. He lacks empathy for others' pain, and in fact enjoys inflicting it. Yet he was a sensitive, gentle child who only wanted connection and love. Vogelbaum raised him like a lab rat and fostered him in a cold, detached cell. He was raised to be entitled and to believe he was an all-powerful god, the lord of his own kingdom within his mind, excused from the responsibility of his actions.

Soldier Boy: Also a narcissist; violent, arrogant, misogynistic, and often indifferent to the damage he causes, emotional or physical. Yet he was also emotionally abused by his father, who set high and exacting standards for what it meant to be a man. It drives Ben to try and prove his worth to his father, though he’s never able to. It fosters the lack of self-worth he feels as he seeks validation through fame and what he believes power to be.

These three characters have many similarities, but also notable differences that set them apart from one another. And both Butcher and Soldier Boy use substances like drugs and alcohol to cope with their traumas—ones that their forced stoicism and sense of manhood won’t allow them to easily express.

“We see Soldier Boy use substances almost continuously in season three to deal with his PTSD from the childhood emotional abuse he received from his father, the betrayal and assault from his team, and the torture he endured from the Russian scientists.

“In the short term, the use of drugs and alcohol to avoid thoughts and feelings about traumatic experiences can be felt as helpful, but in the long term, it hinders one’s ability to process emotions and can cause a deeper depression from the guilt and shame of both avoidance and substance abuse.” (27)

Heroes, Antiheroes & Villains

This book explores two key questions that the show encourages you to think about:

Who the hell is the hero of this story?

And who is the villain?

The surface-level answer is that Homelander and other supes like him are the villains, and Butcher and his band of bros are the heroes (or antiheroes). But they commit just as questionable, sketchy, and downright murderous acts as the supes they’re trying to take down.

“Butcher is not really a good guy. He’s manipulative and self-centered. His reasons for wanting to take down Homelander are utterly personal. That it serves the greater good is almost a coincidence.” (9)

And if Butcher is not a hero, but a vengeful vigilante, then why do we root for him so much?

Well, we see his incredible flaws. But I sympathize with his struggle in losing his wife and the life he could've continued to have with her. I root for the underdog going against the hydra head of Vought and the psychopathic Homelander.

And I see in Butcher, as I also do with Homelander and Soldier Boy, their traumas and their internal conflicts, their deep-rooted self-loathing, and a desire, deep, deep down…to be loved.

(And to foster connection with others, even if they’re unable to sustain them.)

On the flipside, we have antagonists in this show who do truly heinous things. What makes them compelling and even sympathetic, yet again, are their painful upbringings that have shaped them to be who they are. The supes of this show are byproducts of being treated like products.

Like the saying goes: Villains aren’t born, they’re made.

That’s why the real villain of this story is Vought International. It’s an allegory, and an indictment of the ruthless corporate greed that pervades American culture—and much of the world.

It’s why Stan Edgar is sometimes scarier to me than even Homelander (and was the true villain of my story, Break Me Down), if far more insidious.

Speaking of BMD, let’s get to it, shall we?

Here’s a (lot) bit about the Soldier Boy section of the book.

Soldier Boy: Why We Can’t Hate Him

I had to laugh out loud at the title of Soldier Boy’s chapter:

Loving the Villain: The Confusing Case of Soldier Boy

I’m not gonna lie. I felt called out. 😂

It is a confusing dichotomy. Soldier Boy is an absolute asshole. Misogynistic, narcissistic, arrogant, callous, violent…

But also deeply traumatized, a man-out-of-time, emotionally abused, byproduct of the historically and culturally different time he was raised in, a man who just doesn’t get it…

And also charming, adorably grumpy, and undoubtedly attractive.

It’s hard to indict “Ben” as an unredeemable villain in the same way I do Homelander, the psychologist-labelled Malignant Narcissist.

Therein lies the main difference between Soldier Boy and Homelander: Soldier Boy doesn’t take joy in harming others the way Homelander does. But he still harms people, whether he means to or not.

Zubernis confirms many of my own conclusions and ideas about Soldier Boy, and why I still rooted for him to be better, and didn’t want him to die at the end of season 3.

As Zubernis rightly exclaimed during her own watch of the finale: “Noooo, don’t kill the Danger Grandpa Baby Murder Kitten!” (175)

Because Jensen did what he does best in his roles: He made us feel Ben’s pain.

“What’s funny is, in regard to Jensen playing Soldier Boy, you know he’s fucking fantastic, he’s just so good at bringing the audience, and it’s almost like—what I laugh about is, he was probably a little too good at his job!” Kripke said. (180)

And he continues, “In part it’s because of the fandom. So many people took his side in the finale, they’re like, Were’s on his side, fuck everyone! And you’re like, but he’s the bad guy and he’s trying to kill a ten-year-old.”

Were there fans who held this viewpoint? I’m sure. There are some radicals who don’t give a fuck and will side with their favorite character, come whatever. But while I can’t speak for others, that’s not how I interpreted that moment in the season 3 finale.

Yes, I think Soldier Boy was (wrongfully) willing to fight Ryan. Do I think he would’ve killed him? I’m not sure. I think he would’ve done what he had to do to get Ryan out of his way in his fight with Homelander. Maybe he would’ve been more violent than he intended, in the callous collateral damage he’d shown throughout the season, or maybe he would’ve gone that far, if provoked.

It’s a tough call, as I think this character can go one way or the other in terms of his “villain” nature. We just haven’t seen enough of him in the series yet for me to make that conclusion on the canon-version of Soldier Boy. (In fanfic, I’ve explored my own interpretation.)

But overall, I think The Krip once again underestimated the power of Jensen’s acting.

…And the ardent nature of his mostly female fanbase. 😂

Why We Love Soldier Boy

The author cites multiple reasons for why we love Ben more than we probably should:

It’s Jensen Ackles. Fair enough. His talent speaks for itself.

Soldier Boy’s backstory: He was emotionally abused by his father and as a result, he has a complex regarding his self-worth, “something to prove,” and a secret need for attention, validation, and praise.

He has trauma and PTSD: He is displaced from what is familiar to him and confused when the boys find him, and that is the least of it. He’s been tortured for 40 years. Can you even conceive of that?

He’s charming: in a sexy grandpa, adorably grumpy, lovable asshole kind of way.

We’re drawn to danger: dangerous “edgy�� types are fun, especially when you’re physically attracted to the character.

He has his moments of vulnerability: Jensen’s ability to play the nuance in the character is the ultimate draw. I felt his pain, could see his torture, and his resulting PTSD. He longs for a family, even if his ability to bring up those children is questionable at best. 😅

But I think the one aspect the author doesn’t consider is the character’s capacity for change.

Soldier Boy’s Potential

Again, I don’t think you can write off Soldier Boy’s potential for positive character development the same way you can Homelander, or even Butcher.

For one thing, we just haven’t spent enough time with the character. A lot of his collateral damage after he escapes imprisonment has been accidental, or PTSD-induced. Though we can’t discount how he murdered M.M.’s grandfather via collateral damage (and was callous about it).

I think this is what drew me to write about Soldier Boy. “For all his arrogance, his chauvinism, his massive ego and general bastardry, there’s still humanity in Ben.”

In the book, Nathan Mitchell also says something amazing about his own character (Black Noir) that resonated with me about Soldier Boy as well:

"One of the ingredients of a compelling character is contradiction. How does one aspect of our personality contradict with one another? [...] Who is he underneath? How might his true nature contrast with the demands of his job?"

Or coded for Soldier Boy/Ben: The pressures he puts on himself to be the type of man he thought his father wanted him to be.

Again, his sexist, misogynistic ideals are shaped by the time he was raised in, by being a product of Vought, and of his father’s emotionally abusive upbringing. Does this excuse or justify all of his behavior? Of course not.

But I think those 40 years in captivity changed him from the careless alpha dog we saw in 1984 Nicaragua…

He admits to Crimson Countess, with tears in his eyes, that he’d loved her. That he waited for her and his team—arguably the only social system he has in his life—to save him. He’s gutted to realize that not only did she and the rest of the team never love him, they hated him. They traded him for nothing. Just to get him out of their lives.

For all he claims to be afraid of nothing, tough as shit, he is afraid when he goes to face Mindstorm. He knows what the supe is capable of, and he visibly takes a shaky breath and tries to steel himself.

For a moment, he drops the “Soldier Boy” persona that he wears like a fine tailored suit. And he tells Butcher that the backstory Vought created for him was a lie; he grew up a rich kid who got sent to boarding school, but flunked out, because "he was a fuck up." And his father couldn’t be bothered to discipline him, implying he didn’t care enough about his own son to even lay a hand on him.

He is reluctant to kill Homelander when he finds out he’s Ben’s son (sort of). He even claims that he would’ve been willing to share the spotlight “with his own son.” — Something I doubt even Homelander would do.

Ben even seems to be fighting tears when he levies the same vitriol at Homelander that his own father did at him:

Homelander: “Weak? I’m you.”

Soldier Boy: “I know. You’re a fucking disappointment.”

Let me be clear. I don’t think it’s up to someone to change him (like a love interest). I don’t subscribe to that thinking, that a woman can “change” a man.

For example: In season 2, Butcher tells Becca, “Who was I before you? Nothing.”

And yet, she tells him that he put her on an unrealistic and unsustainable pedestal, in which she felt like she wasn’t allowed to fully be herself, unable to keep him from flying off the handle in rage. That kind of relationship (where one is dependent on the other to “keep them in check”) doesn’t work as a lasting, satisfying redemption arc, and it doesn’t work in real life either.

I do think, however, that a person is capable of change if they’re broken down enough (pun intended), and if they themselves have a desire to change. Someone they encounter can inspire them to be better, like Butcher with Hughie. That person can help support the other.

At the end of the day, however, it’s Ben that has to want to change.

If he wants love and connection, he’ll have to somehow want it, and try (and sometimes fail) to get it, thereby giving him agency and a redemptive character arc.

Now, obviously, it’s up to The Krip where Ben goes from here. He seems to have a more indicting vision of the character than I do (at least, so far). But we’ll see! The fan demand to bring back the character has already had Kripke confirming that Soldier Boy will be back.

Maybe it will encourage him to give the character a more satisfying ending than Dean Winchester got in Supernatural. Though granted, that one wasn’t his doing, apparently he was in favor of the ending the writers came up with.

Comparing Dean & Ben

In his interview segment, Jensen talks about what, if any, are the comparisons between Dean Winchester and Soldier Boy. AKA: Wanting a father’s approval, and an undercurrent of “John Wayne”-esque masculinity in John Winchester that Dean sought to emulate.

Jensen also talks about where he drew from to not only embody the character of Soldier Boy, but bring nuance to him—and show the peeks of vulnerability under the bravado and stoicism.

“He’s so fragile and his ego is fragile. Just like Homelander. These bigger-than-life powerful heroes really have a glass jaw… “And everyone walks on eggshells around him [Soldier Boy], and they tell him that they love him, and it’s the same with Homelander. Then when all of a sudden he faces his old team and Crimson Countess says we never loved you, we hated you—that’s a gut punch for him. Because even though on some level he may have known that, he never thought he would hear it. “And he probably propped himself up around trying to believe otherwise, because how can you walk around knowing everyone you’ve ever cared about hates you? It’s too painful.” (191)

It really is. And I inherently felt this about Soldier Boy/Ben when I watched season 3 for the first time. That’s exactly what I got from his performance and thought, there’s more to this guy than the toxic masculinity he represents.

This guy just wants to be loved, like everyone else. He wants to feel important, and even after his father’s dead, “show him” that Ben is the man his father wanted him to be. And so, he bought into the illusion Vought painstakingly crafted for him.

Whether he can come back from that remains to be seen. But I choose to be optimistic until evidence points to the contrary. 😅 (We’ll see in season 4!)

So that’s my personal take on Soldier Boy and this awesome book. 💚 Thank you again @kaleldobrev for recommending it to me! I hope you all enjoyed my long-winded review and want to check this out.

And if you do read it, I hope to read your thoughts as well!

Tagging people who said they wanted to read my review on this book: @venus-haze @jessjad @kristophalis @sl33pylilbunny

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oncillabrigade · 9 months ago

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I feel like I see a lot of fan authors/artists depicting Jason and Tim (and sometimes Steph) as unrelentingly mean to Damian in public, and that doesn't ring true to me. I haven't read the comics since before Damian was introduced (Wayne Family Adventures pulled me back in, and oh man there are fun DC comics these days!) so maybe I'm missing some canon examples of that... but I feel like every single child in that family gets how awful it is to be in the spotlight at a young age. They remember how awkward and exhausting it was to always smile for the camera, always be perfectly behaved, always uphold the ideal of what a Wayne adoptee should be. It didn't matter how you felt; you had to act the part. And they wouldn't make that harder for anyone.

Detailed thoughts below the fold!

Acting like a Perfect Wayne Kid™️ must be easier for Tim than for his siblings, because he was already playing that game as a Drake. But that doesn't mean it wasn't excruciating, especially for someone as introverted and wonderfully weird as Tim. Honestly, I think he'd be a mine of useful information for the later additions to the family!

I can see him at a charity dinner next to Cass, indicating which utensil comes next, murmuring, "I know, it's ridiculous. And there's no real reason, which makes it so hard to remember. But you're doing great." I can see him helping Duke practice the "right" laugh before a party: "Not too loud, not too real, not too many teeth showing. These people are terrified of genuine emotion, but in a shittier way than Bruce is." And I can most certainly see him talking Damian through how to leave a room when there are TOO. MANY. PEOPLE and the walls are closing in, showing him escape routes at different venues, explaining, "you don't want to use the bathroom excuse too many times in a row. People notice and tabloids start saying you have an eating disorder. I'll text you a list of alternate reasons to leave a conversation."

What I cannot see is Tim leaving anyone out to dry in the hell of high society. Even if Dami were driving him NUTS, I don't think Tim would call him a brat, insult him outright, or badmouth him to others. I think the worst thing he'd do is roll his eyes with humorous exaggeration and say, "okay, Damian, you've done your little brotherly duties--go talk to your friends, okay?" He could be SEETHING about a horrific fight 30 minutes before their appearance and play it off as, "haha, well, all brothers bug each other sometimes." And then he'd pivot, flawlessly, to a positive comment about the whole family, Dami included. Tim Drake, world champion of compartmentalization, fiercely loyal and kindhearted, is not giving the press a single bad word about his siblings. He is smiling and saying all the right things.

And then... then, there's Jason.

Jason understands, firsthand, how hard being inducted into the world of Perfect Wayne Behavior™️ is. Can you imagine Jason Peter Todd going through that? It's not just that he was in a new world, where money and food and clothes were a given, not a hard-won prize. It's not just that there were a million new rules to memorize (how to wear a suit, inscrutable dining etiquette, passive aggression instead of speaking your mind when angry, etc.). It's not just that he was suddenly thrust in the limelight at a young age, thrown in at the deep end of child stardom. It's not just that he was inevitably compared to Dick, who's naturally charismatic in a way that made his rambunctiousness forgivable by Gotham's elite. It's not just that he was simultaneously learning to be a Wayne AND a Robin, which was both mentally and physically exhausting.

No, it was all that PLUS who Jason was when he had just been adopted. Picture him: a kid from Crime Alley, recently out of a school for troubled youth, mourning the loss of his mother, and WAY too fucking smart not to see the condescension in the eyes of his new dad's peers. He was treading water constantly in every aspect of life, occasionally managing to float... all while the press and high society watched intently and judged him like he was swimming in the Olympics. Being Robin gave him magic, but god, he must have used so much of it up on just getting through public appearances.

I refuse to believe that someone who went through that would belittle or humiliate anyone doing the same. Especially when it comes to Damian. Damian, who comes from a world where physical prowess is the ultimate trump card, now trapped in a conversation where mentioning that prowess means he loses status. Damian, who knows the worst physical pain you can imagine and takes it as all in a day's work, struggling to contain his disdain for someone complaining about their tennis elbow. Damian, who was exposed to the worst aspects of humanity before he could form permanent memories, staring in disbelief at a kid his age saying the teacher who gave them an hour of detention is SO evil. Damian, who had mastered the rules of the League, discovering that the rules of Gotham high society are SO different that his prior knowledge is actively disadvantaging him.

I cannot imagine Jason seeing Damian as anything other than a fellow kid trapped in the pool with all eyes on him.

So Jason will do what he's always done: stand up for someone in need. Because Damian IS in need, no matter how much of a pain-in-the-ass he might be. That means Jay is telling the press about how smart Damian is, how good he is with animals, how proud the whole family is of his art. It means he's wearing suit pants with deep pockets so Damian's emotional support plushie is on hand at all times. It means he's using his bulk to clear the way to the balcony when the kid needs air and quiet. It means he's verbally eviscerating the posh knob who called Dami a brat, because NO ONE outside the family gets to say that shit about Jason fucking Todd's baby brother.

I don't care how annoyed they are with each other--bat kids hang together in the face of danger. And make no mistake: being a Perfect Wayne™️ is one of the most dangerous missions they face.

#batfam #jason todd #tim drake #cassandra cain #duke thomas #damian wayne #edited for grammar and formatting

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justsomeoneintoomanyfandoms · 2 months ago

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Hey! I got a matchup a while back, and lately I have been craving another one😭 so if it's alright could I get romantic matchups for tears of themis, genshin, and atla? If not that's fine ofc💕

I use She/her pronouns but I've never really cared very much, I'm Bi but I'd like Male matchups for this one if that's alright (I love women but idk none of the women in these fandoms are like my type??? Idk)

Not sure if you use looks to pick, but I'm 5'7, longish brown hair and brown eyes, kinda chubby I'd say, and I wear glasses!

Ok so for the good stuff, I'm an enfp and a virgo and I have gad and adhd so I am very all over the place lol, I'm usually very energetic and loud (got called a human pep rally once) but every once in a while I take a hard turn the other way and do absolutely nothing lol.

Taking thing seriously is kinda hard for me, idk why but I'm very much the deflect and cope using comedy kind of person.

Personal life wise I'm the oldest of four (love my siblings) so loud is kinda the default in my life so I'm pretty comfortable in loud environments, but if I get a chance at peace and quiet I am JUMPING for it.

I have a few plants, I bake quite a bit (I make BOMB brownies), I'm very much a nerd lol, I love comics (fandom request gave that away tho), I play dnd, I love video games (rdr2, mk11 and mass effect are the current ones), I watch cartoons and build legos, and I'm learning how to draw.

I'm big into flowers and flower language, and I play guitar, alto saxophone, steal drum, and I have a violin I'm gonna start working on soon.

This turned out alot longer then I thought so the speedrun of the rest is although I dont often, I really like putting work into how I look (I just got a treble cleft claw clip with some dangly thingys and I like it I just wanted to mention that), no clue how to to makeup tho, I'm planning on going into communications, and uhh my favorite colors are pink and blue.

Thank you so much if you get to this

Hi Abby! Thank you for your request! Sorry it took a while. I hope you like your matchups!

In Tears of Themis, I match you with...

If there’s one thing that drew Luke to you, it’s the fact that you enjoy peace and quiet. He loves being in your presence when it’s quiet around. He just finds it soothing.

Definitely understands you using humour to cope. He does the same so he knows when it turns from just making jokes to coping and will check in when needed.

Please invite him to do gardening together some time. He likes being able to do something where he’s creating and nurturing life. It’s a good change from what he usually does.

Flower language is a big part of your relationship. I see Luke as someone who’s well versed in flower language so every bouquet he gives you has a hidden meaning behind it.

He also enjoys drawing so it’s not uncommon for you to find a sticky note beside your bed with a little drawing on it when he has to leave early in the morning. If you return the gesture, he’ll keep all your drawings in a safe place so he can look back over them.

In Genshin Impact, I match you with...

You and Itto are both the definition of human pep rallies so when your powers combine, no one can stand in your way. You can both be a lot sometimes but you get along well.

He also struggles to take things seriously so he’s a lot more understanding in that regard than others are sometimes. You just get each other.

In a modern au, Itto would be a huge fan of cartoons. He’s a firm believer than cartoons aren’t just for kids and still loves watching all those “childhood” shows.

In the same vein, he also loves Lego. I can’t see him being a big fan of tricky sets but he enjoys all of the bright colours. He’d love to make a set or two with you sometime.

I can see Itto being a fan of D&D as well. I think it might take him a bit to get his head around the different types of rolls and doing so much maths but he loves the roleplay elements and thinks it’s great fun. (I actually wrote this while playing a D&D session!)

In Avatar: The Last Airbender, I match you with...

You’ve got to be a certain level of energetic to keep up with Sokka’s plans. And you certainly meet that criteria. Sokka loves being around someone who can match his energy.

In a modern au, he’s definitely a fan of comics. He’s the type of person who buys two of every comic, one to read and one to keep in pristine condition.

For all his self-awareness, Sokka does have a tendency to deflect so he can easily recognise when you’re doing the same. He hopes you know you can rely on him if things get too much.

When he does run out of energy, there’s nothing that Sokka loves more than relaxing while listening to you play music. He finds it soothing both because of the music and because of your presence.

Please do lots of baking for him! Sokka will never admit it but he does have a soft spot for snacks, especially if you’ve made them.

#writing #fanfic #matchup #matchup request #request #tears of themis #luke pearce #genshin impact #arataki itto #avatar #avatar the last airbender #sokka

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dizaryswrites · 6 months ago

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I have a confession to make!

I don’t know how obvious it is, but I actually haven’t read any comics 😅 I know, I know haha, it’s just I haven’t had the time! Luckily, I mostly follow blogs that I know are comic readers so I know what’s fanon and canon mostly. But since I will have free time in the summer, I was wondering if you have any recommendations on what to read and where to start?

Oh man I WISH I could be one of those blogs who snaps out the long scroll that just rolls down the hallway with a concise cross referenced list of top hits from every era and where to start with each character! But I am a book hoarder with not enough time on my hands so I haven't even read half of what I have, let alone all the back issues 😅

Here's some stuff that I really enjoyed as a new-to-comics-and-DC reader and in general (in mostly chronological order because that's how I arrange my comic books):

Batman: Dark Victory

I really enjoyed the mystery and early Batman days, plus Dick Grayson's debut! He is a delight. I didn't read Long Halloween which comes before this so I missed some context but I picked it up easy enough (also according to some reviews the mystery can be repetitive if you have read Long Halloween sooo win for me ig?)

Robin: Year One

I am determined to read this one soon. I've heard great things about it though so it's being added

Batman: Prodigal

I read this without reading a single page of Knightfall because I was getting interested in Nightwing and this was the earliest book that my library had available (I have given up on a chronological reading order since those early foolish days). I knew nothing and still really enjoyed Dick!Bats and Robin!Tim together. I need to reread this soon

Formerly Known as the Justice League

A limited run, 6 issues I think. Honestly I should just say Justice League International in general but I started with this mini for Booster Gold and Blue Beetle after seeing some funny panels online and I fell in love with that whole cast of losers (affectionate). It's not BatFam but so so fun to read (and JLI has some really poignant moments too)

Young Justice: A League of Their Own

SO FUN. Tim and friends dealing with just ridiculous scenarios LOL I'm only halfway through but it's great

Batman: Hush

I haven't read a lot of just Batman titles but I enjoyed Hush. It had some good character moments for Bruce that helped me understand the way he thinks a little more. I also hear Bruce Wayne: Murder/Fugitive is very very good but I haven't gotten around to it yet (a running theme)

Batgirl: Point Blank

Cass is a treat. This was the first volume I found of her's, haven't read the others yet, but even lacking context I really enjoyed her as the main character and her interactions with Steph, Babs, and Bruce.

Teen Titans (Geoff Johns)

This was one of the first series I started reading and it was a good intro for me, a completely new DC fan. It's Tim and his friends but more serious than YJ. I've read vol 1-2 and part of 3

Under The Red Hood

Classic for good reason. I haven't finished it yet (teehee) but the first half has been entertaining. Jason has had some um... interesting writing in his time. But I really enjoy the way he's written here. It's a good baseline imo. I've heard Lost Days is also good

Nightwing (Tomasi run)

I love Tomasi and this run was a lot of fun. Dick is funny while not losing his serious, capable edge, he interacts with people in his circles, and has some interesting introspection moments. There's a weird part of the plot about midway that definitely uses bad Asian stereotypes which is so disappointing. But after that it gets normal again 😅

Batman & Robin

This comes right after Tomasi's run and it's a mixed bag for me. It's definitely interesting seeing Dick and Damian learning to work together but I was still new to DC with little context for things and was also *so* put off by the art style that I don't remember it well. But I thought I'd add it anyway since it's an iconic moment for Dick!Bats

Batman and Robin (Tomasi)

I adore Bruce and Damian struggling together to discover what being father and son looks like for them. I adore Damian having growth. That's volumes 1-3. 4 is post Damian's death (and damn issue 1 is a well written look at grief), I haven't read 5 or beyond yet.

Nightwing (Rebirth)

The first Nightwing title I read. Looking back, the characterization is a bit weak in some areas, doesn't quite match how he's written in older runs, but it had good moments and kept me entertained. Especially!!! In vol 3 with Humphries's Judge arc

For more current runs, I'm really enjoying World's Finest. Waid's writing is good and Mora's art is just *cartoon heart eyes*. Bats, Supes, and teenage Dick Grayson are a fun trio. Amid other runs that had me tearing my hair out in disappointment or frustration, WF is a breath of fresh air.

Titans United: Bloodpact is a 6 issue limited that was also a really nice read. It's Dick's Titans but Tim is there too and I enjoyed everyone's writing.

The Human Target (Tom King) but honestly I was just losing my mind over Greg Smallwood's art and paneling the entire time. A masterpiece. I want to frame every page. I cheered when he posted inspiration threads on Twitter.

Superman's Pal, Jimmy Olsen

It's not Batfam but hear me out!!!! This comic had some of the sweetest moments between Supes and Jimmy and I wanted to grab literally anybody by the shoulders and shake them until they looked at the Lois, Clark, & Jimmy in the helicopter panel and GOT IT!!! Also it is so delightfully wacky and funny, I was genuinely laughing out loud. Steve's Lieber's art is the perfect pairing with Matt Fraction's writing.

AND SPEAKING OF!

This isn't DC at all but it's the series that made me (and so many others) really love comics and their storytelling potential. Matt Fraction's Hawkeye run, volumes 1-4. Between his writing and David Aja's artwork and color theory (and Steve Lieber's guest issue that literally gut punched me and changed how I saw later parts of the story, it was never just a filler issue to me, Steve) you get a great story that says so much with so little (in the best way) and is a visual treat as well. Chef's kiss.

Some other non-DC comics I really enjoyed are Die (imagine Jumanji but D&D and novels and oh look the consequence of your actions has grown up), Something is Killing the Children Vol. 1 (I am not a horror girly but I really enjoyed this, in no small part because of Dell'edera's art), Eight Billion Genies (the world population hits 8 billion and now everyone gets a genie, what could go possibly wrong), and Paper Girls which I'm about 2/3 through (picture stranger things but with time travel, spaceships?, and oh shit is future me lying??)

Damn, I guess I really did have a scroll's worth. 😭 Anyway, my recommendation for where to start with this list is...what does your library have available? Don't forget about the Hoopla app too, that's where I read some of these digitally. Or the used bookstore which is where I got 90% of my comics from.

But seriously! Just pick whatever sounds the most fun or has the character(s) you're the most interested in and go from there. Skip around on the timeline or go in chronological order. Whatever floats your boat! I think that's the really unique thing about comics. Plus if you can't figure out the context of what you're missing or what is happening simultaneously (because writers & editorial used to care a little more) you can do a quick google or (and I wish I had this with Batgirl) @cephalog0d has a pinned timeline master list. Incredible.

#let me know what you end up reading!!#a lil summer book club haha #dizarys answers #comic recs #I've definitely forgotten some I can feel ot

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no1ryomafan · 4 months ago

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now it’s time for no reason at 2 fucking am for me to give my opinions about every mega man series ✨ (again this is my opinion and also my time to expose how much of a fake fucking fan I am in some regards) imma go in chronological release order to my memory.

Classic: I don’t hate it but I’m the only person who doesn’t feel strongly about it. I just can’t get invested into not only the gameplay but any of the robot masters besides a select few-I’m sorry I just don’t see the appeal-I do like the significant characters like rock, roll, blues and bass obviously, and learning about what influenced mega man as a whole made me appreciate it a little more but I don’t advise it as the series people should get into or like they don’t need to play every single game cause it suffers the most from being samey. (Really just play 11, but I also say this as the only classic game I actually finished 💀) Liked the Archie comics though and wish it continued… Tempo was neat.

X: Mixed feelings galore oh booooy. X and Zero shaped me to be the person who I was for ALL the wrong reasons- I still ship XZero I’ll just never admit to it cause if it’s a overrated pair and the fans can be bad, I just love the most basic fucking yaoi pairs. I like a lot of the other characters like Vile, Axl, Iris-for little she gets-etc. Besides that the X series has been tainted for me cause MAN it has the worst fandom out of the series. I’m sorry X fans are so fucking vicious and I don’t know why, I sometimes wonder if you guys like your own series even if I get it’s super flawed. X discussion can get so annoyed at points especially with the crowd of “oh the games after X5 suck so I don’t count them as canon” (yes people like that fucking exist. Ignoring how X6 CHANGE THE SCOPE OF HOW MMZ1 CAME TO BE) X is definitely that series of “interesting ideas but bad execution” wish MHX got to continue cause the first game had potential to fix the story. Also I never beat a single game but I keep telling myself I’ll beat X1 or X4…

Legends: The only series I haven’t played whatsoever BUT I did watch the cutscenes so I’m up to speed on the lore. Really find the lore cool and the characters are charming, it’s just a series that’s hard to talk about cause it’s all “WHERES MEGA MAN LEGENDS 3” and man I get being salty about that sequel being canned and I wish it happened too but can we talk about the actual series… Also Roll Caskett best Roll don’t @ me.

Battle Network: Okay controversial time this is the Mega Man series I give the least fucks about and it’s gonna shock you when you guys see how I feel about Star Force. Idk why but this series just- doesn’t appeal to me. I want to give it a chance, before the LC even came out I got BN5DS but I didn’t like liberation missions so never got passed the first one, and I still never got the LC and heck is the only LC I didn’t get because I’m sorry no matter HOW much you tell me BN good the pricing is not worth it. I couldn’t be bothered to get into the anime or manga too. Idk just mega man but ai seems like a cool idea and I don’t mind it being a rpg it’s cool mega man changed what it was yet still retained its appeal but BN doesn’t do it for me. It might just be because of the designs and characterization honestly.

Zero: Another mixed bag but NOWHERE near as bad as MMX, and this one I did finish! I like a lot aspects of Zero the story telling and the refinements to the gameplay but the reason I can’t be super invested is when people consider it the best part of the franchise when all of the games have a glaring flaw. I love Z1, it’s unironically my favorite but it’s also the most flawed entry, Z2 is overhated but you can also tell this game was rushed, which it was, Z3 is considered the best and it’s good but I think it’s overhyped to shit-X4 has the same issue tbh-it makes good changes but it’s level design threw me off even if it’s more fixed than Z2 and *sigh* Z4 was a necessary ending narratively but I FUCKING HATE EVERYTHING ELSE ABOUT IT. (Don’t make me talk about Z4, very few things make me mad like that game- it only gets some points for making me cry at the ending even when I knew what was going to happen though) Also the fandom opinions about the story aspect of this game makes me not trust anyone LOL. Zero is better written here then mmx and Ciel doesn’t deserve hate don’t @ me! Anyways my favorite asshole here is Harpiua. Basic pick but I just wanna put him in a jar and shake him.

ZX: YIPPPPPIE- Sorry that was the sound of me getting excited about my favorite entry of the series. I love this game- so much it’s unreal. Everything about it I fucking adore. Art style, characters, music, gameplay, THE LORE even if it’s something they didn’t expand on enough I still love the setting of ZX. Biometals are such a cool concept that I can’t be mad at the idea of X and Zero being rocks unlike other people, there’s so much potential with them. I will always be sad ZXC never happened but the games we got are so replayable to me and I go on a monthly replay- yes I have a problem LOL. I don’t really have a favorite between them- I def get why people prefer the first game but advent isn’t that bad you guys just suck. Favorite character is hard I love everyone. (I’m kidding, it’s Prometheus. But I do like everyone)

Star Force: So remember how I said my opinions on this would confuse you about why I don’t care for BN? Yeah it’s because I’m the one mega man fan who isn’t a coward and also fucking ADORES this series LOL. I understand it’s a huge diversion from mega man and BN at least still uses some characters but I think star force not having AU characters is why I like it more- and also I’m biased for aliens LOL. Omega-Xis one of the best characters in this series and you guys fucking sleep on him, love the general cast too though. Star Force 1 is also a game that means a lot to me, the story touch me and made me cry like Z4. Honestly I’d like it more then ZX if it weren’t for the fact I don’t fuck with the gameplay too hard cause I never replayed it and story wise it really peaked at 1. I don’t think star force 2 is as bad as everyone saids but I get why people don’t like it, star force 3 has the X4/Z3 problem: good but still has plenty of flaws. There’s a lot of changes 3 made I didn’t like and while the story was decent there was some missed potential. The ending was really nice though but after how some aspects of 3 turned out I couldn’t give a shit if star force 4 happens, if I’m being honest it’s the one canceled game I’m glad didn’t happen cause I think it could’ve actually ruined the series. (Sorry I don’t fuck with the geo being bad plot, it sounded like ass) Also yes if you ask I DO own all the games physically cause I’m fucking insane lol.

So given like- 3 of series I really finished I can’t really rank them but I just wanted to yap and give my opinion. Maybe one day I’ll try battle network or beat a x game…

#meg text #mega man #I’m tagging this knowing damn well someone gonna get upset but idc #I would apologize for once being so blunt because I hate being mean #but this is mega man so I could care less LOL #but yes if you can’t tell I really am THE ds era mega man fan they were cooking #I really am a toku fan who’s never watched a toku besides the most obscure one possible (kikaider)#I won’t make tags too long here this post is already long #sorry for being autistic it’s gonna happen again

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sage-nebula · 2 years ago

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Tails ~

What I like about them

Tails fits the definition of a classical antihero. While nowadays we think of antiheroes as brooding types who are willing to do less-than-heroic things to get the job done, in classical literature an antihero was a character who, while heroic, displayed personality traits that weren't often associated with heroes. For instance, a classical antihero might be wrangle with self-doubt where a classical hero is confident. A classical antihero may be physically weak where a classical hero is physically strong, so on and so forth. Frodo Baggins is an example of a classical antihero, and so, too, is Tails. And I like this because it gives us interesting avenues to explore his character from. Sonic is great, but as a traditional hero he doesn't wrangle with things like self-doubt or anxiety. What you see is what you get with him: just a guy who loves adventure. But perhaps in part due to being a literal genius, Tails is a lot more cerebral and there's a lot more introspection with him, particularly given his shortcomings and weaknesses. Exploring the ways he grows and learns to work with his anxieties and traumas, rather than against them, makes his character really interesting.

Also, he is so fucking cute oh my god.

What I dislike about them

His character writing has been, to put it politely, inconsistent over the years. He went through all that growth in the Adventure games just to have it completely ripped the fuck away from him in later ones (particularly Forces). It's not great and most days I pretend I do not see it.

Favourite moment

In the games: Either the moment he threw hands with Eggman when he thought Eggman had killed Sonic in Adventure 2, or the acknowledgement of his issues and his whole arc in Frontiers rolled up into one.

In animation: Either saying that Sonic was his "mom, dad, and picket fence" in AoStH, or the episode in AoStH where Sonic was turned to stone and so Tails spent the whole episode trolling Scratch and Grounder Home Alone style. Again, he is so fucking cute oh my god.

In the IDW comics: Either catching Sonic with the Tornado in the middle of the Angel Island arc, or crashing the airship into Neo Metal at the end of that arc, or when he said goodbye to the Cyclone because he had to sacrifice her during the Metal Virus arc, or when he figured out how to take down Surge in their fight against her in the city, or defending Sonic from Kit, or immediately building guns to go save Sonic in the Scrapnik Island mini series, or . . .

Least favourite moment

Forces 🙃All of Forces. I hate it so fucking much.

Also not a fan of how they made him fight Sonic in the Archie comics. Really, any situation which pits those two against each other is an automatic Nope.gif in my books. I will smack that back button so fast, don't test me.

A situation with this character that I want to see explored more

How he's developing his technology to utilize clean energy! We see that he's using hydro power to fuel the Mystic Ruins workshop in the IDW comics; I want more exploration on how Tails' development of technology is not only not detrimental to the planet, but actually works to reverse the damage that Eggman does. Technology doesn't have to destroy the planet; it can be a clean force for good, too!

An interesting AU for this character

Can I promote my own fic Beyond Oblivion? Because that's an interesting AU to me!

A crossover

I'm still very much in love with my Night in the Woods crossover, where Tails spends an autumn in Possum Springs during his solo journeys. All anthro stories take place in the same universe and this one happens in my head and in my heart even if Sega thinks it could never work in canon. Sega doesn't pay me, they can't dictate what I do.

OTP (or OT3+ etc…. just… favourite ship)

None. In fact, adaptations that have tried to give Tails romances (Archie, Sonic X, Boom) are off-putting to me because they try to give Tails romances. He doesn't need a romance for his story to be interesting! In fact, I think a romance arc for him is far more boring than the alternatives like exploring how he overcomes his inner demons or focusing on the clean energy alternatives he creates to improve the world. And even if you want to explore him with other characters, platonic relationships and platonic love stories are a thing! Tails' brotherly relationship with Sonic, his friendships with Amy and Knuckles—these are interesting stories and romance isn't a part of them. Destroy the heterosexual notion that every character must be paired off for a story to be good.

Other ships?

Nope.

BROTP

His big bro Sonic, of course! Like I said above, platonic love stories are a thing, and the platonic love story in Sonic and Tails finding a family in each other when they were both orphaned has been one of my favorites since I was four years old. I don't think that's going to change any time soon.

NOTP

I wish people who ship Sonic with Tails romantically a very do not ever interact with me, ever, in any capacity. Thank you.

An assortment of headcanons!

I have a lot! You can read some here, and here, and here :)

#tofukitten #character meme #miles tails prower #thanks for the ask!

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personne-writes · 2 years ago

Text

Dad material

Part 6 - Reading level

(word count: 2k)

--------

Michelangelo hasn’t learnt to read the traditional way, what with being a mutant turtle growing up in the sewers and everything.

Of course, reading is something Splinter has taught them, along with many other basic skills. Not as soon as humans or Yokais do, maybe. And probably not as thoroughly as to understand the complex mechanisms of linguistics or to write academic papers. Still fast and good enough for them to be able to keep up with their cherished comics over their teenage years, though - and to never fall behind with charts and reports now.

Michelangelo wouldn’t say his reading skills are lacking in any way, but he’ll admit that when it comes to knowing what a normal kid’s learning curve should look like, he doesn’t really have any timeframe to rely on.

So, he doesn’t know if it’s normal for an eleven-years-old boy born in the midst of an apocalypse to be reading The Fellowship of the Ring.

He doesn’t know, but when he sees Casey Junior frowning down on the voluminous novel, he can’t help but think it feels a little much.

“Hey, Leo," he starts as he plops into a seat next to his brother in the conference room, "quick question. Do you know who the English language teacher is?”

“What?” Leonardo mutters, not looking up from the schematics he's studying.

Mikey drops his chin into his hands, elbows braced on the table. “You know, at the kids’ school. Who’s the teacher?”

“Why?” his brother asks absentmindedly.

“Because I think they might be asking kids to read stuff way above their level.”

Leonardo probably reaches the conclusion that he can't navigate this conversation while focusing on his plans, because he drops them on the table and turns to him. “Mikey. What are you talking about?”

Mikey shifts in his seat. "I just saw Junior reading this big ass book, and it bugged me because I can't remember him reading anything other than comics, right? So I asked him what it was, and it's the fucking Fellowship of the Ring. Can you believe that?"

Leo blinks. “How… is that a problem?”

“The Lord of the Rings, Leo!" Mikey huffs, throwing his hands in the air. "It’s like, a trillion pages long, and it’s so boring at first, what were they even thinking? I tried to read it and couldn’t make it past page 50, and by then I was fifteen and I was a total fan of the movies already -"

"Casey's seen the movies, too," Leo informs him, expression slightly confused.

Mikey gives a dramatic sigh.

"My point is, starting off with this? At eleven?? That’s just gonna discourage the kids. Teaching is all about giving them the will to read. What twisted, sadistic teacher would pick the freaking Lord of the Rings as a child's first real book?"

Leonardo blinks at him again.

And then again.

The absence of an answer is telling Mikey all he needs to know half a second before Leo's face splits up with a big, doofus smile.

"I'm the one who gave him the book," he states, not sounding one bit sorry.

Michelangelo stares at him, speechless, and that’s not something that happens often.

Leonardo gives a quiet laugh. "As much as I find your lecture captivating, little brother, it's not that bad," he assures, putting his hands up like a peace offering. "The kid's clever, I'm sure he won't let himself be intimidated by a simple book. Besides, it's not like he has to read it, or anything - well, I’m glad that he does, but - Mike, you good, hermano?"

Michelangelo tries to get a grip. It’s only half a success. “You could make him disgusted about reading forever,” he accuses.

Leonardo rolls his eyes. “Come on, give me some credit. Like I said, I'm not forcing him to do anything. I won’t pressure him into reading something he doesn’t like. You know me, right?"

That is a valid argument, Mikey has to admit. He still doesn’t feel too comfortable with taking that risk, though. “Hmm.”

“Aw, don’t make that face,” Leonardo cheers him up, grabbing his shoulder affectuously. “Give it some time, okay? Let him try. And if you still feel like it’s a bad idea in, what, a week? Then we’ll talk about it.”

Ah, making a deal without actually promising anything that might make him a disservice. Such a classic Leon move.

Michelangelo sighs and nods. What choice does he have, either way?

--------

It doesn't take a week for Michelangelo to understand he has lost this battle.

There are multiple signs throughout the next few days - Junior hiding in a corner to read peacefully more often than not, body relaxed, expression focused; Junior dozing off when bored, gaze wandering around like he sees things with new eyes; Junior humming the Lord of the Rings movies' theme songs here and there when doing chores. Could fool anybody else, but Mikey knows what having an hyperfixation looks like.

He's so happy for the kid.

That's something he himself hasn't felt in a very long time, the thrill of discovering a story so captivating it takes you away from your day to day life, the delight of forgetting your worries and troubles into something bigger, smoother, more coherently crafted than reality. It's a comforting feeling, and he's happy Junior is getting the chance to experience it, even with all this chaos he is growing up in - even more so.

"Well, well, well, would you look at that," Leonardo starts, coming to a stop next to Michelangelo as he's watching Junior animatedly explain some piece of lore to a poor kid who doesn't look all that interested. "Seems like it's Casey who's doing the traumatizing, after all."

Mikey snorts. "Yeah, alright, that's a win for you."

"What was that? Sorry, Mikey, I don't speak loser," Leo pushes.

Mikey elbows him goodnaturedly. "Hey, I'm saying you're right, that's like, the only thing you'd understand no matter the language."

"Damn right!" Leo smirks, and leaves it at that. Mikey should probably be surprised he isn't bragging about it more, but the way his brother looks at Casey Junior tells him his mind isn't completely focused on the conversation.

He gets it. If he's being honest with himself, Mikey knows he sometimes has that look, too.

He glances back and forth between Casey Junior still infodumping on his poor friend, and Leonardo proudly watching over his protégé. The positive energy radiating from them is enough that he resolves to bring Junior new books, too, each time he has the opportunity.

And so he does for the next few weeks.

Between the novels Leonardo brings back from scouting missions and the books Michelangelo manages to get from people owing him favors, Casey Junior slowly but surely builds his own personal library, safely stored in a carton under his bed.

The kid reads about anything they can find. He beams each time he receives something new, and by the time they get to ask him about the latest addition to the collection, he's already read it two times at least.

So it really shouldn’t come as a surprise that one day, Casey Senior comes for their throats.

“BLUE TURTLE!”

Michelangelo and Leonardo are in the middle of the morning report with a few scouts. The authority in Cassandra’s voice has Leonardo’s body go still in a split second.

Mikey raises a brow at him. “I was pretty sure she knew your actual name by now.”

“She only calls me that when she’s pissed,” Leo explains, eyes wide and panicked.

“HAS ANYONE SEEN THE BLUE ONE?” Cassandra’s voice shouts again, and this time, Leonardo springs into motion.

“Meeting adjourned!” he yelps to three very baffled scouting agents before clutching at the collar of Mikey’s cape. “Mike, hermano, you have to hide me -”

“You’re both there! Good.”

Cassandra is standing in the doorway of the briefing room and Michelangelo doesn’t even have to squint to notice the menacing aura that surrounds her.

She is furious.

“Heyyy, Cassie!” his brother tries in his cheesiest voice, an overcompensation for the nervousness tightening his whole body. “How’re we doing today, my gal? You look fabulous! Something new with your hair?”

Cassandra isn’t having his nonsense, and she makes it clear by stomping towards them with steps so heavy Mikey instinctively checks the concrete floor for footprints.

He doesn’t have the slightest idea what’s going on, but it isn’t good.

His mystic powers slowly lift him up into the air.

“Oh, no, neither of you is escaping this,” Cassandra chuckles, low and dark, as she grabs both Mikey’s cloak and Leo’s scarf. Michelangelo is pretty sure she would’ve seized them by the ears, if they’d had any.

By the corner of his eyes, he sees the three scouts leave the room as discreetly as they can.

“Escaping what?” he asks with an apprehensive smile, his toes a few inches above the ground.

“What have you done to my son?”

Leo and Mikey exchange a bewildered look.

“Junior?” Leo immediately presses. “What’s the matter with him?”

“The matter is he’s becoming a nerd!” Cassandra snaps, and Michelangelo flinches. Ah. That was bound to happen, at some point.

“Are you talking about the books?” he asks as gently as he can. “Because if so, I really don’t see how -”

“He isn’t helping with chores anymore!” Casey Senior presses on, her glare sharp enough to make him go quiet. “He’s running off every time he can, hiding out of my sight more often than not, and when he does come out of whatever rabbit hole he’s spent his day into, he speaks about things I don’t know shit about.” Leonardo tries to take a step back, but she just holds onto his scarf tighter. “What. Have you. Done. To my. Son?”

Leonardo hisses, his scarf apparently pressing a little too much into his throat for comfort. “Casey,” he pleads, voice just a little hoarse, “I swear we mean well -”

“Kids gotta be kids, you know?” Mikey advocates. “You were a Lou Jitsu fan when we were teens, remember?”

“Of course I remember!” Cassandra shouts, but she is distracted enough to let go of them, and they both keep their distance, just in case she starts acting aggressive again.

“There you go, then!” Mikey pushes, voice warm and soothing. “Every teenager needs something to keep the imagination busy. Don’t you think Junior needs it even more than we did when we were his age?”

Cassandra sighs, her shoulders slumping. She presses her fingers to her temples. “I know,” she says tiredly, “but I’m under the impression that nothing else interests him anymore. He doesn’t sound as excited about training as he did, and I’m getting worried about his sleep schedule.”

Something drops in Mikey’s stomach, and by the look on his brother’s face, he understands that he doesn’t like what he’s hearing, either. “Oh,” Leonardo says cautiously. “Well, no need to fret about his training, because he’s going as hard at it as he always has, but, uh…”

“But we could talk to him about not reading too late at night,” Mikey provides.

“Yeah. That.”

With a half-smile, Casey Senior looks back up at them. “Mhm. I guess that would work better coming from you than it does coming from me.”

Leonardo huffs a laugh. “Cool uncles’ privilege, am I right?”

“It’s just a phase, you know,” Mikey adds. “He probably won’t be that much into reading for very long.”

“I wouldn’t bet food on that,” Cassandra grimaces, but there isn’t any more bite to it. “This kid is stubborn as hell.”

“Oh, jeez, wonder where that - you know what? It’s so obvious I don’t think I need to say it." Leonardo eyerolls at her with a smile before getting serious again. “I’m sorry, Cassie. For getting you worried.”

“That much is obvious, too, blue one,” Cassandra says as she bumps her fist into his good shoulder. “No big deal. I mean it. I’m glad you guys get along with him so well.”

She glances back and forth between them, and a rare, soft expression washes over her features.

“He really loves you. Both of you.”

“Awww!” Michelangelo can’t help himself: he brings Cassandra and Leonardo into the tightest of hugs before they can register it. Leo protests a little, Casey protests a lot, but neither actually disengages, and that’s good enough for him.

They don’t stay like this for long, though; Casey is quick to excuse herself and go back to whatever she was doing, Leo straightens himself up and calls the scouts back, and the day starts over again as if nothing had happened at all.

Well, not exactly, Mikey corrects himself as he watches his brother resume the morning report where they had left it. There is a glint in his eyes now, an energy in his movements, an assurance in his voice that wasn’t quite there before. It’s a little amusing to him that the scout agents seem to notice, too.

It’s a little funny, getting to witness the way Leonardo’s serious leader image in the Resistance is slowly being tinted by his mushy side.

If anything, Michelangelo thinks it’s only doing him good.

How long will it take before Leo realizes he’s acting like a proud dad, though?

--------

Dad Material is a collab with @leosmasktails 💙

Beginning - Previous - Next

Sooo what started as Tails doing a comic where Casey Jr bitches about the eagles in the Return of the King movie is now a collab about Leonardo becoming a surrogate father figure and getting lots of Dad Feels. Life is crazy y'all ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

Comics are from @leosmasktails, ficlets are from me, and there's more on the way, lads, so stay tuned!

Oversight: 1 (comic) - 2 (comic & ficlet) - 3 (comic) - 4 (comic) - 5 (comic) - 6 (you're here) - 7 (next)

#dad material #collab #writing #leosmasktails #rottmnt #rise of the teenage mutant ninja turtles #save rottmnt #unpause rottmnt #rise of the tmnt

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all-eyes-lead-to-the-truth · 6 months ago

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All Eyes Lead to the Truth | Post-Modern Prometheus (5x05)

He watches as Dr. Pollidori is quickly shoved into the back of the local police cruiser. The crowd gathered around glares menacingly at the scientist as he’s driven away.

“Good riddance,” Izzy says, standing guard beside the FBI agent’s car where the Great Mutato is slumped over in the back seat. He has to fight a sudden urge to smuggle the guy a jar of peanut butter.

Pushing himself off the car, he shoves his hands in his pockets and sighs. Izzy Berkowitz may look dumb to some. He may be obsessed with comics while struggling to survive a hicktown childhood with nowhere to go but conventions, but he is far from stupid. Looks can be deceiving. The Great Mutato has surely proven that to everyone here. And looking at the would-be mob milling about, like something straight out of a scene from Frankenstein, Izzy feels ashamed of his judgment.

Mutato being created by his crazy scientist brother wasn’t his fault. He was innocent in that act. Though Mutato knew what his father was doing to women within those fumigation tents while he danced to Cher and learned of the world — did he really understand how messed up it was? That a farmer artificially inseminated unknowing women to try to create his son a mate?

Izzy cringes at that thought. Everything about this is messed up.

He strides into the house where Agents Mulder and Scully are, about to tell them exactly that, when Agent Mulder asks, “Where’s the writer? I want to speak to the writer.”

Izzy blinks. “Huh?”

“This isn’t how the story is supposed to end.” Agent Mulder looks at him as if he holds all the answers. He almost laughs, but it’s clear within the agent’s wild-eyed stare that he’s used to being laughed at. Izzy can relate.

“Just because I wrote stories about the Great Mutato, doesn’t mean I know anything about the real him,” he admits, glancing over his shoulder at Mutato’s bowed head. “I think… I think maybe it’s his turn to write what comes next.”

Agent Scully frowns. “What does that mean?”

“Let’s ask and find out,” Agent Mulder nods at the car.

“Mulder-”

The agent shoulders past Izzy, flinging open the car’s back door. Mutato looks up with two sets of sad eyes and holds out his wrists, waiting for the cuffs Izzy hopes never come.

Agent Mulder shakes his head. “If you could write a story for yourself, an ending that doesn’t involve experiments and isolation, what would it be?”

“I…” Both of Mutato’s mouths gape open. “Other than living in a world of acceptance alongside someone else like me, I’ve only ever dreamed of one thing…”

***

Then I'm walking in Memphis

I was walking with my feet ten feet off of Beale

Walking in Memphis

But do I really feel the way I feel?

Izzy’s smiling directly behind the FBI agents as the Cher sings to the Great Mutato in the front row. It’s like a dream: the claw-like hands of her biggest fan clapping to the beat and waving excitedly at the woman on stage.

He looks around the crowded concert hall and chuckles at the irony. Many of these people are the same ones who’d questioned Izzy’s own creativity for years, yet had no idea they are part of a similar kind of creation: a genetically altered town borne of a father’s misguided love for his adopted son. The simple folk of this rural Indiana town are no different than the man they’d called Monster and chased with pitchforks.

Maybe they’re all monsters.

Izzy kind of likes that.

But there's a pretty little thing

Waiting for the King

Down in the Jungle Room

As the disco ball spins and the spotlight shines down on the Great Mutato shimmying in his seat, Izzy catches Agent Mulder reach across the table to squeeze his partner’s hand. “Something wrong?”

She leans over, a tiny smirk tugging at her lips. “Just curious if Jerry Springer is hiding behind that curtain too.”

“You think?” he teases, and she rolls her eyes. “Come on, Scully, have a little fun.”

Izzy can see Agent Scully’s brow arch as her soft smirk turns playful. “Only a little?”

“Ah, Scully,” he gives a lopsided grin, and Izzy nearly rolls his own eyes at their blatant flirting. For a guy who gets laughed at, women sure love him. Agent Mulder turns then and gives the Great Mutato a high five.

And I sang with all my might

And he said "Tell me, are you a Christian, child?"

And I said "Man, I am tonight!"

The energy in the room swells with the chorus, urging Izzy to stand and sway with the rest of the town. As Cher walks down the stairs and reaches her hand out for the Great Mutato to hold, welcoming him onto the stage beside her, Izzy feels that warm sense of acceptance Mutato had mentioned wash over him.

Walking in Memphis

But do I really feel the way I feel?

Agent Mulder suddenly stands, bowing his head and reaching out his hand for his partner. Agent Scully seems as awed as Mutato had moments ago before sliding her hand into his, grinning gorgeously at him as he tugs her close, his one hand grasping hers as the other dips down to palm her lower back. They dance slowly, their eyes locked and noses nearly touching.

Izzy snorts.

Dang, the way they’re practically swooning in each other’s arms reminds him of the covers on his mom’s romance novels. He does roll his eyes then, looking up at the Great Mutato as he joyfully dances with his idol on stage. But if this is how this story of a man-made monster who’s never harmed a living soul is supposed to end, then he’s happy to watch two FBI agents gaze at one another under a disco ball.

Put on my blue suede shoes

Izzy shuts his eyes and says, “The End.”

Read the rest of All Eyes Lead to the Truth on AO3!

@monikafilefan

#all eyes lead to the truth #mulder #fanfic #x files fanfic #scully #x files #msr #the x files #season five #s5 #post modern prometheus #pmp #mutato #izzy

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kordifm · 1 year ago

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Dragons Rising S1 No Spoiler Review

Dragons Rising was truly amazing. For context, my brother and I stayed up until 2 am to binge-watch the season after I got home from classes for the day. We initially wanted to split the season in half for our watch through, but every episode, we found ourselves drawn in by the lore and the world building and all the silly little funny moments in between that could just exist because of the 20 20-minute episodes.

The opportunity to watch a season that isn’t capped at a short runtime due to corporate meddling is honestly a dream come true for Ninjago fans. The season felt so full and well-rounded, and I felt like the writers really were able to get everything they wanted in to the season. Obviously not every idea makes the final draft for any piece of creative work, but this one felt so much less bare bones than the previous seasons as far as time goes.

But my favorite part is the character development, hands down. I was so on the fence about Arin and Sora when the trailer first came out, not because I didn’t want to like them; but because I was afraid that they would seem too much like next-gen replacements in comparison to the OG ninja. Boy, was I wrong. They felt so real as characters and were absolutely written beyond my expectations.

Arin is such a pure cinnamon roll who looks up to the ninja and then gets to be one in his own right. He has this air of humility, always wanting to do what’s right as he learns what it takes to be a hero. And he just loves his new family all the while maintaining his hopes for seeing his parents again one day.

And Sora…well, I could write paragraphs about her character development. She honestly reminded me of myself in quite a few ways, so seeing her grow from being very non-involved and on the run from Imperium to conquering her initial doubts about the ninja and her own insecurities was such a treat to watch. She’s a character that is cynical about the world in many senses, but her heart is open to her new family and later in the season, herself and who she wants to be.

Needless to say, I loved them both, and I can’t wait to see where their stories go from here.

Alright, I have to talk about the OG ninja. Gone are the days when they are sidelined to be comic relief. Each episode had a very accurate picture of who they are as mentors and young adults (I will never get over Lloyd calling Arin and Sora “teens,” thereby distancing the OG ninja from that label). I love how Lloyd, Nya, and Kai get to be guides for Arin, Sora, and Wyldfire; albeit in their own ways. I could also spend an exorbitantly long amount of time on this topic, but the highlight for me is that they all had a different answer when their apprentice, if you will, asked them “Is that a Master Wu saying?”

I won’t write about the other three ninja at length here because I want to keep this non-spoilery, but I will say it’s great to see everyone once again, even for a little bit.

My brother likened the original Ninjago being a circle, and this season being the outer circle. We get to take a step back and see a bigger picture of the world and the characters, and we’re not even done yet. I want to make a list of all the open-ended questions that the season left us with because I am totally hyped up here. And of course, credits to everyone who worked on this project. I cannot wait to see what comes next.

#ninjago #ninjago dragons rising #ninjago arin #ninjago sora

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changelingsandothernonsense · 7 months ago

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20 Questions for Writers

Got tagged by both @throughtrialbyfire and by @redyn-nerevarine to do this fun questionnaire. Thanks for tagging me. :D

1. How many works do you have on AO3?

I currently have 9, though one of them is a collection of first person character studies that are technically each a separate story.

2. What's your total AO3 word count?

274,802... thats a lot considering I only started writing a year ago.

3. What fandoms do you write for?

Exclusively Elder Scrolls atm, Mostly focusing on Morrowind.

4. What are your top five fics by kudos?

Serious Mistakes, Sleepers Awake, Adherence, On Apocrypha, The Properties of Ash Hoppers and Slaughterfish.

5. Do you respond to comments?

I try to, though sometimes I get too overwhelmed by what to say and subsequently forget to reply. I swear if that has happened it's not because I don't appreciate them, I do, I'm just really sick atm and don't have a lot of energy to formulate a decent reply that isn't <3 <3 <3. I do try to reply.

6. What is the fic you wrote with the angstiest ending?

...Oh that's hard, all of them are like that. Adherence might take the cake though.

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

I don't write happy.

8. Do you get hate on fics?

I don't want to get to into it, but I did experience it once. It was pathetic on their end and I'd rather forget it.

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

I have included smut within fics, though I've never written one with that as the focus....that I've published. My kinks stay secret...

10. Do you write crossovers? If so, what's the craziest one you've written?

Never quite been a fan of crossovers to be honest. I'm also not so into isekai as a genre. So it's unlikely I'd ever dabble in it.

11. Have you ever had a fic stolen?

No.

12. Have you ever had a fic translated?

Nope.

13. Have you ever co-written a fic?

It's in the works ;)

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

Arg, it's 100% Josh and Erra . Give me my dumb cinnamon roll Ashlander OC and my kidnapped Skyrim NPC/ Nerevarine who I OCafied to a ridiculous degree any day and I am happy. Erra is a friend group favourite.

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

I have a pov from Joshi's father that I'm so close to finishing but I need to be in the mood to write 1st person.

16. What are your writing strengths?

I don't know to be honest, I have trouble with these kinds of questions.

17. What are your writing weaknesses?

I'm a new writer, only really started up with writing fan fiction last year. I still have a lot to learn.

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

If done well it's great. I love seeing Dunmeris being used within fics. I use a lot of Ashland, which I've compiled using the Akkadian and Sumerian languages as a the root with some Dunmeris mixed in. Assyiology has its benefits- namely I can pick up half the shit going on in Morrowind and Chimeris ;)

19. First fandom you wrote for?

Trinity Blood. (I made a comic as a teen that never actually put that online).

20. Favorite fic you've written?

A tie between Sleepers Awake (ongoing, main Morrowind fic) and Arkanis: Teldryn (which covers Teldryn (Josh) going through Kogoruhn as part of the Warrior Trial for Sul-Matuul.)

#tag games #stuff about writing

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paperboy-pb · 1 year ago

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Now that the prologue is done, I can't thank the fans of this series enough.

No, we haven't hit any particular follower milestone. The story has just begun. And most of you haven't given me any sort of financial support to help me out, either. (And that's alright! I haven't asked, lol.)

I'm thanking you for just being apart of the audience.

I started PB in a little blue notebook during the summer of 2015. It was originally meant for my eyes only. And a big part of the reason why was that, when I googled things like "Special Ed makes me feel bad," there wouldn't be much of anything coming up. There were Quora forums! A couple of YouTube videos. Articles here and there.

But it wasn't a lot. Not enough to help me out for long. And it only hammered the idea further into my head that I was alone in what I endured. As I got older, grew up, and away from the program and people who took my disabled youth, I constantly felt this urge to talk about it. What SpEd had put me through. What I'd lost. What I'd seen & heard. The things I did and didn't learn. Even though I was never a very open kid, let alone teenager.

I hated that no one was talking about it. And how nobody knew what happened to kids like me behind closed doors. At 13 and 14, almost none of the new friends I made had ever heard a life story like mine. And I've always found that wild: I had a LOT of friends! (Still do!)

So I kept drawing it out. Kept working on the story in notebooks, sketchbooks, my friends' DMs, and anywhere else words could go. Sometimes, my family would catch glimpses of the concept art. Sad sketches of Matthew crying, freaky drafts of Monster, or tense moments between what would become Class 7-C.

And one of my parents would be like, "Why is your art so depressing?" They'd roll their eyes. And they'd add on, "People's parents aren't gonna like it!"

No, I never told them what the story was about. I never even told them it was a children's media (because it kinda isn't! I'd personally put PB as 13+?) These were judgments made with just one glance at computer papers covered in pencil strokes; sketchy and shapey little kids who didn't look like they were having fun.

I knew they were wrong. But the audacity still pissed me off. There aren't many times where it's appropriate to boss somebody else around in how to tell their story, you know? Not only that, but I also worried about not having an audience back then. Sure, all my friends loved my work. But at the time, I was the only one who'd really experienced anything "Special Education" in life. Thus, these were General Ed kids watching it unfold. Able-bodied eyes and (as far as I knew back then) neurotypical minds, watching and learning from whatever I made.

And I liked that. But that wasn't the only group I wanted to be seen by. I wanted disabled people, especially youth in their teens and twenties, to see it. That's my primary audience. And shit like that made me wonder if I'd ever find it. Had me second-guessing myself a little, you know?

But I shook it off. It's like that thing teachers always say in class. "If you're confused or have a question, ask: whatever it is, you probably aren't the only one thinking it!"

And I searched for stuff like PAPERBOY, hadn't I? Yeah. I had. So by that logic, other people definitely would be, too.

So I stuck to my guns, and... check it! Y'all showed up!

One thing I've noticed ever since publishing part 1 is that the PB Nation is pretty damn devoted. You guys have been patient, passionate, silly, and unapologetically yourselves since the get-go. And the response to every old promotional comic or post I've made has been OVERWHELMINGLY positive and curious. I've gotten fucking fanart, man! More than once! I've had the honor of meeting a few of you in person already! And for the ones who haven't caught me out with my friends in New York, believe me, I REMEMBER who comments what.

By the way, you guys should spam my comments more. Fuckin' love that shit. SPEAK TO ME, lmao. Even if it's like, the most irrelevant PB question ever. Keyboard smash in my comment sections. Send me disability reels you like. Tell me what you wanna see from the story. Whatever, as long as it doesn't bleed into parasocial territory!

I've gotta have one of the best audiences out there. So thank you! For just... being around. Here's to hoping y'all enjoy the journey we're aboutta go on.

#paperboy pb #paperboy #author's note #disability #disabled artist #disabled writer #webtoon canvas creator

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retroghouls-if · 1 year ago

Note

Care to share some facts about the ROs?

Sorry, this took me so long to answer. I had to think about things that wouldn't be too spoilery.

Ilim

After having done on and off gigs with a bunch of different small bands as a fill-in, Ilim got their big break into the music scene when they got hired as the drummer for the rock band Mouthpiece. While it didn’t last very long – they were with the band for just over a year – it definitely got the ball rolling for them. Which is where things get a little complicated because Ilim (before Mouthpiece) apprenticed at a tattoo parlor so now they have this strange, limbo image of a celebrity tattoo artist who also drums sometimes.

Tuesday

Tuesday started out playing the guitar. However, their main band needed a bassist who could on occasion contribute rhythm guitar stuff depending on the song. So, they learned the bass and it’s just sort of stuck to them. They love both instruments but for different reasons. At the start of the story, Tuesday will be a part of Mouthpiece although they will have joined sometime after Ilim left.

Micky

Micky comes across to some as very soft. They have a quiet voice, light footsteps, and they always seem to be trying to take up as little space as possible, which allows them to be super sneaky. They’ll never admit it, but they get a kick out of popping up behind people and scaring the shit out of them. They’re a big fan of horror too, be it movies, games, or comics. Micky also plays into an image of being passive and shy when the reality is much less cut and dry.

Jack/Jackie

Up until they turned fourteen, J would spend each weekend with their grandparents. On Saturdays, their grandmother taught them how to sew and on Sundays their grandfather would take them on a drive after church. Because of this, J is extremely talented at tailoring (they could have made a living off it) and an absolute maniac on the road. To this day, whenever they get too stressed out they’ll go for a drive.

#retroghouls if #retro ghouls if #micky #ilim #tuesday #j #ro ask #answered

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actualalligator · 9 months ago

Note

#10 through #20.

For any that require a fic title, take your pick 😘

TANIS

10. Is there a fic that got a different response than you were expecting?

"Diaz, Party of 4" has more kudos than my next most popular 911 fic by almost 100% and I have never written abo like that, so I wasn't even sure it was going to be something people wanted to read, so very surprising!! (And pleasant!!)

11. Do you have specific playlists for writing fics?

Nope.

12. Do you have a playlist for your current WIP(s)? Share it!

Nope. Lol.

13. How much planning do you do before writing?

I usually think about it for a day, just roll it around in my head for some time, then start writing, so not... a lot?

14. If you could see one of your fics adapted into a visual medium, such as comic or film, which fan fic would you pick?

"Kindle" I'd love to see Eddie being kinky in a fucking home depot.

15. How do you come up with titles for your fics/chapters?

Stare, cry, for the love is a burning thing series, I Google "fire words" eventually something comes to me

16. At what point in the process do you come up with titles?

Usually at the end, but sometimes in the middle or at the beginning. Depends.

17. What’s something you’ve learned about while doing research for a fic?

You can live with only one lung. Fire fighters probably don't get paid enough. And Dalmatians used to be carriage guards because they were good around horses. Also the invention of green bean casserole

18. What’s one of your favorite lines you’ve written in a fic?

This isn't posted yet, but: “That's fine, just know that when this time you need passes, it's gone. You can never get it back. And we will continue living our lives. I'm not trying to be mean, it's just true.”

19. Give us a small teaser from one of your WIPs.

“My tia told me that he was going to be a babe magnet after my wife left. She said the single dad thing was irresistible,” Eddie said. He pulled his hand back and flipped the sandwich over a few times on the plate. “I want you to be my friend, Buck, and I want to be yours. That's all I can offer right now. Is that enough?” Buck rubbed at the condensation on the glass with his thumb, then nodded. “It is. As long as Christopher is also part of the deal.” Eddie grinned. “A two-for-one special.”

20. What’s a favorite title for a fic you've written?

"And I'll never see you again if I can help it." I've listened to this song more than 100 times in the past 2 weeks, and I want this line tattooed on my thigh. If you ask me in a week, I'll have a different answer.

#ask game #omg tanis

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thestupidhelmet · 2 years ago

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That ‘90s Show Reviews

“Lip Smackers”

Three episodes into That ‘90s Show, and I don’t get a That ‘70s Show feeling from it at all despite Red and Kitty’s strong presence and other recognizable elements. Mentally and emotionally, it’s a bit discombobulating for me. I watched T7S when it originally aired. And for the last thirteen years, I’ve been steeped in the T7S fandom, analyzing the show, talking about it with fellow fans, writing millions of words of fanfic, and drawing thousands of comics. T9S doesn’t have the same flavor (in a metaphorical sense) as T7S despite what it’s inherited and taken from T7S. That being said, I’m overall enjoying That ‘90s Show as its own thing and getting more Red-and-Kitty content, but aspects of T9S—beyond how it doesn’t fit in T7S’s universe—are throwing me off.

--Fez #6 is CAMPY. Which is not an issue in and of itself. But Fez isn’t campy on T7S. He’s a fish out of water (in all versions but T7S season 8, where his main personality traits morphed into sexism and womanizing). At least he’s holding a Tootsie Roll in his salon commercia and says, “I said good day,” which are nods to T7S!Fez. --Oz getting stuck in Nate and Nikki’s make-out gave me a laugh. --Finally, some real Oz content and background. Some, but I’d like to know what his friendships are like with the other characters. Go deeper, show. What connects Oz to them? What connects them to Oz? Why do they care about one another? What’s their history? (Yes, it’s only episode three. But I do hope these questions are answered by the first half of the season.) --I’d also like to know more about Nikki, but the force of her personality is very strong. We get a lot simply from her actress’s performance. Great casting, imo. --I am happy that T9S decided to stick with T7S S1-S7’s ongoing joke of us never learning where Fez is from. Another part of T7S season 8 has been erased … from existence (well, the T9S universe). I would like to know what Kitty said while her voice was drowned out, lol. --Aaaaand a meld of T7S S7-S8 Fez season is in the house. --Fez and Kitty’s conversation in Fez’s salon reminds me of their dynamic in season 8. Fez being rich and successful—no problem with that. How, though … the salon … and the fact T7S season 8 ended with Jackie sweeping at the salon Fez worked at in order to “humble her” (since the S8 showrunners hated her character with more than a touch of misogyny). I’m glad for Jackie that S8, as well as T9S, are on-screen AUs and not canon. By their very nature, they can’t be canon since real!Jackie would never make the choices she makes in those AUs. --When describing Sherri, Fez says he “hasn’t felt this way about a girl since Jackie.” Kitty asks what happened between him and Jackie. Real World Explanation: The actors who played Jackie and Kelso got married, and the people behind T9S wanted to capitalize on that. That ‘90s Show’s Explanation: Jackie left Fez for Kelso. Simple. What we all thought. But, really, Fez was heartbroken over her for fifteen years? Uh, no. (Of course, they never actually dated in the canon T7S universe, so none of this is real. Moving on … for now?) --Kitty gets turned on by Fez for a moment. Just like she, er, appreciated Kelso’s body in That ‘90s Show after he hugged her. For “the laughs”. Not fidelity to character. (Reminds me a bit of the T7S parody porn. I saw the version with all the sex parts cut out (thankfully). But these Kitty-is-attracted-to-her-surrogate-kids-now-that-they’re-adults moments are beyond cringey. They’re squicky. --Leia’s awkwardness trying to get her first kiss at the mall reminds me of Eric. --Jay Kelso has been characterized as a man-whore by Oz and Gwen. --Fez got his MOM on the phone, according to Sherri. (Man, my T7S brain and my T9S-as-a-canon-divergent-AU brain are clashing. There are answers to questions I wish T7S had given us and never did, but T9S’s answers don’t fit with T7S’s universe). --Red in the massage chair is hilarious. He doesn’t need a circle. He just needs a chair from Sharper Image. The fact he asks if he and Kitty should get a cat tells us he is out of his mind, lmao. (He hates cats.) --Jay and Leia’s scene on the car. Depth for Jay (yay). --Oh, man. Fez made a sex joke about Kitty (but he did that on T7S, so that’s nothing new). --Fez being shocked about Sherri being in her forties and saying, that he “really dodged a bullet there,” is season-8!Fez all over. Real!Fez loves them big, loves them small; he loves them all (that applies to age, too—legal age).And his reaction to Sherri having kids, he’d be more like Gus on Psych, wanting to become insta!Dad to them, not scared off. --Gwen [frustrated] to Leia, “You dork! I’ve been telling you how all along how awesome you are, but it took some guy to say that for it all to sink in.” A lot of Gwen and Leia’s interactions and dialogue so far can reasonably be interpreted as having romantic subtext (despite that this is not the writers’ intentions). --Glad Oz’s boyfriend is real. --Final thoughts on T9S!Fez as depicted in this episode: he is cobbled-together mess of characterization. It’s all over the place. While he is recognizable as Fez, I don’t truly know or understand who that Fez is. It’s vague, nebulous, and ungrounded.

#That '90s Show #That 70s Show #That '70s Show #Red x Kitty #Eric Forman #Spoilers #T9S 1x03 #My Meta #My Essay #Meta #Essay

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