#ride or die fandom

[brrypiiix]

(Not Ship Post/lh)

I wanted to put them in glam rock fashion but it came out looking more jester-ish. It is what it is👍

[justarandombrit]

Is this meme still around?

[skulls-and-wishbones]

Hey do you guys remember when dex tried to give Sophie homebrew steroids and nearly killed her when they were both twelve? What was up with that?

[thatswhatsushesaid]

psa that the day there are no jgy stans left on tumblr dot com is the day i am dead

but rest assured i'll go to my grave exactly as i lived: obnoxiously proclaiming to everyone within earshot how great lianfang-zun is. narratively, metaphorically, spiritually. sexually, too, like why limit myself. i like to keep my options open

[lilyrizzy]

nico hischier, family & home

the athletic / guess how much I love you - sam mcbratney / the ny times / the players tribune / the hockey news / giovanni’s room - james baldwin / markerzone / regrets - hether / electra - euripides

[thecompletebookworm]

If I click “Subscribe” to an author on AO3, they’re basically stuck with me forever. Like there are at least two people who I haven’t shared a fandom with in about 5 years, yet I squeal when I get an email notification from them. Sometimes our interests end up aligning again but most of the time it’s just a little reminder that people I love are out there creating.

[felassan]

remember that wild Dragon Age theme park ride (Dragon Age: Flight of the Wardens), originally located in Dubai until it randomly turned up years later (now also oddly-rebranded as "[Not Dragon Age We Swears It]: The Guardian") in, of all places, Skegness England? well, I had to satisfy my curiosity and obsession with obscure pieces of Dragon Age media & archival thereof. and so - actually quite some time ago now - I finally got around to going on a pilgrimage there (which was this whole, like.. heinous harrowing in and of itself, that I will not go into), and I rode it

and to my surprise the original Dragon Age in-ride movie is still part of the ride experience! - complete with references to darkspawn, a Pride demon, dragons, green "rifts", Discount Anders (a Grey Warden[?] mage called 'Eldron'), Discount Yavanna (a Witch of the Wilds called 'Alexia') and Dragon Age: Inquisition soundtrack music. there is also now a new pre-ride movie which replaces the old Dragon Age pre-ride movie as part of the ride's rebranding, and i simply ?¿?

there are also still quite a lot of identifiable Dragon Age props in the fantasy-themed queue-area of the ride (so these must have been part of the whole purchase between parks), including multiple iconic Inquisitor helmets, Grey Warden shields, a Dragon Age dragon (now with DA-dragon identifiable horns.. sawn off??), and several Dragon Age banners, including the Inquisition hairy eyeball, the templar symbol and the Circle symbol. here's some pictures.

[^this image is taken from the video linked below]

I also captured the new pre-ride movie, and you can see it along with the Dragon Age in-ride movie here ⬇️. and so now, with this epilogue to the.. most odyssey of all time, more than two years after the first message about the ride was ever sent to Ghil Dirthalen, this adventure in obscurity and the strange fever-dream meta story of the Dragon Age: Flight of the Wardens era in Dragon Age history is finally complete.

Ghil Dirthalen: The Guardian??? {Overview. - Spoilers All}

[video source & link: Ghil Dirthalen, posted here w/ permission]

some further notes, thoughts and commentary under the cut -

there's a few seconds missing from this capture of the in-ride movie. for the sake of the curious and completion: in them, you're still in the fort and you see lots of 'Wardens' walking and milling around.

a camera in the ride takes two photos of the riders during the ride, which are displayed on a screen on the way out. you can choose to buy these from the Fantasy Island merchandise store. you know those photos of people on log flume rides? it's like those, only of the four riders in a row in the seats. the photos have Fantasy Island branding on them and fire along the bottom, then in two corners there's a bit of a dragon's head and that's about it. the ride photo is the only Guardian-specific merch available at the park.

some of the queue area props appear to be from random other places. like there was a barrel which had something like "1850 distillery" written on it, which is obviously temporally/thematically and universe-ly out of place (not that that's at all unreasonable given the rest of the rideworld lore, there's totally a way it could have gotten there easily hh, see below), and I guess it's a spare or leftover prop from a Western-themed ride or something? others were generic sword'n'sorcery fantasy props (some of these are from the ride's previous life in Dubai though). there are also some pretty random props, like a dead stuffed roe deer's head on the wall and a.. comically large spoon.

there's music playing in the queue area, but it's not DA music, it's generic ye olde fantasy world music.

some folks there mistakenly thought that the long themed lead-up (it was pretty darn long) queue area with the props was the entrance to or start of something completely different, like a haunted house or maze type thing, or was the ride 'experience' in and of itself.

the ride attendant gives you the option of watching the new pre-ride movie or not. I guess they get sick of putting it on and listening to it 9000 times a day (valid), and also cutting it out reduces queue times as it's about five minutes long. it's screened in a little enclosed room at the end of the queue area. you go in and sit down, they show it to you, then you go through another door to the chair machine.

the in-ride movie is blurry and poor quality. I heard someone else who rode it say that it was so blurry that they had no idea what was going on hhh

Now about the new pre-ride movie. first of all, here's the transcript.

Pre-ride movie transcript "Welcome, my friends, to the gates of our kingdom, and the start of your adventure. I know your journey has been a long and arduous climb to get here, but we are grateful that you are the ones that have stepped forward to help us in our quest. I should probably start at the beginning. My name is King Aethelswyth [sp?] and I am the ruler of Elvia [sp?] - at least, what's left of it. You see, six months ago, our world was invaded by giant demons and creatures from another dimension, which now plunder our lands, and continue to destroy our kingdom piece by piece. They came, through a time-rift, from another world, leaving much destruction in their wake. Ever since they came, our people have defended as best they are able, but, we were once a peaceful race, and sadly no match for the giant demons and dragons. Luckily, a few days ago, help arrived. They came through the rift, human in form but with incredible powers, and the ability to not only fly but transform into dragon-like creatures. That's where you all come in. You see, not only have they brought hope to our lands, but also gifted us with technology, the likes of which we have never seen before. This communication device for example - it enables us to talk to each other from great distances without being in the same room. And there is something else, and the reason why you are here. They provided us with plans to create our own machine, which as we speak is being prepared for your mission. I should explain. The machine, although made of metal and advanced technologies we can't even begin to understand, requires biological matter to function; a very specific amount of oxygen, carbon, hydrogen, nitrogen and calcium, all of which you are made from my friends. Once you are connected to the machine, you will be lifted into the portal and instantly dropped into the outer world. You'll be able to fight alongside the guardians and help close the rift once and for all. I won't lie. The mission will be dangerous, but with your help, we can defeat the giant demons, close the rift and save the kingdom. Hahahaha! [dragon roars] Ah, do not be afraid! This is Mia [sp?], one of the dragon guardians. She will help you on your quest and guide you to the rift. There it will be up to you to find a way to close it. My friends, it is almost time for you to enter the machine, and become the guardians! [inaudible] a safe journey. Save Elvia, become the heroes you're destined to be! The gates will open momentarily, as soon as the machine is ready for you. Good luck my friends, and I'll see you on the other side!"

in the linked video, the start of the new pre-ride movie isn't included in full at normal speed as it seemed to be a compilation of whatever random fantasy-themed stock footage the video creator could find, stitched together. but again for the curious and the sake of completion: it starts out panning randomly around SPACE, like at the solar system and of planets and at the Milky Way. for a sec I wondered if it was made up of random old Mass Effect assets. then it shows dragons (FROM SPACE) invading an Earth-like planet where I suppose the Ferelden-y kindgom (formerly called "Noathen", now called "Elvia" or something) setting in the rideworld is now supposed to be set. these invading dragons invade either from space or.. another dimension?? or maybe from the future or both?? [see below], entering through a big green rift. (and they still have the green coloring for the rifts and call it/them "rifts" like in DA, which was honestly so funny to me for some reason). the whole panning in from space start to the movie reminded me a lot of the Easter eggs in the DA and ME games that, while they're just Easter eggs for fun and I don't subscribe to this theory myself (as DA is its own great, self-contained thing), could light-heartedly imply that the planet with Thedas on it is a planet in the MEverse (like the krogan head in the Winter Palace in DAI or the ogre in that ME dlc).

in the pre-ride movie, the kingdom of "Elvia" might have actually been called "Albion", which is the earliest-known name for the island of Britain. (it was hard to make out exactly what the king was saying there) the new pre-ride movie seems like it was made in England and ofc thats a common fantasy setting, so I could see it, especially since the king character's name was something like Aethylswyth, which sounded very "Old English". for me personally, if it was "Albion", it adds fuel to the fire of Caitie's cracktheory/"trying to make this fit"-headcanon for the ride story/lore (see Caitie's original video on the ride's previous life for this), that it's set somewhere obscure and backwatery in Ferelden, which is kinda England- or Britain-inspired. (dont take these thoughts or other thoughts in this post about the lore/canon etc too srsly pls hh, it's just crack for fun and I know tis just an off-brand themepark ride)

on the whole the new pre-ride movie is pretty random. there's a giant in it, but it doesn't look like a DAI giant. (is it his big spoon??) it shows a fortress in part of it which looks a bit like Skyhold if you squint, with the long bridge approaching it as the entrance. at one point one of the dragons that pops up is a dragon designed more in the style of a dragon as they are sometimes depicted in, for example, Chinese mythology and folklore. the "communication device" the king described had me rolling, it's exactly like a Dragon Age Skype Crystal or a working set of eluvians from Thedas.. I wondered if the video creator was inspired some by DAI promo images and took cues from the Inquisitor's green hand/the Anchor, since the king has a green glowing thing on (or in?) his chest. and when the king started listing the elements humans are made of, I was reminded of Fullmetal Alchemist.

also, "through a time rift".. I mean technically Dorian's involvement in DAI DOES show green space-time magic right? Where is this other dimension? ofc I know it's not literally Dragon Age, but it's funny to think about and to try and make it "fit" skhskdhfjhe. is it the Fade? the Void? from somewhere in-between like Tevinter Nights implies exists? or is it the dimension which has Thedas's mundane world itself in it - like maybe the dragons are invading this poor guy's kingdom dimension from Thedas? if so what tf is going on in Thedas?? did Solas' explosion at the Conclave ripple through spacetime and rip holes in the fabrics of other worlds as well - like is Solas out here accidentally causing interdimensional Space Dragon invasions? like, theoretically.. the new pre-ride move does reference the in-ride movie, and in turn the in-ride movie is still Dragon Age (!), so technically the new pre-ride movie IS.. kind of.. weirdly.. canon.

((the pre-ride movie references an "outerworld", implying that even in THAT dimension there's an outer world and an inner world, definitely more than one at least. and back on the dimensions thing, I'm not clear - are the dragons coming from Thedas dimension? or are they coming to Thedas dimension? "they came through the rift, human in form but with powers, the ability to fly [that's Eldron] and the ability to transform into dragon-like creatures [that's Alexia]" implies that the dimension on the other side of the rift - if the helpers came through the same rift as the invading dragons - is Thedas, because that's Eldron and Alexia from the Dragon Age in-ride movie being referred to, and Noathen where they're from is in Thedas somewhere. so some Thedosians have travelled to another world to save it?? Dragons are escaping out of Thedas? but.. from space? but also - the narration is telling us that Eldron and Alexia and the other Guardians brought with them from where they came from, as a gift, incredible advanced technology that the people of Elvia have never seen before. he then gives the example of "this communication device" which could be read meta-ly as meaning the television screen, and of plans to build a machine made of metal and advanced technology (meaning the ride machine you go sit on, which is a themepark machine irl obviously and in the 'world' of the ride, some kind of flying machine). so like.. are Eldron and Alexia from Future Thedas (think Avatar Aang/Korra, when by Korra's time there's like lots more machinery and a more modern feel), a Thedas which has advanced complex machines like idk, AEROPLANES? is that what they mean by "time-rift"? because they specifically did say "time". is that to try and explain the modern machinery? does that mean the invading dragons also came from the future, not just from space or another dimension? the other option: Eldron and Alexia came from alternate universe Thedas, which has more modern technology in it. but Thedosians Time-Travelling From The Future And Also Space And Another Dimension is so funny to me so lets go with that. my headcanon is that on the way to Elvia they also timetravelled through a Westernthemed time period and thats why theres a recent-modern period whisky barrel)).

in the ride's previous life, the explanatory hook was that Eldron made you a special harness or saddle thing with which to ride a dragon, which was what the ride machine was simulating. however now, the hook to explain the machine is that it's a gift of advanced technology powered by carbon, hydrogen, organic matter (Big Oil lmao?) etc. (I enjoyed that this explanatory hook got wackier between eras of the ride's life, much like the whole meta story of this piece of media itself. it was already weird because riding dragons isn't really part of DA. though I don't understand meta-ly speaking this convoluted explanation for the machine. dragon-riding isn't an identifiable or key part of the Dragon Age franchise, so they could have kept the idea that you're sitting on a dragon's back and flying around on that in instead of having this wacky explanation about a flying machine gifted from magical strangers from Back To The Future and it would have been fine. I love it though bc its so absurd)

And Tiny Dragon Alexia from the original ride experience is kinda referenced (unintentionally?) when the king introduces the dragon "Guardian" "Mia", as when she comes on-screen her size or scaling looks small/kinda off, so maybe Tiny Dragon lives on. so now we have Tiny Dragon Alexia, Tiny Dragon Mia, and Tiny Dragon queue prop. it's a Tiny Dragon Conference.

and like I just have so many questions. in her original video on the ride, Ghil Dirthalen wondered at length where in Ferelden/Thedas Noathen could be. where is Elvia? why does the pov of the pre-ride movie proceed downstairs into the room where the king is - like why does the king have his throne in a basement? is he in an underground bunker for safety because of the Space Dragon invasion? why does he say we "climbed" up when we have just gone down into his dungeon? why is the tiny dragon introduced as "Mia" when the tiny dragon witch lady in the in-ride movie is called "Alexia"? does the king's green glowing chest thing work like the Anchor - does he have a chest Anchor.. a Chanchor? where did they get Discount Gandalf from the queue area and why is he exactly like the Ghil Dirthalen Stock Theatre Wizards in her original video? why did they change the kingdom's name from "Noathen" to "Elvia" in the pre-ride movie when "Noathen" was already non-existent in Dragon Age lore? why did they scrub Dragon Age from or avoid Dragon Age in the pre-ride movie but leave the whole Dragon Age in-ride movie intact? are the "Guardians" Discount Grey Wardens? is the king's whole schpeel secretly an evil plot so he that can use our bodies for like necromancy-alchemy? why does the ride run on your flesh and are we about to be sacrificed in a blood magic ritual? do we end up like the husks in Mass Effect after our organic forms are broken down into compounds to fuel the King of Elvia's flying anti-dragon defense tank? is the actor of the king a park staffer who is into larping, or someone's fun nerd uncle who likes DnD? does Caitie not in fact agree that I am very handsome and smart, indeed the World's Most Interesting Guy? 😤 why go to the trouble of sawing off the dragon's DA-dragon horns when the in-ride movie is still Dragon Age?? why are the dragons invading from space anyway like what do they want??? how can I obtain the king actor guy's autograph? where are EA's lawyers? and why is there a giant spoon?

[purplearrowzandleather-blog]

Ice and Slider: Hey, Goose?

Goose: What?

Ice, frowning: Don't you think you should seek help?

Goose: What for?

Slider: Well.... You kinda got... an attachment. *Motions to a blanket-covered lump on Goose's back*

Goose: It's my emotional support attachment. Fuck off

Suspiciously Maverick-sounding lump: Yeah. Fuck off!

[imagination-phantom]

Day 10! Undead!

Had to do Hunkle Stan! That my baby girl! My ride or die!

This was the episode that made a lot of people in fandom say WOW Stan is so hot! However ya girl was on that train WAY before that unfortunately XD. I will say that seeing people talk about this on the Internet then was what made me give it a try! Gravity Falls from the beginning,was amazing an still hold up to this day! So yeah this episode is so special to me and did solidified the fact that I knew Stan was gonna be one of my top my comfort character. And he still is to this day!

[soaked4mk]

face sitting raiden? he would definitely love ts and wanna suffocate under your thicc thighs prove me wrong.

Can I Taste You? // Raiden x Reader smut shot

👽:Oooh, how bout I prove you right, anon. Because I TOTALLY AGREE SKSKSKSK. I kept this one short and sweet. (Not proof read)

⚠️: Low key exhibitionism?, Face sitting/Cunnilingus

︶꒦꒷♡꒷꒦︶︶꒦꒷♡꒷꒦︶︶꒦꒷♡꒷꒦︶

★ You and raiden were training in the fields, practicing your moves with each other, enjoying the shared moment as you admired each others skill set.

★ The weather was perfect for your favorite tank top and spandex shorts. You finish kicking one of the dummy’s before turning to Raiden, asking for a friendly sparring match, hoping it would invigorate your skills a bit more.

★ “Of course, Y/N…” he responded with a friendly demeanor. “Can I get a kiss first?” He cutely asked as he approached you.

★ You smile and nod, gladly giving him a sweet, but short kiss on the lips. Raiden would hold the back of your neck gently, as the kiss deepened a little bit, you smiled against his lips, tugging at his lower one with your teeth, separating before it would distract you two from the matter at hand.

★ Seemingly charged up from the affection, Raiden is getting into position. While you do your own stance, you motion for him to make the first move.

★ He nods before sprinting towards you with a flying kick, you easily dodge it as he stumbles forward a bit. you had practically seen it coming from a mile away. Smirking before landing a solid jab to his side, you decide to taunt him a little.

★ “Wow, great first blow, champion~.” Raiden regains his balance again, before turning to you, rolling his eyes at your teasing remark. “Be careful with your teasing, we’ve only just begun.” He smiled a bit as he went back in, sweeping a foot under your legs, dropping you to the ground below.

★ “nngh- damn…” you immediately go to get back up but raiden steps over you, entrapping you between both of his legs, folding his buff arms over his chest as he looks down at you, with a small smirk creeping onto his lips.

★ “See what I mean? You seemed to have spoken too soon. A common mistake that Kung Lao makes…” you weren’t even listening to his lighthearted scolding. looking up at his towering figure, you swallow a bit at the angle you were getting, face flushing, you turn your head in an attempt to regain your composure.

★ You swiftly move out from beneath his legs, sliding your way behind him and quickly getting to your feet, grabbing both his shoulders you manage to throw him to the ground, back first. And with a thud, he let out a small sound.

★ “Fast…very fast…” he coughed a bit, as he attempted to get back up, but this time you stood over him, looking down at the demi-god as you stood over him, casting a shadow over him, with a sly smirk playing across your lips. Happy with the way the tables have turned.

★ “Thanks, I try.” You smugly agree as you examine his facial expressions. His chest was heaving a bit, eyes glossed as they flickered over your form towering above him. His cheeks seemed to have flushed just like yours did earlier.

★ Raiden then suddenly grabbed both of your ankles, sweeping you to the ground, causing you to fall on top of him. Panicking, as you didn’t want to lose the spar just yet, you quickly sit up, scrambling to pin his wrists down, as he fights against it.

★ “Ugh— just!” A bit frustrated, you finally decide to just use your strong suit. Your legs. You quickly bring a knee down on Raidens shoulder, pinning it to the ground beneath, as you do the same with your other. Almost sitting in a ‘w’ pose, on top of his chest, you now had him at your mercy.

★ “Yeah! Try and get outta this one ‘God of Thunder’. you mock, as you bask in the moment of dominance you held over your partner, too busy celebrating to notice how his eyes were tracing along your inner thighs. Seemingly lost in his thoughts. Your eyebrows knitted together as you noticed his head was practically between your legs!

★ Realizing this, you clear your throat a bit, attempting to get off of him. you shift to stand—only for his hands to escape beneath the pin you held, and lightly smack on each thigh, keeping you in place. Raiden's eyes were clouded with lust as he looked up at you.

★ “C-can I taste you…please~?” He practically begged as he kissed your inner thigh, feeling a small, electric shock from the contact. The sensation made you buck your hips slightly. “Raiden…right here…?” You ask, looking around the secluded field.

★ He nodded “mhmm~.” his eyes never left yours, kissing and licking the skin of your inner thighs, kneading the plushness of them as he left small love bites. Your heart skipped a beat at the thought of him going down on you in the middle of these training grounds.

★ “I-I don’t know…rai.” You stammer a bit, biting your lower lip as his kisses continue. “Well, I certainly do.” He slyly remarked, bringing his gaze to your soaked spandex. “It’s just…what if we get caught?” “Trust me, Y/N…” He encouraged, nipping a bit at the edge of your shorts, sliding his tongue along your panty line. “We won’t.”

★ Taken aback by the sudden boldness of your lover, you hesitated before reconciling. “A-alright but, should we at least move—

★ You were cut off as he pulled you up closer to his face, burying his nose into the heat between your thighs. Licking your wetness through your thin spandex, you held back a moan, trying your best from throwing your head back in pleasure. you whined as your hips began to grind, rubbing your clothed pussy against his tongue, aching for more.

★ “Mmmh~” Raidens groans were muffled as he nuzzled into your wet cunt even more, tracing the outline of your soaked pussy through the soaked fabric. “Hmff~ mmmh~” Struggling to keep your eyes on the man, a red flush taking over your face completely, as the vibrations of his moans sent shocks of pleasure through your clit.

★ Lapping his tongue a bit more, you bucked your hips, in hopes that he would read your signals and further his actions. He hummed once again, before tapping his right hand on your thigh. Catching the drift, since he was still pinned beneath you, you pulled your shorts to the side for him, causing him to smile against your inner thigh.

★ His gaze lingers on your soaked core, admiring the warmth that radiated, before pulling you more onto his face, causing your weight to settle on him, he begins to go down on you in a robust way, fucking you onto his tongue as he groans in pleasure from the taste of your essence.

★ His cock throbbed against the restraints of his pants, keeping his focus on you, encasing your cunt with the heat of his tongue, flicking your clit rhythmically in the process.

★ “R-rai~…” Whimpering as he keeps his pace exact. Pushing you further to the edge, you felt a knot forming in your stomach, clenching your thighs inwardly, Raiden gently forced them apart, to keep you in place for just a bit longer. “You’re doing so good~” he cooed as he continued.

★ Raiden had ejaculated in his pants at this point. as his tongue stayed at work, his grip tightens on each thigh, sending small sparks of electricity from his fingertips to emit through your body, throwing your head back and riding his face,feeling his nose tease your sensitive clit with each small thrust, you cry out in pleasure.

★ Your climax was imminent, as his ministrations help bring you closer to it. you pant out a warning before arching your back, body tensing up as you release yourself onto Raidens tongue and face. whining as your body trembles on top of your lover. Raiden finishes lapping up the remaining juices you released, gently sliding you away from his face, and onto his chest. Panting a bit to catch his own breath.

★ “You taste wonderful.” He stated simply before shifting you sit on his lap, pulling you into a kiss. Tasting yourself on his tongue as he cupped your face to deepen it. After a moment, you two separate, and you gently get off of him, sitting on the ground as you tuck a strand of hair behind your ear. (Or not)

★ Raiden stands up, wiping his chin from any remaining essence you had so thoughtfully shared with him, offering out his strong hand. You gladly take it, smiling as you stand up, beside him. “Let’s get you home and cleaned up, beautiful.” Raiden suggested while taking your hand in his, leading you away from the field.

︶꒦꒷♡꒷꒦︶︶꒦꒷♡꒷꒦︶︶꒦꒷♡꒷꒦︶

[maingh0st]

The hate Taryn gets is way too exaggerated and disproportionate. It’s just straight up misogyny at this point, in my opinion. The fandom needs to get over it.

I could literally write a treatise about Taryn-hate at this point lmao. I’m going to share some thoughts (this actually got quite long), but I want to include a big ole disclaimer: at the end of the day, everybody gets to engage in fandom in the ways they want. everyone is free to love or hate whichever characters they want, for the reasons that feel valid and real to them. that being said, the treatment of Taryn specifically is really troubling and bizarre to me. 

I think it’s worth pointing out that when we say Taryn-hate seems misogynistic, that means a lot more than just “people who hate Taryn hate her because she’s a girl.” in my opinion, fandom misogyny toward her often gets couched in broader terms. some examples of what I mean by this are:

(1) Taryn does things that are bad and I don’t like that - uhhhh okay. everybody in these books does shitty things, so let’s think about why specifically the actions of Taryn (a 17-18 year old girl being manipulated by multiple men in her life) fall into the category of unredeemable for you. the reason we might point to this being misogynistic is because it’s a double standard that doesn’t apply to other characters—we’re willing to forgive Cardan his cruelty, or centuries-old Madoc for the trauma he's inflicted and his ongoing need for bloodshed, but Taryn is just a stupid, evil girl for trying to secure her place in Elfhame through the levers of power that are available to her. she can never be forgiven nor redeemed no matter how loyal she is to Jude moving forward. why is that? what sin of hers are so particularly evil to warrant this response? and we have to answer these questions in the context of Elfhame & its moral code, not in the context of our own world.

(2) I could never see myself acting in the way Taryn does and therefore I don’t like her - okay? I can never see myself acting like Madoc, or even like Vivi (don’t get me started on Vivi & the fact that she gets passes Taryn never does), but that doesn’t mean I can’t have empathy for them. I understand that we experience the books through Jude’s perspective, so we’re automatically more prone to rooting for her—and to be clear, I love Jude! but fiction challenges us to experience the world through other perspectives, and it’s my opinion that Taryn acts in a way that is completely consistent and understandable with her experience of Elfhame. “I’m not like you,” she tells Jude. “I want to belong here. Defying them makes everything worse. You never asked me before you went against Prince Cardan—you didn’t care what it brought down on either of our heads.” 

while Jude’s defiance is held up as girlboss behavior (by me, too! I love a “get worse” arc), Taryn’s more traditionally feminine approach to finding her place in Elfhame is reviled (@slightlyrebelliouswriter23 has a great post on the fawn response to trauma & on passivity). more on this point below. 

(3) Taryn isn’t a “girl’s girl” - I am begging fandom to think critically about why Taryn betrays Jude & what that says not just about Elfhame, but about our world. these girls live in a world that affords them little power and agency. we meet them on the cusp of adulthood, and they’re both hyper-aware that they need to secure their place in Elfhame. Jude refers to knighthood as “earning” her place and is uninterested in marriage, but Taryn seems aware that she’s more likely to secure her place through the latter option (and also expresses the fear that Jude is going to leave her behind). it’s an oversimplification, but a useful one for the sake of this conversation, to point out that Jude chooses a more traditionally masculine approach, while Taryn chooses a more traditionally feminine one.

the tragedy is that this world—and particularly the men in their lives—pit them against one another. Locke offers Taryn the thing she wants most, requires a vow of her secrecy, and then begins flirting with Jude (and that's not even to mention him being a gancanagh!). at a point in her story where Madoc and Oriana are the only family who are still around for Taryn, Madoc capitalizes on Taryn’s ignorance (and also her awareness that she's never been the favorite daughter) & uses her to betray Jude. I almost never see these complexities brought up in conversations about Taryn, which is just gross to me, and echoes the ways that patriarchal power structures pit women against each other in the real world. 

I’ve seen people argue that while Jude’s approach is also flawed, she at least doesn’t betray Taryn. and like… kind of? she certainly doesn’t betray Taryn as directly as Taryn betrays her—but some of that just strikes me as dumb luck. consider what might’ve happened if Dain hadn’t died at the end of book one. what lengths might he have asked Jude to go to in order to prove her loyalty to him? or if we rewind even further—it’s honestly just dumb luck that someone didn’t harm or kill Taryn (Valerian, for example, could've chosen the wrong window). Jude’s antagonism of Cardan & his friends had a direct effect on Taryn’s life, and even though Taryn begged her to stop, she bullheadedly charged on. the difference is that Jude’s risky decisions ultimately work out for her, while Taryn has to face the consequences of hers not panning out the way she wanted them to. 

this isn't exhaustive, and there’s so much more I could say, but this is already so long. so in conclusion, the reason all this matters to me personally is twofold: 

at its best, fiction teaches us empathy. part of why I love tfota is because it takes characters & dynamics that are really messy & helps you, the reader, understand where everyone is coming from & why. the fact that we love Madoc is a testament to fiction’s ability to do this. so why is a teenage girl treated like the true villain of this story? what about her makes us incapable of empathy? why, in the mind of the fandom, is she not allowed forgiveness (or even just a chance at redemption) for the harm she's caused, while other characters are? I see people stanning Nicasia, who actively tortured Jude (over a boy, no less!!) ffs

fandom misogyny reflects our world. why are people eager to forgive toxic male love interests, yet hold the bar impossibly high for girls? why is there such a narrow set of choices & behaviors that we consider acceptable for female characters? Holly wrote a story about two young women carving out places for themselves in a world hostile to them, hurting each other in the process, and ultimately deciding to forgive, love, and root for one another—and fandom has taken that complex narrative and pitted them against one another, upholding one as the girlboss who can do no wrong while treating the other as scum. misogyny thrives on women treating each other like the problem, so if this is our attitude toward a fictional story where we’re afforded direct looks into characters’ thoughts, how much worse are we going to be in the real world, faced with real, imperfect women?

anyways, in conclusion: you're entitled to dislike taryn, but if you feel such vitriol toward her that you're literally making hate posts (or commenting under fanart of her!! holy shit), I invite you to interrogate where that hate actually comes from. fin.

[sforzesco]

you're SO right, how is it that the best portrayal of many italian renaissance figures comes from a bad videogame from the 2010s

wheezing I’m torn between going truly this is the best portrayal of Leonardo da Vinci we may ever get, and defending AC2 even though I’m a full time Ezio Saga Hater

[danandfuckingjonlmao]

rewatching dead poets society for the first time in 4 years and i had to pause to make this it came to me in a Vision:

[cadybear420]

ROD Loading Screen but I genderswapped the characters, drawing by me

So this is my first drawing on here. Not sure how often I'll post my art though, since I'm still working out a lot of things with my artstyle. Like, it's very hit-or-miss for me lol.

Anyways, I did like how this one turned out for sure, so I'm sharing it. I think both MC and Logan should have been GOC honestly. I like to think the f!version would be called Lola. Or Lois. Or heck maybe even just Logan, a girl being named Logan sounds pretty cool. Granted I didn't care much for the story either way (Update 06/12/2024: I replayed it recently and I like it now), but if you know me well you know I'd have loved a genderswapped version of that loading screen.

Tagging: @choicesficwriterscreations

WIP/Process Pieces below!

I drew this on paper with pencil first. Then I took a photo of it and colored it in, added some lighting and hue touch-ups, and added and edited the background of the original on Photoshop/Photopea. The blurry parts are me painting over the areas where the characters from the original cover were still showing.

Original pencil and paper drawing

Cropped drawing + Colored over and lighting fixed

How it looks over the original cover, pre-touchups

[not-your-bro]

on the one hand the until dawn remake is super unnecessary. on the other i need a climbing class revival so bad like it's dire