#right edutainment

[furby-junkie]

“Funky” VCD Covers (Bootleg Educational Furby Discs)

So, a reddit user (PrincessKhim04) posted some pictures of disc covers belonging to bootleg discs Right Edutainment made.

I think the disc for the last cover is supposed to have content that teaches about the Thai alphabet.

The second cover has content that teaches children how to count and it plays the same counting song more than once instead of using different songs, and the disc for the first cover teaches children about the alphabet, but also repeats the same alphabet song instead of adding different songs.

Right Edutainment uploaded the footage from the 123 disc in 2018, and they uploaded footage of the ABC disc in 2017 to YouTube. I think these discs may have been released in 2013, since the company posted these images in 2013 on Facebook.

According to the covers, each disc comes with an educational chart. The ABC one comes with an ABC poster, and the 123 disc comes with a counting poster. The last one is probably supposed to come with a chart teaching about the Thai alphabet, I think??

Despite the 123 cover showing two 1998 Furbys, you can only see the 2012 Furbys from the cover in video footage of what is on the disc.

No footage of the last disc seems to have been posted on YouTube.

Image sources: 1 2 3

ABC Disc

123 Disc

These are official uploads from Right Edutainment. They've just changed their channel name.

[zzoupz]

well if Luce was created as religious edutainment akin to veggietales then it makes the whole thing even worse since you know well that priests especially the catholic church are notorious for being pedophile rapists

well it's not it's a mascot for the holy year

what

[seventeendeer]

this is going to make me soooo unpopular on tumblr dot pendantics central dot com but I fully hate media “deconstructions” that begin and end with “yo if this happened to a real person ... that would kind of fuck them, right? like, they wouldn’t be right in the head after this ... probably have a Bad Dream .. maybe Panicked Attack” like motherfucker the dragon is a metaphor the dragon is a metaphor the dragon is a metaphor going on a quest and slaying the dragon is a METAPHOR

the hero doesn’t suffer debilitating trauma after going through the shadowy wasteland with no food or water for days because the location symbolizes a state of doubt, the lack of sustenance symbolizes dwindling inner strength, and he comes out the other side stronger than ever because he overcame an emotional obstacle and grew more certain of himself.

his mentor dies and he gets over it in the span of an afternoon because the relationship with the mentor was a symbol of responsibility inheritance, a symbol of the relationship between entire generations.

and yes, the dragon is a metaphor. it’s the beating heart of the story, the problem at the root of all the hero’s troubles. it’s the fear of growing up, the pain of loneliness, an oppressive upperclass, a controlling parent - the core conflict of the story given a physical form.

and like, yeah, obviously there’s plenty of tropes and conventions in storytelling that are worth examining and ripping into, but “characters' emotions are calibrated in accordance with the story’s metaphors and themes instead of reacting realistically to the literal events of the story” seriously isn’t it. criticizing a lack of realistic, literal emotional responses is like criticizing a painting for being flat. paradoxically, it does not make a story ‘deeper’ or ‘more insightful’ - it only strips the text down to the literal reality depicted. you’re supposed to leave the peel on, that’s where all the complexities are!!

of course you can rearrange the pieces of classic story conventions into a shape where the realistic emotional reactions make sense and are a part of a completely different point you’re making, but simply doing a classic story setup again, this time with Realistic Trauma And Outcome, isn’t actually saying anything meaningful about the genre you’re trying to deconstruct. pointing at an intentional narrative choice and going “you missed a spot!” only really shows you missed the point of said narrative choice in the first place.

[vaguely-concerned]

🎵 we don't need your edutainment (dum-du-dum, dum-du-dum-du-dum) we don't need your listicles 🎵

[corpseofsuturedseams]

i know it's cheesy and over done but i cannot deny my love for the "lost/unknown kids media that turns out to be unsettling and scary" type of horror. i eat it up almost every goddamn time

[sqrkyclean]

One of my favorite fanfics I’ve ever read was for a public access edutainment show for elementary schoolers. And the author was a mother, right? And in the authors notes for every chapter there was a bible quote that only made sense if you interpreted it as the main character being an allegory for Jesus Christ

[tadc-harlequin-au]

Heyyyy, for no particular reason, who would take Z's role in the role swap universe??? Y'know, just as a silly question, no other reason...

;3?

I... still have no solid idea. As I've said before, it's difficult to roleswap them.

But here's what I was thinking for everyone though (this may change, but I want to keep their original classifications intact as much as possible):

Ragatha:

Swapped with Sunny and Moonie, now she's an Edutainment Mannequin.

Sunny and Moonie's original purpose were to teach astrology, therefore, Ragatha's now a "teacher" teaching people on tours about archeology, and ancient artifacts.

Jax:

Swapped with Gangle, now he's an Actor Automaton.

Instead of a streetside performer, Jax is now featured in B-tier movies, usually for comedic slapstick purposes due to the 'rubberhose-like' nature of his.

This means he regularly gets physically and verbally abused by the directors and human actors, the same way Gangle was.

Gangle:

Swapped with Ragatha. Her passive nature makes for a good luxury party Puppet, performing for a private audience. (no, not in that way.)

She also doubles as a maid sometimes, if she can do her job right.

Z:

Swapped with Kaufmo, now she's a Carnival Figurine and has the full name "Zooble" again.

The concept of Architectural figurines never went into full production, instead the Figurines became a 'pull-apart-and-put-back-together' carnival attraction, and wow were they popular with kids and adults with issues.

Kingr:

Swapped with Z, now he's an Arsenal Pawn.

Constantly making tools of war and becoming the portable, walking supply depot in the battlefield.

Kaufmo:

Swapped with Jax.

He's still a Manimatronic Automaton, usually performing for birthdays or general parties that need 'em instead of a carnival.

Sunny and Moonie:

Swapped with Quinnie and Scarlet, becoming the 'Cycle of the labyrinthian maze'. Both of them are basically the "night" and "day" wardens of the maze, and teach the inmates how to be a good member of society again.

If the inmates misbehaved during their term, these two are quick to act on it.

Quinnie:

Swapped with Kingr. Now, she's the highest ranking general, an Armada Pawn.

She's a damn powerhouse. If you thought Prime Kinger was bad, she's worse.

She's the literal definition of "hell hath no fury a woman scorned"

Scarlet:

Surprisingly, she's not swapped with anyone, unless you count Sunny's current position in the swap. Me and Scarlet were talking, and we decided that Scarlet, instead of becoming a war machine guarding the upper levels of the maze Quinnie is in, Scarlet had become a personal bodyguard for an eccentric millionaire who may or may not be a furry

TL;DR:

Ragatha = Sunny and Moonie's position Jax = Gangle's position Gangle = Ragatha's position Z = Kaufmo's position Kingr = Z's position Kaufmo = Jax's position Sunny and Moonie = Quinnie and Scarlet's position Quinnie = Kingr's position Scarlet = role has been changed without swapping with anyone.

[kchasm]

Ryu Number: Albert Schweitzer

Albert Schweitzer was a German-born philosopher, theologian, and physician. His personal philosophy was based around the idea of "reverence for life": He believed that there was nothing of the objective world itself that evinced any innate meaning or ethical quality, and that the world was composed of life seeking to sustain itself, which occurred at the expense of other lives. Schweitzer proposed a system of ethics founded on a thoughtful and constant awareness of the reverence for life—all living things—from which should result the effort—through actions—to strengthen and develop it. In short: It was good to maintain and further life and it was bad to damage and destroy life, and one ought to commit to the former as much as possible while minimizing the latter as much as could be managed.

…Did I explain that all right? I don't feel like I got that all right, not really. I suspect I'm mangling the guy's principles here in some way, and I can't do a lot more than apologize. I might not have failed my philosophy classes in university, but I can't honestly say I aced them, either. Just sort of floated through while managing to keep my head above water,

Anyway, praxis manifested itself notably in his running of a hospital in French Equatorial Africa (later Gabon)—founded originally in 1913 before World War I broke out and, as a German citizen in French territory, he was removed. He returned to the hospital in 1924, and headed its operation until his death in 1965.

Yeah, all of that was really heavy, wasn't it? If you want to take a moment before crossing the readmore, I totally understand.

If you didn't already know, here's where you learn that both Ryu and Darth Vader show up as guest fighters in Brawlhalla. There's always someone who doesn't know about Brawlhalla, and I love letting them know that Brawlhalla exists. (Rayman is there too.)

Lego Star Wars: The Complete Saga includes a trailer for the then-upcoming Lego Indiana Jones video game. Watch it, and you can buy Indiana Jones from the shop. And then play as him, of course.

Dude's a bit clean-shaven, but it's him. He's got the whip and everything.

The Young Indiana Jones Chronicles was a TV show based on, uh, well, the chronicles of young Indiana Jones. These semi-edutainment stories would usually see Indy getting tangentially involved with real-life historical events and meeting momentarily with real-life historical figures. The episodes were later edited and released across three DVD sets as The Adventures of Young Indiana Jones, each the sets including a DVD-ROM that let you install a slightly more educational computer game version of one of the stories in the set.

Quality-wise, these games are a little, uh.

Also Indiana's really blond in these for some reason.

Still counts, though. Including the parts where questionably drawn Indiana gets to meet the various questionably drawn historical figures.

(Incidentally, for his work, Albert Schweitzer got the Nobel Peace Prize in 1952. This makes him one among a surprisingly large number of Nobel Peace Prize laureates with Ryu Numbers. Larger than you'd think, I'd mean. Or at least larger than you'd think if I asked you to guess how many Nobel Peace Prize laureates had Ryu Numbers and then told you you had only five seconds to answer.)

(It's more than ten, anyway.)

[why-animals-do-the-thing]

hi there! love your work! i recently had a prof say that all zoos (USA) are bad (so we shouldn't support them) and sanctuaries are better because using animals for entertainment is morally wrong, most zoo profits dont go to conservation, and conservation efforts are bandaid solutions to capitalism destroying animal habitats, so the real solution is to return the land to indigenous stewards to manage/rewild. i didn't disagree with the last bit, but the argument as a whole felt a little off to me for a reason i couldnt put my finger on. am i off base here? just feeling really unsure about the whole thing.

You're not wrong! There's a mix of reality and personal opinions in those statements, and it's definitely something worth critically examining. A quick fact-check of what they said for you:

All US zoos are bad

There's a massive range of quality of zoological facilities within the US (and around the world). Some are stellar and some are not, and it's really just not accurate to lump them all under the same umbrella for almost any purpose. Unless, of course, your issue isn't with animal welfare, and it's philosophical, which is what it sound like in #2...

2. Using animals for entertainment is morally wrong.

This is one of my favorite things to talk about w/r/t how we exhibit animals. Entertainment has become equated with exploitation and implicit low welfare in the last couple decades, and so you get a lot of people saying using animals for entertainment is wrong. But those same folk will say that they enjoy seeing animals in other contexts, and they think that's okay. Where's the line between enjoying something and being entertained by it? What makes something one and not the other? Also, we know that people learn better from from situations which are enjoyable/entertaining - even just a fun teacher who jokes around vs a dry lecture - so how can that only be a problem when it's used to make viewing animals more impactful? I wrote a whole piece on this a while back (linked here) if you want to dig into this more. Some zoos (and accrediting groups) are shying away from "entertainment" type branding - shows are demos now, for instance - and others are leaning into "edutainment" that's done with good welfare and communicates actual education messaging. In short, this is a personal philosophical belief, and you're right to question if you agree. (Even if you decide you do think that too! It's always good to question why someone is arguing what they believe about animal use, and how they came to believe it).

3. Sanctuaries are better than zoos.

There's two reasons I think he's misinformed here. First, almost all exotic animal sanctuaries in the US are licensed exhibitors - just like zoos! I only know of a couple that don't exhibit to the public at all. It's an important part of their revenue stream, because gate take helps support paying for animal care. Also anything you see from a sanctuary on Youtube, Facebook, or TikTok? Also exhibition! They just message about it differently, and often have a different ethos about how they exhibit (e.g. tours to reduce stress instead of letting people wander, doing conservation or rescue messaging instead of just display). Second... look, most people assume that the word "sanctuary" means a facility is intrinsically more ethical than a zoo, and therefore they must be a good place. In reality, many sanctuaries get much less public and regulatory scrutiny (at the state level) than most zoos. There are good sanctuaries out there, but there are also sanctuaries where stuff goes on that would absolutely be unacceptable at zoos, and it slides because of the assumption that sanctuaries are inherently more moral and ethical and care for their animals better.

4. Most zoo profits don't go to conservation

This is correct! Direct conservation funding is often a small part of the money a zoo makes. However, that's because money goes to things like facility maintenance, new construction, paying salaries, etc. If zoos put all the money they made back into conservation programs, practically, they wouldn't have the funding to continue to operate. The question that I'd suggest asking instead is "where are they putting money into conservation" and "are they doing conservation work or just throwing money at something to display the logo of the program." Also, it's worth keeping in mind that a lot of what zoos do to support conservation isn't necessarily financial. Many facilities contribute "in-kind", by doing things like sending staff to assist with programs or teach specific skills, or by donating things like vehicles and equipment. Research zoos do also seriously contributes to in-situ programs, and breeding programs for re-introduction like the scimitar-horned oryx and the black-footed ferret are also conservation. Could many of the big urban facilities with huge budgets do more? Yes. But looking just at dollars spent on conservation programs is disingenuous and inaccurate.

5. Conservation efforts are band-aid solutions to capitalism destroying habitats / Returning the land to indigenous peoples to manage/rewild is the real solution to conservation issues

This is a little outside my scope so I'm going to only address the part that I know. First off, like, there's no One True Answer to conservation issues. That's reductionist and inaccurate. Conservation really is a human issue, though, and it often has to involve solving human problems that lead to negative results for animals. There's definitely an issue with what some people call "parachute conservation" where Westerners swoop in and try to tell people living in range countries how to best manage their animals and natural resources without recognizing their perspectives, needs, or what drives their behavior towards those animals. That's not just a zoo issue - that's an issue with a ton of traditional Western conservation work. And there is progress towards fixing it! In the zoo world, I've been very impressed with the work out of The Living Desert, where their conservation people spend a lot of time overseas teaching people in range countries to evaluate and improve their own conservation programs, so they can assess efficacy and also have data to apply for grants, etc. They provide support when asked, rather than trying to tell people who live with these animals regularly what to do. One of my favorite programs that TLD collaborates with (they don't try to run it!) is a group called the Black Mambas that reduces poaching by supporting entire communities to reduce the desperation for food/income, educating kids about animals, and running all-female patrols staffed by community members.

Overall, it sounds like your professor's view of zoos is really informed by their personal moral perspective, and possibly reinforced by a lot of the misinformation / misleading messaging that exists about the industry and about conservation work. They do have some specifics right, but not necessarily the context to inform why things are like that. It was a good catch to question the mix of information and approach it critically.

[inbarfink]

Among the various readings and interpretations of What the Hell is Up With the Ending to the DHMIS Web Show - one of the more interesting ones (from my perspective, at leas) has always been that it’s all a metaphor for repeating patterns of trauma and/or abuse. 

As in, most of the narrative of the DHMIS Webshow has been some sort of surrealist metaphor for Roy being an overcontrolling and manipulative parental figure for his son and his friends

And then the ending shows them finally escaping his influence -

Only that without a frame of reference for just how screwed-up their upbringing really was and without any healthy way to process their various traumas, they end up being in danger of just replicating his abuse on their own. Either on each other or maybe on the color-swapped characters who can, like, represent their own children or something. 

And so the vague ending of the Webshow is an open question, yes, the trio might’ve gotten physically away from Roy’s influence - but are they free from it mentally?

Or are they doomed to snap back into their old familiar world?

And the interesting thing about this is that like… that could be what the Web Show is about on a metaphorical level. But in the TV Show, with its greater emphasis on interpersonal conflicts and the characters - the idea of our main trio unknowingly replicating the abuse they live under is not just something we can hypothetically ruminate on. It’s something we can actually see, something we can actually feel.

Like, the first thing that made me think of Yellow and Red’s interactions with Stain Edwards.

This is basically the closest the Three of Them can get to being parental figures within the confines of the Format. He starts out as such a sweet and curious child-like being, his title for himself is literally ‘the Forever Boy’. And, well…

Red and Yellow are just so uncomfortable with his curiosity and thirst for adventure that they basically immediately try and stomp it right out. And that’s like a whole big thing about DHMIS, isn’t it? The way that children’s edutainment and the education system actually curbs children's curiosity and desire for learning so they can better memorize easily-digestible simplified concepts and Respect Their Authority Figures. 

You know, it’s the whole thing with…

And that’s kinda how Red acts with Stain? He’s a lot less violent and more subdued about it - but he also discourages the little guy from asking questions and wanting to explore the world. 

And he is trying to push him into fitting more into the Format. And, like, managing his life like the Trio’s own life is managed by the Format. First more generally into what being part of the DHMIS main trio is supposed to mean (‘just sit here and something will happen’) and then eventually literally turning him into something he didn’t want to be. 

And from our more familiar perspective, it’s clear that Red Guy really just genuinely thinks at this point that sitting passively and Waiting to Be Taught At is how things are Supposed to Be and can’t really imagine things going any other way. He is honestly just trying to get Stain to understand how their life is supposed to work. (Well until it starts becoming about making a new Duck) 

And it’s also clear to us how much Red Guy is motivated by just unaddressed grief about Duck and wanting to avoid conflict with Yellow Guy, who's a lot more explictly lashing out at Stain in his grief

"What's the matter with him?" "Nothing. Just don't look at him." "What? Where can I look? I can't look at him, can't look over there..." "No, if, if you want to look at stuff, just tell me and I-I'll make a list. Of where you should or should not look..." "Seems like a weird system..." "Yeah, well, you seem like a weird little...thing with...and you don't even... the other guy at least had his own clothes"

But looking at it from Stain’s perspective, taking aside our understanding of Red’s character and motivation. This is just an authority figure giving him a nonsense set of rules and then lashing out at him when he questions it. Never giving a deeper explanation than ‘this is how it’s supposed to be’ and basically punishing his curiosity.

Kinda like, well, how the Teachers tend to interact with the trio.

And then there’s Yellow Guy who’s just totally lashing out at Stain through the whole thing, because, again, he can’t process the grief of losing Duck. Because his environment did not give him the tools to properly process that trauma and he has no healthy frame of reference to grief and that’s kinda...

Yeah, that’s just what I was talking about. Stain’s subplot in ‘Death’ is just Yellow and Red having not interrogated their abusive environment and not really dealing with their trauma and thus repeating the patterns of the Teachers on their new child-like figure.

Which then culminates with either Duck killing Stain in the name of preserving the status-quo of the format (“there’s only supposed to be three of us”) or with Stain having internalized so much of what Yellow and Red (but mainly Red) taught him about what he’s supposed to be that he was willing to kill in the name of the Format - and then slotted in perfectly in the unadventurous, unquestioning role of Duck.

And this lil narrative is especially interesting if you believe any variance of the David Theory. Because Yellow and Red were mainly motivated in their mistreatment of Stain by their Grief about a ‘dead’ family member. Which could mirror Lesley's trapping and mistreatment of the trio and her own motivations. 

But I think this idea of mirroring and repeating patterns of abuse are reflected in more than just this one episode. It’s also reflected in the way Red and Duck tend to mistreat Yellow.

Because while Yellow doesn’t slot as neatly into the Child position like Stain did- his simplistic naïveté does mean he often plays a Child-like role in our favorite Forced Family dynamic. And the way that Duck and Red can often condescend to him can… very well mirror the condescending way the teachers address all three of them.

Especially when you also consider the similar manner both the Teachers and Red + Duck react to Yellow being fully charged in ‘Electricity’. They are all so nervous about Yellow breaking away from his supposed ‘role’ as the Stupid One. 

And they especially all seem so very insecure about the idea that Yellow might be smarter than they are.

And that’s, you know, also an aspect of children’s education that tends to actually harm children and their curiosity. This desire for ‘respect’ towards authority figures and this egotistical need for teachers and parents to always be smarter than their kids - causing them to subtly or bluntly punish children for just being clever or inquisitive. 

It’s, you know “I’m the adult, you are the child. I am supposed to be the Smart and Knowledgeable one and you are the one who must be taught. And you need to play your role!”

Again, that seems to be the whole thing in ‘Time’.

Here it’s a lot more subtle and less openly hostile, but Yellow can tell that just like that Insurance Teacher,  Red and Duck’s egos have also been hurt by the fact that they might not be smarter than Yellow Guy anymore. And he considers going back to the role he’s ‘supposed to be’, even though being fully-charged seems to feel better for him (‘this doesn’t feel wrong’), just for them. 

That’s almost literally a child giving up on a pursuit of knowledge just to placate his parental figures. 

And then, you know, his refusal to do so and his assertion of his own ability to make decisions for himself (his own maturity, "they're not in charge of us anymore" "Maybe they never were") is directly what leads to him ascending and disassembling not just the trio’s dynamic but the very structure of the Format. 

And I think, it’s not just that Red and Duck’s treatment of Yellow mirrors the way the teachers treat the Three of Them - it might be a result of it as well. With how condescending the teachers are towards them in general, bullying Yellow is their way to assert some sort of maturity and intelligence for themselves. It's super-fucked up, but this is how they internalized expressing what ‘intelligence’ is supposed to look like. And they have no frame of reference for a way of feeling smart or in control that doesn’t involve shutting someone else down. Because that's what literally every authority figure does for them all the time.

Now, do I think that means that our trio is doomed to mirror those patterns? That they will always inevitability repeat the horrors they go through on each other and others? Well, just like with every ‘cycle of abuse’, it can always be broken. But it will take some actual understanding and self-awareness and personal healing from the trio. 

And without this, they’re not just trapped within the Horrors physically, but also spiritually as well. Without it, no matter if they do manage to run away, on some level, their journey will always end up back at home....

[determunition]

that's right. retyrement scrybeswap

i've talked about these at length on discord but have yet to show the full extent of my brainrot to the world haha; special thanks to @randyvouz for helping me design some of these guys!

for those of you who don't Go Here these are some elderly humanizations of these inscryption scrybeswap designs i did! details on these guys below the cut bc as always i've come up with way too much lore for them lmao

magicks poe is a bill nye/ms frizzle type edutainment host, and tech magnificus is a retired radio host who's since started teaching digital art in his old age; they met when they were much younger, when mag had poe on as a guest on his radio show, and have been married for some time

beasts poe is a retired wilderness ranger! he lost his eye in a forest fire incident, and still goes on hikes sometimes in his off-road wheelchair; death magnificus is a retired graveyard groundskeeper who does ink-based fine arts in his spare time. they were vaguely aware of each other in their middle years, and now live together in a queerplatonic partnership where they foster cats in their spare time

death poe is a mall night guard who really should have retired by now, but does his job better than anyone else; like death p03 he's really a nice guy under his spooky face mask. beasts mag is a local artist and ren faire performer; merely a shopper at poe's mall, and if the two of them have anything together in their futures it remains to be seen

[alphabetcompletionist]

if i had to make an edutainment game i'd make Grammar Quest where you rpg fight by putting punctuation & such in the right spots in sentences. final boss 'whom'

ABCDEFGHI KLMNOPQRSTU W Y

22/26

[fanonical]

the thing with historical doctor who episodes (that aren't pure historicals) is that they never feel historical because they always have to shoehorn aliens in

the episode is never about the history, it's about the aliens

and when it's about the history, the aliens are something of a distraction to that - everyone remembers donna saving the family in the fires of pompeii, but who remembers the weird rock aliens?

some episodes manage to do it right. the shakespeare code is a good example, because the aliens are both themed after shakespeare in their look (witches) but they are also tied to the power of words and the power of performance, and shakespeare himself plays into the plot

but at its worst, we have legend of the sea devils, which was about zheng yi sao for all of five minutes before it started to be about some boring alien bullshit

and when doctor who wants to be edutainment, it really should have some education as part of that, right?

[gnomeniche]

i should probably post about the storyboards bc i’m obsessed. i get why they changed stuff for the final (most of the dialogue they changed is superfluous because it reiterates ideas brought up earlier / overexplains a little of the fun ambiguity that sticks in your mind, like them actively pointing out it’s uncertain which duck was killed) but seeing the old version is so interesting. i love seeing what changed and what stayed the same

also i love this part. sure it’s pretty on the nose wrt the themes of the show but bc of that i KNOW if it HAD been in the show i would have gone nuts over this line every time i watched it

“it’s terrible where he is” “everything has to go back to its proper place” just like the main three’s situation…

also the line about putting everything back in its proper place helps reinforce that feeling of lesley as a fucked up kindergarten teacher + am intrigued by storyboards explicitly saying that lesley played out the whole series up to now in the dollhouse and the more blatant implication that she is not the one in charge + the idea that lesley came up here with others before.

that last one gives me the vibe of one of my many possible theories about what she represents which is like… she is partially representative of a kid who watched children’s edutainment shows like the one dhmis takes place in and is stuck in her vision of her childhood. someone who used to live on a lower floor (a child who watched the show and thought of the charas as friends) but went up (grew up) but is always looking back at an imagined “better past” that wasn’t actually that good. i need to make a proper post about my idea of toxic nostalgia in dhmis though so i’ll keep that in my pocket for later

other notes:

the rundown of them having Zero idea what their interests Are in the jobs song storyboards is so cool. i’m right that the show-world dictates that they are not really supposed to have a sense of their own identity besides what roles they play. no idea of what they like and want for themselves. but even if that’s how they’re supposed to be, as they exist for longer they gain their own preferences and desires. i want duck to collect buttons though let him have his buttons

i understand why they made red guy more annoyed about the jobs song in the final product and i love my sulky best friend but also it’s funny to see him actually get verses and all of them are on the theme of I Would Like To Sit Somewhere Quiet And Decompress. me too red guy

instead of unemployed brendon we could have had dead-end job kelvin…

the funeral scene dialogue being almost identical to the final scene is great. already perfect no notes

[wangxianficfinder]

In the mood for...

~*~

1. hi there!! i’m really fond of your page. i wonder if you’ve got fics with wei wuxian as an idol but lan wangji with another job and falls in love with wei wuxian before discovering that he’s an idol or something like that. preferably mdzs fandom instead of cql-verse, if you could? thank yoou so much beforehand 💕

When the Lights Come Up by brooklinegirl (E, 50k, wangxian, modern, Notting Hill AU, famous WWX, non famous LWJ, Break ups and make ups, Musician WWX, bookseller LWJ) Not an idol but rock star wwx and bookseller lwj!

The Fault in Our Stars by Vamillepudding (T, 17k, WangXian, Modern AU, Getting Together, Romantic Comedy, Comedy of Errors, Misunderstandings, the title makes it sound like a cancer story, it's not a cancer story) They were both famous, but don't realize the other is as well. A lovely rom com fic.

Twitter fic by @/cerbykerby

does your pretty face see what he's worth by defractum (nyargles) (E, 27k, WangXian, Modern AU, Rock Band, Ballet, Second Chances, Unresolved Sexual Tension, Long-Distance Friendship) has rock star WWX and ballet dancer LWJ, but it's not LWJ not knowing WWX is famous, exactly, just discovering his friend from dance class has gotten famous while he's been busy building a career.

you'll always know me by ana_cp (E, 127k, wangxian, modern, Actor WWX, Teacher LWJ, Getting Back Together, Exes to Lovers, is it exes to lovers if you never quite defined your relationship?, Angst with a Happy Ending, LWJ being cute with children alert, WWX rides a motorcycle, LWJ writes as a hobby, Back hugs as a love language, Sharing Food as a Love Language) Another one where WWX isn't exactly an idol (he's a famous actor) and LWJ knows him from before he was famous, so maybe not exactly what they're looking for, but a great story nonetheless.

~*~

2. Do any mods have some longfic recommendations? I prefer wwx-focused ones since he's my fav character!

Not sure what your definition of a long fic is but the ones that pop into my head right now are:

🧡 a stone to break your soul, a song to save it by rikke (M, 180k, wangxian, Canon Divergence, arranged marriage)

🧡 Night of the Living History (an edutainment special!) by Aerlalaith (T, 51k, WangXian, Modern with Magic, Workplace Relationship, Fluff and Humor, Museums, living history, Some Plot, Slice of Life, Injury, a minor haunting)

🧡 I Don’t Want to Debut! by countingcr0ws (G, 56k, WangXian, Modern AU, Reality show, Idols, Actor LWJ, Forced Contestant WWX)

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

Mud and Canvas by StormsBreadth (M, 109k, WangXian, Larping AU, Fluff, Angst, Role-playing, Camping)

- Mod C

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💖 Cut Him Out in Little Stars by ChaoticAndrogynous (E, 69k, WangXian, Canon-Typical Violence, Grief/Mourning, Existential Angst, Angst with a Happy Ending, Memory Loss, Dementia (referenced), Suicidal Thoughts, Battlefield Surgery, Blood and Injury, Immortality, Loneliness, Isolation, Explicit Sexual Content, Oral Sex, Anal Fingering, Anal Sex, Consensual Non-Consent, Bondage, Top/Bottom Versatile | Switch WangXian (mentioned) )

💖 love, in fire and blood by cicer (E, 360k, wangxian, Canon Divergence, YLLZ WWX, Arranged Marriage, political scheming, Gratuitous Domesticity, Pining, slow burn, The Mortifying Ordeal of Being Known, bottom LWJ)

💖 Pentimento. by orange_crushed (E, 73k, wangxian, modern, college/university au, art conservation, museums, pining, not actually unrequited love, angst w/ happy ending, misunderstandings, smut, major character injury, hospitalization, hurt/comfort, past incarceration, forgery)

I went with two older ones and one I bookmarked somewhat recently ~Mod L

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Other recs:

live from new york: an snl au series by varnes (E, 105k, WangXian, XuanLi, Modern AU, SNL AU, Slow Burn, Friends to Lovers, Pining, Getting Together, Happy Ending, Idiots in Love, and they were ROOMMATES, Frottage, Light Bondage, could not be lighter or gentler bondage)

In Imitation of Life by travelingneuritis (E, 70k, wangxian, modern cultivation, scifi au, android WWX, tone: neon seedy, rich people are bored and terrible, post-apocalyptoc landscape, happy ending, smut, severe major characger injury, time loss)

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3. Hello there! For the next itmf, does anyone know of any Greek gods/mythology wangxian fics?

something so precious about this (so wretched about this) by lazulink (E, 26k, WangXian, Inspired by Eros and Psyche (Ancient Greek Religion & Lore), Touch-Starved, Loneliness, Learning to be Loved, Mpreg, Ancient Greek Religion & Lore Fusion, canon adjacent, Royalty, Angst with a Happy Ending, Pregnant LWJ, Top/Bottom Versatile | Switch WangXian)

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4. Itmf WangXian Bichen smut? Or other sex toy smut? Preferably not modern. Thank you! <333

try Better Things to Do with a Flute in Wartime by Anonymous (E, 365k, MingXian, WangXianJue, Sunshot Campaign, Fix-It, Magical Healing Cock, Dual Cultivation, mild Dom/Sub, Undernegotiated Kink, Golden Core Reveal, Breathplay, Choking, Painplay, Subdrop, Topdrop, Major Character Injury, Canon Divergence, What-If, Temperature Play, Orgasm Delay/Denial, Fisting, Spanking, PTSD, Trauma, Self-Harm, (in the pursuit of cultivational badassery)) and the series it starts. Especially later on, the main thruple really get into some kinky explicit stuff. Mind the gore, it’s not part of the sexy stuff, but the series starts during the sun shot campaign and it’s explicit.

[MANHUA] Incense Burner 2 (Parts 7 - 29) by Haruka_Forever (E, 189, WangXian, The manhua artist unofficially drawing the incense burner extra 2, so what you'll read is canon to the novel, Masturbation, Bichen used as a sex toy, Non-Consensual Blow Job, Rough Sex, Non-Consensual Spankings, But also tender Wangxian) here's the manhua artist drawing the incense burner extras

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5. Itmf for fics with just a lot of love for the characters we adore. Like I'm talking about fics where the love and fluff just bleeds through the page and makes your heart turn into goo and curls your toes. Complete sugar for everyone. I feel like we could use some right now. @gentil-minou

Love Cats Series by so_shhy (T/G, 14k, WangXian, Modern AU, Meet-Cute, Fluff, First dates, Falling in Love, Officr party, POV Outsider)

Bunny Tales Series by sunnific (G/T, 7k, Modern AU, Meet-Cute, Fluff, Falling in Love, First kiss, Making out, Rabbits)

First Errand by Zacksy (G, 7k, WangXian, Accidental Baby Acquisition, temporarily, turning into, Volitional Husband Acquisition, glorified shopping trips, glorified free Sundays)

🧡 A Study in Fluff by WeaverOfTheNight (T, 29k, WangXian, Modern with Magic, Everyone Lives/Nobody Dies, no plot just vibes, Tooth-Rotting Fluff, Domestic Fluff, literal plot bunnies, Getting Together, POV Alternating)

Dazzle Like a Diamond by Tsukimiko_san (T, 4k, WangXian, Dragon LWJ, Crow WWX, Cloud Recesses Study Arc, Tooth-Rotting Fluff, No Angst, ok maybe a tiny sprinkle of angst but like, usual lwj thinking wwx is just teasing him, it doesn't last long, Getting Together, they are both so whipped, Boys Kissing, Courting Rituals)

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

Secrets by handwritten (onefromanotherworld) (G, 1k, WangXian, Fluff, Cloud Recesses Study Arc, Getting Together, Smitten LWJ, Smitten WWX, courting gifts) i haven't read the rest of the series yet but i assume it's just as sweet

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6. Hi! ITMF for time travel fics where the time traveler(s) physically goes to the past, not just them returning to their past body.

花无百日红; the flower that withers by yiqie (M, 29k, wangxian, Time Travel Fix-It of Sorts, Case Fic, Spells & Enchantments, Hurt/Comfort, Forgiveness, It’s about the emotional catharsis, If you have ever laughed at WWX clowning himself for the 'no one will marry you’ scene, This fic is: for you)

Melody of the Lost and Found by esama (T, 48k, WIP, XiXian, WangXian, Time Travel, Canon Divergence, Grief/Mourning, YLLZ WWX, There are two WWXs in this)

❤️ Tragedy is Not the End by Hobbsy3 (T, 358k, wangxian, Time Travel, Torture, Hurt/Comfort, Golden Core Reveal, Canon Divergence from Qiongqi Pass, Angst with a Happy Ending, Implied/Referenced Rape/Non-con, Yunmeng sibling bonding, good dad wwx, good dad lwj, JZX Lives, JYL Lives, Junior Quartet Dynamics)

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7. Hi hi thank you so much for your hard work!! This blog means a lot for me to find many many fics🤣

...

Now, I'm in the mood of fics where wwx is the one being rich rich, meanwhile lwj financially struggle or at least not as rich as wwx, I am hoping for wwx family disapprove of wx relationship as well (maybe because of past incident, difference status, etc) basically the opposite of usual wx relationship in fics, and of course wx endgame and happy ending🥺🥺. The setting can be a royalty, modern, cultivation world, or anything else.

Thank you so much🩵🩵🩵 @yourslwj

there is a fic like that, i know it, i just can’t really put my finger on it. LZ is basically working as a sugar baby and WWX is his sugar daddy. I also remember LZs Mother being a nurse and working really hard to keep them afloat. I think she got sick at some point? Im sorry, i really want to help. If anyone knows what this is called, i would appreciate it a lot.

finally safe (for me to fall) by sassybluee (E, 77k, WangXian, Modern: No Powers, Sugar Daddy, Age Difference, Sex Work, Rich WWX, Older WWX, Service Top WWX, Poor LWJ, Single Parent LWJ, Sugar Baby LWJ, Family Issues, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Angst with a Happy Ending, Slow Burn, Cockblocking, Anal Sex, Blow Jobs, No Lube, Lube, Addiction, Compulsory Heterosexuality, Implied/Referenced Abuse, wangxian + others) it's a sugar daddy/sugar baby fic where lwj is a single father and struggling to care for himself and A-Yuan

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8. Hi! I was wondering if you have stumbled to a juniors see the yiling laozu phase in action or react to him in that mode.. also are the past react to wei ying in laozu phase post canon like a time travel or something😅 @myst1210

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9. itmf for dads wwx and lwj but i want lwj to be the lenient parent and wwx the strict one, thank you!

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10. Can I make an odd fic request? I want to expand my skills as an author and try to write with more personality and flair. I know this will come with experience and that I will eventually find my own style, but I want to also open my eyes to great examples from more experienced authors. So can everyone please recommend their favorite fics that have a unique or memorable writing style/author’s voice? If possible, include in your rec what in particular you like about it. Thank you all so much!

This fandom has so many incredible writers. The ones that come to mind immediately with a unique voice are 💖 Pentimento. by orange_crushed (E, 73k, wangxian, modern, college/university au, art conservation, museums, pining, not actually unrequited love, angst w/ happy ending, misunderstandings, smut, major character injury, hospitalization, hurt/comfort, past incarceration, forgery) link in #2 live from new york: an snl au series by varnes (E, 105k, WangXian, XuanLi, Modern AU, SNL AU, Slow Burn, Friends to Lovers, Pining, Getting Together, Happy Ending, Idiots in Love, and they were ROOMMATES, Frottage, Light Bondage, could not be lighter or gentler bondage) In Imitation of Life by travelingneuritis (E, 70k, wangxian, modern cultivation, scifi au, android WWX, tone: neon seedy, rich people are bored and terrible, post-apocalyptoc landscape, happy ending, smut, severe major characger injury, time loss) (Those last two can fit for the long fic category too) Everything by spodumene Honestly it's hard to not just say like a hundred of them sjsjfj - Ah I just finished reading the rest of the request. What I like most about their writing is that they have this ability to pain the world they wrote like a picture. With these lines that leave me sitting in awe

i 100% agree about the loads of fantastic authors in this fandom. i wanted to mention 2: s6115 - i love how they get to the absolute heart of the characters and express their emotions, and they also balance it with humor very well H_Belle - i would call their writing…. snappy? idk if it's the right word but they keep the writing tight and moving and intriguing

For 10: anything by ScarlettStorm, her writing has a really solid voice! Also paired wings soaring by typefortydeductions (E, 33k, WangXian, Modern, slice of life, domestic bliss, angst, fluff, smut, hurt/Comfort, kissing, bdsm, artist WWX, poetry translator LWJ, slight somnophilia) has a very unique and wonderful narrative style.

I would recommend ScarlettStorm, who has great found families and depth of character and a particular breezy style I like. Also Ariaste, who has a similar style and excels at getting the most out of a premise. Also Sami, in particular the Paper Moon series because of her thoughtfulness about character development and how that drives the plot and the neat way she weaves the story together and has excellent narrative consistency. One more - hansbekhart is a tremendously skilled writer who, like orange_crushed (recced above), can just hit you with a brick of emotions. Highly recommend both authors as those who can drag deep, vast emotions out of you and leave you feeling as if you're a different person after you've read their fic. In particular, I suggest Roots Grow Riotous by hansbekhart.

for an example of fantastic writing, Twelve Moons and a Fortnight series by stiltonbasket on ao3 is EXCELLENT (intricate layered worldbuilding in vast timeline, awesome imagery and characterizations and build towards pivotal scenes). Also I personally love Cradle by dragonesque (one of best/fav show down diss scenes, politics) & The Murder of Crows by cerbykerby; to name a few

Say More by lettered (E, 55k, WIP, WangXian, Modern AU, Pining, Mutual Pining, Slow Burn, non-graphic drug use, non-graphic withdrawal, Drug Addiction, one suicidal thought, negative thought, wwx struggles with Mandarin and feeling connected to Chinese culture, this is not a large plot point but bears mention, Compulsory Heterosexuality, wwx kisses a girl, Sexuality Crisis, Gay Panic, some gender confusion and questions without serious gender questioning, incorrect definition of omnisexuality, Open Relationships, Masochistic Fantasies, non-graphic sadomascochistic realities, humiliation fantasies, Submission Fantasies, some D/s realities, one condomless blowjob, suggestions of some unhealthy co-dependence, Possessive Behavior, Slight Consensual Non-Consent, Frottage) For the itmf ask about works with unique voices I can happily recommend lettered's "say more", currently a wip. They use frequent semicolons and extreme mood swings to illustrate what's its like in wwx's fast-branching and self-effacing thoughts.

总有一天; a place to hide (can’t find one near) by yiqie (E, 76k, WangXian, Modern AU, Pianist, Getting Together, Mental Health Issues, Suicide Attempt, Suicidal Thoughts, Depression, Hospitals, Overdosing, Eventual Happy Ending, Hurt/Comfort, Additional Warnings In Author's Note) for great writing this story is amazing. It will make you cry, and there is a happy ending

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11. hello! hope y’all are doing great 🥰 idk if there are a lot of fics for this ask but recently i read one of your recs luminous by azuresummer and i absolutely love it, in the fic wwx is a jiaoren who is unable to verbally communicate with lwj so for the next itmf, i would appreciate more recs of fics where there is a language barrier between wangxian, any au is fine. Thank you so much ! 💖 @makkachiin

💖 splash;; by defractum (nyargles) (E, 11k, wangxian, F/F, modern cultivation, Gender Changes, Merpeople, Humanfucking, the opposite of monsterfucking, Rule 63)

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12. ITMF Wei Ying appreciation fics!! People realising how much wwx did for them and continues to do so. Bonus if it's ANGSTY

Hi for #12 itmf here. It's good, but not what I wanted. For example, wwx got injured, and now people are really worried like oh wwx did so much for us , i wouldn't handle it if he were to no longer be here. Also it can be about people loving wwx, bonus if there's good yzy and lqr.

New Perspective by mrcformoso (T, 8k, WangXian, Angst, Hopeful Ending, Fatherhood, Regrets, Flashbacks, POV LWJ, LWJ-centric, Canonical Character Death - WWX, Pining LWJ, LWJ Has Feelings, LWJ Needs a Hug, Character Development, Dead WWX, Introspection, Feelings, LWJ is Bad at Feelings, Character Study, Regretful LWJ, Breaking Toxic Cycles, Canon Compliant, LWJ in Seclusion, Post-LWJ, in Seclusion, Child LSZ) you asked for angst and you shall receive. lwj appreciating wwx after he died, and using that as a starting point for change

And Time Is But a Paper Moon by sami (M, 139k, WangXian, XiChengQing, Time Travel, Fix-It, Everyone Lives/Nobody Dies, Healing, Mental Health Issues, PTSD, Hurt/Comfort, Depression, BAMF WWX, BAMF JC, BAMF LWJ, BAMF JYL, Getting Together) And Time Is But A Paper Moon, time travel fix-it, has a situation in the middle (starting at chapter 28) where it's evident everyone cares for Wei Wuxian, and the story as a whole has great Yu Ziyuan and Lan Qiren, and develops their relationships with Wei Wuxian in interesting ways.

See all this and more for just ten dollars a month! Series by ScarlettStorm (E, 382k, WIP, WangXian, Modern AU, Getting Together, Pining, Porn, like in the writing and also as a plot point, onlyfans au, repressed lwj, sex worker wwx, Minor Angst, major shenanigans, hornt(tm), mental health, therapy is good actually, Nonbinary NHS, Gender Exploration, Hurt/Comfort, past trauma, genderfluid wwx) ScarlettStorm's got a series (See all this and more for just ten dollars a month!) where they're both in therapy and work through all their issues like real adults including past trauma but also household budgeting, etc.

leave all your love and your longing behind by ScarlettStorm (E, 143k, WangXian, Modern AU, no magic, Meet-Ugly, Panic Attacks, autistic lwj, neurodivergent wwx, the neighborhood asshole dog, if you’ve met one then you know, Hurt/Comfort, Pining, Minor Angst, major shenanigans, Happy Ending, for everyone including the asshole dog, Eventual Smut, switch rights, Sex Toys, horny yearning, Masturbation) Also recommend the meet ugly story, leave all your love and your longing behind, for just, grown up adulting WangXian + extended family

I'm Sorry & Thank You by Iamnotawriter (T, 12k, wangxian, post-canon, Canon Compliant, Golden Core, Canon-Typical Violence, LQR's epipheny, Angst with a Happy Ending)

u may want to check out variations of watching/reading the series tags. Some follow exactly with great character reactions like The Characters of MDZS Watching the Grandmaster of Demonic Cultivation by emma_screams (M, 147k, WIP, WangXian, Humor, Fluff, Angst, Drama) book canon Misunderstood by Silver_Flame_2724 (M, 250k, WIP, WangXian, Alcohol Abuse/Alcoholism, Heavy Angst, Suicidal Thoughts, Canon-Typical Violence, Self-Worth Issues) very au/diverging au, set immediately after first seige w/ wwx backstory that happened 'offscreen' & dif resurrection

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13. Hi loves! Thanks for all the word you put into the blog! I check it so often it might as well be the newspaper 🤣

For the next itmf I’d like something kinda specific: wangxian, established relationship, when they fight, but like fighting the way married people do, as in a “healthy” fight or because they care about the other or things like that. It can have angst but it must be happy ending or my heart won’t be able to take it! Don’t want cheating or infidelity tho, and no ABO please either.

Thank you!!!!!!!

Waiting for Spring by thievinghippo (E, 130k, WangXian, Modern AU, Mutual Pining, Pining while fucking, slight angst, Happy Ending, for a baseball fic, there’s not a lot of baseball, Sports, Baseball) the second fic in boys of summer comes to mind, with feelings Saturday. Not much arguing though more lots of healthy communicating

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14. Hi, do you know any fics about the kids crushing on wei ying like post canon embarrassing sizhui about his milf dad or him accepting that his dad is interested basically in a random lunatic twink? @quxxnrandonmness27

Help, My Dad Is Fucking Someone My Age!! by sweetlolixo (T, 3k, WangXian, Canon Divergence, Humor, Crack, Fluff, Romance)

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15. ITMF where Lan Wangji is a little more outspoken and Wei WuXian is a little less oblivious and they get together early. The less angst the better.

Thank you for your time ૮ ˶ᵔ ᵕ ᵔ˶ ა @tinyfoxpeach

Pigtail Pulling by protos_metazu_ison (G, 3k, WangXian, Fluff and Humor, Crack Treated Seriously, Cloud Recesses Shenanigans)

💖 Magical Marriage Ribbons Series by starandrea (Varies, 1m, WangXian, Canon Divergence, Accidental Marriage, Fluff, Happy Ending, Telepathic bond, Kink Negotiation, Family Drama, Magical Pregnancy, Dual Cultivation, Shapeshifters, Modern with Magic, Immortality, Yilling Wei Sect, podfic) Super fluffy, very little angst, they figure things out shortly after the handfasting in Lan Yi's cave.

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16. In the mood for fics where LWJ loses his golden core & how he deals with it. Don't mind whether WWX also loses his or not, but hard pass on anything where WWX gives LWJ his core (unless they find a way to share somehow). @thispatternismine

stay, fury, your wrist wrapped in silk by spookykingdomstarlight (E, 228k, wangxian, Canon Divergence, Yiling Laozu LWJ, LWJ loses his golden core, yiling wei sect, Hurt/Comfort, Heavy Angst, Major Character Injury, Injury Recovery, Temporary Character Death, War Crimes, Wen Remnant, wangxian Get a Happy Ending, Revenge, LWJ goes dark for a while, WWX has a hard time with the bad shit going on around him, JGS is a bastard, Protracted Sunshot Campaign, War is war and hell is hell and of the two war is a lot worse, temporary impotence, growing intimacy, LWJ and WWX and the Wen Remnant live in the Burial Mounds together, WWX travels with LWJ and stays at his side post-Sunshot, Spanish Translation)

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17. Hi Mods! hope you have a good day! for the ITMF I have two things I would like to ask A) a fic with a wangxian wedding in detail! like what they are wearing and doing, and B) a fic with some focus on Ouyang Zizhen bonding with WWX,

17A)

This Time With Lanterns by ChaoticAndrogynous (T, 6k, WangXian, post-canon cql, Tooth-Rotting Fluff, Light Angst, WWX's canonical self-esteem problems, Friendship/Love, doting husband LWJ, Cultivators In Love, the duckling squad ship them so hard, not really arranged marriage but surprise wedding)

🧡 a stone to break your soul, a song to save it by rikke (M, 180k, wangxian, Canon Divergence, arranged marriage) It's been a while since I read it, but pretty sure -- has a lot of detail about the wedding and the leadup.

17B)

卧薪尝胆 by RoseThorne (G, 978, WangXian, OYZZ & WWX, Petty LWJ, Bunnies, False Accusations, scapegoating, Cultivation Sect Politics, Chief Cultivator LWJ, POV Third Person, POV WWX)

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

[goopi-ctures]

Bac(terra) In(cognita)

Usually I am not an OC person, but I do have these guys, which are near and dear to my heart. I've been working on them since 2015-16-ish, and, while initially it all started as an imagined reboot for a super obscure animated mini-series from 2000's, by now the whole thing evolved into an entirely independent project of big personal importance. I've been cagey about them mostly because I really want to make something significant out of them, maybe like a comic or a children's book, all with a major focus on edutainment, but have been stuck on the topic for years.

The overall premise goes as follows: one day, an empty Petri dish rolled under the sink in a microbio lab, never to be found again by any human working there. However, it quickly became a home to a vibrant community of all sorts of microorganisms, who, as it turns out, are not that different from the humankind. They even have schools!

Main cast:

Eccoli (based on E. coli): he's the protagonist. A smart, but thouroughly burned out kid who skips classes to go eavesdropping on the lessons taking place in a rival school. This is how he stumbles upon the other three guys and reluctantly befriends them. He's very anxious and secretive by nature, but blossoms whenever he gets a chance to talk about his special interest in viruses. Also, being a bacteria, he is by far the tiniest of the main quartet - yes, not all microorganisms are equally small.

Penny Cilly (based on the penicillium mold): a diligent and energetic girl with a short temper and an over-achiever.mindset. May not be able to grasp some topics from the get-go, but makes up for it with lots and lots of hard work. Her family wants her to make a career in antibiotic production, but she's more interested in looking for the alternatives, as antibiotic resistance is on the rise.

Muchor (based on the mucor mold): despite being Penny's childhood friend, he couldn't be more different from her. A born genius, he never struggles in class, grasping even the most complex of concepts on the fly, but having to sit down and do homework will make him crumble. His intellectual prowess also led him to developing a self-centered and condescending attitude, but under all that he's actually a pretty chill and pleasant guy. Has a knack for dangerous experiments and stupid pranks.

Ameeba (based on amoebas): the token nerd of the group. Shy and timid, but very observant and analytical - she definitely rivals even Muchor in that regard, which he openly admits. She has a wide range of interests, but mostly they revolve around art, anime and fashion. She has a very eclectic taste and changes outfits constantly. Also, she can shapeshift! Usually it's confined to her hair, but changing the whole body is definitely possible. It's a very handy ability, as amoebas are significantly larger than most microorganisms (some are even visible with the naked eye), and not many places in Ameeba's life accomodate for that.

Here are the size comparisons (the left one is super old and has an outdated Ameeba design, but it's the best that I have):

Here are their humanizations:

And here's their classroom:

Side characters:

Vol'ka (based on the volvox algae): he's a little younger than the main cast and goes to a different school, but often gets himself involved in their shenanigans. Just as smart as everyone on the team, but his main love is math, maybe also chemistry, while the protags mostly gravitate towards biology. Also, he's the fabled single mom teenager boy: every little cell that makes up his poofy hair is actually one of his little sisters, and he has no choice but to babysit them.

The teachers! The one on the left is Mrs. Inforia (based on Paramecium caudatum), who teaches the main gang and is niceys; the one on the right is Ms. Aurora (based on Staphylococcus aureus), who is Eccoli's teacher and is horrible. Honestly, they're both kind of placeholder-ish, I definitely need to work on the adults of this setting more.

Eulene (based on the euglenas, who are... technically not algae? It's complicated): she's also a teacher working part-time at both Vol'ka's school and the main school, but she's significantly younger than the other two teachers - so much so that she was only in her senior year when Ameeba, Penny and Muchor started middle school. So she's in that awkward position of both being their close friend, but also an authority. Honestly, I love this dymanic, it's very true to some of my experiences.