#same with that one scene in The Thing when the alien's eating the guy but its obvious its an ragdoll

[hellishgayliath]

Never seen the nightmare on elm street movies and have watched the majority of friday the 13th movies (still debating on seeing jason x and the remake) and gotta say Freddy vs jason is so damn entertaining to watch. I don't know shit bout the stuff that happens in the other freddy movies other than the videos i see people discuss bout it but the characters in the movie lay out a lot of the plot points that helped me get the general gist of things. Dunno if that acting is just how it is in the other Freddy movies, but I had fun watching it.

[matan4il]

911 ep 705 first watch reactions

Of course 911 would "punish" the "You are the boss of you!" guy with an alien hand that attacks him, and does what it wants. Pooor Buck and Eddie paying the price for that...

Okay, love the storyline with Hen and Karen possibly eventually adopting an older girl. Too many shows just find easy, unrealistic ways to give their same sex couples kids, and I am really glad that 911 shows the reality of it, and that it is a more complex struggle for many, that it's an act of continuously choosing to be parents. That's actually an amazing, difficult thing, and it should be faithfully depicted and respected, for all of its heartache, and the little moments of triumph.

Buck and Tommy on a date, and Eddie comes along with Marisol? Love how Buck's bisexual awakening and coming out continues to involve Eddie so much. Tell me they're end game, even if they're not gonna get together right now, without telling me they're...

I did not need to learn Marisol is moving in with Eddie like this, with any build up, or even any sort of insight into the relationship, and nope, that does not bode well for them. IDK how 911 managed to do it, but they have somehow managed to give Eddie a love interest the show is even less invested in than Ana.

And the funniest bit, is that Marisol and Eddie's big development is only there to further Buck's journey anyway.

"You can never have too much closet space" LMAO the way 911 both made me laugh, and feel sorry for poor, baby bi Buck. XD

Hmmm. Were parts of this scene cut out? We don't get to see Eddie on his own date with Marisol, but constantly looking over at Tommy and Buck? Boo. I'm glad we at least got the BTS photos, then. But seriously, why!? That was gonna be so delicious.

Oh, Tommy's breaking up with Buck. I mean, good for him, and he ain't wrong after Buck's "after this, we're gonna go out looking for chicks" reaction, but man do I feel sorry for Buck. Him and Tommy might not be my end game (Buddie forever will be), but I do think this relationship could be good for our baby bi. Tommy being in the same profession, knowing what it's like to have this gap between who you are and the image of guys in your line of work, plus he's got more experience than Buck, is sure of himself, can help our boy figure himself out, and also Buck obviously does like his vibe. He deserves to be with someone he actually likes, not just the first woman willing to be with him that the plot pushed in his way.

Oh, baby Buck. :( You didn't even tell Maddie about Tommy. You really aren't ready it. But also (and as a Buddie shipper, more importantly), Tommy broke things off with Buck, but what is eating him up, is that he lied to Eddie. XD Yeah, this gonna end with wedding bells, sooner or later. On screen, off screen after the show ends with canon Buddie, or only in my head if 911 never dares make Buddie canon, I don't care. That kind of emotional devotion is not something that my hopelessly romantic heart can ignore.

OMG, this is how Buck comes out to Maddie? XD Via random pronoun mention, and as a by product of trying to figure out how to tell Eddie the truth? This is hilarious. lol It really makes it clear that, after all, the issue for Buck really isn't people knowing he is also dating guys (or checking their asses), even when it's the other closest person in the world for him, it's Eddie. Specifically. Buck's ready, even if he doesn't have the exact clear words yet, he's just not ready to tell Eddie. Can't imagine why. XDDD

What was that awkward post-sex scene with Eddie and Marisol? And the issues with her moving in are popping up a second after she has. But yeah, we have no idea who this woman is as a person, she's been a cardboard cut out so far, and then one of the first things we do learn about her, is that she would call her stuff better than Eddie's? Once again, this is not the stuff great romance is made of. Or... even just the stuff any kind of romance is made of.

Wait, Marisol was a nun, and Eddie didn't even know!? This whole ep is telegraphing in the news of how weird and awkward and underdeveloped this r/s is, not just for us as viewers who know nothing about Marisol, but apparently for Eddie as well.

And of course his Catholic guilt is gonna kick in now. I'd care, except 911 has given me absolutely no reason to. Seriously, I care more about Buck and Tommy after just 2 eps, than Eddie and Marisol, even though this is technically her 2nd season on the show.

Of course Buck went to find Eddie, and spotted him at the gym. Forever 201 vibes, with Eddie being the focus of Buck's attention. ^u^

I couldn't care less about Eddie's Catholic guilt crisis, and how it's actually a projection of what his real issues are with Marisol, but it's nice to see that as always, Buck's the one who can tell when something's off, and offer Eddie exactly what he needs (even when that's to talk to someone else, but Buck figures out immediately who the right person to address is), and then they just very naturally switch, because Eddie can also tell when something's off with Buck, and he wants to tell him something. Soulmates. THAT is the stuff that great romance IS made of.

:/ The imagery of Catholic nuns has not been around for over 2,000 years, please stop being ignorant about your own religion, and the very different way it looked in its early days.

Bobby is forgiven, he does give good advice, and his "her ex, the Lord" bit, which prompted that reaction from Eddie, is hilarious. XD

So... when Eddie is having issues with Marisol, he already knows he has to figure out how he feels about her, but instead of doing so, he goes to his safe place... Buck's loft.

Man, Eddie being into Tommy's choice of avoidning relationships with women, and hanging out with boys, after in the past, Eddie had dealt with his Shannon issues by running away from her, and re-enlisting in the army, where he gets to hang out with boys, when we all (Buck included) know why Tommy's "hanging out with boys"... I do like that if they want to (and hopefully they do), this further lays the groundwork for Eddie's own queer realization.

Buck and Eddie helping each other with their respective romantic problems, without realizing they are each other's respective romantic solution is gonna make me chew on my own fists. Again. But I'm not even a little bit surprised that Eddie was totally fine and accepting of Buck being bi, or that the first thing he thought of is how this reflects on them. Because their friendship IS way deeper and closer than normal for platonic friends, and Eddie's little reassurance is also an admission of that.

Man, for a second I was worried they also cut out Eddie in the loft, once more putting his thumb on Buck's pulse point possessively, in a perfect parallel to 303. I would have sued for emotional damages. But yeah, it says so much that the peak of emotional meaningfulness for Buck when coming out is in relation to Eddie, and that the scene itself peaks with Eddie, instead of finishing rushing out to take care of his own romantic business, hurries back to Buck first, to hug him, place his hand on Buck and give him orders. "Sure, you're gonna be dating this guy, but I'm still your real husband."

Well, at least Eddie amitted to himself and Marisol that he doesn't actually know her. But... I have never seen two people being both being so happy about not moving in together, and I'm supposed to think this r/s has a chance? Okay. Suuuure.

The scene with Buck going to Tommy to set things straight ready for something was lovely, it was nice seeing him excited, and get to choose, and hear he's wanted. But since the note Tommy and Buck's storyline in this ep should have ended on, is Buck showing Tommy he's ready enough to let others know he's dating a guy by inviting Tommy to come with Buck to Madney's wedding, then why is the very next scene playing the romantic switch again, making us think Buck's car just arrived at the wedding with him and Tommy, only for Buck and Eddie to walk in together? I see what you did there, 911.

Thank you for reading! If you're looking for more, you can find my s7 reactions tag here, and more of my Buddie meta and content in my pinned post. xoxox

[galacticghoste]

OK im a speak my thoughts on the movie, I'm a try to cover everything i remember

Obviously don't take what I say too seriously it's just my opinion

Spoilers obviously

OK LET ME JUST SAY

I LOVVVVVVEEEEEEDDDD THE MOVIE IT WAS FREAKING AWESOME ME AND MY FRIEND KEPT FAN GIRLING AT RANDOM SCENES AND REFERENCES

Which btw LOVE ALL THE REFERENCES I know i probably missed a bunch but a fun one someone pointed out to me was when sonic say a back to the future quote I didn't even notice 😅

Also Knuckles being afraid of ghost makes sense i keep forgetting i played Adv2 and friend reminded me that oh yeah he dose fear ghost even Casper

"There are no friendly ghost" 🤣

Anyways now MARIA GHAAAAAAAA I LOVED HER SHE SO SWEET AND CUTE AND IT IS NICE TO SEE HER JUST BE A NORMAL KID WHO JUST HAPPEND TO LIVE WITH HER GRANDFATHER and also the fact she roller skates, plays music and dose arts which IM SO GLAD ABOUT HEHEH and was just being a kid was just so sweet

The way she finds a way to get shadow out of the lab and it's by using a teddy bear my HEART and maria being reckless and a bit of trouble maker is SO HER

And and she used shadow as a way to get around faster hit me at my childhood I was shadow as a kid my lil cuz would tie a rope to my bike and I would just bike around as they did nothing. 🤣

BUT LOOK

Idk i feel like the movie needed more time to get more things fleshed out it dosent fully feel like they got everything there

Seeing the film now i understand why Amy or anyone else couldn't be in it their just wasn't enough time

though I already knew this i just felt like complaining about it bc I was grieving the fact they took Amy's scene but since in the movie shadow doesnt lose his memories so Amy wouldn't be able to do much and helping him remember if their nothing to remember it wouldn't be impactful, i do hope they interactat some point they are a cute duo

I think more time was needed too because of Director rockwell, you saw the way she started taking charge and looking like she was gonna take over Commander Walter's place and be new leader it felt like there was gonna be more with her like a betrayal and turn over power to her making herself the leader and those could explain why commander Walter just give the key to sonic bc idk why trust him so easly WITH THE KEY TO DESTROYING THE FUCKING PLANET???

Also the fact the Donut Lord was able to just easly fool her didn't feel satisfying she gave up way to fast for someone who looked like her roles were gonna lead to something even if it was just plane hate for sonic and his friends.

Also I can see why shadow may not like tails Bro literally almost drowned him and stone and interrupted his Novela and didnt even let him eat his "Revenge Guacamole"

(The fact shadow named it that was so CUTE bc ahhh sweet boy my heart!)

Also i do like how shadow remained loyal to Gerald throughout the whole thing really shows how much he cares about the family he as left and how he was fine with dieing if it ment avenging Maria

But I find it interesting that he questions his action a bit late like dude you just now thought about that? I think it would have been better if he questions his action from the beginning but kept using the excuse that this is what Maria wanted or something like that it would given maybe a bit more build up to what Gerald says to him to make him stop questions it

Obviously their no way Maria wanted to destroy the earth even Gerald knew that yet never says it out loud just says "remember what they took from us" and that was enough for shadow to stop thinking about it

Also THE FUCKING FACT SHADOW JUST BEEN LIVING THE SAME NIGHTMARE FOR 50 YEARS HURTS ME POOR GUY

And the fact he says that the sadness was kinda what he got use to and ever knew

(I kin i just dont have nightmares my brain just like to remind me of stuff)

Also did the government just keep him alive bc he was some alien from another planet?

Also he didn't seem to be too young when. He arrived to earth so dose he have amnesia from wherever he was from what was his childhood before maria did he even have one? U would think they would have diesected him and study him while be was put to sleep/frozen for so long

He's been reliving the same events for so long but one day it was enough to wake him up thx to Gerald

Also DOES GEROLD GO TO Comicons?!?! bc ahhh he was saveing that giant arm for it XD

Also speaking on Maria again I'm a bit disappointed by the fact they decide to not cover the fact that Maria was sick or that shadow was supposed to be a cure for her as well as a weapon

I need more scene of the both of them and their lives back in the research facility

I don't think the cover much on him even being the ultimate life form at all or the other experiment or the FACT THEY ARE NOT IN SPACE

I FUCKING KNEW IT I FUCKING KNEW THEY WEREN'T IN SPACE THE SCENES WE GOT WERE ENOUGH PROOF TO SHOW IT HEHHEEHEHEHEH

Its a bit disappointing It doesnt feel as impactful when shadow dose get to step outside for the first time

ALSO I ALREADY WISH WE GOT THE SCENE OF MARIA SAYING SAYONARA AND SHADOW BEING DEPRESSED IN THE TUBE AS HE LANDS TO EARTH

The closest thing to it was when he was captured and tased to enter the tube again and the look of betrayal and sadness and later anger in his face AHHH

His back story in this one is giving Venom vibes with the space rock and him being inside it like its a fucking egg, HE IS LITERALLY JUST AN ALIEN he's NOT SOME SCIENCE EXPERIMENT LIKE WHAT?!?!

Where was he from is he still from the same planet as sonic?

I AM curious on what this will lead to and if we learn more I HOPE WE DO bc that movie did NOT COVER ENOUGH ON THAT SHIT

ALSO THE FACT SHADOW REACTS THE WAY HE DOES WHEN HE SEES SONIC SPECIFICALLY MAKES TOTAL SENSE

HE has never seen another hedgehog

HECK IM WILLING TO BET HE DIDNT EVEN KNOW HE WAS POSSIBLY ONE UNTILL THEN

HE literally would ask Maria if she's scared of him bc he knows everyone else is afraid of him and was worried Maria may be afraid too AHH POOR BABY (no more monster movies for him)

But yeah a bit disappointed I KNOW THEY AINT GONNA DO EVERYTHING THE SAME IM NOT THAT STUPID BUT IDK I JUST FEEL like they only cut that shit out bc they didn't have time which if that's the case it might as well been a two parter film it would give more time to flesh out the characters and give more impact to emotional scenes

(Who knows if they make TV show it would help cover some backstory on him)

Bc that scene with the commander didn't hit i didn't feel too much sympathy and I know i should but the scene wasn't giveing it for me

NOW A SCENE THAT WAS IMPACTFUL

Was when Gerald said to Egg man "your no Maria" I FELT SO BAD FOR EGG MAN

UGH MY POOR DUDE

No but Literally he was in a orphanage his whole life and he ever bothered to get him

Im guessing egg man was born while Gerald may have been in jail or he just didn't care enough.

He either never knew about him or didn't care bc i know he was in jail but egg man is probably a similar age Maria was back then so him never bothering to get him just means he only cared for Maria and kinda shadow he did say KIDS and instead of Just referring to Maria so I think he still got crazy at some point while in jail.

But I wonder why they Commander lied

Yes their was an accident that could have been avoided but it wasn't because of shadow it was bc some dumb ass who decided to shot at some kids and an old man they missed but it cost Maria her life

also why the hell is shadow not reacting more strongly to Maria's death that was his fucking sister

I DONT THINK I SAW A SINGLE TEAR FROM HIM AND THAT DOESNT MAKE SENSE HE IS KNOWN TO CRY AT LEAST A BIT FOR LOSING MARIA BRO SHOULD HAVE BEEN SCREAMING IN PAIN BUT NOPE SILANCE AND ANGER UGHH WHY CANT CHARACTERS CRY ANYMORE not even the memory of it made him cry

Also HOW AND THE HELL IS IT that shadow was just being studied so lightly if he really is and full on Alien bro would have been diesected by now or at least have scars or memory's of it but nope nothing

(YES I KNOW ITS A FUCKING KIDS FILM IM JUST SAYING SHIT would make WAY MORE SENSE IF THEY AT LEAST MENTION IT if they didnt want to show it)

Also i was expecting him to be a bit more edgey i dont mind that he isn't but idk he just seemed depressed the enter movie poor guy needs therapy

I found if sweet that egg man got to expramce everything he missed out of In the film (probably what shadow wanted for him and maria)

Its interesting how shadow and Maria don't have to many lines together it feels like she only talked 1 or twice and that's it i wish their was MORE OF THEM

Also i found it interesting how shadow kept mentioning during their fight that sonic became just like him when it came to revenge and how he kept mentioning that sonic left to fight him against his friends wishes it feels like he saying he shouldn't have made the choice he did kinda like saying he would have done better if he was in his position or like he should be grateful (idk that's just my view on that scene i liked it)

Also the way sonic tells shadow that the pain doesn't go away but he can change the way he views that pain and how he can remember that the love he had for her will always stay

Its sweet but didn't feel that impactful as I thought it would be the word were but idk i think they should have lingered a bit more on the scene or something it feels a bit fast paste at time.

ALSO HAS ANYONE SEEN SHADOWS EYES ARE PINK WHEN HE GOES SUPER?!?!?!?! YESSSSSSSSZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZAHHHHHH

Also LOVE HOW SHADOW AND SONIC BATTLE TOGETHER IN THE END THEY WERE AWESOME

But then in the final part when trying to stop the laser from killing the earth later separate them with sonic kinda takeing the place of shadow falling scene and shadow just goes poof for a bit

bro literally just cares to get a task done and not save anyone he doesnt save stone when their place was flooded and now sonic

Also glad eggman still kinda pissed on the moon

BRO HAD ME WORRIED FOR A MOMENT THAT HE MAY BE DEAD BUT NOPE HE GOOD AHHHHHHHHHHHH AND THE WAY HIM AND EGG MAN DID SACRIFICE THEMSELVES TOO?!?! UGH THE BLISS SHADOW MUST HAVE FELT TO MAYBE REST IN PEACE AND EGG MAN REDMETION ARC WITH STONE WHILE IN AN ARK AHHHHHH I LOVE THEM SO MUCH HE CARES AHH

But I was SO SCARED THAT SHADOW REALLY DEAD IN THAT ONE my friend had to keep reassuring me that he's not dead they wouldn't let him die but i was like BUT THEY COULD?!?!

But nope they were right he alright 👍🏼

OK MY BIGGEST JOY WAS SEEING AMY

FUCKING YESSSSSSSSSSS I FUCKING HAD A FEELING IT WAS GONNA BE HER IT HAD TO BE IF THEY DECIDED TO CUT HER FROM THAT FUCKING FILM AND NOT JUST HER BUT METAL SONIC TOO??? BUT NOW WHO MADE METAL???

I have so many questions not enough answers anyways fuck you I think Amy is important and im so FUCKING GLAD SHE FINALLY SHOWS UP AHH GIRLY IS IMPORTANT and she gonna be a battle machine AHHH

Can't wait to see her reason from fighting all those robots who are METAL!!!

[britishraptor]

Gonna kick the hornets nest here, but the file from the most recent episode of The Magnus Protocol was incredibly underwhelming. It didn’t take into account at all anything that actually makes snakes scary, little to no foreshadowing, and basically attempted to jumpscare the audience with a reveal that reads more like a parody of a horror story than an actual one.

I might look like an idiot or a fool when everything all strings together later than the line, but I’m questioning so much about this episode.

Parasites are scary. Worms, and insects and mold and rot. Decay, possession. Spiders are scary because they’re hard to see, hard to pinpoint and they move fast, plus the connections with webs related to control, and manipulation. So yeah, a worm lady, sure, a person filled with spiderwebs, also sure. But the only connection between snakes and parasitism could be a joke about ‘shedding your skin’ or how disturbing that one scene in Harry Potter was.

Snakes are scary for two reasons:

1) the same reason bears and tigers all that are scary. Hunt style being hurt, and killed, and eaten. Simple.

B) uncanny valley reasons. Snakes don’t blink. They don’t have facial expressions. The way they move and eat and exist is totally different from humans and mammals. They’re often described as alien and cold.

My questions:

a) why rodent control? why was he even actually brought in? His walls are FULL OF SNAKES. It wouldn’t have lasted five minutes. It doesn’t make any sense even if you know he was concerned about parasites. Snakes don’t give a shit about other snakes. To call someone a snake is to literally call them callous and prone to betrayal. A snake eats the rodent, so you kill the snake. Plus a snake store would have access to medications to kill mites and deal with snake illness? Why call the guy at all?

b) the foreshadowing on the owner is terrible. You could have mentioned his skin needed moisturising. That it seemed dry, flaky. Scaly. But just. A red rash? A rash? Are you saying being full of snakes is an infectious disease? That’s what he said at the end, right? That his throat itches. It was swelling. You can just?? Grow your own snakes?? Is that the implication?

No uncanny valley mention on the owner either at all. He didn’t move weird, being full of snakes? Didn’t sway or limp as he walked, didn’t move sluggishly? Bad hearing, didn’t know what to do with his hands? No? Just a short tempered customer. Okay.

c) You lost me at the thousands of snakes. THOUSANDS? What is this, a clown car? A snake clown car in some random guys skin, who explodes because he was mad a customer walked out.

Look, I’m Australian. And when I ask my friends ‘hey, how big do you normally picture a snake being?’ we picture snakes about 1.5m long. Dinner table length is pretty common for all of our common brown, tiger snakes, red bellies, and even longer for our common carpet pythons. But even if I adjust to like, other countries’ grass snakes, thousands?

The throwaway line at the end was plot relevant I’m sure, but I’m all around confused, and totally not even a little bit scared.

The only praise I have is that the description of the crickets was very creepy, and I loved the visual of them moving around like a shuddering wave of pixels on a screen, only really perceived by their screaming.

But yeah. The setup, the foreshadowing, the coherent theming and consistency all just fell totally flat for me. The only thing I learnt was that this guy applied to the institute and was rejected, and that snakes can’t do dishes.

[antilocaprine]

Okay hear me out. I read your fic "All In Your Head" and it gave me such a clear and immediate inspiration. Please excuse me rambling into your askbox, but I need you to know.

You know those videos on YouTube where people will train an AI to win a specific video game? I can't stop thinking about Gordon as a sort of AI being trained to play/win Half Life. Gordon being aware that he is playing a game and that the science team are all AI, but unaware that he himself is also a program. It's like "Half Life but the AI are Self Aware, but Gordon is perhaps less self aware than he thinks he is". (And also just because the idea that a deep reinforcement learning AI trained to win Half Life accidentally unknowingly developing self awareness and also immediately developing a complex that hes somehow more alive/real than the other AI in the game is deeply funny and existential lto me.)

I have such a clear scene in my head that I am desperate to write where Benry does the "touch and move the VR headset" thing in this context.

Like, from a perspective where Benry has always known he's different from everyone else -- he's always been able to kind of step outside reality and noclip and mess with his character model and do things that other people shouldn't be able to do. So he's friends with Tommy and other people, but he knows he's alien and "other", he exists in a different kind of reality that everyone else. (Whether Benry's awareness extends only to "I am different because I am an alien" or as far as "I am different because I am a computer program and I am able to manipulate the game files, which even other self aware AI like Dr. Coomer are not able to do" could both be interesting in different ways).

And then one day this new guy shows up and he's so obviously "other" in a similar way that Benry is. When Gordon gets hurt, it's pretty clear he's only pretending to feel pain. (Gordon, aware that he is playing a game, and thinking that the AI realizing he is operating outside the game might freak them out, tries to be convincing and play along.) When Gordon "sleeps" (exits the game), his body either goes lifeless, or maybe disappears completely. Etc. Etc.

Benry clocks this and is kinda thrilled, because now he has found someone who is weird like him. Weird in a different way, but also different. The feeling of finding kin in someone who is similarly outside the bounds of reality. Which makes it particularly irritating to Benry when Gordon treats him exactly like the rest of the AI and refuses to acknowledge that they are on the same playing field.

Maybe this is why Benry conspires to lead Gordon into the soldier's trap where he loses his hand? Sort of a "oh yeah? You think you're better than me? Well eat this." And of course Gordon absolutely acts up "oh no, my hand... guys... this hurts so bad... ough..." (<- the words of a man who is carefully trying (and failing) to convince the science team that everything here is Real and Not A Game because he's afraid of hurting them and giving them existential crisises or breaking their AI or something, and now has no choice but to double down.) Which of course only makes Benry worse.

Then post Dr. Coomer clone fight but pre finale, at some point Dr. Coomer (who is absolutely fully self aware at this point) notices Benry is infatuated/obsessed, and just shakes his head. He conveys to Benry about Gordon something like, "He's not like us. He doesn't exist in the same reality as us. He doesn't feel things the same way we do. He cannot be touched." Which of COURSE only makes it EVEN WORSE.

Like a kid who was just told he wasn't allowed to play with his favorite toy. Like, "What do you MEAN I can't have him? Just because he's stupid and thinks he's better than me." Which leads to an emotionally charged conversation/confrontation between Benry and Gordon. Because Benry knows Gordon likes him back. And Gordon doesn't deny it, but just says it doesn't work like that. (Gordon is at this point still under the impression that he is A Real Dude and Benry (and everyone else) are Just Game AI. And yeah even if he is really... something about Benry, it's got to be like, immoral or something to fall in love with a dude who's just a computer program.)

Which, of course, leads Benry to go "oh yeah?" And Benry has always been weird and different and able to do things other people aren't able to do. And it's easy for Benry to take a chunk of a program and port it somewhere else, for him to just sort of reach out and grab and pull--

From Benry's perspective this looks like nothing has changed. From Grodon's perspective, this looks like Gordon was playing a VR game and then he was IN the VR game. This is the "Benry takes off the VR headset" moment. (I've also rewatched the finale of the Gnome series recently, which is SUCH a big influence for this moment). Like, Gordon is standing in a temperature controlled room playing a VR game and then the headset comes off and huh wow it's hot (desert) and those lights are really bright and Benry is right up close in his face with a sharp smile that is ALL smug, and he can feel-- oh fuck. Sort of a "what did you do to me?!" moment (which are SO TASTY imo).

And then the rest of the fic spirals off from there, and I am insane about this whole concept, and I need to write something about it before it eats me alive.

I hope you have enjoyed my rambling fic outline. There is more in my head about this, and I will write it up into a proper outline soon. Your fic was the catalyst for this, so thank you for the insanity.

(All In Your Head)

I adore this idea, and I think you should absolutely do it. Gordon being an AI without knowing it is such a good take that I don't see often enough. Likening it to the gnome streams is also an excellent plan - moments where someone gets yoinked out of their version of normal and hurled into someone else's version of normal are just so delightful. Cosmic horror for a computer program... I look forward to seeing what you come up with!

[jeysecretive]

Okay, okay, I steal ideas, I quickly fall in love with fanfics... Please please take this for what it's worth, because I love what pops into my head and I can't not share it!

So, this time to suffer fic by @weirdozjunkary (MVA), and I'll write nonsense because I haven't watched Monsters vs Aliens from the word at all, and am following a completely my own plot that will unfold after the second part of the fanfic.

(Part two!)

(NOTE: I WROTE THIS IN ANOTHER LANGUAGE, AND DECIDED TO REQUEST IT IN A TRANSLATOR TO AVOID REWRITING IT ALL OVER AGAIN, SO THERE MAY BE MISTAKES!(THOUGH WITH MY LEVEL OF ENGLISH YOU'RE UNLIKELY TO FEEL THE DIFFERENCE LMAO))

ENJOY THE SHOW!

It was a cloudy day in May. It was dank and damp outside, and anyone who needed to go out for business in such weather was sure to wrap themselves in a raincoat or scarf, snorted now and then at the dampness and unpleasant wind.

Sonic, Tails and Shadow were not happy about the weather, so they sat in the GUN base and settled down on Sonic's bed and watched comedies on a homemade movie projector that the fox had made from a ruined microwave (Barry had given it to them). What better way to brighten up a dull, rainy day than with a funny movie and a bag of chips?

Knuckles refused to be entertained, disappearing into a roadside café, eating mugs of delicious hot cocoa and cakes prepared by the owner of the place. Guys did not insist on his choice, and decided to have fun in their own way. And now they watched movies with laughter, exchanging ideas or news every now and then.

But the cozy revelry was suddenly interrupted by General Acorn entering the room.

"–Enough of this nonsense, boys!" she exclaimed nervously, "I have something interesting to show you."

"–Uuuh, we've stopped at the most interesting scene..." Sonic grumbled unhappily, taking his equally frowning friends in his arms and following the chipmunk on his heels. He didn't want to go out his room at all, as the very realization that it was raining outside made him drowsy and drowsy. But he didn't want to disobey orders, and with the thought that GUN it would be worth it to hold off on all sorts of things, Sonic and company entered the observation room.

The General hurried to one of the monitors, giving an order to one of her subordinates.

Plumping herself into a chair, she began clicking hastily on the keyboard.

Finally finding what she needed, she brought up the image on the main screen hanging from the ceiling, large enough for Sonic to look at.

At first, nothing could be seen there but a desolate area: a small lake surrounded by sparse undergrowth. It was taken from a distance, but Sonic recognized the place - it was not far (though one has to figure out what "not far" means to a giant hedgehog...) from one of the small towns west of the GUN base. When he wanted to bask in the sun, Sonic would go there and bask on the soft grass that grew near the pond.

Now the place looked rather bleak, and judging by the swaying trees, it was also windy. Sonic shuddered at the dank sight. The last thing he wanted to do right now was to be there. Shadow and Tails seemed to share his feeling, shiver at little times.

But suddenly guys noticed a strange beam of light coming toward the clearing. It seemed to be some kind of meteorite or comet, but the light grew brighter and brighter, and it was already apparent that some object was flying from the sky at an oblique angle straight toward the waters of the lake. Finally, it crashed into the sand right next to the water, raising a huge column of mud and causing the lake to become very agitated and overflow its banks. At the same moment, the image began to glitch and shake, and finally went out.

"–We installed this camera a week ago so that Ollie" - Sally waved her hand toward one of the employees nervously monitoring some sort of signature on small work computers - "–could monitor the soil conditions in this county, since there have been repeated sightings of sudden flooding or ground instability. But ten minutes ago, we received this video from him."

"–I beg your pardon, ma'am!" shouted one of the soldiers running by "we've just been notified that the object MIGHT be emitting Chaos energy, causing interference throughout the area, but that energy is highly variable, and NOTHING like the signatures of the Chaos Emeralds."

The General looked worriedly at Sonic.

"–Okay Ron, I'll take that under advisement, you may go."

"-Yes, ma'am!"

She turned back to guys again.

"-The object in question may not be an emerald, but we have an obligation to find out its origin."

"- Is there any chance that it was an ordinary meteorite?" Shadow asked.

"Absolutely not. Meteorites have completely different radiation levels, and even if it was one of them, there would be no trace of the lake. Besides, the meteor shower hasn't been predicted for the next four months. I want to send the three of you away to inspect this scene in detail."

Hearing this message, Sonic groaned unhappily. The last thing he wanted to do was go outside in this weather, much less look for anything.

"- Ma'am, why don't you ask someone else to do it, say, send out a search party?"

The General looked at him sternly.

"- No one knows what we'll be facing. Besides, if it's not even an emerald, no one knows how to deal with Chaos energy better than you."-Sonic opened his mouth to speak-"... AND I WON'T TAKE NO FOR AN ANSWER! NO ONE CAN HANDLE IT BETTER THAN YOU BOYS, SO LET'S GET TO WORK!"

All three of them left the room and headed down the corridor towards the exit.

They were followed by "...- And please don't forget to take a couple good pictures!!!"

"And why does it have to be us, in this weather?" Sonic said indignantly.

Tails and Shadow silently shared his opinion. They both knew how much the hedgehog hated the cold. Truth be told, they didn't want to run out in the rain to some mysterious meteorite, shivering in the cold and pissing their feet in puddles.

"- Well, at any rate, the sooner we get out, the sooner we get in! We should try and just have a quick look around the place, and we'll be back home.... Unless, of course, something happens..."-Tails broke the silence.

Shadow nodded in agreement.

Ahead of his friends, fox cub went into his workshop. Sonic and Shadow stomped curiously at the entrance, watching him rummage through boxes of junk, sneezing from the dust.

Finally, his face brightened.

"-Hooray, I found it!"-Tails raised the device, which looked like a game joystick with a screen, high above his head.

"-Very good, buddy, but what is it?" inquired Sonic.

"- It's a handheld device for tracking more or less powerful energy sources. It can be used to search for the energy signal of the Chaos Emeralds! I built it for just that purpose, but I haven't had to use it yet. Now I'll tweak it a bit, and we can easily find what we need."

On the occasion of the bad weather, Shadow and Tails had donned raincoats with warm linings. Looking at them, Sonic was quietly envious since GUN hadn't taken care of his warm clothes for such occasions. Seeing his dejected face, the fox cub comfortingly patted the big guy's boot.

"-Let's make this quick and get back home."

Sonic nodded his head.

"-Okay, you're right! There's nothing faster than me anyway."-he hummed.

Stepping outside, hedgehog whinnying as a hail of cold drops rained down on him. Gritting his teeth, Sonic put his friends on his shoulders and sped off.

After only a few minutes, he stopped next to a large crater of sand and mud.

Lowering his buddies to the ground, Sonic began to shake off the moisture fiercely of himself. While he dealt with this procedure, Tales was thoughtfully twiddling one of the buttons on his miracle device.

"These are settings for the beeping sound for better search efficiency," he explained to Shadow, who was looking over his shoulder.

Before they could say anything, Sonic's sneeze rang out across the neighborhood.

"Sorry, guys, I couldn't help it," the hedgehog muttered in confusion. Tails chuckled "–Hey, at least you're wearing a jacket after all!"

The little fox, without answering anything, went back to his search device.

Finally finished, he solemnly moved the gray slider and smiled proudly.

              "BEEP--BEEP--BEEP--BEEP."

"- Wow, not bad for a meteorite!"- Tails even jumped up in surprise. "- I didn't expect the energy to be THIS strong..."

The fox slowly began to slide into the center of the crater.

"- According to my calculations, this energy could very well equate to the power of several emeralds!"

Finally finding himself in the middle of the crater he scratched the back of his head thoughtfully-"- Hmmmm.... Strange... It feels like the source of the signal is elsewhere.... And it's... Moving?!"-Shadow immediately landed next to Tails-"And what does that mean, fox?"

Foxy shook his head thoughtfully-"-I can say with certainty that there's nothing in that funnel."

"So you're saying that the meteorite grew legs and got out of here and went about its business?" Sonic laughed.

Both buddies frowned at him.

Sonic, realizing that his joke was not appreciated, pouted resentfully and walked away.

But suddenly he noticed that the sand around him was cut by a string of strange footprints. They were clearly Mobian, but they were extremely erratic, as if the person getting out of the funnel had been spinning or drunk. The footprints were already half-drenched in rain, but they were still visible. And they led toward the woods.

"- GUYS, I FOUND SOMETHING INTERESTING!"- Sonic took turns picking up his friends in a pinch and placing them near his find.

Immediately a dead silence hung around.

"-Hey guys, don't you think...?" whispered Tails.

Shadow slapped his forehead-"-WHY DIDN'T WE THINK OF THIS SOONER?! WHILE WE WERE GONE, ANYONE COULD HAVE GOTTEN IN HERE AND STOLEN THE EMERALD-"

"-No, wait!" Tails interrupted him excitedly, "This energy is nothing like Chaos! Maybe..."

All three of them looked at each other.

"Does Neo have any relatives?" whispered Sonic.

"LET'S GO FIND HIM BEFORE IT'S TOO LATE!" Shadow was the first to rush out of his seat. The others, after a moment's hesitation, rushed after him.

***

Were the aliens going to take over the world again? We'll find out next time!

[thevindicativevordan]

Since you read all of Ultimate Fantastic Four, what do you think of the series?

Gave me an understanding of why shows like Keeping Up With The Kardashians are popular. Something about following trashy people can be oddly compelling and entertaining. Ellis and Millar’s sections were the strongest of the run, with Carey only getting good towards the end. Ellis spends a lot of time “realistically” explaining how the powers of the Four work, and used that same approach to the Ultimate takes on Doom and the Negative Zone too. Millar in contrast is throwing out cool ideas to see what sticks (zombie F4, everyone gets superpowers, spiders that eat time travelers, Doom pulls a Superior Spider-Man on Reed) and doesn’t particularly care to explain in depth how any of it works. His is the most entertaining section of the UFF and the one where the premise really shines. You get to see the potential of a less squeaky clean F4 in terms of what stories can be told, all of the Four get character focus even if in the case of Sue and Johnny it only makes them more unlikable.

I already talked about Reed but regarding the other three:

Ben is more or less the same as his 616 counterpart. Pissed at Reed for his transformation, angsts over it and is terminally depressed, but when his team or world needs him he brings the clobbering. Thing’s best moments are ironically in the President Thor arc where he has no powers. Scene at that end where he beats the Super Skrull to death for genociding Earth is peak Thing. Ben Grimm rules no matter the reality.

Ultimate Johnny is a moron. A well-meaning moron with a (small) heart of gold to compensate for having no brains to be fair. He has some good moments like clueing Reed in that Sue likes him at the start of the series, and being willing to give up his powers if it means curing Ben as an apology for an incredibly asshole “joke” he plays on Ben earlier. But he remains a shallow fratbro for the entire run, with only the death of his father at the end of the series (thanks to Ultimatum) pushing him towards bettering himself. Bendis’ usage of him in USM is superior to how he’s used in UFF imo.

Another unintentional foreshadowing here that I loved. Sue goes on a mission to Siberia alone after Reed alienated himself from the rest of the team because he was obsessed with shooting the Cube. Sue gets shot down and Johnny blames Reed for it, threatening to burn Reed to death if Sue dies. Follows through on that threat after Reed DOES hurt Sue in Ultimate Doom! Within the arc itself Johnny comes across as an unstable prick, but people probably feel more inclined to side with him knowing what Reed will become. I however saw how you could feasibly make Johnny a bad guy, imagine a world where Sue does die and Johnny is the one to go off the deep end. Can’t see 616 Johnny ever breaking like that, but this guy could have.

Sue… is much, much worse than her 616 counterpart. Most writers, even great ones like Hickman, don’t know what to do with Sue. At best she’s the “mom” and that’s her entire character. She takes care of the kids and nags the rest of the team. Ultimate Sue being unmarried means that they can’t fall back on that so instead they make her whole personality being a woman. Mole Man and Namor are sex pests towards her, she gets kidnapped because one villain wants to use her to resurrect his wife and the other villain wants to steal her powers because she thinks they’re wasted on Sue. Everything about her revolves around the men in her life, even breaking her and Reed up merely leads to a new permanent relationship between her and Ben.

Sue’s biggest fear is becoming her mom, who is a selfish asshole who abandoned the Storm family because she valued her career more than them. Suppose that means she’s attracted to Reed initially because her mommy issues made her think she could get Reed to pick her over science where she failed with her mom. She’s constantly showing off skin to titillate the readership. Arcs focused on her were the worst of the run, and that breakup scene at the end of UFF: Requiem managed to make her shooting down a marriage proposal at her dad’s funeral unsympathetic. All these legit reasons to break Sue and Reed up for good, and they went for the one that makes Sue as unlikable as possible. Yeah how dare Reed not prioritize saving you over saving the planet!

If UFF exists on a spectrum with Reed being morally sketchy even prior to his breakdown, and Ben essentially being the same as his 616 counterpart, Johnny and Sue are right in the middle with Johnny edging towards the heroic side and Sue leaning towards villainy. People have forgotten this but Ultimate Sue had two evil futures where she broke bad. One where she becomes Kang which was Fialkov trying to justify Reed’s transformation into Maker, and the other in a completely forgotten F4/X-Men crossover where she becomes an evil dictator in an alternate future after Johnny gets killed in Ultimatum, with Reed opposing her. God that entire story was a fever dream, on its own it’s mediocre as hell but every goddamn reveal hits ten times harder when you know what’s coming.

Damnit this was a punch straight to the gut. In said future Reed becomes Nihl, no matter what it seems he was destined to emulate one of the Four’s foes. Biggest takeaway from UFF for me is that I could buy Ultimate Reed, Sue, or Johnny breaking bad. All three are shitty people with poor emotional control and narcissistic elements to their personalities. Reed simply had the misfortune to be the one Bendis chose to shove into the deep end.

Ultimate X-Men is the only Ultimate series I haven’t read yet but right now I rate UFF as the weakest of the ones I have. It’s not bad by any means! Actually I quite enjoyed it depending on the arc. Unlike USM and Ultimates however I don’t think UFF does anything better than the mainline FF book. Tellingly that while MCU adaptions of Spider-Man and Avengers borrowed a lot from their Ultimate counterparts, the FF seem to be drawing entirely from 616. UFF works better as a contrast with the mainline rather than as an entry point to the franchise for new readers.

[niiwa-angel]

I love the potential world building aspect for the humans living in any transformers media, because it's a fucking hilarious concept.

I like to think the Cybertronians are the governments of the world's worst kept secrets. Like, in his first scene in the Bayverse Transformers Movie, Bumblebee drove onto the lot literally as Sam was already there, slammed his door into the car next to him, and then blew out the windows of every other car on the lot because he needed to go with Sam but his dad didn't wanna fork over an extra $1000. Then in that SAME MOVIE, he kicks Sam and Mikayla out of his cab in the middle of the street, because Mikayla called him "a piece of shit Camero" only to return less than two minutes later, stunt driving, as a newer model of a Camero.

Not to mention, the Decepticons don't exactly try to hide. Not for long anyway. And I chuckle to think what they were doing off screen before the movie even started. In fact, in pretty much any transformers media I've seen (admittedly it's been a while for the cartoons but still) the Decepticons just fucked around. They did not have a fuck to give about whether or not they were seen by humans.

So I imagine, if you're anybody with Internet access anywhere in the world, you probably know that there are giant alien robots just lurking around. Car does something weird on the roadway in front of you? Get out your phone, there's not an non-zero chance it'll transform and you can go internet famous. Go to an air show? Keep an eye out for any particularly flashy planes, it may be Starscream.

I also think the Autobots would try and copy humans to some extent. Jazz watches a human rip open a package with their teeth and he starts mimicking it. When in Rome, do as the Romans after all. Or Ironhide sees humans step on pop/beer cans when finished drinking them and starts doing that with empty oil barrels. It's funny but it also makes every human around them VERY conscious of the fact that these guys could easily kill them if they wanted to.

BUT! Humans will pack bond with literally anything. So for the humans who live near the Autobots, I'd like to think they're just part of the community. Your elderly parent/grandparent needs a ride to a medical appointment but you work full time and don't want to pay for a cab? Call one of the Autobots. Your family member will get there and back safely but they do not get to pick the music. The streets and sidewalks are always clear of snow because the Autobots took over road clearing since they fucking hate winter. People leave jugs of oil, WD40, and scrap metal in their front lawns because the Autobots eat and drink those things. The drive in theaters was going to go out of business, since most people don't use them anymore, but the big robots like it so the community just agrees to keep it open for them.

If one of them hands you a grocery list and some money, just go get their stuff for them. They don't fit in human stores but they do sometimes need stuff. Be a good neighbour to your local alien robot.

And can you IMAGINE the pranks the younger generations can get up to with more of the care free bots? Senior prank day just got a lot more intense. Jazz lifted a principals care up onto the school roof once because the seniors bribed him with old car parts to eat. Rachet walls outside one morning to find that someone has painted a local statue yellow and black (no idea who that could have been) and Optimus is constantly getting calls because Mirage is impersonating a police car to scare people into slowing down.

But if every human living near the Autobots, I think the kids would love them the most. And the adults know that and exploit it as much as possible. Reading challenge at the nearby elementary school? Optimus was a librarian, everyone go outside and he's going to give us a lecture on the importance of reading. Rachet is also there to stress the importance of good posture while we're at it.

[most-datable-datable-bracket]

ROUND 1 MATCH 94

Jaal propaganda:

“His romance is all about trust gained, vulnerability and making each other feeling safe and he's SO sweet throughout. Player character (Ryder) arrives unannounced on the planet where Jaal's species live, and he joins them to assess their intentions. He's slow to trust (last aliens that they made contact with literally started a decades-long war against his people) but after a while he can start to open up (he responds well to Ryder trusting him and not intervening in certain scenarios, choosing to help his people rather than just finish a mission, honesty in general). He's curious about everything, eager to share knowledge on language, food, biology, culture, literally anything that comes to his mind. He likes tinkering and understanding how things work, he writes poetry and he sews. If romanced, he invites Ryder to his home to meet his mother(s) and the rest of the family, tells them "You make my heart sing" and asks them if they want to be together. Eventually he will take Ryder on a date to his favorite place on the planet to confess his love (player can agree to an intimate scene but it progresses the same even if they say no to him). After they officially get together he'll start using pet names like "Darling one" or "dearest" or "amazing heart" or "You are the light that we all follow, that I follow". Plus, after Ryder meets her, his mother starts doting on you and sending you emails to ask questions to make them feel 100% welcomed in the family (especially since Ryder is human and they face public scrutiny for being of two different planets/species). He's constantly smitten for the player character and not afraid to make it clear for everyone in the general vicinity.”

Jun propaganda:

“He was a gay option in a JRPG in 1999. He’s an astrology bitch. He attacks by throwing flowers a la Tuxedo Mask. He and Tatsuya (the player character) exchanged their most treasured possessions with each other while standing in front of a bridal store. His relationship with Tatsuya is central to the plot. Choosing him as the romance unlocks a demon contact option where the two of them just stand in front of the demon and flirt. One of his solo demon contact options is just him doing an “I’m just a little guy” routine. He’s kind and sweet and caring and earnestly wants to help people but may the heavens have mercy if you piss him off because he also has no qualms about committing murder. Most characters, when their stat bonuses from eating run out, will just make a comment about getting hungry but Jun will take the opportunity to ask Tatsuya out on a date. The lead devs agreed in an interview that he’s the best romance option.”

[gothicprep]

i know there’s still a risk of it getting trapped in development hell, but I’m looking forward to luca guadagnino’s adaptation of american psycho.

bear with my aside for a second, but i watched GOT adaptation earlier this year and felt like there was something missing from it, even from the early seasons. then i read the ice & fire novels and realized the absence that was bothering me was in the books the whole time. American psycho was incidentally the first thing i did this same experiment with years ago.

mary harron’s adaptation doesn’t fully embrace how garish and absurd the world of that novel is, and I think that’s why I couldn’t fully get into it. the absurd factor is hovering around a 4 when it should be an 11. my memory might be failing me on the specifics, but everyone acts like an alien in that book. bateman being a serial killer is almost unremarkable given how unconcerned everyone in that world is with their own humanity in general.

the characters wear clashing designer clothing – a houndstooth suit with a paisley scarf, a candy-striped shirt with a polka dot tie – while still managing to confuse Finance Guy A for Finance Guy B on a glance because their ridiculous dress and convoluted personal care routines are so similar. they eat disgusting food at fusion restaurants which feature flavors that make no sense together. califorinian-indian. scallop sausage. peanut butter duck soup. there’s a scene very early in the novel where someone bateman is out with buys bad coke and gets into a shouting match about it with some gay guy in the bathroom stall next to them.

the one big change i hate is that the famous business card scene that everyone knows about doesn’t happen in an office – it happens when bateman & friends are getting drunk and eating at a trendy restaurant and the waiter won’t stop bringing them Bellinis they don’t want. and then bateman loses his temper by yelling about how their pizza with fish on it is shit because the chef is an idiot.

one of the guys who was eating with him, who objected to his hot take about the pizza, shows him an article about what Donald Trump (in 1988) said about the pizza as a “gotcha”.

it’s a funny fucking book and the one movie made from it saps all the comedy and color out of it. i trust guadagnino to do something better with the source material.

[nerdygoth77]

Savoy's Knife Trick

Have you ever seen the movie Aliens? This drabble is based on a scene in the movie called Bishop’s knife trick. It gave me major Redeye being bullied by Gage vibes and I just had to write it. Gage’s voice actor(Mark Rolston) is actually in this movie and very sexy too, I highly recommend watching the movie for several reasons, and watching him do shirtless pull-ups is one of those reasons.

Mark Rolston's character, Drake, and what he does in this scene is the exact same as Gage in this fic! While the character Hudson(Bill Paxton) is Redeye, and Bishop is Savoy.

I decided to link the movie scene here! This scene is such a fun part of this incredible movie. Bill Paxton has always had major Redeye vibes to me, and of course Mark Rolston is literally Porter Gage.

I posted this work on AO3 as part of my Gage drabble series. Read it and more here at AO3!!

Or just read it below! :)

Redeye sat at the bar, surveying the crowd in Cappy’s Cafe. The place was packed. Drinking Buddy had just made a massive fresh batch of beer, and a group of Operators with instruments was supposed to come play some live music. The band and the drinks were so good that they brought in quite a few important customers.

On the opposite end of the bar sat the Overboss and Gage, along with Mason. The boss had a bottle in her hand as she talked loudly to Gage and Mason, a wide smile on her freckled face. She was leaning on Gage, the painfully sober raider holding onto her waist like a lifeline. Dogmeat was lying by their feet, his head resting on his paws. Mason, not sporting his face paint, stood beside the couple, smirking as the Overboss talked. Redeye would bet money on it that she was a bit buzzed and incredibly entertaining.

The bar was crowded, full of members of each gang. Savoy was even out today, sitting in the darkest corner possible with a few other Disciples. Savoy rarely crawled out of the hole he called home just to come drink with friends, he must've run out of blood to drink or something.

“Savoy!” Redeye shouted, the masked face of the Disciple enforcer turning his direction, “Do the thing with the knife! ” He said, pulling a combat knife from his boot and holding the handle out towards Savoy. “C’mon man! Do the knife thing!” He beckoned the raider over.

Savoy grinned and jumped to his feet, walking slowly to Redeye. He moved like a predator, the crowd growing silent. Raiders wordlessly stepped out of Savoy's way as he approached Redeye. Savoy’s grin turned more snake-like when he got closer to Redeye, Redeye having no idea that Gage was stalking up behind him. When Savoy grabbed the knife from his hand, Gage grabbed Redeye and put him in a tight hold. Redeye began panicking internally but tried to keep his cool.

“Yeah, do the knife thing, Savoy.” Gage mocked in his southern drawl, tightening his muscular arms around Redeye, securing him with a thick arm around his throat. “Gage what are you doing man…” Redeye mumbled, “Oh just shut up.” Gage sneered as he grabbed Redeye’s hand and put it on the table, holding his wrist so Redeye couldn’t move it.

Savoy put his hand over his, “Hey man! Not me! Not me!” Redeye shouted, panic melting into his voice. Gage practically growled out his words, “Yes you! Now shut up, don’t move… Do it Savoy!” Savoy smirked devilishly as he flipped the knife a few times in his hand, twirling it a few times just to show off. It also made Redeye incredibly nervous, which was just what Savoy wanted.

“Oh fuck….Guys quit messing around!” Redeye shouted as he tried to squirm out of Gage’s hold, Gage securing him a bit better so Redeye couldn’t move at all. The panic really began to set in.

Redeye felt like he was about to lose his hand or life, the fear making him sweat. He couldn’t see Gage but he knew he was sporting a shit-eating grin. ”Don’t move” Gage said again, tightening his grip further. He was holding him so tight Redeye felt like he couldn't breath, his breaths coming in short rushed bursts. The crowd of the bar, plus a few people who heard the commotion from outside, had gathered around them. Everyone was waiting for a trick or to see if Savoy and Gage were going to finally slaughter Redeye. It was impossible to tell which. The Overboss even had a front-row seat, a grin on her pretty face.

Redeye really thought he was about to die.

Savoy twirls the knife in his hand one last time before slamming it between his and Redeye’s fingers. Redeye let out a high pitched scream that some would call "unmanly" as Savoy quickly slams the knife between each of their fingers in the typical Five Finger Fillet fashion.

Redeye screams grow louder as Savoy’s pace quickens, the raider not nicking their fingers or missing his mark. Savoy continued to increase the speed of the knife, Redeye screaming as he helplessly watched, waiting to lose a finger. Gage couldn’t contain his laughter and was practically giggling as Redeye screamed.

The crowd had grown, the loud cheers and laughter of the crowd almost muting the screams of Redeye. Redeye was too focused on his hand and the knife going between his fingers to notice who in the crowd was laughing at him. He’d worry about payback later, if he survived…..

Savoy was fast and perfect, not slipping once. Redeye was worried that he’d “slip” and end up stabbing him in the throat or something. Sweat rolled down Redeye’s temple as he continued to shout like a man being tortured, his eyes following the quick movements of the blade.

After going through their fingers multiple times Savoy slammed the knife deep into the table beside Redeye’s hand, Savoy's chest moving quickly as he breathed heavily from the excitement. The horrible snake smirk was still on Savoy’s face. He didn’t say anything, he just stared at Redeye to unnerve him further. It worked, Redeye looking away from him.

Porter Gage let go of Redeye and stepped back. He dropped a cold beer in front of him, the beer sloshing over the rim and onto Redeye’s hand. Redeye jumped a bit when the cold liquid hit him, flinching even harder when Gage slapped his shoulder hard enough to sting. “Drink up.” Gage chuckled, walking back to his seat and the Overboss.

Redeye tried to get his breathing and heart rate under control, his voice a little breathless, “Not cool man! Fuck you guys!” Savoy bared his teeth like a wild animal before walking away from Redeye. He walked back to his dark corner full of Disciples. Nisha had decided to join the party, Savoy sitting down beside her, their knees bumping together. Redeye still believed that they were fucking. It was one of his favorite rumors and boy did it make sense when you watched the two interact.

Gage laughed and sat down beside Lilly, watching as Redeye took a shaky sip of his beer. “Goddamn that was entertaining. I want to do that again.” Gage spoke loudly enough for Redeye to hear, returning his arm to its rightful place around Lilly’s waist. Lilly giggled and pressed a kiss to the pulse point on his throat. Gage leaned down to whisper something in her ear, the Overboss blushing and shoving him away while giggling, Gage grinning at her before leaning in for a kiss.

Redeye looked away from them, they were too gross to watch for any longer. The way they looked at one another made Redeye want to puke.

He’d have to think of a way to tell this story in a way that didn’t make him seem like a coward. He’d some some more beer to think that hard, maybe some Mentats too…. He waved over Drinking Buddy so he could get to thinking.

[dang-orange]

dang-orange makes a list of characters he'd shake inside a glass jar:

i decided to be insane while i wait for the Methylphenidate pill to hit (i was thought to have adhd and still have some leftovers from trying to treat that) so i can study. so i made a list of what i think are kins? i refuse to look up what that actually means so im going by the context that a thousand years of reading tumblr posts on pintrest gave me.

Okay! so:

Kinger is a new one, he seems like such a funny silly guy who is kind of out of it, something i absolutely get! so he goes there.

Izzy Hands has been a cause of insanity for me since season one, but season two got me worse. what a funny fellow. i get the whole being a tryhard thing, and sort of losing it a bit over having to change your ways. havent had to eat own my toes, lost a leg or done drag while singing in french, so those things i just find amusing.

Peter B. Parker! what a funny guy, i didnt expect him to actually come back on the second spiderverse movie. being a cool mentor is something admirable i think, and the scene with aunt may made me spend way too many hours on ao3 as i thought that could have been more of a thing (in my head the movie would have done well as a series, more time to explore the really cool characters they had). Also: him being a version of spiderman ''were things didnt go well'' that doesnt go in a morbid direction is very baller.

Doctor Twobrains i only know of from fandom osmosis. i did watch the series as a kid, but i really cant remember shit. the rat brain is funny, and i love anything involving inventors with a theme (i had to fight myself a few too many times to not include doofenshmirtz). the manerisms and vibe are very silly, the excentricities vibe with me.

Agent Stone was the only reason i watched the sonic movie. i saw a trailer and thought, huh i dont think i remember ever seeing this fellow on anything sonic. turns out, he was a new character and very, very funny. what a guy! i can imagine going that far being a henchman. i, however, do have a deep hatred against the guy that does robotnick, so i havent seen much else other than the first film (that i very much pirated).

Pyro is such a mistery. they just burn things and act jolly, the whole pyroland thing is also so stupid. i mained him when i played tf2, but for now i just save fanart of her burning shit and think about how cool it'd be to have a full body suit, be unintelligible and get to burn stuff. absolute 10/10.

Hazel from The Umbrella Academy was fun while he lasted. The idea of being a time traveling mercenary and still getting shitty hotel rooms is hilarious to me. made me really want to get suspenders, but i dont think that'll happen.

Scar (from Hermitcraft) is such a chaotically silly guy. i wish i could pull that off. going from scam, to huge incredible creations, to changing allies on a dime, to playing games by any other rules than the ones stabilished? i wish i could do that! btw the fanart is by reddit user dead_cricket_ (i didnt want to use a minecraft skin but wanted to make sure that I AM TALKING ABOUT THE FANON CHARACTER NOT THE REAL DUDE THAT MAKES VIDEOS)

Elliot Gussman from The Umbrella Academy was also fun while he lasted. i also have some really, really weird paranoia problems and would act the same if i had alien strangers in my house. there isnt a lot of fandom stuff on him, as he's such a minor character, so i just juggle a few too many head canons on this silly guy.

Aziraphale. hehe. haha. im absolutely normal about this guy. being an angel and having the ideology of heaven hammered into your head, and complying with things you know you shouldnt because you know the consequences and that theres someone all-seeing always watching you? i get that 100%. Two other things: the constant forced smiles that are clearly unnatural and doing silly things you know you arent good at are also relatable.

i really like Abner Krill. this is so long already, but i just, really like him. i wish he didnt get killed, that movie is my favourite and i wish it could get a sequel. i'll be short on the whole thing by saying that being the weirdest one on a bunch of batman villans is very funny, and his powers are very fucked up in a cool way.

Oswald Cobblepot was the only reason i saw Gothan. him going from just a guy to.. The Penguin?? absolutely crazy. i really got the whole bit where he was getting higher on the crime scene by biting small bits and getting big results.

I could write 20.000 words on each of these, but this formatting is ass and i think the Methylphenidate is working (it's been a bit more than 40 minutes between writing and looking up images that werent so bad), so i should go study/work. if anyone wants me to go insane again, dont worry! i absolutelly will. i made an account here for a reason.

[redstringraven]

TMNT ask game! 6.) Do you own any TMNT merchandise?

18.) Who is your favorite villain?

28.) What is one thing you would like to see explored more in TMNT art/fics?

thank you!!!!! c:

TMNT's 40th anniversary ask game!

6.) do you own any TMNT merchandise?

a few things! most of them i've gotten as an adult, because i have adult money that sometimes doesn't have to go toward basic survival. uuh, i have a little 87s hotwheels battleshell i found in the grocery store, i got the '03 basic action figures for each of the boys, i have a city at war t-shirt from target that i think is IDW?, a 2003 20th anniversary print by @shellsweet which may not be 'official' but i'm counting it because i'm in love with it, those tiny funtastic books for each of the boys, and a couple dvds i've scavenged from my local movie trading company. --oh, also some '03 trashcan... storage thing i found on ebay. i keep it on my desk at work and store my pencils in it. i think it was originally meant to be a candy holder? who knows.

18.) who is your favorite villain?

*vacant stare as i blue-screen through the villains* ... honestly? probably stockman. i love to hate the guy, but, at the same time, a small part of me feels really bad for him and is shaking his hand when he's like "why won't you let me die". like. i might not fully understand, but i know the feeling of being exhausted and wanting off the ride. i get it, buddy; immortality is a curse. i dunno; he may not be the most compelling or threatening, but i always enjoy when stockman's on screen. it's fun to watch his hubris get the better of him, it's fun to see him be willing to sass/disrespect someone with as much power and influence as ch'rell (even if it often comes with a price), and also he made a jurassic park movie reference once at dr. chaplin's expense and gets major points for that. 🎵☝ ah ah ah! you didn't say the magic word~. also-also, he made mousers. i fucking love mousers. they're just lil guys! with a bit of a teething problem! their tails wag!!! these dogs are sharp, but they're still good, bront!

28.) what is one thing you would like to see explored more in TMNT art/fics?

it's probably the horror/lovecraft fan in me, but i'd love to see folks explore the fact that the alien creature from the darkness within is still out there and influencing people. i am semi-regularly driven mad (lol) by the fact that the writers decided to expand on the underground city and its old inhabitants more in s4, rather than acknowledge that THING is still alive. especially given how much heavier s4 was and the things it set out to do and address. i feel like that was gift-wrapped for them?? i dunno. i'm in pain. but if the fandom doesn't do it, i certainly will. i have a bit of a crossover/au i've been slowly cooking up behind the scenes directly tied to this fucker still being alive and active in the city. just... i, as usual, have a lot of stuff i want to do, so who knows when i'll get around to it. BUT IT'S THERE. plotting, scheming. eating me alive from the inside, as lovecraftian horrors are want to do.

[dude1818]

To Sleep in a Sea of Stars

Last week I read To Sleep in a Sea of Stars by Christopher Paolini. Full disclaimer, I had no idea that was the same author as the Eragon series until I got to the acknowledgements at the end. This was a thousand pages of hard sf space opera, and the whole time I was thinking "I should check out this guy's other stuff too!"

Imagine The Thing, but more futuristic and set on a potential colony planet. You're halfway through that story, and the alien has started attacking your research crew, when suddenly another race of aliens shows up and now you have to team up with it to fight the new aliens. That's the first hundred pages of this book. So many things happen in this story

The overarching background of the story is the war between humanity and these aliens, the Wranaui. It takes place in the 23rd century, and humanity has settled a handful of stellar systems so far and has found relics of sapient aliens, but not met any yet. The main character, Kira, is a xenobiologist who discovers the alien (more of a symbiotic exosuit) that kicks off the war. The story follows her and the spaceship crew that picked her up as they travel from system to system trying to figure out what the suit is, why the aliens attacked, and how to stop them

Sidebar: there's a really cool FTL system in this world, which makes it possible to travel between stars in realtime months. That's still long enough that crews are in cryo for the trip, and FTL communication can't go faster than that, so you get to have your cake of a multi-stellar civilization and eat the isolated worlds where things can change drastically during your travel time too. (One of the appendices is the introductory chapter to a textbook on FTL and UFT; it's so cool)

I feel like this book could easily have been broken up into two or three, there's so much happening. Around the halfway point, the (non-suit) aliens go from being a symbol of death that appears randomly in the sky into multiple defined kinds of aliens, with their own fleshed out motives and sub-factions that can be reasoned about. It all connects, but that seemed like a change in focus that would've been a reasonable pause point. (The last 10% is a much harder diversion from either of sections, but I'll put my thoughts for that under the cut because it's spoilery)

Overall I really enjoyed it. There are more works in the series that I'll definitely be checking out. The xenobiology and especially the physics were incredibly well thought out, and I haven't seen someone play with travel times in such an interesting way before. There were some weaker aspects, especially on the politics side (if Kira goes "surely we can tell the military what we've discovered and they'll apply that information in a way that's beneficial to humanity and humane to the aliens" one more time I will lose it), but at least that mostly seems to be an in-universe character flaw (spoiler alert: the military does not). It is kinda funny how Kira makes a big deal about trying not to see the soldiers who get in their way, but narratively we need a bunch of alien mooks to kill, so they have to come up with a contrived reason (alien brain backup tech) to make that not count as murder

Spoilers for the ending:

Context: the final bad guys are a different group of aliens called the Corrupted that are a sapient gray goo, and are derived from the same tech as the suit symbiote. Kira merges with their central body and takes it over, self-destructing their army and converting them towards positive life-preserving ends. That felt a little shark-jumpy, but is fine

How that played out was super cringey though. First an uncomfortable sex scene before the final battle in which she wonders if she can still get pregnant while the symbiote is attached; then she learns that the suit was supposed to be a self-directed terraforming tool called the Seed; then as part of the positive gray goo, she positions herself as the Mother, a weird archdruid-in-space. It all just gave me the ick and didn't feel like it matched the tone of the rest of the book at all

[ballcrusher74]

Your sona (bigform) looks very cool, reminds me of the silhouette of a dinosaur, what is the critter and what inspired such a cool mech tang?

OK. RAMBLE TIME

My sona (Jawbreaker) is a fucked up star alien thing ! You're gonna get a little more than just what he is and inspirations and I hope you don't mind, I made a whole fucking species just for this guy's backstory LOL Stellarites are shapeshifting, celestial beings created with star energy. Their strength varies, depending on what kind of star their energy was sourced from. Jawbreaker (his actually birth name is unknown and he forgot himself) was created with the energy of a quasi star as an experiment for his overlord, Metsu. He served in their celestial empire as a royal guard, and had a close eye kept on him. He excelled compared to his peers, and was deemed spectacular at his work- the only downside was his short temper. He was constantly consulted about his attitude, and it only seemed to grow worse. He grows disobedient, to the point where he is sentenced to be shattered for his resources to be recycled. He escapes from his home planet, landing on Earth. He examines life from afar, and takes on a more humanoid form. As he lives out his days on his new home, there's something that he can't avoid now- taxes. So what's a better job to get when you used to be a guard for an intergalactic ruler? Become a hitman! This is where he obtained his helmet and his name. A couple years go by and he's considered a perfect killing machine, being able to leave such little trails behind in his work. Then, he fucks up one day. A single drop of his blood is found at a scene. This results in a huge chase for him, especially because he is extraterrestrial life. He eventually is caught, and used in government experiments. These experiments were based off the mega-structure, dyson spheres, in which they tried to extract energy out of him. He manages to escape this, takes on his current form with a repainted helmet and fresh new look, and is now a party-animal alien out on the run with a bounty on his head. (This is like, a really watered down version of his story cus if I put the whole thing here that shit would go on forever)

Also y'know what, fuck it, here's the full ref sheet + cool guitar item that I keep forgetting I have OOPS

Going onto actually inspirations now, here's a couple !

The general design was just based off of character design aspects that I like a lot. Chunky shoes, shoulder pads, big sleeves, huge zipper- etc, etc.

The hoodie and boxers combo just comes from the fact that that is typically what I roam around in

The star eye was me trying to recycle from my old sona, but the true origin of it was it being a reference to one of my favorite musicians at the time, Grandson ^_^

The half heart locket is for my boyfriend <3

The big ol' eyebrow is just cus I have bushy eyebrows + I love big ass eyebrows

I'm gonna be honest, the hair was when I was trying to make my sona on Roblox but I obviously couldn't have my helmet, so a red base and cyan trihawk came along and it's stuck since then + I FUCKING LOVE MOHAWKS SO BAD

The blood is based off of glowstick liquid . Please trust me when I say to not eat glowsticks they do not taste good .

The colors are also kinda recycled from my old sona, but also because I fucking love red and cyan

The whole alien aspect is taken from the fact my birthday is on the same day as the Area 51 raid LMAO

Exaggerated proportions kinda came from FNF . yeag

THE HELMET . The helmet was a thing I scrapped from a really old oc of mine, which was kinda taken from Jasper (SU) . The addition for the jaw part was inspired by a bear trap

also these two that I use for this blog . They're obviously more jokey looking + I made it so they are both immortal beings that have existed since the dawn of time that just fuck around on Earth but yea it's also just me . but funny looking

I think that is it . yeag

[thewadapan]

Dandadan review

I've been ride or die for Science Saru since Night Is Short, Walk On Girl and Ping Pong: The Animation, so I'm very disappointed that I had to find out for myself that the anime flavour of the week, Dandadan, is one of theirs. Do better next time, y'all.

Brief summary: Dandadan is a romantic farce slash action show about a high-schooler otaku who believes in aliens but not ghosts, and a popular girl who believes in ghosts but not aliens. A double-dare winds up proving both of them right: the girl gets abducted by aliens, the guy gets possessed by an evil spirit.

Thematically, Dandadan is about the gulf between any two people's worlds: it's about how terrifying it is to say to someone, "this is what I'm into!" It's about how this gulf is not as impossible to cross as it appears; UFOs and demons can coexist, may even be one and the same.

It's also very preoccupied with sex.

First of all, the gang at Science Saru have indeed cooked, as ever. The style veers into outright cartoonishness a bit more often than usual, but the budget is always applied thoughtfully and the visuals are memorable, appealing, and full of life.

I suspected the show would share some themes with The Tatami Galaxy, a favourite of mine from Science Saru founder Masaaki Yuasa, and I was right in that regard. But the manga source material here is from a different writer, adapted by a different writer still, and the script on this one is much trashier, and much more aimless. If you go into it thinking "this is going to be pure trash!", I think you'll miss a lot of the more interesting stuff it's getting at. But equally if you go in expecting another remarkably nuanced portrayal of isolation and obsession, there's still a lot of wank dragging it down.

The big problem with Dandadan is that it's not fucking finished. It's not actually a complete unit of storytelling. I was misled into thinking it was another one-shot season, which would reach a conclusion; the reality is that it just stops dead on a complete nothingburger of a cliffhanger, failing to resolve pretty much anything. It's already been renewed for a second season, but the manga itself appears to still be ongoing, so who fucking knows what the plan is? So yeah, it's difficult for me to offer much in the way of reliable interpretation.

Nevertheless, here goes.

The weirdest thing about Dandadan is that Episode 1, right off the bat, has an almost-rape scene in it. Aforementioned alien abduction, threat of probing, you get the picture. What's weird about it isn't that it's there. It's that, after going there, the story has pretty much no interest in going back there. Nothing else in the show is remotely as explicit; in fact, for the most part, Dandadan is aesthetically and narratively a cartoon, neither its content nor its themes strictly mature in any sense. It has kind of a juvenile sense of humour, overall, and I suspect that's honestly the explanation; the scene itself is largely played for laughs, as the girl (Momo Ayase) has a strong personality and the aliens are these goofy frog-people in skinsuits.

See, the conceit of Episode 1 is that this happens in parallel with the male protagonist's own supernatural encounter, where he runs into a ghostly grandma who eats his penis (we don't actually see this). The show wants to basically equate "Okarun"'s emasculation with Momo's near-rape; it's sort of as humiliating as it is traumatic, as the show sees it, I think? And this is because overall, the story is about sex, it's about how sexuality is this awkward and messy thing. Swiss Army Man does the same thing with much more tact. The point is that "showing someone what you're into" has much more oomph when it's specifically about sex. It's about vulnerability.

Where the show stumbles, really, is that it's quintessentially a very male show. It purports to have these two deuteragonists, but it's written from a male perspective, and its content is pitched at a male target audience. It's most undeniable, I think, with the pink-haired girl who winds up being the focus of the middle few episodes, where she keeps saying stuff along the lines of "I love being really pretty so I can manipulate boys and make fun of them!!". This is what high school boys think girls are like, not what girls are actually like. And so it's unsurprising that the show is not actually equipped to tackle the topic of sexual violence, once it's brought up.

The spectre of it hangs over the rest of the show. It's at one point suggested that turbo-granny haunting the tunnel is somehow related to all these anonymous dead girls who've been killed (and presumably raped?), but nothing is really made of that. The pink haired girl gets this extended backstory about a dead mother, who was killed by the yakuza (I think?), and again, the best you get is like, "well, that's sad". This is an episode that is treated with about the same weight as the backstory for the alien-mantis-shrimp gig-worker salaryman's blood-transfusion-needing alien son, a bit later in the season. Neither of these bits are individually bbbbbad, I'd say, it's just that the show is unfocused and often doesn't know what it's trying to say. The theme of misogynist violence ends up feeling incidental, practically vestigial; like they'd meant to spend just as much time on male social issues, and just couldn't help themselves, because they can't actually take the idea of violence against men seriously, and besides it's hotter to put the girls in Predicaments. Okarun's emasculation is the main fetch-quest driving the plot, but narratively it's mostly for the sake of making a bunch of ball jokes.

I know I'm ripping into this show, but the truth is that I did mostly like it. I watched most of it in a single day. The animation and action really is fantastic. The dialogue is often fun (I watched the dub, incidentally). Moreover, though, if you try to put aside the cultural context of this stuff and read it all exclusively as a character study about these specific made-up high-schoolers, pretending it's not making broad generalisations about Men and Women, you'll have a much better time. All the silly soap-opera stuff does a great job of capturing the reality of getting twisted up in knots over a crush, so that when the characters finally just talk frankly about their feelings, it's often very cathartic.

Frankly, for someone on my particular media diet, it was refreshing to see a story which was actually willing to touch on the topic of sex at all. God knows I don't see it in mainstream western media. Maybe Dandadan might give some young people the courage to talk to one another...? That's all I can hope for it, really.

Again, this is where the incompleteness of the story is frustrating. In this season, Okarun gets what I can only describe as an anti-arc: he starts out valuing Momo as a good friend, but soon realises he has a crush on her, and by the end of the show he's practically unable to talk to her without going into convulsions. I can only assume that the second season will reverse this, reconstructing that original friendship alongside a proper romance between the pair of them. Orrrr maybe it will just string us out forever on will-they-won't-they bullshit, who's to say.