#seeing it as simply like a fanfic for the series made it just fun/enjoyable despite there being things i would've liked done differently

[anbaricity]

the key to inner peace is start viewing tv and film adaptations of your favourite books more as something like a fanfic/fan story instead of recreations . trust me

[clever-fox-studios]

Saw @garbagechocolate post one and realized I had enough art to actually do one of my own! (also artist ramble/struggle journey/discussion/new years thingy below the cut if you care to read that sort of stuff)

It was a good year, and not just that but a productive one for me for art. For the longest time, I rarely finished pieces because I simply lacked the enjoyment or satisfaction of getting it done.

I spent a lot of time between 2018 and 2022 stuck in the "no one likes my art, why bother" spiral and when I saw others drawing always, all the time, and loving it I realized I lacked a certain passion for my own work. I was very jealous of so many artists, not because of skill, as I knew I had the technical ability to draw very well...

But because I didn't know how to draw for myself, and stayed in what I knew. I stagnated myself due to depression I didn't recognize was actually depression. I wondered and marveled at how anyone could draw their own content so obsessively--that others cared and loved to see their stuff--because I lacked that feeling myself; I actively hated my own content--my own OCs--at times. I couldn't draw to be "trendy", but also couldn't draw what I wanted; my soul was dark, and struggling financially wasn't helping. I told myself I lacked time, lacked money, lacked this and that to make excuses rather than just be gentle with myself.

Once in a while I got a flurry of energy, but it always snuffed out just as quickly as it came, and so the next dry spell came.

Then, I got a job. A good job. A well-paying, consistent job that I felt safe in, got back on my feet, and lost two of my excuses. Suddenly, I had a schedule, and I had my bills paid; I had a job that I couldn't easily lose to the next monkey in line if I underperformed.

I felt just a little bit safer.

Yet I still didn't have that passion. Instead of stress on it, though, since I wasn't dragging at the unfeeling internet to buy my art to pay my bills anymore, I felt less pressure to try and grind (I was bad at it anyway) and so I was finally, finally able to relax. Recover.

Heal.

And then, Security Breach came out.

I've always been a FNAF fan--OG first game train, let's gooooooo--yet I didn't do anything in the fandom; but Security Breach was... different. Generally I avoid actively engaging with fandoms because I simply don't have the time or patience, but now, I did.

I wanted to enjoy it--enjoy the weird spin off content it created, at least a bit. I started an AU of my own. However, I still wasn't quite... 'there'. The true passion was only flickering embers in a dirty, worn out hearth.

So, early 2023, I indulged myself. I told myself "cringe is dead and I deserve to be happy". I collected Tiktoks, made OCs again, and just let myself have fun. I cleaned out the fireplace like Sophie in the Moving Castle.

I joined a fan server of a SB spin off series I enjoyed at the time. Some of you might know which one by the art, recognizing the pieces or my name.

I immersed myself in a fandom for a short time. I let myself be weird, happy, indulgent...

And suddenly, I was free.

I spoke to fellow artists inside and outside the server, helped younger artists with their fundamentals, drew fanart not for money but for love of the content, made fanfics and stories, revisited my AU I'd been chipping away at off and on... I remembered how I loved drawing to draw, to spread joy and support, not for money. I remembered how to create, not just make. Gained confidence in my choices and ability to write and layer characters.

Learned to love them with their flaws instead of hate them for just existing because they weren't "good enough".

I started to enjoy my own things again, and how to embrace being self-indulgent. To draw what I wanted because I want it, not because it was needed or expected. To take risks, be experimental again--to lean into my strengths of what my art is rather than force it to what I think it should be.

I also came to terms with the fact that, despite what my mind was trying to tell me, I was not a bad person at heart. I was cringy and cared a lot, sure, but drawing for myself wasn't selfish, wanting to be self-indulgent wasn't toxic--that I, fundamentally, was an imperfect person but that didn't mean I was bad or evil. Wanting validation for my effort wasn't wrong, but how I went about it before was detrimental to me.

"Pride is not the opposite of shame, but it's source."

I took uncle Iroh's words to heart for the first time and worked to curbed my own ego, which had been the source of my artistic ennui (thanks Inside Out 2, for giving me that word) the entire time. By stepping toward the the edge where my pride had been holding me back, I realized I was not on the top of some great cliff where everyone could look up at me, but rather on a plateau no more impressive than a welcome mat on a porch. I had to accept I had quit climbing and settled in order to find the reason to climb again; once I stopped feeling like it was a race or competition to vie for attention from others, I could pace myself, avoid the exhaustion that had landed me on that plateau to begin with, and accept that I will reach the top when I'm ready, not when I think I should.

Now, at the end of 2023, I am basking in the satisfaction of having enjoyed myself, my art, in a way that healed me. Stopped me from despising my "talent".

I got to enjoy a few hours of going micro-viral on tiktok for Christmas, because I made something I actually wanted to make--something I cared about enough to share. It was unexpected, unplanned, but getting to see those numbers shoot up for something so small was like a stamp from the universe that proved what my best friend has been telling me all these years that my ego refused to latch onto.

"People can tell when you care about what you make, and when it's soulless trend fuel."

So, in conclusion, thank you.

Thank you, @quilandscroll for putting up with me and my dumbass artist ego all these years.

Thank you, Security Breach, for being the spark that reignited my rebirth as an artist, and to all the funny little blorbos I've met and talked to because of that fandom.

And thank you Sun and Moon, the silly, lanky bois that took that spark and turned it into a beacon with which I could navigate my own darkness with; for creating a safe space where I could be 13 again and just embrace my weirdness without fear of punishment.

2024 will hopefully be a big year as well. My goals are to learn to animate on Clip Studio and be comfortable with the system, to get the assets and refs prepped, and to release the first part of Legacy.

I want to share this project.

I want to bring inspiration and joy to the fandom that saved me from myself.

Oh, and if any of this sounded familiar or relatable to you...

I see you, and I love you.

See you all in 2024.

[rauhallinen-hauki]

a semi-shitpost """review""" of the Mad Max series

despite knowing full well that Mad Max 2 is the best of the series I decided to watch the rest of the Mad Max movies, so here's a half-shitpost half-genuine mini ””””review”””” /me trowing opinions no one asked for because why not (and because on serious note, you should be critical of the media you consume.). also spoilers. If anyone ever sees this post: don't take it too seriously.

Mad Max 1: Surprisingly good writing and composition. My favourite aspects of it were Max wanting to quit his work as a cop even before his friend Goose (a cop too) is killed by Toecutter's gang, some social critique there. I also liked the atmosphere of the landscapes. It made me sad though (the plot is pretty much a lose-lose situation for all parties involved), a little too nihilistic for me. But overall it was good and enjoyable and a classic. 6/10, 6.5-7/10 if I'm feeling good.

Mad Max 2/Road Warrior: Even a summary wouldn't do this masterpiece of a film justice but to put it simply it just slaps. Surprisingly memorable characters and plot for an action movie, sexy vehicles and destructive action, beautiful composition and music and great pacing, just lots of personality and artistry (nothing compares to Humungus and his leather fetish biker gang sorry that's just a fact).There is a reason this film is so influential and pretty much birthed the post-apocalypse genre. Its just THAT good. One of these faves I never get tired of, a comforting piece of media and just one of my favourite pieces of work period. 10/10 just absolute genius. A classic a legend a masterpiece a-(ok you get the picture)

Mad Mad 3/Beyond Thunderdome: The tamest of the series, and probably the reason so many hate it. But I enjoyed it, I like the idea of all these post apocalyptic ”societies”, lots of fun action potential in the thunderdome itself too. Wholesome message at the end. A little ”off” at times but overall enjoyable and aesthetically pleasing. Solid 6/10.

Mad max 4/Fury road: Words cant describe how much I despise this one. Its not bad. Its not even bad in a so bad its good sense. Its fucking diarrhea shit sprinkled with vomit and infections. Not because its new or anything. Different doesn't equate to bad. Its just that this movie is a prime example of ”style over substance”. Its the longest of the films...and yet its like nothing actually happens in it. The dialogue made me roll my eyes and/or cringe most of the time, the action is just shit flying at the screen so there is no actual tension or investment, everything is just try-harding and stupid. Unironical shitstorm of capitalism/10

Thoughts on the franchise as a whole

Weirdest (in a good way) series of films in I've seen. Despite being a somewhat ”chronological” series each movie is its own story and has its own unique feel (regardless of it working or not), which is good. Wouldn't consider myself a mad max fan but since I've seen them all now I can and will gladly discuss the movies whit other fellow fans (and no, I'm not going to shit on you if you like like fury road despite me hating it. I'm not that kind of ”fan”). But I will say that I'm a BIG fan of mad max 2 specifically,so if anyone ever wants to chat about it with me be glad to do it. Overall i acknowledge the cultural impact of the series and i think its an ok franchise.

Some personal preferences and headcanons

-Since each of the movies is its own story (for example, you don't need to necessarily watch mad max 1 to understand mad max 2) I like to believe that you, as an spectator, can decide what really counts as the real continuity or ”official story”.

I personally like the idea that the story of Max ends after the events of Mad Max 2, and after all the gang bullshit Max's been trough he just manages to build a little cottagecore house in the middle of the wasteland and spends the rest of his life healing his numerous traumas with gardening and custom car building (iIshould write a fanfic lmao). So uuh yeah i don't consider mad max 3 and max max 4 to be ”canon”, or maybe they're canon in an alternate universe or something. This is what I believe in, but everyone who sees these films can create their own take on them and that's awesome.

-Relating to that previous idea, Max himself is a bit of a wasteland urban legend in-universe. Some mysterious wasteland hero who may or may not be real.

-Despite the series being called Mad Max, I feel like Sad Max is a more fitting name.

-Almost everyone in Mad Max 1 is a shitposter, specially the Toecutter and Goose.

-Lord Humungus is Max's direct narrative foil. Both cool, clever men with militaristic backgrounds and a fixation on vehicles and leather, who lose everything when the world goes to shit. Also they both are the only ones with guns, max has a worn shotgun while Humungus has a more elegant pistol. The key difference is that Max keeps at least some of his humanity while Humungus doesn't. Other differences are that of Humungus being more of a strategic team leader while Max is more likely to be a ”pawn” or work alone.

-Relating to the previous idea, if Max and Lord Humungus were to talk about their similar traumas and shared interest in cars i think they would bond and become really good friends. Lovers, even. Shipping potential there.

-The interceptor is a really sexy car, specially whit its rust and fat gasoline tanks in road warrior.

-Ironically enough, despite fury road being the longest and most dialogue heavy of the movies, its characters are shallower than the ones in the previous films.

-Aunty Entity got the idea to create Thunderdome while she mused about wresting. She's a fan of wrestling. I also believe she keeps some sort of karaoke night at Bartertown once in a while, she's fond of singing. Most artistic expressions, really.

-The core message of the Mad Max series (or at the very least of Mad Max 2) is about finding love and understanding and humanity in a broken world.

[popculturebuffet]

Hickman’s X-Men One Year In: Part 2: The Dawn of X

And we’re onto part 2. Since it took me a while to talk about Hickman’s Series outside of Giant-Size and the setup here, that’s in part one if your curious, I split this little retrospective into two parts, with this part here talking about the rest of the books. This isn’t to say they aren’t great, many of them are, it was just easier to do this as a two parter so with HIckman himself out of the way how did his hand picked batch of talented writers handle the lofty status quo he set up?Find out under the cut. Pax Krakoa baby. 

Mauraders Okay just to get this out of the way this is my second faviorite x-book running, after X-Men itself and it often equals it and far and away the best tile of the run and restored my faith in Gerry Duggan.  Duggan is not a bad writer and I blame the messy finish of his otherwise awesome guardians run with infnity wars on marvel trying to cram other characters into it and then a weird mash up idea that while cool, kept the guardians out of their own damn event and from confrting a now mad gamora, but that and deadpool made me forget the guy is a good writer and can do great things. Maruaders however won me back to him with intrest.  A unique concept, the x-men as pirates helping ferry goods to krakoan allied states and ferry trapped mutants from hostile ones, is fucking awesome. The only thing missing is nightcrawler and it’s clear hickman has other plans, though I still feel he shoudl’ve been on the boat as he has both the relation to kitty pryde and pirate pedgree that fit in perfectly.  Speaking of kitty after years of writers misusing her due to having a crush on her as a kid and shoving her into half baked romances with peter quill and her ex peter rasptuin, the latter failing so badly that marvel pulled the plug on their wedding because fans clearly didn’t want it, and battling my own reluctance ot see her front and center again, Duggan makes good use of her again: Kitty is given the unique hook of the portals not working for her and no one, even her old friend Doug after he gets back, being able to figure out WHY. Though I do hope Doug does show up here and explain it more, as him being kitty’s best friend once is rarely brought up since he got back and it’s silly it hasn’t been. But rather than take this on the chin Kitty strikes up a crew consisting of big sister Storm, first class graduate x-man, badass gay and kitty’s friend and ex iceman, bishop who reluctantly joins as her bishop more on that in a second and the best of them by a mile: Pyro. The original, finally brought back and given some intresting backstory: he was the first mutant brought back and felt good about it..t ill he realized that despite sacrificing himself to save a, if your familiar with the various cartoons this will be baffling but trust me, reformed senator kelly as Pyro himself was dying from the legacy virus, only to find out they did him first because they considered him expendable basically and naturally was upset over that, drunk a bunch of the liquor kitty smuggled in, for logan naturally, and passed out and then joined in on the rescue mission that formed the team because why not and stayed because it was a great offer.  Speaking of offers with a new purpose, Kitty accepted her old enemy Emma Frost’s offer to be red queen, which includes a seat on krakoa’s council and was basically emma’s way of saying fuck you to her old cohort who she was forced to bring back on to handle the seedier side of Krakoa’s dealings via his underworld connections, sebastian shaw. Emma is the fincical  backbone of krakoa, having the shipping connections to get the flowers in and out and now having kitty to handle the stuff she can’t and do some of the shipping, as well as again tell Sebastian, who naturally wants both gone and is pissy at Emma being so far ahead of him, wants gone. And while he’s seemingly succeded with kitty I not only have every expectation that while ressuection is failing to work on her she’ll be back, but that trying to murder one of the most beloved x-men whose consdiered family to among others three of krakoa’s captains, bishop after this series, four of their council, five if you include Doug whose best friends with both his left arm which is also a deadly space robot and the very place they live on. The only reason he’s not going to die 80 times in increasingily horrifying ways is because the five can’t take on that kind of workload and one murderous ass beating from half of krakoa and krakoa itself is close enough. 

Emma is easily one of the books best parts, being written back as she should: An anti hero who while quick with a cutting quip, truly cares for her charges, and mutantkind as a whole and has grown from the monster she started as or even the kind of person who’d use a therapy session from a desperate man having issues opening up emotionally after apocalypse used his body as a rental car to convince him to fuck her.  And yes that’s how things started with Scott and Emma and yes it’s really fucked up and yes the story treats it as such, though I still wish Scott would get actual therapy, but as Linkara recently pointed out in his House of M Review the Marvel and DC universes weirdly lack therapists for the most part and thus it was left on my mind the last two weeks.. and yes I know DC tried but when your final product at trying to serious tackle mental health is heroes in crisis.. I award you no points and god have mercy on your soul.  But while Emma and Kitty get the lions share of the focus the rest of the group is enjoyable, well done and intresting, if not given many arcs to themselves, but still have enough character moments to counterballance that. The standout of the rest of the crew is easily Pyro, taken from “why is he still dead despite being super popular and used in a heavy role in X2 that’s garnered fans of that version to this day and bafflement he became a foot note in the next movie and used in every adaptation” to fun side character with a skull on his face and a love of booze and setting things on fire. He’s finally given the respect he deserves sorta and while I hope more is delved into his ressurection angst, he’s a ton of fun and it again makes me wonder why it took 20+ years to bring him back, but i’m glad the right person did it. The rest of the crew are fun with Bishop being another standout.  That being said part of the reason there isn’t a lot of focus is simply because in additoin to our brave crew the book is juggling a LOT of characters.. the morlocks and calisto, both given a proper treatment after wya too long, jumbo carnation a minor character from morrisons run who was introduced in the same issue he died is emma’s designer, shinobi shaw and christian frost, the latter I question why a main relative of one of marvel’s a-list mutants who was one of marvel’s earlier gay characters hasn’t been used in a big way till now but no time like the present, Sebastian and the people he shares his big bad spot with Homines Verde aka those tweens who ran the hellfire club during jason aaron’s run because the man is nuts and who I only seemd to liked, brillinatly revamped as a racist replacemnt for the hellfire club and so far a clever threat. The book is just stuffed iwth good characters, beautiful art, and a great tone that combines spectacular humor with really good story and worldbuilding. It’s also a nice contrast to hickman’s stuff: don’t get me wrong I love hickman’s writing style but it’s nice to have something JUST as good.. but with a cheerier tone and less weariness to it, while still not lacking weight. I can’t wait to see where this goes.. it’s a pirates life for me. 

Excalibur:  Like most of the dawn of X-Line outside of fallen angels, more on that in a minute and even then that had an intresting new directoin for betsy braddock, I was pumped for this one. A team I loved: While I struggled to find a run I loved with Claremont’s run having Brian Braddock be a raging dick whose terrible to his girlfriend and gets away with cheating on her and Claremont not really bothering to explain Saturnyne or other characters and their history with Brian well to us yanks who never had the chance to read those tales.. though why stories by alan moore and chris claremont haven’t been republished properly or in epic collections is beyond me. Warren Ellis, who I now loathe for being a scheming weasel who treated women like garbage, had a decent run with plenty of warlock, in a weird phase where he thought he was doug, Moira and Wolfsbane stuff I loved.. but also had 30-40 something pete wisdom shacking up with 18 year old at most kitty pryde, with Pete at the time being basically Warren Ellis badass self insert character, and given recent revelations i’m pretty sure he damn well knew kitty was just 18 and even if he didn’t having his own fanfic character deflower her is just all kinds of EWWWWWW. He also had Colossus, fresh of being a villian for a while for understandable reasons, nearly beat pete into a coma in a jealous rage over the ex.. the ex he dated while she was still a minor, and left because HE , and editorial, was uncomfortable with it for damn obvious reasons. I can see why fans like to see her as bisexual and pair her with Illiayna.. I mean why the fuck not? They have better chemistry than most of he hetrosexual intrests and are paried because of that and not because the writer wanted to make out iwth kitty as a teenager and forgot “oh yeah she’s fictional and i’m 40!”  Christ thank god for Gerry Duggan.  But yeah moving on from that I was still pumped as a magical x-men book with Besty Braddock now captain freaking britan, and apocalypse on the roster. And rictor and jubille? nad rouge and gambit I guess.. I don’t knokw if they fit but whatever. Sign me up. The actual result is a mixed back. I do like Tini Howard’s work here to a point: Betsy gets good character stuff and theres actually good tension from the fact that the new captain britan is no longer primarily a british ctizen, and the book brought back a character I felt marvel needed to do more with: Jamie. if you don’t know, Jamie is betsy and brian’s, her brother and the former captain britian, older brother who went insane due to his powers and thus just goes around in his underwear convinced reality isn’t real and he can do what he wants and the tension with Jamie refusing to have anything to do with his brother for no good reason is really good. Rictor and Apocalypse are likewise good sensable additons: Rictor turns out to be a natural to being a druid which is a nice twist and makes sense given when he lost his powers the biggest issue with that was loosing touch with earth after having a connection to it be a vital part of him for years. Apocalypse as an ominus chess master slowly securing magic for mutantkind with some goal we’re about to get answers to is really investing and adds a layer to his character, that much like doctor doom he’s as much sorecer as he is scinetest and given the guy’s immortal, it dosen’t feel like it was pulled out of nowhere.  The problem is the other half of the cast.. dosen’t really work. I fucking love Jubilee, a faviroite of mine as an xman despite not being a huge 90′s x-men cartoon fan, just feels kinda shoe horned in. Her son becomes a dragon and she worries about him constantly, but her worrying about her son possibly not being a mutant on mutant land could be done in any other x-book, and fraknly I feel her personality would fit better with the maruaders, and it’d be intresting to see kitty and her on the same team since both really haven’t interacted. Here she just feels like “well tini wanted jubilee and no one else did soooo I made her son a dragon to justify getting her”. I feel more could be done and hope Tini has better plans for her. Rouge is one of my faviorte x-men and All New X Factor and Kelly Thompsons work with him and Rouge made me like Gambit again, and I DO love their marriage and it was a way better idea than the one Guggenhiem had planned.. but while the idea of Rouge being reborn is intresting and all, she still dosen’t really get to do much and like Jubilee just feels weirldy out of place while Remy has that plus he’s annoying, as while he’s the only one rightfully supscious of apocalypse he also won’t shut the fuck up about it for five minutes. Ig et where he’s coming from  but it dosen’t make him less annoying. These aren’t bad characters, but sof ar they just feel weirdly out of place in a magic based book and unlike Rictor tini hasn’t made any of htem but Rouge feel in place. 

That being said I could ignore that more.. but the villians are also week. So far at least, as the return of Satyurne has given the book it’s first good antagonist.. but what I feel drags the book down the most from it’s potential is the bad guys; Morgan Le Fay is the first antaognist, being mad at apocalypse’s intrusions and corrputing Brian.. but her motives are just so boring: She wants power and to rule, she hates mutants... while “hates mutants” is a qualifier for every other antagonist so far, she just feels bland.. Tini just dosen’t make her feel like a good antagonist and it’s a shame as mutant hater or not she’s something DIFFRENT from the throngs of mutant hating conspiracies, mostly from russia in the other books... she’s just so bland it dosen’t work. And after her is Cullen Bloodstone who as far as I can tell is written out of character.. haven’t read his book but I had both a friend confirm it and having read his marvel wiki entry, it just seems like an odd turn to have him be a racist asshole. But even with all my problems and underwhelm here.. I still WANT the book to get from okay to amazing, and feel it genuinely has the potetial. I’ve seen books sharply improve after a rough first arc, Duggan himself showed me that with his Guardians run. Sometimes it just takes time for something to truly blossom and I have a feeling even with my issues, with x of swords coming up howard’s going to flip it all on it’s head and leave me standing there gasping like a moron. I have hope for that. And if nothing else the book is at least UNIQUE. And not in a trainwreck way: by giving mutants a piece of the magic pie and having them tackle far weirder threats, it’s at least doing something new and it probably lands for other people if not me, and if nothing else it does brian 80 times better than the claremont run did. not a high bar but I do like the character and it’s nice to see him take such an intresting path, and the same goes for Betsy. Tini’s still got magic to do, and I have a feeling it’s going to take me by storm very soon. 

Fallen Angels: Now for the other half of the coin as it were. Some fans weren’t happy about Betsy getting her old body back, and yes Psylocke wasn’t orignally asian but a white british woman bodyswapped iwth a japanese assasian and yes that’s as ludicrious and unteitonally offensive as it sounds, because horrible implications of said Body Swap or not, Psylocke was one of the few asian superheros of note. So to compromise , Hickman and co decided to split the diffrence: Betsy would come back and get a rank up to captain britan, while Kwannon, said assasian, would take over as Psylocke. Hence Excalibur above and fallen angels here and I was excited about it. The Body Swap thing went on a decade too long and this way fans got the character they knew as Psylocke in another book while the face they recognized would finally get some fleshing out. I was excited about that and while probably the least excited about this book of the intitial 5, it did have an intresting lead, two characters I did like (Kid Cable I grant was only under hickman who turned him from that brat version of cable who killed the one I really love to a good character in his own right), and an intresting antagonist in a sentient machine.  In practice it was okay. The best I can say is that writer Brian Hill DOES do a great job taking a mostly minor x-character and really fleshing her out and making her engaging and Kwannon’s quest to save her daughter is really compelling.. but the premise of those who don’t fit with krakoa dosen’t work with the roster given. Laura Kinney is not only sticking with the x-23 name after dropping the wolverine mantle for no reason previously, something Hickman fixed as soon as he realized how fans felt for her apperance in the main book, while Cable feels nothing like the far more fun version from Hickman’s X-Men and later Duggan’s Cable. Add in Husk and Bling who do deserve to be on a team but feel out of place here, and it just.. is okay. The book has an intresting angagonist and a great lead, but just dosen’t work as a team book and would’ve been better off being JUST about kwannon herself, who is far and away the best part about the book and i’m glad she got fleshed out. Not TERRIBLE but nothing special and it’s a shame given the antagonist, whose name I can’t even remember at this point, is intresting and ties into mutantkind’s greatest enmies being man and machine accoridng to house and powers.. basically a decent concep twith a flawed execution. Maybe hill’ sbatman and hte outisders run is better. I need to get on that. That being said the premise and idea is so far being done well in Hellions which we’ll get to, even if I’m being cautious really getting into the book with Zeb Wells track record. But more on that in a bit. 

X-Force: Time to make noise, bad guys leave us no choice.. you know the rest. But yeah X-force. The concept here grabbed me, having X-Force rather than just be the black ops squad but be literal black ops for krakoa, was really great and fit the brave new world.. what worried me was the writer, Benjamin Percy. Now a lot of x-fans probably knew him from the much beloved “Wolverine: The Long Night” podcast, which i’ve heard is utterly fantastic as is it’s followup.. but I hadn’t heard it, and had only heard of Percy from DC comics where under his belt was an okay teen titans run and a not very good and politcally unsubtle green arrow book. And i’m not against politics in comics it just wasn’t done at all well there and the “oliver queen looses hif ourture due to a shadowy conspiracy thing” was already done better by jeff lemire. So yeah I was going to give this a chance but figured like those books it’d start strong and then peter out.  I. Was. Wronnnnggg. X-Force is easily one of the best of the dawn of x and uses said premise well. It started a bit roughly, mostly becasue the first arc idnd’t make clear x-force didn’t exist yet but was a great origin story: a squad of military commandos working for a shadowy consirtum who become x-force’s big bad, plunge onto Krakoa and massacre a bunch of mutantas and assinate charles xavier. He comes back, though it’s trickier for obvious reasons, but it’s clear from this, and from wolverine and kid omega’s sucessful investigation and finding domino, that this can’t go on and thus X-Forces is formed; The intellegence and black ops arm of Krakoa and the one arm of it’s goverment exempt from the ‘dont’ kill humans rule”. What followed was nearly a years worth of fast paced adventures with good character stuff: Wolverine is in his element, kid omega, while I had my doubts due to quinten being way overused , turned out to be a perfect choice basically being a more compitent teenage sterling archer, cocky and loving this but also really good at his job, while Domino gets a great arc dealing with her trauma over her mutalation and having some of her power stolen by the shadowy masked dickheads while Colossus deals with his trauma over what went down when he rescued some Russian mutants, with the book slowly building up new threats and towards a showdown with Russia, something that’s also been built up by conflicts in Wolverine and Mauraders, which again makes the world of x feel more like an actual world instead a bunch of comics in one cast herd.  Jean Grey is good for intellegence, though by now seems to have noped out as she couldn’t take the toll, it’s not for everyone and most notably after 5 or 6 years of being treated worse and worse and written worse and worse and becoming a bigger and bigger piece of shit Beast is FINALLY put in the right spot: his darker turns aren’t ignored but he’s back to being an actually intellegent hero as X-force’s director, still a bit greasy but now for good reason and without a god complex or some such bullshit and with a tiny bit of his humor back. Not much else to say really, X-Force is well paced, enjoyable and gritty, getting the spirit of the team at it’s best down right while doing something fresh with it. 

New Mutants (Ed Brisson) Last one, New Mutants is the odd duck of the dawn of x line in terms of how it was launched. Fallen Angels ended up being a mini series both due  to Hill being busy and it’s cast being needed elsewhere but will presmibly get a follow up later, but it’s not the ONLY mini series in the line with Fantastic four/x-men, the giant sized one shots and now Empyre: X-Men all debuting in wave 2. New Mutants however is the first book to change writers and said writer STARTED in the middle of hickman’s run, partly due to scheduling delays but even before that it was partly by design and those issues haven’t been collected yet, with hickman’s short run being collected first. So you have a run that builds off what Hickman started but with it’s own ideas that started insidei t and suprisingly it .. really works.  While I do think there are better books in the line Brisson’s new mutants is enjoyable, combining humor and character work. New Mutants focuses on the sextant, which was first brought up in hickman’s run, the series of habitats for younger mutants on krakoa that the new mutants look out for, and while the original new mutants are in space, Armor decides to try and bring some old friends in to join in paradise with the help of Glob Herman, that big pink guy with a visable skeleton and eyes, and Maxine and Manon, who in the tradition of layla miller were created for an event and not great htere but turned out amazing under the right writer.. who I think also wrote that event but whatever, a pair of empaths and telepaths who have trouble grasping the right ethics for using their powers.  The four go to get one of my faviorite x-men back: BEAK! I missed him even if he’s weirdly suddenly repowered. Beak and his wife Angel only haven’t joiend in with their kids because his dad’s sick, and things soon escalate when a bunch of criminals try holding them all hostage and it’s up to boom boom, bored since everyone left her alone, to save the day! After that we deal with Magik rangling them and the team’s new mission statment: not wanting ot mess up again like she did with beak, who did join them but not without loosing his dad and then his memory of his dad thanks to the twins misguided efforts, Armor still wants to try welcoming new mutants in with the vetrans help, and thus we have our puprose: focusing both on how these younger mutant 20 somethigns of various ages from early to late work together to make a better world nad help their own get back to this world. it’s intresting.. I’m not in love with it like mauraders or x-force, but it’s still pretty good and their first big foe so far, DoX, a blog that well.. doxes mutants that haven’t arrived yet, seems to be intresting. Not much to say just pretty good and and better at mixing comedy and character stuff, and getting the cast right. Ed Brisson had already proven himself on old man logan, but this cements him as one of the hottest new x-writers around and i’m glad he was given a book here. He’s also succeded in making me actually like Glob Herman so that’s a plus. 

Fantastic Four/X-Men The first title of wave 2 and easily one of the best, right up there with mauraders nad probably JUSST behind it and ONLY because i’ts a mini series, giving the X-Men their first real step into the rest of hte marvel universe. Sure the 4 had cameoed in the first issue and there’s been mentions of krakoa in other books and one off issues but mostly Krakoa really hadn’t impacted anything.. but that first issue also set things up with Scott’s conversation with Sue Richards

Yeah and in case those who haven’t been aware of what’s going on with the FF lately and either remember franklin as a 6-11 year old or wondered why the hell he was suddenly a teen when they read this crossover, it’s actually simple; At the end of secret wars the Richards family was put on a bus, also so marvel could shove the ff as a proper team out the door due to the whole fox rights thing, and when Dan Slott had brought them back.. and cleverly had more time pass for the richards than for the 616 proper, so he could age Franklin up to his late teens and Valeria up to her early ones, allowing the richards children to actually age since Franklin’s age always had to stay vauge due to marvel’s vage and wobbly time scale. This way they get both consitant ages and more agency.  But the return also came with a price as Franklin, who if you didn’t know is so powerful he can create whole universe and shape the sturcture of the universe, had his powers break saving his family, and thus since he came back, he’s onlyg got so much of them left in the tank before they run out entirely, and it’s been an issue for him in Slott’s run as he worries about being the normal human in a fantastic family and comes to a head here, though rather than Hickman himself, who as mentioned last time has a marvelous track record with the family or FF series writer dan slott Hickman choose a wild card for this, though had both Hickman and Slott’s permission to do whatever he wanted: Chip Zdarsky, a modern marvel for marvel who’d writtne the four in marvel two in one but for some reason didn’t get the main book and this book makes me hope whenever Dan Slott bows out he gets his turn and while this is his first x-men work, Zdarsky proves he’s just as good here as is in most of his work on Howard the Duck, Jughead and Star Lord.. a weird selection I know but all classics. 

With this power outage, Franklin is worried his dad is, at least subconciously, not really trying to help him and to make matters worse teh x-men show up to offer their help.. and Franklin his birthright. The arguments made by both sides are great and I will be covering the series in full soon but in a nutshell the four dont’ want to give up their son/nephew, Reed dosen’t trust Xavier and feels he wants to use his son’s powers while the x-men feel it’s franlin’s choice and he’s old enough to make it, he belongs with them and he’ll be safer there. It also works because Franklin understandably isn’t swayed by either as neither is reallyt alking to him more at him, especially his parents .. and only tries the gate when Kitty Pryde, the two  bonded back in the 80s and a young franklin stopped her from comitting suicide long story but really moving, is the only one to tell him it’s his choice. This dosen’t go quite well though since Reed Richards, father of the year, decided to make a device to mask his son’s mutant gene and no one, including his own family, is happy about htis.  Naturally Franklin, with Val’s help, runs away.. and then as if it couldn’t get worse DOOM shows up wanting to help so now it’s a three way dance between them for hte fate of franklin. The series has gorgeous art form the dodsons a really damn compelling story and great setup for further stories for both lines and feels like the best of both franchises. It’s the x-men’s first huge impact on the rest of the marvel universe,a nd it feels like it with the ending showing that and showing this might not be the last time both sides crossover. It’s everything you could want from a crossover and i’m only being so brief because I want to review it soon as a huge fan of both groups. Easily one of the best x-men stories of the line and one of the best stories for both groups period. 

Wolverine:  We’re onto the final two, and Percy’s second book and the first solo.. and it’s logan again! Makes sense though: Wolverine only just came back from the dead, and while both is daughter and alternate future self carried the woverline banner for him, the original hasn’t gotten his own ongoing in some time. And so far.. it’s pretty good> the first issues a bit messy due to it’s lenght, but overall the book is intresting and has Logan graple with being the best at waht he does and if he can be better or if he deserves paradise while also delivering a compelling solo mission teaming Wolverine up with a federal agent who resents mutants. it also does some good world building, explaning why Krakoan drugs have things like wait lists (they want to control production closely both to avoid having the flower taken away and for quality control), and expanding the russia subplot while using Dracula of all people as a major antagonist, which is clever especailly since this isn’t his first rodeo with the x-men. Just a fun book wiht loads of promise.

Hellions: NOt much to say here as it’s hard to judge after two issues, buti f nothing else this series brought back the delightfully batshit Nanny, who just with last weeks issue offered to nurse Greycrow (who had his name changed from scalphunter because of course marvel did why wouldn’t they) and falling down. It combines humor with an odd but well thought out cast and makes Alex Summers intresting without making everyone else assholes, a hard but earned feet. If it continues to be good.. I dunno, especially since i haven’t been impressed by any of zeb wells other works especially his new mutants run, good god that one’s am ess, but so far he’s winning me over with a clever concept and roster full of deep cuts.  Final Thoughts:  I won’t be covering Empyre: X_men, though I did enjoy it and i’l save that one for next time. For now this has been a hell of a year of x-men comics, with even the weaker books still having something intresting and none being outright terribule and only one had a bad grasp on some of it’s cast and for a line this big and expansive, that’s a gold medal achivment. After YEARS of stasis the x-men have finally risen again better, bolder and stranger than ever. IS every book A+ gold star etc etc, no, but what’s important.. is that it’s all DECENT. There’s enough standout books to make it work but as i’ve made clear what isn’t the best of the best is still good or decent. There’s nothing bad, no one phoning it in or not giving an effort, everyone is trying thier hardest and succeding on SOME level even if not completely and that.. that’s truly amazing and I look forward to more of it as this line continues. Pax Krakoa and hopefully i’ll see you again. 

[zalrb]

Invitation {OT3 Fic Pt. 2}

Hi guys, I decided to do a part 2 just because the idea was in my head and I had to get it out rather than committing to continuing this series. It gets a bit weird but it could’ve been a lot weirder/more disturbing so there’s that. Like I beside before it should be noted that I never watched The Originals sober and so Rebekah and Klaus’ backstory before 3x03 isn’t really taken into too much consideration in this fic. Let me know what you guys think.

Link to Part 1:http://zalrb.tumblr.com/post/178451575500/hi-guys-i-decided-to-write-a-fanfic-about

*not my gif*

Klaus was different tonight, Rebekah observed. He was different with Stefan. He’d only just met him but Rebekah could tell that he was a step beyond intrigued --- captivated, maybe. Spellbound seemed more accurate. He’d decided to join them at their booth, sitting on the opposite side of the table, which was how she knew things were different this time; he hadn’t insisted she come with him and he hadn’t ripped Stefan’s heart out on the spot, two facts that caused Rebekah a surprising amount of confusion.

                The way Klaus looked at Stefan was the way he often looked at her except the desire in his gaze, wherever it came from, didn’t have the same kind of hardness it did when it was directed at her. Rebekah took a sip of her drink. A part of her felt oddly territorial, Stefan was hers and she would not let Nik just come in and take him away like he did everything and everyone else in her life. She’d found happiness again with Stefan, a crazed sort of liveliness that awakened her and she was going to hold onto that with everything she had, Niklaus be damned. But she would be damned if she lost to Stefan, she would sooner snap his neck than let him replace her in Klaus’ heart and seeing the way they looked at each other made her seethe with jealousy. She was there, at Nik’s side, long before Stefan after all.

               “So Stefan, enlighten me. What makes you worthy of an Original like my sister?” said Klaus. “She’s pure vampire and you’re no more than a diluted bloodline.”

               Rebekah rolled her eyes. “Don’t listen to him, Stefan. Nik’s an elitist.”

               But Stefan wasn’t insulted. The question didn’t feel like it was supposed to insult him.  He could see Klaus regarding him but there was a playful glint in his eyes, a coyness that made Stefan grin. He wanted to do whatever he could to keep those eyes on him.

               “And where’s the rest of your family?” he countered.

               Klaus laughed. “Well let’s see, I killed most of them.”

               “But not all,” said Rebekah.

               Stefan turned to her, intrigued by her flippant tone. “And you’re OK with that?”

               “We all had a chance to choose a side,” said Rebekah, looking at Klaus.

               Without warning, Stefan found himself looking in on a private moment between the two siblings. Klaus gazed at Rebekah with something like affection but not quite, it was too charged for that.

               “I chose the right one, eventually,” she continued.

               Rebekah slid her gloved palm over Klaus’ bare one until they were holding hands and Stefan wondered how the material felt over Klaus’ skin. The two of them smiled at each other, centuries of secrets between them that Stefan wanted to uncover, wanted to share, wanted to bury himself in ---

               “WHERE THE HELL IS MY WIFE?”

               A man stormed up to their booth. Stefan felt a flicker of irritation. This stupid, insignificant blood bag had interrupted them, had felt entitled enough to disrupt them. Them.  But then he relaxed as quickly as he became irritated. It wasn’t this man’s fault, he didn’t know who they were; he was simply in need of some education.  

               “I don’t know,” said Stefan. “I give up!”

“You think you’re so tough? Hiding in your bar, drinking your liquor? A telephone call to Chicago P.D. might set you straight.”

Klaus quivered in false fear. “Ooh.”

Rebekah glanced at Stefan and smiled brightly. He had that look on his face, that look he got when he had something deliciously devious planned. Her chest fluttered in excitement to see what he had in store but also to see how Klaus would react to his scheme --- as much as she wanted Stefan to herself, as much as she wanted to break free of as well as be the sole object of Klaus’ possessive eye, she also wanted her brother to continue wanting Stefan as much as she did, to want him badly enough to keep him at their side.

Stefan summoned the man’s wife, Lila, over to the booth.

“Oh thank God,” said the man. “We’re leaving!”

But before they could even take a step, Stefan took the man by the arm and compelled him to sit down next to Klaus while Lila made her way over to him and Rebekah. Staring at the man, Stefan took off Lila’s glove, peaking Klaus’ interest. He understood it, why Rebekah held onto him with such intensity --- it was a high to be around him, a high that took you over completely.

“Now, Stefan, don’t be mean,” said Rebekah in playful reproach.

But Stefan took out a pen knife. Klaus swallowed hard, his breathing becoming shallow. His muscles tightened, he felt hot around his collar. This wasn’t exhilaration, this was ---

Stefan cut Lila’s wrist, the blood dribbling into Rebekah’s martini and Klaus smiled, surprised at his own delight, at the pleasure seeing Stefan exact control made him feel. Rebekah grinned, satisfied and thrilled.

He could feel it --- their eyes on him. Rebekah’s enjoyment emboldened Stefan, she had a taste for the depraved that frenzied him in the worst possible way, but Klaus … … he had a thirst that Stefan seemed to feel in his core, a yearning for more than simple depravity but a desire to revel in Stefan’s unique form of hedonism. And Stefan wanted him to.

“I’d like you to join me for a drink,” he said to the man, sliding the bloodied martini over to his side of the table.

“What kind of sick freaks are you?”

“I said drink,” said Stefan again, his tone the perfect balance between unconcern and malice.

The man picked up the glass and started to drink from it, his hand trembling, his eyebrows furrowed in fear and disgust and Klaus’ breath caught in his throat; he adjusted himself to keep his composure but felt the baser part of his nature come to the surface.

“What’s your name?” said Stefan.

“Go to hell.”

Stefan pursed his lips and Klaus laughed. The man’s attempt at bravery was indeed rather amusing but he found himself laughing more in anticipation for what Stefan would do next.

“Do you want another sip?”

“Liam. Liam Grant.”

“Liam Grant!” Stefan exclaimed.  Klaus gazed at him. He could watch him forever. He would. He’d make sure of it.

“Have another sip, Liam,” said Stefan. “Finish it.”

   When Liam drank the last of the martini, choking down his urge to vomit, Stefan turned to Rebekah, his eyes gleaming.

“What do you think we should do with Liam Grant?”

               She looked at Liam, an eyebrow raised. “I think we should take him home,” she said. “I could use a new pet, it’ll be so much fun.”

               Stefan grinned, dozens of scenarios unfurling in his mind. Sensing his thoughts, Rebekah leaned toward him only for Stefan to lower his head and nuzzle her neck. Lightly, he grazed his lips along her throat, revelling in her scent. Rebekah sighed loudly, in spite of and most likely because of the glare she felt on her back.

When Stefan looked upward to gaze at Rebekah, he instead caught Klaus’ eye.

He moved away from Rebekah, leaning back in his seat, without looking at her or anyone else except for Klaus, and then waited. He didn’t exactly know what he was waiting for but he knew he wouldn’t move, wouldn’t break their gaze until he got it. Neither he nor Klaus said anything, even Rebekah was quiet, and something shifted. A current charged through all three of them, making the air around them hot, making them all hyperaware of one another’s presence, but even through this, Rebekah could sense the pull between the two men on either side of her, the desire separate from her.

Eyes still on Stefan, Klaus gave his head an imperceptible nod and Stefan exhaled, closing his eyes briefly in a kind of tortured release that caused Klaus’ lips to part.

When Stefan opened his eyes again, they were a bloody red. Veins darkened Rebekah’s eyes in response.

               “Let’s go.” He took Rebekah by the hand and Rebekah took Liam by the wrist. She looked over her shoulder to Klaus.

               “I’ll come back to you soon,” she said.

Klaus watched them leave, his eyebrows furrowed, and sat alone in the booth for a while. He wasn’t sure what Stefan’s look meant, if he appealed to him for permission to take Rebekah home or if he was extending an invitation to join them. Either way, Klaus’ nod was a ‘yes’ and he was plagued with conflict because of it.  He couldn’t deny that his skin hummed with anticipation, his blood screamed within his body. He was curious, dangerously curious to know what they were doing --- it agitated him, hardened him. The shame of that was eclipsed by rage. When he actually thought about the possibilities, he was stricken with the urge to kill something.  

What if Stefan bit her? Drank from her. Klaus clenched his jaw at the thought. Suddenly, an image flashed, unbidden, into his mind of Stefan’s fangs piercing Rebekah’s neck, a moan escaping her lips, and he picked up the empty martini glass and threw it against the wall, shattering it.  Then he thought about Rebekah’s lips on Stefan, her hands exploring the breadth of his shoulders, the tautness of his chest and felt dismayed and frustrated that she got to do something he couldn’t stop thinking about all night.

He kicked his foot out, splintering one of the table legs so that the table caved forward.

No. Quickly, he stood up and left the booth. He couldn’t bear not knowing what was actually happening between them.

 Liam wasn’t allowed to speak. He didn’t know why he wasn’t allowed to speak or why he couldn’t even open his mouth despite wanting to, he only knew he wasn’t allowed to say a word. Instead, he sat at the foot of a king bed and watched in silent horror and panic as his captors embraced in front of him.

Rebekah tore open Stefan’s shirt, ripping it to shreds and he pushed Rebekah against the wall, the painting hung beside them falling to the floor from the force. He kissed her with a violent passion, her fingers curled around his hair, pulling at the strands. Quickly, he tugged her dress straps off her shoulders, kissing her along her neck and Rebekah clutched the back of his head, turning her own to the side to give Stefan more access to more skin. She looked at Liam’s terrified face and smiled. Stefan followed her gaze.

“I want a taste,” he said, panting.

Rebekah kissed him again, biting his lower lip. “No,” she teased.

“Rebekah,” said Stefan dangerously.

“There’ll be nothing left if you go near him,” she said, kissing his jawline. “And I intend to make him last.”

She sucked on the bottom of his earlobe and Stefan sighed appreciatively.

“You’re not much better than I am, you know,” he gasped.

“Of course I am.”

Stefan slipped his hand beneath Rebekah’s dress, moving his finger upward and when he found her ache, she mewled.

“No,” he said, grinning. “You’re not.”

Rebekah’s eyes fluttered and for a few seconds she didn’t say anything but eventually she found the willpower to push him back.

“Watch,” she said breathlessly.

In an instant, she sped over to the bed, sitting behind Liam. With one hand, she kept his head facing forward, looking at Stefan, and then abruptly she bit him on the other side of his neck, making him cry out in pain. Stefan’s upper lip furled and his fangs descended as he watched Rebekah feed; desire and lust raged throughout his body, agitating him.

He couldn’t take it anymore.

He sped over to the bed but Rebekah was too quick for him. The second he made to move, she pushed Liam off the bed so that he hit the floor with a thud, and when Stefan reached her, she took him by the shoulders and flipped him onto the bed, pinning him down as she sat astride him.

She kissed him again, this time Liam’s blood, incensing his own. He grasped the back of her neck bringing her deeper into the embrace. She pulled away and lifted her chin so Stefan could run the tip of his tongue down her throat, licking the blood off her skin. She gripped his arms, skated her fingernails across his chest and stomach.

“I’m not satisfied,” he murmured into her ear. He sucked the underside of her jaw.

Rebekah closed her eyes. “Well can’t have that, can we?” she whispered.

Stefan knew she wouldn’t stop him. Quickly, he climbed off the bed to Liam on the floor and bit into the unspoiled side of his neck. He groaned as he gorged and Rebekah turned to face him, watching him from the bed, and slid a hand beneath the neckline of her dress, sighing loudly.

Stefan withdrew from Liam’s now lifeless body when he thought he heard a creak, ribbons of blood pooling from his mouth. “Did you hear something?”

Rebekah furrowed her eyebrows. She had never known Stefan to stop gorging mid-feed. It irritated her as much as it titillated her.

“Something like what?” she said.

               He shook his head. “Never mind.”

               Rebekah pouted. “I’m starting to feel very neglected, Stefan,” she said.

               Without warning he took her by the wrist and pulled her off the bed onto the floor, her back pressed against Liam’s corpse. He ripped open her dress from the middle.

               “Now we can’t have that, can we?” he said mischievously, unbuttoning his trousers.

               Rebekah giggled and thrust her lips against his, holding him on either side of the face.

 He shouldn’t be here, Klaus knew that. He knew his interest went against the laws of man and vampire and for years, centuries, he’d ignored them, he’d relieved the tension through murder, through disposing suitor after suitor, but tonight was different. Everything was different now. Because this interest was as much about him as it was about her. He had to be a part of it in some way; the thought of them without him crazed him.

               Walking further into the apartment, he intensified his hearing and he heard her … panting, whimpering.

               Stefan … Stefan …

Klaus bit the inside of his lip to keep from sighing. He squeezed his eyes shut, the shame of his reaction a bitter taste at the back of his throat but that shame did not have the decency to keep his skin from flushing with arousal, to keep his hands steady instead of shaking with an irrational fury that it was Stefan’s name on her tongue and not …

He turned to leave the apartment but found himself speeding toward the bedroom door, quiet as a whisper, and pressing his ear against it to get a better listen. This time he heard him, gasping and sighing. The moans reverberated throughout Klaus’ body, burning him with an ache, and he slid his hand up against the door, briefly imagining it could be Stefan’s chest. His other hand gripped the moulding on the frame, crumbling it.

Klaus heard Stefan’s low, guttural groan and couldn’t help the moan that escaped him, that mingled with his.

Stefan looked toward the door and then back at Rebekah. Her expression was unsurprised and slightly impish and Stefan knew then that she had heard a noise earlier, that she knew exactly who caused it, like he did, and pretended not to notice anything at all to allow them all what they wanted while feigning ignorance of its hedonistic nature.

“Don’t stop,” she whispered.

If Stefan opened that door then there wouldn’t be any going back. She and Klaus would both know, truly know, what they had known for years; Stefan would never be hers alone again and neither would Klaus.  But if the door stayed closed … … if the door stayed closed they could continue in limbo.

Except Stefan had to see him. He had to see if it was real. He had to know for sure. It was almost a compulsive need. He disentangled from Rebekah and pulled up his trousers as he walked to the door. When he opened it, he and Klaus held each other’s gaze, Stefan lips parted, Klaus’ jaw clenched, an unspoken but recognized longing between them. Klaus opened his mouth to speak but then saw Rebekah in the background.

The puncture wounds on her neck were healed but the blood droplets remained and everything in his field of vision was suddenly red. Without thinking he sped forward and grabbed her by the throat, standing her up. He didn’t say anything, he couldn’t, the fury choked his words. She stared at him defiantly and yet felt apologetic for a betrayal that shouldn’t have been considered treachery at all. Klaus gritted his teeth, glaring at her, teary-eyed and manic. She was his. She was his. It would work only if ---

And then Klaus moved so that he was behind Rebekah, her back pressed to his torso almost the way it had been when he and Stefan met for the first time. Klaus paused for a bit, awaiting any resistance, any hesitation at what she had to know would happen next. When none came, when Rebekah reached behind her and took his hand, entwining her fingers with his, Klaus sank his fangs into her neck, causing her to shudder against him. He closed his eyes, cresting in the bliss of her blood, in the ecstasy of her sighs and when he opened them again, he stared at Stefan’s veined face, beckoning him, calling him, wanting him.

Stefan gaped at the sight in front of him, at the intimacy that was between the two of them but that he also somehow shared in. Yes, this was about power, about control, about Klaus dictating the rules, but it was also an answer. Their stare at the booth had been Stefan extending an invitation after all and this was Klaus accepting it.

               He felt a certain unease and a certain jealousy at the bond the two of them shared, as they certainly didn’t view each other as siblings but as a man and as a woman. But whatever Stefan’s misgivings, they weren’t enough to eclipse the craving that had nettled him all night, that consumed him in this very moment --- the craving for Klaus’ blood. He wanted it even more than he wanted Rebekah’s, the hankering frenzied him more violently than any other lust for blood he’d had over the past few decades.  And when Klaus withdrew from Rebekah’s neck, sighing with satiation and gratitude, panting with lust, Stefan rushed forward and grabbed Klaus’ arm, biting into his wrist. Klaus cried out and shuddered, gritting his teeth at the intensity of his reaction, the intensity of the bite. Stefan grunted enthusiastically, the blood making everything in his body sing and scream, bringing him a high he’d never thought imaginable.

Klaus looked down at Stefan through hooded eyes and then turned his head to Rebekah, so that their faces were only inches away from each other.

               “You won’t drink from him?” she asked, barely contained excitement in her voice.

               Klaus’ eyes fluttered. “Not tonight,” he gasped. “We have an eternity for that.”  

               Partly relieved and partly disappointed, Rebekah raised her neck slightly and Klaus sunk into her again.

[theonceoverthinker]

Someone’s Doing a Rewatch!

That’s me!

I’m so excited to start my own personal Once Upon a Time Rewatch! Like many, I’m going to be going along with the rewatch schedule made by the fine folks at @watchingfairytales and watch three episodes a week!

This is going to be really fun for me because if I’m being honest, despite my love for OUaT, I never did a serious rewatch of the series. There were handfuls of episodes that I rewatched for fanfic research, attempts at my own rewatches, my own personal enjoyment, or efforts to get others into the show, but never a full on dedicated rewatch!

So, what do I hope to accomplish with this? What’s my plan to make this rewatch a most epic one? 

Well, aren’t you nosy! But if you want to find out what kind of content my post about rewatches will contain and what I hope to discover by doing it, join me below the cut!

First, as I didn’t start posting my own thoughts about episodes until Season 7, this rewatch will be my space to give my general feelings on just about everything. It’s not going to be anything epic, but I do have points that I want to bring up in each and every post.

Second, I want to be more self aware. I’ve grown as a person over the course of the four years I’ve watched this show. I understand the world better, and I want to see how that new insight into the world reflects upon my love for the series. How will I treat character actions and story choices? That’s what I want to explore.

So, now that you know the “why” of my rewatch, allow me to illuminate the “what,” or rather, what you will see from me should you choose to follow me throughout this experience.

-Press Release - I don’t want to do a plot synopsis for every episode, so this will be just a nice shorthand for everyone!

-General Thoughts: Stories, Characters, and Themes - To be honest, it should be quite expected to see a general thoughts section. I’m a blogger. You’re coming here to hear my opinion on things, and as I said, a lot of this has been unsaid. So, here will be my examination of the episodes as they stand, including all aspects of stories, characters, and themes. 

-Insights - This will be where I share new thoughts, things that I didn’t notice before, and things I didn’t appreciate before - A rewatch gives births to new insights or even just funny/dark takes on moments that happen in the story or even in the background! I hope this segment has a lot!

-Arcs - Now that I know how arcs begin and conclude, I can give a closer examination as to the building blocks behind each of them and see if the sum of the parts are truly equal to the whole, or unfortunately exceed it. 

-Favorite Dynamic - OUaT’s bread and butter is its character dynamics, and with every episode, I want to highlight a dynamic that spoke to me in some way. They can be there because they made me laugh, cry, or contemplate something a little deeper about the relationships between and surrounding the characters. I’m going to try to not make this a ship thing (I have a segment for ships below), but I won’t act like it can’t happen from time to time if it’s really stand out.

-Writers - I think that it would be really neat to examine each writer and see - now that we have their entire OUaT library of episodes to work with - what they were able to bring to the table. Here is where I hope to examine their strengths and weakness as well as patterns in their writing styles as per their episodes.

-Darker Aspects - This segment won’t come up a lot, but there are more mature themes - as brought up in other places, rape, consent issues, abuse, and treatment of POC’s - that I want to at least shed a light on. I’ll also discuss ways that similar plot points could be achieved through methods with far fewer unfortunate implications.

-Culture - This is another segment that won’t come up a lot, but I want to examine why exactly some of the most beloved episodes are as beloved as they are (And the same goes for episodes that are reviled). What did I observe about the fandom when this episode aired? What did I observe about the world? What did I observe about myself? And now that those things have subsided or changed, do I still feel the same?

-Rating - I like the idea of comparing and contrasting episodes as to better get an idea of my overall feelings of Seasons and the works of individual writers. Therefore, every episode will have a rating. This season, I’ve had the pleasure of being a co-host on The Storybrooke Weekly Mirror podcast, and in accordance with their rules, I’ll be rating every episode on a scale of 1-10 apples, with 10 apples as the best. Additionally, if I find an episode to be better than even a 10, it will be awarded the coveted Golden Apple! May many episodes take a delightful bite!

-Flip My Ship - Ships are kind of a dividing factor in the OUaT fandom, and their presence can...can bring out the shittiest parts of the fandom, if we’re being honest (And to an extent, I include myself). However, romance and fairy tales go together like peanut butter and jelly, and I don’t particularly want to keep my love of ships out of this. Because of that, this will be the place you can come for all things having to do with shippy goodness. If I don’t like the couple, I probably won’t touch upon it unless I simply can’t separate the couple from the story, and if there’s anything that I believe to be downright toxic concerning a ship, it’ll be mentioned in the “Darker Aspects” segment. My icon should probably give it away, but I like Captain Swan, and I know that’s not everyone’s cup of tea. Here are some other couples that I like too (And yup, there’s plenty of overlap - You’re dealing with a multishipper here)! Swan Queen Golden Hook Curious Archer/Mad Archer/Wonderbow Dragon Queen Shadow Queen Snowing Rumbelle (Sometimes) Sleeping Warrior Brave Warrior Mulan Rouge Ruby Slippers Henriella Note: If there’s a couple that’s not here, I don’t hate it, in all likelihood. I might just be figuring out how I feel about it through this re-watch. Or maybe I just forgot it.Honestly, it’s probably the latter. I can be pretty forgetful.

()()()()()()()()()()()

That about wraps up my goals for this re-watch! I hope some of you decide to keep up with what I’ve got going on here and even interact with me from time to time! However, if you don’t (And that’s totally okay, but note that you will be missing out on some stellar puns, and honestly, that’s your loss!), you can blacklist the tags at the bottom of the page. Additionally, I’ll tag the episodes by their production code (Ex. ouat 1x01), ships I discuss, and any darker aspects of episodes that I decide to touch upon for purposes of sensitivity.

[fanfic-inator795]

Old WoY fics that I’m still proud of (+ commentary)

So yeah, it’s been a while since I’ve written really anything for WoY. Admittedly once the series ended, the tag slowed down, and new things like the Lego Batman Movie came out, I sorta lost interest. Though, after rewatching a few episodes (thank you Disney XD marathon ^v^), I’ve got WoY back on the brain. Hopefully I’ll be able to write fics for this show again soon, once I’ve finished some of my other planned fic projects/stuff I have to write for possible jobs. But until then, I just wanna take some time to look back on old WoY fics that I’m still really proud of and enjoy rereading ^v^ And, if you haven’t read these fics, consider this a personal recommendation list.

First up: Post Finale fics. Fics that focus on elements or ideas either based on stuff from ‘The End of the Galaxy’, or just take place after the finale epi.

Can’t Run - I really do love Hater’s “I can’t run if I want to be number one!” quote. Without that line from the first S2 episode, Hater’s dramatic turn around in the finale may seem like plot convenience or just something that came out of nowhere. But, similar to Wander, I firmly believe that with enough determination, Hater is able to accomplish anything. He’s certainly got the power and even intellect for it, he just needs that big push of either determination or genuine confidence. So yeah, I wanted to write this just to sorta fill in the gap between TEoTG’s opening scene and Hater’s big dramatic speech. I also wanted to write some more Hater and Peeps interaction, since it’s still a fun dynamic even if it’s not my favorite in the show. Rereading it, I feel like I could have maybe written Hater a bit better towards the end - maybe have him hesitate more before revealing what he was feeling - but otherwise I still like how it turned out.

Better - Another Post-Finale Hater fic, following the idea that after saving the Galaxy, Hater tries to do good (even if he’s reluctant to have the ‘good guy’ title). I like the idea of him struggling with this new identity as well as new goals, and who better to relate to this than a former bad guy? It really is too bad we couldn’t have more Syl and Hater interactions. I feel like they could not only be enjoyable to watch, but also interesting just to see. But yeah, writing their dynamic is fun, and after they pretty much saved each other in the finale, I can’t imagine that they wouldn’t have at least one sit-down talk/positive interaction with each other.

Conventional Rerun - Aaaaand another Hater-focused fic, though more focused on his possible reformation than the finale itself. ...Can you guys tell which character I enjoy writing most? Lol. But yeah, I remember this idea hitting me pretty randomly one day while I was abroad. Basically I wanted to write a bunch of jokes around both conventions and Hater’s cartoon. Of course Hater just hates the thing, though I was able to imagine multiple reasons why, as well as figure how that hate could possible become a ‘love-hate’ relationship with his cartoon. Again, it sorta connects to Hater having fans and being considered a ‘good’ force in the Galaxy now, and basically not knowing how to take it. Hater may seem simple at times, but I really do feel like he’s got plenty of layers - both in how he thinks as well as how/what he feels. Also, a lot of show continuity and meta jokes in this one, also fun to write ^v^

Long Time No See - My reason for writing this? WHY DIDN’T WANDER AND JEFF INTERACT IN THE FINALE?! Lol, but yeah, the idea of exploring the feelings of a character like Jeff - someone who both had been ‘wanderized’ for a while and who had to deal with his new friend eventually leaving - was too interesting to pass up. Maybe not the most exciting fic, and I do kinda wish I could have done just a bit more with it, but still pretty fun to write ^v^

There’s also By Any Other Name which, while not really an episode based on the finale, still takes place after it, and explores an element I think any WoY fan’s interested in: Wander’s name. I was really hoping this fic wouldn’t turn out too long winded or exposition heavy or ‘deep’, which is why I made the set up for all the more thinky/exposition filled and emotional stuff so grounded (and relateable, considering I was also traveling while I planned out this fic). But I’m so proud of how it turned out in the end, having just the right amount of emotion and story, as well as some humor ^v^

Similarly, there’s Reset the Clock, though that one connects more to ‘The Waste of Time’ than the finale. Definitely not my favorite of the bunch even if it’s fairly well written, though I still like reading it occasionally simply because I like filling in the gaps between scenes/time in episodes like this one. 

Alright, next up: Minor Character Focused Fics! Because darn it, there are too many characters to love from this series! 

One Last Bite - This one I definitely have to put first, because the more I watched ‘The Fancy Party’, the more interested I was in Entozoa and Wander’s pasts. Once it was revealed that Wander was possibly immortal, the fact that Entozoa specifically wanted to take over his body just made even more sense. So, I wrote a fic focused on the two of them, both because I thought it’d be interesting to explore the relationship between two practically immortal characters, but because I couldn’t get the image of Possessed-by-Entozoa!Wander fighting the others and speaking like Malachite from SU out of my head. The latter half of this fic was so much fun to write ^v^ I also feel like I did a decent job writing Wander’s final conversation with Entozoa (and considering that I sometimes struggle with dialogue, any time I can do it well I consider a success). 

Tiger in Kitten’s Clothing - I LOVE LITTLE BITS! ...Then again I pretty much love every minor character from this show but still, she’s one of my favorites ^v^ Her rivalry with Syl and the sort of irony that can come from it can also be interesting and fun to think about. I also really love the imagery I was able to do with this one. So yeah, maybe just a simple character piece with not a ton of story but eh, I still love it ^v^

Breakout and Blindly Looking Out - Two Ryder stories that, despite the first one being more Syl focused, still very much connect with each other. Maybe this is just me totally falling for Ryder’s charm, but I firmly believe that he isn’t a terrible person, despite doing some pretty terrible things. So, this was just my attempt at fleshing him out and giving some motive for his actions, as well as giving some backstory for his relationship with Syl. I like how both of them turned out, but I feel like Blindly Looking Out is the stronger one. 

Freezing Warmth and Helmet and Sword - Another pair of fics, this time focusing on Hater, Prince Cashmere and Peepers. It’s always a fun challenge to write interactions for characters who have never really interacted before. Pretty sure this one was both inspired by RPs/conversations between me and Tessa as well as Hater and Cash’s brief interactions in ‘The Rager’. Adding in elements like Hater learning swordfighting and Peepers being sort of jealous just made it all the more enjoyable to write and reread. Again, I enjoy the latter story of this duo more, but I still really like how Freezing Warmth turned out ^v^ 

Crashing Waves - AKA the first fic in the Awesome Arc series. Like Ryder, I really do love Awesome despite his jerkiness. Though, if there was a downside to this character, it was that he never really got a ton of development or was super interesting (though still pretty fun to watch) until ‘The Rival’. So, this was my attempt to sorta fill in that possible character development, as well as just use the excuse to put a bunch of my Awesome headcanons in a story. Peepers and Hater also get a bit of the spotlight in these stories, which I don’t mind at all ^v^ If anything, it just makes the series feel more whole. I really do hope I can finish this series one day.  Maybe it’s a bit too dramatic or angsty at times but eh, with something like PTSD and changing your whole identity, that’s sorta to be expected. 

Peace - A quick look at Ripov, as well as a bit at Beeza and their possible relationship with each other. Maybe a bit rambley in places but, eh, I still like it ^v^ (and still ship it, lol) 

Don’t Fence Me In - Another Jeff fic! Again, sorta focusing on being kind of left behind after being ‘wanderized’, though thankfully it turned out more bittersweet than angsty. To this day, I still consider it the best Jeff-focused fic I’ve ever written.

There’s also Admirable Interstella that focuses on The King of Sherblorg 7 and Stella Starbella that... I don’t hate persay but, I don’t love either. If anything, I’m more just proud that I was able to write something for such a strange idea and actually have it make sense and flow decently. Though, I do wish I could have managed to make it shorter. 

But speaking of ships... Iiiiiiii have a lot of shipping fics, lol. Much more than I could list and still keep this post at a reasonable length. Most of them are for Wander x Hater but I have written plenty for Syl x Peeps, Hater x Syl, canon characters and OCs, etc. Surprisingly, even the old ones or the ones for pairings I don’t ship much anymore I’m still pretty proud of. So, I’m just gonna leave a link to my story list and anyone who’s interested can check it out: https://fanfic-inator795.tumblr.com/fanfics  (scroll down to the Wander Over Yonder section)

Now, before I end this post, there’s still one fic I want to mention. My longest WoY project to date (and probably ever): Rockin’ Over Yonder

This fic... Ohhhhh boy this fic. Even without it having the personal baggage/behind the scenes stuff that I don’t really want to go into, I’d STILL probably have a love/hate relationship with this fic. For one, it was written before Season 2, so there are just soooooooo many elements that I could either rewrite or add in if I cared to. There’s also plenty of pretty cheesy or cliche moments in it that came from just me still being pretty new to writing fics as well as getting used to writing the WoY characters in general. So yeah, there’s a lot to not like...

But at the same time, there’s a lot I can’t help but love. Some scenes I really like, with some scenes that I can’t help but look at and think “Wow... I actually managed to write something like that?” There are some scenes and lines that I just absolutely loved writing, scenes that I can STILL perfectly picture in my head even after all these years. Maybe I missed out on including Dom and other S2 characters, but I still managed to fit in plenty of great S1 characters. And finally, what I love about this story the most is that I actually managed to do a good job writing and slowly developing the romantic relationships between the various characters/pairings. 

So, despite the stuff I dislike about Rockin’ Over Yonder, the stuff I may be embarrassed about or the semi-related bad memories that may pop up when I think of this fic, I still can’t help but be proud of it, with part of me wanting to remember it. So if you’re interested and you’re willing to read through some of the more cheesy parts, feel free to check it out ^v^

Honestly, along with Phineas and Ferb and maybe Regular Show, Wander Over Yonder probably inspired me the most in terms of ideas and fanfics - especially towards the end of it’s run. I’m grateful to WoY for inspiring me to write and think and analyse so much (along with all the other things it did for me, including introducing me to my best friend). The show may be over and I may be writing for other fandoms, but I don’t think I’ll ever truly forget these fics or the show they were inspired by ^v^

[frost-felon]

Yu-Gi-Oh! ARC-V: Last Episode + Some Final Thoughts

   ...What a ride, huh? You know, I never could have expected it to turn out this way--much better than the previous episodes had led me to believe. For all its problems, ARC-V truly did have many shining moments, from its awareness and focus on characters and world-building, to its particularly spectacular displays of Entertainment and even partial-Meta Dueling, to even just the quiet moments brought about by some of the EDs. I’ll never be able to fully get over the show’s lacking points, but I can say that, thankfully, I was laughing (smiling, hah) and enjoying myself in its strengths, its endeavors, and even, miraculously, its ending. Here’s why:

   ♪ I couldn’t stop laughing, smiling, just trembling with excitement throughout the episode. Even with the clearly bullshit new duel content, I was kept on the edge of my seat and amused, rooting for both Yuya and Reiji to do their bests as our fantastical leads. Truly, Yuya and Reiji are, if not masters, completely exceptional in regards to Entertainment Dueling.

   ♪ Yuto. Yugo. Yuri. Despite their fates, they were more lively here, more involved, and it was great to see. Honestly, I’m halfway to tearing up for them, both in joy and sadness. Really, one of my biggest wishes was for them, and Kurosaki Ruri, Rin, and Serena to be separate from Sakaki Yuya and Hiragii Yuzu, respectively, and while it pains me to not see them be able to live independently, to be fully free of Zarc and Akaba Ray’s death grips on their individuality, I have this feeling. The feeling that they’ll be okay. Things are, hah, quite likely to be weird for them regarding the multitude of relationships each is involved in, and some consequences have been avoided, but...it seems they’ll be able to live their lives peacefully, enjoyably, even with these circumstances. I’m thankful for that, at least.

   ♪ Sawatari Shingo, my-oh-my. He may not have been able to do much in these ending episodes (though certainly not as little as Tsukikage, ha ha, who was he again?), much less this one, but I loved his contributions here. I will miss you, oh lovely, egotistical, ambitious, brave, hit by ups-and-downs-in-terms-of-character-writing, worthy rival, Neo New Sawatari Shingo. God bless his creation. (On a more serious note, I’m...alright with his appearances in this episode; I wish he could have done more, been more, but I’ll take what we were given with a smile and a shitload of fanfic searches/chapters at my fingertips. What say you?)

   ♪ THE MAN, GONGENZAKA NOBORU, deserved more screentime and importance in this episode. Seriously, what the hell? With at least one ED devoted to the Yuzu & Yuya & Gongenzaka relationship and one with a heavy focus on it, why couldn’t we have gotten at least one scene just or mainly focusing on that relationship and Gongenzaka’s importance? Why did they have to completely ignore his importance in the lives of Yuya and Yuzu to just have him do nothing in the episode besides sit in the crowd and stand with the others at the end? Would it have been that difficult to fit something in without killing the pace/cutting valuable content?! I just...that’s one of the more disappointing things about this episode.Though disagreeable, it was understandable for Sawatari, but Gongenzaka deserved better, damn it; the writing made me care about him less in these past 30 episodes or so, but looking back at the the beginning, and seeing how they built him, I wish, and I yearn. I can’t be the only one, yeah?

   ♪ Shuzo. I’m glad they actually cared enough to go back to him at least, and to bring back his importance with the Epilogue Arc and this episode, to an extent. I almost cried, and I definitely whispered in a watery tone something along the lines of, “Oh, Shuzo...” I’m glad that, even if the Kurosaki family can never be fully complete (including Shun & Ruri’s parents, if they were simply carded and not killed), Shuzo has his daughter back.

   ♪ Yusho, and Yoko--Yoko didn’t do much, but I’m aware that, story-wise, she didn’t really need to. I’m still a little mixed on her, but I’m glad that they never fully forgot her and let her have moments in this arc and this episode. Yusho, at the end was...well, really, his appearance saddened me, because I really wanted to see that Yuya VS. Yusho duel. Frick, that would’ve been sweet! Glad he got to end it with his smile, Yuya’s, and mine.

   ♪ Akaba Leo--a man who has committed so much wrong, has understandable (though very misguided) reasons for what he did, who suffered from some bad writing, but nonetheless was very interesting and kept my attention (as some readers would know). In the end, I’m satisfied. Oh, there’s no doubt in my mind that he deserves a bit more punishment, a few more consequences, but I assume those would happen naturally post-series, so I’m not too unimpressed with that particular piece of his handling. I also felt that his contributions in this episode went over with me well (though I laughed when they reused one shot).

   ♪ Reira, and Himika. The business going on with Reira is very funky, and I didn’t quite enjoy what happened to him/her (<-- and that issue seems to have divided the wikis, interestingly; can’t blame ‘em, I am too). I hope, at least, that Post-Series!Reira gets to be individualistic and with free will, to fully complete Past!Reira’s character development and story arc. Anyone interested in writing some fluffy Post-Series!Reira stories? As for Himika, I’m satisfied with her overall inclusion and in this episode. I do felt that she could have done more, but like Yoko, her continued presence during most of the story wasn’t necessary, and I respect what we do have of both.

   ♪ I have so many questions that will never be answered, unless we get a movie or something. But what’s the chance of that, really? Maybe we’ll get an OVA or two. What was Zarc like, before he fell into villainy? How did he get the Extra Deck-Respective/Dimensional Dragons, and what was most of the composition of his deck before becoming the Supreme King Dragon? How much were the lives of the previous-series’ characters that weren’t shown affected, and did they even exist [besides those like Marufuji Ryo(u), who were mentioned in Freeze-Frame Bonuses]? Where in the hell did Roget go? Please, I would like some answers, even if they’re vague.

   ♪ There’s so much more I could say, but I think I’ll end it here--I can always elaborate and discuss my other thoughts in later posts. So, I’ll just ask a single, closing question, with a single, eager answer:

   Where do you go, when the fun has just ended; where can the fun begin again?

   Yu-Gi-Oh! VRAINS!