#she was charismatic and fun and a whole freaking vibe

[knowthatiloveyou]

Hannah Waddingham won the Royal Television Society Entertainment Performance Award for hosting Eurovision last year!

[fogwitchoftheevermore]

I want to see your team ups pls

HELL YEAH. welcome to the space zone.

explanations for the teams will be below the cut for the sake of your dash. because i have a lot to say about some of these.

TEAM "SCOTT'S WORST NIGHTMARE" (BIGB, JOEL, GEM)

i've talked about this team before, but this is the one i most strongly want to see soon. partially because i think the dynamic between the three of them would be awesome, partially because i think they'd be the rest of the server (but especially scott's) worst fucking nightmare, and partially because i think one of them would absolutely win. quickly going to break down why they'd all be scott's worst nightmare and then i'll get into their dynamics with each other.

gem-bree made this point better than i ever could so go read this post, thanks. gem can scare scott in a way no one else really can, and she knows how scary she is to him and just about everyone else. and it's awesome.

joel-literally self explanatory. you know what violence joel feels in his heart for scott. scott isn't actually particularly afraid of joel but joel with a team of people who he can convince to go after scott with him who he's actually afraid of would actually get his attention.

bigb-probably the most charismatic man on the server other than scott. can talk his way out of most situations, including talking scott out of stuff, which as we learned from sl!scott, freaks him out a bit! i think about "it's a lot easier to kill him when he's muted" literally everyday, i think it sums up scott's deal w/ bigb pretty much perfectly.

NOW with each other i also think this would be an awesome team. first of all, i think they'd have a really interesting dynamic. we've seen a fair bit of gem and joel on hermitcraft that makes me think they'd be a whole lot of fun together here, and i don't know exactly how bigb would contribute to the dynamic (because he's barely spoken to either of them in the grand scheme of the series), just their vibes as people make me think it'd be fun.

but also they're all very interesting people when it comes to their past teamups. bigb has wanted to be in on a close knit alliance for a really long time, but it so frequently falls apart for him, either because of his own trust issues or his bad reputation (or both). the notable outlier here is nosey neighbors, and generally i think bigb functions best in these smaller alliances with people who a: don't subscribe to/care about the baggage he comes with (the way cleo talks about him) and b: who can view him equally to the other alliance members. gem has no real preconceived notions about bigb, and joel is well aware of the last life and double life stuff, i'm sure, but i don't think he'd really... give a shit? so i think this would be a group that would welcome bigb in and maybe (in gem's case specifically) convince him that they trust him all the way through, or at least that they trust him as much as they trust the other guy in the alliance, because gem and joel have a relationship in hermitcraft, but not really in the context of the life series. because of their respective alliances last season, they were on opposite sides most of the time! none of these people have ever allied together before, and i think that fresh blood would be huge for all three of them.

joel also has a weird track record with alliances, having been a lone wolf until he was forced not to be in double life, at which point he realized having friends was awesome actually and has been desperate for it. i think joel and bigb are both desperate for friendship in a similar way but both want to be Cool about it, joel because he desperately needs to be cool all the time and bigb because all the times he's tried to actually hold onto people it's not worked out. so putting the two of them on the same alliance would, in my head, not necessarily force them both to confront their problems but would get them somebody who matches their freak. joel and gem also have a similar level of bloodthirst, joel has his violent grudges and gem doesn't necessarily get those grudges but she just genuinely has fun when she gets in fights. put them together and i think they would destroy.

gem's track record with alliances is hard to judge because uh. she's only had the one (i'm not taking real life into consideration for any of this because i 1. still haven't watched it and 2. don't see it as wildly indicative of how anyone would act in the actual series because no one was taking it or themselves seriously). but gem and the scotts were being held together with "glitter glue and a dream", as my buddy mcybree said that one time, so i think gem teaming up with two people who are uh. weird. about alliances wouldn't really throw her. bigb spending a ton of time on his own wouldn't stand to make her distrustful of him, though i think she would try to convince him to actually base with them (unlike the heart foundation). and then with joel who would like a friend please, she'd absolutely be down to hang out with him because they play off each other stupidly well. and she knows they do, so she's gonna make it work!

i don't know if any of that was comprehensible i will be honest. but just trust me THEY WOULD WORK AND IT WOULD BE AWESOME. and i think they'd be a really well balanced team, as well, hence me saying that i think one of them could win with this team. they'd be willing to put the work in to make sure one of them wins, and they have the skills to back it up (bigb with his silver tongue, gem with her pvp ability and weaponized reputation, and joel with his willingness to throw himself headfirst into whatever it is he wants). do you see the vision.

WORLD'S WORST POLYCULE (SKIZZ, TANGO, REN, MARTYN)

this would be, to me, a somehow even worse version of team BEST. because it's once again shoving two pairs of insanely close people into a group and hoping it works, but this time it's got the further layer of martyn's weird dynamics with skizz and tango (and skizz's dynamic with ren). literally the only people who have not, at some point, had a weird gay thing (or a weird anything) going on in this group are ren and tango, this is gonna be a nightmare.

so obviously we were all there for treebark, that's self explanatory. also if we're imagining this as next season, aka ren's triumphant return to the series proper, that would make this whole thing infinitely worse in ways i can't begin to comprehend. we were also all there for tango and skizz's three seasons in a row of teaming up and literal years of friendship and gay shit. also self explanatory.

but then there's more. so first of all, we have skizz and ren. skizz and ren also had some weird gay shit going on in third life, it's just usually overshadowed by the gay shit ren had going on with martyn (partially because him and martyn never got over it and partially because martyn lived with him and as such, got to be gay with him more frequently. and also the beheading.) but skizz loves to be a "loyal sword" (his own words), and he hasn't really gotten to do that since third life, despite his best efforts. because skizz wants to be a loyal sword to someone who acts like ren did, and no one else really wants to be a leader in that way, so skizz has to do it instead. skizz said this on the imp and skizz podcast- he has modeled every alliance he's ever had on the red army. that's that loyalty that never fucking goes away. skizz being in an alliance with ren again would be able to slot right back into the loyal soldier role he's so desperate to play with knowledge that it'll work, that he can trust the guy in charge to lead. and all of that is already insanely layered, but when we consider that, oh yeah, martyn's here, i don't think martyn would be too happy about this! it was fine in the red army because he was closer to ren than skizz, he was the right hand while skizz was the sword. he was an extension of ren in a way skizz wasn't. but here, we're starting over again, we're starting over after seasons and years of these guys not playing together or being in the same alliance, and martyn has gotten so much worse. he's going to have his jealousy on full display and it would be ugly.

and the "martyn's gotten worse" thing leads nicely into my next point, martyn and tango. to put it simply, tango hates martyn so much. so fucking much. he has held a violent grudge against him since about halfway through limited life that he's never been able to adequately get revenge for, because he just kept failing. and martyn also doesn't get it. just doesn't really get why tango's so mad about those two kills, which makes it worse for tango, i think. and so putting the two of them on the same team would put tensions at a high at all times between the two of them, but it would also make martyn and skizz's dynamic even weirder, because skizz doesn't really have anything against martyn, not in the grand scheme of things, but when tango's mad at somebody, skizz goes along with it. for example, in secret life when they're trying to recruit... i think it's bdubs, i can't actually remember, martyn gets whoever it is distracted so they don't talk to them, and tango instantly starts talking about how it's typical martyn behavior and skizz, despite not really having this hatred for martyn that tango does, skizz immediately agrees, saying "yeah, martyn ruins everything". so if the vibe on the team is going to be "tango at martyn's throat all the time while martyn is insanely weird towards skizz in regards to his relationship with ren", skizz is going to return that weirdness! and it would be funny. and also insane. unfortunately tango's violent hatred for martyn is the reason i think this team isn't happening. at least not until tango gets over it, but that would also make the team up less interesting to me. or less interesting to the public at large, i would still be so interested to see how skizz's loyalty would get split between ren and tango, but i don't think most other people would care.

SOUP GROUP REDUX (PEARL, IMPULSE, GRIAN)

look i want to see a soup group team as much as the next guy but i think this teamup would also be awesome. perhaps even better. we wouldn't be getting whatever insane yuri we got out of pearl and gem in secret life, yes, but we'd have whatever the hell these three would have going on. this is the team i could see happening the most, out of all the ones on the list. we technically got this team already at the end of limited life, but etho being there as well made the vibe different than what i think the three of them on their own would have, especially since pearl and etho weren't on good terms.

but we've seen grian with them in pairs before (impulse and grian in last life and grian and pearl at the end of limited life), and while we haven't seen pearl and impulse together in the life series before, it's soup group, we know they work well together. the teamups within the team that we have seen before have also been ones i've wanted to see more of. i loved the way impulse and grian played off each other with the wither in last life, and i've wanted to see a world where they teamup again to do that level of crazy but like, functional this time for ages. and i love pearl and grian all the time forever, but they were a ton of fun in limited life, i'd love to see them do it again and for longer this time.

i just don't really have the words to describe it but like! they have a really good and solid dynamic with each other! you've watched them, you know what i mean! this would also be a season i could see impulse winning, which is part of my reasoning for wanting to see this team so bad. pearl doesn't want to win again, and grian acts like he does and i don't think he doesn't want to win again, but i don't think it's gonna happen. but impulse would have a team of people who are just as good if not better than him at the game to back him up, who'd be willing to help him along to a win, and i could see it finally working out for him. as long as they don't get on team scott repellent's bad side. since that's the other team i could see with a chance to win, and being on the bad side of the actual winner and winner's allies (bdubs and desert duo in the third life, pearl and divorce quartet in double life, mean gills in limited life) has always been his downfall when he gets close.

OH JESUS CHRIST (BDUBS, CLEO, LIZZIE, SCOTT)

this would be. insane. you know it would be. this is another one that i can't see happening because i unfortunately can't see lizzie and cleo teaming up for a full season again. maybe near the end of the series when they were getting desperate, but i'm making up day one allies here, and that is not happening with this group. but we can imagine it together anyways.

ultimately, all the craziness here revolves around cleo and her insane relationships with everyone else in this group. bdubs loves to have undying and terrible loyalty towards cleo. shadowrot. scott and cleo are qpps that make each other so much worse. all of them have such unique relationships with cleo and i cannot even begin to imagine how it would mingle together but i know it would be wild.

there's also everyone else's dynamics, of course. i think bdubs and lizzie would just be really fun, vibes wise. i think they'd mingle together well and i don't really have any evidence here, i just know it in my heart to be true. lizzie and scott would also be a really interesting team to me, since they've got their x life and empires history but otherwise haven't interacted a ton in the life series. part of that is because lizzie hasn't been in the series much, but i want to see them interact more. i enjoy their dynamic outside of the life series a lot, and i'd love to see how that transfers here, especially since scott's main association with lizzie is everything he heard about the fairy fort from cleo after she defected, so uh... it's not a great image, i'll say. and also that time she tried to kill him and failed really badly in secret life. that doesn't help.

bdubs and scott have a fun dynamic outside of cleo, but because cleo is here i have to touch on widow's alliance. widow's alliance was made out of scott and cleo's total surety in how third life would work out, and scott was right, and he felt no real remorse about having bet on two people's deaths to be right about that. and i don't think cleo would've felt remorse so much as she would've mourned, had they been right, but they weren't. cleo went first. and scott, instead of. uh. having tact and being normal when he talks to bdubs afterwards. just tells him straight up "this wasn't supposed to happen. you're supposed to be dead, and this should be me and cleo." and that's already kinda deranged of him, but my favorite thing in bdubs response to that is that like... he doesn't really refute it. he just goes "yeah, that tracks, i thought she'd outlive me too" and they move on. and i would love to see what would result in these two being in close proximity to each other AND cleo from day one. lizzie would only make this worse and it would be great.

also i think this team would successfully get scott to care about them in a way that blindsides him ala jimmy (expecting their deaths and thinking he's prepared for it, only to realize how wrong he was) and as such make him perform worse. this is how we avoid another scott smajor top 5 performance.

SECRET LIFE AU (SCAR AND JIMMY)

secret life was great for scar AND jimmy in different ways and i recognize that scar definitely wouldn't have won if he and jimmy had been allies. but have you considered that i would kill for this. they were so fun during the empires/hermitcraft crossover. they play off each other in such good ways, since they're both guys who are frequently the butt of the joke and know how to play the butt of the joke, but they also both know how to be bitches. and they should be bitches more often, i love when both of them get snippy, because they're funny. scar is more comfortable getting snippy rather than letting himself be the joke than jimmy, and i think if we put them together jimmy would definitely be the target of scar's jokes a lot of the time, but i think it would also encourage jimmy to be more of an ass to everyone else. and i support jimmy solidarity's wrongs. i have no idea how these two would work out strategically. probably badly. but that's not important to me, what's important is the energy.

MUMBO'S BIG DAY (ETHO AND MUMBO)

do we all remember the best friend task. because i do. and i think a season that's literally just that for the entire time would be insanely funny. i also think mumbo would manage to be first out of the series in this hypothetical team, but he's a sacrifice i'm willing to make for the humor. i also think after mumbo died etho would just quietly add himself onto the bdubs/cleo/lizzie/scott team and make the dynamic infinitely worse, but that's not the point of this. the point of this is that this would be probably the most entertaining time i would ever have with a mumbo season, which is saying something.

[andromebaa]

Despair’s Legacy

A Danganronpa AU

Part 2 - The Legacy Students Here are the first half of the Legacy students!

Sid & Joey

The silly guys! Sid and Joey are the oldest kids? (I think I made them like 19 initially but I'm still calling them kids I don't care) out of the Legacy Students. Thought it would be fun to have twin characters because as we all know twins are not at all significant to the plot of DR I only had to make one sprite yey. Their main personality trait as a pair is the pretty stereotypical wacky, prank-pulling twins. Sid's technically the older twin and is a bit more aggressive and weirder. Joey is more charismatic and friendly. They dress and act the same in public-facing situations for shits and gigs but they do have distinctly different personalities. I'm not sure I'm like, entirely happy with how I initially characterised them. They just felt too similar to Leon at some points but eh. Had a mini freak out because I wasn't sure if wacky coloured hair is like....genetic in the DR universe?! Whatever.

Daiya

Oh Daiya. Daiya, Daiya, Daiya. She was the first OC I created for this thing and the one who I spent the most time on. I thought it'd be cute if Taka's daughter took one look at Mondo and was like you are my entire personality now. He's definitely a father figure to her (Ishimondo was end game in this AU btw, also on that note any father/mother pairings in this AU do not equal couples or anything. That was all done out of fulfilling the contracts. Half of them are gay/queer in some way I promise) Anyway, I always kind of pictured her as a rebel - as much as she could be in such an intimate place. Getting answers wrong in class on purpose, and hanging out in areas she's not supposed to be in. A big part of the plot of the AU hinges on her creating a club with the sole intent of escaping the school. Her dream is to travel across the land Mad Max style. Daiya ended up being the more or less 'antagonist' archetype for this AU. I still kind of flip-flop between giving her delinquent and queen bee bully personality. The twins are her lackeys.

Ren

Sad girl hours time! Ren is a jumpy, skittery mess. She knows her existence was a mistake, so she spends her time desperately trying to make up for it.

She loves being around children and is the designated babysitter for the younger Legacy Students. When she's not being mercilessly bullied by Daiya or alienating herself from others, she also likes to make toys. Another really big aspect of this AU is that Toko voluntarily locks herself away (to protect the others from Genocider), so Ren takes it upon herself to act as her caretaker. I'm still kind of working out what her relationship with Byakuya is. I definitely made it more fractured in the original concept, but I don't think he would be that cold to his own child.

Kaito

Hi I am very unhealthy about Kaito he is my favourite. Before you ask, I made him before V3 came out and I absolutely refuse to change his name even though it makes everything I write really confusing (I think he'd get along really well with V3 Kaito though) He's my favourite attempt at mixing two Danganronpa characters together and creating an amalgamation because he ended up becoming a chill and friendly surfer vibe new age one with the universe bro friend. Also he's a blind seer who kickstarts the AU story with a horrifying vision so that's always fun! He's definitely one of the most complex Legacy students because he has tons of layers to him. Something something happiest people are always y'know - not.

Yukihiko

Ah yes, gotta have the quiet, stoic guy who stands in the corner. Yuki start off a lot meaner/more sarcastic when I first made him but then I was like nah I kinda like making him the guy who says like five words a day and judges you quietly from a distance. I was also going to make him more martial arts focused but I ended up making him more into meditation once I figured out his whole thing, that being he's afraid of his own power so he tries to keep himself in a calm state as much as he can.

and that's all the older kids! If anyone ever wants to discuss them or anything I am always open lmao they've rotted my brain for like 6 - 7 years so I have some weird ass lore for all of them.

Part 1 - - - Part 3

[thedeadhandofseldon]

The Anti-Mercer Effect

On the Accessibility of D&D, Why Unprepared Casters is so Fun, and Why Haley Whipjack is possibly the greatest DM of our generation.

(Apologies to my mutuals who aren’t in this fandom for the length of this, but as you all know I have never in my life shut up about anything so… we’ll call it even for the number of posts about Destiel I see every day.

To fellow UC fans - I haven’t listened to arc 4 yet, I started drafting this in early August, and I promise I will write a nice post about how great Gus the Bard is once I get the chance to listen to more of his DMing).

Structure - Or, “This is not the finale, there will be more podding cast”

So, first of all, let’s just talk about how Unprepared Casters works. Because it’s kind of unusual! Most of the other big-name D&D podcasts favor this long, grand arcs; UC has about 10 hours of podcast per each arc. And that’s a major strength in a lot of ways: it makes it really accessible to new listeners, because you can just start with the current arc and understand what’s going on!

And by starting new arcs every six or seven episodes, they can explore lots of ways to play D&D! Classic dungeon delve arc! Heist arc! Epic heroes save the world arc! Sportsball arc! They can touch on all sorts of things!

And while I’m talking about that: Dragons in Dungeons, the first arc, makes it incredibly accessible as a show - because it lets the unfamiliar listener get a sense of what D&D actually is. (It’s about telling stories and making your friends feel heroic and laugh and cry, for the record). If I had to pick a way to introduce someone to the game without actually playing it with them, that arc would definitely be it.

And I’d be remise not to note one very important thing: Haley Whipjack and Gus the Bard are just very funny, very charismatic people. Look. Episode 0s tend to be about 50%(?) those two just talking to each other about their own podcast. It shouldn’t work. And yet it DOES, its one of my favorite parts, because Haley and Gus are just cool.

And a side note that doesn’t fit anywhere else: I throw my soul at him! I throw a scone at him - that’s it, that’s the vibe. The whole podcast alternates between laughing with your friends and brooding alone in a dark tavern corner - but the laughs never forced and the dark corner is never too dark for too long.

Whipjack the Great - Or, the DM is Also a Player!

I think Haley Whipjack is one of the greatest Dungeon Masters alive. The plots and characters! The mechanical shenanigans! The descriptions!

Actually, let’s start there: with the descriptions. (Both Haley and Gus do this really fucking well). As we know, Episode 0 of each arc sees the DM reading a description - of a small town, or the Up North, or the recent history of a great party. And Haley always strikes this tricky balance - one I think a lot of us who DM struggle with - between giving too much description and  worldbuilding, and not telling us anything at all. She describes people and events in just enough detail to imagine them, but never so much they seem static and unreal - just clear enough to envision, but with enough vagueness left to let your imagination begin to run wild.

While I’m thinking about arc 3’s party, let’s talk about a really bold move she made in that arc: letting the players have ongoing control of their history. Loser Lars! She didn’t try to spell out every detail of this high-level party’s history, or restrict their past to only what she decided to allow - she gave them the broad outlines, and let them embellish it. And that made for a much more alive story than any attempt to create it by herself would have - but I think it takes a lot of courage to let your players have that agency. Most Dungeon Masters (myself included) tend to struggle with being control freaks.

And the plots! Yeah, arc one is built of classic tropes - but she actually uses them, she doesn’t get caught up in subverting everything or laughing at the cliches. And it’s fun! In arc 3, there really isn’t a straight line for the players to follow, either - which makes the game much more interesting and much trickier to run. And her NPCs are fantastic and I will talk about them in the next section.

Above all, though, I think what is really impressive is how Haley balances mechanics, and rules as written, with the narrative and rule of cool - and puts both rules and story in the service of playing a fun game. And the secret to that? She’s the DM, but the DM is a player, and the DM is clearly having fun. Hope Lovejoy mechanically shouldn’t get that spellslot back, but she does, and it’s fun. The changeling merchant in Thymore doesn’t really make some Grand Artistic Narrative better, but wow is it fun. And she never tries to force it one way or the other - the story might be more dramatic if Annie didn’t manage to banish the demon from the vault, but it’s a lot cooler and a lot more fun for the players if Annie gets to be a badass instead - and the rules and the dice say that Annie managed it.

Settings feel like places, NPCs feel like people, and the narrative plot feels like a real villainous plot.

Anyway. I could go on about the various ways in which Whipjack is awesome for quite a while - she’s right, first place in D&D is when your friends laugh and super first place is when they cry - but I’m going to stop here and just. Make another post about it some other time. For now, for the record I hold her opinions about the game in higher esteem than I do several official sourcebooks; that is all.

Characters - Or, Bombyx Mori Is Not an Asshole, And That Matters

Okay, I said I would talk about characters! And I will!

Just a general place to start: the party! All of the first three parties are interesting to me, because they all care about each other. Not even necessarily in a Found Family Trope sort of way, though often that too. But they generally aren’t assholes to each other. The players create characters that actually work together, that are interesting; even when there’s internal divisions like SK-73 v. Sir Mr. Person, they aren’t just unpleasant and antagonistic all the time. Listening to the podcast, we’re “with” these people for a couple hours - and it isn’t unpleasant. That matters a lot. (To take a counter-example: I love Critical Role, but the episode when Vox Machina pranked Scanlan after he died and was resurrected wasn’t fun to listen to, it was just uncomfortable and angering and vaguely cruel).

All of the PCs are amazing, and the players in each arc did a great job. If you disagree with me about that, well, you have the right to be incorrect and I am sorry for your loss. Annie Wintersummer, for one example: tragic and sad and I want to give her a hug, but also Fuck Yeah Wintersummer, and also her familiar Charles the Owl is the cutest and funniest and I love him. And we understand what’s going on with Annie, she isn’t some infinite pool of hidden depths because this arc is 7 episodes and we don’t have time for that, but she also has enough complexity to be interesting. Same with Fey Moss: yeah, a lot of her is a silly pun about fame that carries into how she behaves, but a lot of how she behaves is also down to some good classic half-elven angst about parenthood and wanting to be known and seen and important. (Side note: if your half-elf character doesn’t have angst, well, that’s impressive and also I don’t think I believe you).

There are multiple lesbian cat-people in a 4-person party and they both have requited romantic interests who aren’t each other. This is the future liberals want and I am glad for it.

Sir Mister Person, the human fighter! Thavius, the edge lord! Even when a character is “simple,” they’re interesting, because of how they’re played as people and not action-figures. And that matters a lot.

In the same way: the NPCs. There really aren’t a lot of them! And some of them come from Patreon submissions, so uh good work gang, you’re part of the awesomeness and I’m proud of you! The point being, the NPCs work because enough of them are interesting to matter. It’s not just a servant who opens Count Michael’s door, it’s a character with a name (Oleandra!) and a personality and history. They’re interesting. Penny Lovejoy didn’t need to be interesting, the merchant outside the Laughing Mausoleum didn’t need to be interesting, but they ARE! And Haley and Gus EXCEL at making the NPCs matter, not just to the story but to us as viewers. I agree with Sir Mister Person, actually, I would die for the princesses of the kingdom. I actually care about Gem Lovejoy of all people - that wouldn’t happen in an ordinary campaign! That’s the thing that makes Unprepared Casters spectacular - and, frankly, it’s especially impressive because D&D does not tend to be good at making a lot of interesting compared to a lot of other sorts of stories.

And, just as an exemplar of all this: Bombyx Mori. Immortal, reincarnating(?), and described as the incarnation of the player’s ADHD. I expected to hate Bombyx, because as the mom friend both in and out of my friend-group’s campaigns, the chaos-causer is always exhausting to me. And yeah, Bombyx causes problems on purpose! But! She is not an asshole.

And that’s important. Bombyx goes and sits with the queen and comforts her. Bombyx gives Annie emotional support. Bombyx isn’t just a vehicle to jerk around the DM and other players; Bombyx really is a character we can care about. To compare with another case - in the first couple episodes of The Adventure Zone, the PCs are just dicks. Funny, but dicks. Bombyx holds out an arm “covered in larva” to shake with a count, and robs him of magical items, but she also cares about her friends and other people! She uses a powerful magical gem to save her fertilizer guy from death! Yeah, Bombyx is ridiculous, but she’s not just an asshole the party has to keep around for plot reasons; you can see why her party would keep her around. And one layer of meta up, she’s the perfect example of how to make a chaotic character like that while still being fun for everyone you’re playing with, which is often not the case. And I love her.

The Anti-Mercer Effect - Or, “I think we proved it can be fun, you can have a good time with your friends. And it doesn’t have to be scary, you can just work with what you know”

The Mercer Effect basically constitutes this: Matthew Mercer, Dungeon Master of Critical Role, is incredible (as are all of his players). They’re all professional story-tellers in a way, remember, and so Critical Role treats D&D like a narrative art-form, and it’s inspiring. Seeing that on Critical Role sets impossible standards - and people go into their own home games imagining that their campaigns will be like Critical Role, and the burden of that expectation tends to fall disproportionately on the DM. And the end result, I think, of the Mercer Effect is that we get discouraged or intimidated, because our game isn’t “as good as” theirs. (And I should note - Matt certainly doesn’t want that to be our reaction).

So the Anti-Mercer Effect is two things: it’s D&D treated like a game, and it’s inspiring but not intimidating. And Unprepared Casters manages both of those really freaking well. Because they play it like a game! A UC arc looks just like a good campaign in anyone’s home game. They have the vibes of 20-somethings and college students playing D&D for fun because that’s who they are (as a 20-something college student who plays a lot of D&D, watching it felt like watching my friends play an especially good campaign). They’re trying to tell a good story, sure, and they always do. But first and foremost, they’re trying to have fun, and it shows, and I love the UC cast for it.

And that’s the other half of it: it’s inspiring! It’s approachable; you can see that Haley and Gus put plenty of work into preparing the game but it also doesn’t make you feel like you need hundreds of pages of worldbuilding to run a game. Sometimes a cleric makes Haley cry and she gives them back a spell-slot from their deity! That’s fantastic! It’s just inspiring - listening to this over the summer, when my last campaign had fallen apart under the strain of graduation, is why I decided to plan and run my new one!

That quote from Haley Whipjack that I used as the title for this section? That’s the whole core of this idea, and really, I think, the core of the podcast.

The Mercer Effect is when you go “that’s really cool, I could never do that.” But Unprepared Casters makes you look at D&D and go “wow, that looks really fun. I bet I can do that!” And I love the show for it.

And I bet a lot of you do too.

[bonyato]

fandom: komi san

( this was for the blorbo ask game I rbed a while ago ! )

❖𝐁𝐥𝐨𝐫𝐛𝐨 (𝐟𝐚𝐯𝐨𝐫𝐢𝐭𝐞 𝐜𝐡𝐚𝐫𝐚𝐜𝐭𝐞𝐫, 𝐜𝐡𝐚𝐫𝐚𝐜𝐭𝐞𝐫 𝐈 𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐧𝐤 𝐚𝐛𝐨𝐮𝐭 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐦𝐨𝐬𝐭):

NАJIMI NАJIMI NАJIMI NАJIMI !! ♡♡♡♡♡♡♡ MY ABSOLUTE MOST FAVORITE CHARACTER EVER!!!!! THEY’S SO BELOVED FR, I CAN NEVER GET ENOUGH OF THEM<333333

❖𝐒𝐜𝐫𝐮𝐧𝐤𝐥𝐲 (𝐦𝐲 “𝐛𝐚𝐛𝐲”, 𝐜𝐡𝐚𝐫𝐚𝐜𝐭𝐞𝐫 𝐭𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐠𝐢𝐯𝐞𝐬 𝐦𝐞 𝐜𝐮𝐭𝐞𝐧𝐞𝐬𝐬 𝐚𝐠𝐠𝐫𝐞𝐬𝐬𝐢𝐨𝐧, 𝐜𝐡𝐚𝐫𝐚𝐜𝐭𝐞𝐫 𝐭𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐢𝐬 𝐒𝐨 𝐒𝐡𝐚𝐩𝐞𝐝): Kоmi and Tаdano; whether it’s individually or separately, seeing them never fails to make my heart melt. 🥺✨ They’re just such a wholesome pair!

ALSO, as a bit of an honorable mention: KАTAI MАKOTO, MY DEARLY BELOVED‼️ He’s from the 2nd season that’s currently airing, which I only started watching not too long ago, BUT GOD I INSTANTLY BECAME ATTACHED TO HIM. The trope his character revolves around is just incredibly funny and he himself is a very lovable guy. Watching this gentle giant try so hard to interact with his classmates never fails to make me go 🥺

❖𝐒𝐜𝐫𝐢𝐦𝐛𝐥𝐨 𝐁𝐢𝐦𝐛𝐥𝐨 (𝐮𝐧𝐝𝐞𝐫𝐫𝐚𝐭𝐞𝐝/𝐮𝐧𝐝𝐞𝐫𝐚𝐩𝐩𝐫𝐞𝐜𝐢𝐚𝐭𝐞𝐝 𝐟𝐚𝐯𝐞): Otоri Kаede and Nеne Onеmine!!!! They don’t show up a lot but I think it’s nice when they do. :) They’re some of Kоmi’s chillest + most normal friends and, while they may not be as fun as the rest of the cast, they certainly add a nice change of pace to the overall erratic tone of the series.

Though it’s not like they lack their own charm — on the contrary! Onеmine’s sisterly attitude is quite enjoyable, and it’s nice to see how kind and understanding she can be towards her peers (namely Kоmi and Tаdano), given how mean-spirited their behavior can be a lot of the time; her level-headedness is greatly appreciated in a show where insanity is so predominant. xP

With Kaеde I just love the whole vibe she has going on– she’s so airheaded and silly, I love her to pieces. ♡ She’s just a very ditzy yet caring and genuinely sweet girl, and like I said before with Onеmine, having her be this way feels like a breath of fresh air. Plus I just happen to like characters like her a whole lot. 💓💓

❖𝐆𝐥𝐮𝐩 𝐒𝐡𝐢𝐭𝐭𝐨 (𝐨𝐛𝐬𝐜𝐮𝐫𝐞 𝐟𝐚𝐯𝐞, 𝐜𝐡𝐚𝐫𝐚𝐜𝐭𝐞𝐫 𝐭𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐜𝐚𝐧 𝐚𝐩𝐩𝐞𝐚𝐫 𝐢𝐧 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐛𝐚𝐜𝐤𝐠𝐫𝐨𝐮𝐧𝐝 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝟎.𝟐 𝐬𝐞𝐜𝐨𝐧𝐝𝐬 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐈 𝐰𝐨𝐧’𝐭 𝐬𝐡𝐮𝐭 𝐮𝐩 𝐚𝐛𝐨𝐮𝐭 𝐢𝐭 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐚 𝐰𝐞𝐞𝐤): Nоkoko Inаka and Kоmi’s parents!!

Inаka is such a sweet and nice girl, it’s always a delight to see her on screen. 🥺 I always found her naive nature to be extremely endearing, and I think it’s very funny how she admires Kоmi so much!

Kоmi’s parents, well– I think they’re a bit of a given. How could anyone not love them? They’re both super charismatic in their own unique ways; they’re very fun to watch, and their interactions with their daughter are absolutely adorable. 💖

❖𝐏𝐨𝐨𝐫 𝐋𝐢𝐭𝐭𝐥𝐞 𝐌𝐞𝐨𝐰 𝐌𝐞𝐨𝐰 (“𝐩𝐫𝐨𝐛𝐥𝐞𝐦𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐜”/𝐮𝐧𝐩𝐨𝐩𝐮𝐥𝐚𝐫/𝐜𝐨𝐧𝐭𝐫𝐨𝐯𝐞𝐫𝐬𝐢𝐚𝐥/𝐨𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐫𝐰𝐢𝐬𝐞 𝐩𝐚𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐭𝐢𝐜 𝐟𝐚𝐯𝐞): Yаmai Rеn my both beloved and beloathed problematic fave. 😍😍😍🥰🥰🥰🥰

Yeah, sorry, no way to defend myself here, I simply love obsessively enamored freaks in media; I just enjoy that character trope a lot (depending on how it’s handled), it’s my guilty pleasure. ♡ Especially when their antics are as comedically exaggerated as it is in Yаmai’s case; it’s all just so fun to watch (…well, most of it).

❖𝐇𝐨𝐫𝐬𝐞 𝐏𝐥𝐢𝐧𝐤𝐨 (𝐜𝐡𝐚𝐫𝐚𝐜𝐭𝐞𝐫 𝐈 𝐰𝐨𝐮𝐥𝐝 𝐭𝐨𝐫𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐭 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐟𝐮𝐧, 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐰𝐡𝐚𝐭𝐞𝐯𝐞𝐫 𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐬𝐨𝐧): I would treat both Osаna Nаjimi and Omаharu Nаkanaka as if they were my younger siblings: I would bully them, but always in a lighthearted way. <3

❖𝐄𝐞𝐛𝐲 𝐃𝐞𝐞𝐛𝐲 (𝐜𝐡𝐚𝐫𝐚𝐜𝐭𝐞𝐫 𝐈 𝐰𝐨𝐮𝐥𝐝 𝐬𝐞𝐧𝐝 𝐭𝐨 𝐬𝐮𝐩𝐞𝐫𝐡𝐞𝐥𝐥): Yаmai Rеn. Yes, she’s garbage, but despite that I wholeheartedly believe that’s part of her character’s charm; and yes, that doesn’t take away the fact that she’s a disgusting person whose depravity knows no bounds and every time she lets this show it makes me want to have that creep be obliterated once and for all. We exist.

[ichabodcranemills]

re: D*rklina

@musical-chick-13 I’m putting this under a read more, because I have additions and, yes, it is long 😂

So, as far as I can tell from what show-watchers have told me, yes, he is definitely worse in the books. And specifically, the general idea in said books seems to be that just because someone is charismatic and attractive and “gets” parts of you doesn’t mean that they’re a good partner or even worth your time, which is a message I have waited FOREVER to see. Beauty (and to a lesser extent, magnetism) does not equal goodness. The Dark/ling (I have no idea if the names will show up in the tags so I’ll put slashes in the middle of them, wow this website’s features need revamping) always seemed…very entitled to Al/ina. There wasn’t any desire for them to become equals (even in a moral sense by dragging her down to his moral level or raising himself up to hers). His behavior and pursuit of her seems much more motivated by the idea of being able to congratulate himself on the fact that he’s “won” her. She’s more of like…a conquest to him? And maybe that’s a huge misread of his character on my part, but the Leigh, the author, HAS said in the past that some of the Dark/ling’s dialogue and actions were written as a way for her to make sense of and deal with an irl toxic relationship she was in during part of the writing period, so I…don’t think it’s a completely unreasonable interpretation? And that’s not to say that power imbalance ships should Never Be Shipped (because they can be genuinely compelling or even fun to watch under the right writer), and Leigh has even said that she Gets The Appeal herself.

But I think the reasons Tho/schei works for me where D*rklina doesn’t are because 1) Tho/schei have genuinely known each other for a long time (and even been on good terms for some of it) but the Dark/ling decides, despite being this all-powerful charismatic force who is hundreds of years old, to get pettily involved in a teenage love triangle in very little time which is a choice that makes absolutely no sense to me at all, 2) The Doctor is an extremely morally grey character, in a way that if they aren’t careful could easily match the destructiveness of The Master. They both are aware of this, and both of them believe themselves (in their own ways) to be “above” morality (The Doctor in the sense of “I know what’s best and my choices are law” and The Master in the sense of “My choices are law and I deserve to cause destruction and have complete control”. There are…not equal, but similar enough levels of moral ambiguity that it makes sense to me that they still Get™ each other. The Doctor also likes Intellectual Challenges and Foiling Grand Plots, to the point where it’s often the Most Important Thing, and The Master not only provides those, but enjoys the conflict as well, and 3) They actually are close to being equals. They’re both very smart, powerful, immortal. Obviously The Doctor has Much More Life Experience and a more extraordinary legacy because of the Timeless Child thing, but Missy’s primary goal was simply “I want my friend back” and Dhawan!Master freaked out because it was impossible to see them as equals anymore. The Doctor, as per Twelve, wants the Master to be good because they’re alike in a way no one else in either of their lives are. They kind of…want the same thing but in different ways, whereas The Dark/ling, while understanding The Burden Of Power, doesn’t actually want the same thing Al/ina does.

And that relationship between D*rklina could still make for a fascinating dynamic, and one that in another life I might even be into myself if not for the whole “reducing it to Good Girl Saves Bad Boy” trope that I keep seeing within a good deal of the fandom. Not that a general fandom reaction or misread should prevent anyone from enjoying something, but I’m so tired that it’s nearly impossible for me to separate them at this point, lol. Ultimately it boils down to the fact that they seem like such fundamentally different people that I don’t personally see how they could ever truly find common ground or genuinely appreciate their similarities. I think the most interesting exploration of a romantic bent to their dynamic would be in a context  where they are so different and recognize that they’re so different, and they might want to focus on their similarities, but it’s not enough. There could be this undeniable pull between them, but what does that really mean when held up against who they are and how they choose to interact with the world? And then having to deal with the necessary antagonism that results. I guess I see the existence of this ship as like…more of a thought exercise than anything I would ever want to happen in any way other than a one-sided attraction on his part, or that could ever truly be narratively justified. But also like…I hate him, so that makes it kind of hard for me to want to explore it in any way at all. Which that’s a personal thing. Other people like this character, and I’m genuinely happy for them that they can see something I don’t.

UGH, I’m sorry this got so long. This is what happens when I have an urge to Share my Thoughts.

I totally understand your feelings and I think the show did a good job on not only humanizing the D*rkling, but also making the relationship more palatable. I, mean, I’m sure we can partially blame Mr. Barnes’ soulful eyes, but I definitely got the impression that, while the D*rkling wants to use Alina for his own gains, he is very drawn to her as THE Sun Summoner, as in “we are linked and will inevitably be the only one for the other”, he basically tells Mal as much.

And I don’t blame you for losing interest in them because of the fandom, it can be very frustrating, especially if one of the characters didn’t appeal to you in the first place (I mean, I’ve been there, hello R*ylo, lmao)

I think I get what you’re saying about how this works out in the books and how what draws me to D*rklina isn’t necessarily textual. And I think I might have went in a little biased when I watched the show, because, before I did, a friend told me she was getting Thoschei vibes from it, but didn’t especify where, So I watched and there it was: M*lina… okay, school best friends, us against the world, but in general, eh, they were too “perfect” (as in, no real conflict between them). And then D*rklina with everything I said on my original post. I mean, I was looking for a thoschei-like dynamic and I found one 😂.

I’ve read some spoilers for the book, so I know my whole “200 years later” fantasy doesn’t happen, so I agree with you, this ship is more of a thought exercise. But I think the show sets it up in a way that is Just My Thing, whereas the book is more straightforward with how incompatible these two are, romantically. But the fandom will ship away, even in kinda blergh ways, it’s how it is 🤷

[thiswasinevitableid]

5 for Danbrey sfw? 3 would be fun for nsfw but idk if you do Danbrey nsfw

I decided to mush the two prompts together. I gave them saucy overtones, but they’re still SFW

5 Should I update my outfit again? I think they like my new boots but the cape didn’t get the reaction I was hoping for 

3 Okay so when they wink at me after a great comeback, is that just their charismatic arrogance or do they maybe like me back?

“I think I should ditch the cape. I mean, she didn’t mention it all Cleopatra.” Dani sits down on the greenhouse bench to adjust her bootlace. Cleopatra tilts her head, curious, but does nothing else. This is because she is sentient venus flytrap and is limited in her ability to communicate.

“I did catch her checking out the boots. I think. Maybe she was just looking for a way to knock me off my feet.” She mists Cleopatra and her sisters, continuing, “which, also, she literally made a quip about wanting to sweep me off my feet. I just cannot get a read on her.”

She stands, walking to her devils-mouth orchids and checking their water levels, “I mean, I even picked fabric for the cape that made my eyes look nice. Jake helped me make sure the colors on the cape and the boots matched up and everything. Uggggggggh, I cannot believe it’s come to this.”

“Haha!”

“Not helping, Juice.” She turns to the Myna bird (one of three) perched on a nearby branch. They’re trained to be spies and minions, but mostly they offer unsolicited commentary on her life.

“Ask her.” Squawks another

“DON’T ASK!” Shrieks the third.

“Come to a consensus or I’m not putting that intelligence serum in your water anymore.”

The birds exchange a look.

“Don’t follow our advice!” says the smallest one.

“Don’t, don’t” echo the other two.

Dani sighs, turns back to Cleopatra, “Come on, help me figure out what to wear for the next time.”

The plant slithers along behind her (she modified the flytrap genome with anaconda DNA), curls up on the counter in the bathroom as she pulls out her make-up case. 

“Okay, copper is good on the eyes right? It’ll highlight the gold. I think. Hmmmm…” she taps her chin with the end of a brush, “vampy red would definitely make her look at my mouth. Which is apparently a thing I want, because I am the worlds most cliche supervillain.”

Cleopatra rustles her tendrils sympathetically. 

“But the red clashes with everything. Maybe a deeper color, oooh, the cute cashier at the coffee shop said this one looked good on me. I tried to think of something flirty to say back and just ended up complimenting her pompadour. God, why is villain me so much smoother than civilian me? Or is she even that any more?”

A vine pats her hand.

“Thanks girl. Now, having my hair up is safe for fighting, but does it make me too severe? Like, too dominatrixy? Or does the Lady Flame like that sort of thing? Uhg WHY DO I CARE?” She thunks her head onto the mirror.

“Half-twist?” The purple-crested Myna bird pokes it head in, cocking it’s head robotically.

“.....Perfect.”

---------------------------------------------

The Pine Guard has once again gotten the drop on the Crystal Cabal, much to Dani’s annoyance. What is the point of having a team mate who can see the future if this keeps happening to them?

She dives out of the way of a burst of flame, tossing a handful of her latest creation at her nemesis.

“Aw, flowers for me?” Lady Flame flutters her eyelashes, “they’re prettyYYYow, fireflower.”

“That’s right, I turned your own element against you.”

The hero picks up the flaming flowers and starts juggling them, “I’ve heard of hothouse flowers, but this is ridiculous.”

“She’s flame-proof, Demeter, for goodness sake, OW that hurt.” Indrid, aka Nyx, throws a punch at The Ranger, who absorbs the blow easily. 

Dani hadn’t been thinking of flame proof heroes when she made the plants; she’d been thinking what color to make them so that the Lady Flame would think they were pretty.

“If you all would kindly just surrenderPUT ME DOWN!” The Agent yelps, indignant, when Barclay, aka Hermes, hoists him over his shoulders.

“And if you’d ‘kindly’ just hold still and not bother us for ten minutes, this could all be avoided.”

The fireflowers turn to ash, Lady Flame stepping through it with a grin, “I dig the new boots, very classy. Got a whole ‘don’t fuck with me vibe’ I like a lot.”

“That’s exactly what you should have done. You should have left us alone.” Dani musters her most imperious voice as she launches vines across the ground, taking Lady Flame by surprise and trapping her in the grasp of two large, green, fireproof tendrils. 

“Hah! Surrender, all of you, or my pets will-”

“Eeeep! Hey, what the-” The Lady Flame looks behind her at the smaller vine that just pinched her butt.

“Ohmygosh, I’m so sorry-”

“C’mon now Demeter, no need to get fresh with her. That ain’t sportin.”

“That’s rich coming from the man currently straddling me.” Indrid hisses. 

“I ain’t straddlin, I’m restrainin.”

“I mean I, whoah, hey there” another vine caresses Lady Flame’s chest, a third touches her cheek, “I’m not, like, opposed to someone getting handsy, or uh, viney, I guess. But you have to buy me coffee first.”

“I’m, I don’t know why they’re doing this. I’m so sorry, they���re being so rude and they will be mulch if they touch you in a way you don’t like.” Dani takes one step forward and a vine grips her ankle, starts twining upwards. 

“Uhhhhh, why are they doing that?”

“They shouldn’t be! They respond to my thoughts and emotional state.” She tries every trick she can think off, but nothing makes the vines obey, and two more encircle her chest and stomach.

“Wait, if they respond to your feelings, then do you-GAH!” The vine around Lady Flame’s ribs visibly tightens, as the ones holding Dani drag the two women face to face. 

“I’ve always thought you were breathtaking, but the literal approach is kinda freaking me out.” 

“Me too.” Dani thrashes, and the vine tightens around her. She’s starting to get lightheaded. 

“Guys, a little-”

“-Help!” Dani finishes the Lady Flames’ sentence, and the four other figures in the room turn towards them as one.

“Oh shit.” Barclay tosses The Agent away,  drops down next to Dani, hacking at the larger vine with his utility weapon. The Agent recovers, tries to yank the main vine from it’s source only for a tendril to whip out and strike his cheek. 

“I would like it noted that this was not a likely future.” Indrid tugs at the tightest vine, slashing it with his sharp nails. The Ranger manages to rip one off of Lady Flame’s arm, only for it’s larger cousin to shoot out, sending him flying into Indrid and knocking them both to the ground. 

As their teammates continue their losing battle against her unfortunately durable creation, Dani turns to meet her enemies eyes. 

“I’m sorry.” She whispers, “I never really wanted to hurt you. I just wanted you all not to hurt us.”

“I mean we, like, don’t hate you all or anything, but you’ve, like, been putting people in danger, and blowing things up-”

“Nyx didn’t blow up that bridge!” If they’re both about to die, there’s no point in keeping up the act. 

“Wait, what?”

“He was framed, but we thought it made people take us seriously as a threat, listen to us, so we let people believe it was true. Same with me and that power plant. I just blackmailed the CEO into admitting they’d been dumping toxins in the water supply. None of us blew the place up. Hell, you guys were the ones who destroyed that factory.”

“.....wait, they told us you did that.”

“Who told you?”

“Them? Y’know, the big bosses?” 

“We don’t have those, but we do have informants.”

“What the fuuUUUCk, ow, squishing my ribs, we’re being played.”

“That, ow, that sucks. All this time we’ve been fighting, we could have been dating, I mean, uh, working together.” 

Lady Flame laughs, a bright, beautiful sound, “I knew you were checking me out.”

“Me?! You were the one who kept making flirty comments.”

“Hey, banter’s part of the job. Also, you have a cute butt and that costume really shows off your, um,” The last word is so quiet Dani can’t make it out, but given that Lady Flame glances at her chest, she’s got a good guess as to what it was. 

The vines constrict and they both hiss in pain, the world going fuzzier at the edges as breathing gets almost impossible. 

“I, if this, if this is the end, I just wanna say it’s been a pleasure doing battle with you, Lady Flame.”

Fire colored eyes meet her own, accompanied by a weak smile, “You can call me Aubrey.”

“Dani. Nice to meet you, Aubrey.” She has just enough energy to tip her head forward, bringing their lips together. It’s barely a kiss, but as soon as they connect the vines go limp, dropping them to the floor. 

For a moment they gasp jointly for air, then Aubrey is in her lap, fingers tangling in her hair as she kisses her hard and happily. Dani sighs into the kiss, melting into the embrace, knowing full well the near-strangulation isn’t what’s causing the dizziness in her vision and the butterflies in her stomach. 

“Uh, can’t help but feel we missed somethin.” Over in the corner where they were both thrown (twice), The Ranger tries to disentangle himself from Indrid, who sits up with a knowing look.

“Oh, I see. It appears we are about to form an alliance.”

“Really?” Barclay looks back at them from where’s hes sitting, checking the cuts on The Agents face. 

“It’s a long story, but the cliff notes are: we’re pretty sure someone’s been setting us against each other on purpose. Making us each think the other caused certain disasters.”

“Which means it’s time for a team-up.” Aubrey cracks her knuckles, sending sparks flying. Then she glances shyly at Dani, who reaches out to brush stray ash from her cheeks, “Um, but before that, would you like to go out with me?”

Dani kisses her again, bumps their noses together with a smile as she murmurs, “That sounds really fucking awesome.”

[movienotesbyzawmer]

Once Upon a Time in Hollywood

Once Upon a Time in Hollywood (2019)

I mostly like Quentin Tarantino's movies, but when I saw this in the theater I considered it one of his worst. But I still liked some stuff about it. I liked the thick atmosphere of late-sixties Los Angeles, and I liked Leonardo DiCaprio's character's arc & his performance, and I liked some of the playful touches, even though some of them feel indulgent. "Indulgence" is a big concern when it comes to evaluating QT's movies. Sometimes his indulgences are charming and sometimes not so much. I'm kind of hoping a second viewing will make me like this movie a bit more. Okay, here goes…

Vintage Columbia logo. That kind of thing always works well on me.

First five minutes or so are cinematic in a familiar way, not much to note. But at about 0:06:15 there's a jarring little interruption where a narrator tells us LD just lied. The only moment of narration at all.

Then Al Pacino is reflecting on some of the movies he's been watching, and we see some clips. They look kind of vintage, but also kind of Tarantino-y. Like, that scene where LD torches Nazis doesn't actually look like it could be from the 60s.

"Bounty Law! Starring Rick Dalton!" Then a cut to a dorky TV musical sketch. Kind of funny. Not subtle. I love that announcer voice that says "Bounty Law!"

One thing that often works well in QT movies is when he has an actor deliver, and savor delivering, a weighty minute or so of dialogue that really sets up a situation. Think Christopher Walken's monologue in Pulp Fiction or the first scene with Christoph Waltz in Inglourious Basterds. This AP conversation where he talks to LD about where to take his career is like a mini version of one of those but doesn't last as long.

0:15:10 - First really nice period shot of LA. Very nice to look at.

I think the intended audience for this movie knows details about the Manson murders that most moviegoers don't actually know. For example, the ominous close-up of the sign for Cielo Drive. I don't think it's a mistake; I think he's knowingly alienating some viewers so he can give a better experience to those who do know about them. So I can't imagine recommending this movie without also strongly suggesting studying the Manson murders first.

Brad Pitt speeds down a boulevard in West Hollywood, a filming location which has been very lovingly decorated in the style of the period. The production design of this movie was rightly heralded.

Sequence with BP in his trailer making dinner for himself and his dog. Vivid; at one point they cut to a closeup of a pinup poster. Doesn't seem to be a reason for that except for "I'm Quentin Tarantino and I do whatever I feel like". Indulgent, is what I'm saying.

Also indulgent is this minute we're spending watching Roman Polanski drive to this party at the Playboy mansion.

I don't remember noticing this before, but that's Damian Lewis playing Steve McQueen and that's kind of perfect.

Scene where Kurt Russell is telling LD that BP has a creepy vibe and killed his wife, then we cut abruptly to apparently a scene of BP having a mundane argument with his wife maybe… okay, leaves the audience wanting more info, but maybe in kind of an irritating way.

Now this scene with Bruce Lee holding forth. Bruce Lee probably didn't generally speak in arrogant, bullying Quentin Tarantino monologues. Entertaining scene though.

But the left-me-wanting conversation from the previous scene helps this scene with Bruce Lee be more tense. Also the not-ringing-true snottiness of Bruce Lee makes it funny how that fight goes down.

0:52:30 - Okay, LD is in costume as a bad guy on a show, and he's got the long hippy hair that was spoken of in the AP scene. Just saying, I like that it was described and now we're seeing what I'd pictured.

And now this memorable conversation between LD and the little girl actress. The kid acts so grown up. This could have failed because of course no eight year old talks like this girl. But this scene is awesome. And without movies by QT, there aren't scenes like this.

Now Margot Robbie. We've seen her in a few scenes so far as Sharon Tate, but she's only been depicted as a dancing starlet bopping around town. For those of us that know she's a Manson victim, it works in a certain way. But does it work otherwise?

Okay, this is a peculiar part of the movie, it's pretty fun but kind of insider-y. LD is talking about being in the running for Steve McQueen's role in The Great Escape, and they edit in some outstanding CGI scenes of LD in the actual movie of The Great Escape. Playful, but just a weird bit of color…

…but then here's this next scene where MR, playing Sharon Tate, happens upon a cinema playing a movie she's in, and after a leisurely-paced interaction with the cinema workers, she goes in and watches the movie. Unlike the CGI trickery demonstrated in the last scene with LD, we watch actual Sharon Tate on screen. MR is visibly delighted to see "herself", and to hear the audience reacting to her performance. It all works, maybe more in spite of than because of QT's ever-present choice-broadcasting (which is also why we get a good look at MR's feet in this scene).

This is followed immediately by the sequence of the TV show LD is shooting. More playful indulgence. We see the scene edited as it probably would have been edited in 1969, but shot with modern cinematography, and interrupted by LD calling for his line, then backing up and redoing some of the scene. Can it be justified beyond just the undeniable fact that it's pretty interesting? Maybe that's enough. Maybe I'm being a snob, but also, what, was I not supposed to acknowledge it at least?

Stuff now starting with BP picking up Margaret Qualley's dirty hippy flirty cultist character. Before she even has any lines, the screen is practically bulging from the force of MQ's personality. It's entertaining.

1:28:30 - More of the TV show. We get to see LD's character be a good actor, and impress the director and the kid actor, which touches him, it's nice.

It's an hour and 38 minutes into the movie, and now we're to the scene on Spahn's Movie Ranch. I'm already thinking that by now we should be deeper into some kind of story than we are, and now this scene that I remember vividly. Not totally in a bad way, but for all the good things about it, it is stretched way out. Suspense is built up, skillfully, but without the kind of payoff we'd probably like. I mean, it's like a horror movie, with the rat squirming in the trap and the tense music and the "HE MAY BE TIRED" line from Dakota Fanning, but then it's back to not being a horror movie….

…in fact, it's on to this charismatic-tough-guy scene that feels Pulp-Fiction-y. Our MINDS are BLOWN that he hit the guy so hard and made the cultists so mad, it's a fantasy come to life, but just in a movie!!! This stuff is long, but not THAT boring, but maybe it could have been a little less boring, plus more relevant to later events.

LD and BP are now watching an episode of a show he'd done. Way more violent than TV shows probably were in 1969. They like watching his little "heavy" role and chuckling about it.

Then a SIX MONTHS LATER card, and some narration for the first time since that little jokey bit in the beginning. Also jokey is the fact that this new section is narrated, VERY narrated, and is the fact that Kurt Russell is the narrator also jokey?

2:02:50 - "…going back to Missouri." LD's character is from Missouri? With that accent? Is this also an in-joke?

The aforementioned narration persists for a long time. Seems gratuitous. QT was clearly like "We'll do the first two hours of the picture without a narrator, and then suddenly there will be a whole bunch of stupid narration hahahahahahaha! No one else would do that!!! That's reason enough for me to do it!!!!"

Finale is going on now with the Manson cultist killer people approaching the house. If you know what really happened, you're freaking out. But if you know what really happened and you already know how this movie changes that story… it's entertaining. What I'm saying is that it's funny this second time through, without the worry about seeing what really transpired.

"And you were on a horsie!" "Nah something dumber than that" Hahaha BP is super funny in this scene.

Dang, the dog just mutilates Tex, and it's funny!

He violences that woman very very very much, it's nuts, kind of funny but so disturbing.

LD flamethrowers that girl in the pool. She's in the pool. But still dies from being on fire. /shrug

We never did get the whole story about BP killing his wife.

The last scene, MR talks to LD, inviting him up for a friendly drink with her friends. It ends with us thinking how nice it would be if she and her friends hadn't been the victims of a cruel slaughter just moments earlier. That's not a bad way to end a movie. But it's a long movie, and I'll say this again: indulgent. You might not feel that in on the jokes, and even if you do, you might not have as much time for them as this movie requires.

[accsta-blog]

 hello  friends  ,  i’m  admin  ris  but  you  can  call  me  that  Big  Dumb  if  you  want  !  i  play  TWO  characters  ––  my  little  demon  RONAN  ACOSTA  and  my  sweet  forrest  princess  COSIMA  CHASE  who’s  on  her  own  main  blog  ,  so  i  will  probably  double  like  everything  possible  bc  .......  support  and  love.  anyway  !!!  below  you  will  find  some  information  about  ronan  including  wanted  connections  ,  but  feel  free  to  LIKE  THIS  if  you’d  like  me  to  come  plot  w/  you  or  just  feel  free  to  slide  into  my  dms  +  u  get  bonus  points  if  u  tell  me  a  joke  :~)

shawn mendes. twenty-two. cismale. he/him. shawn mendes. | i can’t believe i just saw RONAN ACOSTA walking out of cadence records. they’re a single POP/POP ROCK artist who’s been in the industry for SIX YEARS. the tabloids love to focus on their WITHDRAWN nature , but they’re also pretty CHARISMATIC and they seem to give off a vibe that reminds people of SUNGLASSES & BALL CAPS TO AVOID THE CAMERA , SURPRISED REACTIONS , & HIDDEN CHAOTIC BEHAVIOR. | admin ris. 21+. est. she/her.

𝐚𝐝𝐝𝐢𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐚𝐥 𝐚𝐞𝐬𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐭𝐢𝐜𝐬.

  loose,  un-gelled  curls  ,  hidden  hickeys  ,  hiding  from  paparazzi  ,  sweet,  completely  faked  smiles  ,  a  room  full  of  laughter  ,  bad  boys  who  look  like  good  boys  ,  broken  hearts  ,  hidden  agendas  ,  honest  moments  behind  closed  doors.

𝐪𝐮𝐢𝐜𝐤 𝐟𝐚𝐜𝐭𝐬.

 full  name  :  ronan  mateo  acosta  /  orientation  :  pansexual  /  style  :  relaxed.  jeans  ,  tight  fitted  t-shirts  ,  put  together  but  casual.  /  family  :  angelo  &  cynthia  acosta  ,  musicians.  /  tattoos  :  butterfly  on  shoulder  ,  guitar  on  foreman  inside  ,  family  surname  on  ankle  ,  song  lyrics  (  his  moms  )  foreman  inside  ,  traveling  music  notes  around  wrist  ,  heart  outline  side  of  middle  finger. /   hometown  :  los  angeles  ,  ca.  /  zodiac  :  aries.

𝐛𝐚𝐜𝐤𝐬𝐭𝐨𝐫𝐲.

○ ronan grew up in the public eye , though his parents attempted to keep him very humble and out of the spotlight until he was ready. his parents are both famous musicians , his dad originating in protugal and his mom in the states , he moved to los angles after he met her and it was a true , sappy love story. they really did attempt to keep ronan’s life private but he was always Known like any famous celebrity’s child.  ○ ronan was a pretty SWEET as a kid –– though he was definitely spoiled. his parents thought that giving him everything he wanted would keep him ... behaved ? i don’t know why they thought that. but they did. give the boy what he wants and he’ll listen to us. and at first , it was working because he was still young + didn’t have his own access to their money. yet. however , as he started getting more and more , he was getting more and more stingy + pretentious.  ○ and then ronan starts to want to do his own music. he learned guitar , piano , and even the violin and begins to find his voice. as his voice finds itself and he finds his love for much , ronan & lachlan forms –– a duo group via youtube with his best friend when ronan was 15 going on 16. because of famous background , they quickly took off and because of how ronan’s parents wanted him to be seen , ronan was formed into a very pure + angelic mold and his best friend was pulled into this mold too. except , things didn’t work out being forced into a kid friendly mold for the duo as they got older , and they split about three years ago.  ○ after the split of ronan & lachlan , ronan began putting out his own music and that’s when Demon Ronan really comes out –– except , his music is mostly pg and clean and appeals to a Youngerish crowd , and he’s still keeping up with the same imagine as he was before. ronan’s music basically matches shawns with the exception of some songs + a little bit of an added rock element ; although my favorite song to put to ronan is nervous bc it’s literally the OPPOSITE of him + one of his biggest hits. his image and sound is very sweet and pure with a soft hint of ... thirst trap thrown in to keep people interested. at first , ronan didn’t really mind this and then after the split of his group + finding himself as a teen , ronan realized he REALLY didn’t fit the mold the world wanted him to.  ○ so you’d think that he’d start emerging as his true self , except his manager urges him he needs to keep him imagine pure or it might crash his career –– he’s popular to younger fans and can use this image to support things he cares about and to stay relevant. however , as time goes on , ronan just gets worse. partying , drinking , all that fun stuff all while hiding from any camera that comes in the room. it begins to be a game for him –– how long can he keep this up ? rip to all this team who had to clean up after him. gd mess. ○ anyway ! the general SUM UP of ronan is that on the outside , he’s PURE and sweet and kind with a simple addition of towering 6′2 height and perfectly sculpted arms + abs and thanks to the occasional wet shirt , the people get to see just enough to toggle the line between innocent and thirst trap. it’s definitely a thirst trap. don’t let him fool you. however , when you see the real ronan he’s a MESS who’s partying on private jets , getting drunk in the middle of the day , and having his messes cleaned up for him constantly.  ○ personality wise , ronan is FUN , no matter which side of him you may know. if you’re introduced to the fake , public eye ronan –– he’s sweet and kind and funny , but if you really known ronan –– he’s flirtatious , Wild , always offering unsolicited advice , a Pure Comedian , and a hot freaking mess and u know what ? he’s the worlds hot mess. 

𝐞𝐱𝐭𝐫𝐚 𝐭𝐡𝐨𝐮𝐠𝐡𝐭𝐬.

○ ronan is publicly pansexual and talks about it openly on social media & is happily an ally and support to his lgbt+ fans. this was something his manager advised against and then he was spotted kissing a Boy and took to an interview to talk about it and regularly advocates for lgbt+ youth. though there was some backlash against this , he was still coming out of his duo phase and highly regraded as a good role model + used his platform to advocate which just Progressed his pure image. it’s the one thing that’s not fake tbh.

○ ronan also talks openly about current events + issues but is careful to make sure he was research and doesn’t heavily share too much across platforms but does like to show his support for certain things. it almost feels like it would be part of his Sweet facade but he really does care about some things. believe it or not.  ○ ronan has very few close friends , though he was have some people who completely call him out on his bullshit. it’s really a surprise that the world still thinks ronan is so pure and angelic because this boy is .... a freaking ........ mess. he’s got PLENTY of party friends who happily don’t give a shit about his hannah montana style life but not many friends who .... do care that he’s a messy lil demon who’s fooling the whole world.  ○ he comes off as super humble but this boy ..... is not. not humble at all. name brand everything. best everything possible.  ○ he's actually not a terrible person despite being a demon , he’s just got super chaotic energy but hopefully like ur chaotic fav chaotic energy :~) ○ in my head , ronan is slowly starting to chip away at his innocent front –– partly intentionally + unintentionally. his new music is less innocent + his thirst traps are getting Thirstier and people are starting to realize the make up that’s always caked onto his neck and the glazed look in his eyes in the middle of the day. he can’t really get away from people noticing. his manager is going through extremes to preserve his imagine instead of having his morph into a new one. 

𝐰𝐚𝐧𝐭𝐞𝐝 𝐜𝐨𝐧𝐧𝐞𝐜𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐬.

○ he’s got a pr relationship / stunt wanted connection on the main. they are currently “ dating ” and honestly it’s hilarious. pls take this so ronan can text them stupid fake couple things and they can laugh n be dumb together. i do feel like they’re surprisingly close + this muse backs ronan up when he’s almost caught being chaotic. they got together on the nudge of ronan’s management team - why your muse as chosen can be discussed ! but they help better his image + they so really Look like a couple but they’re just friends :~)  ○ other things include fwb , exes , friends , party/bad influence friends , etc. specially , i would love a close friend , the closest thing ronan would say to best friend. they get him and his chaotic energy. they just get each other and he’s comfortable around them.  ○ would also really love some type of will they / won’t they who likely thinks ronan is in an actual relationship but they also know ronan is a hot mess and this person is NOT his type + they suspect it’s a stunt but he refuses to tell them the truth. 

[nygmobblepot-slut]

4x15 Nygmobblepot Thoughts

Mkay I’m just writing this bc I have to get my emotions out somehow, tonight’s ep was V MUCH! Plus I have no one to yell about it with :( So these are my thoughts from start to finish as I rewatch the episode… (Spoiler Alert)

-Opener Scene w/Ed and Martin

Holy fuuuuck dude, I’m still so shook about it. I feel like even at that point Ed actually going to safe him is such a show of trust and loyalty. Like he did not have to do that after Oswald ‘uncaged’ him….. and yet!!! HE DID!! (Plus I’m just so hype on the fact that Ed and Martin are even interacting, like!!! They went out for ice cream?? What did they talk about, how do they interact with each other, do they like each other?? These are two very important people to Oswald obviously so I NEED them to vibe well!!)

-The Escape Clip

I just absolutely love that Ed was running around like wild and popping off random shots. I loved it!!!!! Plus he was perfectly timed, I’m more than impressed. 

-Walking to Lee’s 

First of all, I absolutely love that they’re talking again?? Like I can’t express that enough because I literally thought that they’d hate each other forever, as I have no trust in the writers. But anyways! Just seeing them banter and talk and develop plans again was like a breath of fresh freakin air my dude. Also, Ed is being so sly and charismatic again and I can feel the confidence radiating out of him. I love it. 

-Talking to Lee

I’m so pleased with how manipilative Ed was with Lee! The way he faked being the old him was a trip. (Now don’t get me wrong I’ve loved Lee so much from the get go and am hella glad they all teamed up but that play was good on Ed’s part).Then he just pulls up his tie and calls Oswald in and bam he’s back. I love it. 

Also, Oswald giving him his hat back made me so happy for some reason like I just can’t get enough of them being in the same room without pointing guns at each other, let alone holding each others belongings and working together. 

AND THE PLAN!!! I screamed when I heard Ed say it and lmao Oswald’s reaction was wow. It was brilliant of course, but I was also lowkey terrified that he was just gonna freeze Oswald and hand him over for some twisted revenge. LUCKILY NOT I FEEL BLESSED.

Lastly the Grundy talk was amazing, Oswald’s confusion made me smile. BUT THAT LOOK THAT LEE AND ED SHARED TERRIFIED THE ACTUAL FUCK OUT OF ME. I’m honestly terrified that Ed is going to decide that he actually likes Lee still because she can be bad too. I MEAN WHAT HAVE THE WRITERS GIVEN US THIS FAR. I’m hopeful that won’t happen but still there’s a part of me that just can’t help but think…

-Grundy Tunnels

Not a big surprise, but I was yellin the whole time. I love Ed so much and I feel like his character development is finally back!! I’m ecstatic to see him mess around with ‘dumb Grundy’ in his cocky way. The look on his face though when he realized Butch’s mind was back, I’m dead. And his signature “oh dear” ahhh. I was worried when he got his shit knocked out but I know the man can handle himself. Jeez, I love Ed. 

-Oswald & Lee in her place

It hurt hearing the suspicion in Oswald’s voice, though it was warranted. But I could tell that he was genuinely worried for Ed, not just ‘the deal gone wrong’ or a betrayal. He sounds so vulnerable and impatient. But Lee though, she’s such a bad ass now my god I love it. 

-Jim, Harvey, & Oswald show down

I love seeing Oswald so brave when it comes to them, obviously he doesn’t have time for their shit at the moment but he’s also not fuckin scared of em either. And shit when he realize Mr. Penn was eyes for Sofia he looked so pissed dude. I was about as shook as he was. 

Okay and what the fuck is up with Jim being the renegade cop and Harvey being the good guy? I mean talk about a role reversal holy man. The freaking parallels this episode (more like this entire season) murdered me. But really, Harvey, be cool brother. 

Also, bless Lee.

-The Shootout with Victor and company

Can I just say I love all of these characters so much? The way they interact is so unique and awesome and I dig the fick out of it. Victor is always so much fun, though I’m still salty he betrayed Oswald. 

Also, bless Lee again. She literally stole their car. Iconic. 

-Other Victor’s Freezer Scene

First of all, DAMN Victor. Next, I’ll always adore Oswald and Lee interacting. It’s the best, yes kids bicker like children. I love Oswald trying to sweet talk his way out of the Victor problem. He’s such a man of words (at least when he needs them). Lastly, damn Victor, way to freeze the bird without even checking, I’m cackling. That pose was damn near the same as Ed’s though let’s be real. I was highkey scared he’d come out all different too though. 

-Bloody Loyal Ed & Frozen Oswald

Let me start by saying, I was terrified that they were going to mess up his beautiful teeth oh my. But aside from that I’m so proud of Ed for enduring that much pain to keep Oswald safe!!! I didn’t see it coming but I’ll accept it wholeheartedly. ALSO THE PARALLELS OH MY MY. I’m going to keep bringing it up because they blew me away. Neither of them would give the other up, no matter how much pain was inflicted! Tell me they’re not at least besties and I’ll call you a liar. No but really, it’s a huge step forward considering that Ed literally wanted to kill him like at least 3 episodes ago. 

Ed’s reaction to Oswald’s use of his plan was great. I knew he’d get a kick out of it. I didn’t want him to be mad that he was getting tortured for nothing though, cause that was also plausible. Luckily again, that wasn’t the case. 

My heart though when Sofia told her men to shoot Ed at the docks, literally stopped. I knew he wouldn’t die but I was still worried. 

-Ice Breaking Scene

Where do I even start? I was relieved it actually worked, and that he actually was intact mentally. It was rough seeing him realize that yet another of his staff was on Sofia’s side back in the day. I believe that was really impactful when it came to Oswald trusting Ed again. In all honesty, Ed was the only one who hadn’t truly betrayed Oswald (at least not without proper cause, as debatable as that may be). I think it was a really good way to highlight the fact that Ed’s the only one. 

Then he sees Ed’s hat and flips his entire lid on that torture man. When he finds out Ed was loyal after everything the look on his face was amazing. Of course he changes his plans for revenge around to go save him. LOYALTY I’M

-The Dock Scene (Pt. 24235454)

Ed’s so sassy, even when he’s about to get straight up murdered man. Oswald’s aim is on fuckin point, bless up. The emotions, I can’t. 

I FEEL SO BLESS BY THIS SCENE MAN THE MUSIC, THE LOOKS, THE LITTLE ACTIONS. I honestly can’t put into words how this makes me feel. 

They trust each other, they put the guns away, they’re perfect. I’ll say it again, tell me they’re not besties and I’ll call you a liar. 

Things evened out so beautifully here. I genuinely hope they let everything go for the betterment of their relationship and I hope they never ever see that pier again. 

-Final thoughts

WHAT AN EPISODE DUDE! I just don’t want the writers to ruin what they’ve just blessed us with. I’d be pleased with them just being friends again man. Of course I believe there’s more to it but even if there isn’t I couldn’t handle them being enemies again. It kills me too much. 

Don’t fuck this up, don’t fuck this up. I swear if there’s a third Kringle I will actual set myself on fire. Don’t fuck this up.

[baekkigguk]

Ok finally back from MONSTA X's Beautiful in the U.S LA Day 1. OH. MY. GOSH. I had so much fun! Monbebes are such nice people! I had the pleasure of meeting the gal who I got my tickets from, meeting an awesome shownu stan who we jammed out in P3 high touch together. @papi-shownu And went with my sister, @@moonmoonmato on a trip by ourselves for the first time! So, my phone ran out of power in the middle of the first ment, so I don't have anything good to show, but I CAN say: 🐹Kihyun is even more stunning in person. Like wow!!! I couldn't look away from my boy! 🐹Kihyun's hands are super soft and he is so charismatic. Will look you straight in the eye, if he isn't squinting from grinning too big! 🐢HYUNGWON'S BACK AND EVERYONE WAS SUPER STOKED TO HAVE HIM THERE. 🐢Hyungwon's cute bow around his neck... and wow his lipsss. No wonder he's a visual. 🐢The members were sooooooooo thrilled that Hyungwon could come! 🐶Minhyuk's aegyo ripped out my heart! 🐶Minhyuk just gives you such a cuddly vibe. Sure, yeah, you see it on screen, but in person it's 10 fold! 🐶Minhyuk noticed me frantically waving for candy and caught my eye! I signalled him toss it... and he did, but it was a little to my left, so the person next to me got it, but hey, I got his attention. 🐰Wonho mimicked the translator as though he was the one speaking English. He saw that we thought it was funny, and continued to do it throughout the night. 🐢🐰FROM ZERO NEEDS TO BE ON ITUNES RIGHT NOW. Both guys were so happy to be performing together again!!! 🐺Changkyun sang "Nothing on You" by b.o.b and Bruno Mars for a line or two, and it was beautiful. 🐺CHANGKYUN'S ARMSSSSSS 🐻Shownu was thrilled Hyungwon was back. He was smiling the whole concert. 🐻Shownu has the warmest smile on the face of the planet. During the high touch, he gave me such a heartfelt grin. He needs to smile more!!! 🐝Jooheon, what a sweetie!! He threw chocolate at my sister, like actually looked her in the eyes, and threw the candy directly towards her. Later he noticed she wasn't feeling good and kept checking up on her. 🐝SPPEEEEEEEEED RAPPER JOOHEON IS FREAKING AMAZING!!!!!!! So yeah!!!!!