#so I tend to expect people to have at least the same amount of information as me

[envolvenuances]

That video that circulates pictures of Socialist Afghanistan and Iran under Zehedi's dictatorship post USA-backed coup of 1953 as the same because women dressed in western clothing and were allowed work and study kinda pisses me off

[darlingofdots]

One of the first things I teach new students in my intro to literary studies class is that there is no definition of "literature" that includes everything you want it to but also excludes the things you don't want, and that no definition is ideologically or intellectually neutral. I use a specific text to teach this because I have to give them an exam at the end of the semester and need specific information for them to recall, but my secret agenda with this lesson is to dismantle the (conscious or unconscious) hierarchy we all have in our heads about what is Good Art. I also find that students tend to have very narrow expectations about what kind of literature they are going to encounter at university, and I don't blame them for that! But it's really important to me that they at least start to understand that every text is worth studying with the same amount of attention you would give to a Shakespeare play. The point of literary studies isn't to make some sort of judgement about quality, it's to understand how we tell stories and process our lives and communicate and how everything we do and experience influences everything else. On this website we sort of make fun of the "his wife has filled his house with chintz" post and of people who read "too much" into kids' TV but we should do this unironically! My main research focus is historical romance novels and people ask me all the time why I think they matter enough to write a book about, and I have to tell them that everything matters. I know a scholar who has worked on Sunday comic strips around the turn of the 19th century and we can learn so much about what people's lives were like from those! Nothing is too small or silly or "bad" to analyse. Understanding how a text works, what it does, where it comes from are all important and incredibly rewarding questions to ask! Every piece of writing is the result of a series of experiences and circumstances and choices that shape it and just being able to understand that is genuinely one of the most important things I hope my students learn from my classes.

[bonzos-number-1-fan]

TMAGP 21 Thoughts: Y2K [Error]s

And we're back, again. Albeit I'm back quite late. This one was an interesting one to start act 3 with. On one hand it's a really good recap for what's lead up to this and a great foundation of what we can presume is to come. On the other hand it's an episode I think is deceptively devoid of new information. There is obviously new stuff to dig into here but in general I think it's not a lot of major stuff and mostly reinforcements of stuff we're already well aware of, or confirmation of stuff that I feel was about as good as confirmed anyway. With that said, this will be quite a read because what there is to dig into does go pretty deep.

Spoilers for episode 21 below the cut.

The conversation with Sam and Celia has a couple of interesting bits in it. Some of it's fairly obvious but there is at least one thing I've not really seen people talk about with it. So, Sam is flirting with the idea of of quitting, which is very Sam, and Celia pushes for him not to and tries to get him back "on track" in regards to the Institute, which is very Celia. Celia does care about her co-workers but obviously she's out for herself more than anyone else in the office. Her "complicated immigration status" is another is a long series of alternate-universe references. I think her comment about the OIAR's lax background checks is a more compelling detail there. Presumably there is a TMP version of Celia, who may or may not be called Celia. So you wouldn't necessarily expect there to be an issue there. "Celia" Ripley does likely exist and is likely British and would likely qualify for a position in the OIAR. Yet the way Celia frames it suggests she thought it would be an issue too. Either something that might come up after she got the job or something to be solved in order to get it. What I think is interesting about that is that it suggests to me that her identity isn't the problem but that they'd have some way to tell she's not from this universe.

That's all pretty normal stuff for this show though. The most interesting part of this is Celia's statement that she has to stay because he can't take Jack back to wherever she came from. I've seen a lot of musings on it but nothing that's gotten to what I feel is the heart of the problem there. Jack can't come with her because Jack is a baby and so can't understand and then engage with the mechanism she used. Which basically confirms that however she did it is much close to Darrien's meditation-induced-travel than, say, a portal to walk through. She doesn't rule out that she couldn't go back either so however it works it would have to be something Jack would have to participate in. Although there is the possibility that she's currently sharing her body with the actual TMP Celia and has merely brought her consciousness over and that Jack can't go because there is no body to return to. The problem with that though is the aforementioned background check. If she was physically living as TMP's Celia then there isn't really a concern there at all. Along with Lady M being about to smell that she's different it probably rules that out. Not a strong confirmation but certainly more pointing in the direction that Celia's body is hers which in turns makes the issue with Jack less likely to be that there is no Jack in Celia's home universe to body hop into.

Okay, so on to the incident proper. Honestly, not a huge amount to dig into this one IMO. Obviously a fair bit happened but it's mostly surface level. Which isn't a bad thing but for the sorts of things I tend to talk about it does limit what there is to say. I'd rather not recount things unless I have something to say about them beyond the text itself. There are still a few things to mention here all the same. Firstly, speaking of Darrien the Dr Welling that is mentioned in the episode is very likely the person who gave their name to Welling Mutare Materia where Darrien was incarcerated in episode 17.

Next up, while it's not talked about in explicit detail there is one thing that sums up the point of this ritual, the "Great Work". Anyone into alchemy will be well aware that this refers the creation of the Philosopher's Stone, the Magnum Opus. Immortality, turning lead to gold, spiritual enlightenment, all of the above. Ask 5 alchemists what it's about, get 6 answers. There are some pretty major implications to this that I've not really seen touched upon. Firstly, it's a near direct confirmation that the OIAR and the Magnus Institute are directly adversarial. If the Institute's goal is the completion of the Great Work then the OIAR's purpose is to prevent that and it's something they. mostly, openly broadcast. The symbol of the Magnum Opus is circle housed in a square, housed in a triangle, that is housed in another circle. That symbol is found in the OIAR's insignia but inverted. Which is about as blatant a statement of opposition as you can really get. In turn that also largely confirms that the OIAR are responsible, or at least wanted to, burn the Institute to the ground. The timing of this is very likely not a coincidence either. This letter is dated 04/01/1999, the dome they're referring to in it (the O2, formerly the Millennium Dome) was opened 31/12/1999, as you might expect. The Institute burned down just 7 days prior to that happening.

Secondly, knowing that the Great Work is pretty obviously the goal at this point recontextualises things like catalysts and agents. As well as the general purpose of the Institute as a whole here. The Great Work isn't generally seen as a bad thing in alchemy, like, it's the whole point of the art. It also doesn't seem like the Institute itself is necessarily perverting that idea either. The PoV character is certainly not happy with the idea that this ritual will harness fear and despair is too great of a quantity. So it doesn't seem out and out capital E Evil as a plan. At least as presented. However, there is

Next up, the Millennium Dome itself has a few interesting elements to talk about in this context. The most obvious one is the Millennium Experience which was a kind of its whole thing for its first year. This was an exhibition of all sorts of bits but of relevance is that the exhibition has split into three major themes; Who We Are, What We Do, and Where We Live. 3 is a fairly major number in alchemy thanks to the tria prima. They're divided further still and Who We Are splits into Body, Faith, Mind, and Self-Portrait. These have some loose alignment with the tria prima, the body, the soul, and the spirit. This is something other people have brought up though and it's not actually the thing I think is exciting about the Millennium Dome. Especially not in context to the episode. The dome is important as an architectural work first and foremost. Everyone should go have a look at it because its major feature is incredibly relevant to the Great Work, this episode's details, and the show's explicit references. The feature of the Millennium Dome are its twelve 100 meter support towers. IRL the 12 towers were chosen mostly because of the strong associations with time, both hours and months, but in this episode a lot of weight is given to the astrological and there are 12 signs in the zodiac. But 12 is also incredibly important for the Great Work too. Typically there are 4 stages that you must take to complete the magnum opus but these stages were expanded upon by various scholars. 12 is a number multiple sources land on. 12 is especially relevant for TMP because it's what's laid out in The Compound of Alchemy; or, the Twelve Gates leading to the Discovery of the Philosopher's Stone, written by George Ripley in 1471. Ripley is a very noted alchemist and importantly Celia is his namesake. It really just ticks a whole lots of boxes for "big important thing" in a show like this.

As a final note on the Great Work its presentation as a universal transmutation is quite a shift from more traditional interpretations. As mentioned it's a bit all over the place as for what it means but this incident seems to portray it as something akin to The Change in scale. Universal and far-reaching. It's hard to say too much more than that based on this episode alone but it's worth keeping an ear out for in the future. Even if this version of it is benevolent I can see why something of that scale got them firebombed.

Also, is it just me or does Chester sound much more roboty to start here than in other incidents?

After the incident it's Alice and Lena having a bit of a chat. Alice in this scene is a little peculiar to me, she's very quick to accept that Sam is correct about being lead to a conclusion by Freddy. Although I'm not sure how that reflects on her stance in the last episode. She was obviously trying to protect Sam but it didn't seem like she was lying about not believing his whole conspiracy there either. In this scene though she's pretty sold on the idea. Lena having a heart is nice to see too. I like that she's opening up a little more and is subverting some of the expectations of her assumed archetype.

Gwen and Ink5oul's section is pretty self-explanatory IMO. At least as far as those two characters go. Ink5oul's powers are progressing and she's now able to control mundane tattoos she had no part in producing but beyond that it's pretty expected stuff. Obviously the real standout here is [Error]. Firstly it's a confirmation that they're the one compelling people to spit out statements. Not that I think that confirmation is much of a reveal. There are a few bigger details to pick at here though. They've seemingly marked the whole gang for some reason. If the above is correct, and the OIAR is directly opposed to the Institute, it could just be revenge. Albeit that labours under the assumption [Error] has some sort of allegiance to the Institute. Which I think isn't entirely certain at this stage. The way the transcript describes them is also very perculiar.

A Figure emerges, shrouded in a cloak of whispers. … The Figure continues to emerge, a nightmarish specter of an older world, slowly enveloping Ink5oul’s brash bravado … The Figure breathes deeply, a strange and disconcerting sound, enveloped in pained whispers.

They're three details worth mentioning there. The first is their almost ephemeral description, they emerge and then continue to emerge. Which is a strange phrasing if they were just walking into the scene. The whispers I think are fairly obviously the statements they force on people, not much to say there. "Ink5oul’s brash bravado" speaks to what I was discussing in last episode's post. Ink5oul seems to be fairly inauthentic in a lot of their interactions and are putting on a persona to seem like they're more of a badass than they really are. Outside of that there is just this to mention.

The tape recorder bites Ink5oul before clicking off.

I've seen it brought up a lot and I get why, it is quite funny, but I think it's also speaking to a larger thing. [Error] appears to have much greater control of these than we might be familiar with. I'm not going to get into TMA spoilers but [Error] seems to be conjuring, and commanding, these things themselves which is a very different vibe. I think they might serve a similar purpose overall, the gathering of statements, but more purposeful and I could also see them being [Error]'s physical tether to the world. If they are as ephemeral as the transcript hints at the tape records might serve as their anchor. It's something they can move about but it might be their vulnerability.

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Incident/CAT#R#DPHW Master Sheet and Terminology Sheet

DPHW Theory: 4254 seems about right but it's also such a weird one that it's hard to really quantify. It doesn't strike me as wrong in any way but the focus of the incident was not on the, well, incident. So it's hard to say.

CAT# Theory: CAT2 is a 2 and I don't have a huge amount to say on these as of yet.

R# Theory: BC seems right. It's what the last letter about spooky shit was rated and this seems to hit all the same notes I mentioned in the ep 19 post.

Header talk: Architecture (Landmark) -/- Corruption (Entropy) is another of those strange ones. Our third in a row. Which likely means they're here to stay, and while that's generally fine by me it does make me wonder what the diegetic reasoning is here. It's a pretty sudden shift to just do this now and it never come up before this. It's also not something mentioned as new either. Corruption (Entropy) is fairly interesting though. It makes sense for the incident but it feels like you could've just done "time" here for the same effect.

[rxttenfish]

merfolk in general are just. horrible horrible polyglots. their brains are already hardwired for language and quick language acquisition that remains active all their lives, further helped by retaining a high neural plasticity for their long lives, and especially enjoy complex language and language-based play and problem solving. but they also tend to have a lot of their society arranged where there's often multiple different languages at play within the same area, and only really stops being so once you get into especially small villages that have below the merfolk norm for outside contact. every merfolk alive today knows at least two languages, but most of them know far more than that, especially because one of those two will be the common-technical language. its been standardized and wide-scale implemented across the merkingdom after their dominance, to help bridge the gap between these different languages, basically as a successful version of esperanto. but its a trade language, and is mostly used for information you might want to reach as many people as possible, such as laws or business dealings or public announcements or the like. most merfolk don't view it as and don't treat it as a language proper, and its not what they prefer to converse in if they have another choice, usually finding it pretty limiting and restrictive, which is why its called common-technical.

miranda, being a royal who is regularly in contact with many different people around the merkingdom and regularly expected to be fully able to converse with them to do her job, knows just. so many languages. i might be changing exactly how many soon, but last time i counted it was in the low teens. like its just a perfect storm of her brain being wired for swift language acquisition and having a job that requires it and a position that means shes constantly around people from all around the merkingdom. not to mention having to know english too, which isn't just not her first language, it's not even her fourth language.

meanwhile, aaravi knows english and a little bit of hindi, less because of her mother and moreso because of her nana... its not that her mother never used it with her, but she was. less focused on using it or teaching aaravi, let's say. nana mishra uses it a lot more and is more interested in teaching aaravi when she asks her, especially in the intermittent period after her mom died and nana mishra was able to come back into her life to help aaravi pick up the pieces (though not after aaravi kind of. got left on her own. for an unfortunate amount of time). its just also fallen by the wayside with aaravi's whole Everything Else and kind of having a hard time accepting her nana's help and kind of being terrified of her (of no fault of her nana's, aaravi's just. she's just really traumatized after Everything, alright. having someone try to offer her help afterwards, especially when aaravi's scared of getting singled out as half human and half monster, is just. it's not something she can bring herself to trust.)

[scoobydoodean]

In my experience it's been bc deancrit cas/destiel girls can easily ignore most samgirls (at least hardcore ones) because they usually either ship wincest or don't really give a fuck about cas so they're in an entirely different "fandom circle". Whereas deangirls tend to have more crossover because the main ship in our circle is still destiel (while I'm personally kinda meh about romantic ships but I definitely see the appeal), so unfortunately they feel the need to get mad at deangirls they disagree w bc we "affect their fandom experience more".

I agree there's the wincest/samgirl/deangirl sphere and a destiel/casgirl/deangirl sphere and our posts generally circulate within those separate spheres among a completely separate audience. If I was hanging out with bibros, I'd get a lot more complaints from samgirls than I do in the destiel sphere (and many people in this "sphere" are meaner about Sam than I am tbqh).

In addition to that, samgirls and deangirls have been fighting since day one, so while we don't tend to view the show the same way and don't tend to get along, there's a pretty well-established 'Dead dove do not eat" situation between us. Of course squabbles still happen, but I think I tend to write meta in a way that makes our complete lack of interpretive common ground immediately apparent when samgirls do stumble across me. When you realize you can't agree with someone on the interpretation of dozens of basic facts, you often deflate before ever trying to start an argument.

On the other hand, I'm expected to display a certain amount of "loyalty" toward Cas. I actually do recognize this and I do actually respond to it to a certain degree (at the very least for the sake of a few casgirl mutuals). At the same time, I firmly believe that the expectations of deangirls and casgirls in the destiel sphere are not symmetric. In fact, most of the negative experiences I've had were a result of me disagreeing with popular deancrit takes rather than speaking critically of Cas. This is because among destiel shippers, there's an unspoken agreement to blog about Cas and Dean in a certain way, and it isn't all about hiding criticism—it's also about agreeing to accept certain criticisms that I... don't agree with. Me not agreeing with those criticisms is seen as "stirring up drama" by some destiel shippers. The thing is, I think most of the people who think of me that way are basing their expectations of my behavior on the constraints that they face themselves. How we behave on our own blogs is largely informed by who is mutuals with who (i.e., people don't want to upset their mutuals). Destiel shippers who follow hundreds of other blogs have a very collectivist mindset and tend to assume all destiel shippers follow the exact same mix of people that they do, when that is not the case. I follow maybe two dozen supernatural blogs.

I understand that some destiel shippers/casgirls don't want to see my opinions on their dashes, but I have a right to my opinions and I am literally not sharing a community the people who complain the most about me. I'm not going to obscure or change my opinions to make strangers I don't follow and whose posts I am in most cases not even cognizant of happy. Some casgirls avoid me or block me and move on with their lives and that works just fine for me, but others seem to have trouble accepting that I am over here blogging about things they don't agree with and get angry that they can't control what I post. At the end of the day, seeing my posts is a choice that a person has to actively make. I don't use generic fandom tags. I don't even tag my gifsets. I don't skulk around on the blogs of people I don't know looking for things to bitch about, and I never interact negatively on other people's posts. If a beloved mutual is putting my posts on someone's dash and they don't want to see my opinions, they can filter my url. It's literally that simple.

[vidreview]

VIDEO ESSAY ROUNDUP #3

[originally posted december 21st 2023]

here we are again! i've had most of this roundup queued for a while and just haven't had time to finish it, so the entries here aren't necessarily super recent. but they're still quite worth your time! so let's just jump right in.

"The Gaming Industry, Gambling, and Addiction" by GC Vasquez.

in the previous roundup i highlighted Jimmy McGee's series on the video game industry's ties to gambling. GC Vasquez has made what i think is an excellent spiritual companion to those videos, in that it approaches the same material from a decidedly personal place. the fact that the primary expected model for turning a consistent profit in the games industry (at least as far as companies like Unity are concerned, with the c-suite insisting that you'd be "fucking idiots" for doing anything else) involves pushing microtransaction gacha mechanics into every nook and cranny really cannot be criticized enough. but i think, even more pressingly, GC Vasquez points out that games have always included fictional gambling in the form of slot machines, poker tables, roulette wheels, etc, and that this demonstrably conditions kids to develop gambling addictions. on a lighter note, his video about why replay value in games doesn't matter as much as we think it does is one of those "finally someone put it into words" type essays.

"The Lost Majora's Mask Notebook | New Zelda Info" by The Hyrule Journals.

there are plenty of folks out there doing Zelda lore and history videos, but no one's got the stuff quite like The Hyrule Journals. Their documentary Line By Line, tracing the history of Majora's Mask's English translation by talking extensively to the guy who did the translation, is an excellent work of games journalism that revealed a lot of information previously unknown to me. The Lost Majora's Mask Notebook is a followup to that doc, sharing insights gained from the translator's own notebook kept during the translation process. it's cool! i would not call this A Great Video Essay necessarily but it's a good excuse to recommend an underrated channel.

"SEND IN THE CLOWN: a people's joker review" by let's talk about stuff.

oh this is a pretty cheeky inclusion, huh? one of my own videos? that's right, you got me: the whole VIDREV operation was just a shell game to goose my viewership numbers all along. the video is exactly what it says on the tin: a review of Vera Drew's incredible trans coming of age story / Batman parody film The People's Joker. i talk a fair amount in the back half about the novel ways this film got me questioning the cultural purpose of copyright and IP law, which is itself a strand of thought that began in my TUNIC review. if it seems like i'm always plugging my TUNIC review it's because i'm really proud of my TUNIC review and i would like for more people to watch it ("it" being my TUNIC review). anyway, The People's Joker is relevant now with the recent news that the film will be seeing wider distribution in the states come April 2024! so look forward to that, and to me undoubtedly plugging my People's Joker review yet again.

THE "DOESN'T NEED THE HELP" ZONE is kind of silly this time around since most of what i have to recommend is from channels that are doing relatively alright. my criteria for the distinction between does/doesn't need the help mostly comes down to vibes and subscriber count. if a channel has more than 100k subs, that to my mind means they don't need the help. this is not to insinuate that 100k+ creators are rich! youtube is a fickle mistress and everyone's revenue model looks different. i try to give precedence to folks below the 30k range, because that's where my channel's at and, coincidentally, where i tend to find the most interesting underrated creators. is it totally corrupt to put my own work in the implicitly-needs-the-help zone? call me out in the comments if you think this is a gross abuse of power.

"Playing Minecraft and Losing My Apartment" by Leadhead.

Leadhead has some great stuff, but this one hit me where it hurts. it's a video about escaping into the artificial goals of a video game at a time when personal disruption and chaos wrenches all sense of control over your own life away. i went through a pretty traumatic eviction myself back in 2021, and found myself totally incapable of making art about it. really nice to see someone else picking up that slack!

"Transition Regret & the Fascism of Endings" by Lily Alexandre.

another in a long line of bangers from Lily Alexandre, about how complicated it is to have mixed feelings on your own transition at a time when anyone expressing such emotions has their story weaponized against the rights of trans people everywhere. a lot of trans women in my life started HRT around 2017-18, and i've noticed a trend of folks in that cohort (myself included) trying to reclaim aspects of their masculinity from a safe distance by playing more with pronouns and presentation. i expect we'll be seeing a lot more videos about this in the years to come, and i can't wait! also: Lily Alexandre has some of the prettiest compositions in the whole video essay game. seriously, her color coordination and framing choices (and use of nonstandard aspect ratios!!!) are subtly artful in a way you really don't see very often on youtube.

"Should We Get Rid of Sex Scenes? (Part I)" by Broey Deschanel.

uh-oh, this one's a Nebula exclusive!!! i haven't really talked about Nebula on here yet, but suffice it to say it's an extremely important development in the business of online video. especially in this case, a video about sex scenes in Hollywood that quite literally could not exist on youtube under its current content guidelines! Broey Deschanel is a lot of fun to watch and makes some really great observations here. if you've got Nebula, it's well worth your time!

"Stop using Fandom" by mossbag.

if you have spent any amount of time in fandom (lowercase-f) spaces, you'll no doubt be well acquainted with how terrible Fandom (uppercase-f) is as a company and a product. this video digs deep into how scummy they are about filling wikis with intrusive ads, making alterations at the behest of private companies without consulting the people who manage said wikis, and their refusal to remove the wikis of any property whose community decides to migrate to another platform. one gripe i have with Fandom that didn't get mentioned is their outright ban on outbound links, which functionally murders any genuine archival usefulness a wiki might otherwise have. everything has to be in-fiction, which is just such a backwards and pointless way of doing things. they are systematically opposed to preserving community history and have no interest in fandom except as a money hungry middle-man between fans and IP owners. i highly recommend installing Indie Wiki Buddy on your browser so that you can avoid Fandom wikis like the plague they are.

"Journey to EPCOT Center: A Symphonic History" by Defunctland.

hey, did Kevin Perjurer just reinvent video essays? well… no, not really. but what he and his collaborators have accomplished here is a fascinating, impressive, and deeply odd intervention on the format which mixes archival footage, live recreations, and a "read along at home" written component to create an essay totally unlike anything i've seen before. honestly i really hope more essayists include supplemental written material in the future, especially with longer works where maybe not everything needs to be on screen! anyway, Journey to EPCOT is such a wild ambitious swing, and while i'm not totally convinced that it completely works i still have to applaud the audacity of the attempt. definitely requires a level of active participation that is well above average for youtube, not something you put on in the background if you actually want to learn anything from it, but definitely worth the effort.

"I kissed nuclear waste to prove a point" by Kyle Hill.

Kyle Hill is an educator on nuclear energy, and while i find a lot of his sillier videos a bit grating, i have nothing but praise for his work on historic nuclear disasters and the present day state of nuclear energy. it really can't be overstated how directly our general distrust of nuclear energy was kickstarted by fossil fuel companies, or how unambiguously illiterate the wider public is when it comes to the management of nuclear power plants and the disposal of nuclear waste. Kyle Hill here does a great job explaining just how unbelievably safe the whole operation is when it's well-funded and well-regulated, and stresses the inarguable fact that there's no source of green energy safer, more plentiful, or more efficient than nuclear. windmills and solar panels have their uses, but they will never be sufficient in reducing our reliance on fossil fuels if they're the only energy infrastructure we invest in at scale. and electric vehicles? oh man. the EV push as it stands is set up to be a grand historic embarrassment of catastrophic proportions. let's be good capitalists and set aside the rampant human rights violations and immense environmental impacts of rare-earth mining. the emissions from having to put down fresh asphalt more frequently due to the increased average weight of electric vehicles wearing roads down faster alone will outweigh virtually every gain from an electrified vehicle fleet, if electrifying the fleet is the only transportation infrastructure we invest in at scale.

there is simply no path forward to liberating the world from its reliance on fossil fuels that does not involve massive investment into building nuclear power plants and reducing our reliance on individual vehicles by exponentially expanding the reach of mass public transit. anything less than that is a laughable half measure whose most prominent boosters are, without a doubt, paid by fossil fuel companies to always be boosting. this is why i find Kyle Hill's work so impressive and refreshing. he talks quite a lot about nuclear disasters, but goes to great lengths to highlight that the fault lies in lack of funding, lax security protocols, and greedy parties preventing proper management, and that even with these horror stories at hand, fewer people have died from accidental nuclear exposure in history than get exposed to carcinogenic discharges from fossil fuel products every day and OOPS SORRY I'M SOAPBOXING it's a good video you should watch it

"What Happened To Spoof Movies?" by Eddache.

bit of a mood shift from that last entry, thank goodness. this here is an exceedingly thorough history of the spoof movie genre that does a great job explaining why some parodies work and others really, really do not. i had no idea how much of the recent history of spoof movies comes down to failson nepotism! a good chill video to watch if you want something relatively harmless to wile away an afternoon with.

and that's it. good luck in these final weeks of 2023, be sure to mask up, get vaxxed, and make sure your friends and family get PCR tests before any big gatherings, what with covid levels being as high as they were in 2020 in many places! i'm serious, deaths have been above 1000 a week since the end of August! so take care of yourselves out there

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ALSO: VIDREV's askbox is open! please feel free to forward any video essays that you think might be worth talking about (even if you're the one who made it!). this includes new stuff, old stuff, professional stuff, amateur stuff, anything that can be reasonably described as a video essay. no promises that i will cover anything that gets sent to me, but i will try to give everything an honest chance when i've got the time. if you have specific questions you'd like answered, please send those over to my main account as i don't intend to answer any questions here. okay, thanks!!

<- ROUNDUP #2 | ROUNDUP #4 ->

[malvenor]

alright, i'll give you benefit of the doubt. i'd like to hear exactly what's wrong with my breakdown if you dont mind! i say this with genuine interest in what you have to say, and curiosity, no malice at all. but i do think that if you're gonna say "everything in this is wrong," you'd do well to explain just what is so wrong, or at least just one example. just saying something is wrong without providing explanation also serves to make one look silly! ...hopefully i dont sound pretentious saying that.

i knooooooow i said i didnt wanna argue. i still don't, honestly. but well, debate is ok.

i do also want to give myself just a little defense and say that my post is a casual person's criticisms, rather than a huge big one meant to be taken seriously. emotions are in there, dyeing my commentary unsightly colors at times. not the biggest defense, but hey, its there.

so yeah, all that wordy preamble to say: yes, i'm probably wrong. in the interest of self-improvement, i'd like to know why!

I expected no response and got a genuinely respectful one! Sorry if I sounded snippy - plenty of things I like get a lot of odd and unfounded criticism, and it's very easy for little things to get under my skin. I can give a bit-by-bit breakdown, for sure! And I get that it's from a casual perspective, but such a lengthy review even from a casual perspective should have a tad more than the first third of the release version of a game completed, y'know?

Ahem, anyways! Preamble out of the way, and with all due respect (which is a fair amount thanks to your stellar attitude!), here are my nits and my picks:

Less a correction and more a tip for anyone who read that post: You can re-access the tutorial at any time by going back to Selva Oscura, the game's prologue chapter, under the same menu where you access the Cantos. I recommend everyone do this anyways because you can collect some Lunacy just for visiting the map.

Next bit, I actually half-agree with. Yes, Limbus Company has a stubborn and poorly-explained learning curve, and it is less immediately intuitive than Library of Ruina. It is, however, also an intrinsically less complicated game than Library of Ruina. Having a base understanding of "when my side's numbers are higher, I win more often" will be learned quickly, and the fight against Ebony Queen's Apple will tell you the rest you need to know (since I believe this to be the game's only halfway decent tutorial). However, I will also point out that the intuitiveness is the only part of the previous two game's learning experiences that were actually good: LC and LoR also had pretty fuckin' bad tutorials.

From a casual perspective, the ins and outs of exactly how clash values are calculated are wholly unnecessary, but the basics are pretty plainly laid out, I find. It gives you a big number that will always be the starting number, a smaller number with a plus sign, and 1~5 little symbols that the game calls coins next to those. I feel like most people pretty easily grasp that when the coins flip heads, signified by the glow, they add their value to the big number. Even if this isn't understood by the player immediately as that, it becomes more obvious once you get to, again, Ebony Queen. I'll admit, this is more subjective, but it still stuck out as something people tend to grasp pretty quickly, especially former Ruina players.

aha okay yeah that's fair. the game does not, in fact, inform you how to upgrade your units.

However! It does not take two cantos to unlock Luxcavations. Now I will give you the benefit of the doubt and assume you dropped the game before that update, but a few weeks after launch they removed thread and exp from the Mirror Dungeons and added grindable micro-stages for them instead. EXP Lux is unlocked I believe around stage 1-10, an upgraded version around 2-18 (?), and Thread Lux after clearing Canto 2, where you also unlock Mirror Dungeons, which is where you get Lunacy and BP Exp. So, while that may have very briefly been true, this has been cleared up and fixed!

Defense skills are probably the only truly well-explained thing in the Prologue tutorial, so I'm sorry to say that this one was purely a personal issue on your part. While the circumstances of their use are not made immediately clear, that's less an issue of the explanation and more an issue of the game's balance, a discussion to be had that is far outside the scope of this post.

Nitpick among nitpicks, dungeons do not have a different combat system! Normal battles still occur within them, and starting in Canto 4 the Focus Battle system (reminiscent of Ruina's battle system) will also occur on overworld stages on occasion! Just a matter of "not quite as cut and dry as immediately laid out"

Ah, the classic victim of the tutorial and it's vague misrepresentation of the purpose of Resonance. This will have multiple parts, so starting off with the most understandable misunderstanding: Resonance does not, in fact, increase the damage you deal. Weird, right? It increases the Offense Level of skills in the chain, which is a small but extremely important distinction, since Offense Level can also affect Clash Power. Is this ever explained? Fuck no. Not your fault, just a bad tutorialization moment again.

While this is not made immediately obvious to the player, Sin does carry more weight to the battle system than you may think! First and foremost, adding a second layer of resistance really highlights how powerful the game's multiplicative damage scaling can really be, and allows some units to still be useful even if their primary damage type is resisted by the enemies.

It's not just that, though! Even on release, the sins did sort of have their own little niches like you described in your post, but you didn't quite make it far enough or get a large enough roster to really notice the patterns. The most obvious example of this is the difference between Envy (purple) and Gluttony (green). Envy is basically the plain and simple damage color, associated with multiple "nuke" skills, as well as being the primary color for Charge, which is Damage: The Archetype. Gluttony, on the other hand, lacks "nukes" altogether and is often used as a technical, status and self-healing type Sin, and also has a fair bit of Paralyze for some reason? Regardless, there's identity with each Sin, which I think is cool!

There is, because Limbus sort of fails at gacha-ing, still an odd sense of progression in Limbus! Not only are the LCB Sinners automatically upgraded as you finish the initial batch of Cantos, but the feeling of getting bigger, better, stronger options comes from not only expanding your roster, but the feeling of more complex teambuilding and additional gameplay mechanics through gameplay-story integration. Eventually we even get new story-locked toys to play with! There's also the micro-progression in Dungeons (including Mirror Dungeons, arguably especially so) but even on a grander scale, there is a nice sense of it. Less so than Ruina, of course, no denying that, but they go out of their way to make it still feel good to play through.

I will not be touching upon the story comment because you already included that edit. Yes, anon is right, it does give you the tools you need to understand what is present.

Some more subjective things, but I tried to tackle them in as objective a manner as possible. But as we are all experiencing art here, there will inevitably be these subjective matters to discuss! Many of these things weren't your fault either as they were added later in updates to the game, but such things are to be expected in live service titles.

To circle back to the original point, sometimes you just have to sit back and wonder if what you're saying will hold water, and if you happen to know enough to speak at length. I'm sorry you had a negative experience with the game to start, and I am morally obligated to not recommend gachas to people in general if they don't wish to play them, so I'll not be asking for your return. I just like clearing things up!

I hope this was informative, and I thank you for reading!

[disinfernus]

Confessions in the Dark

TIMING: Current PARTIES: @lukas-dark-miracles & @disinfernus LOCATION: Community Center SUMMARY: Dis attends one of Lukas' meetings to see a thank you through. They leave with something a little more juicier than expected. CONTENT WARNINGS: mentions of domestic abuse, torture

It wasn’t difficult to find Lukas Zabek’s name, nor where he tended to congregate. There were flyers everywhere in town for a support group — a support group for what exactly? The flier gave enough information, sure, but Dīs wanted to hear it from him personally. Not to mention there was a thank you to cash in on, and they figured this little group would be a good way to get to know Lukas a little bit better. 

So they showed up to the doors, to the meeting, clad in their typical getup of monochromatic black. They softened it a little, though, opting for softer shades of black and even a touch of gray. This time, there was no exposed skin to be found. Instead they decided on a plain, Mandarin collared shirt, buttoned and left untucked, that gave their tall frame even more length. It was a lot more modest and confining than what they preferred, but when in Rome.

Finally it was their turn to introduce themself. Dīs took a firm hold of Lukas’ hand and offered quite the charming smile. They noticed the chill at first, but paid it no mind. Ingeborg was the same as were dozens of others in Wicked’s Rest; there was no strangeness to be found, in their opinion. Not yet, anyway. “Lukas? A pleasure to meet you, I’m Dīs. I’m looking forward to this meeting.”

Things had been going quite well for Lukas, at least as much as they could in such a small amount of time. He hadn’t expected the support group to go as well as it had, and some of the members even came weekly - asking how they could help. While it was much too soon for everyone to know the next steps it did feel like he was on the precipice of change. 

Still, he had to be careful of the town filled with more darkness than he had remembered as a human. Maybe there was some truth that the Light did blind him to all of the darkness around him. So he went around personally greeting each person, everytime careful to keep in mind where he had seen them before and if they were someone to be careful of. So when he reached someone who was dressed in darkness he couldn’t help but be careful - his smile was warm but not quite reaching his eyes like it had been. To hide that he made sure his glasses were glinting. 

“Yes, that would be me,” Lukas said trying to push the unease as he assessed the other, shaking their hand as easily as everyone else. “It is nice to meet you as well Dīs, welcome to your first meeting. If you have any questions feel free to ask. It’s not a particularly formal place.” It was true, while Lukas tended to give a small speech just to let everyone know what was needed where - it very often went into small groups after with people talking. 

“I appreciate that. I do have... one, but I’m positive it will be answered after everything has started.” There were only whisperings of what exactly this meeting was about, so far all positive from what they had heard in passing. Even some of their regulars, the ones who frequently lost at the casino, spoke good will of Lukas’ ‘community meeting’. A place for neighbors. Altruism was rare in a place like Wicked’s Rest, but it was perfect for it. Was it real?

They preferred not to bog down the brief meet-and-greet with a question that was sure to be answered in a few minutes, so they respectfully bowed away from any potential prying or persuasion in pulling that inquiry from them. Dīs wanted all of the cards in their hands first before they made their decision. The question they really wanted an answer for was what could Lukas do for them? At this point, that magic line had been tapped and ready for them to sink their shadowed claws in to further connect that tether.

All they needed was a reason.

The way that Lukas spoke, though unassuming as the man may have been, drew the other people in without much effort. There was one who thought the entire thing was nonsense and left with an irritation that dissipated the moment the front doors closed shut. The outlier was gone and the rest, some new and others were, what they assumed, regulars. They seemed genuinely happy and excited to be there, ready for this change and sense of community Lukas spoke of. It reminded them of decades back, when they too rallied their own family in preparation of a new leader: them. Until they flipped the script and turned their home into an underground graveyard, much to their family’s chagrin.

“I have to say, this all sounds very promising,” Dīs complimented Lukas once the meeting goers were left to their own devices. Some made a beeline for the refreshments, while others mingled about themselves and came up with ‘solutions’. “I am a little surprised, however, that there hasn’t been a community meeting before yours. At least, none that I have heard of.” 

Lukas had tilted his head at the odd phrasing, something that he wanted to poke at but knew that his energy needed to be spent elsewhere. So instead he had nodded lightly before going to his place in the middle of the room. 

It was, in many ways similar to how he had run most of the Church meetings, although he had to say it wasn’t particularly like Mass. It wasn’t as organized, and Lukas had to pause when others yelled out at him, giving the rest of the group a chagrined look, looking nervous as he pushed up his glasses with one hand. It was, somewhat of an act, acting like an everyman in front of people who appreciated humility and togetherness. While he probably had many of those qualities, at least he had at some point, he hardly was a meek person thrusted into the spotlight because of altruism. He had been trained for this, for better and worse and he knew how to endear people to him. So after giving the general announcements and answering questions with the full group with a gentle smile he let everyone break apart going to small groups. 

He managed to get back to the other, wondering exactly what their question was. At the comments Lukas raised his eyebrows slightly and said, “I’m glad you think so. I also hadn’t realized there hadn’t been a community action group before. I just haven't been able to find one to join.” It was somewhat true as he hadn’t found one, but if Lukas was being honest, he still would have made his little group as well. “I find that groups of people are often able to do more than individuals in changing an area, so I am glad for that. Did you come to a meeting because you found something concerning then?” 

“I may be wrong, of course. Despite having been here my entire life, I tend to live under a rock, as people like to say, so my word may not be as reliable as I’d like.” Though it was the absolute truth, Lukas would have no idea how literal they were being. Not yet. “I do agree with that. They all need to be on the same page, however, for there to be results. Which,” Dīs gave the small clusters of people a once over before their glinting, golden gaze swung back to Lukas, “it looks like you have a good group here. Very.. Cohesive.” They wondered when it would crash down. They wondered if it would. People were fickle.

“Concerning?” They gave pause, wondering what exactly they could say that wouldn’t be an outright lie, but as some of the patrons started to file out and with no other answers to be found, a brief air of overconfidence took over. “I came to this meeting with the hope that I might find an answer, but talk of gardens and potholes have given me nothing. I suppose that’s concerning.” Dīs adjusted the hemline of their shirt. Did they dare continue? They could take back this information, surely, at the end of it all. Would there be permanent consequences? There was only one way to find out.

Another patron walked out. “You are bound to me by the thanks you gave me,” they continued; a breath later and another patron wandered over to say their goodbyes. “But I am afraid I must be honest.. I haven’t the faintest idea what to ask of you.” Their eyes only broke from Lukas’ face any time someone walked up to say their bye for the evening, but they looked him over with interest and intrigue. They wanted to know what he thought. They wanted to know if there was anything more to him than the influential and caring speaker that he was. If not, this would be a waste.

Lukas chuckled at the phrase and nodded easily, “I understand. It’s easy not to pay attention to everything after all.” He looked at his group now leaving or talking amongst themselves fondly. While Lukas may not be a priest anymore, there was something in tending a flock that never seemed to leave him. He liked everyone here, even if some weren’t reliable or particularly kind. They thought he didn’t know he was sure, but he did and he accepted them anyway. “They are certainly eager, although I think you’ll find that a group of people always has more then one point of view. We aren’t as cohesive as you may thing.” 

“Yes, a problem or otherwise you wanted help with,” Lukas said, eyes flickering back to the other, his eyes having a hard time focusing mostly from the darkness Dīs wore. It was interesting though, more so than the rest around them. “Oh - answers for what?” Lukas continued wondering exactly what the other thought the group was. He’d been careful, patient and in anycase hadn’t done anything particularly noteworthy as of late.

Well - at the very least he didn’t think they knew about Kelly at least. He’d been careful about choosing her, and no one in the group had even noticed her disappearance yet. Still, he paused as the other continued. Lukas froze momentarily wondering what was meant by bound, his face relaxing almost instantly as others came to say goodbye back to his normal relaxed features before glancing back at the person he was feeling like he should have been more weary from. 

“I’m not sure what you mean,” Lukas said honestly, feeling like there was something he was missing. Still, he made sure most of the others were out, with a smile and gentleness he wasn’t currently feeling, wondering if the other was connected to his Sire in some way. He felt watched, and while he went through the motions of goodbyes and well wishes he wanted in a moment to leave the area and not deal with the shadowy figure who seemed to know more than Lukas about something. 

As he finally turned back to the other, Lukas’s eyes were more neutral, his light smile replaced by something more neutral than anything else. In a word, he looked less like the Father he had once been, and more like the man his Sire had wanted him to turn into. He felt almost naturally like he had been put on his back foot, and now he needed more information to know what to do about it.  “What exactly were you hoping to find here? If you want something from me, I’m willing to listen without talking of - binding I think you said? The others are gone, so feel free to speak plainly.” 

“It really is, isn’t it? For such a small place, there is quite a lot that happens in Wicked’s Rest. Well, now, cohesion doesn’t have to mean a lack of individual thought. I think their shared support for this group makes it cohesive enough.” Lukas’ compassion for these people was clear; they didn’t understand it, but they didn’t show up to understand.

They showed up to cash in on the ‘thank you’ that had been so willingly given, but even that seemed to be quite the failure. Was Lukas as boring as they assumed? Perhaps this could just be a one-off, a silly little fling that didn’t exactly further any of Dīs’ plans? An absolute waste of their time, but still something to get them out of the house, they supposed. They could come back from this slightly embarrassing fumble and Lukas wouldn’t remember a thing. A win-win in their book.

Dīs offered the younger man a sigh and, once the last of the straggler exited the space, made a grab for a nearby chair before setting into it a little heavily, though their movement was fluid and seemed unnaturally elegant despite the obvious exhaustion (and irritation) that seemed to take hold. If there was nothing interesting in the meeting, then perhaps he had something nefarious that hid beneath the surface. They expected not, considering the way the man was dressed.

“Tell me then, Lukas, one of your secrets.” One of their legs lifted and crossed over the other. Both hands knitted fingers together and clasped atop bent knee. Their eyes seemed to faintly glow as they eased into the chair. “And, do make it a good one. This room makes me itchy.” It felt too liminal, too open and plastic and metal. The smell of pastries didn’t help at all.

Lukas was still not quite sure how to take the other, but they seemed annoyed with him. In some ways he figured that must be a good sign that the other wasn’t particularly interested in the group. He didn’t want to be around them as interesting as they were, there was something dangerous that Lukas wanted to fade from their sight.  He was about to laugh and say that he wasn’t about to confess anything until there was something that felt hot in his throat urging him to tell them. So his mouth opened to say anything other than the truth. 

“I don’t think most of the people here are going to live if someone doesn’t kill me. If I don’t kill them She will and I can’t stand to see the blood again. I keep asking God to kill me and he hasn’t, so everyone’s going to die and the only thing I can do is kill them before she tortures them in front of me again. No one is going to agree to go through this hell or be a puppet. I hate Her and her games,” Lukas said horrified, his eyes wide as the words seemed to pull from him before he could stop them. He hadn’t meant to say that and as soon as he did his mouth clenched. “What exactly did you just do to me? What was that?” His voice was harsh, arms crossed as he felt the burns on his hands itch. He didn’t like thinking about this, and he didn’t know why it was pulled from him. 

“What are you? Why did you want to know that? ” Lukas said simply wondering if he was now dead. While Lizzie didn’t seem to like to keep tabs on him, he knew that she liked to test him as well, and saying that he hated her was probably a recipe for death or at least a very unpleasant time going home. 

Dīs sat there with a silent and amused bout of surprise. They hadn’t expected that juicy tidbit to fall from the stiff man with the kind eyes, yet there they were. Though, carnage was hardly shocking when it came to humankind, as there had been plenty throughout history who had felt and done far worse. There were those who relished in death, made it a hobby even. Lukas seemed to be plagued by it.

“I wanted to know because I had a chip to cash in and you delivered. But that just leaves me with more questions. If I tell you what I am, will you tell me what you are?” Lukas could very well be a regular old human with a desire to kill — or maybe even had someone forcing him to — but in Wicked’s Rest, there was always that slim chance that he wasn’t even human at all and that was far more interesting. Interesting in the sense of this man’s personal plight, but again, in Wicked’s Rest, there were monsters and murderers aplenty. What made him so special?

“That only seems fair, doesn’t it?”

Lukas didn’t like the other very much, something telling him to run away. Maybe something closer to what people called a human instinct to survival than anything else. He never wanted to admit any of that, something he knew would end up badly for him if the other released the information. He suspected that his Sire knew deep down that he was upset at her, but he couldn’t think that she would let him live knowing how deep it is. 

At the question Lukas’s jaw clenched, wanting to tell the other to leave him alone. Still, at this point he needed to know, if only to see why the other was able to do that to him. If there were people in the town that seemingly could bind him to tell the truth he needed to know, and how to stop them from doing so. If only to stop her from using it. Despite it all, he was trying to keep people alive, even if he was causing sacrifices he didn’t want to. 

So he paused looking at the other and sighed. “Yes. I will tell you what I am if you tell me what you are.” After all, no human could have done that. Lukas was certain, and it would hardly tip his hand at this point. “You have my word, which apparently you can use.” 

Did he know? Did he know anything about fae, about their magic and what they could do? You have my word, which apparently you can use. Dīs had to wonder exactly how far they could take this — or rather, how far they could keep him away from the absolute truth. At an arm’s length perhaps? Or maybe shrouded in darkness, blind to the real and given something else to merely satiate his curiosity?

They liked to trade, though. And they had a feeling that Lukas’ information was far more curious than their own, but that could also just be wishful thinking. The resignation had been well earned, they thought, and nodded, agreeing to the little barter with nothing but a bow. It seemed fair enough, didn’t it?

“I am…” They thought about a previous encounter, one that didn’t exactly go as they had hoped. Before they could pull the knowledge back that had been so freely given, they ran. A stupid mistake, but one that Dīs was keen on not repeating. “...Darkness.” Okay, it was perhaps a tad dramatic but protection was a must and truthfully, they just wanted to see what would happen. “I am the shadows that sit in these very corners and the dark that falls when the light goes out.” They looked a tad too proud of that fact, as they sat in their folding, metal chair with black hair that tickled the hard, dirty floor.

Lukas wasn’t exactly sure what he expected of the other, a frustration that grew when the answer was poetic and hot factual. Usually he would find it interesting, something to ponder and wonder about - but in a game of truth poetry rarely helped. 

Eyes flickering back to the other though, Lukas had to admit they did seem suited for the dark. Perhaps there was a creature that was full of darkness, he would have to ask Her about it if he ever got the nerve. He didn’t want to admit what he had talked about though the confession was still burning in his hands. 

“Poetic,” Lukas eventually said before pausing. “I don’t have as fancy of words for my existence, but I’ve been told I am a vampire.” It had taken a while for him to believe that, instead believing himself to be a demon. After all, demons had always felt more - real than Bram Stoker’s Dracula. “I assume I’ve played my part of your entertainment then?” 

Oh, he took it — he took the bait. That felt far too easy. While it wasn’t an outright lie, Dīs was a nymph born of shadow and darkness after all, it wasn’t the whole truth. They were surprised that this man simply just accepted that tidbit, especially a man who turned out to be inhuman — or rather, undead, as it were.

“You may not, but there are plenty of fancy words written and spoken by others. The internet especially has quite the fascination with… Vampires. How long have you been this way?” They asked, genuinely curious now. The smallest of chuckles escaped them; that was his follow up question? Did he really accept that Dīs was darkness eternal? Is that how She managed to rope him in, and why he hated Her so much, whoever this She was? 

“I wouldn’t call it entertainment.” They tapped the long, slender fingers of their left hand against the top of one of their knees in thought before they stood to their full height. Though they had more questions than answers, the magical contract had been fulfilled and there wasn’t much else to keep the nymph there. Especially not with how agitated the vampire seemed to be. “I had a tab that needed closing and you provided enough. Don’t fret, this meeting was going to happen eventually.”

They adjusted their collar, the tightness an obvious discomfort. “And if it makes you feel any better at all, know that this request was…tame compared to most.”

Lukas was a little tired of this all, lies and truth always seemed to mix to him lately anyway. Perhaps if he was still human he would feel the weight he used too, but at the end they all seemed to end up badly. He might as well let the lies be truth. 

The other seemed amused by something he said, but in all honesty he was used to playing that part too. After all She seemed to delight in making him a personal theatrical play. Still, it didn’t exactly seem mean either. “ I’m sure. I usually am fairly good with words, but this isn’t the type of thing I often speak on.” That was true, in the strictest sense he didn’t like being a vampire. He would, instead, like to be almost anything else if possible. So he often waxed philosophy on other things. “I don’t know exactly, Twenty years or so? Long enough,” Lukas said, not feeling compelled too. It just seemed like an answer that didn’t cost much. 

The agitation melted into something closer to tired acceptance. It was something he was good at, accepting things that apparently weren't in his control. After all, he was the pinnacle of blind devotion. If the other wanted to bend his will too, it wasn’t as if he wasn’t used to it by now. Nodding slightly he sighed and moved to start moving the chairs. “I still don’t know what tab I had - but whatever it was I am glad that it is filled. I will respectfully ask you not to tell people what I said here. I cannot stop you from doing so, but I can at least ask.” 

Lukas’s eyes glanced over at the other and said, “Feel free to take any snacks you might want.” 

Twenty years or so. The answer was surprising and elicited a furrow of their brow. That was nothing — a blip in time, barely even a thought for the centuries old nymph. It didn’t help that the man looked young, at least in comparison to most humans, but that could have also been caused by the vampirism. Dīs didn’t know enough to make a concrete opinion on the matter, but they felt pity about his undead state all the same.

“To each their own. But you are young. A long life has its way of changing… Perspectives. And don’t worry,” they stole a breath; the darkness in the room seemed to breathe with them, slow and waning like the recession of the ocean tide, “that is not my intention. I.. Your secret is safe with me.” Their stomach turned, the sharp pain of nausea acute and localized. Lies were useful but they ate away at the inside.

The idea of the snacks didn’t help, but they pushed through the discomfort just enough to politely decline the offer with a shake of their head. “You’re kind.. But I’m fine. You should…” Dīs paused. No, they were not fine, and although the fine was in relation to food substances, their magic couldn’t tell the difference. Either they left immediately or they were going to embarrass themself. “You should donate them,” they pushed the words out quickly and before Lukas could say a word, the shadowed man hurried to the door.

“A pleasure,” they finished before promptly disappearing from the vampire’s view. They didn’t leave the premises immediately, however. Instead, a passerby or two would find them with their head behind a bush. 

[radioiaci]

@truearchangel ⧐ Michael has raided Lucifer’s closet for this, wearing the King of Hell’s clothes. It meant the least amount of work involved in dressing up and he wasn’t informed he needed to do this until last minute. So he broke into his brother’s room, stole his clothes, and was now attempting this “trick or treating” act he was informed of. Of course he wasn’t leaving the hotel to do this, which meant the Archangel was wandering around looking for people to bother. Most of them had gotten involved in the “Halloween Party” that Charlie had elected to throw. He does manage to find Alastor though. Locating the Radio Demon himself observing the hotel operations from the top of the balcony, he slowly wandered his way over toward him. Spinning the makeshift apple headed cane in his hand, an illusion casted over his sword to achieve this. When he reached his side he sat the cane down, resting it against the balcony and folded his hands in front of him. “Happy Halloween. As is apparently tradition I shall now perform either a trick or a treat. Given your personality, clearly you would prefer the trick.” With absolutely no time to let Alastor process that, he reached his hand up and slid his fingers inside the Radio Demon’s hair. He pulled them back quickly, holding in his hands a small pocket watch. “Ohhh, magic, wherever did I get it from?” Michael the proceeded to grab Alastor’s hand and place the pocket watch in his palm. “And treat. Are they supposed to be edible? Ah, I covered both grounds anyway. We don’t need to do this again. Look, it’s got a deer on it!” He was very happy with this. “I found it at a store when exploring a bit down here. It reminded me of you. I don’t think it works though. Maybe you can repair it?” UNPROMPTED ASKS.

Alastor is not always such a sourpuss when it comes to hotel goings on and the celebration of holidays here or there. While he tends to have a slight preference for more comfortable atmosphere of Christmas, he understands that Halloween is quite the opportunity to indulge in a bit of drink, if not sweets. Any candy he obtains, anyway, is given away to those who have a finer taste for it, while he nurses a glass in hand of some choice liquor.

When Michael drifts his way, it is clear by the color of his eyes and the slightly different coif of his hair that it is not Lucifer in that ridiculous suit, his amusement evident as he allows himself a chuckle-snort at the other's appearance. He may be at least a few drinks in, otherwise it may have taken a bit more to get him to express so openly.

"My personality entails itself to a trick, does it?" He asks, watching with some relative interest as Michael reaches up towards his head. At first, he is a bit alarmed as to what, exactly, the other has planned, but the producing of the watch as if it is some grand magic trick (and not the typical sort of trick one expects on Halloween) makes Alastor blink as it is set in his hand.

And then he is allowing himself an actual laugh. A bit clouded in static and interference, but still genuine all the same.

"I think you may have-"

Gotten his tricks mixed up, he had been about to say. But the pocket watch catches his attention and he turns it about in his hands, admiring.

"Hm. I think if I have the right tools, I just might be able to."

Alastor exhales, uncertain as to what he has done to appear in Michael's thoughts at all when they are not immediately in the midst of interaction, but... Well. He'll hold onto that pocket watch, placing it neatly into his pocket. He carries one already - but it is overdue for a replacement, anyway.

"I'll have to show you what the youth of my time did on Halloween night when one decided to choose a 'trick' instead of a treat."

The radio demon offers the angel a wink.

"I'm sure it'll be a fun learning experience."

[crystalprofessor]

Kris' biggest weakness is that she's pragmatic to a fault. This most obviously manifests as her, uh, questionable work ethic (girl please take literally one day off), but it means she also tends to hold other people to the same standards she does herself. Which are, I must reiterate, incredibly questionable. One one hand, she has strong feelings about the freedom and public access of knowledge and education and refuses to compromise in regards to her beliefs that deeper understanding of scientific concepts is integral to a functional society, that people MUST be aware of what their government (League included) is doing, and that research should be shared freely—at least among peers—and properly vetted. On the other, she's also incredibly stubborn about the above in such a way that she has little patience for people who aren't necessarily as forthcoming or cooperative with information. She dislikes people who are deliberately obtuse or avoidant. And, again, that work ethic. Honey, no, not everyone needs to have a twenty seven step plan lined up to obtain their PhD by the time they graduate middle school. Though she doesn't necessarily expect everyone to put in the same amount of work she does... she also doesn't really know what a healthy amount of work is, so her standards are still pretty well fucked.

[blissfullyapillow]

Hi Pillow! SleepyIntrovert here. I saw you updated your matchups so I was wondering if I could have songs for the matchups you've already done for me and then a new one please. I'd love if you could do another male genshin matchup along with a jujutsu kaisen one.

Here's some more information for you to work with:

-I can be really sarcastic in an affectionate way with the people I care for and love

-I have dark humor but I also LOVE puns and silly, stupid things

-No matter how hard times get I somehow retain hope and push through. I often feel the need to confine in someone close to me even though it's hard for me to open up

-I love to talk about my interests especially if someone genuinely enjoys listening to me

Thank you and much love xoxo

Notes: Request accepted! I will happily do so for you! I hope you like your matchups, it took me a while to think of them this time around haha

─── ⋆⋅☆⋅⋆ ──

How your relationship sounds: 

♡ ⋮ Shikanoin Heizou ₊ ⊹

𖦹 ⋮ Lucifer ✶

✦⋮ Blade 𓆩♡𓆪

‎♡‧₊˚ ⋮ Welt ⊱  ۫ ׅ ✧

New:

  ๋࣭⭑⋮ Kaveh ✧

⋆｡˚ ⋮ Toge Inumaki ˚◞♡

-`♡´-

Masterlist

`✧˖ °. ✉ ⋆ ˚｡ ‹𝟹

I match you with: Kaveh

Credits: sillyakito on pinterest

`✧˖ °. ✉ ⋆ ˚｡ ‹𝟹

I feel like Kaveh would naturally be attracted to your energy, the fact that you are shy and nerdy would initially pique his interest. 

Initially he may avoid talking to you in fear of making you uncomfortable, but a chance encounter proves his worries were based on fiction. You’re surprisingly easy to talk to, just a bit reserved. 

He’ll tentatively approach you after simply because he enjoyed your conversation and wants to get to know you better, and soon you two develop a blossoming friendship that will later evolve into a romantic relationship you only read about in books.

Kaveh definitely has a hint of romanticism about him, and that translates into his ideals and how he views himself as well as the world around him. He simply adores how chaotic you can be once you let your guard down. It literally makes him swoon when you feel comfortable enough to reveal your full self to him, and in turn he’ll do the same.

You often tease him for how sassy he can be, which results in an “argument” of whose sassier versus more sarcastic. You win the title of the latter option.

You two have similar dislikes so it’s not uncommon to happen upon the two of you whispering in each other’s ears, gossiping about a certain individual who just can’t take a hint. Kaveh finds it particularly amusing if someone works you up and you feel the need to rant to him, but nonetheless he is wholeheartedly supportive and always willing to lend an ear.

You two are each other’s source of light in dark times. Kaveh will do everything in his power to look after you and assure you of your worth whenever times are hard, and you don’t hesitate to reciprocate the same amount of energy for him.

Although Kaveh tends to get fed up easily he’s surprisingly patient with you. People who know Kaveh are often surprised when some comments of yours will go without a full blown retort on his end, a simple flick of your forehead seems to be enough to shut you up anyhow. 

One of your favorite ways to spend time with Kaveh is to be in the same room as him, doing a different activity as Kaveh pours his heart into his work. He often works late into the night. He doesn’t expect you to wait up for him but whenever you do it’s his favorite reward after a hard day of work.

You will happily lend an ear to Kaveh’s rants when a customer insists on doing things their way, without taking into account his vision, and Kaveh will listen to you talk about your interests with a tender smile on his face.

Your relationship with Kaveh is something of envy, but that is the least of your concerns. 

You’re both too lost in each other to pay any mind to the jealous stares of passersby, after all.

‧₊˚✩彡

“You didn’t have to wait for me, you know.” His voice brushes along your cheek, startling you slightly. You lift your head from the book you’re currently reading, your gaze meets his, as bright as a shiny red apple.

“I know. I always want to though. I enjoy spending time with you like this.” Kaveh hums in appreciation as he buries his head into your shoulder. He takes in a deep breath, the feeling tickling the skin at the base of your neck.

You giggle. You feel Kaveh’s lips form a smile against your skin.

“Give me a few minutes and I’ll be at your side.” You only nod in acknowledgement, pressing a kiss to the crown of his head as he reluctantly detaches himself from you.

You watch him leave the room, and moments later the sound of the shower running fills the empty silence.You choose to continue reading in hopes of finishing the chapter before Kaveh returns.

You succeed in your wish. Just as you put your book down Kaveh returns. He looks rejuvenated as he playfully launches himself onto the bed beside you. You share in joyous laughter as his arms wrap around you, pulling you closer.

You spend the rest of the night talking about anything and everything, well past midnight, until your eyelids are too heavy and fall shut of their own accord.

You always sleep the best in Kaveh’s arms, and he’s never too shy to admit that he shares your sentiment. 

.ೃ࿔*:☯ ᨐฅ

I match you with: Toge Inumaki

.ೃ࿔*:☯ ᨐฅ

You two would definitely match each other’s energy seamlessly.

Witty comments are a common occurrence between the both of you. Inumaki may use a select vocabulary vocally, but that all changes over text or other written means.

You have gaming sessions together, ranging from cute Minecraft world dates to intense sessions of rage on a fps game, say fortnite. You’ll send Toge those “Games couples should play together” videos and he’ll show up later with said game already downloaded or held in hand, ready to play with you.

You’ll flirt with him only for him to reciprocate, very eagerly might I add, via his actions. It tends to leave you flustered and wanting more.

The world of Jujustu Kaisen is not a happy one, so your positive mindset is a welcome one for him. Sometimes he needs the pick me up and you’re always the first person he turns to.

Undoubtedly any mischief is a result of the both of you; it’s expected at this point. You’re menaces together, Inumaki often working behind the scenes as you help him execute harmless and silly pranks on his fellow classmates. It’s not always appreciated but that doesn’t stop the both of you from laughing your asses off.

He’d definitely share your dark humor. One night you two were up silently chuckling after you showed Inumaki a horrendous joke you stumbled across while scrolling through social media. It was something you probably shouldn’t have been laughing at but it made it funnier for the both of you.

Toge doesn’t mind listening to you. He often listens to others since he can only say so much, but with you he has no qualms about silently sitting by your side as you rant on and on about random topics that come to mind.

Sometimes he feels guilty that he can’t necessarily communicate with you in the ‘normal’ sense of the word, but you always shower him with affection and reassurance whenever he brings up these concerns. Your acceptance of him comforts him more than you’ll ever know, and it makes him fall for you harder every time. 

Your relationship is very unique, but just as loving all the same. You’re each other’s favorite person; it’s unusual to find the both of you apart when you aren’t separated due to work or jujutsu/curse related reasons. 

。°˖🍙*ੈ✩‧₊˚

You open the door expecting to find Inumkai standing on the other side.

and you do, but you’re met with a delightful surprise.

He stands on the other side, holding a few items and what appears to be a letter of some sorts in his hand. “Mustard leaf?” You don’t say a word, moving to the side to allow him in. He wordlessly reaches for your hand; your hands naturally seek each other out, slotting comfortably against each other. He gives your hand a gentle squeeze as he leads you to a nearby spot to sit down.

That happens to be your couch, and you sit down as directed. Toge slips his phone out of his pocket, and you catch his drift. You quickly get up to grab your phone, returning to the couch as you unlock it. Your lockscreen, a picture of you with Toge, a candid mirror selfie as you both make silly faces at the camera, brings a smile to your face. \

You open his messages to read his heartfelt words. He also provides an explanation to his sudden appearance, your former words of dismay an obvious indicator. 

“You bought these things for me because of the situation I told you about?” You murmur the words softly, but he nods his confirmation.

You gingerly take the items and letter from his hand, all things you’ve said in passing many moons ago, and unshed tears take residence on your lashes. 

He silently reaches out to you, whipping the tear that stubbornly escapes the confines of your lashes.

“Toge.. I.. thank you..” You struggle to contain your emotions, but you should know better. Toge simply steps back and opens his arms wide. 

He doesn’t wait long; you throw yourself into his arms as you allow yourself to be vulnerable with him. 

He sighs; he’s content to be here for you when you’re feeling upset, holding you in his arms for eternity… or until you’re ready to face the world with a smile once more.

and that’s exactly what he does. He’s truly happy he has you, and he’ll remain by your side for the time he has left, and forevermore.

 

Dedicated to,

♡˗ˏ✎*ೃ˚ :SleepyIntrovert: :;

[interculturalcomm335italy]

Italian Business

Are they running late or just from Southern Italy? The difference in opinions about punctuality is probably the most prominent disconnect between U.S. business and Italian business. It is seen as giving a good first impression in American business, it is unfair and untrue to assume the same can be said about other Italians. Although Italians are relationship oriented so it is expected to have animated business meetings. It is normal for meetings to disperse without any concrete decisions being made. Expect many interruption and simultaneous stories but for the initial interaction it should remain formal. Regardless of the interaction, whether that is through an email, fax, or on a phone call; it is important to specify whether you can speak Italian or not. There aren’t many people in Italian business that speak English, but most are willing to use a professional translator if they are given that information as early as possible.

It is important to use last names and titles until you are properly introduced to one another and they request to use first name terms. Ensure that you exchange business cards with the other person and take a noticeable amount of time to look at and read the business card before putting it away. Milan is said to be the fashion capital of the world, so it goes without saying that presenting yourself in a stylish, professional manner has a huge impact on your overall first impression. It is said that masculine presenting people tend to wear dark formal attire while feminine presenting individuals tend to wear lighter colored pant suits or skirt suits with minimalistic accessories. In Italian business culture, it is a rare practice to give gifts. The only time it is seen as acceptable and as a symbol of friendship, is after building a trusting long-term relationship with the person. Even then, it needs to be small and not obviously expensive.

If an American businessperson were to attempt to get a job in Italy a potential communication conflict might arise due to a few factors that I briefly touched on earlier. The practice of the business cards being exchanged at the beginning of the meeting, rather than the normal American way of giving it to another person as a way of being able to contact them again after the meeting. I think that might seem rude or inconsiderate if the American upon receiving the card was to immediately put it away without at least reading it. Another one might be the importance put on the hierarchy of power, many of the young and entry level positions will be invited to speak their ideas during meetings but the person with the highest status will receive the credit if it turns out to be profitable. I think that there would be a large conflict of ideals when it came time to receive credit for one’s work and the American isn’t ‘properly’ recognized. Lastly, the American businessperson will most likely have some conflict when the meeting ends without making any concrete decisions. American businesspeople are focused on productivity and without that sense of progress I think there will be some conflict in adapting to the new business environment.

In the opposite situation of an Italian businessperson coming to the U.S. to get a job, Italians are eager to get to know the people with whom they are working. They will ask personal questions about your family and your home life, which could interfere with some people’s way of communicating in the workplace. To help your existing employees as well as the new one, providing training on effective conflict resolution strategies while stressing the importance of constructive communication in maintaining a positive work environment might solve future or current problems. Another way that a U.S. manager could help their new international employee become more accustomed to the expectations related to work is to clearly communicate to them about concrete deadlines, performance standards, and work hours. Additionally, if there were a way that the manager could offer language support for any employees that may not be fluent in the team’s primary language, would accurately help them cope with the fast-paced environment. Lastly, the smartest and most helpful thing that U.S. manager could do is set up regular one-on-one check-ins with all employees to discuss their experiences and any additional challenges any of them might be facing.       

[hekate1308]

There Are Berries This Year On The Holly, A Drowley Advent Calendar December 2

Masterpost

Read it on AO3

It would have been one thing for Winchester to try and ruin his good looks by donning what could best be described as an insult to everyone’s eyesight – he’d just waved at Crowley, so he could simply turn around and get back into his house – but in that, he turned out to be mistaken.

“Hey” Dean walked up to him with another one of those devastating smiles. “How’s it going?”

Crowley had never been one for neighbourhood gossip, and had made that quite clear soon after moving in, so that he was rather used to everyone leaving him alone. The fact that Winchester apparently wanted to talk therefore took him by surprise. “I’m well, thank you. You yourself?”

“Oh, I’m great” he chuckled. “As usual when I get to put up the decorations… you haven’t started yet?”

“I don’t put up decorations.”

“Ah, sorry man, I tend to forget that not everyone celebrates… no offense.”

“None taken” he said to his own surprise, even through this was one of the things that would normally have irritated him. It must be those green eyes, or that smile, or the way his freckles…

You’re over fifty years old. Get a hold of yourself.

“Well, I have fun” he shrugged, “Even if some of the gang seem to think I’m going overboard. Not all, of course – Charlie would probably put up even more than I, and Benny usually goes along with Andrea, and she’s a fan…”

He really wondered why Winchester was telling him all of this, although the real question was why he was still listening. Normally, he would have extradited himself from the conversation already.

“Mind, Sammy usually gives me the spiel about how we are adults and that this is really not necessary and that I’m just blowing up my electricity bill, but I know he loves it. After all, I was the one decorating our room when we were kids.”

So Sammy must be a sibling. He filed the information away, although he wouldn’t have been able to say why.

“What about you? Do you have any family dropping by for the holidays?”

Those were some intrusive questions he had, and ones that most definitely were not – “No. My mother and I are not close.”

“Oh”. His face fell. “Sorry, man. That can’t be easy, this time of the year.”

It wasn’t easy during any other time of the year but he didn’t mention it.

“Tell you what, whenever you feel lonely, you can just knock on my door. No point wasting time being sad.”

That was not something Crowley had expected to hear today, or ever. Not that he was lonely – he had never been lonely. As a matter of fact, he had always vastly preferred his own company to that of others, except for a certain amount of time, but again, that was out of the question because Dean lived next door…

He did know how he was supposed to react, however, and so he said, “Thank you.”

Dean winked at him. “See you around.”

And he returned to his house, as devastatingly attractive as before, ugly sweater or not.

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

Over the next day or two, Crowley had to reluctantly admit that he was thinking a great deal more about Dean Winchester than he ought to have. He shouldn’t have been thinking about him, period – he was the new neighbour, and that was all there was to it. Yes, he had come to talk to him, but… As he had proven by that very talk, he was what was usually referred to as a people person and had probably been feeling bored.

And anyway, what was Crowley supposed to do? Just walk up to his house and ring the doorbell? Winchester had seemed to imply as much, but that was not something that he would ever do. 

Still, he found himself observing the property next door closely when he could have been doing so much more useful things.

He quickly learned that Dean must have a nine-to-five job, or at least something close to it, for he left his house most days around the same time, although now and then he stayed at home, implying the possibility that he could work remotely sometimes. He also appeared to simply go for drives in that stunning car of his from time to time, which was rather to be expected; after all, one didn’t keep such a car just to have it standing around…

And then there were the visitors. Crowley had decided they must be the “gang “Dean had spoken about – almost every evening, one or two would drop by, whether unannounced or not, he had no way of saying. The very tall man with the long hair came by the most often, so he was probably this Sam Winchester had talked about…

Not, he reminded himself once again, that it mattered.

[honorhearted]

"Our parties can get a bit spirited, I'm afraid," John said, explaining away Benjamin's injury -- or at least, what he'd been told. "I can't believe Mr. Eddleston's elbow just flew up like that!"

"Oh, he certainly had a reason," Benjamin replied, sparing Emma a wry glance. "He gets most spirited about his Plott Hound."

"You were serious about the hogs? I thought you merely had a strange sense of humor."

Despite Emma's prior rancor, there was clear amusement -- perhaps scorn? -- in her eyes. Unruffled, Benjamin asked, "And what's so surprising about raising livestock? We all need to eat, do we not?"

Her query was expected, and already one that John, himself, had asked. What did surprise him, however, was Emma's sympathy towards the soldiers -- perhaps all solders, given her commentary.

Reassembling his features into a passive smile, Benjamin replied, "As many as it takes. At the start, I thought we could begin with forty. If more are needed, I have several hoglets being raised as we speak."

Emma straightened in her seat. "Forgive me, Mister Bolton, but my father knows my stance on the matters regarding the war. My mother was from the British Isles, so people tend to think we're loyalists. But, in reality, my family is the only thing I aim to be loyal to."

Benjamin blinked at her, intrigued to find his suspicions confirmed. "As any honorable daughter should be," he reassured. "I, too, am merely lending my aid for the sake of family and friends and country -- because truly, how am I to know if the men abroad are honorable, decent men whose lives are worth the sacrifice? I'm merely abiding by the desires of my own family."

Emma shrugged. "That is to say, yes, the hog trade could be useful, but there might be better investments yet to come."

Benjamin tightened his hands. "Such as? In this day and age, I'm afraid that waiting around for better opportunities isn't quite the luxury we once had."

She inquired about his textiles then, and with a snort -- God, she was good -- he coolly allowed, "Not the Caribbean, if that's what you're implying. I do not build my wealth upon the backs of slaves for my enterprise. Everyone involved is local, and of my own choosing, though we've sent off for a fair amount of trade along the English Channel."

When Emma leaned towards him, challenging him in her demeanor, Benjamin subconsciously found himself doing the same. "As of last year, we upgraded to looms," he said. "Some of my traders and employees -- the older ones, naturally -- are more dead-set in their ways and stick to the roller print method, but they're so quick and efficient that I wouldn't dare ask them to change."

At present, everything seemed like a game to this woman. The tragic fact remained that he rather liked what they were playing, so he was in no hurry to recant.

Before Benjamin could offer more information, a servant stepped lightly into the room, then bent over to whisper something into John's ear, who straightened with a look of delight.

"Ah, it would see Mr. Willoughsby is here with details on our latest endeavor!" he exclaimed. "Excuse me a moment, won't you? I'll return shortly, Mr. Bolton, but please: continue engaging my daughter in our plans. Perhaps you'll make an admirer of her yet!"

The two men exited the room, and then Benjamin and Emma were left in silence. His stiff posture instantly softened into a huff. "Did I pass your test?" he asked. "Or are you going to make yet another pig joke, and then ask for my entire genealogy? Seeing how our two families are going to be joined very soon, of course."

He allowed a smirk, relaying to her that he had not changed his mind about his earlier intentions, no matter how false they truly were.

"Thank you." She replied curtly, refusing to even look in his direction while accepting his compliment. Without moving her gaze towards him, she volleyed an attempted compliment back. "Your face seems to be healing well."

Given our stimulating talk last night, I'd been hoping we might run into one another again. Emma bristled at how casually he spoke of their encounter. Her fingers curled into fists and, to quell the trembling in her bones, she kept her gaze on her father. She would not let him rile her up again. He had come very close to winning last night and Emma refused to give up the ghost this time.

"Daddy, you're beginning to sound like Aunt Caro. If I didn't know any better, I'd think you were the one who spent three months abroad." She joked, but the smile didn't quite reach her eyes. Although Emma had never known her mother, John Dunster had always been doting towards his only child. She never doubted her purpose nor her worth--or at least she didn't most of the time, in different company-- but she wasn't used to him doing so in front of others. In London, it had made sense for her aunt and uncle to introduce her with such high praises. They were trying to attract attention then, but here? Attention from Mister Bolton was the last thing Emma desired.

"You were serious about the hogs?" Despite her determination to avoid engaging with the enemy, Emma couldn't help but shoot him an amused albeit irritated glance. "I thought you merely had a strange sense of humor."

As Bolton continued, Emma turned her attention away from her father's guest, listening to him as her eyes remained glued to her lap.

"And how many hogs do you propose for such a trade? I admit, I'm not entirely sold on the idea of continuing to fund atrocities, but," She sighed. "The poor soldiers do not deserve to suffer for the Crown's misgivings. Whatever side he's on, no man deserves to starve fighting someone else's battles." As though she'd forgotten with whose company she was in, Emma raised her eyes and flushed.

"Forgive me, Mister Bolton, but my father knows my stance on the matters regarding the war. My mother was from the British Isles, so people tend to think we're loyalists. But, in reality," Sparing a glance to her father, Emma continued. "My family is the only thing I aim to be loyal to." After a moment, Emma finally turned to face Bolton, an inquisitive look on her face. "That is to say, yes, the hog trade could be useful, but there might be better investments yet to come.

"As for textiles, may I ask, where exactly do you get your resources from, Mister Bolton? Where do you collect your materials and from where do you source your dyes? Do you produce the textiles domestically, or do you rely on importation? And do you still employ the use of a roller printing for quality, or have you adapted to the use of the power looms to increase production?" Leaning forward, Emma tilted her head, mildly taunting yet sincere in her questioning. "I am eager to hear more about the details, if you don't mind terribly."

[2023megan]

Oh, you fancy, huh?

The role of the Burberry check is what drives consumers to Burberry in the first place, but its easily mimicable pattern is responsible for the rise of counterfeits, which damaged its luxury appeal to existing customers in 2003. I think Bravo’s decision to reduce the SKU with the checkered pattern and make the checkered pattern more incognito, only visible inside clothing and coats, is the right decision. First, reducing the products with the pattern reduces the ability for counterfeits to be produced, especially as those items tend to be accessories and scarves. Second, I believe hiding the checkered pattern makes it more desirable. Luxury items are more attractive when they don’t scream the designer all over it, and since Burberry is more of a “classic” luxury brand it’s products should not be gaudy. 

Luxury items are status symbols, and the purpose of counterfeits is to exploit the products perception as a sign of wealth. I think the brand that is least likely to be hurt by the production of counterfeits is Hermes, specifically because of the Birkin bag. Hermes has made it almost impossible for counterfeits to exists, and those that exist are easily recognizable, not because of the quality of the bag itself but because of person who owns the bag. Unlike other designers, no one can walk into a Hermes store and buy a Birkin bag. You must be invited and your invitation as well as the bag offered to you is based on your relationship with the store and purchase history. Therefore, you usually have to have already spent a significant amount of money before this opportunity arises and you’re expected to pay $10,000+ for one of those bags. It’s foolish to try to mimic owning a real bag and highly looked down upon by customers. 

The reason this has been so successful with Hermes as opposed to Burberry is because most customers have been priced out of owning a Birkin bag, so it's hard to replicate the ability to own one. However, what’s impressive about Burberry is how identifiable the brand is to non-customers, and even non-target customers. This is not the same for Hermes. I bet most people would not be able to name Hermes if a Birkin was placed in front of them, but would be able to identify Burberry with the checkered pattern. 

My group is focusing on The Boston Herald for our branding lab project. The Boston Herald is facing a problem that most local newspapers are facing, which is a decline in circulation from the inability to digitalize and lack of awareness amongst younger generations. Newspapers face similar challenges around reputation and credibility, especially with more politically motivated articles. A challenge will be finding a way for younger consumers to trust that the Boston Herald is providing truthful news. One way to solve this is to leverage the trust that customers have in friends and family to provide them reliable information by implement a “share” feature that is easy to use. This will create the ability to receive reference articles from those you trust, which will boost their own trust in the paper overall. 

[illidesence]

Cooking, with a Twst

—————————

Summary:

How well I think Twst characters can cook/What it would be like Cooking with them PT.1 Dorm-Leader Edition!!

Fluff

A/n: This is all for fun, if some information is inaccurate it wasn’t intentional!

—————————

Being completely honest, I don’t think he can cook very well

Maybe a couple pastries from watching/talking to Trey, but other than that probably not much else

Riddle TRYS to help but kept getting the measurements wrong

^^ the first time you two tried cooking together without Trey’s assistance, he hadn’t put enough water in the dish and burnt it bad enough the sprinklers went off

Besides, he prefers to watch people cook than actually do so

He watches British Bake-Off

Overall 2/10

This man can COOK

Well, meat dishes that is

I’d like to think he wouldn’t make Ruggie get him food when Cheka is around, instead he cooks for himself and Cheka

You and Him tend to argue about adding vegetables to the dish

^^ you end up having to make the vegetables while he makes the rest, but he’ll eat around the vegetables and give them to Cheka

He doesn’t cook very often though, so don’t get excited

Overall 8/10

He is AMAZING at making fried food, but don’t expect it too often

After all, he does have a reputation, so most times it’ll be healthy, like a salad or something

He won’t force you to eat the same things as him, but would prefer if you did

Back on track, I think he has tried AT LEAST once to make food using potions, and you unfortunately are his guinea pig

This was the first time in a LONG time he had messed up a potion, aka you were in the infirmary for a few hours

Overall 4.5/10

Do you like having a kitchen? No? Perfect!

Your poor kitchen will be a mess or in flames within 10 minutes

Since he’s mostly had everything cooked FOR him his whole life, I don’t believe he has much of any cooking experience

Much like Riddle, he m i g h t be able to cook a few things from watching Jamil or cooks at home

Kalim I love you, but you’re banned from the kitchen. Or Jamil is supervising

Overall 1/10 (1 cause I physically can’t give him a 0)

He can cook really well, but refuses to cook anything unhealthy

He always makes sure you,him, and all of Pomefiore are eating healthy and vitamin filled foods no matter what

Small snack? Have a granola bar. Thirsty? Have some of Epels apple juice, no preservatives of course. Breakfast? Have- you get the point

Will look at you as if you just asked him to burn all of his skincare products if you’re making something he deems as unhealthy

^^ Then he proceeds to make the most delicious (and healthy) dish you’ve ever had

Overall 8.5/10

The best you’re getting out of this man is instant ramen

He mostly gets takeout, or Ortho (willingly) cooks for him

If you asked him to help you make Breakfast/Lunch/Dinner, trust me he’ll try. But in the end it’ll be you doing everything and him passing you ingredients

Also, the amount of dishes, specifically cups, he has left in his room

“Idia, can I have a cup?” *cue Idia silently and shamefully handing you a cup* “Thank you”

Overall 0.5/10

Either Lilias cooking traumatized him into learning how to cook, or he followed in Lilias footsteps and can’t cook for shit

But we’ll go with option A

He’s still a bit naive to what some items do, but he has a pretty good grasp on how most things work

“Child of man, what is a…Toaster….”

He enjoys making things that Lilia TRIED making for Malleus during his childhood, but horribly failed

But even he has his moments

One time he set the oven to 500 degrees instead of 400, and he HAD put the cutting board in the oven

^^nothing a small reminder can’t fix though

Sebek will be deathstaring you the entire time if you’re cooking with Mal

Overall 7/10

—————————

Requests are open!