#so most may not match the timeline of the movie

[rynwritesreid]

Enamoured Expectations|| Spencer Reid

Summary: You and Spencer have been dating for a while (there isn’t a specific timeline in this story, so you could have been dating for as long as you want) and Penelope tells you a hunch she has.

Content: Established relationship. Use of Y/N and Y/L/N. This is all just fluff. Fem! reader.

words: 1.4k

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You were truly and utterly deeply in love with Dr Spencer Reid. You knew if you hadn’t been friends with Penelope, you two may have never met, and even if you had, you doubt that Spencer would have even given you a second look. Spencer treats you like a princess, he texts you every chance he gets when he is on a case, he buys you flowers and books when you are feeling down, he orders your favourite food when you don’t feel like eating, he calls you beautiful when you are feeling ugly, and he always says “I love you” before going anywhere.

 

Whenever the team was away on a case, you would go hangout with Penny. She was your best friend after all. You would bring her lunch and let her rant about whatever case they were all working on at the moment. She would always bring up how Spencer couldn’t shut up about you and how amazing you are. Penny thought she was the best match maker to walk on this earth.

 

On one particular evening, you were hanging out with Penny at her apartment. Spencer was away on a case, but he had called earlier to say goodnight and tell you he loved you. It was sweet and made your heart flutter with joy. You and Penny were watching a movie and munching on popcorn when she suddenly turned to you.

 

"Y/N, I have something to tell you," Penny said, her eyes sparkling mischievously.

 

"What is it?" you asked, curious.

 

"I think Spencer is planning to propose to you," she said, grinning widely.

 

“What makes you say that?”

 

Penny leaned in closer, a conspiratorial glint in her eyes. "Well, he's been acting super secretive lately, and he's been asking me a lot of questions about what kind of engagement ring you might like. Plus, he's been talking about the future a lot and how he can't wait to spend the rest of his life with you."

 

You and Spencer had talked about marriage before, you’ve even talked about having children. You had been in love with the idea of been Mrs Reid, and the mother of his children after the first month of dating each other.

 

But hearing that Spencer might be planning to propose felt surreal. You felt like you were in a dream, and you didn't want to wake up. Your heart was pounding in your chest, and your hands were shaking with excitement.

 

"Penny, are you serious?" you asked, trying to contain your emotions.

 

"Dead serious," Penny replied, nodding her head. "I've never seen Spencer this happy before. I think he's finally ready to take the next step with you."

 

You felt a rush of warmth spread through your body, and you couldn't help but smile from ear to ear. You had been waiting for this moment for so long, and now it seemed like it was finally going to happen.

 

"I can't believe it," you said, still in shock. "I mean, I knew we were in love, but I didn't think he was ready for marriage yet."

 

“If you could hear how he talks about you, how he talks about his future with you, then you would understand that he most defiantly ready for marriage, and more.”

 

Penny's words hung in the air, and a smile slowly spread across your face as you felt a wave of happiness wash over you. You had always dreamed of spending your life with Spencer, and the thought of him proposing sent shivers down your spine. You could feel your heart racing as you thought about the moment when he would ask you to be his wife.

 

"Wow," you breathed, still trying to process the news. "I can't believe it. Do you really think he's going to propose?"

 

"I do," Penny said confidently. "And you know what that means, right?"

 

You raised an eyebrow at her, not sure where she was going with this.

 

"It means that you're going to have to start thinking about wedding planning," she said with a grin.

 

You laughed at her teasing tone, but inside, your mind was already racing with ideas. You had always loved the idea of a small, intimate wedding, surrounded by your closest friends and family.

 

*

Spencer had returned home from the case, he seemed down, it had obviously been a tough case. You hated seeing him like this.

 

You greeted him with a hug and a kiss, feeling happy to be in his arms again. As you both settled on the couch, you couldn't help but notice the sadness in his eyes. You reached for his hand, and he entwined his fingers with yours, holding on tight.

 

"Is everything okay, Spencer?" you asked, concerned.

 

He let out a sigh and shook his head. "It's just the case. It was a tough one, and I can't stop thinking about it."

 

“Is there any way I can help you? Do you need anything?”

 

“No. You just been here and been you is all the help I’ll ever need.”

 

You smiled at him, feeling grateful for his love and the comfort he always provided. You knew that talking about the case would help him, but you also knew that he needed some time to process everything on his own.

 

"Okay, well, if you need anything, just let me know," you said softly, pressing a kiss to his temple.

 

Spencer leaned his head on your shoulder, and you could feel his warm breath on your skin. You loved the way he fit perfectly against you, and you felt a deep sense of contentment wash over you.

 

"I missed you so much," he said, his voice muffled against your skin.

 

"I missed you too, Spencer," you replied, stroking his hair gently.

 

You loved him like this. He was open with you, he trusted you, and he was vulnerable with you. It made you feel like you had a special place in his heart, and that you were truly meant to be together. As you held him close, you knew that you would do anything to make him happy, and that included saying yes to his proposal.

 

Suddenly, Spencer sat up and turned to face you. "Y/N, there's something I need to ask you," he said, his eyes shining with intensity.

 

Your heart skipped a beat as you looked into his eyes. You could see the love and affection he had for you, and you knew that this was the moment you had been waiting for.

 

"What is it?" you asked, your voice barely above a whisper.

 

Spencer took a deep breath and reached into his pocket. He pulled out a small velvet box and handed it to you, his hands shaking slightly.

 

"Y/N, I love you with all my heart. You make me happier than I ever thought was possible, and I can't imagine spending my life with anyone else. And I imagined I would do this in a different place, at a different time. But you’ve made it impossible for me to wait any longer. Miss Y/N Y/L/N will you marry me?”

 

You felt a rush of emotion flood through you as you looked at the small box in your hand. You opened it to reveal a stunning diamond ring, sparkling in the light. Tears pricked at the corner of your eyes as you realized that this was it. The moment you had been waiting for.

 

"Yes, Spencer," you said, your voice quivering with excitement. "Yes, I will marry you."

 

Spencer's face broke into a wide grin, and he pulled you into his arms. You could feel his heart beating against your chest, and you knew that this was where you were meant to be. Together, forever, and always.

 

As you both sat there, holding each other tightly, you couldn't help but feel grateful for the love you shared. You knew that this was just the beginning of your journey together, and that there would be many more ups and downs along the way. But with Spencer by your side, you truly didn’t care.

 

The rest of the night was a blur of emotions and excitement. You called your parents, and Spencer called his mom, to share the good news. You of course called Penny, while Spencer informed everyone else on his team. Everyone was thrilled for you both. You couldn't stop staring at the ring on your finger, feeling like the luckiest woman in the world.

 

This, this was it. Life was only going to get better from here. The world had brought you two together (the world basically been Penny) and you could not be more grateful. Nothing from your past, or his, mattered now. You two had a future together, a future where you would share the same name, and become a family. He was your great love, and you were his.

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[shaunamilfman]

Being Lottie Matthews Controversially Young Girlfriend

Adult Timeline Headcanons

nsfw mention

you and lottie definitely have a meet-cute moment at the farmers market. love at first sight fr she's trying to get you to move in the wellness center within the month. “but y/n if you live in the dorms again you'd be here all the time anyways. Just move in 😁. it's cheaper that way.”

coming home after a long day to see Lottie laying in bed and just burying your face in her cleavage. She's surprised the first time you do it, nearly dropping her book and tries to catch you thinking you've fallen, but she's gotten so used to it now that she doesn't even react. she sets her book down gently on the nightstand and runs her hands soothingly through your hair. 

she has absolutely no shame about dating you despite the large age difference. she's hyping you up to her cult wellness center members talking about how good you're doing in college and shit. “yeah 😁 she really aced that exam she was worried about 😁😁”. she got one of those stickers like “my girlfriend goes to x college”. 

she def packs you lunch and stuff to take with you. lottie can't cook for shit but she can make a mean sandwich. you're like “i only have one class today.” and she's still shoving snacks into your bag lmao. 

im convinced lottie is a bit of a technophobe so she's consulting your ass on everything. you get woken up in the middle of your nap to go turn the wellness center computer off and on again. you spend 20 minutes trying to talk her through sending an email before you give up and type it yourself while she dictates. she looks particularly smug after that one, so you think she may have gotten one over on you. she's so genuine most of the time that you're never quite sure. 

Lottie's a lot older than you but I really don't think she'd have all that much sexual experience given her circumstances. if she had slept with others before you it wouldn't have been that all that many. lottie would definitely be aware that she'd be expected to have more experience and is a little hesitant about telling you that she doesn't. point is I mostly just think she'd be very shy and blushy the first few times you had sex. 

going along with it once when someone assumes you’re her daughter to try to playfully embarrass her. she just shrugs and makes a note in the back of her mind to kiss you in front of them at some point. some poor cult member walks in on you like two fingers deep in your ‘mom’ and is so traumatized by the ordeal. Lottie's all smiles the whole time. she fr giggled a bit when they left she's so devious. 

Lottie mentions movies she liked as a kid and you're off-handedly like “oh I don't think I was alive when that came out.” and she just full on winces. she spirals a bit over it every time she's so dramatic. 

Lottie's constantly trying to initiate sex wearing like beautiful and intricate lingerie all the time while you're wearing whatever random shit you happened to have on like "please warn a girl omg". Lottie's ass is still like 😍😍. she does not care in the slightest what your wearing lmao it's on site.

Lottie wears silk pajamas with like robes and shit to sleep. they've got her initials monogrammed on the pocket and she buys you matching ones in your favorite colors. she wouldn't be upset if you didn't wear them but she always looks so excited when you do. she also has like a ridiculously expensive sheet set on her bed. it's soft as hell though you've got to give her that. all that and your little cotton blanket you bring for when she inevitably steals all of the bigger blanket from you in her sleep. 

Lottie for sure tries to pay for all of your things. you try to pay for them yourself but she always seems to know. she pops out of nowhere with her debit card just as you're checking out like 😁. Lottie's not paying for your things expecting sexual favors out of it but she'd absolutely receive them. dropping to your knees in front of her after she pays for your textbooks??

she has no idea how much things cost. she's def like “how much could a banana cost? $10?”

the reading glasses stay on during sex. she's so embarrassed the first time you see her with them on but gets over it very quickly when you immediately jump her bones. 

Lottie buys you a shit ton of clothes. they're all styles you like, but you can't help but notice they're all heliotrope. you're just like 🙄 whenever she gifts you a new shirt. 

grinning ear to ear whenever you introduce your milf girlfriend to your friends. you're so smug about it that it honestly makes lottie a little shy. she def really likes it though she's just always so blushy when you compliment her in any way.

she calls you so many pet names. it's all honey, baby, sweetie, princess, etc with Lottie. going feral over the idea of lottie calling you love. 

Lottie's so physically clingy. she just loves laying on top of you with her head against your chest so she can hear your heartbeat. she loves when you play with her hair. she chases your hand with her head like a dog if you try to stop lmao.

you'll catch her just staring at you all the time she has no shame

[zeldaelmo]

I wrote a lot of Christmas and winter-themed stories over the past few years, so I thought I'd make a list for everyone who wants to get in the mood or just needs something to read during the holidays.

Modern AU

Flour, Water, Salt, Yeast, Love - As a regular in Link's bakery, Zelda asks him for a favor for Hylia's day. A mistake leads to them fake-dating until at the end of the holidays neither of them knows what is fake and what is real anymore. (25 chapters)

One Stitch at a Time - Zelda is taking over the fabric store from her mother and struggles to balance traditions, new ideas, and financial problems. The last thing she needs in her sewing class is a guy who disagrees with her every word and threatens to ruin her favorite time of the year: Christmas. (24 chapters)

A Rare Find - Link tries to catch a rare Korok that only appears when it rains. He finds a cute girl instead who happens to be in need of a fake boyfriend to impress her ex.

The Thing with the Matching Christmas Sweaters - Zelda realizes at the last minute that her father bought the same Christmas sweater that she and Link have planned to wear on their engagement announcing pictures. Link... has his own solution to this problem.

link_inofficial_23 - Link keeps blogging about Princess Zelda's and his life as new parents. PR is not amused.

One Night in December - Link regrets all his life decisions when he agrees to watching Hallmark movies with his long-term crush Zelda and she picks one about old friends getting together. Of all things...

Believe - A down on his luck Link accidentally prays to a long forgotten goddess and sets things in motion he isn't prepared for.

AoC/BotW

The Art of Now - A little AU where Link really is just a random soldier like at the beginning of Age of Calamity.

Of Pines and Pining - Zelda is forced to join the Champions and Sheikah to decorate the Great Hall for Hylia's Day. Of course, Link does it all wrong: chaotic and messy. But then, Zelda gets carried away and accuses him of being a messy kisser and everything only gets even more chaotic from there.

Sneaky Snow Attack - Link is on guard duty for once and discovers an intruder he doesn't mind so much. Well, before the snowball hit him, obviously.

Dismissed - Just before his first home leave after the Calamity, Link learns that Zelda has dismissed him as her appointed knight for personal reasons. He's confused and sad and the very last thing he needs is his family getting on his nerves about it.

Twilight Princess

Close Enough - The one mistletoe story without a single mistletoe around.

Fairy Magic - Zelda overworks herself before Christmas and Link decides she needs a break.

Ocarina of Time

It may be winter outside (but in my heart it's spring) - Impa sneaks Link and Zelda out to have some fun in the snow. A winterly snapshot set in the child timeline.

General LoZ AU

The Pen Pal Plan - Princess Zelda is sick of being wooed for her beauty and nothing else, so when it's time to pick a suitor, she develops a plan. All suitors who want to court her must engage in a pen pal ship with her so that they can get to know each other without the eyes of the court on them.

After a year, the time has come to meet the most promising candidates at the winter fair and make her choice, but she quickly realizes, that her "Pen Pal Plan" has some pitfalls she hasn't anticipated and chaos ensues. It would be a shame if she missed the meeting with her favorite candidate of all things! At least the kind, blue-eyed guard is still there to help her reach the last date in time...

Merry Christmas and enjoy!

💞 Zelmo

[sillyandquest]

So I had an idea

To be completely honest, I mostly drew this as a treat for me. We don't see a lot of Roll outside of a cutscene or manning the shops and it just makes sense for her to be the player 2 in-game. Yeah we got Protoman and Bass, but c'mon!

I wanna see this lady charging in, full throttle, wooden chair in hand, and smack Wily's newest machine around like a piñata.

So yeah, player 2 au I guess? There's more info below the cut if you wanna read. Be warned, it's a long one.

First I had to ask myself why would Roll even want to fight when Rock does just fine on his own.

Roll's a coward canonically, but she also has a big heart and is willing to fight if she has to. Maybe after the first Megaman game, Rock came back far more damaged than Dr. Light expected. While this does convince him to build Rush, Roll also volunteers to join Rock in this fight.

Dr. Light was super hesitant, but Roll's reasoning was that if Wily was willing to kidnap the Light Numbers to one up Light, who knows what else he would do? Rock already had a hard time fighting them by himself and the Numbers weren't even built to fight. If Wily was smart enough to reprogram civil servant robots, why wouldn't he reprogram robots built to fight?

Eventually, Dr. Light relented and built Roll her own set of armor and a durable broom. She has a shorter attack range, but in exchange she deals way more damage. She doesn't have the copy chip Rock does, so her armor doesn't change color, but her broom does and can change shape/color depending on which weapon is equipped.

Now onto my thought process during the drawing.

When I was drawing the armor, I wanted to keep a couple things in mind. Specifically, what makes Roll so iconic by herself. She has her hair, the green bow, her dress, and her broom/cleaning products.

One other thing I kept in mind was the various depictions of Roll in combat armor. Many fans have made their own and they all look amazing, but I always thought Roll was more of a heavy hitter up close. Most equip Roll with a buster like Rock, which is a good direction to go in, but it wasn't what I wanted to do. Then I looked at Roll's"official" armors, specifically the armor she wore during the Upon a Star movie and the armor she dreamed of from Megaman 11.

I basically put a chest piece and shoulder armor over the Megaman 11 armor, I removed the buttons on it, both of them had a heart motif on the chest which I thought suited Roll very well so I added that. I also used her hat from the Megaman Fangame Perfect Blue. You may notice her arms don't have the bulky arm guards most robot masters have... Yeah, I have no excuse for that, but Splash Woman doesn't have the guards either sooooo.....happy accident?

They're sisters so they matching!!!

I think the colors were the hardest part. I colored the dress to be more red with a pinker red for the heart and middle of the dress. Originally I had the skirt be a solid pink color and the rest of the armor be red and white, but it looked off to me. I knew I had to add her bow which meant adding green and I think that's what threw off the whole thing. The first draft only had a green bow, and I felt I had to add it somewhere else to make it look more appealing and I immediately went to color the buttons on the heart green. A small callback to Zero that doubles as a parallel.

That kinda makes me wonder if Zero was modeled after Roll and Protoman in this au. Also, what would the Megaman timeline even be like with Roll as a fighter alongside Rock? It's always better when someone has your back and Rock and Roll were always meant to be a pair.

They're twins in this au, not a couple. Just had to set the record straight.

Anyway, speaking of Blues. It makes sense why Protoman wouldn't show up as much in this context. Roll is right there, why would Rock need Protoman's help? I imagine he usually shows up only in situations where Rock and Roll are forcibly separated or shows up to both of them individually. Whether it's because he wants to help them be more independent or test the strength of their bond remains to be seen.

I have more to say about this au, I'll try drawing some expressions and go into more detail regarding Rock and Roll's personalities in the au.

[voidvannie]

꒰ఎ KAELYN BURROW ━━━━ NONSENSE AU

ᥫ᭡𓆪┊GET TO KNOW KAELYN !

┍                                      ┑

⋆✩⋆ ─── meet kaelyn

┖                                      ┙

kaelyn’s proflie ─── ⋆✩⋆

୨୧ Full Name ─── Kaelyn Jo-Anne Burrow ୨୧ Nicknames ─── Kae, KJ, Jojo, Little Burrow, Baby B ୨୧ Date of Birth ─── May 11, 2003 ୨୧ Hometown ─── Ames, Iowa ୨୧ Family ─── Joe Burrow ୨୧ Face Claim ─── Sabrina Carpenter

୨୧ Favorite Animal ─── Kittens ୨୧ Favorite Drink ─── Water, Mountain Dew ୨୧ Favorite Food ─── Chicken nuggets ୨୧ Favorite Celebrity ─── Ja'Marr Chase ୨୧ Favorite Movie ─── Legally Blonde ୨୧ Favorite Color ─── Red ୨୧ Favorite Season ─── Winter ୨୧ Favorite Holiday ─── Halloween

𓆩ᥫ᭡𓆪┊EXTRA FACTS!

୨୧ she's super close with joe despite the seven-year age difference. ୨୧ joe is super proud of all of her hard work and dedication in everything that she does. ୨୧ the entire bangles team buys her merch and listens to her music in the locker room even if they don't admit it to anyone. ୨୧ growing up, she wanted to be famous so bad that she begged her parents to let her audition for acting gigs, and later she started putting out music. ୨୧ she lives on her own out in la, but she has her own bedroom at joe's house in cincinnati for when she visits or just wants to get away for a while. ୨୧ her and olivia are absolute best friends and it warms joe's heart to have two of the most important women in his life being so close to one another. ୨୧ even though her brother plays in the nfl, she's a huge nhl fan, but most specifically she's a jersey devil's fan. ୨୧ her best friend is joey king. ୨୧ she loves anything sweet, but she's a big sucker for donuts. ୨୧ she's not a real blonde but keeps up with dying her hair because she doesn't like her original hair color. ୨୧ she calls joe almost every day but she'll call him more than once when she's really missing her brother. ୨୧ she dated her girl meets world costar, tanner buchanan, in 2016 before the two split in 2018 on mutual terms. ୨୧ during the summer, when she's not on tour, she's spending time at the lake house with the boys, but she leaves early to make sure she sees her brother before their schedules get hectic. ୨୧ she will NOT eat mcdonald's, she's told herself that she can't have it and she's sticking to it. ୨୧ she prefers waffles over pancakes and cupcakes over cake. ୨୧ she's allergic to nuts and makes sure to keep her epipen with her at all times. ୨୧ joe is her emergency contact so the one time in the summer where she accidently eats something with nuts (the boys at the lake house freaking out during) he jumps on the first flight to michigan just to check on her. ୨୧ she doesn't keep in touch with any of her girl meets world co-stars, but she has kept in contact with corey (her closest male friend) and sometimes she's seen commenting on peyton meyers instagram. ୨୧ she hates her middle name and knows she's in trouble when her parents (and even joe) call her by her first and middle name. ୨୧ she has a small butterfly tattoo behind her ear that she got matching with olivia. ୨୧ she has a necklace that was given to her from ja'marr chase for her birthday with a diamond encrusted plaque of her name that she never takes off. ୨୧ to add to the necklace from ja'marr, she had a shorter necklace that has jacks' initials hanging from it that he gave her that she also hardly ever takes off.

𓆩ᥫ᭡𓆪┊KAELYN & JACK'S TIMELINE!

୨୧ in 2021, she was on james cordan where she played 'spill your guts' and admitted to having a thing for new jersey devil's player, jack hughes. ୨୧ after the episode aired, everyone on the internet freaked out, making sure to tag the devil's center player in everything. ୨୧ jack was seen commenting on her instagram just a few days after the episode aired. ୨୧ joe, being the overprotective big brother that he is, made sure he did his research on the hockey plater before approving of them. ୨୧ their relationship was confirmed in june of 2021 when he posted pictures of her from a concert he went to while she was on tour with the caption, "my girl❤️". ୨୧ jack's family adores kaelyn, her and luke ending up being the best of friends due to being the same age.

[epickiya722]

The funniest reaction I have seen so far about the latest chapter from some is that pointing out that the story lasted 10 years in real life, but the class are now becoming second years.

I say it's funny because...

Technically, the story itself lasted for 100+ years (take note that some events take place during AFO's time who is over 100 years old)

Maybe just me, but was it a rule that a story that take place in high school actually have to last for the actual number of high school years? Most stories that I have seen, especially in anime, the story last FOR ONE YEAR OF HIGH SCHOOL. Like, do the timeline of real life have to match up with the high school years?

Speaking of, I don't recall Horikoshi saying "I'm doing all three years of high school". Maybe he did, but I didn't see it. But I do remember that the second movie was going to be the original ending... oh my gosh... his quirk... HORIKOSHI!!

If you exclude the events before most of the cast was even born, even still we get 10+ years of Midoriya's story (it starts when he's in middle school, but we also got years when Midoriya was but a little child, his teen years just got expanded)

Also, maybe just me, but high school may be 3 - 4 years, but... it feels like 10+ years...

Also, also... have y'all ever written a story? I have this story that I have held since my middle school years... it's been a long time and I'm still tweaking it out!!

There's also those breaks that happens in between for various reasons.

[rwrbmovie]

Since someone brought up the timeline just wondering if this is correct/fill in what’s missing

Royal wedding- September?

Alex flys back to London- September?

NYE- Dec/Jan

PM dinner-March?

Polo Match- April?

Paris- ?

DNC- August ?

Vacation house- September (Labor Day weekend)

Storming KP- September?

Getting Outed- October

Election- November

I know some things are different in the book. I was just wondering the movie timeline and thinking about how long they in between seeing each other.

Also it would be cool if someone made a gif set with the months (unless it’s already been made!)

oh my god, sorry this took forever to reply to! i actually forgot it was an ask – i took your idea, took notes while rewatching the movie and started planning a gifset. it's taken me forever to complete (life is busy atm), but ill try to post it today to celebrate 100 days of the movie!

but for now, here's the timeline (complete with screenshots for some) under the cut (you got most of them right btw!):

if i got anything wrong, pls let me know!

august - cakegate, damage control, first text from henry (aug 27)

september - 'but we were ever so careful, dear' (sept 18)

october - 'the bromance we deserve' (oct 4)

november - turkey, phone call

december - nye party

january - first kiss

february - alex texts henry again, nora and alex talk

march - state dinner, red room, alex's room (PM's dinner next month)

april - polo ('charity polo match next month')

paris probably happens late march

may - alex campaigning in texas (guardian article dated may 4 (aka star wars day!))

august - dnc

september - lake house (labor day weekend), storming kensington (a week after the lake house), v&a

october - leak, speech (similarly in the book where the speech was on oct 2nd), sound barrier

election nights are held in the first week of november and zahra told alex they'd 'find out next week', so im assuming the speech was done in late october

november - election night

[jewlwpet]

Hello! What do you think is the meaning behind referencing Baroque in utena songs? In particular in "Baroque Rock", but I suspect it's also tied to that one line "I Am All the Mysteries in Creation." So far I've been thinking that it has something to do with atificiality and pointless performance. Do you have any ideas or something to point me towards?

This is a great question! I love getting questions like this!

To a certain extent I think Seazer just writes about stuff that interests him, and he gets a lot of it from the stuff he reads. He reads a lot of Tatsuhiko Shibusawa. I bought a Shibusawa book once and it is so full of stuff that Seazer referenced; it's amazing. None of his work has been translated into English, but Shibusawa himself was a translator and you can read stuff that he translated into Japanese. There's a complete list of everything he ever translated here. You can see some familiar terms even in the titles, like "marionette" and "archibras."

But that's not the most satisfying answer and I'm sure there's more to it than just that. Likely there are answers lying somewhere in his blog posts. But I like your guess. Though, I see those themes just as much in songs that relate to other artistic movements, like Mannerism.

When I was reading Umberto Eco's novel Foucault's Pendulum, there was a passage that really stuck with me and that referenced the Baroque. I don't think that all the references to the Baroque in Seazer's music are referencing that one passage, but it does connect the idea of the Baroque with ideas that run through Seazer's music and through Utena.

When I posted that passage, I mentioned in the tags that I'd heard a rumor that one of Seazer's Utena CDs was inspired by one of this author's other books--I've since confirmed that as fact. I forget which CD (I have posted about it before so you may be able to find it in my Umberto Eco or J. A. Seazer tag), but I did find a quote from Seazer saying he took inspiration from Eco's novel In the Name of the Rose as well as the movie adaptation of it for at least one of the Utena CDs.

There is actually a passage in Foucault's Pendulum that is remarkably similar to the lyrics of a certain duel song iirc (I forget the title, but the one with the lines about the interval between two mirrors), but the timeline doesn't quite match up--when that song was first released, the book hadn't been translated into Japanese or even English so I don't see how Seazer could have been referencing it. Maybe someone translated an excerpt in some publication that he read, idk.

Back to the subject of the Baroque. In my opinion, based on the lyrics to Baroque Rock, I would say it relates to the idea of orbit, of perpetual motion, and of the spiral which represents the mystery of life and death and rebirth--in other words, eternal cycles from which people seek release.

[blueikeproductions]

Well it’s official. This time we mean it.

EarthSpark is officially over as the toy listings for the next show are out.

The next thing is Transformers Cyberworld.

Any relation to Cyberverse is unknown atm, but if Hasbro is serious about not revisiting older series, then this is a new continuity either way. Cyberverse came from a toy line used in the films and Prime, so it was probably a trademark slap deal for the cartoon. Cyberverse didn’t refer to anything unique to the show, and no I don’t count the multiverse as they never once referred to it as “the Cyberverse”, and the show was made up on the fly as they went with multiverse stuff coming on much later coincidentally. In no way was Cyberverse/multiverse planned, that takes a level of basic planning the CV writers didn’t know how to do.

To my recollection Cyberworld isn’t in reference to a preexisting thing toyline or otherwise, so hopefully whatever Cyberworld IS is better expressed in the plot and toy gimmicks.

The toy listings don’t have Megs, Screamer & the Waves as previously mentioned, but they also seemingly lack Bee & Optimus.

The named Autobots so far are Mirage, Grimlock and (presumably) Snarl.

Presumably Snarl as most instances are Autobots/Maximals, the most famous being the Dinobot Snarl. More than likely it’s the Dinobot, but we do have an instance of a Snarl being a wolf. I’d be fun seeing the wolf again lol.

The Decepticons meanwhile are Galvatron, Scorponok, Sky-Byte and (presumably) Offroad.

Presumably Offroad is a Decepticon (most TFs with the name are), but the toy is listed as “OP Offroad” so it MAY be an off road truck version of Optimus Prime, similar to his RBA & ROTB toys.

One toy is listed as “Meg Bull”. No idea what this refers to. Theres plenty of bull Transformers, but whether this is any of them isn’t clear. This being a “Megatron Bull” would be hilarious but I don’t really see Hasbro doing this just yet either.

Toy gimmicks and sets similar to what we saw last in Prime appear to be making a return? “Scorponok Strike Battle” sounds like something in that vein like a Hot Wheels play set, though it may just be Scorponok with a tail lashing action. Beast Wars style, Movie style or G1 style remains to be seen.

Galvatron is said to have armor, while the other gimmick line’s called “Cyber Changers”.

These are probably the One Step Changers of the series but hopefully it’s something more involved like the Beast Hunters.

Chomp & Stomp Grimlock is probably more than likely another version of this:

Hopefully retooled to better match the new Grimlock though.

The stand outs are Galvatron & Scorponok, as it’s not clear which one is the leader of the Decepticons here. Both have been leaders before, & more than likely it’s Galvatron. Galvatron being used again is the biggest shock, as Hasbro has been dodgy about using him in place of Megatron in recent years. IDW wrote Galvatron as a separate character who predates Megatron, while Prime Wars declares (confusingly) that Megatron used to be Galvatron, implying he somehow de-evolved, which has never been depicted properly. (Japanese G1 stuff adds to the confusion where Galvatron evolves further but goes back to calling himself Megatron… oy…) WFC tries to have it both ways with Galvatron as a separate individual, but that he’s from a dark timeline where both he and Optimus were enslaved by Unicron…

I suppose my point is technically Megatron is still in the series as he’s typically portrayed as evolving into Galvatron, but Hasbro has been so weird about non Optimus and Megatron leaders, that they could easily just have Galvatron be an unrelated villain. Either way, the desire to focus on Galvatron is very welcome, regardless if he’s Megatron or not.

[nesting-dreams]

i see the memes of entp and infp all the time online of infp cartoonishly hating entp and entp being cartoonishly creepy, but a healthy entp and infp relationship is so much more fun to watch in my view. Entp’s and infp’s always have a rough start of misunderstanding, but if they can be mature and look past that. It’s a nice dynamic. I want to use fictional works as examples for this cuz it’s just easier.

I shall give 3 different examples. There is more, but these are my favourites. Marriage: Clara and Doc from back to the future 3. He saves her from dying and they fall for each other, he comes across as the mad doctor in the old west and she is intrigued, and it turns out she was supposed to die, so instead at the end, he offers her to live in time limbo with him so she doesn’t ruin the timeline, but she doesn’t die either. Clara risks dying on a train to be with him by walking on the outside of it to stop him from time jumping without her, he thought it was the best for her to leave her at first, but changed his mind when he saw her do that. She gives off the impression of being this sweet little thing, but her crazy matches his crazy with that train shenanigans and them hanging out throughout the movie. Doc even realised this after that stunt that she’s not normal. He is very happy about it. (Doc’s closest friend is a very mature esfp, who is the only one who really takes him seriously when it’s needed out of most people).

Crushes, but stay friends: Laetitia and Lupin the 3rd. Lupin the third the first. They meet from her throwing a punch at him after he stole from her after she set the cops on him, so she could steal this book that the Nazi’s wanted, and also again when she assaults him with her shoe later on. He makes her genuinely angry at one point and he realises he pushed the wrong button, what she got mad about was he told a lie about someone she admired and she fact corrects him and gets annoyed with him for trying to make her feel stupid. He got upset with her cuz she poked him back as a retort, but she backs off too when she realised she upset him. She dreamily wishes to solve ancient mysteries for the romance and fantasy of it. He wants to solve it for profit and the romance of it. After the suspicion has died down, They start out arguing looking for some ancient technology, the arguments don’t actually last long. It is not mean spirited arguing. Lupin’s really sweet to her for the rest of the movie. It is not often in the series he shows a sweet side like this. He tried kissing her and both developed a crush on the other. Laetitia loves the arguments and she also playfully sasses to his naughty comments. They both smirk at each other a lot knowingly. Because she looks like a puppy, he denies that he falls for it and makes fun of others for falling for it but he takes one look at her when he at first does not want too and he basically does anything she asks. He helps her out by going behind her back and using trickery to help her and others. She is more authentic and genuine and up front about helping him and others. She Cries when failure happens and he cheers her up, by showing her that he will back her up when she fails, and they help each other reach a common goal. They bounce ideas of each other, she shows her knowledge on things and he does the same. Both have different knowledge that helps each other to their common goal. She is genuinely impressed outloud with his smarts while he does not say it out loud, he gets excited for her when she gets passionate. He actively encourages her to use her head more. Later in the movie, he had jumped out a plane without a parachute for her to save her. Normally he thinks things through, but he didn’t for that one. He does sometimes have bursts of stupidity inbetween the genius. She does not hide her worry for him whenever he gets hurt or she thinks something bad may happen to him which I think does make an impact of him being gentle with her. He doesn’t usually hang around such soft people. both have the same idea when it comes to ending a disaster that happens. She tries blowing up this plane with her in it to stop it being used in killing people, but it does not go as planned. He tries the same thing later cuz while he did want to use it for himself what was found, he realised it was too much trouble “human’s aren’t ready for this yet”. He had a backup plan unlike her to escape before he would get consumed by the explosion. (Other people Lupin became friends with who he had a rocky start with (by rocky start I mean that they also tried to beat him up cuz he was insufferable first meeting: estp, Esfp, Infj, istp (out of these he is softest to the infj. I think it’s that introverted feelers that makes his fe want to take care of the introverted feelers people like Laetitia and Goemon. It’s nice seeing how gently he treats Goemon and Laetitia. He does show his sweet side to Esfp, but at some point he stops because Esfp does not take it seriously. I think he wonders what is the point in showing it to her and he reverts back to his usual attitude). Other people he got along with right away: Intp (he sees her as a niece cuz she’s 14). Who he respects yet he always messes with him: Estj. (Laetitia respects an estj called Zenigata and he is really nice to her. It’s nice seeing the stereotype of an infp and estj hating each other thrown in the trash like that computer meme).

Goemon knows how to roast, he has dark ideas and take jabs, but Lupin never really takes it too far with him. He pokes and prods, but not as much as he does with the others. The infj and infp respond positively to him being nicer, so he keeps doing it. They are his moral compass. Meanwhile, his istp friend tends to keep a distant to help and emotions. Lupin is best friends with the istp, he’d jump into a running bus for him, istp would do the same, but they don’t often have a heart to heart. Their play is more rough and they can take the more serious pokes and jabs at each other. (Lupin healthily boosts Laeitita’s Te to the surface which has her notice when she is being manipulated and to be more practical and to use her head in finding out more information on the person manipulating her (she is an adult infp so she actually is good at using it on her own, he just helps her use it even more and in a more practical sense). both connect with their si and Ne, honestly the nicest parts of the movie is when they’re just talking with each other quietly and not moving the plot forward. He also boosts up Goemon’s Se which has Goemon experience things more in life on a whim, he also helps Goemon notice when he’s being manipulated, but if Goemon has noticed he is being manipulated, he usually is not sure what to do if his usual methods don’t work, so Lupin helps him out of that situation. Meanwhile, both Laetitia and Goemon boost Lupin’s Fe to the surface and make him a nicer person in a healthy way. Meanwhile, with others he can be callous at times and not listen to them. He does not like to see Goemon and Laetitia sad and does his best to make them smile even at his own expense. He acts like a cheerleader for both in a way).

Mentor and student: Dazai, entp mentor, Atsushi, infp student. Bungou stray dogs. Dazai had saved Atsushi from homelessness with the usual trickery behind his back thing. And Atsushi is grateful and just stayed with the detective agency. At first, Dazai tries to keep a distance emotionally, pushing buttons. Atsushi becomes more confident and sassy because of Dazai, and Dazai feels like someone cares about him for once in his life so he softens. He gets in trouble and most of the people in this series just shrug it off, but Atsushi’s almost the only one worrying about him (Dazai got taken away by the mafia and Atsushi started worrying where Dazai has been for the past couple of days while the others don’t worry about it). Dazai loves that his student is so willing to listen to him, even his silly little antics, yet sass him back. Atsushi feels the most comfortable around Dazai aside from Kyoka. Dazai’s incredibly sweet to his student. These two have moments where they can talk about stuff with each other that they can’t with others. entp in mentor roles to infp always feel like that disgruntled dad adopting a stray puppy who’s looking for a home, at first the dad doesn’t want it, but he’s not going to throw the puppy out cuz that’d be cruel, but then he will throw a table if you even insist on finding the puppy a new home or suggest putting it down, eventually. Meanwhile, infp’s are just in general protective of their love ones right away. (Who Dazai was close to who died: Infj / someone he is friends with but won’t admit it: Entj/ Atsushi works with an estj who he respects greatly, they’re not friends or close, but both respect each other. You don’t see that happen often, but it can happen. It’s nice seeing the stereotype not being around for once in fiction / Kyoka is an isfp). Bonus cuz I’m not writing more cuz I’ll just keep repeating myself. Family: Edward and Alphonse from full metal alchemist. Yuta and Gojo from Jujutsu kaisen (Gojo is also his mentor). The family dynamic is a lot like the student and teacher I wrote with entp always being the oldest sibling or oldest distant cousins.

For Entp and infp to work, infp needs to have a bite to them from years of life experience and entp needs to soften from years of life experience. Most infp’s and entp’s in reality do mention being fond of the other. They always are great together in fiction too. I’m not sure exactly where these memes come from of them only hating each other, obviously there will be some infp and entp who dislike each other, but I hear more good than bad. Only an infp (and infj) can apparently make Entp feel this “strange protectiveness” over them that does not really come out for other people. (Side note. I also love seeing enfp/intj and intp/enfj together. they really do bring the best out of each other without overshadowing the other and putting them in a box. They all start out annoying each other, but can’t deny being drawn to each other).

[fortheloveofaminorcharacter]

Updated Gif Making Tutorial!

What you will need: Google Chrome. Quicktime Player. Photoshop.

TLDR version

Turn off graphic acceleration in Chrome and relaunch.

Use Quicktime Player to record the screen.

Trim the recording and upload it to Photoshop.

Turn the layer into a Smart Object. Resize Image to 540 width. Apply Smart Sharpen Filter.

Add adjustment layers as needed to correct color. Suggested Adjustment layers: Exposure, Brightness/Contrast, and Color Balance.

Save for Web (Legacy) set to Gif 256 colors Loop Forever. Must be under 10M for Tumblr.

So I have changed my process and I figured I should document it for whenever I inevitably forget how to do it. This is definitely for more intense gifmaking so if you are just wanting to do something less intensive, you can still do step one of this tutorial but then use something like GIPHY Capture to record the gifs. You can do basic gif captures and add text with it but you won't be able to get the same quality without doing a little editing. Most of my older stuff was done with Giphy Capture and some of those gifs I would use this tutorial to edit. Even then, they weren't the quality I wanted so now I use this process.

Anyone who is just starting out doing this, super important first step - you need chrome. It sucks but you need it to do the screen recording later on. Once you have chrome downloaded, go to the three dots in the top right hand corner >Settings> System>make sure that the Use graphic acceleration when possible is NOT CHECKED. You will see in the first gif mine was already turned off (greyed out with toggle to the left side). When you initially turn it off then it should give you an option to relaunch (note that because mine was already off I did not need to relaunch).

Now for the screen recording. First go to whatever streaming site you have the media you want to gif on it. For this tutorial I used Abigal that I streamed through Movies Anywhere. You should be able to screen record from pretty much any site but be aware of the quality. VUDU/Fandago at Home will only let you stream in SD on Chrome so that is why I use Movies Anywhere. I then use Quicktime Player to record. I keep it on my dock so I just go down to it and tap it to open a menu at the top of my screen. On that menu, go to File>New Screen Recording and a menu will pop up on the screen with options of what to record. Use the Record Selected Portion then adjust the size to match the size of the video. Once you hit record you can play the media and then it will record until you hit the little stop button on the top right of your menu bar.

Once the recording is done, you can trim it and save it. I HIGHLY recommending trimming down the screen recording before moving the file into Photoshop. Otherwise it will be such a pain when it comes time to edit. Also, your screen recording original will still be saved usually on your desktop if you want to trim down multiple parts of the video into different gifs.

Next, you drag the trimmed file into Photoshop and turn it into a Smart Object by right clicking the layer and selecting Convert to Smart Object. This will allow you to add filters which you will want to do if nothing else but to sharpen the layer. Then you should resize the image to an appropriate gif size (I use 540 x 335ish for my gifs because I find it just looks nice but you can mess around to find what dimensions work best for you).

After you resize your image, go ahead and go to Filter > Sharpen > Smart Sharpen and set the amount to 500%, radius .3, reduce noise to 10%, and Remove to Gaussian Blur. Hit OK and then you should notice your gif looks clearer. After that, you are free to play with the Timeline to adjust timing (you may have to double click the Smart Object layer to change the trim of the layer but once you have adjusted it just exit out of that project and it will automatically save the trim to the original PS document you are working in), add shapes/text, add adjustment layers, etc. I would recommend an added Exposure, Brightness/Contrast, and Color Balancing layer then play with those settings until the color looks right. Be sure to save the file once you get the coloring down so you can just drag and drop other screen recordings into the PS document and it will copy those settings to it. Just remember to do the Smart Object and Sharpen Filter on every new screen recording layer you drop in.

Once you are ready to save, go up to File>Export>Save for Web (Legacy). It may take Photoshop a moment to load this menu. There will be a circle of loading white dots you will just have to wait out. Once the menu does load, select Gif from the menu just under Preset. Make sure the colors are set to 256 to get the best quality gif. Also check in the bottom left hand corner under GIF that the size is under 10M or tumblr will hate it. You may have to adjust the length of you gif if it is over that size. Also, select Forever under looping options and that the dimensions are reasonable. Tumblr hates anything bigger than 540 wide which is why that is my standard width. Once your settings are right, hit Save and then now you are ready to upload to Tumblr!

[taccobelle]

WELCOME TO MY BOOK CLUB 📚

First rule about The Book Club? talk about The Book Club!

Here in TaccoBelle's book club 📚 is where I will keep a collection of all my favorite recent reads and their authors, in no particular order!

I can't always help in more impactful ways, like commissions, but I can definitely share the content!

if you'd like to join my book club give send an ask! let's make a community of these awesome reads!!

Disclaimer: due to some suspicious and disgusting events happening on this site involving a minor, I feel the obligation to reinforce that most, if not all, of these stories are 18+. They contain content that is NOT suitable for minors, so please do not interact! Mature themes will/may be discussed in these stories that is definitely not appropriate for minors. I do not claim to be the author of any of these works, merely a fan

TaccoBelle's Book Club

Simmer: Jim’s Midnight Grill -line cook! Eddie Munson x Shy Fem! Reader

Author: @upsidedownwithsteve

Summary: welcome to hawkins' number one diner! where the staff don't wanna be there and the linecook is a grumpy metal head who likes to argue with his boss and ignore everyone else. but the new waitress can't hack the rude customers and the regulars can be a little... much.

What to expect: “serving up indiana heatwaves, slow burns, walk in freezer breakdowns, late night talks, shared shakes and food as a love language. order extra spice for $4.

141K, a linecook!au with eddie munson and shy fem!reader.”

My thoughts: I absolutely found this fic by chance, and boy am I glad I did! The writing for this fic is absolutely amazing, the way I feel every single emotion the author wrote was crazy! Eddie is this story is such a little grump and the contrast of the shy teacher was so adorable, my favorite moments were when she was being defiant towards him and he didn’t know how to act because no one had ever stood up against him in his kitchen 🥹 totally recommend, this is a slow burn and I thrive in slow burns, can’t wait to read more from this author!

The Breakfast Club - Eddie Munson X Cheerleader!Reader

Author: @radioactiveparker

Summary: Five high school students from different walks of life endure a Saturday detention under a power-hungry principal. Each has a chance to tell his or her story, making the others see them a little differently. And when the day ends, they question whether school will ever be the same. (A retelling of The Breakfast Club, written and directed by John Hughes.)

What to expect: Enemies to lovers / All Characters Are 18+ / Strong Language / Sex References / Mentions of Abuse (physical and emotional) / Cheating / Bad Relationships / Dysfunctional Families / Arguing / Materialism / Kleptomania / Stereotyping / Sexual Orientations / Drug Use / Mentions of Alcohol / Smoking / Pyromania and Fire / References to Demonianism and Satanism / References to Religious Beliefs / Social Alienation / Angst / Hurt-Comfort / Use of Y/N (like once or twice) / Eddie is a complete asshole

“A/N: This mini series is set in its own little world, so it does not follow the Stranger Things timeline, and I have taken some creative liberties with most characters. Yes, they are all still in high school (final year and 18+), and yes, some of the events don't match up - just forget everything you knew about Stranger Things, it's easier that way haha.”

My thoughts: I am in absolute love with this series and can’t wait for updates ! I am so obsessed with the Breaksfast Club narrative, the enemies to lovers, the popular girl x school freak. It’s so enticing and I am a sucker for it! But what the author does that I am loving is that they set themselves apart from the original movie, js the interaction of the reader with other characters, I won’t spoil it, but it’s a little heartbreaking 💔 from the little that I have read from the 3 chapters so far, it is great!

Not Very Noble

Author: @allthingsjoeq

Summary: Your kingdom is placed under threat of liquidation, the villagers crying out for help as each day they enter greater poverty. As their princess you have been chosen to amend the broken monarchy, creating a truce between the neighbouring royals, and fulfilling a marriage decided by the King. A low-ranking knight and Princess both from reverse backgrounds thrusted together against choice, they descend into a journey of Hate, Lust and Love all while caught in between a circle of lies.  

What to expect: Knight Eddie x Princess Reader Disclaimer: Enemies to Lovers, Angst, eventual fluff, light smut to come. Royal and medieval references but they may not all be 100% accurate.

My thoughts: I have a huge fascination with Medieval things, and think there isn’t nearly enough Eddie Munson Medieval themed AU’s and I think that’s a problem! This in particular is so well written, so beautifully put, it made me weep, and cry like a big baby from reading this, and it’s not even complete yet!!!!!! Y’all KNOW how much I buss down for an Enemies to Lovers trope 😩 I really hope they update this soon because I am patiently waiting 🥹

Not Wholly Evil

Author: @uglypastels

Summary: as the daughter of the Governor, there is quite a heavy prize set on your safe return home, and the captain will not let anything come between him and his bounty.

What to expect: "semi dark fic" - READ the warnings:. (gun/sword)violence. blood. minor character death. allusions to suicide. kidnapping. imprisonment. alcohol. open and deep sea. pirates are pigs: frequent mentions of non-con and allusions to assault, but it does not actually occur. malnourishment. abuse. manhandling.

My thoughts: I LOVE me some pirate au, I think it is so incredibly fitting for Eddie to be set in this role. It is still on-going so it only has 2 chapters, but that was enough to make me sign up for the tag list!! It’s is beautifully written, the descriptions are so good it makes me feel like I am IN the Hellfire ship. Super excited to see where this is take me, and I hope they update it soon because it’s my new obsession!

Turtle dove and the crow

Author: @blue-mossbird

Summary: You’ve known Edward Munson since he moved into the farm next door with his uncle - eight years old, odd, and utterly intriguing to you. For ten years, you’ve known him, and over that time, he’s become your best friend. But now, in the dreamy haze of August heat, you begin to know him in a different way. And in this process of knowing and becoming known, lives will be irrevocably changed.

What to expect: 1940s Farm AU, featuring bsf!neighbor!eddie x fem!reader18+ (minors dni). smut; true love; unexpected pregnancy; angst, angst, angst; parental issues; corporal punishment; scheming, plotting, and betrayal; hurt/comfort; period-typical stigma regarding unwed pregnancy; angst with a happy ending. oral (f!receiving), p in v, unprotected sex, breeding kink.

My thoughts: holy shit my dudes, I think I found my new hyper fixation, to add to the list of stories I will check daily for updates! This is only the first episode and it already has me in a death grip 🫥 I am in love with 1940’s due to Bucky Barnes, and mixing Eddie in with that aesthetic threw me for a loop!! This is not the fic for you if you want cannon content, it is clearly set in another world, a different decade, and seems to me like it’s Eddie’s personality adapted for a 1940’s farm boy view, and I think I’m in love. Plus my fantasy of being a southern Belle (that’s my name if you didn’t know) is in an all time high with this. I can already picture all of the angst and all the crying in my bed at 2am this story will bring me, and I’m so excited 🤩

June Baby

Author: @luveline

Summary: you’re a single mom living three trailers down. eddie thinks you’re the prettiest girl he’s ever seen. queue smiley face oatmeal, grossly misused power tools, desserts on the living room floor, a haircut, and an abundance of nerd metaphors

What to expect: teen mom!reader, fem!reader, r is Junie’s birth mother, fluff, hurt/comfort, Eddie ends up being a total girl dad (<3), mutual pining, yearning, etc, tw for not having much money, general loneliness, mentions of a shitty/traumatic pregnancy, general mom struggles :(, slow-burn friends to lovers, you wash Eddie’s hair!!!! this was low-key requested by anon

My thoughts: Honest to god, this is one o the best writing I have ever read on this app. The way Jade uses her words to describe the scenes, ughhhhhhh I can't explain, but Jade writes like a scene of a movie. It does not feel like the supporting characters don't feel like they seize to exist as soon as the main characters move on to a different scene. I love how the supporting characters are all incredibly detailed, feel like real people, and have real people reactions to things; weird, I know, haha. I love how much I adore this story so much. it does not feel like a simple fic, like I would invest in a start-up for this to be published into an actual book. It is so good, so sweet. I absolutely adore this story. It makes my heart do three summersaults per second every time Jade posts a new chapter, the characters have my fucking heart 🥺

Meet The Munsons

Author: @mypoisonedvine

Summary: you were barely acquaintances in high school, but his reputation as a delinquent and freak didn't exactly endear you to him. now he's moving in. at the risk of being too literal: oh, brother.

What to expect: kind of incest, but not really? male masturbation, swearing, mentions/implications of a deceased parent, reader is a tad judgmental but that's what character development is for!

My thoughts: I have read and re-read this story about three times. If I'm not mistaken, this is the only complete one on this list. I LOVE IT SO MUCH!! it made me so giddy. a grown woman giggling and kicking my feet like a little girl. I love the evolution of the characters and the way, slowly but surely, their feelings start to slip out, and by the end, you are totally like, FOR THE LOVE OF GOD, JUST HOLD HANDS, I BEG OF YOU. Not gonna lie, the "kind of incest" threw me off at first, but then you find out that they aren't actually related in no way possible; the reader's mom marries Uncle Wayne, and they are not raised together, so their not that weird situation of raised like siblings, which would make it really weird when they make out pretty heavily. Can't believe I'm defending incest.

The "Yes" Policy

Author: @pinkrelish

Summary: After a lifetime of questionable decisions, you moved from the big city to the sleepy town of Hawkins with your best friend and took the first job you saw: answering phones for the most boring auto shop in the dullest place on Earth. It wasn't exactly the adventure you wanted it to be.. but attempting to win over the jaded mechanic who insisted on ignoring your existence proved entertaining.

What to expect: slow burn, eventual smut, strangers to lovers, flirting, mutual pining, angst, drug/alcohol mention/use, depictions of poverty, sort of grumpy x sunshine, but Eddie's just tired, reader and Eddie are mid-late 20's

My thoughts: This fic singlehandedly made me fall in love with the sunshine x grumpy trope, the thought of Eddie being a girl dad makes my heart double in size. Him being a single dad, Wayne being grandpapi is too cute! them doing their best to provide the best for their little princess, and the relationship between Miss Mouse and Adrie has my heart.

To Have and To Scold

Author: @icallhimjoey

Summary: Your best friends are getting married, and who else can they ask to be their best man and maid of honour but you and Joe? It's just that... you don't really get along all that well, do you? At least, that's what you think.

What to expect: CW / disclaimer: sort of enemies to sort of lovers (very vague, im sorry, but you'll see), language, drinking, rpf, fem!reader

My thoughts: I don’t usually like reading real person fics, like when the character is actually a real life person, I much prefer a fictional character because otherwise sometimes I get weirded out. That being said, I decided to give this fic a try, and I must say that I was pleasantly surprised at how much I enjoyed the story. I picked it up and couldn’t put the phone down till I finished! The characters are engaging, and story is so sweet 🫶🏼

Bad Idea

Author: @lunarzstarz

Summary: Not wanting to leave for college with your virginity still intact, you turn to your last resort that you know can only end terribly…

What to expect: NSFW 18+ minors dni, drugs, first Times, oral (F receiving), fingering, protected sex, nicknames (Princess/Sweetheart), Eddie being a goof but also an asshole (Slightly proofread) Fuckboy!EddieMunson x Virgin!Fem!Reader

My thoughts: smut, plain smut. And I love it. Eddie is kind of a dickhead, not gonna lie, but then he starts to show signs of falling for the reader, regular shmegular lowkey toxic trope, but I love it!!!!

Crayons and Cassettes

Author: @comfort-writing

Summary: You are a kindergarten teacher. Eddie’s daughter, Sage, is in your class. She bonds with you instantly, and Eddie is trying not to do the same.

What to expect: his fic will be 18+ in later chapters, so minors DNI! In this chapter, it is mentioned that rumors about Eddie still linger. no use of y/n. I can think of nothing else for this chapter because it’s just an introductory one, but please let me know if I missed anything!

My thoughts: I have not finished this fic yet, but s far it is amazing!! Eddie is so nervous and so sweet, but still nerdy, and charming.

Honey I'm Home

Author: @trashmouth-richie

Summary: you were desperate for a roommate after Nancy got married and moved out. An ad in the paper goes unanswered until someone comes knocking on the door.

What to expect: enemies to lovers trope, eventual smut, language, crude behavior, Eddie is a fucking menace.

My thoughts: I honestly fell in love with this story, it is so mysterious, and so touching, funny, endearing, and most of all, a big tease. I fell in love with these characters, and their personalities, how they are together, and how the interact with one another. The idea of an older protective Eddie, that is conflicted with the thoughts of seeing Tooty as a little girl, but now she is a grown woman is mesmerizing to read, and Richie does an amazing job at writing it all so well.

Disjointed

Author: @boomhauer

Summary: Nurse!Reader is reunited with her high school crush in the emergency room. Faced with a lifetime worth of debt, she helps Eddie in the only way she can.

What to expect: Fake marriage. Friends to lovers. Medical trauma. Lemon/Smut. Angst. Slow burn. No Vecna!!

My thoughts: This a new type of fic for me, I had never read anything in the nursing realm, an amazing first! I appreciate the reality of it all, from what I understand the author has personally experienced some of these scenarios, and im guessing has been/is a nurse practitioner, so makes for an extremely believable, and amusing plot!!

Twenty Four Hours

Author: @ghost-proofbaby

What to expect: modern!Eddie Munson x fem!reader, uses female pronouns on occasion. strong language, eventual smut, upside down does not exist, minors dni

Summary: in which Eddie Munson and you absolutely hate each other's guts. what happens when your friends make a bet that you can't spend more than twenty-four hours consecutively together? modern!college!eddie x college!fem!reader

My Thoughts: I love Enemies to Lovers trope!! This fic is full of stunning writing, amazing visual descriptions of feelings, and hot-ass characters! this made me cry on multiple occasions, in a good way! Though I am a crybaby. Eddie is such a sweetheart in this, and mean in some chapters, but it's all for the feels!!

Smoke Signals

Author: @eddies-house

What to expect: Grumpy!Eddie Munson x shy!reader, uses female pronouns on occasion, strong language, eventual smut, PTSD, trauma, talks about trauma, mentions of death, mentions of bullying, minors dni, set in a town other than Hawkings

Summary: Relocating to the small town of Knife’s Edge in hopes of leaving your old life behind and starting brand new solves all of your problems, right? Wrong. It only creates more and one of them may live right next door. Side effects may include blaring music at 3AM, a scowling neighbor, and one too many shots of tequila on several occasions. (That The Bourbon will not be comping.)

My Thoughts: I love Enemies to Lovers trope! That much isn't any news to you guys! This fic is so lovely written, I love how real the characters feel, and how immersed I was in reading this, I am so related to the character because I too am a crybaby. Eddie is such a sweetheart in this, I just want Bambi to hug and kiss him 🥹, and mean in some chapters, but it isn't in a toxic sort of way.

Begin Again

Author: @abibliophobiaa

What to expect: Eddie’s post-S4 trauma; panic attacks; nightmares; family member loss; grief; alcohol use; mild smut in later chapters, so 18+; additional warnings to be added. Eddie Munson x afab!reader, sunshine!reader x grumpy!eddie vibes

Summary: The year is 1988. After the loss of a beloved family member, you find yourself inheriting an old coffee shop. The quiet bartender at the Hideout across the street just so happens to catch your eye.

My Thoughts: you know that I love sunshine!reader x grumpy!eddie vibes! This fic is so nicely written, It has long chapters which I fiend for, I absolutely adore it when a fic has 20K words in one chapter, it only has 4 of them because it takes place as a chapter for each season, which is generous btw, wish I'd thought of this!

Beast of Burden

Author: @neonghostlights

What to expect: Fuckboy!Werewolf!Eddie Munson x Fem!Reader Eddie gets called a man-whore (not by reader), mates, cussing, mention of almost hitting an animal with your car (doesn't happen but almost does), parental and grandparent death (readers whole family is dead) 18+ only, minors dni

Summary: (doesn't really have a summary, but this post the author made pretty much sums up) "I’m thinking about fuckboy!werewolf Eddie. Let’s say he’s gotten around with every girl in Hawkins because he never thought he’d have a mate. That was until you, a human, showed up and proved him wrong. Now he has to find a way to prove himself to you."

My Thoughts: yeah! fucking sue me, I like werewolf fanfictions! I can't really blame it all on Twilight, except I absolutely will blame it all on Twilight. But I swear this is really cute, and I live for it!

[duckapus]

Since splatfest is it's own thing in the squid meme au what teams was Meggy?

(so I'm going with the North American Splatfests for this since in SMG4 canon the Mushroom Kingdom and Inkadia are in the US for some reason)

Splatoon 1

(since this would all be before she met Mario I can only base them off her pre-character development personality and Vibes. I have explanations for a few of them but for most I'm kinda-sorta picking at random)

Cats (since she eventually gets a cat in canon)

Roller Coasters

Marshmallows (we saw how that one food fight episode went)

Autobots

Art

Planes

Ninjas

Burgers

Naughty

Future

Pokemon Blue

Snowman

Spongebob

Costume Party

Early Bird (She would be a Morning Person, wouldn't she?)

Marie (I HC that she used to have a celebrity crush on Marie. Because I Can)

Splatoon 2

Cake

Ketchup

Flight (Mostly because she picked her team right after getting home from Mario's Challenge and was thinking that flight would've made some of those floors a lot easier to get through)

Vampire (This one's just for me ;))

Sci-Fi (the Fest started the same day she did a Matrix scene for a movie audition, it just makes sense)

Sock (honestly she kind of just picked one at random since she was too worried about Paige to really care. she almost didn't bother going at all)

Action (duh)

Money

Egg

Soccer (anyone notice a pattern developing?)

Leo (okay losing streak aside I genuinely think Leo would be her favorite of the four)

Mikey

Raph

No Pulp (the texture just feels wrong to her)

Octopus (She ended up in matches with Desti a few times and it was awkward being on the same side)

Fork (FINALLY A WIN! Just in time for Waluigi Time...)

Skipped (she was a little busy being the first victim of the Waluigi Apocalypse)

Treat

Salsa (she may or may not be allergic to avocados)

Hero

Friends (considering what I've implied Meggy and Paige's parents are like compared to the NSS and Glitchy Gang is it really surprising?)

Pancakes (she might have just flipped a coin for this one)

Skipped (she doesn't have time for Splatfest there's TRAINING TO BE DONE!!!)

Skipped (kind of hard to participate in Splatfest when all your weapons are stolen)

Skipped (both because she wouldn't have had time with the Tournament going on and...you know...the whole Being Kidnapped Thing)

Narwhals (after Mario's pep talk part of her getting back into the swing of things includes doing Splatfest stuff)

Chaos (she probably would've picked Order before she met Mario, but...)

Ketchup (a lot of things have changed for Meggy. her preference in condiments isn't one of them)

Treat

Super Mushroom (apparently she likes how they taste)

Splatoon 3

(I know she doesn't live in or even near Splatsville but thanks to the DLC we know that Inkopolis participates in Splatsville Splatfests and I figure that by this point there's be a large enough population of Inkfish living in the Mushroom Kingdom that they would too. Plus Meggy's still at least part inkling and is still culturally an Inkling so...)

Rock

Skipped (since her very existence happened to be illegal at the time and she and every other OC dropped dead the exact same day the Fest started)

Grass

Sweet

Milk Chocolate

Aliens (in honor of Greg, of course)

Courage

Skipped (depending on how the timeline works out this is either during or immediately after everyone being stuck in a simulation for about a month. no way they're bothering with an ice cream Splatfest of all things)

Love (time changes a person)

Big Man (she did feel a little awkward picking between people she considers friends by this point. that being said, BIG MAAAAAAAN!!!!!)

Skeleton (I know this happens at the same time as Heist WotFI but she isn't even in that episode (I don't care that she was credited for the song that was her voice actress not Meggy herself she was not physically present and had no idea what anyone was doing that night))

Hug

Friends

Friday

[We interrupt this broadcast to bring you PUZZLEVISION!!!]

[And this one too!]

Save the World (obviously)

[sugaredbloodcells]

hyacinth, lily & rose!!

SORRY this has taken me so long to get to... i've procrastinated a lot and plus i've found words stuff a bit hard as of late so. buttttt i am finally getting to this <3 finally!

warning: there will be terrifier 3 spoilers!

lily: do you try to fit your s/i into canon, or do you just do whatever you'd like with them?

answering this one first because it's needed before hyacinth. i usually do try to fit my s/is into canon as best as possible, that makes the most sense to me, and my autism doesn't allow me to see other pathways than that? this is mega reminiscent of my oc sunny because i tried so hard for her timeline with johnny to match up with the real time events of jackass. i had a conversation about everything not having to be perfect because this literally isn't real, but my autism thinks everything has to match up and make sense to the canon, whatever that may be. so, yes, i do absolutely try to fit my s/is into canon.

hyacinth: how did your s/i meet your f/o(s)?

in the third movie, in the scene where art and vicky are in the house and they kill those two guys (this is vague but i'm too lazy to completely describe the scene), alfie had explored this house himself and found art. (a bit of an explanation: alfie loves exploring abandoned places, so he will go to places illegally. he pretends he doesn't give a fuck, but he is actually very scared and paranoid about getting arrested. he loves to take photos on his adventures as well.) back to how they met, alfie found this house and decided to explore it, figured he could get some cool photos out of it. this is where he finds art, which does scare the ever-living shit out of him. art had decided to murder him, but since alfie seemed so... not afraid about it... art just stopped and look at him in fascination. like in a "wow maybe you're just like me, fucked in the head" way, which is true! alfie does have a bit of a death wish even if he is kind of a pussy about things. but yeah, art chose to not murder alfie out of fascination. and later on, art somehow found alfie's address and just showed up one day...? and the rest is history. fucking freaks (affectionate).

rose: is your s/i more like yourself, or are they more of an oc you project on?

for alfie particularly, it's a mix of both? i guess? i want him to be like me when i thought i were a trans man. i was... really depressed during this time, and i do want to make alfie like this. but i want to give him a happier way of living after befriending art. i know it's weird but just having one person, despite how fucked up they are, can make such a difference. and art would fully accept these parts of alfie because... art is so much worse. like he murders people. and yes, that makes alfie a bit more fucked in the head for being loving towards art while knowing this information, but art gets alfie in whatever way, and they accept each other's most ugly parts. and that is love any way you want to look at it. i want alfie to have the kind of love i didn't get during this time. he also carries parts of me i feel ashamed about, like my fear of literally everything. but i do make him seem more brave about it than i am actually. and i also want him to have my desire for connection quite largely (obviously, with what i've just said before). he has bpd too, so he often has breakdowns over art. alfie definitely gets more angry than i do. he has rage episodes more often, he breaks things, and feels so much rage that he cries. this says a lot because alfie has been conditioned to not cry even when he wants to (projecting). his anger is all-consuming, something he cannot control (this is the reverse of my own bpd with fps, i get severely depressed, so i'm making alfie have rage instead). so, i'm not quite sure? maybe he is more like an oc instead of being more like me? that's a hard thing for me to say because i always make my ocs so much more like me subconsiously than i realize.

[tenebriskukris]

Oshi No Ko Chapter 158 - My Thoughts/Analysis

This was certainly A Chapter. There’s no use beating around the bush here—it left much to be desired in plenty of instances. But I’m getting ahead of myself. Spoilers for Oshi No Ko Chapter 158 below.

We start off with a Nino monologue of all things during one of B-Komachi’s concerts. Can we please skip this uninteresting side character’s attempt to try to wrest the title of final antagonist so we can get onto the more important bits?

Nino saying that Ruby has already surpassed Ai is—well. I like the effort but can the manga even try to push this idea through to us in any sort of subtle manner. Show us that Ruby has surpassed Ai through means other than using other named characters as the narrative’s mouthpiece—with their own inherent biases, no less—instead of regurgitating it for the viewers with little to no reading comprehension to pick up on. The first concert did it right with a couple of randos who were fans of the first B-Komachi show us that this most recent generation of idols shines no less brightly than the previous generation. Or show us a concert in full and detail the color of the glowsticks and how much the red glowsticks overpower the white and yellow.

Now the scene shifts to Mem and Amemone. Very surprised the latter showed up here considering she was essentially a one off character. Is she going to be relevant for this chapter? Probably not—but it’s a bit of a missed opportunity for her to do anything relevant in this arc if she’s going to show up in the first place. One could change this scene to a more Mem focused page instead and not lose much of what the panels are trying to convey. 

Akane!!! And she’s interacting with Ruby in this page too. Seeing these girls talk just reeks of plot advancement so I’m excited to see where this conversation goes.

Wait, what? This concert is in Miyazaki??? That’s somewhat surprising, but the town that Aqua and Ruby were born in is likely a different area entirely from the location of this concert. Still, kind of odd to namedrop Miyazaki when it’s the prefecture where Aqua and Ruby were born but I doubt the manga will kick up much of a fuss about it.

Akane mentioning not being able to make the concert in Tokyo feels vaguely plot relevant—as well as this concert being held in Tokyo during Christmas day. Is this the Dome concert? When does this chapter even happen and how long has it been since the last chapter? As always, the manga is vague and nebulous for the particulars of its timeline to its detriment.

When she’s an idol, we see things differently. Akane as always taking time to snipe at Kana. You love to see it. 

On stage, Kana definitely is no match for Ruby. Considering the bias that Akane already has for Kana in general, that's certainly a statement that holds considerable weight from Akane of all people. Again, Ruby definitively shining greater than Kana is a fact that was already obvious from the start and throughout how the movie was portraying them but it’s nice to hammer that fact in for people who lacked basic reading comprehension.

But for that reason…some people may find Ruby unpleasant. There will be those who are trying to destroy this sparkle. There is a tendency for those inferior than you to wish to tear down anyone who distinguishes themselves beyond the norm. It is in the nature of those who shine more brightly than anyone else that not everyone will be able to appreciate that light. There’ll be haters no matter how good or deserving or impressive any of the achievements that one pursues when at this level of stardom.

I’d also say that this is some metacommentary on how Ruby is perceived by the fandom these days, but this manga isn’t smart enough for that sort of thing if it can’t even pace things adequately. I’m placing the metanarrative on a high enough shelf until this manga passes Writing 101 because it’s obviously failed that class miserably with these last dozen or so chapters. 

You can’t become a jewel that shines forever. Unless you become part of someone’s memory after you die like Ai. But in our case… Huh, interesting words from Ruby right here. I’d really like to hear this perspective on idols in more detail if the narrative has the decency to flesh out her character in more detail. 

And now we cut to Hikaru calling Nino. Are we going to get details on them since we don’t even fucking know how they met in the first place or exactly how Nino had an hand in Ai’s death, or is that much going to be handwaved like so many other important plot points? 

Since the moment we killed Ryosuke—Sorry, what was that Nino??? You and Hikaru killed Ryosuke? Weren’t the two of you barely around 18 by that point and Ryosuke was 22? How exactly did you kill the man and make it look like it was a suicide exactly? 

Apparently this is a mistake caused by the translators after doing a little bit of digging, but it wouldn’t surprise me in the slightest for the series to pose a question that introduces more than a couple of plot holes when it’s already shown a tendency to fumble so close to the finish line. If the series can’t even prepare to setup a half-decent confrontation between our main character and what the narrative was setting up to be the final antagonist of the series then a little forgetfulness of its own timeline and the events thereof is the least of its issues.

You have to continue to be the best idol forever and ever. Girl, you need to get over yourself and move the fuck on. This isn’t even sad in the entertaining way—it’s sad in the way that you have to put down roadkill to end their suffering. Her entire reason for being a part of Ai’s murder is literally because Ai was barely mean to her in that one interaction and she collapsed under the rejection. The whole—cool motive, still murder—phrase doesn’t even apply here because her entire reason for for having a hand in killing Ai is so petty and entitled that it shocks me that people seem to be on board with her trying to wrench the title of final antagonist from Hikaru, who the narrative has been building up on for the past 9/10ths of the manga.

Crow Girl reappears!!! Finally we’re back to dealing with her and potentially some supernatural matters. This monologue of hers is interesting, but one that’s plainly obvious with how the emotions she vocalizes are ones that the people in the panels feel so strongly. As a being close to what is essentially a god she’s more than privy to see this entire thing play out from audience seating.

Humans are… Foolish, obviously, but that’s because they get caught up in the moment. Their lives are limited, unlike maybe gods. This may be a good time to be reminded of the fact that Crow Girl called both Aqua and Ruby gods as well—which—I wanna see if the narrative follows up on that or if it too is going to be forgotten like a small pile of other relevant plot points this series has left in its wake.

December 25th already??? Is this the Dome concert??? 

WHAT????? THE CHAPTER ENDS OFF LIKE THAT??? WHAT THE FUCK???

Well. That certainly happened. Let’s start off with the elephant in the room. Ruby’s stabbing. I’m quite surprised about how many people think Ruby’s going to die. I’ll describe why I think otherwise below:

Let’s start out with the fact that the way that Ruby gets stabbed is so short, so shallow and bereft of detail that it makes the scene itself look suspicious. Maybe it’ll get rehashed in more detail in the next chapter because as it stands now it feels too much like some sort of dream sequence instead of objective reality. One of Aqua’s nightmares, perhaps? 

It would explain why Ruby—who almost certainly was affected by Ai’s death—would open that door and not look at who was on the other side considering there is a Very large window present in the last panel of the chapter. It leaves a bad taste in my mouth that the narrative would make her hold the idiot ball since Ai died similarly and on the exact day she died. I feel very much like Abiko when she was admonishing Goa for turning her babies into idiots in the script. 

In any case, if that explanation doesn’t sound satisfying then fine. Let’s accept that Ruby gets stabbed and it’s not a dream or anything like that. Even if she does get stabbed, that doesn’t mean that she’s going to die. The location of where she gets stabbed is also something that should be considered. The design of the door pushes the idea that this is somewhere that Ruby was present at because of her idol work—it’s certainly not one that you’d expect to see in an urban household.

But having this “stabbing” happen while Ruby is preparing for idol work also contradicts what Ruby herself said in the last chapter about how she always has someone with her—referring to Ichigo and Miyako—so I dunno. More fuel for a dream theory? If this location is an area that Ruby’s working as an idol there’d be sure to be scores of people who could potentially give medical support in case Ruby got stabbed so that’s also another point in her survival.

But there’s yet more evidence that Ruby survives this encounter. The very much maligned interviews from the start of the series. I want to point out two of them in particular: Miyako’s interview and Ruby’s interview.

In Miyako’s interview she basically describes how both Aqua and Ruby receive favored treatment and trials in just the right amounts before the scene cuts away to see Ruby calling Miyako and telling her to come to her location as soon as possible. I’ll note some important bits of that page. The soy sauce bottle in the final panel of that page is both full and close to the top, so the liquid on the blanket is almost certainly not soy sauce. In light of this latest chapter, perhaps it’s blood? 

This in itself doesn’t mean she survived, of course. But if Ruby has the time to call Miyako on the phone instead of yell out for help or call for emergency services it likely means that the stab isn’t an immediate fatality. More weight on the “Ruby survived” scale in my mind.

However, it isn’t the only interview where we directly see Ruby. She still has her own interview to wrestle with—one that we haven’t seen directly or indirectly. We know quite clearly that both Aqua, Goutanda, and Ichigo’s interview have already culminated, but everyone else’s interview still exists in a nebulous void of whether or not it happened offscreen or not. Which leaves Ruby’s survival in that same nebulous void. Because if she dies here—she obviously can’t go out and do that interview because she’d be dead. 

Hedging Ruby’s survival on the possibility that her interview didn’t already happen offscreen would be a fair enough gamble to roll the dice on. The interviews are certainly important enough for the manga to show on screen—as we see with Aqua and Gotanda’s interviews—so Ruby’s interview should be similarly important enough to show on screen, right? Except this is a manga that handwaved Aqua and Crow Girl’s first meeting offscreen. Except this is a manga that handwaved Taiki’s reaction and thoughts to hearing that his mother was a rapist and that his father was a serial killer throughout the movie arc. It wouldn’t be the first time that the manga has swept aside what should be important plot points to focus on and instead attempt to speedrun the story.

So. Yeah. In any case, there’s plenty of circumstantial evidence to conclude that Ruby survives the stabbing, but here’s my personal take—there’s still one final thing that tips the balance to make me think that Ruby survives this “stabbing” and it all hinges on a single question: What is the point of this stabbing in the first place?

The answer is obvious: Because Nino wants to keep Ai as the best idol in her mind. She says so herself in this chapter and there’s no room to doubt that because we see this idea hammered in more than once throughout her previous appearances. She wants to kill off Ruby because she’s surpassed Ai.

Now look at where the chapter ends off after hammering in the idea that Ruby has surpassed Ai. Ruby, getting stabbed so similarly to her mother on the day of the concert. What better way to actually show that Ruby has surpassed Ai by making her survive the stabbing and go on to perform at the Dome—something that Ai wasn’t able to do. 

This narrative just flows. It clicks, so to speak. You can’t simply spend an entire chapter harping on about how Ruby has managed to shine brighter than Ai and let her die in the same manner that Ai had. It simply doesn’t make good storytelling. It undercuts everything you want to do with the character and the narrative. Killing Ruby off here basically tells the viewer that she didn’t really surpass Ai and that all this chapter was in the long run was wasted energy for a cheap high that would fall flat when you look at it from the bigger picture. It simply doesn’t make sense.

In any case, I have yet more thoughts about this chapter. Namely—how they decided to execute this entire mess of Ruby surpassing Ai.

I’ll be frank. I don’t like it. I like the idea of Ruby surpassing Ai—the narrative has been building up to it quite a while now—but the execution leaves much to be desired. Perhaps I’m asking the manga for too much when I ask for them to show us how Ruby has managed to surpass Ai, but at the moment I’m not completely feeling it. I don’t feel an easy transition from their first concert to where they are now for any sort of change in the way Ruby is supposed to shine and articulate that for the readers. 

Of course, there’s plenty of material around Ruby that could lead to this change. Both chapter 123 and 143 were important shifts in Ruby’s character that should be talked about when dealing with the way she performs as an idol and her perspective in general, but we don’t get to see that transition as a performer. All we get to see is the end result of this process with little more than some breadcrumbs to follow while we show how a character has changed from the outside in. We rarely get to see Ruby’s internality and thought process as she develops from these chapters. She did not get enough time to linger in the spotlight organically as the series developed. I suspect that’s why so many people dislike Ruby now that we’re racing to the finish line and she’s finally gotten a chance to stand in the spotlight.

The narrative itself did not adequately prepare Ruby, the character, into a position where I am fully convinced that she has surpassed Ai. I believe she has surpassed Ai both because the narrative makes it clear that she has and because of the parallels between her and Ai, but it isn’t easy to digest when Ruby herself seems to have been considered an afterthought half the time without the screentime to match such a role.

In any case, I’m glad that Ruby’s finally gotten her time to shine, but the authors need to be writing better material than some of the stuff I’ve seen high school writing students draft up. The way they’ve been handling Ruby half the time is laughable for someone who’s just as important as Aqua.

A small addendum to this entire subject is that some people are fuming that Kana of all characters should’ve been stabbed. If Ruby is lacking some of the necessities for me to be fully convinced that she has both surpassed and parallels Ai, then Kana has negative qualities in this regard. The fact that the movie arc casted Ruby as Ai and Kana as Nino stands for itself in terms of facilitating these parallels. There isn’t much clearer the narrative can be to smack these parallels onto the readers’ skulls.

Now, onto Nino and how she’s doing. I’ll say it plainly: I don’t like her as a character. I make this very clear in a couple of my prior analyses and in this one. The narrative’s attempt to make Nino a compelling character and antagonist is little late when Hikaru has been teased and baited as the final antagonist for the majority of the series. Not to mention the fact that the short story 45510 is now mandatory for understanding her character—which is certainly A Decision. A horrible one, really, but if the manga is already falling off a cliff, it doesn’t matter if you fall a hundred meters down or a thousand.

[hwd405]

Spyro 3 - The GameSpot Build and Lost Media

I've been actively researching and documenting early builds of Spyro 3 for something like 7 or 8 years now, and while I feel like I've made a significant impact, there's always going to be people that have never seen any the content that I've helped to document - so, every now and then, I get the urge to infodump about one piece of my research to a new group of people, to help make sure that the documentation I've done isn't only known to a very small group of people... that'd defeat the purpose of documentation, to an extent, I think.

Sometimes, outreach ends up being extremely important to the research and preservation of prerelease content - and this is no better exemplified than with Spyro 3's "GameSpot build".

On June 23rd, 2000, several websites and publications revealed early previews of Spyro: Year of the Dragon - this date was probably some sort of online embargo date.

The "April preview", an early build which seems to match the one used at E3 2000, was used by most of these publications. A few of them, according to accounts from those that wrote the previews, received exclusive gameplay sessions from the likes of Mark Cerny - these previews apparently took place quite close to the embargo date and certainly would have used a later build than the April one. We know that IGN received one of these sessions (but, according to the author of the preview article, was allegedly unable to record gameplay during this session, which resulted in IGN having to use the same build everyone else did in their preview articles), and it's a pretty safe bet that GameSpot did, too. In GameSpot's case, we actually got to see what this build looked like:

As expected, it's a later build than the April prototype - this one seems to be from around the same point in development as the earliest demo disc version, though we're not sure if it's an earlier build or a later one. Three main characteristics stick out in these screenshots:

We don't ever see what the eggs looked like in this build, but the fragments use this bizarre ornate gold texture.

The HUD uses a green egg sprite similar to some of the eggs seen in the April build; the earliest demo disc version also uses this sprite.

For some reason, transparent polygons are a solid black colour, making some screenshots look sort of ominous and weird.

Perhaps the weirdest thing about this build is that the gold egg fragments it uses, which to most players would be completely unrecognisable and unlike anything they've ever seen before, actually do appear in the final game. And they hatch from every egg in the entire game. In most cases, the fragment flies off screen before the player can spot it.

The earliest demo build, which seems to be from around May 25th, 2000, does not include this texture at all, which has called into question the timeline placement of the GameSpot build. On one hand, they might've used the final egg texture momentarily, switched to the gold one, and switched back, accidentally leaving one of the textures intact. On the other hand, there have been cases in many Spyro builds of random early assets weeding their way back into the game via means that we don't really understand. Look no further than the August 27th, 1998 localisation prototype of Spyro the Dragon, a post-final build which inexplicably re-uses an early Gnasty Gnorc model, textures, and animations, from around 2 months earlier in development:

The info we have on this build doesn't just stop at screenshots, though! GameSpot kindly uploaded 5 videos of the build - labelled "Movie 2" through "Movie 6" (thanks GameSpot. that's not confusing at all) - to their website. Most of these videos were later temporarily put behind a paywall, and in 2014, 4 of these videos were deleted during a server move, with only Movie 2 (the one never put behind a paywall) remaining. The one movie that remained didn't even play properly in GameSpot's video player for years, so I had to download the video from the API to view it at all:

While the video is an important piece of history, and did reveal to us that the early Sgt. Byrd theme heard in some old IGN videos of the April preview had a previously unheard guitar section (this was prior to the public release of the April preview), it doesn't tell us very much new about the build. If we really wanted to more precisely date the build, we'd need to know what the eggs looked or sounded like - but the egg collection section was entirely cut from the video. As of yet, we just don't have this information.

As for Movies 3 - 6? These are now lost media. They were up on the site for 14 years, we know that people saw them, and I suspect there were people that downloaded them. However, since they were deleted nearly 10 years ago, nobody has come forward to say that they have one of the videos and to show what was in it. Anyone that does come forward with this info should be met with some scepticism, of course, but I think the only way we'll ever see more of this build is with a greater outreach and more widespread knowledge of the missing videos - the videos were readily downloadable from the website, and so someone still has the videos, I'm sure.

And before anyone asks, yes, the WayBack Machine has been very extensively searched for these videos - we can't find them, there's just no trace of them on there.

Judging by the video descriptions, Movie 3 would have focused on Bentley, Movie 4 on either Sheila or Agent 9, and Movies 5 and 6 on Spyro gameplay.

I've only ever encountered one person who claims to have seen these videos, and whether they're to be believed or not, they claimed that one of the videos showed Sunny Villa using Fireworks Factory's theme (levels using the wrong themes was very common in early builds of these games! Additionally, Fireworks Factory's theme is very likely to have been present around this point in development), and another showed Agent 9 gameplay using a track that didn't sound very Spyro-like, but more like "something from James Bond".

When the April preview released later on, it was discovered that early Spyro 3 builds actually do have a number of entirely non-Spyro themes, all by µ-Ziq and Propellerheads, left unused in their soundtrack data. The tracks in these builds seem to line up with the levels present in an earlier build of the game, and by this metric, it seems that "Spybreak!", a theme from the Matrix soundtrack, would have (fittingly?) lined up with Agent 9's Lab, and possibly would have been used in that level in internal development builds. Sure enough, my contact agreed that this was the theme they heard, when I sent them the track - if this is indeed the case, then this build is very very weird indeed.

It remains to be seen whether we'll ever learn anything new about this build, but we can only hope. I've linked to an archived 7z file containing all the screenshots uploaded to GameSpot below, as well as a link to a TCRF article detailing some of the known differences spotted in this build:

Archive.org

TCRF