#star city transplant

[godhatesmetas]

Seems like star city will indeed be the focus of the apartment search since I found a group of like minded individuals based there

[maybe-boys-do-love]

A Tale of a Thousand Stars answers the age-old question: What if Hallmark movies were good?

[im-gonna-sing-the-doom-song-blog]

KEEP YOU WARM 

Dick Grayson X Reader

Request! Stuck in a snowstorm, a young vigilante and Nightwing take shelter in a cold cabin. As they endure the storm together, they form a bond, finding warmth and comfort in each other's company.

No warnings.

*sorry for bad grammar and all that!

The snowstorm howled outside the tiny, dilapidated cabin like a restless wolf. Inside, the air was a mix of frigid drafts and tense camaraderie. You held yourself close, trying to keep you body warm against the freezing temperatures. Your costume, designed to endure torrential rain and oppressive humidity, did little to protect against the biting chill of a Blüdhaven winter.  

You really should have gotten a warmer suit. You look at the vigilante leaning against the opposite wall. Skin tight suit? How???? This dude should be shivering right now. Unbelievable!  

“You doing okay there?” Dick Grayson—Nightwing, you reminded yourself—looked at you with concern from across the dim room. His own suit, designed for the city’s chilly climate, seemed to shrug off the cold that had you gnawing on the inside of your cheek to keep your teeth from chattering. 

You nodded, though your shaking hands betrayed you. “Totally fine,” you said, your voice a strained whisper. “This is nothing. I’ve been through worse.” 

It was a blatant lie. Growing up in a tropical climate meant the closest you’d ever come to snow was a slushy machine at a convenience store. You were twenty-one now, freshly transplanted to Blüdhaven at Superman’s recommendation, and still acclimating to a world so vastly different from the one you’d left behind. The idea of learning from heroes like Nightwing had sounded thrilling in theory, but at this moment, all you wanted was a heated blanket and a hot bowl of soup. 

Dick’s lips quirked up in a knowing smile. “You don’t have to pretend to be invincible. We’re in this together, remember?” 

You gave a weak laugh. “Yeah, well, being freezing cold wasn’t exactly part of the mission plan.” 

The mission had seemed straightforward enough when it started. Intercept a small gang trying to smuggle weapons out of the city. But the storm had rolled in faster than expected, cutting off your escape route and killing your comms. Now, here you were, stuck in what looked like an old hunting cabin with no heat, no backup, and no way of knowing when the weather would let up. 

“Come here,” Dick said, patting the spot on the floor next to him. 

You raised an eyebrow. “What?” 

“You’re freezing. I’m not. Body heat is a thing.” 

Your cheeks flushed, though whether from embarrassment or cold, you weren’t sure. “I’m fine. Really.” 

Dick gave you a look that could only be described as ‘big brotherly disapproval.’ “Hypothermia isn’t a joke. You’re not doing anyone any favors by being stubborn. Come here.” 

Reluctantly, you crawled over to him, shivering as another gust of icy wind found its way through the cracks in the cabin’s walls. Dick wrapped an arm around you, pulling you against his side. The warmth radiating from him was immediate, and you couldn’t suppress the sigh of relief that escaped your lips. 

“Better?” he asked, his tone light. 

“Marginally,” you admitted, though the truth was you felt significantly better. The heat from his body seeped into yours, chasing away the worst of the chill. You still felt like an ice cube, but at least now you weren’t actively contemplating death by frostbite. 

“You know,” Dick said after a moment, “I’ve been meaning to ask—why Blüdhaven? I mean, there are plenty of other cities you could’ve gone to. Metropolis, Star City, even Gotham.” 

You hesitated. “Superman recommended it. Said there were ‘good heroes to learn from’ here.” You glanced up at him. “I guess he meant you.” 

Dick chuckled, the sound warm and genuine. “Well, I’ll take that as a compliment. But seriously, it’s not exactly a prime vacation spot. What’s the real reason?” 

You shrugged, leaning your head against his shoulder. “I wanted to get as far away from home as possible. New city, new start. Besides, I’ve always been better at hitting people than giving interviews. Vigilante work just…makes sense to me.” 

“That’s fair,” Dick said, his voice soft. “But don’t forget to take care of yourself in the process. It’s easy to get caught up in the mission and forget you’re only human.” 

You laughed. “You sound like Superman.” 

“I’ll take that as a compliment, too.” 

For a while, the two of you sat in silence, listening to the wind battering the cabin. The storm showed no signs of letting up, but at least the cold didn’t feel quite as unbearable anymore. Dick’s arm around you was steady and reassuring, a reminder that you weren’t alone in this strange, snowy city. 

“You know,” Dick said eventually, “you’re tougher than you look. Most people would’ve bailed on Blüdhaven the first time they saw what winter here is like.” 

“I’ll take that as a compliment,” you said, mimicking his earlier tone. 

He grinned. “Good. You should.” 

Outside, the storm raged on, but inside, things didn’t feel quite so bleak. For the first time since arriving in Blüdhaven, you felt like you might actually belong here. And maybe, just maybe, you’d found someone who could help you figure out how to navigate this new life—snowstorms and all. 

[dandelionsresilience]

Dandelion News - September 22-28

Like these weekly compilations? Tip me at $kaybarr1735 or check out my Dandelion Doodles on Patreon!

1. The slowest of trailblazers: Better DNA testing means trafficked turtles can go home

““You don't want to just get a turtle and just throw it anywhere,” says Rodrigues, especially because box turtles have a big range, spanning numerous states. So [after they’re confiscated from black market animal traffickers] they wind up stuck in captivity. However, DNA testing has gotten cheap enough and good enough that individual box turtles can finally be traced back to the state where they came from.”

2. New progenitor cell type discovered, may aid in tissue repair and generation

“A team of SAHMRI scientists has discovered a completely new type of cell that […] could be used to boost healing in conditions like diabetes, where the body struggles to repair itself properly. Crucially, these cells don't express typical "self" markers, meaning they could be ideal candidates for stem cell transplantation as they're much less likely to be attacked by the recipient's immune system.”

3. How a Children’s Playground Is Helping With Flood Mitigation

“[This park sits above] a below-ground tank capable of holding hundreds of thousands of gallons of stormwater that city officials say would have otherwise spilled onto the streets or streamed into the basements[….] Others increase resilience with newly planted trees that can absorb carbon dioxide and airborne pollutants; once they mature, those trees also provide shade cover that can reduce the heat island effect of urban areas[….]”

4. Transforming agriculture from carbon source to sink

“The study results indicate that by 2050, these agricultural practices [using cover crops, biochar, and agroforestry] could reduce as much greenhouse gas emissions as planting new forests[….] Carbon sequestration on agricultural land is not only important for climate change mitigation efforts but can also enhance agricultural productivity and resilience to climate change[….]”

5. Rewilding success for long-lost bird population

“Conservation charities have successfully completed the second round of rewilding of a long-lost bird breed in Dover [… after working] over 40 years to restore a suitable grassland for the birds. […] Earlier this year, 108 choughs fledged successfully in Cornwall, according to charity Cornwall Birds.”

6. Over 30 celebrities join auction to put LGBTQ+ books in classrooms

“Pride and Less Prejudice is hosting its fourth annual #BannedTogether virtual auction this weekend with the goal of raising $20,000 to send 1,600 free LGBTQ-inclusive books to elementary schools across the United States.”

7. Advancement of Indian Buffalo Management Act Underscores Bipartisan Support for Tribal-led Buffalo Restoration

“The advancement of [this Act] reaffirms bipartisan support of Tribal sovereignty, self-determination and capacity building for bison restoration on Tribal lands. […] The Indian Buffalo Management Act would secure funding for Tribes and Tribal organizations that have an established buffalo herd and management program, as well as provide resources for Tribes to establish new herds.”

8. Anti-inflammatory drug shows promise in boosting motivation for patients with depression

“Growing evidence suggests one potential cause of low motivation may be persistent inflammation, which suppresses activity within key circuits in the brain. […] Patients who received infliximab demonstrated a greater willingness to exert effort in pursuit of rewards compared to those who received the placebo. […] "By targeting inflammation, we're not only addressing the biological underpinnings of these deficits but also offering new hope for more effective treatment options."”

9. Pig transplant research yields a surprise: Bacon safe for some people allergic to red meat

“Some people who develop a weird and terrifying allergy to red meat after a bite from a lone star tick can still eat pork from a surprising source: Genetically modified pigs created for organ transplant research. […] The company that bred these special pigs shares its small supply, for free, with allergy patients.”

10. Brussels tries out a novel rooftop wind turbine suitable for cities

“Just like solar panels, the Renewind mini wind turbine can be installed on the roof of a building[….] Renewind's invention is designed to make the most of wind acceleration at the edge of the roof, a phenomenon that could produce between 1 and 3 MWh per year.”

September 15-21 news here | (all credit for images and written material can be found at the source linked; I don’t claim credit for anything but curating.)

[maxwell-grant]

"porous and easy-to-transplant like Spidey's villains" is it just me does Marvel have more of these guys than DC? Like we can just have random buff list villains go after a a variety of different characters?

Oh yes, Marvel absolutely has the advantage when it comes to rogues gallery transplants, it's not even a contest. That's in large part because Marvel existed as a shared universe from the get-go: DC didn't quite jump on that wagon for a while. For most of the Silver Age, there was little to no cross-pollination between Superman and Batman, the existence of the Justice League not really mattering in their titles, where as Marvel was crossover town from day one. They each offer different kinds of narrative real state for their villains to exist in.

The DCU's defining figures, Superman and Batman, live in opposite cities with opposite tones and opposite casts and everybody else has to occupy the space between their two extremes, and most of the other bigger heroes have their own cities: your Star Cities and Central Cities and Hub Cities and Bludhavens and whatnot. Thus most of their villains and villain casts are centralized, and sometimes they even have formal agreements about this kind of stuff. There's almost like a Venture Bros-esque union thing going on sometimes in the DCU where most of their popular villains and heroes are fairly exclusive to one another, with characters like Killer Frost, Gentleman Ghost and Solomon Grundy who transcend this being mostly such due to their heroes being more absorbed and integrated into ensembles than their own adventures.

The major exceptions for these tend to be villains specifically made or set to menace the entire universe, like Superboy Prime or Perpetua or, Amanda Waller this month I guess, and Event Villains are kind of their own thing (and mostly not very good). DC doesn't have a Doctor Doom, in the sense of a big great iconic villain for the whole universe and specific heroes in it who also can and will fight anyone and it will pretty much always be great no matter who he's fighting. They try to make cosmic baddies like Brainiac into those kinds of figures and it never works as well, it always just makes them too generic, there's no spark to the ensuing dynamic. Vandal Savage is probably the closest to one that works and, love the guy, but he's sporadically great and simply not up to the standard this requires.

Marvel, in turn, has been in the business of regularly loaning out bad guys, maybe ever since Sandman joined up the Frightful Four? He wasn't just a one-off thing like that time Daredevil and Doctor Doom swapped bodies and fought, no he was regularly showing up as a villain in F4, in a new costume even. Marvel already started with all of their major defining characters living in the same sandbox, everybody is within a few blocks away from each other most of the time, and so everybody is everybody's problem most of the time, it's the bastardverse and they are all crammed together, and it's not terribly surprising why they fight all the goddamn time. All the major Marvel villains are shooting to rule the same city/planet and destroy more or less the same people and therefore they kinda have to be on a first-name basis with each other, and all the middle-leaguer/second-stringer baddies are getting beaten up by the same people in the same city. Reverse-Flash and Joker going after anyone other than their respective arch-enemies feels fake and perfunctory, but guys like Ultron and Norman Osborn, who also have specific arch-enemies, can transit between individual problems for different heroes and larger-scale problems for everybody just fine. A DC hero will rarely be in Lex Luthor's line of sight unless they are specifically doing something that will piss him off, where as if you are a Marvel hero, it's a fact that sometimes you'll just randomly orbit Wilson Fisk's business and thus you gotta dodge gunfire for it that day.

This especially applies for the smaller-scale villains, not too strongly attached to the hero they may have started out with to the point they become ensemble villains, the ones that easily and eventually become someone else's problem. Your Mr. Hydes and Absorbing Men and Arcades and High Evolutionaries and whatnot, Spider-Man is stuffed with these. Sometimes these characters will click so well with specific heroes they'll achieve wholly different kinds of stardom or characterization (Kingpin in Miller's Daredevil, Brain Drain and Kraven in Squirrel Girl, etc), and sometimes they'll graduate into the position of supporting character or even main character. The peak example of this is Taskmaster, because while the likes of Loki and Venom can claim greater stardom, they did so by becoming anti-heroes and are generally still attached at hip to their heroes of origin, where as Taskmaster is a midcard villain to the bone and it's extremely easy to forget he was an Avengers villain at first, he is just fully A Guy in his own right who will go anywhere and menace anyone for the right price (except Moon Knight, because he is too scary), he'll scale up and down and be everyone's problem until he's not being paid to do so and then it's cool. DC doesn't really have an equivalent to him (they kinda try with Deathstroke but, pfft, please, that guy is a diehard obsessive Teen Titans villain and that's not even the more embarassing thing about him). They have countless midcarders just picking dust within their respective rogues galleries that could easily be migrated elsewhere.

But on the other hand, Marvel doesn't quite have what you'd call a Legion of Doom/Injustice League, in the sense of being able to pair all of it's biggest villains from the biggest corners of the world together in a team-up and have it work. There's been attempts over the years to make things like the Masters of Evil and the Cabal land as such and they never really stuck, the closest you get to an iconic Big Villain Team is the likes of the Sinister Six and the Brotherhood of Evil Mutants, groups tailored to menace specific heroes or hero teams, or things like The Black Order and the Dark Avengers, ultimately extensions of bigger villains (the Thunderbolts are their own thing). Maybe it's because Marvel doesn't really have a major concentrated dominant heroic force on the level of the Justice League that would demand all their villains to put everything aside to try and stop it (although DC can't really justify the Legion of Doom/Injustice League as an ongoing thing most of the time, they don't exist as a regular thing). It might be a mismatch of priorities, that it doesn't have a Lex Luthor as a a clear-cut Union Chief to properly call in and command other arch-enemies who would be willing to pay union dues and work together to better destroy the specific guys they individually hate. Marvel's major villains are a clutch of arch-bastards all trying to be king of the world who hate each other as much, if not more, as they hate their heroes and the only one who could rise above them to the top leadership position is Doctor Doom, who has no need to be leading or participating in something like this. Loki had to put on a whole charade of pretending to be subservient to each of them in order to pull off the gathering he did in Acts of Vengeance, and that only worked once.

Another obvious immediate answer for why is that, as Acts of Vengeance and other stories have shown time and time again, you kinda can't gather all of Marvel's biggest villains in one place and not include the Red Skull, and thus other villains jumping over themselves to murder him the second he walks into the room. But they've done attempts without him or a significant Nazi villain in the room, and they still largely didn't land. It might be overall that, the point of the Legion of Doom is to force all the separate characters and domains of the DCU to join forces to oppose it and that's why they have to be a threat to the Justice League, with none of it's villains exactly meeting that standard on their own, but Marvel's heroes are already all crammed together in cliques on the same places and fighting/putting differences aside to tackle bigger threats all the time, and so there's not really a point of forcing that through a especially big villain gathering.

There isn't really a unity among the Marvel heroes comparable to the one that demands Lex Luthor to call in all the other arch-enemies to try and break, and the one time Norman Osborn attempted to call in one at the height of his power, it was repeteadly emphasized how stupid he was to expect to be able to gather and control and command said people (and when Namor tried to revive the Cabal for the sake of succeeding where the Illuminati failed, things went even worse for him). In the end, Marvel is just too chaotic for the villains to exist in a centralized ruling body like that, if the heroes can't agree on anything why would their villains be any different.

[silviakundera]

to make up for the vicious atos slander...

what is a tale of thousand stars about, actually?

10 episodes, 60 min each; slow burn with product placements

30-something forest ranger, working the same job that killed his dad, in an incredibly rural village (i mean, rural rural: no indoor plumbing or internet and a long trip to the nearest city). Very gay and very closeted

20-something rich kid of a politician, who has a defective heart and expects to die young before even completing his degree; jumped up the transplant list due to his family pulling strings. Been too busy being terminal to figure out he likes dudes.

Rich kid discovers his new heart came from a woman who died due to his street racing bet that night. When he gets ahold of her diary and finds out she was a volunteer at this tiny village, he decides to finish her assignment. Without telling anyone why.

They fall in love. It's about✨the yearning✨

But the Dark Secret™ and their difference in social status and age loom large

Will a young man with wealth & privilege throw away all modern conveniences, abandoning facebook & toliets for love?

After learning the truth, will this strict & set-in-his-ways ranger still want him to?

Can they have a happy ending? lol ofc this is a gay romance novel, haven't you been paying attention?

vid recs?

beautiful mess by jimochies

breathe by samyvids

[crows4luna]

BLOOD-SOAKED MELODIES: AISLA LOR / “ALISA” [ OC ] .◞ ♱ ◟. LISTEN TO THE 5TH EP NOW!

WARNING: THIS STORY WILL CONTAIN GRAPHIC DESCRIPTIONS OF BLOOD, VIOLENCE, GORE, OCCASIONAL EXPLICIT SEXUAL CONTENT & MATURE TOPICS ALL AROUND. UNDER 18 DO NOT INTERACT.

A SEMI-CANON COMPLIANT LOVE & DEEPSPACE AU. [ SYLUS x OC ] INSPIRED BY FICTIONAL POP STARS, MARIE MOREAU from GEN V, SKYE RILEY, and YUNA from FINAL FANTASY X-2. INDEX ㅤ ⸝⸝ ㅤ PROLOGUE ㅤ CH1 ㅤ CH2 ㅤ MORE TBA TAG LIST ㅤ ⸝⸝ ㅤ @pixelcafe-network

Of all the unique experiments that Ever has ever set its focus on, Aisla was one of the many who flourished darkly. Despite all their ambitions, no one ever really knows what determines the Evol a child will receive once the Aether Core transplant is complete. And with Aisla? Perhaps it was a matter of karmic justice.

Scientists, investors… all this greedy, corrupt power… Aisla was destined to be a part of a driving force to rebel and radicalize. So of course, when her younger self awoke on that recovery table, the bedside doctors each had their heads blown. The alarm had gone off, as a result—and it was the first time the greedy had been shaken. Frozen in place out of fear. Nobody likes to see a blood-soaked little girl, smiling innocently as viscera surrounded her.

PROLOGUE

“They hate the album.”

Aisla spares but a brief glance, then shrugs. Settled in her right hand is a latte, still warm from her short walk to the cafe and back. A ten minute trip, at most, given there’s not a line, so it’s easy to juggle breaks from the studio.

All she manages in response to the news is, “So?”

Her manager grimaces, wearing an expression that unveils a plea to care a little bit more.

It’s not that she hates being an entertainer. It’s actually a nice getaway from fighting Wanderers all the time, and even then, this double life remains shrouded in the dark. She gets to have it all (somewhat). Plus, she loves dancing and singing.

The public used to adore her, so to speak. But everything’s been too much lately, so she disappeared for a bit. It’s a concept that she doesn’t expect any of the general public to understand. The creative process can be a bitch.

And since then—younger, ‘fresh meat’ has debuted into the industry making copycat music and backpacking off each other’s concepts.

ALISA, Linkon City’s Beloved Pop Sensation…

Where has she gone?

“Critics are saying it’s mediocre for an EP, and it doesn’t hold up to your previous releases. They’re complaining about the lack of songs, how the concept doesn’t match, and…”

“And…?”

The man sighs, rubbing his hand over his face as he sets the tablet in hand down at his side. “Look, they don’t know you’re performing at the Celestia Festival yet. And at least, it’s just one song—and it’s a track that they like. Let’s just cling to the hope that this surprise show will regain some trust.”

She takes another sip of her latte, frowning at the taste. The caramel’s more salty than sweet. Gross. “Well… I never did anything wrong to them.”

Her phone vibrates in her pocket. Quickly, Aisla stands, muttering a quick excuse me before walking out of the room. Her manager’s reaction goes unnoticed, uncared for. Now in the hall, she taps on her Hunter Watch. Hologram panels stick up, entailing details: EXCLUSIVE HUNT. INTENSE METAFLUX FLUCTUATIONS 1.5KM SOUTHEAST.

Hm. Time to get to work.

[warningsine]

The funniest show on television is Girls5Eva, which transplanted from the backwoods of Peacock to the mires of Netflix for its third season. While a lot of shows have taken off after landing on Netflix — You, for instance — Girls5Eva, from the data available publicly, didn’t get many viewers on the platform. I’m no expert on the mechanics of streaming, but I have one radical explanation for why this is happening: There are simply not enough episodes of Girls5Eva available to watch. On Peacock, the show had two eight-episode seasons. Netflix has given it an additional six. That means that Girls5Eva has aired, in total, only 22 episodes, about the same number as a full-season order of an old-fashioned network sitcom like 30 Rock, to which Meredith Scardino’s series is deeply indebted (Scardino wrote on 30 Rock; Tina Fey is a Girls5Eva executive producer). Over a three-year period? This is simply not enough!

Sitcoms are built for mass production and consumption, with dynamics between characters designed to generate an endless stream of story lines, and it can take a season or two to fully gel. Girls5Eva is lucky enough to have a distinct sensibility and a strong cast from the start, but it hasn’t had the space to work through all the possible material. There’s so much to mine in flashbacks to the girl group’s checkered early-aughts past, in Wickie’s failed solo career, in Summer’s wackadoo Christian upbringing, in Gloria’s fraught lesbian drama, and in Dawn’s attempts to find her own way as a songwriter (plus the larger meta arc of Sara Bareilles coming into her own as a comedic actor). Season three, in which the crew goes on tour around the country, tries to cover so much ground it’s like a distance runner sprinting at her vO2 max. The overarching plot — they want to perform at Radio City Music Hall — encroaches on all the fun along the way, rushing past a guest appearance from Cat Cohen, the reveal of Wickie’s real backstory, and an intricate Harry Styles parody. Sitcoms should be about all the fun everyone is having along the way, and we’ve lost that.

But there is another and perhaps more important reason that we need longer seasons of Girls5Eva: holidays. Network sitcoms, airing on a traditional schedule, have the opportunity to set episodes around the holidays near which they would air; think of the Thanksgiving episodes of Friends, The Office’s Christmas episodes, 30 Rock’s impeccable use of Leap Day. In my ideal universe where Girls5Eva has 22-episode seasons, Netflix would also abandon the binge strategy and air those episodes weekly, but that’s not a necessity. You could still drop them all at once, which gives me the opportunity to revisit the holiday episodes as those holidays occur throughout the year. If you need convincing, here are my suggestions for some holidays the Girls5Eva might celebrate:

Christmas (duh): Dawn tries to write a Christmas song; Wickie reveals a longstanding feud with Mariah Carey (she claims one of the items from her riff rolodex appears in “All I Want for Christmas Is You”; Mariah does not know her).

Thanksgiving: The girls try to book a gig at the Macy’s Parade (as Peacock actually had the stars do, to the confusion of my parents watching at home) while also atoning for their past sins at the event (revealed in flashback).

Valentine’s Day: Gloria revisits a past relationship with Taylor Lautner (she was his dentist).

Tax season: Summer reveals she hasn’t been paying taxes for years (thought you were covered if you already paid your church).

Presidents’ Day: Dawn tries to write a song about Lincoln being sexy, inadvertently offends a gay activist group.

Pride month: Return of Bowen Yang’s lip-sync influencer.

Cuffing season: Big for Gloria.

The Feast of San Gennaro: Big for Dawn (why is the show so all-in on Sara Bareilles being Italian??).

V-E Day: Wickie and Dawn’s husband, Scott, discover their mutual fascination with the Eastern Front: “I spent a lot of time touring post-Soviet states, okay!”

Casimir Pulaski Day: Gloria has beef with Sufjan Stevens.

[tsotf-fic]

♚ chapter 1 - when stars collide ♛

ii. birds of paradise

The Royal Family departed Cantham House for the Imperial Palace right as the Coruscant sun began to set. Within the speeder, nobody dared to speak under the looming shadow of Imperial surveillance.

Y/N leaned up against the transparisteel window, wistfully looking upon the planetwide city. Coruscant was unlike any other metropolis planet; as far as the eye could see, there were absolutely no traces of life that weren't artificially transplanted from somewhere else. To many, including the Organas, it served as a cold reminder of the effect humans had on the galaxy.

If planets were considered living beings, she pondered, Coruscant would certainly be considered a droid.

"Be careful not to smudge your makeup, dear," Breha said, breaking the silence and snapping Y/N out of her daydream.

To the untrained eye, Breha maintained an air of queenly confidence and serenity, but her family could tell she absolutely radiated with anxiety.

Bail gave her hand a gentle squeeze and smiled. "She'll be fine, my love. We all will."

Feathers rustled as Leia shifted uncomfortably in her dress. "I still have a bad feeling about this," she muttered under her breath.

The speeder landed on the platform just outside of the Imperial Palace, where a crowd of dignitaries, politicians, and socialites from all corners of the galaxy rushed to enter the party first. Each person seemed desperate to outperform the other with their custom-made costumes commissioned from the best designers in the galaxy. The costumes themselves included animals, historical and legendary figures, and various other symbols of planetary cultures.

Leia scoffed. "I bet the materials used to make those are worth more than entire planets in the Outer Rim!"

"I doubt anyone else here cares," Y/N replied, subtly gesturing towards a gaggle of visibly intoxicated politicians.

"Girls, please do not stare at your colleagues," Breha said under her breath with a fake smile plastered on her face.

Bail stifled a laugh as he watched none other than Representative Binks trip over the tail of his blarth costume. "How he manages to stay in power is certainly one of the galaxy's greatest mysteries," he whispered to Y/N and Leia, earning a glare from his wife.

"Perrin! This is a formal celebration, not an excuse for you to get drunk!"

Mon Mothma's husband stumbled out of the crowd. Sparkling, crystalline triangles jutted out from his outfit at all angles, and one could only assume it was meant to mimic the crystal cliffs north of Hanna city, albeit a very gaudy version.

"I jus' wanted to have a li’l fun before the party starts," he slurred, completely oblivious to his wife's anger at the spectacle he was causing. "It's a celebration! I'm celebrating!"

"Not like that," Mon retorted, practically dragging him by his collar. Whether intentional or not, her costume directly contrasted his with its organic, blossom-covered branches twisting elegantly around the lush green fabric of her dress. "If you plan on acting this way the whole night, don't even bother returning to the embassy!"

Most bystanders turned away in embarrassment as the Chandrilan senator berated her husband. Mon did her best to maintain her composure, but she was clearly on the edge of tears; it didn't help that Perrin's inebriated friends loudly tried to egg them on.

Breha and Bail exchanged sympathetic, knowing glances, almost as though they had an unspoken secret language–they were practically Lorrdians when compared to their Chandrilan counterparts.

Perrin wriggled out of his wife's grip and turned around to point an accusing finger at her. "And you wonder why your daughter hates you!" He hobbled off, leaving Mon standing there, flustered and humiliated. However, something about the way she quickly regained her composure told Y/N that she was happy to be rid of him.

Mon’s tear-pricked eyes lit up when she saw the apprehensive Alderaanian girl.

"Y/N, dear, how are you? My, you look so beautiful," she said, placing a hand on the side of Y/N's cheek, her face glowing with pride.

"It's so nice to see you, Auntie Mon! But I guess the situation requires that I refer to you as Senator Mothma," Y/N laughed.

"Oh, please, there's no need for that. People are already judging me for that little fiasco, so what harm would it do for us to drop a little formality?"

With that, the senator immediately drew in the younger woman for a tight embrace, albeit yielding enough to prevent their costumes from being crushed together. Y/N didn't know if it came from the flowers on her aunt's dress or a perfume on her skin, but something about the warm, delicate scent made her feel so calm, so at home. Perhaps it was just a reflection of its wearer's personality: gentle and elegant, with hidden strength beneath the surface, everything Y/N aspired to be. It pained her so much to see someone she held in such high regard be treated so poorly.

"We're here, too, you know," Bail's voice rang, interrupting their embrace.

"I figured as much, Your Highness," Mon playfully retorted. She pulled away from Y/N, giving her one last smile as she wiped the remnants of tears from the corners of her eyes, and went to greet her colleague. "It's always a pleasure to see the Royal Family."

After exchanging bows with the Viceroy and Queen of Alderaan, she turned to the young princess and her eyes lit up again, although not as bright as they were for Y/N.

"Ah! Matching costumes, how charming! I wonder whose idea that was." She turned to look at Breha, who let out an uncharacteristically loud laugh.

"What better way to compensate for our lack of costumes than by showcasing Alderaan's loveliest young ladies?" The queen responded, resting her hands on both girls' shoulders.

"I still think a costume would have suited you well, mother. You and father would have made for quite the pair of swans," Leia said with a tinge of sarcasm behind her voice as she patted her mother's hand.

"Well, perhaps you're right, but I'm afraid there are more pressing matters than us arriving at the ball as a flock of birds."

"I would have liked to be a bird," Bail chimed in, earning a chorus of laughter in response.

Y/N laughed along with the group, but something about the whole conversation felt stilted, awkward, especially considering how well they all knew each other. Perhaps it had to do with the discomfort of her being a mere noble in the presence of planetary leaders; as much as they tried to include her, she never truly fit in among them. They couldn't help that, though, none of them could. It was just the way things were. So, she continued to smile as she always did.

fanfiction by @kaleidoscope1967eyes

[ridox]

Questions about Xavier & Theories Following Chapter 8 —

I need anyone’s input/theory/thoughts regarding this matter because I haven’t gone through much of Xavier’s Secret Times and Tender Moments yet, and I’ve only unlocked 3/9 of Shooting Stars

Discussion under the cut for potential spoilers

Anyway, I just finished going through Chapter 8 of the Main Story and based from this conversation with Jeremiah. Does this mean Xavier has direct/or indirect influence over what happened to Josephine and Caleb on Chapter 4?

I’m assuming the Nonintervention Principle is for the Lightseekers who venture through space, calling for them to basically NOT ALTER anything in the timeline they’re hopping onto as a preventative measure to creating a butterfly effect (?)

I remember some people saying that Xavier caused the explosion but now that I think about it I don’t think he inherently has anything to do with it. Rather, I think his presence, Jeremiah’s, alongside all the other backtrackers or whatever you call them, is what caused Josephine and Caleb’s death (?)

I have to gather my thoughts for a more concrete theory about this but in essence, the fact that some of the residents of Philos never returned to their own home and their correct timeline… caused a major butterfly effect that essentially kickstarted the catastrophic events that’s happening in MC’s life as of the moment

I feel like Xavier knew what was going to happen to MC’s grandmother and PERHAPS he even knows if Caleb really died or not but he’s bound by this rule to not intervene and to just let it pan out the way it’s supposed to be

Which kinda creates a loophole because his existence itself in this timeline is what caused it to happen in the first place (?) if that specific theory is right

ANYWAY MOVING ON TO MY ACTUAL QUESTIONS —

I remember reading a theory or perhaps an actual explanation that - in an attempt to try and save Queen MC - Xavier created a Möbius Strip that essentially catapults him back in time creating this unending loophole in the Philos timeline

MY QUESTION IS… IS THERE A POSSIBILITY THAT THE MÖBIUS STRIP IN QUESTION IS WHAT RESULTED IN THE DEEPSPACE TUNNEL? OR THE DEEPSPACE TUNNEL ITSELF IS THE MÖBIUS STRIP?

I haven’t done enough research to support this theory because it’s 12 AM and I just finished the chapter and want to document these thoughts but I’m theorizing that Xavier’s effort to save his MC in his own timeline resulted in a time rift in the form of the Deepspace Tunnel.

The same tunnel that was the main reason why MC’s heart got implanted with the Aether Core in the first place. What if the Wanderers that ravaged Linkon City those many years ago were actually Philos citizens (backtrackers, lightseekers) that died during the creation of the tunnel and emerged on the other side as just that… Wanderers?

What if the Wanderer that stabbed current MC through the heart is an alternate timeline/Philos timeline MC who recognized herself and essentially transplanted her heart to hers?

LIKE MY MIND IS GOING MILES AN HOUR THINKING ABOUT THIS BUT I KNOW EVERYTHING’S MESSY AND UNORGANIZED SO LIKE MAYBE I’LL WRITE THIS UP MORE IN THE FUTURE WITH SUPPORTING FACTS AND STUFF

But yeah! To summarize it all —

- Xavier and the rest of the backtrackers/lightseekers in Linkon City are Space and Time anomalies

- Their existence in itself is wrong and is what resulted in the catastrophic event many years ago

- Possibly the Wanderer that pierced current MC’s heart is her from a Philos timeline

- Also Xavier may have been indirectly involve to the death of MC’s grandmother and Caleb

- BUT ALSO I think Xavier knows whether Caleb is truly dead or alive

- Bonus: I feel like Caleb found out that an alternate timeline exists and he had to fake his own death for the sake of MC’s safety

- Just by the end of Chapter 8, everyone was talking about the recent discovery of Philos and imo I feel like this happened prior to Caleb coming home in the first place

- I feel like since Ever pretty much runs everything in Linkon, they tried to sway Caleb into turning MC in for the sake of “research” or something after they found out she’s probably the only living person who fused well with an Aether Core

ANYWAY SORRY FOR THE RAMBLE I WOULD LIKE TO HERE ANYBODY’S THOUGHTS ABOUT THIS PLS I’M SO NECK DEEP INSIDE L&DS LORE

[thgfanfictionlibrary]

Mature Rated Fics Masterlist (29)

Part 1-Part 19 / Part 20 / Part 21 / Part 22 / Part 23 / Part 24 / Part 25 / Part 26 / Part 27 / Part 28 /

Created: March 14th, 2024

Last Checked:------

Breathe-Chele20035 (ao3)  Summary: A tragic accident leaves Katniss a precious gift, her niece Abby. Moving back home gives her a new life full of second chances as she meets her old love, Peeta Mellark. Broken Arrow-AnotherSongAnotherMile (ao3)  Summary: You swore to yourself you'd always be there to protect Katniss Everdeen. But it only took a moment for someone to break through that facade. Brokenness-chele20035 (ao3)  Summary: After Katniss wins the 74th games (Peeta was never reaped)... its thirteen years later when a family tragedy breaks her.   Bubbles and Honesty-Alliswell (ao3)  Summary: Katniss and Peeta have sweet heart-to-heart time together while in the bathtub in this outtake of the "Are Those For Me?" Universe. Burnt Around the Edges-HGfanonezillion (ao3)  Summary: A series of one shots that follows Promise I'm Worthy. It includes some scenes from around the time of Bittersweet Dance. It's not entirely chronological. Can I Get There By Candlelight?-authoresskika (ao3)  Summary: AU: To appease his childhood sweetheart, young Peeta Mellark ventures into the magical forest just outside the protective walls of his city to fetch a fallen star—certainly no easy task when the star turns out to be a girl on fire. Catch Me As I Fall-HGfanonezillion (ao3)  Summary: After the devastating news that neither she nor her mother are a match for a bone marrow transplant for Prim, Katniss is hit with the news that she and Prim don't share a father. As she tries to come to terms with the news, she also must come to terms with the drunken mistake she feels she made at a party she didn't even want to go to. All the while praying that her sister gets a miracle. Cheese Buns and Bad Puns-HGfanonezillion (ao3)  Summary: Peeta has as cooking vlog. Katniss has an archery vlog. They are avid watchers of each other's stuff and strike up a friendship over the internet. But could there be more to the friendship? Or is it just their fans' wishful thinking? Christmas In Panem-Alliswell (ao3)  Summary: For 75 years The Capitol suppressed all festivities that could bring joy and hope to the Districts, but with the birth of the Free Republic of Panem, the new leaders are attempting to bringing back the forgotten costumes of the old days, when Panem was known as America. Christmas has caught the eye of one District 12 baker. Clubbing 101-Alliswell (ao3)  Summary: Prompt 144: She has a night of fun before the start of the semester. She meets this guy, they hit it off that they sleep together. But when she shows up to her class the next day, she sees the guy again. But he’s her professor and he’s way older than she originally thought. #olderPeeta

[catmomjudy]

Airport 1975 Tropes & Plot Points

People/Situations On Plane:

Woman with dog in purse

Airport official with wife and son on plane

Famous aging actress (actually Gloria Swanson as herself)

Middle-aged male passengers played by popular comedic actors and providing questions/commentary

Sick child needing kidney transplant brought to plane in ambulance for transport

Singing nun (Helen Reddy in this case)

Feisty old lady who offers support while swilling Boilermakers

Intrusive and overly-dramatic reporter

And the plot as a whole (curated for 9-1-1 watchers):

Original Destination: Los Angeles (Columbia Flight 409)

Man has heart attack in small aircraft (diverted to Salt Lake due to fog in Boise) and flies into airliner cockpit while the Boeing 747 is making a routine landing in Salt Lake City (due to Pacific coastline being fogged in) at about 12,000 feet.

Flight crew: Pilot blinded; copilot sucked out of plane and navigator dead. Stewardess guides pilot’s hand to autopilot and then calls airport on radio.

Stewardess takes charge and flies the plane.

The boyfriend of the stewardess is the pilot who guides her through the radio (from a small aircraft at first, where he’s flying from LA to Salt Lake with the airport official husband; later from Salt Lake).

They call in the Air Force to survey the damage and then send a helo and rescue pilot to do a midair transfer.

Fuel leak!! 🙀

Debris hit radio!! 🙀 They get signal back.

Mountain ahead! Time is limited!

Airport official husband and stewardess’s boyfriend go on rescue helo to scene with the Air Force crew.

Stewardess hit by debris and knocked out for a moment. Radio is now dead. 🙀

Mountain!! 🙀 The two stewardesses get the blind captain to give them instructions since the stewardess flying hadn’t had to increase air speed yet. Suspense!! 🙀

Midair transfer!!!! 🙀 Pilot on rope from helicopter to cockpit through the hole in the windshield.

The pilot fell to his death!! 🙀🙀 Noooooooo!

And there goes the boyfriend. Of course he goes.

And he’s in!! Yay!!! Cheers all around! 🎉

Some engine trouble. “There is nothing to be alarmed about.” Famous last words?

Firetrucks! Ambulances! Heading to the landing zone!! 🚒🚑

And the landing gear is down!!

”Nancy, I love you.”

And they’re waiting on the firetrucks for the plane to land!! 🚒🚒

🚒🚒🚒🚒🚒🚒

No brakes! 🙀 Phew. SKID TO A STOP!!

🚒🚒🚒🚒🚒🚑🚑🚒🚒🚒🚒🚒🚒

To the blow-up slide exit!!

And all the kissing!! ♥️ 💜 ❤️ All of the kissing!! 😻

Pilot and stewardess leave plane together, last.

An all-star 70s cast! And 107 minutes well spent.

Airport official after tossing reporter down the stairs: “Sometimes the public’s right to know gives me a huge pain in the ass.”

“Climb, baby, climb.” (Boyfriend under breath in helo)

Yeah, I can see Bobby getting in on some of that.

And will Tommy be the guy flying the helo (which is pretty precision) or the guy on the rope?

🙀

[hp-fanfic-archive]

Remus/Sirius Angst Masterlist | Works With 5-10k Words

find the full masterlist directory here

last updated: 09/17/24 | links last checked: 09/17/24

A Piece of the Aftermath (Series) by Snromance [M, 7k, Raising Harry]

Sirius didn't chase after Peter after finding James, Lily and Harry at Godric's Hollow. Instead, he picked up Harry, contacted Remus (as he was out of the country) and moved them out of the magic public's eye. The two of them then attempt to raise Harry to the best of their abilities whilst attempting to deal with the emotional problems that come with trying to raise a kid with no experience, a relationship, and dealing with what part they all played in the death of James and Lily.

And the Night Keep Your Secrets by grandilloquism [T, 6k]

Scenes from the life of Sirius Black, concentrating on his relationship with his mother.

*Colours by LuminousGloom [E, 8k]

Today is their anniversary. It’s the first time Sirius has remembered it, since Azkaban. He decides to mark the occasion.

my eyes adored you by moony_andthe_stars [T, 5k]

“Well that’s bullshit,” he declared, “I bet Moony has plenty of prospects. People would be stupid not to like him.” James and Peter nodded in agreement. “I mean, he’s smart, and witty, and he’s tall!” Sirius continued. “And not to mention, he’s, you know-” Sirius gestured towards Remus and turned in his seat to look at him. Time seemed to slow down for a moment. Remus had his chin propped up in his hand, lazily skimming the text in front of him. The evening light came streaming from the window making Remus glow golden, a halo forming around his curls. His eyebrows were drawn, pulling at the scar that went through his left one. His bottom lip was caught between his teeth and Sirius was suddenly struck by the fact that Remus was- “-bloody gorgeous.” --or-- Sirius is suddenly struck by how beautiful his best friend is

*Of Comets and Counter-Examples by Woldy [T, 5k]

If the past is a foreign country, can travel help to resolve a troubled history? Dumbledore assigns Remus and Sirius a mission to explore three European cities, or perhaps to find each other. (podfic available)

Of Envelope Glue, Twitching, & Two Percent Chances by xxanglophilexx [T, 7k]

At 8:10 am on April 13, 1976, Sirius Black will realize that Remus Lupin fancies him. And if Remus stops twitching and remembers to breathe long enough to have a proper conversation, he may realize something, too. (pdf & e-book files available)

real life has no appeal by orphan_account [G, 7k]

In which Remus is Lily's roommate and Sirius, James and Peter break into places.

Sight of the Stars by orphan_account [M, 8k]

Remus Lupin had always been blind, but when presented with the opportunity to have his sight restored through a corneal transplant, he's not sure he wants to go through with it. Sirius reminds him that whatever he chooses, there's nothing that can break them apart.

*Spaces Between by stardustings [E, 5k]

Remus is gone. Which is to be expected. Remus is always gone, slipping away into the moonlight and shadows, leaving Sirius to wake up alone again. At least he waits until Sirius falls asleep to go. Sirius craves another cigarette and tries not to think about the way it all makes him ache.

*The Battle at the Ministry by whataflammableheart [T, 5k]

The history books would say that the Battle at the Ministry of Magic was the turning point of the war. For Remus Lupin, it marked the night when everything could have gone wrong, but didn't.

*The Best Laid Plans by baobabble [T, 5k]

Remus receives a telephone call from his mum, and Sirius finds out that his boyfriend's parents don't know about their four-year relationship.

The Blood Blistering Brew by Deena [T, 7k]

Sirius is an arrogant berk and Remus is complete pants at Potions. (pdf & e-book files available)

*The Nominal Form of Familiarity by rev02a [M, 5k]

“‘It’s just the darndest thing; as far as we can tell, the Veil is bringing back special possessions… about three a person. It’s sort of a Christmas miracle of sorts. […] to be honest, we haven’t a damn clue.’ The Ministry is also quick to point out that this magic does not appear to be related, in any way, shape, or form, to You-Know-Who.”

*There Isn’t a Word for What We’ve Got by mutuisanimis [T, 7k]

Five people who misunderstood Sirius’ relationship with Remus and one two who didn’t. (translation available in Русский (ficbook))

*This Word Lies at the Bottom of a Lake by berhanes [T, 7k, James & Sirius]

Briefly he'd considered going to visit Remus, but Sirius has too many stacked up feelings about him to add any more, and he doesn't trust himself not to ruin their carefully patched situation in the wake of the incident – it's only been a year, after all, and there's no better way to shatter a barely recovered friendship than by doing something stupid like throwing out a declaration of love in the middle of explaining the myriad ways in which your family is deranged and terrible. So instead Sirius had hailed the Knight Bus and requested Bowness-on-Windermere. (translation available in 中文-普通话 國語 (AO3))

*denotes personal favorite

[respectthepetty]

Hello Petty,

Do you honestly think we could have Transplant with Max and Tul? Like, I would LOOOOOVE that, but I guess the chance to see it happen is... Low? 😣 But I would be so happy so see them acting together because the chemistry is insane 🥵

I reside in Optimistic City, so just like I act when Justin Bieber's "Sorry" comes on, I. Am. A. Believer.

Dr. Sammon has always been a catch, but in 2024, we got Dead Friend Forever, 4 Minutes, and the upcoming Spare Me Your Mercy, Petrichor, and Lost on the River from her when previous to this year, we had only four works from her: Manner of Death, Triage, Bite Me, and Make a Wish.

I'm not great at math, but in ONE YEAR, we will have more Dr. Sammon's pieces than we did in the five years prior. Homegirl is a hot commodity and this gives me some hope that companies want to adapt her work because it has an audience, which hopefully translates to guaranteed money.

Also, Max is in Petrichor. MaxTul did the fan meet in Japan and have done some ads together this year even after Tul announced his retirement. So Tul is open to making money off of the MaxTul partnership, but Max is fine with acting against others as well as we've seen in The Outing and Club Sapan Fine and will see in Petrichor. If we ever get Transplant, it'd be odd to have Max but not Tul, but the option is there with Max being willing to act with others (as he should), so Dr. Bun could be recast if Tul really is done with acting.

Or all the characters could just be recast since another company would produce it much like GAP The Series from Idol Factory and Blank The Series from Nine Star Studios are by the same creator set in the same universe with the same characters but two totally different shows with different actors.

Basically, I believe I will get Transplant one day one way or another, but it'd be nice if it were with MaxTul because just like Justin Bieber sang in "Sorry," "I'm missing more than just their bodies!"

[zenkor123]

Is Peeta bitter about failing to recover his memories prior to October in my fic?

Well his treatment stopped him from believing the Capitol lies and made him functional to work. It's unlikely he is mad about that. Him being made to believe that he could be Old Peeta again probably disappointment and thinking how stupid he was to think it was possible, followed by bitterness that his head is filled with capitol transplants, and unrecoverable memories. Along with sour grapes "Peeta sucked anyway."

Was old Peeta really worth fighting for? This runt! If he had continued he would have spent the rest of his life having episodes, being treated like a charity case, mooching District 13's resources like a parasite, for the lie that he could become Peeta, with his memories and identity who does not spend the rest of his life in a hospital bed. Who really cared about Peeta anyway? Why was he so pathetic, with his back that looked like the surface of mars, hallucinations from hell, a mind empty of identity living on false hope that the destroyed identity would return, a person without a real past?

He was useless! Johanna and Delly had called him a mutt and he wished he was one, he would have a purpose he would be needed. He didn't want to be used, never again! But if Peeta has no past in a sense that makes him a mutt, because do mutts have a past like humans do? Everything about him was wrong. Restoring Peeta had given him a purpose, and a delusion that everything was fine he just needed to work on recovering memories of the quell, this wasn't real. He had done all this work in the name of restoring Peeta for what? His memories were his and didn't affect anyone else. Katniss who was mentioned all the time in the memory restoration efforts clearly didn't care, she has everything whatever happens to him in the hospital wing does not affect her.

If the treatment was done for the star crossed lovers how pathetic was that! She didn't give a fuck about him and never did, he was just a mere threat at this point, that's all Peeta was to her, and if all his memories of her are false doesn't that make her a stranger? It made it all the more sad that he was to due work she never could imagine for someone who had everything and would just laugh at him for being so stupid and then put an arrow in his head. He was glad that Coin finally ended this sham. He requested his doctors "destroy" the Capitol transplants, so his mind could be his own, so he wasn't a living tombstone, so lies that are disrespectful not just to Katniss but to himself, that he was forced to believe, would be wiped out, which they refused to do. A corpse or ruined city has value apparently.

A person without a past has a clean slate for the future. The Capitol must pay!

[ultfreakme]

Riki's Thai BL drama recs!

I'm pretty sure 99% of anyone following me don't usually watch these considering I was an anime/manga blog, then a comic blog, an ATLA blog and only very recently an unhinged Thai BL blog but hey! Maybe I can convert some of y'all to the dark side so here are my recs in no particular order!

A Tale of Thousand Stars

I lied about the order, this one's my top favorite hands down.

Plot: Tian is rich, young and spoiled but his seemingly perfect life takes a turn when he learns that he's suffering from a terminal heart disease which requires a transplant to save his life.

With little time left to live, he grows reckless and is rushed into a heart transplant after a car accident. He learns that his new heart is from a young volunteer teacher named Torfun who died in a car crash.

Feeling undeserving of his second chance at life, he follows Torfun's footsteps and becomes a volunteer teacher, using her journal to learn that she wanted to fulfill a wish- to count a thousand stars at the remote and distant Pha Pun Dao Cliff. He also learns that she was growing very close to a forest ranger named Phupha.

Phupha thinks Tian is just another city kid volunteer here to take a few pictures for his socials and leave, without giving proper care to the children and villagers he protects, but as time passes, Tian and Phupha grow closer as they learn more about one another and themselves, with Tian realizing that his motive to stay at Pha Pun Dao has grown from being about Torfun, to his own blooming ties to the villagers and the children he's teaching and perhaps... a particular forest ranger too.

My Thoughts: OKAY this??? This is a freaking beautiful show. The plot and pacing is very well done. The show sinks you into the village of Pha Pun Dao and makes you fall in love with the village the same way Tian does. The side characters and village residents are all unique and charming, the children Tian teaches are adorable and you really get to know the setting and understand why both Torfun and Tian are so attached to this place.

It's a story about gaining back freedom, about finding yourself and finding community. Tian is an amazing protagonist who grows and learns from his mistakes(and boy does he make a lot of mistakes). Phupha is a little cold and closed off but he's charming and so clearly cares and puts his entire heart into the village.

If you enjoy classic slow-burn romances with amazing chemistry and character development with an almost fairy tale-like quality, this one's for you.

2. Triage The Series

Plot: Tin is a third-year ER resident student who's forced into a time loop until he is able to save his patient, a university student named Tol, who seemingly got into a drunk-driving accident. Tin is forced to figure out a way to extend the time he's been given to save Tol, and in the process, he learns more about him and the two fall in love. But what do you do when your lover forgets you every time the clock resets? How do you save the man you love?

My thoughts: The plot is exquisite chef's kiss. The execution is so good every episode makes you want to immediately catch up on the nest. Tensions are high, and while at the start you wish for the time loops to just stop much like our main character Tin, we start wishing for more loops, more chances, as we get to know Tol.

It's a story about how people can change and should be given the chance to do so. How forgiveness, communication, empathy and understanding are key to better ourselves and others. Tin starts the series off as an indifferent, jaded medical student who believes there is no justice due to a past tragedy in his life. He has no motive to save Tol other than to get back on with his life but as he gets to know more about Tol, he starts seeing how significant and important every decision is. Tol is arrogant, spoiled and unaware of the effects he has on the people around him but he grows through his relationship with Tin and does his best to better the lives of people around him.

The side characters are so fleshed out and play important roles, the romance is interwoven with a much darker storyline that starts unfolding through the side characters. The time loops are done really well and the show tries to be medically accurate when it can.

If you're looking for some time travel, plot-heavy, character-driven stories with a bit of an epic romance, this one's for you.

3. Laws of Attraction the Series

Plot: Chan is a high profile lawyer who takes cases in terms of how rich and influential he can get, and in this pursuit takes on the case of a rich politician's son who kills a 11 year old girl in a drunk-driving incident. He hopes to clear the son of charges and gain the politician as a client but the politician fires Chan with no warning. In his quest for revenge for this slight, and growing suspicious of the politician's motive for taking him off the case, Chan finds himself a client in the form of the 11 year old girl's uncle, Tinn, who has been seeking justice for his niece to no avail due to how powerful the politician is.

Tinn hates Chan's methods and motives, Chan thinks Tinn is naive for seeking justice in a system he knows is broken beyond repair. Despite this, they find themselves growing ever close to one another.

My thoughts: The story keeps you on the edge. Like you think you've got all the information, everything seems clear, until you start uncovering the case in further details along with Chan and Tin. You start off thinking 'yeah of course Tinn's right' and he is for wanting to seek justice for his niece, but Chan is also unfortunately right about navigating the legal system. The side characters are so distinct, I think this is the one drama that has you just as invested in the side characters as the mains. You will adore all of them, especially Chan's bff Rose and her gf Maya, and Tinn's grandma-Galaxia. The little girl, Tankhao is dead by ep 1 but she is a prominent character throughout the series and you grow so attached to her, it makes the case so much more personal and painful.

The production value is kinda...not the best, out of all the shows I'll be recommending I think it's visually the least good but you won't even notice it with the plot and the romance going on.

If you like plot-heavy crime and mystery stories with a morally dubious protagonist, this one's for you.

4. Moonlight Chicken

I'm giddy and already crying at the thought of this one

Plot: Jim(or better known as 'Uncle Jim') is the owner of a small chicken rice shop in a tourist hot spot that has faced a huge hit after COVID-19. He struggles to keep his restaurant afloat and raise his rebellious nephew, when one night, he sees a customer passed out drunk in the store. The customer- Wen- is instantly attracted to Jim and after a night out together, they have a one-night stand with Jim stating he isn't looking for romance.

But Wen's fallen hard and fast, finding a sense of comfort and safety in Jim who greets everyone with food and a smile, building a little safe place through his restaurant. Jim, who refuses to let any more people into his life finds himself falling for Wen, who is lonely and unable to move on from his past relationship.

In between this, Jim's nephew Li Ming finds love with an isolated boy named Heart whose parents keep him away from people due to him being deaf. Li Ming's isolation and hopelessness from hsi financial circumstances, and Heart's isolation due to no one around him accommodating his disability leads the two boys to learn from one another and let each other find company and community through one another.

My thoughts: Look, look I know this story sounds basic as fuck, but this series is so on the nose about the queer experience. You see the generation divide between the young queers and older queers. The loneliness is so palpable and heavy.

Jim is the oldest, he's like 40, he's raising his nephew and running a business. He grew up in an environment where being gay was shameful with zero family support so though he is out about his queerness, he's still holding onto a lot of shame that was unfortunately instilled in him. Wen is about a decade younger and he's a lot more open, but understands where Jim is coming from and slowly shows him that lowering your walls and letting people in isn't bad. Jim especially is affected very much by all the restrictions queer people face legally(his ex's parents exploiting him and taking away all his money and assets because he and the ex shared a bank account but the parents claim it was solely the ex's).

Li Ming and Heart are teenagers, Gen Z. Li Ming doesn't understand Jim's apprehensions and worries and just wants to be himself. They're both gay, you'd think Jim would be immediately accepting but Jim's past experience is making him worry. Being gay has not been great for Jim, he had to run away from home and start anew.

This is also one of the few shows that show the effects of COVID. It's ALWAYS there. Every single thing in the plot is affected by it. Wen's relationship with his ex, his loneliness, Jim's restaurant, the entirety of Jim's neighbourhood being torn down- ALL FROM COVID. You just can't escape it and this entire show IS SO RELATABLE.

ALSO, Jim and Wen's chemistry!?!?!?! I feel high looking at them, Wen looks at Jim like he's the last glass of water in a desert where he's been lost for weeks, like he wants to eat that DILF alive, like he's addicted to him. Their kisses are just, so.....[unholy screech]. THIS is CHEMISTRY. If you didn't realize, they're the same actors from A Tale of Thousand Stars(ATOTS). They have perfected the art of longing gazes. If anyone looked at me like these two look at each other, I'll melt, I'll combust, I'll dedicate my life to them. And I think Jim and Wen's actors, Earth and Mix respectively, are super hot and very very good as actors(Earth is 29. this man looks young. but the way he ACTS fully sells the life-weary 40-year-old father figure to a teenager thing). Mix has the strange ability to make honorifics sound hot as fuck. In ATOTS, Mix calls Earth 'Chief'. In Moonlight Chicken, Mix calls Earth 'Uncle'. Now you might think the latter just cannot be hot under any circumstance but hear him say it, and you will understand.

If you enjoy slice of life romances that are character driven, focusing on the queer experience, you'll love this.

5. KinnPorsche: La Forte the Series

This is actually the Thai adaptation of Goncha-[gets shot]

Plot: Porsche is a down on his luck bartender who's trying to pay off his family debts in any way he can, participating in illegal underground fights to scrounge up money. On his break from his bar tending shift, a stranger runs up to him and offers him a hefty sum of money to protect him from people chasing after him. Porsche does so but doesn't trust the stranger- Kinn- to make good on his promise so he steals his watch.

Turns out Kinn is the heir the Theerpanyakul mafia family, and tracks down Porsche to hire him as his bodyguard.

My thoughts: You've likely seen extremely beautiful gifs from this series in wondrous colors as characters fuck each other senseless. Or torture each other, It really depends. All the shows I've recommended, I think, are better appreciated by an older audience, but this one is firmly 18+ officially. There's violence, gore, torture, sexual assault, drug abuse, alcohol abuse and a million other things that I forgot because my god this series goes to some dark, dark places.

Yes the sex scenes are great we stan but despite how thirsty the fandom can seem and how the show presents, there's so much more going on in the show in terms of plot.

It's kind of a tragedy, actually, especially for Porsche. The show is his corruption arc. He does things and acts in ways that he doesn't want because he fell in love with the wrong guy. They're trying to protect their love in a world filled with mistrust. I think the story is about cycles of abuse and violence, and the attempts to escape them.

For Porsche, he's stuck in a cycle of debts and being passed off from one ruling figure to another. In the beginning of the series, the debt collectors rule his life. As a bodyguard, the mafia rules his life. He's always under someone's thumb and he's trying so hard to get out.

For Kinn, it's the mafia. He doesn't want to be the heir, he doesn't want to do any of this but he has to because that's just what his family does. Porsche is a brief glimpse at escape but unfortunately, they're both dragged in.

It's not perfect, but it's so fun to watch.

If you like mafia romances that actually show the mafia side, angst, action and mystery, and are chill with all the trigger warnings this show has, this one's for you.