#sylvia legit used hers on

[your-unfriendlyghost]

Do you have Stevie hcs

Yup

tons

it’s a problem

How they met:

-Steve has always thought Evie’s pretty, but in a hallway crush way- he never really met her until the incident at the police station, when they’re both sixteen (Stevie police station meetcute is @dallasgallant’s fantastic idea lol and I love it sm)

-Evie was also vaguely aware of Steve before that, but she just knew him as Darry Curtis’s little brother’s angry boyfriend sidekick

-I talked about/drew it in this post, but in more detail, I think the police station incident went like this:

-Evie’s mom dates a lot of not so great guys. Usually they leave Evie alone, but they’re pretty abusive towards her mom. On the day of the police station incident, one of them slapped her mom in the face. So Evie punched him so hard his nose broke.

-And then he called the cops on her. So she got hauled into the police station.

-That’s where she met Steve, who was at the station because he got caught for a bit of petty theft

-Steve hears her arguing with the cops while he’s waiting for Soda to come pick him up, and when she comes out of the office and sits across from him to wait for her Mom to get her, he says something like “You know, your crime was pretty tuff.” And then he cringes because that’s a ridiculous thing to say to someone, especially a really gorgeous girl

-But Evie, who’s had a hard day, actually really needed to hear that. She was standing up for her mom, and her mom didn’t even thank her, and now the cops just yelled at her and honestly scared her for it. She’s actually started second guessing herself- like is she crazy? Should she have hit the guy? Is she in the wrong here?? So it means the world to have Steve tell her he thinks her actions were justified

-She thanks him, because she’s legit close to tears at this point she’s so frazzled

-Steve elaborates on how badass he thinks she is. He rambles about it more than he otherwise would because he genuinely thinks she’s awesome for that, but he also isn’t used to complimenting anyone (especially not pretty girls), so he thinks he’s coming off as so uncool

-But Evie needs that, actually. So when Soda comes to pick Steve up, Evie makes sure she takes note of his name/who he is, and she starts purposefully showing up at the DX to “accidentally run into him”

General relationship h/cs

-All of Evie’s friends think Steve sucks, which is okay because Evie thinks their boyfriends suck too

-Like when she tells Sylvia, who I hc as her best friend, about Steve, Sylvia’s like “Ew, really?! C’mom, him? The one with the teeth? That guy’s such an asshole, I don’t think he’s ever said anything nice in his life.” Slyvia mainly knows Steve as an annoying friend of Dally’s, who has the same temper and poor attitude but none of the cool rebel allure. (Part of this disdain is that Sylvia just doesn’t find Steve attractive, like at all, so in her head he’s just a worse person)

-And Evie’s like “You can’t say that, you’re dating Dallas Winston.” (Evie thinks Dally is both unattractive and horrible to be around)

-Steve’s friends all love Evie though

-Soda thinks she’s so cool- he’d be jealous (of both of them) if he didn’t have Sandy (for now 😭)

-Evie is the only person Steve feels comfortable showing his deeper feelings. She’s pretty open about her own, so Steve can let himself be more sensitive around her without feeling like a total sissy. I mean, he’s open around Soda too, but honestly less. He still kinda wants Soda to think he’s cool, yk? Evie though is so open about how cool she thinks he is that he can let his guard down easier. (I mean, due to traditional gender norms, especially in the 60s, it’s easier for Evie to be open than it is for Soda or Steve I think)

-They’re both pretty physical- Evie may not wrestle people or affectionately punch them, but she likes physical touch too. Just with her it’s usually like. Less aggressive. She does get a little more aggressive with Steve though to kinda match his energy (translation- they both like PDA a lot)

-Evie’s tried arm wrestling Steve a handful of times- she hasn’t won yet

-But she has carried him before lol- he’d never admit it, but he loves it (He doesn’t need to admit it tho, she can tell)

-Evie’s good with reading people, but especially Steve. She can see right through his bravado and the more preformative aspects of his personality- like how he’s always wearing sleeveless things, obsessively checking his hair, the way he’s always gotta have attention or he’ll just die- and she thinks it’s honestly so cute. Like, he’s not just a cool tough hood, he’s also a dumb teen boy. And she finds that really endearing

-Steve finds her brain really attractive, but also very much her looks. That sounds shallow- hear me out. My version of Evie doesn’t see always see herself as conventionally good-looking- she’s a mixed race girl in a very white part of town, raised by a white mother who doesn’t know how raise a non-white kid, in the 19-fucking-60s. She’s tall, and not the most thin- she’s used to feeling too big, too dark, too much, from how she looks to how she acts to how she is. So having Steve see all that- all her emotions, all her anger, her height, her hair, her everything- and yet see her as the hottest chick in Tulsa and also probably the whole world matters so much to her. She’s never felt like she fits into the proper mold of good wholesome femininity and it kills her, so the fact that Steve sees her as the epitome of The Perfect Girl makes her feel so much better about herself. (I know this attitude probably sounds kind of dated, but uh. Again, it’s the 60s. So.)

-Similarly, Steve’s not always the most confident in his looks even if he acts like he is. Being best buddies with a universally beloved guy like Soda occasionally does make him feel like he’s ugly by comparison. Especially with his teeth and height and the fact that he’s less lean and slender than Soda- Steve’s shorter and hasn’t lost his baby fat and it feels lousy. (Little bit of Steve angst- I h/c that girls have gone out with him in the past just to get closer to Soda. It seriously fucked with his head, because he was so jealous and angry with Soda, but also loves and adores Soda, and it’s not Soda’s fault that he’s good looking and Steve isn’t… ) (Steve is still perfectly alright looking, even if Soda’s more conventionally attractive- but he’s also less friendly/charismatic than Soda) Anyway, having Evie go for him over Soda feels like a big deal- It’s happened before of course, but never with a girl he liked as much as he likes Evie

-Steve used to like reading, but he slowly stopped over time because he’s a JD and books are for sensitive babies like Ponyboy. But when Evie recommends books to him, he reads them and talks to her about them. He wants to understand her and all the things she loves

-In turn, Evie talks to him about cars- she likes cars too, but admittedly not as much as Steve does. Still, she’ll go with him to every motor show and often helps him out at the DX. She used to help her dad work on cars back when he was alive, and so she knows about as much about them as Steve does anyhow

-In springtime, Steve steals flowers from his neighbors’ yards and leaves them in Evie’s locker at school

-One time Ponyboy and Two-Bit catch him with the flowers, and they both make fun of him so hard for “going soft”

-Legit though, for Evie, he is completely soft. She could stab him if she wanted and he’d thank her (she would never do that but you get the idea)

-One time she convinced him to let her do his eyeliner. He thought it was ridiculous, but only protested a little- plus, it meant getting to stare into her eyes and admire her face for the whole time she was drawing it on, and he can’t complain about that

-When they first started dating, Steve was real insecure because he’s 5’7 and Evie’s 5' 7.5- and in the go go boots she always wears, she’s 5’9. And Dally would often make fun of him for being shorter than his girl which just made things worse. Deep down he was also kind of…physically into their slight height difference, which confused him so much. Over time though he got over the discomfort- besides, he might be shorter than her, but he’s still bigger/stronger than her so it doesn’t hurt his masculinity too much anymore

-Steve realizes he loves her when he gets sent to the cooler for lifting hubcaps. As he’s being handcuffed, Evie starts to cry- both at being disappointed in him, and from being scared for him. And for the first time since he was a little innocent happy kid, Steve reconsiders whether he wants to be a hood. Because if it makes Evie this upset…is it really worth it? And that freaks him out, because the only other person he’s ever cared that much about not disappointing is Soda

-Evie has loved him a little bit ever since they first met and he understood her when no one else did- but she falls in love with him when she’s had a fight with her mom and Steve comes over. He had been at some thrilling drag race with Soda, but he dropped everything to make sure she was okay as soon as he heard. Once he’s there, he listens to her talk, takes her seriously, and she’s never felt so understood and seen. And she knows then that she’s found someone who gets her in a way no one else does

-Evie steals Steve’s sweatshirts and jackets and occasionally even his jeans. In return, Steve wears her (more androgynous looking) jewelry- like her rings and chains and whatever. She almost convinced him to let her pierce his ears so that he could steal her earrings too- he chickened out at the last minute, less because of the pain and more because he didn’t wanna be seen as girly or gay (even though he is for Soda). Maybe someday when Steve’s older and more secure in his masculinity he’ll let her do it though

-Privately, Steve has already planned out how he’s gonna propose to her. He doubts he’ll go through with it until after Evie’s finished college, but he knows he wants to marry her someday

[tsuyoshikentsu]

gonzalez v. trevino, and why you should care.

SCOTUS has ruled on Gonzalez v. Trevino in an 8-1 vote. Per the ruling, when suing the police for retaliation, the person suing does not need to provide precise instances when others were not arrested on the same charge. General evidence that they would not be likely to be arrested is enough.

The story behind this case is wild, and this ruling is pretty important. Hit Keep Reading for both.

Gonzalez in this case is Sylvia Gonzalez, a 77-year old woman who, it must be said, was the first Latina elected to the city council of Castle Hills, TX (pop. ~4,000). Edward Trevino is the mayor of Castle Hills. If this is starting to raise alarm bells for those of you involved in local politics, you're absolutely right.

Gonzalez was a local resident who ran for office because she and many, many others felt that the city manager, Ryan Rapelye, sucked at his job. She ran on the promise of getting rid of him. Well, she got elected. Then the city attorney and the rest of the city council tried to claim that, since the sheriff who swore her in wasn't technically qualified to do so, her votes didn't count. A judge threw that out. Then Gonzalez got started on circulating a non-binding citizens' petition to get rid of Rapelye.

Here's what happened next: after Gonzalez submitted the signed petition (at which point it became a government document), at the end of a meeting it was sitting among some documents on top of a podium. Gonzalez put all the documents in her binder.

Now, before we all get excited here: a key point in Gonzalez's case which this decision does not cover is whether she did this intentionally or not. There are questions about whether all the signatures are legit; some residents have said she coerced them. On the other hand, that could just be the council's faction talking. That part is going back to trial, so no answer here.

HOWEVER. What's clear is what happened next: weeks later, Gonzalez was arrested on the charge of tampering with a government document. She was thrown in jail overnight, and her mugshot was released. The charge was almost immediately dropped, but she wound up paying I think over $10,000 in legal fees and her reputation was hurt. Because of this, Gonzalez then sued the police, claiming retribution.

What's retribution? What it sounds like: if you engage in protected First Amendment activity, and the police arrest you, that's retribution if you can prove that they didn't have probable cause. In that case, you can sue them.

Wait a second. Sue the police for arresting people? That's right, darlings, this is a qualified immunity case!

Now, in 2019 SCOTUS added a second way to prove retribution. Instead of showing they didn't have probable cause, you can sue the cops if you can prove that someone doing the same thing without the message you were stating wouldn't have been arrested. For example--and this is the example SCOTUS used when it was argued--if you shout "FUCK THE POLICE!" and then jaywalk, and you get arrested and jailed for jaywalking, you have a pretty fucking good case for retribution.

Tampering with a government document is, basically, a ridiculous charge in this case. Gonzalez showed that at trial by citing stats saying no one has been arrested for picking up a petition ever. The trial court agreed, but an appeals court ruled that no, she had to cite specific examples of people picking up petitions and not getting arrested. Thus, SCOTUS.

So… what the hell happened?

This ruling is a per curium ruling. There are a number of things that can mean, but in this particular case it means that no Justice's opinion got the five votes necessary to be the majority opinion. Thus, this is another case where we have a bunch of concurring opinions.

Alito's concurrence actually gives some reasons for why they ruled what they did. They're technical, but they amount to, basically, saying that you can't decide whether evidence counts for this exception at the same time you're trying to figure out if there's enough of it. Kavanaugh's is the--technical term here--weakest shit ever, literally saying that this ruling is fine because it "does no harm." Jackson's concurrence (Sotomayer joining) says you should allow all kinds of evidence for this!

And the lone dissenter? That's right, iiiiiiiiiiiiit's Thomas! His dissenting opinion says that this exception shouldn't exist at all and you should always have to show probable cause, likely because he's a bitter old man who hates goodness and joy.

Okay, why does this matter?

One, because it protects free speech from retribution and makes it easier to fight back if that happens. Two, because this is a (very, very) small chink in the armor of qualified immunity, which should die in a fire. (For those who don't know: qualified immunity is what makes it so you can't sue cops.) Those two together make this a big deal to me, narrow as the ruling is. It's a good day for protesters and objectors everywhere.

It's also interesting just how much this fractured the court, especially given how often that seems to be happening. The conservative supermajority we've all been fearing is--ever so slowly, bit by minuscule bit--weakening. I'm still extremely worried about many upcoming decisions, but this has given me some hope.

[rapunzelstiltskin]

LESBIAN PULP ROMANCE

"To the person in the bell jar, blank and stopped as a dead baby, the world itself is a bad dream… How did I know that someday—at college, in Europe, somewhere, anywhere—the bell jar, with its stifling distortions, wouldn’t descend again?"

— Sylvia Plath, The Bell Jar 

Stuffed animals, piles of half clean clothes and various tubes of makeup. Your messy bed is like an archeological site full of half unearthed little vestiges of your anxiety about getting ready for tonight.

It all takes up any space you and Holly aren’t occupying. When she sat down and said she'd your makeup, the little smile on her face said she knew exactly what would happen, though it isn't supposed to, and you played along. Let her gently hold your chin up with her thumb and her index finger while she traced your cheeks with a soft brush. Let her put her face close to yours, sleepy eyes fixed on your mouth, making you feel like the tide before the shore.

She has the kind of soft, squishable body you love and now she's wrapping you up in it while you shove some of the debris away. Softness; Holly, the mattress, her hair, the way she touches you.

You couldn't really believe she even wanted to be kissing you; she was so sunny, so well liked. 

She has:

hazel eyes

a husky voice

a boyfriend named Bryan 

an orthodox jewish family, including:

a mountainous father who once chased you out of her bedroom one afternoon after school, and

a mother who came to your house to scream at your mother for raising the girl who had corrupted her daughter 

a perfect beaming smile

thick, curly brown hair, and; 

a Nokia with the ringtone set to Party Rock Anthem because it’s 2012 (this is allegedly ironic)

Now it rings uncomfortably loudly on the bedside table for a few moments before she props herself up underneath you on an elbow to answer it.

“Yup,” the texture of her voice is smooth and rough at the same time, like asphalt.

“Okay.” Then quieter, to you; “They’re downstairs”.

So you both stand up, straightening your outfits, quickly scooping up keys and phones. You sit on the bed fastening the buckle on your mary janes and watch her check her lipstick in the bathroom mirror. They wouldn’t even notice, you think. It's like queerness doesn't even occur to straight girls. 

“You’ll love Bianca,” she’s saying while she drags one finger slowly under the edge of her bottom lip. “She's exactly like you, I swear to God. She even watches Buffy. You're twins.”

You’re quiet while she talks. You’re mostly quiet lately, quiet and empty like the eye of a hurricane. You notice most people don’t mind at all, which is a relief. You assume they think you're just introverted, silently contemplating everything they say, perhaps too shy to share your own thoughts. 

But the reality is that your thoughts simply turn into honey and leak right out of your ears before they can crystallise into anything, and you're glad that they do. So you let people talk. 

Holly seems perfectly content with this arrangement, and as you both swing out the door and down the concrete stairs you’re hoping her friends waiting in the parking lot will be too. 

Downstairs two girls are leaning against the side of a hatchback drinking candy coloured vodka premixes, and once hello’s are said you’re both being handed your own bottles as well. Summer Peach. Holly introduces you.

“Are you on your full license?” There are no plates on the windshield of the car.

“I am tonight.” Bianca winks.

“So you have an ID, right?” It’s the first thing Eden says to you, and you realise this is likely the reason you’re here at all. 

“Yep.” the word crawls out your mouth, you don't know what else to say.

“It’s completely legit,” Holly brags on your behalf. “They asked us to enter our own dates of birth for the cards at school. Can you believe that? I was too chicken to fake mine, but Ayla did it - they never even checked. Issued by the Australian government, baby.” 

“Can I see it?” You hand her the card. Eden has a lattice of cuts over her arms you try not to stare at. 

“It won't get us all in.” You say. 

“Oh, they won’t card us at the door.” she says, waving a hand dismissively. “It’s just for the bar.”

“They don’t card at the door?” 

“Not groups like us.” Bianca grins and shrugs one shoulder.

Like us. That doesn't seem right.

[wild-ditto-appeared]

Sylvia was buried in a pile of cards. Pip and Fluffy popped out before she did. Actually, it was more like she never popped out from beneath the pile at all. She was still curled up in a ball, frozen in place.

It wasn't that she was scared. Well, this time, at least. But if she moved, she didn't want to bend or damage any of the pretty-looking cards. So she just stayed in that position, paralyzed until the cards were removed.

As for Professor Oak, he was forced to close his computer and stand up because sweet Mew there were way too many.

He didn't even look overly shocked; just mildly annoyed at the inconvenience, yet half-amused at the ridiculousness of the situation as a whole.

With a sigh, Professor Oak turned to the center of the room, seemingly to address everyone. However, he clapped his hands and spoke oddly. "Alright, you can come out now. I'm sure watching us is very entertaining."

In a flash of light, Jirachi appeared in the center of the room and giggled--laughed--guffawed at the looks on everyone's faces, thoroughly amused. "You shoulda seen your faces!" Jirachi exclaimed telepathically, tears welling up in the corners of its eyes. "Aw, my belly's hurting! That was so funny! You otherworlders are really silly, y'know!"

Too curious about Jirachi's appearance to worry about the cards, Sylvia carefully sat up and examined with wide eyes, absolutely entranced. "So he was telling the truth... I-I mean, I sorta... believed it, but... seeing it is another thing..."

It didn't occur to her how confused Tahirah must've been about the whole thing, given that she didn't know anything about the other world.

Jirachi floated down to Ditto, who had clung to Pegasus' chest in the chaos, and beamed. "So, whaddaya think? Pretty good, huh? I fulfilled your wish again!"

"A-again...?"

Ditto looked at it, confused. It never wished for anything like that. It didn't wish for all these cards.

"Hehe! Silly Ditto! Obviously you wanted to share the Pokemon world with your otherworld friends, right? And you wanted to know more about Otherworld, too! So I brought cards to play with! You all like playing cards, right? Go, Toon Magician! Attack with Dark Blast! Hehe! It's a very cool game!"

Professor Oak laughed. Not in that way he laughed when it was from the belly, but the kind of chuckle you might hear from an adult listening to a child boast about their achievements on the playground. He shook his head and crossed his arms, eyeing Jirachi with a fond, inquisitive look. "It certainly sounds like it," he told the Mythical Pokemon casually floating in the center of his rented room. "But Jirachi, this is far too many cards. And--"

A sudden idea caught Professor Oak mid-sentence, his eyes widening and mouth pulling into a serious expression.

"...Say, Jirachi. How did you bring Mr. Pegasus here to this world, anyway? Is there a way for him to get back?"

Jirachi frowned. "Wha? Already? But he just got here!"

"Jirachi... Mr. Pegasus has a home in... Otherworld," Sylvia added, trying to keep her voice gentle, as if talking to a child. "He has friends and a history there, I'm certain. He can't just up and leave out of nowhere."

Jirachi fiddled with its fingers, turning away from the two researchers' judging eyes as it turned to look at Pegasus. "Is... that a wish? Do I have to?"

"It is, of course, ultimately up to Mr. Pegasus himself," Professor Oak remedied. "But teleporting across dimensions or worlds without any prior warning is..." He tried to find the right word to describe it--almost in disbelief that he was lecturing a mischievous Mythical Pokemon on its misconduct--and realized there was a perfect, unlikely word to use to describe this whole debacle. "...well, it's rather rude."

"But he wished it!" Jirachi protested, pointing an accusing finger at the otherworldly visitor. "It's not my fault! I was just doing my job!"

"I understand, but--"

Sylvia stood up and held her hand up, interrupting Professor Oak's train of thought. "If I may... Jirachi, I wish for these cards to be re-organized and returned to where they belong."

Jirachi's first blue tag lit up and in a flash of light, the room was clean again. The only sign of cards that remained was a deck on Pegasus' spot at the table. When Sylvia glanced at it in confusion, Jirachi elaborated.

"It's his cards. In his world, you can never leave the house without them; they're that important."

"I... see," Sylvia conceded, moving on. "Well, now that we can finally stand and breathe... Secondly, Jirachi, how did you get to an entirely different world, anyway? And how did you obtain the power to transport others between worlds? I feel like we haven't touched up on this--even Palkia himself shouldn't have this kind of ability."

At that, Jirachi was sheepish. "I dunno. I guess someone wished too hard and gave me that power? Although... I do remember seeing a meteor shower a couple weeks ago..." It adjusted its position, pointing a finger to its chin thoughtfully. "Now that I think about it, I sensed some pretty strong power and got curious. But... when I went to see what it was, my memory goes blank there. I just... dunno what happened. Next thing I knew, I was flying through space. Then I landed in the water and met Ditto, and then I remembered I hadn't brought it back home yet, so I thought I'd do that while I was there. And since then, it's just... kinda been easy?"

A meteor shower? That certainly explained something, but Sylvia really didn't know what. Was there other Legendary shenanigans going on further out in the world?

"Wait, but... you sent Ditto to the other world before then?" Professor Oak asked. "I had thought you would've done so after gaining this power."

Jirachi's eyes widened. "Oh, you're right! Oops. Maybe it wasn't two weeks ago... Or... maybe it was? I dunno. I can't remember. If I think too hard, I'll get sleepy, and this is the longest I've been awake for a while!" Jirachi glanced around at the crew, feeling restless and hyperactive and like it didn't want to sit still.

Sylvia had a feeling Jirachi was about to suddenly leave them.

"Anyone have any wishes before I go? I wanna go see more things!"

wild-ditto-appeared​:

Cards? Oh! Of course! How could friends play together without cards?!

Suddenly, a deck of cards appeared on the table beside Pegasus in a poof of light. Sylvia, startled, yelped and fell backwards on the bed, nearly kicking the table in fright.

Then another deck appeared, by Leon. Then another, and another. One by one, each Trainer got a deck of cards. Duel Monsters cards.

And then each Pokemon got a deck. And… then there were more and more decks, more and more cards, and–oh god that pile of cards is too high!

Unable to handle its own weight, the tower of cards that had appeared out of nowhere tipped over the side of the table, sending cards flying everywhere. Pip, Fluffy, Ditto, and Pidgey all flapped and flailed in surprise.

“W-where did all of these cards come from?!” Sylvia whimpered, still curled up on the bed with a spooked expression.

Hehehe… Now they can all play! Friends, friends, friends~

Friends from far, far away~

“AAAAAAAAAAAA!!!!!”

Leon, Pegasus and Tahirah’s screams all echoed slightly from the room as the cards came flooding in, especially when the tower of cards fell and sent cards flying everywhere. 

“OHMYARCEUS, OPEN THE DOOR!” Tahirah was heard screaming halfway through. “We’re gonna die if we don’t let the cards flood out! Or a window!” 

Leon opened the door, and a pool of cards came flooding out, making the room at least a little more spacious. “…I-Is that it!?”

“I think so.” Pegasus was absolutely floored by the cards that suddenly appeared. He picked up a few to verify the mess created, only to realize that they were ACTUAL Duel Monsters cards. 

“These..are all cards I’ve designed!”

“What!?” Leon did his best to clean up the mess of cards made outside the room due to him opening the door, bringing them back into the room before closing the door. “Really?”

“Yes!” Pegasus’ good eye widened as he looked up at Leon, nodding. “And, er…is everyone okay!?”

Pidgey chriped a bit and landed on Pegasus’ left shoulder for reassurance. It was shooketh, but otherwise fine. Tahirah nodded sheepishly, along with her own Pokemon. “W-we’re okay…”

“But seriously, where did they come from!?” Leon looked around. “You said these cards were made in your own world, right? So how did they get over here to ours?”

Pegasus swallowed, thinking of how Jirachi brought him and Ditto here. “Jirachi…?”

[macdennisofficial]

any big predictions for s16

Whole season analysis incoming!!! Big wrinkly brain predictions that WILL happen mark my fucking words below!

First episode: The Gang Does Edibles for the first time. "wait a minute macdennisofficial," you say, "they smoked weed before and also crack and sniff glue??" Exactly. They ain't done edibles before.

So you know Frank is like I did Columbian bam bam with Vietnamese sweatshop kids and Dee and Dennis are like "we were legit crackheads before" and Charlie is like "haha I do inhalants so much I built up a tolerance to mustard gas" and Mac is like I am a drug dealer hello ??? They are all like "we are not pussies when it comes to weed we have taken fat ass bong rips so many times" so they just. Dump. Like a whole gallon of weed in the brownie mix. And then between the five of them eat the whole fucking pan to prove how not pussy they are.

Anyway so two hours later Dee "these edibles ain't shit" Reynolds is screaming hysterically and shitting her pants while clinging to the rooftop and staring at the sky, Frank is furiously fucking a rotisserie chicken while listening to sixties war protest rock and seeing colours and having Rambo First Blood flashbacks, Charlie sees everything like a cartoon and is a Disney prince(ss?) who can control rats and pigeons with his singing voice and also hallucinates a musical with the Gang, Mac literally sees God and speaks to him and fucks him. He just fucks God. Full penetration. And God is gay btw and played by Ryan Reynolds. In real life Mac is actually just like lying on the pool table staring at the ceiling light. With this huge stoner boner. Dennis is like weeping in the bathroom because Rick Astley is playing on the jukebox and it's so fucking beautiful and decides he wants to become an artist because the yuck puddle is so beautiful and he wants to commemorate it and it is talking to him

They all manage to meet at some point and talk to each other and hallucinate Charlie and the Chocolate Factory-esque shit together. Oompa Loompas look like Frank's sweatshop children and they sing "oompa loompa doopity doo what the fuck is wrong with all of you"

Episode two: They are discussing Kanye and how they need to separate the art from the artist because they voted for him but they can't support him now that he says all this anti Semitic stuff lately because they might get cancelled for liking him so they just cut all the pictures of Kanye out of the albums and posters and stuff they own and replace it with pictures of Pepperjack. This is especially important they vocally distance themselves from Kanye because Wolf Cola has used him for promotional ads. So they also have to cut ties with him professionally. It's all very selfish because they're concerned about their image.

Episode three: They make fun of Dee for calling herself a feminist even though she never passes the Bechdel test and they argue about how to pronounce it properly. She says she will pass it by the end of the day and she fails constantly but at the end of the episode she finds the Waitress and they talk about something other than men. She is excited and then Charlie is like; "What's her name? It only counts if you know her name." She doesn't know her name. It is titled Dee Fails the Bechdel Test. It is a Chardee themed episode, but they don't kiss or anything.

Episode four: We see the Gang's exploits from someone else's perspective. It is their fucking stalker. They have a stalker and they dont even know it. I mean this is like Joe from You styled narration and everything. The stalker has like Pepe Sylvia style pics on their wall connecting them to various crimes and shit in Philly and it's all true btw but the stalker gets arrested for stalking and attempting assassination (yeah, like an actual attempt at murder) and the Gang is like; "Who the fuck even are you?" despite this stalker being in their bar every day for like years. It is a fun episode because we see them in many mid-scheme situations with like no context.

Episode five: They try to reboot The Nightman Cometh because the find out they have fans because Artemis posted it online and there is fanfic and meta. The reboot is complete and utter SHIT so the fans hate them now lmfao

Episode six: Someone approaches them to say "hey this bar should be a reality series" and they accept but they all agree they should be less problematic because they don't wanna piss off the producers and then the producers are like "actually Mac you're not gay you're bi because it's Not In to be monosexual anymore also uhm you can joke about being into men but you can only ever on screen be with a woman mmkay but lets queerbair you with Dennis." They like insist he hooks up with Dee lmfao and Mac and Dee are FURIOUS. This is like a total commentary on the way television and movies are produced now where the actual writers have little control and the company micromanages their entire lives all for ad revenue and product placement and tiktok soundbites. Anyway they try to go along with it and film thr Pilot just for the studio to say that it was all meant to be a tax write off so their show gets pulled before even being and blacklisted from Streaming Services despite all the work they did and there are jokes about shitty graphics and crap pay.

Episode seven is kind of a part two of the previous episode because Frank buys out the streaming service and calls it like Wolf Soda Streams. They can post all their shitty movies on it and their reality series and also The Nightman Cometh (the original and reboot). Frank accidentally uploads several sex tapes of him and Artemis instead so it crashes and burns and ends up being more lucrative as a tax write off. The employees of the company he bought out all lost their jobs and end up homeless in the alley with Cricket. They all say; "Those fuckers ruined my life!" and he just stares at them and goes; "First time?"

Episode eight: Dennis starts dating a woman who looks and acts exactly like Mac. And literally everybody sees it EXCEPT Mac and Dennis. She's even Mac's cousin. But Mac and Dennis are idiots. And just don't see it. And everybody is like wtf come on. In the end this woman leaves Dennis because she realizes she's a lesbian.

Episode nine: Finally Mac dates a man and Dennis is motherfucking livid. He assumes it's the envy of being single and being dumped a week prior but we all know the truth. Everyone knows the truth. Except Mac. This boyfriend is also played by Ryan Reynolds and as a callback to the season premiere someone says he has the body of God. Anyway the jealousy and envy is eating Dennis up inside until the episode ends with Dennis screaming like a psychopathic madman in the rain while staring at Mac and Ryan Reynolds through a window holding an axe.

Episode ten: This is shot like a horror movie a la The Maureen Ponderosa Wedding Massacre. It's like a typical slasher movie with Dennis as the bad guy and everyone hiding from him and he's going after Ryan Reynolds. It's terrifying and all that. Scary shit like wtf this might be too dark for an Always Sunny episode except they pull it off super well and there is humor and stuff. There are lots of Dennis screaming hilarious shit like I HAVE THE RAGE OF A THOUSAND SPURNED LOVERS SPILLING SEED OVER CIGARETTE BURNED PICTURES OF THEIR EXES! Just when he corners Ryan Reynolds and screams at him "MAC IS MINE" with the ax raised the scene cuts to them all still in the bar fucked up on edibles in the very first episode. They've finally sobered up and make a comment about how the past few hours seemed like weeks or whatever and how they hallucinated some crazy shit and then Dennis walks over to Mac and just fucking kisses him on the mouth, and Mac reciprocates and the rest of the gang make gagging noises and call them slurs. The end

[outoftowninac]

HILDA CASSIDY

1931

Hilda Cassidy is a play in three acts by William Jordan Rapp, Henry Lieferant and Sylvia Lieferant. 

In January 1931, producer A.H. Woods announced he had acquired the play and  would star Pauline Lord. Fay Bainter was also mentioned for the lead. By the end of January, the title role was cast with Katherine Alexander. William Harrigan (son of Ned Harrigan of Harrigan and Hart) would co-star. Woods was still unsure if he would bring the play to Broadway soon - or hold it till next season. 

The play takes place in the yard of a tenement on 3rd Avenue in New York City (Act I); the backroom of Tom Cassidy's Cigar Store (Act II); the Cassidy living-room (Act III).

Hilda Cassidy is the long-suffering wife of a loutish husband. He gets involved in bootlegging and goes to prison. When he comes out, he finds his now-grown daughter is to marry a man just like he used to be. Hilda, on the other hand, enables them to elope. 

On February 17, 1931, the world premiere of Hilda Cassidy took place on the Subway Circuit at Brandt’s Windsor Theatre in Bronx NY.  William A. Brady Jr. (son of the famous producer) staged the play. 

Since the characters age of the course of the three acts, it was decided to rehearse a second, younger cast for Act Two, just in case the actors playing the characters were unconvincing as their younger selves. 

The leading lady was profiled in the papers, listing her ‘likes’ and ‘dislikes’.  Sounds like a very particular woman! 

During the first two decades of the 20th century, Atlantic City was a hub of theatrical activity. But by 1931, only one theatre was presenting live legit theatre, and then only on a part-time basis. Atlantic City’s play incubator status had been usurped by the Subway Circuit. 

Despite this, the play left the Bronx for Atlantic City, doing a week at Nixon’s Apollo Theatre on the Boardwalk opening February 23rd. Surely Broadway was next...

But that was not the case, as was reported as early as the beginning of 1931, producer Woods closed the play. His announced intent was to save it for the following season. 

The play basically disappeared for two years. When it finally resurfaced, much had changed. One of the writers, William Jourdan Rapp, requested his name be taken off the play. The new production would be backed by Harold Stone and Bernard Kaplan, but they withdrew at the last minute, turning producing chores over to Robert Stephens Inc. The leading role would be played by Stella Adler, on loan from the Group Theatre. The Broadway production was to open on April 26th at the Martin Beck Theatre (now the Al Hirschfeld).  

Just before the play started rehearsals, producers were unable to cast one key character: a wooden cigar store Indian. The second act takes place in a family-run cigar store, and what self-respecting tobacconist didn’t have a wooden Indian out front? Famed photographer Ansel Adams took the above photo in 1933, the same year the play was staged. 

In addition to the missing wooden Indian, the set involved a turntable. Just as it had in the Bronx, the technical requirements of the play caused a slight delay in opening.   

When it finally arrived, the opening night party was a Who's Who of music: Mrs. Irving Berlin, Wanda Toscaninl, Ira and George Gershwin, and Jascha Heifetz. The party was short-lived when the reviews came out. 

“Hilda Cassidy is played by Stella Adler, a fine actress who is wholly unsuited to the demands of this part. She seems to have had good deal of trouble with her lines last night, but it was probably due to many last-minute changes In the script.”  ~  ROWLAND FIELD

“It is far from being a play which will make history, and there are better shows in town.” ~ ALVIN J. KATTON

By Monday morning, May 7, 1933, Hilda Cassidy was gone after just 4 performances on Broadway. 

[sepublic]

Night Drivers/Return to Wartwood!

           This episode was REALLY GOOD you guys!!!

           Like, this was a PHENOMENAL return to the show after a months-long hiatus, and genuinely action-packed, hilarious, and had me on the edge of my seat! It was just SSSOOOO enjoyable and I’ve got a lot to say about it!

           Firstly, I LOVE all of these continuity references, to Anne reading Bessie’s manual, Wally being Walliam, as well as that off-screen reference to Hop Pop and Polly being given that wish list ahead of time! It really makes the journey feel all the more cohesive and connected, bound together… And likewise, I love Anne and Hop Pop’s dynamic as the eldest of the family who have the most common sense and have to look after everyone, it’s great! I love Hop Pop’s dream gag and how he’s fairly certain there’s something symbolic to discern, but he can’t tell what- That’s a mood, and really all of his antics and declaring himself a god within was hilarious. Anne’s mood conversely starting nice but turning dark was great, and I legit expected some nightmare fuel before the reveal that it was just licorice; And shoot, now I want to try licorice-flavored froyo! I’ve got a few yogurtland coupons, but I doubt that’s a flavor, at least as far as I remember…

           The monster and background design in Amphibia remains particularly impeccable in Night Drivers, like that snake with what appears to be a decoy prey animal in its mouth to attract good Samaritans; Or even just the rocks having skeletons and bones smeared across, implying they’ve crushed and run over plenty of other passengers on their way down! That foggy bit was legitimately surreal and creepy and reminded me of Silent Hill and this one movie called The Mist, I believe- I’ve never watched it but I get the general premise, and I wonder if that scene was an homage? Also, that Frobo cameo was AMAZING and clever, how it’s grabbing for the Plantars… And that joke about Anne eating Hop Pop was hilarious, I’m sorry but like; Hop Pop is HIGHLY underrated in my opinion!

           The whole chase sequence from Man Door Hook Car Door Hand, or however it goes… The entirety of Night Drivers really reminded me of those urban legends, and the twist at the end where the hitchhiker is actually a helpful ghosts; It was some nice lore and world-building, but also reminded me a LOT of this one story I heard… Which, it was probably a reference towards, but this season really makes the world of Amphibia feel so much more fleshed-out and real, perilous and kind of messed-up, etc.! I saw the twist with Zachariah being helpful, but you know what they say; It’s about the journey, not the destination! Well, actually, it IS about the destination, it’s why Sprig and Polly decided to drive at night in the first place, to get to Wartwood; Speaking of which…

           Return to Wartwood! Another amazing episode, I love that bit of Ivy hiding in a disguise, I saw it and couldn’t be fooled; And I’ve MISSED Wartwood, it’s felt like a year since we’ve last seen it! Which, we technically saw it in the first episode of the summer last year… But it was such a brief passing-through, that coupled with the hiatus between Seasons 1 and 2, and it DOES feel like it’s been over a year to finally get back to good-old antics here! I actually felt the homesickness and joy of the Plantars here… And as I said before, that gag about only Hop Pop and Polly knowing, but to THEM of course they remember, and them just helplessly slapping the floor of the Fwagon was surprisingly humorous. I have to wonder how their shopping trip at Newtopia would’ve gone differently, had they remembered the wish list! And don’t be so hard on yourself Sprig, YOU didn’t know of the wish list, so you can blame it all on your sister and Hop Pop; Besides, you have those broken halves of a staff…?

           I love how Anne has progressed and grown into like, the exasperated, common sense person who’s getting tired of the antics now –even if she’s not fully immune herself- and wants no part in things, her growth feels clear and impeccable here. Seeing the Chicka-lisk from the intro FINALLY debut was like seeing the Intro Worm from the Owl House in its season finale; A wonderful surprise to really tie things together! And that whole sequence where the Plantars perform a satanic ritual just to get away from their responsibilities, that Loggle jumpscare, just the realization that they’re already wearing cloaks at night with candles and a glowing red circle; The escalation had me rolling!

           The Plantars were surprisingly thoughtful in their choice of monster, even if things still went wrong because the townspeople have learned to be more defiant, no thanks to Anne and Hop Pop; The gag of Toady being used as a petrified shield, only for Mayor Toadstool to realize he WAS petrified… Those two frogs looking into each other’s eyes, Maddie knowing about the whole thing, I love it! It just flowed and was done so well, the whole bit felt like a video game boss fight, especially with Hop Pop and Sylvia dodging the shockwaves… The Chicka-lisk being pretty chill was kind of adorable, and I enjoyed the callback to the town’s formations against outside monsters, with this one ACTUALLY working… But for completely unexpected reasons that had me burst in unexpected laughter. Though, for all I know, it WAS the intent to offend- But regardless, seeing Toadstool welcome Anne as part of the formation and she can just roll with it and KNOWS… It’s such a welcome development from the very first episode, the growth is real and it feels like a journey we’re looking back upon!

           Also, Anne’s sword skills were freaking amazing, as was her deflecting the petrification beams; Can’t wait to see more of that in action, she’s quite the fighter and Paladin at this point, and I kind of want to see more of the townspeople in action as like, something that they can rally for in later battles and story events! I really want an action-adventure game for Amphibia now, actually… I mean, I’ve always wanted one, but now it hits harder, especially with the recent Legend of Zelda vibes from the newest trailer.

           …Also, SPRIVY KISS I WAS SQUEALING LIKE ANNE THE ENTIRE TIME THEY REALLY ARE THAT ADORABLE YIIIISSSSSS!!!!!

           This episode was a WONDERFUL return to the show that blew my expectations out of the swampy water with the pacing, the direction, the humor and moments, the callback and action, the surprising horror bits and chaos; And I appreciate the Plantars being called out as the chaos family, they’re like the Tooks in the Shire from the Hobbit! This episode was timed well, it does feel like a return to home after so long, and it makes my heart warm as I feel sentimental and happy… I’m honestly down to just a few episodes of getting back to Wartwood, to those good old times before the story beats return with Marcy and Sasha! Here’s looking forward to next week, F-Annes!

[phantombandit-films]

Why ‘War of the Worlds’ (2005) is a underrated masterpiece.

‘War of the Worlds’ was released in 2005, it is directed by the film god that is Steven Spielberg (Jaws, E.T.) and written by Josh Friedman (Terminator: Dark Fate, Avatar 2) and David Koepp (Jurassic Park, Mission: Impossible) 

Cast:  - Tom Cruise as Ray Farrier. - Justin Chatwin as Robbie Farrier. - Dakota Fanning as Rachel Farrier. - Miranda Otto as Mary Ann. -Tim Robbins as Harlan Ogilvy. - Ann Robinson as Grandmother.  - Gene Barry as Grandfather. 

First lets start with some history of ‘The War of the Worlds’ - The 2005 film is based off the novel of the same name which was written by H.G. Wells between 1895 and 1897, it then was then made into a series by Pearson’s Magazine in 1897 in the UK, Cosmopolitan in the US. Then becoming a hardback novel in 1898, it is one of the earliest written pieces to tell a story of conflict between Martians and man and so its one of the most commented on pieces of science fiction. 

It has been adapted and developed several times over many decades in many medias, the ones that come to mind are the famous 1938 dramatic radio reading that was directed and starred Orson Welles that actually caused public panic to those who listened in and didn’t know that the Martian invasion was fiction, its said that up to a million people ran out of their homes in terror.  (Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_War_of_the_Worlds_(1938_radio_drama) )

The 1953 ‘The War of the Worlds’ film adaptation, which was produced by George Pal and directed by Byron Haskin. It also starred Gene Barry (who played Dr. Clayton Forrester) and Ann Robinson (who played Sylvia Van Buren) who can also been seen at the end of the 2005 film, they play the grandparents of Robbie and Rachel which I think is a sweet little cameo to see for those who loved the 1953 film.  Ann Robinson also revived her role as Sylvia Van Buren in two other films and three episodes of ‘The War of the Worlds’ tv series in 1988. 

In 1978 the most well known musical album by Jeff Wayne was produced and based off the story of ‘War of the Worlds’ this album included the voices of Richard Burton and David Essex.

This was then turned into a concert musical which tours annually through out the UK and Europe, the concert includes live performers such as Carrie Hope Fletcher but also a 3D hologram of Liam Neeson. It also includes a mix of computer animation, pyrotechnics and a big mechanical tripod that comes out on stage and lights up and can fire its heat-ray. 

(Source: Birmingham Mail.)

There have also been several Tv series, the two newest being the 2019 BBC version staring Poldark’s Eleanor Tomlinson and Full Monty’s Robert Carlyle, that has a Edwardian setting and follows closely to the novel. 

The other being the FOX 2019 adaptation that is set in present day Europe but I found this version didn’t really go off the novel, and was frustrated with the lack of the famous Tripods.  (Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_War_of_the_Worlds) 

As a kid I would watch the 1953 film with my mum all the time as its one of her favourites and I do really like it, but then 2005 rolled around and in comes Steven Spielberg’s version. To be fair it was probably 2006 when I finally saw it, I was nine years old at the time and I remember my dad bringing home the DVD that someone at work had lent him. I don’t remember watching it but I do remember having nightmares for a month after, only for a month though.  Many years later when I was half way through high school and getting more and more into film my dad then bought the DVD from Woolworth's before it shut down, the DVD didn’t have a case only a see through CD case so I think it only cost him something like 50p. So I re-watched and again I don’t really remember this but all of a sudden I was hooked, and it climbed to the second spot on my favourite movies list where it still sits today. Honestly if you asked anyone I was friends with at that time they will tell you just how obsessed I was with it.  

I have many scenes that I love in this film the first being the rise of the first tripod, but there are two that I geek out over every time. 

The first scene being the one in the basement at Robbie and Rachel’s house, the scene starts off with Ray asleep in a chair. He starts to stir when when a blue flash of light on his face, but then jolts up right at a load whooshing noise followed by closely by Robbie shooting up from just below the camera. I love the way that Robbie appears sort of fits with the sound that’s heard, also the whole mood of the scene which is pitch black with this blue flashing light every now and then. The fact that you’re just as clueless as the characters as well, you find out what’s happening when they find out.  Also the way that Rachel appears behind the basement stairs, which will appear again near the end of the movie in a much more damaged basement which shows just how much their world has changed in just a short few days.  The sound design in this movie as well is something that I love, I love when the sound in a film alone can creep you out. The tripod sound is one of my favourite sounds to exist, like if I heard that from outside I would be so creeped out and scared.  At this moment in time Robbie and Rachel have no idea what is hunting them or what Ray has seen, Imagine running from something and seeing something completely destroy the whole of your neighbourhood yet not knowing what it looks like. This is what runs through my mind when I heart Rachel cry “Is it them, Is it them?!”  Then the next morning when Ray goes upstairs and see’s that the house is just completely destroyed by an aeroplane that has crashed down in the middle of the the housing estate. This Boeing 747 was a out of use plane and the production crew bought it for $60,000 which then cost them $200,000 to transport, it was then broken into pieces and houses were built around it. Which just shows how far some movie productions will go to make a film look more legit. (We love practical effects in this house.) This scene is still set up at Universal Studios Hollywood and can be seen on the Studio tour. 

(Basement and Plane crash scene.)

My second favourite scene, which is one of my all time top favourite scene ever with no surprise is the dock scene.  The speeding train that’s on fire is absolute stunning in every sense but for me the scene starts when the music starts.  ‘If I ruled the world, everyday would be the first day of spring.’ But i’m really glued to the screen when Rachel starts to follow the birds coming in from the river to in land, she follows them up to the hill where she notices the tree’s on the top are moving weirdly. “The tree’s are funny.” She then reaches out and grabs onto Rays hand who was talking to a friend.  Robbie turns to the hill as the camera slowly comes back and shows Robbie also turning to look at where Ray is looking. (Just remembering that this is the first time Robbie and Rachel ever see the tripods.) 

The camera then shows us what the family is looking at to reveal a tripod stood on the top of the hill, it then moves one of its legs which crushes a tree and makes everyone else look back. Obviously chaos ensues from this point on, everyone running trying to get onto the ferry to get away from the impending doom, unfortunately we learn that no where, not even on the water is safe. As a tripod comes up from out of the water and attacks the ferry, the family manage to escape and get to land on the other side of the ferry. They stop for a moment to catch their breath as people are being picked out of the water below them, they turn as a old air raid alarm is heard on the other side of the hill and we see tripods coming over another hill that was filled with people and using their head rays to wipe them all out, we also see in the distance a lighting storm indicating more Martions are still coming to earth. The scene is like a depiction of all the stages of the attack.  (Dock attack scene.)

I mean all the action scenes in this movie are just so beautiful and amazing, but did we expect any less from Spielberg? And the CGI and practical are all done extremely well and fitted together to make a scene look as real as possible. One of the art directors that worked on this film, Doug J. Meerdink who has also worked on Jurassic Park: III, Cloverfield and Jurassic World. 

I was looking up some trivia on IMDB for this movie and found that there was a deleted scene that is called the ‘Camelot’ scene. This scene is supposed to take place between the attack on the ferry and the battle on the hill, it involves Ray, Rachel and Robbie walking through an abandoned housing estate that’s named Camelot, when a pack of tripods start walking near by.  One of the tripods breaks off and the family has to take cover behind a SUV, they watch helplessly from behind as the tripod reaches into the house and grabs people from the houses. This scene has never been released but apparently it was fully finished, VFX and all but then taken out a few weeks before post production was wrapped up.  There is only one official video from this scene that was in the actual trailer for the film, and it’s only a shot of the family hiding behind the SUV. 

The only other shot from the scene is this landscape shot of a CGI tripod. 

There are also photos of the set designers setting up the miniature of the housing estate to shoot this scene, the rest are fan arts of how the scene maybe looked/ played out.  (Source)

I really hope that one day Steven releases this scene, or for some anniversary adds it into an extended version of the film like we’ve seen for other films. Because I would love that so much! It seems like such an incredible scene, and to see the tripods up this close again would be so cool! 

One of the trailers that was released for this film doesn’t have any of the film shots it in, It takes place in a normal neighbourhood where people are just going about their normal nightly routine when suddenly over the hill there are all these brilliant flashing lights, everyone's just coming out of their houses in their pj’s and standing in the street marvelling at this sight in front of them. Then we see explosions and suddenly heat rays are blowing up the tress on the street which then goes into the title.  I just love this, a trailer that doesn’t give anything away from the movie but creeps you out enough to be invested.  (Trailer.)

All in all it’s just an very visually pleasing film, it feels real enough to give you a sense of fear for the characters and for yourself. I also love that Steven stayed true to the source material,more truer than some of the other adaptations and also added in his own little Easter eggs.  The sounds, the aesthetic, the colours just everything comes together so beautifully. I think its a very underrated movie that deserves so much more love.

[wannabecatwriter]

“Terra, honey...” Sylvia found herself in an uncomfortable position. She truly had not expected her short interaction with Elspeth to have this sort of an effect on her relationship with her daughter. She wondered if saying she was sick and annoyed that day would change Terra’s opinion on what happened. She suspected it would not. Finally, she settled on the only safe thing to say. “I’m sorry. I’ve overstepped my bounds.”

“Yeah,” Terra nodded.

“I’m not going to make any promises I can’t keep, but I will try my best to make sure that does not happen again,” Sylvia told her.

“Ok.”

Terra took a deep breath, trying to calm down. This was only in part about Elspeth. In truth, her mother’s behavior worried her. Terra had trouble wrapping her head around the fact that a professional thief with years of experience would get into a public fight with someone due to being annoyed. Where was her common sense? Her evaluation of which situation actually called for conflict?

“Mom? Are you ok?” she asked. “Have you been feeling, I don’t know, burnt out or tired lately?”

“Are you trying to figure out if I’ve gone loony?” Sylvia smiled. “Don’t worry, I haven’t. But thanks for the concern. I will admit, there have been a lot of things to get used to. Witches, werewolves, dryads, vampires... speaking of the later, J.T? Your father and I got a call from her, but we didn’t talk long. Is she legit? The real deal?”

“As real as can be,” Terra assured her. “She wasn’t awfully eager to get involved with the Coven stuff, however. Her daughter and boyfriend rather had to convince her.”

“Can’t blame her,” Sylvia snorted. “This group sounds like a right mess. But she’s with us?”

“As far as I can tell.”

“Good.”

[save-the-spiral]

rate the professors from 1-10

Halestrom Balestrom: CUTE! excitable, small, helpful! 8/10

Lydia Greyrose: Nice old lady who legit greets you with a PUN when you’re an ice wizard. 9/10

Dahlia Falmea: Spicy!!!! The dress IS a look, the hair not so much. Probably dating Belladonna Crisp, the headmistress from Wysteria. 8/10

Malorn Ashthorn: TRYING HIS BEST! i love him for it!!!!! Great lil dude. 8/10

Dworgyn: Wack. Wack as hell. As a character, great. As a teacher? Around children? learning dangerous death magic? no. 3/10

Malistaire Drake: We don’t learn from him. Leaves like a dad who says they’re going out to buy milk and never comes back. Legit ruins his classroom too. Goes on to attempt to destroy the spiral and inflict almost countless tragedies. -10/10

Cyrus Drake: Mean. Rude. Sure, it could have a purpose. But also.  Mean. Made me deliver his laundry and then tried to get me expelled. fuck you. 0/10

Sylvia Drake: Rumored to be great before she died!! So like !!! uh post mortem 7/10.

Moolinda Wu: Nice lady!!!!!!!! Taking over a tough job !! doing her best!! Gets us interested in gardening!!! 8/10

Arthur Wethersfield: Dog Man Tries His Best. Legit got into krokotopia like, just to learn balance magic. Teaches us this !! DOes his best!! i love him. 9/10

Alhazred: My Teacher Grandpa! While I love him because of my personal headcanon, in game he’s. a bit boring, just telling us the history with far less personality than the other teachers get :( 6/10. 

[flyingfishflopsthings]

pmd list questions. all of them :0

Omg thank you snick 💕

1. Have I played all the games? Yeah! I’ve not played some of the variations like red rescue team or sky (though my copy of sky should arrive next week 👀) or the Wiiware games but for all intents and purposes, yeah! Basically!

2. Favourite? My favourite is definitely explores! It’s both very nostalgic for me (my sister used lot let me do missions on her copy of time) while also a game that stands up really well, story wise, as I didn’t really know the story before I actually played it last year. In close second is gates though. It’s just so good! 🥺

3. Fave partner character? Cinders!!! My Darkness partner!!! I love explores partner, they’re so sweet and they have a great arc!!

4. What did you name your characters?

Ok so in rt my hero is Emmy (bc people irl call me Em & she’s my most self insert character) and partner is Iggy, which I think was short for incenderary device????? Or ignition or something??? I was struggling for names and she’s a torchic so I looked up fire words I think.

My Explorers hero is Luca and my partner is Cinders. however! In the game, Luca is actually named Em bc again, that’s my name, and I hadn’t realised how attached I’d get to this character haha. After a bit I realised I wanted her to be a seperate character, so the name came from a Pokemon rp oc who I never really did anything with haha. As for cinders, he’s a chimchar so again I just looked up fire terms

Cue and Dee are my gates team, and honestly idk where these came from?? I think??? It was because ‘cue’ kind of sounds like axew and Dee sounds like it could rhyme with snivy kind of??? Also maybe bc of deceit from sanders sides? Idk

My super team is Syvia and Sticks. For syvia, I went to fantasy named generator, liked the name Sylvia, and misspelt it and didn’t realise until I’d beat the game. For sticks, I kind of liked the idea of them having a more nicknamey name, and they’re a turtwig sooo.... also it’s a cute name lmao

5. What’s a Pokemon you wish you could play as? CHEWTLE!!!! I think a chewtle hero would be very fun this i why I want a gen 8 game. Of the Pokemon already in a md game though I want Snover bc I fucking love Snover.

6. How do you interpret gengar and Gardevoirs post game relationship? 😳I haven’t actually played much of rts postgame so I haven’t encountered gengars backstory I’m a fake fan I know

7. How do you interpret the future trios relationship? Hmm I think they could definitely get together? More interesting to me is thinking that Dusknoir used to travel with grovyle hero and Celebi before they realised what fixing the future would do, so the post game future trio dynamic is awkward bc it’s like “wellll we were friends but you tried to kill me but then you didn’t so???? Are we friends again??” Haha

8. If you’re an artist how do you draw grovyle and Dusknoir?

As a human apparently I only draw grovyle as a cool anime man looking to the side

As a Pokemon I like to make fun of him for being short

I tend to draw Dusknoir pretty menecingly/looking a bit like a Wild West man which I think is a wild take but whatever

9. Who do you ship? I’m a big fan of chatot/Wigglytuff, obviously. It’s my favourite haha no moment will ever beat “my invaluable partner”. I also ship team charm as a polycule, and I guess also future trio? Idk. Ram paradise and Minchino is pretty obvious. Emolga and Dunsparce I lowkey ship. Idk if I ship emolga and virision bc a. Idk how old they’re meant to be??? And I feel like virision is older but idk. B. I think verision can be aroace as a treat for me :] my gates team are the only ones I’d really consider shipping I think, and I don’t think I have any super ships haha

10. Opinion on nuzleaf’s character? Did you find the twist surprising? Ok so I spoilt quite a lot of supers story for myself before I played it so I knew about Nuzleaf going in so, no I wasn’t surprised really. I think Nuzleaf is funny to make fun of, and he’s definitely a character that it’s funny to be like “that stupid bitch” but like attaching a 💖 to the statement you know? I don’t love??? Him? He wasn’t the most interesting Pmd character ever to me and I feel like the possession thing was a bit of a cop out- if they’d stick with him legit being manipulated but acting of his own free will I would have liked that. Idk he’s pretty fun i think

This was a lot of fun!!! Thanks!!

[midnight-circus]

sometimes you just gotta meme for the new guy.

this is two memes combined so sorry if theres similar questions i couldnt be bothered to post them separately lmao

it’s fuckin huge My Bad

-

Names? If you were to choose another name for your oc, what do you think it would be? Did you choose their name for how it sounds or for its meaning?

Tbh it was a toss-up for a long time between Mallory, Felix and Everaud, and eventually the first two won. I chose it for how it sounded, but as it turned out the meanings of his first two names juxtapose pretty well together (first name Mallory - ‘unlucky’, second name Felix - ‘lucky’). His surname, Valkner, I also picked for the sound - the meaning of ‘warrior’ doesn’t really pertain to him lmao

He hasn’t gone by his legit first name of Mallory since he was about 12, and has used Felix almost exclusively since then. he fuckin hates it. most of the time.

Can your oc play any instruments? Have they ever wanted to learn how to play any? Why?

No, he grew up without much money and instruments would have been a luxury. He’s vaguely considered it as an adult, but is pretty certain he’d be useless so hasn’t bothered trying.

How does your oc fare in the dark? Are they scared? Do they trip over things really easily or navigate like they have night vision? (Or do they have night vision?)

He doesn’t like the dark much, but he’s not scared. He’s just got bad eyesight.

How well would your oc fare as a teacher? What subject would they be best at teaching? What about the worst?

tbh he’d probably be pretty good as a teacher to a group of like...primary school kids, maybe from 5-11 in age. He’s quiet-voiced, fairly mild-mannered, and has a strong sense of fairness and justice - the problem would arise when it came to older pupils, teens and up, trying to get the upperhand, bc he’s not authoritative in the slightest and would probably cave. Give him a room of toddlers tho that he’s only responsible for in short bursts and he’d cope pretty well. Either history or english lit would be his forte; sports would be worst. the boy can’t run.

What was your oc’s relationship with their parents like? If they didn’t have any parents/didn’t know them, who in their life was the closest to a parent to them?

It’s...good? I guess?? It’s complicated. his parents love their kids dearly and Felix didn’t go wanting for affection, but if anything it went too far the other way. He was absolutely smothered as a kid - after several near-death experiences with childhood illnesses (bacterial meningitis, which developed into encephalitis, then sepsis in his leg), his mother wrapped him up in cotton wool and never really let go. He couldn’t leave the house alone, he couldn’t go outside on cold days, he couldn’t move at anything faster than a walk - after being in and out of hospitals from 5-years-old to 8, and then being kept on a shelf from then, it really had an impact on how he learnt to interact with other kids his age. It’s also given him an unstable footing in life itself - he’s never quite certain if he’s going to lose everything at the drop of a hat, because that’s how they used to act around him. Now, with the distance of adulthood, he loves them and appreciates that they were trying their best, but he can’t help but resent them a little if he really thinks about it. He gets around this by not thinking about it.

Does your oc have any allergies, intolerances, or other sensitivities? How dangerous is it? Does this affect their daily life in any way?

he’s got an allergy to letting himself be happy it’s very serious

Does your oc prefer being in a crowd or being completely alone? How many people can be around them before they get uncomfortable?

Generally he’s more content alone - conversation doesn’t come naturally to him, particularly if it’s a crowd of strangers, and he’s more content in his own company. If he does find himself in a crowd, he will take himself to the edge of the room and people-watch rather than mingle.

How open is your oc to trying new things? Are they the adventurous sort, or would they rather stay in their comfort zone? Why?

He needs to be talked into things, otherwise he’d never try anything - he knows his comfort zones and he’s very comfortable in them, and is not inclined to venture outside. If he’s nudged into doing something, he may end up finding that he enjoys it - doesn’t necessarily mean he’d do it again under his own steam, but he doesn’t always regret the experience.

Does your oc have any best friends? Who was/is their closest friend? What about their worst enemy?

Pathetically enough, he doesn’t, really. Sylvia was his best, and to be honest his only friend, and when she left his social life left with her. He loves her still, but he loves her platonically (even if he hasn’t realised that yet) and that wasn’t enough for her, understandably. Outside of her, there’s not really anyone else.

No enemies. He’s not important enough to have enemies.

How dangerous is your oc? Are they completely innocent, or someone to be feared? Do others know?

tbh Felix’s level of danger is about the same as a puppy with a knife in its mouth. like yeah it might get you by accident but its way more likely to hurt itself and its not really done anything to deserve that so really its more important to get the knife away from it for its own benefit than yours

What is your oc’s vision like? Do they require glasses, are they completely blind, or do they have 20/20 vision? Does this have an effect on their life?

He wears glasses for pretty much everything - he’s not blind without them, but his vision’s bad enough that he wouldn’t be able to cope for the whole day if he left them at home.

If your oc were to be arrested for something, what would it be for? For being too kind, for a legitimate crime?

Probably for getting mixed up in something he didn’t mean to get involved in - Felix is the sort of person to say ‘yes’ to one request because he felt pressured and then find himself 20 ‘yes’s down the line embezzling money from the government for the Serbian mafia with no idea how he got there. He’s quite easy to manipulate - a person who knows how to press his buttons can generally work the answer they want out of him. 

How quiet or loud is your oc? Are they easily capable of sneaking around without being heard, or do they feel it’s impossible to stop talking?

He’s pretty quiet - tries not to draw attention to himself if he can avoid it, and he doesn’t really speak unless he’s spoken to.

How stylistically fancy is your oc? Or would they rather go for comfort and plainness instead?

His primary concern is durability and price - he needs something that will either last for as long as possible so he doesn’t have to replace it any time soon, or something that is cheap enough that it doesn’t matter if it wears out, and ergo, Primark. He oftens window-shops for nice-fitting, fancy clothing in the London boutiques he passes on the way to work, but has never bought anything like that in his life and can’t bring himself to even consider it.

What’s your oc’s preferred mode of transportation? Walking, vehicle, (or in a sci-fi/magic setting) teleportation?

His preferred mode of transport is a car, but his isn’t always working properly so when he has to, he takes a bus - he doesn’t like walking if he can avoid it, partially because it wears him out and partially because he’s kind of physically lazy.

Is your oc always late, always early, or always right on time? Is there any reason for this?

He’s always early, because he leaves early, because he’s already envisioned about 20 different disasters that could make him late on the way and he’s trying to circumvent all of them.

How empathetic is your oc? Or are they closer to being a sociopath? Any reason why?

Felix doesn’t really realise that he’s empathetic - he thinks he’s just doing what everyone does, but in fact he will go out of his way to improve a situation for someone if he thinks they’re being hard-done-by for no benefit to himself, even to the extent of bending or breaking rules. It’s partially why he got into the law-scene - he wants to see things bettered for people who need it.

How much does your oc swear? Or do they keep completely clean? Why is this? Is there any situation where they would be the opposite?

Swearing doesn’t come naturally to him - he’s one of those people who will swear only under their breath and still manage to feel guilty about doing it. If he is going to swear out loud, he does it in German and it always comes out clumsily.

How does your oc’s own perception of themselves compare to how other people see them? Is your oc aware that other people see them differently (if it’s different)?

It’s pretty different. In his mind, he’s pretty useless - a bit of a waste-of-space who has coasted through life by pretending to be better than he is, kind of dull, kind of boring, kind of unattractive, altogether too much of Nothing Special for anyone to really be bothered with. Realistically, he comes across as responsible and competent at his job, perhaps a little highly-strung and nervy but nevertheless perfectly capable of managing the responsibilities he has. It’s his own self-doubt that cripples him, for the most part - people see it in him, and perhaps it makes them wonder if there’s a reason for it.

Is your oc a workaholic, or do they find it hard to be busy at all? Do they find it easy to relax, or must they have something to do at all times? Why?

if he’s not working, he’s thinking, and that simply won’t do. Felix’s whole life is work, for the most part - he throws his all into it, and isn’t sure what to do with himself when he’s sitting at home alone in a dead-quiet flat.

How energetic is your oc? Do they have trouble sitting still or do they feel low on juice all the time? Any reason why?

He’s constantly exhausted. It’s because he’s depressed. He hasn’t figured that out yet.

How does your character sleep? Peacefully, fitfully? What position do they sleep in? What is their typical bedding like?

Not very peacefully - Felix is a light sleeper, so although capable of getting to sleep relatively quickly he wakes up in fits and starts throughout the night. He tends to sleep curled on his left side, on bedding that is cheap, serviceable and durable. He can’t afford to buy anything decent. He finds it easier to stay asleep if there’s ambient noise in the room - white noise, the TV, whatever.

Does your oc have dreams or nightmares? What are they like? Is there a recurring one?

He’ll suffer a pretty bad nightmare here and there, generally to do with hospitals or medical procedures, but they aren’t chronic.

How easy to annoy is your oc? Do they have common pet-peeves or are they stoic in response to everything? What is their reaction if the source doesn’t stop?

he’s real easy to annoy lmao. He’s got a list of pet peeves a mile long and he’s very easy to get a rise out of, so people who enjoy getting a reaction (Lyon) find him very entertaining pickings. He keeps telling himself not to get so worked up because it only encourages things, but he can’t help it.

How does your oc view housework? Do they absolutely hate it? Do they enjoy having their surroundings neat and tidy or do they not notice?

He hates doing it, but he really enjoys a clean space afterwards and goes a long way to keep things organised. Disorder stresses him out - he particularly can’t bear people coming into his space and messing it up.

Your oc has to make something for an art exhibition. What would they make? How terrible is it? Would they enjoy making it?

oh christ. the thing is, he’s actually not that bad at art - he’s got a good handle on anatomy and perspective and can reproduce images or photpgraphs fairly well - but he thinks he’s useless and has never shown anyone anything. he’d produce a pretty solid sketch of like a coffee shop at 5pm or something dull like that, apologise profusely for the result, and hate every second of it.

What is your oc’s vocabulary like? Does it match the way they talk? How would you describe their speech?

He speaks pretty well - he’s precise with his words and keeps a quiet, even tone, and his vocab is fairly developed. If there’s a flaw with his speech, it’s that he speaks rather too quickly, because he’s used to being constantly interrupted - it becomes a race to get the sentence finished and his point across, before someone can cut him off.

He has a south German accent, but it’s a little softer for years of living in England - it gets stronger when he goes back home to Munich.

Is your oc more likely to follow instructions exactly, throw them out and figure it out on their own, or make it all up? What are the results like?

He follows instructions to the T, and doesn’t have the impulse to experiment and mess around with them for fear of making a mistake that he’d then have to clean up; that being said, if it becomes a matter of fair treatment, he may be inclined to bend the rules here and there.

Is your oc afraid of touch or do they actively seek it out? Is there a reason for this? What are the exceptions?

lmaoooOOOOO he’s petrified, whilst at the same time desperately craving it. He’s horrendously touch-starved, but his childhood lizard-brain learnt to associate touch with painful medical procedures, so he shies from it by nature.

How is your oc about medical care? Do they avoid any form of healthcare that they can, do they seek it out over every little scrape? Do they treat their injuries/illness all by themselves?

Felix carries an awful lot of medical trauma with him; he’s terrified of medical care, whilst simultaneously being something of a hypochondriac convinced he’s got some sort of Terrible Disease at all times. to be fair, this is because he once had a Terrible Disease, which then led to a second and then a third Terrible Disease before the first could even be treated, so he does have form for it. He also can’t handle blood and has been known to pass out at the sight of it, but would rather do that and recover on the floor than go to hospital.

He will avoid hospitals At All Costs.

How competitive is your oc? Is every little task something that they can win, or are they just in competitions for the fun of it? Is there anyone they’re most competitive with?

He’s sort of competitive accidentally - he doesn’t want to be, but he feels like he needs to be in order to succeed. He is desperate to prove himself, desperate to show his mother than he is more than capable of managing his own life, but he will run himself to exhaustion trying to get there. He’s happiest when he’s left to do his own thing without feeling like he’s competing against others, when he’s content that he’s appreciated by the people around him and is able to take that appreciation at face value, but he hasn’t come to that realisation in himself yet - he just thinks he’s doing it wrong.

How skilled at lying is your oc? How frequently do they lie? For what reason? What situations would be the exception?

lmao he can’t lie to save his life it’s actually kind of sad to watch. he’s a Blusher, for one, so he’s already tripped coming out of the gate, and then he starts falling over his own tongue the second he’s asked a question he can’t give a truthful answer to until it’s painfully obvious to everyone. it’s just sad.

What is your oc’s immune system like? Are they invincible to illness, or are they compromised completely from the slightest of dirt?

His immune system is terrible - a side-effect of his childhood. If there’s an illness going around, he will catch it.

Does your oc do anything “just for the aesthetic”? Or are they completely practical in everything?

Totally practical by habit, but perhaps he’d be happier if he wasn’t. He’s not used to doing things just because he wants to, because he’d enjoy the experience - there has to be a reason for it, else he’s not justified in doing it. Same goes for purchasing things that he wants - if he can’t come up with a good, solid, practical reason to buy himself something, he won’t buy it. ‘Because you want to’ is not reason enough.

If you had to choose a single object to act as a symbol for your oc, what would it be?

One of those candles that re-ignites itself when you blow it out.

If your oc could only eat one thing for the rest of their life (while miraculously not suffering from malnutrition), what would it be?

He’s got a massive sweet tooth and spends a lot of time baking, so probably cake - he’s fond of little gay French patisserie nonsense.

How prepared is your oc? Ready for the worst no matter what, or completely lost in every situation? Would they have a medkit when it was needed? Would they have an umbrella if it rains?

As much as he panics, in a legitimate bad situation he is capable of keeping his head - he runs on adrenaline and suffers the consequences later. He carries a first-aid kit in his car, but has never needed to use it, and yes, he always has an umbrella.

How charitable is your oc? Or are they more stingy with their resources and money?

god. He is stingy, but not out of a miserly nature - he just legitimately does not have much money. He never has, ever since childhood, and that shit is ingrained in him - you watch what you’re spending, because you never know when you’re going to need to make an emergency payment.

If someone was describing your oc to someone who had never met them, what distinguishing features would they mention? How would one identify your oc in a crowd?

Short guy, kind of round-faced, round glasses - kinda looks like he’s lost even when he isn’t. Jumps if you bump into him.

Does your oc have any pleasure that embarrasses them so they keep it secret? Or are they open about all the things they enjoy?

literally everything that he enjoys, he’s embarrassed about. He likes old black-and-white movies and he’s embarrassed about that. He reads shitty romcom fiction and he’s embarrassed about that. He enjoys cooking, he’s embarrassed about that. He actually enjoys sex, believe it or not, and he’s embarrassed about it. Don’t even fuckin get him started on his kinks because he’s embarrassed about them. tbh Felix doesn’t really know how to enjoy himself without guilt or shame, because he always feels like he needs to justify the things he likes and he doesn’t know how to do it. He’s just embarrassed.

What is your oc’s stamina like? Would they be able to run a marathon, or not run at all? What about walking/another physical activity? How are they with exercise in general?

Shitty stamina - he’s got weak lungs and the extent of his running ability is running for a bus and then needing literally four hours to recover. He sort of makes a vague attempt to exercise at home, but is easily discouraged and would just rather lie on the couch having a crisis of body-image.

How long can your oc stay focused on one task before they get bored? Do they constantly have to switch things up or do they hyperfocus? What sort of things is it the opposite for?

Felix is the king of repetitive, menial tasks. Set him in front of a diary or a spreadsheet and he’s well away. He really doesn’t mind thoughtless admin labour, even as he insists that he’s capable of handling more responsibility - and although he is more than capable, he also feels comforted by the predictability of data-entry. A nice mix of both would be ideal.

What smells bring back specific memories to your oc? What are those memories like?

Antiseptic and rubber floors, with that underlying stink of sickness. They’re not good memories.

How jumpy or easily spooked is your oc? Do they have a fight or flight reflex to being startled, or are they never startled at all?

He’s super-jumpy and easy to startle, which is delightful to some people. Between fight or flight, he’ll fly.

How polite is your oc? Do they do everything with the utmost courtesy, or do they completely refuse to say please and thank you?

He’s unfailingly polite, because his mother would have beat him with a shoe if he wasn’t.

How flexible is your oc? Can they touch their toes or do they have trouble just sitting down because of how stiff they are?

He doesn’t think he’s flexible at all, but certain intercurricular activities with Lyon suggest that he’s more flexible than he thinks he is.

What is your oc’s typical walking like? Do they speed-walk everywhere, do they take quick short steps or long paces? How loud are their footsteps?

Because his legs are kinda short, he walks pretty quickly just to be able to keep up with people - quiet steps, because he’s trying not to draw attention to himself.

If your oc was in a video game, what would their idle animation be?

Cleaning his glasses, putting them back on, squinting through them, then taking them off and cleaning them again ad infinitum.

What topics does your oc know the most about? Are these obvious or would these be surprising to others?

He’s a talented cook and has absorbed quite a lot about flavour profiles and all that shit that I know nothing about so I’m not going into details lmao. He’s also got a bank of knowledge about classic films that he keeps to himself, as he’s never convinced anyone would be interested. He’s got a lot of shit that he keeps to himself for this same reason, and therefore there’s quite a lot he could surprise people with if the right topics came up.

What time of day is your oc most awake? What about most tired? Do they get up at the same time every morning without need of an alarm, or is their sleep schedule all over the place?

Tries to tell himself he’s a morning-person. He isn’t. Left to his own devices he’d wake up about 10 and fall asleep about 2am, but he’ll insist if asked that he’s naturally inclined to wake up early.

What would someone blackmail your oc with? Would they be successful in getting what they wanted?

they’d get hold of a list of his pornhub browsing history and yes, they would absolutely be successful.

How easily does your oc get attached to things? Does everything have a sentimental value to them, or do they see nothing as more valuable than its practical use? What about with people/animals?

He gets attached to people and animals very easily, but as for things - he gets angry when he breaks or loses items, but that’s more to do with being stressed about having to pay to replace them than anything sentimental. He’s thrifty to a fault and won’t throw anything out until it’s absolutely unusable, to the point that he’s gotten pretty skilled at sewing repairs in order to avoid getting rid of clothes. He does have sentimental attachments to a few things, but not the majority.

How stubborn is your oc? Are they easily convinced of the opposite opinion, do they not agree but let it happen anyways? Or do they cause conflicts with their inability to budge in their decisions?

He’s not stubborn, as such, but he does know his own mind. He can be talked around or into things quite easily, but he does like to feel as though his voice has been heard.

How much has your oc traveled? Why is this? Would they like to travel more? Or are they perfectly fine with staying home?

He’d prefer to stay home - there’s too much room for error travelling abroad, and the risks don’t really outweigh the benefits for him. He travels back and forth between England and Germany, and he has visited France before as a boy, but that’s about it.

What signs tell that your oc is nervous? Do they fidget, is it in their expression or the way they say things? Or are they very skilled at hiding it?

He fiddles with his glasses and fidgets his hands around, and is also (as mentioned) a blusher - he’s Not Subtle when he’s nervous or flustered, which in turn makes it worse.

How superstitious your oc? Do they end up following them ‘just in case’? Or are superstitions incredibly important to your oc? What are some that they believe? What about the ones they don’t?

He says he isn’t superstitious, but I’m not certain that’s true - I think he’s superstitious despite himself. He follows them, then gets annoyed with himself for following them and assures himself that he won’t do it again, but then when it comes to it next time he follows them again anyway. He won’t walk under ladders, won’t open an umbrella indoors and he broke a mirror once and almost died. The only one he doesn’t believe is unlucky black cats, because he’s never met a black cat that was unpleasant.

[amontaguscapulet]

A Little Something in Response to Fanfic Writer Hate:

Because, apparently, some asswipes still believe that fanfic authors aren’t real writers and that their work is lesser than the OG content. Like there are so many professional writers that technically do write fanfiction as their job and no-one shits all over them. 

And most importantly: I DID NOT GET HUMILIATED IN FRONT OF MY CLASS FOR NOT WRITING GOOD FANFICTION TO HAVE SOME ASSHOLE TELL FANFIC WRITERS THAT THEIR WRITING IS MEANINGLESS AND ‘LESS THAN’. I fixed my work in the end and my teachers were really happy with the end result. I was PROUD AF but I digress...

(I’m using a Read more cus I kinda went OFF!) So, my reason why fan fiction is legit AF! (As long as you’re not getting paid for it because y’know, copywrite reasons and stuff.)

In the UK, when you’re 17-18 you can choose to do 3-4 A-Levels, which are the qualifications needed to get into University. For me, one subject I chose was English Lit&Lang. Two pieces of coursework/assignments we had was to choose a poem and a Shakespeare play and write something they called a Transformation (set by the national examination board). Transformations were basically where we took our chosen pieces (I picked Daddy by Sylvia Plath and Hamlet) and wrote two short stories based on those works (you could do a poem/script or play providing the original source was the same. So you couldn’t do a play on a play, etc.) THEY WERE LEGIT FANFICTIONS PIECES. Like, for Daddy, I wrote about a girl who was going through a mental breakdown but in the end, it turns out it’s actually a father who is going through it after realising what he had done to his child (it was twisty and made sense written out haha. Like the poem.) For Hamlet, I chose to focus on Ophelia. I based it in an orphanage, and her father was one of the social workers. The transformations were LITERALLY fanfiction. They were like AUs! And they were counted as a major part of our grade! WE GOT GRADED ON OUR FANFICTION. We had to be creative but write it so that anyone who read it would instantly see the comparisons and make instant connections. Like using the same characterisations (so no OOC-ing) and take major themes and incorporate them in. You could take plot points and write them in. My character was literally called Ophelia! It was LEGIT fan fiction turned into a school assignment set by the examination boards. LET ME TELL YOU, my teacher did not fuck around with this. I got criticised and pulled up in front of the ENTIRE class (as did many others though) because I made the office of Ophelia’s father look beautiful and lovely which made no sense when I wrote about Ophelia HATING the office. The office should have been what Denmark was to Hamlet! Our transformations (read ‘fan fiction’) had to be amazing pieces of writing. We HAD to make it like the original source otherwise what was the point? As long as it was an AU, we were good to go (though of course they never called it an AU but it lit was.)

You think the authors of books sit down and write the tv show or movie scripts? NO (most of the time they don’t.)  Tv show/movie adaptations are literally fanfiction of an original piece of work and get paid the big bucks do so. Like, with comic adaptations! They can pick and choose storylines and do whatever the hell they want with it. Doctor Who and BBC released books of the Doctors adventures that weren’t a part of the show. The show runners didn’t write the books, other people did. THEY WERE BASICALLY WRITING FANFICTION MY DUDES.

So people who like to write fan fiction, you are WRITERS! You’re writing quality doesn’t even make you less of a writer as much as what you write doesn’t NOT make you a writer. There are some shit books out there and some amazing fan fictions. WHAT YOU CHOOSE TO WRITE ABOUT DOESN’T MAKE YOU LESS OF A WRITER!

K.

[sweetfatale]

timeline events and shenanigans

This is more for my reference (since I got a few dates wrong sorry) but here’s a sort of timeline of relevant events and details in the No More Heroes/Sudaverse that Bad Girl may reference. I’ll be adding to it as time goes on and my girlfriend and I find more details and info. Note that I’ve played NMH1 and 2, but for everything else I’m baby and watched videos or read about them so I might be missing stuff. I’m also always up to discuss this or plot with these in mind! (ask and IMs are always open)

No More Heroes 1

Takes place in 2007.

Santa Destroy is an anarchy in southern California with its own currency (LB$), military (L.B. Army), and flag.

The UAA is founded by Sylvia Christel, started as a con job.

K-Entertainment is an assassination agency with an advertising agency as its front, where only high ranking assassins can get high paying assassination gigs. 

In Badman Strikes Back, Badman gets Greco to reveal to him that he kidnapped and tortured Bad Girl to near death with an electric chair sometime before the events of NMH1, attempting to mold her into a powerful killer, which Badman had a similar experience with, without “messing up her pretty face.” She came out of it traumatized (obviously), but with a need to kill and hurt others with her newfound power. According to him, it was her idea to join the UAA.

Sylvia and Bad Girl are implied to have a sexual relationship (at the very least) with official art where they are hugging, near kissing and lounging around in their underwear together. If not that, they’ve at least met before.

Bad Girl has a “secret base” in the Santa Destroy baseball stadium’s basement, complete with a chiller7 brand mini-fridge, an old TV, sitting area and a liquor cabinet. There’s also a conveyor belt that leads cloned men (likely criminals) strapped in leather from a cloning machine for her batting practice, and a pit of bodies right underneath it.

Makes sense she has her base there, her father having been on their baseball team way back when.

Travis had to pay 500,000 LB$ to fight her as part of the stipulation fee, but she picked the stadium. Members of the Santa Destroy Warriors baseball team (or clones who are dressed in their uniforms) fight him on the upper level, before he is allowed to enter the basement.

She fights Travis, who ultimately forfeits their fight. Travis wins by default, Bad Girl bleeding out and dying due to being impaled by his beam katana.

Bad Girl has had her manager, Greco, record all her fights and assassinations and send them to her father, seeking his approval. Badman watches the videos and is aware she’s involved in the assassination world, but never attempts to contact or find her.

Later in TSA, it’s revealed that Greco recorded her death and sent it to her father (apparently at her request) which sparks his want of revenge.

No More Heroes 2

Takes place in 2010, 3 years after NMH1.

The UAA evolves into a legit agency, taking over K-Entertainment basically, and the assassin ranks go public.

Assassins are all regarded as celebrities and their deaths are entertainment. They even have branding deals and sponsorships, and their contracts are now similar to modeling and acting agencies’.

Akashic Points are explained as portals/intradimensional gates/supernatural gateways leading to “isolated regions”, such as a Prison Island, Graveyard (a forest/graveyard area that’s basically a horror film setting), Housing Complex (a city in eternal sunset/twilight), and the Forest of Bewilderment.

Travis Strikes Again/TSA

Takes place in 2017.

With TSA’s Japan being so damaged in some areas, it’s implied the k7 ending where World War 3 happens is a reality. It would have happened in 2013.

Confirmed that assassinations and assassin battles were streamed via pay per view and dark web red rooms even after the UAA is dismantled in NMH2.

Aliens, superheroes, demons, psychic vampires, and Dracula are all confirmed to be real.

Superheroes apparently have their own rankings and are able to find crime to fight via an app(?), the Villain Autosearch System.

Found by Dan Smith (part of the Smith syndicate in killer7) after selling him out, Badman is given a chance to avenge his daughter with Travis’ location and a Death Ball to start him out with, after which he’ll likely be killed.

Badman finds Travis in a trailer in the Texan wilderness, intent on carrying out his 10 year long revenge plot (thanks dad). He’s come to kill Travis and to resurrect his daughter with the Death Drive MK-II video game console, which is said to grant any wish if you beat all its games. While fighting, they’re both sucked into the console and forced to start playing.

The US government has repurposed cloning technology to create a sort of 3D printer with the Death Drive MK-II and a “mother” machine (Death Drive AAA) to create copies of soldiers, weapons and anything else. Dr Juvenile planted bugs in its programming, preventing it from working. Her lover, Klark, warns Travis of clearing the games on the Death Drive MK-II, since it will reset the mother machine and clear it of bugs. 

As said by Klark, “The controllers for the DDMKII are loaded with a horrible gimmick. They read the player’s personal data at the DNA level, and create clones with increased abilities and power, for the purpose of creating powerful clone soldiers. These clone soldiers are installed with a special AI, turning them into murderous weapons. If the hardware could be sold all over the world, then data can also be gathered from around the globe.” So far, Travis, Shinobu, Badman and Bad Girl have all played the Death Drive and have contributed their DNA unknowingly. 

Travis and Badman clear all the games and the Death Drive AAA is reawakened and ready to be used. While Travis has the chance to destroy the mother machine at CIA headquarters when he travels there with an experimental Death Ball, he instead takes a detour and is able to talk to Jacket (Hotline Miami) and his mask personas, as well as Beard. Nothing really comes of this besides a connection with Jacket, and the Death Drive AAA is still operational post TSA and ready to create murderous clones. 

After beating the six games, the Death Balls are all gathered and summon a tiger god. Travis (being the protag) gets to make the wish, and wishes for Bad Girl to be resurrected. One of the Death Balls are found out to be a fake during the wish and she comes back as a dog.

Badman is determined to bring her back as a human, though admits he likes having her alive at least and her being a dog reminds him of when she was a baby. In the Bubblegum Fatale DLC the real Death Ball is found, fulfilling the wish and turning Bad Girl into a human. 

Bad Girl fights all the Death Drive game bosses (besides Juvenile), being able to talk to some one on one. Silver Face, a pro football star who killed all his girlfriends and went on the lamb, is unfortunately who she talks to the most and tries to relate to her before being killed. Ultimately, she rejects his attempts at “bonding.”

Between games, Travis, Shinobu, Badman and Bad Girl all hang around the campsite and trailer. Bad Girl drinks Travis’ beer and sits in his chair and calls him a fuckface. 

Misc (other games in the same universe that are canon in NMH)

Shadows of the Damned, Lollipop Chainsaw, killer7, Killer is Dead, Let it Die, The Silver Case, Flower, Sun and Rain, etc. happen around the same timeline. Hotline Miami is also in the same universe, but it’s unclear on the exact timeline.

San Romero (Lollipop Chainsaw) is upstate of Santa Destroy.

In Killer is Dead, the moon is inhabited (with royalty even), and in TSA mars is starting to be inhabited by clones. With two pretty major celestial bodies being inhabited (so far), space travel and exploration is possible as well as colonization. Also there are aliens already, so. 

“In killer7’s alternate take on the 21st century, all the nations of the world have signed a peace treaty disarming all nuclear weapons, banning international flight and perhaps worst of all, shutting down the internet. While much of the world is at peace, a violent terrorist group appears between the fracturing relationship between the United States and Japan, pulling the strings of some of Japan’s world leaders.” It’s reasonable to deduce that Santa Destroy became an anarchy as a result of the treaty and the encroaching WWIII.

[grayisholi]

@ the DND ask game: ALL OF THOSE QUESTIONS, I CAN'T CHOOSE!! XD (or if not that, the ones you rlly wanna do!!

BOY OH BOY OH BOYIve been answering these throughout the day and I’m too lazy to reread the full document so sorry if I’ve left gaps or whatever but here it is! All 35 questions about dnd! Matt you unstoppable Madman.

1. A favorite character you have played.

You can’t just make me pick between my children!!! I think I might have to say Atticus Sallow, my faeborn bloodhunter, partially because he’s like 100% homebrew content which I LIVE for, but also because he’s probably the most kinda self-insert character I’ve ever played? Almost became the kinda angsty, brooding asshole character before he was like “get your shit together” and learned that loving people isn’t so bad.

2. Your favorite character that someone else has played.

I almost, ALMOST had the pleasure of DMing for @no-more-good-omens and their character was gonna be SO RAD and I’m a little heartbroken he never came to be. A half-drow paladin of Vecna, pretending to be your typical good and wholesome paladin? Dude, I love that kinda two faced backstabbing in a player. It’s such a shame it never came to anything (although if yall still wanna play hmu ;))

3. Your favorite side quest.

Ooh, there’s been so many good ones. Probably when i was playing as Adrian Smirks and went off on a tangent to rescue his brother ? That was the first time I ever got to see Adrian’s more raw and emotional side beneath the suave mask he wears and it was fun to explore his character in that way ^.^

4. Your current campaign.

That I’m DMing? It started inspired by Guy Fawkes and was gonna be “your party blows up parliament” but I got bored of following historical accuracy so it ended up being “blow up the palace in a magical city that just happens to be called London”. I accidentally wrote myself into a hole with this campaign tho, so once they’ve finished this arc I’m handing over the DM hat to my sister @philosophical-wanton because she seems to love it and I kinda miss being a player lmao. I can’t wait for it.

5. Favorite NPC.That I’ve written? Probably Hai Shen, the youngest son of a group of circus performers who were killed and the party got blamed for their murder. He had such a great attitude and his dynamics with the party kicked ass. And the twist that he was actually dead the whole time and it was his soul that had stayed behind to help solve his family’s murder? ICONIC.

6. Favorite death (monster, player character, NPC, etc).

NPC death would probably be Hai Shen, actually. After the party had brought the real killers (A cult to the demon Prince Orcus) to justice, Hai’s time on earth had come to an end. He had really beautiful moment with the party before being reunited with his family. Alternatively, the time I broke my entire party’s hearts? “Artagan’s staff comes cracking into Ellios’ chest, forcing him onto the ground. Artagan raises his sceptre in hand, pointing it menacingly at the young prince. And for the first time, you see him. Like, REALLY see him. He’s not the strong and powerful leader you’ve all come to know him as, he’s not Prince Ellios of the Four Realms. He’s just a boy. A boy who is much too young to be involved in such a grand scheme. And the fear in his eyes. You see the fear he’s managed to keep buried for so long, finally coming to the surface. And then? You don’t see anything, aside from his cold body hitting the ground.” I got punched three times for that moment, but GOD was it worth it.

7. Your favorite downtime activity.

Like in game? A healthy lil bit of vandalising the local law enforcement buildings is always a good time.

8. Your favorite fight/encounter.

Aw man, how can I pick ? I gotta say, that one time we, a level 6 party, managed to take down two earth elementals was pretty rad. The DM kind of expected it to be one of those encounters that we saw and immediately tried to run from, but what she didn’t take into account was that ALL of us had chaotic alignments so we just went crazy. The DM was rolling really badly (thank God) and we were getting really creative (“I use the produce flame centripetal to light my bottle of ale on fire and create a molotov cocktail” “you do WHAT”) and after like an HOUR we won and it was amazing. The rush I got from that victory was better than any drug my dood.

9. Your favorite thing about D&D.

I know I say it a lot, but I legit can’t choose. There’s so many great things about ttrpgs that a lot of people don’t really think of. The creative fulfilment I get from a session is incomparable, the friendships you can build that you couldn’t form in any other way. And like, not to get too real for a sec here, but I grew up with undiagnosed autism and didn’t understand how a lot of social situations worked, and DnD was such a good mechanic for me to try communicating with people without many real world consequences, and I appreciate that experience so much. It’s just such a great thing my dood.

10. Your favorite enemy and the enemy you hate the most.

Can they be the same thing lmao? I mean, I’m obviously partial to Count Cassius, the vampire lord that Adrian slept with lmao. I also always appreciate a good beholder, until I get hit with three disintegration rays IN A ROW.

11. How often do you play and how often would you ideally like to play?

We’ve got kind of a monthly schedule with my main campaign, and I manage to get a couple online games in-between them, but honestly I’d kill to be the kind of group that got together every weekend.

12. Your in game inside jokes/memes/catchphrases and where they came from.

Oh MAN. “I say we do this.” “Yeah, but that’s coming from the guy who decided to tie 3 50ft ropes together to escape the palace.” “iT wOrKeD dIdN’t iT ???” i.e that time I forgot I gave the gnome rogue flying boots so when I planned for them to get arrested at the palace, they managed to escape by tying their ropes together, sending the gnome with it to the top and climbing the wall. I had to improvise the rest of the session. Also “FLINTON BELINDA SKINTON” bc as a role-play exercise I got my party to come up with rumours about their characters and the gnome rogue called Flint AKA Flinton B Skinton decided that one of their rumours was that the B stood for Belinda, and it was GLORIOUS.

13. Introduce your current party.

My current group consists of Flinton B Skinton, gnome rogue. He’s a quick-fingered, silver-tongued gay disaster who can sell anything to anyone. He’s a charming flirt, and a veritable genius in his own right. Kava Daardendrian, dragonborn ranger who loves nothing in life more than her animal companion - her pig Snortin Norton. She’s fun and sassy and shameless, she’s great. There’s Sparks, the fire Genasi Monk, and full embodiment of a disaster lesbian. She drinks, fights, and gets laid, and doesn’t deal with her problems in healthy ways. An icon. And finally Milo, the halfling Bard who falls in love at the drop of a hat and just wants everyone to get along. I call them “The Shenanigang” and I love them.

14. Introduce any other parties you have played in or DM-ed.

A party I joined late? We had Sylvia Moondrop, the half elf sorcerer who was just trying to get along with everyone despite what the world seemed to want. Orland the half orc bard who was just trying to shake off the Barbarian stereotype his family left him with. Rose Morleen, air Genasi fighter who was literally born to kick ass and take names. I joined as Mason Terrai, the Earth Genasi Alchemist with a perchance for explosives. The very definition of chaotic neutral.

15. Do you have snacks during game times?

Of COURSE. What manic wouldn’t ?

16. Do you play online or in person? Which do you prefer?

I used to play online a LOT back before I had friends who were into dnd, but I VASTLY prefer playing in person. The chemistry that’s built not only amongst the players, but also the actual characters themselves is unparalleled. It’s just such a great experience.

17. What are some house rules that your group has?

Anyone can attempt anything, the only restriction is the dice. Don’t question the DM unless it’s out of session, then bully the dm on the groupchat until he’s so pissed off he gives you inspiration just to get you to shut up. And also canon lore and canon rules are bullshit when it’s convenient. That’s about it

18. Does your party keep any pets?

Our ranger, God bless her, has her pack pig Snortin Norton, sold to her by one Flinton B Skinton. And Flint really wants a monkey, he’s been trying to find one for ages.

19. Do you or your party have any dice superstitions?

Not really ? I’m the kind guy that if my dice rolls a 1 I will bench it for a bit, but tbh all my dice are cursed af and I’ve kinda just learned to roll with it by making my characters canonically terrible at everything lmao.

20. How did you get into D&D? How long have you been playing?

Aw man I can’t remember when or how, it’s been so long. I had a couple friends who were kinda into it, but all the games they tried to run were complete disasters. I only really started playing I’m the past year or so? Maybe a little more ? Adrian was my first character, and he was a very RP heavy character in a party of tanks and they all hated him but MAN was it fun.

21. Have you ever regretted something your character has done?

Oh all the time. One time my character was careless and didn’t check for traps on a legendary artefact and it lead to the death of a party member. One time my character got angry at his party and walked out. My characters don’t make good decisions, but that’s part of the fun.

22. What color was your first dragon?

White! I thought it was silver at first and went to go say hi, and it clawed me within half my HP straight away lmao.

23. Do you use premade modules or original campaigns?

Oh dude, original all the way. I live for that shit.

24. How much planning/preparation do you do for a game?

Depends on the session, but usually a good few hours, couple of days if I’m DMing.

25. What have your players done that you never could have planned for?

“You wake up in a mysterious forest. The strained autumn sun shines through the trees. The only thing you can see it each other, the trees, and an old sign post leading to a path that says "Myrrill” on it. What do you do?“ "We walk in the opposite direction of the sign deeper into the forest.” “…of course you do.”

26. What was your favorite scene to write and show your characters.

I wrote a full carnival show one time for them to watch, and then it got derailed when a horrific monster attacked. But writing all the characters and their acts, and watching my players get entranced as I described it ? Magical, my dood.

27. Do you allow homebrew content?

I live and breathe homebrew content. I don’t know what my games would be without it. I LOVE homebrew.

28. How often do you use NPCs in a party?

I make some pretty sick characters if I do say so myself, so I throw them in a LOT.

29. Do you prefer RP heavy sessions or combat sessions?

Oh dude, role play all the way. Fighting and killing stuff is great, but role-play is just so good. We can go from laughing with a bartender to crying over a backstory reveal and it’s just beautiful.

30. Are your players diplomatic or murder hobos?

Depends on the party, but i find the best players are a little bit of both XD

31. What is your favorite class? Favorite race?

Official ? I’m a fan of the hexblade warlock? Bards are always a good call, and to be real playing monks make me feel like an absolute badass. Race wise, there are just so many. If we’re only talking players handbook stuff, half elf is always rad. Outside of that? I’ve been researching the Shadar-Kai lately and I’m LIVING. They’re so rad.

32. What role do you like to play the most? (Tank/healer/etc?)

What would you call the disaster gay? I don’t really gear my characters towards usefulness in combat, so it’s just whatever the class happens to lend itself to.

33. How do you write your backstory, or do you even write a backstory?

I usually write my character, personality, backstory, alignment etc, before I even pick a class or even a race. I basically just make OCs and apply them to dnd rules, and it’s SO much fun. 10/10, would recommend.34. Do you tend pick weapons/spells for being useful or for flavor?

FLAVOUR. My party usually hates me, but what I lack in combat utility I more than make up for in creative out of combat skill checks XD.

35. How much roleplay do you like to do?

Boi, I even RP my combat, and the great thing is it rubs off on my party too. I’ll have a really low initiative and everyone else will be like “I attack and do 10 points of damage” but then on my round I’m like “I use my staff to leap across the battlefield towards the opponent and launch out with a spinning kick to their jaw” and everyone else is like “oh, okay, that’s what we’re doing.” and the battle becomes so much more dynamic and cinematic, it’s amazing !

[sepublic]

Halloween Special: The Shut-In!

           So, this episode is SUPPOSED to be canon, I believe? Or the idea is that within the episode itself, the events take place after the Plantars return to Wartwood, but otherwise it isn’t canon? I’m not sure, I’ll have to go check. Either way…

           This was a REALLY fun, and surprisingly freaky episode, especially towards the end! I love the darker, pragmatic take on Halloween for Amphibia, and how the holiday is interpreted in this world as more of a doomsday preparation sort of thing, this show’s worldbuilding is always so fun. Let me tell you, I lost my mind when I saw human Sprig, Polly, Maddie, and Toadie! Is the implication that Toadie is actually, like, around the kids’ ages this entire time? That makes people shipping him and Mayor Toadstool, uh… VERY, er… But at the same time, I can see why everyone thought he was an adult- So an honest mistake and thus no harm done! And come to think of it, Polly seems to be about the same age as Sprig here. So, the ages may not necessarily match… But then come to think of it, it IS weird that the writers/animators chose to give Toadie a humansona, and not say, Ivy! Actually, Toadie is rather minor and feels oddly specific considering who else was excluded, so I have to wonder if there was some particular reason for this, of if the writers just felt like it?

           Anyhow, the humanized versions of our frog friends are adorable, Sprig and Polly are gingers, no surprise there, and the bucket over Polly’s foot is so cute! I love how Anne didn’t even TRY to change who she was, she legit just tied up her hair and that’s it. Her story was a fun premise, and I expected the video to actually be a jumpscare that pulls in its victims at the last moment. And I mean, sort of? It definitely takes a while for that Video Cat demon thing to arrive… But I loved Anne in this bit, how she’s so smug and proud of herself and really doesn’t want to care what others say about her skills, you go girl! You go write dialogue! And I just realized, but this is possibly the closest look we have to Anne’s actual home and bedroom, assuming things haven’t been changed up all that much in the ‘bootleg’ translation… So F-Annes, analyze!

           That Video Cat being unable to take criticism and literally dying to it is a mood. Also, either its eggs ARE boba, and/or they just taste like it… Either way, keep in mind that Molly legit took a huge bite out of one. Then again, more feral things have happened in Amphibia and ESPECIALLY with Polly, so I guess I’m not too shocked- Look at Anne, she wanted to eat that monster crab that almost killed Sylvia way back when! Are those cats invincible because they’re bound to no videos, or are they subject to regular criticism in general… Can they also be physically killed as well?

           WHY am I even asking, when we know this isn’t canon whatsoever and is never going to come up again!? Anne insists that this happened to her phone specifically, so I guess the gag is that the phone had a previous owner named Anna, etc…. Still, while it’s funny how Anne just gets away with completely making up a story, I do have to wonder if it’s like. Allegorical to a real-life experience. Probably not, given the presence of humanized Sprig, Polly, Maddie, and Toadie… Unless Anne is recounting something that happened in Amphibia, but then Sprig and Polly would’ve recognized what Anne is alluding to, given how they remembered those other past adventures (which was a hilarious gag that I felt nostalgic to recognize). I’m probably just overthinking it.

           Then, we’ve got Hop Pop’s story! He had LUSCIOUS locks, and he met the Grim Reaper- Again, allegedly. Not gonna lie I assumed that dude was Frog Lucifer or something, but this is kind of better? Either way that was pretty dark, and I love the implication that the Grim Reaper legit went out of his way to steal some rando’s hair. Poor Hop Pop, he never got his hair back! Are we going to call this canon? Does this confirm the presence of a Frog Grim Reaper?

           (Side-note, I feel bad for Wally! Imagine being born on a day where everyone has to be holed up lest they turn into Were-Amphibians! That must’ve been quite the scandal for the Ribbiton family, I have to wonder if this influenced his decision to go out and live his own life with how lonely Wally was…)

           Then we have Sprig’s story! I’m so happy to see Ivy again, I never realized how much I missed her and her adorable design, and her hair is so cute! Kind of reminds me of Anne with how wild it is, I want to see a one-shot of Anne bonding with Ivy over their messy hair now. I really appreciate that gag of Sprig realizing what Ivy’s about to say, about how everyone has knitting needles, and Ivy breaking down that door without remorse. This story was my favorite, not just for the comedy, but also…

           DANG, that was legitimately terrifying?!When I saw those slimy frog skins, knowing those were actual people, with Hop Pop even suggesting one of them could’ve been Gary… and YIKES, what happens to the flayed bodies?!? Legit I freaked out when I saw the Seamstress, this was straight-up Leather Face, the show wasn’t even trying to be subtleor dodge around it, those were actual people skins! This was some Wartwood Chainsaw Massacre…! Seeing all of those hanging skins and faces gave me the heebie-jeebies, I didn’t expect the show to go THIS far, and while I’m impressed and glad it managed to freak me out, still! That build up to the reveal of Ivy literally ripping off that ‘face’, us seeing a glimpse of the Seamstress before her skins fall off, and it looks like she lacks any skin entirely, and that’s why she wears others’!

           Only, she DOES have skin, it’s just clear- Fun fact, I watched this with my brother and he immediately recognized the Seamstress as a Glass Frog, by name, before Sprig did! I think it was a neat gag how for Sprig, he immediately calms down because for Amphibians, Glass Frogs are a somewhat normal and non-supernatural facet of life, relatively speaking. For us humans, well, it reminds me of this one myth about a woman whose head can rise from her body, unveiling her organs…

           I THOUGHT the episode was going to go the sweet route, even as I joked that the Seamstress still, y’know, KILLED people. And like Apothecary Gary, the show remembered this and we legit had the Seamstress burn to death in a classic horror movie finale, and I yelled when she made one last stand to grab Ivy by the leg and bite her! I get that there’s meant to be an allegory between Ivy not appreciating her own hair, and the Seamstress not appreciating her own skin, body positivity and all that- But mostly I was too freaked out to appreciate it. Ivy waddling around blindly in present-time was adorable, though.

           And, Polly! I LOVE the sort of lesson, the realization that her being gone was scarier than ANY story they’d heard that night (probably because this was real, at least I assume the other stories were fake but regardless). We get our twist of Polly turning into a Were-Tadpole, and then anticlimactically reacting while the others lose their minds as noises of ruckus are heard, implying that Polly immediately went feral afterwards, or the others just made a mess as they freaked out! Also, love the twist on the ending credits, that’s delightfully morbid…

           All in all, this was a great episode! Surprisingly scary, and definitely hilarious- It’s a much-needed break from this Amphibia hiatus, especially now that I’m also dealing with the hiatus for The Owl House and Infinity Train (the latter of whom may be permanent PLEASE watch the show on HBO Max), and Kipo’s ending. I do have Carmen Sandiego’s third season to watch, though. I wonder if there’s any speculation to be gleaned from the Blue Moon turning people into monsters, and how that can connect to Blue Energy for the Calamity Box relating to the virtue of Heart. Does the Blue Moon turn people into a monstrous form that reflects the darker sides/fears of their heart? I’m probably overthinking it. Either way, I’m really glad we got a classic Holiday Episode for this show- I always love those, ESPECIALLY Halloween ones!