#t2 heavy

[a-scary-lack-of-common-sense]

I have nothing to say for myself

[ask-the-tf2-mercs]

Is it just me or I haven't seen medic around interacting so I would like to send this message to the man! A box or crate of...uh..animal parts..? I have no idea- anyways it is on its way as we speak. Now for the real question, How has the team been treating you?

Medic: [elbow deep inside of Heavy's chest cavity] I'm a very, very busy man, you see! Tests don't run themselves, after all. Though I do appreciate the gift, I have been running low on rabbit's blood. Ack, Heavy, I can't seem to find it..

Heavy: Maybe Doktor should not have been writing on clipboard while Heavy is still cut open. Would not have dropped pen inside him.

Medic: I know, I know.. oh, ah, that's right. Your question. The team treats me fine. Though they used to be so terrified of me! I never was able to figure out why. So many of them are still so nervous about coming down for their physicals. I practically have to sedate Sniper! But they are fine. They could do a bit more to thank me for keeping them alive. That isn't directed at you, Heavy. Oh! Oh, I found it! [pulls out a pen] Anyway, off with you, I have to finish up here.

[guerrilla-operator]

GUNS N' ROSES WITH ARNOLD SCHWARZENEGGER

[wolfram-but-art]

silly little mercs :P

reblogs >>> likes

[good-beanswrites]

Woo hello 🎬!! I kept all of your ask here -- I put it like this for my own easy scrolling, but no way am I cutting any of this, it's so perfect AH

Oughhhhgh Haruka getting more confident from hanging out with everyone and getting such positive feedback… I’d imagine the back to back innocent verdict and night of compliments would do wonders for his psyche ;-; And same for Muu and Amane! Minus the inno verdict, but the sudden influx of explicit compliments and acknowledgement of “hey, that was fucked up what they did to you, okay?” I wonder if there’s any awkwardness since After Pain directly follows Bring it On, but I like to imagine Fuuta and Muu have a deeper talk about things in private (and maybe Muu hesitantly mentions her involvement with Rei in preparation for INMF…)

Damn, who’s going to give the sex talk to the kids after Yuno’s vide-- Shidou. Sidou does. Without hesitation. They have to stop him because no one wants to hear it and everyone there already understands the basics.I love the idea of she, Mahiru, Muu, and designer Mikoto chatting about everyone’s fashion sense (I can imagine them poking fun at Fuuta’s tracksuit and Shidou’s patterned shirts.) And planning shopping trips that include everyone!!! Amane and Kotoko are given no choice in the matter, and a lot of the guys are genuinely interested in coming along.

Awww, I love the thought of Haruka getting into a “boy” interest with Fuuta and Mikoto -- he never knew what it was like to have brothers but he’s really enjoying it <3 (Also I’m cracking up over Fuuta trying desperately to convince them “it’s not cringe!!!”)

ASDFSDF Mappi just straight up sobbing and Mikoto handing her tissues 😂 But yes, she also gets choked up during Magic and Amane can’t figure out why. This begins the adults’ efforts to get her out of whatever situation she’s currently in (which Jackalope was already half-working on, but is definitely spurred on by several angry almost-murderers demanding he get it done now.)

I do like that idea of Red more comfortable with showing skin than Blue. (I know people are very emotional about the stalker theory, but I personally never took it in a harmful way. I always enjoyed how it was a symbol of stripping away everything else until you’re left with your true, whole self.) So I like to think that Blue feels too exposed, but Red/Green are the ones who pitched it in a symbolic sense! 

I’m losing my mind at Kotoko/Kazui/Red talking about sparring. Everyone else is like “hell yeah, let’s see it!” and Shidou just sitting there like “you all are going to be the death of me. You are NOT fighting.” Because I really want to think about it happening, I’ll say they manage to sneak away at least once and nearly break a prop in the process, to which even Jackalope shuts them down.

I think they all manage to get pretty serious again by the time T2 rolls around, but the hiatus is filled with a lot of sweet moments and healing conversations between everyone. Also, making so many plans for the future helps keep them sane when some of the project immersion gets a bit too real. Whenever they start realizing they might be condemned for their actions and worried that they’re too broken/they’re life is ruined, they come back to those plans and relax a bit.

Absolutely no pressure, but I would love to hear your T2 thoughts! 👀👀👀 I’m so incredibly grateful you’ve taken the time to share your ideas -- from the very beginning this au has been a big collaboration, so it’s super fun bouncing ideas around :D

[daekie-gw2]

oh, huh, i don't think i ever posted this here, did i. a chart of every medium armor pants in the game where what these pants look like is not easily determinable from the wiki's full-set preview (given, you know, the trenchcoats). some interesting ones in here! i'm a big fan of funerary, carapace, and leystone legs, but the sets that are the same across all armor weights get some funky legs compared to light/heavy versions. shoutout to sanctified's booty shorts.

these are all on female models & are almost all on humans, aside from Viper's (on a sylvari for no particular reason) & the cultural armors (on sylvari and norn for obvious reasons).

yes i know this will be outdated in less than 24 hours due to the t2 obsidian legs. sorry. one day i'll go back and redo these so that they're 1. all on the same character when possible 2. all using the same dyes

[vampirevatican]

Milgram and The Court of Public Opinion.

this analysis will be about milgram's voting system, nuance and a whole lot of my own opinions mixed with eng fandoms translations, theories, and observations.

t1 = trial one / t2 = trial two

mv = music video

vd = video drama

voting and verdicts:

voting forgiven/unforgiven or innocent/guilty from the standards milgram sets for us (including es) isn't enough or easy.

being that milgram is set towards the court of public opinion and judgement can come from:

"sensibility, morality, ethics, legality, preference, taste, or sexual inclination..."

we end up arguing semantics, trying to find specifics in the crimes and making the best judgement possible. although in doing that the only conclusion anyone can come to is innocent when all is considered.

if we were doing it based on guilty and innocent then 5 are guilty, 2 are guilty on technicality and 3 are innocent

just in case you're curious, in guilty to innocent order as i just stated.

haruka, muu, amane, mikoto, kotoko, shido, fuuta, kazui, mahiru and yuno

it'd be over so quickly. but this... is milgram.

nuance/the grey area:

as the undercover song says, can you really judge them?

001. haruka did it for attention. with how he's coded - intellectual disability - and his mother being extremely neglectful after a certain age which prevented the possibility of his growth in intellect (understanding cause and effect/actions and consequences, along with many other things) it's easier to claim he's innocent. even more easier to forgive him due to this and extremely so if looking at it from his view point, albeit flawed. killing = attention = "affection", even if that attention/"affection" is negative it what he wanted. for someone, anyone to acknowledge him. he's innocent/forgiven because of his circumstances but if he's forgiven then he's being told it was his only option, and he was right, when the fault is on his mother.

002. yuno, as for now, doesn't have a reason. ofc in western (american specifically) public opinion or at least those who view abortion as a choice. she's been innocent from the start. this is her autonomy, her choice, even if she's 18. i won't deny she is so young to be doing sex work, or more specifically compensated dating, and yes it may be common in japan but that doesn't take away the age being factored into what she decided to do. it wasn't for money and she has a good home life. with how analytical and cold she can be, im assuming her desire to be loved in this way comes from somewhere and she's become jaded towards actual relationships. opting for the material and superficial. even without pitying her, she'd still be forgiven/innocent since t1.

003. fuuta was only trying to call out liars and scumbags. he is well versed in the court of public opinion, but he has never seen or experienced a result that lead to someone's death. looking at the undercover mv, then we can see he possibly doxxed his victim. if we take a nuanced approach here then we'd be looking at how he feels after the fact. he remembers the victims name, the fear in his eyes in his t1 and t2 mv, his voice drama after the first trial, him not approving of violence as a solution are all evidence of him feeling horrible. if he could go back, if he would've known. sure he did question why he's there instead of the people who actually killed the victim, but he also recognizes that he lead the charge. his innocence/forgiveness comes in the form of recognizing his actions were wrong. him being guilty/unforgiven is the action in itself.

004. muu is a love/attention reason. she's always been adored, admired, and cherished. she's always had her way. she also has never had to face heavy adversity. sure she was a bully, the queen bee, and a drama queen but didn't her school's culture allow her that? infact with us/es forgiving her, in the second trial song she claims as such, she'll always be queen. and for the t1 mv she says, "my 'im sorry' spells aren't working anymore." which leads me to believe that she's cried and apologized so many times that her old friends couldn't believe her. not forgiving her affirms to her that "two wrongs don't make a right" but forgiving her says the opposite to her. if she's to be forgiven/innocent the blame is tossed to the school, not her, but she won't see it that way.

005. shido is a love case, but for family. im thinking son because of a theory i saw, but either way when looking at it with nuance it gets heavier here. is taking from brain dead patients to save someone wrong? are the brain dead really dead? in my opinion yes, but that's the crux of the situation right? same goes for all the other inmates in this court of public opinion. he can be innocent from the view point that brain dead patients are already dead, and forgiven for his motive.

006. mahiru is another love case, romantic, and in a roundabout way she never committed a crime in the first place. from the voice drama and interrogation q&a slips, we find out that she's a sheltered girl and loves/idolizes soap opera and shoujo mangas. from her mv's we see she romanticizes everything, especially with her t1 mv. she's innocent because of not actually committing murder and forgiven because this is her first love, she wouldn't have known that it was toxic and messed up.

007. kazui did it in hopes of a dream, righting a mistake, being free. although he deeply regrets it, although he says he loves his wife? that love is mainly platonic. from his second trial mv, we see that he met her through his job - most likely police officer - so they had some kind of amicable relationship through their job. he only married her out of societal obligation, and noticing she liked him. not to mention in his t1 mv he says he messed up from the beginning. he is innocent because his crime is indirect, and forgiven because being gay isn't a crime and the regret he feels shows he never had negative intentions.

008. amane did it out of obligation. now, listen to me. i know she's literally 12 and was raised in a cult but notice how im stating the motive of each of these as they are from being stated in vd or pure observations from the mv's. now to any grown up it's self defense, but also imagine having gone through the worst hell imaginable all because you did something "wrong" stated by the adults around you. wouldn't the revenge be sweet? justice in its purest form. now take that and double it down with what you were taught. amane is not only forgiven/innocent because she was just a child, but because of the circumstances surrounding the murder.

009. mikoto (miko from here on) did it out of pent up stress an emotions, in turn creating john (koto from here on). miko is innocent without a doubt, and no i am not taking on the theory he actually did it til we get trial three. if koto was supposed to be his protector, and if he was born from a sudden explosion of pent up anger then (at least to me) it makes sense that he reacted the way he did. imagine being a corporate slave - no actually double it down, again, with growing up always trying to keep the peace. miko has a habit of laughing when he's upset. he laughs it off in hopes that things get better, his vd affirms this and even his mv after that. miko's smile that shifts to an extremely tired expression right before koto is born and a mirror shatters, right at the start. an intolerable stress from working so hard he grew grey hairs, cried himself to sleep, and yet continued to work, hold it in, and endure. the fault isn't on him or on koto. it's japan's work culture and the endure it mentality. koto is innocent/forgiven in the sense of motive. miko is innocent/forgiven because he's never killed to begin with.

010. kotoko did it to save the innocent. though she doesn't deal in nuance, much like fuuta. a key difference between the two is kotoko chooses violence because the justice system failed her. infact she's been hunting down the awful criminals of the world so much that she even has a covered bulletin board with pinned strings on it. on top of that, from the interrogation cards, we find out she dropped out of college and she was studying law. she'd be innocent for what she was seeking to do, in the court of public opinion, many would agree that awful people deserve a murderous punishment and she'd be even forgiven with that same reason. the nuance appears when considering the criminal, the crime and the reason. factoring those in then she can easily become guilty and unforgiven in the eyes of many, see the results after t1.

when it's all said and done:

they all had their reason, it all has a reason. who are we to say their crimes weren't just or fair? we're the judge, the jury, the executioner, and warden. in milgram whatever we says goes.

i'd love to see them all innocent, but at the same time do each of them deserve that? are their ideas being affirmed a detriment to them or their saving grace?? will they kill again?? will some of them be able to get the therapy and treatment they desperately need??? will they go back into society with an improved outlook on life or will they remain the same?

ofc i already have who i'd like to see forgiven and have already forgiven them myself, same as you reading this and those in the jpn fandom (where it originates)

anyway. moving forward please vote with this in mind, and check out the audio dramas i beg you all. i hope that there are nuance voters and voters with sympathy but with how amane was guilty in t1, i have a strong feeling it's not gonna end well. but if it does, you'll see me rejoice.

[milgram-tournament]

MILGRAM Best Song Tournament, Round 2, Match 3 MAGIC vs. MEME

Propaganda for both options under the cut!

Propaganda for MAGIC:

MAGIC MY BELOVED MAGIC!!! Its one of the best MVs in the entire series, even including T2. Magic is visually stunning and has some fantastic art direction but also is very clever in how it conveys its themes and ideas. Magic doesn't really hide anything from you, not really. It's all symbolic but it Tells You Things. It shows you the abuse, it shows you the cat. There's a fun little relationship going on here where, In Magic. Amane's pain and suffering isn't taken seriously by the people around her and the Audience we are discouraged to take it at face value due to the fictionalized nature of Magic. It's so cool. I'm so fond of the song as well, it's one of the best in the series purely cause of the Layers in it. The implications of this Inability to be good is seeped into Magic. Amane knows this isn't reality, Magic knows it's a show, she watches it at the end. And it's so Sad to me that even in her fictionalized happy world she Cannot be a good girl. It's a standard completely out of reach for her and that idea is just conveyed so well visually.

Im not even talking about the goddamn cat yet- the cat symbolism goes Deep. That cat is HER it has the same wounds Amane has in Purge March. I- I cant talk about the intertextuality of Purge March and Magic here this is Magic propaganda only- I- there's so much good stuff to Magic. I Re watched it over and over again. It has some the Best Writing and Visual Communication in Milgram and I will Die on this Hill.

---

shoutout to magic for having pretty props AND being vague as fuck about the crime! diversity win!

seriously though amane looks SO cute in it! the mv has such a pretty and colorful style and even with that it's able to show the horrors of what amane went through.

adding onto my last point. that scene where the cat is hyperventilating and you see the camera shaking???? that scene where the mascots find amane helping the cat and they're all standing over her? CHILLS. im repeating myself but the fact that they were able to portray the awful things amane went through in a genuinely emotional way while still keeping the cute cartoon look is soo impressive

there are SO many layers to itill the entire cartoony style making it look like a tv show… utilizing the cartoony effects and bright colors to show amane downplaying her own pain… the transformation after she gets punished barely changing anything to show just how manipulated she was from the start… ueueueue

ALSO ALSO ALSO THE SCENE AT THE END WITH AMANE STARING AT THE SCENE? OHHH ITS SO GOOD it adds such a feeling of dread and reminds you on top of this whole thing that all of this is truly horrifying! something is going on here!

this song is so catchy it gets stuck in my head CONSTANTLY

"Dear wise one, Am I worthy? Is it ok to spoil myself?" AMANE... UEUEUUEUE

the little ding sound effects in the instrumental?????

amanes voice is ADORABLE

THE INSTRUMENTAL IN THAT PART WHERE SHES HELPING THE CAT HAS THAT GODLY TYPE SOUND YOUD TYPICALLY ASSOCIATE WITH CHURCHES AND STUFF AND I DONT KNOW HOW TO EXPLAIN IT PROPERLY BUT JUST RELISTEN TO IT AND YOU WILL KNOW WHAT I MEAN. ITS SUCH A NEAT DETAIL

i could go on about this mv for days but i am not a theorist unfortunately. just. magic sweep

Propaganda for MEME:

"MeMe is fantastic because it plays off the audience’s assumptions about Mikoto as a character and tells a “double story”. There’s layers to it and it’s deliberately deceptive in the way it presents the events out of order. Even the instrumentals themselves tell a story. The shift from piano in the second chorus climax is so good - and the way they combine in the last chorus, plus the addition of a violin culminates the song perfectly."

---

"For propaganda: I love meme so much because even the music alone tells as whole story. It goes from heavy metal to calm to heavy metal to calm and that happens a few times and then there’s an epic and creepy intermission with an amazing guitar and a scary of sound of Mikoto’s heavy breathing. And then the psychedelic music and BAM the final chorus. The final chorus of meme just gives me the absolute chills. Like it’s the calmer chorus we see earlier but with epic symphonic metal and an amazing build up and climax like it’s perfectly encapsulates a story through music alone I just love it so much. Also it’s literally called meme lmao."

---

"I could go on about the motifs in MeMe - like identity loss, living and dying, dreaming etc. It's a song, more than with any other character, about the inner self and what hides from the surface. Of the fear that comes with one's identity and place in the world being challenged and crumbling. The intricate designs on the tarot cards have so much depth to them"

[oldsargasso]

4 minutes theories as of ep3

a little theorising for 4 Minutes based on the first 3 episodes because this show is itching my brain in the best way. and said brain is actually working a little today (as much as it can) so! mostly just putting this together so I have it all in one place

main theories (mostly things I'm fairly confident of/have strong text support):

Tonkla and Dome are brothers (literally no other reason to introduce Dome otherwise)

Great's visions of the future are actually glimpses of parallel/divergent timelines

You have around ~4 minutes to start CPR to prevent brain injury when someone's heart stops. This is the reason for the 4 minute limit of Great's 'visions': the person coding in hospital at the beginning of ep1 is obviously Great - flatlines at 11.00. he doesn't survive in every timeline (nor does Tyme)

we see Great and Tyme in Timeline 1 (T1). This is the timeline where Great has taken the second option each time - stopped to help the woman he hit, took Dome to the hospital etc.

on-screen Tonkla and the cop are in Timeline 2 (T2). key divergence is Dome's death

the opening ep1 scene of Tyme getting shot is T2 if there's only 2 main timelines

time progresses differently in the different timelines - or we're seeing things non-consecutively

gambling ring server gets hacked in T2, and the scenes of Korn related to that are in T2. but we also see Korn in T1 when he meets up with Great. unsure if the hack happens in T1 as well (where we see Tyme and Nan meet up and she gives him the USB, then Nan gets caught with the safe)

someone close to Tyme died because of the online gambling and that's the reason for his vendetta. Nan is also important to him beyond the access she gives <- going after Korn with a knife in a public area was not a well-thought-out plan.

minor observations & things I need to see more of to get an idea:

Tonkla and the cat he sees during sudden lightning/thunderstorm in ep1. Manee talks about her son with Tyme (and Anne) during a thunderstorm/lightning + Tyme sees Great's name on the card with a lot of significant lightning. ep3 didn't give us lightning but we did get actual rain, same as the beginning of ep1.

Great gets the visions of himself and Tyme the second time he sees him (omg he does get railed on the pool table whew) not the first time he runs into him after fleeing Manee's room

Title's dad is Important (hence the way Title walks around like he's untouchable). he tells Great to let him know if he needs Title's dad to do anything. my assumption is he's one of the crooked cops/shareholders in the gambling.

despite the establishment of the 4 minute rule, Great is clearly seeing himself & Tyme beyond that. also the vision of himself in the gallery with an unknown woman was not 4 minutes away.

strong theme of suicide (Manee's son, Korn's mother). Den is constantly trying to get Tyme to see his patients as people, and warns him against "prolonging the inevitable". we love a little heavy foreshadowing

Very tentative theories based mostly on vibes:

Great drowns, leading to cardiac arrest

Tyme's cup apology to Great is from a/the timeline where he killed Korn

T1-Tonkla is helping work against the gambling ring. Actually rewatching ep1, I thought I remembered his initial scene establishing him as good with computers (potentially the hacker) but all we know is that he'll fix "it". oh well, I'm still guessing this

I haven't looked at anyone else's theories or anything (except for @le-trash-prince's episode posts) so if there's anything that contradicts/supports/etc any of this please let me know! looking forward to the remaining episodes proving me wrong of 90% of this 😌

[oboetemasuka]

Victim Muu

(poll results)

I managed to get a bit of motivation today.

[Image ID: A watercolor pencil drawing of T2 Muu looking at the viewer with heavy eyelids. The drawing is primarily blue and black. The background is light blue with a black diamond framing Muu's face /end ID]

[the-bar-sinister]

Dessert for Breakfast:

2 tbsp cream cheese

2 tbsp heavy cream

1 tbsp unsweetened peanut butter

1 tsp cocoa powder

1/2 tsp vanilla (optional)

Mash ingredients together into a paste on the bottom of a bowl until incorporated and then use a spoon or ideally a narrow spatula to form into a ball shape.

Serve with coffee.

Optional for non-t2 diabetics: spread over toast or croissant.

[citygirlyuno305]

Analysis of Amane’s Psychosis, How it Influenced her Murder, and How it Supports Voting her Innocent for T2

Obligatory TW for numerous reasons- this discusses torture and child abuse, murder, etc.

This came to mind after I viewed posts from tumblr user @purgemarchlockdown (check out their posts! :)).

Introduction

Purge March (PM) recently dropped and has already skyrocketed to over 500K views. Despite an initial heavy lean towards innocent, Amane’s votes have been steadily dropping, dipping beneath 70% innocent today (September 2). Many viewers indicate that a major reason, if not their exclusive reason, for voting Amane guilty is to discourage her present mindset as to the veracity and reliability of her cult. Such people tend to argue that her voice drama (“VD”) and PM suggest that she is deeply indoctrinated, and hope that a guilty vote will be less harmful by forcing her to confront her beliefs with skepticism.

Although there are multiple other reasons why I disagree with this mentality, this analysis centers on the theory that Amane experienced psychosis when she committed her murder, and the similarities between her mindset at that time and her mindset now.

I. Sleep deprivation as torture

This portion of the analysis discusses the relationship between the above images and the possibility that Amane experienced sleep-deprivation induced psychosis.

a. The Green Figure’s punishment in Magic is a reference to Noise Torture, not mere yelling or verbal abuse.

It is my opinion that the above images suggest that she underwent sleep deprivation and/or noise torture.

The image from Magic of the punishment includes the green figure, who’s head is depicted as a metal ball with 2 attached ringing bells, while Amane holds her ears. This, combined with the surrounding red and yellow zigzagged lines, suggest the “punishment” was sharp, loud noise. Many theorize that this was supposed to represent her being yelled at, but I believe it actually represents a much more sinister, cruel punishment, tantamount to the noise torture experienced by prisoners of war. [See: Iraqi prisoners subject to noise torture by US government, it won’t let me paste the link here but I will try to in the comments.]

I believe it is more extreme than mere yelling based on the degree of torture she experienced in other circumstances. The PM MV suggests that Amane was both tased and waterboarded- two highly extreme punishments. Yet, the Magic MV depicted these punishments in a manner similar to how she showed her torture from the green figure.

From this, it can be inferred that her torture from the green figure was far more extreme than that depicted in her Magic MV. For this reason, I believe that she was subject to noise torture.

b. The psychological impact of noise torture

Sleep deprivation is known to cause psychosis, perceptual delusions, hallucinations, etc. Noise torture in and of itself is a clear factor in Amane’s psychological decline, but I want to focus on how noise torture suggests an impact on Amane’s sleep.

Sleep deprivation is known to cause psychosis. A quick google search yields results confirming that sleep deprivation causes delusional psychosis, perceptual delusions, hallucinations, etc. Moreover, a CNN special, “the dark side of music: Using Sound in torture” states that noise torture strengthens the effect of other methods of torture, including sleep deprivation. For reference, the NHS explains that a delusion is an unshakeable belief in something implausible, bizarre, or obviously untrue; a person with psychosis will often believe that someone or something is trying to harm or kill them. Perceptual delusion refers to a true perception, to which a person prescribes a false meaning- for instance, perceiving that a traffic light has turned red when it indeed has is a true perception, but believing that its turning red means that the president will be killed, is perceptual delusion.

With this, it becomes clear that noise torture is related to sleep deprivation in those who experience it. In turn, the symptoms of sleep deprivation, including psychosis and perceptual delusion, are not out of the question for those who experience noise torture.

Amane experienced multiple kinds of torture, and this is not me saying that I think this is the most “severe”. But I believe understanding noise torture is helpful to understand her PRESENT mindset.

c. Amane’s psychological response

This in mind, I believe this method of torture had a devastating impact on Amane’s psychological function. Based upon Amane’s eye bags in the PM video, during the moment where her eyes turn into bright yellow spirals (signifying what I see as a psychological break), I believe she is experiencing psychosis, exacerbated by her noise torture/the other methods of torture she suffered.

At the moment her eyes turn into spirals, she reenters the all-white world; all of the other Amane’s have similar eye spirals, and she remains in the white-world form in the frame where we see she committed the murder. From what we can tell in the Pm Mv, the white world is representative of her participation and compliance in the cult. While all the Amane’s were strictly falling in line in the beginning of the video, at this point, all the Amane’s are running and moving as less of a monolith. Though implying that her murder was “in line” with the cult’s ideals in her mind, this change also suggests her formerly rigid compliance and participation is now uncontrolled, less rigid.

I believe her finding the cat broke the straw on the camel’s back, as it immediately precipitated her psychotic break. I also believe the realization that her mother killed the cat caused a perceptual delusion in Amane’s mind that, the cat is now dead, ergo, I have to kill my mother. This is still technically in line with her cult’s view on tampering with fate, but I believe it also shows an extreme deviation from her previous view on cult compliance, AND that her mental state is incredibly fragile as a result of her previous punishments.

d. Conclusion

I believe Amane experienced noise torture, which caused sleep deprivation and delusional behavior, leading up to her psychotic break.

II. Why this means she should be voted Innocent

As mentioned above, I believe Amane experienced noise torture, as well as multiple other forms of abuse. I believe the noise torture point specifically supports voting her innocent because if she is voted guilty, we will be subjecting her to noise torture again.

a. T1 punishment and Amane’s behavior in her T2 VD

The trial 1 guilty punishment is said to include restraints, but also, the constant and jumbled up echoing of our voices of disapproval in the prisoner’s minds. They are confined to listen to these voices. Amane, being guilty in t1, did experience this- and we saw an enormous change between her sprites for t1 and t2. Once cheerful and childlike, her sprite is now hunched over, and once again is marked with these extremely visible eyebags to show her lack of sleep or rest.

In her VD, she discusses this, and shows signs of her resulting psychological decline. She attacks Es with scissors, shouting “I won’t forgive you.” This parallels her response and actions towards her victim after finding the cat dead. At that point, she even says “You’re sorry? I dont care!” to demonstrate her lack of forgiveness. In my view, the punishment for T1 had a similar, if not exactly the same impact on Amane that her cult’s punishment did. After all, it was mindless, irrational noise echoing in her head, telling her she’s unforgiven. And she aptly pointed out our own hypocrisy in voting while simultaneously showing that her murder was partially driven by her perception of her mother’s hypocrisy.

When she was in the cult, if she knew she was in trouble, she knew she would be punished. Our voices thus gave her the indication that she was not forgiven- “in trouble”- and thus that she would be punished when she met with Es. This makes me see why she thought the scissors were necessary. She equated us and Es with her mother and her cult, anticipated torture as a punishment, and thus brought something to protect herself. But notably, she only used the scissors at this point. Her encounters with the other guilty prisoners, despite their having been beaten and healed (which is against her cult’s teachings), were actually peaceful, or at least entirely verbal and nonphysical.

So at this point, it does not occur to me that she is a physical danger. She had the opportunity to attack fuuta, yet she didn’t. But a t2 guilty would change that.

b. T2 verdict and prospected impact on Amane’s behavior

For this reason, I believe guiltying Amane again will make her MORE violent. T2 is rumored to bring even heavier restraints for prisoners. So to vote Amane guilty then means we will be locking her down, forcing her to listen to our echoed and overlapping voices of disapproval. This is absolutely tantamount to the previous torture she experienced at the hands of the cult. She would be correct to say once again that we are being hypocritical- in real life, we would not endorse torture to rehabilitate an already tortured cult victim.

Also, her eyes flashing in the Mv showed her break- but here, despite her outbursts, she didn’t show any physical change. I think her referring to herself as “we” is essentially a warning that she is extremely close to breaking into a psychotic episode again.

Given her response after the T1 trial, it is extremely unlikely that she will experience a change of heart after being subjected to even harsher punishment. And considering her response to the similar psychological trauma inflicted by the cult, which then caused her murder, it is reasonable to assume that she will become even more confrontational and violent after we lock her down to listen to us again.

c. Conclusion

the T1 punishment subjected amane to noise torture similar to that she experienced in the cult. Her psychological response to this was violence. However, she hasnt had a similar break in psyche yet- her eyes did not flash, despite her outbursts. A t2 guilty will result in heavier restraints and similar voice torture. To prevent further decline, I advise voting innocent.

Sources in pictures because my fingers are tired!!

[chussyracing]

What do you think about Qatar for us? I would say prob not great (and carlos said as much) but I feel like I suddenly have no sense of the car now that it was good in Austin which isn’t necessarily what I think of when I think of the sf24

there are many points to add to this so i will just throw it all at you:

austin wasn't meant to suit us in general (looking at past years when it also didn't suit us or at the turns that were meant to suit red bull and mclaren and mercedes more)

to be fair, mclaren also stated how austin won't be their strongest circuit and considering how big their upgrade package was for a sprint weekend with only one free practice to see how they fit and make them work, it could play into their performance as well

i wanna see how we do in mexico first before looking at qatar, since the altitude always troubled our engines lately (and the cooling plays an important part in qatar too)

qatar is a street track, so overtaking is more difficult and therefore quali will be more important than for example here in cota

there is a big questionmark surrounding the tyre situation from last year (high risk of puncture, newly resurfaced track that literally eats tyres) - on one hand it could help Ferrari in quali to get the temp in them, which is something they struggled a bit with lately; on the other hand mclaren has been great at managing tyres during the longer race stints lately and that plays more into their cards

we also don't have much datasets from here since we only drove there in 2021 and 2023 (in 2022 there was football instead lol and then last year there was the whole 20 laps per compound maximum fiasco)

it's all much harder to predict since it's a sprint weekend with only one free practice to prepare for the rest of the weekend

the turns are fast and there is no heavy braking (only turn 6 is more "difficult" but even that cannot be classified as slow) so it is not really comparable to cota (maybe T2-T10 and then T16-T20?)

TLDR: Qatar shouldn't favour us, it should be one of our worst circuit maybe like Brazil but we should wait and see because neither should have Cota and we saw how it went.

[kuliak]

Distortion, distortion, distortion.

Went into this patch without any clear direction - most importantly, I knew I wanted to pan around some drums a bit, since I picked up Jumble Henge which I've wanted to get a bit more space on the kit forever.

Marbles acts as the master clock, with T2 clocking Zularic Repetitor and Data Bender. ZR on pattern 01000 controls Daiko for metallic percussion through IDUM, and ABD Kicks without trigger modulation. Taiko is triggered directly from T3, acting mostly as a snare.

T1 clocks Bloom (acting as a clock multiplier and sequencer) and triggers Sinc Bucina, which is where we get to the lead? Distorted bass? I really have no clue what to call it - it's a sound I cam across just patching and re-patching. Telharmonic receives Tonic CV from Bloom and Degree CV from X1. Phase output plays through Sinc Bucina, getting heavily filtered, then Strega. Strega applied heavy distorting saturation, very light reverb, and hi-pass filtering. The voice finally goes into Data Bender with additional saturation, in micro mode, with low repeats. All of these processing stages together create that noisy sound, as well as the novel rhythm. There's just something about it.

Some additional pings come from Ts-L, bitcrushed by o_C and through Ikarie and panned around with an LFO.

Ultimately a very cool patch, and one that's pretty much impossible to recreate. Very happy to have Marbles back in the rack right now, it is an inspiration machine.

[scottxlogan]

StonyAUniverse Bingo Master List

It's that time of year again for another round up and this is my master list for the Stony AUniverse bingo up at @stonyauniverse that I had a blast participating in and helping out with. For anyone who loves these two I would highly recommend you heading on over and checking it out as there is a lot of fun to be had. Under the cut is my personal master list for my fills this round. Thanks to all that were part of the bingo! It was a lot of fun!!!!

Title: One Step Closer Author(s): scottxlogan Rating: Explicit Tags: Alternate Universe - No Powers, Mutual Pining, Friends to Lovers, Forbidden Love, Heavy Angst, Angst with a Happy Ending, Not Peggy Carter Friendly, Past Peggy Carter/Steve Rogers, Past Bucky Barnes/Steve Rogers, Past Bucky Barnes/Tony Stark, Past Pepper Potts/Tony Stark, Minor Bucky Barnes/Sam Wilson, Implied/Referenced Homophobia, Canon-Typical Violence, Drug Use, Alcohol Abuse/Alcoholism, Artist Steve Rogers, Alternate Universe - Popstar, rock star Tony Stark, Rancher Steve Rogers, Second Chances, Sexual Content, Divorced Steve Rogers, Divorced Tony Stark, Rehabilitation, References to Depression, Angst and Romance, Not Howard Stark Friendly, Drug Addiction, Swearing Summary: Tony Stark was pushed into popstar fame by his ambitious father early on, but over the span of more than two decades Tony has seen the highs and lows of stardom hitting rock bottom in more ways than one. Through it all there was always one person that Tony felt was his saving grace. Steve Rogers was always the one that got away and no matter how many times they tried to cross that line into love they couldn't quite get there. As Tony's once close friend and brief roommate, Steve turned Tony's world around in all the right ways until fate intervened, and they were pulled in separate directions. Now fresh out of rehab on his 45th birthday and looking to keep from making the same mistakes, Tony reflects on his past and follows his heart to new beginnings hoping that it's not too late to find his way back to Steve in his hopes for a second chance. Square Filled: T1: Multiple Orgasms, T2: AU: Popstar, T3: Unresolved Sexual Tension, T4: Car Sex, T5: Au: No Powers Link(s): https://archiveofourown.org/works/48437332

Title: The Quest Author(s)/Artist(s): scottxlogan Week: 1 Profession Rating: Teen and Up Tags: Alternate Universe, Treasure Hunting, Archaeologist Steve, Swearing, Action/Adventure, Adventure & Romance, Implied/Referenced Sex Summary: Archaeologist Steve Rogers finds himself in the thick of danger and adventure after teaming up with his former mentor's son and current sidekick Tony Stark to chase down a rare treasure set to unlock all of humanity's mysteries along the way. Square Filled: N2: AU: Archaeologist Link(s): https://archiveofourown.org/works/49077973

Title: Out with the Old... Author(s)/Artist(s): scottxlogan Week Two: Time Period, Bingo Square Y1: AU Cashier Rating: Mature Tags: Alternate Universe - No Powers, Non-serum Steve, Alternate Universe - 1980s, Alternate Universe - 1990s, New Year's Eve, New York City, Dirty Talking Steve Rogers, Dirty Talk, Swearing, Sexual Content, Alcohol, Hook-Up, Hopeful Ending   Summary: AU: Alone on New Year's Eve in 1989 in New York City, Tony decides to go all out in throwing a solo party for himself until sexy cashier Steve offers him a better alternative to a night of drunken loneliness. Link(s): https://archiveofourown.org/works/49199674

Title: The Journey Author(s)/Artist(s): scottxlogan Rating: Explicit Pairing: Bucky/Steve/Tony Tags: Esta https://archiveofourown.org/works/49272082 Steve Rogers/Tony Stark, Anniversary, Threesome - M/M/M, Polyamory, Spanking, Sub Bucky Barnes, Dom Steve Rogers, Dom Tony Stark, Light BDSM, Sexual Content, Fluff and Smut, Restraints, Aftercare, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Role Playing, Dirty Talk, Feelings Realization, Friends to Lovers, Pole Dancing Summary: Steve and Tony decide to take a special trip for their anniversary together. To spice things up they decide to gift each other a vacation with Bucky who is ready and willing to be what they need to make their anniversary even more memorable. Will it prove to be exactly what they needed to strengthen their marriage or will they find something more in their playtime with Bucky? Square Filled: N5: AU Dancer Link(s): https://archiveofourown.org/works/49272082

Title: Just Like That...Back to Love Author(s)/Artist(s): scottxlogan Rating: Teen and Up Tags: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Alternate Universe - No Powers, Alternate Universe - Spies & Secret Agents, Idiots in Love, Feelings Realization, Past Peggy Carter/Steve Rogers, Swearing, Light Angst Summary: Super spy Steve Rogers reflects on the mission he and his work partner/on and off lover Tony Stark put behind him and what it means to their future moving forward where matters of the heart are concerned.   Square Filled: Week Three: No Powers, N3: Wrapping him up in a blanket  Link(s): https://archiveofourown.org/works/49366717

Title: What If We...? Author(s)/Artist(s): scottxlogan Rating: Teen and Up Tags: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Fix-It, AvX Fix-It Fic, Mention of the X-Men, Friends to Lovers, Feelings Realization, Implied Sexual Content Summary: Caught up in deciding what to do about the problem of the Phoenix returning to the world again and causing chaos, Tony offers Steve a suggestion to prevent a war between the Avengers and the X-Men from happening. It sounds like the perfect plan, but along the way Tony finds that perhaps there's something more beyond saving the world with Steve that he's looking to find in their conversation. Square Filled: AUgust Stony AUniverse: Week 4: Nice Try, Canon, Stony AUniverse Bingo N1: Friends to Lovers Link(s): https://archiveofourown.org/works/49535506

Title: Lazy Weekend Author(s)/Artist(s): scottxlogan Rating: Mature Tags: Domestic Fluff, Tony's POV, Threesome - M/M/M, Polyamory, Implied Sexual Content, Fluff, Morning Cuddles, Sleepy Cuddles, Established Relationship, contemplations, Reflection Summary: Snuggled in bed with his lovers, Tony contemplates how far they've come together from their sexy beginnings. Square Filled: O5: Domestic Fluff Link(s): https://archiveofourown.org/works/51525229

Title: Only In New York Author(s)/Artist(s): scottxlogan Rating: Mature Tags: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Alternate Universe - No Powers, Artist Steve Rogers, Meet-Cute, First Meetings, Mild Sexual Content, Awkward Flirting, Blind Date, Flirting, Miscommunication, Threesome - M/M/M, Shy Bucky Barnes, reclusive Tony Stark, Minor Bucky Barnes/Steve Rogers Summary: Tony grudgingly agrees to go out on a blind date in the city that Pepper has set up for him. In doing so Tony meets devastatingly handsome artist Steve Rogers who is catching Tony's eye in all the right ways. When a series of mishaps and misunderstandings brings Steve and Tony closer to one another, will it prove to be the spark they need to fuel the fire between them or will fate have other plans with Steve's sexy roommate Bucky in the picture?   Square Filled: S2: Meet Cute, Stony AUniverse JAnUary Week 1: No Powers Link(s): https://archiveofourown.org/works/52923937

Title: Sweet Dreams Author(s)/Artist(s): scottxlogan Rating: Teen and Up Tags: Anxiety, Panic Attacks, Romantic Soulmates, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Cuddling & Snuggling, Flirting, Kissing, Anxiety Attacks, Insomnia Summary: For years Tony abandoned the idea of ever finding his soulmate, yet somehow after he's hit with a panic attack at one of the worst possible times and Steve comes around to comfort him, Tony discovers that perhaps his soulmate is closer than he thinks. Square Filled: O3: Free space Link(s): https://archiveofourown.org/works/53104438

Title: A Journey Through Time Author(s)/Artist(s): scottxlogan Rating: Teen and Up Tags: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Post-Endgame, Post-Canon Fix-It, Time Travel Fix-It, Alternate Universe - Time Travel, Light Angst, Angst with a Happy Ending, Romance, Bucky Barnes & Steve Rogers Friendship Summary: Post endgame after Tony's death Steve makes the decision to go back in time to travel to the past to see Tony in the hopes of changing what's ahead for them. Together Tony and Steve share a touching reunion as Steve's journey leads him closer to fixing the mistakes of the past and being close to where he's always wanted to be. Square Filled: Y4: AU: Time Travel Link(s): https://archiveofourown.org/works/53155555

Title: After The War Author(s)/Artist(s): scottxlogan Rating: Mature Tags: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Canon Divergence - Avengers: Endgame (Movie), Established Relationship, Amputee Tony Stark, Light Angst, Angst with a Happy Ending, Sexual Content, References to Depression, Aftermath of war, survivor Tony Stark, Dirty Talk, Swearing Summary: Weeks after the battle with Thanos, Tony finds himself in a place where he's left feeling uncertain about himself and what remains of the man he once was. Lost in his struggles, Tony tries to sort his thoughts out, but struggles with his new life until Steve offers him a reason to get lost in a welcome distraction. Square Filled: Y2: Steve’s blush Link(s): https://archiveofourown.org/works/53443666

Title: The Gift Author(s)/Artist(s): scottxlogan Rating: Teen Tags: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Canon Divergence - Avengers: Endgame (Movie), Short One Shot, Established Relationship, Amputee Tony Stark, Tattoos, Artist Steve Rogers, Bonding, Romance, Short & Sweet Summary: Steve and Tony share a moment together after Steve puts his new artistry skills to the test in bringing to life a tattoo design he created for Tony. Square Filled: O2: Body Modification Link(s): https://archiveofourown.org/works/53486125

Title: Jealousy Author(s)/Artist(s): scottxlogan Rating: Teen and Up Tags: Miscommunication, Jealousy, Misunderstandings, Idiots in Love, Reunions, Feelings Summary: For some reason even though it's been a while since Steve and Tony have been together, Steve can't shake the sudden burst of jealousy he feels in seeing Bucky and Tony getting along with one another. Steve knows it's for the best that his best friend and former lover are at peace with one another, yet Steve can't shake the unsettling ways it feels to be on the outside of things with Tony knowing that Tony's still the only one in his heart. Square Filled: Y5: Jealousy Link(s): https://archiveofourown.org/works/53830381

Title: Wrong Turn Author(s)/Artist(s): scottxlogan Rating: Teen and Up Tags: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Alternate Universe - Tattoo Parlor, Tattoos, 5 Times, Romance, Happy Ending, Alternate Universe - No Powers, Tattoo Artist Steve Rogers Summary: Tony reflects on the five times that Steve made a mark on his life while Steve takes a moment to consider the one time Tony made a mark on his Square Filled: O4: AU: Tattoo Artist Steve Link(s): https://archiveofourown.org/works/53831182

[straynoahide]

ainulindalë meta (II)

Index post here

Themes and comparison

the narrative of the ainulindale is divided into three themes (T1, T2, T3, for short), musical segments that occur in sequence in the 'timeless' halls, the Ainur and God's transcendent abode. the timeless halls are different from the Void.

each has a similar narrative structure: first we are told something about Eru (an action, or an emotion), then there's a description of the beginning to the musical segment, followed by an event (related to the Discord, that breaks the Harmony), followed by development(s).

for T2 and T3 we also have a comparative description to the themes before. T1 has nothing to compare itself to, as before was silence.

in addition, i think we could add an 'aftermath' (A) and analyze a similar sequence, so we can make an overall discussion for each (T1, T2, T3, A). i think we can map how the structure/sequence of the music matches the periodization of the ages, the sequence and meaning of events in the overarching narrative of arda. i might go on a lot of metaphysical tangents while i do that.

so first i'm going to go through each point for the themes and the aftermath, comparatively. when all the parts are laid out i'm going to discuss that correspondence with time-reckoning, lore events, and themes that have mostly to do with tolkienian theodicy and eschatology - like the doom of men and apokatastasis.

this includes discussing some heavy (both christian, but really universal too) anthropo/theological concepts. so on to it:

T1: -Eru: Eru teaches the Ainur to sing collectively (as a 'choir' capable of harmony) by playing each their part, filling their role -Beginning: Harmony of the Ainur -Event: Discord of Melkor 'to aggrandize his role' -Development(s): Storm of sound -Comparative description: n/a

T2: -Eru: Eru is amused ("smiles"), raises his left hand -Beginning: Second Theme "gathers power" and finds "new beauty" -Event: the Discord rises "in uproar" and "contends" -Development(s): War of sound "more violent than before" / many Ainur "sing no longer", others "joined the Discord" and Melkor "has mastery" -Comparative description: the Second Theme is "like and yet unlike" the First Theme

T3: -Eru: Eru is displeased ("stern") and raises his right hand -Beginning: Third Theme is "first gentle" but "gathers power" in "profundity"; it is described as 'deep, wide, slow', blended with "immesurable sorrow" from which its "beauty chiefly comes" -Event: Discord tries to "drown" the theme by "violence"; it is described as 'loud, vain, endlessly repeated', itself with little harmony but "unity of its own" in 'clamorous unison' -Development(s): the more triumphant notes of the Discord are 'woven into' the 'solemn pattern of the theme' / the Halls and beyond "shake with tremor" -Comparative description: the Third Theme is unlike the other themes - conceived by Eru alone, unknown to the Ainur 'in counsel'

A: -Eru: Eru is angry ("terrible") and raises both hands -Beginning/Event: a Piercing Chord -Development(s): Silence & Melkor's Shame -Comparative description: n/a (the music ceases) - until there should be a "New, Greater Music" with the Children (Elves, men, etc) aka a Second Music. The Ainulindalë is thus the First Music (a "Great" music), distinct from the Second; all Themes discussed are of it.

Discussion

The First Theme is the most straight-forward. Eru is teaching the Ainur each their own role, preparing them for the intended Harmony that would produce creation in its state of grace: Arda Unmarred, the world before Melkor's corruption.

Melkor, the most powerful Ainu from the get-go, seeks to aggrandize himself, actually, to take on the role of creator. this is clearly, in the beginning, about his desire to imitate his creator and create. creation is good; there is no inherent desire to surpass, destroy, or spoil.

while you can argue the imitation of god is intrinsically hubristic and bad from a human perspective, perhaps it is more plain to simply say it is a kind of attempt from melkor to attain 'full' divine capacity, and leave value judgments to the (literary) creator about whether such an apotheosis is good or bad or neither. I think Tolkien answers that through his envisioning of the Second Music.

at any rate, to create Melkor needs sth called the 'Secret Fire' or Flame Imperishable that is within Eru itself, so he can't get it. he doesn't know it, and he clearly thinks it is possible for him to attain it, so he seeks it in the Void.

in seeking this he leaves the rest; he is already different by nature -all of them are distinct from each other, individual and free-, but Melkor also becomes more unlike the rest in this darker way out of his own actions. he is in the Void only with his own thoughts, and thus his worries are concerns are for himself alone.

i think it is interesting we are told about assigned roles (by a figure of authority) and not natures. Ainur are to play their part in a symphony, that possibly God has fitted to the natural qualities of each, but they are roles nonetheless. nothing says that one Ainu could not have played the role of another.

Melkor's conflict is to fulfill his assigned role. so this is important: when it's God's time and he returns, Melkor is able to sing in Harmony but he chooses not to. Melkor is free and exercises his freedom in this manner. it is not his nature to break from his role, it is his chosen option.

and it's not just about singing differently (quality) but something about quantity or "how much" he takes for himself. the metaphorical "space" he occupies in the melody being greater ('aggrandize') than was presumably assigned to his role.

this behavior produces the Discord because it does not match with what the rest is doing. the manner God instructed them to fulfill their roles within the whole was not intended for Melkor's rebellion, it was intended for Melkor's assignment.

but Melkor is only truly concerned with his role and not with the whole symphony. he is a part, but he becomes totalizing and the part changes the whole from perfectly harmonious to imperfectly dissonant. the harmony and unity in the First Theme are broken.

it's described as the "storm" of sound.

a storm, so we're supposed to think of thunder. big noises associated to fires and danger that startle us because it is, well, unpleasantly coming out of nowhere from our perspective.

Melkor's sound is unexpected, loud, unpredictable to the rest of the Ainur who have not strayed in his singular pursuit, which itself comes from his singular, god-given nature.

there's a combination of qualities we are given as naturally Melkorian, (1) being mightiest among his peers -thus having no real equal in power (not necessarily the same as strength)-, (2) a strong and relentless creative desire, (3) a restlessness that drives him to the Void to seek out what he longs for (through the Secret Fire) - to fulfill his nature instead of his role.

it will later become unavoidable to think about whether Melkor (among others) has or doesn't have, retains or doesn't retain, redeeming qualities. I think it doesn't matter in that these are qualities explicitly stated in the narrative as god-given gifts. not only that, i think it's a wrong frame of thought. Melkor exists, so they are qualities period: without any of them, Melkor wouldn't be Melkor.

he would be less able/unfree to alter creation and sub-create, unmoved to do so, or apathetic despite wanting to - and we may post hoc wish for this or see this in a positive light - but he wouldn't be the individual spirit created by God in any of those hypotheticals, so clearly the Creator hasn't created a Melkor-less world, just like he hasn't created a world without any other spirit of child. we are where we are, just like the Children are in Arda.