#that's not the story of the song but it has thieves and its good

[kagaminelen-official]

You're a master thief in Victorian-era London. Who's the genius detective appointed by Scotland yard to investigate your crimes and track you down?

I'm the thief but I'm also the detective! What, you say you've seen the thief and detective in the same area before? That was Rin! We are one and the same and they never caught us!!

[cherubshert]

Musical Enemies...

Content: Enemies to kinda still enemies, cringe, idk

A/n : Heavily inspired by the Vie ghoul arc of skip beat, and Riki is shotaro fuwa and reader is kyoko:3, if you've read skip beat, just imagine they have the same story line. i don't think this is very good but it's what my brain could create yuh...

The night sky is filled with twinkling stars, a cool breeze brushing past you, leaving goosebumps to rise. You replay the song on your phone again, with furrowed eyebrows, its familiar melody leaving you confused. Your manager turns to you and smirks, lightly amused by what she thought was interest. “You seem to like them.” she says with a teasing smile, you shake your head before pausing the song. Taking out your phone, scrolling to a much darker part of your messages, clicking on a chat you hadn't entered in a while.

‘let’s talk’

𔘓

A huge part of you has always admired Riki's style, heavily rockstar esque, mixed with whatever else he liked. It even mirrored in his music, a signature sound that he's spent years crafting to be his, that's why it was so easy for you to pinpoint when it's been copied.

“They beat you on the charts, with your own song.” His indifference heavily annoys you, the cool image he has pasted over his face leaves the rage in your heart to grow. He stares down the vacant hall before turning to you. “Why do you of all people care.” “I'm an artist, I hate thieves.”

He scoffs before leaning back on the wall, his facade fades for a second, worry lacing his features, before it's back. “You gonna let them steal your art?”, he chuckles dryly, leaning his head back, staring at you through his lashes. “I don't really care, they can't touch me.”

You glare, “You're pathetic, letting yourself get one upped by a group of untalented fools, who are leeching off your work.” you words cause his aura to change, anger bubbling up as his hands curl into fists in his pockets. “The Riki I knew wouldn't let them win.”

“Well.” he says with a heavy sigh. “I'm not the Riki you knew, and they're not going to win. they're nobodies.” “nobodies that beat you on the charts.” he glares at you so meanly that a shiver of fear flows through you, but your glare doesn't falter. “I don't need or want advice from the likes of you. You know nothing about me.” with that he's gone.

𔘓

The song ends with a dramatic finish, the sound filling the studio , before being followed by a dramatic silence. “How?” Yunah asked dazed, staring at the computer before turning to Riki. His odd silence stirring the anxiety in the room further. The director turns around to him, “We can't finish the song, it'll be like we copied them.” Yunah slightly panics, looking between the two.

“The release date has already been scheduled, we'll never meet the deadline if we start over.” Riki drags his hand through his hair, sighing softly. “Don't worry.” “But-” “I'll come up with a new track, I won't let this go.”

𔘓

Weeks have turned to a months, the night sky is still filled with the distinct twinkle of stars. The season is changing, growing colder as the days past, but Riki's voice warms your ears. You stare up at him, before turning back to his phone.

“I'm surprised you actually did something to fight back.” You say, pausing the song. “They pissed me off, I won't take ruining my hardwork lightly.” You roll your eyes, remembering his previous indifference. “Besides, you were right. untalented fools that need to leech off my work to survive don't deserve to drag me down.”

Crickets chirp in the background, a comfortable silence sitting between the both of you. You stand up from the park bench abruptly, holding out your pinky in his face.

“Promise me, Promise me you won't let anyone else drag you down.” His eyebrow raises in curiosity, “promise me, that you let me push you down.” he let's out a breathy laugh. “Here I thought we were going back to old times, yet you're still holding a grudge.” “I still don't like you, I just hate people like them.”

He hooks his pinky with yours, “Feeling’s mutual.” you scowl. “Weren't friends or buddies, I'm trying to make you fail, don't forget that, I wanna be the one to do it, no one else.” He stands, not breaking your contact, his height intimidating as he hovers over you. “I'll let you keep trying, but I won't make it easy.” “I love a challenge.”

He tilts his head before smiling brightly, you pull your hand away, turning towards your dorm. His eyes following your movement before he laughs softly.

[accirax]

Mr. Showtime 2DMV Theory

The release of Mr. Showtime full and its 2DMV... oh my god. I’m back on my Tsukasa bullshit, so please allow me to talk about what I thought was the most interesting part of the 2DMV:

This part, with the jester boy on the moon with balloons. Please ignore the YouTube time bar I don’t know how to get rid of it While the entire 2DMV is gorgeous and bears rewatching one million times, it’s this part that stood out to me in conjunction with the lyrics. Specifically, the strings of the balloons stood out to me, after reading and participating in this post by @/getwonderhoyd. It discussed the symbolism of Tsukasa and the marionette strings in comparison to Mafuyu, and how their tight wind around his fingers implied the tight grasp he has on controlling his situation.

He has that same winding grasp on the balloons. But what are the balloons?

While not all of them are direct depictions of the Wonderland Sekai, many of them also are. The ones that aren’t all seem to be related to stories Tsukasa is featured in, specifically a lot of the girls’ events for some reason? The presents seem to be from On This Holy Night, I Sing; the mermaid tail from Mermaid Adoration; and the tropical climate from A Desperate Situation?! Island Panic!. The plane, I would imagine, is from their travels abroad in Popping In My Heart, and the candy clouds balloon could either also be that event or resemble the clouds in the Smile of a Dreamer cards. I don’t remember where the scary face could be from-- I would posit either a spooky Halloween face for It’s On! Wonder Halloween or the checkered pattern could imply the phantom thieves of A Gentleman Thief’s Thrilling White Day?!. 

Anyways, Tsukasa is clutching on tightly both to the sekai and his memories with his friends. Typical. But could it go deeper than that?

Again, the balloons are his memories. It’s good that he has them, considering his past history with memories. But here, we get some more interesting insight-- these memories are carrying the travelers. The travelers/stars are surely his troupemates, and Tsukasa believes he is carrying them with his memories. Sure, he’s carrying them with him through what he remembers, but as the leader, I think he believes that he’s the one carrying them forward. Not in a totally vain way, of course-- he loves his friends and thinks they’re all super talented, too. But there is one way that he specifically is undeniably carrying them... and that’s through the existence of his very own sekai.

That’s why his memories of prior events and the memories of the sekai are so combined. This other post which I adore by @/wondahoiii discusses how sekais are based off of repressed feelings. This makes the Wonderland Sekai, and the fact that it’s a neverending paradise based off of solely Tsukasa’s childhood memories, kind of terrifying.

Wonderlands x Showtime has had a lot of events recently about how much they don’t want their time as a group to end, even though it inevitably will. All four of them have lyrics here about wanting to avoid an ending, while Tsukasa is the only one shown acknowledging its arrival. But, down to the name, Wonderlands x Showtime and the Wonderland Sekai are connected. Since Tsukasa and Rui would have never made up without Kaito and Miku’s help, you could argue that Wonderlands x Showtime couldn’t exist without the Wonderland Sekai. So, in a way, when the members say they don’t want “it” to end, they could also be talking about how they don’t want the Wonderland Sekai to end.

What happens when true feelings are resolved?

If Vivid Bad Squad becomes a tight foursome without envy and insecurity and surpasses RAD Weekend, would they need the Street Sekai to practice in anymore? If Kanade really does write a song that can save Mafuyu, and all the members of Nightcord become mentally healthy, would they need advice from Miku, Meiko, or anyone else anymore? Someday, More More Jump will retire from being idols, right? Would the Stage Sekai still exist, even then?

And what about Tsukasa? If he became a mentally healthy person, one who could retain and potentially regain all of his memories, and make people like Saki smile... what would happen to the Wonderland Sekai?

There’s a certain fear in being the one-man show that fuels an entire universe.

Tsukasa will do anything to make the people he cares about smile. It’s literally the basis of the Wonderland Sekai itself. So, if the Wonderland Sekai makes Emu, Nene, and Rui smile, of course he would keep it open with all his power. Not to mention that, as reminded by the event story balloons, the Wonderlands Sekai is making his friends better people. Emu has people who unshakably care about her, Nene is overcoming her stage fright, and Rui feels understood and appreciated for the first time ever, thanks to the Virtual Singers inside the sekai. The Wonderland Sekai is making them better.

But at the same time, there’s a problem. As stated, the Wonderland Sekai consists of every happy childhood memory Tsukasa has repressed. For the Wonderland Sekai to exist, Tsukasa has to repress these memories, or else they wouldn’t be “emotions never expressed.” While I would never say that Wonderlands x Showtime was unhealthy for Tsukasa, it’s possible that, to a point, the Wonderland Sekai is. If he wants to reclaim his memories, he has to let the Wonderland Sekai go.

He has to be the one to bring about the catastrophic end.

It’s not just that Tsukasa wants to keep up a happy attitude so that no one will worry about him, or through some sense of pride at being the unshakable leader with masterful skills of pretending. It may be that Tsukasa is worried that if he shows even a crack, so will the world they’ve come to love. You know-- the one that Hasn’t Even Started Yet.

Which is why Tsukasa will never let go of those balloons. The ones that only contain memories of recent events; nothing about elementary school, or middle school, or even Saki and her heart-wrenching hospital trips. Living in the present, keeping things going, ignoring the past, is the only way to keep the Wonderland Sekai alive in his mind. Until closing time comes, Tsukasa and virtual singers like Luka will share this secret. Just like how Luka is constantly falling asleep, Tsukasa, too, will fall asleep on his own needs to ensure that he’ll keep the never-ending merry-go-round spinning. He’ll give up his own happiness for the betterment of others. He refuses to express his memories in words so that he can bear the burden of carrying the travelers by his side.

For the ultimate sacrifice... the show must go on!

[foxes-that-run]

Part 3: 70 Heart kisses 2016 on

This post is in three parts:

When Harry got the Heart tattoo

70 Heart Kisses (1D years), and

70 Heart Kisses continued. (Solo career)

The amazing @womanexile and @this-daydream-is-dangerous-13started this off with finding a good chunk of these. This is by no means a complete list, I think that would be impossible. It’s also important to note that only Harry knows what this tattoo is about, why he kisses it or if that is for one person and who that is.

2017

After no performances in 2016 the heart kiss returned with HS1 but less frequently. In early 2016 Harry and Taylor had been close but by 2017 Taylor was dating Joe and Harry was very emotional on stage. See 2017 timeline. Harry also started performing with a guitar which gave his arms something to do and I think less kisses as a result.

Late March 2017 - London- During his Behind the Album performance for HS1, he not only kissed the heart, he also kisses the guitar it’s thought she had given him as a gift! This was a major moment for Harry and one he was emotional in.  He is good at first but there’s a head in hands moment at 28:10. Then, emotional. Time stamps 32:09 during Sweet Creature  37:48 guitar kiss during ESNY 52:45 kisses OTHER arm during SOTT (when he was explaining the rest of the concert to that nervous fan in July, he described this song as “emotional but hopeful” so maybe that’s a hopeful thing, that arm has ‘Things I can’/the Eagle) 

13 May 2017 - London- secret gig at the Garage in Islington - pink pants black shirt 7:52 during Sweet Creature

19 May 2017 - Troubadour, LA, on the eve of their 5 year anniversary of May 20th, while performing Leather and Lace with Stevie Nicks (1:18), Harry started crying and kissed the heart. Harry was really excited throughout the show, they performed two ghosts as a duet after which he said he was losing his s*** (but in a cool way, with a point to presumably James). 

28 September 2017 - Radio City NY - Story of my life may have an aborted arm kiss (2:30) FTDT also (3:35). On Harry and Taylor’s 28 September anniversary. Taylor marked the day with a 70 song ‘Taylor loves’ Spotify playlist.

14 October 2017 - Phoenix - During Meet me in the Hallway (1:39). After “I walked the streets all day”  before “running with the thieves”. This was Harry's last US show and he returned to Europe. His next show was in Paris where he cried twice in FTDT on 'even my phone misses your call' twice. (1:55 and again 3:30)

2 November 2017 - Glasgow- Sweet Creature on “you bring me home” (maybe, this tour had tricky lighting) (2:19) Kiwi and Reputation were released soon after. 

2018

12 June 2018 - Nashville - Sweet Creature (2:45) Harry moves to kiss his arm but doesn’t after “you bring me home” he was in Taylor’s home city. 

30 June 2018 - Chicago - Sweet Creature, a possible other arm kiss (5:11). Taylor and Harry were both in Chicago, Taylor played New Years Day with an introduction about jumping into icy pools that Taylor Nation has cut from their version. 

2 July 2018 - St Paul - Only Angel - the other arm at 3:30 and the heart at 4:33. On the same night Harry changed the lyric of “running with wolves” to “running with you” (2:00) Taylor had played this stadium the night she had the temper trap song as arm lyrics which Harry tattooed on its anniversary. Taylor had been in nearby Chicago when Harry was there the day before and not seen this day. 

In July 2020 Taylor released Cardigan with a reference to a ‘Tattoo Kiss’:

2021

The later we go the less we really know about what is going on. The heart kisses may also have different meanings. 

The 2021 timeline is interesting, starting with talking at the Grammy’s then the Brits, Harry finished writing Harry’s House and Taylor started Midnights in this period. 

22 September 2021 - St Paul - Falling, with Two Ghosts intro (4:31). Wildest Dreams TV was released a few days earlier, Harry and Taylor had spent time in St Paul in the past. 

25 September 2021 - Chicago - Falling, at the end twice with a smile and again during Adore you. When Harry last played Chicago Taylor was also there. 

21 October 2021 - Uncasville, during thank you speech. Harry and Taylor had been in Nashville at the same time earlier that month when Harry had written Satellite.

25 October 2021 - Boston - Falling. An old selfie of Joe and Taylor from 2016 leaked a few days earlier.

27 October 2021 - Atlanta - the start of Falling (0:09) right arm kiss. On the anniversary of 1989’s release. On the same day Taylor posted an instagram reel captioned ‘Basic autumn lovers RISE’ reenacting a 2014 Tumblr post including trying lyrics to ATW ‘Just between us did he love affair maim you too?’

10 November 2021 - Sacramento - Falling - on ‘it kills me we have run out of things to say’ link. Harry wore Red to celebrate the Re-record of Red TV, which is the first of Taylor's albums with songs about Harry. 

13 November 2021 - Arizona, Falling with Two Ghosts intro (2:17), Red TV was released the day before.

19 November 2021 - LA, The Forum, in the welcome speech after thanking his support act. Taylor was in Panama to visit Joe, after Taylor returned for the All Too Well premier she wrote the majority of Midnights including You’re Losing Me. 

28 November 2021 - Long Island - Falling (4:08) Right arm kiss. After this show Harry was MIA and Olivia seen alone. The next week, Taylor wrote You’re Losing me and wore a Gucci Lion Ring to a party. 

2022

As above, we know less about Harry’s relationships now, however the 2022 timeline is also interesting. Taylor completed Midnights and based on it’s lyrics, her relationship with Joe was not great. Harry released Harry’s House and at the end of the year broke up with Olivia. 

20 May 2022 - NYC - ONO - start of Satellite (1:13) another link. On Harry’s House Release, an important life event, in New York, on the anniversary of 20 May at the start of performing Satellite for the first time. 

26 June 2022 - Hamburg during his welcome speech when introducing the support act. Harry was on his European tour dates, in the last months of dating OW. These were the first months of Harry touring the Harry’s House songs.

29 June 2022 - Stockholm - introducing Matilda (1:12 and again at 1:36) Harry said it was great to be back in Sweden (he once tweeted that same phrasing at a time Taylor was MIA in Europe and he posted a colour IG photo) and that he is happiest performing. 

1 July 2022 - Oslo when inducing Matilda, Harry told the story about the party bus, that Oslo has a special place in his heart then that Matilda has nothing to do with that story but is special. (1:50) and again when introducing WMYB (0:06) 

11 July 2022 - Munich during Adore You and LOML. (Better view of loml)

16 July 2022 Vienna - during Adore you, after the crowd saying let me adore you and him saying “okay” 

5 July 2022 - Paris - after saying “I love Paris” while introducing As It Was. Harry and Taylor have referenced Paris many times as special to them. 

31 July 2022 - Lisbon - start of Kiwi (12:49) 

1 August 2022 - Toronto - cinema - kissed the eagle covering ‘things I can’ after “it’s you, and I’m not getting over it” previous kisses have been after break ups indicating wanting to change something

10 September 2022- Madison Square Garden Night 12, LOML. Harry and Taylor were both in NY, Harry started a 5 week stint of wearing the Peace Ring. Neither Harry & Olivia or Taylor & Joe seemed friendly, with both break ups announced in coming months. 

27 October 2022 - LA - introducing WMYB (day music for a sushi restaurant dropped and 1989 anniversary). Taylor was on the Graham Norton show talking about the re-records and announcing the Eras tour. 

29 October 2022 - LA N5 in Sign of the Times 

31 October 2022 - Harryween LA Timestamp 1:50 during LOML before it's unfortunate.. 

2023

The later we go the less we really know about what is going on. The heart kisses may also have different meanings. 

The 2023 timeline is interesting, Harry had separated from Olivia, Taylors separation from Joe was announced. They were both on tour and both replaced setlist songs with older Haylor songs. 

29 January 2023 - Los Angeles, Forum Night 15 - Love of My Life - Anatomical Heart Kiss (0:42) Harry also played Medicine! Between filming Satellite and the Grammy’s

31 January 2023 - Palm Springs - during Matilda , after the lyric ‘make your tea and your toast’. (2:13) The week before Harry put Little Freak in the HSLOT set 

21 February 2023 Perth LOML, During woman re-added to the setlist. 

28 Feburary 2023 - Gold Coast, QLD - during Satellite after “do you want to talk?” (4:48)

13 June 2023 - Wembley - kissed other arm (0:06) during Grapejuice and kissed the Heart Tattoo during As It Was after “...and I’m the one who will stay” (0:41) The day before Taylor played All You Had to Do was Stay as a Surprise Song on the 10th June. Harry played Best Song Ever intro to WMYB.

17 June 2023 - Wembley - at the end of Sweet Creature Harry went to kiss the tattoo and stopped himself then looked at the crowd with a cheeky embarrassed look. (3:16). Gemma had a baby 8 months later. Taylor had a particularly emotional show that night. She gave an extra wild Champagne Problems speech and extra long and weird Betty Speech and had Aaron Dessner out to play Seven and hugs Taylor at the end. Later a photo of TR sitting with Jeff in one of the Wembley crowds surfaced months later. Interestingly, this is the anniversary of Taylors 2011 Lover Journal entry days after Harry was MIA in the US when Taylor had the Temper Trap arm lyrics in St Paul. 

18 June 2023 - Wembley link Wembley n1 during as it was another link. I think the show above sums this up. Cruel Summer was officially released as a single 2 days later.

[spiritshaydra]

Was tagged by @novafire-is-thinking ! Sorry for taking a hot minute to do mine 😭 I also decided to do ten songs because I have

A lot

Of trouble

Narrowing it down to just five (hell even ten was hard)

ANYWAYS

All of these are taken from my playlist uhhhhhh

That

Which is like,,, every song that remotely scratched my brain the slightest bit. ANYWAYS THE CHOICES. I tried picking songs I haven’t shared here before, with each being from a different artist, and each kinda having their own sound :} (I’ll also be adding why I like each one, what it makes me think of, what parts I like, etc)

Native Colossus - Shield of Wings Spotify|Youtube

HOOOOO BOY OKAY SO- this one makes me think of the lead up to a clash between gods, if not the actual battle itself. I’m talking reality shredding, time shattering, shows of power. Like a battle between two creation gods. I picture one of them descending from the sky with an incomprehensible form, rings circling around it like clockwork, its presence stretching across the horizon. This one is the one that’s defending with the other being an invading force that’s already on the ground.

Maybe this is the brutal battle that resulted in the patch of irreparable dead space in my original work? An area of space time that’s so badly shattered that nothing can stitch it back together. It’s the only remnant of the Old Universe.

I just think this thing sounds badass 10/10 great song to have my eyes stare blankly at a wall to

Free - Mother Mother Spotify|Youtube

I just love the part in this song that goes:

“A bloody war, right behind my eyes. I come out right on the other side. So close the door, and shut the blinds. I’ll come out right on the other side.”

There’s something about that part that itches my brain SO GOOD. Like I can picture animating something to that SO VIVIDLY. AUGH. Just,, something about two characters going through absolute hell while staying by each other’s side the entire time,,,

Strangers to Ourselves - Modest Mouse Spotify|Youtube

OKAY THIS ONE. Normally when you hear Modest Mouse, you think of songs like Float on, Dashboard, The Ground Walks With Time in a Box, or The Ocean Breathes Salty; which are all more energetic(?) songs with Dashboard and Ground Walks being VERY high energy. But Strangers to Ourselves is,,, not that. It’s very lowkey and subdued and has a good atmospheric sound to it that I really like. The slow steady bass line done on what sounds like a cello in the background accompanied with the occasional guitar just makes for a really nice song that makes me think of winding down for the night.

Whenever I do plan on making a long form comic with chapters and the like, I want to do these “credits outros” in between chapters that each use a different song that matches the chapter before it, with each one being somewhat animated. This is one of the top contenders for this one story I want to write/illustrate called Meridian. It would show a variety of locations at sunset- the countryside, the city skyline, the character bases all winding down for the night. Maybe showing various characters as they close up shop. Just,, all around a chill quiet vibe leaning towards the somber.

De Selby (part 2) - Hozier Spotify|Youtube

This one was a recent discovery for me and one that I REALLY like.

I specifically love the chorus parts that goes

“Want to be when you fall on me like night every time, and I want to be so far from sight and mind. I wanna kill the lights. I wanna run against the world that’s turnin’, I’d move so fast I’d outpace the dawn. I wanna be gone. I wanna run so far, I’d beat the mornin’. Before the dawn has come, I’d block the sun, if you want it done.”

There’s something about it that makes my brain feel like,,, I dunno how to describe it,, like stars? Going by really fast as I fall backwards into the void but I’m also not actually moving anywhere.

Also GREAT animation fodder methinks.

Oh no, he Said What? - Nothing but Thieves Spotify|Youtube

Can’t be a Spit music list without at least one Nothing but Thieves song <3 anyways~

This is one of their more recent songs and it’s also one I think is REALLY fun to listen to because it’s got a sort of beat and melody to it that makes you feel like you could dance to it (I cannot dance but I still try) it also sounds like one that would be FUN to play live, especially from the vocals side of things. I’d be lying if I said I didn’t consider trying to cover it myself. Nobody wants to hear that and I don’t have the proper gear to record my voice 💀

The lyrics I like from this one are

“So did you find that thing you're looking for? Does it make you feel alive? Wait, he said what?He'll start a war, tear down the planet for the hype. You know it always ends the same, honesty’s a losing game. It died a long, long time ago with your favorite god. He said what? Oh no, we have lost control. Have you seen the video? But for heaven’s sake don’t ever let the, let the people know, oh no.”

Also GREAT animation fodder as well. I can see it EASILY being either 404 (my personal project) or fandom related. It just depends on what’s rotting my brain in the moment I either listen to it or decide to actually animate it.

I’m also really hoping to be able to see them live again in October, assuming I’m able to pass my driving test next week :,D I kinda need a driver’s license to drive back home from campus in order to even go to the show,, (NBT is AMAZING live btw)

Shut Eye - Stealing Sheep Spotify|Youtube

THIS ONE. MAKES MY BRAIN FEEL TRIPPY. ESPECIALLY WHEN IT HITS THE CHORUS. I’d say it’s animation fodder but I honestly have no idea what I’d animate other than it would be trippy to match the beat and just yeah I don’t know how to describe this one. I’m pretty sure I discovered it from someone’s animation project years ago? I only rediscovered it recently where it hit me like a train. A GREAT song to disassociate to because of the way it makes my brain feel if that makes sense. The colors and movement my brain comes up with when listening to this one is very fun :)

Curses - The Crane Wives Spotify|Youtube

OUGH. THIS. Is a song I get SUPER INTO when singing along to it. GREAT animation fodder. I’m not entirely sure if I’d do 404 or fandom for this one but MAN it SLAPS.

The part I get super into is

“Oh, ashes, ashes, dust to dust, the devil's after both of us. Ooh, lay my curses out to rest, make a mercy out of me. Oh, ashes, ashes, dust to dust, tell me I am good enough. Ooh, lay my curses out to rest, make a mercy out of-“

I know somewhere in my backlog of characters that’s a hundred OCs long I GOT to have SOMEONE that fits this if I do go the 404 route. (Hell might even have a fandom OC that fits, somewhere in between all the TFP and PMD Oblivion lmao)

Blackout - Breathe Carolina Spotify|Youtube

AYO WE GOT A SONG I DISCOVERED ON FLIPNOTE BACK IN LIKE 2012. AND I THINK ITS A BOP.

Edgy? Hell yeah. Do I care? Absolutely not.

Since I DID discover it on Flipnote Hatena back in the day, I obviously think this is animation fodder. But specifically in the style of the old Flipnotes that I miss oh so dearly.

I think I found it on a Pokemon Flipnote..? So might keep it in the spirit of that by making it a PMD Oblivion AMV.

Exit Strategy of a Wrecking Ball - Diablo Swing Orchestra Spotify|Youtube

OKAY THIS ONE. THIS IS A SONG THAT I THINK HAS AN INCREDIBLE INSTRUMENTAL WITH VOCALS TO MATCH.

I think I’d consider its vocals to sound almost haunting? It just sounds. SO. COOL.

The amount of different instruments I hear in it too is really cool too?? Like I can hear brass and classical strings during the breakdown of the chorus and it just leads to SUCH A BADASS SOUND. Like you have the heavy rock sound with the guitars and drums, but then there’s horns and strings as well?? It’s such a unique sound. Tbh Diablo Swing Orchestra as a whole has a very unique sound from what I’ve heard.

My brain also gives me fun visuals when listening to it. Lots of spiraling color when the chorus happens.

Hold on - Belle Sisosky Spotify|Youtube

Tumblr keeps refusing to save this post for whatever reason >:( It’s too powerful. Had to switch to desktop to even finish editing it. 💀

ANYWAYS. THIS SONG. SOUNDS SO COOL. It gives me a HUGE cyberpunk sort of vibe, and I’m honestly just a huge sucker for EDM music that has the low chanting in the background because I think it has such a cool sounding effect. (ESPECIALLY Mongolian throat singing) Also what’s really neat about this song (and pretty much all of her music) is that it uses a LOT of instruments you basically never hear in mainstream music, ESPECIALLY in pop. Some of the instruments include the Tapi’, the Hulusi flute, the Guzheng, the Angklung, the Sabe, and the pratuokng. 

TAGGING @mysticfoxdesigns @errolluck @sonicspacebar @jessenitrogen @aer-arts

@aer-arts @deathlypancakes @antiqueberry @zyanova @aecho-again AND ANYONE ELSE WHO WANTS IN

[spiderdreamer-blog]

2023 at the Movies: A Year in Review

2023 has been an odd year for American cinema in particular, between overall tepid box office outside of a few big hits and the combination of the WGA and SAG-AFTRA strikes affecting release dates as well as promotional tactics. (Just so we're clear, this is a Union Solidarity Blog) But it was a fascinating year artistically nonetheless, especially on the blockbuster end. What this list aims to achieve is sort of a capsule review of the theatrical releases I saw (not counting streaming-only films even if I ended up seeing theatrical releases ON streaming) and how I felt about them in capsule review form. And even then, there's still stuff I need to catch up on like Dungeons and Dragons: Honor Among Thieves, Oppenheimer, Elemental, or Transformers: Rise of the Beasts. Anyhoo, on with my list, in chronological release order:

John Wick: Chapter 4: Much like its titular hero, there are perhaps some signs that this franchise could benefit from taking a bit of a rest. Some of the worldbuilding is going from knowingly absurd to just plain absurd, and a couple early action beats, while fun (NUNCHUCKS), are a little familiar in terms of director Chad Stahelski's neon-as-fuck aesthetics. Ultimately, it's not too much to derail things, as Keanu Reeves proves a capable grounding lead like always, and the Parisian third act is giddy, comically overblown violence in the grand John Wick tradition that reaches an unexpected poignancy. The supporting cast might also be one of the best in the series; while Asia Kate Dillion's unflappable Adjudicator is missed from the last installment, we do receive Bill Skarsgard doing an OUTRAAGEOUS French accent as a smarmy villain you really want to see dead by the end of this, Donnie Yen as a clever, funny spin on the blind swordsman trope, Rina Sawayama is both badass and touching, Shamier Anderson stands out by dialing down, and my beloved Clancy Brown has some of the best implicit "are you fucking kidding me" reactions I've seen in a while.

The Super Mario Bros. Movie: I was honestly dreading this for a while. Illumination Entertainment is a perfectly cromulent animation studio who makes films that, with a couple exceptions, represent pretty much everything I dislike about American family filmmaking: loud, hyperactive, deficient of nutritional value, and did I mention loud? But the trailers started impressing me in terms of how well they adapted the candy-colored toybox Nintendo aesthetic to a wider theatrical scope. And if nothing else, casting Jack Black as Bowser would probably be pretty awesome (spoiler alert: he was). Thankfully, it manages to be an immensely entertaining, zippy adventure film that minimizes potential annoyances at nearly every turn. This is primarily thanks to a ready-to-play, enthusiastic voice cast (outside of Black, I particularly like Pratt and Day's brotherly dynamic and Anya Taylor-Joy doing a Disney Princess-esque comedy action spin on Peach), a smartly simple story structure, and leaving a lot of potential open for the future like Seth Rogen's lovable ready-for-spinoff-movies Donkey Kong. It may not rock the boat, but it was better than it had any business being, and that counts for a lot in my book.

Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3: The Marvel Cinematic Universe and I are admittedly on a bit of a break. Not because they're doing anything WRONG per se, just that a lot of their shows and movies haven't enticed me as much in the past year. I did get out to see this, though, which is both the best all around MCU film since Endgame and very possibly the best film of its own trilogy. James Gunn pulls out all the stops emotionally for his Marvel swan song (godspeed to you over at the still-in-progress trashfire that is Warner Bros. Discovery, good sir), crafting a beautiful, resonant journey for all the characters. The ensemble cast fires on all cylinders, for one. While Bradley Cooper is the obvious vocal standout as Rocket takes center stage, it's assuredly the role of Chris Pratt's career (other non-Mario/Marvel directors, take note! You can in fact have this guy be funny, credibly tough, AND sympathetic instead of missing out on the other two), Zoe Saldana navigates a difficult emotional dance, Pom Klementieff finds real heart in Mantis, Dave Bautista is still one of our most interesting wrestlers-turned-actors in the choices he makes, Karen Gillan has slowly become of the MCU's MVPs as Nebula, Will Poulter is endearingly dunderheaded as a comedic take on Adam Warlock, and Chukwudi Iwuji proves a truly vile villain who exemplifies the maxim of "if you really want an audience to just HATE a motherfucker, have him torture cute animals". And of course Gunn's musical tastes remain impeccable, such as a Beastie Boys needle drop that prompts a truly bitchin' fight scene (oddly the second time this specific song happened this year in a Pratt-led vehicle). It's funny, it made me ugly cry at SEVERAL points, and I got to see a psychic cosmonaut dog beat people's asses with her mind. What more could I want?

Spider-Man: Across The Spider-Verse: Into the Spider-Verse was a revolution and a revelation for what the American animated film industry could accomplish artistically and technically. How could a sequel possibly live up to it? Across does, against all odds, proving to be the Empire Strikes Back to the original's Star Wars in terms of going darker/more complex on the emotions and to greater visual heights (albeit with the caveat that maybe next time, we can manage the production better and not crunch people so much). Co-directors Justin K. Thompson, Kemp Powers, and Joaquim Dos Santos (who I've stanned as one of our best animation action directors from Justice League Unlimited through Voltron Legendary Defender) craft a propulsive narrative that asks big questions about who and what Spider-Man is. And while those will have to wait to be fully answered in the third installment, what it sets up is no less compelling or thrilling. Shout-outs in particular go to Hailee Steinfeld, who has to anchor this film with Gwen as much as Shameik Moore's still-iconic Miles; Daniel Pemberton for an outstanding score; Oscar Isaac for giving rich complexity to Miguel O'Hara, who could have felt like a boorish bully in lesser hands; and Jason Schwartzman for not just proving he transitions REALLY well into voicework between this and projects like Klaus, but being by turns pathetically funny and terrifying in ways I've never heard him be as the Spot. Can't wait to see where that goes next time in particular.

Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny: "Pleasant surprise" comes to mind. While I never hated Kingdom of the Crystal Skull as much as most, it was definitely a little underwhelming as a possibly final Indy adventure. (Not helping is that Steven Spielberg immediately turned around and made an infinitely better indy movie in the form of The Adventures of Tintin) So I was curious to see how going to the well for seemingly the real final adventure would work this time around. Thankfully, director James Mangold proves he has a good eye for creative action, even if nothing here quite reaches the heights of the original trilogy, and Harrison Ford does some of his best acting in ages as a weary, burnt-out Indy; one always got the sense that THIS was much closer to his heart than Han Solo. Phoebe Waller-Bridge is a terrific foil to him, joyously amoral (or so she says), while Mads Mikkelsen finds a new spin on coldly cruel cinematic Nazis; he has a tense reintroduction scene that had me squirming in my seat. Add in a slam-bang ending and a touching epilogue, and I'm pretty happy with where things end up for our favorite archaeologist. A solid B+, which we could use more of nowadays.

Also they Poochie-d Shia LaBeouf, which is hilarious to me on several levels.

Mission Impossible: Dead Reckoning Part One: The Mission: Impossible franchise has undergone a curious metamorphosis from where it started as one of many oldies TV adaptations in 1996 to a purposefully old-school action franchise. Director Christopher McQuarrie has become a pro at these over the last three installments, and Dead Reckoning (now no longer a part one, as the back-in-production followup will be retitled) has lots to offer both large and small for action fans even outside of the continued spectacle of Tom Cruise Possibly Wants To Die On Camera. Obviously the big stunt sequences remain a draw, like a terrific car chase through Rome or the climactic journey onboard the Orient Express because trains are ALWAYS bitchin' locations in movies. But just as good are pleasures like a tense cat-and-mouse game in an airport where nobody's quite sure whose side Hayley Atwell's thief Grace is on, Henry Czerny coming back to the franchise after 27 years and looking as shiftily patriotic as ever, Pom Klementieff on this list for the second time looking really hot as she whoops ass, and Cary Elwes getting an unexpectedly choice exposition monologue. Plus the whole deal with the A.I. villain ended up being, uh, fairly relevant.

Barbie: A brilliant human comedy from an unexpected source. This could have gone wrong in so many different ways, I can easily imagine a version that's WAY more lugubrious and, crucially, much less funny. But director/co-writer Greta Gerwig has quickly become one of our best talents between this and the wildly-different-but-has-more-in-common-than-you'd-think Little Women (I also still need to see to heard-it's-excellent Lady Bird). With an infinitely clever script (I love in particular that the "real world" is just as ridiculous in its own way as Barbieland) and Sarah Greenwood's impeccable production design, Gerwig and her cast craft a feminist fable that remains light and funny even at its most strident and angry. Margot Robbie has never been better, hilarious and gut-punching by equal measure, America Ferrera ends up as the unexpected heart of the piece, and Ryan Gosling is absolutely hysterical as Ken while still making him intensely sympathetic. He and Robbie deserve Oscar noms in particular. No, I'm not kidding. Might expand this one to a full review at some point tbh.

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhem: I missed this in theaters and regret it immensely, given that this is a hilarious, cheerfully irreverent take on characters who've really managed a surprising amount of relevance in the modern age. Actually having teen actors voice the Turtles makes them feel so authentic, and they're matched well by an equally game cast like Ayo Edebiri's thoroughly modern April O'Neill, Jackie Chan as a more bumbling-but-heartfelt version of Splinter than usual, and Paul Rudd going full surfer bro as Mondo Gecko. And of course the scribbled-notebook underground comics vibe of the animation is a neat bit of full circle aesthetics if you know these guys' origins.

Wish: All of you are wrong and being dumb about this movie. It's not that I can't grok some of the criticisms as being legitimate, to be fair; for example, the songs, while very good on their own IMO, don't always hit the iconic level of a Frozen or Encanto. But the vitriol with which they've been expressed, and this odd narrative that Disney is in the toilet artistically and needs to nebulously "fix" things, is something I can't at all agree with. It's gorgeously rendered, for one; yes, I would potentially like to see a return to full 2D animated films for the studio at some point too. But if they're gonna experiment even marginally with CGI, I applaud co-directors Chris Buck and Fawn Veerasunthorn making it look this painterly as a starting point. And as with a lot of modern Disney, there's real richness and inner life to these characters. Ariana DeBose is a winning heroine as Asha, who feels distinct from other "princesses" by essentially being working class and unionizing the kingdom. And Chris Pine as Magnifico is a Disney Villain for the ages, blending real complexity in his relationships with scenery-chewing madness. (Also am I the only one who got major "studio executive/CEO" vibes off him?) If this is "mid" or "bland" Disney, I really question what some of y'all are seeing that I seemingly can't.

Also I liked the 100th anniversary references, sue me. The last one in particular gets points for quiet charm rather than grandstanding.

The Boy and the Heron: Hayao Miyazaki, anime's favorite grumpy old man, comes back out of retirement for like the fifth time. Seriously, remember when Princess Mononoke was supposed to be his last film 25+ years ago? I'll believe his "last film" is truly his last when he's in the cold, cold ground. Regardless of the continuing saga of Old Man Won't Retire Because He Seemingly Can't Be Alone With His Own Thoughts, this is a brilliant, haunting spectacle of animation that might be a new favorite for me. Some have called it confusing, whereas I go for "dreamlike", possibly his most to date. Nearly every frame is suffused with longing and melancholy (though this also has some of Miyazaki's best comedy in a while), and, oddly like Wish, this feels like a true career reflection, if a bit more fraught and questioning what legacy truly means. Joe Hisaishi contributes possibly his moodiest, most dissonant score, with little of the bombast or whimsical charm that typifies his music, but it works unfathomably well. Credit also to the dub, with Robert Pattinson as funny and menacing as you've heard, but Luca Pandoval is also excellent as our stoic lead Mahito, Florence Pugh manages to be both a total badass and a funny old woman (it makes sense in context, I promise), Christian Bale puts forth a fascinating two-step with his boisterous father, Gemma Chan and Karen Fukuhara nail some complex emotional turns, Willem Dafoe nearly steals the whole thing in under two minutes, Dave Bautista makes a real meal out of a part not much bigger than that, and Mark Hamill finds resonance as a tired old man.

[acaciapines]

I just read all your deltarune fics and. I have to know. do you have playlists for each of the characters. and if you do. could you please share them. i’m so so curious about songs you attribute to each of the characters bc i love your interpretation of them so so much

oh!!! im glad you enjoyed them!!

i do have several playlists but not in any form i could share so. uh. instead i'll just make a list of all my most favorite songs i associate with these kids 'cause if i did every song we would be here for A Long While.

do feel free to send in another ask if you want me to explain one in more depth!!! im one of those people who cannot escape associating songs w/ characters/stories so i have a LOT more i could say if that is wanted lol.

Little Fang - Avey Tare's Slasher Flicks: literally The Most Kris Song Of All Time, like do I even have to explain it. its just Them.

Real Love Song - Nothing But Thieves: this is a newer one on my kris playlist but i think it really fits their relationship with dess--taking the 'love' part in a familial/platonic way, 'can i sing this to you / got a thing about you / and it won't go away' i think this song really captures the sort of...hold dess's opinion always has over kris's sense of self, and the way they feel about her isn't exactly returned equally. in a sense this fits more with my dess-raises-kris au but it does work for kris in my other works too.

San Cristobol - Mal Blum: this is the dess song of all time to the point where it's my voiceclaim for her and is half the reason the band au exists. one big part of my dess is that she leaves voluntarily, even if she might get stuck in a dark world later on--she leaves ON PURPOSE, because she wants to. and this song is like, leaving people behind, 'sometimes i think i left you just to see if i'd be missed,' and sort of wanting to reach out but also maybe not. in a world where dess sings this she is singing it to asriel.

My Tiger, My Heart - The Boy Least Likely To: another dess song of all time, if the last one is dess singing to asriel, this one is her to kris&noelle. this song has been on my dess playlist for so long i've scripted out an animatic to it. specifically i see this as being a song for the space after she sees the bunker but before she leaves--like 'my tiger my heart / we're growing apart' in regards to how she sees kris, and then 'and i think it would be / happier / being free' LIKE. GOD. ITS SO GOOD.

Wash - Floor Cry: noelle about dess...specifically noelle as i write her in the holiday-dreemurr kids series, her pov fic in there was named after this song, but its just about. how you idolize your older sister and then she leaves and comes back and maybe isnt as good as you thought she was and you realize you're going to pick kris over her and so its about 'i never want to / become just like you / it's pretty simple / wish i could tell you why' because noelle struggles with this because she should be happy her sister is back, right? and yet...

Sidelined - The Garages: this is THE RALSEI SONG OF ALL TIME.....like. oh my GOD just listen to it. it's ralsei all the way down, how she struggles with figuring out who she is, with being a darkner, with the prophecy and the weight it puts on her, and how she's supposed to be left behind and forgotten but she doesn't want that and how scary it is to try and be a person when the world never wanted you to be one.

Pluto - Sleeping at Last: ANOTHER RALSEI SONG....this one specifically is in regards to the dess raises kris au lol since i explore ralsei/susie/noelle there but it works for ralsei in all universes. like just listen to it. it's so ralseicore. its similar in theme to sidelined so im not going to repeat myself but just 'i've been worried all my life / a nervous wreak most of the time' to the chorus of 'til one day i had enough / of the exercise of trust / i leaned in and let it hurt / let my body feel the dirt.' LIKE

and these are most of my big ones! i have more around somewhere but most of these i dont even have in a playlist i just sort of remember whenever the song comes on njdfgdfg. sorry theres not so much asriel or susie here i just dont have as good songs for them.

once again if you (general) want me to dive more into one of the songs lemme know!!! i will always talk about these kids!!!

[yunarim]

hi! if your requests are open, id like to request ace with a reader who is pretty shy at first, but eventually gets comfortable and jokes around a lot? like they have cute banter! id like it to be fluff, but the rest of the story is up to you! thank you so much ╰(*´︶`*)╯♡

[ .   ♡ 🧸 ] : find out how I feel, let me be there. ー tags : gn reader, fluff ー character : ace trappola ★‧₊💥♥️ ー note : this was such a cute and soft request thank you so much!!! <333 ー w.c : 1.3k+

“Hey, this is such a bop.”

You nod, smiling softly and letting an awkward giggle escape your lips. 

You still have some time before classes start, and you await for Deuce to come. Ace’s shoulder touches yours ever so slightly but you feel a cascade of thoughts swirling in your head as if a silly roundelay playing in your mind on repeat. You don’t mind having Ace around but also you can see how the copper gleam in his amber eyes reflects off the sun's rays, following a flamboyant rhythm and fixing on you. His hair is just a little tousled, and he obviously hasn't given much thought to paying much attention to it. You look at the scarlet heart on his skin and smile a little.

Ace offers you an earphone and notices you staring, so you quickly avert your gaze and try to brush it off, knowing he did really see.

“Something’s wrong?”

“N-no, of course not! Let’s listen to the song.”

You feel your fingers brushing his for a mere second and quickly switch your attention to the phone screen as if it would help you to escape your shyness. 

Ace hums and lets a little smile blossom on his face. You seem so sweet, joyful sparkles splash in your eyes when you tap your fingers on your knees, following the music beats. 

You’re always being like this, so pure and soft. Being transmigrated here so suddenly from another dimension, no wonder you would be so confused. But he also learns you’re naturally sweet and the pinkish hue dusting your cheeks reminds him of spring fluorescence.

“Never in my life was I so poetic…” he whispers to himself, noticing you glancing at him, a sheepishly gentle smile forming on your face.

“What was that?” You ask a little bolder than you thought you would, and maybe you shouldn’t have done so but you also wonder about how Ace would react. The feeling of a playful curiosity causing corners of your lips to turn upward, shaping a cheeky smile.

“That’s the lyrics, you silly.”

“That’s not!” You retort, his little ‘tsk’ making you giggle, and you take his phone in your hands, pointing out that there was no such line. “See?”

“Ha!” He replies, seeing your fingers tremble just a little, as if you’re fighting with yourself whether you should trust this vividly cheery feeling or stay humble. 

You lean on the window behind your back, enjoying the music and the feeling of frivolity, gently welcoming you in its embrace. You realize it’s been a month since you got there in NRC. Even if everything seems so absurdly surreal, Ace leans to you, adjusting himself on the windowsill and showing you his phone. Playful spikes of his hair which look suddenly soft now that you’ve noticed almost touch your chin, and you bend over, trying to hide your peachy soft blush on the cheeks. 

He’s still here. No matter what happened to you during the journey to which you were unwillingly dragged to, he was still here by your side. This is actually cheesy now that you think about it, and this sudden feeling causes you to ruffle his hair playfully. 

“Hey!!” He exclaims, turning to you and leaning a bit closer. “The hell you’re doing?! You’re not getting away with this!”

He ruffles your hair too, laughing brightly, and you two don’t even notice Deuce when he comes to you, half sitting half lying on the windowsill. 

“Good morning?..” Deuce says, tilting his head as if questioning your behavior. “Thick as thieves, you two.” 

“It’s just Yuu‘s being in a good mood,” Ace replies when he lets go of your hair and chuckles when he sees how messy but exceptionally cute you look. 

“Good mood?..” You ask yourself more than him and jump off the windowsill, fixing your hair. “Am I?”

“Why else would you suddenly ruffle my hair?” Ace asks, poking you on your shoulder playfully. “What, am I being cute to you?”

“Dude, gross,” Deuce says when he sees Ace doing silly faces and glancing at you with exaggeratedly huge heart-shaped eyes. 

You laugh softly before realizing you playfully pat on his shoulder. 

“You are,” you say this in an unexpectedly genuine way, your heart pounding loudly in your chest. “But also cheesy, please refrain from doing this from now on.”

“Why why, aren’t I a cutie?~”

“GROSS!!”

“Well that’s a predicament, don’t you think?”

You sigh watching Ace chew a sandwich you made real quick, dust particles float lazily in the twilight of the room, surrounding Ace’s silhouette and weightlessly falling on his shoulders.

“Wll thtz a prdcmnt, hmph,” you barely distinguish him imitating you and sigh once more. He swallows the food and throws back his head, his gaze fixing on yours. “That was your idea to watch Twistflix at Heartslabyul!”

“Uh-huh, and it was your idea to see what happens if I sneak into your room so we can watch Alice in Twistedland when it’s already a curfew!”

“Ah please, it was fun.”

“Yep, it’s not me who’s wearing a collar again tho.”

Ace sighs in defeat, imitating Riddle’s scoldings. You knew it would end like that, so you already had a spare room prepared for Ace just in case something like that happens. He also knows which bed sheets he should use and that it smells nice, something fresh and of spruce.

You sip your tea when Ace sits beside you, watching you fix your gaze on him. Your features look charming in the moonlight, and he notices the faintest hint of a playful smile on your lips as he smiles back at you.

The way you've become liberated in his presence causes an inexplicable thrill in his chest for a split second before you move closer to his face, peering into the glimmer of thoughtfulness in his eyes.

He feels something warm spreading in his chest for a moment. You’re being so poetically lovely at the very moment.

“What? Fell in love with me?~” You say cheekily, raising your brow a little and giggling. 

Huh.

Maybe he actually did. Ah really, was it always so simple he didn’t even have a thought about it? Now it wasn’t only you who got comfortable around him, but he also felt how joyful it was – to see you smile genuinely at him whenever he made stupidly funny jokes. 

“Oh please, it’s you who fell in love with me first!” He exclaims, retorting, and notices how you put your cup down, your arms folded. “Look, let me prove it.”

“Uh-huh, ready to lose? Alright then.”

“The first to avert the gaze is the one who fell in love first!” 

“Damn,” you laugh brightly. “You’re so dumb, I like that in men.”

“Enough talking, okay? Ready? Let’s start.”

First ten seconds you two are making silly faces, laughing at each other, but right after you can feel a sudden blush blossoming on your cheeks when Ace leans on a little. You don’t count seconds anymore as you’ve been dissolving in his vermilion pretty eyes, and you feel the urge to clench your heart so it won’t make any weirdly loud poundings. 

His gaze shifts at your lips just for a moment before returning to your eyes, as if trying to see something in there, but you smile softly. 

“Don’t feel like losing?” He asks, leaning even more closer so the tips of your noses almost touch.

The cinnabar hue in his eyes looks absolutely divine for you at the moment, and you whisper gently.

“Hm, does it mean we fell in love with each other at the same time?~”

“You’re so cheesy.”

“Like you are.”

“You’re cheesier.”

“Not cheesier than the cheesy lord.”

Your little banters lead Ace to cup your cheeks and shut you up with a soft kiss pressed on your cheek. You giggle and do the same for him, ruffling his hair a little.

“No, because it’s extremely cheesy.”

“Aha! You averted your gaze right now!!”

He guesses it doesn’t matter anymore before ruffling your hair in return.

© yushiiae 𝐚𝐥𝐥 𝐫𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐭𝐬 𝐫𝐞𝐬𝐞𝐫𝐯𝐞𝐝. 𝐝𝐨 𝐧𝐨𝐭 𝐫𝐞𝐩𝐨𝐬𝐭, 𝐜𝐨𝐩𝐲, 𝐦𝐨𝐝𝐢𝐟𝐲, 𝐨𝐫 𝐜𝐥𝐚𝐢𝐦 𝐚𝐧𝐲 𝐨𝐟 𝐦𝐲 𝐰𝐨𝐫𝐤𝐬 𝐚𝐬 𝐲𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐨𝐰𝐧.

[utilitycaster]

I'm still thinking about The Rain Road from Worlds Beyond Number in like five different ways, particularly in how it relates to a bunch of other actual plays, so I'm cramming them all into one massive post:

There was a NADDPod D&D Court case in the live show they released this week in which the DM invented a language for Thieves' Cant and put it in a packet for a new player who was playing a rogue but did not make it clear this was required reading, and then in-game answered the rogue's investigation check in this language, which the player had no ability to understand, and it shut down an avenue of story. Absolutely wild case but the point here is that this sort of energy needs to be directed into writing in-world songs or poetry and not a conlang your player has to pick up in their spare time.

In the Fireside, Aabria talked about how the song was inherently political despite being religious and not having any political lyrics (comparing it to some of the spirituals of enslaved African-Americans). We do know that the people who knew the song were older; we know that Galani and Suvi felt a certain way as members of the imperium about it, and that Morrow did not recognize the greetings of Port Talon derived from the worship of Naram and Orima. It's unclear precisely what the Empire's attitude is towards religion. It does not appear to be outlawed and Steel indicates a non-religious degree of respect towards Great Spirits; it seems it's simply not respected by the Empire on the whole, perhaps broadly discouraged. Even a fairly neutral attitude of disregard could erode it culturally among younger people who are always eager to reject the older ways. A cynical person would say any of these could be the path to eventual harsher legislation; wear it down first for a few generations, then come in when the opposition is weak. What's interesting to me is this relationship between religion and Empire, especially against the backdrop of Critical Role. There, we've seen it several ways - religious institutions using the tools of empire (Othanzia), empires that blur the lines between the two (Kryn Dynasty), but also empires that outlaw it (the Dwendalian Empire going after casual worshippers of the Changebringer, leaving their children to fend for themselves). My own feeling here is that religion is conceptually neutral and can be used for either good or ill, and empire is not given that it relies on conquest, but it is interesting to see the vast differences in the fandoms for the two works - which have decent overlap - re: religion when we have mostly seen the two in opposition vs. when we we have seen many different perspectives worldwide.

To that point I'm really excited for the next arc because while I think empire is, again, always going to be about subjugation and conquering and cannot ever be a good thing, I also think that individuals within it are going to be complicated. I can't remember if it was Brennan or Aabria or both who pointed this out, and that right now we mostly just have the word "empire", but even then, we've seen people seeking the favor of the Imperium but not high up within it do terrible things, and people who are in its military and abused by those in power died to save civilians. The Empire is on the whole going to be a bad force, but I'm looking forward to seeing all the very human reasons why people might support it. (This isn't about the song but it's a natural thought from the previous one).

Back to the song, I know much of the lore of the campaign is taken from Brennan and Erika's cultural backgrounds, but a hymn for rain is something very common in Judaism - the upcoming fall holidays especially center around this. Not much to add there other than that this does feel very true to liturgy that has a basis in the natural and the agricultural; good job Brennan on that.

Bouncing back to the song as it exists as a quiet form of something that is perhaps not explicitly anti-empire, but shows a way without an empire (after all, few things are more of a quiet threat than reminding people the empire did not always exist), Ame is of course the one who makes an effort to learn and spread it; she's the one who builds a shrine during the fight and who knows how to communicate with the spirits (sidebar what the fuck is up with Suvi's necklace). It is interesting to me, among various fandoms, seeing which character is pinned as the Moral Center because it is almost always one vague description, which Ame fits (wise; provincial; vague nature vibes), but the thing is that archetype does not really have a moral code associated with it and I wonder why that's the archetype, particularly since that immediately sticks out to me as a valuable but very limited voice. (It's also interesting that when there isn't an obvious character who fits this type, the Moral Center character - and to be clear I think the idea that one character is the moral center is fallacious and simple thinking to begin with - people gravitate towards, if I can be a bit dismissive about characters I genuinely like since I'm really just dismissing the fandom perception, sob stories, more than anything else).

[rimouskis]

Hi this is a manifesto about a band, their albums, and what love can mean in music. It's long. You have been warned!

X Ambassadors' new album Townie is such a delightful, welcome return to form for them as a band. Prior to Townie, their album The Beautiful Liar didn't land with me and sounded like a departure from their raw sound -- it was overproduced and packed full of sounds and beats and instrumentals that didn't sound like the organic band I knew and liked.

But it wasn't until I heard Townie that I realized it wasn't just the sonic experience I was missing... it was the lyrical throughlines of the rest of X Ambassadors' work, which were totally absent in The Beautiful Liar and come ROARING BACK in Townie.

Since their 2013 and 2015 EPs Love Songs Drug Songs and The Reason and first album VHS, X Ambassadors' story as a band has been about hometowns and what it means to outgrow them, leave them, hate them, and miss them. From the sound of a car turn signal in "Giants" (which laments the last of the hometown heroes) to the lyrics I hope we stay / thick as thieves / butter and bread / pillars of colonial homes in "Unconsolable", they were firmly situated in their suburban listlessness.

They integrated a literal Y2K time capsule into VHS, an album named for millennial childhood nostalgia. They begged for success and a way to escape where they grew up (boring, small, conventional) and they got it by the time they released Orion on 2019, which wrestles with them growing up and settling into adult problems but their home is still buried in the heart of them. I maintain that "WASTELAND" is their best song of all time because of how it captures the way their hometown has their hooks in them, and how they seek comfort in its hollowness. Like...

It's an acknowledgement that even after two EPs and an album about wanting to escape where you're from, you will always, forever be from there, and sometimes that's where you belong, even at your lowest.

The Beautiful Liar in 2021 was X Ambassadors' attempt at a concept album, and while I appreciate them having a vision and going for it, I simply don't think they're good at telling stories about fictional worlds and people. Even when they draw inspiration from their own lives (like the story of the blind girl), it isn't THEIR story, and their story is what makes them sound like X Ambassadors.

Townie is, as its name implies, is an unfiltered, echo-y, lament of failing and going back home. The production sometimes makes it sound like it was recorded in a garage, with ugly reverb and warbling sound levels. If VHS is the story of a hometown garage band trying to make it, Townie IS the album that band puts out. It's a distillation of the band's identity into sound. It IS them.

The lyrics of Townie are heartbreaking. They're about a 30something looking into the mirror and seeing his teenage self again. "Women's Jeans" aches about losing yourself. "Start a Band" is reaching a hand out and inviting your teenage self to do the thing that will save you: music. There's so much tenderness for oneself in the album, seeing the child within and wanting to save them, both back then and now. "Your Town" is a demand to remember your hometown, while "Sunoco" is that same teenage boy saying he's going to die in this town, and this godforsaken town will be what kills him (from "Smoke on the Highway"):

I hope I've made my case. The album bleeds this band's blood. It's perfect.

And, additionally, it unlocked something I've always been fussing at with this band but never really put words to until now: this band is about their hometown, but they're also about two brothers loving each other.

For context, the band's lead singer is Sam, and the keyboardist is his brother Casey, who has been blind since birth. Brotherhood and blindness have always been mainstays in their music, from the obviously titled "Brother," which references a lack of sight...

...to "Unconsolable" with its cane and hoping to stay thick as thieves, as the columns holding a house up...

...through the use of braille when talking about their album ORION, chiefly it's song "HOLD YOU DOWN," which remains one of my favorite love songs of all time:

[a tweet which translates directly to "i’ll hold y d{n”]

I've always understood the song to be a proclamation from Sam to Casey (the braille, the "holding" [he walks Casey onstage at their shows], the lights "going out," the "faceless" crowd, the fact that the music video for this song is just Sam and Casey on a piano as old home videos of their childhood play). But it wasn't until I listened to "Follow the Sound of My Voice" on Townie that I realized what makes this band X Ambassadors is the love songs on every album from Sam to Casey.

Forgive me for pasting half the lyrics here, but you NEED to see them:

It's a love song.

This is a love song from a brother to another. So many of their songs are purely love songs from Sam to Casey. It's beautiful. It's why their hometown matters. It's where they're from, where they grew up, what made them.

As someone with siblings, their stories hit me in a critical space that isn't touched upon by a lot of other music. Love songs aren't just about lovers. They're about the people you need, and sometimes, if you get lucky, that's your family.

Anyways, this is to say that you should give Townie a listen. I think you should start with this song, but really just start anywhere. Listen. Be held.

[soleillunne]

OKAY OKAY SO!! do you have any book recs?? i want to get back into reading, it feels like i've mostly been focused on writing these days

i have a bunch but most are fantasy!

the folk of the air trilogy - holly black

enemies to friends-ish to enemies to lovers, mc is a badass and the li is so in love (hes also a menace but mc kinda covers that lmao)

this is a 3 book series with a new series that just dropped that happens after the events of these 3 books

the order is: the cruel prince, the wicked king, the queen of nothing, stolen heir (the new book) but there are also books you can read in between (that i havent read myself)

by far the best book series ive read, i would sell my soul to read it again for the first time

circe - madelline miller

this is a story about circe, a godess (i think) from greek myth. the writing was beautiful, but since its myth, if youre not interested i dont reccomend

(same goes w song of achilles by the same writer)

shadow and bone & six of crows - leigh bardugo

(this one has a two season series on netflix too if youre interested)

shadow and bone - 3 books;

mc is so op honestly, she discovers magical powers early in the book and finds out shes grisha (ppl that have magical powers), but not just any grisha, shes a legend grisha, one of a kind

i dont really remember who she ends up with as its been a while since i read the books but one li is an ass while the other gives golden retriever vibes and i didnt like either of them /lh

six of crows - 2 books;

now listen, i didnt actually read these two books but in the tv show the two series are shown at the same time and i like the characters in this one more

badass gang, thats it. (look more info pls dont trust me)

the kane chronicles - rick riordan

percy jackson is so famous people forget this absolute gem right here.

the idea is the same as percy jackson, except this time its about egyptian gods instead (also techically mc isnt a child of the gods)

it has 3 books, with extra crossover books w pjo (that are also really good once you have the basics)

the midnight library - matt haig

i'm actually not sure what category this falls into.

mc has an accident and ends up at a library at exactly midnight, where the weird librarian tells her that this library is her life (of sorts). basically each book in the library is how her life couldve been like based on some decisions she made

and she keeps going to these other versions of her life by reading the books until she realizes hey, she wants to live, and goes back to her original life

not my favorite, but still an okay one

dune - frank herbert

this is a classic, but it was really good

i dont remember the details, all i really remember was that i had sth for the mc

fr tho its really good, give it a go if long books dont intimidate you

as for books to get into reading again, hmmm

cries okay so dont get mad but the cruel prince got me out of a reading slump

momo - michael ende

this book is so well written istg

mc is a child, first of all. and i dont mean like a teen i mean shes 8 max, shes a literal child but its okay bc there isnt that much action in this one

the main idea of the book is about how precious time is, but its told through such an interesting way. there are time thieves that steal other people's time to live, making it look like theyre helping people save time on mundane things, and momo stops them (not in an insane way i promise)

the secret garden - frances hodgson burnett

this is a classic, but dont let that fool you this is a really well written book

this one has almost no action in it btw

mc is also a child here (shes maybe 12 at most), she moves into the mansion of her uncle after her family dies where she starts to behave like an actual child instead of some spoiled princess/lh

so one day while going on a stroll in the garden area (?) bc no one is there to take care of her now, she finds a secret garden and decides hey since no one seems to care for this garden, this is mine now

also there are other children that she befriends along the way that help her w the garden

def recommend

extra;

anne of green gables (this is so long honestly i ended up just watching the series bc the fact that its 8 books intimidated me at the time - ill get to it eventually)

miss peregrines home for peculiar children (also same as above - i loved the concept tho and ill read it eventually)

percy jackson - a classic

Jayden's Rescue & Old Scroll - vladimir tumanov (these are techincally chrildrens books but theyre also great books so)

[lukecastellan]

nine people i'd like to get to know better

Tagged by @jeaniefranklins

Last Song: "All Around the World" by Oasis which is *embarassed sigh* my favorite band.

Favorite Color: Light pink! Like ballet slipper pink!

Last Book: I'm reading Ruthless Vows by Rebecca Ross and I am enjoying it, but it upsets me that current YA fantasy is so tame and restrained. In my day we were reading Vampire Academy where the protagonist had to kill her turned-evil boyfriend and he captured her and locked her up and put her in a vampiresque sexual trance of sorts ffs. What will happen to the children reading all this prudeness honestly!!!!!! I'm also reading a thriller called The Maid's Diary and the last book I finished was another YA, titled Make me a Liar. It was a scy-fi murder mystery and a solid 2/5 stars read. IDK is it just me or last year was really really weak, book-wise? It was very hard for me to actually find new releases that kept me hooked.

Last Movie: Saw Mean Girls at the theater and at home I rewatched D&D Honor Among Thieves. Still a fantastic movie btw.

Last TV Show: I'm watching PJ&O weekly! Also I just returned from a three week trip to Sweden and they had Scrubs available to stream there, which sadly is not true here in Brazil. Anyway I got to watch all of season one before coming home.

Sweet/Spicy/Savory: Savory! Specially if its a little tangy. I love adding lime and salt to stuff lol

Relationship Status: Single

Last Thing I Googled: The website I have to use for work cause I can never remember the link

Current Obsession: So the PJ&O show has definitely rekindled some of the decade old obsession I've had for/with a handful of characters. Also a couple months back I started to write fanfiction again and finally had the guts to put into words stories I fantasied for a long time, for the niche pairing I've secretly read since I was 17. Its scary cause fandom is daunting but wth, right? Which in turn made me want to read even more fanfiction to celebrate fanwork. People are so talented its insane. Also I have been writing some of my own original shit. Oh and its Big Brother Brasil season so I apologize for my capslocked portuguese tweets for the next 3 months because I cannotjust watch something

Looking Forward To: Carnaval is in a couple of weeks, which, love!! And to keep with the theme, let me give you a book, a movie and a show I'm excited for: Show: Severance season 2 whenever that drops Movie: Wicked part 1 baby I will be there in full green paint idc idc Book: *another disappointed sigh* I love Anthony Horowitz's mysteries, especially his self insert ode to himself (the Hawthorne and Horowitz series which is so so good, sadly;) and a new one is coming out in march, apparently. I will be there.

I have to tag nine people which is a lot and idk who likes this sort of thing and who has done it so if this bugs you im sorry so sorry just ignore. Also if you want to do it GO AHEAD and say I tagged you I wanna get to know you. Also why is it impossible for me to just answer something without a whole paragraph. Anyway, tagging @jedlelands @glorianas @pureanonofficial @clytenmestra @kallypsowrites @bisansastarks @darlingwendy @seollem-tm @peppershark

[sarah-dipitous]

Hellsite Nostalgia Tour 2023 Day 148

The Reichenbach Fall

“The Reichenbach Fall”

Plot Description: Moriarty hatches a mad scheme to turn the whole city against Sherlock.

Oh, Jawnnnnnnnn. Glad you went back to therapy over it though

Ok yes. He’s been ungrateful with his other tokens of gratitude, but to humiliate the man by making him wear the deer stalker cap after he’s just brought you interpol’s most wanted? Come on…

It’s an EAR hat, Jawn

The “confirmed bachelor” lines were no accident and just blatant queer baiting.

Jimmmmm!! Jim my love

I…made this scene a VERY large part of my personality for TOO LONG. Now I’m just gonna sit back and enjoy watching this man bring a country to its knees (this part of The Thieving Magpie was my alarm for years, and I maintain that I was correct to have it. It’s way better than what I have now)

Who’s doing it like him, I ask you

Wiggling, squirming. Oh man. I had THIS on playlists too (the song right before Jim’s trial…when I say my WHOLE PERSONALITY…stayin alive was also my ringtone. Would you believe I’m divulging this lore SOBER?? Because I am)

Do not be yourself in this trial, Sherls, omg…

There’s a weird nostalgic pang of “god I wish that was me” when he asks the one courtroom worker (truly, I don’t know her job title) to slip her hand into his pocket. Maybe it’s just the Irish accent. It’s just for gum but he’s so slutty about it

I can’t look at this actress without thinking of her as Jen from the IT Crowd. She can’t be anything else in my mind. She’s forever Jen doing a bit in a costume in different places (this is going to take forever to watch if i keep pausing like this)

The Sheriarty is jumping out right now. You don’t describe someone you know is definitely listening and watching you as “a spider, a spider at the center of a web. A criminal web with a thousand threads, and he knows precisely how each and every single one of them dances.” YOU ARE LOOKING INTO HIS EYES AT HIS TRIAL AS YOU SAY THAT ABOUT HIM. Were I a consulting criminal, I would be so flattered by that description

Oh god…don’t make the jury hate you. Yeah. Of course he finds it impossible to not show off

This tea scene omgggg when he…is it really breaking into 221b if Sherlock is expecting him??

Every once in a while, I do get the glimpses of how these three shows got lumped together. Jim telling Sherlock he’s boring because he’s on the side of the angels is definitely one of those things

He’s got the best little speeches “no such thing as a private bank account now, they’re all mine. No such thing as secrecy, I OWN secrecy. Nuclear codes? I could blow up nato in alphabetical order. In a world of locked rooms, the man with the key is king, and honey, you should seeee meeee in a crown” (did I do an embarrassing amount of that from memory? maybe so)

Oh shit…i forgot the fairy tale stuff Moriarty puts them through…I mean, you gotta fill 90 minutes somehow (I want to sleep so badly…but I’m not even half way done)

I fucking hate how he treats Molly. She deserves better than him and this show. God…she thinks she doesn’t count…fuck. I hate it

Riiiight. He made it seem like the kidnapping was Sherlock’s doing so he could then solve it and he the hero. Just planting the seeds of doubt

Oh the Tale of Sir Boast-a-lot

When villains hijack the airwaves>>>>>> (my taste has not changed a bit in 10 years lmaooooo) I know in this case, he’s actually the cab driver, but he’ll do it later in the series. For now, we’ll just enjoy this nice little story Jim’s telling

You can’t outrun………oh, that was one of the assassins that moved onto baker street

It’s so weird that he’s doing exactly what Jim wants him to do…..

He’s unbelievably precious as Richard Brook. Insisting he’s a children’s storyteller, he’s on tv. It’s on dvd. You do almost forget that he’s a criminal mastermind for a second, except for that one moment when Kitty can’t see him and he has that look on his face as he glances at Sherlock

John and Mycroft have such a good dynamic. No matter if they’re on the same side, on opposing sides…it’s always a good scene when it’s just them

Uuuuggggghhhhhhhh, we’re starting with the roof of St Bart’s scene…will it be as good and heartbreaking as I remember?

Reader, it is. Jim’s lament about how easy it was to beat Sherlock, his best distraction for the monotony of staying alive. Oh, bby. Andrew Scott is such a good actor.

The fact that there was no code, that it was always a few of those threads that Jim made dance to send the world crashing down around them.

(I’m currently living in a world where his character didn’t get absolutely fucked over by the last episode of the series…………….so far(?))

I do like that Jim underestimates the importance of Molly. She still deserves better from everyone around her, but it’s nice that she’ll get SOME recognition in season 3

Pausing because I know what comes next and I don’t want it to…

Can we not just stay like this??? (Not if I want to make it a true full rewatch…)

I STAY a “here’s how [villain] can still live/be alive” girlie. I DO NOT CHANGE LMAO

Oh the phone call… “nobody could be that clever” “you could” I hate everything

Mycroffffffffft. Jawwwwwwwwn.

John at Sherlock’s grave is just…heart wrenching. Always and forever.

This is the best and highest rated episode of this show for GOOD REASON

[nebulaleaf]

goodbye persona 5 royal. after 121 hours (140 on my switch profile) i got 69% of thieves den achievements, 99% in the compendium, and took 910 switch screenshots (third sem having a recording block really cucked me fr.) I think I did as much as i possibly could. despite my gripes this was my most fulfilling playthrough i've ever done of P5. i have a lot of bad things to say about royal but i really did have so much fun with it. getting excited over the new moves with the grappling hook (guessing where the cutscene would be and having fun being technical with chains de hook), making more strategic personas with fusion alarms, using all that extra time p5r gives as efficiently as possible. I loved maruki's confidant even if it ended in a kind of mediocre palace. he's just a fun guy who's so naturally inserted into the story it feels like he Should've always been there (except for the end). though its a shame because of how his confidant is structured in terms of topics, you cant easily insert it into p5 (its basically just a huge foreshadowing/ general set-up for the themes of 3rd sem). akechi's though... akechi's confidant and the addition of kichioji was WONDERFUL and i'd have killed for it in vanilla. im so glad for it. its such a fun place to explore and i love all the new npcs; penguin sniper was fun to play (though i hate playing with akechi, esp because its useless to) and jazzjin's gameplay elements were REAL FUN TO MAKE BUSTED ASS TEAMMATES WITH. no more what-ifs is also... a good song. i think i might even add it to my personal faves playlist. i'll have to sit down and listen to the ost when i don't have a headache. anyway there's probably a lot more good things i can say, but my head is kind of muddled rn lol. that post-game feeling fr.

ahh, but even when it comes down to the bad, like kasumi-- groaning every time she came on screen was fun in its own way too; whether it was laughing at the hilarity of it or coming to tumblr and grumbling about it with whoever was following along with my posts that day. honestly i just wish they tried a little harder with her and we got to know *sumire* instead of kasumi a little more. reading the interview where the devs admitted to her just being a marketing ploy and how they treated her as such really is crushing. its kind of a reflection of royal as a whole in a way to me. care *was* put in; i can see the heart behind a lot of this, but it's more focused on being flashy and appealing to those who missed the first wave of p5dom; or trying to draw back in those who have already played. which... is the point of a video game definitive edition, but kind of ironic when presented against the morals p5 seems to stand for. (or tries to, anyway. corporate meddling and cultural norms... this is still a video game that needs to sell.) i know i shouldn't treat silly anime game #685 that lets you date a maid-teacher as an 'art form' but i always felt p5 had a pretty solid and profound message. so to see royal trample p5 vanilla and then dance around wearing its skin is... certainly something. i know they're technically the same game, so royal has those messages too, but they get all tied up in the new stuff that royal brings forth (and doesn't deliver on. lmao. lol) on top of the already shaky at times writing p5 came with. i guess what im just trying to say is that royal's content is good... but it's being too much. and that just makes me really, really sad. despite all that, royal still kind of rekindled my love for p5 that was already present. every new playthrough for me lets me look deeper into what i like or neat details i missed; seriously i always find something new when i come back to this game. but this was especially true in royal. i found myself noticing when the tiniest detail was changed and it was always fun to compare them, even if it devolved into a tangent. i really only am disappointed like this just because I love persona 5 as a whole *so much*. its everything to me, so i want it to be the best it can be, yknow? anyway, thanks persona 5 royal. you've been a journey in multiple ways. try as i might, i won't forget you.

[and-home-before-dark]

Fistfight by The Ballroom Thieves is the Kanej song:

“They say it’s good to start a story with a tragedy”

“You were smiling to yourself as if we both understood / The silent language of the anguish of a heart that sings but doesn't make a sound”

“What did I do to deserve you? / How did you find me? I was already halfway gone”

“Our love has found its way into our mouths before / Cut our teeth until we swallow it whole”

I rest my case.

[sophia-sol]

My recs for the month of February! This month included festivids getting posted so there are a lot of small-fandom vids in this batch, as well as the usual run of various mxtx fanfic plus other stuff. The lineup:

Romeo+Juliet – 2 vids Taskmaster UK – 1 vid Jesus Christ Superstar – 1 vid Catherine Called Birdy – 1 vid Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves – 1 vid Moby Dick – 1 vid the Knives Out series – 1 vid Shakespeare’s As You Like It – 1 vid Hikaru No Go – 1 fic SVSSS – 3 fics MDZS/CQL – 4 fics

Romeo+Juliet

Trust+Fall, by sandalwoodbox

it's festivids time!!! this is probably the first of SEVERAL vids I will be reccing today

this one is for the film Romeo+Juliet, and focuses on the Romeo/Juliet relationship

set to the song "Parachute" which I previously knew from an extremely cute Leverage vid, so it was fascinating to see how this vid pulled out very different themes from the song and made a much darker, more painful vid, though cut through with moments of cuteness and levity, as the tension ramped upwards towards Romeo and Juliet's inevitable end

it was so good!

2:52 in length. Music only, no added sounds/dialogue. No subtitles.

Magnetic, by sandalwoodbox

another Romeo + Juliet vid, this one focusing on Mercutio

it's about how magnetic a character and a person Mercutio is and like. YUP. AGREED.

0:58 in length. Music only, no added sounds/dialogue. Subtitles are available.

Taskmaster

Blood in the Cut, by findmeinthealps

Taskmaster UK vid focusing on Alex and the uhhhh dynamics in the show that he created

I love the way the editing turns so many of the weird visuals into something that the camera has an erotic focus on. it's so effective! and the song really amplifies it.

3:13 in length. music only, not added sounds/dialogue. no subtitles available.

Jesus Christ Superstar

Hope on Fire, by aguntoaknifefight (swirlingvoid)

a Jesus Christ Superstar vid which draws on many different productions of the musical, both stage and film, to look at Judas's relationship with Jesus

I love how it gets across how intense and agonising a relationship it is, and the use of many different sources helps hammer home the inevitability of its tragedy too

3:45 in length. music only, no added sounds/dialogue. subtitles are available.

Catherine Called Birdy

Jackrabbit, by Tafadhali

vid for the movie Catherine Called Birdy, about Birdy and her relationship with her parents

I haven't actually seen the movie but I have loved the book for many years!

and this vid felt like it exactly captured the feel and the mood of the story. It's lovely.

3:24 in length. music only, no added sounds/dialogue. no subtitles.

Dungeons and Dragons: Honor Among Thieves

Disaster Party, by Scribe

so I have not actually seen the dungeons and dragons movie yet but this vid about the adventuring party was just so fun and charming to watch

upbeat and loving look at the characters and their various misfortunes as they make mistakes and keep going

3:12 in length. music only, no added sounds/dialogue. no subtitles.

Moby Dick

Here it Goes Again, by eruthros

Moby Dick vid featuring as many different adaptations and inspired-bys as the vidder could fit in

here it goes again! the story keeps repeating itself! you can't escape it!

so much fun and so impressive

3:01 in length. Music only, no added sounds/dialogue. Subtitles are available.

Knives Out series

'Til You Hit A Nerve, by stardust_rain

about the heroines of Knives Out and Glass Onion

idk that I have anything insightful or interesting to say about this one but it's a good vid! I liked it!

2:27 in length. Music only, no added sounds/dialogue. No subtitles.

As You Like It

Boys Keep Swinging, by Tafadhali

a vid about Rosalind in many different productions of Shakespeare's As You Like It

a vid that is just having SO much fun leaning into being as queer about gender as it can manage

and I had just as much fun watching it!

2:00 in length. Music only, no added sounds/dialogue. No subtitles.

Hikaru No Go

Dragons and Other Metaphors, by esama

canon divergence genfic about Akira's pov on Hikaru, and like, it's been SO long since I've been in this fandom that I've forgotten all the contextualization to recognize what the point of divergence is lol

but it's a REALLY good fic about how large a figure Hikaru is in Akira's life, and the rivalry experience Akira is so committed to

3k words in length

I saw this fic thanks to a rec from Rozzychan on fedi so thank you!

SVSSS

Small Fish in an Unsettled Pond, Violent_entertainment

this is part of a series of unconnected works the author is writing, each one focusing on the relationship between Shang Qinghua and a different one of the various Cang Qiong peak lords

today's is about Shang Qinghua and the Ku Xing Peak Lord! yes, one of the peak lords who doesn't even get a name in canon

sqh and the kx peak lord are friends and unlikely allies in the effort to make sure lbh doesn't destroy the sect and mash the realms together

I love how the author comes up with so many different backstories for sqh in the different fics

and I love this vision of the kx peak lord! and what lbh would be like under this lord's tutelage!

4k words in length

stuffed with fluff (and blood and bones and rage), by nyoomerr

it's always a good day when nyoomerr posts a new svsss fic!

this one is about original lbh, beginning in his abyss years, visiting shen yuan in his dreams

lbh can't move or act or speak in these dreams but he gets to hear/read about everything sy says about lbh

over years lbh gets more and more obsessed with sy (obvs)

I love watching lbh's growing realizations of the nature of his frustrations, mediated through getting to hear sy express things that are so different from what anyone in his waking life ever says

I love how much he craves someone who SEES him like sy does, and yet sy can't see all of lbh because the parts of lbh's life he gets to see are all mediated through the nature of what a stallion novel will focus on!

and the ENDING. it is perfect! I'm feral at the thought of what will happen next

17k words in length

Help! My Ex-Boyfriend Transmigrated And Now He's My Shixiong! by kitschlet

just reread this fic and it's as fun as it was the first time!

in which sqq and sqh were exes back in the real world

they figure out who each other are and immediately fall to bickering over what actually happened in their relationship

these two are SO FUNNY and SO RIDICULOUS and my heart gave a pang anyway! truly the magic of cumplane

I love them and they're the worst <3333

2k words in length

MDZS/CQL

The light that he brings, by raitala

mdzs/cql modern au where wwx reappears after many years and lwj wants to keep him in his life in whatever way he can

I love! how much they care about each other, and how they try to navigate the new/old dynamics between them with the additional perspective that being older will bring

though lwj still hasn't entirely figured out the framework to understand his attraction to wwx

they're both trying so hard to not overstep boundaries between them but they can both agree that whatever is best for a-Yuan is worth doing

watching them slide into intimacy and intertwined lives, and how lwj comes alive with wwx and a-yuan in his life! endless delight

impeccable under-negotiated d/s vibes between them

I love the glimpses into all the other people in their lives as well!

ahhh there are so many things I could keep saying about this fic! it's so good

106k words in length

the beauty of maturity, by hisevilforest

mdzs/cql

look this is uhhh not a common ship so I just smooshed the names together for the hashtag and called it good

Lan Jingyi and Xue Yang run into each other alone in all the fog of yi city

their dynamics with each other are SO fun, neither of them trusting each other and yet both having a great time in their various ways

jingyi's pov is GREAT

I think the author's tags are a great look into what the fic is like: hostage situations, poisoning, making out, frottage, mind-games, mouthy jerks who escalate, sexy swordfighting, being walked in on by hanguang-jun specifically, blink and you miss it glimpses of xue yang's angst, but mostly humour

this is a reread for me and it's just as worth it the second time (or third, or fourth, or --- )

6k words in length

moored, by fluffysocks

mdzs/cql

Because Of Reasons, wwx and jc are both married off to lwj after the destruction of lotus pier. wwx is blissfully happy about it; jc struggles with it on a NUMBER of fronts

from jc's pov, about him figuring out how to have a successful relationship with his husband, with his place in his new sect, with his brother and co-spouse, with himself and his struggles in cultivation these days

jc's pov obviously doesn't like to think about any of these things straightforwardly, he's too busy being tsundere about everything lol

I love seeing him finding his own way, figuring out how to have a life that works for him even if it isn't what he would have chosen!

17k words in length

(also: fuck jkr and all, but if you also fondly remember helenish's hp fic "theft of assets, destruction of property" then this is the fic for you!)

Lans Never Kiss and Tell, by FeelsForBreakfast

mdzs/cql modern AU wangxian fic wherein wwx finds out that lwj has kissed all of their friends except him

obviously he immediately goes insane about this

I'm very charmed that this is a "mutual pining" trope fic wherein the two of them never doubt for even a moment that they are each other's most important person

the writing is extremely funny. such good comedy bits overlapping with the genuine emotions in ways that make both parts better!

31k words in length