#the only thing i disagree with is improvisation

[hintze-of-bird]

This was originally going to be a more structured post, but my plan was stifling my motivation to write so I fear I’ll have to improvise. /silly

I have been growing less and less attached to how I used to describe my identity. More specifically, it no longer feels right to call myself “Falco tinnunculus, an Eurasian Kestrel”, or “Negaprion acutidens, a Sicklefin Lemon Shark” etc. This isn’t to say that I no longer feel like a kestrel, or a shark, or any other identity I still have listed in my intro. I just don’t feel as though going into that level of detail, down to the binomial, reflects me very well.

I have stated before that I do not consider myself biologically nonhuman, only physically, because what is fact about my body to me is not evidenced through scientific means. I think this extends to my nonhumanity as a whole — I am what I am, but there will be those who disagree, and they can justify themselves using scientific definitions. (For example, I am not a bird through in accordance to the biological species concept, because I cannot mate with theriform birds to produce fertile offspring. For various reasons.)

No, my experience of being me stems from other things. I am me for my morphology. I am me for my behaviour. I am me because of my feelings and my self-perception. I am me for many reasons unrelated to how species are typically defined.

This is where my species anarchism comes in (thank you, @aldmeric, for introducing this term to me). Although the idea of a “species” has its uses in many fields of study, it is still a flawed concept, and there are many organisms that do not perfectly align with how species are determined. I don’t believe taxonomy should be strictly applied to identity. How can the wonderful, amorphous mess of feelings and beliefs be categorised through such rigidity? Personally, it doesn’t not feel authentic to tie precise species to my experiences.

I still find some merit in citing certain species as a general idea of what it means to be me — there are behaviours and ranges that I feel most aligned to, and these narrow down the kinds of organisms I share traits with. I like being able to convey this. But reframing my nonhumanity as something that can be broader than a specific population/s of theriform animals that can reproduce with one another has allowed me to feel more true to myself. I enjoy being able to call myself a raptor or a tubenose, crocodile or shark while not limiting myself with something that doesn’t exactly apply anyways.

[turbulenthandholding]

The Bear Season 4: Theme Prediction

I have a little Season 4 prediction that I’ve been playing with in my head pretty much since Season 3 came out and I wanted to write it up before the year ends.  

Since Season 2, they have been more overt with picking a theme to pull references from in The Bear.  Season 2 was sports, in the lingering presence of Coach K and Jimmy telling Carmy that the real fuckup of the 2003 Cubs playoffs run wasn’t Steve Bartman but rather an unforced error by Alex Gonzalez.   Season 3 was full of gorgeous film references which also tie closely into sleight-of-hand or magic (the legerdemain) and 4th wall breaking references we get as well.  

In an effort to try to predict where we are going in Season 4, I have been thinking about the following:

As we round what seems to be the third act of the whole arc of the show, what themes would make sense?

And, related to that, it feels like we are going to be out of the freezer and actually vibrantly collaborating in Season 4…

The whole “The Bear is NOT a comedy” discourse in wider media (about which I disagree with everyone lol)

Are there specific Chicago things that could be referenced, like the city’s political notoriety?

My prediction is that Season 4 is going to pull from a theme of comedy – specifically improv comedy.

Modern improv came out of the University of Chicago in the 1950s, pulling from older forms of comedy and theater (like commedia dell’arte, featuring improvised dialogue).

This grew to the formation of the ImprovOlympic (now iO Theater) and The Second City theaters/training facilities as well as touring groups and other theaters and the vibrant improv scene that still exists in the city today.  

This theme feels possible to me because:

Improv is done by adding and building (the improv concept of “Yes, and…”), collaborating, being open (as Luca told Marcus in season 2)

Improv and comedy have deep roots in Chicago (and leaves room for an actual Bill Murray sighting (after Mikey’s Ceres story in season 1))

There’s a through line between earlier mentions of comedic media (i.e. Carmy and Richie quoting Blues Brothers, posters, fuckin Kevin McCalliper) and the Season 3 theme of filmmaking that would be an interesting through line of continuity here

Season 3 was Carmy (and, consequently, almost everyone else) being stuck and improv is distinctively about motion and movement and creation.

Season 4 could bring a return to form of the same style of comedic moments we saw earlier in the series (i.e. the surge rates, fucko scene and pretty much all of Dogs…)

Focus (Or, formerly, Point of Concentration)

Focus is a fresh start.  The past is made to loosen its grip. - Viola Spolin

As I was doing some background reading for this, a major theme arose to me in probably the watershed text related to improvisation - Improvisation for the Theater by Viola Spolin.  Spolin was an acting teacher and coach.  Her work heavily influenced not only her son (Paul Sills, who was the original director of The Second City in Chicago) but also countless improvisers and actors through her improv games and methodologies.  

In the third edition of her book, she writes about how she renamed one of her preeminent concepts, Point of Concentration, into Focus:

“Focus”…suggests to me a moving energy, like a ball in a constant state of movement, the players all acutely conscious of everything going on around them while keeping their eye on the ball.  Similarly, whereas “relationship” is static and implies role playing, “relation” is a moving force – seeing, hearing, perceiving. (page liv)

Focus is a word that is very familiar to us in The Bear, particularly in relation to Sydney and Carmy and their relationship:

…I just need your focus like you need mine.  I…I don’t want to share it, I’m sorry…

…you deserve my full focus…

There is an interesting aspect to the way that Viola Spolin writes about what happens during improvisation; there’s almost a metaphysical or psychological or spiritual quality to how she discusses it, which feels similarly to me as the Season 3 references to Freudian psychology.  I feel like this concept could inform Season 4 in the same way.  

Anyway…I’m going to wrap this up by leaving this passage from Spolin’s book here, which speaks to me of our two chefs.  May we see their mutual focus only grow into Season 4.

This combination of individuals mutually focusing and mutually involved creates a true relation, a sharing of a fresh experience.  Here old frames of reference topple over as the new structure (growth) pushes its way upwards, allowing freedom of individual response and contribution.  Individual energy is released, trust is generated, inspiration and creativity appear as all the players play the game and solve the problem together.  “Sparks” fly between people when this happens. (3rd edition, page 24)

Things to read if you are interested:

Excellent short article on the history of Improv in Chicago

Viola Spolin's book Improvisation for the Theater - pdf of the 1st edition here in full for free

Also an extra article on Viola Spolin because turns out the roots of her improv work are really cool

[scrumptiousstuffs]

see now one thing i truly don't get with somsoms is how terribly incapable of rooting for their own faves they are. does that make sense? like, when First plays those more grayish characters (ex, Akk & Kant) everyone has those swings between “omg my pookie” and “omg ew why would he do that” and it's just so so funny to me. same with Khaotung and what happened for ex with Ray. idonno why our fandom can't just lock in and root for the “bad guys” too.

but i may be biased because i really need fkt to play the biggest villains in the whole universe lol would LOVE to have the fandom where we all can just collectively go “yea my man killed that guy but yk what? HE DESERVED IT.” instead of “my man killed and now he ain't my man anymore”

(btw hii it's me again 🍋)

Hi anon.

From what I can glean (and of course I may be wrong here), most FK fans have no issue with how Kant are being portrayed. It’s the casual viewers of FK/people who generally watch lots of Thai BL but don’t specifically follow FK per se that either had negative take on Kant (with some crossing the lines and starting talking nonsense on First itself) or just skipped KantBison scenes altogether because they perceived it as boring in the 1st half of the series (and then sounded so surprised that Kant was being blackmailed because of his brother. Some didn’t even know he had a younger brother 😑)

However, what I am realising with FK fans, and this is especially with inter-fans are the preconceived ideas they have of the series and then went absolutely bonkers/disappointed when Kant (or Bison) didn’t turn out to be how they thought it should be (it’s already happening with Cat For Cash). Some inter-fans said that it was a missed opportunity to make Kant “more interesting” and he became “boring” after getting together with Bison? (Very puzzled with this). So, in fact, we actually have inter-fans wanting Kant to be even an even greyer character than what he currently is?

Interestingly, I have never seen Thai fans of FK saying anything negative about the series or how they portray KB (maybe I’m not following as many Thai fans?). But I do follow Thai fans that have been with them since at least 2022 or before!). And if these Thai fans put up highlights from Thai reactors from YT - all of these Thai reactors are singing praises on KB acting/scenes.

However, if you look at inter-fans, you will see a fraction of them being angry about KB scenes where these are perceived as not being as meaningful as SF’s. Some are critical with Jojo/screenwriting team, labelling them as “lazy” that KB had to improvise their scenes, stating the scenes are only saved purely from FK acting. Now, I disagree with the statement. That’s like spitting on the face of the whole production team/lighting/cinematographer/costume/props department etc when they worked just as tirelessly.

Or how, it was “robbery” because THK was not as intense/more dramatic as it could have been - inter-fans got upset especially following the recent interview by Jojo with a Brazillian podcaster/YT channel where he confirmed he altered the script to be lighter in tone for 2 reasons - 1) he didn’t want an intense drama after just filming OF 2) when they were about to shoot the pilot trailer, the mass shooting in the shopping mall at Bangkok just happened and the series almost got canned by GMMTV. I also think personally, he wanted to challenge himself because he mentioned (during the interview), Thai series usually don’t mix comedy with action/drama together (it’s either one or another) - one of the reason why Khaotung apparently find it difficult to find the right balance as Bison when he first started shooting THK.

That’s another thing about these inter-fans, I am bemused when these same inter-fans insisted THK was made for international audience and not Thai/local audiences. I put up a post recently where P’Aof made a pointed remark stating Thai directors/production houses make BL/GL with Thai audience in mind. International fans are just bonuses for them.

Sure, THK is probably more “accessible” to inter-fans because Jojo references a lot of famous/classic rom-com from the late 90s to early 2000s. But his target is first and foremost Thai audience and that’s why he tailored it to the current political climate in Thailand at that time (not to mention he likely won’t be able to produce the series otherwise) plus “gentle” introduction to non-vanilla sexual practices to the largely still conservative Thai audiences (yes, I’m talking about BDSM, where again I see inter-fans (and not Thai!) complaining there were only that 1-2 scenes in Ep 3. Since I already explained why I wasn’t surprised in a different asked, I’m not going to say it here).

And please do not compare THK BDSM to KinnPorsche. KinnPorsche is a different ball game together. That show was aired on IQIYI exclusively with the budget largely covered by one of the main actor who is super rich, while THK is still being aired on YT/GMM25 (their local channel that is targeted to be more family oriented).

@firstkanaphans and @doublel27 also answered a recent asked about the discordant on why audiences may be so hypercritical to Kant/Ray as opposed to actual “bad people” like our hitmen. I think it was a brilliant answer.

Regardless, It will be interesting to see how Dr Karn is going to be perceived by audiences (local and internationally). I get the feeling it will again be mixed results. But one thing I will say about FK - they have always challenged themselves with the roles they take. Plus tirelessly working on perfecting their craft. For that, I will always adore them.

[pixeljade]

Dungeon Meshi characters and the music I think they'd listen to:

Laios - No real genre cohesion, but loves anything that he can imagine monsters to. He has extensive mental music videos of monsters doing cool things that he will set to songs which he plays on repeat. Probably has more movie and video game soundtracks than actual mainstream music.

Marcille - Florence and the Machine and Hozier are amongst her favorite artists, and she has a soft spot for ALL dramatic and romantic songs, especially with female vocalists. She guards her tastes very carefully, afraid of what others might think, but will gush to Falin about her interpretations of lyrics, and make her playlists all day long

Chilchuck - dad rock and certain folk punk tracks. He's been found in a puddle of tears listening to mountain goats songs about breakups, but he never mentions that when he lists his favorite artists because he wants you to THINK he's not fucked up over it. Will also listen to classic blues.

Senshi - A jazz lover if I ever saw one. He doesnt really listen to it except in the background while cooking or working, but he likes it because it reminds him of the improvisational side of cooking, and how it keeps him moving while he works.

Falin - I think Falin likes a lot of pop but has a particular soft spot for vocaloid, j-pop, k-pop and chiptune. She's just deeply autistic about the artists she likes, doesnt particularly "stan" anyone because she doesnt approach it like that, but she does try to get Marcille into it all (with mixed success)

Izutsumi - the meow mix jingle (breakcore remix) [10 hours]

Kabru - The widest range listener, because he'll gladly listen to and learn about any of the artists people around him listen to. He specifically keeps up with top 40 entirely so he can have an idea whats in the zeitgeist. If you ask him to put on something and he doesnt know your tastes he'll default to a "safe option" like chillhop beats to study/relax to

Thistle - This one I'm not super sure but Linkin Park for sure is a regular listen for him. Will cry-sing along with it. Probably also delves into other teenage angst music ranging from pop punk to emo. Would write his favorite lyrics in sharpie on his ragged converse

Shuro - All classical. He was raised to have extremely refined tastes and can play several instruments himself, but he doesnt have much interest in music really.

Namari - I dont know why but I feel like she'd have an eclectic mix of classic hip-hop artists like Missy Elliot, riot girl music, and old school heavy metal. Also probably has a soft spot for certain pop songs but refuses to admit it.

Mithrun - I want to say he'd be into Shoegaze but like, obviously does not seek out music, so he literally only listens to whatever those around him put on.

Fleki - Psych rock, psy-trance, trip-hop. Do i even have to explain

Lycion - All Hardcore. Loves the energy and will actively mosh.

Pattadol - An absolute Swiftie.

Cithis - The sort to listen to indie pop and then EVISCERATE you for your opinions on music online. Hates Swifties.

Otta - Loves mainstream hip-hop/pop music. I feel like she'd really love Doja Cat.

I think thats every main character. If you disagree with my thoughts dont be mean! We're all just trying to have fun here

[theamityelf]

number seven with kamuegi for the writing prompt requests, please! 🥺

7. "there isn't anything that i wouldn't do for you."

~~~

It was so peaceful.

The rising sun was starting to pour light through the dorm window, illuminating the different tones of brown in Izuru's long hair. He was still sleeping. Well, his eyes were still closed, and his face was very relaxed. His full weight was resting atop Makoto's body. His head on Makoto's chest, his longer limbs ensnaring the luckster in a snug, unyielding embrace.

Makoto had one arm free; Izuru had let him reach to turn off his alarm when it sounded half an hour ago. His other arm was plastered to his side by the curve of Izuru's arm.

"Hey." As it had now been a full thirty minutes, he decided it was time for round two of trying to convince his boyfriend that it was, in fact, time for him to get up. "Izuru, I've got to get ready for class."

Izuru nuzzled his chest in acknowledgement but didn't get up or let go. He was being hypocritical; when he had something he intended to accomplish in the morning, he vanished before Makoto even woke.

"You'll get bored of cuddling eventually," he tried again. Sometimes this tack worked, but at present Izuru seemed to disagree that he would do anything of the sort. "Come on. Taka's going to give me a hard time if I'm late."

"He will?" Izuru said, finally opening his eyes and fixing them on Makoto's face, to gather the subtext. He seemed to know that the statement wasn't meant to be taken seriously, but he still appeared to be deciding how seriously he would take it.

"Not a really hard time," Makoto qualified. "He's not as, uh, reactionary as Sakakura. He just values punctuality."

"Sakakura is the reason you've become consistent about wearing your Main Course uniform. Is Ishimaru the reason you find it important to be on time?" Izuru loosened his grip, sitting up and giving Makoto room to move. He seemed to be in thought, as Makoto took the opportunity to get up and head for the bathroom. "I could talk to him."

"But it's Taka," Makoto laughed. "You can't convince him not to speak up about what he thinks is right. It's one of the things I admire about him."

"Including the fact that he values punctuality and gives you a hard time?"

"I guess, yeah. I mean, he's my friend. Even the inconvenient things about him are still part of him."

"What would you say is inconvenient about me? The fact that I've made you late?"

"I'm not late yet! I can still make it."

Izuru got out of bed and started gathering Makoto's dispersed school materials into his backpack. "Based on your stamina, foot speed, and how long it takes you to eat a full breakfast, you will be late."

"Then I'll skip breakfast."

"You will not." He zipped up the backpack (leaving it, for now, on the desk) and pulled on his pants.

"Just half a breakfast?" Makoto proposed, leaning to the side to see out of the bathroom.

The only answer he received was the sight of Izuru exiting the room, in the direction of the cafeteria.

Makoto sighed fondly and started brushing his teeth.

He was beginning to get dressed in his uniform when Izuru returned with a plate for him.

"Hanamura made it," he prefaced with distaste, the implication being that Makoto needn't enjoy the meal too much (and perhaps shouldn't). "Since you're in such a hurry."

"Thank you," Makoto said, taking the plate once he'd buttoned his blazer. "Did you grab yourself something to eat, too?"

"I don't have class, so I have time to cook myself something better than Hanamura can make, once you've gone."

With a smile, Makoto said, "It doesn't have to be a competition. You and Teruteru can both be really good cooks."

"According to the experts, my technical skills far surpass his, but he has a better mastery of improvisation and intuiting the subjective tastes of his clientele." Izuru watched closely as his boyfriend took his first bite of breakfast. "Do you find that he's better at intuiting your taste than I am?"

"No. And I'm not some kind of food critic, anyway. I like the food you make me because you took the time to make it with me in mind. Because you're considerate. And also because it tastes good. But I don't have the refined palette your teachers have; I'm not really comparing your use of spices or anything like that."

"I'm considerate," Izuru echoed dubiously.

"And you're cute."

"When?"

"Now! And...well, all the time!" Makoto suddenly remembered to check his watch, and he startled at the fact that he'd been standing still for so long. "Oh! Could you pass me my bag, please?"

"There isn't anything I wouldn't do for you."

Makoto turned to stare at Izuru, who was gathering up the backpack, showing no signs that he knew his statement had been of a grander scale than most might have considered proportionate to the matter at hand. "Thank you," he said, taking the bag as it was handed to him. "I, uh..."

"You're running late," Izuru reminded him. And before he could turn away, Izuru placed his palms on either side of Makoto's face. "And you're blushing. Have a nice day."

"Have a nice day."

Izuru pressed his forehead to Makoto's. "If anyone does actually give you a hard time, let me know. I'll have a frank and civil conversation with them."

"There's no need for that," Makoto laughed. "I'll see you at lunch?"

"Actually, I might be busy at that time."

"Oh, okay. See you after school?"

"After school," Izuru confirmed.

Makoto left for class.

...

When school let out, Makoto was surprised to walk out and see, not Sakakura lurking outside the front door- guarding against, presumably, wayward Reserve Course students -but Izuru, watching the door from a reasonable distance. When he saw Makoto, he began to approach.

"Ooh," Sayaka teased. "Looks like someone's boyfriend was waiting for him."

"Perfect!" Hina cheered. "I remember his name and everything now."

"Good evening, Maizono. Asahina," Izuru greeted them.

(Makoto had been gradually coaxing him out of his shell since they'd met. He even sat at lunch with Makoto's friend group most school days.)

"Hi, Kamukura," Hina said proudly. "I noticed you're getting close to my record lap number."

"And I noticed you finally broke mine for speed. My teachers have recommended I cut my hair, as it drags in the water and slows me down. If I did, I could create a new record for you to break."

"Or I could just swim with a bedsheet tied around my neck," Hina suggested, like it was a completely reasonable alternative.

"Don't cut your hair," Sayaka added. "It would take forever to grow that long again, and having a signature look is something lots of guys would kill for."

"That's not something I consider important at all, but I won't cut my hair," Izuru said. "Makoto likes it."

"Th-That's not..." Makoto spluttered. "If you want to cut it, I mean, either way is..."

"Are you ready to go to your dorm?" Izuru cut in. "If not, I could wait there for you."

"No, we can walk together," Makoto said, still blushing. "Evening, guys!" he bade his friends.

Back in his dorm room, Makoto noticed that his casualwear, including his favorite jeans and hoodie, was hanging up on the bathroom door.

"You...washed my weekend clothes?" he guessed.

"I thought you might want to wear them tomorrow," Izuru answered mildly. "I know you find your uniform less comfortable."

"I wish, but Sakakura never seems to remember I'm Main Course if I'm not wearing my uniform. Probably because I'm so normal looking, heh..."

"Sakakura won't bother you. I had a frank and civil conversation with him, and he won't be bothering you again."

"You...what?"

"Of course, if you want to wear your uniform regardless, I won't push the issue. It does suit you."

"You talked to Sakakura about me?"

Izuru paused, tilted his head, and then merely said, "He won't forget your face again. You don't have to worry about him."

"Wow. Is that what you were doing at lunch?"

"No, at lunch I was presenting a case for moving your class's independent study hours to the morning, so you don't have to rush through your breakfast. The headmaster agreed that the morning was a better time."

"You spoke to the headmaster about me?!"

"Not about you specifically. Again, you can choose to arrive at the same time you always have, but now it's optional. Ishimaru can't give you a...moderately hard time about it."

Makoto marveled at the news.

"Did I overstep a boundary?" Izuru asked.

"No, you're fine! I just...It's like you've been doing stuff for me all day."

"Of course I have. I'm considerate."

Makoto smiled. "Your teachers must be so mad at me."

"Not at all. If anything, you're proving my ability to multitask." Izuru wrapped his arms around him, resting his cheek against Makoto's head. "It takes caring about something to truly test my talents."

It was at this moment, at this proximity, that Makoto noticed some bruising on Izuru's knuckles. "Hey, you're hurt!"

"Shhh." Izuru held tighter when Makoto tried to make a fuss. "Don't worry about it."

"Izuru, did you and Sakakura end up fighting?"

"The conversation was frank and civil...and in Sakakura's language of choice. I'm not hurt."

Makoto sighed.

"He scared you first," Izuru added flatly.

"You didn't have to do that."

"As I said, there isn't anything I wouldn't do for you. Now, we should have dinner. You finally have time to eat something Hanamura didn't make."

Makoto couldn't help laughing, but he still probed, "You don't mean that literally, right? That thing about doing anything for me."

"I think I'm in the mood to make curry," Izuru mused. "What do you think? Maybe I'll even make extra, so your friends can have some when they stop by the cafeteria."

"That'd be great! Hifumi loves your curry. But I was asking..."

"Don't worry about it. Come with me; you can watch me cook."

Makoto let it go, and they went to the kitchen together.

[laestrellapanda]

Red as snow

The snow splashes everything, as if the world had lost all color. The magic of the dragon drains the warm from the mountain range, at the rhythm in which its mountains devour the lives of the knights. There, every day is a constant struggle, minute by minute, without rest.

Some already fear an eternity of bathing in the snow – which will encase their souls when the white has finished covering their corpses.

There are many variables in favor of this theory: the first of them, the slim chances of survival, that they once counted on, have become negligible. Their lives have turned into a succession of repetitive tasks. They fight against hordes of insidious monsters, watching their food spoil faster than they consume it and feeling as they lose the feeling in their fingers from being too exposed to the cold. They bury their companions, comforting the younger ones and idealizing more and more an eternal rest. Death no longer seems a probability, but an unavoidable destiny they approach with every step.

Against the current, the Remdragon knights advance, who do not give up: they are that stubborn. A handful of nobles reclined in their cushioned chairs sent them to die, playing with their lives with their delicate fingers, and they will descend these mountains only to rub it in.

Sir Riftan Calypse and his men pay no attention to the snow except to detect the monsters trying to hunt them. They warm their hands by rubbing them together and mock those who become discouraged. They talk about their plans for the future, about the duke’s face when he discovers that he underestimated them and they achieve what his men would not accomplish even in a million years. They bury and swear, but they get lost in revenge more than in envy.

They do not let their provisions demoralize them; they think of it as a problem they must solve.

“The Royal Knights are also short on supplies,” summarizes Sir Gabel Laxion, “and the Holy Knights refused to share theirs.”

The men rest on a strip of arid land, chewing dry bread that resembles parchment and sticking to their horses to share their warmth with them.

Sir Riftan Calypse has gathered the highest-ranking knights, who surround him in an improvised meeting room in the open air. The valuable loads they still have are a few steps away, guarded by some knights in case a monster insists on ruining them.

“Stingy chatterers, that rabble,” swears Sir Hebaron Nirtha, “who would throw us under their horses to save themselves.”

Sir Uslin Rikaido sends him a hard look.

“Watch what you say. One day you will get excommunicated,” he tells him.

“If they didn’t treat us like damned livestock!”

No one can disagree with him, not even Sir Rikaido. It is not only the holy knights or the duke and his daughter. The Remdragon knights have no connections, only merits. The blood they leave on the mountains is worth less to the nobles the blood of their hunting dogs. For the royal family, they are just a weapon to wield from a distance, while the other troops view them as a bunch of reckless nobodies they can sacrifice to save their skins. Sir Calypse may be the commander-in-chief, but only in name.

“Let’s forget about them,” finally says their commander. “It’s useless to waste energy hunting, either. The best thing would be to send a small group back to the village down the mountains and have them bring us all the supplies they can carry.”

That was also the solution a year ago, when the monsters were hibernating and the rations promised by Princess Agnes were not arriving.

“I doubt they have anything to share this time,” interrupts Sir Elliot Caron, who had led the small team. “The village was small and they were already affected by the dragon’s magic.”

Riftan shows no emotion.

“Then another village. The Royal Knights are also not overflowing with supplies, so we can send a group to supply both armies.”

“We should contact Her Highness Princess Agnes; it would be much easier to coordinate a group and we wouldn’t have to mobilize so many men.”

The wizard Ruth groans at Sir Rikaido’s words. He covers himself better with his cloak, a sign that he is looking for some crack in his reasoning.

“But how are we going to pay for it?” he says after a few minutes.

Silence engulfs them like the icy wind that snakes through their armor to freeze their bones.

What remained of the dowry that the duke gave to Sir Calypse for forcing him to marry his daughter was handed over to Elliot last time. Sir Caron apologized, with his back stiff and his eyes fixed on his feet, for not having been able to save even a coin, given the difficulty of convincing the villagers to hand over their reserves.

“The princess can pay for it,” decides Riftan. “I will return it to her when the subjugation is over.”

“You shouldn’t have to pay for it,” murmurs Sir Nirtha.

“For once, I agree with him,” says Sir Rikaido, cleaning the edge of his breastplate with his nail. “Croyso should at least take care of the supplies.”

“We don’t have time to argue with him,” says Sir Calypse. “When the dragon is dead, we can worry about that.”

“I doubt he will agree to reimburse the gold, Lord Calypse,” says Ruth, too concerned about his commander’s pockets to notice how he tries to settle the matter. “It might not be a bad idea to send some men to the castle —I would accompany them, of course— to request that he replenish our supplies, since it was technically his obligation that he kindly ceded to us.”

Nirtha lets out a laugh. It echoes like a sound carried by the wind between the peaks and stone walls.

“What you want is a night in a warm bed, you little rascal!”

“The wizard doesn’t need to go,” says Sir Gabel. “He may be good at haggling in the markets, but the nobles won’t respect a wizard who isn’t protected by the World Tower.” Ruth shoots daggers with his eyes at him, and Sir Gabel fears he is casting some disgusting magic. “The last time I went, the duke didn’t want to talk to us, so I think the same will happen.”

“Even so…” begins Sir Ursuline.

“Let the young master go then,” proposes Sir Nirtha. “What better than a pompous knight to deal with pompous nobles!”

“It could work,” admits Sir Gabel. “Given Sir Rikaido’s lineage, perhaps the duke of Croyso would be more willing to listen to him.”

“No,” says Sir Calypse. “Rikaido won’t have the patience to play his games. He will manipulate him like a violin.”

“I would like to see that,” mocks Nirtha, reclining in the snow.

“Then we must take someone to keep an eye on him,” says Ruth. “Since I am one of the few here with matter inside my skull…”

“I don’t think it’s wise for wizard Ruth to leave the mountains,” says Sir Elliot, as he tries to calm his horse, “in case of injuries or if defensive magic is needed.”

Ruth murmurs something that sounds like “if only we had another wizard…”

A knight, who sits nearby while warming his hands with the breath of his exhalation, looks at him harshly and reminds him that Anatol is quite proscribed for the World Tower because they employ their only traitorous wizard.

“It might be a good idea to say goodbye, wizard,” mocks Hebaron. “Maybe then we can hire half a dozen less whiny wizards.”

Ruth looks at him, indignant, readjusting his cloak to cover him like a caterpillar in a cocoon: “I’ll let you know that, in terms of magical abilities, I am worth more than ten wizards, so you would be losing out.”

The knight, unimpressed, challenges him with his gaze, as if waiting for him to prove his worth.

“Instead of arguing over nonsense, we should focus on the supplies,” scolds Sir Ursuline. “Commander-in-chief, although I would prefer to listen to Nirtha’s nonsense for a month than deal with that person, Gabel is right. Croyso values people by their lineage and how useful they are to him, so I should go. I can take a few knights with me, at most two or three, which won’t reduce our forces even if it takes some time.”

Sir Calypse looks at the sky for a moment, then nods.

“Try to talk to him. Laxion will go with you. Be polite, and if you don’t succeed in a week, turn back. Crude, go down the mountains with them and find out if any village has enough supplies. Meet up with them when they return, so in their case we will know where we can obtain supplies. If the duke refuses, we will get the gold and buy everything we can.”

Continue reading in AO3:

[beautifulpersonpeach]

Hello! Reading your comment about Gr@mmys, I thought of something that makes my head spin.

Was it what happened with J!m!n and F@CE that got us out of the OT7 utopia “seven exact and equal slices of the pie” for each member? I expected to see differences, problems or competitions during this stage but I feel that F@CE was a before and after, at least for me. Now, I could yell at my "me" from the last concert in Bus@n, how naive and overly positive I was being.

I understand the factors that made this reality. I don't know the internal agreements between them and their company. For me Jungk00k's debut only shed more light on topic (he's not the villain of the story, blaming him is just easy way out) Family = seven = equal. Wasn't that the driven narrative? From my place I see how the members go out of their way to demonstrate healthy competition among themselves but the label does not accompany them with their actions/decisions. Actions that make me see company as inexperienced. Did they really have no way to avoid these conflicts? Shouldn't they take care of every detail of career of the artists they represent?

This has nothing to do with the decisions of each member. Some armys force too much -members decide everything- speech and frankly to me it feels like a re-victimization and the removal of responsibility from their representatives. Even if we look at this as a team it seems like someone isn't doing their part. May I disagree? I'm a different person. If everyone says that BH is a great company, I will tell them that it should be even better. The company where my father works has often not fulfilled its duties as an employer, but he will tell you that it's the best job, and I proceed to respect it. Just like that i feel

Whose responsibility is it really that everything has gotten to this point? From company and its silences, from fandom that allowed solo stans to grow, from everyone? Is it just the natural course of things?

There is something in this chapter that gives me the feeling of improvisation. Or was I just too used to everything being calculated and perfect in the B/T/S world?

If you had to give a prognosis for the next chapter, what would it be?

***

“Family = seven = equal. Wasn't that the driven narrative?”

No, actually.

Listen, I hear you and I get you completely. OT7 literally means love the members equally right? And that’s the agenda the company has been pushing and should show right? Well, not exactly. What I’m about to say is going to be very unpopular, but it’s genuinely what I think.

People have a very narrow idea of how many things can look, and when they run up against a reality that looks very different from how they expected it, many people don’t know how to deal with that very well. And oftentimes what happens is that they turn to vilifying whoever they think is responsible for preventing them from getting that imagined outcome. It never once crosses their minds that maybe they had the wrong assumptions to begin with. It’s always the thought of maybe someone is gaslighting them, rather than, you know, maybe they were just wrong. For that context and for that group’s actual goals.

There’s one post I wrote a long time ago that I think made me fairly popular with Jimin biases here, it’s the one where I talk about some of the ways Jimin contributed to BTS that might not seem obvious at first. I prefaced that post by saying many in the fandom underestimate Jimin not because they dislike him or anything, but because they have a narrow idea of what ‘meaningful contribution’ looks like for a group like BTS. All I did in that post was point out things that perhaps were not framed in the right way to show how much Jimin contributes to BTS that’s more than songwriting, producing, or others. It’s the same thinking in recognizing that while SeokJin isn’t the strongest dancer or vocalist, he’s served as the stable emotional support in the group, he serves as the key hinge in maintaining the uniformity in their choreography, and that without him in the group, the members would certainly clash very destructively. It’s not ‘equal contribution’ in the way a lot of people envision, but I think it’s perfect for BTS.

Granted all I’ve said so far is in terms of contributions, not rewards which is what you’re talking about. You’re saying the company should facilitate things so that each member is meant to get equal rewards each time. Well, that would be dandy and possible for the company. Maybe. But it’s also not weird, bad, nor does is spell sabotage for a company to allocate different resources and use different strategies after consulting with the members for their direct input, and to pursue asymmetrical results for BTS at certain times. The understanding is each member prioritized will vary in different years and eras. And I’m personally looking forward to all of it. Since July 2022, all the members have put forward a good first step with their debuts. Jungkook is the member getting a solid push now and I love that it’s him. I’m secretly hoping he tours a bit too, maybe solo or with vmin, and maybe/not go to the military before 2025. Who knows?

A lot of things didn’t work right for all the members' debuts. Jimin’s performance was impacted by far too many though, and many were issues the company simply needs to get their shit together on. Period. BTS makes a shit tonne of money for that company and the least they could do is go the extra mile and then some. I’m convinced HYBE already does this for BTS (recall how HYBE navigated extracting BTS from that Jamboree concert disaster, though public opinion was also on their side), but they could always do more. And I won’t stop anyone from saying that.

But for anyone who thinks what they’ve seen so far is Jungkook / BTS / HYBE betraying their trust or going back on their principles or whatever, I want to say that they’ve done no such thing. This time around your bias wasn’t prioritized the way you wanted. That’s it. Am I being naive and delusional by thinking the guys are literally taking turns for this kind of focus? Possibly. But I also know there’s a Pharrell collab somewhere in the vault. Rina Sawayama too (her Le Sserafim remix is really good. Please listen to it). And that the guys have very grand plans. All of them. They’re focused and driven and will always get what they ultimately want. Every member is like this. They've put too much skin in the game to walk away for less.

Or lol, maybe I'm just being a company stan. I just hope it's clear I'm not dismissing your concern or care for Jimin, Anon, it's that I disagree with your conclusion. But I know I'm in the minority here anyway.

“Whose responsibility is it really that everything has gotten to this point? “

The fandom, mostly. For reasons that are very obvious. Such as most of the fandom claiming they actually like the whole group and trust their bias, but rather kinda see the other members as background characters for their bias. Fandom is like a pressure cooker, so nobody ever really stays 'normal' if they move too far off-center - people who heavily biases a member in an unhealthy way will never remain an ARMY, for example, they’ll eventually break off into fringe parts; people who dislike a member, only grow to further hate the member. Neutral is rare.

If BigHit wanted to make another try for a Grammy this year, Seven would’ve likely been envisioned with all the members as a project to pursue, because a win for any of them is considered a win for the group. Especially considering the competition this year. And given BH already had a formula with the PET, they went with that same mediocre candy floss of a song that’s guaranteed to get the nomination chances, as in the past. Experience has taught the company Korean tracks will likely not be given fair consideration soon. So they went with Seven. Also, after that Billboard hit piece, Jimin’s chances with Like Crazy are close to zilch. If by some miracle he gets recognition, I hope he wins. But yeah, that debacle with Jimin is one in which the fandom (meaning his akgaes, biases, and the wider/whole fandom) bears some blame. But at the same time, Billboard has never been a friend to BTS and they were likely going to change the rules again anyway. And that’s something they can keep doing.

"If you had to give a prognosis for the next chapter, what would it be?"

I have no real idea, tbh. What I want more than anything, is for all seven of them to be able to continue putting out dope, interesting music that they take joy in. Seeing Bangtan have fun has extended my life by several years I'm sure. That's what I want for them in the prognosis. I'm sorry I'm taking your ask about a serious topic and going all sentimental on it Anon, but rather than chart placements that they don't really need to prove, I want BTS to still be comfortable making the music they want to make. More Arson, Dis-ease, All Day, Change Pt 2, Snooze, HUH?!, Amygdala, Like Crazy, SMF Pt 2, Rainy Days, Seven, The Astronaut.

I hope the people who remain in the fandom core are able to last and tough it out while the fandom regroups. Because even though there'll be chaos and the number of solos will likely triple, they won't ever leave. Nobody who comes in contact with BTS ever really moves on from them. They'll say they're taking breaks, calling it quits or whatever, but give them 6 months tops and they're back. I see it happen all the time. And it makes sense tbh. I mean, have you seen Jimin? After knowing someone like him exists, how can you just go back to your regular life pretending he's not real? Like his existence doesn't mandate you looking at him and caring for him and his art. At least, that's how Jimin makes me feel. And the other members to varying degrees.

If we disagree please don't send me follow-up asks on this topic. It likely won't be productive.

[theresattrpgforthat]

Do you have any games involving candles/matches/fire as mechanics? Ten Candles is the only one I know. Thanks!

Theme: Candle-lighting.

Hello there friend. I do have some games for you! Many of these games are very good at digging into your emotions and make you feel things, so I hope you enjoy perusing some of the options I’ve got here.

What Little the Flames Leave Us, by Kumada1. (@sprintingowl)

What Little The Flames Leave Us is an 8 page TTRPG played by setting your character sheet on fire.

Burn away pieces of yourself to fight the odds, and at the end a portion of your identity might survive.

This is a story about quests that you will not survive. Your characters are doomed from the beginning, and this is represented by burning away parts of your character sheet as you play. This game doesn’t need a candle exactly, but a candle will do just grand at holding a small flame for you to hold your character sheet up to. This is a game mostly played out through consensus, and destruction happens when one player feels like they should succeed in a case where others disagree. It’s a very thought-provoking and emotional game, and you should check it out.

BurnBright, by kumada1.

Three seasons ago, the Dimming came. It started in midwinter, where its effect was almost unnoticeable. But then spring came, and summer, and the days did not grow longer. Instead, the sunlight became thin and strained. The nights turned grim and inescapable. It is clear something is wrong, and it is clear that no one else has the means to stop it, so you have packed your bags and slung a quiver of torches over your shoulder and you have set out for the one place where the Dimming might be stopped. Candlehold is an ancient fortress, built on cursed grounds. Crops grown near it weaken and die. Animals in the woods that circle it wear forms lean and strange. And every night since midwinter, the top of  its tallest tower has burned like an earthbound sun.

This is another game about fate and doom. Characters play heroes exploring a fort in a world that has gone dark. The world is collaboratively built, and the players are granted two stats: Wick and Flame. Flame allows your character a better chance at success; Wick allows your player to last longer.

The primary resolution of BurnBright is blowing out a candle. If you blow out a candle in one breath, you succeed at your goal. If you fail, your Wick becomes shortened. Success is possible in this game, but it definitely comes at great cost. The designer also recommends some ways of altering the difficulty, in case blowing out the Wick is too difficult and the game wears folks out.

The Ghost Game, by amandalee.

The Ghost Game is a one session ttrpg for 4-5 players and a gm, inspired by abandoned places, found footage horror, and the improvised rituals kids make up when they're trying to scare each other.  You and the players work together to create a ghost and convince yourselves it's right there in the room with you.

If you want an atmospheric and spooky game, this is definitely worth checking out. You are playing teenagers exploring a haunted house, undertaking a ghostly ritual at night. There is one candle for each player, including the GM, and at some point, those candles will be blown out. A great game for Halloween!

Light to Your Heart, by Jacky Leung.

Light to Your Heart is game about building intimacy through candles, sharing, and the dark. Over the course of the game, players will learn about each other and possibly by the end, no longer need lights to truly see each other. There candles that separate you and your gaming partner, as the candles go out, the room darkens but that's alright, because you get to truly see each other by the end of the game. 

This is a two-player game that requires a deck of cards and eight candles. You will make characters who have no reason to be in a room together, but who will inevitably grow closer as time passes. The players line up the candles between the two of them and draw cards that represent questions that their characters will ask each-other. A question will spark a conversation, which must continue until the person who asked the question blows out a candle. This will represent an acknowledgement of what has been shared, an act signifying that you need less light to see the other person’s true self. All in all, a very touching game.

[dervampireprince]

I am so glad you care so much for your community- I’ve seen ASMR people who really only do it for ghe money, but the fact you care so much is very sweet!

I do appreciate you also taking the time to show things that aren’t often done like age regression, chronic pain, pet regression, and period comfort. I rarely see any type of regression in media or asmr- it’s a nice feeling.

The mere fact you have made me fall in love with your characters (metaphorically) is wonderful. A lot of people don’t have their characters fleshed out and are left scrambling for answers when someone asks about the OC’s lore.

-sincerely, a fan trying to get a phycology degree; 💿💛

I don't know if I've seen anyone do asmr 'for the money' because it's really difficult to get a following in youtube when it's so oversaturated and youtubr ad money is not ad much as people think it is, at least for smaller channels, and youtube had a nasty habit of demonitising or putting limited ads on asmr videos because it sees them as 'sexual content', which no asmr is not inherently sexual whether it's a platonic roleplay, a romantic one, or someone tapping on things.

So I disagree with seeing people doing it for the money but maybe I just haven't seen the channels you're thinking of. My problem with the asmr voice acting space is far too many channels use stolen artwork in their videos or thumbnails (no artist credit anywhere, 'credit to artist' is not credit, linking to Pinterest is not credit, and even with proper credit I feel like using someone's fanart in your monetised video is something you should get permission from the artist to do, and I think picrews are a grey area as many are listed as 'not for commercial use' and does a monetised youtube video count as commercial use?), or in the last year or so an increasing amount are using AI generated 'art' and images in their videos which is disgusting, and I hope the channels that read scripts from reddit have permission to put them on monetised youtube videos instead of soundgasm because I'd feel weird if I wrote a script and shared it on a sub reddit for someone on youtube to voice it and monetise it and it get 100k views and the script writer not see a penny of that.

But anyway, ah, thank you for your kind words. If you look through my FAQ you can find a long answer about why I started making asmr va stuff, but basically it helped me when k was in a dark place and I always wanted to try my hand at it to be able to help others, especially as I saw no trans people or audios made for trans people at the time, but also I want to be clear I did also do it because I was struggling finically and trying another attempt at making money while working from home. And I don't think me partially doing this to make money is evil, we're all feeling the cost of living crisis I'm sure, and I'd just graduated straight into a pandemic so no one was hiring, I'd had a mental breakdown during my last year of uni, and I was trying to find how I could woke while figuring out I have autism and going through trauma that's left me with chronic pain and other health problems. So while yes I genuinely enjoy doing this, I've always wanted to tell stories and struggled to so that via writing books or drawing comics, improvising and acting these audios seems to come naturally and easy to me and its been a joy to discover this way of story telling and have other people enjoy it and care about my characters, I'm also not gonna sit here and lie and say it's never about the money because if my chanbek hadn't grown and after years I had no patreon members I wouldn't still be doing this because I'd have to have a different job and put my energy into that and wouldn't have time to justify doing this. I dont know just saying people 'only do it for the money' kinda rubbed me the wrong way a little because times are hard and of people get into this space to try and make some extra money I have no problem with that (as long as they aren't stealing art to do so).

The reason I cover topics like age regression, pet regression, chronic pain and periods is because I personally experience all of those things and know that I'd like comfort for them so I make the stuff I wanna hear. I hope knowing that I experience and I understand the topics makes people feel like they can trust me to talk about them in a way that isn't insensitive.

And thank you for liking my characters and that you feel there's are fleshed however, most are really not. Ambrose and Arden are the only ones who have fleshed out backstories. I've spoken about this so many times and I'm often someone who has to say 'I don't know' when people ask about my audio ocs. They weren't made with the intention of having complex stories or any backstory at all because not everyone wants that in their comfort asmr. I have other worlds and stories I've made that are like that, but my audios ocs were never made with that intention and it stresses me out when people assume there is more because I just don't have more. Maybe I'll make more for some characters, but you can't force me to have ideas and backstories for them. I dont think people should have to have fleshed out characters or backstories, especially when they're just making ocs for fun. I get it's frustrating if things aren't consistent, I've experienced liking someone else's audio ocs and remembering the lore and facts given only for the creator to have seemingly not remembered any of it or just randomly retconned it and it was frustrating and I hope I haven't forgotten major things I've said in my audios because when I do improvise lore I try and remember to note it down. And do remember my audios are improvised, I scripted parts of the love bites backstory but that's really been all the scripting I've ever done. If I suddenly made all the audios plot heavy and lore heavy I think a lot of people would stop listening. I have been trying to allow myself tl have my ocs as they are and not force them to have backstories and not apologise for "scrambling for answers" as you say. I dont think not having answers for questions about your ocs is bad, I dont want anyone to make me feel bad for that, and I have asks I haven't answered about my ocs sitting in my askbox because I don't the answers (multiple questions about what movies or music they all like I'm s- no I have to stop saying I'm sorry, the answer is I don't know, also those questions are hard to answer because I don't know most movies or music and I can't just give them all my fave music or movies over and over again because I don't know any others). When I introduce a new character now I do try and give them some story because I'm finding it fun, but I've found I cannot now force a backstory onto satin or valentine for example.

So thank you for liking my audios and characters, I just personally don't think there's anything wrong with someone making an asmr channel to try and earn more money as a lot of people are struggling finically right now, and I don't think there's anything wrong with not having answers or lore for characters that you've made for fun or for asmr videos.

[elleseekswritingpartners]

roleplay partner search interested in: jujutsu kaisen + attack on titan (hunger games too tbh, but ocs only i think). realistic SoL themes welcome & canons + ocs welcome.

disclaimer: i only double up + i'm looking for long-term writing partners + i don't expect daily communication and i don't have discord on my phone but being chill doesn't mean being low-effort. i brainstorm a lot and i'm often ghosted for it, i've more than once been told that i'm great but i write too much in the plotting stage and it makes the other person feel bad. i really seriously deep dive into my characters, plots, and ships. if you only want me to write a character for you because you think the character is hot and are expecting lots of smut, we're not going to get along. additionally, i love aus, so i'll want to imagine our characters in other worlds primarily: hunger games, pacific rim, historical, etc.

--- CANONS I'M INTERESTED IN WRITING AGAINST- ---

nobara kugisaki (i have one plot idea for her)

atsuya kusakabe (i have one plot idea for him)

kento nanami ( i have two plot ideas for him )

hiromi higuruma

shoko leiri

akari nitta

utahime iori ( i have two plot ideas for her )

erwin smith ( i have two plot ideas for him )

jean kirstein ( i have two plot ideas for him )

porco galliard ( i have two plot ideas for him )

--- CANONS I'M INTERESTED IN WRITING - ---

kento nanami ( i have two plot ideas for him )

takuma ino (i have one plot idea for him)

hiromi higuruma (i usually write him in a non-sorcery setting)

toji fushiguro

akari nitta

shoko leiri

satoru gojo (only want to write satoru in an arranged marriage type of plot)

utahime iori

levi ackerman (i have two plot ideas for him)

reiner braun

jean kirstein ( i have two plot ideas for him )

hitch dreyse

porco galliard ( i have two plot ideas for him )

ilse langnar ( i have two plot ideas for her )

REGARDING THE HUNGER GAMES

I don't have anything specific in mind, but I also have too many ideas. Listen, I love these series with my whole heart. I just want plots in it. I have a slight preference for writing ocs, but I could be persuaded to write canons.

--- WHAT I'M INTERESTED IN WRITING- ---

I'm interested in deep diving into characters and developing them extensively. I actually want to explore their story as a whole, from the big moments, to the mundane stuff, to the cringe, to the cliché, to the argument, and though times etc. I like to explore every little detail, and put them in different alternative universes. And yes, we can have an AU where they're just regular people in a real life setting - I genuinely want to explore it all.

I only double up - I enjoy writing several characters with my writing partners, so only doing one ship doesn't make sense to me.

I'm boo boo the fool for exploring family dynamics: I will want to talk about our characters as parents (even if it's only in AUs) and potentially even write their children. This is mandatory for me, I'm sorry but I really love exploring family dynamics and characters as parents. It's also mandatory for me that you're not shy about having our characters disagree and argue, because I love exploring ALL sides of a relationship. I want to explore our characters as real people, flawed as they are.

I welcome both canons and ocs, meaning we can use canons, or use ocs., or mix it up

I'm only writing m/f ships at the moment. (Potential exeptions: shoko leiri, utahime iori, toji fushiguro, porco galliard)

---- WHAT YOU CAN EXPECT FROM ME ----

Hi! I'm Elle - 25+, F, 10+ years experience, staunch purple prose hater. I don't know the meaning of nonchalant: I make pinterest boards, I love character development, I love exploring AUs (historical, mostly tbh, but others like sci-fi and horror too). I'm all in all the time.

I'm down for all things. I don't stress. I don't have triggers. I write all sorts of threads: short threads, long threads, tech threads, heavily plotted threads, improvised threads - I don't care. All I ask from you is enthusiasm.

---- WHAT I EXPECT FROM YOU ----

You're 21+. no exceptions - please don't ask me, I'll just delete your message.

If I write with you, I'll adore your characters, so I need you to care about mine too. This is mandatory. If I'm the only one always asking questions and you show no interest in my characters, I'm out.

You know when to rapid-fire and when to write long descriptive threads and don't care about word counts. I can write a lot but I hate ending up with a thread that has 10 different lines of dialogue because it's messy as hell, also just because a reply is lengthy doesn't mean it has quality or substance.

You'll let me know if you want to drop things.

You'll actually be interested in collaborate writing - some ideas will be discarded, others will be kept, that's just how it goes because roleplaying is a collaborative process.

You enjoy both realism and cliché/cringe tropes.

If you reach out to me, please just dive right in and introduce yourself and let me know which ships you're interested in. I prefer to jump into things - it's the best way to know if we'll be compatible and want the same plots.

That's it! Thank you for reading and don't forget to say hi if you're interested.

[icebluecyanide]

Alex Rider S03E08 Reaction

The last episode already!!! *screaming*

Liveblog

Oh Mrs Jones was John’s handler?? No Ash :(( 

Omg Alex finding out about the nanoparticles!! 👀 Love the moment of realisation

“I went in myself, undercover” oh they really don’t like committing to Alex joining Scorpia of his own free (misguided) will huh. Like not to keep comparing to the book but in the book it’s Blunt who lies to say that Alex was working for MI6 all along when Alex is still feeling bad about being with Scorpia and wonders if Blunt will tell the whole Cobra meeting what he did

Why did Jack even think Alex would be safe going back to Scorpia ahsldfhs

Love Alex not telling people he’s going to die, keep those secrets, Alex <33

Lmao they’re not even staging a breakout?

I feel like it really should not be that big a leap to work out that Julia Rothman wants Alex dead

Why does it sound like Alex is just improvising here ashdlfhs did they not come up with a cover story for how he escaped?? Did they not have budget to shoot the car crash ahsldfhs

I think Nile should have stayed to watch Alex get changed like in the books 😔

“We can get him out the moment I get there, get him clear” I mean I love Alex but like… if he’s dying there is also a whole city dying so is this really your top priority?

Alex’s Scorpia uniform lmao

Wowwww Alex is really not good at this undercover thing huh

No Yassen around anywhere :((( 

Lmao that was so easy unplugging that thing

Damn Nile, that’s some good whump

Oh, she’s running :(((( This show did Julia Rothman dirty tbh

To lose another child 👀👀

Ayyyy Nile escape!! Good on you, Nile

Ahsldfhs Julia Rothman’s poor info security leading to all the other Scorpia members

“I think it’s best all round if we put our differences behind us” ahsldfhslh

“That’s your resignation letter” lmaooooo love it

Ahsldfhs is Blunt gonna resign instead and let Mrs Jones lead the department? Because that would be wild 

Omg he did leave?? Ahsldfhds that’s really funny because Blunt was the only one I liked & this was actually the story he came out looking best imo

Awww Alex getting his dad’s medals 🥺🥺

Love the job offer after university 👀👀 Great set up for post-canon fics haha

Omg Yassen saving Alex from being shot!!!!! They’re both alive at the end!!! Yassen nodding at Alex!!!

Overall

Some nice emotional beats with Alex learning about how he’s going to die, and I like the parallel with Alex shooting past Nile the way John shot past Yassen. Also I really liked the way they wrapped it all up, love the idea that was set up of Alex working as a spy after university and of course the bit where Yassen saves him. Some really great set up for post-canon fics there and everyone I cared about is alive so loved it!

Thoughts

It’s funny how Alex’s age is glossed over in scenes like the art gallery on Malta, but then the Home Secretary is immediately like ‘how old are you’ because he’s visibly a teenager. In general it was kind of wild how she tried to shut the Department down, although I did enjoy the brief moment where Alex was arrested again. Loved Blunt handing her her letter of resignation letter at the end.

I think this show and I disagree on what’s important for a department like The Department, but I don’t think Blunt should have had to resign at the end there. I guess they wanted a nice resolution there and Blunt stepping aside made it easier, but everyone in the Department aside from Blunt was annoying me by how emotional and attached to Alex they got, so I was sad to see him go lol. Like, I remember there was a line in the book about how the SAS team attacking the church had been told by Blunt that the transmitter was their first priority and their second was Alex Rider and honestly he wasn’t wrong for that?? It was kind of wild with the way the team was talking about getting Alex out safely like they weren’t bursting in trying to stop a whole city from getting killed.

I wish Yassen had been in more of this episode, and I was expecting him to actually be around for Invisible Sword, but I guess he had nothing to do with it. Maybe he even went looking for Alex after all? But I love how he shot Nile at the end there, and I’m glad there was no last minute reveal that he knew about John all along. I love how it ended with him nodding at Alex and walking off (into the sunset) and I can totally imagine them meeting again down the line.

Not a fan of Mrs Jones being the one in charge of the stuff with Alex’s parents when in the books it was Blunt who seemed to have run John (with Ash as the point of contact). In general I guess it plays into the way they made Mrs Jones softer and warmer than in the books. For all that this show had them blackmail Alex, and it seems like a grittier take than the books, they actually lose a lot of the book’s edge, also when it comes to stuff like Alex actually joining Scorpia. Like, with the way Alex mentioned it and Jack mentioned it, I’m starting to think Alex really was just pretending to join Scorpia from the start, which I guess is a nice parallel to John, but it’s also vastly less interesting than him actually being manipulated into joining them.

Speaking of John though, I find it a bit hard to believe that no one went ‘oh okay Scorpia are still out there and they want revenge against the department and also remember that time John and his wife’s plane got blown up? In retrospect maybe that was them like Alex said’ and then they could follow that up with ‘if Julia knows about John and all of this is revenge, maybe she wants to kill Alex’. And even if they don’t know that, it’s still pretty dangerous for him to go back if Scorpia assume he has been turned and is working for MI6 now. Especially given how long he was arrested for. I can’t believe they didn’t even try to fake the escape but just had Alex walk out and call them.

Also Alex’s undercover stuff was so bad?? Like Alex I know you know that Julia Rothman wants to kill you but if you play along you could have had your hands free at least?? Though I suppose in fairness to Alex he was trying to distract her to delay things.

This show did Julia Rothman dirty tbh. They made it all about a personal revenge because she loved/was seduced by John and apparently gave up tons of Scorpia secrets and she had multiple male Scorpia members calling her mad for it, plus she didn’t even get to shoot the guard for trying to run away? I hate to say it but Mrs Rothman and Nile were both more fun in the book, though I do love the Nile casting. I really wanted Scorpia to have more of that ‘oh we’re all friendly but if you betray us we will kill you’ vibe.

Okay so enough complaining, here are some positives: Just about anything John and Yassen was very good, loved the Yassen and Alex scenes, and really that was what I was here for so I’m happy. Really good ending and I’m glad they seemed to know they weren’t going to do another season and actually wrapped the story up well. On the whole this season was so much better than I dared hope for, and I think it probably holds up pretty well if you are less into the book like I am. The show’s clearly not telling the same story and that’s fine, and I think it probably told the story it wanted to tell quite well. And I got my John and Yassen and Alex scenes and John/Yassen flashbacks so I’m happy.

[utilitycaster]

Oof, the first half of the episode is a little rough ngl. I like the second half with Aabria a lot more. The first group does get better as the episodes go on if that helps at all.

Also, to add a bit more context to Kollok: the creators - Hyper RPG - are filmmaking nerds and are mostly known on Twitch for their various virtual productions.

So Kollok has a lot of those post production visual effects and sound effects, which is them using their strengths to create a show, similar to CR and voice acting and D20 and improv comedy.

Obviously that's not gonna be everyone's cup of tea and it can get a little too much I admit, but it's not that bad of a show.

Hi anon,

I am...not sure if you read this in the necessary context (this provides some, and this some more, and if I'm being totally honest based on this I don't feel like you read my entire weird rant, which to be fair, it is long and weird but covers quite a lot of issues I have) but I am coming in with the premise of "I think heavy post production of actual play is a poor choice." It don't care that it's their strength; I think that if that's your strength you would do better to apply it to scripted works or to improvised non-actual play shows.

I will freely admit that I went in expecting it not to be my cup of tea for that reason, and with an added grudge of "being hyped up and cited as brilliant by Polygon's AP/TTRPG team, with whom I almost always disagree," but did genuinely want to give it a shot in as good faith as I could muster, instead of solely talking shit about. I hoped the acting, premise, and GM-ing might shine through even though the effects were unlikely to win me over and indeed were likely to annoy me.

That was not the case. I found the GM-ing (Driving?) style profoundly grating and pretentious (and I have a very high tolerance for pretension), the premise nothing to write home about, and honestly I don't know jack about sound mixing but I do know I have perfectly good hearing and had to crank my laptop speakers up to higher than I have to for CR or D20 for the prologue to the prologue only to subsequently hear some of the most irritating static sounds at top volume for the prologue, so I'm not even impressed by the production.

And to be clear: that's all fine. I think people are drawn to different aspects in actual play, and there's room for all sorts of shows. I might even finish this episode simply because if I were recommending something to someone else, and they quit an hour into a 3.5 hour episode, I'd feel a little miffed. But I really don't expect it to ever be my thing, and I watched it mostly because it felt uninformed to be criticizing heavy production in actual play without watching a notably deliberately heavily produced actual play show.

I do want to wrap up, and this isn't specifically directed at you but: when it comes to my opinions on a work, I'm not going to say I'm never going to be swayed by an anon ask because who knows, it could happen, but it's very unlikely. If I dislike something, I don't really care if other people like it - I'd never send anons or get on their posts or maintag something like the post I just made (and which I made nonrebloggable specifically to prevent it from spreading into fan spaces) but I hope that people who like something can show me the same respect and permit my dislike. If you're a fan I will not be offended nor resentful if you unfollow or block me or whatever you need to do, but I can pretty confidently say that new cast members or improved acting will not change the fact that this is extremely not for me.

[bluemidnightmelody]

lover/fighter - my favorite moments

[Little snippets from my Finnick/OC longfic that are stuck in my head]

From Chapter 44 - Neptune in 4th house

Finnick leans against the old wooden desk in the small improvised office and watches her as she purposefully stows all kinds of things in the designated place. "Isn't that too much for you sometimes? After you keep starting arguments with Donna because of me, so that I can get some peace and quiet at home, all you ever do yourself is work," he replies.

Rhea pauses and looks at him. "Those are two things you can't compare," she says seriously. "I love my work. I don't do it because someone else tells me to or because I have to. I never wanted anything other than this. This is where I grew up and taking care of the people around could never be too much."

It's exhausting and sometimes very draining but just as fulfilling for her. She could never imagine stopping. "We both know that you would also rather be at home looking after your people. If you could decide for yourself, you would never have come back here after your Games, would you? You'd be sitting at home in District 4 now, taking the boat out every day, going fishing with the boys, lying in the sun by the sea, eating dinner with Mags and Annie. You probably would have started working as a fisherman after all, like you wanted to, not because you had to, but because you are someone who gets bored easily when you have nothing to do. Maybe you could have become a teacher. I think at least that would really suit you, you're good at it and good with children."

"You think children should take me as an example? I think many at home would disagree," he replies with a smile, but there is a trace of sadness behind it. It's hard to listen to her talk about what his life could have been like, and he likes the picture she paints. Very much so and he has to realize that his comparison was really more than inappropriate.

"I think everyone should take an example from you," she replies seriously. "But we both know that what you do here in the Capitol is nothing but slave labor for Snow to get the most out of the Games. It's not work, it's exploitation, something completely different to my situation."

Not even the victors dare say that out loud, not here in the Capitol. Nevertheless, she simply says it as if it were the most natural thing of all, openly expressing her rejection of the president without a trace of fear. That alone calls for recognition, but in the same breath she is one of the few people who still sincerely believe in his respectable character even after the Capitol has distorted his image so much. He gets a warm tingle in his fingertips as his gaze rests on the floor.

When he looks up again, he has a gentle smile on his face that looks like it wants to become something more. But he doesn't say a word, he just looks at her with this unreadable expression on his face.

"What?" Rhea asks, a little flustered, her embarrassment rising to her head along with the heat. It's as if his eyes have some kind of magical power that allows him to do all sorts of things to you just by looking at you.

His smile widens a little. "Nothing," he then says casually, pauses for a few more seconds, then pushes himself off the edge of the desk and strolls leisurely back into the hallway.

Rhea can hear his footsteps as he descends the old wooden steps of the staircase, presses her hands against her cheeks and sighs. Why is this guy so intense? There's no other way to describe it, everything about him just seems too much to handle. She wonders if he's always like this by nature, or if it's also a bit intentional because he knows exactly what effect he has on others. Probably a mixture of both.

It's like a damn strong drink and when she's around him, she sometimes feels like she's in a daze. But because of the sweetness, you only notice the effect when it's too late and then you just want more and more. She's worried that she might do something foolish while she's under the influence or even end up becoming an alcoholic, so to speak.

She quickly returns to the task at hand to distract herself from these thoughts. Since she knows what's really going on in Finnick's life, that warm tingling feeling in her chest always leaves a tinge of guilt behind, because something in her subconscious says that it's taboo to feel these things, that he would reject having this kind of affection directed at him.

Links to all the chapters: lover/fighter - Chapter Index

fanfiction on ao3 and wattpad

[marcianoliterati]

# A MUCH ADO ABOUT NOTHING ADAPTATION WHERE THEY'RE STUCK TOGETHER DUE TO COVID LOCKDOWNS,BORED AF, AND ON THEIR PHONES 247.

A SOCIAL MEDIA AU. SORT OF.

claudio benedict pedro and tagalong little brother john are roadtripping

italy.

they pay a visit to their old friends' parents house, where hero and

beatrice are also holidaying.

hero and claudio have been heavily flirting online

beatrice and benedict have been fighting online for like a decade,

basically since they met

everyone who follows them but doesnt know them irl thinks it's just a

game and that they're actually dating

all of them are online but none of them are big influencers or anything,

no one has more than 5k followers

and their followers beyond friends and family dont even cross that much

they all post about different things outside of life stuff

only beatrice and benedict intersect, theyre the only ones who have a

lot of different active accounts and they follow each other on every

single one, from like lj to fb to tumblr to twitter to insta to tiktok,

they even regularly show up in each other's reddit posts for the sole

purpose of disagree,most of the time, theyre not even in the same

subreddits or fandoms

but their spats are amusing and a few bits have gone viral before.

but then you get a lot of late-twenty something stuck together, and

posting all the time, reviving somewhat dormant account, it's like an

impromptu accidental reality show

at first its just like games, from tag and hide and seek to passionate

games of uno and clue,tours of the place, building shit, improvising

stuff, and theyre constantly posting little snippets, and so on

benedict and beatrice both post the same thing like "worst person to get

stuck with" and at first people thing they went on holiday together but

now theyre just stuck at like a villa the parents rented

"oh so you just met up while on holiday. riiiiiiiight"

they keep posting, complaining about dumb shit the other is one, about

their disgustingly in love with friends, and so on.

their friends also post clips of them arguing, like during games where

theyre always rivals,and others of them always seeking each other out

a new account pops up something like beadick updates or something, that

takes the time of trawling through all the accounts to post compilations

and builds a bit of a timeline of them through the years

then a different account pops up that start sending them personal

videos, clearly some of their friends having fun

they also post about the group discussing b&b (crucially hidden from

them)

and later both bea and ben hearing the others discussing them and how

they react

cue compilations like "no women will ever tempt me" next to "but it bea

wants me im down" and ben dissing bea next to talking her up after, same

for bea.

it goes like that for a bit

the leak continues posting them acting awkward around each other, trying

to argue then running away, spying on the other,trying to do something

nice while seeming like they dont care

then theres some event theyve organised

a lot of posts of everyone looking nice

a few of people drinking

and then a livestream of dancing is interrupted by a lot of shouting the

sound of stuff breaking and what seems like a physical fight

and then everyone goes quiet

then it switches

the audience, which had been steadily growing, is left in the dark, the

fourth wall is broken when they decide to reach in and find out what the

hell is going on.

someone hacks the complex's cctv

the updates account posts different bits, claudio having a huge jealous

tantrum and starting a fight, hitting hero in the process

then b&b left alone in the garden, with confessions of love to follow

and then shouting and storming off "i will cut his heart out with a

spoon!"

"for you, i will defy covid and the goverment" promises ben before

leaving

the others try to pack and leave, but are stopped and so they hide in a

small cabin on the edge of the property, where they start drinking

it is there where ben finds them, smashes the bottles and dares them to

make it right or he will reign fire on them

claudio laughs at first going "but why is the rum gone?????!"

but then he gets actually worried

the audience witness this via cctv, they see ben through the grounds,

finding the cabin,hear the smashing and shouting

then they start looking back seeing if there is any back footage or if

its been deleted.

it hasnt

they find a treasure trove

not knowing how to contact them discreetly,beadick updates posts a video

of little brother john discussing sabotage plans with some minions and

they tag every account

the cctv is only outside for privacy reasons so they only know it worked

when they see john making a run for it, trying to climb the walls, being

caught by claudio and beaten before john pulls him off

then everyone reunites outside, when they see them coming up

hero goes up to john and hits him, then she goes up to claudio and does

the same

she spits at pedro and calls him a coward

claudio falls on his knees and begs for forgiveness

but she tells him he's clearly not worth her trust or love

everyone is feeling hurt and sore and not sure where to go now

pedro steps up and apologises

he shouldve known better than to trust anything john says, he's always

loved stirring up trouble for no reason

and they shouldve come to her not make a huge deal and ruin everything

claudio also apologises but more begrudginly, same as john

as they all just sort of stand there, their phones ping

and so pedro goes 'hey whats the deal with the video? who found it?"

before anyone gets an answer someone checks and gasps

the audience, stirring shit up, sends the video of them all plotting to

get b&b together, and laughing as they talked it all up

"so you do not love me? it was all a ruse?"

they both accuse each other and then turn to their friends, who in turn

took to look at the cameras in suspcion

their phones ping again. only b&b's first, which makes them both put on

pained faces of "what now?"

so then everyone's faces ping

it's a video compilation of b&b doing nice things for the other in

secret

bea spent an afternoon learning to make ben's favourite biscuits, and

then just left them in the kitchen for him to find

ben spent forever tracking something bea forgot, and then hiding it in

her room to make it look like it was just temporarily misplaced

bea finding ben's favourite movie and casually engineering things for a

watchalong

ben coming up with a thousand different ways to distract bea whenever

she starts to look sad or worried

they all watched, as it dawns on them that a) apparently, theyve had an

audience this whole time

and b)it was never a ruse

b&b were always in love, just too afraid or stubborn or emotionally

constipated to do anything about it

so hero turns to bea and goes "all this time? what the hell happened

between you two?"

beatrice and benedict look at each other and just shrug

"it doesnt matter. we're here now"

they kiss

beadick updates posts a playlist of several hours on yt featuring their

whole story, with videos of them as teens, shyly flirting, to a lot of

screenshots and clips of them arguing online, to the whole saga in

italy, ending in their big kiss

as an epilogue, the two post a video of them in the airport, they thank their audience, and say now they can travel so they will be going off together

[raeseddon]

Had one of those "well *that* makes sense" moments the other day when I realized that the specific American cartoons I watched as a kid all but assured I'd adore Shounen and (some) Shoujo manga later in life-- I'm talking your YST/Ronin Warriors and your Pretear's and the like-- the ones that take time to really push and examine the psychological impact of being told "you are the world's only chance at survival, and for as competent as they seem, everyone else around you is winging it as much as you are."

(I tried, but couldn't get into Madoka Magica, it struck me as one of those shows that people were reading way too much into to justify liking something that was that dark and unabashedly misogynistic. There's deconstructing a genre, and then there's punishing your main characters because you think they deserve it for having certain feelings/beliefs that are stereo-typically associated with their gender.)

The American cartoons I've been jumping between watching are the D&D cartoon and Mighty Max, and man, the mid-80's to early 90's really had a thing for not just cryptic but borderline cruel "mentor" characters who's primary flaw was having planned things out sometimes thousands of years in advance in their heads only to become very flustered and upset by the main characters deviating from "the plan" -- a plan that more often than not said mentors never reveal in full because they know their protege' will disagree with it vehemently. (See: Dungeon Master in D&DC and Virgil in Mighty Max.)

I'm almost willing to give Virgil more of a pass than DM because there's genuine PTSD and survivor's guilt going on in Virgil's case, whereas DM has compartmentalized things so much the only time he shows any regret for how he treats the main characters is when they quite literally snap and tell him that's it, they're done, fuck it, someone needs to die. (It shows how frustrated with modern social media I am when it's actually refreshing to hear a cartoon say the words kill and die. God that's depressing....)

Virgil has watched his previous protege' sacrifice his life for The Cause and it's one of the biggest reasons he gets upset whenever Max "goes off-script" because literally everything he's planned up to that point has been about keeping Max, the literal child savior, alive...while at the same time forgetting he's a child and that kids can be really good at improvising on the fly. And where Virgil learns to trust Max's instincts in the end, there's nothing of the sort between Dungeon Master and the kids in the D&D cartoon-- he leads them around from one traumatizing situation to the next, relying on Hank's innate willingness to trust people who help him and play on his good samaritan streak--which is so strained by the end the only reason he continues to trust DM is because it's the only thing he knows how to do, and he knows it. So it's really, really hard at the end of the day to have a lot of sympathy for Dungeon Master, while Virgil at least works through some of his issues.

Come 1995 and of course I'm going to see the parallels between Mighty Max and YST/Ronin Warriors-- sketchy mentor characters contrasted with really bright, caring and trusting main characters (with a fantastically written female lead this time as well!)and later Pretear. In fact a huge part of me feels like Himeno and Max would benefit from being in group therapy together-- especially with the "everyone around me lied by omission almost right to the end because they refused to believe I would mature to the emotional challenge of handing The Truth" plot point.

TL;DR

American cartoons in the mid/late 80's and early 90's weren't quite as "dark" or edgy enough to catch the culture zeitgiest that anime later did--<i>but</i> if anime had taken longer to catch hold here in the States, you can absolutely see where American cartoons were stepping up to the same level of maturity, aging with their audience and filling the emotional need for more mature stories that had been growing the entire time Regan had his iron-fisted control of the FCC.

[woennix]

Just a little qsmp discourse post, I've been thinking about it for a while and I just wanna share something.

I agree that everyone should have their own interpretations of characters and you don't need to keep up with EVERY pov to say what you think about a character, but I do think that people should be a lot more kinder with the interpretations they have of characters in general.

This comes mainly from seeing people talking badly about characters (the latest one qWilbur, but I've seen it time and time again, with characters I enjoy and characters I don't). This always ends up with people having more context for a character's actions than others, and others making a big judgement without seeing the whole picture, or people who actually try to listen and understand a character's motives but are still upset about it.

I do think disagreeing or even disliking characters is fair, I mean, I do dislike some characters, but ALL of them have motives and explanations for why they do what they do, and also ALL of them have done questionable things to eachother.

The thing is, if I try to, I can create a horrible narrative for EVERY character (I'm not joking, I'm pretty sure I can) where they are manipulative, self-centered, selfish, hypocritical... but telling everyone: ''This character is SO evil because of this specific one thing he did one time to my favourite character!!!'' when that was a cc having fun, or maybe a slip up etc, kinda kills the fun for the ccs. Something I feel some people not take into account is that this is minecraft improvised roleplay, where at the same time creators are meeting eachother and just playing and having fun.

Yes, lighthearted moments where people are joking around kind of are lore, but sometimes, ccs just wanna have fun. This happens a lot with qRoier, where obviously his joking attitude is integrated into the lore and his character is actually joking about a lot of stuff, but like, for example, him enjoying mines is like 90% the cc wanting to have fun, not his characters actually not giving a fuck about killing the eggs (just an example of some takes I've seen). Even though if we think about what he is doing realistically, it wouldn't be an absurd assumption to make that he doesn't care. Now, I think it should be interpreted as what it is,,, Roier enjoying and having fun in the server. What I mean to say is, is this lore? Yes it is, qRoier canonically enjoys mines. But also, are we going to overanalyze this and make assumptions on his character and actually apply real-life logic into how we interpret every interactions he has? I would say that's too much, and makes the server an only roleplaying server where creators can't just fuck around and have fun.

I will say to be clear, if someone wished to bring things into their interpretation of the character that are little details like these and make it a headcanon for themselves, thats completely fair! But that's not actually canon unless the ccs decides to make it canon, and it is important to make that distinction in my opinion.

Btw I chose the qRoier example beacuse I think it wasn't a very big deal (at least in my tl) but I do not mean to create or re-open a whole debate about his morality then if it was big, I am just using him as an example. And also I say this because multiple ccs have complained on some way or another about feeling a bit overwhelmed/upset with this kind of thing. Cellbit and Baghera complained about people misinterpreting their characters and projecting into canon things they didn't mean to do, and Roier has complained (albeit a bit jokingly) that things are too heavy and people are too intense with the lore.

Honestly if this didn't bother the ccs I would tell most people that even though I dislike what I see as mischaracterizations, you can go crazy lmao, but if it makes them not be able to enjoy roleplaying as much and being in general on the server, then yknow... It could be cool if we could find a way to criticize or say what we think about characters in a more contructive way that adjusts to the ccs' vision.