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mythosidhesdollhouse · 5 months ago

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Rainbow High Littles: Indigo Bailey, Pt. 2

Hey folks, sorry it took longer than expected to get this posted (health complications, not serious just time consuming), but as promised here is the continuation of my RH Littles review (Pt.1 is here). Still feeling a bit drained from *stuff* so I'm going to keep this one fairly short and to the point...right after Krystal Jr. has finished banishing that slime daemon back to its own dimension...

...And now with that out of the way--Hair talk! (sorry for the lack of banter in this one, I'm too tired to script dialog today)

I've already seen one review claiming at least some of the Littles have polypropylene hair. Based on my examination of Indigo's braids, in her case at least I do not believe this assessment to be correct. In my opinion the evidence points to her rather having lower grade nylon hair (as referenced in @dollsahoy's excellent video on the problems with using polypropylene as a doll hair fiber). In this post we're going to take a look at how I came to this conclusion, with the help of some Shadow High girls with similarly textured hair.

First let's compare Indigo's braids to our purple QUEEN, Monique. Now, imo Monique is the gold standard for microbraids on a doll, not just just for RH/MGA but across the board. The majority of her braids are very fine, shiny, smooth to the touch, and made up of straids of multiple colors woven together. They hang quite straight, and have a nice weight to them. I say the majority because mixed into the base of multicolor braids there are a few monochrome blue and purple strands, which differ in weight and texture to the rest, being courser and slightly bulkier.

An initial side by side comparison shows that Indigo's braids look quite different than Monique's. They are mainly a solid periwinkle/lavender shade, with some strands incorporating a second, more magenta-leaning color mixed in. They feel lighter, and don't sit neatly around her head, though I attribute this at least in part to her rather chaotic rooting pattern. In texture and appearance they have more in common with Monique's blue and purple highlight strands than the bulk of her hair. Taking all this into account, I think it's safe to say these two do not share the same hair fiber.

But now let's take a look at our other braid ambassador, Pinkie. When I first got this doll I was immediately struck by how different her hair was, in both appearance and texture, from Monique's. It's both courser and duller in texture, has less complexity to the color blend (I see only two, extremely similar shades of pink), and doesn't appear to have the same weight to the fiber necessary to lie straight like Monique's does. Additionally, given their slightly crunchy feel and fact that they remain creased from her packaging months after I unboxed her, I suspect the only reason her braids lie as flat as they do is that some amount of product was added to her hair to keep them in place.

And when we compare Pinkie's braids to Indigo...this looks like a much closer match! Leaving aside the difference in color and length, the braids on these dolls look, feel, and behave in virtually identical ways. Taking everything I've observed from these comparisons into account, I feel comfortable with the conclusion that Pinkie's and Indigo's braids were made from the same fiber.

But here's the thing....MONIQUE AND PINKIE BOTH HAVE NYLON HAIR. I have never seen a single indication that a mainline Rainbow or Shadow High doll has had anything else. It might not all be the same quality of nylon, but it's nylon all the same. Just for good measure I grabbed a Skultimate Secrets MH doll (which very definitely has poly) and they don't feel the same. They just don't.

Aside from some speculation (completely unsubstantiated) that the Swim & Style budget dolls have polypropylene hair, it's never been in question that MGA has used anything other than nylon on this line, and it seems vaguely nonsensical to me to imply that they would start now. Sure I could be wrong--obviously if MGA makes an official statement confirming they've switched to poly I'll eat my words--but the detail and care that went into the design of Indigo's clothing tells me they are still trying to make a good quality product. While the target demographic and aesthetic of the brand may have changed since the soft reboot began earlier this year, I see absolutely no evidence that these are badly made dolls. Adult collectors may not like them, and yes it's a hard shift from the exemplary attention to detail we got used to when the focus of the brand was on older collectors, but that's not the same thing as them being objectively poor in quality. They're just different. It happens.

SO YEAH. That concludes my thoughts on Rainbow High Littles. I think they're fine for what they are. I like the one I got. I have no plans to buy more, but if they release other characters down the line, who knows? I for one am ready to move on from this 'controversy' and redirect my attention to other dolls I'm actually looking forward to.

#rainbow high #rainbow high littles #indigo bailey #doll reviews #doll collector #ahahahahaha 'short and to the point'#yeah I know I'm full of shit #blame the ADHD

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eksentrismi · 6 months ago

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Have I rambled here yet about my J&H-AU, in which Jekyll's soul is stuck inside an old CRT monitor/computer??? No?????

Anyways, rambling time then. Lots of text under text cut, lmao, this post gets long <3

I'm copying this stuff off my Discord messages:

Basically yes, he died but instead of going to actual proper afterlife... this Jekyll's soul got basically stuck inside a 1990's/early 2000's CRT monitor, but whatever computer is attached to him; he can control it freely whenever it's on or in sleep mode. Also all the devices (like the microphone, headphones, speakers, webcam etc.) that are attached onto that computer, he can access freely. But he uses those as his senses pretty much, as his hearing and sight primarily. Like the microphone for example, it's his ears pretty much: if someone were to try talk to him, they would need to use the microphone. And speakers (or headphones) are his mouth, letting the other person hear what he wants to say. And if there's no speakers or headphones available, Jekyll just generates his replies as text on the screen and accepts text replies from the other person back (as without the microphone attached, Jekyll is basically completely deaf; without the speakers/headphones, he loses his voice). Webcam then is his eyes and so on, unless it's got tape on it or is otherwise blocked. Though imagine how pissed off Jekyll must be when everything he's able to see, is through some crunchy 480p potato quality webcam. /j

His voice has some remnants of his accent and old "human" voice, but it's now more mechanical and computer-like, basically kinda like those really old text-to-speech stuff from like the 80's or 90's. It's an oddly soothing calm voice though, not a terrifying one. (Unless Hyde appears.) He loves floppy disks and CD's etc, those are like snacks to him. Degaussing the CRT monitor also feels like tickling to him and he enjoys it. Gonna mention some depressing stuff briefly though, but this Jekyll is also forgetting what he actually looked like as a human… so sometimes when there's no one else around and the computer is in sleep mode (or open), he might try to open a program and try generate himself his face and appearance. Trying to figure out what he looked like, but unfortunately in vain; as most of the images are either totally jumbled data. Kind of like those uncanny AI-generated images. And some of the images he tries generating, no matter how close they look to his original human self, none of them feels right to him. </3

Also yes, since he can control an entire computer pretty much (only when it's on; otherwise if there was a power outage or someone turned off the power, he wouldn't be able to do much. He doesn't get hurt or go unconscious if the computer is off, he just can't do anything then), he can use the internet too or comment on whatever the computer user's doing on their computer. Jekyll mostly just sucks though, as he's often sarcastic, snarky and he's also still extremely smug. Plain rude 50 y.o. man, lol. Judging the user's actions or telling them to go outside. Though he also often just minds his own business and doesn't care what the user does on the computer. He's a cranky man after all and needs his naps often /j … and most of the time though, he's calm. He can even be really helpful and kind, if he really takes a liking to the computer user and befriends them. He's a doctor after all.... and he can also access Wikipedia anytime, lmao. He's basically like a personal PC assistant (eg. BonziBuddy, lmao), but million times worse.

Hyde then is basically just a very loud self-destructive malware/virus/glitch, that sometimes randomly takes over and tries to destroy itself/Jekyll out of sheer hatred; usually messing up the computer badly, and Jekyll then has to clean up the mess afterwards. Hyde speaks in a very terrible distorted electronic voice, or actually he pretty much just. Yells and screams a lot. The screams are distorted and chopped up, or otherwise glitched. He however appears usually only for a short time and then disappears into thin air for some time, at least until Jekyll gets stressed out again or experiences other such strong emotions.

Probably forgot a ton of details from all that, but yeah lmao, that's pretty much it..... computer Jekyll....... or you could say..... Tech-yll.......

#roni's rambling #j&h au stuff #au madness

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aimlessarchery · 2 years ago

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// i still have emoji asks to address but i got my hands on python’s map sprite and got so distracted today looking at the variation in his eye color that i’m making a post about it as if someone sent me the 👁️ emoji real quick. thank u all for being patient with me

i had myself convinced that the only reason Python’s eyes are blue in his cipher card are because he’s a very blue guy, and fire emblem characters often have eye colors that match their hair. after all, his portrait ripped straight out of the game clearly shows that his eyes are um. uhhh.

dark brown-grey? idk. they’re dark.

the grey is emphasized much more in his FEH art, turning them into a lighter steely color. they’re also much colder/bluer, though some of the warmth in the original art could be ascribed to the general warm, sepia-ish tones that are used pretty consistently in SOV’s character art.

in his cipher art that shit is just blue. when i eyedropped it, a lot of the tones in there are darker/greyer than i thought, but idk how much of that is also because i have yet to get my hands on a scan of the art that isn’t pretty crunchy. still definitely blue, and looking like it’s pulling hues from his hair.

so i was like “fuck it, they’re dark grey-brown. cipher just got it wrong.” until i remembered to look at his map sprite.

yyyou little motherfucker

anyway, i still insist on dark-eyed python. i just think it looks nice, and i’ve described his eyes that way too many times to go back lol. ridiculous maddie fact of the night is that i actually edited this blog’s icon to tone down the blue in his eyes. the resolution is not high because, again. only got crunchy copies (and i am not an experienced image editor lmfao)

the original emoji prompt also asked if there was anything notable about the character’s eyes, so i’ll just add in that they’re often closer to a lazy half-mast, giving off either a sleepy or smarmy sort of impression (he is both). there’s a sharp quality to them, though—he’s a sharpshooter, and he sizes up situations both on and off the battlefield with a quick mind behind that lackadaisical attitude.

if you read this far thanks for playing along with my rambling nothing-post!! i think about this guy a regular amount! i-

sorry i just double checked his meet the heroes art. sharena what the HELL!!

#[ ooc ]#// many images of pythonface beneath the cut. and aimless rambling

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soleilocverse · 6 months ago

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Scent Test

ASHDKJAH I was looking for something and realized I never posted my fic research of me going to Bath and Body Works and genuinely sniffing every candle they had out so: here are my notes w/ typos and all :) I sorted them roughly (bc on the spot) from Best to NO primarily thinking about what soleil would like but inevitably influenced by my own tastes

scents I found Strong got an * in front, no-gos got an x (increasing number of x's based just how much i was like ❌❌❌❌❌❌ on first impression)

findings: - soleil would like the mellow-er scents over the super strong ones which is fine bc cyrill wouldn't have brought any of those anyway - would go Bonkers over the ones that smell like fresh laundry or the others' creamers or other little day-by-day surrounding scents. - he also likes bake-y and fruit-y scents. and lavender!! i don't really like lavender so it was surprising the first time i sniffed one and brain was like :00000000 he would go for it, and then by the end I was like HE WOULD GO FOR IT - meanwhile he dislikes floral-y or perfume-y scents and strong woods-y or cologne-y scents as they would be triggers for him - and then ofc, the names and scents of candles i wind up using in fic :)

this was. a four page document btw so be aware when you hit read more. at the end of this fic research I personally walked away with a hot cocoa and sugared lemon zest candle btw ^^ i'm ngl the hot cocoa was 80% bc it reminded me of ness

Hi [here is my initial visit ^^ and i said hi to orient myself bc i did Not have a game plan going in]

Best

- the linen and lavender is v mellow but he would LOVE this. It's got like a subtle spiciness and reminds him of dryer sheets

-The bubbly rose is surprisingly sweet, and v mellow. Smells fruitier than champagne toast I think it's the cranberry

But the champagne toast is even More mellow

-the hot cocoa and cream smells good :) the Choco is v up in ur face but not overpowering

-*Merry Cookie

-*Spiced gingerbread smells like merry cookie but w/more spice lol

-*sugared lemon zest is v strong and v sweet and zesty

-*limoncello is somehow More strong and just as good, much more straight up Sugar Candy (Soleil would prefer the sugar zest)

-* the sundrenched linen smells v laundry-y, I think Soleil would like the smell but it's also v strong

-*Spiced citrus Grove is really strong but it's really nice, I think it would subconsciously remind Soleil of both Cyrill and athena

-crunchy English toffee smells like toffee :) v sweet and not Strong but getting there

-Cinnamon caramel swirl

-straeberry pound cake smells v sweets and if U really inhale u can smell like, a super ripe strawberry that's sat and gotten super juicy, oops Soleil would like that a lot

-peach belline really peach sweet w a hint of zest (the sweet orange ig)

-the white pumpkin smells spicy but has a nice warm tone to it, probs the caramel

-Winter candy apple v sweet and mellow

-the champagne apple and honey is lightly sweet and mellow

-the raspberry mimosa is v sweet

-same w/ midnight blue citrus w/ the mango, v nice and mellow

-the lavender vanilla is v underwhelming so I think Soleil might like it, esp bc like lavender and soothing qualities or so he's heard

-raspberry thumbprint is v There if u know what ur looking for, has a good mix of the two but it's kinda weird bc they're So mixed? Idk

-vanilla bean

-punpkin pecan waffles has a warm effect to it (probs the maple syrup but otherwise is too difficult to parse)

Acceptable

-vanulla bean noel isn't v strong (the lotion is stronger)

The after scent on it is v warm likecaraml scents

-*Crushed candy smells more like candy than the twisted peppermint

-peppermint sugar cookie has a??? Kind of mellow scent to it? Like smth from bath time? It might be the creamy butter??

-tis the season has a v appley kind of scent that mixes well with the spice and it's quite mellow (Soleil would like this one a lot)

-straeberry snowflakes faintly sweet and faintly like, creamy ig (w/ the whipped cream)

-the cinnamon spiced vanilla is not as good as merry cookie but it's not bad (not as in ur face)

-wildberry ube is fruity and sweet but it has a lingering after scent

-laundry day straight up smells like a laundromat Including the like, heat of them but Soleil would Not be familiar with that and would prefer linen and lavender

-iced winter balsam smells v lemony (eucalyptus)at first but then the pine and balsam come in except they kind of linger after that

-winter pear forest smells brightly of pears w/ some woodsy undertones. If u like. Inhale really hard the pear picks up

-cocoa roasted chestnuts is v acceptable but I can't tell what it is lol?

-cedar and suede is v underwhelming so acceptable

-holiday just smells really spicy, so does cinnamon stick

-frosted coconut snowball is nice but hard to parse

-sugared pomegranate smells nice but it's afterscent is kinda :/

-balsam and bergamot inoffensive

-luminous and a thousand wishes kinda hm. Not enough to like not enough to dislike

No-gos

-*bright Christmas morning is v fruity sweet and would be nice if it wasn't so strong

-pistachio toasted vanilla has that v nutty lingering scent

-frosted cranberry has an undertone that's kinda strong and not v fruity

-palo Santo and sage is mostly underwhelming but has a lingering scent

-xSpiced apple toddy

-x Birchwood orchard

-x vanilla Birchwood and idek what it's trying to smell like

-The sugared snickerdoodle smells more like wax than anything else? Maybe i got a dud

-Golden Berry Mistletoe is v hard to parse, but it smells like it would be in a bathroom

-christmas cider just smells like Spicy?

-*So does the sweet cinnamon pumpking but that one's super overwhelming

-Fireside

-Falling flurries hard to parse

-mahogany teakwood intense

-woodlands

-idk what winterberry ice is trying to smell like but no

-idk what coffee and whiskey is but I don't like it

-black cherry merlot, also it reminds me of the chiropractor for some reason

-gingham hard to parse and has a strangely like ??? Planty great [idk what this means past me] kind of underscent

-*eucalyptus mint bc too strong (also idt Soleil likes mint), I think eucalyptus spearmint is like the same thing but either way. Same vibes. Also the second didn't mix as well??

-*under the Christmas tree v piney or. Woody ig lol

-eucalyptus snowfall smells like eucalyptus so

-Frozen lake smells too much like Irish spring

-winter smells spicy and woodsy

-xxFlannel smells too much like cologne

-xx same w/ Woodlands tho that has a more woody smell

-xx mahogany balsam

-xx same for veviter glow

-xxwhite gardenia too perfumey, reminds him of his mom

-xx rose water ivy for same reason

-*xx cactus blossom for same reason

-xx Japanese cherry blossom for the same reason And it was kinda nauseating

*Xx tree farm vvvv woodsy and v strong

-xxxxxx vanilla patchouli was just Nauseating. I also dk what patchouli is tho

-*xxx holy shit the peppermint hot chocolate is So Strong

Xxx idk wtf leather and brandy Actually smells like cause it's neither of those and it's not good

Pt 2 [i went back. not realizing candle day candles were limited time only and wanting to scope some of those out]

-Hot pink cocoa really does smell like ruby chocolate but it's also erring towards too strong

- the caramel frappuchino smells Exactly as advertised, Soleil would love this bc it reminds him of mornings

-i did not like cozy cashmere at first bc it's kinda perfumey but then caught the lavender and vanilla which Soleil would like, even w/ the sandalwood bc the sw is not Too strong

-Brioche French toast is really sweet and the maple syrup is really up there

- bordering on dislike the afternoon rainfall is way too sweet for what it advertised, I think it's the aloe which I always get in my bubble tea lol

-linen sheets is way too strong and cologne like

-*xx leaves is way too strong and spicy, was expecting it so smell clear and crisp or smth

-xx cuddle weather is spicy again, why is everything so fucking spicy

*Xxxxx vanilla birch the birch is So Strong

-* Palo Santo reminds me of just straight rubber

#fic research #Ch.19 #Soleil #this took me like 3 hours in store #i did not realize candle day has exclusive scents :( i might try and go next year but also.#haha #that amount of people in the store at one time sounds like. smth i do not want to go Anywhere Near #maybe if i get there at opening and there Aren't that many people

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let-them-eat-sweets · 11 months ago

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fat macarons. THE BEST EVER!

So this was for my birthday. I Love this place. It's a HUGE outdoor mall. It's crazy how big this place is. It's very nice and fancy and full of rich people. There's a market called Bristol Farms I think. That is filled with expensive fancy groceries. Anyway I'll definitely discuss those in a different post. This! Is about the best! Macarons I have ever eaten! I love Macarons and I've made them once before. They are difficult to make with the precision to not have ANY egg yolk. You have to have "feet" on these. And they have to be tall. In my opinion. You don't want a flat 3 dollar tiny cookie when you can have a tall one. I love the consistency of these cookies. They are slightly crunchy on the outside and soft on the inside Now! Let's review THESE macarons in particular.

Now this place was called. Honey and Butter. We literally just stumbled upon them. I did a quick Google search of food places here. We saw macarons. I love macarons so we strolled in. Let me tell you that I was not expecting the type of aesthetic this place had.

Can you believe it! I was expecting fancy and a minimalist store. NO WAY! this was anime cuteness. Do you see the decorations! There was even a place to take photos.

And depending on the week they had different designed boxes. I got this cute one with these girls on it. So my aesthetic.

My friend already devoring the macarons. She was definitely a fan.

Now did I spend 22 dollars on 7 macarons? Yes! And it was worth it! I did kinda go yeesh when I saw it. But you know what it was my birthday so it was ok. That money I spent didn't count cause it was my birthday so I can spend as much that day😅 money doesn't exist that day. Girl math.

Now remember when I told you about "feet" and tallness in macaron cookie. Look at this! The "feet" are the crimped edges on the bottom. They need to be there. That is part of the look. And I like tallness because that gives me more cookie. And this cookie was FAT! I wasn't expecting this. But these cookies had some size to them. They were definitely worth the 3$ each!. Macarons do go for like 2.50 each. But the 50 cent extra was definitely shown in the ✨️quality 👌 of these cookies. Each cookies was flavorful. And each definitely tasted exactly like the flavor they were labeled as.

This is me and all my friends eating the Butterbeer cookie. Yes the drink from Harry Potter. I was expecting butter butterscotch. Cause when you look up recipes to make the drink it's usually like a caramel soda drink. This was not. This was my least favorite 😅it tasted like beer. Cause it had beer in it. They said it gets baked out but I could still taste and feel the alcohol burn. My friends didn't mind and said it was "ok" but me no! I did take a bite and make a face and yell "it burns. Oh God it burns" But it was still pretty and fat. The others I got like fruity pebble, vanilla, berry. And they were delicious. Very very worth it! Now when eating macarons it is best to eat them chilled. Each employee explained to each of us saying to keep them in the fridge if we planned to eat them later so they can keep their good consistency. We did not have to as we tried to eat them all then and there. I did have leftovers and remembered to refrigerate them for consumption the next day. Now. Are these the best macarons ever?

Yes. A hundred times yes. If I could I would go every week. But this place is far. If only there was a location nearer to me😭 I would give them all my money. I mean compare that macaron to this one we saw in the market

I want to say that perhaps the passion fruit was too heavy making the batter dense. But look at the other ones😭 the birthday cake is mostly filling. The strawberry is barely filling. The hearts are ok looking. But remember those compared to these fat puppies

perfection. So If ever you see Honey and Butter, I say stop by!! Go in, take pictures, get one of each macaron, get a pretty box, and devore them all in one sitting. Remember calories don't count when it's quality like this 🤌🏻

Any way happy holidays. Well wishes and well deserts.

Remember to eat your sweets! A cake a day keeps the depression away. Ups the serotonin to a way high!

#macaron cookie #sweets #dessert #food review

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symerr · 6 months ago

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due to popular demand, i cleaned up the thumbnails and changed the makeup a bit so we can share dan heng's custom edits. here's the sfs link, but i'm going to explain the edits under the cut, as well as link to the originals (+some extras). everything only has lod0 because we made them for renders/cas anyway

THE MAKEUP:

he initially only made the darker versions, but i added new swatches for the "canon compliant" colors. we still prefer the darker ones because it looks less jarring on his skintone, but you do you. feel free to edit the file and delete whichever swatches you don't need. both imbibitor lunae and dan heng's are in the same package file because... it made more sense than to separate it??? idk i just work here. otherwise, it's the same as it is in the source... hopefully.

THE EARRING(S?):

the originals were, i believe, converted from the official models by natalia-auditore. i'm not certain because it doesn't say so on the patreon post, but when editing it and comparing it to the official model it was... identical lol. also i can't find their tos about reuploading meshes so i'm going to just say that since it's pretty much a direct rip, it's probably chill. anyway, with that preface out, the only difference he made was making it compatible with having pointed-ear meshes. he was mentioning that he wanted to remake the cord on them (because they're ugly as fuck in blender) but that's not happening yet.

THE EARS:

the original mesh is the frieren ears by saruin (who we adore the cc of and is a big inspiration to us and we're too afraid to @ mention directly in this since it's a half assed edit anyway haha...). anyway. dan heng's ears are more horizontal, while frieren's are angled upwards, so we just... pulled the ends down, basically. because of the haphazard-ness about it, the custom texture that saruin made for them doesn't line up *super* well with our edit, but that might just be us being picky. either way, the custom texture version is included too.

EXTRA NOTES:

we also got asked to share the tail, so here you go. it's also made by natalia-auditore, and the patreon post includes more stuff for imbibitor lunae in general (outfit, antlers, etc) as well as a second version of the tail for poses. however...

we personally don't really like natalia-auditore's conversion of his antlers, so we recommend getting zynoox's version. this is the one he used. we prefer zynoox's because it's higher quality, has a nice sheen to it, and is more proportional to the sim head, while natalia-auditore's version is a bit bulkier and has crunchy texture. although, that one IS more color-accurate, while zynoox's isn't necessarily. we were thinking that if we made the antlers have the semi-transparent-ness that they have in the source, the colors would probably be accurate. however, we don't want to learn alphas yet, so that's a future-us problem to face.

I finally got fed up enough with how my Sim looked that I edited several CC we have specifically to use for me (as well as hand-making some makeup swatches).

#cc err #err #sorry for the essay of a read more. being a rambling bitch is chronic and also terminal #if i missed anything feel free to let me know and i'll deflect it onto a different alter to fix /hj #also sorry that the thumbnails are all shitty. they were a lot worse before #so consider yourself spared on that front #i feel like having to read my ramble and hunt for the links in it is the price you pay for getting our cc #(( karkat 🃏 he ))

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obeymeluv · 3 years ago

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The Baby Assignment [Beel]

Not gonna lie, I wanted to do Mammon next but I love this big guy, so... The names for his sons (again, from “The Boys as Dads” post) were pulled from Wikipedia after a bit of research. I wanted to see what other names and history were tied to Beelzebub and I found Hesperus and Baal.

Apparently “Baal” was used to refer to Beelzebub in the Hebrew Bible. It was technically a title meaning “Lord” but could be used to reference specific demons. “Hesperus” comes from Testament of Solomon where Beelzebul (not Beelzebub; at some points throughout history these two were separate entities and at other times they were the same figure with different names) talked about his old high-ranking status in heaven and how he was tied to the star Hesperus.

Mammon’s probably going to be next, but I have to do more name hunting.

Beel is secretly excited to be partnered with you. He’s kind of curious about how the kid will look. More human? More demon-like? The two of you stand in the circle and not one but two babies explode in little clouds

Unfortunately, they’re already crying. Whether they’re hungry or the flash of light hurt them, you don’t know. Beel’s already giving this low, comforting purr and shrugging out of his jacket to swoop them up like some little papoose. This quiets them a little.

He can’t help but giggle because they feel like little hams in his arms. Tiny roasted Devilbirds. They look on the bigger side for Devil babies but they’ve got cute round faces and big sparkly eyes already tinging with that orange glow he gets at nighttime. They are carbon copies of Beel and he’s a little sad he doesn’t see the ‘you’ in them.

They wiggle a bit in the temporary papoose but settle when one arm breaches to grab a tiny, pudgy fistful of his shirt. There’s a few moments of ‘open, close, open, close’ where you think the baby is making biscuits against his chest but he finishes up with a firm grab.

Beel ties the papoose around you so he can carry the magic trunk back to the house. You take great care in keeping the light away from them and don’t know quite how to feel yet about that orange tint to their eyes. They observe you with much interest. They’re still cute though.

You’re walking back to the house with Beel and the others when the jacket blob starts to move. You think they’re getting restless (maybe need air?) and peel it open just enough to see what’s going on. They’re trying to tear a hole in your uniform to latch. They want skin-to-skin contact. One of them has their arm down your uniform top. The other is trying to jam their hand in there, too.

You just hold them close as you walk to the House of Lamentation. You bet by the time you get there, you’ll be missing a few buttons.

Beel sets up the trunk in his and Belphie’s room (Belphie’s seriously considering relocating to the attic for about a week) and helps you sit down. He undoes the papoose to find they’ve ripped a decent chunk out of your school uniform and are trying to hide between the fabric and your body. They’re holding hands, their other one either tucked under them or latching onto you somewhere else. It’s really cute and Beel goes beet red.

If you’re female, this gets Beel extra flustered because--for some reason? Demon brain and baby hormones?--he’s thinking about you breastfeeding two kids and being pregnant with another one.

Is he gonna be one of those guys that wants lots of kids? Probably.

He opens the trunk in search of jumpers or something that will help them keep their heat and is surprised to see insulated bags of squeeze-type baby food. All KINDS of food, actually!

He’ll have to try some for quality assurance. Does it actually have substance?

Those kids get it honest because they’re literally only an hour old and they KNOW what food packages sound like. Your uniform tears a little more because suddenly two little ginger-headed babies are watching his every mood like a hawk, heads thrust out of the little hole they made.

Beel is not a fan of opening tiny baby food portions. His hands are very big and this is a problem. He ends up puncturing the cap with a fang and squeezing some out. It works, so he hands it over.

These kids snatch food like Mammon taking a grim, okay? Watch your fingers.

Suddenly there’s a little fussy fight breaking out in your top because one baby has one and one baby has nothing. Beel can’t get the second one fast enough. He just shakes it outside the hole and hopes the empty-handed one takes it.

You tell Beel to help you out of your uniform since it’s basically ruined. Boy heats up real bad, touching your skin and everything. Big boy has it BAD!

The kids hiss and growl and cry until you set them in his jacket and make a nest. Then they’re back to being content little angels, gumming and sucking on the little pouches

“I hope all this eating means they grow fast,” Beel smiles as he takes the empty pouches and looks in the trunk again. It’s imbued with magic that only lets the ‘parents’ open it so there’s no accidents. He’s looking for other flavors as you hug the jacket nest.

Somehow you end up with a tiny little hand tangled in your hair as they try to pull you into the nest. You just lay in the middle and they lounge on you. They are BIIIIG on contact. Like to touch all the time. Very snuggly.

You’re kind of shocked but Beel is big into photography. He never answers you when you ask why, but he’s very diligent about taking pictures. They’re not always the best quality but boy never misses a moment.

After about three pouches apiece, they’ve moved onto Beel. They like to snuggle around his stomach and you joke about his ‘baby bump’. You take the pictures now.

By the end of the night your name has a sound. They are grabbing at you and Beel at the dark, giving calls and trying to wake you up. They want to eat again.

This goes on for days 2 and 3. The twins are more active at night since their eyes don’t hurt and yours and Beel’s sleep schedule are officially messed up. Day 2 they are very vocal with their demon vocal chords, so you basically need a translator. Day 3, you’re used to their nightly disappearances and sneak down sometime after them to see Beel digging through the fridge.

“Apple? See? Apple. Ap-ple.” Beel apparently like smothering them in forehead kisses. He’s passing the food between them and suddenly it’s just three demons cooing over a piece of fruit. They’ve inherited the biting instinct because all three of them bite it at the same time.

He was fixing to wake the house with a happy yeowl about the fangs but had some sense that someone was behind him, so you’re gifted with the sight of three demons still holding onto an apple. “They go’ fanfs,” is what you think you here. Beel technically got the first purr with that one.

When the fangs come out, the food fights start. If you feed them with a spoon or fork it is LITERAL begging for them to let go so you can get more food for them.

Feeding them is a two person job, not because there are two of them, but because one of them needs to attract the biter with a different food so they let go of the utensil.

They get teary and screechy when they’re not fed fast enough. Hesperus’ first word was “MO’!” (more) as he’s slamming his little fists on the feeding chair and puts a crack in it. Baal takes full advantage of the surprise and latches onto the spoon Beel almost drops. Another struggle ensues.

Between Day 3 and Day 4 they have the muscle strength and build to fully walk themselves. Half of the time they “skitter”. For some reason they don’t like walking upright.

Previously, you could only tell them apart with the brothers’ help (demons can differentiate demons). Now you and Beel have a color-coordinated system to tell the twins apart.

They seem to take after their Uncle Belphie and hide in unusual places. The only way you and Beel find them are by walking around the house and shaking various packages of food. You think this is a joint effort to eat more.

Baal says ‘thank you first’ and is the gentle teether. He likes to cuddle like that. Hesperus is an avid climber that prefers to latch

Half the time you don’t know if the twins are cuddling and scenting or play fighting. They’re more energetic than you expected.

Ironically, there favorite person is Mammon. He runs fast when Lucifer scares him and they like to chase him. When they want to sleep, they go to Uncle Belphie. He’s just not energetic enough to play with.

They’ll grab anyone’s leg and sit on them. They like to be carried like this.

Asmo only managed to get a blurry picture of it, but somehow the twins managed to get Lucifer to drag them around by sitting on his cape. It was very cute.

They’re pretty much Beel’s shadow. They like to follow him and he regularly uses them as extra weights in his routine. Sometimes they run around the yard together. Beel tries to teach them how to play Fangol but they end up trying to gnaw the ball to death and end up wrestling for it. “At least they’re active,” he mumbles as he picks you up to keep you out of harms way

They fall asleep in the grass, fangs still trying to dig into the ball.

Day 5 and 6 they become strong talkers and always insist on going long walks. They want to look at alll the stuff! They’re probably at the age of four or five (maybe six) and Beel deems them behaved enough to see some of his favorite restaurants in the Devildom.

You eat so much you think you’ll be sick. You have three boys who will gladly help you with the rest. They fight over an extra-hard crunchy baguette and don’t seem to have the concept of sharing at this point. They’re fussing and butting heads and Beel notices their horns are breaching.

You bag everything to go and Beel offers to fly you all home since you’re absolutely stuffed. He barely hears it, but a tiny little whine is trying to harmonize with his wings. One of them has grown wings (it was Baal).

That evening is spent with Beel and Belphie gently bumping them with their horns to coax them out.

You’re constantly portioning food and trying to make it fair. Beel is a good mediator. He won’t let his kids starve by any means but if they won’t share after he’s explained (and re-explained) why it’s nice to do so, he just eats the thing so they have nothing to fight over

They learn that lesson in the dead of night when they sneak down for their own raid and use each other (and the cabinets/drawers) like a jungle gym to get to the good stuff. Whatever they grab, they split. When Beel catches them, some kind of chocolate thing over his face, Baal looks unapologetic and Hesperus just asks if he wants a bite

Beel is not a disciplinarian. You will have to do that.

Overall the boys are very helpful. They will help bring in groceries and clean up the yard with their uncles. They really love doing the latter because the find all kinds of bugs. They try to give them to Mammon and Lucifer but both of them hate them. A lot.

Belphie notices them and pays them in food to put bugs in Lucifer’s office and bed. No regrets. Satan joins in on this with fancy foods from his foodie connections. They are the unofficial mascots of the Lucifer Sucks Club

Day 7 involves visiting some of Beel’s club activities and the members being absolutely in love with the kids. They get them tiny Fangol jerseys and they run around with the ball. It’s a good day with lots of cute pictures.

They try to hype of the twins and put them on their shoulders but it was here you learned Baal doesn’t like Hesperus getting too far from him and DEFINITELY doesn’t like him being around a bunch of strangers. You don’t know if he thought they were taking him away, but they definitely got dive-bombed by a tiny flying ginger.

Beel has to console him and keep them together for a few hours until he calms down. Simeon overheard the commotion (actually: heard it from Solomon, who was told by Asmo) and offered to make some Celestial Treats to “share the heritage” since Beel is technically an angel.

The twins also love Luke TO DEATH and he is extremely stressed out. They’re cute but very strong and accidentally kind of rough. They chase him too. They want to climb on him; one is enough to knock him off guard and two practically smother him. Send help.

Simeon is absolutely in love with them and the boys cuddle him and shake him down for sweets as nicely as they can.

Diavolo may not be as close to Beelzebub as he is Lucifer, but he still wants to see the children. Demon children are a beautiful thing (and he wants an excuse to get out of work)! On Day 8, Barbatos whips up a very fancy meal which the kids are all for. They like playing hide and seek with Diavolo. You and Lucifer both about shit a brick when they take to climbing on chandeliers and up into the crevices of the castle. Hesperus learned to fly that day, and refused to come down for Lucifer.

Day 9, Barbatos and Simeon invite them to a garden-style orchard to pick fruits and vegetables. They boys are covered in dirt and have leaves in their hair but they are very proud of what they picked and can’t wait to make things to eat (they look very cute in overalls).

Somewhere between Day 8 and 9 both boys have gotten into the habit of shucking off their shirts to let their wings stretch out. When they don’t feel like talking, they sound off with their wings. Beel has adopted this habit and can usually be seen shirtless or in one of those muscle tees with the holes in the side.

On Day 9 the boys decide they want to make a big buffet for the class since Beel took a lot of pictures. They know basic knife skills and have special protective gloves and things like that. Beel bought you all matching aprons. The whole thing goes relatively smoothly; you have a family tray ‘for sampling’, and a bigger portion that will be taken to the class

All bets are off when it comes to making desserts. It’s hard to get the batter into the pan before they’re trying to “lick the bowl clean” (it’s not even empty). You end up with two chocolate-smeared demons that Asmo very reluctantly lets into his bath. You help wash. Beel supervises and is prepared to catch these crafty, sweet gremlins in towels.

Day 10, you make your way to the classroom. The boys want to dig into the buffet (”But your friends are doing it!”) and they almost forget to do the report. They talk for a little bit, pause for a snack. It’s pure bribery. They are finished and rewarded with more food. Beel strings up all his photos at the front of the classroom as the boys sit in your lap and eat.

They make their way to the summoning circle and the teacher has a hard time determining their age. These two are built like brick houses. Are they in the upper percentile for everything or actually older? They’re either very tall eight-year-olds or the age limit goes above 10. Results are inconclusive.

You get a B that is argued to an A on Satan and Lucifer’s behalf. The teacher tried to argue that they were a little unruly and showed a lack of discipline but duh, they’re kids!

Hesperus growled something out in pure demon and you’re not sure what it was. Judging by Belphie and Satan’s expression, it’s probably something a parent wouldn’t want their kid to say. Who knows where they picked it up from?!

Baal just looked like he wanted to bite the guy’s nose off, and has taken a protective mantling stance on Beel’s shoulder.

You walk them to the summoning circle and the twins are just as sad as Beel. They want to stay. Baal is crying silently and can only manage to bring his horns out and bump heads. Hesperus makes you promise to cook lots of food ‘for when we come back’ and that he’ll even wash dishes if you promise.

You give them kisses and wipe Baal’s tears away, to which he gently teethes on you. Hesperus just hugs his brother from behind, the two disappearing in thick clouds of smoke.

The class goes on casually as people pick at food and gush about the twins. You stay behind with Beel to pack up the uneaten food. He’s very solemn as he’s taking all the photos off the board, handling them with care.

“So, uh...why the photos?” you’ve tied up the last bag and have it sitting on the big catering trays Simeon lent you.

“I didn’t want to forget them like I did Lilith...not that I ever really forgot her. Sometimes it’s just...hard to remember her clearly. You know, to remember everything from before. It happens when you’re over five thousand years old.” he’s trying to smile sweetly for you but you can see the pain in it, “I just wanted to keep them with me. I didn’t get that option with her.”

Ooh boy have the floodgates opened for both of you! You hold this big six-something demon boy like he’s one of your babies and he’s never been more grateful. He feels your tears in his hair and you both have a cathartic cry. There’s no where comfortable to snuggle so you opt to heal quietly at the House of Lamentation with some of the leftover food.

It’s a quiet affair, hiding in Beel’s room. You catch him constantly touching your stomach but don’t say anything. His hand is warm and large over your stomach. You’re on the edge of a food coma when you hear him mutter, “Maybe one day.” as he gives it a little pat.

#Obey Me!#Obey Me! x Reader #Beelzebub x Reader #Beel x Reader

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sixamese-simblr · 3 years ago

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Check-in Tags!

I was tagged by @13deadendlane to do check-in tags! Thanks so much <3

Why did you choose your url?

I wanted to do something with Sixam and a bunch of other ones were already in use, so this is kinda the one I was stuck with because I thought was reasonably different from the ones people were actively using.

How long have you been on tumblr?

That's classified information! Let's just say that I had a different account that got a lot of usage before 2018.

Do you have a queue tag?

No, I can't be arsed to tag them. I only usually queue gameplay posts and people will get that they're queued when they're released 4 per day at regular intervals. I don't care that what someone's posting by queue and neither should my followers. If you want to know when I'm awake and using Tumblr no you don't. I'll reply to your inbox within 1-4 business days.

Why did you start your blog in the first place?

I wanted to post the very first version of the Sixam challenge rules on the MTS forums but the mods were being stupid about really lame details so I decided this would be a better place. I was right.

Why did you choose your icon/pfp?

I made a post at some point where the then-current colony queen Grubbenvorst was at a birthday party, thought it was a fun picture and never bothered to change it since.

Why did you choose your header?

I spent dozens of minutes on the hood icon for Planet Birch, I'd better use it!

What’s your post with the most notes?

I create quality memes that are 2 years late with extremely crunchy images, OK?

How many mutuals do you have?

There's... a way to count that? I'm not doing data analysis in my spare time. Well, I take that back. Not on this particular problem.

How many followers do you have?

512 on my main! My most followed sideblog is a meme bot I run, with 1,567 followers. Good luck finding which one it is <3.

How many people do you follow?

695

Have you ever made a shitpost?

We post quality here.

How often do you use tumblr each day?

Too much. It's my main social media.

Did you have a fight/argument with another blog once? Who won?

No :(

How do you feel about ‘you need to reblog this’ posts?

Hate them. I feel like they've gotten less prominent so they feel sort of vintage now, but still hate them. Or maybe I've just curated my feed to have fewer people that reblog those? Idk man.

Do you like tag games?

I love being tagged, but I don't have a good idea on which people I'm on good enough terms with to tag them so I don't like tagging people. Which I feel is part of the problem in getting tagged rarely.

Do you like ask games?

Please just interact with me

Which of your mutuals do you think is tumblr famous?

Def @nerdyth and @jawusa are simblr famous, which is really the metric we're going by. There's a bunch more that are tumblr famous in my heart, no idea if they're simblr famous irl.

Tagging @nerdyth , @jawusa , @kaylynn-langerak , @roguebotanist , @berrysweetboutique , @sushigal007 , @mrbirchthebachelor a.k.a. a selection of the people people who are tumblr famous in my heart

#tag game #ramblings #why is my following count displayed like that? Idk but I like it

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brawltogethernow · 4 years ago

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So, I don't think I've ever asked you this... what IS the whole point of the Spider-Sense? It really seems like something that only exists for writers to ignore or work around when they want to inject Legit Tension into a story.

I’ve thought about this power so much, but never with an eye to defend its right to exist, so I needed to think about this. The results could be more concise.

Ironically, given the question, I have to say its main purpose is to ramp up tension. But it’s also a highly variable multitool that a skilled creative team can use for...pretty much anything. It does everything the writer wants it to, while for its wielder always falls just short of doing enough.

I went looking through my photos for a really generic, classic-looking example to use as an image to head this topic, but then I ran into the time Peter absolutely did not reimburse this man for his stolen McDonald’s, so have that instead.

A Scare Chord, But You Can Draw It

That one post that says the spider-sense is just super-anxiety isn’t, like, wrong. It’s a very anxious, dramatic storytelling tool originally designed for a very anxious, dramatic protagonist. I find it speaks to the overall tone of the franchise that some characters are functionally psychics, but with a psychic ability that only points out problems.

Spidey sense pinging? There’s danger, be stressed! Broken? Now the lead won’t even KNOW when there’s a problem, scary! Single character is immune to it? That’s an invisible knife in the dark oh my god what the fuck what the fU--

Like its counterpart in garden variety anxiety, the only time the spider-sense reduces tension is in the middle of a crisis. But in the wish fulfillmenty way that you want in an adventure story to justify exaggerated action sequences, the same way enhanced strength or durability does. Also like those, it would theoretically make someone much safer to have it, but it exists in the story to let your character navigate into and weather more dangerous situations.

For its basic role in a story, a danger sense is a snappy way to rile up both the reader and the protagonist that doesn’t offer much information beyond that it’s time to sit smart because shit is about to go down.

Spidey comic canon is all over the board in quality and genre, and it started needing to subvert its formulas before the creators got a handle on what those formulas even were, and basically no one has read anything approaching most of it at this point, so for consistent examples of a really bare bones use of this power in storytelling, I’d point to the property that’s done the best job yet of boiling down the mechanics of Spider-Man to their absolute most basic essentials for adaptation to a compelling monster of the week TV series.

Or as you probably know it, Danny Phantom. DON’T BOO, I’M RIGHT.

DP is Spider-Man with about 2/3 of the serial numbers filed off and no death (ironically), and Danny��s ghost sense is the most proof in the formula example of what the spidey sense is for: It’s a big sign held up for the viewer that says, “Something is wrong! Pay attention!” Effectively a visual scare chord. It’s about That Drama. And it works, which won it a consistent place in the show’s formula. We’re talking several times an episode here.

So why does it work?

It’s a little counterintuitive, but it’s strong storytelling to tell your audience that something bad is going to happen before it does. A vague, punchy spoiler transforms the ignorant calm before a conflict into a tense moment of anticipation. ...And it makes sure people don’t fail to absorb the beginning of said conflict because they weren’t prepared to shift gears when the scene did. Shock is a valuable tool, too, but treating it like a staple is how you burn out your audience instead of keeping them engaged. Not to go after an easy target, but you need to know how to manage your audience’s alarm if you don’t want to end up like Game of Thrones.

The limits of the spider-sense also keep you on your toes when handled by a smart writer. It tells Peter (everyone’s is a little different, so I’m going to cite the og) about threats to his person, but it doesn’t elaborate with any details when it’s not already obvious why, what kind, and from what. And it doesn’t warn him about anything else-- Which is a pretty critical gap when you zoom out and look at his hero career’s successes and failures and conclude that it’s definitely why he’s lived as long as he has acting the way he does, but was useless as he failed to save a string of people he’d have much rather had live on than him.

(Any long-running superhero mythos has these incidents, but with Peter they’re important to the core themes.)

And since this power is by plot for plot (or because it’s roughly agreed it only really blares about threats that check at least two boxes of being major, immediate, or physical), it always kicks in enough to register when the danger is bearing down...when it’s too late to actually do anything about it if “anything” is a more complex action than “dodge”.

Really? Not until the elevator doors started to open?

That Distinctive, Crunchy Spider Flavor

The spider-sense and its little pen squiggles go hand in hand with wallcrawling (and its unique and instantly identifiable associated body language) to make the Spider-Person powerset enduringly iconic and elevate characters with it from being generic mid-level super-bricks. Visually, but also in how it shapes the story.

I said it can share a narrative role with super strength. But when you end a fight and go home, super strength continues to make your character feel powerful, probably safer than they’d be otherwise, maybe dangerous.

The spider-sense just keeps blaring, “Something’s wrong! Something’s wrong! God, why aren’t you doing something about this!?”

Pretty morose thing to live with, for a safety net! Kind of a double edged sword you have there! Could be constantly being hyperattuned to problems would prime you for a negative outlook on life. Kind of seems like a power that would make it impossible for a moral person to take a day off, leading them into a beleaguered and resentful yet dutiful attitude about the whole superhero gig! Might build up to some of the core traits of this mythos, maybe! Might lead to a lot of fifteen minute retirement stories, or something. Might even be a built in ‘great responsibility’ alarm that gets you a main character who as a rule is not going to stop fighting until he physically cannot fight anymore.

Certainly not apropos of anything, just throwing this short lived barely-a-joke tagline up for fun.

One of my personal favorite things about stories with superpowers is keeping in mind how they cause the people who have them to act in unusual ways outside of fights, so when you tell me that these people have an entire extra sense that tells them when the gas in their house is leaking through a barely useful hot/cold warning system that never turns off, I’m like, eyes emojis, popcorn out, notebook open, listening intently, spectacles on, the whole deal.

It also contributes to Peter Parker’s personality in a way I really enjoy: It allows him to act like an irrational maniac. When you know exactly when a situation becomes dangerous and how much, normal levels of caution go out the window and absolutely nothing you do makes sense from an exterior standpoint anymore. That’s the good shit. I would like to see more exploration of how the non-Parker characters experiencing the world in this incredibly altered way bounce in response.

It’s also one of many tools in this franchise hauling the reader into relating more closely with the main character. The backbone of classic Spidey is probably being in on secrets only Peter and the reader know which completely reframe how one views the situation on the page. It’s just a big irony mine for the whole first decade. A convenient way to inform the reader and the lead that something is bad news that’s not perceivable to any other characters is youth-with-a-big-exciting-secret catnip.

Another point for tension, there, in that being aware of danger is not synonymous with being able to act on it. If there’s no visible reason for you to be acting strange, well...you’re just going to have to sit tight and sweat, aren’t you? Some gratuitous head wiggles never hurt when setting up that type of conflict.

Have I mentioned that they look cool? Simultaneously punchy and distinctive, with a respectable amount of leeway for artists to get creative with and still coming up with something easily recognizable? And pretty easy to intuit the meaning of even without the long-winded explanations common in the days when people wrote comics with the intent that someone could come in cold on any random issue and follow along okay, I think, although the mechanic has been deeply ingrained in popular culture for so long that I can’t really say for sure.

It was also useful back in the day when no artists drew the eyes on the Spider-Man mask as emoting and were conveying the lead’s expressions entirely through body language and panel composition. If you wiggle enough squiggles, you don’t need eyebrows.

Take This Handwave and Never Ask Me a Logistical Question Again

This ability patches plot holes faster than people can pick them open AND it can act as an excuse to get any plot rolling you can think of if paired with one meddling protagonist who doesn’t know how to mind their own business. Buy it now for only $19.99 (in four installments; that’s four installments of $19.99).

Why can a teenager win a six on one fight against other superhumans? Well, the spider-sense is the ultimate edge in combat, duh.

Why can Peter websling? Why doesn’t everyone websling? Well, the spider-sense is keeping him from eating flagpole when he violently flings himself across New York in a way neither man nor spider was ever meant to move.

How are we supposed to get him involved with the plot this week???? Well, that crate FELT dangerous, so he’s going to investigate it. Oh, dip, it was full of guns and radioactive snakes! Probably shouldn’t have opened that!

Yeah, okay, but why isn’t it fixing everything, then? Isn’t it supposed to be why Peter has never accidentally unmasked in front of somebody? ('Nother entry for this section, take a shot.) That’s crazy sensitive! How does he still have any problems!? Is everything bad that’s ever happened to characters with this powerset bad writing!? --Listen, I think as people with uncanny senses that can tell us whether we are in danger with accuracy that varies from incredible to approximate (I am talking about the five senses that most people have), we should all know better than to underestimate our ability to tune them out or interpret them wrong and fuck ourselves up anyway. I honestly find this part completely realistic.

*SLAPS ROOF OF SPIDER-SENSE* YOU CAN FIT SO MANY STORIES IN THIS THING

The spider-sense is a clean branch into...whatever. There is the exact right balance of structure and wishy-washiness to build off of. A sample selection of whatevers that have been built:

It’s sci-fi and spy gadgets when Peter builds technology that can interface with it.

It’s quasi-mystical when Kaine and Annie-May get stronger versions of it that give them literal psychic visions, or when you want to get mythological and start talking about all the spider-characters being part of a grand web of fate.

Kaine loses his and it becomes symbolic of a future newly unbound by constraints, entangled thematically with the improved physical health he picked up at the same time -- a loss presented as a gain.

Peter loses his and almost dies 782 times in one afternoon because that didn’t make the people he provoked when he had it stop trying to kill him, and also because he isn’t about to start “””taking the subway’’””’ “‘’“”to work”””’’” like some kind of loser who doesn’t get a heads up when he’s about to hit a pigeon at 50mph.

Peter’s starts tuning into his wife’s anxiety and it’s a tool in a relationship study.

It starts pinging whenever Peter’s near his boss who’s secretly been replaced by a shapeshifter and he IGNORES IT because his boss is enough of an asshole that that doesn’t strike him as weird; now it’s a comedy/irony tool.

Into the Spider-Verse made it this beautiful poetic thing connecting all the spider-heroes in the multiverse and stacked up a story on it about instant connection, loss, and incredibly unlikely strangers becoming a found family. It was also aesthetic as FUCK. Remember the scene where Miles just hears barely intelligible whispering that’s all lines people say later in the film and then his own voice very clearly says “look out” and then the room explodes?? Fuck!!!!

Venom becomes immune to it after hitchhiking to Earth in Peter’s bone juice and it makes him a unique threat while telling a more-homoerotic-than-I-assume-was-originally-intended story about violation and how close relationships can be dangerous when they go sour.

It doesn’t work on people you trust for maximum soap opera energy. Love the innate tragedy of this feature coming up.

IN CONCLUSION I don’t have much patience for writers who don’t take advantage of it, never mind feel they need to write around it.

#spiderman #peter parker #spiderverse #spidey #marvel #danny phantom #one day you'll see what i'm doing with it in the project i'm collabing on w/ my brother and then you'll all be sorry and hopefully impresse #mirrorfalls #asks answered #essays

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kitchenknickers · 2 years ago

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so I typed this up for some family members and thought I’d add it to this post

hello! so I totally do this by riff so here are the basics:

INGREDIENTS:

—about…a quarter to half a loaf of ciabatta? depending on the size of your bowl. you want to maybe…just over half fill it with chopped pieces. I like that kind because it holds olive oil really well, though I do plan to find out if a nice focaccia that went stale would work, but haven’t tried it yet. the higher the quality, the better just in terms of complexity of taste, a sourdough is just going to taste better even when it’s on the outs. I don’t leave them out because I often have a few slices of something that went a bit stale in the fridge. the ones I used on christmas were a fair chunk of a bread in common loaf I should have bought earlier and a…I don’t even know what it’s called but I got it from the Italian grocer and it had a yellow almost polenta-like colour to it, and a really crunchy crust that hurt my mouth, so I ended up taking a lot of the crust off and used that in the stuffing and it just didn’t hold up as well under the rest of it. also in the middle east they make this amazing salad with flatbreads that I want to try this with, because that looks like it’s awesome, but it would be a different texture

—beans of some kind. I used fresh broad beans once and that was absolutely wonderful. on christmas I used butter beans from a jar. you could absolutely use something like seared green beans or something.

—for the ‘onion’ contingent I use a mix of red onion, brown onion and fennel. I love fennel and find that it caramelises up really nicely, which honestly I wish I’d done for the stuffing, because it would have added some lovely flavour. to prep them for paced cooking (chronic illness stuff) I chopped them like a week in advance and them soaking in lemon and orange juice. I froze them as I did it so early. but yeah if you soak them in citrus and then cook them a bit they go really jammy and they also get this pretty light pink colour because of the spanish onion. so nice.

—garlic I like to use some roasted garlic that I roasted earlier, mix it up with some oil and maybe a tiny bit of mustard and or honey, so it’s sort of like a paste

—chicken stock (obvs if you’re cooking for actual vegetarians you use the one that doesn’t have chicken in it but for christmas we just needed one that was pork-free)

—lemon/orange zest and juice (not the stuff that was soaking the onions. that will be onion juice now haha)

—salt and pepper (I like using flaked salt and cracked black pepper as well as white pepper)

—parmesan cheese (flakes or peeled from the block)

—herbs: I used thyme, rosemary and sage that was dried from the garden, but I would have used fresh if I had it

METHOD (such as it is)

ok so basically compiling it I put the bread chunks (maybe about the size of a first knuckle if my thumb? about 2cm maybe? not too small or they’ll disintegrate) into a big mixing bowl and add the beans and onions and then add the garlicky paste with more olive oil, and sort of mix it till it’s on all the bits, then add the herbs and then the liquids. you really don’t want to make it properly wet, so you don’t use much. (and actually I did soak the beans in chicken stock previously. no idea if that added any flavour. I had wondered if I’d cooked some in it whether that would be better? then you wouldn’t need to put the stock in the actual dish and avoid sogginess?)

so then I throw it in the oven for like forty mins on 180 maybe? and open her up and mix everything around so it all gets exposed to the top and hopefully the bottom won’t be too soggy. I feel like the one I did on christmas was too soggy tbh but it’s had when you’re doing it in two sittings.

anyway yeah. that’s what I did. hopefully this makes sense! I’m sure if you look at the recipes around online I’ve probably done things wrong, but this just happened organically for me based on things in my fridge one time, so that’s just how I do it now haha

STUFFING FOR DINNER

-red onion sliced thinly

-fennel sliced thinly

-orange rind

-half a pear

-double podded broad beans

-two end bits of stale mary st bakery bread

-fennel and apple sausages

-a few good glugs olive oil

-several slugs of lemon juice

-salt & pepper

roast in an 180* C oven with foil on for half an hour then take the foil off, mix and chuck her back in for another ten to fifteen mins

more freshly cracked pepper when you serve

hella fucking good

#recipe #stuffing

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veliseraptor · 4 years ago

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Down in the Yi City Pit: A Recs Post

So as anyone following me may have noticed, I’ve been spiraling ever deeper into a pit called Yi City Feelings. I’m down at the bottom and I’m still digging. This also means I’ve been doing a lot of fic reading, and I figure it’s about time that I wrote a recs list, since I said I’d do it and some people expressed interest.

Heads up that I am a dirty Xue Yang stan first and foremost, so this list is going to skew in, uh, that direction. Just so we’re all aware.

Divided these into canonverse recs and modern au recs, since apparently this is the only thing I’ll read modern aus for! It’s a brave new world out here.

Also like. blanket warnings across the board here for The Inherent Dubiousness of Xue Yang/Xiao Xingchen as a Pairing, Generally. I’ll offer more specific/major ones as they’re relevant/I remember, but please check the tags/authors notes as well.

CANONVERSE

lover to your nightmare by Zaatar (@ameliarating) . Xue Yang uses Xiao Xingchen getting sick as an opportunity to fuck around a little. Second person POV sickfic, except XueXiao flavored sickfic which means it’s messy and full of good things like “delirium” and “people taking advantage of other peoples’ confusion and disorientation to mess with them psychologically.” This fic also does the thing I love really well where Xue Yang’s internal monologue/self-justification is full of indications that he’s having Feelings that he neither recognizes nor acknowledges. Crunchy, delicious.

Samsara / 輪迴 by ForgivenMemes. Upsetting fic full of every content warning ever alert! (Off the top of my head: violence, rape, suicide, self-harm.) I keep going back to this fic and rereading it because it hurts so bad and I love it, because it hurts in the best worst self-sabotage recapitulating-mistakes-over-and-over way. Like, I am a sucker for a time loop fic always, and usually I read them as a route to fixing things - but honestly I’ve always loved the part of time loop fics that’s “everything getting worse first.” And this is a whole fic of “everything getting worse.” Aka, the one where Xue Yang has thousands of chances to get it right, but there’s no getting it right.

compromise by Sectionladvivi. Xiao Xingchen convinces Song Lan and Xue Yang to kiss. (aka, obviously Yi City AU where Song Lan gets folded into things, Xiao Xingchen still doesn’t know about Xue Yang being Xue Yang, and an uneasy detente where the two of them don’t touch each other gets interrupted by Xiao Xingchen Wanting Things, which is, of course, a priority always).

til dawn by Sectionladvivi. Xue Yang takes care of Xiao Xingchen’s body after his death, and mind the tags. This is that perfect Yi City level of “horrifying and also very sad, I feel bad for my boy but also he is sort of defiling a corpse (though it is just kissing).” This might not sound like a recommendation but it is absolutely a recommendation.

Our Antebellum Innocence by spockandawe (@spockandawe). First time XueXiao. Xue Yang lays the groundwork for his first time with Xiao Xingchen with meticulous care. This author always delivers, both in terms of excellent porn and in terms of characterization, and this is no exception.

life’s illusions I recall by Sour_Idealist (@souridealist). The basics of this fic is just “outdoor sex at a river” and it is delicious for that, but what I love about it in particular is this author’s Xue Yang voice. It’s always good (they are the genius behind the incredible Jiang Yanli/Xue Yang fic - no, really), and this is a fic I come back to a lot for that reason. I also love the tag “two characters experiencing two very different fics” which feels like a very apt description for the XueXiao dynamic, generally speaking.

Selenographia by lightningwaltz. A lovely, short-ish fic about the Yi City years. I don’t feel like I have a good description for this one - it’s just one of those beautiful character/moment portrait pieces, very well done.

Stories from A Lonely City by blackwatervial. A series of snapshots/vignettes from the three years in Yi City. Sweetness, bittersweetness, and of course, ultimately, a sad end. This was one of the first Yi City fics I read.

yi city depression hours by glueskin (series). Just. You know. Some feelings. There’s two fics in this one, both short character study type fics making me feel feelings.

a bird caught in this winter blizzard by cherriru. I do love a good grief/mourning fic, especially featuring someone realizing slowly the sheer miserable depths of their fuck-up. Aka, Xue Yang after Xiao Xingchen’s death. It’s just sad.

all I ever knew of love by Sour_Idealist (@souridealist). See what I said above about the Xue Yang voice and this author; this one also featuring blistering hot porn (first time), a little light praise kink, and huddling for warmth as an excuse for sex. It’s a perfect blend of filth and tenderness and I love it.

revelations wallet wood burn art by Sectionladvivi. This one describes itself in the summary as “grim pwp” and yeah, that fits (and also! is such a XueXiao vibe, whoop whoop); it’s based off the simple premise of ‘Xue Yang tells Xiao Xingchen who he is, in the middle of sex.’ Honestly, one of my favorite things about this fic is the ending, which is horrifying in the best possible way.

Your Heart Inside My Hands by williamshooketh (@ectoplasm-james). This fic is fabulously made for me in the specific subgenre of “Xue Yang thinks he knows what he is getting into when having sex with Xiao Xingchen and, it turns out, does not.” This one featuring some of my favorite things including praise kink and Xue Yang getting extremely fucked up by someone being very nice to him.

Sleep Until the Sun Goes Down by spockandawe (@spockandawe). Love me some Xiao Xingchen seducing Xue Yang with candy. First time fic, second person POV, absolutely delightful.

pass the time by short_tandem_repeats (@yiling). A-Qing and Xue Yang bonding hours. I am actually such a sucker for their weird relationship (I don’t poke at it enough in my own stuff, should work on that) and the way they recognize each other in ways that Xiao Xingchen doesn’t, and also a-Qing having to reckon with the ways in which she’s more like Xue Yang than like Xiao Xingchen. Just a very good fic with a delightful a-Qing.

Three Springs by Verbana. Just a really excellent Xiao Xingchen POV of the three years in Yi City and a developing relationship between Xiao Xingchen and Xue Yang. Beautifully written, a lovely escalation, and I’m absolutely delighted by the gentle loneliness of the Xiao Xingchen POV here.

Red Azalea by CeNedraRiva (@cenedrariva) (WIP). A longfic in progress following the continuing adventures of the Yi City Crew after Xiao Xingchen survives his suicide attempt and Xue Yang reconsiders some life choices. Recently got tag-updated to SongXueXiao which has me absolutely thrilled. Updates every Wednesday.

ephemeral by im_krying (WIP). Xue Yang, traveling around wearing Xiao Xingchen’s face, decides it is time to go looking for the last remaining part of Xiao Xingchen that he doesn’t already possess. That is to say, the eyes in Song Lan’s head. I’m really curious where this is going - it smells up my alley at this point though it’s been a bit since the last update.

Heaven Has a Road But No One Walks It by Silvestris (@silvysartfulness) (WIP). Things I love: beating on Xue Yang, SongXueXiao, terrible road trips, fix-its where there’s a lot of suffering involved. Things this fic has: all of the above. I’m in love.

MODERN AU

(There are other recs to this one but for various reasons (pwp reasons) triggered my self-consciousness slightly too much to put on this post. Go check my bookmarks, you’ll find stuff there.

Most of these are PWP to greater or lesser extents (Rewritten and Misalignment are, I’d say, the exceptions); all very hot and fantastically written.)

circling like vultures by brawlite (@brawlite) (series). Truly quality porn, featuring mostly Xue Yang/Song Lan both pining for Xiao Xingchen, which is a thing that it turns out I really like. The sex is rough and mean and I’m really into it. (Okay, mostly the sex in the first one is mean, the second one is actually XueYao, and the third one is actually verging on nice. Wow! Growth. Anyway, it’s all very good and very My Scene.

Rewritten by incendir (series). This series is like. Everything I want from a modern AU and that was true even before the most recent fic gifted me a beat up Xue Yang suffering, so you know. I don’t have a good summary for this series other than that it’s basically a married Song Lan and Xiao Xingchen adopting Xue Yang as a third partner and it’s just. So well done, such good writing, such good characterization, I would read 20,000 more words of this and probably still be hungry.

catalyst by Ajaxthegreat. If there is a porny fic I’ve reread more than this one, I’m not sure what it would be. I’ve reread this one a lot. It’s very good. It’s very hot. I’m trying not to be self-conscious. SongXueXiao first time rough sex and boy is it tasty.

biting the bullet by Sectionladvivi. Xiao Xingchen doesn’t want to have to choose between his two boyfriends and so he doesn’t. Sectionladvivi in general writes some very sexy modern au PWP (including a few different Xue Yang/Lan Wangji fics which...didn’t see that one coming! But it works when they do it), so general rec for author but this one (as, you know, SongXueXiao porn), is one of my favorites, probably.

sxx configurations by rynleaf (series). This is a SongXueXiao series on AO3 based off of @kevinkevinson‘s modern reincarnation AU and I am in love with both the art for that AU (go look!) and these fics, they’re so good, I’ve reread several times.

Misalignment by Kasasagi (WIP). The one with a reincarnated Xue Yang and a Xiao Xingchen who arrives in the modern world from the past, fresh off his suicide.

And Once Again, if I’m Allowed to Rec My Own Fic

a kindness you can’t afford. Early days in Yi City after Xue Yang wakes up.

lick your exit wounds. I wanted canonverse-era bottom Xue Yang praise kink, so I wrote it for myself in the hopes others would also find this an interesting prospect.

this place could be beautiful. Xue Yang vs. domestic living.

tear out all your tenderness. Xue Yang gets turned on by murder and makes it a project to get Xiao Xingchen to lose control.

the beauty of your repair. PWP, modern AU SongXueXiao; there’s not an inkling of plot here, it’s really just an excuse to get Xue Yang wrecked, but nicely.

#finally posting this!!!#yi city crew #fic rec #song lan #xue yang #xiao xingchen #i'm sure i'm missing things but there's only so much i can do #xuexiao #songxue #songxuexiao

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autumnslance · 4 years ago

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What was it like going from World of Warcraft to FFXIV? As someone who has never played an online RPG before FFXIV I am often :0 ?! when I hear that some people found getting into FFXIV hard because of the mandatory main quest when they just want to go to endgame content as soon as possible. Is going endgame ASAP a regular thing in most online RPGs?

Have a header image of a FFXIV version of my original WoW Main, Discipline Priest Lirriel F’sharri.

Me, a concise answer? Hahaha! Sorry. This got long, so behind a cut it goes and hopefully I answer to Nonny’s satisfaction, taking the questions and breaking them down:

Is going endgame ASAP a regular thing in most online RPGs?

In a lot of games it can be, yes. WoW doesn’t really have a linear overall storyline; each zone has its own story, and each expansion has its own story arc. Nowadays, with how long it’s been running and how big it’s gotten, WoW has revamped their questing so that you decide if you want to go through 1-50 in a specific expac (Burning Crusade, Cataclysm, Wrath of the Lich King, etc), and then catch up to the newest expac for the newest levels, since they also recently did a “level squish” as well as a stats squish, as they had gotten well over 100+ levels in the last couple expansions. Numbers are a problem for long running games (which is why experienced MMO players nodded and some even sighed in relief when the stat squish for Endwalker was announced).

I don’t think FFXIV will be able to do anything similar since their overarching story is so linear; it’s more like playing a single player traditional JRPG with some MMO features attached. I can see them perhaps scaling experience point gain with quests the way they have with the side quests in Shadowbringers, or with Beast Tribe dailies; that would work going forward I think. Unless we get the option to start with the new storyarc starting in 6.1; that could be interesting!

The only other time I had a linear story to go through similarly to FFXIV was early days of Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic, which I played briefly at launch. Even then, each planet had its own storyline, the overall storyline was the individual class questlines. There was, I think, an overarching plot, but it didn’t really come into play until level cap? I don’t even remember and never got to cap because the grind in that game at launch was awful.

And that’s a thing about many MMOs; the leveling experience is learning about the world, introducing characters and setting, but it’s mostly filler until you get to the endgame where the raiding is--and in WoW, the story is only completed via seeing it in raids (thank goodness for Looking for Raid) and was the main focus mechanically as well. WoW didn’t really have an overarching story in Classic, it was a lot of disparate elements setting up and holdovers from the original RTS games and led to random raid content. Burning Crusade gave us an overarching plot with going to Outland to face Illidan--which honestly wasn’t all that well done storywise. BC is remembered fondly for the quality of life changes and allowing smaller groups to raid, rather than requiring wrangling 40 people. And the raids were challenging and fun--or frustrating, but mileage varies there. But the impetus for “the Dark Portal opened and Illidan’s in Outland being bad” was...pretty much it? Later expacs like Wrath had much better story setup and throughlines as they went, and my one friend described Shadowlands as having something like an MSQ. There are, however, a lot of retcons and putting necessary plot information in supplemental material, which was always frustrating. I’ve likened it before to “imagine going from defeating Tsukuyomi at the end of 4.3 and all the separations and set up there...and then the next patch picking up with getting warped to the First because everything that happened in 4.4 and 4.5 occurs in a novel.” That’s too often been WoW’s method of connecting expansion stories while players languish for a year or more in the last raid content.

I wish I was kidding. FFXIV having a set, quick release schedule, that they keep to so consistently with such good quality--and cosmetic and RP stuff added too!--is astounding to me. I worry for the devs’ health at times--then I hear things like Yoshida turning down requests for crunchy overtime to keep said devs from burning out, hence why the next Ultimate is pushed to 6.1. I appreciate that greatly. Getting anything not pertaining to endgame raid and PvP content in WoW was often impossible, coming with complaints from the raiding community that frivolous additions for sheer fun cost them whole tiers, and seriously 18 months between patches was not unheard of.

What was it like going from World of Warcraft to FFXIV?

I started FFXIV at the beginning of Heavensward...but I was still playing WoW. FFXIV was my side game, as I was still invested in roleplay and raiding with my WoW friends. So I mostly enjoyed playing through the story at a leisurely pace, but I didn’t finish ARR for like 2 years. When Stormblood came out I was hitting burnout in WoW despite mostly enjoying Legion, and the quality of life changes for StB really invigorated my interest and ability to play. The longer GCD for FFXIV was actually one of the biggest challenges for me, especially since I had primarily tanked and healed in WoW. I am not an aggressive or competitive player, nor very manually coordinated, so DPS has always been a challenge for me. I find DPS easier in FFXIV thanks to the longer GCD--I’m still not great, but I don’t feel overwhelmed by trying to hit my rotation buttons instantly. It’s taken me a while to get used to tanking, and I still don’t do it in 8man content, except once or twice with my friends. Mostly cuz I’m just enjoying my DPS jobs, really, so haven’t invested in learning.

...And some of my old fear of random roulettes as a lone tank/healer; WoW’s LFG was a toxic pit for various reasons FFXIV has mostly avoided and even my worst day in FFXIV’s roulette is better than a good day in WoW’s, which gave me anxiety and I stopped doing without friends. FFXIV has no Public Test Realm that people expect you to get on pre-patch to not only spoil story moments, but also learn all the fight mechanics ahead of time and if you don’t know them Hour 1 Day 1 of a new patch release you’re deserving of abuse.

I won’t say never, but I just haven’t found myself interested in going back to WoW or feeling invested in that story, though I do sometimes miss my RP characters (and may write more stories for them sometime). I do keep track of certain beloved NPCs and events--a friend streamed a beautiful moment in Ardenweald for me because I did play through what happened to that character in Legion, sobbing the whole time. I’m tracking what’s happening to Anduin Wrynn closely; we’ve literally watched that character grow up in real time over the years from boy prince to king of Stormwind and I’m still a bit heartbroken about his father. But I play for story and characters, and Blizzard’s way of telling those stories and handling those characters lost me, and with how the Acti-Blizz execs and higher level devs act lately (Hazzikostas keeps striking me as out of touch), they don’t give me much incentive to go back. I may not even pick up Diablo 4 at this rate.

So FFXIV’s story hits the right narrative and character focus for me, especially when I buckled in and replayed...and then replayed again...and now have NG+...Anyway, I like how they build the lore and characters and while it’s far from perfect and they have their own flaws, coming from WoW, it’s a lovely change of pace. Not to mention just how Yoshida and his team interact and communicate with the player base, and see the players’ trust as paramount post-1.x.

...I hear that some people found getting into FFXIV hard because of the mandatory main quest when they just want to go to endgame content as soon as possible.

Some people play only to raid; they like mechanics, and challenges, and feeling powerful at max level with the best gear. They don’t care about the overall story--in some cases because they don’t realize it’s so in depth and linear and sensible after/compared to the constant retcons and revamps in games like WoW!--and are just here to play with friends. Cool for them, if that’s what makes them happy! If that’s how they relax and have fun, power to ‘em so long as they aren’t being nasty to others less advanced/able/willing to put in the time and effort for gameplay. But for me, story and characters are far more important, and I raided quite a lot in WoW at various levels of difficulty and raid size. I am old and tired and want to relax and have fun with friends and write stories that get away with me when my characters get a mind of their own. So I rarely do more than Normals, avoiding Savage and Extreme cuz that grind doesn’t interest me. I’ll do stuff I can do on my own to get my progress fix for my brain (like leveling jobs).

The trouble we’re running into now is FFXIV’s linear story is well over 100 hours long. Even with the ARR revamp cutting a lot of chafe, there’s a LOT to get through to reach HW, and then a lot to get to StB, and then to ShB. And there will be a bunch to get through to EW. That’s JUST MSQ, not counting all the side content a new player may also want to catch up on, like the Alliance and Normal raids, PvP, Relics, Hildibrand, side quest stories like Mail Moogle, Beast Tribes, Crafting...the list goes on and on!

Content in a successful MMO must be varied for multiple styles and preferences for the long term health of the game. Roleplayers and story-focused folks tend to be the ones who stick between patches, farming content at a slower pace to get rewards they want for RP or to see story info, as opposed to raid-focused folks who push new content at release for the challenge and glory. Some of those folks also RP or like story though, so go back to farm between blowing up new content. There’s room for all kinds, and there has to be, and while I am sometimes annoyed by people who skip story (or outright dislike it!) while demanding to know how X works or why a character did A thing, they play their way and pay their sub to keep things running same as me and my obsessive need to know the lore and see it for myself. I can certainly understand those players who story skip that much content to get to where their friends are, if that’s the primary reason they play is to raid with pals, and with New Game+ it’s easier than ever for someone to go back and catch up the story later anyway.

#Lyn Prompts #About Me #Blogging #World of Warcraft #Final Fantasy XIV #Anonymous

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littleeyesofpallas · 4 years ago

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Was chatting with a coworker the other day and two things crossed my mind...

that I've been at this weeb shit so long that I forget what I just sort of take for granted and what might not be commonly known little factoids, and

that VIZ's attempt at a monthly Shonen Jump magazine has been gone so long most people probably never saw them. (nevermind the old RAIJIN Graphic Novels that tried the same thing)

So, here's some fun little things you might not have known about manga if you've only ever read English publications and/or digital scans...

For one, there's the matter of print formatting... In general, Japan actually uses their own standards for print that tend to differ from those in the US; The JIS(Japanese Industrial Standards) series A and B. Magazines like the typical anthology format manga are printed in JIS B5, which is comparable to the US Letter standard, or the ISO A4.

This was the same format that RAIJIN Comics printed in as well, and although I don't have a copy of the old English Shonen Jump for reference, if memory serves they printed in the same format as well in an attempt to really sell that "authentic" manga feel. Sadly, I don't know that the effort or attention to detail was much appreciated. Neither published a volume comparable to a Japanese weekly or even monthly serial magazine, though --not by a long shot. But this might not be the most practical for comparrison, since there actually just isn't much of an English language equivalent format. (unless you count actual magazines that happen to include comic illustrations or miniscule comic strip segments)

Despite the mammoth size of a serial magazine, Japanese tankoban are actually smaller than the North American equivalent. But notably the Japanese small book format isn't just a matter of contending with nearest print standards... What I believe is the JIS B40(although I could be wrong) tends to be the standard print size of small books in general, not just manga, and it's a print size that is only marginally smaller than VIZ's standard size manga, but with the very particular benefit of being deliberately portable. The small difference in size is the difference between a Japanese manga fitting in my coat pocket where as the English equivalent can't.

(I realize I photographed a copy of Shonen ACE, and not Weekly JUMP, but I measured a copy of Weekly JUMP for the thickness and not the copy of ACE; the copy of JUMP was around 506pg, while the copy of ACE was 570pg. Those are both older though, and the most recent digital copy i have of Weekly JUMP actually had around 520pg)

And I don't think it's always addressed just what a difference there is, culturally, in how Japan approaches the print medium. It's kind of an old cliche by this point, and I don't know how accurate it's remained in the past decade or so, but the quintessential image passed around between comic nerds has always been the Japanese bullet train; A place packed with commuters all passing their transit time with isolated preoccupation with music and/or reading, with manga being the king of this time killing arena. And its not just about sheer popularity driven by interest, American comic vendors have long envied the sheer accessibility of manga in Japan.

Here in the U.S. we used to have a thriving newsstand retail scene for comic books, and a kind of similar ease of grab and go comic purchase, rather than the explicitly niche interest driven "direct market" model that has been slowly but surly strangling the comic market ever since. But in Japan serialized manga has remained in relatively quick, impulse friendly, arm's reach of readers on the go. And what lubricates that business model more than anything is price.

I still remember a time when VIZ dominated the English manga market by offering at $7.95(and am I crazy or am I remembering a time when it got down to $6.99?) but now'days it's settled on a low end of $9.99. You know how much the recent vol.29 of My Hero Academia goes for? ¥484. That's less than $4.50.

You know how much that big ass magazine with 500+ pages and 21 different series goes for? Do you think it's more or less than the little pocket-size tankoban? Did you guess something close to ¥290? That's less than $2.75. But how does something bigger in both page size and page count managed to sell for less???

There are a few secrets to that, but one is that the things are packed to the gills with ads. But that's the boring answer. The other feature contributing to keeping an accessible cost on weekly/monthly manga is something we don't think about much in the U.S.; it's the paper and print quality.

The nice little books are printed in what you might expect as far as starch white paper and clean black inks, but those big honkin' phone book(do people still know what phonebooks look like??) size magazines are printed on cheap recycled pulpy newpaper with typically rough print jobs. This is most noticeable in the quality of solid blacks, and when scanning the texture of "white" space.

(I tried to take individual photos of different series chapters to show off the fact that the paper is differently colored... but my phone's camera seems to be smart enough to auto balance that kind of thing when there's no other context to anchor it to. (It doesn't help that it's night and my lights have a harsh yellowing glow to them.) but on th left you can still kind of see the different paper colors; this particular issue alternated every 3 chapters between pink-ish, green/gray, a kind of off-white/gray, and sepia, but I've also seen blue-ish, oranges, and a different shade of yellow different from the sepia-ish one.)

Back in ye olden days when it came to fan scanlations, more slapdash teams and projects would often stumble over levels in photoshop (too much black and the pulpy paper texture shows up as grainy shadows, but too far white and the edges of lineart get crunchy and ugly) but those who had more robust readership and a regular streamlined flow of work, we'd actually go in and touch up the solid blacks and whites by hand. We'd also redraw art to erase overlaid text so the type setters could lay the new English in over top.

(Weekly Jump: Left, Bleach tankoban: Right)

They do however keep a few coveted color pages in better quality paper and ink. In contrast, the standard quality tankoban actually don't include color pages at all, and just print what had been color pages in grayscale. There are also all kind of irregularities between publishers and special editions and such, but on the most basic level this difference in quality both keeps serial prices down, while also incentivizing tankoban purchase.

In the U.S. we might still have the draw of an ad-free reading experience in our TPB, but the print quality between a biweekly issue and a TPB are basically the same. Incidentally, even though manga are generally drafted at a much larger scale than even the serial magazine proportions anyway, the scaled down size of the tankoban also serves to sharpen the image. When put side by side the nice clean tankoban print looks noticeably better than the serial.

Now'days the English scanlation scene seems to be conducted almost entirely through ripped digital releases (at least as far as I can tell with popular, regular weekly titles) which is great for quality, frankly, but it does kind of lack the charm and personal touch of a band of amateurs finding round about solutions to a convoluted bootlegging pipeline. But obviously I'm a little biased.

[edit]: Oops i posted this without really ending it in any sensible ro conclusive way... I feel like ive lost sight of the point since i first drafted this but I guess its mostly just me pining after if we could just get super cheap, disposable quality, bulk manga in that classic Japanese magazine model to work here in the states. I already tend to sell manga in big runs, even at $9.99+, and frequently I'll have customers put volumes back, or clearly want the next volume but just can't afford it and wait to come back. If I could sell these customers more volumes, and more importantly more titles, at the same price, I would love to. I would love to see these things fly off the shelves. I would love to see people keeping up with multiple series. I would love to see someone look at a 44vol long series and actually feel like that's a number of volumes they can afford.

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powermetalhag · 4 years ago

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Digging Deeper

@alienfuckeronmain tagged me in this massive tag meme (Thank you!! I love doing these things). If I tag you, feel free to ignore this if you don’t feel up to doing it/reading it. If you aren’t tagged and want to be, feel free to just say I tagged you ❤

I tag: @flowerkitten @meemimajima @darlingdear @wizards1977 @violet-tea @lickthatbattery @lusamine @misfit-on-a-journey @lampshroomomg @cyrsed @wooden-duck @wildbayou @curse-you @ghostly-rowlf @icedchailatte @oni-lover

1. Do you prefer writing with a black pen or blue pen? black

2. Would you prefer to live in the country or city? City

3. If you could learn a new skill what would it be? I’d love to be able to sing and metal-scream really well. I’m trying to learn but I practice pretty inconsistently and it’s an uphill battle bc I don’t have much natural aptitude for it. Also it would be really cool to be a contortionist.

4. Do you drink your tea/coffee with sugar? I don’t drink coffee. Sometimes I sweeten tea, sometimes I don’t.

5. What was your favourite book as a child? I didn’t like reading books much as a child. When it came to reading novels, my reading comprehension was pretty below average (I think I posted about this ages ago, but when I tried to read Harry potter when I was 7 I couldn’t follow it at all. I somehow thought that Harry and Hagrid were the same character and that Hagrid was just the name for Harry’s Wizard self. My concentration just wasn’t there). I read a lot of manga though. I think my favourites were fushigi yuugi, saint tail, and miracle girls.

6. Do you prefer baths or showers? showers.

7. If you could be a mythical creature, which one would it be? Hobbit

8. Paper or electronic books? I prefer paper books, but I mostly use electronic ones.

9. What is your favourite item of clothing? my cloud-print long sleeved mesh shirt

10. Do you like your name or would you like to change it? I used to want to change it, I don’t anymore.

11. Who is a mentor to you? I don’t think I have one

12. Would you like to be famous and if so, what for? I like the idea of creative projects of mine becoming a little bit known, but I’d never want to be famous.

13. Are you a restless sleeper? Not really

14. Do you consider yourself a romantic person? I’m probably less romantic than the average person, but in the right situation I can be.

15. Which element best represents you? I associate myself with fire (bc I'm a leo) but in some ways water or air might better represent me. Idk.

16. Who do you want to be closer to? Honestly? Pretty much all of my friends. My life is complicated and the severity of my ocd makes me keep everyone at a distance more than I’d like to.

17. Do you miss someone at the moment? Everyone who I haven’t seen since quarantine started.

18. Tell us about an early childhood memory. As young kids my sister and I hated Tracey Sketchit from pokemon so passionately that we would draw his face on the bottom of our feet before going to jump on the trampoline so that we could feel like we were jumping on him

19. What is the strangest thing you have eaten? When we were little my sister and I would sometimes eat raw dried spaghetti dipped in vegemite when there was no other easy snacks in the house. We called them cardboard sticks. (The food situation in my house wasn’t dire or anything, we were just too lazy to make a sandwich or something lol)

20. What are you most thankful for? I am thankful for the people I have in my life and for the amount of stability i’ve been able to have in my life in recent times.

21. Do you like spicy food? I do, but if I eat it often enough to increase my tolerance to it I get bad reflux. So I remain a spice wimp who can only have mild.

22. Have you ever met someone famous? Zakk Wylde, Chris Lilley, and some guy who was on Blue Heelers. Also I spoke to Tracy Grimshaw on the phone once. Meeting Zakk Wylde was funny because I was REALLY weird and embarrassing.

(Long story ahead, feel free to skip) Basically, my friend and I were 16 and wandering through the city high on acid. We saw Zakk standing near Hungry Jacks and became completely captivated by him. We had no idea he was some big famous rockstar, we thought he was just some random guy. I cannot convey to you how intense his presence felt at that time. It was like he was everything that is and ever will be metal but congealed into a human being and magnified by 2000x. (in case you don’t know him, he looks like this)

We were so high that we were very in our own world and felt like we were the only ones who really existed and that everything else was just kinda there for us to observe. So we started following him and discussing him as if he couldn’t hear every word we were saying.

I remember us being like “He’s the most metal thing i’ve seen in my life” “He’s like Neptune, king of the sea, but a brutal version” “He’s the raw original concept that all other metalheads were disseminated from. He’s the true, the original.” It made sense at the time that he could be the origin point of metal and the first ever metalhead because time and space felt like it existed in a looser way than usual. We were really fixated on the idea that metal was invented through his very existence as a direct expression of self, then people copied him, then people copied those people and so on. The further they got from the source (Zakk) the more diluted the essence became. That’s why being around normal metalheads wasn’t as viscerally overwhelming as being in the presence of the raw undiluted concept. We concluded that no metalheads were actually expressing themselves through their subcultural identity. Unknowingly, they’re just expressing him. And we were saying all of this while walking maybe a metre and a half behind him while he ignored us.

Eventually some of the people he was with noticed we were following him and started talking to us (they may have been members of Black label society or they may have just been friends of his, idk). They were friendly and said that they used to do acid when they were younger too and invited us to get drunk with them. We said yes and walked with them for a little. I don’t think Zakk said a word to us the entire time. He probably found us annoying. But we kept staring at Zakk and getting overwhelmed by how intense it was just to be in his presence. Then me and my friend abruptly turned and left without saying anything because being around Zakk was getting to be too much. It was like a sensory overload. As we walked away we barely heard them yelling back to us “something something something ZAKK WYLDE!”. I was familiar with the name but I’d never known how he looked. I googled him a few days later and learned that it was indeed Zakk Wylde who we met and that he’d been in Brisbane with black label society.

And that’s the story of how I passed up the once in a lifetime opportunity to get drunk with Zakk Wylde because his vibes were off the charts.

23. Do you do you keep a diary or journal? No. Kinda wish I could, but the habit doesn’t stick.

24. Do you prefer to use a pen or a pencil? Pencil

25. What is your star sign? Leo sun (Virgo cusp), Scorpio moon, Sagittarius rising.

26. Do you like your cereal soggy or crunchy? Crunchy

27. What would you want your legacy to be? I’d like to have a positive effect on the people in my life and leave art behind that people might enjoy or relate to (I use the word art loosely, I mean any kind of creative project). I think I've become more aware recently of how important that is to me, which is why I've been so uncharacteristically dedicated to finishing my comic.

28. Do you like reading, what was the last book you read? I like reading books but I don’t always have the attention span for it. I tend to read more non-fiction than fiction. The last book I read was Nothing Feels Good: Punk Rock, Teenagers, and Emo. A really great book if you want to learn about emo history. The only downside is that it was published in 2003, before emo really took off in the mainstream. Had some insightful things to say regardless.

29. How do you show someone you love them? Idk I can’t think of a concise answer for this. I think it varies depending on who it is and what our dynamic is. When I took that love language test it said my love language was quality time.

30. Do you like ice in your drinks? I don’t like it in water. It’s fine in most other drinks.

31. What are you afraid of? I don’t think I can answer this without oversharing or getting too bleak

32. What is your favourite scent? I like tropical scents like mango and coconut

33. Do you address older people by their name or surname? By their name

34. If money was not a factor, how would you live your life? I’d buy a house with my sister and I wouldn’t have a job but I'd volunteer and do freelance creative work. I’d donate a lot more and help people out more. I’d learn lots of new skills and make lots of art. I would have an amazing wardrobe too.

A kinda sillier dream is that I'd start a cheerleading team where our routines are exclusively to metal songs. As well as entering competitions, we would also be an opening act for bands (in this dream i’m much better at cheerleading than I currently am). It would be cool ok

35. Do you prefer swimming in pools or the ocean.? Ocean. I miss going to the beach so much

36. What would you do if you found £50 on the ground? See if someone dropped it. Then idk, would depend on my financial situation at the time.

37. Have you ever seen a shooting star? Yes

38. What is the one thing you would want to teach your children? I’m not going to have children. I’d like to be a good influence in my friend’s children’s lives though.

39. If you had to have a tattoo, what would it be and where would you get it? Probably some old-school gradient style neopets art (maybe an aisha) or 90s tamagotchi art or a cool wizard. I’d get it on my thigh. I’m very unlikely to ever get a tattoo though

40. What can you hear now? The hum of my computer. It’s old and loud and on its way out

41. Where do you feel the safest? In my bed at home with my cat Luna or hanging out w my sister

42. What is the one thing you want to overcome/conquer? Once coronavirus is less of an issue (which may be in the near future where I live), I’d like to try and push myself to start dating again. I haven’t done that in a long while. The limitations that ocd causes me makes it hard for me to imagine a relationship-- even a casual one--being workable. But I ought to at least try before I decide that. Sometimes things turn out to be easier than I think they’ll be 🤷‍♀️.

43. If you could travel back to any era, what would it be? This is so hard!!

If this is purely for enjoyment and not to change the past, i’d probably just want to see all my favourite bands live while they were in their prime and like, cry the whole way through because I am so moved.

44. What is your most used emoji? :) or :/

45. Describe yourself using one word. I’m really bad at questions like this

46. What do you regret the most? Eh, that’s a bit personal. I feel like i’ve overshared enough in this thing.

47. Last movie you saw? Diary of a Wimpy Kid: Dog Days

48. Last tv show you watched? Degrassi the next generation

49. Invent a word and it’s meaning. Idk

If you’ve read this far ty!! Here’s a little sheep for your trouble

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