#they are straight by definition but they don't feel straight to me because straight (in media) in my mind equals boring and toxic

[scenetocause]

for a prompt— something something the contrast of Lando’s smooth legs vs Oscar’s hairy ones… basically Oscar thigh worship maybe😅 and/or Lando and Oscar comparing hand sizes

"You're like, proper hairy mate." Lando's got his hands on Oscar's thighs, nearly fucking spanning them because he has dimensions as bonkers as anything about him.

"Not really?" Oscar's seen Mark's legs when they're out on the bikes. Shudders, sometimes, at the thought of grey hair there.

"Yeah you are, look." Lando jams his own thigh between Oscar's. "You're all hairy, compared to me."

The temptation to tell Lando that's because he is actually some sort of hairless freak is strong. Except that it wouldn't be totally fair, since the guy has exactly the amount of pubes you'd expect and a bit of a trail down his chest that's more than Oscar can do, honestly.

It's just that on his arms and legs he only has the slightest dusting of soft, golden hair. Just enough to make his skin sort of glitter a bit, in sunlight, make him seem even more ethereal, a creature picked by god. And, apparently, Oscar.

"A bit, yeah," he concedes.

Lando looks up at him, sharply. "S'hot. Like it, like," his horrendous, huge fingers sort of bury themselves in the hair on Oscar's thighs. "Yeah, like that."

"Okay." He's basically used, now, to Lando doing weird sex things. Not like, weird sex things in a normal way - Oscar expected a bit of that but if anything Lando's more vanilla than he is - more like. Having sex in a chaotically incoherent way that doesn't match up to anything Oscar's ever done before.

It's endearing and Lando's not selfconscious about it. Doesn't seem to know other people don't do it like this, all over the top and strange. Lando gets off on things Oscar doesn't think he probably could - like this, just his hands in Oscar's thigh hair while he's grinding his cock against Oscar's left knee - except it's so blindingly hot watching him do it he's usually not far off joining him.

"Do you like it?" It must be pretty obvious he does. They're both naked and Oscar's dick is standing straight against his own stomach, twitching when Lando edges his hands higher, towards the seam of Oscar's hips.

"Yeah, I do. It's nice." Lando needs to be told, sometimes. Maybe he does know how weird he is, that not everyone gets off like this.

"Good." Lando's a bit pink, wild eyed in the way he gets when he's really enjoying something. "Cus I really like it. Looks so hot, with your cock like - yeah."

Oscar can't help preening a bit, reaching for his own dick even while he's leaning over to kiss Lando. Kissing's one of the few things Lando isn't utterly bizarre about, usually very much a giver in letting Oscar lead, surprisingly affectionate and gentle.

"Oh my god," Lando's eyes are like saucers, suddenly. "Could you, like - when you come, can you get it on, y'know."

"I can probably manage to jizz on my own leg mate, yes." Honestly.

"Fuck," Lando closes his eyes, moans, then seems to realise he needs them open if he wants to watch. "That's so hot."

It's clearly not going to last long for Lando, Oscar's knee already wet with whatever's leaking out of his dick. So he sets an aggressive pace, working his own hand to get him there before Lando does. It's just as well he's got such a strong competitive spirit because it's definitely not easy, Lando getting more and more worked up the more Oscar's wanking himself off in front of him.

"Mate," Lando's whining now. "Please, wanna see it."

Fuck. It's - honestly really stupid - impossible for Oscar to resist, when Lando starts begging him for whatever stupid sex thing. Barely remembers to direct his dick over his left thigh, spunk splashing over the back of Lando's hand and into the hair there.

The noise Lando makes is so loud it feels like it's reverberating through Oscar's head, drowning out his own.

Next time Mark has a go at him about shagging his teammate and not showing weakness and all that, he thinks, in the comedown, he's got a really good answer for him. Because Oscar must be a fucking strong bloke or he'd definitely be dead, watching Lando licking and sucking come out of his thigh hair, whimpering when Oscar pets his hair.

[brocedethesis]

midnights thought but basically. even if we are going into the stereotype that 'guys don't feel as much' or 'f1 is a brutal sport, it is what it is, you need to be cut out for it or simply leave', when we take the crazy lore that is brocedes it's actually very undeniable that nico and lewis had something. this was the true definition of bromance as of those days, and of a simple, genuine friendship these days. at one point of time, for a long time too, they were proud of each other. from go-karting to respective pre-f1 races and then, straight into f1. i see the 2008 hug as they both get to be on the podium, the happiness in their faces, and ohhh there's definitely something there. maybe not the irresistible urge to kiss or something, but a glowing ball of light. pure joy for each other.

as it slowly descended into the 2016 penultimate fight, you could also see the pain in their eyes. the title decider press meet always gets me because lewis is trying to be as detached from his words as possible, almost like a third person reciting a history as if he didn't live that himself. nico, on the other hand, is just pained as he tries to get himself past all the things he did just for a single championship. if what i read was right and he had paused contact with family, cut down on cycling, even got a lighter matte paint for his helmet bc it could gain him a fucking secondth of an edge (this is still crazy to me), its just painful. all the calculations and permutations you do to win, and at the opposite end of it all is a person who is a friend. was a friend? he didn't know by the end of it. the mind games they played, the banned moved the detailed studies. the utter betrayal of not even knowing the fact, but understanding the fact that they were going to sabotage each other just for a trophy at the end of some 20+ races where they shed blood sweat and tears for a win. at the end of the day, its a sport, and they were just humans.

of course it would break something, irreparably so. i respect nico for retiring days after his win. i respect lewis for actually becoming a better teammate, and even a friend to many.

now, years later, almost going to be a decade, both understood what brings them happiness at large. but there's always going to be that one part of the heart that bugs them, no matter how detached and away from it they are. maybe on lone days, they wonder if it was worth it all. maybe on loner days they wonder if its possible to rebuild what they lost, but it is not. so they see each other on the grid, at the opposite ends, cherishing (either privately or publicly) the way they were friends.

[florenceisfalling]

speedrun bc im in the dairy queen parking lot as we speak

You certainly never see people arguing NOT to put it in your bio

yes you do, i know this because i used to be one of those people and shared/supported dozens of posts about it. are you forgetting the whole premise of my original post is that i used to be a transandrobro against those terms?

how awful it is that a transandrobro doesn't think it's a good or feasible solution to kick all the Jews out of Israel?

i made a second post explaining his zionism, and this is just a blatant inflammatory misrepresentation of it.

I'm going to make you explain to me how you defend the scores of genocide txttletale openly supports or considers NBD as a tankie.

yknow, im not a tankie, but this seems to also be a pretty big misrepresentation of whats going on with healed. either way, i can dislike both avi and healed if that makes you feel any better. i did straight up say in another post that i agree with spacelazarwolf on some things, its almost like you can agree with some things someone says without vouching for all of them

there are TRFs out there writing books about reclaiming radical feminism

plenty of transmascs are openly transmisogynist terfs. and i don't think trying to look for good in second wave feminism and push it away from its current transphobic standing point is a bad thing.

almost all of the hostility has been from the TMA/TME crowd.

i like that you said you'd provide examples of this in your original reblog - and i was sure you actually would, considering im VERY aware transfems will say transphobic things abt transmascs sometimes. and then you just didnt even try

We're not doing that. What we're doing is describing harassment we've gotten in the transandrophobia discourse trenches

giving voice to transmascs by ignoring transmascs who disagree with you

We don't tolerate being transphobic towards other trans people 'round these parts!

y'all have a very fast and loose definition of transphobic, is the thing

Yeah? Her good opinions about genocide?

me: here are three good posts id like to source that explain something

you: oh so you agree with all of her posts?

Yeah, sorry, two harassment campaigns against trans women by mostly cis people and completely unrelated to transandrophobia drama is not relevant here.

my original post is quite literally about how its bad that transmascs harass trans women constantly. this is one of the most relevant things i can think of. what are you talking about

weird to claim it was mostly cis people when the people spearheading some of the most vitriolic shit, as linked, were trans men, and toonimal was a trans man abusing trans girls

TERFs would never try to exploit legitimate cases of transmascs being treated poorly, they're just attracted naturally like flies to all the evil transmisogynistic rifts in the community!

why are some of you so cozy with them then

The first was written by a trans woman and the second was a very funny joke about hyperbolic whining about sOcIaL mUrDeR.

tgirls can be transmisogynistic, case in point You, though im curious about why you get to bring up your transphobic harassment experiences when mine get responded to with "we're not doing that"

straight-up not about trans men bro

youre openly ignoring the examples i included of why trans men, specifically transandrobros, were relevant

thousands of TMA/TME weirdos will die on the hill that jokes about killing trans men are okay and non-binary people being called slurs is a transfeminist W.

hm i wonder if theres any reason why lately trans women have been especially frustrated or jumpy about trans men

it's the name of a radfem group that sexually abused other trans women, or was it all just complaining because it's, like, such a totally mean name to call people?

actually yea, there are a lot of trans women who take issue with the fact that when they acknowledge transmisogyny they get equated to a hated group of specific tgirls in 2016. also, doesnt excuse calling people a medieval slur, bc it didnt fucking originate in 2016. im not going around calling people faggots derogatorily just bc some of the transandrobros have it in their urls

fuck yourself

what problem exactly do you have with people referring to gender assignment as coercive??? do you want people to infinitely ignore the fact that gender assignment is a binary system that assumes all the details of ones life from birth??? i need you to know that when i block you in a minute, it isnt because you "owned" me, its bc you take issue with an intersex person using the term cagab lol

so laser targeted

i know who posted that, i know that shes informed by the fact that there are plenty of people comfy calling themselves theyfabs in her inbox. while i dont like the term, saying "people who have systemic privilege over trans women have internalized bias against trans women and need to learn to take a joke " is once again not that crazy of a statement

no it's just a term invented by 4chan transmeds to mock non-binary people

we dont know where it came from specifically bc its a simple ass term, unlike baeddel which we know started for sure as a slur. but either way i hate transmeds regardless, theyre not what im arguing against atm

I'm trying to keep you focused because you keep going off track like an imaginative child that doesn't want to be constrained by coloring in the lines

you really don't get to correct me on whats being discussed on my own post, especially when you failed to follow your own "rules," but im also gonna tell you that ^ sentence is the second reason i'm blocking you. why is it that you can cry tone policing bc youre "a bit bitchy" in response to a perfectly polite post but you take issue with other trans women being a bit bitchy in response to targeted harassment?

If you want to call all the people who have directly attested to me that they were kicked out of "trans friendly" spaces for being too masculine liars, you may!

they aren't liars, i just don't believe that the cause is masculinity in itself, and you are putting a lot of words in my mouth!

there was a brief period of time when i empathized with transandrobros largely out of my personal discomfort as a nonbinary person with the terms tme/tma - this pretty much entirely dissolved when i began to understand those terms not as obligatorily publicized personal descriptors but as tools with a communicative purpose. perhaps more importantly, i learned that most of the people involved with the proliferation of the "transmisandry/transandrophobia" concept were treating trans women like complete and utter shit and then making tgirls out to be the instigators. for this reason i seriously encourage every transmasc who finds themself feeling riled up against trans women to, like, double check the kind of messages and comments the angry girls are getting. i promise you, it becomes a lot more evident why those women are describing discomfort or fear or bitterness around trans men when you see the kind of sexually abusive, misogynistic, violent messages they're getting first. no, that doesn't excuse every joke or response, but it makes you understand how disproportionate the transmasc reaction can be. and if you can't find what i'm talking about, you don't see any examples of trans men being misogynistic, literally just message me and i'll be happy to provide as wide a range of examples as possible

[aroaceleovaldez]

Your blog is the only blog where I feel safe enough asking this question. What do you think of Percy Jackson fans who feel as though they and the series have a moral superiority to Harty Potter ? Obviously, Harry Potter and its author are laden with questionable and sometimes straight-up hateful takes and views. But the way PJO fans constantly compare the two, its authors (even though RR is far from flawless), and the two MCs (ignoring how the two both share similarities in the fact that they are both traumatised, abused, angry teenage boys). I'm sorry that this ask got so long, but this has been annoying me for a while now.

This is an interesting question - for one, fandom fights over superiority is a concept that has been around for ages and has never been constructive. PJO and HP fandoms have been fighting in that exact way (and it has gone both ways!) for literal decades (remember, PJO turns 20 this year) so this isn't new, it's just taken on a moral flavor. Let's go over some things though (but please keep in mind i never got into HP and never read the books or fully watched the movies so my knowledge of HP is primarily pop culture absorption/secondhand from my family and friends):

Are either series perfect? No. HP absolutely is full of hateful sentiments and JKR is a hateful person and I do not respect her for that. Disney's marketing recently has absolutely fully leaned into trying to put Rick above her as a moral paragon and emphasizing how progressive he is and his support of diversity in middle grade series, despite some failings to reflect that in the actual text. Are Rick and JKR equally bad? Definitely not. Rick has had tangible good influence on adhd/dyslexia awareness that very directly impacted people like me as a neurodivergent kid going through school in the 2000s. JKR meanwhile has directly negatively impacted trans laws internationally very recently.

Rick absolutely isn't perfect, but he's vocally supportive, has made a lot of effort in the past to be inclusive, and still attempts to do so. Most of his issues simply stem from his own unaddressed internalized bigotry/biases and his research on varying topics not being great (plus poor management decisions such as not hiring a sensitivity reader actually fit for the story he's trying to tell). But he's not hateful. JKR is. JKR is very vocally hateful and bigoted and this is absolutely reflected in her work as well even in earlier HP. They are comparable in that they are both middle grade authors of easily two of the most popular middle grade fantasy (or specifically hidden world fantasy) series out right now. They are not equivalent in the slightest in their bigotry or tangible damage.

In terms of Percy versus Harry, I personally don't think they're very comparable. They share some similarities, but mostly just in that they're both the protagonists of their stories and thus serve protagonist purposes. Beyond that their use within the narrative is pretty different functionally. Their worlds' magic systems are not comparable. The hidden world aspect in both their universes isn't even comparable, since in PJO the "hidden world" aspect is very different from most hidden world fantasy formats because the entire point is that it's functionally not a hidden world. The characters themselves are very different as well - Percy's personality and the way he behaves and reacts to his environment is absolutely nothing like Harry's.

Most of the anti-HP-in-general sentiments stem from wanting to cut off JKR's notoriety, which I think is valid to want to do. And I do think there are a lot of issues with continuing to support JKR's work especially in ways that functionally promote her work or support her financially. Obviously, we will never be able to scrub HP from the cultural zeitgeist. It's just not feasible and I'm very anti-book burning so I do think it's important to acknowledge the role HP has had in pop-culture alongside acknowledging its harmful materials. HP is a text you absolutely can't death-of-the-author your way out of because a lot of the vitriol is baked into the text and worldbuilding in very overt ways - and there are plenty of other pop-culture staple novels like this. But fandom in general, at least true fandom and not mainstream fandom, is so obscure most of the time that I don't think, so long as people are not ignoring negative themes of the source material and are being thoughtful as they navigate engaging with it, that it is an inherently bad thing for HP fandom to just exist at all. It's never going to just stop existing no matter what people do. And HP fandom are not the only ones who should be thoughtful about how they engage with their source material - PJO fandom is not exempt from examining some of the problematic aspects in our own text and figuring out how to be respectful with those topics. It's just a lot easier for PJO fandom to tune it out without it being noticed because there's less of it and it's (at least sometimes) less overt. Honestly if HP fandom decided to go more down the path of a fandom like Warriors or Miraculous Ladybug, where the average sentiment is more along the lines of "Oh god no don't read/watch the source material it sucks/we stopped paying attention to it year ago and it's not relevant at all to what we're up to. We're over here functionally rewriting everything from the ground up/doing our own thing" I would very much support them in that endeavor. I do think there is merit in limiting promotion of the HP source material as much as possible, though.

Hopefully that all makes at least some amount of sense.

[unistaryo]

Hey I read recently one of your works and I really enjoy your style of writing and I find the way you write really comforting!!🙃☺️ I was going to ask if you could do headcannons on Alucard as a dad with another vampire. (I know canonically it wouldn’t happen ever but i was just curious lol)

Alucard as a dad with a vampire child (headcanons)

//I don't know how, but I somehow got extremely sick💀. So I'm sorry if this is ooc

I feel like you will most likely adopt a child who was turned into a vampire during a mission, immediately taking the role of a caretaker and forcing Alucard to do the same

The first couple of days or months he wouldn't really accept the role of the father figure

It would take a lot of convincing from your side for him to even stop trying to get you to stop parenting the child

He sees himself as someone who failed as a human, who willingly became a monster and he is very aware of his nature, Alucard can't comprehend how you can even think about him in such a positive way

But he will eventually comply in his own twisted way, maybe after your child has proven that while they can be a creature of the night, they still have some sort of humanity in them

maybe the child drank blood from an animal but is still compassionate to other people

Alucard loves and hates the child's innocence at the same time

He sometimes teaches your child how to control their vampiric powers, but it will mainly remain your responsibility (he's afraid the child will take too much after him)

He will definitely tease you a lot about your parental tendencies like "Where are you going? You know, you can barely handle one"

Despite this, his love and respect for you increased even more than before, again because he seems to value determination, will and courage

Alucard will definitely bring the child on a mission, maybe on one who isn't so bloody as usual. If you aren't on board with this he will do it in secret, unless you talk to Integra

Integra will command him to stop until the child has grown

The vampire does have his dad moments, trust me

He melts every time he sees you and his kid having a moment

If somebody other than a few range of specific people dares to comment about you two in a bad way, that person will either be traumatized for life to straight up killed

Alucard will play a lot with your child, he isn't far from teaching him how to transform and many more

Those two will prank soldiers in the most unhinged way

The child will love horror and adventure movies with extreme violence in the future, trust me

But, given how Alucard is one of their main caretakers, they will also become violent and mess with people on purpose (Alucard will either be entertained or curse himself because of this)

If something happens to the child, BLOOD WILL BE SHATTERED

He will have no mercy on whoever even looks at his kid in a weird way

(in Ultimate) Seras and Pip would be more than happy to help with babysitting, and the overall process of taking care of the child, more Seras actually, but Pip finds a good opportunity to get closer to the vampire

In the end, both of them will become extremely attached to your kid

Integra will remain distant, but it is clear she also cares a lot about the child, often forgetting they are a vampire

Walter will provide with the necessities but won't be extremely involved. But he will babysit from time to time, and even train them in small ways

(in 2001) Seras will help like her ultimate counterpart, but I feel like she will take them out more, even showing them her old home

Here, Integra will be a lot more distant, letting comments slip more often regarding the situation, but still cares immensely about them, even if she doesn't show it

I don't know why, but I feel that this version of Walter is more fatherly, so I think he will be more involved in the child's life, maybe even letting them accompany him in the mansion when he doesn't have an important task

Peter Fargason will sometimes entertain the child in small ways, only if the others aren't looking, but will mostly keep his distance

[hestzhyen]

Chapter 63 Cool Posting

Hi, kind void. Today's chapter is straight out of an action movie! It's light on lore but chock-full of cool stuff (and some names at long last) so let's get into it.

Rough TL of editor's notes (don't take as competent):

Colour page: 音を割ぎ, 匂を割ぎ, 獲物の元へ忍び寄れ- [] Cut all sound, cut all smell, then sneak up on your prey- This one's fun because "cut" as in "eliminate" works in both EN and JP! Last page: 巻墨とチ-ムで!! [(Nakama) to chiimu de-!!] Teaming up with allies (the Masumi)!! The kanji for Masumi (巻墨) have Ruby over them spelling out nakama (なかま), the word that usually means ally/partner.

Really cool perspective shot on the colour page, by the by!

Code Name: Uh...?

Please live.

So, we finally got names for our Masumi Ninja Maids. But they're kind of, um. I feel bad for these guys if they aren't code names or nicknames ha ha.

"Ms. Masumi" is Sumi (炭): charcoal/coal "Minimura" is Rou (郎): son/young man (archaic) "Masumi Bro" is Moku (杢): woodworker/figure pattern in wood

Normally these kanji are combined with others to make a proper given name; they basically don't exist by themselves as a way to refer to someone outside of a family/surname from what I can find. I think I feel the worst for Sumi since her full name sounds like a Lalafell's from FFXIV: Masumi Sumi (巻墨 炭) lol. But yeah. Names at last, even if they're kinda headscratchers! Just like the nature of this ink sorcery.

Random bullshit, go!: the ability

At this point I'm definitely operating under the assumption that Sumi's sorcery is basically just Rule of Cool: Ink Version. I guess she can manifest anything she wants or needs if she has the time to write whatever inscriptions are necessary. I've never read Naruto in full (fake weeaboo, cancel me on TWT) but apparently this is similar to how Fuinjutsu works in that series? In the sense that a user can write a "seal" and concentrate their power into it to do something crazy cool that may or may not actually have anything to do with sealing something.

In the Masumi's case, I think their surname literally meaning "rolled up ink [scroll]" is a dead giveaway that this is basically how the technique functions- the user channels their sorcery into a written inscription for a desired effect. So they're basically OP if given infinite time to train and prepare for a fight, and will have all kinds of ass-pull types of clutch factor if they stick around.

...Speaking of.

I have a kind of ominous feeling about these guys beyond the jokes about how elite squads have a high mortality rate in this series. I don't want to be one of those doomsday prophecy guys, but this chapter ends pretty optimistically in a way that makes me think we'll be saying goodbye to them at some point. We have some significant emotional investment in them by now but they're not critical enough to keep around despite the deep ties to Samura. I don't think it'll be next chapter or anything, but... they could be another Elite Squad Statistic sooner or later is all I'm saying. I want them to live though. Rou's kind of growing on me, Moku's got amazing himbo energy in a series critically lacking in hunks, and Sumi can pat my head and call me a "good boy" any day.

(Warning, pure speculation ahead.) Also, referencing chapter 53 where it seems like Chihiro's hellbent on taking his own path but is trying to rely on others- if he loses the Masumi after seeing Uruha die and Hakuri be gravely injured, then he's probably going to spiral down even further and try to go it alone for real like Samura is. That could be when Hakuri comes back in for the save where Uruha tried and failed with his mentor. But I'm just spitballing with this so I'll leave it be until we get a better idea of where the Chihiro/Samura and Hakuri/Uruha parallels are going. Don't want to get too attached to a development that may well not even happen.

For now I will pray they live and keep supporting Chihiro in all kinds of silly and cool ways. Buck the trend and don't become an Elite Squad statistic!

"Quality" Analysis Section

Just in case you forgot how fucking exhausted Chihiro must be.

The author lampshading his own breakneck pace isn't just a cheeky jab at the people fretting about it- I see this as a deliberate callout that Chihiro is going to run himself into the ground and truly break. Referencing chapter 53- Chihiro thinks he's an irredeemable monster and is rushing down the path to hell. So maybe the rushed pacing of chapter 60 was intentional after all? As in Chihiro won't give himself a break so we don't get one either. I don't want to assume too much but I'll keep that in mind as we get closer to his breaking point. How he collapses and why will be very important. As will be the people who help him recover.

Chihiro looks fucking tired man. The new scars and extra thick sketchy lines under his eyes even when he's being a badass give me the impression that he's pushing himself too hard. The only other character consistently having the tired look right now is Rou and I'm willing to bet that it's done to give him a slightly more mature look to remind us of his true age- he's had them ever since he was woken up from his nap in ch. 55. I swear to God, if Hokazono-sensei has Chihiro buckle and shatter because he won't let himself rest, I will forgive absolutely everything about Chapter 60 onward and never doubt him again. Well, almost everything.

I'm not just saying this to cope. I went back through the whole story to check Chihiro's expressions up to chapter 62 and there's a pretty clear trend. Apologies for the huge cluttered images, probably should have made these on my smaller monitor.

Chapter appearances: 18 Examples: 18

Chapter appearances: 25 Examples: 22 (not present in ch. 35) I will mention Hakuri in every post one way or another.

Chapter appearances: 14 Examples: 41 (not present in chs. 55 & 56)

Basically: Chihiro is the most exhausted and emotional he's ever been in the shortest amount of chapters (even accounting for the lines under most character's eyes getting thicker starting around chapter 47). So yeah, he's tired as fuck and absolutely should not have been so gung-ho to do a rescue mission.

The real give-away is the end of Chapter 60:

Zoom in on the second to last page: he tired and burdened AF bro

Squad roll out on the last page: cool, calm, collected

Extreme zoom-in shots to character's eyes are how a mangaka draws attention to how the character's truly feeling without having them say anything out loud. Doing this to show Chihiro is exhausted before zooming back out to have him looking like his usual self reads as him burying that tiredness to get things done with the others. He is focused and ready to do whatever's necessary to protect Iori- but Rou knows how he's really feeling and called him out which is why we suddenly see all those panels of Chihiro looking as wiped out as he feels this chapter.

Like so.

Chihiro's exhausted but won't give himself a break. And this chapter's making a point of that, because now Chihiro's at the point where even shots of him being a badass have that tired look. He's going to break from pushing himself this hard sooner rather than later or I'm sixty toads in a wooden onesie. (Surely I won't regret making this assertion...)

I haven't forgotten about this flag from Chapter 1.

I feel like a colossal idiot for needing this to be pointed out to me, but I'll admit I'm dumb. At least I took the closer look I should have been doing all along for this post- better late than never and all that.

Rokuhira Chihiro: Forever Badass

Always the coolest guy in a 3781.2km radius

Yeah, Chihiro absolutely reminded us why he's the MC this chapter despite not having as much screen time as Sumi and the Hishaku. He's just that awesome- Hokazono absolutely nails every entrance this guy makes.

Shame the general public doesn't seem to agree.

Not so above it all (but we knew this)

Nice to see that people being frightened and thinking he's a mass-murderer still gets to Chihiro a little. It won't stop him from pursuing his goals, but he is absolutely not above caring about how he's perceived. Maybe fighting against the guy who broke through the window and threatened to kill defenseless students will help some people change their minds?

Iori's definitely going to have to take some time to reconcile her dismal first impression of Chihiro with who he actually is. I'm actually looking forward to how that plays out- Chihiro probably won't go out of his way to convince her he's a nice guy, so we'll get to see her evaluation of him evolve as they spend time together. Hopefully. Maybe. I can only rarely guess what's going to happen next in this manga and I'm not at all confident we'll get significant time devoted to developing the relationship between Chihiro and Iori. I'd like to see it though. Hakuri is the best character from anything ever, but Chihiro would benefit from getting to know more people his age- especially ones that have been able to lead a relatively normal life. She can bring a fresh viewpoint to this series that's so far mostly been limited to traumatized action hero types.

Kuguri Impressions

This guy is a piece of work. Definitely obsessed with "slicing" to an unhealthy degree.

Talking through fighting, that time-old tradition.

Taking a page from his... inspiration? Mentor? Whatever? Sojo, he wants to "talk" with Chihiro in a high-octane way. Sure let's go, love the fights and the spread of them engaging each other this chapter was epic! There's an interesting line from him that caught my attention, though.

The vibes are "these guys should have just let me kill them, now look at this mess."

We're reminded on the same page that "The Hishaku have no qualms about involving innocent bystanders." And this seems to hold true for Kuguri- he killed an unarmed teacher in cold blood, sliced up a bus full of people, was ready to kill students, so on and so forth. He's not a good guy. But talking about how more lives need to be sacrificed now snagged at me- it's a total 180 from Hiruhiko's joyful bloodbath approach.

He strikes me as the type of person who takes the shortest path to everything in life and killing is just a tool he can use to achieve that. He might actually be closer to Chihiro in that he doesn't really enjoy committing murder but views it as necessary. Just in way too many circumstances and with way less morality involved than our protagonist- again, Kuguri is absolutely 100% a bad guy who will deserve whatever death is coming to him. You don't have to murder your way through unarmed civilians to reach a defenseless target.

I'm a lot more interested in seeing more of him now to find out what he's really like and what makes him tick. I especially want to see him clash and contrast with Chihiro. Our poor protagonist is getting challenged on way more fronts than ever before, and in way finer detail, but I know he's up to it. At least for now...

Miscellaneous Thoughts

"This is a surprise tool that will help us later."

I will absolutely accuse people who ask "is Chihiro using Enten?!" or "where did Chihiro get the sword from?!" of speedreading. Yes, it's very silly that the motorcycle that appeared from a magic ink scroll had a katana built in to it. We're definitely not meant to think hard about the how and why of that- it's there because Chihiro needs a proper weapon to fight with while he can't use his magic fish nuke. Hopefully it's existence isn't on a timer or something.

It will be interesting to see how he fares with a regular weapon against a guy who can cut a bus in half with his own mundane katana. How good are Chihiro's basics, really? How much did he manage to pick up from Samura and others before he started to train with Enten's powers? We're probably about to find out!

Please don't let this raise a flag for the Masumi.

These front shots always look so damn cool. Chihiro is the kind of protagonist those edgy wish-fulfillment series wish they had. If Hakuri didn't exist he'd definitely be my favourite character, no contest. Pretty rare for a shounen series honestly! He might even win an official popularity poll if/when Kagurabachi gets one! Usually that honour goes to the deuteragonist or characters with wide appeal like Gojo while the MC is in second or third. Maybe. I want to collect the data on this but I've already got a ton of other half-finished things I'm working on, so maybe that'll wait until a poll is actually announced.

A lot of shounen MCs are good guys with a lot to learn and Chihiro's not much different in that regard. But all the little details about Chihiro add up to make him the first WSJ protagonist I've been sincerely attached to in eons. ...I'll get around to finishing that "why Chihiro is a uniquely compelling protagonist" write-up one of these days.

Hooray for magic skirts that ignore physics

Not much to say here other than I'm really happy for the yuri fans. They finally have "shippable" girls interacting with each other in Kagurabachi. And an innocent-yet-brave girl is clinging to a cool, deadly beauty for safety no less- that's really potent stuff. Let the lilies bloom!

Okay, dear void. We have one more break for brain rot before resuming a normal weekly schedule on the 19th. Great time to re-read the series for the five millionth time, wouldn't you agree? Yes? Wonderful! See you in two weeks or so if I don't finish up something that's gathering dust in the drafts before then. Take care of yourself and may 2025 be your best year yet.

[amethystfairy1]

OH GOD I'M GETTING FLASHBACKS 😭😭😭

I seriously don't comprehend how you write so engagingly. Like, I feel like with any other author, I'd have a pretty clear idea of what's going to happen in the next chapter, but with you I have no idea.

My first thought was that Ren, since he wasn't lying at all, would respond truthfully that he does love Martyn. However, Martyn is definitely going to want to take back the order (like what Mumbo did), so I think it's just a question of whether or not he's going to be in control enough to do so. I wouldn't be surprised if he breaks down even more.

But then there's also the possibility of Ren going back to his conditioning. We saw in chapter 2 that he adopted this sort of "YOLO" attitude, but I'm scared that getting an order would set him straight back to that and basically ruin all the progress that had...

AMETHYST WHY ARE YOU DOING THIS TO US!!!!!!!

But I'm holding out hope, please? Please can they talk things out? I'm using that communication tag as a lifeline despite the fact that the lack of communication tag is also there. Also, I've been thinking a lot about Jimmy here, because according to the summary he's "playing a connections game." I'm hoping this means he's noticing things about what Ren and Martyn are thinking but not speaking, so he'll push them to talk about things... Please? Please just let them have a happy, stable relationship??

Awwwwh heck that's so nice I mean I know you're freaking out because of the ✨angst✨ but the fact that you think my writing is that good makes me so happy! I try real hard not to let y'all get too good of an idea of what's coming next! 😆

As for all your suspicions, I love hearing all of your thoughts of what's coming next! It's always so cool to see people trying to spitball through what might be coming! I mean...I guess you'll have to wait and see! I don't plan to keep you waiting long, so please look forward to whats coming up! 💖

[captainleviswifee]

I don't hate characters. But I do have least liked ones some of which is:

1. Annie. Used to like her and honestly loved badass women like her and Mikasa. I honestly would've loved to see who would win between them. That was such a hype moment. But she became my least liked one for obvious reasons and Marco (dw all of em 3 received the same reaction from me abt that)

2. Floch. Man's a fascist. Need I say more? He'd sacrifice you (and the world apparently) for the sake of his country. Wait, that's kinda hot? I'm frking contradicting myself.

3. Zeke Yeager. He doesn't see value in human life. Although as an eldest kid, I can 100% feel him. RIP he had the epiphany he needed way too late.

4. Eren Yeager. Just bc he has a sad backstory doesn't justify what he did to those innocent ppl. The world wasn't as empty and clear as he expected it to be based on Armin's stories. Thats why he made it so to fit his expectations and definition of freedom. I pity him though, poor kid. If only Carla was alive to set him straight... sigh.

ANYWAY i dont hate characters. But I have these three as my least favorite characters. All characters in aot be it antagonists or main casts do their things for their own reasons they fight for. And I absolutely love that. You can't 100% blame one or the other for this or that. They were all just kids caught in a war.

I especially loved this tapestry merch from Hotel Socia's AoT themed room collab (in Hita, Japan). Because it shows it just that. They were just kids 😭 Yes this is 104th running towards that tree on that hill. Playing like kids should. Instead of going to the army 😭 See why I can't hate any of em???

[arttsuka]

How does one know about their sexuality? How do you figure it out?

[sciderman]

Sometimes i remember a comics moment i randomly came across somewhere, where Sam Wilson mentiones a musical and Steve Rodgers says he doesn't like musicals, to whitch Sam goes "Guess that means you really are straight" and even tho i don't care about Cap America or the Avengers, the moment stuck in me for that quote by Sam. And like....Sci, any ideas if straight men actually don't like musicals or is that bullshit?

actually i think i know more gay men who hate musicals than i know straight men who hate musicals. i've had a drag queen stop me point blank when i was about to sing a barbra streisand song, and i know so many gays who pointedly hate abba. so based on my experience i think the inverse is true. most of the straight men i know are kind of impartial about musicals, but gay men? hate.

my theory is that a lot of gay men don't want to fall into stereotypes, maybe. but thaaaaat's just a theory! a gay theory.

[lyril]

i feel like not enough people use writing fanfiction as a way to like... study and learn? outside of it being more practice and things. like sure, this is for entertainment first and foremost, but for me keeping the writing tone and characterization as accurate as i can to then transform it more into a writing style to create something good just ends up in me like, intensely studying the source material. i don't ever go off of memory i fucking break that shit down, study dialogue patterns and write down literally everything the characters i'm writing for say, observe the structure and themes and tone of whatever i'm looking at, watch and analyze things until i'm sick of them and come out a better writer because of that hands-on observation and because i simply fucking hate when other people go off of memory while writing characters i like ❤️

[kurokoros]

first of all, the duffers absolutely didn't have the full series planned out from the start because Stranger Things was originally pitched as a limited series with 1) the potential for a direct "sequel" that would follow the younger kids as adults (basically, they pitched "It") or 2) an outright sci-fi horror anthology. second of all, even if the duffers did have everything mapped out from the start that doesn't mean that plan isn't garbage.

[suitsimp]

probably doesn't look that great but i attempted to draw Valarie Bronev and Clayton Bronev from the How Things Change au by @multiversal-madness

also i want to point out i attempted to make their poses be similar to some poses done by a certain top hat wearing professor that Luke is missing very dearly, cause i think it's neat and sometimes you just gotta make a child cry

[mariyekos]

One day I'm going to finish my FFXVI mega essay, but for now I think my thoughts on the game can be summarized like this:

When making FFXVI, the developers sure knew what they wanted to do, and by god were they going to do it.

Were they also going to do other things that would make those first thing better? Were they going to do other things that make a good game overall? Ehhhhh...they were going to do what they wanted to do, and invest all their time and effort into that, so surely that would be enough! Surely!

[neverendingford]

hardwood comb project

I forgor to buy a lighter colored wood for the spine/core so I can't keep working on it tonight cause all I've got is the walnut.

[mossy-thing]

@outofangband @main-to-outofangband is the recreation of the post you were asking me about. I tried to keep it as close to the original as I could, so I hope what you wanted to comment on is still there

Something I really admire about Tolkiens writing is that he manages to write m/f relationships that don't bore me but actually make me interested and invested in their story.

I am sure that many of you can relate to this, but I would like to say it regardless: Growing up queer with basically no media representation makes me want to throw up whenever I see a generic female lead start fluttering her eyes at a generic male lead who is ten years older than her and just tried to kill her.

So why am I so excited about, for example, Beren and Lúthien?

Let me explain. What Tolkien does is simple yet genius: he switches up the powerdynamics. He takes a guy, drags him through the most traumatic shit possible so he is permanently covered in blood and tears, makes it seem like he has grown unapprochable and dangerous because of it (Think Beren fighting armies of orcs completely on his own), and lets him run wild for a bit.

Then he takes a woman, who is one of the most etheral and powerful beings in general and who also seems unapprochable and dangerous, not because of what she has gone through, but because of who she is.

Now he takes both of them, drops them in a 10 mile radius of one another like a chemist would drop sulfur and salpeter acid into grape juice, and lets them react. And then the magic happens.

The man immediately turns into a himbo ("Can you teach me how to dance?") and the woman into a girlboss who WILL tear apart the world if anyone dares to hurt her man. They fall in love, and it feels so real.

They are so passionate and honest about each other, so much so that the narrative eventually grows bored of it and throws an AND THEN CAME CELEGORM WITH THE SPEAR at the two (which set off the funniest fight scene I ever read).

And throughout it all, while the main plot is going on, Beren is just kind of... there. He tries to go off on his own two times and Lúthien just shows up and makes it clear that "Yes Beren, I understand you want to keep me safe, but I am half angel and you are a himbo, if I don't come with you, you will die with a 100% certainty, and I would rather be tortured by Morgoth than let that happen. I'm coming with you, you fool."

And after the second time, he is fine with it. He doesn't feel threatened in his masculinity or whatever any Tom Cruise character would do, but he respects her wishes and is just thankful that she is with him on this journey.

She has to save him multiple times and he is nothing but thankful. He falls asleep while she fights Morgoth (and I know why, but it feels like Tolkien saying: Alright, Lúthien is being epic, fuck I forgot to write what Beren is doing, errrrr, he's under her spell too. Yup.) But the best part is that, while the powerdynamics are switched up, there is no moment where he is afraid of her in a "Fuck you could literally tear me apart", kind of way.

He simply loves her and she simply loves him. That is a given fact.

We need more pathetic man/powerful girlboss relationships guys, if a white english guy could do this in the 20s then so can we!