#this got LONG but I feel like it’s an accurate breakdown

[sillylotrpolls]

Normally in these results posts I include some interesting/amusing analysis of the results, but as seen in yesterday's post I'm not really feeling it this week.

Instead, let's talk about something else interesting that happened with this post: it was my first experience with Tumblr's Blaze platform!

A whole bunch of information about that below the cut. ( @staff, if you're reading this, I have some ~burning~ questions for you. 😁)

I'm not sure if anyone noticed, but much to my surprise this poll was blazed on November 5th courtesy of @katco-cereal, who runs @silmarils-for-breakfast. They thought the poll was funny and had a free blaze thanks to Tumblr's new ad-free -> premium system, so why not?

What happens when your post is blazed

When someone else blazes a post of yours, you get a notification in your activity feed as well as an email. However, I first noticed because the poll had a little "fire" icon right above the notes.

So, if a post of yours gets blazed, you'll definitely know about it so long as you check tumblr and/or your email regularly.

Clicking the icon got me this notification:

As you can see, anyone can blaze a post as long as your blog settings permit it and it passes moderation. However, if you blaze someone else's post they might choose to "extinguish" the campaign before it starts or is over. If this happens, you don't get a refund or your free monthly blaze campaign returned. So, be sure the original poster isn't going to be upset at being blazed or else be comfortable being out the princely sum of $10 (or however much you spent).

Why you might want to check before blazing a post

I was touched that someone found my poll funny enough to reblog, but there is a reason I might still have extinguished the campaign early: you can't edit a blazed post while it's blazing.

Obviously you already can't edit polls (a fact I approve of, actually), but I do often go back and add context to posts or links or just fix a typo or whatever. Even adding a new tag would have required ending the campaign first.

This makes sense! The post has been through moderation, and it would be a huge loophole if you could submit something unobjectionable, like Gollum singing about how he likes it raw and wriggling, and then edit the post to feature hardcore Gandalf/Balrog porn after the campaign starts. But it's something you should be aware of before blazing.

The report and how to interpret it

Here's a copy of the report I was emailed after the campaign ended. It was sent pretty quickly; clearly Tumblr puts some effort into providing a good experience for users willing to actually give them money unlike the vast majority of us.

Something I have frequently lamented while running this blog is the lack of detailed stats. In particular, I would love a time-stamped breakdown of votes, so I can see exactly when a certain option took off or how getting reblogged by a certain popular blog affected things. With this report I still don't have that, but I did get some impressions stats.

As it happens, I have experience marketing and running ads on other social media platforms (mostly Twitter (RIP) and LinkedIn), so I had no trouble interpreting this. If you don't have that specific experience, however, let me break it down for you.

About impressions

According to the report, I got 3,677 impressions, 277 of which were "earned." An impression is when someone sees your post. Or, more accurately, an impression is when Tumblr puts a post on someone's dash. It's entirely possible for Tumblr to do that but for users not to actually see the post because they have some sort of ad-block in place. How exactly a platform determines if a post was seen is generally kept secret in hopes of preventing exploitation.

An "earned" impression in this context means someone saw the poll because it was blazed and decided to reblog it. Then, additional users saw their reblog. Those additional users seeing it are the "earned" impressions. Same for the other stats in this report.

Note that this report is only for impressions and other stats related to the blazed version of the post. If you saw this poll because you follow @sillylotrpolls or because someone who does reblogged it, that impression is not counted in this report.

Something else to notice is that the campaign promised that the post would be shown to "at least 2500 users." Why not make that exactly 2500 users? A few reasons come to mind. This is educated speculation as I do not work for Tumblr, but it's very likely a combination of:

Not being able to be 100% certain each user actually saw the post for above ad-blocker reasons (or if their dash just glitched for whatever reason, or the power went out as they were scrolling, or whatever).

The blaze system lags in counting how many impressions have already been served, so it's simpler to just show the post extra times rather than constantly checking to see if the count is at 2500 yet.

It's marketing technique meant to make users feel good about choosing Blaze because Tumblr is being generous with the impressions (which is fine to feel! there is nothing wrong with appreciating something nice!)

Votes = impressions?

Finally on the topic of impressions, one thing I really love about running polls is that they are a good proxy for measuring impressions without an ad campaign. When you scroll through your dash, you probably vote in most of the polls, right? Even the ones you don't like or reblog? (Actually, now that I'm saying it, I realize I'm not sure and would dearly love some stats on this.)

If you look at literally any poll on this blog, you'll see the number of votes is much higher than the number of notes. Since each user can only vote in a poll once, it makes a good estimate for how many people saw your post even if they didn't otherwise interact with it.

On the other hand, sometimes I have a poll that gets very few votes compared to other polls posted in that same time-frame. When that happens, it's probably not that I'm getting less impressions, since I can generally assume about the same number of followers are seeing each of those posts. Instead, it's much more likely that people just didn't want to vote on that particular poll.

A good example is this poll on dwarfism. I know it got at least 85 impressions, because it got that many votes, but generally other polls that didn't do well in that month got at least 200 votes or so. So votes can be a quick proxy for a proper impression count, but you have to be aware of complicating factors.

What about those other stats?

An engagement means someone interacted with the post. This includes clicks, follows, shares, replies, reblogs, and likes. It does not include votes.

A click means a user clicked on a link in your post. This is an important measurement in most "real" campaigns because you make the post trying to get people to click a link to the page selling your product or whatever. If there's no link (as was the case here), this stat will be zero no matter what.

A follow is pretty self-explanatory, but I will mention it can be difficult to capture all follows as a result of a campaign, especially if a user has turned off tracking cookies. If a user follows directly from the blazed post, of course that will be captured in the report. But what if a user sees the blazed post, then goes to check out the blog and see if they like it before deciding to follow? Depending on how the system is set up, that may or may not be reflected in the report.

The other stats I'm guessing you're familiar with if you use tumblr in any capacity at all. XD Once again, "earned" means the engagement happened on a post that was reblogged by a user who saw the post in blazed format. Interesting to me was the high ratio of reblogs to likes in the report. I'd have to see reports from additional campaigns to have any insight into whether that's common for blazed posts or specific to this one, however.

Something else I'm curious about is if any of these engagements are "hidden" in the notes until after the campaign ends. It's not going to be noticeable with reblogs or likes unless you're very meticulous, but I noticed right off that the number of replies the poll theoretically had (6) wasn't matching the number of replies I could see in the notes (4).

Usually if there's a mismatch like that I would assume it's because either I have a user blocked or visa versa, but that shouldn't be possible on my own blog, right? And if I go to check now, there are indeed the number of replies the notes say there should be, and they're timestamped Nov 5. So, I guess they were hidden? But I have no idea at all why that would be, as it would require extra code to make that happen, right? Very odd.

Is blazing a post a good idea?

Sure, if you like a post and want it to get more attention, why not? Just be sure the author (if not you) is cool with it and doesn't have plans to edit that post. However, it's also the case that a good post will probably spread around Tumblr anyway.

If I were making the call and had a set budget to work with, I'd blaze under some combination of the following circumstances:

The source blog doesn't have very many followers so the post isn't likely to be seen otherwise

The source blog has followers, but the post to be blazed would be popular with an audience beyond the typical demographics of those existing followers

Getting only a few clicks is enough to justify the cost of the campaign

Getting the post in front of users, regardless of any engagements, is enough to justify the cost of the campaign

In this case, Katco had a free blaze to burn (heh) and it was worth it to them to share the post with no potential personal return simply because they thought the post was funny and should be shared. And as a bonus, we got to learn about the Blaze process together, which was neat.

Generally, just keep your expectations realistic and remember it's only Tumblr, after all. $10 to have a little fun is perfectly justifiable if it brings you joy.

Okay, fine, a LITTLE bit of poll analysis

I said I didn't want to dig into the results, but I think we can all agree that "The monarchy is fine, but city-states like Rivendell aren't" getting 0.3% of the vote while "City-states are fine, but Galadriel should face re-election every 500 years" got 10.2% is pretty interesting, right? Can we get a Political Science major in here to dive into that result?

And how about the notion that monarchies are great so long as you like the guy in charge (17.2%)? And yeah, the Shire has democracy, but it's limited and both Merry and Pippin are part of aristocratic lines and inherit (not earn) positions of power...

Apparently even when I'm depressed, I just can't help but be interested in data. It is a sickness gift.

Finally, I'll leave you with these tags from @narcissusneverknewme:

#honestly this is a case of 'any system can fall to corruption'#our government sucks not bc it's a democracy but because its corrupt at every level of governance#lol#the bureaucracy and the fact they can just lie to citizens and do horrible harm. like red hill#or flint mi#this wouldn't happen under aragorn#not bc he's a king but bc he isn't corrupt

[rnanqo]

how do you keep the momentum going on your original story? i'm impressed and amazed at how often i see a post about something the characters did or about the act you're on now

this is a great question and honestly, treasured online pals who will like my silly posts are so so so important so i am delighted you asked!! but I do wanna break down the motivation/how I keep myself going parts because it took me literal decades to figure out how I work best and take advantage of that

- knowing where the book is going, both storywise and careerwise. the initial idea had a hook and an ending i’m dead set on, so I am constantly writing toward that. I have written so many books where I didn’t have an ending in mind and frankly, ick, blegh, that’s the least successful way for me to write anything. careerwise I’d love for this to be a tradpub debut novel, which means I have to query literary agents, which I have done before, so I know how I need to shape the project and have been tinkering with the query & synopsis on the side, both because doing that helps tighten the story as I go and because I know I hate writing those things after the book is done. basically…plans! I know what work I need to do and i know that I can do it

- also, deadlines! external deadlines are basically the only way I do anything. for the past year and a half I’ve been in a monthly critique group I have to send 5k of writing into every month, and I’m joining a summer novel swap for which I have to have a beta-readable draft by the end of this month. self-imposed deadlines do nothing for me I need to join groups and classes and things

- making tumblr posts about the book and seeing little hearts appear is VERY motivating and I am shaking everyone who’s ever cheered me on in that way gratefully by the hand. yes, you, the person reading this! you help keep me going!! im like tinkerbell if nobody claps i’ll DIE

- momentum does wax and wane though. from mid-March to the end of April I did barely anything on the book because BG3 consumed my brain. but that’s ok!! I felt mildly guilty about it but I find the distractions pass sooner if I just throw myself bodily into them. I’ll always get back to a project eventually

- and the love-of-the-project part. i just love the world and characters I’ve created so much and I like watching them make each other suffer! I’m having fun!!! and I know that that’ll eventually turn into the “I feel nothing for these people and cannot think about them for another second��� stage, which is when I will need to take a break and play bg3 for another solid month

- unexpectedly, hozier? the project playlist is like 75% hozier punctuated by a single 3OH!3 song. I do a lot of brainstorming by listening to music on walks/drives and this project imprinted on hozier i guess. thanks hozier!

overall all these things sort of combine into a sense that the book is compelling me to write it, instead of the reverse, which feels like me pulling words out painfully by my fingernails. when I start feeling like I’m dragging the words into existence kicking and screaming, I take a break. obviously nobody’s wholly inspired ALL the time, but I understand how I work and have set things up so there’s always something that spurs me onward. never underestimate the motivational power of being able to shitpost about it

[bluecrocss]

Yes. You are racist. (Buckle up, this is gonna be a long one)

So approximately half a year since the premier of the Disney+ Percy Jackson show, and almost two years since the announcement of the Trio's casting, I would like to take this moment to look back at the insane, racist and anti-black backlash that was launched at Leah Sava Jeffries and a few other cast members from the PJO fandom.

I'm not concerned with the trolls who are openly racist, who resorted to racist slurs and outright threats, everyone agrees that they "took it too far". I want to talk about the rest of you, the "I'm not racist, but.." people, the "What's wrong with wanting book accuracy?" people. Just to let you know, for the unasked question... yes, yes you are.

I've noticed the Percy Jackson fandom has been lording some weird superiority complex over a certain *unnamed* fandom that has fallen out of grace due to their recently outed bigot of an author. But honestly, y'all are not much different. The amount of vitriol and anti-blackness I have seen from this fandom (beyond just bullying a 12 year old girl), y'all don't have a leg to stand on.

Below is a breakdown of the most common arguments I have seen used to justify y'alls absolutely insane bigotry. I am going to explain why none of these justify the amount of anger and vitriol y'all have sent towards Leah, Rick or any of the cast.

I am not here to argue, and this is not a democracy. I am giving you a chance for some self-reflection and to understand that this pattern of violence directed towards POC actors (mostly black women) has never been justified in the name of "book accuracy"/"comic book accuracy"/"ending forced diversity" or whatever other excuses y'all try to make up.

If you still try to justify or argue further for any of these points, I will just block you. I am not coddling you through your racism. If anyone has seen any other dumb arguments floating around that I might've missed, feel free to sound off in the comments.

She's not book accurate:

Neither is Percy, Luke, Grover, Dionysus, Poseidon, and just about every other named character.

Rick already made it clear that physical features were not the priority with casting, rather it was actors that embodied the role. So why are the biggest complaints about Annabeth and Zeus? 🤔

What? You're gonna say everyone else got backlash too? I see you trying to obscure the main issue by playing dumb 😉

See my friend, yes, there were one or two comments about how Percy's hair should be black or how Luke is supposed to be blonde, but as soon as Leah was cast, none of those actors got any significant backlash. In fact, Walker and Charlie literally have an army of fan girls at their beck and call, calling them the perfect Percy and Luke, despite neither being "Book accurate". But then again, have we not observed the pattern of White boy of the month vs WOC to hate for the year? (Yes, I know Charlie isn't white. Further adds to the irony, doesn't it).

Why include character descriptions if you won't stay true to them, you cry? Well, my dear sweet moron, see, books and TV are two different mediums. Because in literature, you can't *Literally* SEE the characters, the author has to add descriptions to paint a picture in your mind, in TV... that's not an issue. So unless the character's appearance is necessary to the plot (like Luke's scar, or Nico being Italian) the show runners can actually focus on more important things.. Like ACTING and PERSONALITY.

2. It's just not how I imagined her:

News flash, babe! ANNABETH ISN'T REAL. None of these character are. They are concepts that originated from the brain of Mr. Rick Riordan. It doesn't matter how YOU imagined her. There are millions of people who read these books that imagined her several different ways. When the creator of the character watched Leah's audition and said, 'Yes! She embodies the character I created!", your imagined version of Annabeth ceased to matter. And guess what? The books still exist... they have not been burned. Your version of Annabeth has not disappeared. Go read the books.

3. Zeus can't be black/Gods have to be Greek/*Insert Character* can't be black:

Y'all did not read the books, I swear. You have to be fake fans looking to troll atp.

The gods move based off the center of western civilization. They change their forms/environment to reflect the culture they are occupying (they did it with Rome, now they're doing it with America). The gods change forms all the time. How we see them is not their true form as a mortal would disintegrate if they were to see their true form.

America is a cultural melting pot (specifically NY where Mount Olympus is now based). If the god's choose forms that reflect the current society they inhabit, they could literally be any race (keep in mind NYC is only 33% white).

All of this is literally SPELLED OUT in the Lightning Thief.

Furthermore, if you're going to push the ethnically Greek thing... Poseidon is British with a British accent and Hermes is Latino. The only ethnically Greek actor is Dionysus (who still doesn't look book accurate). Y'all are sounding like some white supremacists because do you forget that race is a social construct?

Before the advent of the transatlantic slave trade, I can promise you that the Greeks and the Anglo-Saxons did NOT view themselves as the same people. Why are y'all not taking issue with Poseidon's actor then?

Also, Percy Jackson has canonically had a slew of explicitly black demigods since the second book (including Harriet Tubman, which I have mixed feelings about 😭), so I genuinely have no idea where some of y'all are going with this point.

4. She was our smart blonde representation:

Don't pmo. I swear to God!

White, blonde women have NEVER been excluded from Hollywood. Representation is not something you lacked. The dumb blonde stereotype was a simple branch off of a larger misogynistic "dumb woman" stereotype. It has not truly been relevant since the mid 2000s outside of childish jokes.

This iteration of Percy Jackson will probably not go beyond the first 5 books, based off pacing and the age of the actors. So here's a fun game: 5 bucks to the first person who can find me a quote in the first 5 Percy Jackson books, where Annabeth laments her insecurities about being blonde (hint: there aren't any).

Also, her blonde hair does not hold her back at Camp because she is head of the Athena Cabin who are highly respected (and guess what?), ARE ALL BLONDE!

Her insecurities about her hair color are two or three lines at most in the later books, not this fundamental, core part of her character y'all all of a sudden wanna pretend it was. And guess what, as a non-blonde black girl, I was able to read those scenes of Annabeth feeling undervalued because of her looks and relate to her even if she didn't look like me at the time.

Why all of a sudden can y'all not do that with a black Annabeth? By every metric black girls are undervalued for their intelligence in academia more than white girls are, regardless of hair color. So your little representation of a woman undervalued by her looks would still hold. Do y'all dehumanize black women so much, that you are incapable of empathizing with show!Annabeth's plight in the way I could with Book!Annabeth simply because she doesn't look exactly like you?

Your issue isn't that she isn't blonde, it's that she is NOT WHITE.

Furthermore, Becky Riordan had tweeted previously (before the show was even cast) that Annabeth never needed to be blonde (probably recalling the BS y'all put Alexandra Daddario through), so even if they cast a white Annabeth, the blonde hair was never a guarantee. the author and producers all agree that it was not a significant part of her character. It's been a non-issue since day one.

Also, stop acting like smart blondes are rare in media... If you don't go watch some Legally blonde, Iron Man (Pepper Potts), Zack and Cody (Maddie), Liv and Maddie, FMAB (Winry), Captain Marvel, She-Ra, Buffy, The boys (starlight) etc. etc., and go sit down somewhere 🙄🙄🙄 (those were literally all things I've watched recently, off the top of my head, btw 💀)

5. It's not about race, but...:

Yes it is. It was always bout race. No other actors got as much hate as Leah. Her grandmother and other family members on IG had to mute their comments because they were getting so many threats.

Alexandra Daddario had to come to her defense on Twitter. Rick had to put out an official statement on his website. This girl has endured years of psychological torment for simply having the best audition. No one else is book accurate, no one else is ethnically Greek (except Jason Mantzoukas). Walker literally has British and German ancestry.

Why was she being called racial slurs on reddit and in youtube comments?

I know what you're gonna say, "I actually had problems with the entire cast", "I actually had a bigger issue with Walker's hair color", blah blah blah. Then why aren't you in Walker's comment sections? Why are you only making your displeasure known on posts defending/advocating for Leah? Why is she always your first example of 'wrong casting"?

Well, she "looks the most different"... Look up the term "scapegoating".

"Oh, I don't agree with the harassment. I just don't like the casting." Guess what? She's already been cast. They are not going to uncast her. What do you get out of still complaining about it.

All the vitriol you're stirring about her when you complain about her on Social media, it is directing people to send her hate, even if you're not writing it directly. It's is not enough to "not agree" with the racism, it is your duty to actively prevent it. And btw, these are young gen z actors, they are active on social media. They see the edits of themselves (even comment on it) and they most likely see these little "harmless" complaints you're posting. Are your upset feelings really worth contributing to the racist dogpile on this poor girl?

6. Why couldn't they atleast give her blonde braids?:

Why should they? Y'all wanted blonde because of the "dumb blonde" trope... that doesn't apply to POC.

A blonde black girl is gonna be viewed the same as a non-blonde black girl (or at worst, someone might decide she's "ratchet" or some shit for wearing colored hair). What difference would it make?

Why shouldn't Walker dye his hair, then?

7. Annabeth has Gray eyes:

Less than 3% of the global population has "gray eyes". Even if they cast a white actor, they would've needed contacts. Her being black is not the reason Annabeth's eyes aren't gray. Simply put, it is a plot element they removed, like the whole "names have power" element, or Ares having flames for eyes, or Dionysus using his powers to grow strawberries at Camp.

That's how adaptations work. Unnecessary plot elements are cut to save time and budget. This has nothing to do with her casting. They probably also didn't want to make child actors wear contacts (not a new practice).

8. Even if Rick chose her, he was wrong/Disney is forcing him to be okay with it:

Where do I start? Rick created the character. He can't be wrong. Do y'all have no self-awareness? Death of the author has no place here, because y'all are hung up on an aspect of the character that is not relevant to her arc or development.

Y'all's justification for wanting a "book accurate" Annabeth is that she was such an inspirational and important character growing up, and yet your behavior is so in conflict with the character you claim means so much to you. You're narrow minded, dismissive of bigotry and injustice, and disrespectful to the wishes of the creator of your favorite character; everything that Annabeth would never be. Y'all were never genuine fans of the books. You're bigots that needed an outlet for your rage.

Keep in mind, Rick has said countless times that PercaBeth directly mirrors his relationship with his wife. Y'all think he would have allowed them to cast someone who doesn't live up to the woman who has been by his side for decades? The mother of his children?

Regarding Disney forcing him, show me one piece of direct evidence that proves Disney in anyway pressured Rick to cast her. Cuz if you can't, that's baseless speculation. And if you have to resort to baseless speculation, maybe try to examine why it's so important to you to hold on to this belief.

9. So, I'm racist because I hate "race swapping"?:

To start, there is a difference between "race swapping" and "color blind casting". Often times, when y'all complain about the former, you're actually mad about the latter.

It would be "race swapping" if Rick and the team decided ahead of time that they wanted a black Annabeth and ONLY allowed black actors to audition. But the actual reality was that they accepted auditions from everyone (there were white actors and non-black poc that also auditioned for the role) and chose the best person who embodied the role. They didn't "make Annabeth black" and they didn't "make Zeus black", they cast black actors for those roles.

Y'all think you're being slick with your wording. Dismissing that is implying that they did not earn their roles fair and square. Which is racist. It's the equivalent of going up to a black college student and telling them they only got in because of affirmative action. You're dismissing the achievements of a person solely because of their racial background.

For all you people complaining about "unfairness" and "forced diversity", I would think hiring based on merit would appeal to you 🤔

71% of theatrical Hollywood leads were white in 2024 in comparison to 29% POC and you still think "black washing" is a thing? You still get this angry over a black person fairly earning a role because you think in a time where Hollywood only knows to do remakes and adaptations, that the majority of lead roles still *have* to be reserved for white actors?

Once again, white people have never been excluded from Hollywood for being white. Representation has never been something you lacked nor is it something you can lose. Your anger comes from seeing a black face where you think they don't belong. Because you feel you are owed a disproportion of representation in Hollywood.

10. Woke agenda/DEI/Forced Diversity:

If you are unironically using any of these terms in a negative light, it's already too late for me to reason with you. Look up the term "dog whistle". If you are sharing the same terminology with Elon Musk and his fanboys, maybe reevaluate some things.

POC are objectively underrepresented and have been historically excluded through actual laws and policies in Hollywood. There is no such thing as "forced diversity", you have bought in to a right wing conspiracy theory.

"Woke" is a term that was intentionally appropriated from the black community. It originally meant being aware of injustice and systematic threats to the community and is now being weaponized by bigots. Good job.

Diversity and inclusion is a good thing.

11. But POC deserve to have their own stories told:

We do. And we have been fighting for it for over a century now, and we've made great strides, no thanks to y'all.

No thanks to y'all gaslighting us about how little representation we get or that representation matters at all. No thanks to y'all pushing the idea that POC can't sell globally and obscuring POC actors in international promos. No thanks to y'all continuing to whitewash even to this day (Bullet train, the beguiled, gods of Egypt, atla, every portrayal of Jesus ever, etc.). No thanks to y'all calling every piece of media that has more than one black lead and more than one queer couple "woke". No thanks to y'all throwing a fit every time a black person in a fantasy setting isn't a slave.

Fact of the matter is, y'all never cared about POC "getting their own stories", you're only parroting our own words back to us now as a politically correct way of saying, "leave white roles alone" lmao

Well fun fact, actors of color getting opportunities to play lead roles and allowing poc to "tell their own stories" are not mutually exclusive. If y'all cared that much, instead of bullying a 12 year old actress, you could actually support up and coming independent POC writers, directors, and studios 😱

12. Studios need to stop "setting up" actors of color:

Do me a favor and google the term DARVO.

Your racism is not the fault of the studios for giving a POC actor a role that they earned. It is not up to the rest of society to tiptoe around racists to avoid their vitriol. It is our responsibility to hold them accountable and protect minorities from unwarranted hate. At most, you can say it's the responsibility of the studios to provide adequate support to POC actors who face this backlash.

At the end of the day, Hollywood only allows very few spots for POC actors (especially WOC), while simultaneously pushing a new white boy every month to put in everything. Putting minorities in these roles that are usually closed to them, usually opens the door to more actors of color than before.

Brandy being cast as Cinderella did a lot to push her into the mainstream (yes, she was already extremely famous in the black community atp), Halle Berry being the first, black, bond girl literally shot her to icon status, and even going as far back to what Anna Mae Wong did for Asian American actresses with her "femme fatale" roles.

At the end of the day, even with the backlash, *some* rep does more good for POC actors than *no* rep. The solution to racist backlash isn't to take away those opportunities, but rather to not be racist??? 🙄

Also, for everyone that claims that "POC race-swapping" is just as bad as "white-washing", despite white washing having a longer history and objectively causing more harm, note how the backlash to white washing never lasts as long as the harassment that POC get.

Like, no one brings up Scarlett Johansson's ghost in the shell role anymore, but you can best believe Candace Patton is still fending off racist trolls. As much as people hated the atla movie, people moved on quick from Nicola Peltz playing Katara since she was just a kid that accepted the role (re: daddy bought her the role), but y'all would not have any of that consideration for Leah Sava Jeffries.

But I digress...

13. What if we made Tiana white? Wakanda white? Hazel white...:

Ah, my favorite inane point. I was so excited to get here :)

See, I could start out by pointing out how "White washing" and casting a POC actor as a traditionally white character are not equivalent.

I could point out the history of hollywood ACTIVELY excluding POC actors and POC stories. I could point out how grossly over represented white people are in hollywood. I could point out that POC characters are so few in comparison that whitewashing them causes actual harm, where white people have never lacked rep.

I could point out how, because poc characters and stories are so often tokenized that their racial/cultural background is often directly tied to their character's identity, in opposition to a lot of white characters, since hollywood treats white as the "Default".

See, I could make all those points, but the thing is, the people who make this argument already know all that. They are trying to waste time by drawing me into a pointless circular argument that will sum up to "fair is fair", while ignoring all the context and nuance I previously provided.

So you know what? Forget it. Let me play your game.

I am actually fine with a white Tiana. Would it make sense, for her and her family to experience Jim Crow era racism, in the south while white? No. But we can look past it. Disney was never known for historical accuracy anyway 🤷🏿‍♀️

However, in exchange, the live action frozen will have a black Elsa and Anna, live action Rapunzel will be black, live action Merida will be black, we're re-filming Cinderella and Beauty and the beast to cast a black belle and Cindy, snow white will need to be recast as black, and we also get aurora whenever the live action sleeping beauty is announced. But then y'all can keep Tiana, deal?

You want a white T'Challa? Fine! (I'm partial to Ryan gosling), in the meantime, we'll be recasting Iron man, Captain America (Steve version), Bruce banner, Thor, Loki, hawk eye, black widow, ant man, captain marvel, Bucky, Peter Parker etc. All the avengers and their side characters, then y'all can have Sam Wilson, war machine and the whole of Wakanda (will it make sense that a sole, hidden, African nation is randomly made up of white people? Who cares? We get the avengers!).

You want white Hazel? You got her! I hope you have no problem with us taking Percy, Nico, Will, Poseidon, Jason, calypso, Rachel, Tyson, Silena, the stoll brothers, Sally Jackson, Hades, Hepheastus, ares, etc. But y'all can have Hazel and Beckendorf.

If we're gonna do this, let's commit all the way. Fair is fair, after all.

14. Leah isn't as "pretty" as Book Annabeth/Movie Annabeth:

I wish I could say this wasn't a genuine point I had read, but when all else fails, they will always go for a woman's appearance.

Now first of all, as a rule, I will never hold black women to white beauty standards. Our hair will never be long and silky enough, our nose will never be narrow enough, our skin will never be fair enough and our eyes will never be light enough (Might I recommend Toni Morrison, when you get the chance?). But Leah is unfairly gorgeous idc what any of you say, and you're not gonna have me use my defense of Leah as an opportunity to bash Alexandra either because she is also beautiful. These two queens slayed to the best of their abilities within this toxic ass fandom.

I find it funny, however, that so many of you harped on the "blonde" issue because you thought it was important that Annabeth be seen beyond just her looks, but quickly devolve to bashing an actress's looks when it comes to why she's not right for this role 🤔

I would also like to sincerely apologize that the 13 year old girl they cast in the show, wasn't as sexually attractive to you as the 24 year old woman they cast in the movie and sexualized through like 25% of her screen time (I'm actually not sorry. You're very weird if this is an actual point for you).

15. I don't agree with sending hate to the actor, but she's just not right for the role:

Once again, what are you doing by complaining about her casting on no other basis than her race?

The creator of the character said she embodied the role. She has already been cast, and Disney would be in a legal/production hell to recast her atp. Just because you're not directly leaving comments on her social media doesn't mean you're not part of the hate mob.

No matter how you look at it, your issues with her casting come from a very entitled and narrow-minded place. When you join in on these dialogues you are bolstering a sentiment that pushes more people to harass this teenage girl. When you leave these "harmless" complaints, on show content, fan posts or posts defending her, she's liable to read them because the cast regularly interact with fans online.

What do you have to say that is so important that it trumps protecting a young girl from the long-staying trauma of racism, of being told she doesn't deserve something she worked for because of how she was born?

16. I can't even criticize the show without being called racist:

Get. Over. Yourself.

Y'all are not the victim. Have fans of the show gotten protective of Leah and the young cast? Yes.

With good reason. This fandom is unbearably toxic.

Racism outweighs your need for a "perfect adaptation", sorry.

If you explain yourself properly and keep your critiques fair (like, even I don't think this was a perfect season, and will be sharing my thoughts shortly), no one is gonna call you racist.

You're preempting with that because in all honesty, you're probably planning to use your "critiques" of the show to pivot to one of the many points that I just outlined, and you want to pre-empt the criticism.

If a black Annabeth is the end all be all for you, just don't watch the show, no one's holding a gun to your head. Geez.

17. I'm Black/POC and I don't agree...:

Hey, Candace Owens... No one gives a shit.

First of all, for all the "I'm POC and I don't agree" people, you don't speak for us. Anti-blackness is rampant in just about every culture globally. You being not-white doesn't somehow make you less prone to hating black people.

But for the "I'm black and I don't agree" leftovers (assuming you're not just a 👩🏼‍💻 behind a keyboard). Black people are not a monolith. You're not obligated to think a certain way because you're black.

But consider why you're putting yourself up as a barrier to protect this hate mob. It's one thing to just state why you don't like Leah's casting, but to start off your spiel with "I'm actually black" as a way to weaponize the very identity politics you're critiquing... very strange. Not to mention, what are you defending?

The black community is coming together to defend one of our own, a kid who has been receiving death threats since she was 12, and this is when you feel the need to back the opposition?

I mean whatever... sometimes the house slaves would snitch to the master. There will always be some of y'all in the woodwork. It is what it is.

But when the exact ideology you defend is turned against you, when a Baltimore elected official is being accused of getting his job through "DEI", when conservatives are claiming that they wouldn't "trust a black pilot", don't decide that's where you'll finally draw your line in the sand.

All that being said, This is my Annabeth:

May every tongue that rose against Leah Sava Jeffries Shrivel and die in 2025 🙏🏿 My girl will keep winning ❤️

(video by @/waleahhasmyheart on TikTok)

[p0rk-guts]

He's finally done I think. WOAW! Radio demon time!!!

Okay time for comparison + breakdown rant ^ - ^ another SUPER long one I had a lot to say about this silly guy

ALRIGHT. So. Atp all that can be said has been said about Alastor but I'll gloss over it anyhow. Grossly historically inaccurate hair and clothing. Invisible deer theming. One of the main reasons he's got one of the most clowned on designs in the show is bc he's a pretty good representation of the worst it has to offer. He's absurdly red and has the waspiest waist in town. Also gotta zero in on the coat for a second bc I find it incredibly stupid that he went to that tailor bc of his coat being ripped and then left the shop with the exact same torn coat on oh goddd that felt like a complete joke who wrote this

Also his "redesign" was pointless. He stayed pretty much entirely the same except his colors got pinker and grosser and now he has this?? White trim on his lapels??? Even less 1930's accurate and it only serves to hurt the pallate in my eyes. It's the only spot of white on his entire design, it doesn't appear anywhere else so it throws it all off. And it's so bright. Is it supposed to be a focal point?? His tits????

Anyways onto my guy who I love so very deeply. I'm pretty sure sepia film was outdated by the 1930s but I gave him a palette inspired by it to emphasize how dated and stuck in old ways he is. Added blood red accents bc. Well. Cannibal murderer. Also bc I redid the sin colors so red is wrath and it seems like a fitting sin to pair him with.

After looking into 1930's men's fashion a tiny bit (thanks anon, this video was helpful!) and gave him a double breasted coat but wider and pointier so he looks a little less like just some normal guy and really emphasize how prideful and egotistical he is. "Ooo look at me I'm super big and imposing and powerfulll". I think it's a fun character trait of his. Definitely keeping it.

I liked him wearing gloves bc I feel like he wouldn't like getting his hands directly dirty and would always be covered when committing his murders. Maybe he's a germaphobe even. "I can excuse murder but I draw the line at dried blood on my skin". Also the gloves being white would contrast really well with blood so. Love that

I gave him a long tie to free him from the Vivziepop bow tie uniform and a fedora to add to the 1930's vibe and serve as something that can occasionally obscure his face in shadow. His glasses are also opaque and I imagine his eyes would rarely be shown if ever to make him seem more inhuman and off-putting, disconnecting him from personhood a bit. Wanted to add to that with his smiling mouth never opening and just being a static grin that can only occasionally widen or lessen, his voice cracking out of his "speaker" with fuzzy radio static. Seen multiple ppl use that idea and it always eats

I love Alastor's silly theatric nature (primarily in the pilot) and I'd probably keep it, but I'd add a layer of uncanny-ness to him where when he's not putting on his silly jovial facade, he gives off an unnerving vibe. Trying to appear approachable and charming and pleasant to lure people in before he's revealed to be less than human. Loveee thattt

I love Alastor being a deer. Predator becoming prey (animal) + "prey animal" lulling people into a false sense of security before striking. Love it. We should be CAPITALIZING ON IT❗So I gave him deer like legs, visible deer hooves, and more readable deer ears + the ham radio tower antenna antlers (sorry 4 calling them horns 💀)

Tried to make it a little more obvious that he's a mixed man of color by giving him dark wavy hair and the faintest hint of lip definition Viv uses in her style. I think it works. He's still not dark skinned tho

LASTLY the mic. Also not an original idea as I've seen tons of others turn it into a carbon mic but turned into a pentagram shape and I love the idea a lotttt so I joined the crew.

AND THAT DOES IT!!!! hope u like him as much as I do hehe. Just 1 supplemental doodle this time sorry :/ showing off how his face is probably obscured most of the time. He's. So hard to draw. I'm just bad at men but I'm tryinggggg guys

Alsoooo I've already finished the drawings for Niffty, Angel, and Husk! Once I've finished their breakdowns I'll add em right to the queue, and then I'll make a post with all of the main 6 together :3

[eph-em-era]

hey so i am so so pleased they hired an intimacy coordinator this time around! and you can tell that the actors are much more comfortable too! the intimacy is much much better!!

let's do a lil intimacy breakdown from my knowledge as an IC in training and a director just in general

(this is a long post so it's under the cut)

fact is, there's some awkwardness in the ed/stede s1 kiss, which i am ninety percent sure is due to body placement. i'd wager there was a discussion on set that was like "hey this is a stunning shot, we love what it looks like, let's get the actors in" and they got the actors in and got to the blocking for the kiss and everyone was like "hey this is a bit awkward but we'll muscle through" - cause that awkwardness fits the character arcs.

but it's not actually all that easy turning all the way to one side to kiss someone without moving where your legs are! it's weird! it's an awkward angle! - or more accurately, it's the angle that two people would kiss at if it was a very impulsive, awkward surprise; or if your two lead actors are very good friends faced with playing lovers for the first time and not sure what to feel about that (we've all been there) - there's reticence, but it fits the scene so it's fine.

(Lucius and Pete and Olu and Jim also have moments of intimacy, which for the most part are fine, and I suspect that's a combo of a) their staging is SO MUCH BETTER, b) character choices, c) different directors and d) less of that "OMG WE'RE PLAYING LOVERS NOW" anxiety)

~~onto season 2~~

for the record, intimacy direction isn't just for kissing/sex scenes, ICs can come in for intimacy building exercises and additional blocking, as well as things like nudity, childbirth or any similar sensitive work, but I'm going to be talking mostly about kisses in this. anyway!

Beautiful! Kind, lovely, tender! The backdrop is super nice too. Honestly, the Lucius/Pete stuff has really been so nice all the way along; that's great casting! Especially in S2E5, everything reads as very earnest and space is used very well.

Archie and Jim. Now, we don't have anything to compare it to from S1, but I'm flagging it cause yeah, they definitely have similar staging to Ed/Stede from S1E09. I would say there's a much better range of movement in this one, likely because they're sitting on the floor, braced against the bed, so they can compensate for the weird angle better than E/S could. This might come off as a lil rude but it's also more likely that these two actors are slightly more flexible and can make this staging work better than Taika and Rhys.

Cannot for the LIFE OF ME find a gif of their hug, but they have fantastic chemistry! despite only showing up for like 2/3s of one episode. I've seen people whining about how they absolutely should have kissed - and you know what, I would have liked that too!

however, I suspect that what happened here was that one or both of the actors didn't want to kiss on screen, and voiced their objections to the IC, who found a work around. It was likely not cause of any kind of ill will or homophobia, for the record - sometimes you just don't want to kiss people. Maybe you're sick, maybe you're feeling weird, maybe you're just not in the right headspace, but a kiss might be off the cards that day.

This is behaviour we want to encourage, btw. The goal is to ensure that actors feel comfortable and that the shot isn't be all end all. I've done something very similar, we had 20 mins to get the blocking done and the actors weren't at a point where kissing felt comfy, so we did a kiss on the cheek and a hug.

it is better that the actors are comfortable than your ship is fulfilled.

Hey yknow what I was saying about how ICs aren't just used for blocking, they're used for chemistry building? That's what they've HIT ON HERE. This is genuinely a very lovely kiss. It's deeply appropriate for the characters, and it's private and simple. things get a little more raunchy, and hands start moving, but then it's stopped, for a narrative reason, and the chemistry remains with the hand hold. It's really very nice, well blocked and well performed. the hand placement! the tenderness! it's great. there's none of that s1 reticence, whether that was from characters or actors.

I think the intimacy work, much like the writing and the characterisation is much, much stronger in this season, and that's to the show's benefit. I know we're only halfway through, but I'm thoroughly interested to see where things go in the remaining episodes. I will update this post if anything exciting crops up in the final five.

and this is why you need to hire ICs! they make life easier for actors, directors and crew alike!!

[goose-on-the-loose]

The Darkest Hour - Styracosaurs in a Wildfire Paleoart Process Breakdown

It’s been a long time since I’ve shared my art on this account (at some point years ago I just forgot to), but I thought that this might be a great opportunity to start posting my art again! This is my first attempt at paleoart, and I think it’s worthy of sharing. It’s for my showcase at my art school, so there were time restraints that stopped me from adding elements that I would’ve liked, but ultimately I’m quite satisfied with it.

For any budding paleoartist (or anybody really) who’d like to see my process, I put it all below the read more! @a-dinosaur-a-day (hope you don’t mind me @/ing you, i originally meant for this post to be an ask but it got too long haha)

I started off knowing that I wanted to depict some kind of ornithischian for a number of reasons. Two of the biggest reasons were that 1) I simply like them more than theropods and sauropods and 2) My senior showcase is all about showing animals in ways that the viewer hasn’t seen them before, and most people don’t really think about ornithischians except for if they’re being preyed on by a theropod.

I then narrowed my choices further by looking at different formations and what species they have. I looked up what formations parasaurolophus was in (since it’s one of my fav dinosaurs and I was thinking of making it my subject) and I saw the dinosaur park formation. Looking at the different species found there and the type of environment they lived in, I knew this formation was going to be my choice. 

I couldn’t narrow it down to one species yet, so I decided to think of some scenarios ornithischians might find themselves in first. I thought, “Oooh, what about some dinosaurs escaping from a wildfire?”, since the storyline could easily be conveyed, the lighting would be interesting, and I could get creative with the composition (flames and burning debris can create arcs to guide the viewer’s eye).

I did some very quick simple thumbnails and sketches to get the feeling and flow of the lines. I saw some paleoart by Marzio Mereggia and I remembered one of his parasaurolophus pieces that I really liked. I also looked at the composition of the fire scene from Spirit: Stallion of the Cimarron for inspiration. (the tiger doodle had nothing to do with it, i just wanted to draw a tiger) The shapes and silhouettes of these species weren’t really clicking for me, so I looked back on the list and saw styracosaurus. I looked at some paleoart and realized that the silhouette and shapes of their frill and horns could really draw the viewer’s attention.

So, I drew the top thumbnails and showed them to my teacher. He liked all of them, but especially liked the middle one, so I drew a larger version of it, making sure to elevate the best parts and communicate the story. I like to use highlighters when thumb-nailing because it helps me break down the background, middleground, and foreground while also giving attention to the focal points. I was satisfied with this layout, so I drew an even larger version of it that would be the same size as the piece of wood I would be painting on.

I wanted to add more dimension so I changed the placement a bit. I don’t have much to say on this one, except for the final project has less background detail because each piece in our showcase has to be finished within a certain amount of time, this is also why the adult styracosaurus doesn’t have scale detail. I would’ve liked to add it, but I have to be realistic with my time.

I then drew the sketch on the piece of wood, and then my teacher cut the excess wood off.

Painted the background and also changed the shape of the face horn to be more accurate. I believe that styracosaurus’ horns changed with age and each individual’s grew in their own slightly different way. I do regret not pushing the dark ground colors further back.

Started trying to figure out the colors in class here.

Did this all the next day, took about 6-7 hours. 3 during class and the rest in my dorm. I changed/added to the rest of the face colors later, but the beak stays the same. I still really like the way I painted the beak.

This was after 3 more hours of class time. I changed the face horn color and made the frill horns match it. I also started focusing more on highlights and shadows. This is the last photo I took during the process.

With the final version, you can see that I warmed up the highlights to match the fire and I dulled them out too (adding yellow to purple desaturates it). I also went over the background again, making the colors more vivid and adding a glow to the fire. Ngl I do regret not adding that glow to the fire on the trees, but oh well. Live and learn ig.

[lexirosewrites]

You asked for more about S/G and I don’t want to do my homework. So let’s go.

The version of sentinels that shows up the most in fic - no idea if it’s accurate to the original source - is that sentinels have low key super powers, faster reactions, better senses, stronger, and a very very strong protective instinct. The other side of the coin is that they can zone and get stuck in a sense. What counts as a sense varies, but my faves are when they basically get so fixated on something they get a little feral, increasingly freaking out, and then they drop into a zone, and dissociate into their own mind.

It’s dangerous for them because they have a really hard time getting out on their own. So starvation, etc is a risk. Sentinels also get a reputation as dangerous because if something does set them off, they’re likely to hurt someone, whether the threat was real or not because they’re generally stuck in an Always On state.

Other side of this is Guides. They’re supposed to be the calming anchor for sentinels. Literally the one to Guide them out of a zone, or guide them when they need to go into a serious crisis. Depending who writes it, guides are just a helping hand for sentinels, or they can very mildly effect everyone, diffusing situations and having a really good sense of emotions and danger. I’ve also seen where the Sentinel can pull energy out of their guide to win a fight when things get really bad.

There’s also a thing where they aren’t quite soulmates, but there are pairs who are much much better matches and work better together.

As for the known/unknown divide. If it’s a world where S/G are known, then society has all those expectations, you watch kids, especially kids of lineages, for indication of being one. Or, they’re known but only show up when needed. Which puts them somewhere in the mythical category. Third option is that society has no idea about these guys at all and only secret societies know.

You can see how it stacks on Omegaverse right? And how the assumption would be that alphas are sentinels?

So in a combo situation for Steddie, I’d go with a society that doesn’t really call them Sentinels and Guides, considers that a fairytale, but does know that sometimes there are alphas who are More Alpha, and omegas who are More Omega. Because the correlation for that kind of combo is the most likely.

The lineages are suuuper long, like, two or three generations between Sentinels or Guides showing up is fast. The lineage carries the potential though, if you have the right set of genes it’s a really mild effect, but if the right kind of stresses hit you at the right time, it can activate you.

Now then. Steddie. They’re not the right combination. They’re the kind that just makes them weird.

Steve is an omega, but is more aggressive in his protective nature than others. He’s always been able to push around the alphas, but he’s also a bit beloved in school because hes an absolute bitch and ruins the social life of anyone he decides has hurt someone. (This means he’s basically blind to how Tommy and Carol treat others, or he believes the stories they tell him)

Eddie is an alpha but has always been too soft, too caring, too worried about how others feel. His dad hates him for it. Eddie gets activated wayyyy too young, like, 8 or 9, when his mom has a breakdown and Eddie desperately needs to fix it. When he moves in with Wayne and is at Hawkins schools all the time, he doesn’t know why he’s obsessed with Harrington, and hates how confused he feels about him. Like he’s supposed to be his alpha and protect him, but also like he should let Steve take the lead. So. He stays the hell away from him.

Steve wouldn’t notice Eddie at all. He’s just that weird kid with his cluster of weirdos. Steve doesn’t activate until the demogorgon. He’s felt off, all twitchy and paranoid since Barb, the first time the monster got close enough to ping his latent senses, but it’s not until he sees the Demogorgon, until he runs, that he activates. He’s at his car, and his alpha Nancy told him to leave, and his entire world shifts. No idea what’s happening, but he has to go back and keep them safe, he has to fight that thing.

That’s as much contact for a stack as I have for you. You can totally think it should be a different set up or situation. Or hate it entirely. But I like the way it makes both Steve and Eddie wrong according to their designation and the way they’d be all kinds of confused about each other.

oooh okay yeah this makes more sense now. i love learning about different AUs that i have no experience with because they’re always so creative and complex.

and of course steddie are the wrong kinds and subsequently make a mess of things! are they really steddie if things are easy for them?😭

[stunticonbreakdown]

I feel like a lot of people seem to forget (or are unaware) that Breakdown's paranoia manifests itself into violence rather than the need to be taken care of by other people. (I do not mean for this to come off as rude at all, even if you have found you write or think of Breakdown this way. This is just a subject I find annoying, and wished to speak about it 😊.)

I see him depicted as a "cinnamon roll" kind of character a lot, as if his paranoid delusions and hallucinations and whatnot leave him a crying, shaking mess on the floor simply in need of care and affection (which, to be honest, he definitely does need, but the point here is that it's not a super accurate representation of his character).

Canonically, as shown in the cartoon as well as his many many bios, he gets violent. His gun does not leave his hands. He would not hesitate to physically harm someone else while he has the belief they are wronging him. He was born with his gun in his hands, so why would he be afraid to use it if he believed he was in danger?

I feel his mischaracterization comes from a lack of education on like... How paranoia works and affects the mind. Even seeing how courageous and strong Breakdown is in the cartoon, people focus in on his stammering and fears mentioned in his bios more, and then writing it in a way that ignores the forementioned traits because some people just do not understand that those traits can coexist, or how they can.

I will be honest, I do love a good comfort fic, and I can't see him shooting at someone who's only trying to help him, but let him have his more 'violent' traits! I do believe some people may also fear that they're coming off as writing Breakdown into the "violent and evil paranoiac" archetype, but as long as it's done right, it's not going to feel that way.

Let him shoot down a security camera! Let him ready his gun after hearing a knock at his door! Let him break something he was holding because he got too distracted by his thoughts! Because he would!Him being continuously written as an "innocent lil anxious boy" feels incredibly disregarding (if that's the word?) to his (and real people's) issues. I find his more violent traits relatable. I don't have a gun, but I break/damage so many things when in a distressed state of mind, and I know for a fact many other people do.

To conclude this, I will mention this is not a direct criticism of anyone or thing. This is about a jumble posts I've seen, conversations I've had, and some fics I've seen. Even the fanfiction I'm barely referring to, as I understand many authors, including myself, enjoy projecting onto characters they like. I do not mind reading fics or seeing fanart where he's curled up onto a ball in panic, but I just wish more people saw Breakdown less as "innocent with anxiety" and more as how he actually is in the cartoon/comics/bios. There is a difference between seeing Breakdown as the aforementioned archetype of anxious + innocent and seeing him as his appearances show and describe.

Thank you for reading all the way through, if you did! Once again- this was not meant to come across as rude at all, nor was this a direct criticism of anyone or thing. This is me getting my thoughts out as someone who heavily relates to Breakdown on how the fandom tends to view him.

[tessenpai]

Kono Oto Tomare! Chapter 132 Scans and Rough TL

Disclaimer: Please DO NOT use this translation to make your own TL of the chapter!! The KOT TL group works very hard to give you the most accurate translation, that does as much justice to the original script as possible. This is a ROUGH translation. That means is faulty and there must be mistakes in certain places. This is just for impatient people like myself to get a grasp on what is going on in the chapter! You can REFERENCE my TL if you want to discuss the chapter but never USE it as it was your own.

Scans: Kono Oto Tomare! - Raw Chapter 132 - KL (klz9.com)

Page 1

Imari [memory]: Of course we are frustrated!!!

Imari [memory]: Everybody's holding in some emotion or another!! Have you ever thought about that!?

Side text: The words no one had said to Miran, until now.

Chapter Title: #132 A story: Ours.

Imari [memory]: What you are lacking, is imagination!

Miran [thoughts]: Wha-

Page 2

Miran [internal breakdown]: I made her cry. I hurt her. I did it. What do I do? I haven't gotten a single solo, have I!!? Do you think we don't feel anything about that! You haven't realized that, have you!? What do I do? I made her cry. I hurt her. I hurt her. What do I do? I did it. A performance is not something you do alone. Of course we are frustrated! I made her cry. I hurt her. I made her cry. I hurt her. It's imagination!

Miran[sfx]: Ba-dump.

Page 3

Miran[sfx]: Ba-dump, ba-dump, ba-dump.

Miran's mom [memory]: Hurting others to get what you want is a cowardly and awful thing to do.

Miran's mom [memory]: Never do this again. Never!

Miran [thoughts]: Again, I... I-

Imari: hic

Miran: Ah

Page 4

Imari [sfx]: hic

Imari [memory]: Are you this self-centered?

Miran: ...

Luka: !

Page 5

Miran [sfx]: Wipe, wipe.

Imari: Wha-

Imari: Whaaaaaaaaaat----??

Miran [sfx]: Wipe, wipe, wipe, wipe, wipe, wipe, wipe, wipe.

Imari: Wai- That's enough, already. Your necktie is gonna get dirty--

Page 6

Imari: ----

Imari: I'm going to wipe my face, give me a minute.

Miran: Ah, wai...

Tougo: I'll go after Imari. You should cool your head a bit too, Miran.

Page 7

Kio: The person who knows Imari-san the best is probably Tougo-kun. It should be fine.

Kio: Those two are childhood friends, apparently.

Miran: ...

Luka: Hey, Miran. When those two come back...

Luka: Why don't we all take it easy and talk, just once?

Miran: ----....

Imari: ---So

Page 8

Imari: Why did you insist on doing this outside?

Luka: The weather is so nice, I just thought it would give us some sense of freedom.

Kio: We could've sat on that bench over there.

Luka: But this feels more informal, doesn't it?

Imari: Well, I don't really care. Whatever.

Luka: Fu

Luka: I've always thought that music is a way to communicate even if you don't understand the language or don't know another person.

Luka: I figured I didn't need to ask more than I had to about everyone else either. I don't like to pry, you see.

Page 9

Luka: ...But just now, Imari... She let us listen to the voice of her heart, even though she probably never meant for us to ever hear it.

Luka: And even though it was shocking, it made me really happy.

Luka: "Aaah, so that is what we are lacking!", it opened my eyes.

Luka: If you'd like, I would love to hear more about you.

Page 10

Imari: What do you even want me to tell you...

Luka: Anything is fine! Your upbringing, the things you like, the things you hate, even something you are not happy about. It doesn't matter as long as you feel comfortable talking about it.

Luka: If we got to know more about each other, I bet our performance would also change.

Imari: If you say that... Then you should go first about telling us about yourself.

Luka: ! I see! You are absolutely right!

Page 11

Luka: Well then. My parents adopted me when I was one year old, and then---

Imari: Waitwaitwait.

Imari: Eh? Wha-? Ehh!!? Is that something you feel comfortable sharing with us!?

Luka: What? Yeah, of course.

Luka: Meeting my adoptive parents is the luckiest and most joyful thing that ever happened to me.

Luka: It is my greatest pride.

Imari: The- Then it's fine, I guess...

Page 12

Luka: My parents are very big music lovers.

Luka: So ever since I was little I've been exposed to all kinds of music. Thanks to that, I met the koto.

Tougo: How exactly did you meet the koto?

Luka: What?

Tougo: I'm curious. What drove you to begin playing the koto? Did you listen to someone's performance, or something like that?

Luka: Oh... umm... It's nothing like tha...

Imari: What is it? Don't be coy now, say it!

Luka: You... you won't laugh?

Imari: What?

Luka: You gotta promise you absolutely won't laugh. Promise!!

Imari: I won't laugh, what is it!?

Page 13

Luka: Hmm...

Luka: When I heard the koto was an instrument resembling a dragon... I just thought "That's the coolest thing ever!!!!" and wanted to play it...

Kio: ...Eh? That's all..?

Luka: ...Yes...

Imari: Ahahahahahahahah!!!! Are you for real!? And here I was expecting some noble reason!!

Luka: You- you said you wouldn't laugh!! That's just how children get hooked on things!!

Imari: You are even studying abroad for it, so I'd say it worked alright.

Tougo: Did your parents ever oppose the idea of you studying abroad?

Page 14

Luka: They were super supportive.

Luka: It's just that when it was decided that I would be studying abroad my dad was diagnosed with an uncommon illness...

Imari: What?

Luka: Ah, he had surgery to treat it, so he's alright now!

Imari: Dude, you've been bad for my heart ever since you started talking!!

Luka: Sorry.

Luka: In any case, with my father's condition, I decided not to study abroad and stay in my hometown. And they fervently opposed to that.

Luka: I wanted to be by my father's side... But then he said, "I refuse to be the reason my child is dragged down!"... He just wouldn't hear it. I got into a huge fight with my parents for the first time.

Page 15

Luka: We worried a lot. We talked it through, a lot. Both of them consider my future to be the most important thing. And so, here I am today.

Tougo: You have great parents.

Luka: Right!?

Tougo: Are they coming to listen to us at Nationals?

Luka: Yeah. It will depend on how my father feels then, but that's the plan.

Luka: ...I would love to give them a great performance.

Page 16

Miran [memory]: It's because you are here! It's your fault!

Imari: What about you, Kio? You are just as much of a mystery to me as Luka.

Kio: Me?

Kio: I'm just a normal guy. Your average "Failure" born into a prestigious family.

Imari: Failure?

Kio: I hate it when people tell me what to do. The more someone tells me to do something, the more I want to do the opposite.

Imari: You are such a pain in the ass...

Kio: Haha Isn't that the truth?

Page 17

Kio: My relationship with my house is terrible because of that.

Kio: …It's the kind of house where your path is already decided even before you're born, and where you grow surrounded by pride and traditions.

Kio: And so, I rebelled against my house. I was pretty naughty at times. I was almost excommunicated on several occasions.

Imari: What in the world did you do?

Kio: Do you want me to tell you?

Imari: On second thought, no...

Luka: The way you speak is so polite that it's hard for me to picture you being naughty, Kio.

Kio: Ah--... I'm a bit of a jerk when I speak plainly.

Luka: I see!

Luka: But if it's like that, why did you decide to still inherit your house and take over it?

Page 18

Kio: Ahhh. Because I thought I would be able to destroy the "Akane Group" once and for all. Clap

Imari/Luka: What...???

Kio: Please, do not share what I just said with anyone.

Kio: I have not been officially appointed as the next heir yet. I will get debarred for real this time if they find out.

Imari: I didn't sign up to hear such a terrifying story!

Luka: When you say destroy, do you mean to dismantle it?

Kio: Hmmm... If it comes down to that, I may do it.

Kio: When I say I want to destroy it, I mean "The way things are done in the Group".

Page 19

Kio: For my parents, everything should be inside a pattern. That's the way they were taught, and that is the way they teach.

Kio: New ways are absolutely forbidden.

Kio: They believe that's what "Preserving and passing on tradition" means.

Kio: They are not mistaken in thinking that. If that's what the person who entrusted it to them wished, then that's how it should be.

Kio: However

Kio: If I were to entrust something precious to me to someone else.

Kio: I don't want that person to whom I entrust my work to be "just another entity who will pass it on to the next one."

Page 20

Kio: The life of that person.

Kio: Their thoughts and feelings.

Kio: I want them to pass on the proof of their lives.

Kio: That's how I want "Passing on tradition" to be.

Imari: What the heck? You have given this a lot of thought, haven't you?

Kio: Haha Did your opinion of me get a little better?

Page 21

Kio: Well, I may say all that but

Kio: After the entrance ceremony, when we introduced ourselves... When it was Miran-san's turn my sarcastic side came spitting out at her. I'm sorry.

Kio: "Got in through connections", I said?

Kio: That was very cruel.

Kio: I know that. I regret saying it.

Kio: Miran-san, you are completely free and unbound by anything.

Kio: I was envious of you.

Page 22

Tougo: Well, hearing your stories made me realize I'm the most normal out of all of us here.

Tougo: I was born into a normal family, and can't think of any remarkable thing to say about me---

Imari: No. What the heck are you even saying?

Imari: This dude over here!!! He is my stalker!!! Ever since we were children up till now!!!

??: Eh!!?

Imari: He lived in the house next door.

Imari: He's been following me around since we were three years old.

Imari: Whatever I did, he would follow my lead!!

Page 23

Imari: From beginning to play the koto, entering competitions, even applying to this school. He aaaalways follows me in what I do!!!!

Kio: We- well, it could be a coincidence...

Tougo: No, I'm following Imari. Because I love her.

Kio: You can't be serious...

Kio: I'm sorry, Tougo-kun, but I'm very creeped out right now

Tougo: That's fine, I don't care what anyone other than Imari thinks.

Imari: I was always creeped out!

Imari: It's not only that. The scariest part of this guy is that he had no musical sense to begin with! But because he wanted to be next to me, he practiced like an absolute idiot, won a prize at a competition, and got into Ichiei..! Isn't that freaking insane!?

Page 24

Luka: Tougo, I didn't know you were such a passionate man!! You must be head over heels for Imari!!

Imari: That is not what I said!!

Tougo: I am in love with you, though.

Imari: Shut. Up.

Kio: So you were that kind person, Tougo-kun... Why haven't we seen you act like this before?

Tougo: Because I promised Imari.

Imari's rules: Don't stick to me. Don't stare at me. Don't talk to me unless it's necessary.

Tougo: She said, follow the rules or die.

Kio: Woaaah...

Kio: We've been working together for a little over a year, so I thought I knew you reasonably well, but…

Kio: You really never know. People...

Luka: That is true! It's so interesting.

Page 25

Luka: I wish I had asked about you from the beginning. Such a pity I didn't.

Imari: What are you saying? It's not like I would talk about these things with a complete stranger.

Kio: Exactly. It is now that we can talk about them.

Luka: !

Luka: I see!

Luka: What about you, Imari? Your mom is a koto teacher, isn't she?

Imari: That's right.

Imari: Ah, but not from a prestigious family, like Kio's. Just a normal koto class teacher.

Imari: I've been playing the koto as far as I can remember. When I was five, I entered a small competition for the first time, and won it.

Imari: From then on, I started participating in prefectural and regional contests.

Page 26

Imari: Because of the amount of awards I was winning, they began to call me a prodigy child.

Tougo: She even appeared on TV.

Luka: Amazing!

Imari: But when I got to my third year of primary school, I entered a national competition for the first time

Imari: And there, I lost to Luka's beloved Hozuki Satowa.

Luka: !!

Imari: At the time, I felt like I was at the top of my game. I didn't bother to listen to Hozuki Satowa's performance, or the other kids' for that matter.

Imari's mom(?) [memory]: Imari, aren't you coming to the venue?

Imari[memory]: I'm not interested.

Announcer [memory]: Winner: Entry number 5. Hozuki Satowa.

Page 27

Imari: After that, I heard that she was to be the next head of a very famous koto school. "I'm sure her family used their power to win her the competition", I thought. I felt like an idiot for trying so hard, if things were like that. I started skip off in practice.

Imari: But after that, we both participated in another competition, and I got to hear her performance for the first time.

Imari: And then, I realized just how small my world was.

Page 28

Imari: The fact that when you hear someone perform, you can hear all of what that person has accumulated until then.

Imari: That's what I learned that day.

Imari: From then on, I started to take the koto seriously again, but everyone around me also got better and better, to the point I never got first place again.

Imari: To tell you the truth, there were a few times I thought about quitting. Still.

Imari: I just end up realizing "There is nothing else for me but this".

Page 29

Imari: And that's how it's been until now. Super lame, isn't it?

Luka: That's not true!

Luka: You are super cool.

Imari: ...

Imari: Speaking of, that's why I blew up saying pretty conceited things to you. I also---

Page 30

Miran [memory]: What you need to do is prop me up like all the rest.

Miran [memory]: When I'm the main star of the song...

Miran [memory]: You always get in my way...!

Page 31

Miran [memory]: Know that I would never give you the slightest consideration!

Miran [memory]: Being called a rival of yours makes me sick in the stomach!!!

Miran [memory]: It's because you're here.

Miran [memory]: Shut up, shut up, shut up!!

Miran [memory]: I'll do the solo!

Page 32

Miran: I'm so sorry.

Page 33

Miran: For all the hurtful things

Miran: That I've done because of my selfishness

Miran: For all the things I've said

Miran: I'm very sorry.

Page 34

Luka: Hey, Miran...

Luka: Now

Luka: Why don't you let us hear your story?

Luka: It's okay if you take your time.

Page 35

Kifune-sensei[thoughts]: ---Finally.

Kifune-sensei[thoughts]: Their worlds are now beggining to connect.

Side text: Taking it to the next level----....

---Kono Oto Tomare! will continue next month!---

[lyss-sketchbox]

(To start, I've been enjoying reading your and folks' various perspectives on Natlan, it's interesting to see different breakdowns/thoughts)

I do have a theory on the flippancy though, and I may very well be horribly wrong, but I suspect it's intentional. The whole nation is being taught, more or less, that this war they're fighting is a game. It's fine if you die, we'll bring you back. It's fine if you fight the Abyss, we do it all the time. And yet. We see that folks' Ancient Names can be lost and not recovered, that you can't fully recover from Abyssal corrosion, and that hey, actually, Kachina is a terrified kid when we see that projection of her. It may even be part of why the nation is struggling so much with creating their Contending Fire. I also think Mavuika plays into this narrative.

Primarily, I think (or maybe just hope) her overconfidence is going to be her hubris. Traveller expresses concern about the time she has to gather the warriors and she's non-plussed, "eh, I trust the Wyob". She's got A Plan and it's going to work, according to her. But I dunno about that ma'am. She also says weirdly definitive statements that I don't think are fully accurate like "humans can't know their fate" and "the only thing that unites the Fatui are collecting the gnoses" that lead me to believe she puts full stock in her conclusions as soon as she feels she has an answer and doesn't exactly question any further.

Honestly? It would be nice if they set up this whole thing of the nation being so casual and Traveler buying into it only to tear it, crashing down, around everyone. How long can the nation avoid taking things seriously before everything comes to a head? (Perhaps why Capitano isn't interested in brute-forcing things overall? Or maybe I'm giving him too much credit, lol)

What an interesting take, genuinely

So Mavuika

It would definitely play the part of being a pyro archon and how pyro vision holders are often extremely confident and high spirited. It would make sense if the pyro archon embodies that kind of value.

This also lines up with what the previous anon said about how she wanted to be reincarnated because its HER plan and she wanted to see it through even if it means offing herself early.

(I dont remember the ending dialogue was i did it all at like 4 am so yeah please fight me on my takes)

She also seems very quick to make MASSIVE decisions like using a good chunk of her power to keep the Contending Flame alive right then and there even with the concerns of some people. Then she was just as quick to burn all the mementos gathered for centuries when the group sent to find Kachina didnt make it.

I feel like maybe she couldve waited before keeping the Contending Flame alive. And while the Contending Flame IS more importang than a single girl, based on the time we spent in the Night Kingdom. It doesnt... feel all that long. She couldve waited. Use her power to save us. Rest for a while then fan the Contending Flame. Saving us from the Night Kingdom didnt feel like a permanent loss of power while keeping the Contending Flame alive does.

To be honest, she IS human, WAS human before archonhood. Shes been human TWICE now due to her reincarnation. I can understand humans wanting to prove to higher powers and beings such as fate that they CAN hold power over themselves. But being human, being NATLANIAN means she has worshipped to Wayob as well at some point. Hence putting her faith more into them and their ancient names.

The Plot of Natlan

I will admit here that i am biased and there is only 2 acts so far. For all i know theyre still setting up the chekovs guns and they may pop oh so beautifully in late acts and i am too harsh on the set up acts.

But i can understand if the people of natlan has been trained their entire life to numb themselves of the true horrors of war. Because they live constantly in it, if they are in constant fear, it is not good for morales or the ancient name holders either.

And if they were written to be so chill so that hoyoverse can pull the rug under us even harder then well good on them because i will be COMPLETELY honest.

I cannot see them pulling this without making it cliche or shallow.

Because we all already know SOMETHING is gonna go wrong. The abyss will reach natlan. The contending flame will die. The 6 heroes will reawaken and help Mavuika fight off the abyss for good. We know it will happen. The only issue is how to get there and how to not make it cliche as fuck.

Because for one they pulled the anime training montage for Kachina where we get told she is actually really good, she has been training so hard with Mualani but we literally dont get to see or feel it. But oop she defeated mualani.

They pulled the power of friendship when Mualani talked back to lector in the night kingdom.

They already spoiled how Ororon was the traitor because HE WAS STANDING NEXT TO CAPITANO IN THE TRAILER.

It feels way too messy for me, way too unserious and uncoordinated both in game and advertisement materials. I almost feel like capitano, 1st of the fatui harbinger, probably shouldnt have been responsible for natlan because dude can out espionage them (or maybe natlan and capitano are both as equally uncoordinated who knows).

Well for NOW i think they have a generic base plot. I would be very willing to declare how wrong i was about natlan if act 3-5 managed to fucking mindblow me. But yeah as you can see i am not hopeful that hyv have half the brain you have about the plot.

[hurpdurpburps]

Otherside Picnic Manga Yuri Club Special Story 6 English Translation

SPOILER WARNING: Takes place immediately after the events of File 6 - Resort Night at the Beach of the End in Vol 2 of the novels.

Written by: Miyazawa Iori

Translated by: @hurpdurpburps

-

Chapter 6: Ishigaki Island, A Dazed Vacation [1]

The hotel room was air-conditioned and comfortable.

It was mid-afternoon, with the sun almost directly overhead. Although the glaring sunlight outside our windows was so bright that it was almost painful, it didn’t reach the inside of the room. With the lights off, the room felt dim, as if cut off from the rest of the world.

We were in a hotel room at a resort on Ishigaki Island.

Toriko and I were laying on a large bed, dazed.

We’d barely escaped the beach on the Otherside that we’d wandered into from the outskirts of Naha, and ended up on the faraway island of Ishigaki. On the verge of a mental breakdown, we’d impulsively fled to a resort hotel on the island in search of a place to relax.

The walk-in rates for our room was expensive, but I wasn’t in a position to point that out. We were in desperate need of some rest and refreshment.

We were doing fine immediately after our return from the beach on the Otherside, but as time passed and the tension that had been building up for so long was released, our condition deteriorated.

I suppose you could consider it a state of collapse. The shock we’d experienced from the Otherside was probably too much to bear. Somehow we had managed to check in, but I barely remembered anything afterwards. I was sure we’d entered the room and collapsed onto the bed... I couldn't remember anything after that. Everything felt like a fragmented dream, but I most likely simply blacked out.

It was already late morning when I woke up... After visiting the bathroom and drinking some water, I returned to bed, neither speaking nor thinking about anything.

Although it would’ve been more accurate to say I wasn’t capable of thinking about anything. A few hours had passed since then before I was finally able to take stock of our situation and put it into words.

"Are you awake?" I asked, my voice husky.

Toriko groaned in response as she stared at the ceiling.

"Good morning."

"Mmmm…" Toriko cleared her throat and repeated herself. "Good morning..."

"Are you going to sleep a little longer?"

"Dunno..."

And that was the end of our conversation.

We continued laying in bed, dazed. Toriko was on her back, staring at the ceiling. I rested my head against the headboard on a pillow, looking at the wall across us.

I could hear the gentle sound of waves beyond the windows.

Occasionally, I could hear people's voices coming from somewhere outside. I couldn't make out what they were saying, but they seemed to be laughing happily.

Come to think of it, we were at a resort. If we got up and went downstairs, there’d surely be tons of fun stuff to do.

And yet here we were, simply lazing in our room, wasting our time away in the shade and air conditioning, doing nothing. I knew better, but had no desire to do anything at all.

Depending on how you look at it, this might actually be the most extravagant way to spend time at a resort - staying put in a comfortable place, resting our body and mind, in a tropical location [2]…

Little by little, I could feel my ability to think return, but it was still a far cry from my normal state of being. Just remembering the scene on the beach, that deep blue sky above our heads-

I suddenly felt faint, and when I had finally regained consciousness, the clock had moved forward by about twenty minutes.

This is no good, I have to stop thinking about it. It’s bad for my brain.

I shook my head and lowered my gaze.

At some point, Toriko had decided to use my thigh as a pillow. Her long hair spread out messily on the sheets. She was sleeping on her side, so I couldn't see her face.

Perhaps in contrast with the bright sunlight outside, the inside of the hotel room was tinged with blue, as if it’d been passed through a filter. Toriko's golden hair appeared dull in the desaturated scene around us, and it felt as if I’d stumbled into a tranquil scene from a movie.

Without thinking, I reached out and stroked Toriko's head.

Toriko made no reaction. Facing away from me, she accepted my touch as if it were the most natural thing to do.

I had the sudden realisation that we’d missed our college classes, but I suppose it couldn’t be helped.

It was impossible for us to return right away, due to both time and distance.

I didn’t feel like rushing home immediately. Neither of us had recovered yet.

How many days did we intend to stay when we checked in?

We haven't been asked to check out by this point, so I don't think It’s just one night.

I'll confirm it later... It’s fine for now. I don't have the energy to think about such things.

But I'm starting to get hungry-

As if on cue, I heard Toriko's stomach growl just as the thought crossed my mind.

I waited until I had the energy to speak, then said, "You must be hungry."

"Mmn…" Toriko replied.

"Do you want to eat something?"

"Where...?"

“Dunno. The hotel must have a restaurant or something, right?"

"Or room service…"

"That sounds good too." My stomach started to growl just as I said that.

This time, it was Toriko’s turn to say it. “You must be hungry.”

The both of us burst into a fit of laughter.

It seemed strange that our stomachs were the first to complain, even though we hadn't fully recovered yet.

TL Notes

General note: I adopted a more 'literary' prose style to match the tone of the novels. Hence, the translation in this series will be significantly more liberal than my usual analytical posts. Feel free to ask me anything.

[1] The title of this short story is 石垣島、呆然のリゾート, which can be translated literally as “Ishigaki Island, Stunned Resort”, which makes no sense, so I made a more liberal interpretation.

[2] The term used here is 南国, which refers to Southern regions of Japan such as Wakayama, Kōchi, Kyushu and Okinawa, or even Hawaii and Guam in a 南洋幻想 context. Anyways, the gist of it is that due to the ‘tropical island’ connotations that come with 南国, I decided to translate this line as such.

List of Yuri Club's Otherside Picnic Short Stories [my translations]:

1. Shinjuku, The First Meet-Up (新宿、初めての待ち合わせ)

2. Hasshaku-sama Epilogue (八尺様エピローグ)

3. Ochanomizu, The First Afterparty (お茶の水、初めての打ち上げ)

4. Ikebukuro, Cafe Meal For One (池袋、ひとりカフェ飯)

5. Naha, After The Big Job (那覇、大仕事の後)

6. Ishigaki Island, A Dazed Vacation (石垣島、呆然のリゾート)

7. Mercedes AMG, The Backseat (メルセデスAMG、後部座席)

8. Otherworldly Elevator, On The Way Back (異世界エレベーター、帰路)

9. Kozakura Mansion, Pizza Party (小桜屋敷、ピザパーティー)

10. Ikebukuro Bookstore, Meet Up (池袋の書店、待ち合わせ)

11. Hannou, In The Car From The Station (飯能、駅からの車中)

12. TBD

[luxxtuxx]

you’re comfortable writing it, you could have reader have adhd and that means she forgets things a lot, lots of things being necessary things like eating and putting on her glasses/ contacts, you could have her forget to eat one day and since hobie is busy he can’t check her vitals until he pays her an impromptu visit and sees that she’s super tired and sluggish and he realizes she hasn’t been eating (you could totally take this any route you want I just think it would be cute if he sets himself an alarm to check her vitals just incase)

Her Condition After Week-Long Mission

Im changing up the plot a little because I can /hj

CW: Hobie being sappy, ACCURATE Potrail of ADHD (I have ADHD, so these are sorta based on real events).

Little quip: does anyone else go to use words, but they are so often used in a sexual manner that you gotta rephrase so you don't sound nasty?

~~~~~~~~~~~~

Hobie knew of Y/N's Neurodivergentcy habits and made a pact with himself to not step in unless absolutely necessary. So the longer they were together, he always knew what needed to be stocked in the house at all times, and more ways to help during sensory overload.

This punk constantly checked on them, if he had the day off and they were hyper-focused on something, he'd keep all 3 different drinks at their respective temperatures and make sure they at least snack on something throughout working.

Then Miguel called him and told him he'd be gone on a mission for a week. Hobie knew it was important, so he tried to make sure they had everything in the apartment to be okay... with a kiss he left.

Day 1: Everything was normal, they woke up early, took a quick shower, started work, and worked all night, only breaking to go to the bathroom. They were so focused on work they had forgotten to eat something, and the light tinge from not eating they wrote off as 'Just missing Hobie"

Day 2: They felt a bit more drowsy than normal, but they made some eggs, ate half, and got distracted by the mountain of dishes, the dishes reminded them of the laundry, and doing the laundry reminded them to shower. And so by the time they remembered to sit down and work it was about....11:54pm Day 3: They had slept at their desk on accident so now, they were tired, in pain, and stressed because the boss moved the project date sooner. they only moved to go to the coffee pot and bathroom all day.

Day 4: They were knocked out in bed exhausted, they knew they had to keep working but they get so stressed out thinking about it. So at 8:30pm they grabbed hobies hoodie and sat on the floor curled up having mental paralysis because of the stress,

Day 5: The burnout started the fading hope of actually getting the work done. it came to the realization that for the past 2 days, they hadn't really eaten much.... sure they had snacked on some loose snacks and had a bunch of coffee, but no real full meals. They tried to shower to help calm the cricks in their back and how ill they were feeling

Day 6: They were back at work again pushing through, ignoring the stomach pain, and the headache. They had woken up and just felt like they were on the verge of a breakdown. Everything was too much right now, they just wanted their comfort human, comfort blanket, and comfort food all in the same place. They were so overloaded sensory wise, they couldn't speak on the company Zoom calls, they were using the chat, and even that felt like too much

Day 7: It was the day hobie came home... it was the day they had off from work. They drifted around like a zombie. They managed to eat a bowl of cereal in between waking up and taking a nap. After that nap, they just sat on the bed completely zoned out... after what felt like maybe 5 minutes, the clouds were gray and hobie was stepping through his portal.

When hobie saw they zoned out, all the coffee mugs towering on the desk and how pale they were. he knew immediately what happened. He quickly got out of all his spider gear, and he made sure to be careful as he moved them to lie down. He kissed their forehead... "Oh, my angel of music... it's okay, just rest. Tomorrow and Tuesday call in sick and I won't take any mission and we can just spend the next two days getting back into our routine, does that sound good?"

They meekly nod as they finally put themselves under the covers of the bed. "Im sorry, it was so much, the boss moved the project date up sooner. I really tried hobie. I mean it I really tried" they sniffle. hobie hugged them tightly and nods "I know angel, and I'm proud you tried, now rest."

BONUS: The next day in the evening

"Hobie..... thank you for everything," Y/N said cuddled into his chest, wrapped in their favorite blanket, eating their comfort food, watching their comfort movie. Hobie just hums "So explain to me again why you like this movie so much??"

[calicomarie11]

Eddie breathes out as he takes in the sunset over LA. The view from the roof of the firehouse is spectacular tonight, the smog taking on a golden hew as the sun’s last rays hit it. Christopher had actually picked up when he called, and even though the conversation was stilted and awkward it was progress.

He’s hopeful that Chris will be ready to come home soon, if only to be able to go back to school with his friends and get out from under his grandparents’ thumbs. This has been the hardest summer of his life, and it’s thanks to Buck and Tommy that he is surviving it.

Speaking of, Eddie hears the bang of the door as it slams open fast enough to hit the wall and rebound. A few seconds later he looks over to see Buck standing beside him, his face thunderous. It’s an odd feeling, to be happy when his best friend is so obviously upset.

Eddie lets him stew, sure that Buck will speak when he’s ready. His friend is not known for keeping his thoughts to himself. He hopes he doesn’t take too long, he wants to share that Chris actually talked to him this time.

Buck lets out a heavy sigh and Eddie perks up, ready to be supportive. “Something on your mind?”

He doesn’t answer right away and Eddie starts to worry that this is something serious, life changing. He really hopes it’s not about Tommy. He’s never seen his friend so happy in a relationship before and Tommy is a lot easier to get along with then any of Buck’s exes.

Buck turns to him, his face severe. “Have you been watching Hotshots?”

Eddie frowns, confused by the question. “No, of course not. We made a pact.”

Buck lets out the breath he’d been holding. “Thank fuck. Apparently we’re the only people who kept to the pact.”

He’s still confused about what a TV show has to do with Buck’s bad mood. He had thought about watching the show, if only to be prepared to support Buck if Taylor the show screwed him over, but Buck has been so adamant about ignoring the show’s existence that he’d decided against it. His only knowledge of the show comes from the billboards and bus stop ads of beautiful people in heroic poses that are ubiquitous around the city.

“I thought we were ignoring the existence of that show. What’s brought this on?” Eddie asks.

“Traitors,” Buck grizzles. “Apparently everyone has been watching the show. Tommy, Lucy, the rest of the Harbor crew. And Hen, Chim, and Ravi all admitted to it and implicated Karen and Maddie too. I can’t get upset about Harbor, they didn’t know, but I can’t believe my family would betray me like that.”

Eddie’s a bit surprised himself. Buck had been very forceful about ignoring first the book and then the show. He’d only had the one breakdown, that Eddie is aware of, about how stupid he felt when Taylor turned their relationship into a media empire. At the time he had barely restrained himself from saying I told you so. He had never trusted her, but Buck was hurting and it wasn’t his place to make him feel worse. He’s glad Buck’s taste in men is better than his taste in women.

Back to now, “I’ve never watched it, I swear. What brought this on?”

Buck sighs, his hand drifting towards his forehead to rub at his temple. “Tommy didn’t know about the history I have with the show and I was telling him about Bobby’s new job and he got really excited and told me about everyone watching it. Then I had to tell him about Taylor and he told me about Randy.”

“Randy?” Eddie says, the confusion apparent in his voice.

Buck turns to Eddie, his face too conflicted for Eddie to accurately parse the emotions there. “Do you really want to know?”

And Eddie has to stop and think about it. Because, of course he wants to know what is bothering Buck, but at the same time, he’s dealing with so much emotional fallout from his actions in the spring that he’s not sure what impact one more bombshell might have. Will this be the thing that sends him teetering over the edge? But surely Buck would keep it locked down if he really thought this would send him into a spiral.

“Let it rip,” Eddie says, trying to sound confident.

Buck looks at him curiously, not entirely sure about that response. “Apparently, a large portion of the fanbase for Hotshots think that Sandy and Ricky should be together.”

“And Sandy and Ricky are…” Eddie trails off in confusion.

“You and me,” Buck says, his voice flat.

Eddie stares at Buck, his head tilted as he processes. “But I’m straight. How would that even work?”

“I know,” Buck almost shouts to the skyline.

“I mean, I’m really straight. I’ve thought about it and everything,” Eddie says.

“What?” Buck’s nose crinkles as he turns to look at Eddie. “What does that mean?”

“Well, I was telling Frank about you liking guys now,” Eddie starts before Buck interrupts him.

“You talk about me in therapy?”

“I talk about my life and relationships with other people in therapy and you are probably my most stable relationship ever,” Eddie says.

Buck’s face breaks out in a wide grin and he bumps his shoulder into Eddie’s. “Aww Buddy, I love you too.”

Eddie shoves him a bit, his face flushed. “Yeah, yeah. Anyways, Frank thought it was interesting that my best friend turns out to be…bi? Queer? Have you settled on a label?”

“Oh, bi, definitely. I thought about pan, but I like the bi flag better,” Buck says with a shrug.

“Right, bi, and he asked if I’d ever considered you as more than a best friend. And I told him no, because I hadn’t. But it stuck with me, so I did think about it because we do work so well together and Chris loves you and it would make things so much easier.”

Eddie focuses on Buck, who is shifting nervously next to him. “But, I’m sorry man, I’m just not into dudes. Like at all.”

Buck lets out the breath he’d been holding. “Thank fuck,” he laughs. “I was afraid for a second there I was going to have to let you down easy.”

Eddie glares at him, not appreciating how relieved Buck looks. “Hey, you could do worse.” Like Taylor fucking Kelly he thinks.

“Eddie, I love you like a brother, but you are one of the most emotionally constipated people I have ever met and I’m a needy motherfucker. It would never work. You’d shut down, I’d get insecure and start pestering you which would make you shut down farther and we’d both end up punching holes in the wall.”

“It sounds like you’ve thought about this,” Eddie says slowly.

“Yeah, Tommy asked me a similar question after he figured out the Randy thing. And my gut reaction was hysterical laughter. But I thought about it later and it was still a hell no. Sorry man.”

Eddie tries to glare at Buck, but the twitching at the corner of his mouth ruins the effect. “Well, I don’t want to date you either.”

Buck nudges him again. “I know dude. Don’t worry, a few more years of therapy and you’ll be as emotionally healthy as me and then we’ll find you your own Tommy. For now, you can be the token straight guy.”

“Token straight guy? What about Chim and Bobby?” Eddie says, confused.

Buck just grins and jogs back to the stairs. Eddie follows him. “What about Chim and Bobby, Buck?”

Read on AO3

[yeyayeya]

I’ve wanted to make this post for a while but wanted to wait until the dub was officially over so

My Final Thoughts on the TGCF Season 2 English Dub

Howard Wang as Xie Lian is fucking perfect. Every single time he spoke it just, I don’t know how to properly put it into words, except it is so well done?? But when XL started basically having a mental breakdown in front of Hua Cheng after Lang Qianqiu found out about the truth of the Gilded Banquet, holy fuck did the emotions just hit me in the feels. The scream and he emotional fatigue after? Xie Lian’s voice is perfection omg

Shoutout to James Cheek for just voicing the gayest character ever (Hua Cheng) and writing the gayest script for TGCF. While I liked his voice in the first season, but I wasn’t the biggest fan of it. It wasn’t until the second season where almost everything improved, and James’s voice for Hua Cheng? *chef’s kiss*. Okay but at least tone down the gayness a bit. And seeing someone who has read the novel and having little easter eggs for the novel readers for them to go insane over is incredible. I’m going to miss his voice in Season 3 since they’re going to have to cast someone else as Hong’er, but that’s ok.

Male and Female Shi Qingxuan: OMG??? Perfect casting. I just know they both put so much effort into them and I am eternally grateful. They just sound like the best of friends (they are). Every single line from them was so fucking iconic, which is accurate to the Wind Master’s character. I love both their voices so much you don’t understand.

Lang Qianqiu: AAHHHHH. My son, my boy, they gave him justice and I am so happy. First read through of TGCF, I only cared for HuaLian, but reading it again has made me appreciate and fall in love with the side characters, with Lang Qianqiu being one of them. I’ll say it did take a bit for me to adjust to it, but he sounds so much like an anime protagonist that I am ok with it. Another perfect casting. I’m going to be so fucking sad that he won’t appear for such a long time, and while he does get brought up occasionally, his last appearance is going to be the finale. I’ll miss you my son 😔

Jun Wu: ASDFGHJKL. He sounds like such a manipulative/toxic ex and a father figure at the same time. wtf. But his voice is so sexy tho. I don’t like it but I do. And I thought his original Chinese voice was hot, and then the English one goes and surprises me. I hate that I love it

Qi Rong: Perfection, glorious, fucking incredible. HIS VA IS PERFECT. Original was slaying so hard, and English? Fucking killing it. He was actually the one I was looking forward to the most, and he 👏 did 👏 not👏 disappoint. I won’t get over the perfect casting. Ever. The crazy and mad laughs? The insults I’ve never heard about but decided to keep in mind? Literally everything. I’m sorry I can’t get over how great his voice is

Feng Xin and Mu Qing (of course together): I am so biased towards Lucien Dodge, so I immediately loved his voice for him. He slaying that tsundere cat boy vibe so well. I will admit that his voice made me like his character more tbh. Ok but Feng Xin’s? Every time I hear it, I always need at least 30 seconds to get used to it. Idk why. I don’t hate it, and I actually love it, but he sounds so much like a dad it’s so funny. I still love him tho.

Pei Ming: 😳. No but that was actually my reaction to his voice. Why is every single god’s voice so hot. Please calm down. I really did not like Pei Ming at first but damn. I can actually understand why every single woman went weak with him.

Ling Wen: While she didn’t get as much dialogue this season, I’ll still count her. I’ve heard some drama relating to her voice actress from a while back but I’m not bringing it up rn. But her English voice is almost exactly the same as the original, just, different languages of course. She has such a unique voice and it’s quite pleasing to hear. She also sounds a bit like Siri but it fits her character

Other major characters that got only a few lines but still slayed their roles (Ming Yi, Pei Xiu, Jian Lan, Yin Yu): Hello?? Can I be patient to hear their voices again? Probably not, but please I need more of them. Ming Yi sounded hot since he took voice lessons from Hua Cheng, Pei Xiu sounded like such a little wet cat (wtf where did this crush on him come from), Jian Lan slayed because she is such an underrated queen, and Yin Yu? I WAS NOT EXPECTING A DEEP VOICE FROM WTF. I will say I do prefer his Chinese VA a little more due to it being more in character with him sounding soft and somewhat tired. But I enjoy his confident and announcing voice. They should keep him for the QuanYin flashbacks.

All in all, perfect cast. I don’t have twitter/X but I see things from the VA’s from time to time. And seeing them interact with the fandom and trying to give more to their characters makes me so happy. I just desperately need for more of the characters to have voices (aka Shi Wudu, Quan Yizhen, Mei Nianqing, Yushi Huang, Male!Ling Wen, White-No-Face). Give me more please.

Please check out the dub it’s so fucking great.

[thewiddershinsme]

Finished Anastasia by Sophie Lark! Random thoughts with full spoilers below:

-you can definitely tell the author likes the 1997 animated Anastasia movie, there are some elements that feel inspired by/paying homage to that film (Damien/Dimitri similar sounding names, him calling Anastasia “Anya”, the music box, Rasputin’s greenish hue at times, and my favorite the white bat called Bat (Bartok!)). Even the illustrations bring that movie to mind.

-this is not a historical retelling by absolutely any means whatsoever (it is about as accurate as My Lady Jane - which is actually a good comparison cause that show also creates a magic filled alternate reality and the main premise is a doomed historical figure survives), but there are obviously real places and people mentioned which sent me down the Wikipedia and YouTube documentaries rabbit hole. So despite this being a complete fantasy novel, I actually learned a bit by looking up the real world history on my own! I’m embarrassed at how long it took me to realize that Felix was a real person (and it was his Wikipedia entry that made me suspicious about the novel’s ending)

-I never was crazy about Damien himself (though his death touch was nice and angsty and added a whole new layer of obstacle to their romance) but I liked him and Anastasia’s relationship (even more post Revolution) I just wish had a few more moments and interactions when they were growing up together in a show don’t tell way. But I was so so looking forward to the complete grief stricken angst and breakdown as regret when he found out about Anastasia’s “death”; and it happens in the time skip! I love that trope, and was so annoyed it happened off screen.

-Anastasia’s relationship and interactions with her family was well-done. It really showed that even though her family was extremely flawed and in the wrong, they all desperately loved and protected each other (which I think is part of the tragedy of the last Romanovs, that they were well known to be a close and loving family but absolutely terrible autocratic rulers. They would’ve been happier not being the imperial family).

-the big spoiler: time travel solves (mostly) all. I suspected this was gonna happen when historical figures that are known to survive the Revolution were all killed off in the first timeline. In all honesty, I didn’t mind it. This was a fantasy story, the time manipulation element has been part of the plot from the beginning so didn’t come out of left field, and the foreword directly stated Anastasia was going to have her happily ever after. And as mentioned above, the more I read the more I realized in order for her to have a happily ever after, she needed both Damien and her family. I actually had more trouble accepting that Anastasia became Tsarina. I mean, it was a big thing that the girls could not inherit the throne, that was why Alexei having hemophilia and being sickly and likely to die was SO MAJOR politically, cause her dad just couldn’t “decide” to give the throne instead to one of the daughters….except that is exactly what happened. And not even Olga, the eldest child, but the youngest daughter! That part (weirdly enough out of all lol) broke my suspension of disbelief for a bit, but after some time I realized that it was the best ending for the AU to give the throne to the person that had lived the terrible alternate future and could lead Rusya to peace and prosperity for all (since no Revolution happened in the new timeline). I just had to headcanon it that it got passed through the Duma due to Anastasia’s time walking capabilities (which the heir was always supposed to have but she was the only one of her siblings to inherit). And I did like the symmetry of Damien (who was supposed to Attaman) leaving to become the Rusyan consort, while Alexei (who was supposed to be Tsar) instead becoming a Cossack. And you know what, it is still bittersweet that Anastasia lost the version of Damien that she first married, and all the moments and understanding and memories they had built together.

-so, this book felt like a fanfic, and I mean that in the best possible way. There were illustrations (which were gorgeous) and a soundtrack (with tracks interspersed throughout the novel so you know what part each song corresponds with). It does not replace the Anastasia 1997 movie in my heart of hearts (which will probably always be my favorite Anastasia retelling) and did not ignite a new obsession (which was kinda hoping it would). But this was very obviously a passion project, and I enjoyed reading it, and have already lent my copy out to someone else. In a couple years will definitely re-read it again.

Edited to add: I forgot to mention that Rasputin being a vampire was a twist that completely took me by surprise but I thought was a very clever fantastical take on Alexei’s dependence on his “healing” powers

[somethingpersonarelated]

On how Futaba views Akechi

A piece of fanon I've noticed that comes up a lot is how supportive Futaba is of anything that involves Akechi. I don't want to go "Oh she just hates him and any interpretation otherwise is WRONG!!>!" or like she'd totally be cool if he randomly waltzed back into their lives.

It's not something that particularly annoys me or anything. It's just something I've noticed and wanted to comment on because I feel like Futaba's character gets overly simplified. I think it's an interesting dynamic that should be explored more! NOTE THIS IS LONG SORRY LMFAO. Also, I should clarify this isn't a ship post. (don't make this weird)

At the beginning:

We all know the infamous "wait why are you telling me about your trauma, this is a wendy's" scene but it gives us our first insight into her perspective.

When he talks about his mother, it's a fairly similar scenario to Futaba's own. So much so that she has her own cut-in looking sad/sympathetic towards him.

But she's still defensive when he asks about the Phantom Thieves' and their popularity by deflecting sarcastically with,

"...You're popular too, Ace Detective Akechi."

They definitely don't start off on the right foot, much like his relationship with pretty much all the Phantom Thieves, for obvious reasons. Although at this point they don't fully know the extent of his suspicious behavior, just that he is generally sus.

During the Casino + Shido Arcs:

Futaba cannot stand Akechi at this point, but as a part of the plan, she has to act naive even though arguably she probably knows the most about all the mechanics of the plan. She does get to mess with him though (making the newbie do stuff, the whole cognitive akechi part of the plan, bugging his phone). Her perspective is probably still similar to the others and it shows how much she was able to improve by being able to face him without cracking at all.

Shido's Arc and Third Semester is when it actually gets interesting though:

Futaba: You know... sometimes I think about that fake Medjed that you guys made up... Futaba: That was the worst trap... but if not for that, I don't think I'd be here right now. Futaba: Uhhh, basically... it doesn't matter where you start over!

This one gets me, I think this line is where her perspective begins to shuffle a bit (and it will be important later). She's trying her best to sympathize with him, as this is before the black mask part of the breakdown, and get him to see that there was some amount of good that came from his actions. It doesn't work, and I kind of think she doesn't really believe it, but they are all trying anything to get him to come to his senses. But I do think she means the part about him starting over, in a "I did it, so could you" kind of way.

And of course this engine room dialogue which is peak (even if it may be an incorrect description of his abilities):

Futaba: But you trusted no one, so you only got two Personas: one for your lies, and one for your hate. Futaba: Still, you thought that was enough, right? That part I totally get.

Okay the first part of the dialogue may not be accurate to how his Personas work but I don't want to talk about that (there's some good posts on that though). But the point isn't being accurate, she's throwing back what he's done in attempt to get through to him. Like this is where you went wrong and here's why I can relate to that. The second line confuses me and I had to sit on it.

One point she makes is that he's operating on his own without teammates (the translation is a bit different), "playing in single player mode." I think this refers to how she thought she could manage her situation on her own, but wasn't able to. Additional note, it could also be referring to the way she attempted to push people out of her life (like how she tries to stop the PTs when they say they need to meet her to change her heart). That she needed the help of the Phantom Thieves (I think, even beyond the change of heart) and those bonds proved her wrong. So even though she initially thought no one needed her and that her life was meaningless, she did something Akechi couldn't conceive of doing, reaching out for help. This is her way of extending a branch even though there's no reason for her to.

Third Semester

Source:

An additional line I can't screenshot:

"So please let me get back to navigating! I wanna navigate so hard that I won't be able to think about anything else."

When this happens, I think it's pretty clear that there's a strong inner conflict for her when it comes to forgiving Akechi. Even though they reasoned it out by saying they needed him on the team due to Maruki's abilities, she's still trying to look for a better reason to work with him. And she just can't find one. I wouldn't say it's necessarily out of pity, but it shows that she does on some level still feel bad for him. I guess the word I'm looking for is compassion? A thought that comes into my head is that she does want him to start over, just not with the team. If it was only Shido, then it would have been justified, but the circumstances are different here. Knowing that he might be alive changes the way all the thieves interact with him (they aren't trying to get through to him anymore, and some dialogues are just awkward- you can tell no one knows what to say to him now that he's acting 'normal').

A counterpoint to this dialogue would be her dialogue in the engine room and Mementos. She's pretty open to talking to him in these dialogues. In Akechi's section there are some really interesting interactions imo:

Akechi: You may not like working with me, but I'm counting on your assistance until our goal is achieved. Futaba: You better appreciate just how open-minded I am.

The fact they don't play together in Tycoon but they still get Mementos dialogues confuses me a bit but eh. Without Haru and Futaba's approval it's pretty clear the others wouldn't be on board with Akechi on the team. The delivery kind of makes it sound like she's forcing herself to be open minded about it, and that's what the safe room dialogue implies too. She doesn't want to be around him.

Akechi: Do you prefer my previous outfit or this one? Moving around's become much easier for me. Futaba: They both work fine. Just wear whatever you want.

Akechi: You think I'm frightening when I fight? Well, I'm afraid you're just going to have to accept it. Futaba: I was pretty shocked at first, but now I'm used to it.

I think these are pretty clear. She hasn't forgiven him, hell she probably doesn't like him, but she's come to accept him for who he is. But she isn't scared anymore, nor is she trying to reason with him, he just exists.

Conclusion/TLDR: She goes from actively disliking him at the beginning of the story to still disliking him but it's complicated™. She understands what he went through to get to that point, and wanted him (like the others) to face Shido with them. But when it comes to third semester, the circumstances are far different, complicating it further. She doesn't need to forgive him at all, she knows that, but after everything that happened wants to find a reason to forgive him. But she can't. At the very least, she's begrudgingly accepting of his existence, and can deal with it only for the sake of the team. She doesn't hate him, at all, actually, but to say she's okay with him is also a stretch.

edit: some edits for clarity/demonstration.