#this man is going to be a maniac in January

[ingravinoveritas]

Not Michael writing "Do it again" on a screenshot of the kiss at London Comic Con today, oh my God...

[violentdelightsandviolentends]

Honey Girl. Christmas.

chapter synopsis - Christmas doesn’t feel like Christmas for you this year. Bucky’s determined to change that.

pairing - dads bestfriend!bucky barnes x female reader - soulmate au

warnings - cursing.

word count - 2.5k

authors note - I know what you’re thinking… murphy, this is a christmas chapter and it’s january 2nd. and yes, I know. I admit that I had a lot less time than I initially anticipated over the festive period to write. regardless, I hope you enjoy this. it’s a flashback, set between chapters 6 and 7 <3

series masterlist. main masterlist. inbox.

“You have icing on your face.”

You chuckle as Isabel rubs at your cheek with her sleeve, trying to be gentle but failing miserably.

“What colour?”

“Green.”

“Christmas cookies,” you say as you smack her hand away, laughing when she glares at you playfully. “The kitchen is covered in red and green icing. It looks like an elf was murdered in there.”

“That sounds festive. And morbid. And… delicious?”

“You want to take some home?”

“Yes!” she gasps with excitement. “I was telling my brother about them yesterday, he’s desperate to try some.”

“Remind me later, and I’ll grab you a box.”

“Thank you. You’re the best.”

You’re rising from your chair to return to the kitchen when Isa grabs your hand, pulling you back down. You quirk a brow at her in confusion, asking a silent question.

“You’re going home for Christmas, right?”

She’s squeezing your hand rather tightly, waiting like an eager puppy for your response.

“I, uh - yeah. I think I am. Need to make sure I get back here in plenty of time for opening between the twenty fifth and new year.”

“Girl… what? That means you’ll only be home for a few days. That’s not a real Christmas.”

“It’s okay, it’s just the way things are. It’ll be a super busy few days anyway, knowing my Mom.”

She looks at you intently for a moment, and you can practically see the wheels turning in her brain.

“We’ll cover you.”

“Isa… what?”

“We’ll cover it. Me, Stella, and we can get Justin and Mikey to help too. They’re coming to give us a hand over the next few weeks anyway, so they might as well pull their weight.”

“I can’t ask you to do that.”

“You’re not asking. I’m telling you, that’s what we’re going to do.”

“Isa-”

“Please. You’re the backbone of this place - it’d quite literally fall apart without you. The least you deserve is some decent time off with your family back home. You deserve a proper Christmas.”

You’re quiet for a moment, contemplating everything. The more you think about it, the more you’re tempted - the idea of more time with your parents and Bucky is too good to pass up.

“Only if Stella agrees. And you can’t convince her - she has to agree on her own terms.”

“Thank you, thank you, thank you!”

“I should be thanking you,” you laugh, shaking your head.

“Okay, now leave.”

“Huh?”

“You’ve been here since 4am. Please, go home.”

“Isa.”

“I am so serious right now. Look at my face. Look at how serious I am.”

You can’t help but laugh at her, the stoic expression she wears doing nothing to hide the amusement behind those big brown eyes.

“Fine, fine. Man, you’re bossy today.”

“I’m learning from the best.”

You hit her with your dish towel, punishment for the jab she made. She’s giggling like a maniac, skipping back to her place behind the counter.

“Isa - call me if you need anything, yeah?”

“Always.”

✵  ✵    ·　 ✵ 　　 *  · ✵

You’ve been in the same spot on the couch for an hour when there’s a knock at your door. Reluctantly, you get up to answer it, disappointed about leaving the cocoon you’ve made so comfortable.

Your hand is on the door knob when you feel a sudden rush of warmth through your chest, spreading rapidly to the tips of your fingers and the soles of your feet. Suddenly, everything is a little bit brighter, more colourful, more vibrant. The birds are chirping louder, the sun setting in a more beautiful shade of orange than before.

He’s here.

You swing the door open to reveal Bucky, standing looking hopeful with his overnight bag in his hand. He gets even more beautiful every time you see him. His hair is a little longer, his stubble growing out slightly, freckles scattered across his golden cheeks. He looks like the sun has come down to earth and given him a kiss, just because.

“You’re here.”

“I’m here.”

He’s wrapping his arms around you before you can move, creating a safety net that blankets you both. You breathe him in, the scent of the ocean and musk and wood and home.

“What are you doing here?” you mumble against the soft cotton of his t shirt.

“Came to surprise you. Thought we could have our own Christmas, the two of us.”

“Really?” you ask as you pull back to look at him.

“Really. Isabel says you’ve been working too hard, and that you need a pick me up.”

“You talk to Isa?”

“We’re friends on Facebook.”

You laugh like you can’t help it, shaking your head at the idea of the two of them messaging each other.

“She was very adamant about sending me home today. It all makes sense now.”

“Our master plan worked,” he chuckles, stepping inside and kicking the door closed behind him.

You’ve almost forgotten how easily Bucky fits into your space, like he belongs there. He throws his bag down and sits down on your couch, sinking into the cushions like they’re moulded to his shape, ready and waiting for him to return.

“How long are you here for?” you ask as you slide yourself into his side, slotting in perfectly.

“Just a couple of days. And then I’ll see you back home for Christmas with your parents, yeah?”

“You’re coming? My Mom said she wasn’t sure whether you were or not.”

“I can’t say no to one of Lori’s Christmas dinners. I’ll come over at lunch time, give you guys the morning to yourselves. Won’t overstay my welcome, promise.”

“You could never overstay your welcome, Buck. Not possible.”

He presses a kiss into your hair, pulling you closer so there isn’t an inch of space between you.

“I got you a present. Wanted to give it to you while we’re alone.”

“You did? I thought we said we weren’t gonna do gifts?”

“We did. But I know for a fact you got me something, didn’t you?”

You chuckle, resting your head on his shoulder.

“Yes, I did.”

“Knew it. And anyway, I didn’t buy it. I made it.”

You quirk an eyebrow at him in curiosity, watching as he bounds across the living room to rifle around in his bag. When he finds what he’s looking for, he jumps over the back of the sofa, returning to his original place next to you.

“Here.”

It’s wrapped very precisely, a book sized rectangle with neat corners and careful folds. There’s a red ribbon tied around the centre, and the idea of Bucky sitting and trying to get it just right makes your heart ache.

You unwrap it gently, reluctant to undo all of his hard work. He’s watching you intently, determined to see every little reaction on your face.

Sitting in your hand is a leather bound book, with a forest green coloured cover. Your name is engraved into the front of it, carved into the material forever. You open it up to find that it isn’t blank, but contains templates of some sort, the pages covered with very faint geometric lines.

“What is it, Buck?”

He grins, turning some of the pages so he can show you.

“It’s a blank cookbook. Thought you could write down the final copies of the recipes that work after you’ve developed them, have them all in one place.”

“I love it,” you whisper, running your fingers over the pages. “What’s this pattern? On the paper?”

“It’s the blueprints. For our house.”

“It’s beautiful.”

“I made them as transparent as possible, so your eyes wouldn’t get distracted. But I wanted to have a piece of us in it, to remind you.”

“It’s the most thoughtful gift I’ve ever received,” you smile, willing yourself not to cry about it. “I love it so much, Buck. Thank you.”

He leans in to press a gentle kiss to your lips, all sugary sweet.

“My turn, now. Though lower your expectations, please.”

He rolls his eyes, laughing when you shove at his shoulder. You pull his gift from the drawer in the coffee table, handing him a small box.

He opens it carefully, lifting the lid to reveal a navy bracelet, all woven and intricate. He turns it over to look at the inside, gently tracing the embroidery with his fingertips.

“They’re our birth flowers.”

“I didn’t even know I had a birth flower,” he chuckles in awe. “Honey, it’s… it’s beautiful.”

“I made it.”

His head whips up, eyes wide as he stares at you.

“You made this?”

“I went to a class with Stella and Isa, it was like an introduction thing. And I knew how to embroider anyway, so that bit was easy.”

“I can’t believe you. Is there anything you can’t do?”

You’re laughing as you shake your head, dismissing his attempts to massage your ego.

“Like I said, it was a workshop.”

“I love it so much, honey girl. Thank you. I’ll never take it off.”

“Never?”

“Never,” he murmurs against your lips, big hands cradling your face as he pulls you closer. “Never ever.”

He kisses you with purpose, one hand gripping the back of your neck as the other wraps around your back to plaster you to him. You tilt your head to let him slip his tongue into your mouth, tasting the coffee he must have been drinking on the drive down.

Just as you’re about to pull his shirt up and over his head, his stomach rumbles louder than you’ve ever heard it.

“What have you eaten today?” you chuckle, carding your fingers through his hair to fix it.

“I had an early lunch, but I haven’t had dinner yet. Have you?”

“Not yet. You wanna make something?”

“Cake.”

“Huh?”

“I think we should make a cake for dinner.”

“Bucky Barnes. What is wrong with you?”

He laughs all full and warm, and the timbre of it settles nicely into your chest.

“I’ve been thinking about all the stuff I’m missing out on now that you’re here and not at home. The cakes, the cookies, the macaroons, the tarts…”

His stomach rumbles again as he clutches it dramatically, throwing himself backwards onto the couch cushions.

“And so you want cake for our Christmas dinner?”

“Yes I do.”

You can’t fight the grin that’s sweeping across your face, no matter how much you want to.

“Let me make you something to keep you going while I create the best cake for dinner you’ve ever had.”

“Yeah?”

“Oh yeah.”

A huge kiss is planted onto your cheek, joy practically radiating off your soulmate next to you.

“I’ll make myself a sandwich, honey. I know it’s gonna take you a while to line your baking tins.”

You don’t know whether to laugh or cry at the fact that he remembers the time you were ranting about cutting greaseproof paper and bottomless cake tins and butter versus margarine for stickiness.

“I have homemade bread in the pantry. Sourdough from the bakery.”

“That’s the sexiest thing you’ve ever said to me.”

He’s pressing a kiss into your hair as he rises from his seat, wandering towards the kitchen to get things moving.

“This is a stupid idea,” you laugh, following him. “What kind of cake do you want?”

✵  ✵    ·　 ✵ 　　 *  · ✵

“I’m never going to get over this.”

“So you like it?”

“Honey. My God.”

He groans into his last forkful of cake, placing the utensil down onto his plate with a definitive clang. You’re both sat at the kitchen island, the two of you having just finished your second portion each.

“Good, because we’ve got a whole cake to finish before you go home.”

His head is resting on his hand as he looks at you with bright eyes, watching every micro expression that graces your face as if it’s a rerun of his favourite movie.

“Make sure to write that recipe in your new book. We’re making this a Christmas tradition.”

“I like that idea,” you smile as you lean over to press a kiss to his sugary lips. “I like that idea a lot.”

“Good.”

You stack the plates and are about to get up to stick them in the sink when Bucky grabs your wrist, keeping you sat down on the bar stool.

“Hey, pretty girl?”

“Yeah?”

“Can I ask you something?”

“Anything.”

His thumb rubs circles into the back of your hand, the touch so familiar that you almost don’t notice it at first.

“Why haven’t you decorated for Christmas?”

“Hmm?”

“I thought you’d at least have a tree, or some lights hanging. Maybe an ornament or two. But you don’t have anything.”

“Oh. Um… I don’t know. Just haven’t had the time, I guess.”

He’s looking at you like he doesn’t believe a word you’re saying. You’re not sure you believe a word you’re saying.

“It doesn’t feel like Christmas,” you whisper honestly. “Even when I was in culinary school, I’d go back home for Christmas. And now I’m here, and I have like three friends and no family with me, and it doesn’t feel like Christmas.”

A tear slips down your cheek as you sniffle, pulling the sleeves of your shirt down over your hands.

“Oh, sweetheart.”

He’s up and out of his chair immediately, wrapping his arms around you where you still sit. His familiar scent and his familiar warmth comfort you instantly, heart rate calming down ever so slightly as he holds you.

“I know it’s all new and different, but that’s the exciting thing about this, right? It’s not what you’re used to, but you have the chance to create new traditions and a whole load of new memories now.”

“You’re right,” you mumble into his chest. “I think I was so stuck on thinking about how different everything was, that I forgot that different can be a good thing.”

“Exactly. I’m here for a couple of days, and then we can go home and have the Christmas Day with your parents that you’re used to. Yeah?”

“Yeah. Buck?”

“Hmm?”

“You are the only person in the world I wanted to see when I opened that door earlier.”

“The feeling is mutual, sweetheart,” he hums as he presses a kiss into your hair. “Why do you think I drove all the way here?”

“Because you’re the best.”

“Can’t argue with that,” he chuckles, pulling you with him towards the couch. “Now come on, we need to watch a Christmas movie. You pick.”

“Love Actually,” you say without missing a beat. “It’s Love Actually or nothing.”

“Done,” he’s laughing, reaching for the remote.

“Thank you,” you whisper, lacing your fingers with his. “For everything.”

“Always. Merry Christmas, honey girl.”

“Merry Christmas, Bucky.”

[kneelingshadowsalome]

So we know König is horny mf. How about an insatiable reader whom even he can’t keep up with? One who demands physical attention and affection all the time and wears him out completely…

The first months are fun!

König is in heaven and can’t help but brag about his new girlfriend at work, earning jealous looks and filthy jokes, a few pats on the back. He'd never share the details of the head-spinning sex to anyone but it just so happened to slip past his lips that this pretty new girl is always at his dick… Other men are complaining about their wives’ headaches or their girlfriend’s dry patch while he gets a full rodeo everytime he gets home. Work is a place he comes to rest, if you know what he means… They say it’s only the honeymoon phase, but hey, can’t a man be happy about it, huh?

Turns out the honeymoon phase is neverending because his girl is wilder than he thought. He hardly gets past the door before she drags him to the bedroom, wakes him up at night by grinding against his leg, her sweet little moans begging him to please please please do it again… In the morning, she’s already climbing on top of him, and it’s a relief because he’s starting to get tired, and it has barely been 24 hours.

After that, she turns into a koala whom he carries around the apartment, who only lets him go to the bathroom alone. He gets so many kisses that his brain is not braining anymore: the overstimulation and attention turn his heart into soft pudding. They make so much love that his balls feel like raisins before the leave’s end, every single drop squeezed out 💔 She’s not just wild, she’s insane, actually, must be a nymphomaniac... And it’s not fucking funny, you should feel sorry for him…!

Everyone at work jokes about him looking exhausted as they playfully punch him in the chest – did his girl give him hell this weekend, or did the pussy grow teeth? What’s up, what is it, did the king lose his crown? König just sulks and shoots a nasty glare at the men, not bragging about his girl anymore, feeling he must be cursed after he joked about being ridden like a horse three times a day. Why did he have to say that? He should’ve known his luck always backfires some way. Even an amazing thing like this had to turn into a way to torment him…

He wants to satiate his girl, truly, he worships her. But please, even he needs to rest… König reluctantly buys her a sex toy, only out of fear of losing her to someone else when he’s away. She sends naughty pictures to him when he’s at work, and of course the big boy downstairs wakes up with delight when he’s lonely and more deprived, seeing she has put the toy to good use. If only he could bottle up that energy and use it when he sees her again, but that’s not how it works. He has to stay strong and have no nut Novembers, Januarys and Julys even when he doesn’t want to. Almost cries the first time he gets to fuck her again, which makes her think he’s a sex maniac as well. So cute, but who cries when having sex?! What a nasty, naughty boy…

[motorsport-jesus]

From the Alain Time Travel Fic:

January 1985

Elio wasn’t afraid of Ayrton, not like he thought that the others in Lotus were from time to time.

Ayrton was something in between the typhoons that made Suzuka a difficult drive and Mount Vesuvius on the brink of eruption. Two very different elements for one very peculiar man.

Brashness and genius, madman and cunning driver. Portugal was his crowning achievement, and Elio felt a little old and inept just being around him. He was a red star, swallowing teams whole and forcing them to gravitate around him. Only him, Elio could sense it. Toleman had been tailor-made for Ayrton, and yet he had left it behind for Lotus, and Elio knew if Lotus didn’t provide by the time the contract was up, Ayrton wouldn’t even look back.

“Who is your hero?” Elio had once asked Ayrton.

He expected the usual Niki Lauda, or maybe a James Hunt.

He did not expect was for Ayrton to look at him with cold brown eyes and say: “Alain Prost.”

Elio had not asked more, and Ayrton did not explain himself. Instead, he leaned back, becoming the more genial person that Elio knew him is. His eyes becoming warm, his smile softening, and making Elio’s heart do a strange pitter-patter that he tried his best to ignore.

Men like Ayrton Senna would only hurt him, at least that’s what his Mama had told his sisters.

__________________________________________________

January 21, 1982

This was the coolest thing Elio had ever done, and he had done many cool things.

Niki Lauda (!!!!) tried to lighten up the atmosphere by telling dirty jokes. They were horrible jokes. Jokes that would have his mother washing his mouth with soap and sending him to confession to cry to the Father, still tasting soap studs in his on his tongue.

They crowded together in the room. Exchanging jokes, and waiting nervously for a call, all of them trusting in Niki Lauda because he was Niki Lauda.

Elio’s career might be over. If this is how it ended, maybe he didn’t really mind if it meant that he wasn’t tied down forever and ever through the Super Licence. No, he did mind, he really, really did mind. He wanted to win, he wanted to make Old Man Chapman proud, but if he wouldn’t bend, then Elio would be forced to quit.

Alain Prost leaned against Elio, both of them something in between real friends and strange acquaintances, ever since they had been deemed ‘basically the same age’ by the rest of the grid and forced to bond. The year between his debut and Alain’s meaningless in the face of the fact that Alain was actually an amazing person to hang out with. Mostly because he spoke Italian and let Elio chatter away at him.

Bruno Giacomelli, his fellow countryman, gets his hands on a chart and gave a presentation on how to take a gun to bits. His smile maniac as he explains the components of the machine guns and bores half the room to sleep, and the other room curiously asking questions about the guns.

As a few people stirred from their power naps after hours in the pool, shutting out the anxiety of the day, Alain shoved him towards the piano. He poked and prodded Elio out, russet eyes gleaming with mirth and cunning.

“Elio here is going to play the piano for us.” Alain said, waving his arms to get attention, and oh, Elio didn’t like the attention of everyone on the grid on him.

Alain patted his back, forcing Elio to sit down and taking a seat next to him, facing out. Elio kicked him as best he could while eyeing the piano up and down. Yes, this would do.

Elio tried a few keys, pleasantly surprised at how well-kept the piano was. Alain laid a hand on his knee, and Elio took a deep breath.

He started to play, trying to express his love for the sport, for the people in the room. For those he was trying to match, for those he had left behind.

The room was silent, everyone listening to Elio’s little lament. Alain hummed lowly, seemingly picking up everything Elio was putting in his song, and Elio felt seen by his friend, by everyone in the room. Then, Elio switched, the intimancy searing the back of his throat, something more appropriate for the day and time.

“Alla mattina appena alzata

o bella ciao bella ciao bella ciao, ciao, ciao

alla mattina appena alzata

in risaia mi tocca andar” Elio began crooning, and Alain let out a soft laugh. Bruno let out a cheer, and the Ferrari drivers made noises between a groan and laugh.

Yes, this was the coolest thing Elio had ever done.

edit: out now

[mariacallous]

If you’ve been on TikTok at any point in the past six months, chances are you’ve stumbled across them, as I first did during a fairly routine doomscroll one night this summer. For me it started with two videos somewhat incongruously tagged #homeremodeling and #housedesign. One of them featured a CGI man summoning a baby phoenix outside of a tree that he planned to turn into an apartment. Then a robotic AI voice started to narrate how the CGI man, identified as “Little John,” was going to build it. Over the next 90 seconds, Little John transformed the tree into a maniacally space-efficient luxury unit in an AI-generated ballet of flying galvanized square steel, ecofriendly wood veneer, and expansion screws.

The other video, featuring nearly identical CGI and the same hypnotically flat AI narrator, followed the story of a couple with a billion children that, like Little John, decided it was time to improve their home. And those two videos were only the tip of the galvanized steel iceberg.

There are hundreds of accounts posting these videos to TikTok right now, and they’ve become immensely popular, racking up millions of views. Even the “character” of Little John has become a meme of his own, with people making skits where they pretend to be him.

The videos struck me as a fascinating case study of how TikTok trends have evolved—or rather devolved—over time. What was once an app full of human beings making content in conversation with each other has become a dizzying world where irony and sincerity, memes and spam, blur together into a slurry of bizarre content no one is quite sure what to do with. As I set out to discover who was making these videos, I assumed that lifting the rock would reveal an even stranger world of broken social networks, AI content farms, and shady engagement hacks, wiggling just beneath the surface of the web. Which it did! But stranger still, in the end, it turned out these videos hadn’t become huge as a TikTok trend at all.

In 2022, an account popped up on TikTok called @​​designer_bob. From the start, it exclusively posted videos with a specific format: Some kind of weird domestic issue must be solved with extreme home renovation, the action animated in a surreal CGI style with a spunky stock music soundtrack. Within a month, the account had a viral hit: a video about designing a bedroom for four children, which has been viewed more than 10 million times.

Designer Bob’s formula proved perfect for TikTok’s algorithm, which is constantly analyzing, in microseconds, what catches your attention and recalibrating to what it thinks you want to watch. There’s a hypnotic quality to these videos. “The storyline is just fucked up enough to grab your attention early on,” says social media analyst Rachel Karten. And because there’s a process happening—a home renovation—the user can’t look away.

Once Designer Bob’s videos started going viral, hundreds of other accounts started posting similar content. One account called @dy02449xjp, which had been sharing clips from 2000s romcoms like The Proposal and Two Weeks Notice, switched over to weird home renovations in January 2024. That same month, one of their videos went exceptionally viral. It’s been watched more than 44 million times.

Along the way, the aesthetic and style of these videos started to change. The early viral renovation videos from Designer Bob were silly but could sometimes be mistaken for genuine design content. Newer videos were more ludicrous, the renovations more fantastical, their action narrated by a droning AI voice. That’s just the way TikTok’s remix culture works, says Alex Turvy, who studies digital culture.

“We’re going to see trends like this become more and more absurd until they burn out,” he says.

There’s even a spin-off meme specifically about “galvanized square steel,” to the point where some users have questioned whether the whole meme is a viral marketing campaign for galvanized steel.

“I think lore is a really good word to use here. Now the videos blow up and do well because there is lore around them,” Karten says. “Lore sustains virality.”

The more I watched these videos, the more desperate I was to understand who was making them. In the case of Designer Bob, the account bio links to an online candle and crystal store run by a company based in China called Whisper Wisp. And the ​​Designer Bob Facebook page lists Hong Kong as a base on the Page Transparency section. Still, it seems unlikely this is a covert marketing campaign for a candle shop. None of Whisper Wisp’s social channels are nearly as popular as the Designer Bob account. (Whisper Wisp didn’t respond to any of my messages.)

Details about who’s behind the Dy02449xjp account are even more scarce. There is a Facebook page with the same username sharing the same videos. Beyond that, nothing. No other connected accounts, no storefronts or identifying information. If there’s a scam or an upsell coming, it hasn’t dropped yet. For now, at least, Dy02449xjp appears to be pursuing TikTok engagement for its own sake.

Many of these accounts use some variation of the name “Home Designs” and similar logos of a small house, which strongly resemble the branding of an architecture and interior design program called HomeDesignsAI—a major clue, I thought, toward solving the mystery. I was able to track down HomeDesignsAI’s COO and cofounder, Denis Madroane. But he was just as confused as everyone else about how popular these renovation TikToks have become.

HomeDesignsAI is a Romania-based startup that launched in 2023. The app allows users to upload a photo of a room or floor plan and transform it using AI. Madroane says he started seeing TikToks that used HomeDesignsAI last year. He says he and his team thought they were pretty funny—but they’re not seeing much upside.

Madroane confirmed that Home-DesignsAI does have a TikTok account, though it doesn’t really participate in the memes. It has a little under 900 followers, and its biggest video has around 195,000 views. Which seems fine—until you compare it to the unofficial Home-DesignsAI accounts on TikTok. The biggest one, @homedesign369, has 2.4 million followers and is consistently getting millions of views per video.

“Our official account is severely underperforming compared to the numbers averaged by user-generated content,” Madroane concedes.

But as it turns out, none of the most viral Little John TikToks were made using HomeDesignsAI software. So, mystery unsolved. And before this summer, no one on TikTok seemed to know where these videos were coming from. That is, until Candise Lin, a Cantonese and Mandarin tutor based in the US, noticed the trend going viral and revealed the missing piece of the puzzle—at least for confused Americans—in a TikTok video of her own.

It turns out we haven’t actually been watching videos made by TikTok users. They’re coming from a completely different app. As Lin explains, these videos come from Bilibili, China’s closest equivalent to YouTube. On Bilibili, Little John is known as 大壮, or Big John. “Galvanized steel” is even a trending search term. According to Lin, there are two Bilibili users known for creating this kind of content, an account called 疯狂设计家, or Crazy Designer, and another called 设计师王姨, or Designer Aunt Wang. I was able to find dozens of other accounts, as well.

The unhinged home renovation videos on TikTok are machine-translated versions of videos from Bilibili. Chinese content makes the jump across the Great Firewall like this fairly often. Videos downloaded from TikTok’s sister app Douyin are a regular presence on TikTok. But the fact that these were not made for English-speaking audiences would explain the robotic narrator, bizarre syntax, and Chinese iconography seen throughout.

After digging through Crazy Designer’s videos, I was able to find one of the videos I had come across on TikTok back in June, about a couple designing a house for a billion children. Crazy Designer titled it “One Billion Children per Room,” and it’s part of a series, all with titles like “A Million Children per Room,” “Two Million Children per Room,” and so on. After watching it on Bilibili and reading the comments underneath it, I started to realize what these videos are: They’re shitposts. This jaundiced real-estate porn is meant to satirize the housing crunch in cities like Hong Kong and Shanghai, and the commenters are all in on the joke.

In the end, it appears there isn’t any kind of scam or engineered marketing stunt here after all. It’s just two cultures laughing at the same uncanny user-generated content, filtered through some perfunctory layers of AI translation and lost context. And according to Lin, Bilibili users are now aware of how popular Little John videos have become in the West. They’re mortified that Americans are watching.

[sunshines-child]

Drew

TW: rape, slight gore, death

Drew Fukohei Tanaka comes to CHB at the age of 4 years old after her father dies from a drug overdose. Her clothes are ratty and the goat looking man who brought her there looks at her weirdly. She wraps her arms around herself and wishes she could go home, but home isn't there anymore. Home isn't anywhere now. Drew Fukohei Tanaka feels hands on her hips one night at 6 years old. It's one of the Hermes boys, she knows, and she's too scared to make a sound as she feels rough hands spread her legs. It feels like hours, but in truth it was only a few minutes. She feels wetness run down her thighs and all she can do is curl up in a ball in cry. On a brisk January morning, █████ ██████, son of Hermes, is found dead in the forest clearing, face mauled into a bloody pulp and blood dripping from open gashes around his neck and wrists. The little grass around him is stained brown. Drew feels sick satisfaction pool around her. She is claimed that very morning, next to the body of her attacker. Drew Fukohei Tanaka is moved into the Aphrodite cabin, where she is met with walls of soft pink instead wrangled beige, sweet smiles instead of maniacal grins. A beautiful girl greets her, her hair wavy and her eyes warm as a summer's sky. The girl greets herself as Silena and wraps her in a hug warmer than anything her father ever gave her. Drew loves her. When Silena dies, taking care of the cabin falls onto Drew's shoulders. She's not even the oldest, but apparently Silena had trusted her enough and wanted her to leave. Drew wants to curse out Silena for making her do something she wasn't ready to do, but she can't bring herself to. She loves Silena with all her heart. She falls to the ground and cries.

[messengersfolly]

There is no means to an end.

(a self-para for Malachi Howahkan. TW blood, gore, murder)

It's the endless drone of old fluorescent lights and the maniacal beeping of the fire alarm, low-battery. Everything ends, but it doesn't mean you know when.

And the annoyance will continue, and continue, and melt your mind away, until you put a stop to it.

It's with this thinking that Malachi Howahkan murders his wife with an axe in the back of their small Prairie-style Craftsman in mid-January.

His life has not been his own.

It has been Alice's, turned to dinner parties and board game nights. Stockings hung with care, two tiny tots, soccer practice, and the backyard grill. The ole ball and chain. "Can't live with him, can't live without him!" The baby showers, the anniversaries. A mini-van and a house with a foyer.

He works as an insurance agent. 9-5, casual Fridays, water cooler chatter and group synergy. "Workin' hard or hardly workin'?"

One day it's easy to just take the axe and swing it.

Easier than the time it takes to type in his client's yearly salary and figure out the percentage still owed.

Easier than picking up Bobby from violin.

Prison is not easy. It's threats and shouting and shoving. Too much time alone to think about every aspect of his wife's dead body, the blood coming from the chunks he cut out of her. Officers with too much power, men with too much anger. And boredom.

When he gets a letter, he assumes it's one of his kids. But it reads of a man infatuated. Questions about his life and how it fell apart, and more importantly, how he can piece it back together for Malachi.

This meager connection is a life raft in a tsunami. Mal holds to it like a man possessed. Until his fingers go raw and bloodied, he'll cling to every letter sent.

Polaroids on sun-bleached film, chopped brown hair tied with an old rubber band. Tales from the outside.

It's back and forth for years.

One day, the folded letter Malachi sends has a piece of twine tied into a little loop perfect for a finger enclosed inside. He asks him to marry him, and promises a better ring when he's out.

It's years later that Malachi Howahkan walks out of the New York State Penitentiary in the dirty clothes he walked in with over 20 years ago. Released early on good behavior. Cash that Mik had sent for snacks from the commissary buys a bus ticket straight to his husband's apartment.

Once he's there, he never leaves.

[livealittleoc-cb]

Small Update!

✨: I’m awake so earlyyyy! *whines* It’s for an important event, my cousin is having a bachelor’s party and as the best man I had to help arrange it and it’s now the day! So have to smile through the pain. Good news though, I’m going to England for Thanksgiving week, my parents are meeting me there and I’ll be with Devon hanging out as well.~ I’m just excited for food we don’t even celebrate Thanksgiving, we celebrate Chuseok but since that past and I didn’t get the chance to visit my parents we’re doing stuff now. Christmas is still a ‘to be announced’ because I don’t know what we’re doing. Hope everyone has lots of fun things planned for their holidays!~

🐉: It is so damn early-. What the fuck. *groans* Guess who’s going also to this bachelor party? Me.~ I may or may not be entertainment, I haven’t been told yet-. But, Sky and me are on a little breakfast date before I have to go and be sexy. 🥰 *snorts and laughs* I also get to pick up my check before I don’t have to work for the rest of the holidays, today is just a great day.~ Thanksgiving isn’t really going to be anything done Sky and me are going to hangout with Joo before he leaves us 🙄 and then for Christmas we’re going to Australia to meet up with mum and then going to China for Chinese New Years in February. I can’t wait.~

☁️: G-Good whatever time i-it is-. I a-am currently extremely t-tired but I get a cute breakfast date with my beautiful b-boyfriend.~ 🥰 I’m not going to the party I-I’m g-going to meet u-up with my D-Dads for the r-rest of the week and catch up with them and than Grey and I have some hangouts with J-Joo planned until C-Christmas! January I s-should be g-going t-to Netherlands with the D-Dads so that should be fun. D-Do you have a-any plans f-for the holidays?!

🩵🩵: @monsterhigh-cb [🐟🤍💍 && ⚡💙 && 👻💜 && 🐺💕 && 🎤💖 && 👑💛] @evicted-oc [☕️🤎 && 🐼🖤 && 🔦💛 && 🧊🩵 && 💄🖤] @theinvitation-bot [🐭🩶💒] @welcome-to-maniac [🐇🖤 💍 && 🌻❤️ && 🌕❤️‍🔥 && 🐿️❣️] @fantasyaespa [🐈 💚💍 && ☀️🩵] @k-venturetime [🍓❣️] @multi-joong [🌧️🧡💍 && 🎨💚] @kardpackcb [���💝 && 🐺❤️‍🔥]

possible new residents: @faywithlove @badbf-cb @clubwnderland @domxbot @welcometosector1 @lunaaofthemoon @reve-rv @multi-esme @the-hellhounds @san-cb @jinju-oc @enhanced-cb @camboys-com @lavienrosecabaretxo @oppositesattraxt @domrachaa @hwangsiblings-oc @coffeexdreamcb @silcntxnight @moonlightchn @blogger-yura @crimson-l @thesugaredalchemists @folklore-cb @doom-bc @hearthstone-apothecary @vandalsxcb @redlight-cb @inferno-cb @damnationinc @moongoddesselene @darkloversxcb @urluvlyfe @9ateez-multiau-bot @minsour-r @jeonsoyeonn @secretscb [DM + / -]

[butchmusings]

January @taylorswiftmicrofic 274 words, wolfstar, slight NSFW?

1st of January 1978, the calendar on James’s wall beside his bed read, as Remus looked at it through blurry, sleepy eyes. He stretched under his bedsheets until he froze, eyes widening when his arms came in contact with another person. Remus slowly turned to find a mess of black curls splayed out on the pillow beside him. Sirius. Remus felt panic swell in his chest, he didn’t remember what had happened last night, but he was pretty sure it wasn’t something he should’ve done. There was no way Sirius had been sober enough to actually want it. Remus attempted to get up, deciding to go into Sirius's bed and make some story up about finding him already asleep when he went up, or vice versa. But as he shifted, Sirius woke up. His grey eyes opened and stared at Remus, a smirk playing across his lips in a way that made Remus very thankful for the large sheet covering him. “Good night?” He asked mischievously

Remus felt relief flood him, thank god, Sirius at least remembered, and definitely didn’t look too mad about it “I must have been fucking pissed, I don’t remember a thing”

“Want me to remind you” Sirius smirked, leaning in closer to Remus, his hands resting on the other’s shoulders

“I hate you so much” Remus laughed, kissing Sirius on the forehead “What are we doing when James and Pete wake up?”

“Nothing, I wanna see the shock in their eyes” Sirius smirked maniacally “And I want people to know, that I am the luckiest man alive to have woken up to the sight of you staring at me”

[enpleurait]

Musicals in Korea: Take One

The highlight (or embarrassment) of my video call with VIXX was Lee Jaehwan looking at all four musicals I went to in Korea and saying "Wow! Musical maniac!" I didn't even show him my drawer of Broadway Playbills. Actually I'm pretty sure Taekwoon imitating my dolphin squeak is peak embarrassment.

I do not have much experience with Korean musicals. I was, however, (un)fortunate enough to live by Broadway for two years and within two hours for several more. I've so far checked off 15 out of 41 Broadway theatres, and a handful of Off-Broadway theatres. I'm not a "theatre kid", so am coming at theatre as a casual enjoyer. I'd like to think I have some grasp on the pinnacle(?) of the american theatre scene, from smaller black box productions to Majestic classics and hyped up Best New Musical Tony winners.

I was blown away in Korea. 

Since finding info was a pain in the rear, I'm doing a quick write-up of my experience as a non-Korean speaker before I embark on Korean Musicals: Part Two. The four musicals I saw were: 22 Years and 2 Months, Les Miserables, Phantom of the Opera, and Ben-Hur. 

- - - - - -

Some general notes on ticketing:

There are two HUGE differences from purchasing theatre tickets on Broadway (or Toronto, or West End). The first is that the cast schedule is posted ahead of time. The second is that tickets are released in batches, known as 'Ticket Open', separated several weeks apart. A third, less major, difference is that there are often several purchase sites per show, and each purchase site will have a different "block" of seats. The full-price tickets are also much cheaper than Broadway… (although I got a little spoiled and this time looked at my fifth row off-to-the-side Jesus Christ Superstar seats of ~130 CAD and went 'this is kind of expensive'.) For the most part, I bought my tickets for these shows directly from the global interpark website. The other two common sites are Melon and Yes24. Some shows that are on Interpark (korea) will not be on Interpark Global, but may be on Melon. Last year the fee was 3,000KRW but this year it seems to have become 8,000KRW on Interpark Global. This is still much more reasonable than western ticketing sites.

Example cast schedule (may only appear on Korean version of Interpark). This one is for Tebas Land which only has two characters. Unless you're really interested in seeing a particular actor, probably any cast choice is a good one.

Example seating charts for Great Comet, R&J, and Hedwig. Each site takes a 'vertical' chunk, and has all tiers available. Some seats are reserved for box office.

Example of a Ticket Open announcement with the casting schedule announced at the same time. The tickets will go on sale at 2PM on November 6, for shows between the dates of December 17th to January 5th.

- - - - -

22 Years and 2 Months -  Link Arts Center, Bugs Hall, 401 seats

This was a smaller, local production, and I was lucky enough to attend Jaehwan's last performance. I failed at ticketing, but another fan helped me get a ticket! Ticketing is serious business in Korea and seats for shows for well known actors or idols can go in seconds, especially for first and last performances. Imagine trying to get tickets for, say, Aaron Tevit or Daniel Radcliffe--instead of the barrier to entry being ticket prices of 300$-700$, it's down to internet speed and fast fingers. 

In some ways, it's more fair! At least scalped tickets are still much less than for English shows… 

Tickets were will-call. I lined up at the box office, showed them my order number, and they gave me my ticket. I was there pretty early so went to take pictures with the cast board and look at the merchandise. Since it was the last show, several things were out of stock, but I bought a really pretty key-chain, a handkerchief(?), and a program book. The photobook and OST were only available to people who'd seen the show X number of times (five? I forget) which was kind of a bummer. Unlike many Broadway theatres, there's no bar to get an overpriced cocktail in a souvenir cup to sip on through the show.

I again have to stress that I speak zero Korean. The language barrier doesn't bother me, possibly because I was raised on a steady diet of Italian and German opera. I knew the rough gist of the story since it was based on a historical event, and had no trouble following along. The acting was phenomenal--not just the leads, but also the ensemble. No one was ever 'off'. The vocals were… everything. The set was simple, but the use of lighting and projections and sound design brought it to life.

And the sound design. Imagine not getting your ears blown out! Imagine actors enunciating! Imagine mics not cutting off, or speakers turned up to max! I didn't even need my auditory sensitivity aids! Twenty minutes in and I needed all my self-restraint not to message my friend to wax poetic on the sound design and the enunciation. I will give it to Korea that the theatres are all much, much newer, which definitely helps.

Plenty of washrooms, so no need to book it out the door to the washrooms during intermission. Merchandise booth was open during intermission as well. 

Stage door seems to vary from actor to actor and show to show, especially when it comes to idols. This is the only show I 'stage door'ed for. Fans lined up behind barricades and waited for Jaehwan to come out, fansite cameras at the ready, he waved and greeted us and then got into the van and left. He seemed very tired :( Probably because he had a concert in a few days to rehearse for.

The (packaged) MD from 22 years and 2 months.

- - -

Theatres in Korea (or at least in Seoul) are completely dark on Mondays. Some shows are dark on Tuesday as well, but nothing plays on Monday. In other words, I was forced to do non-theatre things, like go to Namsan tower… What a shame.

- - -

Les Miserables - Dream Theatre, Busan, 1700 seats

I'm basic. Les Miserables is one of my favourite musicals. (In no particular order, my top three were Camelot, Phantom of the Opera, and Les Miserables). Circumstances and sheer bad luck meant I'd completely missed its Broadway run and I'd resigned myself to hopefully seeing it one day on West End.

I was initially bummed out because Les Mis closed in Seoul just before I arrived. But! Thanks to the power of public transportation! It takes less than three hours to get to Busan! Where Les Mis was playing! And so, on Wednesday, I hopped on a 7am train to Busan, ate delicious seafood, and went to the matinee performance. The ticket for a 5th row seat was 180,000 KRW with a 3,000 KRW fee. 

Instead of there being one concentrated theatre district, several of the big theatres (arts centers) tend to be further out of the city center. Again, good public transit makes this a non-issue, but it is something to note. 

Other than 22 years and 2 months, the other three musicals were "big" productions. While I'd never seen Les Miserables before, I had the 10th Anniversary Cast recording playing on repeat, and was probably one of the few that actually enjoyed the movie???? Either way, I had high expectations.

Tickets again were will-call, the theatre was pretty big and connected to some other things and up an elevator, but again, showed them the order confirmation, and they gave me the ticket, and off I went to wait. 

Unfortunately, I met my absolute nemesis--school groups. Downside of matinee performances :( I've encountered school groups or summer camps at matinee performances on Broadway, but there were so many of them, they took up almost the entire balcony level, and, I am afraid to say, had all the decorum one might expect of a hundred or so middle/high schoolers. They laughed during 'On my own'!!!! (They weren't that bad. I just don't get along with school groups.)

Merchandise at Korean shows go HARD. None of that basic t-shirt or tote bag or magnets. Although I only ended up picking up a pin badge and a program book, mostly because I got choice paralysis and also had to schlep whatever I got back to Seoul. Playbills aren't a thing, similar to West End, but the program books are basically the most beautiful photobooks for a musical you want. They also have synopsis and cast introductions and all that standard stuff. 

The tiny amount of Les Mis MD (because I was already hauling a bunch of stuff around.)

I unfortunately forgot to take pictures with the cast board for Les Mis because I was too busy avoiding the Hordes Of Children.

Honestly, I don't know what else to say about Les Mis because it surpassed my wildest imaginations, Grantaire had the best delivery of his lines in Drink With Me possible, the stability of all the actors even while moving or while lying down was incredible, and Gavroche was so hecking cute. I cried so many tears. So. So. So. Many. Tears.

I was very excited and impressed and was relaying my appreciation of technology to my friend.

And then I had just enough time to go to Spa Land and still make the last train, and that was what I did in Busan. 

- - -

Ben Hur - LG Arts Centre, 1335 seats

So. Recall how my top three musicals were Les Mis, Camelot, and Phantom? I now have a new one.

Ben Hur.

Ben Hur is an original Korean musical based on a well known book with a well known movie that I did watch when young but mostly slept through. Mostly I remembered: chariots, and Jesus. Wikipedia here was a godsend. 

Ben Hur, by nature, is a big production. They had real horses in the play on Broadway! (They did not have real horses here, but the horses might've been more impressive.) If I ever wanted to see any sort of stage production of Ben Hur, it was not going to be in North America. Also, my little dumpling goober was playing the titular role so an otherwise very painful decision of which cast to watch was made for me. I could not imagine this loser gamer dweeb as Judah Ben-Hur but also, he's my soft loser dumpling gamer dweeb so. Yeah. (Kyuhyun. It's Kyuhyun.) 

This one I was waiting on Interpark and refreshing desperately for ticket open, and managed to get a seat in the 10th row. The ticket was 170,000 KRW with a 3,000 KRW fee. After absolutely botching two ticketing attempt, I was very thankful I got a good ticket! 

Again, tickets were "will-call". IIRC, instead of a box office, they had little machines where you put in your ticket reservation number and the ticket was printed from there. There was a lot of merch, and one thing I wish I got but did not get was a pair of Ben-Hur 'opera glasses'. Yup. In Korea they still use opera glasses, and people in the same row as me were using them too. Honestly, given how emotive the actors are, I can see why you'd want a good look at their faces. In addition to the program book and some keychains, I also got postcards of the dumpling and of another actor who I really want to see some day but didn't have time to. 

Anyway.

LG Arts centre is quite new and is also very big. I'm looking through old convos with a friend and I sent her this image with the caption "Broadway could never".

Look. I'm used to scouting out the bathrooms in any unfamiliar theatre so I know exactly where to bee-line to during intermission. Of course this is incredible to me.

There was no line for the bathroom during intermission.

Out of all of the musicals I saw, this one was the 'loudest'. Mostly because Ben-Hur is about the Roman occupation and there is a lot of whipping and fighting and in other words, there are many things that should be loud. But because sound design in Korea is great, there was a good volume range they could use, so even though it was 'loud' I didn't need to pull out my auditory aids at any point. Also: "if you've ever wondered what it's like to mic up opera singers, I think I'm experiencing that right now." 

I mentioned this in the Les Mis section, but the stability of the actors is incredible. I expect it of the idols, who've trained extensively to sing and be stable while dancing, but wouldn't expect it of a general theatre actor. There were several sword fights and other physical altercations that the actors sang through. I've noticed on Broadway and other English productions, more physical fights tend to be split into 'action' and 'singing'-- sing the lines, do some fighting, stand and sing lines, do more fighting, etc. It's incredibly impressive to watch Valjean choking Javert with a chain, or Messala and Judah having a sword fight and singing through it all.

I did not even attempt to stage door for this. I was actually so tired that I just walked some distance away, stared at the huge crowd waiting at the door, and called a cab. 

I really, really, really wished I'd bought an OST for this. It's an incredible show, and I have an ideal casting in my head that if it ever occurs, I will fly to Korea for. And I will watch it so many times. From so many seats. For as many cast rotations as I can afford. 

- - -

Phantom of the Opera - Charlotte Theatre, 1200 seats

Oh man. Phantom. This was my fourth time seeing Phantom. I'd seen it three times on Broadway, with three different Phantoms, three different Christines, and three different Raouls. This was the best Christine I've ever seen. Imagine my surprise when I open the program book and all I see for her credits is one ensemble performance from the 2018 production of Elizabeth. This is the difference that classical vocal training can make. Best Raoul, best Meg, probably the best Phantom also. Absolutely best in class. 

The Charlotte is gorgeous. It's new, and big, and has the loveliest staircases. There were several photo spots, including the cast board, a backdrop of petals, and a… chibi Phantom statue? It actually has fewer seats than the Majestic (1200 vs 1600) but there is actual leg room. I am so spoiled now.

Once again, the tickets were will-call. Went to the box office on the first floor, gave them my order number, got my tickets, and went to go look at the merch. Phantom has a special place in my heart for being (one of?) the first musical I ever watched live. I'd say that it's because of Phantom I became such a theatre fiend. So in addition to the program book, I ended up with a wine glass, a tote bag, two key-chains, and a magnet. (One of the keychains was for a friend!) Because of how big the Charlotte is, there were a few merchandise booths, with one on the first floor and one on an upper floor. 

My ticket was in the 16th row, and was 160,000 KRW with a 3,000 KRW fee. I didn't get ticket open, and actually got it for the wrong day at first (accidentally double booked with another one) but THANKFULLY noticed fairly quickly. Korea has no cancellation fee for the first few days, and then has increasing cancellation fees to a maximum of 40%.

I learned that the trick to not crying during Phantom, is apparently to cry your eyes out at three musicals during the same week first. Which is good, because it was so emotionally impactful I would have bawled if I'd seen it first. 

Set design was incredible. There are/were rumours that Phantom might return to Broadway stripped down, similar to how Chicago got stripped down--Phantom in Seoul was the opposite of that. It didn't have anything 'extra', but the set was meticulous and breathtaking, and again, I've seen this show three times already. This isn't because it's the first time I've seen the chandelier crash down from the second floor. I also appreciate Asia's dedication to pyrotechnics. Incredibly fun to see the Phantom shoot fireballs at Raul. I imagine that this would've been a pretty big fire hazard at the Majestic though, especially with how packed the seats are.

I'm not sure if there was stage door for this one, but again, even if there was, I was way too tired. Apparently I swore off three evening shows in a row after this, but looking at my calendar for the coming week, I've definitely got three days in a row of evening+matinee shows…

Phantom was the last show I saw in Korea. In the space of a week I'd been to a fanmeet and four musicals, and stayed out past 11 for 3 days in a row. I was wiped.

Not pictured: a wine glass.

Anyway. I'm about to do this again in a few weeks. The line up this time: Jesus Christ Superstar (twice), Tick Tick Boom, Lizzie, Eternity, and Tebas Land (twice). I can't wait.

[pscottm]

America Did This to Itself

This time, the nation was on notice. Back in 2016, those of us who supported Donald Trump at least had the excuse of not knowing how sociopathy can present itself, and we at least had the conceit of believing that the presidency was not just a man, but an institution greater than the man, with legal and traditional mechanisms to make sure he’d never go off the rails.

By 2020, after the chaos, the derangement, and the incompetence, we knew a lot better. And most other Americans did too, voting him out of office that fall. And when his criminal attempt to steal the election culminated in the violence of January 6, their judgment was vindicated.

So there was no excuse this year. We knew all we needed to know, even without the mendacious raging about Ohioans eating pets, the fantasizing about shooting journalists and arresting political opponents as “enemies of the people,” even apart from the evidence presented in courts and the convictions in one that demonstrated his abject criminality.

We knew, and have known, for years. Every American knew, or should have known. The man elected president last night is a depraved and brazen pathological liar, a shameless con man, a sociopathic criminal, a man who has no moral or social conscience, empathy, or remorse. He has no respect for the Constitution and laws he will swear to uphold, and on top of all that, he exhibits emotional and cognitive deficiencies that seem to be intensifying, and that will only make his turpitude worse. He represents everything we should aspire not to be, and everything we should teach our children not to emulate. The only hope is that he’s utterly incompetent, and even that is a double-edged sword, because his incompetence often can do as much as harm as his malevolence. His government will be filled with corrupt grifters, spiteful maniacs, and morally bankrupt sycophants, who will follow in his example and carry his directives out, because that’s who they are and want to be.

I say all of this not in anger, but in deep and profound sorrow. For centuries, the United States has been a beacon of democracy and reasoned self-government, in part because the Framers understood the dangers of demagogues and saw fit to construct a system with safeguards to keep such men from undermining it, and because our people and their leaders, out of respect for the common good and the people of this country, adhered to its rules and norms. The system was never perfect, but it inched toward its own betterment, albeit in fits and starts. But in the end, the system the Framers set up—and indeed, all constitutional regimes, however well designed—cannot protect a free people from themselves.

My own hope and belief about what would transpire last night was sadly and profoundly wrong—like many, I have the emotional and intellectual flaw, if that’s what it is, of assuming that people are wiser and more decent than they actually turn out to be. I feel chastened—distraught—about my apparently naive view of human nature.

I dare not predict the future again, particularly as it comes to elections and other forms of mass behavior. But I daresay I fear we shall see a profound degradation in the ability of this nation to govern itself rationally and fairly, with freedom and political equality under the rule of law. Because that is not actually a prediction. It’s a logical deduction based on the words and deeds of the president-elect, his enablers, and his supporters—and a long and often sorry record of human history. Let us brace ourselves.

[justinspoliticalcorner]

Mark Sumner at Daily Kos:

Former South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley announced on Tuesday that she is releasing the delegates she earned in the Republican primaries and asking them to vote for Donald Trump. This will not alter the outcome; Trump secured enough delegates to ensure his nomination months ago. But now he may be spared the distasteful distraction of hearing someone else’s name entered into nomination during his coronation next week in Milwaukee.  For Haley, this is the final step down a descending staircase of self-abasement and humiliation.  The move comes just over a month after Haley endorsed the man she had called “unstable and unhinged.” Which came after she suspended her campaign while refusing to endorse Trump.  Which came after she lost her home state but vowed she was staying in the race. Which came after Trump threatened to blacklist Haley donors and supporters. 

Now Haley’s voters, who continued to cling to her name as a symbol of their dislike for Trump even after Haley officially suspended her campaign, are finding that Haley’s tough talk about Trump has vanished. They’re getting confirmation that being a Republican in 2024 means supporting Trump. And nothing else. For months during the campaign, Haley repeatedly signaled to her voters that she was never going to get behind Trump’s run to return to the White House. In February, she declared that Trump was a “bully” who was “getting meaner and more offensive by the day.” Haley may have offered a series of proposals on foreign policy and her own plan for the economy, but most of those who voted for her simply did not care about any of that. As The Atlantic wrote in May, they voted for Haley, and continued to vote for her long after her candidacy was no longer viable, for a simple reason: “as a way to stop Donald Trump.”

[...] Haley may have talked a big game. She may have presented an almost ideal image of an anti-Trump candidate, offering traditional Republicans and Never-Trumpers the idea that the Republican Party could continue as the Republican Party, rather than as a vehicle for the worship of a single man and his maniacal campaign of vengeance and destruction. But that image proved to be as substantial as the rainbow on an oily puddle. On Tuesday, Haley stood up to that “bully,” to the “mean” and “offensive” and “unstable” and “unhinged” man who had threatened both her and her supporters, and gave her last abject surrender. 

What a debased and cowardly move by Nikki Haley to release all of her delegates to Donald Trump at the RNC.

This is a far cry from the primary cycle, especially from January 2024 onwards, in which Haley brutally laid into Trump.

[blowflyfag]

WRESTLING ALL STARS: Heroes and Villains : JUNE 1996

VIEW FROM RINGSIDE

By George Napolitano 

[The Bodyguard for Hire and his snake share a moment with their #1 fan: Tekla Benson.]

We would like to welcome everyone to another edition of WRESTLING ALL STARS. Since our last issue there have been quite a few changes in the wrestling world. For starters on January 22 in Fresno, CA, during the WWF Royal Rumble, the bizarre Goldust defeated Razor Ramon to win the WWF Intercontinental title. The following day in Las Vegas, Nevada, during a live Nitro Tv broadcast, Macho Man Randy Savage defeated Ric Flair to regain the WCW heavyweight title. Also on the card, Lex Luger and Sting defeated Harlem Heat to win the WCW tag team title. 

On January 27 in Philadelphia, PA, the Sandman’s reign in ECW came to a screeching halt when he was defeated by the mysterious Raven. Needless to say, Raven had plenty of help as the “new”  Fabulous Ones (Stevie Richards and the Blue Meanie) as well as Raven’s new squeeze were at ringside to lend their support. In the Sandman's corner was his manager. Woman. After the title loss, Woman took the microphone and asked the Sandman to join her in WCW. The Sandman looked around and hesitated for a moment. Then Too Cold Scorpio joined him in the ring. Now Woman offered to take the both of them to WCW just when it looked like they were going to accept her offer, they flatly refused and said they were never going to leave ECW. 

[Woman looks to be headed for WCW. Will she take any of her ECW talent with her?]

[Woman was in Sandman’s corner when he lost the ECW belt to Raven. Are their days together over?]

[Woman asked this man, Too-Cold Scorpio, if he wanted to come with her to WCW. Been there, done that, Scorpio replied, declining.]

In Las Vegas, at the WCW Clash of the Champions, Hulk Hogan and the Macho Man had two special guests at Ringside during their tag team battle against Ric Flair and the Giant. One was Kevin Green from the AFC Champion Pittsburgh Steelers, and the other was the former manager of the “Mega-Maniacs,” the lovely Miss Elizabeth. With Savage’s ego as big as it is you can bet that soon he will get jealous that his ex-wife, the lovely Elizabeth, is spending so much time with Hogan.

[Diesel and Lawrence Taylor at last year’s Wrestlemania press conference. It hardly feels a year has passed since LT made his spectacular WWF debut against Bam Bam Bigelow.]

The following week in Canton, OH after a Monday Night Nitro match between Ric Flair and the Hulkster, it certainly looked as if the Macho Man’s jealous rage was starting to burn! While Flair and Hogan battled toe to toe inside the ring, Jimmy Hart ran over to the other side and attacked Elizabeth. As soon as Hart grabbed Elizabeth, Arn Anderson immediately tossed his shoe into the ring toward Flair. 

Grabbing the show by the heels, Flair pounded right into Hulk Hogan’s eye! Flair then rolled Hogan over and pinned him in center ring! After the verdict was rendered, a bloodied Hogan rolled out of the ring and fell straight to the floor bleeding profusely from his eye. Elizabeth immediately ran over to try and comfort him, but as soon as she did the Macho Man pushed her away. Elizabeth didn’t know what to do, but she continued to kneel next to the fallen Hulkster. Finally Savage helped Hogan up and led him to the dressing room. Do you think that the Macho Man was jealous that Elizabeth was there to help the Hulk? 

Oooh..Yeah!

As far as the tag team title is concerned, you know that eventually Sting and Luger will have a major falling out. Luger is still very much a part of the Dungeon of Doom, while his partner, Sting, hates everyone else in that infamous group. It’s only a matter of time before their team is blown to smithereens!

[The Stinger is one-half of the WCW tag team champs, with Lex Luger. But Sting and Lex have not been seeing eye to eye as of late. How much longer can they work together as a team?]

While we are on the subject of tg teams, we must acknowledge that the awesome Road Warriors have reunited after a three-year layoff. Before Animal’s back injury caused the team to dissolve, the Legion of Doom (as they were then known) were the premier tag team in their sport. Now that they are back, the Road Warriors are determined to regain their rightful place at the top of the tag team empire. 

Razor Ramon is livid! Ramon can’t believe that he lost the Intercontinental belt to Goldust. Although Goldust had expert coaching from the sidelines from his “Director” Marlene, it was Goldust who applied the finishing touches inside the ring. NOW that Goldust has the gold Intercontinental belt strapped securely around his waist, it’s not going to be easy prying it off of him.

By winning the Royal Rumble for the second year in a row, Shawn Michaels earned the right to face the WWF champion at Wrestlemania XII in Anaheim, CA.

[Here’s a pair of partners who aren't getting along: “Macho Man” Randy Savage and Hulk Hogan.]

At the WWF Royal Rumble, the awesome Vader really made his presence felt in a very big way, but that pales in comparison to what he did the following night on Raw. After easily finishing off his opponent, Vader continued to apply his deadly Vader Bomb from the top rope. After witnessing several Vader bombs in paid succession, interim acting president Gorilla Monsoon came to ringside to try to stop the unstoppable Vader. After failing in his attempt to stop Vader, Monsoon grabbed the microphone and said that Vader was indefinitely suspended for his actions. Hearing this, Vader flew into a rage and immediately attacked the President. Sonn Monsoon found himself on the receiving end of several Vader Bombs. Eventually Razor Ramon and Shawn Michaels ran into the ring to try and stop Vader, but by the time help arrived the damage had already been done. Within minutes Monsoon was taken by ambulance to a local hospital to have his injuries treated. With Monsoon out of commission the WWF has named “Rowdy” Roddy Piper as its new president!

[Eddy Guererro has made a smooth transition between ECW and WCW. He still maintains a lot of his AAA (Mexican) style, however.]

Former ECW champion Shane Douglas is back after a short and unsuccessful stint in the WWF. While in the WWF Douglas called himself “Dean'' Douglas and critiqued the other wrestlers’ performances in the ring. Although Douglas talked a good game, he just couldn’t produce in the WWF. Whether he will regain the form that made him a star in the WCW still remains to be seen. 

Henry Godwinn has brought his cousin Phinneas T. Godwinn to the WWF, and they are being managed by the original country boy, Hillbilly Jim. When Hillbilly Jim was going strong he had several family members with him yoo. Hillbilly’s family consisted of his Uncle Elmer, Cousin Junior and Cousin Luke. Old time fans will recall that Uncle Elmer was even married in center ring at the Meadowlands Arena in New Jersey. But that wasn’t the first WWF wedding. That distinction goes to Butcher Vachon who got hitched on a Saturday Night Live segment during the glory days of WWF. The other WWF wedding was the marriage of Macho Man Randy Savage and his lovely valet, Miss Elizabeth, at SummerSlam in Madison Square Garden. Today, as we know, these two are back together again, but they are no longer married–as their marriage ended in a bitter divorce. 

[Bret Hart with belt. Will the Heartbreak Kid be his Wrestlemania opponent?]There has been quite a bit of talk in the wrestling world about the controversial “Billionaire Ted” skits with the “Huckster,” “The Nacho Man” and “Scam Gene” which have been appearing on the WWF telecasts. The skits poke fun at WCW Head Ted Turner and ex-WWF stars Hulk Hogan, Macho Man Savage, and Gene Okerlund. Actually the skits are very funny, but unfortunately WCW doesn’t think so. Now WCW has threatened the WWF with legal action if they continue  to air the “Billionaire Ted” skits. The war between WCW and the WWF has really heated up, and it’s obvious that the war is only going to intensify in nature in the next couple of months. That’s all for now. See you at ringside!

[flaylore]

MACHIROON APPRECIATION DAY

"If our world is fake and your world is real what actually is the truth? What is a lie? Are you able to answer that for me? You’re not. Then let me ask you this, do you choose reality or a falsehood, or rather a truth or a lie?"

Machiroon Appreciation Day and New Outfit stream, released on January 20th 2023, is Flayon's 2nd outfit debut. Flayon also dedicated this stream to show his appreciation to Machiroons. It is the 7th stream that shows a more in-depth look into the hidden dynamic between the two people fighting control over his body.

Summary:

Before the intro screen cuts away, there’s a short glitch that happens before cutting to the guild hall

Flayon appears on a  blue projection explaining what’ll happen during the stream

The reason for the new outfit is because the Elysium government says Flayon needs to go on a sort of vacation due to his energy output for the R-TRUS getting “out of control” (5:14)

More importantly, Flayon doesn't know why

The Elysium government told him to find ways to express himself, so he dug up an old outfit

Had some gifts delivered from his family to his guild room (6:03)

Another short glitch happens before cutting to Flayon’s guild room (supposedly, see 6:39), a photo portrait lying on the ground near his bed

Soft grunting can be heard, followed by more short glitches once Flayon’s projection appears on at the top right corner (7:14)

Following this is a sudden change in music, followed by more glitching

Upon picking up the portrait shows a younger version of Flayon from his childhood, looking notably different

His eyes are a blank, tinted shade of pink. His expression looks blank and emotionless

Flayon begins to hyperventilate, grunting and shouting in pain as the glitching worsens. He begins to repeat frantically:

“Stop..! I’m Flayon.. I’m Flayon—! I’M FLAYON!!” (8:35)

The background changes (looks like a forest, maybe somewhere abandoned..?), a glitchy figure of Flayon appearing in front asking where he is and that it’s cold

He asks who he is, soon disregarding the previous statement saying “it doesn’t matter”. After all, it/he can’t be explained (10:09)

The screen glitches again, a very faint image appearing once it disappears. Looks like a younger version Flayon again, this time with bright, blank, red eyes and a small smile (10:25)

The figure begins shouting “I hate you!” repeatedly in a fit of rage before the screen flickers again

Another image of younger Flayon appears, his eyes and smile more lifelike than the previous two

The figure starts laughing, soon asking “why me?” and that this “isn’t what he wanted”. He begins to apologize, asking someone to “forgive him already” (11:08)

Frantic apologies continue, now asking to stop hitting him as he was “doing it for you”

A question pops up on the screen: “Who Am I?”, followed by two choices: “Machina” or “Flayon”; the poll eventually ends with “Flayon” winning

While the chat answers the figure continues to talk frantically, asking to help him and saying it isn’t fair how “you get to enjoy it”

A second question appears: “Did I do something wrong?” the choices are “Yes” or “No” respectively; “No” wins

💬: “He didn’t do anything wrong” [laughter] “Liar. You’re a liar. You don’t know what he did. He took away everything from me.”

The figure gets upset and accuses us of lying, the screen glitches longer than usual. When it ends, the background switches to the inside of a subway train as Flayon’s outfit slowly reveals itself (16:19)

“The corruption. It’s… It’s… right. That’s who I am, no one else. There’s no one. There’s no other man.” (16:55)

Third question: “Is it wrong to hurt yourself?” the choices are as followed: “Yes” and “Yes?”; the poll ends with “Yes” winning, though suddenly changed to “NO”

The figure begins to laugh maniacally, repeating it’s not wrong

“Why did it have to be you? You piss me off. …help me.” (19:15) “It doesn’t matter. And then no one would miss you. No one missed me, anyways. Nobody can even tell the difference. If people can’t tell you’re different, do they even care? All people care about are themselves, right?” (20:17)

Fourth question: “Do you love me?” the choices are: “. . .” and “No”; the poll ending with “No” winning

“Of course you don’t. You don’t even know me. You’re so quick to replace me… that’s all you care about.”

Figure recalls that he was getting ready for the guild, saying “he” doesn’t appreciate his friends

A final question: “Who am I?” the choices are: “X” or “Neither”; the poll ends with “X” winning

The glitching ends, revealing Flayon (?)

“That’s it… I’m Flayon, no one else.” (28:40)

The lighting darkens, revealing his swirly eyes

“I think… you’ve been here long enough. You can clear the corruption as much as you want. This is my body, okay? So go. Away. Stick to your little league friends in the guild, and they’ll care of you.” (29:15)

Laughter ensues, followed by more glitching until we’ve returned to the inside of the R-TRUS, Flayon in his new outfit appearing in front of us

Explains his outfit is from when he attended “a school for geniuses”, claiming he always had it (33:12)

SOMETHING OF NOTE. Flayon says “I guess I wasn’t the best…” before the screen glitches slightly, with him correcting himself and saying “No, I was! I was a very good student; a genius.” 

“Well, nobody really paid attention to me, so… But that’s what happens when you don’t make good grades, right?” (33:34)

His outfit came from the Elite Elysium Academy

SOMETHING OF NOTE: the screen glitches but for a small moment you can see Flayon’s eyes switch to swirly eyes at 43:03. You can properly see them if you pause correctly at 43:04, but i’ll link the image HERE.

“After all, they’re my clothes.”

The screen glitches when he says this, swirly eyes clearer to see and present for a moment before Flayon switches back to normal (44:06)

Talking about his haircut…

“It reminds me of when I was young, I think. But, I can’t exactly remember what—” (46:24)

Nothing else of note besides the new ending screen… you can see Flayon and a Machiroon walking through a snowy forest of some kind with X somewhat transparent in the background

However, some distorted audio in the background can be heard at 1:06:1

[vanillagalaxiez]

Fandom: Pit Babe

Name: A Trusting Fool

Pairing: Winner/Kim

Tags: Hurt/Comfort | Developing Feelings

Date: 22nd January 2024

Blurb: After Kim gets locked up by Tony’s men, Winner shows up in the room Kim is kept in to mock him. However, something changes, and to Kim's surprise, instead of the mock laughter he expects, Winner takes him away and promises to take care of him instead.

❤️

A part of Kim regretted coming to confront Tony, the man who seemed hellbent on wanting Babe for some reason, the man who trafficked children on the black market—and the man who would undoubtedly slit his throat and sell his organs in the foreseeing future. Yet he believed he did the right thing, in a foolish way; nonetheless, his heart was set in the right place. 

Kim sighed. What a pathetic display he so happened to be. 

As the icy concrete floor seeped into his back, he opened his eyes for the first time since Tony’s men gave him a beating, and this time a pitiful whine left his split lips. He was going to die there, in a foreign country—they would probably throw what was left of him in the sewer when they were done. Kim wasn’t a crier; he never had been, and yet he couldn’t stop the tears from welling into his eyes and down his face. 

Soon, a piping ache squeezed Kim’s stomach from where the men had punched and kicked him, and he whined again, instinctively reaching to wrap his arms over himself. However, it was then that the realization washed over him that his arms were tied tightly by ropes behind his back. His ankles were also tied so tight that he couldn’t move, not that he would; the pain was unbearable. His eyes barely opened, and when he opened his mouth to shout for help (which might be a stupid thing to do), his jaw silently screamed—he could barely speak. He couldn’t breathe, either, and every part of his body ached in ways indescribable and unimaginable, in ways he had never experienced before. 

When the door to this holding cell, which Kim supposed was what it was, opened with a loud bang and heavy footsteps entered, his body subconsciously closed in on itself, and goosebumps swept across him from head to toe, and it wasn’t because he felt cold—quite the opposite.

He knew what was coming.

Tony’s men were there to kill him. Would he scream and beg for mercy? He never thought of himself as a coward, and yet, there he was, with eyes tightly shut, contemplating ways he could barter his way out of this messed up situation he was in. It might’ve had something to do with what happened earlier, he supposed. After one of Tony's men had put a knife to his neck this morning, the touch of the cold metal still clung to his skin, so, like a weeping coward, he was afraid of it slicing through his neck.

“Well, well, well, look who we have here.”

That voice—Kim knew that voice—he despised it with every core of his being. 

It was Winner. What was he doing there? Was he there to help him? They might not tolerate each other; they were still teammates, though. Did Winner come looking for him?

With great difficulty, Kim opened his eyes with relief, only to stare up at Winner, who hovered above him like a creeping maniac—with laughing eyes and a mocking smile.

Something seemed wrong, Kim believed. Winner did not seem the least bit concerned about his predicament; he seemed rather joyful, like he was enjoying the beaten-up state Kim was in, the bruised face and sprained ankle, his torn clothes, and his exposed weaknesses. 

He watched with cautious eyes as Winner approached before stooping down next to him; that menacing look on his face never faltered.

“Look at you,” Winner said, gently brushing the sweat-soaked fringe from Kim’s forehead before he slapped him across the face before gripping his throat, causing a shocked gasp to leave Kim's mouth. Winner did not squeeze; the threat of him crushing Kim's windpipe still lingered, though. Winner added, “Not so tough now, are you? Where did all that mouth go?" And then he burst into a fit of laughter. “I can’t wait to watch them cut your throat. Maybe I should do it myself.”

So Winner was also working with Tony? It figured— a man like him was a selfish bastard after all . 

Kim stared hard at him, a deep frown on his pained face and hurt in his eyes. He wanted to fight—scream, put his fist down Winner’s throat. And he would’ve done just that, too. However, when another sudden pain clung to his stomach, his eyes spilled tears, and his mouth opened, and a pitiful whine escaped it—something soft and helpless, something strange even to his own ears—like a wounded puppy, perhaps. 

Winner's eyebrows furrowed into a curious frown, and Kim thought that maybe he—

Suddenly, Winner let go of his throat, only to grip Kim by the jaw in a tight squeeze and grit, “You think I will feel sorry for you?” 

Kim didn’t know what Winner was talking about. He was in pain, bleeding, wounded, thirsty, and hungry—he didn’t give a shit what Winner thought. For all he knew, the bastard was there to make cheap jokes out of him. 

“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” he answered with a distressed gasp when Winner's fingers sank into his cheeks. "You had your laugh. Just… Just go away.”

“I told you not to meddle with affairs that don’t involve you,” Winner said, and he said it so quietly, it was like he was talking to himself. Then he looked at Kim with mean and angry eyes and added, “You deserve this, you know that? You should’ve gone back to Korea when I told you to.”

Kim let out another pained whine when he attempted to move away from Winner. He didn’t need this—he didn’t need to be told he was a fool for wanting to do good, and he certainly didn’t need to see Winner laugh at him, mock him, torment him with words, and possibly with other things when the time came. He couldn’t move, though, so he let out a frustrated sound that ended up being a whimper.

A moment later, when Kim realized it was pointless to move away or do anything, his shoulders slumped in defeat, and he asked through tears and a choked-back sob. “Why do you hate me so much?”

Because why did Winner hate him? He never got an answer, not that he ever asked, either. 

Winner seemed taken aback by this question, yet he answered, “I don’t hate you; I just don’t like you.”

What a childish thing to say. If Kim had functional eyes, he would’ve rolled them so far back that they might permanently disappear at the back of his head. He also found it funny, though. 

“Why did you come here?” Winner suddenly asked, more serious than before.

“I want to confront Tony,” Kim answered with a tremble in his voice. “I saw what he did to Babe... I don’t. I wanted to do something.”

“You’re a fool.”

Kim didn’t want to admit it, but Winner was right: He was a bloody fool. 

“I know.”

A moment passed by, perhaps three minutes or four, and Kim’s eyes went shut once more. Despite this, he felt Winner’s gaze on him. He had expected Winner would probably hit him, maybe a stomp or two—definitely more insults. However, when he got closer and Kim’s body stiffened, preparing for a damning beating, what happened next was something other than what he had expected—something strange. With careful consideration, Winner’s arms were on him, and he hoisted Kim up like he weighed nothing in a bridal style, and he whispered, “I will take care of you... Everything will be fine. You just need to behave and not cause me any trouble.”

Kim groaned deeply the second he left the floor and went into Winner’s arms, where he unknowingly allowed his body to curl into the other man’s embrace, pressing against his chest. “What are you talking about?” He asked in a whispered tone. He knew that he appeared fragile and helpless, like something that needed protecting, and he wondered, Why wasn’t Winner taunting him? 

Winner said nothing; however, when they arrived by the open door, he stopped and looked down at Kim for a minute—into his eyes like they were lovers—and said, “I won’t let anyone hurt you, Kim.”

When Winner started walking again—out the door and down the hallway—Kim couldn’t stop himself from staring at the other man’s face the whole time, and gradually, his eyes softened because, strangely enough, he believed Winner’s words; he believed the man wouldn’t let anyone hurt him. What a fool he was to put his trust in a man who disliked him from the very beginning, because, obviously, Winner was lying. 

Kim felt his eyes grow weary, so he closed them. 

It seemed that Winner was right; Kim was a fool—the biggest of fools. 

[historyhermann]

Supa Team 4 Season 2 Spoiler-Filled Review

Supa Team 4 is a computer-generated superhero action-comedy series. Malenga Mulendema is the series creator and co-executive producer. Trigger Fish Animation Studios, known for the recent animated series Kiya and the Kimoja Heroes, and Kizazi Moto: Generation Fire, and various television specials and films. The first season was released in July 2023.

Reprinted from Pop Culture Maniacs and Wayback Machine. This was the sixty-second article I wrote for Pop Culture Maniacs. This post was originally published on January 14, 2024.

The second season picks up where the first one left off. The four protagonists (Temwe Chiti, Komana Mwinga, Zikomo "Zee" Phiri, and Monde Wamunyima) are trapped in an abandoned mine. They are confronted by Bad Magz (voiced by John McMillian) and fellow villain Prof. Greenthumbs (voiced by Abena Ayivor), with the former angry they keep ruining his plans. Mama K (voiced by Pamela Nomvete) can't get in touch with Team 4 and thinks the Principal Nkwashi (voiced by voiced by Abubakar Salim) is up to something, until he admits he only wants to help Temwe (voiced by Kimani Arthur). The heroes use makeshift weapons and detain Prof. Greenthumbs. Mama K helps them escape, but not before Bad Magz photographs the van. Later, his assistant Ms. Prudent confirms that Zambinite was there. He is intrigued by the ring on Mama K's hand. And that's only the first episode!

The kidnapping of the four protagonists impacts all of them. It may have heightened Temwe's jealously toward Zee (voiced by Nancy Sekhokoane). The latter results in them "switching places," so they can recognize each other's struggles. There is no doubt that the kidnapping deeply impacted Komana (voiced by Zowa Ngwira). Later, she is comforted by Monde (voiced by Namisa Mdlalose). More directly, photographic analysis causes Bad Magz to track down Chi (voiced by Chi Mhende), a blind man who is Mama K's comrade, and snatch a computer, blueprints, and disc, even as he lets Chi flee. Also, this episode shows Temwe and Zee sympathizing with each other's struggles. That's something you don't always see in TV series.

Bad Magz is one of the most devious villains. His public form, Lee Magadzee, is outwardly an African nationalist who wants to return power to "the people." Later, he flirts with Monde's sister, Likando (voiced by Chipo Chung), who holds him to his promise to end load shedding. Putting aside his somewhat developed hacking skills, he can be harsh toward his subordinates. For instance, Alley Gator (voiced by Yinka Awoni), finds the Zambinite for him. However, Alley Gator wants to be with Prof. Greenthumbs instead.

The actions of Team 4, in Supa Team 4, are reactive. They resembling the Pretty Cure in the franchise of the same name. Team 4 fight villains, save people from sinkholes (called by Ally Gator), and promise to support one another. They don't face the one behind everything. Bad Magz is not a villain equivalent of Bell in Power of Hope: PreCure Full Bloom, a mysterious guardian angel who traveled back in time to prevent a town from being destroyed by humanity. The consequences of his actions matter little to him. He agrees to freeze Zambinite because it is combustible. This mineral gives off a bad smell before energy is extracted. He ignores Pro. Greenthumbs before she points out the hazardous and toxic waste byproduct.

Bad Magz's harsh managerial techniques bleed over into his feelings for others. In the fifth episode, he plans to go on a date with Komana's sister, Likando, which the girls of Team 4 are happy for. But he stands her up! This makes her suspicious of him (she only knows him in his public persona of Lee), and his secrets, and mysteries. She even points out that secrets, like those of powerful people, always get out. This causes Komana to investigate and discover that Storm Drain (voiced by Ashley Zhangazha) is freezing the Zambinite.

Komana is the first one, of Team 4, to be openly suspicious of Bad Magz's public persona. Monde refuses to believe her. Likando's love of Lee causes her to assist him, throwing her logic out the window. This directly parallels Click. He is unhealthily obsessed with Temwe after the third episode. Clearly, the lesson is that obsession with other people can cause you to lose sight of what is important. Later in Supa Team 4, this all comes to a head, for Bad Magz, Komana, and Team 4.

Bad Magz sees everyone as toys to be manipulated. He says gaining control of the Mayor will be "automatic" with Likando's trust. In his public persona of Lee, he promotes "Magz Power" as the "solution" to the power cuts in Lusaka. He claims it will end load shedding and blackouts. He challenges his scholarship recipients to sign up, as many people as possible, for his Magz Power system, saying those who bring back the most signatures get an internship at his corporation. This too-good-to-be-true presentation makes Komana a willing pawn in his scheme. She is unaware that this power source has toxic waste as a byproduct (conveniently not mentioned by Lee). She sees the internship as a way to advance her own career.

The sixth episode is one of the best in Supa Team 4. There's a parallel between Komana's dad suffering from asthma and Lee turning on his "alternate energy source" which fills Lusaka with light. In one case, he is suffering from a chronic health condition. In the latter, Lee is hiding the truth behind an action which casts him as a "savior." Whether he is directly aware of it or not, he is responsible for Alley Gator dumping toxic waste, from Zambinite processing. Written by Gloria Huweiler, and directed by Valentina Ventimiglia, this episode is outwardly cynical of demagogues. While people in the crowd chant "power to the people," Bad Magz thinks of ways to gain more power for himself. Undoubtedly, he is worse than Huey Long.

The final two episodes raise the stakes. In the first of these episodes, Komana abandons Team 4 so she can work for Lee, distressing her teammates. The remaining heroes put together the pieces. Without a doubt, they are worried about the people of Lusaka. People are coughing, scratching themselves, have rashes, and inflammation in eyes. As a result, everyone is leaving because they are sick, in what looks to be a commentary on COVID-19. This is more direct than the "missing" episode of Cleopatra in Space, entitled "Quarantine".

In episode seven, Komana wants to warn Lee about toxic waste from the Zambinite. She is shocked out of her role as a willing pawn. She learns that he lied about his past. As a result, she comes to the conclusion he is behind everything. This happens at the same time as Mama K. She sees Bad Magz in front of her before he kidnaps her. In a parallel development, the girls decide to bust into his corporation. Likando agrees to give the contract (which gives Lee full rights to the city's electric grid) to Lee personally.

In the final episode, the girls fight against Prof. Greenthumbs (and her monster). Mama K and Chi are in Lee's office. Mama K calls him a "monster" and "worse than a villain." The truth is finally revealed. His mother was in the Intelligence Agency of Zambia. His real name is Limbani. He claims that Mama K "made him" who is is today. Elsehwere, Monde reveals her hero identity for the first time to someone other than her fellow teammates: to her sister Likando. Both agree to talk about her hero identity later.

He is confronted by Team 4. They demand he turn off his power source, saying it is hurting city residents. Instead of listening to Team 4, he ignores them and continues his own agenda. He blames Mama K for causing the memory of his mother, Towela, to be erased. Following this, he places the device on Mama K's head, allowing him to access her memories. While they are horrified, Team 4 can do nothing. It is only when the memory showing Towela was mind-wiped by Chusi that he realizes his mistake. He uses the same device to restore his mom's memories. She recognizes Chi and Mama K and tearfully embraces Lee. Following this touching scene, Likando rightly punches Lee (for being a lying jerk). She has the police arrest him.

Of course, this is not the end. In a strange juxtaposition, Prof. Greenthumbs' ZambiMonster causes a cave-in, and captures Komana. I found it awkward to have this after an emotional moment which could bring you to tears. In any case, Lee shows that he is not fully a villain. To the chagrin of Prof. Greenthumbs, he saves Komana (he recognizes her voice) after Greenthumbs' monster explodes. He frames his next steps as an attempt to amend his past wrongs. He says he will do whatever he can to fix things. In a coded manner, he hopes that Komana's spirits aren't dampened. However, no one believes his declaration at face value.

In many ways, Lee's declaration is one of restorative justice. Traditional / retributive justice systems are clearly stated throughout this series. They are symbolized by police arresting villains and keeping them behind bars. Surely, there are laws that have been broken, villains who broke the laws, and methods for punishment of said lawbreakers. Lee is attempting to repair the harm caused. He knows who has been harmed and how he can repair or address those harms. In response to one of the key questions of restorative justice ("who should address or repair the harms?"), that person is clearly Lee.

Lee will likely face criminal punishment for what he did and may face his victims. He is on the road to understanding the impact of his actions on other people, taking responsibility for his actions, comprehending how he harmed people, and behaving with basic respect for others. It would allow him to become a better person. This would make Supa Team 4 one of the few series which depicts restorative justice principles, apart from Steven Universe.

The episode ends with her teammates showing their camaraderie for each other. They comfort Komana. Everyone supposedly has a "happily ever after." The villains are locked up. The corrupt mayor is arrested. Likando runs to become the next mayor of Lusaka on an anti-corruption agenda. Komana's device makes the city's energy clean, and green. It runs on Zambinite but does not produce toxic waste. The episode closes with all of them meet at headquarters where they welcome Komana back. Mama K boldly says everyone is worthy of redemption (not sure this is entirely true). Chi says that Lee is trying to right his wrongs.

I also liked that in this series, characters such as Marjory (voiced by Celine Tshika) appear to be on the road to villains. She blames everyone for ruining her party (including Team 4), and causing well-known performers, like Click, to depart. The fourth episode emphasizes this. She said she disliked Team 4, even though they saved her, and harshly commanded the majorette team. Everyone else on the team picked Monde as captain instead. This left Marjory, under a lot of pressure from Principal Nkwashi, behind.

Although Monde comes up with a new routine, she tells her fellow teammates that even though Marjory bullies them, it isn't right to bully her back. The episode ends with Monde and Marjory, having a heart-to-heart about working together as a team, and they use this to take down the hypnotizing rapper, Snap Back (voiced by Sne Dladla) and saving them all. Marjory later apologizes to Team 4.

There is the possibility of a third season. In a final scene of the episode, Chusi says he is back, after 20 years. He declares he wants Lusaka to burn. He fades away, into the smoke. It is a bit of a cliffhanger, akin to the scene with the Triumverate in High Guardian Spice, a series which should receive a second season. A second season may focus on fighting with Chusi and Lee's attempts to rebuild the city from the damage he caused. Perhaps it could resemble the aftermath-of-victory concept that is present in Steven Universe Future, where the protagonists have no villains to fight, but are trying to make the world (and universe) better.

Although I liked this series, my enthusiasm was severely dampened, as compared to season one. It came at a bad time. Other anime series such as I'm in Love with the Villainess (ended on December 19), Kizuna no Allele (ended on December 21), Spy x Family (ended December 23), Stardust Telepath (ended on December 25), and The Vexations of a Shut-In Vampire Princess (ended on December 30), were ending. This series seemed too compressed. It should have been longer.

I wish 1-2 episodes were released weekly rather than a huge episode dump on December 21. This method makes clear that Netflix cares little about the creators, fans, or anyone else who worked on Supa Team 4. Furthermore, the binge model itself is a detriment to creativity itself. It encourages crunch conditions to complete series. If two episodes had been released a week, Supa Team 4 could have finished by January 11. If one episode had released a week, it could have finished by February 8. That would have been preferable.

Supa Team 4 can be streamed on Netflix.

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