#this specific segment is so special to me

[ratatatastic]

"I gotta have you talk about Barkov a little bit... 'cuz, you know, he's your Captain but like... What should we know that we don't know about this guy? He's so quiet, he keeps a low profile—I'm sure that's by design—but he's the quietest, incredible superstar that...When Chris Pronger was working there (VP of Hockey OPs/Senior Advisor from 2017-2020), I remember he used to say to me, 'Hey, this guy is a Top 5 player in the game.' Even when nobody was even putting him in the Top 10 at that time, you know? But what makes him so great? What do you know about him now that you thought you knew before you got there?" "You know, well, everything—because I'm with you! I knew he was in the league, I knew he was a great player but playing on the other side—I'd see him play twice a year and I wouldn't watch that much and I had no appreciation for how good he was. But the answer—I'm gonna give you an answer about Barkov and it's not gonna be good enough... 'cuz I can't answer that question about him yet, I still haven't gotten to figure it out. I don't know to do it justice but he's this extreme perfect blend of absolutely no ego and an incredible drive to be better at the same time. So usually the guys that are really driven have a bit of an ego. Ego's not bad always, right? Maybe I'm using the wrong word to describe it but he will put his teammates and his—everything—first, and it won't bother him one bit! That's exactly the way he wants it! He doesn't want to be the first guy out, he doesn't want to—it's not that he doesn't want to do interviews because of the media! Talk to this guy! You walk in our room—you don't know hockey and you don't know names—you can't tell if he's the 1st forward or the 13th forward by the way he treats people. That's absolutely the truth! And the reason he's not appreciated as much as a player is: I have never, ever once seen him even remotely cheat to the offensive side of the game to score a point. He just won't do it. That doesn't mean he's sitting back defensively! He doesn't give a rat's ass about his point totals, he just wants to win. So he's never gonna put the numbers up that he could. If Barky decided he was gonna generate points—if somebody'd convince him, 'Hey, Barky! If you just cheat the game and score—we'd got a better chance of winning!' I don't know, [he'd put up] 120, 130 points? Like he is brilliant but he will never, ever put the game—you know, what? He wouldn't put himself in front of the game. The game demands certain things and you can't get past that no matter how good you are. There are certain things you got to do in this game and usually those are hard things... he'd never once put himself in front of the game." "You can't score 120 or 130 without cheating a little bit, right? It's just a real—" "Yeah, except those guys don't call it cheating! They call it anticipating. Bad players cheat, good players anticipate." "They see things before they happen, Paul! That's what happens!" "Exactly, exactly!"

The Cam & Strick Podcast | 9.24.24 (x)

[thoughtfulfiction]

Social Media QB

Author’s note: reposting my old work on this side blog! Let me know if you’d like to read a specific one. Thank you for reading!

The reputation of the Chargers social media team was unmatched. They are known for being funny and up to date on all memes and pop culture references while also showcasing players’ personalities. That alone made you apply and this past year on the job had really been a once in a lifetime experience. Working with Megan and the crew was a daily adventure and you were becoming more and more comfortable calling the guys your friends. It even got to a point where you didn’t even call them by their names anymore.

Quentin was usually just “Q.” JK was always “J’Kaylin”, Derwin was “3” and your favorite nickname was definitely calling Justin “Sunshine.” At first it was a Remember the Titans reference but it became a lifestyle. Everything and everyone revolves around the sun and that’s exactly what it felt like when you were at work. All of the players were important and special but you could just feel the energy in the room shift when Justin was there. It was palpable, it almost took your breath away sometimes.

Off camera he was goofy, funny and had this uncanny ability to make the world stand still for a bit, even just for a few fleeting moments where it felt like you two were the only ones in the room. But then reality would hit and you were reminded that you work for the team and he’d never see you in that way, he was just nice to everyone he encountered. But on camera? It was all fun and games. There was a running joke, mostly based on his real feelings, that Justin hated cameras. He couldn’t stand being the center of attention or having people perceive him so he avoided the social media team altogether when phones were pointed in his direction. 

But sometimes, a rarity, you were able to get him on camera, even if it was just for a split second. The two of you reviewed the questions he was going to be asked before their Hot Ones appearance and there was ALWAYS a discussion, more like subtle begging if you all were going to have him participate in any content.

“We need Justin for this new segment we’re doing, so you’re gonna have to talk to him.” Megan sighs, grabbing her Stanley cup that was sitting on the counter. She’d just finished editing a video where she and her assistant put fart spray on the tiny mic and could still smell the rancid scent until she grabbed some Lysol spray to de-funk the place.

You were going through photos taken during practice earlier that morning and deciding which ones to post and without looking up you asked her, “why do I have to do it?”

Lorren and Allie giggle in the corner, shaking their heads. “You cannot be serious right now y/n,” Lorren gives you a pointed look.

“What?”

“We all know you and Justin have a thing for each other. Even if you won’t admit to us…or yourself. It’s pretty obvious.”

You finally raise your head up from your laptop, staring at them while also wracking your brain trying to figure out when your innocent crush had become so painfully obvious. If the girls knew, then Justin had probably somehow caught on and the thought of that made you want to dig a hole right outside on the practice field and never come out. “Is—am I that easy to read?”

“No one blames you,” Megan runs a loving hand on your shoulder. “And I’m sure you’ve been trying so hard to hide your feelings that you haven’t noticed that he’s doing an even worse job of hiding his massive crush on you.”

The look on your face sends the room into a fit of laughter. “We’re being serious. The way he looks at you and acts around you. Anyone can see he’s into you friend.”

You weren’t convinced, “I need an example.”

“Okay fine,” Lorren stands up to prepare a demonstration. “He wasn’t ready to put the mics on when he was mic’d up until you walked over and helped him get the mic in the perfect spot in his pads. And then he wore the friendship bracelet for six weeks because you handed it to him.”

Allie pipes up to put in her two cents. “And let’s not forget when he had you driving him around the golf tournament and kicked Zion to the curb. There’s no way all of those are just a coincidence.”

“Fine. I’ll go ask him if he’ll shoot the video for us but I’m not going to lose my job because of a meaningless crush on the starting quarterback.”

You waited around for the guys to leave treatment after practice and caught up with him on his way out. “Hey Sunshine, quick question for you.”

His cheeks turn a light shade of pink and he gives you a small tight-lipped smile. “What’s up?”

“I need you to do me a huge favor and be in this tik tok. It’s a short game and it’ll only take like 15 minutes.”

His deadpan face and disappointed dad sigh has you practically begging, saying “please” in your finest sing-song tone.

“Fine, I’ll do it.” You knew he’d crack, he always did. “On one condition. You also have to participate.”

You hold your hand out and he engulfs it with his much larger one. “You’ve got yourself a deal Herbert.”

“Okay the rules of the game are simple,” Megan begins from behind her phone screen before hitting record, “we’re going to give you these Canadian snacks and you’ll rate them on a scale from 1 to 10. One being it’s awful I’ll never touch that again and 10 being a solid snack that you’d eat everyday if given the opportunity.”

You and Justin nod, diving in on everything from the ketchup chips to the toffee. The video didn’t take long as promised and the quarterback went about the rest of his day with no further distractions.

In your office a few days later on the team’s off day, you were contemplating your life. Maybe you should take a step back from him so people don't get the wrong idea. Sure, your coworkers were convinced the crush was mutual but what if he was just being nice? He was always so focused on football and making the most out of every opportunity. Why in the world would he waste time flirting with a social media manager? It just made no sense. Instead of continuing to run a million imaginary scenarios in your mind you packed up your stuff and tried heading out to the parking lot. Even after all this time you still struggled to maneuver all the twists and turns of the building and somehow found yourself walking past the quarterback room. You intended to just keep walking but he was in there alone and called out your name when he saw you.

“What are you doing here? I didn’t think anyone would be in the building today.” His bright eyes staring down at you made your heart feel like it was beating out of your chest. You desperately needed to get it together.

“I came in to finish up a few things but I’m heading out now. What are you doing? I think you’ve watched enough film to last you a couple lifetimes.” That gets a light chuckle out of him and he shakes his head, the two of you knowing that his quest for perfection would never allow him to believe he’s watched enough film. “Thank you for shooting that video the other day. The fans are gonna love it, they’re always begging us to get you on camera.”

“No problem, anything for you.” He clears his throat after whispering the last part, desperately hoping that you didn’t hear it. Even though you definitely did. You should go home for the day and leave him alone in the office so he can get back to work. You should stop staring at his lips that look so soft and just begging to be kissed. He should turn around and get back to the playbook and the computer but here he is, standing still, right in front of you.

You’re just there, waiting for someone to rip the carpet out from under you, to fall on your face, for someone to tell you that this isn’t actually happening. The space between your bodies diminishes significantly, so much so that you can smell the Dr. Squatch Birchwood Breeze radiating off of him. It’s intoxicating and you swallow the fear in your gut and ignore all of the common sense thoughts plaguing your mind, allowing you to feel.

The kiss is tentative at first, he pulls back slightly, whispering if it’s okay to keep going as you feel his breath against your lips. You don’t respond but instead pull him in closer, hearing a satisfied husky moan from him as he allows your tongue access to his. His right palm rests against your cheek until he’s tilting your head up ever so slightly to deepen the embrace and he pulls you in even closer, holding on for dear life while closing and locking the door behind you. It was so much more than he imagined, these feelings that he’d been pushing aside were being confronted and magnified by the second. This innocent crush that you had on him were genuine, real feelings that created a deep ache in your bones, actively being soothed with his hands all over you as the two of you made out like helpless teenagers.

You didn’t think you’d have the strength to tear yourself away from him…until his phone rings. He ignores it the first time but it’s all you can think about by the fifth ring.

“Answer it,” you whisper breathlessly and you can feel him hesitating to pry himself away from you. The heat that was radiating off of his body that you felt being so close to him sends shivers down your spine at the sudden distance. A thousand unspoken apologies are painted on his face as he pulls his phone out of his pocket. He keeps the call short and sweet but the look of devastation is clear when he hangs up. “You have to go don’t you?”

He nods. “I’m so sorry. We can—we need to talk about this I know. And I promise we will. I just—I need to take care of this.” He doesn’t want to leave, not like this. Even if he knows you understand. Justin presses a kiss to the side of your head and whispers another “I’m sorry” leaving you in the room to think about what just happened.

You walk around the empty parking lot until you reach your car, letting out a deep sigh at the thought of what the conversation with him is going to look like after this. You need to be mentally prepared for good news, bad news and everything in between.

He is the sun after all. And sometimes when you stand too close, you might get burned. And maybe, just maybe, you’d avoid the burn altogether and bask in the warmth as long as you can.

[sgiandubh]

No lies last forever, part 2: the (over)due confirmation

With the Happy Sad Confused Tenth Anniversary Live Special being made available online, I think all doubts have now been lifted about the entire Intergalactic Bullshit this fandom has been deliberately fed for years and years in a row, by a cheap, sad troll and his accomplice. Both imbeciles' determination being only matched by the cast's complete indifference to fandom drama and, as I already wrote (https://www.tumblr.com/sgiandubh/764711074507390976/no-lies-last-forever?source=share), ***'s incompetent, tone-deaf PR.

You can watch the entire recording here, by the way:

The part where S specifically addresses his (non-existent) 'friendship' with William Shatner has been explicitly planted by the end of Jack Quaid's dedicated segment. That it has been discussed and planned prior to the show is obvious. And this time, Josh Horowitz wasn't even subtle - he announced the topic way before it 'spontaneously' popped into the conversation (39:42):

Transcription follows:

Josh Horowitz (JH): 'So, what's the dream for further voiceover roles, do you want a Pixar movie, do you want Outlander -the cartoon, what do you want?'

[laughter throughout the panelists]

S: 'Oh, I'm a Star Trek fan, actually' [women in the audience boo and shout - I wonder why, seriously], 'I am a Star Trek fan, I grew up watching Next Gen, so maybe Below Decks is... come on, guys.. '

[Note: yeah, he's such a fan, he has no idea the correct name of the cartoon spin-off, in which Jack Quaid has a voiceover role, is Star Trek: Lower Decks]

JH: 'We'll get him out in a second' [note: Jack Quaid], we'll talk some Star Trek, amazing...'

See? Not even subtle, if you ask me. I think this is something S wanted out for a good while now. It doesn't erase or even ease the pain and the trauma brought to so many people in this fandom by a pair of idiotic bullies, but I think it was very brave of him and, at any rate, it's better later than never.

And so, I waited. And waited. And waited. And then, here it went (01: 02: 54):

JH (consulting notes):' Um, we also should mention Star Trek: Lower Decks, we talked Star Trek a little bit earlier...'

Jack Quaid (JQ):'And, by, the way, this is the last season of Lower Decks, but we would have loved to have you! What the fuck, I didn't know you watched the show! [inaudible, if someone caught it properly, something like 'that was so close', I'd love to know more and especially who said it - thank you] Unbelievable!'

S: ' That is so cool, man!'

JQ: 'Oh, thank you, dude! Oh, yeah, hey, let's get rendered (?), let's do this, we keep going, let's get him on, let's do it!'

JH: 'Isn't...isn't William Shatner a big Outlander fan? I feel like he is...'

S (very uneasy): 'Ah... erm... yeah... (scratches back of his head)...I hung out with him once, we went to his stables and I watched him like riding a horse and stuff.... And, I don't know, it was really weird, cause sometimes I wonder if I am speaking to him via messages and stuff, or if it's actually his assistant [JQ: 'oooh!'], I don't know...'

JQ: 'Does his assistant look a lot like him?'

S (chuckles): 'Kind of...Yeah, you can't tell them apart. Yeah, no, but I believe he was a fan, until he saw me ride'.

Despite the jocular tone, I think everything is pretty much clear, here. Definitely a prepared conversation, despite Horowitz's efforts to make it sound playful and spontaneous. Something he even took prior notes about and made sure to include in the panel - nothing more serious than that, in fact. As for the sad cretin mentioned there, what would be left to say... S sent the guy to Coventry in barely two phrases and actually poked fun at his appearance and demeanor ('you can't tell them apart'). So long for the fictional 'friendship' and 'communication' between S and The Assistant, so long for the braggadocio that horrible little man exhibited all the way, pretending he actually had a personal relationship with S (well, as we all see, he actually doesn't: he doesn't even have a name, in S's book, as acquaintances, let alone friends, do). His only claim to fame was what, in reality? Answering some X DMs sent by S to his employer? Hello? How about his threats, then? How about his repeated calumny of people he didn't even know, calling them 'crazies', 'in need of medical attention', etc?

And please, don't come after me with that sorry excuse that 'it's S's humor'. There was nothing humorous about it and I have proven it already.

I will leave you draw your own conclusions about the non existent friendship with Shatner, something that has probably been 'encouraged' ex nihilo by *** and taken to dramatic cheapness and conflict with and within this fandom by The Assistant himself, mainly, and his friend, the OG Troll. I do not remember hearing/seeing Shatner himself saying all those horrible things (please correct me if I am wrong), so until I am proven the contrary, it's only logical to have many thoughts and questions about these people's strange, very strange obsession with OL and its two main co-stars.

Not to mention the most idiotic threat I have ever read in this fandom. Something I fell upon by absolute chance this morning. I mean, I couldn't even believe people actually bought such primitive, kindergarten bullshit:

[July 29th, 2017]

' Do you still want OL to continue or not, people?'

Empty, illogical threats: why would *** cancel its actual cash cow show, just because two co-stars had something SO obvious, that people realized there was more than the official narrative to it? And what about the crazy story about Albrecht & co. investigating and allegedly menacing fans with going to court? Has this cretin ever realized the potential media scandal would have far outweighed the inanity of such a claim? That it could very well have a serious impact on ***'s company profile and future projects, even?

I really, really think both of these Unsavory Clowns should find another playground and another obsession to cling on (wasn't the first, would not be the last). Elsewhere. In a galaxy far, far away.

PS: Thank you, regular attendee who bravely spilled the tea and thank you, old shipper who came forward and confirmed. And many heartfelt thanks to all of you shippers, old and new, who also bravely stepped forward with their personal take on everything these two have done to this place.

Dare we hope this is the beginning of the end? What is sure, is that no lies last forever. Or as we say in Romanian: minciuna are picioare scurte și adevărul o ajunge/'a lie's got short legs and truth will always catch up with it'.

[Later edit]: edited to add a new, improved clip that actually does include the entire conversation.

[piningforstan]

Talking in Your Sleep

Part One | Part Two

Summary: You start to suspect that there’s more to Stan than what he tells you, at least while he’s awake. Asleep is a different story.

Pairings: Stanley Pines x GN! Reader

Word Count: 2.1k

Warnings: Not really any? Let me know if I missed one

A/N: All Most of my oneshots are inspired by songs I guess😂 I’m thinking there might be 2 or 3 parts to this one

Stan lied.

To everyone.

Perhaps it was delusional to think that it didn’t apply to you. You, your reasoning was, were special. At the end of the day he crawled into bed next to you and pressed his cold toes to your calf, laughing as you squirmed away. You made grocery lists together and raided the aisles for food and supplies. It was you that he whispered his fears and hopes to.

So you thought nothing when he lied to the tourists, lied to the banks, lied to the man who “dropped” his wallet (Stan had pickpocketed it and you forced him to return it). You thought nothing when the lies bled into your daily life, domestic bliss disrupted with the occasional white lie. You told yourself: everyone does it.

It didn’t mean anything.

Right?

The room in the Shack that you stumbled upon on accident one day while looking for warmer blankets. “My brother’s room,” he told you. The brother, that you knew, was dead. You let it be, didn’t ask questions. But if it was his brother’s, why did all of the books say his name? Stanford Pines. Scrawled in margins and on the wall like a hasty addition. You didn’t have time to inspect it too closely, but the handwriting looked too neat to be Stan’s — tidy and cramped, unlike the sprawling letters you had seen him print on your paychecks.

STNLYMBLE his license plate read. It wasn’t his brother’s car, he affectionately retold stories of his time in the vehicle before. Maybe it was a tribute of some kind?

A million instances that accumulated in your mind like clutter in an attic, each one a box that you labeled and tucked away for later.

The first snow had just coated itself over Gravity Falls when the sleep talking started. You were roused awake by Stan twitching and muttering, the alarm clock blinking the time at you from the nightstand.

Too early. You rolled over, trying to grasp at the last remnants of your dream. It wasn’t much longer before he was muttering again, louder this time, hands clutching at the sheets and his face scrunching in unmistakable pain.

“Portal…help…” whatever disturbed his dreams made no sense to you here in the real world. You listened quietly. “I promise, Ma…I promise.”

Segments of promises and reassurances, bits of stories that you hadn’t heard before and couldn’t parse out yourself. It didn’t concern you at first, chalking it up to stress — about the Shack during the cold winter months, or maybe whatever work he did in the basement.

And then they became more specific. Unsettling.

“I didn’t mean to. It was an accident. An accident.” Sweat glistened on his forehead and wet the dark curls at his temples. The weirdest part is when he would whimper: “I’m sorry, Ford. I’m sorry. The portal…”

The portal, the portal, the portal — the one reoccurring connection to all of the sleep talking.

The dreams were worse during the holidays; Thanksgiving, Christmas, New Years. It was sometime after the beginning of the new year and you were nestled into one another on the couch when you asked him, “What’s the portal?”

Stan kept his gaze on the TV but his body stiffened beneath you. “What?”

“The portal.”

“What’re you talkin’ about?”

You don’t know why, but you sensed that you’ve crossed a line, somehow, said something wrong. In an effort to lighten the mood, you injected a hint of humor in your voice, “You’ve been sleep talking lately and you keep mentioning a portal. Is it a bad dream or something?”

“Or something,” Stan coolly replied.

A beat passed between you, tension palpable. The TV flickered off. Stan untangled himself from you without a word and started up the stairs. You stumbled after him.

“Stan, what is going on?”

“Nothing,” he said, whirling on you, one hand braced on the rail. “I’m tired is all.”

You steeled yourself for an argument, aware of it approaching like a storm on the horizon. “For weeks — months — you’ve been having these awful dreams and talking about someone named Ford. And a portal.”

Sometimes you wake up in tears. Sometimes the pain in your voice is enough to make me nauseous. Sometimes you cry for forgiveness.

“S’probably nothin’.”

“Nothing? Stanford, I know something is wrong.”

You had both made it to the landing now, an old fashioned draw. Shadows thrown across his face, Stan possessed an unpredictable air, sharp and glinting like the blade of a knife in the dark. It slipped away just as quickly as the image had impressed upon you. Did you imagine it?

His features arranged into a semblance of shame, sheepish in nature. “I jus’ don’t wanna talk about it, alright? I’m sorry you had to deal with that. You ain’t gotta worry about me, doll.”

You wanted to press the matter. Wanted to know why he was being elusive and why his explanation rubbed you the wrong way.

But you didn’t.

A month or two passed. Spring lingered in the woods, melting snow and glimpses of greenery. You hadn’t mentioned the portal or the dreams again. Stan would go some nights without sleeping at all. You knew this only because you would wake up at night and roll over, expecting his warmth and finding the bed cold and empty.

“What are you doing in the basement?” You asked one day when you were feeling particularly brave. Stan was your kind-of boyfriend, after all, and you asserted to yourself that you had the right to know where he spent most of his time.

Stan, shoveling food in his mouth, shrugged and replied in a muffled tone, “Science stuff.”

He was off doing science stuff when you poked around the entirety of the Shack, searching for this alleged basement. How could there be no doors? You patrolled the perimeter of the building and spotted a cellar but it refused to budge. It unsettled you that couldn’t find an entry to the basement and hadn’t thought to even look before now.

“You wouldn’t want to see it, it’s boring,” he would tell you and you would believe him, his large hands roaming over your skin. “I can think of much more fun things to do up ‘ere.”

It worried at the back of your mind constantly, this idea that you were just another victim in Stan’s lies. Were you being dramatic?

The answer came to you in the dark of the night, moonlight spilling over the floor in silvery bars. Stan woke you as he staggered out of bed, muttering and bumping into the dresser that now hosted a mixture of your clothing. You sat up.

“Stan, honey? Where are you going?”

He never ceased his muttering to answer, persisting down the stairs in his sluggish manner. You grabbed a robe and threw it over yourself, following after him. After several more attempts to get his attention, you came to the conclusion that his sleep talking had now progressed into sleep walking. You knew you should’ve woken him but you curiously trailed behind, through the living room, the kitchen, and into the gift shop.

A blue glow from the vending machine washed over Stan as he ambled towards it, thick fingers pushing the buttons. Was he just hungry, sleepily venturing for a midnight snack? You wouldn’t put it past him. You reached out a hand, ready to rouse him from his trance, when a strange whirring emitted from the vending machine.

Shock rooted you in place as the machine didn’t release any food but rather swung open miraculously on its hinges, disclosing a corridor instead. Stan never even hesitated as he just continued on, broad shoulders and bedhead disappearing around the corner.

Rendered motionless for several moments, you finally decided to go after him. Where was he going? He could hurt himself.

You shuffled into the corridor. An uneasy feeling descended upon you like the legs of a spider, brushing against every inch of your skin. The chill cutting through your robe told you that you were being led further under ground, finally emptying into an enormous room.

And it wasn’t even the size of the room that surprised you, but rather the gigantic metal contraption crouched to one side. From what you could tell it wasn’t working. A huge, darkened eye stared at you from the middle of the rafters.

A window?

A portal.

Stan had ceased his dreamlike ambling to stand before this machine, gazing up at it like it might offer him some kind of absolution.

Your voice, small and afraid: “Stan?”

The trance broke, a taut rubber-band snapped in the way that his shoulders rounded and he glanced around in confusion. You could only imagine the look on your face as he turned to you.

Your name left his mouth, panicked. “What are you doing here?”

“Stan, what is that? Where are we?” Hysteria gripped you. “What’s going on?”

“You shouldn’t be here,” Stan replied.

“Did you…did you make this? What is this?”

Stan pinched the bridge of his nose. “Let’s go upstairs. I can explain all this. A’right?”

“No, Stan, I’m tired of all of the lies and the sneaking around. I’m staying here. And you’re going to tell me what’s going on.”

A defeated expression crossed his face. He went over to a panel of controls and leaned against it, hip and elbow. “Ya know I would never hurt ya on purpose, doll. I-I care about you.”

You wanted to soften. But you held yourself strong, heart fracturing. “Stan?”

“I guess I don’t know where to start.” He scrubbed a hand over his face, then slowly began to unravel the story that you had pieced together over the time. Except, this time, details were changed— the truth, you realized, not the altered version he had given you.

Everything you thought you knew about this man, this man that you loved, disappeared and took on a new form. The childhood in New Jersey accompanied by a twin brother. His years as a drifter a result of his father kicking him out, not a pursuit of freedom and independence. Even the Mystery Shack, his name, wasn’t his.

Stanley Pines, he said.

Stanley. Not Stanford.

And his brother wasn’t dead but lost in time, and he was trying valiantly to find him again.

“All of this, all of the lies…are for him. It’s my fault that he’s gone and I need to fix my mistake.” Stan’s voice had taken on a strained edge, on the verge of tears. “I’ve made so many but this one…this one I’m close to fixing.”

“You come down here to work on a…portal,” you said, not sure what else to say.

“It’s the only way.” Stan took a step towards you, then thought better of it. “I-I didn’t wanna lie. But I had no idea how much you would mean to me. It was one lie an’ then another and I couldn’t take any of ‘em back. Not without you lookin’ at me like how you are now.”

“I trusted you,” you breathed.

“I’m still me.” He flinched. “Well, kinda. Besides the name and everything. That hasn’t changed. The way I feel about you hasn’t changed.”

“What do you mean? Everything has changed,” you snapped, “Everything I know about you is a lie! I don’t even know what to think right now.” You shook your head as if to dislodge the torrent of thoughts. “You led me to believe that you were someone else. That your brother — who is actually you? — died. I grieved him with you, Stan. And you just lied to me again and again like it was nothing. How do I know I can trust you?”

“I’m tellin’ you, I didn’t want —”

“To lie? But lying is what you do best. It’s all clear to me now. I-I can’t do this. I need air.”

Your feet carried you without permission, away from the strange basement and the portal and Stan. Stanley. Not Stanford. You heard his heavy footsteps as he chased after you, one hand on your shoulder and spinning you to face him.

“Don’t go. Please. I can make this right.”

“No, you can’t.” You fought back tears as you looked at him, so heartbreakingly handsome and wounded and earnest. “I can’t be with someone who I don’t even know. Everything about us has been built on lies.”

He didn’t try and stop you as you stepped out of his grip and back into the gift shop, nor did he follow you. You shoved out onto the porch and into the greying, mushy snow, gathered in piles in the corners of the forest. You didn’t know where you were going, but you couldn’t be here.

[lemoncrushh]

Live From New York

Summary: Harry's on SNL and he gets a little jealous when he thinks you're not there for him.

Warnings: None

Word Count: 1313

A/N: Super silly blurb from 2017 after Harry was on SNL. This was a request (some requests were oddly specific back then lol) that you have a bit of a crush on Colin Jost and Michael Che. It also helps that you know a couple of Rolling Stones songs that are mentioned at the end.

We gotta get away from here...

Harry's lyrics were still ringing in your ears as you watched the stage being set up for the next skit. Your stomach flipped when you realized it was going to be the Weekend Update segment. You liked this skit in particular, having always had a little secret crush on Colin Jost and Michael Che. Perhaps it was their humor, and the way they would sometimes roast each other that got your juices flowing, but they always managed to crack you up.

"Hey, come with me," you heard to your left.

You turned your head in time to see Harry walking toward the dressing room. Hesitantly, you followed him, quickly returning your focus to the monitor set up on the wall.

"Sit with me for a minute," he requested, beckoning you to the sofa where he sat.

Smiling, you did what he asked, taking his hand. "You were great."

"Yeah?" he grinned.

"Mmm hmm," you nodded. "I especially liked seeing you in that white Mick Jagger suit."

Harry chuckled. "Maybe I should add one to my wardrobe."

You scooted closer to him, hiking up your leg to lightly brush against his.

"I wouldn't be against it."

Just as Harry leaned in for a kiss, your peripheral vision caught sight of Colin and Michael on the screen.

"Oh!" you squeaked. "This is my favorite!"

"Um...alright," Harry paused as you sat up.

You thought he might've mumbled something under his breath, but then someone else entered the room to tell him to get ready for the next skit. He rose from the couch as you continued to watch the segment, giggling at everything the two comedians said. When it was over, you noticed Harry had left the room. You felt a little guilty, knowing this was his special night and you'd been ogling over two other men. Determined you find him to wish him luck on his next skit, you opened the dressing room door. Just as you stepped out, Colin and Michael were walking down the hall.

"Oh my god, you guys...I love you, you're amazing!" you exclaimed, the word vomit escaping your throat before you had a chance to stop it.

The two men stopped to thank you, and you chatted for longer than you'd expected. So long, in fact, that you missed Harry's next skit. He was just walking off the stage when you caught up to him.

"That was great," you lied, though you were sure it had been considering the comedic faux beard he had on.

"Really?" he asked with sarcasm and a deadpan stare. He knew you hadn't seen one second of the skit.

Unable to speak, you watched as he walked past you to the dressing room. You stood frozen, feeling more guilt ooze throughout your body than you thought possible. You'd hurt him.

"Harry," you muttered when you entered the dressing room.

No response.

"Harry, I'm sorry," you added.

Nothing.

You stepped closer to him, his back to you as he pulled on his slacks.

"Say something."

"'s nothing to say Y/N. You obviously had something more important to do than to be there for me."

"Harry, that's not fair," you argued. "I was there for you. I mean...I'm here! For you!"

He finally turned then, his eyebrow raised in question. "Really?"

"Yes!" When he just continued to glare at you, you shook your head, throwing your hands up. "I can't believe this."

"Can't believe what?"

"You can't be jealous because I was excited to see Colin and Michael."

"Are you fucking kidding me? I'm not jealous."

"Then what is it?"

Harry sighed, dropping his shoulders. "I'm just upset that you missed the skit."

"I said I was sorry. I didn't mean to. You're right, I got caught up in the excitement, but I truly did not do it on purpose. You're the one I'm here for. You're the one I'm immensely proud of! You're the one I'm in love with!"

The last sentence slipped out unwillingly. You couldn't take it back, but you also knew you didn't want to. Harry stared at you, his jaw set but his eyes softening. Then he separated the space between you in one stride, pulling you into his arms and kissing you on the mouth.

"I'm so in love with you," he whispered when your lips separated. He pressed his forehead to yours, cupping your face in his hands. "I'm sorry."

"What are you sorry for?" you choked.

"For..." he paused, "for doubting you."

"No," you shook your head. "I'm sorry. I should have been more considerate. I know you're nervous."

Harry chuckled, stepping back on his heels. "Is it that obvious?"

"Not blatantly," you grinned, running your hands up and down his arms. "But yeah, I can tell."

"'m so bloody nervous, 'm shaking."

"Well, babe, it's live TV. Of course you are! But you're doing amazing, and I'm so so proud of you."

"I still have another song to sing," he remarked.

"And I'm gonna be watching. I promise."

Oh tell me something I don't already know...

The second performance had gone well, and if anyone had really been paying attention, they could hear your claps and cheers the loudest.

You followed Harry back into the dressing room after the finale and credit roll where he had not surprisingly hugged every single member of the crew. You smiled when you sat on the sofa and watched him get undressed.

"So are you as proud of yourself as I am?"

He flashed his dimpled grin and shrugged. "Maybe."

"Are we going to the after party?" you asked cautiously. He hadn't mentioned it, but you'd heard there was one. You didn't want to rock the boat though, after what had happened earlier.

"Do you want to?"

You cocked your head nonchalantly. "It's your call. I'm fine with it. Either way."

Harry smirked. "You're funny."

"Me? Why am I funny?"

"You're trying not to get too excited again. But I know you."

"It's whatever you want, Harry, really. I was just wondering."

Smiling, he took her hand and kissed the back of it. "We can go. I just have to do something first."

"Okay. What's that?"

"Just a minute."

Harry turned toward the rack of clothes at the far end of the room. Then with a smug look on his face, he took something off a hanger, turning again swiftly so you couldn't see. But as soon as he stepped into the trousers, you knew what it was.

"Oh God," you giggled.

Harry looked back at you with a shit-eating grin before pulling on the shirt and jacket.

"C'mere, Mick," you beckoned.

"Wait, I don't have my wig on."

"Don't need it," you commented. "I just want the suit."

Harry finally turned around then to face you, making you grin from ear to ear.

"There he is," you murmured low. "My Midnight Rambler."

"Oh, Jesus," he scoffed which only caused you to giggle more.

"I said, come here," you demanded in a seductive tone.

"Yes, ma'am."

You rose from the sofa as he stepped closer to you. Pulling on the lapels of his jacket, you kissed him on the neck, your tongue licking and sucking his skin, sticky with perspiration.

"Hmm," Harry sounded, turning on his Mick Jagger impression once again. "Looks like someone wants some manky panky."

You laughed under your breath, pulling him backwards towards the couch. Sitting down, you urged him to come with you as you kissed his lips.

"What exactly is manky panky?" you asked. "I thought it was hanky panky."

"I dunno. Is it?"

You laughed harder, sliding your hands down his chest to unfasten the two remaining buttons.

"You fucking Brits," you mocked.

Harry lifted himself up to look you in the eye. "You know what this makes you then, don't you?"

"What?"

"A Starfucker."

If you enjoyed, please like, comment, reblog or send me a msg!

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[fatuismooches]

wanderer saying that [name] is dottores "little pet" is so funny to me bc if you think about its the other way around

like he would actually do anything for you, with complaining some most times but yk

like a segment could be researching and they walk in, he turns into a damn puppy and just starts focusing on them while not really looking at what hes doing

you are really special, its not often any version of dottore lets go of their focus when experimenting

luv ya

Many people marvel at your ability to have the Doctor in the palm of your hand, but to you, who has been with him for so long, don't think much of it. Every time an agent or another Harbinger brings up how powerful you must be to have the segments so attentive toward you, you kind of just smile and shrug it off. Because it's just very normal to you but also extremely abnormal to others. You do suppose it's a bit jarring for others to see a segment that had worked for twenty seven hours straight, refusing to be bothered by anything, suddenly perk up and drag you in for some much-needed recharge (and then go back to work.) It's no wonder rule fifteen in the handbook is to retrieve you if a certain segment is acting out (Webby.)

But his behavior also gives you a bit of an ego boost for obvious reasons, I mean, who wouldn't get a bit puffed up having such a man at your beck and call? Of course, the segments don't do this much when others are around, because they will not be the subject of gossip for the agents and the Damselette, but well, they're not always successful. They have a very specific image to uphold - they can't be seen with you squishing and kissing their cheeks. However, it's not like anyone will have the gall to comment on you feeding him your latest sweet creation.

You don't really care about people who think otherwise or have their own misconstrued version of your relationship, they can talk all they want. In fact, some of the stories are so wild it makes you laugh, and you share them with Dottore, detailing how evil and heinous he is to keep you trapped with him. But really, all that matters to you is the love you have for each other, that no one else needs to understand.

[yourheart-inmyhands]

Second ask of the day I am so sorry if I am overwhelming you :(

But I was scrolling through your blog and someone requested Blade with a reader who was like terrified of him that they would not sleep or eat unless forced to.

Could you write the same for Dottore? I just feel like this would fit him well :D

~🍂 Anon (once again I am apologising for requesting a second time today. Feel free to ignore me)

omg no don't feel bad for multiple requests, i adore every request i get, even if there's multiple in a day :D <3

Warning: this post contains yandere-themes, including implied being held against ones will, mentions of drugging, mentions of restraints, mentions of permanently paralyzing someone, and other potential topics. Please read at your own risk!

Honestly, it doesn’t bother Dottore nearly as much as it should, but when has he ever been bothered by something this minuscule? Dottore isn’t an overly affectionate person, but he can’t deny the appeal of having someone waiting for him in his bed, it’s a nice change from the usual night spent in his lab, forcing himself awake for another hour. It’s a good change of pace for him as well, even if he has to use force to keep you compliant.

He’ll allow you free roam of the room during the day, certain you couldn’t get past the bars on the windows or the guards outside the door. When night rolls around though, it’s kicked off by a few of his segments coming to get you ‘ready’ for bed. They’ve been instructed to use any force necessary, which often means restraints or merely drugging you. This is so that when Dottore does eventually come around to go to bed an hour or so later, you’ve already had your time to cry and fight, tiring yourself out and making you perfect to snuggle up to.

Of course, he has considered permanently paralyzing you before, but a small, sick part of him likes it when you fight. Dottore enjoys the challenge you put up, so he may on occasion threaten it, among other things, he isn’t likely to actually do it.

There was an extra pep in his step as Dottore left the lab, choosing to let his experiments wait till morning in favor of going to rest with you. Normally he’d be there till sunrise the following morning, but as of late, he’s come to find that he much prefers your company at these hours. You had been extra difficult with his segments tonight, at least that was what they had told him, so they went ahead and administered some ‘medication’ to help you relax. It was a special formula Dottore had made for you and you alone, it was strong enough to keep you incapacitated till morning while also not making you weak enough that you needed assistance in breathing.  Kicking open the door to your bedroom, he was pleased to see you laying there, staring at him with tear-riddled eyes, small wet streaks running down your cheeks from the crying onslaught you had subjected yourself to. Oh dear, if only you knew how much this sight made his heart flutter.

If you never grow accustomed to Dottore’s presence, it’s not a worry, he honestly thinks it’s cute that you hate him so much. His heart is set aflutter when he sees how terrified you are of him, he thinks it’s just so adorable. I mean, everyone already hates him, thousands have nightmares of the things he’s done, but you, there’s something about you specifically that has him hooked. He can’t ever let you go.

[bump1nthen1ght]

A Very Monstrous Kinktober: Day 4 (Prostitution)

Kink: Prostitution

Pairing: Male!Android x GN!Reader

Other Kinks: Deepthroating, Cum Swallowing

Warnings: N/A

Word Count: 1047 words

Kinktober Masterlist

"Wow, it's so soft." Axel half-whispers, warm digits massaging your ass cheeks. His modulated voice is full of awe, so enraptured by the feel of flesh and muscle. Since coming to this planet where 90% of the populace are androids, cybers or other kinds of techno-life, this was a reaction you were getting used to.

Especially when it comes to your clients.

"You like?" You purr, wiggling your hops in his face. The audible whirr of his cooling fans kicking on makes you giggle.

"Y-yeah, I do." Axel mumbles, still in awe of the jiggling flesh. He gives your ass a timid slap, cooing at the recoil.

Axel was shaping up to be one of your favorite clients. He'd walked into his appointment, face flushed blue with coolant and stuttering out an introduction. He had muttered out that it was his first time with an organic, which you had already assumed but pretended to be shocked anyway. Most of your customers requested you because of the novelty of your fleshy body; you'd grown used to several minutes of petting and observation before they eventually asked you to spread open.

But Axel had been different. He had asked your name, asked if the way he touched you was okay. Even the way he fondled you felt different. It wasn't detached fascination, it was a desperate awe. He'd whispered sweet things about your body, admired your specific stretch marks, your dimples, and your skin's imperfections.

You think you'll give him your card after this session. It’s reserved for your most well-behaved, respectful clients.

But for now you have a job to do, and you want to show Axel all the things your fleshy body can do.

You flip around, pulling Axel into a hug. He squeaks, not unlike an old computer mouse, but quickly sinks into your embrace. He rubs his face into your warm skin, moaning at the sensation. Just a kiss to the cheek has him shuddering with a moan.

"Let me make you feel good, baby." You whisper in his audial port, Axel responding with an eager nod. His body readily complies as you push him back on the bed, slotting in between his legs. The sleek wiring pulses green and blue in between his segmented joins, flaring as you trace your fingers down them. It's adorable.

His modesty player is buzzing, whirring machinery underneath betraying how eager he is, if you couldn't already tell from his shaky whines and stuttered words.

"W-what are you-" Axel whispers, caught in a moan when you press another kiss to the plate, his hips jerking upwards. "Ooh, do that again, please."

"I can do you one better, handsome." Your hand caresses the seam of his plate and Axel is quick to let it pop open, sliding to reveal a pulsing phallus. It drips with a neon green lubricant, more like a vibrator in shape than a human penis. It also has several bumpy nodes, which only excites you for later.

Wasting no time, you lick up his shaft, paying special attention to those nodes, wondering how sensitive they are. Axel throws his head back with a breathless whine.

"O-oh, stars. That feels good." His voice catches with another moan as your hand wraps around the base of his shaft and squeezes. More neon lubricant gushes out of the slit at the top, which you lap up eagerly.

Yum, lemon-lime flavored.

You suck at the eager slit some more, Axels flailing hands grasping at your shoulder and neck, gently pulling your mouth closer, chasing tbe high.

"Your mouth...it's incredible!" Axel yelps. His whimpering voice sends a shiver down your spine.

You're definitely giving him your card after this.

"Your tongue, your lips, I've never felt anything like it. It's amazing."

"Hmm, and how about this?"

Before Axel can even mutter a "Huh?" you have him half-down your throat, cheeks sucked in. His voice processor glitches as he groans, those eager digits digging into your skin. "Oh stars!" He shouts as your tongue lathers around the shaft, slowly moving your head up and down.

He's a little too thick at the base for you to properly deep throat him, but you don't need to. You can see his wires pulsing in your peripheral, hear his pants and moans, and can taste the excess lubricant bubbling to the top. Axel grows bold enough to hold onto your cheek and fuck into your louth, although quite gently.

"I think-" Axel stutters, hips still humping into your throat, "I think I'm close."

You humm, the buzz around his shaft making his thrusts falter. Your lips pop off the top of his member for a second, quickly replaced by your hand. Licking excess fluid off your lips, you look Axel right in the eye.

"Oh yeah? Where do you want to come? Down my throat?" Axel nods, voice chip struggling to form words amidst his groans. It makes you smirk, giving one long lick up his phallus before deep throating him again. You set a more moderate pace, urging him to climax.

"Oh stars, ohh-" Axel's voice, even glitchy, is melodic. He sound so sweet, coming undone below you. "S-shit!" His chip distorts the audio, wires pulsing a bright flash as hot streams of lubricant shoot down your throat. It's a little sour, but also quite sweet.

You slowly let Axel out of your mouth, savoring the flavor of his phallus as you do. The running of his cooling fans reminds you of a kitchen vent, his phallus slowly sinking back into his modesty place for a quick recharge.

You climb up Axel's body, giving him gentle kisses as you do. He readily nuzzles into your skin, despite his systems already warning that he might overheat.

"That was....fantastic" Axel whispers.

The sheer reverence in his voice makes you giggle, pecking again at his jaw.

"Well, I'm not sure how long it will take to recharge but..." You run a finger up his wiring, batting your eyelashes. "We still have another hour left in our session. If you'd like to see some of the other things I can do."

Despite the warnings in his processor, despite the way his modesty plate slowly beeps as he lets it open again, Axel is eager.

"Yes please."

[actuallyjustabiscuit]

Kinger is Cursed With the Consequences of His Actions, and That's What's Making Him Crazy

Oh yes! The character we've all officially designated as Pomni’s new papa has got me reminiscing about another silly crackpot monarch who is actually an intelligent man in his late forties, an identity that has been buried so deep within the recesses of his altered mind that it can only emerge through special circumstances of which he has no control. But I know I'm not the only one who's made connections between him and Simon Petrikov from Adventure Time.

Btw did you know that they're also nearly the same age?

Yeah, this comparison has already been made by plenty of people. But if I may, I'd like to point out one other similarity that I've noticed; the fact that both of these men tragically lost the love of their lives, yet even in their broken minds the love they felt for them is still remembered fondly.

But, what if Kinger was also indirectly responsible for losing Queenie?

So........what exactly causes someone to abstract?

Of course, this would be an important question considering it's baked into the premise of the show itself, but I find it to be particularly relevant when dissecting Kinger's character because if we only assume that abstraction occurs when a human loses their mind, then how is someone like him still hanging around the Circus?

He’s been trapped there the longest, how long exactly is yet to be confirmed, but it’s safe to say that all those years haven't been kind to him. In the pilot he’s characterized as extremely erratic and forgetful, getting easily startled because his spatial awareness and object permanence are practically nonexistent nor can he retain previously established information for very long. On top of that, he regularly spouts nonsense that seemingly has nothing to do with the current situation. Because of this, his general demeanor tends to range between ridiculous to downright frustrating to the other characters.

So it’s no wonder that his fellow humans have more or less dismissed him as just being insane.

But I think this is a completely reductive view of this poor man because Kinger’s got that “he’s a little confused, but he’s got the spirit” energy that I love about him.

I think this is one of the more adorable aspects of Kinger's character; he's always trying to help. He tries his absolute darndest.

And what makes me sad is that, with the way that he is, he has such little control over how much he can actually help the people he clearly cares a lot about.

In Mystery of Mildenhall Manor, it's revealed that Kinger's lucidity is apparently affected by his exposure to darkness. How this works exactly is a bit inconsistent as we've had scenes of him in complete darkness and still acting pretty goofy.

However, based on my observations, I believe the change is not instantaneous. Like, he doesn't immediately become the Kinger we see in the adventure with Pomni if he is suddenly enveloped in darkness. I think what primarily plays a part is the amount of time he spends in darker settings. The segments we get with Kinger and Pomni are significantly dimmer compared to the rest of the episode, and we even get hints of Kinger progressively becoming more logical before we get to the cellar.

I’ve also noticed a small pattern in which he prefaces these brief moments of clarity with “I think…”.

This could be completely unrelated, but I find it interesting that Kinger's big advice to Pomni on how to overcome something difficult is to try "not thinking about it". I may be reading too much into this specific bit of phrasing but I feel that it's worth noting if this really is the mentality he lives by, because this is the advice he gives her when he's in two totally different states of mind.

Anyway, it turns out that when this silly man finally gets a good grasp on himself again, he’s actually extremely competent. Kinger shooting down the angel is a pretty obvious example of him being a BAMF, but I want to give these two moments a bit of focus.

I like the idea that Kinger has been in the Circus long enough to become so familiar with his weird digital body that he uses his detachable parts and disembodied hands to his advantage. It’s just a neat little detail because we get a taste of just how capable Kinger can be in this world if it wasn’t for his handicap.

And what really sucks is that the amount of time it takes for him to regain his sanity in the dark is really disproportionate to the amount of time it takes for him to lose it when back in bright environments.

Take the scene where Kinger is having a conversation with Ragatha in Candy Carrier Chaos with the bucket on his head for example, which definitely foreshadows this detail since it's the first time we hear him speaking more sensibly.

and then this happens

Notice how he taps the handle of the bucket? Like he's realizing that he does, in fact, have a bucket on his head that's obscuring his vision, before lifting it off of his face and going right back to responding in the way we've come to expect from Kinger.

It makes me wonder if Kinger has ever tried to tell the other's about this, but just couldn't. Ragatha clearly isn't aware of it despite having known him the longest out of any of the current residents of the Circus. And Kinger himself can't seem to pinpoint when exactly he shifts between sane and insane. Like a man who blacks out and feeling ashamed of his drunken actions when he sobers up again, despite having no control or awareness in the moment.

Describing Kinger's usual behavior when not in darkness as a "blackout" is pretty ironic, but I think it fits beautifully because it perfectly explains his short-term memory loss. Or I guess it would be more accurate to call it a "brownout". Either way, the point is that his memory becomes more obscured when he's in the light.

As for what initially caused this impairment, we still don't know.

I also don't want to get too clinical with Kinger's "symptoms" because I am in no way schooled enough to diagnose a fictional character who has only had a single episode focused on him.

But even just one episode proved to be very enlightening (...heh...see...see what I did there? Enlight-eh forget it) because after comforting a freshly traumatized Pomni, our girl interacts with Kinger at his most coherent long enough to learn some very crucial information.

It seems that the abstracted humans are not inherently dangerous, at least not when secluded in darkness, which Kinger was fortunate enough to witness with his own wife before they were separated (not legally, divorce doesn't exist in the Circus).

I've made this connection in another post I made, but yeah I really do think that it's the Circus' garish lights that make the abstracted so aggressive. I mean when you have that many eyes, that shit would aggravate the hell out of you.

But now comes the real question, and I'm tying it back to the one I made at the start, what made Queenie abstract in the first place?

How very convenient, Kinger. How did Jax put it, "gotta keep the mystery alive"?

Well, I'm playing detective here and I say you're the key suspect!

That's right! I'm accusing you! But unlike Baron Moldydick's crime, it twasn't homicide.

Yeah, everyone has picked up on how Mildenhall killing his wife acts as a parallel to what Kinger may or may not have done to Queenie. But I don't think it's as cut and dry as Kinger losing his mind and then somehow putting Queenie in direct danger as a result.

No, I like to think that it's definitely a bit more complicated than that.

It's not clear when exactly Kinger began losing his mind, but I certainly believe it had everything to do with losing Queenie. And it would actually be a pretty fun bit of character design if it does because in chess the King becomes most vulnerable when the Queen is taken off the board.

I know we all want to imagine that Queenie had existed alongside the other characters sometime before Pomni's arrival, but based on what we're given in canon, I'm starting to think that was highly unlikely. Because if everyone knew who Queenie was, then they would also deduce that Kinger wasn't always the way that he is now. I just don't get the impression from everyone else that they know about Kinger's dual state of mind. Otherwise, it'd be kind of awful that they wouldn't do more to help him if they were aware of this fact.

Kinger has always been crazy to them because all they know is that he's been in the Circus longer than anyone else. Which really goes to show how little they truly understand one another despite having only each other for company.

And it's not like they don't care enough (well, except maybe Jax) to want to understand and be there for each other, but it's almost like they are never given enough opportunities to really...bond.

And yeah, unfortunately, a lot of it has to do with each of these characters having their own hang-ups that keep them from doing just that. It's not just Caine constantly shoving them into his adventures to distract them.

Ragatha is dishonest with her feelings

Gangle is insecure when her mask breaks

Jax hates being vulnerable

and Zooble is never comfortable in their own skin (or at least their body's equivalent of skin)

I don't want to downplay it either, these are real issues that need consistent work. These people need help and the only one really capable of supplying that is a little broken himself.

This is why it's so fortunate that Pomni was with Kinger when he started speaking more sensibly. She has already displayed a remarkable level of emotional maturity with Gummigoo, but that's because Gummigoo was the one in need of reassurance at that moment. When exposed to problems far worse than your own, your problems in some way appear much more manageable in comparison. Pomni may be trapped, but Gummigoo doesn't even get the luxury of existing outside of what he was made for. That alone gave Pomni the confidence to live in spite of her circumstances and inspire someone else to do the same.

But it's hard to maintain that confidence when your new support system gets literally deleted right in front of you.

It's ok tho! Thanks to participating in Kaufmo's funeral, Pomni begins to open herself up to the others more, which allows her to have...some faith in her new friends. This is especially good when she gets to finally break down for a minute with Kinger because honestly, it's amazing she's held herself marginally together this whole time without crying at least once.

Pomni experiences her (so far) all-time low, and this segues to Kinger sharing his.

It's pretty terrible, losing someone. The previous episode pretty much forced that onto Pomni. How exactly do you completely move on from something like that? Well see that's the neat part, you don’t. In fact, Kinger even alludes to how you shouldn't. Even though the memory of losing Queenie is painful, it's what anchors him. He lost Queenie, but he still has everyone else, and he refuses to give up on them. So despite his mind constantly working against him, he does what he can to help his friends. In his own clumsy and confused way, he's there for them.

To me, abstracting isn't going insane. It's giving up. Giving up on yourself and giving up on others. It's easy to get to that point without the occasional necessary affirmation that you shouldn't give up.

This was the hardest lesson Kinger had to learn in the Circus. And he's doing his best to get the others to understand as well. But Kaufmo's recent abstraction proves how unsuccessful he's been.

Thankfully, Pomni takes it immediately to heart.

This is crucial, not just for Pomni's development, but for everyone else. Kinger even assures that it's more important for Pomni to remember than for him to not forget. That's why her name is more than just an ironic punchline, it's meant to represent her purpose in the story. As long as she remembers, hold on to the good, she'll get through it. Kinger is putting just as much faith in her practicing what he just preached as she is in letting him lead her through hell.

Oh no I've made more biblical allegories! The Pomni is Jesus theories are winning!!!

Ok but in all seriousness, we see just how much Kinger's words influenced Pomni's actions in Fast Food Masquerade. It's all but said that Gangle was close to abstracting towards the end of the adventure.

Yeah she’s about to turn into an eldritch horror, but c’mon we’ve all been there after a long shift.

Trying to talk things out didn't work, so Pomni then took a more practical approach to helping her.

Something as simple as allowing Gangle to get some rest and verbally reminding her that she doesn't have to handle things on her own. It's almost poetic how although Pomni can't leave the Circus, she's constantly telling others that they can leave and she's going to help them.

And Pomni doesn't save Gangle all on her own either. It was Kinger's insistence to have Zooble take his spot in the adventure that allowed them to witness Gangle's manic-depressive decline. They also had a practical way of showing support by offering to stay past their designated shift and relieve Gangle of the burden of transporting a drunk Ragatha.

Episode 3 really was all about acts of service, wasn't it.

If Zooble wasn't present for that adventure, they wouldn't have had the full context of why Gangle feels like she's not wanted.

Zooble saying "I still like talking to you" carries far more weight than if they had said, "I like talking to you". Especially when Gangle already feels insecure about how honest Ragatha is with her. Zooble got to see Gangle spiral and still accepts her. On top of that they are adamant about calling her their friend despite her doubts. That means something. Everything really.

This is what cherishing someone looks like.

I think Queenie abstracted because, at some point, Kinger began to neglect her. Perhaps he became so obsessed with finding a way out that he forgot what was most important. It's too early to really say if that's how it went down, but it'd be a poignant bullet point to the tragedy that is Kinger.

So I guess the real question is: How does one lose their wife?

Well in the wise words of Cody Martin

[yellowjacketsfashion]

Do u think they’ll play the bonus ep with the upcoming szn? What are ur theories?

The bonus episode was originally planned to air between seasons 2 and 3 but it seems like it’s postponed for the time being. Based off this Entertainment Weekly article it appears that the current plan isn’t for the episode to air before the new season on February 14th.

If it won’t air before the new season it might air after or maybe with one of the later episodes. Based on what Lyle said though it doesn’t sound like it’s completely off the table.

As to what the episode is about, there’s a couple things that suggest to me the potential plot:

(Warning: There are two images below featuring fake blood, one of which is of an article of clothing and the other with a fake dead wolf.)

The two black and white photos below show Jason Ritter on set for the second season of Yellowjackets. Before the season aired he was announced as a guest star but ultimately he wasn’t featured in any of the content released so unless his scenes were cut, I think it’s very likely that he plays a character in the bonus episode.

While the photos are in black and white, Jason Ritter appears to be wearing the plaid wool coat that was repeatedly worn throughout the season.

In an interview with Digital Spy, costume designer Amy Parris said the coat “(is) on purpose meant to look super warm and not a part of the suitcases of the Yellowjackets that flew out there. So this is something the audience will um, it will be revealed to them in future episodes where the like origin of this jacket comes from… It’s a very fun plot reveal when we find out where it comes from.”

Ultimately though this origin was not seen in any of the released season 2 episodes. Much like the exclusion of Jason Ritter, while the coat’s origin could’ve been in a deleted scene, I think it’s more likely the “origin” is seen in the bonus episode.

As to who Jason Ritter plays specifically, I believe he is the Cabin Guy whose body was found in the attic (and who was previously portrayed by William Charles Vaughan). My guess is that the bonus episode is the backstory to the Cabin and its previous inhabitants, such as Cabin Guy and the Baby.

Both the previous behind the scenes photos came from an Instagram account for the young twin actresses who are seen with Ritter. I’m assuming they played the same character as that’s what’s common for babies who act in film but it seems as though they might be playing the Cabin Guy’s child.

The baby is mentioned in the script segment below from 02x07 as well as an additional character that might be featured in the Bonus Episode:

In this snippet Van finds a page from a “manuscript” written by a character called the “Wife.” It seems like between the photos with Jason Ritter and when the page was written, something happened to the baby and the Wife is mourning that loss.

In coping with what happened to her baby, it seems like she’s seeking comfort in the Wilderness (and describes an entity similar to the one Lottie and the other Yellowjackets talk about).

I’m not sure what happens to the Wife but I was able to find a potential piece from her wardrobe!

This photo came from the Harper’s Bazaar article about the costumes in season two and it it described as “a bloodied robe from on set.” As far as I recall this robe wasn’t otherwise used in season 2 and stylistically I feel like it looks like it could be from the 70s (which is what I’ve seen people generally theorize as the timeframe when Cabin Guy was alive).

Could the robe belong to the Wife? Maybe she meets a grisly fate or maybe the blood has something to do with the loss of her child?

Speaking of blood, there was a post on Instagram from @mastersfxstudios (the group who does special fx for the show) of a dead wolf prop they made for season 2 (as seen below):

Like most of the other things I’ve mentioned, the wolf isn’t otherwise seen in the episodes from season 2 and therefore could be featured in the Bonus Episode. The photo also features a lack of snow which would be strange if it was used in the teen timeline as I’m pretty sure they’re surrounded by snow for the entirety of the 2nd season.

Perhaps the wolf was killed by Cabin Guy or is otherwise found by him or his wife? Maybe the blood on the robe is connected to the wolf or maybe it suggests the wolves might play a bigger role in the episode?

I think it’s especially interesting that the wolf is entirely white as it reminds me of the white moose that plays an important role in the teen timeline during the second season.

There’s still a lot we don’t know about the bonus episode but it’s definitely cool nonetheless! What about you guys, what do you think about the Bonus Episode?

[therealcallmekd]

Playing The Frame ! ! !

Left to Right : Lochanori (Locha) They/Them; Tiyazikin (Tiyaz) He/Him ; Mainarenzi (Maina) She/Her

finally threw together my thoughtform obesk ocs,,, theyre so silly and special to me....

They are silly creatures that I initially created as random ocs for the frame segment, they are shapeshifting thoughtforms that look alot like obesk despite their.... fun colors (very specifically the BSTRD colors for a reason :P) They're what I image the shells are that you use in that portion, I mean... they each have a striking personality so I just had to.

Plus a million doodles:

[tonythr]

Picking up Monarch Wings triggers Infected Crossroads and there is a lore reason for that

Another interesting fact that (in my opinion) is not talked about enough is that the Infection doesn't corrupt the crossroads after we take monarch wings just because it's a convenient point from a gameplay perspective to introduce the player to stronger enemies, or to show us the passage of time. It's because taking away the wings from that specific location directly affects the spread of the Infection.

In the game, we can clearly see how a specific segment of the Ancient Basin is overrun by the Infection. I'm talking about two big rooms in the western part of the Basin, one where we fight the Broken Vessel and the other where we encounter the Mawlurks. There is a third one near the Basin tram station of the lower line, but I assume it's just part of the same thing, just the Infection seeping through the ceiling of the main room. There is also the room that contains Monarch Wings, which is completely free of the Infection, but I'll get to it.

Those glowing bubbles and pulsing vines and orange clouds of fog are indicative of severe corruption by the Infection. Before Infected Crossroads, we see them only in special places (like the Glowing Womb aspid nest) where the Infection had a lot of opportunity to become gas, then liquid, then flesh for one reason or another (with the aspid nest that reason is probably the symbiotic relationship between aspids and the Infection itself, where the aspids act like carriers of the disease that help it spread).

And the western part of Basin is the most unique place in that sense, because, aside from the crossroads, it's the only place where 'that flesh came to life'. But what is the reason for that? Why don't we see those glowing blobs and lightseeds in any other part of the map, even though it's clear that even the most remote parts of Hallownest were influenced by the Infection? What is so unique about this part of the Basin?

It's the wind.

The picture doesn't show the vines and particles moving around that much, but anyone who played the game probably remembers that badass storm that we see and hear the moment we enter the room after the big spike tunnel. The orange glow of the Infection also makes its first appearance in this particular room (if we're talking about this specific part of the Basin, of course). That leads me to believe that the wind is somehow connected to the spread of the Infection in the confines of this area. And we already know why this wind is there in the first place.

The room where we pick up the Monarch Wings is the only one in this area that holds no sign of the Infection whatsoever. The wind in this room also feels much stronger, and it blows with a unique sound specifically near the Wings statue. But most importantly, it stops the moment the Knight consumes the Monarch Wings.

After that, the whole area actually becomes less infected. The changes are rather subtle, but visible.

Look:

LOOK:

And, despite the common misconception, it's consuming the Wings that serves as the in-game trigger that sets off the Infected Crossroads. You can literally kill BV without picking up the Wings, and then return to the Crossroads to see that it's still (relatively) uninfected. It's a solid proof that Monarch Wings and the wind that they create is what affects the spread of the Infection.

After we pick up the Wings, the Infectious mass partially leaves this part of the Basin and moves to the Crossroads, since that's when we see all those drastic changes. Now, that might give us some interesting implications about how the Infection actually works. Possibly, reuniting with its main source inside the Black Egg Temple gives it more power, resulting in total corruption of the Crossroads, since we see that Infected Crossroads has way more bubbles, lightseeds, vines etc. That actually leads me to believe that the Infection actually may have very specific physical limits, and that the total mass of the matter that it can create is finite and measurable (at least as long as the Sealed Vessel is still intact and holds the source of it inside itself).

Like, why doesn't it spread all throughout Hallownest even when the Seals are broken and the door is open? Even when the Hollow Knight is unchained, the Infection doesn't spread anywhere beyond the Crossroads, it stays exactly the way it was with only one Dreamer taken down or only Wings being picked up. So yeah, my theory here is that:

Picking up Wings and killing a Dreamer triggers the spread of the Infection in different ways (Wings lets another part of the Infection's mass give power to its main source, killing a Dreamer loosens the door's Seal and lets the Infection out), but ultimately leads to one result, that being Infected Crossroads.

The Infection doesn't spread past Crossroads because Hollow Knight, despite its failure, is still strong enough to hold it at bay.

The Infection operates like some kind of shapeless mass that can be gas, liquid, solid and sentient. It's basically a matter that holds a will (that will, of course, belongs to the Radiance).

That is why destroying the Infection (instead of sealing it away) was deemed impossible.

Although that leaves many questions about the Pale King and his relation to the Radiance. Did he know that the source of the Infection was his old pal Moth Goddess? Did he deliberately choose not to confront her, but instead try and seal her away? Was he stupid? Or did he have some secret internal motives?

...That is not exactly what this post is about. I would like to get back to the Wings thing now.

Another thing that led me to believe that it's that particular Infectious mass from Basin that corrupts the Crossroads after we pick up the Wings is the movement of the particles inside that part of Basin. Particularly, the Void particles. Before we pick up Wings, those particles follow the wind. After that, they start to slowly rise upwards, just like in the rest of the location. That gives us two interesting conclusions:

After we pick up Wings, the Basin Infection escapes upwards, eventually reaching Crossroads.

The Void that resides in Basin is also affected by the Monarch Wind.

By the way, another interesting fact: the orange fog that we see spreading throughout Infected Crossroads actually moves according to its position relative to the Black Egg Temple.

This means that Team Cherry does put deeper meaning into how they make background particles move, and it means that I'm not insane for reading this much into that! Yay!

Now, back to the Void being influenced by the Wind. Like I said, the part of the Void (which, probably, is also a matter that has its own mass, albeit maybe not as measurable) that resides in that part of Basin is also influenced by the Monarch Wind along with the Infection. It might imply that, like the Infection, the Void is trapped inside that area.

Or maybe it's not trapped. Maybe it just circulates there, so that something else can be trapped inside its currents. Ancient Basin is basically the Void's home, so I really doubt that whatever is going on in that area affects the overall condition of the Void as a whole. But we don't know that. What we DO know is that the Infection there is certainly trapped, unable to reunite with its source, being forced to slowly find ways to adapt, becoming gas, then liquid, then flesh, then reviving the corpse of the Knight's Lost Kin.

So what if that was the whole point?

Ok, we know that Pale King was looking for ways to fight off the Infection and eventually decided to harness the power of the Void to do so. He created Kingsmoulds, Wingsmoulds, probably experimented with the Void inside his workshop, eventually coming up with the idea of a Pure Vessel... But what if what we see in the Monarch Wings location is another part of his struggles to come up with a plan to lock up the Infection?

See, we KNOW that the Monarch Wings were Pale King's deal.

We know he wore one of those.

We know that those flies that (presumably) give the Knight those Wings are called the Monarch Flies (or rather Monarchflys? I dunno, I wouldn't trust those mushrooms on how to spell things).

And we also know that the Pale King has some connection to the wind.

So perhaps that area is a place where Pale King was trying to contain the Infection without trying to put it inside a live Vessel. Maybe it was the first prototype for his plan to see how the Void, being channeled with his monarch power, would keep the Infection at bay? Maybe there was another reason as to why that part of the Infection should have been sealed away?

Whatever it is, my overall theory is this:

The Monarch Wings contain some kind of power that is strongly connected to the Pale King. This power creates a magic Wind that makes the Void residing in Ancient Basin move and circulate, resulting in a part of the Infection (perhaps one of the remaining parts from the first time it started destroying Hallownest) being trapped in the area of that Wind's range, isolating it from the outside world and making it start to form gas clouds, liquid puddles, bubbles and lightseeds. Once the Knight removes the Wings, consuming them for its own purposes, the once trapped part of the Infection reunites with its main source at the Black Egg Temple. As a result, the Infection's will becomes stronger, and it starts corrupting nearby lands (although it's still being held back by the Sealed Vessel), creating what we know as Infected Crossroads.

Ok I'm actually done. I hope this is comprehensible enough to read and not too boring or too obvious. I just REALLY wanted to talk about it, since everything about this part of the game gives me chills.

[orsan1070]

Pokémon World Geography and Real World Geography: Not The Same

It’s a common idea that the geography of the Pokémon world reflects that of the real world, and I would not begrudge anyone for thinking so (especially given the series’s origins). However, I’ve found that fewer people than I expected are aware that it actually doesn’t line up and that it hasn’t for at least ten years– the evidence is not compiled in one easily accessible place, making it often hard to explain why it does not match up.

This is, unfortunately, not a full map of the Pokémon world. Such a thing would be a big undertaking, and I do not believe we have enough evidence to completely coherently construct one as of now. If people are interested in my take, let me know!

As with my prior posts, direct main-game quotes will be in orange, and quotes from supplementary media like demos and spin-off games will be in green.

This is going to go in order of most damning to least damning. Starting with:

Kalos & Hoenn

This is probably the most famous example. Within Pokémon X & Y, you can find Swimmer Kieran at Azure Bay, who says that he “swam all the way here from the oceans of Hoenn” upon being encountered.

In addition, the map description for Hoenn’s Route 108 states that “People come swimming from as far away as the Kalos region to see the site of Sea Mauville.”

One more piece of media reiterates this: the Omega Ruby and Alpha Sapphire Special Demo Version. While the two demos are not canon, as seen by their having nonstandard takes on the settings of both ORAS and SM, including an entirely otherwise nonexistent area in SM, different protagonist names, and the like, they still likely reflect the actual nature of the setting. Within the ORAS demo, which is set in Mossdeep City, you can meet a Swimmer who leaves for Kalos, telling two other swimmers that he’ll “swim back to Kalos on my own.”

Overall, all three of these paint the picture that swimming between Hoenn and Kalos is possible and, in the case of the Route 108 description, not uncommon. In real life, though, the distance between France (the basis for Kalos) and Kyushu (the basis for Hoenn) is approximately 9600 kilometers / 6000 miles in a straight line, not even accounting for water. The longest recorded human swim, even accounting for multi-segment swims, is only 168.3 kilometers, only about 1.7% of the necessary distance. These two areas being at their real-life inspirations’ distances is, frankly, infeasible. This is the most damning piece of evidence, but it’s worth bringing up some more minor discrepancies.

“The East”

Throughout the various games, there have been occasional mentions of an eastern region, such as in the story of the Treasures of Ruin. However, the relevant case here is in the Pokédex entries for Arcanine. In older dex entries, Arcanine was said to be revered in China. In line with modern Pokémon cementing itself as not being in the real world, however, that specific dex entry did not return at all after HeartGold until Let’s Go Pikachu and Eevee, which rewrote it to be in line with modern lore (much as it did for other bits in Kanto such as Surge’s tagline): 

“A legendary Pokémon in the East. Many people are charmed by the grace and beauty of its running.” 

However, Kanto is based on Japan, which China is notably west of. Even the original Japanese text refers to this eastern region as “the Orient”, a term that literally means “east”, also historically used in China to describe Japan. Therefore, this unseen Chinese-based region from Arcanine and the Treasures of Ruin’s lore has to be east of the Japan-based Kanto and Johto, despite that not matching real life at all. (Thanks to @kiskeym on Twitter / @boh.nonso on Medium for the Japanese translation and for explaining some of the nuances for me!)

Hoenn, Galar

Hoenn is based on Kyushu and Galar is based on the United Kingdom. However, as many people know, both of these regions are rotated compared to their real-life counterparts. Hoenn is rotated 90 degrees counterclockwise, so real-life north equates to Hoenn’s west, while Galar is rotated 180 degrees, so real-life north equates to Galar’s south. If their real-world geography applied, they would be at their proper orientations. (We know that north is up in both Hoenn and Galar from various pieces of dialogue and world design, such as the four sisters in Mauville City and the names of the Wild Area’s lakes).

Paldea & Unova & Kitakami

Next up is the trio of regions featured in Pokémon Scarlet & Violet. In-game, the player takes plane flights between the three of them, with the time shifting according to each region’s timezone. (It’s not just the time of the plane flight, which is abstracted away, as the in-game map shows the time correctly regardless of which region the player is in.)

In-game, Kitakami is 18 real-life minutes ahead of Paldea, and Unova is 18 minutes behind Paldea (Source). The day/night cycle in-game is 72 minutes long, thus making 18 minutes equivalent to six hours in-universe. 

In real life, Spain is in the UTC+1 timezone, while Portugal is in the UTC+0, making up Paldea. New York City, the basis for Unova, is in UTC-5, which does match up with Spain, which represents the majority of Paldea. However, the issues come with Kitakami, which is based on the real-life region of Kitakami in Japan. All of Japan falls into the UTC+9 timezone, putting it eight hours ahead of Paldea instead of six. This is, ultimately, a relatively minor discrepancy, but it is still a discrepancy.

Fiore & Almia & Oblivia

Lastly, I’d like to delve into the spinoffs a little bit. The three regions of the Pokémon Ranger series, Fiore, Almia, and Oblivia, are all based on real regions of Japan– the Okoyama/Hyogo Prefectures, Oshima Peninsula, and Oki Islands respectively.

However, a girl in Cocona Village in Pokémon Ranger: Guardian Signs says that “This Oblivia region is very far south relative to both the Fiore and Almia regions.”. Looking at the real-life inspiration map, this does not make sense– the Oke Islands are north of Okoyama/Hyogo and southwest of Oshima, neither of which I’d describe as “very far south”. In addition, Oblivia is quite tropical, unlike Fiore and Almia.

Conclusion

Overall, there are quite a few pieces of evidence that Pokémon geography does not line up with real-world geography. Kalos to Hoenn being a swimmable distance is by far the most damning, but that doesn’t mean that there’s a dearth of other evidence. Regardless, I hope this was informative! If you have any questions, comments, or feedback, my askbox is always open, or you can just comment/reblog– I promise, I love disagreements (they’re opportunities to see other perspectives or learn something new!), so I’d love to hear any thoughts or criticisms!

Thanks to, once again, @kiskeym / @boh.nonso on Twitter / Medium, as well as the others on Discord who helped me look over this!

[fatuismooches]

4.5 potion-making event makes me have many thoughts about Dottore and Reader...

You two definitely tried potion-making before, originally for the sake of classes in the Akademiya. However, both of you got interested in making potions for personal use - well, surprisingly for each other. Zandik would make you strength/endurance etc enhancing potions for making you carry stuff on long trips to the desert... On the other hand, you'd make him tranquil/relaxing potions so he wouldn't be so irritated, and hopefully could either persuade him to go to sleep, or take it a bit easier while researching. You always loved choosing the cute bottles and decorations for the potion (which he found to be useless but whatever!) Eventually, normal potions would turn out to be far too boring to concoct so you two would sometimes dabble in more dangerous ones illegally. There was probably a time when the dorm was nearly blown up in the middle of the night. Zandik stopped potion-making in the room after that.

Lisa talks a lot about how doing this is like reliving her old days at the Akademiya. I imagine fragile reader would feel the same way. There are not many things you can do properly with your current state, which often leaves you upset and bored. It irritates you to see others help him with research (that was your responsibility!) So it would be cute if Dottore invited you to create potions with him once again. With lots of precautions of course. Unfortunately, you'll have to stay away from the exploding agents for now. You keep the potions in your room to admire the pretty colors.

Also this with a specific segment. I think it's a pretty popular hc that each segment has their own research specialty/interest so it would be cute for one to specialize in potions/alchemy... many thoughts are being made as you start coughing hysterically from the smoke as a result of another explosion that happened all the way down the hall.

[theriverbeyond]

#SPOILERS

ok so I watched arcane s2 act 1 and my immediate reaction is mostly mixed -- I think there was gorgeous art and strong individual emotional beats but I think it all got watered down by everything else -- I did LIKE it, I guess (?) and am reserving full judgement for the whole season until the next 2 acts release, but yeah.

warning for SPOILERS and also critiques below:

the deluge of new characters I have no reason to care about, and whom i am given no specific reason to care about (besides the itty bitty one, and that's just bc they are a child) does not hit. I dojt get it. why are these people special or chosen for the strike squad. they're just randos, and fangirls and one of them is a random dude you all seem to have grabbed off the street (?) also who tf is amara. was she even in season 1 at all?

the integrated music videos felt significantly LESS integrated this season than the last. last season it felt like the "music video" segments were just like.... really well done and stylized parts of the show, here they feel more like clipshows or standalone music videos during which the actual show takes a pause. some of them do advance the plot and all are gorgeously done but like, I dunno. feels a bit much, honestly, especially in a show that NEEDS to be incredibly economical with its time

relating to that, it feels as if nothing really happened at all besides setup, and I guess that was perhaps narratively necessary, but using THREE episodes of a 9 episode season to set up the plot feels..... REALLY wasteful, especially when i feel like those 3 episodes didnt have a tight plot OR tight character focus. everything feels very loose. the timeskip between s1 and s2 is like.... idk! why did we skip that. why didnt we just skip farther. how is Vi suddenly beloved by topside those bitches hate her!!! anyway. there is a lot happening and a lot being set up and, as i said before, a LOT of new characters being introduced and I'm not very emotionally invested in most of them. The differences between act 1 s1 and act 1 s2 are feeling incredibly stark right now.

To me, Arcane has always been a character driven work, so I can forgive it of plot issues if the emotional focus and character arcs are strong. I.... didn't feel that here! and even the big character moments didn't quite hit. for me. like ok CaitVi kissed. but like. they've known each other for a week? Why are they acting married? The most resonant and emotionally intense part of the CaitVi arc in act 1 was when Caitlyn HIT HER with HER GUN, in a way that felt deeply reminiscent of how encorcers probably hit Vi when she was in prison. And that was like at the very end. sorry but the kiss just did not hit for me. sorry. so sorry. you can kill me with Hammers if yuo want to

A lot of characters seem to be making plot centric decisions that simply do not feel within their character. Vi becoming an enforcer -- I literally do not care about the game, it is emotionally inconceivable for show!Vi to do be super down with gassing the undercity. Jinx and Sevika suddenly being buddy buddy is weird, even thought i LIKE it, it just feels.... fast. Jinx's arc, emotionally, feels the best and most consistant, and I feel like there's so much setup happening it isn't given the space it needs to breathe. Caitlyn becoming a facist is like.... fine, I guess. I really like the emotional conflict this inserts to the story but again it just feels inconsistant with her lifelong characterization as someone who is out of place on the force. also didn't she actually get fired lol. why is there a Kiramann supercomputer.

a lot of stuff just feels emotionally really off. Cait going wild with anger in her grief is fine, but then it feels.... bad that the redhead bitch who's CHILD Jace KILLED last season is a villian for wanting revenge also? maybe this is just an inherent weakness of the genre. or the source material. or whatever. i mean season 1 was pretty enforcer-critical at least in the first 2 acts. sorry for wanting a story made by people with money to be consistant in its negative framing of cops :/

l am deeply confused about the Noxian angle here -- I think it serves a meta narrative function of giving Topside and Bottom (aka, all the characters we care about, who hate each other rn) a common enemy to rally against, but there is just. a lot going on, honestly. too much? only time will tell. this all makes me deeply concerned/curious about the governmental system of Piltover though. why is Caitlyn like the town King now. why are they not electing new councilors.

don't even get me started on viktor being undercity jesus

Anyway. things I liked: the opening, especially its contrast to season 1. Jinx & Vi's fistfight was incredible I just wish Vi felt more emotionally consistant BEFORE it happened. I really LIKE jinx being given essentially a second chance in the form of saving and caring for a child in a situation that puts HER in a reversed position from her youth. like OK it definitely feels way out of left field but like, that's fine I guess. I like what they're doing with the kid. the art is gorgeous as always. I love how the enforcer squad is represented like hunting hounds, coming out of the gas. unfortunately i think their gas masks are wildly erotic. anyway. what was i saying?

that's my immediate thoughts. I'm definitely open for comments/explaining, but i really don't like the "it makes sense if you play the game/pay attention to LoL meta" kind of explanations I see thrown around -- it's a narrative weakness to be relying on viewers to know LoL lore, especially on the heels of season 1, which didn't need viewers to know anything.

[kits-ghosts-corner]

reasons i would make a great medieval monk:

• aroace - no problem with a vow of celibacy and the idea of not being able to marry isn’t a concern for me personally

• autistic - a segmented day? separated by hour? with specific things to do in those times? excellent!

• big lover of bread and cheese

• do love a little sing-song and chanting in a rhythm soothes me

• love scribing shit

• love doing those silly ass looking flouncy letters

• one of my special interests is medieval religion. so. bonus.

• oh i need to be silent for bit? i already go non-verbal sometimes babygirl that's not a problem

• monk robes provide 0% body shape. it’s all rectangle. excellent.