#this will probably post a thousand times but idc

[goore-ghoul]

COPIA BEING FRUITY IN NASHVILLE

🎥 me!

[tleeaves]

TIME LOOPS. FUCK YEAH.

time loop fans when the loop slightly changes

[massiveladycat]

i will never get over people laughing at octavian's death personally,,, he was SHOT INTO THE AIR!!! thats so painful. all the burns and the impact, plus being flung from a cannon and probably slamming into gaia (literal earth goddess) plus festus (gigantic metal dragon, i bet that HURT) and leo (pretty sure leo was burning)

he was a kid and he was annoying to some people and he was usually antagonized but he didnt deserve to die OR go out in that way. the gods are a thousand times worse than octavian, and apollo told him that he'd be a savior of new rome, but people still justify them. not to mind there are much worse people in the PJO universe (gabe, LUKE)

octavian ily they could never make me hate you EVER. idc what you say he could have been redeemed. did he do bad things? yes. but he was so deeply influenced and the day meeting with leo and the others, in which i remind you octavian literally was watching new rome get blown up (no wonder he was livid, his home was on FIRE).

like come on. octavian is a complex character and people aren't willing to admit that he could've been better and he was just a literal teenager in the sake of hating him because everyone else/pjo characters hate him.

he is such a tragic character imo because he grew up in new rome and all he wanted to do was protect it (and he was highly ambitious and aiming for praetor, i won't deny the fact that he was selfish but that is a quality that can be REDEEMED) and sure the way he went about it was messed up but most of his actions (except killing that one centurion) were justifiable

btw im not saying octavian's like an angel or anything im pretty sure i remember him "killing" a 5th cohort centurion once but then she was revived which . . . what was the point of that?? was it just to like make us hate him more?? huh??? and then was it even ever talked about again?? also yeah he blackmailed hazel thats not good also judging from the wikipedia it only said frank suspected octavian because.. he didn't have his spear?? what?? reminder that there is proof that a lot of pjo characters are unreliable narrators and for all we know octavian could've screwed up somehow and left his spear somewhere (just saying i'd do that too ngl)

also "I am the savior of Rome! I was promised!" i didnt know why but that quote DESTROYED me but now i know that it was because he genuinely believed he was doing the best for new rome and he'd finally have someone's praise and they'd praise him like they praised percy and reyna. pretty sure his mental state was not very good in that scene either and nico and will just let him shoot himself out of an onager on accident. also are we just going to gloss over the fact apollo told him that and encouraged him he was doing the right thing?? of COURSE octavian trusted apollo on that and believed it was the truth; apollo was his ancestor and someone he worshipped as an augur and trusted in for omens and prophecies and allat

yeah. octavian's an asshole. but he was a kid and he couldve been redeemed. then again i am a huge octavian apologist and im not saying you have to have the same opinions as i do also i will not be responding to any asks in my inbox im 2 tired to deal with that!! anyways dont go and insult people or me if you think the opposite thats fine !! i was just bored and found this in my drafts so whats the harm of posting it because im not going to get sent threats over this right,,, right??????

[s4toryuu]

inumaki headcanons — 1

notes: bc im losing it and i love toge too much.. also numbered for future masterlist because there will be multiple hcs!! —also not x reader bc not everyones into that but truuust next hc will be x reader

part 2

he mostly communicates through notes app and signing but since it’s annoying to pull up every time he just resorts to body language and signaling to things

he knows that he can probably say a lot of words but he’s too scared ever since some kind of incident in his childhood

he can definitely say other nouns but when he says people’s names, that person automatically anticipates a command or smth so he just refrains from saying anyones name

despite him being a troll, there’s definitely a side to him that wishes people took him more seriously

he can type like 150wpm due to it being his only straight way of communication LMAO

texts with chronically online slang

absolute menace outside of assignments and school (see: maki’s skirt incident)

kind of likes that his onigiri language can piss people off

can’t lose arguments

really fcking funny on tw1tter and on his ig spam

like he’s actually hilarious and probably has a couple thousand followers

he doesn’t tweet a lot or post a lot but when he does it’s stupidly funny and genius wit

his hair looks a little like back it did when he was a first year when he wakes up in the morning

I feel like he’d like hot chocolate idk he just looks cozy all the time and I associate it with hot choco

his body temp runs on the warmer side

he’s a twice fan idc I don’t make the rules

has never once used his cursed speech for malice

at least not for anything serious

like he definitely got free candy or something when he was little from a candy store, “give me free candy” idk

he’s one of those “sigh.. this generation” people who say that whenever they’re out and everyone’s on their phones

but actually it’s just cuz he likes spending time with his friends so he wants everyone to be present

he just mutters “okakaaa” with a sigh and dramatically rolls his eyes while him and the second years wait for their food in mcdonalds

maki’s like “what now” and he points to their phones and mocks how they’re sitting like capital Cs

more soon!

— reqs [open]

[shitouttabuck]

Do you have any buddie fic recommendations for me? Sweet fluffy smutty idc I need something good 🥺

hiya! these are some of my faves off the top of my head and you’ve probably read most of them and if you’re like. nina. these are eighty percent fics by your mutuals. well i BECAME pals with them by adoring their writing and bullying my way into their lives about it <3

stitch my soul 30.5k by @onward--upward (soulmates au that genuinely changed my whole life i think about it daily—fair warning it’s a little heartachey, but in the best way)

it’s nice to have a friend 6.4k by @colonoscopys (a little domesticity i love this with my whole heart it’s so soft and sweet)

drench yourself in words unspoken 26k by @eddiediazes (everything is the same except eddie secretly writes romance novels and i reread this like once a month it makes me so happy)

the side effects of eating too many clementines 3k by @forthewolves (idk what to even say, no one writes love like amanda writes love, it’s a bigger-than-your-chest kind of feeling)

(this kiss is) something i can't resist 7.9k by @clusterbuck (family curse where eddie has to kiss his true love in one year or he’ll die, i laughed so much, EXACTLY the kind of romcom shit with a side of ridiculous i adore)

growing sideways 3k by @housewifebuck (extremely evan buck buckley is christopher diaz’s parent and you WILL cry about it)

left your mark on this heart 5.8k by @anxieteandbiscuits (buck thinks he has post-lightning heart complications but he’s just That stupid in love)

slip like freudian 4.4k by @jeeyuns (eddie diaz gets jinxed and is Extremely entertaining about it)

sundae kind of love 18k by @rewritetheending (okay this was the first morgan fic i ever read—and maybe one of the First buddie fics i read actually—and i think about the pier scene all the time! au where buck works at an ice cream shop by the beach)

maybe fall in love 1.8k by @try-set-me-on-fire (brick’s writing is just. unfailingly gorgeous but also 8 out of 10 times the most devastating thing you’ll ever read so this is a sweet, minimal emotional damage first kiss one???)

there’s always been a rainbow hangin’ over your head 8.7k by @alyxmastershipper (just the heartwarmingest of coming outs feat. the mug of my dreams. so so soft)

i think it’s my body wanting it the most by @transboybuckley (post-date that they’re not sure is a date, this is under a thousand words and i could not stop beaming i come back to it all the damn time)

you shaped this heart of mine 5k by justhockey (i haven’t reread this because it was such an enormous ache—in a good way—when i read it the first time, but god. god i love it so much. domestic sickfic)

i’ll scrawl it on every wall i see 29k by @letmetellyouaboutmyfeels (loosely a you’ve got mail au???? which is simply my favourite romcom in the whole world. this is so fucking funny as is everything they write and i adore it)

there ain’t language for the things i feel 1.8k by calvingseason (eddie buys buck a plant at the farmers market it is. so unbelievably soft)

i’ve almost certainly forgotten a bunch of faves so let me trawl through my bookmarks later and round some more up!!!!! highly rec ALL of these guys’ fics though SOME OF YOU are hell bent on breaking my heart these days and anon asked for ��sweet. fluffy. smutty” and not hole-in-chest-in-shape-of-author's-fist, so

[comfycuddles]

You know what I think...

It's time we start talking about Peter Capaldi.

When we talk about Doctor Who and our favourite modern doctors, we always go round and round in the same circles:

"David Tennant is the greatest Doctor!"

"No way! Matt Smith brought this goofy nature to the character, while maintaining the Doctor's eternal darkness!"

"Please! Nine was funny and sassy and just overall great. He deserved more credit. Eccelston was the best Doctor!"

And sometimes even a:

"I think that although she had to endure poor writing, a female Doctor was refreshing!"

I agree with this of course, and every Doctor brings something with them, you know who we don't post enough about? Or even generally talk about enough?

Peter fucking Capaldi. I seriously think he might be one of the most underrated Doctors of the modern era and It's a WASTE.

From the very beginning he was just amazing. "Do you know how to fly this thing?" ICONIC. His first episode was pure crack in the very best way. (The way he flirted with the dinosaur, anybody?)

Capaldi had this amazing connection with Jenna as Clara (Although I am a Clara stan idc so I might be a little biased about that) and their dynamic was so much fun to watch.

Not unlike David Tennant Peter is such a fan of the show. (As was confirmed by Jenna) But is also nice about it too. He doesn't go around just correcting everyone, but he wants everyone to know what an amazing show it is and wants people to love it just as much as he does.

Also 12 was so iconic??? Fighting fucking Robin Hood with a spoon? Awesome! Rolling into the middle ages on a fucking tank, calling people "Dude", making puns and dumb jokes and above else SLAYING that guitar?! Yes! A thousands times Yes! Just the best space grandpa ever!

Capaldi is so unhinged and has this chaotic energy while still appearing as the sanest person in the room. Just look up some stories about him fucking around on the set.

It was also very refreshing to see an older Doctor. I mean, I think Capaldi wad the oldest guy to play the Doctor since HARTNELL. He still had this youthful energy, but he just seemed so DONE with everyones bullshit. 12 handled things with a certain maturity that I kinda loved.

Like he has life experience, he KNOWS what his actions will cause and that's GOOD to see of the Doctor. And at the same time he's also forgiving himself for all the things he's done, which is even BETTER.

And don't even talk to me about his relationship with his companions and Missy. First of all the latter gives me life. And his relationship with Bill was so good y'all. I mean, he punched a racist in the face for her. (ICON!!!!) And were just adorable.

And my final point, the biggest point: Peter Capaldi is just an AMAZING actor. We all love "Heaven sent" and It's just the greatest episode EVER and this is party because Moffat wrote it so beautifully, but also because of Capaldi's Jaw dropping performance!!! If he wasn't SUCH an amazing actor the episode would have never worked. And I am certain of this fact. He did that y'all! HE. DID. THAT.

Capaldi gave some of the best speeches and performances in Doctor Who history. And everyone sleeps on it, and I say "No more!" Also his line. "Do you think I care for you so little that betraying me would make a difference?" DONE, SOBBING ON THE DAMN FLOOR. I need to say with this that I'm NOT an emotional person at all. But somehow that line hit me right in the feels and never stopped.

So yeah

Eccelston was hilarious and fun and amazing

David was awesome and I think It's definitely deserved that he goes down in history as one of the greatest Doctors.

Matt had some heartwrenging moments that I'll never get over, was as cool as bowties and just lovely

And Jody was unique and ADORABLE!

But y'all are SLEEPING on Peter Capaldi and 12 and that is SO undeserved.

Mister Capaldi Sir, if you ever see this, (You probably won't, but that's okay. I hope it does though) just know, that I love and adore you so much and think you are one of the greatest actors and human beings in the history of everything. And you DESERVE to know that. I will forever be proud to say that 12 that is my favourite Doctor of all time. And I say this without half a doubt in my mind. I'm a proud Peter Capaldi stan until the end of time. And just know that I and so many more people along with me have so much LOVE for you. (Most of us not in a creepy way though) and you are CRIMINALLY underrated.

Thank you so much for reading my rant.

This has been a Peter Capaldi/12th Doctor appreciation post. And I invite you to reblog this and show your love for the best Doctor. Only positivity though, stay nice.

[notyouraryang0dd3ss]

I’m still furious at the Brazil mess so I’m sorry if this is incoherent but holy fuck!!!! Im not saying this to minimize Ana’s death, but another person was shot and killed before the concert, and over 1000 people were injured during it as well!! I don’t care whether it was strictly her, the venue, of her team making decisions none of that should’ve happened. They banned outside water, closed the air vents so people in the parking lot couldn’t hear for free, used pyrotechnics even though fans begged her not to make the already 100 degree heat worse. The fact that over A THOUSAND people fainted or were burned by the venues metal grates and she did nothing to stop it and nothing afterward!!! Brazil is one of the places being hit by global warming the hardest and she did all this shit during the hottest time of year, AND flew back and forth between Brazil and her home every night instead of staying in a hotel. She’s been one of if not the biggest individual contributors to pollution for the past 2 years!! Indirectly and directly she is to blame for all this and I think she knows it. It’s probably why she couldn’t muster more than a “I’m so sad don’t msg :(“ insta story post and purposely skipped all her other shows quiet moments. It’s clear she doesn’t care about her fans, especially fans of color. I hope everyone at that concert sues for negligence.

no worries its not incoherent at all!

her negligence was deliberate. idc what any swiftie says she is responsible to a certain extent of the venue and she definitely 100% has the power to make sure none of that shit happened. but she knew and didn’t care (and she definitely knew because they also told her of ana’s death). a moral human being would stop the show and make sure the conditions were liveable and SAFE to be in during a concert but she knew she already had everyone’s $ so she just went on anyways. and i don’t doubt the fact her negligence was aided by the fact that brazil isn’t a wealthy white western country so she wouldn’t face as much backlash. can you imagine if this happened in the U.S. with a girl that looked just like her? her tour would be cancelled. & you’re not minimizing ana’s death at all, you’re just giving proper context to the horrific situation and letting us know her death wasn’t spontaneous but a direct result of the neglectful and actively dangerous conditions. and then to top this all off with her flying to/from her LA home like what a way to say fuck you to her brazilian fans. im so sorry this happened and her racism is undeniable and fatal

[bitchofdarkness]

8, 17, and 19 for the year in review ask list!

Hey love! Thank you for asking 🥰

8. What fic meant the most to you to write?

Phew, my baby is A Heart's Desire and it's still ongoing (although I wish I'd finished it this year already and hey, maybe I will lol. Here's to hoping), but if I have to choose a finished work I would say Ashes of a Former Life. It's a gender bender fic that is pretty long and where I got to put my blorbos throguh a lot of stuff that isn't too heavy xD

17. Share your favorite opening line:

Opening lines are not my forte, I don't really like mine tbh. Only one that didn't make me frown from this year:

A small gift landed in Seok-chan's lap and while he fumbled with it to keep it from falling to the ground, he looked up at the person who unceremoniously threw it at him. “What is this? A Valentine's gift, Sarge?” he asked and shook the little brightly wrapped box, a delighted smile on his face.

The rest can be found here.

19. Share your favorite piece of dialogue:

From an unedited Sweet Home fic I have yet to finish and post:

If he’d thought lusting after his subordinate had been bad before, it was a thousand times worse now.

Somehow he managed to power through the week without being a complete weirdo, but failed on Friday. “What are you doing this weekend?” Yeong-hu asked as he walked to the parking lot next to Seok-chan. His subordinate was a bit perplex and blinked up at him since Yeong-hu never asked after such things and usually hightailed out of there without a word.

“Not much,” Seok-chan replied, a blush creeping up his face as he avoided Yeong-hu’s eyes. Through his live streams during the week, Yeong-hu had noticed that Seok-chan always looked a little sad when he mentioned he’d be eating alone. “I might visit my family.”

“Ah,” Yeong-hu said, thinking of a natural way to offer having a meal with him, but failed. “Would you like to eat something?”

The need to face-palm right after he said this was almost too great and Seok-chan appeared to be seriously confused, but managed to give him a smile nonetheless. “Are you asking to have a meal together or if I’m hungry in general?” He’d always been good at deciphering Yeong-hu’s words, but this was the first time Yeong-hu felt embarrassed not to have been clearer. “I could shoot a quick text to the boys if you want us to have a night out together.” Today didn’t seem like the day Seok-chan was good at it though.

Seok-chan was already fishing his phone out to do just that when Yeong-hu stopped him, “No, I meant just...us?” This really wasn’t getting any better and Yeong-hu was ready to just give up and make a quick escape. “I- there’s a lot of food at my home and I...would like some help? But it’s not enough for the whole unit,” he got out, feeling betrayed that the ground didn’t break open to swallow him whole.

Seok-chan got a little closer like he was inspecting him, “Are you feeling okay, Sir?” he asked, hand shooting out to probably check for a fever, but Yeong-hu caught his wrist before he got too close. “Sorry.”

“I’m perfectly fine,” Yeong-hu grunted, “You know I’m not good at making friends?”

His subordinate slowly blinked at him and Yeong-hu could only imagine what he was thinking. “That should be a statement, not a question, Sarge.” Seok-chan said bluntly. “But sure, I’ll help you with your food.”

I'm honestly cracking up each time I revisit this dialogue. Idc if someone thinks that makes me arrogant for laughing at my own writing xD it's funny. Can't wait to post this trainwreck full of horny 😂

-

2024 in Review - ask game

[milf-louis]

I know im late to post my first louis concert experience but i just really wanted to share this so here it is <3

The journey to the venue was pretty uneventful, when we got off the subway a man who worked there asked us if we’re going to the “Tomlinson concert” and gave us directions. On the bus we saw a bunch of really young fans, one of them was wearing a 0neDee shirt and i gave them a dirty look and idc if they were like 10 it felt good! Later on one of them asked if we want to be in their tiktok and wear heart shaped sunglasses… we rejected them so fast lol. So we got off the bus and walked till we saw the venue, screamed a bit, continued walking to the entrance, got past the security and then walked around without a purpose and got something to eat. In the meantime i worked on my sign. We made the mistake of not getting water afterwards and just made our way into the venue. When we got inside the venue tho the second opening act started playing. They were meh. And then we just sat there for a long time doing nothing but staring sadly at the giant poll that would block our view of louis on stage UNTIL the band appeared on the stage and THE CROWD WENT WILDDD the scream they let out made my ears RING AND THEN LOUIS WAS THERE AND HE STARTED SINGING THE GREATEST AND my life felt complete!! My heart was beating so fast and i felt lightheaded i just!!! Couldn’t believe my eyes!! I started screaming the lyrics right away. He was captivating, ethereal, powerful and OWNED the stage!!

So!! I do not remember the order of the songs but everything was amazing, he started off strong and kept it up. He did sound a bit off a few times but im guessing it has to do with the fact that he was tired bc of the previous shows. Anyways!! He literally KILLED KMM I did not want that song to end I couldn’t get enough!! He sounded SOOO good during Bigger Than Me! He hit those notes and you could tell that it’s a song that needs to be played live. Holding On To Heartache was such a moment my god he ate that UP!! That was one of the highlights for me i was really really impressed with how he sounded, he put his soul into that song and it showed! Shed a few tears as well cuz that song just hit different yk.. he did sing two 0neD songs which.. I didn’t sing along to because I genuinely didn’t know the lyrics and wasn’t going to try and remember 😭 so those were kind of the moment i let myself have a break from screaming and jumping. During WAOYF u could just tell the energy in the venue shifted. People were LOUD. As loud as the other one d songs LIKE HE KNOWS WHAT HE DID TO ALL OF US WITH THAT TRACK HE JUST KNOWS. Hearing WMI for the first time was such an experience!! The best way to describe it was nostalgic and just really sweet idk i loved it. Ok. I know I’ve heard copy like a thousand times now but… you guys the recorded version is NOTHING compared to the live version. I could feel myself ascending into heaven with every word it was just beyond words. One of my favourite moments or perhaps THE favourite part of the show for me. WALLS WAS ALSO NOSTALGIC AND I GOT TO SCREAM “you were my because” at louis with my whole heart!!!! That was so so so special definitely one of the moments i will never forget. Lucky Again was literally perfect he again hit the notes and it was perfection. The song that surprised me the most when heard live was probably Angels Fly because he just did it sooo well and had full control over the song it was just such a nice tune to hear live also one of my favourites! .Face The Music is one of the songs that sounds amazing live!! And 505… someone else did inform me that he will cover it but nothing and i mean NOTHING could have prepared me for what i heard that day. I was ON MY KNEES READY TO PLEASE HE was just so hot!!! So effortlessly hot and sexy it was almost too much for my heart. I caught myself shouting “with your hands between MY thighs” … not my proudest moment 😵‍💫 the most shocking moment was back to you ofc. i was losing my marbles when it started playing i was head empty no thoughts except for “what the fuck is happening is this a new track????” And louis starts singing and i am STILL TOO OUT OF IT TO UNDERSTAND THAT ITS BACK TO YOU so my friend had to tell me what song it is and then i was having the best time of my life. I don’t know how he managed to alter it into a rock version so perfectly but it’s not a surprise, anything that louis is involved in is absolute perfection. Out Of My System my beloved!! Could not get enough of it one of my faves. All This Time was another moment that made me emotional because it showed how louis loved performing that songs and put his heart into it. Silver Tongues was also one of my favs and i really REALLY wanted to be closer to the stage at that moment to see his chaotic ass in action 😭. They gave away free monsters when we left and a group of embarrassing people were doing a * karaoke but that’s irrelevant. Overall it was a perfect night and !! i got to meet @berlinini and @bbrox 🫶🏼

[beebeetheclown]

No idc it’s game time. ‘Action stations’ Kendall Roy phase

So.. for the ones who saw my one post about the options.. I think I’ve cleared it lol. (Probably not there’s still stress and possible most likely mind changes) there’s no just bakery and pastry classes anywhere near where I live now. They are all hours and hours away. I think first I need to learn to live on my own somewhere close by.

I don’t think I’ll do the culinary course and live with my parents cause I just really feel like I won’t be interested in the cooking classes and also it’s expensive obviously. Also if I stay here any longer I feel like I will lose my mind even when I get a job. There is nothing to do here, I have no friends here, and all the men here I hate lmao.

Moving out would be so good for me. If I get depressed, there’s somewhere for me to go, a mall, a park, a random university just to walk around in, etc. And also, my family isn’t too far away and the city I’m thinking of my sister lives in. Here there is practically no where. Our only public park is full of druggies or strange people, our mall is so sad, more empty than full of stores. There’s hardly any events here, etc blah blah.

People constantly tell me how hard it is to afford living on my own especially with only working minimum wage, yes. I know. I’ve heard it one thousand fucking times. If you want me to not live with you till I’m late 30, stop telling me this bullshit that will make me give up and say boo hoo.

If I move out, start out minimum wage, that’s okay. Moving out in a bigger nicer city, maybe I meet someone and eventually move in with them and split rent, maybe I somehow get two jobs, maybe I get experienced enough on something than I get a higher job.

I’m just tired of people telling me crap. I know, I know they are trying to help me. But I just need them to listen to me, say good positive things about it and help me by looking at places and stuff, not just telling me the bad stuff that comes with it. I just constantly feel like they don’t think I am able to do it. Well, staying in this house with nothing to do is only going to make me more depressed and anxious and all that. I need to start fresh.

Game time you guys😎 I am not going to let them hunt and take me down like I’m some little deer.

[amoeganism]

🍓🌹❗for both and 🥀❤️💔🥩 for mayumi :333

(can u tell i really like mayumi)

MAYUMI MY GIRL!!!!!!! i love her sm she's a horrible person but idc 🔥

info under the cut

🍓 (strawberry) - Does your oc believe in anything? Are they superstitious? Religious? Atheistic? Has anything in their past made them this way?

already answered this one in the previous post!!

🌹 (rose) - What does your oc find attractive in other people? Are these traits found in their friends and/or romantic partners? Are they found in themselves?

mayumi's standards are LOWWW she'll fold for any girl but she doesn't fall in love easily. her kind of pining is staring at a girl from afar and giggling over scenarios at home (she needs to stay mysterious and nonchalant). she skips from crush to crush really fast though, a new one maybe every other week but she's got a thing going on with yuu that's been pretty steady

ryuji is an unapologetic gold digger LMFAO ever since the u20 match he's had his eye on isagi and hits on him every chance he gets (he's atrocious at flirting and isagi thinks ryuji is just fucking with him and it pisses him off). his feelings for isagi started because he saw isagis potential and exponential growth in the sport and from that MONEY!!! FAME!!! if he sees an opportunity to exploit, he'll jump for it cuz he's trying to do anything to get validation and also out of his life

❗️(exclamation point) - What was the scariest moment of your character’s life? Does it still affect them?

for mayumi it's when when her mom got hospitalized after her dad beat her. she was used to her parents always arguing and both of their explosive tempers but that time they got physical. after that she was left kinda jaded and cuz violence was all she knew, she flipped out on her schoolmates and ended up getting expelled her second year.

i'd say the most defining moment of his life is when he got alcohol poisoning and had a nearly fatal overdose of synthetic drugs one night, leaving him in several thousands of yen in debt because of medical bills in a city he doesn't live in. his family is already poor so that was a huge punch in the face about his lifestyle and living situation. also he used diapers until 13 and he lives in constant fear about that secret coming out

MAYUMI ONLY SECTION:

🥀 (wilted flower) - How does your character deal with stressful situations? Is their fear response fight, flight, freeze or fawn?

mayumi has horrendous coping mechanisms and immediately goes for fight. she's on edge like 24/7 and is 5 secs away from jumping everyone #angerissues

❤️ (heart) - Who is the most important person to your character? To what lengths would they go to protect this person?

MAYUU YURI!!!! mayumi honestly only cares about yuu and feels kinda bad because she sees herself as a horrible influence on yuu. she'd do anything for yuu but is also scared that one day she'll blow up on yuu and fuck up their relationship, leaving her alone

💔 (broken heart) - Who has your character hurt most? Physically or emotionally? How did it feel? Do they regret it?

i'm gonna be fr she's probably hurt everyone in her life bc that's all she knows of relationships. she's thought about getting physical but she can't hold her own in a fight like... at all.... so it's mainly emotional abusing others until she got expelled and that's when she was like "huh.... maybe i should .... not 😱 " and got sent to intensive therapy for half a year so yuu is her #1 #icon

🥩 (steak) - Does your oc have any coping mechanisms? Healthy or unhealthy?

her previous coping mechanism was severely bullying everyone in her vicinity but ever since she got out of therapy, she's been trying to manage her temper. she's still on edge 24/7 and a literal bomb so she turned to self harm and punishing herself #ROFL i was gonna include it in my scene!mayumi art but i thought it was too much so i cropped it out 😭

[rontra]

Pls tell us more about ur summer/salem rare pair cuz I'm so interested

ok ok stupid ass post incoming its also at least a couple thousand words long so be warned

like i CAN yes, but it'll be rambling and inconveniently longwinded!

this is because my thoughts on this and the context for the pictures i drew actually hinges on a bunch of rwby analysis that has to be established First for any of my conclusions to make sense. i actually thought about making a comic about them to lay this stuff out in a more convenient format…maybe i will do it, but until then, umm. i'm sorry about this level 9000 nerd wizard post. it's the autism and passion for women kissing (the 2 reasons behind everything i do)

as an aside before i lose my lucidity, i'm not claiming the stuff i'm about to set up is 100% absolutely indisputably true and if you disagree you're wrong. it's just sort of my interpretation of a bunch of different stuff. it's fine if you disagree or have your own reading! but for the purposes of this specific content we're discussing, in the context of the women kissing AU if you will, these are presupposed "truths" . idc if you think i'm wrong as hell in real life! but in the world of the pictures i drew/my feelings on this ship, this is the list of Things That Must Be True.

(the salem/summer torment nexus is built on a bunch of overthinking rwby and then a little bit of lesbian high romance, so we do reach a point where we finally veer off from "analyzing rwby" and into "and that is why women kissing women", but that is, all i can do . because just putting down the "here's why they should kiss" conclusion makes me sound insane. so before we go into why they should kiss in the way i've depicted, here are some points that must first be true)

Summer is alive and well, and

Summer is Salem's unseen lieutenant at Beacon, and is working for her by her own free will, because

Salem is right (caveats about being evil rn notwithstanding) and

Remnant treats them in similar ways, for opposite purposes (thus in the women kissing women world, they are not only women who should kiss, but foils who should kiss: a far more powerful gameplay unit that inflicts a Brainrot DoT on its target (me))

i'm not going to be completely thorough here: i'm omitting anything that doesn't feel immediately important to understanding me, so if it feels like i skipped something, i definitely did. please bear with me bc this post's existence is already hilarious. the omissions probably aren't me missing things (depending on what it is) i'm just genuinely trying not to get derailed by factoring in every nuance and perspective (which rwby has, A Lot, of,). do not tweet at me

1 and 2 are almost self-explanatory, so they're quick: scenes about summer are nigh-universally conspicuous in how they talk about her, and there are too many questions raised about her/her fate that only she (and salem) could answer. her just being dead is too straightforward for all this effort, so something else is surely going on. in v8, the "Hound Summer" idea is raised, but i don't think they would let a character onscreen spill the beans ahead of time if it was actually the truth. (additionally, salem herself describes the hound as "an experiment", indicating there isn't like a bunch of them running around or anything...)

HOWEVER, letting ruby draw the "hound summer" conclusion on screen leads me to believe the actual truth is not FAR away: it'll be a knife-twist on what ruby said. the More Harrowing version of "my mom is alive but a tool for salem against her will" feels like it's naturally "my mom is alive and working for salem on purpose".

for 2, salem has an additional lieutenant that we have not been shown; being at beacon working on the Beacon Relic Puzzle ever since the Fall. we see salem contacting this agent to give them verbal instructions over the grimmphone, which is…not typically how she directs grimm, suggesting it is a person. we aren't privy to any further information about this person except their station being Beacon, which…i hate to say it but that's a "dramatically seeing summer rose alive" ass place….

the REASON for summer being salem's lieutenant as opposed to A) dead, B) a tool, C) a double agent, D) literally anything else, is because of 3 and 4.

this is where things are gonna get really cringe and potentially deranged but i need you to stay with me. let's go in order and focus on 3 first: salem is right.

saying this will cause some immediate pushback from some people, but to those people, please set that gut reaction aside for now and play in the space with me; i'm not saying that her current plan of action is like, nice, or Good, but i'm saying she is ideologically the one in the right. like Thematically. it took a lot of work for the world to make her be evil (across quite literally millions of years, potentially hundreds of millions) and now she's like "fine i'm about to be hilarious", but in the fundamental conflict rwby is about, she hasn't stopped being RIGHT.

just before this, someone on twitter asked me what i think salem's goal is, because a lot of people jump to assuming it's planet-destroying stuff; i had to make it a twitlonger just to answer them because (in case it wasnt obvious already) im head FULL thoughts SALEM mouth RAMBLING. instead of spending time and wordcount rehashing all of that i'll just relink it here because all of it is important to THIS discussion too: http://www.twitlonger.com/show/n_1ss7lck

You Have To Read That Post Because I Won't Re-Type It. But It Is Important For This Post. TM.

ok. you're back? hi. sorry about that. let's continue

okay so we have the "disquietingly genocidal if carried out to its natural conclusion, which is that we should surrender ourselves to the complete custody of the World Destroyer" guy, and the "humanity inherently has a right to exist and doesn't need babysitting from someone who believes otherwise" guy. One of these sides is currently in control of remnant. and it's not the one you'd hope! and it's not the one the show agrees with.

(sidenote before it's too late I should clarify i have a Lot of thoughts about ozma's side of all this and like i said rwby is incredibly rich when you begin to mine for nuance and in-universe perspectives; i love that guy to bits and pieces. there are a lot of angles to this dangle. it's just that neither the twitlonger nor this post is About Him, so if it sounds like im dismissing his own nightmare situation i'm NOT im just not posting About Him Right Now. love you oz sorry you're also in the bullshit swamp etc amen)

i mention this very briefly in the twitlonger, but ozma has a vested interest in A) wiping salem from history/humanity's knowledge, and B) making sure the people who DO know about her see her as completely incapable of being reasoned with, the source of all evil, and so on. he's been pretty aggressive in these efforts, successfully paring salem's perpetual existence in remnant down to a spectrum ranging from "i have never heard of this woman in my life" to "exaggerated fairytale image that can be safely ignored" and maybe like "scary witch story to keep kids from wandering into the woods (FAKE, NOT REAL)". and to his circle, she's evil incarnate, and nothing more—still the fairytale witch, just an actual threat this time.

there seems to be a belief among some of the characters in the show that if you stop salem, you win; you've Fixed The Problem. in this way of thinking, salem is the one thing holding remnant back from being Normal And Good. she is the single cog not turning in time with the rest of remnant, and she is Fucking Up The Machine For Everybody. obviously this is a very simple and easy way of looking at her, and it is also desperately encouraged by ozma's version of the story. for his story to work, salem MUST be the source of all evil, the well it all springs from, the clear villain who's behind every bit of suffering and wants to destroy humanity; if she is NOT, his own comprehension of his trauma falls apart, his life's work and mission loses meaning, and the world he's built on them falls apart too.

(unfortunately, you cannot fix a dysfunctional world by destroying a single woman (no matter how much some certain gods try to tell you otherwise) if the dysfunction is systemic and foundational the way remnant's is)

with that in mind, summer rose (aw hey girl i forgot you were in this post) seems like a pretty stark opposite to her. but i would like to argue the…opposite. opposite double reacharound combo: They Are The Same edition. aka 4

okay, so, another facet of ozma's ideology that goes pretty visibly hand in hand with his own baggage (rip) is the fixation on this, idea of, a Hero. a Guardian. a "simple soul". specifically, he tends to nominate a Lone Hero, who must shoulder an unfathomable burden—usually a secret one—with little to no support (because they cannot share the burden). and this is, demonstrably and in no uncertain terms, a practice that breaks heroes.

(without getting too distracted: this is pretty obviously what was also done to HIM, and ozma continuing this pattern is not surprising with that fact in mind; i do sympathize. but girl…<3 you are crafting the crux of an insane post on rontra.tumblr.com and you dont even know it)

the Lone Hero is perfect. they fight alone, carrying humanity's light, and when they die they do so heroically, righteously, bravely. they are a symbol, praised and exalted even into their own deaths. their torch doesn't burn for long, but it's beloved whilst it does! the superhero dies young, but dies well.

this idea is a motif that recurs in rwby; all four Maidens are historically isolated, working alone, their very existence a secret except for when they swoop in to save the day. Huntsmen can become Lone Heroes if they're exemplary or unlucky enough. it was done to Pyrrha on-screen, by backing her into a corner and nominating her for an unfathomable burden she could not possibly refuse—and it lead to her death, alone, in a fight she knew she could not win.

of course, it also intersects with the Silver-eyed Warriors, who are (like Maidens) secret and largely isolated, but (especially when combined with being Huntsmen) make extremely powerful Lone Heroes. THERE'S our girl we've been waiting for! summer came out of the extremely notable team STRQ, and she's got silver eyes; with her pedigree we've got another legendary Grimm Reaper on our hands!

ha ha…

the weight must be crushing.

i can't say for sure why summer left; maybe she really thought going in guns blazing could finish this. maybe she had encountered a piece of information that alarmed her, or even seemed to corroborate something Raven tried to tell her team years prior. maybe it was something else that drove her to take the fight to salem on a solo mission. maybe being a Hero from a broken team just does that to your brain. we don't know yet! but she went out alone and she met up with salem.

this was never going to work, and not ONLY because salem can't be killed: it's doomed because rwby, the show, does not give praise to self-sacrifice. it is opposed to the very idea of the Lone Hero. when characters break the buddy system and face the bullshit alone, they usually don't get out unscathed, and usually don't succeed in accomplishing much of note. if anything at all, they usually attain something temporary or minor that isn't at all worth the sacrifice they made. because how can anything be worth that? rwby so far is pretty against the idea of both a lone hero and of "good death"; you can't die heroically, because you only ever die tragically.

but the Hero, Lone or otherwise, is needed. it's a twisted hope, but it is hope: there are people, real heroes, who will do anything to save us; including die, over and over and over and over and over again. remnant runs on hero blood. the academies are major arteries that pump out more of it, and even while you're at an academy you're not in the clear, because the students are included as a layer of protection around the relic. if something comes for the school, you are intended to die for it.

Like it or not, the people that hired me are going to change the world! You can't stop 'em, I can't stop 'em! You wanna be a hero? Then play the part and die like every other Huntsman in history!

and the selected Lone Heroes, even more so, are intended to die fighting an unwinnable fight, bearing unfathomable burdens. proverbially speaking, it keeps the lights on: keeps the fight going. keeps humanity from losing its grip on faith. and it completely robs each Hero of their humanity.

this kind of hero is not human: it's romantic like a fairytale and reduces a human being to a symbol. one of hope, sure, but a symbol nonetheless. the perfect hero isn't permitted to doubt or fear or hesitate. they're something distant, something else, something beyond humanity, something conceptual. and THIS, (points at it) is BAD

but it is the other side of the coin. the Lone Hero who represents all of humanity's hope has a natural obverse: the Sole Evil responsible for all of the world's darkness. the Single Enemy who springs forth all the things the Single Light stands against. these two concepts together pull an astonishing amount of the weight to make ozma's ideology function. without them, the wheels do not turn.

it's important how successfully ozma has eradicated salem's humanity and cast her as a force of blind evil. you can't reason with her, it's futile to try… but we know that salem may be very fucked up indeed to people, but she's also plenty willing to talk; essentially the only reason no one even thinks to try it is because her carefully designed reputation precedes her. the ruling world ideology prominently features the bastions of humanity, the bulwark against evil, the Lone Hero figure; the Guardian…and it hinges almost entirely upon the Sole Evil of salem, who can't be reasoned with but must be destroyed, even though the war against her is eternal, impossible, unsustainable.

by design, neither one is permitted any humanity at all.

Summer Rose and Salem are both ideological work-horses. in the world of remnant, neither of them can retain their humanity: they are conceptual existences that pull ozma's world through the motions, step by agonizing step. they are both yoked to the same plough.

if those two TALKED—and salem is very much willing to talk—i think a lone hero with a passion for humanity and way too much skin in the game would be repulsed by the system she lives in. she would recognize that she (and huntsmen as a broader institution) would be in the Wrong to support ozma—and by extension the gods, who look at humanity as a thing to be corralled and punished, something that must actively justify its own right to exist—

—that she's got two kids in this world, and she suddenly hopes to high heaven that they never get pulled into the same cannon fodder machine that created the Guardian summer rose, who bleeds and bleeds so that all humanity can cling to a hope that is bound to be false because the arbiters of their worth do not find them inherently worthy of life—

But, baby, please don't do what I did; I don't want you to waste your life in vain.

the reason women should kiss is that there is a mutual understanding that they are both beasts of burden to this world: two less-than-human icons, unpersoned on purpose, merely representing a concept. they perform roles in a narrative written by somebody else. they are not human! they are bearing unimaginable weight in service of an idea!

and they don't want to see humanity's fate be shackled to that idea for a moment longer.

i think when i say summer/salem most people think im trying to conjure like a dark spicy image full of like, power and control, and tension, and stuff. and there's nothing wrong with those, i do make a lot of those. but in reality im picturing the most tender secret in all of remnant. could you imagine?

...they are both yoked to ozma's ideology in these weird twisted ways so theres a lot of understanding and sympathy there, even if their Functions are different. opposite even. perhaps like foils one could say...

it's a ship built on that kind of understanding. the theme tying it together is that grueling dehumanization and the tenderness of seeing that you're both human to the core regardless. remnant yearns to grind them both up, one in service of the other, for a horrifically cruel ideal they can't just lie down and surrender to. humanity deserves better. so do they.

salem is right. summer rose knows it.

in the pictures i made, there's a protective angle to their poses and interactions: sort of a knightly, HER Warrior, type thing. "NOT YOUR SACRIFICE". etc. i guess salem is a lady with a tendency to attract the heroic knightly type (rimshot)

and that's why summer and salem should kiss. i dont know. i know im the one that locked you in this room but we should get out of here before i transform like a werewolf. wanna listen to Until The End in the car?

to live free or die, it’s all the same the enemy was right, there’s no reclaiming in waves of shame, we’re desperate to make amends but through a simple soul we lie complacent.

awoo...

[caliburn-the-sword]

cress commentary (hehe i love alliteration)

i love how you can tell how far into a book i am by how dense?? my commentary is in terms of like how many comments i'm making over a given number of chapters. because when i'm first starting a book i'm good to interrupt my reading to taking a note down but once the stakes and tension start hitting i'll only note something down if it's significant enough

"She would have kept walking all day if he had asked it of her" jesus christ cress sounds like she's been glamoured LMAO

CRYING SHAKING THROWING UP CINDER DIDN'T MENTION CRESS TO ERLAND - but now that i know how common a name crescent is it's likely he wouldn't even think twice about it

cinder and erland's relationship honestly reminds me of the relationship between buffy and giles. a teenage "chosen one" so to speak, who has the weight of the world on their shoulders and copes being sassy, and her long suffering but equally sassy mentor figure. i think that's why i love it so much

SAHARA. THAT'S WHERE CRESS AND THORNE MAYBE ARE. THEY'RE GONNA FIND EACH OTHER

i really like the townspeople of farafrah

OMG AND NOW KAI THINKS SCARLET IS THE LUNAR PRINCESS. dramatic irony my beloved. i mean kai is right that cinder has found the lunar princess,,, just wrong about WHO it is LMAO

YES THORNE HAS REJECTED HER. god she's freaking out

cress' reaction to seeing the goat <3 she's got such a distinct character voice. also she's super delulu and i love her

i remember questioning on a previous post how everyone talked to everyone else. universal language explains it. praying it's not english

thank goodness cress and thorne found someone. hopefully no one recognised him

jail for a thousand years DO NOT hit me with the one bed trope with CRESS AND THORNE OF ALL PEOPLE (note: i've never been more glad to see a character kidnapped and to NOT see the one bed trope happen)

back to being grossed out by thorne again. i don't like him. idc if he can't see, it's about PRIVACY and BOUNDARIES. he should not be entering a bathroom where an underage girl is showering, with or without consent. it's gross

omg is thorne buying the escort droid for iko

jacin is kind of a dick ngl. sometimes his humour is funny and other times he's like a 12 year old boy that thinks dark humour is like making jokes about war. like bro people are DYING. you don't have to give a shit about cinder but at least don't make fun of her friend that's been kidnapped by the queen

losing my mind that erland and cress have met

help has cress just stumbled across wolf?? this is hilarious NAUR JACIN HAS JUST COME IN OMG. THIS IS LITERALLY THE WHY IS GAMORA SCENE IN INFINITY WAR. AND NOW ERLAND AND THORNE. THIS IS CHAOS INCARNATE OMG FSKDHFSKH

EW EW EW the sex bot androids are modelled after LATE TEENS??? YIKES.

(intervention voice) come on cinder, what have i told you?? friends don't control the bioelectricity of friends

holy shit. what's happening to scarlet is literally horrifying

scarlet referencing helen of troy~

OMG PRINCESS WINTER

HOLY SHIT SCARLET'S FINGER I HATE CLIFFHANGERS I NEED HER NEXT CHAPTER IMMEDIATELY. fingers can often be reattached (or a toe in place of a finger) so HOPEFULLY that's what happens for poor scarlet if she does lose her finger

IKO FSKHFSCKFNHS SHE HAS A BODY NOW

cress is literally so paparazzi by lady gaga. and also lovefool by the cardigans. also this is home by cavetown but specifically the bridge. ocean eyes by billie eilish (even tho i imagine thorne with brown eyes lol). a few penelope scott songs but you're not allowed to make fun of me for this. god this is probably gonna end up with me making a playlist. thankfully i'm too lazy to make playlists so my ears are safe from the onslaught of random mishmashed songs that remind me of cress (that said thinking of a song when i see a character or thinking of a character when i hear a song has gotta be the highest honour i can bestow to any character)

i remember reading meyer's pronounciation guide when i first started the series and jacin's was like "jay-sin - so the real pronounciation of jason" but i'm aussie and every jason i've known has been pronounced jay-sen, so i'm respectfully ignoring that. i doubt i'm pronouncing anyone's names right anyway LMAO like i have to mentally correct myself every time i read benoit as "beh-no-it" instead of "ben-wah" (if i'm STILL incorrect i apologise to french speakers). i've also been pronouncing wolf's actual name as "zay-ev" idk how right that is

@eddisfargo @francforever @winterrhayle @winterpinetrees @shellyseashell

[designsdefiance]

quick lil pinned post that might get replaced with something prettier at some point. idk i'm terminally lazy.

about me

lance, 25, he, gmt, i will also respond to my mains' names idc

crystal + chaos dcs mainly but i have alts on other dcs

drk/brd/blm main

alliance raid enthusiast. normal about ancients (lying)

i only roleplay with friends but i love my ocs a lot and i'm trying to be more outgoing about sharing them

about my wols

if i talk about ALL of them in detail here this will be a thousand years long so to keep it brief, my trio of favourite children:

loren; midlander, he, pld -> drk + blm

ishgardian runaway teen turned ul'dahn sellsword. full of problems but don't worry about him he's fine (he's not)

m'seyli; seeker, she, cnj -> sge + arc

gyr abanian who (reluctantly) left her home with her very sick baby sister m'kipfhi in search of a cure

hypnos; ancient, he, blm

my azem oc + half of the ancient soul that would be reincarnated as loren. silly lil guy shadowed everywhere by his very intimidating twin brother/literal other half of his soul thanatos.

you can find the rest of my ocs here!

things to note

i don't have a dni or anything, but a couple things to note before following:

i rarely post anything nsfw but it might happen?? so like be aware if ur a minor.

one of my mains is in a lalafell/non lalafell relationship so if that bothers you you probably won't have a good time here

this blog will not be spoiler free. i'm all caught up on msq and most side content and horrifically bad at tagging spoilers.

i like and follow from @cryptocorvid, though i'm more active for non xiv stuff on my side blog @aspeckrobus

[golbrocklovely]

Hi, so the thing about the volunteer mods on xplrclub kind of rubs me the wrong way. They absolutely have made millions in their career, I mean their channel has been blowing up steadily for years. Their channel on top of merch sales, tours, xplrclub, they're living rather comfortably. One of the other anon's said colby has admitted to spending 10k a month on just clothing?? 10k is what I make in 5 months of working full time, dropping that on clothing in one year is insane let alone one month. Plus they have 2 mansions and not just rent but own. I'm the same age as them and I'm still living at home because despite having an MA and working full-time, my job doesn't pay me a wage that would allow me to live on my own without going completely broke and ending up in even more crippling debt.

I do like snc, as people I think they're probably really nice guys, but I think they've been in the influencer sphere for too long and no longer have any grasp on the real world. We're in a cost of living crisis right now, so asking anyone to essentially work for free is a bit tone deaf. I know they're not asking for crazy work, but they're still asking someone to give up their free time to put in labor for something they pay snc to be able to access. It's just a bit icky to me. Either don't charge them the monthly subscription if they're going to mod for you, or pay them. It just kind of strikes me as snc think their fans should be grateful to them for allowing them this opportunity to mod for them, that money shouldn't even be a factor. Idk, maybe I'm being a bit too harsh, but in the economy we're currently in, asking people for free labor while you are raking in hundreds of thousands if not millions of dollars a year is gross.

Sorry for this long post, I just felt like I wanted to get it all out, haha.

you're totally fine to vent. i agree with a lot of what you're saying. i think it's ridiculous that snc would think mods should be volunteers and not paid employees.

but to defend snc just a small amount….

snc haven't stated what the "perks" will be of being a mod. so it's possible it's negotiable to ask for a free membership as a mod, if not possibly more. on top of that, now that it has been a day and i'm not as upset as i was, i think the reason snc think this volunteer system is okay is bc when they did a livestream on wednesday, they mentioned getting mods and ppl in the comments started asking to be a mod.

not to mention the amount of ppl that have already applied to be mods. i mean the last time i checked the post (and this was yesterday mind you), there was 50+ comments, and only three of them were critical about this whole thing and one of them was me. so a lot of ppl are fine with being mods without being paid.

that, tied with ppl being on twitch and streamers pick randos from their fandom to be mods, i bet snc think this is the best case scenario and way to go about things.

i would like to believe that it's mostly this, tied with a little bit of snc being cheap lol

and look, personally idc how snc spend their money. they made it, they can do what they want with it. even if i think it's outrageous to spend 10k on clothes in a month. reality is, we're just in a different tax bracket than them. i don't relate to them on that level. and i wouldn't want them to act poor, so to speak. so….. it is what it is.

that being said, they should pay for mods. mods should be ppl not in the fandom. bc even tho snc also stated in the post that there is no amount of time you have to be online and moderating, i know there are some fans that if they do it, will be on 24/7 and will neglect their lives just to be in snc's good graces assumingly. and i think that's where an extra layer of problems lie. the lack of money is an issue, the trusting of fans is an issue, the possible future problems is another, and so on.

it would be better to get rid of chat, impo. but they ain't gonna listen to me lol

[oodlyenough]

the last of us 1x06: kin

surprisingly don't think i have a ton to say about this ep of the last of us but i feel like i should continue posting for posterity at this point lol. (eta: i said that, then started writing my thoughts, and wrote a gazillion words anyway.)

side note: any canadians watching on crave? isn't it fucking terrible. trash service

anyway: 1x06!

continuing to enjoy joel and ellie a lot. the further we get into the show i think the more they've come into the roles and evolved into their own versions of the characters, which is fine. good even. i think bella ramsey and pedro pascal have very fun chemistry together, and i think bella carries the comedy beats really well, which means i've been enjoying seeing more and more of those. i also really like those scenes because they feel familiar without being complete retreads of the game dialogue (which inherently invites me to make comparisons on delivery, etc)

so this joel is much more openly vulnerable. i think this change works to go with what we've seen in the show so far and places where the show is presumably going. and, i'll be honest, i find show joel a much more likable character. 🤷🏼‍♀️

the "not my daughter" scene hit differently... tbh i think it hit less, but not really through any fault of the show's, if that makes sense. it's just one where beat by beat i know the words as delivered by troy and ashley and my brain is super imposing them

loved the opening with the Indigenous couple, they were so funny, and the idea of florence seeing joel puffed up like an angry bird and identifying zero threat and making him soup lmfaoooooo hkghlkg. honestly w game joel i don't think that would work, lol, but w show joel it did. such a funny way to use the map easter egg, and the "there are firefly people?" followed by the couple laughing at their own joke killed me lol

also loved ellie's indignation about how they probably don't know anything because they're "a thousand" and they don't even know the fireflies, who are probably a total nonentity outside select QZs. extreme kid energy. they haven't even HEARD of paw patrol can you believe it. what do they know. also, congrats to them escaping joel and ellie mostly unscathed... minus a rabbit. (rude, ellie.)

show maria was great idc. imo game maria is not much of a character, so the show had plenty of room to expand, and i liked how they did it. i see some people reacting badly to her skepticism of joel and forgiveness of tommy, but we also don't really know what exactly she's been told by tommy. maria being pregnant is also a more solid reason for why tommy can't take ellie than we got in the game.

i can't really evaluate tommy or maria as characters without factoring in part 2 and at this point there's enough difference that who knows where the show will go with tommy and maria in s2, so, it's all kinda fair game imo

the university scene felt a bit rushed but i guess there really isn't that much to do there when you're not rearranging dumpsters and killing infected. it was the first time the show felt notably rushed to me, and i suspect that feeling will get worse in the back third of the show. ah well.

joel's injury and the fight felt anticlimatic compared to the big action set piece of the game, BUT i think it worked much better in context (joel's explicit fears in this ep becoming manifest), and also, game joel's injury is sooooooooooo ludicrous and video game it just wouldn't work on tv lmao. i kind of wish we'd seen ellie land any of her shots on those guys, but i have my theories as to why we didn't. tbd

misc other thoughts:

diva cup scene... excellent. was worried about those musty tampons.

SALLY FUCKIN' RIDE lmaoooooo ellie. u lesbian. ilu

like everyone i was beyonce.gif DINA?!?!?!? in the cafeteria scene. 100% that was dina, there's no way it wasn't. it might not be the final cast actress (i can see them not wanting to cast a major role so far in advance for a cameo, and they have a time skip to justify any appearance changes), but as a character that was surely meant to be dina. ellie that's ur WOMAN

we're 10000% getting some other cameos in the finale. i'm ready 👀👀👀👀👀

lastly: can't wait for this weekend's episode. the one i've most anticipated. left behind DLC my beloved...