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writing-for-life · 9 days ago

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You’re absolutely right @harleiquina (and I don’t think your brain works differently at all). Of course that’s the underlying reason for racism. White people have treated PoC like cattle (or “sardines”, as Hob calls it) because they saw them as animals. As not like them in any shape of form. That’s what dehumanisation is, and always has been.

So I don’t think it goes counter to what I wrote above, because that’s what’s behind it. You can’t be a slave trader without dehumanising your “cargo”. If you saw them as humans equal to you, you wouldn’t do it in the first place. And we also shouldn’t forget that historically, there have always been people around who didn’t, even if they might have been a minority (or rather: not aligning yourself with the prevailing mindset of those in power, or the majority, or both, always had repercussions—it’s complicated). It also has to be said that even non-white people have enslaved other people (not just sold them on to white slave traders) all throughout history—it’s what dehumanisation does: denying other people humanity and hence not feeling any empathy.

And in this case, it has been exploited for materialistic gain. Of course Hob’s character as such is in line with history and would likely share these exact views, and that was probably also NG’s thinking and why he introduced him to the story in the first place (hence my stating he wrote Hob as a stand-in for [white] humanity and British Imperialism, so I’m fully on board with your line of thinking).

So what I’m saying here is not that, in historical context, it would have been unusual for Hob to think that way, neither that this isn’t a part of history.

It’s rather that the way the slavery arc has been handled in both comics and show is minimising. And by extension, that can also be said for the way parts of fandom engage with that particular part of the story. I’m not saying everyone. Of course someone can’t know about Hob’s proud proclamations and Gwen if they haven’t read the comics, and that’s okay [no one gets forced to read ahead]. But that also means that if we haven’t read it, we can’t just minimise these questions, down to simplifying them to, “Well, but he didn’t say that in the show, so it must mean he’s a different/better person.” That person can’t be “better” just because he didn’t say a certain thing, but still did the exact same thing. He just is the way he is. Maybe a product of his time, but certainly not the personification of hope and love that fandom often projects on him (as a head-canon based on pants-feels for an actor, that’s okay, no problem 🤣. Just better not to blur the lines between that and who he is in canon—both show and comics).

The historical viewpoints are what they are, and it makes sense to examine them in fiction. And it also makes sense to examine why people did the things they did and saw nothing wrong with them (that’s not the same as condoning things in hindsight). But I don’t think these topics are well written in The Sandman—neither their introduction to the plot, nor their supposed resolution in Sunday Mourning. As I’ve pointed out in the OP, and you hint at as well: It’s a white male writer white-male-writing with massive blindspots when it comes to handling these issues sensitively. And I’m old enough to have been around when these arcs were written—I can say with 100% certainty that this was already a sloppy way to engage with these topics in the 1990s. While sensitivities have changed further since then, a lot of people already criticised certain takes of The Sandman back then (also goes for other topics, like e.g. Wanda’s arc). It’s not something that only comes up now, although we certainly discuss it more openly because we’re more connected. And if one reads the “Sandman Companion”, NG’s takes and justifications get worse, not better. He might have changed his views on it (as you said, we’ll never know, neither do I personally feel any desire to find out at this point), but what we’ve seen about how it’s been handled in the show so far doesn’t make me super hopeful. I might be proven wrong—I guess only time will tell.

And yes, Gwen only shows up in that part of the story. She has nothing else to do, no other purpose, as pointed out in the OP. It’s really worth engaging with every of Hob’s appearances in the comics to get to the root of the issue, but I understand if people don’t want to read ahead.

You wrote:

but you can't write a -basically- inmortal character without delving into how their mindset would've been in each time period both good and bad (to today's standards). For someone like Hob, having been a part of the Slave Trade would be a "hiccup" in retrospective and having a black girlfriend would be sort of a "apology" from him.

And that’s exactly the point of my post. It’s not about what made racism happen in historical context. It’s also not about what Hob would deem a “hiccup” (or an “oopsie”-moment, as I called it). All of that makes total sense in historical context.

It’s how writers and showrunners (and partly fandom) engage with it. They turn it into even more of an “Oopsie”.

They are not truly delving into the/his mindset, and what made things happen the way they did. They are treating it as an afterthought not worth more than half a sentence. And as stated in my OP, I think that’s what really shone through when the slavery arc got minimised even further in the show by leaving out important detail that was still present in the comics (not that the comics were great in that department, as much as I love them for other reasons. But at least they showed a bit more context in MoGF). If they don’t want to engage with it more deeply due to budget/time constraints/what-have-you, it’s better to leave it out in my view. Making it a half-sentence doesn’t make it better, it makes it worse IMHO, because it fails to engage with everything we’re discussing here. What it certainly doesn’t do: Make Hob a better person just because he didn’t say certain things he said in the comics (to get back to one of the original premises of my post, and they don’t exist in a vacuum but are based on actual conversations on here).

But ofc that’s just my opinion, and it also depends on our own focus when we’re engaging with a story. As an example: I have literally no interest in shipping (and what ship doesn’t matter an iota in this context), or making a character more palatable in any shape or form, because that’s just not the way I engage with fiction. I also know that this isn’t true for much of Tumblr fandom, and that we all engage with these questions differently, depending on our own interests and biases (and we all have them, myself included).

Hob Gadling’s Involvement in the Transatlantic Slave Trade between the 16th and 19th Century

The Fallacy of (clumsily written) Racial Reconciliation or: Is show/Hob really different from comics!Hob

I originally wrote this a while back as a reply to someone else’s post, but since we’ve been discussing “Men of Good Fortune” (comics) and “The Sound of Her Wings” (Netflix) in our community over the past weeks, I’ve expanded on a few points of my original thoughts.

This post discusses difficult topics, systemic racism, questions of social (in)justice and problematic angles in writing. If that’s not your thing, this is the exit sign…

A question that comes up quite frequently is the following:

Is show!Hob different from comics!Hob?

Hob’s conversation with Dream in 1789 (and not just 1789) in the show has been significantly altered (compared to the comics), and it makes it tempting to believe this somehow makes him different regarding the more problematic side of his character.

In the comics, we have a bit of dialogue in 1789 that shows how deeply involved in the slave trade Hob was: “I sort of started it,” said with a hint of, dare I say, pride? And then brushing off Dream’s concerns by saying, “It’s a living.” Twice.

(They changed this to, “It’s just how it’s done”, and a shrug in the show.)

And it’s true: If this had been integrated into the show, it would have painted him in an even worse light. However, I personally think it was the wrong move to leave it out (Ferdinand Kingsley carefully voiced something along those lines as well btw). Because now the show pushed Hob’s whole involvement in the slave trade much more into the direction of, “Oopsie.”

Can we truly take leaving out the above dialogue as a hint that Hob might be a better person in the show? I’d like to really reflect on that--leaving out those comments can’t make him a better person. Even if we change his arc slightly and he “wasn’t that involved.” You’re involved, or you aren’t. There is no, “I tried a bit of slave trading and decided it wasn’t for me.” One could even argue it makes the angle of the show more problematic because it makes the slave trade a “little blip” in his timeline. Things like that can’t be a blip. I personally think the writers made a mistake here, but that’s obviously just my opinion.

If there wasn’t enough space in the show to expand on it (which I get for a side character), I feel they should have left out the slavery arc completely instead of keeping, but then minimising it (that might sound contradictory, but it only does if you don’t look at it too closely). It already didn't sit right with me 30 years ago to use slavery as a side note for showing a white person’s character development without properly examining the damage caused, and it still doesn't sit right with me now. It makes the plight of PoC a plot vehicle to centre white people’s guilt, and I always thought that’s a blind spot only white people have (and I’m white myself, to get that out of the road straightaway).

I’m not saying it couldn’t or shouldn’t have been used narratively. Or that you can’t show remorse and atonement/redemption for the most heinous acts (that’s not the same as forgiveness—I’ll get to that). Or that characters who have committed said acts are irredeemable. But it would have needed to be fleshed out instead of making it a comment in passing. Many books and movies do exactly that. But the point is that it’s never been fleshed out.

“But they had to shorten and streamline it…”—just no. Because to me (and ofc people are free to disagree), that exactly proves the point—centring the white guy while sidelining the people who suffer. I am a bit doubtful we’ll get anything remotely appropriate in the show after what we’ve already seen. Only time will tell, so I’m withholding final judgment at this point. Fact is: It is uncomfortable to watch for people with any sensitivity on the matter.

And yet, there is a lot of focus on leaving out Hob voicing his regret in 1889, since that (again) “would have painted him in a better light.”

While simultaneously regularly failing to mention that he proudly proclaimed he “invented” the triangle trade. Can we really pick and choose his traits like that? Hob is a materialistic opportunist who also has some regrets. That doesn’t mean he can’t exist as a character, or that we’re not allowed to like him (morally grey characters are often the most compelling ones). We don’t need to sanitise him though, or try to erase his problematic traits from canon. The same goes for other characters (yes, I’m looking at you, Dream, and I’m sure we’ll get to that very soon—in fact, we’re possibly starting tomorrow 🫣). If we are talking about Hob’s remorse, we are probably mostly thinking about Sunday Mourning, so I need to bring in issue #73 at this point (this is your spoiler warning if you don’t want to read ahead).

The Fallacy of Racial Reconciliation

Very plainly:

A black woman is used as a vehicle to forgive Hob. And said black woman has been written by a white male author for that sole purpose without giving her anything else to do. I personally think NG got that wrong. It was clumsy and insensitive to POC, and I really hope they change this for the show. It’s a fact that he really wasn’t good with writing black female characters in the whole run—they all get fridged in one way or another, and he even admits it in the Sandman Companion. And then turns around and basically implies that it's all okay now because “nothing bad” happens to Gwen once Morpheus is dead. She is allowed to be a vehicle for the character development of a white guy though. It’s just really insensitive, and I sincerely hope they don't put it in the show this way. And I’m glad that we're seeing hints it might not happen--at least the casting in the show hints at it (from Lucienne, Death and Rose to very likely turning Carla into a white man—we already met Carl, and that’s who he is IMHO).

There is also the not so small fact that Hob is, even in his guilt and shame (shame is always about yourself, and that’s actually very in keeping with his character), not honest with Gwen. The thing about him basically inventing the triangle trade, which he so proudly proclaimed in 1789?

The English who were so good at it? The “Jack” Hawkins he talked about in 1789? That’s actually this dude:

And Hob funded him 200 years before 1789, and enabled Hawkins. Hob was involved in what became the transatlantic slave trade well before 1789–he already funded it when he had money in the 1500s.

He carried that mindset around with him for literal hundreds of years and saw nothing wrong with it until at least (! more about that in a sec) 1789. Dream had to rub his nose in it, otherwise it wouldn’t even have occurred to him (or did it, and he just chose to ignore it--see below).

Hob has been written as a stand-in for humanity, British Imperialism and England over the centuries—with all that entails.

So how honest is he with Gwen? And how long, even after 1789, was he still involved, even after abolition in England (Somerset vs. Stewart declared slavery unlawful in England in 1772, but that wasn't true for the rest of the British Empire. Buying and selling slaves was only made illegal in 1807, while owning slaves only became unlawful with the Abolition Act of 1833, and it took another year to buy out slave owners to actually make it happen)? Because there’s still this:

“It got worse when they did [outlaw the slave trade]. You only needed one voyage in three to make a profit. You could afford to dump your cargo if… you spotted a British Man o’ War.” How does he know? Why does he have these nightmares? We can take a guess…

That’s not someone who tried it for a couple of weeks and then thought, “Sorry, my bad.” That’s someone who has been opportunistically involved from the 1500s and potentially until after slavery was unlawful in England, which it already was when he talked to Dream in 1789. So does his feigned ignorance of, "It's a living/It's how it's done?" really hold? Especially if he potentially kept going, even after that convo with Dream? When I wrote "between the 16th and 19th Century" in the header, that's exactly what I meant...

Guilt and Shame

Yes, what we see above and in all the other panels is guilt and shame. And it reminded me of this:

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And I’d encourage everyone to really listen to what Jasper has to say, and sit with the feelings it brings up. Because I can still remember watching this in the George Floyd aftermath for the first time, and how deeply uncomfortable it made me—because he’s right.

Black people/PoC do not need to forgive and absolve white people from their guilt. They can if they wish to, but that’s their choice, not ours. It’s not for white people to absolve other white people from their guilt around the oppression of PoC. And that’s why it could be argued it’s not for white people to write a black character to do that in their stead either (they can of course, but then they need to live with the fact that people will call them tone-deaf). It could also be argued it is something that cannot be forgiven retrospectively, and white people need to be okay with that. It can only be worked on in the present with a view to the future. And as Jasper also so rightly points out:

The guilt is not even helpful (at least Gwen has the right sentiment there, but it’s still falls incredibly flat over all), and shame only centres ourselves.

Forgiveness vs Redemption

Hob Gadling's regrets don't make everything he did forgivable. I think it actually does the story a disservice if that’s our main takeaway, because this is truly one of the bits of The Sandman that’s written in an extremely tone-deaf manner. NG isn’t the first author who did this, but we can take something good and helpful from this, and that’s engaging with these questions instead of brushing them under the carpet—because that’s what literary analysis is about.

It should be clear that I do see Hob Gadling as narratively important because I see him as a stand-in for humanity, and more specifically, English history. And there is really so much to learn from that.

Writers can get things narratively right but still be emotionally tone-deaf due to their own blind-spots. We don’t need to assume malice, but we also don’t need to leave it entirely unchallenged.

And because of that, we can certainly see Hob as someone who has to live with his conscience, and the consequences of his actions, for the rest of his life and struggles with that (as he should). And maybe we can see him as someone who is now, finally, trying to do the work. Because that is what atonement and redemption actually mean:

Taking action to rectify past wrongs. Actively working against the harm once caused, and preventing it from ever happening again. And I hope that’s what he does, and the signs are there (but there are also still signs that he values covering up his immortality higher than e.g. telling Gwen the truth. And we can find a million excuses for why that is, but ultimately, none of them truly matter).

However, it is not the same as forgiveness from the people we have wronged. Forgiveness is not a prerequisite to redemption, although it can be a part of it if the person who has been wronged chooses to extend it. But the people Hob wronged are dead, while their descendants still need to live with the pain people like Hob caused to this very day. So while I don’t see him as irredeemable, I don’t think he needs to, or even can, be forgiven—especially not by black people (unless they choose to. But it is also fine if they don’t, and again, we need to be okay with that). And we could say, “But Gwen chose to.” To that, I say:

I wonder what Gwen would have said if he had been truly honest with her (which he wasn’t, see below panels). That wouldn’t have been an embrace is my guess…

#the sandman #sandman #hob gadling #transatlantic slave trade #sandman meta #men of good fortune #the sound of her wings #cw racism #sandman spoilers #queue

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fanby-fckry · 7 months ago

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Actually, I Don’t Like Cake Either

Day 1 of Ace Alastor Week: Cake Day

Word Count: 1,433

Chapters: 1/1

Fandom: Hazbin Hotel (Cartoon)

Rating: General Audiences

Archive Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply

Additional Warnings: Spoilers for Hazbin Hotel Season 1 Episode 8 The Show Must Go On

Relationships: Alastor & Rosie (Hazbin Hotel), Alastor & Charlie Magne | Morningstar

Characters: Alastor (Hazbin Hotel), Rosie (Hazbin Hotel), Mentioned Charlie Magne | Morningstar, Mentioned Hazbin Hotel Ensemble

Additional Tags: Canon Compliant (mostly), Post-Season/Series 01, Humor, Attempt at Humor, Light Angst, Friendship, Asexual Alastor (Hazbin Hotel), Aromantic Asexual Alastor (Hazbin Hotel), Alastor is Bad at Feelings (Hazbin Hotel), Alastor Has a Heart (Hazbin Hotel), Talking, Conversations, Ace Community Inside Jokes

Series: Part 1 of Fanby’s Ace Alastor Week 2024 || Part 1 of Piece of Cake! ( || Next -> )

Summary:

“This isn’t the first cake,” Alastor confessed. “This isn’t even the second or the third! No, no, no, this is the sixth – the sixth – cake she’s given me since I returned to the hotel!”

Alastor broke into manic laughter. “I don’t even like cake!” he said. “I detest sweet things! Can’t stand them! But for some reason she Just. Keeps. Baking them!”

For some unknown reason, Charlie keeps baking Alastor cakes. With no sweet-tooth to speak of, nor the willpower to face Charlie’s disappointment should he turn down her gifts, Alastor seeks Rosie’s help with this dessert debacle.

Better on AO3

Alastor made his way through Cannibal Town, walking with a purpose and a cardboard pastry box.

In fact, the box was his purpose for being in Cannibal Town today.

He needed advice. And who better to ask than his dear friend Rosie?

“Alastor!” Rosie dropped everything she was doing to come rushing over to him. “Oh, it’s so good to see you! Things get so gloomy here without you!”

Alastor lifted the box above his head and out of the way as Rosie wrapped an arm around his waist and pulled him in for a hug.

The movement drew Rosie’s eyes upwards, and after a moment spent embracing him, Rosie turned her attention to the box.

“What’ve we got here?” she asked.

“My reason for visiting!” Alastor announced. Then, somewhat quieter, “If I could just speak to you in private…”

“Of course, of course!” Rosie ushered Alastor away from the crowd and into one of the more secluded spaces of her emporium – the same room they’d used to discuss Rosie’s potential involvement in defending the hotel.

“Come, sit down, get comfy.” She motioned for Alastor to take the closer chair, then crossed the table to take her own seat.

Alastor did sit, but he felt far from comfortable.

“Well?” Rosie folded her hands in her lap, and Alastor felt distinctly aware of his own hands, still gripping the cardboard box. “Show me what’s in this mysterious box of yours.”

Alastor set the box on the table and opened it to reveal…

“A cake?” Rosie laughed. “Alastor, you charmer, did you bake me a cake?”

Alastor exhaled in a sigh, releasing a breath he hadn’t realized he’d been holding.

“Actually, Charlie did!” he said, doing his best to keep his cadence and tone in its typical Transatlantic manner. “Although she baked it for me. I just didn’t want it to go to waste and was hoping you might know of at least one demon around here with a sweet tooth!”

Rosie raised one eyebrow. “There’s more you’re not tellin’ me, dearie,” she said.

Alastor looked down at the cake. Then back up at Rosie. Then at the cake again.

Even with his smile, Rosie could read him like an open book. There was no point in trying to deceive her. And besides, he had come here to ask for her help.

Alastor broke into manic laughter. “I don’t even like cake!” he said. “I detest sweet things! Can’t stand them! But for some reason she Just. Keeps. Baking them!”

“And then she hands them off to me with that smile of hers and…” Alastor closed his eyes.

He didn’t tell Rosie that he’d grown fond of Charlie. That he genuinely considered her a friend and couldn’t stand the thought of seeing that smile fall. A smile that was so unlike his own: honest and true where his was a weapon, a mask, and – more often than not these days – a lie.

He didn’t need to. Because Rosie already knew.

Alastor opened his eyes and folded his hands on the table. “I just don’t want it to go to waste,” he repeated, and it was half true.

“Why don’t you give it to one of the other guests at that hotel of hers?” Rosie asked.

“Because she would know,” Alastor insisted. “Vaggie and Angel Dust would sell me out in a heartbeat! Even if I gave it to Husker or Niffty and ordered them not to tell, it would only be a matter of time before she figured it out.”

“And besides,” he added. “Niffty really shouldn’t be eating this much sugar.”

Niffty on a sugar rush was a level of chaos even Alastor struggled to endure. At one point, the tiny cyclops had eaten an entire batch of cupcakes and wound up deep cleaning Alastor’s radio tower and stabbing a dozen demons – one of which was Alastor, himself! Non-lethally, of course. Although, the same couldn’t be said for the other eleven.

“Well, what did you do with the other five?” Rosie asked.

“Opened a portal and threw them into the same dimension I summon my tentacles from,” Alastor said with a dismissive hand wave. “They’re probably rotting in there. I’m not entirely sure whether or not those abominations eat, but I’d assume that if they do, they’re carnivorous.”

Rosie shrugged. “Well, I don’t mind sweets myself,” she said. “I prefer when they’ve got a little blood baked in, of course, but I can make do.”

“Thank you,” Alastor said, relief washing over him as Rosie picked up a knife to cut herself a slice.

“I don’t know what I’m going to do if she keeps this up,” he admitted.

Alastor knew what he had to do, and what would happen if he failed to do it. But he didn’t like the looks of either option.

Either Alastor was going to have to tell Charlie to stop and watch her mope around like a kicked puppy, or someone would eventually figure out that he was going out of his way to avoid disappointing her.

His reputation had already taken a massive hit after his battle with Adam – his televised defeat, his failure. He couldn’t afford to let any more evidence of weakness reach the masses.

Alastor’s inner monologue was interrupted by Rosie’s laughter.

“What?” he asked. “What’s so funny?”

Rosie stifled her laughter and put a hand on Alastor’s shoulder. “I think I might just have an answer to your dessert debacle, darling.”

“Oh?” Alastor’s ears perked up at the thought of a solution.

“Tell her you’d rather have garlic bread,” Rosie said, smiling ear to ear. “Bonus points if you use those exact words.”

Alastor tilted his head at a forty five degree angle. Garlic bread? he wondered. What does garlic bread have to do with anything?

But, he did prefer garlic bread to cake. Maybe if he could channel Charlie’s inexplicable urge to bake towards something he might actually eat, then he could have his cake and eat it too, so to speak.

“Well, it’s worth a shot!” Alastor decided. “Thank you for the advice, my dear. I may not grasp the particulars, but I trust your judgment! You always did have such a knack for these things. Why, it’s no wonder you’re Cannibal Town’s go-to gal for guidance.”

“Aww,” Rosie cooed, swatting playfully at his arm. “You’re such a flatterer. You’re gonna make me blush!”

Rosie hummed and took a bite of Alastor’s unwanted cake.

“Guess you’d better get back to that hotel and tell the Princess about the menu change before she fires up the oven again,” she said after swallowing the bite.

Alastor laughed. “Oh, I think I can stay a while,” he said. “Surely she’s gotten it out of her system for the time being.”

“You said this is the sixth cake?” Rosie asked.

“Yes,” Alastor confirmed.

“And would you say the rate she bakes them is consistent?”

“Hm,” Alastor hummed. “The first one was to celebrate my return… Then she baked another later in the month, then one about a week later… Two last week, and now…”

“Shit,” he cursed as it finally hit him. “The cakes are increasing.”

“Mhmm,” Rosie hummed. “How long did you have this one before you managed to sneak it out of the hotel?”

Alastor’s smile widened. “Well, it was great chatting with you, darling!” he said, wrapping Rosie into a hug and preparing to take his leave. “I’ll be seeing you!”

Rosie giggled. “Good to see you too, Alastor.”

She hugged him back, wished him luck, and just like that, Alastor was on his way.

Rosie speared a piece of cake onto her fork, capturing all four distinctly dyed layers – black, gray, white, and purple, in that order.

“Oh, Alastor,” she said to herself with a sigh.

If only he would stop cutting her off every time she tried to actually bring up the concepts of asexuality and aromanticism.

Rosie could make jokes and puns that flew over Alastor’s head – although not over a certain Princess’s head, apparently – day in and day out, but the minute she tried to explain the identities behind them, she was met with, ‘I don’t care for all those modern labels,’ and ‘I don’t understand what any of this has to do with me!’

Too bad, really. Alastor would probably get a kick out of aroace in-jokes. Even if he didn’t like cake.

#fanby’s fuckery #fanby’s fics #acealastorweek2024 #hazbin hotel #alastor #aroace alastor #asexual alastor #aromantic alastor #rosie hazbin hotel #hazbin hotel fanfic #hazbin hotel fanfiction #aroace #aro #ace #aromantic #asexual

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chadfallout76podcast · 9 months ago

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"Deah Shroud!: A Nick Valentine Mystery" EXPLAINED and AMA

It never occurred to me to do this last year, but a lot of people have asked me questions about our Fallout 4 play in the last year in the Discord, so I wanted to open an AMA but also explain "Death Shroud!" and some of the broader themes involved in it.

**SPOILERS AHEAD**

Part 1: Pre-production

Before I get into the story, I wanted to explain how this production even came about. Over the years after working together on some official community projects with Wes Johnson through Bethesda, we became good friends. I took a couple of his acting classes and he talked about the Fallout For Hope charity initiative I started and asked for help in organizing the gaming community for his Alzheimer's Association fundraiser. The idea was to host a month-long digital event of discussion panels, game shows, improv and a play with as many different voices of video games, film and TV as we could round up. In our second year of his VoiceAPalooza fundraiser, I wanted to do an original old time radio show and see if could bring back as many of the cast that we could from Fallout 4. It was Wes who first suggested an adventure with his Silver Shroud character (that he voiced in Fallout 4's radio plays) teaming up with Nick Valentine (voiced by the amazing Stephen Russell). Valentine is, for me, one of the best written, unique companions in Fallout lore.

So, I reached out to Stephen Russell who had joined us before for charity work and he was all in on bringing Nick Valentine back to life! After that things moved fast with Bethesda's Pete Hines and Emil Pagliarulo joining us to have some fun for a good cause. We tried to get EVERY companion from Fallout 4 that we could, but schedule wrangling is tough, and some people are just impossible to track down or find. Matt Mercer would've loved to have joined us as Macready, but unfortunately scheduling didn't work, so the best we could manage would be a holotape (the only reason our snarky gun running merc had to take the big sleep in the story).

After having everyone plugged in to reprise characters, it was time to put fingers to keys and find the story...

Part 2: The Deep Lore

The origin of this story started with a thought: how would the NPC's and characters we love perceive modification of their universe by us? We, as players aren't the true creators of this universe or these characters (Bethesda is). If anything, we the players are the equivalent of "lesser gods", reshaping it in new ways, unexpected and subjective ways, and sometimes even chaotic ways (I'm looking at you avalanche of adult mods with realistic jiggle physics and Thomas the Tank Engine Vertibird).

It started with a mental image of the small ways in which we start out modding games, or even the first mods we (using the "Engine of Creation) actually create. I had a mental image of Magnolia doing her thing, singing away sultry in a crowded and smoky third rail when she looks one way, back the next and sees new curtains. A subtle thing, something a little startling, but in a universe where recreational drug use is met with a YEEE YEEEE WHEEEE...a change you simply dismiss as being overtired or a little too juiced.

I'm a sucker for old time radio. I grew up listening to classic radio horrors like The Whistler, Suspense, and Lights Out on vinyl records and cassette tapes when I'd spend summers with my grandmother on a little island off the coast of Canada. Getting the tone, feeling and sound to stage an old-time radio show was the easiest part of this whole process...it's baked into my brain lol. The key of course is finding the right narrative voice.

Enter: Bill Lobley. If you play Fallout 76, he is the announcer for the "Tales from the West Virginia Hills" holotapes, but before that he's a prolific voice actor, maybe best known for his role as the truly vile Jeremiah Fink in Bioshock: Infinite. He has a FANTASTIC transatlantic voice for old time radio and was perfect as narrator in the script.

Part 3: What Is Going On?!?!

I had the base idea, the voices to pull it off, but what was the meaning and message of the whole thing? I always start there. From a meta experience level, the story is about dealing with subjective reality that’s being torn apart. After Fallout 4 launched in vanilla, we the players changed that world and reshaped it with mods. The small changes in perceived reality are meant for the omniscient player (us) and are not meant to be perceived by the characters themselves...and yet, what if they were? And if they were...WHY?! The answer was right in front of me: there's a difference between something born into a world and something MADE into a world.

You take someone like Magnolia or Nick, both synths, that obviously weren’t naturally born from two people. They were conceived as an idea...a human idea sure, but still they were made, not born. Without even needing to say in the script, the Trickster from the Grognak comic books who shouldn't exist yet does IS also an idea. Some MADE into a world but not born...a different world sure, but still the creation of it. Nick, Magnolia, any synth as ideas themselves would sense that the world was wrong and being changed in a way no one else would because of fundamentally who they are and what they represent.

Everything that unfolds is because Nora as a keystone event in the Commonwealth, a focal point of the causal nexus making her a unique entity in that world. A causal nexus is the link between a cause and its resulting effects and ignore the science mumbo jumbo, because here's an example of how that works:

The Sole Survivor, Nora, listened to Kent's message, chose to answer him and put on the outfit of the Silver Shroud. As a unique figure she shifted perceived reality of everyone in the Commonwealth by becoming the Silver Shroud, acting like him and making people believe that a fictional character exists.

Unfettered belief and faith in an idea = manifested reality.

Rejected belief and faith in the idea = dispels that reality.

This HAS happened before in Fallout lore in the instance of people with horrifying backstories and personal tragedies choosing to become someone else such as the Mechanist (Fallout 3 and Fallout 4) or even the Ant-Agonizer (Fallout 3). This time however it was a unique figure who did this, a figure fated and meant to reshape the Commonwealth for good, bad or ugly.

This opened a door, the door through which another figure could influence and enter a new universe provided it take the form of something already in it...a reality side-step into the form of the Mechanist. Concurrently, the moment that happened, reality counterbalanced by making the Silver Shroud who was already believed to be real BECOME real as the ying to the Mechanist/Trickster's yang.

Now at home in reality, the Trickster found himself very much alive and unbound by story but had very little power to do much at all. He needed something more, an idea and faith that already existed in the Commonwealth with the infinite universe of ideas made, but not born like himself. His goal wasn't power, it was to sow chaos, reshaping reality into a realm for any and every idea despite the consequences to reality itself.

So what did he need? The belief in the Old Gods and a focus point of belief in the idea: a staff. The universe is as adaptive as it is remarkable and where the Mechanist had its opposite: the Silver Shroud, the Trickster needed its twin: enter Sheogorath...because what better staff to tear apart and reshape reality than the Staff of Sheogorath. There is a quest added in the new Skyrim Anniversary Edition in which you can build it for yourself with a few items: Branch of the Tree of Shades, Ciirta's Eye, Fork of Horripilation. In this universe it would have to fashioned with things FROM this universe.

Two eyes were needed:

The eye of a True Believer: Kent Connolly

The eye of a True Seer: Mama Murphy

Affixed to the top of a staff of the purest heartwood from a Twice Born Tree. Living wood from Harold, born a man who eventually mutated into a living tree.

Lastly, it had to be soaked in the tears of ages end: barrels of radiated blessed waters courtesy of the Cult of Atom.

The Trickster had no magic of his own in this universe in which to act, but thankfully courtesy of some powerful allies, he was able to make contact with shadowy cults and worshippers of the old gods who gave him the name of someone truly of faith in the old magic to make all of this work: Jebediah Blackhall, who in this spin of the universe did unfortunately get his hands on the cursed book: the Krivbeknah.

Finding allies was all too easy, as the events post main quest left the Commonwealth changed. To many, the Sole Survivor and his/her companions would be hailed as heroes. To others, they would be villains, particularly in light of what Nora CHOSE to do to the Railroad to end the synth threat for good. That's a lot of blood on the hands of heroes...

As the Mechanist/Trickster, Blackall and the Lombardos began using the staff, its changes and shifts in reality rippled backwards through time, as changing one specific thing would change its entire existence. You change some curtains and the manufacturer of those curtains only every made one pattern...the world object becomes changed universally. Tapping into the Engine of Creation to make these changes, leaves anyone MADE not born aware of them as they don't fit into the design as it shifts around them. Nick, Danse, Magnolia would all feel and see it, be thrown off for a bit before settling into the changed reality state.

At the climax when everything starts falling apart and you get everyone from GlaDOS and the Joker strolling on in, the only way to end it all is to separate the Trickster from the Staff and restore the saved intended state of reality. The Silver Shroud finds himself powerless against the Trickster...only someone from this universe would be able to intercede, hard wired into the Engine of Creation itself as an existing element connected throughout its framework and history. After sending the Trickster off packing to the moon (thanks GlaDOS), but its a little too late for reality. It collapses around them, finding themselves elsewhere...the point between the mind, creation and the outcome of reality.

After the Shroud fades away, Nick has the power and choice to roll the universe, his universe back along the tapestry of choices that led him here. They all were haunted by the choices they made the first time around, something Nora couldn't live with...that ultimately led her relationship with Danse to fall apart. So Nick decides to go back further, as far back as he can go and he finds himself back in his office with Ellie waking him up.

There are consequences to what he's done, that he's not yet aware of, ones that will become clear in our next episode. The synths remember, as he remembers...Danse, Magnolia and everyone else remembers the fall of the Institute. They all find themselves at their starting point, moving towards their intended fated position to encounter the Sole Survivor. For Nick? He's starting down the path that will led him to be held prisoner and meet the Sole Survivor for the first time.

As he'll soon discover however, things don't play out the same way this time. Moreover, while he was rolling back reality to an early saved state, he made a huge mistake and completely forgot about something and someone so incredibly important...

You'll have to wait to see what that is...

#death shroud #chad: a fallout 76 podcast #chad: a fallout 76 story #fallout 4 #fallout for hope #wes johnson #fallout #fallout fanfic #nick valentine

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iloveilovei · 2 years ago

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The happiness that wasn't supposed to be.

#I'm not okay...#transatlantic #transatlantic netflix #Varian x Thomas #abcd #transatlantic spoilers

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musicalcastingideas · 7 months ago

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Dropout Does The Guy Who Didn't Like Musicals

So my theory about overlap of Dropout and Team Starkid seems to be accurate, and people seemed to like my Dropout does Nerdy Prudes Must Die post, so I'm back for another. Same method and criteria as my previous post, you can go see that if you want to know what they are. Also, I have previously done a similar list with Internet Personalities that included a handful of Dropout people, but I'm gonna try to make this one different.

Also spoilers for potentially anything in the Hatchetfield verse

Paul: Ross Bryant

Ross is a great straight man (in the comedy sense, I don't know his sexuality) while being very funny in his own right, and I think, while Paul has a lot of his own funny moments, it's very important that his character is also the more normal guy reacting to the madness around him. Also, he would slay the Jekyll and Hyde homage that is Let it Out.

Emma : Siobhan Thompson

I think one of the essential parts of Emma's character is an underlying exhaustion with the world, and that is very Adaine Abernant and Ruby Rocks, so I think Siobhan would embody that very well.

Charlotte: Vic Michaelis

I don't think I've ever heard them do a transatlantic accent before, but I just have this gut feeling they'd be so good at it.

Ted: Ify Nwadiwe

While I do genuinely think Ify would be great in the part, if I'm being fully honest, this casting is because I (despite my better judgment) find Ted Spankoffski hot, so casting arguably the hottest man in Dropout in this part makes me seem less damaged for being attracted to the self-proclaimed sleazeball. Also him and Vic seem like they would be great playing off each other.

Bill: Brian "Murph" Murphy

He just has "refuses to drink during the apocalypse so he can be the DD" energy.

Mr Davidson: Brian David Gilbert

Since I'm splitting up all the parts, this basically turns Mr Davidson into a Princess Track where the actor just shows up, sings about desire and being choked while he jerks off, but laments how he can never achieve his dreams, and then pretty much leaves, and I don't know why, but that seems right up BDG's alley.

Melissa: Lisa Gilroy

Lisa Gilroy seems nice, but also kinda scares me, and those are the correct vibes for Melissa (#heymelissacore)

Sam: Jacob Wysoki

My only concern about this casting is that he'd go SO HARD in You Tied Up My Heart that he would keep breaking the handcuffs and/or chair, but that's fine, it would be worth it.

Nora: Katie Marovitch

The "Decaf?" parts of Cup of Roasted Coffee already sounds a bit like her TBH.

Zoey: Rehka Shankar

I feel like Zoey is such an underrated, funny side character in the show (I know she's a very small part, but like every line she has is a banger) and I feel like Rehka is a very underrated performer, so this is a good match.

Greenpeace Girl: Persephone Valentine

Making up the Save the Sea Turtles campaign is such a Sam Nightengale move, and also she would eat up Lah Dee Dah Dah Day.

Alice: Surena Marie

She's got a bit of a baby face (I thought she was like 25) and I think she would handle the change from Alice to Hivemind Alice really well.

Deb: Emily Axford

I'm definitely not just casting this because I want Emily to be my protective and caring girlfriend...

Professor Hidgens: Josh Ruben

I don't have an explanation for this one, this is vibes alone.

General MacNamara: Brennan Lee Mulligan

"Wear a Watch" and a song highlighting how the hivemind is essentially fascist and using the military to destroy any resistance to their regime is so Brennan core.

Homeless Man: Ally Beardlsey

I just feel like this is the part they'd want.

Dan Reynolds: Lou Wilson

Icons play Icons.

Donna: Aabria Iyengar

Icons play Icons

Hard Cuts:

Jacob Wysoki as Ted

Mike Trapp as Paul

Emily Axford as Emma

Jess Ross as Charlotte

Lily Du as Zoey

Grant O'Brien as Professor Hidgens

Grant O'Brien as Ted

Ally Beardlsey as Ted

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frangipanilove · 2 months ago

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Thoughts on the latest Spain spoilers; are we going to the “Dog Islands”? Plus a tangent on alcohol, pilgrimage and a cure.

In light of the latest Spain spoilers laid out in this post by @bookqueenrules, I wanted to bring back this post that I wrote back in April, when the first rumors of TWDDD filming in Spain appeared. The currently unconfirmed spoilers below describe how Daryl and Carol arrive on the coast of Galicia:

Like I explained in the post from April, themes of Spain, Santiago de Compostela, and pilgrimage under the “way under the field of stars” have been lurking in the background of the show since at least 5x8 Coda, possibly even further back. We now know that there will be filming in Galicia/ Santiago de Compostela (read here) and I can’t help but feeling that it’s all coming together. In this post, I talked about how Santiago de Compostela could be tied to “the green route” written on Morgan’s wall back in 3x12 Clear, and how that potentially could be a tie to Beth (whose last name is Greene), and how the Northern Way of the pilgrimage to Santiago de Compostela, which goes through an area called “Green Spain” could be significant for TD.

(I’ve also discussed the themes of Spain, Santiago de Compostela and pilgrimage in more detail here, here)

Also, @galadrieljones made an incredible discovery while researching some coordinates from FTWD, coordinates that supposedly were pointing to a repeater station in Georgia, but in reality pointed to an area of the Atlantic Ocean near the Canary Islands (which are Spanish territory located outside the West African coast).

There are several interesting aspects to the Canary Islands, aside from being loved holiday destinations for sun-deprived North Europeans (of which I am one). The name itself comes from Latin Canis, which means "dog". There's even a breed of dogs local to the islands, Presa Canario.

Again, the dog theme is super significant in TWDU. I’ve talked about the Sirius symbolism incessantly since 4x13 Alone, when Beth and Daryl were visited by a one-eyed, white dog, embodying the spirit of Sirius the Dog Star, the star that returns to the night sky after having been missing for …let’s just say several seasons. 4x13 was when I became aware of this particular symbolism, but in reality it’s been present since the pilot 1x1 Days Gone Bye, which I’ve also discussed in several posts.

Sirius the Dog Star is located in the star constellation Canis Major, “canis” is Latin for “dog”, and the Canary Islands can be translated to “Dog Islands”. And as @galadrieljones discovered, coordinates from FTWD pointed in that direction.

I’ve laid out the theoretical foundations of the Sirius symbolism in many posts over the years, here’s one of the first ones I wrote on it.

So yeah, there’s that. Lots of dog/Sirius symbolism. Additionally, the Canary Islands serve as an important gateway to transatlantic crossings. This is due to their favorable position in the Atlantic Ocean, where the trade winds historically has aided vessels across the ocean.

Could this latest development, with Daryl and Carol reportedly aiming to cross the Atlantic on a boat from the UK, lend itself to a future storyline where they instead have to cross from the Canary Islands, or shall we say Dog Islands?

This could, in the narrative, serve as a plausible solution in Daryl and Carol’s quest to RETURN to the US after their European adventure. See what I did there? Sirius symbolism is about returns/rebirths/resurrections. Where better to achieve that than on a group of island whose name literally means Dog Islands? That’s double Sirius symbolism.

And of course, for TD, the big question is, will Beth, the Sirius figure, return (or RESURRECT) with them? Will they find her there, or have they already found her and she’s the one who suggests returning via the Canary (Dog) Islands?

I have no idea, just throwing out suggestions here. We won’t know until we know, plus keep in mind these are, at the time of writing, unconfirmed rumors. However, it is interesting how spoilers constantly seem to be perfectly aligned with theories we already explored months and years ago.

And on a personal note, I started theorizing about Santiago de Compostela and pilgrimage literally after 5x8 Coda, and now, all these years later, we have confirmed reports on filming in Santiago de Compostela, on a show that was originally called Pilgrim.

Of course that doesn’t prove anything, but it gives me the feeling we might be on to something 👀

Finally, I will mention that I believe “the green(e) route” from Morgan’s wall (possibly represented by the Northern Way to Santiago de Compostela, through “Green Spain”), will be tied to not only Beth’s “resurrection” specifically, but rather a “resurrection” of human kind in the form of a vaccine/cure/treatment to the Wildfire zombie virus. I talked about how that was foreshadowed in 4x4 Indifference in this post, where we saw Daryl completely mesmerized by a green jasper he found, literally a "rock in the road", while they were out searching for antibiotics to combat the prison flu back in season 4.

My hypothesis is that the “rock in the road” is a reference to St. Roch, pilgrim and patron saint of plague victims, known to have healing powers, who was himself healed from the plague when a stray dog licked his wounds. He therefore also became patron saint of dogs and dog lovers:

See how there’s dog/Sirius symbolism in that? Sirius symbolism is ultimately about resurrection, rebirth and returns, and what represents resurrection more than an actual cure to the zombie virus?

In 4x4 Indifference, Daryl and company were specifically out searching for antibiotics (a "cure for the plague”) when he found the green(e) “Roch in the Road”. I believe that’s a metaphor for how we will find hints of a cure in relation to symbolism that deals with pilgrimage (St. Roch and Santiago de Compostela), something green (Beth Greene and green(e) Spain) and that Beth’s resurrection will be a metaphor for the revival of humanity.

@galadrieljones recently wrote an incredible post on how she believes the bottles of green Chartreuse spotted in the trailer for TBOC might be a nod to a historical template for how scientists working on a cure for the zombie virus were exiled to Spain, modeled after real events where monks producing Chartreuse were exiled to Spain in the past. Go read it, it's excellent!

The Chartreuse can be seen on the table under the Mona Lisa painting in this screenshot:

I’ve been meaning to write a separate post replying to the Chartreuse post, and I still have every intention of doing so one of these days, I just don’t have the greatest time-management skills, I guess 😄 I don’t know where time went, this summer was super busy. But it’s coming, I promise!

In the meantime, I’ll just say that I believe the Chartreuse hypothesis sounds more than plausible, in fact I’ve written several posts on how in TWDU, alcohol has always been used as a metaphor for “the antidote”, meaning a cure, such as here, where I also explain how it is Sirius symbolism.

In FTWD 4x16 I Lose Myself, we saw this meticulously explained when our heroes had to find a way to survive being poisened by antifreeze containing methanol:

I wrote a post on that, read it here.

Remember how in 4x4 Indifference, at the veterinary college where they found the antibiotics that ultimately saved the lives of the flu victims that were dying, Bob famously also found a bottle of brandy:

Daryl did not approve, to say the least. He felt Bob should have focused on finding antibiotics for the plagued prison population. However, TPTB, by placing the bottle of brandy among the antibiotics, cleverly made sure to establish an association between the alcohol and the antibiotics, the "antidote/cure".

They also did that earlier in the episode, when they came across a gas station where several people had committed suicide by drinking antifreeze, which often contains methanol. This was a storyline that was later repeated in FTWD 4x16 I lose myself, which I mentioned above, where they explicitly articulate "the antidote is ethanol". Again, the takeaway for us is that alcohol is a metaphor for a cure.

The antidote to methanol poisoning is ethanol, otherwise known as alcohol. So where methanol is the poison, ethanol/alcohol is the cure. Meaning, TPTB established alcohol as metaphor for a "cure" all the way back in 4x4 Indifference, first by showing the deadly effects of the "opposite" of alcohol, meaning methanol. Then they did so again, by strategically placing a bottle of alcohol among actual antibiotics, the actual cure which helped heal the sick prison community.

I also elaborated on this in the Fighting Fire With Fire posts (here, here and here).

Long story short, alchohol has been used as a metaphor for a "cure" since at least 4x4 Indifference, where we also saw Daryl find a "Roch in the road", which in my opinion was a reference to the pilgrim St.Roch, patron saint of plague victims, known to be able to heal people from the plague, as well as being healed himself. Basically, it's peak "cure" symbolism.

I believe the fact that Daryl's "Roch in the road" was green, is a nod to Green Spain, a stretch of land that needs to be crossed (in pilgrimage) in order to get to the real cure, which potentially could be under production in Spain, possibly somewhere near Santiago de Compostela, a world famous destination of pilgrimage.

Pilgrimage has always been about healing in some way, shape or form, and we saw this clearly with Morgan, in the coda after 5x8 Coda, when he reached Father Gabriel's church as though it was the destination of his pilgrimage. The last time we had seen him, in 3x12 Clear, he had been a tormented soul, now he was a pilgrim reaching his destination, and he was "healed".

He "resurrected" a cross, which TD interpreted as a foreshadow of the "resurrection" of Beth, who had "died" just moments earlier.

And I believe we will see the resurrection of a certain Beth Greene, which will serve as a metaphor for the revival of hummanity, meaning a cure for the Wildfire virus. Fighting Fire With Fire.

#team delusional #team defiance #bethyl #daryl dixon #beth greene #the walking dead #twd #twddd #ddtboc #the book of carol #tboc #twd daryl dixon

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adainesfroggieboggy · 10 months ago

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siobhan thompson appreciation post because her characters just make me so happy and they're so. good. she's so good at characters! spoilers for every intrepid heroes season of d20. i could do a whole other post about her sidequest characters bc they're so good.

Adaine Abernant. The Elven Oracle. She's always been one of my absolute favorite characters ever. Her anxiety representation in the first season makes me feel more seen, understood, and represented than any other character ever. She's literally so cool! She starts freshman year as an awkward nerd and becomes a cool nerd! Her anxiety never goes away, but the medication makes it manageable. She hates her parents because they're awful! Just the rep of having awful parents and hating them and that's okay because they suck! You should hate your parents if they suck as bad as the Abernants! Not everyone gets a redemption arc. If they suck, they suck.

Misty/Rowan. Misty is the perfect representation of an old lady who gives no fucks. She flirts so hard with that guy at the pixie wedding. She openly admits to having been friends with John Wilkes Booth. But at the same time? Will not give her age. A lady never tells. She's absolutely ancient and doesn't fucking care, but she also has this undertone of absolute existential panic because she needs adoration to survive! She stays relevant because she has to! Don't get me started on Rowan. I have a crush on Rowan Berry. She's reborn and immediately starts flirting with Pete, which is iconic in its own right. She's a bard who gives bardic inspiration by either flirting or complimenting, and sometimes the lines blur just a little bit. Absolute queen shit. She defeats the queen of Faerie and has no desire to go back until the Fae court tells her hey. You left us with no leader. And then brings democracy to Faerie! President Rowan!

Ruby Rocks! She starts the season as a kid who loves her sister just so much. That's the most integral part of her character. She's a princess and a rogue, and she loves her sister. She has a lot of development over the season! She ends as a woman who fights for her family and her country. She hates Saccharina when they first meet, a new sister on the tails of the loss of the most important person she's ever had. After Jet's death, she's overcome with grief and takes a level of shadow sorcerer because of it! Her development is amazing, a truly wonderful arc.

Iga Lizowski! Oh. My. God. She's the first pc that is a mom in d20, or at least in the Intrepid Heroes. Her relationship with her kids is so fun to watch, from urging Jessica to engage with the chest to bringing her into another part of the Unsleeping City. Then Nick, who she hadn't pressed at all to take responsibility for the chest, decides to become another defender of his family's magic! Not only is she an amazing mother, she's a fortune teller by trade! She knows full well that everything she does has merit, and that magic is real, but makes it all seem like a lie to cater to her clientele. It's not her intention to become a part of the Dream Team, but when her family is threatened, she fights like hell. Also she has a pseudodragon that's just a magical chihuahua and that's so old ladycore it's such a perfect choice.

Riva. They're just on their gallivant, honestly. They decorate their psychodrone with magnets. They're trying to sell pleasure putty. They make their own hours, but they don't know how. Riva is sweet and fun and naive. They love their friends and they love the outside world and they're having a great ass time on their gallivant.

Rosamund. Du. Prix. Quick little shoutout to Siobhan's princess voice because no joke she did my favorite accent. It borders on transatlantic (my favorite accent) but is very Disney princess. She starts as a Disney princess, too! To have a character looking for her true love wake up, search for him, and ultimately sacrifice her chance at having him is *mwah* beautiful. True love isn't real! She directly confronts this, and a member of her party is living proof of it. She has to see the prince who came to save her, and upon meeting him, she realizes how fucked the idea is. He kisses her once and that's all? She doesn't know him, she doesn't love him. How can she live happily ever after with him? Her story is about having things happen to her, but she wrenches the pen from the authors' hands and writes her fucking own! Once upon a time, there was a princess who tried speed dating!

#fantasy high #fantasy high sophomore year #the unsleeping city #the unsleeping city spoilers #fantasy high spoilers #a crown of candy spoilers #a crown of candy #a starstruck odyssey #dimension 20 neverafter #neverafter #neverafter spoilers #adaine abernant #rowan berry #misty moore #ruby rocks #iga lisowski #riva #rosamund du prix

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artemis1214 · 4 months ago

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HAZBIN HOTEL OC DEMON HEADCANONS

Hello! 👋🏼

These are some headcanons for my Hazbin Hotel OC, Esme! If you would like to read more about Esme's story, you can check out my Wattpad stories "A Siren's Spell" and, "A Siren's Hunt."

HELLA SPOILERS AHEAD!!!

Demon Afterlife (1932-Present Day)

Siren Demon (technically considered a succubus considering that's what a siren is).

No memories of human life when manifested into hell.

Her ‘siren voice’ tells her all she needs to know about feeding.

Must feed on other demons and blood in order to stay alive (she will grow weak and powerless if she doesn't).

Cannibal

When she sees her tail in the water she FREAKS out and tries to wiggle out of it.

Has trouble walking at first when she's out of her siren form.

Waddles like a penguin at first.

Regular appearance: Luscious long black hair with slight curls, light seafoam green skin, emerald eyes. Flawless skin and glittery scales.

Her regular appearance is more seductive and human like in order to attract more men for her to feed on.

Full Demon Form: Icy blue skin, glowing green eyes, sharp fangs, fins on head, shinier scales throughout her arms and hips, long black claws, sea serpents in her hair, strong melodic alluring voice.

Her voice will echo lightly when she's frustrated.

Still present transatlantic accent, very seductive sounding.

Soprano.

SIREN VOICE (Theme)⬇️

youtube

“Darling” is her go to word for everyone.

Can alter the soundwaves of music.

Can play the piano and the harp.

Is 100% a cat person

Like to collect little sea rocks and shells.

Always wearing her wedding ring, although she has no memory of who her husband is.

Does not come off.

Embedded into her skin.

Has names for all her different sea serpents.

“Oooh you look like a George! Do you like that? George?”

Hopeless romantic, will torture men and devoure them in order to cope with her need to be loved.

“I'm not loved, I'm lusted over.”

Thinks she's tough shit when she manifests, quickly becoming feared.

Approached first by Rosie who introduces her to Cannibal Town and eventually the overlords.

Still thinks she's better than everyone.

Super close with Rosie.

Long morning chats about how she feels forgotten about.

Rosie is basically her therapist.

Brings her blood-roast coffee every morning to soothe her cravings.

Steals other demons' voices when making deals/taking souls to use for a stronger siren song.

Strong hypnotic abilities, psychic abilities, magic, and more.

Hydrokinesis (can feel the blood within people since they're made of water)

Has to keep moisturized or her skin will dry out. Takes swims daily to help this.

Rosie eventually gifts her different face lotions and serums.

Fearful of The Radio Demon when he comes to hell, but quickly befriends him.

“I think we get along just swimmingly, don't you?”

Naturally takes a liking to him since he's radio and she's basically music.

“You remind me of someone, though I can't remember who.”

He just smiles at her.

The three of them, Rosie, Esme and Alastor often spend time in cannibal town.

Lots of whiskey, vodka, and more when going out.

R: “Shit, you two can sure drink!”

E: “Always loved me a good speakeasy~”

A: “Likewise.”

E: “Oh? What a coincidence!”

Alastor leaves her alone for most of his carnage, never batting an eye to her or being threatening.

Rosie finds this suspicious.

Immediately takes a liking to Vox when he shows up.

“Ooooh tell me more! What's life like now?!”

Giggling, kicking her feet hearing about Golden Hollywood.

He plays her old movies on his screen.

Specifically Casablanca

Vox will offer both her and Alastor to form the Vees.

Esme immediately agrees to control the music industry.

Alastor denies in order to avoid Esme.

Vox comes on to Esme after living with her in the tower.

“I apologize if you were charmed by my nature, but I am wed.”

Will sleep with other men, but it's just for fun, and refuses to be with anyone for emotional connection.

Valentino introduces Esme to Marijuana.

Doesn't do it often but is very relaxed and creative when high.

E: “This is nothing compared to some good ol’ snow.”

Adores Velvette when she shows up.

E: “YOU'RE SO CUUTEEE!~”

V: “Get off me!”

Is a popular singer in the Pride Ring, her records sell like crazy.

Her voice hypnotizes demons to keep buying.

Makes up little tunes as she works around the tower or her recording studio

Wakes up about 30 minutes before her alarm is set to go off just so she can write down any songs or little melodies she thought of in her sleep.

She's extremely self-conscious about her laugh. She thinks it's too shrill and too high pitched.

She's still a big bookworm, this time drawn to romance novels.

Big sweet tooth

Favorite food is sushi (specifically salmon)

Drinks water bottles full of blood

Always filing her claws.

Gets more hungry when around Alastor for whatever reason.

Still sits next to Rosie during overlord meetings.

Very protective to the children she sees in Hell, although she doesn't know why

Angel is the first person she recognizes from her life.

“Bambino? *tears up* Bambino!!”

Wants to know everything about his life since she's missed so much.

Angel stays in her room for the first week that they're reunited.

They share the same bed, just staying close to one another.

Does not know the conditions about his deal with Valentino.

Often cooks for the Vees.

She once got into a fight with Valentino because he insulted her cooking.

Vox and her have morning coffee chats.

She likes to watch the news with him in his office but secretly catches Alastor's broadcast afterward to get the real scoop.

Vox hates how the two get along so well.

Going out to the club with this one is not a joke. You better come prepared to put on a SHOW.

She steals the spotlight wherever she goes.

BIG THANKS TO @hoomandoescosplay for sharing her headcanons of Esme's dry skin AND THE LITTLE NAMES FOR HER SNAKES AHHH!

There will be a part two to these headcanons, so if you didn't see yours - don't worry!

~ Artemis 🦌💗

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