#truly I am alone here

[xerith-42]

Once again thoroughly humbling myself in realizing that I am in fact the only person in this fandom posting Blazein ship content. Everyone else in the tag is posting weed.

[chrisbangs]

231003 ♡ Happy Birthday Bang Chan!

[rin-sith]

Every time I see Odysseus described as any of the following:

"Simp" (God forbid men actually healthily love their family and wife a completely reasonable amount.)

"Wet Cat" (What does that even mean exactly?? But whatever it means the vibe does not match up at all.)

"Bottom" (This man honestly has more top energy than literally every other character in this musical including the gods.)

"Homeless man" (He did not spend 20 years trying to go to the home that he has and that wants him back just to be denied his belonging there.)

"Monster/Villain/Evil" (He calls himself that enough. Can we please stop with the Odysseus demonization I am literally begging as hard as Poseidon did in 600 Strike.)

I lose a piece of my sanity.

Obviously I'm not personally attacking anyone btw. I'm just venting. Joking around is one thing but why do I see so many people treat these as canon traits? Am I in some weird corner of this fandom that I shouldn't be in?

[uniquezombiedestiny]

come on

please tell me

[swinging-stars-from-satellites]

this week is making me wish I could spontaneously human combust with no lasting consequences

[huellitaa]

i giggle so hard whenever i see one of my posts on someone else's blog like omg..... i'm actually liked by people..... blushing rn

[dan-whoell]

i keep thinking about a phandom book club, but i have no idea how to go about organizing it or if anyone would be interested or even where to host it

alternatively is there already a phandom book club i could join? because i would love that

[kingdom-of-ire]

Chilchuck from dungeon meshi is a monaghan lad to me.

Reason 1) Unionised in hard labour setting, say what you will about how under educated monaghan is sometimes but we are damn good at joining a union and sticking with it

Reason 2) half foots are basically just hobbits and hobbits are basically a metaphor for the British, guess what's in Britain? Northern Ireland- where's Northern Ireland? Ulster- who's in free ulster? Monaghan. Hobbits can be a stand in for monaghan lads too

Reason 3) I am from monaghan and I like him.

reason 3 cannot be refuted by anyone

long story short

uncontestable proof he is from monaghan

[jojo-the-puppy]

im gonna say something to vent and if literally anyone tries to talk to me about it, no matter who you are, i will fucking block you, because i refuse to go into detail

but my god, nothing has made me wanna transition and be myself less than this fucking site

[tulsa24]

happy birthday brody!! 🥳💜

[evelynpr]

Arlecchino Demo Music Analysis

DISCLAIMER: I am no musical expert in any way, just a massive fan of the Genshin soundtrack and learned music theory as a hobby.

One of my favorite things about Genshin is its music. It is not just that it sounds amazing, but each element, style, and motif has meaning and purpose- while being orchestrated and mixed to create a truly magnificent and unique musical experience. It is no exaggeration that this soundtrack is one of a kind.

Arlecchino's Character Demo has just been released, so I want to make a musical breakdown of it because I think it is a stellar example of how Genshin uses music to signify its themes and present its story. Before we get into that, there are ideas that I must detail for you to get the full picture, so I hope you enjoy!

Genshin uses musical elements to signify certain ideas (places, characters, elements, etc.). For example, Chinese and Japanese instrumentation signify Liyue and Fontaine respectively, but it goes beyond this.

"Travelers' Reverie" — Behind the Scenes of the Music of Sumeru | Genshin Impact

You may have noticed that a majority of Genshin's environmental music consists of real world instruments. There are even videos showcasing the orchestras and instruments of each nation (Mondstadt, Liyue, Inazuma, Sumeru, Fontaine), and using orchestral/live instruments even applies to other regions such as Enkanomiya, The Chasm, Golden Apple Archipelago, and etc. This gives each region a distinct musical identity, but all together it establishes them as places that are grounded and real.

During the final act of Fontaine's archon quest, we have been introduced to a new musical identity. This is Genshin's dubstep, and it has been used to signify otherworldly power. This genre not made by a real orchestra or real instruments, but through sampling (using existing sounds/music) and technology.

This is the identity in its most blatant form: (Shadow phase of the All Devouring Narwal boss fight)

This entire track symbolizes this. No other track within Genshin's world sounds remotely like it, symbolizing its otherworldly nature. It does not belong here- not with the live orchestras and melodic symphonies of Genshin's world.

Simply put, hardcore dubstep = otherworldly

Note: I am aware that many character demos and other tracks also use dubstep/EDM, but for the purposes of this post I think it should be left separate. Only if someone openly disputes this conclusion then I would happily oblige in presenting more evidence to this thru a reply or rb. Essentially, dubstep IS used in other tracks, but only in Silhouette of Catastrophe and Arlecchino's demo is the dubstep used as a"main idea", while also accompanied by heavy bass and "smaller intricate" sounds. This specific form of dubstep is what signifies being otherworldly.

Another musical element is children's singing!

In terms of the in-game ost, children's singing is used most prominently in Dragonspine's soundtrack in Genshin's world- and I will admit that I am not sure why that is. Perhaps Dragonspine has themes relating to innocence? Childhood? Tranquility? Whatever it is, I am not sure of. (If you have an idea, I would love to know!)

Instead, we can look at a certain character demo:

Nahida's! The beatdrop of her demo begins with children's singing. I believe this represents her innocent nature, status as a young archon, and the children of the forest that surround her- the Aranara.

Not only that, but the only other people in her demo are all children. Suffice to say, Genshin pays very close attention to using their music to reflect the themes and attributes of their characters in their demos (I could make more posts about this- breaking down more demo music...I think that'd be fun)

It's fairly straightforward, but essentially children's singing = children, innocence, and childhood

Now let's (finally) look at Arlecchino's demo

Let's first review each of the main musical elements and what they represent:

Dubstep and distortion: Otherworldly power. For Arlecchino: her curse, power, and dominance. "A spark cannot shatter all shadows until it sets all ablaze"

Children's voices and music box: Children. For Arlecchino: a lullaby; possibly protectiveness/care or tainted innocence (depending on how you interpret how she sees her children)

The music begins with a solo piano- lonely, melancholic, and mysterious. This is how she is after the death of Clervie and the rest of the children of the HotH.

Afterwards, the piano gets distorted- then replaced with harsh artificial beats and musical turmoil. This may be reflected on how she defeated her "mother" using her otherworldly power- her curse.

Following this is the anticipated beatdrop. Fascinatingly, it is not actually lead by dubstep, but by a distorted music box with a creeping melody. Not only that, but it is accompanied by a children's choir and a drum beat together.

The dubstep then ramps up- completely overtaking the track. But one it has reached its height, it is interrupted by the music box and singing children.

One can interpret this as her children holding her back from unleashing her true power. When she is most ruthless and violent, she is reminded of their playfulness and innocence.

The choir ends abruptly- but afterwards, the children's voices and music box lead the melody, while the dubstep and distortions accompany it harmoniously to create one whole piece.

This is who Arlecchino is. A Father and Harbringer defined by "caring" for her children and her otherworldly power. A love that nurtures and neglects- a power that frees and destroys. A wolf in sheep's clothing, or a sheep in wolf's clothing?

However the demo doesn't end there- the solo piano returns once again.

"Its flame is no longer needed, for you have the strength to defend yourselves"

This is going into speculative territory, but perhaps after she passes on her title as "king", she is once again lonely, left without a family. After all, she may no longer be needed or wanted at all- not after all that she has done, not after all that she has failed to do.

Conclusion

I love Genshin's music from the bottom of my heart. One reason why is the attention, detail, and beauty put into each track. Each piece is not only an experience, but also a story, an idea, a character, a place, whatever the artists wish to portray.

Arlecchino's Character Demo is one but many pieces that showcase this. In this track, we are able to discern Arlecchino's two core ideas, her relationship with her children and otherworldly power, through an incredible combination of singing, a music box, and dubstep. One can even theorize the course of her story through its visuals and music, in the end creating a beautiful and encompassing display of "Arlecchino".

[not-5-rats]

I've been feeling things, many things

[This is just me rambling abt my feels again, been feeling bit lost inside myself recently, just wanna yap abt it for a while]

I don't know who I am, like I know who I am but there feels like there more than me here

In my head

In my body

There isn't just me, there's others.

From what I hear there aren't many others, only 3 or 4 more, but that's way more than anyone I know has up in their brains

They have names, they have colours and styles they enjoy...one even has an age...but I'm not that age, this body isn't that age. They enjoy different types of music, different foods and it's so confusing trying to organise how this room should look because everyone has a different opinion

Sometimes they're quiet and sometimes they're loud, they never really do anything, like they commentate my life never personally taking action...but recently one did do something

I lost my cool with a friend, I sent him lots or angry/ hateful messages but I didn't want to be saying that. I held my phone and refused to read what I was writing..but I didn't have to because someone else was, they felt angry, I could understand that, but I wasn't. Jet wasn't angry, but somebody was, and I don't know who else it could be

I never felt so out of myself before, like yeah I've disassociated, I've felt out of control, out of touch, but I've never felt like my body was getting mixed signals, not like this

I'm scared, I don't know what's going on

I'm feeling all these emotions but they're not mine, I'm having all these dream like memories that aren't mine and I just feel so lost

I don't know who I am

But I know who Jet is

I am Jet, but I feel like there are others who respond to my name as though it's their own

[thursdaygrl]

closed starter for @persephonyed

"i'll be your partner for charades if it'll stop you from making that face. seeing you pout is like being waterboarded..." sully always managed to put his foot in his mouth, but he was trying to be funny. "like, as in, it should be a federal offence for you to wield that against me. as in it's unfair. so."

[shivunin]

Hi, I just wondered what your favourite part of the Fenhawke romance was? Like, a scene/moment that really made you fall more in love with him? I love your writing so much!!

Oh, that is very kind of you to say! 💗I'm glad you enjoy the things I've written. I've really been enjoying writing for this ship, especially the past few months c:

As for your question...

Man, that's tough. I have a hard time picking one thing---I mean, *gestures to all the fic* you know? But I can narrow it down to a couple of scenes/elements:

The fact that a romanced Fenris still calls you "my friend" even after the act 2 romance scene. This is just...the bedrock of their relationship to me. Yes, that night went very poorly (understatement, I know), but at the core they are friends and he trusts Hawke in a way he's likely never had the cause or opportunity to trust someone before. I believe he never stopped loving Hawke, and it was a matter of laying those feelings out and understanding them one at a time. Romantic love not replacing platonic love or eclipsing it, but building or twining together is just... *chef's kiss* that's the good stuff.

The moment during the romance conversation in Act 3 when you can see Fenris go from hoping (painfully hoping!) that there is still some way he and Hawke can be together to actually believing it will happen. There is a shift in his body language that I could watch (and...have) over and over.

The element of choice? This is not going to be coherent, but the fact that he is learning for the first time what it means to have options and preferences, and he spends a lot of time exploring and understanding himself...and after all of that, the thing he keeps coming back to is Hawke. I think it's gorgeous. A song with refrains of pain or fear and choruses of decision and hope. He's loyal to a fault, in many ways, but understanding how much of himself exists to share and then still choosing to share it is just...man. I said this wasn't going to be coherent lol, so there you are. "If there is a future to be had..." like he doubts its existence but he's willing to chance it for Hawke. Man.

But, honestly? I've played DA2 a lot of times and never romanced another character, even though I've played through multiple romance storylines in each of the other games. I can't shake the Fenris romance. Every time I open a new playthrough, I tell myself that this is the time I'm going to romance Isabela, and every time Fenris rips that dude's heart out and I just......alright, yeah. Okay. Here we go again.

[patrocles]

the thing is i dont think eddie ever actually thought about how he would have to explain to his parents (texan, mexican american catholics) why he chose his best friend (of only a few years by that point and has had more near-death experiences than him no less), to be his son’s guardian in the event of his death over them (his own parents!!) in a way that doesn’t sound gay. like he did all that and was probably like “well if i’m dead i dont have to explain myself” and safely packed it away

[pickled-flowers]

Every time I go to a party I'm reminded that it's not that I can't interact with people, it's just not a desire I have :(