#trying to put more of my thoughts on tumblr

[deadbeatbirdmom]

Happy Valentine's Day my fellow RWBY fans. This should be a day focused on love. Which is why I'm going to talk about something that's been troubling me for a while. This isn't about any single post, and I'm not singling anyone out. I'd put this under a read more cut but I think it's important enough not to do that. Scroll down for TLDR and a poll.

One of the common courtesies of tumblr etiquette is: don't tag hate with things like a ship tag or character tag. Or should be common, but let's face it, it's more like uncommon.

A good chunk of tumblr users who I end up blocking are those who post hate in tags like the 'Bumbleby' tag, or 'Yang Xiao Long' tag (it'd be the 'RWBY' tag too, but I don't often go there and rarely post in it). No, it's not toxic to block people, it's how you control your tumblr experience. It's how I avoid seeing hate, or try to.

But there are some tumblr users who I don't want to block but also end up putting hate in the tags: some of my fellow fans. It's not intended the same way as those who do it out of spite, but the end result is the same: your fellow fans end up seeing stuff they might prefer not to.

There's another rule, an old one that predates tumblr: don't feed the trolls. Don't give them attention. Please delete anon hate rather than answer it, although I definitely understand how trolling trolls can be fun. Just please don't tag it with the main tags or you'll do the anon's work for them if it's hate about a ship or character.

I see all too much fan art around that gets far less engagement than posts trying to fight back against hate (and unfortunately share the hate at the same time, especially when it's something from elsewhere like reddit or twitter). If you like the art, don't only hit that heart button, reblog it too!

RWBY fandom isn't dead, but we do need to do our part to encourage artists to make and share more art. Likes alone don't help the art get in front of more fans. I don't think everyone looks in the tags to find art, some will rely on those they follow reblogging art. This goes for sharing fic too! And giving fic writers comments (and kudos on AO3).

This is an appeal to keep negativity out of the main tags. I'm not saying you can't post whatever you want, just when it comes to tagging: please spare a thought for your fellow fans who are incredibly tired of negativity. If all else fails, maybe include a tag that can be added to filters? 'Wasps' for posts about Bumbleby hate, maybe?

I don't know about anyone else, but if I wanted to see hate and get angry, I'd be on twitter or reddit. I check tags here on tumblr to find fan art, and to see fellow fans talking about how much they love RWBY and its characters and ships, and find interesting theories and analysis.

I'm also not entirely sure how tumblr works with followed tags and words mentioned in posts. Do untagged posts still show up if the word appears in the post? Does that mean breaking the word with a backslash or something to avoid it showing up? I don't know, perhaps something to consider.

TLDR: please don't feed the trolls and don't tag hate with main tags. Show RWBY fan artists and fic writers some love and reblog their posts, and comment on fics!

One last thing: a poll to find out if I'm an outlier and posting hate is actually normal in this post-twitter world.

[mythalism]

about ai in fanfic, wasn't there some huge drama about a popular solavellan fanfic "writer" who used ai to pump out a total of 700k words in a month or something a while back?

I will never understand people who do that, not stolen valour, but just fake valour. Cheap plastic valour that breaks after a single use.

i have been largely not commenting on these AI fic debacles because im controversial enough on my own however at this point its getting so fucking annoying that idc anymore. yes people across the fandom keep writing AI fics that are blatantly AI in terms of the INSANE literally physically impossible word counts in short periods of time, lore inconsistencies, internal inconsistencies (characters changing eye color between chapters, for example), repetitive prose, repetitive scenes (like literally the same scene happening 5 times), repetitive formatting (very little variation in paragraph length), absolutely no spelling or grammar mistakes in an entire 400k word fic, no intentional stylistic errors, no character development across 400k words, strange nonsensical metaphors, and also they just feel... off? i DNF'd the one you're alluding to because it was just OFF. also i thought the portrayal of sexual assault was careless and clumsy and the age dynamics were... bizarre. a red flag even. AND THIS IS ALL NOT EVEN MENTIONING THAT THESE FICS COME UP AS 70-100% AI ON AI DETECTORS. ive literally been trying for weeks to get a false positive and ive yet to be successful. nothing human-made that i have put in that detector has ever come up as more than 0% AI. nothing. and yet people are literally fighting for their lives in the streets to defend these authors against "false accusations"? when they get accused and then cannot provide any proof in the form of notes, outlines, google docs version history? and then people start sending the accusers death threats and calling them slurs????? (yes this happened on both twitter and tumblr) ARE YOU PEOPLE FUCKING INSANE???????? WHAT DO YOU GET BY DEFENDING THESE PEOPLE THAT ARE LYING TO YOU???? POINTING OUT A FIC IS AI IS NOT BULLYING. ITS NOT A SMEAR CAMPAIGN. ITS A FACTUAL STATEMENT THAT MAKES THEM UNCOMFORTABLE BECAUSE THEY ARE RIGHTFULLY ASHAMED. GET A GRIP OHHHH MY GOD. dragon age has famously some of the most fantastic fic i have ever encountered and the fact that people are literally putting forth AI slop TRAINED THROUGH PLAGIARISM OF PEOPLE WHO HAVE BEEN PUTTING THEIR SOULS INTO THEIR WRITING FOR YEARS is so disgusting. AI is encroaching on every facet of our fucking lives and if you cannot speak up against it we are going to be literally devoured by it. chatGPT's energy consumption is immense, it uses the same amount of wattage daily as 180,000 US households and consuming what is equal to a bottle of water with EVERY. SINGLE. CONVERSATION. and every time someone uses it to write one of this braindead fucking fics THEY ARE DELIBERATELY CONTRIBUTING TO THIS. THE CEO OF OPEN AI HAD A FRONT ROW FUCKING SEAT AT TRUMP'S INAUGURATION AND DONATED A MILLION FUCKING DOLLARS TO HIS INAUGURAL FUND!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! THEY ARE WORKING TOGETHER!!!!! DOES THIS NOT INFURIATE YOU? YOU ARE MORALLY BANKRUPT!!!!!!!!! HOW DARE YOU CONTRIBUTE TO THIS????? FOR WHAT???? INTERNET CLOUT???? THAT YOU DID NOT EVEN EARN YOURSELF????????? GOODBYE!!!!!! LITERALLY LOG OFF. I WILL CHASE YOU OFF THE INTERNET WITH A BROOM I CANNOT STAND IT!!! GET OUT AND DONT LET THE DOOR HIT YOU ON THE WAY OUT

[deerlybelov3d]

Reposting this from my secondary blog on my old tumblr account (@deerly-belov3d) and migrating over to this one as my new main!

Hazbin deaged AU! ♥️✨ Generally, the older characters become younger, and the younger characters are a little older! So Alastor is 6, Husk is 4, Angel is 8, Charlie and Vaggie are 12, and so on! Luci is 100 years younger but you can’t tell bc he’s so old! 😆 the one exception is Niffty, who’s 2 years old because it’s just cute and fitting that she’s a tiny lil baby!

You’re free to draw lil Al or Husk or both, together or separate or with Lucifer or any other combination (in fact I’d CRY if you did!🥹) so long as you tag me!! I’d love to see it!!! 💖

Some rambly infodumping if you’d like to know more about the AU:

Alastor a feral little rascal but is capable of being a polite little gentleman if he chooses to be! 😆 As a de-aged gremlin he does love to scamper about with his hoovsies out, usually forgoing shoes, which adult Alastor would loathe hehe! In being de-aged, a lot of the things Alastor tries to hard to present himself as (refined, in-control of his every reaction, put-together and neat, etc!) are mostly stripped away, and he’s left even more impulsive, reactive (both negative and positive emotions!), inclined to blab what he’s thinking, act messy and unrefined, etc! Which again, older Alastor would HATE 😆

Little Alastor absolutely WILL bite, no hesitation! He also loves to eat things that most definitely should not be eaten! 😆 Alastor’s shadow shrunk down to match him and helps him get into mischief too hehe!

Lucifer makes all the de-aged kiddos their outfits and delights in doing so! 😆 He makes them other outfits and little pajamas too! He loves being able to be a dad to little ones again, even if he is SUPER overwhelmed by just how many there are that he’s responsible for! Particularly without Lilith here to help this time☹️ His mental health, as we know, isn’t—great! So this is a good motivator, in a way, that he can’t bedrot for days on end with no word to anyone, but also, for that very reason, it’s also very hard on him that he can’t just have a moment to decompress! Charlie and Vaggie are old enough that they can help out some, but young enough that Lucifer can’t rely on them to be left too long with the little ones without supervision! 😆

All the kids have very different food preferences, different levels of development, different bedtimes, different clothing preferences, different play styles, some need baths/showers more often, some need help and supervision bathing, some don’t, and it’s very hectic all the time, and Lucifer is having a TIME trying to accommodate everyone and make sure no one gets into trouble or gets hurt and everyone has what they need!

Little Al is obsessed with 4-year-old Husk and treats him like his favorite stuffie, hefting him around—with little regard for if it’s comfortable for Husk or not—and petting him, pulling on his tail and wings, nibbling on him, etc! Little Husk can walk an all fours and on two legs, and he doesn’t speak, only make kitty sounds, and the rest of the Hazbin Hotel doesn’t know really know for sure how old he is or if he’s not speaking by choice or not! Alastor also adore baby Niffty, but he’s noticeably more gentle and tender with her than he is with Husk! 😆

Lil Husk is very picky, and loves drinking from bottles even if he’s technically too old to be doing so! (BECAUSE IT’S TOO CUTE😭)

If there’s any nterest for this AU I can post more of my thoughts and make more art and just share more about the AU in general! If you read any of this I love you and any sort of engagement is so very super appreciated! 🫶💖✨

[tvckerwash]

hmmm I agree it could've been a way to show ambessa's cunning side, but having her be the mastermind behind the attack at all honestly feels...somewhat disingenuous to her character the more I've thought about it. ambessa's thing in season one is that she never lies about her motivations, and is in piltover because she genuinely wants to advise jayce and mel in a time of war—the problem is that she's so blatantly self serving and only doing so for her own goals that it makes it difficult for us as the audience to trust her or her word in any capacity.

for example, is ambessa wrong when she tells jayce that the council is the problem? the mind hiding behind the body or whatever it was she said? in my opinion, no. we've seen that the council was consistently an issue, and jayce himself had been growing more and more frustrated with them over the course of the season, among other things.

I want to be clear though that I'm operating along the lines of "what story beats can be cut or changed to make season two more consistent with season one" over "how can we make the existing plot of season two make more sense while still hitting all of the same beats", as while I think act one is salvageable with changes, acts two and three? nah those gotta go—but that is just my opinion as a guy on tumblr dot com. 

renni's attack on the memorial service would still happen, but instead of it being directly initiated by ambessa it could be because renni was pissed the other barons decided to work with the dude that killed her son (as lbr the only reason ambessa was such a central figure to the plot of season two, alongside mel and the black rose, is so riot could make them champions and sell a book). ambessa would then still use the attack to try and weasel her way into a position of authority in piltover’s government, but there'd be more focus on her battle of wits against mel.

if the chembarons aren't removed from power, then caitlyn would have no need to launch a strike team to take them out and dismantle shimmer since they’d already be doing it, and therefore she would have no need to use the gray. like I don’t think I need to explain why having “the good guys” in the eyes of the writers use chemical weapons is bad and needed to be handled with a level of care the they clearly were not capable of, especially when the only other characters we’ve seen use it as a weapon were silco and jinx respectively. 

IF they wanted to keep the gray, I would’ve kept it as an environmental pollutant and connected it to the forgotten dying firelight tree plotline instead of using it for shipping drama, and they could even still keep said plotline connected to hextech! 

Jayce could have seen how strong, cool and collected Caitlyn was during that attack. Let her save him at some point. I think she could have convinced him to make her Sheriff after that. Plus, Jayce folds like a house of cards any time someone he loves asks him for anything lmao.

one of the things I truly despise about season two is how people have been gaslighted into thinking jayce has no backbone and is incapable of being assertive and putting his foot down when that is not the case at all. go rewatch every interaction he has with marcus and every council meeting he's in after he becomes a councilor.

jayce already knows how capable cait is too, but whether or not she’s capable doesn’t change the fact that he cares about keeping her (and piltover!!!! he's the security guy!!!!) safe above all else. she’d end up as the sheriff eventually, I’m just not convinced it's a position that she’d be given by jayce. I could see mel or ambessa being the ones to suggest it and jayce being outvoted on it though, just swap the fucked up chest thumping dictator scene with an incredibly tense council vote.

I also think jayce being too occupied with viktor as an excuse for anything is...ehhhhhhhh because season one was constantly showing us that jayce took his position as councilor and the responsibilities that came with it very seriously to the point that he was pretty much never at the lab anymore.

anyway I don't think vi needed to break up with cait the way it happened tbh, especially because it was so obviously done for drama and nothing else. this is maybe a hot take but imo caitvi has always been the weakest relationship in the show as it functions entirely off of tropes and ship bait instead of being organically developed. they do not feel like two characters who have any real chemistry together—they feel like dolls having their faces smashed together.

any split between them should've probably revolved around vi's struggles with trying to find a new identity for herself and her remaining loyalty to jinx as her sister (and how it represents her relationship to zaun)—it's important to remember that vi is more ideologically aligned with silco than she is with vander in season one, and getting past her desire to save jinx and the "all enforcers are just asshole criminals in fancy uniforms" was going to take some character development.

the easiest and most tragic answer is to prove silco right—jinx has changed too much for vi. we've already seen her be incredibly distressed over witnessing the brutal violence jinx inflicted on the firelights in episode six of season one for example, so don't give jinx a redemption arc (because she really didn't need one, let her be a bad guy) and make vi see that her mayhem needs to be stopped because people are getting hurt. don't give her a badge immediately either, have her work alongside them like she did with jayce during the shimmer raid, and let vi be the one who decides to put it on of her own accord, not because caitlyn asked her to do so.

The thing that bugs me most about Caitlyn's arc is how obviously she was forced into the position Jayce had been set up to fill.

Jayce was the de facto head of the council that Sheriff Marcus (keep that in mind) reported directly to for city security.

He was the Golden Boy, Man of Progress, beloved by everyone in Piltover for the invention of Hextech! Charismatic! Handsome!

They didn't NEED martial law. After Jayce emerged unscathed from the terrorist attack, most of the council dead, Piltover would have been falling over itself to give him sole authority regardless of him wanting to quit the council right before the attack.

And Jayce should have been beside himself with rage! Jinx turned his invention, his dream, into a weapon that nearly killed him and the two people he loves most! Mel and Viktor, at the same time! She ruined his peace deal! (And killed Silco, but for some reason Cait and Vi never tell anyone about that)

But nope. He's just sad, and tries to talk Caitlyn down from wanting to kill Jinx.... Like wtf!! Where did his passion go?? His recklessness? Caitlyn got it all.

Let's say he's still reeling after killing the kid in his shimmer raid and fearing the consequences of violent intervention. Fine. But then there is the attack at the memorial. Now it's bigger than Jinx, and his entire city is threatened.

Picture the end of episode 1, with the council gathering in the basement after the memorial attack and it is JAYCE marching in to announce the strike team, with Caitlyn and Vi beside him, with their shiny Hextech weapons.

They didn't need to give Caitlyn political power. She could have become Sheriff under Jayce! She would have had nearly the EXACT same scenes. She doesn't get a single moment where she acts like a political leader in Act 2 anyway!

We never see her do anything the sheriff wouldn't do, which tells me this was a late change to cram all the remaining story into one season, to every character's detriment. If Caitlyn had just been following Jayce's orders until running into Vi, her flip would not have felt so jarring.

She loves Jayce as an older brother, she's grieving her mother, she and Jayce could have BOTH been manipulated by Ambessa. Let Caitlyn be at the forefront of all the awful shit she's ORDERED to do, instead of ordering it HERSELF.

By giving her ultimate authority instead, the few clipped scenes of her redemption, her "I know" and letting Jinx go free are nowhere near enough to get the audience back on her side. As evidenced by how many people hated her arc this season.

[accidentalmistress]

Snzfic - Sparks of Something New

I'm planning to post a Zayne snzfic soon, but I realized that I never posted the first Zayne fic on Tumblr. So, here's the first snzfic I've written with my OC Zayne: a six and a half foot tall nerd with a PhD in immunology and the worst allergies on the planet.

Word count: 2852

Content and warnings: male allergy sneezing; mild swearing

------------------

No one uses the cubicle next to me. Or the one in front of me, for that matter. I'd say no one uses the one behind me, either, but the only thing behind my cubicle is a wall painted in a hideous dark orange color that some far-removed executive probably thought would be "fun" or "invigorating." There's no one in the cubicle on my other side, the one that shares a wall with mine. The ones diagonally in front me are empty, too. In fact, no one else sits in my row, or in either of the adjacent rows. This entire section is empty, excepting little ol’ me, of course.

When I requested moving my desk after that whole incident with my supervisor Greg, HR claimed that this deserted patch of cubicles that sits down a short flight of steps in the half-sunken ground floor of the lab building was the only area with open seats. I know that's bullshit. The Boys' Club of Upper Management wanted to shove me somewhere out of the way—in a whole separate building, even. Joke's on them: I thrive in solitude. I love having this quiet corner all to myself, without the dull drudgery of small talk or people bothering me with inane questions. I put my earbuds in, get in the zone, and focus on my work without distractions.

Which is why it's super weird when I hear someone in the cubicle across from mine.

I've been so engrossed in what I'm doing that I didn't notice anyone coming back here. It's only because of a lull in the music playing through my earbuds that I notice anything at all. It sounds like… heavy breathing?

"Heh… heEHHhh! ��� Hh'xcht! … h'gnKT! Heh-hahCHT!  Ugghh…"

Someone is sneezing like crazy in the empty cube next to me. Or, rather, they're stifling an onslaught of sneezes. Do they not know I'm here? I unlock my phone and touch the pause button on Spotify. Oh, I am so glad I didn't start jamming out when “Careless Whisper” came on, because when I get really into it I do the saxophone parts and everything.

Still, I'm honestly a little surprised whoever it is hasn't noticed me yet, or at least the clicking of keyboard keys beneath my fingers. From the sound of it, though, they're probably focused on their own problems with, y'know, breathing. Besides, if they're expecting this area to be deserted, it may not even cross their mind that someone could be back here.

I slowly push my office chair backwards and lean so I can look into the cubicle across the aisle to my right. Sure enough, someone is sitting at the desk. Well, more like slumped over it. Looks like a guy. I watch his back spasm a few more times.

"Gh-CHT! CHT! hhCHT! heh-EHssht! Mmmhh…"

Capping off another string of stifles is a pathetic-sounding whimper that tells me this is not the beginning of his suffering. I have no idea whether he's been back here for a while now or if his problems started somewhere else and he only snuck back here moments ago. Man, why’d he have to come to this section for his little sneeze attack break or whatever? I know I have no claim over these rows of empty cubes, but even so it feels like he's intruding on my quiet sanctuary of productivity.

I could try to ignore him—turn up my music, pretend he isn't there, and refocus on my work. Maybe he'll remain blissfully ignorant of my existence and leave quietly whenever he's done, uh… getting whatever it is out of his system.

Yeah, right. Refocus? There's no way I'll be able to refocus as long as I know he's there. His mere presence will loom like an unseen specter and eat holes in my concentration. Which means my only real choices are to sit quietly and hope he leaves, or make my presence known and hope he leaves. One of those options will have far more immediate results, so I sigh lightly and remove my earbuds.

I get up and go peer at him from the relative safety of standing partly concealed behind the cubicle wall next to the doorway. Do cubicles have doorways? Whatever, the opening entrance thing. He's facedown on the desk, forehead resting on his arms and a box of tissues close at hand. I can't see his face, but I don't think I recognize him. Dark brown hair that’s on the longer side and messy in that tousled, “I just woke up like this” way that I can never achieve when I try to do it intentionally. Slim build. Wearing a white coat. Lab coat means lab guy. His whole upper body tenses up every time he sneezes.

“Heh-chxt! EhCH’nx! Huhh… God, it won't stop…”

"You all right there?"

I take a kind of perverse satisfaction in the way he jumps. His head snaps up, and he fixes me with a wide-eyed stare behind round-rimmed glasses. I'm struck by just how blue his eyes are. It's a deep blue, like a sky just beginning to darken. Now that I can see his face, I know I definitely don't recognize him, but something twitches in my gut all the same.

"Wh-wha-!? Oh n-no- heh-hehh- hhx'ch-TIEW! Heh-ts’CHIUHH! heGH’SHiuhh! HAH-GHSHIEEW!!"

He tries to keep stifling, but I guess I startled him too badly, because he quickly breaks down into a full-blown sneezing fit. It sounds pretty harsh, too, and I have to admit that I feel a little bad.

"Uh… sorry. Didn't mean to scare you."

"N-no, no, it's- heh-tchiuhh! I, um… I di-hihdn't know anyone was o-over heh-here."

I point across the aisle to my cubicle.

"My desk is right there, my dude."

His face is already flushed from sneezing, especially across his nose, which has a prominent aquiline shape and Roman bump at the bridge. I can just barely make out that he has freckles beneath that blush. He gets a few shades darker before my eyes.

"Wh- R-really? I- oh, hh'chnxt! Nguh… I-I'm so sorry, I ha- hah-shiew! h-had no idea anyone even s-sat over here. Oh, God, then you've been here this whole t-time?" He groans and puts his face in his hands. "Oh man… this day can't get any worse… heh-chtt! Nnhh…"

"Well, if it makes you feel any better, I had headphones on, so I only just noticed you were here… So, uh… you sick or something?"

He shakes his head and his eyes screw shut as he grabs a handful of tissues, then he draws in a deep breath and buries his face in them.

"Hehh-GSSHHT!! … Allergies."

“Oh…”

I’m not the best conversationalist, but I feel like I should say something else, so my brain spins a roulette wheel of possible responses that apparently lands on: “To what?”

He looks up at me with red-rimmed eyes and sniffles miserably.

“Everything. Dust, mold, the pollen of every flower and tree you can think of, cats, dogs, fragrances. I swear a light breeze will set me off… -snfff- I th-think what’s really geh-getting me now is the- the- heh- the r- ragweed- heh! HEH-CHSHIEW! ESHyuu!”

He blows his nose into his wad of tissues with a wet honk and a slight moan. Part of me says I should just say a quick "welp, hope you feel better", go back to my desk, and really crank my music up. And yet…

There's something about this guy that glues my feet right where I’m standing. I don't know if it's instinct or empathy or the fact that, despite the streaming eyes and red, sniffling nose, he's actually kind of cute. In the same way a scraggly, wet kitten is, I guess.

"Wow, that… sucks. Bless you."

"Thanks… Um… I-I'm Zayne, by the way. Zayne Reynolds. -snndf-"

I nod, slowly. I'm pretty sure I remember there being a Dr Reynolds in the immunology department. Guess this is him.

"Lynette Sparks. So, like… do you take medication or anything?”

He nods and looks away to the side with a slightly uncomfortable look.

“Mhmm. B-but this morning, I um… Heh'ISSHiuh! -snf- I-I was running late, and I… I forgot.”

“Oh. Uh, well… Can I do anything for you? Or get you anything?"

He regards me with some surprise, eyebrows raised.

"You… want to he-help m- heh-hehh- HIH'chgdt! Nngh… -snfff- You want to help me?"

"Is that weird?" I say the words slowly, second-guessing myself. Maybe he'd rather be left alone.

"N-no, I didn't mean— It's just the guys I work with don't usually… Th-they don't, uh…" He sniffles, nose scrunching with obvious irritation. "Oh no… I-I'm gonna… hehh…"

His chest jumps with hitches of increasing urgency, and I can't help but notice the way his reddened nostrils twitch. His voice quavers and rises in pitch as his breath catches.

"G-gonna h-have a f-fit. Oh God- hehh! HhheEHH!"

He stifles a sneeze. Then another. And another. And another. The next he tries desperately to stifle as well, but the outburst breaks through his efforts to contain it, and from there it's all downhill. A dam has broken. His body is wracked by more and more powerful sneezes, and all he can do now is grip the bundle of tissues tight against his face to catch the expulsions and muffle the sound.

"HEH-TCHIUHH!! EHHSHHGHT! EHHSHHGHT! HEHH-EHH'SSHHIUHH! Ehsht!-Ehsht!-Ehsht! Ehh'SHHIUHH! Oh God- heh'CHSHIUHH!"

He goes on like that for what has to be at least a full minute, and I can think of nothing I can do but try not to stare. By the time he's done, his entire face is cherry red, and his breath comes in labored pants. He moans.

"Oh my God… I'm- I'm s-so sorry. I can't h-help it- Hah-gghhssiuh! Oh man… now I'm lightheaded… I-I’m really sorry…"

My face pinches into a scowl. "What? You- Why are you apologizing?" I sigh and smooth my features. "I was gonna ask if you're okay, but… you're obviously not."

Any irritation I harbored at having my workflow concentration broken feels insignificant and petty now. I may be antisocial, but I'd have to be pretty friggin heartless to just go back to my desk and leave this poor guy on his own.

"Give me a minute." I point a warning finger at him. "And don't go anywhere!"

He looks up at me with confused and bleary eyes. He doesn't even need to speak: his expression screams, "Why would I?"

I duck into my cubicle and grab my bag, hauling it up onto my desk. Rummaging through, I find a small zipper pouch, which I toss lightly into the air and catch with a smirk. Then it's off to the opposite side of the room where a water cooler sits plugged into the wall. I'd heard the phrase "water cooler talk," but I didn't think offices still had actual water coolers until I started working here. Not that there's anyone around for me to talk to, but the water cooler is genuine enough, and I fill one of the little paper cups.

I find the ailing Dr Reynolds much as I left him: hunched over the vacant desk with tissues attached to his face like a diver with a SCUBA mask. I plunk the water down next to him before unzipping the pouch and rifling through until I pull out a small, neon pink pill in a plastic blister pack.

"Here. Benadryl. Might make you sleepy, but I figure that's preferable to… this."

Zayne raises his head and stares at the pill in my outstretched hand for a few silent seconds. I clear my throat when it gets awkward.

"Uh, you don't have to take it if you don't want to."

That at least spurs him to respond. "N-no, I don't- I mean- heh-chhzhiuh! I-I'll take it if… you're sure?"

I raise an eyebrow. I don't know why he's making it sound like a question.

"I wouldn't be offering it to you if I wasn't."

"R-right… sorry. Thank you."

He extends a hand, and I drop the pill into his open palm. He sneezes twice while trying to get the blister pack open, and I'm about to offer to open it for him when he finally gets it himself. I watch the tiny pill vanish as he downs the water and sits back with a sigh. He looks exhausted.

"That should… eh… heh'chgt! Guh… Should hopefully kick in soon… -snfff- Um, thank you again… You said you're, um, Lynette?"

I nod. "Yeah. Sparks. Lynette Sparks. And please don't say something like, 'sparks flew' when we met. I've heard it a bajillion times before, and it's not a great pickup line."

"Huh? P-pickup line? Why would I… try to… um… heh-heh-hehh! HEHTCHIEW! Nnh. -sndf- Excuse me… Um, I-I wouldn't do that… T-try to hit on you, I mean. That's not, um, work appropriate."

Wow, this guy's a dork. I fight a giggle that threatens to bubble up, but it's not that I want to laugh at him. His timid stammering is actually oddly endearing. Maybe this is what people mean when they call someone "adorkable." I cross my arms as a smirk creeps across my face.

“Well, I appreciate your professionalism."

I'm not lying. I genuinely do appreciate that he's being considerate of me as a coworker. Yet, there's something else, too: a twinge of disappointment. Well, that's… new. I chew on my bottom lip for a second before I decide to take a chance.

"So… what if we got to know each other better first?"

I think that makes him short circuit, because he just stares at me for a good five seconds before he can speak again.

"I… What?"

"I'm just saying, if we got to know each other, that would maybe, y'know, open an avenue towards things happening outside of work. Where flirting might be more appropriate. I mean, if you actually wanted to. It's okay to say no; for all I know you're not even into women."

"N-no, I am! Uh, interested in women, that is. I just- I- oh, h-hang on- ah-hahh-HAESHIUU! Nguh, excuse me… I mean, um…"

His gaze rests on the desktop for a few more moments. I can't tell anymore how much of the flush in his face is from allergies and how much is from how flustered he is. I don’t know what it says about me as a person, but I can’t help but think it’s cute. He takes a breath. When he looks back up at me, though, there's something strange at the back of those deep blue eyes.

"Are you messing with me?"

My eyebrows twitch upwards for a moment. In retrospect, I can see how he might think that, what with my rather flippant tone. I’ve never been good at any form of socializing, let alone flirting, so I end up hiding behind sarcasm and humor. That way any screw ups I make can be passed off as a joke, no harm done. Of course, it doesn’t always pay off, like right now. In fact, I may have just blown my chances.

I clear my throat with a somewhat embarrassed cough.

“That was not my intention, no. I’m sorry if I offended you or made you uncomfortable. Maybe we should just, uh, forget I said anything?”

I take a step back with an awkward chuckle, not really intending to return to my own cubicle yet, just wanting to offer a little more space between us in case he is uncomfortable. He must think I'm leaving, though, because he stands up with such abrupt force that the chair he was sitting in rolls and hits the wall behind him. I can’t help but stare for a moment with slightly wide eyes. What I could not appreciate while he was seated (and, furthermore, hunched over), is that Zayne is tall. Really fucking tall. Like, he must be at least six foot six, which means he’s over a foot taller than I am.

Well, shit. He just got a heck of a lot hotter in my book. I'm not the least bit ashamed to admit: I have a thing for tall guys, and the taller the better.

He doesn’t seem to notice my reaction, though, or maybe he’s used to people gawking at his height.

“Wait, I didn’t mean- H-honestly I just… couldn't understand why you’d be interested in me. B-but I would, um, l-like to… ah… ahh-hahh-AESCHIUUH! S-sorry! I-I’d like to get to know you better… if that’s really alright with you.”

The corner of my mouth twitches into a smile that blossoms wider by the moment, and I nod.

“Yeah… Yeah, that's definitely alright with me.”

No one uses the cubicle next to me, and suddenly I'm finding myself even more grateful for that fact than usual. I don't know why Zayne chose this area of the building to hunker down and suffer through his allergy attack, but it seems those dickheads in HR did me a greater favor than I realized when they moved me here.

After all, this could be the start of something very interesting…

[jaydick-week]

Hiii team!

I love this community, but I find it so difficult to get my works seen. Is there anything/where you suggest that I could share my fic that might help me get seen so I can engage more with jaydick fans?

Thanks, love you all! I'll be buying the next zine you put out for sure, the last one was so beautiful, and I keep it on display in my room <3

Hello! I'll break this answer down into a couple of categories.

On AO3

AO3 doesn't have an algorithm (which is a good thing), which means people have to sort through fics on their own. This means that having accurate tags, interesting titles, and strong summaries is a really good way to capture the attention of folks sorting through fics.

Of those three, strong summaries are by far the most important. A lot of people are turned off by "I suck at summaries" or "Read the tags" or even vague excerpts (though mileage may vary). Try to describe your work like it's on the back cover of a novel. This post has some good examples broken down by genre.

A lot of people may get nervous about folks only choosing to sort by hits/kudos, but in my experience, people only do this when they are new to a fandom. After they've read all the classics, most people do sort by new, so don't worry about that!

On Tumblr/Bluesky/Etc.

Just posting a link might not get that much attention on its own, even if you add some additional thoughts. Try making your own "New Work" graphic that you can edit and attach to each of your posts. An example of this can be seen here by @bitterleafs.

Other graphics ideas can include moodboards (which are very easy to make on Canva) or edits.

Post to Collections/Events

Works created for fandom events are often promoted by blogs with fairly large audiences/followings. When people make works for our events and tag us, we reblog their work to our followers, who might reblog it to theirs, and so on. This is a really easy way to reach a vast network of people you might not otherwise have access to.

(As a side note, pretty much anything can be posted for Jaydick Week, so you should join us in April!)

Joining Discord

Many discords (including the Jaydick Server - message us off-anon for an invite) have channels dedicated to sharing your work and being hyped up by other people. This is also a great way to find cheerleaders, beta readers, and more!

I hope this is helpful 💙❤️

[spnfanficpond]

New Member Spotlight January 2025

The Pond is always growing and we want to make our new members feel welcome! Here’s a list of recent additions to our fishy family and a little info about them!

Guppies, Jellies, and Mutuals, oh, my!

doe - she/they, @nyc-pizza-rat, Purple_Starflower (AO3), sleepydoe (Discord)

OTP? - Destiel

Other fandoms? - A few — ofmd, good omens, do bollywood movies count?

Looking for in the Pond? - Community and support! Also accountability

Pairings you read? - Destiel, mostly

Genres you read? - Fluffy & Angst, low smut, soulmate AUs, Accidental marriage

What do you like to write? - One shots

Something you haven't written but would like to try? Why not? How can we help? -Long fic

Mari D - she/her, EST, @rosemariad, kunoichidelahoja (AO3), R0s3mar1_D (Discord), mari_m_d on Instagram, mdgurl on Twitter (I'm always gonna call it Twitter, idc lol) & bluesky

OTP? - Destiel, SamJess

Other fandoms? - Naruto

Looking for in the Pond? - Support, engagement, social activity

Something to signal boost? - I'm working on an SPN fanfic series - I've published 5 fics contributing to that series spanning from the end of s4 to s8, s9 is currently in progress and will be done by next week, here's the link to the series on Ao3:

Pairings you read? - ships, occasional love triangles

Genres you read? - angst, PWP, smut, slow burn, Canon divergent, Canon compliant, the occasional bit of crack for levity lol.

Favorite writer(s)? - favorite fanfic writer not necessarily but favorite fics absolutely: our old heroes by adelaclancy, a room of ones own by northernsparrow, four letter word for intercourse by @bendingsignpost

What do you like to write? - I love putting my own spin of Canon events and then spiraling from there, so it tends to be in-universe but Canon divergent or Canon compliant and writing from a character's perspective never seen before.

Masterlist!

Most underappreciated fic? - SPN Inferno

Something you haven't written but would like to try? Why not? How can we help? - I would've previously said publishing this spn fanfic series I'm working on but just gauging people's thoughts on it would be super helpful, what works, what doesn't work? what would people want more of or less? I want these fanfics to be the best it can be because of how long the SPN Fandom has endured, now reaching 20 years since the show began.

Liane - she/her or they/them, Germany, @chevroletdean, Reika (AO3), reikanra (Discord)

OTP? - Destiel (I also love Samwena)

Other fandoms? - Anime (some of my favorites are Jojo's Bizarre Adventure, Attack on Titan, Sailor Moon, Durarara!!, Death Note), Gaming (some favorites are Persona, Animal Crossing, the Legend of Zelda, Ace Attorney), Dungeons & Dragons, Buffy the Vampire Slayer, anything vampire related honestly

Looking for in the Pond? - I hope to connect with other writers/readers, to participate in writing events, and to learn a thing or two (especially about formatting stuff). I'm also looking forward to fic recs.

Something to signal boost? - Back in November 2024 I have created a Tumblr Community for Supernatural Writers. It is a groupchat-esque space for all kinds of writers to connect, collaborate, and help each other out. In December we've hosted a Prompt-Mas event as well as a Secret Santa. Tumblr was rolling out this new feature and I wanted to use it for that purpose. Secondly, I have recently joined a mutual's Discord Server for SPN Fanfic Writers and am currently a mod there.

Pairings you read? - Destiel, Samwena, Reader inserts (all of them! Dean x Reader, Sam x Reader, etc.)

Genres you read? - Angst, fluff, smut. My favorite is ANGST all the way, the heavier the better. Some of my favorite tropes are hurt/comfort, Royal!AU (knight x prince(ss) has my HEART), sunshine x grumpy, friends to lovers, Character A fell first and Character B fell harder

Favorite writer(s)? - There are too many to just pick one, but I'll try to list the first 5 that come to my mind! Alex ( @zepskies on Tumblr and Zeppelin_Skies on AO3), Blondie ( @ohsc on Tumblr and AO3), Dahlia ( @lovedahlia on Tumblr), Fig ( @figthoughts on Tumblr), and Kelsey ( @inknopewetrust on Tumblr and happyhogan on AO3)

What do you like to write? - As of right now I mainly write Dean x Reader and Dean x OC stories. I write for other SPN characters too, though, as well as characters played by Jensen Ackles. They all range from fluff to angst to smut, or revolve around platonic relationships. I generally prefer one-shots, but also write headcanons and multichapter fics. My current main project is Tainted, a very angsty Dean x Fem!Reader mutlichapter fic revolving around the Mark of Cain and Demon!Dean arc in seasons 9-10.

Masterlist!

Most underappreciated fic? - NSFW warning, I wrote this for Kinktober 2024: Lingerie

Something you haven't written but would like to try? Why not? How can we help? - As someone who's queer myself, I'd love to write more sapphic x reader fics. I already have (cf. the underappreciated Rowena x Fem!Reader oneshot above), but it fell a bit flat, so I haven't done it again. I love the boys dearly, but sometimes I wanna put more spotlight on the female characters of Supernatural. Especially in x (fem!)reader scenarios, but also just generally. Maybe events where the ladies get to be the main characters would motivate me more, if a couple of people participate.

Mal - she/her, EST, @winchester11213, Winchester11213 (AO3),

OTP? - Sam/Eileen

Other fandoms? - Marvel

Looking for in the Pond? - Recommendations and possibly when I get the gumption, to have others see my writing.

Pairings you read? - Reader inserts

Genres you read? - All genres. Favorite tropes: enemies/friends to lovers; fake relationships

Favorite writer(s)? - @kittenofdoomage is my favorite.

What do you like to write? - Smut, fluff, working my way into some more genres at a snail’s pace

Masterlist!

Something you haven't written but would like to try? Why not? How can we help? - Not yet. I still have 96 (exaggerating a bit) WIP & a 3yo so I’m very slow at putting out work between time restriction and my general lack of confidence

Beth - she/her, Australia, @bettystonewell, betty_stonewell (AO3),

Looking for in the Pond? - Making fandom friends

Pairings you read? - Reader inserts

Genres you read? - Romance with a bit of everything. I prefer humour to angst. Slow burns, friends to lovers, omegaverse

Favorite writer(s)? - @littlegreenplasticsoldier, @kittenofdoomage, and alexjanna91 (on AO3)

What do you like to write? - Dean x reader. Writing from Dean’s perspective

Masterlist!

Abbie - Great Britain, @supernotnatural2005, Supernotnatural_2005 (AO3), Abbalinawrites (Discord)

OTP? - Dean x reader

Other fandoms? - Big sky, SPN RPF, wanting write for more

Looking for in the Pond? - I’d like to be able to communicate with more people, and find new blogs with work to read. I’d love to be able to bounce ideas around and get more advice, or opinions on my work. Be part of a community with lovely people I can share my work and theirs with.

Pairings you read? - Any of Jensen’s characters x reader

Genres you read? - Angst, fluff, smut, alternate universe, A/B/O

Favorite writer(s)? - Currently, my two favourite atm are @zepskies and waynesmultiverse because I have recently read their works, and love everything they put out. Also, Alex has been lovely in responding to some of my work.

What do you like to write? - Angst to fluff, smut, AU, A/B/O

Masterlist!

Most underappreciated fic? - A Christmas Miracle

Something you haven't written but would like to try? Why not? How can we help? - I would like to write my own Alpha!dean x Omega!reader story. I have attempted but struggled to put the ideas to the page. And maybe idea bouncing? I show/tell you my idea and get feedback or advice?

EnTeSelene - she/her, Spain, @enteselene, enteselene (AO3), EnTeSelene (Discord), enteselene.bsky.soc

OTP? - Wincest

Looking for in the Pond? - I'm looking for fellow fans who love to read and write

Something to signal boost? - I'm the @spneldritchbang mod. On AO3

Pairings you read? - gen, wincest. I don't mind the pairing if the story is good

Genres you read? - lol, horror, case fics, character study... But again I don't mind the trope if the plot is good

Favorite writer(s)? - fleshflutter is to blame that I fell down the rabbit hole

What do you like to write? - horror and dark fics

Masterlist!

Most underappreciated fic? - Porcelain Soul

Something you haven't written but would like to try? Why not? How can we help? - uh, thriller? sci-fi? I guess that the plot bunny missed my address

Tiffany (or Tiff) - PA, USA, (no Tumblr or AO3), Maxx15849 (Discord)

Looking for in the Pond? - To meet other writers and support others

Something to signal boost? - I'm working on my own application for writers

Pairings you read? - Oc/Dean Winchester ships

Genres you read? - Romance, friendship

What do you like to write? - Romance, friendship

Something you haven't written but would like to try? Why not? How can we help? - Not really. Still working on the ones I am working on now

That’s all for this month, folks! (If we’re missing anyone, let us know and we’ll add them to next month’s list!) Make sure to say hi to the newbies and make them feel welcome! Thanks to all from @mrswhozeewhatsis, @mariekoukie6661, @thoughtslikeaminefield, @heavenssexiestangel, @spn-fanfic-reblog-writes, and @manawhaat!

[smiley-mcdoggington]

I fear something I have sent may have gotten lost in the void of tumblr…

Rip…big bottoms…

But yes Ford can top and yes he moans like gorl

NOOOOOOOO :((((((

Ford almost exclusively tops for most of his life, with Stanley at least. Its a little bit like pseudo-sexism where Bottoming is Losing but also because for most of their lives Ford expected Stan to put more effort into their relationship, be the vulnerable one, let Ford take because Ford was unwilling to give, not with what he thought of Stanley. That changes during weirdmageddon when he realizes how much he just wants Stanley back right before he has to kill him, it turns from 'Stanley has to bottom because he would probably do it wrong and I don't want to be at his mercy' to 'My brother's the kindest man I've ever known and I want to spend the rest of our lives worshipping him while he lays back comfortably to take it' so Ford bottoms if Stan wants but Stan is usually uninterested. Except when Stan saves Ford from anything, then Ford wants to get bent in thirds because Wowww he's so handsome and he can pick me up just as easily as I can pick him up

As far as bottom Stanley, Stanley's almost always submitted to his brother: Ford knows best, better than Stan, his dumb, sweaty clone. Stan kinda gets it, he's built like a bully even if he tries to stoop around Ford because he couldn't handle Ford being scared of him, and Ford's always been more particular than Stan, so if he wants things one way and Stan doesn't care as much, why not just have them Ford's way? It keeps the peace. But then Ford's change of heart from weirdmageddon, and Stan starts actually thinking about his opinion on it, because in his life he's appreciated both sides. But this is Ford, his family, his brother he gave his life for in more ways than one, that he worked so hard for every day of his life. And he wants a reward, to be treated like it mattered, Stan's spent so long trying to take care of Ford, look out for him, save him, he just wants Ford to want to take care of him back. And Ford does, for some miraculous fucking reason he does.

But Ford has to actively remember to not let his throat tighten during sex because he gets squeaky - Stan makes him give up that pretty quickly tho. Meanwhile Stan's smoked Everything so above a certain octave his voice just Stops so he's either huffing and groaning or it looks like his mouth is just hanging open because his throat just won't do the high noises the sex demands. One time they almost got caught because McGucket surprised visited but then he thought Stan just had a girl over and later vaguely mentioned it and now Stan won't let Ford live it down

[godfreyr]

I am the anon who messaged you on the other account I am 15, and still young so stop cursing me or saying stuff about my grammar, I am from Spain, and speak 7 languages, so doing some errors is more than fine, you are hating on my grammar and probably speak less than 4 languages. I was just asking a question and you took it in the wrong way, but whatever be a hatful oldie, it’s time to get married and have kids instead of hating on a child.

Spread love, cause that’s what my family thought me at least unlike yours

{ You’re so aggravating… Jesus Christ… This is my last response to your anon asks, and this will be long because it’s the same issue I have seen around tumblr nowadays and I think it needs to be addressed—

First and foremost, congratulations for speaking seven languages.

If your family taught you to spread love, you’re doing it wrong. Because YOU started this shit.

The thing is: when you spread hate online being ageist, you’re bound to make enemies. I’m not the only 30 year-old here… so you managed to offend half of my followers with your ask and they will obviously retaliate. It’s pretty easy for you to hide behind anonymity, stalk another one of my blogs and continue to attack me, all the while asking people to not spread hate against you. Maybe get out of anon and talk to me like a real person? That would be a good start.

As for my personal life, even though it’s none of your concern, and since you seem so drawn to me and interested in me, I’ll indulge: I am married and I have a very happy life, thank you. My family taught me to put people like you back in their places when I have to. I’m soft, but I have teeth and I can bite back harder—precisely because I’m older. As for having kids, not everyone wants kids, not everyone can afford to have kids, not everyone CAN have kids. Again, this was sexist to say the least! So far, you’ve managed to be both ageist AND sexist… I guess the whole “spreading love” is going very well, right?

You see, hopefully you will be 30 someday, you will still love what you love today, you will continue to seek connection with people with similar interests and guess what? It’s normal! You don’t age and automatically become a boring person who doesn’t have hobbies. Blogging has been my hobby since I was your age, and it was a very fulfilling experience. I made tons of friends along the way, and I continue to make friends and connect through the things that I love.

I’m far from being an “oldie” we are not in the 60s anymore! I’m just having fun, same as everyone else. Besides, you should be paying more attention to yourself and your own life instead of wasting your time with granny here. I’m a nobody, nobody cares about what I do online, I’m not famous… so the real question is: why do you care, sweetheart?

Now, reevaluate your opinions and your ageism while you still can, and try to evolve as a human being. It will be a favor to yourself!

Ps: I find it funny that men in their 40s can be interested in games and anime, but GOD FORBID a woman in her 30s who enjoys tv series and blogging in her free time! }

*Roman: annoyed and displeased*

[italianpersonwithashippersheart]

Taishin reads as a neurodivergent kid whos ernest curiousity and innocent wasn't forcebily destroyed by the world.

As a neurodivergent person (90% sure currently self diagnosed only) it reads to me that Taishin was probably very loved and very sheltered. He also probably never had that many friends. The sheltering was probably a little to his detrument, but I think it's preferable to the alternative.

He is curious and ernest and eager to learn. Social situations and relationship are confusing. He also feels a lot for others. He latches onto the rules of a stan because that explains what he is feeling and the rules are simple and easy to understand and follow.

The problem of course that Takara doesn't want a stan and you can't have a close relationship (friendship or romantic) to someone you are stanning.

And also I think Taishin realized at the end that he wasn't a stan, or at least was about too, because even on the surface the idea of being a stan matches to what he was feeling. The idea of not being hable to be next to Takara or interact with him in any way made him sad.

His questions are not being answeared (as @lurkingshan pointed out here) and he doesn't know how to navigate new feelings or new situations with no guidence or knowledge of how to correctly identifying what the feeling of being in love or having a crush is.

There is only an actress for a Taishin Mom and we only saw a Mom and a sister in the phone call in the previous episodes. So I think his Mom might have been a single Mom. And he doesn't read to me as someone who is super into media or fiction or watching tv. That plus the sheltering and protecting and not having a relationship to observe probably left him very unware about love in general.

I definately agree with @lurkingshan that Takara is not answearing his questions because he wants Taishin to arrive there on his own and because of his own influence on him.

I think the new relationship between Emiri and Akira might put love and relationship in his head a little more and he will either arrive there on his own or ask for advice from someone else. Maybe Minami since she was so helpful during the welcome party.

I'm very intrigued and curious about Takara's backstory reveal next episode.

Another thing about Taishin that is very neurodivergent coded (at least in a very similar way to what I am personally used to) is that he is pretty good at realizing when he said something "weird" after he said it (he can recognize emotions and reaction in others decently well but not in himself and he is also probably used to getting reactions when he says something that other people find "weird"), but he doesn't seem to be able to recognize if something is "weird" to ask before hand.

Also the umbrella clutching at end, and how it turned to tense and stiff to exicted fidgeting. Perfection.

[poorly-drawn-mdzs]

Master manipulator vs Master manipulator

 [First] Prev <–-> Next

[ganondoodle]

got this reblog on one of my posts were i talked about being anxious about the future of the zelda series after totk and-

i even went back and unblocked them just to check my own post and check twice what they meant exactly- but i still dont know how they got to these conclusions

i never said i 'want a good uwu ganondorf' (bc that would mean hes aligned with hyrule bc thats how goodness works!!!!11!1!!!), i also dont think of any of the zeldas as 'whores' (seriously, where did that come from?? neither me nor the addition of someone agreeing with me said anything like that??? did they think bc the addition called tloz misogynistic means we think zelda is a whore????? huh???)

its also funny how they say they want zelda to stay a simple fairytale rather than have 'people like me' bc .. one point i talked about in the og post was how the evil arab thing VS good white people media likes to do so much is so normalized here that its simply seen as a simple harmless fairytale trope instead of a big underlying issue in general media and the writers might not even realize it (which is worse) bc the most 'generic' appeal is to people who dont think of it as a problem in the first place, because it is so normalized

(huh, i wonder about what kind of person that part was about .. hmmmm)

(ALSO funny they mention princess hilda as nuanced villain ... like ... wow they are so nuanced about purple haired people!!- like guess why we want a nuanced/less badly/less flat written ganondorf and what he, in particular, has not in common with other villains! its not his hair color! .... or was that point supposed to mean .. look we have one female character that is a villain, its not misogynistic! idk honestly)

(and the classic, "you just call it this/dont like it bc its not what you wanted !!!!!!!2!"1!112!!")

also funny how its 'never gonna be progressive enough' like asking for the franchise to maybe put a little more thought and nuance into their white divine right vs evil desert man simulator instead of making it worse is already asking too much

(i dont know what the last point has to do with anything??)

(also yes totk is racist, like most if not all of the franchise and a alot of other media as well, shocker- you can still like it though, i and plenty of other people are still fans of it, we just wish they did a little more with their stuff and maybe not make the racism problem WORSE)

(also yes the hyrule monarchy is also evil :))) )

(and also not so secretly so either :)) )

[gophergal]

You've always been a delicate disaster

[arinmoss]

Mabel :3 (she/her)

[seaofreverie]

Sparkstember Day 11: Angst In My Pants (The Decline And Fall Of Me)

Album two of two in the series of Sparks' immaculate new wave releases! Iconic in every way imaginable from the music to the artwork to ONE music video. I think it's more musically (and lyrically!) varied and mature in tone (besides... a couple exceptions. Yes, an album called Angst In My Pants) than its predecessor, which is a very good development. These songs will leave you chuckling and bopping along and also pondering the intricacies of human existence. Ok, maybe that's a bit of a stretch, but it can't be denied that behind much of the earnestness and theatricality here, there's lots of quite emotional, introspective and thought-provoking stuff to be found.

Thematically, this album goes everywhere. One moment we are in Sextown U.S.A, the next we're visiting Disneyland, California where we make friends among people and animals. On a more serious note though, I think the biggest emotional whiplash one could experience between different songs on an album is between Mickey Mouse and Sherlock Holmes. And yet there's still a very prominent element of humour, even in those songs that are on the more serious or dramatic end of the scale.

I said a few days ago that I'd try to return to the topic of Sparks' brand of humour and how it works, but I don't feel intelligent enough to analyse that today. And I'm pretty sure that from what I've seen, Other People And The Maels Themselves (Said It Better Than Me). So instead, as a little send-off, please remember: if a mouse can be special, well, SO CAN YOU!!! 🫵

Favourite songs (and other highlights):

Angst In My Pants: literally no other song like this one in this world. I can't tell why that is but it's just. So great

I Predict: I had a weird kind of effect where I heard this song in my early days of Sparking and it felt VEEERY familiar to me. I think it was due to the genre / style here, it reminded me of something specific, at first I thought it was very glam rock but I'm pretty sure that this is not it but something else (and I don't know what to call it in that case!). Anyway, banger song

Tarzan And Jane: whoa wait, am I already skipping to the third-to-last song on the tracklist?? I guess I am. This one's great and one of my early favs too (I wonder how long it will take until I run out of things to say about my fav songs and it all just becomes this list of 'it's very good and I like it a lot. next.')

The Decline And Fall Of Me: it's great!! I like it!! And, of course, "check out my pizzas"

Eaten By The Monster Of Love: personal reasons that lead to a printed and framed mini-comic of my making appearing on my desk, which features some of the lyrics of this song, which caused me to have it permanently stuck in my head for a pretty long period of time. And this way I ended up liking it much much more than I did in the beginning, when it still seemed somehow pretty unremarkable to me

[vodid]

everyone is legally obligated to look at my pink linktree. and then follow me on my other socials if you use them. sorry, i don't make the rules