#very limited vision

[hysterical-random-things]

I've made a loop cosplay for nycc and while I love how it cane out I'm very glad I got a handler for it because I will be a Harzard (it's in character but still lol)

[the-nothing-maker]

Heartache

(my piece for NovaMali's "Classics but Make it Gay 3" ! Inspired by illuminated Bibles Moralisées from the 1200s/1300s and their depictions of same-sex love - couples enlacing under the watchful eye of protective demons. A highly emotional piece for me...

If you're interested in learning more about it, you can snatch the zine over on NovaMali's shop !! I highly recommend it, it's an absolutely gorgeous book ! : https://www.novaandmali.com/shop)

[wannabemasterofwindintraining]

The headaches aren't leaving me alone so I'm manifesting them onto the blorbo instead

[tomasz-the-hater]

it must have been said already by someone more eloquent than me, but i find it fascinating how lestat and armand mirror each other in terms of power dynamics and gender roles.

we have lestat. 'how can i say no to you' lestat. the stark father and maker to claudia and somehow later louis, the one that the new orleans tour guide mentions as the master of the house, the one that will not have claudia leave. his violence is loud and physical and outward, his sadism is somewhat acknowledged by him yet keeps happening. he almost kills louis when they fight by his, lestat's, own actions. he regrets it, sure, louis responds to his attacks often, sure. the violence between them is open.

not bothering to clean, only insisting that louis does eat. up to a certain point he even finances louis' wishes and whims. he is promiscuous, he gets lover(s), he is often (though not always) the first to make his desires known (considerable considerables etc etc).

despite the attributes that are considered unmanly (flair for dramatics, inclination to theatre and arts, queerness), he remains the more traditionally masculine figure in the relationship. he is the patriarch of the family, or at least he presents himself in that way in louis' memories.

(it, of course, does not mean that louis falls into the traditionally feminine role. the dichotomy of traditional heterosexual/heteronormative marriage is not fully applicable to even straight relationships because it is primarily a cultural ideal.)

we have armand. 'are you asking, maitre' armand. famously a victim, agentless by his own belief and volition. saying louis can leave in san francisco, yet staying in power by a) mind control (yay!), b) lies, manipulation, witholding information and c) care. he is also violent. he orchestrates louis (and claudia's, and madeleine's) death, yet is discrete about it to the very end; he saves and cares for louis after his suicide attempt, yet all of it is hidden behind mind control for five decades after.

picking lint off the sofa, cleaning up after louis (or claiming to do so) gives armand control over what is seen and what is not, what is kept and what goes. a humble servant rashid. it also gives him a great guilt tripping point: whatever louis does, armand just has to clean up after him, and isn't louis grateful for that? while not stated directly (i think), louis investments in art and real estate are the main source of money for loumand. lastly, an ex-prostitute, armand the one to lay face down while being fucked and seems to have no outside lovers (or louis just has more, ie 128).

not completely feminine, as aren't his gremlin nature and the ultimate violence and power that he keeps over louis both in the '70s and 2022 stay; yet armand still seems pretty much submissive, or wants to be that himself and for louis to be dominant (servant-master, arun-maitre), all the while keeping some control from the shadows. he is the quiet daniel's been longing for, the vacuming valium wife.

the first was louis' husband unforgettable through 77 years of marriage. the second was the proclaimed love of his life and a partnership to spite the first that may have grown into love but not enough to forget lestat. active violent power and shadowy mind control. a kind of husband and a kind of wife to louis, both defining him in and out of partnership

[veveisveryuncool]

"hey! you got this, little buddy! don't give up just yet!"

kirbytober day 29: crossover/last battle ability

[sonadowkismesis]

Shadow is aplatonic: an argument.

"Friends? I'm only temporarily working with you to achieve a goal. Don't get the wrong idea."

from Puyo Puyo Quest's 25th Anniversary event

@apl-swag-bracket

What is aplatonicism?

Here is a quick definition to catch you up.

The aplatonic spectrum, otherwise known as the aplatonic umbrella, is a group of platonic orientations that fall under the umbrella term of aplatonic. Those on the aplatonic spectrum may lack platonic attraction or feel it so little that they relate more to aplatonic experiences. The common link between those on the aplatonic spectrum is that they do not feel the "standard" amount of platonic attraction or they don't feel it in the "standard" way, that alloplatonic individuals do.

Here is some more reading you can do on the topic.

Resources about aplatonicism are scarce and anyway, this is meant to focus on character analysis first and foremost, so forgive me if I cut this section short. Anyway, I believe I have given enough context, so let's get into the meat of this post.

Is Shadow aplatonic?

As stated outright in the Sonic Ultimate Character Guide, Shadow is a loner who relies on himself first and foremost.

from Sonic Ultimate Character Guide (2016)

He is extremely individualistic and doesn't compromise for the sake of others. He prefers to act alone rather than as a team, believing the latter to be futile, and will even choose violence over cooperation to get his way.

from "Team Sonic Racing Racers!" Interview (2019), IDW Sonic the Hedgehog (issue #09), Sonic the Hedgehog (2006) and Sonic Rivals 2 (2007) respectively

If he teams up with others with cooperation in mind, it's always in the interest of a higher purpose. He'll actively ditch crowds and avoid gatherings once the action is over.

from IDW Sonic the Hedgehog (issue #11 and #31 respectively)

Most of his interactions with the rest of the cast follow this pattern, however there is some nuance to be considered when looking at his dynamic with a select few characters.

Rouge and E123 Omega are two characters Shadow has often been partnered with. Although the word "allies" would be more appropriate to describe their relationship, they're easily the ones Shadow is closest to out of everyone else. In the case of Omega, Shadow even displays bouts of camaraderie, likely due to the fact they share a similar mindset.

from Sonic Heroes (2003)

from Sonic Chronicles: The Dark Brotherhood (2008)

from "Team Sonic Racing Racers!" Interview (2019)

Another notable dynamic that stands out is that between Shadow and Sonic. Shadow's attitude towards him could be much the same as with everyone else if it weren't for their rivalry. Although Shadow is always focused on his goals above all else, Sonic's presence brings out a competitive side that distracts him and pushes him to act recklessly.

from "Team Sonic Racing Racers!" Interview (2019)

from Team Sonic Racing (2019)

Shadow doesn't see Sonic as his friend, but considers him an important part of his life despite himself.

and lastly,

from Sonic Channel's Shadow character bio

Conclusion

Shadow doesn't feel the need for companionship and doesn't seek to bond with others if he doesn't have an ulterior motive. He's a loner and a misanthropic, and would rather work alone to achieve his goals in the most efficient way. Because of his standoffish personality, the few close/intense relationships he has are with people who are "like" him in some way, given the impression of an unconventional connection in a very tangible and grounded manner, and not so much driven by feelings of affection or love. Hence why I think Shadow is aplatonic or is on the aplatonic spectrum... I rest my case.

(I would have liked to give more examples, but the 10 image limit makes this very difficult haha)

Here's where you can read the translated version of the TSR Interview (which I referenced a few times) in its entirety.

Here is Shadow's official character bio.

[the-jam-to-the-unicorn]

Stephen Fry - "Into Ukraine" (Documentary)

Trailer

Snippet

Link for the Premiere

[crossbackpoke-check]

Dysprosium, Mary Soon Lee

dysprosium, AN 66, is a silvery-white rare earth metal. its name is derived from the greek dysprositos, meaning “hard to get at”, owing to the difficulty in separating and isolating this rare earth element. dysprosium is used to measure neutron flux, to fuel reactors, and to activate phosphors. terfenol-d is a magnetorestrictive alloy, meaning that it changes shape when a magnetic field is applied, and is used to manufacture underwater acoustic systems.

jason “robo” robertson, dallas stars #21 for @simmyfrobby’s nhl periodic table poems <3

[amasiusblog]

MC makes a skirt

mc: *making patterns for a skirt* lucifer: what are you doing? mc: i'm making a skirt lucifer: making- why would you need to make a skirt i can buy it for you. mc: no can do, luci. i need to do something with my hands or else i'll go insane. besides you guys buy stuff for me all the time, it's fine. lucifer: okay, if you say so... [10 minutes later] mc: hey lucifer? have you seen my skirt i swear left it right here a minute ago... lucifer: hm? no i haven't seen your skirt. maybe you just misplaced it. [the next day] mc: !!! mc: how did my skirt get here. how is it done and holy shit these stitches are immaculate. lucifer: you left it in my study. mc: wait you finished this for me? lucifer:...no

[tsubasale]

[pardycity]

retris if he was grounded grounded grounded grounded grounded grounded grounded grounded grounded grounded for [unnecessarily long number] years

[fivewholeminutes]

Someone please help an old hag out and provide some new micstand photots bc i keep hearing about it or seeing glimpses of it but i haven't seen it in its full glory yet, even tumblr died when i tried searching the tag for new posts yesterday lmao

EDIT: @a-s-levynn i love u 💖

[scribbling-dragon]

thinking about limited life scott. my lil guy, my funky lil mermaid guy

thinking just about the concept of him. the idea of h2o mechanics and the secrecy thay would have to surround such a weakness. of no one knowing it (or just one person knowing. only one person knowing of such a weakness)

[nailgunstigmata]

i have strong delusions about dennis being a masochist but theres no textual evidence so i worry that if i write it into a fic people will start throwing rocks at me. i know i wrote that bloodplay fic but this is different and i need everybody to promise me that you wont be disgusted and try to kill me with bricks and bury me in an unmarked grave okay 🥺🥺 like at least put a rock on it or a stick

[starsfromtoulon]

it really is true what they say....your first les mis becomes Your Les Mis.....

[rxttenfish]

also, despite only abyssals having bioluminescence, basically all merfolk who can will still cultivate bioluminescent bacterial cultures that they then add to food as a decoration, or sometimes as an additional bit of flavoring. merfolk sight might not be very good, but theyre all hardwired to pick up on flashes of light or odd light specks in general, and making your food glow makes it look extra tasty and fun to them!

this is the same reason why piercings are remarkably common for merfolk, as adding little flashing pieces of metal or fish scales can make you look tasty in a different way (or just ensure that people are looking at your face, which is why royals tend to bias towards facial piercings).

of course, as a fun aside - since abyssal merfolk are also dependent on bacterial cultures for their own glow, especially young abyssal merfolk or those who have been given antibiotics wont glow at all! they need to eat food like this or just any other species of deep sea animal that has this bacteria to be able to glow again!