#welp nothing from season 7

[drmajalis]

My personal top ten favourite episodes of House cause I'm bored.

No.10 The Down Low "The" queerbait episode, lmfao. A neighbour at House and Wilson's new apartment thinks they're a couple, Wilson tries to convince her otherwise because she wants to sleep with her, House tries to convince her they are to fuck with Wilson, only to get out-fucked by Wilson when he mock proposes to him in public while he's out with the neighbour. Oh and there was some medicine stuff I guess. No.9 The Right Stuff With his old team all gone, House hires 40 new fellowship candidates and pits them in a reality-show style competition to select the new three fellows for his team. Massive amounts of hijinx ensues. No.8 Last Resort A desperate patient takes House, Thirteen, and a number of other patients hostage in Cuddy's room, demanding a diagnosis for his long running condition. The patient's desperation for an answer and House's overwhelming desire to solve puzzles threatens Thirteen's life, who realizes she's afraid of dying after going through a self-destructive binge following her Huntington's Diagnosis. No.7 The C-Word After failing to convince Wilson to play things safe, House commits to helping him with his dangerous, potentially lethal double dose of chemotherapy in the wake of his cancer diagnosis, doing everything he can for his partner, including honouring his wishes that he not just be brought to a hospital to die, and ending by doing something thoughtful enough to make him laugh. No.6 Help Me Having given up on his therapy, House struggles with drug relapse in the aftermath of Cuddy's engagement announcement. At a construction crane collapse, House finds and bonds with a woman in the rubble with her leg trapped, advocating her when everyone says she needs an amputation, but eventually admitting it's the only course, and it was what he should have done years ago, and that he's a worse person because of it. No.5 Forever After the conclusion to no.4 on this list, Foreman tries to make a change in his life as he struggles with his brain damage. The team treats a new mother who's husband found her having seizure in the bathtub with her baby, only for it to turn out that she tried to kill her own baby. Probably the bleakest and darkest episode in the series which is really saying something. No.4 Euphoria Part 1 & 2 House has to treat one of his own as Foreman contracts the same deadly infection afflicting the patient-of-the-week. Things take a turn for the worse when the patient dies, Foreman has to deal with the real possibility he may be next, and House struggles not to let his personal attachment to Foreman affect his judgment. No.3 House's Head & Wilson's Heart House wakes up in a strip club, drunk, and realizes he saw a life-threatening symptom in someone before a brutal bus crash. When it turns out to be someone close to them both it threatens to end their relationship. No.2 Three Stories Roped into giving a lecture to med students, House takes the opportunity to tell three different episodes of patients experiencing leg pain, one of which turns out to be House himself recounting the story behind his leg limp, and showing a little about how he became the person he is today. No.1 Broken House entered a psychiatric hospital at the end of the previous season when his vicodin abuse started giving him hallucinations. Now having finished rehab, he must show his therapist that he has the tools to find happiness and comfort without drugs, and has accepted that he can be a better person.

[aurelion-solar]

Arcane Act 3 Spoilers

Season 2 Episodes 7-9 rambling/reaction (i'm a mess)

welp. AAAAAAAAAAAAA holy shit

episode 7:

mind fuckery with the ALTERNATE TIMELINE WHERE VI DIED AND HEXTECH NEVER GOT INVENTED HOLY FUCK - it's crazy to see how different things are with zaun seemingly having good relations with piltover?? the alternate jinx - still known as powder - with her pigtail buns 🥹

benzo and vander and silco and mylo and claggor??

powder and ekko together 😭😭

showing gert doing well being in a band in this timeline but then they're a jinxer who dies in the original timeline im sobbing

heimerdinger's song aww :)

jinx's shrine to vi then ekko's mural im yelling

the time limit being 4 seconds bc of ekko's ult i loveeee it

meanwhile jayce in the cosmic/body horror jumpscare timeline. that was horrifying

jayce climbing up all that way to find his own husk of a body jfc

HEIMERDINGER BETTER STILL BE ALIVE WHERE DID HE GO

someone riding a monocycle past ekko reminded me of LoR's gilded ekko skin, also bc he's dressed all fancy :)

episode 8:

hi I AM A MEL STAN I LOVE HER AND SHE'S SO COOL

LEBLANC? VERY INTERESTING

not the "i, robot" viktor husks im screaming they're so creepy

the zaunites who volunteered to fight against noxus made me so emotional ffs

CAIT AND VI AGAIN WE WON

poor vander he didn't deserve this 😭

VIKTOR'S FACE LITERALLY SPLITTING IN HALF IM SCREAMING WTF IS THAT

the way they repaired the council table with gold reminds me of kintsugi!

episode 9:

jinx burning the last drop and then ekko stopping her from ending it all mid-song was such a gag. they're so sweet omg, ekko's clothes having her paint on it aaa

maddie got what she deserved and nothing can convince me otherwise lol

rip loris though :(

the reveal of viktor not actually being in the hexcore orb thing DAMN the sense of dread that ran through me omfg

viktor's weird fuckass laser arm coming from his back is so gross

MEL AND CAITLYN TEAMING UP ON AMBESSA LET'S GO GIRLIES, i love seeing mel discovering her power omg she's awesome

the zero gravity fight in the hexgate was so cool, i loved it when viktor and jayce just flew through the middle of them lol??

ekko getting his clock hand weapon from in game YIPPEE king us amazing and u saved the day

VIKTOR AND JAYCE VIKTOR AND JAYCE their lives being so connected im actually yelling

"in all timelines and all possibilities" THAT'S RIGHT U DESERVE EACH OTHER i hope they're happy being gay wherever they went lol

jinx and warwick fml..... i mean WE DIDN'T SEE A BODY SO!!!! but the flashbacks to vi seeing vander die again i literally can't take thissss why can't vi and jinx have a happy ending sdjlskdjk

SEVIKA on the council AS SHE DESERVES!

scar has a daughter they're so cute 🥹

ORIANNA IS REAL AND ALIVE IM LITERALLY GONNA SCREAM

ERM SWAIN'S RAVEN FINDING SOMETHING IN THE RUBBLE OF JAYCE'S WEAPON?? the next show has gotta be about noxus right?

"the end" in jinx's handwriting please tell me she's alive

[david-talks-sw]

At some point when talking about the Jedi and the Prequels and Star Wars, I feel like there's distinctions that need to be made.

There's George Lucas' Star Wars.

And then there's Star Wars the transmedia franchise.

They are not one and the same.

They have similar messages. Depending on which continuity you go for, the message is more or less alike (Disney canon's treatment of the Jedi Order is slightly more aligned with GL's vision than the Legends canon was).

But they are not the same.

George Lucas' Star Wars is just the six films and the first six seasons of TCW which serve as an addendum to the six films, and the values and messages that derive from them.

The transmedia franchise has those values, but they've been diluted through comics and novels and games and authors who don't agree with GL's vision and authors who tweaked it a bit and retcons until it's no longer the same thing.

Which takes us to "did the Jedi deserve to fall" and the answers:

"no, but the institution needed to go"

There is NOTHING to indicate that read in George Lucas' Star Wars.

If you go by the movies ONLY, then the Jedi are in the right, and what happens to them is tragic, and I don't just mean Order 66.

The movies' narrative literally frames them - as a people, a religion and an institution - (and Bail Organa) as objectively good and the only ones trying to do what's right.

However, some of the marketing and storylines and comics and books presented in the EU and in new canon do support this POV.

If you count those as "just as valid and canon as the films and shows" then you'll have a very different view of the Jedi Order.

"yes, for what they did to Ahsoka".

Ahsoka is part of TCW.

If your Star Wars is the same as Lucas', then TCW is meant to be an asterisk in the larger story, nothing more than a footnote.

As such, Ahsoka's part is NOT that big, her being on Mandalore or being expelled from the Jedi Order is NOT a contributing factor for Anakin's turn to the Dark Side.

Ahsoka is NOT a part of the Prequels, which represent KEY moments in Anakin's life and the Republic's downfall.

But for many, Star Wars is the transmedia franchise. And TCW and the Prequel films are one and the same. So Ahsoka's treatment factors into the judgment.

If you add TCW's stories to the mix, welp, the show certainly questions them here and there, showing the war corrupted their values (because it was designed to do so) but in the first six seasons it does so in a fair manner showing both sides of the argument.

They're framed as caught between a rock and a hard place. They HAVE to do the very thing they didn't wanna do or people get enslaved and get killed.

Under Lucas, TCW does what it was meant to do: it adds footnotes, it shows unfortunate downsides. It's not meant to define what is seen in the films.

Whereas by the time we're in Season 7 and Lucas is no longer involved, we get this:

"They could do better but choose not to because they're playing politics." That's it.

Which is what I mean when I'm talking about the franchise: it has grown past George Lucas' vision, for better or for worse.

For some, TCW redefines what is seen in the films.

[voxofthevoid]

I didn't look at the list, so I'm picking #7

Just like last time, you've accidentally picked shota—well, shota adjacent. Welp? Thanks for asking tho 💙

There's nothing explicit below, but CW for grooming, pseudo-incest, and general underage vibes.

07. i was born of the womb of a poisonous man

Omegaverse-canonverse alpha/alpha where 20-something Gojou adopts Yuuji, who was being raised by a Sukuna-focused cult.

Yuuji's 10 when he gives Suguru a hug—and immediately reels back to crow, Suguru-san, you smell really good! Satoru and Suguru shocked for a second before realization strikes. Yuuji asks if something's wrong, and Suguru laughs and says it just means he's growing up

Satoru goes through the day in a pissy daze; Yaga sends him home after he makes a first-year burst into tears. He stress-trains in the yard till Yuuji comes back from his study session with the Zenin Megumi. Mollified by how what he first does is barrel into Satoru. They play wrestle a while, Satorupretends he's been slayed; Yuuji's amused and exasperated. Satoru thinking he only gets brighter every year, those warm eyes and sunshine smile tempting you to forget there's a monster sleeping in his belly. Sukuna hasn't shown up once, but sometimes, Yuuji talks about the scary guy in his head, and none of them likes that.

Distracted by Yuuji plopping tiredly on him, face tucked into Satoru's neck. Satoru asks, only half impulse, whose scent Yuuji likes best. Yuuji's pretty straightforward response is that Suguru smells sweeter, like the pastries Satoru buys, but he likes Satoru's scent better—because it's Satoru. Satoru thinking he's had his scent described like the rain—the earth after a thunderstorm, petrichor and ozone. He's always been proud of that. But none of it's ever matched the vicious delight that plows through him when he hears Yuuji say this. Hugs Yuuji possessively closer.

That night, after they've showered and eaten and are in bed (emphasize Sat thinking that Yuuji's too old for this and the joint baths, has probably been too old from the beginning itself, but he's not complaining, seems to enjoy it, and Satoru doesn't have the heart to stop it), Satoru discreetly tries to scent Yuuji—nothing there, just the scent of soap and clean skin, not even any sweat yet. The typical scent of a freshly washed unpresented human. Yuuji's too young; Satoru wonders though.

Ask in response to the WIP Open Season

[jaelyndoodles]

Hey there! 🌟 I'm planning to write some fanfiction and expand my DP x HB x ROTTMNT crossover universe, and I'd love to ask you a few questions about your Sam x Millie (Samillie/Deviled Egg) ship. Hope you don't mind me picking your brain a bit!

How did Sam and Millie meet?

Did they meet before she worked for I.M.P?

Did they meet before the events of Green Eggs and Ham season 1?

What does Millie's family think of Sam?

What do Sam's mother and friends think of Millie?

Who liked who first?

What are their main five love languages?

What does Millie like about Sam physically? (this is not a sexual question).

What does Sam like about Millie physically? (this is not a sexual question).

Do they have pet names for each other?

What are their favorite foods or meals to share?

What are their favorite activities to do together?

What are their biggest challenges as a couple?

What do you associate with Sam and Millie? Like flowers, stars, colors, objects, songs, shapes, clothing, or something along those lines?

Welp, that's all I got. I'm sorry if this was too long/much.

Hello again! I'd be happy to answer all these for you! (Heads up, this post is going to be lengthy!)

1. Sam and Millie met after Sam accidentally got into a scuffle with a couple of imps. He was basically asking if they knew how to get back to Glurfsburg, and just happened to be into uncharted territory (yes this is in Imp City.) Millie, hoping to clear her mind ifor a bit, sees the altercation and shoos away the imps. And the rest is history. :)

2. Sam met Millie after she works for I.M.P. In fact, during that time, he doesn't even know she used to be a wanted criminal.

3. They both met after the events of the whole series. Guy has his business and family, Pam is now living in Glurfsburg w/ Sam, etc. This is also what drives Sam to accidentally end up in Pride (i.e Having to deliver an invention for Guy.)

4. Millie's family was very hesitant at first. Lin and Joe weren't exactly used to Sam's energetic nature, and quite frankly haven't seen anybody like him before. Thankfully, they've grown used to it, and appreciate his mannerisms. Sallie May gets along with Sam, and so do the rest of her siblings. Sam loves bonding with her younger siblings, and always happy to help them with their chores, especially if they're having trouble lifting things. However, Millie's older brother (whose named Desmond in my headcanon), get along with Sam the most. After all, there's nothing wrong with some good ol' fashioned bromance!

5. Pam absolutely loves Millie, and they actually have a very good relationship. Pam likes how loyal Millie is to Sam, and especially likes her thirst for adventure. They totally have girl nights together, and aren't afraid to cause chaos now and then. Guy enjoys Millie company, and they get along pretty well. He was a little cautious, as he didn't want Sam's feelings to be hurt, but thankfully he was proven wrong. Michellee was the same way, but she and Millie get along well and are good friends. E.B. admires Millie, as soon as she finds out all the stuff Millie get to do for work. "You actually get to go through portals AND defeat bad guys?! Awesomeee!!"

6. I'd say Sam fell for Millie first. As Millie shooed away those imps from their first meeting, he was honestly just smitten from day one. He knew he had to be her friend lol. Millie, however, took a while to pursue a relationship with Sam. She was afraid that her relationship would be like her and Chaz's, but Sam changed her mind.

7. Physical Touch: Sam is a very touchy person, as shown on how he's constantly touching and holding onto Guy in show. So, naturally, he's going to want some physical touch from Millie as well. Of course Sam respects Millie's boundries, so he always asks first if he could hold her hand, cuddle, hug, etc. He never goes beyond that. Millie is always willing to oblige if she's in the mood! Millie expresses her physical touch through kisses! She's always seen kissing Sam's cheek before she leaves for work, goes to sleep, and even when they take walks in the city.

Acts of Service: Sam and Millie are always willing to help each other out around the apartment, or even if its running errands. Sam would most likely be doing this since Millie is working most of the time. So he's never afraid to clean up, get groceries, or even cook while she's away. After all, what kind of person would he be to NOT do that? It's in his nature! Millie does things too, like always making sure to get his favorite foods, ask how he's doing, etc!

Words of Affirmation: There's not that much I can say here. Sam and Millie always tend to compliment each other and lift each other's spirits when they can!

Receiving Gifts: If there's one person who loves to give gifts to their partner, its Sam! He loves showering Millie with gifts, especially when it Valentines Day or Sinsmas! Millie tends to give gifts too, but its not as frequent or as much as Sam.

Quality Time: This one's pretty self-explanatory! Sam and Milie always try to spend as much time together as possible. Whether it be watching a movie, or going to a diner together! This was very apparent before Sam moved in with Millie.

8. I'd say that Millie really likes fluffy Sam is! After all, nothing better than coming home from a hard shift and immediately cuddling with your floofy boyfriend!

9. Honestly, Sam just likes everything about Millie. Since I headcanon him as being pansexual, I'd think he'd really like her personality the most. But, if I had to choose one, he'd really enjoy her golden eyes. <3

10. Of course! Sam calls Millie "Mills" most of the time, and Millie calls Sam "Hun" or "Goofball!" Sometimes Sam will use abbreviations like "BGITWWW (Best Girlfriend In The Whole Wide World)", but its not as frequent as "Mills."

11. Obviously, Sam loves green eggs and ham, and is never afraid to share his favorite dish with Millie! However, he is open to trying traditional foods Millie liked or grew up eating in Wrath. Millie, in my headcanon, loves chocolate. Her favorite snack is fudge popsicles! It's her main schtick!

12. They both enjoy eating at diners, especially when they're on dates! Sam and Millie also enjoy stargazing, watching movies, cooking together, cuddling, etc!

13. Hmm, this is a good one. I'd say they struggle with their relationship being an interspecies one the most. Sam is known to be a family man and is definitely the type to have kids in the future. However, Millie is afraid that she may not be able to give him that choice due to them being species. Sam is okay with it of course, and is always there to reassure her when the topic ever arises. Plus it does give them weird looks from other demons who pass by, but that doesn't stop or bother them.

14. I typically tend to associate Sam and Millie with the color orange! Because, well, Sam is yellow and Millie is red! Red and yellow make orange when mixed! I don't usually associate shapes or songs with them, but flowers that represent change, good fortune, and new beginnings are what I also associate with them as well. :)

Thank you for asking these questions! They definitely got me thinking, and hopefully help with your fanfic! I'd love to give it a read sometime!

[blurglesmurfklaine]

Stick Season (14/14)

Summary: After Finn dies, Kurt leaves everything he knows behind without a trace. His hometown, his family, his boyfriend. When his dad has a medical scare, he returns to Lima, one year after breaking Blaine’s heart with no explanation.

A non-chronological series of one shots and drabbles set in this universe. Based on the Stick Season album by Noah Kahan

Tropes/Genres: Angst, Reconciliation, Grief, Alcoholism, Mentions of Major Character Death, Mental Health

Track 7. Everywhere, Everything // Day 14: Time of My Life

Words: 1446

A/N: WELP HERE IT IS! The final installment of Stick Season! Honestly it made me hella emo so buckle up buttersluts

As i mentioned earlier, the majority of this series is non-chronological. This story IS complete, HOWEVER I will be creating a masterpost some time tomorrow with all the links and three different orders you can read the chapters in (Posting Order, Chronological, Author's Preference) so stay tuned for that!

Thanks to everyone who kept up with this, and encouraged me with your kind words about this story, especially @dartor-lovesreading, @rockitmans, and @calliopemelpomene <3 your support means more than you could know

ANYWHO! I'll shush now and let y'all get to reading. Bone apple teeth or whatever <3

They stay there at Finn’s grave, huddled close together and clutching on to one another as they brace against the wind, for what could be seconds or hours. Finally, Blaine prompts Kurt to get back into the heated car, where they wont risk freezing their toes off. 

They drive silently back to Blaine’s place, and Kurt doesn’t let go of Blaine’s hand the entire time.

“Do you… want to come inside?” Blaine offers carefully.

“I… Can I um, stay? For the night.”

Blaine sighs, warmth shooting up through his blood and bursting in his heart as he grasps Kurt’s hand. “You can stay forever, if you want.”

Nothing happens, that first night, aside from Kurt snuggling close behind Blaine on the bed, wrapping his arms around his torso—two puzzle pieces that have finally found each other. 

“Kurt,” he murmurs softly, his quiet voice warm around the winter covering them. 

Kurt wordlessly hooks his chin over Blaine’s shoulder in response.

“You don’t have to say anything. I just… I want you to know that I meant what I said at Sam’s party. I still love you. That’s it. I don’t want to make things weird, or whatever, but I can’t not tell you how I’m feeling and—”

“Blaine?”

“Yeah?”

Kurt’s arms squeeze tighter around him, muffling his choked sound of emotion. “I love you, too,” he finally says. “And I… I want to try again. Us. If you’ll have me.”

Blaine flips to his other side to face Kurt, features barely visible in the darkness of Blaine’s room. “God, Kurt,” he says breathlessly, putting a hand up to Kurt’s cheek. He inhales in response, breath frozen in time. “Of course,” Blaine mutters, and pulls Kurt’s face to his.

“I don’t want to screw this up,” Kurt says when they pull apart, cradling Blaine’s face. “Not again. I need you to know that I’m with you, now, forever. Everything, everywhere, I want you.”

“You have me.”

Kurt doesn’t officially move in with him, but Blaine’s mom spends less and less time at home and more time with her sister in Tennessee, so it’s not a complete surprise when she eventually announces her move from Lima to Nashville. She’s generous enough to live with her sister and leave Blaine the house.

Blaine is happy for her. She’s been wanting to start anew since the divorce and it seems she finally found the courage to. Although, he’s also secretly excited to have a space of his own—one that he can share with Kurt.

Kurt sleeps over more often than he doesn’t, and when he does, it’s typically just that—sleeping. Of course, Blaine wants Kurt. He wants to feel their bodies pressed up against one another the way they did back in high school, and wants the heat mounting between them to warm his heart that’s been lying cold for nearly a year now.

But he gets the sense that Kurt isn’t quite ready for that, yet, so Blaine never mentions it, never presses for things to go past lazy kisses pressed on necks as they straddle one another on the couch while some 80s romcom like Dirty Dancing plays in the background.

One day they’re watching an episode of Ninety-Day Fiance, critiquing the reality TV stars’ poor life decisions and even poorer wardrobe decisions.

“What could he possibly be hiding in all those pockets?” Kurt exclaims in bewilderment, pointing out a contestant’s jacket with an array of asymmetrical pockets.

“Secrets,” Blaine quips.

Kurt snorts and leans his head on Blaine’s chest and he responds by draping his arms over Kurt’s shoulders. “You’re so dumb,” Kurt mutters playfully.

“Yeah, but you love me.”

Kurt turns his chip upwards, grinning. “Yeah, I do.”

This time, when Kurt reaches up to kiss him, Blaine can tell there’s something different. The gentleness and unhurried tempo is quickly replaced by a growing sense of urgency and need until the spark of light between them ignites into a roaring fire.

Before he knows it, they’re a mess of tangled limbs on the couch, each so fully intertwined and in tune with the rhythm of the other’s body that Blaine truly doesn’t know where he ends and Kurt begins.

In the aftermath—after Blaine’s pressed gentle kisses to Kurt’s forehead, not caring that his hair is matted down with sweat despite his protest of chagrin—he lies there, Kurt’s head on his chest where he’s closest to Blaine’s heart. He strokes Kurt’s hair long after he’s fast asleep, cradled in Blaine’s arms.

It’s been a long year, one where his and Kurt’s story was dog eared, frozen in time. It’s not over yet, but Blaine has a good feeling about where it’s going.

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

One Year Later

“I can’t believe this is goodbye,” Kurt says, voice shaking.

“It’s a see you later, not goodbye.”

“I’m gonna miss you so much.”

“I’ll miss you, too. You know, if you ever feel like it’s too much out there… You can always come back.”

Kurt squeezes his arms tighter around the familiar torso, drying his tears on his sleeves. There are so many reasons he can’t do that, and the biggest one is standing behind Kurt, patiently waiting as he says his farewells.

As if he can read Kurt’s mind, his dad says, “But I know you won’t. Not if it means leaving Blaine in Columbus.”

Finally, Kurt finds the strength to pull away. “If you need anything—anything at all—or have any medical updates you call me right away. None of that I can handle it myself crap.”

“Guess that runs in the family, doesn’t it?” Burt moves to ruffle his son’s hair, before seemingly remember how much it annoys Kurt. The funny thing is, though, Kurt’s certain he wouldn’t have minded it as much this time. “I’ve got Carole, cancer’s been gone for two months now. If it comes back, I’ll just kick its ass again.”

Kurt gives a wet little chuckle. Columbus is only a few hours away, so when Blaine got accepted into a prestigious Master’s program for music composition, Kurt knew he’d follow him anywhere.

Still, it’s hard to leave his dad again. At least this time he’s doing it the right way.

They’d done the planning—scoped out apartments and packed up their things into Kurt’s car. Blaine will spend his days at school, and Kurt… Well, he’s still got a lot to figure out, but at the very least he doesn’t have to do it alone.

A gentle hand on Kurt’s shoulder prompts him to turn around. 

The local eighties station plays Time of My Life as he and Blaine buckle in for their road trip, and Kurt can’t help but think how fitting it is. He’s starting anew with the love of his life in a new city, and he owes it all to Blaine.

 A  year ago, Kurt thought the guilt he felt over Finn’s death would follow him for the rest of his life, but Blaine had shown him—with his ever constant reassurance and unwillingness to let Kurt hate himself—that you can’t shame yourself into a better person. He can only spend the rest of his life trying to return the favor and making sure Blaine feels just as loved.

Kurt doesn’t believe in god, or an afterlife, but he sends up a wave of gratitude to the universe for his brother, who in his short but bright time on this earth, managed to give Kurt something worth its weight in gold.

“You ready?”

Kurt smiles and nods. As long as you’re next to me, for anything.

Healing is a lot of things.

It’s not easy, and it sure as hell isn’t linear.

It’s difficult. It’s a marathon, not a sprint. It’s a shaky leg at his dad’s doctor’s appointment, and the itch in his fingers that want to reach for a drink, even when his heart doesn’t.

 It’s seven weeks of good days followed by one argument with Blaine that sends Kurt spiraling when he can’t get a hold of his boyfriend for hours on end. It’s the gentle touch of the love of his life’s hand on his when he finally does come home to Kurt crying on the couch, sobbing, “I thought you’d left. I thought you were going to show me how it felt.” It’s the solidity and softness in Blaine’s voice when he reassures Kurt that he’s not going anywhere.

It’s a choice—one that has to be made every day. And now, one Kurt gets to make with Blaine next to him every step of the way.

[aniron48]

20 questions for fic writers

Thank you for the tag, @anyawen! These were so much fun!

Answers under the cut, and tagging @sweetbabyangels, @mr-iskender, @stinastar, @aprettyspy and @thestalwartheart, in case you haven't done this already and it's of interest!

1. How many works do you have on AO3? 30! That number seems astonishing to me now, considering I started writing fic in earnest like a year-and-a-half ago. 😁

2. What’s your total A03 word count? 138,358

3. What fandoms do you write for? James Bond, Glass Onion/Knives Out, and I just wrote my first fic for The Old Guard fandom, which has pulled me in by the lapels and refused to let me go. And the very first fic I ever wrote was for Stardew Valley.

4. What are your top five fics by kudos? 1. A Good Man (Benoit Blanc/Phillip) 2. rain (00q) 3. open line (00q) 4. The More Loving One (00q) 5. Must Love Cats (00q)

5. Do you respond to comments? Why or why not? Ok yes I definitely do and I love to *and also* I'm so sorry, I'm 288 days (yes I just checked) behind in responding to comments, because this year has been...something else. So, taking the opportunity to say that a) all of your comments are incredible bright spots for me, and b) I am working my way steadily through and enjoying your comments all over again as I re-read and respond to them.

6. What’s the fic you wrote with the angstiest ending? WELP (eyes my pile o' fics warily). If we go based off the fics with "Major Character Death" as a warning, for a certain value of angst, it's a tie between offering and and the wind at their backs. But both of these fics deal with grief, and the complicated emotions that result from the persistence of love even after the object of that love is gone, and there's some hope in that, too, I think.

7. What’s the fic you wrote with the happiest ending? lmao most of the rest of them other than the two in number 6? 😂 this is a hard one to answer, so I'll list my RomCom-iest fics for now (Must Love Cats for 00q and in a space that they belong for The Old Guard). Special shout-out to 'tis the damn season, though, because the happiness at the end of this fic feels like some of the hardest fought, to me, and some of the tenderest I've written, I think.

8. Do you get hate on fics? No--I've gotten a few less than diplomatic comments, and a couple people making unflattering notes in bookmarks that I don't think they meant for me to see, but nothing terrible.

9. Do you write smut? ::offers you rain and for the age of the earth, and after as if I am a sommelier presenting you with some very fine wine:: "this one has notes of--" you know what I'm just going to stop there.

10. Do you write crossovers? I haven't yet!

11. Have you ever had a fic stolen? No, thank goodness (knocks on wood).

12. Have you ever had a fic translated? Not yet! #goals

13. Have you ever co-written a fic before? Use. Your. Words., which was a collaborative poem for 007 fest 2023. 😁

14. What’s your all-time favourite ship? I spent about five minutes hemming and hawing about this but you know what, it's impossible to pick. 😂

15. What’s the WIP you want to finish but doubt you ever will? Like Anyawen, I have aspirations of finishing all the ones hanging out in my Scrivener app...someday. Probably the one I have the most doubts about is a 5 + 1 fic where Bond tries out different activities post retirement. I still love the idea and some of the vision I had for this one, but it lives almost entirely in my head, still.

16. What are your writing strengths? I think maybe I have a good ear for language, both in terms of the rhythm of sentences and paragraphs, and for conveying a character's voice or accent. But it's hard to assess your own strengths, sometimes, so that's just my best guess!

17. What are your writing weaknesses? I'm actively working on trying to be better at descriptions, especially in giving details about setting or background. I realized I give these things short shrift, sometimes, and want to change that!

18. Thoughts on writing dialogue in another language for a fic? I'll do it with languages I'm fluent in (and have done it with Spanish, since I'm a native speaker).

19. First fandom you wrote for? Stardew Valley, in What Dreams May Come.

20. Favourite fic you’ve ever written? Omg, another one that is almost impossible to answer! I think I have to go with all the flags we've hung. This is one of my least popular fics--it's a rarepair, the love depicted in it is complicated (though no less real), and it deals with light topics like, you know, structural racism in the United States. As one does. But it's a fic that's incredible close to my heart, for many reasons, and I remain so proud of this one.

Phew! If you have read all of this you deserve a cupcake. 💜

xoxo, Ani

[italeteller]

Is there any modern isekai anime you think are actually worth watching? Or is it all just the same toxic wish fulfilment garbage at this point?

Fear not anon, there's actually some good modern isekai anime still! But first, some hearsay:

-While I didn't personally vibe with it, I've heard a lot of good things about Re:Zero, but I've also heard a lot of bad and cringe things about it, so it's up to you I guess

-Ascendance of a Bookworm is another I don't know anything about, but I've heard good things

Now for the ones I have actually watched:

-My next life as the villainess: all routes lead to doom! is a 2021 isekai where a teen girl dies and gets reborn into the world of her favorite dating sim, but she's in the body of Katarina, the awful rotten-hearted villainess, and to top it all off she's 7 years-old.

Katarina soon realizes that, if her new life progresses the same as the game's, all she's got to look forward to is banishment or death, because game!Katarina is a major bitch so nobody loves her, and she starts taking measures for her inevitable doom: she learns to farm so she'll be able to procure food is she's banished, tries her hand at magic and swordfighting so she'll be able to defend herself, and other stuff like that

She's also a naturally nice person to everybody in the game so all the boys and girls end up falling in love with her, which she completely doesn't notice because she's dead certain that the game has to go on the preplanned route so she has no idea everybody who's supposed to romance and/or befriend the game's protagonist wants to jump her bones instead.

It's a pretty fun series, and while it's no benchmark of storytelling, it does have a few genuinely good plot twists and heartwarming moments. I wish it would end up as a proper bisexual harem, but I knows the odds aren't good, sadly.

Also, if you do watch it, stick to the first season. The second season is bad. Like Bad bad. Makes you regret the time you spent watching it-Bad. There's a movie coming on December, which I hope is good and redeems the franchise, but if not, the first season is good

Saihate no Paladin/The Faraway Paladin is another 2021 isekai where a random dude gets reincarnated as a baby in the ruins where a great evil is sealed, and gets adopted by three undead: a skeleton warrior, a mummy priestess and a ghost wizard. They raise him, teach him to fight, magic and miracles, and then send him off to the world when he turns 15. It's a pretty decent story, it has a slow start, taking some 5 episode to properly set up the MC's circumstances and goals before his journey, and it's got a second season coming on October so if you wanna catch up, you'll get more content soon

My only problem with it is that it should be a fantasy anime. The isekai part is... I mean it's there, it seems like there will be something with the gods and the different cycles of reincarnation, but it could very easily have been a fantasy story and lose nothing. The main character having been a random japanese man before reincarnating doesn't really add anything, so idk if you wanna count it as an isekai or not

Tensei Shitara Ken Deshita is a 2022 isekai-that-should-have-been-a-fantasy where another random japanese dude is reincarnated into a magic sword. He immediately goes "welp, time to discard everything about my previous life and be the best sword I can" and begins slaughtering monsters to grind levels. He eventually becomes a super OP weapon and that's when he gets found by his future master, a preteen catgirl slave whose caravan is escaping from a two-headed zombie bear

The catgirl gets the sword and kills the bear, the sword uses his telekinetic powers to kill the slaver by snapping his neck 180° degrees, burns the slave contract and they team up. The sword restores the girl's name, Fran, which she had lost when she became a slave, and Fran names the sword "Teacher", and they set out to grind levels so that Fran may evolve - because she's a member of the Black Cat race, which is the only race in that world that can't evolve, which is why they're discriminated and sold as slaves, and Fran wants to prove her race can evolve after all

This one I have a love-hate relationship with. It does a lot of the shit I hate on other isekais, but it also does a lot of things I like. Yes, Fran is ridiculously OP with little effort thanks to being able to share Teacher's skills, and she breezes through most challenges effortlessly which is often anticlimactic as hell, but she's got an actual tangible goal and a personality so she's already more interesting than your average isekai MC. There's no romance and almost no fanservice, and when there is it's always with the adult women in the series, so that's another bullet dodged

But on the other hand, the slavery plot is introduced, and then dropped almost entirely except for a bunch of obviously evil people who all get punished, and meanwhile everybody else is super nice to Fran and nobody brings up the fact that hey, she was a legal slave until not too long ago and her race is still being enslaved and nobody's doing anything about it, ain't that fucked up? No? Nobody wanna say anything? Idk, it's a fun romp but it's also very power-fantasy-trash at the same time. It's got a second season confirmed in production, maybe that will do something with the slavery plot

The Magical Revolution of the Reincarnated Princess and the Genius Young Lady is a 2023 series that should really have a shorter name, my god. It's another should've-been-a-fantasy isekai and it's. Hmm. It's got some amazing first episodes, but then they tried to cram A LOT of plot into the rest and fucked it all up. A lot of stuff makes very little sense, character motivations are all out of whack, and you get the feeling that they really needed another cour, or at least 6 more episodes, to fit it all in properly

It's one of those series that you can see the potential it had, how great it could've been if it had been allowed, and it makes you kinda sad that you'll never see it unless you go to read the light novels. The reason for this rush is that the studio wanted to end the series on the end of the third light novel, which is where the main girl gets together with her girlfriend as a canon, explicit, openly gay couple, which is a deeply respectable, dare I even say admirable goal, but I still wish it had had more episodes so it hadn't had to sacrifice the rest of the series for it

The Executioner and her Way of Life is a 2022 series, the final pick of the list, and the one I like the most, so of course it's only got one season and no confirmed sequel because god hates me, personally

The main character, Menou, is a teenage priestess from her world's church, and she's also in charge of killing all the japanese people who get isekai'd into her world. Menou doesn't enjoy the killing and feels guilty for it, but she knows she must do it to stop the ridiculous powers the isekai'd are given from bringing ruin to her world. One such power is the one that turned her whole village, people and buildings alike, into ash when she was little. She was rescued and raised by Flare, the world's strongest warrior, whose power is only matched by her mental instability, which she gladly passed to her apprentice

The story proper begins when Menou meets Akari, the new japanese teenager in town, and finds out Akari's power prevents her from dying. Thus, Menou takes Akari on a trip across the continent to see the sights and find a weapon strong enough to kill her before Akari goes nuclear. Akari, meanwhile, is ecstatic, because she doesn't know Menou wants to kill her, and because she's down horrendous for her from the moment their eyes meet, loudly and openly fantasizing about the romantic adventures they'll have and telling her stuff like "you're the only one for me" to her face

As the series goes on, you start to notice there's something very, very wrong with Akari

Another such character is Momo, Menou's junior who is also loudly and openly in lesbians with her, very annoyed that Menou spends so much time with Akari, and also very off in the head. I hope you're seeing a pattern here

The final character in this delightful ensemble is Asuna, the princess of the realm and the most well adjusted character in the series. She's a wandering knight who loves a good fight and develops the most hilarious crush on Momo, who wants nothing to do with her and is constantly antagonizing Asuna, attacking her, ambushing her and throwing her into deadly traps, only for the princess to walk it off and offer to buy her a drink. It's honestly hilarious

And there you have it, my personal isekai reccommendation list. Hope you find at least one that suits your tastes

[truessences]

So here's the thing about episode 7 of The Acolyte. SPOILERS by the way. When it was over, I literally said "Y'all just wasted my time... welp back to Charmed. (I've been rewatching the reboot). Because I feel like what we learned in that episode could have been said in a line or something.

I really thought when we saw Mother Aniseya in Jedi Padawan Tommen's head that she used him to do something during the chaos... but nope.

I feel like this stuff could have been told to us in a way that didn't take away from what we could have gotten, especially since these shows keep being 8 episodes for some reason. At this point just make it a damn movie. Bring back 22 episode shows lol. The length of the episodes are fine but the length of the seasons is just bananas.

Anyway, I guess the BIG reveals were that Sol felt so connected to Osha that he was willing to do whatever, but I feel like that was implied. Also that Sol killed Mother Aniseya but she looked like she was about to do something to Mae, especially since the other mom got into a fighting stance and Padawan Tommen was about to defend himself. Also her being like "I was gonna let Osha go with you... it's what she wanted." I don't know if I believe her lol.

Also also, the other reveal was that Jedi Master Trinity killed the rest of the witches but uhhh, she was trying to save Kelnecca, I'm kind of her side lol.

And the last big reveal was that Sol willingly let Mae fall to save Osha because he couldn't save both of them. I kind of already assumed that from the first flashback episode.

I didn't like that it felt like nothing happened and if the season was longer, I may not have minded as much because we had more to go but since there's literally only ONE episode left, it felt like bad planning. I don't know.

At the end of the day, I wanted to see more of Osha and Qimir because that's currently the most interesting aspect going forward. I do enjoy the show but don't dangle that in front of me and then not show them the next episode!

[icecoffee90]

Top 9 Shows

Thank you for tagging me, @jerzwriter!

Okay, this list was so hard to narrow down and I'm sure I still forgot some, lol.. I was addicted to TV shows at one point (it all started with House and Heroes in about 2008 and lasted for years), I've barely watched anything in the past couple of years, though. Alright, let's get to it! I'll TRY to keep this short..

1. Will & Grace: Smart humor, top-notch physical comedy, amazing cast.. Is it perfect? No. No show is. I once saw a video in which Megan Mullally said something along the lines of "our worst episode is still funnier than the best episode of other comedy shows", which I respectfully disagree with, but it's definitely high quality entertainment! The reboot (or the last 3 seasons, whichever you prefer) admittedly wasn't that enjoyable, but the original finale sucked, so at least the characters got the ending they deserved!

2. Pushing Daisies: I love procedurals and I love shows with a supernatural aspect, so a combination of the two is an absolute win! This show deserved much more than just two seasons! I should rewatch it for a third time soon..

3. Sherlock: What can I say? I got hooked immediately with "A Study In Pink", I rewatched it at least 4 times while waiting for episode 2 to air in my country.. Welp, I couldn't wait, I binged the next 2 eps the next day, lol. To this day "The Reichenbach Fall" remains the best episode of any show I've ever seen and that's the reason why, despite the abomination the final season was, Sherlock made my top 3.

4. The Last of Us: Do I even need to say anything?! I doubt there is anyone who missed everyone and their mom singing the show's praises after each episode, lol. Episodes 5, 6 and 8 were pure television gold! The only reason I didn't put the show higher on my list is that we've only seen one season so far and it's still not clear in which direction season 2 is gonna go.. 🤷‍♀️

5. Only Murders in the Building: Another show that got me hooked with the series premiere already! Of course, the main reason I started watching it was the main trio of actors, but the show is about so much more. I love getting to know the character's backstories as we're trying to uncover the killer.

6. Schitt's Creek: Okay, what can I say about this show? Like with Will & Grace, the first season may not have been "all that" (just my opinion), but from season 2 onward it became a comedy gold! The characters quickly grow on you and make you care about all their highs and lows.. And Moira f**king Rose is hands down one of the best characters on TV ever!

First, a little fun fact nobody asked for: I've finally gotten around to watching this show when covid started and my timing couldn't have been worse - I binged the entire thing within a week, I had one episode left the day the penultimate episode aired and then I had to wait a whole week for the finale! 😩😂

7. Person of Interest: A great procedural with an interesting "twist" (for a lack of better word).. But again, aside from the 'cases', you care about the characters as well. I remember there were at least 2 eps which made me cry.

8. Young Royals: Am I a little too old to be enjoying this show this much? Maybe. Do I care? Hell no! But I'd argue that rather than a teen show, it's a show about teenagers. I originally had no intention to watch this show, but I read a fan review which was very positive, so I figured that I might as well give it a shot and if nothing else, I'd at least pick up some Swedish (Boy, was I naive, lol! The opening scene already showed me that I'll be lucky if I learn 2 words.. 😅). Ahem, sorry, to the point - all I know is that no other recent show had me looking up release Dates and actually worrying that there won't be another season. The show just sucks you in. And it is about so much more than the main romance arc! But apparently I'm partial to the "idiots in love" trope, lol.

9. White Collar: Did I mention that I love procedural dramas? Lol. The main reason I started watching this show was that I fell in love with Matt Bomer's character on Chuck and I simply wanted to see more of the actor. Little did I know how much I'd be enjoying it, even though I didn't agree with each and every of Neal's decisions. Although, if I remember correctly, it was also starting to run out of steam toward the end. I know everyone was hoping for a reboot, but now I'm not sure it would be the same without Mozzie.. 😔

Honorable mentions: Chuck, Monk, Abbott Elementary, The Good Wife..

I'm sure I'm still forgetting many others but this is probably enough.. 😅

They may have already been tagged, but I'd like to see what shows are on @dr-colossal-pita's list (feel free to ignore!)

[merrilark]

Welp, that's it for S2. I have mixed feelings about it. Overall, it's solid enough, but oh man is it repetitive with some serious pacing and characterization issues. The first episode and last two-threeish episodes make the season better, and I loved the finale, it's just a shame that you have to wade through so much unnecessary padding.

Overall Pros:

The animation is smooth.

The concept is interesting.

Sonic's new voice actor is fantastic! He reminds me a lot of a really pleasant blend between Jason Griffith and Jaleel White.

Love the game references (and very subtle SatAM references?)

Chaos Sonic was a breath of fresh air; he should have been a threat sooner and lasted longer

Dark!Sonic??? 👀 I suppose he'd be Prism!Sonic, but I loved that reference and the shard sound effects every time he flickered were cool.

The Prism Titan was actually terrifying to me.

Shadow finally gets more accurate characterization.

SEGA also remembered that Shadow can use his Air Shoes to hover and propel himself around space. Whoever was responsible for supervising Shadow's writing knew their stuff and really did a good job.

Knux was cool and it was nice to see Knuckles finally being portrayed as competent again.

Sonic's characterization grew on me, and I think he's really charming now.

Everything about Nine was pretty good. I enjoyed the build up with him.

Shadow and Sonic are at their peak whenever they're on screen together.

The Predator references (?) in space with Shadow were VERY good.

It was fun seeing Knux and Dread fight together.

Speaking of Knux, I loooove that Knux/Rebel is basically canon. 7 yo me shipping Knouge would be so happy.

Also I am now pretty sure I ship Sonadow. Romantically or as just platonic soulmates? Somewhere in between? I have no idea yet but I'm feeling things.

The finale almost made everything in the middle worth it.

Really good bones for a show. It has so much potential.

Overall Cons:

Spoonfeeds some things to viewers that feels unnecessary at best and a little patronizing at worst. I know this is a kids' show, but... c'mon, give the viewers a little more credit lol we don't need so many flashbacks, do we?

The pacing is terrible. There were so many moments where I kept thinking "okay, we get it" or "not this again" or "did we really need that scene?" There's a lot of good scenes but unfortunately they're all sandwiched between a lot of pointless stuff.

Too many robot fights that felt exactly the same.

Too few worlds. The concept of traveling to other universes could have been so fascinating to explore but all we got were four new ones in two whole seasons, one world of which is empty and still unexplored.

I'm not a fan of most of the characterizations. Knuckles being stupid is tired and inaccurate, Rouge has been watered down into what feels like the designated Mom Friend™ and just doesn't feel like herself at all, and I can't pinpoint exactly what it is, but Amy has lost a lot of her charm. Big is fine, but he feels like he's just there and doesn't really serve much purpose.

The Chaos Council. I can't stand any of them. I think it would have been better if New Yolk's big bad had been a retro Robotnik. These guys? I just don't care about them and I don't find them menacing in the slightest. The baby makes me homicidal.

It wasn't as glaring this season, but the number of duplicate background characters with little to nothing to distinguish them from the others was extremely distracting and took me out of the story almost every time.

I don't think I liked or cared about any of the alternates except the ones in NY. I liked Dread at first but he got annoying pretty quickly. Feels like a lot of wasted potential.

Rusty Rose exists but you mean to tell me that the Chaos Council DOESN'T robotize it's citizens??? Isn't that what she's alluding to since she's clearly not 100% a robot? I know Robotnik/Eggman roboticizing animals has already been done a lot, but that's because it's good! It's scary! It's body horror! It could totally be freshened up if they wanted.

Kind of annoying that the S2E1 emphasized the need for Sonic and Shadow to work together, actually had them say that out loud, and then... just? Kinda didn't give Shadow anything to do for another whole season? All he did was nag Sonic a bit, kick some space rocks around, and then help fight a little at the very end. Maybe I'm biased because he's my favorite, but it's a little tiring to see Shadow constantly being used in newer stuff as just a vehicle to draw a crowd because SEGA knows fans love him, yet not actually giving him anything substantial to do.

This is such a minor thing in comparison to Prime's actual issues, but I didn't like anyone's new voices except Sonic and Shadow. Although, if I'm honest, Shadow's voice sounds almost more fitting for Knuckles. It's better imo than Thornton's Shadow (also a great VA just not my taste for that particular character), but it's def more a Knuckles voice than a Shadow voice. Tails is also fine but I can't stop hearing Rainbow Dash pfff. I don't like Amy, Rouge, and Knuckles' voices at all (Knux aside; the Brooklyn accent somehow makes it better and really suits him LOL).

Anyway, I really don't know how to feel about Prime. The idea is so so good but the execution could use a lot of work. Somehow I'm still excited for S3 and looking forward to it, assuming it gets a third, so I guess that means it isn't all too bad. It's just a pity that it still hasn't seemed to find it's footing. S1 and S2 could have been trimmed and condensed down into one season easily, I think, and been a much tighter show.

[genericpuff]

Very personal response, as someone who was right in that middle grey area of Millennial and Gen Z, I can attest to the loss of rewatch value for movies, and even shows and games, as a consequence of streaming services. I'm old enough to remember growing up with landline phones and VHS tapes and DVDs and home videos, but also young enough that I was still in middle school when the iPhone first released. I distinctly remember my big brother buying me a copy of The Wind Waker on Gamecube when I was like 7 years old (still one of my favorite memories, love you big bro) but also remember being 13-14 and getting the pants scared off me watching the first few episodes of Marble Hornets at my best friend's house on a much smaller version of Youtube, before the days of content creators, social media influencers, and Raid: Shadow Legends sponsorships. I remember learning how to draw from books like How to Draw Pokemon and How to Draw Disney Princesses that I got at school book fairs and book orders, but also from anime bases and tutorials on DeviantArt and RateMyDrawings.

And I can confidently say that the replay value of films and movies and games and entertainment media in general is one of the biggest things we've lost in the advent of streaming services. When I was a kid in a low income household that liked to play video games, I only had the games that I owned, meaning I'd often be replaying games from my limited collection that slowly built up over the course of many birthdays and Christmas seasons. If there was a game I really wanted to play but couldn't wait until Christmas or my birthday to get - or maybe it was on a console I didn't own - I'd have to rely on whoever I was friends with at school to either play it with them at their house, or trade one of my own games with theirs (this is actually how I wound up owning my Gamecube copy of Tales of Symphonia, which I loved so much that I kept borrowing it from my friend at school, until he finally just let me keep it years later as a gift because he wasn't interested in beating it and knew I'd get more fun out of it, thanks Edmund LOL). And when that all failed? Welp, guess it's time to crack open the bag of games that I have and see what I'm willing to replay. Half the time I wouldn't even actually progress the game, I'd just fuck around in the overworld making my own stories. Many hours I've spent riding around Hyrule Field on Epona and visiting towns to talk to the NPC's in Sylvarant.

And hoo boy, did this make the experience of buying new games a whole ass event. If you were lucky, you'd get a new game on Christmas or your birthday, in which case the worst of your waiting would be getting through the festivities until everyone left so you could hole yourself up in your room with your new copy of Pokemon Colosseum. If you were unlucky, you would get the chance to buy a game from the actual game store an hour away in the city, but then you'd have to be stuck in the car and god knows where else your parents dragged you while re-reading the instruction manual for Kingdom Hearts 2 cover-to-cover and begging them to just take you home already, what the hell do you mean we're staying for the weekend at dad's friend's place-

And yeah, this was often the case with movies too, we only had the movies we owned, oftentimes on VHS tapes in a box in the basement that we would dig through when the DVD's we owned weren't cutting it. There are movies that I'm still sick of despite my fond memories of them because we'd watch them back to back just to make the time pass, especially during summer vacation when school was out and there was nothing to fill the day with besides whatever entertainment we could make for ourselves. We had a couple family friends who knew their way around a computer and were able to pirate and burn DVD's for us, but that always came with video quality that would jump from high to low, and hilarious audio glitches that almost trained us to expect them in clean versions of the film when rewatching it years later, just for us to go "oh yeah, that was a bootleg copy of Hancock, the music isn't supposed to suddenly blip out and then blip back in during the credits". Other than that, there were rental spaces, but growing up in the sticks meant the selection of rental films was limited to whatever was available at the nearby family-run gas station and the library.

If any of this resonates with you, and you now find yourself in the position I do where you're more than willing to rewatch the same movies and shows you watched as a kid but find yourself completely uninterested and almost disconnected from the sensationalized artificial hype created by studios and streaming services like Marvel and Disney and Amazon, well let me assure you, you're not alone, it's not just you. Yes, we are getting old. Yes, we are experiencing much of the same disillusionment that our parents did and their parents did that comes from simply growing older. This is unavoidable.

But it's absolutely also still worth discussing the consequences of these changes, because as it stands right now, much of that disillusionment is being sped up by the effects of the exponential technological growth and oversaturation of media around us. I'm sure this could very well be a flawed comparison, but it makes me think of the things that have managed to survive even to this day compared to the things that came around in the height of the technological boom of the mid-2000's - newspapers were around for centuries and still managed to survive the rise of radio and television until the advent of the Internet as a popular method of consumption around the mid-2000's which is when they were truly threatened to become obsolete... meanwhile streaming services as we know them today have been around for barely two decades and they're already failing, and that's nothing compared to the tech bros who are constantly coming up with new gimmicks and "miracle technology" like NFT's and AI which are often clung to immediately by corporations purely on the basis of hype and inflated promises, just to become financial black holes within a year that they then have to find sneaky ways to profit off of until something else comes along to fill their void for something "new and innovative".

Case in point, I'm not even thirty yet, I shouldn't already feel like I'm falling behind the way my parents did when they were in their 40's. That whole feeling of life being "over" at 25 isn't just psychological, it's being actively enabled by the titans of capitalism shifting the goalposts of how we interact with the world faster than ever before. I can absolutely still quote the entire script of Shrek as it's happening onscreen, but I can't for the life of me remember a single video I watched while doomscrolling in bed last night.

And this HAS had its effects on art and media, because now movies and shows are simply hype-events that people consume and never touch again, never re-analyze, never rewatch with updated perspectives. You'd be shocked how many times I've rewatched old Spongebob episodes like Squid on Strike and Selling Out just to realize that Hillenburg himself knew what was up and was both empathizing and warning the adults of that time period what was happening in the creative industry - and now those episodes are still timeless and relatable even more than they were back then because we're now living in the exact reality that such episodes were trying to warn us about. Don't even get me started on films like Idiocracy which may as well now be a prophecy uttered by ancient gods that we should have probably paid more attention to.

This effect of turning art and media into mindless "content" is even bleeding into the smaller industries as well. Within my own special interest and experience, webcomics, a virtually endless library of indie media to enjoy that isn't gatekept by industry control, is now becoming controlled by corporate platforms which pump out cheap media that's trained people to value quantity over quality, oftentimes resulting in fanbases who barely even read what they're swiping through and will deadass forget the name and plot of the comic weeks after they've stopped seeing it in their reading lists. Many of those same readers will immediately get nervous as soon as anyone even mildly criticizes or questions the content that's being consumed, often jumping on the defensive with arguments like "you need to turn your brain off if you want to enjoy the story" and "stop thinking about it so hard" and "just let people enjoy things".

I don't know about you, but as a seasoned webcomic artist myself who loves engaging with discussion and discourse surrounding their favorite pieces of media, I'd be livid if I found out my readers were saying that shit about my own work. I want you to think about it. I want my work to get your brain moving. I want you to come up with your theories even if they're wrong. I want you to re-read and change your opinions and re-think your perspectives as you re-engage with the text with a new lens that changes both over time and over the course of reading the work in full. I want you to be capable of engaging in nuanced critical discussion and thought without it automatically becoming a polarizing battle between "fan and hater". I suppose I was born just a little too late to exist in the time period that allowed projects like my own weird convoluted "work for the lore" meta-commentary shit to exist without needing to maintain a company's bottom line. Instead, I was born just in time to exist in the world that's solely serving the "turn your brain off" population of consumers who don't even realize how much their senses and thought processes have been numbed by the effects of late-stage capitalism, with only the hope that maybe there will be a renaissance within my lifetime.

The disillusionment we feel from "what the kids are watching today" isn't just a symptom of getting older. It's a symptom of all of us - as a collective society, across all the generations - getting fucked by corporations bombarding our senses for profit.

Matt Damon explains why they don’t make movies like they used to. Pls watch.

[racingliners]

F1 Re-Watch 2022: Round 21 - Sao Paulo

Filed under: I was that tuned out of last year I didn’t realise a second race had its name changed for 2022

ANYWAY: while I forgot to watch highlights for Brazil (I genuinely had every intention to, I just forgot bc C4 only has the highlights shows up on their website for a week). I do remember logging onto tumblr after the race and seeing the carnage of George Russell getting his and Merc’s first win of the season... and the RBR team order drama (👀)

But apart from that, I know nothing, so let’s dive in:

ngl this is one of the races I’ve been most looking forward to watching in full, mainly for the non-RBR win but also I need to know how Russell dragged the W13 into P1 like please tell us your secrets

I also read a few weeks back the very wild stat that the W13 got a 1-2 finish, but it’s predecessor the W12 didn’t. Which is insane

right then, starting grid whiplash:

(which, this was a sprint weekend, which will likely explain a lot)

Lance P15, bc of a 10 sec pen apparently

SEB P9 LET’S GOOOOOOOOOO

oh my god a Merc front row, the absolute SCENES

capture it, remember it

oh, we absolutely ADORE to see it.

I will give sprint races this one right, just this once

[Formation Lap]: like Mexico, a pretty even split of people starting on either the softs or the mediums, with the exception of Albon being the only car on the hards

oh, I am looking forward to this. I am thrilled Angela in the garage and she is me

[Lap 1/Start]: Mercs holding formation at the start

LANDO NORRIS?! In between the RBRs and Ferrari???

OH SHIT

Safety Car, Dan just speared into Kevin

oh the duality of McLaren in 2022

[Lap 2]: Tag yourself I’m the marshal just flinging the broken bits of advertising board away

oh so Dan tapped Kevin into a spin, and Kevin not able to control the car, went right into Dan. welp.

[Lap 3]: SEB UP TO P8 LET’S GET IT!!!!

and Mick P10 🥺 That’s my emotional support Germans

[Lap 4]: “That Aston Martin in the hands of Vettel has some pace today” I need Ted to be my hype man seriously

Charles has potential engine problems??? oh welp

Ferrari gonna Ferrari

[Lap 5]: Albon pits to ditch the hards for mediums, still under SC

The replay of Lando’s start, very noice

[Lap 6]: aaaand SC in this lap

rip Otmar’s nerves for having to watch Esteban v Alonso at the restart

ayyy Bono sighting

...you gonna go George???

[Lap 7]: ....

ffs

Lewis and Verstappen touched and broke bits of each other’s cars

NOT LANDO TAKING OUT CHARLES

oh so Charles is not out he managed to get his car back to the pits.

still I would like a refund for that lap, it woke up and chose TOO MUCH violence

[Lap 8]: oh my god Seb’s up into P5 as a result of all the violence

[Lap 9]: And Lewis is up into P7

[Lap 10]: And now P6

cut to Lance in P9 defending from Bottas

[Lap 11]: Lewis v Seb, this is not how I wanted it to happen but I’ll take it 🥺

apparently still a way to go until 1st stop territory, which will probably have been extended a tiny bit thanks to the safety car

[Lap 12]: “That Aston Martin is a sprightly thing” AMR22 no longer assigned tractor status 🥳🥳🥳

[Lap 13]: Verstappen got a 5 sec pen for the violence huh 👀

as does Norris for trying to murder Charles

[Lap 14]: And Lewis takes P5, to the delight of the very lively crowd

I think we can all agree that Brazil is Lewis’ second home race at this point (I mean, it technically his how he has his honorary citizenship, but you know what I mean)

[Lap 15]: And Lewis takes 4th from Lando (try saying that three times fast)

can we not get constant replays of the Verstappen on Lewis violence, once was more than enough

[Lap 16]: meanwhile Seb is chasing down Lando 👀

this race has been quite a lot, and I don’t think we’re barely at one quarter distance

Interlagos will always be 100% that bitch

[Lap 17]: SEB INTO P5!!!! THAT’S MY BOOOOOOY

oh and Zhou makes his first stop

[Lap 18]: as does Sainz

meanwhile Russell is driving around completely unbothered while multiple fistfights happen behind him

Sainz has a smoky brake apparently 😬

not a tear off stuck in the brake duct oh good grief

[Lap 20]: somehow, Bottas is in P6

ayyy Lance up to P9

...or not Sainz just passed him

[Lap 21]: Charles still down in P15, he was a title contender at the start of the year 😭

[Lap 22]: Lewis closing the gap to Perez you say 👀👀👀

Charles pits again, because Clowneria Ferrari

[Lap 24]: and just to emphasise the point, Sainz doesn’t know what strategy he’s on.

Perez pits for mediums

oh my god Seb’s in P3. STOP THE RACE!!!!!!!

[Lap 25]: Russell pits, and has a slower stop compared to Perez

but he comes out ahead of Seb.

Anyway Merc 1-2, Lewis win, Seb P3. STOP! THE! RACE!!!!!

[Lap 26]: Lewis leading in Brazil, feels good feels organic

and the crowd (rightfully) love him

“Sebastian Vettel runs third” INJECT IIIIIIIIIT!!!!!

But, I did look up Seb’s result and he finishes P11 so I’m vibing now while it lasts 😭

[Lap 27]: and in Seb pits for mediums, he comes out in 9th

[Lap 28]: and Bottas takes 7th off Gasly

helmet watch: Seb’s Brazilian flag tree design is so cute I love it

[Lap 29]: They’re talking about dark clouds, please no 🥲

but anyway SEB INTO P8!!!

[Lap 30]: Lewis makes his first stop, softs for mediums, and comes out in P4

and Seb up into P7 as Lance pits

“Pitlane incident involving Alfa Romeo will be investigated after the race” ????? care to give us any detail at all FIA?????

don’t just leave us hanging spill the tea

[Lap 31]: I am not looking at the clouds in the distance I do not see them

[Lap 32]: Lewis setting a 1m15. King shit.

[Lap 33]: and Lance passes Yuki for P14

beloved midfield spice how I have missed you since you were MIA in Mexico

[Lap 34]: Ted spilling the pit lane drama tea, apparently Alfa Romeo didn’t pull in their wheel guns when Mick came in for his stop (it’s a sporting curtesy, not a rule per se)

But is still funny that the entire Alfa Romeo team is under investigation seghujgh

poor Barry from catering is an innocent bystander in all of this!!!!

[Lap 36]: Anyway, racing

Alonso pits, promoting Bottas to 5th (?!) and Seb to 6th 🥳

Sainz to pit again, not surprising considering he’s on the softs

He’s on the mediums this time

[Lap 38]: Man seeing the cars being able to actually follow each other, and make overtakes in the corners as opposed to DRS moves. WE STAN.

Alonso with a nice move on Yuki for P13

[Lap 40]: whew I didn’t even notice that we’d passed half distance

track temp has dropped 11 degrees since the race start, it’s def way cloudier. And that’s seemingly favouring Merc, considering the rate at which Lewis is catching Perez

[Lap 41]: Ted has gotten out the big braincell and realised that Merc’s goal is to get a 1-2 for the drama. As they should tbh.

[Lap 42]: Seb still in P6, I’m equal parts thrilled and worried as to how he ends up P11

[Lap 43]: Lewis’ gap to Perez under 2 seconds 👀

someone whip out the jaws music

[Lap 44]: he’s closed right up, racing time!!

[Lap 45]: and he gets the move done down the main straight. NOICE.

and the crowd go insane, as they should

meanwhile Charles pits again from 8th, I once again support his rights to burn things down

[Lap 46]: Seb pits from P6, and drops to P11

[Lap 48]: Perez pits again for mediums, and gets jumped by Sainz

Both Mercs yet to make their second stops still, I would be both surprised and impressed if they manage to make the one-stop work

[Lap 49]: And as I type that, in comes Lewis 😅

Likely to cover off Perez.

Which he does! He’s on the softs

[Lap 50]: and In comes Russell, also for softs

Crofty stop trying to manifest rain the race is fine without it!!

Seb in P7 ahead of Charles 🥺

[Lap 51]: And Charles does pass Seb for 7th

[Lap 52]: Oh apparently Kevin still hasn’t come back to the paddock yet ubhsgeugheshg

and Lando has stopped with a loss of power. McLaren’s very bad not good race.

and a bit of a late VSC, since Lando was getting out the car while cars were passing him 🙃🙃🙃

[Lap 53]: and looks like Ferrari are going to pit Sainz for softs

[Lap 54]: that McLaren is not moving for the marshals for love nor money

and we’re upgraded to a full Safety Car because of it

not Crofty stirring the pot asking Otmar what he’ll tell Esteban and Fernando at the restart slrbnhlbh

He is craving all sorts of violence today

[Lap 55]: Helmet watch: Lando’s neon yellow with chrome royal blue design is so pretty

“You are racing, just be respectful” Mercedes say no violence only polite fisticuffs allowed

stop. replaying. the Verstappen on Lewis incident.

[Lap 56]: another Bono sighting?! TV director your basket of pastries is in the post.

[Lap 57]: “They haven’t released the lapped cars yet” Brundle... don’t

[Lap 58]: oh Esteban being told to let Alonso past and he straight up says no aeghearughs

Alpine squared violence intensifies

[Lap 59]: SC coming in... I am Anxious™️

If we get RBR on Lewis violence again I will SCREAM

George once again taking his SWEET AS TIME to go ffs

[Lap 60]: okay phew that was a much more chill restart

argh Seb down to 9th what happened?!

[Lap 61]: oof Sainz trying to barge past Perez

Charles watching behind with popcorn

and Alonso passes Bottas for P6

once again, EVERYTHING IS HAPPENING

[Lap 62]: 10 laps to go, oh BOY

oh. Seb was on the mediums surrounded by drivers on softs. no wonder he’s dropped places

[Lap 63]: And Sainz does pass Perez for P3

funnily enough he’s also on the mediums while the cars around him are on softs

[Lap 64]: And Charles takes P4!

meanwhile the gap between the Mercs is just over a second

[Lap 65]: Oh jeez that swerving from Perez and Alonso

and Fernando adds himself to be “I passed Perez after the SC restart” party

oh. Verstappen is behind Perez now. team order drama incoming I guess. 🍿

replay of elated Alpine mechanics my beloved

[Lap 67]: 5 laps left, and Verstappen passes Perez. 

after explicably being told to take points off the Ferrari’s 😬

ohhhhhh that pass from Mick on Gasly was NICE

[Lap 68]: Gap between the Mercs still are 1.2-1.3 seconds

[Lap 69]: Ugh, Seb’s dropped down to P11 behind Lance, damn you medium tyres

(Not Lance though, he’s great)

[Lap 70]: The fact that this was Merc’s first win since Saudi ‘21... pain

[Lap 71]: Also the comedy of Merc winning one of the races Toto wasn’t at aeghaergh. It’s a wonder Toto has been at any races in 2023.

welp more internal Ferrari violence

[Finish]: And Russell wins his first F1 race, with Lewis bagging a Merc 1-2!!! 🥳🥳🥳🥳🥳🥳

Sainz P3, Charles P4, with Fernando dragging his Alpine into P5 out of sheer spite.

Okay I’m pretty neutral on Russell but his team radio was v sweet 🥺

and ending with Lewis DOTD, and Lance P10 Team Greeeeeeeeen!!!🥳💚

WHEW. Interlagos continues to deliver the racing AND the drama. That was a fun race to watch though, while we didn’t have a proper battle for the win per se there was so much entertainment in the midfield, and while the reason why it happened did not spark joy, watching Lewis fight back through the field like the King he is was *chef’s kiss*.

Overall, 9 front wings out of 10. Next, and final race of 2022 - Abu Dhabi!

[ikeromantic]

A Word of Advice

A Chevalier Michel fanfiction. Approx. 1700 words. This scene takes place in Chapter 5-6 of the main route and is told from Chevalier’s POV. Part 7 of a series.

First: Bravery Becomes Her

Previous: A Good Morning

There was never enough time, Chevalier thought. His patience was thin. This past week, he’d barely managed a handful of hours with his books. Rhodolite’s border reports and missives from the nobility kept him occupied and more than a little frustrated. He could clearly see the connections between information and from that, predict likely outcomes. Why was it so hard for others to accept and follow?

Prince Leon’s faction and their noble adherents fought him at every turn, and even his own coalition was fractious. It was enough to put anyone in a sour mood. And somehow despite the looming threats on the border and the death of the king, Sariel insisted the palace must still hold this season’s ball. As if everything were normal and there was nothing to worry about. As if no one would notice the presence of the Belle and the princes’ tension.

Worse, Chevalier knew he would be forced to make an appearance. Another wasted evening trying to organize a herd of nobles that were only there to seek status and personal gain. He took a breath. There was no purpose to dwelling on the unavoidable. What he needed right now was a few precious minutes to himself and a good book. It would ease his mind and then he’d be able to focus on the things that mattered.

The library was usually empty at this time of day, but the moment he stepped through the door, someone called his name. Chevalier glanced over at the Belle.

She was balanced precariously on a shelf ladder. Her full skirts and thin palace slippers were not ideal for any practical use, much less this one. The way she was turned to wave at him only hastened the inevitable.

Chevalier considered catching her but with the distance between them, he was unlikely to reach her in time. Besides, the fall wasn’t far enough to cause real injury and a little bruise might remind her to be more careful next time.

As expected, she lost her balance, arms flailing as she fell backwards onto the floor. Emma let out a pained yelp at the impact.

“That was clumsy of you,” Chevalier observed as he made his way toward her. He evaluated her situation at a glance. It appeared the only injury she’d taken was to her pride.

She lay there looking up at him with a pained expression. “Welp. This is awkward.” 

“Indeed. And you need to move.” He cocked his head toward the shelf she was blocking.

Emma glared at him, going from embarrassment to annoyance more quickly than expected. She stood up and straightened her skirts with a huff.

Chevalier pretended to ignore her as he pulled a book from the shelf. Her expressions were too precious to really ignore. The high color in her cheeks, the dainty twist of disapproval to her lips . . . the memory of their softness against his thumb made his heart beat a little faster. Who would ever have guessed that he might enjoy the presence of such a silly little fool? 

She was watching him intently as he perused his choice but Chev didn’t favor her with even a glance. He realized before she opened her mouth to speak why she was staring. The palace ball. Of course. He should have anticipated this outcome. His mind quickly cataloged the possible consequences of each answer he might give to the question she had not asked yet.

The Belle’s fingers gripped her skirt tightly. “Prince Chevalier? There’s something I’d like to talk to you about.”

Chevalier kept his eyes on the page. He’d read this one before, maybe twice? But the story held up. 

“It’s about the ball that’s happening soon -” She swallowed audibly. 

“No.”

Emma twisted the fabric of her skirt as if strangling it. “What? But you didn’t even let me finish! You don’t know what you’re saying no to.”

Chev’s eyebrow twitched up, wondering what game the girl thought she was playing. “You are looking for someone to be your escort, aren’t you?” He sighed. “You shouldn’t be asking me, simpleton.”

“Right. I know that.” A tiny smile lifted the corners of her mouth. “But I was hoping you could tell me who you think would be the best choice to escort me. I want your advice.”

“What? Why would you bother me with something so trivial?” He managed to cover his surprise with irritation. This was not a tactic he’d expected from her.

Emma’s smile widened. “I’m not expecting something for nothing. If there’s anything I can do for you in exchange for your recommendation, I’ll do it. Whatever it is.”

Chevalier felt something well up in his chest. A strong urge to turn and grab her and shake her. What little fool would make such an offer to a beast? Did she not have any idea what could be asked? What might be taken? He told himself that what he felt was only frustration with her idiocy. Only that. 

He’d intended to point out her folly as looked up. “What could you possibly -” Then it hit him. A small smile turned his lips upward. “Actually, I have changed my mind.”

She looked at the floor, brows drawn together in confusion. “What?” 

“If all you’re doing is asking, then go ahead. Ask.” He let his full attention fall on her. Chev could see the wheels of her mind turning as she grappled with his sudden change in demeanor. He used the book in his hand to tilt her chin up so that her eyes met his. “Ask. However, choose your words carefully. I’ve lost my patience over less, and you wouldn’t want that. Would you?” 

The Belle swallowed nervously but didn’t drop her gaze. “I don’t take kindly to threats. That’s taking it too far.”

Chevalier chuckled and released her chin. This was the woman that grabbed his attention in the city street - that exact expression. “So brazen, aren’t we?” He sat down in a nearby chair. “Well?”

She smoothed her skirt before speaking, clearly trying to organize her thoughts. “Right now, the person I’m thinking of asking to be my escort is . . .”

He listened to her with half an ear, which was all her question really required. Chevalier found the rest of his attention focused on her unconscious motion. Tucking a hair behind her ear. Licking her lips in a momentary pause. The way her chest rose when she took a deep breath. Her lashes against her cheek when she looked down in thought. 

What made her so lovely, he thought, was the naivete of these motions. There was no artifice, no manufactured flirtation. The Belle wasn’t seeking his attention - she simply held it naturally. And she was completely unaware. Chevalier could not help but imagine what she might do if he pulled her onto his lap.

“So? What do you think?”

He quirked a brow. “So Black and the clown are your most promising candidates. Both are passable candidates but they are foolish and lack follow-through.”

She shrugged. “Both have a lot of connections so I thought they would qualify for the job.”

Chevalier snorted. “It’s true, the clown is the most social of us all but even you can imagine what it would be like. He has trouble when it comes to women.” He smiled coldly. “If you’re prepared to be backstabbed, I suppose he would be an amusing choice.”

The Belle shook her head, her lips turned in a worried frown.

The prince continued. “Then there’s Black. He would be biased in his information.” He felt a twinge of discomfort imagining her on Leon’s arm. Certainly that was only because the 4th prince wouldn’t be a good choice. No other reason. “As leader of his faction, he’s unpopular with the nobles on my side.”

“Alright, so who does that leave?”

Chevalier tapped a fingertip on the table as if counting out the remaining candidates. “There’s the mime and jumbo. Out of the question. Neither of them have attended a ball before. And then there’s the show-off but his lineage is a problem. I doubt those nobles who treat him as a tumor would offer you any worthwhile information.”

The Belle nodded along, taking only a moment to understand which prince Chev meant. He appreciated how quickly she could follow along when she was paying attention. 

“After taking all that into consideration, I believe Number One or Clavis would be the most appropriate choice.” He leaned forward, interested in what she would decide. “Do you want to be trifled with by a natural born womanizer or manipulated by a man who loves trouble far too much for his own good? The choice is yours.”

She laughed. “Is that really the choice I have?”

Chev gently poked her forehead. “If you don’t even know this much, what have you been doing as Belle all this time?”

Her cheeks flushed with heat and she glanced down. “I . . . don’t have an answer for that.”

Looking at her with that expression on her face shifted something in his chest. Chevalier stood suddenly and closed the distance between them. He took her hand, letting his calloused thumb stroke her soft fingertips. They were red and probably sore from all her notetaking. She was working so hard toward her goal, but without focus and direction. 

“H-hey!” Emma tried to pull her hand back but he didn’t let go. 

Chevalier leaned close, his nose almost brushing hers. “No matter how much effort you put in, it’s pointless if you don’t get results.” His boot brushed her palace slippers. “And if you don’t get results, you’ll be perpetually useless.” 

He couldn’t say why that bothered him. It shouldn’t matter if she succeeded or failed as Belle. Chev knew he would be the next king. Yet . . . he wanted her of her own accord, to choose him. And to come to that decision honestly. 

The Belle’s wide eyes met his cold gaze. “Y-yes . . . results are important. You’re right.” Her voice was steady but quiet, low and breathy. Then, unexpectedly, she smiled. “Thank you for the advice Prince Chevalier.”

That sweet smile hit Chevalier hard. It lit up her face and made her so enticing. His pulse sped, and his breath caught in his throat for a moment. Then he felt an answering grin lift the corners of his mouth. “That’s very admirable of you, thanking me for tormenting you.” 

“Of course I’d thank you,” she squeezed his fingers. “You have been a big help.”

The feelings uncoiling in his chest were strange. An uncomfortably warmth. Chevalier released her hand and moved away. He felt he should say something to remind her that she would owe him for this, but instead he simply walked away.

Next: Through Her Eyes

[aruanimess]

Yay! Thanks for the tag! (and the excuse to goof at work)

1. Three ships: Well, obviously AruAni is my current obsession, after that Rhaenicent (which is on the back burner for now, but I'm sure it'll come back with season 2), and then... huh, idk, I'm not particularly passionate about a single other ship, but I do have wips with JeanPiku and MikaHisu going on so let's go with them.

2.First ever ship: Damn, I don't even remember which was first. Probably Dan and Blair from Gossip Girl. But the first ship I read fic for was definitely Hayffie from The Hunger Games. (and yes, I see a problematic woman, I click).

3. Last song: Hayloft II - Mother Mother.

4. Last movie: Watched The Banshees of Inisherin last night, started strong but lost me towards the end.

5. Currently reading: Recently, I picked up again Hangsaman by Shirley Jackson, which I had stopped bc I'd already read 3 other Shirley Jackson novels in a row and I was getting a bit tired. (funnily enough I think I'd mentioned reading it in another tag game as well... welp! I hope I don't drop it again!)

6. Currently watching: Nothing. Just finished Interview with the Vampire. It was good.

7. Currently consuming: Herbal Tea.

8. Currently craving: A walk!

I'm honestly feeling kind of lazy to tag people (sorry), but if anyone sees this and wants to do it feel free!

∘✧ 9 people you’d like to get to know better ✧∘

Thank you a lot @itsana004 for the tag!

(I'm always so touched when someone tagged me, thank you all who ever did it)

1. Three ships: Well, I'm sorry, but my heart is completely devoted to AruAni. These two have a tight grip on me for a very long time (it's been 11 years...), and I honestly doubt any other ship will have such an effect on me. But I also love YumiHisu, JeanPiku and PokoPiku.

2.First ever ship: oh... I don't even remember, to be honest. So let's say - AruAni. First love for life :D

3. Last song: Latexfauna - Masandra (if you ever decide to watch the music video, just know that's it's extra sensual)

4. Last movie: 20 Days in Mariupol and Carol (the rewatch on a big screen, so it also counts)

5. Currently reading: just finished a few days ago Yugoslavia My Fatherland by Goran Vojnović, and starting today The Vindobon Apocrypha, the debut novel of the poet Kateryna Devdera.

6. Currently watching: oh... Nothing. But I'm going to watch the Apothecary Diares soon.

7. Currently consuming: almost finished my black chemex coffee (aka my source of life).

8. Currently craving: some peaceful sleep.

9 people to tag (no pressure!) and anyone else who wants to join!

@moonspirit @distortedclouds @dude-why-3 @aruanimess @mimiwrites2000-fun @the-last-thread-of-my-sanity @crystalclear97 @luciensdefenseattorney @aruxani

[sylvieeee5]

it's finally time...

for episode 3!!!

please pardon my lateness- I had family over last week, and then I got the second booster shot and it knocked me out for a couple days!

But we're BACKKKK

And here's a Sonic for your troubles :)

Oh! And if you'd like to support my poor time management skills, I would greatly appreciate if you'd consider donating to my Kofi! haha. i'm. broke

!Warning!! Book/show spoilers ahead!

1:27

"Welp, guess they jumped overboard. Alright, back to dinner, everyone!"

2:38

How'd you get that figure? Did Kate tell you?

"Alright gang, stay calm, we don't want them to hear us. By the way, we're 120 feet over the ocean, so uh... don't look down."

2:47

Down? Shouldn't you have gone up??

3:12

...do you think constance has a evil plan pre-formed in case she ever decides to go rogue?

3:17

she hopped on the ruse train :)

y'all ever hear a good word and decide hm! nice word! i will use it Always from now on

3:47

what do you mean

4:55

Number Two's plan B is biological warfare!! love that for her

5:00

HDSGDJWAKYGASYDGAKDAGK

5:43

I think you can be as judgmental as you want when it comes to his second mind control scheme in as many years

6:12

fambly,,,

6:25

ahahahaaaaaaaa

ha

7:07

UNBOTHERED Q UE E N

8:08

????????????????????

noland HUH

8:20

babies-

9:05

JKUCAKYCAIUCKUICQHWXKKHGAJCSH DACAJHSHASGSAASU

constance wants a taste

9:59

gambling montage hell yeah!!

10:27

смерть или слава.

i absolutely love that they made her russian vsjdaskdf

11:45

GIRLBOSS

i know nothing about gambling so that was. interesting to watch with no context jasfkjs

11:58

please let the pie truck be connected to moocho in some way please pl

12:41

"I'm highly concerned about the lion in this cave. Oh, what's that? I've stumbled upon a pile of meat and am being invited to sit on it? Well, why not?"

12:54

no it ain't, nathaniel

13:57

roll credits kinda!

14:20

YES TRUEEEE

impromptu parenting seminar with ms perumal. we love to see it

15:23

hehehe! same. haaaaaaaah

16:13

gfhjhgfhgh

okay but how is that considered cheating?? it's a strategy!

16:24

and NO SHAME

17:22

i mean... true enough

then again i somehow doubt this is a legal operation so if you're stealing from criminals, two wrongs make a right! /j

17:43

GIRL PLEASE

17:56

kinda thought this guy was risker when i saw the trailer. guess not!

18:25

Ahhh, you can totally take him. You just have to make it outside and them sic Madge on 'im! Just... don't look.

19:25

oh right, international waters. no laws! don't look that up, i promise it's true

19:47

the earnestness of that line awwww

Good job, Reynie. Applejack would approve!

20:04

Those "water polo" players are lucky Martina's not here. You do not besmirch the name of sports in her presence- unlike Kate she won't hesitate, bitch.

20:24

........?

20:35

SURRENDERRRRRRRRRRR

i love cannonball oh my god

21:28

...that line, and referring to his followers as "family" is.... really reminding me of my own experience in a similar organization. Man.

22:14

...excuse me a second

22:19

NO WE DON'T ENLIGHTEN US PLEASE

22:52

.... given what we know about constance that somehow seems competely plausible

23:32

Not so "equal in weight", huh, Atalanta?

rip milligan's luggage :(

23:57

DFKUFUAKJHJKASDGSJSKDAHJASDGKJGFYJSAYGGFSEY

THAT LINE DELIVERY

BLESS YOU FRED MELAMED

24:16

these are children you two

24:28

OOOOOOOOOH

she just called your ship sad. with class!

love that kate really is expanding her vocab- she didn't lie to milligan in ep 1!

25:30

do they not have passports?? did they leave them behind with the adults?

25:37

yoink

25:53

What happened to "Nicholas, I've moved on?"

26:02

if you're going through the grieving process simply say "no"

26:33

Unlike last season, the bright yellow is actually very effective camouflage in a lemon grove!

(also, little bit of trivia- coastal Italy does have the ideal climate for growing lemons!)

26:48

free snacks for the road ayyy

27:02

they sound like they're looking for their lost dog shakjdsl

27:21

sebastian's brokennnnnn

27:54

UH OHHHHHHH

28:03

UH OHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH

28:48

the engineering on that luggage cube must be insane because the ones on top are essentially floating

29:08

which was not very from your perspective! was that a diss?

29:23

and now i'm laughing bc i'm thinking of the chekhov's gun bit from the goes wrong show s2 ajaskhjh

29:46

And there's an example of one right there!

30:05

"But today I learned that morality is relative!"

so has reynie's "oh no humanity might be evil" arc been replaced with a "humanity's evil so i'm gonna lean into it lmao" arc?

30:31

constance over there like "oh? really? yes a completely figurative saying imagine that"

30:50

highly, highly accurate

and also

31:13

31:40

jeffers was in curtain's drama club in college and curtain couldn't stand him but he was on board for the evil scheme stuff so what can you do.

32:13

aaaaaaaaaAAAAAAAA???

32:46

more evidence for the drama club theory. gotta pose dramatically before even attempting to hail one of the numerous nearby cabs to follow them! you go king.

Alright! That was episode 3: A Gold Bar in Fort Knox. I feel like this was sort of a transitional episode, and I'm... not sure how I feel about that. The Shortcut and the people on it were a huge part of the book's journey, and here... it's just used to get from point A to point B, rather than being an interesting stop of its own. With that, I'm gonna have to give this one a 7/10. I really hope they do more with Noland and Cannonball down the line... But I am fascinated to see where the brainwashed Mr. Benedict plot goes...

See you all shortly for episode 4!