#what kind of madlads are you?

[my-personal-hellsite]

FYI: The Live Action Gintama movie is free to watch on YouTube

[sexy-sapphic-sorcerer]

jesus fuck the BBC4 Sherlock Holmes radio dramas are gay

I mean, I heard Mary accuse Watson of marrying her "under false pretence" while his heart belongs to Holmes

I heard Holmes and Watson reciting Tristan and Isolde to each other about "existing only in each other, wrapped in love"

but Watson being so scared to tell Holmes that someone wrote a play about him where he's straight! "you're not angry? it's hardly in character"

insane. hilarious. iconic.

[nightfal1n]

Me gathering my thoughts on chapter 110 but it ends with NARUMI no matter what

[citrine-elephant]

read smut and now i want to give leon a moment of pure joy and good boy pats that's.... entirely unrelated to smut beyond the emotional highs.

[greenhappyseed]

I don’t think it’s right to say young Toshi decided to be of service to others, and bury himself beneath “All Might,” simply because he couldn’t find another role in society for his quirkless self. He recognized very early on that “everyone’s got a tough time” and everyone is busy looking out for themselves, which meant the status quo was unlikely to change. Toshi was the weirdo who couldn’t accept that.

From his very beginning, Toshi is built different. He’s tall and blonde and orphaned and quirkless and questions everything about the way the world works. Although he’s polite, nothing about Toshi fits in with Japanese society. He’s just not like the other boys, yet in his Toshi way, he turns that into an advantage. He won’t ever find joy being like others or “fitting in” because he was made to stand out. When Toshi tells Nana, “A quirkless guy like me has no role otherwise,” he’s not rejecting the society that rejected him, and he’s not desperate to fit in. He’s saying he is the perfect person to change the world because he’s not leashed to any societal expectations.

Toshi doesn’t have a “three-meter radius” to protect like other people with homes or families. He’s not destined to do something like take over his father’s business. He’s not too busy looking out for himself. Unlike everyone else, he has the time and youthful exuberance to care about others. He knows nobody is going to draft a quirkless kid into a battle. Yet he was so incensed by the world around him that he “refused to sit on the sidelines” anyway. He’s calling up himself.

Toshinori’s lack of limits startles Nana at first. Not only does he follow her like a lost puppy, his second sentence to her is, “Let me help/assist you.” Let HIM (the quirkless child) help HER (the adult pro hero)?!?!? (Who is this kid???) When she initially turns him away, he says he’s not chasing her for help avenging his family. He really wants to break the cycle of loss and grief for others. Then Nana challenges Toshi’s true motivations, asking, “so what would you do to change the world?” and to her surprise he sets out a coherent plan for creating a Symbol of Peace. (What child walks around with an audacious yet plausible vision for changing the entire freaking world???) Nana challenges Toshi one last time, sarcastically asking if he’d put on a big show of force or grand display of power, knowing he’s quirkless. And the madlad STILL answers yes, continuing to insist he’s the perfect candidate to put on such a show.

All Might always emphasized the joy of volunteer work and helping others without being asked, even when others didn’t quite catch his main message. He specifically researched and chose a physical task with a public benefit and no public recognition for Izuku’s 10 months of training. He could have bought a secret gym space! But no, he had to instill the value of benefitting the public.

Even as All Might talks about his past, his powerlessness, and his regrets, he never wavers from his original idea. He believes in the idea of a symbol. He believes that society needs a guiding light. The part he knows he got wrong was brushing off the kindness of others. Just because he is different; just because he started on this path alone; just because his isolation made him the right person to start on that path; doesn’t mean he had to stay that way.

[the-cat-and-the-birdie]

Clarification before I attempt further discussion. Once again,

Y'ALL MAY I HAVE YOUR INTERPRETATION:

SO YOU THINK THIS WAS JOKE - MEANT AS AN INSULT OR NOT?

Why I ask -

I've been discussing Peter B. Parker a lot lately and the motive behind some of his actions, and notably throughout the post I mentioned Hobie disliking or even hating Peter.

And yeah, that's kind of what I assumed, based on this line.

But some people I've been talking with have expressed the exact opposite - they believe this line shows that he does like Peter, and that he meant it completely as a joke.

And Hobie does joke a lot, he's a warm guy - but why would he call Peter a 'Humbling Reality' - and is that meant as an insult, or a welcome to a friend?

If I'm correct, this line is the ONLY line Hobie ever speaks towards Peter.

So did you think he meant it as an insult? Or a friendly joke?

Here's why I took it as an insult:

'Humbling Reality Spider-man', MayDay, and why I think Hobie and Peter aren't friends at all.

First, Hobie makes no other deprecating jokes AT ALL throughout the movie.

Hobie is a very casual, very laidback guy (most of the time..) - and he's known to joke around with the people he's close with. But when we look back at all his other jokes - NONE of them approach anywhere near as neutral or negative as being a 'Humbling Reality'.

Hobie affectionately calles Gwen 'Gwendy'. And he even calls Miles 'Peter Pan', despite not knowing them. Pav is 'Madlad Pav' etc.

No one else but Peter gets this kind of..I don't know.. backhanded? I never took 'Humbling Reality' as a good thing, I took that as being 'so depressingly average and mundane'.

And being average and mundane is not something Hobie would call someone he's particularly fond of.

Even those he feels neutral on - Miguel and Jess, he doesn't address this was. He just chooses not to engage with them.

Hobie had every chance to walk into Miguel's lair and make a comment like this, but he didn't.

To me that showed that Hobie's feeling towards Peter differs from his feelings towards people like Jess and Miguel as well as Pavi and Gwen.

Hobie calls people pet-names. This doesn't seem like a pet-name

Second, Tone.

I don't know, I always read this tone as unusually dry for Hobie.

Usually when making jokes so deadpan, he's speaking about a situation, not a person ("It's a metaphor for capitalism." / "A bit much, innit?"). And even when speaking to Jess, his tone is more casual than this line to Peter.

We see how Hobie approaches someone like Pav, which clear excitement, warmth and proximity. But this is completely absent towards Peter.

Hobie makes no attempt to move towards Peter or further greet him in anyway.

Third, Peter's Reaction.

Hobie says that line LOUD. You hear the echo.

And Peter just ignores him. He doesn't laugh, he doesn't look at Hobie, he doesn't mention him at all in the scene.

And that's not to say 'oh, Peter secretly hates Hobie and wants to ignore him' -

I just think that Peter didn't take that as a full-on joke. Or rather he didn't expect a warm welcome from Hobie. Because they aren't close.

Throughout the whole scene Peter ONLY addresses Gwen and Miles.

While Hobie says one line to Peter - one that isn't even clearly that friendly - Peter says nothing to him, not even stopping to pat his shoulder.

Based on the fact that Hobie and Peter are BOTH touchy, I feel like that in itself shows that they aren't friends. Both of them are the type to greet their friends when they enter a room, but neither do. Not properly anyway.

They seem to be acquaintances at best - or with my assumption that this was an insult, less than that.

I mean, Hobie is still a teen, he's still a friend of Gwen's. Peter has every reason to treat him warmly, or openly greet him.

But Peter makes no attempt at all to be like "Hey Hobie, what's going on."

Whether or not you think Hobie hates him is one thing, but I feel like Peter's reaction, and how he disregarded the comment without being shocked or responding in any way shows:

Hobie has said stuff like this to him before, and it's not too shocking

Him and Hobie aren't nearly as close as him and Gwen, and they aren't friends enough to greet each other.

Hobie & MayDay

I've also seen it mentioned that Hobie's connection with MayDay shows that him and Peter are friends.

And I can absolutely see where that conclusion comes from, and it holds weight. I just..kinda have to disagree on the basis that even if Hobie openly disliked Peter, that dislike wouldn't extend to MayDay

Even moreso, If Hobie didn't like Peter, but took good care of MayDay, and MayDay very clearly liked Hobie - which she does (she jumps into his arms, Hobie doesn't pick her up) - then Peter does not seem like the type of father to separate them.

Notice how every time Miguel or Miles is holding MayDay, Peter is talking to them, commenting on how they're holding her, showing them stuff. But when Hobie is with MayDay...nothing. He says nothing to him.

It even goes farther.

When Peter is showing Miguel, Gwen, and Miles photos of MayDay, he makes no attempt to show Hobie.

We know Hobie loves MayDay, but Peter doesn't show him photos of her. Despite showing Gwen, Miles, and Miguel, quite excitedly.

Because I'm assuming him and Hobie are NOT close like that. And/or Peter knows Hobie would not appreciate him getting close to him and shoving a phone in his face.

Miguel is clearly annoyed and Peter even shows him, while not approaching Hobie - who is clearly in a good mood.

Once again, I think that shows that Peter and Hobie are not friends, even if Hobie likes interacting with MayDay and does it well.

I assumed that Peter lets her be around Hobie because he trusts Hobie, not that they were friends.

And the final nail in the coffin Peter isn't enthusiastic about MayDay going to Hobie

This is something I JUST realized on a rewatch, but it lines up so well.

So this scene: Peter is getting ready to change MayDay. We see Hobie standing on MayDay's left and Peter on her right.

[LMAOOOOOO LOOK AT HER I'M WEAK]

MayDay swings towards the right of the screen, aka her LEFT - the direction of Hobie. We as the audience don't see what she's attaching her web to. But she has to attach it to something and she's going towards him.

And Peter pulls her back. Doesn't really say anything or look at Hobie, he just pulls her back.

Then, MayDay goes again, this time bouncing herself into Hobie's arms. MayDay chose to go to Hobie - and like I said before, Peter isn't gonna separate them, if that's what May wants.

But that's not the thing - regardless of whether you think MayDay was going towards Hobie or not - in the shot we see Peter puts his hands on his hips, watching Hobie, and he shakes his head at him.

You can go back to the scene and check, because it really is so subtle and I genuinely only caught it while employing my autistic Hobie sight and staring at them intently.

But he does shake his head, letting Hobie have her. I suggest you go watch it back for yourself, but in my eyes Peter's slow headshake doesn't really seem like the 'Oh, you!' type.

In the next shot we see of Miles, Gwen, Hobie and Peter, MayDay is back in Peter's hands and that's the end of the interaction. We don't actually see them speak, only trade off MayDay.

If they did say anything, I'd KILL to know what they're saying cause like...

idk for both of their characters it feels like such an odd interaction to me

The whole scene, both him and Hobie interact with the people around them, except each other.

And it's only after MayDay literally LAUNCHES herself into Hobie's arms that Hobie and Peter even approach or look at each other.

---------

I've spoken at length about why I think Hobie would hate Peter - mainly for his open neglect of Gwen and his failure to step up as her mentor, his betrayal towards Miles, or the fact HE RATTED MILES OUT TO LYLA (how else would she have know to look for his location? That's one analysis I'll STAND on.)

But whether or not you believe Hobie hates him or whether Hobie has the capability to openly hate someone like that (he does.) I feel like everything I said here is a clear indicator that they are not friends or close.

The one on-screen line between them is vague on Hobie's end and completely ignored by Peter. Peter leaves Hobie out of his activities when showing photos. He shakes his head when MayDay fights her way to Hobie, and only looks at him when Hobie is giving MayDay back.

From my first watch, that kinda made me assume that they're just not close - despite them having Gwen in common.

And combining that with the 'Humbling Reality' comment, I took that as a sign that it's not that they don't know each other. They just don't talk like that.

And that made me ask why. Which led to all my other speculations.

But that's just me.

Did ya'll take the 'Humbling Reality Spider-man' thing as joke? Do you think they're friends, or no? (Not if Hobie hates him - just if you think they're friends/close)

What do you think the situation is?

I'm curious. Let's open the floor.

Is they beefin or nah I gotta know cause that would be funny as hell

[syre-stane16]

Do Dendro Vision Holders Deserve Their Element?

What is Dendro?

associated with knowledge/wisdom in genshin, dendro is a form of florakinesis [technically}.

Plants->trees->old->wisdom

also

Plants-> trees-> paper->books->knowledge.

healing traits can be due medicinal propertied of certain plants.

and with plants association to life, nurturing.

this element feels pretty self explanatory to me which is good when you compare it to how hard electro was for me.

lets begin with the f2p guarantee...

Collei

Despite her past, Collie is a kind soul. the healing trait works here because she IS healing. She's gotten far and we cured her of eleazar, but she needs to heal mentally as well, and I wish the best to her.

her being experimented on could also be seen as the corruption of the thirst for knowledge.

Tighnari

biologist.

knowledgable in his field.

has medicinal knowledge so healing.

kind

parent, so nurturing. [He and Cyno are totes Collei's adoptive dads and I'm here for it.'

Rewarded for his bravery by telling the teacher that they were wrong about something like, DO YOU KNOW WHAT ETHNIC TEACHERS ARE LIKE? THE PEOPLE WHO CLAIM THAT HIS VISON STORY ISN'T IMPRESSIVE DIDN'T HAVE TEACHERS WHO HOLD A GRUDGE AGAINST YOU BECAUSE THEIR PRIDE OF WOUNDED.

OMG! THAT MADLAD!!!! THAT ABSOLUTE UNIT!!!!

Baizhu

Parent= nurturing.

Idealist.

knowledgeable in his field.

pharmacist so healing.....that and he's a healer in game

treats his patients decently which makes them feel at ease.

Yao Yao

Nurturing and Healing.

kind of a weak character to me, I feel she was made just to pad the dendro elemental users.

though I guess I don't mind a few simpler characters here and there.

Kirara

i.... she... she's ignorant to the world outside of inazuma... so maybe... she's...getting rid of the ignorance with experience?

KAVEH AND ALHAITHAM

hush! those two are together for reason.

Kaveh and alhaightam is definitely knowledgable.

while Kaveh may have the specialised knowledge needed for his field, Alhaitham's desire to learn about the world gives him a wider scope of knowledge, and he's constantly learning.

common misconception I noticed is that Kaveh is the Idealist in the relationship. They both are heavy idealists and they live with their ideals to the max.

Kaveh is empathetic and uses his heart for decisions to the point of self sabotage, while Alhaitham leans too far into logic.

They may represent the two factors of the pursuit of knowledge.

LOGIC & UNDERSTANDING

which is why while those two are opposites to each other, they're also strangely compatible.

look, I like my emotional messes dating put-together logicians, but those two are in such extremes I didn't get the ship for a bit. I don't know how they work well together as characters but I'm not gonna analyse that relationship.

so yeah.

CONCLUSION

dendro is the latest element introduced so it's characters are sparse. and there are some that really may not have good justifications.

honestly nothing else to say..... goodbye, I'll work on pyro.

EDIT: HYDRO, I FORGOT ABOUT HYDRO, IM WORKING ON THAT NEXT, NOT PYRO

[aheathen-conceivably]

Now that we know a little more, clearly Gio is pretty ticked off with the situation - considering the feelings that he has about his and Jo’s relationship already, combined with the guilt and likely irritation of her finding out about his lying, now also combined with her demanding part ownership of the ranch - he doesn’t have a lot of leg to stand on. He has to just, deal with it, because it IS all their lives’ on the line, and nothing he’s tried to do has worked. I voted for Zelda to be most pissed, but I think she and Antoine are really just sad for now, so Gio might run away with the title after all 😭

Oh HELLO my friend! I love that we’re still playing the game of “Who Will Snap First!” (Game show pending). You’re hella right about one thing, as things shift and move, everybody’s numbers start to kind of adjust don’t they? Cause ahem, yeah, Gio is ~not pleased~ at the moment, and like you said, he doesn’t even feel like he has the “right” to be angry (which is its own sort of compounding factor, isn’t it?).

Is it time for a Gio deep dive? Welp. Gather one gather round my darlings because you know I can never resist….

Ted Talk with a Heathen! (Obviously under the cut because I’m a madlad)

First and foremost let me say that for whatever else Jo may do or how she demanded it, she is damn right not to pay off a loan without some legal backing in return. Now does she know this? For sure. But does she also know that she did it to get under Gio’s skin in a way that nothing else could? Absolutely. I’ve talked about it a little here, but Gio’s entire mindset is wrapped up in this farmhouse. It is his American dream. We also need to remember that he did what he said he never would in order to get the money to buy it, which is involve himself in his family bootlegging back in the 1920s. He even admitted to Antoine that after their one deal he tried to get out, but “once they get their teeth into you, once they know where you are, they don’t let you stop.” So Gio saved up this money by going against his own moral code and then ran from it to a place he thought he could establish himself as a “legitimate” American.

And I know yall like to rag on him about “making bad choices,” and while that’s partially true, Gio is just horribly, horribly unlucky. Buying land in the American West was incredibly fortuitous at one point in history, and it’s these stories that prompted Gio to do this at all. He’s an example of how not only can we buy into propaganda with our money and our dreams, but how they intersect with historical circumstances in ways far beyond our control or predictions.

Now to add to this, Gio knows what Jo has just done. She’s essentially taken part of what’s incredibly personal and precious to him as “payment” for what he did to her: which was trying to control her into fitting neatly into his dream when she had told him no multiple times before. In doing so he took away what was most precious to her: control and autonomy over her own life. It’s why he’s not really fighting her, and that deep seated Catholic guilt is simply telling him that this is retribution. But you can only write off someone else’s actions as righteous for so long, can’t you? And to make matters worse, let’s not forget….

Gio is not stupid. He knows something is going on between Jo and Val. How much of him thinks it’s just flirtation? How much of it is genuine or is just Jo once again trying to “get back at him”? But he’s staying quiet about it for a reason, most likely the same reason he’s willing to roll over and let Jo take 1/4th ownership of his dream. He’s motivated by guilt and ideas of righteous payback, yes, but he’s also taking a gamble that Jo is working through his betrayal in a way that he has to let her get through, and he’s attempting to let go of control to show her that he won’t do it again.

Essentially, he’s overcompensating for his actions and using his own compliance as a sort of “play” in their game to keep the other person where they want them. Is this potentially more motivated by love and less problematic than him directly lying to her to get her to stay? Y’all can make the call on that, but now at the very least, he’s the one suffering for it rather than her.

Now with all that going on, how far is this man willing to bend? How intuitive is Jo to when she’s pushed him too far and how much of her even gives a damn? Welp. There’s your questions on today’s episode of 1930s: Arc Two! Who Will Snap First? with more info coming at you tomorrow! 🫡

[nkn0va]

Blazeblue request: If your ok with it, can you write relationship headcannons for F!Ragna and a M!S/O?

Thankfully Ragna's got protag privileges when it comes to fanart. Whitehorse made the banner completely impromptu, the absolute madlad.

Also fun fact, did you know that Ragna is an actual name that's originally feminine? It's a Scandinavian name so you probably won't actually meet anyone with it. In Blazblue's case though, it's likely a reference to Ragnarok in Norse Mythology.

-Poor Ragna has absolutely no romantic experience. Growing up in a church and then being raised by an anthropomorphic cat whose wife was yeeted into the great beyond will do that to you.

-She's extremely hesitant to let you join her when she goes out to destroy the cauldrons, she can't afford to risk losing anyone else she cares about.

-She does eventually relent and let you join. At least that way she can keep you close to her, which may be for the better considering the target likely to be on your back by proxy of hers.

-On the bright side though, you can think of it as a way of travelling, getting to see the world outside of wherever you were born and Jubei's "abode", if you can even call it that. Try bringing this up to Ragna though, and you'll only get a scoff in return. Half amused, half annoyed.

-She's definitely got a bit of tsundere-ness in her like her brother. She'll chew you out when you do something dangerous, it's how she expresses her worry. She doesn't really know how to worry like a normal girlfriend.

-Speaking of Jin though, you're gonna have to deal with his never-ending jealousy/rage when you happen to meet him. There's no avoiding it. He can target Ragna all he likes but if he dares point his blade in your general direction she is going to pound his ass straight back to the Azure.

-She's extremely protective in general, she'll often patrol around the area where you set up camp for the night to make sure nothing is there, aggressive wildlife, scouting NOL soldiers, or otherwise.

-There aren't a lot of chances for intimacy, the kind that's normal for two people dating. When the opportunity does come around though, Ragna can actually be surprisingly soft. It's around you that she can finally relax and not have to worry about putting on the tough attitude.

-It's in moments like those where you realize she really isn't all that aggressive by nature. She has to be if she wants to protect the people important to her, and you're no exception. In fact, you're really the only person that gets to see her be vulnerable like this.

-Of course you're both going to face endless teasing about your relationship. Rachel, Jubei, Kokonoe, and Kagura in particular are all going to give you varying degrees of shit.

-Rachel's going to ask you what made you fall for such a "lowly, unladylike creature" with a shit-eating grin on her face, much to Ragna's chagrin, while on the other end of the spectrum Jubei's just going to playfully tease you two like a dad watching his kid in a relationship. He won't give you the ol' warning about breaking her heart spiel, it's not needed with Ragna of all women. If you cross her she'll fuck you up herself.

-Your relationship with Ragna is really the only semblance of normalcy she has left in her life. You're her tether to reality, a comforting presence that keeps her sanity from truly slipping. Though of course she probably won't be saying this out loud.

-She'll be damned before she lets the NOL, Sector Seven, or God forbid Terumi get their filthy hands on you. You're the only person who can truly see her for who she really is deep down, past the sardonic, hotheaded exterior.

-When she takes control of the Master Unit, you're the one at the forefront of her mind above everyone else that she creates the new world for. Deep down her heart is breaking at the fact that you can never see each other again, and that you'll never even remember her and all the shit you had to go through together. Even at the fact that in the new world you'll probably find someone else.

-But...that's fine. Ragna knew what she was signing up for, and she knows it needs to be done. For the people she loves. No matter how much it hurts.

[cicerenella]

now i’m so curious, what are your thoughts on spaus, historically and in the modern day? what do you imagine romano thinks of them?

I'm jumping to answer this ask because I'm continuing the Austria train! And also because I have a lot of thoughts about this pairing that is (sadly) very overlooked in my opinion. Slight Spamano following.

OK SO I love SpAus. Great angst machine, I love their historical accuracy and a way to portray my view on Empires in Hetalia, since most of the time power gets into their head. Oh well, a marriage between two of the most powerful empires in europe, what's the worst that could happen?? a divorce that brought war to half of europe.

Spain and Austria's marriage was probably one of the longest and most powerful europe has seen, but that doesn't mean that it was good LMAO. I have an idea that for the first century or so of their union everything was...ok? Sure, it could be better, and it had it's ups and downs (I'm looking at Spain) but that doesn't mean that it was that bad. Except for like, the revolt of the Comuneros, that was a bad one.

I think their marriage started to go really south after the Netherlands' independence and the decline of the Spanish Empire, because after that things only started to spiral downwards. And I do not have a good and kind portrayal of "Empire Spain". He was awful both historically wise and also in his personal relationships and it SHOWED.

So, the war of Spanish Succession. A shitshow, Europe's messiest divorce, it did not end good, and Spain lost massive chunks of territories. The treaty of Utrecht/Peace of Rastatt was probably their divorce papers AHAHHA. In thirteen years more than eighty wars where fought.

And about Romano...I know many people make the love triangle between Roma/Spain/Austria and honestly? I like it. ALTHOUGH I have a very specific characterization that I am going to analyse through just now!

So, Naples was considered an "anomaly" in the Spanish Empire. It was the biggest and most populated city, and often times even overshadowed cities in Spain. Historically speaking, Antonio would admire the HELL out of Romano, even if he was one of his subordinates. I don't think he "loved" him yet, more than he considered him his favorite out of all his colonies.

Although I think the more his marriage with Austria deteriorated, the more his kindness to Romano turned into straight up obsession. The civil war twisting Spain's head in a lot of ways too.

That is to say, that while Spain was having his twisted villain arc, Romano would both hate and care about his superior. In a friendly way, of course, because it would be scandalous having an affair with his "master" that was married to another (plus not to mention Romano's internalised homophobia). So while my man was fighting to get independence, Spain was trying both to save his crumbling marriage and keeping his favorite colony with him (spoiler: he failed in both).

SO UHM YEAH. Romano probably wouldn't want to get into the SpAus business, and Spain obsession for Roma definitely irked Austria a bit. Can you imagine after all that crap that was the Spanish War of Succession going on a rampage in trying to reconquer South Italy?? From your ex husband?? Absolute madlad. I love SpAus. Spamano is my number one ship but this one is a guilty pleasure of mine.

[OH SHOOT, forgot about modern day SpAus. Uhhh, since I ship spamano it is a bit tricky. But most of the time I make them stay on friendly terms!! ex husbands that often nitpick at eachother yay. The venom of their divorce is long gone, and they're both old men that like to crack jokes and reminisce about their past adventures.]

[noideawhatshappenin]

I need to rant about a few things from Bad Batch so

SPOILERS AHEAD

I'm writing this based on memories right after my first watch because my emotions are overwhelming me and I need to rant about them to strangers on the Internet. They're also not in any chronological or logical order.

First off, Echo telling Emerie that he knew the Zillo was Omegas doing? Because he would have done the same?

Immaculate. Fives would be proud to see his brother still being up to dangerous shit. And even passing it along to his little sister/daughter.

On the same note, the Zillo breaks out and the boys outside immediately know it's not coincidence because of course it would be one of their genius madlads.

Crosshair: Was that Echo or Omega.

Wrecker and Hunter without missing a beat: Omega

Because of course it was her.

Then Crosshair saying Clone Force 99 died with Tech had me crying buckets. Baby really has lost all feeling of self worth and needs time to heal on Pabu. Poor boy. Probably feels hella responsible for his death, too, because he wasn't there to help them.

Next up, Hemlock's operatives? You cannot tell me that they're not reminiscent of the Clone Force 99 we saw in Clone Wars. Using debris as a shield, like the first plan we see them do? One fighting with knives, like Hunter? One having a rifle, like Crosshair? Hemlock saw the boys and said: damn I want that as well.

It also explains why many people (me included) hoped for the reveal of Tech being CX-2. They're meant to seem like the Batch.

Also I really hoped Scorch would somehow survive this, just because I'm currently replaying Commando and feel for my poor boy.

Then I think a lot of us remember the meme with the explosion? Absolutely adore, that it was Nala Se blowing the research and Rampart to pieces.

Don't get me wrong, Rampart was a great addition to the recent episodes and his screams had me dying with laughter, but he was an evil piece of shit till the end. He died as a selfish evil Empire guy instead of dying for redemption (like there is a tendency in Star Wars) or getting to live on without any change. He stayed an asshole, even if he was kinda funny in the end.

Now to get into some specifics about the ending and the fate for the boys.

The cut to black when one of the operatives threatened Crosshairs hand? I nearly shat myself, holy hell. What the actual fuck.

The constant pan to Wrecker being injured? I was fully expecting him to sacrifice himself in the end, very glad he didn't.

The scene in the rain on the bridge? Immaculate. The perfect climax to the show. Perfection.

Hemlock's threat being empty, because he needs Omega.

Crosshair still worried because, even if Hemlock won't shoot Omega, his trauma won't just go away and he cannot risk Omega getting hurt.

Omega realising Crosshairs struggle and helping out.

Hunter realising that Omega realised.

Crosshair getting the first hug.

And then we see them leave. Safely. Because it's over. Their fight is over. Bad Batch is over.

Seeing all the clones and children happy on Pabu was the kind of ending the show deserved.

I'd go so far as to call it the ending the show needed. Because the Bad Batch would never have stopped fighting, if there was still danger threatening one of their members. Omega wouldn't have stopped fighting if she had lost another one of her brothers or hadn't been able to free the other clones.

The only way for them to find peace in that world, was a happy end. And I think that's beautiful.

In fact, this leads right into my final thoughts on this. Omega leaving to fight for the rebellion is very on brand for her selfless nature. It's also why this has to happen in the future. The Bad Batch had done their duty. They had fought enough battles for their lifetime, which is why we don't see them joining the rebellion with her. Why it has to happen, when Omega is ready to leave on her own.

Then of course, I cried buckets for Tech's glasses on the dashboard. Because her following in his footsteps and becoming a pilot makes this story come full circle.

Sidenote, I'm pretty sure her hairstyle is, at the very least, inspired by Phee. And her flying is probably closer to Phee than Tech as well, because she is still a chaos child.

Perhaps we'll see more shows from this time. We're certainly still lacking important info.

How does Wolffe join his brothers?

Why are Gregor, Wolffe and Rex "retired" in Rebels?

What happens to Echo?

I imagine, Filoni will give us a Clone Rebellion show (possibly with a sadder ending than Bad Batch) to answer these questions.

Do I have a closing thought? Yes.

As nice as the final scene was, we were absolutely robbed of older Crosshair and Wrecker. ROBBED I SAY.

[modeus-the-misanthrope]

heeeey mody, for the stp ask game

5. (Explore) Who's your favorite Voice?

17. (Explore) You're a princess locked in the basement of a cabin, what kind of princess would you be?

23. (Explore) Any first impressions regarding [Character]? How about now?

Answered question 17 over here!

5 = Stubborn, 100% my angy boi. The obvious mvp of the Adversary route, a great peanut gallery member for Eye of the Needle and Fury, a hilarious part of Razor's and I love the "gladiator fighting the lion" feel he can give to Den's route.

23 = Narrator. When I first played the game I thought of him as the "True" antagonist. But after playing the game enough, he is a true protag of his own story...but StP isn't his story. So while I would drop kick that grampa bird, in the name of Shifty, I respect his ability to say "I am gonna kill the concept of change and death." And actually pull that shit off, the madlad! XD

[7grandmel]

Rip of the Week: 01/07/2024

KNUCKLES (Smaragdwächter)

Season 8 No Album Release (Read More) Carnival Night Zone (Act 2) (Nov 3, 1993 prototype) - Sonic the Hedgehog 3 & Knuckles

Ripped by Madinstance

I pondered long and hard about this post, of what rip to make it about - I'm sort of back in the groove of things after my break, and I'm happy to see people are enjoying the graudally-increasing trickle of variety posts already, but I also feel as if I'm still regaining my footing in how to pick these rips for the blog. Alas, amidst all the requests and the all-time classics, I do inevitably hold recency bias close to my heart - bias you've already seen with rips like Last Freight-train Night, and that rears its head once again with KNUCKLES (Smaragdwächter). Because no matter what happens to me or the blog, I am but merely a Sonic fan, an Undertale enjoyer, and an absolute CONNOISSEUR for Madinstance's work. The madlad's done it again.

Like, look - I've featured the guy so many times before, I've featured Undertale music on here so many times more than even that, blah blah, blah blah...can you sincerely blame me for picking this one? Madinstance has been featured on here plenty for their incredible arrangements like M-O-O-G City and Thwâmpröck Desert, and I've always sort of taken them as the kind of ripper who puts their heart and soul into rips of games and music that they genuinely just care tons about, most evident with their Minecraft tributes like Fell From a High Place (Reprise). But lately it feels as if that view may have been wrong - or Madinstance is just growing as a ripper to where they're becoming willing to take on any arranging project so long as it sounds cool. Honestly though, I can't blame them with a concept as sick as this - meshing together prototype Carnival music from a Genesis Sonic game with Undertale boss music is the kind of lunatic concept that I don't know how one comes up with but also wouldn't be able to help myself to pursue.

There have been a lot of times where I've worried that I've covered too *much* Undertale music for the blog...but the more I sit on it, the more I realize just how core Undertale's music is to both SiIva's viewers and its rippers. Undertale blew up just a short few months before the SiIvaGunner channel itself did, and its fans have thus grown in almost direct parallel with SiIvaGunner's own fans - and on top of that, Toby Fox is the exact kind of online meme freak that SiIvaGunner itself attracts the most. Is it any surprise that we've had banging Undertale arrangements on SiIva like Hoopache, SUNGORE, and indeed Madinstance's very own Fell From a High Place (Reprise), since the very beginning of the channel, from just about every one of the team's rippers? Undertale is endlessly beloved, and moreover - endlessly versatile for arrangements, its leitmotifs and melodies so well known as to becoming a series of online anthems all in their own rights.

Compared to the more popular tunes like Megalovania and Death By Glamour, it feels as if ASGORE doesn't get as much attention from remixers and rippers. And perhaps that was part of what made me fall head over heels in love with KNUCKLES (Smaragdwächter) right from the moment go - it shows such a profound respect and understanding for not just the original ASGORE theme, but the iconic Bergentrückung prelude that introduces the battle, here weaving the two together damn seamlessly in the rip's intro. It's immensely impressive just how atmospheric and intense the rip still sounds despite, again, it's baseline track being the borderline juvenile carnival music used in Sonic 3's recently-unearthed prototype versions, a series of cheerful clapping samples introducing the track yet never overriding the emotional sincerity of the melody leading the rip. I feel like the emotion in large part also just comes from how fucking cool of a sound Sonic 3's music in general has, a lead synth that sounds unlike anything else on the genesis playing a sort of melodic back-and-fourth with a second synth lead that sounds just as distinct yet far more chipper and bright, almost reminding me of something from Rivals of Aether...? The back-and-fourth feel is an amazing touch either way, is the point!

KNUCKLES (Smaragdwächter)'s final touch, of course, comes toward the finale, the section in which the original ASGORE battle theme takes a step back from its intensity to reflect, a calm in the midst of the storm. Madinstance brilliantly uses this interlude to throw a complete curveball that still fits the arrangement perfectly: using samples and sounds from the *finalized* Carnival Night Zone theme, the one created by Michael Jackson's soundteam, and featuring that distinct glass shattering sample from Jam. I talk about escalation in rips a fair bit on here, but it wasn't as it the rip was in any need of it here anyway given how amazing the arrangement already was. It's just the sort of thing that pushes the rip from great to godlike, the kind of touch you'd mainly expect to see from a Sonic the Hedgehog superfan committed to their rip, akin to what MtH did with Youkoso Twinkle Park e. But again - perhaps, somehow, I've underestimated just how far Madinstance will go once they've landed on a concept they truly click with. Season 8 may well be the silly season in many ways, but it's all too clear that each one of the team's rippers are growing more powerful by the day.

[fictionfixations]

penacony spoilers (this will mean nothing to you if you dont know it but like uh. memory zone meme? that one battle.)

what in the fuck thats freaky

ive never seen this fight im not gonna lie (ive seen the story and sunday and aventurine's but nothing else)

so wait does killing that bring him back??

WELCOME BACK YOU MADLAD 😭 how does. temporary.. death?? feel?

i keep forgetting to save skill points for the healer so my characters can ACTUALLY heal my bad

AGAIN?

what is your obsession with this man memory zone meme. like. if it was robin id understand cause thats kinda story-relevant but like...

genuinely so freaky (ive always been targetting the person itself so i dont think ive seen the follow up attack and im kind of scared to)

okay now PLEASE stop being oneshotted

no matter how much i try to build my characters it always feels like they're still that shitty team thats barely built. like. yknow the team for casual hsr players that dont spend that much time grinding cause they're more story-focused or something??

fhuisdhf iwish i had aventurine cause i feel like ive been getting into a really good groove with planning on how i should play with aventurine as like the support character (support as in im taking an aventurine from my friends lol) but also. the one thing that infuriates me is that you just. shields cant heal you. so theres just that chunk missing from the hp bar that cant be fixed until the battle ends and i go to like a space anchor (or use consumables but i forget they even exist)

but theres just something nice about not taking damage at all because the shields are taking it for you. ...but anyway shields or no id probably still get fucked over

(sometimes probably gonna comment and be like 'aCTUALLy you're getting oneshotted because you keep doing [action] when there's a symbol over it so then it triggers [so and so] and im just like. i know. but i play by ignoring the stuff that triggers the enemy to attack so like--)

okay now what am i supposed to do LMFAO (i cant tell if the eye means even if you like use your skill instead it'll trigger because ive been using basic attack when they get oneshotted. so idk maybe it doesnt matter what you do it just chooses the last person's turn basically)

(well i could trigger an ult but. so well hi im future me but if i had any ults they were probably being saved. like natasha's healing everyone ult.)

i want to scream

ended first. uh. round? is that what you call it? then it took out TWO of my team members. was prepared to yell obscenities at it but then cutscene happened so i hoped that that was it

but oh my god YOU TOOK MY HEALER??

actually. kind of off topic. i wonder what happens to aventurine's shields if he dies?? like cause the turns are counted by when it reaches that characters turn again (which no duh that means a whole turn has passed. i just remember it better describing it this way) ..but if no turn does it just. disappear?

OH

anyway 'two characters who act of their own intiative' ... you. bitch.

okay. im. gonna sacrifice robin and ratio. since i can do that i guess. (if i had to rank characters on team of 'absolutely need to keep alive or im actually fucked' then these two would be at the bottom...)

wonder if her ult just disappears if she dies

yeah ult is gone

black swan made it so much easier but oh my god i hated that (and i know im going to hate the future bosses so yayy)

no but its actually really cool to basically have allies turn on you like that. its. really really cool.

i just am not a fan of actually playing against it. im gonna be honest i hate bosses with other enemies around them cause they always end up screwing me over 😭

[eyesofshan-if]

I doubt you'd tell us but what kind of drunks are the ROs...? ><

hansol

downright embarrassing, clingy drunk. spills every secret he knows, and even those he doesn't. no filter, very affectionate with touch, will bear hug everyone in sight to the point of suffocation. he is lucky he has not broken anyone's spine yet. his face gets red very easily, and his alcohol tolerance is second to none (from the bottom). either he remembers everything or remembers nothing.

insu

irritated but cute drunk, appears totally in control of his motor functions. gets annoyed at everything, starts ranting, has a full on debate with himself and then passes out. sometimes has flashes of inspiration and does ridiculous things like writing an entire dissertation criticising a civil policy or analysing the trade agreements between two countries. absolute madlad.

yongsun

happy drunk, smiles and laughs a lot, very willing to acquise to any request. becomes far too generous, and will casually attempt to give away entire jewels or empty the treasury. it's lucky that none of the servants dare to accept, but yongsun has quickly learnt that it puts them in a difficult spot to refuse, so he only drinks around certain people who can tell him to stfu

wooyoung

melancholic drunk. it's strange seeing him without his usual cheeky grin on his face, but there's always a certain look in his eyes after he's imbibed some alcohol, staring away into the distance and lost in memories. seeks out touch, but not effusively like hansol does, just quietly rests his head against your shoulder, and the two of you sit in silence together

dalhwa

almost never gets drunk, but if she does, she's a tired drunk. remains totally in command of all her functions, physical and mental, makes her way to her bedding and proceeds to knock out within seconds. if she drinks enough to take her out like that, she'll likely wake up with a raging headache in the morning

????

seductive drunk. if they know that you're interested in them or are in a romantic relationship, they'll keep coming too close, letting their fingers drag lightly across your bare skin, always a hint of playfulness in their eyes that makes you wonder if they're really drunk or not. if the two of you aren't yet in a relationship, they just flirt excessively

[witchofthesouls]

I'm giggling like a madlad because I'm picturing Nickel checking back on you since you stopped screaming in the medical supply closet and it's too quiet now.

She actually knocks before barging into it, just to see you passed out half on a folded down gurney and half on the stacks of powdered minerals and spare thermal sheets. Nickel just leaves you there after checking your systems and closing your panel because Tarn left you gaping, and you were hobbling like a cowboy of the Wild West at high noon on a speed run. That kind of rage you were projecting can easily dismiss any pain, but you're fine. Just going to be hellishly sore upon waking.

Now, Nickel needs to figure out what the Head of Idiot Sandwiches had done.