#whereas most of the stuff i play i work out from hearing it

[aromanticduck]

Tag your instrument(s) if you feel like it (voice counts if you want it to)

[vasito-de-leche]

I love how you write, your interpretations of characters are my favorite. If you're okay with it, may I ask for romantic headcanons of Horropedia (Reverse 1999) x Reader? I would love to know what he is like when he's developing a crush, how he confronts his feelings when he realized them, what he's like when in a romantic relationship, etc. Thank you very much!

;R1999 HORROPEDIA - Relationship Headcanons

Compilation of headcanons about Horropedia in a romantic relationship.

awe! i'm glad you like my stuff! and thank you for the lovely words and request, cause i've been itching to write for horropedia <3

i got a liiiiittle carried away with this one, hope that's alright!

Horropedia as a character is fascinating because at a surface level he's a mess and a walking stereotype - a "nerdy nerd" with a very specific hyperfixation on the horror genre, the tall guy with glasses who explains the plot and does his own thing regardless of how others view him, the first one to die in a movie solely because he's perceived as cringe etc, etc.

And yet, his medium is "logic" - he, better than anyone, understands the nonsensical laws that make up the concept of horror, he sees the patterns and the reason why some things are done this way instead of that way. Through logic, pattern recognition and analysis, Horropedia can pretty much understand anything and work his way around any problem, no matter how unorthodox his solutions may be.

In a sense, I'd compare Horropedia to Pavia. Both are characters who are subject to the stereotypes and images others assign to them - but whereas Pavia both fights and plays into all of these roles, Horropedia just brushes it off and continues doing his own thing, being genuine and unapologetically himself.

When it comes to romance, it's easy to assume Horropedia has no interest in it - they're two different genres that don't go together most of the time. It's also easy to assume that he would be a troublesome partner, due to the laser focus attention he gives to his interests. And the latter is partially true: his lackluster love life is entirely because romance hasn't entered his radar, at least not enough to pull his attention away from his one true love.

But I think this is where the aspect of "logic" comes into play. All Horropedia needs is that spark, to find something to truly become invested in when it comes to romance - once he finds it, he'll dedicate the same amount of attention to detail and care as the horror movies he loves so much.

On the subject of Horropedia developing a crush.

Similar to Click, Horropedia would need some time to start noticing the signs of a crush - the difference is that Horropedia is a little quicker when it comes to realizing he's fallen for someone. His forte is horror movies, but he still knows a thing or two when it comes to other genres.

When he cannot rationalize his behaviour around you in a way that makes sense to his current fixation or situation, that's when he knows. And given how straightforward (to the point of bordering on obliviously rude) Horropedia can be, I'd say he'd also be the type to address this crush right away. Now that there's this brand new thing in his life, he'd like to understand it better - to dissect and study the way romance is potrayed, explore how it feels and just analyze it to hell and back. Basically, he wants to know the rules, to figure out how to best proceed.

Of course, he wouldn't dream of confronting you directly, only an amateur would do such a thing. Instead, he asks his friends and pretty much anyone within his general vicinity. He wants to understand romance from every angle, to hear about it from all sorts of people until he feels like he knows enough to start forming his own opinions.

His questions are all theoretical situations that begin rather innocent, innocuous. What does the hero of a romcom do to get the romantic interest? Does it follow a three act structure? And should the third act climax start with a confession or the breakup?

Overtime, they become a little more specific. To the point where his closest friends might suspect something is up, until Horropedia finds himself asking about your interests so that he can figure out the perfect gift for you. Just in case. He finds himself watching romcoms and making extensive research and charts and essays into the genres.

The funniest thing to me is that Horropedia would be extremely casual about this whole ordeal, this crush makes him extremely intrigued in the concept of romance (an oddity for someone so themed around horror), he finds himself staring at you from across the room (this is the third time he's walked into a door because of it) and so on and so forth. But he's so chill about it.

When confronted about his crush - should Blonney or anyone else decide to tease him a little by prodding - Horropedia has no problem blurting out that he has, indeed, fallen for someone. But he'll take your name to the grave, not out of shame or embarrassment but because "he doesn't want to spoil the plot, as obvious as it might be".

On the subject of Horropedia confronting his feelings and some more insight into his mentality.

I'd say there is this small possibility of Horropedia feeling disheartened if he begins to neglect his real passion for the sake of his feelings - it's that sort of guilt and shock one gets when they realize they've forgotten their wallet the moment they're meant to pay for dinner, or when they realize they've forgotten to turn off the oven.

Horror is a huge part of his life and who he is as a person - literally look at the name he's chosen for himself - and given how heavily coded he is to be neurodivergent, I can understand this aspect of him. The feeling like one must choose between two things they enjoy, and all the other things that might come with hyperfixation, both positive and negative.

This is the biggest obstacle for Horropedia when it comes to finally taking the first steps into forming a relationship with you or confessing - the irrational thought that by doing so, he's prioritizing you and romance over horror, something that he holds very dear. One of his stories gives some insight about Horropedia's relationship with horror and how it's something he shared with (and possibly was started by) his grandfather.

I feel like he'll grow a little distant, as a way to set some boundaries for himself or draw a line between his identity and his feelings for you, separate the two so that he doesn't have to feel guilty for giving one more attention than the other. Maybe he simply stops bringing up films around you, because "you're probably not that interested anyway". Masking, he's masking.

But overall, I can see Horropedia being capable enough to get out of this mindset by himself - or with a little help from someone else. Either way, he simply loops back to realizing the obvious: you two were friends, before he realized his feelings for you. You were fine with the whole Horropedia Experience. You liked him for who he was. And he liked you just as you were.

Horropedia is the one who confesses first, the one who asks you out. 100%. And it's so unnecessarily dramatic.

I DO think that Horropedia would make sure to be the one who confesses, just so he can put everything that he's learned about romance into play. And he delivers the most award worthy performance. It would be all about redirection, an unexpected reveal - his skills and animations are also all about fake outs and misleading the audience, after all.

In my head, there's this whole scene about Horropedia asking everyone to help him out confess to you, and everyone is so excited for it - but then he just asks them to fuel this slow rift that formed between you and him, to act vague, distant and mysterious should you ask Blonney or Tooth Fairy about him. Again, unorthodox and weird, but he's cooking. This is all done with the intention of forcing a confrontation between the two of you, just so he can pour his heart out right there - it's all or nothing.

Again, I want to insist that Horropedia, despite being a logical man, still makes as many aspects of his life revolve around the things that he loves and is interested in - he likes films, he likes you. And while romance is not his preferred genre, he still wants to explore all there is about it all thanks to you.

That alone should tell you how much you mean to him. Even if his methods aren't the "proper" way, you know he's putting his whole heart into this. It's all over the top, there's fake rain, etc etc. Of course, your reaction to this is up to you!

If you're mad at him for such convoluted plan, he'll sit there and allow you to scold him to your heart's content - he's used to it as one of the many troublemakers that the Foundation failed to raise as model students. If you laugh at him because of how ridiculous this guy can be sometimes, he'll laugh along, trying to get you to tell him what he could've been done better to get a third act reconciliation. And if you start crying, jump into his arms and play along then he'll be over the moon, trying every single impactful one-liner from every romcom he's watched in the past few weeks.

On the subject of Horropedia and how he acts when he's in a relationship.

Dating Horropedia is pretty easy, because you're dating your best friend. However, it is very easy to misunderstand Horropedia's way of showing affection - those who are more on the insecure side or less receptive to his subtleties may feel like there's been absolutely no shift in the dynamic, that he's treating you the same way he'd treat Tooth Fairy or Vertin.

This is far from the truth! Once Horropedia finally settles into the relationship, he grows very comfortable and allows himself to just exist around you - which isn't saying much since he doesn't mask as much around friends, but it's all about the subtle things!

I like to think Horropedia is very particular about space, as in he makes a point not to invade people's spaces if possible and he'd rather remain in his little bubble. But when it comes to you, he's very casual with physical touch. He's not as cuddly and touchy as characters like, let's say, Matilda, Jessica or Pavia, but being able to rest his head on your shoulder means a lot to him, or just have you lean on him when sitting together. This is pushed to the limit when you two pull all-nighters, binging all of your favorite movies.

He's on cloud nine when you pay attention to his ramblings and makes sure to listen when you ramble to him as well. More than often, he'll do his own little research into the topics you like, just so you have someone to properly discuss things with! Horropedia more than anyone knows what it's like to be brushed aside for being too much or too weird, to have no one listen. Despite his confidence, he has had days of feeling like he keeps on talking to a wall, so he doesn't want you to ever feel like that.

It's all about sharing interests and recommending things that you may like, keeping up with the latest events and so on and so forth, having looong discussions at night about whatever topic you two are extremely invested in.

If these discussions get a little heated and end up as arguments, expect Horropedia to insist on arguing because he's just stubborn like that - it'll take him time to realize that he might've hurt your feelings, or that he might've be hurting too, but he'll come around eventually to talk it out.

Overall, dating Horropedia would be fun because he's full of surprises and excitement, but he's also considerate in his own way.

[shitposting-fox]

Just finished episode one of The Edge of Sleep and I have... Thoughts

I definitely see the disrespect given to Mark throughout everything. Christ

First things first, the good things. I really love the eeriness of seeing completely empty roads, quiet towns, and only one car on the road driving to the hospital

It plays into the "quiet town = something is wrong" as there's even a lack of animal noises (except the one good boy who was barking)

I love the way they portray the hallucinations- but ESPECIALLY the way Dave just works to try ignoring it and not freak out

As someone with hallucinations occasionally it. It really is how you feel and react when trying to be normal and ignore the shit you're seeing/hearing/etc

While it is dramatized the incorporation of how actual psychotics work to cope with hallucinations was very nice

Also, an AMAZING take on a different kind of apocalypse. Everyone dying for some unknown reason as soon as they fall asleep is such a cool concept

Mateo and both nurses are well played and I really am excited for the next episode

Now for the issues...

I'm sure y'all have already heard about how it is blatantly obvious they're trying to fuck Mark over, but it's even worse when you watch the credits

The whole time he's only credited as "Markiplier" not even his legal name! Whereas every other person has their full name listed

"Markiplier's stunt double" "Executive Director Markiplier" is it really so hard to put Mark Fishbach in the credits????

It's so clear they don't actually care about him, it's a fucking miracle we've actually managed to make it #9 in the US so far. They're fucking him over so bad he had to make an announcement video because they (likely intentionally) released it early

I don't even watch much of Mark's stuff anymore but this is ridiculous. Thank god the fandom has pulled together to make sure they're not fucking him over but it shouldn't have even been an issue in the first place

No ads, no promotion, intentionally releasing early in only one country when most people are at work, etc.

It's awful and I'm hoping that everything goes better from now on

[alecvolturiswifeforever]

dating jane volturi 𝜗𝜚 ׅ ۫ headcanons

warnings: fluff, angst (?), implied smut

⤻ she is extremely cold towards you at first.

⤻ she sends glares your way, makes snarky comments, makes an effort to avoid you unless it’s mandatory that she’s in the same room as you.

⤻ that is until her brother finally talks some sense into her.

-“sister isn’t this what you always wanted? that special bond with someone?” “i have that with you.” “that’s… not what i was talking about”

⤻ this would continue on for a few days until he finally says it upright to her.

- “she’ll leave you know.” “…” “if you keep it up she’ll leave and you know it.”

⤻ suddenly she’s not so avoidant anymore.

⤻ don’t get me wrong, she still makes snarky comments every so often but she doesn’t say them to hurt you… more to test you.

⤻ she wants to see how easy you’ll give up and leave… and when you don’t she is thoroughly surprised (and pleased, but she’ll never admit that to you)

⤻ she begins to seek you out and slowly (like VERY slowly) she’ll start to offer small sprouts of affection.

⤻ she’ll hold your hand occasionally, lean her head on your shoulder if you’re sat together, a small side hug. little stuff like that but you appreciate it nonetheless.

⤻ she is very dependent on validation (she seeks this in the kings the most, however now she seeks it a lot in you too)

⤻ once she is comfortable around you you see a new side of her. the side only reserved for her brother… and now you.

⤻ the first time you hear her giggle you were mesmerised, staring at her with parted lips.

⤻ you could only describe it to be angelic.

⤻ (if she could’ve blushed at the look you gave her she would have)

⤻ she knows that you can be doubtful of her feelings for you, typically after one of her meltdowns when she’d attempt to push you away or her stoicism towards you around others and so she’ll subtly show you she cares through little gestures when you are alone.

⤻ reading to you, little love notes left in places she knows you’ll find them, soft touches and kisses to your face. though she can’t physically bring herself to apologise you just seem to know.

-“i’m-… I- ” “I know, it’s okay…”

⤻ bdjsbdksnsjs this is so sappy i’m sorry 🥹🥹🥹🥹

⤻ she’s not as soft with you ( i believe alec would be the one to be more teasing with his mate, whereas jane is much more to the point and serious) but you get used to it.

⤻ she makes it known that no one is to mess with you, and if they do well yeah they’re dead.

⤻ tortured first but very much dead.

⤻ she takes great pride in protecting you. it gives her a purpose. but that doesn’t mean she doesn’t like to be coddled by you. she very much has those moments (who doesn’t?).

⤻ she’ll sigh in content as you play with her hair, whine when you pull away from holding her, giggle as you give her soft kisses (omg this is adorable i cant)

⤻ the first time she sought you out and asked you to cuddle (albeit very quietly) you were shocked.

- “are you okay, jane?” “i- can you- can you hold me please?” “of course, come here”

⤻ she likes that she has someone other than her brother to talk to about more… intimate things.

⤻ it’s like having a bestie and a significant other all in one (the best type of relationship).

⤻ intimacy is very, very important to her. it’s not just a “oh yeah let’s fuck and then i’ll go to work” type thing it’s much more meaningful to her.

⤻ she has to be held/holding you for a while after, just to remind her you are there and you’re not going anywhere.

⤻ overall, she is a cutie she just has some severe trust issues (but you can fix that☺️)

[aihoshiino]

Hi hello!! I adore your oshi no ko analyses and chapter reviews/thoughts! I always make it a point to, whenever a new manga chapter releases, always to read your reviews after reading the chapter =3=

I wanted to ask!

What are some of your Hoshino Ai headcanons?

I had a very silly one for quite a while ever since the DVDs were brought into the story and that is when Ai recorded them, there were times she had to stop what she was saying and walk out of frame after hearing baby Ruby crying or something like that. Just having the twins interrupt her and just turning into a wholesome, funny thing for Ai.

GOD I HAVE SO MANY AI HEADCANONS I DON'T EVEN KNOW WHERE TO START… I'm constantly playing Blobo TV with her in my brain both for RP/fanfic purposes and also just for when I'm bored at work lol so I have so many in my head… So I'll rapidfire a bunch off the top of my head!

Ai can't cook! Most of her meals are premade stuff or like, bentos bought from supermarkets, etc. She was never taught literally Anything about cooking when she was younger so she has zero instinct or starting knowledge or lbr even time to try and learn, but she commits to at least trying once Aqua and Ruby are born. She is absolutely not good at it even when she really gets her nose to the grindstone but eventually becomes passable. Ironically, she's actually better at baking then cooking, because baking recipes are WAY more precise and exact and she has an easier time when she has a set of Very Exact Step By Step Instructions to follow.

On a food note, she has really bad spice tolerance…!!! Anything hotter than like, the medium spicy Golden Curry range is so far out of her strike zone it isn't even funny. Ruby is the same (a hold over from eating mostly bland food as Sarina) but Aqua really likes spicy stuff and his tolerance is really good as a result. Unfortunately, he also doesn't really realize just how high his tolerance is - it was way worse as Gorou so he keeps underestimating how hot things are. So anytime Ai is like "hey Aqua how spicy is this" he's like "oh it's not too bad" and then Ai takes a bite and dies and it takes years before they manage to figure out the differences in their tolerance LOL

She's a little clumsy…! It's a side of her people rarely see because she's so graceful and careful as an idol, but the #1 way to tell she's comfortable with someone is that they're allowed to see her being a bit of a failgirl.

I mentioned this in another ask but I like to think she gets back into video games on her hiatus… not super deep, but she grabs a cheap secondhand GBA SP and one of those carts that's like 20 puzzle games in one or something and keeps playing it even after she goes off hiatus. Since she's so busy, it's easier for her to get into things like Tetris where your play sessions don't have to be that long and there's no story to follow… anything like an RPG would be no good. Eventually one year, Aqua and Ruby pool some money and get her a jailbroken DS or something for her birthday and even though she has a bajillion games on it, she mostly still just plays Tetris………..

She really wants to be a plant mom but her schedule means that she inevitably gets so busy she forgets to water them and they end up dying and she's depresso every time…

Appearance wise, between the twins, Aqua is actually the one who looks most like her - Ruby definitely does too but grows more into her own features as she grows up, whereas Aqua still really strongly resembles Ai even once he's all grown up.

She has a ton of those influencer ass hyperspecific trendy gadgets and appliances around the house, not because she buys them but because companies keep sending them to her in hopes of getting her to promote them and she never does LOL. If she actually gets a sponsorship deal through work then she'll do it, but even then it's mostly her just hyping something up and saying she uses it every single day when 90% of the time they just end up rotting at the bottom of her drawer. Pretty much the only thing she ends up regularly using is like, toiletries and hair care products and that's just because it saves her having to shop for them but she has absolutely zero brand loyalty.

As an adult, she copies a lot of her fashion sense from Miyako! Her style leans more girly and fresh than Miyako's does but Ai doesn't really care about clothes so she never developed a sense of fashion growing up. But she knows Miyako is a pretty stylish person and looks up to her as someone to emulate fashion from. Of course, when she's incognito or chilling at home, she still always prefers her comfy hoodies and sweaters and plain, loose clothes.

Ai likes Kana a lot! This was technically canonized in the Da Vinci interview and I felt so smug when I saw it lol. But I've always thought Ai would like Kana - she sort of vicariously enjoys her cheekiness and confidence and admires her drive and her passion and craft at such a young age. When Kana joins B-Komachi, Ai sort of recognises how much of her fire has gone out and its immediately like free daughter??? Free daughter for Hoshino Ai???? She and Mem also get along really well but because they're closer in age, the dynamic is more friendly coworkers whereas she and Kana have a more senpai/kouhai surrogate mom figure thing going on.

she's our strongest aqukana warrior btw

Aaaand finally… If Ai had ever found out about Aqua and Ruby's past lives, she would have loved and accepted them all the same. If anything, knowing just how terribly alone and starved of care they both were would have encouraged her to make sure they felt loved, safe and accepted as her kids. After all, Ai, too, is a "motherless child" as Tsukuyomi describes the twins - she'd absolutely understand.

[all-pacas]

I saw some of your posts saying how observant and clever Chase is,while also being a "dumb whore". I feel like this is the right place to say that I don't find his "ditzy slut" moments funny in isolation,without taking his cunning,calculating traits into account. If Chase is just a "himbo",it takes away the shock value(not to mention I've seen way funnier "simple dumbasses" than "isolated Chase moments"). On the other hand,a guy who can clearly think on his feet making terrible mistakes that could be avoided by a bit of common sense is a recipe for hilarious "wtf?" moments. Like,I've seen you deduce stuff with striking accuracy with minimal information,how did you come with such an inane conclusion? It's what they call "high intelligence,low wisdom".

Also,I saw a post of you saying Foreman is "book-smarter" than Chase,while the latter is more observant and a "people-person",besides having more "improvising" skills. This is certainly interesting,considering their backgrounds(Foreman was raised in the hood,had some involvement with gangs;whereas Chase was a rich brat with many opportunities. One would think their skillsets would be inverted,lol)

Even before I finished reading this comment, I was planning on making a "he's a high in/low wisdom," so thanks for making that joke for me, lol.

The thing is, Chase is legitimately very lazy. Or like. He works hard and he's very good at his job, but I think it's interesting that both his specialties are… obviously to be a doctor you have to be smart, but he has very hands on specialties. His job isn't to memorize and know everything about auto-immune diseases, his job is to be great at cutting people open and fixing them. Again, I am well aware surgeons and intensive care takes a lot of knowledge! But it's interesting to me, you know? He definitely comes off as less cerebral.

And he's deeply unambitious. He spends half the show in a fellowship, a training program, because he's more comfortable there. Cameron and Foreman have a subplot about writing articles; we never hear anything about Chase doing the same. House literally has to fire Chase to get him off the team. Where Foreman is always desperately trying to prove himself and be the best doctor in the room, and where Cameron is honestly also deeply competitive and demands respect, Chase… we joke about him being spineless, he is spineless, but also he never really seems to mind it. He doesn't care. He does not seem offended Foreman keeps getting put in charge, nor does he really want it for himself. He has the most seniority of the fellows, but never plays it up; he's fine where he is. And I think that's where his 'laziness' comes in. He just… doesn't try very hard. Very rich kid of him, tbh. He coasts whenever possible.

Meanwhile Foreman is a huge perfectionist, and has a huge inferiority complex. He is the first to tell everyone he had perfect grades (he tells Chase a time or two), went to top schools, has a perfect resume, because Foreman derives a lot of his self worth from being able to say that: if he's the best, no one can say he doesn't belong. I think it's because of his background that he's like this: he's a Black man from a Bad Neighborhood and has a Record and he's absolutely aware what that makes him in the eyes of others. He can't afford to be like Chase — Chase can get away with being lazy and unambitious because he's a rich, good looking, white guy (and foreign, at that — but the good kind of foreign, who speaks English as a first language and comes from a rich and successful family). If Foreman acted like Chase — like he didn't give a shit about his career, like he was just working for House for the hell of it — it would look different. It would feel different. Foreman is a perfectionist and has an inferiority complex because his whole life the world has told him he's not as good, he's doomed to "turn out" bad, he won't and can't amount to anything because of who he is. Cameron is assertive and ambitious and gets really touchy when people underestimate or overlook her, because she's sensitive and kind and weak (Foreman himself tells Cameron he thinks she needs to "toughen up"), and so she also constantly has to prove herself, and that she can be a Good Doctor And Leader while still being compassionate and soft. Again, Chase doesn't have to worry about any of this. He can be unambitious and easy-going about his career, because it doesn't really matter to him in the same way. He doesn't have to be the best student or get the best marks and have the best record. He has very little to prove.

And in a way, Chase is in the same kind of perception trap as the others. Not to suggest he has it soooo much worse than Foreman, but because he's a Rich Good Looking Dude, you kind of expect him to be a nepobaby. You kind of expect him to be useless and underqualified and shallow. To coast on his looks and to not have brains and have no idea how to manage in the Real World. It's definitely how Foreman sees Chase — he says as much, and lowkey hates him for it, and fair enough — but again what's interesting to me is where it isn't quite true. Chase is brilliant, when he cares enough to try. His apathy is learned, not born from an easy life; he comes off as cool and easy-going but holds grudges and resentments and trauma about two inches down. He's afraid of rejection and trying and failing, and so stays in his comfort zones. But where Foreman spends all his time and energy trying to prove the entire world wrong, to fight every automatic perception of who he is as a person, Chase leans in to his own facade. I actually think that S8 Foreman is a pretty happy person. I think S8 Chase, Chase MD in House's office, is at least 70% miserable.

[bengiyo]

La Pluie Deserves a Standing Ovation

I hope y’all didn’t think I’d forgotten about this show after the finale. I was just traveling and have been too busy to write this final review.

La Pluie has been one of the most enjoyable experiences I’ve had as a viewer of TV ever. This show told us exactly what it was from the very opening scenes, and then spent the entire show paying that off. This show opened with an explanation about soulmates, and then immediately countered that with Tai’s parents’ divorce, the note that the pairing of people is ultra-rare, and a happy couple that wasn’t a soulmate pair in a café. Throughout the show it repeatedly stressed that love is about how we treat each other and not something you win via a lottery. It’s so rare these days that we get a show that trusts their audience this much to follow the thread and think about the big ideas along the way.

Doubt and Faith in Acts

One of my favorite things I observed in the show is that only Patts and Tien consistently make the kinds of choices that lead to long-term love without getting their asses handed to them. @shortpplfedup observed during her catch up that this story featured four different kinds of believers: an apostate, an agnostic, a believer, and an atheist. It’s notable that the apostate (Tai) and the atheist (Lomfon) are the ones causing the most harm to other people in the way they treat others.

Throughout the show, both Tai and Lomfon keep making standoffish choices. Tai has cut off his mom and avoids his coworkers. Lomfon is rude and standoffish. Neither of them is able to hold on to their loves because they are incapable of letting go of their own bullshit.

Conversely, Tien goes out of his way to take care of his brother, his family, and eventually Lomfon. I actually liked that Tai and Lomfon had to make opposite choices in the finale. Lomfon needed to show in his actions that he was serious about Tien, whereas Tai needed to show in his words that he was actually listening to what Patts had been asking for.

For Patts, he doesn’t believe that he and Saengtai are meant to be together because they’re connected by the rain. He does the work of caring for Tai because he is kind. He loves Tai because he’s Tai and not because he’s his soulmate. Patts stays present for Tai. He respects his boundaries. He tries to help Tai deal with his problems. He trusts him.

The Ambiguity

As a lapsed Catholic, I gotta say that I really love the way this show ended without fixing all of the soulmate stuff and giving concrete answers. I like that the show holds firm to its conviction that love is not ordained by the narrative; it is something built by people doing the work to be together. I love how this show challenged the notion of the narrative itself mandating the characters be together and instead reminded them (and us) to be present for our loved ones and to listen to their needs.

I think this show would have been weaker if Tai and Patts had restored their rain connection at the end. Besides, I think it gives them room to play with that idea if they get a second season. I also liked that Tien started hearing someone at the end of the season. He is a believer in soulmates, and I think it’ll be interesting to see someone as earnest as him face that challenge.

Releasing the Tension

Before I get to wrapping up, I want to reiterate again that this show has two plot-relevant blowjobs in it. So often these shows tease us and then don’t release the tension. Worse, when they do release the tension it doesn’t always feel like it’s something the characters lean into with their new dynamic.

After episode 5 ended, @ginnymoonbeam teased me for having a moment of panic that maybe I was misreading the show and that somehow Patts wasn’t into Saengtai because of how often I’ve been tricked or teased. Instead, these two end up making out on the floor and Patts was going to blow that man. Then, we don’t cut away from them. We watch them talk about what happened and why Tai is holding back.

Going further, they let Patts and Tai find peace and closure with Nara. Moreover, they treat Nara’s heartbreak seriously. She isn’t ejected from the group, and is allowed to be disappointed and sad about the loss. At the end of the show, they also confirm our suspicions about her and Dream.

It’s just incredible to have watched a show that didn’t rely on teasing us and instead treated the sex and intimacy seriously.

Thank You To Everyone Who Watched La Pluie

I cannot overstate how much joy I got from watching this show along with all of you. When @lurkingshan and I began writing earnestly around episode 4 in the hopes that more people would join us on this show, I did not expect so many of you to actually give it a try.

I think, if you have held off on watching this show because you’ve been waiting for confirmation about one plot point or another, just watch it if you’re still on the fence. When you do watch it, try to let go of what you think is supposed to happen or what you want to happen, and instead respond to what the show is giving you. This has been the most legible show at this caliber I’ve experienced since I Told Sunset About You (2020).

At no point did this show try to trick us about anything, and it trusts us to keep up and engage. This show is better when you lean in. It’s better when you discuss it with others. For a show so much about questioning belief, it is amazing how much this show rewards you for believing in it. I don’t know a better show this year.

I have a lot of folks I want to acknowledge here at the end, including but not limited to:

I want to thank @wanderlust-in-my-soul, @pharawee, and @liyazaki for letting me use their gifs in my posts.

I want to thank @lurkingshan and @ginnymoonbeam for being first through the door with me and committing to getting more folks to watch this show.

I want to thank @respectthepetty and @absolutebl for regularly sticking it out for shows and giving them an earnest watch through their lenses.

I want thank everyone else who contributed incredibly thoughtful writing to this experience, including @shortpplfedup, @syrena-del-mar, @neuroticbookworm, @wen-kexing-apologist, @chickenstrangers, @recentadultburnout, @williamrikers, @heretherebedork, @shouldiusemyname, @sunshinechay, @fadelikeclouds, @slayerkitty, @chinzhilla, @indigostarfire, @iguessitsjustme and @rocketturtle4

See you all in the next show!

[marimayscarlett]

This is a FREE pass to deep dive into ANY of your favorite thing(s) about Mr. Zee Kay!!! I wanna hear EVERYTHING about your favorite thing, I love seeing your deep dives and essays on the most important subject to exist ❤️

❗ CAUTION. LONG-ISH POST AHEAD. ❗

Hi! First of all:

Kissies for you for sending me this ask, thank you so much! This has been sitting in my inbox for a while now since it took me ages to decide what this post should be about. I didn't want to make yet another fashion/stage outfit/etc post, so I decided to do something different with it.

I decided this will be a long ass post about Richard's outspokenness and honesty in interviews and some of my favourite quotes/topics he spoke about in the past. This man has A LOT to say and sometimes is brutally honest with his answers. You ask him how he's doing or what he thinks about XYZ? Prepare for a lengthy and detailed reply. You ask him something silly or boring? Be prepared he quite actually reacts quite directly on it.

This list will be sorted by three topics: 1. Quotes regarding work with Rammstein, Emigrate and in general, 2. Quotes about his personal life and finally, 3. Unhinged shit Richard says since this man sometimes has no filter.

All interviews will be linked, german quotes are translated into english. Prepare yourself, this will be long and self-indulgend and I'm probably the only person who's really interested in this stuff but i don't CARE, I love reading about and listening to this man and I'll use this post to my liking thanks to this lovely, lovely anon 💞 Let's get started 👀🤍

Richard on working with Rammstein and Emigrate and music in general

In this interview, Richard talks about being put into the right wing corner by the german media and how hard it is for him and the band: "You want to shout it out loud and convince people otherwise, only to find that nobody listens because nobody wants to know. They want you in this corner. That was very disillusioning."

Here he gives an example for his immeasurable perfectionism and how he tries to protect himself from it: "I spent a lot of time recording guitars over and over again. I ended up giving my guitar engineer the key to the locker where my guitar cabinets are and told him “Do not give me this key back”,  otherwise I would have still been in there recording guitars right now.

In the same interview, he also gives an example how the whole Mutter problem came into play: "So if I’d come up with 45 ideas, then others in the band may feel they’d have to come up with 45 ideas as well. There was lot of pressure going on within Rammstein because of that."

Here Richard talks about how he, back in the GDR days, wandered from peer group to peer group to find his style: "I've always been bored of sticking with just one group of people. The metalheads got drunk too often. So I moved on - and I found that refreshing - to the punks …" Interviewer: … who didn't drink any less. "No, exactly. And they were also dirtier (laughs). Then I was with the bluesmen, and they always went to these blues fairs. And because they also drank a lot, they could sleep well, whereas I, who didn't drink, always woke up at three in the morning because I was so cold - we only had these thin cotton sleeping bags."

Richard on the amount of hours which go in one song of his [interview]: "At some point, I calculated that it takes me about 1000 hours on average for a song to reach the listener. But I don't want to think too much about the time involved. That would just be frustrating."

On his relationship with Flake and that he would be the one member of the band Richard would play an Emigrate album as a test run to [interview]: "Although someone like Flake would probably be very open to that. We have a lot of respect for each other and are in a lively exchange. For example, I regularly listen to his radio show - and call him afterwards to ask him what weird stuff he's been saying. (laughs)"

2. Richard on his personal life

In my alltime favourite podcast with Richard, he admist to seemingly being a quite difficult person to live with (apparently, only his daughter is able to and is relaxed enough to bring him inner peace). He hates talking in the morning, needs time for himself with no talking and reflect on things and sometimes is afraid/annoyed that he has to explain himself to others (since other people tend to take offense because of this). This is one of the reasons why he definitely can't imagine living together with a girlfriend again.

Here he talks about the evolution of friendship with Till: Intervier: How has your friendship changed over more than 30 years? Richard: "Well, as it goes in life: Unfortunately, there's never a happy ending. You should only meet friends once or twice a month. It's unnatural for men to be extremely close for decades. At some point you want to be left alone." Interviewer: You two are more like colleagues these days? Richard: "Sounds stupid, but that's kind of how it is. But I still have a basic trust: If anything happens, I know I can call Till and he'll be there, just like the others."

Here Richard admits to his immense moodiness at times: "I am a very moody person, my mood sometimes changes by the hour."

Why he likes western movies so much [interview]: "It might sound strange, but I have really early childhood memories of my father watching these cowboy movies and falling asleep… that ended up being part of my upbringing somehow."

And his fond memory of the wild times with Till after the wall came down [interview]: "Because at that time, in every house there was a techno or rave party, and we would go there, and 7 in the morning, he would bring his daughter to school, and then come back and we would stay there into the daytime, and dance to these electric beats — I mean, can you imagine us dancing like that?"

How he answers to a fan question in which movie/show he'd like to be a part of (musically or in general) [article]: "I would have loved to have been in Game of Thrones. I really love fantasy worlds, you know? Also Westworld."

3. Welcome to the unhinged RZK corner aka "Shit RZK says":

In this interview, he describes his relationship with music like this: "I believe the music itself must be the king, but I want to be the queen." Alrighty then 👀

Just overall this conversation with him thinking about filming himself having sex [interview]:

The Gauntlet: Do you always have that funny smile during sex? [regarding the Pussy MV]

Richard: "I actually never watched myself but you have a point. I really should watch myself or videotape it. I never really...I can do it. I did that a long time ago but every girl is different. Do I really smile? Sometimes I guess, I will have to check that out. You really have me thinking on that one."

This man seemingly tried every therapy under the sun, which is good, but this one left me a bit speechless [interview]: "I always had the feeling that I was a king without a nation. That was always in my head and I once did reincarnation therapy and experienced this life. It was really interesting and this song came out of that [song: Born on my own].

Here he admits to throwing a guitar at Lemmy Kilmister: "It was the third time a roadie had given me an out-of-tune guitar. So I threw it at him. Unfortunately, Lemmy was standing there watching the show from the side of the stage. But I didn't know that, I just saw Lemmy disappear. That was very embarrassing for me."

Or he throws his credits cards at sales women (how about some anger management my guy): "The last time I was there [New York], I wanted to pay for a coffee in a café with a hundred dollar bill. But not because I wanted to be a big shot, but because I just had this one bill in my pocket. The sales woman hissed at me and threw the bill back over the counter. I just thought: She's out of her mind. I then threw my credit card at her. I was really angry."

If you made it to the end of this post, I really applaud you and apologize for my rambling yet again 🙏 I could go on and on (I didn't even started with quoting the video interviews), but I think since I'm the only one who's into this, I stop right here 😅 Have some smiley Richard as a reward 🍀

[allthatmay]

(about the smoker/ace ask) i see the same in their dynamic !! theyre both very passionate, stubborn people. whereas shanks is the ~suave guy who knows how to play ace, smokers the typa to add fuel to fire in an argument (whether he means it or not). i can easily see them ignoring the other other for weeks and then angrily hate fucking when they stumble against each other at a random place.

lots of miscommunication and lack of trust are guaranteed (more on the ace side with his self–esteem and roger issues, methinks); its the type of relationship where both make mistakes even when they genuinely want it to work. again, theyre on the same side of the coin personality wise, so things end up pretty heated without someone to balance it out. great for one night stands, not so good when these stands end piled up into something more intimate.

theres also the secret relationship thing, with one being a pirate and the other a marine ... (it has been quite the open secret for a while now, but no one really talks about it cause of the garp factor). on the side, theres almost everyone furiously recommending each of them to give up already (“that kids not good for you, smoker, just look how he has you...” “i get that you love him, ace, but the guy ain't worth all your tears”).

this has ended in more of a ramble than i had expected, and i also added some of my own hcs ... apologies for that !!

Hahaha, I read this whole thing while nodding, like, "This person gets it!! We're on the same level!!"

Yes, Shanks can work with and around Ace's insecurities and proclivities, whereas Smoker would butt heads with him. There'd definitely be a lot of hate fucking, like you say! (But we love a good hate fuck.) I totally agree that they'd be making mistakes even when they want things to work; that they'd make more mistakes trying to fix the last. There would definitely be moments of intimacy and tenderness, but ultimately, things would be hard for them. And that's certainly in part because of the secret relationship stuff!

That aspect of their relationship is what I enjoy most about it, probably. "Forbidden love" is always enjoyable. I also like the idea that their friends would be trying to convince them to give the relationship up. You just know Tashigi and Thatch would be leading the charge on their respective sides. Thatch would use food to his advantage; Tashigi would just be insufferable. Maybe she'd buy Smoker a real nice set of cigars before sitting him down for a chat.

I think their relationship would culminate in a battle—a draw, obviously. And they'd break up right there, on the floor, tired and fucking defeated. The bad end. (But we like those too, sometimes.)

In general, I think toxic relationships can be super fun to explore in fanfiction. Just because a relationship is bad for you in the long run doesn't mean there isn't still value to be found in it (and the lessons you learn from it). Smoker and Ace are a prime example, in my eyes.

Thanks for your thoughts! Loved hearing them! Very much agreed.

[the-s1lly-corner]

Splendorman headcannons; catchup edition

General hcs plus some of the prompts that I did for multiple characters!! Idk how this is gonna look but we'll see (I tend to write these notes before writing the actual... post..) so!! Yeah!! I've been meaning to expand the base list of characters I do for hc posts; esp since it's so small and I dont feel comfy writing romantic stuff for a lot of the popular characters in this fandom <\3

Anyways! I'll have this split off into like. Segments. One for basic hcs, and different areas for prompts I did in the past (ex. Pet names, plushie stuff, ect!!)

This is gonna be a looooong post

General hcs;

To be fair, I'm still fleshing out how I want to interpret Splendor, and how I want to write him into my au

Obviously he's going to be related to Slenderman; as well as Trenderman (whether or not I add trender to this blog isnt decided yet, since I feel like not many people would be interested)

Most days he couldn't hurt a fly even if he wanted to.. however on the off chance he does need to fight/defend himself; he will

He can be just as, if not more, devasting than his brother

"The devil shivers when a nice guy loses his temper" except its splendorman and he actually is a nice person with a rare but hot temper

Usually his ugly side doesn't show itself unless someone tries to hurt those who are innocent

Perfect segway into the concept idea I have for him in general/in the au; but I like to think of him as a guardian

Now I may be getting silly, since he reminds me a bit of itward from fran bow; but I wanna use itwards whole imaginary friend/whimsical being as a basis for splendor

Also this is propaganda for fran bow; go play it, it's a nice game and it's been a hyperfixiation of mine since it released

Carrying on

But for splendor, rather than solely appearing to children, he appears to all

Bros like an anti dementor; adds life into a room

Actually he's kinda like scp 999

Guys can you tell my minds all scattered with vague ideas

Anyways

Similar height to slenderman; about 11-12 feet by default but he can also shift his height around for intimidation/convenience

Going with the hc that he has bells on his tentacles; you can hear him walking around/j

Said bells are also semi sentient; they still bend to his will most the time but sometimes they can snip at people... lil bites n stuff; like you know how bells usually have those lil.. gaps? In them? Idk what they're called but the X shaped things on them; that's the "mouth" for each bell

Actually unlike slenderman, you can actually see splendorman walk around, whereas slenderman just. You blink and he's moved.

Gives the absolute best hugs; also does the thing LJ does, and snakes his arms all up around you

Adding onto the idea that splendor is basically itward/scp 999, he basically shows up for people who need company, or need their spirits raised

Torn between giving him an actual face, or making it a blank face line slenderman where the smiley face is just markings; if he does have a face I'm also torn on whether to give him a perma smile or not

Idk

I like both ideas

Has clown/magician logic. Can pull next to anything out of his hat and/or suit sleeves/pockets

Reaction to s/o having plushies;

Doesnt mind it one bit!

In a way he finds it cute, and endearing!

Would never ever make fun of you for it; in fact he wouldn't make fun of you ever

Seemingly manifests plushies and accessories and all that for you

Does one have a stain or tear? Hes already working on fixing it!

Makes you handmade plushies as well; they have that charm to them, some having mismatched fabric patches, button eyes, ect

Yes he WILL smooch each of them if you ask him to, even if you ask as a joke

AND he will tuck them in!!!!!!

What he calls you/wants to be called;

He calls you: sweetheart, sunshine, my dear, sunflower, schnookums and similar dumb lil names! I feel like those would be more teasing/joking

He wants to be called: he has no preference, as long as the term is endearing and meant for him, hes happy

Downtime;

Off days with Splendorman usually are filled with fun and activities

If you want to spend time outside, he will pull something together. Gardening, picnics, stuff like that! Unfortunately, since hes still considered... a monster, he needs to remain out of sight, so walking out in broad daylight is a no go for him, unless the area is isolated - so that does make things a little limited in terms of time and location :(

But if you want to spend time indoors, he's more than happy to stay!

Baking, arts and crafts, ect ect! If it's something fun that at least two people can do together, its an option!

I feel like he would have lots of fun reenacting things with you; like dramatic retellings of your favorite books or movies or whatever

He gives a passionate performance

Ideal Partner;

Like most the other characters in the other post I made on thing, he doesn't have many preferences when it comes to partners: both in regards to personality and looks

Looks really mean nothing to him, you could be tall or short, fat or skinny or buff, guy or gal or anything else, and he wouldn't care so long as you're you

Personality? As long as you aren't a bully or otherwise cruel, he can love you with his whole being

That's really it, Splendorman isn't very picky

Just don't be a jerk and you're set

Though he will be thrilled if you share the same energy as him; though it's not required

Perfect date;

I covered a lot of things in the downtime section, so this spot isn't going to be too long, as to avoid me just repeating the same thing reworded

But this dude has a list of ideas as long as he is tall; he is not picky!

He doesn't really have a "perfect" or "ideal" date, as he's down for anything and everything

Well almost

Anything that puts ANYONE in danger in an immediate and hard no, same goes for if it puts anyone in emotional or physical distress

Otherwise anything else is possible! He's free to let you pick and take the lead; however he'll hardly mask his excitement if you tease the idea of doing something he very much enjoys/wants to do

It's kinda like watching a dog get excited after mentioning a treat or a walk

Romantic hcs;

Writing this first before I have the chance to forget: but when hes about to leave, he'll kiss you.... and when he turns around to leave, he'll let the lil bell monster things on his tentacles kiss you all over the face as a extra bit of affection

Now onto how I wanted this segment to start

S tier partner, out of the (creepypasta) characters that I have written for thus far, at least in my opinion

Great listener and willing to give advice, amazing comforter, and generally adds an air of excitement to life while also keeping things stable

Moving on

He gives the best hugs, as mentioned in the segment above, his can snake his arms around you in a similar fashion that LJ does

Speaking of that segment, depending on how you see his face working kisses can go multiple ways

If he does have a face, kisses go as expected; but if he has a perma smile it can get awkward since his face is constantly pulled into that large grin

But if its the "the smiley face is a group of markings" route, he can't really... kiss you.. at least not in the traditional sense

He'd approach it the same way slenderman does and imitates the act by gently nuzzling/knocking his lower face against you

He loves quick little pecks; on the cheek, forehead, and mouth, nose, loves it all

Always gives you flowers; usually defaults to sunflowers and daisies but if you have any particular favorites he'll provide it

Likes using that hat trick of his to present gifts

Just

Takes off his hat, puts his hand in it, and BOOM ! He pulls out a bouquet of flowers for you

If you get sick he'll be a mother hen and fret over you; won't back off until you're back at full health, and even then he'll hover over you for a few days afterwards just in case

He always let's you know how much he loves you; he'll remind you at least once a day

[unholyverse]

waterparks // alternative press spring 2023

(full article text under the cut:)

TO THE MOON

With their new album INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY, WATERPARKS are diving deeper than ever before. The result is an exorcism of deep trauma and the sweet afterglow of catharsis.

STORY: Alessandro DeCaro • PHOTOS: Jawn Rocha • Styling: Josh Madden

Between international flights, jet lag and no days off in between, it is a miracle that Awsten Knight isn’t face down in a pile of pillows. For the past two weeks, Knight and his band Waterparks have been head down in a run of massive shows throughout the U.K. supporting British rockers You Me At Six as well as a series of intimate appearances at record stores with some of the band’s most die-hard fans. It was a landmark run for a group who have hit the road relentlessly the past year-and-a-half, with sold-out North American and European headlining tours, a top slot at the 2022 Sad Summer Festival and even a “bucket list” opening slot for My Chemical Romance. Their latest milestone? They played to 10,000 people — their largest show in the U.K. region — at London’s historic Alexandra Palace. Exhaustion should be Knight's baseline, but instead, he's as chipper as ever when he hops on Zoom back home in Los Angeles. There's only one problem. The bandleader has been on vocal rest for days leading up to this very interview.

“Dude, my voice feels so shot,” Knight confesses from his living room couch. “We did 12 performances back to back, then combined with really short cut-up sleep on the flight, 1 just feel, ugh.” Sleep deprivation aside, Knight is almost at a loss for words (not from the vocal rest) but because the experimental pop trio he formed 12 years ago have unlocked another level of fandom where new listeners are still flocking by the droves. “It turns out there are a lot of people [in this world].” Knight quips, referring to his newfound fans. But in reality, global domination doesn’t really seem too far off.

Knight barely has time to slow down. The band are set to release their fifth studio album, INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY (out April 14 via Fueled By Ramen). But the self-professed workaholic has never known any other way. “It's a really hard mentality to shake,” Knight reveals. “When we were a local band, we didn't have any family connections in the music industry, and no one cared, so you had to take on every role. Even though we are not local anymore and get to play arenas with our favorite bands, if I'm not actively doing stuff to push the music, then I don’t know if anyone else will."

In some ways, Knight fears downtime or stillness because that's when he feels like his brain will start to turn on him. He admittedly functions better when he's working on something creative, whether that’s writing a new song or simply designing streetwear for his clothing brand hii-def. “It's not necessarily the most healthy thing in the long run, but people have worse coping mechanisms,” he laughs nervously.

But Waterparks remain his main focus. The trio, which initially formed in 2011, began to truly put the pieces together the following year when Knight enlisted his now-best friends, guitarist Geoff Wigington and drummer Otto Wood, to round out the lineup. “Otto loved classic rock and bands like La Dispute and Touché Amoré, whereas Geoff was all about EDM," Knight recalls. “We all had different tastes, but at the core of it, it's guitar and drums.” Their individual musical backgrounds helped craft the genre-less sound they have now cultivated.

"THE BIGGEST REASON I didn’t want that pop-punk label is that I know exactly what we are capable of." - AWSTEN KNIGHT

It wasn't until 2016 when Waterparks finally released their debut album, Double Dare — an intentional choice. “I always felt like if no one was looking at us, why put out a large body of work? I wanted to do cool shit as opposed to oversaturating and waiting until enough people [actually] wanted to hear it.” There is a common adage that you have your entire life to write your first record and six months to write your second, to which Knight agrees, and from there, the band began making records like clockwork.

With those albums came carefully curated eras — a moment in time with a clear aesthetic, theme and overall mission statement. While always writing music from a subversive and experimental perspective, it was when the band released both FANDOM (2019) and Greatest Hits (2021) that they began to stray from the confinement of genre and inaccurate labels. Knight himself spoke out vehemently about being boxed in by the term “pop punk. “I learned [during that time that] you can’t control everybody, and you can only frame the narrative so much,” Knight explains. “Obviously, we grew up loving and still loving blink-182, Green Day, Sum 41 and Good Charlotte, so it’s in our DNA to a degree, but I just don't want that label because it’s so synonymous with the past and what cynical dickheads or mega naysayers say is just for preteens and kids. However, the biggest reason I didn’t want that label is that I know [exactly] what we are capable of and what our output is.”

Take, for example, the breakbeat madness of the FANDOM single “Turbulent” or the distorted experimentation of “Numb” from Greatest Hits. Nothing is off the table for Waterparks. The group join a cohort of other trailblazing acts like Bring Me the Horizon and Paramore, who both successfully pivoted away from the late Warped Tour circuit in favor of mainstream appeal without losing any substance. “There's a song for everybody, and I once tweeted that anyone who doesn't like Waterparks just doesn't like Waterparks yet,” Knight says confidently.

If you have yet to be on board with the band's music, you've at the very least been entertained by — or seen — Knight's fiery social media presence.

It's undeniable that Waterparks’ meteoric rise has stemmed from the bandleader’s unofficial side hustle as a social media celebrity. And at times, his online presence can feel truly monolithic in scale, something Knight has attempted to analyze over the years in many songs, including the aptly titled “You'd Be Paranoid Too (If Everyone Was Out To Get You)" When asked if his status as an extremely online figure has influenced the band’s latest album, INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY, Knight isn't entirely sure but reveals that he has had to set boundaries nonetheless, as someone who's regularly met with constant praise and vicious internet trolls. “I try not to let it influence things too much [lately], and with therapy, I've learned that you can only control yourself. However, that doesn’t mean I'm not still vulnerable in the music that I write.”

He tackles the subject on INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY with closer "A NIGHT OUT ON EARTH" and parts of the song “RITUAL,” where he recalls when he felt things were “caving in" around him due to the pressures of constant attention. “There are people who listen to Waterparks who aren't on Twitter. and then there are those who view the band in this bubble where it's just them and the people who reply to the tweets,” Knight resigns.

But beyond the topic of social media, Knight gets admittedly “introspective” on the record. When asked to discuss the overall lyrical themes and concepts behind INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY, he takes a deep breath and delivers a warning: Things might get a little turbulent.

“There is a love story throughout the record that is expressive to and for other people, but the album itself has to do with overcoming, unlearning and growing past religious guilt,” Knight explains. “It's something that I've struggled with for a long time.” On “FUNERAL GREY," he delivers the punchy line “baptized in my spit,” which is a playful twist on a weighted subject. The theme of religious guilt doesn’t just apply to the overall lyrics of the record but also extends to the album's striking cover art, which at first glance appears to be an image of a blue frog over a red backdrop; in actuality, it possesses a much more poignant meaning.

“Frogs have always been one of my favorite animals,” Knight reflects. “However, when I learned that frogs were seen as dirty and unclean in a biblical context, it was interesting to me that something that I saw as so good, natural and beautiful could also be seen as a bad thing through a biblical lens.” In other words, the concept of shame plagued the charismatic bandleader for as long as he can remember, and INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY was the moment for Knight to finally face his trauma head-on and “come to terms with himself” once and for all. That explains why a majority of the new songs possess “hypersexualized” energy — a conscious rebellion against a conservative past. “Growing up in church, you're taught that everything is so wrong and bad. I always felt like shit, so [this album] is the breakaway from that specifically.”

By overcoming his religious guilt, Knight was able to tap into an evolved sense of self-worth that he’s since applied to his very own love life, which he details on the album's stripped-down ballad “CLOSER.” “My concept of love has changed throughout the years, and that song is about [looking at the past] and realizing that when I was younger, it was maybe more of an obsession. Now I'm taking it apart and learning more about love and the way I present the current version of myself to other people.” Inversely, there is the alt-radio-ready anthem “BRAINWASHED,” where Knight admits that he still wrestles with the idea of true love, constantly making sure that he’s not just wrapped up in the “honeymoon phase.” Knight jokes that this track and “FUCK ABOUT IT” which features a guest vocal spot from blackbear, are “polar opposites,” as the latter couldn't be further from the “hyperfixation” he details in “BRAINWASHED.," once again proving that he feels the most comfortable when inserting juxtaposition wherever he can.

"I've learned that you can ONLY CONTROL YOURSELF. However, that doesn’t mean I'm not still vulnerable in the music that I write." - AWSTEN KNIGHT

Beyond the emotional clarity that Knight gained during the creation of INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY, it's the album's sonic risks and exploration that he is the most fired up about. Though Knight wanted the band to return to their more guitar-driven and organic roots for certain parts of the LP, much of the record ventures into eclectic territory, with hyperpop, trap, synthwave and even subtle elements of hard rock and nu metal. “RITUAL, ‘A NIGHT OUT ON EARTH, ‘REAL SUPER DARK’ and ‘ST*RFUCKER' are the craziest instrumentals we have done ever,” Knight exclaims. “I love the idea of taking something like a guitar or my voice and making it sound entirely like something else” “A NIGHT OUT ON EARTH,” however, is what Knight describes as “the biggest production flex,” and it most definitely shows. “There's fucking elephant sounds in there and weird Batman villain-sounding horns — it's evil and heavy, and not to mention, the outro is just game over,” he says.

Beyond production, Knight pushes his voice and stretches the idea of what constitutes a strong hook on INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY. With “END OF THE WATER (FEEL),” Knight is at his most “bombastic,” in a “cartoon-like” state, weaving falsetto melodies that are meant to shock. “I always make a mental note when I hear a song that makes me go…" He pauses, imitating an explosion. “For me, that's when I hear some high-ass vocals that I'm not expecting.” Even on the first day of demoing “END OF THE WATER (FEEL)” in his home studio, Knight was already so confident in the song that he called longtime producer and collaborator Zakk Cervini and “essentially” forced him to come over to his house right then to help finish it. “I also want the record to show that I had a mustache [during this time], too,” Knight laughs.

With collaboration on the brain, Knight is the first to admit that for many years, he was precious about his art and was hesitant to work with others. However, during the COVID-19 pandemic and quarantine, Knight changed his mind, which was evident on Waterparks’ previous album, Greatest Hits. This time around, Knight, who's an outspoken fan of the U.K. boy band One Direction, finally got a chance to live out one of his dreams by working with esteemed songwriter Julian Bunetta, who co-wrote beloved One Direction classics like “Olivia,” “Infinity” and “Best Song Ever,” among others. “I flew to [Julian's] place in Nashville, and we ended up making five songs together, two of them being ‘FUNERAL GREY" and ‘BRAINWASHED,” Knight recalls. And while he still plans to keep the majority of his music close to his chest long term, he won't rule anything out. Knight would undoubtedly jump at the chance to work with everyone from Post Malone and Damon Albarn to Donald Glover and Toby Keith.

"I'd rather make the coolest f*cking thing, RATHER THAN HOLD BACK and make something that wasn't that good." -AWSTEN KNIGHT

Now, with the band's new LP incoming, there raises the question: Does Knight feel a sense of relief after both exorcising his deepest traumas and inviting listeners on his journey to self- discovery? "I still feel pressure with it," Knight concedes. “It would be a lot easier if only strangers heard this, but everyone in my whole fucking life is going to hear this album, so that's what makes it strange." But he's never let any awkwardness or controversy hinder the artistic output. "I wasn't not in trouble when I put out a song like [2018's] 'TANTRUM' where I listed a bunch of dudes I wanted to kill, calling out by name," Knight acknowledges. Though his lyrical choices have sometimes resulted in strong reactions, even within his close circle of friends, Knight can't help but accept that he is meant to be unapologetic. "At the end of the day, I'd rather make the coolest fucking thing, rather than hold back and make something that wasn't that good."

Pressures of lyrical vulnerability and transparency aside, INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY is Knight's attempt to "normalize” the catharsis he finds within songwriting, which ties into the album title itself. "Intellectual property is the mental space you give to something in your head. The 'property' may be the thing that you are struggling with. By materializing it and giving it its own world, it's actually a great way to express it and then, eventually, expel it,” he explains. "I want this album to go to the fucking moon." ALT

[supermarine-silvally]

ooooh wanna see Ace, Sabo, Luffy and Yara as kids xD

An ASL + Yara AU just for you, anon! one day I'll work up the motivation to draw it but my drawing inspiration has been virtually nonexistent as of late

Enjoy these headcanons~

So in this AU, Mihawk left Yara in Windmill Village because it was somewhere Shanks recommended would be safe enough for her. He gives her to a foster family to raise while he's away, but he doesn't cut off all contact with her like he does in Yara's canon story. Therefore, Yara has a happier upbringing than she does normally, with foster parents who love her, but she still resents Mihawk for his extremely minimal parenting. Whenever he comes back to visit, he teaches her some swordplay (but to be honest, she probably learned more from Shanks than she did Mihawk and has a much greater respect for him than her own father).

Luffy befriends Yara first, since they're both kids in Windmill Village. Although she's quite quiet and spends most of her time in the local library, Luffy does insist on playing with her and will drag her out to go play by the ocean or show her cool bugs or stuff that he has found.

Yara has heard about Ace at this point, since he has gotten himself into trouble on more than one occasion, and she knows of him as this weird, angry kid who keeps asking about Gold Roger and beating up local thugs, but they don't meet face-to-face until later.

Once Luffy is sent to live with the Dadan family, he insists on introducing Yara to Ace and Sabo. Sabo and Yara hit it off instantly, but Ace acts like he wants nothing to do with her because she's a girl and will only slow them down.

(I can imagine Ace and Yara having a Calvin and Susie from Calvin and Hobbes-like relationship lol upon re-watching the postwar arc, I noticed young Ace doesn't have a very high opinion of girls XD)

Ace doesn't want her to accompany them in their adventures and tries to 'no girls allowed' their treehouse, but Luffy and Sabo overrule him on multiple occasions.

Yara honestly isn't terribly fond of Ace, either. She thinks he's a rude, belligerent little brat, and the two get into disagreements often. (If you had asked Yara back then which of the brothers she would one day end up married to, she probably would've said Sabo lol Ace would've been an unfathomable option)

Tensions between the two reach the point where Yara ends up smacking Ace hard enough to draw blood, at which Ace develops a begrudging kind of respect for her and allows her to accompany them into the woods more often. (She also learns his secret at the same time Luffy does, but rather than use it to provoke Ace, she just assures him that she doesn't mind who his father is).

Running around in the woods with the boys does help her hone her swordplay skills. She even engages in some shenanigans in the Goa Kingdom, stealing items and dining and dashing and the like, but at some point, her foster parents find out and she gets grounded with a warning that she is not to see them again.

Despite this, she still manages to sneak out and gets caught up in the Grey Terminal incident, barely making it out with Luffy and the mountain bandits alive.

She is absolutely devastated by Sabo's death, which kickstarts her hatred of the World Government and the Celestial Dragons.

Mihawk hears about all the trouble Yara has been getting in with these boys and decides (alongside her foster parents) to send her away to finishing school, where she will get a good education and learn how to behave like a proper lady. So Luffy and Ace end up having to say goodbye to her, too. (Or, rather, they hear that she was sent away without being allowed to say goodbye to them).

A few years later, Yara finally returns to Windmill Village and meets Ace and Luffy again. Luffy is excited to show her all the new moves he's been working on, whereas Ace, in the full throes of puberty, is immediately smitten. He has certainly grown up a lot, and with some help from Makino, is hardly the rude little brat Yara used to know.

Cue a childhood friends-to-lovers arc full of awkward teenage romance and a desire to make up for lost time that results in them sneaking out together every single night, though it still takes awhile for them to come to terms with their blossoming feelings for each other.

They're sitting on a cliff overlooking the sea when Ace (16) finally works up the nerve to ask Yara (15) if he can kiss her. (She says yes). He also tells her of his plans to go out to sea on his birthday and asks her to come with him, which she accepts.

When Ace sets sail at 17, he takes Yara with him and she becomes the first member of the Spade Pirates. With Yara’s competence as a navigator, they avoid being shipwrecked on Sixis Island, instead stopping there to refill some supplies. That’s where they meet Deuce and where Ace, who wants to explore a bit, comes across the Mera Mera no Mi. The three of them decide to build a better boat than the one Ace and Yara currently have that Ace can power with his newfound abilities. Things proceed as normal from there.

[twisted-wonderland-shenanigans]

Hi! I’ve been following all your AU’s since they started and I love all of them! I think my favorite is actually turning out to be the Kaiju au though. Seeing as that’s my favorite, I wanted to ask something about it.

So, you said that the fruit and even the soil on the island is overly fertile and nutrient filled, will Yuu, who is still only a teenager, get affected by their long term stay on the island?🤔 Like, will they grow differently, have their DNA or abilities altered at all? I would see them growing bigger than average, growing faster, getting stronger, just all of the human possible abilities that the Top Evolved of humans can achieve! Like being less affected by extreme weather, better eyesight, better hearing etc.☺️

I love your writing and am waiting very excitedly for more stuff to come out!😄🥰

If they aren’t taken can I either be 🍄 or ❄️ anon please?😊 Stay healthy and get plenty sleep! And don’t forget to drink your water! 🥰💙

Hello there, 🍄 Anon! :D ( ❄️ Anon is also acceptable since those hadn’t been taken yet)

That means a lot to hear that you love all the AUs, and that you’ve been following them since I started working on them! ;;v;; And I get it! The Kaiju!AU is starting to turn into one of my favorites, though I love all of them. >v<

Anyway, I did indeed say that the soil was very rich. It may not be kaiju related (though still has giant monsters), but I drew inspiration for the island from the game Monster Hunter World and how the island’s environment is constantly changing and growing with vibrant life with the migration of the Elder Dragons like Zorah Magdaros. If you’ve not played the game or beat the main story before it goes into the Iceborne expansion, I don’t want to spoil it too much because the mystery and discovery of it was the fun part (at least for me)!

Anyway, the soil creating such a nutrient rich environment for plant-life was developed through the magic influence of the kaiju that lived on the island over the years to sustain themselves. Yes, they do eat the prey species that dwell on the island or in the water (and as MIRA mentioned in the second chapter, kaiju can eat one another to grow stronger), but for the most part it’s easier for them to consume the fruits, berries, roots, etc. across the island as it gives them the same amount of energy—if not more—than just consuming meat.

That doesn’t exactly mean Leona in this AU is more inclined to eat his veggies though! 😂

Now, as for the effects that it has on humans themselves…well, you’ve also gotta keep in mind normal human biology. In most cases, boys will stop growing around 16-18 years old whereas girls will stop growing around 14-16 years old (according to Google, so now you know why Riddle looked up to see if he would still grow! 😆). However, you do raise an interesting point that there would be long term effects to Yuu (or any human) dwelling on the island for a long period of time the more they consume the food grown from the soil.

That being said, however, I’d imagine that because the long-term effects of the food are largely unknown to the researchers, they likely would have started cultivating their own food sources using soil they brought from the mainland. Sure, they have eaten the food on the island, but for the most part it was in emergencies as only select few are willing or even potentially testing to see the effects it has on the human body. Meanwhile, some people didn’t care and just went for it because hey, giant food that tastes great? Why not!

Effects wise though, the amount of nutrients that a human would gain from said island’s bounty would be akin to a “super food” times ten. Health wise, those who might have had problems either physically or internally would find themselves essentially getting “repaired” from the inside due to the magic/energy that essentially flows through the island’s ecosystem. The reason being for this is that—much like how Crowley said that rest and maintaining a healthy lifestyle can help clear the built-up blot—the food on the island essentially helps to purge the blot in kaiju after a territorial fight. Hence, why the food can purge toxins and other unhealthy things in a human’s body—it treats it the same way as it would blot!

Now, it’s not a “be all, cure all” sort of deal, but pretty darn close given how tiny we are compared to the kaiju themselves!

Speed, strength, sight…it does help improve it in humans for sure, behaving like the super foods would and essentially leading their systems and body to a healthier lifestyle like having more energy to move around and do things and increasing cell regeneration to heal the body faster while they sleep. However, scientists have been observing the DNA samples of those who consistently consume food from the island and noted that the strains seem…healthier. Segments that once suggested a history of biological health issues have been either replaced by a new healthy strain or are simply…no longer there, filled in by a strange energy (hint: it’s magic, but there is a very, very, very small chance of the person developing magical abilities like the kaiju and may manifest in the family tree somewhere. In Yuu’s/reader’s case, though, you’re free to have fun with that as one of the lucky ones if that’s what you want!).

Yuu is definitely going to start developing some new physical capabilities the longer they’re on the island surrounded by kaiju and eating the food available, that much is true. But…that’s only the beginning behind what I have planned for our intrepid main character/reader. One I shall delve into lore wise as I progress in the chapters and random little skits~ >w>

That’s all I’ve got off the top of my head, and some things may adjust as ideas come to me! I’m still developing this world as I go now that I’ve got the base worldbuilding concepts down, and you guys are the ones who ask the interesting questions that get the ol’ noodle doodle brain thinking. It’s fun, and it delves into the speculative biology/evolution aspect of worldbuilding that I love so much! Keep throwing more worldbuilding questions at me, and I shall be a happy faun~! >w<

Thanks again for stopping by, remember to drink water and eat good food! :D

Also, in case you guys have never heard of it: speculative evolution focuses on hypothetical scenarios in the evolution of life, and a significant form of fictional biology. Think of it as how writers speculate the type of environment that an animal or a being lives in as well as how their biology allows them to survive and adapt to it or how they developed/evolved natural resistances over time! Like how giraffes developed long necks over generations to be able to reach the leaves in the tall trees, or how apes developed the use of tools to obtain food easier. 

[orchidyoonkook]

Babe, how are you doing? Jungkook is out to collect more hearts. I quite like that this seems more in line with jk than other American produced songs that bts has done in the past. The 90’s film sequences and theme was used throughout and elevated the hunk/simp image lol. Jungkook looked great in his outfits and the song is easy to listen too. Confession tho, I didn’t quite like the rap verse and I really looked forward to a romantic/simple song with emotional vocals. A example of that would be decalcomania… I guess we’ll have to see if that happens in the album. What did you think?

-🫧

My darling Bubbles it’s so wonderful to hear from you!!

I’m gunna talk a lot so ⤵️

I’m good! I’m working on UTWT book things now that I’m off vacation, and then once that’s sorted I will be deep diving into chapter 5 of TWWWBAATTA -> just gotta edit! And then and then! irl I’m job hunting on top of that so I’m very busy 😂.

What about you!!!!????? How are you? How’s life?

I don’t mind the song! It kinda reminds me of bad decisions (cuz of all the days of the week stuff) but it’s cute!! And then the explicit version makes me want to eat rocks cuz that’s my baby and he doesn’t say things like that. (Please know I’m fully aware he is a grown man and can do whatever he wants I’m not a puritan just sentimental)

The music video was really interesting! I found a lot of the directorial choices interesting too. They definitely made a few angling choices I found a little confusing and off putting but that’s just a difference in personal style. The whole idea behind it was great! I’m excited to see what he does next.

I think the rap part isn’t necessary to the song, nor do I know who Latto is so I didn’t really feel one way or another about it. But I know her verse made a lot of ARMY uncomfortable which sucks. I really really dislike a lot of modern rap, there’s few exceptions like our boys and then bands like twenty one pilots and such. More rap with meaning then just spitting lines about sex or drugs or nothing of substance, which I feel a lot of it has become. That kind of music just isn’t for me.

So I probably won’t have it on my regular rotation but I will have it in my kpop playlist! If when his album drops there’s songs I like a lot more then they’ll get dropped into my regular listening playlist!

I’ve found that I vibe most with Yoongi and then some of Hobi and Joons musical styles more. They’re a bit more rough around the edges and musically diverse in styles, which is very much more my type of music, whereas the youngins in the Maknae line tend to be more Pop-y and upbeat. And there’s nothing wrong with that! It’s just not usually my style so it takes longer for me to learn to vibe with it.

Over all I think it’s a nice song and he’s doing well! I loved that Sohee played the love interest because I LOVED her in My Name. That was a great little highlight for me!

Thank you so much for reaching out!! I’ve barely been able to be online much the last few weeks so it’s always wonderful to hear from you!!

[racefortheironthrone]

I would love to hear your general thoughts on the design direction of OneDnD, especially as it compares to how you feel about the design trends in 5e over the years. I apologize for this exceedingly broad prompt; I read essay series on this topic for fun

Let me start by saying that I am not an expert in game design, either from an academic perspective or an industry perspective. My only experience here is as someone who's been engaged in the playtest process for both "D&D Next" (which eventually became 5th edition) and "One D&D" (which will eventually become 5th edition 2024).

The D&D Next playtest saw a lot of conflict between traditionalists and non-traditionalists which the traditionalists largely won - hence the Combat Superiority system going from a core Fighter mechanic to the Battle Master subclass, for example - largely because people's memories of the edition wars kicked up by the 3.5 to 4th Edition transition were still strong, and a major part of WotC's intent behind 5th edition was to win back some of the audience share they'd lost to Paizo et al. as well as grow the overll audience with a "back to basics" edition. (There was also a fair bit of lingering conflict over the Tome of Battle, but that's not quite edition warring and is a bit harder to categorize.)

I have to admit that I haven't followed "design trends in 5e over the years," because while I've been playing D&D pretty consistently since 5e came out, I didn't buy Xanathar's and Tasha's and MoM etc. (because my DM had already done so on D&D Beyond) so I don't have a good sense of them as cohesive books that sought to change the design of 5h edition, rather than just "oh that's the book Booming Blade comes from." So I have to admit that I don't know as much to what extent One D&D's design philosophy is an extension of those efforts.

As for One D&D, I am a bit unsure about the overall direction, because I see two conflicting impulses in design at work at the same time. On the one hand, there is clearly an appetite among the devs to swing for the fences and make some big changes to character classes - Moon Druid, Warlock, etc. - within the overall shell of 5th edition. Stuff like class groups, moving subclasses to 3rd level and other anti-dipping moves, moving away from Short Rest mechanics, Weapon Mastery, and so forth starts getting more into game mechanics, but we haven't seen an entirely new game engine in the same way that d20 or AEDU or bounded accuracy were.

On the other hand, there is clearly a mandate to maintain compatibility with 5th edition and make as few changes as possible while still providing a value proposition for the new books, because 5th edition was such a massive success that transformed their playerbase in ways that a lot of older players still haven't really integrated into their thinking, because 5th edition is still selling well and they don't want to rock that boat, and because ".5s" are terrible marketing and numerical edition changes are a real crapshoot whereas "5th edition" is now a brand with some cachet.

I still think we're a bit too early to tell which impulse is going to win out in the end - we've only seen first drafts of any of the characters and we don't know yet what the second drafts will look like, we haven't seen the Monk, we haven't seen most spells, we haven't seen most monsters, etc.

[sleevesareforlosers]

hey danny how was succession?? i would love to hear ur thoughts

also i’ve never seen a single ep of the show i just know there’s a beautiful lady and i am not worried abt spoilers. what went down i wish to know all ur thoughts

OH IT WAS REALLY GOOD. uhhh brief summary shiv (the beautiful lady) has been working with matsson who is attempting to buy the company against the wishes of roman and kendall (brothers) so at the beginning of the ep her and kendall were trying to amass votes from the board members for their respectives sides of the deal. THEN their mom called them and said roman was "delicate" and with her so they went to her like resort house. bunch of sibling fighting and then kendall found out and told the siblings that matsoon WASNT planning on giving shiv any power if the deal went through and was looking for replacements for her so shiv decided to go in with the boys and try to tank the deal. they swam together and made kendall drink a NASTY smoothie to "crown" him as the new ceo and it was like heartbreakingly sweet which was followed by a DIFFERENTLY heartbreaking scene where they went to divvy up logans remaining possessions with connor (oldest brother, different mother, not involved in the business) and he was playing a "virtual dinner party with dad" where he was like. reciting poems with his buddies and singing and well everyone onscreen was crying and so was i because it was SO WEIRD to see logan in such a different setting and behaviour than the literal entire rest of the show

THEN THE BOARD MET and it was a 6-6 split for wether or not the company sells. shiv was the tiebreaker and she hesitated and ran out and then kendall came after her and started YELLING at her and like attacked roman and her and then shiv went back and voted against kendall which just DECIMATED him. business stuff blah blah tom (shivs husband, tenuous relationship there) is going to be the puppet CEO for matsson and the episode ends with kendall looking like hes abt to drown himself in the ocean, roman at a bar smirking to himself, and tom and shiv in the backseat of their chauffered car limply holidng hand and both looking SO dead inside.

SO OVERALL I REALLY LIKED IT. i think the ep did a good job of showing like. the places where siblinghood and the business stuff intersect and interfere with each other and how logans abuse has and will affect all the kids in different ways. the cycles stay cycling, as they say. AND ALSO how even the relationship logan had with connor vs the "old guard" of people who work for him vs the other three kids was all different and like. idk. the last few eps especially have been driving home how no one knew logan for a variety of reasons and so seeing him laughing and joking at a dinner party was especially jarring.

the acting and direction and camerawork was MASTERFUL as always but especially kieran culkin (roman) was just. annihilating to watch. i think that no one really got a happy ending as is realistic for this kind of situation but (ive been talking w nico abt this all day) it seems like roman has the most of a chance to get out of it bc he like. very much accepted by the end that all of the siblings were kind of hollow nothing people who shouldnt have been running the business whereas kendall cant accept that at all and even if shiv did, shes now just a powerful mans pregnant wife. good closure overall without wrapping everything up unrealistically neatly

THANK YOU FOR ASKING MATT sorry for the essay askdjfh