#which i hate; as it's coarse rough and gets everywhere/

[wraith-caller]

This is the cloth garb:

It is worn by two player model characters and no enemies. Those characters are Devin(D, Beholder of Death), and the dead person we find by Darian(D, Hunter of the Dead). You can get the set from a chest in Murkwater Cave, and off a corpse in Leyndell.

The current item description is sparse, just mentioning it's a commonly worn item made of rough cloth. There is a hood that completes the set, which is a thorn-wrapped mantle, seen on the dead body by Darian. The item description explains that the hood is put on those who have committed lesser crimes.

HOWEVER...

In the 1.0 text, this set has a very different description:

Clothing made of coarse material. Garb of spurned Tarnished who were forced into slavery in the Lands Between. The Tarnished have been wandering into the Lands Between from beyond the Sea of Fog in dribs and drabs since times of old. Most are killed on arrival, but the few, unlucky survivors are taken as slaves.

Intriguing. Let's explore some things about that.

So first is this idea of Tarnished being made into slaves, which appears to have been done away. After all, the Tarnished we meet are all kinda doing their own thing, free to pledge allegiance to whoever, and some, like Gideon, hold such an esteemed position of authority so as to have a squad of goons at their disposal for casually massacring villages. The other piece of this description is still accurate enough - Tarnished are targeted by multiple factions, and treated like crap basically everywhere they go.

So let's hold on to the idea that Tarnished were enslaved. Devin's attire would mark him as one, which isn't all that surprising given he and his brother were pariahs among pariahs. We know the Golden Order was the only institution not to revile them, based on the Inseparable sword description. The JP text for that same sword gives a more interesting flavor to that text, saying:

The Undivided Twins served the Golden Rule for no other reason than because they were not branded as cursed.

This is interesting because it omits any references to taking solace in the Order. The "for no other reason" bit is also noteable. It carries an implication that the lack of persecution is the primary force driving them to serve the Order. It makes sense. If you were hated by everyone else, you'd go with the one group who took you no matter what else they're up to, and you'd fight tooth and nail for them to last. Otherwise, what's standing between you and being completely shunned and ostracized again?

If we're to continue on with the 1.0 text for the cloth garb and its references to Tarnished made slaves, Devin wearing that set gives a new context to the phrasing of "the undivided twins served the Golden Order." Could the twins have originally been intended to be slaves of the Order? Devin's location in combination with his potential status as a slave is noteworthy because, aside from the Misbegotten of Castle Morne, there is one other named group of slaves, and they have a heavy presence in Nokron. The Fallen Hawk Soldiers were a band of slaves who were ordered to search the Eternal Cities. They became lost there, condemned to remain below the earth after burning the bones of their fellows and discovering the ghost flame.

These guys aren't just in the same city as Devin. They are right by him, in the Siofra Aqueduct itself, just where Devin sleeps. There is also a golden centipede in Siofra River, beside a corpse which gives us the Inverted Hawk Heater Shield, used by Fallen Hawk Soldiers. While I don't intend to suggest that Devin is a part of the Fallen Hawks, I do find these tiny, potential connections interesting as shedding some light on potential routes a character's story could have gone.

[gummyfang]

Merman! Anakin hates sand.

He finds himself on the beach and he's just flopping around screaming in absolute FURY. it's COARSE and ROUGH and it gets EVERYWHERE.

"I HATE YOU!!!" he cries in rage and torment as if he was burning in lava. But he's not yelling it to anyone in particular. He's yelling it at the sand.

*flop flop flop* "I HAAATE YOOOOUUU"

HONESTLY ITS KINDA FUNNY In the AU I’ve made there’s two general categories of mer, Deepwater mer and Shallowwater mer. Of those two categories, Anakin belongs to the latter category. Even more specifically, he’s a bay mer. Meaning he technically belongs to the category of mer that absolutely has to deal with sand THE MOST out of every type of mer he could’ve been born as.

Tatooine Clan mer live in a shallow bay which gets quite warm in the full sun, which is where Anakin spent most of his life until he left to live in the open ocean due to his self-imposed exile. So he did finally escape the sand.

[spacefinch]

Okay, how would a beach trip for the MSB kids be like (if Ms. Frizzle doesn't show up and turn it into a field trip... and what happens if Ms. Frizzle does should up and make it a field trip)

Some of their time at the beach is spent relaxing on the picnic blanket, and some of the time is spent exploring and goofing off.

Some things the kids would do (based on my experience going to the beach):

Tidepooling (this is Wanda's favorite activity)

Watching and photographing shorebirds

Frisbee or beach volleyball

Collecting shells

Stone-skipping

Getting their feet wet (and then somewhat regretting it afterward because now their feet are cold)

Someone (probably Ralphie) quotes Anakin Skywalker's "I hate sand" speech from Star Wars. ("I hate sand. It's coarse, it's rough, it's irritating, and it gets everywhere!")

Surfing and/or bodyboarding

Carlos spends a lot of time climbing on the rock formations (at least the ones that aren't fenced off) and collecting as many rocks as he can.

Tim takes this trip as an opportunity to do some plain-air sketches. He also brings his watercolors.

Phoebe immediately falls in love with the plovers and sanderlings and oystercatchers. She spends as much time as possible observing them.

Building sandcastles. And by this, I mean really epic-looking sandcastles. There are multiple turrets, a moat with a drawbridge, an outer defensive wall surrounding a central keep, and more.

Wanda, Ralphie, and Carlos start digging a huge hole for treasure. They convince everyone else to help. (There is no treasure, and they know that. However, the allure of a Big Hole in the sand is too much to resist.)

Obviously they bring food. However, there are seagulls around, which means someone has to be on "seagull duty" at all times. (This just means you guard the food from the seagulls, and chase away any that get too close.) The kids draw straws to decide who has to be on seagull duty first. Arnold is usually the first, and he does not like it. (He has a grudge against seagulls because one stole an entire bag of cheese puffs from him.)

[stxrmnight]

Eden, all the way to the end I

For the first tier, Nemi was just along for the ride, though dizzy with how upgraded the primal fights were. But for all obvious reasons, it's with one arrival that I started taking pictures

I am still kinda jealous we got no semblance of this armor...

This is just a wayfinder set

Oh Nemi, your poor head.. you legit wanted this to be easier

"Why, it looks kind of... tasty"

Okay, now for real spoilers. This is going through all tiers!!!

Honestly this is so scary... Nemi would've tried to affirm such powers are not one's choice and the truth is not firm with how her memories are, but this would fail given how Gaia. This is a different kind of teen.

Looking at this it's, wild this was contemplated as possible, but she was managing!! Light power real babey!! And means my headcanon that Nemi wielded the Light against Hades not too insane

Which, which tier was this before...

Oh Gaia you fearful girl... you are afraid of being abandoned for having flaws huh

She really gritted teeth trying to center in how Ysayle was always herself when transformed, and apologizing endlessly to Thancred. But at least she learned... gay love truly does conquer everything. Yes Rynegaia started kissing and dating then because I say so.

"Ysayle... you never knew my feelings but, maybe them and your efforts have given these children a gift I couldn't even offer you. Thank you. I, hope you're sleeping soundly, wherever you are..."

Hah, always the cheerer

Gaia why do you pretend to care about pretty girl values and care that bad you're a goooth. You're just tsunding

"I hate the sand. It's rough and coarse and it gets everywhere."

The alternate to the Shiva mention loool. Ahh Nemi is happy the girls are really getting along and enjoying friendship their age after the whole Light disaster era!

:) girlfriends

This burn to Emet Selch lmaoo. Also initially thinking "this rock is gay GO AWAY!!" While being unaware Mitron's soul is of a toxic lesbian.

Making fun of Urianger and dragging Thancred's earlier dallies is in character for Nemi, buut she didn't think that would jog Gaia's memory much. She knew the rugged tired father.

Oops, image limit on post!

[punisheye]

11, 12,13,14

11. do they have any sensitivities to smells?

he's definitely got a strong nose but i don't think there's any specific smell that he's particularly sensitive to. the basic bad smells gross him out but he's kinda used to them too so it's whatever. when you're on the world's worst road trip across the desert in a suit and the guy you're traveling with is in leather and a coat the whole time and you're going often days unwashed then not many smells are gonna bother you anymore i don't think

12. do they have any sensitivities to tastes?

no and he'll eat anything, like a goat

although now that he's gotten more into cooking he can pick out the taste of different ingredients ore now

13. do they have any sensitivities to textures?

any fabrics that aren't like smooth and/or soft make him go insane. he hates the feeling of desert sand which sucks because he's from a desert planet. wolfwood voice i hate sand its coarse and rough and gets everywhere

14. is there a sound that drives them crazy? ( like the sound of nails on a chalkboard, styrofoam rubbing together, cardboard boxes, etc?)

pens clicking. nails drumming on the surface of things. a lot of repetitive sounds like that make him itch. autism

[ashmeaboutmylife]

i hate it here

we now have an idea on who's the bitch that keeps assigning these shitty emotional support dogs. can't believe people in charge keep shitty assholes get away with this. these dogs are literally emancipated and rabid, and animal control isn't doing SHIT about them.

we went to visit our friends over at Hot Goblin for further information and assistance on this individual. they provided us a free boat ride in exchange for some psychedelics and fidget spinners. after that, we then made our way to the woods in the south, which has a sandy playground on the way.

i abhor the coarseness and roughness of sand. it's irritating me because it gets everywhere, especially if it's sentient sand.

we then arrived to the most sickingly bright and colorful forest I've been in. no matter where I go, there isn't any comfortable shadow for me to rest in. we then encountered Florielle, a huge angelic snake thing who owns the place. they're kinda scary but low key nice.

[idridian]

episode 10

i hate sand it’s coarse and rough and irritating and it gets everywhere

ghost L ghost L ghost L!!!!!

human to ghost to shinigami pipeline???

stop going through watari’s files *hisses*

splish splash whirlpool fun

german terms of endearment still unbearable more news at five

light has a GUN

lmao at this old crime lady

sports commentator ryuk my beloved i have missed you during the yotsuba arc

high noon over tokyo

bro he got the eyes for the price of ten minutes i’m not okay

soichiro 😭

"i didn’t want a hero. i wanted my husband" OOF

ghost L sassing ryuk means everything to me

i’m so deeply disinterested in this american politics nonsense. gay tennis died for this

watari’s ex is back! i forgot about her!

mello and near are talking to each other and the only reason i can tell which is which is because mello is on the phone 💀

"christ what an asshole"

near should not swear that’s illegal

"this is the US how could something like this happen?" lol. lmao.

highlights from the german death note audio drama: episode 1

(because i need someone to bear witness to my slow spiral into insanity)

the very first scene is light doing a dramatic kira speech which gets interrupted by his mom calling him down for dinner, a gag which to my knowledge will be repeated at Least one more time throughout the story, possibly more

"i could be a sex god if i weren’t so good with death" - Ryuk

ryuk being highkey horny is going to be a pretty regular occurrence btw. i’m not going to keep mentioning it but just assume that if he’s in a scene, he’s being sultry

watari is Siezing* L i hate it here

"i need to change wifi hotspots" - L, the smartest person alive (supposedly)

68 percent of victims…. so close to the funny number 😔

they’re pronouncing it ya-GA-mi and it’s killing me

bad french accent 💀

L is incredibly hard to understand with his voice filter *cries in auditory processing problems*

bad standup comedy 💀

light almost just choked to death on curry

btw i’m a big fan of how every adaptation has to make light kind of a dumbass (in this case so they can convey that he’s startled or upset in audio only)

is watari flirting with the interpol leader lady????

also watari just made a heart attack joke go off kingggg

*formal address, which uses "Sie" + 2nd person plural instead of the more informal/familiar "du" + 2nd person singular. the bane of all german translations and dubs <3

[pumpkin-spice-ed]

me after working with charcoal in art class

[qvarterstaff-blog]

             “ I would follow him to the ends of the earth if he asked it of me. ”

[starship-squidlet]

we now return to our regularly scheduled mental breakdown, except apparently this one gets to happen at the beach.

[ashasmonsters]

Hi could you maybe write a male werewolf x male reader, you can decide on the plot

Hey anon, thanks for being patient! I love werewolves and writing male readers, so I hope you like it too. I've also messed around and made some header art for you. Enjoy!

M!Werewolf x M!Reader - Lime

As the sun started to set, you worked in the small forest clearing to set up your digs for the night. Some things were still here from your last visit: a pile of cushions covered by a tarp, an old hurricane style lantern, and a folded-up lean-to style tent. It felt like a second home to you, especially as the smell of dirt and pine filled the air. You would have taken more time to enjoy the peace, but the sun was sinking lower into the horizon by the minute.

You tossed aside the tarp and arranged the cushions into a nest, put fuel in the lantern, and started pitching the tent’s poles into the soft earth. A few hammered stakes and taut cords later, the tent was up properly except for a side panel, which you intentionally left open. This way, the sounds and smells of the forest would be right there with you as you slept, and you wouldn’t have to fiddle with getting in or out of a zipper-fastened door. After all, you never worried for your safety when you were out here; you had Oskar.

He crested the rise in the trail just as you were putting the finishing touches on your camp. While you had come with a backpack with snacks, a battery bank for your phone, water bottles, and your sleeping bag, Oskar came with only the clothes on his back. He looked tired, and despite shaving every day, he had the stubble of several days on his face.

“You really don’t have to do this for me every time,” he said, looking at the setup around him. “It’s just one night. I’d be fine on my own, honest.”

“I’m sure you’d be fine, but I want you to be comfortable, too.” You smiled at him, watching the last few rays of sunlight shine through the edges of his raven-colored hair. “I’d hate to see you go through something so rough alone. Besides, I need to get out of the house every once in a while.”

“Well… thanks.” He took off his flannel shirt and handed it to you. “You’re the best boyfriend ever.”

“No, you’re the best boyfriend ever.” You asserted, folding his shirt into a neat square. “Now get comfortable while we still have time.”

A moment later, you were sitting in your nest of cushions with the hurricane lantern casting gentle warmth around the clearing. The sound of rustling fabric came from the tent, then Oskar emerged from it without a stitch of clothing on him.

“Don’t worry, I folded everything up for you.” He closed the distance between the tent and your resting spot in the cushions, giving you ample time to admire his muscular physique. The flickering lantern flame showed the beginnings of the shift already taking hold; his normally sparse body hair was starting to cover him everywhere, and the bags under his eyes betrayed his cheery demeanor.

“Just come here and rest for a bit,” you suggested softly. He stepped over the outer ring of pillows and cushions, arriving at your side and lying down next to you, where you sat cross-legged. He rested his head on your thigh and took deep breaths. “Want a snack before you go?” You asked.

“No, I’ll just catch something while I’m out.” He stretched and groaned, no doubt trying to soothe his sore muscles.

“Alright, but don’t catch anything too big. Save some room for pancakes tomorrow morning.”

“Pancakes? Now I’m wishing I didn’t have to deal with this dumb ‘Shifting’ stuff,” He joked through gritted teeth, even as the pain was clearly setting in. You just rested a hand on his back, massaging his muscles as they bulged and surged in a way that was quite disconcerting to you the first time. Now, all you had in mind was your boyfriend’s comfort.

His form started to change in earnest now, completely covered in coarse fur in a matter of seconds while the skin underneath roiled and expanded. He started to groan, his teeth grit and tears slowly beading in his eyes.

“Shh…” you reassured him, his pain making your heart ache. “This is the worst of it. You’re doing fine. You’re almost done.” Your hand that rested on his back was being pulled away from you as he began to grow in size. Your hand trailed over his fur as he gradually pulled away from you, moving from his back, to his shoulder, and now to his forearm. You wished you could hold his hand, but claws replaced them faster than you could notice: another thing you learned during Oskar’s first Shift with you around.

Before you knew it, there was a snout resting in your lap. His long tongue felt around his newly-formed rows of sharp teeth, and small droplets of his saliva dotted your jeans. At last, his body settled and stopped quaking, and his breathing went from labored to regular. Having tripled in size, his bodyweight weighed heavily on you as he rested there.

“Alright, Oskar, now that you’re feeling better,” you huffed, his weight on your lap becoming uncomfortable, “it’s time to get up.”

The werewolf in your lap complied, granting you some relief as he lifted himself up on all fours. His eyes, glowing in the light of the lantern, met yours. He circled your island of cushions, getting accustomed to the feeling of his paws on dirt.

“Are you feeling good? Ready to run?” You said, your voice practically a whisper. His hearing would be extremely sensitive right now. Your werewolf nodded back at you, his head bobbing more diagonally than straight up and down. Human gestures were hard when your skeleton had just Shifted minutes prior.

“Come here, big guy.” You stood and met him on the dirt, bringing his entire head into a hug. You ran your hands along his neck fur, petting him as he rumbled into your chest, his heartbeat pounding like a drum. “I love you. Go run. Catch something good to eat, too.” He half-nodded again as you pulled away from him. You made your way over to the tent and started to set up with your sleeping bag, phone charger, and snacks, when you noticed Oskar lingering.

His paws bounced on the dirt, showing how eager he was to bolt into the night… but he stayed. He looked at you, then at the trail returning back to town.

“I’m fine, Oskar. I’ll stay here. Just be back by morning, okay?”

Another half-nod, but this time with a shred of reluctance. He turned away, looking at you one last time before he trotted into the trees, disappearing from the reach of the lantern’s warm glow. As you got inside your sleeping bag, you smiled as you imagined him bounding through the forest at his full speed, stretching his muscles and exercising his new, temporary form. He always said that sprinting through the forest for the first time after Shifting felt like scratching an itch you couldn’t reach—multiplied by a billion. You hoped so; it was the least he deserved after going through the rigors of Shifting.

You reclined in your tent, your phone ready to play music and let you float off to sleep, but you hadn’t put your earbuds in, yet. You waited, and waited some more… until you heard the howl pierce the night. Birds, startled out of their roosts, took to the sky, and distant hoofbeats of deer fled from Oskar’s instinctive call.

Perhaps it was a bad night to be a forest creature, but it was a lovely night for a camper like you—and an even better night to be your boyfriend, bounding through the night under the light of a full moon.

[tainted-wine]

hey bae you alive? I have a question and you're the best ornithologist I know

Do you think hawks like taking dust baths? Like after steamy seggs on a hot day he'll straight up and ask you if you wanna roll in dirt ._.

The Aftergroom (NSFW)

(Because he would totally grab a coffee after dicking you into the next dimension.)

Sex

So...Keigo’s quirk has an evolutionary flaw.

See, birds have the preening gland over their ass, which they use to spread oils all over their body and moisturize their feathers to keep them from getting too dry and brittle.

Keigo also has preen glands...except they're everywhere. I'm saying his sweat glands also function as his preen glands.

That means whenever he overexerts himself, he can get very oily and sticky. Very.

Poor guy actually held off sex with you for a pretty long time because of this. This is gonna gross you out, watching him slowly turn into an extra shiny grease bird as he bangs you.

He warns you beforehand after gathering enough courage to give it a try. "Look...Uh, just know that when I get into it, things are gonna get...slick. Slicker than your pussy."

You don’t even remember the warning while you’re moaning in the middle of pound town. Your fingers dig into the blades of his shoulders, clinging onto him as those magnificent hips rock you into the mattress. Or at least, you’re trying to cling to him, but his skin is getting so damp that it’s difficult to grip.

Okay yeah, his embrace is starting to get really clammy. And his sweaty hair feels like the down of a wet chicken.

Sure, it surprises you, but it’s not that weird. Certainly not weird enough to distract you from the incoming orgasm.

He is beyond relieved when you’re covered in his extra oily sweat and you don’t even look that fazed. You just shrug and smile. What’s a couple of extra fluids during sex? 

Of course Keigo loves cuddling and admiring your satisfied face after a steamy session, but he really hates feeling like this and doesn’t wanna make you any stickier than you already are. Time to clean up.

You ask to join him. “Alright,” he says. “But you know by now that I have special steps when I bathe, right?”

Bathing

The two of you don’t head for the shower, but the dusting room that you were always curious about. You’ve heard him take his baths in there; lots of flapping and particles flying around and hitting the walls. Your imagination has gone to the most adorable places as you listen to your lover roll around in dust.

You don’t know what you were expecting it to look like, but it wasn’t this. Wallpaper of a desert landscape, fake plants, a sun-shaped heat lamp in the center of the ceiling, and a floor coated in soft premium ‘sand’. If you didn’t know better, you’d say it was a habitat for an actual hawk.

Naked bird man is hella happy when you offer to help him preen. It’s a much slower process when done by hand, but the intimacy of being groomed by his very own partner more than makes up for that.

 After all his feathers are straightened, he digs a little bowl into the sand and gets settled into it and my god it’s so cute look at him he’s wiggling his way in!

A couple minutes are spent sprawled out in the fake sun, then Keigo starts to roll and beat his wings.

It’s CUTE, and you join in. This type of sand is basically a beauty product made for people with fur or feathers, so it isn’t as coarse, rough or irritating. But it does still get everywhere.

You may not be hairy, but the stuff still helps immensely in getting rid of the excess oils.

Things get a little playful and you're soon wrestling with Keigo, rolling each other around in a fit of laughter. His hair and wings have never felt so soft and fluffy. It honestly feels pretty nice whenever a wing accidentally smacks you.

He sticks around to let the sand fully do its job, but it's time for you to head to the shower and get this shit out of your eyes, hair, ass, and vaj.

[the-technicolor-whiscash]

Not to defend the rise of Skywalker but in regards to the “somehow, palpatine has returned” line, Star Wars has always had stupid lines lmao. The series is called Star Wars and the main character is named Like Skywalker like if this weren’t like the most popular series ever people would realize exactly how stupid all of that sounds. And lest we forget every line that George Lucas thought would be good like “I hate sand. It’s coarse. Rough. And gets everywhere.” Or the floating pear. Or kid anakin saying “yippee!” Or how whiny Mark Hamill’s voice is when he says “but uncle Owen I was gonna go to tosche station to pick up some power converters!” Which is a line I quote at least once a week. Star Wars has always had stupid lines. It is fundamentally stupid shit played off very seriously and for the most part it’s very fun. But we can’t forget. This is the series that brought Jar Jar Binks into the world.

[elindae-writes]

Let's keep the Jack Darby hate train going. Ok honestly this is my dumb onion on humans in tfp/tf media in general: I know they're supposed to be there to be the anchor for the viewer but it's like... Most of the time humans being around feels like they either gotta be written like the Lois Lane to Superman always being that one thing that keeps the Autobots nerfed because "oh no muh human is in trouble!" or they get something special about them *cough* Jack *cough* to keep them relevant to the alien robots but end up feeling like those bad fanfics with a human OC who's the ✨certified badass✨. Raf is on thin ice with his hackermans schtick and Miko is amazing. Thanks for coming to my Ted Talk.

The train has derailed yet is still miraculously chugging on.

I never liked how the humans are supposed to be audience surrogates. You see, I hate this because this implies that the show was designed to make you "live" through the Autobot drama by putting you in the place of McJack McDarby. The show tried to make me emulate Jack but all it did was make me just want to emulate Megatron. Like I resent this so much? only clowns want to live through the experiences of other clowns and u are not a clown Anon and I am ESPECIALLY Not A Clown

Yes, this rant is long so buckle up

What kind of writing decision even was this??

"Sir, we have this show, we could make the cool and interesting robot warrior leader of this struggling faction the main character--or the fast food boy"

"make the burger-flipper the ✨star✨"

If they cut Jack out then Optimus could've gotten that screentime instead and could have actually been the real main character. He would've gotten so much more character development!

Which would've made SENSE considering that it's Transformers: Prime not Transformers: Bland Bitch

I hate how they made Jack so ✨SpEciAl✨

"oh jack, only you and your mediocrity can save the world"

like what, excuse me, but i could shuffle into society and instantly find a more competent, interesting, and qualified person to replace Jack. i could just find some guy shopping for Lucky Charms in the cereal aisle and be like "u are the chosen one" and he would STILL DO A BETTER JOB

Jack shops exclusively out of other people's carts, smh what a loser. I bet Jack binge-watches Scooby-Doo.

When I was writing chapter 26 I was trying so so so hard to prevent my hatred for Jack from infusing the story. This was especially hard during the scene where Starscream had to comfort Jack.

Like if I had 0.01% less self-control we would've gotten this literary masterpiece instead:

Starscream looked down at the humans in his palm. Surviving in the Sahara was hard enough while alone. But with three delicate fleshies in tow?

Jack blinked sluggishly and shook like a mildly frightened chihuahua. "I hate sand. It's rough and coarse and irritating and it gets everywhere."

Perhaps Starscream could lessen this load.

He dumped Jack's lame bitch-ass on the dune and then punted him into the sky. Starscream then strutted off with Miko and Raf still in his servos. There, better.

I like June and Fowler. I love how every time Fowler appears in the show and in Unburied he just starts off by shouting "P R I M E"

Raf is indeed on thin ice. I've seen some people say that "ohhhh well, Raf is more used to human computer systems, that's why he's better at hacking through them than Soundwave is"

But I don't think so, I think Soundwave could completely figure out our computer systems in like five seconds.

My headcanon is that the deaths of his casseticons have forced Soundwave off his A-game and that he still hasn't fully recovered from the grief. That's why Raf poses a threat to him--Soundwave isn't at his peak potential. If Soundwave was in full on Hackerman Mode then he would absolutely wipe the floor with that 12 year-old. It's the only explanation I can think of as to why Raf is an actual threat to the 'Cons.

If you wanna get really angsty with it maybe Raf reminds him of his casseticons and he feels like he's fighting against them when he fights against Raf.

I find it funny how the kids aren't relevant at all during the finale, probably the only thing about Predacons: Rising that I liked.

Thank you for inviting me to your Ted Talk.

[otterskin]

Loki and Letters - Runes and Symbols in the Loki Trailer (Pt.1)

I know I’m late, but life, amiright? Dad’s home from hospital now. Anyway, before Tumblr eats this post again, let’s get started with the official Loki trailer ‘new stuff noticed’ breakdown:

First off, you may remember my spiel about Kaunaz/Kenaz, the Loki Rune, from last time (which makes a few new appearances here). If you need a quick recap, that’s this one -

Also transformation, burns, ulcers, and the search for truth. All of which feels very relevant to Loki, no?

Well, looks like > has a friend this time - one that’s plastered all over the TVA.

And ENHANCE!

Say bonjour to Dagaz.

Thanks, RuneSecrets.com - maybe not my best source, but they do have such nice pictures.

Dagaz is the ‘Day Rune’ - it means Enlightenment, The Ideal, Paradox, Transformation - and Time. It is renewal, the promise of dawn after destruction. It is the transformation on one thing into its opposite, of female and male becoming one. It is Order. It is the ancestor to our letter ‘D’, which you can see if you hold up a mirror to a very spiky letter ‘D’.

It seems an appropriate rune for the TVA, with its emphasis on order, managing paradoxes, and of course, Time. It is also an interesting contrast and complement to Kaunaz/Kenaz. It also means transformation, but it comes from a place of balance and cycle, rather than Loki’s hunger and potentially dangerous fire. But like Kenaz means light, it means dawn, fitting with what we previously discussed about the apocalypse and Loki’s role in that.

But Otterskin, I hear you say, that’s not a rune - it’s just an hourglass.

Yes. Yes it is. Also that. Which we see everywhere, from logos to drawings in the TVA.

Even the V and A of their logo create an hourglass if you stacked them on top of each other. Obviously I think the hourglass is meant to be taken literally, as another form of a clock, which we also see plenty of (stay tuned for another post on their cute little mascot).

But unlike clocks, hourglasses must be reversed and inversed to keep time, essentially rewinding it over and over again. They are symmetrical, twin triangular chambers through which sand, representing time, falls.

How fun that the first footage we ever saw of this show should start with Loki falling into sand, then.

Sand. We hate it. It’s coarse, it’s rough, it gets everywhere. It shifts and is totally unreliable as a foundation on which to build anything. Nothing grows in a desert. It can be formed into structures like sand castles or concrete with a little work, but on its own? Sand isn’t something you want a lot of. It’s a symbol of death, as well as a keeper of time. We turn to dust when we die, and many afterlives are likened to deserts.

We see a lot of blighted, desert like locations in both trailers. A purple-lit quarry of stone. A concrete, deserted department store. Urban streets illuminated in red and orange. And so, so much fire. Very apocalyptic stuff. (Please see previous meanderings for what all that is about).

Obviously that is connected to Kaunaz, Loki’s Torch. Speaking of which - here are some new sightings of it in the wild.

We see two Kaunazes facing each other inside a diamond (which also creates two <> shapes) behind the running figure. Could be a coincidence, but we do also see...

...three kaunazes facing each other behind this fight scene in presumably the same location (neon lights).

My guess is that these symbols being in prominence indicates that some alternate Loki is in power in this world, or at least some destructive aspect of Kaunaz is. These are very fiery looking.

There is also a possibility that it is Jera, which is made out of two Kaunaz shapes.

Which also means time, specifically the passing of it - the orbit of the sun, the cycle of seasons, and it was believed this rune could be used to either slow or speed up time in spells.

I do seem a little caught up on these letters, don’t I? It’s a bit esoteric and very unlikely to play into the main plot, but as someone who comes at this series from a deep childhood love for Norse Myths, there’s a good reason for that. Runes are a huge part of the stories, even though, ironically, the versions we have today weren’t ever written in them. There’s also another reason - several times, we’ve been shown that letters are important to Loki. This is the Marvel Studios Title Card for it:

Hundreds of type faces of different letters from Loki’s name. And of course, the logo for the show itself, shifting and changing:

The word “rune” can mean ‘letter’ and ‘secret/mystery’. It’s believed that the use of runes allows one to actually influence and shape the forces they represent, as I mentioned with Jera. They are a form of magic.

Which is why Odin, God of Magic, sought them. One of the most important stories in Norse Myth is Odin’s quest to learn wisdom and the runes. This was when he famously hung himself on Yggdrasil and pierced himself with his own spear. There he hung for nine days and nine nights, in great anguish, staring down into the well of knowledge at the base of the tree. He learned nine spells in that time - and then perished on the ninth night, Walpurgis Night. With his death, it was said that the sun and all light died. Spirits crossed over into the land of the living and caused chaos, while magic everywhere strengthened beyond that which had ever been seen before.

It was said that only the dead could learn the secrets of the runes and the magic they could wield. The runes accepted Odin’s sacrifice and revealed themselves to him. Odin learned them all, and the powers that they both symbolized and embodied and controlled. At midnight on the day after, Odin used their power to return himself to life. He awoke with a terrible scream, driving back the spirits to their proper place and bringing back the sun.

Odin described this act as ‘sacrificing myself to myself’ - as if making an offering of Odin to Odin. The ultimate sacrifice.

So why this long-winded story about Odin, when the show is about Loki? Well, obviously, the MCU has had a history of taking traits from one and giving it to the other. Loki is Thor’s brother, not Odin’s blood brother. Loki left Asgard to wander the universe (however briefly), but we have not heard of Odin the great wanderer. Of course in mythology, they were also often conflated. Both are Gods of Magic, Gods of Stories (Odin of Poetry and Song, Loki of Lies). Both were considered to be ‘feminine men’ and outsiders to Asgard. Both were descended from Giants. Both were thought to be untrustworthy, both used trickery to solve their problems, both used disguises and many names as they sought meaning and entertainment across the realms. The MCU has thought to connect this as something Odin imprinted on Loki, intentionally or no, through a role as his father, rather than something they shared that brought them together as close friends.

The history of conflating Odin and Loki is already there. While I don’t think we’ll see Loki stab himself with a spear in a search for knowledge, I do think we might see some obscure nods to it, much like how Ragnarok had some deep cuts hidden amidst the fun.

The phrase ‘sacrificing myself to myself’ seems particularly relevant, especially as multiple Lokis seem to be in the cards. Hiddleston has recently said the show will be about his ‘many selves’, and I think that will be literal and figurative. Somehow, in some way, Loki will have to kill Loki to save Loki. A sacrifice of Loki to Loki. A gaining of knowledge and truth, such as Kenaz seeks. Not to mention an overcoming of death, which Loki is well experienced in. There’s also the matter of Odin ‘bringing back the dawn’ with his resurrection, which Dagaz also promises - as does Loki in the famous loose thread from Avengers: Infinity War, when he says ‘The sun will shine on us again.’

We have shots that have Kenazes facing each other, in conflict. We even have what I think is the first multiverse Loki we’ll run into, or perhaps a mere case of mistaken identity, in this trailer:

This lad on the left seems suspiciously similar in appearance, no?

We also have this - a shot of a library.

Books are known for having letters in them, occasionally. Not always the better ones, mind, but still.

(This place may be Jotunheim, but of the shots we see this is the only one I’d say looks ‘giant-sized’, especially with that lectern in the back and the massive fire. Other shots have human-sized steps and narrow corridors, so I’m not necessarily convinced, despite the similar colour correction and architecture. I would like it to be, of course.)

That’s not even mentioning the TVA’s obsession with paperwork and recording every word Loki ever said. Which this is presumably just the table of contents for.

I think this show will be a quest for knowledge, for ‘letters’, and the power knowledge grants. Loki is dropped into a world he knows little about, and the knowledge he’s given by the TVA will likely be suspect. A quest for Truth is what began his journey in Thor 1, and I think his hunger for it has not really abated.

If you are also somehow not sated with all this guff, here’s some more, potentially:

This Blade Runner 2049 -like scene has what looks to be an evolution of Chinese or Japanese text, but there is also some resemblance to Norse Runes. My guess is that this is a future where language has evolved, or maybe this is Asgardian script. 

There’s a chance this ‘X’ is actually

Which also means partnership, and the dissolution of barriers between people through giving of yourself. We also see ‘X’ shapes prominently with Roxxcart in both trailers, with the Xes given heads to make them resemble people holding hands, as if in partnership.

Seeing as this trailer has Loki partnering with Owen Wilson and sitting side by side with the hooded woman, it is possible this could be a reference to ‘Loki learning to make friends’, and the gift of friendship. The Sacrifice thing also connects to what we mentioned earlier.

If y’all can spot any other runes or rune-like things, let me know. As for the many symbols (mostly the eyes - so many eyes), I’ll save that for a Part 2.