#which kinda enhances the experience tbh?

[proudfreakmetarusonikku]

watching the Netflix dub is like. fucking Evangelion but remembered during a fever dream it’s so cursed. Uncanny valley ass Evangelion version it’s like a weird hazy memory.

[bri-in-ur-attic]

Just some lil risqué thought I had, nothing explicit but its kinda steamy, just two idiots in love tbh (not proofread)

Imagine getting in the right mood, dimly lit candle with books surrounding you and all

P accidentally read a romantic novel and he felt the ergo in his heart churning as he imagined being in the scenario with you

Noticing he had been completely still for a long while, you peeped over next to him asking what he was reading

Placing the book down, P turns his head to face you, his face conflicted

Worried that he might've read something depressing you place a hand on his shoulder with concern

"Did you read something not pleasant?"

Shaking his head, P leaned his body towards you, your concerned expression now confused and flustered

"It was..good actually..really good.."

The implications behind his words and body language was clear

P had just read a steamy scene from a romantic novel.

"Ah- I-I get it now..."

Unable to handle his deep gaze you look away, overwhelmed but in a good way

Recalling that the male character from the book took the initiative, P gently directs your face back to him with his index finger now grabbing your chin

Deeply gazing into your eyes, he then looks down to your lips

Taking the fact that you licked your lips as a sign, P leans his face forward with eyes lidded, you mirror his actions and hear his small inhale before your lips meet his

The kiss was very gentle, like a first kiss which indeed was for P

You having a little more experience tilt your head to enhance the kiss and you hear a soft moan from P

Placing your hand where his mechanical heart is, you feel the thumping, P despite being non-human feels and acts so much like a human-being

You pull away to catch your breath, pouting at the loss of your warmth P chases after your lips and feeling more confident grabs your face but with ease to keep you at a close proximity

Grabbing his hands, you let out a breathy laugh at his assertiveness

"i need to breathe for a moment.."

While you were kissing, P had slightly pushed you down which leaves you under him, legs draped under his

After catching your breath, you pressed your lips towards P to which he reciprocates, this time you decide to let your tongue out a little to tease P's lips

He halts and eyes widen, worried that you made him uncomfortable you push yourself away embarrassed

But before you could even move 2 inches away from him, P grips your hip in one hand and the other on the back of your head and slams his lips on yours

With how human he acts, you sometimes forget that he's a puppet, but no human has ever made you feel this way, from his gentleness to his ethereal beauty, with each motion your lips move against each other, he truly is human at heart, the fact that you're French kissing with a literal puppet doesn't bother you much at all

*chirp* "Woah! You finally did it! Y/n you have no idea how much he was pining for you! I'm so proud of you pal!"

Both you and P look at the Gemini with annoyance

[sunthyme]

Sorry for this being a day late, I last second decided I hated how the og designs turned out so I redid them lmaooo. Whoops! Tyty sm for the support though, I love y'all! 🩷🩷🩷

💐Ignihyde💐

I cleared the tail end of Book 4 and all of Book 5 two days ago so fair warning, I'm still not completely aware of all the ins and outs of Ortho and Idia. And I might have to redo some of my Pomefiore headcanons with Book 5 in mind, namely Rook??? Whose apparently from Sunset Savanna??? Anyways, onto the designs...

🎮Idia Shroud🎮

(he/it) Unlabelled Gender - Achillic Asexual

Ah, the most relatable character in Twisted Wonderland...

- I don't think I really changed a whole lot about him physically, tbh. Gave him slightly bluer skin and dark makeup. I figured he's kinda one of the closest characters to like alt fashion and stuff so I slapped some piercings on him.

- You can't see them with his GIANT MESS OF HAIR but I gave him some piercings. I'll just grab a pic of them rq.

No bald Idia today guys.

- He's autistic. Is that even up for debate at this point? Either way, I feel like he'd actually hate having hair against his neck and typically put it into a ponytail or something. That shit would be hella warm otherwise, fire or no.

- He plays dating sims religiously but god forbid someone ACTUALLY flirts with him. In the unlikely scenario that he actually realises they're hitting on it, he just freaks out and runs, physically if possible. I think he's unintentionally shut people down hard because he cannot fathom why anyone would like it.

- He has to fight his demons whenever he see any of the people with cat ears which me too me too. Ignihyde actually has a bit of a stray cats issue, namely because Idia sets out food and water for them and refuses to let anyone take them away. They never get into the workshops or anywhere dangerous and Idia has named all of them.

- He has unique names not only for the stray cats of Ignihyde but also for all of the ones in his games, in specific his Minecraft cats.

- It's actually in the process of making a robotic cat as a sort of emotional support animal since a live cat isn't allowed in classes due to allergies (which Grim is exempt from due to him not technically being a cat and not producing allergens, fun fact).

- Oh! And I headcanon him as Greek and Japanese. Forgot that oops. Nationality-wise he'd be Australian though.

I was struggling to think of things that were just canon facts of his character already, which, to be fair, some of this could be but moving onto...

🦾Ortho Shroud🦾

(they/it/he) Nonbinary???

I actually adore how they came out omg. I have no really experience with robot/cyborg character design so I gave myself some liberties.

- First and for most, I made a lot of its robot features more obvious with panelling that would make it easy for Idia to access any brain or vocal mechanics. You cannot convince me that Idia, known for liking video games and anime, would pass up an opportunity to make Ortho look cool asf. Or maybe Book 6 can but for now, panels.

- I don't know if it's ever brought up in detail Ortho's like material components and stuff but I think they're made with the anti-magic stuff Charon's ferrymen have, further enhanced and durable. His freckles help with sensing particularly smell and temperature.

- His eyes took a bit of inspiration from Genoa, I just though a black sclera would look super cool tbh.

- It's hair is a bit crazier and I wanted to lowkey emulate Medusa vibes with it and the soulless eyes lol.

Not much else right now but I know damn well Book 6 will make me cry... Time for the ocs!

🪻Fuji Izanami🪻

Third Year - (she/he) Bigender - Bisexual

- So, a bit of a disclaimer, I've never actually seen Hercules because I was a Greek mythology nerd and was offended by the inaccuracies lol so keep that in mind with the ocs for this dorm. Fuji is my Cerberus character!

- He's the vice-housewarden of Ignihyde and tends to help out with Ortho's upgrades by moving the heavier parts that Idia can't lift.

- Since I believe, and correct me if I'm wrong, Cerberus means 'spots', I wanted her to have a ton of freckles as an omage.

- She's fully Japanese and has been a childhood friend of the Shrouds, with both families going way back. He was kind of Idia's emotional support before Ortho was allowed as well as a bit of a bodyguard. She and Ortho were the reason Idia didn't have to attend with a mass guard force.

- Quiet and seems quite menacing at first but is a huge softie and loves to be around other people. She and Jack are workout buddies and bond over common music tastes in the J-Pop and K-Pop genres.

- When she's talking to Idia or Ortho, it tends to be in Japanese (neglecting that the game is set to Japanese, imagine the default is like a common tongue or something lol).

- He specialises in heavier mech tech, developing protective wear and other durable things to work with. She hopes to intern with Charon eventually and work to study the containment of blot.

Now for another set of triplets, these ones all in Ignihyde...

🕰️Ye-Jin Ryu🕰️

Second Year - (she/her) - Sapphic

So these next three characters are representative of the Fates, they're Korean.

- Ye-Jin is my 'past' character. I styled her hair is an older-fashioned wavy cut and gave her some classy pearl earrings to give that 🌸vintage aesthetic🌸.

- Her primary skill set and interest is in re-purposing older things and upgrading them i.e. keeping the older aesthetic but making the mechanisms modern and remove the fear that it'll break down from overuse and whatnot.

- As such, she's a sucker for antiques and older fashion trends, mostly consisting of long skirts and formal wear. That being said, she still wears properly protective gear w an working on one of her projects.

- A hobby of hers is photography and she loves both actually taking photos as well as experimenting with different kinds of old cameras. She's a part of a photography club and also has a photo wall in her room.

- Never one to slack, she enjoys journalling and writing letters in her pass time as well. A hopeless romantic, she and Chanda share a class and Ye-Jin writes little posty notes for her.

Now for the present..

🛰️Ji-Ho Ryu🛰️

Second Year - (she/they) - Heteroromantic Bisexual

- Ji-Ho is the present and reflects a more modern Korean makeup style and haircut. I think she'd have reading glasses but only wear them when necessary.

- She has an interest in modern technology and pushing its limits. Adding more storage to a computer than typically offered, making a car even more gas efficient, that kind of stuff.

- They like a combination of things but are actually a part of the Spelldrive Club. She wanted to try something new and expand their bases. It gave her some insight for a recent interest in prosthetics she's developed.

For the final Fate,

👾Dae Ryu👾

Second Year - (she/they/it) Agender - Pansexual

- Dae is the future! I gave her more sci-fi-y makeup and a bit more flare in its hairstyle. Some piercings and ta dah!

- They specialise in bio-tech. Looking at nature to modify scientific approaches and being more environmentally friendly. Sustainability is a top priority for Dae.

- She wants to eventually make basic resources easily accessible to all and is doing its best to work out a solution. They're connecting the dots lol.

- Dae is a part of the hiking club and loves being around nature as much if not more than being in her lab. They often go hiking with Chunying on weekends.

For the last Ignihyde student and the final Benoit...

💀Cooper Benoit💀

First Year - (they/he) Nonbinary - Queer

- Cooper is twisted from Barrel and is the last of the Benoit family to be introduced. They are a very booksmart person and a math nerd.

- He's also disabled and typically uses a wheelchair. As such, they have been working on trying to improve the school's general accessibility as even with magic, NRC's campus can be difficult to navigate in a wheelchair.

- Similarly to Idia, Cooper is a total cat person and he and Idia take care of the strays together. Cooper's slowly memorising the names lmao.

That's all for Ignihyde! Diasomnia will be out tomorrow, promise! Tyty 🩷🩷🩷

[taeiris]

if I’ve already sent this ask before I’m so sorry, I’ve got adhd, but how did you find your art? (I’m in my questioning phase)

hihi!!! no problem! i think i have some kind of glitch with asks bc when i go look for them it says i have 3, but when i check it, there isn’t any so im sorry if any of u have ever sent asks and i havent answered them it’s probably bc of that😭

but anyways lets get on it!

finding you art style is not smth simple at ALL. ive been drawing my entire life!!! and ive had a bunch of different styles until now, they kinda used to change every few months or so, i was always happy with them but it never really lasted??? and i always had at least one part of the process of it to dread doing, for example, coloring.

it wasn’t until recently i FINALLLYYY found a style im 100% comfortable in.

it really takes experimenting and finding what elements of creating art you love and enjoy the most. for me, i used to mostly do traditional art, just pencil or ink sketching and i would OCCASIONALLY color them. so i really used to enjoy kinda the messiness of the pencil on trad mediums and stuff? and i never rlly found a way to translate that element to digital art which is the one i enjoy the most now.

brushes are very important! it depends on the look you like. since i like that pencil feel, i use a pencil looking brush! (softy from esbenlash’s procreate brush set) and i also got a paper feel screen protector for my ipad to enhance the experience🔥

i found i mostly enjoyed doing lineart and didnt rlly look forward to coloring, i didnt find my past styles enjoyable bc they kind of felt restricting in that area? since i didnt find a way to make it more abt the lineart and less abt coloring that i liked (ofc theres plenty! i just didnt find one for me)

so tbh i think what mostly influenced the style i enjoy the most now is film, and baroque art!

i had recently seen:

Crimson Peak (2015)

The Shape of Water (2017)

and ofc

Stranger Things DUHHHHH

and i fell in love with the way the lightning was, heavy dark shadows and moody lights, and tried to match my style to it and found that it highlighted all the things i enjoy doing the most while drawing! so thats where i am now

special mention to the one movie im obsessed with currently

The Crow (1994)

also has the similar style

all that + experimenting, studying other’s art i liked and finding elements to integrate to my art, ANDDD music also played a huge part in it. so as you can see for me its about kind of combining aspects of every single piece of media i like 😭

its not gonna be the same for everyone, but its always good to have a guide so i hope this was useful for you and anyone else! im always willing answer any art questions :)

don’t worry too much about speeding up finding your style, it’ll come to you eventually, so focus on enjoying the moment and learning, take mental notes of what you like and don’t like!

sorry this is kinda long as hell… but i like rambling

[running-tweezers]

Ok, I’m finally doing it.

The Damien/Huxley Pining Playlist

I am well known amongst my friends for my Far Too Thought Out Playlists. I have one for like, every D&D character I’ve ever made, and have written full Google docs about each song and why it’s there.

Combine that with my voracious love of DamiHux and pining? We get this.

So if you just want to listen without reading an essay, I will put my annotations and thoughts under the cut. (But it will probably enhance your listening experience tbh)

Congrats you’ve entered the

MARISA ANALYSIS ZONE

Welcome. You’re my kinda people.

First the basics, this playlist encapsulates Damien and Huxley's entire pre-confession relationship, from their first meeting, through Inversion, to the confession itself. It alternates POVs, I’ll label each song with a color to make it easier to follow. Cool? Let’s go.

——————————————————————————

Stray Italian Greyhound - Vienna Teng

Kicking off the playlist with one of my very favorite songs on it. First song, Damien’s first impressions of Huxley.

The denial was REAL. Those initial feelings were met with a “OH NO, OH GOD, OH FUCK” kind of reaction. Damien was totally unsure of what to even do with what he was feeling. After all, he isn’t the kind to get so mushy and sappy over a little crush! Especially on someone he literally just met! He’s far too cynical for something like that. So he just tried to push it down, ignore it.

But it “won’t sit still” “won’t do what it’s told”. Huxley came into his life and changed EVERYTHING. In a way that feels incredible, but makes things complicated. And he’s going to have to deal with it eventually.

But not now.

Enchanted - Taylor Swift

Putting this song on this playlist is part of where my “Huxley is a Swiftie” headcanon came from. It was a joke at first, I swear.

This is Huxley’s POV of their first meeting at the bowling alley. The “forcing laughter, faking smiles” really plays into where Hux was at that point, still putting on a bit of an act and not letting people see past the surface level. But he met Damien, they hit it off, and Hux was immediately feeling some kinda way.

I’m convinced this big guy had some giddy, twirling hair, kicking feet energy about Damien. Thinking about him for days after they met. Hoping that they would continue to be friends and get closer. And that this was the beginning of something that could be amazing.

Trouble - Troye Sivan & Jay Som

You can’t deny it forever, Damien.

This is Damien coming to terms with the fact that yes, he does have some feelings for Huxley. He’s now got a group of friends like he’s never had before, and that’s changing his outlook a little bit. He doesn’t want to live like he’s been living anymore, focused entirely on school and grades, and hurrying to the future he wants for himself.

And one of those friends felt like something different to him and he can’t deny it anymore. As scary as that was.

THATS WHAT I WANT - Lil Nas X

I think we as a society do not talk enough about how lonely Huxley was.

Huxley was the kind of guy who was friendly with everyone. He was liked by pretty much everyone. He was liberal with hugs and willing to give every ounce of love he had to other people.

But he was still guarded. Playing the version of himself everyone expected. Afraid to be himself. All that friendliness and love given away didn’t translate to anything substantial.

He wanted someone to love him back.

And now he had friends! Which was amazing and made him a lot less lonely. But one of his friends, again, was different. And he desperately wanted a different kind of love back from him. One he was more than happy to give, but afraid he wouldn’t receive in return.

Out of My League - Fitz and the Tantrums

First of all. God I love Fitz and the Tantrums.

We know that Damien doesn’t think he’s good enough for Huxley. He ESPECIALLY thought that in this stage, around the time of Friendsgiving.

Damien knows he’s easily annoyed, loses his temper quickly, and doesn’t think he’s much to look at either. But Huxley is so patient, is a calming presence, and is incredible to look at as far as Damien’s concerned. Huxley is so wonderful, and so far out of his league that he really thought he had no chance.

But that doesn’t stop him from daydreaming. Hoping someday he might be more than just a dream.

Golden - Harry Styles

Damien might think that he’s not good enough, but Huxley would definitely beg to differ. In a lot of ways, Huxley thought Damien was too good for him. Too smart, too bright, too driven to be interested in someone like him.

So he decided to keep his feelings to himself. Because he knows Damien isn’t nearly as open with that kind of thing as he is.

Also I think this song’s bright, firey, sun-coded imagery being seen as something to be admired and adored is really in line with Huxley seeing everything Damien thinks is bad about himself and loving him for those exact things.

Line Without a Hook - Ricky Montgomery

This is the one. I could do a whole lyric by lyric breakdown of this one. But I will attempt to keep it brief. Bc I’m obviously so good at that, just look at this post

Immediately after the Inversion, Damien had some very complicated feelings. About Huxley, about himself, about everything. This song encapsulates all of that.

Huxley saves his life in several ways that night. Both by being a support during his breakdown, and physically, literally saving his life when he exhausted all his magic. And he still feels like he can’t reach out. They hasn’t spoken at all. I can’t help but think that maybe he feels like it’s better that way, like it’s his fault, like Hux doesn’t want to hear from him. After all, Huxley was so emotionally mature about it all and he was not.

Combine that with his feelings of inadequacy, looking back at the night and wishing there was some way to take back some the the decisions he made. He would’ve helped Hux the same way Hux helped him, if he had just done things differently.

So he’s throwing himself completely into training. Maybe if he just works hard enough, he can make up for it. And maybe those complicated emotions will go away.

Also. Two specific lyrics I feel I need to point out. “I need you here to stay” is an excellent counterpart yo Huxley’s “right here” and we all know how I feel about a fuckin motif. And of course “all my emotions feel like explosions when you are around” is almost literal in this case’

(I have so much more to say about this one, but perhaps another time)

Heat Waves - Glass Animals

Though Huxley seemed to handle the aftermath of Inversion with a calm maturity, that doesn’t mean he didn’t have his own struggles.

As he went home to be with his family and deal with things, his feelings for Damien stayed. I do wonder what he was thinking during that time, when Damien wasn’t talking to him after everything they went through. I think that maybe he also blamed himself a bit. Maybe they weren’t as close as he thought? He felt like no matter what he did or said, it wouldn’t help Damien, no matter how much he wanted it to.

Also like. “Heat Waves” is too perfect a concept to not use in this playlist.

Delicate - Taylor Swift

After things start to return to some kind of normalcy after Inversion, Damien’s feelings for Huxley are stronger than ever. There’s no denial anymore, he really likes Huxley. He’s thinking about Huxley a lot. He wants to be with Huxley.

But things are different now, whether they like it or not. Inversion changed things, and everyone is still working through that night at their own pace. So there is a lot of hesitation on Damien’s part about what he should and shouldn’t do about the feelings he has.

By this point they’re hanging out together more, just the two of them. And Damien is really wrestling with whether or not to let Hux know how he feels. There’s a fear that he might upset the delicate situation they’re currently in, as friends who have been through hell together and are still healing from it.

Dandelions - Ruth B.

At the same time that Damiens’s so concerned about what moves to make, Huxley has never lined harder. He is firmly in “lovesick puppy” territory. He’s gotten even closer to Damien, and know him on a deep level now. He knows the parts of Damien he doesn’t show most people. And he loves them.

Damien just makes him so happy.

This song’s imagery is so good as well. It gives vibes of lush, green earth and flowers and something just so Huxley imo

In My Head - Joe Serafini & Andrew Barth Feldman

I am incapable of making a playlist for anything without including at least one musical theater song, and this is no exception. Through this not from an actual musical, it’s more theater adjacent, let’s call it.

We’re into right before the confession territory, a song for both of them, a duet. This song perfectly illustrates the awkward stage they’re in, as friends who both desperately want to be something different.

So much of this song feels so perfect for them specifically, it’s like it written for them, I swear. Huxley’s worries about being too much, Damien feeling like he’s not good enough, the gym line, it’s all too good honestly.

Right Here - Betty Who

And the playlist caps off with this one, the song that Erik Redacted himself said was their song. And it really is perfect, especially with that “Right Here” motif carried through their relationship that I love so much. It’s just so damn soft and so am I. I love them your honor.

——————————————————————————

HOLY SHIT this took so long. I sincerely hope you got something out of all of the ravings of a mad man that this ended up being.

Also @redactedbloop dinner’s ready, eat up!!!

[mosneakers]

Do you have any tips and tricks for someone (me) starting a sims story to post on Tumblr? Asking for a friend (it's me. I'm the friend)

omggg you're askin me? 🥺

I'm not sure I'm the best simblr to ask because I'm not in it for the trends or popularity; I'm all about the interaction and finding others to talk to at length about my delusional fictional universe that's been going on for over a decade now lol. But let me try:

*puts on my mother glasses* There are two ways to go about it; depending on your goals. There are plenty of exceptions, but simblr sorta has a formula you can follow. Get ready for some contradictions haha

if you aim to appease the simblr community:

reshade/gshade mixed with photo-editing is generally a must. Simblr users will gravitate to pretty pictures, so even if you're an excellent writer, people usually won't give it a second look unless something attracts them to it. The sims is pretty ugly without filters and such, and it will enhance the experience as well. Bonus if you crank up the mxao and depth of field but I prefer to take it a little easy on those lol

CC. Not necessarily a must, but simblr in particular usually hates vanilla sims. same explanation as above, slather those suckers in skin details!!

poses poses poses. readers love reading stories with poses and they spit on screenshots with only game animations! (tbh those game animations do get pretty repetitive after a while so I kinda get it)

Read stories. I'm not much of a reader personally, but there's a huge imbalance in the reader-writer ratio on simblr, and lots of simblrs will return the favor if you read theirs too. Be careful, though; getting stuck in a transactional mutualship can lead to tricky dynamics. Only reach out to other stories if you're genuinely interested in following more stories, not just to gain readers.

BUT, with all that being said, as an "elder" of the simblr community, please consider this as permission to say screw any and all of those above tips if they don't align with your goals.

If your goal is to just have fun and relax:

reshade/gshade. Because let's be real the game's graphics are very depressing. It's not actually a must if you're just enjoying yourself, but if you find the right settings and just play, so you can spend minimal or even no time editing your photos. There are lots of tutorials that explain how to set it up. If you can't figure it out or don't feel like it, that's also not a big deal.

I can be a controlling sim god when it comes to my stories, and I have most things planned out. HOWEVER sometimes it's a little fun to let the sims drive their own storylines. If something is just not working, I consider that a sign to let the story flow in a slightly different direction. IF you're planning on writing gameplay stories/writing as you go, as I do. (which has its own challenges lol)

Sometimes it can be tempting to let readers sway the way the story is going. Sometimes that is a strategy that works. But if you have a storyline that you're confident in, own it and let it play out. Even if the whole community (and your spouse) wants that alien character to go die, you have him there for a reason, trust in the power of your storytelling 😜

Despite being a pose creator, I find using poses kinda tedious and sucks the life and immersion out of the story and gameplay personally, if used too much. Trust me, I do use my fair share of them, but I do try to use the game animations whenever possible. When I do use poses, I personally prefer to keep the expressions very maxis-y.

Don't try to be like any one particular simblr. With a community where we all pull from the same CC and game pack pools, there's bound to be overlap in aesthetics, storylines, and concepts. Definitely find inspiration in all your faves but do what works best for you but don't feel some sort of way if your screenshots don't look exactly like PastelPlumbobPixelLlama's game, despite you downloading all the content and presets from their resource page! You have your own style babe and it's way more unique ♥

Post a "New Story/New simblr" post to get the word out about your story.

PLEASE don't ever get discouraged by notes because you are perfect and creative and if others don't understand your genius that's them problem ok <3

sorry it's so long ;-; there's probably more but that's what came to my mind off the bat.

[solarwynd]

Am I the only that thinks hybe getting Jungkook to collab with usher instead of jimin is slimy as hell? I’m not saying it wasn’t out of convenience, usher and scooter Braun have a history (he calls him his soul brother) so getting him to collab with a bts member was surely appealing to usher anyone would jump at the chance but to not give it to jimin someone who’s expressed that this is someone he idolized growing up is shitty as hell. Not saying jimin wouldn’t be happy for Jungkook or be supportive but after watching the dance performance he compliments jimin so well. It’s a shame he’s a Zionist and all so in a way it’s a relief he wasn’t working with jimin but before that came out all I felt was anger for jimin tbh. It’s like if jimin collaborated with Justin Bieber someone who Jungkook has idolized and basically shaped his entire personality around. I know he would feel some type of way but one of my mutuals also said jimin has changed the last few years so maybe usher isn’t his favorite artist anymore and maybe that’s true but I doubt it. He has namedropped him many times over the years just like he did for fast and furious but I think jimin is not the type of person to reach out to an artist, at least from the very small collaborations he’s done he was the one that was always being asked. Sometimes I wish jimin took initiative because I do not want him to work with usher anymore but I would love for him to work with kehlani, h.e.r., mahlia, aamaree, ariana, lucky daye extc. There’s so many artists that would compliment his voice but I just feel as though he never feels the need to reach out like the other members do.

Mmm I don’t think it was slimy more like a wasted opportunity in general or something that could’ve had more artistic merit had he been involved with jimin. Like you have an artist like usher and then just shove him on a remix? Dumb. Fts should always be representative of bringing someone on that you feel could either bridge a gap to make a more complete song or enhancing it. Not just putting someone on the track just to be there. If you do the later, it just ends up sounding disjointed in the end. For example, I can’t imagine usher being on any song on face cause he doesn’t fit the vision jimin was going with. Jimin even said there were no fts on face because he didn’t feel right with someone else singing on tracks about his personal experiences.

In jk’s case, usher fits what he’s going for. Which is basically an imitation of him and several others. They’re collecting the major male solo artists to get them to collab with jk. Not only to bring him more clout but to also have him aligned with that image of the next big male soloist in america. Justin beiber is gonna be the last infinity stone in that gauntlet and we all know they probably have that lined up already.

It’s also kinda unrealistic to call “dibs” on an artist just because someone idolizes them. Chances are if another member genuinely wanted to, they’d approach them. Doesn’t make sense to put something that you already have planned on hold just to wait for person A, who has nothing planned with said artist, to maaaybe put something in the works with them, out of courtesy to them. I understand that the novelty of it might be dampened since someone in the group nabbed him first, but that doesn’t mean usher can never be utilized again as a ft. And the product from the second time around would probably be infinitely better anyway. (In theory. I’d rather him not work with him) It’s very easy to conflate all these instances as slights towards jimin since hybe is always working against him and maybe there is some hint of that in this decision, but it wasn’t their goal with this imho.

Claiming jimin doesn’t take initiative in terms of doing collabs is odd to me though, cause you can’t say that if it was never on the docket for him. I could understand if he was constantly teasing or nudging at usher for a collab, but he never has. He just mentions that he loves his work. And like I said, if he didn’t fit the vision then there’s no point of putting him on a song. I’m sure there probably are collabs for jimin in the future that he has planned. Good chance it won’t be with anybody who any of us envisioned (I’ve dreamed of him doing a collab with banks for ages) and that’s gonna have to be okay. Cause if it works and it works for him then 🤷🏾‍♀️

[ninjaunderscore]

What are your headcanon of Evil wizard without hood apparence and of His forms a ball and a giant spider i like to see how he look His full body reference

Finally getting around to answering the year old asks LMAO anyways Ive gotten 2 asks about this so I broke them up into separate posts

I call the Evil Wizard 'Mandrin' which is a misspelling of Mandarin, reason being I joked about him being as small as a Mandarin orange, so with that out of the way ill be referring to him from now on!

Tbh I saw him as a troll, kinda like what the troll mom spawns in thieves forest/in the marsh? But lighter with the fur patterns like his spider form!! Hes just a little guy, heres an old ref of his unhooded look and his alt forms (theyre just the same imo, lmao)

I havent seriously drawn the ball form he has nor have I drawn his spider form since Im horrifically afraid of arachnids

His design is very different now but I haven't gotten around to drawing his ref sheet but it's the same thing, just different robes!

Heres him in my newer style!! hes just a full on spider creature

MASSIVE LORE DUMP AHEAD

Onto his head cannons about his forms:

I personally have an au where my head cannons take place because I absolutely adore lore building on this game

Mandrin wasnt originally evil, he was a part of a coven of high mages and such! They take the form of anthropomorphic creatures and try and keep the peace working with other kingdoms (flooded temple/Marsh, Castle Grey(Home Castle), Lava World, the Arctic, Sand Castle, etc etc yk)

Mandrin thought of a plan to take over the entire land, have everyone live in harmony in his own way and to have all the kingdoms respond to the high covens command (which he wanted to be in charge of) but that required essentially beating the kingdoms into submission. He was then cast out of the coven to be on his own, stripped from his title and role.

Mandarin was enraged and proceeded to take the situation into his own hands, training his own army with his own ideals to unite the world and be king of the lands.

Im not gonna go too far into his back story but thats how he started to be,,, well,,, himself.

Hes able to transform as Ive stated before, high powered mage, but he doesnt have a lot of experience so his powers are limited. This is why his spider form is very.... Unstable? Goopy, slimy, not right. He and his magic are very unstable to begin with and its just enhanced by the magical crystal he stole from the king.

[arrenkae]

So I finished bg3 and thought the ending was Fine, Actually

Maybe I expected the worst after seeing so many people voicing their disappointments

Maybe I was lucky to avoid most bugs that made the experience worse for others

Or maybe I'm just too happy with my boy Withers/Jergal being a total badass MVP both in my good dark urge ending (I'll write more about this in another post) and in the after credits scene so that everything else pales in comparison

Hell yeah bro you tell them

...but yeah, I quite liked this ending. It hit all the right notes for me: big epic final fight, big stakes, dramatic cinematics, all of all allies gathering to help, final words from our companions before we go and celebrate our victory

Sure, there is room for improvement and the ways it could be made more impactful and reflect our choices better; and with so many people being unhappy with the ending, I wouldn't be surprised if Larian make those improvements in a future enhanced edition or something

But so many people who are unhappy with the ending are asking for detailed epilogue sliders and look

I'm probably going to give a very controversial opinion here

But I don't really care for epilogue sliders. I don't hate them, of course, many great RPGs have ending sliders. They are fine. Especially in the heavily text-based games. But personally, if the game's story worked well on its own, tied all the loose ends and answered the big questions, I'm fine with just having a big satisfying ending scene and riding off into the sunset. We won, there is a bright future ahead of us, who knows what it will bring. Maybe there will be a sequel, maybe you can just imagine things. It's fine to end it at that.

Meanwhile, epilogue sliders bring a certain sense of... finality that I don't always vibe with. It's one thing to see your choices pay off in the game itself, but spelling out the characters' futures for years to come is sometimes a bit too much. Also, in most cases it just boils down to "this village you saved? yup, it's saved, everyone is living happily now" and "this character you helped and who already told you their plans for the future? yeah, they are going to do just that, they are going to be fine". Which is sometimes nice to hear, I get that.

Or, alternatively, when the epilogue gives you an unexpected outcome, and it's not really something you wanted for this character, it kind of sucks, you know? You are not going to replay a game for one different slider. But then you are like, "okay, those are just sliders, I can pretend this didn't happen like that" and then this whole things kinda falls apart. Sliders never quite feel like the "real" part of an ending for me, more like some musings about the most likely future. I can take them or leave them.

But like I said, it's much more important for me to have the game itself end on a strong note. Tbh, endings tend to be the weakest part of SO MANY great RPG games that are amazing otherwise; and Baldur's Gate 3 is far, FAR from the worst examples. With so many hours of gameplay, and so many choices you can make, it's super hard to end it in a way that truly does justice to this entire experience.

...but for some people, like me, it's enough to see Jergal shit talking the Dead Three. That's all I ever wanted from this game. Absolutely iconic.

[gamerism]

Top 5 fics of yours? 👀

(could be finished, could be wips, unpublished.. anything that you consider favs/ that are special to u 💜💜)

Do you mean my own work? Interesting question.

5. Kinda wanna start with an unpublished (and unfinished) oc fic, it's just, which one do I choose ya know? Maybe my spidersona stuff, I never finished writing about the Neon Arachnid / Ara, but I had some ideas for how to play with the canon of the mcu spiderman movies that I wanted to explore back when I was into them. Also nonbinary superheroes navigating the gendered nature of the role isn't an oversaturated concept yet, and I was gonna explore that.

4. Reproval is hard to talk about for how personal it ended up being but I do like that it spoke to other people in the pathologic fandom. I'd had other questionable experiences in the past with responses to a fic focused on an autism headcanon and this one was waaay more personal than that, so the positive response was really nice (and probably why i didnt take it down later out of fear of being known).

3. I feel like I wanna put something with my first major DA inquisitor here, so I'll go with Sacrifice, and the demons i exorcised from my psyche with this fic and the rest of his. He was kinda the first Big oc that I did a lot of stuff with and remains special to me because of that, as do the fics i wrote for him jkdsgh. So looking at this fic from that perspective, it's closing his chapter of things.

2. The Dragon of Dojima's First Revelation is probably my longest work that doesn't follow the structure of a canonical event, so woo for that. I'm also writing another fic that's gonna be set in the same AU which i'm feeling excited abt. I think I just like the softness of this fic...

1. Tbh atm I think I still really like An Introduction for Kazumi. It was fun to come up with the idea to mix media (and show some of the stuff that kinda inspired the fic!) as I haven't really done that with fic before and I've rarely done it with my art overall. It's something I'd like to do more in the future, especially the idea of mixing my poetry with other mediums. Regardless the fics came out well and I like to think they enhanced the reading experience in the end.

[picas-art]

Who, in your opinion, would make for a great DM for DnD? Jonathan, with a scary DND campaign using fear toxin to .... enhance the experience. Jervis, with his ,,,, special ways to enhance the experience.. Clayface could prolly turn into NPC tbh,,, What are your opinons lol

I've recently been introduced to Call of Cthulhu and I think Jonathan would be the perfect DM for that. I kinda feel he would be a great storyteller, and in multiple comics it's been shown he can scare people shitless just by talking, so he probably wouldn't even need the fear toxin. Might be great therapy for him actually, it's like the most harmless way where he gets to scare people and they'll actually come to him for it.

Meanwhile I think the award for worst DM ever would go to Edward since all he cares about is proving how smart he is. So all his players die after just one session because the encounters are way too difficult, and no one wants to play with him anymore. Which offends him deeply.

Maybe Jon and Ed should just work together really, like Jon does the storytelling and Ed finds players for sessions via Reddit and forums, and makes highly detailed dungeon maps that have actual special effects and moving parts. Maybe even little robots that walk around on the map as NPC's or enemies. Though I also absolutely love the idea of Clayface turning into NPC's and since he's been an actor I think he would def be into that so he can join too.

Might make for a great therapy session, take notes Arkham.

[kurjakani]

Hiii! I was wondering if you’re still into cyberpunk if you could give us (mainly me) some more Dum Dum/ Royce hcs I love the way you interpret them 💛 just go off the rails plz

I am DEEPLY into dummybaby still even tho its been a while since i played cyberpunk 2077.. the tech stuff is cool in a lot of places but the only ppl who rllly wet my appetite for scifi humanity r the maelstrom and the little hints we get about how they function.. Im not like. adept w any technology i can barely keep my comp 2gether so i dont quite understand it, but the part about Maelstrom bodies or brains somehow amplifying music in Totentanz? Made me d r o o l

ANYWAYS im not gonna talk abt te canonical stuff i barely remember it i need 2 refreshen my brain abt it but ill give. u a quick reminder of how i visualize/characterize Dum dum mostly but ill also give some royce stuff and then ill just go ham w some headcanons abt their basic life.

2 me as like, one of the CHillest maelstrom, which, isnt saying a lot, but 2 me (maybe as an adhd person who experiences the same and mayyy be reflecting a bit teehee) hes someone whos experiencing some level of understimulation who gets over it w extremity.

I usually imagine ngl that its caused by being so overstimulated by an extreme enviroment for his whole life (i mean. night city yk?) that he needs constant punching to get through life. this makes for a vERY hollow feeling life for him but 2 me.

Royces chaos kinda enhances it for him 2 some kinda point of like. purpose? Almost? which is why he seems 2 have at least. like some mild genuine respect & dedication to him. yipee yk.

Royce is just batshit and he loves his music and is the exact opposite he seems 2 be full of energy and so on. Royce is hyped Dum dum is exhausted but seeking smth that feels real and alive and exeptional.

2 me. we get so little abt their personalities in game PLEASE leave me alone this is ENTIRELY speculation and reflective.

anyways yeah just some random stuff!!!!

bc of that i kinda like to think that they r both. unwell sleepers if that makes sense? Dont sleep enough. Royce sleeps naturally very little and dum dum keeps up w him. We doo see dum dum usually just hanging about, lounging, I can totally imagine him taking mininaps constantly, eyes flickering from time to time, head nodding. Snapping 2 awakenness suddenly when Royce starts speaking again.

ive looked at some rotations of dum dums model and some of his bodymods are DEFINETLY more just aesthetic than functional.. at LEAST his upper lip rings. Those r trditional piercings. Probably also is chin metal n much of the stuff around his mouth. Again im not technically adept and Idk what the designers were going for, but I'd love to think that also the cored part around his neck, where they've just taken a part around his spine and replaced it w a dent of metal, is fully appearences, just bc its so extreme and interesting. He likes his bodymods he enjoys the process!!!! Perhaps he even enjoys the care that goes into them, bodymods that heavy must require a lot of care.

I dont. think he has tattoos in his final design right? og dumdum had the tats? Though i do love to think that he got tattoos when he was younger but most of them have just gone through being torn apart by his later bodymodifications. Maybe he has some shitty stick & pokes somewhere thatd be cute. bonding w the boys.

he mentions he likes classic rock music- tbh i kinda love 2 imagine that hed also enjoy old movies/shows? classics enjoyer. i knoww they have like those brainfilms n shit but its rly hard for me to imagine film going out of style fully, just like books havent fully gone out of style bc movies exist. i dont remember if movies r much mentioned in the game though. STILL yeah I bet hed like some horror movies... He would 1000% watch texas chainsaw massacre etc, and movies from our day as classics. Midsommar w / dum dum sounds like a nightmare.

Secretly dumdums a lil interested in philosophy. He kinda dismisses stuff like that but he does have a secret admiration for the world and thoughts. This comes out particularly bc Royce has some weird ideas.

I think he must be running warm most of the time.... My friend asked me if i think his metal parts get cold enough for your tongue to get stuck and yeah thatd be funny he prolly hates cold weather and needs 2 wear a balaklava when its wintery outside so his metal parts dont freeze his face.

seeks purpose but u might not realize it bc hes made chaos his purpose

Litcherally never prolly thinks about cyberpsychosis. if e does, maybe he even wishes for it in some way? in a self destructive sense. Royce is more likely to experience it faster, though which i imagine would be a big blow 2 dumdum

Has a lot of CASUAL friends in the maelstrom but it never gets fully to the level of found family/genuine friends. Yes they have a lot in common, yes he spends all his time w them, but it often feels surface level to him, and "unreal". Hes found a more profound connection in Royce, but i feel like his admiration is a little one sided, and that he realizes it? But is like. whatever this is still nice.

dehydrated, forgets to eat and eats like shit when he does eat. Loves carbs and sugars. Possibly caues some of his exhaustion.

He kinda plays up his emotional outbursts!!!! He isnt that angry. He does it to assert dominance in a very outbursty enviroment. If he was in a chiller enviroment you could actually mess w him quite a lot and hed just laugh and mess back w you.

BOTTHH of their eyes can flicker 2 the beat of music like those old computer apps that played music and had some kinda visual indicator of the rythm. fuck w them

Dum dum prolly drives some kinda rly shitty van most of the time, just bc hes usually hanging out w so many people. Big driver in general!!! Not like a car/bike person but enjoys sitting at the wheel and feeling out how the car runs. usually a p good driver but sometimes he gets too focused on getting some adrenaline and becomes a bit of a mess of a driver.

[cubedmango]

so this spiraled out of control, and this is me warning that my messages ahead are gonna get pretty long, so my apologies for clogging up your inbox with my ramblings as i do my best to answer your questions and stuff 😅 so basically: most toku are elaborate children's toy commercials, superhero shows, and shounen manga/anime but live-action (complete with the homoeroticism) rolled into one, although a good portion of its protagonists (especially in kamen rider, the franchise i'm most familiar with atm) are actually adults this time, albeit usually 20-something prettyboys (as to why, look up the odagiri effect if you haven't heard of it yet). and officially, toku isn't really a genre (stuff like godzilla are also considered toku), but many people outside of the jpn fandom basically treat it as such in the way they treat shounen, shoujo, seinen, josei, etc. so i guess it doesn't really matter anymore atp? (1/?)

(rest of ur asks under the cut!)

some toku are more adult-oriented, though those tend to be relegated to webseries and movies that aren't aired on tv, but again i'm not as familiar with that stuff rn. and you're right about the number of episodes - among the toku big 3 (kr, super sentai - aka the basis for power rangers, ultraman), kr and sentai seasons tend to be ~50 episodes while ultraman seasons are often around 25 instead. also all 3 of these air shows annually, but each is generally stand-alone albeit taking place in the same wider universe (mcu vibes except i think it's somewhat less annoying and with a less strict sense of having to make everything 'canon') and which can be loosely connected enough for them to have crossover movies every so often (though yeah, those tend to be not officially canon) (2/?)

among those big 3 as well, kr is definitely the go-to if you're interested in m/m subtext, whereas it's apparently less frequent (but definitely still present occasionally) in sentai and ultraman, especially as sentai in particular seems to be more big on the power of platonic friendship and family (not so sure on ultraman as that's the most unfamiliar series to me for now, though fwiw i think the template of the steel samurai in aa is relatively closer to ultraman than to the other big 2 franchises) (3/?)

as for what i'd recommend - i've actually only gotten into toku recently, but i'd say kr build (the season where inukai and akaso play the leads) is a pretty good place to start tbh! i haven't actually finished it myself, but i'm really enjoying it so far, and while i've heard it kinda stumbles in the latter third, it's generally agreed upon to be a solid season with a fairly cohesive plot and compelling characters (and the ending is kinda insane from what i know, but like mostly in a good way), and i agree so far as well. it's also one of the seasons specifically conceived as a callback to the very first kr shows in the showa era, so this way, you can get a pretty good sense of the original themes of kr even without watching said showa-era shows right away. and each kr season has its own themes too, with build's being focused on science and scientific principles, hence the protagonist here being a physicist (4/?)

build is also known for having a suspenseful thriller-like plot with a lot of twists and turns, so it's best to go in as blind as possible aside from like a cursory glance at its synopsis - basically don't follow my example, as i got spoiled for all the major plot twists and while i'm still liking the show and now focusing more on seeing how well-foreshadowed and built-up (ha) said twists have been so far, i definitely sometimes catch myself wishing i'd been a more unaware viewer from the start lol. and it's 49 episodes long (with some spin-off movies and a stageplay that, while not strictly necessary to watch due to either being not officially canon or not really relevant to the main plot, apparently do enhance the viewing experience and still tie in nicely to aspects of the main series and its character development), but due to the nature of its thriller-like story meant to hook viewers in, it might not actually take too long for you to finish (though i personally am taking it more slow and steady) (5/?)

as for the gay stuff, build is definitely worth checking out as the very originator of the life-changing phrase 'heated drama between men' (from this official promotional article www . toei . co . jp/tv/build/story/1210272_2766.html) and is also generally agreed to be one of the top kr shows (and the most recent one in years) to lay on extreme gay subtext (and again, that's saying something considering kr homoeroticism as a whole, and it's so palpable they've gotten many straight people and dudebro fans on reddit and twitter to also agree they're gay; other seasons with very heavy subtext between its 2 male leads that i can think of off the top of my head rn are ooo, blade, and ofc kuuga, the grandpa of all heisei kr shows) (6/?)

sento (the protagonist, played by inukai) and banjou (the deuteragonist, played by akaso) are considered iconic nowadays in helping elevate the primary x secondary rider partnership (bc going by those other mentioned extremely gay-coded relationships from previous seasons, none of them count as primary x secondary), and banjou by himself is often seen as redefining the secondary rider role (and also sento/banjou, or ryusen, is like peak m/m nerd x jock romance to me in general, and a fun bonus for me is even if it's yaoi, they both dress a lot like butch lesbians so in my mind they're kinda lesbian-adjacent to me, an actual lesbian). they're also really popular that they've gotten official couple's rings merch (based on their animal motifs of rabbit for sento and dragon for banjou), in the vein of narumitsu (and klapollo too if i'm not misremembering?), kawoshin, those guys from promare and code geass, etc (7/?)

speaking of aa again, i do think edgeworth would generally enjoy kr, gay subtext and all (the steel samurai probably contains heated drama between men too), and even though idk yet if kr and/or build would be his favorite toku shows as a whole, i definitely think he'd find himself relating to sento in many ways (they're both gay-coded identity crisis-having autistic guys with red in their color schemes, among some other similarities you'll discover along the way), but i think sento's relationship with misora (the main female character and his younger sister-ish figure) is overall more akin to phoenix and maya's than to edgeworth and franziska's. i don't think banjou and phoenix are that similar though, aside from being bi-coded blue-themed men associated with dragons, but edgeworth might still find a way to draw some parallels between his relationship with phoenix to the ryusen dynamic (8/?)

and while i can't guarantee build will make you feel as crazy (positive) as it's making me rn, i think you'll still like sento/banjou and the show itself... also, sento and banjou are pretty much the opposites personality-wise of inukai and akaso's characters in odt and cm (i also watched and enjoyed both shows prior to watching build, and yeah it's definitely a bit of a whiplash to see how different their respective characters are, though it does tickle me to imagine the possibility that the drama got so heated in build it inspired them to act in full-blown bls a few years later). like sento is an 'egotistical genius superhero' with a heart of gold whose arrogance is partly a facade and coping mechanism for his identity issues, and banjou is basically an adhd icon and ex-pro boxer (although lbr akaso doesn't really have a convincing enough physique for it, but well i can forgive it in the end because he's a great actor otherwise) who's very much an 'act/punch first, think later' type of dumbass but who's also a kind person at heart, albeit starting out as a bit of a selfish jerk whose (kinda understandably, in hindsight) distrustful nature makes him look out only mainly for himself and his small circle of loved ones, so i think it's nice to see both men's acting range (9/?)

anyway i'd say the love story (platonic or romantic, but well. it's really hard to read it as purely the former) between sento and banjou is truly at the heart of the show (like it's literally a story about building relationships) - in short, build is that "stop war start gay" graffitti meme. but for a better summary of what i do like overall about build that's also not very spoilery: www . tumblr . com/timetoddddavis/711997352927510528?source=share also i'm obsessed with this fmv so i must inflict it (positively) on every person i can (it's a bit spoilery but it's all out of context so it's not that big of a deal): youtu . be/-Gjzr5HmmfY?si=HUr8oZezqV_lIusZ (10/?)

(also even if you end up concluding that toku really isn't your cup of tea, you can at least maybe think of your experiences as a way to improve future aa headcanons and fics wrt its depiction of the steel samurai and company i guess?) this has gotten long enough that i'll stop here, but i did have some additional thoughts on build's female characters (sadly there's only a few of them, but they're treated well enough considered how men-centric kr generally is), how kr has actually and refreshingly also been dipping its toes into yuri(bait) recently, and the kinda morbidly funny anecdote about akaso thinking he might have gotten a crush on inukai on their first day of filming but it was actually heat stress affecting him, but i'll save those for another time if you're curious enough or are okay with me continuing to ramble. i really appreciate your time and attention, and thank you so much for entertaining me and my toku fixation :-) (11/11)

also toku fans have all made our jokes about the energy emanated by that classic 'heated drama between men' photobook image of inukai and akaso as sento and banjou but i'm also not kidding when i unironically think their posing in that picture perfectly encapsulates the characters' relationship by the end of the show... their relationship development from reluctant and kinda antagonistic allies to friends to beloved (and kinda codependent ngl but that just gives it more flavor to me, and also understandable given the circumstances of everything) partners really is a sight to behold <3

oh my god anon . thank u so much for the detailed explanation but also how long did these take u to type theres So Much Info Here ??? respect to ur fixation tho i dont think i would ever be so clear and coherent talking abt my blorbos afjdskfjkd

ANYWAY !!! u have def caught my interest w build (esp w the aa parallels and the rings mention i had no idea other franchises do it too) (also in the post u linked this line "it stars a silly little rabbit, the silly little rabbit has a death wish" i Need to understand the context behind that) so i might actually watch the first few eps and see if i enjoy it?? the chara dynamics sound rlly interesting already from ur descriptions so im curious abt how theyre in the show 👀 if theres any specific place/site ud recommend i watch id appreciate that too bc i have no idea where to look kfjdks

[silentsockfeet]

tlou hbo s1 ep5 thoughts (spoilers)

i don’t know why but i was surprised that the fedra overthrow happened so recently? in the fourth ep it seemed like it happened years ago and that kathleen had been running the militia group for a while

the parallel of henry telling sam to look at him and not at the rebel activity and joel saying the same thing to sarah in the first ep

reallyyy liked the line about ‘burning the bodies’ because of how it connects back to ep4, where one of the first shots of kansas city was of a giant pile of ash and bones. like you don’t think much of it in that moment beyond maybe like ‘oh shit something happened here’ so getting that extra layer feel very fulfilling

kathleen sitting and talking with all those prisoners caused me so much pain mostly because it reminded me of like every shitty know-it-all teacher with a superiority complex i had in middle/high school. but honestly it kind of works for the character like the fixation on doing what she wants and getting everyone else to fall in line,, idk it was just a genuinely terrifying characterization tbh and for that i liked it

i kinda wish they explained the relationship between perry and kathleen more, perry is literally ride or die for her but we have no idea why and it makes that side of the story feel a lot more emotionless than it could’ve been

i like the fact that sam is deaf in the show, mostly because it’s a new perspective on how people navigate the apocalypse. it was cool to see the different ways he communicates with people, or the ways he and henry have to adjust their actions to account for his lack of awareness. i do think it felt a little cheap in the sense that they only did it to make him rely more on henry, all of the important scenes with sam were the same as the game so it didn’t feel as if making him deaf enhanced those scenes.

absolutely LOVE this henry’s characterization. in the game he seemed way older for his age because he had more experience and was a lot more intense about things, like not letting sam play soccer and that sort of thing. but in the show he actually feels more like his age, maybe even a bit younger. he’s inexperienced, scared, immediately looks up to joel in almost a mentor-mentee way. he’s more lenient with just letting sam be a kid (and this could also be due to the fact that sam is younger here) which gives him a bit of his own child-like wonder. idk i just liked that they made him a bit lighter, a bit more earnest

the re’s all sorts of parallels in this ep i love it. henry having ellie and joel at gun point and he tells joel to look at him, not at sam, the same way marlene tells joel to point the gun at her, not at ellie. just the same drive towards protection

i don’t know why it never occurred to me that fedra could be like. worse or better depending on which qz you live in lol. like the games always characterized them as like a shit government period but never really went into nuance, so it wasn’t until the scene where joel and henry talk about it where it liked clicked to me that some could be worse than others. really makes the whole kansas city storyline feel a lot fuller now

“you ran into two clickers and you’re still alive” this line hurt so much. like he didn’t mean anything by it but he doesn’t realize that actually no they lost so much for it

ellie sticking close to sam, keeping an arm around him or giggling with him or whatever :’) they really nailed their friendship i’m so glad for it

the ish reference 🤌

i had my doubts about the kansas city / kathleen storyline after ep4 but i’m a lot happier with it now that we have more of the backstory. knowing that kathleen’s brother was the leader of the resistance and that on multiple accounts he was a genuinely good man makes all of kathleen’s and the milita group’s actions make a lot more sense. that plus the fact that the revolt happened only like a week ago and like yeah okay i get it now. still think they could’ve afforded an extra 10-15 min in the last ep just to flesh out KC more but at least we got something here

“i am a bad guy because i did a bad guy thing” love this line because it’s like the antithesis of tlou’s main themes, first the idea that there are no bad guys in this kind of world, and then also the idea that joel doesn’t care about good and bad, he cares about keeping ellie safe.

the infected scene was so fuckin sick, i was cheering the whole time!! i get why they’re a little stingy on showing them, it keeps the horror and suspense up and all, but i really do wish we could see more of them. and the bloater!!!! so cool!!!!!! when he killed perry using the same death animation from the game i got so fuckin hype lmfao

the running theme of the superheroes throughout this ep, and then the way it all ties into ellie seeing herself as the hero and thinking she’ll be able to save sam,,, it’s so good but so painful. i could write a whole post about ellie’s characterization and how all the threads connect together (her naivety, her fixation on violence, the way all these things contribute to her hero complex) but i won’t do it here. i just love that we’re getting to explore this more, i feel like the game has more emphasis on the idea that being the cure is an obligation for ellie, so having this side of it helps fill in the gaps for her motivations (and also sets up the foundation for pt2, but that is also a separate post)

also really the love the parallel of henry asking sam ‘do i look scared’ and sam shrugs as if to say ‘i mean yeah kinda’ but then at the end of the ep ellie asks sort of the same question of ‘do i NOT look scared?’ and sam says never and i just love the differences there

i’m not gonna say much on henry and sam’s death, other people have already shared my thoughts in better, more articulate posts than what i can write. while i do wish sam and henry had a happier ending i don’t really know how they could’ve changed the story without impacting that narrative beat. and while i wish that didn’t come at the expense of black people i can’t say i expected them to do anything different. just a small summary of my thoughts

overall did like this ep better than the last, tho the complaint about pacing feeling too fast is still there and sadly i’m expecting it to only get worse through the rest of the season :/

[xynchronicity]

Big Triple Threat HC Post

Putting under a read me bc ooooohhhhhh boi y'all...

My duo (Reaps and Gabi) is still written from my POV of 2016 before all the lore stuff for him/them dropped. Like, from 2020 on, I haven’t added anything new to them. Sure HC wise but nothing including the new lore. Like, I’ve added Martina as Gabi’s ex-wife, sure…but I haven’t changed my old 2016 backstory for them up to fix that. Hell, I don’t even care about it and kinda wanna trash it altogether. My bois are mostly HC based anyways.

And a new idea came to my mind while searching through the reaper tag on tumblr. Came across a post that talked about the errors within OW’s lore and Gabi’s lore itself as well…blizzard doesn’t know him. Is he a villain bc of racial motives forcing him to be or is it just lore getting retconned bc they’ve moved away from what it was before bc of how OW2 has turned out so they gotta change shit to fix it? Like, the post was saying “why would Gabriel kill Antonio/the leader of Talon just to then join Talon???” bc what Talon stands for goes against the motives that were revealed to us and later reinforced in reaper’s “Code of Vengence” story. Yet it still doesn’t explain why he’d join that organization entirely.

Which got me thinking of what was revealed to us in that story as well as certain interactions we got in OW2 for Reaper.

Martina and their son.

Who mentions them?

Widowmaker and Sombra.

Sombra: Wanna know what Martina's been up to? Reaper: Not interested. Sombra: Hmm, that's not what my tracker says.

She knows.

Widowmaker: Are you ever tempted to contact your wife? Reaper: No. Widowmaker: Afraid she would try to kill you? Reaper: I'd be surprised if she didn't.

They both know of her. While we know little to nothing about her besides the fact she’d try to kill Reaper on sight or otherwise upon seeing Gabriel again.

How would those two have known about her? Sombra can hack and get that knowledge sure - I don’t think she’d personally share it tho…use it more for blackmail than sharing with the team…but Widowmaker? Perhaps Martina was part of Overwatch during Widow’s time before becoming blue/purple lady of murder? How likely do we wish to believe that though?

What if…the only reason Gabriel joined Talon was because of blackmail. Threats to his (ex)wife and son. Particularly from Moira, Max or Doom - more likely Moira but less in a “I’m openly threatening you” and more of a “this is a subtle threat that you know I’ll follow through on” and the “you” is Gabriel. What if that’s the reason Gabi and Reaps are separated? A deal made between Gabi and Moira for Reaps to remain with Moira to do with as she pleases so that Gabi could return to Martina or at least be promised she and their son would be safe? I always HC’d that Gabi and Reaps hated each other (Gabi hated Reaps bc of the shit he did as him and Reaps never had a solid reason for hating Gabi tbh…I couldn’t think of a reason…until now).

However, if Gabi made this deal he and Moira (along with Widow and likely also Sombra) know that Martina likely wouldn’t want him back. Whether because of what he did being revealed to the world from Blackwatch and she being disgusted at that, it being revealed he was the terrorist named Reaper but now he’s “better” or whatever. With that knowledge, Gabi doesn’t return to her. Not in a way that he would’ve preferred. He keeps an eye on her and their son, from a distance. He’s a better father dead than a father that’s been alive the whole time and couldn’t be there for his family for sometime. Least, that’s what he tells himself.

Meanwhile, with Reaps…his hatred boils. His own host betrayed him and left him at the mercy of the red headed devils talons….which held no mercy. He’s further experimented on, his abilities enhance and get better…for worse tortures. Reaps could handle what Moira did to him so long as Gabi was there. It was a shared burden. Now it’s his burden. His alone. Alone. He was alone. While Reaps did know those he worked with, he didn’t know them. He knew their names, their faces, the way they smelt…but did not know them. That was Gabi’s job, to know others. Now he’s thrown to the wolves with no backbone to stand with.

It’s worse for those within Talon as well. The Reaper certainly wasn’t always a friendly person…nearly never was in all honesty. However…when the separation happened and things furthered with Reaps….there was a hollowness about The Reaper. There was obvious hatred within him but also an emptiness. Something was taken from him - no, it. That wasn’t a man anymore. That was Death walking amongst men. Were they blessed or cursed for that? Only time would tell.

That Death was a ticking time bomb, waiting to explode. One interaction away from going off and killing everyone it deemed it. Perhaps not even an interaction but a day….a time….a smell….a feeling? Who knows really.

A curse disguised as a blessing it must be then.

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Funnily enough, I always had Gabi sort of reluctant to interact with anyone post the separation because "I did shit I'm not proud of….they have no right to forgive me for what I did and I don't expect them to. I was still there, still present to a degree even if I couldn't stop it from happening." and that's why he was closed off or otherwise terrified to see Ana, Rein, Jack, Cassidy, Genji, etc etc again bc "you dont need to forgive me and i dont expect you to but i am not that person (anymore)". He's so riddled with cPTSD and nightmares that he uses coffee or other caffeinated sources to stay up, losing a lot of sleep to the point of passing out which worsens his nightmares….which starts the process all over again. He's so fucking traumatized by what he did as The Reaper that he can't go back to normal life. Moira knew this. She isn't worried about him ever coming after her for what she's done to him or Reaps. He cannot function in the world anymore. At least he won't be able to for a long ass time and with the right help.

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This is why I like the HC that Reaps needing souls isn't about souls. It's about a soul. Gabriel's soul. Reaps needs him to survive, the others are just a source of torture Moira can use against him. A way to keep Reaps "in line" by taking or giving souls as she sees fit.

That's why I like Wraith being the thing that ties the two together in the Triple Threat verse. They're trying to keep the peace but also trying to get the two not to kill each other (more so keeping Reaps from killing Gabi). Reaps bonds with Wraith well enough. Reluctantly at first ofc as "oh its just another me that was abandoned, huh? how many more is he gonna separate from himself until he's satisfied?" and Wraith knows this. While Wraith is typically portrayed like a child - new to the world and everything….it's more so a way to distract Reaps from his murderous thoughts to - hopefully - teach Wraith how to be like him. At least, how to use the nanites better than like "i want them as a complete carbon copy of myself".

Another angsty thought while we're on this topic: Moira having someone keep tabs on Gabi just in case Reaps does anything, they can just swoop in, grab Gabi and he is at Moira's mercy - which she has none of.

So, Gabi got out to protect Martina and their son but now Reaps technically (albeit not to his knowledge) has the choice to protect or condemn Gabi based on his actions.

While Reaps does hate Gabi for the choice he made, Reaps wouldn't want Gabi dead or tortured because of the choices he - Reaps - made. They need each other even if neither wishes to admit to it.

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Because Gabi was the first to have been essentially bonded/host for Reaps…he would have that bond as there are still nanites within Gabi as most of his body isn’t…well, there. So, those nightmares he has? Are a combination of events of the past and current going ons. Reaps holds so much hatred towards Gabi abandoning him that it flares that connection up and sends all these dreadful emotions, thoughts and memories to Gabi. As Moira’s torture/experiments continue…the anger shifts towards her as she’s starving Reaps of souls to the point he’ll kill anyone who steps into his cell…which he’s done to Moira’s assistants several times now. Those memories - murders - are nightmares Gabi has. He’s never seen those assistants before yet he knows it’s real. Nothing that graphic could be faked….and the feelings and memories that came with it…

Essentially, after the separation for some time, Gabi has horrible as fuck nightmares bc Reaps is projecting that shit to Gabi without knowing then it calms down when Reaps’ anger switches over to Moira but when Reaps kills and consumes a soul, those moments, and feelings and memories are transmitted to Gabi as nightmares.

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Intimate/Relationship HCs

Reaps:

While Reaps isn't the most intimate person, if at all. If he does form a close bond with someone and he trusts them...they're more likely to see underneath the mask than others. Moira is the only one that knows what he looks like without the mask but she's not a trusted person to him. His appearance has changed since the last time she saw him, though.

He'll allow only those trusted to 1. touch his mask 2. take the mask off & 3. touch his face

Hand-holding will never happen. Don't ask. He won't do it and he won't ask for it.

If he's concerned for someone he's reluctant to give any kind of physical reassurance because of his claws. Now because he's afraid he can't be gentle because he can be and he knows he can be. It's the knowledge that those hands have murdered and he's now using them to touch someone he cares for or otherwise is concerned about to some degree.

If he ever has to use his nanites to heal his partner, he's reluctant to do so. He's used them to kill, never to heal - save for himself. Reaps isn't entirely sure how his nanites will react to others in a nonviolent manner.

Reaps' way of showing he cares is....likely not ideal for most. It's silent or little things. Things you might not even think are ways he'd show it or even ways people show they care. He's not a big PDA or gifts type of being. It's the little things. How his partner prefers the AC or heater set to and always makes sure it's set to that, always setting their alarm if they forget to do so, making sure they get their medication if they take any, etc etc.

He'll notice the smallest of changes in his partner's behavior and adjust accordingly. He'd likely have these memorized before it even got to the partnership level as being close typically means guards are lessened between one another, yes?

While Reaps holds an air of intimidation and murder....if you touch his partner with the intent to harm or maim....you'll get it back tenfold. Don't flirt with his partner either. Do not touch that which Death has taken as his own. Reaps possessive asf and also super jealous.

He doesn't like sharing - yes, he doesn't like sharing in the Triple Threat verse too. Only shows he cares/his affections towards the person in that verse when Gabi and Wraith aren't around. Sometimes when Wraith is around...never when Gabi is around. Reaps can't show Gabi his soft side, not after what he did. Literally just Reaps holding a grudge bc he's a petty bitch lol

Gabi:

Physical contact is a must. It's mostly as a reassurance that his partner is there. They're there and they haven't left him. They're real. They're real and physical.

While he's typically the big spoon, sometimes he needs to be the little spoon. Typically when the nightmares happen is when he'll roll away from his partner. He does so to distance himself but also to not harm them in case he fights back in his sleep - which is on the rarer side.

Gabi still cares for his ex-wife, Martina, and while she may not be keen on wanting him around...he still visits her...well, more so he keeps an eye on her from afar. It's paranoia on his part. He needs to see for himself that she's still safe and alive along with their son. So, if his partner cannot stand him needing to know that for his own sanity...the relationship will not work. Moira isn't known to keep promises exactly so he fears for Martina and their son's safety.

It'll take a lot of work to even become close to Gabi, let alone become his partner. With the cPTSD, nightmares, and who knows what else he has going on...it'll be a lot of patience and understanding from them. However, once that happens, they're likely stuck with him now lol. You made it past his walls and his flaws, you ain't leaving now lol

Gabi will show he cares in many forms. If he's had a particularly rough time with nightmares lately then he'd be more materialistic with his love. Gifts with little notes to show his appreciation. However, if they haven't affected him as much lately, then he's more verbal with it. "Thank you, Cariño.", "I love and appreciate you, Cariño", etc etc.

[snowddeong]

for the kpop ask game: le sserafim!!

ps, i sometimes see you in your posts’ tags saying you’re anxious about your writing, so i just wanted to let you know that i for one am a big huge fan of your writing, and i think you have such great vibrant portrayals of yeji & ryujin, and tbh your writing makes me want to write too, so thank you always for sharing your work and god-tier ryeji thoughts with us :’)

Not sure which category to put them in cause I'm familiar but also very barely hkasdh

I’ll listen to their top song on Spotify & tell you my thoughts - I'm going to assume that's antifragile? (In uganda we don't use spotify much so I can't tell if it's their top song adskhds I only have the acc for whenever I wanna support my faves and have enough internet)

Fun and catchy, it has aspects I REALLY like but there's also stuff I'm unfortunately not so into so I don't think I could listen to it on repeat but it's very much stuck in my head now sdakjh

I’ll look up photos & tell you who stands out to me - Yunjin I think??? Idk there's something about the vibes she's giving here especially that's knocking me tf out

Idk her really so I might be very mistaken but like HER EYES? There's a way that she seems to use them to really enhance her expressions??

I’ll tell you if I’d look into them more - I might if they release something I'm REALLY into. Or if I'm in a situation where I have to write something with one of their members that's actually how I got into Stray Kids lmao. I usually try my best to check out as many gg releases as I can cause finding new music is always a positive so it'll probably happen eventually since the little I've seen of them is always a serve

This is already long but I'm so touched by your ps 😭

Thank you so much for all this. I never really considered myself on the level to inspire anyone and it's actually a dream of mine to write stuff that has an effect on people so I'm kinda emotional over this ashdjsdh

Thank you for reading my works. I'll be sure to keep sharing my thoughts and random brainrots and hopefully keep writing stuff that you guys enjoy 🖤

And if the interest has gripped you I really do hope you give writing a shot anon. It can be very tough and frustrating and sometimes it feels like downright torture but if you love it enough it's the most fulfilling thing to have an idea in your head and express it with words. Even though I'm anxious like 99% of the time cause perfectionismTM and self esteemTM I always enjoy myself the most when I'm writing. I really love writing so I'm going to try to stfu and not start waxing poetic rn but imo everyone should give it a try at least once. Whether it be poetry or prose of even just journaling. There's something really beautiful about writing that you can only experience when you're really in it and I hope you find it as well. If you ever write anything feel free to send it to me through anon or even dms if you feel comfy with that I'd love to read it