#would it be groundbreaking tv? definitely!

[m4iya]

──★ ˙🧷 @yiooobb37 has chosen to study Languages, 2 hours a day for 1 week with Hinata! He isn't too sure how he'll do though! Let's see how they go...

Hinata, who has been pretty stressed lately. Ever since the groundbreaking news was dropped that he had to pass all his exams in order to make it to this years training camp, his head has been buried in the books for hours on end.

You, who'd been doing alright for most of your subjects, only feeling the nerves hit as exams inched closer and closer.

Hinata, who stumbled on his words as he struggled, shifting between Japanese and English as you quizzed him on a variety of different vocabulary words.

Hinata, whose thick Japanese accent makes you giggle. His English translations weren't necessarily incorrect, quite the opposite, actually. 'Rice' would become 'lice' , and 'very', would become 'bery'.

Hinata, who would flare up when you teased him, ensuring you that it wasn't a speaking exam, and that his pronunciation wouldn't be marked!

You, who'd attempt to stifle your laughter, and he'd snap back, challenging you to an accent competition.

Hinata, who made sure to organise study sessions with you, whenever he was free. During weekends, during lunch breaks, and even after practice—with the two of you meeting at the local library together, or at each other houses.

Hinata, who'd sometimes fall asleep during these late-night study sessions, breathing softly as the mechanical pencil he held slowly slipped out of his grip. Gently swiping it from his hand, you noticed that the tip of his index finger dented by how hard he'd been gripping it.

Hinata, who brought his friend, Kageyama, along at one point, joking that you'd 'definitely be able to tutor a numbskull' like him!'. It wasn't long before the boy told him off, remarking that their grades were practically the same.

Hinata, who'd sometimes ring your number in a panic, asking you about a word that he'd never heard before, and how it would be structured in a sentence. You'd answer his question as much as you could, continuing to give him pointers on other things he needed to know.

Hinata, who definitely wasn't a slow learner when it came to grasping a language concept. He knew his vocabulary, vowels, punctuation and sentence structure more than most of the people in your class. He'd been stressing for so long, complaining that he wasn't sure how he'd ever come close to passing this exam, but you'd seen how much he was working, knowing his skill level well.

Hinata, whose score on the last practice test you gave him was 100%. His eyes widened, taking the paper from you with a gasp. Laughing, he shoved the paper in his friend's face, who turned away, wearing a scrunched frown.

Hinata, whose final score on the official exam didn't necessarily align with the practice one despite the countless sleepless nights you'd shared.

You made sure to let him know that what he learnt wouldn't necessarily only be used in one exam throughout his entire life. After all, if he really wanted to play professionally around the world, wouldn't he need to learn a variety languages to communicate with all the different people he'd meet?

Hinata, who never stopped hanging out with you after exam season, inviting you to come watch his team's games sometimes, always reminding you that he wouldn’t forget what you'd done for him.

extras:

Hinata, whose newly tanned face one day appeared on your TV, playing in his debut match for a national team in Brazil. Sticking around for the whole match, you watched as the interviewer asked him how he learnt to speak Portuguese so fluently in such a short amount of time.

Hinata, whose eyes softened at the question, a breathy chuckle leaving him before responding "A close friend of mine from high school gave me the push I needed."

side note: Hello!! You're my first request for this event! Not sure what to call you, so i'll call you yiob if you don't mind! I noticed you chose Hinata again!! I mean, I write for him a lot either way lol

From my exam season event ✩ other works

[bijouxcarys]

I am going to try my best to articulate this to the best of my ability.

If you are still being salty over what Roman said in that Vanity Fair interview, you’re opening your mouth about “why does he have to be so attractive” when he’s on your TV, you’re celebrating a curb stomp when it completely comes from a place of believing he deserves violence for what he said, you’re chastising others for supporting him, and you’re continuing to miss the point of what he said…

…then you are the problem. Not Roman.

You need to develop critical thinking skills and really think about what it was he said there. But if you’re still missing it, let me break it down.

Roman was unnecessarily asked his opinion on the political climate in America. The journalist included that there was a pause before the answer.

That pause is important.

Because it’s an indication that he was about to tread on the topic lightly. And he did.

He did not give a political answer. He gave a politically correct answer, wherein he stayed pretty neutral because that was what was going to protect him the most.

He said he supports the presidency, the institution, as opposed to Trump specifically.

He said supports a successful future for the country, which is not the equivalent of saying he thinks Trump is going to provide that. It does not automatically mean he thinks in all these extreme ways that you’re brainwashed into believing it does.

He said he definitely does not agree with everything the current president does.

Then, and this is important, he started talking about the celebrity aspect of Donald Trump. That’s the part Roman is more comfortable talking about. The business of PR, of creating adversaries.

He avoided the political talk completely. He never confirmed who he actually voted for. And his answer was intelligent, wary, and was the best one he could have given in the position he was put in.

Not everything is black and white, and it seems like most of you need to understand that.

You can say you’re disappointed, but I’d argue it’s more disappointing to see people online, people you thought highly of, explicitly reduce this situation to him being ‘just a man’ or just ‘someone with money.’ And then go on to bring race into it, specifically his wife and children, when that has ZERO relevance to anything he said in the article.

And then… to bring up that he is mixed race. To bring up the white in him. Which… never mattered before, in fact y’all never addressed it before, you actually kind of “put up” with it.

But all of a sudden, it matters that he’s half white? Because it’s convenient? Make that shit make sense.

If anyone is perpetuating stereotypes, compartmentalising how people of different races and backgrounds should believe (and that anything different is groundbreaking and unheard of), it’s you.

Roman Reigns—Joe Anoa’i is not a bad person. It is unfair to judge that based on a small paragraph in one interview, when you’ve dedicated much more of your time to other media that you enjoyed him on when he’s been himself and not the character. You already knew him, and he’s the same fucking guy he was this time last week.

Also remember that Punk is fine working with him, and Sami Zayn is essentially family. If he was what he’s being called, I don’t think that would be the case.

Critical thinking will open all sorts of doors for you, I assure you.

[castlebyersthoughts]

Dude those Reddit posts—Yikes! The mindset of some people is startling. At this point I’m not sure if I want to laugh or scream. I know ST is just a show or whatever but we’re talking about possible queer representation and we’re getting called out. They really don’t understand how groundbreaking it would be. There’s so much straight rep out there and you don’t have to look hard at all. In any other instances you could have theories going back and forth in a fandom and people would be open about it or at least be like “hmm…that’s interesting now that you mention it”—but the second you try to imply that a character could be queer all hell breaks loose. Why? Does that threaten their favorite ship? If they’re so confident in them they shouldn’t have anything to worry about? It’s so stupid to call us delusional just for hoping for some queer representation. We want to be seen too.

The audacity to say “if they wanted it to be obvious they would have done it like all the other couples” you mean all the straight couples who can live openly and be comfortable with who they are and fall in love with who they want to without fear of judgement or shame. I swear people watch this show with their god damn eyes closed and their fingers shoved in their ears. Do people seriously not understand that it’s set in the 80’s at a time where there was zero positivity surrounding queer people. Every tv news program or newspaper article was filled with hate, death, slurs or quoting some bullshit bible verse.

I hope Milkvan’s enjoy their time living in blissful ignorance cause come season 5 that shits going crash down real hard.

Oh my god, anon, I know. You're trying to find excuses for them but let's face it, the ones I posted here were pure homophobia. Because they wouldn't react this way if Will was a girl, it wouldn't be seen as such an unthinkable thing, especially in season 3 out of a 5-season show. It's a normal and even basic progression of the story to slowly reveal another love interest for the protagonist who's been struggling with his relationship, especially when it's the best friend who's had feelings for them the whole time, it's like every romcom ever.

To be completely honest I did select the worst comments for that post, some people actually agreed with Will possibly having feelings for Mike, even if they all thought it was going nowhere. But Mike not being straight is just never a possibility for them, I guess because he had a girlfriend at age 12? It's either ignorance/heteronormativity or homophobia. Which is why representation is still so important, especially with a character like Mike, who's seen as the "normal" character, the audience stand-in.

And yes you're absolutely right about queer couples in the 80s not having the luxury to just be open like the straight ones, it's just completely crazy to think they could ever write Mike and Will like they did Jonathan and Nancy. I also don't know why those people are not considering the simple fact that the writers are taking their time writing a careful, coherent story? It's like everything is about instant gratification these days and people forget what a piece of fiction even is. They don't realize a story needs to have a beginning, middle and end, and characters need to go through a journey and grow. But somehow since Mike and El kissed in season 1 they have to end up together, no question about it. It's like these people have never read a book or even watched another tv show? It's truly baffling.

I guess in the end people who react this way are either: 1) M*leven shippers who use any excuse they can to stay in denial about Byler, 2) homophobic people, or 3) casual fans who don't pick up on the little details and queer subtext and aren't used to seeing that type of storyline in their "monster" shows, so they just don't register Byler as a possibility. Honestly the ones I'm most shocked by are definitely the M*leven shippers, because these people are absolute fans of the show, have watched it many times, and know how the writers and cast talk about it. Maybe they're just skipping all the Byler scenes on their rewatches, I don't know, but it just amazes me how they can convince themselves that Byler is just a fan-made crack ship and their beloved couple that's been terrible together for the past two seasons is the only possible endgame.

Like you said, there's going to be a big crash down from them after season 5. Because even if for some reason Byler doesn't happen, I am absolutely sure that Mike and El aren't ending up together. They're ET and Eliot, they're gonna have to part ways at the end of the story. Fortunately there don't seem to be many M*leven fans left, so I guess if the season is good this won't affect the global reaction to season 5 too much. Like the Duffers said, "You just can't please everybody"!

[purplechaosguardian]

Mom said it’s my turn on the writing

Alex stumbled through the door, mentally and physically drained. Another day working at the Foundation, another day of being kept in the dark, another day of feeling completely powerless. Nothing they could do about it now, a voice in their head reminded them. Nothing that could be solved by running themself even more ragged, anyways. Their stomach growled loudly. When was the last time they ate? That was what they were going to do next then. Get something to eat, find a dumb horror movie on tv, and shut off their brain for a while. That sounded nice.

They were far too tired to actually cook anything, settling for grabbing some bread and a jar of peanut butter out of the cupboard, then a jar of strawberry jelly from the fridge. Nothing particularly groundbreaking, but it was a classic for a reason. They were just about to settle down and relax when a large crash came from outside. “Goddammit.” The raccoons got into the trash again. They let out a sigh, rushing for the broom. They still clutched the sandwich. Not like this would take long. They were pretty skittish. Besides, the sooner he got outside, the less he had to clean up.

The air outside was crisp, a sure sign of autumn. They could see people already putting out decorations, strings of lights were draped across roofs and inflatable displays laid across yards, limp and lifeless. They felt their stomach churn.

Alex’s attention was drawn back to the trash cans. They were too far away from the streetlights to see what they were actually dealing with, but the faint outline of the toppled over cans and the sound of something digging through them was all the evidence they needed. It didn’t seem to have run off yet. Weird. Maybe it just didn’t hear them. They could fix that. They tapped the broom against the trash can. “Alright, get outta th-?” A figure rose from the piles of trash, staring down at them with yellow eyes and cat-like slits. Definitely not a raccoon.

The thing’s grin seemed to get bigger at the sight of them, and the next moment they were on the ground, wind knocked out of their lungs and the back of their head stinging. They must have dropped the broom when they fell. Not much good that would have done them, barely able to move under the thing’s weight and claws threatening to puncture something important.

Maybe it was panic, maybe it was an attempt to stay alive, but they flung the sandwich. It seemed to have caught the thing’s attention, because the next thing Alex knew, the weight on their chest was gone. They weren’t exactly sure why it would settle for a peanut butter and jelly sandwich when it was obviously looking at them like they were on the menu, but they sure as hell weren’t complaining. They quickly scrambled to their feet and ran back inside, making sure the door was locked. They looked out the kitchen window, and could see the thing staring back at them. In its claws was their sandwich, and a large bite had been taken out of it. It grinned again, and maybe, just maybe it looked more mischievous than malicious.

They let out a breath they hadn’t realized they were holding in, continuing to stare into the darkness.

“What the fuck.”

—-

“What the fuck.”

Of all things that could have happened next, it definitely wasn’t it coming back with a flimsy pad of paper with “sandwich please” messily scribbled in orange crayon.

“Where did you even get this?”

(A cashier watches as it approaches the counter, holding a pad of paper and a pack of crayons. It had been running around the store for a few minutes, seemingly looking for something. Not that the cashier intervened, this was a situation that was above her pay grade, and if she was being honest, was a nice distraction from the store’s playlist replaying for the fiftieth time. “Will that be cash or card?” Several pennies fall out of its hand, dropping onto the counter and rolling across the floor. The cashier signs.)

It shrugged.

Alex looked down at the pad of paper. They know they should be far more panicked, run back inside and call the police, but they couldn’t lie, the absurdity of a demon requesting a sandwich from them quickly snuffed out any horror they should be feeling. They looked back up at it. “What kind?”

“What’s your name?”

“Clyde”

“Mine’s Alex.”

[darkmaga-returns]

WASHINGTON, D.C. — In what experts are calling the most startling discovery since learning that repeatedly pressing the CLOSE DOOR button in an elevator does absolutely nothing, the FBI announced Monday that it has miraculously stumbled upon new files related to the assassination of President John F. Kennedy.Well, would ya look at that?

“We totally had no idea these were here,” an FBI spokesperson stated while nervously glancing at an overflowing filing cabinet labeled “Definitely Not JFK Stuff.” The records were coincidentally unearthed immediately following an executive order from President Trump, who did not know of their existence but nevertheless demanded their release along with documents related to the assassinations of Robert F. Kennedy and Martin Luther King Jr, not that anyone thinks everything we were told about those murders is sus, too. Really.

History buffs may recall how the Warren Commission, in a remarkable display of investigatory efficiency, took nearly 10 months to conclude that the most powerful man in the world was taken down by a lone gunman with a cheap mail-order rifle, firing from an impossible vantage point, using a magic bullet that zigzagged through two people like a snake on roller skates. This groundbreaking report—rushed out in only 888 pages—assured the American public that there was no conspiracy, despite the fact that the assassin was immediately assassinated on live TV by a man with mob ties, and that literally everyone who saw the shooting had a slightly different version of events. The Commission gathered airtight testimony from sources like Allen Dulles—the former CIA director that Kennedy had fired—who pinky-promised that the agency he led had nothing to do with the presidential execution or anything else, ever.

[flimflamfandom]

Hi there, it’s me again. I hope you’re doing well and that you’re having a good day/night. Since it’s pride month where I’m at, I was wondering how Rocky got into fighting for LGBTQ+ rights as well as women’s rights? Was he an avid supporter since he was a young adult or was it later in life? 

Also, I was wondering how Rocky’s shows would work? What’s his comedic style? And did he ever talk about his activism stories openly in his shows? 

And, as a last question for now, do you have any other miscellaneous older Rocky trivia that you would like to share? If for some reason you can’t answer these questions then I completely understand. You’re busy with a new job if I can recall and I wish you all the best in your future endeavors. Please make sure you leave time for resting as well if/when you can, burnout’s no joke. I adore your future Lackadaisy headcannons! 

Hello! New job has been taxing, but fun. In any case, I CAN answer the questions!

FIRST

As far as activism in this case goes, most of his started during his later life in the 70s and 80s - Rocky was never particularly public about his sentiments towards the queer community until then.

His sentiments were definitely aligned with the community - he didn't have to be convinced to accept them - but after Stonewall, he started to try and add more gays into stories he pitched, shows he wrote, etc. He wasn't necessarily groundbreaking in this regard - it's very 70s style stuff - but he did his best to keep them from being the punchline.

During the AIDS crisis, he was notable for visiting friends of his who were patients - of which there were remarkably many. he wasn't going into any marches at this point in time, being in his 70s, and he was mostly retired, but he did contribute some TV episodes about the crisis here and there.

HIS SHOW

Rocky went through a few different forms of entertainment - first, of course, was radio. He was brought on to run a comedy show, which was structured around parodies of other radio shows, comic adaptations of dramas, and show-within-a-show episodes which were explicitly about running the show. Think of him as this universe's Jack Benny.

He transitioned to Television in the early 50s, and he did well there! He was notable for his show's transition, which was one of very few radio-to-TV bids that actually...y'know. Worked.

But he was ALSO notable for a game show, Ivory Towers, which ran from '55 to '62 - a quiz show where a group of college professors would compete against random attendees to answer questions. After being pretty much the only quiz show NOT to be cooking the books after the big Quiz Show scandals, it started to run with the subtitle of 'The Cleanest Racket in Town'.

OTHER TRIVIA

Rocky actually got a lot of fanmail from girls. It made his wife rather jealous.

In the OLD AU, I shipped Rocky with an OC named Loretta - she has been written out of existence.

Rocky once entered a pie eating contest and won, and wore a giant fake pie slice on his head for the next show. He became so well known for it that he would enter that contest annually until he died.

Rocky almost recorded a comedy album about Christmas - it never got released or published.

[blamemma]

Just some perspective from someone who works in entertainment (meee) - the studio that originally picked it up was shut down and merged with another studio in October which is when the pilot was shot (they announced a bunch of casting around that time which usually means those people ALREADY shot their scene/a pilot takes a month tops to film)

With the merge, a whole bunch of execs left and I assume whoever greenlit the pilot is no longer with the studio

I want it on record that the fact that a pilot was even filmed is honestly pretty impressive. Less and less pilots are being shot ever year even with big names loosely attached.

Idk if anyone even cares about any of this ^^^^^ but the tv industry is in shambles rn so not shocked it was passed on!!!

TLDR: once again bad luck follows Daniel and personally I think he needs to get saged or see a witch to lift whatever curse was put on him

(saw ur other ask, and its okay, i love to learn 🫶🏼)

yeah i sort of accidentally stumbled across the deadline article just now and was like oops lol, another blow to a man bleeding out on the floor. i wont lie, i have no idea how tv production works, so this is all really interesting insights, especially the tidbit about it being a success he even got a pilot filmed. for whatever its worth, i dont think this would have been the big groundbreaking move for daniel post-f1. i think it was most definitely more of an advisory role, and they probably would have rolled him out for a couple of interviews to promote the show when it dropped. it's a shame, because the few times he talked about it, he seemed interested by it, but i guess in a tricky entertainment climate, he and the overarching team of the show, just couldn't make it work.

[tenok]

Still fuming about «Crowley’s so queer it makes Aziraphale looks straight» take. I saw some people saying «queer is not a political identity» as an argument against it... and actually I disagree. Queer is an identity that’s as much about politics and community as is about gender and orientation. «Queer as in fuck you» indeed! And while I’m pretty sure that if you’ll ask Aziraphale he will say that he’s queer because mentally he still in times where it was term preferred by community as whole (or he’ll say that «gay» is his gender because he still links gender and orientation together and it’s a habit thats hard to break), I’ll argue that he’s definitely queer by definition. And I won’t say that one of them more or less queer, I want to vomit just from thinking this, but he and Crowley definitely different flavors of queer; and the point is community.

See, the Crowley we see is not the very community-oriented being. He despises angels and demons alike, he’s not close with humans, through whole series we saw him connected with Aziraphale, maybe Warlock, Shadwell to some point and only as a subordinate he’s not really interested in (Aziraphale actually remembered all the names of soldiers Shadwell pulled from his ass, on the other hand [book, also in script if I remember correctly]). But for Aziraphale community is the whole deal. He links himself to communities: community of book collectors, for example ([in book at least]), community of angels (even in season two he regretfully said that he misses reporting back to his lot), as soon as he put his roots there he become part of British and specifically London community (immediately clocked as British by everyone, for better or for worse). And he’s clearly consider himself and considered by others as part of queer community. For example:

He’s clocked as specifically effeminate gay man (which is part of queer umbrella oh my god stop misuse of political slogans gay are not some kind of others that are lesser for being gay!!!) by everyone, to the point of getting called homophobic slurs (twice in book, once in series) and being targeted by literal Nazis. He’s not arguing or denying, he reclaims it: he’s not calling himself gay, he’s proudly declaring that he’s THE southern pansy (not very «hurray establishment» of him hmmm?). He looks so gay and safe that cemetery man from season 2 doesn’t see a problem in telling him he uses grindr!

Tied to this: he can present as anyone else, he chooses to look soft, gay, effeminate, he chooses to make silly sounds and flamboyant gestures, and as soon as he gets comfortable he likes to go a little campy (can you imagine Crowley in ribbons and frills? do we see male-presenting Crowley in pink silky shoes? would he fight to the death before you put him into pencil-drawen moustache and bright cape with shiny starts? yes he’s GNC! there’s more then one way to be GNC and one is not better then other because it’s in black and sexy!). I’ll argue that him choosing one comfortable presentation and stick to this is no less groundbreaking by heavens standards then «hoarding all the genders» since he’s not treats his corporation as «meat suite», he really had an identity tied to it!

And using this identity he becomes part of 100 guineas club. Part of gay/queer (it was in times where this distinction was meaningless) community with fellow queers, where he learned queer ways, such as dances, becoming part of queer culture as a whole (and should I remind you that back in days drag was mandatory part of such clubs? if we measuring queerness by how close it to cross-dressing apparently). He also collects literature by queer authors, immersing himself in this culture, again. Do I remember correctly that Oscar Wilde gifted him one of his books specifically? So we can safely assume he hangs with queer authors as well? Correct me if it’s not in canon (I’m freely mixing tv and book canon there btw although usually I treat them as two different things)

He also lives in Soho. He specifically chooses to live there, knowing perfectly well what a neighborhood it is (even back in 1600s it already had a Reputation). He knows what it says about him and he aims for it! (Crowley lives in Mayfair because it says something about him too — remember that while Aziraphale constructed himself around being soft and gay, Crowley intentionally made himself look as irrating rich asshole. If this asshole has vibes of sinister gay that would gladly corrupt you if you ask nicely, that’s another story) He is a part of this community! As a word of god, he: speaks Polari freely because he used it… with other queers (as oppose to Crowley that knows «bits» because he hangs out with criminals); he hide incriminating things from fellow Soho residents back when there were police raids (breaking law to help those in need is reacurring theme with him!). He still part of this community, he knows people, people knows him, he literally gives place to lesbian women for free so she can have her dream shop (supporting your local queer business!) (also great call back to Edingurg minisode! Aziraphale, personal saint of broke lesbians!)

I’ll also argue that letting in first Gabriel and next Muriel was a very queer of him. Queers help other queers: he may not like Gabriel, but «he has no other friends» (and he's homeless after being kicked out from heavens after disaster forbidden love affair with other queer being, hmmm? paralleles with reality of being queer much?), so he steps in. And Muriel, while being the same age as those two (we're NOT child-coding Muriel in this house), vibes as queer youth in needs of guidance, and Aziraphale, that had every right to be suspicious and cold to them, immediately lets them into safety of his shop and tries to be nice and supporting in both older queer and older ND cousin way.

So, in conclusion: Aziraphale is a queer being, that likes to make it clear that he’s queer and queer GNC man specifically; he’s part of queer community for at least couple hundred of years, participant in queer culture, and he watches out for other queers, helping his own as much as he can, using his money and other resources and breaking law to do so when needed. What there can make him look straight even as a joke?

Crowley is absolutely a queer being too, in very queer love with other queer being, and I'm sure he has a blast pocking into rules and boundaries of genders, orientations and all kinds of relationships since he loves questioning and testing so much. He also has a cool rebellious aesthetic and «fuck all» attitude, so it’s understandable that he becomes tumblrs queer icon (and being played by David Tennant helps for sure). But if you ask them both where’s local shelter for homeless queers located, one of them will have an answer and it won’t be a Crowley, or he wouldn’t sleep in his car (I'm joking), and this is as much of the part of being queer as having cool aesthetic or being kicked from home (I'm joking again). And it's a shame that some people want to make a competention out of it, because it gives us infinity possibilities to discuss their different experiences and choices, down to what their respective aesthetic choices says about them, and how they can use their strong sides to support each other! But alas.

[genericpuff]

Any thoughts on the girl wonder podcast ? ??The host seems to gloss over alot of things happening in LO, especially when talking about the episode with leuce and Persephone.

Nothing really, I think as an interviewer she's not exactly all that credible or groundbreaking because she approaches her "interviews" more like just sit-down one on one gushing sessions between a fan and their favorite creator, but if you want just like, a chill podcast of someone talking about comics they like with the odd interactions with those same creators, then her stuff is chill and she seems to have a lot of fun doing it. There's definitely nothing for me to really gain by listening to her LO-related stuff because her LO stuff is not for me, it's for fans, and that's fine.

Although there was her recent "interview" with Stephanie K Smith that she did that I talked about on stream that I really do wanna re-listen to and breakdown in an actual essay post here. Just because I think a lot of what Smith said really just further confirms how mismanaged the LO TV production is LMAO But I don't have any opinions regarding Girl Wonder specifically in that way (again at most I think her "interviews" are just very softball between a fan and a creator rather than trying to really dig at more information like a decent interview would), I'm more so just miffed with what Stephanie said throughout it.

[raisinchallah]

since you are a queerbaiting scholar, I have a question that I don't remember if you've ever covered. Do you think the t'hy'la footnote in the Star Trek TMP novelization could be considered an example of queerbaiting or is it just too iconic to fall under that category?

oh unequivocally like for clarification for people i guess who have a more narrow and specific definition of queerbait i do think it like kind of dodges around the entire central conceit of hoped for "gay representation" or something that is not really the lens i think its viewed thru in 70s fandom the way it was in 2010s as in like the way people frame queerbaiting they want characters to join this pantheon of confirmed gay characters fitting a mold of existing gay characters on tv to some degree and nobody was assuming like from that tease that kirk and spock would be portrayed as a couple in future movies or anything the way the queerbait dance between creator and fandom was portrayed in 2010s queerbait discourse but i think it was probably the first and most high profile attempt to date for a creator to try and mediate the relationship between the media property shippers and ship haters through like a direct communication of like canon material i guess like i would have to go on a pretty big deep dive back into some of the random star trek zines ive looked at to find sources again im struggling to find it right now but i know i read some various responses from fans at the time and kirk/spock shippers did react negatively to the footnote in much the same way people reacted to like ship tease jokes in classic queerbait tv shows on tumblr which i found really interesting people did think it was trying to shut kirk/spock shippers down just as much as people thought it was energizing them and speaking to them it really threads the needle so perfectly by like opening the door to a whole new type of possibility and whatever to the types of people who want that while also in text saying theyre not lovers hah hah isnt that weird which i think some fans also felt uncomfortable about because it was like shining a light on their niche corner of the fandom letting people know there were people who thought the relationship between kirk and spock might be romantic but again ive only read like two accounts of this so i honestly have no clue how widespread each type of reaction was i wonder if it also like re inflamed fights about if they do or dont have sex lol because that was a whole thing which is slash was for people who believed it was sexual vs kirk&spock was like homoerotic friendship to nonsexual romance fanfic and these were bitter fandom divides as well but of course and like this isnt to paint it all in a negative light but i do think the dissenting voices get a bit lost in the history and i thought it was kind of fascinating how similar a lot of the weird mediations felt to like some actor at comiccon 2012 saying well i dont know but it could be romantic you know it creates the perfect vessel for everyone to see what they want thru it so i think in many ways it was groundbreaking queerbait but also tbh did it better than anything else like truly stoking the fires of fan speculation and probably introduced a lot of people to the idea of "the premise" and planted the seeds in their minds to begin with and again few other queerbait texts are out here inventing special words that mean lover for the characters to call each other few people that bold like again somewhat different context but it does kind of feel like a first of its kind broaching into that messy dynamic between fans and the powers that be as they sometimes called them and truly a fascinating iconic piece of queerbait history

ok upon further looking i believe i must have read a scan of "a careful analysis: the roddenberry footnote" by christopher randolph (a pseudonym for della van hise the author of killing time) that was printed in the star trek zine naked times issue #3 but i have been unable to locate an actual link to the full text beyond the excerpts from fanlore here [x]

[bigfootbeat]

Patterson-Gimlin Film, Greatest Hoax or Evidence Ever

On October 20, 1967, Roger Patterson and Bob Gimlin took the Patterson-Gimlin film. It is now a key piece of both the Bigfoot debate and the field of cryptozoology. The movie was shot in Bluff Creek, California, and shows a big, hairy, two-legged animal walking quickly along the bank of a creek while looking back at the camera. This short encounter, which lasted less than a minute, has caused a long-lasting debate that people are still interested in. For believers, the movie is the most important wildlife video ever made. In their defense, they say that the movie's subject has traits that would be very difficult to fake effectively. Supporters, for example, point out that the creature walks naturally and fluidly, and that you can see muscles moving under its fur. This suggests a level of anatomical detail that would be difficult to duplicate with the technology available in the 1960s.

Several experts, including anthropologists and special effects artists, have looked at the movie frame by frame and concluded that the creature's proportions and limb movements don't look like those of a human and are eerily similar to what one would expect from an undiscovered primate. People who believe the story also point to the fact that Roger Patterson and Bob Gimlin have stuck by their story of what happened, even though they have been skeptics and made fun of it over the years. Patterson, who died in 1972, stuck to his story until the end. Gimlin, who initially avoided the spotlight, has also kept his word. Skeptics, on the other hand, think that the Patterson-Gimlin film is a clever hoax that is ultimately flawed. They say that the creature in the movie is just a man in a suit, and that the "muscle movement" and "natural gait" might be possible with good acting and smart costuming. Critics often highlight the role of outfit designers and special effects artists. Philip Morris, for instance, claimed to have sold Patterson a gorilla suit suitable for the movie. Skeptics also look closely at the events leading up to the filming, pointing out problems with the timeline and the fact that Patterson, a Bigfoot fanatic, was working on a documentary about the creature, which some see as an excuse for staging the experience. The lack of supporting evidence, such as more clear sightings, physical remains, or undeniable footprints, makes the case against the film's authenticity even stronger. As technology has improved, the argument over the Patterson-Gimlin film has grown even stronger. These days, digital tools for analysis make it possible to look at the video in more detail than ever before. Certain studies have reinforced the authenticity of the movie by revealing details previously unobservable with outdated technology. Others, on the other hand, have found problems that point to a possible fake. There have been many efforts to definitively prove or disprove the film's authenticity, but it remains a mysterious piece of evidence that neither side can claim for sure.

The Patterson-Gimlin movie had a big effect on culture. It has become a symbol of the Bigfoot story, and it has been the subject of many articles, books, and TV shows. The movie's creature, often referred to as "Patty," has come to represent Bigfoot itself. It doesn't matter if you think the movie is a groundbreaking wildlife video or a masterful hoax; it changed the way people thought about and were interested in cryptozoology. In the end, the Patterson-Gimlin film is a testament to the long-lasting wonder of Bigfoot because it sits at the edge of belief and skepticism. It will always have a place in history, both as a piece of video footage and as a cultural symbol that makes us think about how much we know about the natural world and how creative people can be. People are still amazed and skeptical about the movie, which means that individuals will continue to argue about how real it is and whether or not Bigfoot exists for generations to come.

[pickypickypeak]

It's kinda sad that Disney's films with a black leads get the short of the stick

Tiana is well loved but she was a frog for most of the movie and that people care more about the tropes in her movie over the issues that were present

Ethan Clade is a decent character and Disney (the animation studio, not the whole company) proper first gay character who is one of the main character from not a minor character but no one didn't watch his movie because they were too busy complaining about the lack of original films, oh the irony

And finally Asha, who is deliberately meant to be an homage to the classic heroines without needing to a princess with a love interest, but is lauded as the real villain because of the wonky premise that idiots immediately use to describe her and her movie bad and only care about her if she's paired with an imaginary Jack Piss-in-the-Snow boyfriend they made up based on a concept art that never said anything about her being in a romance with

Mmm… I wouldn’t say tiana gets “the short of the stick” yes there are alt right idiots using her as a scapegoat to “prove” we white people are oppressed (“they should do white tiana next!!🤡”) which sucks but overall like you said I think she’s well loved and put among the best disney princesses by the ACTUAL disney fandom (because she is. Sorry not sorry) also she’s getting a tv show which is possibly becoming a sequel?? I mean there most definitely are movies that did WAY worse than princess and the frog lol (home on the range? Chicken little?)

Yeah, strange world was a very unfortunate movie coming out in a very unfortunate time. Kinda same with wish. It’s not really about skin color in their cases imo though.

I don’t wanna dive too deep into this “race” matter because I’m not black so I don’t really know what these characters and their reception mean to the black community in terms of rep, but hey – literally no offense anon I know you’re coming from a good place – while I like addressing these issues let’s also talk about the positive aspects! Being negative about people being negative is what keeps the negativity going lol, let’s show them reasons why these characters are awesome instead!

Tiana and ethan were both groundbreaking characters for different reasons, tiana was the first afro-american princess which was HUGE at the time and ethan was disney’s first gay character who is actually gay on screen??? I’m kinda relieved we skipped all the hate for that lol, youtubers would have been insufferable about it if it became a hit. But I’m happy some kids will have this movie to look up at as they grow older, I’m sure it’ll mean the world to them to see it so normalized in s disney movie.

And finally asha being a blending of classic and modern disney heroines brought a smile on the face of people who actually watched her movie without prior biases. Wish was just not for everyone. It’s cool.

(Also you wanna know about a disney leading black lady who doesn’t get enough credit????? BRANDY’S CINDERELLA!!!!! I ONLY WATCHED IT RECENTLY I CAN’T BELIEVE THAT MOVIE IS NOT A DISNEY MAINSTREAM!!!! IT’S SO GOOD!!!!!!)

[ash-and-books]

Rating: 3/5

Book Blurb:

From the New York Times bestselling author of The Atlas Six comes the story of three siblings who, upon the death of their father, are forced to reckon with their long-festering rivalries, dangerous abilities, and the crushing weight of all their unrealized adolescent potential. Where there’s a will, there’s a war.

Thayer Wren, the brilliant CEO of Wrenfare Magitech and so-called father of modern technology, is dead. Any one of his three telepathically and electrokinetically gifted children would be a plausible inheritor to the Wrenfare throne.

Or at least, so they like to think.

Meredith, textbook accomplished eldest daughter and the head of her own groundbreaking biotech company, has recently cured mental illness. You're welcome! If only her father's fortune wasn't her last hope for keeping her journalist ex-boyfriend from exposing what she really is: a total fraud.

Arthur, second-youngest congressman in history, fights the good fight every day of his life. And yet, his wife might be leaving him, and he's losing his re-election campaign. But his dead father’s approval in the form of a seat on the Wrenfare throne might just turn his sinking ship around.

Eilidh, once the world's most famous ballerina, has spent the last five years as a run-of-the-mill marketing executive at her father’s company after a life-altering injury put an end to her prodigious career. She might be lacking in accolades compared to her siblings, but if her father left her everything, it would finally validate her worth—by confirming she'd been his favorite all along.

On the pipeline of gifted kid to clinically depressed adult, nobody wins—but which Wren will come out on top?

Review:

Succession meets magic family tech corp drama, following three siblings as they deal with the fall out of their father's death, the company, the scandal, and of course, their future. Thayer Wren is the genius CEO of Wrenfare Magitech, and any of his three telepathically and electrokinetically gifted children could be the one to inherit his company. Meredith is the eldest daughter who headed her own biotech company but her journalist ex-boyfriend is going to expose her for what she really is : a fraud. Arthur the middle child, is the second youngest congressman in history, is married to a woman who doesn't want him to touch her, and is in a thrupple that he keeps a secret... and he might be losing his re-election campaign. Then there is Eilidh, the world's most famous ballerina who was put in a life-altering injury and now spends her days as the marketing executive of her father's company... and remains his favorite child all along. All of them are forced to come together for his funeral and to see what will happen to his fortune all the while the story dissects societal pressures, clinically depressed adults, and family drama. This was really interesting because on one hand it would make a really fun tv show, but as a book it kind of loses the plot a bit. It's a constant whiplash of "what is happening" and going through various POVs and going back and for between past and present. I thought it was a fun read because I loved Succession and this was a fun twist of a story that had a similar vibe, but I think it gets a bit muddled. Definitely read it if you love family drama and rich people problems.

Release Date: April 1, 2025

Publication/Blog: Ash and Books (ash-and-books.tumblr.com)

*Thanks Netgalley and Tor Publishing Group | Tor Books for sending me an arc in exchange for an honest review*

[rulernogard156]

Okay so I'm sitting here waiting for the wash on my mini to dray and I started thinking

(Aplogies to any non Fnaf fan followers, my old love once more resurfaces and is taking hold)

But I have to say the FNAF movie was kinda a B- (I know the most Luke warm take), but I have to tell someone this idea i had so ur all my victims.

The Movie, fantastic casting, literally couldn't have been better. The special effects? Phenomenal!! The fact they got Jim Henson company to help make the animitronics was a ture stroke of genius (I'm biased as I adore practical effects) but the writing? Eh.

I know that's not groundbreaking comitary/ nothing no one else had said. But, and I know I'm not the only one to think this, but this would have been a phenomenal TV show/ series.

A thriller series that follows the mad man Wiliam Afton himself (still played by Mathew Lilard) in a Dalmer/Breaking Bad/ Hanibal style.

Or we could follow Henry Emily and see from his point of view in an open secret cat and mouse game with William.

But also have a b plot that flashes to "the present" with grown-up Michael tracking down and cleaning up his father's messes. All in an attempt to save his brothers soul and stop both his dad and his sister.

I definitely want Elizabeth/Baby to be an over arching villain for Mike in the present, Think Sister location esque (season 1 - 2a)

Also, it'd be so fun to get someone who Matthew has really good chemistry with to play Henry Emily. Because you know, before all the child murder and burning alive, they were as close as could be (I always liked to think of them as platonic soul mates, or maybe more) but yeah maybe a 3-4 season show, though I could see it being a tight 2 seasons if written right.

Also, the same practical effects are absolutely nessasary, and I really need them to change the spring locks back to how they're described in cannon because that is way scarier than whatever the fuck the FNAF movie claw ribs have.

Thank you for coming to my Ted talk.

[infecto-groovalistic]

From the first moment I laid eyes upon him, I decided I liked him. That was saying something, because I don’t much like anyone. I can’t afford to like or trust anyone. Not anymore.

He slunk in one morning, head down, eyes x-raying the floor, shoulders tense and overall trying to look like he didn’t exist. I saw him appear in the doorway and quickly slip into the armchair Magda pointed out to him. He didn’t look around or make a noise or speak. He just sat there, as straight as he could in the sagging cushions of the blue and white striped armchair. He clasped his hands together tightly and placed them carefully on his lap, the thumbs facing the ceiling. A moment later his hands unclasped and one hand flew to his mouth where he began gnawing on a fingernail. Then, as though realising the full extent of his habit, he removed his fingers from his mouth and reclasped his hands back in his lap. Then he began to twiddle his thumbs instead. My eyes drifted away from the distracting hands and to his face. God, he was young. Too young to be in a place like this. He must be pretty fucked up. His face was pale, like it had been cast in moonlight. I twisted my head to check his eyes. His face may have looked like moonlight, but there were definitely no stars in his eyes. They were hazel, I could tell. I couldn’t see. But I didn’t need to see. I just knew. He had the whole ‘poor baby’ thing going too, but, to his credit, he wasn’t exploiting it. On my first days I would’ve killed to have the “poor little victim baby” thing going.

A shout of laughter rippled through the room and he jumped. Scared, he cautiously looked up only to find everyone fixated on the stupid television. He took a quick glance around the room, assuming everyone was watching the television. I wasn’t. I was still watching him. I focused on his lips now. Straightaway I could tell that those lips had touched another person and was disappointed. But there was no love on his face. There were no remnants of who had kissed him in his eyes or mouth or soul. He had hidden the memory of them inside of him and that distinctly annoyed me. If people hide things, then they have to actually look to find them. It’s okay if you lose them, or misplace them, or put them somewhere else, you can still stumble across them. Just like your first kiss. If it was a good memory, don’t try and hide it somewhere – just put it somewhere. If you hide it, you’ll never just stumble across it. But, if you forget it or misplace it, you never know when it might come back. You never know when it’ll pop up in your subconscious and give you a nice surprise. But if it’s a bad kiss, you try to forget and lose the memory so you’ll never stumble across it again. It’s quite sad actually when people forget to lose a memory and are haunted by it for the rest of their lives. But the brain is not just like a filing system, or a big tunnel with two exits saying ‘keep’ or ‘chuck’. You can’t physically file your memories; you don’t actually get to decide which ones you lose for good or which ones you simply misplace. I’m the only one who knows this, so, naturally, I know how to do it. If I’m really bored and Jasper is not here I sort through the week’s memories and file them, but a lot of the time I just let them go, it’s no big deal once you’ve cracked the secret. Though I bet if anyone else did it would be groundbreaking. Imagine being able to lose memories of a tragic childhood incidence or forget all the deaths you’ve witnessed. Think of how much a doctor or an ambulance officer would give to be able to forget things like that.

So, that’s how all memories work. Don’t ask me how I know – I just know. And now you know, so if I hear of a groundbreaking new study about memories I’ll know. I’ll even understand if you don’t credit me. After all, I’m just a teenage kid and that doesn’t give me much credibility, does it?

Back to the new kid. He’s taken up staring at the TV now, instead of his lap. I hate that TV! Doesn’t anyone realise how easily that box kills your brain cells? Annoyed, I ground my teeth together so hard Ben turned around.

“That’s not a good idea now, is it?” he said in his annoyingly calm, orderly way.

I purposely rolled my eyes and ceased the grinding. I don’t want to be here. I hated TV time. They think that we’re all so interested in who gets voted off American Idol. Who cares? Half of them can’t sing anyway. My money’s on the chick, and I don’t even watch the show. She’s gonna win though, I knew it. I shuffled in my armchair so my back is resting against one padded arm and my legs are propped over the other. Another ripple of laughter courses the room and I glanced at the television, wondering what was so funny about American Idol. Only, it’s not Idol that on but some crap TV sitcom. Holy shit! Quick! I need something to gouge my eyes out with and deafen myself with before too much of this stupidity seeps into my brain. Somebody must’ve changed the channel because now that I think about it, I don’t recall the sounds of American Idol at all this session. I must be slipping. How could I let such a little observation slip past me? Oh yeah, it was the arrival of that new kid. The one with messy, once-styled black hair. I could still smell the gel he used to use in it. Yeah, of course he’s washed it since he came here, but, like I said, I know stuff. And I know he used to gel his hair.

There is a quiet click but to my ears it is so loud because I have been awaiting it all day. The TV is off! Hallelujah!

“Lunchtime!” said Magda in an overly cheery voice, beaming at us all.

I moaned and purposely took my time unhooking my legs from the arms of the chair. I desperately hoped Ben didn't decide to wait for me. However, he’s not waiting for me but instead for the new little black haired kid who was sitting trying to look as inconspicuous as possible in his armchair. He offered a hand to the kid to pull him out of the chair. The black-haired kid learnt the hard way how difficult it is to extract yourself from the cushions of that particular chair. It swallows you in; sucks your arse in the base of the chair. I chuckled as he gripped the arm and tried to haul himself out.

“Here, let me help. Can I touch your arm?” Ben asked carefully, his hand still extended and quite close to the boy’s.

The little victim shook his head violently and retracted his hands, terrified, clutching them close into his body, staring up at Ben like he was threatening him. Ben holds up his hands hastily, indicating no contest.

I raised an eyebrow to myself and passed Ben on my way to the door. I paused, my back facing the two and shook my head slowly. I turned back around to face them both, smirking.

“What are you smirking at, Gerard?” Ben snapped, watching the kid and looking defeated.

I raised a finger to indicate patience then began to slowly undo the tie around my neck. Slowly, systematically, and carefully I undid it, preferring to reverse every step rather than loosen it. I took it off my neck and dangled it in front of the kid’s chair. He’s watching me with such intense scrutiny I’m quite affronted. If I was mocking him, he would know, and would not have to resort to attempting to read me. He finally decided my intentions were pure, or whatever; he just finally took the loop of the tie I held out to him. In one swift motion I hauled him out onto his feet. He staggered for a bit but I didn’t move to steady him. He didn’t want anyone to touch him. I had to respect that. If he fell and cracked his head, I wouldn’t touch him. If it was against his wishes to be touched, then I wouldn’t do it. It wasn’t that hard to comprehend.

Once out of the chair he was steadily going bright red. I let go of the tie and it fell, slack, in his hands. He bundled it up and held it out to me. I shook my head and made my way to lunch; I was hungry, after all.

I KNOW WHERE YOU LIVE IM GOING TO SMASH YOUR DANGER DAYS CD ALSO KILL YOURSELF

[castlebyersafterdark]

I don’t necessarily think that anons thinking is outdated, maybe the way they expressed it showed a level of doom and gloom that doesn’t match up with todays landscape, I certainly don’t think it’s *impossible* for him to have a very successful acting career. Not at all. But I don’t think anons general concern is unfounded or sadly, outdated. Yes even though we have made great strides the last few years, for every Jonathan Bailey and Kit Connor, we still have a looooooooooong way to go when it comes to out gay or bi actors. Sure out gay actors can nab gay roles, look at say Kit Connors heartstopper costar (I always forget his name sorry!), but will we see him book romantic leading straight men roles like kit easily has? probably not. There’s a lot more diversity nowadays which is great but I think it’s telling we still don’t have any A lister top of the heap leading men who are fully out and out in their prime. I think it’s telling the fact that in 2024 something like byler would still be groundbreaking .. it means we haven’t come as far as we should have by now…. like Im pretty sure actors are still told to be closeted to get jobs and in an industry that makes more straight roles than queer ones, things like “passing” believably as hetero matter still … and idk why but for some people as soon as someone comes out it becomes impossible for them to believe that actor in straight roles…. it’s weird, but the way fans switched up when noah came out speaks volumes as to why risk averse studios and agents still closet actors… people are dumb and ignorant still…. i mean this isn’t always the case, jonathan bailey is a good example… but not every gay actor is treated with such grace ….. (and not every actor can “pass”) hence why there’s still that worry.

basically noah will still be able to work if he wants but it def won’t be a cake walk or as easy as a lot of people want to believe because we WANT to believe the industry is oh so much better than it was…. but it’s still a very homophobic industry. the way queer romances and characters are still treated in tv and movies is all the proof you need. it’s not impossible for him but I think we need to be honest about the issues and struggles he could face still and respect the fact that he’s gonna have a harder road to walk than some of his peers

Maybe outdated is the wrong terminology, and agree that there is SO MUCH that is still needed. Small number of out gay/bi men in Hollywood comparatively is sadly true - by a landslide. I do say the true doom and gloom can maybe be left behind? We may not have hoardes of A-listers (what counts as an A-lister, anyway), but "young hollywood" is queerer than ever. I don't know most of these people, but there's so many more than in the past. And people are coming out younger. Progress! Just want to celebrate it.

I don't disagree at all with the bulk of what you said so don't take this as a downing of it, it's insightful and true and I definitely understand the continued environment (agents urging closeting, passing, etc). I'm just pointing out counterpoints of positivity and additonal reality.

I think a problem here is how overly people use "romantic straight leading man" roles as the pinnacle of success and my pushback is - why is that the measure? He or anyone else doesn't need to star in a straight romcom to make it. There are soooo many options. Those type of roles aren’t even the biggest draw. And one thing, Kit Conner - isn't he bi? Would make sense for him to pursure a M/F romcom if he wanted. Might not be the point but js.

I don't see why Noah would even want that type of role to be honest (or the the other guy on Heartstopper as mentioned. Joe Locke?). I know you don't NEED to only play your sexuality (personally, I also don't have issue with straight playing gay as long as care is put into a role) but I can't see that as being a dream pursuit for Noah. There's a lot more genres and scripts. And while some gay actors might want those romantic lead roles, others would never. Some famously have played straight.

Here's some in general big name out actors off the top of my head. I don't love all these people but a majority are household names.

Lee Pace. Matt Bomer. Andrew Scott. Billy Porter. Jim Parsons. Luke Evans. Ian McKellen. Neil Patrick Harris. Jesse Tyler Ferguson. Zachary Quinto.

List can and should grow more and more - I long for being to rattle off dozens and dozend of names!!!