#yes I'm a very mature individual

[steelthroat]

Please Hasbro let the Shattered Glass version of Hardtop be named Softbottom. Please please please please!!!!! PLEASE, HASBRO I'M BEGGING YOU!!!!

[partyparade]

It warms my heart to see more follower oc x aym or follower oc x baal ships(or platonic interactions)

[ozzgin]

Yandere! Werewolf Headcanons

I've been stalked by the guilty feeling that my Romanian Werewolf boy got a lot of backstory but not much romance or interaction. So there you have it: some headcanons featuring the ancient Beast, a post-kidnapping sequel.

Content: female reader, obsessive behavior, monster romance, mild NSFW at the end, ridiculously older yandere

You followed the gargantuan stranger back into the city, leaving the bloodbath behind as if it was just a distant dream. Admittedly, you’d expected to be dragged into some mountainous cave or an abandoned mansion, not the cozy - albeit a little dusty - apartment on a main, historical street. On second thought, he did function as a human outside of his monstrous escapades, so it made sense. “Is this your place?”, you sheepishly asked while he wiped the thick layers of blood off him. “One of them, yes”, he answered curtly. “It’s central”, you remarked, trying to make conversation. “Well, I didn’t know about it back then. It’s been a few decades.”

Your ears perked up at the words. Gazing at his features, he didn’t seem necessarily aged to you. The deep creases contouring his face felt more like a sign that he’s lived sorrows beyond most people’s comprehension. “How old are you?” You finally asked as curiosity replaced your initial fear. He abruptly stopped his movements and leaned back, brows furrowed in deep contemplation. “I’m not so sure anymore. I was born in the 80s”, he concluded. “That’s not too far back, is it?” You inquired, this time more relaxed. “80 BC, I meant. You do the math.”

He freshened himself up as you counted the millennia on your fingers, frowning in confusion. He chuckled at your intense focus, then quickly looked up into the mirror. When was the last time he smiled like this? The reflection was a foreign sight to him. “We’ll get you everything you need tomorrow”, he continued, still in a daze. What a strange idea, having someone to speak to after an eternity. And suddenly, it occurred to him just how rusted his communication had gotten: “I’m so sorry, I haven’t asked for your name once”, he said, embarrassed. “It’s (Y/N). And you are...?" Might as well introduce yourself to your benevolent captor.

The dreaded question. How did they call him back in the day? He hasn't had anyone spell it out for him, nor did he feel the need at any point to say it himself. Why would he? He hadn't anticipated meeting you. With pursed lips, he searched his mind. Eventually, from the depths or memories, from days of yore, it made its way back: "Daos."

Given your first gory encounter (where he quite literally murdered everyone else), you were surprised to find out he's otherwise a calm and polite individual. Well, he's had centuries to mature, you suppose. You've also noticed he has that rather old-fashioned chivalry to him. He's very attentive despite his stoic demeanor, and often follows with acts of service.

"You're insulting me. I can carry this myself with ease", you'll argue. "I never doubted you can. Nonetheless, it is my wish to do it for you."

As the days pass, your reluctance seems to vanish as well. In fact, you've become particularly cheeky, encouraged by his warm, unperturbed behavior. Maybe you haven't gotten the worst deal out there, after all.

"You know, you talk like an old man", you've teased him once. He was visibly taken aback by your statement, and you could discern a faint blush on his face. "Do I? My apologies, I haven't spoken to anyone in a long time. I'm not familiar with modern speech. Have I embarrassed you somehow?"

He spends his free time reading, though he will frequently take you on walks. It's an interesting affair to say the least. You can feel the curious eyes of the passersby and hear their not-so-discreet whispered gossip. You can't truly blame them: Daos is enormous even as a human. He towers above everyone else with his imposing appearance. To match, his voice is deep and coarse as a result of not using it much until recently.

The ancient werewolf is a living history book. If asked, he will narrate to you important events or details you might be curious about regarding his culture. Once, when he'd been in a good mood, he even shared fragments of his life before turning into a creature. He'd been a high-ranked Dacian warrior, spending his days training or fighting. He still remembers the flag he carried with bitter fondness, yet another irony to his fate: a wolf-headed serpent. It was meant to showcase their way of life; barbarians with no fear of death. They'd greeted the Roman Empire with nothing but a sword and a shield, no shred of doubt.

He might've been betrayed by his people, but the pride remains. The pride of a soldier who's never known defeat. You learned quickly that his beastly form doesn't count as a significant change by any means, save for appearances. The man has brute strength even as a human. You'd once strayed from his view, and a stranger approached with a daring whistle, gawking you up and down. Before you could react, Daos clawed him by the throat. You heard the twist of the skin and the creak of the bones giving in to the immense pressure of his large hand.

"It's the second time I have exposed you to such unpleasant sights", he said, discarding the body as if it was any other garbage. "Forgive me, but I will not have you disrespected like this."

He is very much aware he's taken you away from the world out of his own selfish desire. The fact that you accepted it is more than he could ever ask for. That's what he keeps telling himself, even as his eyes wander to your lips whenever you speak. Or as his hand lingers a moment too long against the curve of your back. Or as he hungrily takes in your scent whenever you're nearby.

He might be unhealthily possessive of you, but Daos will never do anything against your will. No matter how obvious his urges are. In fact, no amount of flirting or teasing will shake his resolve. You will have to be very direct with your approval.

Once the reality settles in, he'll become extremely affectionate, bordering on obsessive. To think he could have you in every way possible. Oh, he's waited thousands of years for you. All the suffering, the loneliness, the anger, they're stripped of any meaning now that he has you.

The city strolls at an awkward distance have since become a habitual excuse to hold your hand and show you off to the mortals. The quiet evenings of passing time with a book now include your merely noticeable weight cuddled into his lap. You didn't expect him to be this adoring. Being touch-starved for millennia counts as one reason, naturally, but there's more to it, so much more. And it all leads back to you.

He is a little taken aback when you ask him to do the deed in his werewolf form. "Don't be foolish. I can't overcome my instincts as well when I'm a creature. I could harm you", he'll lecture you. "Besides, you can barely take it as it currently is", he'll add, smirking at your baffled expression. It seems he's picked up on your cheekiness.

After a lot of pleading and waiting for the right moment - when he's ravaging you in a daze - he finally agrees. True to his word, his tune instantly changes. The tender hold turns into a desperate grasp sinking into your skin, and the thrusts become irregular, almost frantic. His drool cools your burning cheeks as you hold onto the coarse fur, feverish and overwhelmed.

His golden eyes rest on the small human squirming underneath him, and suddenly, he can't help but notice: you have the perfect birthing hips.

[soberstardom]

JEALOUSY? — デスノート

SUMMARY. ❦. — death note characters having jealous moments.

CHARACTERS. 𓉸ྀི — yagami light, lawliet l, amane misa, touta matsuda, mihael keehl (mello), jeevas mail (matt), mikami teru.

REQUEST. 𖦹 — N/A

WARNINGS. ᶻ 𝗓 𐰁 — jealousy, some mentions of killing, (semi-romanticized) possessive men + women.

A/N. ౨ৎ — this took way longer than it should've. i apologize deeply. also, i do not write for nate river (near) as i'm not the biggest fan of his general character, personally. also, the reader is presented as female.

LINKS. .ᐟ.ᐟ — PINNED POST. | MASTERLIST.

YAGAMI LIGHT — (夜神 月 ライト)

> 私は想像します — he'd be manipulative . . . !

꩜ .ᐟ — ah, yes, light yagami. where do i start?

꩜ .ᐟ — this manipulative god of the new world would do exactly as his name implies. manipulate.

꩜ .ᐟ — he would most likely coerce you into giving him the individuals name and other personal details.

꩜ .ᐟ — later on, however, he would hold this against you. but, not in a 'blackmail', sort of way, no.

꩜ .ᐟ — he would use it as leverage to shut down any more ideas forming in your pretty little mind.

꩜ .ᐟ — what i mean by that is, he would use that and turn it against you by saying you're such a good girl for giving that said information to your lord. he would say that he loves you and that he only gave him a heart attack, nothing more.

꩜ .ᐟ — he would end it off by saying that you are his. his goddess. his lover. his servant. and nothing will change that.

LAWLIET L — (エル・ローライト)

> 私は想像します — he'd be logical . . . !

꩜ .ᐟ — now, i personally believe that L is not the type to get jealous.

꩜ .ᐟ — he genuinely trusts you, and doesn't believe that you'd commit adultery. especially towards him.

꩜ .ᐟ — however, we're only human and as a result, we have our moments.

꩜ .ᐟ — L, if he felt jealous, would be either very broad and upfront, or very doubtful and unsure.

꩜ .ᐟ — i say this because L is a very smart and straightforward man who has no shame in voicing his thoughts.

꩜ .ᐟ — but, since you're his first relationship, he has less knowledge in this field and that could make him feel insecure.

꩜ .ᐟ — but, regardless of that, you discover his feelings eventually and comfort him with loving words and reassurance.

꩜ .ᐟ — you two ate strawberry cake together afterwards.

AMANE MISA — (弥 海砂)

> 私は想像します — she would be clingy . . . !

꩜ .ᐟ — misa would definitely be whiny and clingy, demanding your attention.

꩜ .ᐟ — she would never let it go and would probably be still asking about the same individual a week after that occurrence happened.

꩜ .ᐟ — she would be asking who they were, why did they approach you, do you like them more than her, do you like them at all, etc.

꩜ .ᐟ — she would try and buy you things and take you put on more extravagant dates to try and make sure you know she's better.

꩜ .ᐟ — she also did that to try and soothe her paranoia.

꩜ .ᐟ — but, she couldn't stop thinking about it, and eventually started ranting about it more.

꩜ .ᐟ — due to her eyes, she threatened to kill them if you ever converse with them again.

꩜ .ᐟ — she's a handful, but you love her, don't you?

TOUTA MATSUDA — (松田 桃太)

> 私は想像します — he would be self-critical . . . !

꩜ .ᐟ — now, matsuda already isn't confident in his abilities due to the amount of criticism he already gets from his team. (that's deserved, lol.)

꩜ .ᐟ — and seeing you, his gorgeous girlfriend, talking with one of the higher ranking members is yet another blow to his self-esteem.

꩜ .ᐟ — he wouldn't voice it right away, choosing to sulk instead.

꩜ .ᐟ — you didn't think much of it at first. however, once his mini pout phase didn't go away, you began to worry.

꩜ .ᐟ — after a while of 'what's wrong matsu?' and 'its nothing y/n!', he finally gave in.

꩜ .ᐟ — he told you how it made him feel when you spoke to the other men and apologized in the case that he seemed immature, but of course you didn't mind.

꩜ .ᐟ — you two sorted it out maturely and went to sleep soon after.

KEEHL MIHAEL (MELLO) — (ミハエル・ケール) + (メロ)

> 私は想像します — he would be territorial . . . !

꩜ .ᐟ — i'm sure you're not surprised, considering mello's bold, aggressive personality.

꩜ .ᐟ — he isn't scared to tell people what belongs to him. that goes for you too, since you do belong to him.

꩜ .ᐟ — whenever he sees someone hitting on you, he goes off. and i mean, OFF.

꩜ .ᐟ — he yells at the person and will definitely land some punches while practically screaming "DON'T YOU HEAR ME?! SHES MINE!" at the guy while you're trying to pull him off.

꩜ .ᐟ — once he was done, he would give you a kiss while whispering 'mine.' and he would quickly drag you away with a iron grip on your wrist.

꩜ .ᐟ — once you got home, you two were cuddling in bed all day while he kept on reminding you that you are his. <3

JEEVAS MAIL (MATT) — (マイル=ジーヴァス) + (マット)

> 私は想像します — he'd play it off . . . !

꩜ .ᐟ — matt is a member in mello's gang that's known for being cocky and overconfident.

꩜ .ᐟ — due to that, he doesn't get jealous often. well, that and because he trusts you and doesn't see the need.

꩜ .ᐟ — BUT, on the off chance he does get jealous, it could go one of two ways.

꩜ .ᐟ — one, he plays it off with a smirk and a puff of his cigarette, or two, he just mocks the person straight to their face. with no regrets, may i add.

꩜ .ᐟ — he earns a smack in the back of the head, for that.

꩜ .ᐟ — but don't get your hopes up. he's not going to admit he was ever jealous. (not that he needs to. it's obvious, lol.)

MIKAMI TERU — (魅上 照)

> 私は想像します — he would be aggravated. . . !

꩜ .ᐟ — now, mikami is a man of order and structure. he enjoys schedules and planning. he looks forward to the same things each day.

꩜ .ᐟ — however, this criminal defense lawyer can't help but feel the slightest bit of aggravation when he sees this, nobody, approaching his partner.

꩜ .ᐟ — of course, the calms himself down since x-kira can blow his cover, can he?

꩜ .ᐟ — so he let you have that little interaction with them, and continued on with your guys' day not showing much acknowledgement towards what happened.

꩜ .ᐟ — but once you guys got home and he proceeded to his office, we all know what he did.

꩜ .ᐟ — delete, delete, delete.

©𝐒𝐎𝐁𝐄𝐑𝐒𝐓𝐀𝐑𝐃𝐎𝐌 — 𝟐𝟎𝟐𝟒

[marzipanandminutiae]

I´m struggling with a writing research question and you seem like the person to ask, so I hope you don´t mind me showing up here: do you happen to know when girls/teenagers made the transition to adult style dress (i.e. full length skirts, or at least I´m under the impression that this is the distinction)? My brain insists it´s 17ish, but of course I can´t find the reference now that I´m looking, nor any other. The story is set in the (late) victorian period.

16-17, yes! You were pretty much on the money there. this chart, printed in Harper's Bazaar in 1868, expresses the generally agreed-upon age ranges, although of course individual practice could have a 1 or 2 year margin of error

(the implication being, of course, that at 16 she would adopt the instep-length skirts of adulthood. the reason it says "2-16" is the toddlers often wore longer skirts than girls who could confidently walk. I'm not fully sure why that was, I admit, but I'm pretty sure what they mean is "this length is theoretically appropriate for girls of all ages between 2 and 16")

(and keep in mind that these are approximations and magazine ideals- I generally average it out to "knee-length when very young, calf-length when a pre-teen or young teenager." parents weren't necessarily freaking out because their 12-year-old daughter had her skirts an inch shorter than Harper's said she ought to. not everybody saw this chart; not everybody had the ability or desire to hit precisely every benchmark on the list at its assigned age. it's a good general rule of thumb, basically)

this whole "long skirts = adulthood" thing started around the 1820s-30s, of course. before then, little girls and adult women had pretty much identical hemlines. and hairstyles; see also, mid-late Victorian and Edwardian practice of putting one's hair Up as a sign of maturity around the same age as letting down skirts

[chimggukchim]

A Jikooker's Take On Taekook

So...it's been a minute - real life is hectic. But I've got some downtime now and like always, a thought popped into my head and I felt like...why not write about it. So here I am.

I will preface this because of my tags that this is in no way meant to be insulting. Because first and foremost...I will always be ARMY who fell in love with all of BTS and their bonds with each other before anything. And no toxic shipper take will ever get me to hate on any members' bonds.

While watching a reactor's video on taekook's dynamic (she does all of BTS, and is not a shipper), it got me thinking back to when I just got into the fandom and was consuming content left and right, building my perception of BTS and the dynamics within them - this is clearly before I felt there was anything between jikook.

Just plain ARMY loving on all the guys. Most importantly, an ARMY who watched content without the influence of twitter or any other social media that could influence my thoughts.

Anyway, so Taekook from my perspective.

I got into BTS at the very beginning of 2017 and rapidly consumed all their content (I'm talking ALL). So by June, I had felt like I had been on this journey with them since 2013 lol.

My initial take on Taehyung and Jungkook was that they were the typical BBFs. The youngest in the group, their vibe to me was like those two class clowns who are attached at the hip, always getting into trouble together, doing the silliest things together...but being the best of friends to the point, they wouldn't know what to do without the other.

The content I saw was Jungkook and Tae doing stupid stuff, either to the other members or to each other. They were so cute. In many moments, it was the maknae line, but I always felt like Jimin was kinda trying to fit in by being silly with them. It was only after, now that I know Jimin's personality better, that I realized it was because of his level of maturity, which was much higher than Tae and JK's at that time. (I've always felt like Jimin is one of the most mature in BTS, probably right up there with Joon and Yoongi).

Anyway, so that was my perception of Taekook.

Fast forward throughout the years, we have seen that dynamic change, and I think it was inevitable and natural as these two grew up and grew more mature. No one can deny that the Tae and JK we see today are very different from the ones who did all those antics back then.

So naturally, as they individually changed, it was no surprise that their dynamic changed as well. And we did see it. Although they still loved each other (there will never be any contestation to this or any other bond in BTS, all those boys love each other to death), we saw less of their jests and games.

i thought it was just me until that little talk they had in In The Soop, where Jungkook did confess that he and Tae had sort of drifted apart and weren't as close as they were before. Now, don't get me wrong. I still believe JK loved and respected Tae, and they did spend time together doing things, but compared to how they were before, yes, there was a decrease in time spent together.

And again, that was only natural. They both had changed, and so I think they needed to re-connect with the persons, the matured adults, they were now.

It started with them voicing it out loud to each other.

And then we got the Taekook we see today. Close again, but in a different way. Now, they don't get themselves into silly antics (although they are still playful as seen in AYS). But they do spend time together doing activities they both share an affinity for.

But it will not and cannot be what it was before. Because these two have their separate lives now to live as well. Will they involve each other in their big moments? I have no doubt they will. And yes, they might spend time with each other's friends as well because that's how normal friendships work.

But there will also be a ton of moments where they will keep just to themselves and yes, their significant others, and not share with each other.

And that's normal and natural too.

So, to anyone trying to discredit their bond to prove their ship right, and YES, it goes the other way too because I am after all, in my jikook circles and see the same being done to Jimin and Jungkook, I say please stop.

Your hurtful, spiteful, DELUSIONAL words will never change reality.

And that reality is that Taehyung and Jungkook are close, they love and respect each other, they see each other as very very good friends. But...they have matured. They may no longer be the BFFs they once were, and most importantly...they are not in love with each other.

[olderthannetfic]

I'm in a couple anime fandoms, mostly from series I started when I was a kid and was a part of the target age range (but not necessarily demographic bc many are shonen and I'm a woman), and I've recently started re-reading and rewatching some series I thought I really understood. Turns out I had a lot of the characters wrong and so does a lot of the fandom to this day. I was vaguely aware of the Yashahime "controversy" with Sesshomaru and Rin and just thought it was funny how many people found issue with what was obviously endgame (Let's be real, the only purpose for Rin's character was Sesshomaru's character development. There's not much else to her 🤷🏽‍♀️), especially because of the many people saying Sesshomaru was so mature and was like her father, which I partially thought, too. I'm about 20 chapters from the end, and he's so petty, vindictive, and childish from beginning to end! He wasn't parenting anyone and had no reason to initially pursue Inuyasha besides spite, entitelment, and arrogance lol. Did we all think that a stoic personality is the same as maturity as kids?!

Then watching and reading Naruto again made me realize a lot of the fanbase is really odd about Sasuke as a character. I also thought he was whiny, dramatic, and overemotional as a kid, but now he's definitely one of the most compelling parts of the story for me. He's just a traumatized kid with an avoidant attachment style and insecurity complex who's scared of getting close to people because he doesn't want to be hurt again while constantly mourning his entire clan. That and Naruto takes place in a feudalist-based world with a daimyo wherein clans are integral to society individual identity, but Sasuke's prevented from being a socially "good son" in avenging his clan's honor because blind nationalism is good or something 🤷🏽‍♀️, despite the narrative allowing other characters like Shikamaru to get revenge. Very cynical and a bit too realistic for me in that aspect. Honestly, pretty glad I never picked up on any of that as a kid, or it'd be too depressing.

So yeah. I've been pretty surprised from these re-reads and rewatches. No idea what comes next, maybe Sailor Moon or Fushigi Yuugi. Has anyone else experienced something similar when revisiting stuff from their childhoods?

--

Did we all think that a stoic personality is the same as maturity as kids?!

Yes.

[thearchercore]

Im going to ask a really dumb question but I’m a brand new fan to F1. Why is Max so hated?? Because he wins a lot?? I keep seeing snippets of drivers talking about how lovely a person he is, just rather blunt, so I’m genuinely confused why there’s such an intense dislike of him.

well, he was raised differently to other drivers. with his dad being a former f1 driver (with borderline or outright abusive strict parenting and training techniques), he had faster transition to f1 than the others. he was basically the face of child labour. at the time, because of that, he wasn't really treated as a "rookie" because older drivers didn't respect him and the rest made fun of him for being too young to even be in f1 when most kids did f2 first.

he got promoted to a top team fairly quickly and that started his long run with red bull. that being said, starting in f1 so young came with maturing WITHIN the sport, while so many cameras were on him, so he was bound to make mistakes as he was figuring things out and like, growing up to be a proper adult.

he also is known to race hard and push his car to the limits, which gave him nicknames like max "crashtappen". i'm not gonna excuse anything he did that people still criticize him for to this day but i think growing up in this environment and being in front of brutal press since he was 17 must have taken a toll on him.

add to that drive to survive debuting during his years (and the show chose daniel as unsaid protagonist which meant they painted max as a villain). so even locals disliked him automatically because he got a bad edit on a show that was globally accessible to every netflix subscriber.

then, his title fight in 2021 was a rough one, mercedes wasn't exactly playing nice and there was a whole controversy about the final race which didn't make things better.

then there's the question of dominance that max grew over 2022-2023. he broke numerous records by being the fastest driver in the fastest car. if you're successul, people will dislike you. that's always happening.

so, yes, this is a long story short essentially but i think i covered most angles why some may dislike him.

at the end of the day, i think when you take all these factors into consideration, his abusive father, all the bad people that influenced him in his formative years, press choosing him to be the enemy from day one, and then netflix doubling down on that and making things worse, i think the max we have today is a mature individual who, despite everything life threw at him, grew up to be a very decent and nice person

[tealvenetianmask]

Do you see Blitz and Moxxie improving his relationship with each other?

Honestly, I'm a little confused by this question, because I don't think their relationship is so bad. They obviously both care deeply for each other and value their friendship.

Blitz goes out of his way to compliment Moxxie's work (when he thinks it's deserved . . .) and his gut reaction to danger is always to step in front of Moxxie to shield him with his own body. When they first met, Blitz helped a very distraught Moxxie break out of prison, move on from his abusive mob family, and start a new life.

In turn, Moxxie is super loyal. And while he might criticize some of Blitz's decisions in the most "um actually" way possible, he also stands by Blitz whenever it matters and earnestly tries to help.

Now do I totally excuse Blitz for bullying Moxxie on the regular with jokes at his expense and generally stalking M&M and being a nuisance? For often being a dick for no other reason but the fact that Moxxie is fun to make fun of? Do I excuse him for essentially using Moxxie as the go-to self-accomodation for his paperwork issues and washing his hands of it? No. Blitz obviously has growing to do. And I think he's on his way.

Also, whenever Blitz is unable to lead him, Moxxie's weapons-grade daddy issues get free rein and he utterly loses his shit. And one day I'll do a full post on this because there's a lot there.

That said, their dynamic is very older and younger brother in MOST ways. The way that Blitz is protective. The way that Moxxie questions Blitz's judgement. The teasing and bullying. They both annoy each other and care deeply.

So to get back to your question, yes. I think their friendship is fine even though they're both very messed up individuals. And also, their friendship will grow as they both mature.

[the-haven-keepers-collective]

local Piglin goes on unhinged rant /silly

aLRIGHT FUCKERS buckle up I'm gonna scream about exomemories, noemata, and Piglin culture and general Piglin fuckery. Some stuff about Enderfolk in our canon too, just a very small section.

Preamble real quick: Yes, we know some of these things in the "worldbuilding" of our noemata/exomemories are likely or even undoubtedly subconsciously inspired by Tumblr posts or media. If you notice it, we probably already know. Please don't comment on it, it kinda bothers us for reasons that are hard to articulate. Also, plz be mature about the bits that could be read as kink-coded. It's not a kink it's literally our version of marriage. Nothing against kink tho shout out to kinky alterhumans.

Oh also, post written by Techno. I am the local Piglin in question.

So for one, Nether culture is very cutthroat. "Learn fast or die" in the words of Avatar. It's home and I love it, but it's not the sort of place most people are able to get comfortable in. Comfort requires safety, safety requires resources, and resources are very few in the Nether. Survival is priority in the Nether; a lot of the culture within stems from that base fact.

Hair is super important to Piglin culture. It has nothing to do with hair itself and everything to do with the result of it- long hair is an easy handle in a fight, and sometimes a braid someone can get ahold of is the difference between life and death. It's the norm to keep your hair short; from maybe chin length to properly against-the-head levels of short. Long hair is considered to be a sign of a skilled warrior, since they're skilled enough to have an active hindrance for the sake of aesthetic. The longer the more of a threat they are. If you challenge a Piglin with waist length hair. Hairstyles have some significance too- high ponytails are the most dangerous to have with how much they stick out, so they're the "fuck you I'm a badass" of hair pretty much.

I've already mentioned this in a post before, but it's pretty common for teens to try and grow out their hair and end up with shitty, choppy haircuts from a fight. It's considered normal- kids get cocky and they're kind of assholes to each other. Everyone in the Nether knows this aspect of Piglin culture, so the danger isn't unique to fights with other Piglin, either- long hair as a Piglin makes you a well-respected individual at best, a potential target at worst. That's not as true in the overworld, where most people don't know about the hair thing. It's also not that uncommon for those with long hair to cut their hair before a battle as a sort of symbol for "going all in" so to speak. They're taking away the hindrance they've gotten used to- that means they're going to use all their force, all their skills, and typically means they're willing to die in this fight.

In source- skip this paragraph for source talk- my mother did this when helping me escape the Nether. Our village wasn't very fond of The Blood God, and for reasons that'd take up more space on an already very long (and not even near done) post, they went after me. Lemme tell y'all when a Piglin woman cuts her hair in front of a full village of people ready to kill her and grabs her axe, you motherfuckin' FEAR HER AND RUN. /silly

Alright hair aside! I'm finally done yelling about hair. Enderfolk! For one, they're called Enderfolk in our canon. They have zero concept of gender and frankly we just like the word better anyway. This is a tidbit that'd probably be better on our Enderfolk's post when/if they write it, but it's necessary context. Enderfolk, in our canon, are only creatures of the End. The End is completely closed off- which we'll get to in another post I'm sure, Kip can explain that one. Enderfolk aren't naturally found in any other dimension; They're "raptured" into the nether. Think, if you've heard of or seen the backrooms, how you just sort of clip into the backrooms. One step on seemingly solid ground and suddenly the world spins around you as you fall, and you're in another dimension. They appear, consistently, in warped forests.

The Nether doesn't naturally have warped forests either- they just started bleeding through, spreading, one day. It was one day thousands of years ago, to be fair, so most societies in my source memories had long since adjusted. We're not quite sure how much of Ender culture is even left for the Enderfolk in the Nether and overworld, since most of it is just reframed Piglin, Blazeborne, Pheonixkin, etc. culture. Most Netherborne are actually really fond and protective of Enderfolk nowadays because... I mean, really 99% of us have a memory of meeting one who was still adjusting and very clearly confused and stressed about losing their home/being plonked unceremoniously into a completely different environment. A lot of them take at least a year just to adapt to the temperatures, and the language barrier is... messy at best for a while. Gods forbid the village doesn't have a translator on hand.

Anyway; ROMANCE, HUH? Yeah we've got that too. I had forgotten until recently that Piglin do actually use the term 'mate' in our canon. I'm not sure there's a term equivalent for "dating" though? If there is I don't remember it. Which is kind of funny, because there is absolutely a major difference between being someone's spouse and being their mate. For a Piglin, at least, a mate is a much bigger commitment than a spouse. It varies from person to person obviously, but the general consensus as far as I remember was that a spouse spends their life with you. A mate makes a vow that a spouse does not in most situations; they will die for you. They will fight along your side to their last breath if they must.

Like I said earlier- a lot of Nether culture is based in the cutthroat nature of the dimension. The very act of the mating ritual- here's where my preamble about kink becomes relevant- proves that better than anything in my opinion. Piglin give each other weapons. A ring is shiny and sure gold is a huge deal, but most Piglin have already collected about five million of the things. A blade, or perhaps a bow on the rare occasion, is far more valuable in the Nether. In my Noemata, the blades are usually daggers and very ornate, but it depends on the culture of the area because it varies and just personal taste. Sometimes a useful but boring-looking weapon for their mate to fight with for life will be treasured far more than a fancy weapon that will ultimately never see any blood.

Anyway, the mating ritual is entirely about vulnerability; something that, in the Nether, gets you fucking killed. Funny, I use the word cutthroat to describe the Nether- that's literally what you do, though. Usually it's done in private because it has a borderline (or outright) spiritual tone to it, and the whole thing vulnerability that you don't want to be seen by anyone other than your mate or mates. The blade gifted to propose is used- and if their mate responded with a gift of their own that's used as well. The response gift is up to personal preference; some feel like it's too transactional, others feel it's about equal respect, others just want an excuse to give their mate a pretty knife. Throats are bared, and very gently ever so carefully blood is drawn. Dangerous? Yes. I'm genuinely not quite sure that the specific points in my mind could have blood safely drawn on a human. That's the point; the trust in each other to not be cruel or even just accidentally fuck it up is immense. This is not only trusting someone to stand by their vow to take their last breath for you if they have to, but trusting them to not take your last breath.

Some tidbits I couldn't fit in easily anywhere:

Proposal blades are purely meant to be for the tastes of one's mate, not for the one proposing. It's considered pretty rude to propose with a blade that's tailored more to your taste than theirs. Unlike wedding rings, no compromises have to be made- that knife is purely for ONE person. Hence why some Piglin prefer to give a blade in response.

TW FOR (IN-SOURCE) GENOCIDE AND DEATH, RELIGIOUS THEMES IG. Y'know the way we're REAL trigger-happy, attacking on sight if you don't have gold? Yeah there's a reason for that. Piglin are hunted. It's a clockwork sort of thing; done annually. Skywarden, in the words of the person who created them (we have permission to talk about them) are "Toxic Minecraft Christians." I'll get into their lore some other time maybe, if we do a chonky post on the mythology and history of our canon. Skywarden are, essentially, angels. For a species of empaths, they aren't very empathic. They have a white and gold theme- guess where they get all that gold. -_- Piglin are violent but we have good reason to be. Anyone that isn't clearly Netherborne (or Enderfolk) is shot on sight lol

OH MY GOD DID I MENTION PIGLIN ARE SORT OF COLD-BLOODED IN OUR CANON???? I DON'T THINK I DID. YEAH WE'RE COLD-BLOODED. Living near lava lakes will do that to you.

We have boats btw. Like fucking boats made of Nether brick type shit. I'm still not sure how the fuck that works I just know we had boats.

Most of the bit about mates is using monogamy as an example but monogamy isn't considered "the norm" and polyamory "a deviation" in Piglin culture. It's just sort of there. No one gives a shit.

ANYWAY HAVE ALL THAT get hit with a wall of text nerds. /silly

Feel free to ask questions if anyone has them! I don't expect any, but I also don't want anyone to feel like asking questions is bad. We actively want to delve into our sources and what we know or remember about our personal canons more. "Doubles" and such are welcome as well we don't care lol.

[absolutebl]

Hey. Ty very much for your posts. As a woman in my 30s I got hypnotised by the beauty of the novelists and was wondering if you had similar high heat intense recommendations (also watched the samurai one "taboo"), bi or mlm with older leads and non fluffy storylines.. Moody atmospheric and venomous is my weak spot

Moody, atmospheric & venomous BL

Like, the Novelist? really?

AKA Pornographer movie series AKA The Novelist, Mood Indigo, Pornographer Playback (Japan 2018-2020) - emotional manipulation, cheating, obsession, seduction, May/December, kink, touch of necrophilia, explicit.   

Okay I got one right off the bat: seek ye....

The Cornered Mouse Dreams of Cheese

AKA Kyuso wa Chizu no Yume wo Miru (Japan 2020) - obsession, cheating, breakup, reunion, then break up again, explicit, mature characters. 

Now let me think about some more:

high heat

intense

non fluffy

older leads

The last one is a doozy, so I'm not gonna use it as a qualifier. BL is most, well, about "boys" not men.

Some others that might work for you but don't meet all your criteria:

Your Name Engraved Herein (Taiwan 2020 Netflix) - this movie is fantastic but it is also seriously depressing, it’s a self acceptance journey, but if you wanna wallow in high quality acting and serious gay drama, this’ll do it. 

Innocent (Taiwan 2021 GaGa) - mental health, childhood trauma, actually kinda sweet. 

The Eighth Sense (Korea 2023 Viki - This isn’t in the KBL bubble, there’s sharp edges and lots of triggers. For a KBL the darkness of the content left me feeling unsettled but it's really damn good.

My Personal Weatherman AKA Taikan Yoho (Japan 2023 Gaga) - Basically: boys who fell in love in college end up living together but both are so repressed they actually don't realize they're in love. They're hot, young, in love, and total idiots.

I Feel You Linger in the Air (Thai 2023 grey or YT) - IFYLITA is an exquisite BL, elegant and classy… from Thailand which normally doesn't even try for classy. The main couple (both as a pair and individuals) were excellent, it gets hot more that explicit, but it does have sharp edges.

Tokyo in April is AKA Shigatsu no Tokyo wa (Japan 2023 Viki) - Two young men with a shared tragic past reunite and fall in love all over again, but the past will not stop hunting them. It’s Japan in full on soft focus which means it gets emo, abusive, and chewy. These two characters are giving parts of their souls away in a desperate attempt to shape themselves to the expectations they have of each other it's heavy and cutting.

Moonlight Chicken (Thai 2023) - I enjoyed this complicated little show, even though it’s spectacularly messy gay with lots of shrapnel and authentic pain. EarthMix turn in their most compelling performance to date.

Bed Friend (Thai 2023 IQIYI) - Office frienamies transition a flaming hot one night stand into a f-buddy relationship that is built on a puppy/cat dynamic (and kinks into it at one point). Our puppy is loyal, smitten, and protective with endlessly longing eyes, while our cat is snarky, prickly, and deeply damaged (ALL THE TRIGGERS). NetJames give lovely high-heat with excellent chemistry and tuned-in performances of surprising depth.

Big Dragon (Thai 2022 Gaga) - This is a decent execution of true enemies to lovers, these two spy on and bully each other, exploring darker themes and self worth issues. The way the leads transition between anger, resentment, titillation, and flirting (and the way, with kinksters, this can all be the same thing) is really well done. A pairing that proved itself to be a lot more sophisticated than I expected with excellent chemistry, but something went askew around plot, directing, and ending. Still if you're in it for the sexy, go to, they did.

My Beautiful Man AKA Utsukushii Kare (Japan 2021 Gaga - One of the most Japanese BLs to release in the last decade, as weird and as messed up as any 2000′s yaoi: emo af and hella warped, entirely true to itself with no attempt made to modify its POV for modern sensibilities or current BL fandom. It used seriously old school problematic and kinky tropes, like whipping boy, for a truly uncompromising piece that also manages to hit up themes of communication, consent, and self acceptance. It’s a wonderful BL but uniquely dirty and harsh, in the best possible way - Japanese cinema, uncompromising.

End of the World With You

Junjou: Pure Heart

The Egoist

No thoughts on those three, not my thing.

You also might consider some of the stuff on this list:

Hope that gives you some options!

[tyrannuspitch]

Odinson twin manifesto

Part one: EVIDENCE

Look at Thor and Loki as children, imagine you don't know anything about them, and tell me who's older. Can you tell? I'm willing to bet you can't.

No-one in the films ever actually says that there's an age difference. There's no "little brother", no "elder son", no "when I was your age" or "just because you're older". They only ever say "brother", and, once, "firstborn". But of course one of them had to be born first. All siblings have a birth order. That's not the same thing as an age gap.

We do, however, get one (1) implication of an age gap. Infinity War has Thor say that he is 1500, while Thor 1 established (pretty tangentially, through an on-screen time and date for the Jotun war) that Loki is around 1000.

...But Ragnarok explicitly says that there is NOT an age gap. Thor says that the snake anecdote happened "when we were eight". Since Ragnarok comes directly before IW, it seems unlikely that IW is deliberately retconning Ragnarok here, and more likely that the subtle age implications of Thor 1 were just forgotten about. So if IW calls Thor 1500, we're meant to assume that Loki is also roughly 1500.

Proof by contradiction, for the unconvinced: If Loki is 1000 and Thor is 1500, forget being twins - how can they have grown up together? This means that Loki is currently roughly two thirds of Thor's age; what age gap does that translate to?

You could say that Loki is roughly 20 and Thor is roughly 30 - but those kids definitely don't look like, say, a 5-year-old and a 15-year-old. You can play with the numbers as much as you like, but there's just no way to make the ratio work.

You could also say that Jotuns and Asgardians mature at different rates, so the brothers are very different chronological ages but similar relative ages - but wouldn't Loki being so different have been a major giveaway of his heritage? And if they already looked the same age as children, why hasn't Loki overtaken Thor yet?

And you could say that Jotuns and Asgardians mature non-linearly, so they grow rapidly to adulthood and then slow down for a near-eternal youth - but then you have to retcon every single piece of evidence relating to the brothers specifically being children together.

Essentially: These two canon ages are very, very difficult to reconcile. You can take either of them as canon individually, but together, they cause major problems which are much more easily explained by... "someone forgot".

Finally: Why is the succession even in question to begin with? Yes, you can argue that only Loki believes it is, while Thor sees it as fixed - but even then, why does Loki always make it about who Odin favours and who Odin thinks deserves the throne? If the official line were really that Thor was chosen for his age, don't you think Loki would comment on what a terrible qualification that is, and how he would be the obvious choice otherwise?

So. Now that we know twinhood is a distinct possibility, what can we do with it? Stay tuned for part two.

[orangepanic]

I know you usually mind your own business and avoid ship wars, but out of curiosity, have you ever gotten unprovoked hate for shipping Iroh and Asami? Also, what’s your advice on staying strong about it? I feel like such a coward because I don’t want to get attacked by the mob for it. I know it’s just a ship, but the idea of dealing with that negativity makes me hesitant to speak up about it. 😰

First off, big hug.

Second, oh boy have I ever. I've gotten it here in my askbox and in replies to my posts, I've gotten it on fics, I've gotten it in comments about me on twitter and private discords, both ones I'm in and ones I'm not. I once had someone hate me in a comment on nearly every chapter of a fic - why did they keep reading it? Seemingly just to yell at me about the ship. It got so bad I had to report them for harassment. And that's not counting all the ambient hate out there of the "ewwww omg who the fuck would ship that?" that's not directed at me specifically. So... yes.

In terms of advice, I can recommend a few strategies that have kept me safe and sane over the years:

Aggressively curate your online experience. Block anything you don't want to see, be that tags or individuals or authors. Know that shipping Korra or Asami with anyone who isn't Korra or Asami is extremely unpopular in mainstream fandom spaces and avoid those spaces - for example, public fandom discords, tumblr communities and most of Twitter. Don't start shit or comment on bad takes. Don't reply to negative comments - delete them. Don't like, don't read. Etc. This is both to protect your own mental health but also to be a good fandom citizen. I've found that if you're generally doing all the right things and minding your own business people who go out of their way to shit on you wind up looking that much more like assholes to everyone else, which can help avoid that mob mentality you mention. I've also found that, on balance, you get back the energy you put out there. If you're a positive person who is seen as a positive person, most people will interact with you positively.

Find cool people and hang out with them. In my experience, these tend to be people who are both a) emotionally mature, and b) also ship a small or non-canon pairing. They do not have to like your ship and often won't but they'll also understand the experience of having their preferred pairing disliked by a large number of fans and so are less likely to be bullies themselves. Definitely avoid absolutists - people who believe a certain kind of ship is intrinsically superior to others (e.g. canon ships, queer ships, same-age ships, whatever) - in favor of people able to say "it's just not for me" if they don't like something. Finding spaces to interact with these people like their blogs or ask boxes, or finding small-ship-friendly private discords, are great ways to build community in fandom while shipping something out of the mainstream. These people are also great to vent to and problem-solve with when you get unprovoked hate or see a terrible take so you don't feel in it alone. If you don't know where to start, find fics on AO3 that you like and be friendly in the comments. That's how I met my first fandom friends.

Recognize that you can't argue with unprovoked hate. The first nasty comment I got on a fic I agonized for a week about what I'd done wrong and how to respond. I wrote out a very thoughtful reply asking for feedback on how I could better represent Asami's bisexuality in my writing. I got back "you're a piece of shit." I've learned since that the kind of people who say that what you ship in fandom means they should run you over with their car are not the kind of people looking for a thoughtful discussion. They are looking for the moral high ground, or for a fight, or to be seen as doing something "right" online so that they can be reassured of the black and whiteness of the universe, or whatever, but the point is that it's about them and it's about them getting a reaction out of you. Engaging isn't going to change their mind. So don't. It also prevents escalation. If someone drops a turd in your ask box and you delete it, nothing happens. Publish it with a lengthy rebuttal and that continues the conversation. Instead, treat them like you would any other bully, that is, disengage if you can, and hit them really fucking hard if you can't and then disengage. Again, don't be afraid to delete, block, or report someone if they are violating any TOS.

There's also all the standard online safely stuff like never sharing your name, address, or any personally-identifying info online. Table stakes. You don't owe anyone anything.

Anyway, good luck, and I hope to see more of you, anon. I'd love to chat with more people who like Iroh and Asami together, and I firmly believe fandom can be wonderful no matter what you ship.

[ourplacetobefree]

I don't like the fact that Tae broke things off with Bah Mee. It felt like a cop-out, instead of him course correcting like he should have. I'm glad that the show had him realize that Bah Mee falling for someone else didn't come out of nowhere, but from his own neglect of their relationship.

Bah Mee is solely responsible for her actions, but it takes two people to be in a relationship and by Bah Mee's own words and from what the show has show us, she has been carrying the emotional weight and LABOUR of their relationship from the very start. That is EXHAUSTING. They've been together for 3+ years, and Tae gives minimum effort. I can't begin to imagine how insecure and scared that made Bah Mee feel. Yes, I know he cares, but you have to express that to your partner. Internalizing those feels means nothing to someone who can't read your mind to know your true thoughts and intentions. His lack of emotional affection made Bah Mee overcompensate and more susceptible to being swayed when given affection and attention. Just cause and effect.

I know the separation will be good for Bah Mee to grow as an individual, who puts herself first, but I believe it's a regression on Tae's part, despite the consensus I've seen on how mature it is of him. A breakup shouldn't have been his first answer to solve the problem. Why couldn't he have tried with her to rework their relationship to be more balanced. That seems more reasonable than him, never learning how to balance his work and personal life and how to properly communicate with his partner.

[mllemaenad]

You know what? That's fair. You never ssid you condemned individual Brotherhood members, I'm sorry I assumed that.

Addressing them as an institution, however...

I think they might still be a morr admirable group than you give them credit for. Yes, they have rather brutal hazing rituals for aspirants. At best, this ensures the unqualified won't go into danger, at worst, it's abuse. Bullying is absolutely wrong, I won't defend that.

However, on the charge of bigotry, I don't think it's entirely fair. Based on comments by Knight Rhys and others, I don't think tgey hate nonhumans simply for being nonhumans, rather they see it as a quasi-religious duty to remove the consequences of technological abuse. Ghouls, Synths, Super-Mutants... they didn't arise naturally. They are permanent (un-ageing) reminders of "technology that's gone too far". Think on Arthur Maxon's words in "Blind Betrayal". Danse's existence is intolerable to him because it is symbolic of a perversion of technology. Whether it's radiation, FEV, or whatever else, the Brotherhood is committed to opposing technological abuse.

In that context, their hoarding of technology is understandable. In 2077, mankind demonstrated that it wasn't capable of using technology in a responsible manner. Heck, given what Ulysses tried to do at the Divide, and what Hank did at Shady Sands, mankind arguably STILL isn't capable.

So what alternative is there but to keep that technology safe, away from the reckless hands that would abuse it, until humanity develops the maturity and restraint to show technology its peoper reverence?

The Brotherhood is also not without its reformers. This is explicitly why Maximus chooses to return to them! He speaks with Cleric Quintus about improving the Brotherhood, making it match the idealised image he once held. He no longer holds illusions about what the Brotherhood is, but he still believes in its mission, in what it could become.

Even when they have disagreed with one another, the Brotherhood has always shared a common (noble) goal. Christine Royce and Father Elijah didn't see eye to eye on how the technologies of Big MT and the Sierra Madre should be used, but they both shared the same ultimate vision; Rodger Maxon's vision, a vision of a world where mankind worshipped technology rather than misusing it. A better world.

Hi Anonymous person.

I mean, look. I'm not the Thought Police. You're free to like any Fallout faction you like, and I'm not going to hunt you down and bother you about it. But ... I mean, you've asked, and I'm really confused about what you're saying here.

However, on the charge of bigotry, I don't think it's entirely fair. Based on comments by Knight Rhys and others, I don't think tgey hate nonhumans simply for being nonhumans, rather they see it as a quasi-religious duty to remove the consequences of technological abuse. Ghouls, Synths, Super-Mutants… they didn't arise naturally. They are permanent (un-ageing) reminders of "technology that's gone too far".

I ... don't understand why you're putting this forward as a defence? This is kind of my whole point. If some individuals in the Brotherhood were bigoted, that might reasonably make them terrible – or at least misguided – people, but it might not say anything about the institution itself.

But the genocidal impulses are built into Brotherhood doctrine. Wanting to murder groups of people because they don't fit into your vision (religious or otherwise) of a perfect world is ... bad. I mean it's very bad. It's one of the worst things you can want to do. It's very much a despairing "war never changes" thing.

I know what Arthur Maxson says. I'm not disputing that the Brotherhood really, truly believes that mass murder is a good thing. It's just that my response to that is "Go fuck yourself, Arthur."

I genuinely do not understand why you're calling my assertion of bigotry unfair. I noted that I do not like the Brotherhood because they are genocidal toward mutants and Synths, and you have agreed that they very much are, and not only that but that this is a core part of their belief system. So ... that's that.

The Brotherhood is also not without its reformers. This is explicitly why Maximus chooses to return to them! He speaks with Cleric Quintus about improving the Brotherhood, making it match the idealised image he once held. He no longer holds illusions about what the Brotherhood is, but he still believes in its mission, in what it could become.

Huh? No he doesn't. Maximus very definitely does not do that.

For much of the show, Maximus lies to other people about his name and status in order to protect himself. He also lies to himself, somewhat, about what he wants out of life.

The fact that Maximus shows little investment in the Brotherhood's ideals is one of the things that keeps him sympathetic, even when he's stomping around in power armour (he calls the Brotherhood's mission "weird" when Lucy points out the inherent contradictions).

His time in Vault 4, combined with his exposure to Lucy, allows him the space to grow as a person, and to start telling the truth. Truth works with her in a way that it did not with Thaddeus, who was never going to side with Maximus against Brotherhood guns. What Maximus really wants is Shady Sands back: specifically a world where Shady Sands was never destroyed, and he could have eaten well and gone to school and lived a completely different life. Failing that, what he wants is peace. This is what he says "explicitly": that he wants to live in peace and not go to war.

Maximus returns to the Brotherhood with a decoy head to allow Lucy to complete her mission. He does this because one of the things he has to admit to himself is that the deal he made with her was bullshit. He simply doesn't have the clout to force the issue, and the Brotherhood isn't going to help out a vault dweller having a rough week for moral reasons.

Lucy is confused by this sudden change of plans: she only knows Maximus, so she thinks the Brotherhood must be "the good guys". Both Maximus and Thaddeus know better: they've lived through Brotherhood brutality.

One key problem that both Lucy and Maximus have is that they've never really delved into what the head is for, so whether it's safe or good to deliver it anywhere in particular doesn't factor into their plans. It's just a MacGuffin to them: Lucy needs it to rescue her dad; Maximus needs it so the Brotherhood doesn't murder him.

Consequently, Maximus is at least initially fine with using his knowledge of the head's location to save his own arse – moreover, leading the Brotherhood to the head will also take him back to Lucy. He confides to his friend Dane that he intends to flee with Lucy at the first opportunity; Dane laments that they don't believe there is a way to escape. I don't know where this "Maximus enthusiastically reforms the Brotherhood" idea is coming from. In his head, Maximus is already deep underground, wearing Vault 33's fluffiest dressing gown, and never hearing about any of this crap ever again.

However, The Beginning is largely about disillusionment. For Norm and Cooper, this means engaging in some espionage to uncover Vault-Tec's evil plans – and their loved ones' complicity in those plans. For Lucy and Maximus, it means recontextualising the childhood memories that shaped them.

As Lucy listens to Moldaver's story, she reflects on her childhood memory of standing in a cornfield with her mother. She realises that she really did stand beneath the sun in a rebuilt civilisation, and that her father's insistence that she was in the vault the whole time is a lie intended to conceal his own crimes.

As Maximus listens to Quintus's horrifying little speech about conquering the wasteland, he reflects on his childhood image of the Brotherhood as heroes and saviours. In the present, the Brotherhood has just forcibly occupied the town of Filly (this is bad!), has come very close to summarily executing him (also not what you'd call good!) and is about to force him to go to war against a group of people who have not at any point in the series threatened them, purely because they have some tech the Brotherhood wants (really fucking awful, if you think about it!).

If Maximus has any mission at this point beyond getting the hell out of there and finding Lucy – it is wresting control of the cold fusion technology from the Brotherhood's hands. Because Moldaver bequeaths her cause to him with her dying breath.

What do you suppose your Brotherhood would do with infinite power? Maybe you can stop them. Maybe you can't. Maybe all you can do is try. – Lee Moldaver, Fallout: The Beginning

Maximus is a child of Shady Sands. He's a citizen of the NCR. The expression on his face when the Brotherhood vertibirds open fire on the people fleeing across the compound is understandably appalled. He attacks Hank when he learns what he did to his home. Moldaver knows none of this. She just knows the expression on Maximus's face when the lights go on across the city – and she reaches out to him because that's enough to hope.

So ... no? Really no. Maximus does not explicitly return to the Brotherhood to embrace Quintus's bullshit.

Even when they have disagreed with one another, the Brotherhood has always shared a common (noble) goal. Christine Royce and Father Elijah didn't see eye to eye on how the technologies of Big MT and the Sierra Madre should be used, but they both shared the same ultimate vision; Rodger Maxon's vision, a vision of a world where mankind worshipped technology rather than misusing it. A better world.

I mean ... Dead Money is not a story about rational people making good choices. I don't think the "unhealthy obsession DLC" is a great example of anything but what not to do. Christine is a tragic figure. Her absolute best ending leaves her as something that is almost literally the ghost of an old-world film star, forever haunting the Sierra Madre. She's also clearly paralleling the fate of her lost love, Veronica: Veronica is keenly aware that the Brotherhood's ideology leads to an ugly dead end, but she can neither change them nor escape them and becomes a kind of ghost herself.

These are not pro-Brotherhood stories.

But I mean ... I'm not trying to somehow dispute that many Brotherhood members believe to some extent in Brotherhood ideals. I know how indoctrination works.

You're assuming the "noble" part. What I am saying is that I don't believe the Brotherhood's goals are noble, good, or helpful. I think they should stop doing what they're doing. I think the hoarding and the dogmatism and the genocide are ... well, wrong. I don't think Roger Maxson has a "better world". I think he and his men couldn't handle the guilt of being involved in unethical experiments themselves, and the Brotherhood has just been reacting badly to their collective trauma across generations.

It's not that I think the Brotherhood of Steel is absolutely incapable of change: in theory they could stop hoarding and murdering and generally being arseholes. But then they would not really be the Brotherhood of Steel anymore. And I think it is unlikely that that will happen, because the kinds of problems they cause are useful for the sorts of stories the Fallout series wants to tell.

So I'm probably stuck with them for the foreseeable future. And I still have no time for any of them.

[slugtranslation-hypmic]

Hey Slug! Now that all snippets are out, what are your thoughts so far on the BB songs for the 3rd DRB? I'm especially excited for Ichiro's. It reminds me of Hiphoppia but with less intense dream vision feel and more funky back alley hip hop stuff. Jiro's sounds good too tho!

I love anon asks like this that remind me to go look at the new stuff that comes out... I would never think to do it otherwise. Thank you; it's very sweet of you.

Let's fire up the old YouTube and give them a listen.

Ichirou -- H歴維新 / The H Age Revolution

(Side note about the title: I'm using "revolution" here in a general sense, but this specific wording is evocative of the Meiji Restoration, the political revolution in the late 1800s that ended the regime of the Tokugawa shoguns and "restored" the old social order under the emperor while radically transforming Japanese society as a whole. Here, we should understand that Ichirou is tearing down Chuuouku's reign to usher in a new state of society.)

(Fifteen seconds in) YOOO this goes hard. I like this beat and the vaguely military-esque theme w/ the horns.

(At end of preview) DAMN okay. Give me a sec to get my thoughts in order.

Every time I see the language in these songs, I'm reminded of a video of an NHK presenter guy reading the lyrics of one song and announcing dryly, "They're all very good at kanji."

I love how this is much punchier than Break the Wall. Ichirou seems to be much more of an active agent in it, not just the figurehead leader of a revolution--and I LOVE that. It's great to see Ichirou embracing his individuality and not simply playing into the image of MC BB that others want him to be.

I also love all the callbacks to previous songs, quite literally going back to basics. ペンは���より偽りがない ("The pen is mightier than the sword, and that's a fact!") goes all the way back to Hypmic's very first song's ペンは剣よりヒプノシスマイク ("The Hypnosis Mic is mightier than the sword")

Can't wait to get the full version and learn the lyrics. Seems like a hella fun song to rap.

Jirou -- Sunshine

(Five seconds in) Getting "This Means War" vibes.

(Fifteen seconds in) Bro what is this autotune... This sounds like the opening of Rhyme Anima season 2.

(Forty-five seconds in) "I'm ready; the wind's pushing me along; I'm flying with the wings Ikebukuro's given me" Hell YES Jirou you get that identity independent of Ichirou

(Fifty seconds in) "I can't shake the past. I take my scars with me off into a future--a future that's still unknown." Yo this is bars. (I'm butchering its lyricism but whatever) I love that Jirou is actually acknowledging his past and his struggles instead of pushing it away. You notice how his comments on the past are always either "Ichirou was so cool" or "Saburou used to be such a cute kid; what happened?" ? It's good to see him finally being honest enough to touch on his hurt feelings.

(End) Hmm... I don't know how I feel about this one at first liston. I really like Jirou's voice actor's singing voice, so I'm kinda not feeling the autotune. On the other hand, his singing voice definitely has more of a sweet/young flavor, and I can see the authors wanting to lean away from that to make him sound more adult. I think my issue is this song sounds... idk, a bit too idol pop rock to my tastes. I don't mean that idol pop rock is a bad thing; it's simply not my personal preference.

Here's a selection of people in the comments having a normal one:

"Wtf he's hot now"

"I'm picturing Jirou going to school the day after this song drops and his friends being like 'EYYY' and he's like 'Aw, you listened to it? Thanks, guys!' Then a bunch of girls swarm him and he deadass has no idea what they're on about it"

"Say it isn't so... Not my sweet baby boy dumbass Jirou... They made him hot af..."

"I feel like a mom watching my widdle Jiro-chan grow up"

Saburou -- 朱夏 / Maturity

(Side note about the title: Japanese borrows some terms for stages of life from ye olde Chinese (<- very technical term) wherein stages of life correspond to colors and seasons. You may know the word "seishun" (blue spring) or have seen blue = youth as a recurring piece of imagery in Japanese media. (BSD's Blue Period, anyone?) "Shuka" (red summer) is the stage that encompasses most of adulthood; it's the summer or prime of a person's life. The word conveys a sense of energy and a greater understanding of the world than in the youthful seishun period. Sounds like the Hypmic authors want to convey that our baby boy is growing up! *sobs into a hankie*)

(Five seconds in) Chill lofi hip-hop beats for studying

(End) Hmm... Musically, I liked the piano as a consistent piece of imagery for Saburou. It was a little too chill for me, but I always say this and always warm up to Hypmic songs over time lol.

Lyrically, I kept thinking throughout the video "This would be easy to translate" because Saburou monologues for most of it haha. Apart from the imagery related to seasons and the BB's heat/energy "firing" him up to reach the hot summer of adulthood, most of the song is surprisingly literal and straightforward. Saburou states in plain terms that he wants to go be his own person (seems to be the running theme of this album), but it's a departure from his usual style of complex imagery and vocabulary. I would guess that's on purpose, as the song opens with "All through my childhood, I could never wait to grow up. I'm a better rapper than Ichirou, but no one ever sees me as anything but an accessory to him. At least I'm better than Jirou in every way-- oh, who am I kidding? Look at me going on like an edgy middle schooler. I'm always smart, collected, calm--but on the inside, I'm NOT okay!" That is, Saburou is purposefully throwing away his attempts to look smart and mature for his age. He's allowing himself to be rough and emotional like any fourteen year old.

Really fun start to an album; can't wait to hear all the songs! Thanks again for sending this ask, anon.