#you'll always be the best

[lolo-chi]

I MISSED HIM SO MUCHHH

he's just a silly little guy

Hopefully we won't have to wait 3 years again for the next time we meet

[thissmycomingofage]

- Left-wing deputies of the newly formed French parliament refusing to shake hand with the member of the far-right tasked with guarding the ballot

[mobius-m-mobius]

#he's actually a comedian

HUGH JACKMAN as LOGAN HOWLETT // WOLVERINE

[vaguely-concerned]

the fact that irving canonically survives through the end of asunder to be at wynne's funeral is so fucking funny to me. nothing but love and respect for MY unstoppable cockroach morally grey machiavellian mage dad!!! he's survived in his position through multiple attempted rites of annulment and blood mage plots popping up left right and center around him. the chantry keeps trying to stamp him out but his dodge game is simply out of this world, divine. civil wars, political machinations and minefields, chantry atrocities, this wily old motherfucker is dodging and weaving his way through it all, not-quite-no-hits-taken-running-it-but-honestly-close-enough-under-the-circumstances style. if solas does succeed in tearing down the veil I would fully believe that one of the like three people still alive at the end of it all would be a very weary 90 year old first enchanter irving going 'oh this shit again huh'. the maker has cursed him for his hubris and his paperwork is never finished (affectionate, it's fine he canonically loves paperwork)

[nataliescatorccio]

"Why am I the only one not getting off on this boring back-to-the-land bullshit? I suck at this stuff, and I know that. And I don't belong here, and I don't know how much longer I can keep doing this." @yellowjacketsnetwork event 06: arcs

[iliothermia]

taking a break from intricate book cover im working on to line Neptune.. He has a nice belly so wanted to share it before I sleep

[koumeowkami]

— PARADOX LIVE 5TH ANNIVERSARY VISUALS !! 💽

[missholloween]

Paul's fate was sealed from the beginning, and I love all the ways The Guy uses to show us.

The first scene of tgwdlm (after the title song) introduces Paul as a character: who he is, where does he work, who does he work with. In this scene, thanks to Paul actions and words, we learn that Paul isn't the nicest of the guys... And that he doesn't have much going on. He rejects Bill's Mamma Mia invitation, but so does Melissa's soft ball team proposal. As the title song said, he's a grunch.

But then, the next scene is Paul going to Beannie's. We discover that Paul wants to talk to Emma, he wants to get to know her better, to make her laugh. We are introduced to his need, to what he desires, even if Paul isn't fully contious of it by this point.

Then plot starts, we've got our inciting incident (the meteor fall) and a couple of plot beats: our heroes meet the villain, Paul valiantly resists it in their first face to face (what do you want, paul?), and the threat grows stronger and stronger until it takes the first victim our protagonist cares about, that is, Charlotte.

Join us (and die) is the moment where our main cast sees everything the hive is capable of: it's been coy so far, just presenting itself as some dancing craze that controls people. But in that song we discover that those people are dead, and that the hive won't doubt to get nasty if it has to. When Hidgens is explaining this after the song, he's interrupted by Alice's call to Bill. Had the hive gotten into her already? Was it just bad luck? Given that we don't see Alice during the call, we cannot be truly certain of that.

It is then when a fight between Bill, panicked about his daughter, and, Ted, consumed by grief, starts. The fight is different from their previous banter with the whole "kick my head" bit, as both of them are now at their limit. Thankfully, Paul stops the fight by giving Bill a meaningful way to save his daughter. In that scene, Paul decides to go with Bill to get Alice, because he wants to help him.

When Paul says "which is why I'm gonna go with you to get your daughter back", a piano starts playing on that scene. It continues quietly as the scene goes on, just to climax with Emma and Paul's last conversation, where the Inevitable leitmotif starts playing. And then, act 1 finishes.

The Guy is not a conventional musical by any means: we don't have a big act 1 finale song, nor a big leap that the characters take. It is a really modest act 1 finale, and some viewers (including myself) might not notice the change of act on their first watch. However, a big change has happened, although it is subtle: Paul has taken his first step in his hero's journey. He is not only showing his desires (to help Bill, a dear friend to him), but also he's acting. He is taking the iniciative, he's being brave! That decision it's just the beginning of his downfall, that will come to an end in "Let it Out", and the shows knows it. The only thing the score does is to make it clearer for the spectator, if they notice it... And they'll probably won't, too enwrapped in the show.

[starcurtain]

Listen, the greatest appeal of Diluven is how desperately chained Diluc is to his past, to his personal losses, to the expectations of his father's legacy, because Venti is the god of liberation, of hope, the breaker of shackles, the capricious breeze that ever uplifts--it's about letting yourself be set free, listen--

[skania]

aaaaaand as of this chapter this gorgeous song has officially become certified Aquaka™

If I could tear you from the ceiling I know best have tried

I'd fill your every breath with meaning And find a place we both could hide

Don't go and leave me And please don't drive me blind

You don't believe me, but you do this every time

Please don't drive me blind Please don't drive me blind

I know you're broken

If I could tear you from the ceiling I'd freeze us both in time

An find a brand new way of seeing Your eyes forever glued to mine

Don't go and leave meAnd please don't drive me blind

Please don't drive me blind Please don't drive me blind

I know you're broken

[creaturefeaster]

agh!!!!

[socksandbuttons]

Wait there are TWO evil Lunars in canon???? Not just the one???

No, Theres LORD Lunar from this episode:

Then there's Evil Lunar who';'s been dubbed Lunara, that most eveyrone knows from this episode and Laes new one (where they robbed him of the best design ever but thats just me):

It's occured to me and few friends some of ya'll never saw the one from the Roxanna and Gregory show. A shame cause both iterations of Lunar have the star, but the Evil one is constantly referred to.

Vs the rather grey morality of Lord Lunar, who doesn't know who sun and moon are, Eclipse DOES tho but never lets that on. Its fascinating.

Altho I figure not everyone keeps track of RAGS too often (honestly theyre very silly over there) Likely cause the one episode wasn't on TSAMS (odd tho given the episode IS a two parter, first part being on SAMS itself).

Anyway this is what I mean by TWO star holding Lunar's. I think um actually the very few characters who we see in different circumstances of holding the star? Maybe the only one actually?

This all happened when Lunar was technically Dead too.

[mean-scarlet-deceiver]

In Wilbert's books, how would personally separate Henry and Gordon as characters?

I already wrote a Henry and Gordon post, but that was as much headcanon as analysis so I'll tackle this one too. Besides, I really like how this question acknowledges from the outset that RWS Gordon and Henry are basically the same character :D 

Okay, not really, but they're awfully damn similar. (So are Thomas and Percy tbh.) I have read so much guff (mostly in my dreary dark bird site days) about how BoCo is basically a diesel Edward and it pisses me off. If you can distinguish between two of these pairs, then you can distinguish between all three, dammit. 

Anyway, RWS Gordon and Henry are both pompous, self-important, classist (?), totally up their own arses tenders, sometimes breathtakingly ungrateful – but fundamentally good-hearted. They're sometimes complete assholes, but it's not like they actually try to be assholes… they just sometimes don't try all that hard not to be. But they have strong notions of fair play and loyalty and solidarity, and they try to live up to them (except on the days they don't). 

And I will say from the outset that I much prefer their RWS "omggg… there's two of themmm 😐😩💀" dynamic than the weird TVS "manly man and sensitive guy… who also don't even seem that close" thing. That being said, even if you don't basically flanderize Henry into a funhouse-mirror version of his RWS self, yes I think we can describe their differences in the books: 

1) Social roles. Gordon is the leader-y one of the two. This is probably because he's more conventional (see next point). But it is also possible that a lot of this is down to how their working schedules have shaped their dynamic with the rest of the fleet: Henry's Flying Kipper timetable means his working hours would overlap less with the daytime fleet and that he'd be either away or not in steam during moments where Gordon takes on a role helping other engines (Percy Runs Away, Leaves, Down the Mine). Of course we do see that when Henry is available, he acts in the same way (Super Rescue), but it is probably no coincidence that we see Gordon in this role first, and much more often. 

Gordon's leadership also extends to him having Ideas, like his (half-baked) plan to run all the way to London, or his plans to force the Fat Controller's hand with a tender engine strike (not wholly successful, but still way more successful than one might have thought), or his plan for them to pay out first Edward and then Duck for respective 'betrayals'. Of course sometimes Gordon and Henry are in total lockstep without even needing to consult, with an absolutely adorable shared brain thing – like when they initially reject Diesel's idea that Duck is gossiping about them, or when they strong-arm Percy into being the deputation ("Rubbish, Percy. It's easy." "That's settled, then.") This shows how similar they are in outlook and feeling, but Henry is the more passive of the two, we have never seen him initiate… anything, I think? Gordon is the one who makes things happen, and the one that Henry and James look to for leadership within their group. I don't actually think the whole of the fleet looks to Gordon as reliably as James and Henry do to take charge of things, at least we don't have any textual evidence for that (and even James and Henry do it less and less as the series goes on). But I do suspect that he's definitely the one the rest of the fleet would look to first in a choice between him and Henry. 

2) Self-esteem. I'm going to come in with a flaming hot take and say that Henry is the one of the two more confident and comfortable with himself. Henry of course does a lot of moaning, and he moped a lot in his early days, when he was physically struggling. But even in those early days he was still proud as punch, willing to flat-out reject orders from his crew and the Fat Controller; it's also striking to me that he switched from blue to green paint (conformity to individuality) before he got his Welsh coal. Henry actually has quite a strong sense of self-esteem. Gordon is arrogant, but he has every reason in the world to be. Henry could swagger around even when he didn't. Gordon has to emphasize his background and his tender engine status because he requires external markers of worth; Henry doesn't explicitly reject that stuff, but he's certainly NOT hung up on it enough to actually expound theories about it to captive tank engines ("You don't understand, little Thomas; we tender engines have a position to keep up…"). And Henry seems to have been the first to drift out of the big three engines' hive mind. He was the last to join the strike, the first to support Duck when challenged, the first to think that Bear wasn't so bad, and the least inclined to trash-talk smaller engines. Henry's an individualist, and if he doesn't try to make things happen as much as Gordon it's at least in part because he doesn't feel the need to. Of course he adores recognition and importance and respect from the others (they all do, really) but he can function without it. He's proven it. And if he's not as active as Gordon in some respects, he's also not quite so reactive. For example: although he's not the brightest bulb, I don't think he'd have ever been so thoroughly convinced that Bill and Ben were about to kill him, either. 

3) Emotionality. This is strongly related to point 2 actually, but my other flaming hot take is that Gordon is a more emotional machine than Henry. Henry gets the bad rap for moaning and pissing, but I'm actually amazed, again and again, by how quickly Henry bounces back from hurts and setbacks – witness the absolute lack of drama after the horrible Flying Kipper wreck. 

Gordon, in contrast, gets into his feels more quickly, and requires more external support to get on his rails again. We've never needed an entire book to describe Henry's depression after being in Disgrace.

"That's all right, Thomas. You made me laugh. I like that. I'm in disgrace," Gordon went on pathetically, "I feel very low." 

I'm sorry, why did Henry get flanderized as the sopping wet cat out of the two? ;) 

Henry and Gordon are contrasted again with the news of the end of steam. Henry is totally oblivious, preoccupied with some bullshit status symbols. Gordon's going through a whole-ass existential crisis.

Which, fair. That's a reasonable thing to have an existential crisis about. But we also know that Gordon is capable of catastrophizing like a mofo. He perceives lots of things as threats, and dwells on them. We're back here to "No, no, I AM Gordon! Stop, stop!" We're back to him enjoying Thomas teasing him because it's the only normal thing in his life when he's being punished for his ditch nonsense. We're back to him spending most of Gordon the High-Speed Engine moping over various slights. 

This also ties back into point 1, about Gordon being perceived as a leader. I think part of that tendency is because Gordon is able to bond with other engines when they are down – when they're down, he can let down his own guard. There's empathy there ("No one understands our feelings," Gordon says to Sir Handel, winning over the smaller engine's entire heart). Henry is capable of treating other engines well too, we've seen it, but we haven't seen that evidence of empathetic feeling. Mind you, this is not a bad thing or a criticism; ethics aren't dependent on empathy. It's just an observation in their approach. Henry's connections with other engines seem to be built on a more cerebral approach, a we-stand-together-because-it's-pleasant-and-mutually-beneficial mindset. Now obviously, Mr Shall-We-Form-An-Alliance is familiar with the idea, but honestly when Gordon makes connections, it seems to be with his heart (which may be why he's far more inconsistent about it lol, and why he tends to blow hot or cold! Henry seems to be on generally good terms with everyone, after his first few books, whereas Gordon has conflicts as well as friendships that spring up very suddenly). 

In addition to his "low," "pathetic" moments, "high spirits" are also more strongly marked in Gordon than in Henry. This is another facet where we see that Gordon is just more emotionally driven than Henry, although – again! – I don't think the two are very far apart. We're talking about differences in degrees, not polar opposites by any means. 

[fluffygiraffe]

PLEASE HEAR ME OUT .

please...?

[makedonsgriva]

I’ve been reading a lot of posts where people talked about watching Yuri On Ice for the first time back when it was airing in 2016 and it really feels so heartwarming and heartbreaking because can you imagine loving a series so much and being there for it from the start only for it to get cancelled.

I watched YOI for the first time back in mid or late 2019 (don’t remember very clearly), after a friend on tumblr urged me to watch it and it just altered my brain chemistry. I watched the whole thing in a day. And then I proceeded to re watch it very soon. I was obsessed. As a baby gay who was still struggling a lot with their sexuality, never comfortable with the labels, the pronouns, all the nuances and always thinking how do I fit myself into this Queer cardboard box with neat little labels, that show rocked my shit.

Viktor and Yuri didn’t need any labels. There was no grand coming out scene, no need to fight against the world for their love and no struggle with their inner self about wtf am I doing or am I right or wrong. They literally just skated and did their work but they fell in love side by side and it was so so beautiful for me.

A part of me was also dismayed because the kiss scene was censored. The touches, the love they showed was subtle. I felt that this meant many could brush them off as friends. That maybe, just maybe, the love wasn’t as strong and maybe I was just deluding myself. It was only after I rewatched it yesterday after years, I realized how wrong I was to think that. And that in turn helped me realize the progress I’d made in my journey to accept my own queerness. Love is not about grand romantic gestures. It’s about being there for each other and lifting each other up and not caring about how the world perceives you. Especially so in queer relationships. It doesn’t matter how some people might perceive Viktor and Yuri as old pals, we know that they are in love.

They don’t have to be incredibly loud. That love is abundantly clear when Yuri asks Viktor to coach him till he retires and Viktor oh so sweetly replies that he hopes Yuri never retires. It’s clear when Yuri changes a jump in the China Cup to show his love for Viktor. It’s clear when Viktor decides to be with Yuri every step of the way from his journey from the rock bottom to the Runner Up of the Grand Prix Final.

We call everything on this ice love and oh YOI you’ll forever be iconic for giving us queers so much love.

[lookninjas]

Pick A Song From A Bad Description (Minnesota Nice Edition)

What can I say? This dude's inspired me.

(Also, let's be real -- Minnesota's always had a crazy fucking scene that deserves highlighting. I'm not just saying it 'cause they're my Great Lakes family.)

Pick a song from a bad description! You don't have to recognize any of these songs to vote for them (although if you've been on tumblr since 2014, you will likely recognize at least one of them). Pick whichever description makes you smile. Whatever makes you curious. Whatever makes you think bitterly about how much your state House Rep sucks and meanwhile, people in some districts get cool reps and --

(It's okay; he lost his primary; I'll feel better in January when he's gone).

My point is, just pick a song. At the end of a week, I will compile the songs into a playlist, running in order from the song with the lowest number of votes to the song with the highest number of votes. If you would like to hear the playlist at the end, leave a comment or put it in the tags on your reblog, and I will tag you when the playlist post goes live. If you desperately need to know what a particular song is and don't want to wait, shoot me an ask and I will answer.

Also, please reblog the post! Minnesota does have a ridiculous music scene, and I guarantee you will find something to love on this playlist. This one will probably also get an extended cut, so. Even more songs. All from Minnesota. Gonna be epic.

Last but not least, to my U.S. Citizens reading this: You are registered to vote, right? 'Cause it's not that long till Election Day, and I don't know about you guys, but I'm getting kinda hyped up for it. (Especially now that my House Rep lost his primary).

That's all I got. Have a great day, listen to some weird music, read up on your state and local candidates if you've got an election in November, and I'll see you in a week!

(But not really, 'cause the rap playlists are still going).