#I've got you and I'm not letting go

[roverjamball]

DamiRaeWeek2023

Master List

Day 1 - "I've got you and I'm not letting go."

Day 1 - II

Day 2 -  "Let me take care of you... please." Part I Part II Part III

Day 3 - "I think I'm in love with you and I'm terrified."

Day 4 - "Why are you so good to me?" Part I and Part II

Day 5 - "I have to do this to save the world.” “You are my world."

Day 6 - "I'm not going to leave you. You're never going to have to suffer by yourself again, I promise."

Day 7 - Free day |Forbidden love | Moving in together

[egophiliac]

don't think I'm not still obsessing over 7-12

[welcometogrouchland]

[ID in ALT] I've made posts before about Talia/Dick co-parenting Damian moments (will never happen but let me dream) and this came to me in a vision. Took me ages to finish for some reason 😭 and then even longer to post

[clarionglass]

here we go :) part one of three, updates to be released weekly!

---

sam says 4 (game master cinematic universe, part 3)

Ruby was at her mum's for a family dinner she couldn't miss on pain of death, apparently, and the Doctor was many things, but a family dinner kind of guy wasn't one of them—particularly when Carla had already slapped him once in the short time he'd known her. He thought he'd broken his streak of bad luck with mums, but… well, seemingly not. So he was companionless for a few hours, and while he could wait for her to get back, maybe catch up on his reading—what was the point of waiting when you had a time machine? 

He ran his hands over the TARDIS console, marvelling at her clean lines and metallic flourishes, the way that even now she felt brand new but familiar, and paused. He’d just pop off for a quick adventure, nothing too dangerous, but—where to go?

He could scan for a distress call nearby, and pitch in to help. He could drop in on Donna and Shaun and Rose, beautiful Rose, and see how they were all doing. Or he could just hit the randomiser button, and jump in feet first wherever he ended up.

He remembered a conversation from a long time ago, when he wore a different face, and his gorgeous TARDIS wore a face too, for the first and only time.

“You didn't always take me where I wanted to go.”

“No, but I always took you where you needed to go.”

He grinned. Who could resist an offer like that? He pressed the button and whooped as the time rotor spun into action, ready to see where the universe would take him.

---

Apparently, he was needed pretty close to where he already was. Earth, 2024. Huh. Same planet, same time—within a few months of where he’d left Ruby, even. The main thing that had changed was the location: he was now in the good old US of A. California, to be more specific, and Los Angeles to be more specific still. And to really narrow it down, the Doctor discovered as he poked his head out of the TARDIS doors, he was in… a broom closet. Not bad, as a parking spot—a bit squeezy, but out of the way. And as he poked his head out of that door, he could finally see he was in the backstage corridors of a studio of some kind. Film or TV, if he was to hazard a guess, it was a different vibe from Abbey Road.

With a shrug, he decided to go exploring.

It couldn’t have been more than a minute before a young woman wearing the full-black outfit, headset, and permanently stressed expression of a production assistant came running up to him.

“Are you the fill-in Sam organised?” she asked breathlessly, and honestly, seeing the look on her face, the Doctor didn’t have the heart(s) to tell her no. And really, what was the Doctor, if not a professional fill-in? This, this was why he had a randomiser button on the control panel, because whatever he was about to get himself into was going to be fun.

“Sure!”

“Oh, thank god,” sighed the production assistant, relief dawning across her face. “When Ally tested positive this morning, I thought we were sunk for the record, because we called around and we couldn’t get a hold of anyone. But then Sam said he could get someone in, and, you know, here you are, and just in time, so—ah, yeah, if you could follow me this way?”

Smiling all the way, the Doctor followed his guide through to hair and makeup, looking around as they went. The studio seemed to belong to a company called Dropout, according to the branding scattered around, and things seemed, at least on the surface, to be… well. Fine. He couldn't tell why he'd been brought here yet, which meant that when he found the reason, it was going to be particularly tangled. He couldn't wait! 

And then he looked back at his guide, still engulfed in a miasma of anxiety, and realised he'd been too busy looking for clues to notice the person right in front of him. 

“Hey, it's cool, you've found me,” he started with a gentle smile. “You can relax. Hi, I'm the Doctor. What's your name?”

“Oh!” she said, startled. “The Doctor, yeah, of course. Um, hi, I'm Kaylin. Look, sorry, it's just that I've been so busy this morning, I'm so distracted… Shit, and I would've completely forgotten to get your details too. There's paperwork to fill in, but you can do that later. Um, just for now, though, can I get your pronouns?”

The Doctor thought for a moment. “He/him, for now.”

Kaylin nodded, making a note on her phone. “Okay, cool! And do you have any socials?”

“Not me, babes,” he replied. “I'm hardly sitting down long enough to be able to update, you know?”

“On a day like this, I know exactly what you mean,” she said. “That's okay, Lou didn't have socials either for the longest time. Right, so if you go through there, the team will get you sorted, and once you're done, someone will take you up to the greenroom. All good?”

“All great,” the Doctor replied. Kaylin flashed him a quick, relieved smile, then hurried off.

Hair and makeup was a fairly quick process, the sound mixer fitted him with a microphone, and before too long, Kaylin was back to take him upstairs. 

“This is the greenroom,” she said, pushing the door open. “The rest of the cast for the episode are already here—they’re great guys, and they’ve both been on the show a lot, so they’ll be able to help if you’ve got questions. And if you need anything else, just come find me or any of the other PAs, okay?”

The Doctor nodded, beamed at Kaylin, and walked in.

---

The greenroom was small but comfortable, and its occupants, two men around the same age as the Doctor appeared, looked up as he entered.

“Oh, you’re new,” the taller of the pair said, clearly giving him the once-over.

The other sighed with a mixture of fondness and exasperation, just as clearly used to his friend’s antics.

“Hey, I’m Brennan,” he said, levering himself up to standing from his perch on a chair arm, and holding out a hand. “That’s Grant.”

The Doctor took it warmly. “The Doctor. Just passing through, and happy to help.”

Grant’s eyebrows quirked. “Doctor… something?” he prompted.

“Or is it just ‘the Doctor’?” Brennan asked.

“Just ‘the Doctor’,” the Time Lord confirmed cheerfully. “You’ll get used to it, everyone does.”

Grant didn’t look convinced, but—

“Copy that,” Brennan shrugged, and settled back on the arm of the chair, returning his gaze to the door.

Grant, in turn, looked at the Doctor and rolled his eyes in a clear expression of ‘no, I don’t know why he’s like this, either’.

“Okay,” the Doctor said after a moment of watching the watching. “I wasn’t going to ask, but now I think I have to. What’s up with the door?”

Brennan huffed a laugh. “Well, the last time there was one of those up—” he pointed to the Out of Order sign stuck to the bathroom door, “—we got locked in here for the game.”

“He’s paranoid,” Grant interjected.

“Well, yeah, maybe,” Brennan retorted. “Or just cautious. Because Sam’s been acting weird lately, and we’re coming up to the last few records of the season, so he’s probably planning something way out of the box for the finale. And the original cast was you, me and Beardsley, so…”

He shrugged one shoulder meaningfully, and Grant nodded, conceding both the point and the potential for chaos.

“So if Sam comes in to give us the briefing, rather than waiting til we’re on set,” Brennan continued, “or there’s anything else weird going on, I’m gonna know about it right from the beginning.”

He turned to the Doctor. “The only reason I'm not quizzing you is because I know for a fact Beardsley was genuinely scheduled for this, so you can't be a plant by the production team. No offence.”

“None taken,” the Doctor smiled. “That sort of thing happen often, does it?”

Grant and Brennan exchanged a look. 

“More than you'd think,” Grant answered with a grimace. 

“Alright,” the Doctor said slowly, then brightened. “So what is it we're actually doing?”

Grant gave him a disbelieving glance. “You don't know—?”

“Very last minute fill-in,” the Doctor said breezily. “But don't worry, I'm a quick study.”

“Well, you're not that much worse off than the rest of us,” Brennan said encouragingly. “You know about Game Changer, obviously, if you know Sam, and we only find out the rules of the game once we get on set. Hopefully,” he added, with a dark look back at the Out of Order sign. 

The Doctor nodded. No, he didn't know Sam, and he didn't know Game Changer, but he could work out the situation from context clues. This was a game show. And with the Toymaker banished, and Satellite Five not coming into existence for another 198000 years, give or take, he found himself smiling. Maybe third time would be the charm. 

“Mmm, hopefully they aren't going to throw you in the deep end,” Grant said. “Because Brennan might seem lovely now, but as soon as we get out there, he's a whore for points. He'll stab you in the back and won't even blink.”

Brennan barked with laughter. “Yeah, and you wouldn't?”

“Excuse you, I'm always a goddamn delight,” Grant replied, the very picture of injured dignity. 

“Oh, absolutely!” agreed a new voice. The Doctor turned to the now-open door to see a bearded man in a pinstriped suit smiling broadly. “That's why we keep inviting you back!”

Grant bowed sarcastically. “Why, thank you, Sam. Good to know I'm appreciated by someone here.”

“Always,” Sam replied, gently but firmly ending that particular path of the conversation. He scanned the room, and his eyes lit up when they landed on the Doctor. 

“Ah, you must be the Doctor!” he said with obvious delight, walking over with his hand outstretched. “I'm Sam—thanks for filling in for us, you've made sure we're going to have a good show. Seriously, it's a pleasure to have you here.”

“Aw, cheers!” the Doctor smiled, shaking the offered hand. “Glad I could help out, I'm really looking forward to this!”

“Well, great!” Sam exclaimed, then took a step back, regarding all three players in turn. “Now, folks, I'm just letting you know that we're just about ready to start the record, so if you can start heading down, that'd be great.”

Grant and Brennan nodded—Brennan, the Doctor noticed, with relief. 

“See you down there,” Sam said, smiling. “Have a great show, and—”

His eyes caught on the Doctor's for a second, twinkling. 

“Good luck.”

---

Backstage, the Doctor, Brennan and Grant were marshalled into podium order and given a final briefing from the crew. And then, with a thumbs-up from Kaylin, that was it.

Showtime.

“Get ready for a Game Changer!” came Sam's voice from onstage. “Tonight’s guests: he can shoot off a monologue with laser accuracy; it’s Brennan Lee Mulligan!”

Brennan, his back to the camera as the curtains opened, spun on his heel and, with a stone-cold expression, pointed finger guns straight down the barrel, before letting the facade crack open. “Hi!” he exclaimed, and walked over to the leftmost podium.

“It’s his first appearance, but he’s already on fire; it’s the Doctor!”

The Doctor leant against the archway to the stage and flashed a broad smile towards the camera, then in a few skipping steps, had bounded over to the next free podium. What the hell, why not make an entrance?

“And even in the toughest of mazes, you’ll always be able to find him; it’s Grant O’Brien!”

Grant dipped his lanky frame into an approximation of a curtsey, spreading his arms wide, then sauntered over to the closest podium with a grin.

“And your host, me!” Sam announced, a ring of manic white showing around his irises as he beamed down the barrel of the camera. “I’ve been here the whole time!”

“This,” he continued, pushing his microphone shut and stowing it in his jacket pocket, “is Game Changer, the only game show where the game changes every show. I am your host, Sam Reich!” 

As he said his name, he looked at his hands, front and back, as if he was pleasantly surprised to be himself, then gestured towards the three podiums.

“I am joined today by these three lovely contestants! Now, you understand how the game works.”

“Of course not,” Grant started. “You know we don't.”

“We can't, Sam, that's the whole point of the theatre you've set up here,” Brennan said over him. 

“Not yet,” was all the Doctor said, anticipation starting to drum a tattoo of excitement against the inside of his ribcage. 

“That’s right!” Sam said brightly, shooting finger guns at the camera. “Our players have no idea what game it is they’re about to play. The only way to learn is by playing. The only way to win is by learning, and the only way to begin is by beginning! So without further ado, let’s begin by giving each of our players fifty points.”

The Doctor, biding his time, watched the reactions of his fellow contestants. Grant looked at the front of his podium, checking the point total, and nodding approvingly when he saw that yes, it was sitting at a round fifty. Brennan, on the other hand, was starting to frown.

“Players, Sam says: touch your nose,” Sam began, and Brennan sighed the sigh of someone who wasn’t happy to be proved right.

“Oh, no,” he groaned. “Oh, you son of a bitch. Wasn’t one this season enough?”

He touched his nose anyway, as did the others, and Sam smiled encouragingly. “Sam says: touch your ear.”

When they all did, Sam nodded. “Touch your other ear.”

Everybody held still, fingers on the ears they had originally touched.

Sam beamed. “Easy, players, right?”

“You say that now,” Brennan said darkly. “Which makes it worse, because all you're doing is setting us up for failure.”

Sam gasped, pretending offence. “Would I do that?”

“Yes,” Brennan and Grant replied in unison, which drew a grin from the Doctor and set Sam off chuckling.

“And I'm not having it,” Brennan continued, leaning his elbows against his podium and pointing at Sam with the hand not touching his ear. “You better watch yourself, because I know how this game works, and you're not going to get one over on me.”

“Strong words, Brennan!” Sam said, clearly delighted by this response. “Okay, then, let's start making things a bit more interesting!”

The game continued as per Sam Says usual, some rounds done as a group and some individual. Points were won, sure, but lost slightly more frequently, and even the Doctor found he was having to concentrate to avoid getting caught in the host's traps. 

It was fun. Genuinely, it was like playing a game with friends, and the Doctor felt himself leaning into it. There wasn't any sign of danger—maybe there wasn't a mystery to solve at all, and the TARDIS just decided he needed a total break. 

Well, probably not. But the way things were going, he was able to let himself hope. 

“Alright, players,” Sam said a good few rounds in, just as pleasantly as he would start any other question, and the screen behind him dinged as a new prompt popped up. “Survive the death beam.”

For a second, everything was frozen perfectly still. 

And then came the crash, the explosive noise of heavy machinery moving relentlessly through a drywall set.

The Doctor was already moving. “Everyone down!”

“Duck!” Brennan yelled at the same time.

The two of them hit the ground within milliseconds of each other, but Grant was still paralysed in the face of the giant, science-fiction type laser cannon that had just ploughed through the wall. 

It whined ominously, screaming its way to fever pitch. And then a sharp pain in Grant’s ankle made him stagger, pitching forwards onto the carpet behind the podiums as the Doctor rolled away to avoid getting pinned.

“Sorry, babes,” the Doctor whispered. “But it was either kick you to get you down, or—”

A hideous metallic screech ripped through the air, and all three of them could feel the crackle of ozone as a beam of energy swept across what had, moments ago, been neck height.

“…Or that,” the Doctor finished with a grimace.

“Jesus fucking Christ,” Grant breathed, suddenly very conscious of every inch of his 6’9 frame. “Thanks.”

“Well done, players!” Sam exclaimed delightedly from above them. “But… sorry, I didn’t say ‘Sam says’, so that’s a point off for everyone.”

“What the fuck!” Brennan snapped.

“Are you actually insane?” Grant demanded at the same time, his voice overlapping with Brennan’s.

In response, Sam just wheezed with laughter. “You can come back to your podiums,” he said, cheerfully ignoring them.

Nobody moved.

“Very good!” he acknowledged, and even without seeing his face, the grin was obvious in his voice. “Okay, Sam says: come back to your podiums.”

Although the words were innocuous, and his tone was just as light and breezy as usual, there was nevertheless an edge hiding just underneath the surface. And while the death beam loomed large in the minds of all three players, it was impossible to consider disobedience as an option.

Slowly, they stood, returning to their places. Now they had the time to look at it properly, the death beam was even more sinister, and Brennan and Grant both kept flicking nervous glances its way, ready to move if it looked like it was charging up again.

The Doctor, however, was focused purely on the man standing in front of them. Unbothered, Sam met his gaze like a challenge, a mischievous smile playing about his lips.

“Oh, you’ll love this one,” he said, and the screen changed. “Sam says, starting with Grant: say my name.”

Grant frowned in confusion, but answered quickly nonetheless. “Sam Reich?”

The man himself shrugged tolerantly, moving on. “Brennan?”

Brennan just stared at him coolly. “Do you take me for a fool?”

“Well caught, Brennan!” Sam said happily. “Sam says: say my name.”

“Sam,” Brennan replied, suspicion clear in his voice. “Samuel Dalton Reich.”

He nodded, still with a hint of indifference. “And lastly, Doctor.” His smile broadened. “Sam says: say my name.”

It was easy. Too easy. And as the Doctor looked into the eyes of the man calling himself Sam Reich, he felt his hearts stutter in recognition, because something had changed. He wasn’t hiding himself anymore, and while the face was different yet again, the Doctor would know the shape of that soul anywhere. It was impossible. It was inevitable.

“You can’t be,” he breathed. 

Sam smirked, leaning in across his podium. “Oh, but Doctor… I’ve been here the whole time,” he stage-whispered with a wink.

“He said you lost,” the Doctor said, shaking his head, looking wrong-footed for the first time that Brennan and Grant could recall. “You lost, and he trapped you.”

The other two watched, uncomprehending, but Sam just smiled, drumming his fingers against the podium with an audible beat, fast but distinct. Four taps, four taps, four taps. “I’m waiting.”

The Doctor took a slow, deep breath. Set his jaw. 

“Master.”

---

missed an installment of the game master cinematic universe?

original idea by @ace-whovian-neuroscientist: x

art by @northernfireart concept: x scissor sisters sketch: x sam and his doppelganger: x

writing by me (!) part one (escape the greenroom): x part two (deja vu): x part three (sam says 4): you are here!

[a-most-beloved-fool]

spirk using telepathy to keep each other alive. kirk, desperate, psy-null and untrained, reaching clumsily into spock's dying mind and pulling, dragging spock's essence into himself, wrenching him forceably from the very jaws of death and holding him there through sheer strength of will, saying you can't die, i won't let you, you can't leave me, i need you, and binding him to life and to himself until it's impossible to fully separate them. spock, more skilled, carefully managing each one of kirk's vital signs - keeping his heart beating steady, his lungs drawing breath, his temperature within a safe range, all while suppressing kirk's pain, and at the same trying, vainly, to keep their minds from tying themselves inexorably together, but they're pressed too close and he can't, and he hopes that kirk will forgive him, for bonding them like this (he will, of course he will), but the alternative, letting kirk die, was - unthinkable.

[benevolenterrancy]

Finally got Fish Book 3 out from the library (and 4 on its way!), at last I will be experiencing Real Pregnant Li Yu for myself! After being there for your experience of it finally it's my turn xD You said a bit back you like getting drawing prompts, could I suggest flustered just-realized-his-fish-is-a-cute-boy Prince Jing? He gained confidence quickly but that period where he was embarrassed about things like petting his fish because if his fish is a person petting his tail is like touching his butt was very funny and very cute 💖 He's such a dork <3

hey, prince jing, what exactly are you touching there? 🤨

[poorly-drawn-mdzs]

ISAT & Dungeon Meshi swap!

[roverjamball]

DAY 1 - 17.07.2023

 "I've got you and I'm not letting go."

Raven enters the Titans tower, Damian, following her. He close the door he’s been holding for them. 

 Team Leader for the month continued to berate me as we climbed up the Everest, to the top floors that house living quarters, dining and kitchen area. Damian lead, I was slightly behind him. Trying to to lag.   

The patrol was routine. Except for the fire, of course. Which was probably some kind to trap. Either way it would need investigating. This was the day from hell.

Most days Damien and I took the nightshift. I was more alert at night. Shadows, they spoke to me. This was not something I had really noticed, but when we ended up doing three nightshifts in a row, I realised how the cool darkness could feel, freeing. The night Spoke to me in a way that nothing else had before. Shadows, not usually sentient, were always aware of her, always eager to do her bidding.

Raven counted the steps, Damian's, tall, lean frame, ate up the steps beside her. His breathing steady, as if they were out for a stroll. She on the other hand was tired, her legs ached, magically depleted. After being up for almost 48 hours straight, fighting fire creatures, warding a whole building only for the creatures to vanish and rousing unnatural flames, I was a little flames out. 

The previous two days, from what felt like dawn to dusk had been filled with Justice League briefings, mandatory Justice League, briefings. There was a threat. It was spooky. Ant that was all Constantine could or would tell them. One magical and one norm was the new protocol. And though they could’ve asked out of Night Shift, Damien and Raven both decided not to.

Raven was mentally cussing the person who designed the tower, this insanely long staircase, and the fact that the elevator was lowest in the list of priorities for renovations of Titans Tower. Maybe she should teleport the architect all the way up and help him feel each stair, head first, on his way down. 

So involved was she in the violent, yet satisfying fantasy, it took her totally by surprise when they reached the kitchen. 

Raven blinked, further surprised to find that Damian had stoped in the middle of the corridor, and was speaking to her. I turned to look up at him, my senses searching him, what question? Only to sink into his green eyes. 

Wide eyes shone like sea glass under dark brows. Add to those mesmerisers, straight thick brows. Damian’s wavy hair, now covered with soot, ash, his warrior bearing, lean like a professional fencer, his beauty could lead her to any number of sins, and Raven was turning into a poet, trying to justify why she couldn’t take her eyes off her teammate.

Thick eyebrows were raised in question. Look away. Look away Raven told herself. 

Damian was far too perceptive by half, even suffering form smoke inhalation. And then Raven made the mistake of looking at his mouth, soft lips compress in a lush line as if annoyed at being ignored. Tempting softness beckoned Raven. She had watched him clean up after the fire was put out, ash and soot patchwork, still his magnetism caught her. She didn’t want to notice such things. 

Seep deprivation, Raven thought, yes that is the only reason.

“Huh?” She asked. 

They’ve been awake for over 48 hours in one go. And haven’t had much rest before that marathon either. A good excuse to be out of it. Reason, not excuse. 

The night had been quite, but Raven sensed unease in the air. Damian noticed, he suggested they linger a bit before heading back. Donna and Conner would release them in an hour or so. Damian called for his bike, a fun self drive feature, handy. It stoped below their perch and Raven teleported them to street level. 

Damian hoped on, side wheels retracted into the bike, no longer required for balance. Raven took to the skies. They would run parallel sweeps, Raven taking high ground and Damian covering her. 

Doing a final lap before turning in, a few blocks from the Tower, Damian informed her a building was on fire. The FD had just been called. FD would take 20 minutes, budget cuts, while Damian and I were less then a minute away. They passed by the area most nights on the way home, office buildings dominated and then closer to the pier godowns and warehoused were plentiful.

I cast my senses out. There was something there. It needed investigating.

I landed on the roof while Damian went in through a window, creating a zip line for evacuation, if needed. It was early morning, midnight oil a old memory. Even so. Patrolling guards or any number of people could be trapped.

My boots slipped and slid on the tile floor as I sprinted around a corner and toward the doors to the middle of a grand foyer reception. The place had an abandoned feel to it. 

Streetlights provided light in the dusty hall, and left huge swaths of blackness crouching and observing my progress. The reception of one office to doors to various utility closets. I was looking for anyone trapped in. Stretching my senses I listened, listening to the hum of the universe, speak to me, I thought. 

Moving faster, my cafe-length magical cloak black in the darkness swishing against my legs. I heard a rustling, hissing sound and I’m not sure why, ducked to the left, taking cover of an alcove doorway. 

A ball of some kind of noxious-smelling substance, zipped past me, engulfed in blue-white flame. The ball of foul I don’t know, hit the floor, sparked and promptly exploded. I broke to lock and ducked into the room behind me, heat of a hungry fire shot towards me and half melted the wooden door. 

It got hot for a second, and wooden door would’ve  burst into flames but for the wards I'd woven the moment I touched the doorframe. 

I called to Damian, but my magic was interfering with the com technology. I could pull my magic in, but then the door would burst and I didn’t like my chances of hand to hand with a thing ablaze and alive. 

Another flaming glob crackled toward me. The substance, whatever the hell it was, clung to what it hit and burned with a supernatural ferocity. It had already burned metal doors to slag in the dim hall behind me.

The goop hit my shield, it slid off the protective spells, spattering the walls on either side of my door. I flinched . The walls wouldn’t hold it back and it was getting hot. 

Checked behind me, the light from the street lamps and the fire revelled luckily, restrooms. Water! 

Light was growing back where I'd come from, as flaming missiles chewed into walls and floor, spreading with a malicious glee. The door held.

I ran for the windows by the sinks, in was an older building, a few stories tall. Slamming the locks, opening the safety bar with my arm and barely slowing down, I pushed with my will. Plumbing broke and as the pipes burst out, they poured with vengeful force guided by my magic on the flame creature. Once the water honed in on the magical flame monsters, knocking them down took minimal concentration.

I climbed out the window, onto a ledge. Three feet wide, if that. The warded door and water kept the burning creature out, but for how long. I’d regroup, find Damian and then we’d finish this. Slowly I moved to the next set of windows, more than a few feet away, a side way shuffle. 

Don’t look down. One step at a time. I could teleport but I wasn’t sure if the creature could track that. I pressed against the side of the building. Teleportation was an option of last resort. I wasn’t even high up, but this close to the ocean sea breeze nipped at me. Pulling my cloak. I focused on making my self streamline. I wanted to levitate, this narrow ledge, only a few stories high was getting to me more than I thought it would. 

A sudden weight hit my back, it was all I could do to hold onto the window sill, something pulled viciously at my hair. A wolf like creature had leaped off a dumpster below me. It held on, finding purchase on the ledge, started biting at my neck and ear. It hurt. I tried to spin and throw it off, but it had a good hold. If I pushed harder, I’d lose a ear. The creature could easily pull me down, out weighed my by a mile, a short drop but it would do me damage. 

I stopped struggling, the wolf thought it had me, I could feel its triumph, primitive thoughts, ruled completely by instinct. I couldn’t fight it off physically, heavy with power musculature. Instead focused on where the creature touched me, my bare skin, “Sleep” I pushed into the creature. Elation and catching me, its guard was done.  Feeding compulsion and power where its molten fur met my skin. My voice echoed in the empty streets, “sleep” I willed it, feeding more power into the command. I fed it empty fields, a full stomach, lazy afternoons with shade for a nap. 

The pressure ended abruptly. The command took hold. A thud sounded below me. Heavy body hitting metal. 

Compulsion took effort, will, concentration, I lost focus of the water to fend off flaming monster in the building. The fire creature burst threw my magically barricaded door. Rushed into the restrooms, zeroing in on me. Heading right at me. More pipes broke, spewing water all over the restroom with the creature in it. Did little good, wet, flames diminished it come for me and I lunged to the side, now all the way out the side of the building to avoid a collision, but now I fell. 

My will no longer focused on water cannoning, I blinked into shadows, out of existence. Only to reappear somewhere else. Disoriented I appeared in the middle of a hallway. Smoke, an acrid smell filled my nose, my vision limited. Still in the same building then.

I was about halfway to an exit, not a fire exit she saw, so the door maybe locked. Walking to the middle of a corridor as I pulled my magic into me, I saw it was the ground floor. 

Robin still unreachable. 

Something ripped the steel doors behind me inward, against the swing of their hinges. A low, bellow erupted from further inside the building. I felt it like thunder.  Calling energy to me, my power manifest dark ebony a deep purple. Shadows move to me, eager to please, puppies to her master. 

Panting, I looked down the hallway and then to the exit. There was maybe twenty meters between me and the exit. I’d be out, a barred door couldn’t hold me, but then I’d have led who know how many fire creatures after me. I sensed three. I faced two of them, one would sleep for a bit, but the other could re-group and I’d face two again. 

I have successfully developed a standard operating procedure for dealing with big, nasty monsters who wanted to kill me in excreting ways. Run. But I couldn’t apply that here. This building was going down, business, shop hopes and dreams would burn tonight. We shall see. I just hoped Damian was all right. He could hold his own. 

I breathed in pants, pulled on a mask to cover my mouth and nose. My eyes watered from the heat and smoke. 

Water water everywhere, I thought. Finding the reserves of the building, the infrastructure around. Ah!. In an overhead tank, I had spotted something white and round when I landed on the roof. There was three fire hydrants nearby. Only one close enough to make a difference. I reached out to them. 

Just then my com crackled. “Raven?”

“Get bike. “ I kept my sentences short and urgent. “Exit off the west parking lot. Over looking the high rise expansion.”

“Copy” his voice crackled in my ear. 

“Be ready to carry me out.”

No response. I hope my message was heard. If I ran, the monsters zeroed in on me, would follow. If I escaped, they may scatter in the sleeping city. My magic and will held them at bay. No man made flame retardant material had a prayer against supernatural fire these creatures were throwing around. It was like greek fire. 

I pictured the building in my minds eye. Then spread my awareness all over. My power coated each wall and window and vent. I wanted to contain the creatures in which ever area they are, but I don’t think I can do both. Find them all to keep them in, contain the flames. 

Adrenaline surged through me. My heart hammering in my chest. The world slid into sharp focus. I saw it all at the same time in half a second: two creatures converged from different areas to me. Their shape flickering in my minds eye. The whole building is covered in my energy, spread too thin I panted, should’ve practice more. 

“Seal.” I say. But my voice is normal not a force to be obeyed. I pore my will into the command.

“Seal”, I say again, my voice an eerie register, even to my own ears. I picture what I want. Identify the creatures to the ward. Keep these in. Contain the unnatural flame. Snuff in out. Deprive it of oxygen. 

Damian! I sense, him coming from one side, lower face covered with a modified oxygen mask, eyes red from smoke. I find the sprinkler system and feed some magic into it. I give the water intent and power.

Something new, other touches my senses. Closing in. Not from the mundane, not having the same signature as the creatures, they are not of the entity, its power setting my senses on high alert. 

Undeterred, I showed the ward the differences in the air. Mundane and magical and foul. The darkness that are shadows creeps towards me. As if to assist. A stranger on the street watching me lose energy, someone it considered of itself, coming to help.   

Avalanche of power, magic rushed at us. Honing in on me, it fell in waves. Damian was closing in, keeping the power contained was beyond me. The colossal power must have found a way around my ward, it was like an extra dimensional opening. 

Its magic beckoned me. Making promises and offers, all without words. Emotions: belonging, power, family, support, understanding and finally acceptance. 

It took a monumental effort of will to restrain it. I was a rock, small and unmovable. The power and its promises an ocean. The waves could go on right over me, but I would lay there, stationary, not at all affected. 

The creatures surged, drawing my attention, a frontal assault. Keeping my wards up, while pushing water at the flames was taxing. Walls burst all around, the plumbing breaking out, drenching the beasts; the sides, front, back while the sprinklers worked double time, pouring water from above. Magic combined with water seemed to be effective. Steam rose, mixing with smoke, filling the air. It was hard to see. 

Attuned to seeing into levels and dimensions far removed from reality, and therefore inefficient at observing the merely mundane, I was now suspended in the narrow space between the living world and the dark shadow-world, I could survey all that was Metaphysical. My vision doubled magical and mundane superimposed. 

With smoke and steam obstructing my normal vision, this magic shadow-world sight was worth the loss of the former. 

Magic brushed against me, insubstantial but saturated with power. It was too large, I couldn’t perceive its limit. I began to tremble with the effort. I strained to stay upright.

An explosion of magic, a blaze of white brighter than the nearby street lights. The entity was here. The light bathed the creatures. There were three of them, vaguely animal like, made of flame, the constant water combine with my power did not fade them, but they shied away from the blinding light. 

“Evac?” I head in my ear, Damian was here, he reached me. I felt relief in my very bones. Damian was here, safe and he would back me up. 

An ancient colossal power that observed me, I felt it judging me. The magic pulled me forward. I only barely got my barriers up. Belatedly, I threw one around Damian. 

The pressure held, roaming around my shields, against their shape, strength, a long pale beam of light tasting, testing. Its focus was solely on me, Damian or the creatures beneath its notice. In a moment it retreated. I heard a clinking sound. I think I was losing it, my shields, the warding of the whole building, holding back the creatures, dousing them with powered water, it was a bit much. 

The remaining light coalesced into something luminescent, it landed on the tile floor to the side of me. The power was finally truly gone. And it left behind a present. Good thing too. Damian and I we no match for it. Not with out major preparations; artefacts and back up.

On the floor was the object, it that was hard to describe. It had a physical and metaphysical presence. The double vision was giving me a head ache, and sapping at my power reserves. It had markings on it, scratches in the groves. A misshapen shape, it could be an octagon, a hexagon, a disc of some sort, of what sort I just wasn’t sure.

I nodded to Damian, he walked the perimeter of the area. Taking in the scene. We could leave, no need to stand and fight. The wards were in place. Able to function without my intervention. They would hold. Back to my senses, I found that we were alone. Damian and I. 

I looked up and around, the creatures must have backed off. They were gone, leaving only charred animal footprints on the floor as proof of their passing. 

“Stand back.” Damian walked to the luminescence. It finally faded, leaving nothing behind. 

I staggered to the exit. The door was locked. I sagged on it. Right now a stiff wind could flatten me. 

Damian gestures me to move away, staggered to the side I leaned on the wall, he took a running start and rammed the door. It shuddered. Where it was weakest, he rammed it again. Wood splintered, metal groaned, the doors burst open. Ignoring my protests Damian lifted me and we shot out into the darkness of the parking lot. 

The fresh air was startling, it tasted so good. I stumbled, blinking, trying to get used to the darkness after the red glare. After images dancing before my eyes. The symbol etched on the coin predominant. 

I hear a bike reeving, the headlight turn on and helmets come out its sides. I run to it assisted, mostly carried by Damian, push on with my will, climb the rear seat and sag. Spent. 

Damian mounts the bike behind me, securing me to him. "I've got you Raven, and I'm not letting go."

“Go!” I mutter. Go”

We duck into an alley. Sounds of sirens and flashes of red blue light pass us. Their howls deafening. Damian turns to check on me, passing me water canteen.

“What the hell is that?" 

“Back at the Tower.” I held back a groan. The fire was out, a fire truck couldn’t have done much but with the fire monsters gone they had a chance putting out the embers. 

As Damian drove us away I pulled my directive back from the building. The fire hydrant I had repurposed went back to normal and the sprinklers pushed out regular water found in any tap in the city. 

And now we were back at the Tower, standing together, Damian facing me.

Damian shrugs resigned to having to repeat the question. “Would you like breakfast before turning in, Raven?” Damien asked, but ever so aloof and polite. Typical, Damian. 

His eyes never leave my face, I love my name on his lips. At 19, Damian is so much bigger than me. Taller, broader. His face losing its youthfulness, and with the right get up he can look younger, older, Arab, Afghani, Caucasian or Latin descent. I used magic to help, but with Damian it was all micro expressions and body language. 

Back to his question. Spend more time with Damian while he inevitably cooks us breakfast, because my skills in the kitchen were basic at best! Answer a hundred questions. Or, or go off to sleep, hungry. 

Her body needed sleep and food. She’d gone without one and now going without the other wouldn’t in anyway, restore her.

Raven nodded, realised she’d been staring and looked down and away. Oh crap sure signs she was hiding something. Hide the slip. Move, move, she told her body. Did an about turn towards the kitchen. Put some distance. Actions speak louder than words.

Before she could, Damian open the door for her. His whole body was in her space. Trying to repress then urge to gauge Damian’s response to our closeness, as he behind me, too close for comfort. 

I worked to control my breathlessness. But Damian filled my perception in every way.  His face leaning over my right ear, his warm breath grazing my temple. My whole body tingled from the contact. Unless I moved forward, or leaned back a fraction of an inch, I’d be braced against him. Too close. 

At times like this, when Damian was gentlemanly towards her, opening doors or pulling my chair for me to sit, I felt something. Correcting my stance during practice or training. Offering me a ride when I’m tired at the end of patrol, giving me a leg up to climb on his unnaturally high Robin cycle. With him this near me, touching but not touching, when his very presence surrounds, he makes me feel safe. 

I hope I didn’t pause for too long, get a move on, Damian followed me, our combined smoke flavoured miasma dispersed into the largest, most modern kitchen anywhere, ever. 

The kitchen was a priority over fixing the elevator, food trumpets a few extra stairs. Jamie words not mine. I thought of using a portal when I didn’t disagree. Good food the way the Titans did it was usually worth the hassle of a few, million extra stairs.

The right side of the kitchen faced the ocean, floor to ceiling reinforced glass with metal panelling. In times of emergency or lockdown, bars and shutters would enclose them in darkness, but right now hints of sunrise, seeped threw. Hints of stars, twilight still evident. 

After Tera’s betrayal, the priority was structural integrity of the tower and defences, after that armoury and training room. Even before the living quarters, the kitchen was done up.

“Pancakes?” Behind her, Damian stood almost touching, his words vibrate through her back. She still felt unsteady, but managed to move unaided. She conquered the stairs, a few feet to the kitchen she would manage.

“Aha” she said, monosyllable reply, is best, Raven decided.  

Going into the kitchen, she moved purposefully towards the sink cleaning up the best she could. Then the cupboards. Raven pulled out the necessary pots and pans, while Damian entered the pantry, returning a moment later with required ingredients; butter, flour, salt, maple syrup and honey. 

His voice echoed in my mind, a continuous refrain “"I've got you and I'm not letting go.”

When I thought back to those words, how Damian sounded as he said them, how he held me close and warm.  His arm around my waist, secure and strong against my back. 

Placing the items on the counter, Damian moved to  one of the breakfast bar. Removing his cape he folded it and draped it on the back of a chair. He smells like smoke just like she does. Then arm guards came off, followed by all outer pieces of armour; leg guards - that moulded mussels, chest plate, domino mask, equipment belt. Stop, she thought, eyeing him covertly.

 To her dismay, Damian even pealed off his reinforced buttoned tunic, now dressed only in pants, and an athletic temperature regulating black t-shirt, the kind most of us wore under our suits. Unaware or unconcerned of side glances Raven gave him, Damian moved about the kitchen,  cleaning up, washing his arms after pushing his sleeves above his elbows, scrubbing his face and neck. Water clung to him as he drank a swallow after rinsing his mouth.

Arranging the utensils in only half of his Robin uniform. Pants that moulded his thighs, defined, long legs and a thin temperature regulating athletic high neck T-shirt, sleeves pushed up to his elbows, revealing warm sinewy muscles. 

Oblivious, Damian continued, drying off, measuring ingredients, finding dishcloths, wrapping an apron around his waist. His body, lean and hard, flexed, stretched, his sure hands working kitchen appliances, mixing and tasting. It was embarrassing how much it all appealed to me. 

This was the worst part of the morning routine. Damian had only recently, a couple of months ago, started to feel comfortable removing his armour, which he usually kept on, even in Titans Tower. And now Raven felt like an asshole for not removing her cloak and equipment belt when he was so comfortable with her. 

Raven debated using magic to change out of her smoky clothes, but with her mind so addled, she may end up picturing something ridiculous, and be utterly humiliated. No thank you. 

Facing the floor-to-ceiling windows, Raven chose the   table furthest from the kitchen. Ever this early it smelled of coffee, the automatic timer must have activated. 

Quit stalling. I remove the cloak, balling it on a chair - warding saved it but would need to be washed, belt pouch - carried magical items, powders and herbs equipped with multitools and gadgets, like our communicators and such, I set down carefully across the table. Magic and technology don’t mix too well, techno-magic was possible, I’d tried my had at it a bit. But as a rule I kept them separate, powders in glass or lead jars, mostly inert to magic. 

Keeping it simple, I unlace and remove my boots: an organic vegan compound Gar created to replace leather, soft soled and light with re-enforced heels and toes, they had two loops for silver knives, Anthems. By the power of my will I send them to my room. Then I sent the cloak to the hamper and my belt which had technology, I left alone. 

Not wanting to be barefoot in front of Damian, I summoned slippers and unbraiding my hair, still smelling of smoke, I took a moment to get a hold of myself.

All this took less than two minutes. Was she being rude if she didn’t continue to help Damian with breakfast?Decided that she was, he was as tiered as she felt, Raven went to set the table. She could do this without distractions if she kept her eyes averted.

Setting the table with plates, glassware and cutlery, Raven while giving Damian a wide berth, opened cupboards, pulling out a platter and placed it on to Damian’s left. 

She went back to the pantry, found some ripe summer mangoes, proceeded to peel and cut them to go with the pancakes. As a cook, she was okay, but cutting, mixing ingredients was an essential part of being a magic practitioner. The fruit was cut in perfectly thin slices, garnished with mint and a bit of red pepper sprinkled on the side. And it didn’t make sense, but Damien liked a bit of roasted spice with his pancakes.

“Thank you” Damian said indicating the platter and cut fruit. His voice was low, it had a husky quality to it that made even the most clinical assessments in the heat of battle, sound, intimate. Planning logistics sounded private, spoken in the dead of night. His voice was rough, smoke damage. 

It would be beyond rude if she left him there while he cooked for both of them, but she didn’t know what else to do. The table was set fruit, honey, maple syrup placed on the table, awaiting diners. 

Damien had two pans going on the burner and soon pancakes word begin piling up the platter. Raven probably would eat three, Damien would probably have four or five, but if he didn’t make some for the other Titans, he would never hear the end of it.

I forced myself to grope for reason but found only fog, a fog Damien routinely created around my mind; every time he spoke, looked at me or I looked at him. I had figured that if I look just off his ear, it would seem I was looking at him, and I would only see him in my peripheral vision. I felt it dilutes the intensity and his effect on me, at least a little bit. 

“After we finish breakfast, Damian”. Raven said, I kept my gaze on him. No emotional compulsion.

I pick up the platter of pancakes, taking away Damian’s access to it, once it had enough pancakes for the two of us. The others weren’t even up and they could wait for breakfast after Damian had eaten. Damian had been awake longer than even she had.  

The corner of Damian’s mouth twitched, Raven was struck again by Damian’s beautiful lethalness. Without even trying, his dimples and the beginning of stubble made him distinctly handsome. 

Damien put the kettle on one burner and turned off the heat of the second burner, leaving the pans as is.

 “For later” his smooth voice assured her. Surprisingly a placating smile graced his lips. 

Carefully balancing the planter, Raven turned away, she moved away for the kitchen, to their table by the windows. The Sun rose over the horizon, lighting the ocean in pinks and oranges. The whole sky was lightning as she placed their food on the table, arranging the cutlery. 

Damian’s long-legged steps were easy beside hers, and she envied the way he seemed so at home in his own skin. Feeling every step Damian took, getting closer and closer as he pulled a chair for her to sit, Raven wasn’t sure how much more she could take. Just keep it professional. Less pathetic that way.

For the last couple of months, most of the night patrols were Damian and Raven, what partnered She’s caught herself staring at him a moment too long and would look down a street, or anywhere else abruptly, so as not to keep staring at him. 

As if perpetually aware of her, Damian responds to her sudden movement. Trusting that she must’ve seen or sensed something that he missed. It was happening with such frequency, these last few weeks, it was getting ludicrous.

 She could notice things like that, she reasoned, despite the fact that she would never fall for him. She could appreciate his appeal. His movements across any space, for instance. He was fluid and aloof, like a wolf that could take off at any moment with great speed, even though at the moment he was simply beside her. She wouldn’t touch him, however. She had a feeling she’d end up losing a lot more than a limb.

[egophiliac]

I loved your drawing(and I love your style in general) with Leia in your recent post! If/when you have time can we see more of her in your style? I get so happy whenever I actually see people mention/talk about her and she’s not just forgotten because we didn’t get to see much of her. 😭

thank you! 💙💙💙 Leia/Leah/Lea/whatever is fascinating to me. she is the ultimate unknown. what was she like? how involved (or even aware of any details of the invasion) was she? Silver's basically a physical carbon copy of his biodad, so what did he get from her? like, I understand why the two of them kind of have to stay as these super vague and mysterious figures -- the whole point of them is that their story ended 400+ years ago and they're not really relevant anymore (and. well. the more that gets explained about them, the less that can just kinda be handwaved as "oh the politics were Very Messy") (we can sit here and theorize all day but let us acknowledge that, ultimately, canon gave us almost nothing about them post-Meleanor and we'd just be making things up). I do still wonder about her though! RIP Lea, we never knew you and we probably never will.

actually you know what, as long as we're here, I think I WILL go ahead and just make some stuff up about what Silver might've inherited from her instead.

[territorial-utopia]

Huzzah! It's birthday time! I'm slowly accumulating more and more things I like (latest additions this vest I made and a travel typewriter! Still need to fix the latter one though)

Sure has been a year.

[ondeemand]

Transformers One Review

For the sake of convenience, I’ll be referring to the characters as their new names (Optimus Prime, Megatron, Bumblebee) instead of their old ones (Orion Pax, D-16, B-127).

Also, I didn’t grow up with Transformers, so this will be mostly from an outsider’s perspective. I can’t tell what possibly was or wasn’t a retcon or how accurate to the source material it was, but I think the background info on their world held up very well and they were able to explain it clearly to new viewers like me. It definitely would have hit harder if I grew up with Transformers and knew more than just facts from cultural osmosis, but I still enjoyed the movie a lot.

Notes/Things I’m Neutral On

Very weird to hear my name (Dee) being said throughout most of the movie by Chris Hemsworth’s bad American accent.

Also, I forgot that Megatron has transformed into ground vehicles before. I only ever knew him to turn into a jet, so I was kind of confused that he was a tank in this movie. I hope we get to see him get upgraded to a jet in the next one, but the tank is still cool.

Pros/Things I Liked

Simple but effective color theory with their eye colors. Main good guys have blue while Megatron has yellow, sitting between good and bad. Still a friendly color at first, but slowly turns closer to orange and then fully red as his anger and hatred consume him (and after he met the red-eyed Starscream, a cowardly man who ends up enabling Megatron‘s more violent/aggressive tendencies)

○ Also I don’t know if I was just seeing things, but it looked like Megatron’s eyes got more yellow whenever he looked at Optimus which is so sad and so gay.

I really thought they were gonna push a romance between Elita and either Bumblebee (goofy manchild x competent woman trope) or Optimus (male lead x female lead, blue x pink), but I was pleasantly surprised that they didn’t. Sadly, there’s still time for it in future installments, but I can dream.

Not to be gay, but spider woman sexy. Airachnid was so obviously evil that it was funny, but I can’t fault Sentinel for having her around because I, too, would want a deadly goth woman to be my right-hand lady. They felt like the evil, less developed versions of Mustang and Hawkeye. I am in love.

The animation is gorgeousssss. The environments, the character designs, the fight choreography, the transformations, the lighting, the texture, mwah mwah MWAH STUNNING!!!

○ Sorry, I’m never gonna stop talking about this. The way they were able to make square/blocky figures move so fluidly was fantastic (and proof of concept that a fully animated Minecraft movie would have worked). ○ The camera angles were also great for framing both the dramatic, intense, and/or high-action moments like fights or chase scenes, while also adding a lot to the comedic moments. Like when the camera stays tracking Optimus’ face when running through the forest, only for him to suddenly fall down a cliff neither he nor us saw coming, only to then zoom out to the perspective of the guards below, showing them stumbling and falling. ○ The contrast between the mechanical and organic elements on the surface were really cool, and the way it was introduced was able to convey this idea that organic life was this strange, alien thing. ○ The way the surface just rebuilds itself into these jagged, blocky terrains was really unique and interesting! It felt like a glitched computer model because of its rougher shapes which really added to the fear and hostility of the surface.

90% of their jokes landed and they landed hard. The bit where Optimus looks like he’s about to transform and then just fucking books it is incredible. The audio and camera work help add to these as well, like the music building as Optimus pretends to transform, the camera zooming in close to different parts of him, only for all background noise to cut out as it shows Optimus running away. I won’t name every joke and quip I found funny or we’d be here all day, but they’re certainly a highlight of the movie.

I love Keegan-Michael Key, but I wasn’t a fan of him as the comic relief character of Toad in the Mario movie. When Bumblebee showed up I got a little nervous, but I really loved his performance of the character.

I really liked the midpoint pep talk about hope. That’s a really nice reason that Optimus is the leader despite not being as skilled as other people. He has the hope for a better future and it was a core part of his character from the beginning, and I really like the idea that a leader is someone who can envision a brighter future no matter what.

Alpha Trion transforming was SICK AS FUCK!!! I love that he was more animalistic when the rest of the cast become vehicles. His final fight was so cool, and it actually made me kind of emotional to see him at the end with the rest of the Prime ghosts.

The stabbings? The beheadings?? The branding??? The way Megatron tore Sentinel in half and then ripped his heart out on-screen holy shit???? This movie was incredibly brutal and I loved it. It’s such an interesting phenomenon that children’s media is allowed to be about as graphic as they want as long as it’s against robots, even incredibly sentient ones like in the Transformers series.

○ I watched the 1986 Transformers movie for a class earlier this year, and while it also had a lot of brutality in it’s fights, the new movie felt more intense. Part of this could be attributed to me watching the 2024 movie on a big screen vs the 1986 movie in my living room, but there are other reasons as well. The 1986 movie had more upbeat songs playing over the fights, specifically songs like The Touch and Dare, which helped keep the tone lighter and more exciting. The 2024 movie didn’t have anything like that, allowing the action, while still cool and exciting, to take on a more serious tone. This is also emphasized by the graphics of the movie being 3D instead of 2D. While the 2D 1986 movie is a stunning masterpiece, people still view it with the idea in mind that, since it’s a cartoon, the stakes and story will be less intense. The 2024 movie being 3D with very detailed graphics and lighting already has more visual intensity. The characters are still these bright, poppy colors, but they can come across more moody and dark due to the environments, lighting, and textures that the 3D medium more easily allows. And while the painted backgrounds and cell shading of the old movie are great, the CGI backgrounds are a lot closer to realism, so the harsher elements like metal and rock, which make up a vast majority of the environment and characters, look real too.

The way Megatron’s hate consumed him to the point where he started acting more villainous and, while not entirely similar to Sentinel, still ended up hurting innocent people was tragic. Trying to push away and deny everything about a person only to wind up being just like them. This was perfectly shown in the end credit scene where Megatron is branding himself and the new Decepticons with Megatronus Prime’s face. To him, it may be him reclaiming the traumatic experience and literally using it like a badge of honor, as well as thinking he’s honoring Megatronus Prime. But in reality, he’s just inflicting the same trauma done to him onto others, just like Sentinel. Such a cool way to show how every villain is the hero of their own story.

The doomed yaoiiiiii I’m never gonna get over them. The only other Transformers media I’ve consumed is the 1986 movie, which kills off Optimus Prime in the first 25 minutes and Megatron becomes Galvatron, so I never knew the depths of their homoerotic relationship.

I’m a sucker for “the hero and villain used the be friends (and maybe even lovers?)” trope, so Optimus and Megatron’s relationship and the general premise of the movie was already a slam dunk for me.

I’m also a fan of legacy stories like Avatar and She-Ra. While this movie didn’t get as in-depth with the concept, I enjoyed that they played with the idea of legacy and taking up the mantle of the former Primes.

I absolutely loved the end message that Optimus gives us. Hope, freedom, and autonomy are incredibly important things to learn, and as a trans person who very much wants to keep control over what I do with my body, I really resonated with that last one. I think it’s really cool that they included a message like that in this children’s movie about robots that turn into cars.

Regarding the message of autonomy, I love that it gives the term Autobots a new meaning. Auto meaning “automobile”, since they transform into cars, and Auto meaning “self”, as they are now fully their own bots with control over themselves.

Cons/Things I Disliked

Mid vocal performances from everyone except Brian Tyree Henry and Keegan-Michael Key. And as I mentioned before, it was hard not to focus on Chris’ attempts at an American accent, not to mention how recognizable his, as well as Scarlett Johansson’s, voices are.

The plot felt a little disjointed in the first 1/3-ish.

○ Good setup with the main characters being an oppressed working class with one dreaming of better things and the other hesitant to fall out of line or take risks. But then suddenly there’s a race, and then they’re in it, and then they lose, and then their leader wants to promote them. At first it feels like there are hints that he’s a scummy celebrity-type and that meeting their hero is what will spur on the disillusionment with their society. But then some random douchebag that doesn’t like them reassigns them which goes against their leader’s command, and that’s how the plot kicks off? ○ Also, Elita’s involvement felt kind of rushed/hand-waved. They all get stuck on the surface, but instead of trying to make her way back to report them like she was saying she would for the past few minutes, she makes a complete 180 and heads the expedition herself. ○ It all just felt a little strange, but once it got going the rest of the plot felt fine.

Megatron’s descent into “evil” felt kind of rushed. I understand that he feels betrayed and I really love where the character ends up by the end, but it felt like a real 180 without a lot of build up.

Some jokes fell flat or felt annoying and kinda cringe. That’s the territory of children’s movies though, so par for the course.

TLDR

Overall, this movie was a really fun watch and I’d love to go see it again. While some parts fall a little flat, the movie is lifted from mediocrity by its many Pros. From the stunning visuals, to the quick humor, to the tragic origins of two friends driven apart by their ideals, I’d recommend this movie to anyone interested in animation or the Transformers brand.

8.82/10

[necrotic-nephilim]

@sasheneskywalker i love when you enable me to ramble about things because oh my god do i have thoughts.

so recently, i made a post discussing the phenomena of DC x DP and DC x MLB crossovers and why they exist and part of that post was discussing how largely speaking, at least half, if not more of the Batfamily fandom doesn't read the comics. if they interact with canon DC material, it's adaptations that are their own sequestered universes and oftentimes not remotely comic accurate or seeking to be. the most obvious example is the Young Justice cartoon. i'm adding a cut to this post because it just got so long i'm so sorry.

a lot of times, when people are discussing the "why" of this oversaturation of fanon-only fandom, they blame Wayne Family Adventures. and i think, to a point, i agree WFA is responsible for a boom in this fandom. but as someone who's been in the fandom long before we had WFA, to me it's the other way around. WFA was DC's way of meeting the demand for this easy-to-get-into, easy-to-consume content about the Batfamily that predicates itself on the comics just enough to be vaguely the same characters, but has a more sitcom, slice-of-life sort of vibe so DC could profit off of this section of the fanbase that otherwise wasn't consuming its primary material. and well, it's definitely worked. not only that, but i have a weird theory that the decline in the MCU also led to the rise in the Batfamily fandom. when you consider the fan content that made the MCU popular within fandom, it's that 2012 "they all live in Avengers Tower and Thor is eating poptarts and Clint is in the vents and there are movie nights every Friday" sort of vibe. those were the fics that were a hallmark of the fandom. and as the MCU has strayed from well... quality content in general, but specifically well-thought-out crossover content where characters can have their own arcs but also exist in a wider story where they clearly care about each other, that fandom was sort of homeless. so where do you go, if you like a superhero found family where you can have villains for angst but also stick them all in one big family-like home for silly crack and have a plethora of options for gay ships? well. you go to the Batfamily. if you write a crack/fluff Batfamily genfic with silly vibes and low stakes instead of say, a fic about a very specific comic issue even if it's a popular comic, you're *going* to get more traction for the former. because the fanbase largely just isn't reading the comics.

and i feel... complicated about this. because on one hand, Don't Like Don't Read has been a tenet of my fandom experience. i'm very pro-fandom and that includes fandom content i don't like. and to an extent, i do think this sort of should apply to Batfamily fanon. i enjoy having my moments with other comic purists, giggling over exceptionally painful OOC headcanons or even facepalming in pain over some content but it is on me to not interact with that content. you don't make fandom a better place by being hostile to fans who engage with canon in ways you don't approve of. and frankly? we as comic readers are not going to get non-comic fans to read the comics by being asshats to them. no one is going to want to pick up any comic if we get a superiority complex about it. and also, i feel like we're all lying to ourselves a little bit insisting comics are so, so easy to get into. they're not. we can just all agree, they're really not. i've been single-handedly helping my sister get into comics, specifically Wonder Woman and no matter how simple i make it, i watch her get frustrated trying to understand what pre-Crisis and post-Crisis and New-52 and Flashpoint and all these things mean and what a retcon vs a reboot is and what a Crisis Event is and what the hell Diana's current backstory even *is*. sure, you can give someone a beginner list of comics to start with and slowly dip their toes in the water but sooner or later, *something* is going to confuse them. comics as a medium straight up aren't going to be everyone's cup of tea. and if someone *just* wants to read silly fluffy fanfiction about the Batfamily, i can't entirely begrudge them for not wanting to take the hours and hours out of their day to understand this medium. it's not an accessible medium to get into. "read this and this, but this run is out of print and this run wasn't collected in trades at all but also make sure you read that event in order and this is a good comic but the backstory in it is retconned and you *have* to read this it's so important but it's also really bad because the author kind of sucks" sounds. ridiculous for someone who like. just wants to read some stuff about Nightwing. sometimes, we all make reading comics sort of sound like a chore, not a hobby.

so my point is, i do extend some grace to Batfamily fanon for existing. i think my biggest gripe is, as i said in my other post, misuse of tags (if you're not creating content about comics, maybe you don't need the comics fandom tag on Ao3, just the all media types umbrella tag) and my far bigger gripe: when panels are taken out of context to support fanon only headcanons. if i could impart *anything* onto the Batfamily fandom as a comic fan it'd be this: if you haven't *read* the comic, don't spread the panel. if you don't even know what comic it's *from*, don't spread the panel. it's fine to use comic panels to discuss your headcanons, but so often i see someone spreading a comic panel from a comic they haven't read, and when asked where it's from, they can't source it. a silly example that comes to mind is a post going around, taking a panel where Dick, in his internal monologue goes "here comes the sun. do do do do." and the post is claiming it's from him getting buried alive. when that panel comes from Nightwing (1996) #140, and he gets buried alive in Nightwing (1996) #127, two completely different moments frankensteined together. if you're going to not read the comics, that's completely fine, but unless you're sure of the source and the context, panels shouldn't be spread around. i'm sick of this specifically happening to Red Robin (2009), with ppl claiming Tim has totally killed people because he blew up some of Ra's' bases, when those panels within context, make it clear he gave everyone time to escape. and in a later arc in that very comic, Tim grapples with the idea of murdering Captain Boomerang, and *specifically chooses not to*, because he doesn't agree with murder, even against the person who has hurt him the most. if you'd like to write fanfiction where Tim is pro-murder and has done some sketch things, i'm totally on board and would probably like to read it. but there's no need to pretend it's canon from a few panels you saw out of context.

beyond that, i think it's not *entirely* correct to say that fanon is harmless. whenever i see very WFA-positive posts, they often default to the argument that WFA is fun and silly, and comic fans are killjoys for not liking it. which. i think is complicated because the issue is, WFA and fanon don't exist in a vacuum. if you like WFA power to you, i don't think it's the worst thing ever, but i do think it's degrading to these characters because honestly? they feel incompetent in the webtoon. it's one thing if WFA was solely a slice-of-life sort of deal, just having silly episodes where Bruce is taking on a PTA mom or they're all fighting for the last cookie. but when WFA attempts to take on more serious plots with these characters, it *fundamentally* falls flat in understanding them. i get it, Bruce comforting Jason having a panic attack because a noise reminded him of the crowbar felt cute in a microcosm, but i'm so serious when i say that storyline destroyed how like. half of this fandom understands Jason Todd's relationship to his trauma. it doesn't understand how he reacts when he's triggered, what coping mechanisms he seeks out, and how he would handle Bruce comforting him. even if i can believe for a brief moment Jason *would* be triggered by something like that, him running and trying to hide and then getting a hug from Bruce to make it okay is just. painful. WFA needs everything to be wrapped up in a nice, neat little bow. so even when it starts to tackle interesting concepts, it makes them fall flat with its need to be soft, low stakes, hurt/comfort. there was a two-parter episode that dealt with the complicated mutual hatred/jealousy between Tim and Damian that *almost* really interested me because for once, it felt like the webtoon wanted to explore canon messy dynamics. but of course, it had to be fixed with one conversation and a hug. you don't mend the *years* of issues these characters have like that. WFA isn't in character because these characters are hyperbole cartoonified versions of themselves to fit within the medium and be a cute happy family.

because that right there, is the crux of it. the Batfamily fanon seeks to simplify the Batfamily and force them into a nuclear family. there are so many fantastic posts on here discussing how the nuclear family-ification of the Batfam is eroding decades worth of complex histories so i won't go too far into that. but what i will say is that there's this need, in the Batfamily fandom, for the Batfamily to exist as a unit. they are a *family*. (honestly i think calling it the Batfamily is a misnomer and has been for years but we're in too deep now.) they exist to each other first, and any teams or friends they have come secondary to this family unit. you can *specifically* see this demonstrated in what headcanons are becoming popular these days. i have an entire lengthy meta in my drafts about how i *loathe* the "the Batfamily meets the Justice League" genre of fanfic because it makes no *sense*. in order to have this genre of fic exist, you must operate under the assumption that no one in the League, or adjacent to the League, knows the Batfamily exists and are thus utterly shocked to discover Batman has kids. and to make *that* work, you have to strip *every single Batfamily member* of such important dynamics and friendships so you can lock them all in Gotham for their whole lives. Dick can't have the Titans, Tim can't have Young Justice, Duke & Cass can't have the Outsiders, Jason can't have the Outlaws, Damian can't have the Supersons, Babs can't have the Birds of Prey, and so on. because if they had these relationships, they would be known to the League. the Batfamily fandom doesn't care about this, it's just "silly fanfiction", it's not trying to be serious. but how can you say you like Dick Grayson as a character if you don't understand the Titans *are* his family? at some points of his life, moreso than the Batfamily even is. it is constantly repeated to us in most comics with Dick how much the Titans mean to him. he *needs* them to be who he is. the same extends to every other Batfamily member, most of which have been full League members at this point. but in fanon, that doesn't matter. the Batfamily are a sequestered unit first, and all of those side relationships are secondary and easy to toss away, if it makes your fanfic work better.

and because they have to be a unit first, you have these forced relationships that dump years of actual canon material for the sake of making them get along. the Batfamily fandom has its favorites and well. it's no secret it's usually the boys. Jason and Tim by *far* stand out as fandom faves so, their dynamic is a heavily explored one. it does matter that in canon they don't tend to get along and especially don't see each other as family. what matters is that you can push dynamics onto them. and so fanon gets all twisted up about which Robin Tim actually idolized as a kid (Dick) and what member of the Batfamily is pro-murder but still an older sibling figure to him and looks out for him (Helena, or if you want the dynamic of once tried to harm Tim but they've reconciled, Jean-Paul) in favor of who's the most popular. Dick, Jason, Tim, and Damian are always going to be the standouts for popularity, but it's specifically Jason and Tim who are getting fanonized the most. and that's because really, we don't have much canon content of Tim that *isn't* the comics. for Dick you've got Young Justice (tv), for Damian you've got the DCAMU, for Jason you've sort of got the Under The Red Hood movie, but Tim sort of lingers in this limbo. (yes, he's in Young Justce (tv) and Titans (live action) but in neither is he the main character nor given much depth) so, he gets a *lot* projected onto him and has become fanonized. and even with Jason's animated movies, you don't see him interact with Tim, so people build it from the ground up how they want to see it, disregarding of canon comics. i think it's what makes him so popular in the first place- he's malleable into whatever you want or need him to be.

and of course, the fanon ignores other characters in the Batfamily it doesn't know about. i feel like you could create a tier list of Batfamily characters by their popularity, going from the fandom main characters: Tim, Jason, Bruce, Alfred, Dick, Damian. to the underrated: Steph, Duke, Babs, Cass. to the forgotten about unless they're convenient for a story: Kate, the Foxes, Helena Wayne, Carrie, Selina, Harper Row, Maps, Minhkhoa Khan. to the absolutely unknown: Helena Bertinelli, Jean-Paul Valley, Onyx Adams, the Clovers, Julia Pennyworth. it's not lost on me that the ignored characters tend to be women and people of color. which is both a canon and fanon problem, DC will continue adding interesting characters to the Batfamily, play with them for a few years, then drop them to default to the "Batboys" again. and it's a vicious cycle of the fandom only caring about the "Batboys", and thus people entering the fandom via fanon osmosis won't have content about the other characters, therefore, they won't be interested in those characters enough to create it, and it's just this ouroboros consuming itself, no matter how much canon content we have of these other characters. and it's ridiculous just how large the Batfamily is becoming because of this, which is why i'm a pre-Flashpoint fan, because then the Batfamily was contained enough to actually feel like a family with every character having nuances relationships with each other, but i digress because those thoughts could be their own post.

and the thing about fanon is it doesn't exist in a vacuum. DC has started turning the comics to accommodate for what fans are asking for, because fans will beg and beg for content they're not going to consume. Tim Drake: Robin had Tim as a coffee drinker because that's the fanon accepted headcanon. and the resolution of the recent Gotham War arc was for Bruce to buy this new manor for everyone to move in and call him. nevermind that most of these characters have their own homes and have zero reason to be moving in with Bruce. Tim had his marina in Tim Drake: Robin, Dick has Bludhaven, Cass and Steph have their little side of town in Batgirls (2022), and so on. these characters are being forced together as a unit, as one big happy family living together, to appease what non-comic fans want and it's damaging comic relationships. Robin: Knight Terrors saw Jason and Tim team up and working together, which i've seen varying opinions on but i personally despised. their interactions made zero sense for any of their canon history, but it appeases them being this close sibling relationship that fanon acts like they are. also the fears they faced in their respective knight terrors didn't make sense for either character and *only* worked as a moment of bringing them together so they could reassure each other and have this weird dreamscape bonding moment. the canon is bending itself to the will of fanon rather than building on the pre-existing complex relationships. Tim barely even gets along with his most important team in Dark Crisis: Young Justice because it seems the only important relationships the Batfamily can have is with each other. and when we do see them outside of the Batfamily, it only seems to be to relive the glory days like with World's Finest: Teen Titans, instead of developing them as they currently exist. this isn't recent in the comics, it feels like you can trace it back to the New-52, but it does feel a *lot* worse over the recent years. WFA is fine when it exists in its own bubble, but the simple truth is, DC content never exists on its own. the adaptations will reflect back onto the comics. (the damage the Young Justice cartoon has done to some characters should honestly be studied) and so it does frustrate me a bit when fanon-only or adaptation-only fans act like we're being nothing but killjoys for being frustrated with this. since they don't read the comics, they don't see how the comics are suffering as a result of this.

people argue about what's out of character for the comics they don't even read. i'm sorry, but "bad dad Bruce" is consistently canon. that man is just kind of shitty. when you take someone who has the drive he has, who has this need for the Mission first, who needs a teenager in spandex next to him to keep him off the ledge, that guy is sort of going to be a shitty father figure. he just is. not on purpose or with malice, but when you compare him to any other dad in a big DC family, he sure takes the cake. it's why characters like Oliver Queen tend to *really* fucking hate Bruce for how he treats his kids. Bruce loves fiercely, but he doesn't do well with putting that love first. and his love is a controlling one, he is very particular about controlling how others in the Batfamily are "allowed" to operate. it's what drives the wedge between him and Dick, it's why Steph is never a true daughter to him. (besides the reason of her needing to be a love interest to Tim first, anyway-) i've never understood the massive outcry of people reacting to Bruce kinda being shitty in comics they're not reading. there are some moments that get ridiculously OOC with how cartoonishly evil he is (the whole Gotham War arc and that... complicated mess with Jason) but largely if you want sitcom loving nuclear father Bruce, you have to accept that is a fanon thing, not a canon one. the Batfamily being a nuclear family in *general* is fanon. most of the "Batkids" don't actually see Bruce in a particularly fatherly light and begging for moments where he calls them his kids or they call him dad outside of incredibly specific circumstances is just OOC.

it's getting harder and harder to exist peacefully in this fandom it feels like, if you don't comply to the standard fanon has set. i'm happy people are having fun with their blorbos, even if in ways i dislike, but that "harmless fandom fun" does ripple it's way back to canon, eventually. so i end up pretty tangled with my feelings because are fans at fault for DC making these poor decisions? probably not, but it certainly feels like an unfortunate cause-and-effect situation whether at the end of the day, nobody is happy. and of course, i know some fanon-only fans are striving to be more canon accurate and care about canon dynamics more than others, but for them it's always going to be an uphill battle with the above-mentioned out-of-context panels thrown around and ever-pervasive fanon overtaking anything that's truly seeking to be canon compliant. so really, it sometimes feels like we're all losing.

[navree]

Incorrect, the fact that Biden has dropped out and a candidate with history of supporting medicare for all and being more receptive to a ceasefire in the I/P conflict has made me go from "I cannot morally support the Democratic nominee" to "I am voting for the Democratic nominee despite the fact she isn't perfect in every respect." I'm really happy this played out. The Dems for the most part abandoned the old Obama platform and it feels like its possible an actual progressive agenda could come to pass in my lifetime.

Kamala 2024!

If you weren't going to vote Democratic in this election before Biden dropped out you're a dorkass loser who does not care about any of the issues you're yammering about here and also a fundamentally bad person, and I hope you get run over by a bus.

But you got one thing right in all of this gibberish, Kamala 2024.

[purplecelestial-buddy]

There's many little details in Harusono's works that tend to take space in my mind (like the background gag of the boys piling up bottles) but one of them is this picture:

There's cake, there's a ton of people and there's someone being thrown???

Idk I just think that they Kagiuras are probably great pary guests.

Full panel for more context:

[thirdeyeblue]

“Nine would have treated Martha better than Ten did”

I need to talk about this argument that never seems to stop circulating.

Note: Not a venomous/anti post. There’s more than enough of that across fandom spaces as is, and this is supposed to be a place for ✨sweet, blissful escapism✨

When making this argument, people seem to envision a scenario in which Nine never met Rose.

While I can appreciate a good hypothetical, recognizing Rose's significance to the Doctor (Nine and Ten) is essential to understanding why things with Martha played out the way they did in the first place.

In the third series, the Doctor is grieving. This grief is deliberately threaded into nearly every script, whether spoken aloud or not (and these are just a few examples):

He's burning in Rose’s wake the entire time Martha travels with him, which is why it’s so frequently called upon: It’s 100% deliberate in framing his grief. He grieved as Nine too, of course— having been fresh on the heels of the Time War — but then he met Rose, which changed everything.

Back then, he was still a rude, traumatized pain in the ass, but we watch Rose soften more of those jagged edges with every episode as they grow closer; as he lets his guard down and forms a deep connection with her.

He falls in love (against his better judgment) and it's game over.

And yes: provided S1E1 had been titled 'Martha', one can realistically assume things might have unfolded similarly to how they did with Rose. However, it wouldn’t have been that way just because the Doctor was Nine and “Nine was different” — it would be because he wasn’t already in love with someone else. The same can't be said for the start of S3.

Think of it like this: if Rose AND Martha had been in that cellar — if Nine had taken both of them along with him in S1 — we’d eventually be looking at the most melodramatic love triangle ever, what with him living in close quarters with two brilliant, gorgeous, compassionate young women... But Doctor Who is plenty “soap opera” as is with just one woman in the TARDIS.

(I certainly wouldn’t object to reading that fic, though)

Now, regarding the unrequited elephant in the room…

His inability to be romantic with Martha isn’t because he thinks her lesser, nor is it for lack of compatibility. It isn't because Rose is any better than her. It certainly isn’t just because he’s Ten.

It’s really only for one reason, which can't be denied — and now I’m a broken record:

He is still in love with Rose.

(cut from a tenrosedaily gif)

Nine is Ten, and Ten is only such a mess in S3 because he’s just lost the love of his life. Martha merely got caught in the crosshairs of a volatile Time Lord in mourning, and yes — it sucks. Absolutely.

But it also feels dismissive to chalk Ten and Martha’s relationship up to little more than some sort of mindless dance of pining, jealousy, and toxicity.

Ten trusted Martha with his life over and over again — and hers, with him. He constantly praised her brilliance, happily carting her around time and space with no intention of letting her go. In the BBC’s extended universe of novels/comics/cartoons/etc, there’s so much depth to their relationship: love and trust and trauma and sacrifice. They had their own special bond as mates, their own complexities — so it’s a bummer that it's forever overshadowed by the other things.

I’m not denying that there was a lot of stuff that sucked/was for sure toxic about Ten's S3 behavior, but so many of the things I've seen him catching flak for can be directly attributed to being A Clueless Fucking Alien Idiot (not a trait that’s unique to Ten) — as well as his flat-out obliviousness to Martha’s feelings.

So yes, I agree: if Rose never existed, he would have treated Martha differently as Nine. He also would have treated her differently as Ten. Certainly.

But Rose did exist, and when discussing canon, it matters.

“He tells me that he absolutely, 100% loves Rose... He tells me how my daughter; my wonderful, beautiful, clever little girl saved him from himself before… And he says that’s all because of me! I made her into the Rose Tyler that saved him.”

-Jackie Tyler, Flight Into Hull!

Martha got the short end of the stick in S3. She came round at the wrong place and time, but that doesn't mean it was all bad. It doesn't mean the Doctor didn’t adore her. It certainly doesn't mean the time they spent together was wasted or worthless. They were brilliant!

Sure, he could be a twat, but let it be known that he was a twat with Rose as well, both as Nine and Ten. I’m sure Tentoo can be plenty infuriating, too. So while I'll defend Ten (and Tentoo) into the ground forever and ever and ever, I'll concede that he's fucked up.

The Doctor is a certified Pain In The Ass. It’s one of the things I love so much about this character — dynamics.

But never forget that Martha was goddamn tough as nails and overcame every bit of it. She moved on with her life, and the Doctor moved on with his. One can only pray that, when they inevitably drag her back onto the show (which feels inevitable if I'm honest), we see at once that she's been living her best life for all these years.