#It feels awkward and anticlimactic in a bad way

[longagoitwastuesday]

While I loved that interaction, that is all we got about something that could be taken as two of the most important (alive) people in Gojo's life mentioning him, thinking of him with fondness, or coming anywhere close to mourning him.

Then we got two pages of resolution of whatever emotional turmoil these two have going on

[spaceorphanssecondbreakfastclub]

SO's Bookclub : Romancing Mister Bridgerton

Title: Romancing Mister Bridgerton Author: Julia Quinn Genre: Romance

Goodreads Summary :

Colin Bridgerton is tired of being thought nothing but an empty-headed charmer, tired of everyone's preoccupation with the notorious gossip columnist Lady Whistledown, who can't seem to publish an edition without mentioning him in the first paragraph. But when Colin returns to London from a trip abroad he discovers nothing in his life is quite the same - especially Penelope Featherington! The girl haunting his dreams. But when he discovers that Penelope has secrets of her own, this elusive bachelor must decide...is she his biggest threat - or his promise of a happy ending?

Review :

I think this review is a little hard to write when one is so close to the characters to begin with. And coming at it from someone who enjoyed the adaptation, it feels... awkward? bittersweet? possibly disappointing?

So. I knew going in, because I had heard a lot about it, that this book (and to some extent all the Bridgerton books) are exactly what they are. Your average, paperback bodice ripper meant to occupy the romance fan for a few hours then you go on your way. Julia Quinn was not writing War and Peace, nor was she trying to. She just wanted to write a fun, little romance. And, I guess, that is what she did.

There is a skeleton of a story that really works for me. I loved the build up to the romance -- I like slow burn. I like friends to lovers. I like when characters actually enjoy each other's company from the onset. And hey, there are secret identities, that's always fun. And the beginning of this novel and its set up, works relatively well. But somewhere around the middle, it kind of gets muddled, and starts to be a victim to Quinn's writing style and the reliance on a romance formula that's been used for all the earlier books, and it starts to not resemble what really draws me into romance stories.

Penelope Featherington is a great character. And she's been set up for four books now -- her awkwardness, her longing, her invisibility to society... It feels epic in a lot of ways because the prior books did spend so much time peppering in little bits about her. We did have time to fall in love with her -- and with Colin. And it's just holding onto your breath that she gets the payoff she deserves.

But the problem.... there are multiple issues with the book, but the main one is that Colin isn't romantic. And, I mean, don't get me wrong. I was warned. I was prepared for this. I had been told by many sources that this was the case, and I went into it with very low expectations. So when he began acting like an angry asshat, I can't say I was surprised. But I think I still felt some disappointment.

Because you do want Penelope to have this happy ending. And you do want Colin to just be beside himself when he understands how much he loves her. And... it always feels so forced. I just never buy it the way I want to buy it. And, part of it is because once they do (sorta) get together -- Colin is always angry or moody or snapping at her, and he suddenly doesn't feel like the Colin we all loved at the beginning. And I'm not even talking about the show -- I'm talking about the fun Colin we loved from the previous books. And by the end he feels bland. And their romance feels... bland?

And I just... wanted more? But I knew what I was getting myself into.

There are elements that I did like. Penelope's relationships with Lady Danbury, Violet, Eloise, Hyacinth, her sister (omitted from the show) Felicity, and even Anthony and Kate are really fun.

The Lady Whistledown stuff was... a little anticlimactic, but with the exception of the ending, wasn't all that bad.

And there were moments between Pen and Colin that I really did enjoy. Most of them in the front half of the book, but when they finally work their issues out and start writing together, that was nice, too. There were times when the characters resembled the characters I've grown to really love. And then there were times when it really felt like I was in an average, historical, bodice ripping, romance novel.

Oh. I guess I should add. The actual romance scenes... are fine. They aren't ridiculous weird (except the part where she mentions Eloise's hair when raking her hand through Colin's). But they aren't anything to write home about. They're fine.

I don't know. It's hard to articulate that the entire novel felt like it was missing something. But what that something is, it's hard to pinpoint. Because I'm not really sure. Maybe I wanted to just have more fun with it? I just don't know.

Rating : It's hard to actually rate this. Do I think the Viscount Who Loved me was the better book? Probably. But this one (so far) is the only one I'll probably pick up again. Probably 3.75 stars. It's not at all trash. But it could have been so much more...

[snootlestheangel]

Oh no! How? How could you “fix” it and stick to canon story line?

If you’re crying. I know I’m gonna be too!

I'm fuckjng sobbing right now, Tats, it's bad

Major Character Death warning for below the cut

So, I don't know if it's just me but the main reason Soap's death just sucked in like a bad storytelling way is that it felt so anticlimactic? Like, there was a bit of emotion but it was lacking and just felt weird and out of place. And then the scene with his ashes? Just like did he not have family? Was this something after an official funeral for him? That scene also just felt really fucking awkward.

Anyways, yeah I "fixed" those issues. In other words, I'm here with proper storytelling to make it hurt like it was supposed to.

When Ghost and Gaz are coming in, just after the bullet is fired, all Price can hear is the broken, desperate way the lieutenant screams for Johnny. After the bomb is defused, and they're all standing there when the realization hits. Ghost is already on his knees, hands hovering just over the bloody wounds on either side of Soap's head. For a moment, the only sound is the ragged, heavy breathing from Ghost as his whole body trembles.

Price can't even get the words out to update Laswell. Can't force himself to use the proper terms. Just manages to blurt out with a broken cry that "Soap is gone". And those three words are daggers to their hearts. Gaz lets out a small whimper and he turns and looks away because he just can't bear the gruesome sight before him. And Ghost lets out a sound so unlike him, no one really knows what it was. A growl, a whimper, a plea, a confession?

The quiet, mournful whisper of "You're supposed to be with me" doesn't go unnoticed by Price and Gaz.

In the plane, heading back to wherever, Soap's body carefully concealed and hidden away. And Ghost finally speaks. Tells them of a private conversation the pair had before everything kicked off. How Soap told him he'd want a proper funeral, nothing fancy but a send off nonetheless.

Ghost tells them how Soap wanted him, Simon, to go to the spot in the mountains overlooking the water and spread his ashes.

To let him go.

By the time Soap's family is notified and arrangements are being made, Ghost is nowhere to be seen. He's disappeared, vanished like the specter he's rumored to be. And Price is doing his best to assist with the arrangements, doing his best to notify those he'd think deserve to know that John "Soap" MacTavish is gone.

And Gaz is struggling. He feels he's lost two best friends. He feels like he's mourning alone, lost without the lieutenant there.

Lost without Soap and Ghost, Ghost and Soap.

It's the funeral now. Soap's family is a wreck, yet just like him, they're facing the dark with mournful smiles, not letting the darkness of the day chase their light away.

Laswell is the first to approach his parents. She praises their son and how well they raised him; saying he was a good man and a good soldier. Saying he died to save hundreds more. That they should be proud of how selfless and brave a man their boy was.

Price is the second. He apologizes. He never expands on why he's so bloody sorry. He can't. He can't bear to tell them that the bullet should have been for him but Soap took it instead. That Soap sacrificed himself for him. Because Price doesn't believe he deserved to be saved like that.

Gaz is the third. He tells them he'll miss his "brother", that he wishes they were all meeting under better circumstances. The conversation doesn't last long; Gaz walks away before he loses composure.

Alejandro and Rudy are next. Alejandro tells them of how Soap saved his life, how he is eternally grateful for the man. He tells them they should be proud, and yet that it is still okay to mourn the loss of a hero. Rudy prays with Soap's mum.

But the one person to never approach them is Simon Riley. He stands off to the side, looking lost yet emotionless all the same.

Soap's mother asks Price and Gaz something: "What about him?"

Price tries to deflect it, tries to say she shouldn't worry about others, this is her son's funeral after all. But she stops him. She tells him that "while he rarely spoke of you all, he spoke highly still. So I ask you, what about him?" And Price doesn't have an answer.

Gaz tells her "He's dissociating really bad. He's just not coping well at all."

And Price speaks on how special the two were. How they survived some serious shit together, just the two of them. How they were an unstoppable duo, a perfect pair on and off the field. That "wherever Simon went, Johnny followed."

The procession is rough on everyone. Price and his father take the front end of the casket, while Soap's brother and Gaz take the back. And as they walk down the aisle, the reality sets in for everyone there, and there's not a dry eye.

All except for Ghost. Who remains at the side, expressionless and slightly unfocused.

A candle is lit for him, and a line forms before his casket. Alejandro, Rudy, Price, Ghost, and Gaz.

Alejandro salutes first, and Rudy follows.

Price's arm raises firmly despite the quivering of his breath.

Ghost's arm raises slowly, like he's moving through water and his face ever so slightly twists with an almost confused pinch of his brow.

Gaz is the last to salute, eyes squeezing shut as tears fall down his cheeks.

But in that moment, something changes. Simon sees Johnny smiling at him. He hears himself ask "Are you with me?" only to hear the distant whisper of "Always, Lt."

But Johnny wasn't with him.

Johnny never got to know how much Simon loved him.

And Ghost broke. His hand dropped as his knees buckled, a painful cry worming its way out of his chest. Sobs rattled him as he put his head to the ground, the cold stone of the church floor seeping into him. He cried and sobbed and wailed, kneeling on the floor with his head to the ground. And he begged, he pleaded, he confessed

You're supposed to be with me

[duhragonball]

Dragon Ball Super Manga Ch.100

Yes, Cheelai, we have finally reached the end of the 2023 Dragon Ball Apocrypha Liveblog, but in particular, we've also finally reached the end of the seemingly endless manga adaptation of the Dragon Ball Super: Super Hero movie.

And yeah, this seems like an anticlimactic place to close out the year, but that's kind of how this entire liveblog has been, when you get down to it. I've had fun going through all this stuff, but there's a reason I'm referring to it all as "apocryphal". The Tournament of Power is a lot of fun, and the two DBS feature films are instant classics, but none of it really feels essential to Dragon Ball. From the OAVs to GT to Super, the main theme here is "Hey, remember Dragon Ball? Let's make more of that!" Everything ends up being a sequel or a callback or an easter-eggy kind of deal. And that's not the worst thing that can happen to a franchise, but it's probably fitting that we're closing out on the final chapter of a comic book adaptation of a movie that serves as a sequel to the Android arc that was a continuation of the Red Ribbon Army arc.

Chapter 100 just retells the last several minutes of the Super Hero movie, and I already went over the film, so let's just concentrate on how the manga depicts it differently. We'll start with Gohan's right arm, which got some heat a few days ago when the previews came out.

I refuse to dogpile on Toyotaro, since he's a far better artist than I'll ever be, and I've genuinely enjoyed his art through this entire read-through, even when the writing has been bad. That said... yeah, Gohan's arm looks kind of weird. Maybe while Gohan was teaching himself the Special Beam Cannon, he learned how to do Piccolo's stretchy arm thing too.

I do think it's pretty dumb how chuds on Twitter will nitpick Toyotaro's art as though the original Dragon Ball manga was some kind of showcase of photorealistic anatomy. I've been a fan of this thing for a quarter-century now, and the key to loving Dragon Ball is to make peace with the fact that it's fundamentally goofy and stupid. Sometimes a guy's arm gets drawn longer than his other arm. Sometimes characters scream so loud that their jaws unhinge like when a snake swallows an egg whole. Bulma wasted a wish on the Dragon Balls to make her ass look hotter, because if she didn't, then Frieza would come back and use the wish to make himself taller. Goku grew his tail back by having a guy tug on his ass with a pair of pliers. This show was always a hot mess, so don't blame Toyotaro. It was like this when he got here.

Anyway, Cell Max tries to block the Special Beam Cannon like he did in the movie, but Gohan has a harder time punching through, so in this version Goten and Trunks jump in to distract Cell and give Gohan a boost. In the movie, they were still Gotenks until after the fight ended, but in this version the battle must have taken a little longer, since they de-fused a little earlier.

Of course, this is just a way for Toyotaro to show off the Great Saiyaman X-1 and X-2 costumes one more time. It's kind of pointless, because all of the added Goten and Trunks scenes in this arc have been pointless. Also, Trunks' pose looks really awkward here. He looks like he got sawed in half, and both halves are still kind of flying forward in the same direction, but he's no longer connected.

I will say that I'm grateful for this final appearance of X-1 and X-2, because it gives me a chance to critique their outfits one last time. I hate the superhero undies they wear over their tights. They look baggy and puffy for some reason, which make it look like Goten and Trunks are wearing diapers. I'm pretty sure that's the exact opposite of what the boys were going for.

I mean, the outfits aren't that bad, but what irritates me is how Toyotaro keeps showing them off like this is the coolest thing going on in this story. The designs are presented like they somehow connect all these different things. Goten and Trunks were inspired by Cleangod, and they named their personas after Great Siayaman, and then Dr. Hedo saw them and supposedly based the Gammas' costumes off their look. Except X-1 and X-2 don't actually look anything like Great Saiyaman, or Cleangod, or the Gammas. It's just frustrating.

Anyway, we get the same bit about cosmetic skin alteration from the movie, except Gotenks has already separated in this version, so Bulma can address Goten and Trunks separately.

I also like this part after Pan shows off her flying ability. This segued into the credits of the movie, but here we see Gohan calling out for her to stay closer to the ground. It's pretty cute, since it kind of calls back to when Gohan was a timid child way back in the early days of DBZ. Now he's older and braver, but I bet when he sees Pan up so high in the air he thinks about how scared he was whenever he was up really high.

Meanwhile, some Red Ribbon goons have survived the battle and appear to be slowly getting away. This is nice because I noticed these guys escorting Carmine to safety in one of the previous chapters, and I've always wondered if any of the Red Ribbon guys made it out of the base alive. Pan knocked Carmine out, so it seemed reasonable to assume that he was vaporized during the Cell Max battle. Actually, in the movie, it looked like the entire crater was flattened, but here it looks like the destruction stayed confined to that area.

Anyway, the implication is that Carmine will return to Red Pharmaceutical and try to figure out his next move, but it seems unlikely that he could be much of a threat. Magenta's dead, the base is destroyed, and a bunch of their soldiers either died or deserted in this battle. Remember, even with the base and all those soldiers, Magenta still wasn't ready to make a big move. Dr. Hedo's androids were supposed to be his game-changing weapon, and now Hedo's turned against the Red Ribbon, so what can Carmine possibly do from here?

We get some additional material of the Goku/Vegeta fight in the movie. In the post-credits scene, they were practically moving in slow-motion and we only got to see the final blow. Here, we see Goku and Vegeta each land one last punch before the one that ends it all. These boys look all rowdy and badass and it's great.

When Whis finally responds to Bulma's messages, we get this cute shot of everyone sleeping in the back of her aircraft. Gohan talks about taking her to the amusement park, which seems kind of random, but it occurred to me that this might be setting up some filler story for Chapter 101. Like Gohan and Pan go to the amusement park for the day, and Carmine tries to kill them or something to avenge the Red Ribbon Army. That probably wouldn't be a bad idea, although I really don't want that to happen, because it sounds similar to the "Hedo vs. Goten and Trunks" stuff we had in Chapters 88-90. Everyone thinks Toyotaro has been champing at the bit to get done with this arc so he can return to his Black Frieza business, but for all we know he's been enjoying this whole bit, and he'll blow the next six months on filler stories with Goten and Trunks goofing around with Sgt. Nutz.

Anyway, this is the last page and this was the last little bit of the movie too, so Toyotaro has definitely run out of movie to adapt. Also, Bulma looks really cute on this page, so I wanted to add that to the record.

So that pretty much wraps things up, except for one minor detail. Where's the big twist?

I ran across this last month when I was checking to see if Chapter 99 would wrap up the arc or not. CBR.com did an article entitled "Dragon Ball Super Chapter 100's 'Unbelievable' Twist to Lead to "'Crazy Developments'" The story stems from comments made by V-Jump editor Victory Uchida, who was hyping DBS chapters 99 and 100 while appearing in an unboxing video for some reason.

The video is in Japanese, so I can't just pull out direct quotes from the man, so maybe this was all some big misunderstanding. Maybe it was a mistranslation, maybe Uchida got confused and was referring to material that wouldn't see print until Chapter 101. Or maybe he was just doing a standard hype job for his publication without thinking about what was actually in the magazine. After all, how can Chapter 100 have an "unbelievable twist" when it's doing a shot-for-shot repeat of a year-old movie?

So I assumed this meant there would be some sort of epilogue scene in the final pages, designed to set up the next arc. Sort of like how the last chapter of the Tournament of Power arc had the scene where the Galactic Patrol kidnaps Majin Buu. But Chapter 100 had no such thing. No Black Frieza, no Cell Max suddenly turning the tables on Gohan to win the movie, no mysterious appearance from Purple Turles or Red Bojack. Not even a lousy cameo from Platinum Cooler.

Does this make Victory Uchida an unreliable source of information? Or has he simply been misunderstood? I feel like his ridiculous yellow wig/hat thing kind of holds the answer to that question.

Anyway, the ultimate fate of Dragon Ball Super lies in Chapter 101 and beyond, but those stories will be printed in 2024, which means they fall outside the scope of this liveblog. So unless Toei or Shueisha has a new movie or anime coming out in the next eleven days, I'm done. This has been the 2023 Dragon Ball Apocrypha Liveblog. Good night, everybody!

[circuses-and-childhoodtrauma]

So, guess who finally sucked it up and watch the final two (three? The two parter was a whole thing) episodes of danger force and…yep. It’s currently 5am so I’ll probably have more thoughts to post on the whole plot and what it means for character progression and endings in my mind once I’ve actually processed and thought about it. This may include what you’d consider hot takes on characters but just know it’s from a place of love and I wouldn’t want them to change (unless, of course, I’m talking about things I wished went differently) because that’s the best part of the show. Long post ahead and Spoilers for that btw

I will say I procrastinated the hell out of it after hearing a spoiler that Drex has an anticlimactic death, a spoiler which turned out to only be half the truth. I can’t remember where I saw it, but I will say thank you to whoever unknowingly spoiled it because y’all should’ve seen the look on my face when that motherfucker came back from his unimpressive dusty death. Truly, pure joy. The finale itself was weirdly underwhelming and I guess on brand for the show but I thought maybe they’d put more heart into it; you can really tell the difference of investment put into danger force versus the finale of Henry danger which was, despite Henry and rays final words being a joke, far more touching than the awkward, we know it’s abrupt ending that we got for DF. It feels a little odd as a Henry danger fan since it’s first season to see it end in such a way that leaves me with. Nothing really emotionally.

I’ll start with my thoughts on Ray’s character. Keep in mind it’s been a good few months since I’ve seen any episodes besides these last few (“Ray Forgives” and “The Battle for Swellview”) so forgive me if I’m rusty on some things I’m due for a full rewatch and so point out any contradiction or disagreements you may have because his character is one of my favorites to discuss due to the extremely polarized view fans have on him. I will say this ending truly showcases the final decline of Ray’s character as the show accepts him for what he truly is (see one of his final lines in the last episode as the DF kids try to process his departure “classic me”). Ray, I never had high hopes for you and I truly enjoy watching such a despicable person be our main mentor of the show and without you I would definitely be down a few class essays. I wish we could’ve touched on Ray’s inner workings and childhood as well as how his relationship with Henry is involved in any of this? The first part of that sentence I’m fine without simply because part of Ray’s charm is being a pretty vain character that gathers most of his motivations through that vanity and pursuit of his own goals, but the latter half? I really feel like the show is pretty lackluster for that loose end of Henry’s involvement which I now doubt we will see in the movie. More on that later.

As for Ray, I think I’ve mentioned in the past that his behavior over the course of the later seasons on HD as well as the first two seasons of DF (which is all that was out at the time) could really only lead to three options for his character. Either 1. he has to become so bad that he is actively a villain in the show (I say villain not antagonist because Ray has already been the antagonist of a few episodes), 2. He fully turns over a new leaf and actively works back to the strong figure he was in Season One of HD (too little time for that, get him a therapist), or 3. He spirals into a character so objectively and morally grey that he just leaves. I honestly figured they’d go for something more of 2 (or at the very least give us some growth and then lead into the third; which, no. The MILES system plot line does not count and I’ll explain why), but it seems the show went right for the third option. His character in the ending was just so shallow and lacking empathy that I was actually shocked. And sure, the show tried to play it off by saying “oh well he saw the kids prove themselves in the big fight”, when Ray had very clearly already announced his retirement before this happened?

The whole ending with Credenza felt very “Love Muffin”-esque in the way that you only see one aspect of Ray’s character (which makes sense in Love Muffin because he only had one portion of his character thanks to the muffin) but it was certainly a…decision…for the final ending of not just danger force but the full run of the Henry danger force series as a whole being considering there was no pause between the finale of HD and the premiere of DF. There’s just so much more to his character that could’ve been used there, and it contradicts a lot of things he’s stood for even as late as the second season of DF. Even if you follow his decline of character, there are still other notable qualities that would be far better suited for a goodbye like that. Ray is known for his childishness and his immature attachment style, I don’t think I need to show proof or references if you’ve seen the show but I will if need be. Ray is also shown with outbursts of anger and things like that which would have been a bit of a dud considering he did that in the HD finale and we don’t want a redo because this is something different. I really think the show could’ve done something better than just…calm acceptance? I could even call it delusion but it just wasn’t enough for a final goodbye. Ray’s immaturity, his anxious need for his employees to love him, his relationship with Bose? I can’t really think of a worse way to end things aside from Ray leaving offscreen like they couldn’t pay Cooper his final check.

It seems Ray simply doesn’t want to be a mentor anymore. Like other things, he grew bored of it? He found something better? One can only guess. But it feels almost as though the show is painting a picture that Ray was just doing the whole mentoring sidekicks thing while he looked for a hot date. Which, if so, was his whole goal from the beginning? Because Ray spent all 8 seasons of show trying his luck with various women and he was quick to jump in their arms at any moment to leave his superhero life behind. But then again, he was quick to take any opportunity to leave his job. It’s not a good characterization of him to say that he was just “looking for love” the whole time and once he found it, he was done with the superhero schtick. It disregards his whole obsession with the city of Swellview loving him. It disregards his childish idealization of super heroism (buying capes, creating other super identities) , something that persisted even after he’d worked the job for decades. You could say he “grew up”? But then why the “classic me” line at the end and why have we seen no other growth in any areas? I have my own view and characterization of Ray that was not changed by the finale, so I am ignoring a large portion of it, something you’ll see as a trend with the other characters. But, this is just food for thought.

And obviously, since he’s truly the highlight of the show in my eyes and the light of my life who brightens my face and day every time he comes on screen, I was very happy to see Drex make his presence in the finale. Of course I knew about him being Buddy Fudgers real dad (see the timeline I made for it because the initial reveal in the trailers and clips had me absolutely reeling trying to keep my own interpretations of the show at least somewhat in line with whatever canon threw at me). The simple fact of him *being* buddy fudgers biological father is the only good and useful thing to come of it in my opinion. The actual details…Credenza being Drex’s ex-wife?? Drex apparently being an active part of Buddy’s life for an undisclosed amount of time before leaving and then apparently finding the time to come back into Buddy’s life and having SHARED CUSTODY for an also UNDISCLOSED amount of time?? The retcons in this specific plot line and Drex’s plot as a whole make my head hurt. I’m not even going to touch on the marriage thing until I’m good and ready, but, let’s just say I have ideas for that. As for everything else? Scrap it, honestly. The show itself pokes fun at the paradox of Drex’s character (always losing for…some reason…as he puts it) and I am happy to keep my own Drex and Ray and hell even Buddy Fudgers dolls away from the canon of it all and leave it there.

I liked that the show didn’t try to put on an elaborate backstory as to why Drex and Ray really hate each other (because, hey, whaddya know, we already got that in Drex’s DEBUT episode in 2016, but it’s not like the writers are aware of that…) and they just left it at “I don’t know why we’re mad” as well as leaving any backstories of their friendship in one little photograph. Don’t bother with the details, we know it’ll make our brains hurt anyway. Even though it’s a bit of a copout, I wouldn’t have wanted to see one of the only stable and serious relationships in the show be reduced to a joke like “oh Drex are my last poptart 15 odd years ago and we’ve been enemies ever since”. A good part of Drex and Ray’s rivalry that still held up even onto season 3 of DF was because so much of it was left in the dark, we can only speculate. They always have just enough motive and reasoning for you to be like “sure, that makes sense” (In Hour of Power when Ray explains that Drex’s violent tendencies led to them just “having it out” provides a father-son Batman type feud between them as Drex’s rage is obviously not dealt with in a proper way, as well as in the finale of Henry Danger on the blimp where Drex’s thought-to-be final words to Henry are “I was always the better sidekick” implying a clear jealousy at Ray’s favor towards Henry). It kept things neat and clean and dark enough for Drex to be a good bad guy. And he makes a pretty good show of being a good guy in his fifteen seconds of fame (which btw had me beaming and shaking my screen at his happy saunter ahh I just love him so much I can’t)

And, of course, I must discuss, my Roman Empire, my magnum opus, Ray and Drex’s relationship. Or rather their father and son. relationship. Let me preface by saying of course you may interpret Ray and Drex’s relationship however you want (father-son, brothers, I think some people ship them as lovers as well) and by extension Henry and Ray’s. However, if you’ve caught even one glimpse of this account you’d likely see that I consider them to be scorned father and son. Same goes for Henry, I know some people think of him and Ray like brothers and that’s fine, but in my mind they will always have a pseudo father son relationship. Now, I’ve talked about all three of them and their relationships with each other a lot on my account, so I won’t waste space reiterating it. I do want to talk about the show’s portrayal of Drex and Ray’s latest moments together. Now, right from the getgo Drex is very much coded as a scorned son (or ex lover if you listen to Hour of Power’s euphemisms which is so gross not for Drex but for the implications the show put on Henry). He calls Ray “old man” and “pops” and even says something similar to dad if you’re desperate like me “finally got the outfit to match your dad bod”(excuse my paraphrasing on that last one it’s 6am and I don’t want to go look for the exact quote). But by the latest episode Ray calls him brother? I preferred the ambiguity; it’s not the biggest issue in the world but it feels like another part of Drex that they were trying to retcon. I have much bigger plans for him though, always.

There seemed to be a lot of copout “for some reason”s in the last few plots of the season but honestly, I don’t want to compare the two finales because they’re separate things and also one continuation of each other, and also I don’t care for the discourse between which is better. I simply look at this finale for a three season show that took the time to invest us in its characters and I just feel disappointed. I didn’t have high hopes for the ending given what they were working with.

Some other thoughts that didn’t make it into my totally “neat” paragraphs:

Ray getting decapitated was the total best move for showing just how unhinged and detached Henry danger force is from the rest of Nickelodeon in terms of censoring and morals, and I absolutely loved it.

Buddy turning into Drex, only to turn back into himself but bigger a few minutes later was…a choice. Although I did find it funny that the show pointed out his return back to Buddy-likeness.

I’m not sure where any of this fits into the movie but considering it didn’t begin work until after season three was done, it might have some impact. I would love to see Henry’s reaction to all of this.

I’m not sure why they felt the need to hammer home Bose’s dad being gone? It felt like a bad punchline the third or fourth time around and I was very confused and annoyed when they mentioned it 3+ times per episode despite it not being a prominent thing in any prior seasons. Felt like maybe it was supposed to be lead up for a conclusion that didn’t happen, so it was. Odd.

I felt like Chapa really got her spotlight in those final episodes which is cool but we also didn’t really see anything come of it, especially when Mika was the unofficial leader of the group, it seemed like Chapa was stepping up to take that place with her initiative. I’ve always felt like Chapa would be the one hero to stay in Swellview after CM if they took the route of only one hero taking over. But then again, nothing came of it.

Mike’s visions also got pushed to the back which, they kind of always have been, although it was always an opening to introduce new powers for the others, nothing came of that either.

As for Mika, no notes really. Great job. Although it seemed like there was supposed to be a romance between her and Bose that just never came to fruition either for time or other changes, which left us with something very similar to the Henry and Charlotte run. Bose and Mika seemed to have more intentional moments so I had a little more hope for them considering they weren’t just a few circumstantial jokes and a rushed one-off episode like Charlotte and Henry. Would’ve like to see something happen there simply because of the clear intent for something to happen there, but, unfortunately it didn’t happen.

Credenza I haven’t got much to say about, except the whole cult thing being ingrained into her by her ancestors seems like a cool aspect to her character that might lend to some neat little details in other stories. Buddy was cool, I think his character was fine as well although I never understand why they love to do this trope where these superheroes with SUPER SECRET IDENTITIES apparently “can’t ever keep any secrets at all” but it’s a gag at the end of the day and Mika suffers from the same trope at times.

That’s all my thoughts for now, I know it’s a lot, and I’ll probably have more once I’ve had time to fully flesh things out in my mind. I would love to use this for a chance to write new stuff, but unfortunately my laptop melted, so that’s that. Feel free to discuss your thoughts on any of this! Thanks for reading if you got this far I know it’s jumbled

[pretentious-art-love]

Book Reviews #15 - The Sword in the Stone by T. H. White

I started the collection of The Once and The Future King by recommendation of a friend. This is the first book of the whole collection. Now, this a chosen one narrative. I often find chosen one narratives rather uninspiring. Fate, blood lines, all that, none of those things mean anything to me at all, but how does the story perform overall?

There will be spoilers, so beware.

This is a nice story, although it is not much of a story, but a short of fables with Wart's childhood as a wrap. This is my first true contact with any fiction about King Arthur, but naturally I have heard since my childhood the legend of the sword in the stone and the challenge of pulling it out, so I was in a way still familiar with the concept.

White paints Wart as a bit of an awkward, nerdy boy. Merlyn, his mentor, transforms him into several animals as part of his "education" and in there he sees all the kinds of societies that nature is part of. Societies that mirror human ones, the belligerent ants, the wise badgers, the owls, the fishes, and my favorite of them all, the wild geese. There is an abundance of humor and child like wonder in the story, nothing gets ever so serious, and Wart is depicted as mostly an spectator to all these kinds of worlds that the writer uses to show different sides of the human being.

The wild geese transformations were my favorite chapters. If I couldn't choose to be human, I think I’d love to be a goose. That feeling of freedom, of flying over the sea—I’m going to miss it dearly. I’ll miss Lyok and the 'cockneyfied' birds. To live in a world stretched horizontally, shaped only by relentless wind and endless waves beneath me—that’s a sensation you can’t replicate. The acrobatics, the silly birds on the islands, the freedom to fly farther than any human ever could… I think someday I’d like to read a whole book about what it feels like to be a bird, soaring away.

Merlyn is also an interesting character because (pardon me for viewing old stories through a modern lens) I feel he is an autistic person. The living backwards in time, knowing things that will happen but not things that happened as if in being in he's own wavelength. To me, it feels like a "medieval fantasy" take on autism. Of course, he isn't really coded to be that, so he not just knows things we don't know, but he also seems to grow younger, and even have been in centuries way past his life time, as he by accident gets a hat he worn in 1890 in one occasion. He is not a character that is supposed to make sense, but give occasional comedic relief and add world building. His motto about "learning" being the only thing that can cheer you up no matter anything is also fantastic.

About the chosen one thing, yes, it is still a chosen one narrative. Merlyn can only transform Wart into animals, not even Kay, and my friend said that "he was chosen because he would work" but this is not true, because in the very last chapter Merlyn reveals he is in fact the son of the previous King Pendragon. Now now, that doesn't mean the story is bad, because I think the writer is doing something interesting here. The scene where Arthur pulls out the sword is rather comedic and very anticlimactic, with Wart being the only one who is around to pull it out the first time. The narration skips most of the events after this with a quick narration to his coronation and leaves Wart intact at his core. I feel that the writer, while he did not reject the chosen one narrative, he made the protagonist indifferent to it, subverting any sort of fulfillment we could gain from it and in that way erasing my biggest complains in a story of this kind. Wart is never depicted as someone hungry for power, but someone who wants to fight evil. In this iteration of the story, Wart is a spectator in a world filled with silly rules and conventions designed to make us think about the own reality we live in, all this done in a heartfelt and whimsical manner.

How would I do it? I was thinking about the scene a lot. I thought, if I ever came into a situation that was as blatant as picking up a sword of a stone, I would be able to pick out my sword not because I was chosen, but because I choose to pick up the sword, because everything I did in my existence was to pick up the sword, so in reality, I would not be the person who would pick up the sword, but it would be sword that fits the most for my own purposes and goals the one I decide to take out. The moment that Sir Ector and Kay realize that Arthur in fact will be a king they kneel down and treat him like royalty is quite an ecstatic moment to me [THEY WEREN'T MEAN AT ALL LIKE IN THE MOVIE THEY WERE NICE WITH HIM ALWAYS IF YOU SAW THE ANIMATED MOVIE JUST SO YOU KNOW THAT MOVIE IS A LIE A LIE A LIE A LIE], in that moment the story turns into a secret identity story and the big reveal and change in reaction always brings me butterflies, you know, its like when people treat you as a girl the first time and call you by your new name and are a bit more delicate with you, it is such a wonderful feeling to experience that moment when you start being treated like your true self.

There are some colorful characters I really like, like King Pelinoire (who is only King on name, and who inspires me to be a Queen as well), Archimedes, who is a shy but also wise owl (when I looked clips of the animated movie to see his expressions, they completely ruined him making him in someone as irascible as Rabbit of Winnie the Pooh but less anxious), as well as Lyok and the charming hedgehog who would not uncurl.

As it stands, I would have rated it a 6/10, a solid tale with funny fables carrying a naive but also affectionate view of the world and that add a lot o color to an already old established tale, but those Geese chapters elevate the whole thing to me to greater heights.

7/10

[pinkeoni]

What specifically about I Saw the TV Glow made you think it was a bad movie?

I love it when I post obvious anon bait and then I get anons. Also thank you to other anons who asked a similar question.

I'll start with something positive. The movie is mostly a metaphor for being transgender, and since it comes from a trans filmmaker, you can really feel the depth of emotion that the director has put into the film. I think if you can latch onto this emotion that the movie is putting forward, and be transported into it, then you can really get something out of it.

As for me, its the execution of everything around the metaphor that prevents me from getting into it.

When you strip away the metaphor and look at the actual story being told, it's poorly paced, anticlimactic and unsatisfactory.

The dialogue is terrible, and the performances just don't do enough to pull it off. I thought the lead actress was fine, but Justice Smith was really not doing it for me in this roll, I find his voice really grating and his line delivery to be awkward, which isn't good if he's also narrating parts of the movie. The metaphor is very on the nose, which isn't inherently a bad thing, but the reason why the metaphor is so on the nose is due to the dialogue. The characters say lines that tell the audience exactly what the metaphor is, rather than speaking naturally. They just do not talk like real people.

A big part of the film is that the two leads are obsessed with this tv show, and the show looks like shit???? The idea of a show where two girls fight monsters through a shared psychic link sounds fun, and there are some fun creature designs within the fake show, but the clips of the show that they present in the movie are all really poorly made. Schoenbrun kinda gets away with it because you get the sense that this was done on purpose to make the show look like a cheap network show, but this doesn't really make sense since the 90s shows that she is clearly taking inspiration from (like Twin Peaks and Buffy) do not look like they were poorly made. If this is a show that the two main characters are supposed to be completely enamored by, wouldn't you want it to look good.

One of the tv show characters is played by Snail Mail, I'm guessing because Jane Schoenbrun likes her music. Good god can she not act, and Jane is having her do much more than maybe what she was expecting when asked to be in this project. We also get a marvel cameo shot of Phoebe Bridgers at one point in the film.

The entire film is terribly drab and depressing, which I guess is kind of the point if the director's goal is to capture the feeling of being trapped in the closet. The film leaves off on a rather bleak note, and as I think about it more, I realize that it probably would have been better for both the story and the metaphor if the film did have a happy ending.

I don't know this for sure, but I get the feeling that Jane Schoenbrun's aversion to a happy ending has less to do with the goals of the film, and more to do with not wanting to go the typical Hollywood route of having a happy ending and wanted to subvert expectations. But had the film actually gone this route, it not only would have given the movie a climax where we see Owen/Isabel finally claw their way out of their grave, giving their life and story a light at the end of the tunnel after the entirety felt so bleak, but also would have left the audience with a much more hopeful message. The film has glimpses of hope, as we know Maddy/Tara was able to escape, but for a film with a trans metaphor, I do find it odd that she decided to give the film such a hopeless feeling ending.

[psyberhell]

So, Surf and Turf Wars pt. 2 just dropped, and I’d like to do a mini-review again, just like I did for the first part.

I try to be as unbiased as possible when it comes to reviewing these, as I don’t want to have an “old good, new bad” mindset. I like legacy, and it’s quite different from the classic era. So I try to give everything a fair chance.

and now for the actual review:

_

5.5/10

Yeah, once again, like my first review…it’s just alright. The whole “lobster monster Matt” wasn’t really to my taste comedy-wise. The whole “big monster does big monster stuff” isn’t really funny to me.

And I feel like this eddisode suffered from separating the guys. I feel like the way Tom and Edd are written in beyond isn’t entertaining enough to carry long scenes where it’s just them. (Which *might* be kind of controversial? Maybe. Because I know a lot of people liked their scenes together in part 1.) But, even so, the two of them are sidelined HARD in this and I’m not even sure why.

Also…I’m not a fan of how many jokes are relegated to random one-off characters. Like, I’m here for the guys. Not randoms. And yes, I know that both past eras of eddsworld had jokes with one-off characters. But they were using pretty sparingly, and never felt like it took away from the comedy.

Not to mention that both of the ongoing plots: the Matt plot, and the Tom and Edd plot…were both a bit stale. Both plots didn’t really end in any satisfying way. It’s was pretty anticlimactic. If it were up to me, I would’ve just had Matt be with Edd and Tom on the beach doing the competitions. The eddsworld guys work great when they’re all together. Plus…lobster Matt doesn’t even interact with Edd and Tom?? What’s the point then?

And all the jokes were very…meh. I’m just gonna accept at this point that Matt’s writing style isn’t my cup of tea.

OKAY. I know I just tore into this eddisode pretty harshly, but there are some nice positives and improvements that I noticed.

-Better pacing. The first part, imo, had really strange and awkward pacing. Like it was so sluggish at points, but also moved too fast sometimes. But that’s been remedied somewhat in the second part, and I like that.

-Less awkward: By “less awkward”, I mean there’s more music. Something thats bugged me about the beyond eps is that they felt awkward and quiet due to lack of music. But there’s more music now, yay.

-Montage. I liked the montage scene. Very eddsworld.

-Sonic popsicle on the ice cream truck. Because I’m massive sonic trash.

-

SO…yeah. That’s the review. Sorry if this is formatted shittily, I did it on my phone in a hurry, lol. And if you happen to have different opinions on this eddisode, totally cool.

Kinda sucks that pretty much all of beyond hasn’t been what I’d hoped. Everyone else is enjoying it though, and I can’t help but feel like squidward looking out the window in that one meme. 😭 I wanna like it so bad, but I just can’t. Beaster bunny, and the surf and turf pt. 1 and 2 have both just been misses for me.

…Also, Matt doesn’t like icecream. What’s up with that?

[sclfmastery]

thoughts, s15 finale

GOOD: --RTD's trademark emphasis on the crucial nature of ordinary people, because we imbue each other with significance and nothing is more alive and human. --Ncuti's best acting in maybe his whole career was in this episode. --The best writing as far as the Doctor being Doctory, while still uniquely 15, was also in this episode. The moment with the amnesiac mother was the best moment in the entire season for this. Acting, again, enhanced this significantly. --Normally I think nostalgia for nostalgia's sakem put in the hands of consumer capitalists, is the death of creativity, but Mel was a good choice; someone recognized Ruby and the Doctor didn't have quite enough on-screen lore of their own. --The Doctor facing that he had "caused" the entire universe to be killed and grappling with the guilt of making his traveling "fun" when there was a greater responsibility to wielding TARDIS technology across time and space. --Mrs. Flood. And no, I don't think she's a Master. Way too obvious, particularly the ending. But I also doubt she's an ally. She'll be a fun antagonist or at least complication. --Kate Stewart and her whole team.

BAD: --Massive buildup and anticlimactic, too-easy resolution (bring death to death is a very cool idea, but maybe achieve it a touch more simply), some empty spaces where character development could have been stronger and the jumping-right-into-danger could have been less frequent.... all of which I think can be attributed to squeezing an ambitious subplot into only 8 episodes, 2 of which were Doctor-lite. Certainly Ncuti Gatwa isn't to blame for being busy and successful during filming time. --The whole "You win, Sutekh" scene. The Doctor has killed millions intentionally already. Usually attention is drawn to the hypocrisy of "I bring life" (btw, Rose shout-out???) , eg Boom Town, End of Time Part 2, etc. And the Doctor is best when showing humility about that, while trying to be a champion of life by striving to be a better person than he was yesterday. This didn' t translate that nuance (or many others) terribly well. --People are going to say this is my bias but the conspicuous omission of the Master even from scenes where their existence almost HAD to be mentioned....feels awkward and strange.

--On that note, the Doctor insisting on not visiting his granddaughter. "Maybe someday" bitch why not NOW? At least give a reason for what's stopping you. I have many theories (still grappling with misplaced guilt for instance) but that in an episode about how Ruby's birthparents should have contacted her sooner felt clunky and forced.

[hikorzik]

So, after like 70 hours I finished my 1st playthrough oh BG3 and I gotta say :

- Love the game and the characters they're all so very cool that rocked

- Fuck act 3 and fuck the ending, it felt wrong to me for reasons that are below the line

Still a good experience but all in all I think it mainly gave me an itch to play Planescape Torment again...

So in all the game I decided against using any tadpoles or probing people's mind because I decided my monk wasn't into this Illithid shit and seeing as I romanced Lae'zel I respected her knowledge about them and her advice, bring "don't do that shit". However, as I wanted to free Orpheus because I feel like it was unfair to keep him here... I was forced by the game to negate all that I had built up to! Since you need to force someone to become illithid or become one yourself. I'm not forcing Orpheus because what would be the point of freeing him then. I'm not forcing anybody from my crew to become an illithid since none of them wanted to use the tadpole before. So... I could only sacrifice myself. I found this vastly unsatisfiying as imo I was led to believe there would be consequences to using (or not) the tadpole stuff and 1/ there were none and 2/ I was forced to negate all that I did and become a flayer anyway. I don't understand what this achieves, narratively. Nobody really minds beyond some jokes or awkwardness. I have now lost my soul. In the last fight I still just whacked on the damn brain and almost never used my newfound powers because... I had never used them before. Didn't know what they did. Didn't feel like trying on the *last fight*.

Gameplay wise act 3 tired me out a lot too. It was way too long, I was overleveled all the way and at the end I was at max level with my best stuff just going through the motions. I could have just not done those side quests but I really can't see myself not doing all the character quests I don't want a bad end for any of them. And I hated a lot of the late game encounters, which I guess are there because of how dd5e works. Getting zerg rushed by dozens of enemies that take long to take their turns was really u fun, especially in the factory and in shar's temple. The courtyard fight too was unfun to me and felt like a slog. And like I said before giving me newfound powers I never used before juste before the last fight was meh. Just used a potion of resistance, dimension door'd to the brain and used the stones and voilà lol. A bit anticlimactic for a last fight.

Otherwise I feel like progression in the first 2 acts was very cool. Especially act 2 with the cursed lands : lots to do, but in an area where you are still discovering a lot as you go. The city of baldur's gate had too much in too little space at a point when I really just wanted to get to something else.

Anyway I'm still glad I played this game!! Just gonna wait till way later for another playthrough.

[yingren]

sometimes dan heng wished he could take back the vow to relieve his karmic debt, especially when ren seemed so adamant on adding to it. ‘ owed kisses ’ he’d called them. what a childish rhetoric. still, it wasn’t as if placating ren had heralded anything but good results so far. he wasn’t sure whether that should put him on edge or not. true to word, he’d behaved during their last mission together, managed to have dan heng’s back without destroying himself in the process, so when he came to collect his misguided reward, dan heng couldn’t exactly say no. he'd made a promise, hadn’t he ?

seated upon the couch, his movement was a little awkward, the hand on ren’s neck, and the tentative press of his lips to the corner of his mouth, more so. the anticipation of it, and then the anticlimactic … sloppiness of the gesture confused dan heng, prompting him to open his eyes and regard the hunter with a raised brow, as if they weren’t a hairsbreadth apart. maybe it was a sense of relief that overcame him, a charm over inexperience or … a lack of practice. maybe it was some sadistic glee on the vidyadhara’s part, that took joy in ren’s shortcomings. that serpentine mouth curled into an amused smirk, seafoam eyes glinting, as breathy voice fanned cloudhymn over ren’s lips.

“ wow, you’re really bad at this. ”

earn it. dan heng never lets ren off easy, especially not in their relentless back-and-forth where every move ren makes is met with an infuriatingly flawless counter from the vidyadhara himself. naturally, ren still expects him to honor his word and keep his promises, yet he should have seen this coming. the almost casual remark slipping out with zero hesitation, the raised brow, and that maddeningly self-satisfied smirk. aeons forbid he looks this damn good even when his tone is dripping with mockery, practically daring ren to bite back.

maybe that’s exactly what he’ll do.

“ sorry i couldn’t live up to your horny little daydreams. must be awful for you. ” ren’s hand presses firmly against the small of dan heng’s back, drawing them closer, far closer than necessary, even though he can already feel the heat of dan heng’s breath against his own skin. the approach isn’t particularly graceful; his lips land on dan heng’s neck, clumsy and unpolished, but driven by a raw, undeniable need for something more. his mouth trails along the exposed skin, lingering just enough to leave an irritated red mark, a visible reply to the earlier taunt. teeth graze over the bruised spot as he pulls back, face flushed from the heady warmth between them.

for a fleeting moment, the hunter’s identity completely dissolves, leaving only a man stripped of duty, unburdened by the life and choices stretching out before him. the taste of dan heng lingers on his tongue—warm and soothing, yet edged with a minty coolness steeped in sugared honey. ren’s tongue wets his own lips, savoring the flavor with a sadistic grin that bares his teeth in silent triumph. it pisses him off how insatiable he is when it comes to dan heng, laid out like a rare delicacy on a silver platter, tempting him with these games where ren is destined to fall short. and the worst fucking part is that ren would heed every unspoken command, comply with every unvoiced request, just to drink deeper from this intoxicating reward. even if, somtimes, he apparently just takes whatever he wants regardless.

reality settles back in as ren meets dan heng’s gaze once more, feeling the weight of the present press down on him. his free hand lifts, thumb gliding over a bead of saliva lingering on dan heng’s neck, smearing it away as he admires the red mark blossoming over fair skin. it looks better this way, he decides—painted with the evidence of his own desires.

“ pretty, ” he bites back another grin. “ something to remind you of me every time you look in the mirror. ”

[sukodus]

An smau or crack fic about a bizarre BlaBlaCar/Waze pool/Uber Pool/Lyft Line, where all the passengers although primarily strangers or unrelated, hide loads of conjoined lore among them (including them all or about two people at least). The bigger the car, the better and the crazier. Nobody makes it to their destination sane. They exit the car more confused, more in disbelief, and with zero closure. Someone hands over a five-star review, but it’s unclear whether it’s a threat or just sheer relief at being alive.

CAST IDEAS:

The "Not so Stranger" Duo: These two are playing the long game of “I don’t know you”—until they reach a boiling point and the past starts bubbling up. They’ve been silently throwing daggers, annoyed by every little thing about each other, until finally, the gloves come off. They've got history, a shared past, or maybe some deep secret. Also, they are most likely going to reveal their connection at the worst given moment.

The frantic one: They're desperate to get to their destination. Although bubbly at first, each toll booth, every red light will torturously reveal an almost borderline manic person, who is anxious about their arrival. And just as you think, "Could they be any more over the top?" they hit you with the twist: their ridiculous but totally valid reason.

The Lovably Clueless Duo: Ah, budding romance. Only, these two are painfully dumb about it. They're vibing with each other in the most awkward, bumbling way possible, missing every cue imaginable. Flirting? Barely. The rest of the car knows they’re into each other, but watching them not realize it is both infuriating and hilarious.

The Quiet One: They're barely present in conversations, and when they do say something, it's cryptic and barely sensical. But—and this is key—everything they say eventually means something. It's not clear when or how, but their strange, soft-spoken comments will come back to haunt the group later. BONUS: They're so shy that they articulate very badly, or take lots of time thinking how to write something.

The inquisitive Driver: They're constantly trying to spark conversation, but in the most uncomfortable way possible. Harmless, sure... but as the story unfolds, it feels like their probing is a little too on the nose for some of the passengers' liking. Truth is, he is just trying his best to overcome his social anxiety and bad at reading the room tendencies by choosing to drive for other people, and is just trying his best to provide a good ride for his travelers. Prior to the ride, they’ve probably watched one too many true crime documentaries and are now convinced that this ride is how they’ll meet their doom. Might also have a strange collection of items in their bag, like emergency snacks, pepper spray, and perhaps an actual GPS they keep checking to make sure they aren’t being taken to some remote location.

EXTRA IDEAS FOR GROUP DYNAMICS:

The Ex-Criminal Turned Life Coach: This person swears they’ve changed. They’ve done time, turned over a new leaf, and now they’re all about self-improvement, growth, and motivational speeches. But there's this constant sense that their past is right behind them, lurking. They drop vague hints about their time in prison, only to follow it up with advice like “I learned in solitary confinement that you have to love yourself first before you can love others.” BONUS POINTS IF THE CRIME HE COMMITTED WASN'T EVEN THAT BIG OF A DEAL. But nobody truly bothers to ask until an anticlimactic point in the story.

Throughout the ride, almost every character at some point is under suspicion. The suspect could be anyone—and as they text, side-eye, and gossip through their phones, the group chat becomes a breeding ground for wild accusations. The characters start sending private messages to each other, forming alliances or throwing others under the bus in the most passive-aggressive ways possible.

The unexpected connections that keep surfacing along the ride. Somewhere in the chaos, a shocking revelation emerges: two people in the car actually went on a terrible blind date years ago, or maybe one of them is the ex of the driver's cousin, or they all once attended the same wedding but didn’t realize it.

Someone is off, and they must try to prove their points about their weirdness and assumptions, while said person does not find out. Hence, the passengers must find a way to find past their phone numbers with each other, with a driver that is almost militant about not letting people use their phones. As soon as someone pulls one out, they awkwardly clear their throat or, worse.

This story was ideated by me alone, but as I'm quite bad at the piecing everything together part, I've decided to give it away to someone that might be better at treating this idea with the care it deserves. Of course, if used, it would no longer be mine, but still, I'd love to keep track of the story if it ever gets moulded into something good! So, if you want to use this idea, do not only tell, but also tag me to give credit, but also so that I can see how it grows!

I don't think it's necessary to say, but what I've listed are nothing but suggestions that should be treated as such. There are no imperatives when it comes to world building and cast making. Feel free to make this story your own! And if you've come this far reading, thanks a lot for giving this silly plotting a chance!

+ Credits to @roseschoices for the divider!

[winderlylandchime]

And we are on 3x09 1/2: ‘ITS JUSTIN AND BRIAN!! LOOK AT THEM BACK IN THEIR ELEMENT DANCING IN THE CLUB! I missed them being slutty on the dance floor. Every episode should start this way’ Ben says the most historic reunification since Germany ‘FUCK YEAH BENJAMIN! NEVER HAVE YOU BEEN MORE RIGHT THAN IN THIS MOMENT…maybe there’s still some faith for you’ ‘finally Justin is back to how he was! I missed him in the club being free and slutty. He acted all high and mighty before. BUT NOT ANYMORE’ and then immediately stockwell pops up ‘for fucks sake, theres no escaping this trump wannabe, is there? BRIAN, why would you do this to me?! This is the type of commercial that would pop up to convince you to stop smoking and fail miserably. (Stockwell invites Brian to hottub) *starts singing* two dudes, sitting in a hot tub 5 feet apart cause they’re not gay. Except one of them definitely is and the other one has a secret crush on Brian’ ‘wait, why cant Mel work while pregnant? Isn’t maternity leave at the end? That’s fucked up. Girl fuck ‘em and go to work’ Brian is now in a hot tub with Stockwell and he said something about getting used to it but once youre inside it feels good ‘That “yeah” from Brian was him trying very hard to not make a gay joke, no one can convince me otherw- HE LIKES HIM? Brian, you’re better than this. OOO SOMETHING HE NEVER TOLD ANYONE? IM CALLING IT! HES GAY..oh he’s just afraid, well that was anticlimactic. Now what would Brian’s doubts be? Love? Life? That peanut car? His future with Justin?’ And we are at Justin showing Mikey the rage cover ‘OH ITS A BLOWJOB COVER?! Yeah! Speak on it Blondie! it hurts my soul to agree that Mike was right (justin says brian will never say he loves him) HE WILL! I am working on it! I know i said that the last season will end that way but unfortunately you fucked up my plans so i will make it up to you this season! Ha, blowjob on a comic cover. i fuck with it, hey, did i ever tell you about the time I accidentally told a store employee that i am looking for that machine for blowjobs instead of blow dries because i forgot what it was called? It got a little awkward’ ‘why does Mike keep staring at Justin and Brian? Dude, you have your own boyfriend. Imagine being called out for being a prude by Ben of all fucking people. I MISSED THEM BEING MESSY TOGETHER-wait why is the cop here? Why are they shutting this do-? FUCKING TRUMP WANNABE, look what you did Bri Bri (The cop spots Brian at woodys) oh he’s also got a crush on Bri Bri. I see we all have a crush on Brian.’ Debbie is now calling out Brian at the diner ‘oh Bri Bri, it hurts me to unfortunately have to agree with Ben and Debbie. Look what you’ve done, you have me agreeing with Mike AND Ben in the same episode! Brian HE IS NOT STIRRING SHIT UP! shit he wants out of this town..SHIT HE WANTS TO GO TO NEW YOR- YES PLEASE TAKE JUSTIN WITH YOU! Finally michael speaks some facts! Here i go again agreeing with him’ And now the Carl/protest scene is on ‘EXACTLY CARL! NO NEED TO CALL PEOPLE NAMES! Oh she’s mad at carl, damn i kinda feel bad, i think this trump dude is above his pay grade..Lindsay you aren’t being really reasonable to Mel right now. Actually neither of you are reasonable. Youre both annoying me and they wanna bring another kid into it?’ And here comes the scene where Brian gets fired ‘Brian for fucks sake stop working with this pig! SHIT HES GETTING FIRED?! HELL YEAH! Oh fuck, its because hes gay?! FUCK YOU but also Bri Bri you should’ve seen this coming, you’re smart, why are you acting dumb now? Oh so that guy wasn’t checking out Brian at the bar. Well that’s disappointing. Now THAT is a good rule Brian. I like it. Now go home and do some business transaction with a certain blondie to celebrate you not working with this fucker anymore’

Every episode should start with them dancing and being slutty!

Your brother is working on Brian saying I love you to Justin! He’s so invested. I’m so sorry he’s not going to get his wish for a long time .

I’m loving how much he hates Stockwell and how torn he is about Brian working for him.

They’re both annoying and they want to bring another kid into this? My thoughts exactly.

[mukelaniot]

Standing on the edge of being an OT. 

Just the other day we were ‘awkward pimple-faced teens’, fresh out of high school, struggling to access our emails and modules on Learn. When did we get here? Where did the time go? 

 I still remember those days like it was just yesterday. What an emotional roller-coaster this journey has been. From the first email stating that I was accepted to do OT, to having virtual orientation week and doing Anatomy TUTs and spotters online.  We definitely got here at a very awkward and complicated time. The COVID-19 pandemic definitely robbed us of a real authentic university. 

Redirect Notice. (2023) 

Redirect Notice. (2020)

For over a year and a half, we had online lectures, most of which we attended from the comfort of our own beds. Sounds fun right? Wrong!!! The transition from attending 9 hours of school, with the occasional evening classes, to not even having to leave bed to attend lectures was a terrible way to start our college experience. I know I speak for many of us when I say, that ruined us. We didn’t see it at the time but now that we are transitioning back to full contact classes, with the return of actual exams instead of continuous assessments, we feel it. We didn’t even get our chance to make friends at the beginning and now we’re just strangers just trying to get to 4th year and move on with life because we feel it’s too late to make friends at this point. 

This journey has definitely not been an easy one. But now we are here looking out to the horizon, standing on the edge of becoming an OT🤔? And I gotta say, this definitely feels anticlimactic. I mean, I should be excited, right😏? My classmates definitely are. Most of them are already discussing graduation attire, and some are already thinking about cars and checking out contract phones, meanwhile, I can't even think about where I want to do my comserve.….... I don't know why but I am not looking forward to any of this, and it is very disconcerting😥. 

I've been pondering this question for the better part of my life. Why? I mean, I’ve worked my butt off my entire life to get to this point. The countless sleepless nights, the blood, sweat, and tears. The hardships I've endured and the obstacles I have had to overcome. Not to mention the countless calls I made to my mother crying when things were not going my way. My family and I invested a lot of time, money, and effort to get me to this point. All this has made me understand why people cry at graduation ceremonies yet somehow, despite all this, I still don’t feel even a tiny bit excited. WHY? 

I have never been able to celebrate my achievements. Getting to this point after such a long journey is worth celebrating but I can't get excited about it. But maybe someday this will change, and I will finally give myself the grace I deserve and celebrate as I should. Until then, it's been one hell of a ride, and its not even over yet. To whatever that is yet to be thrown at us, I say bring it!

REFERENCES 

Redirect Notice. (2023). Google.com. https://www.google.com/url?sa=i&url=https%3A%2F%2Fvc.ukzn.ac.za%2F&psig=AOvVaw1IUsb2z2z0nD__o1Ab_WCe&ust=1692437374102000&source=images&cd=vfe&opi=89978449&ved=0CA4QjRxqFwoTCIDPxtXy5YADFQAAAAAdAAAAABAq 

Redirect Notice. (2020). Google.com. https://www.google.com/url?sa=i&url=https%3A%2F%2Fxaviernewswire.com%2F2020%2F08%2F24%2Fthe-good-and-the-bad-of-zoom-classes%2F&psig=AOvVaw3LYw68_aKupKXZs3Gx5BH_&ust=1692439794916000&source=images&cd=vfe&opi=89978449&ved=0CA4QjRxqFwoTCIDXitv75YADFQAAAAAdAAAAABAD 

[sanjisblackasswife]

So.... Hello! I'm not Very good at english since it's not my language but here we Go. I wanna to say i really love your art (from fanarts to your write style) and i Hope you have a good day today. Anyway i don't know If your ask are ope but How the Monsters trio Will react with they being your First in everthing! (Like First Kiss, First love, First s*x, etc) you can do nsfw-ish If you wanted

aww thank u!:) I am not going to go into grave detail because I am already doing a “First time” series with them but i like this request💓imma do it moreso where you’re THEIRS if thats alright

Being the Monster Trio’s First (NSFW-ish)

Black Fem Reader in Mind

CW: Mentions of sex

I am half sleep and typing this all in one go so mb for my spelling errors im just making up for lost time not posting consistently because school and coms☹️

Being Luffy’s First:

Crush: Being his crush is no different from being his best friend, he isn’t a very romantic guy if he likes you he will just tell you, “Y/N I think about you a lot, and I also think you may have a Lust DF power because when I think of you i get hard.” Bless him he is very blunt. BUT he does mean what he says so..be nice?

Kiss: Probably the most anticlimactic thing ever. Luffy already licks your face, hugs, and touches you a lot so when he starts running at you after a fight to see if you’re okay BAM. His lips smack into yours like a bowling ball and honestly. It’s cute. Completely uncoordinated, damn near sucked your bottom lip off, but…there was just something so addictive and attractive to his kiss that made you want more

Love: Very odd in his case. He just thought he liked you a lot. The signs were evident though, when you tell him he doesn’t deny it persay he moreso brushes it off because being in love is so new to him. However being his first love is something you can’t forget. He reminds you everyday why you’re important. Why he loves you. And why he fell in love with you.

Sexual Encounter: It was fun! You both were inexperienced. He didn’t know what hole to enter, you were shocked by how long he can stretch his dick. You both even spent the night laughing more than actually having sex, but once it came down to business it was a learning experience for you both. He was so attentive to make sure you were okay you felt yourself crying a little afterwards at how gentle he was with you.

Being Zoro’s First:

crush: He’s actually more of an asshole to you Not even on purpose he just doesn’t want to admit his feelings towards you. You’re beautiful, sweet, and charming and dammit he hates that he has feelings and how you always mess them up when you’re around him! He feels so powerless so please be gentle with him…or put him on blast. It maybe attractive to the mf.

Kiss: Awkward, awkward, awkward. He isn’t the rizzmaster okay. Yes he is pretty and he knows it but he is crap to flirting. absolutely crap. He was so hot in the face when you did the first move and kissed him he was a stuttering mess and pulled you back in for another kiss to prevent you from laughing at him. His kisses wasn’t BAD but …just practice with him. Yeah it was awkward but seeing your face so close and personal, smelling your scent. He couldn’t get enough.

Love: DENIAL IS A RIVER IN EGYPT Absolutely ridiculous how in denial he was. Everytime someone even said the word love he’d get so mad because that word applied to you in so many ways. He fell for you and he couldn’t do anything about it. You were the one opponent he could not beat and honestly, he didn’t want to. He fell for you and he fell so hard that it actually makes him nervous to be around you. He doesn’t know whether he loves you or hates you now for being so irresistible to him. Eventually he comes to terms with it and once it does and you feel the same way. Good luck getting rid of him.

Sexual Encounter: You taught him everything. He didn’t know his way from the clit to your ass. It took a lot of trial and error, sex wasn’t really NEW to him. He has seen porn but it’s completely different from films and pictures so sometimes he would back down when making out got too far, eventually he needed that release one late night while cuddling you and even though he could have went to the bathroom you stopped him and …helped him out. Let’s just say Zoro is so grateful he didn’t pussy out this go round!

Being Sanji’s First:

Crush: Sanji is an interesting guy because any woman that knows Sanji knows he is a mixture of a flirt and just having amazing manners for women. You however was just above the usual women he served to. Being his crush was an experience because you seen a side to Sanji most women don’t get to see. You seen him stand up straighter, sly comments that made your heart melt, and even kept his cool…too cool in fact. He really was Mr. Prince for you.

Kiss: The first kiss he planned it out. He knew his feelings about you and that you felt the same so he needed to plan it just right not just for him, but for you as well. The kiss was so soft and delicate you almost didn’t feel it. And that was because he shy’ed away for a moment, scared his sudden bold move would have you smack him, Luckily, he didn’t have to worry feeling your hands cup his cheek to kiss him back. He still touches his lips when he thinks about that time you kissed him.

Love: I mean man…you really are a blessed woman because out of all of the others he has seen and been with he chose you and only you. it’s insane really. He tries in his entire will to not mess this opportunity to find true love up. You being his first love he watches his mouth and actions around you more, He tries his hardest not to ruin the view you have of him and it shows. If you can just reassure him you love him for him and not who he thinks he needs to be. Sanji needs the confirmation that you love him almost as much as he loves you.

Sexual Encounter: LORD—- okay. okay. Just like Zoro trial and error HOWEVER. Much longer and worse. He really is still a pervert no matter how much in love he is with you so you have to take it very slow. Once you both are okay to be naked in front of each other he is back to being a shy boy so you constantly kiss and praise him, telling him how good he is for you, how well he is doing for his first time. You were so kind and patient with him, it never fails to leave a chill down his spine (in a good way) when he remembers that night of love making with you, and now that he has more experience he does nothing but reciprocate the same feelings back to you in bed.

[facelessfrey]

Roswell New Mexico - Season 4, Episode 11

Okay...aside from OH MY GOD ALEX IS BACK AND HAD ACTUAL SCREEN TIME WITH MICHAEL AND IT WASN’T JUST THE LAST TWO MINUTES OF THE EPISODE HOORAY!

Three things first:

1. Did we really have to bring Alex back just to have him say “oh yeah by the way I’m totally dying from radiation poisoning”? Hahaha. What the fuck?! I mean, I’m gonna go ahead and assume that Vlamis and Tyler wouldn’t be happy with the Malex ending if Alex literally dies. So I’m going to assume that means he gets healed somehow. Perhaps everyone will finally get that handprint moment they’ve been begging for. But I’m just going to have to go with “he’s definitely not dying” or I’m going to lose my mind. 

2. If they fucking have Dallas marry them in that permanently twilight world with only Bonnie for a witness, I might also lose my mind. I’m sorry, I’m gonna need A) light and B) everyone else in attendance. 

3. Was there an actual explanation of what the Alighting is in Clyde’s ramblings? Because I don’t think there actually was beyond “I’m gonna go home” and like...is that it? Just going back to Oasis? Cause that’s boring. Anticlimactic. I mean, I expect nothing less from this show but still? Why have a fancy word for it if it’s just “point my star map home and walk through a portal”? That doesn’t sound like “THE ALIGHTING” to me. I mean honestly, I need someone to explain the show’s whole alien mythology to me because my god does it not make sense to me AT ALL. This show makes me feel so dumb sometimes and I’m pretty sure it’s just bad storytelling but also....maybe I’m missing something?? So I was rewatching bits of season one because I was having Malex feelings and I ended up watching Noah’s whole scene about “coming from a war torn planet blah blah blah the Alighting and when they come to take us home, I was going to trade you for leverage” and he talked about a stowaway??? So like...why did all these aliens come? They were trying to escape Oasis because of Jones the Dictator? But then Jones stowed away? But like...there were a bunch of his Ophiuchus disciples on that ship too? Noah, Bonnie, Clyde, Tesca etc? So wouldn’t that be more than one stowaway?? And then what were Nora, Louise and Theo actually trying to do? Were they trying to go home? Or were they just trying to save their kids and take Max from Jones so he couldn’t transfer into him? And Theo was undercover helping Jones but also creating pocket dimensions as decoys???? Like...what the fuck is any of this supposed to be?!?!? HELP! I have so many questions and I don’t feel like any of them have been answered. 

Aside from those three things....

I was very glad to see Alex in half the episode rather than just the last five minutes like I feared. Still annoyed at the “hey I’m dying part” but remember, we’re ignoring that cause he’s gonna be fine okay. But I like that we really are just full on paralleling Motherland and Raylla and Alex is immediately like “we found each other again let’s get married!” Which is very sweet. And you know...no hang ups there in saying yes...just the whole....dying part but anyway...moving on. 

PRESENT DAY, PRESENT TENSE I LOVE YOU!!! ABOUT DAMN TIME! Bless. 

They have incredibly cheesy lines but at least one of them isn’t “you’re my turquoise” because I swear if I have to hear Max say that one more time to Liz I’m going to lose it. Haha. 

I have to thank Bonnie at least for letting Malex have some alone time while she and Dallas went on their little fruitless errand. I may not really care about her arc but at least she gave us that. 

There were references in this episode but I don’t think there were any Harry Potter ones? Maybe I rage blocked it out immediately but I don’t think there were?!?

I continue to adore the Kybel awkwardness and also the fact that Rosa and Max totally know. I desperately wish they had just let Isobel date Anatsa all last season and started fresh with the Kybel slowburn this season so we could have had more time with this but alas. It is what it is. They’re super cute and I can’t wait till they make it official. 

I was very glad to see so many Kyle and Rosa scenes in this episode because despite Kyle finding out she was his sister in season one, I feel like their sibling scenes have been pretty nonexistent so yay for those. Especially him telling her how far she’s come and her being like “yeah so Isobel is totally in love with you too you idiot”. I really wish we had gotten so much more but this was great. 

I still just...don’t care about this Liz plot that, shocker...was solved in an episode. Well...at least the addiction part. There was that preview (that preview that had no Alex in it again ..ugh) where she said her brain is broken so I guess there’s consequences but still...obviously very rushed. 

I feel like Shivani wasn’t totally wrong about Echo because I don’t feel like they’ve really resolved any of their actual issues. But sure...I guess we’ll see. 

I suppose I should be happy that they’re all of a sudden now making an attempt to make Liz’s student relevant to the plot but uhhh...yeah...not so much. It all just feels kind of ridiculous to have that whole GED class plot and trying to be a mentor just so she could be used by Clyde like nine episodes later. 

I suppose I should also be glad that Clyde is trying to make Shivani and her cryo daughter relevant to the plot too but uhh...I’m sorry I still don’t care. Plus, I really can’t believe that Shiri Appleby was used just for that weird mindscape episode but I feel like they’ve just wasted her if she’s not going to suddenly be relevant at the end. But also...do I even care about her actual character beyond that she’s OG Liz? At this point? No. Although still the fact that she’s apparently related to the Valentis and we didn’t even see her when Kyle and Eduardo went to find her for...reasons? to get Alien console pieces? is just kind of also absurd. She was vaguely plot relevant and we didn’t even see her??? So strange. 

Speaking of Eduardo....why were we meant to care at all about him and his estranged daughter if it was literally a twelve second plot point that meant nothing?? Like literally...other than Kybel hooking up, that whole Mexico excursion was thoroughly pointless. 

Anyway....I would like Alex not to die now that we’ve got him back. I would like to actually get to see Sanders in that tux at their wedding outside the pocket dimension. That is coincidentally the only thing I still care about aside from Kybel and Rosa’s happiness. The plot is meaningless but I still would really like someone to explain it to me just cause I want to understand. To be honest, I’m not even sure the showrunners and writers could explain it if pressed.