#but those are the vibes i've been getting from the fandom

[lynxgriffin]

I gotta be totally honest, I've just never cared about the "big" fandom memes. Maybe I'm too old for this or something, but just looking at it straight I'm like "...okay? Where's the funny part?" Like even the Ralsei with a gun or Ralsei with a giant blunt memes from back in the day never seemed like much to me. I DID see some folks who could pull off the memes and make them funny (lupusc's Cyber World animation featuring the Ralsei blunt meme made me laugh!) but most of the time they feel like a punchline without any setup.

But ehh, I'm probably just old, ignore me.

Transmasc Dess and asexual Asriel, GO!

I think no matter Susie wears, Noelle is going to think she looks hot in it! (Because she's both correct and has good taste)

I don't ever recall a character referring to the Knight as "he." I think it's pretty much only been "they" or "it." That seems to hint towards more going on with the Knight than just them being a particular person.

That said, once again: Transmasc Dess, GO!

"Bangin' sermon my man" was SUCH a good option, I was laughing so much.

And I DUNNO WHY YOU'D DRINK IT IN FRONT OF ALPHYS THAT IS MEAN. Like I know she's the teacher but that's just. So awkward!

Yes, I've watched the vid. Like I said last time, I'm sorry, but I remain unconvinced.

I think that mostly means I need to get around to playing Mother 3 soon.

I don't think boss monsters exist in Deltarune.

No, he was putting off those creepy stalker vibes in these chapters for sure. It was funny with the "eggs husband" joke in chapter two, like he did just run into her and tried to be funny about it. But him popping out of the bushes with the flowers she clearly didn't want? The "they'll all see and then we'll be a happy family again" business with the conspiracy corkboard? Come on dude, tone it down, because it's getting gross.

Maybe if he was a little easier than the secret bosses we DID get...

[kooldewd123]

i'm noticing some themes this season

[upsidedownsmore]

I won't lie I nearly fell into disliking this quest after seeing so much reactionary negative feedback immediately afterwards, but posts like these have helped me appreciate the quest better and calm down from that initial spike in discourse. I know that's still me building my opinions off of the opinions of others, and I really do need to examine my own susceptibility to being easily convinced, but actual constructive discussions and breakdowns over the last few days have helped assure me that no the quest is not some problematic mess actually, as some made it out to be.

I do still believe the somewhat vague writing that Warframe usually has may not do it favors when paired with what can be seen as a harmful trope in other media when viewed from a glance, and the game progression structure/narrative of gathering warframe blueprints and parts to pilot copies of them can be seen as rubbing against the nature of Jade's story in a potentially disturbing way. I think those things could have been handled better with more time to handle those nuances. But in the end, while I feel the empty spaces in the story can be interpreted badly if twisted enough, what the story does say tells a clear message of love and respect in the strangest of circumstances and tragedies, even if it doesn't line up with some of our ideal scenarios or comforts.

I'm glad that, at least personally, my view has stabilized, and it seems that the view of the community here in general has begun to stabilize as well. I'm happy to take in the designs these artists have made with a clearer head, and I hope they have not experienced too much turmoil following the release of their hard work. I'm sure there will still be people unhappy with the quest for a variety of reasons, but I hope people have begun to understand this quest as not some misogynistic fever dream cooked up by the same writers and creative directors and studio that has brought us the rest of Warframe prior.

possible spoilers for Warframe: Jade Shadows ahead

i wish people would stop, take a breath, and actually think about jade shadows from an analytical place before they leave their reviews rather than just going "i think it's icky" because like. obviously it isn't perfect, i don't think anyone's arguing that, but it isn't gross or wrong- it's art, it's evocative, and it's going to resonate differently with everyone. i want to pick apart some common criticisms i've seen here from the perspective of someone who's played a lot of warframe and thought about some of the heavier themes present in the quest quite a lot.

It's weird that Jade is pregnant because I'm afraid of it/it's gross/it's fetishistic

Personal feelings of revulsion are not a reason to judge something on an objective level. It's perfectly valid to come out of Jade Shadows feeling weird about it- I do think that's kind of the point. The quest has a content warning before you begin it, because the subject matter is something that is really uncomfortable for a lot of people- that doesn't mean that the game shouldn't be allowed to explore it. Also, even if it was wrong to include something like this as fetish content, this argument would imply the game has already gone to weirder places. Looking at you, Grendel.

It's weird that they make the operator give birth via transference

This argument has a little more ground, but also kind of misunderstands how transference works. Yes, it is a hand-wavy "linking of the minds," but we do see clearly in quests like The Sacrifice that when linking with the more sentient frames like Umbra for the first time, the Operator is not fully controlling the frame. I think Umbra is the most appropriate comparison- when linking with Umbra properly for the first time, you don't immediately control Umbra- it's a more spiritual "linking souls helping him find peace" thing. I'd also say that even in the case the Operator was fully in control, I don't think what happened was remotely equatable to literally giving birth. Like. She breathed for 20 seconds and then dissolved into light and died, then there was a baby there. I don't know if you've ever seen a birth, but that isn't how it works. I feel like after all the shit our Operator has been through, "giving birth" through transference is kind of a drop in the bucket.

It's misogynistic to have Jade die in childbirth

????????

Ok. So let's pick apart the possible reasons that this would be misogynistic. Maybe fridging the woman? But. Not really, because she isn't really gone- the game even acknowledges that she will live on through you and through the motes in Hunhow's message. You can literally craft her and then boom, she's back. She may not have a gigantic speaking role, but no warframe does- hell, even the Stalker barely grunts out single words.

Another one I see a lot is the argument that her sole role in the quest is the whole "her whole personality is motherhood" situation- and that is fair, her role IS that- but that is the point of the quest. They hid this in the teasers because they wanted the reveal to be significant, not to intentionally obfuscate their misogynistic writing- while I certainly do agree that it is all too common for female characters to be pushed aside and relegated purely to motherhood, particularly in fandom spaces but that's an entirely different discussion. I think Warframe handled the motherhood issue well- a person used as a tool of unjust death for years (remember the Jade Light?) giving her own life to finally bring life into the world rather than taking it away- it clearly had purpose and thought behind it, and Warframe has already spent years providing female characters that don't revolve entirely around motherhood- though they aren't pushed into your face and provided immediately without any exploration, so it makes sense that some people on Tumblr would miss them. Warframes don't generally have fully fleshed-out personality- the more sentient frames like Dante and Umbra are an exception. Jade was on the verge of death, it's not shocking that we didn't see much of her personality. I don't doubt that we'll get some codex entries explaining more of her actual personality and story- the quest was just not the place and time.

At the end of the day, Warframe is a game about love, family, and sacrifice. Jade Shadows ticks all 3 of those boxes, probably in the most on-the-nose way we've seen yet. I'd love to make a post soon lauding the things I liked about it, the real narrative depth it presented, the meaning behind and the significance of the discomfort rooted in its themes, and its connections to Warframe's broader themes, but I've seen more negativity than positivity thus far which is... genuinely shocking. When I played it I had nothing but praise. Warframe's writing is usually a bit clunky, so I hadn't noticed anything particularly out of the ordinary, but a lot of people seem genuinely convinced that this expansion was somehow the worst we've ever seen when that is far from being the case. Operation Belly of the Beast has been a ton of fun, and the seeming finite nature of what's left adds a real gravitas to farming for Jade. I'm not shocked the quest itself felt a bit half-baked, I'm surprised they released this at all with 1999 coming up- I'm just happy to get some new content and a new frame whose concept I really enjoy.

[eldritchamy]

I think I've figured out a good way to articulate one of the reasons Human Domestication Guide is hitting for me in a way really not much else has done for a long time.

HDG is an inverse fandom.

Whereas a lot of fanfiction (maybe just for the sake of the pun we can expand outwards, wink, and call them "transformative works") takes at the core of its nature a specific character or group of characters, and then transplants (sorry, I had to) those characters into Alternate Universes in order to keep telling altered, revised, and original stories with those CHARACTERS, while changing everything else, HDG does the opposite.

It takes the SETTING as the core defining feature, and creates original CHARACTERS in order to tell original stories.

And that's really cool for reasons that, of course, ended up becoming another gigantic one of Amy's Patented Infodump Posts.

Most fanfiction gets to appeal to its audience because of the associations and attachments readers have for the CHARACTERS, and then create a new story from there without having to spend time setting up WHO THE STORY IS ABOUT for you. I don't say this as a bad thing, that's just the attraction. The readers bring their attachment to the characters WITH them before they start reading.

HDG gets to assume you understand the SETTING as a basic premise, and then tell new stories with original characters without having to hold your hand through as much of the set up work, because you already know the SETTING going in.

So instead of discovering how the characters you know relate to a world you don't (and to each other within that context), you get stories where you get to discover who the characters ARE, in the context of a world you already understand.

It's not "what does a different setting do to these characters." It's "how do different people navigate this setting."

You get to meet and learn and identify with the CHARACTERS because you see how they as unique people react to a set premise.

So much of what I've read so far has done exceptional work establishing who the characters are, even making MINOR characters within the story feel like fleshed out people.

You'd think in a setting that takes at face value the premise of humanity being subjugated and doted on by a species that uses mind control drugs to turn them into docile, obedient pets, the stories would struggle a bit with sameness as the individuality of the characters failed to shine through or were inevitably suppressed over the course of the plot.

In practice, it seems like almost the OPPOSITE is true.

The Affini always win. But every character chooses to lose to them in a different way that speaks to who they are as people.

Getting to explore these unique stories through the eyes of unique characters seems like it's making it EASIER to latch on to what makes THESE characters the focus of the stories being told.

And so far the stories being told are fucking great, and have such a huge range to them.

The original story for the setting is a VERY non consensual medfet/drug play subjugation story where Elvira (captain of a ship for the Free Terran feralist rebellion) is ABSOLUTELY brought into domestication by force (at first), and we get to see the PROCESS of her being broken down and becoming something new over the course of (what we later learn has been ONLY) about three weeks. She's not the same person she was at the start of the story. At all. She's been utterly replaced by a new identity and personality that the old version of her would never have accepted. (Also it's kinda hot that it's actually good for her, and that she very much DOES end up happier for it. She's still Elvira. But she's safe, and she's loved.)

That's a pretty specific vibe for a story.

But the next story I read in the setting takes place over the course of several hours in-universe, and basically follows a dysfunctional, clearly neurodivergent woman stagnating in the limbo of having been failed by capitalism (or in her mind, failing at it) and having mixed feelings about the staggeringly powerful alien civilization that is currently part way through conquering her planet and its people.

The story starts off when she's so hungry after scraping through what scant, nutritionless garbage she was able to find in the capitalist dystopia that it finally overrides her fear, and she goes to the border of Affini-controlled territory in her city. She figures, they're going to do whatever they're going to do to the rest of the city within a few days anyway, so there's no sense pretending whatever outcome she's walking into wasn't inevitable, and even if it's not as good as the Affini promise, at least it's not what she's been stuck in. Fear of sameness finally becomes more traumatic than fear of change.

She proceeds to go on an adorable lesbian grocery date with a 10 foot tall plant that gently flirts with her while remaining very firm that all of this human's needs CAN and SHOULD and WILL be taken care of FOR her from now on, and it's OKAY that she has trouble focusing because it's OKAY that some people need more help than others.

She spends several chapters experiencing repeated Lesbian Bluescreens because of this sweet, doting alien who insists it's no trouble at all and she's happy to help. Then said alien takes her back to her apartment on the human side to make sure she feels safe getting there through the anti-Affini protests, and then in a matter of minutes she has cleaned this girl's entire disaster of an apartment and promised to cook her a nice Terran pizza.

Then the girl has a lesbian panic attack while coming to terms with how much misery she didn't have to be living with, and whether this future isn't exactly what she always hoped for and more, so the alien offers to give her some alien drugs to calm her down, and her now fuzzy brain accidentally crumbles under the weight of all the secret petplay fantasies that have been turning her face red all morning and she accidentally calls the alien "Mistress", and then she goes home to THEIR place back in Affini territory with her new owner and gets absolutely spoiled until she falls asleep feeling safe and loved for the first time in her life.

COMPLETE tonal shift from the original story, but the LOGIC of the story is fully consistent with the setting. It's just a different character responding to that setting in a different way.

The range of what's possible is ENORMOUS.

I went from there to "two humans captured at different times struggle to find their way back to each other and end up with neural implants plugged into each other's brains by their shared Mistress, and the feedback loop helps them domesticate EACH OTHER" and then from there to a mostly historical context story about an Affini who lived for almost 300,000 years and how she feels about the Compact's role in everything they've done to the universe.

And then I got to read "I have to pretend to be a good little floret maid at an Affini Compact hotel because that's my Genius Spy Cover WHOOPS it turns out being a maid means getting teased and played with a lot WHOOPS, OHHhhh NOOOoo~ I'VE BEEN TURNED INTO A FREE USE HYPNO DOLL because EVERYONE KNEW I WAS A SPY THE WHOLE TIME, I'm going to resolve my mixed feelings by erotically betraying my co-conspirator so we can be floret girlfriends together," which was cute, funny, and INCREDIBLY hot.

Seriously, chapter 10 of that story. Holy FUCK. I think my brain has turned fully inside out. I had a DREAM kinda like it afterwards that I wish I could remember more of.

I guess my point is HDG is less like a fandom and more like DND.

It's a shared universe of collaborative storytelling, even if any individual work within it was made by one person.

You get to play within a core set of rules for how the setting works, but the stories that can come out of playing by those rules are so incredible and diverse and interesting, and I'm really enjoying getting to explore all of that within the context of a basic premise that has absolutely grabbed most of my kinks by the throat, stared menacingly into my eyes, and smirked knowingly.

Also it's INCREDIBLY queer and very obviously made specifically for gay autistic trans women who take progesterone, so I guess just like the rest of the little Terrans, I never stood a chance.

[aceingonthecake]

Unpopular Opinion

(At least from what I've seen in the fandom)

Okay. It's time for me to confess. I kind of hate the idea of Aziraphale having a beard in s3. There, I said it. But I have reasons.

So, first of all, I don't really think it suits the character. Don't get me wrong, I love how Michael Sheen looks with a beard, but Aziraphale? I don't know, I don't see it going very well with their style. But this could also be related to my personal taste. I have more intricate reasons.

The thing is, every time I've read about people hoping Aziraphale will have a beard in s3, they were also connecting it to Aziraphale being badass in Heaven, taking the lead, showing their protective streak in a stronger way, having a more...masculine behaviour? Maybe? That's what I got from those posts most of the time.

And hey, I'm all for Aziraphale fighting to make a change in Heaven, but I don't really like the implication that, in order to show their protective side more, they also need to change their looks to appear stronger/bossier and all that jazz.

It would actually be kind of a comfort to me to see them act that way and still be themself, as we've always known them. Especially considering that this part of them is not new. It's true that, until now, we've always seen Aziraphale protect what (and who) they love in a more subtle way, but it's still protection and it's always been there.

That's why I think they don't necessarily need a new look. But, if we do get one, I actually hope it will be something more similar to how we saw them in the Bastille episode, or giving the same vibes they were giving in the changing room with that feathered boa. I mean, they were playing like that one second and delivered that "Aziraphale" to Furfur the next! They can act tough AND look all pretty and silly (in a good way).

With all that being said, I won't be mad, disappointed, or anything like that if Aziraphale ends up with a beard. It's not something that bothers me at such a level. What I've never really liked were the implications some people were writing around the concept of the beard. If it makes any sense.

So, that's my end-of-the-year confession. Don't hate me, please.

[whateversawesome]

Spy x Family AU Fic Recommendations

It's been a while since I've done fic rec list. There are so many good fics out there, so I thought it was time. For this list, I will focus on my favorite Alternate Universe fics!

After Peace by @unhappy-sometimes : My current favorite AU, also named by someone else the "midwestern au" for its vibes. In this fic, Twilight is no longer the best spy of the West, but an agent forced into retirement in small town in the middle of nowhere because of a terrible injury. As you can imagine, he's quite depressed without a purpose until a little girl named Anya enters the picture.

Tactic & Strategy by Puolain: In which Twilight and Thorn Princess are forced by their agencies to get married. Twilight is undercover as Lionel Reiss, from the national guard. This fic is not only beautiful but also very exciting.

Hidden Under the Roses by @sister-cna-reader : This is a mafia AU that has plenty of fluff and plenty of spice! In this story, Yor is the Garden's heir and must marry Loid to ensure an alliance. Also, did I mention Anya is a baby in this universe?

As Time Goes By by @nightofnyx8 : In this AU, Twilight is a spy and an American pilot that crashes near Yor's garden. After nourishing him back to health, they face the terrible Captain Winston Wheeler, who won't rest until he captures that spy. This story is incredibly exciting and also sweet.

Green Eyed Monster by Bigbruja: If you like jealous Twilight, this is the fic for you! Here, an old friend of Yor's returns with the intention of taking her away from her husband, but Twilight is not going to let him do that so easily.

Air by @cantareincminor : In this AU, Twilight and Thorn Princess meet during a mission gone wrong. I can't say much without spoiling it! Just know that it's very sweet and you can feel the strong chemistry between those two! Major flirting alert hehehe.

The Cat, the Key, the Cook, and the Queen by @lpham2525 : If you like fairytales, this fic is perfect for you. In this universe, Queen Yor must marry, so she creates a clever competition to find the right man for the job!

Lo que se hace en el primer día by @gijipaw : Yes, I am aware this is in Spanish but, do you want to see Loid and Yor as boyfriend and girlfriend? Then you have to read this fic! If you speak Spanish or if you know how to use Google translate, give this short and sweet fic a try.

The Five Times Loid Forger Went Topless In Front of His Wife and the One Time She Reciprocated" or "Bare-Chested in Berlint" by Talik_Sanis: Ahem...yes, I am aware of the title and what can I say? This list needs a crack fic! This is probably the funniest fic I have ever read (the title says it all) so I encourage you to read it and have a good time. And when you get to the ice cream scene come back and tell me what you thought about it. It's my favorite scene in the whole fic hehe.

The following is not a fic per se, but an exciting, ongoing multichapter fancomic that has become a staple in the fandom and is definitely worth checking out. I'm talking about none other than...

Doppelgänger by @buf309 : Without giving too much away, in this AU there's a man who looks exactly like Twilight going on a killing rampage. Twilight will have to face his worst nightmare and do everything he can to save his family. This is an amazing story!!

And finally, the list wouldn't be complete without some shameless self-promotion 😆

My Enemy : A war fic AU in which the Briars are forced to host a Westalian high-ranking officer in their home. As an Ostanian, Yor hates this man, of course! However, little by little Captain Loid Forger wins her over and, despite being enemies, they end up falling deeply in love. Riddled with exciting twists and turns, this story is also full of fluff and spice.

Love Is...: A non-traditional omegaverse in which Twilight is a shifter (a person who can shift between Alpha, Omega or Beta) who experiences his first rut after a kissing practice with his wife. This fic has plenty of fluff, plenty of angst, and some spice too!

Eden's Ball: If you like Eden AU, you're going to love this fic! In this story, Loid Forger, president of the student council, is in charge of organizing a ball at school. His intention is to ask Yor Briar to go with him but things go terribly wrong!

That's it! If you like these recommendations, check out my Spy x Family fic compilation and my previous fic rec lists (part 1 and part 2).

[saurongorthaur9]

Potentially unpopular opinion for the ROP fandom:

I really wish people/interviewers would stop pushing the Hot Sauron and Haladriel stuff directly into Charlie's face.

I woke up this morning to drama in the fandom about Charlie (yet again) very politely deflecting Haladriel questions, as if this is some sort of insult to the fandom and shippers. And I know it's not going to stop, but I wish it would.

To make it very explicitly clear, make all the stupid sexy Sauron and Hot Sauron memes and jokes you want within the fandom. Ship Haladriel to your heart's content and create glorious fanfiction and fanart of them making out as they ride into the sunset (or as they simultaneously attempt to kill each other, if that's your vibe). All great. All fantastic. Everyone knows I'm a huge fan of sexy Sauron both inside and outside the ROP fandom, and I am a thorough Haladriel enjoyer at this point.

But I really, really, really wish people would stop pushing it on Charlie himself.

It just makes me so sad and uncomfortable for him. I saw the interview yesterday that I'm pretty sure was what caused everyone to be up in arms where he was being shown Sauron memes and fan posts and a lot of them were very Haladriel/shippy. He is obviously SO uncomfortable with those and the "Hot Sauron" comments. You can see it in the difference between how he answers questions about Sauron's motives or psyche or his research into Tolkien and how his eyes light up and he gets so animated and he just starts gushing vs when he's asked for the millionth time if Sauron has feelings for Galadriel and he gets quiet and reserved and gives a short, diplomatic answer.

And he's been so gracious and polite to the shippers and about all the shipping questions that he keeps getting asked. Each time, he gives basically the same answer: that he doesn't personally see it as romantic but that he's happy people care enough about the characters and story to be passionate about what they see in it. He's not going to suddenly flip a switch and start passionately shipping Haladriel.

I personally like to view it as Sauron (particularly as Halbrand) having some genuine feelings for Galadriel: genuine sense of connection, genuine sense of shared purpose, genuine attraction on both a spiritual and physical level, and yes, even some genuine admiration and love, mixed in with the complex mess of other things Sauron feels, which is why he's a great, complicated villain. The fact that this doesn't 100% line up with everything Charlie has said that he feels about the character is fine with me. I respect Charlie's opinions and the clear thought he's put into portraying that character. But I can also have my own thoughts and perceptions of the character and story apart from that, without needing him to validate them.

I know this isn't the first time an attractive man playing a charming, sexy villain has been inundated by thirsty fans (I remember Loki's Army very clearly) and that some level of it is to be expected. But he's clearly put such thought into portraying Sauron and I'm so grateful to him for that, so I'm sad to see him having uncomfortable questions shoved at him that reduce everything he's done to "what do you think of being Hot Sauron?" and "Do you think Sauron and Galadriel should kiss?" And I'm even sadder to see fans reacting negatively to him simply because he won't validate a particular ship or perspective.

From everything I've heard of fans who have gotten the opportunity to meet him, he's an absolute sweetheart and very kind and appreciative towards his fans. I hope dearly that I can meet him some day and tell him how important it was to me to see Sauron portrayed on screen as such a wonderfully complicated character. But I truly hope that the constant barrage of nagging for him to openly endorse Haladriel and the backlash whenever he gives one of his reserved, diplomatic answers about shipping doesn't sour him to his fanbase. He's given us a gift that I wouldn't have even dared dream of only a few years ago; why can't we focus on that instead of whether or not he's enthusiastically pro-Haladriel or not?

[iceclew]

BACK TO ART Y'ALL!

(after ....an awful lot of screaming these last days.. ... hey I don't know what is wrong with me, maybe it's the spring vibes finally kicking in or smth..)

Anyway here's the concept art for Hans and Henry - Witcher AU

'Cause I can not enjoy ANY franchise, ANY game, ANY-FUCKING-THING without witcherizing it. For t'is the law here.

Go down to my overly detailed description and non-text versions for AU Hans and AU Henry here. I have my brainworms and i'll spill them out on you, if you don't step aside, so beware.

Also this time I'm not going for a mix, I'm going full Witcher universe here.

Let me tell you there is a LOT of Hansry in the making for canon and Witcher AU right now.. I just need to find a way to finish it, for I am cursed to be stuck at WIPs so far as it seems. BUT I WILL DO MY BEST !!! FOR WE NEED THE HANSRY, DON'T WE?!

YES WE DO!!

So I've read the witcher books, played game 3, and looked up several things on fandom-wikis. If anything's not entirely witcher canon here, my bad. I tried my best ok? Also I took some liberty and smushed timelines and stuff to fit the scene here.

Capon is my fucking dress up doll. I am sorry I could not not. He is so FUCKING Dandelion coded.. PLUS I had so many cool outfit ideas and well...LOOK AT HIM HE JUST EATS, OK? I feel like he could be stuffed in a human-sized sock and still would look great in it... I don't get it either.. the tailors just love him.

have a song recommendation for Hans :3

Hans Capon (House of Leipa) The House of Leipa is a family line of famous military leaders at the nation of Kaedwen. (listen, there is a canon Fort Leida in the witcher universe, how could you blame me for jumping on that?) For generations they reigned over Fort Leipa and the surrounding region in Kaedwen. It was about 19 years ago when the Scoia'tael invaded the fortress and killed almost all members of the major family branch, including Hans' parents. Hans himself survived due to a servant's quick thinking. He was hidden in the servant's quarters in a bedroom's chest. The Scoia'tael focussed on looting the royal belongings. So he was not found until his relatives reconquered the fortress hours later. Hans has no memory of said day since he was still an infant, but suffers from claustrophobia now.

'The Slaughter of Leipa' contributed severly to the following pogrom in Ard Carraigh (Kaedwens capital), causing the deaths of over 400 nonhumans. Hans is not entirely against nonhuman races but has his personal, unprocessed issues with them....

Back in the present (20y/o) his situation is very similar to canon Hans, with Hanush currently being his guardian as long as he's not old enough to reign. He differs a lot from Hanush's imagination of a proper heir of their family tree and arguments are on a daily bases. For political representation Hans gets to travel and stay at the free city of Novigrad for a while. While he loves his home region in Kaedwen, he immediately falls in love with the urban vibes, and modern culture of the city (and of course the freedom of being away from Hanush's monitoring for once). For a few months he's spending a fair amount of coin on every tailor, tavern, brothel and bathhouse in the city.

By now the owners of said etablishements have made appropriate arrangements with every bandit's guilt around, for his regular visits are more profitable to all of them, than robbing him once.

There might have been one or two kidnappings with ransom involved nonetheless, which had Hanush consider hiring a bodyguard for his ward after all...If only just to mend his headache from time to time a bit.

This is were a certain offer from an old friend, plus a witcher's apprentice appears seemingly just at the right time...

------------------------

Henry's design and my idea of his witcher character made me painfully aware of just how similar those two universes actually are. I mean - not necessary a bad thing, but it might take the charm out of it a bit. So I tried to add a little twist to Henry here. Let's see how we're doing.

Have a song recommedation for Henry :3

Henry, child of the fate Henry is born a blacksmith's son and lived a slow life in a small village around Kaedwen's hillside. There would be times he would even go as far as to call it straight out boring, but he's not one to complain about stuff like that.

Since his father Martin taught him from young age, Henry practically grew up with swords, especially the kind made of finest silver ore, used to slay monsters. His father's outstanding works, famous in all the northern nations, attracted many witchers from far and wide. Of course the nearby 'School of the Wolf' at Kaer Morhen was a popular and recurring customer at their forge as well.

All peace and quiet ended the day his village was raided by bandits and his parents were murdered. Henry found himself seeking refuge, first at Kaer Morhen, then at Fort Leipa, with a handful of other citizens. At the witchers fortress he recognized one or two faces from back at the forge, but there was one particularly standing out.

Radzig Kobyla, a reknown witcher in all around the region seemed to have special interest in Henry and even offered some first combat training in sword-fighting. With time Henry finds the truth about is bonds with Radzig...

Before he was born Radzig saved Martin from a mountain troll. Half joking, half serious Martin remembered old witcher's tradition of the Law of Suprise - 'for what you find at home, yet did not expect' and offered it. Radzig actually refused the offer, for he was not necessarily fond of said tradition.

It was only a month later that they found out about the pregnancy... While awaiting a child Martin was devastated about his promise. He was not sure if it was to be fulfilled or not. After Henry was born Radzig still refused to ever take the child, arguing he never agreed to any contract like this. But fate finds his way nonetheless and with Henry basically finding him and being robbed his family, friends and home, Radzig finally gives in and offers to train him to become a witcher.

Of course things are way more complicated by now, since Henry is not suitable for a proper 'Trial of the grasses' anymore. He never gained the full immunity and powers of a proper witcher, but with Kaer Morhen's knowledge, plus consultation of several sorcerer Radzig's find a way for Henry to undergo a lighter and also much slower variation of the original changing procedure.

Although the risk of said changing progress is the same, if not higher. Errors or negative effects can only be seen and be treated much later after they have already settled in. The sorceress Katharina of Ard Carraigh was outraged when she heard about Radzig's little experiment, but offered her help with the effects nonetheless. With her help Henry was able to adapt existing witcher potions to handle his new powers and skills easier, and - much more important - to keep them at bay, when they threaten to take over his sanity.

While trying to tackle his new life and witcher training, Henry is also confronted with his first 'witcher' contract (well whatever Radzig found fitting for a half-baked witcher, without much fighting experience, nor complete control over his powers, that is.) Their host at Fort Leipa seemed to have a promising task as bodyguard at hand, and since Radzig had taken a lot of contracts from the house of Leipa in past times, it would not hurt giving it a try. Henry would only have to take care of the spoiled Leipa's offspring for a while. Nothing too much of a task right? Right.

At least until said offspring runs off and jumps into sheets with an Alp and seems to be in need of a witcher now after all, .....

But that's a story for another time...

---------

*visible exhaustion but I made it*

that's it for now guys.. I ..clearly overdid myself in the description right there, I just know it.

Also - sorry for my spelling , I hate rereading stuff, and tend to miss weird errors...

Hope you liked it, I don't really call myself a good writer, I just want to get out my ideas here. :)

[attabxy]

Hiii <3 could you please write an Erik Campbell x reader fic where Reader is a 'Y2K it girl' (like pink animal print, playboy bunny necklaces, fake tan vibes)

And Julia is like Reader's bestie too? And if you would like, include a song to read along to?

Dating a Y2K Reader - E. Campbell

Pairing: Erik Campbell X Reader (romantic, gender-neutral).

Media: Final Destination Bloodlines.

Content Warning(s): Julia is Reader's best friend, opposites attract, feminine-leaning/presenting Reader (she/her is not used), Erik once had an emo phase, the nickname 'Kiki' is used for Erik, Julia and Reader are mid-twenties while Erik is late twenties to early thirties.

(Author's Note: Hi, Anonymous! Take this heart <3 and brace yourself because I've never written Y2K before! This is the most I've had to research for headcanons because I'm only vaguely familiar with the Y2K aesthetic. I'm not sure if this is explicitly a female reader, so I've written Reader to be gender-neutral but more leaning to being female. I've also taken inspiration from this Erik 'fic by @/multi-fandom-imagine. Show them some love! As well, I included Sexy Drug by Falling in Reverse as the song. It's not exactly Y2K, but I think this would've been Erik's anthem as an emo boy).

Erik remembers the 2000s', for better or worse.

When they were kids, Julia would drag her older brother to see the newest movie that had Lindsey Lohan or whatever chick-flick was playing in theaters.

It was only mildly embarrassing to walk into Legally Blonde in full black, eyeliner, and belt chain.

He completely forgot about those times until you walked in the door with Julia, dressed to the nines in a pink leopard-print crop top, low-rise jeans, and a belly chain.

"Kiki, you remember my friend, right?" Julia asked him, but his mind was taken aback and into 2005.

He thought 2005 stayed in 2005. Y'know, twenty years ago. But no, it didn't come to him at any point that just maybe someone would keep the aesthetic alive.

There's this part of him that's still a teenager listening to My Chemical Romance and frequenting the local Hot Topic. He's also trying to push down that part of himself.

Lo and behold, that part of him was not pushed down when he started dating you.

While forgetting to tell you that he had an emo phase as a teenager, he was entranced by how you embraced the Y2K aesthetic.

Can't help but (not-so subtlety) stare at your figure in the jeans and the jewelry. He's close to biting his lip and twirling his hair at the sight of you.

He helps you DIY and thrift your clothes, and he's really good at repurposing old clothes. The emo phase really came in handy.

Since Erik's pretty clueless about Y2K, he asks Julia about the aesthetic, as well as what to get you. Not only is she more aware of the Y2K aesthetic, she's also your friend, so she helps with gifts that are tailored to you.

Julia played matchmaker with you and Erik. That's it, send Tweet.

He was surprised that not only did you own a flip phone, but actually used it.

His gifts to you (that aren't clothes) are accessories for you flip phone, as well as an iPod he found at a thrift store for thirty dollars.

Another revelation he had was hearing someone squeal. He didn't think people did that until he gave you the iPod.

Date nights tend to consist of watching 2000s' movies and thrift shopping, which he found himself enjoying (he finds a lot of shirts at thrift shops and Mean Girls is a guilty pleasure movie).

Eventually, you find out Erik had an emo phase. It's the opposite of Y2K, but it was a big aesthetic during the 2000s'.

You sometimes tease him about it, but you try to get him to embrace it, or at least come to terms with it and realize that it isn't that bad.

Fine, he thought as you unearthed the old band shirts, chokers, and 15-year-old makeup that he likely stole from Julia.

Yes, he's cringing. Yes, he's remembering some good memories as he looks at old MySpace pictures of himself. How did he think that was cool?

He's not emo anymore (more metalhead than anything), but his emo phase was a stepping stone into him discovering metal music. He now gets weirdly sentimental over his emo phase and appreciates you for allowing him to look at it in a different light...

...until you post a picture of him recreating one of his emo looks. Now his family teases him about it.

(Author's Note: Anonymous, thank you for bearing with me as I was posting this later than expected. My motivation went to the toilet, and I have summer classes starting. Thank you to everyone who requested headcanons and showed them some love, but I think I'm done for now. I was starting to get burnt-out, and on top of school and a job, I figured it was best to close my requests for now. I still love you guys tremendously, and I think this is a great community that I'll continue to interact with! Go easy on me if I totally misrepresented Y2K, I had to ask several people to define it because I neither partake in Y2K nor emo. Let's hope I didn't misrepresent two aesthetics!

Signing off for now,

-Libby)

[adventures-in-mangaland]

I'm going with 10 All Time Classics from the Captain America (MCU) fandom. I mean, they're all classics to me, at least. In no particular order:

1. This, You Protect by owlet

First installment in the Infinite Coffee and Protection Detail series, which are all amazing. It's a “Bucky escaping Hydra and rebuilding his sense of self” fic, which he does while spying on Steve. With eventual Avengers Family and a lovely cast of OCs bonding with Bucky in the meantime. It has a very distinctive perspective and writing style; Bucky's in constant internal (and sometimes accidentally external) dialogue with himself, making it hilarious and tragic all at the same time. I love it. I've recently been getting into The Murderbot Diaries by Martha Wells and this Bucky has a similar sassy-but-vulnerable vibe? Read this if you like that, anyway.

2. The One Who Knows by Dira Sudis (dsudis)

This is a Political Animals AU, in that no-powers Steve is inserted into the Political Animals world and Bucky is TJ. Discusses being outed and depression but is ultimately hopeful. The author is one of my all time faves and has written lots of great stories for this and many other fandoms.

3. Blue Scales by chaya

Steve is a merman AU. He's still Captain America, though. It's crack with heart, I love it.

Best line: "May your scales and your love story be our weird secret forever.”

4. Our Lingering Frost by eyres

AU where Bucky is rescued from Hydra in the 50s (?) and so is around for Steve to be found.

5. Assets Out of Containment by follow_the_sun

It's a classic to *me*, OK? Bucky goes undercover at Jurassic World just as that movie's plot kicks off. They're Hydra dinosaurs! It's just great. Also has a podfic and crossovers with Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.

6. Not Easily Conquered (series) by dropdeaddream and WhatAreFears

Some of the greatest fanfiction I've ever read, the whole series is epic. Anyway, it's a "Steve doesn't go into the ice" AU with added queer angst when (never sent) love letters from Bucky resurface. I particularly like the second installment in the series The Thirteen Letters, which are just Bucky's letters and are insanely well-written.

7. to memory now I can't recall by Etharei

Time travel AU! Featuring post-CATWS Bucky accidentally switching places with CATFA era Bucky.

8. If Wishing Made It So by Leveragehunters (Monkeygreen)

Genie!Bucky AU! This author is great at writing AUs with fantasy/genre elements, it was hard to choose. They've also written an excellent werewolf!Steve AU and a horse!Steve AU that I really love.

9. Into That Good Night by Nonymos

An Interstellar AU! Very angsty and tragic but with an eventual happy ending.

10. Goodbye Piccadilly, Farewell Leicester Square by Speranza

Speranza must be one of the best writers in the fandom, so it was hard to pick just one of their fics. Other strong contenders were All the Angels and the Saints and The Fifties, so check those out too! But this one has a special place in my heart. Steve, Tony and Natasha accidentally time travel to WW2 London, leading to an accidental run-in with CATFA-era Bucky. The author does tragic and romantic time travel tropes so well, but with a happy ending.

I now realise that most of these are AUs, so here’s a bonus rec for a non-AU in-universe story that’s severely underrated and deserves more love:

+1

Heart, Have No Pity on this House of Bone by Sena

This story follows Bucky in-action in the Pacific Theatre. It’s very well written and, from what I can tell, well researched. Steve only appears in Bucky’s imagination and the story focuses on the horrors of war rather than romance, but it’s gripping! And it explores unrequited love, being closeted and period-typical homophobia, which I also enjoyed. I’m still holding out hope for a sequel.

[slaaverin]

I just wanted to take a little bit of time to reflect on the last few years.

We've been through it all - the fear of thinking jikook would get separated, the disbelief to see them go on trips for unknown purpose, the celebration of their solo works, and then the relief of finding out they would enlist together.

Then once they were gone, we knew it would be tough but we were still reassured by the fact that despite the challenges they would face, they were together, like an unshakable anchor that would keep them from sinking too low.

We went through every emotions, a true rollercoaster.

Unfortunately, while they were absent, we saw the fandom drop in such bad vibes, such hate, lies, narratives, schemes to attack jikook and their bond, finding always new ways to belittle them as artists and persons and their relationship, that many of us didn't even want to call ourselves ARMYs anymore. Being an ARMY lost its meaning since the behaviour we witnessed went against everything BTS stands for.

Yet.

Despite the chaos, and how hard it was to be online sometimes, many of you stayed, defended jikook, supported them, sent encouragements to them. We were patient and unwavering in our love. We were still united in many ways and that was beautiful.

After a while we got AYS, a magnificent gift from jikook that filled our hearts with joy. Unfortunately people still found ways to belittle jikook however they could. But it did not matter so much because all of us knew what it truly meant, how precious those moments were for jikook and their bond. It never stopped us from showing our devotion to these two amazing people.

The last months have been rough, with the whole fandom ganging up to prevent them to win the iheart award, and then the whole mess of the AMA awards.

It's clear now that jikook are the black sheep of the fandom. And having to support them despite the hate can take a toll on mental health, but I'm sure many of you would agree, it's all worth it.

We all share a special bond with Jimin & Jungkook, a bond not many fans have with their idols. We are linked to them as well as each other by our hearts. It's not something hate can break or belittle. This love jikook share and we share all together is a light brighest than the darkest of shadows.

Thank you all for your resilience, your discernement, and for doing what feels right in your soul.

We've come a long way and now that we're there, the moment when we'll see them again it all feels surreal. All the pent up emotions we've been feeling, we'll able to let them all out, and cry and scream and celebrate in unison once again 💜🥹 I'm really grateful to be part of a community of such incredible people that have the same values as I do.

This has been tough - but we made it. All together. Cheers!

On a more personal note, I've been in and out of here for almost all chapter 2, yet I'm very grateful I got to make all the AYS edits, then start writing on this blog, and then make the 10 years of jikook edit. Deciding also to open a patreon was a huge step for me and my creativity.

Overall, good stuff!

I'm happy we got to the other side, still here to support, still relieved jikook were together in there, and ready for the next adventure 🎉

The future is going to be bright, and I can't wait to celebrate with each of you 💜

Starting with the next few days

If I'm incoherent and screaming everywhere don't mind me, I'll truly not hold back even if I make a fool of myself 😂

Thank you for everything and bless you my favorite jikooker family 🥹💜

To a brilliant next chapter 🥂 full of surprises, love, screams, and mutual support 🫂

[taylor-titmouse]

Hey! As an artist who posts NSFW here, I wanted to ask how you decide what posts to censor and redirect to your other socials like Bluesky/Patreon/etc, and which you leave unedited and maybe throw a mature label on? How do you choose to tag your posts? (particularly in fandoms, like your Harvest Moon series).

I feel as though I'm still trying to get a sense of what's both appropriate here and gives people the ability to hide stuff they don't want, while not just avoiding the tags that would let people find my work actually find it.

For example, I'm doing figure studies now with fandom characters to keep me motivated. I don't feel bad just posting artistic nudes, but what if the whole hog is out? How the hell do I decide?

Doesn't help certain tags on Tumblr that would accurately inform people like NSFW just keeps my work from showing up in tags at all. And I've had completely cropped smut with a sexual mature label get flagged and denied in appeal. I never know if I'm doing this right. Would love your thoughts on it!

so regarding what i do/don't censor, it's mostly vibe and my interpretation of the rules. nudity is allowed on tumblr nowadays, but graphic sex is not. so it's fine to post a naked woman with her tits out, but it's not fine to post her being penetrated. same goes for hog--if it's erect, i censor. if it's flaccid, it's fine. i also assume sexual fluids could get you in trouble, so i tend to remove cum or excessive wetness even if there's no sex happening in the image.

basically if you could make a "tasteful" argument, i think it's fine to post uncensored. i actually tend to use the mature content label only when i'm posting in a fandom tag, because that's not an audience that deliberately signed up to see my work. or i put it on when i think it's an edge case of whether something is allowed--it looks better to have made a good faith effort of properly labeling if you have to appeal it later. or, i'll label it when i intend to blaze an advertisement for my books. i mark those as mature to a) make that good faith effort for the person deciding to allow the blaze campaign and b) to make sure it's only shown to people who have that filter turned off. not out of fear it'd be shown to Innocent Eyes, but because the people who have that filter turned off are more likely to actually buy an adult book. it's a way to narrow the marketing down to more potentially interested customers.

i think i've only ever been flagged like, twice on this account? it's actually kind of wild how much i get away with. but i think making a good faith effort to crop and censor when appropriate has gone a long way.

also regarding the automatic filter, it's primed to select flesh colors and things that look like nipples and genitalia. but it expects those things to be shades of pink and brown. it's not so good at picking it up when, say, the image is bright blues and greens. and i do a lot of fucky palette stuff.

hope that's helpful. long story short it's just vibe.

[miriadalia]

Things you can comment on the fanfics you love when you have no idea what to say

From what takes less time to what takes more

~show those writers your love, please!! They do it for free T-T and they deserve better

1. Emojis

You know the vibe of the fic you're reading, chose the ones that suit it better.

❤❤❤

💔💔💔

🙈🔥🔥

You may think this is kind of stupid, but trust me, it is NOT for the writer. It shows you've read until the end of the chapter and that you liked it so much that you decided to say it publicly. Your presence means A LOT.

Also, leaving kudos or votes takes literally just 1 second, what are you doing NOT doing that?? 🤨🤨🤨

2. Simple phrases

I loved it so much!!

Can't wait for the next chapter!!

This was just so good 😍

Amazing as always, keep it up!! 🙌🏼

Writing is a lonely work if you think about it. When I'm in a writer's block, just one sentence can hype me up for the rest of the day and give me the spirit I need 💪🏽

3. The emotions you felt

Yes, you DO matter. That fanfic author cares more about your opinion than your stupid ex so you better write to them instead 🧐

The plotwist was so unexpected, I'm shocked 😱

You can't end with that cliffhanger, how am I supposed to wait another week??

Excuse me, I will now lock into my room and cry all night, thank you 💔

I've read some people saying they won't comment how they felt because they feel ashamed or shy. Take it as if you were about to post a tweet or comment on a friend IG's story 👍🏻

4. One piece of dialogue/prose that really amazed you

Oof 🔥 this happened to me a few weeks ago and that comment still lives in my mind rent free. There's no better way to compliment a writer's work than to highlight something they wrote that left a true impression on you.

And it literally takes no time:

[Insert piece of dialogue], oh she didn't just say that, imma throw hands 🤬🤬

[Insert piece of a description], I could really see it with my own eyes, loved how you described it!

5. Hopes and wishes for future chapters

C'mon, you're going to comment this anyway with some of your fandom mutuals or friends, why don't let the writer know that too?? COPY AND PASTE IT ✍✍

I just need Chatacter A and Chatacter B to kiss, how long is it gonna take?? 😩

Watching that scene in [Canon series name] would have been awesome!! Maybe in future seasons 👀👀

I hope [Ship Name] don't break up in the next chapter, they are so cute 😭

6. Character discussion

Okay, we're entering deeper waters here.

But the truth is: if you love that fanfic that much is because the characters really resonated with you. So express your first thoughts without any fear:

[Chatacter Name] is so important to me, like you have no idea. All the things they went through... But they still manage to be a better person ❤

[Chatacter Name] was so forgotten in [Movie/Series Name], I'm glad they're getting the development they deserved here!

7. Scene discussion

Again, you might think the comment section is no place to start "fangirling" over the stuff you liked. But IT IS!! And the writer wants to know your thoughts on their work, especially if your opinion is all positive 💞

This will take more time, sure. But if you're going to write it anyways for other people, COPY AND PASTE AGAIN, hon!

8. How this story is impacting your fan life (or even personal life)

You don't need to overshare, but simple comments like:

Your fic has really changed the way I think about [Character Name]'s decisions, I feel like I can understand them better now.

This story has motivated me to rewatch all the episodes again 😢 the nostalgia!!!

What you did with [Character's situation] was incredible! I've been there myself and I could have not explain it better 😔

... They will be the ones the writer will remember the most, I can assure you that.

9. A simple THANK YOU

At the end of the day, fanfic and fanart creators only have your feedback to rely on when the block or discouragement hits... This is about showing appreciation to someone you may not know at all, but that has brighten your day with their creations and efforts ❤

[orengejoshi]

Love you art. My favorite thing is definitely your coloring. Flug does give t boy swag. Hope to see more of your drawing soon. Out of curiosity what do you hope for season 2?

Thank youu🥺💜

I know what you meant but just the entire term "T boy swag" reminded me of my fav rapper who just goes by "T" and since I wanted to do that for a while anyway (his songtexts would resonate with Flug so much) I used this as an excuse to redraw one of his album covers, so I love that, I'm gonna steal that heheh

(relatively unrelated for everyone except me lol but I always throw in some art when replying to asks)

umm yeah so... we're not even done with the first season, so idk. from S1-B I predict more of what we've had so far; more or less episodic comedy, slowly easing us into a connected plot. 6th episode already kinda introduced that.

it's gonna be one of those cartoons like TOH who start off silly and episodic in the first season and develop into a melodramatic serialized show from 2nd season onwards.

this is going to be an unpopular opinion but I actually do not 100% vibe with that, I prefer episodic cartoons like SpongeBob or South Park without overarching plot; comedy over drama. but it was always obvious that Villainous is gonna have a fuck ton of lore so I'm not disappointed.

my criticism rn is that I feel it's already way too many characters I'm sorry. it's getting pretty convoluted. I'm just not a fan of that but again pretty subjective. I can't bring myself to care for absolutely any character that we haven't seen animated yet. it's been too long for me to throw too many new characters in the mix, I've been nonstop hyperfixated since 7 years so I'm skeptical about changes.

as for the plot, I have no idea. we're in so early that I can't even imagine where this is gonna go.

for the end I wish that no ship with the main 3 becomes canon. it's just going to create fandom wars, just leave it open

I just want to see Flug happy...

I'll always just hope to get as much information about Flug as possible

definitely hope they explore Miss Heed's character too, as long as she doesn't end up with Flug l'm interested in her. I would like to see her getting worse (maybe switching sides?) before finally healing and learning to love herself

I want to know more about Goldheart and consequently about Flug's past

I wish for Demencia to snap out of her brainwash some day and learn about her past. I need Flug and Demencia to become real good friends and escape together with 505. I do NOT want them to become heroes but in order to find true happiness and peace they'll have to leave this place imo

but I think most of that is WAY in the future, this won't all happen in the 2nd season. but idk how long this series is gonna be, I doubt the crew even knows, so ye!

[melmedardasworld]

Honestly, Mel is NOT a mirror to Viktor. The fact that ppl (shippers) take that line talking about HER powers and story arc and in a literal sense apply it to Jayvik is insane. I've just seen so many dishonest discussions about Mel's storyline being more than being tied to a man (absolutely true), but then turning around to validate HER peculiar story and character development for a ship. If you really valued her and cared for her, you wouldn't say this, and it's lowkey gross. It gives the same vibe as those animators saying Jayce had to sleep with Mel to know it was Viktor all along. People can say don't use their words as truth, but a LOT of people are using that as a gotcha for shipping war bs. I see the viral posts and overarching well the writers/animators, etc. said it was, so my ship is canon, and yours isn't (just delusional all around).

Gone are the times wheter canon didn't dictate people in getting so heated and nasty and just want to be right.

I'd say Mel and Viktor are foils, and if the writers took the time to actually have Mel and Viktor interact past putting Jayce as an in-between (often only squished as the prize) character, we could get decent analyses and discussions.

Currently, the majority of their dynamic by fandom is literally based on people's saying that she looks down on Viktor cause she ignored/looked at him a certain way in one scene and micro analysed her expression or that she's a manipulative (groomer) seductress that used Jayce for her own gains when honestly everyone used each other (Jayce 'used' Mel, Mel 'used' Jayce, Viktor 'used' the both of them directly and indirectly etc.) Is that manipulation? No. I'd call it being mature enough to understand that certain ventures and goals involve give and take. I think MelJayVik understood that when it came to Hextech and that in itself cause more complex issues and implications once the whole Zaun vs. Piltover storyline erupted.

We could've actually had intellectual scenes between where we touch uppn the fact that Mel is part of an oppressive system as a Councillor (and that whole system that was set in place waaaay before she came to Piltover as an exile and ended up where she is) and that her ideas for Piltover, didn't include Zaun, where Viktor is from and on the opposite end had to work his way up and only ended up as an assistant until he and Jayce became lab partners.

Instead, we get dumbed down discussions and views that have shipping at its basis and fandom, concluding that their interpretation is canon when it's quite not. It doesn't help when the writers have fallen into that same cycle in S2. Now they come out in interviews to put their perspective out when I'm like, why didn't you put it in the show then if that was your intention or how it should've been interpreted?

It's bad writing and storytelling.

It really makes me wonder if the writers cut that happened between S1 and S2 was really the reason behind the ish we got in the final Arcs.

[moonlitbeth]

the Death and Rebirth update yapping, y'all! you're welcome to join in the comments 🐦‍⬛

so... with so many players now sprinting through the lore and main story chapters (myself included), i guess it's perfect time to indulge in a little speculation session abt tomorrow’s update.

first of all i'm sooo glad we're getting a full main story update instead of a separate branch. the only thing here is no free 5-star card (and tbh, most of us were waiting for a green one). but that's at least balanced out by the fact that major updates are now released a bit more frequently than once every 6 months. hopefully, this trend continues (given some rumors, next story updates might be dropped within 2 months). lads really feels the most exciting when the main plot is moving forward, no back-to-back banner mayhem match that energy.

action, drama, and that damn entrance it's pretty clear that we're so in for action-packed storylines. that trailer is absolutely big-screen material. the shift toward more dynamic animated scenes is noticeable and very welcome. esp when it comes to Sylus. the boss-man is finally back nearly a year after his debut.

and how can we ignore that entrance? the man never shows up quietly, always so dramatic and effortless (just like in his intro in LAR). i'm hoping what we saw in the pv isn't all we'll get cutscene-wise since there'll be 2 chapters per LI. it's also possible that the devs might've changed their approach to how they deliver the main story content. tho don't let me get too excited, this fandom loves being delusional.

in angst we trust judging by the Death and Rebirth title, we're sure as hell getting our heavy dose of angst (which i've honestly been craving lately). we've had our fluff therapy over the past couple of months, now it's payback time. and knowing infold, it's going to hurt. i also bet everything i have that the whole "memory return" thing will revolve around MC, not Sylus or Zayne. those chapter descriptions basically scream it.

the Timelock Key event as for the alongside event, there's a solid chance we'll get LIs' POV into their past. last night, while rereading LAR for the umpteenth time (don't judge me), i had this thought – what if we get a deeper dive into Sylus' backstory? like the stuff briefly touched on in World Underneath (Mischief/Elysium timelines), his early years on Earth, his path leading to meeting MC, his POV mid-LAR (this man had a breakdown, ok?), or his absence in the N109 Zone earlier. maybe even small pieces from his anecdote? there's so much potential here, and i hope his team keeps delivering that peak writing. i'm just eager for some analysis fuel.

Eye of Aether and more hints damn, those visuals!

this one is just adding more fuel to the fire for the theory that the Eye of Aether is deeply connected to Sylus. maybe we'll finally get some answers... or another batch of cryptic clues. personally, i think this is one of the most intriguing mysteries in both the core lore and Sylus' story. but as usual, we're only getting crumbs.

and then there's another pic. this one clearly references the abandoned chapel from the limited myth. and i love the gothic vibe (i instantly started thinking abt the next myth, but more on that later). plus, perhaps it's just me, but that specific image radiates loneliness – a sense of forced isolation and unwanted solitude, idk. i'm probably overthinking it. and Sylus' silhouette here is definitely not the one referencing his dragon myth. which means we might be getting a current tl perspective with reflections on the past.

foreshadowing? yes, please now onto the part i'm most excited abt.

every major story update is obviously the devs' chance to tie up previous clues and core narrative threads – all those crucial points and chekhov’s guns finally go off. but that's not all, what abt foreshadowing? it's the best time to start teasing future updates, esp when it comes to new limited myths. with Sylus' character development tempo and the timing of his content, i wouldn't be surprised to see hints of what his next myth could look like. i'm still betting on his anecdote tl. a cosmic conqueror with the Robin Hood agenda? sign me up. this kind of limited companion and setup both have insane potential. and going back to that gothic visual from the new event – what if we get a gothic/futuristic Sylus in his myth style-wise? i'm just widely speculating atp, but it sounds so good.

final thoughts to sum this up, i really hope y'all catching up on the story (or in the middle of it), cuz tomorrow's going to hit us hard. also, don't forget to manage your phone/tablet storage and clear space.

and just be ready for whatever is waiting for us there 🐦‍⬛