#he was super cool and all his lines really hit home for me...!

[kanasmusings]

[Masterpost] SOARA Drama CD - “Gift”

Hello~! It’s been a really long time since I last posted on Tumblr, but I’m probably going to be more active here again (especially since Twitter is in shambles right now orz)~ Life has been a kick in the butt, but I have been working on a few projects that I’ve been wanting to work on, so hopefully my Tumblr blog will look alive (pun intended www) again! 

Let me kick the blog back up with a literal “Gift” translation~! Thank you to @melynir​ for requesting me for this drama! It is based on the plot of IveSta 6, but watching the stage isn’t really necessary to appreciate what the drama CD wants to convey ^^ IveSta 6 is divided into Growth and SOARA versions, but the drama applies to SOARA only, just in case you’re wondering where Growth and ZIX are.  

VAZZROCK translations are on queue, so please look forward to them as well~

Here are some links to where you can purchase the drama and the stage if you’re interested in checking them out: (CD) Movic, CDJapan | (Stage Play) Movic, CDJapan

Tracklist and translations under the cut, enjoy~!

[TRACKLIST:]

Track 01: “Encounter with an unlucky guy.”

Track 02: “Their Validations”

Track 03: “Let’s make comedy!”

Track 04: “The night before the battle.”

Track 05: “N-1 BATTLE”

Track 06: “N-1 Battle - Aftermath”

※ Please don’t re-post or re-translate these without permission!!!

If you enjoyed this, please consider buying me a ko-fi here to support my work! It’ll be a really big help. (o^▽^o)Thank you!!

[sarahsmi13s]

Fever Dream

pairing: evan buckley x nash!reader

characters: evan 'buck' buckley, nash!reader, bobby nash, athena grant

warnings: CONTAINS SPOILERS FOR 8.15, mentions of religion, blood, panic attack, nightmare, major character death, xreader (this is how i'm coping okay?), i'm delulu and gonna feed my fellow fandom siblings delusions, if i missed any please let me know!

word count: ~2.1k

a/n: as mentioned in the warnings, this contains spoilers for episode 15 so please if you don't want spoilers don't read. i wrote this simply because is how i'm choosing to cope until the next episode airs. i hope everyone out there is doing okay (in a general sense, i know so many of us are fucking mad). i hope this can help feed delusions or just maybe bring comfort.

summary: being separated from your team, your family, is hard enough... add in a deadly super virus and cctv cameras to give you a perfect view of them, and it's going to haunt you in ways you may never expect

Your fingers dug into Buck’s turn out. Your shaking and gasping cries merged with his screams, desperate prayers vibrating against his arm.

His throat hurt. It was raw and felt like it was bleeding, a metallic taste building up on his tongue. But he couldn’t bring himself to care. 

This couldn’t be it. This can’t be happening. Bobby’s not supposed to die.

No! No… Bobby was fine. He had been right behind Buck as they were leaving. He made it out. 

He was walking and talking, barking out orders like it was breathing.

Bobby was breathing.

Now…  Now he was what?

Now he was pacing around a room, alone. Professing his love to Athena and pleading with her to believe he didn’t want this. He was using every ounce of his strength to fight away any doubt in her heart. He was apologizing. Buck could still hear how he apologized to you as you were drug away from your attempts to pry the door open. 

Now he was crawling on the floor, his organs beginning to fail as he coughed up blood – red splatters decorating the ash covered floor. He was sweating, body feverish as his immune system kept trying to save him.

But nothing can save him…

Now he’s dying. Praying on his knees until blood filled his mouth like a fatal elixir, a final communion. Blood was coating his tongue and teeth, staining his lips crimson as his head fell to the table and his chest slowed to a stop.

Now he was in a body bag… and Buck-

– jolted awake, a raw cry straining his vocal cords as he gripped the duvet in his lap.

“Buck? Buck! Evan!” He knew that voice – that soft, gentle voice. “Hey, hey, baby it’s okay. It’s okay. I’m here. You’re safe.”

Gentle and warm hands cradled his face, tilting it up as thumbs wiped the tears away. He can barely make out anything through the tears and the panic scrambling his brain.

But those eyes… He knows those eyes. They’re safe. They’re home.

They’re you.

His entire body was shaking. Sweat dripped down his back, leaving goosebumps as the AC cooled his hot skin. Tears shone on his face in the dim lamplight, more spilling over his lash line to pool on your thumbs. His chest ached, it felt like he was trying suck in air from an empty oxygen tank.

“Breathe, Ev’. Breathe for me.”

He hit his chest to communicate that he was trying. Each gulp of air wheezed into his windpipe, barely giving him enough to speak. “I-I can’t…”

You nodded, moving his arms around you and pressing his hands flat against your back. “You can. You just gotta follow me, baby.”

He tried, he really tried. But his chest felt too tight, air snagged in his throat, scraping along what felt like open wounds lining his esophagus. All before getting forced out in broken, strangled sobs.

You only smiled softly at him, the expression warm and encouraging. Your thumbs brushed his cheeks gently, being careful not to rub his cheeks raw as your exhales cooled them. His hands were desperate and hard on your back, gripping at your sleep shirt as he tried to follow your breathing.

Neither of you knew how long it took before his chest expanded fully again. A full breath of air, accented by the scent of your shampoo, filled his lungs. He swallowed, nodding against you as he began to calm down.

You tilted your head, the movement small as you pushed his curl back from his damp forehead. There was no doubt this panic attack was the result of a nightmare. They weren’t uncommon in this line of work, but only a few brought on panic attacks.

Your hand rested at the back of his head, the other gently resting on the side of his neck. “What happened, Buck? What did you see?”

The question made his throat cinch up again, fresh waves of tears falling down his cheeks. He opened his mouth and the words tumbled out in broken, sob-ridden babbles.

You gently shushed him after a few moments, soothing the ache with the tender caress of your hands carding through his hair. His tears are hot against your skin as you tilted his chin up with your thumb. “Sweetheart, I need you to slow down.”

You weren’t upset with him, or frustrated in the slightest. If anything… you were scared and just wanted to help.

Buck swallowed, squeezing his eyes shut in an attempt to control himself. You pressed your lips to his head and gently rocked you both. It was a little awkward in this position, but all you cared about was making sure he was okay.

You pulled back to look at him, your hand moving back to his cheek to brush away the tears.

His eyes remained downcast, staring at where your knees pressed into his thighs. He gripped your shirt again as a soft cry fell from his lips.

“The lab…”

He felt you tense at the words. Your hands paused in their movements just long enough for him to catch it before you went right back to soothing him. 

A pang of guilt hit deep in his heart. 

“We-we had just got Hen and Chimney out, and everything was fine. But as I turned to Cap… he-” Buck bit his quivering lip, his eyes remaining fixated on your point of contact, not wanting to see the heartbreak in your eyes as he told you again what had happened in the damned lab. He hated to make you relive it, relive probably the worst day of your life. He wanted to take it back, take all of it back… but he kept going, knowing you wouldn’t just let him go back to sleep.

“He locked himself in… the hose line to his tank was torn in the explosion, he had been sick the whole time and no one knew. He sacrificed himself for Chimney… he’s gone.”

His voice cracked, sobs sending his trembling frame into your lap. Apologies tumbled past his lips and rumbled against your sternum. 

Your heart broke, frame rattling with the devastating cries of your boyfriend. You planted kisses on his head and rubbed his back. “Oh Evan, honey… it’s okay.”

“No, it’s not! He’s gone!” He pulled back swiftly, nearly headbutting you in the process. “Nothing is okay! How will it ever be okay?”

You held his face, fingers gently curling around his jaw to get him to look at you. “Baby, that was just a nightmare. He’s okay. He’s with Athena at their temporary apartment.”

Buck’s eyes met yours, his crystal blue eyes surrounded by red as his brow furrowed in confusion. “W-what? That-that’s impossible there was only one cure and we used that on Chimney. Bobby couldn’t have…” He trailed off, his voice giving way as he looked at you with pure desperation to understand.

Your thumbs rubbed under his eyes, tracing comforting crescents there. You couldn’t help the tears that stung your own eyes or how your lip quivered as you shook your head. “Baby, dad’s line was never compromised. His equipment was intact. He’s okay, I promise you.”

“But-”

You shushed him gently, adjusting how you were sitting to hold him. “I know… I know it felt real. Dreams like that always do. And it’s wild how, despite knowing the truth, your brain can twist reality so intricately that you wake up wondering which is which. Scared that the good life was the dream and the nightmare is your life…”

Buck sniffled, a small sound escaping his lips. His head was throbbing, pulsing alongside his heart as it crossed wires and memories. He was half-awake trying to make it all make sense.

“C’mon,” you said softly, sniffling as you kissed his damp forehead. You slipped out of the bed, grabbing Buck’s zip-up hoodie before pulling him to his feet. “Put this on and find your shoes.”

“Honey-”

“We’re going over there, right now.” 

Your words held a sense of authority, leaving no room for argument or questioning. Not that Buck needed to question you, he trusted you more than he trusted anyone.

The drive across town was a blur. Street lights and business signs merged together, nothing but bright neon streaks that went by too fast for anyone to process properly. 

Buck was fighting to stay awake, to pull himself out of his dream fog and focus. He felt stuck, constantly trying to decipher dream from reality.

A gentle squeeze to his hand felt like he was sucked back into his body. Everything around him clears, all becoming separate entities rather than a multi-colored blob. He could hear the low hum of the radio, the ambient sounds filling the space of the car in substitute of his voice.

Your lips brushed his knuckles as you reached across your body to put the car in park. “We’re here.” You could feel his hand trembling in yours just before you let go to exit the car.

He quickly got out after you, rounding the car and reaching for your hand again.

He needed it. He needed to be grounded. 

You both walked in, nodding to the doorman as you walked right past him to the elevator. 

After you got in and pressed the button you turned to Buck. He was bouncing on his toes, his unoccupied hand restless at his side.

“Baby, c’mere,” you said softly, tugging on his hand before wrapping your arms around him in a proper hug.

He immediately returned it, his arms pinning you to his chest desperately.

His voice was raspy as he spoke. “I’m so scared…” 

“I know, Ev’... I know. But I promise, he’s okay. You’ll see for yourself soon, I swear it.” 

The elevator slowed to a stop and you pulled apart as the doors opened. You took his hand again, gripping it tightly as you walked down the hall to your parents door.

Your knuckles rapped on the door in a rhythm that would signal to whoever was awake that it was you. Buck brought the concept up to Bobby back when you both began dating. It was just a silly little thing you did as a family, nothing serious.

But the sound of it made Buck’s stomach sink with anxiety.

What if Bobby would never hear that again? What if Buck would never hear Bobby knock like that again?

What if-

“Y/n? Buck?”

You smiled at Athena softly, a hint of an apology in it. “Hi, Athena…”

She wrapped her robe around her, yawning as she ushered you both inside. “It’s two in the morning, baby, what’re you doing here? Is everything okay?”

Her voice was laced with sleep and you almost felt bad for waking her up but there was a glass of water on the counter. She had been awake for a few minutes when you knocked.

Buck wiped at his eyes with his free hand as he squeezed yours.

You returned the gesture, rubbing your own eyes as you spoke.

“We umm… we need-”

“Bobby…” Buck’s frayed voice rattled through the kitchen, his shoulders dropping as if the strings keeping him so tense had been cut.

You and Athena looked up to see your dad walk out of the bedroom, stretching as he walked into the kitchen.

“Buck? Y/n? What’s going on? Everything okay?” He was slowly coming around to the idea of being awake at such an ungodly hour as he noticed the look on Buck’s face.

“Buck? What’s wrong?”

Without saying anything, Buck launched his 6’2” frame at your dad, curling into him like a child. He pressed his face into Bobby’s shoulder, crying in relief.

You noticed Athena glance at you from the corner of your eye as Bobby looked at you, hoping for an explanation.

You swallowed, arms wrapping around yourself as you leaned against the counter. “A nightmare… about the lab incident.”

Bobby gripped Buck tighter, realizing that being the only one not stuck in there must have taken a bigger toll on Buck than he thought.

Athena rubbed your arm, extending a comforting hand to you. Seeing Buck reacting so viscerally like this had to be affecting you too, she wanted you to know that you weren’t alone. 

You smiled at her appreciatively, resting your head on her shoulder as Buck pulled back from the hug.

“It-it felt so real… you died, Bobby. I-I thought we lost you.”

A deep frown pulled at your dad’s lips, his brow creasing as he gripped Buck’s shoulders.

“It was just a dream, son,” he said, pulling Buck back into a hug. “Everyone made it out. Everyone’s okay. I’m okay, and I don’t plan on changing that anytime soon.”

a/n: thank you so much for reading! i hope this could bring some comfort in, it was a huge comfort to write, and that it can hold you over until may 1...

and thank you to @startrekfangirl2233 for giving this a look over for me a giving some feedback!

also, happy easter to those who celebrate! i hope you're all having a great day!

tags (you can also follow @vinnys-recordcollection and turn on notifications ;p): @lovinglyeternal @bradleybeachbabe @achilles-rage @kmc1989 (tagged a few i thought might like it - apologies for anyone i missed, i gotta sort out taglists 😅)

[supercap2319]

Clark Kent and his childhood best friend, a wizard, Clark has a bisexual awakening and gives up Lana for the reader, something cute, I'm kind of needy

Best Friends

Y/N watched with an amused grin as his best friend fell down at the dainty feet of Lana Lang? Again? He couldn't help enjoying the entertainment value of Clark Kent making a fool of himself for a girl who was too needy and popular. Clark could have his pick of dozens older, and more importantly, legal girls. They all fell for that farm boy sweetness and Boy Scout charm.

Clark had been crushing on Lana since the third grade and while it had been cute in elementary school, now, it was just sad. Like a bad Netflix rom-com, where the nerdy guy gets the very pretty, and very unattainable popular girl. It just wasn't fair in Y/N's opinion. Lana wouldn't give Clark the time of day, no matter how hard the farm boy tried. He just wasn't what Lana was looking for. Probably a gay best friend or even a friend, but not a lover.

It didn't matter anyways. Clark always got sick and pale around Lana, and they both knew the reason for it. It was that damn meteorite necklace that she always wore around her neck. It was a green diamond, tied by a silver cord. Lana started wearing it after the meteor shower hit Smallville. It was around the same time that Clark came into their lives.

Clark was an alien from another planet, who arrived in Kansas in a spaceship. Mr. and Mrs. Kent adopted him as their son, and the rest was history. At least until Y/N found out Clark's secret. It was third grade, and Clark had accidentally hovered in front of Y/N. It had shocked him, but he understood what it was like to keep a secret. 

Y/N was from a long line of wizards with wands, spells, and magic. The whole nine yards, if you will. That's where their friend became stronger than anyone else in their friend group. Stronger than Pete's. Stronger than Chloe's. Y/N and Clark were an unstoppable duo, until it came to Lana.

“Hey, Clark. Hi, Lana.” Y/N said. He picked up a few of the books Clark had dropped when he was trying to act cool in front of Lana. He didn't hate but, man, he really wished he could portal her into another dimension. Clark would not be happy with him if he did that, but it was a comforting thought.

“Sorry, I didn't pick you up, man. I was up late last night finishing an article for the Torch, and Chloe will kill me if I don't have it in her snarky, dainty hands by the time the bell rings.”

“That's okay. I managed.” Clark gave Y/N a secret smile. An inside joke between them. They both knew Clark was referring to his super-speed. He must have used it to catch—beat the school bus to school.

Lana, was momentarily forgotten about. At least she was, until she cleared her throat, gaining both boy's attention. “Glad you weren't hurt, Clark. That was a pretty nasty fall.” Lana said, tugging a strand of hair behind her ear. Made her look so innocent and pretty, that Y/N wanted to gag.

Apparently, it worked on innocent farm boys, because Clark was grinning ear to ear, a slight blush on his handsome face. “Thanks, Lana. I'm fine.” Of course he was. He was Indestructible, until he got near that green meteor rock, and suddenly all Clark's powers and abilities were replaced by pain and nausea.

“I'm glad. See you guys around.” She turned on her heel and left, joining her friends in the social patriarchy that was high school. 

……

That night, at the Kent farmhouse, Y/N and Clark were up in the loft (Fortress of Solitude as Clark likes to call it) working on an assignment for school. After this morning's disaster of America's Funny Home Videos, Clark had begged Y/N to sign up with him and Pete for the football team. Football was Y/N's style, but he did it for Clark. True, Mr. Kent was gonna be upset when he found out what Clark had done, but hey, it was worth it, right?

Clark had been wanting to join the football team since 6th grade peewee league, but Mr. and Mrs. Kent was afraid he might accidentally hurt someone with his powers, so they forbade him from competing in any sports. It was kind of sad, really. Clark never get to experience the highs and lows of being on a team of meathead jockstraps, as Chloe affectionately references to them.

“This is boring. Let’s take a break and order a pizza. I'm starving.” Y/N tossed his math book on Clark's desk. The taller boy shot him a pointed look. “And who says you're in charge? It's my fortress, I decide what we do.” Clark grinned.

“I've been making the decisions since we were in diapers, Kent. You can't be insubordinate now.” Y/N grins back. It was nothing serious between them. Just two super-powered teenagers looking to unwind after boring algebra. 

“Oh, yeah? And who's gonna stop me? I have the phone right here.” Clark held up Y/N's phone with a grin on his face. Y/N waved a hand, and the phone came flying into his hands. “Checkmate, Clark. The guy with the wizard powers always wins. Just ask Harry Potter.”

In a blur, Clark had Y/N’s phone in his hands once again, waving it around in a teasing way. “I got the phone. Gonna order pineapple and anchovies.” He turns to walk down the steps of the loft, towards the ground floor barn. Y/N lifts Clark into the air using his powers and grunts. He's heavier than he looks. He turns Clark to face him. "You do realize there are about 6 different ways I can break free of this."

Y/N smiled interested. "Take your best shot, Kent.”

Clark smiles as he just starts spinning around in mid air thanks to Y/N keeping him up. At a human speed at first,  but eventually it picks up momentum until he becomes a red and blue tornado. Y/n stumbles and loses his grip on him, and Clark lands feet first on the floor.

“You cheat!” Y/N accuses.

“Nah, I didn't cheat. You just suck at magic, dude. Or just plain suck, if you know what I mean.” Clark's eyes wiggled in a teasing way. Y/N growls and charges before feeling his back on the plush couch. Clark was on top of him, pinning him down. He grins and leans downward. “You're all mine, tough guy.”

“And just what do you plan on doing?” Y/N asked.

“This.”

Clark leans downward and kisses Y/N. It was soft and sweet, like taffy. Clark tasted like the powerade and peanut butter sandwich he had for lunch today. It was a strangely appealing taste. The kiss was something and everything that Y/N imagined with Clark. He had a crush on his best friend! He was so screwed.

A few moments later, Clark pulled back with a blush on his cheeks, replacing the cocky guy, who was just pinning him down a second ago. “Y/N? I think I'm bisexual, and I have a crush on you. Please don't hate me.”

“Hate you? Clark, you're my best friend. I could never hate you, but I will admit that I've been crushing on you too.” Y/N blushed.

“Really?”

“Yeah, really, but what about Lana?” Y/N asked. This was definitely not the way to win her affections. Not by kissing boys, who are your best friend in a barn loft.

“Who cares about her? I got someone even better.” Clark leans down once again, placing a chaste kiss on Y/N's lips.

[nerdsnuff]

NISHINOYA YUU BOYFRIEND HCS. gender neutral reader, fluff, pre-timeskip in mind while writing…

my first haikyuu love… still love him btw thats my BABE who deserves more love

𓅪 does not hide his feelings. at all. he WILL be the one to confess. no buts. on a random day and not even fully planned… just blurts it out impulsively.

you were getting the last of your things in your locker before you finally head home for the day, imagine your surprise when you see nishinoya next to you when you closed your locker door. he simply laughs as you yelp, heart almost bursting out. “hahah! sorry for scaring you! i just really wanted to talk to you. walk to the gate with me?” he offers. though you’re jokingly still ticked off you agree anyways, letting him know with a nod. once you’re done you two head off, the wind is nice and cool this afternoon. “so… there’s something i wanna tell you…” he suddenly stops, so you do too. unexpectedly he raises his voice, startling you once more. “YOU’RE SUPER COOL AND I KNOW THIS IS SUDDEN BUT PLEASE GO OUT WITH ME!”

𓅪 both before and after dating he talks to tanaka all about you all the time. thankfully the guy is never annoyed. and yes he did wingman nishinoya, probably the guy to convince him to just go for it and confess. they’re both pretty intense about their feelings… anyway just imagine the absolute hype when you accept his confession.

𓅪 guard dog boyfriend FR! will not let ANYONE bother you. people hitting on you? jumped. bullies? jumped? some person simply pissing you off? JUMPED. he has a bit of a problem controlling his temper sometimes… you often have to tell him off when he doesn’t realize that backing off is simply a better solution.

𓅪 speaking of guard dog, would absolutely love to take you home as far as he could! if you use the bus then he’ll take you to the stop (though would hop on with you if he could…), if you guys live near each other hell yeah he’d walk you home

𓅪 buys you treats after school!!! loves spoiling you with little snacks. candy, ice cream, cheap cakes, etc. mostly sweets. always takes you to go to coach ukai’s store every after school! he basically remembers what you look like now and teases the two of you.

𓅪 biggest simp like goddamn bro. he isn’t even into romcoms but if he was he’d be doing all the extra shit he sees. that can’t take my eyes off you’ performance from 10 things i hate about you? absolutely he’d do that. he WOULD learn french for you. which is crazy ‘cus he literally struggles to learn englishcough

𓅪 WILL tackle hug you. yes, even if he’s sweaty… can you blame him? he just can’t contain all the love he has for his darling partner!

𓅪 about petnames… 100% a “babe” guy. i mean he’ll call you other things but babe just slips out so much easier for him.

𓅪 he does need help in class but most of the time acts like he doesn’t just to seem cooler. but if it gets real bad he will go to you for help, it doesn’t matter if you’re smarter than him or not.

𓅪 invites you out almost every weekend. unless it’s a busy week or a busy week is coming up, then you guys just call from home.

“y’know, i really wanted to take you cycling today, but i seriously gotta study…” he sighs and adjusts the phone on his ear, causing scratched noises to be heard from his line. “oh yeah, i’m going to tokyo next week! ahah, yeah! i gotta study hard so i can actually go though, wouldn’t let me pass with a bad grade” you hear him chuckle, along with the sound of papers ruffling. “mmhm, it’s a training camp for volleyball” he then unexpectedly pauses for a moment, the unfamiliar silence makes your eyebrow quirk up. though in a quick second, his voice shoots up again. “actually, ryuu’s coming over to study with me soon… wanna join!?”

[zutarawasrobbed]

ALTA Live Action Season 1 Initial Thoughts (Spoilers)

I just finished the season, and holy shit!

Quick things that need to be addressed/debunked:

“Sokka is no longer sexist”

I dont know what people were talking about when they talked about Sokka’s “sexism” being removed. It’s still there! But not in the overly exaggerated comical way it was in the original.

In fact, it’s more in line with ancient practices of indigenous tribes where men are seen as protectors and providers while women are expected to nurture. It’s not the same “boys are better than girls” narrative in the original.

Additionally, Suki still beats the fuck out of Sokka and humbled him really quick. They’re super cute by the way. And I love Suki’s “I like my men a little stupid” vibe. She’s great.

“Aang doesn’t run away like the original!”

That is not true. He does run away, but not because he’s trying to get away from the temple but instead to get some air because he feels overwhelmed. He’s more like taking a quick break and planning to come back. It’s not exactly the same, but almost. It also is done in a way where his guilt feels more justified.

“Katara doesn’t talk about her mom anymore like the original”

This is true… BECAUSE THEY SHOW INSTEAD OF TELL. I was honestly not prepared to see the death Kya in such graphic detail and how Katara was in the room hiding when it happened. It’s honestly really sad and more heartbreaking.

Plot:

The timeline seems to be ambiguous compared to the original series where it was “end of current year.” In fact, they repeat “three years” a few times, which makes me think if the series get greenlit for more seasons, it would be over a three year period.

Jet is still villainized but given more nuance and not a simple "good v bad" way like the original.

Zuko’s story about how he got his scar has additional lore that makes him come across as even more selfless and compassionate. The additional context of the platoon he advocated for in the war meeting, becoming his current crew, really added to the story.

Eradicated the nepotism baby plot point with Pakku only training Katara when he finds out he used to date her grandma. Instead, Katara proves herself and ends up teaching the other male fighters the techniques she learned from watching other benders use their elements and mimics them.

This season doesn’t have Aang learning any waterbending, but rather facing his trauma and the consequences of his actions. He get roasted by all his past lives. Which is an interesting choice, but I think it works well in how they executed it.

This season seems to actually be Katara focused and her journey of learning waterbending which I honestly loved because it really hits home the element of “water” being the story of an untrained waterbender learning her element. But, I do think Aang could’ve learned a little bending. It felt a little off.

Katara ends up advocating for all waterbending women and ends up leading an army of both men and women during the siege. She’s really bad ass and is given the title of master without being formally trained by Pakku. She made herself a master.

I think the timeline is a little wonky because of how much they had to fit in with the limited episodes they had.

Kuruk is given respect! I loved that.

June actually seems into Iroh which I thought was a funny but cool way to flip the script from the original.

The relationship between Zuko and Iroh is really beautifully executed. I love the depth they added with flashback scenes and their bond prior to the Agni Kai. It also wasn’t as frustrating watching Iroh and Zuko’s dynamic because Iroh communicated with Zuko in a way he could understand with straight answers rather than seeming to actively sabotage him with cryptic puns and shenanigans like the original.

They changed the love triangle with Yue Hahn and Sokka to be very healthy. They gave Yue autonomy and a choice in her relationship- which- again- is much more in line with indigenous cultures. Also, Hahn and Sokka’s relationship is really supportive and full of respect and no ill will.

They way they handled grief and the realities of war with the loss of life was very well done and really drove home the point that this is a war and these are child soldiers.

There’s a lot more but these are my initial thoughts. Will probably post more later.

Shipping:

Kataang is all but removed. Literally DOA. There is no indication of a crust on either side. It’s painted like a sibling relationship, which is like the original, but this time everyone seems to be on the same page. But, I swear the writers had to have read ZK fics because damn.

They canonized a popular Zutara theory/hc about the cave of two lovers and how the crystals would light up once it went completely dark instead of a “kiss” activating the crystal glow.

Speaking of the Cave of two lovers. They keep the Oma and Shu story with red and blue coloring. Making it come across more as foreshadowing than a direct link to the present tunnel story.

Sokka is put in Aang’s place with Katara in the tunnels and turned it into a story about the love of family and sibling bonds. Aang wasn’t even present.

Zuko and Katara share a meaningful look when they first see each other and continue to have a Katara centric scene followed by a Zuko centric scene and vice versa.

The scarf scene. I will not be elaborating further. If you know, you know.

Zuko and Katara fight scene in the North is epic. He still taunts her with almost the exact same dialogue but it’s so sassy- I love the banter.

Suki and Sokka were really cute and the actors had great chemistry. I think Yue and Sokka was really rushed and didn’t really feel anything about them, honestly. But I attribute that to lack of episodes to develop all that plot.

[sunsetmaidenwrites]

Thanks to @questinwitchface @bastianfruit and @ineffable-snowman for tagging me. Thanks to @jemgirl86 for doing fun things to help cleanse and reclaim the tag!

Rules: Share your top 5 favorite SamBucky fics that you've written, and then tag 5 people.

Destination Wedding M, 31,155 words

Opposites reluctantly attract when Sam and Bucky keep running into one other at Steve's destination wedding. (Lots of bickering and bantering in this one, which was super fun to write.)

Excerpt:

The man was dressed all in black, like he was going to a freaking funeral. Kinda fitting actually. Sam could relate. As if sensing Sam’s perusal, he glanced up, giving a brief nod and a tight smile, Sam hit with the most gorgeous pair of eyes he’d ever seen. Blue shimmered with gray, lending the stranger an ethereal quality that more than made up for his decidedly grungy appearance. Hair shaggy and unkempt, escaping the man bun he’d thrown it in, scruff lining a jaw that was probably too chiseled for Sam’s peace of mind…

He stiffened at the thought, wondering where it had even come from. He was not the sort to go checking out rando’s at airports, especially one that looked like he’d just rolled out of bed, opting out of the shower to save time because he was running late.

Sam was never late. This dude looked like he’d never made it on time for anything.

2. That Picture T, 8,168 words

Captain America and the Winter Soldier on the outs? Working on opposite teams? No longer in each other's lives? What's going on?! Can this relationship be saved?! (This fic was written after the first Bucky Thunderbolts* pic came out and sent us all into a tailspin. It's actually one of my less popular SamBucky fics, so I'm a little protective of it. I don't think I did a good job promoting it or selling what it was really about, but if you make it to the third chapter, it's worth it. I love Sarah in this one, too.)

Excerpt:

Not only was Bucky Barnes out of work, he was also out of options, out of friends, and out of chances. His pardon hanging by threads he was damn near ready to sever himself just to be done with the whole fucking thing. Let them lock him in the raft, never to see the light of day again.

Without Sam Wilson there was no sunshine anyway.

3. The Wilson Home for Reformed Assassins T, 2195 words

Bucky Barnes has some explaining to do after Sam Wilson finds a feisty blonde former assassin in the kitchen, eating all the food and looking for a place to stay. (This was my first attempt at writing Yelena. It was fun giving her and Bucky a sibling vibe and writing her meeting all the Wilsons.)

Excerpt:

"Sam! What's going on in my kitchen right now?" Sarah watched as Yelena speared a cinnamon roll with a wicked looking knife and proceeded to eat it. 

"Cool knife," Cass said, his eyes widening with a mixture of adoration and fascination.

"I can show you how to throw the-"

"Sam," Sarah interrupted Yelena, a dangerous edge to her voice.

"Sarah, I can explain," Sam said, keeping his voice level, alarmed by how much his sister reminded him of his mother in that moment. Darlene Wilson had been the sweetest woman on the planet, until you got her riled. Sarah was definitely edging riled.  "It's Bucky's fault!"

4. The Only Thing I'd Change T, 13,772 words

Sam overhears Bucky say something curious and obsesses over it. Bucky notices Sam acting differently and spirals about it. And Sarah just wants them both to use their words. (An established relationship fic where both Sam and Bucky do too much overthinking and not enough communicating, but they love each other so damn much you know it's gonna work out in the end. I think this is probably one of my better written works and definitely one of the fics I spent the most time working on, tweaking, and obsessing over. At times, I felt like this fic was gonna break me, but it ended up being quite healing instead.)

Excerpt:

"Can you move your seat up?" He’d asked another lifetime ago, sullen and lost, broken beyond repair without even a smidgeon of hope. And through the mess of pain and disillusionment came one brisk, certain reply.

"No."

Bucky had fallen a little in love that very moment. The only person who could love an obstinate asshole was another obstinate asshole. And on some vague level, Bucky had recognized even then that he’d found his obstinate asshole.

5. An Affair to Remember M, 40,365 words

Sam is a college running back destined for NFL stardom. Bucky is a depressed mess just trying to make it through the day. A wrong number leads to an unexpected connection and a secret relationship that can only be temporary...right? (This one will always be special to me. It was my first real chaptered work on AO3, and the first fic I wrote that garnered passionate responses. It's angsty and heart-breaking at times, but also has a lot of humor and heart and an array of guest character interactions I'm really proud of. Reader response and engagement really meant so much to me with this one.)

Excerpt:

Sam’s eyes shone with joy. “You showed up for me, Buck. Maybe that’s what changed everything. Like flipping a switch and now nothing will ever be the same since I’ve seen you in this light.”

“I never wanna be the man who doesn’t show up for you, Sam Wilson.”

“Now you’re just trying to charm me. Steve warned me about that, ya know? His rascal of a friend Bucky. The charmer with the million-dollar smile and a shitload of pretty words. Then I met you and there was zero smile and about 10 words and a grunt or two. I thought he was full of shit, but here we are.”

“Here we are. Maybe I’m an acquired taste.”

“Maybe. Had a shot of you last night, now here I am back for more.”

Honorable Mention:

I have had so much fun with the Friends Don't series! It would be hard to pick a favorite there because it runs the gamut of being fun, fluffy, serious, and angsty. But Friends Don't Get Lipsy When They Get Tipsy gets a special shoutout because it both makes my heart ache and cracks me up every time I do a reread.

No Pressure Tagging: I'm late to the party, so I think everyone is probably already covered. But I'll add @abarbaricyalp @thatmexisaurusrex @firstelevens since I haven't seen anything in the tag from them yet. If anyone wants to do it, consider yourself tagged--or send me an ask and I'll sneak your name in. 🥰

[bigbigtruck]

A non-comprehensive list of favorite songs that came out in 2024

Elbow, "Things I've Been Telling Myself For Years" [YOUTUBE] alt-rock Haven't been super thrilled by the past 2 or 3 Elbow albums but they're back in fine form with Audio Vertigo. Swinging for the bleachers, getting a little weird with it again, thank god. This one's got my favorite verses on the album: I'm the dashboard hula girl of nodding self-deception Here's to never accepting slight adjustment or correction... Of course I'll live to ninety-six and fix the welfare state I'll build a house with these two hands, my face above the gate I haven't paid for cabs or beers or met a cunt in twenty years Like all that outrun poverty, all I have was coming to me Things I've been telling myself for years

TWRP, "Content 4 U" [YOUTUBE] pop Highly danceable, highly relatable. First heard this on the Digital Nightmare tour this spring. After shaking my ass and giggling into the April night air, the lyrics sink in and I'm doing that dead eyed Lisa Simpson stare at the pavement because yeah that's. That's trying to live from any creative hustle in this bitch of a 21st century. Excellent work, boys, I hate it. I love it.

St. Vincent, "Big Time Nothing" [YOUTUBE] alt-pop What's the big deal this is just "Numb" over the bass line from "Army of Me" with a little Laurie Anderson and Talking Heads thrown in and wait hold up this rules

Oranssi Pazuzu, "Muuntautuja" [YOUTUBE] (link fixed!) prog/psych/black metal Goes hard and slow. A pulsating, hypnotic onslaught of black smoke and sandpaper. The whole album's incredible but this is probably my favorite track.

Kendrick Lamar, "Euphoria" [YOUTUBE] hip hop I mean, it's Kendrick Lamar. Dude's a fuckin Godzilla across the musical landscape. "Not Like Us" was the splashier hit of the summer, but this is the one that stayed with me. (Listening again while writing this and. Jesus, It's... it's 6 solid minutes of sticking your hand right on a hot burner.)

King Gizzard and the Lizard Wizard, "Antarctica" [YOUTUBE] southern rock A fun (ironically) warm summer jam that fuckin blew the doors off live. Easily my fave from their most recent album.

Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds, "Wild God" [YOUTUBE] alt-rock/symphonic Really sneaks up on you, like a mumbly guy in the coffee shop. What's he writing? "Moving through your body like a prehistoric bird?" Huh, Looks intriguiOH HOLY SHIT HE HAS A CHORUS WITH HIM.

John Grant, "All That School for Nothing" [YOUTUBE] alt-pop/funk John Grant's got this particular nasty (complimentary) streak, a deep-seated gay cynicism that reminds me of Hidden Cameras at their best, but with more lush and varied instrumentals. His lyrics are always tops, and this one's no exception. The whole album, The Art of the Lie, is great, with "Marbles" being another delight.

Ninja Sex Party, "Let's Save The Earth" [YOUTUBE] comedy pop Feels silly to put this one in alongside the rest, but... I mean it's NSP. They do goofs, not a poetic dissection of the zeitgeist. I actually heard this one on tour in Fall 2022 and it brought the house down--I might actually prefer it live with audience participation TBH. This has become me and Brett's karaoke go-to.

A.G. Cook, "Soulbreaker" [YOUTUBE] electronic Deceptively simple chord progression becomes healing, memorable. The animated video for this is essential viewing, IMO. Wild art style and cool concept. This song makes me feel like things might turn out okay.

Elbow, "Balu" [YOUTUBE] alt-rock Probably my most played track of the entire year. Apparently this is a semi-fictional tribute to a beloved cousin or nephew? Once again back with the incredible lyrics. Probably my favorite line of the entire year: I'll never be home without you, but I'll never grow in your shadow. Anyway that bass/keyboard line is sending me to the center of the galaxy

[dark-lord-of-awesomeness]

So, I've been planning a fic on this concept, but my motivation has been in the dumps for months, so I thought, why not tell you? I’ve sent it to aroace-get-out-of-my-face as well, but your also one of my favorite creators, so why not? Either it'll help my motivation, or at the very least, I'll still be getting my idea out to somebody, lol. This ideas is really scattered, so sorry about that.

So, after getting his mind wiped, Stan runs away due to lingering conman/criminal instincts, which means he doesn't meet Ford, Mabel, or Dipper or have his memories come back. He finds the Starmobile, already packed, with a new fake ID 'Stanson Pinesford,' because Stan had previously packed it, preparing to, y'know, hit the road after summer.

Ford and the twins chase after him, of course, trying to get him home. However, due to Stan's emotions and time periods being all over the place, he has his conman experience with his homeless paranoia, so, no, he is not following this dude who claims to be his brother back to Oregon. Not to mention lingering emotional tensions makes Ford convincing Stan even harder, because even though the memories aren’t there, emotions and trauma stick around.

This leads to:

Stan getting kidnapped/rescued back to Oregan.

Stan speaking spanish (that he cannot remember learning) and pretending not to understand English, trying to throw Ford off, only making Ford more determined to save him.

Ford is a terrible, terrible driver.

When Stan does he kidnapped and/or rescued, he silently judges Ford for kidnapping him with kids around.

Mabel is living in fierce optimism, she will turn this into a fun family road trip, one way or another.

Ford is desperately making up excuses as of why Mabel and Dipper need to stick around longer to their parents, with varying success.

Eventually Stan stops genuinely trying to escape, because they sure are convincing, but he keeps play escaping because, hey, it’s fun and he gets to show off!!

When Stan get backs to Oregan, Stan and Soos bonding over card tricks. Stan thinks Soos is pretty good, Soos is only that good because he learned from Stan.

Honestly Stan is getting one sidedly found family’d while everyone else is just, a regaining family lol.

Stan slowly bonding with everyone again, feeling memories poke through the surface and slowly finding himself. Teaching Wendy to steal, Mabel learning Spanish, Dipper feeling so familiar but he can’t pin point what he’s being reminded of.

Ford being kind of jealous that Stan’s the most wary of him(because their relationship has not been very good for years, and the emotions are a weird tangle in Stan’s chest and he can’t remember what happened, but everything’s so good right now, does he even want to?)

This sounds so fun!

I love the found family with his own family Stan thinking he's being hunted by the most inept kidnappers ever. These are children. Why is this other grown man bringing kids to kidnap him. Ford, who hasn't driven a car in a while, gets shoved out of the drivers seat by Stan with him saying something along the lines of 'give me the wheel before you kill us all!'

Ford just goes 'ah alright, that makes sense- and he's gone. The kids!' and chases Stan who's stolen the car with Dipper and Mabel and is telling them he'd get them home away from that other crazy guy.

And bonding! Laughing with Mabel, scheming with Dipper, and teaching Soos and everyone all his cool tricks he usually wouldn't because he's too self conscious.

Ford just watching it all like a kicked puppy :( Thats his bro, and he's missed so much time and now Stan thinks he's an awful kidnapper and also doesn't like him anymore :( Every attempt to bond has Stan side eyeing him and gets accusations of trying to get Stan to a second location followed by a smoke bomb.

This is a super fun idea! I hope you find the motivation to continue it, and thank you so much for sharing!

[the-fo0l]

Micheal Scofield dating hcs

notes: it's criminal crazy kooky insane how little content there is for this show

warnings: gn reader, s1 lore, super soft fluff!!!! also idc if u think its out of charater let me be delulu

he's so babygirl

a very devoted boyfriend (im pretty sure i say that in all my hcs but its true!!)

just so soft and polite and gentle with you aaaaa

doesn't notice just how hard he's fallen for you until he has to be apart from you a long while

such a gentleman, his intentions towards you are always respectful

before you we're offical he had quite the crush on you

sometimes you could notice that cool, calm, witty demeanor of his becoming more bashful and jittery around you

daydreamed a lot about you and your potential future together. what it'd be like to live with you, to start the day by your side, how you'd show affection, how you'd express diffrent emotions, what you'd talk about, your niche interests and quirks— etc

slightly creepy but he did do a bit of research on you to make sure he hit it off with you as best as he could

always says good night and good morning, over text if not in person

just imagine waking up, still cuddling, but with a little distance so he can properly take in your sleepy morning face

him just gazing at you so lovingly, his gentle smile growing a little bigger seeing you open your eyes, then moving one hand from your waist to caress your cheek and murmur "good morning" with his sultry morning voice

GOOD LORDDD

he developed a new-found love for his job when you two started dating cause thanks to it he can properly provide for you

and provide he does

doesn't think you should have to work a day in your life (unless you wanted to)

he'd hate for you to stay at a job you're miserable at

super proud of you for all your accomplishments

when you have to seperate while walking to avoid something in the street, be immediately reaches back to interwine your fingers again

expresses all love languages in some way but 'acts of service' is his main one

amazing at gift giving and romantic gestures

just when you think he can't possibly out-do last year's anniversary/birthday gift he suprises you with something super elaborate and meaningful

absent-mindedly makes origami flowers for you at work. you'll also find them all over your apartment, some hidden, some in plain sight

at some point he started writing messages on them. some with the most loving praise you've ever heard and some w cheesy pickup lines

p.s. he grins ear to ear when he finds out you've got a special box for them all instead of throwing them away

when you're both still a little tired in the morning, or when either of you comes home after a long day, he peppers delicate kisses all over your face, ending with a deeper kiss to your lips

your touch just makes all the headaches of his day-to-day melt away

also takes both your hands and kisses your knuckles while looking at you with all the love and admiration in the world god lord

okay enough with the kissing!

always opens doors for you

compliments you often, and always uses words like stunning or beautiful instead of "hot

loves making you flustered with praise

he's an amazing listener, and he looooves listening to you talk

also, he's quite intense with the eye-contact

he thinks you're the most gorgeos person in the world what can i say

it might seem like he's not paying attention sometimes cause of how lost-in-your-eyes he seems but i assure you he remembers every little thing you say

nods along and hums a little to let you know he's listening

"i remember you said you liked this, so i got it for you" typa guy

you're happy = he's happy

will often sometimes call you to talk about nothing really important, more just for the sake of hearing your voice

and if you're not much of a talker that's fine too, the silent moments you share are never awkward

he's canonically super observant, so if you changed anything about your apperance or if you were in a bad mood he'd notice right away, even if you tried to hide it

great at comfort too, that silky-smooth voice of his knows exactly what to say

he's a very handsome guy (i mean cmon just look at him) so he tends to get hit-on quite a bit

he'd always brushed it off before but ever since he set his sights on you he's been very adamant on very clearly and quickly rejecting others' attempts

when he was making plans to break linc out of prison, a huge amount of his focus went to making sure you were kept safe during the whole process

having you be there from him after news broke and after linc got the death sentence already meant so much to him

so when he trusted you the broad strokes of his plan, and you supported him??? ohmygod this man fell in love with you all over again

yes, he was worried, but he had to tell you, spending days obsessing over prison schematics and getting full body tattoos is rather hard to hide from the love of your life after all

granted, he could have broken up with you and tried to rekindle after he'd escaped, but be fr he could never bring himself to dump you

you never know what may go wrong, and his love for you wasn't exactly a secret, so he took every precaution he could (as in like if someone wanted to harm you cause of your association with him)

he was still super anxious to let go of you

gave you the most passionate and desperate kiss before he went to prison

gets really really homesick for you

calls you whenever he can

would sometimes get teary-eyed from how hard he misses you before falling asleep in his bunk

would lose his mind if something didn't go according to his carefully constructed plan and put you at risk, cause there's not much he can do to control what happens outside foxriver. if t-bag ever found out about you he'd. freak. out.

he's willing to go to great lengths for the people he cares about (it's like the whole plot of the show), so you'd better not play w his beloved

on the rare occasions he has down-time in prison his thoughts always go to you and what you might be up to

he's surrounded by murderers daily and has the gall to be worried about you

sucre would pester him about his love-life a lot. insisting that he recognized yearning in michael's distant expression and saying that no single man could've helped him woo maricruz with that letter (michael writes love letters for you too)

sucre does eventually pull it out of michael and becomes just the biggest supporter of your relationship

this was kinda messy huh

[unbuttonedown]

I don’t know why but I have this image of the reader in fault lines being super sunshine-y compared to Cyclone who’s super not and one day Cyclone comes home and sees reader singing and dancing in the kitchen to Juno by Sabrina Carpenter and he thinks it’s super cute but when he hears the lyrics he’s like 😳 but also super into it and that’s how baby #2 is conceived 😂

loved this idea + added a little something extra at the end ;)

It had been one of those golden California spring evenings — warm breeze through the windows, soft light stretching across the kitchen tile, and the house deliciously quiet for once. 

Stella was next door for a playdate with the neighbors’ twins, and you had exactly two hours of uninterrupted time on your hands. So naturally, you decided to turn it into a little date night at home — just for Beau. No fancy plans, no pressure. Just comfort food, soft lighting, and a moment to remind him that even in the chaos of your lives, he still had your full attention. 

You were barefoot in the kitchen, wearing one of his old button-downs — unbuttoned just enough to keep it interesting — and the loose shorts you knew drove him crazy. The smell of garlic and basil filled the room, and you were half-dancing, half-sautéing when you heard the front door open. 

He stepped inside, looking very much like a man who’d had a day — flight debriefs, politics, pilots acting like teenagers. Exhaustion clinging to him like static. His shoulders were tense, brows furrowed, that signature crease between his eyebrows deeper than usual. 

Until he walked further into the house and saw you. 

You were twirling a wooden spoon in one hand, hips swaying gently as you hummed along to Juno by Sabrina Carpenter, not even noticing him at first. 

Beau just stood there in the doorway for a beat, watching. Something about the way the last light hit your face, the way your laugh broke out when you really stopped to listen to the lyrics, the flirtatiousness of the song and the curve of your bare legs — it melted whatever tension had been bricked into his spine. 

“You always stare at me like that when I’m making dinner?” You teased, finally spotting him. 

“Only when you’re making me fall in love with you all over again,” he said, voice gravelly. 

You grinned, turning the stove down and sauntering over to him. “Long day?”

He nodded and pulled you into him without hesitation, burying his face in your neck. “You have no idea.” 

“Well,” you murmured, lips brushing his ear, “we’ve got wine breathing, pasta boiling, and no kid in the house for another hour and a half.” 

He pulled back, eyes dark with affection and something heavier. “That’s dangerous information, babe.” 

“I’m counting on it,” you whispered, and when his mouth found yours, it was slow, deep, and full of that kind of ache that comes with missing someone you see every day. 

The pasta never got eaten. 

Weeks later you were standing in the bathroom, barefoot on the cool tile, blinking down at the tiny plastic stick with shaking hands. 

Two pink lines. 

You laughed. Then immediately cried. Then laughed again.

Stella was asleep upstairs, curled up with her favorite stuffed otter, and Beau was still in uniform, sorting through emails down in his office. 

You walked out of your bathroom and down the stairs slowly, holding the test behind your back. 

He glanced up at you as you entered the room, eyebrow raised. “Everything okay?” 

You nodded. “Yeah. Actually…” 

You handed him the test, and for a moment he just stared. Then he looked at you — eyes wide, stunned — and the smile that stretched across his face made your knees weak. 

“You’re pregnant?” 

“Looks like pasta night came with a souvenir.” You laughed, tears welling in your eyes again. 

He laughed, then pulled up into him so tight you felt like your heart could burst. “I love you,” he said into your hair. “God, I love you.” 

[osakanone]

I've been getting into gunpla and i'd like a rec since you know mecha. Are there any gunpla you recommend? I'd appreciate one that doesn't look like a dude as much as possible.

The closest i've gotten to that idea so far is a guarda/rever nova build from the 30 minute missions line because of the two scorpian arms.

May I suggest the Wodom Pod?

Its fairly simple to build, very cheap and readily available.

--

If you want to straddle the "a guy thing" in your mentality and challenge it a little, also good is the Aegis specifically its transformation mode as its primary mode (like all humanoid MS) is intended for generalized combat and front-line logistical work (hence the hands).

--

If not, Hildolfr is a fun one. He bridges the space between early mobilesuits in minovsky signals displacement warfare and was used by a starship cannon pilot, requiring a lot of manual skill to aim well!

--

The Xamel is also really good though only provided you've got skills to bring the best out of the kit with scribing and painting. He's a heavy launch platform hovercraft designed for opening vollies with a high powered mortar grenade system via coordinates coming from other units, with legs designed for hit and run skirmishes so he can make his get-away after providing the opening strikes and fire-support during the mop-up phase of an attack.

--

Not gunpla, and a bit more advanced is Variable Infinity's Armored Core Aaliyah. You're probably gonna need some glue for this as smaller parts fall off. Its extremely detailed, and very "not a guy" despite being humanoid.

It uses a spherical particle field of highly radioactive and toxicparticles to protect and cool itself, and is capable of absurd mobility.

Quite a pain in the ass to work with, the design itself is utterly sublime and a spectacle to look at and I fell in love with it circa 2007 with Armored Core 4. Sadly, it isn't anywhere near as posable as most Gunpla due to how "un-guy-like" its body design is. These are the concessions we make cool appearances like this.

--

A substantially easier build (and much closer to Gunpla) is bandai's 30 minute mission 30MM Armored CORE Ⅵ Fires of Rubicon - BALAM Industries BD-011 MELANDER Liger Tail

I'm a huge sucker for 4-legged mecha since they're about as far from "an guy" as you can get. They're also super affordable right now if you can find a stockist who isn't a scalper.

--

Also while not Gunpla, if you have advanced skills, Gunhed is also very good though it requires a lot of extra work since the plastic provided with this kit is more of a raw material you need to do work to, to achieve the look and hide the seams akin to more traditional model kits. Gunhed's role is to invade gigantic sprawling synthetic superstructures and wipe out unmanned weapons.

--

Though likely not to your tastes, my own personal favourite of the year has actually been the Lfrith Ur. I don't usually go for chunkier designs but it has that delightful "chubby girl in a swimsuit" energy despite being a very intense and scary weapon that scratches some strange itch in my brain that I find deeply pleasing.

It is likewise, also very cheap -- and if you get two of them, its very easy to mod them together into a single 4-legged machine with double loadout (very cool, and probably bringing it more in like with your preference -- I wish I still had photos: I'm currently out of the country and my "big database of cool research files" is at home and wouldn't search well from two continents away)

--

Also Zowort heavy from the same line if you do the same quad-leg/tetrapod adaption looks amazing. I have a huge soft-spot for unusual legs, if its not clear.

--

I hope this provides some food for thought. If you have a clearer idea of the kind of kit you want, or what your needs are, let me know and I can provide more suggestions if you'd like.

Happy modelling!!

[cementcornfield]

Sooooo-How was it???

it was super fun!! well, i say that, but we all saw that game lol, it was definitely an agonizing 2nd and 3rd quarter. if my brother in law hadn’t taken it upon himself to get me constant refills of vodka sodas i don’t know what i’d have done lmao. 

anyway, i just got home and here’s some rambling about everything below the cut if anyone is interested! 

football thoughts

we got the win, so thank god. i know it was an ugly one, but jesus christ did we need it. the season isn’t saved at 2-4 by any means, but at least it’s not COMPLETELY ruined yet.  defense stepping up was great to see! bj, trey, and dj in particular seemed like they were everywhere they needed to be when they needed to be there, which was awesome. and yeah, i know it was daniel jones and the giants, but they just beat a pretty decent seahawks team and were actually a playoff team two years ago, so i’ll take it for now! like as bad as our defense has been, it certainly hasn’t helped that we’ve been going against some of the top offenses in the league like the ravens and commanders. so it’s good to see them hold an opponent off that we should have been able to hold off, you know? 

special teams also was awsome! ryan rehkow’s punts are really cool to see in person! (they go so high!!) 

offense….well. um. we could use some work there! what was it, 5 punts in a row and then a fumble?? yikes yikes yikes. play calling…. execution…. all of it was a problem. but i guess they just couldn’t find a rhythm with that d-line, which is definitely one of the toughest in the league, so i get it. but we better start figuring it out by next week with myles garrett…

off the field, sideline thoughts

joe’s 47 yard TD was insane though!!! seeing that in person was wild because of how excited all the bengals fans were and how horrified the giants fans were lmao. and the way he dove right through the pylon at the end had me so scared he didn’t actually make it, it’s so stressful when no one is commentating and telling you exactly what’s going lol. but joe doing his flex!!! and ja’marr and tee and the rest of the guys running up to him! we got a pinky shake!!! ja’marr flexing back?!?! come on. that was adorable! 

speaking of adorable celebrations, after bj tipped that ball that led to germaine’s interception, they had a cute moment on the sideline that i wish i’d captured. they did a little hand shake/celebration thing, and then kind of just like, held onto each other’s arms for way longer than i thought they would lmao. i love those two, their dynamic needs to be talked about more! (and they were roommates etc etc) 

but other than that, it wasn’t really a game for a lot of cute moments 😔 mostly everyone was just frustrated on the sidelines! ja’marr couldn’t sit still and kept getting up to pace around (which feels very On Brand, so that was nice confirmation.) joe would stare intensely at his ipad and sometimes wander off to stand on his own for awhile and watch the game lol. i found it interesting that no one tried to interact with him in those moments, that must be something that he just does sometimes and everyone is used to it! 

OH at one point joe was super pissed after a play, i think it must have been one of his sacks, and you could tell he wanted to, if not slam, at least forcefully place his helmet back on the stand. but as he was about to do it, he noticed that jake’s helmet was in his spot lol. so he had to pause in his angry ritual and move jake’s helmet, and then just kind of sadly set the helmet down instead, poor guy, even that couldn’t go right :( 

and then the very scary part was when joe took that BIG hit and they made him go in the blue tent!!! god i was so drunk and confused and scared at that point, i had to hold my sister’s hand the whole time he was in there. but, thankfully he wasn’t in there long, and he came out looking even more pissed that they made him go in in the first place lmao. 

that’s about all i got! it was a really fun experience and i’m glad i got to see a W! wasn’t quite the week though for a lot of cute moments for sure. but oh well! i’ll see if i have any pictures or videos worth posting…. 

[deadlyflan]

4. mikey asks

4. What headcanons do you have?

2003!Mikey is as gross as he needs to be to annoy a brother. Michelangelo's A+, #1, All-Time GREATEST, brother-bothering tool? He had a skin mask. Which sounds super-ghoulish, but it was just his own shed skin. He must have been about 14 years old and his whole family—reptile members specifically—had been shedding their scaley skin a few times year since forever by then. Mikey knew how to deal with it: Don't Scratch It! Even though the old scales made your whole body feel too tight. Even though the old scales were super-rough and snagged on everything. Even though the old scales looked awful and milky. You weren't allowed to scratch. It could damage the new scales growing underneath. Then you're the worlds worst piece of flaky fried chicken AND you're bleeding. Scratching could also tear the dead skin—which left a horrible full-body dandruff trail for anyone or anything that was following thoughtlessly itchy mutant turtles. And even when you got home and everyone knew just how insane you felt from the itching and the pulling and squeezing and the rustling and CRUNCHING AS YOU SAT—you still weren't allowed to scratch because showering the sofa in your sweaty potato chip skin was TOO GROSS. Like Donnie hadn't repaired the vacuum cleaner. When Mikey hit his shed that season, Halloween was only a month away. And just about every family member had been on his shell to NOT SCRATCH. Leonardo had even managed to peel off his whole lower leg skin like a freaking shin guard. OOooOO. It was cool. It was really cool. But also, was that guy sleeping in a coffin or something? How'd he keep his whole leg from snagging on his blankets?! Impossible vampire brothers and their deathly sleep habits aside, Mikey had an idea. He was going to shed his entire head in one piece. He spent most of the month of September in the tub. Soak it off. If not in the tub, under mounds of lotion like a teen girl mudmask. Moisturize it off. At night, he wound a wet length of the softest fabric he could find around his head and slept in a shower cap. Sluff it off. Broad patches separated first. He looked like he had leprosy. Donatello thought his plan was hysterical and contributed vasoline and other ointments to keep the smaller, more difficult scales moist until they finally worked loose. Leonardo and Master Splinter clearly had concerns, but after Donnie reassured them that Mikey's health wasn't in danger, they largely resigned themselves to occasional aesthetic critic. Even still. It was the spirit of the thing and if Michelangelo was attempting a challenge, both of them supported him. Even if it was weird and off-putting. You can do it, Mikey! Just… do it over there, okay? Raphael, though. Raph HATED IT. Top to bottom. Beginning to end. Just viceral rejection. "Geezuz! You look you got cornflake skin! No. Sit over there. I don't eat next to zombies. Stay away you're gonna peel inta the popcorn." When larger parts of the face started separating from Michelangelo's mouth, it was worse. "NOPE. Sensei, I would spar with YOU before I let him get near me— LOOKIT HIM! He's like a bug comin' outta its skin! His eyes don't line up with his eyes! It's GROSS!! Nope! Just SCRUB IT OFF IN THE SHOWER LIKE A NORMAL TURTLE!" That year, not only did Michelangelo manage to shed his entire head in one piece before Halloween. (Donatello helped him cut it appropriately so he could take it off.) But he totally jump scared Raphael with the Dead Skin Mikey Mask a good 11 different times before the old lair caved in that next year and he lost it forever. (To Raph's great relief.)

[thevegetablewhichnoonedaresname]

every morning i wake up and think about canonically ace pleck decksetter

i keep trying to unpack why he's so important to me, and i think it's because ''character with unspecified orientation who never displays attraction but there's plausible deniability in that maybe they're just mission-focused... but then at the end they get with someone'' is a character archetype that i often personally feel more connected to and find more relatable than explicitly ace characters, at least pre-ending. but it's so rarely treated as valid, either by creators and fans. often they get with someone at the end because allosexuality/alloromanticism is the assumed default, or the fandom wants to ship the character so so bad that they ignore fairly explicit canon evidence (''I'm not really interested in anyone'' is not treated with the gravity that ''I'm interested in men'' would be, for example). and like: disclaimer that I don't need that type of character to be actually aro or ace every time. alloromantic/allosexual but with bigger priorities is a super valid and cool thing to have going on, and i see y'all. we are brothers in arms. but y'know. i like to be taken seriously too sometimes!

so to see one of those characters that explicitly deprioritizes sex and romance and displays a distinct lack of attraction but never outright states a label, and then to have the creator listen to feedback and agree that asexuality is the most valid reading for this specific guy and make it INTENTIONAL for the remainder of the series but still without saying anything in canon? it feels wonderful! like. you don't have to talk about it for it to be valid. you don't have to label yourself to be valid, and for your friends in-media and your writers out-of-media to respect that about you.

like it was a goofy moment, but i still think about dar's ''MY FRIEND'S NOT INTERESTED!'' in the zombie episode so much. and that line where someone asks him if he's ever had sex or something and he goes ''that hasn't been a problem for me yet'' gosh. i phrased an answer in the exact same way when my aunt was interrogating me about boyfriends once.

also, his friends make fun of him for being unattractive, but clearly he isn't completely because multiple characters attempt to start something with him over the series. this really helps drive home that he doesn't get with anyone not because there's never been a chance, but because he genuinely just doesn't want to. and again maybe this is just a me thing but as an ace person i'd rather people didn't find me attractive. i don't really do anything to facilitate that intentionally, but i rarely get hit on and i think it's just whatever vibes i'm putting out. and that's a good thing! i like that about myself! so if my friends told me i was sexually unappealing i would be like oh sweet👍mission accomplished i guess.

not to mention, the kind of ''responds to advances by saying. 'oh ok. neat.' and doing a thumbs up'' energy that pleck brings is very relatable. like, he's not negative about anything and doesn't care what others get up to but is just sort of naturally vibe-killing. and he's okay with that! he's not actually offputting most of the time, it's just that the entire area around him is The Friendzone and you can't get out of it because there's nowhere else to go. any tension is nuked on sight. that's so me. very beautiful, very powerful.

like. is it textbook wonderful unproblematic representation that perfectly encompasses every ace person's experience? of course not. but it's actually a pretty darn scarily close representation of mine as a goofy awkward late bloomer who did still turn out to also be ace after all, separate from those things. he is very special to me personally

[calliecat93]

ST: DS9 S1 Episodes 9-14 Watchthrough

The Passenger: It was okay. Has a pretty cool and outright terrifying concept with the body surfing. But it's been about two weeks since I watched this one, and I for the life of me cannot tell you what exactly happened. Aside from the main plot and a specific character's weird acting, I barely remember it once we realize who's been possessed. The last two minutes were fun though, I do remember that. Good concept, but unmemorable overall... I REALLY wanna remake this with the TOS cast though XD 2.5/5.

Move Along Home: Apparently, this one is pretty unpopular, and I think I saw even Avery Brooks (Sisko) disliked it. I guess I can see why, even by 90's ST standards this is super goofy and weird... but I kind of loved it? It's so silly but it's not so goofy that it takes me out of it. I love everyone's reactions to being stuck in a game, and the alien leader is just having SO much fun, I love that guy! And Quark learning that cheating never ends well... okay he probably learned nothing, but at least he has a tad bit of a conscious haha. It's not a great episode, but it's a fun one, and sometimes that's all you ever need. 3/5.

The Nagus: Well this is a first, a Ferengi-focus episode. Overall, it was fine. Quark sucks, but he's so damn fun I can't really hate him... but he totally had what he nearly got coming, especially with how he treats his brother. I hated the Ferengi in TNG cause they were so freakin' dumb and not in a fun way, but so far DS9 has figured out how to make them fun! I don't have too many thoughts other than that it was a decent watch. I'm also loving Jake and Nog's friendship and how Sisko is at first opposed to it, but for reasons I won't spoil ends up proud of his son. Oh and Jadzia casually eating Sisko's dinner XD 3/5.

Vortex: Now this was a good one! Odo finds out that he is a Changeling, but no one's seen them in an eternity save this one criminal slated for execution on his home planet. I can't even imagine the position that Odo has been in his whole life, being the only one of his kind and not knowing if there's anyone else like him. Then someone comes along and says he can lead him to them, and while it of course isn't what it seems when we find out the guy's true motivation... well, it hits HARD lets say that. This is the kind of episode that Odo needed, and I freakin' loved it! 4/5.

Battle Lines: This sure was something. I feel mostly good about it, but I for the life of me could not get invested in the conflict going on between the two species. IDK, the leader of the one group was so freakin' dull and boring, I could not care. That said, the message of these two at odds for all eternity truly hits hard, especially as they can't die as the planet brings them back to life. What really got me though was everything with Kira and the Kai Opaka, the Bajoran's spiritual leader. The Kai ends up killed in a shuttle accident, but the planet resurrects her... and we find out that she can't leave or she'll die. Being on this planet causes Kira to have to confront her past as a freedom fighter and of the horrible things she had to do for survival and deal with having to lose the Kai as well. This poor woman is so broken and scared that she can't move on, and the Kai comforting her... God it made me an emotional wreck. I wish I could care more about the two sides, but it did wonders for our main cast and with the Kai gone... well, I guess we'll see what happens in the future. 4/5.

The Storyteller: This was... meh. I love having O'Brien and Julian on a mission together and Julian getting on O'Brien's nerves... but the actual plot is incredibly dull. Long story short, O'Brien ends up made the new savior of a Bajoran village when he doesn't want to be, oops. It's saved by the O'Brien and Julian interactions and I can't even lie, finding out why O'Brien was made the hero is legit hilarious. But it's still overall pretty dull, especially compared to the B-Plot. IDK how DS9 made a silly plot with Jake and Nog trying to get a 15-year-old girl who si also a political leader to loosen up and have fun... but it was legit so fun! I wasn't a huge fan of Wesley in TNG so I wasn't sure I'd like plots involving Jake, but he and Nog have been a delight thus far! Heck Nog's crush on the girl is kinda cute and doesn't veer into creepy, it's a miracle! This is very much an episode where the A plot isn't really much of anything, but is carried by it's B-Plot. 2.5/5.

The post for the remaining six episodes will likely be posted this weekend, I'm three episodes away from finishing Season 1! I'm so excited~!!!

[nellie-elizabeth]

Outlander: Carnal Knowledge (7x12)

You ever watch an episode of TV and actively cackle at the events playing out on your screen? I have been in full-on cackle mode for this entire plot thread of this show. It's everything I could have asked for.

Cons:

So, I think sometimes this show's acting is stronger than its writing, by which I mean a stellar performance from Sam Heughan can often elevate a clunky line of exposition, or the genuine passion in Caitriona Balfe's face can elevate an otherwise cheesy moment in dialogue. That remains the case in this situation as well, but there have been a few moments in Jamie's dialogue specifically that felt kind of awkward. It happened last week when he was explaining about not being on the Euturpe, and it happened again this week when he's explaining to John about why he has soldiers chasing him. Just super clunky moments where he's having to lay out basic tenants of the plot for the audience that don't feel naturalistic.

Also - I need to go back and re-read this section of the book again I think, because I was having trouble following the logic of why Jamie needed to drag John with him all the way out of the city. Once he's clear from the soldiers why doesn't he just say "hey, sorry for the light kidnapping, I'm going to run - just say that I hit you and then gave you the slip, and go back home." Like, what extra protection does John afford Jamie on his way out of the city, if the goal is to get a horse and sneak out? It only makes sense if there are still soldiers with their eyes on him who don't want to take him in by force for fear of harming Lord John. A nitpick, but I was distracted by it.

Pros:

But come on. This episode was SO juicy, where to even begin?

I've been really pleased by William's acting this season, I totally believe his distress. He's an inherently good person and, one might think, fairly open-minded and understanding, but this situation is just beyond the pale for him. I loved his conversation with Claire, where she points out that either way you look at it, she is still his stepmother. He's very reasonable and calm with her as he asks for details about Jamie and Geneva, and then when he finally does lose his cool, he storms off and destroys some property but doesn't actually take anything out on Claire.

Of course, later, he does rather hilariously and horribly take it out on Ian. Poor Ian and Rachel sharing the good news of their betrothal, and William says a strained congrats and then turns away, only for Ian to reach out for him with a smile on his face, likely wanting to invite him to the wedding or something, and William just turns around and socks him full in the face. It's darkly hilarious since Ian has no idea that it's coming. Also, this scene is so sad to me because Ian still believes that Jamie's dead, so when William is being all horrified about being Jamie's son, Ian is like "how dare you, any man would have been lucky to be his son." All the while, William could tell the poor guy that his uncle is alive, but fails to mention it in all the excitement. I also liked Rachel being horrified by the violence but also standing by her man when William allows Ian to be arrested.

We also get to meet Jane, a prostitute who William... befriends? If that's the right word? at the height of his despair over the revelation of his parenthood. He's rather awful to her at first, but then later he protects her from being taken by a man who wants to "bugger" her and likes it when the girls don't enjoy it. He takes her upstairs and offers her a night of repose, saying he won't molest her or anything. Jane, who offers William this plain first name in lieu of the "fancy" appellation of Arabella that she uses at work, seems to find William's honor charming enough that she actually does pursue sex with him, even though he's saying that his honor, his word, is the only thing he has left and he doesn't want to abuse it. It's a messy situation, because on the one hand William is saying no and Jane isn't stopping, but on the other, she's trying to give him a kindness in the only way she understands how, and he's so mixed up in the head about what's right and wrong that he doesn't know how to process anything that's happening. We'll see more of this dynamic later, and I'm anxious to see if they make any changes in adaptation...

Last thing before I turn to the juiciest stuff: we do have a moment where Jamie and William confront each other, but there's actually no opportunity for any sort of emotional catharsis or explanation. Earlier in the episode Jamie says he's sorry to John that William had to find out "our secret" and then says they'll find him and explain... but here, Jamie just shoves his son up against the nearest surface and threatens to expose him as a bastard if he doesn't get Ian free from capture. It's Jamie being very pragmatic and dangerous and very much damaging his already completely destroyed relationship with his biological son. Pour on the angst, why don't you!

The opening scene with John and Jamie - I was having the most fun staring at David Berry's face as John and just watching all the conflicting emotions. Delicious. On the one hand, Jamie's alive, and on the other hand, John has to tell him that he's had sex with Claire. I just kept thinking about how this whole scene is undoubtedly the most physical contact these two men have ever shared, what with Jamie tugging on John's arm and guiding him around Philadelphia, and then the uh... other kind of physical contact when Jamie is beating John bloody and John is basically egging him on. It's so twisted to imagine what John is thinking about everything that's happening. I love that he refuses to give Jamie the details, I love that he screams "I'm not bloody sorry" when the soldiers are dragging him away. Jamie spends this episode thinking himself the aggrieved party in this situation, and yeah, sure, hard not to see why he would feel that way - but at the same time, John didn't do anything wrong, in going to bed with Claire, did he? Strictly speaking? I also really loved the fact that when the rebel soldiers first turn up, Jamie's first instinct is actually to stop them from taking John. It's not exactly a protective instinct born of affection in that moment, but there's this sense that instinctively, he knows he and John are a thing separate from rebels vs. loyalists. He knows that this is a personal thing between them, and he doesn't want to hand John over into the hands of people who might mean him harm. The moment where you actually feel like Jamie has crossed a line, in my opinion, isn't really with the punching. It's when he gives John over and lets him be taken as a prisoner.

I could go on and on about the exchange between them, so much of this excellent dialogue is lifted straight from the book - Jamie's initial reaction being this kind of restrained and polite curiosity: "oh, why did you and Claire have sex? How interesting, please explain yourself" is sort of the tone here, and John's bewilderment is also such a treat. His incredulous anger: "What do you mean, why? I thought you were dead!" It's just such a treat for me that for all of the book moments that can't make it to screen, for all of the things they could have chosen to truncate or cut, it's my favorite stuff in the world that's getting the full drawn out treatment.

Then the Jamie and Claire scene, which happens a bit differently than in the books - the fact that it happens at Lord John's residence and that they end up having their reunion sex on his dining room table is frankly just... sending me. But honestly the whole scene is delicious, perfect acting from them both. When Claire is explaining what happened, there's this moment where you think Jamie will have to be moved to understand: Claire has just finished saying that she was contemplating suicide, and that John had the look of a man about to throw himself off a cliff, and that she really needed triage in that moment, that John provided her solace when she was at the depths of despair. There's this look on Jamie's face like he can't help but be moved by the idea of these two people being so deranged in their grief that they did this insane thing they never would have done in their right minds. But then, Jamie suddenly asks, quite calm and matter of fact: "did he bugger you?" And it's such a slap in the face to Claire and to the viewer both. Jamie isn't going to be super-human about this, he isn't going to be emotionally mature enough to accept what happened and move on. He's jealous and he's mean about it, and I love the drama there.

I also feel like this scene elevated the weird emotional triangle between Jamie, Claire, and John, even from what it is in the books. Claire has a line about how she couldn't bear to be alone and also she couldn't bear for John to be alone, and she seems so genuinely worried about John and what Jamie did to him. Then there's the beat right before Jamie decides to set aside the matter (for now), where he talks about how at Helwater, when Geneva died and William was a baby, John saved Jamie's life with his friendship. He's drawing a parallel - both of them know what it is to have John Grey hold you together when you're on the verge of falling apart. Another weird twisted way in which each arm of this triangle act as mirrors to one another. So juicy!

Meanwhile, John's eye is a mess because of Jamie's attack, and Denzel gets word that John is going to be hanged as an example, because he's deemed important enough to make a spectacle out of. So Denzel arranges to help John escape. The end of this episode is framed so amazingly and hilariously, with Jamie and Claire having passionate and re-connecting sex on a table, while John is wearing an eye-patch and in utter disarray, running through the woods as a shot rings out behind him. Lord John Grey's No Good Very Bad Day. Somebody give that man a hug.

So yeah. This whole story-line is the best because it takes my favorite character, Lord John Grey, and just shoves him into such a Situation. I love putting blorbos in Situations, I really do. Can't wait for more of the season to play out - we've got a lot of juicy stuff ahead of us, and I'm so curious as to what makes the cut from the books!

9/10