#i actually think its funnier without context

[alberichfanpage]

I love this manga so much

[plasmara]

ok but seriously. dr s3 was not a season it was a fic generator in disguise. LIKE THEY GAVE US SOOOO MUCH. and now I’m drowning in fic ideas with zero ability to commit to just one so here’s a brain dump (but jay edition because i wrote them all out and accidentally hit one thousand million words):

so. the obvious one is jaya. Duhhhhh. just jaya in general. jaya angst. They r so tragic now and i want it all. the absolute disaster of it. i want every version

give me nya trying to flirt her way back in like “hey, remember me? your girlfriend? the love of your life? jay. jay. JAY.” and jay’s like “okay first of all i barely remember ur name.” he’s being stubborn about not catching feelings, and she’s being even worse about refusing to take the hint coz if she can’t win him back with love she is Absolutely going to do it with sheer persistence and mild emotional terrorism

and kai keeps trying to give her advice but fumbling bad bitches is a genetic trait and they’re both diseased

OKAY AND JAY. IN GENERAL. OBVIOUSLY

i need his pov through the whole season. the fallout after what happened w ras and how he was well and truly Abandoned with a capital a HE HAD NO ONE . him trying to piece himself together without his memories. and how he rediscovers like the little things that made him HIM. the inventing. the way he starts tinkering with stuff without even thinking. the terrible jokes and the way he needs to lighten the mood even when everything’s falling apart. HOW HE MAKES A NAME FOR HIMSELF and is just really his own person. i loveeeeeee how they didn’t just brush it off like yea he’s doing his own thing now whateverrrr. like they went into specifics (ish) and i feel like it rlly added to his personality

AND THEN him trying to trust this group of strangers who keep looking at him like he MATTERS. like they KNOW him. and he’s just like “ok cool cool cool i don’t Know any of u but sure.”

he keeps saying he’s fine when he’s literally NOT. cracking jokes like it’s instinct but they don’t land right. he laughs and then immediately wants to curl into a corner and disappear. BUT HE CANT CONFIDENIN ANY OF THEKNBECAUSE HE DOESNT KNOWNTHEM!!!!!! side note he clearly knows a LOT (based off how he knew about arin’s parents instantly) BUT HE DIDNT VOLUNTEER THAT INFO UNTIL RIGHT AT THE END AND HE KEPT IT ALL TO HIMSELF FOR SO LONG. HE DOESJT TALK ANYMORE!!!!! HES NOT USED TO TALKING WITH ANYONE ABOUT ANYTHINGN AND HES PROBABLY GOT SONMUCH REPRESSED AND KEPT LOCKED UP AND AGHHHHHH!!!! omg someone take this boy to therapy

AND THEN GIVE ME A WHOLSE SEPARATE FIC ABOUT HIS RELATIONSHIP WITH TOUCH NOW. because this kid was THE most touchy out of the team. he was always throwing himself at people BUT .now. Now he flinches whenever anyone moves too quickly towards him and they all have to keep reminding themselves of it. FUCK!!!!!!

and specifically cole because let’s be honest bruise’s love language is physical touch and it’s killing cole not to be able to be near him. AND ACTUALLY BECAUSE COLE ISNSO TOUCHY jay avoids him the most and it’s like. That’s ur best friend………. WHAT R U DOING. and everyone thought just FINDING jay would be the hardest part but actually this is and they don’t know what to do

okay and. Well. plasma. Like sorry u all knew this was coming. i have to live up to the plasmara name after all its in the contract. and i Love them but I don’t want to write angst for them in this context I just think it would be so funny to have kai hardcore crushing on his sister’s ex fiancée and even funnier to have jay somehow like him back. Like he just takes whatever kai tells him at face value and thinks yup.. this is the one i Trust. just hears kai say “yeah you were totally into me” ONE TIME as a joke or in a moment of panic and he fully believes it cos he’s got the memory of a damp sponge. Like. “oh. yeah. that checks out. i must have been with you. makes sense. ur hot” And after kai finishes freaking out he decides yup THIS IS MY CHANCE!! nya u had him for years. It’s MY turn now

and he is now committed to the bit with his whole chest. takes every opportunity to “remind” jay how deeply in love he was.

“you used to call me hot stuff.”

“no i didn’t.”

“you don’t remember, jay.”

And worst part is it works because jay is just like… “well he seems to have a good balance between nice and pathetically obsessed and my standards are a mystery to me so sure???”

[nishitanis-left-nut]

finished LaD. I think Ichiban fixed something in me.

but first of all- took em long enough to give us a majima crotch shot in this game (what hes saying with no context makes this funnier. you gotta go 100 times WHAT)

positives first (im gonna make a separate post with all the more stinky complaining and nitpicking-)

(stinky complaining)

"Once you're at rock bottom, the only way forward is up."

i feel like this is one of those phrases that gets so overused in media that whenever i see it it just automatically reads as insincere and a lazy way of trying to say something profound, and maybe im biased since i was in a place where i needed to hear it, but this time around it didnt feel like that. might have made me cry even. whos to say. the story is pretty self contained and simple (by yakuza standards) and ichiban is a nice man so it doesnt come across as it talking down to you?? the scene feels very encouraging and the lack of mean spiritedness in how ichiban talks and carries himself is nice??? i still feel like they set some things up and then subsequently did nothing with them but eh. i think most of my complaints about this game actually kinda boil down to how they spent the entirety of it teetering in between making it feel like a "yakuza game" and dealing with the new game mechanics and direction and not really knowing how to do both at the same time. eh.

do NOT separate them

this entire last scene gutted me actually. i noticed it back when saeko cries at the club but damn the crying in this game feels so visceral and real like- theyre full on ugly crying on screen. i tried looking back at other crying scenes in past games and the only ones that look and feel like this are kiryus reaction to rikiya getting shot and the nishiki forest scene in y0 (i know the animation is a product of its time too but also specifically with women, comparing sayama crying over ryuji and saeko crying over the soapland owner its like night and day. sayama looked pretty and her tears were barely there, not a grimace or wrinkle in SIGHT, saeko at least was allowed to look "ugly" when she cried) i dont think this scene wouldve hit me as hard as it did if they hadnt made ichi look as distraught as he does (also the vocal performance cuz holly shit? holy shit.)

i knew i was gonna like ichiban, look at him how can you NOT like him? but even while playing the game i didnt think he'd end up leaving that big of an impression on me. but here we are. we really do need more media that revolve around "Adulthood" and how different people cope with and adapt to it, i wish LaD had spent more time on those aspects of the story honestly since with each game it feels like the crime drama parts of it keep trying to get pushed to the backburner, but they still suffocate everything else- no, positives, positives-

im not someone who plays a lot of games so before i picked up any yakuza game id been feeling like Something Was Missing and that something was a piece of media. and then i played yakuza 0 and it was like oh. i guess i live here now. i really do need to start playing more videogames because i feel like its one of the phew mediums where we still constantly get adult protagonists dealing with Adult Things aside from romantic relationships or work without it also just being a parody or a comedy? and it taking itself seriously??

i keep thinking about yakuza 3 and how the game had you be with kiryu as he lived a normal life for a while, it felt like a resting point in his life because, well, it was. and how in yakuza 5 we got to go to work with him and i feel like stuff like that was missing from this game. every domestic and "normal" thing ichiban goes through in this game happens off screen, and for a game thats got friendship and the power of community at its center that feels kind of weird?

not sure how the rest of the fandom feels about y5 and the whole taxi substory and the parts of it you had to do for the main story but i really liked being able to see kiryu get somewhat comfortable in his new environment and do "normal" things. and, as flawed as it is, theres no debating the importance the quiet parts of yakuza 3 had on him and the games that came after it. if y3 hadnt had kiryu interact with the kids as much as it did, if it hadnt had us see how HAPPY he is living with them in okinawa, y5 and y6 wouldnt have hit as hard as their supposed to

in y5 you can even send money to the kids through atm's for christmas presents, and every time you do kiryu sends money thinking of a specific kid and he goes on a small tangent thinking about the things they like and how old they are and sending money according to what he thinks theyll want/need and its like- these are HIS KIDS. he knows their interests he knows their birthdays and even though hes not supposed to exist to them anymore he still wants them to have a good christmas because thats what children deserve thats what HIS children deserve-

i went- kiryu tangent. but back to ichiban, my point was that even in those games where they have the crime drama at the center and are extremely action packed, they still took the time to have kiryu do normal things so when he gets ripped from that you feel it. ichiban didnt get any of that, the crime drama isnt really as all-encompassing as it is in the other games and the "normal" bits of it you gotta hunt down around the map or be TOLD they happened

this was uh, this was supposed to be the Positive Thoughts post so ill get back to that rq. despite all of my barely disguised animosity towards how they didnt balanced the action and the character progressions i really did enjoy the game. i think. i adore ichiban so that counts right? im still real confused about why they established how he can get blinded with rage really easily but then didnt. do anything with that? in fact they kind of go back on it and just have him POSITIVE THOUGHTS POST GRAAAFKASFMPJJO

live laugh love ichiban, i wish the writers loved you as much as i do. i kept calling him a shonen protagonist in other posts because thats kind of the impression i got from him at the start and ive seen other people describe him like that too, but thats not exactly accurate to how he is as a character. hes a really nice person, a stubborn man thats got an idealistic view of the world and wants to make it better so his life and the people in it can be better. i love you kasuga ichiban and i hope whatever happens to you in infinite wealth isnt that bad cuz itll make me sad

who the FUCK are you nick and who do you work for

[lunarle-old]

Omg yessss!!! I’ve been looking through your asks and the Shumai thing is so real. The thing that makes me like that nickname as much as I do is specifically because it was created for the sole reason of pissing off Kaito. Without that context, the nickname just loses a lot of its flavor.

Anyway, I’m about to start reading Love Letter and I’m very excited! I live for anytime Tsumugi and Shuichi so much as look at each other. There’s so many fun ways you can play with their dynamic so I can’t wait to actually see what you do. Not to mention your immaculate saiou writing skills and the way you make your stories just go insane. It’s very entertaining and I adore it!

BE CAREFUL GOING INTO LOVE LETTER!!! That one gets pretty violent...! And it only gets worse from here @_@ Their dynamic is cute and silly for a total of two chapters before everything goes Bad. If you reeeeally like Tsumugi and don't want to see her do anything bad or insane Ever then I wouldn't recommend reading it x"D

Also, thank you!! ^.^ Writing romance is always the hardest part of writing anything of mine, so I'm glad you've enjoyed it (⁠ ⁠╹⁠▽⁠╹⁠ ⁠) (and don't get me wrong, I love saiouma!! I wouldn't write about it if I didn't. The problem was that I'm a demiromantic trying to write in the perspective of an alloromantic... which I am not doing for love letter. sorry shuichi you're on the aro spectrum now) And yes I am quite fond of descending into insanity in my stories. I barely see stuff like it in my very filtered Shuichi tag, much less longer multichapter fics!! So I thought, "well. might as well do it myself!" and five fics later we're here so I'd say that ended pretty well ^_^ whoops I am rambling

Anyway. You are SO right about the Shumai thing!! It's also just objectively funnier when it's used with the original context ;P it's also the fact that I don't think Kaito even knew who he was referring to at first LMAO. And Shuichi just?? Brushed it off??? Like I understand that someone died but cmon. thats hilarious

[letterex-fyofm]

probably the worst idea i've ever had (ft. hq rarepair that i've never seen anyone discuss before)

So, I have I think more than thirty tskym fics in my docs (none of them are fully complete) and recently I've been working on one that was supposed to be a one-shot yet it escalated and it's growing to be its full monster.

Without sharing much, it revolves around Tadashi and Kei's relationship, with it tempting to cross the lines from really-close-friends to something more - yet without ever making the real jump. I also projected my experience with comphet and realising I was bisexual and the internalized homophobia I first faced - and since my favourite character of all Haikyuu is Tadashi, well, I used him as my guinea pig.

The thing is, I wanted to include a Tsukki pair that was not TsukkiYama, KuroTsuki, TsukiKage or TsukiHina, since they wouldn't really fit in the story. I was scrolling on twitter and boom.

Hear me out: TeruTsuki - don't click off yet.

Listen, does it make sense? Absolutely not. I think Tsukki would be annoyed as hell with Terushima - yet I actually am starting to like the idea of them as a messy fwb situation, where there are no strings attached and they just vibe.

So, I think Teruyama is a pretty popular ship and although I have no problems (because why would I have) if someone ships it, I never could get totally behind it. Like, I guess it's fun, yet I also think Tadashi would never like someone like Terushima. And I think people like it more because it gives the chance to write about Punk!Yamaguchi, which I think it's a funny concept yet I'm not a fan of because I always find myself missing the actual/canon Tadashi.

Yet...Terutsuki? That could be funny and almost even plausible without changing their personalities - too much.

I feel so stupid - this is all this user's fault.

And this one too

TELL ME YOU CAN'T SEE IT? There's something cooking here.

And just imagine the amount of drama it would cause. For context, when I write jealousy I usually write Tsukki kind of depressed and with self-esteem issues (because, same) - which is great for angst and character/relationship study! Yet, I've realised that writing jealousy with Tadashi has so much potential to be funny AS FUCK.

He was two seconds from barking at Koganegawa just because he called Kei "Tsukki". Just imagine how funny it would be if Tsukki was suddenly going out with freaking Terushima.

I imagine him just being like "What the fuck, Tsukki. Since when do you like punks? He has a tongue piercing for fucks sake! Who cares if he is on the top of his class - his hair is piss coloured!"

And I think it would be even funnier if Kei and Terushima didn't actually have any sort of feelings for the other. Like, I'm not saying as in they are fake-dating, but like more as friends that occasionally make out because one, it's fun. Two, Terushima is figuring things out. Three, Kei wants to move on from whatever the hell happened between Yamaguchi and him and he is going to do it - in one way or another.

They are both using the other for something, yet it is not unhealthy since they are pretty open about it.

So, what if Tsukki wants to make Tadashi a bit jealous? Terushima doesn't mind - he is enjoying it even.

I have no words to express how disappointed I am of myself.

[liketwoswansinbalance]

Round VII of Excerpts from The One True School Master of Vault 41

Someone has “revenge” on the brain. I thought the first excerpt might be funny and could stand on its own out of context. The actual context makes it funnier, in my opinion, but I unfortunately can’t spoil it because it involves possibly the most insane shock in the entire fic.

Admittedly, I’m slightly proud of myself for managing to not burst and to hold back on revealing the plot twists, particularly with major events #2, #3, and #4. Otherwise, there'd likely be zero surprises left.

Though, plot twist #1 is sort of foundational to the premise, so I gave it away! (Sophie is nominated for the position of School Master.)

Also, a strange observation about my own plot occurred to me: contrary to what I or others might think, the plot is actually quite simple. Or, at least, from my view at the moment, it is. I’d originally thought it was complicated, but no. Actually, it’s simple masquerading as complex because there are complications thrown into the story, like wrenches, via a few different elements/events. So, that’s something, I guess?

If I could summarize the plot in one sentence, it would be: three souls enter a crystal ball, and some of them emerged scathed, changed, or both at once.

That’s probably the easiest way to put it, without spoilers.

Anyway, here are the excerpts (from two entirely different sections of the fic):

⸻

That was it. To say it irked her was to put it mildly.

Assuming they were both alive by the end of it, the first moment she got after all these crises were over with, she was taking him for a haircut, whether he liked it or not!

She would march him directly over to the finest salon she could find in the Woods, posthaste, like a prisoner if he resisted—all for the sake of a nice, neat trim.

So be it if it ended up botched. His Doom Room had done the same to her. So what did it matter?

⸻

Rafal glared at Agatha as if to signal: don’t let on that you’re hurt.

“Why are you both limping?”

Agatha stole a quick glance at Rafal who found himself turning to stare intently at a Stymph on high.

He shook his head with the slightest motion. She couldn’t know what it had cost them, or she would intervene.

The movement caught Sophie’s eye, and she turned her attention to Agatha for the truth.

Agatha shrugged wordlessly.

Sophie narrowed her eyes. “Well, it certainly wasn’t bird-watching, that much I can gather.”

Agatha shuffled, and Rafal observed her shove one foot behind her other ankle, but in her gaping, oversized clumps, one sock slid down to reveal an inflamed, red welt.

Unfortunately, Sophie traced his sightline to Agatha's foot. “Agatha? What happened?”

[justjasper]

i love your E rated/smut writing. do you have any tips for writing smut?

most of these are about reality/modern-based sex writing rather than fantasy stuff where all the bets can be off!

there is literally no god word to use for balls/testicles, it's fine

USE CHARACTER NAMES. no "younger/older" woman, "darker/paler" man, just use their names especially during a sex scene

do learn some basic anatomy, please look up where the prostate is, where the g-spot is

but fanfic sex doesn't need to be instructional, you are not teaching people how to have sex. it very much shows when you write like this

fanfic is also not consent 101. it's fine to just let your reader assume they're 100% into what they're doing, and i think "unnegotiated kink" should be reserved for scenarios where the kink is spur of the moment, not just "involves kink but no explicit discussion of it" (unless they're not meant to be, which one assumes would be made clear in tags or descriptions!!)

that said, writing about discussing consent can be really fun, doesn't mean you can never do it. you just have to vibe out whether it's adding to the fic or not

talking really helps break up sex scenes, so write at least one character who's chatty lol

plan out your sex scene so you don't get stuck with what's happening next. remember you can go back to it to flesh it out/work on the pacing. honestly most of my sex scenes start on the page as a list that goes: LICK LICK CIRCLE CHAT SUCK SUCK STROKE LICK SUCK GAG SUCK TALK BIG CUM

speaking of going back to pacing, literally invoking time can help make a sex scene seem longer without saying "they fucked for seven and a half minutes". "a long moment later" "by the time X, the sun had begun to rise/fall", "long into the night"

lube is preferable but optional, even for butt stuff. sex without lube doesn't mean it's painful or dangerous, especially for experienced butt stuff doers.

spit as lube is not a cardinal sin and is miles better than things that are actually dangerous (engine oil? things w sugar like honey? baby dont give your chars a yeast infection)

olive oil is fine but it's messy and it doesn't play w condoms, but fine if you're going historical

speaking of which, from my experience people in established relationships forego condoms way quick. and in general people forget to use them all the time. again, this isn't Safe Sex 101, it's fanfic.

but on the flip side, its sexy/funny when characters have lube and condoms to hand. there is no funnier environmental storytelling than there being a bottle of water based lube in the kitchen cupboard with the peanut butter.

simultanious orgasms are a pain to time and sure they're romantic but there's other fun climax dynamics. maybe one character feels duty/honour bound to always make sure their partner comes first

come/cum? it doesn't matter, just keep it consistant per fic

similar, be consistant with your body part names, even if you use a few. e.g. you use "cunt" in narration, but character A uses "pussy", keep that consistant.

you can still euphamise genitals without it sounding like you're afraid of them - sometimes six instances of "cock" in a row doesn't flow, that's when you should be utilising your "hardness" and "shaft" and "length"

the brain is a sex organ, and all the senses are engaged during sex. you can bulk out yor sex scenes and give great insight into the character experiences by describing what they're experiences with non-touch senses (or the lack of them, e.g. when blindfolds are in the mix)

even in pwp works, you're saying something about the characters who are fucking. you can give context and inferred complexity without plot. are they familiar with each other's bodies? is this new? are they confident, or nervous.

write for you! if you are a person who experiences sexual response to erotic fiction, then a good measure of your own work is if it makes you horny to write/re-read it. there's absolutely no shame about being aroused during the process. there's no harm in taking a wank break.

[marshmallowprotection]

Mystic Messenger 7th Summer Event

I was on the money with my speculation. I was right on the money and there is nothing you guys can do to stop me from talking about this photo in its entirety. Oh, my God. I am frothing at the mouth at this very moment because Cheritz gave me everything I could have ever wanted in a photo.

It's Ray DRESSED as Unknown, and that is someone I never saw coming.

See, I have egg on my face because they said Ray in their post last night and I never thought they were going to throw this at me. That's because they've never done something like this before. Usually, when he is mislabeled, it's just one of those things that happen now and again because of marketing or trying to avoid spoilers, but in this case, they actually went out of their way to bamboozle me.

I never could have expected something like this. I am most definitely not complaining because this isn't something I didn't know I needed in my life. Unknown and Ray are my favorites so the fact that they are combined in this situation is sending me. I didn't know I needed this but I'm happy that I have it.

On that note, does anybody have commissions open because I need more Idol Ray in my life? I want my MC to be in the audience cheering him on with a penlight.

When I tell you guys I cried when I saw this, I am not kidding about that. I cried. There are a lot of reasons why I cried and we'll get into that in a second. First I think we need to appreciate this for what it is. I think this is the first time in a long time my speculation has been 100% accurate.

This photo is split into three different parts just as I expected it would be, Rika is trying to pedal the soda, and V is in his believer robes which I joked about because the color was accurate but I wasn't sure if they would actually go through with it, and Ray painted his fingernails and that's sending me to Heaven.

V cannot believe what he is seeing. Need I remind everybody in this fandom that his mother was a musician and knowing that fact makes this a hell of a lot funnier when you consider this was Rika's plot. I would not put it past her to have thought about using music as a ploy to mess with him, not only because it's something they shared with her love of Zen, but because she wants to use everything she has against V.

The context in this situation is amazing. I don't know if any of you have seen the new Twitter thread but I'm going to share it with you.

[Link]

When I tell you guys I screamed, I mean it. I screamed because Ray was so smug when he said he has a cute face. That was a lot of confidence in a short amount of time, and if he looked at me after saying that, I would have melted and done anything he told me to do. I mean, I would already do that in general, he knows what I am.

She literally decided out of the blue that she was just going to sell him out because he has a cute face. I mean, she's not wrong, but that's such a Rika thing to do. After all, it's not the first time she pushed him into being an idol.

So, what I'm going to say here is a little silly. I have to tell all of you the implication of what this photo means. This is Ray and he is dressed as Unknown. He has no means to be able to dress that way without us helping him.

That means the MC is the one that chose his wardrobe for him.

That means we are the ones who looked at him and his princely attire and decided he needed to look like he just walked out of Hot Topic. See, my favorite type of character is a toss-between princely and edgelord, so that's even funnier to me. Saeran Choi is my full package deal when it comes to aesthetics, I swear.

I wouldn't want to change Ray out of his magenta coat to dress like Unknown. Well, I say that, but if I tell him to wear that and he takes off the jacket, then I can put it on... oh, yes. That's the best way to get a boyfriend's sweater.

But it is the single-handed thought that the MC is the one that put him in this outfit that is sending me to another plane of existence. Can you imagine doing that to him? Because that is way more funny to me than the idea that Ray chose to wear that himself. But it is always possible that he did choose to wear it himself because he often says that his taste and clothes are nothing like the outfit Rika gave him.

I also need to point out that that tattoo would have had to have been drawn on with Sharpie or temporary ink. He doesn't have the tattoo in Another Story. That is a fact that a lot of people get confused about despite the fact that we are shown a visual of him in the shower that proves he doesn't have a huge tattoo.

I suppose you could read this as a bonus AU where in some universe, Ray is the one who gets the tattoo first... which, ouch, I don't know if I can handle that... "I proved myself, body and mind, to my Savior so it isn't possible she'll throw me away. If I brand myself with the cause of Mint Eye... I'll... I'll be safe."

But, what that also implies is that there is a picture of him with that tattoo drawn in some capacity lingering in his room at Magenta. It also means that despite the fact that he and Suit Saeran inevitably disappear after not being able to live up to the potential the Savior wants them to, Unknown stumbles across that design.

Ray: QUICK, I HAVE TO DESIGN SOMETHING EDGY FOR THIS OUTFIT.

Ray: A dragon!

Ray: ME for Mint Eye!

Ray: This certainly won't effect anything later in life!

Two and a Half years later...

Unknown: I don't know who designed this tattoo but it's sick. I need it on my body.

It is so gut-wrenchingly painful for me to think about that. It means that a piece of Ray still exists. Unknown does not even know where that tattoo came from nor does he know who designed it. Because he doesn't get to know Ray one-on-one since I personally believe he isn't Suit Saeran. I view Unknown and Suit Saeran as separate people, after all.

The reason why he has the tattoo is because Ray drew it. I have long wondered where he came up with the idea for the tattoo, and it turns out it wasn't Unknown at all. Ray was the one who drew it and I don't know what to do with that information other than cry.

The Savior only gave him a short amount of time to figure out how to be an idol and he said I'm going to have a tattoo. Sure, should we just assume this is an Easter Egg and the artist might not have known all the details involved in the story of Mystic Messenger? Sure, you can think that, but for the sake of my enjoyment, I'm going along with the theory that I'm right, lol.

That's something that an idol has. Ray says. He draws a sick dragon and a twisted ME. That tattoo is so large and ridiculous, but I love it dearly. Ray, honey, You Are My Forever Babe. But I don't know what to do with you sometimes.

[If you want to know how I think Unknown gets the tattoo, I have a post on that.]

Rika looks amazing here and there is no lie about that. I actually really like the outfit she's wearing even though we can't see a lot of it. It speaks to a music festival because of how simple but trendy it appears. She's trying to be that friendly face that can do no wrong. She wants you to buy her homemade soda, and you should do that.

You should do that right now. It's good for you. There's nothing wrong with it.

A little bubbly soda won't hurt you. What do you mean it's burning your throat as we speak? It's not doing that at all! You're just excited by the electric energy of this concert! Drink more soda! I think the important question to ask ourselves here is how many cans of soda did she bottle and does she think it's going to work out as well as she thinks it does?

I don't think we need to talk about the fact that she is wearing a cross necklace. I don't want to unpack her religious trauma right now. I don't have time to do that right now but I will say it made me laugh my ass off. On a side note, her hair looks good here and I'm jealous of it.

This man looks like his soul just left his body.

I don't know what he's thinking at this very specific moment in time but I know he's not happy to realize that Rika has decided to sell out Ray as an idol. I mean that's probably the last thing he expected to happen. But, it makes sense, Rika loves music and if she thought it would work, she would absolutely push Saeran, Ray, Unknown, etc, into doing that for her. But, it hurts to think about V... to think about those complicated feelings he holds about his mother...

He kind of wanted to learn how to play the violin to get closer to his mother... He's already got complicated feelings about musicians and I don't know if his adopted son here being an idol is doing much good for him. It reminds me of the bad ending in the RAE.

He wasn't particularly comfortable in that situation either and this just reminds me of that. Which is a shame, because that ending is so horrible. It is one of the worst endings that you can get in this entire series.

I don't think we need to get into that in general, but just know that if you want to hurt yourself, aim to get that bad ending. If I can say nothing else, I'm really happy to see his long hair because I think it's the most attractive aesthetic for him. I've always liked that style on him a lot more than the traditional one. I don't know what it is about that look for him but it just works. He's like a wet kitten in a cardboard box.

I can't believe she decided to hold the concert at 7:00 p.m. I mean, I can most certainly believe she would do that, but it feels like spitting in Ray's face. Why would you do that, Rika? I know it's just a cute little Easter egg to remind us of his brother but oh my God that's awful.

I don't think anybody I've seen talking about this has pointed it out but the background colors are literally the same as Ray and V's hearts. It's the magenta and teal hearts. I thought that was a good touch. I do know that it's also in homage to the fact that it's Mint Eye and the building is called Magenta. It's a 2-in-1 package deal. Just like the fact that I got to see Ray dressed as Unknown. This is a two-for-one deal!

I do think it's interesting that they chose to make the penlights white. That means his image color is white. Oh, yeah, idols have image colors that correlate to those penlights so those things are very important! I didn't expect white. But, I didn't expect him to be an idol ever again after that bad ending. I mean that ending is horrible but he has great hair in it so like we're winning and losing.

Best day of my life. I won Unknown and Ray.

[jakesuit0]

Beautopia Review

Susan Strong returns, and the show recognizes how significant her reintroduction is to Finn and the audience by staging her appearance at the Treehouse as grand and important. Jake is distrusting of Susan, bringing up the events of her first episode, while Finn still holds on to the hope that Susan is human. Susan herself has developed, now speaking slightly more fluent English. We can already infer that the Hyoomans are mutated descendants of humans who sought shelter during the Mushroom War. We learn in this episode that those humans didn’t just live in a dirty sewer. They built an underground civilization called Beautopia. Beautopia, just like the humans led by Two Bread Tom and Hugo, shows its in humans’ nature to rebuild. Beautopia is even an island civilization of sorts. Unlike the islands and The Drift, Beautopia’s society was abandoned presumably hundreds of years ago. Susan has attempted freeing Beautopia from the Lub Glubs before, but meeting Finn has reignited her hope of restarting the civilization.

Jake’s prejudice towards the Hyoomans is on full display. He scares them with his shapeshifting for his amusement, building on his desire to rule them like “angry gods” in “Susan Strong”. Susan almost drowning Finn works great as a reminder that Finn and Susan are not exactly the same. The episode really plays up the awkwardness between their relationship. Finn and Susan do feel a connection to each other and they want to be in each other's lives, but their lack of understanding of what the other person is keeps getting in the way. This scene and Susan’s surprise of Finn’s lack of gills is a wake up call for Finn at how different they are. Finn must be disappointed and starts to believe that she probably is a fish person. However, he still feels a connection to her. That and his heroic nature makes him determined to still help and trust Susan and defend her from Jake’s insults. In actuality, Susan’s surprise is that he is like her. Finn takes his hat off here and his hair has continued to grow back since “Mortal Folly”. 

Finn, Jake, and Susan take a boat to Beautopia, a precursor to the Islands crew (minus BMO). We get a string of great Jake moments including a very catchy sea shanty. Jake’s smug reaction to Susan’s terror over a pool floaty is hilarious, and him struggling to breathe while being used as a paddle is even funnier. Another pool floaty coming out after an ominous buildup with horror movie music is also very funny. The true forms of the Lub Glubs have a very creepy design. The implication that they have existed for hundreds of years leads me to believe they were mutated from nuclear residue, eventually pushing out the humans. One of them chews on a human skull with a bunny hat, leading to many wild fan theories connecting it to Fionna. 

Jake and Susan complete their arcs in this episode with Jake finally trusting in Susan and Finn once again inspiring Susan to overcome her fears. Finn tells Susan that humans and hyoomans have to stick together, staying consistent with Finn’s lesson in “Susan Strong” that everyone is the same or “wild animals”. Jake delaying throwing in the lantern is yet another hilarious moment. One of the Lub Glubs reminds Jake of his mother, like how a drawing of one reminded him of his father. Many interpret this as a subconscious memory of Warren Ampersand. It could be, but I don’t think the resemblance is quite strong enough. 

The episode ends on a fantastic, quiet moment. Finn and Susan have yet another awkward moment, with Finn refusing to stay. Susan puts Finn’s hand under her hat, resulting in the two finally understanding each other. The episode does not confirm if Finn’s reaction was to him feeling gills or not. However, I think it can only be read as Finn realizing Susan is human, even without the context of later episodes. Susan puts Finn’s hand there as a response to Finn telling her he isn’t like her. Finn’s surprise only works if she is human because Finn was already convinced Susan was a hyooman. I like the reveal being more subtle and the show’s restraint at only giving us a tiny piece of the puzzle.

The dynamic of Finn, Jake, and Susan makes for a great episode with lots of nuanced interaction full of heart, tension, and hilarity. It makes for a worthy followup to one of season two’s best episodes. 

Grade: A

[edenfenixblogs]

Palm tree, daffodil, and cactus for the Ask Game!

(The villain question, the sibling question, and the “what are you currently learning about” question)

palm tree ⇢ do you have a fictional villain you shouldn’t like but love regardless?

Oh boy. Not technically fictional, but in his fictional representation — Ecbert from Vikings. He’s so compelling and his motivations and intensity is like that of a Shakespearean villain. I mean, just look at his monologue to Jesus in the church. It takes my breath away every time. Even without context.

I also find the real actual story of the real actual man to be fascinating. In general, I find early Anglo-Saxon era British history fascinating.

daffodil ⇢ do you have siblings? if yes, in what ways do you think you’re similar to or different from them?

I do! But none by blood. @will-write-for-food is my sister, who I met in high school. I also have a friend (it feels weird calling her a friend tbh. She’s just my sister) who I’ve had since I was 4 and she was five. She’s also biologically an “only child,” but that made our bond even stronger. Nobody but an only child understands how fucking boring summers are if you’re an only child like another only child. Several years in a row we lived together by force. I would sleep over at her house until her mom needed a break and then she would send us both back and to my parents and on and on we’d go. I was maid of honor at her wedding. I’m aunt to her children.

As for similarities: both my sisters and I are motivated by love and family and kindness and are naturally rebellious in a dangerous way. We can all be snarky and we are all funny as fuck. But we never wanted to do drugs or go out and do any of the dangerous things you saw teens do in movies. We all care deeply about making the world better and believe in the value of choosing kindness and love any time you have the chance—even if it means gritting your teeth and clenching your fist while doing so. But also, we would all fear the fucking world apart if you hurt anyone we love. We also never abandon our friends to prioritize romance. We all value friendship as its own distinct type of love and relationship that isn’t less important than anything else.

For my Since-Pre-k sister, we are really quite different people. She leans more conservative (not in a terrible way though) whereas I’m very leftist. She is extremely romance driven in a way that @will-write-for-food and I are not. Over all, I think she’s a lot more traditional and normative in her life choices than we are, but not in a judgmental way. It’s just how she is. And it doesn’t change any of the things that matter about any of us. @will-write-for-food and I are also much more intellectually motivated than she is. She isn’t dumb though! She’s very smart! She just doesn’t learn things for fun like we do. She goes out and does stuff instead. I value that about her. Whenever I get too in my head she is amazing at shaking me out of it. She’s also not super into politics. She’s very practical.

As for @will-write-for-food and I? Ooooooh boy. There is no way to fully disentangle this. She’s my other half. We are basically the same person. I’m much more optimistic than she is in general. And I’m also soooooooo much more humble. (😉😘) But she is so strong in a way that inspires me. She can keep her head down and keep moving forward in a way that is incomprehensible to me. I’m glad she’s learned to reach out more over the years and know that she doesn’t HAVE TO operate like a one woman emergency crew. But the fact that, when the chips are down, she *CAN?* It’s astounding to witness. She’s also funnier than me. Or anyone. She’s the funniest fucking person in the world. And if you think *I’M* patient?????????? You have all seen NOTHING. You don’t know the meaning of the word patience. None of us do. The word belongs to her.

As for a way I’m different than both of them? Aside from what was already mentioned, I think it’s pretty funny that they are both Irish Catholic with a big, loud Jewish found family.

cactus ⇢ something you’re currently learning (about)?

Interior design. (I got this ask a lot and will give a diff answer every time because I’m always learning a million things)

[7grandmel]

Todays rip: 05/03/2024

Grand Dad Metropolis

Season 1 Featured on: GiIvaSunner's HighestQuality Video Game Rips Volume 2 Also on: GilvaSunner's Highest Quality Video Game Rips: Volume 3 & Knigra, 7 Somari Dad

Ripped by MtH

Requested by an anonymous reader! (Request Form)

Juxtaposed to yesterday's post on a rip that's barely a week old in Willievan Afton Polkka, today we're going OLD school: to a time early in Season 1, back when the mere act of melodyswapping in any capacity still felt like witchcraft (and honestly, to me it still kind of does!). At first glance, Grand Dad Metropolis may appear to just be yet another funny flintstones edit amidst a sea of others - but in the context it was released in, it managed to both be incredibly funny, and mind-bendingly impressive at the same time. I'll try to summarize.

I've been alluding to the significance of April Fools on SiIvaGunner a handful of times on here, notably in Violet Snow Memories, and I've gotten quite a few requests to cover Season 7's April Fools event in particular. Rest assured: that day will come, but I think its important to cover some history beforehand. SiIvaGunner as a channel, one initially all about lightheartedly bait-and-switching unsuspecting viewers, obviously goes hand-in-hand with the very essence of April Fools. But then that raises the question: if the channel, in the early days of Season 1, was already aiming to pull pranks on people all days of the year, what could they do to change that up for when April Fools rolled around? The answer that the team came up with was perhaps the funniest one they could've done: for the entire day, every rip uploaded was of *actually* completely unedited video game music. Funnier yet, all the music chosen were of songs that already featured *some* of the notes from The Flintstones theme, giving the illusion that they had been edited just subtly - effectively driving the audience mad with confusion over whether or not the funny Grand Dad theme was going to play or not.

But where does Grand Dad Metropolis come into this? You can probably hear yourself that, unlike what I'm talking about here, it IS actually edited, if you're familiar with the original track. That's the thing - viewers back then were VERY familiar with the original track, as part of a running joke dating back to just a month after the channel's creation. The track Grand Metropolis, playing off of its very funny name, had been uploaded *six times* to the SiIvaGunner channel (back when it was still called GiIvaSunner) before April Fools rolled around - and in each of these instances, the track had been completely unedited. It was hard to really discern what the point of these repeated uploads was other than to just be mildly funny filler, that the joke was just in how the name of the track evoked the thought of the Grand Dad meme itself without any need to change the melody - until you realize the number that comes after six. Seven. The Seventh Grand Metropolis rip was yet to be uploaded - until, again, the day of April Fools.

With these two in jokes combined - the joke of Grand Metropolis being repeatedly uploaded without any edit until it had reached six out of seven total Grand uploads, and the joke of Season 1's April Fools being to do the complete inverse of the channel's typical activity - Grand Dad Metropolis was the ultimate payoff to a joke almost two months in the making. But see, the quality of the rip runs runs yet further: It was understood, back in the early days of Season 1, that most melody-swap rips made used songs where replacing or modifying its lead melody wasn't all too much work, be it well-understood 8-bit music such as on the NES, or songs whose stems and such were fully available to make isolating individual instruments a non-issue. Grand Metropolis had no such advantage, its performed with a live guitar played by Jun Senoue of SEGA's sound team, it doesn't have any sort of release out that allows for isolation of its instruments, and its sound is distinct enough to where it would seemingly be a huge challenge to recreate from scratch - Yet somehow, ripper MtH was still able to make Grand Dad Metropolis sound shockingly authentic-sounding, to the amazement of many. Check the video's comment section yourself, you'll find even some rippers like SonicHeroesFan1 of Green Panty Zone (Sequenced Ver​.​) fame left amazed at how a rip like this was - at the time - even possible.

There's of course a handful of other jokes featured throughout the rip as well, following that initial hit of getting the long-awaited funny flintstones. The melody goes through Snow Halation, Hiroyuki Sawano's Before my Body is Dry and Gangnam Style - all three jokes being quite historically important to SiIvaGunner's legacy, as I've covered in Stone Halation, voiceless and One Winged PSYcho - V​.​S. Sepsyrop respectively. That importance, paired with the prior-described lengthy context that surrounded it, really makes Grand Dad Metropolis a sort of milestone in early SiIvaGunner, a distillation of everything that gave the channel its initial intrigue, featuring some of the most core-to-the-channel jokes, ones pushed hard by the team's earliest members since the channel's inception. That part of the rip is undeniably important, of course, and yet...its the gag that still sells it for me. The gag of finally receiving the seventh Grand Metropolis was such a genuinely funny one to have unfold in real time and, paired with how funny April Fools of Season 1 was to begin with, ensured that Grand Dad Metropolis would be one I'd remember for all of time. For as often-sloppy, unplanned and rough as Season 1 can often feel, the novelty of the channel's conceit and the cleverness of the team resulted in it being one of the most devious and surprise-filled periods of the channel's entire life. And to me, that is what Grand Dad Metropolis most proudly represents. Pure, unfiltered Season 1 silliness.

Speaking of that silliness - huge shoutout to the "GiIvaSunner's HighestQuality Video Game Rips Volume 2" April Fools album this debuted on, featuring 245 uncompressed FLACs of Grand Metropolis, where exactly ONE of them was actually Grand Dad Metropolis. I don't know if I'll ever get a chance to actually talk about Volume 2 on here, so please look it up on the Wiki - its one of the funniest things the channel's ever done.

[br1ghtestlight]

Bob's burgers beginners episodes

if you want to start watching bob's burgers but aren't sure where to begin with over 265+ episodes i have compiled a small list of episodes that i think are a good introduction to the series and characters!!

it is an episodic sitcom so i wouldn't worry too much about starting with season one episode one. you won't really miss out on too much context except for some secondary character introductions, and in my personal opinion the earlier seasons aren't the best introduction for the characterization and humor that the rest of the series has and probably aren't the best to start out with watching. i will try to include at least one episode that focuses on each of the main characters :)

Bob Belcher and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Kids (season 11, episode 6)

in my opinion this is the best episode to start with if you've never seen an episode of the show before. it was the 100th episode special and so it does a good job at introducing the characters, settings etc as if it were a rewritten version of the pilot episode AND it's a lot funnier and more enjoyable than the actual pilot episode!!! it does a good job at introducing family dynamics and characters and also has a really catchy song lol

the plot of this episode is that there's an annual festival on ocean avenue and bob is hoping it'll be good for business but due to a series of events the kids end up setting the restaurant on fire, and end up getting up to some shenanigans to try to make it up to bob while him, linda and teddy try to get the restaurant in good enough condition for them to open for the lunch rush (also there's a fun plot twist at the end of this episode)

The Hurt Soccer (season 8, episode 12)

this episode is really funny and enjoyable and doesn't rely too heavily on secondary characters that were introduced in earlier episodes for it to make sense

the plot of this episode is that bob and linda accidentally signed louise up for a soccer team (which she absolutely DOES NOT want to be on) and she ends up having to compete in the final game of the season with bob as the coach and tina as the assistant coach, but louise's soccer team is kinda terrible. gene and linda end up opening a musical production in the restaurant bcuz they are both huge showbiz performers. Weirdly enough this episode ALSO has the restaurant catch on fire but i swear to god that isn't a consistent thing on this show it's just these two episodes </3

Eat, Spray, Linda (season 5, episode 18)

this is a pretty simple episode about linda's birthday where the kids and bob try to give her a happy birthday but EVERYTHING seems to be going wrong for her. it's a cute episode and has some interesting insight into linda's character and her relationship with her kids without feeling overwhelming!!

Stand By Gene (season 6, episode 12)

this episode features A LOT of secondary characters but I don't think its too confusing if you just go into it with the understanding that these are the kids friends from school and they appear in many episodes before and since this one. besides that it's a very fun adventure-type episode of all the kids going on a small adventure to find a two-butted goat at a nearby farm and explores a lot of interesting friendship dynamics. the subplot is a silly restaurant game between bob, linda and some other minor secondary characters but it does a really good job of showcasing their relationship and support of each other (while also being super compeitive) if you don't want to watch EVERY episode where a secondary character is introduced right away this is a really good one to start with. it's sooo charming and fun

The Laser-inth (season 7, episode 18)

I'm slightly biased because this was one of the first bob's burgers episodes i ever watched but i do think it's a really good one to start out with!! the main plot is about bob taking gene to a rock concert where he ends up getting sensory overload bcuz of the loud music and lights and is a good protrayal of bob's parenting style and how he is as a father. the subplot is linda taking tina and louise to an american girl style doll restaurant and it's mostly silly fun but also a little bit sweet at the end :) AND they help a spy doll escape from being killed. genuinely a very wholesome and fun episode with so much heart. also one of the episodes that explores the "it takes a village" type parenting style that is so important in bob's burgers worldbuilding (specifically in the subplot with gretchen)

Wharf Horse (or How Bob Saves/Destroys the Town) & World Wharf II: The Wharfening (or How Bob Saves/Destroys the Town) (season 4 episodes 21 and 22)

THIS is a huge two-part season finale that is a good introduction into the more high-stakes episodes of bob's burgers and the world that surrounds them. it's almost a prequel episode for the movie (which i maybe wouldn't recommend watching RIGHT AWAY but it is really good) and is super enjoyable and tense!!! i can't even begin to describe the plot of this one but basically mr fischoeder (their landlord/guy who owns everything in town) is convinced by his brother to sell wonder wharf so they can build condos and. things happen!! VERY TENSE!!!

also maaaybe look at the trigger warnings for this episode if you dont mind spoilers and think you might be triggered by certain situations because it is a bit darker than most episodes (not darker than the movie though lmao)

Mother Daughter Laser Razor (season 3, episode 10)

this episode is an earlier one but really good and explores linda and louise's dynamic. linda thinks that louise doesn't like her and signs them up for mother/daughter parenting classes which louise ABSOLUTELY hates. good episode about meeting your kid where they're at and provides some more context for later louise and linda episodes (where their relationship is definitely improved). the subplot where bob teaches tina how to shave her legs is also really sweet and I love how understanding and empathetic it is towards tina as a neurodivergent teenage girl <3

Mission Impos-slug-ble (season 8, episode 20)

this episode is another low-stakes episode but it explores the relationship between louise and tina (which has been explored before in earlier episodes and will be explored again!!!!) and also is just generally a very fun more school-focused episode. it does have a lot of wagstaff school staff members as secondary characters which might be a bit confusing if you aren't aware of their dynamic?? but honestly i think it's pretty easy to understand even from within the context of the episode and what's provided onscreen. also has some rudy screentime and other characters from louise's class (rudy is louise's best friend which is pretty much the only important thing to know here). the subplot is about bob giving a eulogy at a funeral but i can say the character who died is not a character who had been introduced previously despite how it might seem. He's just a guy they made up for this episode but it's a fun subplot

The Hormone-iums (season 6, episode 14)

this is a cute tina episode and has bob being a great dad too :) there isn't a lot to explain it's just an episode about tina wanting the lead role in a play type thing and having a crisis of morality and wanting to fit in with her classmates. the subplot is also very funny AND involves a transgender/drag queen plus-sized women's shoe store so you know it's good

Poops!... I Didn't Do It Again (season 10, episode 20)

episode focused on bob and louise's relationship as father and daughter where louise is going on an overnight field trip but she can't poop unless she's at home (ITS SO MUCH MORE HEARTWARMING THAT IT SOUNDS. bob is such a good dad) and in my opinion an episode that does a great job of showcasing louise's personality and fearlessness while also showcasing her internalized anxiety that she mostly gets from bob lbr

the subplot is about linda and the kids trying to make a stupid video for linda's parents anniversery and its entertaining enough BUT im absolutely not giving any context for the pickle costumes. it's so much funnier that way. They just have those don't even worry about it <3 we call this episode two in The Pickle Costume Trilogy

Driving Big Dummy (season 12, episode 4)

teddy episode!! I wanted to include at least one on this list because he's the unofficial sixth main character and has an important role in this show (you'll notice he's had an appearance in almost every episode I listed here) and this is one of my favorite episode of his :) there aren't any secondary characters and no real context is needed outside of the main six characters. bob and teddy go on a roadtrip together to pick up some equipment for the restaurant etc and have conflict bcuz teddy is outgoing and blah blah while linda and the kids compete to become the employee of the day (aka linda brags to the kids about how she's the best employee at bob's burgers. which she is. and then lets them win anyway because she loves them). fun episode and a great introduction to teddy and bob's relationship dynamic even if it wasn't intended to be

there are SOO MANY other bob's burgers episodes that I think are great and required viewing when it comes to this show but I wanted to make a short list of episodes for anyone who might want to dip their toes into the Bob's burger water without having to commit themselves to 14 seasons. by no means is this an inclusive list of every episode new viewers should watch. it isn't even 5% of them and honestly i would recommend watching through the whole show eventually bcuz every episode is somewhat important but this is a good starting point if you think you might enjoy this show!!

(I didn't include very many episodes from the more recent post-movie seasons not because they aren't GOOD. they're some of the best in my opinion. but because almost all the episodes are experimental storytelling or require a lot more context of the characters and their relationships and 14 seasons in they aren't really writing these episodes to introduce new viewers to the show. like imagine trying to introduce someone to the show for the first time using the amazing rudy or amelia lmao)

[overplannedbutunnamednpc]

Clover: 1, 50

Jesse: 8, 19

Kez (this one is for me 🙈): 9, 23

Leg: 11, 41

Clover:

1. What’s the lie your character says most often?

"Not a couple!" which is SO much funnier to me in the context of has been wearing a wedding ring for him for two years without telling him. Truly I am taking Clover's face in my hands constantly and asking them to explain themself. And they always do, and it's always so much weirder than I was expecting. I'm going into this like "la de da de da I mean I pretty much get Clover" and then Clover says to me "when I made my vows to Honey I also started to consider myself married to him, which I acted upon by starting to wear the ring that I intended to use to propose to him, but in secret". and I WHIP around to look at them. And they continue on their life as if that was some normal shit they just said. I do genuinely find it very interesting as a character trait to have them go “and I’m Always Right” while knowing. “Girl…… no……….”

Again, but they do think this is a joke:

50. What belief / moral / personality trait do they stand by that you (mun) personally don’t agree with?

I truly don't think you can love someone without also liking them. Clover doesn’t NOT like honey, to be fair—they think he’s fun and they genuinely get along with him most of the time, and even their bickering is more or less always in good fun. But like. Their perception of him is Colored. Which I genuinely don’t think works if you want to actually truly be in love with someone. Clover thinks they’ve got no choice, that that’s just how they feel and therefore they’ll be feeling it forever, which just. Isn’t true, to me. Girl you can leave him. Idk. You’ve done it before and it worked.

Jesse:

8. How loose is their use of the phrase ‘I love you’?

I don’t think he’s ever said it in game, which tells me he has to mean it! You’d feel like he’d be pretty liberal with it, which doesn’t seem to be true. He likes plenty of people! And he’ll go a very long way for people he likes! But love is its own thing—maybe not something Earned, exactly (up god knows he loves people who haven’t earned it) but certainly something that takes a little more than “accidentally blow up a factory together”. If he felt it, he may or may not say so. But if he says it, he feels it.

19. What would they do if stuck in a room with the person they’ve been avoiding?

Currently he’s avoiding Mag. Which… well, he’d have to have a conversation with her. Very sad. He doesn’t WANT to admit to her that he’s got second thoughts or that he’s very wary of his own new brain. He’s too loyal to want to leave or even really change things, and more than that, he knows that she doesn’t want things to change. It’s not that hard to see that Mag resents losing her glorified handbag, and Jesse’s got some conflicting opinions on actually being that handbag. But why would he tell Mag that! She doesn’t really care, and even if he did tell her she couldn’t materially help unless Jesse submitted himself for a VERY invasive use of her powers that he is genuinely pretty aware that she would probably abuse. So! From the bottom of his heart: 🙈

Kez:

9. Do they give tough love or gentle love most often? Which do they prefer to receive?

Kez is gentle, I think! This is because they’re genuinely pretty easygoing, and also probably because they’re aware that they’re almost always the pot calling the kettle black when someone fucks up. From Kez, you’re probably more likely to get a, “Is that really how you feel?” or a “Maybe not your best moment.” Something that’s more like “I know you know you’ve fucked up already, so let’s drop the bullshit”. Sure, he can get pissed, and he can get mean if he really wants to, but I wouldn’t call that tough love, because it’s more likely to be defensiveness rather than proactive. (Guy who has been thinking about reactions to Day’s promised evil monologue.)

(added after the monologue) GUY WHO CASTS SPELLS ABOUT IT LMAOOOOOO. but to be fair the spell was hold monster. because day was actively walking out. So. I’d call that. Gentler? than (consults notes) chain lightning and prismatic wall? ALSO this is a special case fksdkfjsd

They definitely prefer to receive gentle love? But I think by virtue of again. Being who they are (massive fuckup) they’re actually alright at receiving tough love by this point. And she’s so avoidant that I do think it’s the thing that “works”. When you threaten to never let him see his nephew again if he doesn’t clean up his act, he cleans up his act. You know?

23. What do they feel guilty for that the other person(s) doesn’t / don’t even remember?

(You just want evil Kez au. I see you, villain. But she ISN'T evil she ISN'T)

Kez only just got good at holding babies and now Teddy was too big for them to pick up.

Didn’t mean that much. Kez was hardly a fitness nut, and even he had to admit that he’d only gotten worse over the past couple years that he hadn’t been running for his life. Fighting gods toned some muscle in a way that peace just didn’t. And. Well. Drugs and parties burned fat and muscle with very little prejudice.

Luckily, the kid was good at toddling around by now, and surprisingly fast about it, too. Which was its own set of problems.

Mental note: Make sure not to be hungover next time Teddy’s dropped off, Kez thought, blinking blearily at the blue-tinged glare of the museum’s lamps through their sunglasses.

“Hey, stuffie, stay near me,” they reminded the little guy for the fifth time in as many minutes.

Teddy, bless him, slowed, but being a toddler didn’t stop. Kez’d take it. Teddy’s understanding of the world was such that he actually kind of knew what he was looking at when they went places, and his eyes were wide like an owl’s. Big and brown got his little ass a lot of old lady cooing. They were also very effective on Kez herself. He just put a little more skip in his own step to keep following.

Aoterra's Museum of Heroics was as legendary as the Sunyth citizens' likenesses it held, and it looked the part. Large halls and marble and glass cases that somehow made even the rusty old shit look just as grand as the gleaming stuff.

Teddy was mostly interested in the swords room when they came here, so Kez took him often. Free tickets - they donated one of their old spellbooks a couple months ago so they pretty much just had to flash a smile and drop a name to get through the doors.

This is where things got complicated for Kezzie. They couldn't pick Teddy up, nor was Teddy tall enough to really see what he was looking at without assistance.

Teddy made a beeline for the biggest swords in the room - the ones that were wielded by giants back when dragons were a much more widespread problem than they were these days. "These things are wider than you are tall, kiddo," they told him. "Why do you like them so much?"

"Big," Teddy answered. "It's big swords."

"So true," Kez replied. "What else? Do you like them because they’re shiny?”

Teddy didn't answer that question, distracted. Kez let it go, resting a hand on the top of his head instead so she could close her eyes for a second while he stared.

This was one of the better ways they found to do this - Teddy was well-behaved, but he wandered some, and Kez would quite literally rather die than ever have to look Callie in the eye and tell her that he lost her kid. But when Kez was hungover, the lights were brutal, especially glinting off all the metal in here.

"There," Teddy announced, his head moving some other direction under Kez's hand. Kez reluctantly opened his eyes - not a good look to use your nephew as a seeing-eye dog just to rest your eyes.

She let him lead her around in much the same manner for the next few exhibits, asking him about the exhibits like a good uncle should. Teddy was happy to talk and just as happy to not answer when he got too into an exhibit, but he was easy, blessedly so, today.

At least, up until he tugged on them and said "That's Daddy's," with such urgency that Kez's ears flicked.

"Huh? Say that again, baby," they told him.

Teddy just pointed, over to a newly-opened room. Kez blinked.

RECENT HEROICS, it proclaims, in paint so red it could still be fresh. Through it? Oh, that's Daddy's alright. Kez can see Arthur's sword through the glass doors - presumably a replica - as well as a morningstar that makes his chest ache a little more than it had any right to.

“Oh,” she said. “It’s not actually Daddy’s, Teddy bear. They made a new one that looks like Daddy’s sword. It isn’t the same one.”

Teddy started towards the doors. Kez, though he felt rooted in place that same way he always did when he wasn’t ready to deal with all the hero stuff, got tugged along as if Teddy was physically doing it.

She snapped out of it when someone came out, clocking and holding the door open for her nephew, and she saw the large diagram on the wall of the planar system.

Well. Planar-system-that-was.

Kez realized quickly that inside was gonna be a whole thing about the separation and who did it and who held it together and got hit with a wave of no fucking thank you so strong that they grabbed Teddy by the shoulder before he got through the doors.

“We don’t have time, Teds,” they told him. “We gotta get going. Maybe next time, okay?”

Next time, when he knew what he was getting into. He didn’t have any problems with people telling the story, he just needed to know when he’d be hearing it. Semblance of control, or whatever.

Teddy, who was probably pretty used to being directed around, did stop at the hand on him, but complained, “I want to see.”

“Not this time,” Kez said. “Next time you visit. That’s, like, a week. You can wait a week.”

“But—”

“Teddy, I said no,” Kez snapped, and her voice was so sharp that she surprised herself.

They’re not all that surprised when Teddy started crying. Gods damn it.

Immediate guilt rushed him, both for making the kid cry and the fact that they couldn’t effectively pick him up to make it better. The best they could do was drop to a knee to give him a hug—one he accepted, which was good, he was always a touchy little attention sponge—and an apology.

“Oh, no, sweetheart, I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to snap. You didn’t do anything.”

They rested their chin on his head, looked past him to the exhibit and decided they weren’t gonna offer ‘let’s go in’ as a fix to the crying. Not their circus right now. “You’re okay, baby. I’m not mad at you. That was an accident. Calm down, I’ve got you.”

Kez rubbed a hand over their face and then dropped it to Teddy’s hair. He was calming, a little. He was a happy kid, like that. The tears were more surprised than sad, Kez was pretty sure.

The woman who had held the door open had let it shut by now, and Kez did her level best not to look up to meet the judgement that she’d made Teddy cry. Yeah, lady, she knew already. You try saving the world sometime and being reminded of it even when you’re not asking for it.

“How about we go get some ice cream?” Kez offered the little guy still in their arms.

The offer was twofold, because it meant that the second Teddy nodded his head, Kez could press his head against their chest so that he wasn’t disoriented when they cast teleport. Boom, distraction. Totally different place, totally absent of problems.

“There we go,” he told him. “We’re back at my tower. We can go to the place you like down the street. You okay, buddy?”

Teddy, though he was still a little wet—apparently children were, often—nodded. Kez wiped away the tears on his cheeks and then wiggled her fingers to clean up the snot, a process that made Teddy sneeze and her smile.

“There you go. All better. C’mon, buddy, let’s get you a treat.”

Legacy:

11. If someone was impersonating them, what would friends / family ask or do to tell the difference?

I think it slightly depends on how well the impersonator knew her. What I think would be a decent tell is how she’d react to GD telling a joke during a serious conversation. I feel like usually, Legacy plays into that—she’s not very serious, despite her 20 strength and charisma and her 19 AC. I think someone very much could see her look and her resume (killing vampires, demons, cultists, etc.) and assume she takes a lot more seriously than she actually does. I think that could definitely trip up an impersonator.

41. What phrases, pronunciations, or mannerisms did they pick up from someone / somewhere else?

It came up in game a few times, but Legacy’s favorite comforting touch is playing with people’s hair! It came direct from Baba, braiding her hair while they chatted and Legacy polished her sword or worked on her knitting. Legacy always found fingers in her hair comforting, so she uses it on others, too. She doesn’t know how to braid, but playing with it is almost as good, so hair it is.

[kansasmention]

Statement of Intent.

Preemptive QnA:

Q: Do you live in Kansas?

A: Regrettably.

Q: Have you even actually watched K-ON?

A: No.

Q: Can I @ you?

Q: What is your main blog?

A: Yes!

Q: Are you an adult? What are your pronouns?

A: 26. She/Her/Boss.

A: I think it's funnier to keep it a secret. That being said, it's probably not that hard to find my main. I've reblogged from it more than once.

I've alluded to the idea of this blog having criteria for what posts i will and will not reblog, so here those are.

No Kansas City Chiefs posts. They are, as of writing, based in Missouri and therefore not Kansas. Even if they weren't a Missouri based team I still would have a blanket ban on them as the blog would be overrun with them. This is a blog about the state itself, after all.

As a continuation of the previous point, posts that are only about Kansas City but don't mention if it's referring to KCMO or KCKS are also banned. Kansas City is so different from the rest of the state that it'd be misleading too allow it without context, anyway.

No posts about the band, Kansas. Yes i know they come from Topeka but that doesn't change the fact they otherwise have nothing to do with it.

Wizard of Oz is not banned but the phrase "We're not in Kansas anymore" is. If that is the only mention of Kansas in the post than the post does not meet the criteria.

Posts that only mention a specific city or town, but not the state, are valid. I'm scraping for content as is I can't limit myself to just the exact word itself.

Posts that are just pictures of Kansas weather or the sunrise or sunset or whatever are banned since like, the post is specifically about Kansas which makes the joke not really as funny.

Extremely personal posts that only tangentially mention the state are banned. Yes, this technically fits the requirements, but I am not barging onto someone's post about their experience growing up a lesbian in a fundamentalist household or coming out to their parents. Even if its technically in a public space, i am not derailing their self-expression to make content for a silly gimmick blog.

Tags:

#Kansas Mention - What you're here for.

#Not Kansas - I accidentally reblogged the post to the wrong blog or i deemed it important enough to break character. Rare either way.

#Special Edition Version - A special edit of the usual K-ON girl I use, these are typically one offs.

#will delete upon request - This is for posts that fall into a grey area with rule 7. Posts that are still from some random persons' personal blog but aren't talking about anything serious or strictly personal to them. It's a courtesy in case they don't want it "breaching containment."

[rarepairnation]

1, 10, 23 for the ask game

heyyy long time no see 2 u as well...i hope u are doing well<3

1. the character everyone gets wrong

well one might be able to guess who i will say here. keep your hands and feet inside the rant at all times. denethor my dearly beloved...my prince of nuance...my darling victim of the narrative....i mean one thing i CAN say for peter jackson is that he did succeed at creating a laughingstock of a villain because most of the particularly egregious shit (tomato scene/flaming run/gandalf staff bonk) IS like. jesus christ i hate to admit it but it is funny. you hear about it for the first time and you HAVE to laugh. unfortunately i have developed the opposite of a sense of humour whenever im faced with denethor jokes. i am physically incapable of finding any of it funny anymore. i just get mad. its all just jesus christ the same yesterday today and forever. you all are smart enough to be funnier than this. its almost like sometimes your emotions towards other people are complicated and sometimes they are even contradictory. and sometimes EVEN you can fail to express either side of the coin in an easily understandable way. like i really understand not liking him after like considering how his crazy brain processes his relationship with his sons. like it is. well it is not objectively insane it is totally rational but rather perhaps an insane thing TO DO. but i simply think that some people are not willing to put in the work of thinking and resort to inanity and the same three overused gags to dismiss an incredibly complicated complex character to nothing more than a caricature. obviously i have more opinions but i've written thousands of words about those already. fucking. goodnight

10. worst part of fanon

i dont even know if i should say anything otherwise ill write another 500 words. um. sad little faramir i guess. its so common in fic portrayal and im tired of it. and then faramir's restraint gave way dot mp4. he did NOT blame boromir's death on his own father for this shit!

23. ship you've unwillingly come around to

oh man this one might be controversial but actually i AM going to say farawyn. not in the way that i didn't like them before but just that i was totally indifferent bc i didn't Understand. without like. i didnt have the context of his mother's mantle about her shoulders and he kissed her on the walls in the sight of many and very well as i am not a king and to make ithilien a garden where things shall only grow.......I Didn't Understand. i get it now.

[pumpkinwastaken]

rlly late night doodle canvas but i just got struck with inspiration! (also i have weekend atm so its alright!) Lots going on here, generally i leave these things without any context because oftentimes its funnier but theres some more personal things going on in this that i kiiiiiiinda want to expand upon. (more under the keep reading thingy if ur interested)

Like the whole feeling alien thing. Basically i often feel when with other people like, i'm this weird creature, sometimes its alienating (heheh pun) to have people not understand me and me not relating to them on things. But as long as i have my friends it's all cool! cuz like theyre all like "Beau ur such a silly creature we love you!" And i would go " woah i love you too!" and then i dont care about being weird anymore! <3 Also i have been thinking about getting a haircut again, but only because i would look a bit more professional when working. Which might not be a good motivator LOL. Also also! bottom right is actually a pretty good self portrait of me rn. Slightly receding hairline (actually born with it), messy style but also got that eyeliner swag going~ I actually really like how i look <3 P.S the workaholic thing, i went from like 200+ hours a month to working 170 something and i am very proud that i'm taking more time for myself again! Slowely taking up all my overtime hours and i think i have about 50 left? Which is a lot of overtime! But not nearly as much as it was! Thanks for reading <3, much luffs!