#it also has both moments of REALLY FUCKING BAD characterization and REALLY FUCKING GOOD characterization

[cluescorner]

There's no feeling stranger than knowing that something is bad but liking it anyways. Not in a 'it's so bad it's good' way. Because that implies that it has become good. I'm talking like this thing is just kinda bad in the normal ways things are bad, but i like it anyways.

[soft-pine]

spn20rewatch: 2.20 what is and what should never be

this has got to be in my top ten episodes of all time! there is so much i love about it! it has my favorite favorite scene and then my other FAVORITE FAVORITE SCENE!!!

but before we get there it has some wonderful dean character moments.

dean's confused, withdrawn, performative kiss with carmen!

this whole scene watching his face go from performance to confusion and worry and back and forth! he is so funny and i love him so much!

but this is also a cruel foreshadowing that the next two kisses dean has are him specifically sacrificing himself and his body as a means to an end.

but we're not there yet so let's just bask in THIS!

DEAN: Well, who'd'a thought, baby. We're civilians.

or THIIISSSSS!!!

DEAN Dad's dead? And the thing that killed him was a... MARY A stroke. He died in his sleep. You know that. DEAN That's great.

or the way dean is so fucking happy to see jess and it's heartbreakingly sweet!

there is also so much that can be said about how even in dean's "dream world," he's the family fuck-up. he's never really thought much about his own future or himself but the best thing he can picture is his family (or most of them, HA!) alive and happy and safe. and i think there's a component of this where he has to remove himself (and John) in order to imagine it being possible. gutting honestly.

season two opens with dean yelling at john (though john can't hear him) and ends with dean crying at john's grave. i'm interested in the shared threads between these two iterations.

2.01

DEAN: I've done everything you have ever asked me. Everything. I have given everything I've ever had.

2.20

DEAN: Course I know what you'd say. Well, not the you that played softball but... "So go hunt the Djinn. He put you here, it can put you back. Your happiness for all those people's lives, no contest. Right?" But why? Why is it my job to save these people? Why do I have to be some kind of hero?

the speech in 2.20 is actually one of the very best explanations i feel we ever get for dean's relationship with john. because the issue is not only that john forced dean into hunting, it's that hunting saves people. like dean can rail against john and against his childhood that was stolen and against his future that will be stolen and against all the cruelty and harshness and ways he was parentified and it was subtly reinforced that his life literally mattered less than sam's or than strangers. but hunting does save people, goddammit and dean both cares so deeply about that on his own that many of these sacrifices would be freely chosen and he cannot fully hate or distance himself from his father because so much of what john did was actually just straightforwardly good.

abuse is messy. i think john winchester's characterization is perfect, actually.

dean can much more easily put to rest a father who played softball than a father who "got a bum rap around every turn. But you know what? He kept going. And in the end, he did a hell of a lot more good than he did bad." (8.12)

like dean has to remove himself and john from their family's lives to picture their family getting a happy life. but for it to feel easy, he also has to make this father one who just worked at a body shop (i'm extrapolating) and played softball.

so yes, okay this episode is a nonstop thrill ride of beautiful, cute, wonderful dean moments and utter heartbreak. so of course, the next thing i have to say is THAT THIS SCENE IS SO FUCKING CUTE!!!!! i can't stand it! (rip to the "I know how it sounds" that i didn't squeeze in because it was too long. because that line just kills me !!!!!)

but look look look!!!! he's so smooth and cunty AHHH

so it follows that what comes next is heartbreak. dean wants a future where mary is alive, where jess is alive, where sam is happy and safe and in college and alive. and it's not real and he can't have it and it will kill him but he wants to stay. so he stabs himself in the heart.

and in the next episode sam dies anyway.

... well here we are, this is already so long and i haven't even talked about my actual favorite scene. which also, i think, happens to be my favorite scene in all of supernatural....

Dean realizing one of the other of the djinn's victims is still alive and catching her as sam cuts her free.

DEAN: I gotcha. I gotcha. We're gonna get you out of here, OK? I gotcha. I got you.

the way the fact that he's in pain and weak and drained is layered throughout the desperate care in his voice here.... besties i don't have words...

all hail 2.20

[astro-cattus]

Flatland (The book) is pretty good!

I read Flatland not too long ago, I´m afraid to admit that I saw the 2007 adaptation before I read the book fully. I didn´t change the fact that the movie was a hot mess to me.

At first I chalked it up to be just an indie movie from almost two decades ago, of course the script would be messy and the visuals jarring. But the moment I gave myself the time to read the book in it´s entirety, I realized how bad Ladd missed what the book was aiming to teach, and make fun of. Bigots like him :^/

Not only that, but something that irks me so fucking bad is the whole Chromatists ark in the movie; not only is it extremelly inaccurate to the book. This being A.Square´s retelling of a historical event that happened so long ago, we can´t really take A.Square´s word for it, as it was probably altered to make the Chromatists as "irrational liberals" and the Circular Priests as "the voice of reason".

Bringing this very much innacurate retelling to the present day of Flatland feels to me, like a very poorly made strawman.

I need to mention too, the leader of the Chromatists, an irregular shape. Which could´ve been an interesting approach to the differences between both kindoms. But,, the way he´s characterized really hits me the wrong way, feels extremelly ableist. And just serves to further the point that Ladd Ehlinger didn´t comprenhend the message the book was trying to comunicate.

Or he did, afterall, the Chromatist movement was a in-book version of a human rights movement, as it seeked women´s and irregular liberation and individuality.

To be honest, It could be interesting to explore a Chromatist resurgence in Flatland, the book has plenty of worldbuilding and potencial to have new stories written about it. (I´m yet to hear of a good adaptation though, If you have any good adaptations around this world, I would love to read it!). But not by people like Ladd.

Another thing I would like to mention is how much Ladd butchered A.Sphere´s personality in this movie. I hope I´m not the only one who has this sentiment. A.Sphere is supposed to be humble, he scoffs at the idea of somehow being a supperior, perfect being. He´s also empathetic and patient, things A.Square mentions he associate´s with women, and therefore inferior. Something that is supposed to challenge his view, as he has this notion that A.Sphere is a godly entity.

I believe this was a counsious desition; by scrumbing this character of this personality, now he doesn´t have to challenge A.Square´s (and by proxy Ladd himself) bigoted views.

I can still understand people might´ve grown attached to the character, I trust you have two brains and understand the core message of Flatland regardless.

This just goes to show media literacy is a very crutial skill, specially as an adult.

Anyways, have this quick thingy before I run to my Uni because just now I realized I ranted too much and now I´m late lol

[lurkingshan]

10 Things I Love About Only Boo!

*kicks down the door* I'm a few weeks late but I have arrived and I am here to yell about this fucking adorable show. Have you heard that it's the cutest shit you've ever seen in a fresh new package of all your favorite silly old romance tropes? Besties, this is truly the Sunday Serotonin we need. Here are the top 10 things I love about it:

The main romance is between a confident sunshine protagonist and a kind older boy working through his grief and an artistic block. Mok (Moo) and Kang are such nice boys, two cinnamon rolls too sweet and pure for this world, and I loved them instantly. They have a nice crackly chemistry between them and really solid communication right from the start.

The setting is rural and refreshing. Moo moves to Nakhom Pathom to attend school for a semester because his mom wants him to focus on his studies before she will allow him to pursue a career as an idol. Little did she know she was delivering him to a cute boy who would become the new distraction.

The crushing and flirting starts immediately, and it's mutual. They just like each other, man. Kang is (slightly) older and trying to be responsible about keeping Moo focused on his studies so he's putting up some token resistance, but it's very very token. They both find excuses to keep seeing each other after they meet.

There's a side couple with a long-term pining friends to lovers arc. The way I squealed when they revealed that photo wall. I support you, Payos, you will get your boo. These two also have a lovely, easy chemistry and seem so comfortable around each other. Their characterization also gets a fun twist in the beginning of the story.

The writing is strong and assured. This was written by the same screenwriting team as Cooking Crush, aka the best written original Thai bl of last season. These folks know their way around a smart romcom. They know how to deploy classic tropes so they feel fresh, build authentic character arcs, and make all the beats of the story feel confident. We are in good hands and don't need to worry about any out of left field conflicts or weird plot turns with this one.

A fresh new cast brings a ton of energy. I really love all four of the main actors for this show. They're young and bright and breathing some new life into an old formula. And both pairs have solid chemistry and seem comfortable in their scenes together.

Some of our old favorites are here too. They've made the smart decision to bolster the young main cast by surrounding them with more experienced seniors like our lady Milk, here playing Kang's friend and neighbor who is all up in his crush on Moo. Louis and Book are also going to show up at some point.

The show incorporates music and dancing in such a charming way. Moo is one of those kids who just has to dance, and the show mines a lot of comedy around his efforts to stifle the impulse as his mom ordered. I don't think he'll hold out for long, though, because Payos and Tae are on him to train with them. And of course the music supervisor is having a great time working in some classic GMMTV music gags (yes, Love Score and Too Cute To Handle both make memorable appearances).

It's a high school story brimming with youthful energy without being mired in immaturity. The tone of this show reminds me of My School President in the best way, in that it has all the sweetness and innocence of a high school romance without making the characters so immature and bad at communication that it's annoying to watch. As expected from the CC writers, these characters may be inexperienced but they are going to talk to each other and honesty will prevail every time.

We are only three episodes in and the romance is already well underway. This is the kind of show where we will see the main pair flirt and date and face obstacles together. The swoony moments started immediately and Moo is already throwing around the faen title. We know from the synopsis that the core conflict will come when Moo is forced to choose between his relationship with Kang and his dream of being an idol, and I expect he will be finding a way around that choice. I'll be strapped in for the ride because I already believe in these two.

[knavestrolls]

Do you remember your favorite fan troll you’ve ever seen that wasn’t one of yours?

Okay so this is such a loaded question but not in a BAD way. I hope y'all are ready for some dropped names. I'm not going to ping anyone, I don't want to step on toes! LONG ASS POST. I AM NOT KIDDING.

Sid Cada @/lordtonic - I may be yellow colorblind but god damn I love sid. Enough that it makes me angry I know I can't see that damn suit right sometimes. I picked Sid as my favorite one day and my brain stuck to it so hard that while I do legitimately love every other troll there, Sid makes me light up like I've just see a lizard [which with Sid, sometimes those things both happen]

Thread @/sasster My favorite chase troll changes a LOT. Chase has INSANELY GOOD TROLLS AND FUN CHARACTERIZATION. Stryx was actually my first favorite troll of Chase's and how I found the sasster blog BUT. Thread is SO good. She's so fun and oh my god. Snakes,,, [WOMAN. also her one romance with the uhhh commander I think? The white suit with both arms on one side in her sprites.. sleepless brain is killing me rn- but oh my god it's SO fun to see them flirt.]

Mallum @/roetrolls Okay so. I know everyone would think I'd put Remora and they're NOT WRONG I STILL ADORE REMORA. But through the storylines I just fell HARD for Mallum. The redemption? The struggle? I literally can't hear "Main Character" by Wil Wood without imagining a whole animatic of Mallum to it! The only thing that stops me (besides time) from making it is I know I do NOT know enough to make it any form of accurate. [after coming back to proofread: also the fact that Roe is an amazing animator and my brain struggles with the 'well x could just do it'. Not the point brain!]

ALLMAH @/ase-trollplays Listen. Here on the knavestrolls we are villain enjoyers. And we are WOMEN enjoyers. And WE SUPPORT WOMEN'S WRONGS. WE WANT THEM TO DO MORE IN FACT. Allmah my beloved. Free her. She did all of it I just think she should be free to do more. [doubling down. Let Allmah commit new warcrimes. Let her invent them]

Veketi @/windy-trickster Mi mijo has so many good trolls that it's always hard to pick. But Veketi gets a soft spot for me because we made Veketi and Liegia together. Because I made Veketi's sprites and I want to remake them because I think they look god awful now but they still get USED when he's around. They still read like they're fun! Becase Star has an amazing way of making the sprites WORK with what the character is saying too. <33

Melanc @/ask-melanc-vivura I.. don't actually have a long explanation for this one. This is another BPD brain pick that's really silly. I drew her with her boobs mostly out and have just loved her ever since. I am weak to women I can pin up. [PIN UP ART. PIN UP ART.]

Galeia- @/videcoeur This is another one I don't have a good long explanation for just.. pretty fish. I'm love pretty robit fish. Plus, science and REALLY FUCKED UP science,, my beloved [Fun fact i am weak to every single Videcoeur character, OC or otherwise. And the moment she arts? I'm dead. One day I'll be able to afford sprites]

Arceel- @/memurfevur I'm pretty sure I spelt his name wrong and I do not care, he can fist fight me. Not the author, the troll. Papa Arceel! One of my favorite troll to interact with because I can go to that troll with some of the stupidest questions and get a legitimate answer. Sometimes, one I didn't even know I needed [Also I am SO sad upon realizing I don't have the stupid meme image of his head over Beast now.]

Rynthu- @/lashysdomain Again, pretty sure I spelt it wrong but she'll forgive me I think (the troll). Just all around a fun character. Has so many fun plots in so many fun ways/worlds! Her romance with Watch'r is adorable as hell, but I'm not obsessed with the Watch'r side, it's her side I follow. As if it's one of the many romance webtoon I cling to and she's the FL.

PELEXI- @/mageofspacemultiverse DRAGON. WOMAN. WE SUPPORT DRAGON WOMEN'S WRONGS. Especially when they're funny. Plus like listen. Listen. Have they actually dated? No. Have they even gotten past a SINGLE conversation? NO. But that's Esstoc's wife and I don't take excuses

Charon - @/asks-n-trolls If I could romance 1 old troll............also honestly I love a LOT of Dan's trolls. Each one has such a fun personality, cute quirks- and FLAWS!!! I LOVE FLAWS!!

Alacar- @/alacarhelsng I can type freely here, because I *know* that he will never read this so. Alacar is genuinely one of my favorite characters my husband has ever made. He's so genuinely fun to play off of as a character, to build around! His design is SO freaky and silly and fun! I forget his damn scar EVERY TIME! He's getting surprise gift sprites done and I had to go back and rewrite the notes to please include the scar and add more references because I had forgotten AGAIN. He's SO ODY coded but he's also so Achilles coded. He didn't want to fight in this damn war. He wanted to spend his days with his Patroclus (AND HIS PENELOPE). He wanted to laugh and joy! And now look what this journey has turned him into! What losing those people has turned him into! Ugh I could go on forever- and I will, if ever given the chance, because I know that my husband isn't around on here as often and isn't very known but god DAMN I need y'all to appreciate the fun builds he makes. (also Qimzal is my second favorite and depending on what song wins you might get some insight on why)

Chrona- @/8bit-mau5 Okay. So. This one is REALLY hard to narrow to one because I also adore Malice and Opal. Crow's getting it for the STUPIDEST of reasons though. I'm weak to pinstripe. All three characters are a genuine joy to have on my dash any time they appear I am over the moon! I want all three of them worse and better all at once!! Also I would not trust Crow to actually help me in a court of law. Should I? Maybe.

Nereus- @/nethertrolls The design? KILLER. The stories? Absolutely enthralled me. Also, Nereus just reminds me of the Outsider from Dishonored sometimes and I ADORE The Outsider. To the point where I do actually plan on getting his mark tattooed eventually! So just.. Genuine attachment regardless of any story changes I'm dedicated to Nereus

@/goddesstrolls For religious reasons, I can't post her name. Starts with an H. She's Bast's very buff beautiful rust woman. A huntress. A legend. An icon. I ADORE her. It KILLS ME that I can't interact with her because I can't say her name!! Plus I just get nervous because,, womyn,,

 Ailaxi- @/tempi-fantrolls Okay, so this is going to be very shameful of me and we're all just going to ignore it for a moment okay? I struggle to keep up with the dash, even when I had the free time and the mental health but the #1 troll I always managed to catch on my dash was Ailaxi from them. And oh my GOD I ADORE lil grouches! Especially SOFTIE GROUCHES. It has been a while since I've been able to keep up at any level so this is VERY much just vague memory but I see that gray man and I'm like yes. my boy he has returned.

Daiona- @/norts-trolls Nort is another person I struggle to pick favorites with but right now it is STRONGLY Daiona. This I don't have words for in the same way I don't have words for the profound loneliness that sneaks up on me that I can only explain via sending my husband pictures of abandoned, overgrown, half destroyed houses that look like no one's even urban explored them in at least a decade. Daiona fills that same feeling to me, I hope someone makes sense of that.

Voghel- @/happyhappyfantrolls I have said it once, I will say it again, we are VILLAIN LOVERS here at Knavestroll! Voghel was one I locked onto early and have not let go! I try to go keep up with events and comics on this blog when possible because so many characters have fun interactions, deep relationships, and there's familial bonds that get to me...but also I want to see Voghel.

Babble- @/wandering-trolls I NEVER leave behind an EDM girlie. Just look at her. Look at her and tell me you can't love her I'll fist fight you

Mikael - @/mik-mania I just think Mikael is neat. That's it. thats the whole thought

Rhulan- @/morgombie It was love at first sight. If I remember right, I think I even got to draw her once! Not 100% on that thought, please remember I do have memory problems. but anyways! THE DESIGN FUCKS SEVERELY. SO GOD DAMN STRONGLY.

Malara- @/ask-swagger-dagger-trolls I was blessed with getting to know the story behind Malara's design and it stuck with me. Some days I think about doing something similar but honestly, Malara fills that need for me. She's like a silent presence with me sometimes. Filling in where that friend would have. Now, Tam has some amazing other trolls I love for lots of insanely silly reasons but..Malara stuck with me the most, for that reason.

Wicata- @/goldenguillotines So. I have to be honest, GG has a lot of trolls and I love so many of them that with my memory issues some of them bleed together. I did have to go look up her name, but this is a design that sticks with me. When I think of GG, this is the design that comes to mind because to me. I would see her on my dash endlessly and every time I saw her I'd stop scrolling because I had discovered another neat little detail in her sprites, in the art of her, in her design! GG has so many amazing designs and characters so please don't take this as a 'this is all there is' it's just what stuck with my broken brain.

HeeHoo - @/trollbreak JONAH. One of the platonic loves of my life is literally all of Jonah's clowns, and I am the EXTREMELY proud owner of a clown designed by Jonah! (As well as a mimic dragon amongst other designs) But I can firmly say my Jonah-clown obsession started with Heehoo. He's just a little guy! He would never do a murder, it'd dirty his pom poms! Just a lil guy who does a lil dance and stands in your hands and when he leaves and you look down there's rainbow footprints on your palm! Just OUGH Peak Clown for me. Peak clown design for me too. The mustache fucking kills me

Now, this is not NEARLY all of them. I could go on for ages but I've been told by three separate people to go try sleep again because I've hit the 27 hour mark but. Here is a small handfull of favorite trolls and thoughts about them!

[peanutheaddd]

favorite dog man book?

Oh anon. Ohhhhhh anon. You cant make me choose. Staring solemnly at the sunset. i cant . they all have their good parts.

id say top three are tale of three kitties, for whom the ball rolls, and mothering heights . unfortuantely cant rank within that list i think id explode .

stupid baka rant about every book below cut bc im fucking NEURODIVGERNEEE NNTTTTTTT FUCKKKKKKKKKK

ig book 1 and 2 wouldnt rank very high js bc theyre js silly. i love them obviously but it doenst even compare to the other books bc theyre js So compelling. theyre more lighthearted and thats ok w me . i like them bc dog man gets a lot of attention hehe ^_^ i love that guy

I Love tale of two kitties. i thnk its one of the most insightful books into petey and dms character along with obviously introducing lil petey as a character. tale of two kitties is one of the most influential books in my brain when im characterizing petey specificlaly but def dm as well. it just. realy perfeclty shows how petey doesnt have an onchalant bone in his body which is So important for how i personally characterize him. and it realy shows dms selflessness and how he took to fatherhood like a fish to water like . its just. So good in that aspect. drawing these parallels ig between them .

lord of the fleas has one of my fave petey moments of all time (lil petey saying wait you love me? and petey staring at him and saying PAY ATTENTION!) . also the book where he fully embraces father hood THANK GOD. dog man and cat kid was So fucking hard to read because petey was Such a piece of shit LMFAOOOOOOOO . 😭😭😭😭😭i was gen grimacing my way through the book

brawl of the wild has a special place in my heart bc its like the One book that actually addresses dog mans . identity crisis. peteys struggle here and him thinking hell always be bad is also very compelling. its also intersting bc he and dog man are both going through the same arc of having inner conflicts about ones own identity . i mostly like it for the rare dog man focus tho

for whom the ball rolls is easily one of my faves . Again for the dog man tidbit LMFAOOOOOOOOO. i love my goat i fear. specifically him jumping on petey when he comes to hsi house to get lil petey . lit that one scene inspired me to write a whole ass fic LMFAOOOOOOOOO . also has one of my fave petey scenes (lil petey says u love me ? and petey responds WELL DUHHHH. also the scene where lil petey says you abandoned me once. and i forgave you! and grampa breaks smth and petey just. Holds him. I could probably write an essay on this scene i fear.) and obviously its the book that made the detey coparenting dynamic explicit GOD BLESS. also has my Fave ending sequence of all time . (petey telling lil petey that the world could never be a bad place bc hes in it Like are you fucking kidding me? I hate you petey the cat. fuck my life)

fetch 22 had some funny parts (petey saying WE ARE NOT VISITING GRAMPA! and the next ch splash page is titled VISITING GRAMPA) also lil petey messing around w grampa AS HE SHOULD. also the petey washing flip e rama LMFAOOOOOOOO . ofher than that it was js ok 2 me. it felt similar to book 1 and 2 smth more lighthearted. i think the molly arc was So good. the part where she moves the single branch was awesome. i think the message is great.

grime and punishment was Incredibly important for navigating peteys grief .its all pretty much just . written there in the book tho like its pretty obvious so idk what more i can say about it .

Mothering heights. Oh mothering heights. My fucking life bro. My fucking life. dont even get me fucking started. i wrote literally a whole paragraph about mothering heights in someones rb tags once. the EXPLICIT petey and grace parallels. petey giving lil petey and molly their stupid snack and drinks even tho theyre driving him nuts which Really drives home how much hes changed since the beginning of the series. obviously had the awesome criticism of the us justice system DAV PILKEY WIN. really just driving home this idea that petey never Wanted to be a criminal . So important for his character . the grace and lil petey and petey paralleles. Fuck. fuckkkkkkkkkkk M y. life. and obviously the peteys lab getting destroyed and him + lil petey moving in w dog man event. This books ending has inspired So many Awesome fucking fics. the number of fics ive read where the premise is after mothering heights where peteys living with dm WHAT WOULD I DO WO THIS EVENT DAWGGGGG

20k fleas was chill i think the best part was just again criticism of the us justice system which i fe HHHEAVYYYYYYY . other than that it was ok . i think it focused too much on the fleas for my liking Lmfao.

scarlet shedder was So fucking yaoi. LMFAOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO gayest fucking dm book i genuniely was staring at my svreen in horror MUTLIPLE times bc i was actually like dav pilkey Has to be doing this on purpose . i get that a lot of peteys actions were motivated primarily by lil petey and not dm but if he hated him even close to the amt he did at the beginning of the series he would Not have sacrificed ss much as he did. But even thenthere are still events where . their actions are completely unrealted to lil petey but still SOOOOOO FUCKING. CARING !?!?!?!!??! dog man getting sentenced and petey getting mad on his behalf like. Bro what ? You cant be fucking serious. Do you have a crush on him. IDIOT. HIS STUPID ASS. also petey getting dm out of the jail truck and dm is smiling SOOOOOOO FUCKING WIDE when he sees petey like BRO YOU CAAAANNOOOOTTT BE FOR REAL GENUINELY. most yaoiful book in the entire fuckign series gen hoooo my god.

[atopvisenyashill]

Please bring back the anon mode, I fear sharing my opinions publicly like the coward I am. Since your name is atop Visenya’s hills, I have to ask

Do you think the fandom mischaracterize her too much? I always see it in fanart, discussions that Visenya was the big bad person and Rhaenys the good natured silly princess and last time I checked both of them were trifling at times. I like Rhaenys duality as a trifling at times character but truth is still that she was wilding out.

Rhaenys went ahead and instigated a war in Dorne by bunting Planky Town😭 civilians, not the ports, not the exits, old, women, and children😭 I never seen one conquest of hers where she didn’t get to violence.

Rhaenys depsite being the favourite wife still had affairs. Before the “rumours by the maesters” gang come for me, Rhaenys was the most liked of the two wives. Visenya is accused of sorcery and even when it’s admitted people thought she was beautiful they had to add “Even those who loved her best found her beauty to be more austere than her sister Rhaenys”. They can’t even let her have her stans. It’s also funny that Rhaenys surrounds herself with comely young men, can you imagine a man surrounding himself of comely young ladies, mummers and dancers, no matter how fond of the arts he was! Now Aegon still spending 10 nights with Rhaenys over Visenya maybe a form of cuck fetish, maybe she was having affairs to stress him out so he’d overdo attention to her but that’s not my point. Maybe since it was an unconventional marriage they all fucked whoever they liked and Rhaenys is the one who got caught. Whatever

Visenya maybe was sterner but she wasn’t without softness or warmth. Created the Kingsguard, had sense to not surround herself with side pieces, and she was nice enough to Ronnel to be comfortable with her, the child didn’t seem distress by her presence despite the giant dragons so I assume she wasn’t all mean.

People often use the usurpation as a defining moment but often forget that for YEARS she’s kinda been pushed to the limit? Aegon straight up neglected her son and left them on Dragonstone, man approved the match to Ceryse who was 10 years older. And Aegon absolutely fostered the distance between Aenys and Maegor because there’s no other way Aenys would feel bold enough to take Dragonstone from Maegor. Not to forget Aegon had married her to steal her claim to Dragonstone since if married, his claim would supercede hers.

Another mis characterization is that Rhaenys is always curvier (hips, chest) mind you she was the slender one, but Visenya is explicitly described as curvaceous and seductive. They even took away her titties and her rizz😭 FREE VISENYA

asljfdlksjdafdkj sorry i kept getting like mean anon messages, i was honestly deleting the most out of pocket ones and posting the ones i thought were funny but i had gotten like 6 in one day and i was like alright enough i can't fucking do this rn and that's why i turned anon off but i'll probably turn it back on soon.

last time I checked both of them were trifling at times.

no because REAL. i do think visenya often has this reputation In The General Fandom as this like unfeeling evil ice queen, not dissimilar from for comparison's sake the way cersei and catelyn are characterized in fandom - her flaws are inflated or made contextless from what she has experienced and people just kinda pretend like she's a one note villain to Rhaenys' sweet charming queen. but i don't think that's at all accurate to how she's characterized in the series nor do i think rhaenys as the ~sweet never wrong favored wife~ is very accurate for Rhaenys. Look at the beginning of the conquest for an example - Visenya rolls up to Cracklaw Point, to a people who don't really want her there, and instead of just threatening them with fire and blood, she just kinda points at Harrenhal and goes "if you submit right now without a fight i won't give you any overlord but the crown itself" which is a pretty nice deal for a region that has been regularly fighting off being ruled by other people! she takes it bloodlessly through diplomacy! now what does rhaenys do when she goes to dorne? she immediately starts making threats! she refuses to see why perhaps the descendants of the rhoynar aren't high on the idea of being ruled by what's left of valyria! she just threatens and leaves. and when it's time to take dorne, what does she do? she burns planky town the home of the orphans of the greenblood, the last stronghold of rhoynish customs and culture! she completely and totally botches the dornish conquest!!

now this isn't to say that visenya isn't also a) weird about dorne (because basically every single targaryen up until daeron ii is weird as shit about dorne) and b) full of vicious and self righteous violence herself. but as you say both of them do some extremely stupid shit yet only one of them has a reputation for being evil!

and yeah, the thing is, while i think aegon is very smart in how he handles his lords (again, outside of dorne) he is dumb as a box of rocks about how he handles his own sons. he's just very clearly playing favorites, letting the rift get bigger and bigger, actively antagonizing visenya, and not only that but like - visenya isn't wrong that there is a slight succession issue here between maegor and rhaena, given that visenya is the oldest wife and the first wife, but he completely handwaves this off, which really heavily implies a rejection of visenya and maegor completely. should they have reacted the way they did? well no lmao but it's stupid to pretend like aegon doesn't set his kids up for failure here when he sees how deeply unhappy visenya and maegor are and does absolutely nothing to help the situation.

Also damn you're right, I have always had this issue with the way the conquerors are depicted, especially the women as being these two barbie bombshells but like, canonically, VISENYA IS HOTTER the same way Rhaena is considered hotter than Alysanne but whereas Alysanne always gets depicted with her yellow hair and mismatched eyes and a kind of cute, round face to Rhaena's much more Valyrian steely looks, Rhaenys is ALWAYS this Valyrian bombshell. Rhaenys should be drawn the same as Alyssa T and Alysanne though like where do we think they got their looks hmmmm??? IT WAS RHAENYS. RHAENYS IS NOT A BOMBSHELL SHE'S A REGULAR LADY. SHE'S 'CUTEST GIRL IN YOUR ANTHROPOLOGY 101 CLASS' HOT!!!!!!! SHE'S NOT A MODEL!!!!!!!!!

[stationintern]

Hello my friends! I am late, but we won't mention it. April was a very busy month, but I managed to read way more than I've been able to the last few months, so I have a good selection for you. There's a couple rereads, a couple fics I put off reading for far too long, and a few that I found at the perfect time and devoured on sight.

Let's go!

Yours Truly by @skeptiquewrites for H/D Bodice Ripper Fest 2022 M, 14.8k

Every single one of Harry’s exes has gone on to marry the next person they date, and with the upcoming nuptials of numbers six and seven to each other, Harry’s feeling exhausted by it all. It doesn’t really matter if he lets people assume Draco Malfoy is his boyfriend for a moment of peace. In any case, Draco’s been away for five years and there’s no way he would find out, right?

I read this fic about a year ago, and I am so glad that I chose to revisit it this month. It is just so, so good. Endlessly hilarious, with a solid plot that is resolved neatly in 14 thousand words. I really love Harry here. His letters are so adorable. This aspect comes in later in this list as well, but I love when Draco is kind of a mysterious figure for a good chunk of a fic. The wondering, the anticipation. What kind of Draco will we meet this time? It's all very delicious.

Seeker's High by @corvuscrowned M, 40k

Harry Potter doesn’t expect to take up running years after the war ends; it just sort of happens. He also doesn’t expect that — as he fights tooth and nail to climb out of a post-war depression he didn’t realize he’d fallen into — he’ll end up running right into the arms of Draco Malfoy. A half angsty drama, half romcom of Harry working on himself, learning how to accept help from his friends, and falling in love with his childhood nemesis.

Another reread. This is one of those fics I've found myself periodically thinking about, mostly because it just feels so right. Harry's characterization in this is fascinating, and I really enjoyed watching his slow evolution as his relationships grow, both with running and with Draco. A unique premise that I really enjoyed and know I will revisit again.

Turn by Saras_Girl E, 306k

One good turn always deserves another. Apparently.

Okay, so, I'm not even gonna say anything. I put off reading this for way too long, and not knowing a single thing about this fic was probably the reason I devoured every chapter the way I did. Just know I was clawing at the walls.

Rookie Moves by peu_a_peu E, 75.3k

Aurors Potter and Malfoy crack the case.

Oh my fucking god. I have never in my life laughed out loud this many times while reading a fic. Truly, two dumb, horny assholes just trying to crack the case. But, behind all the side-splitting humor (and searingly hot sex) is a deep understanding of both characters that shines through and makes every moment hit so much harder. As in, they would fucking say that. Every single follow-up in the series is a banger, too. Thanks to @tackytigerfic for pointing those out to me!

Make This Leap by @oflights M, 118k

Harry owns a struggling restaurant which is running out of money, and his Head Chef has just handed in notice. He's at a bit of a loss as to what to do until Narcissa Malfoy presents an obvious solution: bring in Draco Malfoy as Chef and part owner. Harry does.

I relived four years of my life reading this fic. Both the good and the bad. Truly, a wonderful portrayal of the epic highs and lows of restaurant work. From personal drama to work-related catastrophes, this fic has it all. Like I said before, I love having to wait a bit to see Draco. I love hearing about him through the grapevine. I had so much fun reading this, and it was a treat to see these characters in an environment that I hadn't really envisioned them in before. Lovable (and punchable) side characters, a very stressed out Harry Potter, and a solid amount of health code infractions. Amazing.

See you at the end of May! xx, Moon.

[flower-boi16]

Bring the thunder down

Well time to give my thoughts on the latest episode.

POSITIVES:

-Seeing callbacks to previous episodes in season 1 was pretty nice

-Holy shit Verosika development? HELL YA!!!! I'm just going to say it; Verosika is the best part of the episode hands down. I like that we get to see a real side of her beyond just being a one-dimensional bitch, her being friendly towards Stolas due to seeing him, and how SHE felt when she was hurt by Blitz.

And she deeply empathizes with people who were also hurt by Blitz and holds this party so people can cope with their experinces for how Blitz damaged them, a place where they can all get together. Viv developing a female character...? That's insane! Verosika feels like an actual person in this episode, not just a one-dimensional bitch.

-We don't get a rushed resolution to Blitz's feud with Verosika like we did for his feud with Fizz, which I am very happy for. I liked how they handled the reletionship between the two here,

-The development for Blitz here is genuienly great...? Like, the episode does a good job of showing him finally realizing how his actions have hurt others, and shows him trying to play victim here in the final scene of the episode before accepting that HE IS THE PROBLEM. And it's now the begining of him finally deciding to grow and become a better person, which is probably going to be a major arc in both season 2 and the rest of the series.

-The characterization here for Blitz is also great. Again it shows him playing the victim here because he's too much of an asshole to accept how he might have hurt others, until he realizes how his actions actually affect those he hurt. He feels genuine remorse now for his actions after the song that Stolas' sings on the stage.

-SPEAKING OF THAT SONG NUMBER; I have some issues with it when it comes to Blitz victim blaming but for the most part it's not bad. The visualls during it look quite nice and the singing is really good. This also serves as a good moment for Blitz as a character; as he sees that actually did, genuinely, have real feelings for him, and it helps Blitz realize all the mistakes he's made throughout his life and how his actions have genuinely hurt others.

-The episode, generally, does a good job of showing how Blitz's actions have hurt others.

-The finale scene in the episode is fantastic. Like I said we get some great development for Verosika and some insight on how she felt when Blitz ran off, characterization for Blitz and growth with him finally realizing his mistakes and the begining of him growing as a person. The voice acting from the two especially sells the emotions in it.

This episode has a suprising amount of good stuff in it when it comes to Blitz and Verosika...unfortunetly there are still some issues.

NEGATIVES:

-Unsuprisingly the Stolas stuff here is awful. The episode constantly frames him as another one of Blitz's victims who was hurt by him which just shows more Stolas victimization. Whopee. The begining scene is especially awful when it comes to this. The thing that really gets me is the line "since when have I ever looked down upoun you", like, dude, YOU CONSTANTLY BELITTLE HIM THROUGHOUT THE FIRST SEASON. OF COURSE HE'S GOING TO THINK YOU LOOK DOWN UPOUN HIM.

And then he says that Blitz is like Striker which is fucking stupid.

(though tbf Blitz is deffiently an ass in this scene so I can get Stolas' perspective to a slight extent, but some of the framming here and dialogue is still questionable)

-Speaking of that begining scene, its...eh. It has the issues with Stolas victimization as I already talked about here but then there's the fact that they used Blitz not telling Stoals about Striker as a way to create cheap drama. YAY! Also this...never gets resolved in the episode btw.

-The stage scene where Stolas sings his "motherfucker" song is good enough in terms of development for Blitz but since Blitz isn't in the wrong here for not believing Stolas loves him it still come across as another instance of Blitzo victim blaming to a slight extent. I already expressed my opinions multiple times about why Blitz is not in the wrong for not thinking that Stolas has real love for him so I'm not gonna repeat myself here, but I'm really sick of the Stolas victimization in this season and I just wish the show would stop pretending that Stolas is the victim here.

-The conversation the two have after the song isn't an awful scene but still shows Stolas victimization. Again, more Stolas victimization and a lot of the dialogue from Stolas here really seems to point to this. Like the scene has Blitz apologize to Stolas and act like the latter deserves better than the former because the former was soooo mean to him UwU, and it just. Ugh. And then the episode has Stolas whine about how he just wants someone to care about him and I'm just like. Viv. You aren't going to make me sympathize with this stupid fucking owl. You just can't.

-The episodes seems to be implying that Blitz has feelings for Stolas...? Huh???? Since when??? And also why does Blitz even have feelings for Stolas to begin with? Like everytime Stolas and Blitz interact Blitz always shows physical discomfort around Stolas, why tf is he suddenely interested in him NOW???

-How exactly was Verosika able to know of Stolas' reletionship with Blitz?

-Blitz decides to go into the party WITHOUT A DISGUISE. Like he takes one eventually but why didn't you bring one to begin with...?

-Is there no one guarding the entrance to this party? Because Blitz should have not able to get in here.

-Blitz comeing in without a disguise doesn't bring any attention for some reason???

This episode was...actually kind of good. Like, I'd say this is probably the best episode of season 2 so far. It mainly suffers from more Stolas victimization and some very weird plot holes and the out of nowhere development of Blitz getting feelings for Stolas but there is genuinely fantastic stuff in here that's good enough to make the episode at least a 7.5/10, hell maybe even an 8. I could forgive a small amount of plot holes if there's enough great stuff in the story and in this episode there is.

So ya, I actually kind of enjoyed this one.

[pipnchips202]

while i eat up practically every valgrace fic i see, down bad jason grace for leo valdez is always one of my absolute favorites; so, here are 5 valgrace fics where jason is the pining one :)) (for the most part)

1. hopeless case by restinreeses

rating: teen and up

warnings: none

“Nico,” Jason wheezes as he slams the door to the Hades cabin open. “Nico, I think I’m in love with my best friend.”

“No, really?” Nico drawls, barely looking up from his book.

Or: in which nico is jason’s wingman this time around.

AHHHHH!!!!!! this is REALLY good; i love the characterization and the many implications of jason having helped nico get with will prior to the events of the fic. also, platonic jasico will ALWAYS get me.

2. EP: things leo does; by jason grace by jacksonpercy (robertmontauk)

rating: not rated

warnings: none

God, he loves Leo’s laugh. It’s more like a giggle than anything - all high-pitched and bubbly; his mouth stretches into the widest smile Jason’s ever seen, and his tongue sticks out of his tongue just a little bit, and holy fuck Jason’s in love with Leo.

Shit.

[leo does things sometimes, and jason notices.]

i was very much obsessed with this fic at some point (still kind of am, actually). it’s basically a 5 + 1 of jason just pining for leo and i LOVE it. small warning though, there is a mention of kinks in the second chapter, if that’s weird for you. it’s really just an offhand comment and doesn’t get brought up again, so do with that what you will. they are teenagers after all, and as a teenager myself, i can confirm i’ve thought of similar stuff several times! but, anyway, this fic is really good.

3. staring at me (with your lips and tongue) by ethannku

rating: teen and up

warnings: none

“You really believe all that?” Leo asks, and if Jason were more aware of the world, he might’ve registered the hopeful breathiness in his voice. But as it is, he’s far too focused on the hand on his chest. He nods anyway, once he realizes Leo’s asked him a question.

Leo huffs and leans closer while simultaneously pulling Jason closer.

For a moment, they just look at each other, their noses inches apart. Leo’s breath comes in soft puffs on his face. There’s a hint of a smile on Leo’s face, but the corners waver as if he’s having second thoughts. Jason registers Leo’s eyelashes flickering, and his blood sings when he realizes he’s looking at Jason’s mouth.

Or; Jason is down bad, and Leo might be too.

this one’s really good, too. lot of kissing. a few suggestive references/jokes but no suggestive actions, just kissing. also has many piper moments mixed in :)

4. Crooked Glasses by thebigqueer

rating: teen and up

warnings: graphic depictions of violence

leo & jason confess their feelings for each other in an arcane-themed alternate universe.

~~

Leo has always been flirty. When he casually smirks at Jason and tells him how handsome he looks; when he bites his lip suggestively and tells Jason that no, he doesn’t mind if he changes his shirt in front of him; when Jason asks what’s for dinner and Leo responds, “Not sure, but I know you’re the desert,” Jason doesn’t make much of it. Sure, an occasional blush and an attempt at jokingly flirting back, but Jason knows he doesn’t mean it. Besides, he isn’t special. If Jason had to count the amount of people Leo had made out with just in the past year, it might take both his hands.

But lately it’s been different. There’s a softness in Leo’s eyes when he catches sight of Jason, a more soulful smirk when he offers that they sleep in the same bed, a hopefulness when he asks Jason if he wants to come with him on his next haul.

i’m gonna be honest: although i plan to someday, i’ve never seen arcane. and this is an arcane au. however, even though i know absolutely nothing about arcane, i did understand this, i think. i’m putting it here because a) it’s well written, b) it does in fact feature pining jason grace, and c) i have very limited options when it comes to valgrace fics anyway, so i don’t have much of a choice. yes, there is action and a mild fight with sherman yang and connor stoll, but it’s not that graphic in my opinion, but that’s just me; what’s more graphic is actually the gratuitous descriptions of leo’s gorgeousness from jason’s pov (understandably so). anyway, this is a good fic; if you’re not familiar with arcane, you can probably still read it, because i enjoyed it quite a lot!

5. hold me, thrill me, kiss me by restinreeses

rating: teen and up

warnings: none

“You love me,” Leo declares, his smirk widening with every passing second. “You, the great Jason Grace, love me.”

He fumbles for his words, but they melt in his mouth as Leo's hands snaked up the small of his back – those delicate fingers tracing patterns into his skin that burnt worse than his SPQR tattoo.

“I wouldn’t call myself great,” he mutters at last. Leo leans in, raising one thick eyebrow.

“I dunno,” he says, “I’d say you’re pretty great.” His lips brush over Jason's, once, twice. “You know. For loving me.”

...

In which Jason falls and Leo catches him.

okay, so i was debating whether or not to put this one because jason is still dating piper during this fic. she doesn’t make an appearance, she’s only mentioned, but jason and leo kissing is referred to by the both of them as an affair, which might make some uncomfortable. however, this has absolutely gorgeous writing. is jason still in love with piper during this fic, though? no. a bit complicated. however, it is, once again, pining jason as promised. they kiss a lot in this one, too.

enjoy!

— piper <33

[kalinara]

Why is Charles constantly held up as this leader for mutants when there are many other mutants who would be a way better leader than him and he at times is not very good at it.

I don't know if I'd agree with the word "constantly", since I do think that Xavier's reception both in universe and out tends to fluctuate.

Xavier, at his best, is a man of high ideals, who took in five kids with the intention of giving them a safe place to learn how to use their powers.

It's a genre convention for kid/young adult stories, for the parents and mentors to be, at best, uninvolved and clueless. Because that's how the kids go off and have adventures to begin with. Spider-Man for example gets away with superheroing because Aunt May doesn't know what he's doing. And Uncle Ben is dead.

Xavier takes the genre convention a bit farther though, because rather than being completely clueless, he's the one who actually sends them into battle. And well, when you start to look at it from an adult perspective, you quickly go "wait, what the fuck?!"

It probably didn't help that Lee and Kirby were pretty fond of stories where Xavier would fake impairment and depowerment, or just go off and do his own thing, so that the kids could take charge and act on their own. Or the way he was actively involved in lying to Warren or Jean's parents about what their kids were up to. He starts looking a bit manipulative at best.

So we have a guy with two warring sides at work: the visionary benefactor vs. the manipulative plotter.

And well, X-Men is a franchise that's been ongoing for sixty years, so we have multiple generations who go from kids having fun to adults boggling at the characters' decisions, and I think that tends to get reflected in which traits get the most focus when.

It's probably fair to note that from about the early 2000s onward, Xavier really wasn't involved in a leadership position at all until Krakoa. He got kicked out twice for bad decisions, was hovering around in advisory capacity, and died twice to boot. The second, biggest time ushering in the post Avengers vs. X-Men period, which I think was great for really shaking up the universe.

It also though introduced a lot of really bizarre (Watsonian) veneration for the dude. Maybe it makes some sense, Scott Summers, a character who'd been recognized as a paragon by even his enemies, has proven himself flawed in his own right, so maybe that inspires people to look back at the previous guy more fondly?

(Or we could go with my theory, that Scott-as-Phoenix accidently mind-whammied everyone to love Xavier and hate Scott as much as Scott himself did at that moment.)

But then there's Krakoa, which was a pretty grand, pretty new experiment. And while I may gripe about certain aspects of the storyline, I can't deny that it was definitely a big, earth shattering concept change.

It also wouldn't have worked with anyone but Xavier at the head. Even though Rosenberg's X-Men arc had ended with Scott and Jean reunited, and positioned to lead what was left of mutantkind together, they're not really nation builder types. (Scott had Utopia, but that was less a nation than a garrison, IMO.)

For Krakoa to work, it needed nation builders. Xavier has the influence over mutant kind, and has the characterization of a benefactor. Which very much fits with Krakoa's modus operandus: giving humanity things for recognizing mutant kind, and scheming and manipulating when they don't.

And it makes sense, I think, that he was successful. Not only does he have the benefit of the absence makes the heart grow fonder veneration from his death. But he's offering mutants something tangible and amazing: safety, a home, freedom from death and persecution, a lot of their lost loved ones back.

That's a big deal. It's just unfortunately, Xavier has that other side of him too, and his blind spots and worse impulses play a big part in why Krakoa ends up falling.

(Though, to give him something: there IS a version of Krakoa still out there, in the White Room, where a nation of mutant kind has grown and developed beyond Xavier and the Council's flaws. But it's notable that they did this without him. It always seems to work like that.)

[tinyfantasminha]

TALK ABOUT YOUR SONIC 3 EXPERIENCE 👹

HHHHHHHHHHHhhhHHHHHHHHHHHH

OKAY before anything else I want to state that I am well-versed enough in sonic lore and I played Sonic Adventure 1 + 2 and watched Sonic X in japanese so I'm VERY biased 😫(also I watched it in the PTBR dub so when I mention dialogues it might not be totally accurate to the original audio BUT I did as much research as I could 😫)

Overall the movie went pretty much the direction I was expecting 🤔it wasn't 100% accurate to SA2 sure but?!? The changes were not bad at all! I remember when I saw the trailers I was a bit doubtful on Gerald being present throughout the movie but he ended up BEING ONE OF THE BEST THINGS OF THE MOVIE OHMY GOD BLESS JIM CARREY 😫 I found myself having a blast of fun and laughing at EVERY single scene of him and Eggman just doing silly (for evil reasons >:)) shenanigans

EGGMAN'S AND STONE'S DIVORCE ARC 💔💔The ''toxic'' yaoi was only a facade..... they were actually just doomed yaoi this entire time 💔

THEY ACTUALLY DID THE ''talk about low budget flights ✈️🙄no food 🍿🍕or movies 🎞️📺💅i'm outta here 😂😂😂🏃🏃'' IM CRAYZYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYY

Tails was OK in this movie, not really as interesting as he was in movie 2 but ooOHHMYNGOODDD KNUCKLCKES 😫😫😫😫😫😫💕 I LOVE LOVE LOVE the movie characterization for Knuckles... the big-brother coded scenes ..... the highlight was definitely the scene when he and Sonic are arguing about the Master Emerald, OML THE TRUST HE HAS IN HIS BROTHER

Ok let's skip to the good part already. SHADOWWWWWWWWWW SHADODWWWWBWHGHHGHDHJFGDFJNJNFD THE INITIAL SCENE WITH HIM KNOCKING OUT THE GUN SOLDIERS AND TELEPORTING I WAS JUMPNIG IN MY SEAT POIUNTING AT THE SCREEN THEY REFERENCED SHADOW THE HEDGEHOG 2005 OPENIGN IM SHITTING MY PANTS I COULD ALMOST HEAR I AM ALL OF ME IN THE DISTANCE OML

Shadow's and Maria's story was done spectacularly. It was SO nice to see how their daily life was..... Maria getting to act just like a pre teen her age, they danced and watched movies together.... 😭😭😭I was almost tearing up at that sequence just by knowing that these peaceful moments would come to an end. Her death was a liiitle different than what we expected yeah they wouldn't just fucking shoot a 12 year old in a kids movie unfortunately but it had the same impact nonetheless and dAAMMN Gerald's absolutely HAUNTED look??! I GOT CHILLS

Okay but hands down the moment that I just can't get out of my head??? ''Oh Ivo... you're no Maria.'' I LEGIT GASPEDDDDDD like yeah I did expect Gerald's plan because that's what happens in canon after all but I was NOT expecting this level of coldness towards his own — and REMAINING — family. Not a twist villain, but a villain with a twist. I may have gotten spoilers for the post credit scenes but I'm SO GLAD I wasn't spoiled for this. (Also me and my friends laughed out loud when he went down like a looney tunes villain 😭)

I was spoiled that Amy appeared in the post credit (the kid behind me was also saying ''oh Amy will appear'' 💀) but UUUHHH IDK HOW I AVOIDED THE METAL SONIC SPOILERS SO I WAS LEGIT SHOCKED. The only time I admittedly screamed in the theater, ''WHAT IS THAT?!? METAL SONIC?!?!!!'' OKAY SO SONIC 4 WILL BE BASED ON SONIC CD IG........... I regretfully am not really well versed in classic Sonic lore BUTTT I WATCHED SONIC OVA A LOT so PLEASE PLEASE if Metal turns out to be the main antagonist in Sonic 4 PLEASE make Sonic OVA references 😭🙏 ESPECIALLY TO ITS CLIMAX...... if you know you know.

AND LAST THING BUT THEY DID IT. TJEY DID IT THEY DID IT IM FUKCCN CRAZY

NOT ONLY SHADOW IS A FEMINIST HE ALSO LOVES LATINAS CONFIRMED 😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭🙏🙏🙏🙏🙏🙏 GABRIELLA SHOULD KILL THEM BOTH SHES NOT A PRIZE TO BE WON !!!!!!!!!!!! THANKY YOU SHADOW THE HEDGEHOG YOURE THE REAL ONEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE

so glad I went with my special shirt for this occasion 🙏🙏🙏 IF NO ONE GOT ME I KNOW SHADOW GOT ME

[absolutebl]

This Week in BL - It's weird where I am right now, Okay?

Organized, in each category, by ones I'm enjoying most at the top. However, I've put quite a few on hold for travel reasons.

Oct 2023 Wk 4

Only a few screen shots for you this week, my hotel wifi is actually THAT bad.

Ongoing Series - Thai

My Dear Gangster Oppa (Thurs iQIYI) 1 of 8 - Classic unlucky in love failed crush on straight bestie = both v queer and v emo yaoi. I gotta say I like these actors way better in this than their previous series, and maybe that’s because Tew is more like Tul and I just like Meen better when he’s… erm… mean. All of which is to say, this is off to a wonderful start and I am about to lose my very sleep deprived little mind... ready for a ABL ecstasy rant?

I LOVE THIS SO MUCH I CAN'T EVEN.

"I play support because that way everyone is happy to see me show up," might be the single best moment of characterization BL has EVER seen.

Look here, in the grand cornucopia of BL universes this is my metaverse. It's pulp... but relatively high production. It has an established pair that I know I like... but who were given crap before. It's a tidy little script, it's not gonna run too long, and it's ALL the archetypes and tropes I love but rarely see. It's Japan's style otaku plus Korea's style gangster, Thailand's style friendship group, and it arrived out of NOWHERE. It's Korea's IP & money, Thailand's talent, and China's streaming service.

Do we know what the hell is going on?

No we do not.

Do we care when it's this much fun?

No we do not.

(In this I speak for everyone... no, EVERYONE.)

This show I why I got into BL.

Don't bother me with trifles. Me and My Dear Gangster Oppa are sailing off into the infinite pixilated sunset together, thank you very much.

Dangerous Romance (Fri YT) ep 11 of 12 - I managed to watch most of it on low rez before YT "discovered" I was in Asia and therefore could not be allowed to watch Asian shows. (AKA my VPN failed me.) But it seemed like a good ep.

My Universe (Sun iQIYI) Lucky Love ep 10 of 24 - I enjoyed this 2 part installment, it’s a bit of a sad sack recovery SAGA, but the acting is genuine, the couple believable, and the story felt particularly queer to me. 7/10 but close to an 8. It was really quite charming.

However: Next week looks not good on many levels - it's horror and I spotted guitar. Which is even more horrific. 

Absolute Zero (Thai Weds iQIYI) ep 5 of 12 - do temporal paradoxes exist in Thailand? That is the question. I gotta say Tor (Ongsa) is carrying this show and is doing a really great job, it's just the story itself doesn't resonate with me. Ugh it's so sad.

Is it, indeed, better to have loved and lost than never to have loved at all?

We only on ep 5 and had a full story arc already, there is A LOT more to go.

Venus in the Sky (Tues iQIYI) 9 of 10 eps - the fact that in losing Sky Venus also lost his surrogate family explains his resulting bitterness a little bit more. I wish we had gotten this back story much earlier. Still stupid pulp made me cry, which of course means it's back in my good books. This story is slow as fuck, but I'm going on a rollercoaster with it.

Ongoing Series - Not Thai

Kiseki: Dear to Me (Taiwan Tues Viki & iQIYI) ep 11 of 13(?) - I love them, okay? All of them. This is a great sappy classic Taiwanese BL and it is my baby and you can’t take it away from me. MINE. 

You Are Mine (Taiwan Fri Viki) eps 8 of 10 - oh noes it got sad, I thought they would at least would have had drunken sex before the drama. Sigh. Still the kissing was good, as it should be from Taiwan.

If It’s With You AKA Even If I Fall In Love With You AKA Kimi to nara Koi wo Shite Mite mo’ (Japan Gaga) ep 4 of 5 - Amane is so brave. About being gay. Being out. Confessing. Its admirable if scary. Otherwise this ep was pretty slow. 

Bump Up Business (Korea Gaga) 3-4 of 8 - how do I feel about this show? Conflicted. Are OnlyOneOf doing a great job? Yes, actually. Am I enjoying it? No, not really. Is this anyone's fault? I don't think so.

The little linguistic negotiation was cute tho. And we seem to have gotten idols kissing in a BL both in the same group, so that glass ceiling dildo has finally been broken.

NineMill are unexpectedly good, also KB plays a great evil ex. Of the 3, I think only Nine is good enough to go into acting permanently (but he's not tall enough). Still, all hail OnlyOneOf... kings of the "gay concept." You boys make me v nervous but as couple-branding goes, you just out branded Thailand. Mad props baibies. Legit never thought I'd see the day.

Trust Korea to be in it to win it.

Mr Cinderella 2 (Vietnam Sat YT) ep 6 of ? - i pretty much just forgot to watch this.

It's Airing But...

I Feel You Linger in the Air (Fri grey) ep 8 of 12 - I will try to watch and do a series review in November but... not sure I will be able to. Fingers crossed.

Love in Translation (Sat iQIYI) ep 8fin - completed but I couldn't catch the last ep, my final thoughts in Nov.

Only Friends (Sat YT) ep 12 fin - completed, but see afore mentioned YT issues. I'll review it in Nov. I anticipate better internet soon.

What Did You Eat Yesterday Season 2 AKA Kinou Nani Tabeta? Season 2 (Japan Fri Gaga) ep 1 of 10 - I find this series more fun to binge, so I'm waiting until it completes its run.

I Cannot Reach You AKA I Can't Reach You AKA Kimi ni wa Todokanai (Japan Tues Netflix-Japan & ????) - in classic JBL fashion, I Cannot Reach You could not be reached. 

Can I Buy Your Love From A Vending Machine? AKA Sono Koi, Jihanki de Kaemasu ka? (Japan cinema release in-country only) - This one is a movie from Japan so in customary fashion who tf knows when (or if) it will get international distribution. Salaryman Ayumu Koiwai just can't tear his eyes away from the strong, muscular man as he checks on the stocks of the vending machine in his office.

One Room Angel (Japan Gaga) - adaptation of Harada’s manga of the same name (which I did not like) about a convenience store clerk who's stabbed, nearly dies, and returns home to find an angel waiting for him. With only 5 eps and a good chance this won’t end happy, I'm gonna wait and let you tell me how it goes.

Next Week Looks Like This

Upcoming October BL

10/31 SHADOW (Thai Gaga) 1 of 14 - this is a horror BL featuring ghosts and other paranormal elements in a high school setting. I'm not wild about Thai horror (or horror at all). It features Singto (who did paranormal BL He's Coming to Me) opposite Fluke N (who's done a couple horror's before). Also Fiat. Dan suffers from sleep paralysis, and in his dreams he sees a shadow that suffocates him. It gets worse when he transfers schools.

Upcoming November BL

11/3 Twins the series (Thailand ????) 1 of 10

11/17 Pit Babe (Thai) - Pavel my love!

11/19 Bake Me Please (OhmFluke but not, Thailand)

11/22 7 Days Before Valentine (Thailand) - horroresk

11/25 The Sign (Thailand) - horroresk

11/30 For Him the series (Thailand) - high heat

VIP Only (Taiwan) - may be delayed/canceled

Cooking Crush (OffGun, Thailand) - may be delayed, there some kinda gossip/rumor/shade happening at GMMTV

Wuju Bakery AKA Space Bakery (Korea) - this one may be DOA

2023 forthcoming BL master post (see comments, some are inaccurate, NOT KEPT UPDATED).

THIS WEEK’S BEST MOMENTS

My Universe - I just enjoyed the angle of this kiss shot.

Uh huh. Sure, honey. (Bump Up Buisness)

COULD THIS EXPLAIN THE SNUFFLE KISS?!!!!

(Last week)

[blackjackkent]

@cindymeltzer: also - interesting parallel that I noticed when I went back to check the beginning of your liveblog cindymeltzer: helena and nora both did the same thing of choosing to talk down the bartender at the start of the game, but then when it comes to the first warden they chose to knock him out blackjackkent: ooh that's a good point cindymeltzer: I'm curious if you have headcanon on that - I do for Nora blackjackkent: will have to include that in my writeup here XD blackjackkent: i think my headcanon is that helena is fucking DONE blackjackkent: rofl cindymeltzer: lmao very fair blackjackkent: i think if she hadn't just had the incredibly frustrating conversation with solas right before this, too, she might have been able to find her control blackjackkent: but she's pissed blackjackkent: and frustrated cindymeltzer: *nods* blackjackkent: and there is a cloud face in the window cindymeltzer: yeah >.> blackjackkent: and she's scared blackjackkent: which she wouldn't admit blackjackkent: i'm a little frustrated with myself cos i feel like i've never really gotten a firm hand on Helena's characterization in quite the same way that i did with my previous few liveblogs blackjackkent: but that 'not scared' thing has definitely stuck as a throughline. she wants to act like she's got everything under control blackjackkent: and i think in these moments when things get really bad she gets kind of frantic. like when they fought the dragon in minrathous cindymeltzer: you still have 2/3 of the game left. this is the last quest of act 1, and there are 3 acts in total blackjackkent: cool 😄 cindymeltzer: there is plenty of time for characterization handling blackjackkent: 🙂 blackjackkent: It's reassuring to hear you really started getting a handle on Nora at this point too cindymeltzer: oh for sure. like I had headcanoned about her backstory before this but this was the first time I felt like I could integrate it

[conduitandconjurer]

I think I've figured out one thing (beyond that .... "ending" ....) that bothers me about TUA s4 and Klaus.

It seems like the popular dichotomy, in terms of his characterization, is "fearful of life because he's mortal" versus "careless and effectively invicible" and that somehow being divested of his abilities would pave the way to healing and guarantee sobriety. Klaus's rage at his family for saving his life by returning his powers is proof enough that HE believes this. Alongside this is the presumption that all of his character development last season, mastering the gift of immortality, is itself--RATHER THAN THE WAY THAT HE MASTERED IT (by being led on and used by Reginald, and made to equate his worth with his usefulness/skill)--should be nixed. It's bad for him to be porous to the veil between life and death. It's bad for him to be immortal. He can't "deal with it" and he'll go on a bender the moment it's restored. His unwillingness to drink the "marigolds" (until he's dying and forced to do so) is supposed to be proof of this.

I have some qualms with this line of thinking, despite its solid attempt at showing character development.

I think Klaus is braver than people give him credit for WHILE he is mortal. Friends have posited (and I agree with this part) that he becomes very high strung and phobic about any form of injury or illness because even though mortality is scary to someone who just found out he was immortal...and then lost that immortality...he also feels he has CONTROL over his own body and mind and life that he was NOT afforded when he could be possessed by ghosts and used for his conjuring powers (both by family and predators). And I've been harping on Klaus's need to actually have agency and grant consent since that squicky Ben-possession joke in season 2. But, agh.

To begin with, I don't think Klaus is 'afraid' of life (or at least that the fear is unwarranted or laughable) so much as he's forcing himself to endure what he KNOWS is deeply perilous and unfortunate t unlucky people like himself, without resorting to the powers that also open the door to substance abuse. Of all of the Brellies, he tries the hardest, the most often, to break patterns, when he sees that there is motivation to do so (more on this later). He is hardcore and brave as fuck, rubber gloves or not.

But is it really a good thing, or even necessary for Klaus as a character, to equate no powers with guaranteed sobriety and powers with falling off the wagon? I don't think it is.

Unfortunately, this is hard to glean from the audience pov, because all we're given in this season is the most extreme, toxic, abusive, stomach-turning example of how his powers can be abused the moment they return--and how, of course, this exacerbates relapse. We get the whole 'have sex with his body while the deceased possess it, for drug money" subplot. We get him getting so desperate for the cycle to end that he begins inviting harm and self-harming out of some grim hope that his powers will fail (getting shot in the head scene). And he needs the drugs that this awful situation provides BECAUSE OF said situation. Compound upon that the PAST trauma that it's opening back up like a raw wound (literally, from at least the age of 8). Of course Klaus is using because of his powers, but because THEY'RE BEING ABUSED.

Klaus's abilities don't guarantee a fall off the wagon. His low self-esteem does, and the inability of anyone in his life to communicate with him or intervene does. When (deleted but still important scene) Lila's relatives are calling him, in front of him, a loser junkie (etc), and he says, "Yeah, that's....that'd be me," Klaus is mortal. We see the cogs in his head turning: yeah, I'm worthless, what's the point. And it's already too late right there, unless someone intervenes.

"What's the point," AND NOTHING ELSE, is Klaus's kryptonite. And he isn't a fatalist by nature, I'll (controversially, I guess) add, but there are things nobody can endure forever. Klaus, like any addict, is there because of underlying core beliefs about himself and about his ability to change his circumstances. What I love about the deleted scene that shows Klaus INSISTING on having his AA meeting is that he becomes his own advocate, because well, the Hargreeves are "all assholes" (well spotted, Klaus, lol) in their own ways, and each has to be their OWN intervention. This has more to do with self-determination than it does with seeing ghosts. The cause and the remission of Klaus's addiction is deeper-seated than powers that are given and taken away at surface level.

Why is this so important to me? I guess because to me the powers Klaus never asked for still remind me of something perhaps not initially intrinsic to someone's being--but still something they have to integrate into their lives in order to go on living. I think it MEANS more to fans who identify with Klaus (at least it does to me, someone with debilitating chronic illness) that he be able to transform his abilities into a strength that is, to Klaus and his loved ones, benign, while also not letting it become the central facet of his identity. He IS a medium, but he is also OTHER things. He is a human being, and all human beings have many interests, roles, and hopes.

The precipiating events of Klaus's trauma are NOT his ability to see ghosts or resuscitate. They're the abuse inflicted by those who would use Klaus for their own gain. Why should he give up his powers in order to heal, just because Reginald is an unconscionable monster who was willing to kill his own child over and over and over? I wish Klaus himself had had this epiphany before the show ended.

Losing his powers for good would certainly be the quickest route to healing and growth, and fine, if fans like it, go for it. To me, though, it feels like "don't ever wear crop tops because if you do, you won't get SA'd." Like, no. Maybe the world needs to operate by a kinder standard. Maybe Klaus needs a real support group, a better family of his own, to help him contradict his feelings of self-loathing. Maybe he needs the AA counselor to stay when he shows up for his chip. Maybe he needs reliable transportation to and from. Maybe he needs to move to a different city. Maybe he needs to chat with some of the ghosts he sees, and start a fucking Tuesday evening afterlife meditation circle. Maybe he can get a cheap apartment and fill his living space with succulents that he has to be held accountable to feed and water and keep ALIVE. Maybe he should become an AA counselor and help other people go the right direction. Maybe he should resort to poetry or knitting every time he has an urge to use, and that can become a healthier compulsion. Maybe someday he can get a kitten or start dating again (someone alive, in this century). What Klaus needs is to have MORE in his life to define him than his powers and how they can be used for the benefit of others.

Maybe the TUA writing staff is weirdly sadistic and won't let any of that happen. But by God, we can. And it's important. It's important that healing and remission not be dependant on things others can bestow or take away (like powers). It needs to depend on something internal, an "internal locus of control," as the CBT shrinks call it. THAT is having control over your own life.

[ophelia16stufff]

shuake post-canon

!OBV SPOILERS!

disclaimer: i prefer shuake over akeshu. everything that i post here is sfw, but theres a difference in the dynamic itself so i like shuake more. i feel like the characterizations of both characters individually fit shuake more. i'd like to get more into this lol, but thats another topic.

anyway coming to headcanons on how they'd end up after p5r

post-canon situation:

obv akechi survives i think its canon in the true ending. i think he would've sustained some injuries and needed both physical and mental rehab, based on that scene that was cut out of the game.

i do think maybe he would never want to see akira again cuz man thats hella embarrassing, but no matter how he tries to rationalize that it would be a Bad Idea, he still reaches out. maybe just for one last time. not sure if its over text or in person.

now, i think akechi would be v aware that he's painfully in love with the guy but akira genuinely isnt aware of his own feelings. i think he gets confused between platonic and romantic feelings bec he just cares that much about his friends even though he gets attached slowly.

but the moment he realizes that akechi is alive, freed from puppet strings, he knows what he feels for him and the realization hits him full force.

getting together:

i think they'd take a while to actually get together. i think akechi would hate that he's not on equal standing with akira, and wait till he finally feels his life is somewhat under control.

akira is terrified for a while that akechi can leave again and doesnt wanna do anything to cause a divide. theres also the whole issue of his friends, but i dont think he'd let them have that much sway over this decision. he already regrets that he let go of akechi twice, hes not gonna let there be a third time.

i think theyd be roommates eventually and it would be a completely normal everyday habit/routine that makes akechi blurt it out that he just loves him. maybe smth like akira passing him his cup of coffee, or akechi drying akira's stupid untameable hair bec he never dries it off on his own.

he immediately freezes and considers doubling back but he's no coward, nor does he ever run away. so he just rambles and spills everything, and akira's eyes are just flooded by tears which really makes akechi regret everything and he awkwardly tries to offer comfort

but yeah akira tells that he loves him back and now akechi starts to cry. i think theyre both due a cry honestly. akechi is dramatic in his emotions, and the p5 anime taught me that akira cries when its is related to akechi. so.

i think they wouldnt announce their relationship but they dont try to hide it either? theyd probly take things slow cuz both of em dont wanna fuck it up, and akechi even moreso bec although he's formed a proper friendship with akira, his emotions still become too overwhelming at times

sidenote but i do think akechi is capable of making friends but its probly with his co-workers or smth like that. a relationship that starts off as mutual respect and companionship, basically smth that he and sae couldve had.

relationship issues:

they both have their own issues, i think both have a habit of antagonizing each other when they're pissed, and prefer to not hold back with each other. but i think they'd still take care of each other. they agree on most things, but when they disagree it becomes worse.

i think akechi would have a tendency to hide and withdraw if he feels insecure about anything. basically, if a conversation would require him to be vulnerable he'd bottle it up till he explodes.

probly made worse by akira who's passive in such situations even if he notices smth is wrong. he thinks its better to let akechi approach him on his own terms, which is normally a good decision but it doesnt work with akechi, who has it ingrained in his mind to hide his dissatisfaction so he's not abandoned

akira would also have the problem of not being vulnerable i think? except he's even better at repressing things, which pisses off akechi to no end, albeit feeling hypocritical.

akechi would try to drag it out tooth and nail, unlike akira though. he isnt able to ignore issues and cant tolerate such a glaring imperfection in their relationship. except this makes the Don't Tell Me What To Do rebel in akira to act like nothings wrong cuz its also kinda fun when akechi is pissed

ig the difference between them would be that akechi still has the urge to spill his true thoughts, but for akira, once he resolves to repress smth he doesnt really go back on it.

i think once they realize both of em aint going anywhere else, they get better at dealing with this kinda stuff. akira's issues would get better after he finally wholly understands that akechi prefers confrontation and to be pushed to do better, and the ugly truth

akechi would realize that he should stop catastrophizing and be more gentle with his approach? but i think in his case gentle wouldnt mean kind, just less accusatory and antagonistic, just more patient and pure facts that akira cant avoid

this is what i can think of for now lol. more about their behaviour and not about specfic things that they'd fight about

how they'd show/express affection:

ok i think akira would be more likely to be jokey and ironically cheesey just to make akechi irritated and not actually express love through words that often

i think it would be akechi to express love through words unironically, hes more articulate and unconsciously just rambles or blurts stuff about how he thinks of/feels about akira

akira would be more big on physical touch i think? unconsciously just become more touchy and act on the impulse to have some kind of physical contact with akechi. akechi would be more purposeful and internally debate on the matter a lot, and therefore more hesitant lol

akira would love getting him trinkets that he knows akechi will call stupid to his face but panic if any of them goes missing. akechi thinks gifts are more of a event exclusive thing, but akira just gets gifts if he thinks they suit someone

akechi likes travelling n stuff, so i think he'd invite akira to explore and try new places a lot. he's also a perfectionist so hed be good at planning things and making sure that its a place they both like.

this part legit makes me hurl i didnt know it was so painful to write fluffy things why is it so harddd ahhh oh well

misc stuff:

i think akechi would be perfectly aware that he's attractive, but akira genuinely thinks himself to be average in looks. smth that akechi is absolutely shocked at and resolves to change that perception

akechi stops apologizing for talking a lot and being verbose after it finally gets through to him that akira likes listening especially to him

i like to imagine this manifesting as akechi just walking into a room and immediately yapping without a greeting and akira gives him attention

akira is probly a furnace if he was able to survive that fucking attic. akechi also wears gloves and the stupid sweater vest in a heat wave so he stays cool mostly. ik the sweater vest is an image thing but he mustve been able to wear it.

therefore he'd let akira to stick to him in the winter without complaint, and akira would cling during the summer bec he feels cool somehow, smth that akechi would grumble about

akechi is a shameless biter. just sinks in teeth randomly. it confuses the fuck out of akira the first couple of times but then he gets used to it. even gets back at him sometimes but with kisses, smth that akechi gets embarrassed by

akechi is insanely confused when he sees his lover crossdress for the first time. hes gay but hes attracted to akira, and akira pulls off the look really well but looks convincingly female with the right clothes, but he thought he liked guys ????

i dont think akechi would fully crossdress, i do hc that he wears a little bit of makeup, puts in more effort to his appearance and normally looks more feminine compared to akira, but i think he'd dislike fully presenting as female. i do NOT think he's misogynistic or anything, just a matter of preference

i do not hc their genders to be trans. i dont hate or dislike the notion, i just dont agree with it personally. i think they're both cis, and akira just likes wearing feminine clothing and kinda considers it to be a hobby to indulge in occasionally. cuz he feels hot in it, AS HE SHOULD.

yeaahhh im done for now loll thanks for reading, esp if u made it to the end <3