#presented without context bc it’s funnier that way

[honey-dont]

[glitch-e-stardust]

finally

[leohtttbriar]

for the reverse unpopular opinion meme, Worf!

worf is special bc, to me, he is both the funniest and most serious character in ds9, without particularly trying to be both. which i think has something to do with the invested expression of his cultures and all the values he means to represent. sometimes these characteristics are played for the pathos---the intense empathetic feeling you get when you watch him do and say things that fit in a specific heroic poetic. other times it's played for the humor, his honorable presentation in an honorable fight leading him to say things a little out of context, like "death to the opposition" in a baseball game.

but for all the ways he's a character that comments on how one can perform respect for one's self and multiplicities of loyalty, how cultural values of "heroism" might clash with others, how quite often one's acts are a choice--depending on how aware one is of why they are acting a certain way and what they want to project with their actions, the best part of worf is that he really is sincere.

i've compared worf to kira before and i think that's the thing they have in common and why both those characters work so well with characters like dax--the contrast of a loudly resolved person against a willingly variable one. worf and dax are so interesting in their scenes together because this contrast is true of them but they also interrogate that which is surface-level in each other: worf sees in dax someone who can and will commit in many (often brave) ways, and dax sees in worf a breadth of contradictory feeling and expansive experience. many of their fights as characters is refusing to acknowledge they know this about each other--even expect it.

so my favorite part of worf's character (his sincerity) is showcased in my favorite narrative for worf--the fact that he really does spend all of season 7 grieving his wife. he loved her deeply and does not back away from still feeling it, no matter the hurt. and it feels so appropriate to what these characters were to each other, in the story, and it leads to the best exchange possibly in ds9:

WORF: Perhaps not, but I am certain that you will do whatever is necessary to complete your task. EZRI: And how do you know that? WORF: You are Dax. It is your way.

worf is the kind of character that is meant to hold up some sense of resolve in a show and genre that is all about the anxieties of uncertainty. worf, of course, faces a lot of uncertainty and personal struggles (and probably it's the sort of thing that gets more focus in the next generation, which i haven't seen yet, than in ds9), but his ethic purpose among the cast of characters is to be more sure than not--not by means of arrogance but by means of choice.

other characters like this i feel are generally cast as the leaders/captains of the crew, but the difference between a character like janeway or kirk and a character like worf is that worf is not "sure" out of an obvious external pressure to choose but out of internal impulse to be. he is who he strives to be through his striving. he sometimes does and says the funniest things in the show because he doesn't bend to unspoken social demands of propriety, no matter if he senses these demands or not. and he doesn't feel the need to explain himself which makes his one-liners all the funnier. and it's so easy to see why ursula k le guin was obsessed with him.

would like to conclude the gushing by just saying that michael dorn is extraordinary as an actor imo: he has so much makeup on for the character, normally the most out of everyone in any one scene he's in, and still he turns in a Performance, implying so much interiority and perspective, making even worf's most judgy moments inherently fascinating in their distinct and unmistakable personhood.

[happy-peppermint]

having a brave new world special interest is a Time. you see all these conservative fuddy duddies try to be like “this is why we should [insert thing that limits personal freedom]” OR the same mediocre quote about god and sin over and over just. bossbabes. it’s about late-stage capitalism, classism, showing a mirror version of morals at the time in some ways, mechanization and industrialism and the unintended consequences of those things. it’s about (i hate to use the word but i’m not sure what else would be accurate other than american, but it was written by a british dude about his society and is likely relevant in europe as well, plus other places?? i guess “western society” but that doesn’t really mean anything though it does have a sort of set meaning in philosophy and just. you get my point) taken to the absolute extreme: seeking efficiency and pleasure above all else and justifying it with the veneer of “progress” while actually halting real progress. it is a book Created to piss people off and unnerve them, no matter their social or political beliefs, and the fact that it can still do that roughly 100 years later is impressive to me.

But also, an important thing with the book is that it’s funny. Like, Huxley makes fun of his characters pretty consistently throughout the book and the thing is that none of them are good people. Huxley knows this and wants to make sure you do too. He describes a group of students taking notes at the baby factory and how they are just copying everything the tour guide says unthinkingly and just. One of my favorite lines is

“‘Consider the horse.’

They considered it.” (Pg 14 chapter 1)

which is honestly even funnier in context. Your main characters are a hipster who is sort of “oh, im so much better than everyone else, they don’t understand. this is so sad” who craves depth beyond the shallowness of society, an incel who is an outcast partially because of his own bad attitude and because he feels like he has to compensate for being short but at the end of the day he is still shallow and greedy, a man and woman who are exactly who the society asks them to be pretty much (lots of drugs lots of sex and only caring about themselves really. not much going on upstairs as well), and an emo theater nerd who read shakespeare instead of having friends and who doesn’t Really understand shakespeare but thinks it sounds nice.

also the villain (other than like. society ig) is probably one of my favorite characters of all time: Mustapha Mond. Unlike in 1984 and a lot of other dystopian books, he actually has reasons beyond “i work for the society :)” for being evil and for perpetuating society. I don’t want to spoil it in case people read the book, i may make a separate post just about mustapha mond bc i have brainrot, but his story is a tragedy. yes he is a villain, but he is also very much a human and has been harmed by the society as much as the main characters who are suffering (helmholtz, bernard marx, and john). also unlike other dystopian books, mond presents his perspective and in all honesty? had you not seen what the consequences of a society based on those ideal is, with some of what he says, it feels like he actually has a point. however, the counterpoint to it is other events and aspects of the society that are explored earlier in the book, and how terrible it can be. the conversation that takes place in chapters 16 and 17 is one of my favorite pieces of literature.

im gonna put together a sort of content warning guide to the book to make it more accessible bc yes part of its thing is to shock and disgust people in some parts, but also i want the interesting philosophical stuff to be accessible to people without risk of hurting oneself

[starlightaxolotl]

End of Year Writing Highlights compilation

All of these are by far some of my favorite lines and word combos of the year. In No Particular Order. Under a cut bc this got L O N G. Some are actual scenes, some are lines, some are outline notes!

Enjoy!

The kingdom of Fuckoffname

Conversation between Flare and Eleanor about names. (side note, I have no idea who tf Flare is. But this was a document in my folder. This was the entire document.)

He peels back the layers of thorny brambles choking out (name) and tries to help. He sees (name) the way he sees his cat Mitzy, a golden hearted angel behind all the feral attitude and hissing and spitting they started with. (I personally redacted this because it's funnier without context. I love the dynamic of sunshine character and their feral bestie)

"I’m sure between these bozos and the clown I can find work for them.” (I need to write more for this. I enjoyed the way that I wrote Kennedy. What a snarky supervisor. A shame what I planned for him.)

The document titled "Yee Haw, Stardew Valley"

Foxes, for example, you know there are five separate species of fox in North America. They have incredible hearing, and like you, they grin when they’re scared.

The following exchange from a Fatherless Support Group Text fic I joked about.

Skywalker: probably like the third worst betrayal in my life actually. DAD HELP: ??? DAD HELP: THIS is in top 3??? I can think of at least 4 worse betrayals??

(the betrayal in question here was the reveal that Skywalker used to have a bedtime)

The kid–a little girl–looked so much like she did. Dark hair, hopeful smile, boundless energy. Like a mirror of what she once was, before she was a weapon. (I need to work on this one again)

Would there even be an investigation if he vanished too?

He was syrup-sweet. He is still syrup-sweet, but there is a sour note too. Dark berries and something tangy in his attitude. Is it the recognition of the blood on his hands? (Can you tell I wrote this while hungry and wanted to focus on the idea of flavors in not food contexts?)

Josephine looked relaxed, laying on the couch. Yes, it was merciful. A true monster would have simply let her fall to the floor in a heap. They had made sure to make quite the show of laying her down as he stood there in terror. (I NEED TO CONTINUE THIS. I peaked with this whole warm up. Dear god this bit really was something. The sense of horror from the perspective of a man dying a slow death)

(From yet another RWBY au crackfic idea, you get a few notes)He has to be in this universe as a treat. As a human. Some kind of aura wrecking semblance. Asshole. Aura leech?// Maybe his semblance should be fire based. Maybe he’s got some fire immunity idk if that’s possible but like again, would be funny.

She can sing and she can dance and she is everything your father wishes you were, and you hate her. (this is still one of my favorite sentences of the year, and it's literally from the first day I was writing in 2nd person.)

The image on the monitor was static-y and glitchy, but she could see it was another kid, one who was excited to hear another voice, just like her. “Oh good, I was worried that it was just Chica tripping the motion sensor again.” They moved and a horrible crackling sound came over the speakers. “I’m trapped under Roxy Raceway, there’s an elevator going down and it won’t turn back on. Maybe you can find a way to get it some power? I wanna get out of this place!”

“Top drawer has your security pass for the job. Level ten clearance. I think that should get you wherever you want—also works on the vending machines, not sure how but it does.” (the Pizzaplex is my playground and I will make it as nonsensical as I want for comedy reasons.)

Long scene but I forgot how much I liked the Ballpit Multiverse crackfic and how I wrote my faves.

Alert severity: NONE. Unidentified Watch User pinging FRDY-1. He scoffed and rolled his eyes. If there was an unidentified user then there was either an error or an intruder present in the building. He would need to cut this game short. He turned on the spot and walked quickly, calmly—if he ran Lloyd would know immediately that something was wrong, and it would not do for the children to be afraid, no it would not do. He lifted the shutter up with ease and smiled at the boy inside. Lloyd groaned. “How did you find me?” He tucked Lloyd under his arm and carried him like he weighed nothing. “Consider it one of my many skills.”

Unknown guest profile. But the scanner identified him as a potential guest, he had to be real, yes?

Fazbear Entertainment had a bad habit of making headlines. Everyone knew that. It was widely joked about online, the same way that people talked about headlines that started with “Florida Man”. If Fazbear was in the news it was typically worth reading about.

When things did hurt, it was phantom feelings of wounds he couldn’t remember. It felt wrong. His body was wrong. He was broken, and he had no idea how or why or if he could fix it. Gregory wanted to fix it. (I've been meaning to revisit I, You, Me, We for a few weeks now, and rereading what I had for chapter 2 does make it more enticing...)

ATTENTION EMPLOYEES: Be safe on your shifts! Interfering with “Superstar Gregory” is not advised. If he seems to be somewhere he shouldn’t, contact MANAGER ON SHIFT or FREDDY directly. Do not attempt to stop or manhandle “Superstar Gregory” unless absolutely necessary. Let’s avoid further hospitalizations and paperwork as a team! (lmao I loved this little note, I think it was funny to write it. Freddy as a very overprotective parent is one of my faves and I think I can do this better now after reading....like 200 fics in a similar flavor. all of my faves are perfect for forced/surprise adoption fics.)

He was the fire, and he had been burning on empty for a long time.

“It’s a lot prettier as stars instead of exploded green goop all over the city.” (wheezing, the context is star gazing in Ninjago)

"Are we there yet?" “You know,” You started with a smirk. “Every time you ask that I’m going to walk slightly off course for two minutes just to make it take longer to get there.”

"Hi there, it's me, the local idiot."

[xiuhunsoo]

2, 3, 6, 7, 11, 13, 14, 15, 18, 24 (knowing it going to be rina, besides rina), 41, 44, 46 (PLEASE I LOVE PUNS AND I LOVE YOUR PUNS) 51, 58, 59, 64, 74, 79, 87, 100 i love you anna!

under a read more bc these are a lot and i’m only answering the ones i haven’t answered before!

2: do you like the feeling of cold air on your cheeks on a wintery day?

hell yes, can’t wait for it to be winter again

6: do you keep plants?

no but i want to, later on when i have a more permanent own place

7: do you name your plants?

i would, yes

15: go google a weird space fact and tell us what it is!

apparently when you spend some time in space you can grow taller by a few centimetres, xiusoo hmu for a trip to space (lol jk i like my height)

24: is there someone out there you would trust with every single one of your secrets?

every single one??? uhhhhh lol no 

41: what's the last book you remember really, really loving?

it’s been a few years since i last read an entire new book so maybe pride and prejudice, but i finally started lotr last week and so far i’m actually liking it!!!!

44: when was the last time you remember feeling completely serene and at peace with everything?

a few days ago when i was swimming in the ocean and was just floating on my back looking at the vast blue sky, that shit was therapeutic

46: tell us the worst pun you can think of

most of the puns i make are context based so idk, i can’t think of any ‘’worst’’ one rn, i like puns better when they come out of nowhere actually and the other person/s least expect it, they have way more impact and are funnier

51: think of a person. what song do you associate with them?

hm i associate juanes - la camisa negra with my mum

58: who's the wine mom and who's the vodka aunt in your group of friends? why?

i’m the wine mum, rina’s the vodka aunt i think the reasons are rather obvious lmao (although it’s more like i’m the wine dad and rina’s the vodka mum all things considered)

59: what's your favorite myth?

idk i’m not that much into myths, don’t really have a fav one

64: what color is the sky where you are right now?

since it’s night it’s dark and starry

74: describe a good friend of yours without using their name or gendered pronouns.

hm this person has been one of my longest friends, haven’t seen them in a while but we chat from time to time and i like the warmth they radiate and the fact that they can make me smile, it’s so easy to spend time with them and while we’re not the closest of friends i still cherish them and wish i could see them more often, i love baking for them and going to places with them and they have this surprising sass about them that comes out at the most random times and makes me laugh really hard

79: what's one of the cutest things someone has ever done for you?

that was julia this year surprising me on my birthday, i honestly wasn’t expecting it and she decorated my flat for me and got me a great new lipstick and she made me smile really bright and it’s one of my happiest memories, she didn’t have to do that esp bc she bought the decorations for me and everything

87: what are some movies you think everyone should watch at least once in their lives?

idk everyone is allowed to watch the stuff they want to or not i wouldn’t force any movie on anyone, personally i like the Big Classics like harry potter, lotr and star wars but i know that not everyone is cut out for them so i don’t have this ‘you should do this’ attitute bc everyone is different

100: if you were presented with two buttons, one that allows you to go 5 years into the past, the other 5 years into the future, which one would you press? why?

does this just mean just time travel and i have to go back to the present eventually or permanently live there from then on, bc if it’s just time travel i’m gonna go with the future and if it’s permanently living there i’m gonna go with the past lol