#the fact that this is from 2015... the world is beautiful

[headfullof-ideas]

I’d like to mention that I’m not just expanding on other regions of the world. On characters and their dynamics with one another in this crazy project of a crossover that I’m doing. I’m also expanding on the dragons themselves. Playing around with the fact that they’re like people, and not all people are good. Some people just really, genuinely suck. But the thing this post is about is to showcase all the dragons who I am adding depth and lore to that we didn’t see in the films. Or the games. Because I am bringing in dragons from the games. So to all the School of Dragons players (RIP, that game was my childhood), here are the dragons from the games that I am bringing into this story (that I can immediately think of, especially since there’s a ten photo limit) (pictures supplied by Rise of Berk)

And then dragons that showed up in the films/shows that I’m adding lore to that wasn’t in the films/shows

It’s going to be so much fun (adding this after doing tags HOLY CRAP I FOUDN THE TAG LIMIT)

[blackbird5154]

Papa lll's special kung fu

After watching a lot of Terzo footage, I've noticed his amazing talent for turning disadvantages into advantages. And here's what I mean.

▸ If you love Third Era acoustic performances as much as I do, you've probably noticed that very often things went wrong on them. Tangled wires, dropped sound, wrong mic height, forgotten song lyrics 😅 Every time something like that happened, Terzo amused the audience while the problem was fixed, and now we remember those moments as the most touching. He didn't hide the problem, he made fun of it.

▸ Philadelphia Incident, 2015. Pope Francis arrives in town at the same time as Ghost and makes it so they have to cancel the concert. At the next show, Terzo praises the audience for their support and says he is by far the second greatest pope in the world. He says “number two” in such a voice that you absolutely believe that being number two is the coolest and sexiest thing in the world.

▸ March 28th 2017. Papa falls off the stage into the pit and immediately uses this as an opportunity to approach the crowd and hold their hands. Papa, fall more often. Your ass looks really fine.

▸ He almost falls again, but pretends it was part of a dance move.

▸ The legendary hole in the shoe is the result of his ability to turn problems into advantages. Anyone else in his place would have thought, “Damn, my shoe's worn out, now I need a new one. I've got to change it without anyone noticing.” But Terzo thinks about turning it into an event and makes it iconic. Sometimes I think he could be a successful businessman with the most creative ideas. One of those people who can make a fortune from used cans.

▸ How to resolve situation if you passed out during a concert? That's right, compliment the ladies who are so beautiful that you fainted, and make their hearts melt.

Now let's dig a level deeper.

Radley and I have already written quite a bit about the theme of loneliness in Terzo's monologues. It all boils down to the fact that, according to Papa, ghosts can be pretty good company if you're lonely. Here are a couple of telling quotes:

We can't always get what we want. You know that, huh? But one thing that can keep you company in a lonely hour… are the ghosts inside. Let them be your friend rather than your enemy. It's that darkness that sometimes makes the person, eh?

Lawrence, Kansas, USA (October 5, 2015)

And

You have a lot of things in your life, huh? We all crave so many things. If we list… in order to feel as if… we all get all these things and then everything will feel better. Ain't that right? I am exactly the same. But I do know one thing… is that if you have the spirits and the demons inside you that causes a little… wreckage. That can be to your favor. Believe me. An empty shell is nothing, so...

Chicago, Illinois, USA (October 3, 2015)

Usually ghosts are associated with something scary, or they're a metaphor for memories of people you've lost. It sounds like Terzo was able to “win them over” to his side, make them his allies in a lonely hour, turn them from tormentors to trusted companions. Sounds like a profound reinterpretation of the experience of unhappiness. Someday I'll learn to do the same.

A phrase from the classic comes to mind, You have to make the good out of the bad because that is all you have got to make it out of. Maybe Terzo would argue with the second part, but would agree with the first.

▸ [Part 7]

▸ Encyclopedia of Terzo

▸ [Part 9]

[three-dee-ess]

official 3ds post

o3DSXL

look at this. fucking look at this shit. i spent all day modding my 3ds and this is what i’ve done. a fucking. space jam theme. for my home menu. it plays the fucking goddamn theme song too. i spent hours looking up guides and troubleshooting errors and this is the shitting end result. seeing michael jordan’s shit eating grin every time i open my 3ds. i hate myself so much i hate space jam i h

[cityofmeliora]

i can't sleep. i'm too busy thinking about the fact that 3 of the songs on Meliora are about suicide by jumping / falling–

Spirit is about getting so drunk from absinthe that you start to hallucinate and jump off a building to your death.

Anti-Saint wormwood catapulting your mind Into the jaws of death

A GHOUL WRITER: Lyrically, this is meant as a hallucinogenic trip into the spheres of devils and demons, guided by the green muse. Think 1929, just before the crash: A New York night sky with searchlights. An office inside the Empire State Building. A bigwig sipping absinthe before jumping off the ledge of the observation deck. Face first into the pits of hell. Meliora marketing materials (2015)

From The Pinnacle To The Pit is about both Lucifer, the fallen angel; and Icarus, whose wings melted and caused him to fell to his death when he flew too close to the sun. this song has two main interpretations: it's about how ambition is self-destructive, but another interpretation that it presents is that there is freedom to be found in choosing your own downfall. the main character in the music video for this song escapes the evil rulers of the city of Meliora by committing suicide, jumping off a building. the ghost that rises from his body is Papa Emeritus III, who uses his power to help the people of the city.

You are cast out from the heavens to the ground Blackened feathers falling down You will wear your independence like a crown

A GHOUL WRITER: Lyrically, it deals with the classic tales of Icarus and Lucifer to illustrate how most ambitious souls are ultimately, according to popular belief, facing the fall. Meliora marketing materials (2015)

He Is describes the story of two lovers' double suicide by falling to their deaths. it's compared to Romeo and Juliet– a couple choosing to die together in order to be free to love each other. interestingly, this track comes after Cirice, which is a song about about manipulating a vulnerable person through false love.

We're standing here by the abyss And the world is in flames Two star-crossed lovers reaching out To the beast with many names

//

And we are falling over the precipice

A GHOUL WRITER: Lyrically, it's a Romeo & Juliet esque inspired love song where one of the lovers is guiding them both over the edge in the belief that there will be someplace beautiful somewhere else where their love can prosper without the threat of the outside world. It's a song about faith and devotion. Meliora marketing materials (2015)

[milfygerard]

Lots of her peers are on their first divorces and some of them even have kids and Taylor seemingly hasn't done that in her journey to world domination and I think people are selectively forgetting that in wishing her marry this man she's only known for a year and a half. Even if it is happening I think it's kinda gross how a lot of so called fans of The Taylor Swift don't consider her truly successful until she's wedded, or at least engaged. Gross gross gross gross gross.

this whole thing goes into a neat phenomenon ive rambled about in many a mutuals tags which is taylors tightrope walk of gender performance. This ties some ways into gaylor and ndlor but i find taylors sort of cartoonish understanding of femininity and her attempts and failure to adhere to it such a fascinating undercurrent to her career. The fact that theres a massive amount of lesbian rumors around her and there have been for most of her career by itself regardless of the rumors credibility says something about how people look at her as a woman. She sort of obsessively curates her looks to conform with whatever current idea of feminine beauty is popular at any given moment but is also someone who just exudes this sot of full body awkwardness and desperate energy that kind of undermines her attempts at complete conformity. She is popular insofar as when everyone decides that they like her, and despite seeming to know fucking everybody she seems like a lonely and solitary person who writes about feeling disconnected and cut off socially (tangent about envy of her lovers in her music goes here). She has never been "cool" except for the moment from like 2013 to late 2015 where being uncool and awkward and kind of socially inept WAS cool and she rode that fucking high to the moon until it crashed and shattered into a million pieces and nearly killed her. Her being such a social target no matter her popularity or trendiness or how much she tries to conform to others is something that clearly kills her and something she still hasnt really deconstructed even as shes tried to several times through her art. That sort of confusion and alienation is actually a part of her art that ive always deeply connected with as someone whose gone most of my life without even a self diagnosis and never knew what was "wrong" with me or what made people seemingly impusively target me as someone who could be ridiculed without pushback and seemed to be constantly breaking silent rules.

This response has gone kind of extremely off topic and out of control and barely relates to your ask sorry its the vodka iced tea running thru my system. I do agree theres a massive amount of misogynistic pressure on taylor to properly perform and recreate gender norms as expected, its a massive part of the fervor surrounding travlor specifically bc theyre the complete encapsulation of white american heterosexuality and people desperately want taylor to finally fold herself completely into that world of conformity even if what they like about taylor is her inability to conform.

[stereor4t]

lesbian movies I've seen so far (review based on my tastes)

I'm going to give my opinion of the lesbian movies I've seen so far and I'm going to give them a score from 1 to 5 stars :3 it may contain some spoilers

Bound(1996)

For the year this movie was made, I was actually surprised by the END of it(fuck the obsession with killing the protagonist). I didn’t really have much faith in it by how it stars, but man, I was so surprised, I loved it, be gay do crime. ★★★★☆

Gia(1998)

God, this movie is my new roman empire, I didn’t know about Gia’s story, but the ending of the movie DESTROYED ME. the scene where shes talking with Linda and she says: now we have all the time in the world, I was so moved by it, I loved it. It’s currently one of my favorite movies.★★★★★

Lost and delirious(2001)

ugh shakespearean shit, this movie touches more than one of us when it comes to the experience of liking girls. I liked it but I felt like there was a lot of wasted potential that could’ve made it great, tbh i just wanted Paulie to be happy; the fact the Piper Perabo is in it helps the score too. ★★★☆☆

D.E.B.S.(2004)

ITS THE BEST FUCKING MOVIE IN THE WORLD, GOD. I actually hated this movie before watching it ‘cause I thought it was some dumb comedy, but god, when I gave it a chance it BLEW ME AWAY. If you want to see some lesbian spies enemies to lovers shit watch debs.  ★★★★★

My summer of love(2004)

Personally, I HATED this movie kjj, I didn’t really get ANYTHING at all, like it felt like everything was just too rushed??? like when did they even fall in love lol? Gets points just for Emily Blunt. ★★☆☆☆

Imagine me & you(2005)

Piper Perabo again and Lena Heady THE WOMAN. This movie is ART, my fav movie, it’s beautiful, comfort movie af. The true don’t let your husband keep you from meeting your future wife. ★★★★★

Loving Annabelle(2006)

This movie was made for all of us who once liked a teacher or profesor. I liked it quite a lot, but I feel like seize it’s true potential. Personally, I choose to think that the alternative ending it’s the true one lol. ★★★☆☆

Bloomington(2010)

Again for us that like fantasizing about our teachers. I like this movie but again, I feel like they didn’t really make the most of it jskdja annoying af bitching about the same but yeah, it bothered me. Anyway, i liked the movie, and I didn’t like the ending at all,I felt bad for the poor teacher :c. ★★★☆☆

A perfect ending(2012)

I know a lot of people hate this movie and think it’s shit, but I personally love it lol. Idk I remember that when I watched it it got me super emotional and i liked it a lot, dont care what anyone says to me it’s a good movie. ★★★☆☆

The girl king(2015)

★☆☆☆☆

Didn’t like it at all, boring af, i didn’t really get it, idk, i was expecting more. ★☆☆☆☆

First girl i loved(2016)

Im fond of this movie, it was one of the first ones I saw, the ending just made a me a bit frustrated, but I liked it, Brianna Hildebrand with a wig funny as hell. ★★★☆☆

Disobedience(2017)

Rachel Weisz and McAdams DAMN. Great movie, I liked it in all aspects. Although the ending wasn’t what I expected I still liked it. ★★★★★

Tell it to the bees(2018)

Mmm I think this movie is kinda meh, like it’s okay but I feel like it lacks something for me to like it, tho I didn’t get the ending, like I don’t understand the decisions each one took. ★★☆☆☆

Ammonite(2020)

Kate Winslet and Saoirse Ronan!!!! I liked it but I didn’t love it, I never got to understand if Mary hated or loved Charlotte. The ending got me frustrated!!! ★★★☆☆

Crush(2022)

The kind of movie you gotta watch after Gia, I liked it I thought it was silly, like very much teenage romcom sort of shit, like the Kissing Booth but for lesbians. ★★★☆☆

You can live forever(2022)

I think this is a great movie, interesting story, I wasn’t expecting the whole ending sequence, what Marike says to Jamie destroyed me, in my head theyre the young version of the Disobedience ones. ★★★★★

Booksmart(2019)

GREAT MOVIE, very entertaining and funny, I liked it quite a lot, it’s perfect to watch it with friends. Gigi is just like me fr best character ever. ★★★★★

[eternal-echoes]

“In 2015, writing in the New York Times, Justin McBrayer—a philosophy professor— noted an odd trend in public schools. Current standards in his local school district required students to know the difference between facts and opinions. But in checking his second-grade son's homework, he realized that every moral or ethical premise his child encountered was treated as an opinion as opposed to a fact. "All men are created equal." "Copying homework assignments is wrong." "Cursing in school is inappropriate behavior." All these things were being taught as opinions, not facts.(1)

In his essay, McBrayer argued that such a curriculum "sets up our children for doublethink."(2) Students learn standards of conduct and mutual respect in school as part of growing up. That's always been the case. But today they're also taught that those same standards are, in essence, elegant-sounding opinions.

In practice, students learn that the only concepts worthy of the term "truth" are those that can be empirically proven. Moral truths accessible to human reason, such as those in the Ten Commandments, don't really qualify as true. "Our public schools," McBrayer wrote, "teach students that ... there are no moral facts. And if there are no moral facts, then there are no moral truths." In effect, truth becomes a social convention that humans themselves invent. Thus it can change from culture to culture.

That's a problem for two reasons. First, in losing a fixed definition of truth, we also lose a sense of goodness and beauty. Why? Because belief in objective truth, and the framework of moral right and wrong that naturally grows from it, is the "bone structure" of a society. It supports every other virtue and roadmap to meaning that can help people build a decent common life. There's nothing really "shared" in a public arena that invents its own ground rules on the fly-nothing, that is, except a Darwinian struggle for dominance. Second, the damage done to a child's moral reasoning doesn't stop with the individual student. It inflicts itself on the wider culture as he or she grows and engages with others.”

-Archbishop Charles J. Chaput, Strangers in a Strange Land: Living the Catholic Faith in a Post-Christian World

—

(1) & (2) Justin McBrayer, "Why Our Children Don't Think There Are Moral Facts," New York Times, March 2, 2015.

[finalgirlguy]

favorite first watches of june (happy pride month ❣️❣️❣️)

tangerine (2015) - hilarious and dirty and mean and manic. this life fucking sucks but you have to keep living it so you may as well find the beauty in it

the queen (1968) - i’m so in love with this movie. it’s just a portrait of such a specific moment in a specific culture it feels like a couple of months encased in amber. i feel bewitched. also fun fact i saw pink flamingos in a movie theater this month and the poster of this movie was in the background of some scenes <3

shakedown (2018) - a doc abt a black lesbian strip club i was in love with these women with the relationships they built for themselves the space they built where they could be beautiful and free. the femmes and the studs and the queens and the respect and love they held for eachother. again another portrait of a specific moment in a specific scene

i saw the tv glow (2024) - i can’t really talk abt this movie. but it did change my life. and it haunts my thoughts. it’s one of a kind i’ll think abt it forever. you still have time. god.

gay usa (1977) - doc abt the san francisco pride parade right after harvey milk was murdered. really really interesting to see what were the most talked abt topics and what felt most urgent back then. it’s a lot of interviews with the queer ppl and allies present and it just warms the heart 💝

only lovers left alive (2013) - i love!! vampire love!! it’s so lonely and old and unconditional. to know someone perfectly well and float back to them again and again as the world changes around you

blue (2002) - i love movies abt teen girls who are in love with each other and wildly codependent and toxic abt it. i love the way they loved each other i loved how they just couldn’t say what they meant i loved the way love just made them more lonely. there’s a scene where one of the girls is trembling with desire and hurt and confusion and it makes me crazyyyyyy. such a beautiful movie as well, this moment where you’re a few months away from not being a child anymore and you don’t know what to do with the fact that your entire life has already passed you by

[music-interpretation-review]

Feeling Emotions Song Tournament Round 2

Sometimes a song just hits you right in the heart and might even find you falling to the floor in tears. Or the joy it brings you is so palpable you can't help but dance. Submitters were asked to include propaganda to make their case for why their choice was the most emotional song and now you get to vote!

The Dark I Know Well propaganda by anon:

(cw: child abuse, sexual abuse, incest)

You say all you want is just a kiss goodnight Then you hold me and you whisper “Child, the Lord won’t mind” It’s just you and me. Child, you’re a beauty

In the scene preceding the song, Martha tells her friends that her father beats her with a belt and, at one point, locked her out the house at night. She asks her friends not to tell anyone, for fear that her parents would “throw her out for good,” like what happened to Ilse. The song starts after the conversation between Martha and her friends.

“The Dark I Know Well” is a heartbreaking song about child sexual abuse and incest. In the song, Martha describes the part of her abuse that she cannot tell her friends about—the sexual abuse she has experienced at the hands of her father—, and Ilse eventually joins in and recounts her own experiences with CSA. Ilse and Martha’s feelings of anger and fear really show through vividly in both the lyrics and the actresses’ performances, and it’s absolutely devastating to watch/listen to.

One Step Ahead propaganda by anon:

(cw: Spies Are Forever spoilers)

One step ahead, you played me from the start Well, look at you, without a clue You know you broke my heart

gay love cold war fake death gay divorce. tfw you thought you killed the love of your life but he was actually alive and plotting your downfall the entire time!!! they give me actual physical symptoms. background: Owen "died" on a mission 4 years before the main plot of the show. Curt blamed himself, quit his job, and grew an ugly ass beard - but he's back for one last mission to defeat a villain he later discovers is his "dead" partner.

this song is not only Curt trying to save the world from Owen's scheme but also their official breakup. ugh. the "old buddy/ old pal" the "I'm sorry, my old friend" they sound so fucking bitter and so so sad the way they can't even face the fact they used to be in love. "this is it, we're done/we're through" like HELLOOO. for the past 4 years Owen hasn't been Curt's ex, he's been his dead boyfriend. Curt hasn't been Owen's ex, he's been the man who left him for dead. only when they are literally fighting over the fate of the world do they take the time to officialise their breakup. like do i even NEED to go into "don't deny, I was the better spy/ I liked you better when you were dead" I HATE THEMMM. in Owen's mind he's made such a villain of Curt that he can't accept him as an equal. but Curt can't even think about that bc he just wishes he'd been able to mourn the man he loved, and not the spiteful shell of Owen's former self that's trying to go full fuckin Big Brother on the whole world!!

tl;dr Owen spends this whole song mocking Curt for not being able to stop him (because he is One Step Ahead) while Curt is trying to push aside his grief and anger and confusion so he can stop his ex's evil scheme. my fav doomed yaoi (60s spies from a 2015 musical)

[artist-issues]

Anyone notice the Compare & Contrast in Cinderella (2015?)

Nothing major, just another reason why this movie is so good: going to talk about Ella/Kit v.s. Lady Tremaine/the Court.

You know how Ella, and more secondarily, Kit, have to hang on to their faith in “have courage and be kind?” And you know how the book-ends of the movie are “Ella saw the world not as it was, but as it could be?”

Okay obviously Ella has to have courage to withstand abuse, but I think more focus is placed on her kindness: she’s kind to mice, she’s kind to lizards, she’s kind to bratty stepsisters and kind to a super-horrible stepmother. And what’s the opposite of kind?

Cruel. Lady Tremaine is cruel, but it’s because she sees the world as cruel. Unlike Ella, who is kind and sees the world as it could be.

How do I know? When she returns from the ball, she (cruelly) points out the fact that the Prince is not free to marry for love, the game was rigged, and then watches Ella for a reaction. And when her girls say, “it’s so dreadfully unfair!” The Stepmother says: “Yes…the way of the world.”

That parallels what another character, presenting an obstacle and contrast to Kit, says in the movie: the King. When he learns he’s dying, he says: “Way of all flesh, boy.”

Why? Because the King—as wise, and noble, and loving as he is (certainly no villain) is succumbing to fear as he gets closer to death. Not fear for himself; the movie shows no hint of that. But he literally tells Kit, “I want to see you and the kingdom safe.”

He’s afraid for Kit. He wants Kit’s safety, and the kingdom’s, and he can’t do what a father should do when he passes; protect. So he’s insisting on a princess, and the divisions that the Kingdom might get, to make it stronger, from an advantageous marriage.

That’s a great foil for Kit, who is kind, but is even braver than he is kind. He’s not being abused, like Cinderella is, but he is about to face a world where he’s got everyone’s fate riding on his shoulders—alone—without the loving father he’s always had. He has to become his own man fast, and defend what he believes in…

…no matter what’s “done.” No matter what’s proper, and no matter what everyone else thinks.

You have the Prince who must be courageous when even his own father is beginning to fear, and you have Cinderella who must be kind even to those who are cruel to her. It’s awesome.

But then, that whole idea of perspective comes into it.

The Stepmother is cruel because she has experienced what she believes is life’s cruelty.

She’s arguing with Cinderella in the climactic scene, explaining that her first husband, whom she loved, was taken from her—and then so was her second, who never loved her as much as he did his daughter, who is so much more beautiful than her own—and all the opportunities for hope that she had expected to come with him. Lady Tremaine thinks the whole world, all of fate, is cruel.

She’s been subjected to hard circumstances—the first thing the audience gets to learn about her is, “she too had known grief.”

Ella’s stepmother has had hardships—just like Ella. She lost “the light of her life.” She lost her second husband. She’s snared in debt, her daughters are mean and (by her own admission) stupid, and she doesn’t even like the house she lives in with them. She’s let her circumstances twist the way she sees the world. Now she believes everything comes at a price, and one that the world is just cruel enough to wring out of you.

Ella, on the other hand, has known even greater grief than her stepmother. We watch her lose her mother, her father, her dignity, and even (briefly) her faith in the course of the movie. By the time she has that conversation with her stepmother, she’s also apparently lost the chance to ever see the Prince again. But does she let it change the way she looks at the world? No!

She keeps seeing the world as it could be. She won’t let her circumstances change what she has faith in; that love is free, courage and kindness have power, and will carry her through all of life’s trials. And the characters that change the way they look at things—the ones who are willing to, like Ella, see the world as it could be instead of as it is, find it to be true. Look at the king!

We know (from what the Prince says: “the wars have brought sorrow on us all,”) that he’s seen hardship. He’s seeing how fragile even his own life is; it’s coming to an end. He has every reason to be afraid for his son’s future when he���s not there to help him.

He’s thinking, “the way of all flesh is to die.” And he’s hoping that by convincing his son to marry a princess, he and his kingdom will be safer. Safety, safety, because he’s afraid for Kit.

But what happens? He meets “the mystery girl,” who is, by definition, unknown, unsure, and unsafe. Clearly Kit is besotted with her; she bumps into him, then makes a darling little speech about how good and brave Kit is and how much he loves his father. And then Kit, who learned to verbalize it this way from Cinderella, tells his father on his deathbed, “I believe we need not look outside our borders for strength. We need only have the courage and kindness to see it.”

And when he passes away, he does so by telling Kit that he should marry for love—even though the girl Kit loves may never be found again; even though, when she does, they have no guarantee it will strengthen the kingdom. But this is the King, acting on faith that those ideals his son believes in, and his son, himself, will be see things through. That’s him, having courage.

He stops seeing the world as dangerous, first and foremost, and starts seeing it as it could be, like Ella and Kit.

Comparing the King’s fear to Kit’s courage, and the Stepmother’s cruelty to Ella’s kindness, was such a good choice. And comparing the way these characters saw the world as dangerous and cruel, versus how Ella and Kit see the world, was an even better one. And they used lines like “The way of the world/way of all flesh” to do it.

This movie’s so good.

[bobbinfire]

Transformers One - Animation Student Analysis

(Aka why TFHypeGuy is right and you need to make this a #TFWeekend)

Disclaimer: This is a Review by an animation student based on the first viewing alone. I will not be giving the same quality of analysis of a film like a seasoned animation professional. However, I still have tons of knowledge by the years I have spent personally studying animated films and the new information learned through my academics. If you are still here, with that out of the way let’s begin.

(As requested by @serotoninisheldinkiwis)

((Spoilers below- quick non spoiler version here))

Transformers one is the peak example of what a brand such as the transformers franchise could accomplish when fans and talented artists work together to make a piece of art. The phrase of “could accomplish” is even over written as they “have accomplished” this. Both seasoned and newly furnished transformers fans seem to concur this as a fact.

All animation fans (you could even get the same from any of my fellow animation classmates) agree the Spider-Man Into/Across the Spider-verse movies are the best amongst the vast pool of the animated film medium. Rise of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: The Movie (2022) was my favorite animated film, for both story and animation. But when compared to the artistry that is the Spider-verse, I knew that it still couldn’t compare in terms of mastery. No matter how much a film has your love, you are more likely than not to agree with the concept that Spider-verse saga is the best. And I used to agree. That was until the night of Friday September 20, when Transformers One single handily took the scepter of victory and waved it high for the awaiting crowds to see. The controversy I may get from this will probably be immense, but the statement I am willing to scream from the rooftops is that Transformers One has officially surpassed Spider-Verse movies as the top animated film. 

But what actually makes an animated film the “best” when compared to the variety of competitors flooding the market on a bi-monthly basis? What makes this film so better when it could be just the current hyper fixation coded bias of a long time transformers kid who just got handed a shiny new toy to play with and will eventually forget about once the next film releases. Well my friends…and random people of the internet, here is an analysis made by an animation student (me *cough *cough) that breaks down the answer to that question. 

Animation

As with any quality animated film, the animation itself will make or break a film as it is the core part of the film. Transformers One’s animation was handled by the company Industrial Lights and Magic. While not a large competitor in terms of feature film animation, they have produced films that have pushed past known boundaries of both animation and story as seen in their few animated feature films: Rango (2011), Strange Magic (2015), and Ultraman Rising (2024). Their work in the industry is primarily known in reference to their special effects work with Jurassic Park (1993) and Star Wars (1977). ILM’s animation in Transformers One manages to bring to life a world many have tried to do before, but not as elegantly or dare I say brilliant as this. The animation itself seems to stay on a constant frame rate, the beauty of special movements or actions being more defined by hard cuts or continuously moving shots. Each movement has purpose even ones that seem more throw away because it adds to the personality of the characters/environment. Specialty/new techniques are not as important for this film, which is perfectly okay considering they managed to hit each one of the 12 principles of animation when it counted most. An animation coming from a special effects studio in general is very good because they tend to pay major attention to any animation related to special effects, even if it’s just for a cartoon. Details can range from giant Quintesson ship slowly descending to the tiny sparks cause from a hit to a metal face. The animation in general is smooth as well as robotic only when it needs to be.

Environments

There have been a variety of environments in both animated and live action films that have help suck the audience into the story. When an animated pulls it off successfully it is even more noteworthy worthy. However, one must note the limited use of environments when it comes to how much we see past the establishing shots. Most times the best of environmental shots are primarily used to help set up a location or scene, then the rest of that is limited to a small corner (more often than not for budgetary reasons). Transformers One leans into the almost constant use of environments, not only for location, but for story as well. There is a variety of scenes that are carried through meticulously crafted sets and allow for you to not only finally get to know the world of Cybertron, but we travel through the environments almost fully as we progress the story alongside the characters. Minor details play a large role in the environment. Between the polished textures, the detailed individual blades of alien vegetation, the different background characters, and the hidden easter eggs within the framework of the designs themselves allow for a new thing for you eyes to feast upon with each viewing.

Textures

The use of textures in both environment and character design is on another level when compared to other 3D animated films. Speaking from experience the process of applying basic textures to a 3D model already requires hours of hard work, dedication, and patience that you will be very low on by the end of the whole ordeal. So when you analyze the detail and complexity of the work the team at ILM brought to the table it is truly extraordinary, even more so when you realize the time it would take to fight the UV layout and unwrap the mesh of a complicated figure like a cybertronian, especially one that has to transform. If you are confused on my alien language look up basic uv layout and texturing tutorial for maya on YouTube and generate a heart attack for yourself. Good luck sleeping tonight. Transformers one works itself down to the individual grains in the sand, the cracks in the ground, the glitter speckled plating on Elita-One’s head; even the length and deepness of scratches in armor can be measured. The effort put forth creates an effect of feeling you can touch the textures just by looking at them. Of course textures can only go so far without the correct use of the next subject. 

Lighting

When used to its fullest extent lighting not only lights the cast and their environment but it helps extend storytelling capabilities. Things such as mood, emotions, atmosphere, movement and location are brought out through simple artificial particles. The darkness of the mines contrast with the bright fantasy lighting of Iacon, which in its own way contrast the calm natural lighting of the surface. The carefully crafted textures of a surface could not be fully realized without the full use of directed light bouncing off it. During the final sequence of fights the change of D-16 to Megatron is not only conveyed through the change in the lighted color of his eyes but the waves of light flowing from them as he battles his way through opponents. The trail of light allows our eyes to not only follow Megaton’s movements but his descent into his dark path, with his blood red rage clouding his vision and being all that he can see.

And finally the most important point to cover with any animated film besides animation:

Story

Recently Dreamworks employee Rick  Rickdel gave a lecture on my campus. Out of all he talked about one of my major takeaways was when he said: “a story only connects with the felt needs of your audience”. Transformers fans have been wanting a movie like Transformers One for a long time. Even the smallest fans wanted to know what happens between Optimus and Megatron. And that’s the true beauty of this movie. We already know basically what happened between them, we know the overall story. Going into the theater we already knew how it was going to officially end and based on the lore we knew how it was going to start even. So the most important thing for Transformers One was how they connected the two and carried out the main part of the story. And what they did not only managed to meet expectations, but surprised us multiple points along the way. Voice actors poured their souls into these characters, leaving behind their celebrity personalities and bringing the characters to life. Each character themselves that had a relatively good chunk of screen time had a role in the story and were not just throw away side characters. With each one it’s set up for an almost domino like effect for the plot. Bee is not just a goofy side character, he assists in the journey, helps them get to new locations, and even provides relief from the typical dark undertones. Darkwing is a side character that ends through one quick mean spirited action kicks off the rising action at break neck speed. The quintessions show briefly, but provide enough of a threat without overstepping the plot’s boundaries that it is okay they are not there for long, but there may be a chance they can come again. Sentinel is at first glance a stereotypical egocentric villain, but take away his power and status and he will crumble in your hands (quite literally). He is not designed to be redeemable, but he is also not evil just for the sake of being evil. He has goals, he has factors that push him to evil things, but he very clearly has gone far enough that he no longer cares. His overall actions that are not super specifically targeted end up affecting what were originally minor threats to the point it results in his demise. And because of how his character was designed we rejoice even if actual justice wasn’t delivered. For a film have good storytelling it needs to have two factors: the story (the lore and information the audience receives in order to understand the film’s world) and plot (the events that play out in the films timeframe). The movie uses both of these to their proper extent allowing people like my friend was never watched any Transformers media before to watch it with understanding and enjoy it. It plays out what we expect of transformers media while taking on its own persona. What I find most enjoyable about the movies plot is the fact it is similar to a slow burn romance, but in reverse. We take this strongly built brotherly bond that can be shaken, yet once the match gets struck we can do nothing but watch as all these ties melt to heartache before our very eyes. And the audience’s vision eats it up without blinking once. We watch as D-16 goes to catch Orion, only to slowly realize he can’t undo what he’s done to the point of of diluting his mind to making it Orion’s’ on fault. We watch orions spark break through the emotions in his eyes as he begs D-16 not to…but it’s not about not dropping him, it’s about not becoming what he has watched him slowly come into to the point a flip is switch and D-16 is gone. @sephirose explained the summary of this movie best:

“D-16 reached out and caught Orion.

Megatron dropped him.

Orion Pax held onto D-16.

Optimus Prime let him go.”

Even the soundtrack tells a story. “The Fall” it only plays an emotional heartstrings of former Transformers Prime fans, but encapsulates “the actual physical fall of Orion and the metaphorical one of D-16 as he kills Sentinel” (@firebunnylover). Even if the end of the film is just a quick hit of Megatron being banished and forming the Deceptioncons while Orion ascends and becomes robot Jesus, it is what we were expecting. 

And that is the culmination of these factors. It manages to astound and amaze, but in the end it was a Transformers movie meant to be satisfactory. It is satisfying to the transformers soul, and in turn we should do our part like TFOneGuy says and give it the appreciation it deserves.

Anyways, sorry this took so long (I say to the single person who asked for this) to get out but in order to be able to give an in-depth animation student analysis I have to do well in my animation classes.

[lexisbethrothed]

What Mad Girl Movies Taught Me:

Never Be Like Me

(Lessons From Helter Skelter and Black Swan)

Beauty and perfectionism has been ingrained to how we build our self identity, social acceptability and self worth. This just has to stop. So here I am, sharing my opinions and experience, in hopes that someone who is struggling the same way finds this and say " wow, I am enough. The world is just fucked up".

Let's get on to it as I dissect the moral lessons two beloved movies of mad women we can all learn from.

Helter Skelter: Beauty As A Trend is Never Achievable

I have noticed how fucked up body trends are, in all known genders yes, but especially the heterosexual ones.

It really is so fucked up how it is normal to treat the body like a moldable accessory, when it's literally what works hard keep you alive because it is you! In just a span of a decade from 2015 to 2024, the trends over body aesthetics is crazy. I can tell you that sexism and ingrained toxicity in social constructs are alive and maybe even so flourishing with globalisation, whilst civil wars are coexisting. It's crazy (but that's another conversation).

Lately, another wave of Heroin Chic is hitting the influencer network, this wave has been a long time coming, especially during and after the pandemic. People have been trying to get healthy, yes, but for the wrong reasons, so much so that people just try to look healthy when in fact they got there from the artificial place.

Just around mid-2010, big ass and a tiny waist were all the rage. Yes, it opened up the door to the body types acceptance but also glamorized it, too much. Then by 2020, healthy body figures became the rage again: abs, toned muscles and no fat. Interestingly, body positivity also came along with the trend, opening the new target audience in markets: the plus size. Here we are at mid 2020, where heroine chic came back, along with toned look. The influence of this trend came with the build of many celebrities losing weight, such as Kim Kardashian removing her buttlift, Christina Aguilera looking like she was in her early 20s again, Nikoavokado coming back with relatively a drastically changed body and many more.

I will be honest that I accidentally jumped into this trend train. I lost weight drastically in a span of 6 months, due to self harming habits. (Please be warned of the terms I am using to describe what happened to me, I did not get diagnosed, even when it is very obvious what is happening to me). Ever since I was younger, I unconsciously trained myself to not eat when I am upset which led to repercussions I am yet to recover from. My weight would fluctuate all the time as a teenager and even now as an adult, as I get upset for longer periods of time, and the stress of that period still stays even after I feel better. So my eating habits would have split days of completely normal times to eat or literally starving because I slept in the whole day, that is my journey right now which is actually quite better than before. I would be physically incapable of even digesting food properly, my stomach would reject just the thought of eating again, which would only happen if I try to eat outside of the house (very specific I know), yet I would eat just fine at home. I couldn't eat because it would literally hurt. It was the worst periods of my life honestly. I couldn't function well, I couldn't sleep , one time I fainted at work from extreme fatigue.

Needless to say, I lost too much weight. Not skin -bone, but a drastic comparison from before. I am not happy, I am not moving much, and I feel like I am not enough, because now I am developing body dysmorphia. I was fine when I was a little over weight, I am jolly, active and full of life (not all the time, but most is pretty good!) I moved a lot, I am talking about long walks and trekking, and it was just for FUN. I loved it. Now, I can barely move and at age 22, my bones would "pop" or "creak" just from an occasional stretch or kneeling.

Look at what happened to the patients of the clinic where Lilico and other people were obsessed with beauty. Suicide, because they couldn't afford to lose their new look. They would rather die beautiful than live. Lilico is fucked up in her own way, yet her actions' main motivation is because of the delicious power she has from her perfected beautiful appearance. Fame, a rich guy who is obsessed with her, money, easy manipulation of others. She wanted it all. She wants to be what everyone wants, and just from her monologues, you can tell she hated every single minute of it, especially in the manga. She treated herself like a perfect product no one should ever dare to one up, yet she knew she was just a product, that her market value will end eventually. That girl went bat shit crazy. She was addicted to the good stuff her socially praised beauty was. It is obviously not worth it!

Oh here is one too: ageism. Look, it is well and alive before so is today. The amount of males who told me women have a ticking clock of attractiveness is frustratingly high and even exists in younger generations. Age is the number of years you have been alive on this earth, not a set of intervals of attractiveness.

Like what the detective said: "Youth is beautiful but not inherently beauty". You know what you get with age? Wisdom, even more beauty, journeys of epics and living life to the fullest.

Look at the Golden Girls. If you ever have a chance to watch that show, you find that dating at an older age is great and sometimes rocky, like any type of dating. Their age in that show is supposed to be around 50 to 60, and they were ACTIVELY DATING. They even tackled the insecurities of being older, having wrinkles, a hanging stomach, and being unattractive, and it is always countered. It isn't true what they say, that you are attractive at only a certain age. Honestly, I prefer the type of dating in an older age. You MOSTLY know what you want from the other, and because you have gone through a lot already, it's faster to move on. Also, these ladies mostly dated men AROUND THEIR AGE. Now, this is important too. Males have told me that men just age better with time, and that's not true at all. It depends heavily on each individual, irregardless of age and gender. The Golden Girls dated handsome men, overweight men, men of different races and religions, average men, etc. They like to get to know the person (Blanch, though, is so hyperactive, so maybe not always getting to know them for who they are, but she does value traditional dating) because that is way more valuable than their looks.

Lilico didn't even like anyone, not even herself. Probably just her sister, she loves her but well she is Lilico so toxic af. Sex is not even making love to her, it's a business transaction, a tool for manipulation, and a means to an end. That's fucked up.

Let's this be a cautionary tale: achieving society's beauty will never be worth it.

I discussed said toxic beauty standards. Now, let's move one ahead with the toxicity of perfectionism.

Black Swan: There is No "Perfect"

Perfect? No, she was brilliant, but she was never "perfect". Perfectionism is so toxic in itself already, I know because I used to participate in it too.

I wanted to be perfect in writing the best, it didn't matter to me if I was not on the top ten highest grades in class, as long as I am the best in that one thing I am good at. However, my story is not close enough to Nina's extremely perfectionist behaviour, so I will share one that is closer to that tale as well as the point the movie and I am trying to make.

I am Asian (Filipino) and just from above, I can say that that really is the school system here, yes being a nerd is normal and being the TOP NERD was so important, I saw people broke down because they didn't win at a class competition. Toxic, right? Self-worth was associated with how good you are at academics and those over-achieving people envy others who had it easy. I was one of those who didn't struggle with academics as much, I got good grades , even when I didn't study. University did humble me, of course. Still, it doesn't bother me if I got a bad grade or a good grade. But the comments I hear from the one who worked hard to be "the best", damn. I once had a classmate who really wanted the best record in her academics. She was obsessed with it. Losing sleep, losing patience, and losing her mental health, basically. I did ask her once when she was stressing about not getting in a higher rank in the top ten, I asked her : "Does it matter?"I didn't mean it as a serious thing, but it came out like that because she replied,"It matters to me. " The tone was "I want to win." Look, her hardworking personality is ENOUGH to get her a job (she really wanted a job to get out of the house), I just wish she wasn't stressing out about winning so much. Back then, I remember her being in a bad mood, because she didn't sleep working on a project or she had a bad group mate (to be fair to her, everyone hated that person for good reason). She was ENOUGH, and I hope she sees that about herself now.

I think sacrifice is discussed a lot when talking about toxic perfectionism but behaviour from the get go isn't talked about enough.

Nina Sawyers is an example of the bad behaviour of any toxic perfectionist. She would do ANYTHING to get to the top. She tried to seduce the director to get the part she wanted, she would sabotage Lily who was friendly to her all through out as a person wanting to steal her part, she would do anything that it literally messed with her head, that her fate was her karma. She was jealous, envious and had no GOOD DAY unless SHE WAS THE PERFECT ONE. She loved the praise but couldn't handle anything less.

Nina needs to cut her mother out of her life, go out and actually have fun, and have friends who she doesn't see as competition. She needs to be friends with her peers of the same interest, too. God, that girl has no friends. She is too busy with her craft, and also, her mom is overbearing, which probably drove her to isolate from others.

One other thing, like in Helter Skelter, Nina sees her skill as a marketable tool that puts her above the rest, which is also why she is so paranoid when the director keeps comparing her to Lily, feeling threatened to be replaced. The director is an asshole, but it is pretty clear that those comparisons were meant to constructive criticism, though he needed to work on that bad delivery, also I think he was unconsciously and consciously manipulative of his muses in general. The past "Oddette", before Nina, probably experienced all the build-up paranoia that led her to extreme actions such as aggressively confronting Nina and stabbing herself in the face.

No person should ever feel like they are replaceable because they are worthless. No one should ever feel like they have to be the best because that's the only way that makes them worthy. You are worthy, nonetheless of your skill.

The Conclusion: You Are Never Enough For Them, You Are Enough For You

I know I discussed Nina and Lilico as cautionary tales, but we also to acknowledge the society that drove them to that point. We, as a society, glamorize the best of what we see: skill, craft, art, beauty, age and etc. We failed to acknowledge that we are putting impossible pedestals on them. We treat "good" things as if that is what should be good. We really failed to SEE BEAUTY AND GOOD IN OTHER THINGS.

Lilico was bullied for being fat, fetishised for being fat, and praised for being perfectly beautiful. Then, she is shamed for her past.

Society really ruined her.

As for Nina, she was always praised for being perfect, yet she had no friends because she saw them as a competition. Her over bearing mother would put her down (I saw more moments of her downplaying her skill, though in hindsight, rather than actually celebrating and supporting) .That is a factor as to why she thrived in praise so much in ballet. That is where she could be loved and FREE.

Her mother failed her, and the perfectionism ruined her.

Do not ever go to that point where you find yourself going crazy over an unreachable height. Be kind to yourself, so someone is comparing to other people? wow, aren't they someone who notices too much, that person has no life to live. Also, don't do that to yourself, don't be the loser who always looks down on others, who compares themselves to greater people because they are not enough, that is not a habit you want lingering.

I also was a person who compared themselves often to others, guess where I got that from? My flesh and blood: my mother. I still remember it, she compared me to a good friend of mine and it led me to compare myself to everyone. It was ONE passive-aggressive comment. I hated it so much, and I never did that to anyone.

I learned that I hated that feeling whenever someone does it to themselves or others to that to me, I take offence and say that that is such a sorry way to think then I realized I was like that. I had friends like that, and guess what? the Habit is still here, but I now combat it because I have no friends who do that to themsleves or others. I was done with that mentality.

I don't like it, so why should I linger in that energy?

Now, I implore you to really look at the bigger picture, think and do what is truly best for you, no matter what others say.

[jokerislandgirl32]

Birthday Wishes to Varina Virginia Varmitech

Happy Birthday to Zach and Violet’s oldest daughter Varina! She is now 10 years old! Zach and Violet have been parents for a decade, and they could not be happier! Varina is their miracle, their moon child, their world, the integral piece in their family puzzle 💜.

Varina Birthday Facts!

Date and Time: May 31st, 2015, 1:22 PM (arrived 6 weeks early)

Weight and Length: 3.5 pounds, 15 inches

Parents: Zachary Bennett Varmitech & Violet Virginia Varmitech nèe Tyler 

Siblings (at birth): Alexandria Rinella Varmitech👼

I made some collages on Pinterest to celebrate (click on the links in each for references), the first depicts Varina through the years, alongside some of her favorite things (the moon, the night sky, butterflies, and flowers)…btw, the Wildest shirt is a gift from Martin!

The second is more of a vibe/asetic moodboard! Varina is a moon child who loves everything related to the moon and stars, her favorite color is indigo/dark purple (so everything is this color), and she adores cats, music, and flowers! I also included the beautiful fanart drawn of her by @quasarzt.

Below you can find the special birthday message to Varina from Zach and Violet!

Happy 10th birthday to our beautiful Varina.

Our smart, bright, talented, kind, caring, loving daughter without who our lives would be incomplete. You came into our lives at our lowest point, we’d just lost your sister Alexandria, we’d nearly divorced and lost each other. But we pulled through for the sake of our love and out of that turbulent time came you, Varina.

You were an unexpected but welcome miracle at the end of the storm. Our rainbow, our star, our moon child. Despite the personal struggles we endured leading up to your birth, despite the scary circumstances resulting in your birth, despite the challenges that faced you and me/Violet in the weeks following your birth, you preserved and made it through with flying colors.

Varina, our beloved daughter, we love you to the moon and back.

Love Always,

Daddy and Mommy

[black-arcana]

NIGHTWISH Shares Full 45-Minute Documentary About Making Of 'Yesterwynde' Album

During the past months building up to the worldwide release of NIGHTWISH's newest opus, "Yesterwynde", on September 20, the group shared various episodes revealing further insights into the creation of this magnificent album, which closes off the trilogy started with "Endless Forms Most Beautiful" in 2015. From early demo playback sessions in hotel rooms all across the world during the "Human. :II: Nature." world tour to the remote rehearsal sessions in a cabin in Röskö, from Floor Jansen delivering stunning vocal performances at her home studio to the orchestral recordings at Abbey Road Studios, London, this 45-minute documentary directed by Ville Lipiäinen details the long way of transforming the ideas, stories and songs of Tuomas Holopainen into the opulent masterpiece that is "Yesterwynde". Check it out below.

NIGHTWISH's multi-instrumentalist Troy Donockley comments: "'Yesterwynde' is full of secrets, but, if the stars are aligned, you may find some answers within..."

Holopainen previously said about the new NIGHTWISH LP: "'Yesterwynde' took more time to make than any previous NIGHTWISH album. The new album was intensively worked on for three and a half years. My ambition and piety really skyrocketed, and I just couldn't let go of the creative process — and didn't want to. Along the way, 'Yesterwynde' became both an exhilarating obsession and a comforting haven for me. All aspects of the making — compositions, lyrics, arrangements, cover art, videos, mixing and so on — were given more attention than ever before."

The result? There's a fascinating, but inexplicable feeling that NIGHTWISH has once again been able to find unprecedented nuances, spices and perspectives in their new works after a career of nine classic albums.

"'Yesterwynde' is an experience that takes time to digest," Holopainen explained. "The gravid ingredients of the songs are easily recognizable, but beneath the surface lies a large number of intriguing details and features."

He continued: "It's interesting – but not surprising – that 'Yesterwynde' has attracted quite a variety of opinions. Some have stated that it is the most 'band' record to date. For some it appears to be the heaviest and most ominous NIGHTWISH release. It has also been called our most progressive album. And the list goes on."

And what does Tuomas think of it himself?

"To me, 'Yesterwynde' sounds, tastes and feels strongly like the true essence of NIGHTWISH — enriched with new moods and flavors."

The lyrics of "Yesterwynde" deal with large-sized universal themes: memories, mortality, humanism, time and much more. "The new album is the conclusion of the trilogy — textually, it follows in the footsteps of its predecessors 'Endless Forms Most Beautiful' and 'Human. :II: Nature.'," Holopainen said. "At the same time, 'Yesterwynde' is the band's most lyrically driven album: our music has never been so 'married' to the lyrics. So here's a tip: if something in the composition puzzles you, the words might clear it up."

"For me, one of the key lines is 'we are because of a million loves' — taken from the song 'Perfume Of The Timeless'," he continued. "Each of us is part of an unbroken chain that stretches back billions of years. If even one of your ancestors had died too young — mauled by a cave bear, for example — during this incredibly long period of time, you would never have been born. In other words: our existence is such an unfathomable privilege."

What does the term "yesterwynde" mean? Tuomas said: "It describes a feeling that cannot be found in any human language. That's why we had to invent a whole new word. The album is supposed to open that feeling to the listener."

Without taking anything away from the solid delivery of guitarist Emppu Vuorinen, drummer Kai Hahto, bassist Jukka Koskinen and multi-instrumentalist/singer Troy Donockley, it might be worth highlighting one fact: the performance of the eloquent storyteller Floor Jansen is once again unparalleled. It is simply breathtaking how the singer is able to make songs fly with her performance.

"Floor's second child was born just over a month ago, and we hadn't rehearsed together at all... So it was a little nerve-wracking to go to Floor's home studio for vocal recordings," Tuomas said. "Well, what happened? We had booked twelve working days and after six days everything was completed in style. Floor's preparedness for the sessions was something extreme."

After the recordings and mixing process, there was one more working phase. Mastering. Could you possibly guess that no shortcuts were taken at this point either?

"The album was mastered seven times until we reached the finish line — one hundred percent satisfied,", stated Tuomas. "When the record was eventually finished, a three-year, extremely inspiring adventure had come to an end. I felt very, very happy."

NIGHTWISH's next steps are clear. And they are not the most common ones.

"NIGHTWISH will not go on a world tour this time," Tuomas said. "This was a decision made for personal reasons. But don't worry... Our contract with Nuclear Blast Records includes several albums, and there's plenty of motivation to create new music!"

"Yesterwynde" track listing:

01. Yesterwynde 02. An Ocean Of Strange Islands 03. The Antikythera Mechanism 04. The Day Of... 05. Perfume Of The Timeless 06. Sway 07. The Children Of 'Ata 08. Something Whispered Follow Me 09. Spider Silk 10. Hiraeth 11. The Weave 12. Lanternlight

"Human. :II: Nature." was released in April 2020. The follow-up to 2015's "Endless Forms Most Beautiful" was a double album containing nine tracks on the main CD and one long track, divided into eight chapters, on CD 2.

In August 2022, NIGHTWISH announced the addition of Jukka Koskinen (WINTERSUN) as an official member of the band. Koskinen, who made his live debut with NIGHTWISH in May 2021 at the band's two interactive experiences, had spent the previous year touring with NIGHTWISH as a session musician.

In November 2022, Jansen revealed that she was "cancer free" after undergoing surgery to have a tumor removed following a breast cancer diagnosis.

Photo credit: Tim Tronckoe (courtesy of Nuclear Blast)

[sober-stupid-shithead]

1. Ramble about your transformer dudes. Still trying to learn stuff cause apparently I am one of the few here who have no clue what is happening there.

2. Who, of the transformer dudes you like, would be the most edible, and who would be the most pred material?

OMGOMG OKAY

If you want to start learning more on your own or get into the fandom, I suggest starting with Transformers: Prime! It's the best introductory series imo because it explains things very well and doesn't have the same obvious sexist/racist undertones that get randomly thrown at you in G1 (not to say it isn't good, that show is also fantastic and surprisingly inclusive for its time)

AND THE SEQUEL ISNT THAT BAD DONT LET THE MASSES TRICK YOU 😭😭 Robots In Disguise(2015) is one of those shows that is mainly carried by fun characters because the writing is wack, but it's good I promise 😭😭 It has one of the arguably best arcs for Bumblebee I've seen outside of the comics, and Strongarm is hands down my favorite woman in any transformers media.

ON TO THE VORE!! LMFAO!! (I'm gonna choose from RID15 characters because they're my favorite hehe)

Best prey is OBVIOUSLY the minicons because they're small and bite sized, but also because the main minicon characters are simply adorable and I want to protect them so bad. Fixit is one of my favorite characters and I think he deserves some tummy nap time, but Slipstream and Jetstorm give me the most insane cuteness aggression like I need to eat them so bad. Even Fracture's minis, Airazor and Divebomb have very cute adorable prey energy. Baby bastards, they are. (grown ass men btw) (also honorable mention to Clampdown for being hilarious and giving insane prey vibes)

Best pred is a toss up because good lord there are so many ideal pred options in RID15. Grimlock is a massive adorable himbo, Bumblebee is a protective dad, Steeljaw is a weirdly zesty werewolf car... The list goes on. (another honorable mention for Fracture) But I gotta say out of pure bias I think Bumblebee is my favorite because he's my beautiful gorgeous fantastic sexy beautiful wife.

My other universe (technically the same one but shhh) choice is TFP Starscream because he would make the most tryhard stupid cute pred and the wettest most pathetic prey in the world. Thank you for coming to my Ted talk.

Thank you so much for doing that little reverse request thing! This was super fun to answer and I totally started rambling lmao. can u tell im autistic. Fun fact, Grimbee vore was what introduced me to this side of the fandom in the first place! Anyway, have a lovely day and thank you again for the silly questions :3

[penny00dreadful]

Spies AU - Part 13

Part 1 Part 14 AO3

19th November 2015

Steve felt consciousness come to him slowly, like a haze of fog was gently rolling away over his brain. He snuggled his face further down into his pillow, breathing deep and feeling the warmth and comfort of his bed around him.

It took a few seconds for him to remember everything that had happened last night. The gala, the motorbike, the noises that Eddie was making while Steve ploughed into him…

He snapped his eyes open, feeling his stomach drop with dread and disappointment when he realised there was no one currently wrapped up in his arms, practically throwing his head to the side to look around.

But those feelings quickly dissipated when he caught sight of a mess of brown curls sticking out from under his duvet.

Eddie must have wriggled out of his grasp at some point during the night. He was still fast asleep, completely dead to the world, somehow both splayed out and snuggled in. All elbows and knees at awkward angles as well as the majority of the duvet wrapped tight around him, only the barest sliver left over for Steve. His mouth was open, huffing out the most atrocious morning breath, his head sunk deep into the pillow and god damn it Steve adored him. 

Steve turned onto his side so he was facing him, snuggling in as close as he dared, reaching out to brush a strand of hair away, but he was forced to almost tug it when he realised that strand was in Eddie’s mouth.

Given the length of it when Steve pulled it out, it could have easily reached halfway down his throat. It was fucking disgusting. It was so endearing, Steve felt insane with it.

Eddie snorted in his sleep, smacking his lips together, finally closing his mouth and breathing through his nose, though that only started a light wheezing snore.

Fucking hell.

Steve was so far gone for him, it was actually a little pathetic.

He could have stayed here, watching him sleep forever like some kind of giant creep but he figured that might not be the most comforting thing for Eddie to wake up to. 

An assassin who must always be on edge and on high alert waking up to find someone staring down at him? 

Probably not for the best.

With a light stroke of his fingers over Eddie’s cheek, Steve slowly wiggled away, trying not to jostle or move too much. He wanted to let Eddie sleep in for as long as he needed to.

Steve made his naked way to his bathroom, taking his time to brush his teeth and luxuriate in the warm water of the shower.

It was nearly forty minutes later by the time he got back into his bedroom, now dry but still nude, his hair perfectly styled and feeling as put together as he could be. 

Eddie had curled himself up into a little ball, twisting the duvet around him until he was completely burritoed in from head to toe. Just a bundle of duvet with a head of hair.

Steve bustled around his room, getting dressed but keeping it relaxed, just a pair of sweats and a henley, starting to clean up the left over evidence of their night together, throwing out the tattered remains of the clothes Eddie had ripped off and tossing the rest into his hamper.

He tried to keep the volume down, not wanting to disturb sleeping beauty but he needn’t have bothered. Eddie didn’t stir once and Steve would have started to worry if not for the fact that he could hear him breathing and he knew Dustin also slept like an evil witch had put him under a curse. 

He had just managed to get his room back to an adequate level of neatness, digging through his closet, trying to find Eddie something comfortable to wear when he heard a grumble coming from the lump under the duvet.

Sticking his head out of his closet, Steve watched as Eddie pushed himself up on both elbows, gazing around the room with bleary eyes, a sleepy frown on his face and deep inset grooves from the wrinkles in the pillow across his cheek and neck.

He looked like he wasn’t even sure what planet he was on but as soon as he caught sight of Steve, his face split into a wide dopey grin, practically radiating sunlight.

“Wh’t’re you doin’ out’ve bed, sweeth’rt?” He slurred, collapsing back down onto the pillow and holding a hand out to him. “C’m back.”

Steve was powerless to deny him. 

He draped the clothes he’d picked out over the foot of the bed as Eddie lifted the corner of the covers up, trying to drag him back in, revealing that pale, illustrated skin to him in all his naked and half hard glory.

Eddie latched onto him as soon as he had crawled back in, surrounding him like a koala, snuggling into his neck.

“You’re cuddly in the mornings.” Steve said to him softly, trying to brush ticking hair away from his face.

“’M cuddly all the time.”

“Hm. So I’ve been missing out?”

“Just you wait, sweetheart.” Eddie dug his nose into Steve’s neck, inhaling. “It’ll be non-stop.”

“Sounds perfect.” 

Steve squeezed him tighter, just basking in the feeling of having him so close, having him here in his home, in his bed. Having him lazy and content and happy to be here, affectionate and warm and staying.

They lounged, wrapped around each other in comfortable and soft silence for long enough that Steve was sure getting up out of bed the way he had that morning had been one of his more ill-advised moves.

“Can I ask you a favour?” Eddie muttered into his shoulder.

Steve brushed his lips over Eddie’s ear. “Anything.”

“If I got up to pee and brush my teeth, would you promise to be here when I got back?”

“I live here, baby. I’m not going anywhere.”

“I meant in bed. Will you stay? Until I come back? Please?”

Steve pulled away, just for a moment, just long enough to be able to grab at Eddie’s face and bring them together in a kiss he hoped conveyed all of his deepest feelings, how much he was feeling. “Of course. There’s spare toothbrushes in the mirror cabinet.”

Eddie smiled at him, wide and dazzling and still a little bit sleep rumpled, pressing a short kiss to his nose before slipping out, wincing as he walked out of the room, bare ass naked.

Steve rolled over onto his stomach, burying his face into Eddie’s pillow, inhaling his smell, stifling his giggles and trying not to kick his feet like some teenage schoolboy.  

He could hear Eddie bustling around in his bathroom and when he didn’t immediately return Steve had to wonder if the urge to snoop had gotten to him again. But this time he wasn’t worried, Eddie had already uncovered the worst of it.

When he heard the sounds of Eddie making a racket in the kitchen, he was halfway out of the bed, not wanting to miss the sight of him naked in his kitchen and maybe just wanting to make sure he didn’t fucking break anything before he stopped himself, falling back onto the sheets with a huff.

He’d promised.

It didn’t take long for Eddie to reappear, two steaming mugs in hand. A grin spread over his face at the sight of Steve still in bed.

“Good boy.” He said, low and rumbling as he set Steve’s mug down on the bedside table closest to him, leaning over just to hover.

“Fuck off.” Steve answered with an eye roll, not wanting to get into the intricacies of what those words were doing to him right now as Eddie crawled back into bed, his own mug put down on his own table.

He propped himself up on some pillows, opening an arm out for Steve who snuggled in immediately, settling in against his chest and lacing their fingers together over Eddie’s stomach.

He hadn’t really had many experiences like this. 

Hookups didn’t really want to hang around too long, they both knew what they were there for and once the end goal had been achieved it just felt awkward to linger, which Steve understood. He was the exact same way. 

Hell, even in his previous relationships, he’d never been coaxed back into bed just to lie together. 

It was nice. 

He dragged his thumb over the back of Eddie’s hand, watching the designs there pull and push with the pressure, doing the same across his fingers. Eddie seemed happy to let him, just resting his cheek against the top of Steve's head, watching him mess with his skin.

Steve turned the hand over, wanting to map over the lines of his palm for no other reason besides that he could, but he paused, a little startled at the sight of ink there that he had somehow missed before.

On the meatiest part of Eddie’s thumb were six empty circles set in two rows, three on the top, three on the bottom. He brushed over them, trying to figure out what they were. Four of them were shaky and distorted, but the last two were clean and perfect. He thought he might have seen the design somewhere before.

“They’re death saving throws.”

Steve tilted his head back, gazing up at Eddie while Eddie looked down at the tattoo, something unbearably soft in his eyes.

“They’re for when you’re downed during a battle and need to know if you’re gonna live or die in D&D. My boys have the same ones, Grant, Jeff and Gareth. These two,” Eddie shifted, caging Steve in a little as he pointed at the two outermost circles, the most wobbly of the bunch, “Gareth did those. He looked like he was going to pass out.” Eddie laughed. “I had to promise him that I’ve had worse before he could even turn the tattoo gun on.”

He thumbed over the middle two. “Jeff did these. He didn’t quite go deep enough the first time, had to go back over them. Kept apologising about it too.” He tapped at the last two circles. “Grant did these. Said to sit back and watch a professional at work.” He hummed out a laugh again. “At least he said the ones I did looked pretty good.”

Steve looked up at him again, well aware his face was probably pulling some ooey-gooey shit but how could he help it when his heart was making him? 

“You tattooed these onto your friends too?”

“Yeah. We all did two of the circles on each other. It was a really fun day.”  

Steve looked back down, thumbing over the tattoos himself again. “Didn’t think you’d be the matching tattoos type.”

“Why not?”

He shrugged. “I dunno. Your whole...” he waved his hand around Eddie’s torso, “vibe.”

“Excuse you, I’m as cuddly as a teddy bear.” Eddie looked back down, his eyes drifting from soft and happy remembrance to something sad. “I miss them.”

“You don’t get to see them very often?”

“No.” Eddie shook his head. “Not unless I’m on a job nearby. And I’m not being followed..”

“Followed?” Steve nuzzled his cheek into Eddie’s chest. His collarbone was sharp and in the way but Steve didn’t care. “Why would you be followed?”

“Creel has eyes everywhere. And he likes it that way. I don’t want to give him any more reason to target them just to keep me in line.”

Eddie sounded resigned. Like it was a fact of life that he had to hold the people he cared about the most at a distance just to keep them safe.

Steve snuggled closer, hugging Eddie tighter. “I’m sorry.”

Eddie shrugged his shoulder. “Not your fault.”

“No, but it…” he sighed, “it just seems lonely.”

Steve thought of the friends he had, the small, little family he’d built over years. Robin, who he’d kill for, who he’d die for and who would change the direction the world spun if he asked it of her. 

The kids who’d help her figure out how to do it. 

Hopper, Joyce, Murray, Bob, Alexi, Dimitri, Jonathan- hell even Nancy. 

Steve was surrounded by people who he never would have been able to survive without.

It seemed like Eddie had none of that.

“What about others? Friends or colleagues or anyone else? Someone to talk to if you’ve had a bad day or have a few drinks with or-”

“I have you.”

Steve’s heart both melted and broke at the same time.

“Just me? I haven’t really done much to help you-”

“You’ve helped plenty, trust me. You’ve… like-” Eddie huffed to himself. “When I think about you I… I don’t feel so alone.”

Steve pushed himself up, not giving Eddie a chance to react before he slid a leg over and sat himself down in Eddie’s lap, bringing two hands up to cup his face.

“You don’t have to be alone. I’ll never let you feel alone again. Baby, say the word and you’ll have me forever. I’ll keep you forever if that’s what you ask me to do.”

Eddie looked up at him, his eyes bright, biting down on his lip.

“You can’t promise me things like that, sweetheart.”

“I sure as shit can.”

“It’s-” Eddie shook his head. “You’re making it sound easy.”

“I’ll make it that easy. Creel will never lay a finger on you.”

“It’s not me I’m worried about.” He flexed his fingers resting on Steve’s hips, tightening and loosening, tightening and loosening, watching them as they moved. “If I step out of line, even just a little bit, my people will pay the price. I won’t do that to them. Not again.”

“Gareth?”

“Yeah.” Eddie sat up, pushing his head into Steve’s chest, hugging him tight around the middle. “I had… someone. We’d been talking about our future together after all of this, when we eventually got out and- well. Our conversations weren’t as private as I had been led to believe. What happened to Gare… it was a warning.”

He squeezed Steve tighter. 

“I’d…” Eddie took a big breath in, like he was trying to hype himself up. “I’d love to leave with you.” He muttered, so quietly that Steve barely heard it. “I’d love nothing more. Sweetheart I- I ache for it. Every second I’m under Creel’s thumb, I hate it. It makes my fucking skin crawl. I’d love to run off into the sunset with you and become your kept man and live happily ever after, but I won’t put my people at risk for it.”

Eddie sounded desperate for it, he sounded like even just thinking of it made him hurt for something he thought he couldn’t have and it only made Steve more determined.

“Then we keep your people safe.” He said. “We’ll cut the strings he has on you and then you can run.” Steve wound his fingers through Eddie’s hair, holding him close, letting him hide in his chest, speaking low and comforting to him. “I’ll keep you safe, I’ll never let him touch you again.”

Eddie’s laugh was muffled against his top. It almost sounded like a whimper.

“Not unless you have an army at your command, sweetheart. Creel is the most powerful man I’ve ever met and he’s fucking sadistic as well. You’d have to either take down an entire criminal industry or somehow get close enough to kill him.”

“Well… I don’t have an army, but I do have a group of scrappy nerds.” He scratched at Eddie’s scalp. “And it’s a good thing that getting close enough to my targets to kill them is kinda my day job.”

“A group of scrappy nerds?”

“Yeah. They’re the toughest kids I know.” Steve smiled to himself. “Agents in their own right and very skilled in their particular areas. I brought them into the fold myself.”

Eddie hummed in thought. “And if The Agency says no to this?”

Steve took a bolstering breath in. “The Agency isn’t going to find out about it. They can’t. We think there might be an informant and I won’t put you at risk by blabbing about it. This is going to be my own mission.”

“Oh, right.” Eddie snorted, a little hysterically. “You’re just going to go against your bosses while also trying to take out one of the most dangerous men in the world. I’m sure that’ll go well.”

Eddie wasn’t taking him seriously. It was like he thought this was all hypothesising or wishful thinking. Empty promises. 

Steve needed to let him know he was serious.

“Baby.” He pushed his lips over the top of Eddie’s head. “I wouldn’t be going against my bosses. Or my boss, to be specific. He knows I’ve been in contact with you.”

Eddie froze in his arms. 

“He… knows.” Came the deadpan reply. “He knows you’re in contact with Kas or he knows you’re in contact with some guy named Eddie?”

“He knows I'm in contact with Kas. He doesn't know who Eddie Munson is.”

Eddie relaxed almost immediately. “Oh. Well. That’s- I mean I expect as much. Like it's pretty obvious you'd report that back to your boss the first time it happened.”

Steve pursed his lips. 

“Right. Well I… I might have only told him recently.”

“How recently?”

“Like…” He shrugged. “Three weeks ago?”

Eddie pulled back, blinking up at him, confused.

“You only figured out I was Kas a few weeks ago?”

“No.” Steve shook his head. “I figured that out back in July.”

Eddie blinked at him again. “You're gonna have to start saying more words, sweetheart.”

Steve slumped in Eddie's lap, pulling his tattooed forearms towards him, running his fingers over the bloody hand and the dice.

“I figured it out when I first saw this. The kids, my mini-spies, they love D&D and I've overheard enough of their campaigns to connect the dots. I don't think I was admitting to myself why I didn't tell anyone immediately but,” Steve sighed, “I didn't want you hurt. I didn't want to be told to take you out or bring you in or whatever. I didn't want to hurt you.”

Eddie looked up at him with wide eyes. “Even if it meant the people I killed in between July and now would still be alive?”

Steve looked him dead in the eye. He needed Eddie to understand just how much he meant to him and just how committed he was. 

“Not worth it. Nothing’s ever worth hurting you.”

“But-”

“Would Creel have taken it out on your people if you'd gotten caught?”

Eddie looked down. “I- I don't know. It's never happened before.”

“Best not to find out then.”

Eddie was silent for a while, before looking back up, darting his eyes in between Steve's, searching, considering.

Eventually he took a large breath in.

“You really mean it?” He asked, quiet and a little hopeful. “You really want to try and get me out?”

“Baby,” Steve whispered, taking his face in his hands again. “I'll burn the world down for you. You just gotta ask. I'll do it or die trying.”

Eddie grasped him around the wrists, keeping him in place. “Please don’t do that.”

“I don’t plan on it but if it comes to it-”

“No.” Eddie cut him off, squeezing tight. “It’s not worth it if it kills you. It wouldn’t be worth it if it killed Wayne or any of my boys. The same goes for you.”

Steve brought Eddie’s face closer, bending a little to place a kiss on his forehead. 

“You can’t get rid of me that easy.” He whispered. “I’m not going anywhere. I promise.”

Eddie stayed with his forehead pressed to Steve’s lips, hands around his wrists, eyes closed and breathing him in.

“Okay.” He said, eventually.

“Okay?” Steve asked, a little thread of hope blooming in his chest.

“Okay.” Eddie looked up at him again. “I'll let you be my knight in shining armour. Get me out from under Creel’s thumb.”

Part 1 Part 14 AO3

@geekymagicalpotato @estrellami-1

Big thanks as always to @hbyrde36 for the magnificent beta work and to the STWG for their motivation