#'shes from the real world she will love me for it :)' spoiler alert i absolutely dont love the real world

[frecklystars]

Ken immediately shielding this complete stranger when he sees a "scary unmarked black truck car" pull up. My goddamn sweetheart.

[low-budget-korra]

Comments on Netflix's Avatar The Last Airbender

*spoiler alert*

First of all I'm gonna start by saying it is one of the best adaptations I've seen so far. And that's the key word, adaptation. I've seen a lot of fans and others complain about some things that honestly, doesn't make sense because some things only work in a cartoon(just as much as some things only work in a book or a video game)

And before I start to talk about some topics that I judge important, I also wanna say that the production is fantastic, from the costumes to the CGI. It all looks amazing. (A part from Yue's wig)

1. The Script

It's not easy to pick 20+ episodes and make it fit in only 8 but damn they did a hell of a good job, especially when judging what was important to show and what they could let it go. Some fans commented that since there's no fillers, the Gaang and others miss some development but I think that for the universe of the live action what we got here it worked.

I can express how much I like to see Ozai and Azula's relationship and how it is now clear that he uses the siblings against each other, manipulating them to get what he wants. But I will admit I miss the fear Azula had, since it's implied in the show and some extras that she does fear Ozai, and fears becoming like Zuko.

I hope the 41. Is just fine after the battle in the north. See all of them bowing to Zuko after discovering that Zuko was the one that saved their asses and was heavily punished by that...it was beautiful. I loved the writers did that, give names and faces to Zuko's crew and a beautiful yet sad arc when Ozai banished his son and the men who he saved.

I also loved that they put weight into things that was treated as a joke, like Katara talking about her mother. She was a little kid who saw her mom get murdered in front of her and the live action made sure to let us know that it is not okay to make jokes about something so traumatic. All of the deaths here have tons of weight in it, it's not some random person, is someone we met, someone we liked, someone who helped. The costs of the war, something the cartoon manages to show us but know in live action, with real people, the massage gets stronger.

And they didn't forget Iroh's past like the fandom does, which is great. That actor, the earthbending soldier really let it all out, that's how you use the few screentime you have.

Sokka's isn't sexist and y'all were making a storm outta a cup of water, is not like Sokka sexist didn't go away after like the 4 or 5 episode in the original show. I think the live action was able to bring more depth to him in comparison to the first season of the cartoon. We see how he feels about his father's, the absence of him and his duty as warrior who kinda doesn't want to be a warrior.

I need a Gyatso in my life, I didn't know I needed to see more of him until the live action gave us more of him. Kyoshi was the Thor coming to Wakanda from this season, WHY THE FUCK BRYKE DONT WANNA GIVE US A KYOSHI SERIES? She is absolutely a jewel of a character. Roku and Kuruk, damn poor Kuruk man, so much pain in his words but again that's what it means to be the Avatar, it's not fun and games. Zhao saying to Aang what Korra villains said to Korra😭 that the world doesn't need the Avatar anymore, it hurt.

Guys I'm gonna say it, there's no way in hell for anyone to ship Kataang here. I'm saying this because some shippers complain that the secret tunnel part was different but c'mon, look at Kiawentiio and look at Gordon, it would be so s awkward and weird and just wrong. I know they don't have a big age difference, is only like 3 years but when they filmed Gordon looked so much younger than her, maybe in the next seasons the difference won't be that big.

The pace is good, once you start you don't wanna stop.

2. The Acting

Everyone is really good at capturing the essence of it's characters and somewhat making them their own. The highlights for me were Dallas and Ian, Its like they came straight from the show. Ken Leung's Zhao was also amazing as he was way more threatening here than he was in the show.

Kiawentiio was the Katara we were looking for, she is kind yet strong, brave and caring. And Gordon was Aang, sure, he has to learn a few things since he slipped a few times in his acting but nothing that could ruin the experience, that kid is good and just needs some experience.

Elizabeth Yu was Azula. It was different but yet the same character, is like learning something new of her and I like how cleared she show emotions with her eyes. Maria Zhang had great chemistry with Ian and I can't wait to see more of Suki. Arden Cho and Yvonne Chapman as June and Avatar Kyoshi look like they came out straight from the cartoon. Daniel Dae Kim...man is Ozai, so cold, so sharp, so scary, already way better than the cartoon version. I wanna see more of Paul Sun-Hyung Lee as Iroh since the character he really starts to shine in book 2.

3. The live action doesn't have the spirit of the OG?

Yes, it does have. The thing is now that we are seeing real people, things get dark one way or another but I don't think it ruined the spirit of the show. Aang is still a kid, Sokka still making sarcastic jokes, Zuko still annoying as hell, Katara still hopeful and strong... There's everything there really.

The thing is stuff like genocide, murder, war, death and suffering are, for some people, better to watch as pixels in a cartoon than real people.

I think it's a great adaptation and I would recommend it to every fan.

[sonderlivra]

First of all, loveee your bytham fics! Wondering what your opinions on the merge between loki and basim are. Do you think Basim is evil? You write him so soft, but it never toes the line of ooc!

First of all anon thank you for the ask! <3 I'm glad you like my lil fics I'm trying my best :)

Second of all you brought up a particular subject I love to rant/ramble about so buckle up lmao.

More under the cut. WARNING SPOILER ALERT for: AC Odyssey, AC Valhalla, AC Mirage, AC: The Golden City.

All images have alt-text :)

My opinions about the merge are varied and long, so I'll start off by answering your question first.

Do I think Basim is evil? No. Absolutely not.

This is because I really don't think it's ever as simple as someone being 'good' or 'evil'. You could say I'm getting too pedantic about it, but from the very first game in the Assassin's Creed the idea that nothing is ever just black or white has been stressed upon constantly. 

For this reason I believe Basim is a fantastic character to focus on in this series. He is the poster child of 'morally grey'.

So yeah, I've seen Basim (or Loki) being called a villain but I don't think that's true. I think he's an antihero.

But before I get to that, let's talk about the merge. I've seen the merge being described as something unfortunate, something that ripped away Basim's own personality and changed him into something he wasn't. I genuinely believe that that is not true.

Basim is who he has always been.

The thing to remember is that Loki has always been a part of him. He manifested himself as Nehal in Basim's early childhood, because young Basim was getting traumatised by nightly terrors. What he thought were visions of Djinn was, in his words, “a crippling memory from a past life”. The Djinn was Loki's nightmare, and poor little boy Basim was reliving it every single night. 

Enter Nehal.

From little asides in the game, from their own conversations, it is clear Basim and Nehal had a very close bond. She banters with him, teases him, scolds him, fights with him. In the House of Wisdom, Basim tells us he used to sneak in there as a child with his best friend, and they spent many nights reading together (this is one of my favourite things about his childhood <3). Nehal has a distinct personality of her own, with her own interests, her own perspectives, her own opinions that she offers to Basim constantly. None of it is ever forced on him, he rejects her opinions and her advice many times over the course of the game. And while she (often vocally) disagrees, she respects his choices.

Then the events of Mirage happen. Basim discovers the 'truth' about Nehal, that she's not real, that she's just a part of him. Just waiting for him to accept her.

I want to take a step to the side and bring up Eivor's potential-merge moment from AC Valhalla. Because the difference between that moment and Basim’s is astounding. Throughout the game, Odin is there as an intermittent voice in the back of her head, posing questions on her moralities and her choices specifically when she kills someone with power, whose death would have major consequences. He isn't there to give her companionship or even friendship, his appearances to her look like a political advisor offering his opinions in statecraft to a leader. (Fwiw, I have not yet taken his advice once in my Valhalla gameplay lmao).

Odin: You have earned your place here, Eivor. Seize it! Eivor: Stand aside! My people need me! Odin: I have given you everything you wanted. Everything you needed! Eivor: You gave me nothing! It was all me! Odin: Yet I cleared your path. I guided your axe! Eivor: You were a fly, buzzing in my ear! Odin: How dare you deny me! Everything you believe in stirs before you! Yet you question all! You question the very gods!

And later:

Eivor: Your corpse hall is nothing but a dream! Odin: Nothing but a dream? A dream is as real as anything in this world! Do dreams not inspire? Do dreams not make us fearful? Do they not push men to their greatest glories! Eivor: Then I am done with dreaming! Odin: Stand and face me, you feeble-armed thrall!Leave me now and you are nothing! With me you have wisdom! Glory! Power! What more do you need! Eivor: Everything else.

Compare it to Nehal and Basim’s:

Basim: It is done. Nehal: No, Basim. It is only the beginning. For us. For what lies ahead. A deeper understanding of the world we left behind. And our place in it. Basim: All my life I wrestled with who I was. Who I was meant to be. And there you were. All this time. The side of me I resisted. A reflection of who we once were. Nehal: Of who we shall be once more. There is so much that awaits us. A new world. Let me show you. Basim (shakily): I will never see you again, will I? Nehal: (shakes head) Basim: Will I be… alone? Nehal: You are never alone.

So there it is. Odin tries to make Eivor choose him. He tries to bend her will, tries to trap her, to tempt her and goad her into accepting him. 

Loki/Nehal does none of those things to Basim. Instead, he/she offers Basim companionship. A complete understanding of his self. Purpose and surety in his life. Something that Basim has been lacking, has been desperate to find his entire life.

Basim is scared, sure. Who wouldn't be? But he asks if he will ever be alone. And Nehal tells him, never. He will never be alone.

Because, and now we come to Loki, he won't be.

Let's talk about Loki. Is he evil? And you know what anon, I have to give you a resounding no for that too.

Loki is, let's face it, a bit of a pathetic asshat. He gripes, he connives, he grumbles and makes annoying faces behind Odin's back. But he's not evil. He just, idk, really loves his gf and his kids man.

From one of my many conversations with @project-zorthania on discord:

Odin (who is also an asshat lbr) condescends to Loki. None of the Aesirs treat Loki with any trust or respect. Now I'm not saying Loki was completely innocent. I'm not sure how much of the original Norse mythology is supposed to be canonical in this series, and by all accounts Loki is a hell of a troublemaker. But at the core of it all is the fact that the Aesir have never trusted him because he's half-Jotunn. He's always been the outsider.

Loki's wife Sigyn is mentioned once (and not by name) in this series, so the central point of his motivations is his mythologically canonical girlfriend, Angrboda. Aka Aletheia.

(Side note I adore Aletheia. Every time I saw her in Odyssey I lit up like a light bulb. She's so badass. Dikastes of Atlantis who was instrumental in getting Juno banished for human experiments, a human-sympathising Isu who was also a hacker. And now she's also a mother of three. Hot damn.)

Loki is already unhappy with the Aesir. The one truly joyful facet of his life is his lover and their children. He loves his kids, wants to keep them safe and spend more time with them. He tries to sneak his son into Asgard to keep him close. Odin discovers the son and imprisons him.

The interesting thing about Asgard (and Elysium/the Underworld/Atlantis in Odyssey) is that we don't truly know what they looked like. All these mythical places are seen through the lens of the protagonists, our player characters. Sure, there's some Isu-ness in the architecture, the dialogues, the 'devices'. But on the whole, Atlantis still has ancient Greek architecture, the people still wear chitons and sandals because that is what Kassandra expects to see. Similarly, Asgard is just a more grand, magical version of what a Norse city would look like.

I am stressing all this because we know that that's not actually the case. The Isu were an advanced civilisation, sure, but they weren't actually gods. The Nornir were confirmed to be compilers of a great calculating software. Yggdrasil was a simulation chamber. Thor's hammer was probably an advanced weapon with, idk, sci-fi electric laser stuff going on. 

Loki's son was probably not a giant wolf.

I would like you to picture a young boy being snuck into a new strange place by his father. Imagine him being locked up instead. Imagine a teenage boy breaking his chains and trying to run. Imagine Odin beating that boy bloody and chaining him again, all because a probability machine told him that the boy would be the cause of his (eventual, inevitable) death.

That is what happened to Fenrir. Is it so hard to imagine Loki's rage? How he lost what little respect and faith he had in the Aesir?

Here’s some notes found in Urdr’s Well in Asgard, clearly written by Loki to Fenrir. The first is from my own gameplay taken a week ago, the second is from Zorthania’s stream from last year:

Here's a snippet of conversation between Loki and Angrboda (from one of the Animus Anomalies):

Lastly, here is a picture of a Literal Baby 🥺:

I could go on about this for hours, man. There’s so many more notes and hints and conversations that paint a picture of a flawed (Isu) man just trying to look out for his family.

When Loki merges with Basim, he is driven by two things: vengeance, and the need to bring his family back together. He needs to accomplish these goals no matter who or what stands in his way. But he’s more than just Loki now. He is Basim, and Basim has more than just these goals. If there’s a greater cause that’s not in the way of his own personal ones, then he’ll gladly and enthusiastically work for it.

And that brings me back to my final point. Basim is not a hero, he is not a villain. He is an antihero. This is from the Wikipedia article for antihero:

Post-merge, Basim continues to do his work as a Hidden One. He does so well, in fact, that despite whatever qualms Rayhan must have had about him (making Hytham spy on him even lol), Basim is made the bureau leader for Constantinople. Sure, his personal agenda is very much active. But at the same time, he fights the Order of the Ancients on behalf of the Hidden Ones. He ensures their strong presence in Constantinople by the end of TGC. He recognises that Kjotve is a major problem because he’s a high-ranking member of the Order. 

During Valhalla, you see him ensure that Hytham’s place in Ravensthorpe is secure, that their shared mission of re-establishing the Hidden Ones in England is successful. You see hints and implications of Basim finding more resources and information that could be important for the Hidden Ones and forwarding them to Hytham. He’s still a Hidden One. He’ll always be one.

From the ending of AC Valhalla:

William Miles: So what next? Where will Basim go? Basim: As far as I can, William. William Miles: I feared as much. Basim: Do not. I cherish the Creed that guides us. I always have.

I do not think Loki and Basim are two different beings at this point. After the merge, Basim is just Basim, just an “Enhanced” version. Basim always refers to himself as himself, even when he could be talking about Loki. He speaks of Fenrir as if he was his own son. And yet he never claims the name Loki for himself. I’ve always thought that was so fascinating. It implies a true and complete merge of the two personalities, and yet, Basim was not the one consumed in that merge. Loki is accepted, but Basim continues to be the dominating identity.

Basim is who he has always been in both Valhalla and Mirage, and no, that doesn’t mean he was always evil. It means he never was just ‘the bad guy’ and that he was and continues to be a flawed, selfish, kind, helpful, dangerous, charismatic, complex man.

Thank you for the ask and sorry for the HUGE ramble lol! <3 you are so brave if you managed to read the whole thing <3

[lucienne-thee-librarian]

18 on the choose violence 😏

EDIT: As y'all may have guessed, my queue I was saving drafts of these in was running last night and I forgot to switch the time over so here's the real answer.

18 - It's absolutely criminal that the fandom has been sleeping on: you want me to CHOOSE?!? You expect me to CHOOSE just ONE character from Sandman that the fandom sleeps on?!?!?!? Oh, jail for 1000 years - well let me spin the roulette wheel Rose and Jed.

ROSE. God I'm emotional about her. She's been through so much, the loss of her baby brother with a father who it's implied was not the nicest, lost her mother and her best friend in the same year, and she nearly destroyed the world but yknow what, she literally did nothing wrong here. She called Dream an asshole and totally got away with it. She's got gay hair and gayer friends (fellow bi!Rose truthers anyone???? Hello??? Someone else please discuss, queer people do all tend to flock together) and I hope she gets everything she wants.

I really want to explore the possibilities of a growing relationship with her and her immortal family sometime. Morpheus isn't just going to forget about her and Jed and him looking out for her baby brother is the only way I can see her kind of starting to warm up to him again. Like I WANT to see that weird tense but possibly loving relationship explored. Dream clearly respected her intelligence and wanted to give her more information (even if he was also using her to find the Corinthian which. Not cool).

(Also I think she'd go NUTS for the library of Dreams. Like she's a writer and suddenly she's seeing all the books never published?? Who wouldn't want to read them all?)

I have feelings about the parallels between her and Death. Plus I have a hc as some of my friends already know, that in one of Rose's low moments Despair finds her and something about the fact that this girl is family tugs at her. She has her function and her duties but she also has a sense of loyalty. So that could cause some seriously juicy potential internal conflict for her AND Rose honestly kind of needs an outlet for her bottled up grief and the weightof responsibility she feels. For Jed, for Lyta and her son...feel free to ask or dm me if you want to know more this post is already long enough xD

(And the fact that in a series where she's ONE OF THE MAIN FUCKING CHARACTERS for multiple episodes of this series she gets so much less attention ON HER OWN SELF - I'm talking art and fic overall PERIOD, let alone stuff where she gets any interiority of her own or her character taken seriously is just. I don't even know man)

jED. My precious baby boy my son. I want to give him a hug. I want to wrap him in a warm blanket and give him cocoa and as much popcorn as he wants. Dream's reaction to Jed was in fact channeling me. This kid has been through too much and he deserves to live a happier life with his sister, so thank God he's gonna get it.

(But also does anyone wanna talk to me about the fact that Jed is a possible candidate for Dream's successor when he's older and might be even more viable than MASSIVE COMIC SPOILER ALERT Daniel Hall and all the ways this could complicate things HELLO.)

Miranda Walker - either the gif search function is broken which isn't beyond the realm of possibility here, or I couldn't find one gif of her in this show. And I KNOW people have made them I just can't find one...sigh

But I really want her to get more attention because her story is so potentially fascinating even if she barely got any screen time. Like this girl is the granddaughter of Desire, that must've massively impacted her life. I want to know how she dealt with the relationship with her children's father going sour and him taking Jed away and her struggling to raise her kids.

And last but certainly not least drumroll please...UNITY. That's right we're giving the whole Walker-Kincaid family some love!!

HER. The queen the legend the moment.

Her story man...it gets me emotional every time. She could've had a life in the waking world. I really want to see more about what her dream life (which we know she experienced as real, with time passing and all, because of the things she said about it) was like. Even without Desire, how did she handle basically growing up in Wonderland surrounded by dreams? (I can't take credit for the Alice in Wonderland vibes that was @violetoftheendless 's great idea.) Did she make friends and a new found family there? Did she see signs she didn't understand at the time of dreams and nightmares falling into chaos and eventually leaving the realm in a slow trickle?

But also she's just such a genuinely lovely person. She took Rose into her heart without a second thought and was prepared to take Jed - I'm sure she didn't know how much more time she had but she knew she didn't have forever, and she wanted a family again and she'd lost her own parents long ago and never gotten to say goodbye...and the kicker is, unlike in the comic where she's basically on her deathbed already, she COULD have possibly lived a little longer. But she chose to sacrifice her new life to save Rose's. If this woman doesn't deserve the Spirit of Love label like I've seen in some truly beautiful meta from @windsweptinred I don't know who does. BUT ALSO she's not a perfect inhuman angel either, she is capable of being charmed by the Corinthian, which - looking around at the fandom, one can see she's not alone so I for one can't blame her too much, but also she met the king of dreams and nightmares and within less than 5 minutes called him a himbo to his face. She's beautifully human with icon behavior and Sandra James-Young deserves all the credit in the world for this role.

[sgiandubh]

Jottings: Season 7, Episode 5. Dinna fash, we'll sort it out

The proof is in the pudding: we don't really need to see J&C/S&C all the time on screen, to know an episode is still consistently good, in an overall unexpectedly great season, so far.

Side note: just how hypnotic Bear McCreary's Dance of the Druids must be, to immediately cut all ties to the real world, as you settle on the couch, larva style, with your ice cream (yes! again! B&J's Karamel Sutra Core - more appropriate for last week, but nobody's perfect)?

It would seem this time speed gave precedence to density and even gravitas, because neither war, nor self-assertiveness are jokes. The main theme of the mysteriously named Singapore seems to be the obvious cause and effect relationship between prejudice and miscommunication, or even lack thereof. It doesn't really matter if the year is 1777 or 1979: men will be men, women will be women and idiots will be idiots, regardless of gender or nationality. Tonight, for instance, an accomplished French idiot, which is ironic and a tad unfair to watch, seconds after Bastille Day (this comes from a place of deep love, familiarity and appreciation). But almost all of them will face authoritarian idiocy in this episode: I will let you discover (remember: nothing but minimal spoilers).

Still embarrassed for SS, whose vital signs seem to be on display only when she is a) crying and b) pissed off because of someone or something. For the pub scene with the gang of morons from the plant, she could have borrowed a wealth of JAMMF's expression tricks (for which S is the absolute ace) and I suspect she tried but, yet again, failed to persuade: the only thing that she seems remotely acquainted with is the smirk. And I will not insist on the torturous rendering of maternal love or domestic bliss. I feel merciful tonight and sometimes mercy is just about the same as oblivion (not a word about that vanishing panties scene, do you hear me?). Maybe this is also why RR still seems more relaxed, but perhaps also totally resigned about a situation that must be dealt and be done with a stiff upper lip, for the cause.

Product placement alert, with the Barbour wax jackets and shirts (long time client, here) prominently featured at Lallybroch. Nothing magic. This is a long-term partnership, maybe also S's contribution. Yes, Mordor, that peasant did it again!

A propos of the plant inspection, the tunnel scene sent powerful The Man in the High Castle vibes, from the set to the running through well, something, for lack of a better word. For those who have not seen this excellent series, here's a good Droughtlander plan. It's all about Jude Law and the Japanese guy; and also Philip K. Dick, one of my beloved science-fiction writers, truly a genius.

Spoiler: "You can thank that rotten stew". Ohai, Vandervaart, sweet summer child. Too fleeting a presence on my screen, yet you nailed your scene with Rachel Hunter, which I proclaim my favorite of this episode. The scenery helps, that pre-dawn murky, metallic light is perfect and you found the right balance between disgust, horror, an adrenaline high, fear, uncertainty and yes, unspoken (maybe even unconscious) attraction. Also, a masterful use of voice, pitch and breathing techniques - what's not to like?

A close second but enthusiastic kudos for Young Ian. John Bell is wonderful in his scene with C. which, again, gave me life imitates art vibes. And even more moving is the dense moment with the Cherokee/Scottish son, for I believe that endearing boy with a Fraser smile is Young Ian's.

These jottings are unable and unwilling to ignore S, very busy shaping Jamie's hero stature in short, effective appearances. Something we will probably see in full force next week, when I shall be out of town and not watching. Still, rejoice: the Jottings will be making it a double in two weeks.

[an-au-blog]

The college au is so full of angst I’m trying o come up with fluff set after a possible „talking it out“ scenario and just love the idea of Buggy at a party with a bunch of folks he doesn’t know feeling out of his area. He’s not technically a shy guy, he’s pretty outgoing if anything actually, that’s how he met Alvida and Mohji and „Mr. Three“ Galdino and so on and so forth, but Shanks is truly just the life of the party, Shanks talks to everyone and makes them feel welcome and everyone seems to absolutely love Shanks, as opposed to Buggy, who’s keenly aware his abrasive personality scares people off unless they are forced to spend more time with him (Or if they are like Alvida and can just dish out as much as he can)

So he nurses a little solo cup on his own and stews in his misery until Shanks suddenly drops next to him onto the couch and snuggles up to him all happy and affectionate. They banter a little until someone comes in to ask Shanks if he wants to come out and play Mario Party with everyone, before glancing at Buggy and inviting him along mostly to be polite, but Shanks is just in pure affection mode all „I’ll join you guys later. Have you met my boyfriend? This is Buggy, I told you about him.“ „Yeah you mentioned you have-„ „Buggy I just got done talking to uhhh-*snap snap* Pardon me I forgot your name- but she was telling me about that makeup channel she has and I told her „My boyfriend does absolutely AMAZING special effects makeup.“ and showed her the stuff you did for my Halloween costume and she asked me where I got the coat from and I just went „Get this, he also does sewing in his spare time and-„ Just completely in worshipping boyfriend mode until the other party , obviously not interested in listening to this, excuses herself.

By the end of the night Shanks is just resting his head in Buggys lap , clearly content with himself and his place in the world while Buggy is still processing that his boyfriend loves him so much he will just introduce Buggy as his boyfriend without a second thought, something he always doubted would happen, because … he’s Buggy and who wouldn’t at least slightly cringe at introducing him because… he’s Buggy. And also that Shanks thinks so much of him he is will absolutely talk peoples ears off when he gets the chance.

Idk what kind of psychic reading shit you're doing but it's working because I'm so serious when I tell you I'm in the middle of writing chapter 7 and (spoiler alert ig) there's gonna be a party in it ahaha

But don't worry, there's no actual angst yet, the real angst lays ahead, but don't worry, I always sprinkle fluff for balance.

Also I have plans for Alvida, but I will steal the idea of him meeting Mohji and Galdino through a party lol ':)

But ohhh goodness this is the cutest thing ever! I adore self-conscious Buggy and clingy Shanks :''D

Anyway have a little party-goer addition to this:

Buggy went to the party only because Shanks did. In fact it wasn't just because of him, he made sure at least Alvida came as well but she canceled last minute. So now the only person he knew was his social-butterfly boyfriend.

Something odd kept on happening though. People kept on recognizing him. The first time it happened Buggy thought they would giggle behind his back or insult him, but they recognized him as "Shanks's boyfriend" and started talking about how he'd talk about him all the time.

Buggy then thought that they were saying that out of politeness, but they kept bringing up things Shanks had said and the way it sounded was almost as if Shanks was praising him. No... showing off maybe? Which was confusing for him because what was there to be proud of anyway?? Regardless, anyone who recognized him from Shanks's stories or because of how much he mentioned him, seemed to have a good opinion of Buggy. Which was enough for now.

At some point Buggy has had enough being around people and decides he needs a break. Preferably a snack break. He found the way to the kitchen and rummaging through it he finds a half eaten box of ice cream. Only problem is he needs to sneak out back to eat it or else someone might want some and he can't be giving ot charity! That's the ice cream he rightfully stole, bo one could take it from him!

So he sneaks out and Shanks somehow finds him. Shanks is a bit worried Buggy isn't having fun but Buggy is worried Shanks will eat his dessert.

They sit next to each other, staring at the moon with half a box of ice cream. After two spoons of silence Buggy finally gives in.

Buggy: fiiiiiine, I give up

Shanks, panicking that something happened and he missed it and he's too tipsy to be adequate: wh- huh?

Buggy tilting the box to his boyfriend: You can have some. You were looking for a good time to ask right?

Shanks: Well no... *takes it anyway*

Shanks: I thought you were running away to be honest... hiding...

Buggy: Running - no. Hiding - yes, this ice cream is way too good to be shared. I'm taking an ice cream break, like a snack break but better because I found this treasure *gestures to the box as if he's in a commercial*

Shanks giggles a bit. He can see the moon's radiance off his boyfriend and he feels so lucky at that moment.

Shanks: You're sharing it with me though

Buggy: You don't count, at this point you're like an extension of my own body. You're inevitable... I bet that makes you happy, huh

Shanks absolutely smittened taking about spoon: Yeah, it does.

Shanks, jokingly: I hope you never get rid of me

Buggy: Well now you sound like a curse- hey, hey, hey, stop eating my ice cream

They finish the ice cream and dump it in a random garbage can hoping no one saw them. They also google it finding it was extremely expensive and pray to whoever's listening no one noticed them sneaking out and back in with a spoon gull of evidence.

this makes me wonder if i should leave a couple of chapters as epilogue just for fluff... I'll think about it...

[andromythical]

PJO FINALE SPOILERS!!

"Look - You didn't ask to be a half-blood" OOH IM GAGGED. the swordfighting flashbacks??? "I warned you. If you're not careful, you'll find out who I am." OH THAT IS MY PERCY JACKSON RIGHT THERE!! THE WAVE GOING AROUND HIM????? HE SLASHED ARES' ACHILLES TENDON.... OH MY GODS. OHH HADES' HELM.. "tell Hades I expect him to do the same.... please." OHH THE ZEUS CONVERSATION IN THE CABIN ! "I'm done running from monsters. This is too important, I have to try." ANNABETH GIVIJG HIM HER NECKLACE IM SICKKK

"just to be clear, how sure are we we cant explain all of this in an email?" "Where's the glory in that? WOAH. OLYMPUS IS SO COOL???? I WOULD KILL TO LIVE THERE. ohh another Percy and Luke flashback.. THE SPIDER/DEMIGOD COMPARISON?? "Things that are small and scary.. get squished." HOLY SHIT. oh the council room is not at all as cool as I thought. r.i.p Lance Reddik, absolute legend 🫡 OHHH THIS IS SO GOOD THIS IS SOOOO GOOD. "BOY. the war proceeds, it ends with victory." oh wow. oh wowwee. "They obey, because theyre afraid." TOA REFERENCE?? OH MY GODS OH MU GODS POSEIDON SAVING PERCY IM THROWING UP IM ILL!! "Take your victory, just spare my son." number 1 dad alert?? THEY'RE SPEAKING ANCIENT GREEK??? WHAT?? THIS IS SO COOL??? "Make sure I never see this one again" uhm about that... "The sea does not like to be restrained" HE SAID THE LINE!!! HE SAID THE LINE!! ohh they both love Sally so much I'm dying. "Do you ever dream about mom?" ohhh I'm sobbing. THE LOOK ON PERCY'S FACE WHEN POSEIDONS HAND PULLS AWAY?? ARE THOSE THE STOLL BROTHERS?? OR CASTOR AND POLLUX?? ohh they're hugging. oooh they're strategizing. CLARISSE!! leave my girl ALONE!! "And you should be betrayed by one who calls you a friend" oh honeyyy :( HES FIGURING IT OUT. THE FIREWORKS LIGHTING LUKES SCAR?? "I didn't think you'd give them to Grover to wear." he likes Grover, he didn't want Grover to be hurt because he was his first proper protector, he lead him, Annie, and Thalia to safety, to camp, Luke DIDN'T WANT TO HURT GROVER. Ohh walker and Charlie's acting is insane... BACKBITER ??? ohh this is so good kid from the musical coded. "This isn't you!! 🥺🥺" Luke's face when Percy said he met Hermes is making me SOB. oh this fight scene is so sick... ANNABETH??? Luke's face?? HE WENT THROUGH THE GATEWAY?? I'm crying. "I don't think he does either, that's what scares me." OHHHH. "You are a leader in the eyes of your fellow half-bloods." HES TWELVE ??? 😭😭 "Percy?? That's your name??" Oh Dionysus I love you. ANNABETHS HAIR DEVOURED??? "And then some place like Disney world?" ANNABETHHH "just.. be a kid." OH MY GOD. GROVERS SEARCHING LICENCE?? "No ones bothered to check the seas!" WOO FORESHADOWING!! THE GROUP HUG :(( CRYING. SALLY!!!! the only mother and son duo ever. Ohh their acting is unreal. IT WAS A DREAM?? is that Kronos?? he's fucking ugly I can't even lie... OHH IT'S SALLY SHES REAL!! "grandpa:(" "don't call him that..." cry laughing. They're so precious to me :(((( BLUE PANCAKES!! I'm sick this is so perfect 😭😭 the brainrot is real.

[miredinmiddleearth]

Rings of Power, Ep. 4 Review - *mega rant ahead*

*spoiler warning, though I don’t know the point of warning about spoilers in a show where nothing happens*

Thoughts on episode four:

1. Do I spy a sloppy mistake? Miriel’s outfits make no sense. Early in the episode, after waking from a dream, Miriel is seen wearing a heavily-ornamented green dress with giant pins on the shoulder. It’s stated that it’s first thing in the morning, and it is implied she fell asleep in her chair, not her bed. The next scene shows her back in that blue monstrosity of a dress that she wore the day before. Later, in the evening, she’s back in the green dress. This implies:

A. She sleeps in a nightgown that both features uncomfortable jewels and that she’s comfortable wearing in front of strangers. Unlikely.

B. Miriel re-wears an outfit two days in a row. A QUEEN? Just as unlikely.

C. Sloppy editing is sloppy. The scene back in the blue dress was supposed to take place the day before. 

2. Pharazon’s line about “cleverness is for men of small ambition.” Another attempt at depth that fall flat. 

3. Pharazon has a son now?! Just add it to the pile of discarded lore in the corner, I guess.

4. They did NOT! PLEASE tell me they did not just compare a visiting elf to illegal immigrants. Please tell me they are not making this fear of elves taking human jobs a real thing in Numenor. (Spoiler alert: they are). This is some of the sloppiest, most shoe-horned nonsense I’ve seen in an age. 

Let me explain: Men of Numenor eventually fall because they are jealous of elf immortality and prosperity. It drives them to be the best, but that only takes you so far. At the end, they’re still mortal. So they seek that which they can’t have, and it leads to destruction.

They are NOT afraid of elves moving to their island and taking their jobs. Real-world discussions can show up in fantasy, but they take subtlety and talent. These showrunners have about as much subtlety as the Witch King’s mace shoved up a human backside. This particular real-world debate has nothing to do with realistic motivations that would make sense in the world you’re stealing from Tolkien. Your pitiful little minds only look the more miniscule next to the genius whose work you’re appropriating for your own greedy desires, you slobbering little worm-brained sacks of meat. 

*deep breath to steady myself* Okay, back to reviewing

5. “Tempest in me line” literally gets Galadriel sent to jail, lol. More of Galadriel acting and therefore getting treated like an angsty teen/toddler. Literally sent to time-out. Also, more Halbrand teaching Gal how to have two brain cells. Make it stop!

6. That scene where Isildur is ousted from the ship. Let’s set the stage: Isildur lets go of a rope. Friends try to grab rope and fail. No one gets hurt. No problems with boat arise from this. Commander says he’s never seen Isildur mess up. Must have been on purpose. Immediately dismisses Isildur and his two friends. 

SO much wrong with this. 1. You don’t ask Isildur WHY he did that? 2. Absolutely nothing bad happened! He let go of a rope! There is zero reason for repercussions! 3. You purposely punish innocents, even though you know exactly who is to blame? Who writes this garbage?!

7. Intrigued by Adar. Would love him to be an elf mid-orcish transformation, but that would be far too interesting an idea for these writers.

8. One thousand percent positive that Theo has elf ears hidden up under that hair.

9. Rules of sound only apply when director needs them to apply (see scene where Theo hides in the well)

10. Is anyone else distracted by Disa’s struggles with the accent, or is it just me?

11. FINALLY we see an elf using elf-like abilities like incredible hearing. Place your bets on how quickly the writers forget elves can do this.

12. Yeah, I really don’t care about the romance between two made-up characters who have zero impact on the story. If you can’t tell if I’m talking about the two Numenoreans or the elf and the healer...yeah, me neither.

13. Conveniently cut away from Galadriel incapacitating a bunch of guards. Would take way too much work to make it look believable, and honestly, the one shot of her shoving a guard into the cell is already too ridiculous-looking.

14. Miriel states the other six palantiri are lost or hidden. Good grief. Okay, fine, ignore the lore that Elendil and his sons take the stones to safety. Ignore that this lore is upheld in the movies and now you look incompetent. But don’t have Galadriel reply that she has used a palantir before! How, if they are lost or hidden?

15. This show is incapable of SHOWING us anything. Cave collapses? We don’t see it. Dwarves trapped? We don’t see it. Durin risks his life? We don’t see it. Durin has a strained relationship with his dad? We don’t see it.

What do we get to see? Durin returning, everything’s fine, and he has a reconciling with his dad. I. Don’t. Care. Because. You. Have. Done. Nothing. To. Make. Me. Care.

16. Miriel is taking her people to help the Southlands. How the heck do they know the Southlands need help? Pretty elf guy and healer girl are only just now figuring it out. We’ve seen no communication with Galadriel about this. No pigeon letter. No vision. No beacons. We’re going to war without proof there’s a threat that exists? A vague Mordor drawing and a plan on a rag are apparently all you need.

Final thoughts: I’m back to being bored. Totally just remembered there were no Harfoots! Yay! And finally, whyyyyyyyyyyy.

[doyouever-daydream]

i literally wrote my reactions to that garvez interaction and it wasn't saved... i'm here screaming into the void, beware of spoilers and a lot of cme writers/penelope slander and a lot of rambling that won't make much sense,,,

sorry but i'm fucking furious

to sum it all up, i cried out of frustration, the writing is so awful... i'm still furious about how the reactions to penelope sleeping with the guy have been so watered down and kind of out of a bad sitcom, it makes me dislike garcia so much and i hate that, i legit cherish that character so much that it breaks my heart to see what they've done to her.

i need someone to talk some sense into penelope, i hope it's jj (like a real angry jj)

it's not even about them not being together, it's the awful writing, they could've given me a real explanation about why they didn't work out (i've seen people here do a much better job at that but that doesn't surprise me much), i would've been sad but it would've been better than no explanation at all, some bait in the first episode (sort of) and pulling out this romantic plot that is simply ridiculous, i've tried to see their "relationship" in a neutral or unbiased way but even then it just screams bad news, red flags, alert, alert, alert.

(i'm still watching the episode and penelope saying "falling for someone blah blah blah" i can't believe my eyes, you've known this fucking dude for like a month, tops? i'm so mad at penelope, the writers and queen of my heart herself kv as well)

watching your favorite character be butchered in such a way... it's...

STOP

the garvez date flashback, i can't even watch this without crying, knowing the will destroy absolutely everything i loved about the original ending

i was right, they did destroy it

so whats-his-name is not d word, penelope, babe, he lied to you, used you to get elias' location by exposing you to your coworkers and you're still like 'he's my person, stay alive, make it up to me', sorry honey, the work you've said you've done is non-existent or the therapist you go to sucks (i'm a psychologist so i'd know) red flags everywhere but since he's good in bed everything is forgiven, am i right? going back to where i was before i was disappointed once more by that flashback scene... penelope garcia means the world to me, and seeing the way they've destroyed her essence (bc cme pg is someone else) is just heartbreaking and infuriating.

i could talk about how much i've loved her character for almost eleven years or about how she and kv (and garvez tbh) saved me from a dark hole during 2020 but i won't, i'm simply too upset, it almost makes me feel stupid to be so worked up about a fictional character (i know it's valid but still, it's been a rough week and this doesn't help at all)

[lerr-writes-fic]

Music game!

rules: shuffle your “on repeat” playlist from spotify/the music service of your choice and post the first 10 tracks.

thanks for tagging me, @ellena-asg!!

I use Apple Music, so I put my Replay 2023 playlist on shuffle - it's gonna be a lot of Beyoncé, y'all.

spoiler alert: I am very predictable in ways even i could not imagine. Replay 2023 dragged my ass... more under the cut!

Steve Biko (Stir It Up) by A Tribe Called Quest

if I'm not listening to Beyoncé or movie soundtracks, I'm listening to A Tribe Called Quest.

2. SUMMER RENAISSANCE by Beyoncé

what a powerful way to end her rebirth after Lemonade. Also love that she sampled by man Giorgio Moroder who also worked on the soundtracks for Scarface (1983) and Top Gun (1986).

3. CHURCH GIRL by Beyoncé

this is my absolute favorite song on RENAISSANCE. "nobody can judge me but me, I was born free" brings me to tears and then I immediately shake my ass bc Beyoncé tells me to "drop it like a thotty, drop like thotty."

4. Verses from the Abstract by A Tribe Called Quest

this song is from The Low End Theory, which is a different album from song #1. it's wild to think this album wasn't a big commercial success, but it still went on to create alternative hip hop.

5. 6 Inch (feat. The Weeknd) by Beyoncé

this is my second fave song from Lemonade, and how could anyone not love this song? a sexy song about a woman working her ass off thinking she's doing it for herself, but in the end, she was trying to get her man's approval... brutal

6. Main Title (From the Motion Picture "Scarface") by Giorgio Moroder

okay y'all, i swear i'm writing these lil tidbits in real time as i listen. i had no idea this song would come up despite mentioning it in my answer for #2. fun fact about this album: it was not available on streaming until 2022, which i know bc i bought the Scarface CD in 2020 so that I could listen to it in my car

7. Top of the World by Trevor Jones

not gonna lie, my least favorite song from this album was next, so I skipped and got this song instead, which is an actual bop! fun fact about The Last of the Mohicans, it was my least favorite movie for 13 years, but i gave it a final chance a while back. lemme tell ya, Michael Mann does not disappoint, and the music is outstanding.

8. Auto Rock by Mogwai

another song from another Michael Mann movie, this time it's Miami Vice (2006), and apparently this is my most played song this year. Michael Mann does such a wonderful job of picking music to fit the tone of his movie endings.

9. Line of Sight (feat. WYNNE & Mansionair) by ODESZA

full disclosure, i had to skip 4 more songs from Beyoncé's RENAISSANCE to get to this song... sorry not sorry

10. Elk Hunt by Trevor Jones

welp, I guess we just had to end on a Michael Mann movie song. This the best song in The Last of the Mohicans though, so i ain't complaining.

welp. i am nothing if not predictable, which i hate 🤣🤣

[nulltune]

five interesting facts about Hakuno & five things you consider uncanny. Go!

THANK YOU SUE FOR MY LIFE!!!! talking abt hakuno is my hobby fr so thank u 4 enabling me ehe <3 here we go!!

5 interesting facts about hakuno:

her name is an annagram of kimi no na hakushi which translates to "your name is blank". i think it's suuper neat because 1. it gives you the impression of it being an insert name here kind of thing that's common for self-inserts, but it's a nice way to start off hakuno's character journey of becoming her own character from a blank slate and 2. it's a pretty straightforward way of telling us that her name, much like herself, is blank. empty. there's nothing there ^_T

speaking of- you know how with mc characters, there's usually a silly haha kind of dialogue option? that's present for hakuno too but i like it because it's more like an illusion of choice than something more like a self-insert thing. the point hakuno makes in the end is essentially the same, she's just being a lil goofy about the delivery, y'know! i'm not even kididng btw sgfkshfj hakuno herself admits sometimes that she did do it to get a rise/see the other person's reaction to it. moon lady's got a lil michievous side ✨️

she knows the sa-shi-su-se-so which is an expression to memorize essential ingredients for japanese cuisine. so it's safe to say that she'd at least know the basics of cooking, though it's a lil headcanon of mine that although she knows it theoretically, she absolutely flops at the execution (and if you wanna make this more nuanced, you can think of this through the lens of food as a love language-)

she "doesn't particularly like octopus". we don't get a reason why, but it's kinda funny when considering the sea motif in fate/extra! maybe hakuno wouldn't like seafood in general? this isn't that interesting but agfkshf we barely get any information about hakuno herself ya kno!!! which makes sense considering she doesn't even know herself, but that's why i treasure these little crumbs !!

i've noticed this in my reread of fate/extra, but i feel like hakuno brings up the fact that she's "not alone" Quite A Lot post chapter 4 or so. it's her only solace after finding out the truth of her existence so it makes sense why that fact is important to her, but i also like to think that repeating it so much is her (likely unconscious) way of trying to cope with how truly lonely her existence is :,)

5 things i consider uncanny:

OH MAN THIS IS A PERFECT THING TO ASK BC there's always hints about something being "off" about hakuno. in hindsight, it's pretty sad when this disconnect with everyone and everything else seems almost inherent to her existence when all she wants is to be a normal human and find her place in the world </3 and spoiler alert: She Is Not and She Does Not. but it's neat!

there's this one hakuno dialogue response that was essentially her introducing herself in an almost automatic "pavlovian response" — it's a small hint about her true nature as an artificial intelligence but i wish we got more of this aspect explored tbh! how much of her is real? how much of her is her? it could really mess up hakuno's head but it'd be hella interesting to see !

her reaction to being felt up by someone as a first meeting was seriously underwhelming ! a lot of hakuno's reactions to things are pretty tame and iirc it's been noted that she's strangely calm for someone in such a high-stress situation (enough to cripple even the finest soldiers, according to rin). it's likely her being so numb to it all tbh ^_T but it's still pretty weird hakunochan!!!

this one's kinda graphic but there's a scene where hakuno tries to reach her servant-- even as her body is literally being broken down and deleted in the process :,) i say it's uncanny because damn it's a great scene but hakuno's thought process behind it all is a widdle fucked up!! look at what she has to say when she goes numb from the pain + her stomach collapsed: "I just feel gross, like I’ve turned into a skeleton-monster. Though with my body being lighter, I’ll be able to walk faster, which is nice." HELLO??!? (bassbooted)

this one comes a ccc anthology chapter but basically hakuno was asked to pose for a photoshoot and she has no problems wearing a suggestive nightgown, a bikini, and a wedding dress but Draws The Line at a maid outfit (girl?) (she ended up wearing it — and absolutely slaying the look, if i do say so myself — but was Very embarrassed)

[evelyne-am]

April 4, 2023

day 22.

Remember when I said that Sir didn’t say a single word after our run through. Even though it was real shit, he just told us to have a good weekend. But I knew in my heart as everyone else did, that there was more to that, and that we found out as soon as we entered in our fourth week. Sir has been in a horrible mood because he hais revealed that that Run broke his heart and now he wants to change everything again. This will be the 5th change, and the third draft. I don’t know who read this but our first draft was so different with multiple first persons, I second draft was one first person and three third person is describing it. Second draft also included switching the protagonist from different ages so somebody would play the young age and somebody would play older. in the third version I did have a small speaking role, the smallest one but I was playing it for the purpose of rehearsal for the past two weeks. But today it is announced that the Messyness of multiple roles and multiple dialogues is getting too much he is cutting it out to be simpler and and the multiple actors for one role is possibly going to be cut. Before the acting and casting things happen, though, Sir changes the entire choreography that we have been working all over the last couple of weeks but actually we were almost getting down. Remember the Burpee‘s thing that’s already gone don’t know if that’s good or bad I was kind of getting fond of it. But God damn do I love it when he changes things. I get to see how his mind works when he adds suctracts and move things around. The intro is now absolutely stunning and lovely and subtle and beautiful. Spoiler alert, the first person you will see on stage is me. As we are doing the entering sequence The director is reminding me without saying anything that there were issues raised when I opted in for the play. Two things were mentioned about me being able to be in the cast; number one my posture, I have absolutely horrible posture something that I’m so ashamed of. 2 number is my pronunciation because Bangla is not my first language, but having said that I have been singing this language my whole life, even though I don’t read and write so fluently I do know how to pronounce words on stage and so I think that part is not the issue. But Sir asked me if I am to be the first person the audience sees walking onto that stage if I can retain my straight posture for the duration of the entire opening sequence which is very long. I of course say yes, and I take it as a challenge to myself to make sure that every moment of the opening sequence anyone stares at me. In fact every moment of that play anyone stares at me they will not know that I am actually hunched in person. I am painfully aware that the new changes means that many of us will be cut from our speaking scenes. The two young girls who are playing the young girl roles are not doing very well today, one of them burst of tears when Sir was point-blank asking her to commit. The other one passed into tears when she was unable to do something that he was repeatedly asking her to do. The problem with that is that Tears are a very natural reaction to biologically female beings however in a work situation it really is not acceptable. So the director was not being able to accept it, but these young girls for the lack of a better world I think this generation, is an able to take Harher commands. What happened was due to the two of them messing up, sir I got angry and said the play will be done by one person per character only. That kind of implies that my small part is also given to the protagonist who will do the play like a monologue. But truthfully as sad as I was to have that in the inevitable reality, watching him change the play so absolutely beautifully is even more thrilling than being sad about me not making a big theatrical debut.

Despite my wondrous ways of looking at this production, some of the girls were feeling very disheartened because the director was really unhappy with the way things are fairing so vibe at rehearsal is very tense right now. A part of me realises that because I have a small role I don’t have a lot of feedback, so maybe I don’t understand what they are going through, but another part of me thinks that This is what I do best, not take work things personally not take fame and fortune personally but value the art value the talent value the creation and value the absolute magic of being able to do something like this. And I feel really blessed, maybe it is because I have achieved other things that another’s eyes have deemed successful, but I don’t feel anything I’ve done is achievement worthy yet I am yet to set my actual stage. I’m still learning. And I think that’s why I can enjoy this life in this career because I know that I’m not at my peak. Wrote my first poem since I started and shared it with M, she seems to really like her. There we are so different we do share that similar passion to give up everything for work. And so we are becoming closer.

Ps this is my front door now.

[jungjangnim]

japchae

trigger warning for food; spoiler alert for the stargazer's real name.

How on earth did Anarkia survive WhiteSands with that kind of appetite?

Yoo-jung has undertaken one of the most challenging jobs since being Chief of the MBCC: getting the Stargazer to eat more. She has lived off fruits, even while detained, especially since becoming her lover. She would frown whenever she saw Anarkia munch on her pomegranates—yet being the understanding partner Yoo-jung is, she never prodded her about it.

That is until Anne alerted her of Anarkia being admitted to the infirmary after she fainted.

Yoo-jung was discussing with some construction firms about extensions to the current layout of the MBCC, with Langley and Nightingale giving their input or negotiating something with the proxies. Once she got the call on her earpiece, she immediately fled the scene without a single word, eliciting confused expressions from everyone involved.

"There's no way my rookie is running from one of the most important negotiations the MBCC has to broker," Langley quipped. "Unprofessional. Adjutant Nightingale, is this a daily occurrence?"

"Unfortunately," Nightingale replied with a sigh. "Especially when her Sinners are in the infirmary. Let me check my records…" She pulls up a logbook of those admitted to the infirmary for today. "Ah. It's the Stargazer."

"The who now?"

"The Stargazer. The newest detainee from WhiteSands." Nightingale pulled up her profile. "She also managed to be the Chief's lover… who has time for love in this economy?"

"Not me," said Langley. "You?"

"No," she sighed, then turned to one of the company representatives. "Uh… I have a wife, does that count?" one of them answered.

"Lucky you," the other joked. "She's a good one. Can't believe you survived three decades without her."

"Shut it, Soren."

"Okay, okay, gossip's over," Langley decided to take over the negotiations herself. "I'll take over. This time I won't be as lenient as her."

"Anarkia, you dumb piece of shit."

Yoo-jung waltzed into the Stargazer's private room with a bowl of her favorite food--japchae. "Be fucking glad I didn't whack you in the head when I saw you are eating only pomegranates for lunch."

"Ah, my little monster." Anarkia still managed to send chills down her spine whenever she called her that. "I see you brought… provisions for me."

"Yes, I did, you fucking buffoon," she huffs, pseudo-slamming the metal bowl onto the nightstand. It was custom-designed, etched with a combination of Anarkia's Star card and Yoo-jung's family crest---a gift from Chelsea to celebrate their union. (They're not married. There are multiple items with that same etching. The Countess is indeed full of blessings.) "You have got to stop eating only pomegranates, Anarkia. You're going to starve yourself."

"My little monster… I appreciate you looking out for me, but I must not partake in worldly indulgences. I am still looking for the truth, after all."

"Well, you can't look for the truth on an empty stomach." Yoo-jung gave her the bowl. "Here. Have some japchae. It's a millennia-old recipe."

"Thank you, but--"

"Do you want me to feed you, then?"

Anarkia stopped in her tracks. Two sides of her are at war with each other---one is determined to continue on the path to enlightenment, while the other wishes to indulge in this world's pleasantries, even if it's just for today.

She decided to listen to the latter.

"You may feed me then, love." She smiles. Yoo-jung's heart skipped a beat. "I trust your food won't kill me."

"I'm not that heartless." She put on cellophane gloves, grabbed a handful of japchae, and then decided to channel her ancestors' spirits. "자, 먹어," she says, feeding her japchae. Here, eat.

Anarkia closed her eyes and chewed on her japchae. The flavors immediately flooded her senses, flavors she had never tasted before during her time on this imaginary planet. Yet she welcomes it nonetheless. Perhaps this would help her get to know her little monster better.

"Absolutely divine, my little monster," she praised. "I see I have missed a lot of delicious meals during my time at WhiteSands."

"Perhaps if you came to me earlier, you would've eaten these kinds of meals for longer," Yoo-jung sighed. "I'm glad you liked it, though."

She flashed that signature smirk again—a bad omen. "Perhaps… a reward is in order?"

She twisted the Stargazer's ear with her fingers. "Not while you're sick, you dumbass." Yoo-jung kissed her afterward as an apology. "Next time, eat more for me, okay? If you need, I'll cook for you, whenever and wherever."

"I'll take you up on your offer." Anarkia kissed her back. Her lips still make her spirit go insane. "Stay with me?"

"No." Yoo-jung rejected her offer. "Langley's going to kill me if I don't come back."

[cinema-tv-etc]

ATTN ‘Downton Abbey’ Fans: Your New Favorite Show Is Here

by GARRI CHAVERST January 30, 2022

To this day, one of my crowning achievements is getting my S.O. to fall in love with Downton Abbey. When the trailer for the movie came on at the theater (prior to him completely catching up on the series), he covered his ears and ran to the lobby, in fear the trailer would somehow spoil the show for him. He was right; it would have been quite the shock seeing (spoiler alert) Mary and Henry Talbot together in the trailer when he was still blissfully unaware of Matthew’s fate. Downton Abbey is a delightful show with upstairs-downstairs drama and incredibly low-stakes plotlines you can’t help but get wrapped up in (remember the case of Violet’s missing letter opener?). Needless to say, he and I have been chasing the Downton Abbey high for quite some time, and with The Gilded Age now gracing our screens, we may have found it.

From the creator that gave us Downton Abbey, The Gilded Age follows Marian Brook (played by Louisa Jacobson, and if you can’t quite figure out why she looks so familiar to you, it’s because she’s the Meryl Streep’s daughter) as she moves from a no-name town in Pennsylvania to New York City to live with her estranged aunts, Agnes and Ada. While Agnes and Ada are old money and resistant to change, Marian is more open-minded, causing a rift when an up-and-coming, new-money family builds a positively garish palace just across the street (I mean, can you believe the audacity?). Though we’re only one episode in, I can already tell that The Gilded Age has everything I love about Downton Abbey—and I am all in.

Why Downton Abbey Fans Will Love It

Characters You’ll Love… or Love To Hate

Starting with our heroine, Marian Brook is already someone I’m rooting for. She’s loyal, defiant, and wants to make something of herself in a world where women of her class are supposed to sit around and wait for a husband. In just one episode, she proves she doesn’t care about the status quo and could be the bridge between the warring old-money and new-money families.

Marian’s aunts have a dynamic to die for. Cynthia Nixon’s Ada Brook is the slightly more open of the two, and is the reason Marian came to New York in the first place. Agnes, on the other hand, exudes an air of superiority that intimidates me even though I’m safely behind a screen. The two make for a compelling pair of guardians for Marian, whose youthful openness to the changing times doesn’t exactly mesh with their steadfast traditionalism. This conflict immediately comes into play with the introduction of their new neighbors.

Those new neighbors are the Russells, and I can’t tell just yet whether I love them or love to hate them. Either way, they already provide endless entertainment. Bertha, the Russell matriarch, will stop at nothing to be accepted by New York’s elite, despite the fact they want absolutely nothing to do with her. And Larry, her son, is already shaping up to be the lovable heir of the series, a la Downton’s Matthew Crawley.

It wouldn’t be a show after Downton’s heart if it didn’t feature a billion characters we somehow grow to love, loathe, and root for. Though the first episode of The Gilded Age focused on the families upstairs, it’s only a matter of time until we get to know the downstairs cast as well. And if I’m being honest, that’s where some of the best of Downton’s entertainment happened.

A Setting To Get Lost In

If you fell in love with the Abbey, The Russell palace will be right up your alley. It’s a monstrous home built on prime New York real estate with an interior to die for. This is in stark contrast to the Brook’s home across the street, which screams, “we’ve been rich since the Revolution.” While the homes are a marvel in their own right, the backdrop of New York City promises an expansive setting we just didn’t get with Downton—and I, for one, can’t wait to dive in.

It was always hard to place myself in the English countryside, but hearing the characters in The Gilded Age mention streets like Fifth Avenue brings the series down to Earth in a way that’s kind of spectacular for being set so long ago. I may never live in a home as grand as the Russells’ or sit in a parlor like the one at the Brooks’, but the New York outside of their homes doesn’t look too different from the one I’ve seen in person—of course, aside from the horse-drawn carriages and dirt roads. There’s something special about watching a historical drama and being able to shout “I’ve been there!” at the screen.

Plotlines That Pull You In

One of my absolute favorite parts of Downton Abbey was the largely lighthearted, low-stakes nature of some of the plotlines. Don’t get me wrong—they absolutely dealt with more serious issues, but the heart of the show, and what kept me coming back, was the daily drama on the Crawley estate. Violet’s utter confusion with the changing times (remember when she didn’t know what a weekend was?), Sybil daring to wear pants instead of a dress or skirt, and Carson’s shameful history as a stage performer, among so many others. As I’ve said before, The Gilded Age is just beginning, but it’s already showing hints of the silly, endearing plotlines that kept me thoroughly enthralled by Downton Abbey. Without giving too much away, there’s a scene in episode one that came straight out of a rom-com and I’m still giddy thinking about it.

Final Thoughts

Listen, I get it. There’s a ton of great TV shows begging for your attention. But for one hour on Monday evenings, that attention should absolutely go to The Gilded Age. If you’re someone who could rewatch Downton Abbey‘s six seasons until the end of time—and I’m right there with you—you definitely won’t want to miss The Gilded Age. Just give the first episode a try, and I promise you’ll be back for more. Like I said at the beginning of this article, I am a diehard Downton fan, and I’m all in.

Stream The Gilded Age on HBO Max on Mondays at 9 p.m. ET.

https://theeverygirl.com/the-gilded-age/

[hkblack]

Beta Blog Spotlight Week #3

I skipped last week cause real life, and I think the fates heard me because for this week’s Beta Blog Spotlight the random number generator made me squeak in delight when it landed on:

@5ftjewishcactus’ look at those secret world (T, 2175 words)

The AO3 Tags Include: POV Outsider, Trans Character, Implied/Referenced Transphobia, Queer Guardian Angel Aziraphale, Queer Guardian Demon Crowley, Ineffable Husbands, Happy Ending, Aziraphale’s Bookshop, Reference to Covid (Mask Wearing)

look at those secret worlds was written as part of the DIWS Ineffable Game Gift Exchange for lyricwritesprose

My Favorite line:

She picked up her pace, her sneakers pap-papping against the wet sidewalk.  

This is actually my second favorite line, but my favorite line gives away the ending. So we’re going with the beautifully evocative pap-papping that just makes my heart pitter-patter.

More thoughts on this darling outside pov and the process below!

About the Beta Read: If I remember correctly, we were on a bit of a deadline with this one. So 5ftjewishcactus was looking for a fast SpAG and Flow check before posting, as well as a bit of a detail check to make sure everything was clear from the outsider POV.

What I love: Look, I’m a sucker for outsider POV. Especially when it’s all about the love my two favorite ineffable walnuts have for each other. And this is such a beautifully touching outsider POV. Like, wow wow wow. Queer Guardians of Soho* are always a great trope for me, and this story does not fail to deliver. There’s not a lot of words to develop an original character when you’re in under 2.5k, but 5ftjewishcactus delivers a well fleshed out human girl with feelings and a story you want more of. Like seriously. I’ll read the rest of Nicque’s story sans Aziraphale and Crowley. Let’s go.

*Saying “Queer Guardians” like this makes them sound like Magic Girl Guardians ala Sailor Moon and I need that image now

This story also gave me the personal head canon of: Aziraphale always knows what pronouns to use for you, even when you’re not sure which pronouns you want. “Dear boy/girl/one” is automatic, and will change throughout a single conversation when appropriate. It’s his personal angelic spidey-sense. When questioned, he chucks a thumb towards Crowley and goes, “I’m married to that one, I don’t have time to not know the right pronouns.” Crowley always just grins and waves like that one gif of Stitch from Lilo and Stitch in response. So three cheers for a story that gives you a new head canon.

I’m so glad I got to reread this beauty today because it’s just soft in all the right places and absolutely what I needed.

Spoiler Alert!

My actual favorite line from this is: “As they held each other and cried, it never occurred to Nicque that she’d never given Crowley her address before he drove her home.” Because of course this walnut forgot to ask. But I really think both lines are a great indicator of how much world building comes from the smallest places. Not telling the address makes the mostly quiet car ride home feel all the more impactful. Pap-papping against the sidewalk makes us feel like we’re right there, hoods up heads down, weaving between rain drops with Nicque. There’s something to be said about using your words carefully to build the world you want to build, and 5ftjewishcactus nailed it.

End Spoiler!

If you haven’t already, please go read look at those secret worlds. It’s a beautiful and evocative outsider POV that will just tug your heart strings and make you feel great.

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Barbie

🔺Spoiler Alert

What an absolutely delightful movie.

Before I present you with my take away from the film, I would like to mention one small but significant aspect of Barbie that made me so happy. I really really LOVE how it has become a movement. No one asked anyone to wear pink to the movie, it was just a naturally decided fact that we all have to show up in pink. I for one, love pink and barbie both hehe so it was so wholesome and lovely to see a crowd of people dressed up in the said colour. My friend said that this is one step foward towards world peace haha.

Now onto the movie,

Greta Gerwig did not point out anything new about feminism, I don’t think so. In today’s time, almost all of us have heard of the concepts of feminism, patriarchy and toxic masculinity and most of us understand the meaning.

However, that doesn’t necessarily mean that all of us acknowledge the need of feminism and the existence of patriarchy. What Gerwig did with this movie, in my opinion, was that she made this idea more accessible. She presented it in the form of fun and giggles and a LOT of pink and I think her attempt was more or less successful. Yes, it might not be in the sense that some people are still going to throw comments like “Oh you’re going to watch Barbie? Please don’t come out hating men lol.” (taken from real life happenings). But I think in the movie, for those who keep an open mind and actually try to watch it for what it is, Greta successfully managed to talk about gender roles and how they impact BOTH men and women.

And I think it is a very tricky thing to pull off heavy topics like these in a lighthearted manner but Barbie made it happen. I was laughing through out the film but at the same time, I had this heavy feeling inside me. The heavy feeling was the acknowledgment I felt that “yes I do go through these things. I am treated like this.” as well as the sadness relating to the fact that I can’t live in Barbie Land where everything is perfect haha.

If we talk about casting, Margot Robbie and Ryan Gosling CHEFS KISS. Both of them did such a good job playing Barbie and Ken. Specially Ryan Gosling, I imagine it’s not easy to play a symbol of Patriarchy, not knowing of it at all to learning of it and how it can give you power and make you an asshole lmao and to have it crumble in front of you and then realising that you don’t actually need it because along with it, it brings things like toxic masculinity.

Gender roles and norms were the central theme of this movie and their portrayal was fun and beautiful.

If you think Barbie is going to be a light hearted watch after Oppenheimer, then you’re wrong definitely haha. Trust me I had the same misconception. But it’s definitely worth a watch.

I have saying this since yesterday, everyone in the world should watch Barbie 100%!!!