#A RAMBLE

[galdrgobrrr]

I find it endlessly fascinating how much Alhaitham outside of his character stories is portrayed as someone solely defined by the present. He never mentions his family ever. You don’t even know he’s an orphan unless you read them, or even that his grandma was such a pivotal figure in his life (and inspired some of his current views). He’s so divorced from his past you could be convinced he just popped into existence one day with no fuss.

[ramblingautisticman]

Thinking about how the different X-Men were while looking after kids in the mansion.

Jean and Scott are the usual mom and dad. They will scold you if needs be, but if you have a good enough reason for whatever the hell you got in trouble for, they will be a little less upset. They encourage your passions, help you when stressed or upset, and make sure you are doing good in classes.

Hank is the wierd uncle. The one you don't see often but when you do he's always somehow in a new venture and will tell you all about it unprompted, ya know? He's also always there if you need to chat or wants some help with homework, but will also end up rambling about some science stuff.

Remy is the cool uncle, but also the grandma that wants to feed you everytime you visit. He's always making something, or has made something for you to eat. Always. He doesn't let you go hungry, and will be concerned if you deny ANY food he offers. He's very chill and understanding, and gentle parents in a way because he knows how tough Scott can be sometimes. He also will come pick you up at 3am no questions asked if needed.

Storm is the aunt that you listen too no matter what. Sure, you'll argue with Scott or Jean about something they want you to do, but if storm asks? Your doing it instantly. You both fear and admire her. She is a force to be reckond with and doesn't take any shit from anyone, but also likes having fun and doesn't push you so hard you break.

Logan is the quiet one. The one you don't really know anything about until something happens and it gets mentioned in passing. He's not much of a talker, but will listen and give advice if needed, and even though he acts all grumpy, he's got soft spot for you. He's always doing little things that subtly shows he cares. Helping with a birthday party, making sure you have clean clothes, fixing anything broken in the mansion so it's safe ect. Stuff that isn't necessarily direct, but enough to show he cares.

Charles is 100% the grandpa that let's you do whatever you want because why the fuck not? He doesn't let you do anything dangerous, but he will encourage harmless fun that he knows will upset the other X-Men. He's also the best listener in the mansion, and never minds lending an ear or some advice when it comes to your feelings or emotions. He also always offers you some old looking candy from his pocket.

Anyway, this has been another ramble from me :)

[anonymous-spooks]

Strangely, I never associated LJ with the CircusPastas. I mean, he’s a clown, of course he would hang out with them!

But I always see him doing his own thing? Maybe he doesn’t like performing with others because he’s a one-man show?

I always view him hanging out with Jeff and Toby and anyone else associated with Slenderman. Makes him stand out.

What do you guys think?

[icetobes]

thinking about bucks reaction to eddie admitting he’s worried about himself because to me, its not a face of “okay good you admit you’re not okay” it’s a face of “oh i care about you so much”

to me it feels like a big step closer to bucks feelings realisation, he’s realising he cares about eddie the way he’d cared about his past partners, he doesn’t care about eddie the way he cares about his friends

eddie admitting to buck he’s also worries about himself is big, even for buck and eddie. because eddie has only ever really admitted to buck that he’s not okay, they don’t really talk about eddies ‘rage’ era, we get the kitchen scene “wanna go for the title”, we get “i’m afraid i’m never going to feel normal again” after he smashed up his bedroom, and now we have “i’m worried about me too”.

i truly think we have never been closer to buddie realising they care about eachother the way couples care about eachother, they’re there for eachother in such big moments even in the smallest of ways

[rosesncarnations]

A mild acotar brain rot

What if Nesta started seeing ghosts (if her magic is “death” in playing into it goddamn it) and she comes across Catrin and she’s just watching as this girl (she doesn’t know is related to let alone is the twin of gwyn) follows her friend with the same sad turquoise eyes.

[possibility-for-joy]

Still on the topic of NBP Severance panel but I was slightly confused by Patricia’s words on Mark and Helly not knowing what a real and domestic relationship is like. She mentioned it as if it was something that made them less likely to persevere together.

When in reality Mark and Helly are so aware of what experiences they lack that the scene before their first kiss is them imagining a domestic scenario where they are married sharing everyday struggles with one another.

Mark and Helly know they don’t have a life beyond work, it doesn’t mean they don’t want or that they wouldn’t be able to face the challenges of a domestic life together if they were to encounter them. The point is… they are not allowed to have it. That life belongs to outies, not innies. That is the whole tragedy.

Love, connection, domesticity and intimacy are part of what makes us humans. Nobody can survive if everything they have is work. Choosing each other is the ultimate act of rebellion. It says “Innies are human too and I am allowed to live a life as fully and fulfilling as any outie does”.

[staringamassivemistakeintheface]

I forgot just how much I loved the 1996 Doctor Who movie back at the peak of my obsession. …Well, more accurately, I forgot how much I loved Paul McGann as the Eighth Doctor. He’s soft-spoken, with an incredibly charming smile. The childlike wonder and excitement as he rediscovers himself just puts the biggest smile on my face. I am DEFINITELY checking out the audio dramas!

[omgwhatchloe]

thinking about how life-changing seans first hangover must have been since being dumped in reform school. like him escaping, getting absolutely smashed in some saloon then spending the entire morning throwing up and crying that he was never going to drink again.

then of course we have him riding states away from the reform school, the absence of a companion almost suffocating him as he spends all day out on the road, looking for things to steal, starving, and all night in the saloon trailing after other drunk people he forced to be friends with him, before sobering up in the morning and remembering how goddamn lonely he really is.

the gang might have saved sean more than we realised

[rambling-abyss]

So Regarding the Heroine in a Villainess Iskeai Story.

*note if a series has an official English title that's what I use for no other reason then it's easier for me to remember

enjoy!

A thought that has come into my head recently. And as the title of this suggests it’s something related to the heroine in a villainess iskeai story. Now bare in mind this isn’t super deep dive into the trope. More like a simple observation I’ve come to make after years of reading a certain niche. And that little corner I figured this out was female lead iskeai and iskeai adjacent stories. Usually the setting of a medieval kind about noble ladies living life in noble society sometimes doing things sometimes nothing at all.

I’ve read many those of stories in both manhwa and manga form over years. Can’t say I am expert on this niche topic. In fact a major backbone of the this niche being Otome games is something I very lacking with experience and information. Cultural osmosis from reading this stuff(as well as some interesting YT channels that cover the subject) do I even have a clue to what that’s all about. But that is unrelated to what I am going to talk about. as that’s for someone a bit more versed into those to deep dive into how they formed the backbone of this little genre.

So what exactly about the Heroine I am going to talk about. To put it bluntly how a story uses them is a big factor in deterring the quality of a Villainess story. If they total ignored or missed used then they is a high change that Villainess story is going to kinda of stinky. While the ones that bother to use them to any degree worth something will not come out as smelly. Wow the a story’s use of idea will determine the quality of it is mind blowing right! In this 15 hour video that just recaps episodes of Save by the Bell scene by scene I’ll blow even more of your brain until it’s just a stock.

Joking aside I am going to attempt to make a point about this. To the best of my rambling abyss ability. I will using the two series that made realize this to help make my point as well as use others that can help with. So the two series are

The 6th Loop: I'm Finally Free of Auto Mode in this Otome Game

And

The One Within the Villainess

Because both are a bit of a mouthful to type and to help with brevity. They will be shorten to 6th Loop and OWV respectively. Now this pair are total opposites of this spectrum. And they both end up hitting home of asking the question of just what is the point of having a Villainess story. A Question that only a writer trying to come up with one would ponder. This question only came to me because I’ve read large swathes of them ranging from the good, the bad, and the just plain mediocre. However with the two example I’ll be using I’ll mostly be focusing on a major linchpin for this kind of story. It which is oh so obviously reference in the title of this

Let’s start off with 6th Loop. The Villainess of this story is a poor girl focused to live though a total complete playthrough of a Otomo game. Five lives of misery only able to be observer watching your body reach it’s inevitable doom. Not a bad way to start off a series. It give the reader a good idea of why the lead know the contents of the game so well as well as give them a solid idea to why the lead wants to not walk down the path of the villainess. So what about the heroine then? A faceless specter of the future that were told is important. But once you’ve past the finish line and look back. She’s nothing more then a minor foot in the set up.

Now with OWV it’s a story that asks the question what exactly happens to the original villainess when a Iskeaier posses they body. Well the end up a observer watching the life the otherwolder is now making of their body do. And while watching his somewhat typical iskeai villainess story about a girl wanting the best outcome for everybody. The villainess gets as charmed as the various male leads the girl is helping. And it gets to a point where out villainess see her poser as a someone very important to her. the endless kindness and sincerity not lost on her. But were dose the Heroine matter in this. Well it’s simple thanks to her shameless selfishness the Villainess is forced to surface and the real story begins. And the craziest part is the heroine never 100% vanishes beyond the set up.

What these two examples make me realize is just how important a The Heroine is to a story about a Villainess. And that a total disregard of them misses the entire point of a story of this kind. Robin Hood can’t be Robin Hood without at someone like Prince John around. This doesn’t mean the Heroine has be the bad guy of the story. Not all the time. My Next Life as a Villainess: All Routes Lead to Doom is a foundational series for this niche. And the heroine is the best friend(and some might even part of the bisexual harem) of the lead. She still a very important character. And a lot of lesser series tent to forgot how important that element is.

6th loop is a one of those lesser series and one that’s been stuck in the back of my head as I pondered about this niche. Not because it’s a uniquely bad one. It’s a painfully mediocre and very unoffensive read. It’s something that you’d have to a back of the dumpster licking freak like me to really remember it. and even then I could forgive for you for forgetting about it or even mistaking for another and much better series by the name alone. But why its sticked was that might be a near perfect example of a generic store brand Iskeai Villain story.

A mostly uneventful story about well-meaning girl trying to stop the bad ends that await her. Maybe even find someone that loves them for who they are along. Maybe make some real friends and overcome whatever personal problems that keep her living her best life. Having all that to the maybe lead up to the happy end she wants. I don’t know it man it kind of just ends with a implied flashes of the future after a bizarre reveal that felt out place for what it going for. really felt like they should have been a bit more after that. But it didn’t get that more. Not a uncommon thing to happen to the shorter of the this niche.

But minor digression aside, 6th loop really falls into a lot of stereotypes and cliches trappings. That a lot of lesser ViS heavily relay on without really adding much else to it. I am not among those unreasonable assholes that think cliches are remnants of Satan’s left nut. As long as I don’t have a truly terrible  time, I can be pretty forgiving. And as proud member of the Bragin Bin Divers Elite. It takes a lot to really offended. Btw Redo of Healer is probably the most famous work in Iskeai that managed to limbo under such a low bar I set.

By now you wondering how OWV counterpoints this? And if that’s the impression I give then I am sorry. Cause really what makes its work is because it’s use of cliches. It’s just that it’s use of it’s twist to the formula that helps it come together. And that twist use an element that is often overlooked in ViSes. It makes full use of it’s idea to help make the base for a compelling story. And hell that idea also leaves room for some interesting implications.

That’s the most frustrating part about 6th Loop it dose have a solid base for itself. A story about the fears of control and assumptions is in there. But the feeling a creeping disinterest in the own story it wants to tell just hurts it. Doesn’t matter nothing was done wrong on a technical level. It’s still a D+, see me after class.

So where dose the heroine really matter in this. Well it’s shorthand way to give you an idea if the author wants to really engage the story they telling or not in this hyper specific niche. Of course it not going to perfect. A writer worth their salt can make you forget about the heroine exists at all in a Villainess’ tales. I am just saying if you going to bother to have one present use it. Cause more times then not it’s only one in a conga line of mistakes made. It’s also the most obvious trope to spot when causally reading something. You’d be amazed how consistent it was that a not-so-great ViS just toss aside the heroine.

However I am really not going to fault creatives behind those duds. Yeah I’ll critic they work until I lose interest in it. But a lot of the stinkers are the results of the great and unstoppable CONENT MACHINE™!!!! A terrible beast made of unforgiving deadlines, sometimes little to no real help from editorial. And because the machine deems more and more a lot of inexperienced talent get a chance on the market as pro because they quickly throw together a comic like these. Can’t give them too much crap for that. Mostly because those ones tend to not last long.

Remember the Iskeai Boom from a sometime ago(maybe) was more then just male power fantasy about get many bitches. Some authors used it as excuse to write the pulp fantasy stories that always wanted to do. and I respect that. However, I’d say that machines have since calmed down a bit in recent. Now that the genre has made itself audience. Hopefully all those dud makers are doing fine these day and have learn the experience and have grown as artist.

Recently I’ve been watching this game reviewer/cook guide guy where every video he said to a nauseating level. Art isn’t content. While I don’t disagree with this remark at any level. Content and Art aren’t totally inseparable, however. Because of how our current society works sometimes art is made for the need of content. And artist the try hards they be sometimes do their best with whatever limitations are strapped on them.

I definitely wouldn’t have notice the trend if it wasn’t for the machine. I do think the trend wouldn’t exist at all if it wasn't for the machine else. Or at the very least amplify it.  I guess this part me bitching about something notice because I’ve read too much of one kind of thing. And the other part is me bitching about the content machine™  again.

But really its me asking writers to not forgot an important elements that make your premise your premise. Writing is hard I know. But you’ll have better idea of what you really want to do if all your pieces are in front of ya

Got Ghosted for Errand Boy Position

Abyss

[galdrgobrrr]

Volume 6 bees in Brunswick farm are always eating my brain in some capacity. Blake softly smiling, holding Yang’s hand with both of hers and swearing she’ll protect her (internally, this time it will be different, I’ll be better, I won’t run away) and Yang hearing that she’s ’something that needs taking care of’ like when she overheard her dad in volume 4, assuming that she’s weak or not capable, assuming that Blake is still talking about her old method of protection (running away) in some way.

Yang grabbing Blake’s hand to get them out of the house. How Blake looks at Yang while Maria talks about how some of them are stronger already. They make me want to gnash teeth

[moka-pot-official]

Elon Musk's death would not actually solve many world problems or make much better honestly however I still want him dead because he's the most annoying pathetic person to ever exist it honestly feels painful to walk the same earth as him so please please please kill him already and make it painful and humiliating

[kawhh]

What the fucking hell is going on with the ducks. Genuinely. Is it the coach? Is it the players? Is it just both?

They all have moments when they shine and are playing well and being threats and then the next minute they’re playing like it’s their first time on the fucking ice???

If they’re being told to play in a “my way or the high way” by the coach to the point of self sabotage, I ask why. If they aren’t, why are they playing like they are?

This shit ain’t working and nothing is even being shuffled 🙅‍♀️

[anonymous-spooks]

Slenderman taking in the Pastas like he’s recruiting them for the Avengers Initiative.

[risto-licious]

on another unrelated note (ALSO HI!), I had to let go of my trusty old computer unfortunately. the newly obtained one comes with windows 11 and of course there's a funky bug where suddenly the keyboard shortkeys won't work with my drawing tablet any longer. the joys of troubleshooting are upon me, I might just get used to a different workflow. no big deal luckily, alas, annoying as heck. don't mind this mini ramble though! I WISH YOU ALL WELL, whoever reads this, please take good care of yourself, treat yourself to something nice today! I'll be heading back to working on commissions (THANK YOU) and hopefully some bits of other art, too, heeheehe hohoohoho! (I've been drawing a lot in my sketchbooks these past weeks, but.......more private things, unsuitable for eyes that aren't my own) EDIT 2 days later: computer device problemo: FIXED!!! ✌️ heck yeah!

[macklemorrigan]

i have a healthy amount of skepticism about the new dragon age. right now im just enjoying the idea of it being real and coming out so soon (ironic thing to say after ten years)

the new companions look interesting. im curious more than anything, i guess!

wondering how they’ll tie it all together as I am assuming this is to be the last in the series seeing as they, you know….. fired the whole team.

a lot of excitement has a bitter after taste to it knowing the minds that made it possible against all odds have been so grossly mistreated. mary kirby they did you so dirty !!!! you will always be famous to me !!!!

ultimately im trying to keep my expectations for the game realistic, but im geeked to see the fandom percolating again!