#Barbara is evil part 4

[gallifreyanhotfive]

Random Doctor Who Facts You Might Not Know, Part 8

The Gallifreyan village of Slothe was populated by people who relied solely on hunting and gathering, leading to the near-extinction of several species including the ulanda, trunkike, yaddlefish, and broakir. A Krafayis sent to the village by Death as punishment.

There is a TARDIS cradle at the Academy for students who already have symbiotic bonds but have not graduated.

The Doctor's Aunt Flavia named her cat "the Doctor."

As a child, the First Doctor played in the tunnels underneath the Panopticon. Also underneath the Panopticon is the Eye of Harmony.

The Twelfth Doctor calls the Tenth Doctor "Bambi" and refers to Rose as "Blondie."

On prehistoric Gallifrey, the aspects of the Time Sentinels would toss time sensitives into the Untempered Schism.

Barbara kept a diary that she intended to leave for Susan for when she began to live in the 22nd century.

The Eighth Doctor claimed he could think of fourteen different instances of wars being started over someone refusing a cup of tea.

The Dancing Plague was caused by mass hysteria. The lack of an evil presence causing the plague caused the Fifth Doctor some severe confusion.

Cameca gifted the First Doctor a brooch while he was leaving, which he eventually regifted to Susan in his Eighth incarnation.

The Fourth Doctor took Sarah Jane back to kill the would-be dictator as a baby, but upon seeing his Sixth self fail to do so, he realized there was another way. Thus, when his Eighth self went to go kill the baby, the Fourth told the mother, foiling all of the Eighth's plans. The mother realized her love for the baby and raised them better. And thus wraps up the the-Doctor-tries-to-kill-a-baby arc.

Following the TV Movie, the Eighth Doctor promptly loses all of his memory again and gets arrested for possession of cocaine.

Knowing that the Doctor took on the name Merlin, it is interesting to note that in King Arthur's court there was a woman named Ganeida, who was Merlin's half-sister and the daughter of a nun and a "demon."

Hecuba is the Queen of Time and the Toymaker's sister. Her games often relate to clocks and time, and if someone refuses to play, she turns them into clocks.

Satthralope was the Housekeeper of Lungbarrow (basically a medium between the family and the sentient House). She thought the Doctor was a "disappointment to the House" and a "wretched child." In fact, one of the Doctor's first memories is of Satthralope smacking him so hard that he could hardly walk afterwards. If the Doctor refused to come to dinner, she let the drudges attack him.

Some Time Lords have a tapetum lucidum, including the Corsair.

Yarvell, Davros's half-sister, was a peace activist. Calcula, their mother, drowned her, and Davros used her body for experiments.

Part 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28

[deliciousangelfestival]

My Problematic Girl - Chapter 4

Character: College!Steve Rogers x Rich!Female Reader

Prologue:  Steve has lived being nobody in this prestigious university. He just wants to graduate and get a job to get more money to pay the bills for his mother's surgery. 

But his life turned upside when a new student attended his class. His quiet and dull life became dangerous and full of surprises.

×××

She exhaled the cigarette smoke from her lips. She still doesn’t care even though he told her he has asthma. 

She looked at Steve and said, “Bark for me.”

Steve felt humiliated, and his pride was crushed. But she held his life and secrets. He had to bury his dignity to the ground, and he murmured, 

“Woof.”

******

I would appreciate any comments and feedback you can give me. 

You can tell me if you want to join the tag list. Don't be shy 😘💖💜💙

Chapter 1, Chapter 2, Chapter 3, Chapter 4, Chapter 5 , Chapter 6, Chapter 7 ,Chapter 8 , Chapter 9,-

Main Masterlist || Buy me Ko-fi

His body felt weak, and he dropped himself to the floor. He leaned against the wall and closed his eyes, dreaming he could run away. 

He punched the floor and screamed, "No! I won't do it."

"Don't be that innocent, Steve. Art is always related to money laundry."

Y/N exhaled another smoke. "I knew a drug cartel who hung two Picasso's in his bathroom."

'Oh God, she knows a drug cartel now.' Steve's hand ran down his face. 

"You need the money, Steve. Drawing hentai comics and the salary of a part-time waitress and cashier is not enough to pay for your mother's surgery."

"And your father's debts."

How did she know that? That's the painful past he always pretends never happened. They have to move several times to avoid the debt collector.

He lifted his head to look up at her. "You do a background check on me?" 

Then it hit him. "You choose me because I'm poor!!!"

She didn't deny it, and it seems like she admits it. 

Y/N know Steve is a man with a strong sense of pride. 

That's why she wanted to break him. He became easy prey because he didn't have any money. 

"Steve, I'm offering you a shortcut to get quick money."

"Or do you want to build a startup that could give you more debt or join a Ponzi scheme like your father?"

Steve gritted his teeth. "You're evil."

Y/N let out laughter wounded like a warning from a beast. "Not just evil but also greedy. I learned this the hard way to survive."

'Survive? What does she mean by that?'

She offered her hand to him. "If you doubt me, I have written a contract for this. In that contract, you get all the benefits. If you have disadvantages, you can sue me."

He clenched his fist. What does she want from him? Please make her stop. It felt like he was stuck in a shipping ship. 

"You need this, Steve. Aren't you tired of being humiliated because you have no money?" 

Steve saw Y/N with two horns, bat wings, and a tail. She offered him a dangerous deal. 

But deep down, even though he knew this was wrong, he needed that money. 

He's tired of drawing that comic, different part-time jobs, and hiding from debt collectors; he wants to move out of that ugly apartment and needs money for his mother's surgery. 

He threw away his morals. 'Forgive me, Mother, this son of yours will be a partner in crime.'

He grabbed her hand, and she helped him to stand up. He doesn't speak, but it's a silent yes.

Y/N smiled, "That wasn't difficult right?"

She dragged his hand, but Steve's body wouldn't move. "Where are we going?"

"Just get into the car."

He let her drag his hand; when he finally got inside the car and put on his seat belt, he asked, "Now we're inside; where are we going?"

"Saint Barbara Hospital."

Steve almost jolted his eyes. "This is low Y/N !!! You're going to use my mom to blackmail me?"

This is also the first he screamed at her. That place is where his mother got admitted. 

Y/N gasped, "Wow, I will never use that method."

He scoffed, "Yeah, right."

She stirred the wheel and started to drive. "You are free to hate me. But I'm the only solution you got. Besides, I'm visiting someone too."

Steve remembered something, and it made him wonder. "Before you said, evil and greed are needed to survive. What do you mean by that?"

There's no answer. Steve saw Y/N's right hand tremble; she had to put her left hand to calm it down. Then she immediately turned on the car autopilot. 

She lowered her head while massaging her hand. 

"I learned it the hard way; being kind is useless. That's why I'm intrigued by you."

Steve pointed to himself. "Me?"

"You aren't offended when your classmates mock you; you weren't greedy when I gave you the deposit money for the drawing. And I liked how you looked at me for the first time."

She was silent for a second, then said "You despised me."

"..."

Steve rubbed his forehead; he is dealing with a crazy person. "You're crazy."

She laughed and said, "I know."

When the car arrived, the hospital security opened the car, and she handed him the key. 

Steve always gets here by bus but never sees a valet service. 

"I didn't know this hospital offered a valet service."

"They don't."

Both of them walked together into the lift. Y/N pressed the 2nd floor. Steve always came to this hospital; he knew that floor was for physiotherapy. 

Without looking at him, she said, "I'm going this way without looking at him. See you tomorrow."

Steve finally could breathe when she left. When the lift door slide opened, he went straight to a patient room where his mother stayed. 

There he saw his mother already in the wheelchair. 

She smiled at him because she knew his son would come. "Let's go outside. The weather is nice." 

Steve couldn't say no to this fantastic woman. Sarah Rogers. She has sacrificed so much, and he is always grateful for having a strong mother like her. 

But her kidney got worse. Because his father failed at business, he ran away and left the debt to Steve and Sarah. One day his mother had to sell her kidney so they could survive. 

Steve still felt guilty until this day. But she never blames anyone, even her husband, and keeps smiling.

Steve brought her to the hospital park. On the way to the park, Sarah greeted everyone. She stayed in the hospital for so long that made her know everyone.

When he found a perfect spot to sit, Sarah pointed at someone.

"Oh, that's Lilly."

Steve looked in the direction she pointed. An older woman in a wheelchair and being pushed by…

Y/N??? 

"Mom, you know her?"

"Lilly, of course. She used to be our neighbour. She's a piano teacher."

"And the person who is behind her?"

"Ooh, you mean Y/N? She's a nice kid."

'Nice? She's far from that.' Steve wants to tell his mother the truth. 

"She used to live around our neighbourhood too. But she moved after her father remarried"

Steve raises his eyebrows. Y/N used to live near their apartment. She didn't grow up in an elite neighbourhood?

"Y/n is Lilly's only student who keeps coming to check on her. And she paid for her surgery."

"Student?"

"Lilly told me Y/N is a prodigy, but she stopped playing the piano after an accident."

Sarah sighed. "That poor girl, Lilly, always in tears when she mentioned it. Y/N's fingers got hurt because of the accident, and she can't play the piano anymore."

Steve remembered Y/N were shaking. 

Did something happen in her childhood? Trauma?

He doesn't know he starts to sympathise with Y/N. He shook his head. It's not just her who went through a hard life. 

Even if she has trauma, at least she has money. 

After he visited his mother, Steve went home and started painting. If he could complete his work, he could end the deal with Y/N immediately. 

'Bzzt.'

Hmm? Another call from Bucky. Steve answered the phone. 

"Hello?"

"Uhm, the girl you mentioned yesterday reminded me of a famous kid from my university."

Steve sighed and said, "Y/N L/N." That name reminded him of tobacco since she smoked a lot. 

"Ahh, that's her name !! She is admitted into your faculty?"

"Yeah."

"That's unrelated to her law degree."

So she's graduated. "Then what is she doing in Stark?"

"Uhm, I heard a rumour from my team. It was hot gossip."

"What is it?"

"Y/N, after she graduated and joined her father's law firm, she exposed the Imperial University admission scandal."

Steve gasped when he heard that info. He heard about that scandal, but the news stopped talking about it.  

"You know what's crazy? Her step-grandfather is the biggest donor of this campus."

How did Bucky know that? 

"I think she went to Stark to make her stay out of trouble."

'That's why she said this is her punishment.'

"Did she make trouble there?" 

"Always. We called her Mad Dog. Some people don't agree with her method, but she defends weak students."

That's hard to believe. Wait, she defends him from Luke. He saw her as a good person before she turned into a crime lord. 

"I think she got kicked out from the family because she almost tarnished her father's law firm."

"And her sugar daddy Tonny helped her."

"What?!! No!!! That's disgusting. Tony is her godfather."

"How did you know?" 

"When she graduated, her father didn't come, and Tony replaced him. Tony was so proud of her perfect GPA and told everyone that he's Y/N godfather."

"What is her father's name?"

"Brian Solomon."

'Brian. That name sounds familiar.'

"Why does she have a different last name?"

"Her father took his wife's name after he got remarried. If you go here, you will know everything about her. Her family is basically like a royal family. "

'Crash'. 

"Steve, what's wrong?"

"My hand slipped. I break the glass. Sorry Bucky, I'll hang up."

Steve put down his phone and picks up the shattered glass. 

L/N.

Lawyer Brian L/N. Steve remembered that name. 

That person is the lawyer who defends the people who introduce the Ponzi Scheme to a bunch of people like Steve's father. 

The victim who invested their money lost everything. While the mastermind didn't get punished. 

"Uurgh." This info triggered his asthma. Steve took his inhaler to breathe.

What kind of crazy coincidence is this? 

Y/N is Brian L/N's daughter.

Like father and daughter, both of them are evil and greedy. 

Thank you for reading. I hope you like it.

You can tell me if you want to join the tag list. Don't be shy 😘💖💜💙

I will always be grateful for those who reblog. Thank you so much.

Chapter 1, Chapter 2, Chapter 3, Chapter 4, Chapter 5 , Chapter 6, Chapter 7 , Chapter 8, Chapter 9,-

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[ao3feed-brucewayne]

Lifelines

by SomebodyIUsetoKnow After everything that went down with the Crime Syndicate and then Spyral, Nightwing couldn't do it anymore. Five years after retiring the mask, five years after Bruce had once again cut him out of the family, Dick Grayson returns to Gotham. But Detective Grayson is not the only transfer from Bludhaven. An enemy from across the bay makes an explosive debut onto the scene of Gotham's organized crime that has the GCPD racing against a clock that could cost the lives of thousands. Including one of their own. The Batfamily has only seventeen hours before it is too late to reclaim the piece their family had been missing for far too many years. Words: 4365, Chapters: 1/5, Language: English Series: Part 4 of Must Be Tuesday Fandoms: Batman - All Media Types, Nightwing (Comics), Gotham Knights (Video Game 2022), DCU, DCU (Comics) Rating: Teen And Up Audiences Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence Categories: Gen Characters: Dick Grayson, Kate Kane (DCU), Renee Montoya, Bruce Wayne, Dinah Lance, Duke Thomas, Tim Drake, Alfred Pennyworth, Barbara Gordon, Stephanie Brown, Jason Todd, Damian Wayne, Cassandra Cain, Jim Gordon (mentioned), Maggie Sawyer (mentioned), Amy Rohrbach (Mentioned), Harley Quinn (mentioned), Poison Ivy (mentioned), Original Main Villain Character, Justice League Characters (Mentioned and Brief appearances) Relationships: Batfamily Members & Dick Grayson, Dick Grayson & Everyone, Kate Kane/Renee Montoya Additional Tags: Post-Forever Evil (Comics), Post-Spyral Arc (Comics), Dick Grayson is Not Nightwing, Detective Dick Grayson, Bruce Wayne is Batman, Dinah Lance is Black Canary, Duke Thomas is Signal, Tim Drake is Red Robin, Barbara Gordon is Batgirl and Oracle, Stephanie Brown is Spoiler, Jason Todd is Red Hood, Damian Wayne is Robin, Cassandra Cain is Black Bat, Non-Consensual Touching, Non-Consensual Bondage, Canon-Typical Violence, Kidnapping, Hostage Situations, Bombs, Dick Grayson Whump, Hurt Dick Grayson, Romani Dick Grayson, Bruce Wayne Gets Therapy, Trying to Explain why Bruce is/was a Bad Parent, Bruce Wayne Tries, he's getting better, Batfamily gets their heads out of their asses, Protective Batfamily, Batfamily on the Warpath, Hurt/Comfort, Explicit Language, Alfred Pennyworth is the Best, Alfred Pennyworth is So Done, Protective Alfred Pennyworth via https://ift.tt/8sXa3ED

[fantastic-nonsense]

hey! i love your blog and i wanted to ask: what do you think dick and cass's relationship would be like as siblings?

Well, apart from uh....*side-eyes the Evil Cass arc and Batgirl Vol. 2 (2008)...I am looking away, I pretend I do not see it*.....that, despite not actually interacting a ton Dick and Cass have a cute as hell relationship where they support, trust, respect, and tease each other and I love that for them. It's what they deserve!

"I heard about your visit with Cain. I know that must have been hard for you. If you need someone to talk to, let me know. I've been there." -Batman: Family #7 (2003)

"We're going to find Vesper's real killer." [looks at Cass] "You don't look too happy about that." "I am. I just...I feel...guilty. For...doubting him." [Dick looks startled, then turns his eyes back towards the road] "We all do." -Bruce Wayne: Fugitive (2003)

[Cass laughs] "What's so funny?" "None of you ever learn." "Learn?" "What...you can't change about each other." -Nightwing (1996) #81

"Race you there!" "You're kidding!" [Cass smiles] -Batman: Legends of the Dark Knight #184 (from 2004)

Bludhaven. My new home. Nightwing once called it..."Gotham's wicked little stepsister. I didn't...get it. He was...surprised. He told me the story. Cinderella. He...acted all the parts. That made me laugh." -Batgirl (2000) #58

"[Batman] taught me...teamwork. But it's not a team. More his family. Wish it still felt like that." -Batgirl (2000) #71

"Well...you're both wrong. Everyone experiences tragedy. Tim. Bruce...you and me. It's not about the city. It's about how you choose to see the world. Everything else is just an excuse." -Gates of Gotham #4 (2011)

That being said...Barbara is Cass's first priority and she will and did punch Dick in the face for breaking her heart asdfghjkl

-Batgirl (2000) #46

Also as a post-Flashpoint universe bonus: here's Hallucination!Cass playing "Ghost of Christmas Future" and calling Dick her brother in the "Carol of the Bats" Christmas Special (aka the first time we've gotten official confirmation in the reboot universe that Cass is a Wayne again):

"My brother. I have come to collect." -Batman: Urban Legends #10 (2021)

And Real!Cass kicking the asses of Scarecrow's minions for her brother so he can come to Christmas dinner with them:

[A sign that says 'Merry Christmas Nightwing! Love Secret Santa] Fear Toxin hallucinations can do a lot of things...but they don't kick butts and leave notes. That's more of a Cassandra Cain move.

"Cass insisted she go out and pick you up a last-minute Secret Santa gift...and then radioed that you'd been out without your ventilator and she was going to clean up the mess as your present." "Cass! It was you! Merry Christmas. It's one of the best gifts I've ever gotten." "Better than another pair of headphones."

Basically: they're super cute and have a ton of mutual respect for each other, and we deserve far more Dick-Cass interactions than we've gotten.

[dextixer]

RT is CRWBY and CRWBY is RT

For a long time now, especially right now i see a lot of people say things like "Roosterteeth is not the same as CRWBY!" "CRWBY is innocent of the things that Roosterteeth is doing!". Of course this is mostly in response to RT being caught up in yet another scandal of abuse or some other sort of fucky wucky. The most recent one being queerbaiting with BB over... Completely unrelated content. Something that most critics could have told you like 3-4 years ago, but the FNDM is only now catching on.

The other times people try to pretend that the problems of RWBY are because "CRWBY has limited resources" and they pretend that RT is some sort of evil overlord hanging over CRWBY and not giving them time/resources to make RWBY.

So, i took some time to go over a few names of people who produce this show for the sole reason of proving a simple TRUTH. That there is almost NO difference between CRWBY and RT. They are the SAME company with the SAME people.

(Directors)

Kerry Shawcross - Director of RWBY from V3 - Core member of RT

Gray Haddock - Co-Director of RWBY V3-5 - Head of Animation at RT

Miles Luna - Writer, Assistant director V3-5 - Head writer of Animation 2015-2018, core member of RT

Connor Pickens - Co-Director V6-7 - Lead Editor of RT

(Producers)

Matt Hullum - Executive Producer of RWBY - Chief content officer and co-founder of RT (CEO - 2012-2019) - His wife is a VO in the show for Raven Branwen.

Koen Wooten - producer / supervising producer 2015-2019 - Supervising producer of RT animation division

Joe Clary - Lead producer of RWBY 2017-2020 - Producer at RT

Nick Todd - Animation associate producer of RWBY 2019-2023 - Pre-production/outsourcing producer at RT

(Voice Actors)

Jack Pattillo - Co-Founder of Achievement Hunter - VA for Junior

Michael Jones - Core member of AH - VA for Sun Wukong

Lindsay Jones - Core editor of AH - VA for Ruby Rose

Barbara Dunkelman - Creative director of RT - VA for Yang Xiao Long

Burnie Burns - Co-founder of RT - CEO - CCO - VA for Taiyang Xiao Long

They Knew

Many of the highest ranking members of RT were involved in the production of RWBY. Heads of animation, Co-founders, Head Writers. People who were the leads of entire DEPARTMENTS of RT creation.

These people KNEW about EVERYTHING that happened at RT. RT is not some foreign entity from CRWBY. CRWBY is RT. RT is CRWBY.

The only parts of CRWBY that are not related to RT management are ANIMATORS and other such workers. And guess what, most of them are now FIRED.

Workers not getting paid, frat boy culture, bigoted culture, overwork etc. Were the fault of the SAME RT members that are a part of CRWBY.

And absolutely NOONE can even try to imply that the reason RWBY had problems because of "higher ups at RT" when those same Higher ups of RT worked on RWBY DIRECTLY. Including the CEO of the company and Co-Founders.

Also, as a note, Blizz fanboys tried to pull the same shit when Blizzard abuses came to light. "Its not the department that i like! My WoW team was innocent! My Overwatch team was innocent". Fucking bullshit, all of it.

[jellymeduza]

1250 followers gift - take a peek at my medievalish fantasy game (part 5/?)

part 1 | part 2 | part 3 | part 4

After a break, we move on to the Magic household, or actually both of them. Elders and their children live separatedly.

On this lot live two elderly couples: Baltazar and Salamandra, and Gargamel and Hogata.

I use @midgethetree's edit of aging controller, so witches live longer than regular Sims.

I also use hereditary supernaturalism, so children inherit powers when they age to teens.

Going left to right:

Gargamel is Hogata's husband and father of Janka, Barbara and Łucja (or Lucy, I can't make up my mind about translating this name). He is evil wizard. His personality is 6/5/3/9/2 and his aspiration is fortune.

Salamandra is Baltazar's wife and mother of Eugene Magic (the wizard at the court of the Dariuses). She is good witch and works in alchemy (a.k.a. science). Her personality is 5/8/6/3/3. Her aspiration is knowledge.

Hogata is Gargamel's wife and mother of anka, Barbara and Łucja/Lucy. She is neutral witch. Her personality is 5/8/6/3/3. Her aspiration is knowledge.

Baltazar is Salamandra's husband and father of Eugene Magic. He's evil wizard. His personality is 4/7/8/3/3 and his aspiration is fortune.

Turquoise (on Baltazar's shoulder) is their dragon pet.

The second Magic household is much more crowded. It is inhabited by three sisters and their children.

The sisters run a magic shop, where they sell potions, cures and magic artefacts.

Left to right:

Łucja (Lucy) is the youngest daughter of Gargamel and Hogata. Even though, she is Eugene's wife, they live apart. They have three kids: Alice, Merlin (red-head boy with short hair) and Magus (red-head boy with long hair). She is infallibly good witch with her magic skills maxed out. She's got great relationship with Janka but doesn't get along with Barbara. She's got 10 points in logic and 5 both in creativity and cleaning. Her personality is 4/10/4/4/3, socially awkward, family-oriented, workaholic, virtuoso. Her favourite colour is white. Her first personality is knowledge and secondary is family.

The boy sitting in front of Łucja is her nephew, Arthur. He is son of Janka and Caligula, and elder twin of Octavian. He's also a half-sibling of his cousin, Arcadius (weird family relationships, let's go!). His personality is 10/10/1/8/0, snob, loves to swim, hates the outdoors.

Alice is the eldest child of Łucja and Eugene. She is a teenager who only recently unlocked her powers. She's learning magic and once she's old enough she will study at the magic university - Artes Magicae. She reached her rebellious teen phase as she fears casting good spells. xD Her personality is 7/4/9/8/1, hates the outdoors, love to swim, family-oriented, absent-minded. Her favourite colour is blue. Her aspiration is knowledge.

Merlin is the younger twin of Magus (yes, there are two sets of twins in this family. No, it wasn't on purpose) and the youngest child of Łucja and Eugene. His personality is 4/10/10/2/9, night owl, family-oriented, loves the outdoors.

Next to Merlin, his elder twin Magus is playing with a cat, Fang. Magus' personality is 4/5/6/10/10, brave, artistic, heavy sleeper.

Janka is the eldest daughter of Gargamel and Hogata. She is a mother of Arthur and Octavian. She's a neutral witch. She had a brief affair with Caligula Claudius, which resulted in twin pregnancy. Of course at the same time her sister Barbara had an affair with Caligula as well, bruh. Anyway, Janka gets along with both of her sisters. She works in medicine and is a licenced physician. She's got 6 points of cooking skill, 7 points of both mechanical and cleaning, 10 points of body skill. Her personality is 2/8/2/6/7, adventurous, workaholic, bookworm, kleptomaniac, artistic. Her favourite colour is brown. Her aspiration is knowledge.

The boy hanging on the chandelier is Octavian, younger twin of Arthur. He is son of Janka and Caligula, and half-sibling of his cousin Arcadius. His personality is 5/7/4/8/10, artistic, ambitious, genius.

Then we've got Arcadius, son of Barbara and Caligula. He spent his infancy and early toddlerhood living with his maternal grandparents, only then Barbara took care of her son. Like his half-siblings, he doesn't know they are so closely related. His personality is 4/9/9/8/5, heavy sleeper, bookworm, good sense of humor.

Barbara is the middle daughter of Gargamel and Hogata. She is a mother of Arcadius. She's an atrociously evil witch and has a familar cat called Fang. She had a brief affair with Caligula Claudius. She works in entertainment. She's got 6 points of mechanical skill, 7 points of creativity, 8 points of cleaning and 10 points of body skill. Her personality is 7/5/9/3/1, over-emotional, loves the outdoors, heavy sleeper, supernatural fan, socially awkward. Her favourite colour is black. Her aspiration is knowledge.

Fang is mid between genius and doofus, mid between lazy and hyper, independent, cowardly and mid pigpen between finicky.

Next up, the Monks!

part 6 | part 7 | part 8

[wackyscreamswithraisin]

Indefinite Hiatus and Clearing the air BIG TW ON //PERSONAL

Before I say anything this is the fanfic summary: It’s/ it was revolving around Raisin and Malcom (and Hamilton) from the Smart Talk With Raisin short, somehow stealing a meta cartoon remote from the, inaccessible to them; Cartoon Network ‘toonworld’ (like when you see the characters crossover in CN bumpers). They’d watch Courage the Cowardly Dog on their tv in their room like a comfort, but with the remote they start meddling with the character’s awareness of meta for entertainment - and when Barbara accidentally fuses with a glitched artefact, she is unable to be reverted to normal and she breaks the constructs of her own minor characterdom to try and track them down. The fic idea has changed a lot over the years but that’s what it (currently) has changed to. It’s rather Pibby adjacent and would focus on a lot of what’s changed about cartoons between every half decade - yeah it’s very complicated and over the top lol.

I know y’all are sick of me making these long ass walls of texts instead of proper content and I’m really sorry I keep pulling this 💀. I was going to make a nicer pinned posts] of explanation but since this blog is in a confusing place at the moment I just decided to do it quick instead so I don’t put it off.

For those who don’t want to read the full thing: TLDR,

1. I have personal attachment to Fred that has probably affected my judgement

2. My thoughts on Fred as schizophrenic rep is certainly not universal and the partial embarrassment about writing content revolving around him continues to catch up with me

3. The related problems below are reason why I have been so adverse to seeing Fred as being a r-pist m—-ster or SA’er

And 4. I’m starting to accept that it’s not that deep if my fanfic never gets told. Even if it would make me happy, it’s not the end of my work or me if I don’t. Nevertheless I hope you all understand and I’m sorry for any disappointment.

On the personal issue: First, bc some might not know, I am mentally ill and have had a vague diagnosis of psychosis for years that was never fully decided and that I understand now and abridge as ‘schizopsec’, but follows all the traits of OSDD 1B, enough that I tend to use both terms. ‘Fred’ is one of my alters - he’s my main ISH (internal self helper), caretaker, and fictive (fictional introject), and he has been for around 10 years. This is not a joke. This is as cringe as it sounds, even worse in real life when he fronts of course, and is embarrassing for me to admit even when I attach this post to my main blog where I share schizospec upliftment posts. It’s a complicated and excruciating subject matter for many many reasons, and it’s important that I clarify this, even though it’s uncomfortable for me, since this naturally affects my ability of separating Fred the alter from Freaky Fred in my writing and art. This is part of why I have to keep scrutinising my writing drafts. I believe I can keep them separate, but this is part of the reason why I guess my attachment for him and making content to do with him is there at all.

My thoughts on Freaky Fred in episode : As a schizospec, putting the alter aside, schizophrenic representation means the world and the moon and the stars to me, even when it’s bad. I can’t tell if this is an agreeable opinion amongst other schizospec/ psychotic people, but even damaging and dangerous rep involving homicidality like the axe crazy maniacs have something of catharsis in their rises and falls that I can appreciate, depending. Sexually depraved and violent rep however, crosses a line; obviously schizo killers in fiction are heavily drenched in misinformed stigma and is mostly bullshit and can be dangerous- we are dramatically far more likely to hurt ourselves or be hurt - but I think most people would agree that sexual violence is a different evil altogether, and I cannot stand to see the marginalised mentally ill conflated with such horrendous shit.

There’s the problem. I think Fred is a schizophrenic; other than him getting the equivalent to straightjacketed at the end and taken to presumably some asylum or how he narrates/ talks/rhymes in his own head and otherwise barely talks just disjointedly - he’s got that classic 90s-00s cartoon crazy grin and is instilling fear in the viewer through said unbalancedness,his whole deal is very ‘of its time’ on displaying scary madness. And, all that being said, even though he’s clearly not good rep by any stretch of the imagination, he doesn’t harm anyone - he’s even ‘nice’ - or at least doesn’t seem to be blatantly malicious. The bar is on the floor, but that’s already better than idk William Afton or something.

Fred as a predator: The point of view of Fred as a metaphorical molester is pretty obvious and is a popular opinion, and it would be dishonest to say I don’t completely see it, especially with how he says naughty - the implication steers more into the sexual predator area. Hair shaving isn’t violent as much as taking something away - subtracting, and this can be interpreted in a murderous or SA fashion, but the murderous interpretation I stick with, one akin to Sweeney Todd, is a very flattering view of it and I know it. It’s easy to see how it comes off fetishistic which favours an SA view and is naturally the reason why a lot of people see it as rapey.

The episode as a metaphor for SA or CSA enabled in a household that turns the other way is popular, and at first I didn’t like this theory because it felt like a dark theory made almost to tarnish child content with a deeper or darker meaning, which I had seen a lot elsewhere. But this wasn’t really honest; ‘The Mask’ works well as an episode with no subtext but is respected moreso as an episode clearly about domestic abuse and misandry born from trauma. ‘Freaky Fred’ can also be this.

I think the well and honest truth for me is, even when I do everything I can to touch grass, and remove my personal connection to the character/ the idea of him through the alter, away from the conversation; I really don’t want Fred to be a schizophrenic and a sexual predator character at the same time, and I cannot remove my view of him as the first one, but I have to admit that, in some ways, both was intended for him and this episode in some variation. It’s pretty upsetting to think about; I know a majority audience isn’t going to be that invested in the representation of mad people, especially not in cartoon antagonists, but it matters a lot to me. Obviously it would still be bad if he wasn’t a crazy character and it would still be scary and awful if he acted more ‘normal’, but that craziness is there and the combination feels particularly wretched because, once again, schizophrenics are far more likely to be victimised.

What I’m trying to say with all this; Fred is a mad character who despite being the most offputting and scary character I’ve ever seen in my life, managed to become irremovable from my psyche for almost my whole life, for better and for worse, and in some small way, seeing him as so scary and uncomfortable, but equally ‘good-willed’ and harmless by technicality in that episode, made me feel a little less alone. But people who have been yucked out by this blog and this fixation as I said before are fully in their right, and I am taking a step back to consider if I want to continue with making stuff to do with Fred or not.

The fanfic?: I still think about the story a lot but as you can probably tell I’ve made it very convoluted by involving a meta narrative, and as I’m just about to head into university by the time I’m writing this, it’s difficult to tell what will come of this. I will let you all know, but it’s in a continuous grey area and I don’t want anyone to get their hopes up. I’m sorry.

Will I still post art?: Maybe haha, I never know how to feel when I post it. Sometimes I worry it gives off the impression that I ship post-shaving incident Barbred (I don’t) or that I endorse Fred’s ‘freakiness’ at all. And sometimes I think it just looks bad, as in not a good recreation of the ctcd art style, or too sad - like idk why I think the audience is just going to understand these alarmingly emotional pieces when I’ve been pretty scarce on context, I apologise for everyone’s who’s gotten tonal whiplash scrolling. Fred art may come up elsewhere on my other blog which I will reblog here if I think it’s appropriate.

If you read all the way thank you so much💚, I hope you get what I’m saying, and if you don’t I understand. Consider following my main zebedeezing if you want somewhere I post more often though non ctcd related.

[trainer-sean]

DPxDC Prompt: Pokémon Au

@stealingyourbones

@im-totally-not-an-alien-2

@new-revenant

pokemon au Dp x Dc

most of the ghost stuff is different, because its now the Fenton's studying The Ghost typing, which, they are now morally correct. due to studying it and have machines processing the Ghost Type Infinity energy, they've had alot of ghost types born from their machines, and alot collect around their home. Danny has developed a Ghost type alignment in his Aura(aura having wave lengths with infinity energy, which affects some traits a person has, like water type alignment are good at swimming and holding their breath) due to his parents studys letting the G.T. infinity energy radiating through the house influencing his aura development while it was developing.

the Fenton are the local professors in town, but mostly pass out Ghost, Dark, Fairy, and Psychic types due to their studys being connected to them.

When they find Danny has a Ghost Type Alignment, with secondary Ice and Psychic, they give him a Dreept they had been previously studying for his starter pokemon.

Jazz has previously been on a journey, with a Teddiursa, she caught psychic types and many pokemon good for Emotional support and therapy due to her developing her like of Psychology during her journey, she made it to 4 gym badges before deciding to head home for studying, splitting up with her traveling companion, Harleen Quinzel, a friend who shared similar likes. However, she would later be kidnapped and tortured by Joker, eventually becoming Harley Quinn, her pokemon have been confiscated, and given to Jazz, to keep them safe.

DC is still a heavy part here.

due to pokemon and pokemon league being a thing, Civilians will help apprehend criminals, due to pokemon training originally being a Crime deterrent. this has also turned away multiple invasions. also, Apocalypse(can't remember jow to spell that name) was destroyed long ago by Arceus, Dialga, Palkia, and Giratina, so no Darkseid. isn't it great when God's actually do their jobs.

starters: Danny with Dreepy, Sam with Bounsweet, Tucker with Togedimaru, and Jazz with Teddiursa.

when Danny goes on his journey at 14, he, Sam, Tucker, and Jazz, head out to travel Unova. Jazz here to mentor and chaperone. they ran into multiple incidents involving poachers and evil teams, and assisted Heroes, like many trainers. The League actually has a meeting every few weeks to talk about some of the notable trainers that helped them, and even watch the League Tournaments as team bonding. Batman is more approachable here, and he and the batfam use suits that have tech that allow them to use attacks, primarily based on the closest pokemon to their animals. regular animals still exist.

Diana actually uses Burst(from the manga, Pokemon ReBurst), which fuses a human and pokemon. She typically does it with a Braviary, but her people also can call upon Ho-oh or Lugia to preform Burst in times of need. Shes still a demi-goddess, this is mostly for situations where she needs a change of tactics or a boost in strength.

the DP team find a old Temple, one that was recently cleaned out and collapsed, when some ghost types were beckoning for help, after clearing the way they found a strange woman who'd look like she was trapped for weeks, she looked half feline pokemon, much like Killer Krok in Gotham.

Barbara Ann Minerva had been obsessed with archeology from a young age, sense she learned of all the pokemon that were artificially made by ancient civilizations and that Fossils could be revived. But while she was interning for a Professor on a exploration if a temple, she and the Professor were backstabbed, the professor killed and she shot through the back, thankfully not through the spine. They had blew up the pathway, Barbara was stuck, her mentor was dead, and she was likely to starve. she returned her pokemon so they wouldn't have to worry of starving, and started crying. her crying angered something. The Temple she was in was the resting place of the Legendary pokemon Cheeralah (chi-rah-lah), an Electric Fighting type, a humanoid and feminine cheetah pokemon, with bandages wrapped around her legs, arms, and chest, and Bronze markings along her body. Some human was whining in her Temple, she was angry, so she cursed Barbara, turning her into what was basically a Human Cheeralah hybrid.

when the Dp Team made it to Barbara, Cheeralah was angry enough that she showed up, along with two Zeraora. A Raid Battle occurred, with much struggle, from all the pokemon one Danny's, Sams, tuckers, Jazzs, Barbara, and the Professors teams, all three legends were caught. and then Danny accidently caught Barbara.

Gotham, the spirit, became a legendary pokemon along time ago, and still has no clue how to assist with everything, she became some variant of Lunala, but a Dark/Ghost type, and she just can't seem to exit the spiritual plan, which is probably the doing of some wizard or something to prevent city spirits that became pokemon from running around causing havoc. She eventually breaks out when Jason was kidnapped. She looks like a darker Lunala with a more pointed tail, she has a form change that makes her look like dawn wing necrozma, but not entirely, it does look like necrozma parts, maybe even make it an artificial form change made by Bruce, similar to the enhancement equipment Jessie and James sometimes use on their pokemon, maybe even a special batmobile that attaches power ranger style with a ride pokemon saddle part for Bruce. Called: Gothmala.

Something Similar to Metropolis, who became a Variant of Solagaleo, a Steel/Fairy type, who just watches from the sidelines as the superfamily protects his city, but his appreciation can be felt by the super family due to their lack of resistance to supernatural power. Maybe make its presence capable of breaking down green kryptonite and its radiation. Maybe Clark, taking a note out of Bruce's book, makes a armor mode for it using some Kryptonian tech. Called: Metgaleo.

Maybe make some of the other city spirits similar to regular pokemon, like like paradox pokemon, like star city(thats green arrows place right?) Is a Decidueye, but it has a pair of crossbow like structures floating beside it instead of being able to make a bow string, due to not being a grass type. Ghost/fighting type.

And in Amity Park, the Fenton's research has caused Amity Park's city spirit to develope into a pokemon, a variant of Hoopa, due to the form change and Desiree's mischief with wishes. A black and green Unbound form. Ghost/Fairy type.

The Fenton's also accidently made a Variant of Type:Null from digital blue prints and such of the usual species, combined with research files on Giratina and the distortion world, and went through the development program used to process and make Porygon, and went through the Transfer machine. Its built like a mildly serpentine Type:null, no hind legs, the head piece being more shaped like a Giratina head piece. Normal/Ghost type, with the primary type being changeable with the disks. Built like a Lindwyrm. The first one is studied by the Fentons and Aether to make sure its Healthy and stable, Danny is even brought over to help calm it due to his compatibility to Ghost types. Name, Type:Ghoul, evolved/unsealed form called Spectvally.

Cheeralah, The War Pokemon. a Legendary Electric and Fighting type. Cheeralah were once worshipped as Gods of protection and purity, but worshipped members began to enjoy fighting and conflict while protecting the innocent. Zeraora are believed to be lesser incarnations born from Cheeralah lust for battle being so great that they forcefully removed it and it became a pokemon.

(-Legendary pokemon(God or mythical types) can turn into human form.

-pokephilia might be a partially accepted thing here? Regular Supernatural species still exist like in regular DC, so maybe. So possible human pokemon hybrids running around, so laws about catching those types of people are probably a thing.

-possible Ultra-space shenanigans with alternate timelines, different dimensions, Pocket Dimensions, separate universes, etc. Aka Crossovers with different franchises.)

[rulers-of-hungary-tournament]

ROUND 3, MATCH 4

Admin's commentary: ...okay this one is just. Not fair. For once I wish the Czechs were there to balance the score, although it still would be an incredibly lopsided battle. Zmikund, my poor baby.

***

Zsigmond (Žigmund Luxemburský) 1387-1437

also king of Bohemia and emperor of the Holy Roman Empire, elsewhere best known from what he did to Jan Hus, but we don't have enough time to unpack that, needless to say he's responsible for the bratríks (branch of hussites that went on supply raids into Hungary), so fuck him just for that

his rule in Hungary was long and eventful, after he secured the throne, his first order of business was a war with Ottomans, which ended in the catastrophic battle of Nicopolis, later another war, during which he regained Beograd, but lost Golubac, which was an important fortress

after the Hungarian nobles were found to conspire against him, he instituted harsh repressions, destroying many important noble houses, which he then tried to replace with a nobility faithful to him - but that just caused yet another conspiracy, which Zsigmond had to appease by marrying Barbara of Celle

founded the Order Of The Dragon, which is how Vlad II. Dracul and after him his son Vlad III. Dracula got their monikers

supported the rights of cities, especially in his Minor Decree, but lest our fellow medieval city kinnies start liking him too much, he was also the guy who lended several cities in Spiš to the Poles (cities formally stayed part of Hungary, but the profits from them went to the king od Poland; which is basically how it stayed untill the divisions of Poland)

he also instituted another two law codes concerning courts and army, gave himself placetum regium (right to veto reading of papal bulls on his territories, which meant he could witheld the orders of the pope itself from his people; @best-habsburg-monarch might recognize this one)... basically for better or for worse, he was a Big Damn Deal here, truly one of the most important monarchs of Hungary, just look at how long his entry is

@biksarddedrak said about him: "I want to see Zsigmund to win because well: a) catastrophic results of battle of Nicopolis weren't his fault. Those damm Frenchmen once again doomed Europe by their arrogance. Funny enough they were so scared after this battle, that it ended their support for any war with Ottomans in the future. (Forget that whole beef with Habsburgs, that comes much later.); b) ugh, well, he may king of the Romans and king f the Bohemia and temporary the most inportant ruler of Christendom, but it was the kingdom of Hungary he could trully call his own and had here full authority. And that is truly impressive because, well... Hungary was always kinda difficult to manage.; c) the dragon. The Dragon. THE DRAGON!!!; d) and also time to spice up relationship between Slovaks and Czechs right after anniversary of our divorce.

I.Mátyás (Matej I.); also known as Hunyadi Mátyás (Matej Korvín) 1458-1490

I mean, do I even have to say anything??? you know who this guy is right.

fought the Ottomans. supported arts and sciences. instituted important reforms. founded Academia Istropolitana. made Buda the capital and built the Buda Castle. gained the crown of Bohemia and stole territory from Austria. the man. the myth. the legend.

@deetherusalka said about him: "Lmao Bohemian crown snatcher, it's still so funny to me how in Czechia he's always presented as the evil himself and then everywhere else he's celebrated (which is not wrong imho! it's just funny how the narrative changes depending on perspective you learn about it)"

@durzarya said about him: #listen i love Mátyás király and i have voted for him#but my guy had some interesting policies#hilarious information about him: at 19 he captured Vlad Țepeș

@biksarddedrak said about him: #It's not even fight#It's just bloody beating#Matyás is remembered even in many historical legends as a good and just ruler#he reformed military and made the world fear Hungary#first profesional army#he managed to pay not only for the one for a THREE armies at a time#also his love with his wife Beatrice is a thing of a legends#The GOOD sort of legends#also I am completely obsessed with a way how his name is pronouced#seriously check that out it's hilarious#black army

[dailycass-cain]

Cassandra Cain Reading Guide Part 3: The Search for a Arc

Part III of this reading guide for Cassandra is more what you say is "guidelines" than completed story arcs since well, "bumps" occurred aka DC Comics gonna be DC Comics.

Here you’ll find stories involving Cass that DC threw to wall to see what stuck, along with random appearances (outside and in canon).  

Part I reading guide you can find here.

Part II reading guide (Modern) you can find here.

Part IV reading guide (Alternate versions) you can find here.

Part V reading guide (PAIN) you can find here.

Batgirl Vol. 2 #1-6 (aka Redemption Road)

-  The title is figuratively and literally not only meant for Cass but the author of the series itself. Built on the back of some really bad stories involving the character it's another look into the character's ultimate coda.

Keep in mind when reading the series, that that the context isn't just of the characters, but the writer calling out various other Batman/Bat-Family writers at that time for their ignorance with Cass.

It's the only way to fully understand the out-of-character moments (namely Nightwing). It's probably the best "sendoff" the character could get. Even with the problems that are cast all over it.

The series is problematic (David Cain being a complete monster, 0 payback for the stuff Deathstroke did to Cass because during this era of DC Comics Slade could get away with anything), but has gotten better with age and knowing  these strains over the story.

Batman & the Outsiders Vol. 1 #3-14

- Post-Batgirl #73, and the first story since Cass turned heel (aka EVIL). It does feature some gratuitous adult themes involving her in #4. However, #5-onward does treat the character decently. 

Green Arrow and Cass work out some grievances over her brief villain career (along with the ramifications of the Black Canary mini that occurred prior to this series with the League of Assassins targeting Sin, Dinah’s adopted daughter to fill the void of Cass exiting the group), and we get the sprinkles of Cass wanting to connect with Katana, and the latter's maternal instincts kick-in knowing this girl needs some love. The thing is though none of these plotlines go anywhere.

The writer of the comic, Chuck Dixon, is gone by #10, and basically, a fill-in writer, Frank Tieri has to break-up this team abruptly in #12. Making this comic a solo featuring Cass in #13-14. These specific issues deal with the fallout to Batgirl Vol. 2 #1-6, but it does have a neat nugget..

Basically, Cassandra creates an organization (the Network) that would eventually become Batman Inc. The Network is featured in Battle for the Cowl, but there's only one important bit to read of that.

Battle for the Cowl: The Network #1 

- is the last full canon appearance of Cassandra as Batgirl (until Batman: Joker War Zone #1 in 2020). Her, Oracle, Huntress, and others take on Hugo Strange in the issue.

The series plays up this angle as Cass is given the more spotlight most and is given one more moment to shine. 

Batgirl Vol. 3 #1, 3 

- Cassandra abandons the Batgirl identity-- for reasons that are retconned later in Return of Bruce Wayne: Batgirl #1 (2010).  Let's just say, DC being DC at this point.

If you read my "tragedy of Cass" post then you know the various goings on this period. She also appears in a one panel flashback in Batgirl Vol. 3 #6.

Red Robin #14, 17

- Cassandra is teased in Red Robin #14 with Tim looking for her before a full-on return in #17. These issues continue the strong connection Tim/Cass have built all the way back in “Fresh Blood” x-over between their former comics. There is a further mention of the two corresponding between one another in Birds of Prey Vol. 2, but it’s a mention only to explain why Cass will be out of the loop that Oracle is still operational (Secret Society was targeting Barbara. So Babs “died” to keep herself safe).

Black Bat Era

Batman Inc Vol. 1 #6 (first appearance)

Red Robin #25

Batman: Gates of Gotham #1-5

- Cassandra’s tenure in her new identity of Black Bat, “the Batman of Hong Kong”. An older more mature Cass as showcases her knowledgable outlook helping Tim and Dick throughout her all too brief role. 

Gates of Gotham is the true standout story here among the three stories. It has all of Bruce’s angelic kids (at that time: Dick, Tim, Damian, and Cass. Jason was being a bad boy at the time, and showing up in an arc in the Batman & Robin also going on at the same time) all teaming up to unravel a mystery involving the creation of Gotham City. 

Originally meant to be a maxi-series starring Cass by writer Scott Snyder, co-writer Kyle Higgins and DC Editorial liked the Bat-Family angle more within it.

But well, any promise these issues had going for Cass- well DC gonna DC and right after #5 of Gates (LITERALLY THE WEEK AFTER), the entire line was relaunched into the New 52 with Cass/Steph being dumped to the wayside for a few years (see Part II of Rebirth reintroducing Cass and the Tragedy of Cass for the full story).

Solo #10 

- written/drawn by Cass co-creator Damion Scott. Not surprisingly, Cass shows up in two tales of the comic. One of her mentoring Steph during her time as Robin, and the other Tim/her as Batman/The Bat.

You might be taken aback by the later story as Scott tries a new style to his art in this story. Likewise, you may be off put that Scott pairs the two together as husband/wife in the story.

Look, the best way to talk about this relationship was that in the late 2004 to 2007s many DC creative (both writers and artists) shipped these two together. Why you have the extremely awkwardness of her heel character being fully attracted to Tim.     

Tiny Cass

Tiny Titans #33, 39, 45-46

- The myth. The legend. The force of nature. The tiger force. There is nothing that can prepare you for Tiny Cass. A variant of Cass who creates all sorts of shenanigans. 

She is truly is the nickname of ONE WHO IS ALL. 

Future’s End Batgirl #1

Red Robin #19

- Two one-shot appearances. Cass’s first appearance in over three years occurs in Gail Simone’s swan song to her New 52 Batgirl run. Cass appears with Steph and a new Batgirl Tiffany Fox as Barbara Gordon mentors the trio known as the League of Batgirls!

Red Robin #19 has a one panel Cass cameo, Tim and friends are in the Unternet (a dark internet used by DC’s supervillain community) and to combat the digital villains, Tim imagines "backup". Said backup being a Justice League of next-generation heroes with Cass as Batman. It's one panel, but the aww yeaaaah factor alone is worth it.

-Random Guest Spots-

Batman: The Brave & the Bold #13

-  is an all-Robin spotlight issue. It's the ending which might bring a smile to some. Okay, the entire issue was glorious, but that ending of all the Batgirls together. I still want an all-Batgirls issue DC. GIMME!

Young Justice #21 

Harley Quinn #10-11

 Supergirl V. 4 #63

-  YJ #21, Cass is the B-team sent in to save the A-team. Features Cass meeting Bette Kane (the OG Batgirl) and her bullying Klarion the Witch-Boy. 

- Harley Quinn #10-11 features Cass, Tim, Dick, and Babs dealing with Harley running around Gotham dressed as Batgirl (Barbara). Hijinks ensue as the Bat-Family has to clean up the mess of Harley’s time as Batgirl.

- Only “heroic” meeting between Cass and a Supergirl (Linda Danvers). Takes place during the “Last Laugh” event. 

Robin #119

Batman: Gotham Knights #42, 45-49

[wesavegotham]

@fancyfade and I talked about DC's habit of publishing stories that make Bruce look like a bad father, but them also not really wanting to commit to it and openly blame him, which often leads to weird victim-blaming, non-apologies and sometimes nonsensical retcons to save Bruce's reputation later on.

And I imagine that it put the writers in a very difficult situation when editorial told them to create this very long storyline that was supposed to end with Damian becoming the main villain for 5G. They started this with Justice League: No Justice and the Adam Glass' Teen Titans run in summer/autumn 2018, but Death Metal would only pave the way for 5G in early 2021.

Meaning this wouldn't be a fast fall from grace, but more like tumbling down a very long staircase for over two years.

Batman being too busy to grasp the gravity of the situation and thus blamelessly fail to intervene might have been plausible for one or two short arcs of Damian becoming evil, but this was way too long. They had to acknowledge the conflict eventually, but they also couldn't have Bruce prevent Damian from seperating from the batfamily to turn into a villain.

So they seemed to have settled on "Bruce is in fact concerned about Damian's estrangement from him, but he's also too busy and emotionally constipated to ever actually get off his ass and properly communicate with his son."

It's probably one of the few things in this mess of a storyline that DC has managed to keep somewhat consistent:

Damian and Bruce had an off-panel fight in Justice League: No Justice #4 that seems to have ended with Damian seperating from Bruce to found a new Teen Titans team. Bruce's words indicate that instead of trying to stop his son he has decided to accept this seperation for now.

Damian briefly returns to Wayne Manor in Teen Titans #26 to hack the batcomputer and runs into Alfred who claims that Bruce is concerned for Damian. But it also voluntarily or involuntarily highlights the discrepancy in Bruce's behaviour. He seems to say that he's worried about Damian, but then never acts on that worry. He's not doing anything to resolve their problems. He only shows up about 20 issues later when it's far too late.

Bruce's reluctance to stop this from escalating becomes even more apparent in Detective Comics #996 when Bruce asks Damian to talk and make up, to which Damian agrees.

Too bad it's only part of a simulation:

and while Damian was in fact present at Wayne Manor Bruce chose not to follow the desire to fix his relationship with Damian that he expressed in the simulation and rather chooses to talk about Gotham's crime rate before meeting up with Leslie Thompson to celebrate his birthday with her and Alfred.

Bruce similarly deflects Damian's accusation of showing more care for strange children than him by proclaiming that the city needs him and then guilt-tripping Damian by reminding him of the teenager Bruce wants Damian to look for because he was already busy fighting a gang and didn't have the time to do it himself in Detective Comics #1017.

This, well, let's call it a refusal to face their problems continues in Pennyworth RIP when Damian leaves the wake in tears and Barbara explicitly demands from Bruce to go after Damian. Which he doesn't do and Tim is apparently more interested in telling his Alfred story than in convincing Bruce to get off his ass to comfort a crying child that blames himself thinking he got their beloved grandfather killed.

Bruce's problems with opening his mouth to talk things out with Damian before it's too late might have turned out less catastrophic if Damian wasn't equally emotionally constipated. But Bruce is supposed to be the adult in this relationship and with Alfred dead and Dick calling himself Ric there was nobody to talk with Damian for him anymore.

It took Damian killing Brother Blood (and planning to kill even more) and thus DC completing their destruction of Damian as a hero for DC to allow Bruce to step in since now the worst had already happened:

Of course DC had to make it clear that our world's greatest detective Batman had somehow no clue what brought Damian to do all of this.

Then, still not willing to open his mouth to calm Damian down, Bruce seemed to think that hugging it out with Damian while he went through an episode of murderous rage was somehow a good idea.

Which it wasn't. Who would have thought. But it's enough effort so DC can claim Bruce tried, right?

Bruce even proclaims his love for his son and admits he failed him! Which would have been more believable had this desaster lead to a change in behaviour.

Instead the arc ends with Damian quitting and walking away into a dark alley and Bruce also having already vanished.

DC could have shown us that Bruce learned from his mistakes, but chose not to because they didn't actually want Damian to come back home.

Seriously, Jon:

and even Jason (!) went out to look for Damian:

Bruce...did nothing and waited. Again. I really don't understand why DC thought it was a good idea to make that a recurring trait for Bruce in recent years. Yes, neglect also counts as child abuse, not getting involved doesn't absolve Bruce of blame, DC🤦‍♀️

Like, he canonically sat on ass, probably for several weeks after Damian killed a villain and all the other stuff, thinking Damian would return home and ask for his job back on his own. As if Damian's pride and insecurity would allow him to do that. Of course he chose a more roundabout way to get in contact again🥴

Bruce didn't really seem that eager to see Damian again though and chose to repeatedly postpone looking for him to deal with other things. Again.

Anyway, at the end of the arc Bruce it finally seemed to come to Bruce's attention that it's actually possible to follow someone after they walk away from you:

But of course DC can't end this storyline nobody liked here, so Bruce forgets that lesson two pages later.

Instead Bruce decided to wait until Damian was gone again to...finally make an effort to search for him?

And it only took us almost three years to reach this point!

Anyway, we don't see them meet until one year later in our time, when they ran into each other again in Shadow War Alpha:

But when Ra's was killed Bruce at first couldn't open his mouth to talk:

...and when he did he put his foot in his mouth:

How many times has Bruce let Damian walk away from him at this point? You could make a drinking game out of this.

As I've talked about before, this apology scene could have been good...if they didn't feel the need to retcon the events of City of Bane to make it sound like it was Damian's fault even while Bruce puts the blame on himself.

But we could have moved on. We could have had them back as Batman and Robin!

Damn, I hit tumblr's picture limit. Anyway, we could have moved on! No more Bruce doing nothing while Damian's character gets written badly on purpose! No more Damian walking away while Bruce just stands there! No more punching each other!

But no! They needed to annouce a book called Batman vs Robin! With 100+ variant covers showing them punching each other! Bruce insulting Damian! Damian as one of the antagonists! Potentially partially to blame for a global crisis if Waid doesn't give us a twist! Amazing!

Fucking shoot me, I can't do this anymore.

[definitelynotthedarklord]

My idea for a Batman Animated Series.

In the first season he's that stereotypical year one Batman, dark and gritty, a boogeyman to be whispered about by cops and crooks alike, fighting mostly his more reality grounded enemies like Falcone and Black Mask as he struggles to find balance between being batman and Bruce Wayne, and in the finale we see Batman thwart some mobsters trying to break into Ace Chemicals, led by, you guessed it, Red Hood.

Then, in season 2, things get a bit crazier when characters like Riddler, Mad Hatter, Two Face, Penguin and Catwoman make the scene, but none of them come close to the insanity that is The Joker in the finale.

Then season 3 comes around and we begin to expand on Batman's character and the universe around him, bringing in actual supervillains like Mr Freeze, Man Bat, Poison Ivy, Scarecrow and others, while also bringing in Dick Grayson, who Batman meets as Dick's looking for the man who killed his parents, Batman sees part of himself in Dick and takes him in, and offers to teach him how to be like Batman so he can bring his parent's killer to justice, but over the course of Dick's training it becomes clear Dick is not Batman, hes loud when he should be stealthy, makes jokes in serious situations and takes unnecessary risks because of his overconfidence in his abilities, but after a a fight with Mr. Freeze where he almost dies to protect his wife, Bruce starts to wonder if its better if Dick isn't like him, if he could be a better hero than Batman, and thus Robin is born. It would also be the season we start introducing other heroes, like after fighting Maxie Zeus, Batman has a brief and combative encounter with Wonder Woman, and in another episode stops his long lost friend, Oliver Queen, from killing the man who tried to kill him, and in stead brought him to justice, inspiring him to become a hero like Bruce (he'd get the idea of being green from getting green paint spilled on him and a news photographer getting a picture of "The Dark Knight and The Evergreen Archer.") And another episode where Lex Luthor approaches Bruce about buying some tech, but Bruce shoots him down, knowing all too well Lex would use the tech for evil, but the tech gets stolen so Batman travels to Metropolis and meets Superman, and despite neither trusting or even liking the other, they manage to stop Luthor's evil plot, and it would of course have a scene where Superman x rays Batman's mask and sees he's Bruce Wayne, but Bruce would hit him back by sending Clark Kent a pair of glasses with a note that says "These will help with facial recognition software." after he left.

Then season 4 starts with showing Bruce actually going to therapy, and who's his therapist? Why none other than his old friend from med school Harleen Quinzel. This is the season where we see a softer Batman, one who understand some criminals are as much victims as villains, and really steps up as Bruce Wayne, putting his money towards preventing crime rather than punching it, but not to worry there's still plenty of punching, namely against foes of Bruce and Batman alike, such as Hush, Ra's Al Ghul, and the court of owls. Also in season 4 and episode where Robin wants to hang out with other teen superheroes like Kid Flash, Speedy, Aqualad and Wonder Girl, though with Batman helicoptering to make sure they didn't get into too much trouble. This teenage outing inspires Batman to contact other heroes and form thr Justice League. We'd also introduce Batgirl in there somewhere, where after saw some goons break into a warehouse on Halloween, she put on a Batman costume to try and scare them, but the goons saw through the ruse and started shooting, and then the real Batman shows up and tell Barbara to leave it to him, but she couldn't, and using the skills she had learned from her Father, Jim Gordon, she tracked down the thieves, who had been working for Firefly, and helped the Batman take the villain down, but not before escaping a burning building. Commissioner Gordon approached the two of them, but because of the costume and soot that coated her, couldn't recognize Barbara, when asked Batman said she was part if his team. She and Dick would of course be rivals at first, but after time would become friends, and maybe something more..

Season 5, Dick leaves to become a full time Titan, though it's not because he and Bruce have a big fight, more like he feels like it's time to spread his wings and get out from Batman's shadow. Batman would also meet Jason Todd as he's stealing tires, and after taking him in would ask Dick for advise and eventually his blessing to make Jason the new Robin, Dick would agree saying he was working on a new identity anyway, because it's hard being Robin without Batman. Jason would prove more of a handful than Dick was, angrier, more rebellious.

Season 6, The Joker captures Robin and Batgirl, and after beating Robin to death with a crowbar, shoots Batgirl and leaves her to die next to Robin's body. Batman finds them and goes on a rampage, leaving criminals bloodied and more broken than he ever had in his early years, but none of it mattered in his hunt for The Joker, all the while he's questioning himself, if all the work he's done, both as Batman and Bruce, mattered if monsters like Joker existed, and when Batman finally finds The Joker, he beats him to an inch of his life, and almost finishes the job, but Gordon talks him down. And there's a beautiful funeral scene with other heroes there, but after, we see minions of Talia Al Ghul digging up the grave, and it's revealed that the whole thing was orchestrated by Ra's to try and push Bruce over the edge to get him to his way of thinking, something Ra's and Talia didn't see eye to eye on. And we also get to see Joker, in a full body cast, in Arkham, where doctors are discussing what to do with him, and they decide to call the best psychiatrist in Gotham, Harleen Quinzel.

Season 7, Bane breaks Batman's back and puts him in a coma, in Batman's absence crime goes rampant, and Nightwing comes back to Gotham to take up the mantle of Batman and with Barbara/Oracle's help, take down Bane, but they're not the only ones, Tim Drake and Stephanie Brown both try to be Robin but after a lengthy debate decide Tim can be Robin and Stephanie can be Batgirl, Kate Kane, Bruce's cousin becomes Batwoman, Luke Fox, son of Bruce Wayne's tech developer Lucius Fox, becomes Batwing, and even Azrael shows up. Dick, of course, tries to tell the others to leave Bane to him, but even dressed like Batman Dick isn't a convincing Batman, so he takes what he's learned, both from working alongside Batman and from leading the Titans, and leads newly assembled Bat Family to bring Bane down and restore order to Gotham. At which point Bruce wakes up and Dick leaves joking that "they're you're problem now." And at the end we get a little glimpse of the next Big Bad, Red Hood/Jason Todd.

Season 8, After the defeat of Bane by the Bat Family left a power vacuum in Gotham's criminal underworld, Red Hood and his gang of Outlaws take over the streets, leaving death in their wake, but the Bat Family is having trouble dealing with them because somehow the Outlaws know exactly what the Bat Family is going to do, and then it's revealed that Red Hood was Jason Todd and he's mad at Bruce, and it's very emotional, but when Jason puts a gun to Bruce's head, Bruce says he's sorry and accepts his fate, but when Jason can't pull the trigger Talia Al Ghul steps out from the shadows and reveals how she was the mastermind behind the whole thing, how she brought Jason back to life and brainwashed him into being the Red Hood, then uses a sleeper agent code phrase on Jason to make him kill Bruce, but Bruce manages to beat Jason. Talia escapes and Bruce takes Jason back to the cave to try and un brainwash him. Meanwhile Talia crawls back to her father and agrees to his plan, whatever it may be.

Season 9 Joker's back and has Harley Quinn with him, and in a moment alone woth Batman, Harley reveals how she knows Bruce is Batman, but she won't tell because "Mistah J ain't interested in the man under the bat," but it ends with Harley betraying the Joker because she realizes he doesn't love her. Afterwards we get to see Harley being put in a cell in Arkham next to Poison Ivy.

Season 10/Final Season. Ra's Al Ghul declares war on Gotham and exposes Bruce as Batman, but with the help of his family, including Jason who's no longer brainwashed and in his spare time built The Batmobile, and the help of various villains, including Catwoman who says if they survive this they should run away together, they manage to stop Ra's' plan to destroy Gotham, but not before Bruce gets stabbed in the side by a young boy who escapes with Talia as Ra's lays dying. And as the sun begins to rise, all of the Bat Family gathered wonder what happens next, now that they're secret identities have been revealed, but a voice from behind tells them not to worry, as the previously invisible figure presses a button on his wrist a wave of energy pulses over Gotham. The figure says he used some of the Mad Hatter's tech to erase the memories of the Bat Family's secret identities from everyone's mind who didn't know before. Then the figure briefly mentions he's Batman from the future and that they shouldn't worry about Damien, "after all, it's hard being evil when you're the son of Batman." which surprises everyone, "you did know he was your son, right? Uh...gotta go!" Then he disappears. Then we see them all returning to Wayne manor, Alfred sweeping up glass from a broken window, and says "Ah, I see we've survived another night, shall I get the celebratory champagne?" Jason nonchalantly replies "We met a Batman from the Future and Bruce has a son." Alfred processes the information and says "The good whiskey, then." Then as Bruce is getting his stab wound stitched he says he thinks it's time he retired as Batman, the others protest, but Bruce continues to say its just for now, how after everything that's happened he trusts his team, his family, to keep Gotham safe in his absence. Then we see later, at night as Commissioner Gordon stands next to the batsignal on the roof of the gcpd, about to light his pipe Dick, dressed as Batman says "those thing's'll kill ya, ya know." Then the two of them talk about how Batman had retired, for now, and left Gotham in Dick's hand, and Gordon contemplates retirement, and wonders what would happen to the city without him, what would happen to Barbara, to which Dick replies "I wouldn't worry about Barbara, she's made of some pretty tough stuff." Gordon agrees, but when he turns around to ask how Nightwing knows his daughter, Dick's gone and Gordon says to himself "I guess some things never change."

[sunnydaleherald]

The Sunnydale Herald Newsletter, Wednesday, December 6

(Puppet Angel walks dejectedly back to his office) PUPPET ANGEL: Harmony, get my call list. HARMONY: (watches Puppet Angel, confused) Um... (Spike walks toward Harmony's desk.) PUPPET ANGEL: And Spike needs a car. SPIKE: (to Harmony) You heard the puppet.

~~Smile Time~~

[Drabbles & Short Fiction]

Good And Evil by badly_knitted (Kendra, Buffy, Angel, PG)

Seeking Ghosts by madimpossibledreamer (Assasin's Creed xover, Xander, T)

Hall Pass by NAOA (Cordelia, Harmony, T)

Fire by TheOriginalLovelace (Buffy/Faith, M)

Moon River by all_choseny (Buffy/Spike, NC-17)

age differences by Amina (Buffy/Oz, PG-13, NOTE OZ)

Moon River by all_choseny (Buffy/Spike, NC-17)

The Christmas that Spuffy… by Tessa (Buffy/Spike, PG-13)

Sweet But Twisted. Does that Make Me a Candy Cane? by honeygirl51885 (Buffy/Spike, NC-17)

The Merry Month of Magnus Presents... Bare Minimum by gwennie (Buffy/Spike, NC-17)

[Chaptered Fiction]

“You Came.” “You Called.” - Ch. 1-2 by FivexFiveB (Blazinwolve) (Faith/OC, not rated)

Beginning's End - Ch. 1 by arcanedreamer (Assassin's Creed xover, Xander, T)

Advent Calendiles - Ch. 4-6 by HAL1500 (drabble collection, Giles/Jenny, G and M)

I'm Only Your Darkness - Ch. 13 by Karnstein99 (Buffy/Faith, E)

High Tide - Ch. 4 by ClowniestLivEver (Buffy/Spike, PG-13)

Slay Bells Ringing - Ch. 6 by all_choseny (Buffy/Spike, PG)

A Darkened Night of the Soul - Ch. 22 by In Mortal (Buffy/Spike, NC-17)

In The Dark With You - Ch. 25 by Geliot99 (Buffy/Spike, R)

The Courage Of Another - Ch. 6 by BlueZeroZeroOne (Buffy, Legend of Zelda xover, FR15)

High Tide - Ch. 4 by ClowniestLivEver (Buffy/Spike, PG-13)

Slay Bells Ringing - Ch. 6 by all_choseny (Buffy/Spike, PG)

Spuffy's Little Helper - Ch. 6 by Alyot (Buffy/Spike, PG-13)

A Very Summers Winter - Ch. 6 by VeroNyxK84 (Buffy/Spike, PG-13)

Cherry On Top - Ch. 10 by Maxine Eden (Buffy/Spike, NC-17)

[Images, Audio & Video]

Gifset: "A Buffy Christmas" by The WB (1998) [TV commercial] by whatisyourchildhoodtrauma (Buffy/Angel, worksafe)

Gifset: I'll show you what a Slayer really is. BUFFY THE VAMPIRE SLAYER (1997-2003) by spuffygifs (Buffy, worksafe)

Gifset: Angel the Series | 5x14 "Smile Time" by mycatismyfriend (Puppet Angel, Harmony, Spike, worksafe)

Gifset: BABY I’M YOURS — BARBARA LEWIS by detectivedawnsummers (Willow/Tara, worksafe)

Gifset: buffy, cordelia, & homoerotic confrontations behind the bronze by coffygifs (Buffy/Cordelia, worksafe)

Gifset: And while most of Southern California is enjoying a balmy Christmas... by charmedslayer (Joyce, Faith, worksafe)

Gifset: BUFFY THE VAMPIRE SLAYER | 3.09 // 6.07 by andremichaux (Cordelia, Buffy, worksafe)

Manip: I Saw Buffy Kissing Santa Claus by VeroNyxK84 (Buffy/Spike, shirtless Spike)

Cross Stitch: Does anyone else cross stitch? I'm working on a Buffy stitchalong! by amethyn (worksafe)

Artwork: Unwrap Your Present by JSBirsa (Spike, NSFW)

[Reviews & Recaps]

btvs rewatch - season 2 episode 9: what's my line, part 1 by slut-jpeg

Spike's wardrobe change... [in S5 E14 - Crush] by jenny-from-the-box

PODCAST: HELLMOUTH HOMOS: Helpless by Fear Queers

PODCAST: ANGEL gives Cordelia an alternate life [Birthday] by Gimmicks

[Fandom Discussions]

Ask Answered: Thoughts on Riley?? And thoughts on season 4 in general?? by xandersrailcrash

... on the horror of not recognizing your own body... [and Angel asks Harmony] if she remembers being human by dear-massacre and lucky-bishop

buffy and cordelia are like. cordelia invites buffy out to the bronze the very first night they meet... by chasingfictions

POLL: Which Buffy character is most likely to fall for a cyber scam? by aphony-cree

The horse Giles rides in season 7.... by anthonyheadwithanimals

Who was your favorite one-off vampire or demon? by HisMrs and others

In HIM, why is it BUFFY'S responsibility to find SPIKE housing? updated by NoShip and thrasherpix

Do you think Buffy would move back into College Room had Joyce lived? updated by NoShip and others

Did you like Giles? updated by NoShip

If you could change anything about a season, what would you change? by george123890yang

Do you think Willow, Xander and Giles felt guilty after Empty Places? by sadhungryandvirgin

How were the witches at Springfield College so bad at magic? by farfetchedfrank

[Alphabet game]... what Giles quotes you guys come up with. Starting with “A” by TransmanDan20

Buffy S6 & S7 [resurrection and Willow accountability] by johnnyorac

Would it have been worth trying to "curse" other Vampires similar to Angel? by Inspirational_Owl

Ancient Art History themes in Buffy TVS by cryptidr_iley24

Spoiler - Buffy and the monks [how was Dawn created] by mandalinajones

ELIMINATION GAME! Day 2. We lose S4! Vote out your LEAST favourite season. [ATS] by WildBarb80s

Wesley suddenly using guns a lot? by trex397

Did Cordelia, Wesley and Fred have siblings? by JellyfishDry9464

[Articles, Interviews, and Other News]

James Marsters to Attend Austria Comic Con 25-26 May 2024 | @austriacomiccon via dontkillspike

Submit a link to be included in the newsletter!

Join the editor team :)

[2ndbat]

𝐌𝐔𝐒𝐄'𝐒 𝐈𝐍𝐅𝐎 𝐒𝐇𝐄𝐄𝐓

{Basics}

Name: Terry ██████ Alias: Batman, The Bat, Bats Gender: tranmasc, he/him Age: 16, (verse dependent) Species: human ( half Amazonian ) Zodiac: aquarius / aries / cancer / capricorn / gemini / leo / libra / pisces / sagittarius / scorpio / taurus / virgo / unknown Abilities/Talents: trained in martial arts/combat and various weapons and tools. Among other things related to being Batman that would be too long to list. Is very good at cooking, although still learning. Good with younger kids. (if you think that counts as a talent)

{Personal}

Alignment: lawful / neutral / chaotic / good / neutral / evil / true Religion: n/a Sins: envy / greed / gluttony / lust / pride / sloth / wrath Virtues: charity / chastity / diligence / humility / justice / kindness / patience Languages: English, some Japanese, learning more Family: adopted parents ( kind of ) - Warren & Mary ██████ / biological parents - Bruce Wayne & Diana Prince / sibling(s) - Matt ██████ Friends: Maxine Gibson, Dana Tan, Melanie Walker, Chelsea Cunningham, Carter Wilson, Howard Groote, Blade Sommer, Willie Watt, Barbara Gordon, The Justice League ( sorry the list is getting a bit long) Sexual Orientation: heterosexual / bisexual / pansexual / homosexual / demisexual / asexual / unsure / questioning / other Relationship status: single / dating / married / widowed / open relationship / other

{Physical}

Build: twig / bony / slender / average / athletic / curvy / chubby / obese Hair: white / blonde / brunette / red / black / other Eyes: brown / blue / green / black / other Skin: pale / fair / olive / light brown / brown / very brown / other Height: under 3 foot / 3-4 foot / 4-5 foot / 5-6 foot / 6-7 foot / above 7 foot Weight: under 100 pounds / 100-150 pounds / 150-200 pounds / 200-250 pounds / above 250 pounds Scars: some easy to miss small scars at various parts of his body. two stylized top surgery scars meant to resemble the bat wings on his suit. Notable Features: small leftover fangs from being forced to splice against his will.

{Choose}

Dogs or Cats? Birds or Hamsters? Red or Blue? Yellow or Green? Black or White? Coffee or Tea? Ice Cream or Cake? Fruits or Vegetables? Sandwich or Soup? Magic or Melee? Sword or Bow? Summer or Winter? Spring or Autumn? The Past or The Future?

[eughjesusgross]

Positively no one is going to care or look at this, but this is purely for my documentation. Will be updated when appropriate.

Hi, I’m Kristina Sweeties System, and I’m a scaredy-cat-turned-horror-fan. I watched the original Scream film in November of 2021, following with the three sequels before the 2022 film, and then with the Child’s Play franchise and Killer Klowns from Outer Space. I refuse to watch the Saw series and the Final Destination series, as they contain huge triggers for me, but I’m basically game to watch anything else.

This is going to be my list of horror films that I watch for the first time, with my honest reviews of them.

- Ghoulies : 10/10. So campy and insane, a wild, dumb ride from start to finish. Also featuring Mariska Hargitay in her earliest role, good for you.

- Fright Night : 10/10. Camp. Queer. Gothic. Chris Sarandon and Amanda Bearse. Takes a spot as one of my favorite films.

- Night of the Living Dead (68) : 6/10. Pretty good for an OG horror film with practically no budget. Unintentional racial aspect is such a plus, it’s so poetic. A bit slow in parts, with unnecessarily long, awkward scenes, but great acting. They’re coming for you, Barbara.

- Night of the Living Dead (90) : 10/10. So much better pacing, loved that they let Barbara actually do shit. Also enjoyed the different ending. Good on you, 90’s film making.

- Elvira, Mistress of the Dark : 10/10. I was gagged all the way through. The scene where Elvira first meets Patty, there was so much homoerotic tension, especially now that we know Cassandra Peterson is a lesbian. Like, there is no heterosexual explanation for that.

- Nightmare on Elm Street (84) : 8/10. Loved Nancy, loved the kills, but her friends were borderline annoying at times. Tina’s death was INSANE, and I loved it. Glen’s was also a standout, the amount of blood coming out of that waterbed was so unnecessary but oh so incredible.

- Nightmare on Elm Street part 2; Freddy’s Revenge : 9/10. I’ve heard so many great and gay things about this one, and boy did it live up to its word. My favorite was the practical effects of Jesse splitting in two so Freddy could come through.

- Nightmare on Elm Street 3; Dream Warriors: 10/10. A fan favorite, and MY favorite. Love Nancy and love Kristen. This one was so much fun!

- Nightmare on Elm Street 4; Dream Master: 9/10. Absolutely obsessed with Sheila and Alice. Not a fan of the Kristen recast, but you know, you gotta do what you gotta do. Kudos to Rick’s actor for doing that fight scene all on his own. Also enjoyed the practical effects.

- Nightmare on Elm Street 5; Dream Baby: 8/10. Absolutely bananas. I was a big fan of Mark’s death, on a visual aspect. The acting felt kind of dull, soap-opera like, but I enjoyed myself over all.

- Nightmare on Elm Street; Final Nightmare: 6/10. Absolute trash film (/pos) I really like Tracy’s enthusiasm. Maggie’s storyline was so tragic yet so silly.

- X : 10/10. Absolutely fucking incredible. No notes. If anyone has anything poor to say about this film, feed ‘em to Theda.

- Pearl : 10/10. I was absolutely gagged by this film. I didn’t like it as much as I did X, but it was still a phenomenal film. Loved the connections and easter eggs from X, like where the car in the lake came from.

- Evil Dead (81) : 8/10. The practical effects were GREAT for its time, and I really enjoyed myself during this film. My only complaint is that at times, it took me a second to figure out what was happening on screen, and confused the female characters with each other.

- Evil Dead 2 : 8/10. A great continuation with a stellar, bizarre ending. I enjoyed watching Ash descend into madness with his bite, and I thoroughly enjoyed Annie’s character.

- Army of Darkness : 10/10. So camp, so beautiful. Reminds me of Robin Hood (Men in Tights) or Monty Python. So ridiculous, yet still containing so much gore and… somehow a storyline? Ash may be one of my favorite delusional himbos in horror.

- Evil Dead (2013) : 9/10. This film was INCREDIBLE, with great jumpscares, gore, and a compelling character in a format based on the original ED. The coloring of it was absolutely true to the 2010’s style of film. My only complaint is that the jumpscares were drawn out a little too long.

Evil Dead Rise: 8/10. INSANE opening scene, and has incredible kills and gore throughout. I was SO concerned for Kassie the whole film, that poor girl has SO many years of therapy ahead of her. Wish the rest of the film’s storyline had matched that opening.

- Orphan First Kill : 10/10 I watched this the day it came out, not even having seen the first Orphan film, but having enough knowledge of it for things to make sense. That final fight was INTENSE. Stand-out scene was Esther in Anna’s home.

- Cocaine Bear : 10/10. Super camp and fun, but also full of sick kills. Also I would die for Keri Russell

- Cabin in the Woods : 10/10. This was so much fun! I really liked the take on the people being behind the film’s plot, and them all just not giving a shit about the people in the “film” because they don’t see them as real people. The kills were BRUTAL, but also tame in the same sense, like you could see all of the gore and aftermath, but didn’t really witness anyone’s demise thoroughly. I actually laughed out loud when Curt hit the wall, because I knew that it was going to happen (because of the bird foreshadowing earlier). Stellar parody.

- Halloween (71) : 10/10. I love the fact that the darkness aids makes it a million times more tense, you can hardly see Michael, and it adds to it. Also loved the creepy, slowed-down version of the theme.

- Halloween 2: 7/10. Slow-paced, which made it even creepier. Love that it could have been played with the first as one film. Big fan of the jacuzzi scene. Also a big fan of Michael walking out of that explosion on fire. Not rated a ten because it didn’t really add very many new storylines to be invested in.

- Rubber: 10/10. Wish I could rate it higher. This movie was absolute trash (/pos) and there wasn’t a moment where I wasn’t laughing at how absurd it was. Incredible watch.

- Friday the 13th:

[sailorblossoms-snowbaz]

The Same Old Story – list of media mentioned

When I wrote this, I incorporated lines from films in the story. I didn’t want to mention the name of the film if it didn’t feel natural for the character to mention it, so here’s a list for anyone who reads it and it’s interested (and also to have a link to include at the end of the fic lol). I’m also adding everything that inspired me in some way (that I remember) 

Chapter 1: 

As time goes by – It’s the theme song of the romance in Casablanca (1942)

Not ever explicitly referenced, but Laura (1944) inspired me when I was picking the elements: the portrait, a woman in front of her vanity as danger looms, and it’s what got me thinking about clocks. If another movie influenced me here… I don’t remember lol 

Chapter 3: 

The window idea was inspired in part by a scene reading from Maurice (1987). I’m totally going by memory here, I might be wrong about the details. Skip the italicized quote if you’re planning to watch it and don’t want the ending spoiled!

Steel bars from windows are often used to frame a character who is feeling caged or trapped in some way. (Or wooden bars, I remember Hitchcock using a stair to accomplish this in Shadow of a Doubt.) In the ending, Hugh Grant’s character (who is afraid of being outed/an outcast and married a woman for a better political position iirc) is closing the windows, but then he stops in front of one to contemplate his past romance with the titular character Maurice. He doesn’t close it: he’s wistfully remembering a simpler time (schoolboy days).

The visual language is communicating that he’s doing so from the inside of a cage. In the very last shoot of the film, we see husband and wife, behind bars. The steel bars remain so very visible (the fact that they’re white really makes them pop). Heteronormativity is a prison!

Chapter 4: 

The lonely people quote is from A Stolen Life (1946) (not the one from 2018, pretty sure that one doesn’t have Evil Twins. It certainly doesn’t have Bette Davis, which is a point against it)

Chapter 5:

I was thinking of Shadow of a Doubt (1943) when I decided I wanted to have a scene with a car in a garage. However, it ended up not being dangerous and more being about Feelings. 

Chapter 6:

I mention it in the chapter: Sullivan’s Travel (1941) There’s this neat little bit of commentary in the film that I used. 

The leading lady is never named in the film. When the credits roll, Veronica Lake’s character is simply “The Girl” – says a lot. 

Chapter 7:

The title Mad About The Boy is a song about developing feelings for a male film star, written in the 30s by Noël Coward (who was gay) but if I’m not mistaken, most famously performed by Dinah Washington in 1961 (which is the version I listened to the most). A banger, if you ask me. 

Chapter 8:

They’re watching The Lady Eve (1941) a movie where Barbara Stanwyck makes a fool out of Henry Fonda’s character for more than an hour and still gets her bag at the end. I wanted to use a Film Noir with her at first but I figured a more overly romantic movie fitted better here. 

Chapter 9: 

Prisoner of Love (1946) is the name of the song the husband hears. Perry Como’s version. 

They’re watching Sweet Smell of Success (1957). Why this movie? Because I wanted to use this: “You’re dead, son. Get yourself buried.” –  an absolute banger of a line said by an absolute psychopath of a character says before hanging up. And here I made it horny and gay.

Chapter 10:

I mentioned in the chapter: Gentlemen Prefer Blondes (1953). The title is part of the iconic Diamonds are a Girl’s Best Friend. I also mention Greatest Love of All by Whitney Houston. "Loving yourself is the greatest love of all” – a message best heard performed live by the voice.

Chapter 12:

They’re watching Leaver Her To Haven (1945). Movie is wild as hell and in technicolor! It also influences most of what happens in the chapter. 

Chapter 13:

They’re watching City of the Dead (1960) also known as Horror Hotel. 

Chapter 14:

They’re watching The Apartment (1960). A Movie!!! This is Cinema, to me. This is a comedy, and it also just fucks you up. I might or might not have teared up multiple times while watching it.

Chapter 15:

Gaslight (1944) inspired the final scene in the house. It’s part of what inspired the whole fic in the first place, and it was one of the very first scenes I wrote (even though the final version is very different from my first draft). Since I did this first I knew everything that happened in the house would lead to this moment, but i didn’t sweat it. If it works, it works. If it doesn’t, we can still say “the typos and mistakes we find along the way” are The Real horror (I didn’t have a beta and didn’t proofread with fresh eyes!).

And that’s all! (I think)

As a bonus, I wanted to use this quote from All About Eve (1950) (and bring up Bette Davis, an actress whose audiences were drawn to for her portrayal of unlikable women – something I would’ve used with Agatha, a character who can come across as unlikeable, which I think it’s an interesting part of her that both humanizes her and makes her go against trope) but alas, I couldn’t find the space for it. So my intentions shall live here: 

“Lloyd, honey, be a playwright with guts. Write me one about a nice, normal woman who just shoots her husband.”