#I don’t even really need the end of the season just give me hiatus

[wafflesetc]

To be honest I have five to six theories of what could have happened to jay. first one, He's dying in bolivia. Second one, he's coming back from bolivia and they are both leaving for good. Third theory, He's coming back and they are married off screen. Fourth theory, Hailey is kidnapped and that's why he's coming back. Fiveth theory, He's coming back and they are getting a divorce. Sixth theory, he was kidnapped and he didn't call back because of it.

All plausible theories. I don’t think they are going to kill him. If they haven’t already done that, I don’t think they are going to do it now. As for the rest of it, he’s eventually going to have to come back home. Hopefully we see it. Or at least hear about it happening on our screens. We’ll know in a few weeks!

[extasiswings]

i can't believe they're gonna end the season with eddie dating some women he meets in the next episode, like what are we doing here. This sucks.

Okay a) we know nothing. Nothing. Except that she’s in the episode. B) if he does date her, so what? His arc has been centered around the idea of at least needing to try and put himself out there, and that if he gets himself to a place where he can unpack some of his baggage about romance, maybe he can stop being so afraid about going after what he really wants. Right now, Buck isn’t ready for what he and Eddie would be (which, imo, is pretty damn forever as soon as they actually get together) and is a pretty big mess with a fair bit of work to do—for all Eddie knows, Buck may never be ready. Is Eddie supposed to just wait around and settle for a half-measure of what he really wants on the off chance that Buck will finally wake up one day who knows how long in the future and see what’s been in front of him the whole time? How is that fair?

Basically, I’m 100% committed to the idea that Buddie canon is the ultimate end goal here, but I also don’t think the writers should have to shortchange their storytelling to get there. And I’ll be honest that as much as I’ve loved them slamming the gas towards that end goal throughout 6B, it was feeling a little rushed to me given how little time there was left in the season. And as I said after 6x15, they clearly have more planned with Buck’s story than I anticipated. Which is okay!

If (again, we don’t know anything for sure yet) Eddie dates her, I don’t expect it to end up being more than a way for him to work through his romantic baggage in a way that’s much more low-stakes than it would be if, say, he jumped into something with Buck. I don’t expect it to end up being anything that serious. Idk if it would even be something to last the hiatus. But I also think that we’ve been shown pretty clearly and consistently (at least imo) that Eddie knows how he feels for Buck while Buck is simply…oblivious. And if his options are therefore 1) pine alone forever, 2) tell Buck and risk ruining what they do have especially when Buck isn’t ready (and has already in his own way kind of rejected Eddie anyway), or 3) try to move on—I’m not going to give the writers shit for having him at least explore the possibility of moving on. I may not expect it to work, but I don’t think it’s an unreasonable choice for him to try. And again, I feel comfortable looking at everything else they’ve done and saying endgame of this story is Buddie canon, no matter how long it takes to get there. So idk I’m just vibing.

[forgottenghosty]

Dang I miss Immortal/Undead Male Whump with possible wholesome romance as tv shows...

I just got done rewatching FOREVER (2014) and Moonlight (2008) and want to watch more shows and even movies of the similar tastes and it’s hard to find.

(Forever 2014)

(Moonlight 2008) (Fun facts, the character Joseph from the show voices Terra in the Kingdom Hearts games. A book was published years after the show that inspired the series called “Angel of Vengeance” by  Trevor O’ Munson. The show went on hiatus due to the writers strikes and received 4 new episodes before ending, being cancelled, and not being picked up again.) 

I miss seeing shows where the male lead has to keep the secret or deal with someone knowing their secret and trying to live with it. All of it based more in a realistic reality of the actual world, while still be fictitious enough to have things that could never happen in reality as well.

I know there are some show or movies out there similar, but they don’t fit my tastes or I did watch them for a time and then stopped cause they started getting crazy or boring for me.

I’m not one for watching something with sex in it, nor a lot of demonic things in it either. Some exceptions have been Angel and Buffy, but those are more supernatural fiction. I tried watch Vampire Diaries and did enjoy it for a time, same with the Teen Wolf series, but they both got to a point I couldn’t stand them and just stopped watching and couldn’t get myself to watch them again. I’ve tried with Teen Wolf, but just got bored.

I did try watching some of True Blood to see what it was like and only came out enjoying the theme song and left that quick. I don’t think I made it past the first episode.

Tried watching Penny Dreadful and same thing happened. The Sabrina remake as well. One ep and then I ditched it. I hated the the demonic stuff and just dipped. Made me miss the 90s show I grew up all the more.

I used to watch Forever Knight as a kid, She Wolf, and Beauty and the Beast as well, but not really into watching the super older shows of late 80s early 90s right now.

Also sucks how I can’t get season 2 of Invisible Man (2000) in the US. UK is lucky and got the second season of Invisible Man, we only got Season 1, which I bought up so fast. Though based more in science, Invisible Man was another good one. Poor guy couldn’t catch a break. Miss it so much.

(The Invisible Man (2000) (Thankfully, though only 2 seasons, the series got to end with an actually ending.)

Thankful we keep getting Psych movies every few years or so, though movie 2 and 3 haven’t been available to buy yet, which is frustrating since they only show it on peacock, though 2 was on USA recently and 4 is in the works.

(Psych (2006-2014, Movies ongoing)

Enjoyed watching Dracula, the NBC, not the BBC one. That one I hated. I enjoyed Jekyll and Sherlock, but Dracula was horrible.

Dracula NBC ended too soon.

(Dracula (2013))

One I didn’t see until after it aired, that for a time was free to watch on old Hulu, was The Crow: Stairway to Heaven. Very 90′s, but enjoyable all the same.

(The Crow: Stairway to Heaven (1998) and yes that is Mark Dacascos probably known by many as The Chairman of Iron Cheif.)

Which I recently found out they finally have made a remake of the 90′s movie with Bill Skarsgard that I hope will be good. Just leaves adding any vfx and so on they need to before release.

Many will know him more as Pennywise the Clown and leads into why I sat through watching all of Hemlock Grove.

Only good reason to watch that show on Netflix. 

It has Vampires and Werewolves and more, but man, it isn’t worth it in the end with the plot they give.

So, yeah, really wish we got more immortal / undead whump with possible wholesome romances.

[theromanticrationalist]

My ‘The Big Bang Theory’ Rankings

Seasons 1 - 2: I haven’t watched all the episodes in these seasons, as it doesn’t really interest me because they were still trying to figure out the characters, so they feel rather one dimensional to me. Though, there are some cute Sheldon episodes/moments for sure! Mainly he and Penny had cute banter and chemistry!

Season 3: For a season without Amy, it is actually really good - well for TBBT. There are so many of my favorite Sheldon episodes and moments in this season! Also Raj was more prevalent as a character. It seems like they finally found their voice as a show and established their vibe. It is super fun and funny! I mean there are few snags still, but overall it’s a good one.

Seasons 4 - 6: Literally only watching for the Shamy! Their story arc and characterizations is what elevates what would otherwise be a pretty mediocre bunch of seasons. I don’t know why they took a nosedive with all the other storylines and characters. Maybe they only had enough braincells for Shamy?? I mean - fair. But literally everything is crap - Leonard and Penny’s on and off again situationship (their drama was SO ANNOYING), Howard and Bernadette’s whole thing (like what was even their point?? It wasn’t until they became a family that I found their characters and stories had any purpose, e.g. Howard actually becoming a man and learning to be the father he didn’t have. Bernadette’s character became funnier too in later seasons, even if she never was my favorite.) Raj’s characterization was instantly thrown out the window for an absurd string of increasingly bizarre scenarios that were really pathetic. (Why didn’t they keep him and Lucy together as a couple?? I’ll never understand that.) Too many stupid, puerile sex jokes, politically incorrect jokes, cringy nerd jokes, and not nearly enough science. Just give me the Shamy! … who were so perfect, of course! Early Shamy in the beginning of their courtship was really special. ❤️

Seasons 7 - 11: This to me is where the show really shines the best! Each of these seasons just gets increasingly better and better, until it culminates in the Royal Wedding of Weddings! 🦢✨ Raj’s character, unfortunately, doesn’t improve much, but that is its one downside. I love rewatching these seasons so much! I mean mainly for the Shamy (although I never rewatch The Hiatus) but the other character stories get more interesting, as Leonard/Penny and Howard/Bernadette become more established. There is so MUCH more science, as we actually get to see the characters doing their respective jobs. And of course, Sheldon and Amy developing their Nobel Prize winning “super asymmetry” model which perfectly and symbolically represented their journey together as a couple. To me The Big Bang Theory is literally about Sheldon and Amy’s love story, that is what the title refers to, imo. This show will always be the greatest rom-com ever told, following the patterns and story beats of that genre. That‘a why these season are the “meat” of the show.

Season 12: After experiencing the high of seeing newly-wedded Shamy life and their eventual overcoming obstacles to achieve the Nobel Prize, this season is mostly a dud. For the final season of a beloved sitcom, it is actually pretty disappointing in all respects. It is boring even in many parts. It is like they didn’t actually know what to do with the characters at this point in the game (even though I feel like the show could have written itself, it had everything, but whatever) - other than building towards Sheldon Cooper’s inevitable Nobel Prize win. Weirdly, that meant they suddenly developed a HUGE interest in Raj’s character, like “Oh yeah! We need to actually DO something with this guy before this thing ends!” And his story with Anu was really good and developed his character in unexpected and wonderful ways. However, of course, in the season finale they were like: “JK! We are resetting him to factory settings! Har Har Har!” - which completely nullified literally everything they had built in regards to his character - so, there’s that. sigh.

Anyway, did I mention Shamy?? Because that’s what this whole shabang is all about! 😍😍😍

[vinylattes]

8 shows to get to know me better

thanks for the tag @little-orcs-hurrarrumm !! <33

ABBOTT ELEMENTARY (2021-)

my current fave!! i’ve been seeing it a lot both here and in twitter literally the first months it started airing, but i’ve been busy and all that. binged the whole thing recently, and it deserves a long run! story’s well-written, scenes are very wholesome and fun to watch, and what an amazing ensemble of cast and characters!!

DIRTY LINEN (2023-)

pinoy pride!! tfw when you watch a trailer and you just Know the entire thing’s gonna be good? (and they knew what they were doing with those posters)

i’ve never seen a teleserye i truly love since the killer bride and la vida lena, like, this is the first time i’ve been invested in a filo show so far (there’s just something abt revenge girlboss dramas)

neways, international fans can still watch it thanks to the subtitles in iwanttfc and youtube. but i hope filipinos love and promote it even more.

WHAT WE DO IN THE SHADOWS (2019-)

i thought i would be Normal abt it, now i’m a changed person. a mutual rb’ed a gifset of memo being insane with the “and if one day he doesn’t, well...”, and i was Intrigued so i binged all three seasons in one day.

i have to confess that i finally tuned in because of taika, but i’ve found reasons to stay: nadja, guillermo, matt, harvey, the characters, the silly plot, have i mentioned nadja and guillermo?

YONDERLAND (2013-2016)

ult fave! this show just GETS me!! i wasn’t there when it aired, so i’m not really sure if it’s a hit in the uk or us but i don’t think i would’ve discovered this show if i didn’t watch ghosts. deserved a lot of awards and recognition. just a silly goofy show that i didn’t and wouldn’t want to know what’s happening most of the time, and i love and enjoyed every single bit. society needs more shows like this one but this masterpiece will never be replaced imo

BBC GHOSTS (2019-)

i’m still in denial that this show is ending, but i think it’s their time. i would still definitely watch fillers after fillers as they drag the whole thing, but just like yonderland— that’s not very idiots of them to do so.

nevertheless, it’s a very comforting show! love how they truly understand the characters they write and portray. a found family of a bunch of dead losers, what more could you want!!

THE FLASH (2014-2023)

arguably the first fandom i’ve been kinda active in after my long hiatus from fandoms i think ? (i was more of an observer than a contributor back then)

the first seasons were so good. i miss westallen so much. eobard was so cunty. harrisco were my first attempts in giffing and editing in general. i still love them, but idk if i’m gonna be able to actually finish the show (i stopped after s7)

OUR FLAG MEANS DEATH (2022-)

actually a great show, but no longer one of my faves bc the fandom ruined some things for me sorry. it was fun waiting for ep 7 and 8 to air, but i do wish i was there since the beginning when it was still fun and quiet. neways, i miss the brainrot that possessed me to learn giffing.

GOOD OMENS (2019-)

i was there when this baby was born but didn’t get the chance to be involved until they’re like a toddler. the brainrot was insane when i used up my savings for the funkos, the original books and the script book like !! i miss them so much and i can’t express how excited i am to see them again this summer !!!

tagging @larryrickard @autisticharrywells @spineless-lobster @baynton @bluntbeard @moondogss @fiovske @horuuuuu and anyone who wants to give it a go! <33

[squirrelno2]

Ongoing Fics (aka things you can pester me about)

When We Save Each Other (aka clone rebellion fic) - Star Wars OCs and canon clones joining forces to try and make the galaxy a little better for themselves and the clone army as a whole; being posted one arc at a time, third arc will begin posting at the end of July

Nightingale - Julie and the Phantoms superhero au that delves into the question of how badly superheroes might be exploited; finally back in motion after months on hiatus, and should be posting every other Saturday until completion

Ned’s Journey of Queer Superhero Discovery - post-Spider-Man NWH fic that says “what if Ned thought Peter staring longingly at him was a sign it was time to have a queer summer fling but also Peter was just under the impression that they’re such good friends they can even overcome magic” and then proceeds to get wilder and more batshit from there; posting every other Tuesday for the foreseeable future!

The Art of Trust - Ducktales fic that stole the premise of Once Upon a Time and won’t give it back; also back in action! Posts every other Saturday, alternating with Nightingale

In Every Possible Timeline - Star Wars fic wherein a very young Echo starts to slip forward in time periodically to around season one of the Bad Batch, diverging very quickly from the original progress of canon as he tries to fix things; this was me being foolish and impulsive in posting but I have a decent buffer so for now it's posting weekly on Sundays

Not WIPs but fics/series with sequels I need to write:

Sometimes a Family Is - Star Wars mostly-a-fix-it that hands Dogma and Fives a child (children...) and says “good luck, deal with your emotional trauma so you don’t fuck these kids up too badly”; the next fic is in progress but daunting so you know. If you wanna know more about it please ask and spark my brain

SuperFlynn/BatLuke universe - another Julie and the Phantoms superhero au, this time casting Flynn as Superman (Superwoman) and Luke as Batman (which makes sense in context I swear); the BatLuke companion piece is mostly plotted but because of all the Other Things on this list it’s taking a backseat right now unless something really inspires me

Things that currently only exist on Tumblr:

Jesse Lives AU - how it sounds: a fic where Jesse survives the end of the Clone Wars and ends up travelling the galaxy with a pretty guy who annoys the crap out of him while also trying to deal with his feelings of abandonment by both Rex and the Empire; I haven’t touched it in a while due to the Everything Else I’m working on, but if you like clone/oc stuff and don’t mind (or enjoy) a lack of smut here is some writing for you

[lampmanliveblogs]

After a brief hiatus, I return to you with episode 17. I don’t know the title of this one, so no guesses based on that. If I had to make any predictions… probably a follow-up on the stuff with Hunter. It’s probably not a good idea to just leave the traumatized boy alone in the woods. Luz would definitely try to find him and after she explains to Eda what was going on, she’d probably let Hunter stay in the Owl House.

The episode starts off with King and Luz preparing some cakes together. This reminds me of that one time earlier today when me and my sister made a cake together. My first thought, based mostly on the large container of apple blood there was that this is maybe for Eda’s birthday or something like that.

However, King says that he hopes ”they” will like it, implying more than one guest. Guests that King are eager to impress.

Oh, and Luz is wearing the same outfit she wore in Enchanting Grom Fright.

...I...wha-what?

Oh, so it was a dream. I had a hunch that was the case, based mostly on the fact that this came right the heck out of nowhere and made absolutely no sense.

Anyways, an episode about King again? Based on what I know of the final episode of the season (the name), I had kinda resigned myself to not getting any more on the King’s family plotline until then. So getting another episode on this plotline would be a pleasant surprise, but I really do hope we get to hear about Hunter too.

Eda says that Luz is ready to talk. Ready to talk about the events of Hollow Mind. After the intro sequence, we get some brief flashbacks to the recent events. And right out of the gate, we get this interesting revision to history.

Let’s slash and rend and crush and bruise!

Let’s curse the land in nine bright hues!

That’s… not how that went last episode, Luz.

This reminds me of Follies at the Coven Day Parade, where we got a flashback to the episode before, Yesterday’s Lie. More specifically, to the scene between Luz and Camila at the end of that episode. Luz’ recollection of Camila’s words were slightly different from the original, showing how she interpreted them differently. I think there might be a similar thing going on here.

The Collector’s original line was ”We’ll play forever, me and you, when you paint the land in nine bright hues!”

It’s interesting then that Luz heard that and got ”slash, rend, crush, and bruise” out of it. Which hey, based on what little I’ve seen of The Collector so far… that might be very well what they consider fun. So me and Luz have basically the same interpretation of this character

I feel like it might be significant that the writers have shown us twice in this season that Luz recalls certain things in a slightly different, slightly worse way than how they really happened. It might give a bit of insight into how she thinks. I’m not quite sure yet, I just felt the need to bring it up.

Those are some really good drawings, Luz.

I’m not only stopping here to say just that though, but to point out something I kinda missed in the previous episode.

Seeing that drawing of Belos’ reconstructed portal made me realize that even though we, the audience knew about it, Luz & Co. had now idea until now. I think I’ve mentioned before the possibility that if Luz wants to ever get back to the Human Realm, she’s going to have to use Belos’ portal. And now she knows he has a working portal, and the last of her Titan’s Blood reserve is gone… that’s pretty much her only choice.

Then again… Belos needs the portal for his evil plan, a plan that could possibly jeopardize all life in the Demon Realm. And at this point, one of the few ways to stop him would be to destroy the portal. For good, this time.

[miscelunaaa]

some small updates

Hi y’all, I've been logged into hellsite for like thirty seconds and haven’t managed to work myself up into arbitrary rage so that’s good ig. 

It’s beeennnnn ... oh wow. 

It’s been exactly a month since I went on a real hiatus. That's fucking wild. tbh not much is happening on my end. I’m trying to get started as a freelance editor but it’s like a super slow burn. I’ve written a little, but not a lot, and it’s been kind of a struggle trying to find things that count as self care while actually being self care. It’s planner season and I’ve already spent toooo much money on hobonichi and the stationary shit, etc. This year’s dalmajung concept is killing me slowly and Sexy Nukim was just mind meltingly cool. So like, all in all, a pretty average time for me. I can’t say I've missed this space a ton, but I have missed y’all, so that definitely counts for something. 

A few things:

Sacrificial is still getting posted weekly-ish on AO3. It’s not behind their accounts wall, and we’re not even half way the story yet, so you’ve got plenty of time to start reading and maybe get an account there to subscribe if you so desire. The feedback and love people have been giving the story has really blown me away. It’s given me the courage to try to make sure that as I work through edits, it comes out closer to what I originally intended. Will it ever really meet my impossibly high standards?? Probably not, but it’ll be closer and that matters more to me at this point. Please consider reading it if you’re interested! Here's a link, have fun. 

In a couple of hours, I will be posting the first in what I hope is a series of weird hybrid fics. The series is called Animals in Predicaments and I’m fucking vibrating with excitement for it. When I realized I was burnt out as hell in like, July, @thatlongspringnight said I needed to work on something fun and absurd, rather than something that was going to rip my feelings out and eat them. Y’all probably don’t know this but I have a SERIOUS LOVE for hybrid fics, so being able to work on something crack-y and strange and delightful was just ... so nice. I got held up on the smut though so this took me like two months to complete alkdjsfhlaskdjh but I finished it last night and ah, wow. I’m just really glad I managed to finish something at all. It’ll go up on ao3 and mmmmmaybe here, I haven’t decided. Regardless, I’ll be back with a link so y’all know it's up. 

Sooooo yeah, there you have it. I’m not ready to return to this space for real, yet. Honestly, most socials just make my brain hurt anymore and ugh, I have little patience with the bullshit that happens on them. I looked up a few weeks ago and realized I'd lost touch with why I was here in the first place: Celebrating these seven weirdoes by writing stories about them. So many people have lost the point of this community, and it makes me incredibly sad and angry. 

With that said, I’m still incredibly grateful for the people who’ve continued to read my shit and love it. It means the world to me. 

I’ll be back in a couple of hours with a link. Lots of love, y’all 💜 stay safe and well.

[redowlkitchen]

Dulcimer Update: Unintentional Hiatus Edition

Hi friends,

It’s been a while since I’m made a dulcimer update here, but I have a few things I want to share, so here we are. :) Eventually, I’d like to turn this into a video on my YouTube channel. This is a good place to get my thoughts down first.

I took a break from playing dulcimer this fall.

This past summer, I had big plans for my dulcimer. I was going to play for at least an hour or two each day, learn tons of new pieces, record plenty of videos, and generally use my extra time to get ahead with the channel and further my skills as a player. Things started out well relatively well. I was booked to perform at a local farmers market in mid-July, so I was focused on polishing my current repertoire once school ended. Performing at a farmers market has been my goal for a long time, so I was thrilled to finally have an opportunity to do so.

However, after the market, I experienced what I can only describe as a musical collapse. All of a sudden, I wasn’t particularly interested in playing my dulcimer for any length of time. It took a lot of effort to get myself in front of my instrument, and a lot of times, I wouldn’t even make it through my warmup before I walked away. This wasn’t a practice rut. I’ve been in those before, and I’m pretty good at pulling myself out of them relatively quickly. This time though, my usual tricks didn’t work. This felt like something more. I decided to give myself a mindful "vacation” from my instrument. I had just reached a longtime goal in performing at the farmers market. Maybe I just had to reorganize my thoughts before I could continue. That week turned into two weeks, which turned into three. Even when I decided I just had to get back to it, I felt completely uninspired. I wasn’t interested in learning new tunes, not even Christmas pieces (I usually start at the beginning of August!--sorry neighbors), and I had very little to show my teacher during the few lessons we had during this time. (She was so patient with me and I really appreciate that.)

Once the school year started, it felt easy to explain away why I wasn’t playing my dulcimer. I was busy with work and I’m also in grad school. I didn’t have time to play, or if I did, I was way too tired from the long day. Most days, I would look at my dulcimer, say, “I should play today,” and then end up not playing. I didn’t like the feeling of ignoring my instrument. Back when I first started with the hammered dulcimer, I would play for a few months and then take a few months off before repeating the cycle again and again. I know how much skill you lose when you do that. (Plus, think of all the skills you’re simply not getting a chance to learn during that time. It’s a double loss.) Still, I just couldn’t get myself to play more than a few minutes at a time here and there--not enough to really do anything.

Everything finally clicked back into place a few weeks ago. I’m not entirely sure why and I’m not going to question it. I’m just happy to be playing! I does probably have something to do with the Christmas season though, as I truly do adore playing Christmas music on my dulcimer. Check out my latest recording!

Why did I effectively take a four month break from my hammered dulcimer when it’s something I feel passionate about and brings me joy? I don’t think I’ll ever really have a definitive answer, but I do have a few thoughts.

The farmers market had been my main instrumental goal for so long that maybe I didn’t have a “direction” to head after it was complete.

It gets ridiculously hot in my apartment during the summer. Maybe it was as simple as the heat killing my creative drive and then the time needed to “reboot.”

On a more serious note, my school year ended very badly in June. Maybe this was my mind’s way of lightening my load so that I could mentally recover.

Maybe I just honestly needed a break!

Whatever the reason for my latest dulcimer hiatus was, it feels really good to be back to daily practice! I’m enjoying my holiday music and I can’t wait to share it all with you--plus, all the new tunes I have in store for the New Year.

Any musicians out there reading this--have you ever gone through a hiatus like this? Do you know how it happened? How did you get back? I’d love to hear from you!

I hope everyone can enjoy the holiday season! Thanks for reading my extra long post. :)

[captainskyson]

AO3 Q&A

Saw this from @talldecafcappuccino a while back and saved it for later, mucho life happened and I forgot about it, then just found it again in my drafts and thought “hey, it’s been a long time since I’ve done a Tumblr q&a post. Why not.”

1. How many works do you have on Ao3?

132

2. What’s your current Ao3 word count?

1,803,382

3. How many fandoms have you written for and what are they?

On Ao3, 7 - but I can think of 3 more off the top of my head that never saw the light of the Internet. A handful are just one-offs, too. But the full list I can think of, most-prolific to least, is: Agents of SHIELD, Buffy, The Blacklist, Harry Potter, The Man in the High Castle, Longmire, CSI, MCU, Ted Lasso.

4. What are your top 5 fics by kudos?

GH-325 (Agents of SHIELD) - my first baby! I hadn’t finished, due to show circumstances and becoming a bit disillusioned to writing for it (the show, not the ship), but I refuse to give it up. It’s still a wip, just in long hiatus. Too many people have supported this one over the years for me to give it up… despite the apologetically loooong hiatus.

I Need A Bad Idea (BtVS) - my true baby; this fic is a beast. It’s ridiculous. When I first surpassed GH-325 word count numbers I wondered what the hell I was doing - now well beyond, I just roll with the chaos. I deeply appreciate the love on this one because I’d still be doing this nonsense even without it - so it’s very encouraging to have it. ❤️

Sweet Nothings (The Blacklist) - to be honest, I’m just now discovering this is my #3 kudos’d fic. A pleasant surprise! This one was pure fun to write, and I’m more than pleased to give Lizzington shippers something positive to indulge in, considering… everything.

A Cover Is Not The Book (BtVS) - one of my earlier BG fics. A fully light-hearted story which I know can be rare for these two haha.

Secrets and Surprises (Agents of SHIELD/MCU) - my indulgent attempt at writing a Tony Stark-Daisy Johnson friendship - FUN. Also, of course, Lola is a main feature. 😍🚘

5. Do you respond to comments? Why or why not.

I try to! Even if it’s just a thank you - I really do appreciate every single comment on a story and I like to try and show that. Sometimes I accidentally miss some, but yeah usually I do my best to respond.

6. What’s the fic you’ve written with the angstiest ending?

I don’t do angst very well. I’ve been told otherwise (😅) but I’m just a sucker for my happy (or at least hopeful) endings. Two of my Buffy fics, Shrike and Beloved, are pretty angsty UNTIL the end… lol.

7. Do you write crossovers? What’s the craziest one you’ve written?

Not as a habit. Technically a few of my AoS fics could count as crossovers, even though I’m firmly of the belief that SHIELD *is* just as canon as the rest of the MCU (Or it was??? I lost track of the plot after season 6.) A number of years ago I wrote a Buffy/MCU crossover fic that just makes me laugh now… it’s a little nuts, as it spawned from a weird dream I had haha. It was actually also my first Ao3 posting for my beloved ship…

8. Have you ever received hate on a fic?

Oh yes. The most hateful comments tend to spawn elsewhere, but I’ve had two or three silly-gooses forget that they have a ‘back’ button on their Ao3 browser. 99.9% of the time Ao3 is a lovely community though. But I also tend to live in smaller corners of fandoms, we keep to ourselves. 🤙

9. Do you write smut?

Does one make lemonade out of lemons? 🤣 🍋🍋🍋

10. Have you ever had a fic stolen?

Not that I know of.

11. Have you ever co-written a fic before?

Yessss - Lemon Giles! I am deeply proud of this collab. It was one of the most magical writing experiences of my life. Two people, a shared Google doc, opposite time zones and a chaotic level of shippy feels 😂 It was so much fun.

12. What’s your all time favourite ship?

Oof magoof. This is a tough one. My knee-jerk reaction is to go BG, as that’s definitely been the most affecting ship in my life (as far as real-life friendships and relationships made and heroes met and goals inspired etc). But Grissom-Sara from CSI: Las Vegas has been close to my heart for an even longer time. I also deeply adore Longmire-Vic… it’s not often a tv show follows the books (sort of), and/or canonizes your otp. At least, not when it’s any of *my* otps hahaha.

13. What was the first fandom you wrote for?

If my memory serves, I first wrote for CSI, but I first posted online for Harry Potter. On Ao3 specifically, my first posted fic was for Agents of SHIELD.

14. What’s your favourite fic you’ve written?

Oh dang it, I cannot pick one answer here. I have different reasons for favourites: “Shrike”, because a friend and I actually had that one printed and bound (for funsies and a gift to a fellow friend, not for dough) and my copy ended up read and signed by someone I adore. The Infinite, because Coulson-Mace was a ship fandom of like, five (bless you), and I’ve never felt Mama-Bear about a ship before, but those boys are just… so much to me. Plus, working on that story had helped me mourn a sudden real-life death of someone close to me. “I Need A Bad Idea” is my favourite in regards to the amount of work I put into that one. It’s so satisfying when all the research and brainstorms and notes come together into a ready-to-post chapter.

[crehador]

how are we halfway through the season again it’s true what they say time flies like the wind and fruit flies like bananas

anyway winter 2023 mid-season thoughts:

nier and uniteup aren’t quite at the halfway mark yet due to their hiatuses (which were thankfully short, looks like no one is getting fucked like isekai ojisan this season knock on wood)

no new thoughts on nier since 3-ep ruling since lol it’s still at its third episode, but finally coming back this week! hype

uniteup is still adorable, though i’m starting to notice more immersion-breaking moments of the voice actors just... really sounding like they’re reading off a script

which is honestly kind of cute to me? they’re all very new of course and it’ll be nice to see them grow and improve as they get more work (well... if they get more work)

technoroid is shocking still the better idol anime of the season, though as i suspected it does struggle a bit to hold the perfect balance between its idol plot and its human/android tensions plot. they did a really phenomenal job of striking this balance at first, but the idol stuff has fallen by the wayside a little imo

it’s like if you’re going to do both you’ll need to do both well enough to justify having both, which technoroid is... still more or less accomplishing! i do wish we had a bit more idol stuff, but i can’t imagine how they would be able to do that without making the other themes suffer, so i think overall they’re doing as well as they can

that’s only for new idol seasons though because idolish7 is back from hiatus hell and continues to be the best idol series, like, of all time basically

trigun stampede is... well... i can’t say i’ve completed come around to it. i don’t so much mind that there are changes, it was always billed as a re-imagining after all, but so many of the changes (most of them, in fact) just make no damn sense to me

i’m not even a manga purist or anything, like yeah that’s my favorite version of canon but i do also love the og anime a lot even in how it deviates from the manga (i even like the og anime ending! so i’m really not like grrr grrr nothing can change from the manga grrr it just... doesn’t feel like these stampede changes are reasonable)

stampede is of course a gorgeous show and i’m loving the visual feast, also gotta give props for the crybaby livio flashback scene because that was quite literally everything i could have wanted

SINS I STILL HAVE NOT AND WILL NEVER FORGIVE: MILLY ERASURE. AND THEY TURNED?? MY WIFE??? ELENDIRA??? INTO A CHILD FOR SOME REASON?????? WHY WOULD THEY DO THAT WTF

anyway i will continue to enjoy the visual feast and otherwise keep my expectations so low that they are buried in the ground, my only hope is please please please let legato be as unhinged about knives as he is in manga canon do NOT take this away from us gays we need it

fumetsu s2 is still good but ngl kinda losing me, i’m just sad enough already that i don’t really need this lol

blue lock is coming up on its first season ending, and no it hasn’t held the high quality of its earliest episodes, but i still personally find it to be an incredibly good adaptation. hoping s2 will be announced quickly so i can continue watching with my dearest

high card is still in the strongly okayish category in terms of quality, wihch puts it above ooyukiumi no kaina... and it pains me to say that because kaina had such a strong start, but i don’t feel like it’s actually done anything all that interesting with its very cool worldbuilding

or, rather, i guess i’m just not into what they are doing. it’s fine and all, but i’m not feeling invested in the characters. worldbuilding is still dope as hell though

tsurune remains gorgeous and... kind of baffling in terms of vibe lmao like what the hell happened in the novels because i’m so sure it’s not as sanitized as the anime, i can just feel it

even in s4 my memories and i are still in such a weird relationship with bungou stray dogs which is that i know i’ve read the manga up to this part at least, probably even farther, but the absolute most batshit things have to happen before i’m like “ohhh yeah i guess that did happen huh”

don’t remember anything else. how did kunikida even get in jail?! he’s my favorite so the fact that i forgot that makes me wonder what else i forgot lmao

tomo-chan and i guess we’re calling it ice guy are still both pretty cute, and i usually enjoy office romcoms much more than high school romcoms because hell yeah adults

but tomo-chan has a strong edge over ice guy. both these series are just in the pretty okayish category for me, but tomo-chan’s comedic beats tend to land while ice guy’s do not. ice guy has its very cute moments, and it’s so so so soothing that i’m definitely enjoying it, but its comedy (especially its comedic timing) is just not really working. very often there are sketches that go on for just waaay too long, to the point that i think ice guy may have benefited from being a half-length show like cool doji danshi

still very cute, though!

and speaking of cool doji danshi, it’s still asdkflajsdlfkj i want to PUNCH a CLOUD these idiots are so cute. eikyuu shounen, the other half-length series of the season, is still pretty enjoyable too! surprisingly, if we rule out idolish7, i think i’d actually say eikyuu shounen has the best music out of the currently airing idol anime. uniteup and technoroid are obviously better in many other ways, but the eikyuu shounen music is right up my alley

last but certainly not least, the vampire dies in no time s2 is still so fucking funny that i’d put it as a strong contender for anime of the season for me. i feel like we’re seeing a lot more of fukuma this season which is fantastic because the bits about ronaldo’s writing career are so incredibly relatable lmao

like where can i get a fukuma-san fr

[wordsandsound14]

2022 Albums of the Year

What a year it’s been. In all honesty, 2022 was a little disappointing in the album department. The albums I have on this list are all ones that I like and enjoy, don’t get me wrong. But I feel that I didn’t have an album that blew me away that normally does. However, I also didn’t have albums that I absolutely hated. Even the Panic! album that I didn’t care for isn’t an unbearable mess, it’s just not good and that’s it. Regardless, I listened to a good amount of albums from this year that I feel confident in my top 20. (I’m sure when I look at other year end lists, that my ranking will get changed. Yet, this list still feels good.) Let’s just jump in now 

20. Sometimes, Forever - Soccer Mommy

I find this album really explores the different sounds that Soccer Mommy is capable of producing. “Clean” was an introduction to her sound and “Color Theory” took that sound and made it larger. “Sometimes, Forever” doesn’t do anything unexpected but it does embrace experimental sounds that she hasn’t yet made. I adore the pinball “With U” as it launches into a electro-rock track that embraces the energy it has while still having an incredible chorus to hold the song together. “Shotgun” is another standout and the numbers back up how catchy the chorus is. It’s the most memorable song off the album and it’ll be stuck in your head. The rest of the album does a marvelous job of weaving the new ideas without feeling like two completely different thoughts, all the while still sounding like Soccer Mommy. A very unique album that will stand out in her discography with the years coming.

19. Lila - Marketa Irglova

After the long hiatus, the third album (and apparently the ending of a trilogy of albums) has finally arrived. Many know Marketa as being a member of The Swell Season and being a co-star in the film Once. Years later, we arrive at “Lila” and her long journey to where she is today. For those unfamiliar, she creates piano driven music that often focusses on the complexities and intricacies of love and its many different forms: platonic, parental, eternal, romantic, etc. She touches on a lot of topics but often, endearingly, looks at the side of love. While the short track listing is a hard pill to swallow after the wait (being only 9 tracks long), each song does feel special if you give it time to bloom. I was initially a little disappointed that after all these years and it didn’t feel like they compared to the past two albums. But living with the songs and listening to them more often proved how intricate these songs are. My personal favorite being “Girl From a Movie” with a melody that touches my soul and calms it. I hope these songs can find you where you are at and you can embrace the peacefulness they bring

18. Dance Fever - Florence + The Machine

The song “King” alone is enough to land this album on this list. Being the feminist song of the year and maybe decade, it has an ability to be empowering without feeling like there is an agenda or coming off really corny/obvious is what sets this track apart. “Cassandra” is another highlight that brings attention to the gothic fantasy that is thematically embraced by the band this time. The thing that does hold this album back is there is a series of songs on here that I don’t care for. From “Back in Town” to “Prayer Factory” is what feels like a very automatic Florence. However, everything else exceeds my expectations and fulfills that Florence scratch that I didn’t know I needed itching. I think what made this album work so well was the subtle experimentation they used. I felt like they utilized Florence’s fantasy sounding voice really well and made music that surrounded her voice well and doubled down on it. I think it’s the best decision they could have made and embracing it only created the album that we have here.

17. Hold the Girl - Rina Sawayama

There’s not a huge stand out here but this album fully showcases Rina’s ability to songwrite while fully embracing the pop genre. With her last album, she genre bounced almost as many times as she could and here she still incorporates other genres but I would still put them all in the pop genre. That being said, I fully understand why if others weren’t too fond of the this project. It doesn't feel like a betrayal from the artist but it isn’t a path that works for everyone. Without a standout, it can feel like you’re waiting for her to break the ceiling and it can feel like she never really does but if you take each individual song as it is, she does a great job of making them unique and their own. I see this album more as a collection of songs rather a complete project that has a start and finish. However, this perspective has helped me hear the songs for what they are and that each one was carefully made to be the best pop song it can be. “This Hell” being a catchy Gaga inspired song, “Hurricanes” being a momentous pop song, and “Frankenstein” being the iconic rock-pop song off the album (I think it’s an actual leftover Gaga track). Rina Sawayama is making waves as a new pop star that has no limits on her genre.

16. Chloe and the Next 20th Century - Father John Misty

This is probably the hardest album to rank. It took all year (did listen to this a little late; believe it was June when I listened to it for the first time) for this one to grow on me. Upon first listen, I felt like the title track was the only standout song (which it still is my favorite from the album) and the rest fell short of what I wanted from the 20′s inspired album. I lived with the songs some more and found some more songs from it but still felt like the songs felt a little stale. Then came late November and it’s time to re-listen to all of the albums I heard from the year so I can make my year end list and it clicked this time. Really clicked and suddenly there’s no skip tracks and it sounds super cohesive and I hear the diversity of the album. (There’s maybe one ballad that goes on too long but that was my only major complaint). It’s so well crafted and I think my only wish was that he committed to the 20′s sound more but he still did a really great job of getting that sound to the modern day. I’m sure this album will age like wine.

15. All Girls Go To Heaven - Mint Green

I did a lot of listening to Spotify’s Discover Weekly, a curated playlist of new music and this band showed up with their song “Body Language” (still my favorite from the album). I put the new songs I like in a “Rotation” playlist and I listen to them and funnel some in and out every 2 weeks. (It’s a whole system) To listen to new albums, I’ll pick a few songs that have albums attached to them. This is one of those albums that I found through this system. (Keep in mind that there are plenty of other albums but some come from last year so they don’t qualify for this year.) This album really impressed me, even though I thought there was places that it could improve on. The songwriting of this group is amazing and you can just imagine these being played in small rooms/live. You can hear their love and understanding of music through listening. These songs have such a great energy and it feels like there’s so much more of their talent for them to discover. I really can’t wait to hear what’s next for them but I also have this selection of songs to continue listening to. I also really love the dynamic of this band and having to women who sing in the band (though it seems the lineup of the band keeps changing every time I look). It’s a little difficult to rank a band on their music and not the potential of their music but they’ll land right here for now.

14. Asphalt Meadows - Death Cab For Cutie

While I’m sure Death Cab has made better albums, I feel this one is going to go under many radars of music from this year. This album showcases that they are a band who have plenty of ideas still for those still listening. I say it like I’m a longtime fan but really I only knew a handful of the bigger songs. I listened to “Plans” earlier in the year and then I saw that they dropped an album and gave it a listen also. I was pleasantly surprised when I gave it a listen and the songs have only improved with time. “Fragments From the Decade” is the perfected indie ambient music that I love from the band. “I Don’t Know How to Survive” is an excellent opener that presents the listener with confirmation that the rest of the album will be a good ride with its indie flares. “Hear to Forever” is another highlight that simply evolves with how the album is moving thematically but hits as a high point for the album. Each song is sonically interesting though and feel like they got the songs to the best of place they could get them in.

13. The Art of Survival - Bush

In 2020, Bush reinvented themselves with “The Kingdom”, opting for more of a modern hard rock sound with post-grunge. I loved the approach they did with their sound and evolving it to a place where that felt like it was appreciation to listeners who were still here after their on-and-off career. I wanted more of their recent evolution and they answered back maybe a bit too literally. It’s an album that serves as a sister album more than a sequel. But damn, this sound is really good. They don’t nail the ballad as good as they could have but all the other songs have a lot of energy to them with booming guitars and hard hitting drums. You can feel the wave of sound with every chorus that comes and the song structures are varied enough so that you never feel like it’s the same song over and over. It’s a great listen that I hope they can use it as a stepping stone for the next album. They can get away with one sister album but not two.

12. Meet the Moonlight - Jack Johnson

I hadn’t given up on Jack Johnson yet but I figured his best years were behind him, being a remnant of the 2000′s acoustic/folk scene. His past two albums didn’t seem to pushing his career forward in a significant way anymore, the first being more of a copy of his earlier work and the later feeling over-produced and sounding forced. But this album proved that he still has songs. I think the issue was that he was happy just touring, being a humanitarian, and being a family man. The studio and notebook weren’t calling him and he pushed himself to meet the page in times when it felt like his life wasn’t calling him that way. Here, you can feel that these songs were from his heart that he had something to say. The music matches the tone and Jack’s personality shines through; the Hawaiian beach ocean is almost tangible. It’s an album that feels like coming home. He has interesting songs and I’m extremely happy that he took a chance on ambient music with the title track and it ended up being my favorite from the record. It makes me happy to hear that he’s back in his element with music again.

11. It’s Almost Dry - Pusha T

I really liked Pusha T’s last effort with “Daytona” but felt that it could be expanded on in a way that could feel fully realized. “It’s Almost Dry” is the answer to that request. His hooks are impeccable and each song feels like its own. My favorite unfortunately has West attached to it and I had to make the tough call of not including it within my top 50 to not endorse West. While I know my actions alone will not really change what his reputation is, I don’t feel comfortable supporting him in any way. With that said, it doesn’t stop the music and hooks being absolutely great, with the only skip track being “Scrape It Off” as it uses a beat and plays of typical modern trap beats. But everything else is really progressive and evolves his songs in a new way. I know a lot of people say that Pusha T makes only one type of music and that you should know what you’re getting when you put on his music but idk, this album seems to prove that wrong and I might bet that’s what he was after cause no track sounds the same and I can tell he used his creativity to expand the best he could within the rap genre.

10. Where the Heart Is - Sweet Pill

Another Discover Weekly band that I found and fell in love with. The best way I can describe this band is take Paramore’s first two albums and they have recreated it without sounding like carbon copies. You can hear the heavy influence but it doesn’t take away from their own original sound. “High Hopes” was the song that got me hooked and still is my favorite with its addicting riff and high energy rock. However, the title track does make it run for the money providing a great thesis for the album. “Sometimes” is the perfect song for you if you are interested in their Paramore similarities. It’s a great callback album to the 2000′s edgy alt rock scene but moves it to a modern headspace. Overall, I’m super delighted to have found this band and am super excited to how they expand their sound next time.

9. Harry’s House - Harry Styles

Separate the art from the artist they say. I’ll do that here. And it’s not like I started hating or disliking Harry that much but the second half of this year has proved how much growing up he has left as a human. The drama behind the movie is difficult to ignore and how he is in interviews (especially surrounding the film) has made it evident that he isn’t really ready for any type of normality/reality check. Being someone who loves Harry, his daring outfits, and protest against gender norms seems like a long past now. He now seems like that annoying little brother who got famous but isn’t ready for the responsibility but is still able to BS through life. It’s complicated; he hasn’t done anything really wrong but he could be doing better. Anyways, more about the music since that’s what this is about. Harry’s ability to create insanely catchy pop hooks and do it successfully 12 times is truly a feat. And a good portion of them are fully realized and the others work well as shorter songs. He doesn’t try to push an idea further than it needs to if he doesn’t know how to fill that space. “Boyfriends” is the only song that I feel falls short. Everything else keeps up with the rest of discography. This album might be a little more simple musically, goes for the pop production, and sticks to shorter songs but I feel that these choices benefit the album majority of the time. There’s a song for everyone in here and Harry’s House is a good addition to his portfolio.

8. Spinning the Truth Around (Part 1) - Blue October

Blue’s last album was such a major disappointment. I felt like a lot of it was overproduced and that a lot of songs didn’t get fully realized. And it sucks because there’s a “fan reason” behind it that really seems to be true for this band. It goes something like this: “Justin (Blue October frontman) only makes music if he isn’t doing well. I’m happy that he’s finally happy and in a good place but the music doesn’t hit like it used to when he was depressed and anxious all the time.” And well... he made some really good music. The news is that he’s going through a divorce with his second wife. Luckily, it’s not even close to how messy the first divorce went. It seems like they just grew apart and didn’t feel their marriage was what it was supposed to be nor did it feel right for them. Yet, that still is a gut punch and you can hear it in the songs where Justin talks about this topic. He perfectly walks you through the emotions of losing a love that you still love. The anger, the sadness, the confusion, the passion, the acceptance, the etc. The greatest thing to come out of this album is how diverse their sound has become. While there’s still a glossy pop production to the album, there’s a lot of different sounds and approaches to songwriting. I can hear the band really pushing themselves to make great songs here and it really pays off. “Where Did You Go I’m Less of a Mess These Days” is my favorite for its soaring chorus and gut wrenching words. “How Can You Love Me If You Don’t Even Like Me” is groovy and incorporates its dark tone with its ambient sound. “Change” is a super unique, sleek rock song that I wouldn’t have seen coming from the band. I’ll let you listen to it but I’m super excited for Part 2 if it continues this new ambition within the band.

7. THE UNRAVELING OF PUPTHEBAND- PUP

PUP seems to have found their sound and seems super comfortable with exactly how to expand that sound while maintaining it. They nailed a great sound with their last album “Morbid Stuff” and continue by going a little harder but continue with their great energy punk with indie rock. While I’m not a fan of the interlude songs in-between the longer songs, they are quick. But every normal length song on here is an absolute blast to listen to. They’re snappy, punchy, and rock really hard. “Matilda”, “Robot Writes a Love Song”, and “Habits” are the highlight tracks but it’s really hard to hand pick the songs off from here when each one is so well made. It’s an album that you can hear it being played live just by listening to the studio recording (but I kinda wanna hear it in a small room too).

6. 22 Make - Oh Wonder

Last year saw the return of Oh Wonder. Not that they went away but their album before “Nobody Can Wear Your Crown” felt like Oh Wonder on autopilot. 22 Break had urgency, creativity, and passion. It felt like that music was the only route for them to work through this part of their life. 22 Make is 2nd part of the album, a sister album. The first half explored how their struggles, doubts, and conflicts lead to a difficult first year of marriage. This album is reaffirming themselves through all the pain that they truly love each and backing away from their marriage and time together would be for the worse. The love is bleeding through the sound and the choice to stay in a relationship after a time of hardship is never more beautifully displayed than here. While there’s a bit more tendency for pop production compared to the first one, this still has a lot of creative ideas and unique sounds. Oh Wonder has still yet to really branch into something unknown but they have continually made interesting songs and sounds the accompany their music. Also the more time passes, the better Anthony’s production skills get. His beats, mixing choices, and selection of effects are really spectacular. Truly a producer I’m inspired by.

5. Are You Happy Now? - Jensen McRae

Discover Weekly really brought me to an artist here that has such a bright future in front of her. Comparable to Phoebe Bridgers and Lucy Dacus, Jensen McRae’s lyrics and indie folk music is soulful, introspective, and meaningful. “Wolves” is commentary on average predatory men and how they affect women’s lives. “Adam’s Rib” is a desperation we all feel from unrequited or decaying love that is out of our hands. “Dead Girl Walking” was my introduction and utilizes its infectious beat to display her insecurities and stress. Her ability to share her thoughts well, keep the lyrics intimate, and the music interesting are welcome in the realm in highly praised modern folk songwriters mentioned above. Her album really caught me off guard tho. On the surface, she’s an indie artist that has a good knack for interesting songs but nothing that really jumps out. The moment you realize what she’s doing and how she sings really changes that perspective and tells you how wrong you are. There’s a lot more depth and letting these songs sing to you is the key to listening.

4. HOLY FVCK - Demi Lovato

Even with all of the discover weekly finds this year, this is still the biggest left field album for me this year. I’ve never listened or been interested in her music. I heard her music was actually rock this time and I kind of assumed people who said this were stretching the truth and it would sound way more like pop than rock. (kinda like Avril’s release) But I gave it a chance so I could have my own opinion and I was so surprised with what I found. Actual rock music... like what I was told. There are definitely some songs that have a pop sound to them but she never leaves the realm of rock music. Two biggest complaints is that there isn’t a song that super stands out to me and the track listing is bloated. I enjoy the whole track listing so it’s a little difficult to eliminate songs but it does indeed drag. Anyways, I was really taken back with how hard these songs rock and how ambitious it is for a pop artist to commit to a sound that would seemingly alienate the target pop audience. This album could have flopped (for Demi standards) and I may have never heard it. But she nails each of these songs and doesn’t make any adjustments for her audience. On top of it all, these songs are super honest with the listeners. She doesn’t sugar coat her experience the past years and has so much self-awareness. It’s how we get songs like “29″ and “SKIN OF MY TEETH” on how she realizes what her choices, things that have happened to her, and everything in between has affected. It’s her art and she made sure it was her story. It’s an impressive album and is executed as so. (I do also apologize if excluding them/them pronouns is harmful. It is not my intention to inflict harm. I remembered their pronouns changed at the beginning of this year. I thought it was she/her but it was they/her. Since they do go by she/her pronouns currently, I’ll keep my wording the way it is but I did not want to exclude they/them without mentioning those pronouns in a disclaimer at least.)

3. Vaxis II: Window of the Waking Mind - Coheed and Cambria

This is one of the most consistent bands of modern day. I understand that they aren’t for everybody but I find their music has always been so carefully made. This time, they took a few notes from classic metal and made the bold decision of making the majority of their songs shorter. If you aren’t familiar with the band, they are a modern Prog Rock band. Prog is known for their story driven albums and longer songs (Rush and Pink Floyd are well known classic Prog bands). While Coheed has a story within their album, it doesn’t need to be known to like or even connect with their music. I do think it helps knowing that there is a story so if something feels a bit narrative, you’ll understand why. However, Coheed has always done a wonderful job of displaying the emotion of the narrative if there is a story element happening. This is all beautifully displayed on the title track, which really feels like a Magnus opus. All of their skills, learning, and creativity reaches its max with this song. While you can jump into it if you really need to, the payoff is way better when the whole album is listened to so the last song has the impact that it has. Your mind will subconsciously pick up on the journey of the album and the final song will conclude this story well. They also lead this album off right where the last album drops off (more listening if you end up liking the band) with the melody of “Unheavenly Creatures”, which is thematically satisfying. Then you have the electrifying “Comatose” and the anthemic “The Liar’s Club”. And if that’s not enough, the band really experimented and mixed their sound with a Eurovision sound in “A Disappearing Act”. It’s a solid release from a band that continues to display their growing talent and professionalism as musicians.

2. Mr. Morale and the Big Steppers - Kendrick Lamar

I’m unsure if this is a hot take or not. All I can say is that Kendrick did a daring move and instead of tackling racism again after the 2020 Black Lives Matter movement, he took a step away to focus on his family trauma and his healing process through therapy. I feel like he even stepped away from flashy hooks in an attempt to make music that felt like less of a product and one that told his story. At first, I was thinking this project would land lower on my list, remembering that the songs felt like they missed the musical creativity that Kendrick offers more of and it sometimes felt like sitting in on his therapy sessions vs listening to a creative project. However, upon re-listening, I don’t feel that way anymore. These songs now feel like an old best friend that I’ve been needing to connect with again and I had put it off. These songs become personal in the same way that they are to him. They keep their impact, the theming becomes so much purposeful, and his execution of this album is precise. There’s so much depth and importance in what he’s saying: “Stop tiptoeing around the conversation”, “I’ve got daddy issues and that’s on me”, and “So I set myself free from all the guilt I thought I made.” There’s a deep sense of self healing and helping his loved ones with their healing. He’s tired of the damage that has been done and the passing of the damage with generation to generation. Hurt people hurt people. He decided that instead of continuing the conversation of racism he started, he wanted to start a new one on generational trauma. While I think a lot of us were doing healing ourselves at the same time during the pandemic, I don’t think there is a better example of this process than this album.

1. Expert in a Dying Field - The Beths

It’s a tough choice between this album and Kendrick’s. I went with this one because of how consistent it is in comparison. Kendrick’s album is a bit like a roller coaster of what works and what doesn’t. And sure, it does feel weird to have an album like this at my number 1 but it really has topped my list for best album. This album is full of amazing songwriting and consistently delivers throughout its runtime, plateauing at a high line. The Beths also take great notice to incorporate parts of different genres within their indie rock sound. Punk, 2000′s pop, and adult contemporary. And it sure sounds like a weird and maybe boring mix of genre’s but it never leaves the realm of indie rock. The catchy melodies with lyrics that paint a picture of different relationships and the aftermath of them are surrounded by carefully curated guitar tones. It’s an easy album to listen to but doesn’t sacrifice musicality, lyrics, or enjoyment. It’s a really solid album that keeps every song interesting and fun. Give this energetic album a chance and you’ll soon be singing along to the choruses of these songs. Maybe you too can be an expert in a dying field. 

[lovecolibri]

SaL anon here bestie and, well, I'm sure you've heard the news. Not sure it comes as a surprise, RNM really only ever had one, maybe two, reasons to watch and neither of those was the writing. Honestly I've got mixed feelings on this one, on the one hand I can stop hoping despite all evidence to the contrary that this show won't disappoint me, which is a relief. On the other, the only reason I still bother having hope for it is of course Malex and the incredible Vlamburn chemistry that carried

most of us through the horrors of S2 even (honestly with any other actors in those roles, I'd have been done by 2x02 with no regrets). Also there's the sentimental value in Malex being what kicked off our SaL based screaming in the void. Curious to know your thoughts on this my friend when your up for discussing it but would totally get it if you wanted to put this off till 911 is officially on hiatus. Take care 😗😗.

Hi bestie! I got your first ask about the promo but had to be in the office working all day for the rest of the week covering for someone (and our new boss wants us back in the office full time soon 🙄) so I didn’t get to it right away, and then the cancellation notice came in so I figured it would be in poor taste to drag the show that day, so I was holding on to it.

I also have mixed feelings. I’ve been out of touch with the show since season 3 ended and didn’t keep up with any of the news about season 4 until the promo poster (for ANTS!) dropped the other day with the season synopsis which was...not particularly encouraging (another season of Malex being separated and doing different things? whyyyyyy are they wasting the best dynamic and scene partner chemistry?! WHY?!). I’m with you in that I can finally stop having some hope that the show is going to live up to it’s potential and focus on the actually interesting dynamics and storylines and give characters scenes together that actually make sense. 

But also on the other hand, Malex. What a phenomenally heartbreaking and beautiful love story, with actors that actually pull it off! I still see gifsets from season 1 that feel like a gut punch, and moments between them where I feel like I should look away because it’s so intimate. The wealth of amazing fanfic that came out of that love story immediately after the show started is a testament to how magical it was, and even when the writing let them down again and again, Tyler and Vlamis always managed to hold on to that magic. Sometimes it was just by the skin of their teeth, but they kept that flame alive through some pretty horrendous choices on the show’s part. 

It’s frustrating and disappointing that a show that truly had the potential to be incredible and interesting and heartfelt was helmed by people and a network more concerned with teen soap drama. It’s frustrating and disappointing that a pretty stellar all around cast with the chops to pull off some ambitious things (that DID pull off some ambitious things!) got stuck with a network and writing better suited for a teen drama. I wish I could say I’m surprised by the cancellation news but honestly after what we got in season 3, I’m not. They wasted the whole first half of the show on a plot that went nowhere and was not needed! The writing for Echo and Malex was all over the place! Malex got together in a very confusing way given the animosity all season until suddenly it was gone. Kyle disappeared for several episodes and no one even mentioned him! Alex wasn’t in most of the finale OR in the big showdowns! The love of his life nearly died and we are TOLD they saw each other but don’t get to see it?! And don’t even get me started on the amount of time and dialog wasted on certain characters that didn’t end up serving any purpose the entire season. It’s frustrating, and sad, knowing what could have been. Knowing that they won’t ever really get a chance to try and fix things and that these characters that deserved so much better won’t ever get it. 

And it’s sad because Malex is what brought us together! Ryan and his music could have been written about Alex and Michael and it’s going to be bittersweet to let that go, especially since our alternate 911 is being Like That right now. But no matter what, no matter the missteps the show made, Malex will ALWAYS be special. There are so many stories and avenues to be explored with them that will keep fic writers busy for a long time to come, I’m sure. Vlamburn sparked something so beautiful that shows will be trying to capture and re-create forever. I’m sure in 10 years some cable show looking back on shows and couples from the past will be talking about Malex and what should have been and we all know Vlammy won’t ever shut up about his love for Michael, Alex, Malex, and Tyler.

And, we still have one more season to go! One more season of Malex, one more season of songs to flail over. The feelings about the show may be mixed, but my excitement about your asks will never fail. Cheers to us, bestie, and cheers to our woo wee woo show and the fandom that always came through to fill in the gaps, rewrite/expand the stories, create stunningly beautiful AUs, and magical fanart. That deserves to be celebrated! 

[whirlwindsworld]

I posted 11,925 times in 2022

23 posts created (0%)

11,902 posts reblogged (100%)

Blogs I reblogged the most:

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I tagged 305 of my posts in 2022

#ml spoilers - 47 posts

#dndads spoilers - 21 posts

#woe.begone - 20 posts

#wbg - 16 posts

#my art - 11 posts

#the owl house - 9 posts

#unreality - 8 posts

#tdp s4 spoilers - 7 posts

#dndads - 6 posts

#mike walters - 6 posts

Longest Tag: 138 characters

#jesse we need to go get some food for the first day of the park tomorrow at the church center for the first church in church and then park

My Top Posts in 2022:

#5

Dndads s2 spoilers

I am thinking again. Gen 4 dads with newborn infants or toddlers. The idea that their kids will have to grow up under the doodler…. They won’t even have good early childhood memories to fall back on like their parents did. It would be all they would ever know. Their is some real Adult Fear there.

I do get why they condemned the people of Faerun. Then the sunk cost fallacy kicks in. Who would you condemn to protect your children? Another realm, full of demons? But its your friend, your brother’s home. Him as well then? Well okay, you’ve betrayed your own, but he also forced your hand right? And you’ll look out for his kid maybe.

Now the enemy is back. Everything and everyone you have destroyed to save your children threatens to be for nothing. Do you do it all again? Delaying it, and passing it down like it was passed down to you? Or do you end it? You can’t undo the damage done. But you can stop the casualties from becoming exponential.

It will end here. Your children will not inherit it as you once did. They will given what you never truly received. Time to heal.

16 notes - Posted October 5, 2022

#4

We all thought Ron was alone. That when Willy tried to drown him, Ron was alone and no one protected him.

And while it doesn’t change how Ron felt as a child, or the original narrative arc from season one…

I think its still important that the Doodler was there. That it wanted to protect Ron. That even a supposedly eldritch horror could see that a child should be protected.

The Doodler could see what Willy never could.

20 notes - Posted December 1, 2022

#3

So I’ve been on Doctor Who hiatus while the current show runner does his thing. It just hasn’t been for me and that’s fine.

But I was invited to watch Eve of the Daleks last night and uh, might have to start actually caring again because holy this got gay and I was not expecting it!

22 notes - Posted January 2, 2022

#2

I wasn’t an autistic!Link truther until this episode’s dad facts.

37 notes - Posted September 6, 2022

My #1 post of 2022

Wednesday Spoilers!

-

-

Yeah they better give Tyler some space and respect and let him grow into his own person next season or I will be rioting.

He was failed by his father and taken advantage of so severally by a woman who only saw him as a tool, a weapon, a slave.

She targeted him, drugged him, chained him up, and tortured him. I don’t think his monologue and violent talk to Wednesday was in an any way indicative of this just being who he is now.

I think its part of the super weird and creepy bond that Laurel forced on him. The loyalty and all that.

I want to see him get better. I really hope he’s not just “the monster” now.

And you know, I get that he wasn’t a great love interest. I don’t particularly want Wednesday and Tyler to get back together in the event of a recovery arc. But!

I’m a sucker for stories that show the fact that boys and men can be victims of abuse too. He deserves some good screen time to just be his person again.

88 notes - Posted November 26, 2022

Get your Tumblr 2022 Year in Review →

[cosmic-pheonix]

So, I’ve just come up with an idea for The Owl House Fandom 🧙‍♀️🦉🔮🌟…..

So with the premiere of the 1st part of season 3 of The Owl House quickly approaching (airing way late in my time where I’m from - on a Sunday no less) I figured I propose a suggestion to the fandom… By giving thanks to Dana and the crew for all their hard work, especially on this season!

And while I’m not sure if anybody else has or is going to use this idea before me (I mean it was worth the shot! I feel like just about any fandom would do that), I was thinking about doing some sort of massive fandom big bang; making and creating fanart, animations/animatics, AMV’s/edits etc You name it!

The idea came to mind after lurking around in the Amphibia fandom (I like to check into the fandom every once in a while) then I remembered that since Amphibia ended months ago, the fandom would joke around making tweets about season 4 happening and creating fake promos and fan made episode animations/animatics/storyboards for like a couple of weeks (even creator Matt Braly liked some of the stuff he saw from fans and had to check in with the fandom about it - You had to be there!)

I like to think of this as a tribute to Dana and her crew for giving us the most of season 3 has to offer, and while we’re concerned of how the final season would play out as a 3 part near hour long special, I trust Dana and her team would be able to fill in everything that’s needed, flaws and all.

As a fandom, I think we can all come to an agreement that since Disney decided to be a bunch of assholes for cutting the rest of season 3 and cancelling the show entirely for not “fitting into their brand” (whatever the hell that’s supposed to mean?!) that they’re now officially on - what I like to call - “Massive Corporate Entertainment Company Hit List for Screwing Animation Fans Over” officially considering Disney public enemy No. 1 (but now that spot seems to go over to Warner Brothers/Discovery, after certain recent events - also don’t ask me on the title, I just randomly made that on the fly so it was the first thing that popped into my head - sorry if that sounds cringe 😬)

Which is why I think starting around the day of the premiere for season 3, let’s get the show trending on social media to show tremendous support for the owl crew, cuz lord knows they deserve the love for creating an amazing show after everything they’ve went through with Disney’s higher ups shady ass-hattery that goes on there, the best we can do is support Dana and the team for the hard work, appreciate and make the most of what we have for the final season!

There’s probably a few bits and bobs I felt that are missing (or just the whole idea of some fandom big bang is already somewhat a common thing here and in other fandom spaces IDK) but feel free to share some ideas here! I’d love to see some ideas to shared around this fandom!

Personally, I love seeing fanart, but you know what I wanna see more of? Fan made “episode” animations/animatics/storyboards of season 3, y’know since Disney thought that cutting season 3 was necessary, why not make make some fan made “episodes” to fill in the gaps that would’ve been a full season (especially once the first part is aired and from what I’ve heard we go into a 3 month hiatus until the next part, which oof, I thought the Steven Universe fandom has a rough hiatus, but this 😳) - whether it’s from fan made theories, headcanons or just something that’s canon adjacent - I think it would’ve been really fun and would really mend the hole in the fandom’s heart once the show’s over (honestly I kinda miss the chaotic energy from the fandom when Amphibia ended and I really wanted to have fun with The Owl House, all in good fun!).

I hope this idea sticks to the fandom because I would love for this post to boost up and garner everyone’s interest! Again, if you like this, feel free to share your ideas here!

Also of course, please support the show through legal means through Disney +, or more likely, just pirate the show and give Dana the crew some support and kind messages! Also, don’t share any spoilers/leaks and PLEASE tag them once they’re aired, especially to those that are not in the US!

                                   Happy Season 3 Everyone!

[kaoarika]

I remember I started to read a series like four years ago and I even made a mental note to return to it sometime later. Then, it went to hiatus after its first season finished. And just now, that I’m cleaning my wbtn backlog of finished series, I sorta wanted to return to it, eventually. So, I decided to give it a go.

But, as it always happen, I take notice in the number of chapters, and at first it was strange to me how the S2 was shorter than the previous one, so I thought of two outcomes: the platform cancelled it (not the first time, tbh) and/or the author was rushed to finish it because contracts and, somehow, was waiting on it to lapse. So, YEAH, this was going to be a trip.

S1 was... deep and quite intense, ngl. There is a message there that could be told by the characters, their motivations and so and so, and seeing it develop really meant something... especially the few twists at the end of it. And the art was pretty nice to look at. And then it went to a hiatus of 2 years.

I know that the platform where it was published on doesn’t have an EXACT good record on these hiatuses and  what not, and there’s hearsay about how in the past year and so they haven’t been fully receptive about coming back to the authors and contract renewals to proceed on these series. Understandable. It also seems that those contracts are a little too unfair about how a series HAS to perform to be renewed, which, okay, I guess (not that I’m in favor of this unfair way to see things, but the platform barely does it part to promote some series when they play favortitism towards other heavy-hitters because they are popular w/ppl).

There’s also the fact that the series dealt with some heavy topics and it’s some kind of a fact that it can do a turmoil on someone’s mental health and their work pace and will to continue their art while developing it, which, again, it’s totally valid.

Yet, I dunno, S2 felt weird. Disjointed, even. And it being shorter, doesn’t help either. I do feel there was too much to explore and develop, just for it to end rather vague, with subplots hanging, and maybe in not the best outcome as possible.

I think S1 was well structured as it let the characters breath a little to know who and what were their motivations. And while by S2 you already had those established, it’s like a whole “well, what do we do here from here?” There were 3 characters to further develop in S2, but I don’t come satisfied with their resolutions. I mean, I suppose the ending was going to be bittersweet regardless of the quantity of chapters it had to get there (and the outcome in regards to it doesn’t fully settle well with me, tbh)... but it felt it went quite quickly to my taste.

Like. It was around two months or so after S1 concluded... and the only hint that time was moving on was the fact that one of the main leads was getting her hair longer (look, I know hair can grow quick as well, buuuut...), but it was moving TOO QUICK and like I said, I felt like it sometimes needed some air to let the characters breath, if only a little outside the concurring events.

It felt like the author grew a disinterest in continuing it (regardless of doing so because mental health issues) and only did their part because contract lapsing. Also, I pretty much suspect that the return from the hiatus didn’t help because it was done with much less fanfare and the viewing/liking numbers in the chapters reflected it as well, and as an artist I do get how discouraging it might be when it reflects on how well your things are doing.. especially if you are also receiving money from it (I don’t know if the series was available as fast pass, btw). Sure, I’m not the author and they may have their own reasons besides this speculation from my part... but it would also be that they simply wanted to go along their original basic plan about it and simply had it done, regardless of the results and the readership.

The last chapter does feel “finale”-ish, although very vague in other events that were going on and much more “to the point”. If the narrative wasn’t too disjointed in the ongoing events of the plot, I could easily accept it - at the end of the day, there’s stuff that don’t get full resolved because life moves on and some things are left in mystery... but also, I was previously disappointed in how some events were playing out that it was kind of obvious what probably went on in the development of it. 

But it was just... like that. There’s not even further explanation about it or some apologies from the author side or acknowledgments. I know NOT every single series does this (the same goes for not localizing/TL’ing the afterword/revisions chapters from SK series... sometimes THEY do, but most of the times they DON’T)... but even a short-lived series that was cancelled DID provide an afterwords and further explanation of WHY they finished it in a cliffhanger.

And one could say that the answer COULD lie on the author’s social media... and at the start there was radio silence, according to some commenters... and then you find out where is the author’s attention these days >.> (the “no f*cking thanks” variety) and also it kinda looks like they disowned the series, like, ???? I guess, good riddance?

I dunno. Right into the S2 I was ready to get disappointed, but when I realized the chapters got lesser and lesser, and the story was moving too fast I guess I felt it was it. And finding out what the author does now is where I was prepared to let the disappointment to sink in deeper. 

I know some authors do fight their rights to keep communicating with the platform team after their series got in hiatus and they don’t reply quick (because it can be a legal mess if they go ahead without them getting greenlit about it) and sometimes the hiatuses extend because they aren’t in a good place at the moment (or they are in school, even), and I suppose that at times, they might not feel the same passion on their project as they did originally (and there are so many facotrs that fall on this too, hence exploring other ventures).

I suppose sometimes the trip is better than the destination. It’s just... disappointment sinking in.