#I have so many ideas in so many directions the problem is well. execution

[dr11ft]

me when in order to make art I have to draw

[levyfiles]

is it just me or is this kinda not a good idea?

I think it's a gamble. And like anyone who cares about something deeply, watching it take a high-stakes gamble can be terrifying.

What I think people don't take into consideration is just how flooded their recent youtube videos have been with scammy sponsors and cheap fast-product get-rich-quick scheming vendors. Sure, their writers and producers made it fun by adding some really excellent characters to the mix, but I wouldn't touch a thing like Mistplay if you paid me as much as they paid Watcher for their video. However, the thing is, look around at all the youtubers you know who are up and coming. You can't make it on that platform without advertising trash to your audience.

With the vimeo OTT program, i believe there is a shared revenue and more incentive to promote more simple dedicated engagement; it's not ad sense clicks; it's just clicks. It's a soft start and there are going to be some kinks to work out but if they get to control their brand more and decide what gets made without needing some nu-venture, cash hungry sponsor to look at it, then I think they could change media online for the better.

Having said all that, the execution? Not their best. Watcher--listen, I love them so much--has had a consistent and terminal administrative problem and that means stuff falls through the cracks. From a communicative standpoint, when you're about to take your company in a controversial direction, you should know two things.

The backlash! You gotta get ahead of it. You need your PR team on the go a MONTH before launch

Always soft launch a big move. Get your feelers out for how people react especially if you don't have the kind of shark PR person who would know already that people don't respond well to paying for something they didn't used to pay for.

Watcher is still a baby company in so many forms and I will wholeheartedly support their move to do what they can to keep control of their creative content today and in the future. I'm not in their offices so I can't make as prescriptive a judgement as Twitter feels emboldened to about capitalism and greed or whoever they think their audience is however I can and will say that with any form of growth, the growing pains are going to show. i'll give them grace as they pivot and figure out how best to move forward especially with the volume of vitriol the internet loves to spew when they feel entitled to art forms that used to be free.

I'll say it again. At least we're no longer having garbage peddled at us regardless how much I crave Fabian Sax biblically.

[genericpuff]

I was kind of curious: What do you think of Persephone's therapy scenes in episodes 160-161?

I personally liked them, but you and many other LO critics always seem to see things that totally flew over my head (I mean that in a positive way).

I think the idea behind them was fine, just the execution that felt really half-baked. Rachel doesn't like scenes to sit too long so the therapy scene, of course, wound up being rushed in the course of 2-3 episodes (meaning she had to have Persephone dump everything all at once) and while Persephone's dialogue is handled relatively well, the direction of the scene itself feels entirely mismanaged (which is both a side effect of Rachel's directionless writing and the fact that she clearly doesn't want to do more than one of these kinds of episodes so she needs to speedrun it).

TRIGGER WARNING: Discussion concerning sexual assault ahead!

Like, let's start with Persephone's intent in going to therapy. Wanting to pursue therapy doesn't just happen suddenly, there's usually a "trigger event" to make someone realize "I need help", whether it be hitting rock bottom or even just going "I feel like I don't have the skills or tools necessary to deal with what I'm dealing with, I need a professional opinion".

Despite Eros advising her to go to therapy all the way back in S1 to address her assault-

-she actually finally goes to therapy in S2 not to address the assault, but to address... how she feels insecure in comparison to Hera who she just found out Hades had a long-term affair with??? At least that's definitely the implication.

And then of course the therapy session itself segues immediately into "Persephone is a high achiever and it's because of her mom being overbearing" which Rachel doesn't connect at all to either the SA or her feeling insecure compared to Hera (which, by the way, barely even has anything to do with her, but she didn't - and still doesn't - have the emotional maturity or self-respect to realize that Hades is a serial cheater-)

That's where the first therapy episode cuts off, and then the next episode immediately opens with Persephone writing her entire backstory on a whiteboard, so we can assume time has passed and she's talked about everything from her childhood up until this point.

Then we get Chiron asking Persephone... what could go wrong if she leaves TGOEM??

Even though we never saw any of the actual sequence so it just feels like a question that's coming out of nowhere? Like did Persephone say during that schpeel that she wanted to leave TGOEM? Isn't that something we should have seen to connect these two trains of thought?

Ah, right, because we have to get into Hades. Because this comic fails the Bechdel test so hard it can't even have a character talk about their trauma or childhood without it seguing into "well there's this one specific main character guy I just really wanna sleep with-"

Don't get me wrong, if Rachel is trying to "deconstruct purity culture" here, I can get her angle with this, if Persephone has been "groomed her entire life" to be an eternal maiden then there's clearly some thought processes about sexual attraction there that are being challenged by her attraction to Hades. But it just feels so rushed purely for the sake of getting her through her trauma and childhood problems and everything that Rachel tacked onto her backstory (in an attempt to make her seem more than just a self-insert) so that Rachel can get her back on track to sleeping with Hades, the one and only man she's clearly ever felt sexual attraction to enough to want to leave TGOEM and question her entire childhood.

And then we get this and I just-

Like first of all, again, Persephone being a complete airhead and not realizing that it has less to do with her possibly being an inadequate partner and more to do with Hades being a serial cheater who also used her as an emotional affair partner;

but ALSO the fact that the conclusion is some "eureka" moment of "you're a bad decision maker" ??? I was a fan of the comic still when this scene happened and even I went "huh?"

Like she doesn't bother to try and connect it to everything she just learned and said about her childhood and how she wants to be the "perfect daughter" who will make everyone happy, Chiron just reduces it to "oh you just suck at making decisions". As if "sucking at making decisions" isn't like, a reactionary extension of deeper problems. She's treating it as if Persephone is some "puzzle" to be solved and her being a "bad decision maker" was the answer when it's undoubtedly just one of many side effects of her upbringing. It feels like she's addressing the cough and not the virus.

Also a little off topic but-

Gotta love how we've never seen Persephone actually employ this homework from her therapist because she's constantly stapled to Hades and the only thing she cares about is his happiness. Literally, I don't think Persephone could possibly answer that question because she's never been independent enough to even learn what makes her happy - she's jumped from wanting to make her mother happy to wanting to make Hades happy but we're supposed to condemn the former and celebrate the latter.

Buuut of course we don't get her answering that question because again, Rachel can't spend more than 30 seconds on a single scene because that would demand too much writing and thought from her. So we cut to Hera having a discussion with Asclepius regarding her scars re-opening, yadda yadda.

By the time we cut back to the therapy session at the start of the next episode (that's three episodes that have been spent basically accomplishing nothing because none of the thought threads tie together in a meaningful way beyond what the audience has to assume) Chiron is conveniently wrapping things up and it's then and only then does Rachel try to actually incorporate the SA plotline that was Persephone's ORIGINAL MOTIVATION in going to therapy.

Now, the scene for the most part is fine, I don't really like how the therapy session was written leading up to it, but her describing her freeze response and how she feels guilty she couldn't "fight back" is a very real feeling that I can definitely say was well written.

My one gripe with it though - and sure, this might be nitpicky, but here me out - is this:

I don't particularly like that Chiron the therapist just found out about her patient being a rape victim - someone who's also said she doesn't like people grabbing her / touching her without her consent - and then decides the best course of action is to comfort her... while touching her.

Now I want to make it perfectly clear, it's not against the law or even the code of ethics to make physical contact between a therapist and their patient. Loads of patients have made breakthroughs with their therapists that have called for hugs and while some therapists may not be okay with it, there are definitely therapists who are who fully understand that hugs in those moments are the best thing for a person. But it's still a general boundary that is there and even with patients who aren't victims of SA, consent needs to be asked for / given.

So Chiron just... coming over and touching Persephone on the knee, while undoubtedly seen as a "warm and comforting act" by those who have had similar sessions with their own therapists or even just those who have no clue and see it on the surface level as being "sweet", really irks me, because it just seems so tone deaf to do with a character like Persephone who is supposed to be a victim of having her bodily autonomy taken away from her.

Again, it's a small criticism, and undoubtedly a nitpick in the eyes of some, but a simple "can I give you a hug?" from either Chiron or Persephone would have gone a long way in accomplishing Persephone's need for consent and bodily autonomy a lot more than just having Chiron come up and touch her leg without her consent. Please, for the love of god, let Persephone have some autonomy, asking for consent doesn't ruin the moment.

And that's pretty much it, Persephone talks about how she feels like she's tethered to Apollo, and Chiron assures her that's not the case, session over, Persephone goes outside to Hades aaaand notice how we never actually tackled that "I feel insecure because of my partner having former partners?" thing? Notice how the best we got was her talking about her fears of being an "inadequate partner" which focused entirely on her not being "enough" for Hades and being a "bad decision maker" rather than pointing out 1.) Hades' own faults in being a serial cheater that would undoubtedly contribute to her insecurities and 2.) what Persephone could do for Hades rather than what Hades could do for Persephone? It's always "I don't know if I'm good enough for him" and never "I don't know if he's good enough for me."

Yet another F-- on Lore Olympus' Bechdel test. Every single thing tacked onto Persephone's backstory is meant purely to get her with Hades - TGOEM is just an obstacle preventing her from having sex with Hades, the assault is just a framing device to show how much "better" Hades is for Persephone than Apollo, her overbearing childhood is just to show how much more "free" she is now that she's not living with her mother and is living with Hades instead, etc.

No agency, no autonomy, no character, even when it tries.

[cerebralinvasion]

yandere february event day 15

“Love is patient. I, however, am not.”

you stood stiffly at the doorway to mori’s office. how was it that you kept finding yourself here? despite how much you hated being around your boss, it had slowly become a near constant. you had always tried to draw as little attention as possible. do your very best on missions, stay careful not to cause any problems, follow all commands from superiors, and never speak unless spoken to. it was the perfect recipe for keeping your head down and laying low in the port mafia. and yet, day after day you found yourself being called to have visits with the leader himself.

the first time was the worst. having a direct request for a meeting from mori had scared you shitless. you had no idea what it meant for you. which executive had you managed to piss off that badly? you were, unsurprisingly, entirely confused when all that occurred was a casual conversation. the way he carried himself implied that something deeper than discussion of your day was at hand, but you’d never be able to read mori well enough to know what that possibly could have been.

the second time wasn’t nearly as bad, but it terrified you nonetheless. mori didn’t exactly have a habit of being predictable. you had no idea if this next meeting would run in a similar fashion as to the last or if something much worse would go down. it ended up being quite the same, elise was there this time. you were careful to give the girl some of your attention while there. nervously asking her about her drawings. it wasn’t until near the end of your visit that mori offhandedly mentioned something about being a single father to the girl. how it’d be nice to have another parent in her life. you thought it was a weird thing to say, not only because she was an ability and not a real living being, but also because even if she was an actual human, why would he be telling this to you of all people? you tried not to question it.

today was the seventeenth time you’d been called into his office. it wasn’t as scary as the first, but you were careful to keep your wits about you. as much as you wanted to grow comfortable in the space you’d been spending so much time in, you couldn’t help but feel it was a bad idea. this was still the leader of the port mafia that stood in front of you. and you still had no grasp of his true intentions. to allow yourself to grow too comfortable could prove a fatal mistake.

“ah, so glad you got my invitation. have a seat.” mori’s voice called out.

you did as asked, gently placing yourself in one of the two cushioned chairs around the coffee table. a beautiful view of the city stood before you.

“how can i help you, sir.” you still didn’t make eye contact, staring pensively at your hands in your lap.

“still as aloof as ever, and we’ve met how many times?”

“seventeen, sir.” even though the question was likely rhetorical, you answered promptly.

“right, and despite how many meetings we’ve held, you’re still as formal as the first. you can relax around me, you know. i don’t bite.” the grin on his face was almost wolf-like.

“you’re my boss, i just try to remain respectful.”

“hm. it’s been over a month since our first meeting, hasn’t it? and you haven’t warmed up to me at all. i guess it’s true that love is patient. i, however, am not. i've found myself growing weary of this drawn-out courting.”

“love?” your eyes widened slightly and you met the man’s eyes for the first time since you entered the room. your face read as nothing but entirely confused.

“that’s right. i’m surprised you hadn’t picked up on it sooner. i thought i’ve been making my preference for you quite clear. but that’s alright, some people just require a bit more candidity than others.”

“i- i’m sorry sir but i don’t know if i- um- this feels like a sort of-” you sputtered, stumbling over your words. this is not what you wanted. nothing about attracting the boss of the port mafia would help you continue to stay unnoticed and out of trouble. but considering your situation, flat out rejecting him couldn’t be a smart idea.

“i’m sure you’re aware that you don’t have much of a choice here, yes?” he cut off your pathetic attempts at forming a statement. “but don’t think of it as a negative thing. you’re quite capable, i’d hate for that talent to be wasted, and you’ll receive far more benefits within this organization than you did previously. the kind of benefits someone of your skill level deserves. i’ll make sure to take good care of you.”

[meaeris]

beyond all expectations

pairing: sebastian sallow x f.mc

genres: fluff, (a little) angst

summary: in which the protagonist is practicing to become an animagus and things, contrary to her expectations, go exactly as planned. more or less.

warnings: takes place one year later. spoiler for sebastian's quest. mention of character's death. hurt/trauma. Mc has a random name because i don't like using y/n or 2nd pov.

A.N. hi! i don't usually write fanfictions since english is not my first language, but i had this cute scenario in mind and had to write it down, so forgive some mistakes and inaccuracies. this is a repost from ao3. thank you for reading and interactions are super appreciated!

The problem was that Allie, wonder-child and proud Slytherin, had underestimated her abilities.

She didn't think for a moment that she would be able to transform so soon and, above all, she didn't think that the transformation would be so well executed that she wouldn’t be able to return to her human form.

"Don't panic" she thought, panicking.

Certainly Hogwarts couldn’t be defined as a cheap structure in terms of grandeur, yet now everything around her appeared immensely bigger and infinitely more majestic. She turned around and watched her own tail wag furiously behind her. Cats do that when they're nervous, right? She didn't know. She wasn't a cat expert whatsoever, for the only ones she had to deal with were the ones that roamed the castle. And now, herself.

A wave of delusion swept over her. It couldn't have been worse. Of all the animals she could turn into, a cat? Such a common animal? Her Slytherin pride was more than slightly hurt. Peering through some reflective surfaces, she managed to take a glimpse of her appearances: short gray fur, slender paws and deep aquamarine eyes. She wasn't just some common breed, at least. What was it called? A russian blue? Perhaps. Although there weren't traces of blue whatsoever.

The girl-prodigy (that's how some people called her) tried and retried several times to return to her normal form. She failed. A Slytherin who couldn't revert back a spell? What would her housemates say? What would her professors say? And after everything she had accomplished the year before! Defeated goblins, dragons, dark wizards… yet now the obstacle was herself.

She sneaked out of the girls' bathroom where she had been practicing until a few minutes ago and attempted to interact with the other students. Maybe someone would recognize her?

Misplaced hopes. Everyone mistook her for an ordinary cat, one of the many that occupied the school. Only a tiny less friendly, as she hissed and quickly sprang away whenever someone tried to pet her.

"Merlin's beard, why is this castle so big?!" she thought more and more irritated. She had no idea what to do. The worst thing? She could involuntarily transform back any time and end up naked in the corridors. In front of everyone. No. She would rather remain a cat forever.

"Of course, the wand! I'm an idiot, I could have brought it with me. Maybe showing it to someone will make them realize it's me."

She went back, not without getting lost a couple of times. Her sense of direction, now that she was seeing everything from a different perspective, had definitely worsened. The bathrooms were empty, and the room in which she had changed was still locked from the inside. With difficulty, she slipped again under the wooden doors and found her wand submerged by the clothes. She took the wand with her mouth, but she couldn’t manage to make it pass through the big pile of clothing. She wasn’t used to her feline body yet and everything felt like learning to walk for the first time. Her mouth felt stuck and the wand abnormally heavy. From bad to worse, no one would have noticed her clothes because from the outside it would have looked like an occupied bathroom.

She got an idea. She headed to Professor Onai's divination classroom, hoping to run into Natty. As the only Animagus she knew, the Gryffindor girl was aware of her attempts to become one. But so far every attempt had been unsuccessfull. Until that day.

She arrived at the entrance of the classroom, but realized she had forgotten an important detail: the ladder in front of her. She would have never been able to climb it, not in this form. She started meowing wildly, hoping someone would hear. It worked. Professor Onai, perhaps annoyed by that cry (which in her hindsight sounded more like a cat about to vomit), looked out from the upper entrance with a soft smile.

- You can't stay here, little one. Class is about to start. Shoo!

And that was that. The teacher disappeared and the girl (cat) stood there, looking up, as if expecting divine help. She cursed (meowing).

The lesson would last a long time, she didn't have time to wait. She had to do something.

If Natty wasn't available, there were only two options left.

She wasn't too proud of it, but in two years at Hogwarts she hadn't managed to make that many friends. Despite everything she'd done to save the school? Well... yes. But perhaps it was her fault, as she’d never been the reincarnation of friendship and affection, as much as she tried. Only Ominis Gaunt and Sebastian Sallow could define themselves as “companions”, at the moment. A direct consequence of sharing a deadly adventure that ends in tragedy. Natty and Poppy? Good company, surely, but they didn't have many occasions to meet, being from different houses and all.

It had now been a year since Sebastian's uncle died, and he still hadn't been able to forgive himself. He smiled and joked around much less than before. Everyone noticed that. Ominis, for his part, took a long time to accept things as they were, but when he realized that Sebastian needed friends, now more than ever, he decided that regret was better than anger. The three had become even more close, and they seldom left each other’s side. Although the topic was left untouched and a tense atmosphere was palpable everytime someone received a letter from their relatives.

She immediately thought of Ominis. He was the more conscientious of the two, the one with common sense, some would say, and he would have certainly uncovered her transformation if it wasn’t for a small... technical problem. He would simply hear her meowing madly and he would, rightfully so, ignore her, as he did with most of the cats. Although Sebastian admitted he caught the Gaunt boy secretly feeding them a couple of times.

And Sebastian? Well, let's just say she had been trying to avoid him lately. Not out of malice, but due to the effect that the boy's presence was having on her stomach. It wasn't a pleasant feeling, but at the same time... it scared her. She was scared that this feeling had a name. After all, who would ever consider someone like her that way? Sebastian was smart, charismatic and charming, traits that certainly didn't went unnoticed by fellow Slytherin (or not) gals. At the same time, he exuded this unapproachable aura that seemed to scare his suitors away. Although some would say it was due to his close friendship with Ominis, despite the Gaunt boy being one of the kindest people she ever met... despite his, well, mood swings. He certainly didn't deserve such a treatment just because of his family reputation.

At the moment she had no choice. Burying useless emotions inside, she knew where Sebastian was, for they roamed together so often now that she had learned their schedules. She made her way to the Defense Against the Dark Arts tower and luckily, she spotted Sebastian walking out of the classroom. She waited until he was isolated from the other students and tried to get his attention. She waddled towards him and began meowing at his legs.

"Sebastian! It's me!"

- Hello there, small one. Are you looking for attention? - said the boy, kneeling at the height of the feline. His scottish accent sounded more pronounced with her feline ears.

"NO! I mean, yes, but not in that way!"

- How precocious. Are you hungry?

"No! I mean, I kinda am now that I think about it... but that's not important now!"

She tried everything: she rolled, jumped, scratched his shoes (which caused a gasp of disappointment) and even tried to stand on two legs. All of which only contributed to the "hungry cat" image that Sebastian already had. Other than making her own head spin.

- I'm sorry, I don't have any food for you - Sebastian shook his head in amusement and started to walk away, but Allie, desperate, followed him. A few minutes later Ominis showed up, wand in hand.

- What’s going on? – he asked, probably having heard the miserable cry from afar.

- I don’t know, this cat seems to be mad at me. It's been following me since I left the classroom.

"Then ask yourself some questions!"

Ominis raised an eyebrow.

- Maybe it's hungry. Or in heat.

"OMINIS!"

The two laughed and simply left her there.

“Come back, you buffoons! Don't leave me alone!”

- Shall we go to the Undercroft? Allie should join us soon.

Of course! Only the three of them knew about that place. If she showed that she knew, somehow, maybe they would finally put two and two together. Besides, if she was late, they would get suspicious. She was never late for anything. Of course, except that time she managed to be late for her sorting ceremony, but that was a special case out of her control.

She ran away, under Sebastian's perplexed gaze, and preceded them towards the entrance to the Undercroft, a gothic clock meticulously decorated by blue and gold hues, an elegant design that recalled the starry sky.

The only positive thing about the situation was that she got there before them, thanks to her four legs.

When Sebastian noticed her, he didn't hide a surprised grin. It didn't happen often, but the freckles on the boy's face seemed to stand out even more. She liked that expression a lot and, for a second, thought it was kinda cute.

- What the...

Ominis lowered his wand.

- What are you doing here? - Sebastian remarked more and more confused.

- Did it follow us?

- I'm positive it got here before us.

-Well, it's a cat… it wouldn't surprise me if it knew this place better than we do.

"Ominis, you and your logic, shut up for once!"

Sebastian abandoned himself to a slight smirk.

- Well, I don't think a cat might blurt out anything about this place. If it wants to come, let it come.

After her meow of approval, Sebastian walked over and bent down to pick her up. Normally she would have wriggled herself free if it was anyone else. But Sebastian wasn't anyone else. She relaxed and the floor moved far from of her view, making her feel slightly dizzy. She may have been a cat, but she’d been one for less than an hour.

Sebastian snuggled her into his arms and her heart went crazy, leaping into her throat.

- It's purring - Ominis noted, hinting a smile.

- And here I thought you hated me - Sebastian joked with his typical flirty tone.

“I want to dig a hole and bury myself in.”

When this was over, she was going to obliviate anyone that knew, she thought. They crossed the rusty gate and, once inside, Sebastian left her on the ground. The poor teen (cat), still panicking and probably thinking about a spell for grave-digging, didn't move for a couple of minutes.

- It could keep us company, as long as we are careful not to cast spells on him by mistake - Sebastian suggested, taking off his robe and placing it on the ground in a corner. He took out his wand and twirled it with his wrist, as if practicing movements.

- Are you sure it’s a him?

- I don’t know.

- I've heard that females have a smaller head compared to males.

Sebastian looked closely at her, who was now sitting next to them. If any other cat saw her right now, they would have probably stayed kilometers away from her.

- I frankly can't tell... if nothing else, I almost have the impression that it can understand what we're saying.

"I do in fact, and yet you're just spouting nonsense!"

She meowed in disapproval and two heads whipped towards her.

- See? - said the brunette.

- It is kinda bizarre - Ominis confirmed, perplexed.

- Maybe it belongs to someone and it got lost. We should take it to the professors later.

"You two are definitely not Ravenclaw."

The two spoke no more. Sebastian practiced with the training dummies while Ominis read a book in braille.

She had run out of ideas. She had tried everything, and the two seemed to ask the right questions, but not enough. So she just lay there, taking everything in for once, admiring her friends. Maybe it was the new point of view, but Sebastian definitely got taller, compared to last year. Taller and sturdier, although his complexion remained the perfect mix of soft and manly features. Ominis didn't change much, but bis cheekbones were more prominent and slightly higher, framing a tad more mature face. On the other hand, she remained exactly as she's always been, if not with increased dark circles and puffiness under her eyes.

An hour later Sebastian realized something was wrong.

- She's late - he observed, leaning against a big box and taking a breath. - How many times has it happened so far?

- In two years? Never, - Ominis confirmed, - Except that time she was held by Professor Garlick for being bitten on the ear by a chomping cabbage.

- That was actually rather funny. It was the first time I saw Allie spill some tears.

At the mention of her name (and trying really hard to ignore what he’d just said), she got up and leapt at Sebastian's legs, meowing so wildly that from afar it would have sounded like someone was torturing a stray cat.

This attracted Ominis' attention, who took his hands away from the book and placed it at his feet. He was getting suspicious.

Sebastian knelt down and inquisitively looked into her light eyes. She reciprocated, but that strange feeling in her stomach didn't take long to manifest.

- Here’s the thing… - he began, tilting his head towards Ominis with his eyes half closed. - Didn't Allie say she was training to become an Animagus?

Ominis knew immediately what he was implying. - For some months, yes.

- Did she ever succeed?

- As far as I know, never.

She meowed again and spun around.

Sebastian's eyes seemed to light up for a moment.

- Could it be... is that you, Allie?

"At last! Honour your name, Mr Sallow!"

She meowed and jumped, twice.

Sebastian took his wand, pointed it at the animal and spelt "Revelio!".

Nothing happened.

Sebastian sighed. - Maybe I'm reading too much into it...

At this, before Ominis could intervene, she lost her patience and grabbed his trousers with her pointed teeth, biting his skin in the process.

- Ouch! Okay, wait, let me try again! What was the spell... I read it once in a book of transfiguration…

He thought about it for a moment, until he snapped his fingers in ecstasy. He cast a spell she had never heard before and a blue light enveloped her body. For a moment she felt nothing. Then she sensed that her body began to change. Without thinking twice, she ran over to the robe Sebastian had set down earlier and mentally thanked him for doing so.

The transformation was undone and Allie found herself with Sebastian's robe wrapped around her body.

- Finally! Everything is at its right height. That was horrible! - she cried, stretching and shrinking in order to feel her bones again.

Perhaps from the effect of the spell, or perhaps from the sudden cold of the dungeons, she sneezed.

- Merlin! - Sebastian exclaimed, and turned away uneasy with eyes wide open.

- Allie? It's you? - Ominis asked, turning towards her, and for once she was thankful that he couldn't see.

Sebastian was looking at the wall. - What the bloody hell happened?

- I wish I knew! I was practicing the whole Animagus thing in the bathrooms, when suddenly it worked, and I...

- You were practicing? - Sebastian repeated.

- Yes.

- In the bathrooms? - he began to turn around to show his disappointment, but soon realized the embarrassing situation she was in and changed his mind.

-Yes. I mean, no... wait, that doesn't matter! Contrary to my predictions, it worked, too well in fact, and I couldn't turn back. Took you long enough to notice!

- How were we supposed to know?! You could have asked the professors!

- Ask, how, exactly? All I could do was meow. And besides, admit to a professor that I failed such a simple thing after all I've been through? No way. It would have been humiliating!

Sebastian didn't say anything more, as if he got the point.

- Well, for instance... you should put some clothes on.

She blushed furiously. - I would do it myself, but my wand was left in the bathroom along with everything else.

- It's fine - interrupted Ominis. - I'll go get them.

Probably understanding the situation better than Sebastian, Ominis offered himself to go retrieve everything. How, she didn't want to ask, but she trusted Ominis more than anyone.

- Thank you...

Ominis went through the secret passage. Two of them were left.

She sighed, both tired and awkward about the whole situation. - I'm sorry for all this mess. I really didn't think it would work… it was honestly just for fun.

Sebastian sighed and seemed to realize the irony of the situation. He giggled. - It's all right. But I think you should stop underestimating yourself so much.

She slumped her shoulders. Maybe it was the tense situation, or maybe it was the fact that she felt naked for the first time in front of someone (metaphorically and physically). She felt like confiding in Sebastian. - You'd think that after all that happened last year I'd be more confident, but it's not easy.

Sebastian crouched, leaning against a stone wall, a leg bent over his chest, the other stretched on the cold floor. He turned to look into her eyes, feeling the discussion was getting serious.

- You guys had four years to practice magic, but I had just one year to catch up with you lots. And yet everyone has expectations from me. I have to prove myself, and I have to do it quickly. Otherwise-

"I may as well turn back to my pitiful muggle life" she thought, but didn't say it out loud.

- I think you proved yourself enough - Sebastian admitted, not without a hint of irritation. - The goblins, the whole business with Anne and... my uncle. You've endured more than any Hogwarts student ever had. You should be proud of yourself.

- Only because I was not alone.

She was staring at him and he understood. He suddenly found his shoes more interesting than everything else in the room.

There had never been a real discussion after the events of the previous year. Perhaps out of fear, or shame, or both, but none of the three ever dared to press the subject. Therefore what she said next was like opening a forbidden box.

- I'm so sorry about your uncle.

He tightened his fists. - Yes, well... I've been living with regret all this time, and it's what I deserve. I haven’t heard from Anne since.

She looked at the ceiling and gripped the dark robe closer. - I won't tell you that with time she will change her mind and forgive you, because I don't know. But I think that it's never too late to redeem yourself.

- But how? - Sebastian asked, hiding a stutter.

- I don't know... Only time will tell.

Sebastian raised his head. He had those afflicted eyes that Allie couldn't stand to see. If she had some way to turn back time, she would do anything to stop Sebastian from casting that damned spell. If there was a dark magic spell that could help rewrite the past, she would cast it with no hesitation.

"What a hypocrite I am."

She suddenly had this urge to get up and hug him, but she obviously couldn't. For multiple reasons.

Sensing her feelings, he simply said, - Thank you, - and that was enough. The two smiled awkwardly at each other. After a while, he spoke again. - I have a question, if you don't mind. Have you been avoiding me lately?

She swallowed. - What makes you think that?

- I don't know... just an impression.

- It is. I would never avoid you.

She didn't mean anything by it, especially because it was a lie, but for some reason such a simple sentence felt like it had a double meaning. Sebastian seemed to grasp it too, and he scratched the back of his neck.

Not much time later, Ominis came back with her clothing and wand. She changed herself with magic as quickly as she could.

- How did you get these in the girl's bathroom? - Sebastian asked warily.

- Let's not get into details.

***

After thanking Ominis multiple times, she left the Undercroft for Potion class, while the other two gathered their things and slowly made their way out.

- What did the two of you do while I was gone?

Sebastian raised an eyebrow. - We talked?

- About what?

- Just small talk.

- Really.

Silence.

- You held her in your arms. And she purred.

Sebastian cheeks flushed and he was glad that Ominis couldn't see.

- Don't you start again, Ominis.

[tyquu]

Here's the Ben whump rant i talked abt in my last post,,,

Ofc heed the triggers and what not: Blood, injury, ect ect

Also take everything here with a serious handful of salt, im being dramatic as heck. So if you don't wanna see me get serious abt something that's not that deep, this probably isn't the rant for you <3

Anywho...

Do you ever think about just how often Ben gets the absolute crap beat out of him? Like in Grudge Match, I forgot how many times he gets flung about in his human form. He's ten years old, his bones are way too weak for all that. The amount of head injuries he must get is insane, and Max never once seems to take Ben's injuries seriously. 

Like that time Ben gets sick after sitting in the back of an ice cream van for like,, twenty minutes. He's ill to the point it's actively inhibiting his ability to play hero, blinding wildmutt with gunked up sensors and taking the heat out of heatblast. He's pale and sniffly and looks like shit, but Max still makes the executive decision to drag him out on errands instead of giving him time to rest. 

Also just cause he takes the majority of damage in his alien forms doesn’t mean those injuries suddenly have no impact at all. I think in alien force they were toying with idea of his injuries carrying over becoming more of a problem for him, with his busted knee in season one, and black eye in the episode where he gets grounded. Either way, it’s still implied that wounds translate over after he de-transforms, even if to a lesser extent. Not to mention all the scrapes and little injuries he must get from de-transforming mid battle (on the occasions he does).

FUCK, I mean Ben actually displays short term memory loss as a direct result of getting hit in the head in alien force, and Gwen isn't concerned about it probably because she grew up with Grandpa Max not being concerned about it. She doesn't realise just how dangerous this level of head injury is, what the brain inflammation and possible bleeding could do to him. She's probably looked him in the eyes, with his pupils blown wide, dazed and confused about his whereabouts, and then buried her concern because it's nothing new right? Ben's been dealing with stuff like this since he was 10, and Max, the ever responsible adult, never shows the appropriate amount of concern for it, so it makes sense that both Gwen and Ben don’t consider these things serious until its too late. 

Like not to get all dramatic about this and over think it (more so than I already am lol) but I’m positive this stuff would have long term consequences for Ben’s health as he enters adult hood, or even before then. Trouble recalling things, ringing in his ears, migraines and headaches as well a light sensitivity, all of these are symptoms of repeated and serious head trauma. Not to mention, paired with my personal headcanons about the burning chemical sensation of having the omnitrix fused to his flesh, leaking fluid into his bloodstream and scorching his skin. Or the chronic nosebleeds I think he would have as a result of all these other health complications. There's just a LOT that can be done with Ben whump, and I’m surprised it isn’t talked about/thought about more? 

Folks love the idea of Ben being functionally immortal (at least from injury related death), and the power fantasy that comes with being the weilder of the omnitrix, but what about the fact that he’s just some guy?? That the omnitrix failsafe doesn’t protect him from everything, and that if the injuries are bad enough to have triggered the failsafe in the first place, then where does that leave him in terms of recovering from them??? Sorry, sorry, crazy moment. 

[mbti-notes]

Hi, this will sound strange but can the inferior function leak into consciousness when one is dreaming ? I'm an INFP and usually see Te-doms as being loud rushed and so on but I had this dream where I was behaving more or less like one and in the dream my actions while under the influence of Te made sense I was like hell yeah it makes sense as to why Te-doms are always on top of things always solving problems and such that when I woke up their actions made a lot of sense. Thank you.

Do you know who Sigmund Freud and Carl Jung are? Freud is widely considered the founding father of psychology, and Jung was his mentee. The two of them developed the first rigorous methods of dream analysis that are still used by some therapists today. Freud wrote the first authoritative treatise about dreams called The Interpretation of Dreams. In it, he famously said:

"The interpretation of dreams is the royal road to a knowledge of the unconscious activities of the mind."

Freud made a distinction between manifest and latent content of dreams. The manifest content is the literal images of the dream, while the latent content is the symbolic meaning of the images. Dreams have symbolic meaning because they are actually expressions of unconscious activities.

Unconscious activities deal with darker instincts, thoughts, feelings, emotions, desires, and ideas that are too psychologically disturbing to confront when awake. Though unconscious, these activities still have a negative influence in waking life, so it is important to become more conscious of them in order to mitigate those negative effects. This is easier said than done because the conscious mind seeks to avoid disturbance at all costs.

Enter dreams. Dreams occur in a mental space between the unconscious and consciousness, so they are the perfect vehicle for transmitting messages. Since the content of unconscious activities can be disturbing, dreams disguise the content in symbols in order to make it more palatable and easier to confront and accept. The process of interpreting the symbols in dreams allows people to arrive at deeper truths about themselves.

Freud understood dreams as a form of wish fulfillment. He postulated that human beings had a great many desires, but those desires often conflicted with each other or were deemed unacceptable by society. Thus, dark and taboo desires had to be repressed and kept unconscious.

However, repressed desires don't just disappear and they might even become stronger the harder they are repressed, to the point of creating anxiety or neurosis in waking life. The pent up energy from repressed desires has to go somewhere, so it eventually influences dreaming. Playing out dark/taboo desires through the events and stories of dreams is a safer way of handling them. Freud believed that dream interpretation was a good way of getting to the bottom of what was actually troubling people.

Eventually, Jung broke with Freud because he believed that Freud's ideas were too narrow in scope. Freud was famously focused on understanding repressed sexual desires and fixations (because of his own repressed desires and the fact that many of his clients were female and had suffered some form of sexual abuse in early life), but Jung believed that there was much more to mental life than sex and taboos. He developed dream analysis in a somewhat different direction. While he generally agreed that dreams were about wish fulfillment, he was able to paint a much broader picture of what a "wish" could be.

Dreams might provide some clues about the current state of your life, e.g., whether you are generally happy, sad, anxious, yearning, etc. In the hustle and bustle of daily life, people often neglect their own well-being, so dreams provide an opportunity to check in with oneself.

Dreams might provide insight into a challenge or problem you're facing. Ever heard the phrase "sleep on it"? When you're dreaming, the brain's executive functioning is switched off, which allows your mental processes to operate more freely and thus more creatively. Dreams can explore, connect, and synthesize information for you, which might help you come up with better solutions. This fits with current neurological dream research that indicates the brain uses sleep to clean up and consolidate information.

Dreams might provide wisdom by connecting you to a larger pool of knowledge you didn't know you possessed. Jung was an exceptionally well-read person. He studied the stories, myths, and religious practices of many different cultures, western and eastern, and was astounded to find common recurring patterns, which he distilled into a concept called archetypes. Dreams are often full of archetypal images. This led him to postulate the existence of the collective unconscious, a storehouse of information that is genetically transmitted to every member of a species. Ancient archetypal patterns lend dreams a narrative structure that makes it easier to decipher their meaning.

Dreams might signal a need for compensation or aspiration. As I've explained in the study guides, normal personality development is "uneven". This creates an underlying sense of lack or missing something, which opens a door to developing your potential.

In the process of healthy personality development, certain functions must be given more power and control. However, the side effect of this is that their opposite functions get repressed and left to exist in an infantile state, operating more unconsciously. When the imbalance between opposing functions becomes too extreme, the pent up energy of repressed functions can influence us in unpredictable ways. One way is through inferior grip, which is an unconscious and desperate attempt to right the imbalance. Another way is through dreams, fantasy, and wish fulfillment.

Your dream might be related to people or someone you've recently met that you feel drawn to because of their Te strengths. Or your dream might signal "type envy", which is negative, because it implies low self-esteem, deep-seated self-hatred, or a dark desire to destroy your true self and become something false (a manifestation of Te grip). Or your dream might indicate compensation for personality flaws, which could be positive if it led to change and improvement. Or your dream might indicate an aspiration to realize more of your potential, in terms of being more ambitious or striving for more challenging goals, which could be positive or negative depending on how you approach it.

While someone trained in dream analysis can help you interpret your dreams, at the end of the day, only you can confirm the underlying truth of those interpretations by taking the bigger picture of your life into account. Nobody can access your full experience except you. Examine the notable thoughts/feelings you've had about Te and the encounters you've had with Te in waking life. How do the images and emotions in your dream connect to those experiences? Because dreams often seem random at first, it helps to contextualize them by connecting them to waking life or reflecting on what aspects of waking life are provoking you to focus on Te. With added context, it's easier to discover the most truthful interpretation.

[blackgirlsuperherorants]

Alright, thoughts on Kaos, after watching the first three episodes. I'm going to try to keep this more organized than it's gonna wanna come out, but no promises lmao.

I REALLY want to like the show. In fact, I don't hate it, strictly speaking. It's... interesting? But it's also a really frustrating watch, for me. I guess the biggest problem for me is that it very much feels like a show that would have worked better if it was made 15 years ago. Like, it's a very late 2000s, early 2010s show. Which isn't terrible, but compared to other recent shows in the fantasy genre, it just feels like... something that would've been edgy and boundary-pushing in like 2009, but falls flat in 2024.

And I hate to do a lot of comparing, but as a creator, as a writer, as a show runner, they needed to expect comparison to happen. Especially when they're dealing with figures from one of the most studied, most read, and most adapted mythologies in human history. And like, yes, please do your own take on Greek gods-- on Greek myth in general. I am not expecting a 1 to 1 interpretation, and the fact that the show is doing it's own thing with these figures is not a problem for me. It's just not hitting. And in a time when there are VERY POPULAR books, movies, shows, and plays using these same characters and telling versions of these same stories, like... you gotta compete. You gotta pay attention to what others have recently and popularly done with the stories, and yours has to be as good or better or it's just going to fall short. And for me, that's what's happened, here, with Kaos. I'm going to try to go into detail about what I think works well and what I think isn't working, so be mindful of spoilers.

Their version of Zeus... I dunno. I like him, I guess? But I'm not sure if that's just because Jeff Goldblum is very interesting to watch or not. I think the thing they got really right about Zeus, and many of the other gods depicted here, is the casual cruelty and indifference. A lot of shows and movies about these Greek deities are either afraid to depict them as too cruel (making them Good Guys TM), or make them just villains-- rarely is the balance met well. And, well, I think that's one of the things that this show does best. When Hera disguises herself as Zeus and fucks Zeus's little human lover, then makes the girl go through a full pregnancy in seconds and turns her into a bee and makes Zeus kill the baby-- that was GREAT. I hated it and loved it because it was so mean and cruel and Zeus just snapped the baby's neck like it was nothing, because it was nothing to him. A very good depiction, in my opinion, of how cruel these gods can be without even an ounce of remorse for the mortal they're being cruel to.

But, again, I dunno if I like what the show is doing with Zeus, in particular, or if I'd just enjoy watching Jeff Goldblum read the phonebook for 9 hours straight, you know?

Hera? She's wonderful. 10/10, no notes. I love this Janet McTeer as Hera, I love the way Hera is depicted, I love the way she looks. She eats.

Now, to my biggest problems with the series, and I apologize in advance because I have A LOT OF FEELINGS about it. I've been ranting about it every time I try to sit through episodes.

Let's start with my beloved Dionysus. Now, I want to be clear: Nabhaan Rizwan is great as Dionysus. He is giving such a good performance, it's just... something is lacking. Which makes me feel like it's on the creative side. Like, it's the direction or the writing or something that is off. So, they're obviously going for this... like... youthful boredom, with Dionysus. Dionysus is often depicted as, like, one of the youngest gods, and his whole thing is theatre, wine, debauchery, pleasure... so, yeah, having him be this kinda youthful party boy is perfect. I get it 100%. I just think the idea they had is SO GOOD and wasn't well executed at all. Here is where comparison is going to come in, so I apologize in advance if this is a problem for you--

We live in a time of very good television. Okay? And the trope they're going for with Dionysus is something we have seen done extremely well. Even, like... Klaus from Umbrella Academy fits that trope, and was done extremely well. The way they're trying to depict Dionysus is very pansexual, very life of the party, very "knows everyone who is anyone at all the spots", very "casual sex just because." And like, we LOVE those characters. Bratty disasters who live in the moment and are perpetually into some shit. And we've seen so many versions of them on recent television shows that, while ALL different, were all executed way better than this version of Dionysus. Lestat on AMC's Interview With The Vampire. Blackbeard on Our Flag Means Death. Klaus, as I mentioned before. The whole disaster bi/pan dude thing.

Dio, in comparison, seems very half-baked. Very 2009. I think out of all of the characters, he feels the most 2009, you know? Like, back when making a bi/pan character was edgy, and even then, it wasn't explicit or was even played for laughs. I know this is a comedy, but so is Our Flag Means Death, you know? And even when the whole Blackbeard/Stede thing was funny, it was never because being queer is funny. And like... this show DID THAT with Dionysus. There's a moment where he goes into The Cave with Orpheus and he casually orders drinks from the (male) bartender, and the bartender flips him off-- implying some prior knowledge of each other-- and then Dio goes off to have a quickie with the bartender. And like... he's getting fucked by the man, and in that moment it didn't feel like... like a male character having desire for a man and having a sexual tryst with him. It felt like "isn't it funny that Dionysus is getting FUCKED in the ASS?!" Which, like... no? Like, that's so 2009. It's so passe to play the gay for laughs. Like, even in other fantasy comedies, like What We Do in the Shadows and Our Flag Means Death-- the CHARACTERS are funny, but their same-sex attraction never is. It's not funny that Stede and Blackbeard fall for each other-- it's lovely.

And let's be clear-- I'm not expecting Dio to "fall for" the bartender or anything, but it's clear that they were going for "Dio is a fuckboy who has probably had casual sex with this man before, and probably scorned him in some way, and so he uses the casual quickie to make up with the guy and possibly get free drinks." Cute, fun, I like that. I don't like HOW they did that idea. Like, Dio did not react like someone who enjoys getting fucked. He reacted like a straight boy playing getting fucked in the ass for laughs. IDK.

To be fair, this version of Dionysus is very bored with his whole debauchery schtick and we do see him boredly getting his cock sucked by a girl in a club in an early scene, too. But even that looked more like someone who enjoys getting their cock sucked but is just bored, and less just... "it's funny because of what it is." Does that make sense? IDK.

Like, it feels like a direction problem. Because this Dionysus seems to work very well on paper, and the actor doesn't seem poorly cast, to me. It just seems... executed like it's directed by a dudebro older man who was very cool in the 2000s and still thinks the way dude filmmakers thought in the 2000s.

Then there's the Orpheus.

2/10. I do not... like him. And like, not because of the story-- we all know Orpheus and Eurydice. (Which is part of the problem.)

I think it's because he very much gives CHRIS MARTIN, gives COLDPLAY, and not in a good way. Like, yeah, I like Coldplay alright. They're fine. But for ORPHEUS? Orpheus' whole thing is that his music is supposed to be... extremely special. Like, nobody is touching him. His music is so beautiful it can like... literally change the world. Move the gods. All of that.

And they chose to make him... COLDPLAY? This man whose music is the most special, beautiful thing anyone has ever heard. Like, I don't understand that music direction choice. At all. Who... decided that this was the move? I need something otherworldly. Something ethereal. Like, when he's playing the piano at The Cave for the fates in an attempt to get them to allow him to go into the underworld to retrieve Eurydice's soul... as soon as he started, I was like "This basic ass piano." Like, THAT IS NOT "the greatest, most beautiful music-- music that breaks your heart so much that you'd let him defy the gods and get his lost love back." It sounded like he was playing Christmas hymns at the Christmas morning service. Basic as fuck.

And again, I hate, hate that I have to compare, but YOU CANNOT GIVE SUCH A MEDIOCRE MUSICAL PERFORMANCE IN A WORLD WHERE HADESTOWN EXISTS. Like, we cannot hear Reeve Carney give the most beautiful performances of the most heartwrenching songs in a hit Broadway musical as the same character, and then you give us Chris Martin playing Christmas hymns.

Again, you are allowed to make your own interpretations, and the showrunner did not need to try to copy Hadestown. That is not what I mean. But you need to pay attention to what perhaps the most popular telling of that myth OF ALL TIME did, and you need to try to match or exceed it. Why even both with Orpheus and Eurydice if you're not going to slay us with the music? YOU NEED TO SLAY US WITH THE MUSIC! THAT'S ORPHEUS' WHOLE THING!

Honestly, full stop, even though they have every right to tell their own versions of these stories and create their own versions of these characters, you're fighting an uphill battle when AMERICAN GODS, PERCY JACKSON, and HADESTOWN exist and have done EXTREMELY WELL and been EXTREMELY POPULAR touching this same mythology. You have to MATCH OR EXCEED. Because why would I want to sit through your mediocre Orpheus when I could listen to Hadestown and hear a far superior Orpheus?

Now, their Eurydice? She is beautiful. She is fierce. She is heartbreaking. I love her. Hera and Eurydice are the best characters on the show, and the only ones I just full-on like without much complaint.

And maybe the point is that the men suck? IDK. Like, I don't give a fuck about this Orpheus. I'm not sad for him. His reaction to Eurydice's death is selfish and not at all heartbreaking. I don't even believe him that he wants to go into the underworld to retrieve her. I feel like Dionysus wants it more than he does. But Euridyce. I feel so sad for her. She lost her mother to Hera's cult. She dies tragically. Her stupid husband took her coin, so she can't even pass through to be Renewed and have a new life. She wasn't happy in her marriage, and she isn't happy in her death, and all I want is for her to succeed.

IDK if their goal was for us to dislike Orpheus, but if that is the goal, they've succeeded. Like, I want my heart to break for Orpheus. But I just feel like he's shitty. And I don't care about him at all.

And the other thing was small, but Theseus and Nax being in love was brushed over and not fully explicit and the Nax actor didn't play it well enough. Theseus actor was believably in love and heartbroken that Nax might die at Minos' hands, but Nax was almost playful, like his whole purpose was to reveal that Theseus was not for Ariadne rather than to truly be Theseus' lover. Which, again, feels like a director problem. They WROTE "Theseus is revealed to be gay and in love with Nax, the secret prince of Troy". He DIRECTED "and then we learn that Theseus is actually gay and Nax sassily reveals it to Ariadne because lol they're gay and she doesn't get the man isn't that amusing?" Which, again, is very 2009. Very "see? It's EDGY, the character is GAY! But not too gay, because eww, amirite?" And like, again, in a decade in which we have OUR FLAG MEANS DEATH and INTERVIEW WITH THE VAMPIRE, that just doesn't work anymore. We have pirates and vampires being openly gay and kissing and being casual about how in love they are with their partners... and you play your gay Theseus as if it's edgy just to imply he's in love with this prince and that you don't need to show us that he is because you let the prince call him "babe" and let their hands touch a bit and let Theseus cry for him. Like? Coward shit, man, it's so outdated. I don't know how else to say it. Like, even having Nax just show an ounce of empathy for his partner who is terrified that he is going to be executed would have been enough, but Nax was just sassy and smirking and resigned to his fate as if it was just words on a script. Even a man who knew he was probably going to die because of his actions to save his people should have more emotion and conflict than just "Oh well, I'm not afraid to die, lol, Theseus babe stop crying omg lol"

Anyway, I think this was more negative than positive. But... I like the modern setting. I think it's fun. Very "Romeo + Juliet", which is I think what they were actually going for. I love the Fates and the Furies. I think they look so cool, and I think the gnc Fates was a great choice. I liked their Poseidon. Didn't like their Hades and Persephone, but there's nothing wrong with them, actually. I just don't like what they did with them personally.

I like Prometheus, and I like that he's serving as the narrator. I think that's interesting. I like that Zeus keeps summoning him and sending him back-- again, that casual cruelty thing that the show does so well. (Also, when Poseidon drowns the servant girl for no reason. That was very fun. Just, perfect Poseidon behavior-- he's such a piece of shit, and I love that this show decided to show us that.)

I also like the story it's trying to tell, with the three humans who are prophesized to bring down Zeus/the gods. I'm interested in seeing how that works out, and especially in seeing Eurydice's role in it. The show has a REALLY good premise, and has some REALLY nice elements. It's just, honestly, the execution that leaves something to be desired. Like, I feel like I'm pulling my hair out every time I try to watch an episode. Like, I pause every few minutes just to rant about something.

And to be fair, I'm a mythology girlie. I read a lot of mythology. I watch a lot of mythology shows and movies. I listen to mythology podcasts. Like, it's my special interest. But also, I understand completely when people adapt these myths to tell their own versions, or use these characters in their stories in ways that don't match the mythologies. I understand, and I've even done it myself. And so does the mythology. There are so many different versions of these gods, of their myths, so many different ways they were worshipped and things they were worshipped for-- it's perfectly on-brand to change them in your own ways for your own purposes. I don't think that's my problem with Kaos. I just think... I don't like how it was executed. It's a very "sounds good on paper" show, at this point. And I feel for the cast, because they're not doing a terrible job. It really feels like the problems are on the director/producer side. I even think what the writers wrote sounds better than what the creative team did with it.

And... that's all I'll say. I'm still going to finish the season. Maybe I'll give final thoughts after I finish the season. Sometimes things that you think are problems are there to pay something off in the end. But some of these things, IDK, I just think they're problems in general. And, like... I'm kinda disappointed, because I really want to like this show, and right now, I can't say that I do.

[dontmeantobepoliticalbut]

One of the most enduring—and ridiculous—#Resistance narratives of the Trump era was the idea that the President of the United States was a literal Manchurian Candidate, a man who had been compromised for years (perhaps even decades) by a foreign power, namely Russia.

Like most enduring conspiracy theories, this one was built on a kernel of truth. Donald Trump really was admiring of Vladimir Putin and had no apparent problem with the Russian dictator arresting dissidents or invading neighbors. In fact, Trump was far more conciliatory to Russia, a long-standing adversary, than he was to many of America’s closest allies.

When Trump’s troubling admiration of Putin was combined with other details—particularly salacious (and dubious) reports of Trump, as a private citizen, being videotaped in Moscow and salacious (and accurate) records of Trump doing business with shady Russian oligarchs—a conspiracy was born. Trump was compromised. Either through blackmail or bribery, America’s foreign policy was obviously being directed by Russia.

Nearly a decade into Trump’s political career, there is no evidence that he is compromised by Putin or any other foreign power. But as he runs for reelection, Trump is indeed compromised in a way he never has been before. Desperate to avoid prison—and needing cash to win reelection, so he can pardon himself—Trump is selling his administration’s domestic and foreign policy to the highest bidder. It’s hardly a conspiracy, either. As we speak, he is traveling from billionaire to billionaire with hat in hand, making explicit promises to sell his presidency.

Trump has raked in campaign contributions in the wake of his conviction last week on 34 felony counts of falsifying business records—$60 million alone in the 24 hours after the jury delivered a guilty verdict, nearly half of his total $141 million haul in May. But even with that sizable pot, his campaign is still trailing Biden’s. And given Trump’s use of campaign contributions to pay attorneys representing him in his numerous criminal trials, much of that money is being spent on legal rather than political expenses.

For Trump, the 2024 presidential campaign is an existential project. If he wins, he surely will direct the Department of Justice to drop two ongoing criminal cases against him—one involving his retention of classified information after leaving office in 2021, another involving his role in the January 6 insurrection. He could, as president, also pardon himself and several key witnesses who might otherwise be tempted to testify against him to avoid jail time or reduce sentences. To keep those cases from advancing, and ultimately kill them, Trump needs to win the 2024 election. To do that, he needs money—lots of it.

In recent weeks, one strategy for raising money has become clear: Trump is going to wealthy donors and interest groups and offering to cede policymaking to them—in exchange for massive campaign contributions. Last month, The Washington Post reported that Trump gathered oil executives at Mar-a-Lago and made a pitch: For the low cost of $1 billion, he would, as president “reverse dozens of President Biden’s environmental rules and policies and stop new ones from being enacted.” The pitch reportedly “stunned several of the executives in the room.” But it is nevertheless in keeping with Trump’s larger program. Despite promising during his first run for office in 2016 that he was, as a rich person, incorruptible—and that he would use his inside knowledge of a corrupt system to benefit his voters—Trump has always dispensed with subtlety and flaunted his corruption. Here, he is advertising his willingness to take a bribe: Give me what I want, and I’ll give you what you want.

And less than two weeks after that Post report, Trump made even more promises to oil and gas executives at a campaign fundraiser. He reportedly ended his speech by saying, “Be generous, please,” and was rewarded with more than $25 million in donations.

That’s not all. In late May, an interesting item appeared in a New York magazine profile of billionaire casino magnate—and part owner of the NBA Finals–bound Dallas Mavericks—Miriam Adelson. Adelson, a long-standing donor to right-wing Republicans and a staunch supporter of Israel, is expected to be Trump’s largest donor in the 2024 cycle. But her money comes with strings attached.

“One can assume she’ll press for the unfinished items of Trump’s Israel agenda from last term,” New York’s Elizabeth Weil wrote. “Top of that list: Israel annexing the West Bank and the U.S. recognizing its sovereignty there.” That would mark a dramatic shift in America’s policy toward Israel—and would make ending Israel’s destructive military campaign in Gaza significantly harder. But Trump is advertising that he’s open for business, and he has never shown any interest in Palestinian rights; it’s fair to assume he would see supporting annexation of the West Bank as a small price to pay for millions in campaign contributions. Last month, moreover, Trump promised donors that he would set back the pro-Palestinian movement by “25 or 30 years.” One easy way to do that: Allow Israel to annex the West Bank.

There’s little doubt that if Trump returns to the White House, he’ll again speak favorably of Putin and likely even support Russia’s annexation of Ukraine. But if so, it will be because Trump is fond of autocrats and disdains America’s alliances, rather than because Putin holds some kind of leverage over him. And yet, if Trump as president also does everything in his power to enrich the billionaire donors who have contributed so generously to his campaign, it will be hard to believe it’s because of a fondness for billionaires. Rather, he will simply be returning the favors that, for all the world to see, he promised them this year.

[multifunctionalnitroglycerin]

Leona and Diana Old Lore / New Lore. My take on it

Okay so, I am relatively new to the League community, with barely three years under my belt, but lore is one of the things that interest me the most about it. And well, the dynamic between Sun and Moon coded characters is one I never pass up in exploring. Leodia is arguably my favorite ship from League, but it's mostly the idea of it, with recent executions leaving me feel kinda... meh.

So apart from probably having read every single half decent fic under the Leona/Diana tag on Ao3, I have scourged the internet for their lore and have come across quite a few references of their old one. Never found the complete thing though. And possibly unpopular opinion, I like it better than their current one.

That is not to say that the old lore is any sort of masterpiece, and people could argue that it doesn't set them up to be lovers, but I think with a little bit of tweeking it can become really good. Many of my ideas are inspired from a fic I probably read like 2 years ago, also features an OC named Helena and has a side of Riven's inner struggle, Riven and Diana friendship and Rivelia. (I cannot for the life of me remember the name, I apologise)

My problem with the New Lore mostly, is that it's vanilla for a mountain of warriors and *cultists* it feels almost like High School AU but try to fit it into League, and yeah it's not it for me. Also the co-dependence of their ascension, and just Leona's whole thing kinda sucks. Like I can see how people might see it as romantic and poetic and whatever, that they ascended at the same time and Leona followed Diana up the mountain to keep her safe etc. etc. but that's kinda glossing over some issues especially with Leona's character.

Now the new take on Leona's character is really interesting, and a complete 180 from the old lore and actually the idea isn't so bad, if they ACTUALLY DID ANYTHING WITH IT. Now as a person that definitely doesn't overanalyze literature and fictional characters for fun, Leona's new lore is such an interesting take and could be taken many directions if someone chose to explore it and go a bit deeper that "genocidal close-minded bigot".

At first read Leona is really just that. She does what she is told no hesitation, no questions asked and turns on Diana also no questions asked. But let's take it a bit deeper shall we?

I have no intention to make it as though Leona holds no blame for her actions or that she is a paragon of virtue, cause she is not. But if we dive in her story a bit more we could perhaps understand how she came to be what she is. Because under no circumstance do I think she is that daft. Especially if she was with Diana for years. Some of that curiosity must have rubbed off on her. Then again she could have just ignored everything Diana said about the Moon and her research. I guess we'll never know.

I do not intent to ramble about Leona in this post. But I'll give you some clues as to why her backstory and the whole Targonian premise is important. She is born practically into a cult, or well a religion with really strict and particular disciplines. So already an environment with very particular ideas and particular ways to enforce them. She is the daughter of two really strict and proud parents in said cult, who seem to care more abt her achievements and punishments than anything (Grade A parenting), - She doesn't even send them that letter in the end - and she is the golden child of the Solari. So what do we have in our hands? An affection starved perfectionist suffering from gifted child expectations. NOw take that and put it in the Solari premise of religious fanatism and voila!

(I will probably at some point make a separate post abt this, because I really took a deep dive in Leona's character when writing my Ruination fic - that I wont ever post anywhere probably - and I have a LOT to say)

So in the old Lore the Rakkori are the warriors and defenders of the mountain, a bit heavy on the bloodthirsty side though, hence the right of Kor. A coming of age ritual battle to the death. (What else could it be). Leona being the only one that refuses to kill her opponent and friend, is sentenced to be executed, but before the execution could be carried out, she is claimed by the Golden Sister as the Sun aspect with a beam of golden light.

I feel that Leona's ascension in particular is really important in the old Lore, because in such a warlike culture she was rewarded for showing mercy. She was chosen because she chose mercy over mindless slaughter. Something that could potentially be really important later on, in a mountain where half its indigenous people have slaughtered the other half??

Point 1 I like from the old lore: The Sun chose Leona because she was merciful. (Or had a semblance of a moral compass)

Moving forward the lines kinda blur for Diana, mostly cause I am not sure what I remember is actual lore and what is related to that magnificent fic.

Her curious truth-searching nature is ever present. She discovers hidden texts, burned pages and embarks on a journey of knowledge that leads her to climb the mountain. Only she is in the company of an elderly woman I think? Anyhow, she finds - is lead to - an alcove, an old temple and the relics of the Moon Aspect. Overjoyed at her findings she dons the armor takes it all down to the elders, they call her a heretic, brand her, and intent to kill her, when she begs the Moon for help and ascends. Either her or the moon blast kills every elder in the room she gets blamed either way, and the chase begins.

Diana is at her core an academic and a researcher, that researches. She has her Indiana Jones moment in the mountain and there is a process a ritual to it, instead of I just climbed up saw unimaginable terrors and now I am the aspect of the Moon (over-simplified I know. The climb judges worthiness). There is something about her checking old dusty books, and deciding to brave the climb looking for answers. About her choosing to be helpful -kinda as a mirror to Leona sparing her opponent, Diana, the one that keeps to herself - apart from when arguing abt academics and scriptures consciously engages with and helps a stranger, guiding them up the mountain and helping them along the way when the trip became too arduous.

Point 2 I like from the old lore: The ritual of the process in Diana's research and ascension and the mirroring with Leona, minor though it is, that they ascended - sooner or later - after an act of kindness that contradicted what would have been expected of them.

Point 3 I like from the old lore: The brand. Like it just adds another layer to Diana's character. And is a much better explanation for its presence than Moon magic. Also the amount of complications this act has, its just delicious. I mean THE DRAMA. and ofc THE TRAUMA. I don't think she'd go near a fire for months.

Point 3 I like from the old lore: The independence of the ascensions. It gives us the chance to see them grow and evolve as their own people before the thread of fate that binds them together appears. We get to see one without the other, and that would later make their dynamic more interesting.

But How are Leona and Diana connected?

In the old lore they aren't. I think. Leona is like a blood hound that needs to kill the heretic.

In the fic, Leona's dad was one of the guards in the room when Diana ascended and was killed, which in the context of the story adds a layer of betrayal between them, as up to that point they were lovers. And you know what, I really like that idea. And I was thinking that perhaps we could try to get the best of both worlds. Though it might be difficult to fully develop the idea.

Lore Idea:

So the Rakkor ans the Solari are different factions. Solari = priesthood, Rakkor = Warriors. Leona's family are Rakkori, and they are simple people, her father works as a guard for the Solari Temple, something that is considered a bit of an honor despite that fact that the factions don't rly see eye to eye about everything. Right of Kor happens when they are around 15 (Yes I want to traumatize a bunch of teenagers that train to fight, kill and defend since they could walk) and Leona's story proceeds as we know it. She then gets taken to the Solari temple to be educated in their way and train to become the figurehead of their faith. (Like that Leona has already had the chance to develop some critical thinking, and to experience sth different.)

She gets there and all the acolytes younger and older look at her starry eyed, because the elders told them so and because they see her like a bit of a Messiah. (Plus I doubt a bunch of scrawny academics and priests to be have seen anyone their age with that musculature). All of them apart from Diana, who as always isn't particularly impressed by the paragon in training of the Solari faith.

Leona is relieved to get some normal person treatment, even if it is from the broody girl with her nose in a book half the time, and like the cocky 15year old meathead she is, she wants to show off a bit and perhaps win her favor. Shenanigans ensue and Diana unlike the other people that desperately want to befriend Leona, is not impressed.

Another point of similarity is that Leona - that has ascended already mind you - would have a few questions and oppositions to all that mumbo jumbo the Solari say about the Sun and the Moon. So after she flops exceptionally in one oration or sth class, with saying something positive about the Moon that has the students look at her with horror, and the priest fuming and screaming punishments - light ones, because the Sun chose that clueless miscreant, and he doesn't want to fall out of her favor - Leona manages unknowingly to win inquisitive Diana's intrigue - and favor, (but don't tell anyone about the last part).

A tentative bond forms. It gets solidified when Leona stops a few bullies from beating Diana to a pulp, and the dark haired girl in return helps her pass a class she was having an exceptionally hard time with. Diana - who in my head is a year younger - does eventually get charmed by the surprisingly goofy and sunny disposition of the Sun Aspect in training. (Don't get this wrong Leona will still act like a 15 yo that has had to train and fight every day of her life) Diana asks her countless questions about life outside the temple and they discuss theology together, either trying to help Leona understand, or trying to make sense of Diana's findings. (The Rakkori in my head are far more neutral abt Sun and Moon, more like if there is light and I can see I am happy, whether its the Sun or the Moon. "There was even that one traveler from some big city, Pilt - something was it, that even said that the Sun and Moon are like orbs in the night sky, one is a star rly close to us and the other is like a smaller planet or something, can you imagine?")

The become friends, the Nightless Eve happens, and then they become lovers. Leona starts suffering from all those expectations and the charade she needs to put up, she has more hours with classes and training she gets tutored by the priests, punished more severely when se speaks out of line or says something borderline heretical, yada yada. More people like her and she likes the attention. She doesn't abandon Diana though, and she always defends her. Things get difficult as the years go by but still they persist. (We could include some homophobic sentiment in the Solari, or even sth downright misogynistic, which would add complications with Leona's state as the Radiant Dawn, and the wlw relationships as they would not be seen as real substantial relationships - add asshole trying to flirt with Leona bc her relationship with Diana isn't real cause they are both women- DRAMA)

Leona is 18 passes her final exams, and Diana is 17 when Diana's arc happens. They have a huge fight about faith and contradicting it and if it is worth it. (No one wants to bandage their lover's whipped back that is practically a mosaic of scars at this point, or nurse them to health after sever dehydration - cause yes apparently standing naked in the sun for three days can do that). Diana storms off angrily. Finds an elderly woman in the base of the mountain that needs help going up (Silver sister in disguise). She helps her up, and when they are like 3/4 up and rest cause Diana's everything hurts the woman disappears. She looks around, finds the temple, sees carved proof that the Solari and Lunari co-existed gets the relics and climbs back down excited to show everyone her findings.

Meanwhile Leona has left for an emergency Solari mission or sth, and hasn't told Diana. Diana goes to the priests, they don't believe her, she invokes her right to be judged by the Aspect or sth, the priests pretend that Leona is still around and doesn't want to see or help Diana (Strike 1 of betrayal). Diana feels betrayed and hurt and fears for her life. The priests give the order for her to be branded and executed on the spot. Leona's dad who had been in the room and had met Diana, tries to plead her case from an outsider's perspective. One of the elders reprimands him and threatens him with death.

They brand Diana with the moon Symbol on the forehead, and are about to place her face down in the flames and / or slit her throat, and Iasur can't have her dying thinking that Leona betrayed her (A bit of family honor and afterlife beliefs - honor is a huge deal-, and a bit of a soft spot for his daughter's closest companion). He tries to fight his way to her, and gets killed in the process. Diana witnessing Iasur's murder prays to the moon for help, and seconds before breathing her last breath, she ascends. Pillar of Moonlight and heavenly fire burns everything to a crisp, and Diana remains alone in the middle of the room, barely breathing and clad in the garb of he Moon aspect. She takes one look around her and speeds away from the temple.

Leona returns three days after to find the council and her father dead, the council room in ruins and apparently Diana to blame. On top of that Diana is missing. Leona is presented with the case and believes Diana to be her father's killer. She vows to avenge him and kill the Scorn of the Moon, because her Diana wouldn't do that. It must be the moon spirit. and yes apparently Moon is bad because dad and Diana are gone bc of it. Leona is determined to save her lover from the Moon's clutches and set her free the only way she knows how, with killing her.

And thus their journey begins. Leona becomes more and more of a puppet from here and on driven by anger and betrayal and Diana feels abandoned and betrayed, with nothing left in the world but the glow of the branding mark on her forehead and the knowledge that her lover wanted her dead.

And as for their path to reunite again and achieve peace? Well Leona needs to be merciful, and Diana needs to guide and support someone through the right path.

Thanks for reading this huge ass post. Again MANY credits to that amazing writer on Ao3, if I find that fic I'll put a link here, cause its phenomenal.

Take care and see ya next time!

[aetheriumnoctes]

Well well well! Please share your opinion on the worst TVD season (asking for your imho!)

this might be an unpopular opinion bcs season eight seems to be the majority vote here but season seven for me.

A) everything just felt so dragged out in this season, i honestly don’t remember much from it but from what i remember there was no reason for the julian phoenix stone storyline to be so dragged out? and i have nothing against the heretics but they didn’t really do much for the storyline and after the masterpiece that was season six the heretics + lily and julien as ‘villains’ just felt so underwhelming. also i didn’t even remember the armory plot until i googled it that just goes to show😭 the only interesting part was rayna cruz

B) what the hell was the whole caroline and alaric thing?? that was so odd and tbh creepy i can’t believe people still ship them. also why was matt so heavily involved in this season, i’m not a matt anti but he was just annoying, there was no use for him in s7

C) i am a firm believer that season seven set up the shitshow that was season eight and that season eight is so bad as a direct result of season seven, you could tell after season six the writers were running out of ideas and just dragging it on. at least season eight gave us some decent moments, a good finale with katherine coming back and stuff but i don’t blame season eight for being as bad as it was because season seven warned us all for what was going to come

D) i know a lot of people hate elena. i have never hated elena and i believe her absence from the show did not work in tvd’s favor, regardless of the fandom’s opinions of her (i could get into a whole other conversation about that) elena was a main character and nina was great on the show and there were so many character dynamics we just missed out on after she left. it left a hole in the show and there wasn’t even any attempt made to fill it that i can remember so it just gave the show another problem aside from the lack of ideas (not even lack of ideas, poor execution of ideas)

looking back on this it was a whole lot of yapping but it is my honest opinion. the show should’ve ended with season six

[ryan-the-dark]

Arthur: I much prefer the old Canon explanation so I decided to write this prompt. Along with my personal opinion on how Order 66 would have went if the Clones did it willingly in the Clone Wars.

When the order came down, Commander Cody stood quietly. They had fought in countless battles throughout the Clone Wars. The man saved his life more than once.

But Cody's ultimate loyalty was to the Republic. Every Clone was indoctrinated into the army, taught all the contingency orders.

There was no personal pleasure in what he was about to do. Just a man doing his job.

That job being kill General Kenobi and possibly another Jedi.

Still, Cody felt a slight annoyance with the whole thing. It would have been easier to remove Kenobi without that damn weapon of the Jedi. But of course, Cody could still make sure casualties are avoid.

Still, he couldn't help but murmur. "Would it have been too much to ask for the order to have come through before I gave him back the bloody lightsaber?"

Still, a small part of him couldn't help but hope that Kenobi's death would be quick.

He might be a soldier, but he was still a man of his own who had thoughts or opinions of his own like many other Clones.

On a Venator traveling back to Coruscant, recently promoted Commander Rex stood, sell-shocked.

Order 66...

But Tano wasn't...

But the Clones have been indoctrinated to follow the damn orders. All their lives, on Kamino, any Clones who disobeyed orders would often be targeted by the long necks and sufer reconditioning at best.

The worst, the poor bastards were never seen again.

The same could be said for Rex if he doesn't go through it.

"Rex, it's Anakin. I feel like something terrible has happened."

Yet, Ahsoka Tano had been loyal to him. She and General Skywalker. Their tactics were far from orthodox yet they led to high success rates.

Still, a traitor was a traitor, and Tano had to be put down.

No, Rex knew he couldn't do it.

His hands shook over his helmet as he dropped it in conflict.

Both Clones behind her registered the orders and turned their blasters on Tano's back.

"No, stand down."

"Sir? We have been given directive orders by Chancellor Palpatine to execute all Jedi." One of them said, and Rex couldn't even put a name on the face now.

Was he the only one thinking clearly right now?

Should he just go along with it?

"Sir, orders are orders," the Clone said.

Rex raised his blasters at Tano's direction, saying. "Very well, I'm sorry."

"Rex!" Tano grabbed both of her lightsaber hilts but didn't activate them yet.

The Clone was about to fire before turning his aim and firing.

Both of them dropped dead.

At that moment, the door opened behind them, and the Clone Captain flipped around, noticing Jesse and the rest of the Clones.

"Take the Captain down!" Jesse growled, betrayal in his voice.

"Jesse-" Rex was about to say before they all fired at his command.

Tano jumped in front of him and began blocking blaster bolts. Rex gripped his helmet and fired. Eventually, they would have to run, but the man couldn't regret his decision.

"Come on!" Ki-Adi-Mundi shouted.

Clone Commander Bacara and the Galactic Marines had other ideas.

The Clone Commander would admit hesitating briefly. How could Mundu turn against them?

Regardless, the Galactic Marines Commander all gave the motions for them to wait until the time was right.

That time being now.

When Mundi turned around, all of the carbines clocked and aimed.

They fired, and the bastard was able to last for a few seconds before falling.

They stopped when they understood he was no longer a problem.

Clone Commander Bly cared about Aayla Secura.

Every one of his men do. She led them to hell and back on many planets. They hadn't even returned to Coruscant once since the war began.

When Order 66 came through, Bly gave a reluctant heartache nod to his men.

They all centered behind them, and Bly wondered if each of them were feeling tears in their eyes now.

They made it quick.

Her back sprayed with blaster bolts, and they didn't stop.

No, she didn't deserve to die so painfully. Were it a bastard like Quinlan Vos, it would have been different, but not her!

Neyo didn't even hesitate against Stass Allie either.

The speeders pulled up and fired.

That was all.

Gree had to admit being relieved that he wasn't executing Master Unduli.

She had been a good General. His men would take her out. He knew that much.

But Gree knew that Master Yoda couldn't be that much of a threat. He wasn't even involved with much of a battle.

The Clone Commander nodded at the other trooper - Jek - and aimed his blaster at the back of Yoda.

Pull the trigger and that would be all...

A blur of green, and Gree felt no more.

[dojae-huh]

Wanted to comment on the horse reference.

During the first (Apple) fanmeet Doyoung said that this comeback is similar to the meme with a drawing of a horse. The great music compensates the beginning (promotion).

Ifans, naturally, interpreted it like him dissing SM, however, I suspect it is a reaction to a lot of kfans not liking the concept of IG promos (saw this sentiment on Pann and YT), they found it boring. In addition, this comeback will be short (sidenote: 3weeks->2weeks->1week reduction of music shows promotions in normal for older artists. Rookies need every chance at exposure, meanwhile established acts already have fanbase, while music show ratings are very low, few people watch them (usually just the performances of groups they like on YT, not the whole programmes. time to accept the passage of time and 127 becoming seniors). Do always monitors the fandom (Korean part of it, at least) and often reacts.

There is a problem of using words in a wrong way, devalueing their meaning. Walk comeback is not grand, it is on a small scale, but it is in no way "poor" (the word many ifans used in their twits). Using such terms is belittling the work of the creative team and disregarding the improvements in Neo centre. Fans spoil the aftertaste themselves with their attitude.

The IG promo was goofy, endearing and well-executed (all reels were prepared and shot in a few days when MarkHyuk were available, good time-management). It reflected well the motto of "I don't care what others say, I walk at my own pace". It vibed with NCT's lore and image.

The track-videos were all well-made, creative, beautiful. 2 track videos are better than none. People get used to good things quickly and don't value what they have. The comebacks before Neozone didn't have track videos.

"Deities of seoul" is breathtaking, however, the momentum gained by the short promos wasn't carried into the title-track and fell flat (the fandom was so exited with the gods concept, and we got nothing out of it, we still don't know who is supposed to be who). The way this comeback and the promotion unfolds is a smooth ride. It's an improvement in my book.

The physical albums aren't extraordinary, but are OK (with the exeption of the seam eating up faces issue, I'm dedacting points for it, rest assured). And the print quality is good. Physical albums is a weak side of many companies, not just SM. Didn't make me excited, but I'd still buy them for my collection (Jaehyunie is cute there). (at least we didn't get WayV's insect concept version of an album, *cough*, *cough*, count your blessings)

"The timewalk" series was boring, won't lie, but it had a couple of highlights (like the dance battle), and it is Korean type of idol variety shows. They are never interesting, heh. "I walk radio", on the other hand, was a good idea. It is always nice to hear about bts, what members think about the music.

Neos did their own merch. Always a good move.

SM invents new ways to shoot performance videos. DJJ got great ones. "Movement" was directed by the same person who did "Who is Sticker?" and "Meaning of love". SM allocated a bigger budget for it. It took 16h to shoot it. SM discovered Wasabimayo, established a good relationship, and now has another great creative head in their roster (the comments for NCT are always "I was happy to work with them").

In short, the promotion isn't big, but it is a nice one, I'm entertained and left with a good feeling overall. 127 won't go on a tour right after this comeback, therefore, there is no incentive to spend a lot of money on promotion. It is not cost-effective. (I'm hinting at aespa's full album comeback which was grand).

Comebacks is not the only time when a group finds new fans (which is the goal of an extra promotion). This Fact check performance has 12mln views. This mirrored dance practice on an unofficial account has 1,6mln.

Quality music or good choreo that will make people do tiktok dance challenges is hundred times more valuable than appearing on Weekly Idol. After Neozone 127 had 2 luckluster albums - Sticker and 2 Baddies (they had some great songs on them, I'm talking about all songs combined). NCT's Golden Age was a letdown as well. Finally, Fact Check turned the tide. And Walk might be the best 127's album. As Do said, it does feel like a new beginning.

As for the tour. I'd preder for MarkHyuk to have time to rest, SM have time to prepare lightshow, VCRs and special effects on par with aespa's concert, to all legs planned way ahead, including Americas and Europe, than have another subpar quality Link. If 127 will have some spectacular end of the year performances to make the town talk, they can get attention and an influx of concert-goers, as well.

[moviewarfare]

A Review of “Gran Turismo (2023)”

Gran Turismo is the next PlayStation IP to be adapted to the big screen. Their first attempt with Uncharted wasn't good but The Last of Us TV series was great. I was already interested in the idea of this movie but was further interested because of the director, Neill Blomkamp. He has not made anything as good as his first movie, District 9. Has Neill managed to return to form or is this another forgettable entry from him?

Firstly, David Harbour is terrific in this movie as Jack Salter. He plays the old tough mentor to the main character and he plays it so well. David just delivers those powerful speeches with such weariness and charm. Orlando Bloom is also great in this film as the marketing executive at Nissan. Orlando gives a charismatic yet slight sliminess to his performance that is so fitting for a person in marketing. Djimon Hounsou is wonderful in the role of the Dad. He is playing a Dad who is disappointed in his son for just playing video games. A character like that would be very disliked by the audience but Djimon manages to make him very loving despite that. Djimon delivers the most emotional performance in this whole film despite his minimal screen time. Archie Madekwe plays the main character, Jann Mardenborough, and he does a good job. His performance is tame compared to the others and he is outshined. Still, his performance makes him feel more relatable which is a perfect fit for a gamer character.

It's a solid telling of an underdog story. It has all the tropes you would expect: an underdog given a 1 million chance to make it, a grouchy mentor who warms up to the main character, the early success, the big setback in the later parts etc. However, it tells the story well and with a lot of heart. The dramatic and emotional moments still hit hard. A big core of this movie is the father and son dynamic between Jack and Jann. Seeing the relationship between the characters grow and the moments where Jack pushes Jann are superb. This is thanks to the great chemistry between David and Archie. The race scenes are also magnificent thanks to the great direction of Neill. He uses video game overlays to help the audience keep track of what place Jann is in a race. He also cuts away to the engine or the front seat to put the audience in the seat of the car. The climactic race is incredibly engaging and Neill does a great job in delivering a great conclusion.

However, due to the fact it is telling a story you have seen a dozen over, nothing in the plot surprises you. There isn't any moment of subversion or surprises, which could be a bit disappointing. There are some problems in the story though. There is a love interest and romance element in this movie with a character called Audrey, whom Jann is in love with. The romance is not fleshed out at all with no exploration of Audrey's character. She doesn't even do anything in the story that is meaningful whatsoever. She is just there for the main character to kiss someone. I am also disappointed by the lack of Jann's dad in this movie. It feels like there should have been more interactions between Jann and his dad as it would have made the final scene between them have more impact. The movie is 2 hours long but even that feels too much for what is a generic story. The final race is very noticeable CGI and kind of ugly at times too.

Overall, Gran Turismo is a surprisingly solid film. The trailers and marketing didn't do a good job of selling this. It's not going to blow you away but it's very enjoyable. Neill's is a great director who has made too many misses. Hopefully, this is the beginning of his return.

For more reviews like this visit:

https://moviewarfarereviews.blogspot.com/

[royal-shining]

hello, i agree with most of them but i think

shizuka is more an estp because he love being the center of attention, outgoing, action orientied and DRAMATIC. Plus he always taking risks ( like telling minami and mei about his ridiculous game in the penthouse when mc could litteraly hear it ) and very spontaneous. Rather focus on the present time and rely on his senses to understand the world and make decisions based on logic and objectif criteria rather than emotions so i think it fit him more .

Minami is entp because he enjoy engaging discussions and debates ( that most of the time he take too far cuz he want problem ) and like exploring. He is enthusiastic and energetic but also a very independant thinkers ( in his route when he runway from mc to america he told her that he can leave without her and hate being told what he has to do ). A bit intolerent dismiss any idea that don't stand up his scrutiny and get bored easily.

mei is infp because he is highly intovert and creative. Expressing himself throught music and others forms of art ( in one of his ending where he play a music for mc to show his feeling but dense she is , she had no idea ) his creativity is driven by his stong values for music and emotions . I notice in his route because of his backstory he end up self-isolating wich made him struggle to connect with others leading to feel loney and isolated.

Rei is infj because he take adavantage of people feeling so he can get what he want ( especially mc ) but at the same time want to help others . Like his goal is nice but he execute it in evil way , he often seek holistic solutions that consider well beings of all involved . 100% plan ahead and have a clear sense of direction and very private struggle to open up his own feeling ( like the fact that he actually care about his siblings or telling honestly to mc how much he love her

alan is an enfp a bit the same like minami he is energetic and enthusiastic but he is an angel compared to this evil minami . Prioritize harmony and understanding in his interactions ( especially with mc ) but also playfull and mischievous. Enjoy motivating others and use his enthusiasm to connect with people . Oversensitive to criticism and may take neagtive feedback personally .

Roy is honestly a bit hard cuz i read his route and he remind so much of shizuka and rei at the same time but i think he is an enfj because he is pretty sociable, confident, outgoing and a leadership ( i mean he is the oldest siblings and the their ) but unrealistic put pressure on himself to solve problems and sooo condescending ( espacially to mc, and it still piss me off )

Love your interpretations! I feel like your understanding of Shizuka is better than mine, because that does sound more like him. With Minami, especially, but also Rei, I feel like they both have very complex and strong personalities that can overlap with many of the types.

Oh, I would love to know more about Roy! With the discontinuation of translation for the international version, unfortunately we've never gotten to play any of the routes after Minami's sequel.

Thank you for sending in your ask! It's always wonderful to see players' thoughts and opinions of the game.

[lazyrants]

Trash Trouble (prod 209)

Original airdate: September 27, 2006

Story by Magnus Scheving

Written by Magnus Scheving, Mani Svavarrson, Noah Zachary

Directed by Sigvaldi J. Karason

Executive producers - Magnus Scheving, Ragnheidur Melsted, Raymond P. Le Gue, Brown Johnson, Kay Wilson Stalling

Starring Magnus Scheving, Stefan Karl Steffanson, Julianna Rose Mauriello

Puppeteers - Gudmondor Thor Karason, Jodi Eichelberger, David Matthew Feldman, Julie Westwood, Sarah Burgess, Ronald Binion

This episode better not be trash.

Sportacus is in his airship and he flips, lands on a button and turns to the screen. He tells the screen to look for Sportscandy and it zooms into an apple tree. The record for obtaining it is 59 seconds which Sportacus believes he can beat. So, he rides into town using the Sky Bike, and once he sees the apple tree, he throws a boomerang at it, and it slices the apple off the branch and it lands in his hands.

If this was realistic it'd have just landed in the grass. While going back to the ship, the boomerang flies back to him. Without even looking he catches it! Then he goes back in the ship - the record was 51 seconds! Anyways, back in the town after the intro.. Sportacus is literally lifting a bench. Stingy is carrying a bunch a trash in his car (including himself) when Milford comes to him. He tells Milford that he found some stuff that he doesn't want - and gives it to him. Trying to carry it, Milford falls down into Stingy's car wagon, sending Stingy flying into the air. Lucky Sportacus is there to catch him.

That doesn't get a 'thank you, Sportacus' from Stingy. He is only concerned about his car. So, Sportacus pushes the mayor out of the wagon, then he goes after Stingy's car. Then he checks on the mayor, takes the trash out his hand and throws it at Stingy's car - Well, I'd do that. I am NOT cut out to be a super hero. He throws it at a far-away garbage can and makes a perfect shot! The mayor compliments him on it, and he goes back to the airship. Stingy advises Milford 'not to do that again'.

Back at Pixel's house, the kids are watching an episode of a show they've already seen and Stephanie asks Pixel where the remote control is, but his room is such a mess he can't find it. Stephanie proposes the idea of cleaning up but everyone including Steph declines. Then Ziggy panics and tells everyone not to move - he lost his lollipop. Stephanie promises to get him a new one. Then Trixie wants to play outside, assuming it'll be cleaner there. So they all go. Ziggy is reluctant, but little does he know..

Robbie is in his lair, eating gooey sticky taffy, and THROWING THE WRAPPER on the floor - making a mountain of taffy wrappers. Anyways, it's still dirty outside (Steph found Ziggy's lollipop), so Pixel says that they can't play - and that cheers up Robbie. Imagine being such a jerk your happiness is at the cost of a kid's sadness. Anyways, he goes to look at the periscope, and questions how simple it can be. He says the answers to his problems is episode thirty - Greatest Hits.. hey, he said trash. No difference. Anyways, he has the usual disguise time except this time it's not funny - Too fifties, too sixties, too seventies, 'eh', then he finds the trashman costume.

Ta-taa! His plan is to fill a cannon with.. well.. trash, and launch it into LazyTown! HAHAHAHA! Anyways, he launches it to test if it works - but he forgot to open the hatch and it all comes crashing down. LOL. He's happy it works, completely ignoring the fact his lair is a mess.

Meanwhile, the kids aren't fond of Stingy's idea to not be a lazy slob in a dirty town, and they run away when he bends down to pick up gloves. 'All you need is some organization.' So, he runs back to Pixel's house. But all his efforts won't be needed, because Robbie's finally driven into town with the cannon. Meanwhile, the kids are playing a video game (you pick up a MUSHROOM with a LEEK..?) when Stingy walks in angrily. Trixie's excuse is that they don't know how to clean - which gets Stingy to start performing 'Clean up'. Since the town is pretty clean, the kids tell Milford to take a rest and Pixel takes him to his room to play video games. After the song ends, Steph looks for a place to put her rubbish.

Then Robbie comes up in his trash-man costume, saying he is the trashman and tells her to give the rubbish to him. No hesitation, she does it. Not as easy with Trixie who argues with him for ten seconds before giving up. She's not too sure about this. He sees some more trash and smiles. Then for some reason he notices some taffy in his mouth he didn't even know was there. So, he throws it onto the ground before going to pick up more rubbish. Meanwhile, Ziggy is.. licking a lollipop.

Stingy is NOT being a lazy kid, and he is working on his very own recycling system, then Robbie comes to mess it up. Eventually he convinces him with three questions - 'Do you stay up late at night studying trash?' 'Have you ever been to trash school?' 'Do you even have a Trash Man Badge?' As suspected, the answer to all these questions - is no. Then Robbie spits out more taffy. Slob. Stingy scrapes it up and flings it into a bin, telling Robbie to 'not do that agaen'. He says he'll be watching him. Robbie's so annoyed by this once he leaves, he throws his taffy wrapper on the ground and says 'I'll be watching YOU!!' Anyways, Ziggy finally finishes his lollipop.

He jumps off the bench, takes a bin, and steps on Robbie's taffy. He's stuck to the ground. (That would be hard to get off but it's possible!) Anyways, Pixel is still attempting to teach Milford to play the Leek game when the kids all come into the house, informing Milford and Pixel the town is tidy. But not for long - Robbie has finally got his cannon to work and he pulls the lever, making trash fireworks. Stingy comes in and makes an announcement - the town is tidy. Thanks, I heard. So, he pulls up the window to demonstrate and boy does he get a surprise.

Stingy thinks this is just a dream so he tells someone to pinch him - and Trixie does. Really hard. By now, Robbie's broken the lever. Stephanie realizes Ziggy's missing - so Stingy DIVES IN the trash to find him. That's no use because Sportacus' crystal beeps (Man, this sucks, he was only in three scenes of this episode..) and he flips into town. The kids watch on Pixel's computer as if it's a movie. Sportacus calls for a boomerang and throws it at the lever. The trashpour stops! Hooray! Trixie has the audacity to say 'We did it'.. little brat. Sportacus finds Ziggy and tries to pull him up but he can't because of that bing bang taffy. Stingy pops up from some trash and throws a scraper at Sportacus, and HE dives in.

For a while nobody can see him, but he pops up with Ziggy! I don't know how he scraped off the taffy - he couldn't possibly see under all the trash. Ziggy preaches - 'I'm free!' Robbie jumps from a wall to another wall and climbs on top. He says that this was a bad idea and he wobbles and falls into a trash can. (I love how Stefan screams when he's trying to talk. 'Maybe this trash wasn't such a good idea after aAAAAAUGGGH') Sportacus hears the lid drop, and goes to rescue him. He pulls him out but his hat/wig and moustache have fallen off. Then he goes back into the bin after everyone realizes it's him. I'd do the same. Stingy says that they have a little job to do, and in the span of a fourty second long 'Bing Bang' they've CLEARED THE TOWN.

Maybe it wouldn't be as dumb if they sang the extended version of Bing Bang, but, kids show. Robbie is sulking in the lair, and he throws yet another piece of taffy on the floor. He steps on the piece he JUST THREW. Did he forget about it 1 second after? Then he falls onto the ground in the Taffy Mountain (TM, TM).

He greets the trash. LOL!! So simple and so funny.

7/10 - Needed more Sportacus scenes, the slice in the middle of Clean Up was unneeded, and frankly, Trixie and Ziggy annoyed me in this one.