#I’m so sorry for using teen titans go audio

[flamebearrel]

Catch, daddy, catch

[squidiosyncrasies]

1, 5, 14, 19, 20, 21, 23, 28, 29, 31, 32, 48, 50, 59-62, 73, 72 (sorry it's so many asks you don't have to answer them all).

Hey!! I don’t mind the questions at all!! And in fact very much appreciate them!!! However, I am gonna put it under a readmore since it got pretty long

1: coffee mugs, teacups, wine glasses, water bottles, or soda cans?

thick cups like mugs/tea cups give me weird sensory issues, so i try not to drink from them unless i have to (like it’s a coffee or hot chocolate). of the remaining three, i think i like water bottles best since they hold a lot more fluid and tend to be a nice shape (and have lids!!)

5: do you prefer to drink soda from soda cans, soda bottles, plastic cups, or glass cups?

probably cans, with bottles it depends what type (plastic are thin enough for me to not have issues, but idk i also like the taste of them in glass more)

14: favorite non-chocolate candy?

i once got these cool wafer like ufo-candies with sour powder inside from alex and i still think about how cool those were sometimes

19: sleeping position?

i need to sleep on either my side or back, but honestly i sleep better when with my girlfriend, so whatever works for us both in the moment is what i’ll go for (and i’ll make room for cats too)

20: preferred place to write? (ie in a notebook, on your laptop, sketchpad, post-it notes, etc)

probably in notebooks! i’ve never been one of those people to take their laptops into class tbh and idk why but the idea of it makes me a little anxious. i also got this little whiteboard to write on at home when i do my chem homework and i’ve been liking that a lot too

21: obsession from childhood?

i really liked the teen titans (2003) cartoon and would watch it all the time and talk at my brother about it and also superheroes in general

23: strange habits?

i pop pretty much every joint i can (not just knuckles), including my knees and toes, all the time. it gets pretty annoying sometimes tbh but it’s a compulsion

28: five songs to describe you?

like a star (mike krol), coming clean (green day), when you were young (the killers), jenny (studio killers), everything stays (rebecca sugar)

29: best way to bond with you?

probably making me laugh, and just being kind towards and there for each other is good too when we’re both mentally able to

31: what outfit do you wear to kick ass and take names?

i really like wearing a pattern button up under my leather jacket (when it’s not too hot out for that), so probably that with black jeans and my trans shoes

32: top five favorite vines?

i wish i could tell you but tbh i’ve never sought them out. as a rule, if something has audio (unless it’s a movie/show/song), i tend not to listen to it, and since vine has always seemed incredibly audio based to me, i’ve just never watched them on purpose

48: if you were a fruit, what kind would you be?

probably a pomegranate because they’re tasty yet very frustrating to deal with

50: what made you laugh the hardest you ever have?

i wish i knew. recently maybe one of my cats though because they’re both very disastrous individuals and it’s funny to see

59: if you were a video game character, what would your catchphrase be?

still probably “ow”

60: if you were a character in an anime, what kind of anime would you want it to be?

idk what they’re called but probably one of those boring everyday life ones. i don’t want a lot of stress like people in most others face

61: favorite line you ever heard from a movie/book/tv show/etc.?

i don’t actually have an answer to this question, and i’m really sorry about that. it’s not easy for me to remember exact quotes. i can’t even remember names about 40% of the time

62: seven characters you relate to?

lapis lazuli (su), stevonnie (su), chidi (the good place), chloe (life is strange), marceline (adventure time), zuko (atla), star fire (teen titans (2003))

73: favorite weird flavor combo?

i like french fries with chocolate milkshakes

72: worst subject?

i remember hating social studies as a kid but i think it’s probably because i had a really boring, passionless teacher

(asks from here)

[aftermathdb]

Death Battle Review: Raven vs. Twilight Sparkle.

Season 5, Episode 2 (or Battle 89) is starting off with a battle between two characters with mystical abilities, powerful empaths, warriors who originally rejected friendship but eventually found out that it was the key to defeating evil, and Tara Strong voicing them in their respective animated series.

As per usual, spoilers under the cut.

So… Tara Strong vs. Tara Strong, I guess. I honestly was not expecting this. I was expecting something more like… Mortal Kombat’s Blaze vs. Killer Instinct’s Cinder. Regardless, this is a bound to be a strong matchup… Sorry about that.

Elephant in the room that I feel needs to be addressed. Yeah… Twilight Sparkle. Given how… divisive Starscream vs. Rainbow Dash was, and how… zany Deadpool vs. Pinkie Pie was, I can understand the concerns. MLP has yet to suffer a loss, and given how weirdly they seem to treat the show, it can be understood that this isn’t something to be overly excited about. But I don’t understand why people are groaning “Another Pony episode?” - Because only Rainbow Dash and Pinkie have entered the fray. And now that I think about it, there’s never been two pony fights twice in a row in a season. By which I mean there’s never been two seasons in a row that feature a pony fight.

With those out of the way, let’s move on to the review.

Raven’s Preview.

Overall, the math presented here is very impressive. And by utilizing the various form of media that Raven has been present in, the best stats are used. In addition, the pop-up information cards makes their comeback. Quick shoutout to Gerardo (the editor of this particular episode) for making math look cool. It’s kinda hard to make something as mundane as math look interesting, so by using the various graphics, it made me excited to learn about the force that these characters can output.

Going over Raven’s backstory is actually pretty daunting. And the little “Take That” towards the constant retcons is actually a pretty good one. Because seriously! - These writers need to work with what they have.

The fact that there was barely any reference towards TTG seems like a good call here. That show is very polarizing, and I think that it’s a smart call not to open up any old wounds. The only reference being used as a quick joke.

The math seems fairly solid, and the various small jokes do work to the advantage. For example, the line of “As the crow - or the raven in this case,” is a little thing that works exceptionally well. It’s the little details that make the episode shine.

While I would have rather used that badass speech that Raven had for dear old dad in the original Teen Titans cartoon, the line that they used here is actually pretty impressive.

Twilight Sparkle’s preview.

The elephant in the room is tackled immediately here. Overall, instead of dreading the preview, the jokes and math that are used are pretty interesting.

Going over her backstory proves that there’s a lot more to her than meets the eye. 

You can even really go nuts trying to comprehend the crazy spells that Twilight has. From the gravity thing, to the “apple to egg” thing. The commentary points out that she’s got a myriad of spells that could have won the fight.

Actually, the bit about math is a bit misleading. Outside of the mystical shield durability, speed, and telekinetic lift, there’s not really much to work with. The focus seems to be more on the mystical abilities rather than the physical prowess. Appropriate, considering that Twilight doesn’t have a whole lot of physical feats of note to work with from what I recall.

Cheesy end line, but considering the source material… appropriate enough.

The Battle itself.

Similar to how both characters’ most recognized roles are both by Tara Strong, both characters in the fight will be voiced by Kira “Rinachan” Buckland. Animation is being done by Luis Cruz, animator of such impressive battles as Shredder vs. Silver Samurai, Metal Sonic vs. Zero, and Zoro vs. Erza. Music is done by Brandon Yates, and is called Titans of Magic. Sprites are done by Chris Bastin, and the background is made by the talented BonesWolbach from deviantart. And finally, the audio is done by three separate people.

Thanks to our rather talented voice actress, we can actually get a story reason as to why the fight starts, and it’s… weird. Like, I thought that the reason for Yang starting the fight with Tifa was petty, but this just takes it to a whole ‘nother level.

The animation does do a good job of showcasing the mystical destructive capabilities that both combatants have. Though, it feels like it’s a bit lowballed in the beginning.

But then the fight is taken to the field, and we get to see a lot more of the destructive force that can be doled out by these two. And the mystical prowess is actually pretty interesting and astounding. You can see the struggle between versatility and sheer power going head to head.

Then the finishing blow happens.

OH! Before I get into that, you will WANT to have already seen the episode beforehand. Because spoilers comes in 5…

4…

3…

2…

1…

Raven’s soul self annihilates Twilight by ramming her at Mach 36! Yeah, a pony lost. Go figure, huh?

Verdict + Explanation.

Clearly, they think that Luna is the best princess… And before you ask, no. I actually typed that out before watching the commentary. Though, it is making me crave a Luna vs… whatever fight. Moons are awesome.

Joking aside, they have a quick card explaining that the number of “Instant-Win” abilities that they had were equal. That’s something I appreciate. I’m not a fan of “Instant-Win” buttons. It just feels… wrong to pull them out to justify a win for a single character.

Overall, it’s apparent that Twilight is outmatched in several ways. She often relies on her friends to get the job done, and it’s obvious that her durability isn’t that strong to endure any killing blow from Raven.

And we also get a look in how DC just basically tosses physics out the window for the sake of “Rule of Cool.” Going over each of their stats, the only real edge that Twilight had was mystical versatility. And that alone isn’t enough to win the day if Mega Man’s fight with Astro Boy is to be believed.

And when they lowball statistics like how they’re doing with Raven’s soul-self, you know that the lowest possible stat far exceeds the opponent. The same applies when highballing a stat (Examples include Batman Beyond vs. Spider-Man 2099 and Naruto vs. Ichigo). When they go for the lowest possible stat that can be calculated for a certain character, it’s a good sign that that character basically stomps. And when doing the opposite, it’s clear that the other character doesn’t stand a chance.

Overall impression.

A very nice 8.3/10. While the verdict and the fight are really great, a lot of jokes can easily fly over someone’s head. Plus, I don’t want to incur any fan’s wrath by giving this a higher score. Maybe in the future, I can give it a higher one, but not today. Not now. The fight is spectacular though, and it’s hard to say that this is a bad fight, but it’s simply one that is not expected to be this good. That expectation is certainly a good one. The fight is fun. But I also feel as if Raven transporting the fight to her own little dimension could have been utilized in the battle. Regardless, the fight is a good one.

Major kudos for making Raven’s soul-self from scratch. Custom sprites are always a major plus, and it’s always fun to see how they mesh with the environment/characters. And when it’s a well-made sprite? - That’s when it becomes spectacular.

I want to also take the time here in the impression section to comment on the meshing of vector art and sprite art. The custom animations are great, and the aesthetics are great. Kudos to Luis, that is some pretty great animation techniques. It certainly shows why he’s one of the best sprite animators that the show has. Sprite battles like these are ones that make a lot of fights look spectacular, and it can even have visuals on par with some 3D animations as well.

Next time…

Well, they did say on the podcast that the next combatants were going to be ones who haven’t appeared before… I just wasn’t expecting this. It’s another Anime vs. Anime fight, and I’d say that’s… interesting. I don’t know a whole lot about these characters, so I’m looking forward to seeing what they can do.

Is there a fight that you want me to review? - Send an ask/request, and I’ll look into it!

Do you want to read my fanfic based around DEATH BATTLE itself? click here!

Thank you for reading, and I hope to see you next time for…

Uh… I don’t have a clever name or quip for this one.

[angel-gidget]

Stars Unearth Your Fires (ch3/?)

Title:  Stars Unearth Your Fires (Ch 3/?)

Fandom: DCU, Teen Titans, Red Robin (preboot)     

Rating:  PG  | Words: 2320  | a03 link    

Summary: Tim Drake never thought of himself as a troublemaker as far as Robins go. But a passing accusation quickly escalates into a case of stolen memories, technologically backwards clues from his past self, interdimensional hijinks, reflections on the good old days, and possibly the rekindling of a foregone romance. Eventually Tim/??? Mystery ship!

A/N: Thanks to @kiragecko for being my lovely beta on this. And thanks to @komadoriwonder, and JLAGuyer and regulusmarkara on a03 for their thoughtful reviews. ^_^

“Dude. You know you just paid wicked money for good seats to the show right? So why are we not in those four front row seats with Wayne’s name on ‘em?”



“Because it doesn’t feel right, Kon.”



It did, but it didn’t. Fashion show. He had been so sure at the time that the term wasn’t code for anything. But as he watched the snappily-dressed crowd converge on the runway waiting for the lights to dim, he just got the feeling that actually attending the official show wasn’t quite what his younger self had in mind.



“So… what does feel right?” Bart asked, looking up from his e-reader. Cyborg had customized the processing power to keep up with Kid Flash’s speed, and so far, it was doing wonders for creating the public illusion that Bart was a patient person. So long as no one looked too closely at how quickly his finger tapped from page to page. 



Even if Bart had paused for half a second, Tim wouldn’t have been able to read it. Bart had studied Dutch last week, and was currently reading about some variety of European alternative rock in its native language.



“I don’t know,” Tim sighed, “Just… walk with me.”



They did. They were amazingly patient with him, dodging and weaving through the crowds. Kon and Bart chuckled at a cheesy poster for running shoes that seemed to appear after every third store.  Cassie allowed herself to admire a couple dresses in their respective windows—he had seen her in a dress exactly once but apparently she liked to look at them a lot? Unclear. She lingered longer over a pair of hot pink boxing gloves in a sportswear display. Future Christmas present. He made a note.



“So, not that this isn’t kind of a novelty for us,” Kon interjected, “Because you know we never do normal things, but… is there anything for us to check out here that we couldn’t have checked out in ‘Frisco? Or Gotham? Which would both be less crowded by now?”



Tim sighed.



There was something different about the Beverly Hills Mall’s ambience. He just couldn’t put his finger on it. The posters were the same stupid posters in shopping centers back in Gotham. The music was the same blaring music. The people… the people.



“The girls.”



“Hah, very funny.” Cassie rolled her eyes.



Bart chuckled.



“What about them?” Kon blurted, taking his statement seriously.



Tim’s gaze latched onto a circle of three girls—late teens to early twenties—chatting loudly with each other as they dug into their food court lunches.  He pulled out his phone and discreetly snapped a handful of pictures.



“Wait. You’re serious?” Cassie blinked.



“Bart, pick a topic and start talking. Low voice. We’ll take the open table close to them and keep it casual. I need audio.”



Cassie grimaced, “Oh my god, you are serious.”



Bart shrugged and proceeded to perfunctorily lecture on Darwinian evolution as a growing topic for romanticization in symphonic metal music. It actually struck Tim as vaguely interesting, and he made a note to ask Bart to repeat his spiel when he was better able to pay attention.


For the moment, he leaned back and let the cadence of the girl’s voices wash over him. They were talking about the fashion show, its pluses and pretentiousness, because their friend Valerie was clearly more talented than those ‘professionals’ as she actually designed things that were fun to wear. That somehow evolved into a discussion on nail polish remover as a multi-purpose solution, and really—while the nail polish thing might prove useful—none of it really mattered.



There was a common speech pattern. Not accent so much as slight dialect. Word choice interspersed with the casual pop of Mindy’s bubblegum.  For the first time, it wasn’t something about the milieu that was the same; it was something about it that was familiar.



Yet Tim couldn’t remember for the life of him where he had heard it before.



“Go 2 fashion show @ Hollywood Mall. Compare/Contrast costume.”



West coast street fashion was inherently different. While not terribly fashion-conscious in his own right, Tim had been exposed to nearly all walks of life, and their clothes, in Gotham.  The destitute in patched up hoodies, the wealthy in designer suits, the middle-class in semi-ironic polo shirts. But it was all Gotham. Even the goths and hair-dyed punks had a certain aesthetic that fit to a mold.



The California mall had different molds. Mindy’s glittery tattoo-style tights under her faded denim skirt, and Raquel’s bangly earrings jangling against the careful color palette of the beads in her cornrows had a certain feeling to it that was more theatrical than anything Tim ran into outside of his costumed life.



And Sylvia’s bright yellow jacket demanded that he stare at it. He didn’t know why.



“… I love your fashion sense!”



Tim’s head snapped around, “What?”



“Is that what you were planning on saying to them?” Bart had an eyebrow raised, “‘Cause you’ve been kinda badly hiding that you’re looking at them for the last 43 seconds and even with me providing conversational cover, they were going to notice. Soon.”



While Bart appeared merely curious, Kon and Cassie had their patented looks of concern on their faces once more.



Tim tapped his phone to stop the audio recording.



“I’m done. I’m good. Let’s go.”



——



“So,” Bart called out while skateboarding into a loop in the gym-obstacle course hybrid of Titan’s Tower, “What do we do when we hit up Paris?”


“What?” Tim blinked, pulling out one earbud. 



He hadn’t been playing the audio clip of the girl’s voices on repeat very loudly, so he had heard the question just fine. He just wasn’t on the same page, exactly.



“It was in your notes,” Kon explained from the corner where he was spotting for Cassie’s weight-lifting. “Go to the most romantic city?”



Tim snorted, “Paris is NOT the most romantic city. Nowhere close.”


Cassie grunted from beneath her gym record of 74 tons—it was frustrating for her, he knew, because she’d stopped a passenger jet once. Theoretically, she should have been able to press twice that without shredding her muscles, but apparently even superheroes had a kick-in-the-pants relationship with adrenaline that wasn’t easily replicated with a machine.



“Nnhh… okay then—guh—We’ll bite. Why? Baguettes not on your diet?”



Tim lifted an eyebrow. 



“Paris is filled with street gangs who know my face, and there’s nothing wrong with my diet.”



He wasn’t an idiot. He wasn’t trying to lose muscle-mass. It was just an unfortunate side-effect of focusing his grocery list on immunity boosters instead of protein or comfort food. Mackerel and ginger and salads did good things for his lack of spleen, but didn’t help him look ripped. 



At once, Bart was in his face with a cold slice of leftover pizza.



“OkayTim. Every time you say something drenched in the waters of DeNile, youhavetotakeabite.”



He wasn’t in de—ooh anchovies on extra cheese. It wasn’t like he couldn’t use the protein. And cold or not, it smelled good. He took a bite.



“Good boy.”



“Screw you.”



Bart cackled and ate the rest of the slice himself. Jerk.



He zipped away and the clattering of pots and pans a level away signaled that Bart had started the process of cooking dinner for the evening. Tim mentally rescinded his jerk comment.



“So Rob,” Kon’s use of his old nick name snapped his attention back, “What is the most romantic city then?



Tim shrugged, “Not Paris.”



“Well, nnnngh, that’s helpful.” Cassie set down her weights, and reached out a hand. Kon wordlessly handed her a water bottle emblazoned with a W.



Kon tapped a finger against his chin.



“Is it Moscow?”



Tim frowned, “You think the most romantic city is Moscow?”



“Uh, no,” Kon scratched the back of his head, “I think you might think that Moscow is the most romantic city because you and Tam Fox had kind of a love nest going on there…? Didn’t you?” His eyes flashed quickly to Cassie, as though unsure if Tim would want to talk about it in front of her.  Tim rolled his eyes.



“We had adjoining hotel rooms that had good room service. Hardly the mark of ultimate romance, Kon.”



Cassie smirked, “The Tower is subscribed to the Gotham Gazette.”



Oh. Oooooh. Tim winced. Knowing his friends watched the news to keep an eye out for his exploits as Red Robin was one thing. Knowing that they were reading all the gossip columns on Timothy Drake-Wayne was another.



“This does not leave the Tower, but if you wanna know, I’ll tell you.”



“Please.” They chorused. And wow, but things must have been dull around San Fran if they were all that starved for proverbial bread from the rumor mill. Tim sighed.



“The only way in which we took advantage of those adjoining hotel rooms was by having breakfast together in our pajamas. Yes, I was flirting. And yeah, I really, really enjoyed it.”



Both Kon and Cassie had small, tight smiles on their faces. They were waiting for the other shoe to drop. Because, well, they knew him. Tim pretended that he didn’t see Kon reach behind his back, handing Cassie a twenty dollar bill. He was too tired to ask about the specifics of the bets anymore.



“But it’s all irrelevant now as I have since managed to royally piss off Tam, and have just barely earned enough forgiveness that we can work together in a civil manner. It’s over…”



Kon snatched the twenty back.



“… No matter what I want.”



Cassie reached behind her again, claiming final victory on the crumpled bill.



“Hera, that’s rough. Sorry, Tim.” 



At least Cassie sounded sincere. And at least the value of his personal woes had risen with inflation. Bets about his mask had only been worth ten bucks back in the day.



“Grub’s up!,” Bart’s shout came from the kitchen, “And Ikindabrokethemicrowave, so get it while it’s hot!”



———



Tim wasn’t sure why he had been so suspicious of ‘peppered lamb lasagna’. He should have learned to trust Bart by now. The sting of spice and rosemary with cheese lingered on his tongue as he slouched with the group—and their full stomaches—on the giant couch in front of the 70’’ TV.



They had it set to Gotham news. Which was boring, seeing as Tim helped make the news by putting Riddler back into Arkham, so he already knew it all. But apparently, boring news was the point, because boring news was easy to talk over. 



Kon was the first to breach the white noise.



“So you never did answer the question.”



“Ugh,”  Tim pinched the bridge of his nose.



“What question?” barked Gar from his basset hound form. He was snuggled up next to Raven, who had similarly snapped out of her private world to pay attention.



“For four hundred points,” Bart mock-intoned, “What is the most romantic city in the world. Andon’tsayParis. SayingParisstartsawholeTHING.”



“New York?” Gar mumbled, sliding back to his human self.



“Ain’t got nothing on Honolulu.” Kon rejoined.



“I’d say Themyscira,” Cassie enunciated around a last bite of lasagna, “But you can only take girlfriends there, not boyfriends. So…”



“Funny thing is, I know the absolutemostperfectcity,” Bart muttered, grabbing the remote and flipping through channels, “But it hasn’t been founded yet. Welcome to thespeedsterlife.”



Raven’s voice managed to seep through the white noise and the commentary, causing everything else to go silent.



“You know the answer, Timothy. You just need a moment to breathe and think.”



She stepped away from Gar to kneel in front of him, placing a hand at his temple. Tim shivered. 



He wasn’t inherently comfortable with magic, but he refused to shut it out the way Bruce did. Refused to let that twinge in his gut make him shut people in his life out. He might not ever be as relaxed in Raven’s presence as Dick could be—as Dick pretended to be?—but as much as he could consciously open himself up to someone who had fought and bled with him, he would.



So he leaned back, and breathed out…



“Venice.”



He came out of the meditative moment to find everyone staring at him. It was getting kind of old. His friends seriously needed some more hobbies. Kon finally restarted the discussion.



“Y’know? Not bad. Venice is… a good choice.”



“Shoddy infrastructure, though.” Bart sighed.



“Pretty sure that’s a huge part of the charm, kiddo.” Gar chuckled.



“Seriously. Why?” Bart tilted his head.



Tim shrugged, “Venice has gondolas.”



Cassie nodded, “That it does. Guess that’s pretty romantic.”



Tim continued, “Gondolas are the perfect date activity. Historical romantic tradition. Often a new experience for both parties. A mix of public space to create a feeling of safety, but enough privacy to… um. Make out. If you want to.”



How did he know that? That wasn’t… he couldn’t ever remember setting foot in Venice. Or a gondola. But now that he was stopping to breathe and think—thank you, Raven—it made perfect sense. Huh.



His hooded empath of a teammate gave him a gentle smile before returning to her corner of the couch once more.



“I’m just saying that Venice will have collapsed by the time I’m even born,” Bart objected.



“You are so missing the point, my man.” Kon retorted.



Tim let their squabbling wash over him like a blanket. The last several times he had come to the tower, he had simply fallen asleep on the couch. It was always warmer there than in his room, and it didn’t hurt that he was usually in someone’s company. He had every intention of sleeping there again. But until then… he rose and headed for the kitchen.

By his calculations, there was one piece of lasagna left.