#I'm still enjoying the show and fully intend on watching it to the end and probably making dozens more gif sets and happy posts about it

[spacevixenmusic]

Fionna and Cake thoughts so far

I like what they're doing, but there's a nagging part of me that's really of two minds about the whole thing. It's hard to explain.

There's something I don't like about the constant callback cameos by the original AT characters. Don't get me wrong, I understand why they're doing it - mechanically, thematically, nostalgically - but it is bothering me a bit. I don't think it's even a fault of the show itself, so much as it is a fault of The Current State of Media In General.

Listen, I have quite literally been watching Adventure Time religiously since the very first episode aired. I LOVE noticing all the subtle and not-so-subtle cameos in the Fionna and Cake series as they pass by, because I recognize them all from all this time I've spent immersed in this little universe. But there are times when it starts to feel like Fionna and Cake is a series of nothing BUT cameos and callbacks, and that kinda sours things for me.

I know, I know. Mechanically, that's how it's SUPPOSED to be, since Fionna and Cake is - by definition - a fanfic of Adventure Time. It's an AU. It's a crossover. It's a spin-off. It's SUPPOSED to be that. But just like with all the other big name reboot and remakes and re-imaginings we've gotten in the past 5-10 years, it's all just a big game of who's-who and tugging on nostalgia's heartstrings to make this IP emotionally impactful (i.e. Sad, because sadness is the only emotion people ever seem to give a shit about - but that's another opinion for another time).

The Current State of Media In General is that very few new original shows are being made. Studios aren't taking any risks. A significant percentage of shows in the past decade are all just carefully constructed, reimagined, retooled, re-tellings of every possible IP you ever felt attached to as a child. DuckTales, TMNT, Castlevania, Animaniacs, Trigun, He-Man, Super Mario Bros, even fucking FLCL has multiple new spin-offs. It's all about spotting the obscure references and fawning over the little ways they changed things into something meant to tickle the emotion centers in your brain (oh look, Della is singing the Moon Theme from the NES game but now it has lyrics and is sad!). After a while it starts to feel very...formulaic? Manipulative? Corporate?

Idk man, sometimes I just want something to be completely New and original, and not feel like a cut-and-paste heartstrings-playing nostalgia-fest. Sometimes I don't want my childhood to eat well. I want my adult self to have its own new things to enjoy, that mean something to me NOW. I want something that feels Fresh, like, oh I don't know, Adventure Time when Adventure Time first came out?

Again, I get why Fionna & Cake is all cameos. I get it. I understand it. And there's a big part of me that still even loves to see it. But I also sometimes feel kinda cheated by it at the same time. Like there's a glimpse of a show in there that could have been its own cool thing if it weren't so laser-focused on Expanding The Lore. I wish I could describe this feeling better. It's complicated. I'm complicated.

But hey, if you're out there and feeling the same way, congrats on finding this post. I'm right there with ya, buddy.

Now, let's get back to enjoying Fionna and Cake for what it is.

[grandline-fics]

Hi lovely, hope you’re doing well. If you feel like it, would you write Smoker not realizing he’s got a crush on you until Tashigi has to point it out? It seems so Them ™ thank you 🫰

DESCRIPTION: He has no idea he has a crush on you

WARNINGS: mutual pining/ crushes

CHARACTERS: Smoker

WORDS: 1,225

A/N: I was only intending on making this a short and sweet drabble but it went a little longer than that. Not that I'm complaining. I hope you like what I came up with for this and thank you for requesting.

*REQUESTS ARE OPEN*

DIRECTORY | PROMPT LIST

————————

Smoker is normally straightforward and very aware of his surroundings and those that are in his immediate vicinity. He likes his space immensely and rarely allows anyone to encroach in that personal bubble. Outside of attacking pirates, or training very few tend to be given the privilege of staying next to Smoker for more than a few seconds. Tashigi would be the one to stay next to Smoker the most given she was his second in command although an interesting development caught her eye that Smoker somehow failed to notice for himself. You. Ever since you were transferred to the G5 base she noticed more and more how you and Smoker had gotten closer, to the point that now as she watched the two of you talk in the hallway her keen eyes took in how Smoker’s arm was all but a hair’s breadth away from fully touching yours. 

By her observation that was practically the equivalent of anyone else straddling their lover's lap by Smoker’s standards. Her gaze took you both in and she fought back the giddy smile, her boss had a crush and endearingly, he had no idea of his feelings. For a while she was happy to just take the revelation in and enjoy it for herself, unable to give up the chance of a lifetime to see Smoker like this. It was like winning the lottery to see the gruff, almost socially distant, stoic leader show his softer side. Now that she was aware of the change that overcame Smoker when you were near, she couldn’t help but see it take effect instantly. 

When you talked with him about mission reports, changes in shifts, or engaging in general conversation, Smoker would keep intense eye contact with you, taking in everything you had to say but his eyes would soften just enough to unconsciously seem less intimidating. Tashigi found that you’d never shied away from Smoker’s presence that others would normally feel nervous around. If you didn’t have time to stop and talk, you and Smoker still made sure to smile-albeit a small one on Smoker’s end- and offer a courtesy nod before continuing on your separate ways. Tashigi spotted out of the corner of her eye that as you passed by one day that Smoker’s head followed you for just a second. That day Tashigi decided to put Smoker’s feelings for you clearly into perspective. As she inspected the debrief of the upcoming mission that afternoon, she began the conversation by stating your name. As expected, Smoker’s head turned towards her curiously. “You going to say goodbye to them before we leave?”

“I’d be here all day if I said goodbye to everyone that wasn’t coming on the same mission as me, Tashigi.” Smoker stated with a confused frown, eyeing his second in command warily. “Did you get enough sleep last night?”

“Of course I did.”

“Then why the strange question?”

“Dunno just thought, you might want to say goodbye.” Tashigi shrugged with a playful smile. “We will be gone for at least a month. Won’t you miss them?”

“Tashigi…” Smoker abandoned the papers on his desk and turned in his seat to look at her, unwilling to indulge her antics. Especially if she was bringing you into the conversation. “Just say whatever it is you want to say so I can actually get on with my work.”

“Fine. You like them and before you say ‘they’re an asset to the base’ I mean you like them. Romantically.” Smoker blinked at Tashigi and she could see the gears turning in his head as her statement was being processed. The expression alone made her wish she had pointed it out to him sooner. Still, Smoker was a stubborn man and even with her nudging him towards the revelation, she needed to continue to really drive the point home before he could dismiss it. “I can see the way you look at them, and seek them out to talk to. They like you too y’know?”

Smoker couldn’t help but tense at that. An almost hopeful jolt ran through him involuntarily but even then he was reluctant to believe that you held a romantic interest in him the same way that he had for you. Now that Tashigi had pointed it out to him, he felt somewhat foolish that he hadn’t realised his own feelings on his own. He wasn’t a child and he wasn’t some lovesick teenager either but out of fear of sounding like one he refused to ask Tashigi how she knew you would reciprocate his feelings. Instead he gave a noncommittal grunt and quickly looked to the papers on his desk again. Tashigi grinned broadly and used all of her will to keep her voice even and calm when she was all but squealing on the inside. “The next time you go to talk to them, watch how their eyes light up. Perhaps if you went to say goodbye before our mission you’d see?”

The was a moment of silence as Smoker continued to stare at the papers but not reading them. Then with a curse he stood abruptly and headed towards the door. “Only because you won’t shut up about it.” 

“Whatever you say, sir.” Tashigi nodded, watching Smoker leave with the most satisfied smile on her face. As much as she would have loved to have follow close behind and see the next part for herself, she decided to give Smoker his space out of fear of pushing her luck with interfering into his personal life even though sometimes he sorely needed the obvious being pointed out for him.

Smoker strode down the corridors, seemingly doing his routine patrols before having to set off on the mission when really he was hoping to coincidentally run into you. He turned the corridor sharply just as you came from the opposite direction. Your body collided with his and instinctively Smoker’s hands firmly caught your shoulders, keeping you from falling. You let out a nervous laugh and looked up at him, an embarrassed warmth spreading over your face as you stared at your boss. “Sorry! I should really look where I’m going right?”

“No harm done on my end.” Smoker mused, taking Tashigi’s advice to observe your face as you spoke to him, to really watch your eyes. 

“Just as well.” You joked, smiling brightly as you met his gaze with only warmth as opposed to the use caution the others on the base would. “Last thing you need is an injury before going on a mission.” At that you seemed almost disappointed. Smoker tried to keep his expression neutral at the prospect that you’d miss him. “Jero said it was going to be a long one?”

“A month is the estimate.”

“A month…” Your smile lessened slightly before you mentally lectured yourself. This was how it went. Missions could range from a couple days to nearly a year, even longer. “I wish you a successful mission, Vice Admiral. I’ll see you when you get back.”

“Promise?” The word was out of his mouth before he really considered the implication the weight behind it would be. Smoker momentarily got lost in the way surprise lit your eyes and how your lips slowly spread into a smile far brighter than he’d yet to see grace your face before. 

“I promise.”

----------------------------------------------

TAG LIST (If I've missed anyone or if you want to be added just let me know) @3v37773, @tsaaps , @i-am-all-love-puns-and-lazy , @sanemisnonexistenteyebrow , @fiery-captain-spider-santa @kabloswrld , @atanukileaf , @ane5e , @stuckinthewrongworld

[highvern]

Track 9: Feature Me - Flo

“He's got me actin' like I'm some kind of animal // The way he looks at me, I don't feel like a girl no more”

Pairing: Kim Mingyu x fem!Reader

Genre: smut

Warnings: Katoptronophilia, exhibitionism, pussy slapping, Mingyu is a huge tease, brat!reader, fantasy of choking, sex toys (vibrator)

Length: ~800

Note: i know i said this came out tomorrow but this is my world and i do what i want! also i wrote this before nana tour revealed shirtless gyu with a chain but now that that's out there im down stupendously (as if I wasn't already)

Like, comment, reblog, enjoy!

Mixtape Series: Me & You Masterlist

main masterlist

This blog is intended for 18+ only! MDNI or you'll be blocked!

“I told you to watch.” Mingyu rasps in your ear, free hand harsh against your chin as he drags your head back up.

The mirror resting against the wall across from your bed frames a scene of complete debauchery. Mingyu’s head just visible over your shoulder, captivated with every jump of your tummy and gasp of breath as he forces the pink vibrator against your clit on the highest setting; encouraging him to force your legs wider to enjoy the show.

Mingyu loved watching you touch yourself, loved having you watch him touch himself, and most of all loved touching you. So why not combine all those things and put on a performance worthy of a never-to-be invited audience?

Not an hour ago you’d been embarrassed. Batting away your boyfriend's hands as Mingyu recounted the video he found on Twitter. Whispering how hot you'd look spread out for him, practically begging for you to let him get you off in front of the mirror he already moved from the hallway to the corner of the bedroom.

And now you sit, completely naked while he remains fully clothed underneath you, the stiff material of his jeans rubbing your bare skin raw each time you squirmed in his arms, your knees hitched on the outsides of his thighs, preventing any sort of shyness at his affection.

“Please, Gyu,” you gasp, drool leaking down your chin as his arms flex with effort to keep you still.

Ignoring your request, Mingyu angles the vibrator just so; leaving your chest caving and muscles ripped tight. “Need it so bad, don’t you pretty girl? Just look at you humping my hand.”

“Say that like—shit!— you aren’t about to cream your pants.” You bite back.

A stinging slap to your pussy nearly sends you to the floor, hips bucking into the contact. The now forgotten vibrator buzzes across the carpet while Mingyu harshly swipes against your clit. 

“Aww, baby.” Mingyu tuts. “Be nice.”

Voice cracking, you goad him again. “Or what?”

Another slap answered with a sob and Mingyu smiles over your shoulder, pinching your chin between his fingers and forcing your head to turn towards his. You can feel the residual dampness from earlier smear across your jaw and your boyfriend delights in the mess; eyes igniting with glee that only spells trouble for you. 

“Wanna come?”

Whine as he brushes his nose against your own, his mouth just out of reach causing you to warble with protest. Your back shakes with Mingyu's laughter at the pathetic state you’ve melted into, turning your head back to the mirror.

You’re a mess; eyes red and watering and body glistening with sweat. And where Mingyu works you is no better; blossoming pink around the thumb abusing your swollen bundle of nerves, your opening sucking up his fingers eagerly.

“Please!” 

You don’t know what you’re begging for. Maybe to finish like this on his fingers; maybe for him to unzip his pants, slip his cock inside, and have you ride him; maybe for the hand gripping your chin to dip to your neck and giving a loving squeeze while he lavishes you in praise. 

But Mingyu knows exactly what you need.

The inside of your thighs burn with warning, both of Mingyu's strong hands dropping to get you to the end. Your thighs attempt to shutter close at the shock but the man behind you forces you wide open to drink in everything.

A third finger joins the other two curling against that place inside you and Mingyu's ears ring with the guttural moan they press from your lips. Vision black, your soul flees into the abyss in an effort to preserve your sanity because Mingyu doesn’t stop. Even when you thrash in his lap, his teeth and hands force you in place, making you take what he offers freely.

It isn't until the blood returns to your brain that you find the strength to bat away the hand still wedged between your thighs.

“Shhhhit,” you gasp.

Mingyu’s lips stretch into a smile. Pampering reverent kisses anywhere within reach while you catch your breath. He silently adores the way you melt in his hold, mouth slack and eyes dropping.

“Good?”

With a final peck to his lip you begin your descent. Sinking onto boneless knees, Mingyu follows you with confused eyes, eyebrows furrowed as you unzip his jeans. Arching your back, you know he can see the remnants of your orgasm dripping onto the floor beneath you if he took the time to look up. But he's trained on your doe eyes and the shrinking distance between your mouth and his cock and misses the motion of your free hand cradling the long forgotten vibrator.

Mingyu's so sensitive he nearly knees you in the tit when you press it to the underside of his leaking tip with a sadistic smile.

“Eyes on the mirror, baby.”

-

Taglist: @tomodachiii @anthropologymajorkpopmultistan @cvpidyunho

© highvern. copying/reuploading/translating my work anywhere is strictly prohibited.

[asexualbookbird]

insert Imagine Dragons Radioactive Gasp Here

Hi. Coming up for air. I'm surrounded by yarn ends and fabric scraps I'm sweaty and covered in paint. I was a tiny bit productive this July! Made lots of progress on the Irish Lullaby Blanket, painted our balcony, started a few projects I really shouldn't have, and oh yeah! READ EIGHT BOOKS?? Who am I. I'm twelve books ahead of schedule according to goodreads, eleven by StoryGraph standards. It's wild. It helps that my library is holding an adult summer reading bingo contest and I fully intend to fill out the entire board.

The City We Became by NK Jemisin ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐- WAOW. I initially rated this four stars, but sitting on it and coming back to it now, it was absolutely a five star read. I would love to reread it, the world was intriguing, and the AUDIO NARRATOR WAS STUNNING! I do try not to judge the contents of a book by it's narrator, but what a performance! When library bingo is over, I'm listening to book two ASAP.

The Haunting of Hill House by Shirley Jackson ⭐⭐⭐⭐ - Oh look! A Classic I actually enjoyed! I don't want to judge horror on whether or not I'm scared, because it IS kind of tough to get to me, but this was fun! I could see the spooks! Even if it wasn't spooky For Me, Personally, it was still a fun time!

The Butcher of the Forest by Premee Mohamed ⭐⭐⭐⭐ - Oh. Ouchie. A shortie, but a goodie, I'm kicking myself for returning the ebook immediately because I would've liked to go back and reread bits of it if not ALL of it. A not exactly new take on fae, but an interesting one that I actually enjoyed.

Starling House by Alix E Harrow ⭐⭐⭐⭐- I did NOT intend to read this directly after Hill House but I am SO glad I did. THE PARALLELS!!!! The circular story!!!! THE STARLINGS!!!! I laughed, I cried, I yelled at Arthur, there were surprises I genuinely didn't expect, but made so much sense in hindsight. I don't exactly buy the romance, but I'll let it slide this one time.

Ghost Station by SA Barnes ⭐⭐- Two stars is Very Generous. And I'm sticking to it because the concept is still intriguing and if you squint there was some Leech stuff going on. Maybe I should just reread Leech. Sigh. Ophelia was hired to do ONE. JOB. To make sure none of the team members have Want To Murder Disease. And then Birch shows signs of Want To Murder Disease and she KEEPS IT QUIET BECAUSE *checks notes* HE KNOWS HER DAD HAD WANTS TO MURDER DISEASE. Everyone is stupid. They're scientists and everyone is fucking stupid. It wasn't scary, because EVERYONE WAS FUCKING STUPID. Biting all of them.

Thornhedge by T Kingfisher ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ - Oh T Kingfisher, you have never disappointed me, why do I read anything else. Another fun take on the fae! It's so hard to get me to like a fae book, so GOOD JOB KINGFISHER! I liked the new take on Girl Locked In A Tower, I liked that Toadling was surrounded by love and still encouraged to do what makes her happy. Again, I almost reread (listened. Whatever) this immediately just for funsies. Another banger from T Kingfisher.

The Sun and The Star by Rick Riordan and Mark Oshiro ⭐⭐⭐ - I've been waffling on this rating a LOT. Disclaimer that I haven't read any of Riordan's stuff since the OG Percy Jackson series, and that was ages ago so I can't compare this to that. This was a fun little book, but it felt a little heavy handed with the themes even for a middle grade. It doesn't make me want to read more, but I'm not mad I read it at all.

The Scapegracers by HA Clarke ⭐⭐⭐⭐ - Okay. Listen. Look. Look at me. Was this The Perfect Book? No absolutely not. Was it a banger? Did I have fun? YES ABSOLUTELY YES! It's a book I could've needed in high school, but I wouldn't have been mature enough to appreciate it so I'm glad I have it NOW. Angry Queer Teen Girls will run the world. And I'm here for it. So looking forward to the rest of the series, I need to know what sort of mischief these girls get up to. I hope they curse another fuckboy. They deserve it.

BONUS! I also watched The Haunting of Hill House on netflix! One bingo square said "read a book then what the movie" and I really thought Mike Flanagan's Hill House was a movie but no it was ten (10) hours of spooky fucked up family dynamics. Also Nate Ford was there. Naturally. It was good! It was creepy! I wanna watch it again JUST FOR THE TREE HOUSE. I was skeptical when I first started because who the hell are you people (Steve, Shirley) but no it was fun! But also. Fuck Steven and Shirley. Congrats to Theo and moving in with her girlfriend of one week, peak lesbian stereotypes. Biggest complaint is with Mike Flanagan and his need to not only kill cats, but get close up shots of said dead cats. What's up with that my dude. What did cats ever do to you?

Plans for August (how am I saying that) are The Bone Season side by side comparison with the first edition and the tenth anniversary edition. I'm counting that as two books, I think, because it IS two books, and looking at them next to each other, there's a pretty sizable difference in page count! No clue about word count. This is part of book bingo (reread a book you didn't enjoy the first time), and this has helped me realise that I've been avoiding this for a Reason. I truly and surely did not enjoy The Bone Season and have no desire to experience that again. Don't know what to do with this information. So. I'm rereading it. Yay.

I have a few sewing projects I'm working on, and I am SO CLOSE to finishing the Irish Lullaby Blanket! It's exciting! So lets go!! Bring it on, August!!

[pascaloverx]

Sweet Love

Summary: You're an up-and-coming writer, congratulations. To protect your beloved job, you're willing to do anything. Even strike a deal with the devil, better known as your sister's neighbor. You and Dean Winchester don't really see eye to eye, but in a moment of desperation, you agree to collaborate with him for a greater good.

Author's Notes: Many characters do not belong to me but to the Supernatural Universe (2005-2020). I hope you enjoy the fanfic's story. The fanfic will contain strong language and future adult content.

preview chapter two

CHAPTER ONE

You never imagined yourself knocking on Dean Winchester's door. I mean, you don't count having had dreams about him that involved you getting to know each other intimately. But going to his apartment to ask for help wasn't in your plans.

"I need you." You say softly as if telling someone a secret. Maybe your speech sounds like a whisper. Dean's obviously not hearing you properly, because he's humming Livin' On A Prayer as the song plays inside his apartment at full volume.

"What?" Dean says almost shouting as he looks me up and down. He looks confused like he doesn't hear you at all. You then decide to do something. You approach Dean almost seductively and say close to his ear that he won't regret it if he turns down the volume.

"Does your sister know you're here trying to get me into bed?" Dean asks as he turns off the music that was playing. Nothing against Bon Jovi, but seeing Dean turn off the sound for thinking he's going to sleep with you kind of lifts your spirits.

"If I were going to let you fuck me, I wouldn't ask my sister's opinion. I don't think you ask Sam's opinion when you decide to have sex." You speak while still standing, hoping that Dean will notice that he is only in his underwear and change into more decent clothes.

"You come over to my house, make me turn off my music and now I've suggested that I ask my brother if I can have sex. This conversation seems better by the minute." Dean speaks clearly enjoying this moment. You end up looking at his body from top to bottom but as soon as he notices, you turn to face the door.

"I need your help." You say while avoiding looking at Dean. He might have noticed, since he put on some pants. Not that you watched him put it on.

"With what?" Dean asks as you turn to face him. He put on his pants but is still shirtless. But now is not the time for you to notice these things. Even though his body is...

"I need to write steamy scenes in my book. But I just can't do it. It's like I can't think of anything sexy and I need to get this book published soon." The words coming out of your mouth don't seem to fully fit together. I mean, what is wrong with you that you would look to Dean Winchester for help?

"And what do I gain? Helping you will take up a lot of my free time, you know..." He seems too convinced, as if his ego could fill the air in the entire apartment.

"Free time? You mean wasted time. You've been living off your rich mother for I don't know how long. And I intend to pay you for the consultancy." You say everything with a certain pretentiousness in your tone of voice. Somehow, Dean Winchester brought out the worst in you.

"Do you think that just because I have a rich mother my life is easy?" Dean says, getting even closer to you, getting so close that you could smell his perfume invade your nostrils. In fact, Dean Winchester smells like men's perfume and sex.

"I think. Maybe it's not the easiest thing for you but it seems easy. So do it as an personal fulfillment, do it for the money, do it to show your mother that you are more than her son." You say feeling a heavy conscience as you realize that maybe you were rude to Dean, maybe even a little unfair.

"Nice attempt to manipulate me. I'm going to deny the offer and urgently ask you to leave my apartment. I'm accompanied and my visitor should be waiting for me in the room. So there's less you want to insult me ​​more or join me and my visit, I suggest you go to your apartment." Dean looks offended, maybe a little irritated. You look at him a little regretfully.

"I'm sorry if I seemed rude. But I would really like your help and I'm willing to give you whatever you want." You say, desperately trying to appeal to the side you know exists within Dean. He might not even notice, but claiming you're willing to give him whatever he wants is just a lure to make him interested. At least that's what you tell yourself. But it doesn't seem to work, he closes the door just as you're about to cross the hallway that separates his apartment from your sister's. What a disaster, now you'll have to stop being a writer and move on to a new field. You can't live forever with your sister.

"Be in my apartment later. Let's start working on your book. And I'll decide what I get for the help I'm giving you. As you said yourself, you'll give me whatever I want." Dean says as he opens the door to his apartment while you open the door to your sister's apartment. You immediately turn around and hug him. Without any explanation, your first instinct was to run into his arms. And you only realize how strange that is when you see the half-naked woman coming out of Dean's bedroom and staring at the two of you hugging at the door.

"See you later, buddy." You say, giving Dean Winchester a slightly friendly punch on the arm so that his visitor doesn't find it so bizarre for him to be hugging you at the door. He looks at you as if you've lost your mind, and then you quickly leave, entering your sister's apartment, hoping that the partnership with Dean Winchester is a good idea.

[sophiethewitch1]

Look, look. It's not my fault I wrote 998 words on Wayne comfort. Or I'm giving it to you anonymously. Just think of me as the neighborhood feral cat giving you a dead bird for all the nice head scratches. I don't have enough guts to post my writing on my blog since I'm new to Tumblr. So please enjoy this comfort, slight nsfw fic at the end. Your writing has been inspiring me, so you deserve this. 😭😭😭😭😭😭😭👍

You had just been laying on the couch that was undoubtedly worth more than anything you ever owned in your previous life. Anyone rich can buy a uncomfortable and presumptuous piece of high quality furniture, but finding one that looks this nice and feels great too is a special skill. The nice buttery leather was encasing you like a hug that you sunk into as you struggled with being awake. To make matters worse, you had grabbed one of the bloated pieces of Victorian literature off the shelf in the library. You fully intended to give it up at first sign it got hard. Then Todd challenged you on whether you could read and gather it's plot without help. He wasn't saying you were stupid, but you still heard it hanging in the air after he shuffled out of the room. You really hate being called stupid.

That's how Damian found you, lounging on the couch and half dozing as the sun and fireplace chased away the chill. Damian was also tired for another reason, he had spent all night on watch and was finally showing signs of tiring like a normal human. And there you were, all nice and cozy in silk pajamas, even though it was cold outside, you had long discarded your sweater and changed into shorts. Ever since you complained about the cold in the Manor, Bruce had raised the heating to a nice summer day.

It didn't bother Damian at all, especially when he got to see the way your pajama shirt rode up in your tossing and turning on the couch.

The sudden weight made your breath wheeze out and you lifted the book off your chest to peer down at Damian. In no time he settled himself between your open and splayed legs, hooking his massive arms underneath your knees and slightly under your bum so that he can wiggle closer to your navel. Your eyes widen and you almost squealed at him. Especially as his warm breath started warming your stomach.

Then you saw how his eyes dropped, and he slightly nuzzled into you before going slack. Your eyes traced the planes of his face as they slowly smoothed out from sleepiness.

"What are you reading", Damian slurs out, his voice heavy and deep from contentment.

"Some meaningless Victorian novel, everyone is so emotionally stunted it's hilarious" you hum out.

He doesn't respond and you cautiously close the book and rest it on your chest. His breaths were coming in deep now, having finally lost the battle when you started ranting about your arch nemesis book.

You take another moment to appreciate the softness that was missing from his face usually. Brows slack, not furrowed in rage or disgust. Nose not scrunched up from sneering. Cheeks puffed out slightly from sleep as his mouth pops open to let out the softest snore. This was Damian, the version you longed for. And ever so softly and gently, you run your hands through the silky but forbidden hair.

That's how Dick found you two hours later. Only your shirt had crept up more as you settled into sleep. Most importantly, Damian had slid down as he stretched slightly in his sleep, one of his hands crawling up underneath your ass and to fan out across the side of your ribs. This movement unconsciously moved you more in your sleep as you curled protectively around the weight on you. Your hands still buried in his hair.

Now though, Damian's face was buried in your pelvis, way too close to the goal for Dick. Older brother slapping younger brother in the calf to get the rotten bastard to wake up. Which he succeeded in.

Just for Damian to give Dick a shit-eating smirk as you mumbled in your sleep from the jostling. To rub his position in his brother's face even more, Damian leans over to give the lightest kiss to your inner upper thigh that was so tantalizingly close. Cue both Dick and Tim who just walked in having a collective mind blown explosion.

Needless to say there were a lot of harsh slaps and pathetic "ow"s as they wrenched him out from you as best they could without waking you. It didn't really work as Damian's stray hand slid back down as both held your ass for dear life. He buried himself even closer to you as your thighs clenched around him and you let out the littlest of moans in your sleep. Something that had both brothers dropping Damians legs and scurrying away with beet red faces while Damian flicked them off.

When you woke, Damian was sitting up in the chair with your legs on his lap and your discarded book being held precariously in his long calloused fingers. He looks down at you as you let out a delicious sounding moan as you stretch the sleep off. It wasn't as good as the one you let out earlier though, he needs that one again. Soon.

"You know it's not the Brontë sisters fault you're stupi-" he didn't get to finish as your foot slams the book into the side of his stupid gorgeous asshole face.

Took me a while to answer this because I didn't even know what to say. It's perfect it's fantastic it's amazing and I'm genuinely begging you to write more. The assholishness. The clingy desperation. The way both reader and Damian are so obviously in love with eachother but can only manage to get along long enough to touch. The little hints to the other relationships. The TENSION. All of it. All of it is amazing and wonderful and gorgeous and I'm dying on the floor. AAAAAAAA

[yellowhollyhock]

raph vs a volcano day 20

The 1987 episode plot:

Donatello's health scanner predicts Raphael has only 24 hours to live. Raphael goes around doing good deeds and taking ridiculous risks because he's gonna die anyway. Meanwhile Donatello figures out his machine didn't work right and means to tell Raphael, but you see he is distracted doing good deeds and taking ridiculous risks. It culminates with Raph inside an active volcano (trying to stop it from erupting? bro??) and his brothers have to come rescue him.

I love this episode. For so many reasons.

1) What an interesting way to give Raph his role while keeping him in character within the new role they gave him for this show. Because Mirage Raph is the guy who always wants to help without pausing to think about whether they can. He's known for sometimes being impulsive and always being protective. And not just of his fellow turtles! He sees someone in trouble he wants to help. But usually in Mirage that's expressed with violence. So for the show they made the "crazy one" express the same traits through sarcasm instead and he became the witty one, and I love how future Raphs are both. And I especially love when 1987 Raphael himself is both

2) This is such a classic plot. It's like... the tribbles spoof/tribute or 'character gets kidnapped but acts so annoying they get released.' You know the kinds of plots I mean right? Our style of storytelling has changed (it's always changing) but tv shows in late 80s early 90s especially had these. You could pretty much guess the plot from the title because you know the characters and you know the story. The exciting reveal is mostly the jokes. There are words for what I'm saying but I haven't had an english class in a few years, so take this ramble and trust me. It's a beautiful example of whatever this is. And!

---2a, It doesn't have the classic resolution that 'character thought they had one day to live due to a misunderstanding' would have on a kids show. There isn't a 'moral' about seizing the moment and using your time wisely. There also isn't a moral about communication, so instead of the miscommunication being annoying like it would in a preachy episode, it's gloriously hilarious to watch

3) Speaking of that, the obligatory 'he tried to ask' scene is Raphael watching Michelangelo cry on Donatello's shoulder because "I'll miss him so much" "I'm sorry there's nothing I can do for him" it's the oven. The oven is broken. Michelangelo is sobbing in Donatello's arms like his world is ending because they're going to have to get a new oven because this one's beyond fixing. And Raphael fully believes that Michelangelo is begging Donatello to fix him, when this version of Donatello is so very none medic. Like I don't even know how to describe why and how much I love this scene. I think I killed english

4) The scene of Raphael in the volcano. I just. He's so funny. This episode really captures what I love about the whole show, which is that I am absolutely buying into it and feeling deeply about it, and simultaneously enjoying it ironically. Does that make sense? When you can put your whole heart into unironic enjoyment but your brain at the same time gets it's 'make fun of this' treat. So both types of fun at once.

---4a it's not trying to fix the plot holes it's enjoying that in this format you don't have to. I feel like this is severely under utilized in modern cinema. make things not make sense on purpose for fun. don't explain about where they are, how they carried that object with them, why there were not other consequences for certain actions. The fun thing about stories is they don't have to be realistic unless you want them to

so for today I had intended to write a Rise version of this episode. I think it would work well for them. Plus, Raph and Donnie bonding. However. That is going in drafts and will be coming. later (march for raph is my opportunity to collect drafts for the rise turtles apparently.) I'm actually still debating if Donnie would make a health-o-meter or if something goes down in witch down, but either way, ❤️💜

[sometimes-love-is-enough]

HiIII II min, what are you reading/watching/listening to at the moment, i need recs

QUITE A LOT. i am reading and watching and playing and listening to. A LOT. I'm kind of astounded that I'm actually doing all this at once, but here we go -

Books:

Lolita by Vladimir Nabokov - y'all already know what this one is about. I'm here to tell you that it's brilliantly done with a genuinely engaging writing voice and style, and a terrifyingly good unreliable narrator. If you're up to stomaching the obvious pedophilia, I fully recommend it.

Moby Dick by Herman Melville - slightly racist biologically inaccurate whale hunting. For people who know nothing about whales. I've been on a classics kick recently, I'm trying to get my way through a lot of the big 'classic' books and this is what feels like the final boss. It's good, but it's dense as all fuck, and I'm struggling despite being very close to the end with it. I don't recommend this one quite as much, but it's good enough for me to stick with it.

Sacred and Terrible Air by Robert Kurvitz - this is the Disco Elysium novel, translated from Estonian by a variety of lovely people. It's good, but it's also pretty dense - maybe not as much as Moby Dick, but it makes it hard to read in large chunks. I'm reading it alongside my beloved @lifewithoutrainydays, and i really need to put more time into it.

S. by Doug Dorst - fucking fascinating book. It's presented as a book called 'Ship of Theseus' by an author that doesn't exist, and it looks and feels like an actual old library book, complete with scribblings in the margins (that form a whole other meta story on top of the book itself), postcards and printouts jammed in between the pages, and an old library label on the spine. Still trying to figure out how to read it, but plucking away at it in-between all my other endeavors.

Our Bloody Pearl by D.N. Bryn - a.k.a., me trying to step out of my comfort zone and read some recommendations, and not quite clicking with it. Found family pirate-siren trauma-recovery story. I like the things being done with communication difficulties, but on the whole it feels a bit too fanfiction-y, which is not something I tend to like in my original fiction. I'd recommend it if you're a fan of that sort of thing, though!

Comics:

Awful Hospital: Seriously the Worst Ever by Bogleech - the author says they've never read Homestuck. I don't know if I believe them. A glorious gruesome surreal hellish trip through a very very bad hospital, seriously the worst ever, and beyond! I'm pretty early on but enjoying the fuck out of it. I don't know where it's going and I'm scared to find out.

Doctor Strange: Fall Sunrise by Tradd Moore - I read this ages ago, but finally have it in printed edition, and that rules because everything about this FUCKS SEVERELY. the art style is unhinged and brilliant, the writing is weird and beautiful, and the plot is........ the weirdest thing Doctor Strange comics have ever done since Into Shamballa, actually. i'm taking it slow this time because i want to savor every panel.

The Apothecary Diaries (manga edition) - this has been on pause for a bit, because everything else I was reading distracted me, but it's good and it's open in another tab right now, so I'll include it. Murder mysteries in an ancient Chinese court, starring the weirdest poison-obsessed apothecary girl who has ever existed. She poisons herself for fun and gets excited over particularly deadly toxins, I love her to death.

Games:

The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt - I loved the books and the show, so I figured it was about time to actually play the games. I'm a tiny bit addicted to it at this point. It's a good fucking game. I like killing monsters and I like playing Fantasy Magic The Gathering and i really really like the battle music. I'm 100%ing this one or I'm dying in the process.

Lobotomy Corporation - has fallen a bit by the wayside because of the Witcher, whoops, but I do fully intend to get back to it at some point. I know there's some less-than-great stuff going on vis-a-vis the creators, but I'm not really engaging on that level. I'm just enjoying it as an SCP-like creature-management simulator. There's some very fun anomalies with very fun writeups in this one, and I enjoy the mental challenge of figuring out what makes them all tick.

Listening to:

Critical Role, Campaign Three - I'm not utterly obsessed with it, but it's a nice long chunk of listening for me to get my evening routine done to the sound of.

And on my podcast 'I'm all caught up, but I regularly listen when new episodes come out' list are: The Magnus Protocol, Dungeons and Daddies, The Adventure Zone, and Apocrypals.

Watching:

The X-Files - all of it, start-to-finish, because I have somehow managed to avoid all spoilers of a sci-fi cultural touchstone all this time, and I'm really looking forward to seeing where this goes. I love some fucked-up monster-of-the-week sci-fi.

[9leaguesofmirrors]

Revenge Fuel (a Ross Gaines x Joseph Lisgoe fanfic)

Ages ago, I wrote a fic called Paranoia Fuel. Well, I've finally decided to write a sequel to it. While this can be read as a standalone, I've linked Paranoia Fuel here so you guys can read them back-to-back

I really hope you guys enjoy this one!

CONTENT WARNING: Contains depictions of violence and threats

Hammonds was a man that nobody in Royston Vasey ever saw, but if they did they'd be unable to scrub the image from their minds. Unruly hair, stubble and a generally scruffy demeanour: the mere sight of him told you everything you needed to know - 'this is an unpredictable man'

As usual during the night, he was sat on one of his leather seats watching TV, fully intending on having a quiet night in

Had he been a little more alert, he'd have noticed the figure moving swiftly towards his house

The figure making his way to the window and looking inside, waiting for a sign that someone was home

The figure with a gun in his pocket and was not, in the slightest, happy to see him

In fact, he only noticed someone was there when he heard the door being slamming. Once he went and opened it, he raised his eyebrows slightly when he saw who it was. The rest of his face was still

"Lisgoe."

"We need to talk."

Hammonds stepped aside and watched Lisgoe as he walked through like he owned the house, making his way to the living room. He was followed by Hammonds like prey being hunted

Not that he behaved like there was danger

"Didn't expect you to live this nice."

"What is it, Lisgoe? I was busy."

"Doing what?"

Hammonds glared pointedly for a few seconds, then sat down

"Don't waste my time. Make it quick."

"Stand up."

"Lisgoe," Hammonds leaned forward, squinting his eyes and baring his teeth "when have I ever taken orders from someone like you?"

"Fucking stand up."

"Don't swear at your boss, Lisgoe."

"You're not my boss." Lisgoe sneered "We're outside of office hours, you're just some guy."

There was a moment of pause, both of them stared at each other with unreadable expressions

"I'm not dealing with you anymore, Hammonds."

"You what?" He wasn't scared or angry, his voice was closer to mockery

"You heard me. I'm not sitting pretty while you talk to me however you want."

"Don't worry Lisgoe, you couldn't be pretty if you tried. You have a face like a smashed-in beehive."

"This is exactly what I mean." Lisgoe's voice melded into a snarl "It's boring, Hammonds. The constant bullshit has gotten old and I'm not putting up with it anymore."

"Oh, I am sorry!" Hammonds ramped up the mockery to a degree that really pissed Lisgoe off "I'd hate to hurt your precious feelings."

Hammonds finally stood up and walked towards Lisgoe, towering over him like an overarching thunderstorm. The tone of his voice became more like harsh daggers

"You think I'd answer to a single demand someone like you would make?"

Lisgoe didn't respond, he just stared back in cold defiance

"I could bash your head into the pavement until it was an unrecognisable pulp of blood and broken bones." His voice was calm, but the look on his face made it very clear Hammonds was enjoying the image "They wouldn't be able to tell you apart from dog meat."

There was no doubt in Lisgoe's mind that this wasn't an empty threat, but he wasn't going to let that show on his face. His boss was the only person he knew that would actually follow through with his promises - he'd proven that several times. It made his hairs stand up on end, but he held his ground

Until Hammonds took it too far

"And what about that Ross? What do you think will happen to him?"

For the first time since he entered the living room, Lisgoe stared down at the floor. The very way his partner's name was spat out of Hammond's mouth made his stomach coil

"Could visit him personally, show him exactly what I could do to him. Exactly how I could make him hurt. Damage him beyond repair."

Upon hearing that, Lisgoe's head shot up to face Hammonds. There was a burning eclipse in his eyes that shut out any sort of critical thought, leaving only a buzzing and frothing pit of primal aggression

"Maybe," Hammonds continued "I'll make you watch as I teach Ross a lesson in-"

"Don't say his name unless you plan on putting some fucking respect on it."

Hammonds was taken aback by Lisgoe's sudden lack of containment, he knew the man was volatile but he'd never lost it like this around him. What gave him the right?

"Why should I? Just because you're having sex with him, doesn't mean I have to care."

"You don't have to give a shite, but you need to respect him."

"I don't 'need' to do anything. Why should I show an ounce of respect to some lowlife greasehead that you decide to bum every so often-"

Something snapped

The room burst into shades of red and orange

Lisgoe had ripped his belt from its loops and shoved Hammonds backwards until he collided with the floor, holding it up and thwacking it down hard on him. The force and lack of control caused it to hit the light on the way down, shattering it and making it rain down like hellfire

"You fucking try it!" Lisgoe screamed, as if he were talking to anyone other than his boss "Just fucking try and lay a finger on him." He got right in Hammonds' face, teeth bared and eyes blazing "I will rip you a new asshole and fuck you with it!"

Hammonds wasn't going to let himself be bested by this scrawny upstart, and he stumbled his way to stand - not seeming to care about the broken glass under his feet. Without a second of hesitation, he grabbed Lisgoe by the chin

"You've got steel balls, haven't you?"

Maybe it was pride and arrogance, or maybe it was delirium, but Lisgoe couldn't help but laugh

"Guess that's why Ross likes me so much."

That was rewarded with a harsh shove to the floor, which effectively snapped Lisgoe out of it. He scrambled for the gun in his jacket pocket and held it at Hammonds' head, who's face slowly merged into one of silent, underlying rage

"Is that my gun, Lisgoe?"

"Wanna look down the barrel and find out?"

Hammonds launched for it, but Lisgoe held on tight. They scuffled for it on the floor, barely registering the click of the holster. Too busy trying to dodge and navigate the violent frenzy of limbs to realise the gun was active

Until someone grabbed it and shot twice

The air grew thick as the two were still. For all that build-up, the ending felt so sudden it was almost an anti-climax. Not that it mattered now. Not with a smoking gun and a dead body

Lisgoe felt himself slump backwards, his breath escaping him in ragged pumps. His fist loosened around the gun and his eyes closed. A look of pure relief ghosted his face

How's that for a smashed-in beehive?

Chuckling to himself, he stood up to look at the lifeless body of his boss that had falling on glass-riddled flooring. Two clean hits right in the jugular. Not bad

He let himself out of the backdoor and headed for the garage, as casually as brushing his teeth, to search for some form of toolbox. It didn't take long for him to find what he was after, and then he called his partner as he rummaged

"Ross? ... Yes, I know I'm late. ... I'm OK. I won't be home for a while," at least, he pulled out a small pair of pliers "it's impossible to find anything in these shops! ... I'll let you know when I'm back. ... Right, bye."

Once Ross hung up, Lisgoe called up a friend

"Mark, do you and Steve still have that business? ... Good, I want something made."

*********************************************

Lisgoe let himself in, holding a bag of shopping in his hand

He was met in the living room by Ross, who didn't look impressed

"Is there a soap shortage? Have people around here finally understood concept of hygiene?"

"Knowing the thick twats here, they're probably drinking it." Lisgoe put the bag down on the sofa and took something out, handing it to Ross "I saw this. Thought it was cool."

Ross took the bracelet in his hands, very surprised by the gift. Being a debt collector, Lisgoe was stingy with money, this felt slightly frivilous on his end. That wasn't to say he didn't appreciate it though

He ran his fingers along the plaited leather, dark brown and high quality. What also struck his eye were the little charms embedded into it

They looked exactly like human teeth

"It came with something else," Lisgoe took a chain from the bag and handed it over "shopkeeper was a pushy git. Would let me go until I got it."

They moved to their bedroom and stood in front of their mirror. As Ross put the bracelet on, Lisgoe went behind him and looped the chain round his neck

Ross reached up to touch the two bullets hanging from it

He wasn't stupid

"Joseph, where did you get these?"

"A couple of mates of mine make jewellery."

"I meant the charms. The teeth and the bullets, where did you get them."

Lisgoe looked at Ross' reflection and said nothing

"Did they deserve it?"

"It was Hammonds."

A few seconds of silence passed. Then Ross turned to face his partner with a dark smile

"I'll save them for a special occasion then."

A/N: As much as I love exploring different aspects of Gainsgoe, we can't forget that they're actual sickos - especially Lisgoe

[my-rose-tinted-glasses]

So many things have been written already, but since I can't stop thinking about it, I need to write some stuff down. Or as @twig-tea would say #typed so that I can stop thinking it.

We could talk all day long about what the show intended to say or not, what the show intended to portray and what message was actually all of it about.

But, as with most things, we will never know for sure. And you know what? It doesn't matter.

Because when you make anything for others to watch, as soon as the product leaves your hands, you give up any control you have over how it is perceived. That's, more often than not, the hardest part in creating anything. You lose all control over the thing, and all you can do is hope that what you wanted to do, was what people wanted to see, and what you wanted to say, was what people heard.

Sometimes these two things don't match up.

So, I won't speculate any more about what Jojo and co. wanted to say with this, or what they wanted the take away to be.

I'm fan of Jojo. Not in the way of, everything he's done was perfect, but I adore Gay Ok, I completely enjoyed 3wbf and warp effect surprised me weekly in a good way. I was happy. I was content. And maybe that set my expectations too high, because my biggest feeling about ofts finale is disappointment.

Before anything else, I fully admit by biases influenced my viewing of some things, but that is unavoidable.

I started this show relating a bit too much to some of the characters and that made it hard for me in the beginning. Specially when you have people talk about this characters in such a way that, at times, legitimately made me feel bad about myself. So basically I had to create a barrier. And look at this show in a more critical way. I still felt emotionally connected to the chars, but in a different way. And with that critical view came a whole set of new problems.

Whatever the direction the show was heading in the beginning, got completely lost somewhere in the middle. And I'm strictly talking about the writing now. The show lost all coherence in character development and any type of episodic theme went out the window.

I’ll start just referencing the frame works. (very well documented by @slayerkitty) They started as some sort of commentary that we could point to and say, that’s what they’re trying to say about this, that's the lesson this week. That got abandoned.

As I’ve written before, when the show started and we were introduced to the characters, we were led to believe that Boston, Ray, Mew and Cheum were the mains and where going to have equal weight throughout the show. That disappeared when Cheum did. It turns out it wasn’t that way after all. And as we started to see couples forming, or at least coupling happening, we knew who the mains were again. Because we got some (Top not included) of their backstories and povs.

The fear crept in here, that, because it’s gmmtv, we were heading to shipper land and all was but an illusion. But still the in p’jojo we trust was strong so we collectively, said to ourselves – It can’t be that. This is the messy show, with the messy gays, this is Jojo! And at least for me, that’s where it all began to fall apart. Genuine character growth got substituted for easy conflict, depth of character got substituted by fluffy couple moments that seemed out of place. [That is also why the beginning of Top/Mew was so divisive for so many people. Because, it could be cute in any other show, but it couldn’t be here. Because once again - This is the messy show, with the messy gays, this is Jojo! ] We got no accountability for most actions, no genuine character growth for most characters and in the end, nothing feels earned. And personally, it pisses me of when chars don’t get what they deserve, and worst, somehow end up on top, or thinking they are on top, or are morally superior.

But, even if that didn’t make me angry, it’s lazy writing. It’s conflict for conflict sake, it’s new storylines/characters that bring excitement but no follow through. it’s trauma as the easiest way to give a character depth (which I hate with a passion), it’s moral lessons that have absolutely no place here (This is the messy show, with the messy gays, this is Jojo! ) and worst of all it’s wasted potential. I might write more about this later, or on rewatch, but for today this is what I needed to type.

[dotthings]

So this is it. Last episode of Gotham Knights.

Thank you to James Stoteraux and Chad Fiveash for a fantastic finale. And to all the writers and cast and crew who made this beautiful DC series.

Season one gave us a taste of all the places this could go and what this show could be and it was SO GOOD I'm sorry there won't be more of it. There's only a few DC live action TV series that have worked for me over the years, Gotham Knights is among them.

"Batman chose well. Gotham needs its Robin." I LOVE this. Carrie's mom trusting her to look after herself, to stay alive, having seen her daughter in action as Robin, and asking her daughter to go save lives and trusting her to survive in return.

Commissioner Soto!! Knew!!! So...maybe she was the Gordon analogue in this continuity. All this time.

What finally made Harvey give himself over to the Two Face personality, what finally made him fully snap -- HE DID IT TO SAVE HIS DAUGHTER AND THOUSANDS OF LIVES IN GOTHAM. This is a really brilliant re-imagining.

With Turner's parents, I got that there was more to the story. Batman was defending himself from assassins. I didn't expect this version to have Batman actually have killed them, because the Batman doesn't kill idea is so seminal in most continuities including this one--this Batman also had the do not kill code.

He's a precise highly trained fighter, who has a strong code about not killing. So in that fight, something went wrong, he was in deadly peril, or, in defending himself, did something he didn't intend to be a kill, but wound up killing them.

Misha Collins and Olivia Rose-Keegan are hitting it out of the park in all their scenes. Duela with Harvey, Duela with Two Face, two very different dynamics and both riveting.

Misha getting to play Harvey as a regretful father who wants to save his daughter and thousands of lives and make amends and then Misha getting to play completely unhinged scarred, murderous Two Face and Misha floors it in both directions.

GIVE HIM AWARDS I'M NOT KIDDING HE DESERVES NOMINATIONS.

Sadly, because it's the CW network and a superhero show, the critical awards people won't even look at it. But I'm betting industry folks will take note anyway. Bravo, Misha.

I didn't expect Turner to actually be dead, and that tactical team had French accents so I expected Henri Ducard. Still enjoyed that reveal at the end. Guessing they're going with the comics background as inspiration (and would put their own twists on it--and not Nolanverse.) Henri Ducard trained Bruce Wayne. He's not a good guy, but he helped Bruce. I like how this show's plan was to have him train his son too.

And Turner, who wants to live up to his father's legacy, becomes a legacy and inspiration for his friends, to Duela, to keep fighting for Gotham, like Bruce did, like Turner wanted.

I can only guess what the S2 plans were. It's hinting Turner becoming a new kind of Batman eventually, not sure by S2.

The Knights are going to be pissed he didn't tell them he's alive.

The Two Face and Duela stories I'm sure would be riveting.

Steph/Harper and Duela/Turner getting more development and drama. Harper enrolling at Gotham Academy. Cullen would get a boyfriend.

Beyond that, it's a wild card. Two Face likely as a significant villain, but perhaps one who goes after other villains, who ultimately acts to preserve Gotham. Maybe some Owl remnants would be in play?

As it stands, I'm grateful. I got to have this, as a DC fan. I didn't go into this solely as a Misha fan. The bulk of my perspective of this show was as a DC fan, and it was good and I am going to keep saying it was good.

I love the team, I love its beautiful, candle-lit, aged, gothic, old stones and hidden dark corners and dirigibles and pre-war towers Gotham style. It gave, in my opinion, what is the best filmed take on Harvey Dent I've ever seen. The most nuanced and compassionate and unhinged and heartwrenching and frightening and gloriously fun to watch.

And it gave me this amazing and wonderful version of Carrie Kelley's Robin and I think I will miss her most of all.

[flutishly]

GGF rewatch, part 1

Confession: I actually started the next rewatch in my Great Webseries Rewatch series a few weeks ago. And then I paused, not because I wasn't enjoying it but because I was traveling. And now that I'm back home, I intend to continue and so it seemed like the right time to start writing up my impressions from the first batch of episodes that I saw.

Let's start with the fact that I even chose to rewatch Green Gables Fables next, after LBD. When I was imagining which show would be second, I kept asking myself whether I'd go with my personal successor to LBD, the show that got me into Tumblr in the first place, or whether I should just continue with the Pemberley Digital set of shows. And then... I ended up going for something else entirely. I picked GGF almost intuitively, thoughtless, just because.

It was a pretty great choice, honestly.

GGF is one of those shows that I watched consistently as it was airing. I reblogged posts about it and I followed all the creators and I got excited over it and I loved it and felt so much from it. But I didn't write all that much about it. It's not that I didn't write about it at all, of course I did. (I wrote and rambled quite a lot in those days, after all...) But it was never the dominant show in my orbit and in a way I felt like I always sort of forgot about it. Every time I watched it, I'd be like "oh right, this is great!" and then it would again just sort of... fade into the background. Part of this has to do with the fact that it originally aired alongside shows that would become among my all-time favorites. Part even has to do with the fact that its second season aired alongside another excellent Anne of Green Gables adaptation (Project Green Gables), which I found somewhat easier to write about.

Anyways. It's time to give GGF its due, because... yeah, this was and remains a good show. And yes, I do love it.

Right from the onset, Mandy Harmon is excellent in how she presents Anne. The filming style is youthful, quippy, a little messy, imperfect, and so utterly Anne. I thought this when the show was airing, that something about GGF's flaws consistently made it better as an adaptation. In a lot of regards, GGF was one of the best in having realism in webseries literary adaptations. Not only did the story easily lend itself to bite-sized episodes (Anne of Green Gables itself being very episodic), but there was a concious effort to make Anne's world fully populated. Anne is thoroughly present online as an aesthetics blogger (excellent adaptation choice), befriending Diana through Tumblr (a nice wink to much of the fanbase itself, and a bit to the way the show developed), and there is a rich and real transmedia experience that I think ended up blowing pretty much every other show out of the water. All these years later, I still marvel over how characters were introduced to the story seamlessly through their online personas, without it necessarily being "plot relevant" for Anne's videos. They simply existed and as such they also occasionally existed in Anne's immediate (filmed) orbit.

But since I'm not reviewing the transmedia (and never really tracked it much when it was live either), let's get back to the show itself: Dang, it's good.

The pacing is great. The acting is great (if a little uneven when Diana is onscreen, though this isn't so much because of bad acting as much as a reflection of the character's relative discomfort/unease onscreen). Most of the adaptational choices are great (I still don't much love the Diana-getting-drunk plotline, which was the last episode I watched, but it was a lot less painful this time around than the first, and better than I remembered). The sense that Anne lives in this fascinating little town is beautifully conveyed in-story and I love how open everything is. Anne doesn't hide her videos and she addresses her mistakes on camera (particularly as relates to being mean or snarky about individuals) and there's none of the awkward work-arounds to explain why some people know certain things. The story just... is.

I'm still at the very beginning, of course, but I find myself wanting to write about the show in a lot more depth than I ever did while it was running. I find myself wanting to talk about how Anne's dramatic filming style feels less like old vlogs and less like new TikToks/Reels and more like the transition from the old world to the new, in how they're so fluid yet dramatic. I find myself thinking about how Anne's loneliness comes across so beautifully in the first few episodes and how she takes a little while to settle into her Avonlea life. I find myself loving how Anne's anger with Gilbert is so freshly realistic, that it's easy to forget that the story is over 100 years old.

I don't know how much I'll actually end up writing as I go through. I meant to pause and write up my thoughts as I was watching the first batch of videos, but I just got wrapped up in it and couldn't stop; the episodes flow seamlessly and warmly and the show feels like I really am just catching up with some teen vlogger from a decade ago. But again: I'd like to make the effort. I hope to pick up my rewatch next week, so let's see how that goes...

[rymixta]

Misunderstood season 4 of The Dragon Prince by fans

I'm pretty embarrassed about The Dragon Prince Season 4 hatred from fans, here are a few things I want to say in defense and support.

The wide or tiny audience? What about if is needed novels and other for uderstood?

Yes I agree it's a bit mind boggling - that they said you don't need to read the comics to understand the story - probably this will be answered by a wider audience in the next season...

On the other hand, I'm arguing, that instead of trying to get a wider audience, they keep the existing one, and  I think they achieve this precisely with a lot of things are dosed outside of the series - through graphic novels and stuff...you're in touch with the story and space even while waiting for the next season and "you have something to do" - by that I mean, if you are really interested in it and are a big fan, then you also enjoy these things and watch them - and thanks to that you have a better chance to understand - and that's when you run out of things in the serial that others don't understand or don't notice.

Complex things cannot be understood at first sight and not everyone can understand them.

My other thought is connected to this - the dragon prince is an incredibly complex world - and whenever something is complex - you can never understand everything the first time and that's what I enjoy so much - I have a reason to watch the series again, because I often only understand some things after a few seeing of season or of the moment. Which may not be fully the purpose of the show - but I know this when I make games and ciphers - I know how it is a perfectly thought out, complex and brilliantly fitting idea - but at the same time, not everyone will understand my idea on the first try and some people will not understand it at all, and whoever understands it will then say wow, that's brilliant - but I had to put all the pieces of the puzzle together - and that's exactly what happens to creators - they have some brilliant ideas of a complicated interconnected world - which are not straightforwardly meaned out and it's impossible to understand them all at once without a deeper of interest.

They build it for their fans, there are a lot of things that are not easy to notice if you only see the scene once. I like the fact that often on stage even those in the background have some kind of interaction. And so, I have to see some scenes more than once - because I really don't have eyes on both sides of the screen. And season 4 has this too.

The Dragon Prince is about patience, reality and deep understanding.

Honestly, I'm really sorry for the attitude of the fandom. I think this season is misunderstood - as is Callum and Rayla's relationship and my genial camp ciphers (By this I want to indicate that it is not possible to reach everyone without explaining to them in the end how it actually works). In every serials, we have cheap arguments, rapid development of romance and it's still the same, everyone wants everything now - that's what romantic Christmas movies are for. But the dragon prince is about patience...and I think this brilliantly reflects the story of Aravos....also his "absence in the serial",...his whole story is about infinite patience. You can see the hatred..honestly - you can see it on the creators, every other interview they don't look so enthusiastic anymore. Yes, I had to listen to them and maybe hear some explanation of how some things were intended, either from the creators or someone who already understood - but that's my interest in the world - and it helped me understand a lot of things and love the season. Btw. they said there will be Soren interaction with Viren etc.

Animation - yes, the first parts were probably built distantly - like our previous two years of study - how good you can apply your skills?

What I definitely agree with fans is the animation, yes I was also irritated by Rayla's appearance as a lumberjack at times and bugs in the form of disappearing body parts and clothes. And I really missed moving her ears.

Ununderstood Rayllum

As for Rayllum - again, you can't understand it without looking carefully, and the creators themselves said so. The problem with fans is that they expect what they have already seen, what they have seen hundreds of times, but this is something else. With 1-3, were often about a lot of expression with words.. Season 4 is about what is not said (in the words of the creators), many things are not expressed in words, but in body language - and that's definitely something that hits an older audience. They said they would like to speed up their relationship - but that it's not possible - it's not natural and I like that. Rayla tries to give him space, and he gradually transforms his ignorance into small, often minute acceptances of her presence and small touches. The next season is supposed to bring a deepening of their relationship on the level of friendship instead of romance (see today's twitter the Dragon prince) - and it probably makes sense, they are not crazy teenagers, they are almost adults, but not so much and they have to find a way to each other again and build new trust and only then on it build love for the other.

Fall in love again This is my opinion. I find it hard to compare the previous arc and this one - it's different. My relationship with season 4 was building like Callum and Rayla's relationship...first it was WTF, then eeeeee I'll see what happens, then I can't stop and then I'm so glad the series is back and I love it.

[pluviophile-bookworm]

HSMTMTS season 4 reflections: I have been changed for good

It's been an incredibly wild ride and I was overflowing with emotions even before watching the final season, but now... the emotions are even stronger. I've let them settle down a bit and I think I'm ready now to share a list of my favourite and least favourite things about this season (both lists in a completely random order, though more or less chronological, if anything).

My favourite things:

‘It’s a good thing the cameras won’t be in our faces back at school. Right?’ This has the exact same energy as ‘Nothing will shake these ivy walls’ in School of Rock, and I love it for that. I'm all about the dramatic irony.

Alyson Reed as Ms Darbus looks just like a much older version of Ashlyn as her in season 1. What I’m saying is, the casting choice of Ash as Ms Darbus was on point.

I learnt the hard way back in season 2 not to get too invested in any core four relationships, but Ricky and Gina… they’re kinda it. I mean, just look at them, they’re so cute. Also, I've come to realise that, as an aroace autistic person who loves shipping, I mostly tend to ship canon couples only, except for when I don't perceive them as having chemistry. Conversely, I will sometimes ship non-canon couples if I perceive them as having chemistry. This will be important a bit later.

Rina's duet with the montage of season 1 references. That was so beautiful. And don't get me started on their Can I Have This Dance... Miss Jenn was trying to get through the table read quickly through all the chaos and wanted to skip over the songs, but Gina was just like 'no, I'm not doing that'. And we love her for it.

Ricky’s ‘You can tell it’s a joke because I laughed’… so me-core. Love it.

I found the bit about Troy and Gabriella being in couple's therapy so funny... I wonder, is that anything like Therapy from Tick Tick Boom?

Now or Never, the audition version (and the show version, too, but especially this one). That was the definition of Slay.

As a newly dog-favourable person, I would agree with Ricky — puppies are everyone’s kryptonite. In one way or another… I mean, can you believe that up until this last April, I would just literally go out of my way to avoid crossing paths with any dog of any kind, and then I put it into my head that I wanted that to stop, and now I’m this close to actually becoming a dog person? All this to say… I really appreciate those puppies. Everything really is better with puppies.

Ricky's background character in the film was giving Thayne Jasperson in Stick to the Status Quo. I enjoyed that.

Ashlyn's iconic 'I'm dying, I'm deceased, yes' is back again, and once again it comes in connection to Ms Darbus. We love to see the parallels.

Nightmares Come to Life is such a good song, though. Hallowe’en-y, creative, but also reflective of the characters’ very real fears and anxieties. Might be my favourite. Or it might not -- remains to be seen.

Why are all of Ashlyn’s songs the best in the show? Idk, but I might be warming up to Madlyn after this. Call It What You Want is quite something and their chemistry is off the charts.

Redlyn have always been so in sync, they even broke up with so much love and respect and amicability... I've heard the phrase 'We can still be friends' so many times, but they're one of the few ex-couples where I actually fully believe it.

EJ and Ricky’s duet is everything, and they’re finally, finally letting Matt sing… took them long enough.

Big Red in the last couple of episodes -- I literally teared up instantly even upon his first appearance, and with the exception of the extremely stupid and unnecessary cheating storyline, I just enjoyed seeing him one last time and especially getting to say a proper, less embittered goodbye at the end.

Carlos' recap in 4x6 goes hard. Pun absolutely intended. As were all of his go puns in it.

4x6 is the most Glee this show has ever been, even if we take season 1 into account. This is basically the '2009' episode of HSMTMTS, and my favourite of this season until the final one.

Seblos being back and making me believe in love again. I think the world healed a little after that duet. Though I've got to wonder... if it was meant for Ryan and his partner in the film... what is the script making those two go through to warrant such a song? I'm just curious, is all.

Dreams Don't Die, and Emmy's energy throughout the entirety of this season. It's been a sight to behold for certain.

Miss Jenn sending out Ricky's college application behind his back (Troy and Ms Darbus much?) and Mr Mazzara, Benny if you will, vouching for him. The world has truly turned upside down.

EJ and Big Red and Seb showing up for opening night (and Ricky carrying on Nini's opening night cards tradition), the way the gods intended. Big Red expecting to be 'screaming, crying, throwing up' (huh, a bit like on BATB opening night in season 2, innit?), and EJ just vibing to the entire first act, while Seb sings along like his life depends on it.

Carlos and Kourtney being magnificently fabulous as Ryan and Sharpay. Also, Seb just walking out there amid the number and planting one on Carlos with no warning. I sort of got Nick Nelson on sports day in season 1 of Heartstopper vibes from this. 'This means we're a thing'... we love it.

EJ’s scene with Miss Jenn… when did he become so wise? I was going to ask that about his scene with Ricky in 4x5, but this, this is something else. This is an adult conversation he’s having. It was even officially labelled as such. I just… I love this boy, this young man, I really wish him all the best. I wouldn’t have believed you if you’d told me this during season 1, but I shall miss Elton John Caswell.

'Antoine' not really being French was absolutely something I'd called all the way back in 2x7, but back then I certainly couldn't have called him being interested in Big Red, and not in a million years Big Red being interested in 'Napoleon over here', as he once referred to him. Then again, back before I watched this season, I'd never considered the thought of Redlyn not being endgame, so there's that. But I'm now 1000% here for it. As I mentioned a bit earlier, I ship canon couples if I see chemistry between them. (Also, it took me longer than it should have, but... Andy? Like Andrew? They literally didn't bother giving the character a name.)

The last ten or so minutes of it all, with Denny's and Born to be Brave and For Good at the end... now that was a sendoff such as this show deserved.

My least favourite things (some of them I find mildly irritating, others I'm actually enraged by; I hope it comes across which are which):

In the entire first half of the season, feeling like I couldn't even say 'Seblos' anymore bc they felt, for the first time since forever, like such separate entities which didn't seem like they'd be one again. That was painful for a while.

The 'Seb and Big Red cheating on Carlos and Ashlyn together' plotline... like, not only is this sticking an arguably biphobic stereotype on my favourite character, but it also feels extremely out of character for both of them. Another bit which just hurt to watch and to think about.

This is a bit of a gripe with HSM3 itself, but also with the fact that this version did nothing to change that up -- the two genders according to A Night to Remember: excited for prom and dreading prom. Interesting how I've always identified with the latter and to this day regret going to my prom... oh well. This is one of those mildly irritating ones.

The way Emmy pronounced Jean Valjean... I mean, nobody’s perfect. Even Mike Faist says ‘mischievious’. But this was a bit much for me. Still, it was sobering in this emotionally charged moment. I sort of needed something like this to take me out of things for a bit.

So yeah, it's clear to see that I liked more about this season than I disliked. At the end of the day, I walked into this season expecting to feel a bit 'meh' about it and walked out all like 'how can I sleep at night, pretend that I'm fine leaving it all behind'... That's been HSMTMTS, and it's been quite a wild ride. Because I knew you, I have been changed for good, indeed.

[gregoftom]

New to the Saw franchise, wondering if I can go into X without any context or if I absolutely Need to see any of the earlier movies before seeing X to understand it? 🧐

aaaaah omg okay so i would recommend watching both saw and saw II to get enough context to enjoy the movie as much as you can without being an og fan. you could go into it blind if you wanted but i think you'll have a better experience if you know the characters of john kramer and amanda well. i in fact recommend including saw III as well for a little extra background on them and their relationships as well as some little bits of the original movie. there is a post credits scene so make sure to stick around for a little bit, they show it before they fully roll the credits so you don't have to wait long at all. saw III will you give some context as to why that scene is important. saw IV will give you even more context to it and make it make a little more sense, even. the post credits scene assumes you're a fan of the series so you can always just give a miss on it and come back to it later if you intend to get into the series fully. saw II is a bit of a drag imo so i wouldn't blame you if you either watched clips specifically of the beginning, amanda, and the ending. you could do the same with III and IV. if you don't mind spoilers i'd recommend looking at kramer, amanda and mark hoffman's pages on saw wiki.

even though i'm saying all of this, the movie itself DOES work well and can be thoroughly enjoyed as a stand alone! i just can't deny that being a fan/having background infos gave me a little extra happiness. but my gf who had only JUST watched saw and saw II before we went to see it REALLY enjoyed it as well so, as i say. i think you could go in without too much context and still know enough to have a good time! like they don't bring up anything that you essentially have to know to get the film, there are just some references for fans. :>

[goldendiie]

ok i'm going to be an adult and give a little explanation as to why i've been missing for three months now. under the cut. heart.

BEFORE ANY OF YOU PANIC. I'm not quitting. I'm not saying goodbye.

I'm going to preface and say that I have been writing sarge/fillmore fanfic since I was fourteen years old. I am turning twenty-one at the end of the month. This December marks my seventh year of running this blog-- almost all of my teenage years were devoted to making cars fandom content.

I've realized, only recently, that I've trapped myself into a box by doing this. It was fun, for the first couple of years; I would just write whatever the hell I wanted, I would take requests, I would do anything. And then, once I started working on The Third Blink, and studying the 1960s, I realized that history was something I wanted to do professionally. I finished TB, and then I started working passively on Americana. I wanted to fully encompass the historical narrative of the peace movement, and make the argument that it self-destructed itself. More than anything, I wanted to spread knowledge. This is not to say that I’m not still having fun-- I have a blast doing this, and I always always always love talking to you guys about the AU. It's wonderful to know that I've created such an active and interested group based solely on the pursuit of this historical question-- even if it is through the lens of gay cars.

Now, four years after this all started, I'm waking up in that aforementioned box. The counterculture has become my entire life: I have dozens of books and resources saved for whenever I become an instructor, I'm an avid 60s alt fan, and I have an arsenal of potential theses that I want to approach in graduate school. But, in those four years, I haven't given myself the opportunity to explore more. I've been so headstrong about the 1960s that I failed to realize the vast richness of other historical pursuits. I was almost ignorant of them. This has been a hard epiphany to tackle. I've built my life around this, and it's hard to realize that I need to move on. (Alexa, play Landslide by Fleetwood Mac).

And, weirdly, South Park (of all things) is what brought me to the realization that I'm trapped in this box. I started watching the show, and then I started listening to different music, and enjoying different media. It was the most new stuff that I've ever consumed at once. At first, it was kind of terrifying: I had been one thing for the longest time. Once I started noticing that I was changing, growing into a different person, I didn't know what to do. But changing and growing is never a bad thing-- actually, it's the most human thing that anyone can do. Allowing myself this growth rather than continuing to confine myself into this box has been really, really awesome for me. I started laughing more, and taking things less seriously. I have new historical questions, and I feel as though I have been filled with life again. No longer am I disillusioned with my fanfic writing, or my professional work. I'm excited.

When I wrote the "everything happens for a reason" line in The Third Blink, I never thought much of it... until now. I think I was meant to find the cars fandom at fourteen (maybe earlier-- I made this blog at fourteen, but I was definitely in it for maybe a year before that), meant to start writing sargemore, meant to ask historical questions about the nature of their relationship-- All because it led me to where I am today. I'm applying to graduate school in December, and I still intend to write about the peace movement for my doctoral thesis. I think the same thing can be said about that life-changing epiphany that South Park (ugh) gave me: I've finally begun to realize that nothing is really that serious, and that changing and turning into someone you never expected to be is a good (even great!) thing.

After a certain point, I have to break out of this box. I can't always be Goldie, cars fanfic writer. I have to become myself, and I have to grow into my career and research pursuits. Becoming a better version of yourself is never a bad thing; nor is living your life free of any expectations. And, at any rate, a wise man once said: "It's futile to resist change."

So, I'm not saying goodbye. Not yet, anyway. I'm just taking a few steps back, becoming more passive. I still fully intend to finish Americana (and, maybe Nowhere, if I ever get around to working on it again), but I am not putting myself under any pressure to do so. It's been a long, crazy, incredible ride... But I think my retirement will be coming soon.

If you read all of that, thank you. I know this isn't stuff that you guys wanted to read, but the longer I went without saying anything, the worse I felt. Thank you.

Like I said, I'll still be around-- just not frequently.

Love y'all. -G.