#I've loved Transformers for so long but I haven't kept up with a lot of the comics and animated series

[wishingstarinajar]

Have a messy WIP doodle of a Transformers version of Rewind I've been trying to puzzle together for fun~

[goldfades]

✮ 𝐜𝐨𝐰𝐛𝐨𝐲 𝐥𝐢𝐤𝐞 𝐦𝐞, quinn hughes

♡ ─ word count | 3.2k

♡ ─ summary | you and quinn were destined to fail from the beginning.

♡ ─ warnings | unedited LOL, so much angst (are we surprised), drinking, mentions of a stupid bet (pls don't come for me ik it's a cliche but it works), asshole!quinn (so sorry for this), break-up's, lots of fighting and just overall asshole-ry, unloyalty (not exactly cheating but idk), lmk if i missed anything LMAOOO

♡ ─ taglist | tbd (check out link in navigation!)

♡ ─ ev's notes | whoo, finally i wrote something for my celly!!! i'm not very proud of it .... idk why i lowkey hate it but i hope i did this song justice, i love this song and evermore in general. this is also very out of character quinn, LOLOL because he would never (in my head, at least...). ANYWAY!!! please let me know your thoughts and i would love to hear some respectful critiques for my general writing/plotting, i would appreciate it! anyways, enjoy this angsty ass story lol

As you stared into Quinn's eyes, under the flurolenst lights of the parking lot, you knew that it was over. The distant hum of traffic and the occasional flicker of the overhead lights were the only sounds breaking the stillness of the night.

Quinn's expression mirrored your own; a mixture of sadness, resignation, and regret etched across his features. His lips parted as if he wanted to say something, but the words remained trapped, unspoken, as if even he couldn't find the right ones to mend what had been broken.

In the quiet of that desolate parking lot, you prayed, as you hadn't in a long time, for Quinn to say something, anything, that could mend the gaping rift between you. The silence between you two was deafening, heavy with the weight of unspoken words, unfulfilled promises, and a shared recognition of the inevitable.

As you stared into his eyes, his beautiful eyes, the eyes that still somehow showed admiration, you knew that this was the end. And in the depth of that painful realization, you also knew that, somehow, it was for the better. The love that had once bound you both was still there, but it had transformed into something unrecognizable, something that no longer served the happiness you both deserved.

──

ONE YEAR AGO

──

"You come here often?" were the first words that came from the unknown beautiful man's lips. The beautiful stranger's confidence and charming smile were hard to ignore, and his well-worn pick-up line had almost made you laugh.

You had experienced countless encounters with men using the same old pick-up line, wearing that familiar confident grin, and creating a typical atmosphere. Yet, there was something about this particular interaction that stood out.

You responded with a gentle smile, shaking your head in acknowledgement. "No, I just moved here." Well, that wasn't exactly true ─ you had lived here almost a year now but you were still new.

The corners of the beautiful stranger's lips curled up even further as he chuckled at your response. "Well, that explains why I haven't seen you around," he said, his voice carrying a playful undertone.

He kept turning around with a smirk and you noticed his group of friends and you suddenly understood what exactly what was happening ─ he was trying to prove something to his friends or win some kind of bet.

Sure, you first found his charming approach somewhat appealing, the growing suspicion that this might be part of a playful dare or a friendly challenge from his friends left you feeling intrigued and slightly amused. Nevertheless, you decided to go along with it, maintaining a friendly smile, eager to see where this interaction was headed.

He glanced over at his friends once more, who were now watching the two of you with amused expressions. It was becoming increasingly clear that this was more than just a chance encounter.

You decided to keep the conversation fun, playing along with his playful undertone. "I guess I've been flying under the radar," you replied with a grin. "But now that you've found me, what's your next move, mystery man?"

He laughed at the nickname before he leaned in closer, lowering his voice as if sharing a secret, playfully. "Well, I could offer you a drink and continue this intriguing conversation, or I could simply disappear back into the crowd, leaving you with the mystery."

"I like mysteries," you replied with a flirty undertone. Now this was something new ─ he was actually engaging which made you even more interested. "I'm Y/N."

"Quinn," he responded and extended his hand with the same smirk he's had on the entire night. "Quinn Hughes," he repeated, emphasizing his name in a way that made it clear he wanted you to know it.

"Good to meet you, Quinn Hughes." You replied playfully. "Now, where's my drink?"

Quinn's grin widened as he held onto your hand for an extra second, making sure you knew he appreciated the introduction. "The pleasure's all mine, Y/N," he said with a wink before releasing your hand. "What are you like feeling tonight?"

"Bellini, please."

He looked at the bartender who was cleaning the glasses and nodded his head, "Two Bellini's, please."

The bartender soon returned with two frosty Bellinis, each garnished with a sweet slices of peach. You took a sip and savored the fruity and bubbly flavors.

"Cheers," you said, raising your glass to Quinn. "To unexpected encounters and intriguing mysteries."

Quinn clinked his glass against yours, his eyes locked onto yours. "To new beginnings and unforgettable nights," he added, his tone suggestive.

──

What started as a one-night stand quickly became something more. Nights spent together soon became a weekly thing that excited the both of you. Quinn found himself smiling at mere thought of your presence, and that was when he knew it was over for him.

Sweet words exchanged as you fell asleep together, talking about your dreams and hopes, your worst fears and nightmares, building something that could only be described as perfect. Everything that you had ever wanted was Quinn.

He was a gentlemen, he opened doors and made sure you got home safe. He gave you forehead kisses, treated you like a princess, paid for everything and respected your boundaries.

But nothing is meant to last forever.

"You told me you blocked her!" You yelled in frustration as you threw the phone on the bed.

Quinn's face flushed with anger, his eyes narrowing as he retorted, "Well, what about you, Y/N? You promised me you'd stop bringing up the past every time we argue!"

Your anger flared in response as you threw your head back in anger. "This isn't about the past, Quinn. This is about you lying to me!"

He clenched his fists, his voice rising with fury. "And what about your constant need to control everything, to question every little thing I do? It's suffocating!"

The room seemed to crackle with tension as the argument escalated. Voices raised, accusations flying, both of you venting the pent-up frustration that had been building over time. It was a clash of emotions, a heated exchange that left no room for compromise.

Quinn's face was red with anger as his usual calm demeanor broke, his voice laced with frustration. "You never trust me, Y/N! It's like you're always waiting for me to mess up, to prove that I'm not good enough for you."

Your own anger burned hotly, and you shot back, "Maybe if you didn't lie to me, I wouldn't have reason to doubt you!"

"Lie to you? Y/N, come on, I never said-"

"Don't you try and twist your words, Quinn!" you interrupted him, your voice sharp and accusing. The hurt and anger in your eyes were unmistakable as you continued, "I saw the messages, Quinn. Don't insult my intelligence by denying it."

Quinn's jaw clenched as he realized there was no way out of this argument. His own anger surged, and he retorted, "Fine, I lied about blocking her, but it's not what you think."

Your heart broke truly for the first time that night as he said those words. Your lip trembled as you continued, "Then what is it, Quinn? Why couldn't you just be honest with me?"

He let out a frustrated sigh, running a hand through his hair. "I didn't want to upset you, okay? I knew how much it bothered you, and I thought I could handle it on my own."

Your anger began to mix with a sense of betrayal. "So, you thought it was better to lie to my face instead of talking to me about it? Is that how you see our relationship?"

Quinn's shoulders slumped, realizing the gravity of his mistake. "No, Y/N, that's not what I meant. I messed up, and I'm sorry."

Silence enveloped the room, heavy and suffocating, as you sat back down on the bed. The tears you had been holding back finally began to flow, tracing a path down your cheeks. The pain and betrayal in your heart were almost too much to bear.

You felt Quinn's presence beside you on the bed, his touch warm on your shoulder. His voice was filled with regret, and you could sense the genuine concern in his words.

"Wait, baby, please don't cry," he implored, his voice soft and tender. He moved closer, his arms encircling you in a gentle embrace. You laced your arms around his waist as you let the tears freely fall.

Despite the anger and hurt that still lingered, you couldn't help but feel safe in his comforting touch. His embrace offered a sense of solace, a reminder of the love you share.

"I'll block her, okay?" He hummed softly as your cries paused and you nodded in his arms. "I'll block her," he kissed your head as he mumbled those words.

Those weren't the last lies you both would ever mutter. More lies would follow, weaving a tangled web of deceit between you both.

──

You had never been one to care, before Quinn. It was always one after the other, leaving no room to heal. No one had ever taken you like Quinn, no ever felt Quinn. He was one in a million, he was your equal.

Maybe that was the problem, he was too much like you. You should've known it was a bad idea once you realized how similar you two were. You were both fiercely independent, with strong-willed personalities and a desire for control over your lives. While these traits had drawn you together in the beginning, also fueled moments of conflict and clashes of wills.

Perhaps it was the old adage of "too much of a good thing." The intense passion and stubbornness that had drawn you together now threatened to tear you apart.

Arguments that once seemed passionate now felt exhausting, and you found yourselves butting heads more often than not. Quinn's stubbornness mirrored your own, and instead of compromising, you often clashed fiercely over minor disagreements.

Amidst the commotion, you couldn't deny the depth of your feelings for Quinn. He was, and would always be, the love of your life. You realized that love was not about finding someone without flaws, but rather finding someone whose flaws you could accept and embrace. Quinn was not perfect, and neither were you, but together, you were something good, something worth fighting for. Something good was something that was hard to find nowadays, and something you had never experienced, something that you now relished in.

So, you made a choice. You chose to ignore the problems, at least for the time being. It wasn't the healthiest decision, and deep down, you knew it. But the love you felt for Quinn was powerful, and you were willing to overlook the cracks in your relationship, hoping they would somehow heal on their own.

Now, in hindsight, you realized it wasn't the best choice.

"Jesus, Y/N! Give me some room, I just won the best game of my life and the only you wanna talk about is something you heard from someone you know is a shit-talker, Y/N." Quinn shouted as he walked away from you, into the kitchen. It was obvious he was avoiding the topic, you'd try to bring it up multiple times but now you just wanted answered.

Your frustration boiled over as you followed him, your voice sharper now. "Quinn," you snapped, "this is important, and you can't keep brushing it aside like it doesn't matter. We can't keep avoiding our issues."

"There aren't any issues, you're making them out of thin air Y/N." He replied sharply as he opened the fridge. "Fuck, I lost my appetite. Thanks, baby." The sweet pet-name sounded like an insult now as he glared at you.

His dismissive attitude only fueled your anger further. You couldn't let him brush this off any longer. "Quinn," you said firmly, "I'm not making this up, okay, this is just something that has bothered me from the beginning and I can't keep trying to ignore it. I want you to be honest with me."

Quinn let out an angry groan as he slammed the fridge making you jump as you leaned back from him. He noticed the change in atmosphere and he sighed. Tonight was supposed to be about celebrating his win and now it just felt like another night where you two fought.

He slammed the fridge door shut, his frustration boiling over. "You want honesty? Fine. I'm tired of you constantly questioning me, doubting my every move. It's suffocating, Y/N!"

"Quinn, what happened the first night we met?"

That statement made his face pale. Quinn shifted uncomfortably, his eyes darting around the room as if searching for an escape from the conversation. The air grew heavy with the weight of unspoken words, and for a moment, it seemed like he might try to evade the question.

But then, with a resigned sigh, he finally relented. "Fine, let's talk about it." He ran a hand through his hair, a gesture of nervousness that you had come to recognize. "It was a stupid bet, okay? My friends dared me to approach a beautiful girl like you and get your number."

Your heart sank as the truth spilled out. It confirmed your suspicions, but hearing it from him still stung. "No, but there's more. What about her?"

He knew who was "her" was, as he swallowed.

Quinn's discomfort was palpable as he reluctantly began to share more about that fateful night. "It wasn't just the bet," he admitted, his voice filled with regret. "There was this girl, one of my friends' exes. She was there that night, and she dared me to take things a step further."

Your heart sank even further, a mix of anger and hurt bubbling up. "You slept with me because she told me to?"

He nodded, unable to meet your gaze. "Yeah, I did. I'm so sorry, Y/N. I should've been honest from the beginning, but I was stupid, and I wanted to impress her."

The room seemed to close in around you as Quinn's confession hung in the air. It was a heavy blow, and your emotions swirled in turmoil. The pain of betrayal and humiliation washed over you, making it hard to find words.

"You used me," you finally choked out, your voice trembling with a mix of anger and sadness. He tried to touch your hand but you moved it, "Don't touch me."

And now it all made sense, the texting, him insisting she was blocked (when you knew she wasn't), the glances back from his friends on the night you met. It all clicked, like a switch.

But as you looked back at him, it hit you like a truck. Your sweet boyfriend, the whole foundation of your relationship had been because of a bet and an ex. "You still talk to her?"

The silence answered your question and you felt your stomach turn in disgust. The room felt suffocating, and you couldn't bear to stay there any longer. Pushing past Quinn, you rushed out of the kitchen, the weight of the revelation heavy on your shoulders.

──

You and Quinn faced each other as you both laid in bed, smiles hanging on your lips as you exchanged sweet whispers of "forever."

The room was bathed in the soft glow of the moonlight streaming through the curtains. It felt like a moment suspended in time, where the worries of the past and the uncertainties of the future faded away.

Quinn gently brushed a strand of hair from your face, his soft eyes filled with tenderness. "I love you, Y/N."

Your heart swelled with affection, and you caressed his cheek with your fingertips. "I love you too, Quinn."

As you lay there, wrapped in each other's arms, you both knew that the path ahead wasn't easy. But for now, in that moment, you held onto the hope that love would prevail, and your story would continue, marked by its ups and downs, but bound together by a love that refused to fade.

──

Forever was the sweetest con. Promises of the best future were mere phrases, no literal meaning behind them.

As you stared into his eyes, his beautiful eyes, the eyes that still somehow showed admiration, you knew that this was the end. And in the depth of that painful realization, you also knew that, somehow, it was for the better. The love that had once bound you both was still there, but it had transformed into something unrecognizable, something that no longer served the happiness you both deserved.

In the midst of that silence, you could almost hear the echoes of all the beautiful moments you had shared with Quinn. The laughter, the whispered promises, the warmth of his embrace – they all seemed like distant memories now, fading into the abyss of what could have been.

Finally, Quinn's lips moved, and he let out a heavy sigh. "Y/N," he began, his voice tinged with sadness, "I wish things could have been different. I never wanted to hurt you like this."

Your throat tightened, and you fought to keep your composure. "I know, Quinn," you whispered, your voice trembling. "It's just too late to fix what's broken."

The words hung heavily in the air, a painful acknowledgment of the damage that had been done. You both knew that there was no turning back, no magic words that could erase the pain and mistrust that now defined your relationship.

The pain of parting was excruciating as you took a step back from each other, the unspoken love still lingered in the space between you. It was a love that would forever remain a bittersweet memory, a chapter in your lives that had come to an end.

With one final, longing look, you turned away from Quinn and walked towards your separate futures, leaving behind the shattered remnants of a love that had once felt like forever.

You would never love again, not like you did with Quinn. No would ever make you laugh like he did, or touch you like he did, or make you cry like he did. And maybe in some way, that was a good thing.

Maybe, in time, you would discover new forms of love, different from what you had known before. You didn't know if you even wanted that, you just wanted what you once had with Quinn, before any of the shit hit the fan. At the same time you knew you were destined for failure the moment he had come up to you at that shitty bar, the foundation was destined to break into a million pieces for you to pick up.

Maybe, in some other universe, it would've worked out. Quinn would've come up to you willingly and bought you a bellini and maybe, he wouldn't have been so hung up on his ex. And then, your promises would've been fulfilled; the big house in Michigan, with two dogs and a big family and an even bigger heart. Two boys and two girls, like he'd promised. So that the son had a brother, and the daughter had a sister, just like the both of you had.

It was a beautiful vision of what could have been, a dream woven with the threads of love and real commitment. And maybe, in this reality or another, there were still beautiful moments and dreams waiting to unfold and that brought you some kind of peace.

-> make sure to check out my navigation or masterlist if you enjoyed! any interaction is greatly appreciated! <-

thank you for reading all the way through, as always ♡

[tinywagoncolorbat]

GAICHE ADLAI X READER PLSSS IM BEGGING (and reader is jealous of grey bc I am) if you don’t want to you don’t have to but please do any setting where you can write best!

I haven't had any luck with writing for months now but I absolutely love Gauche and really want to try writing for him because there is not enough of him out there

I am also currently rewatching Black Clover so it's perfect timing

Your just as important as Marie

Gauche Adlai x Fem!BlackBullsReader

Summary: You decide to go shopping alone instead of waiting for him but you run into him in town with gray

Warning: Fluff, Slight angst?, Cursing, Jealousy, Gauche might be a little out of character

Word count: 800+

It's been a few hours since you've seen Gauche. You heard something about him helping Gray with her shyness.

It upset you a little because he's been spending a lot of time with her lately and you found a nice new shop in the capital that has really good toys and treats for kids, so you were hoping to go shopping with him for Marie.

You wander out into the main area of the Black Bulls base hoping they would be back by now.

You take a look around and notice almost everyone is out on missions or is training.

You let out a loud sigh "Guess I'll just have to go shopping by myself then" You say as you grab your broom and head for the capital.

You arrive and you keep flying over the buildings to try to find the shop you found not too long ago when you hear a familiar voice.

You fly down to the street you hear the voice and jump off your broom to get a better look at the loud yelling that you seem to recognize somewhere.

You walk closer to see Marie standing In the street. You turn your head to see Gauche with a nose bleed screaming that he loved her and running toward her to hug her.

You stood there smiling at him because that's just like him, Until he's right in front of her and she transforms back into gray.

Your heart stops as you see Gauche and gray standing incredibly close to each other and him complaining that she changed back.

You start to feel really insecure by watching this so you walk forward to interrupt them.

"There you are Gauche, I've waiting to see you all day" You say with a hint of sadness in your voice as you approach them.

"Oh, hello dear. What are you doing here" Gauche asks when he turns and sees you there. Gray immediately panicked and tried to hide herself.

"There was a new shop i found a while ago that would have nice things for Marie, and since you weren't back yet i was going to go by myself" you say nervously while playing with you're fingers.

"New things for my beautiful angel, I will gladly come with you" Gauche states as his nose starts bleeding at the thought of new gifts for Marie. "I'll have to help you later gray, my darling Marie needs some gifts"

You smile at him as you start walking in the direction of the store. "It's a little ways down this street"

He runs up besides you and starts talking about what he could get for Marie from this shop. "Will i be able to get my angel some new dresses, Or maybe some new dolls that she can play with"

You just hum and nod along with what he's saying, fully focused on what you saw with him and gray just a minute ago.

He kept rambling until he realized you weren't responding and helping him think of what to get her. He stop talking and looked down and seen the sad expression you had on your face. "Is something bothering you" He blurts out.

You stop walking and look up at him. "It's nothing, don't worry about it" You wave it off putting on a smile.

He stops to stand in front of you too see you better. "Don't say that, it makes me what to know more.

You look up at him and then look back down at the ground. "It's just.." You trail off for a second, then take a deep breath deciding to just rip off the band-aid and just ask. "Do you have feelings for gray" You quickly say without looking at him.

At first he gets angry at the fact that you think he would like somebody else, then he realizes that your worrying about this a lot. He lets out a breath to calm down so he doesn't say anything mean and make this worse.

He puts a hand on your cheek to make you look up at him. "Gray is just a colleague and that is all she will ever be. Next to my darliing angel Marie you're the most important person in my life" He pauses and looks at you for a second.

"Actually, Your just as important as Marie is too me"

You look at him with pure shock as you eyes start to water. "You really mean that?"

"I do, I love you y/n" He say with a smile on his face.

Tears start streaming down your face as you hear the words you never though he'd say to you. "I love you too" You happily say smiling back at him.

He uses his thumbs to wipe the tears away as he leans down to leave a gentle kiss on your lips.

After he pulls away you looks at you with a slight nose bleed. "now lets go to that new shop so i can spend all my money on my sweet angel"

"Sounds good" You say as you grab his hand and lead his down the street to the shop.

[cer-rata]

A (long) review of the first 5 issues of Wonder Woman (2023) *Full Spoilers*

So I'm a bit of a lapsed comic fan. I grew up on my dad's collection of 90's comics and kept up on and off until the new 52 which did a lot that really put me off. And frankly Marvel wasn't doing much better so I kind of moved onto different fandoms and some smaller runs. Recently however I've decided to try to get back into the hobby more seriously, and while there have been some books that I've really enjoyed, there's been a lot of meh plots and inconsistent characterization pretty much everywhere across the major publishers.

But I was nonetheless excited to see a new Wonder Woman ongoing. Out of the trinity, Diana was always my favorite (a fact that I, as a little closeted boy, kept secret for years. More on that later) and I was aware of some of Tom King's works and was pretty impressed with his "Vision" run, so I was cautiously optimistic about the prospect of a popular modern writer giving Diana some love, and was hoping for a story with some modern nuance and uplifting fun.

The bag has been...mixed at best.

So I'm going to try to be fair about this, because writing genuinely good and transformative comics isn't easy, especially when your editorial is completely unhinged. That being said I do have some serious concerns that I think are really important to talk about.

I'm also lapsed so I haven't read everything religiously the past couple years, so if I get something about canon wrong please correct me in the notes.

I'm going to break this down into a couple of sections to help organize my thoughts. The art is gorgeous generally so I'm not going to spend too much time on that. Let's start with:

Plot

The name of this arc is Wonder Woman: Outlaw, and the first issue is devoted to setting up that premise. The action kicks off when an amazon gets into a bar fight with a group of sexist men, and ends up slaughtering every man in the establishment. The government reacts to this development poorly and ends up ordering the forced deportation of the Amazons that had settled in the states. We're given narration by a mysterious figure, detailing how Diana and her friends lobbied and fought against this obvious injustice but failed, laid over images of an Amazon resisting her deportation with violence, and being gunned down in front of her wife and daughter.

But how, you ask, was the government able to rush through this bizarre reactionary stunt?

Well you see, this is all a part of a scheme by the Sovereign, the CEO of sexism and an American "king" whose family has used the "Lasso of Lies" to control the country for it's entire existence. He showed up in WW #800 with Trinity seeking him out for information, which explains why he's narrating this story. A Wonder Woman book where she isn't the POV character? I'll get more into that later.

Anyway the Sovereign wants to run all of the amazons out of the country or kill them, whatever works, as he believes they're a threat to his rule and masculinity as a whole.

So he's in the background. The foreground antagonist is Sargent Steel, who's been tasked with leading the Amazon deportation and is actively hunting Diana, who he eventually corners as she's paying her respects to the men that the rogue amazon killed. He tries to assassinate her, obviously fails, and Diana extracts some information from him and begins her investigation. See it turns out that after running out of other options, she's trying to hunt down the rogue amazon and figure out what's going on in the hopes that she solve the tensions.

So that's the basic premise of the arc, Diana is trying to solve a murder mystery while being actively hunted by the government. It's not a bad premise on its own honestly, so I was intrigued. The first issue is pretty, well laid out and interesting. The problem is that the following issues don't really deliver on that premise.

Instead of detective!Diana, we spent issue #2 on a (gorgeous) fight with the actual US army, intercut with a flashback of Diana's trial by combat in order to leave Themyscira in the first place. It really is a beautiful issue that really drives home how much of a badass she is, especially since she ends up not killing anyone in the process. Somehow. She did throw tanks at people so...I'm not sure how she...anyway.

Issue #3 is Diana walking into Steel's base, bulldozing through all the security and then bullying him to get some more information about the case, where she finds out that the Amazon is pregnant. Intriguing right? Meanwhile we see the Sovereign showing a young soldier around his house, which is filled with old American historical artifacts. See he wants this kid to push the narrative that Wonder Woman emasculated him and took away his pride, but the soldier doesn't really care? He's actually excited to have fought a superhero and live, and he thinks she's cool. So that won't do, and we're shown the capabilities of the Lasso of Lies, as the Sovereign uses it to implant feelings of discontent and depression into the young soldier, while also ordering him to write a manifesto about Wonder Woman taking his manliness and then to...kill himself. The idea being to create some bad press and push public support away from Diana.

Issue #4 is my favorite in the run so far, devoting most of it's time to watching Diana give a terminally ill kid who idolizes her the best day of his life. I'll get into it when I talk about dialogue later but I think it's the truest depiction of Diana so far, you get to see her kindness, generosity and wisdom. There is a nice moment where she comforts the kid about destiny and soothes his feelings of otherness in the face of the expectation that he should be drawn to a male hero. It's really nice. But also kind of a strange decision in the scope of the plot. As much as I love this moment, I think her taking a day away from her mission of stopping this political disaster and being on the run to just hang out with a kid is...odd from a pacing standpoint. With the lack of effort she's shown so far in dealing with Steel and the machinations of the Sovereign, and the threat to the Amazons happening mostly off screen and with very limited access how Diana's feeling about it all because she's not the narrator, it all wraps up in not feeling very urgent. It's mentioned that she's trying to control her emotions and that makes sense in theory, but with the way she's drawn and written she just seems unbothered.

Meanwhile, Amanda Waller tells Steel that they're just going to throw all of Diana's villains at her and call it a day.

Issue #5 Deals with the Wonder Girls, Cassie, Donna and Yara trying to convince Diana to accept some help. She challenges them to trials where if they can beat her she'll allow them to assist. It's kind of a neat concept, but it highlights a strange piece of this characterization of Wonder Woman: her desire to work alone.

It's...very Batman of her in ways that don't make much sense in the narrative and in the broader scope of her characterization. And it would be more understandable if the conflict was more focused, Diana hunting down Cheetah to try to reform her, a more personal mission. But this literally involves all of her people and could lead to actual war between the states and Themysicra. It seems weirdly shortsighted for her to shun help from adult Women who she's trained and worked with in the past. The rationalization that she doesn't want to endanger them falls completely flat because they're already in danger.

Also what is Yara referring to here? She acts like there's history of them working together and it not working out. Why do they insist on trying to make her a Wonder Girl in the first place?

Anyway they all lose but then ignore the terms of the wager and show up in her apartment in their costumes, not taking no for an answer. And like that they ignored that foolishness, but then I'm bothered that we spent almost an entire issue on this pointless conflict that didn't really teach us anything useful.

But I did say almost, and the rest of the issue is devoted to Steel and the Sovereign convincing some of Diana's greatest foes to join up on a squad to take her down.

Which is...a choice. Don't get me wrong, it's a cool sequence, and It's not an unusual conceit in comics to collect a bunch of villains to take down their nemesis, but as far as I was aware, in this continuity:

Giganta and Silver Swan had buried the hatchet

Circe also helped Diana defeat the upside down man, and seemingly dropped her animosity (and...I...I thought she was trapped in a mirror. How did they get her out?) But regardless, why on earth would Circe agree to work for anyone, especially the US gov?

Grail was never that focused on Diana in the first place, but I could see her wanting to kill her for kicks, but again, why would she agree to work with lesser beings and take orders from mortals?

Angle man is nuts, so, sure

And Dr. Psycho does hate Wonder Woman with a passion so sure.

But this doesn't take into account that if they were to be written correctly, Circe or Grail on their own are justice league threats, and even with the Wonder Girls helping that would be an uphill battle. And then you add all the others, and factor in the dubious choices here in relation to established canon and it leaves me concerned that none of these villains are going to be used properly to their potential, or written in character. The idea that they were convinced to do this in the first place is hand-waved away, likely because there are no real persuasive arguments to get someone like Grail or Circe to job like this.

But enough of that tangent. This upcoming slug fest raises the question: What happened to the investigation into this rogue Amazon? 5 issues in and all we know is her name and that she's pregnant. Diana doesn't even know her name though, because if she did she'd realize that she actually knew the woman. So 5 issues in and the main plot has taken a backseat to watching Wonder Woman be a badass and including a bunch of villains. And don't get me wrong, I love a badass Wonder Woman. I was absolutely thrilled watching her go to work on people. But if you strip away those exciting set pieces and try to follow the plot and themes, there's not much substance there.

And you know, now that we've got an overview of what's happening, let's talk about the greater ideas here.

Themes

So King clearly wants to investigate misogyny in this book, with his villain Johnny Sexism. Uh. I mean, The Sovereign, an old white man who hates women and believes in the divine right of kings and wields the literal Lasso of Lies. And his unwitting sidekick, Military Industrial Complex Man, AKA Sargent Steel.

So it's not inherently bad to personify an social issue. Comics often work in shorthand like that. The issue I have here is that when you have a mastermind character who has manipulated everything behind the scenes, who is ALSO a caricature of a social problem, instead of providing interesting analysis of a systemic problem and its sources and methods, you instead attribute it all to One Evil Man. Which is painfully reductive and misguided. Sexism is complicated, much more complicated that one evil wizard deciding that women are the problem. It's like if you created a vampire slave owner who had been manipulating the country from the shadows and created the system of racism. It's bizarre and not really analysis to suggest that you can just solve social issues by stopping individual bad actors.

The bit with the soldier really crystalized this for me. We are given a kind man who has no misogynistic tendencies, and then the CEO of sexism forcibly implants it into his mind. He's shown personally bullying the president into submission, manipulating Steel, most overt examples of sexism can be tied directly to the Sovereign, which is a bizarre choice that really flattens the narrative weight. Couple that with the fact that the Sovereign is shown to be completely ill-equipped to actually stop Diana. She literally walks through all of his roadblocks, doesn't seem like she's out of control of the situation outside of the opening explanation that she wasn't able to save her sisters. The only real threat so far is the team of villains, and that's framed as Amanda Waller's plan. Why isn't she the villain of this book? And he's the narrator. In a book about sexism, immigration and tribalism, the voice we hear the most is that of the Sovereign. And he doesn't have anything particularity interesting to say. He's not scary, he doesn't seem particularly competent and he provides no interesting analysis so I'm left wondering, why are we centering his perspective over Diana's? In a book lead by a feminist icon, about the evils of sexism, we are completely locked out of her head. She barely gets a chance to speak, and when she does it's clipped and robotic. There's no personality, and certainly no continuity to her popular depictions. I'm all for writers reaching for topics, trying to make social commentary. Some of the best arcs we've ever gotten deal with real issues. But you have to A: Know what you're talking about and B: Actually talk about it. Sexism bad, men bad--it's not enough, it's not analysis, it's not revelatory and by creating such ridiculous caricatures of hyper masculinity, you make it very easy for the average male reader, who I assume you're trying to engage with, to separate themselves from the equation. It's thematic window dressing, and frustrating to see in a Wonder Woman book of all places. I don't think that only woman can write women, that's ridiculous and removes the responsibility to be better from male writers. But, if you're going to talk about social issues that apply to a group you're not a part of, you'd better know what you're talking about. Hell even if you're in that group you still have to know what you're talking about. This is feminism that starts and ends with "Sexism bad" and it's 2024, we have to be smarter about this.

That being said, I think issue #4 has bits of the right idea. Seeing Diana representing something greater than the sexist division that the world perpetuates is great. I felt incredibly seen as a little boy who loved Wonder Woman, and that moment of kindness meant a lot. We're given believable symptoms of sexism, from Jack's dad being uncomfortable with his son idolizing Diana. and Jack having internalized that judgement. It's handled gently and instead of just beating us over the head with obvious allegory, it shows us a taste of what Wonder Woman stands for: a better, more loving world. And it's mostly because it's the most insight that we get from her about how she thinks. The best part of the book about Wonder Woman is, shockingly, the part about Wonder Woman. Why can't we get more of that?

Dialogue

Man it's weird. King is clearly snappy, with a decent sense of humor. There's lots of fun exchanges in this book, particularly the backups, which I'll get to soon. He's pretty good at dialogue, which makes the way he writes Diana so bizarre. Awkward sentence structure, aloof characterization, the grating repeated use of "No thank you" as some sort of catch phrase. What? king has taken the warm beating heart of the trinity and made her distant and robotic. It's kind of impressive. And some of the rationale is that she's in emotional turmoil and trying to maintain appearances. But that's not reflected in the art at all, even when she's alone. We're told that she's conflicted and angry but almost never shown it. She feels like a side character in her own book most of the time. Speaking of side characters:

The Backups

So the running plot here is Damian Wayne and Jon Kent...babysitting? raising? Diana's daughter Lizzie Prince, who is eventually known as the hero Trinity in the future. And it's cute, particularly when they're all younger. King really gets Damian and Jon's characterization and writes some really fun exchanges.

Issue #4 and #5's backups are a little weaker but still really fun.

So my question is...why is the best characterization in this Wonder Woman book the backups starring the Supersons? I love the Supersons! Why are they here? Why would Diana choose them to watch her daughter? Why isn't she on Themyscira or being watched by any of her adult friends, especially those who have actual experience with children? It's fun but feels shoehorned and poorly reasoned. Honestly? I get the feeling that king wants to write this more than he does the main book, and it's mind boggling, because I wouldn't hate him writing supersons, and his version of Jon is the most Jon we've gotten in a while. So why is he writing Wonder Woman?

Conclusion

I think I'll keep reading, mostly to fuel my desire to see what they do with her actual villains, but it's not the smart book I was hoping for. It takes pretty big liberties with characterization and recent canon and there's not much actual commentary to find here. The art and the action are incredible, but the story that should be supporting it is pretty anemic and frustrating, with moments of genuine quality that makes the rest of the book even more disappointing.

Honestly? Just read Amazons Attack instead. Better dialogue, better pacing, better characterization, just more fun.

[thegoddamnwordsmith]

TMayNT SUPERPOST!

Hey all! I haven't really had a chance to post for TMayNT, which is a bummer, because TMNT is my comfort food.

I know a lot of people who follow me on here may be more familiar with me as a Transformers fan, but I was born in 1983. TMNT has been the constant fictional presence in my life since I was old enough to remember. Moreover, it was the major fiction that I followed through the formative years of my childhood, and while I haven't always been active in fandom spaces or interacting with every part of the franchise, I've always kept that flame burning in my heart and my eyes on what was going on with all things Turtle.

So I'm going to be posting the full month's worth of TMayNT in one post (put under a cut, of course, to spare y'all from having a stretched-out timeline). Also, this will give anyone who's interested a better idea of just what slice of the fandom I'm a part of, which I think is kind of fun.

Anyway, let's get on with the show, shall we?

1 - Your favorite Turtle - This kind of depends on your definition, but if we're just pulling from the Brothers, it's easy: Michelangelo.

He's fun and funny, compassionate and caring, arguably has the biggest heart among all his brothers. Often irreverent and irresponsible, but always dependable. His lack of discipline usually ends up balanced out by his incredible natural ability, and what he lacks in forethought he makes up for in thinking on the fly. I love all the Brothers, but I'll always gravitate towards Mikey first.

If we go outside the green teens, however...

I. Love. Slash. The original action figure was one of the coolest I owned in a toyline made of cool, but it wasn't until the Archie comics that I fell hard for the guy. And while he showed up in other fiction before and after that, when IDW utilized him, he was just an incredible character. Sure, he seems like a violent brute on the outside, but even as far back as the 1987 cartoon version had deeper desires, sentimental longings that were almost at the core of his rage. He's a character that's both straightforward and incredibly layered.

2 - Favorite April

Another easy one, the Archie Comics version.

First, I'm personally a fan of April being an investigative reporter, since it gives her a perfect reason to get into messes that would be on the Turtles' radar. But moreover, where '87 leaned more into April fitting 'damsel in distress' tropes, her evolution in the Adventures comics would set the pattern for future versions of the character. She started learning how to hold her own in a fight, to the point where she was on equal footing with the rest of the crew. She was able to have adventures and plots independent of, or only peripherally involving, the Turtles themselves. She had her own supporting cast and enemies, and even got to have a stable romantic relationship (and not with usual pair-partner Casey Jones)! I feel like any version of April that gets the chance to stand on her own in subsequent TMNT iterations owes at least a little to this Splinter-trained independent reporter.

3 - Favorite henchman

This one is a bit tougher than the last two, only because there's so many to choose from! But I think that Tiger Claw rises above all the others.

He is dangerous. He is ruthless. He is loyal. And worst of all, he is competent. You have a lot of villainous characters that can use at least one of those words to describe them. But Tiger Claw uses them all. Armed to the teeth, well-trained, and able to take even major injuries in stride, Tiger Claw is one of the most terrifying soldiers to work under The Shredder in any continuity.

4 - Baby Turtles!

Look at these little guys and tell me that they aren't the cutest Baby Turtles we've ever gotten.

5 - Best Leo (all incarnations)

A bit of an odd pull, but I feel like 2007 Leonardo was a great examination of the character, specifically how much his sense of responsibility and his perfectionism both drive him, and get in his own way.

Also the absolute delight he has in the final fight when he gets thrown into a room full of swords.

6 - Favorite mutant ally

My immediate go-to is to say "The Mighty Mutanimals" as a whole, specifically the original Archie iteration of the team. However, if we want to narrow it down to a singular character among them, it would likely be Jack Finney, AKA Man Ray/Ray Fillet.

A former marine biologist and ecological activist, Man Ray was not someone you wanted to make an enemy of. Honestly, the only reason he didn't have a body count was because of the people he hung out with. Man Ray felt that the ends often justified the means, if the ends were protecting the lives and environments of sea-dwelling creatures, and was not above using theft and violence to reach those goals. But even with all that, he was shown to be incredibly loyal, and even forgiving of those who genuinely wanted to make up for their mistakes.

7 - Best Turtle gadget

Does 2012 Metalhead count? Because if so, 2012 Metalhead.

8 - Favorite Turtle + ally dynamic

Raphael and Ninjara, again from the Archie comics. Aside from how much I was a fan of their romance, their relationship was one of mutual respect and appreciation for their strengths, but also being willing to call each other out when the need arose. The two genuinely made a great team whenever they went into action together.

9 - Best Raph (all incarnations)

This one is a tie, because the 2012 version of Raph is my favorite of all the major incarnations of the character.

Unlike many other versions before him, 2012 Raph was much more nuanced. He was angry, sure, as the character often is, but he also really loved his family. He's got a warm heart that he does share, just with a select few. He goes on multiple journeys of growth and change, and they stick as the series progresses. Also, he loves animals so much.

But of all the versions of Raph, my hands-down favorite is Future Raph, from the Archie comics. Older, wiser, having mellowed with age but still having that fire inside. He settled down into a somewhat calm life, got married, ran a restaurant, and still helped his brothers take care of the bad stuff going on in the city. He also lost an eye to Armaggon, learned to handle Leo's swords as a hobby, straight-up shot someone who threatened his family, and decked Hitler while time-traveling with his brothers.

How can you not love him?

10 - Favorite Turtle curseword

"Shell," for its sheer versatility.

11 - Favorite Splinter

2012 Splinter hits the perfect balance of wise master, trained ninja warrior, and caring father for me. Not only is he willing to take on any threat to his family, but he can fight on surprisingly equal footing with many of their foes, even the Shredder depending on the situation. He has the patience and wisdom to train April, put up with Casey, and even calm down characters like Leatherhead and Slash, who could easily (and even accidentally) cause him major harm. And yet, this is a father who has a cheese-themed phone for the boys to call him on "for emergencies."

12 - Best Turtle vehicle

The Turtle Van. The original and still the best.

13 - Best Don (all incarnations)

Something that always fascinates me with Donatello is how often he gets put into "crisis of faith" stories of a sort, usually putting his scientific mind at odds with magical or supernatural forces beyond his understanding. Nowhere is this more pronounced than with the Archie version.

Over the course of the series, Donnie ended up seeing Izanagi and Izanami intervene in mortal affairs, speak to the manifestations of yin and yang, encounter an entire world that existed out-of-time in the center of the Earth, speak with an elemental spirit of the Earth while being present for the events of Columbus' landing in 1492, and had his mind opened to the infinity of the cosmos when he held the Turnstone. All of this made him a much more subdued and grounded version of himself than many other iterations, without a doubt.

14 - Favorite Turtle movie

I love when the Brothers are written the most like teenagers, and nowhere did that hit the best than in Mutant Mayhem.

Not only that, this one had the unenviable job of having to manage a large cast without the story feeling bloated... and it succeeded. As a lifelong fan, this movie hit all of my notes and then some. I can't wait to see where things go from this one.

15 - Best Karai

Once again we go to 2012, as this version of Karai had some incredible complexities to her, both in her character and in her origins. The connections between her, Shredder, Splinter, and the Turtles made her entire character arc incredible.

16 - Favorite episode/issue

The Future Shark Trilogy (TMNT Adventures, Issues #42-#44). Featuring one of the most dangerous threats in the franchise, a time-travel tale that's both fun and has high stakes, and of course, Future Raphael. Runner-up would be "United We Stand, Divided We Fall," from TMNTA #38-#39 and Mighty Mutanimals #6, because it's hard to get over a story where the TMNT, the Mighty Mutanimals, and a handful of their friends and allies face off against Mr. Null and the Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse.

17. Best Mikey (all incarnations)

Above all the various versions of Mikey, the IDW comics have given possibly the most emotionally open and heartfelt version of the character. Mikey befriends humans and mutants alike, and really would rather not have anyone be fighting anyone. He has such a strong moral core that, despite how much he loves his family, he left when he didn't agree with Splinter's more flexible stance on morality when running the Foot Clan. If any one Turtle could bring you to tears with how much of a good person he is, it's this version of Mikey.

18 - Human version of the Turtles

Not something I've dwelled on much! That said, my favorite version(s) have been done by @thisistab so there's that.

19 - Best Casey Jones

A rare 2003 pull! This is the perfect example of Casey being this lovable guy who's also genuinely unhinged. Too many other versions lean into him being a grim vigilante (or a parody thereof), but 2003 showed him at his best - a guy who knows how to weaponize the fact that he's not quite right in the head.

That said, shout out to Rise's Cassandra Jones, for being a very different take on the character, and a refreshing one at that.

20 - Favorite Turtle merch/toy that you own

My copy of the Official Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Treasury, which has a very cool collection of photos of early TMNT merch, including the tabletop miniatures, an assortment of wild tie-in items, and even prototypes of some of the first Playmates figures. This thing is well-worn and will leave my possession when I die.

21 - Favorite Shredder

The 2012 version has been both the most human, and the most monstrous, version of the character to date. He walks a very thin line of invoking feelings of hatred, pity, fear, and sympathy. He is an aging man, trained in the ways of warfare and assassination, who refuses to let go of his grudges to the point of deluding himself of the truths behind them. And even the people and things that he cares for are still tools to him - no matter what he feels towards them, they can always be discarded once they no longer fit his goals. He is no less dangerous as an ally than he is as an enemy.

22 - Favorite Turtle duo

Regardless of the version, it's gotta be Donnie and Mikey.

Whether it be bonding over the same kind of nerdy wavelengths, Donnie being frustrated over Mikey's inattentiveness or negligent curiosity, or the two of them offering color commentary whenever Raphael and Leonardo have a blow-out, these two are easily my favorite to see interacting, especially during downtime.

23 - Favorite human ally

Oyuki Mashimi from the Archie comics. While she ends up more of an April supporting character, she nonetheless a bit of a unique type, being a Japanese street urchin that came this close to being a human sacrifice, only to get saved by the actions of the TMNT. She went on to follow them back to America and provide a no-nonsense, sometimes rough point of view when it came to their adventures. She also became April's trusted friend, roommate, and coworker, and even got to see some infiltration action to help the Turtles on a few occasions.

24 - Favorite Turtle + villain dynamic

Raphael and Xever/Fishface from 2012. It was a take on the "we're not so different" kind of relationship, but in a way where neither party was left feeling more lenient towards the other, and instead they seemed to have a mutual, if begrudging, respect for one another that would've been fun to see explored more, but was a pretty good relationship as it was.

25 - Your turtlesona

I do not have one, sorry!

26 - Favorite series

The Archie comics are my nostalgia. The 2012 cartoon revitalized my love for the TMNT. But overall, nothing even comes close to the IDW comics. The series has run the gamut of everything that's been a part of TMNT since their inception, from humor and wild adventure to raw emotions and dark twists and turns. This series, this universe, is hand-crafted by creators who know the Turtles, and moreover, love them. They have cherry-picked the best things from the past to bring back, and given them a rework to be even more beloved than they ever could be before. The stories, the characters, even the concepts have depth and growth that one might never have assumed possible for this 1980s-spawned property, and the fact that the IDW continuity lasted as long as it has (and isn't even over, just getting a 'soft' reboot/jumping-on point) is a testament to how well this all came together.

27 - Favorite mutant/alien villain

Armaggon, hands down.

A ruthless criminal with his sights set on mastering time itself, the cybernetic mutant shark Armaggon presents a threat to the Turtles and their allies in two different time periods. He's personally responsible for the loss of Raphael's eye, and if given half the chance would end the threat of the Turtles permanently by way of just straight-up eating them. He'll gladly work alongside other villains, but he's only out for himself.

28 - Favorite Turtle intro/song

Favorite intro would probably be the 2012 version of the theme (the standard version through most of the series), but my favorite Turtles song all together would be Mutants on Broadway, from the Shredder's Revenge game. As the kids say, it slaps.

29 - Favorite alternative outfit or design

Even tie between the Stump Intergalactic Wrestling outfits, and the Future Ninja Turtles outfits (both from, surprise surprise, the Archie comic)

30 - Favorite human villain

IDW's take on Baxter Stockman bumps him into the upper echelon of fictional schemers along the lines of Lex Luthor and David Xanatos, what can I say? Plus, he's still a bit of a mad scientist.

31 - The Turtles in your favorite style

Just go look up any of Chris Allan's work from the Archie comics, or pretty much any TMNT art that Sophie Campbell (@mooncalfe-art) has done.

OKAY! Did it! Whew! That took a minute. I hope you all enjoyed getting a chance to see my taste in Turtles. This was fun, if a bit taxing to do all at once.

[reginamangala]

Chapter 50 Release!

Chapter 50 of Sanguimancy is out now:

Your support, shares, comments, etc. are as always appreciated.

It took me a lot longer to write than I thought. To make a long story short though, last year I almost died. And I'm terrified to talk about it.

Back in 2023, I tried to make more friends, especially in the writing and fandom space. Most of those efforts went really well, and I still cherish those friends to this day. Some, however, went disastrously.

I ended up having some disagreements with certain people. I don't claim to be perfect when it comes to this, of course, but I did the best I could with the feelings and information I had at that time, given how I was treated and what I knew.

We’re adults, so I wanted to keep the disagreements private. Sadly, that option was taken away from me. Another blow came soon after: someone I considered a good friend betrayed my trust, completely blindsiding me.

As some of you know I have a lot of health issues, both genetic and mental. The stress from all this exacerbated those conditions to the point where my life was actually in jeopardy, and I had to work really, really hard to get back to being semi-stable again.

The only reason I bring this up now is because despite my continued silence, certain people are still out there badmouthing me to people I've never met. Half of the people doing this I've never even spoken to, not once.

It's been seriously hindering my health and productivity, and all I want is for this group to leave me alone so I can heal, and write, and try to be happy in this space again. But they haven't, and I don't know if they ever will.

So if any of them read this, I'm asking you, please, just leave me alone. Leave my friends alone. Keep my name out of your mouth. I’m sure you think what you’re doing is justified, but at this point it’s starting to look like bullying, even if that's not the intention.

To all my readers, thank you for supporting me. An extra big thank you to all my commenters, fan artists, podfic creators, Discord community members, spinoff writers, cosplayers, and fan merch makers as well. Your love and support has kept me alive, and I love you all.

At the end of the day, I just want to be okay. I don't want to be afraid to make new friends anymore. I don't want to have to deal with this pain anymore.

Please remember that I'm just a person. I'm a human. And I deserve kindness, too.

Thank you for your time ❤️

[siphersaysstuff]

New for G2!

Know what I haven't done in a hot minute? A Patreon-backed @tfwiki pic thread about toys from before the turn of the century! Ha haa god I'm old.

Anyway, let's look at some of the new toys made for GENERATION 2, easily one of my all-time favorite eras of TF. I was the exact target demographic for the original TF line, but it was just one of many toylines I liked. I never had a lot. But G2 came when I started having disposable income, and at the dawning of internet fandom, and the innovations it made turned me into a TF FAN and long-time collector.

And before we start, everyone give thanks to Takara designer Takio Ejima (江島 多規男). He designed SO MANY TFs from this era to today, and is responsible for creating the light-piping and balljoint articulation that first appeared in these years.

The "Autobot Cars" became instant favorites (especially Rapido). The European releases were called AXELERATORS (a far cooler name) and had gorgeous hot-pink translucent parts instead of the US versions' smoky black. (Skram, Windbreaker, Rapido (old pic), Turbofire (old pic))

Of course, the "Decepticon Jet" counterparts, aka SKYSCORCHERS, were also adored. Weapons stored in vehicle mode were still rare, and thankfully the US versions kept that lovely bright-green translucent plastic. (Windrazor, Terradive, Afterburner (old pic), Eagle Eye (old pic))

The LASER RODS didn't just have light-up parts, they were the first super-articulated TFs! They used the G.I.Joe O-ring and steel hips construction, which was very awkward and made standing them tricky. (Electro, Volt, Sizzle, Jolt)

Following up are the LASER CYCLES, which use the Cyberjet ball-joint tech for much more stable advanced articulation. Road Pig and Road Rocket (old pic) also keep their lights permanently plugged into their weapons, where the Rods had you move the light from engine to hand.

On the other end of the articulation are the GO-BOTS, small and simple toys designed to work with Matchbox/Hot Wheels-scale playsets. Gearhead here was first released with clear parts, then again in the second wave with opaques… the first of many, MANY redecoes for this lot.

(No really, the six Go-Bots were released in like TEN different decos each all told over the course of eight years. It's amazing the steel molds weren't cheese by the end of it.)

The last toys released in G2 (in the US at least), the AUTO-ROLLERS (Dirtbag & Roadblock) are absolute units. Their back/lower halves have involved gearing that, when you flip a switch, makes them auto-transform to robot when rolled forward, or to vehicle when rolled back.

There's loads more delightful toys in this line, but I've already done pics of most of them, like the water-shooters (sadly my US versions are pretty rough), Rotor Force, Heroes, and the Australia/New Zealand exclusive Power Masters. Try 'em, you'll like 'em.

And if you enjoy these looks back on TF toy history and want to see even more pics per month, please consider joining my Patreon. Every little bit helps out. You can find it at

www dot patreon dot com slash gregstfwikipics

[patiann345]

Ok but... why are they so uggglyyyy????

Just gonna dump some of my ROTB thoughts here before the movie releases. Long post, very ramble-y,, >3<

I haven't kept up with all the news about it I'm sure, but I have been looking out for the designs and. Oh my...

Look, I have no doubt ROTB will be a good movie. A great one? I'll have to see, but I don't think it can ever get as bad as Bayverse. I've heard (word-of-mouth, no source sorry) that Cullen is really happy working on it, and that he thinks it's gonna be the best of the movies so far, which like,, it's Peter Cullen, man's been here since G1 I trust his judgment slkhasdkg

And real quick, before I get into the meat of what I wanna talk about, I do wanna make something clear; I fucking love Beast Wars. I binged it when I was first getting into Transformers, and yeah there's a reason it's in such high regard.

And I'm more than aware the animation is dated. And I'm more than aware there are a lot of people who would never think to watch BW or any show like it cause "Ew it's so old, it looks grosssss"

That's always been a really stupid argument to me. If you can rewatch Toy Story for the 5th time at your family reunion, you can watch some slightly dated-looking cartoons. I firmly believe that the WRITING and STORY ultimately makes a show. It can look pretty "yuck" or weird, but if it's well-written and engaging, I think it's worth more than it's visuals y'know? A movie or show can look beautiful and stunning, but that won't change it having bad writing and plot.

Anyways it's 2023 and uh, yeah why do Optimus and Megatron look like thatttttt???????? Girl there is no excuse

Megatron particularly like, that face could work on another bot but... Not MEGATRON, not when his Bumblebee concept stuff looked like THIS:

LOOK AT THIS MAN. WROW. Could use some color, the body's a little cluttered, but his face looks good! Great even! He fits the style that Bumblebee (2018) had set up and built. ROTB though? Christ-

That's not even getting into Optimus who's got that Bayverse crap going on with his face, which is,, so disappointing. He looks just fine with the mask on, but it comes off and it looks bleh. There's no reason for them to look like this! Seriously, cause everyone else (at least the autobots, haven't seen the maximals) look great!!

I particularly love Arcee's design, think she looks great, and I actually kind of prefer her design here over her Bumblebee (2018) look

Oh and hey speaking of that, Wheeljack what the fuuuuucckkk????

Sorry I've only got the toy image on hand but... That's not Wheeljack, I dunno who that is, but it ain't Wheeljack. Let it be known I'm not seething with rage like other people may be over this design, I don't mind deviation from the norm, just look at Armada or TFA. You can deviate from a character's usual look or schtick and make it work!

But when you look at his Bumblebee (2018) design,,,, We were robbed. We were robbed blindddd

I bring up all these examples because the designs are so. Hit or miss. And I don't understand why or how they ended up this way. Bumblebee (2018) had amazing character designs, that's evident enough by Bee's design in ROTB, he's still using that same helm and face and his body is still very much inspired by his look in the last film.

I brought up the dated animation in shows and films earlier because I don't want anyone to think I'm going to think less of this movie for its designs. If the writing and story and characters are good, then that's a good movie in my book. BUT there is,, no reason for half the characters to look like THAT, not when the other half look so GOOD. It is not 1996, it's 2023. Which like, Beast Wars had problems with age in its animation and rendering, NOT in character design. The CGI in ROTB looks amazing from what we've seen in trailers! But,,, the desssiiiggnnnnssssssssss. Optimus' Mouttthhhhh.

I'm gonna see this movie, that's a promise. When it hits theaters? Maybe, I'll have to see, y'never know what'll happen. But at SOME POINT, I'mma see this movie. And I really really hope it's good, I hope it's great! Hell, I hope it'll be the best movie in the catalog! But... I also hope it doesn't set a standard in terms of design.

Well. No, let me put it this way; I hope it doesn't set a standard for how certain characters will look in future installments. I love Arcee's look, I love Bee's, I hope they continue with that! cause. But man, Megatron is so ugglyyy, Optimus' mouth is gross, and Wheeljack just isn't Wheeljack. I'd hate to see them devolve into more Bayverse mess again, please Hasbro-

Lemme end this before I start repeating myself

[popculturebuffet]

So looking at how much Hasbro has been trying to revitalize animated reboots since 2010, thoughts on modern Hasbro 2010s reboots MLP Friendship is Magic, Pound Puppies 2010, Transformers Prime, Littlest Pet Shop 2012, Equestria Girls, GI Joe Renegades, Transformers Rescue Bots, Transformers Robots in Disguise, Littlest Pet Shop A World of Our Own, Transformers Cyberverse, Transformers: Rescue Bots Academy, Pony Life, Transformers EarthSpark, MLP Tell Your Tale, and MLP Make Your Mark?

Who boy.. settle in folks this is going to be a while. Friendship is Magic: A show I honestly want to go back and finish once the streaming weirdness is cleared up. (It's currently weirdly bisected with the middle missing), as my discomfort with the more extreme side of the fandom (and a manipulative asshole getting into my head, very long story), I dropped it around late season 2. Granted how they intially brought discord back didn't really sell me on returning but I still at least kept tabs on everyone and honestly.. wanted to return at some point I just never did. I watched most of the discord episodes because he's my boy, but that's about it. Still a good show.

Dan Vs: Technically dosen't count.. but i'm throwing it in as the only other show on the hub and because I loved it and need to rewatch it. Dan VS is an awesome little adult sitcom that was weirdly on this hasbro based family network. It was one of the best shows of it's time and had a simple but hilarious premise of a very angry man trying to get revenge on some inconveince he's faced, sometimes justifably sometimes because he's a sad strange little man. With the dream trinity of curtis armstrong (who really shoudl do more va work besides this and american dad) dave foely and paget brester, it really worked and while i'm sad it only got three seasons the fact it did and you can still watch it today (it's on youtube, tubi and the roku channel for free baby!) I highly recommend it.

Pound Puppies: Since I had the hub around the time all this happened, I did see most of these early reboots. Pound Puppies.. is adorable. Not entirely my speed, but still a lot of fun... and not suprising given it was developed by the guys who created recess. Transformers Prime: Another show I need to watch more of. At the time I thought it was okay, but just didn't get into it, but I hear it only got better and better with age. I also think the animation wasn't for me and I still think it's not entirely, but it's not bad by any stretch. LIttlest Pet Shop: I really loved this one at the time and even now a bunch of animals at an animal daycare getting into slice of life shenanigans just hits the spot. I also had ships because of course I did, i ncluding sunil and that one cat. But it was a lot of fun. Russel was my easy faviorite. And even if I didn't really care for blythe as a charcter I respect that they had her wear a new outfit each episode and put care into the deisgns given she IS a designer. Solid show.

Equestria Girls, Rescue Bots, Rescue Bots Academy, Pony Life: Haven't seen any of it

GI Joe Renegades: ANOTHER ONE I regret not watching more of but in this case I was interested I just could never catch it and never thought to you know, dvr it, even more now i've read the truly awesome larry hama comics. Still really good.

Robots In DIsguise: I only saw an episode of this but I liked the premise, It was just clear if you hadn't seen prime, even as a soft reboot this was going to be hard to follow. Which is a shame as it had he, grimlock as a main character. Granted I didn't REALLY like painting him green but still dinosaur man!

A World of Our Own: Say it with me now "I wish i'd seen more of it", though in this case by this point I didn't have satalite tv anymore, so I watched it while babysitting a few times. It was neat though and I wa sintrested.

Cyberverse; About the same with me also forgetting it was on netflix. New Gen MLP: I've seen the movie, which was decent, and me and a friend PLANNED to watch the series, we just haven't yet. It looks good though.

EarthSpark: I REALLY fucking want to watch this one. It has a stacked voice cast a brilliant premise that FINALLY breaks away from autobot decepticon war for the first time since armada (Though Animated at least had a fresh take on it), by showing what comes after, I haven't seen it but I really want to I just keep forgetting.

(Phew) Okay next time maybe don't pack so many shows into one of these.

[davidmariottecomics]

The New Year (2023)!

Hi there and happy new year! 

I'm back after a short break for the holidays! As of writing, I've been maintaining my blog on my own website for over a year. I've grown that blog by extending it out to a newsletter and a Tumblr. Happy anniversary to the blog and let's get to it! This one's going to be pretty personal and then next week I'll get back to talking about comics, storytelling, the not-so-secret life of an editor, and pressing issues of social and societal import! 

Being self-reflective, the transition from one year to another is a complicated time. It is the period when what has been and what could be really collide and force one to define what is. 

I tried to get out of a little bit of that by posting a whole week into the year, but honestly, that feeling's still coming for me. Professionally and creatively, that transition feels like a bit of a metamorphosis as I transition from what I've been doing to what I hope to do. While there are plenty of constants being maintained, things like Sonic which I've now been working on for 5 years (and which will soon have been releasing for 5 years), I've also recently said goodbye to Transformers and hello to Godzilla as an editor. This time last year, the last issue of TF Wreckers was about to be released and I knew I had at least a little bit of other writing work in the hopper. This time this year, I don't have any releases currently scheduled, and yet, I'm hoping/already in some ways planning for this year to have my highest writing output yet. I am a writer and an editor and I want both sides to feel equally nurtured. 

For a long time, I haven't really made resolutions with the new year. Not because I feel the distinction of years is arbitrary or I don't believe I'll stick to them or anything.More, the goals I was already setting for myself existed outside the scope of the year change and so it wouldn't feel genuine to call them resolutions when they were pre-existing. And this year, for the first time, I have some. I'm not going to share them in full--a few people close to me know, but they're personal and outside the scope of the transparency I usually try to provide. But it's an interesting feeling having some "resolutions" and, like so many people, at least right now, they're energizing me even when other things aren't. 

The other part of the new year, of course, is reflecting on the previous year. What you did, what you enjoyed, the moments big and small and that seemed so important, but were quickly forgotten. Fortunately, through the blessing of a blog, here's some of the stuff that I was reminded I did proudly in 2022.

I got engaged to Rebecca Ann. They're my best friend and favorite person and I love them. 

I launched a website and a blog that posted *nearly* weekly and made a few sales. 

I went to WonderCon, Tucson Comic-Con, San Diego Comic-Con, and a ton of smaller events around CA. 

I released multiple Transformers comics that I wrote, including finally getting to contribute to Beast Wars, a lifelong dream. 

I saw my sister graduate high school. 

I made some weird little drawings and comics for myself, many of them posted here. 

I wrote more than I probably ever have, though there's plenty of it that'll likely never see the light of day. 

I ended up in the top 0.1% of Lizzo listeners on Spotify for the second year in a row. I don't know that this is actually as momentous an accomplishment as some of these other things, but it is funny. 

I somehow managed to do a little bit of traveling, spent a lot of time with family, and had some very rough moments in crowded places without getting sick. 

I saw Transformers to it's end with some of the best TF books of all time. 

I hit a milestone issue, #50, with Sonic and then kept going and have a lot more to come. 

I made progress on various other deals and titles that you'll be finding out more about from IDW in the weeks and months to come. 

I met various other professional goals in creating comics I'm proud of and working with some of the greatest creators ever to practice the craft. 

I was a good cat dad. 

I made new friends. 

I tried really, really hard to find a balance that works for me between work and life and the ways that so many of my interests and hobbies overlap with my job. I'm not sure I've quite got it down just yet, but I'm getting there. 

I also, liked a ton of stuff! So, if you're maybe new here for one reason or another, here's your chance to get an idea of what sort of stuff I like and if you like it too, maybe we can talk. 

What I enjoyed last year (not a comprehensive list, but a lot of it):  Blank Check (Podcast), Smallville (TV show), Special by Lizzo (Album), Bar Rescue (TV show), Chainsaw Man (Manga & Anime), Honkai Impact (Video game), She-Hulk: Attorney at Law (TV show), Ted Lasso (TV show), Genshin Impact (Video Game), multiple comics unions forming, Pokemon games, Dr. Gameshow (Podcast), Spy x Family (Manga & Anime), Jack Johnson (Musician), The Flophouse Podcast, Willy's Wonderland (Movie), Barbarian (Movie), Dungeons & Daddies (Podcast), Persona 5 Strikers (Video Game), My Best Friend's Exorcism by Grady Hendrix (book), Komi Can't Communicate (Anime), Hello From the Magic Tavern (Podcast), The Afterparty (TV show), X (Movie), Pearl (Movie), Junkwraith by Ellinor Richey (Comic), Aeonian Red by Gigi Dutreix (Webcomic), Solve this Murder (Podcast), Pokemon cards, Medallion Status by John Hodgman (Book),  Beastars (Manga), Mark Darkly's Dark Room #1 (Comic), Escape This Podcast, Nancy (comic strip), Dicktown (TV Show), Garth Marenghi's Dark Place (TV Show, doesn't fully hold up, but still some great bits), My Lovey-Dovey Wife is a Stone Cold Killer (Manga), The Batman (Movie), the Sonic 30th Anniversary symphony, Turning Red (Movie), Inventing Anna (TV Show), Jujutsu Kaisen (Manga), Shrek! by William Steig (Book), Lizzo's Watch Out for the Big Grrrls (TV show), Tomie by Junji Ito (Book), Woke Season 2 (TV show), Young Justice (TV show), Sonic the Hedgehog 2 (Movie), Moon Knight (TV show), Chopping Mall (Movie), Dead Eyes (Podcast), Mr. Mayor (TV show), Kaguya-Sama: Love is War (Manga & Anime), Secret Identity by Alex Segura (Book), Maniac of New York (Comic), Catherine Full Body (Video Game), Hey Riddle Riddle (Podcast), The Rock Cocks (Webcomic for Adults Only), Alfie (Webcomic for Adults Only), Dr. Strange and the Multiverse of Madness (Movie), Squirrel Girl The Unbeatable Radio Show (podcast), Venom (Movie), The Quick and the Dead (Movie), A Simple Plan (Movie), Army of Darkness (Movie), Sweat & Soap (Manga), Obi-Wan Kenobi (TV show), Vixen: NYC (Webcomic), Ms. Marvel (TV show), Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (IDW Comic),Witch Watch (Manga), Persona 5 Royal (Video Game), Wotokoi: Love is Hard for Otaku (Manga), Sonic Origins (Video Game), Only Murders in the Building (TV show), Monthly Girls Nozaki-Kun (Manga), Lore Olympus (Webcomic), Gil Thorp (Comic), Halloween Kills (Movie), Cyberpunk Edgerunners (Anime), My Hero Academia (Anime), Uzaki-Chan Wants to Hang Out (Anime), Yakuza: Like a Dragon (Video Game), Godzilla (1954 movie), Werewolf by Night (Movie), Far Sector (Comic), Abbott Elementary (TV show), The Simpsons (TV show), The Loneliest Time by Carly Rae Jepsen (Album), Prom Queen by Beach Bunny (Album), House of Leaves by Mark Z. Danielewski (Book), Evil Dead Trap (Movie), Sonic Frontiers (Video game), Lego Masters (TV show), The Tick (2016-2019 TV show), the Quintessential Quintuplets movie, my cats! 

New Releases this week (1/4/2022): Sonic the Hedgehog #56 (Editor)

New releases next week (1/11/2022): Godzilla Rivals II: Rodan vs. Ebirah (Editor) Godzilla: Monsters & Protectors - All Hail the King #4 (Editor) 

Announcements: Arizona Comic Book Arts Festival - 2/25! Becca and I will be coming to the AZ Comic Arts Fest! It's a one day comic-focused event in Phoenix, AZ. Tickets are only like $10. And besides us, there's an incredible group of folks going. Mitch Gerads! Steve Rude! John Layman! Henry Barajas! Jay Fotos! Jeff Mariotte! Marcy Rockwell! John Yurcaba! Andrew MacLean! Alexis Zirrit! Meredith McClaren! James Owen! Ryan Cody! And many more! Come and see us! 

Next week: Over the break, I saw some chatter about whether or not some of the larger publishers are due for another reboot/relaunch/continuity reset of some sort and we'll talk about why limited continuity is so appealing for pitches and creators and new readers, but how leaving continuity behind is also a headache and a half for everyone involved! 

Pic of the Week: Becca ended up having one last little event right at the end of the year! They tabled at the New Year's Eve party for fundraising for block reconstruction in our neighborhood! So we spent our NYE doing something we did a lot this year, tabling and selling cool merch. 

[thescrapbookingscientist]

Bimonthly Media Roundup

- Kaiju No 8 (Anime) - Binged this on a whim and honestly it was a lot more wholesome and engaging than I thought it would be? I like that the majority of the characters are adults and act like it, people were pretty reasonable in how they approached issues and the team building aspect was very cute. I like the protags Kaiju form though given the weird body transformations we saw he was capable of I wish he would do something more interesting in fights than just punching really hard. Then again the fights clearly aren't the focus of the series and just serve the purpose of cooperation/character building which I guess is fine. The way the characters quip at eachother was pretty fun, I'd say the whole cast was likable though not super well developed at this point given how many we were given in just the first season. Shinomiya and Hoshina were the standouts given they had interesting designs, personalities, and fighting styles. The pacing was a little quick but it did mean that interesting things were always happening so I can't complain too much, though personally I think it's a missed opportunity that they moved away from the "Kaiju clean up job" as that some pretty interesting worldbuilding, even if they did keep Kafka's experience relevant. Honestly I'd recommend it, this was a good time - Will be watching Season 2 for sure.

- Pluto (Anime) - Pluto was an interesting little mini series about a murder mystery surrounding the deaths of the worlds most advanced AI. It was overall pretty good, it had a really solid middle chunk where tension was kept high, it never underestimated it's audience and trusted them to put pieces together, and characters felt very grounded and human. The ending was a little messy though, as certain plot beats felt pretty out of place for what was otherwise a very tightly written anti-war story. I don't really feel like talking about it beyond that as I don't have any interesting input, sometimes you just watch something and go. Yup that was good, I agree with it's themes. And that's the whole of it. Gesicht was cool, I feel bad for the little baby robot, I have no idea why sensing emotions is considered a robot ability, and the piano saga in episode One was probably my favorite single arc of the show.

- Why Raeliana Ended Up at the Dukes Mansion (Anime) - Didn't really have another entry for this week so I guess I'll mention this anime that my sister and I dropped pretty early on. I like the Villain/Villainess genre as a whole given it frequently uses one of my favorite tropes of "Using knowledge of the future to change the present for the better" as well as the "having to work your way up from the bottom" trope, but I've read enough to be a bit picky about the ones I keep up with and unfortunately Raelina didn't end up grabbing me, at least not in the first 5 episodes. I like the art style and the protagonists design overall as well as the idea of her being the first death to kick off a mystery novel rather than the standard dating sim plotline, but my main issue was just how un-interesting the plot, characters, and interactions have been thus far. The love interest especially seems very 'cookie cutter snarky pretty boy shoujo male' and I can't remember a single notable interaction or anything that stood out as being a memorable visual or interesting lore or anything, it was just kind of boring.

- Jujutsu Kaisen (Anime) - I know I said previously that this show is truly a mixed bag with a lot of glaring flaws, and I stand by that, but I'd be lying if I said that I haven't been obsessed with it for the past month. Yes the worldbuilding and combat system are wack, and the show too frequently takes a tell-don't show approach with relationships and plot beats, but there is some genuinely engaging stuff in here - The entire hidden inventory arc, the sisyphisian cycle of curses constantly reforming as long as human hatred exists, the idea of being a god being a deeply in humanizing experience, the good humored moments of levity when the characters actually get to hang out, it's not nothing. What I'm saying is I could fix it okay? Give Jujutsu Kaisen to me. Also I'm pretty sure I'm experiencing what the kids call gender envy whenever I see Suguru, I adore his design, I need to look like that. Also also, both of Season Two's OPs are straight bangers.

- To Your Eternity (Anime) - I'll talk more about this next time as we've barely scraped the surface, but for now I'll say this is a truly unique and emotional story that unfortunately has the worst auto generated subtitles ever. Like it's so bad it takes you out of the show. The OP gets translated as Pig Blood, Pig Blood, the phrases are usually incorrect, and the names get changed each time to things like Google or Pierre. Please crunchyroll why do you hate us.

- House (TV) - Ah yes my favorite anime, House MD. Decided to watch this in between anime binges, and as expected revisiting it is a mixed bag. The medical mysteries and overall format are still very well done, a lot of the clinic scenes are still pretty funny, the characters all play off eachother well, and in general it stays engaging throughout its run-time which I can't say for a lot of 45 minute TV episodes. That being said House as a character can be....a lot. It's fine to have asshole protagonists and I don't really prescribe to the idea that media has to contain only morally upright material or otherwise punish moral wrongdoing in the narrative, but as a viewer I'm uninterested in media where it feels like the writers are actively disdainful towards (usually liberal) ideas or groups of people and trying to scold them into accepting 'the correct' viewpoint and House as a show can occasionally toe that line. To be fair it's usually not too bad, the show depicts positive wlw relationships pretty early on, characters will rightfully call House out when he's being a dick, Cuddy is a fun character that gets to one up House occasionally, and while the writing can be pretentious it's not usually mean spirited. It's a good enough show in every other respect that I still find myself enjoying it, but I can see how the tired narrative of "obnoxious white guy is a rude jerk that can do whatever he wants without being fired because he's just that much smarter and better than everyone else" is a hard sell to new viewers in 2024.

- The S Classes That I Raised (Webcomic) - Been seeing some discourse around Riette and while I do get it, Must a woman always be "a good person" and "redeemed by the narrative"? Is it not enough to be a butch hottie who is also a Dragon? I support women's wrongs.

- One Piece (Manga) - 27 years of One Piece apparently. Maybe it will end on the 30th anniversary? We shall see.

- Genshin Impact (Video Game) - The origami Event world is cute, I love collecting the figures and the little dragon design. Also excited to get Kirara.

Listening To: Good Luck Babe by Chappell Roan, Two Birds by Regina Spektor, Espresso by Sabrina Carpenter, All In by 6FU, Crazy cover by Walk of the Earth, SPECIALZ by King Gnu, Ao No Sumika by Tatsuya Kitani, Princess of China by Coldplay, Lay All Your Love On Me by ABBA, Boys by Lizzo, Walking in Memphis by Marc Cohn, Jesus He Knows Me cover by Ghost, Tongues and Teeth by The Crane Wives

[sorryicantquitequeeryou]

Dissecting why I abandoned one of my first-ever stories...

This got long, so here's the short of it: It was a story imagined to be funny and sweet, the main character had issues, but I failed to realize that these issues should actually affect the character's mental state and actions. The main character was too uncaring, and honestly didn't even properly address the whole issue past "Wow, this sucks." and I didn't even notice this until today. It wasn't that the character was pushing away their feelings, it's that they had no feelings. How wild.

Here's the long version if you're interested in what the story was about... it's a BL if that matters to you.

In late middle school and early high school, I started writing this hilarious cringy BL story that used and made fun of a bunch of tropes that BL manga consistently uses. I had no idea where I wanted the story to go, but I kept writing it and working on it whenever I had time. It holds a dear place in my heart. I affectionately named the story "BL Star", since it was to poke fun at BL tropes. As I came up with other stories it sort of faded into the background and eventually went untouched for a long time. Coincidentally, or maybe not, I started working on it less after I explored my characters more in-depth. The main character, Junji, whose perspective the whole story was from, was filled with mainly negative or annoying traits, being saved by the far more interesting secondary main character, Kai, who was the love interest. Junji had a mundane life except for the main issue of the story, which was that he got a lot of unwanted attention and would be berated for his queerness by his so-called "fan club". Meanwhile, Kai had a very complex nature to him. He had a complicated home life, felt very strongly about his academic success, and was tired of his best friend being so wishy-washy with his feelings.

Last year, I decided to completely change the story. I wanted to explore the characters in a completely new way, making it more about the story instead of the jokes. This version I'll have to title differently, but it's tentative title is "BL Star: Re-imagined". Instead of being in high school, they're now in college. Kai is now the main character. The two haven't been friends for ages, they've only just met, and by mere chance. Some unexpected changes happened as well, as the words took on a life of their own. Kai's character seemed to transform and almost flip around. Originally, he was studious but gave off a carefree air. He was always smiling or had a kind face on, the type of person who was kind and caring to all but even more so to those close to him. On the inside, he was annoyed, restless, and a bit of a perfectionist. In the new version I had started writing, he was still calm and kind to all, but in a courteous way. Instead of acting to protect the person dearest to him, he now gained a strong sense of duty or maybe misguided justice? Openly studious to a serious degree, tired and un-energetic, and rather easily annoyed. Funnily enough, Junji's character didn't change much. Of course, he still had his problematic fan club, and would often get picked on, bullied, or beat up because of it. The main change was that he wasn't obviously pining after his best friend, oblivious to their mutual feelings. Other things stayed the same as well. Kai is still saving Junji from every bad situation he comes across, and Junji is still clinging to Kai. The dynamic has definitely changed, though. Junji is very curious of Kai, why he keeps getting involved with him, and will probably be the first to develop any type of romantic or physical attraction. Kai is very blunt, having more of a realist outtake on the world, and tries his best to keep Junji at a distance. Before, I had skipped past all of the relationship development by making them friends already, but I think it will be so much more rewarding to approach from this angle.

Last thought here... while writing out all of this I've now realized that Junji has never openly expressed his feelings about all the bothersome attention he receives. I've never once put any of the negative impacts it could have on him into his character. I've completely ignored the entire original premise of the story in favor of the horrible back-and-forth crush between the two best friends. I don't even know how I managed that. Actually, yes I do. Junji is a hopeless guy obsessed with his crush on his friend, unable to look at anything else or even consider all the traumatic things happening around him. Instead, he was escaping to the rose-tinted land of love. And since I never had any proper direction for the story, I only knew what he knew in any given moment.

This has been very helpful, to step back and dissect my own work like this. Especially since this whole story has always confused me on why it wasn't working out. The story that I just last down and wrote, never planning out. Now I understand my main issues with it and can plan out this more serious and less satirical version I've begun. Very cool.

[chuuyrr]

AHHAHA idk if when ka mag oopen ng reqs pero mag ddrop na ako in advance kasi na eexcited na me, imagine scarlet witch! teen fushiguro! reader playing guitar, drums and teen fushiguro practicing in her room while jjk students, sukuna, papa satoru and papa toji caught her playing and singing at the same time tapos yung mga reaction nila like "wow i didn't [name] can sing and play like this" "wow i didn't knoa Kikufuku can sing like this" yun lang tapos na. chu sana mapansin i love ur oneshot series a lot im gonna expose myself i always reread ur shots everyday bcs ang wholesome mwah take care always <33 - nini

jjk characters when scarlet witch! fushiguro! reader has other talents

jujutsu kaisen x reader

masterlist of the series

╰➤ CW(s): possible spoilers for jujutsu kaisen, major themes of fluff, mentions of calloused fingers due to musical instruments

╰➤ PAIRING(s): dad! gojo satoru x teen! reader, dad! fushiguro toji x teen! reader, platonic! sukuna x teen! reader, platonic! jujutsu kaisen x teen! reader

hello nini my beloved! sorry for the long wait :) thank you for requesting and for being patient, enjoy reading ♡

you never told anyone about your other talents, since you've kept it as a secret, and well, that's because you didn't want to tell them yet. more importantly, you wanted to show them yourself, but you still haven't mastered the piece you've been secretly working on.

the easy part was hiding it, because you have chaos magic, which can warp reality and grant you the ability to transmute or morph things at the molecular level into whatever you want. despite how dangerous that sounded, you mostly used your magic in your room. as soon as you walk into the bedroom, you customize it to your liking. the small room with only a bed, desk, wardrobe, and a few shelves is transformed into an incredibly spacious room with your own little studio and musical instruments such as a drum set, guitars, and even a piano.

gojo, toji, sukuna, and even the first- and second-year students, including your older brother, didn't notice it at first, but they gradually realized how distant you became with them. you would excuse yourself whenever you had the opportunity, claiming that you had homework or studying to do, but they soon realized that you continued to use that excuse even during a school break.

at first, they were like, "wow, [name]-chan sure is studious. it's already summer break and she's still studying???" (;° ロ°)

because you live with your adoptive father, gojo, rather than your biological father, toji, he was the first to notice things. gojo and you were eating dinner together as usual when he noticed calluses on your fingers and became concerned.

"kikufuku! your hands! what happened?" gojo immediately dropped his eating utensils to hold your hands after noticing how rough they had become.

you would simply shrug it off with a laugh, saying something like, "oh, this? it's nothing. i've been writing so much for school lately."

gojo was beginning to doubt you at this point. "these calluses on your fingers didn't look like it was from writing though, and it's also school break; why are you studying so much?"

"oh, you know, so i don't forget concepts and stuff, and well, to mentally prepare myself for the next semester... i just like remembering stuff." you were sweating bullets at this point too, but fortunately, gojo bought it, for now.

gojo isn't going to say anything, but he's been watching over you more than usual since then, worried that your chaos magic was wearing down your fingers or something. he doesn't understand why you've been so distant with him and everyone else lately. you were so busy that your poor father began to miss you and became increasingly concerned with each passing day.

eventually, the day had finally come wherein gojo and everyone else had found out exactly what you were up to, and they were stunned. everyone was over at your house because you were supposed to have a little get-together, but you forgot about that because you were busy inside your bedroom.

"hey, where's [name]?" toji quipped, noticing the lack of your presence, having grown used to seeing you around especially when he or other guests like megumi was over.

"don't tell me she's studying again." megumi drew out a long breath of sigh, folding his arms across his chest.

"tch, i say we should see for ourselves what that brat is exactly up to. she stopped visiting me too." sukuna appeared on yuuji's cheekbone as an eye and mouth.

"wow, even sukuna misses [name]-chan." nobara snickered, causing the curse king to scowl at her.

"i do not miss that brat! it's been really peaceful since she stopped bothering me." sukuna retorted defensively.

with curiosity getting the best of them, they agreed to sukuna's suggestion and headed upstairs to your room, and immediately caught wind of a music playing, particularly a rock band of sorts, from your room. as soon as gojo got a hold of your door's knob, he realized how loud the music was because it was vibrating.

without wasting anymore time, he twisted your door open and pushed it open, and found him and everyone else in for a surprise. just as they were expecting you to blast loud music, you were the one playing.

everyone stared at the bedroom in awe. they were used to being small, becoming as big as a music studio. you were standing in front of a microphone, strumming a scarlet electric guitar, simultaneously singing lyrics that they hadn't heard before, but what surprised them even more was how you were astral projecting your soul, who looked like a phantom version of you, into skillfully playing drums to accompany your guitar and singing.

"yami wo haratte, yami wo haratte, yoru no tobari ga oritara aizu da, aitai shite mawaru kanjousen, zaregoto nado wa hakisute ike to, mada tomenaide mada tomenaide, dare yori mo satoku aru machi ni umareshi kono shoutai wo, ima wa tada noroi norowareta boku no mirai wo souzou shite."

as gojo stood there in awe together with toji, megumi, and the rest of his students, he realized where the calluses on your hands had come from and as to why you have been so busy, and he couldn't believe it.

"i didn't know kikufuku can sing like this." the limitless sorcerer blinked profusely behind his blindfold.

"me neither. [name] never told me that she can play the guitar or drums." toji exclaimed.

the way you sang and hit each note and beat so elegantly whilst also adding spice to your playing by having your astral projected phantom skilfully flip the drumsticks in mid-air and promptly catch them before striking and doing a little twirl as you strummed your electric guitar while singing with your eyes closed had their mouths hanging agape. even sukuna, the king of curses, was in awe. everyone felt as if they were watching a famous singer or band live. 

by the time you stopped playing and singing, only then you had realized that gojo, toji, megumi and the jujutsu tech students had been standing in your room the entire time when they rounded you an applause, causing you to stumble backwards and dissipate the soul you had been astral projecting.

"d-dad? everyone?!" you tripped over a wire and fell on your bum, making gojo and toji run to your aid.

"are you okay, angel?" toji chuckled softly, gently grabbing your arm to sit you up together with gojo as the students loomed over in concern.

"what are you guys doing here?" you squeaked, feeling your face burn into a beet red color. "ah! this is bad, you weren't supposed to see everything. i haven't mastered the tabs yet, all of that was just a practice!"

"you were just practicing? you were so cool, [name]-chan!" nobara exclaimed with a wonderstruck gaze.

"so, this is why you've been busy, huh?" megumi shook his head, smiling ever so softly at you.

"how long have you been playing, huh? why didn't you tell us?!" gojo whined, a childish pout crossing his features as he pinched your cheeks.

"sorry for not saying anything! i really am!" you gently swat away gojo's hands from your cheeks, stifling a fit of laughter before sighing. "i wanted to surprise you all. i've been meaning to tell you guys, but i figured it would be better if i showed you."

"so, that's why!" yuuji dropped his clenched fist onto his open palm. "geez, you had us worried you know!"

"that song you were playing earlier, brat. did you compose that?" sukuna spoke up, inquiring.

"yeah, i wrote it." you answered rather meekly, averting your eyes away from everyone as a chuckle erupted from your throat.

"you write songs too?!" the students shouted in disbelief. "that's amazing!"

"it's just one song though! i entitled the song as kaikai kitan. i've been working on another song i named lost in paradise, but i still haven't been able to come up with a good melody for it." you explained, smiling.

you were instantly engulfed into gojo's embrace. gojo practically peppered your face in kisses as he gazed at you, "my talented kikufuku! i'm so so proud of you. even though you were just practicing earlier, you sounded great!"

"keep it up, angel. i'm proud of you too." toji extended a hand out towards you and ruffled your hair affectionately.

ever since then, you openly play songs and pieces around them. you even got them to play with you; gojo and megumi with the piano, yuuji with the electric guitar, nobara and toji with the drums. they wholeheartedly supported this talent of yours and gladly offered constructive criticism whenever you asked for it while you were working on a new song or trying out something new to cover. 

expect them to be your biggest fans as soon as you started playing instruments and singing during school events. everyone's hyping you up so much, and your school would be so confused as to why you have so many visitors outside the school. 

apart from jujutsu-related things, music had become a new thing for you and your family to bond over, and it made your heart incredibly happy.

[quickspinner]

Lukanette vipernette 💓

I'm sure I've shared this one before but I haven't added to it in a really long time. 😆 The basic idea behind this was Lukanette square shenanigans, except Luka knows Marinette is Ladybug so he's basically taking every opportunity to flirt with her and say to her as Viperion all the things he wants to say but can't as Luka. Because he knows that she knows who he really is so he feels safe flirting in both forms. He's having fun playing up the romantic masked hero angle while knowing that she knows it's really him so there can't be any harm done. He only flirts with Marinette, not Ladybug, so--all the romantic spoiling, none of the angst of 'but now I'm in love with two guys' or 'does he really love me or is he into LB' so that when he finally comes clean there's no drama. (Sorry angst lovers. plants my flag atop Fort Fluff)

The battles were getting harder. With Mayura’s help, Hawkmoth was far more dangerous. More than once they had only been saved by the unexpected and unexplainable failure of Mayura’s powers. But they couldn’t count on that; any battle could be the one where Mayura’s powers held strong. More and more often Ladybug and Chat were forced to call on backup. Battles were taking longer, meaning one or more of the team would have to take a break from the battle to recharge before coming back to fight on. 

Viperion pelted across the rooftops, panting, heading for a particular alley that he knew he needed to reach before it was too late. He dropped three stories just in time to grab a familiar pigtailed figure and press her between himself and the wall, shielded by an outcropping in the building next to them. “Shh, don’t make a sound,” he hissed, and the girl practically stopped breathing. “Whatever happens, don’t move. I’ve got you.” Viperion kept watch on the mouth of the alley, counting seconds. He only got to three before the sentimonster came crashing through. Viperion flinched but held strong, knowing the monster would continue its destructive path past them. Everything played out as he knew it would, only this time the sentimonster didn’t see the girl in the alley, shielded as she was between Viperion’s dark suit and the wall. He clenched his teeth as a few chunks of debris hit his armored back, and winced as a piece knocked into his head. None of them reached the figure he sheltered, though, and he breathed a sigh of relief, stepping back as the monster moved on. He stepped back, rubbing his head. “Ow,” he muttered. 

“Are you all right?” 

Viperion gave a rueful smile at the girl he’d just rescued. “I’ll be fine, it was just a small rock. Stings though. What about you, are you okay?” He touched her face, checking her over. Without the protection of her transformation, he’d seen her badly injured by the sentimonster’s rampage. 

“I’m fine, thanks to you,” Marinette said, putting a hand on his arm. “Thank you, Viperion.”

“Hold on to me,” he said, picking her up. She didn’t question him the way a normal civilian would, just put her arms around his neck and locked her legs around his waist. He calculated his path up the building and leapt, keeping one arm around Marinette’s back as she clung to him. He hopped along the roofs with her until he found one that he deemed safe for her to use to transform back, and set her down.

“I’m sorry, I don’t have a lot of time. I have to leave you here,” he said gently. Of course, he knew the second he was out of sight she would transform and swing herself back to the battle, but she didn’t know he knew that. “One of us will come back and get you once the Akuma’s defeated. Please be safe. What’s your name?”

“Uh--M-m-Marinette,” she stammered, and he smiled. He would wonder for weeks what possessed him in that moment, if it was that familiar stammer or something else that made him lean close. 

“You’re the most beautiful woman I’ve ever met,” he breathed. Marinette’s eyes widened and her face flamed red. “I hope we meet again, Marinette.”

Then he turned away and leapt back towards the battle, so she couldn’t see the grin on his face. 

When Ladybug came to retrieve his Miraculous after the end of the battle, she was blushing under her mask. Luka pretended not to notice.

[collegetennisoriginstory]

Howdy :) I struggled a little to write this or not but I figured I'd go for it bc I feel like you deserve to know how much your IF has already helped me.

I've been struggling with severe depression along with recently being diagnosed with autism. and for months haven't felt much of anything. I've been sort of numb to the world around me and my days have been a long lasting fuzzy things. I've found no joy in things I used to and it transformed to me simply giving up trying. I went from anger, to being tired to feeling numb. Pretty much a walking zombie.

Your IF popped up so much in my recommended but I never clicked it because, like I said, I'd given up trying. But a few days ago it kept popping up. It was so persistent that I finally gave in.

Im not good at expressing myself, even less at understanding my own emotions. But I have to thank you. I expected nothing when going into reading (emotions wise, not your story) but I came out of it shaking. I was so overwhelmed with how you captured me. Your writing of the characters, the gentle feeling of companionship and feeling like part of a world i didn't know could exist. The tennis matches had me holding my breath and actually shaking a little. A part of me has awakened, peeking out so abruptly when reading your writing that I had to take a break bc I was so overwhelmed.

Im not delusional, im not saying your story has cured me of my depression and given me purpose. Its given me something I value so much more. Hope. Im not a lost cause yet, there's still a part of me who aches to be okay and im so thankful to you for it.

Im so bad at words, I wanted this to sound better? But I feel like it's too long already even though I still have so much to say but I'll stop here. Im looking forward to basically everything. Thank you again for sharing this immensely beautiful IF with us and I wish you only luck in your life and whatever makes you enjoy life.

hey there :) so, I might have, kinda, uh, well, teared up a little reading this ask.

I am so so happy that this silly little thing I'm writing has given you just a little bit of warmth and comfort, and I'm also so grateful that you've shared this with me. While it's cool writing CT:OS for the sake of it, it's even cooler imagining all the lives and people I get to connect with, through this IF. Like, we're all inhabiting this shared umbrella/world together, and I find that such an incredible privilege.

I know it's hard to express how much something moves us when it's technically just words on a screen, and I'm struggling to do it here, but I just wanted to say that I feel like we're linked through time and space now and I'm rooting for you - whether you like it or not. now that you've sent this ask, I will think about 'that anon who read CT:OS and made me tear up' from time to time, and wonder how you're doing.

In conclusion, I'm sending you a big warm hug (if you're comfortable with it!) (actually, as many big warm hugs as you want), lots of love, and all the hope in the world. By the way, I saw this vincent van gogh quote floating around tumblr the other day, and it made me happy! Here it is for you too. <333

"One morning the wind turns, and there is a thaw. And so I must still have hope.”

[tsuki-sennin]

Maaaaaaaaaaaan, Revice ended yesterday, and so all of a sudden, these Donbura Dorks decide they have to end their show too, huh? And here I thought we had something special :<

-Aww man, don't remind me.

-"Yes, that finale was pretty poggers and based. My compliments to Mr. Kinoshita and the crew. Now... we have no reason to continue with this charade!"

-Hooray, we all get to go home!

-Haruka can't see herself stopping the whole hero thing, huh?

-"Well, as long as there's a single human being left on Earth, I doubt that the desires that corrupt the Hitotsu-ki will ever disappear..."

-"THAT'S SO NOT TRAFFIC SAFE!"

-Donbrothers is over.

-Pick the MVP!

-Man, I'm gonna miss this absolute banger of an OP next week. ...who even are the new Ranger dudes, anyhow? Are they friends with Mr. Geats already? Is Cosmic Fury gonna air alongside Geats?

-Wait, is this a clip show!?

-Aw son of a bitch, Inoue tricked me!

-...did Inoue even write this episode?

-Hang on, lemme check...

-Saburo Yatsude... that's the pseudonym used by Toei itself. I believe they also wrote the scripts for the Den-O crossover specials and Zenkai Red last year.

-Checked and cross referenced some Wikipedia articles (very cursorily mind you). The only show among the Noto's inspirations to have a Saburo Yatsude "Created by" credit is The Kagestar. This makes me believe that some producer really likes Sonoza, and I can't blame them for that.

-Well, you have been through an awful lot for a teenager, Haruka. A lot of kids fantasize about superheroics, but rarely do they take full notice of the consequences, both social and physical. I'd know, I was one of those kids, writing self-inserts kept under lock and key. Hell, even now, as a 21 year old, I still think it'd be worth it just to have something else going on in my life.

-You're a bit different though. Even if you were basically dragged into Ranger work kicking and screaming, you perform your combat duties very admirably, and still strive for that normal life. Not to mention how far you've come as a person. The Haruka from 25 episodes ago absolutely wouldn't have gone out of her way to help out her teammates the way she's been lately. I'm proud of ya, kiddo.

-Shinichi, did you have to transform between cuts to make your point? Seems a bit extra. Ah who am I kidding, that's just who you are, I wouldn't have it any other way <3

-Let's see... you've definitely haven't changed as much as Haruka has, but there's so much about you that interests me all the same. All the small things you use your powers for to help others, the way you stick to your asceticism despite all the obvious personal risk to your safety, the way even slightly giving into your desires seems to burn you up so quick... remember in Episode 20 when you immediately started living up the hero image? Do you even use your Kibi-Points, I wonder?

-Tsuyoshiiiiii, my man!

-"I kinda am a total scrub... if only I were a cool guy... Heh, guess I kinda got my wish in a way!"

-...and yeah, that's very much like you :)

-Hmmm... who's Mr. InuBrother?

-"Wan..."

-Don't put words in the doggo's mouth!

-Oh shoot, hello Sononi!

-...er... I'm sure Condorman's a pretty cool hero! Kohan Kawauchi's responsible for the creation of Moonlight Mask, Japan's first ever tokusatsu TV superhero, so he evidently knew what he was doing. He also created Warrior of Love Rainbowman, which was an inspiration for Cutie Honey.

-He was also an Islamic convert, which led to the creation of this show called "Messenger of Allah", starring a young Sonny Chiba, of all actors! I was a big fan of him as a teenager, but I don't think I've ever heard of this. Which is crazy to me, because a show like Messenger of Allah is absolutely something that should be explored from top to bottom.

-Sorry, I should be focusing on Donbrothers right now, but... Huh... I keep wondering how shows like these get made.

-Uhhhh... Sononi! You're presenting your case for Tsubasa, right? Yeah, show me.

-Gotta save the love of your life, Tsubasa-san!

-"Who the fuck are these weirdos, this is bullshit"

-Oooooooooooh, Dog Man throwin' shade!

-I have to wonder... the actor playing Sayama, Ryoji Sugimoto... do you think he wonders exactly what he's supposed to be doing as a character?

-Damn, Crane Lady got kicks.

-Yeah, I think that's one of my nicknames for Natsumiho.

-Man, that Momoi Tarou.

-He's one of a kind madman.

-Yeah, guess he really speaks for himself, huh?

-Oh yeah, the Enya Rideon.

-Beeg AND Smol!

-Oh yeah, the headpat lmao

-"Wait, Don Onitaijin is five guys, burgers and fries?"

-I love that little plush doggie they use for Tsubasa, I hope they keep it around when he... maybe or maybe not joins with the rest full time.

-SONOI

-"Now, hold on a moment. ...there's another Don. ...technically two? Or perhaps not."

-"I'm gonna be the strongest hero! Waaaaaaaaah!"

-Dragon Punch! Shoryuken! Dragon! Dragon! Rock the Dragon!

-Tiger Cutter! Tiger Uppercut! Lions Tigers and Bears! Oh My!

-"But nah, my rival is Don Momotaro. And you can't have him."

-Oh shit, Donbrothers MVP time.

-And the winner is Don Kaito.

-YEP FUCKING CALLED IT LMAO

-"I win."

-Shut up Kaito kjlhklghvghjg

-"...why were you all rainbow-y in that stock footage?"

-Awwww, he wants to reward us :)

-"For you all :)"

-Free photobooks :)

-"I was born to be a hero. I've always been a hero. I am the hero."

-Heeeeeeeeeeeeeey, what're you lads doing here!?

-"Jesus Christ, it's been 26 episodes and this shit isn't over."

-"Next time, Sonoza... I will defeat Momoi Tarou! Then Sononi can deal with Inuzuka Tsubasa as she pleases and you can resume your manga browsing with Kito Haruka. Now... watch me blow some bubbles."

-Are we at a water park next episode? Epic.