#IS THAT A LORE POST ON CHRISTMAS EVE

[taviokapudding]

Okay so the horns are curved but also the size of their chin to tip of their forehead…hmm

*processing in cosplayer*

I wasn’t a Homestucker nor a Homestuck cosplayer but I think I understand what I need to do based off what everyone has said, I’m just worried about wind and weight hmmmm. I already have a wig (not pictured below) and I started making all the red ropes out of some extra red yarn I had

It’s 3 smaller braids, braided into each other to create a 9 rope tri braid. I have a pile in my room now that are just ready to go but I forgot to take pics. I’ll have to do that later.

To everyone who thought I was joking about cosplaying Hiyori, y e a h I hyperfixated around the construction and contractor ADHD father and it’s too late to back peddle now. He joked we had plastic Christmas ornaments I could use for the necklace and then insisted we could use this metal sheet so I made stencils (one was too bit so I made another that’s a bit smaller below) so tldr tomorrow is power tools day.

[kiefbowl]

I just looked up my housework post from my old blog, wrote that christmas eve of 2015...so I would say sometime in 2015 I started participating in radblr, whatever shape or form that was at the time. That was the year I had no money, worked as a barista, high every day, paying rent on an apartment I kept moving in and out of bc of bed bugs, embarrassed I had lost a job the year before from a panic attack AND failed to try to become a real estate agent, broke up with my first love, had sex with someone in a relationship and felt like I wanted to die about it (but instead I smoked weed...you know how it goes), stayed up into the wee hours with my coworkers drinking and eating 50 cent wings after work, and just generally doing fuck all. literally wake up at noon, smoke weed, walk 45 minutes to work in the sunshine, work to 11, walk home, watch netflix, getting addicted to tumblr, such a fuck nothing life. and so many moments were pure misery, but there were moments of such pure joy, freedom, and youth. why am I doing this lore dump? idk :) life is never one thing. I think when you're 24 you're supposed to be doing fuck nothing, and I think I need to remember I did have some fuck nothing life for a bit. we had no furniture. we had a tv and a chair and a lawn chair, and I had a mattress that was on the floor. life seems to never change and then you look back and you see nothing is ever the same, it's a funny sort of life for us

[tansyuduri]

Merlin Loregasm Rewatch S1E4

Hi Everyone! Welcome to my rewatch of Merlin focusing on the lore. I am a giant nerd so pretty excited about this. We're on THE POISONED CHALICE

OKAY so @catsconflictscopicsandchamomile our resident Old English expert explained to me something really interesting. the spell used by Nimueh draws its power from the Spear-Danes, the semi pagan culture featured in Beowulf (Who had their own lake lady in Grendel's mother who was likely a priestess of the old religion And linguisticly called Disir) There is more though The first lines of the spell also seem to be Nimue saying she owes her magic to the spear Danes (that Grendel the monster in Beowolf ate) At this point I'm wondering if its meant to establish she is saying HEY MY SPELLS ARE PAGEN This will not be the only Beowulf reference in this episode. (Its never referenced or quoted after this episode) I'm wondering if the translators threw this in as a joke or easter egg Or in my freind's words "fuck it. lets canonize Beowulf in this universe real fast" (Okay I just discovered one of their choices I'll talk about later and HOLY FREAKING SHIT)

Mercia is traditionally thought of as a kingdom formed during the anglo-saxon settlement of Britain (Which occurs post Merlin acoirding to Merlin having saxons of enemies in later seasons) The historic king Arthur if he existed was said to have fought against the anglo saxons but this is just a footnote as we are focusing on Merlin Universe) HOWEVER a 13th century text says "“Pagans came from Germany and occupied East Anglia, that is, the country of the East Angles; and some of them invaded Mercia, and waged war against the British.” 

British here being Original pre-saxon inhabitents. SO it is possible that a Mercia existed before The Anglo-Saxons. This could also be the Historian using the name he knows. Bayard is not a recorded later King of Mercia either so good choice in name if we want him to be a Britonic king from a Mercia founded before the Anglo-Saxons apear. Fun fact Mercia also resisted leaving paganism longer than any other Anglo-Saxon kingdom! BUT Anyway in Merlin Mercia is a thing, Its ruled by Bayard, and its color is blue. It would be in the midlands of England most likely.

Also he was at war with Camalot, but now is not. I wonder if that has to do with Uther having not inherited but taking over the kingdom! Uther: The treaty we sign today marks an end to war and the beginning of a new friendship between our peoples

I also think Uther as a peacemaker is interesting, especially as we see this more than once. It might be why some people view him as "A good king."

So this at first glance SEEMS like it hints more toward paganism. Beltane is a Gaelic May Day festival. But its renamed version May Day was not exactly Christianized. See most other big Gaelic festivals (usually religious) Were kinda taken over by Christianity when it came. Yule became Christmas Samhain became All Saints Day (All Hollows Eve) ETC. Beltane was also celebrated in some places ALONG with Christianity until the 1800s. (Scotland did this specifically) In modern times Beltane is VERY Pagan. And it is very possible this hints further toward the Camalot is pagan or just nonreligious side of the entire debate. (Despite people using words like god or hell.) But it's not quite as conclusive as many other type of references would be.

(For context despite it saying we've Arthur here is talking about Merlin, who just announced his cup was poisoned, exclusively which is interesting!) See slow gin is a type of alcohol made with juniper berries and blackthorn fruits. It was traditionally brewed (With a lot of home brewing) in October and November and used as a warming drink in the depths of winter. AS you can tell this episode does not take place in winter. I think there are two possibilities for Arthur picking this drink specifically to mention despite that. The first is that as a prince perhaps the drink is available to him year round if he wants it and he doesn't know that is not true of most people yet. The second is he is so panicked at the prospect of the trouble Merlin is in his mind latched on to the first drink that popped into it.

Okay, so Mort means death in Latin. And the ending suffix here Usually makes the word an adjective from proper or place names BUT often appears in flower naming. So basically this plant is named The "Death Flower" Flower or "Capital D Deathly" Flower

Gaius: it can only be found in the caves deep beneeth the forest of Baloch The flower grows on the roots of the Mortaeus tree.

Uh okay. THERE IS SOME SHIT GOING DOWN with this plant. First of all, flowers growing from the roots of a tree is just weird. flowers are basically there to attract things to pollinate a plant usualy. If a tree has flowers they do not grow from the roots. Second of all its kinda weird for flowers or trees to grow in DEEP caves. Sunlight cannot read them there. I would give it a pass if it did not say deep because if there were cracks in the ceiling of the cave that could put light though. It does kinda explain why they can ONLY be found there though. If its so odd and specialized it might be the only place it can grow.

This flower is either innately magical in some odd way or does not conform to evolution. So at this point I am pretty sure it was bred/engineered/magiced into being but some sorcerer. Likely specifically for poisoning people. and that person wanted to limit the people who knew of it and thus kept it in once set of caves. BUT SOMHOW news got out about it. Ok so I also looked up Baloch. In Welsh it can mean dig or sorry. In Irish it means boy and in scottish the same thing. So no info to be gleaned from that

Gauis: A cockatrice-- it guards the forest. Its venom is extremely potent, a single drop would mean certain death. OK first of all I'm doubling down on there being some past sorcerer, Because they were FOR SURE using these as guard dogs. Second of all I LOVE Merlin paying fast and loose with magical creatures from folklore because I can too in my fics A Cockatrice in folklore was a monster created when a toad or snake egg was hatched beneath a chicken. It could kill with a look, or a breath, or a touch, and was basically a two-legged dragonish creature with a rooster head. In the Merlin world it is very diferant. We'll see one soon! "Few who have crossed the mountains of Isgard in search of the Moraeus flower have made it back alive." Yeah can't find any meaning behind the name Isgard! BUT HAVE I MENTIONED I THINK A SORCER ONCE LIVED IN THE CAVES/FOREST.

Okay I think this is a reference to the actual historical job of taster. Basically important people (ESP royalty) would hire someone to taste all their food before thay ate it. That way if it was poisoned the taster would die instead of them. It was viewed as a pretty plum gig because poisoning didn't often happen (ESP if people knew there was a taster) and the taster got to eat REALLY good food and get paid for it. I think its also an interesting character detail that while this kinda implies that Uther might have someone (At least for his private food and not banquets) We see multiple times that Arthur in fact does NOT. It is quite possible he managed to put his foot down and get out of this somehow because he believes it to be wrong. Which not gonna lie is a very Arthur thing to do.

(Context: Arthur talking about how Gaius said they can save Merlin if they get the leaf so it is not a fools errand) Waiiit is this trying to imply that Gaius was the one who brought up the idea that one could use the old religion to give Uther a son? I mean we knew he was the messenger. but HOLY SHIT. And if that is true, Uther somhow forgave him? Why would Uther forgive him? The only thing I can think is if Gaius talked about how magic had tricked him and gave Uther something else to blame. This is all conjecture though. Uther could be referring on how Gaius is close to Merlin or something else. It just feels like it might be a nod at what all went down around Arthur's birth.

Okay so this is Merlin quoting Beowolf here. A Poem that is yet to be written down but might have had some oral tradition and actually takes place at the traditional time Arthur is said to have lived. Merlin is basically talking about how Arthur/Beowolf is endowed with honnor. This happens right after Arthur decides to ride out to save Merlin.

Magic Rule Established: Potions/Poisons can be more potent if magic is used in their preperation

Okay MORE Beowolf

Merlin says Arthurs name then basically talks about a young man doing good deeds.

Playing hard and fast as I said. LOOK Dinosaur!

Okay so more Beowolf At this point I am 99.99% sure the people hired to write the spells at the time where having the time of their life. Let me explain

This line talks about gifts of treasure (the light) he conjuress to help Arthur. Fine. BUT then it mentions Arthur being under his father's protection. Expect Merlinto protectg him. The spell writers used a freaking old english poem to let Merlin call himself Arthur's "daddy" I am not sure what I am expected to do with this knowledge. (It might have been chosen so they could use the next line of the spell but THEY DID NOT HAVE TO DO THIS) The next line (Which is actually also the next line in the poem) says something about how so that when Arthur is older his companions can stand with him when war comes.

Okay so yeah turns out there is no tree or roots. I'm chalking this up to he said she said. STILL GOING WITH THE SORCERER.

OKAY so it a potion is made using magic the antidote may ALSO need magic

Oh look our first hint Merlin is immortal. I find his brand of immortality intersting. HE CAN DIE he just comes back after a bit.

[blakeandaffairs]

The Big Bad Lore Discussion: JESUS

Justttt gonna step over the landmine that is the current situation of this tag, as today I'd like to discuss an important lore point in the game:

JESUS CHRIST HIMSELF.

I made a short little post asking about it, but the more I really thought about it, the more I realize how deep the rabbit hole goes. Jesus' existence itself is already an enigma, but it's even moreso in whb???

Let's discuss, and for context, was forced to take Salvation History and Creed in college, hold on tight, this is gonna be a yap session

The Plotholes

Several issues immediately arise because of the fact that...well, God disappeared shortly after Solomon.

Why is this a problem? Because Solomon is approximately 900 years before Christ, now I know the timeline is all screwed up as well in whb, but if I'm assuming the bible canon, then, none of the things past Solomon had happened, including the birth of Jesus.

This conflicts with the fact that Minhyeok briefly mentions his neighbor, who is a Christian, and the fact that Christmas exists. Meaning some form of Jesus DOES exist, but just in the written scripture.

Why is that?? Well I have several theories:

1. Jesus already exists

Not LITERALLY. Without God there then how was the miraculous conception was supposed to happen, but since Jesus is considered the Word of God, and the Word of God has existed ever since the creation of the world ("On the First day, God SAID let there be light"), and with those first words uttered, Jesus was made manifest in it. He just isn't able to manifest physically due to a lack of God.

2. Jesus is some form of copesona or propaganda of the angels

We know that, at least according to Ppyong, that the scriptures are apparently propaganda made by the angels to make devils look bad, if that's so, to what extent? I'll assume it's somewhat minimal, they just want to make the devils look bad, because in general, Solomon is painted in a pretty good light, which is uncharacteristic of them. But how do they come up with someone like Jesus? It seems strange of them

The answer: Gabriel

Since Gabriel is the one that announces the birth of Jesus, it's likely he knows that Jesus already existed, and was expected to be born, but with God's disappearance, Gabriel, the unhinged, likely more unhinged, probably started making up stories about the Son of God that was never to be.

3. Jesus the person, existed, but he was just an ordinary mortal

We already believe the Jesus Christ, or more specifically, Yehosua Messiah (original Hebrew name) existed historically, it's likely this is the case as well. He was probably mythologized with the inception of the new testament, it's not the first time this has happened (Gilgamesh the king became the legend he is with the Epic of Gilgamesh)

Why Jesus likely doesn't exist

1. Usually, people are normally referred to as Son/Daughters of God, but in Lucifer's selfie story, he doesn't call us that (calls us Son of Adam/Daughter of Eve), meaning the original sin that those two committed have not been cleansed. (Jesus' death would have cleansed everyone of it)

2. In the Gamigin Event, Lucifer is said to be second only to God, which is odd, that's Jesus' spot. ("he is seated at the Right Hand of the Father, he will come again to judge the living and the dead")

3. It's a bit iffy, but the Christmas Event was also termed 'X-mas', which usually excludes the celebration of the birth of Jesus.

4. Since Jesus is the Son of God, he would have inherited the throne of God as well, and it's likely he would stop the ongoing genocide of the devils

IN CONCLUSION:

It's likely that Jesus was something meant to exist, but with the disappearance of God, that never truly happened.

But these are my thoughts. If y'all managed to make it this far, then I thank you for listening. If this gets enough views, I'll probably make more (such as the Solomon and Lilith conundrum)

[the-french-belphegor]

Don't you love secret Santas? I love a secret Santa! And this year I was assigned one of my favourite people on the internets, @laurelindebear :o) I sent her the drawing on the day (well, eve, but still) and now I'm posting it here!

In major arcana, the Magician symbolises "meetings of the physical and spiritual worlds ("as above, so below"), with one hand pointing towards the sky and the other towards the earth, the divine motive in man". I thought it was the card that might fit Ardeth Bay best: as a Medjai, he is the guardian of lore and the right order of things physical and spiritual. Thought I might add his scimitar, and I struggled with the closed hand around the handle for a while until it occurred to me that I could draw an open hand behind the handle to symbolise the fact that the reason he draws a weapon is always protection, never agression.

Happy Christmas, Laurelinde 💜 And much love to you all!

[iantos-coffeemachine]

read the torchwood archives book today, and felt like sharing some things because this book gave me a headache (ft the ages of tw3 members and when they allegedly got recruited. "allegedly" because the consistency is bar to none and must be taken with a very large grain of salt).

tldr: information is very inconsistent and i would trust information given in the show more than from this book about timelines any day. i apologise in advance if none of this makes any sense lol

explanation under the cut cause this turned out to be much longer than i thought it would be lmaooo

reblogs always appreciated, helps the post circulate 🫶

these are all documents in the torchwood archives book where it says each member's date of birth (among other info) where it does state clearly that ianto is the youngest (1983) but what i Wasn't aware of was that owen was born only a year (+ 6months) before him

here is also a note from the margin on owen's page

now this is where it gets confusing. because s1 came out in late 2006-early 2007, i assumed that that would be more or less when they were set (me when im Wrong). s1e10 (out of time) is very clearly set during/around christmas, despite coming out before christmas, and e11 coming out on christmas eve, which obviously throws the timeline off. we know s1 of tw occurs sometime during 2007 before doctor who s3e10/11 (when jack runs off to the tardis and briefly comes back to the main series), so that matches up with the dates written in the margin of the document page.

in s2e12 (fragments), it says that by that point ianto had been working for tw3 for 21 months (or it had at least been 21 months since the first time he met jack, but i feel like its safe to assume those two didn't happen that far apart), and if that happened in early 2007, it would mean that the end of s2 would be set sometime in late 2008-early 2009 which also matches up with when doctor who s4 was set, when again jack leaves and goes to the doctor (we know this is after the end of tw s2 because the only people in the hub are jack, gwen, and ianto, therefore happened after owen and tosh's deaths. also other pretty obvious things im almost definately forgetting about).

anyways all that to say that during owen's fragment (ha) of fragments, it says he met jack 4 years before late 2008/9ish, and then had spent "months" looking for jack which would set katie's death at around 2004/5, and his torchwood recruitment at mid-late 2005 but. that doesn't make any sense if in the note in the margin it says 2006.

yk what Also doesn't make any sense? tosh apparently joining tw3 in 2005 (and other things mentioned in the tw archives). because we know fragments was set in 2009 at the latest, where it states that tosh got arrested by UNIT 5 years prior, which would mean at the latest in early 2004, which again contradicts the tw archives.

tosh apparently got arrested by UNIT in early 2005ish, which would make it a year later than possible if fragments is in fact set in 2008/9 and her arrest happened 5 years before it. her being held in UNIT makes this worse cause it would mean she joined tw3 somewhere in mid-late 2005, which makes sense with the dates given in only the book, but with nothing else outside it, since the latest it could possibly be if we followed the show would be 2004.

because of the inconsistencies of recruitment dates (and birthdays of everyone apart from ianto and suzie, but i will Not be getting into that rn), it's pretty difficult to put exact dates on recruitment, but what i've generally managed to gather according to information from the book (and other snippets of lore i can remember off the top of my head) is:

owen: joined tw3 2005 or 2006, making him around 23yrs old when recruited, but is stated to have been born in 1980 in s2e13 (exit wounds) so possibly 25/26.

tosh: joined tw3 either in 2004, or 2005, making her around 28-30yrs old, but stated to have been born in 1981 in exit wounds, so possibly 24-25.

suzie: joined tw3 anywhere between 2000-2005, making her 27-32yrs old at recruitment.

gwen: joined late 2007, making her 29yrs old.

ianto: joined tw3 early 2007, making him 23yrs at time of recruitment, would've turned 24 that same year though.

edit: ianto joined tw1 as a junior researcher in 2005, which would make him 21-22yrs old at the time.

in conclusion: the book seems pretty inconsistent with information. birthdays, recruitment days, loads of other things are off, so despite having spend almost a whole day compiling information for this post from this book, i don't think it's a very trustworthy source for timeline stuff (or much else really). i don't think the writers really bothered with making the timeline consistent and accurate because, let's face it, most fans probably don't care enough to make a complete and accurate timeline down to months and years for a spin-off show from the mid-late 2000's. if you're still reading this, you deserve financial compensation. won't be the one providing it though.

[sweetpayaso]

🤡🖤🤍 Laughing Jack: Lore and HCs 🤡🖤🤍

Hello again! This post is sort of a follow-up to the Cake Topper headcanons post. This time, I will be covering keypoints of my version of Jack.

While some things in my version follow canon, a lot of stuff has been altered to give my version of Laughing Jack his own identity.

• Laughing Jack’s origin story ( in my take ) takes place in the mid to late twentieth century, rather than the late nineteenth century.

• The character of Laughing Jack, or as he was originally referred to, Jack ( or Jack the clown ), was actually an image created by Isaac himself, not an otherworldy deity.

• Jack originally did not have a physical form in our reality. He slowly manifested himself, similar to a Tulpa, as Isaac’s mind and personality only grew more vivid. In fact, he didn’t maintain a full physical form until he was completely monochrome and corrupt.

• His colorful form, therefore, was only ever able to be “seen” as drawings, or inside of Isaac’s dreams when they were still close.

• Jack still had his own “Jack In The Box” that he was assigned to. However, it was an average box that Isaac had painted/handcrafted himself. This is what stemmed Isaac’s creative work with carving in his adult years.

• The clown’s “birthday” is celebrated on Christmas Day. No day is more fitting for an initially jovial, colorful clown than the happiest day of the year. This is also because Christmas Eve was the day Isaac first thought up of him.

• The corruption of Laughing Jack started when Isaac grew out of their games, and eventually forgot about him, in favor of horror-based medium. Jack would slowly watch and gain ideas from the movies Isaac would watch, thinking all of them were ok and fun to “perform” in reality.

• Jack actually didn’t earn the full name/alias of “Laughing Jack” until after his first few kills. This is because children would describe him to their parents as “always smiling and giggling” when interacting with the clown.

• Laughing Jack is partially stuffed. The stuffed part of his body is his arms, which is why he is able to grow and stretch them in comparison to other parts.

• He, quite literally, always smiles. He can hold a toothy smile open without ever needing to rest his face.

• He is only able to view things in greyscale. This is due to the loss of color in his eyes. It’s like watching an old movie 24/7.

• His nose does not function like a regular nose. It’s merely for aesthetic purposes.

• He actually hides his candy inside of his stuffed sleeves.

• He is approximately seven feet tall.

• Jack, despite his corruption, is still able to feel emotion to a very minimal degree. It’s incredibly hard to do so, though, and most of it is found through his drive during killing.

• He mostly smells of must and old candy.

• Jack still finds time to practice playing the accordion. It’s his main act as a clown, besides being rusty at it after his abandonment.

• Laughing Jack prefers hard candy over anything chewy.

• Because Isaac was a craftsman, Jack also has a knack for crafting things. Often, he has to repair his own arms, because stuffing falls out of it due to the constant tearing of his sleeves.

[withasideofshakespeare]

An AMENDED Rundown on the Absolute Chaos That is First Quarto Hamlet

O, gather round me, my dear Shakespeare friends And let me tell to ye a tale of woe. It was a dark and drizzly winter night, When I discovered my life was a lie... This tale is a tragedy, one of Shakespeare sources turned into gardening websites, "misdated" quartos, and failed internet archives. It is also a story of the quarto itself, an early printing of our beloved Danish Prince's play, including an implied Hamlet/Horatio coffee date, weird and extremely short soliloquies, and Gertrude with a hint of motivation and autonomy.

But let us start from the beginning. Long ago, in the year of our lord 2022, I pulled a Christmas Eve all-nighter to bring you this post: https://www.tumblr.com/withasideofshakespeare/704686395278622720/a-rundown-on-the-absolute-chaos-that-is-first?source=share

It was popularish in Shakespeare circles, which is why I am amending it now! I returned to it tonight, only to discover a few problems with my dates and, more importantly, a mystery in which one of my sources miraculously turned into a link to a gardening website...

Anyhow, let us begin with the quarto! TL;DR: Multiple versions of Hamlet were printed between 1603 and 1637 (yes, post-folio) with major character and plot differences between them. The first quarto (aka Q1) is best known for its particular brand of chaos with brief soliloquies, an extra-sad Hamlet, some mother-son bonding, weird early modern spelling, and deleted/adapted scenes with major influences on the plot of the play!

A long rundown is included below the cut, including new and improved sources, lore, direct quotes, and my own interpretations. Skip what bores you! And continue... if thou darest!

What is the First Quarto? Actually, what is a quarto?

Excellent questions, brave Hamlet fan! A quarto is a pamphlet created by printing something onto a large sheet of paper and then folding it to get a smaller pamphlet with more pages per big sheet (1). First Quarto Hamlet was published in 1603 and then promptly lost for an entire two centuries until it was rediscovered in 1823 in the library of Sir Henry Bunbury. Rather than printed from a manuscript of Shakespeare, Q1 seems like it may be a memorial reconstruction of the play by the actor who played Marcellus (imagine being in a movie, memorizing the script to the best of your ability, writing it down, and then selling "your" script off to the print shop), but scholars are still out on this (2).

Are you saying that Hamlet comes with the stageplay equivalent of a “deleted scenes and extra credits” movie disc?

Yep, pretty much! In fact, there are even more of these! Q2 was printed in 1604 and it seems to have made use of Shakespeare's own drafts, and rather than being pirated like Q1, it was probably printed more or less with permission. Three more subsequent quartos were published between 1611 and 1637, but they share much in common with Q2. The First Folio (F1) was published in 1623 and its copy of Hamlet was either based on another (possibly cleaner but likely farther removed from Shakespeare's own text) playhouse manuscript (2, 3). It was an early "collected works" of sorts--although missing a few plays that we now consider canon--and is the main source used today for many of the plays!

The versions of the play that we read usually include elements from both Q2 and F1.

So... Q1? How is it any different from the version we all know (and love, of course)? What do the differences mean for the plot?

We’ll start with minor differences and build up to the big ones.

Names and spellings

Most of the versions of Shakespeare's plays that we read today have updated spellings in modern English, but a true facsimile (a near-exact reprint of a text) maintains the early modern English spellings found in the original text.

For example, here is the second line of the play transcribed from F1:

Francisco: Nay answer me: stand and vnfold your selfe.

For the most part, however, the names of the characters in these later versions (ex: F1) are spelled more or less how we would spell them today. This is not so in Q1.

Laertes is “Leartes”, Ophelia is “Ofelia”, Gertrude is “Gertred” (or sometimes “Gerterd”), Rosencrantz is “Rossencraft”, Guildenstern is “Gilderstone”, and my favorite, Polonius gets a completely different name: Corambis. 

(This goes on for minor characters, too. Sentinel Barnardo is “Bernardo”, Prince Fortinbras of Norway is “Fortenbrasse”, Voltemand and Cornelius--the Danish ambassadors to Norway--are “Voltemar” and “Cornelia” (genderbent Cornelius?), Osric doesn’t even get a name- he is called “the Bragart Gentleman”, the Gravediggers are called clowns, and Reynaldo (Polonius’s spy) gets a whole different name--“Montano”.)

2. Stage directions

Some of Q1's stage directions are more detailed and some are simply non-existent. For instance, when Ophelia enters singing, the direction is:

Enter Ofelia playing on a Lute, and her haire downe singing.

But when Horatio is called to assist Hamlet in spying on Claudius during the play, he has no direction to enter, instead opting to just appear magically on stage. Hamlet also doesn't even say his name, so apparently his Hamlet sense was tingling?

3. Act 3 scene reordering

Claudius and Polonius go through with the plan to have Ophelia break up with Hamlet immediately after they make it (typically, the plan is made in early II.ii and gone through with in III.i, with the players showing up and reciting Hecuba between the two events). In this version, the player scene (and Hamlet’s conversation with Polonius) happen after ‘to be or not to be’ and ‘get thee to a nunnery.’ I’m not sure if this makes more or less sense. Either way, it has a relatively minimal impact on the story.

4. Shortened lines and straightforwardness

Many lines, especially after Act 1, are significantly shortened, including some of the play's most famous speeches.

Laertes’ usually long-winded I.iii lecture on love to Ophelia is shortened to just ten lines (as opposed to the typical 40+). Polonius (er... Corambis) is still annoying and incapable of brevity, but less so than usual. His lecture on love is also cut significantly!

Hamlet’s usual assailing of Danish drinking customs (I.iv) is cut off by the ghost’s arrival. He’s still the most talkative character, but his lines are almost entirely different in some monologues, including ‘to be or not to be’!  In other spots, however, (ex: get thee to a nunnery!) the lines are near-identical. There doesn’t seem to be much rhyme or reason to where things diverge linguistically, except that when Marcellus speaks, his lines are always correct. Hm...

5. The BIG differences: Gertrude’s promise to aid Hamlet in taking revenge

Act 3, scene 4 goes about the same as usual with one major difference: Hamlet finishes off not with his usual declaration that he’s to be sent for England but with an absolutely heart-wrenching callback to act 1, in which he echoes the ghost’s lines and pleads his mother to aid him in revenge. And she agrees. Here is that scene:

Note that "U"s are sometimes "V"s and there are lots of extra "E"s!

Queene Alas, it is the weakenesse of thy braine, Which makes thy tongue to blazon thy hearts griefe: But as I haue a soule, I sweare by heauen, I neuer knew of this most horride murder: But Hamlet, this is onely fantasie, And for my loue forget these idle fits. Ham. Idle, no mother, my pulse doth beate like yours, It is not madnesse that possesseth Hamlet. O mother, if euer you did my deare father loue, Forbeare the adulterous bed to night, And win your selfe by little as you may, In time it may be you wil lothe him quite: And mother, but assist mee in reuenge, And in his death your infamy shall die. Queene Hamlet, I vow by that maiesty, That knowes our thoughts, and lookes into our hearts, I will conceale, consent, and doe my best, What stratagem soe're thou shalt deuise. Ham. It is enough, mother good night: Come sir, I'le prouide for you a graue, Who was in life a foolish prating knaue. Exit Hamlet with [Corambis/Polonius'] dead body. (Internet Shakespeare, Source #4)

Despite having seemingly major consequences for the plot, this is never discussed again. Gertrude tells Claudius in the next scene that it was Hamlet who killed Polonius (Corambis, whatever!), seemingly betraying her promise.

However, Gertrude’s admission of Hamlet’s guilt (and thus, betrayal) could come down to the circumstance she finds herself in as the next scene begins. There is no stage direction denoting her exit, so the entrance of Claudius in scene 5 may be into her room, where he would find her beside a puddle of blood, evidence of the murder. There’s no talking your way out of that one…

6. The BIGGEST difference: The added scene

After Act 4, Scene 6, (but before 4.7) comes this scene, in which Horatio informs Gertrude that Hamlet was to be executed in England but escaped:

Enter Horatio and the Queene. Hor. Madame, your sonne is safe arriv'de in Denmarke, This letter I euen now receiv'd of him, Whereas he writes how he escap't the danger, And subtle treason that the king had plotted, Being crossed by the contention of the windes, He found the Packet sent to the king of England, Wherein he saw himselfe betray'd to death, As at his next conuersion with your grace, He will relate the circumstance at full. Queene Then I perceiue there's treason in his lookes That seem'd to sugar o're his villanie: But I will soothe and please him for a time, For murderous mindes are alwayes jealous, But know not you Horatio where he is? Hor. Yes Madame, and he hath appoynted me To meete him on the east side of the Cittie To morrow morning. Queene O faile not, good Horatio, and withall, commend me A mothers care to him, bid him a while Be wary of his presence, lest that he Faile in that he goes about. Hor. Madam, neuer make doubt of that: I thinke by this the news be come to court: He is arriv'de, obserue the king, and you shall Quickely finde, Hamlet being here, Things fell not to his minde. Queene But what became of Gilderstone and Rossencraft? Hor. He being set ashore, they went for England, And in the Packet there writ down that doome To be perform'd on them poynted for him: And by great chance he had his fathers Seale, So all was done without discouerie. Queene Thankes be to heauen for blessing of the prince, Horatio once againe I take my leaue, With thowsand mothers blessings to my sonne. Horat. Madam adue. (Internet Shakespeare, Source #4)

First of all, the implication of Hamlet and Horatio's little date in the city is adorable ("Yes Madame, and he hath appoynted me / To meete him on the east side of the Cittie / To morrow morning.") It reads like they're going out for coffee!

And perhaps more plot relevant: if Gertrude knows of Claudius’s treachery ("there's treason in his lookes"), her death at the end of the play does not look like much of an accident. She is aware that Claudius killed her husband and is actively trying to kill her son and she still drinks the wine meant for Hamlet!

Now, the moment we’ve all been waiting for! My thoughts! Yippee!  On Gertrude: WOW! I’m convinced that she is done dirty by F1and Q2! She and Hamlet have a much better relationship (Gertrude genuinely worries about his well-being throughout the play.) She has an actual personality that is tied into her role in the story and as a mother. I love Q1 Gertrude even though in the end, there’s nothing she can do to save Hamlet from being found out in the murder of Polonius and eventually dying in the duel. Her drinking the poisoned wine seems like an act of desperation (or sacrifice? she never asks Hamlet to drink!) rather than an accident.

On the language: I think Q1′s biggest shortcoming is its comparatively simplistic language, especially in 'to be or not to be,' which is written like this in the quarto:

Ham. To be, or not to be, I there's the point, To Die, to sleepe, is that all? I all: No, to sleepe, to dreame, I mary there it goes, For in that dreame of death, when wee awake, And borne before an euerlasting Iudge [judge], From whence no passenger euer retur'nd, The vndiscouered country, at whose sight The happy smile, and the accursed damn'd. But for this, the ioyfull hope of this, Whol'd beare the scornes and flattery of the world, Scorned by the right rich, the rich curssed of the poore? The widow being oppressed, the orphan wrong'd, The taste of hunger, or a tirants raigne, And thousand more calamities besides, To grunt and sweate vnder this weary life, When that he may his full Quietus make, With a bare bodkin, who would this indure, But for a hope of something after death? Which pusles [puzzles] the braine, and doth confound the sence, Which makes vs rather beare those euilles we haue, Than flie to others that we know not of. I that, O this conscience makes cowardes of vs all, Lady in thy orizons, be all my sinnes remembred. (Internet Shakespeare, Source #4)

The verse is actually closer to perfect iambic pentameter (meaning more lines have exactly ten syllables and consist entirely of iambs--"da-DUM") than in the Folio, which includes many 11-syllable lines. The result of this, however, is that Hamlet comes across here as considerably less frantic (those too-long verse lines in F1 make it feel like he is shoving words into too short a time, which is so very on-theme for him) and more... sad. Somehow, Q1 Hamlet manages to deserve a hug even MORE than F1 Hamlet!

Nevertheless, this speech doesn't hit the way it does in later printings and I have to say I prefer the Folio here.

On the ending: The ending suffers from the same effect ‘to be or not to be’ does--it is simpler and (imo) lacks some of the emotion that F1 emphasizes. Hamlet’s final speech is significantly cut down and Horatio’s last lines aren’t quite so potent--although they’re still sweet!

Horatio. Content your selues, Ile shew to all, the ground, The first beginning of this Tragedy: Let there a scaffold be rearde vp in the market place, And let the State of the world be there: Where you shall heare such a sad story tolde, That neuer mortall man could more vnfolde. (Internet Shakespeare, Source #4)

Horatio generally is a more active character in Q1 Hamlet. This ending suits this characterization. He will tell Hamlet’s story, tragic as it may be. It reminds me a bit of We Raise Our Cups from Hadestown. I appreciate that this isn't a request but a command: put up a stage, I will tell this story. Closing notes: After over a year, it was due time this post received an update. My main revisions were in regard to source verification. Somehow, in the last year or so, one of my old sources went from linking to a PDF of Q1 to a garden website (???) and some citations were missing from the get-go as a result of this being an independently researched post that involved pulling an all-nighter on Christmas Eve (but no excuses, we need sources!)

I have also corrected some badly worded commentary implying that the Folio's verse is more iambic pentameter-y (it's not; in fact, Q1 tends to "normalize" its verse to make it fit a typical blank verse scheme better than the Folio's does--the lines actually flow better, typically have exactly ten syllables, and use more iambs than Q1's) as well as that the spelling in the Folio is any more modern than those in Q1 (they're both in early modern English; I was mistakenly reading a modernized Folio and assuming it to be a transcription--nice one, 17-year-old Dianthus!) Additionally, I corrected the line breaks in my verse transcriptions and returned the block quotations to their original early modern English, which feels more authentic to what was actually written. A few other details and notes were added here and there, but the majority of the substance is the same.

Overall, if you still haven't read Q1, you absolutely should! Once you struggle through the spelling for a while, you'll get used to it and it'll be just as easy as modern English! If you'd prefer to just start with the modern English, I have also linked a modern translation below (source 5). And finally, my sources! Not up to citation standards but very user-friendly I hope... 1. Oxford English Dictionary 2. Internet Shakespeare, Hamlet, "The Texts", David Bevington (https://internetshakespeare.uvic.ca/doc/Ham_TextIntro/index.html) 3. The Riverside Shakespeare (pub. Houghton Mifflin Company; G.B. Evans, et al.) 4. Internet Shakespeare, First Quarto (facsimile--in early modern English) (https://internetshakespeare.uvic.ca/doc/Ham_Q1/complete/index.html) 5. Internet Shakespeare, First Quarto (modern English) (https://internetshakespeare.uvic.ca/doc/Ham_Q1M/index.html)

And here conclude we our scholarly tale, Of sources, citation, and Christmastime too, Go read the First Quarto! And here, I leave you.

[technobladestanblog]

I never really talk about it but the only reason I got into dsmp was cause tiktok kept showing me clips of technoblade in the dsmp and I was like that's the funniest minecraft youtuber I've seen in a while. then I found his potato war videos and said great I guess I'm watching his whole backlog (also mutuals on here saying technoblade was where it's at) so then I'm introduced to philza and Wilbur and Tommy and I'm like yeah they're fun too and now im watching dsmp but only really technoblade streams. so most of my plot knowledge is techno and philza centric and then I'm like I guess I'll check out dr*ms stuff and the videos were ok but I didn't really like the editing so I stick with technoblade n friends and as time goes on I just stayed watching dsmp and interacting with fandom but more in a I wanna know more about this guy and his lore. and all that to say is that with the reignited discussion on "dsmp made (anyone who wasn't dr*m and friends)" I just thought I'd share my own experience. like the only thing that brought me in was the tiktok clip I saw. and dr*m wasn't even in it I think it was just a clip of techno talking to his audience. and then when I was watching I'm I only really caring about techno and his closest friends. like I would compare it to watching a survivor/big brother and only caring for one or two contestants, like in not watching for the show I'm watching for the specific person. idk this became a rant/ramble sorry for the long post this Christmas eve lol

[enam3l]

so you guys voted and for your rockstar eddie christmas fic you chose... eddie & reader's first ever xmas together!

i just want to say a huge thank you to everyone who's followed me, this story and has ever reblogged or commented. i posted one little thing on a whim about three months ago, the first time i had ever been involved in fanfic. now we're here, there's nearly 700 of you and we've created a whole rockstar eddieverse. so this is my gift to you! thank you x

an eddie munson christmas (rockstar eddie x reader) 2.2k / pure festive fluff

you can see all rockstar eddie x reader stories and lore at #enam3ls rockstar eddie or the masterlist! and check out my new series love, lola

1989 had begun, as every year had, with you grateful that the festive season was over. A time for family and traditions just a torturous reminder of your own loneliness, of everything you longed for. Growing up, Christmas had been treated like any other day. Parents occupied with work or themselves, or basically anything that wasn't you; leaving you to fend for yourself. Once you'd moved out, Christmas Day was spent eating takeout and living vicariously through movies. Eventually you met Marissa, who was Jewish and whilst you still didnt get to spend Christmas the way others did, you at least had someone to spend the day with. 

Now as '89 winded down you were giddy at the prospect of a real Christmas. As if the universe had been compensating you for twenty odd years of miserable holidays, it gifted you Eddie Munson. Knowing about how the season had always been for you til now, Eddie insisted on making Christmas a month long occasion. Although you'd both grown up with shitty parents, Eddie's saving grace had been Wayne. Money being tight only encouraging the pair to create more fun traditions. And this year you were privy to them. 

There wasn't a Christmas market in New York you hadn't visited. Not a hot chocolate or Belgian waffle you hadn't sampled. Every infamous display in the city was admired. Your ice skating virginity taken outside Rockefeller Centre. Eddie Munson, your metal head and famous rockstar boyfriend had orchestrated your own Hallmark movie experience. He even found somewhere you could cut down your own tree. For the first time you now owned a box to be stored away labelled Christmas Decorations. Filled with ornaments collected from your festive adventures. Finally, you were having Christmas. 

Yet you felt bad. Knowing Eddie would usually be spending the day with Wayne and his friends. All of them together in their found family. After surviving '86 they'd formed a new tradition, spending Christmas all together with dinner at Joyce and Hopper's. But he'd insisted that if this was your first real Christmas, he wanted you to have your own and not be dragged along with his plans. You tried to protest, especially because you loved Wayne and all of his Hawkins friends but Eddie was adamant.  

It was Christmas Eve morning, the city air frosty causing Eddie to be bundled up tightly in the bedsheets - a large man able to curl up surprisingly small. It took several kisses to his pink cheeks to wake him up from a heavy sleep. Your hand pushing back his wild fringe as his sleep filled eyes took a moment to adjust. 

'Happy Christmas Eve, Y/N,' he croaked. Gazing at you with a sleepy smile you immediately had to kiss. He chuckled as he pulled away and finally noticed the reason for his awakening. A tray placed on the bed with a pile of pancakes, drenched in his favourite topics. 

'What's this?' he queried 

'Christmas Eve breakfast,' you beamed. 

Eddie chuckled, shuffling over so he could pull you down to sit next to him on the bed. Kissing your cheek he laughed, 

'Sweetheart, that's not a thing but thank you.' 

You pull the tray onto his lap, the pair of you propped up by pillows with Eddie's arm wrapped around your shoulders. Perched between the plate and a glass is an envelope, you subtly cough and direct his gaze towards it. 

'Well it is now. Plus, you have to open your present today actually.'

You're certain you're grinning like a maniac, legs jiggling in anticipation. Eddie looks at you suspiciously before taking the envelope and opening it. Once its contents is revealed he gasps, you can see from his profile that his jaw had dropped. It's an excellent feeling, rendering someone who always has something to say, speechless. 

'I can't believe you...' 

Eddie looks at you, brown eyes glittering with unshed tears. His head shakes. 

'Y/N... you didn't have to do this.' 

You take his hand into your own, bringing it to your lips to place a kiss to his rough knuckles. He melts at your touch, placing his present down carefully to embrace you. Two flight tickets to Indiana for today. 

'The only Christmas I want is yours, Eds. With the people you love because I love you.' 

He cradles your face in his hands, foreheads pressed together. 

'Thank you... so much. This is the best present. You're going to love it, okay? I love you.' 

Wayne is there waiting at arrivals to drive you to Hawkins. You'd already clued him in on your plan, not wanting him to think for a moment you would keep his boy away from him. Upon seeing him, Eddie runs through the hall and embracing his uncle with full force. You smiled, pleased you'd managed to recreate this Hallmark movie moment for Eddie. You're embraced too by Wayne as Eddie piles your luggage into the truck. 

'Thank you for doing this hon, means a lot,' he whispers to you. 

'Anytime Wayne, I couldn't let him miss out. Not after Ed's has exposed me to all your Christmas traditions,' you grin. 

Wayne gets in the drivers seat and flashes you one of his great rare smiles. 

'Well I got the feelin' you'll always be part of them traditions now.' 

His reply leaves you dumbfounded and red in the face. The thought of being part of their family encourages a dream that after less than a year of dating, you wanted to ignore for now. 

On the journey, Eddie radiated a giddy energy. His leg bounced incessantly causing you and Wayne to send each other knowing smirks through the rear view mirror. But Wayne's glee went beyond what you thought. The older man was overwhelmed seeing someone love his boy for who he was and understand the parts Eddie rarely shared at all. Once the truck pulled up outside Joyce and Hopper's house, Eddie was running full pelt down the path and up the steps. Ringed fist hammering on the door. As you and Wayne made your way behind him, you heard his friends before you saw them. Screams and cheers at Eddie's surprise arrival. It never failed to make you smile, seeing how loved he was by his friends. 

The house was bursting at the seams with guests. Crammed full of these people who'd found each other in the darkest of times and patch-worked themselves into a family. Sure fire evidence when compared to your own family that real family and love isn't bound by blood. One of the greatest parts of being with Eddie was he came with this friendship group. You'd known it on the night you met him, when they'd taken you in before you had ever heard the name Eddie Munson. Each time you met them since they'd made you feel as if there hadn't been a time you weren't a part of the team. Heartfelt looks and warm hugs were given to you as Eddie proudly told each person how you'd made sure he came. Every member thrilled they were continuously being proved right in pushing you and Eddie together ten months ago.  

Tables were crammed together with a mishmash of chairs to ensure everyone was seated. The group cheering as Joyce produced a humongous turkey and Hopper carved away. Your sides ached from laughing hearing everyone's tales and latest adventures. The kids had all started college this autumn and were filling you in. Dustin had managed to start several small fires, Max already with a growing list of mortal enemies on campus and Lucas had become somewhat infamous for being the most athletic nerd the college had ever seen. 

Eddie watched as you wiped away tears of laughter from Dustin's jokes, let El win the prize in the cracker, offer Steve girl help and made sure Wayne's plate was full of his favourites. He can't believe he found you and you accepted every aspect of his life. In awe at how you loved everyone he loved, treated his family as your own. Throughout the evening he was unable to stop himself from stealing your affections. Ensuring his leg hooked with yours as you ate, held your hand under the table between courses and pulled you onto his lap when everyone resigned to the sofas. As if he wasn't certain before, he was now that this is where you belonged. You were fated to be with him, to be a part of his mismatched family.  

When you finally go back to Eddie's house it's no longer Christmas Day. As soon as the front door is open, your weary body heads straight towards the stairs until you're tugged back. 

'Where do you think you're going, sweetheart?' Eddie grins. 

'Bed, baby. S'late!'

Eddie just tuts and shakes his head. 

'But I haven't even given you my gift!' he protests. Dragging you by the hand to the living room where he plops the pair of you down onto the sofa. In all honesty, the thought that Eddie would also be getting you a gift hadn't crossed your mind. Receiving presents was still a fairly alien concept. The entire month of festivities as well as the day had been gift enough. Eddie rummages in his bag, pulling out a small flat box and carefully placing it on your lap. He chews at his plush lip anxiously, fingers drumming on his thigh in anticipation. Eddie had been fretting for months about what to get you. 

'What is the perfect gift for the perfect girl,' he'd wailed down the phone to Steve, Dustin, Robin and Wayne. All of whom had insisted you'd love a rock if it came from him, which wasn't wrong. 

A clear giveaway at Eddie's nerves is his immediate choice of babbling to fill the silence as you carefully undo the bow. 

'It's okay if you don't like it... I just thought... well maybe you will like it... I hope... or not... it doesn't matter, honestly... don't worry... I can get you something else... I-'

You cut his rambling off with a kiss, it had taken you a month to learn this was the only way to ease his brain. 

'Eddie, there's more chance of us spontaneously combusting this instant than of me not liking anything you ever got me.'

Your smile eases Eddie instantly and he nods, watching as you lift the lid of the box.

In the same way Eddie was at your present to him, you're left speechless. Your eyes darting between him and the gift, tears welling as you struggle for words. Inside lies a guitar pick on a chain, like Eddie's however this pick is gold metal as is the chain. 

'Eddie...' you're only able to get out a whisper. Your fingers toy delicately with the charm. Eddie reaches for it and carefully takes out of the box, letting you see it closer. 

'This is thee pick. The one I used at the homecoming gig at The Hideout. When I first met you. Kept it safe ever since, figured it was lucky. Then I finally thought of something to do with it. Had it casted in gold so it's a lil prettier and will last...'

He's chewing the inside of his cheek, desperate for you to say something. 

'It was lucky,' you finally sob, 'if it meant I met you then it's lucky... this is the most thoughtful gift I've ever gotten.'

His face softens, relieved you love it. You wipe away the tears that won't stop flowing. 

'Please could you put it on for me Eds?' 

Eddie guides you so your back faces him. Carefully twisting your hair out the way, he brings the necklace round your front, his fingers skimming your collarbones as he delicately places the necklace before clasping it. You turn back towards him so he can see. You're grinning for the hundredth time that night as you pick up the charm to admire it. It's surface sparkling with the reflection of Christmas lights. Eddie leans forward and stills your hand, he places a kiss onto the pick then on your chest, just over your heart where it hangs. 

'Luckiest pick, luckiest man in the world, sweetheart,' he coos. 

You embrace him now, hands pushing his curls back so you can take in his beautiful face. 

'I'm lucky, Eds. My first Christmas and it's with you. Without my necklace, that would've been the best gift I could've had. I love you so much.' 

The pair of you are sniffling messes at this point. Drunk from this evening but also the love you feel for each other. 

'I love you too. You're never going to have a shitty Christmas again, I promise.'

He links his pinky with yours before tugging you up to your feet. 

'Now let's go to bed. I think I might have another present for you.' 

The smirk on Eddie's face tells you everything you need to know. You run off up the stairs, leaving him chasing after you. You're determined to give him his other present first. 

Once you return to New York and you dismantle your decorations in the apartment you shared, your cheeks ached from smiling. From thinking how for the first time ever, you didn't want Christmas to end. But mainly, from seeing your decorations merge with his own into the packing boxes and you hoped they'd always stay that way; entangled together. 

my taglist angels: @whoahoney@lukewearingbeanies @esme-viridian @elysian-chaos @munsonology @mseddiemunson @kreepja

[idsb]

hi im new here can you give a brief rundown of like you lol?? where youve lived, jobs, partners, interests, give me the idsb lore please!!!!!

hi!! sure, I have a lot of new followers and I was just thinking the other day abt this and how my blog is like 70/30 my personal life v Taylor so that must be confusing for new people. so yes! here's the spark notes:

My name is Holly and I just turned 28! I grew up outside of Boston and lived in NYC for ~10 years after I went to art school there. I dropped out of college after one semester to pursue my actual dream of touring with artists. After I dropped out I spent a while willingly homeless in NYC so that I could establish myself & my career there. Eventually it worked & I had been doing freelance photography, videography, graphic design and merch sales as steady income since ~2017. I was in a 5 year, emotionally abusive relationship with my high school sweetheart and finally ended it in 2018. A bit after this, I went to Australia for the first time with my then-friend now-boyfriend (Nov 2018). I've been obsessed with Australia since I was like 5 years old and it was an incredible adventure. I spent about 3 weeks there alone without then-friend, and during those 3 weeks met a Man. The last night we spent in Australia on this trip was Christmas Eve, and said man invited me to have an outdoor Love Actually screening and have a wine picnic with him and all his friends. it was one of the best nights of my life. We hooked up and he singlehandedly cured some sex-related fears I had from the previous relationship and I couldn't stop thinking about it for months. Back in America (Jan 2019) I entered my hoe phase in a never-ending quest for validation and slept with every guitarist I'd ever worked with while meanwhile having a big mental breakdown. Enter a John Mayer vibing man we called the Guitarist here, and a lot of Bad Shit he did to me in his own validation quest mental breakdown (May-August 2019). Clearly my only choice was to fly back to Australia to see the other guy! And I did (September 2019)! Then I was mega depresso when I went home bc my life felt hopeless & I'd already lived out all the hope it had going for it :) I continued my hoe phase and chronicled it via Spice Nights where I’d just answer nsfw asks and give advice for like 8 hours straight. This is waxing over it but it was chaotic and I cannot understate the Depression (Feb 2020).

Then the pandemic happened whomp whomp. I lost all my gigs and posted about it on Tumblr dot com, this blog gained a very large following sort of bc of being a Taylor blog and sort of bc of live-blogging all the drama. ms Taylor Swift saw it and she sent me $3,000 to cover my rent for all of lockdown. a lot happened as a result of that but in the end I realized it was not smart to stay in NYC and spent summer 2020 roadtripping around the US with my then-friend who had first come to Australia with me, who had since joined the leagues of guitar-playing-employer-i-was-sleeping-with (there were 4 in total but I was in loveeeeee w this one). Big Cruel Summer vibes. my friend group exploded partially as a result of my behavior and partially bc they were cunts who didn't care about John Mayer vibe man manipulating me. So then I said fuck it and moved to Montana to work in a national park w guitar guy I Actually Loved who had become my boyfriend at that point, and we lived there until winter 2021. Then I started touring again, got insanely successful, was making more money than most people I knew with salaried jobs and booking work all over the world, my relationship ended over some drama I found out about way after the fact but then we got back together & moved in together (May 2023). Going great. Then I got so fucking burnt out from my job I was like stop the presses I am fucking off to Australia I can't do the music industry and the mega late-stage capitalism anymore. so now I live in Melbourne and am a bartender at a fancy cocktail bar and my relationship is sort of a LDR but I’m going home soon maybe(?) and that is what you missed on Glee!!!!

[yellowjacketslesbian]

What do you think Van's relationship with religion is like, before and after the crash?

hey!! I love this question because I actually have a whole hc for this!!!

pre-crash I hc that Van was raised catholic and went through catechism (with Nat & Laura Lee). I think she partially did confirmation because of family pressure, but also because I think she has always been someone who searches for meaning in the world around her, and I think she looked to the church as a way to find that meaning as a kid because it was all she knew. (I think Van's parents were probably more along the lines non-practicing catholics, and only really went to mass for major holidays, but they still really pushed for her to get confirmed to keep up appearances with extended family).

I think Van left the church sometime in middle school after she fully realized / came to terms with being a lesbian. (I personally hc that Van's dad left when she was 12 or 13 and her mom's issues got worse after, so she also didn't have the same family pressure to stay in the church). however, I believe she still held onto some of the mysticism of the church / saint lore, etc. she grew up with and she more was rejecting an organized religion she knew wouldn't accept her, rather than all of the beliefs (though I don't think she would necessarily admit that to herself).

as far as immediately pre-crash, I think Van probably used humor to cope and deflect from any religious trauma by high school and probably would have described herself as a recovered catholic / atheist, if it ever came up.

I also think having that common background of being raised catholic and rejecting that upbringing was something she bonded over with Taissa pre-crash (it's canon that at least Tai's grandmother was catholic). I can definitely picture them being their sarcastic selves together and making quips back and forth through an entire Christmas Eve midnight mass they both got dragged to.

I also think having that common background adds some additional context to their fight in the attic in S1E10. like if rejecting religion and supernatural explanations for the world around them, is something they bonded over, there's an added layer there when Van suddenly believes in this supernatural thing and Taissa is still firmly an atheist.

(I could write a whole thesis separate thesis here on why it makes so sense that Van believed so fervently in the supernatural element and embraced the cult practices as a way to make sense of that terrifying time in the wilderness, assuming a catholic upbringing. tldr: in my personal experience, it's fairly common for people who have dealt with specifically catholic religious trauma to be more susceptible to that type of influence because of the beliefs we were raised with).

anyway, post-crash I think Van struggled a lot to cope with the things they did in the wilderness and kind of just completely shut off all belief in anything instead of actually facing what they did. I also think she's going to go back to her belief in the wilderness after being cured of cancer in S3 because she never actually worked through any of her trauma, and therefore, is still very susceptible to falling back into that acolyte role.

also, if the crash never happened, I think Van would've been the type of recovered catholic who gets into like spirituality as a way to make sense of the world (tarot cards, astrology, etc.)

tldr: I think Van was raised catholic but is an atheist both pre and post-crash

[lucysbronzes]

Okay I need the tea about Luna at that wedding… that’s where they met? Lucy followed Ona right away? I need the Luna lore dump lmaoooo

met at the wedding, ona already looked loved up and there's a video of lucy thinking she's slick dancing over to her😭followed her two days later on christmas eve and then ona posted thirst traps for about a week😭

[7grandmel]

Todays rip: 01/03/2024

Thank You, Everybody!

Season 4 Episode 1 Featured on: FINAL BOUT ~ SiIvaGunner: King for Another Day Tournament Original Soundtrack VOL. 3

Ripped by Expensive Dispenser

Requested by Alex Worm! (Request Form)

God, man. King for Another Day was magical, in so many ways. And I know, I know, that's something I've repeated over and over on here, to where you could almost argue my coverage of KFAD on here is a bit oversaturated - Sunday Morning, September, Here Comes A Thought, Lifelike Waterway...the event was simply overflowing with incredible performances from SiIvaGunner's entire team. Obviously the most exciting part of it all was the finale, and I discussed perhaps the loudest part of that in NIGHTMARESCAPE 〜Unrestrained HyperCam 2〜 (Final Boss Phase 2). Yet, when the dust had settled on that final battle, there was still things to be done. A battle between the tournament's two finalists, yes, but more importantly: A thank you to be given.

It's difficult to grasp just how gargantuan the event was unless you were there to see it all unfold piece by piece, and it's all made yet more jawdropping when you remember that SiIvaGunner still operates entirely as a non-profit, hobbyist endeavor. Back in 2016, the channel had started out as nothing but a pool of pure self-expression, an extended running joke left driven by impulse and commitment to the bit; yet four years in, it had morphed into an entity with continuity, with lore, with running jokes and ongoing storylines...and a devoted group of fans eagerly loving it all. The original King for a Day Tournament back in Season 3 was a rather sharp left turn for the channel's trajectory up to that point, and was only conceived as a way to give the channel something to do during an agonizing copyright strike - yet it wound up being a surprise highlight of the entire year for many of those devoted fans. To have the status quo of the channel's proceedings shaken by a random one-off event, and thus in a way change just what those same fans would expect from the channel in its years going forward...I imagine there must have been a lot of pressure on the SiIvaGunner team in developing the second tournament as a result. In a way, it's sort of felt to me like one of the first ever projects on the SiIvaGunner channel developed specifically to satiate our expectations, rather than subvert them.

What I'm getting at with all this is, that the King for Another Day Tournament was a one-of-a-kind project, one that kept one-upping itself with every step along the way, to the point where several commenters were noting just how insanely high-effort of a project this had turned into - if, for no other reason, than to surpass our expectations. With each MOJO post, each huge-in-scale arrangement, each twist in the tournament's proceedings, it felt more and more like we truly didn't deserve what we were getting. One part that I'm still in awe over was what I covered back in Fall Breaks: as the tournament's two finalists in Mariya Takeuchi and DJ Professor K were about to face off, we were treated to FOUR incredible collaborative arrangements between the two. We were, throughout the entire event, *spoiled* in so many ways, and the excitement through it all was absolutely palpable.

Yet, mere hours before the Grand Finals results were announced, on Christmas Eve of 2019 - we received Thank You, Everybody!

I remember it all clear as day, as one of the first SiIvaGunner rips to make me emotional within just the first few seconds; no, I'd say before I even clicked play. Here was this team of hobbyists, arrangers, composers, musicians of all kinds of trades from all over the world, putting together a project of this scale with no reason but for the love for the medium...And after a project of this scale, they were thanking us. US! The viewers, the fans, who hadn't contributed a single cent, who had no right to demand, no right to expect anything from what the team was to deliver with this tournament. At first glance, it felt completely backwards - until I clicked the video itself and was reminded of what SiIvaGunner truly is. A community.

The team were thanking us for everything else we had done to push them along this crazy ride. For our commitment to following this silly idea for a YouTube channel, for being so vocal about our excitement in so many fields, for speculating and engaging and spreading the word of the tournament throughout the year, and for - in the process of all of that - helping turn SiIvaGunner into a full-on community, scattered as it may at times feel. Yet check the comments on the YouTube upload yourself, and you'll see a community that was - for once - wholly united. Three hundred and nintety-two comments, all of which express the same sentiment, a unified thank-you sent right back for the team for the event they had put together for us.

These feelings are what immediately come to mind when I think of Thank You, Everybody!, but it of course helps that the rip itself is absolutely fantastic at amplifying those feelings. It's not a triumphant, bombastic credits theme - the final results were still to come, after all! - but rather plays to the strengths of Mariya Takeuchi's patented City Pop style for a lo-fi melody cruise. Primarily building on Tyler, the Creator's GONE, GONE / THANK YOU, it implements sprinkles and stylistic flairs of Hideki Naganuma music such as that featured in Jet Set Radio, little hips and hops and record scratches to always remind you which two characters the rip is build upon, yet with a tone that makes it sound as if the battle has just wrapped up.

Its an amazing listen in so many ways, be it with the sappy context given in mind, or just as a fantastic piece of music that shows just why these two were the ones to make it to the tournament's final round to begin with. In both Takeuchi's city pop and Naganuma's sample-funk, we the audience found a kind of sound that was otherwise missing from the channel, we formed a connection with these characters, with the people behind them and their rips. And regardless of who the winner would be revealed to be just hours late, Thank You, Everybody! would remain a beautiful end to the tournament's proceedings, and in its title alone a perfect reflection of our sentiments toward the SiIvaGunner team itself. Thank you. Everybody.

[void-ink-studios]

An Unhinged Animal Crossing ramble

I haven't played my Animal Crossing file in over a year, but damn did it help me through college.

I don't know about any of y'all, but I made backstories for the villagers on my Island, and they all had connections and families. I made lore for these adorable little bundle of pixels.

Some of these backstories are ridiculous and silly. And I'm okay with that. This post is for me, I am this post's target audience. If you like my nonsense, that's on you.

Mac and Cherry are siblings, Mac being the overly enthusiastic younger brother while Cherry's the cool and aloof big sister. Cherry left home to start her music career, and she's doing pretty alright as an indie solo act. Mac wants to be a wrestler, but misses his big sis, so he kinda set out to follow her. Cherry used to find him super annoying and was really pissed that he followed her, but their relationship is getting better. She's learned to appreciate she always has him in her corner, and has started to return the favor for Mac's training. Mac was the first to move to the island, as a great private spot for training, and talked Cherry into moving in when she was done with her current tour.

Clyde is literally just vibes. He's a country boy, but his rural neighborhood is getting encroached on by suburbs. So, he became a backpacker, looking for somewhere not very busy or high pressure to settle down. He has a passion for woodworking and bug collecting and has formed an unlikely friendship with his neighbor Julia. Tiny brain with a massive heart. Doesn't know what a politic is, doesn't wanna know what a politic is. Would think a huge cheese wheel is an appropriate gift for a first date.

Julia wanted a fresh start, with her new name and identity (because you cannot look at her and tell me she isn't trans). With a dream to be a fashion designer, she transitioned very publicly and said so long to everyone who knew the old her. She is a high demand city girl, but got tired of the grind and questions and judgement. So, she retreated to the island to collect her thoughts, get inspiration, and just vibe in a place where no one knew who she was. She has expensive tastes, but has found an unlikely friendship in the kind but simple farm boy next door.

(Yes, I do think there is a Halmark Christmas Movie ass romance story waiting to happen here, don't judge me)

Gruff and Vladimir know each other. They know each other far too well. Two bosses of different families, families with some less than savory business practices. Vladimir moved into town from the old country, and muscled in on Gruff's turf. The two hated each other at first, constantly plotting the other's downfall, until they discovered a mutual desire to protect their family. Gruff has his niece Chevre, while Vladimir has his granddaughter Meagan. They saw eye to eye, at least enough to not try and kill the other. It more became a game to them, and soon they covered for each other from the cops. Gruff came to the island first, mostly as a way to finally get out of the city, but wasn't alone for long. Before she moved away, Meagan tipped Vladimir that Gruff was at the island, and he soon followed. Now they take pot shots at each other in the form of old man banter, sometimes with graphic murder plots, and no one can really tell if they're joking or not.

(This is the part you're gonna have to go with me on this)

Marina and Cephalebot are an unlikely duo. She claims that he's her younger brother, but everyone can see there's something off about him. He's adopted, but from where, no one knows. Except the family (There's so few octopi villagers I just like to think they're all a family, okay?). Marina found him in a crater in a corn field, with no memory or understanding of where he was. So, she decided that was brother material enough. In reality, Cephalebot is an alien probe. He was sent to Earth to study the local life and report back (kinda like Eve from Wall-E), but crash landed. He felt welcomed and loved by the family that helped him, so he decided to stick around. So, he lives as a resident of the planet he was meant to study, constantly learning how to vibe as an Earthling. He comes across as weird and a little invasive, but he means well. Marina, however is all that she seems on the outside. She is sweet, she loves pink, and she's the big sister everyone would want. She's also surprisingly handy with a screwdriver (because she's learned how to repair Ceph if needed). Marina came to the island as a perfect beach house spot, noticed all the bugs and fish in the area, and called Ceph to join her because of how much he likes studying the wildlife.

Drago is the heir to a powerful family (either business or actual royalty I can't decide), but does not have a cutthroat bone in his body. He's gentle where his parents are ruthless. He gets called an idiot and soft all the time, and no amount of "training" ever makes him a cruel person. He had enough one day, and bailed. He took some money, some snacks, and left. He found the island as the perfect escape from his family, and set up shop pretty quickly. He gets a little nervous around some of the stronger personalities, but quickly warms up when he realizes none of them are as vicious as the ones he left behind. He hangs out with Clyde at snack time, helps Shino with her performances, and even likes listening to Vlad and Gruff's old man ramblings.

Shino is not of this realm originally. She was a demon, summoned by a jealous actress to sabotage her rival. She took on the mortal form she now inhabits as a way to get closer to her target, but something else captured her interest. She fell in love with the stage, with the attention she received for her own skills. So, she ditched her contract and set to travel the world as an actress in her own right. She writes plays and poems, and performs them for whatever audience she can find. She moved to the island for similar reasons as to Julia, to refresh and get some new inspiration. She found that she liked it there, and has made an unlikely friendship with Drago, an always willing audience member.

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If quite literally any of that was interesting to any of you, feel free to reblog or add your own thoughts. It was nice to finally just dump all of those ideas out there.

[themousefromfantasyland]

The Creatures of Yuletide: The Hidden History of the Christmas Goats

How Christians allowed pagan goat symbolism into their sacred holidays

Back in 2020, I started a series of posts here called Creatures of Yuletide, diving into the strange world of the creatures and magical figures that are said to appear during the holidays. However, there were some creatures and some interesting pieces of lore that I left unexplored, so now that I’m on my break from college, I’m thinking about bringing the series back for this holiday season.

I consider this piece a companion to my posts about Krampus, the Yule Goat, and the Companions of St. Nicholas, explaining things that I got wrong or thought were left unclear.

Let's start with my biggest complaint about the portrayal of Krampus in modern media: Why is he always a villain?

Originally an obscure character of regional European traditions, Krampus exploded in popularity in the late 2010s, quickly becoming a stock villain in cheap Christmas horror films, usually portrayed as a common demon or as a demon doppelganger of Santa Claus.

The fact is, that the tradition of Santa Claus started with St. Nicholas appearing on the eve or right on the day of his feast distributing some sweets, oranges, and nuts to children. However, these treats were only for good children. The bad children received a visit from a scarier and more threatening figure that would follow the saint. Usually, this figure would be represented by someone in fur clothes, with horns, and with a mask or a painted face. Depending on the region and country the identity of this dark companion varied.

In Austria, he was our demon Krampus

In Germany, he was a scary man called Knecht Ruprecht.

In French, he was Père Fouettard, Father Whipper, a dark figure connected to a butcher that killed three children in St. Nicholas’ legends.

In the low countries he was the controversial Zwarte Piet, where instead of a demon or a creepy man covered in soot, he’s a black servant boy, represented by a white person in blackface.

If you take Krampus' depiction at face value it’s easy to see him as a villain, since his and all the other companions’ shtick is to threat bad-behaved children with physical punishment and dragging them to a worse place. But if you look at the origins of the tradition you see a more interesting and much more nuanced view.

The people of the Alpine region and central Europe, in general, had a tradition of dressing in fur clothes and wearing wooden masks with horns. That was deeply connected with Frau Perchta, another dark yuletide figure from the Alpine region that was a goddess before Christianity arrived.

Perchten is the plural of Perchta. Originally, the word referred to female masks representing her, but the name come to refer to the animal masks worn in parades and festivals in the mountainous regions of Austria.

People would masquerade as these devilish figures and march in processions known as Perchtenlaufs. The Church didn’t like these creatures and tried many times to ban these practices, but due to the sparse population and the rugged environments within the region, the ban was useless.

Now depicted as a simple Christmas ornament in Scandinavian countries, the Yule Goat and similar other figures were probably offsprings of this tradition.

When the Christians showed up, small bits of these traditions remained, as an act of resistance, but little by little these people started adding Christian contexts to them, and Christians begrudgingly accepted them.

St. Nicholas is the patron saint of children. His saint day falls in early December, which helped strengthen his association with the Yuletide season. A seasonal play that spread throughout the Alpine regions was known as the Nikolausspiel, "Nicholas play". In these plays, St. Nick would make questions about morality and reward children for their scholarly efforts. Eventually the Perchtenlauf, in an attempt to pacify the Church, introduced Saint Nicholas and his set of good morals.

During the 17th century, in Sweden, it was the costume that during Christmas or the Epiphany (The Three King’s Day), young men in costumes would walk between houses singing songs, enacting plays, and performing pranks. The Yule Goat would often appear in these pranks, usually as a scary figure demanding gifts.

Eventually, these animal costumes soon became boogeyman figures that would follow St. Nicholas in punishing bad children. From place to place, the shape and identity of the companion changed, in some places staying a demon-like creature like Krampus, in others becoming fully human, like Zwarte Piet and Knecht Ruprecht.

It’s also important to point out that in some places, the goat creature absorbed St. Nicholas completely and became the gift-bringer himself. That’s the case with the Yule Goat. During the 19th century, men would often dress as goats to give gifts to their families. In Finland, to this day, the word for Santa, Joulupukki, translates to "Christmas goat" or "Yule Goat".

So why did all of these people dressed like goat monsters during wintertime?

Protection of course!

Thanks to electricity and heating we tend to forget how unforgiven winters in Northern Europe were. Winter was considered a time of darkness and death, and similar to Halloween, there was this belief that during winter the barrier between the worlds weakened. It was believed that ghosts and other evil spirits and entities could come to our world. There were several stories about entire spectral legions bewitching and spiriting away people in the dead of night. People dressed in these masks and costumes to scare these evil spirits.

In the 16th century, the Perchten took two main forms: Schönperchten, "beautiful Perchten", or the Schiachperchten, "ugly Perchten”. The beautiful Perchten came during the twelve nights of Christmas and festivals to bring luck and wealth to the people. The ugly Perchten had fangs, tusks, and horse tails that were used to drive out demons and ghosts. Men dressed as the ugly Perchten during this time and went from house to house driving out bad spirits.

The Norwegian had the tradition of “Julebukking” or more correctly, “to go julebukk” (Gå julebukk). One man or many men from the community would dress in a goat mask and fur cape to represent the ghosts of a winter night. After that, they would go “trick or treating” from door-to-door receiving gifts from the towns folk to thank them for protection and keeping the winter ghosts at bay

Today, in some parts of Finland, the custom persists of people performing in goat costumes in return for leftover Christmas food.

From the Smithsonian Magazine: A man dressed in a traditional Perchten costume and mask performs during a Perchten festival in the western Austrian village of Kappl, November 13, 2015. Each year in November and January, people in the western Austria regions dress up in Perchten (also known in some regions as Krampus or Tuifl) costumes and parade through the streets to perform a 1,500 year-old pagan ritual to disperse the ghosts of winter. (DOMINIC EBENBICHLER/Reuters/Corbis)

Krampus and all the other Christmas goats aren’t evil. They are wild, but not evil. They aren’t even demons, that’s part of the Christianization and the demonization of them. In the proper context of their cultures, they are defenders of people, having their origins in a tradition that consists of scaring away malevolent winter spirits.

The idea of Krampus as the last remnant of a pagan world, protecting people from evil spirits that the modern world forgot existed, to me, sounds much more original than another cheap Christmas horror movie where Krampus is the bad guy.

@ariel-seagull-wings @thealmightyemprex @amalthea9 @tamisdava2