#LET THE FUNKY LITTLE GUYS BE THEIR OWN ENTITIES

[kalloway]

tumblr’s feeling pretty dead for me (in terms of engagement) anymore so i don’t feel so shy about sharing this dumb Bloodborne art i did back in november im never gonna actually finish lmao

it’s for a fic i haven’t finished (or even posted) yet... there is a trend here 🙈

anyway Micolash is the slug man, change my mind

[indigovigilance]

Sovereignty, Citizenship, and the Bookshop

Credit to @flameraven for scripts

Read on Ao3 at: Sovereignty, Citizenship, and the Bookshop (1702 words) by indigovigilance Summary: The rules regarding who may enter the bookshop, and who may give others permission to enter the bookshop, are revealed by events rather than exposition. Parallel themes surround the Bentley. In this meta I generate a theory of sovereignty and citizenship as it pertains to the Bookshop, and what that implies about a statement Crowley makes and Aziraphale's final decision in S2E6.

What actually is the Bookshop?

First, Aziraphale explains to Crowley:

S2E5: AZIRAPHALE: We're perfectly safe in here. Technically, this bookshop still counts as an Embassy.

But then, speaking to Shax, Aziraphale further defines the bookshop:

AZIRAPHALE: Out of the question. Might I remind you, that this bookshop is technically an independent embassy. Being a former outpost of Heaven, and as such…

Which doesn't actually make any sense.

An embassy, by definition, is a satellite of another larger nation. It is usually the residence of an ambassador, and is considered the "soil" and jurisdiction of the home country, regardless of where it is in the world: "An embassy is considered “foreign soil,” meaning that it operates under the jurisdiction and laws of the home country, not the host country (the country where the embassy is physically located)." [ext source]

So an embassy, by its basic definition, cannot be independent. It's an oxymoron. I'll interpret this to mean that the Bookshop constitutes its own nationstate (and that Aziraphale just doesn't say it that way because he's a funky little guy).

Bookshop: A Sovereign Nation of Two

There has been extensive discussion about why Crowley seems never to have told Aziraphale that he was living in his car, and why, if/when Aziraphale figured it out, he didn't say anything about it. (I wrote a meta discussing how we know that Aziraphale knows by the beginning of S2E4 that Crowley is living in his car. Additionally, in S2E6, Aziraphale doesn't seem to look particularly surprised when Crowley announces to the room that he's tired of living in his car; you can interpret this as being distracted and phased out but I don't think Aziraphale is ever so dissociated that he would miss a statement like that and simply not react. So by then, he certainly knows.)

I posit that Crowley did not ask to move in and would have refused to do so even if offered for one very simple reason: moving in would have made him a citizen of Bookshop, and therefore a point of vulnerability for Aziraphale. Because as he explains to Shax in S2E3, he can't technically invite her in:

SHAX: if you won't let me in… CROWLEY: Not technically something I can do.

Of course, Crowley is a demon: he could be lying. But let's take the statement at face value, since Shax, also a demon, who seems reasonably familiar with the rules of entry, doesn't question it. So Crowley, by never establishing citizenship, ensures that he can never be coerced or tricked into letting anyone into the Bookshop. He maintains his foreign entity status on purpose to protect Aziraphale.

One more note, in passing: Crowley stays at the shop in S2E3 and S2E4, but he has been charged by Aziraphale to "mind the bookshop, and Gabriel." His role is more akin to a house-sitter than a houseguest. He's there on work visa, and it does not establish citizenship.

So Crowley isn't a citizen of Bookshop. But someone other than Aziraphale is.

S2E1: MAGGIE: I can be out of here in two weeks. AZIRAPHALE: Out of here? Why? Don't you like it anymore? MAGGIE: Oh, Mr. Fell, I love this shop! I've loved it since I was a baby. But I know how behind I am on rent. (…) MAGGIE: You can't just forgive me eight months' rent. AZIRAPHALE: Oh, I can. I'm very good at forgiveness. It's one of my favorite things. Now, you have paid your rent, I have my music, and I know exactly what I'll be doing for the next 21 minutes. [he giggles and leaves] (creepiest most disturbing giggle in all of cinematic history BUT ANYWAYS)

We've established that Maggie not only is a tenant of land owned by Aziraphale, but that her accounts are all paid up. Her citizenship (or at least, permanent residency) is secure. If simply renting out the space wasn't enough, we learn that she is a fourth-generation resident of the space owned by Aziraphale, which started inside the bookshop itself, and so Maggie may have been born into citizenship. Either way, the consequences of this arise in S2E6:

AZIRAPHALE: Maggie, what just happened? MAGGIE: I… I think I might have just told them they could come in.

Crowley can't tell demons that they can come in. But Maggie can. My explanation for this is because she actually lives (and is up on her rent) in a territory of the nation of Bookshop. It could be posed that Maggie can invite demons in because she is a guest of the ball, and so this is a temporary power, but Crowley was a "guest"/house-sitter and didn't have this power, so I reject this explanation and affirm it as a citizenship/residency power.

The Metatron's Offer

At time of writing, the fandom has spent two months trying to figure out why Metatron offered Aziraphale the job of Supreme Archangel. Was it to get him back into Heaven where he can keep a closer eye on him? Was it to get him away from Crowley? Did Metatron realize that he is a wellspring of power and wants to tap into it for nefarious purpose?

I'm going to propose a different, much simpler reason: he needed to get Aziraphale out of the bookshop. To explain that, we look to a line that Crowley delivers during the Conversation:

CROWLEY: I mean, if Gabriel and Beelzebub can do it, go off together, then we can. Just the two of us. We don't need Heaven, we don't need Hell, they're toxic. We need to get away from them, just be an us. You and me, what do you say? AZIRAPHALE: Come with me… to Heaven. I'll run it, you can be my second in command. We can make a difference. CROWLEY: You can't leave this bookshop.

Hang on, didn't Crowley just say that they should run off together? Why is he now saying that he can't leave the bookshop? These statements seem contradictory, but through the lens of sovereignty, they're not. You see, if Aziraphale goes off to Alpha Centauri without rejoining Heaven, the Bookshop still belongs to him and constitutes the sovereign nation over which he rules. It is the anchor and touchstone of his independent status. What ever new residence they establish will, in turn, be an embassy of that "independent embassy." The Bookshop then (I hypothesize, and posit that Crowley does too) grants Aziraphale protection from Heaven and Hell no matter where he is in the universe.

A Brief Aside on the Mechanics of Satellites

We have some evidence that Bookshop rules extend to wherever Aziraphale happens to be "residing," in that when Aziraphale borrows Crowley's car, Shax must trick him into giving him permission to enter (S2E4):

HITCHHIKER: I'm so sorry, can you be an angel and give me a lift? Only m-my car's broken down and my phone's dead. Just to the next town, there's a garage there. AZIRAPHALE: Oh… yes, well… I suppose you better climb in, then.

Thus establishing that, theoretically, Crowley and Aziraphale could "go off together" and still have the protection of the Bookshop.

The Consequences of Aziraphale's Final Decision

Crowley tells Aziraphale that he cannot leave the bookshop, but then we know that Aziraphale takes the job and ascends to Heaven. Metatron looks extremely relieved. No sooner do they ascend than Muriel enters the bookshop, where we know Metatron has placed them. Let's take this point by point.

The Bookshop is no longer a sovereign nation

By rejoining Heaven, Aziraphale has reclaimed his citizenship as an angel of Heaven. I'm going to go ahead and say (for sake of argument and because it is thematically consistent) that Heaven does not honor duel citizenship. Therefore, Aziraphale has given up his citizenship of Bookshop, but as it still belongs to him, it is now territory subject to the jurisdiction of Heaven. Muriel has been placed there as a representative of Heaven. Having been (we can surmise) the only "independent embassy" in existence where both angels and demons had to ask permission to enter, it is once again a good and proper embassy of Heaven.

This is important because now, neither Aziraphale nor Crowley have any place to go that is protected from both Heaven and Hell.

Muriel has unfettered access to Aziraphale's collection of books

My very simplistic theory for why Metatron went to so much trouble to get Aziraphale to cede control of the Bookshop is that he needs access to his collection of books. Specifically, he needs a certain Scrivener who enjoys reading to set up camp there and peruse every single book. This is because he is looking for something.

Gabriel left Heaven with a large box; he arrived at the Bookshop with an empty box. We can punt around all sorts of possible reasons but let's say, for sake of conjecture, that Gabriel stole the Book of Life on his way out to protect himself and Beelzebub from erasure. We don't know where the Book is now, but Metatron (who doesn't know the box was empty) has good reason to believe that the Book of Life is somewhere in the bookshop. But it's too dangerous to admit that they've lost track of it, so the best way to find a Book in a bookshop is to get the owner out of there, install an avid reader as steward, and wait patiently.

Other consequences of this theory of citizenship

We are given to believe that Crowley and Aziraphale are both outcasts of Hell and Heaven, respectively, yet Aziraphale seems to be the only one of them that benefits from the protections of independence. We could say that it is because Aziraphale owns land, and so that allows him to establish a nationstate, whereas the Bentley does not, but since Aziraphale brings the protections of independence with him when he borrows the Bentley, that seems flimsy. I find it more likely that in S3 we're going to learn something about Crowley that explains why he lacks these protections, and if I dare to make conjecture, it will be the subject of another meta.

I didn't get around to a discussion of the consequences of Aziraphale throwing his halo and "declaring war," or that war declaration being maybe-cancelled by Crowley; suffice to say, that may again be it's own meta.

~~~

If you enjoyed this, you may enjoy: Honolulu Roast: the story of a coup

another meta on the topic of ownership re the Bentley by @ineffable-endearments can be found here.

~~~

edit: I was reminded by @rekishi-aka to note that in S1, Gabriel and Sandolphon walk right in, because at that time the bookshop is an embassy of Heaven. For all of S2 except the final 30 minutes, celestials all have to ask permission to enter, including Michael, Uriel, Saraqael, and Muriel, because the Bookshop is independent. After Aziraphale throws his halo, celestials just appear inside the Bookshop: by declaring war, Aziraphale has relinquished his protection. It's unclear whether it would have been reestablished by Crowley cancelling the war, but it's a moot point because then Aziraphale agrees to become the Supreme Archangel.

[hydrxnessa]

YOUR DOORS CONTENT BRINGS ME SUCH OVERWHELMING JOY ,,,,,,,,,,,

plsplspls tell me abt Halt . begging on my hands and knees TELL ME YOUR HCS PLEASE PLELELEPSPELWPLALDLSOPlsls

AAHHH THANKYOUU ;; <33 MEANS A LOT TO MEE !!! im so glad ppl are enjoying my funky doors phase sketches ^^

halt hcs? bouta whip some up in a whim (i've been mainly focussing on designs rather than their actual personalities lol, the hcs i've said before are probably subject to change)

(also i am Not used to writing headcanons, i'm usually on the receiving end of them so writing them is gonna be a wild ride for me x'p bear with me here)

halt's hallway is its own domain to control! similar to a dreamscape, halt can control the appearance of its hallway, giving it the ability to REALLY mess with people's heads. it hasn't discovered the scopes of what it is capable of, but distorting the sound and giving its victims vertigo is seemingly enough.

halt can only do this in its own hallway! the only 'dizzying powers' it has outside of its room is its ability to give the flight/freeze response to whoever it touches (making people immediately panic and flee from the area/freeze). sadly it can't control it and sometimes unwillingly gives it to someone just wanting a hug :[

despite its jokester nature, halt is actually a polite and well-mannered fella! will not hesitate to drop whatever its doing (unless its pranking someone) to help with whatever you need!

halt likes to lurk in the shadows of the hotel. most entities probably got used to seeing halt's blue eyes in the dark corners and would go like 'haha. funny, halt. you got me.' . halt took advantage of this and placed two little blue lightbulbs that look like its eyes in random corners. let's just say halt won many staring contests this way

yknow that cinematic trope where a character appears to be moving to the side of the screen (towards off-screen) and a second character is looking at them as they move, only for the first character to somehow appear right behind them? halt does that. a lot.

as for relationships with other entities - halt isn't very close to many. probably closest with guiding light since it's not affected by its 'fleeting' touch. that doesn't mean entities don't like halt!! they just try to keep their distance from it, and they find halt to be a nice entity anyway :]

when ambush chases its own tail, halt joins alongside it. then rush joins. then its a three-man tail-chase fest (if .. you count halt's lower half as a tail)

i may think of more later but that's what i have rn !! halt is a funky fella w its joking yet polite nature but sad isolation from contact w others :[ poor guy

[sad-little-ghost-hunter]

The Professor and The Genie: A Full Breakdown

Welcome one and all to A Comprehensive List of All The Genie Lore In Puppet History, With Theories. If you aren’t familiar with what I’m talking about, go watch all of Puppet History made by @wearewatcher on YouTube and come right back here. No dilly-dallying. For those of you who are, you’re probably also aware of the recurring character of The Genie on the show, whose role has been the subject of much speculation among the show’s audience. I couldn’t find a compilation of references/ theories, so I made one! 

The show, which tells somewhat obscure stories from throughout history, accompanied by a special guest each episode and a musical number at the end of each tale, is hosted by The Professor, a little fuzzy blue puppet, who commonly references The Genie, with whom he holds a deep-rooted grudge. I will be going through all the existing information on this guy so far, and discussing a few theories as to what all this is about. It’s like my very own BuzzFeed Unsolved except I’m just one very bored person with way too much time on her hands. 

Let’s compile all of the currently known information: on April 10, 2020, in the video entitled, “Surviving The Titanic: History's Luckiest Woman • Puppet History” the Genie is first mentioned, at 16:10, in a question about what Violet Jessop saw while peering off of the ship. The answer choice reads, “A Genie??????????????????” 

On August 14, 2020, in the video entitled, “How America’s First Female Detective Saved Abe Lincoln • Puppet History” the Genie again comes up, at 23:04, in a question entitled “What’s the matter?!?”. The answer choice reads, “The secessionists had found a magical genie!” The pattern was starting to emerge. 

On September 4, 2020, in the video entitled “The Disastrous 1904 Olympics • Puppet History” the genie is once again mentioned, at 5:06. The genie is referred to as “fickle” and apparently keeps making things worse, no matter what the Professor says. From this we can gather that the genie may have gone back on some sort of promise he made to The Professor, and is escalating the situation. 

On September 11, 2020, in the video entitled “Isaac Newton's Nemesis • Puppet History” the genie is mentioned in an answer choice at 6:45, reading “A genie that will stop at nothing to make my life a living hell, even though I followed his silly rules to the letter and I don’t owe him anything.” Clearly, things with the genie are only getting worse. The genie is harboring some sort of grudge against the Professor, be it the Professor’s fault or not. The Genie also provided rules for something-- we’ll return to this later.

On September 18, 2020, in the video entitled, “The World’s Greatest/ Rudest Samurai • Puppet History”, The Genie once again comes up in the answer choices at 24:52, as “A genie who insists I owe him, and I wish I had a wish left so I could wish Musashi were here to teach him a lesson.” Once again, we see evidence that the Professor may have made some sort of deal with this genie, and whether or not he fulfilled his end of the bargain is still up in the air.

On September 25, 2020, in the video entitled “Policarpa: The Revolutionary Teen Spy • Puppet History”, the Professor makes not one but three references to the genie! We get so much lore here! First up, at 1:05, Ryan Bergara asks The Professor how old he really is. The Professor responds with this: “Yeah, you know, you start jumping around in time and things get a little funky…”. Just a few seconds later, the Professor says, “Well, if you could ask the subject of today’s story, which, how could I, it's not like you can just wish to be able to time travel…“ The pain in his voice here is apparent, devastating, and very real. Lastly, later on in the video at 20:05, The Professor gives the following answer choice to the question, “What happened?” (to Policarpa). The choice reads, “A magical genie meddled once again with history, and turned Policarpa in, and tried to pin the blame on a bespectacled puppet, who is at this point starting to suspect he may have made a deal with the devil.” Now here’s where things get real interesting. The Professor is now alleging that not only is the Genie out to get him, but the Genie is actually influencing history. 

On October 2, 2020, in the video entitled “The Grisly Journey of the Donner Party • Puppet History”,  The Professor goes on a longer than usual tangent about the genie at 18:38, saying, “He had cached a trove of treasured items, including a magical lamp that only a creature about the size of a human hand could get to, and inside the magical lamp was a Genie, capable of granting any wish, up to and including turning a seemingly everyday item into a secret time machine, but that if you wished for that, THE GENIE WOULD BE A TOTAL PRICK ABOUT IT, SO MAYBE BE CAREFUL WHAT YOU WISH FOR.” The genie appears in a short montage of clips, with the professor’s above monologue in the background. The genie shown is just Shane in eyeliner and an Aladdin-style genie costume, cackling and looking mischievous. The professor rubs the lamp in the skit, and the genie does that evil villainous hand thing, and casts some sort of spell. There’s a lot to break down. First up, we may have gotten a glimpse into the Professor’s actual past here. It seems as though at some point in his life he was either told about, or found out about this cache of treasure deep in the mountains, that only a creature about the size of a human hand could get to. This is important because it debunks one of the most popular theories circulating the internet right now-- that the Genie somehow turned the Professor into an immortal, time-traveling puppet. The Professor was clearly already a puppet, as he had access to this treasure trove. Next we get the part about the time-machine. If we can assume that the Professor is projecting his past experiences onto the poor guests on this show, we can surmise that the Professor used his wish to wish for one of his ordinary objects to turn into a secret time machine. We will delve more into this later. 

Finally, on December 25, 2020, in the video entitled “The Story of St. Nicholas • Puppet History”, The Professor goes on another rant about the Genie in the answer choices, saying “The same curse that eventually befalls all of God’s creatures-- an evil genie was pursuing him through time and space to steal something the genie himself had made magical!” From this we can gather that, after the Professor wished for his time machine, the Genie gave him some rules and conditions he had to agree to. The Professor may have broken these, hence why the Genie is pursuing him across time and space. 

Now that we have all the existing information, assuming I didn’t miss anything, let’s get into the theories. 

My current, working theory is that The Professor happened across this lamp somewhere deep in the mountains, and wished for a Time Machine from the Genie inside. The Genie (who appears malevolent in the Professor’s flashback, but I’m gonna chalk that up to personal bias) agreed, but gave the Professor some conditions and rules to follow regarding the Time Machine. The Professor agreed, and promptly broke these rules. The Genie then demanded something in return-- This could be the Time Machine itself, but given Shane’s twisted mind I would assume the Professor owes the Genie something more. Perhaps… his soul?

Or maybe just a fine, I don’t know.

The Professor refused to pay up, possibly time traveling away to hide from the Genie, and is now on the run. A fuzzy blue fugitive. But, the Professor also mentioned that the Genie actually meddles with history, and tries to get the puppet in trouble for stuff he didn’t do. This begs the question; why would the Genie resort to a relatively harmless source of mischief to target the Professor, instead of just taking whatever is owed to him? This almost implies that whatever it is the Professor owes the Genie has to be given willingly. Hence, why the Genie is making his life “a living hell”. 

The puppet also seems to be immortal, or at least old enough to not remember how old he is. In his words, time is “funky” when you travel around it too much. 

We also don’t know which of the Professor’s objects could be the Time Machine. Some have speculated (some being me) that it’s his satchel, or hat. But, when you think about it, it seems most likely that it’s actually the theatre itself. The Theatre does often seem to transport you back in time to the actual stories, although that could just be Watcher’s killer editing skills. Either way, the Time Machine seems to be a source of great trouble for the puppet, so maybe just… get rid of it?

There are 2 main schools of thought here, in my own opinion. The idea that the Genie is in the wrong, and is relentlessly torturing this poor Professor for no good reason, or the idea that the Genie is actually justified in his anger at the Professor, and that the Professor brought this on himself. 

Theory #1: The Genie is a malevolent entity, and tricked the Professor into making an unfair deal with him. This is clearly what the Professor himself believes, or wants us to believe. The Professor says, and I quote, “starting to suspect he may have made a deal with the devil.” If this is true, and the Professor is actually on the run from the Devil himself, then that would imply that the Professor sold his own soul for this time machine, the most commonly referenced deal with the devil. However, since that would be a little far-fetched even for Shane (although, let’s be real- would it?) we could go with the second option- the Genie is just a Genie, but he did trick the Professor into making a bargain with him, and the Professor still believes he has held up his own end of the deal. 

Theory #2: The Genie is just doing his job, and the Professor’s the one at fault. Now I don’t want to take any sides here, but this does seem to be the most plausible theory. Even the Professor, on several occasions, has implied a set of rules that he agreed to when he wished for his Time Machine. What these rules were we may never know, but the Genie clearly thinks that he broke them and is now owed something. Historically, in folklore from all over the world, Genies are tricky creatures, and will try to deceive you into wishing for stupid stuff, or agreeing to things that you maybe shouldn’t agree to. However, in almost all cases, if you manage to outsmart them, or keep your word, they will leave you alone. Let’s say The Professor knew what he was getting himself into when he wished for the Time Machine. He agreed to the rules, and he understood that if he broke them he would owe the Genie something. Yet he went ahead with it, and now the Genie is after him. He clearly broke the rules and the Genie is just collecting on his bargain.  

All in all, we don’t have enough information yet to actually know what this Genie’s DEAL is (see what I did there). Is the Genie an evil being trying his very best to ruin the unlucky Professor’s life? Or is the Professor the one who wronged the Genie, breaking his word and escaping via Puppet TARDIS? The answer will remain… Unsolved.

[ocean-stuck]

A very long ??? post (+ some Arthur stuff)

Thinking ‘bout the scant information we have on ???, and what that might tell us about what it is plotwise and thematically.

So. ??? has exactly 3 appearances in the entire series. The Ghost flashback, the opening of Freaking Out, and...

well, you know.

These are all pretty brief, and they don’t really give any insight into its motivation (if it’s even sapient enough to have one), but its mechanics are readily apparent and there is the faintest scrap of backstory implied in Future, more on that later.

For now, let’s talk possession.

??? seems to gravitate toward the emotionally distressed. Envy may or may not be a preferred one, given Arthur’s mental state in the Ghost flashback and the association of green with envy (with the release of nearly every video, I’d spot at least a few not-very-sharp-eyed casuals who dismissed the green of Arthur’s possession as symbolic and failed to realize ??? existed at all; Future is the only one where this hasn’t happened, since at this point it’s literally impossible to miss). More notably, it also appears drawn to interpersonal distress, to people whose relationships are deteriorating. Both of its (sapient) targets, Arthur and Mystery, are at points of social turmoil when it enters them, and both, for varying reasons, opted to bottle their issues rather than discuss them.

(Also, this bat no one cares about. Presumably non-sapient stuff is easier by nature. I mean, it commands that hand just fine.)

This also speaks to how ??? manages to overwhelm Mystery so easily, compared to Arthur who lasted long enough for Mystery to forcibly excise it and was aware throughout, despite the former being an ancient and powerful nine-tailed kitsune and the latter a normal human. Arthur is lonely from being the third wheel and not wanting to hurt anyone’s feelings by talking about it. Mystery is bleeding out, has just watched his ex-partner possibly die (or so he believes) at the hands of his ward, who herself has just been seriously injured by said ex, and in trying and failing to prevent that same nightmare scenario has left the guys unattended, who last he saw one was trying to murder the other. Like not to invalidate Arthur but there’s a bit of a gap in severity here.

(image by artsy)

That still leaves some questions, though. How did it reach Mystery from such a long distance? Last we saw it, it was loitering outside the cavern. It could’ve followed Shiro, if not for the fact that it’d’ve had to keep pace with a high speed car chase while moving entirely on foot (hand?). Why is it still attached to the hand at all when it could surely find some random animal with less awkward means of locomotion? What was it doing at the cavern in the first place?

I’ve seen people speculate that remaining in the arm lets it remain connected to Arthur via his prosthesis, and while there’s definitely something fucky about that thing this seems strange to me as an explanation. The prosthesis consistently sparks yellow, Arthur’s own color, rather than green, with the only exception being while in direct contact with Lewis (pink). Speaking of, the prosthesis seems drawn to Lewis when active, which would be odd if ??? was trying to do harm through it since...what could it possibly do to a near-invulnerable ghost with power over fire and lifelike illusions using the body of a relatively fit but still normal human?

It could be that Mystery sealed it in the arm to prevent it from doing further harm, and this binding slipped as he became physically and emotionally vulnerable, while also giving ??? a magical line to Mystery for it to exploit. It’d answer the distance question as well.

I think there’s more, though.

I’ll save myself a paragraph or two and just plug this edit of a certain Future shot for the nth time.

Each stream seems to correspond to some form of harm done to a person significant to Mystery. We know or can intuit half of them (though this doesn’t seem to be the first time Vivi/Mushi or Shiro have been seriously harmed); the others, while not explained, match the rest of the cast’s secondary colors (which itself raises questions)...except green, which isn’t linked to any of the major characters except ???.

Has there been some deeper history between ??? and Mystery (haha rhyme) that we haven’t been let on until now?

Loved ones appear to be connected in essence as well as emotionally, at least when supernatural beings are involved. This essence can be drawn on and tracked.

Shiro uses this to locate people, though still has to physically travel in order to reach them. But ??? is a different sort of entity; it may be that it has more direct access to Mystery’s soul as an incorporeal being.

After all, one can affect someone at a distance with their essence on hand.

(??? being familiar with Mystery would also recontextualize this little surprised reaction it has to Shiro; it knows who she is, rather than just being wary of her as a stronger entity.)

This possibly points to a deliberateness to its actions in the Ghost flashback, to what happened being more than happenstance. But there’s still too little information to discern why, if so. Revenge for something? Power? Possessiveness? Was possessing Mystery the endgame the whole time? If so...now what? Why did it still linger around the cavern after the fact when everyone except Lewis had gtfo’d?

There’s not really anything to go on vis a vis motivations, so I’m not really gonna pursue this line further.

Some Funky Fresh Thematic Stuff

If Ghost can be said to be a cautionary tale about failing to communicate one’s emotional needs, ??? could be thought of as the interpersonal havoc that results from letting such issues stew too long.

Arthur keeps quiet about his loneliness and ends up vulnerable to ???. Mystery intervenes to prevent ??? from doing further harm, but by then the damage is done. What was once a typical relationship hurdle has become a full-blown traumatic event that creates a rift between the gang, particularly between Arthur and Mystery and between everyone and Lewis.

Furthermore, sealing ??? doesn’t stop things from collapsing, only prolongs it. Lewis is hurt and pissed and literally comes back with a vengeance. Shiro, one of Mystery’s failed pacts, is drawn into it trying to force him into whatever relationship they used to have. The mistakes of the past catch up, and Mystery’s loved ones nearly eat each other alive.

And at the end of it...??? is back.

I think if the gang wants to make it out of this one, it’ll take them confronting their pains and the ways they’ve failed each other in order to reconcile. By extension, I think saving Mystery is gonna be an everyone deal (including Shiro, who seems to be slowly waking up to her mistake when Vivi vibe checks her), though I think one in particular is likely to shine.

Arthur, the least assuming one of the main cast, the last person to have fallen under ???’s spell, who inadvertently enabled the plot through his insecurity, and also the one who’s bent backwards the hardest trying to fix what’s been broken since.

It’s like...poetic or something.

Also, I want an excuse for Arthur to do electric magic.

[laszlowrobinson]

A playlist that your character would actually listen to

It didn’t say to describe why they would listen to these songs, but I did it anyway because while idk anything about music I like to rave about it lmao

Spice Up Your Life - Spice Girls 

I mean the Spice Girls were and still are iconic spelled to sound like eye-con-eek. They were a good chunk of his childhood to adolescence since they WERE the 90′s. So not only is their music just, you know, great, it holds a very nostalgic place in his heart. I mean he for sure watched Spice World and didn’t give a single shit that it makes no sense. It didn’t need to, it was the Spice Girls hanging with aliens and chilling out on the bus in their iconic fashion. Anyone in that movie he will reference as their character from that instead of like oh Hugh Laurie from House MD? NO, it’s Hugh Laurie, Poritot from Spice World. Oh Stephen Fry? From Gosford Par? NO, it’s Stephen Fry, the Judge from Spice World. 

Anyways, while he would and does put their entire discography on, I’m putting this one in particular because it’s such a bop!! And their anthem. When the bitches were back for the 2012 Olympics, while they may have opened with Wannabe with choreography, (except Victoria who literally stood there Posing, the icon) they really went in with Spice Up Your Life okay, they rode around that stadium ON the cabs while singing it!!! It’s 100% the song that will pick him up off the floor. 

LA DI DA - EVERGLOW

What a song??? Holy SHIT. It may be only like a month old in its life span but it Hits, so it gets a spot on this playlist because as soon as I heard it I was like, “Laszlo would be obsessed.” It’s a bop, it’s a jam, it’s everything he could ever ask for in a song. First off, the production on it is just so good!!! The beats HIT and the clapping behind their vocals picks it up to another level. And that part where they like lmfao aggressively grunt?? after “Everglow forever let’s go.” amazing, brilliant, stunning, absolutely the best thing he has ever heard before. And then the VOCALS!!! The talent!!!! Like the range between all the girls is astounding, and I don’t just mean their vocal range. I mean ALL of it, the singing, the rapping, the power and then pulling it back for the softness until they come back to make heads bop for the chorus. Whew!!! Just such a good, pump up song that he can bop around too and that’s his favorite kind of music!! 

Gimme! Gimme! Gimme! (A Man After Midnight) - ABBA but the Cher Cover 

No disrespect to ABBA because Laszlo loves them, but he looooves Cher and while he would ALSO play her entire discography, this song just hits different sung by Cher in 2018 in her beautiful, earthy voice. And she did it so tastefully. She respected the original song by not turning it over into something completely lost to the track but it still felt like she was putting her own magical Cher-y blessing upon it as if it were her very own song. It’s like the perfect crossover??? He probably had an out of body experience listening to her cover album of ABBA and then going to see her in Mama Mia! 2. Plus, like, this song is also his life lmfaooooo where is his man,,, @ god (who is Cher, as confirmed on Will and Grace.) 

I Know A Place - MUNA

Not only is this song just...so good...but the lyrics of it really hit home for him. Like??? “Don’t you be afraid of love and affection/ just lay down your weapon”??? ow bitch. But it is a celebratory song!!! It’s about being able to be whoever you are and not having to worry about getting hurt or dealing with the bleeeh people of the world because they’re going to a place that’s safe and accepting, and that’s in LGBT+ spaces. And there are a lot of people who don’t feel safe and who are having to hide themselves, but this song is providing them a little slice of heaven to be themselves. It also serves as a reminder that there are places were you can be safe and happy and yourself and you will be accepted!!! And that’s just such a lovely message, and for music like this to be out there in the world for the youth makes him so happy! And the music itself is so funky and absolutely something that one can dance to. It has those places that slow down...and then HIT for the bopping around for the hype of the chorus!! UGH! and Katie’s voice still being sort of haunting really just brings it on home. This song is so good!! Stream MUNA!!!!! 

Paparazzi - Lady Gaga (TW: fake blood from 3:20-end of the video) 

I’m linking the 2009 MTV performance because I’m going to say that this was his first exposure to Lady Gaga and holy shit was it life changing!!! This was everything. Like the performance art of it really came for his throat. Spoiler alert: when the blood started pouring from her chest and the crowd like gasped and groaned??? It was a Cultural Reset!! She was singing her heart out and going all out on that choreography. Her foot up on the piano as she slammed the keys??? The set design?? SO GOOD! And her dancers? Shout out to them, because damn they really did that. So, not only is the song amazing, he will always associate it with hearing it to this performance and it is still such a good song!!! The lyrics are insane. She did this when she was 23, only a year older than him, and boy did it light a fire under his ass. 

And it also serves to keep him humble lmfao. Even though he isn’t Famous famous like his other family members he does have his own little corner of fame and can’t be out here falling in love with the attention. 

Coisa Boa - Gloria Groove

Honestly, anything Gloria Groove puts out is pure gold to his ears. They don’t have to go as hard as they do, but they do it anyways! The really pronounced instrument that’s going on? Their singing??? Going from rapping to hitting that note at the end of “Quer papo de ousadia?” absolutely sends Laszlo off the rails. Like, there’s no other way to describe their style than Iconic. It’s fun and fighty and gah! So good!! Also it just being about getting the Squad and going ham is just, chef kisses. Again, his favorite songs are things that get him moving and grooving, and this ones ticks all the marks and so much more. One day they will release an album and on that day someone should check to make sure Laszlo is still alive. 

Toxic - Brittany Spears

I mean what is there to say. The song is iconic, it came out when he was like 17. It was everything and still holds up today. The production on it still just boggles the mind. That like eeeeee sound??? The spy music break in the middle of it?? And the video!!! Art. The fact that she did the back handspring during the laser bit really just made him go insane. Cultural reset from the pop queen of the time. Turned him into a bigger Britney fan. Everything about it is so good. Another nostalgic one, but !! it still holds up baby!! If this is played he is legally required to perform. 

El Mambo - Mon Laferte

Her voice is just?? out of this world. Laszlo is a huuuge fan of everything she puts out but this one really just took him out. Like she can hit some powerful vocals and that’s what the beginning seems like they’re counting up to, but when she came out of the gate just rapping about this guy who needs to get over himself, woooowie. And then she comes back for that mambo sound in the chorus and her beautiful voice going In, ugh. UGH. It’s so good!!! She is amazing and the instruments on this one really highlight that as well as making it groovy enough to dance around to as we say goodbye to toxic men and their overwhelming jealousy!!

Too Little Too Late - JoJo

I’m linking to the 2018 version because JoJo re-releasing all her music so that she can get the cash money from HER music is...stunning, amazing, love her and love that for her. This song was yet another cultural reset. And you know what, she just got better. Her vocals kick ass and the lyrics are still just as good as they were when they first came out. That high register run she does toward the end??? Okay?? go off!!! Another song about a wonderful lady kicking a man out of her life and becoming better for it. also she JUST came out with a Christmas album so go stream it. 

Endless - Frank Ocean

Now this is the whole album because, honestly, that’s how it’s supposed to be listened to. There’s also the visual element that you’re supposed to watch while listening, but since that’s like no where to be found since Mr. Ocean’s people snatched it all up from the internet unless you want to buy it off Apple, this is all we get to work with. Which is fine, honestly. ANYWAYS, this whole album is just so beautiful. And no one really knows the full story behind where it came from or why Mr. Ocean made it, and that’s a whole over layer as to why Laszlo adores it!! Not only is the music stunning but the mystery surrounding it gives him life. Frank Ocean is another artist that he could press random on the entire discography and be happy with whatever decided to play, but THIS album is his favorite from the man. It may seem like the outtakes from Blonde but to Laszlo, they all feel intentional. It’s like peaking into a sketchbook versus the novel of Blonde, and that appeals to him!! There is a certain effort that needs to be put in to listen to it by finding it. So it’s that little bit of extra artistry that makes this album hit different than the others, plus the songs, though some very VERY short, are all GREAT. Every song has this sort of improv feeling almost? but feel effortless like all his other music. Some of them are really short, just snip bits of a song, but they don’t feel that way with how they flow together and cut one another off and it’s just a weird entity of music that feels fleeting and yet...endless. 

[crinkliedfries]

Okay, so this is just using what i’ve already written and what i already know for a fact is going to happen, so certain (minor) things are subject to change. (also, for my own and others’ sakes, i’ve bolded and italicised certain points to make it easier to read) 

So: Pluto, the embodiment of death, the Raven, you know. I love that funky little omen of death, however-- 

We’re here to examine how they interact with the story and characters (hopefully).

To start off, there are at least six other definite “Spirits” (Pluto, death; Beowulf, war/anger; Rumpelstiltskin, greed/famine; The Pied Piper of Hamelin, punishment; Captain Nemo, adventure; and Time, time). We could start off with saying that Pluto readily calls them siblings even though none of the are actually related (it’s more in an adopted-family sense of the word, though none of them have no parents and the idea of family is more of an illusion to most of them, especially for a while), which shows that while they almost definitely don’t often get along (See: initially not wanting to let the other main characters meet the group, arguing with Beowulf about the stories she’s taken, not even wanting to acknowledge Time for a while, trying to avoid and ignore Rumpelstiltskin until it becomes obvious that they can’t) they do care for them and don’t necessarily wish too much ill will towards any of the others. Pluto is, at their core, a caring entity, even though it’s taken thousands of years to get to that point (although it is very likely that this, especially in the beginning, comes from a place of self-interest and almost selfishness). 

Which takes us to character before the story even starts. For those that know the basic idea of the stories, you know that things like The Tell-Tale Heart, The Black Cat, The Fall of the House of Usher, and the Cask of Amontillado end in someone dying. So do Strange Case of Doctor Jekyll and Mister Hyde, Frankenstein, Romeo and Juliet, and Hamlet. (which brings up a point for later). This implies that Pluto has previously (and fairly recently, all things considered) been a cruel entity that allowed these people to die, possibly working with The Pied Piper to teach these characters lessons in ways that they would not be able to learn from. It is very likely that they have even gotten joy out of such things (implied [and possibly explicitly stated] in conversations that haven’t yet been written with Annabel Lee/Lenore/Ligeia/Rowena), but something happened. Now, their motivation is to keep as many characters alive as possible while still having the idea of the stories play out vaguely as they’re supposed to (which is almost impossible, when you consider quite a few things and the way that death is a theme that runs through most of/all of the stories mentioned). 

When we initially meet Pluto, it is likely that they are having some sort of crisis/are beginning to come out of one (“Enter Pluto, wearing sunglasses and dressed in a very loud button-up and garish pants, a hat on their head, an instrument slung across their back, and a coffee in hand. They are very obviously out of place.”) and they have an introduction that is similar/mirrors The Raven, which shows that they are still influenced by the stories/the fact that they are the embodiment of death and have very likely internalised this part of who they are. They have named themselves Pluto (see: Roman god of the dead, the planet that was cast out, etc. etc.) but have also given themself a middle initial (although it should be noted that they don’t quite understand the idea of middle names, as their middle initial stands for one of their other forms) and a last name (Ulalume, named after a poem that focuses on the idea of loss). 

They are aware of what has to happen (“Pluto. Hello, I’m Pluto, and… did you really start without me? 

Montresor. I’m sorry, what? 

Pluto. Alright, well, this is a bit less than ideal. 

Montresor. What? 

Pluto. Right, right. Where is Annabel Lee? 

Montresor. She’s dead. 

Pluto. Ah, ah, alright. And Lenore? 

Montresor. Dead as well.”) 

And they’re act almost inconvenienced by this (“You all started without me and now I gotta figure out where we are. You said Annie’s dead, right?”). The next time we see them, they’re ready to start and get going, still attempting to work out how to stop everyone from dying. Throughout the story, they remark on how Montresor doesn’t have to resort to murder and even try to help the other group that is trying to find him so that they can help. 

When Montresor sends them away, they immediately go to Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland (which could be argued to have some themes of death, because of the idea of “murdering the Time”), and is even the one to help point Alice in the right direction (but again, could be considered as another way that they are ultimately going back to their initial form, seeing as they point her in the direction of someone who has “murdered the Time” and because of that is stuck at tea-time, the idea of the “painting the roses red” possibly being a symbol for the War of the Roses, etc. etc.). They choose to go to a fairly light-hearted story in which death isn’t something that doesn’t actually occur too terribly often (it is threatened often, and referenced, but isn’t actually done, and is talked about in a less than serious manner) and then they go and cause mischief in various other places (they likely go to Waiting For Godot when it first starts and cause them to wait longer, spark the conversation in Play, help blow Odysseus a bit of course, egg Medea on [but also like. I love Medea so that’s just something that happens], etc.) and then they go to the other group to get help. 

Bringing up a point from before: the Shakespeare plays. In the second part, we find that Pluto has gone to Much Ado About Nothing to help Beatrice/Benedick (and, by extension, Hero/Don Pedro/I guess Claudio) as well as has now taken over Alice’s Adventures In Wonderland (a story which Time was originally supposed to have) and has recruited Hatta (a character that Time and arguably the Pied Piper had both specifically supposed to have been dealing with, not Pluto) to their “team”. They have also recruited a certain Sherlock Holmes (known for faking his death/escaping death). It is later discovered that Pluto was supposed to be on either (or both) Hamlet and/or Romeo and Juliet (when they’re arguing with Beowulf). (on another note: because they were both abandoned, it’s almost comical because by abandoning them the Spirits have caused the stories to play out exactly as they had before). 

It should also be noted that Pluto is described as singing off-key, which is something that is likely often done on purpose on various occasions. Pluto later admits that they cannot actually sing a song that has to do with something they have not experienced (basically: for a long time, the only song they could play was Dies Irae [part of a joke]), so when they sing A Dream Within A Dream it is very likely that while they are remarking upon both Montresor and their own crises, they are also attempting to cheer him up by not doing so in a perfect way. When Pluto later hums Dies Irae, it is unmistakable and almost causes the plants in a nearby vicinity to die, except that they put all the force they can into keeping them alive--which brings up another point: 

The amount of power Pluto has. So far, the power hierarchy seems to go (from most powerful to least): 

Pluto Ulalume (death) 

Time (time) 

The Pied Piper (punishment) 

Beowulf (war/anger, and on the flip side of that same coin peace) 

Rumpelstiltskin (famine/greed, and on the flip side of that coin prosperity/charity) (this isn’t to say that either Beowulf or Rumpelstiltskin aren’t powerful, Time and The Pied Piper have just been more busy with one specific thing and because of that are considered to be more powerful) (also, Rumpelstiltskin rates lower because they are a gremlin that mainly just tries to inconvenience others and often forgets that they, you know, have Actual Abilities That Would Be Difficult To Stop that they could use for said inconveniencing) 

Captain Nemo (adventure) (he’s just kind of got a ship. He’s doing his best, but. All he’s really got is a ship and probably some harpoons.) 

Pluto, very obviously, is at the point in their life when they are less than a fan of the abilities they have, and as such choose to rarely use them. It is later revealed (likely by Beowulf or The Pied Piper) that, while they do not realise it, simply by being death they are also life, because neither can exist without the other. (but it should be noted that this does not mean that they can bring back the dead). 

Now, another thing I’ve considered: how does Pluto compare with other versions of death that can be seen? 

If you go by The Book Thief’s version of Death, he’s weary. He’s tired and doesn’t necessarily like his job, but he does it. If you go by Death in Good Omens, he’s very much “not one of the guys” (because while the other three horsemen may change with the time, death very much does not) and omnipresent. He’s serious and doesn’t necessarily push the apocalypse happening--he goes with what happens, leaving when the other three horsepeople have been sent away. 

This isn’t the first time I’ve gotten my grubby little hands on death tried to write with a character that is the embodiment of death--the one that’s most easily remembered is John, a version of death from another wip. I very much enjoy taking these things and putting them on their heads and messing them up, so when I was working out the Four Horsemen (all named some variation of John, because I Am Very Done With This Family [i don’t even know how to give context. I wish i could.]) I tried to consider what they were and what they meant, and how a person might react to having to deal with those things (because they were, ultimately, at one time people, and have to deal with the effects of that). Eventually, they all became characters that were aware of who they were and what they would have to do, but, for the time being, wanted to help as much as possible. Pestilence was a doctor, doing what they could to help the sick and injured; Famine donated food, money, and supplies to people that needed it; and Death did similarly. The Death (John) from that wip and the Death (Pluto) from this one differ in how they deal with who they are, while still choosing similar paths, except that John was like that from closer to the start, while it took Pluto what could be thousands of years (not including possible “Returns” [still working out what to call them]) to come to who they are when we meet them in the story. 

Tl;dr: pluto has changed very much even before the story starts, and while secretive about their identity, later tries to help people. They don’t even realise the full extent to who they are, because they focused so much on one specific aspect that they didn’t consider other possibilities. 

[lamiralami]

TMA Retro 5: Thrown Away

Come on and get funky with your fellow feral trash pandas, it’s garbage day in MAG 5: Thrown Away

if MAG 4 was a hearty meal that needs time to digest, MAG 5 is a light and crunchy fortune cookie

(with a tooth in the centre)

which is good! it was a savvy decision to have the meta plot build so slowly over the first season. sometimes the thought of getting into something with a huge, complicated, mysterious narrative is...preemptively exhausting. but the format of singular spooky stories within a slowly illuminating enormous web eases you in, tricks your brain into getting invested despite itself. you know, like being in a pot gradually coming to a boil  🙃

this one is very self-contained indeed. I don’t even think anything in this statement ever comes up again. just get in, get spooked by a pile of teeth, get out

still, we are left with a lingering question: Which Fucking Entity Did This?

no but seriously. it could be so many!

the doll parts remind me of the Stranger, and it does come up later how much they like to play with teeth.

but then, piles of body parts would suggest the Flesh?

the metal heart sounds a little too elegant for them though (lest we forget, the Flesh ritual could have been called Hole Vores Some Meat. not sure coppersmithing is precisely their style)

could also be a bit Beholding? the whole mess would have been avoided if they hadn’t looked in the bags. Kieran talks about how bin men are privy to the secrets of those on their routes. and both he and Alan feel a compulsive need to look further into the odd disposals, an urge that leads Alan to his assumed end.

or even, maybe, just a whiff of...the Extinction?

yeah, almost certainly not.

but.

there has been garbage imagery linked to the Extinction, in MAG 149.

and this quote stuck out to me: “People have an odd mental block - this idea that as soon as they put something in the bin it’s gone. It’s officially been made rubbish and no-one will ever see it again. [...] it’s gone, far beyond all human understanding.”

maybe it’s just recent reports that make me think about this blind spot about garbage in relation to the catastrophic mess of climate change, which certainly feeds the Extinction if it’s not a manifestation of the same. a world without us, built on what we’ve left behind - that would involve a lot of trash.

okay, it’s definitely a reach. but hey! the fact that  I can make a bullshit English paper of an argument for almost any of the powers being present is in itself a good example of the entangled nature of the entities.

a thing I love about TMA is all the background detailing. the individual world building lets the statement givers breathe, makes them feel like real people. the statements become a wee window into another life.

my little T. rex arms mean I’ll never be a London bin man, but now I, too, have strong opinions about proper garbage etiquette. Solidarity!

“You can throw away a mountain of grotesque porn and, as long as you’ve tied it into neat bundles, we’re fine with it, but if you throw away cat litter without properly bagging that, you’d better believe that you’ve earned the hatred of every bin man that ever slung a sack. Still, I’m getting off topic.

Point is, the bag of dolls heads didn’t bother me.”

WHAT a transition! Gold star! ⭐

I might just have a high threshold, but the bag of doll heads doesn’t strike me as...phenomenally weird? I dunno, hang out with a few artsy friends and suddenly any mass collection of objects is dismissable as part of some demented craft project.

and then there’s the Latin Lord’s Prayer streamer. ordination party clean up perhaps?

singed edges say maybe the Desolation. they do have a cult, they’re at least pseudo-religious...

...but the Dark have a church...

god, are multiple players just - using this house as a communal dumpster, in order to fuck with some garbage men? for no real purpose other than to be Chaotic Spooky?

that

that would be extremely On Brand for almost everyone

“[...] I realised that the others were waiting for me to pick it up - I’d picked up the others, and apparently this was how it was done now. It almost felt like a ritual.” well now it probably is a ritual because your own awful human brains imbibe everything with meaning! we did this to ourselves!!

“There was something about this, beyond anything else I’d encountered, that… I don’t know. It drew me in almost as much as it disgusted me.” even on top of the near possession he experiences reading statements, this part has got to resonate pretty deeply with Jon

(and yet he still doesn’t take note that this guy survived by NOT investigating further and his coworker disappears BECAUSE he ran off to investigate on his own, he got obsessed and then his heart got ripped out and alchemized into a fairly valuable amount of haunted copper, you ever want to reach back in time and shake a fictional academic until he listens)

but anyway, speaking of said copper: hope your buddy who works the medical incinerator just did you the favour without opening the package. copper scrap sells for a pretty penny, and a big chunk of it goes a long way since it’s primarily used in wiring. so. yeah, might have us an epidemic of eldritch electricals out there.

every time Jon bitches nastily about Martin is so delicious. a nutritious meal, rich in irony. “[..] at least it got Martin out of the Institute for an afternoon, which is always a welcome relief.” you spend the entirety of season 4 barely holding back tears because Martin is out of the Archives, you absolute windchime.

I’m weirdly bothered we don’t know which tooth is in the bag. you say there’s 2,780 examples of the same tooth but you don’t tell us which one it is? incisors? canines? this will haunt me forever you bastard

it does my head in that this statement seems so clearly to be inspired by this truly cursed news coverage...except that article is from 2018 and this episode came out in 2016 🙃🙃🙃

[katesmemes]

feel free to change any pronouns, etc. || may contain some nsfw!

I just let the music come from my soul

It don't matter if you're young or you're old

Now you see what I'm talking about

I'm gonna show you what I'm talking about

Now it's time to get funky

How low can you go?

Tonight's the night, let's live it up

I'm doing my own little thing

Don't pay him any attention

You can't be mad at me

If you like it, then you shoulda put a ring on it

I got so caught up I forgot she told me

She's all up in my head now

On a one-to-ten she's a certified twenty

How the hell am I supposed to leave?

I won't stop till I get em in they birthday suits

I'm bringin' sexy back

I think it's special, what's behind your back

I'll let you whip me if I misbehave

It's just that no one makes me feel this way

Let me make up for all the things you lack

I've had a little bit too much

Where are my keys? I lost my phone

I love this record, baby, but I can't see straight anymore

How'd I turn my shirt inside out?

Don't try to fight the feeling

Separate's always better when there's feelings involved

Are we still in denial when we know we're not happy here?

I'm just being honest!

What's cooler than being cool?

I want to see you on your baddest behavior!

Shake it like a Polaroid picture!

The whole club was lookin' at her

Ain't the same when it's up that close

Cash ain't a problem, I know where it goes

I tried to be chill but you're so hot that I melted

I fell right through the cracks

Look into your heart and you'll find love

We are just one big family

I won't hesitate no more

Three, six, nine, damn you’re fine

Whoa, am I gonna fit in?

Everybody's looking at me now

I guess I never got the memo

It's like I waited my whole life for this one night

There's no one else that matters

I won't let you fall

I keep you with me in my heart

You make it easier when life gets hard

I'm lucky I'm in love with my best friend

I'll wait for you I promise you, I will

I couldn't see how every sign pointed straight to you

I'd like to have the time I lost and give it back to you

When I leave for the night, I ain't coming back

Ain't got a care in the world, but got plenty of beer

Ain't got no money in my pocket, but I'm already here

The party don't start till I walk in

A little gambling is fun when you're with me

When it's love, if its not rough it isn't fun

I won't tell you that I love you

It's always better when we're together

You look so pretty sleeping next to me

If you don't have to go, don't

Do you know what you started?

Don't you feel the passion ready to explode?

What goes on between us no one has to know

I don't understand just how your love can do what no one else can

If you ain't there, ain't nobody else to impress

You're making a fool of me

You got me sprung and I don't care who sees

I'm so glad you have a one-track mind like me

I'm always gonna wanna blow your mind

Time changes everything, life must go on

I'm not gonna stand in your way

A place in my heart will always be hers

I've been losing so much time

I can't keep my eyes off of you

All of the things that I want to say just aren't coming out right

You've got my head spinning

Everything she does is beautiful

I can go for miles if you know what I mean

I'll be burnin' rubber, you'll be kissin' my ass

You're probably gonna start a fight

I know this can't be right

I want to see you out that door

I just want to tell you that I've had enough

I wonder if I ever cross your mind

I need you now

Guess I'd rather hurt than feel nothing at all

I don't wanna think anymore

I don't wanna talk anymore

Sorry, I cannot hear you

I'm kinda busy

The way you blowin' up my phone won't make me leave no faster

I shoulda left my phone at home ‘cause this is a disaster

Without you it's hard to survive

Every time we touch, I get this feeling

Every time we kiss I swear I could fly

Well maybe I'm in love

Can't stop thinking 'bout it

How much longer will it take to cure this?

You have my heart, and we'll never be worlds apart

Took an oath that I'mma stick it out 'til the end

Know that we still have each other

You can stand under my umbrella

You're part of my entity, here for infinity

It's okay, don't be alarmed

I'll be all you need and more

I hope you never lose your sense of wonder

God forbid love ever leave you empty handed

Whenever one door closes I hope one more opens

Promise me that you'll give faith a fighting chance

When you get the choice to sit it out or dance, I hope you dance

Don't let some Hellbent heart leave you bitter

You know, this isn't the first time this has happened to me

A girl like me don't stay single for long

I'm so glad I found you

I love being around you

I've broken my heart so many times I've stopped keepin' track

I get all worked up than I let myself down

I tried so very hard not to lose it

You change your mind like a girl changes clothes

I should know that you're no good for me

Used to laugh bout nothing, now you're plain boring

I should know that you're not gonna change

It's five o'clock somewhere

This lunch break is gonna take all afternoon

I ain't had a day off now in over a year

It's always on five in Margaritaville, come to think of it

You been there haven't you?

A guy like you should wear a warning

Do you feel me now?

I'm addicted to you

Don't you know that you're toxic?

Long as I'm with you it really don't matter

Put your pretty little arms around me

I'll take you home if you don't leave me at the front door

This feeling's tearing me up

I saw you dancing and I couldn't get you off my mind

I was thinking of ways to get you to stay tonight

Turn me on so I can turn off the lights

It don't matter to me, we can dance slow

They ain't got nothin' on me

I wanna dance with you

Best believe I'm number one

I made you believe we're more than just friends

Can't you see I'm a fool in so many ways?

Before you go, there's something I want you to have

Oh, it's beautiful, but wait a minute, isn't this--?

Aww, you shouldn't have

[outofoxygen]

NEW - A nice game for cute children.

Before I begin: This review is more professional than my last (Elsewhere) as I feel NEW deserves my respect and consideration more than Elsewhere ever has. Now then, I shall review NEW.

By the way, yes, I am back. I will work on more reviews. But I won’t follow a schedule that is easy to understand in any vague sense, and I’ll just write reviews about what interests me at the minute. (Quick after-post edit to add tags here.)

                                    [ S P O I L E R S   F O R   N E W ]

                             [ P L A Y  N E W  I F  Y O U  H A V E N ‘ T ]

Part One: Foreword

Oh boy, a new form of padding. Now then, to preface this, I will warn you that I do enjoy NEW, and that I don’t wish its creator ill will, I afford them all proper respect, and I’m not going to talk about Mr. Evan Vasejeff (The creator of NEW).

Part Two: Plot Synopsis

The Batter is back, this time as a Prophet instead of a savior. This time, he has the goal of rendering all the Zones ‘safe’ instead of ‘pure’.

Zone 0 introduces us to Valerie, who is written better than HOME. I’ll write further about him in the Characters section. After a few puzzles, we head off to Zone 1.

Zone 1 is mostly similar to OFF, except Dedan is missing and replaced by a overweight idiotic chef. This chef (named Gabriel) is introduced to be malevolent and idiotic from his first appearance, all the way to his last, where you render him into a bloody corpse.

Zone 2 turned into a more pathetic hellscape than usual, with the nice aesthetic addition of a Japhet corpse on the roof. By the way, the Mall looks beautiful awful now. The game introduces a red herring (Oedipus, a little girl whom The Batter ends up beating to hell and back) before you meet the final villain, Angela, an insane spirit infesting a mannequin that The Batter summarily destroys.

Zone 3 is this time played backwards, with The Batter going from Area 4 to a mythical Area 0. All the while, you are pestered by Sonovan, an odd-talking priest and general narcissist, who eventually fights The Batter, is beaten, quickly jacks up Valerie (just play the game if you want to understand this better), then gets killed by The Batter, who mercy-kills Valerie at his own request. You then go and defeat Gazmel, who is, in his own words, Satan.

Zone 4 (or, The Echelon) is a miserable hellscape that is actually just a part of The Room, maybe. You meet ‘Vincent “Ivius” Corsacoff the 2nd’, who I shall permanently refer to as ‘Ivius’, as his actual name is incredibly long and annoying. So you head onto a roof, where you talk to Ivius, going on to fight him, before inevitably winning, and going to The Room itself.

Of course, The Room is a strange mindnumb I won’t be going into too much, as I feel like getting this poor-quality plot synopsis over with.

Part 3: Characters

The Batter - As I mentioned, he’s a prophet instead of purifier. His goal is to make the zones ‘safe’ instead of ‘pure’, and he seems to be more mellowed out now. On occasion, he interrupts himself before carrying on with a thought (ie. he comments upon Oedipus’ mention of comics named ‘Batteur and Boxxer’ by stating “What kind of trite do you read? "Panic in Ballvile" is obviously-” before cutting himself short and carrying on the dialogue.) and generally, The Batter seems altogether more.. human than before. Other than that, he is mostly the same character as before, and still a bat-wielding protagonist.

Valerie - The cat we (don’t really) know from OFF. I can state something about NEW’s characterization of Valerie: It was executed very well! Mortis Ghost has stated that Valerie was more soft-spoken and shy than The Judge, and NEW does indeed follow through with Mortis Ghost’s stated character of Valerie. He comes across as a shy, introverted, socially awkward cat, and that altogether works very well for him. He’s also the new Guardian of Zone 0.

Zacharie - I’ll say more in the Merchants category.

The Judge - Our favorite, eloquent cat! .. except, he’s taken Hugo’s place. Also, unlike Hugo, he’s not that nice. Or innocent, really. He’s become corrupt with absolute power over the world, and as such, has used his raw powers of creation to muck about, creating demonic feline entities known as Jury, which replace Secretaries in NEW. Of course, the implications of this are quite large in scope, and will take up a portion of the Lore section.

Part 4: Music

I will state this immediately: This fangame has some incredible tracks. These include: My personal favorite, Awesome Miniboss, Crying Girls Part 1-2 (which are actually samples of Is Dancing Till Her Head Explodes, from Alias Conrad Coldwood’s album Crying Girls), Dented Helmets on TV, Stay in in Stay (A remix of Stay In Your Coma), and Funky Bucket of Nasty Noises, among plenty others. Its soundtrack complements the game, and it’d be an incredible mistake to play it without listening to its excellent tracks. One warning for headphone users though: the miss sound is awful, and it’s rather loud in comparison to the other sounds.

Part 5: Basic Enemies

The enemies in this game are well-designed, with inventive competence names and lovely art. They’re well-made, and this fangame clearly had a lot of care put into it. However, I have never had to grind so much in my life. The enemies are rather harsh, and you will suffer. Before anyone tosses an ‘git gud’ in my face, I did. After a while, The Batter will be so high-leveled that bosses fall in a heartbeat against his bat’s blows and his add-on’s.. cuts(?). Now then, on to the next section.

Part 6: Merchants

I think everyone reading this knows of my distaste, my violent hatred of fangames using Zacharie as a merchant? So, who is the merchant of NEW?

.. this guy. Zacharie. But, just look at his face. Look at that face. I.. I can’t be mad. To be honest, I found this incredibly amusing. I simply cannot be mad. His face.. It’s absolutely hilarious. Zacharie is absolutely ridiculous in this fangame, and I cannot be as vitriolic as usual. Sorry.

Carrying on, I almost feel like NEW mocks Zacharie in a way; outside the mall, there are two statues of Zacharie with his mask as how it originally looked. What does The Batter have to say about this? “A statue of Zacharie when he looked less pathetic.” All throughout the game, The Batter insults Zacharie. Here’s another line of this, as an example: “I'm tired of this wild goose chase. I've went through one too many things. One of those horrific things being friends with Zacharie.” Finally, Zacharie repainted the mall an awful pink color, which The Batter is clearly disgusted by, including making a comment about Zacharie having poor taste.

Altogether, I feel like NEW uses Zacharie in a way that I can’t be mad at.

Part 7: Lore

NEW takes place after the events of OFF. The Batter returns, and fights 4 Purifiers instead of 4 Guardians, and it seems the original 3 are dead. The world is a corrupted shade of a corrupted world; it is broken to the point of being unable to be fixed. One actually gets the sense that The Batter is righting wrongs, and fixing the world.

But, let’s talk about the position Hugo filled, and that The Judge fills. In the events of NEW, The Batter is looking for The Judge as he makes the Zones ‘safe’. It turns out The Judge has taken up the mantle of Creator and God, and has become corrupted by his new-found power. Which implies quite a few.. unpleasant ideas. If the power Hugo had can corrupt someone with as pure intentions as The Judge, was Hugo also corrupt? If NEW’s idea of how the next Creator takes power (basically, how The Judge offs The Batter) is correct, does that mean any number of individuals could become Creators in their own right, merely by killing The Batter at the apex of his quest?

But let us leave behind these thoughts, and carry on; we are nearly at the end, and I have more reviews to do.

Part 8: Does This Game Fit In With OFF?

Yes. I hold NEW as my personal pick for an unofficial OFF sequel, and I am proud in that. Its lore doesn’t contradict OFF’s; in fact, it follows the lore as closely as possible, and its lore, whilst small, is worthwhile to notice and consider. I believe that it adds on to OFF’s weird world.

Part 9: Conclusion

I hold this fangame in high esteem. I view it as an example of what one person, with naught but a computer and a dream, can achieve. In the end, though, I suppose NEW asks us a question. A very important one, and one I’ll state directly.

Would you like to start a new game?

[pokemonruby]

Top 5 ocs (no ties we rank according)

elias you're not supposed to make a parent choose between their children.

jevon... of course it's jevon.... i mean he's my overall main and as such, i've given him the most development out of all of them so it's only natural that he would be my favorite. but his concept is so nice... he's a fallen angel-esque entity with howl's aesthetic, a gentlehearted romanticist, and not to mention one of my beloved white-haired anime boys. he is pure self-indulgence and i love him for it. also he's gay as fuck and he and his darling husband, roxxy, invented true love.

TOMI.... he is an incredibly close second but i love him to pieces. he's just such a good guy! absolutely brimming with positivity! he's the human embodiment of sunlight and everything i aspire to be as a person! he also has rippling muscles and likes to wield gigantic swords like fucking cloud strife and he's so sexy for that. also his voice claim is miyano mamoru so could he get any more perfect.

elena.... my sweet daughter whom i would do anything for. she's just a funky little mage whose brash and crass demeanor completely contrasts her petite and bookish appearance. she has come an extraordinarily long way in terms of development too and i'm really happy with how her backstory & such have come about! but mainly i love her because she's the token comedy relief and isn't afraid to speak her mind... by that i mean i would advise keeping her away from children because she could put a sailor to shame. also lesbianism

xavier! they are essentially my mascot. they're just the human equivalent of the >:3c emoji; a renowned delinquent with a propensity for harmless mischief (most of the time anyway...) but they're also the kind of character who hides their deep-rooted pain with humor and fake smiles. one of the deepest, in my opinion, when it comes to their underlying issues and backstory, and has served as a good medium for myself to discuss my own mental health, if that makes any sense... but mostly they're just a huge meme and nonbinary icon and i love them for it. also has two boyfriends which is epic.

and last but certainly not least, my man leo... whose lore would take me several hours to properly explain but tldr he's probably the most important character in the universe of my story. he introduces himself as a traveling storyteller who is simultaneously far too carefree, and wise for his "assumed" age. knows more than he's letting on, there's a mystery hidden behind his cheerful visage... you get the picture. but he quite possibly has one of if not the most interesting backstory i have ever concocted, so naturally, he's up there among my favorites.

[tatooedlaura-blog]

Never Replace You

This third series reads as follows:

Shattered … Desolation … Determination … Us and Ours … Ratty Towels … The Sleepover … Skinner and the Punch … Oregon … Impossibilities … Something from Nothing … Out of the Car … Partners ... News

@today-in-fic

First series … Second series

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

“No. I’m just going to quit. It’ll be easier. What did you say I should become again? Cooker of books for your dessert shop?” Throwing himself down on the couch, he bounced up again, hand gripping his hair, yanking several times, pacing twice around the table before coming to a stop by the window, “seriously? How much math does a bookkeeper really need to do these days? There’re computer programs and calculators and sharp pencils. The accounting practically does itself.”

Scully wanted to throw a few of those sharpened pencils at him but she refrained, “would you sit back down, please?! You’re annoying the hell out of me and I’m already hungry. Just … sit … and be quiet.”

He did not comply, wandering the room instead, “we’ve read through every one of these backgrounds twice already and each one is worse than the last. I give up. They’re all terrible and dangerous and from what I can tell, not open to even the remotest of extreme possibilities.”

“Neither was I, Mulder, and look how well I turned out.”

“You have never once agreed with one word that’s come out of my mouth regarding anything in seven years. I haven’t convinced you of a damn thing.”

“But you’re still alive.”

He had absolutely no response to this and having the sneaking suspicion he may have somehow lost his argument surrounded by hypnotic voice and reverse psychology, he finally sat down, elbows to knees, “can’t I just deputize the Gunmen as one entity, have them dress all in black so they’re interchangeable and do some funky poaching in the dark of night with you monitoring the camera I have attached to my head? Is that so much to ask?”

“And what would their name be?”

“I don’t know … Frolangers, maybe?”

Scully really was going to hit him, “neither of us is good at diplomacy on an empty stomach. Do you know if we have anything for dinner?”

“Not a clue. We were arguing too much yesterday to remember to shop; I think we ordered from the diner.

“I want pancakes … and bacon. Lots of bacon.”

Knowing this evening would be shot to hell if he didn’t get some food in both of them, he moved again, wandering to the pantry and digging in, “we have pancake mix,” moving to the freezer, “and while we do not have any bacon, we have a crap-ton of sausage, what the hell, was it on sale or something, and a bag of chicken nuggets.”

Scully was beside him in a heartbeat, stomach angry, cravings real, “where do we keep chocolate chips?”

“Do we own chocolate chips?”

“No self-respecting Scully goes without at least one bag of them in the house.” Unearthing from a lower cupboard, she held them aloft, “chocolate chip pancakes it is. Find me a frying pan, please; if I don’t eat in five minutes, I’m going to pour the chocolate directly down my throat.”

She was scary.

It amused him.

Soon, pancakes were being doused in syrup and coated with a thick layer of butter, soggy as an eight-hour rain day with maple-y goodness. Scully, carrying her plateful and another bowl of sausages to the couch, settled in, eyeing Mulder’s plate as he devoured his first bite mid-route to his spot beside her, “you going to share at all?”

“Eyes on your own plate, Agent.”

“You have one more pancake than I do.”

His grin came on so suddenly that the sausage piece he’d just bitten off rolled from his mouth back onto the plate, “let’s negotiate at the end and I might be persuaded to give you a bite or two.”

“I’ll trade you some dessert for it.”

She was smiling all the while and he stopped mid-pancake cut, “we have dessert?”

And the smile shifted to mischievous in an instant, “you’ll like it.”

He gave her the extra immediately.

He was not disappointed by the five minutes of grinding followed by the 10 of straddling sex with files scattered and syrupy-chocolate kisses abounding. As she lay against him, putty in his hands, malleable and soft, exhausted and spent, he whispered in her ear, voice low, “I can never replace you.”

Snuggling deeper into his chest, she managed to find the words to tell him, “you have to because I can never replace you.”

Pulling one of the myriad of blankets heaped around the room over them both, “we will find someone tonight, I promise.”

&&&&&&&&&&

2am rolled up after another 20-minute turned hour 15 power nap and Scully looked at him with rimmed eyes, dark and exhausted, “there is not one person in here with even the remotest possibility of doing what we do.”

Hating to admit defeat, especially when he knew how much she had wanted to find at least one person in the pile, “we can go through them again, I mean, maybe something will jump out that we haven’t seen the last four times.”

She dropped her head back to the arm of the couch, feet wiggling until they were under his warm and cozy butt cheek, “that would just give me more of a headache and besides, if I didn’t like them the first time around, the fifth won’t suddenly, magically endear them to me, either.”

“Then we need to call Betsy, ask her to use her powers for good instead of evil and have her persuade Uncle Skimmer that he’ll have to be my partner until further notice but right now, we need to go to sleep.” Standing from their paper-whirled cocoon, he gathered bowls, stray dishtowels, candy wrappers and mugs, “because I need you and a bed and the feel of warm body and fuzzy flannel.”

Deciding defeat wasn’t so bad after all, she rolled off the couch, standing and swaying, “I can do that.”

He moved her down the hall, hands on hips, steering to clear a stack of shoes and a pesky doorframe, “What will we call it?”

“What?”

“Our donut shop? I was thinking ‘So Good You Could Donuts’.” A solitary chuckle told him he’d done good, “or maybe ‘Go Nuts Donuts’.”

“Just get in bed.” Finally settled, half-snoozed, half-mind-racing, “Donutty?”

“You realize that sooner or later, that will have to happen, yes?”

“G’night, Mulder.”

“G’Donut, Scully.”

&&&&&&&&&&

The following morning, after meeting Maggie at church and taking her out to breakfast, the pair of them yawned their way through coffee until Skinner showed up, having been called out for some other agent’s issue. Coming into the kitchen, he stopped when he saw them, “did I lose four hours from the front door to here?”

Maggie stood, kissing his cheek, “no. Dana and Fox came to church and took me to breakfast and now I’m trying to keep them awake long enough to finish their coffee before I send them for a nap.”

Skinner eyed the file carton innocently shoved in the corner of the kitchen, “up all night with those?”

Mulder nodded, “yeah. I’ve been through that stack so many times I can recite each file by memory.”

As he collected his own coffee and sat down, “find any?”

“No and therein lies the problem.”

Turning his judging eyebrow from Mulder to Scully, “you couldn’t talk him into any of them?”

“It was me, Walter. Mulder wanted to go through again and I just …” giving him an embarrassed look, “I don’t see myself trusting any of them.”

Skinner looked at Mulder, only half-joking, “what the hell have you done to her?”

Mulder decided to take the humor side and respond in kind, “do you really want to know?” That killed any type of serious mood as Maggie blushed, Scully blushed, Skinner blushed and Mulder continued, “anyway, we figured maybe you could look through them, tell us if you have any more info that might change our minds?”

He didn’t get up, instead leaning back in the chair, glasses removed for a moment or two to rub his eyes, “can you give me half-hour for a shower? I’ve been in Arlington most of the night with a rookie who shot his partner and is now backpedaling his story.”

Both nodded and once Skinner stood up, Mulder spoke, “I always forget you have other agents to deal with besides us. This guy hasn’t knocked us off the top of your ‘pain in the ass’ scale, has he?”

“Oh, no, Mulder. You two are too far up on that list for any mortal to reach.”

Once he was gone, Scully looked at her mother, “is he officially moved in here yet?”

“No sugar coating today, I see.”

Grinning at her mom over her edge of her mug, “just curious if I should start knocking on all closed doors from now on.”

“Yes, dear, please do.”

&&&&&&&&

They spread out the files in the living room until people began showing up and once everyone left again, the files came back out. By 10pm, Mulder had a headache the size of the Washington Monument, its pointy little end jabbing behind his eye, “I’ll work alone. I’ll just avoid cases where I have to travel and the ones around here will be background checks and witness follow-ups; hell, I’ll do other peoples background checks and witness follow-ups. It’s fine.”

Scully’s hand, already on his thigh, tightened its grip, “you will hate your job in under three days.”

“But I’ll love my kid and you forever so it’s not that difficult of a choice in the end.”

Skinner took one last shot, hoping to break one of them, “will you just talk to this Doggett guy? I knew a guy who knew a guy who knew him in the Marines and he’s got an excellent history.”

Mulder nearly caved but Scully spoke first, “and he’s got a rec letter from his friend in the DoD. He was a no even before we began this insanity.”

Skinner flopped back on the couch, hating them both … Mulder flopped back on the carpet, hating the world … Scully sat their quietly, eyeing her mother reading her book, “what do you think, Mom?”

Placing her finger in the pages, carefully closing the book but keeping her spot, signaling this would not be a long conversation, “I think that only you two can judge who you work with but if Fox needs a partner in order to keep you out of the field, I would like to vote that Walter goes on out of town assignments when you have them but for local work, keep it to your self-defined mundane nightmare of non-threatening inquires.”

She re-opened her book.

She did not look at Walter.

Walter, sitting there, felt his finely-honed decision-making skills caving to the reality of his personal life and looking from the man who irritated him to the ends of the Earth to the woman who was carrying the grandchild of the woman he felt certain he would eventually marry or at least live with for the next 70 years, realized that he had people he had to watch out for. Also realizing as well that this might only mean one or two trips out a month, he justified by labeling it field reacquaintance and skill improvement, “two out of town cases a month at most, understand?”

Scully stood, turned, wiggled herself in between her mother and Skinner, hugged him as awkwardly as possible from the side, “thank you, Walter.”

“You don’t have to hug me, Scully.”

“Is it making you uncomfortable?”

“Yes.”

“Another 10 seconds, then I’ll leave you be.”

When she finally let go, he discovered he kind of missed her.

[trickormemes]

The Conjuring sentence starters

136 starters feel free to change gender pronouns ‘read-more’ added for length content warning: suicide mention, violence

“It scares us just thinking about it.”

“When you hear us, you’re gonna think we’re insane.”

“It was moving around by itself.”

“Ever think that maybe someone had a key to your apartment and was just playing a trick on you?”

“Wait, you did what?”

“Miss me?”

“Ghosts don’t possess such power. I think what we have here is extremely manipulative. Something inhuman.”

“What’s an inhuman spirit?”

“It’s something that never walked the Earth in human form. It’s something demonic.”

“Demonic spirits don’t possess things, they posses people. It wanted to get inside of you.”

“Oh, god, we’re in the middle of nowhere…”

“What’s the matter with you?”

“Look what I found, _____.”

“No peeking!”

“Where should I hide?”

“That’s cheating.”

“Alright, what did we break now?”

“_____? What do you see down there?”

“Stop it, _____. It’s not funny.”

“Thanks for making this work. I know it’s a lot to bite off.”

“You still too fried to christen the new house?”

“And there was this really funky smell in my bedroom last night. Reeked like something died.”

“This is gonna take some serious elbow grease.”

“What are we gonna do with all this stuff?”

“Speaking of ‘knocked around,’ what did you do to me last night?”

“Feel free to look around. Just don’t touch anything.”

“Wow… This is crazy.”

“Everything you see in here is either haunted, cursed, or has been used in some kind of ritualistic practice.”

“It’s safer for these things to be in here than out there.”

“Sometimes it’s better to keep the genie in the bottle.”

“Oh, a non-skeptic. That’s a pleasant change.”

“Stop blaming yourself.”

“Stop grabbing my foot.”

“Shut up, I didn’t do anything.”

“And stop farting. It really stinks.”

“Don’t blame that on me. It’s you.”

“_____, what are you doing outta bed?”

“It’s _____. She’s in my room, she’s sleepwalking again.”

“I’ve never seen her do this before.”

“Shh. Let’s go back to bed.”

“Oh, no. _____, you got another bruise here.”

“Will you do me a favor, go see a doctor for that?”

“You’re my friend, right?”

“Who are you talking to?”

“When the music stops, you see him in the mirror standing behind you.”

“_____, you just gave me a heart attack.”

“Can we play hide-and-clap?”

“Oh, I know where you’re hiding…”

“I’m gonna get you now.”

“I can hear you breathing.”

“We’ll get through this.”

“Stop it, _____, it’s not funny anymore. I’m trying to sleep. Please stop grabbing my feet.”

“There’s someone behind the door.”

“It’s looking right at us…”

“Look, there’s no one—there’s no one here. See?”

“It’s standing right behind you…”

“There was someone else in here!”

“Well, _____, I’m pretty sure it was just a bad dream.”

“No! It talked to me! It said that it wants my family dead.”

“Why do you even try?”

“In fifteen years, have you ever been able to lie to me?”

“Maybe it’s just time we take a break.”

“You said that God brought us together for a reason.”

“So this place isn’t haunted?”

“Who is that?!”

“Who’s ever down there, I’m gonna lock you in now!”

“Okay, you can, uh, just sleep with me tonight, alright?”

“Somebody, goddamnit, tell me what’s going on in here!”

“Did you personally perform the exorcism?”

“There’s something horrible happening in my house. Could you come and take a look?”

“I’m so afraid this thing wants to hurt us.”

“I’m constantly turning up the heat, but the house is always freezing.”

“It’s gotten a lot worse the past few nights.”

“There’s this awful smell, like rotten meat. It moves around the house.”

“Look what she made me do.”

“You picking up anything in here, _____?”

“Something awful happened here, _____…”

“I’ve been seeing the dark entity that haunts your house and your land.”

“This entity has latched itself to your family and it’s feeding off you.”

“Sometimes when you get haunted, it’s like stepping on gum. You take it with you.”

“You have a lot of spirits in here, but this is the one I’m most worried about because it is so hateful.”

“I got you a present.”

“You know you can’t shoot ghosts, right?”

“You’ve actually caught things on film?”

“Well, this is where the witch committed suicide. She hung herself from that branch right above where you’re standing.”

“How could a mother kill her own child?”

“Give us a sign that you wanna communicate with us.”

“There’s definitely something here.”

“My hands are so cold.”

“For a guy who doesn’t believe, you looked a little freaked out when that door slammed shut.”

“They have such a beautiful family, don’t they?”

“We’ve gotta help them.”

“_____! Are you okay?! _____, open the door!”

“I woke up just feeling a little nauseous, that’s all.”

“I thought that was you.”

“I just wanna say thank you for coming out when you did.”

“Get outta here!”

“_____, we’re getting something.”

“There’s someone else in there with her. I’m hearing another voice. Listen.”

“Follow me. This way. This is where I hide.”

“She doesn’t remember a thing.”

“I know what she did! She possessed the mother to kill the child!”

“_____, are you gonna tell me what’s going on?!”

“_____, I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to scare you. I’ll explain later, okay?”

“I know it was some kind of warning. I know it.”

“_____, they don’t have a lot of time.”

“_____, there’s something wrong!”

“Get away from the door, _____!”

“You think I’m gonna let you walk into this alone?”

“Let’s finish this together.”

“If we take her out, the witch will kill her.”

“I don’t wanna stay here by myself!”

“Let’s get something to tie her up!”

“I have to do it. The exorcism.”

“Well, you got a better idea?”

“Damnit, _____, I’m not doing this with you in here!”

“Come here! Hold her still!”

“Don’t give in! Don’t let her take you!”

“Stop it! You’re killing her!”

“Understand this! We are now fighting for her soul!”

“Damn you! You leave my family alone, you hear me?! I don’t what you are, but you leave my wife alone!”

“She’s already gone. And now you’re all gonna die.”

“I found her! She’s under the house, under the kitchen!”

“No! _____, don’t! No!”

“By the power of God, I condemn you back to Hell!”

“You can’t give in!”

“Don’t let this thing do this to you, okay?”

“You gotta fight it. I know you’re stronger than she is.”

“You gotta stay with us, alright? Come on back, _____.”

“Remember that day you said you’d never forget.”

“You said they meant the world to you.”

“I am so sorry. I love you so much, I love you so much…”

“Ooh, a draft do that to your face?”

“I’d take a guy with a gun any day.”

“You did good.”

“Diabolical forces are formidable. These forces are eternal, and they exist today. The fairy tale is true. The devil exists. God exists. And for us, as people, our very destiny hinges upon which one we elect to follow.”

[voodoochili]

My Favorite Songs of 2020

With nowhere to go and nothing to do in 2020, I had plenty of time to listen to as much music as I could stand. Luckily for me and for everyone else, 2020 supplied an embarrassment of musical riches; the endless creativity of our artists providing necessary emotional support during the Worst Year Ever™.

I’ve compiled my favorite 100 songs of 2020. Again, I limited my selections to only one song per artist, but as you’ll see, I couldn’t quite stick to it this year. Narrowing the list down to 100 was a painful process, with many excellent songs left on the cutting room floor. 

Check below for Spotify playlists

Top 100 Songs of 2020: https://open.spotify.com/playlist/3ySKk19paBFgO698vw7HTs?si=-al-SyEsTqWzqKfmEraNFw Best Songs of 2020 (Refined):  https://open.spotify.com/playlist/1ET0aA5TPj5JDsUtosaCVv?si=MyDxjcXKQpy3SNs7dV0wIQ Best Songs of 2020 (Catch-All):  https://open.spotify.com/playlist/0XxtEo0PrNSyZDWBCjJtuR?si=pBZWRoNGSGWBCaqxJrHoyw

Without further ado, my favorite songs of 2020.:

25. Yg Teck - “What You Know”: Yg Teck has one of the more prominent Baltimore accents in rap music, elongating “ooh” sounds and shortening “er” sounds with reckless abandon. “What You Know” is buried towards the end of his excellent mixtape Eyes Won’t Close 2, but it stands out as one of Teck’s strongest songs. The buoyant piano-led beat offers Teck an opportunity to reflect on his struggle with heart-breaking directness: “So what if they hate me, sometimes I hate myself.”

24. Brian Brown - “Runnin” ft. Reaux Marquez:  Filtering the conventions of southern rap through his easy-going drawl and omnivorous musical appetite, Brian Brown is the brightest light in Nashville’s burgeoning hip-hop scene. Built around producer Black Metaphor’s circuitous jazz piano, “Runnin” is a soulful and poetic meditation on breaking out of the staid existence that can creep up on you if you stay still for long enough. Brown serves up the song’s irresistible hook and provides a grounding presence on his second verse, evoking the styles of two Tennessee rap titans: Chattanooga’s Isaiah Rashad and Cashville’s own Starlito.

23. 42 Dugg - “One Of One” ft. Babyface Ray: Detroit producer Helluva’s beats provide the tissue that connects the Motor City with the West Coast, creating anthems that mix D-Town propulsion with soundscapes perfect for a top-down drive down PCH. The Helluva-produced “One Of One” is an electric duet between two of the D’s most distinct voices: low-talking, whistle-happy guest verse god 42 Dugg and nonchalantly fly Babyface Ray. They trade bars throughout the track, weaving between squelches of bass to talk about the ways women have done them wrong.

22. PG Ra & jetsonmade - “Keeping Time”: The phrase “young OG” was invented for guys like PG Ra, who is somehow only 20-years-old. On “Keeping Time,” the South Carolina rapper spits sage-like wisdom about street life over Jetsonmade’s signature trampoline 808s, decrying nihilism and emphasizing the importance of holding strong convictions in a deliberate, raspy drawl: “Oh, you don't give a fuck 'bout nothing, then you damn wrong/Cause every soldier stand for something if he stand strong.”

21. Empty Country - “Marian”: After spending a decade as the main songwriter for Cymbals Eat Guitars, Joseph D'Agostino is an expert at crafting widescreen indie anthems. CEG is no more, but D’Agostino is still doing his thing, opening the self-titled album of his new entity Empty Country with “Marian,” a chiming and heartfelt power ballad with sunny vocal harmonies and a fist-pumping riff. It’s hard to make out the lyrics on the first few spins, but a closer listen reveals some striking imagery (“In a sea of Virginia pines/A burnt bus”), as the narrator imagines the life that lies ahead for his newborn daughter.

20. Raveena - “Headaches”: Raveena’s music is a soothing balm, capable of transforming any negative emotion into peaceful reverie. “Headaches” starts as a sensual, woozy, reverbed-out slow jam–typical Raveena territory, perfect for emphasizing the enlightened sensuality that she exudes in her vocals. The song mutates in its second half into an invigorating bit of dream pop, picking up a ringing guitar riff and a prominent backbeat as Raveena struggles to stay close to the one she loves (“There's no sunset, without you”).

19. Los & Nutty - “I’m Jus Fuckin Around” ft. WB Cash: In which three Detroit emcees receive an instrumental funky enough for ‘90s DJ Quik and proceed to not only not ride the beat but to fight so hard against it you’d think they’re training to get in the ring with Mayweather. I love Michigan rap.

18. Sufjan Stevens - “My Rajneesh”: I’ve never seen Wild Wild Country, or read about Bhagwan Shree Rajneesh and his cult, so I don’t know too much about the subject matter of “My Rajneesh.” I do know, however, that it’s a story that involves crises of faith and the state of Oregon, which means it fits perfectly into Sufjan’s milieu. “My Rajneesh” does an excellent job of relaying the ecstasy of a devout believer, layering celebratory chants, South Asian traditional percussion, and glitchy electronics into a 10-minute epic. As the song progresses, the sonic tapestry grows distorted, mimicking the emptiness that lies beneath Rajneesh’s surface and the darkness and confusion faced by his followers when the illusion fades.

17. Koffee - “Lockdown”: Leave it to rising dancehall superstar Koffee to find ebullient joy in a situation as bleak as quarantine. Weaving around piercing guitar licks and euphoric vocal samples, Koffee schemes to turn her lockdown romance (”quarantine ting”) into a long-term deal, fantasizing about travel with her love even as she’s content to just spend time in her apartment. Everything is dandy as long as they're in the same room.

16. Rio Da Yung OG & Louie Ray - “Movie”: Flint’s answer to Detroit’s “Bloxk Party,” one of the best rap songs of the past decade. Rio and Louie trade verses throughout the song, competing with one another to see who can be the most disrespectful.

Rio’s best line: “Ma don't drink that pop in there, I got purple in it/I know it look like Alka-Seltzer, it's a perky in it”

Louie’s best line: “Let me cut my arms off before I ball, make it fair”

15. Ratboys - “My Hands Grow”: “My Hands Grow” shines like an early-morning sunbeam, hitting that circa-2001 Saddle Creek* sweet spot with aplomb. But “My Hands Grow” is more than just a throwback–it’s an oasis, populated by sweeping acoustic guitars, electric leads with just the right amount of distortion, and especially Julia Steiner’s affectionate vocal, which blooms into gorgeous self-harmonies during the bridge.

*Obligated to add that this song came out before Azure Ray signed to Saddle Creek, but the point stands.

14. J Hus - “Triumph”: J Hus and Jae5 have the kind of telepathic artistic connection and song-elevating chemistry only present in the best rapper-producer pairs. A great example of how their alchemy blurs the lines between genres, “Triumph” is the J Hus/Jae5 version of a boom-bap rap track. Hus rides Jae5’s woodblock-and-horn-accented beat with unassailable confidence, gradually elevating his intensity level as he sprays his unflappable threats. Like most of Hus’s best songs, “Triumph” is home to an irresistible hook, which I can’t help but recite whenever I hear the words “violence,” “silence,” or “alliance” (more often than you think!).

13. Sada Baby - “Aktivated”: Every post-disco classic from the early ‘80s could use a little bit of Sada Baby’s wild-eyed intensity and dextrous flow. On “Aktivated,” Sada runs roughshod atop Kool & The Gang’s ‘81 classic “Get Down On It,” turning it into an irresistible and danceable anthem about going dumb off a Percocet. Sada is a master of controlled chaos, modulating his voice from a simmer to a full-throated yell within the space of a single bar. It really makes lines like “Coochie made me cry like Herb in the turtleneck” pop.

12. Yves Tumor - “Kerosene!”: Prince is one of the most-imitated artists on the planet, but while most artists can only grasp at his heels, Yves Tumor’s “Kerosene!” reaches a level of burning passion and sexual literacy that would make The Purple One proud. A duet with Diana Gordon, “Kerosene!” is a desperate plea for connection, each duet partner thinking that a passionate dalliance might cure the emptiness inside. The song vamps for five minutes, filled with guitar pyrotechnics and moaning vocals, its extended runtime and gradual comedown consigning the partners to a futile search for a self-sustaining love that won’t burn itself out when the passion fades.

11. Special Interest - “Street Pulse Beat”: “Street Pulse Beat” sounds like “Seven Nation Army,” as performed by post-punk legends Killing Joke. It’s a strutting, wild, propulsive anthem–part come-on, part self-actualization, all-powerful. Dominated by an insistent industrial beat and the fiery vocals of frontperson Alli Logout, whose performance more than lives up to the song’s grandiose lyrics (““I go by many names such as Mistress, Goddess, Allah, Jah, and Jesus Christ”), “Street Pulse Beat” was the song released this year that made me miss live music the most. 

10. Megan Thee Stallion - “Savage” (Remix) ft. Beyonce: The first-ever collaboration between these two H-Town royals was the most quotable song of the year, firing off hot lines and memorable moments with an effortless majesty. Megan does her thing, bringing classy, bougie, and ratchet punchlines about the men who grovel at her feet, but it’s who Beyoncé elevates the track to transcendence. She prances around the outskirts of Megan’s verses, applying the full force of her lower register to her ad-libs (“THEM JEANS”), and during her verses, the Queen proves once again that you can count the number of rappers better than her on your fingers.

9. DJ Tunez - “Cool Me Down” ft. Wizkid: WizKid is almost alarmingly prolific, releasing enough amazing songs per year that he would be a worthy subject of his own “best-of” list. My favorite WizKid song of 2020 didn’t come from his excellent album Made In Lagos–instead it was this team-up with Brooklyn-based DJ Tunez. A favored collaborator of WizKid (Tunez is partially responsible for career highlights like 2019’s “Cover Me” and 2020’s “PAMI”), Tunez’s organic and textured approach to Afrobeats is an excellent fit for his voice, mixing swelling organs, 808 blocks, and the occasional stab of saxophone into a percolating concoction. The “Starboy” rises to the occasion, hypnotically repeating phrases in English and Yoruba, making octave-sized leaps in his vocal register, and stretching syllables like taffy as he sings the praises of his lady love.

8. Sorry - “Rock ‘n’ Roll Star”: Part swaggering indie anthem and part skronking no wave, “Rock ‘n’ Roll Star” struts with the woozy confidence of someone who’s had just the right amount to drink. It’s the ideal throwback to late L.E.S. (or Shoreditch) nights, sung with irresistible gang vocals on the chorus and a detached sneer on the verse that jibes with the sinister undertones of the deliberately off-key backing track.

7. Destroyer - “Cue Synthesizer”: As Dan Bejar ages, he becomes less like a singer and more like a shaman, his incantatory near-spoken word verses grounding his band’s instrumental heroics. On “Cue Synthesizer,” Bejar plays the role of conjurer, summoning synthesizers and electric guitars in celebration of music’s ability to breathe life into modern mundanity.

6. Chloe x Halle - “Do It”: Pillow-soft R&B that walks the fine line between retro and futuristic, powered by the Bailey Sisters’ playfully twisty melodies and sumptuous production from a somewhat unexpected source. That’s right, piano man Scott Storch took a break from smoking blunts with Berner to deliver his smoothest beat since he teamed with Chloe x Halle mentor Beyoncé for “Me Myself & I” in 2003.

5. Fireboy DML - “ELI”: Nigeria singer Fireboy DML is an unabashed fan of ‘90s adult contemporary, worshipping idols (‘90s Elton John, Celine Dion) that even some devout poptimists wouldn’t touch with a ten-foot pole. A modern-day retelling of the Biblical fable of Samson and Delilah, “ELI” seems to take inspiration from Ace of Base’s “All That She Wants,” its rocksteady beat, wobbling bassline, snake-charming flute, and “lonely girl, lonely world” lyrics recalling the 1994 Swedish pop smash. It’s a testament to Fireboy’s charisma and melodic mastery that “ELI” is as invigorating as “All That She Wants” is annoying. He switches from playful flirtation on the verse, to hopeless devotion on the chorus, to lascivious swagger on the bridge, gently ratcheting up the intensity in his vocals until the song’s climactic guitar solo* grants glorious release. *The build-up on “ELI” is so great that it makes it easy to ignore that the guitar solo itself is a mess. It sounds like the producers couldn’t get Carlos Santana, so they settled for Andre 3000 instead. 

4. The Beths - “Dying To Believe”: If you’ve ever audibly cringed while thinking about something you’ve said or done in the past, The Beths have the song for you. Carried by its driving backbeat, “Dying To Believe” chronicles singer Liz Stokes’s rumination on a crumbling friendship, her fear of confrontation preventing her from removing her toxic friend from her life. Though the lyric is pained and uncertain, there’s no such lack of confidence in the music. An adrenaline rush of muscular, sugary power pop, “Dying To Believe” is an immaculate construction, each fuzzy guitar riff arriving with mathematical precision and each “whoa-oh” chorus hitting like a ton of bricks. Jump Rope Gazers might not have been as consistent as the Auckland, NZ band’s self-titled debut, but “Dying To Believe” is as good as anything on that album and helps solidify The Beths’ deserved reputation as some of the best songwriters and tightest performers on either side of the International Date Line. 

3. The 1975 - “What Should I Say”/“If You’re Too Shy (Let Me Know)”: I know, I know. I was supposed to only pick one song per artist, but sue me, this is my list and I just could not decide between these two. The 1975 have always balanced their affinity for ‘80s-style pop anthems with an interest in experimental electronic music. In 2020, they released the two very best songs of their career, each seemingly fitting into one of those two boxes. On its face, “If You’re Too Shy (Let Me Know)” is the band’s transparent attempt at recording their own “Everybody Wants To Rule The World”–it’s in D Major, it has a chugging backbeat, an echoing two-chord riff in the verse, and an ascending E Minor progression in the pre-chorus. Where the Tears For Fears classic takes a birds-eye look at the yuppie generation, Matty Healy uses his song’s swelling bombast and gleefully cheesy sax solo to explore the awkward intimacy of cyber sex. The burbling Eno-style synth that opens up “If You’re Too Shy” evokes a dial-up connection, simulating the thrill of discovery felt by those whose only connection to the outside world comes through their screens.

“What Should I Say,” meanwhile, combines Boards Of Canada-esque bloops with bassline that strongly resembles Mr. Fingers’ oft-sampled “Mystery Of Love”, over which Healy sings in a heavily-manipulated voice that sounds like the lovechild of Travis Scott and Sam Smith. Fittingly for a song about loss for words, the best moments of  “What Should I Say” spring from vocal manipulations, imparting more emotional resonance than mere words could ever hope to provide. The final minute of “What Should I Say” is almost tear-jerkingly beautiful, as a single computerized voice cuts through cacophony, determined to let the world know how it feels, language be damned.

2. King Von - “Took Her To The O”: His career was far too short, but King Von had plenty of chances to demonstrate his god-given storytelling ability before he passed away in November. Accompanied by regular collaborator Chopsquad DJ’s chaotic, circular pianos, Von recounts an eventful night in his home neighborhood of O’Block. Von’s gripping narrative is packed with writerly detail (“Nine missed calls, three of them from ‘Mom,’ other six say ‘Duck’”), peeking into his justifiably paranoid state-of-mind (“My Glock on my lap, I'm just thinkin' smart”) and ending with a smirk on a bit of gallows humor that recalls prime Ghostface. Long Live Von.

1.  Bob Dylan - “I’ve Made Up My Mind To Give Myself to You”: It’s impossible to escape that 2020 was a year of mass devastation, on a scale not seen in American life since the second World War. In the midst of the cascading chaos of this year, I married my best friend. So it’s fitting that the song that resonated most with me this year was “Throat Baby (Go Baby)” by BRS Kash.

*Ahem* Excuse me. It was a love song, and not just any love song: the finest love song of Bob Dylan’s six-decade, Nobel Prize-winning career. 

Bob Dylan spent much of the 2010s trying his hand at the Great American Songbook, applying his craggy croon to standards made famous by Bing Crosby and Frank Sinatra. It felt like a weird turn for such an iconoclastic figure, one known for his massive (and valuable) library of originals. “I’ve Made Up My Mind To Give Myself To You” proves that Bob’s covers and Christmas albums weren’t larks or cash grabs, but an old dog’s attempt to learn new tricks by digging into the past.

“IMUMMTGMTY” shares a lot of DNA with “The Way You Look Tonight” and “I’ve Got You Under My Skin,” bringing florid metaphors and touching pledges of devotion, but it also inherently understands that love is a decision–a weighty decision that imparts great responsibility–as much as it’s a feeling. What really makes “IMUMM” sing is the tastefully folksy arrangement, which ties into the old weird America explored by Dylan’s compadres in The Band, filled with bright Telecaster leads and easily-hummed choruses. And the lyrics are excellent even by Bob’s elevated standards. It turns me into a puddle every time I listen. I’ll let Bob take it from here:

Well, my heart's like a river, a river that sings Just takes me a while to realize things I've seen the sunrise, I've seen the dawn I'll lay down beside you when everyone's gone

Here’s the rest of the list. Check back later this week for my albums list!

26. Katie Gately - “Waltz” 27. Bonny Light Horseman - “Bonny Light Horseman” 28. Bullion - “Hula” 29. Omah Lay - “Lo Lo” 30. Greg Dulli - “Sempre” 31. Fiona Apple - “Shameika” 32. Anjimilie - “Your Tree” 33. Key Glock - “Look At They Face” 34. Lido Pimienta - “Te Queria” 35. Morray - “Quicksand” 36. Obongjayar - “10K” 37. Xenia Rubinos - “Who Shot Ya?” 38. Kiana Lede - “Protection” 39. Flo Milli - “Weak” 40. G.T. - “What You Gon Do” 41. Chris Crack - “Hoes At Trader Joe’s” 42. Lil Baby - “The Bigger Picture” 43. The Orielles - “Memoirs of Miso” 44. Shoreline Mafia - “Change Ya Life” 45. Masego - “Mystery Lady” ft. Don Toliver 46. Junglepussy - “Out My Window” ft. Ian Isiah 47. Siete Gang Yabbie - “Gift Of Gab” 48. Rosalía - “Juro Que” 49. Black Noi$e - “Mutha Magick” ft. BbyMutha 50. BFB Da Packman - “Free Joe Exotic” ft. Sada Baby 51. Andras - “Poppy” 52. Lianne La Havas - “Weird Fishes” 53. Crack Cloud - “Tunnel Vision” 54. Lil Uzi Vert - “No Auto” ft. Lil Durk 55. Fred again… - “Kyle (I Found You)” 56. Burna Boy - “Wonderful” 57. Lonnie Holliday - “Crystal Doorknob” 58. Mozzy - “Bulletproofly” 59. Tiwa Savage - “Koroba” 60. Frances Quinlan - “Your Reply” 61. Ariana Grande - “my hair” 62. Bad Bunny - “Safaera” ft. Jowell & Randy & Ñengo Flow 63. Yhung T.O. & DaBoii - “Forever Ballin” 64. Katie Pruitt - “Out Of The Blue” 65. Sleepy Hallow - “Molly” ft. Sheff G 66. Niniola - “Addicted” 67. Prado - “STEPHEN” 68. Drakeo The Ruler - “GTA VI” 69. Boldy James - “Monte Cristo” 70. Caribou - “Like I Loved You” 71. Andy Shauf - “Living Room” 72. Hailu Mergia - “Yene Mircha” 73. Kabza de Small & DJ Maphorisa - “eMcimbini” ft Aymos, Samthing Soweto, Mas Musiq 74. Gunna - “Dollaz On My Head” ft. Young Thug 75. Roddy Ricch - “The Box” 76. The Lemon Twigs - “Hell On Wheels” 77. Sun-El Musician - “Emoyeni” ft. Simmy & Khuzani 78. Madeline Kenney - “Sucker” 79. Natanael Cano - “Que Benedicion” 80. ShooterGang Kony - “Jungle” 81. Don Toliver - “After Party” 82. Chicano Batman - “Color my life” 83. Pa Salieu - “Betty” 84. Chubby & The Gang - “Trouble (You Were Always On My Mind)” 85. Dua Lipa - “Love Again” 86. Rucci - “Understand” ft. Blxst 87. Skilla Baby - “Carmelo Bryant” ft. Sada Baby 88. Bartees Strange - “Boomer” 89. Jessie Ware - “Read My Lips” 90. The Hernandez Bros. & LUSTBASS - “At The End Of Time” 91. Brokeasf - “How” ft. 42 Dugg 92. Mulatto - “No Hook” 93. Eddie Chacon - “Outside” 94. Veeze - “Law N Order” 95. Polo G - “33” 96. Bktherula - “Summer” 97. Jessy Lanza - “Anyone Around” 98. Perfume Genius - “On The Floor” 99. ComptonAssTg - “I’m Thuggin’” 100. Mario Judah - “Die Very Rough”

Honorable Mentions: Jamila Woods - “SULA (Paperback)” Demae - “Stuck In A Daze” ft. Ego Ella May Good Sad Happy Bad - “Bubble” Guerilla Toss - “Human Girl” Kaash Paige - “Grammy Week” ft. Don Toliver Kre8 & CJ Santana - “Slide!” Laura Veirs - “Another Space & Time” Angelica Garcia - “Jicama” Malome Vector - “Dumelang” ft. Blaq Diamond OMB Bloodbath - “Dropout” ft. Maxo Kream SahBabii - “Soulja Slim” Shabason, Krgovich & Harris - “Friday Afternoon” Skillibeng - “Mr. Universe” Waxahatchee - “Fire” Westerman - “Float Over”

[justinbgalensw]

The Foolproof Discrete Synonym Strategy

The Little-Known Secrets to Discrete Synonym

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In general, public and private accounting are distinct facets of the exact same field. The medical industry offers medical services and the mechanisms to cover it, but doesn’t encompass everything that contributes to health. The staff may just be attempting to entertain one another, but more likely they’re deliberately crafting an image as a way to entice applicants that have a playful nature and a creative, or even iconoclastic attitude.

http://publichealth.phhp.ufl.edu/

The web is a great example. Business users do not typically think regarding ETL pipelines, their focus oscillates around the data that’s the consequence of running multiple ETL tasks. Your visitors don’t even need to get an account to get hold of the advertiser and after that get the advertised good.

When it’s direct, then the listing agent might be able to not permit any buyers’ agents to subsequently attempt to go involved. You might be responsible for creating content, or overseeing editors in developing a content calendar. The idea of a domain can be considered synonymous with the idea of contexta domain stipulates the context for the truth of an issue.

Desk research isn’t about collecting data. If you’re using a Sony Wi-Fi surveillance camera you know that it’s great for both indoor and outdoor environments like retail outlets, campuses and business buildings. Different types of mnemonic devices include memory encoding and retrieval cues, but there are various sorts of memory devices and plenty of folks use them differently.

If you wish to use some prebuilt tools essay writing to make word representation then Facebook’s fastText is just one of them. Every time that it receives a query, it will initially capture the intent and extract the entity. Let’s borrow their definition of the plan procedure, too.

The Debate Over Discrete Synonym

Microsociology is the study of what people do, think and the way they interact with one another in their everyday lives. If you too are on the lookout for discreet dating service, search online and I am confident you will get what you would like. Know one will know that you are getting a better deal!

Give others your entire attention a If you’re ready to pay at a shop or public location, give the cashier your whole attention. For starters, there are two or three places where you are able to wear Western clothing, including at the hotel, within a compound, and in certain cases at the workplace. While dressing, don’t try too much together with never dress poorly because in both situations, the manner in which you dress affects your impression negatively.

You don’t say everything you’re considering another individual. The very first in the series is all about somebody who has been my pal and mentor for the previous 3 decades, Rob Busacca. Much like the aforementioned work, it’s a prime instance of a fourth-generation house’.

Non-verbal communication is every bit as significant in positive relationships. So there are two individual outcomes that are sometimes mutually exclusive. The practice is often referred to as typosquatting.

There’s so much to research and you should be informed. Model on how you would like your teams to behave and the culture that you want to promote. Conceptual language skills are often more difficult to develop because they’re also associated with word knowledge.

from Justin Gale Updates http://padstyle.com/the-foolproof-discrete-synonym-strategy/20510

[strwbrymoonchild]

Keeping It Funky with Sal Yvat

Interview by LaChelle Chrysanne

Everyday when we wake up and get dressed, we put together outfits that say something about who we are. Though fashion is a large part of American culture, having a distinct personal style takes wearing clothes to the next level. I haven’t met anyone with style quite like Memphis-bred stylist, Sal Yvat. From working with Nike and buzzworthy singer-songwriter Ravyn Lenae, to styling an entire cast of women for a stage play, Sal is well on her way to becoming a well-known stylist in the fashion world. We chatted with her about her southern upbringing, why she’s inspired by church ladies, best methods for thrift shopping and how to hone your personal style.

UC: You're originally from Memphis and moved to Chicago to study at Columbia College. During your time at Columbia we met and you styled me at a photoshoot. Tell me about your southern upbringing and what led you to go to art school in Chicago.

Sal Yvat: I went to Ridgeway High School in Memphis and I was in theater. We had this lighting tech guy named Alex Nahon and we were kind of cool. He went to Columbia and recommended it to me because I was telling people I want to go to school for fashion. I didn't really know what I wanted to do in fashion but I just knew I didn't want to go to a regular school. I only applied to Columbia and told my mom I'm either going to Columbia or I'm staying in Memphis. I got accepted! Much thanks to Alex because I'd never heard of Columbia before he told me about it.

As far as my southern heritage and upbringing, I think it definitely influences my style. I'm super into the concept of Sunday's best. You should always look your best, for yourself or for whoever you believe in or worship. That is definitely reflected in my personal style and what I do.

UC: What do you feel are some of the main differences between the south and the midwest?

Sal Yvat: In the South we're kind of funky, more playful and even gaudy. Sometimes I joke and say southern people are the closest to our OG ancestors from the motherland, so we get it. I think Midwesterners are pretty bland. Most people who I think are kind of  saucy in Chicago are from St. Louis or Atlanta or somewhere like that. I think it's because in the south it's warmer and there’s a greater opportunity to be colorful. It's colder in Chicago so I understand why they're bland.

UC: As a native midwesterner, I'll try not to take offense to that.

Sal Yvat: I'm sorry *laughs*

UC: How did you get into fashion and styling, was it something you always knew you wanted to do?

Sal Yvat: I've always loved fashion. I've always gone to church and Sunday's best has had an influence on me because I was always at church and had to look good--it kind of molded me into who I am. My mom always dresses nice, I've always been her mini-me as she calls me. When I was younger I used to draw a lot and I actually wanted to be a fashion designer first but just kind of let that dream go. Once I became a senior in high school and had to pick a college, I was looking at Columbia. They had a fashion business program and I thought that maybe I can open a store or something like that. Once I got to Columbia, I took a fashion styling class and I was like ‘wow this is amazing!’.

UC: Have you ever seen Mahogany?

Sal Yvat: I have not seen Mahogany which is crazy, I know.

UC: *gasps* You went to school in Chicago to study fashion and you’ve never seen Mahogany? The film where Queen Diana Ross styled and designed her own wardrobe?!

Sal Yvat: I know and everyone always tells me I remind them of her in that movie so I’m rude for not having seen it yet.

UC: Yes, you need to watch it, it’s a classic. Do you still have a desire to get into design at all?

Sal Yvat: Not necessarily fashion design but probably accessory/product design.

UC: What type of product?

Sal Yvat: I would say things that kind of reflect me and my aesthetic. I'm really into sunglasses. I have a thing for bags and bracelets, I also make earrings.

UC: That’s really cool. Switching gears a bit here, let’s talk about young Sal. I feel like middle school is when everyone starts to really dress themselves for the first time. What was your style like in middle school?

Sal Yvat: Wow. In 8th grade, I started to figure out who I was and I remember this girl pointed out my style to me. She was like ‘you just be putting stuff on and you make it look good’ and I think that was when I kind of transitioned to a punk rock type of theme. I started to get really into slip-on Vans and skinny jeans and  button-down shirts with cropped moto jackets. I would wear tote bags, I was really into matching my bag with my shoes. I remember I had these pair of slip-on Vans with hearts on them, they weren’t real Vans but I loved them because of the hearts. I went to the beauty supply store one day and I saw there was a bag with the same kind of hearts on them and I was like ‘this is fate! So I had to buy the bag and I just kept trying to do that. I would have a checker print scarf and a checker print purse and then I found some checker print shoes, that was my theme. I also went to a school where we wore uniforms.

UC: So accessorizing was how you were able to express yourself?

Sal Yvat: Yes. That was my style, I was weird.

Be comfortable with yourself, know how you like to dress your body and don’t let any outside force dictate that

UC: Are interested in pursuing further aside from the styling fashion styling?

Sal Yvat: Designing earrings is my newest thing, it gives me a chance to be super creative and play with shapes..  I'm really just trying to culminate all of my interests into one entity which is what I call The Look Authority. We had our first Fashion Show last month with AMFM in Chicago. The brand is a mixture my own creative concepts, a blog, my designs, and (soon to come) events.  

UC: I've noticed that when you've styled certain clients, you’ve created certain things such as earrings and other accessories. What is that process like? It seems like you're able to get your clients to trust your creative vision.

Sal Yvat: I really try to understand people and be open to their ideas. I know I'm real extra and loud and clanky and I’m still working on losing myself in the work so I can just be the vessel and transporter in the process of making someone look their best. I always try to remember that I'm here to amplify them and it’s my job to take what they want and add a little bit of me.

UC: You've done some work with Nike,  you’ve styled Raven Lanae who I love. What are some game-changing styling gigs that you've done and when did you get to the point where you were like ‘yes, this is what I’m meant to do’?

Sal Yvat: My first like game-changing job was with Victory Garden’s Theatre. I styled a cast of women for The House That Will Not Stand which is written by a Black playwright. It was a cast of seven Black women which is almost unheard of in play world. That was my first big job and I got to do two looks per cast member, so in total it was 14 looks. I feel like that was a game-changer because I was booked by someone who was outside of my friend circle who saw something in me based on the work that I had made with my friends. I was able to recreate historical looks and it really gave me more confidence.

UC:  I could totally see you styling like Solange or Rihanna who are some of the biggest Black style icons right now. Who are some celebrities you would die if you were able to style?

Sal Yvat: Definitely, Leiomy who's one of my favorite voguers. I first saw her on America's Best Dance Crew. I love that she's so athletic and I just love dancers especially voguers.  BbyMutha and Queen Key are also on my radar. I would also love to style Angela Bassett but that’s just because I think she's just the best.

UC: She is the best and she looks good in every color too.

Sal Yvat: Yeah it's like Angela Bassett, what do you drink every day? Are you eating honey? What is it?

UC: One of the first things I noticed about you when we worked together is that you love music and you love a good vibe. When we were shooting it was like the music really helped get into your zone. How does music inspire your creative process as a stylish?

Sal Yvat: I love music. My first love is dancing so I have a visceral connection to music the same way a musician or a producer does. It just puts me in this place where I can center my thoughts and this rhythm where I’m able to fine tune the vibe. Music really elevates the mood and look I’m going for…..  kind of like activates another creative side of me.

UC: We were talking today and you said this outfit that you have on right now, you just bought today. How much do you shop?

Sal Yvat: I actually don't bulk shop that much, surprisingly. I buy like one shirt or one pair of pants every other week or month.  I'm on vacation technically so I did come to spend but I can tell you how much! This dress was like $6, the jacket was $8, the hat was $10 and my shoes were like $9.

UC: Do you have any tips for people when they go thrifting?

Sal Yvat: I would say look for pieces not an outfit and try to find things that don't look dated. I feel like this jacket I’m wearing looks thrifted but a name brand company or fashion house probably could have made it, you know what I mean? Don't get overwhelmed when you're shopping. You may have a large number of things that you like but you have to learn how to streamline what you really want, unless you can use all of it and you can afford it. For example, when I'm on a budget and shopping like I was today, I went to the dress section I went through the whole section and I picked about five that I wanted. After I picked what I wanted, I looked at them asked myself if I’m going to wear any of those items more than once. I also asked myself if I have enough shoes in my closet to go with the items I’m buying. I ask myself these type of questions to make sure I’m getting longevity out of something and I'm not just buying it just because I see it. I don't like to spend more than $10 per item at the thrift store.

UC: If you had to wear one outfit every single day for a week what would that look like?

Sal Yvat: Oh is it like per season or is it's like an all-weather outfit?

UC: Someone says to you, ‘Listen, you got to wear this same outfit every single day for seven days.’ what would that look like?

Sal Yvat: Well, I’m going to go with an all-weather look, just so I don't get caught lacking. I love to be cozy so I would say something like a baggy suit and then underneath I would probably have like a corset, white tee, or like a bandeau top or a bodysuit. If my hair isn't done I will have a hat on like I'm wearing today *laughs*. If hair is done, it would be laid,  pimp shade to the side. I always have on a big pair of earrings. As far as shoes go I probably would wear sliding mules or something like a low heel to give me a little action, a little sauce. The suit would need to be a color like pink, blue, red and maybe have my initial on the back, you know what I mean? A little sauce!

UC: Sounds fly, do you have any style icons?

Sal Yvat: Oh my gosh, so many! Of course, Solange. I think she's everybody style icon at this point.

UC: She’s been killin it for a while. I remember when she was wearing banana pants.

Sal Yvat: Yes! When she was wearing the box braids. Of course Erykah Badu as well. I love church women and their hats. I like my mom’s style, she's really classy. I like classic 1960s Twiggy, Shirley Kurata, architecture, Japanese design methods, Wes Anderson’s characters. Grace Jones, I love her androgyny. I also just like  random people on the street. I get inspiration from everybody, even the postman, I love postman pants I love the army and people in uniform.  Uniforms say so much without saying anything.

UC: In your wildest dreams, where do you see yourself at next year?

Sal Yvat: I would be a curator for a fashion exhibit at a museum. Another dream would be working as a celebrity’s personal stylist or maybe the key stylist in a recurring TV show or a film.

UC: Styling allows us to express ourselves and make statements. For those of us who are just now beginning to hone in on our own taste and what looks good on us. What would you say is a good starting point for mastering our personal style?

Sal Yvat: Be comfortable with yourself, know how you like to dress your body and don’t let any outside force dictate that. It doesn't matter your gender, sexuality or your size. Obviously, you want to make sure your clothes fit you how you like but if you want to wear mini skirts everyday for the rest of your life, do that. Just be comfortable because style is really confidence in expression.  Find out who you are and how you like to see your body and do that.

Follow Sal on social media at @SalSoGroovy and check out her curated playlist below: