#LITTLE GUY-CEPTION

[youkaigakkou-tl]

Breakdown of the newest G-Fantasy cover

RARRRRRR IM SO INSANE ABT THIS I NEED TO SEAR THIS ART INTO MY EYEBALLS THERE SSO MUCH TO IT!!!! AUGHGHGHH ITS SO PRETTY!!! THE ASTRONOMY OF IT ALL!!!! ok had to get that out of my system im normal now lets get on with it

Starting with the most immediately obvious parts....

Bellflowers

GRARRR ITS BELLFLOWERS!!!! ITS BELLFLOWERS!!!!

Chinese Bellflowers, called "kikyou" in Japanese, are associated with and somewhat symbols of Abe no Seimei because of the pentagram shape, and Seimei's pentagram is also sometimes called "Seimei kikyou"

In other words, AAAAA BELLFLOWERS!!!!!!

Libra

This is Libra!! Not a whole lot to say about it, but there's a neat detail that the tippy point of the triangle (Beta Librae) is the brightest star in the constellation, and it's also represented by a more defined 4-pointed star here!

Cancer and Crux

Not much to say about Cancer, so lumping it in with Crux.

Crux, also known as the southern cross, is an asterism of four of the brightest stars in the southern hemisphere, and used for navigation similar to the north star.

There is also a northern cross (that's the "body" of Cygnus), but you can tell this is specifically the southern cross because the northern one has a star in the middle

Ursa Major

You can tell this is Ursa Major by the paw stars and the back leg! This is also the constellation that the big dipper is part of, which you may know from a previous rambles to be a big thing in Taoism and also associated with Abe no Seimei.

While we're on the topic of dippers...

There's this constellation that's covered by the G-Fantasy logo (that I didn't want to draw any definitive lines for) but I'm almost certain is the little dipper

What's the deal with the dippers anyway

Hey guys. remember when i lost my mind over the big/little dipper in my kyoto arc essay. still havent gotten over that.

So likeeee... the big dipper is the one classically associated with Taoism and Seimei. The little dipper doesn't really have much of an association with anything in that area, at most you could say its an extension of Polaris, the Big Boy North Star

Note the way the handles bend, the handle of the big dipper hooks down at the end. It's not as if this looks particularly different in different parts of the world, and you can see that every depiction of it irl is the way it is.

But consistently. Consistently. Sensei draws it with the handle bent the other way, aka looking more like the little dipper

Now there's a cute idea here that maybe the big dipper represents Seimei and the little dipper represents Haru. That's so cute! Unfortunately also just an idea. Because as you can see the little dipper is also there in Seimei's magic circle. So.

(Side tangent I swear at one point someone pointed out a principal art where its super clear that the mark on his face is Seimei's magic circle??? But now I can't find which art it is)

The Shichiseiken

Tangent-ception! I recently found out about the shichiseiken (seven star sword), named after the big dipper engraved on it. Originating in Chinese Taoism, it's said to drive away evil. There's been replicas and other versions afterwards, but the major one seems to be the one that had been reforged by Abe no Seimei after being destroyed.

(Though, none of these would be the one Ranmaru has, since his is double-edged and all these japanese swords are single-edged. And besides his just looks like a chinese sword anyway)

Couldn't identify these

too few identifying features on these two constellations sadly... they both Kinda look like they could be corvus.

Well. If it is corvus, and it represents Ranmaru, thats kinda cute. In that line of logic, cancer would be Sano, and libra could be either Hijita, Beniko or Renren (or all 3 lmao?)

Ok thats all i have for now i think. its 6am i gotta sleep i just had to write this right now

[wowowwild]

Ace's All Time Best Fic Rec List (AATBFRL) April 2024: Ace Attorney

It's been a 6 months since my last list so here we go again! (I specified Ace Attorney in case I start doing this for other fandoms.) I originally planned to have all the old recs here as well but the list was too long so here's a link to the previous list. These aren't necessarily in any particular order, but if you can think of a good way for me to organize them, please let me know for future lists!

P.S. Anything rated over T mentions that immediately for your browsing convenience.

Doing more self promotion this year, so check out my pinned post or fic tag (desktop only)!

London, 2021- 7 yg Wrightworth hint of Krisnix. Phoenix is presently in London with Edgeworth. Phoenix is presently knowing that he knows about Kristoph but doesn't want to acknowledge it bc Kristoph has been really good to him and Trucy. But that doesn't matter right now bc they're going to the theatre.

if you leave the light on- 7yg Wrightworth. Nothing can happen until it's over but something Keeps happening. Miles will wait as long as it takes and Trucy decides he's part of the family.

In The Dead Of Night- During the 7yg Edgeworth invites the Wrights to Europe. Trucy has a nightmare and 'Uncle Miles' comforts her.

Phoenix's List- After getting his badge back, Phoenix has some regrets and sets about fixing what he can.

Perfect- I actually found this on another fic rec list and I can see why it was their favorite. Set towards the end of the trial of Bridge to Turnabout. TW if you have memory issues, it might be a little hard to get through parts bc of all the mindfuckery. I have to be really vague here so as not to spoil it. (Wrightworth)

Eo Nomine- Klapollo fake marriage turned real marriage but ig that's what happen when you get fake married while being real in love.

the best you'll never have- Rated M for sex reasons. I love the tagline: "Someone else's wedding is something that can actually be so personal". It's a Blackmadhi complicated relationship, what relationship, they weren't actually dating but also...

Apollo and the Artist (1975 - Oil paint, wax crayon, pencil, collage)- Rated M for mentioned sex reasons. Apollo is not an art person. But to Klavier he is art... and also a person. They've known each other for 8 years and it's probably been coming for just as long. It was a long time coming.

darling i'd wait for you (even if you didn't ask me to)- Wrightworth fake date bc Edgeworth needs a plus one to a wedding for some guy, it's not really important. But the cake sucks.

A Knight in a Loud Red Suit- oh my god oh my god oh my god Klavier gets shot and Apollo stabs a guy. And also love confessions at the hospital. They could have me also if they wanted.

Written- Rated E for sex reasons. Edgeworth moonlights as a Steel Samurai fic writer, and due to it being an obvious coping mechanism for his life and feeling Maya finds out... and accidentally sends a fic to Phoenix who... finds out. Half of the smut is Edgeworth's own fanfic, so we get like... fanfic-ception. That doesn't really work with more than one syllable words, huh...

Lover Be Good to Me- Rated M for implied sex reasons. 5+1 klapollo wooing each other.

Love Love Love- Rated M for implied sex reasons. klapollo is messy in a good way and takes wayyyy too long to call themselves boyfriends. Set from middle of aa4 to past aa6.

delicate- Rated M for sex reasons. klapollo is messy in a bad way (long distance is hard) and they break up but it works out, I prommy. If you don't like angst you'll want to skip this one, though.

(i was) enchanted to meet you- klavquill! I love them, I need to read more fics with them. They meet at the Prosecutor gala for the first time and sparks fly. Actually, they were fireworks, but that's not important.

Process of Elimination- Rated M for sex reasons. One day I will read a fic where Blackmadhi is not complicated as hell. Can they ever talk about their feelings? Apparently I like this, though, bc I keep reading and recc'ing them. Um, Nahyuta is looking for a fuck buddy and by 'process of elimination' ends up deciding on Blackquill but whoops! Feelings.

feel your skin- Rated M for one boner. Klavier is infuriating AND wearing lipgloss and Apollo can't take it. Cue making out in the janitor's closet.

moribund- I keep thinking about this one so I need everyone else to read and think about it with me. Pre Gant busting, POV Lana has to help clean up his messes. This a comedy, mostly of errors.

chronophobia- StarrSkye (AngelxLana) Be forewarned, you are going to cry. Lana has done her time and is trying to find a way to reconnect with the most important people from her past.

Crash! Landing- Junithena, fantastic traumatized autistic representation, if I do say so myself as a traumatized autistic person. It is very sweet and Juniper is a real one. I need me one of those.

In Pursuit of Justice- This one is not yet complete, but I preemptively j'adore'd it. It's a klapollo. Sebastian is great. He says Apollo looks like a frog (accurate).

Witcheln Woes- Secret Santa klapollo and they are cute and Clay is alive and it is sooooo fluffy.

Samurai Swear- Maya making besties with Edgeworth! Maya and Phoenix being besties also! Dash of mutual pining wrigthworth.

Missing You/Missing Time- Ok, hear me out, yes, the mystical bullshit tag is accurate, and de-aging is a weird concept, but !!! It actually serves this story very well! It is a fanfic that feels like a fanfic, but sometimes you want that, you know? Not every fanfic needs to feel like Little Women. Established klapollo first I love yous.

[starflungwaddledee]

Okay you gave me permission so now it's time to go fully autistic

*inhale*

So something I'm really interested in (mostly for my Bandee x Marx bias) is that comic with Marx and Bandee interacting, like, what's their relationship in this au, how'd they get to that point and heck, what was even happening? also it kinda seems like Bandee may be the main guy in this au or is just really important which makes me happy as Bandee isn't treated the best by Nintendo at all (hell, Sakrai said he didn't add Bandee into smash because he didn't like him) so seeing Bandee get the spotlight always brings me joy

And about the Meta and Galacta comic, it seems like Bandee plays a factor here too, with the mention of him being what gets the most reaction out of Meta and that makes sense because canonically Bandee is the weakest of the four and most likely to die quite easily, so it would make sense for the others to be protective of him

ALSO META BEING SEALED AWAY AND GALACTA SAYING HE'LL TAKE GOOD CARE OF, I'M ASSUMING BANDEE, DOES THAT MEAN GALACTA TAKES META'S PLACE??? HELLO???

anyway hi im really invested and also your art is fucking astounding

hell yea, fully autistic! the best kind of message! thank you also for the sweet words about my artwork ahhh! but hoo boy isn't this The Ask Ever. okay, let's get into it!

Bandee is, i think maybe obviously, my most specialist little guy ever and everything i make is likely about him in one way or another. so you're correct that he is indeed the main guy in both these AUs; he is the central protagonist which i think he deserves!!

(but he does also go through the angst blender a bit, just like... a warning. i adore happy endings but before that i do tend to meat-grind my faves pretty well in the drama machine.)

clockwork heart is actually a spin-off of awtdy (we do a little AU-ception in my household) which is our* primary au. (*a lot of my au work and headcanons are fleshed out very collaboratively with my girlfriend! the initial concept for awtdy was her idea, which i then very meanly shoved my bandee-important agenda into lmao)

awtdy sets this basic alternate world-state: during the Haltmann invasion, Galacta Knight defeats Meta Knight in battle and makes a wish on Star Dream to trade places.

this causes all sorts of terrible fun problems for everybody and basically gives rise to a bad timeline that a lot of folks do not come out of intact (rip floralia)

the Meta Knight vs Galacta Knight comic covers an important turning point in the story, where Meta Knight lets slip that he cares about Bandee the way he cares for Kirby. Meta Knight has an especially strong reaction to this for two reasons:

one is because, as you said, of the three remaining heroes Bandee is the most vulnerable-- seasoned and experienced fighter he may be, but against someone like Galacta Knight? 💦 he's still ultimately just a mortal dude. this obviously puts him at terrible risk, because Galacta Knight also considers him far more expendable than Kirby.

"i'll take good care of him" is transparently a threat and not actually... you know, kind.

secondly is because (unbeknownst to Galacta Knight) Bandee uniquely remembers Meta Knight. he knows that the timeline is screwed up and Galacta Knight is not meant to be there, and is actively working to rescue his real dad mentor. Meta Knight knows that if he's found out, Galacta Knight won't hesitate to kill him.

suffice to say the guilt of this would drive him capital i Insane!

as for the Marx "hurt like hell" comic, I am actually sorry to have to tell you that that scene is their first ever interaction in this au! 😂 in this alternate version of the story Marx is also aware of the timeline fuckery (due to his existence as an eldritch, temporal little creature) and he tracks Bandee down late in the game with a risky trade offer; which Bandee refuses. that's what's pictured in the comic!

it goes on for quite a long ways after that; though I don't know if it'll tickle your ship dynamic quite right because Marx is mildly antagonistic towards Bandee (and everyone) the whole time. so while they are cursed to be Stuck Together By The Narrative they are not really close or even particularly friendly.

they do indeed interact in it quite a lot, and I personally think Marx would gladly shoot his shot if he was offered it; but Bandee is neck-deep in a different ship for the entirety of awtdy and is especially miserable/pining as hell throughout clockwork heart.

but that's okay because Bandee is, uh-- totally fine!! he's normal. he's fine. he's very very fine and things will be very very okay.

[hazbinhotelexpansion]

Oh I was BORN to answer your request, prepare for all of my random discord quotes

Are you climbing the inside of the elevator??? ..........maybe

"I want them Zoloft boys"

"ok I think the phone has been in the microwave long enough"

She could run a kingdom, people would listen to her, she's very loud!

I'll sop your wet! ... I'll wet your sop? No, neither of those sound right, joke canceled, goodbye

You know me I love dead people

You want me to go straight to bed? Why not gay to bed???

"this tastes like battery acid, but if battery acid was tasty"

Gusty showers sounds like a terrible name for a retirement community

What happens if you have nipple pasties that just look like nipples? "Then you need nipple pasties for your nipple pasties" Nipple-pasty-ception "Get a bra that looks like boobs and put nipple pasties on that"

Yeah I'm like canonically allergic to chihuahuas in specific

"Jesus told a tree to off itself and then he threw a table"

"am I a Honda or a person?"

"NOW GIVE ME YOUR FACE AND DONT ASK QUESTIONS"

Gasp! Someone cheesed him!

WHY WOULD YOU MAKE MY LITTLE BOY INTO LEMONADE

"using my telekinesis to lift my daughter out of her crib just in time for her father to see her levitating randomly"

"why are we talking about bacon now I thought we were talking about your daddy issues"

I do not have a gender, I have a question

oh pants stopped happening like 30 minutes ago

just calling me Charizard is unhelpful team

I AM THE PICASSO OF MEMES

Ope there goes angel climbing into the China closet again

EVIL JELLO MY NEW GENDER

"I have a *weird* problem, are you ready to hear about my *weird* problem" "always" "my brownies are too oily"

"Before I can own a pigeon, I need to get my bird permit" Your..... Birdmit

It doesn't have to be a bunch of sad white women drinking wine sitting in a rented conference room with a bunch of tables all done up in tablecloths with droopy streamers and half floating balloons

he can be a soft boi *and* a crackhead!!!

"they're Jean shoes" YOU GOT THE FUCKIN JHOES???

Please refrain from happy biting the cannibal

WOOHOO KEVIN GOT BOOPS

Two pigeons, chilling on the sidewalk, five feet apart cause they're not gay

"you're watching a weiner schnitzel be made? Isn't that a dog?"

"she wouldn't hit a cows arse with a banjo"

About husk: probably grumpy enough to overpower catnip by the sheer force of cynicism

About niffty being drunk: she's a spastic caffeinated squirrel in traffic that's just taken a nice long inhale of, uh, snow

no actually I think you're right! I like my impulsive, self destructive behaviors

don't turn yourself into one of those cooked children in the backseat you're always hearing about, Pls don't cook yourself over your trauma

YEAH WE HAVE CHILD LABOR ON THIS BUS!

Mickey mouse voice: you can't spell drunk driving without U and I!

He has the mcdonald's headset of infinite wisdom

*angrily* IM GONNA TURN YOU INTO TREE FOOD

Sudden vox in my head: and now introducing, this.... Fuckin thing..... *gestures to cursed cat alastor on a small runway behind him*

HOPE THESE HELP YOU GUYS IM LOOKING FORWARD TO SEEING THE NEW CONTENT!

Friend, I am

CRYING

[coralinnii]

I have one essay report and a big work project left and I'll be stress-free...for like a week before classes start again. Instead of finishing those last responsibilities, I've been putting Cell Block Tango on repeat because Youtube algorithm decided I needed scary hot women murderers...and it's not wrong.

The product of that procrastination is now an AU of my Villain/ess AU, where the villain/ess!readers still ended up being villains. An AU-ception

I will start on my writing list eventually. This was just a stress relief

One villain/ess!reader doesn't get a verse cuz someone's gotta be Roxie. Also, I don't know Hungarian so I used my native language (which may also suck since I haven't practiced in years).

Seeing that this is a parody of Cell Block Tango, all the warnings for this cover are the same for the original song (violence, infidelity, etc) so read at your own risk.

~ Enjoy ~

Yawn

Seven

Squish

Uh-uh

Monstro

Schoenheit

And now, the six merry villains of the Twisted Wonderland Dungeons

In their rendition of the Story Book Tango

Monstro

Schoenheit

Yawn

Seven

Squish

Uh-uh

Monstro

Schoenheit

Yawn, seven, squish, uh-uh, Monstro, Schoenheit

Yawn, seven, squish, uh-uh, Monstro, Schoenheit

Yawn, seven, squish, uh-uh, Monstro, Schoenheit

He had it comin'

He had it comin'

He only had himself to blame

If you'd have been there

If you'd have seen it

I betcha you would have done the same

Yawn, seven, squish, uh-uh, Monstro, Schoenheit

Yawn, seven, squish, uh-uh, Monstro, Schoenheit

You know how people have these little habits that get you down?

Like, Leona

Leona, he liked to sigh when he's sleepy

No, not sigh, yawn

So I walk into our room this one day

And I'm really irritated

And I'm looking for a little bit o' sympathy

And there's Leona, lyin' on the bed, on his lazy ass and sighing

No, not sighing

Yawning

So, I said to him, I said "You yawn near me one more time"

And he did

So I took the rifle from our armory

And I fired two warning shots

Into his head

He had it comin'

He had it comin'

He only had himself to blame

If you'd have been there

If you'd have heard it

I betcha you would have done the same

I met Malleus from Briar Valley about two years ago

And he told me he was single

And we hit it off right away

So, we started meeting together

He'd go to his castle, he'd come back to me

I'd give him a rose, we'd have dinner

And then I found out

"Single" he told me

Single, my ass

Not only was he meant for some girl

Oh no, he was one of 7 suitors

One of those harems, you know?

So that night when he came home from his castle

I gave him a rose, as usual

You know, some guys just can't hold their poison thorns

He had it comin' (yawn, seven, squish, uh-uh, Monstro, Schoenheit)

He had it comin'

He took a flower (yawn, seven, squish, uh-uh, Monstro, Schoenheit)

In its prime

And then he used it (yawn)

And he abused it (seven)

It was a murder (squish)

But not a crime

(Uh-uh, Monstro, Schoenheit)

So I'm standing in the kitchen

Tasting some cherry tarts for a party (uh-uh)

Minding my own business (Monstro)

In storms my husband Riddle in a furious rage (Schoenheit)

"You been breaking the rules!," he says (yawn)

He was crazy (seven)

And he kept on screamin' (uh-uh)

"You been breaking the rules!"

And then he ran into his scepter 

He ran into his scepter 42 times

If you'd have been there

If you'd have seen it

I betcha you would have done the same!

Kenapa aku di sini?

Mereka kata pencintaku menolong aku dan membunuh Tunku Kalim bersama-sama

Bukan! Aku tak bersalah

Kenapa negara Scalding Sands lihat aku seorang pembunuh? 

Aku menjelaskan kepada polis tapi mereka tak faham

Yeah, but did you do it?

Uh-uh, not guilty!

My partner, Azul and I had these businesses

And the tweels, Jade and Floyd traveled round with us (he only had himself to blame)

Now, for the last day in our business trip (if you'd have been there)

We opened twenty businesses in a row

Food, suits, rings, tea, dresses, lounges, night brothels (if you'd have been there)

Show acts, theaters

One right after the other (if you'd have seen it)

So this one night before we leave, we're down at the Monstro Lounge (I betcha)

The four of us, boozin' (you would have done the same)

Havin' a few laughs

And we ran out of ice

So I go out to get some (he had it comin')

I come back, checked the stores

And there's Azul and the tweels (he had it comin')

In business seventeen (he took a flower)

The brothel

Well, I was in such a state of shock

I completely blacked out, I can't remember a thing

It wasn't until later

When I was washing the blood off my hands

I even knew they were dead

They had it comin' (they had it comin')

They had it comin' (they had it comin')

They had it comin' all along (they had it comin' all along)

I didn't do it (she didn't do it)

But if I'd done it (but if she'd done it)

How could you tell me that I was wrong?

They had it comin' (they had it comin')

They had it comin' (they had it comin')

They had it comin' all along (they took a flower in its prime)

I didn't do it (and then they used it)

But if I'd done it

How could you tell me that I was wrong?

I admired Vil Schoenheit

More than I can possibly say (he had it comin')

He was a real beautiful guy

A masterpiece, a queen

But he was always trying to find his fairest self (he only had himself to blame)

He'd go out every night looking for that self

And on the way

He found Rook (if you'd have been there)

Epel

Neige and the dwarfs (if you'd have seen it)

I guess you could say we broke up

Because of different perspectives (I betcha you would have done the same)

He sees himself as the fairest of them all

And I saw him as was

The dirty bum, bum, bum, bum, bum

The dirty bum, bum, bum, bum, bum

They had it comin' (they had it comin')

They had it comin' (they had it comin')

They had it comin' all along (they had it comin' all along)

'Cause if they used us ('cause if they used us)

And they abused us (and they abused us)

How could you tell us that we were wrong?

He had it comin' (he had it comin')

He had it comin' (he had it comin')

He only had himself to blame (he only had himself to blame)

If you'd have been there (if you'd have been there)

If you'd have seen it (if you'd have seen it)

I betcha you would have done the same

You yawn near me one more time! Single my ass

42 times! Negara Scalding Sands lihatku

Business seventeen, the brothel

Different perspectives

Yawn

Seven

Squish

Uh-uh

Monstro

Schoenheit

[bug-decal-kissing]

Hey friends!

Alone Inside by ackletze was updated today, with 2/? Chapters released! It has a rating of Teen And Up Audiences and No Archive Warnings Apply, with the additional tags "Hurt/Comfort, Angst, Grief/Mourning, Unhealthy Coping Mechanisms, Enemies to Friends to Lovers, Enemies to Roommates"

You can read it here:

I AM SCARED I AM SCARED I AM SCARED. MY BOYS. MY POOR BOYS. THE ANGST IS DEFINITELY THERE. PRISMO I AM SO SORRY SCARAB I AM SO SORRY. THEY NEED THERAPY. THE ARGUMENT HURT OW OW OW/pos. This was such a good chapter, everything felt so real and now I am very scared as to what is going to happen next vbhnjmkl please let the comfort of hurt/comfort come soon/hj

And They Were Roomates by Finn565 was updated today, with 2/2 Chapters released! It has a rating of General Audiences and No Archive Warnings Apply, with the additional tags "Fluff and Angst, Scarab has self esteem issues, They wont leave my head I can not stop thinking about them, Fluff, Angst, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Prismo is actually the best for real, Developing Relationship, Scarab is manic at one point, Touch-Starvedthey both are, Kissing, Wonder what kissing a wall is like fr"

You can read it here:

Prismo you simp/j. I love Scarab using it to tease him, like yes king you are attractive now weaponize it <3. And then they start talking about Jake and that always makes me go🥹 oh my poor boys my poor, poor boys. Scarab is finally being nice for once in his lonely life/j. He can't comprehend that Prismo just wants to be nice to him my poor stupid boy/lh.

Day Jobs and Daydreams by RainSparks29 was updated today, with 5/? Chapters released! It has a rating of Teen And Up Audiences and No Archive Warnings Apply, with the additional tags "Slow Burn, Exes, Enemies to Lovers, Alternate Universe - Human, Alternate Universe - Office, except the office is not present much, it exists in spirit, Narcolepsy, prismo has narcolepsy, Scarab's POV, I like these guys, Hurt/Comfort, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Grief/Mourning, implied prisjake, No beta we die like Jake"

You can read it here:

I was HYPED for this one, I love this work so much, it's just written so well !!! I feel bad for Cosmic now that he has to sit between these two doing whatever the heck they're doing/j. And now Scarab knows that Prismo is at least a little attracted to him, and he has to be normal about that; I could never. I love the way everyone is written in this work, the characters just work so well !

Golden Eyes by Kurei16 was updated today, with 3/? Chapters released! It has a rating of Explicit and Graphic Depictions Of Violence, with the additional tags "Alternate Universe - Pirate, I Wrote This Instead of Sleeping, no proofread, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Torture, Dead Dove: Do Not Eat, Panic Attacks"

You can read it here:

MY BOOOOOOOOY NOT MY BOOOOOOOOY-- PRISMO YOU PIRATE B IT C H/hj. I'm so excited about this fic, I love the pirate AU, even if it makes me want to be violent against my favourite pink sticker man/pos. Scarab is going to need some therapy after this; too bad it's too early for therapists/j. I am HYPED to see nightmo soon too !! I don't know if he'll be worse than Prismo, but the bar is set pretty high right now/lh.

A new work, Like Looking In A Mirror, by phoenixash234flames, was published today, with 1/1 Chapters released! It has a rating of General Audiences and No Archive Warnings Apply, with the additional tags "Multiverse, Sort Of, part of wedding wishes but also not really, AU-ception?"

You can read it here:

I love this series so much, they get to be SOFT and MARRIED <3. I'm glad Orbo is at least a little bit nice, letting them go to Fionnaworld. Also, very in-character of Prismo having no actual plan when they got there. Empty-headed king/j. I always like it when they get to see Fionna and Cake again, it's funny when they realise what's going on between Scarab and Prismo fvgbh They are so silly and it's so nice :].

Seraphyllic-⭑-Prohibited Wish by DrakianDH was updated today, with 4/15 Chapters released! It has a rating of Teen And Up Audiences and Graphic Depictions Of Violence along with Major Character Death and the additional tags "scarab the god auditor - Freeform, prismo the wishmaster - Freeform, Priscrab, ProhibitedWish, Scrabby, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, no beta we get turned to legos like the lich, Adventure & Romance, Story within a Story, Eventual Happy Ending, Maybe - Freeform, Author Is Sleep Deprived, The Author Regrets Nothing, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Angst and Hurt/Comfort, You gotta work for the comfort, begining poem important, each chapter a word, prepare"

You can read it here:

Cosmic Owl once more has to sit and watch these two do whatever the heck they're doing/pos. Scarab may be acting like a little baby who wants to sit in his room and brood for the rest of eternity, but at least Prismo is being nice about it wbhdencrf They finally get a chance to be soft and it's so good :,]. I'm now extra scared about the upcoming chapters/lh.

Silly Bug by TJade was updated today, with 2/? Chapters released! It has a rating of Teen And Up Audiences and No Archive Warnings Apply, with the additional tags "Genderbending, Domestic Fluff, Teasing, Humor, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Rating May Change, Suggestive Themes, Awkwardness"

You can read it here:

More of the girls YES PLEASE !!! And we get a little bit of Fionna time too :] ! It's so funny that she sees Carrie and is immediately like 'oh glob not SCARAB,' at least Carrie is nice to her <3. Cake has no filter but that's okay because she's a little kitty. I love seeing them interact with Fionna, she is reeling dcvfgbhj

That Won't Fly With The Boss by just_a_somebody has been updated today, with 5/? Chapters released! It has a rating of Teen And Up Audiences and No Archive Warnings Apply, with the additional tags "Prismo x scarab, ProhibitedWish, Hurt/Comfort, Angst, Headcanon, might've given him trauma, please just hear me out - Freeform, what if scarab had wings like scarab beetles are supposed to?, key word had, it makes sense with canon(to me at least), My first fic, Be nice to me, Post-Canon, and they were ROOMMATES, this can probably be considered as scarab having ptsd, PTSD, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Enemies to Lovers, Developing Relationship"

You can read it here:

HYPED for this work too !! Poor Prismo has to deal with Scarab's little guys form, he's lucky they're so cute/j. I love the way Prismo treats them and just how he treats Scarab in general, king is trying his best <3. They get to be soft and it's GOOD !! More people need to write about Scarab's little guy form(/nf), the possibilities of him getting up to no good are endless.

NSFW works are below the cut :].

A new work, got you in my mind, by rizzy_luke, was published today, with 1/1 Chapters released! It has a rating of Explicit and No Archive Warnings Apply, with the additional tags "Masturbation, prismo is whipped, i blacked out and end up with this, ig theres some plot elements here??, theyre texting now"

You can read it here:

Prismo is so down bad it isn't even funny anymore/j. I love the soft office AU, and getting a work from Prismo's PoV is always a treat :]. The ending made me cackle; Scarab you have no idea what you are doing to him <3/lh.

A new work, Touch, by kiripiry, was published today, with 1/1 Chapters released! It has a rating of Explicit and No Archive Warnings Apply, with the additional tags "Fluff and Smut, Fluff, Anal Sex, Biting, First Time, Blow Jobs, Touch-Starved, Prismo wants to touch things, and scarab is helping him, confession kinda?? cause they are idiots, written from a shutdown nest, My First Fanfic, very self indulgent"

You can read it here:

These GOOBS are so GOOBERLY !!/pos. I love how they get to be intimate without having actual sex at the beginning. They are relishing in their human bodies and it is so nice :]. Absolutely smitten for each other too. I love it <3

[hearttohaato]

Encanto OC Event Week 2

Part 1: Tomás Herrera & The Madrigals

For this week about OC relationships, this'll be a perfect opportunity for me to introduce a couple background OCs that I wasn't able to last week. In order to prevent an insane amount of clogging I've decided to split the info into multiple posts, starting with the Madrigals' relationship with my favorite Just Some Guy: Tomás Herrera!

Tomás, like many other villagers within the Encanto, has lived his life understanding that the Madrigals were special people with incredible abilities. He's grown up respecting them as such, but eventually he'll come to find himself being taken in as one of their own and adopting their name - and their legacy. But though Tomás is happy to marry the love of his life and join her family, doing so comes with some difficulty adjusting to the new environment: he's gone from a household of four, to three, to two, to over a dozen. Everything gets so busy and bustling so quickly, and initially it's a little hard to keep up; for the first few years under Casita's roof, Tomás feels decidedly "un-ceptional" and like an outsider who is a Madrigal in name only. But as years go by and he gets more comfortable with all the new activity, responsibilities, and magic, he'll come to accept himself as being where he belongs just as the rest of the family already has.

In regards to Camilo Madrigal:

Tomás and three of his good friends (Santiago Torres, Cristián Vargas, and Rafael Molina) bond with Camilo as they and the rest of the town help to rebuild Casita after the events of the movie. Camilo had his own friends his age, of course, but there was something special to him about being taken in by a patch of older boys and being considered one of their own. He's simply Little Brother Shaped!

Though all four of them have their own dynamics with Camilo, Tomás and Camilo grow very close despite their seemingly conflicting personalities. Camilo aims to help Tomás loosen up and come out of his shell in ways he likely wouldn't attempt to do on his own, and in return Tomás offers Camilo stable and level-headed advice that is a welcome change in perspective from the kind he gets at home.

Of course they can get on each other's nerves, namely when Tomás won't budge or when Camilo's joking goes too far. But all in all they're a bulletproof duo, where Camilo gets the older brother he never had and Tomás gets to be the older brother he should have had.

Art by LintuShadow.Art (left)

In regards to Luisa Madrigal:

The experiences Tomás had growing up alongside Luisa Madrigal weren't unique nor exclusive only to him. He's hardly the first or only villager she's extended her hands to over the years - but from mundane favors to quite literally saving his life, everything Luisa has ever done for Tomás has meant the world to him, even if to her they were simply her duties as a Madrigal.

But despite what he may have believed, Tomás hadn't been completely invisible to Luisa. She knew him well enough as someone she grew up and went to school with, and though she was indeed doing what she needed to, she never really forgot any time she helped him (or anyone else). If anything, he was a friend to her!

What really sealed Tomás's fate was a moment he witnessed something he wasn't meant to, one that helped him recognize that someone as unremarkable as him and someone as special as her actually could have something in common: the mindset that one's own feelings could be ignored when there were more important things to worry about. From there admiration blossomed ruthlessly into a hopeless crush, and though it took him a while to be able to pull it off, he relayed his feelings to her through a simple gift: a hand carved wooden dove for her 20th birthday.

As a couple they compliment each other nicely, though in a different way than Tomás's friendship with Camilo. They are each other's pillar; his emotional stability allows him to support her in her time of need, whereas he feels safe and at ease when she's around. Luisa can very well take care of herself, this she and everyone else knows... but sometimes it's nice to sit back and let herself be treated like a princess, something Tomás is always more than happy to oblige. There's little room for arguments or disagreements between them, provided they don't try to out-martyr each other - sometimes it is necessary for one to wring true feelings and thoughts out of the other like they're pulling teeth. But they can't hide from each other, and over time it becomes much easier for them to be open and accept that maybe their feelings do matter when someone is willing to listen.

He is her osito. She is his paloma. he's so in love with her it makes him look stupid

Art by mushroomflood (left)

In regards to the other Madrigals:

Bulletpoints to make things go a little more quickly--

Julieta, as his future mother-in-law, is the closest thing Tomás has had to a mom since his own's passing. He's bashful around her for a while, even moreso when he gets the greenlight to start calling her Ma. He comes to enjoy helping her in the kitchen periodically, as he already has cooking experience from living with his father.

He wants to make a good impression on Agustín very much, despite how remarkably easy it is to get on the man's good side - all Tomás really had to do was promise to take care of his daughter and Agustín was sold. Tomás would like Agustín to teach him how to play piano but he doesn't know how to ask.

Mirabel, by virtue of hanging out with Camilo a lot, ends up getting close to Tomás as well. Tomás doesn't know how he ended up with not one but two teenage ducklings following him around but he's not mad about it. When Tomás and Luisa become engaged, Mirabel gifts him with an embroidered vest that he wears all the way up until the wedding.

The only problem Tomás has in regards to Antonio is that he's terrified of wild animals. Antonio himself is a perfectly sweet kid and Tomás is kind to him when he wants to socialize, but he'll be a little on edge if Parce decides to tag along. It likely takes years for him to get used to having the denizens of the jungle waltzing around the house, but he comes to trust Antonio to keep a handle on them.

Alma intimidates the hell out of him, especially since he's in a very Agustín-like position of probably not being her first choice to wed one of her grandchildren. But he'll prove himself to her in how devoted he is not only to Luisa but to Camilo as well, and eventually earn her blessing (to which he's both grateful and relieved).

Similarly, Isabela is a little tough on him at first and is the one to give him the third degree when she finds out he's involved with her baby sister. She recognizes he's kind of a marshmallow soon enough though and eases up on him after that. There's a cordial mutual fascination between the two and their skillsets, given Isa's ability to conjure trees and Tomás's ability to turn those trees into something new.

Tomás and Dolores are shaking hands over being exasperated by their goofy little brother Camilo, but beyond that their lowkey personalities mesh quite well. Oddly enough, between Dolores's Gift and Tomás's natural observational skills, the two tend to have enough information between them to quietly discuss goings-on around town.

Pepa and Félix are a little more removed from Tomás due to him being a cool color family addition, but as housemates there's still interactions to be had. Félix's extroversion brings a lot of energy Tomás doesn't always know what to do with and Pepa's storms take some time to adjust to, but all three of them readily agree on how much they care about Camilo and that's all that's really needed to keep the harmony.

Bruno keeps to himself more often than not and Tomás wholeheartedly understands. That said, once Tomás gets a good read on how Bruno operates and how best to approach him, they're able to have a rather polite rapport. The rats skeeve Tomás out a little but they're no big deal compared to things like jaguars and anacondas, thus Tomás can be convinced (by Mirabel and/or Camilo) to offer his talents and build little sets for Bruno's telenovelas.

Mariano is in the same boat as being a mundane marrying into a very non-mundane family, and with the added history of being casual friends beforehand Tomás ends up gravitating towards him as they adjust to their new lives as Madrigals. They, along with Camilo, end up becoming more or less the second generation parallels to the Madriguys that came before them - Tomás's Agustín to Mariano's Félix to Camilo's Bruno.

Art by cringecanto

Part 2 will be coming shortly! Then, as I'm fairly certain it's already technically Week 3, the post for that week's prompt will follow sometime soon after.

@encanto-extended-edition

[frogshunnedshadows]

Retro Arcade Afternoon Write-Up Part II

Electro-mechanical Boogaloo!

The madness continues!

They had a Root Beer Tapper, which I tried and did not get very far with. And right next to it:

720, a skateboarding video game by Atari. Odd play controls on that, and a weird cabinet, but I like the fake cassette tape in the fake boom box. Nice touch & nice art. I see what you did there, Atari.

Then there was this guy, Circus Charlie. This had the vibe of a fake 80's arcade game for children that you'd make up for a movie. Cute marquee art, though.

And they had an Arkanoid! CRT was not in great shape. It is a slow game, but I do like it. Nice sounds & music. This one was on an awkward and slow level (28?).

Elton John's Capt. Fantastic pinball machine by Bally. Possibly the most self-referential pinball machine ever made. It's pin-ception.

Couple more electro-mechanical pinballs: Surf Champ and Paul Bunyan. Pretty old, and sadly, not working at this time.

But Road Race was working! The flipper action seemed a little weak, but I recall this having a particularly nice dinging bell / chime sound every time the score increased.

Yes, Virginia, there is a Centipede. Which I haven't touched in forever, but I got a decent score on! Made the high scores list! Which was exceedingly difficult to photograph!

Missile Command! A major historical, early and intriguing game that I don't think I'd played maybe more than a few seconds of before. Also seen in Terminator 2, I believe. Fitting. I did not get a decent sore on this. That is one super chonky trackball, too.

To be continued!

[pesterloglog]

Nepeta Leijon, Equius Zahhak

Act 5, page 2162

arsenicCatnip [AC] began trolling centaursTesticle [CT]

AC: :33 < *ac twitches her friendly whiskers at ct*

CT: D --> Hi

AC: :33 < *ct purrplexes over where he put that important wrench that he n33ded for building a fancy robot or something*

AC: :33 < *he says, now where did that silly old wrench go??*

CT: D --> 100k

CT: D --> What are you e%pecting to accomplish with this

AC: :33 < *but oh look! ct p33ks around the corner to find that a very playful kitty has stolen the robot wrench and is now kicking it vigorously with her hind legs!*

CT: D --> This is f001ishness upon one hundred thousand prior, equally unsolicited f001ishnesses

CT: D --> You'll stop now

AC: XOO < rawwrrrrr

AC: :33 < youre so lame!

CT: D --> I'm not

CT: D --> I'm fine

AC: :33 < no! lame

CT: D --> No I'm not

AC: :33 < lame

CT: D --> No

AC: :33 < youve never played a fun purrtend game with me ever even once!

AC: :33 < even karkat does it sometimes, even if he does mean it in a grumpy and insincere way

AC: :33 < but at least its still fun!

CT: D --> Yuck

CT: D --> Don't pol100t my incoming data stream with his name, or any sort of e%cremental language you pick up from his ilk

AC: :33 < i s33 right through your stupid act, who are you trying to kid!

AC: :33 < look how you go out of your way to use words that have x's in them so that you can use your silly purrcent signs

AC: :33 < or use these absurd words that you can shoehorn a '100' into, even if its not strictly replacing 'loo'!!!

AC: :33 < you are so transpurrent

AC: :33 < i can tell you like to play games, d33p down you are a guy who likes to play games!

AC: :33 < i can smell a guy who likes to play games from so fur away with this nose, you have no idea X33

CT: D --> If you're 100king for a 100phole through which you may e%tract concessions from me, you'll have to 100k elsewhere

AC: :33 < s33! what the hell???

CT: D --> Nepeta, what did I say about that awful language

CT: D --> I won't stand for it, and you'll stop

AC: :33 < oops

AC: :33 < sorry :((

CT: D --> Your fraternization with the base classes have 100sened your morals, can't you see this

AC: :33 < no! i dont care, they are fun

AC: :33 < and i dont know anything about classes or bases or blood color, it doesn't matter!

AC: :33 < what does gr33n blood even mean! it doesnt mean anything to me and it shouldnt mean anything to anyone else!

CT: D --> Well, green b100d is ok, but it's not great

CT: D --> But that's why you're lucky to have me to 100k out for you

CT: D --> Because you don't know better, and you can't fight the role the mother had in store for you

AC: :33 < rawrgh, you are such a hypurrcrite!

AC: :33 < you pretend to be so high and mighty but i know you're not and i know you like games

AC: :33 < look at that silly little bow and arrow you always type!

AC: :33 < its always there, you never furget

AC: :33 < why would you do that if it wasnt a playful fun thing, i am so on to you!

CT: D --> My bow and arrow are highly dignified symbols

AC: :33 < lol! bs!!!

CT: D --> Archery is among the highest and most e%ceptional crafts, held in tremendous regard by the most a100f classes for centuries

AC: :33 < you suck at archery

CT: D --> No

AC: :33 < yes

CT: D --> No

AC: :33 < yes

CT: D --> No I don't

AC: :33 < yessssss yes yes yes

AC: :33 < have you ever even successfully fired an arrow?

AC: :33 < like actually got one to leave the bow??

CT: D --> I think

CT: D --> We need to stop talking about archery

AC: :33 < nuh uh

CT: D --> Yes

AC: :33 < no

CT: D --> We will stop talking about archery

CT: D --> The topic is making me

CT: D --> Sweat

AC: :33 < eww

AC: :33 < youre so gross

CT: D --> No, you're the one who e%ercises distasteful practices

AC: :33 < nooo, thats you

AC: :33 < everyone knows youre a weirdo and a cr33p!

AC: :33 < thats why youre lucky to have me to k33p an eye on you

AC: :33 < no one else can stand you!

CT: D --> You e%terminate beautiful, innocent creatures by the hundreds

CT: D --> I can't condone such wretched behavior

CT: D --> Beasts are meant to be 100ked upon with adoration

AC: :33 < but

AC: :33 < i eat them!

AC: :33 < i dont kill anything i dont eat, that would be mean

CT: D --> I guess that's basically acceptable in principle, but I still find it a bit unsavory

AC: :33 < well i think YOUR habits are unsavory!

CT: D --> No they're not

AC: :33 < yuh HUH

CT: D --> You're wrong about me, Nepeta

CT: D --> I do like to play games

CT: D --> But they must be e%tremely important games with very high stakes

CT: D --> Not the kind played by trans100cent green wigglers who let 100se an e%cremental surge hard in their wiggler-bottom diaperstubs

CT: D --> As it happens I have arranged to play just such a game tonight

CT: D --> Aradia and I have a private engagement to be co-leaders of the b100 team

AC: :33 < oh yeah??

AC: :33 < *well just by purrchance it happens that ac has a private and sneaky engagement to play this game as well!*

AC: :33 < *and by a purrsnickety twist of fate, she will be on the R33D TEAM, with her other great friends who like to play their childish diaperpoop games!!!!*

AC: :33 < :PP

CT: D --> Absolutely not

AC: :33 < absolutely :PP

CT: D --> I forbid this

CT: D --> You will take your position on the b100 team with me

AC: :33 < yeah right! i will take my purrsition into this funny pounce ball and tackle you!

CT: D --> That's nonsense, you're nowhere even remotely within my pro%imity that would be necessary to e%ecute such a maneuver

AC: :33 < *ac rolls her eyes almost as hard as she is rolling around in this really interesting smell*

CT: D --> The thought of you fraternizing with and abetting those stink-b100ded h001igans strikes me as scandal beyond measure

CT: D --> I'm afraid you're too delicate to withstand that sort of corruption

CT: D --> It's forbidden

AC: :33 < nuh uuuuuuuuuuuuhhhhhhhhhhh

CT: D --> Yes

CT: D --> You won't

AC: :33 < no

AC: :33 < i will

CT: D --> You won't

AC: :33 < you cant stop me!

CT: D --> I am telling you not to

CT: D --> And you will be on my team

CT: D --> That's final

AC: XPO < bllllraaaaaawwwwwlllllrrrrghgghghgh

CT: D --> Quiet

AC: :33 < why do you do this, why are you so confurdent about your stupid commands?

AC: :33 < dont you know you cant ACTUALLY tell me what to do??

AC: :33 < its not like you even have any special mind pawers or telepurrthy or anything!

CT: D --> No

CT: D --> I do not

CT: D --> And yet

CT: D --> You will do as I say

AC: :33 < yes well we will just s33 about that!

CT: D --> Yes we will

CT: D --> You will join me on my team shortly

CT: D --> Stand by for further instru%ion

AC: :33 < hisssssssss!

CT: D --> You're angry, and I appreciate that

CT: D --> But it doesn't matter

CT: D --> Di%ussion over

AC: :33 < :((

[original-character-championship]

lemme show some ash designs over the years!!

the current ash we know and love !! goofy parrot guy

previous oc world lore ! he had everything except good consistent worldbuilding. religious imagery. being a lab experiment. more pathetic. even gayer somehow. this version is now in Ash's own story(see oc-ception section of the info post)

They were almost in a medieval fantasy thing..... excuse the old art

everything before that is art that doesn't get anything across. But the thing is, Ash was a doodle with no set story from when i was sooo little. won't you vote Ash for little me? :(. I made him when I was super bored and contemplating very many things. My only exposure to any gender thing was Alex from Magnus Chase, and I was an egg. I thought, oh, it makes so much sense to be genderfluid, that just makes sense. But why fully shapeshift how you look entirely? Aren't you still just you? And so when I drew Ash randomly and thought, oh, you cant rly tell from the drawing if this is a girl or a boy- I was ecstatic. So basically I gave Ash my gender(which to me was my own original idea, since I knew no labels) and in that way I was able to put mine into terms for myself. So Ash was huge for my gender journey. But besides that he's also an awesome character

[mariacallous]

The Guardian's This Week in Patriarchy

Courtesy of Arwa Mahdawi

James Corden: the 2022 Ellen

It’s not been a terribly good week to be British, has it? It’s been pandemonium in the country itself and one of Britain’s more famous exports has been making a disgrace of himself. I speak of James Corden, of course. The comedian, an English immigrant in LA, has been making headlines for some egg-ceptionally mean-spirited behaviour. He turned up to eat at Balthazar, a fancy New York restaurant, and was nasty to the waitstaff, according to Balthazar’s owner, Keith McNally. In one incident he was extremely mean after he found a hair in his meal. In another he became apocalyptic because the staff got his wife’s order of an egg yolk omelet wrong. There was a little bit of egg white in it apparently and we can’t be having that can we?

McNally, who perhaps sensed a good opportunity for some free PR, did not hold back his thoughts on Corden. In an Instagram post he banned the comedian from his restaurant and called him “a tiny Cretin of a man” and “the most abusive customer to my Balthazar servers since the restaurant opened 25 years ago”. Still, that abuse was quickly forgiven after Corden apparently called up McNally to apologize. “Anyone magnanimous enough to apologize to a deadbeat layabout like me (and my staff) doesn’t deserve to be banned from anywhere,” McNally later wrote. Dude, apologizing isn’t magnanimous; it’s the absolute least someone can do!

The story should really have ended there but Corden decided to keep it going by telling the New York Times he hadn’t “done anything wrong, on any level”. Corden said: “I feel so zen about the whole thing. Because I think it’s so silly. I just think it’s beneath all of us.”

It’s not beneath me, mate. I understand that this is just some silly celebrity gossip and there are more important things to be worried about in the world but that’s precisely why I am so deeply invested in the Corden drama. When the world is falling apart, celebrity gossip provides welcome relief. And there’s a lot of Corden gossip out there. As soon as McNally unleashed on Corden the floodgates opened and lots of stories about Corden being “a tiny Cretin of a man” emerged. Becky Habersberger, who is married to a member of the Try Guys, shared a TikTok video about how she witnessed Corden yell at a busboy in Los Feliz. People started sharing a Popbitch story about how Corden had once ignored his crying baby for the entirety of a flight and left his wife to deal with the kid (grounds for murder). Everyone remembered that time he was seen cozying up to Sean Spicer at an Emmys party. And the time he was rude to Sir Patrick Stewart.

The parallels between Ellen DeGeneres, who fell from grace in 2020 after everyone decided she was a horrible person and her on-screen bubbly persona was a scam, are not hard to see. Indeed there are plenty of people who are already calling Corden the “Male Ellen”. Corden may be the male Ellen but, unlike Ellen, I’m not sure that the allegations he is a nasty piece of work are going to put a massive dent in his career. Women, after all, are consistently held to higher ethical standards than men and more harshly punished for the same transgressions. Studies have found that people react better to anger from a man than they do from a woman. A 2008 study, for example, called “Can an Angry Woman Get Ahead?” found that “male and female evaluators conferred lower status on angry female professionals than on angry male professional.” The study found that “whereas women’s emotional reactions were attributed to internal characteristics (eg, ‘she is an angry person,’ ‘she is out of control’), men’s emotional reactions were attributed to external circumstances.”

Anyway, I don’t know where Corden’s career will go next but I do hope that he is on his best behaviour from now on. The English don’t need any more embarrassment.

Russian feminists help men avoid draft

The day after Russia invaded Ukraine, 57 feminist groups in Russia banded together to form a group called the “Feminist Anti-war Resistance” or FAS. The movement is active in 100 cities in Russia and abroad and has been helping men avoid conscription. Like Black Lives Matter, FAS is decentralized. “This makes the FAS more adaptable and allows for new tactics and strategies,” a political scientist explained to DW. “The Hydra has several heads, and if you cut one off, 10 new ones grow back.”

What a pregnancy actually looks like before 10 weeks

This eye-opening piece from the Guardian has been going deservedly viral.

The woman hunting down revenge porn

Mia Landsem spends hours a day (unpaid) helping victims of revenge porn track down and remove their images from the internet. I would say she’s doing God’s work but she’s actually doing the work that highly-paid tech executives and politicians should be doing.

Female leaders are leaving companies at the highest rate ever

About 10.5% of female leaders (defined as those in senior management and above) left their company in 2021 compared with 9% of male leaders: the highest rate of voluntary departures since McKinsey started collecting data in 2017. Burnout and the pandemic are largely to blame.

America has a Black sperm donor shortage

Black men account for less than 2% of sperm donors at cryobanks, the Washington Post reports. “The severe shortage is forcing Black women who need donor sperm into a painful choice: Choose a donor of another race and raise a biracial child or try to buy sperm from unregulated apps and online groups.

How a $1,900 stroller became a metaphor for motherhood

“The baby stroller is only the most visible symbol of the ethos of consumer capitalism that saturates American pregnancy and parenthood,” writes Amanda Parrish Morgan in this fascinating piece.

Why Bolivia’s lawmakers are 50% women

Quotas requiring half of all party nominees are female were introduced in 1997 when just 9% of the country’s national parliament were women. Now that requirement is part of the constitution.

The week in pawtriarchy

One upside to the brouhaha in Britain is that Larry the Cat, who serves as Chief Mouser of No. 10 Downing Street, has been getting the attention and adoration he deserves. The 15-year-old tabby has now outlasted four prime ministers. “The King has asked me to become Prime Minister because this nonsense has gone on long enough,” Larry the Cat wrote in a viral tweet hours before Truss announced her resignation. Britain has officially gone to the dogs: time to bring in a cat.

[newtonian-tragedy]

Here's a full 30-minute playthrough of The Discovery of Robert Hooke: A Microscopic Adventure. You can try it yourself through the Legends of Learning website but it requires an account. The most expedient way to access the game is by signing up as a teacher and adding it as an assignment. Keep in mind that it runs on WebGL and therefore isn't supported by mobile devices.

Review under cut:

So, even though this just your basic education game commissioned by some guy on Fiverr for a website that uses some questionable assets (the avatars resembled reskinned Animal Crossing characters, and you're assigned a companion that is basically a Pokėmon ripoff) this is obviously my special interest and I just wanted to take a moment to discuss this delightfully bizarre little addition to Hookedom.

The game is described thusly:

Hmm. "Graced", you say? I doubt it was intentional, but I really appreciate that subtle choice of words.

Also yes, our Bobert literally magically shrinks down to a microscopic size after using what is beginning to sound like a cursed object that doesn't even belong in his lab to begin with.

A very small act of defiance against his rival. You love to see it.

The main summary states that it wants us to "join Robert Hooke in his great adventure through the cellular world discovering and classifying different types of cells, facing and overcoming amazing challenges, and becoming the most famous and adventurous scientist of the century" which sounds great until you find yourself asking "which century"?

Because, first of all, this raises an immediate red flag:

After pondering the smallness of a cork in the opening cutscene, or hero begins rummaging through some chests stuff with books so that he can locate a microscope with which to examine the object.

He then finds not his own microscope, but one from 300 years into the future. For some reason, he doesn't question this. Then again, he also has several portraits of 19th century scientists around his room.

Anyway, upon peering into the microscope, Hooke is immediately isekai'd away into a strange world, which is strange to think had existed on his little piece of cork all along.

(Take note of what he is wearing while he is being shrunk down—this will be important later on.)

From here, Hooke encounters a humanoid worker who is oblivious to the fact that an alien just landed at his feet, and instructs him to collect some scientific samples in a psychedelic-looking platformer environment.

The gameplay is pretty brief and basic. There are a couple of obstacles that try to crush you, but there are zero damage penalties because there's no health bar in this stage. Which is good, because I was accidentally crushed twice in a row, and thankfully nothing came of it.

When he is finished, he enters the Experiment Room and is instructed to use yet another microscope to examine and classify several samples based on whether they are unicellular or multicellular organisms.

And no, please don't ask me how any of that works if everything is already supposed to be microscopic to begin with. That's like some kind of micro-ception that I can't even begin to wrap my head around.

Next, we get to the lengthiest segment, in which Hooke is instructed to construct three different types of cells in a factory-like setting, where each part and its function is described.

I dunno, man. Should he even be entrusted with that kind of power? Then again, imagine the look on Newton's face if he knew that his rival was tampering in God's domain. Why, he'd die of jealousy!

The final segment is the Chaos Room, in which you basically just sort four different organisms into their respective areas based on cell functions.

You can actually lose health here, so you know that shit's about to get real when the health bar appears on the screen.

On my first playthrough, I lost a life when I was unexpectedly struck by cannon fire whilst carrying "Grandma" to the "Animal Eukaryote Zone" where she rightfully belongs. Yes, you read that correctly.

Speaking of Grandma, I'm not sure how comfortable I am with the implication that she may contain sperm.

For this path I was scared of falling, so I pussed out and took the easy route. Don't you dare judge me.

Immediately following this harrowing exercise where it feels like everything wants you dead when you're just trying to learn science, we are alerted of a very literal virus alert.

I am ashamed to admit that the combination of the text-to-speech narrator and the cheesy alarm sound effect actually triggered a flashback of those noisy pop-up ads from the 90s that was so convincing that I actually shit a brick for a split second, thinking this game injected some kind of malware into my laptop.

But alas, there was nothing to fear, for our hero Robert is here to save the day—with the power of soap bubbles.

Here you basically just smash the space bar, keeping the wave of respawning goobers at bay until either the time expires (50 seconds or so) our you reach a certain number of kills (the minimum for me was 132). Not sure which one comes first.

As bland as the gameplay is, you have to admit that the image of Hooke manning a turret on the bed of a moving truck is one of the most badass things ever. I might be a little biased because I draw him equipped with a pair of pistols, but now I'm more convinced than ever that this man was made to wield firearms.

Alas, once the viral menace is eliminated, Hooke has little time to participate in the (semi-nude?) festivities that follow, for he soon finds himself quickly un-isekai'd away just as quickly as he had arrived.

Remember when I said to pay attention to his outfit?

Opening cutscene? Pants. Gameplay? Pants. The ending, however?

That's right. Bottomless disco, baby. For whatever reason, the normally modest Hooke decides to abandon all inhibition and engage in the decadent customs of this apparently Sodom and Gomorrah-esque society.

Perhaps it is this very display of degeneracy that makes the mysterious Powers that Be decide that enough is enough, and Hooke is beamed up in a sudden one-man rapture.

He is returned home safely, but no less nakey (and probably traumatized for life).

Come to think, many reports of alien abductions turn out the same way. 🤔

So what are your thoughts?

My personal conspiracy theory: Newton sent the cursed 1965 microscope in the hopes that his rival would meet a gruesome end in another dimension, only to withdraw him once he saw his victim having too much fun indulging in his sexual vices.

Anyway, that concludes my autistic take. If you made it this far, thanks for reading.

[drewoclock]

Commentism

Originally published October 27th, 2014

One day, the inventor of the Internet had a brilliant idea.

"My goodness... It's genius!" "WHAT IS IT, PROFESSOR STINKLES." "Why Bebop4000, my robot companion, do you know how people are always remarking things to each other?  Sharing their thoughts about a central thing?" "YES PROFESSOR STINKLES I AM NOT A DUMBASS." "Well, what if, when somebody puts something on the Internet, other people--can REMARK about it?!" "THAT IS A WEIRD QUESTION.  HOW WILL YOU DO IT." "I'll create a--a little box!  And in the box, people can write a comment.  And they can make more and more comment boxes!" "CANNOT COMPUTE." *massive explosion*

And despite their untimely deaths, this idea of comments indeed became a thing.  But I don't think anyone expected it to become as glorious as it did.

YOU get a comment!  YOU get a comment!

...hmm, that wasn't--well, anyway, there's reviewing products, there's commentating on live events, but in the comments section on the Internet, you've got a global bathroom wall where everyone can read and participate at any time while taking a giant dump.  And some people have really found their calling with comments, because they're fantastic at it.

I was supposed to be a fighter pilot.

...Alright, that needs to stop, whatever that is.  ANYWAY, these certain commenters make reading comments a form of entertainment.  It could be one person or a whole group of people, and the possibilitites are endless.  With timing, grace, finesse, and maybe a diaper or something, these commenters essentially create literature: A dialogue that can stand on its own from the very thing that's being commented on.  Comments imitating art, if you will.

Yes, I'm sure the infinite contributions of "fake and gay" would make a fine book.

Hey, if Kim Kardashian can make a book about her selfies, anything is possible.

please buy my book guys, its all the times i accidentally took a screenshot on my phone

EVERYBODY CALM THE FUCK DOWN I'M TRYING TO TALK.  So YES, THESE kinds of COMMENTS are VERY ENTERTAINING, and I've even indulged in making them myself.  But I've noticed an interesting phenomenon.

Soylent Green is people!

SHUT THE FUCK UP.  THE PHENOMENON is that these COMMENTS are BECOMING THEIR OWN POSTS.  I look at these expansive constructions of commentary and think that they themselves should be a separate piece with their own comment boxes.

Comment-ception.

BUUUUUUUMMM.

You have to write a comment in one minute that takes two minutes to read.

It's two minutes to write, one minute to read, dumbass.

Go home, you're drunk.

Is that why somebody called him a BUM?

Guys, alcoholism is a serious problem.

Yeah, come on guys, you're bumming me out.

The road to recovery is a bumpy one.

I recorded twelve songs about my own experience as an alcoholic.  You can buy it on my brand new album.

I am a bum.  am I doing this right?

Alcohol is a serious probum.

I actually think I may be onto something there.  In fact, and I'm totally serious, I had an idea for a social network specifically for comments.  But I'm getting off track.  My point is that with all this focus on comments, sometimes you lose sight of the original post.  And I know some of these original posts encourage this comment spectacle, and some people don't mind what happens to their posts, but you know what?  I kind of do.  Call it controversial, but I think some posts should be spared the comment circus.

Is the op trying to reclaim control of his own post?

ITS A TRAP.

If you strike me down, I shall become more powerful than you can possibly imagine.

Hahahaha, Star Wars, it's funny because it's a reference, what I'm trying to get at here is that perhaps we should use more discretion when commenting.  Maybe take a look at these original posts and decide whether they might be important enough to deserve their own attention?  Hell, I've had a lot of important posts I've made that have been subject to comments that have distracted people.  I even used to do the same thing to other people.  I love comments, but I think there are some posts that are too important for this parading of comments.  Dare I say it, I am a COMMENT ACTIVIST.  COMMENTISM.

#Kony2012

#GamerGate

#StopYellowFever

#KKK

#sicsemptertyranis

#MenAre#1

#But there's two sides to commentism.  I've made many frivolous posts which have been commented on.  I've watched the comments get more likes than my own post, and its always (to my surprise) really upset me.  It's people essentially declaring that they prefer what someone else said over what I said.  That my content is inferior.  And you know what?  That's a bummer for me, but what's wrong with it?  There's no rule that my original post should be considered better than comments made on it, and there shouldn't be.  Hell, I've made comments on posts that wound up more popular.  Comments may bother me, but just because something was based off of another thing doesn't mean it can't be as great, or even greater.  Dare I say it, I am a COMMENT ACTIVIST.  COMMENTISM.

tl;dr

what are you doing making words?  this is AMERICA

*eagle dives into pool of fireworks*

'MURICA

Morocco?

'MUROCCO

*Moroccan eagle dives into pool of Moroccan fireworks*

SO TO SUM THINGS UP I think comments are grand.  I think that sometimes comments seem right when they're actually out of place, and I think that sometimes comments seem wrong when they're actually fine as they are.  I think this is all something that people really don't consider much because people don't take comments seriously.  But let's face it, a lot of us pay attention to comments.  We notice them more than we think.  So maybe this commentism thing is worth your time.  After all, we're all commenters.  We're all in this race together.  And as long as we're racing, we may as well finish it in...

...

Come on guys, I literally set this one up for you.

FOURTH.

SECOND.

EIGHTY-THIRD.

PI.

SECOND.

ONE HALF.

NEGATIVE EIGHTY-THIRD.

Oh, comments.

[shuuenmei]

Some "black or white" stuff but while thinking of the potential ending for this fic, there were actually two scenario's I thought about?

First ending is still something I'm keeping under wraps about at the moment but it's the one that I decide to be the true and final ending for "black or white".

The second one... I dub it as the "Time travel ception" ending

(Placed under the cut for future scenario and spoilers)

The ending is half inspired from the Gintama movie "Yorozuya yo Eien nare" and also the Korean webcomic "flow" which had a concept of everyone having a supernatural animal spirit but only a few are selected to have the spirit of the Four cardinal beasts.

To not spoil much, Yuu (Rei) borrowed magic from the world and also from Shiro due to needing his power as a mythical beast to turn back time to one year back to her arrival in Twisted Wonderland when beating an overblotted Grim seemed impossible as everyone's been downed and there's no telling when reinforcements could arrive.

A little something about Shiro is that beyond his control of the earth and metal and connection to the fall, for this story, each mythical beast had a secondary set of powers that help keep the balance of the world and Shiro has an ability connected to time.

Since time related magic is fragile because one wrong step can do something wrong, Shiro is the only one that can wield and use the power to control time safely but even he and the masters he chose still need to follow the time and dimensional clause to a degree.

So Yuu (Rei), now with memories of the one year that happened along with Shiro, went out of their way to avoid meeting with anyone from Night Raven College to take refuge in the now defunct Ramschakle dorm.

But Yuu (Rei) cuts her contract with Shiro and borrowed magic from the world to erase herself and Grim from existence so none of the events such as the overblots and Grim's eventual overblot will come to pass.

Grim, who doesn't know anything was fighting his way out that he doesn't want to be erased but Yuu (Rei) kept firm, hugging Grim tight as the magic takes effect and says.

"Don't worry Grim, we'll go together. As if we never existed in the first place."

And just like that, Yuu (Rei) and Grim disappeared with only Shiro and the Ramshackle ghosts being the witnesses who remembered them.

The magic was felt all over the island since it's world changing, but once the effect takes place, they forgot it ever happened.

However, things started to get strange.

Riddle acted a lot more lenient than he was supposed to, having flashbacks of the failed Unbirthday party and of someone telling him that "There's no right or wrong answer" to rules and how he should stand up to his two feet to try and make things right.

Ace and Deuce remembered going through that event with someone but didn't remember who.

Flashes of the original timeline bleeds, an unintended side effect to the time travel and some, which I'll cover in a bit.

As the year goes by, the main casts and some of the staff remember things being a little different and find it odd... until the one year mark passed.

Ace and Deuce decided to go to the abandoned dorm as a small dare to commemorate finishing their first year but that's when things went a little odd.

They see flashes of someone being there and the dorm is not abandoned but felt like a second home to someone.

So they entered and lying on the floor of the unused dorm's lounge, is a pocket watch.

Ace held it curiously and then the magic activated.

And they remember.

"Don't worry you guys, I can finish this, I'll handle this." "Yuu, what are you doing-"

They finally remembered what truly occurred and got their answer.

"What... what the fuck Yuu!? We didn't ask for this! We didn't ask for a future where you're not here!"

The rest of the students, everyone that Yuu (Rei) had befriended, all headed for Ramshackle and saw Ace and Deuce knelt down the ground, makeup smudged and messed up with tears, holding onto the pocket watch that is still emitting magic.

Lilia recognized the pocket watch.

"That's the pocket watch I once received from Kaname... I had wondered why it was not among my possessions and I thought I misplaced it."

Now the ghosts and Shiro finally showed up and reveal that they knew what had occurred but kept it quiet because that's what Yuu (Rei) wanted.

The pocket watch was a gift from Kaname to Lilia, and Lilia decided to hand it over to Yuu (Rei) as a memento of her grandma after Shiro's true identity as the White Tiger and connection to grandma is unveiled.

The pocket watch becomes a magic conduit to keep the magic contained and running but it's a bit unstable, leading to the casts remembering the original timeline.

Since the overblots didn't happen at all, everyone involved comes up with a way to time travel back to the moment before Yuu (Rei) and Grim disappeared.

Malleus had enough magic to spare since he never overblotted and with Shiro's help, they all went back in time to stop Yuu (Rei) from disappearing.

Then they blink their eyes, they are back to the start of the year, during the entrance ceremony.

And everyone who remembered proceed to skedaddle out there and headed for Ramshackle.

They stopped Yuu (Rei) from activating or starting the magic, got there in time.

Ace and Deuce arrived first, magic pens pointing towards her.

"Ace? Deuce? "We remember, Yuu." "Remember? What... you shouldn't be-" "Oh we are NOT letting you play yourself as a self-sacrificial martyr!"

Long story, short, everyone caught up and after lots of talking and reasoning, stopped Yuu (Rei) from disappearing.

Grim, on the other hand, is damn confused to what's happening and the only gist he later got is that he will destroy Night Raven College in the future and thus, shouldn't actually be allowed to study in the first place.

"I haven't done any of that here! Why should it matter that I'd be some future bad guy!?"

In the end they allow Grim to stay after much talking because they all also remembered a time when Grim's an innocent individual, before he got corrupted by the crystalized blot he kept eating.

And it's unfair to judge him for that.

So the time-travel ception ending ends with everyone being mostly safe and sound, remembering everything.

The cons is that they all had to repeat the year. LOL

The staff also remembered but Crewel already got first dibs on taking in Yuu (Rei) as his ward before Crowley could and everyone else is gonna be weirded out at the newly changed self but things are okay.

But yeah, that's what I got for the time-travel ception ending!

The actual "black or white" story had a different ending that I ultimately liked better so this is an alternate ending of sorts that I'm willing to share bits about!

[bumblingbabooshka]

Transporter accident baby and his dear ol’ dads.

[prof-peach]

Everyone talking about what you're going to do with the comic, but I'm now curious on how Mr. Ogepi is doing after seeing Carl

Those two get on just fine, they have meetings every 3 months to oversee the finances and general legality of everything. Carl doesn’t have a Pokemon, because he’s a little awkward around them, but the egg-ception is Mr.Ogepi, who is in fact a bit of a business man himself, and for some reason his mannerisms are very human, so Carl likes the guy. On the rare occasion they cross paths, they do have lunch together in silence. Apparently this is enjoyable to them both.