#SO SILLY AND GOOFY AND HEART OF GOLD CHARACTERS>>>

[joybeantown]

IT WILL WORK OUT 🗣️

Filled with glee and wonders hes my fav :>

My kid icarus phase comes to haunt me but it did help with the hair

Still have requests open if theres an alt you'd like to see!

[autumn-leaves]

My Adventures With Superman is SO silly and fun and yet understands the character of Superman and Clark Kent at such a fundamentally good level.

Clark Kent is a goofy silly man with a heart of gold.

[third-arch]

Corazon Rambling-A Heart of Gold

An incomplete rambling about how I see Corazon and how I write him as a character.

One thing that I noticed when studying Corazon’s design was that it was a complete contrast to his brother’s.

His posture was droopy, his features were boxed and squared, rather than jagged and pointed like Doflamingo. His colors were darker and mature, rather than bright and chic. His bangs drooped over his eyebrows. He smoked, too.

So,

When you think of Corazon, what are the first words that come to mind?

Silly? Goofy? Lovable? Clumsy?

Or maybe, there’s a more subtle set of words that come to mind,

Quiet, father figure, caring, and all that.

The funny thing about Corazon is that he is all of those things, and I always try to incorporate them in my writings.

Still, it seems undermining to only define him that way, at least to me it does.

Throughout my time in the One Piece fandom, I have seen Corazon’s character interpreted in a multitude of ways, ranging from a silly, goofy tall guy, to a compassionate father figure and selfless caregiver for the bratty child Law was.

I realized the amount of characterizations that were possible for him.

He is one of the most beloved characters in the One Piece universe. Yet, we see so little of him.

So, there are bound to be multiple characterizations of him.

Yet, out of all of the perceptions I have seen done of him, there were two individuals who I thought interpreted his character very well.

But, throughout all of this, one phrase I rarely seen used when describing him is the one that I think fits him most admirably.

Corazon has a Heart of Gold

In my opinion, he’s just.

He’s willing to sacrifice himself for the greater good, and dedicate his life of it simply means helping others see the greater good.

He’s brilliant and loves unconditionally.

Humble, sweet, and gentle.

He’s patient and empathetic.

He’s a leader and a commander, willing to take on hardships and make sacrifices, even at his lowest.

Even when in pain and miserable,

He’d bleed and die for those he loves.

He set aside his emotions when others were hurting.

He loved with all his heart.

He’s strong and courageous.

He’d be willing to smile in the face of the devil if it meant a greater good would come out of it. If it meant forever leaving a positive impact on someone.

He is someone who is willing to set his foot down when someone crosses the line, and will do what it takes to ensure it never happens again.

And, most of all, he was completely altruistic and noble.

Even when he was dying, he wasn’t even sure if Law would remember him or his impact.

He just thought he’d be a passing memory.

Nothing more, nothing less.

Corazon was truly the best thing that ever happened to Law after all that he went through.

Neither Corazon nor Law realize it, nor do they need to.

Just and genuine love.

He saved his life without knowing what would come of it.

Even in his final moments, instead of reflecting on his own life or past, all he cared about was Law leaving silently and safely.

His heart poured out love for that child.

Courage and compassion beyond comprehension,

And he did it all with a smile.

[minzart]

What's Kamen rider about?

Great question without an easy answer!

I'll do my best to try and explain it since I'm just starting to know what Kamen Rider is too XD

So, the best way I know to exemplify to someone is "like power rangers but with, most seasons, 2 heroes instead of a big team" and also more serious yet without losing the silly factor.

Each season has it's own cast, story, rules of the world, and villain, so Kamen Rider Den-o, doesn't work by the same rules as Kamen Rider Wizard, even if they are in the same franchise, think Final Fantasy, were each new FF has it's own world instead of a continuos long plot.

So you can jump into any interation of Kamen Rider and not be lost, the question is if you'd like this version and keep going.

[More bellow and more about the two seasons I watch]

My first Rider is Den-o, and I fell in love with the silliness AND the characters, bc that story has a weak villain, good mystery, but mostly focused on characters, in specific the Taros with our main boy Ryotaro and the mystery of Ryo's older sister' lost memories.

Now I'm watching Wizard, and it is a completely diferent plot, I heard it has a mid story but I'm very interested until now so I'll see it for myself, were our protagonist is a survivor of some kind of ritual to create phantoms(for best understanding think evil monsters) and gained the power to become a wizard through magic rings, what's keeping me interested is how i'm slowly realizing Haruto(protag) isn't helping people and keeping them from dieing bc he's kind, but bc of his survivors guilt, and I want to see how this will change bc it will change for that I'm sure Shunpei(his new friend and ray of sunshine) will change him I bet.

The last post I made was about Rider Gavv, the new Rider released this week! And I'm intrigued already by the world it's building and it's protagonist, for the first episode(I'm patiently waiting for our fan-translators to get to the second episode and for the show runners to release the third in japan next week i think?) We know that our protagonist, Shoma, is at the very least a hybrid of a monster, the Granute, or is a complete one, or was experimented, anyways he has a weird mouth in his stomach but it is diferent than the other Granutes , he escapes his dimension and turns up here, a little boy saves him, feeds him, and when a Granute tries to EAT THE LITTLE BOY ALIVE-, he jumps in, gets beaten up over and over, refuses to keep down, learns and finaly transforms in Rider Gavv.

At the end of the day it is a children's media, so it is wacky and silly, but the topics they revolve around are what keeps me interested, it has heart.

See, in Den-o Ryo is possessed by an Imagin, the monsters of this universe, creatures that came from the future to grant wishes for people in the present, so they can go for the past that those wishes originated from and destroy the curent timeline.

The theme in this Rider is memories, fighting for the future even if it doesn't looks bright for you, accepting change, loss, friendship and becoming stronger and bolder with the right incentive. And the presentation of those themes are really well done for me.

You see there's this character, Sakurai Yuuto, our secondary Rider, he is two characters, we got Sakurai the older man who's integral to the plot, who mysteriously disappeared and the only person who remembers him is our protagonist, and Yuuto, a new Rider a younger man, hot headed, grumpy, but with a heart of gold, the younger version of Sakurai who can transform, but each time he does the memories of himself are erased from people who knew him, and he has to cope with the fact that the future he'll have is this, no-one to remember him, and yet he still fights

And all of that is played straight, there is no punch line, these characters will still be goofy and then have emotional break downs and deep conversations that almost say nothing but conveis everything to move you to tears.

To choose your first Rider can be anything that catches your interest first, be it:

In Wizard there's this scene between our protagonist and the a girl he is friends with, I don't know if it's a sister, a protégé, or just the person he saved first, but. I know that she was part of the same ritual that tried to transform him, she, unlike him, succumbed to the despair and "died", but he saved her and now she's alive only bc she has to consume his magic to keep on living.

She's sat in a lake, water almost up to her torso, and she's saing how she's a monster and how can she move on, and Haruto, instead of calling for her to get out, he moves in, he sits with her, he listens and promises to keep being her hope, and this whole scene is such a metaphor for grief, loss, depression etc, that it made me tear up, it's really simple but effective.

the suit design(what made me chose Wizard as my second season),

a silly gif(one gif of Momotarous that circle around 2022/2023 made me curious to start),

the main esthetic,

the story summary, etc.

I hope this explains it well enough and if you got curious I suggest starting with Gavv and waiting for the new episodes with the fandom or Den-o bc it was my first so... it would be the first that I recomend to people, or just search for a summary for the other and their themes, finishing Wizard I'm between starting OOO, Kiva, W or Ghost. All bc of suit design, so I have no idea what they are about XD

What I know is that Kamen Rider is a younger franchise than Ultraman, and older than Super Sentai (The serie that Power Rangers is based off) all of those are Tokusatsu(live action films/shows with heavy use of practical effects and special effects).

The older seasons are more serious, while the newer one are more colorfull and silly -Rider Gavv literaly gains his power from eating candy man XD- there's always a group of monsters to fight against, the villains are kinda mid but the heroes and deuteragonists are really good, with diferent esthetics and lore each season, many seasons don't have official translations -Den-o is one of those- but the fan-translations are around and done with good faith and plenty of bromance.

[melonteee]

tbh i genuinely dont understand why zoro is as popular as he is. i dont mean this in an 'ugh he sucks!' way but, like, compared to the other strawhats i always feel like he's lacking... something. idk what. he's a good character, but where as i can really get into the others on there own, digging it when they have solo adventures, zoro only really interests me when hes interacting the other strawhats. his solo moments fall flat.

he feels like a character who people like more cuz he gets a lotta cool battle/'bro' moments than anything else.

again, im not hating on zoro, he has a lot of great qualities. if anything im baffled because i cant even exactly pin point what the rest have that he lacks (in my eye)! its just... like robin or frankey or usopp or brooke or, yes, even sanji have this depth that is so much more intereging and enjoyable, i simply cant understand having zoro as a fave with them around. hes just. there.

Zoro is just very cool to a lot of men lol. But outside of that, I totally understand his popularity because he’s a very stable character, he feels like someone you want as a friend because you know he’ll always look out for you. He’s also someone you can desire to be due to his insane strength of will and drive to achieve a near impossible dream.

Zoro’s one of my top favourites as well, but for me it’s because he subverted my expectations! I expected him to be so boring and stoic, instead? He was so funny and goofy, he’s literally a charming idiot. He’s got a scary face and a heart of gold, and the way he clearly WANTS to be cool and WORKS to be cool is just so silly and endearing to me. Because I stand by that Zoro isn’t naturally cool, it’s a conscious effort he makes to be cool, and it makes me wanna pinch his cheeks and say he’s so cute for it lol.

I know a lot of guys don’t see him that way, but with how Zoro honestly gets embarrassed pretty easily, he’s just a cute guy LMAO I find it really hard not to like him and tease him. Tons of people like Zoro simply because he’s got different sides and qualities to him that different people see and latch onto!

[not-playable-character]

Everyone always mentions the character assassination of Bayo, but no one mention that both Luka and Jeanne were treated like garbage too.

They fundamentally changed Luka to make him the Mostest Special Boi In the Universe ™.  In all the previous games he was never special, and thats what made him special.  Also he was never a guide, the guiding people for all the games were Balder for 1, Rodin/Jeanne for 2, and Viola for 3.  Luka was always there by coincidence or just following Bayo around (in the case of the first game).  He was a babysitter at least and an exposition machine at most, and thats not a bad thing.  He was invaluble to the plot for that reason, in the first game he helped care for cereza when bayo ran off to do her thing and he would explain things that Bayo couldnt remember and need the information to move forward.  That right there is the worst bit they took from him in giving him his magic powers and having him have a combined conciousness.  Luka is SMART, sure hes goofy and silly but this man is smart.  He speaks and reads at least 2 dead languages, found out about a long dead and buried society whose history was burned to the ground purposefully, found artifacts to help him study these cultures.  These powers will take away from that fundamental part of his character (he even says it does in the final stridor fight where he berates himself).  Hes a goofy, perverted genius with a heart of gold and they ruined that making him Special ™

With Jeanne, they did my girl dirty in the latest game.  They made The Heir to the Umbran Throne (technically the elder but this isnt time for that) get killed by some dude in a pod.  You are telling me that the strongest Umbra to live cant sense that the guy who is literally saying “im gonna kill you” is gonna stab her in the back, WHILE shes in the middle of battle where shes surrounded??  Im not 100% but I can almost guarantee that Bayo once dodged Balder’s sword when he attacked from behind in 2 and she was trained by Jeanne.  She also couldnt tell that sigurd was evil?? Really? He was screaming evil, and she should have experience with creepy evil men in a secret facility.  They just really dumbed her down so much, she didnt even get to use her powers until ch12.  Also it goes against the Jeanne dying trope of it always being a heroic sacrifice for Cereza. 

I had more thoughts but i cant remember them anymore so this is the end of this nonsense

[wynnyfryd]

20 Questions for Fic Writers

tagged by @thefreakandthehair @stevethehairington @wormdebut @just-my-latest-hyperfixation and @morningberriesao3 thank you loveliess

1. How many works do you have on AO3?

27 dresses starring katherine heigl and james marsden

2. What’s your total AO3 word count?

138,103

3. What fandoms do you write for?

Stranger Things <3 My fics are all pretty exclusively Steddie or platonic Sstobin as the main focus, but I like to play around with the background ships - the best part of being super into a show with 14000 characters is you have so many opportunities for weird pair-ups

4. What are your top 5 fics by kudos?

No Son of Mine

relax (lay it back)

TITS! magazine

Monsoon Season

relax (that's that)

5. Do you respond to comments? Why or why not?

Yes! I try to answer every comment I get because like, thank you for taking the time to let me know you read and liked my story you didn't have to do that and I love that you did

6. What is the fic you wrote with the angstiest ending?

mmmm. I don't- HAHAHAHA okay wait, I was about to say "I don't really do unhappy endings" because I don't, but I did do a single angsty ending microfic as a personal challenge back in July

at the bottom you'll find all our friends

7. What’s the fic you wrote with the happiest ending?

weirdly enough I think it was the sex tape fic I wrote for @inklessletter lmao that fic turned out so much more 'aggressively married' vibes than I originally planned. Just absolute sap city

Satanic Ritual: DO NOT WATCH!!

8. Do you get hate on fics?

Hope not lol

9. Do you write smut? If so, what kind?

ADHD crack smut with a heart of fluffy gold

10. Do you write crossovers? What’s the craziest one you’ve written?

I have written exactly one chapter of one crossover, which is a modern Stardust AU where Eddie is Tristan, Steve is the star, and 1980s Indiana is on the non-magical side of the wall. Also Eddie was trying to find the star so he could grab a chunk of it and barter it for a new electric guitar lmao. I really loved the premise I came up with and thought the first chapter was great; unfortunately the fic is fuckin cursed and will never be finished (by me. if anyone wants to take a swing at the story where I left it off feel free!)

stupid fucking star stuff

11. Have you ever had a fic stolen?

See #8

12. Have you ever had a fic translated?

I don't think so!

13. Have you ever co-written a fic before?

yes! @gorgeousgreymatter-x and I co-wrote the first installment of the yogi steve vs adhd eddie series as a birthday gift to @flintandfuss <3 we broke each other's brains with our linear vs non-linear writing styles lmao but it was a really fun project

14. What’s your all time favorite ship?

Steddieeeeeeee

15. What’s a WIP you want to finish but doubt you ever will?

I started working on this goofy little crack fic forever ago where Steve was a member of the snooty grandmas-only Loch Nora Gardening Club, and he was all stressed out because the ladies had beef with the neighboring town's club and had somehow put Steve in charge of operation "publicly humiliate them by throwing a better annual fundraising party"

and then Eddie, being the impulsive horny dumbass that he is, was jokingly like "hey, you could come to my garden party some time" and Steve's like "you're in a gardening club?" "yeah, technically! sure!"

then Eddie drives him to Indy and pulls them up to this shady little sex club called The Pleasure Garden and Steve gets gently bullied by a drag queen lmaooo

16. What are your writing strengths?

Dialogue dialogue dialogue. Also I think in weird synesthesia (some words taste bad, some memories smell like cinnamon, ya know what I mean) so I feel like my imagery toward the fun and funky side

17. What are your writing weaknesses?

All the silly important shit that goes around the dialogue. And writing a seamless big group scene - more than four people in a conversation and the pacing gets so ssx tricky

18. Thoughts on writing dialogue in another language in fic?

Mmmm. I mean, I tend to avoid it unless the fic/character actually requires it. Like I did a Robin POV fic where Robin would think certain curse words in different languages because it seemed fitting for the girl who's fluent in four languages, ya know? Ooh, I do also love a good "character royally botches what they're trying to say" moment so foreign language phrases are fun for that

19. First fandom you wrote for?

Twilight

20. Favorite fic you’ve written?

I'm really just unreasonably proud of myself for writing almost 30,000 words of continuous story in 30 days. I've been trying to do that for years and never even come close

okay sick thanks for letting me ramble incessantly about myself this was fun!

as usual I'm late to the tag party but tagging a couple people anyway <3 @steddieas-shegoes @thisapplepielife @wormdebut @aidaronan @gorgeousgreymatter-x

[fairyhaos]

can you do moots as book tropes maybe? if possible

yes i definitely can omggg lezzgo (these kinda turned into fic tropes instead tho ngl,,,)

@slytherinshua is a coffee shop setting! no idea why tbh, but i imagine her as the animated, lovely customer who always comes into the cafe during the slow hours, with a smile on her face and a book in her hand and a whole array of wonderful and weird new things to chatter about to the barista who may be just a tiny bit in love with her

@blue-jisungs feels very much like a magical school book series. i'm thinking harry potter, i'm thinking school for good and evil, i'm thinking magic and pastel blues and childhood friends to lovers and saving the day and being a hero, either willingly or unwillingly, and learning and growing to become the best person you are able.

@wheeboo is arranged marriage!!!! i can't explain it but the tension and the drama ✨ and the way it can be either enemies to lovers or strangers to lovers is soooo rania. she'd bicker, she'd banter, but most of all she'd fall in love so, so deeply that she cannot even think of not loving them anymore.

@rubywonu is a fae/ faerie world setting. im thinking cruel prince-esque, with drama and blood and alliances, but also with all of its whimsy and its magic and its sparkly gold fairy dust. it's something a bit mysterious, very much unknown, and only the strongest and the most quick-witted will be able to survive

@selenicives dragonsssss and faux medieval settings :D the lore and the intrigue and the aesthetics of it all make me think of weiwei, #1 bc i think xe would love to create a world like that but also bc it feels vv much like something xe would enjoy being part of haha

@ylliris-hanniehae is exes to lovers. perhaps an unusual one, but exes to lovers, and second chances, is always about soft love and gentle stories, of talking things through and comforting past hurts and making promises to move on into the future, together. and i think ylli would like that.

@odxrilove is amnesia. dori is gonna get hit by a truck or smth during a crucial moment in the plot and half of the story is spent watching her struggle to get back her memories before PLOT TWIST it turns out that either a) someone intentionally hit her or b) she never lost her memories in the first place????? i feel like drama follows her wherever she goes tbh.

@weird-bookworm is found family ^^ bc she's just so sweet and nice and also a little bit silly and goofy exactly like how the found family dynamic often is. also sky just fits so seamlessly into our group like she's always meant to be here, so duh. she's now part of our family.

@etherealyoungk is just. cottagecore like idk how to explain it. when a character moves away from the bustle of the city to live in the countryside, perhaps to heal past traumas, and they discover an elusive stranger with flowers in their hair who help them open their heart and learn to love again? that's skye.

@gyuswhore is a baker/ bakery au! again i literally don't know why but em gives me the vibes of a rambly + bubbly + slightly weird baker who always makes sure to beam at the regulars and mayhaps be just a little bit enamoured with this one customer who always comes in and, without fail, orders fifteen egg tarts in bulk. she doesn't know what they're doing with so many egg tarts. but she's gonna find out.

[konradkatzen]

Favorite warhammer character, weapon, and vehicle?

Hi Leaf! Thanks for the ask I've been new enough to tumblr I literally just figured out how to check my inbox 🤦‍♀️

Favorite warhammer character has to be Nemesor Zahndrekh. His madness and delusions about everyone still being necrontyr are tragic, but he really does have a heart of gold as far as necrons go, going so far as to hold himself accountable for honorable conduct on the battlefield and the humane treatment of prisoners, even if Varguard Obyron ends up tying up the loose ends later.

Favorite weapon has to be the device the Maynarkh Dynasty used to destroy Llandu'gor the Flayer God. They basically just ripped a whole in space and time to unwrite Mr. Flayer C'tan from existence. If I remember correctly that bit of lore also includes Xun'bakyr, Mother of Oblivion, who is a kickass necron Phaerakh. Unfortunately Llandy boy got the last laugh with the flayer curse and the Silent King also told them to pack up the doomsday weapon because overusing it could destroy the whole universe. A more practical answer for favorite weapon would have to be the gauss flayer. Atomizing things and sucking them up into a vacuum cleaner device is a silly yet terrifyingly effective way to hurt things. My time playing tabletop in 8th and especially 9th taught me that few things hold up well to 20 necron warriors rapid firing lightning, especially if you use stratagems and abilities to buff them

Favorite vehicle has to be the admech onager dunecrawler. A walking forcefielded gun platform that can be kitted for anti-air and anti-armor. A close second would have to be predator tanks. The newer primaris hovertanks are neat but they sometimes feel a little too high-tech compared to the usual imperium gothic aesthetic. I really wish necrons had more of a MBT vehicle in their roster aside from the tesseract ark which is a goofy looking forge world model. The triarch stalkers are also kind of cool, and I love the lore that the doom scythe's engine produces a resonating warble in the atmosphere that drives organic beings to nausea and hallucination; truly a portent of doom.

[fountainpenguin]

Favorite underrated FOP episodes? (Definition of underrated is up to you, can just be a random small episode you like)

I think "The Odd Squad" will forever be top of the "underrated faves" list for me. The pacing and style are both so good, it has a lot of cute worldbuilding in it, the character interactions are fantastic (including a wholesome moment with Timmy and his regular parents), and it has Juandissimo saying "Nice wheels, Timmy! :D" I am a massive sucker for Jorgen freaking out over Timmy driving in Fairy World and wrecking the place but Juandissimo was more or less on the sidelines giving him an enthusiastic thumbs up because he is too silly and oblivious to foresee a problem skldfj. The dialogue is lots of fun and Timmy is happy the entire time. It's a sweet one.

I'd say that "Shelf Life" and "Which Witch Is Which?" are episodes I would classify as "episodes I enjoy that are less commonly remembered." The former has a lot of wit and clever dialogue and a silly ending, and the latter gave me a lot of worldbuilding to play with by canonizing witches in Crocker's family tree.

I love "Crocker of Gold" and "Chicken Poofs" for a lot of the same reasons- a pinch of worldbuilding and a lot of goofy character interactions. I'm sure that description applies to a lot of episodes, but there's a special place in my heart for the flower quest, Bring Your Chicken Hawk to Work day, and for the "Everything is so green here" scene, which is one of my favorite jokes in the world.

I'll always hold a soft spot for "Mr. Right" as well for being one of the first episodes I ever saw when I was out at a pizza place one time. I also really enjoy the concept of "The Big Scoop" and how it portrays Timmy in a creepy way from the perspective of his friends as they worry about what's going on in his life. Also I feel like "Please Don't Feed the Turners" says a ton about Timmy's parents... the LOOK they give each other when they're on the same page is the best.

All the Learnatorium and Pixie episodes, I'm a big fan of. "Hassle in the Castle" speaks to my soul and I think "Big Wanda" is hilarious. "Yoo Doo" will always be a favorite, and I love the silliness of "Presto Change-O," "The Gland Plan," "The Masked Magician," "The Good Old Days," "For Emergencies Only," "Talkin' Trash," "Parent Hoods," and "Formula For Disaster." Also "Fly Boy" because Timmy yelling "This is all your fault!" at Poof while Poof slightly cringes away just cracks me up.

I love the wackiness of "Dad Overboard" and "Take and Fake." They're hard to top; they're so very good. Poof playing in the sand and he finds a freaking missile, Crocker takes his class on a field trip to watch Timmy's supposed death, Dad accidentally kidnapped an elf from the North Pole who becomes a good friend, there's a line of dialogue that goes "I'll get Stanley and his headless wife! :D" and these are all the same episode. "Take and Fake" is just... goofy and nice, it's very difficult to watch without laughing so it's just lovely.

I'll also throw in "Wishing Well" because it's one of my all-time faves. The vibe it gives is kind of chilling while also being delightful the whole time because you know it's about learning life skills and it's such a positive viewing experience, plus it's one of very few episodes where Timmy meets other godkids and has a positive relationship with them.

"Fairy Friends and Neighbors" is a huge fave. Idk if that counts as underrated (imo Seasons 4 and 5 are the best in the series; they're almost all winners)

"Cosmo Rules" and "Jerk of All Trades" both feel nice because they're highly specific to the FOP world (i.e. they're about Jorgen's duty of overseeing Da Rules) and they're really fun to watch together. Facing the Fairy Council are two Fairies: one of them is Cosmo the estranged von Strangle who should care for Da Rules because it's his blood right, and the other is Juandissimo who straight-up broke Da Rules by fleeing Fairy World and returning stolen memories to his godkid, and the Fairy Council really said "Screw the bloodline, the rulebreaker gets to be in charge now." Obsessed with how after Jorgen announces he's been replaced, we pan over to Juandissimo who just sits there quietly in a chair with wide eyes like he doesn't know how he got there or what he's doing.

Let's see... "School of Crock," "Crockin' the House," "Viral Videots," "Dust Busters," "Fairly Old Parent," "Anchors Away," "Cosmonopoly," "Dog Gone," "Lame Ducks"... those are also episodes I really enjoy. Season 9 has a lot of underrated faves for me. I don't care for Sparky, but Season 9 is so good... Some of the best lines in the series are in there.

For underrated Season 10 faves, I'll throw in "Clark Laser" (idk if that counts as underrated since it's gotta be one of if not THE best of Season 10), and "Chip Off the Old Crock" with the same disclaimer. Then "Whittle Me This" and "Summer Bummer." Those are good.

"Kale Patch Caper"... It's got bits and pieces that don't click with me, but I LOVE morally gray Chloe committing B&E on her neighbors. I love how if Chloe didn't have godparents then canonically her fate is to lose an eye and join a gang. Like. What on earth. They really just dropped that on us and refused to elaborate. What. Love that.

Special shout-out to "Beach Blanket Bozos" for giving me one of my favorite FOP moments of all time, which is Jorgen grouchily sitting on Da Rules to scold Timmy for locking his parents in "I wish they were both the best surfer ever" wish limbo.

We don't talk enough about what a hilarious character Jorgen is. Big boss fairy godparent who can crush your skull. He's not allowed to have a godkid because he'd physically and emotionally destroy them. He's married to the Tooth Fairy... We love a man who's obsessed with his muscles and threatens to destroy you on the regular but in reality he just files paperwork. Which will ruin your life. I love Jorgen.

[thebonerpit]

After playing four huge new games in a row recently I wanted to jump back into a game I've already played, and I ended up on Assassin's Creed Valhalla. It kind of made me reflect a bit on how initially I was quite disappointed with this game but now it's really, really grown on me.

I'm a huge fan of the newer AC games but when Valhalla first came out it was a very distant third place in that trilogy. There are still some things that annoy me (being forced into open combat for so many encounters rather than being able to stealth) but I think what threw me off the most at first was coming into it after Odyssey which has SUCH different vibes.

Like, Origins to me is a really fun adventure/mystery story. It has some dark and serious elements but it also has Bayek who can be quick-witted and funny, it has the great Bayek/Aya romance, and it has the creation of the Hidden Ones which is SO cool. And then Odyssey is just pure joy imho. Alexios/Kassandra is a big old goober and they're so silly and I mean I guess it depends on the choices you make but it always makes me feel so fufilled and happy at the end when the family gets back together. It's heroic and light-hearted, has a lot of really goofy side missions, and even the world itself is bright and colourful and full of life.

Then you have Valhalla. Valhalla is DARK. It has this overarching sense of futility and inevitability, like your fate has been written and there's no escape. Eivor is stoic and brusque and violent and quite frankly a little unlikeable. A lot of the victories don't even feel like victories. They're tainted by loveable characters dying, friends betraying you, basically: winning but at what cost? Eivor often feels lost in their own story, being manipulated by people like Basim and Fulke and Alfred. They're also burdened with Odin's memories and end up having to leave everyone they know and love to deal with that.

But it also has these moments of searing beauty that make it into a wonderfully stirring experience, and I think it took me a while to realize that. I missed the joy of Odyssey so much I couldn't appreciate what Valhalla had to offer. I've been listening to the OST a lot and I think it captures that bittersweet vibe perfectly... the main theme alone is so haunting. Most of the England you explore is dirty and muddy and brown but every once in a while you are at the top of a hill and you see a beautiful sunrise light up the gold in the trees and it's breathtaking. That, to me, is what Valhalla excels at.

[mr-geargrinder]

Star Trek Rewatch Thoughts

Finished my rewatch of DS9, Voyager, and TNG. I've lost count of how many times I've rewatched TNG and DS9, but this was only my second time going through Voyager, because it just didn't click with me the first time through. Anyways, here's some thoughts.

TNG is fascinating to me because you can see them assembling the show as they go. They change plans pretty drastically, remove and bring back characters, and try to salvage others with a few last minute episodes. That left a permanent mark on the way I think about storytelling.

TNG is a pretty goofy show, but it takes itself seriously and there's a lot to be said about how dedication to the bit and some really charming actors doing their best can totally overshadow cheap sets and silly technobabble... and even when it doesn't, those goofy moments are still very charming too.

I only skipped a handful of episodes and most of them were Troi or Wesley episodes, for obvious reasons. Troi got a lot of bad episodes and Wesley is... Wesley. Someone who kind of embodied all the worst parts of Gene Roddenberry's silly utopian wish fulfillment fantasies. One of the things that I never noticed before was how the last season was filled with so many bad episodes, followed by one of the best series finales ever made.

Voyager was less bad than I remember. I found myself liking certain characters a lot more and hating others much more intensely. Janeway, Tuvok, and Neelix really clicked with me this time. I recall Neelix being hated for being the silly comic relief character, but he's got some depth! He's a sincerely, genuinely good person who is trying his hardest for the people around him and that really resonated with me this time around. Especially his interactions with Tuvok (minus the Tuvix episode).

Tom Paris ended up being the guy I liked the least because his three traits are "pilot", being a general shithead, and reminding Harry about every single time he messed up romantically in a list, over and over, and none of that really helped them sell him as a roguish hotshot with a heart of gold, or whatever. He's just a shithead.

Skipping episodes helped me to enjoy Voyage a lot more. Almost anything to do with Chakotay was skipped immediately. His bullshit tribal mysticism, literally made up by a con-artist who convinced Hollywood he was a Native American and an expert cultural consultant, did not endear him to me in any way. Robert Beltran did his best to portray the character with dignity and wisdom, but Chakotay just suuuuucks. The inclusion of the Maquis subplot was also a pretty big waste of effort, but the fact that it gets ignored for most of the series makes it easy for me to ignore.

Anything to do with the Kazon got skipped too. They're just lamer, dumber, more irrational Klingons and they have nothing of value to add to any story they're featured in. That also meant skipping a lot of the Seska plot, which was Chakotay heavy anyways, and I don't regret that. Seska was not compelling at all.

Likewise, the Vidiians got skipped without hesitation. Not only do I hate the body horror aspect, but they were an attempt to create a sympathetic monster faction in Trek, but they're just.... irredeemably bad. There's no reason for anyone to allow the Vidiians to keep living. Not because of their disease, but because they are organ stealing monsters who hack random people to bits to extend their lifespans a tiny bit, so they can keep stealing more organs. No thank you. Fuck off. Go away. There's a reason no one talks about you.

DS9 remains my favorite Star Trek. It's got some rough episodes, and it struggles at time between being a planet/anomaly/random-space-threat of the week and a smaller scale, single-location focused kind of story, but the entire cast does a fantastic job of switching between the two without skipping a beat.

I don't think there's a single character on DS9 that I can say I dislike and the few I could complain about are mostly ones who were there for a single episode or just didn't have the benefit of a few more seasons to develop them as much as we got with characters like Jake and Nog. Speaking of which, Jake and Nog are such a perfect example of how you can have kid characters in a trek show and have them work and develop naturally and feel like a natural part of the story.

One of the things that struck me that never occurred to me before is that DS9 is a show that is very, very much about the concept of "home" and all the complex ways the character interpret and grapple with that concept. Quark and Garak have a fantastic scene towards the end of the series where they both commiserate about how their home planets are changing rapidly and how they'll never be able to return to the planets they once knew. It's kinda there in nearly every character and plot and it's really fascinating.

I think the only episodes I skipped were a few of the "It's time to make O'Brien suffer!" episodes, and that one specific episode where they meet that insane lady who forces her anti-technology beliefs on everyone by lying to them and abusing them, and the moral of the story is "actual this is good and she's right!" -- Fuck that episode. I'd rather watch the board game episode.

The last stretch of the Dominion War is a little uneven, but it's still a strong arc overall. Could've maybe done without the Pah-Wraith stuff, and the Ezri and Bashir subplot is a little weak, but those are nitpicks.

Anyways, go watch Star Trek.

[grelleswife]

Ooh so you're watching 98 Trigun. What do you think?

I’m really liking it so far! Though I should probably hold off on extensive comparisons with TriStamp until I’ve finished 98, I think these anime adaptations are a prime example of the “two cakes” philosophy: Distinctive versions that each bring something good and unique to the table. It might a bit hypocritical of me to call 98 Trigun’s style “nostalgic” since I didn’t enter weebdom until around 2017, but the animation has this feel of belonging to a bygone era that gels nicely with the western elements. The cast for the English dub give an entertaining performance, especially the voice actors for Vash and Milly.

And, speaking of Milly…Milly Thompson, woman that you are! 😍 A himbo lesbian with keen powers of perception, big guns (of both the metallic and muscular variety), and a heart of gold. If she snapped me in half, I’d thank her, but she’s likely the type to give out warm bear hugs instead. 🥰 I definitely understand why fans of the original were so irate over her absence in Trigun Stampede (barring the offscreen mention in the last episode), because she’s a treasure! 💕 Milly also makes a great foil to her girlfriend Meryl. While I’m fond of TriStamp Meryl, I love how the 98 version gives us assertive, spitfire (complimentary) Derringer Meryl right off the bat. She’s serving fashion and putting outlaws in their place with her coat of many guns, and her complete lack of patience with Vash’s tomfoolery (to the point where she stubbornly denies the possibility of this chucklehead being the Humanoid Typhoon for several episodes) cracks me up every time. 😂 I also like the running gag of Milly and her being insurance agents. Although TriStamp’s decision to make Meryl a journalist worked fine—giving her a plausible motive for chronicling Vash’s misadventures—her original position as an insurance worker places a greater emphasis on the violence and destruction which plague the story (as she and Milly scramble to document the havoc wreaked in Vash’s wake), albeit with a comical twist.

Vash remains my darling babygirl, whether caught up in madcap hijinks or betraying the deep sadness hidden behind that smile. Johnny Bosch does a wonderful job bringing him to life (I mostly watched the sub when TriStamp was airing, so getting to hear his interpretation of the character is a treat!). However, I’m not a huge fan of the stereotypical “sleazy womanizer” bit inexplicably tacked on to Trigun 98—my plant boi drinks his respecting ladies juice, thank you very much! 😤 But perhaps it’s just part of his silly goofy guy act, albeit a distasteful one, so I’m hoping it’ll be phased out as the show progresses.

(Haven’t reached Wolfwood’s intro yet, but I’m looking forward!)

The 98 anime’s more relaxed pace is another point in its favor. As much as I enjoyed TriStamp, that 12-episode limit plaguing so many contemporary anime often left the plot with little room to breathe, which I think might be one reason why the melancholy undertones came through with such unremitting force from the very beginning. In contrast, 98 Trigun can afford to be stealthier, keeping things light in the early episodes, but with occasional somber moments betraying the brutal angst to come. Both approaches have merit, though! Like I mentioned earlier, the two Triguns are a pair of cakes: Different frosting and flavors, but both delicious.

The OP is, as the younglings say, a banger. I’m normally not a huge fan of instrumental OPs, but I inevitably find myself rocking out to this one! 🎶 Meanwhile, the languorous ED evokes lazy Sunday afternoons dozing in the shade; it makes me want to take a nap in a hammock like Vash is in one of the stills.

TL; DR: The ride’s a blast, and I am fully prepared to get hurt again. 😎

[blobracing]

Han Solo at Stars’ End, by Brian Daley

Featuring the Quintessential Jerk With a Heart Of Gold, Chewie highjacking a combine, and a literal cat girl.

I’ve taken to skimming Goodreads before I read the next book on the list, usually to try and pluck out something relevant or funny to use as a teaser for the next post– listen to me talk like I’ve been doing this for sooooo long– and that made me a bit nervous about Stars’ End. The resounding and repeating sentiment was basically Now THIS is Han Solo! and perhaps uncharitably and due to the time we live in, that makes me antsy. It’s taxonomically close to I Remember When Men Were Men or Star Wars Used To Be Good Before The Wokeists Got It. Stars’ End isn’t perfect, but it isn’t that, and when I let my guard down, I honestly had a good time with this classic adventure romp. 

Coming up: world’s fastest plot summary, what I liked about it, and, just, you know, the vibes. We're just gonna meander.

So, as quickly as possible:

Han and Chewie are running amok in the Corporate Sector, a corner of the galaxy where the Imperial presence and Rebellion hasn’t reached, and local law is enforced by essentially a corprostate called the Corporate Authority. In return for some ship repairs and upgrades, the lads take on a deal to transport some passengers from one Corporate World to another, and along the way become involved with finding out why some bothersome citizens seem to be mysteriously disappearing. Chewie is captured during the process and so Han leads his allies to infiltrate and then destroy the prison planet where Chewie and all the spirited-away people have been held.

There’s a lot more going on in this book than Splinter of the Mind's Eye, so I’ll leave most of the plot summary to Wookieepedia, as per the usj– although I would say this is a pretty quick and easy read.

So, given that there are a lot of similar constraints on Stars’ End as Splinter– limited canon character use and availability, had to be set outside the plot (not totally applicable to Splinter, as it was originally ordered as a potential sequel to Star Wars [fuckin yowza]), relies a lot on original creation– Stars’ End is better. 

CHARACTERIZATION’S OKAY?

Yeah! I’d say pretty good, actually. 

Prose-wise, there’s something a little silly going on with the vocabulary that makes it feel more charming than annoying (thermocline, dipsomaniacal, insuperable) and Han’s dialogue and narrative voice is OOZING with Coolguy Spacebro. It dips into goofiness now and again– there’s definitely a sense of yeah, Harrison Ford could probably make this work that I respect in terms of characterizing Han, but sometimes you just gotta laugh. Picture Harrison Ford, your gruff, weed-dealing carpenter, getting out something like this:

“An Authority Data Center?” Han exploded. “And how do I get into a place like that? It’ll look like the Espos’ Annual Picnic and Grand Reunion. Listen, toots, I want that stuff from you, but I want to live to a ripe old age, too; I plan to sit in a rocker at the Old Spaceman’s Home, and what you’re suggesting will definitely exclude that option.”

(Immediately obsessed with the implication of the Old Spaceman’s Home. This is not the last time he mentions it, either. Where is this Disney+ miniseries.)

This is definitely not the last time I’m going to opine on what makes a successful Star Wars characterization? because so often that’s the thing that will pull me out of a tie-in novel or fic. To me, the gold standard of characterization is being able to slow down and feel instinctively that dialogue and behavior suit how a character is portrayed in the movies. Characters that don’t appear in the movies at all, or who do but don’t get a lot of attention, face a double-edged sword: they’ve got to be interesting enough to kind of generate their own force of personality, but they’ve also got to feel authentic to the setting.

That’s especially true where we are in terms of Star Wars novels– we have ANH’s Han to go on, and go through Stars’ End knowing that’s who we’re going to meet at the end of it. There are constant references to how much he doesn’t want to get involved with any causes, he’s looking out for number one, goddammit! There are more than a few moments where Han’s cynicism is pointed out or appealed to by characters in a way that ranges from hamfisted to Oh Man That Droid Just Read You To Filth, but I don’t necessarily think it needs to be subtle– Han’s not a subtle guy, after all. 

I’m worried that point might get a bit long in the tooth knowing there are two more Han Solo Adventures before ANH, and Han is essentially stuck in the same role, the same moment of his life before tipping over into throwing his lot in with the Rebels. By the same token, it does retroactively add a little flavor to that moment when he shows up at the first Death Star battle, knowing how hard he fought against his better nature before giving it all up for Luke’s big blue eyes the Rebellion. 

AND THE SUPPORTING CAST?

It feels fucked up that I’m including Chewbacca as a “supporting” cast member, but the man’s not getting any dialogue and doesn’t do much beyond act as a living sounding board for Han to exposit off of. His main move is getting captured by the bad guys and Han just about gets himself killed trying to save him, and the intensity of that relationship is always really fascinating when played out. Also, Chewie being a damsel in distress is cute. 

A lot of the other supporting characters feel very stock, like a fiery woman leader of an outgunned rebel faction (Jessa, leader of the outlaw mechanics who buck the man), or evil patrician badguy who loves droid bloodsport (we’re still saying ’droid in the text, somehow)-- but a couple of notable exceptions.

Bollux is a Goodreads fan favorite, an old droid who has a counterpart with a “younger” droid who lives inside him, Blue Max. Bollux grows on everyone who meets him– even me… he’s just a good guy…– and Max is essentially a portable plot-solver who can do whatever’s needed at the time. 

Rekkon is an extremely capable university teacher-turned-investigator who leads the cause to try and find where the Corporate Authority Guys are stashing the people they’ve stolen. He’s jovial, Han likes him almost immediately and respects him about as much as Han respects anybody who isn’t Chewie, and demonstrates a confidence and self-assuredness that I found really refreshing in a book where a lot of people just seem to defer to Han to move the plot. Rekkon is also Black, the only other Black character in the novel besides his missing nephew, and he does also get murdered by a traitor among the party in the second act and his body is dropped out the airlock. It’s really a “oh, nice!” to “oh… nice :/” thing that feels emblematic of Star Wars’ relationship with Black characters, even in these early days. A bizarre mirror is Star Wars’ relationship with the Black Hollywood executive who championed its original release, Ashley Boone Jr. 

As always, Rekkon’s death is an important motivating factor for Han, and he even gives Han the means to figuring out who the traitor is among the party, but his body is still very much dropped out a fucking airlock.

There’s a lot to talk about there, and I’m not sure I’m qualified to talk about it. But I noted it, and I noted myself noting it.

To brighten your spirits, I bring you the other two interesting characters left in the party: Atuarre and her son, Pakka, who are the only aliens that matter besides Chewie. They're Trianii– CAT PEOPLE THAT’S RIGHT WE GOT A FURRY MILF YEAHAHAHA BABY LET’S GOOOOOO MEOWOW!!!!!!! Star Wars actually has a ton of cat people variants. Despite being a trained warrior and pilot, she ends up pretending to be a dancer and leader of an entertainer troupe– Han’s idea.

WAIT, WHAT

Yeah– Han gets really excited about dressing everyone up as a circus troupe in order to infiltrate Stars’ End, to replace a troupe that couldn’t make it. Pakka, Atuarre’s traumatized-by-the-Authority-to-silence son is an acrobat, Atuarre is the troupe’s leader and skilled in the “dances of her people,” Bollux gets a paint job, and Han poses as a sharpshooter. I cannot emphasize enough how excited Han is by this idea. The word “exhilarated” is used. I’m now integrating this into my view of him as a character– between this and dressing up as a stormtrooper to get around the Death Star, Han Solo lives for the theater. The deception… the prestige. The making of props and wearing of capes. 

LOWKEY KINDA SOUNDS FUN…

Yeah! That’s how I’d characterize Stars’ End– fun. Not really breaking any molds or blowing my tits clean off, but certainly a step up from Splinter of the Mind’s Eye in… every conceivable way, likely. It still suffers from some tired genre conventions, and as always your own mileage may vary, but it’s a very readable adventure story that’s just cheesy enough to not take itself completely seriously. 

BEFORE YOU GO:

Bollux is described as having been programmed with sewing and “necessary skills” while serving under a regimental commander in the Clone Wars. Obviously at the time of writing there was no way Daley was told that commanders in the Clone Wars were traditionally Jedi, so for me today it calls forth the image of Obi-Wan having a droid on hand specifically to tailor the cloaks that he throws away on every mission. 

Hours are referred to as ‘Standard time parts,’ implying some galactic agreement on measurement. As an American, this is outside my ability to conceptualize. 

Stars’ End also contains our first detailed dogfight, and introduces the Headhunter starfighter, which is kind of the X-Wing’s homely older sibling. I’ve been imagining an entirely different shape all my life. Bah oui… 

NEXT TIME

Han Solo’s Revenge, by Brian Daley

[intertexts-moving]

ROSWELL PLEASEEEE PLEASE LISTEN TO MISSION TO ZYXX ITS SILLY AND GOOFY AND FUN AND THERES A GAY ROBOT. OH MY GOD. its lighthearted starwars parody space sillies the main character is tortured by visions theres a himbo (real one btw.... dumb jock with a heart of gold) theres a sentient ship that is also a washed up actress.... theres a Big Fucking Creature........ its so good. i would love 2 talk abt it i have 0 mtz mutuals

HIIIIIIIIIIIII MAC!!!!!!! yes yes i am. definitely starting it i put on the first ep on my way to the grocery store yesterday & its SO funny??????? anyway ur propaganda has swayed me & also... big sentient ship....... gay robot... eyes emoji eyes emoji eyes emoji >:3

[misty-wisp]

5 and 18 for Ryuji for the character ask game?

5. What's the first song that comes to mind when you think about them?

really basic choice but my homie for sure! it's like his theme hehe. he's a silly goofy guy with a heart of gold and i think this ost fits that perfectly

18. How about a relationship they have in canon with another character that you admire?

SCREAMING ABOUT RYUANN FRIENDSHIP. THEY ARE BESTIES. I AM SO MAD THERE'S SO LITTLE OF IT IN THE GAME BC THEIR BANTER IS LITERALLY THE BEST THEY MESS WITH EACH OTHER SO MUCH BUT THEY KNOW IT'S ALL PLAYFUL AND GRAAHHHH

i love ryuji and ann's friendship so much they are literally the silliest