#also this character's really underrated imo

[reveseke]

out of context can i talk about fugidove for a second. i love how we're introduced to a character that thinks they're a big bad villain, and instead are just unknown and he's kinda disappointed but still continues like he had actually done something bad. i also love how he's designed to be a literal bird and i wholeheartedly think he might be autistic and have a special interest in doves and pigeons in general and also with villains & criminals. he's using the coos as a vocal stim and the ""wing"" flapping as a stim to regulate himself bc the feathers are overstimulating him same with the mask sometimes and he knows enough about the villains in kryptarium to info dump to others. :3 (i also think he might get exploited at some point due to the info dumping whether that would be by other villains, the police or the ninja (possibly ronin as well?))

i also love how he has an unnamed brother who's supportive of him (at least what i gathered of the first interaction in prime empire when he got his screen time) and his life decisions literally quoting his coos to PIXAL and Zane lol. also going to Ronin they would make a hilarious duo (and do) and that's based on like three time interactions they had.

However i'm still quite curious over Fugidove's & his brother's backstory and what they're lives were like ebofrehand. i read that it was suspected he doesn't have a good relationship with his mother from the wiki? also he was originally supposed to be an owl which makes it hilarious to me that he ended up being a dove. (going from a powerful avian predators to a domesticated yet hate-loved swarming city birds that are both really really pretty birds.)

[haliaiii]

fav percy jackson character and WHY‼️ also a character u didn’t like/were iffy abt as a child but relate to now

Ok imma be real I never had a proper proper fav? But if I had to choose (this is gonna be really basic I know) I’d say Percy 😭

Not just bc he’s the main character but I really liked him a lot as a kid and even now I still fuck w him. He’s just great and holds a lot of emotional connection cause when I started reading pjo, we were almost the same age and now that I’m rereading pjo, we’re literally both seniors in high school 💀, although when I was a kid I think I also liked Leo a lot too, pretty much any character that had a funny pov

As for a character I relate to now it’s 100 percent jason

So when I was a kid and started getting into the Percy Jackson universe, I didn’t really know where to start (cause it was like my first proper series), but the ppl at school were reading heroes of Olympus so I assumed that was where it started. I knew who Percy bc I read the Greek Gods book prior so I was very confused to open The Lost Hero and there was this guy named Jason instead 😭. I didn’t really like or dislike him, but I was surprised to find out many didn’t like him. I think if there was another series that had focused on Jason like how there was one with Percy then it would’ve made public opinion of him way better tbh, bc I feel like people didn’t like him cause they were comparing him to Percy. Anyway I didn’t really think much of him, he was just kinda ok ig? Like he didn’t really feel like he had that much character to him (at first) and I kinda thought his relationship with piper was boring 😔

But revisiting it today, (and also post what happened in the burning maze), he has a lot of really cool hidden lore that I wished was more talked about 😭. Like his whole life was a straight up tragedy, abandoned by his mother at 2, raised by wolves and then had to join the Roman military and lead at a young age. Then when he thinks he’s finally settling down, Hera fucking wipes his memories and drops him in the middle of the US and he has to spend the next years of his life fighting a war. AND THEN right when he finally settles down again, piper breaks up with him but he still goes on that quest knowing he or piper will die bc of the prophecy but sacrifices himself anyway bc he cares about her and dies at the age of 16. It’s literally so sad, he never got a chance to experience what he wanted to do and spent his entire life accommodating for others. Anyway peak eldest sister energy even if he’s the younger brother 😭

Also another character I warmed up to a lot was Piper!! I originally didn’t like her “not like other girls” personality, but looking back on it I was kinda the same way 💀. Like I feel like she’s a really cool complex character and that gets overlooked, I think her negative feelings towards femininity kinda also stems from the weird brainwashing thing Hera did and her developing her sexuality. I actually started liking her more when she broke up with Jason and started dating her girlfriend, ( on a side note, I lament the fact that we’ll never get to see Jason and Piper develop their friendship cause I really think they were platonic soulmates and never meant to be in a romantic relationship).

I just think they’re both really neat by themselves! There’s so many other characters I could spend paragraphs talking about but we could be here all day 😭

Ty for the ask tho I had sm fun info dumping-

[imaybe5tupid]

On the hidden repressed suburban white emo boy darkness in Laios’ heart

LET ME BE CLEAR: i like Laios, this is not a hate post, his flaws and darker parts of who he is round out his character and make him the character I love. Also this isn’t proper meta or analysis just my literal sleepy off the cuff rambling

I think Laios can be very comfortably summed up as someone who feels he was never indulged and the person he is in the series grew over those scars. I really enjoy how much Laios genuinely has a lot of darkness in his heart his emo-boy ness is really underrated. He canonically thought of (and is implied to sometimes still think of) his bullies (and sometimes people in general) like this

Aside being autistic, well into his 20s Laios really inhabits this very imo teenage mindset/outlook thats a combination of outsider and contrarian (the latter secretly). And the Winged Lion sees this immediately for what it is, this idea of being an alienated outsider due to your unique understanding of the world (I don’t mean Laios thinks hes like a nobel prize winner but more that he has a lot of resentment for how the things he’s interested in are not valued in the way he values them) and the percieved dull conformism of others (eg. his father), and how these feelings of his come from a deliberate (as in i feel hes actively trying to make himself think this as a coping mechanism) lack of intellectual and emotional curiosity about people or things that he’s unable to box into this Different category i.e the grass is always greener (of course in addition to his Traumas). For example monsters obviously, but also his fascination with Toshiro’s foreignness, like the island was probably full of strong cool warrior types but they weren’t so distinctly “exotic” (unfortunate but true 😔, many such cases see Japanism and also ironically cause thats how i hc the toudens, the way scandinavia is weirdly idolised by a great deal of the world, or even the way people will see an indie movie set in like small town absolutely anywhere else in the world from where they are and be like waow so cool and different unlike my LAME hometown imagine that meme of the ships thats like their barbaric practices etc.) and an emblem of this cool different world that he could idealise and escape into.  Shuro represents a kind of escapist fantasy for Laios, like in addition to just being (to Laios) This Super Nice Guy Who Always Saves Me And Says Yes To Me And Never Gets Mad, he’s also Nothing Like Those Boors from the village/school/ the military. And he probably dgaf about Rin or like Eastern diaspora in Melini and would say offensive things to them running along the lines of what he said to Lycion (“so you only look different on the outside, nothing is different internally , how disappointing”). Like you can compare Kabru’s curiosity towards people which is driven by a genuine passion for humanity, to Laios’ at times objectifying curiosity toward Shuro which is shaped by the pain of the past and immediately see the sickness in the head Laios has lol. Unconsciously, Laios I think can also be a deeply self-centred guy at his core (evidenced by the nature of his curse at the end of the story too haha).

[youremyheaven]

Uttara Bhadrapada & Revati: Psychic Insight, Time Travel & Dreams

In my last post about Punarvasu & Swati, I had briefly gone into their association with time travel but in my research since I have found that Pisces rashi (0-3 degress Purvabhadrapada, Uttarabhadrapada & Revati) is also connected to time travel, as well as with psychic powers and using these abilities to solve crimes, prevent disasters or save others. This is an important distinction because not everybody uses their paranormal/supernatural powers to do good necessarily.

The word spirituality has been so over used in the last decade or so that it has now kind of lost all meaning as most people don't understand it in its true sense of transcending the material but instead as a way to play around with crystals or tarot or astrology, engaging with these tools in the most shallow way possible and using it as a balm to remain in the loop of earthly attachment.

Some people are born with an inherent understanding of what it means to be connected to the spirit. Due to the way religion & belief are often structured, not all of these people will identify their own beliefs as spiritual ones but you've got to admit that some people are just naturally intuitive and capable of understanding things in a way that goes beyond education or any taught knowledge. What is intuition though? Is it just a profound inner knowing? Usually, it is a combination of several things, including observational skills, the ability to be perceptive and understand what lies beyond the surface, deduction etc. Intuition isn't always knowledge from the beyond but it can also refer to the ability to read a room or a person and be emotionally intelligent enough to behave accordingly.

I am by no means suggesting that all Pisces natives are this way. They are not. But I have noticed several Pisces natives possessing a heightened sense of perception & intuition. This is just water sign culture tbh and as you'll see in the post, also extends to other rashis/nakshatras.

Derren Brown, the British magician & mentalist is a UBP Moon. He's a skeptic himself and has repeatedly said he does not possess any psychic powers but he's never really gone into his methods either. You could say that he has astute observational skills that makes his performances truly one of a kind but its pretty incredible to train yourself to do what he does; you can only build on the natural acumen you possess.

The Sixth Sense is a pretty iconic film in the "child has visions" genre and it stars Haley Joel Osment, Revati sun & mercury as well as Bruce Willis who is UBP Sun

Bruce also starred in a movie (also directed by M Night Shyamalan) called Unbreakable where his character has psychometric powers.

Psych is detective comedy drama series (very underrated imo) that features a guy who possesses eidetic memory and great observation skills and uses it to convince the police department he is a psychic.

James Roday Rodriguez who plays this character has Revati sun & mercury, Venus in Pisces (2 degree Purvabhadrapada )

Patricia Arquette stars as a psychic medium in the show Medium (honestly the police department x psychic consultant is one of my fav tropes of 2000s television). She has a Revati stellium (sun, saturn & rahu) and UBP mercury and venus.

Salma Hayek, UBP Moon, plays a psychic medium in House of Gucci (based on a true story)

Devon Sawa who played the main character on Final Destination (he has premonitions and tries to help others avoid death) has Ketu in UBP

Joan of Arc, UBP Moon went to King Charles at the age of 17 as she was guided by visions from the archangel Michael, Saint Margaret, and Saint Catherine to help him save France from English domination. Convinced of her devotion and purity, Charles sent Joan, to the siege of Orléans as part of a relief army. After several military defeats in which Joan played a role, she was put on trial by Bishop Pierre Cauchon on accusations of heresy, which included blaspheming by wearing men's clothes, acting upon demonic visions, and refusing to submit her words and deeds to the judgment of the church. She was declared guilty and burned at the stake on 30 May 1431, aged about nineteen.

Baffled is a movie about a race car driver who has psychic visions. He is played by Leonard Nimoy who has UBP Sun, Mercury in Revati (amatyakaraka) & Rahu and Swati Rising (Swati is a nakshatra that is associated with ESP but more on that later).

The Dead Zone is about a man who wakes up from a 5yr coma and learns he has psychic abilities. Christopher Walken who plays this man has Revati sun & UBP mercury (being in a coma/waking up from sleep is also a very Pisces theme a la Sleeping Beauty)

In Doctor Sleep, a sequel to The Shining, Ewan McGregor plays Danny Torrance (who has psychic abilities). He has UBP Sun

Harry's ability to see things is kinda overlooked (in Goblet of Fire for instance when he makes those predictions in Trelawney's class). We know that he sees a lot of stuff due to his connection with the Dark Lord but still. Harry's intuition has saved his ass on more than one occasion. Daniel Radcliffe has UBP Moon.

The Initiation of Sarah is a movie about a nice girl who is bullied by her sorority sisters and then unleashes her psychic powers to get even. Kay Lenz who plays her has Mars in Revati atmakaraka, UBP mercury (swati moon & rising)

Nostradamus who had prophetic visions of the future (many of which have come true) had Rahu & Rising in UBP

This brings me to Pisces' connection to time travel because if you think about it having premonitions and making prophecies is tied to an ability to see into the future; you are mentally time travelling.

I have noticed that in several instances Pisces natives are cast in time-travel movies.

Nathan Fillion who was in Firefly & Serenity (time travel series & movie) had UBP sun, Revati moon atmakaraka

Bliss (2021) a movie about alternate realities accessed through drug induced hallucinations??? (i dont know for sure the plot is kinda dense) stars Salma Hayek, UBP Moon and Owen Wilson, Swati Moon with Saturn in Revati atmakaraka

Predestination is a time travel movie starring Sarah Snook who has Revati moon & jupiter

Joseph Gordon Levitt, UBP rising stars in the time-travel movie Looper as a hitman from the future who has to kill himself.

The Girl Who Leapt Through Time is a movie about a girl who can travel through time, its directed by Mamoru Hosoda who has UBP Moon and Saturn

La Jetee is an experimental French short film about a man who travels through time to understand the past/present/future of WW3. Its directed by Chris Marker who has Ketu in Revati

Pisces is kind of obviously connected to the story of Sleeping Beauty (I'll explore this more in a separate post) but I think Pisces and dreaming (not sleeping but dreaming) are also connected.

Joseph Gordon Levitt, UBP Rising stars in Inception a movie about dream thieves essentially

Werner Krauss, Ketu in Revati starred in The Cabinet of Doctor Caligari (1920) as a hypnotist who uses a somnambulist to commit murders.

Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind, The Science of Sleep etc was made my Michel Gondry who has Venus in Revati amatyakaraka (he is also Punarvasu Rising but I'll discuss more in my post about Surrealism)

Dreams (1990) is a movie by Akira Kurosawa and is based on 8 dreams he had. He is UBP Sun & Punarvasu Rising

Dreams That Money Can Buy is a surrealist film about a guy who sells his dreams to others. Its directed by Hans Richter who has Revati Sun

All of Miyazaki's movies have a dream-like quality and one is literally a dream (won't spoil by saying which one hehe). He is UBP Moon.

I have noticed many Shatabhisha natives be drawn to similar themes and tropes in their work.

Dreamscape is a movie about a psychic who works for the President of America. Its directed by Joseph Ruben who is Shatabhisha Sun & Jupiter (he also has Venus in UBP) and stars Dennis Quaid (Punarvasu Moon) as the psychic.

Firestarter is a movie about a child with psychic powers and stars Drew Barrymore who is Shatabhisha Sun & Punarvasu Moon

Jennifer Love Hewitt, Shatabhisha Moon starred in The Ghost Whisperer as a person who can communicate with ghosts.

Sissy Spacek starred in Carrie about a girl who has supernatural powers. She has Shatabhisha Moon

Scott Bakula who starred in Quantum Leap, a TV series about a scientist stuck in time, has Shatabhisha Moon

I hope this post was interesting and informative, pls lmk if you have any other examples!!

[sincerelystesichorus]

let's talk about that one scene in oops

(and fizzarolli in general bc me and my autism r obsessed with this scene and haven't seen someone break it down. also ft. blitz lmao)

just a general scene and vague character breakdown/analysis!

i first of all want to admire the perfect representation of best friends to enemies with blitz & fizz because ugh.

And like Blitz tells everyone this but the way it's so malicious here. Just the perfect simple dig and Fizz's little shit eating grin because it delivered how he knew it would sdfkjsdkf. Shoves Blitz to the side because really that's all he cares to say. Fuck you and what you did to me, bye bye <3 Fizz is so for talking shit and dipping (House of Asmodeus) I love how messy it is but also shows how he really doesn't hold malice for Blitz otherwise. Obviously we see this front and center later in the episode once they start reconnecting, but I like the subtlety and how he's so willing to snap at Blitz despite his usual anxiety with confrontation.

Blitz also knowing exactly what to say to really piss Fizz off once things escalate <3

(Fizz literally so smug and content with himself lmfao)

(smirk wiped off bc hey that's the thing i'm sensitive about!!)

But Fizz keeps his composure. And if you'll let me be alarmingly gay for a second, I love how his version of keeping his cool as a messy gay is managing to basically recreate this drag race confrontation in what is probably my favorite set of Fizzie lines.

eat him up babes. also it's so important that that shitty coffee and fizz were on this side of the street for framing i'll talk about it more in a sec jfskjdfksf.

and now my personal favorite exchange of this entire scene that is criminally underrated imo:

love his face after this line. I SUPPORT DISABLED PEOPLES WRONGS sfjdlkfsdd. literally so fucking nasty with his clown wit but also so justifiable because yeah blitz did just pull this nightmare and dip in fizz's pov. i cannot wait for that to get touched on more likeeee why were they kept apart ugh.

and finally!!

this cut to blitz,, specifically the scarred side of his face is sooo good.

the face of a man who just achieved critical vicious mockery vs. the face of a man that knows he can only win this interaction one way now

Blitz does deserve a little violence maybe <3 Fizz underestimated his ass jjdkfsdlk.

Idk I just love how indicative this whole interaction is for their characters but especially Fizz, it's a perfect build-up for him. Fizz has major imposter syndrome with dual layers because of general haters but especially because of Mammon and Asmodeus. Not on any fault of Ozzie's,, we just see Fizz obviously thinks he isn't fully deserving of their relationship/his situation and the healthy dynamics of it and so do most major news outlets apparently askjfsk.

(full fizzy meme post & also i like how this is a special also like damn do u think they were also apart of the crossword??)

It'll be really interesting to see how his character develops in future episodes because I feel like a lot of what I've rambled about here has come to a resolution after 2 Minutes Notice in the musical special lmao. I really like how here when he goes to compose himself, this is how he does it.

Makes me wonder how many times him and Ozzie have had the self-worth and imposter syndrome conversation before it finally stuck in the Mammon Musical Special. I just love their relationship and how they compliment one another,, and how it projects into Fizz's other relationships because they're healthy for one another. Love my OTP love Blitz & especially love Fizzie. Obviously.

[lunarin64art]

Underrated Parallel

These two duos are actually so similar, it’s surprising that the fandom hardly acknowledges it. 

 First off, both of these duos are shown to both spend time investigating together in private. (Gonta and Ouma mainly doing so in chp2) While also sharing the dynamic of one being hyper intelligent, mysterious, as well as having a lack of trust in their classmates, and the other being more naive yet enthusiastic. There’s also of course the fact that they both share the same color scheme. (Toko and Komaru also share similar qualities as well but that’s for a different post.)

 Naegi and Gonta also have alter egos included in their executions. And were both unconcious during the events leading to their investigations/trials.

Also, if you let Kirigiri be found guilty, both her and Ouma die from being squished by a press...(on chp5)

Then lastly, they’re similar in that Kirigiri and Ouma used Naegi and Gonta to survive so that they could defeat the mastermind.

 As a side note, I’m surprised that there aren’t many people who acknowledge how similar what Ouma did to Gonta in chp4 is to what Kirigiri did to Naegi in chp5. It’s especially weird how people will claim that gontouma is toxic because of chp4 but then see nothing problematic about naegiri. Like, I get that Ouma comes across really rude and aggressive on chp4 but that was on purpose to make everyone vilify him. 

 He never treats Gonta the way he did on chp4 on any other part of the game. He’s almost too nice to Gonta in some instances (specifically on the jpn version since the NISA translators ruined Ouma’s character). Also, Ouma’s motivations for what he did were much more selfless than Kirigiri’s. You can’t even really say he did this because he saw his life as more important than Gonta’s as he immediately locks himself in his room and plans his own death afterwards.

(Which correlates with how the writers decided to make Gonta/Ouma be the only ones to like the Survival Flag and the Death Flag. As it imo implies that Ouma gave up on survival once he knew that Gonta no longer could because of him)

 I also find it strange how there are still people who actually think that Ouma didn’t care about Gonta. That was legitimately one of his most obvious lies in the entire game. His end talk with Kaito wouldn’t make any sense otherwise, nor his interactions with Gonta on TDP and DRS. I really do think that people need to play V3 more than once to to get a proper understanding of their actual dynamic though.

 (And not through letsplays since they will give you their own biases.)

[milgram-tournament]

MILGRAM Best Song Tournament, Round 1, Match 3 THROW DOWN vs. THIS IS HOW TO BE IN LOVE WITH YOU

Propaganda for both options under the cut!

Propaganda for THROW DOWN:

silly point is that throw down was my top song for this past year and i havent even been into milgram that long so. good song. also i sang it on stage once so. anyway

Flower imagery!!!! god i love flower imagery

the vocals are good

it has a banger es cover too

"ethics are a delusion" is singlehandedly the funniest line to come out of the t1 songs

the mv is SO pretty like. holy shit

the first note constantly jumpscares me

also i like the clock sounds in the background of the verses

the instrumental,,,,

throwdown is just a really nice. calmish song that still has the whole desperation thing conveyed through his voice props to va for that cuz its relatively subtle but really adds to it imo

im reiterating that ethics is a delusion is the funniest thing to me

also i really like the bridge (the whisper part)

irrelevant to the song itself but i like his fit in throw down i'd wear that irl

gardening/pruning as imagery is so fun for a surgeon character

also vocally i just really like throw down its calm sounding yet theres a hint of like. desperation? despair? in his voice and thats really cool to me

---

Jackalope's note: Only one propaganda piece... hmmhehe. Well, I'm glad our resident pretty girl got tons of asks! But I feel a little bad about Shidou, so let's let him argue his case at least! Oi! Shidou! Get over here! Oi! Sheesh, it's like he can't even hear me! This is why I need to send the reminders early...

(mod's propaganda: While I love both songs very much, Throw Down has a special place for me in that I can actually sing it. You sing way too fast, Mappi!! I also just think using flower imagery both made the MV one of the prettiest ones we have yet and helped distance both the viewer and shidou himself to the reality of his sin... I also really like the ethics is a delusion bit lol)

Propaganda for TIHTBILWY:

okay so like the thing im most in love with: the VOCALS!!!! this song has an absolutely AMAZING singer and AMAZING vocals!!!! the way the conversational talk-singing lines still feel so musical!!!! the cute cute cuteeeee mahiru voice!!!! it brings you so much energy!!!! its a song sung with so much love!!!! mahirus va brings such an amazing feel to the song with such amazing talk-singing!!!! its very skillfully done and it happens in i love you too!! mahiru songs r the QUEENS of musical talk singing

the silly phone call bit. kurururu~!

the little vocal flourish and the way her voice raises up like an excited exclamation in the final prechorus!! daijoubu nante kirai DA!

its such a fast song but everything flows so well!!!! it makes it feel so bright and cheery and peppy!!

the instrumental is so underrated just LISTEN to that catchy bass line thats so pretty in the verses!!!! no for real even if u dont vote this is how to be in love with you go listen to the bass line in the verses it works to move both the song and the listener forward at mahirus sweeping breakneck pace. and the cute keyboard sounding and synth instruments!!!! its SUCH a danceable song!!!! i cant listen to it without bopping along in my seat

the way the ominous bits are subtly hidden? it all sounds so cute but there are just these Things that she sings that are really kind of concerning and unhealthy when she sings them!! and the veiled desperation to be in her relationship- listening to that and the cheery tone and breakneck, quick song pace, it really does represent mahiru SO well. she throws in all these little bits that just go noooo teehee the relationships just fine!! when it REALLY isnt

i would listen to mahiru talk for hours

the MV!!!!!! HER FASHION SENSE THE MAGAZINE STYLE!!!! the magazine style especially works so well with her character!!!! its so cute and stunning and just looking at it you have a blast. also her birdcage!!!! her birdcage and the bright orange and the pink bars!!!! the way everything desaturates and becomes more sickly looking when she wakes up at the end!!!! its such a happy carefully curated and designed dream and then it drains away!!!! also god all her outfits are stunning. mahiru call me

the way she sings "overheat de~!" cutest thing in the WORLD.

the little faces she makes!!!! godddd shes so expressive

actually the whole songs so expressive!!!! shes putting her all into it!!!! her words have so much expression in them!!!! once more praising mahirus va the way her voice can soften and become bright or subtly desperate so quickly is MASTERFUL control of expression when singing and its so underrated. join me in being insane over miho okasaki delivers her lines. shes such a perfect mahiru.

funniest es cover. hands down. funniest es cover.

this is how to be in love with you is FREE serotonin!!!! free energy right there!!!! this is how to be in love with you sweep!!!!!

---

-The song is so cheerful!! I always feel like dancing and singing when this one comes up in my playlists!! Absolute banger, mood definer, kicking sadness in the shin with those high-heels and then hitting its face with a cute purse -THE HIGH-HEELS STEPPING TO THE BEAT OF THE MUSIC IN THAT ONE SCENE (0:50). SIMPLY ICONIC. NO ONE DID IT LIKE HER. -👠💅👝👗 -She is slaying. Look at her outfits. She put so much effort there. She gave it her all. Absolutely serving. -SUKITTE KIMOCHI WAKATTA TSUMORI? NARA KONO MAMA FUTARI O-VA-HI-TO- DE -The storyline of the mv MAKES SENSE and you can form a COHESIVE TIMELINE OF EVENTS (unlike other unspecified contestants' mvs you know 🙄) -look at herr 🥺 she beby 🥺 all she did was love too much 🥺 we all love mappi don't we 🥺 she deserved more let her win this pleease 🥺 -No medical malpractice happened in the making of this mv 👍

---

I care so much about This is How To Be In Love With You- it's visuals are brilliant in the ways it conveys its themes and narrative. I'm never normal Ever about the "Love as marketing" symbolism that is brought in by the use of magazines. It's a lovely upbeat song but the Horrors are Always Lurking under it, the breakup Ritual line is my Favorite Line cause its so horrifying but its said so casually and its so good oh its so good-

[i-drop-level-one-loot]

You watch slasher movies? I haven't done so in years (much to my disappointment), got any recommendations, classics, popular, underrated, anything really?

I knew I hadn't watched them in a long time, but it wasn't till I had to try and write something based on classic slashers, that I realized how long its been since I consumed that kind of content.

My only plan so far is that I need to watch The Texas Chainsaw Massacre

Alright, Pandora, it depends on your tastes, and what you look for in a "slasher" ❤️

As you may remember, I fucking love the OG the Texas Chainsaw Massacre, and when I got pretty bad last month emotionally I watched it on repeat for two weeks straight. However, if you go in for a regular slasher film you will be disappointed. The first movie is incredible, focusing on amazing shots and atmosphere for nearly the entire first half. It's less of a slasher as we would come to know the genre, and more of an artistic film centered around the horrors of humanity. The series is a wonderful mess of multiple timelines and little continuity, but the sequels better fit the slasher archetype. The best sequel (imo) is the one directly after the first, and it's a black comedy slasher, focusing more on the kills.

Now, slashers ❤️

If you're a nerd and want to experience the slasher history, then before Halloween (which still holds up) there was Black Christmas, and before that the Town that Dreaded Sundown.

The Town that Dreaded Sundown is based off a true serial killer, and unlike TCM which is loosely inspired by Ed Gein, a lot of the kills (except the trombone scene) are based on actual murders, with his mask accurate to the only real world survivor's testimony of her assault. It's very slow pace, and with how desensitized we are as a society you might find it boring, but if you ever get a phonecall from Ghostface, then you have to know the Town that Dreaded Sundown. Fun fact, his mask also inspired Jason's mask from Friday the 13th part 2!

Black Christmas is awesome! I'd recommend it more than Sundown, because of pacing, characters, acting, and overall atmosphere. I love my second wave feminism horror (Stepford Wives (mwah)), and it did a lot better with it's feminist themes than the loose remake from 2019 that tried to be intentionally feminist (ignore the 2006 remake entirely, so bad, so lame, so gross). It did the first person perspective of the killer nearly four years before Halloween's iconic opening. It introduced the idea of the final girl, but she wouldn't become a sexually repressed younger woman until Halloween solidified the trope. It has some great kills that still hold up, and Billy is iconic. I really feel the only reason why he isn't more well known in non-horror spaces is because he doesn't have a mask or outfit that can be replicated and sold in Spirit.

After that we have our most well known slashers, and they're popular for good reason ❤️

A Nightmare on Elm St, Friday the 13th, and Halloween spawned sequels that spiraled off into varying degrees of madness, but still have fun moments.

After the success of Friday the 13th (and the realization of the franchise-ability of slashers) there were a lot of slashers that tried to capture the money magic of the first few success stories. Not all of them were great, but a few notable slashers imo are My Bloody Valentine and the Dentist.

Although Candyman is often lumped in with slashers, like the Texas Chainsaw Massacre, the first movie is more than a traditional slasher. I recommend the first one as a beautiful love story about the horrors of American racism. It's score is still incredible, the behind the scenes are so interesting, and Tony Todd is absolutely beautiful. Such an amazing actor. (Not so) Fun fact: Tony Todd said in the behind the scenes that there originally was a romantic scene where Helen proclaimed her love for Candyman, but they were forced to cut it, because "they were okay with a tall, black man covered in bees.. but, mm, when it came to a kiss, or something like that, it was a little bit too risque..." ( :/ )

(Please please please watch Candyman)

Then the best, or worst (depending on your views), thing happened to the genre; Scream.

One of the best slashers there is, it isn't the first self referential, meta horror (see Wes Craven's New Nightmare), but it did change the slasher genre for a very long time. It was a revival for the genre, since it was declining in popularity by the early 90s. However, post Scream horror was very meta. See Chucky's personality changing from the occasional funny quip, to Bride of Chucky levels of silly (still love him tho). Of the terrible horror trying to copy Scream, I'd recommend Urban Legend over I Know What You Did Last Summer. It was a shame, just how silly a lot of scary movies got back then, trying to be as smart and self aware as Scream was.

But my favorite (outside of Scream) meta horror slasher film is Behind the Mask: the Rise of Leslie Vernon ❤️ took meta to a whole new level, mockumentary style, a camera crew follows a wannabe slasher killer explaining how to be a slasher icon.

I've watched too many slashers to remember all of them right now, but if you want really meta black comedies, Tucker and Dale vs Evil isn't a slasher but a loving joke on the genre, and the Final Girls made me laugh and cry like a little bitch.

A lot of slashers since the late 90s have drifted closer to the black comedy sub genre. Killers that kill for the sake of killing are often B-rated blood fests, that can be great for mindless fun but not so great for box office gains, especially in our current horror renaissance. Slashers don't fit in to the current horror culture. Serial killers aren't scary for desensitized audiences, and the mindless gore expectations set by older slasher films have created a pretty specific genre setup and pay off (dumb people who only exist to die get brutally murdered). It either has to be B-rated mindless fun (Laid to Rest 1 and 2 had terrible camera work and directing, making even incredible actors like Lena Headey feel lackluster, but the practical effects are so impressive I'd recommend it just for the blood and guts (and bewbs)), or comedic (the Hatchet series has great cameos, genuine laughs, and more impressive practical effects, but with good cinematography and directing (still bewbs)). Slashers that don't lean in to how ridiculous the concept of slashers are and try to take themselves seriously often end up falling short, either creating boring killers with no personality or trying to force a plot into a generic slasher shaped hole.

This does include most remakes of slasher movies, as a lot of slashers were remade in the early 2000's with less interesting characters to be killed off by the slashers. The remake of Candyman was an exception, because even though it wasn't as good as the original, it did go back to it's non slasher roots, learning from the mistake that was the third Candyman.

TLDR:

Non slashers that are considered slashers because of the slasher sequels/iconic murderers:

the Texas Chainsaw Massacre

Candyman

Child's Play

Best Precursor to the genre:

Black Christmas

Popular Classics:

Halloween

Friday the 13th

a Nightmare on Elm St

Pre 90's Slashers that I recommend:

The Dentist

Sleepaway Camp (it's divided on whether it's problematic or interesting representation)

Alice, Sweet Alice

My Bloody Valentine

Post 90's meta commentary/black comedy:

Scream

Behind the Mask: the Rise of Leslie Vernon

Hatchet

The Final Girls

Tucker and Dale vs Evil

There are obviously a lot more, but these are a few off the top of my head ❤️

[squish--squash]

The best Sherlock Holmes adaptation (that people hardly know)

The stories and adventures of Sherlock Holmes is probably one of the most well-known, most referenced, and most recognizable series out there, as well as one with an insane number of adaptations. Hell, Sherlock Holmes even holds the world record of being the literary character with the most screen adaptations.

This has led to many, many people making ranked lists of their favorite adaptations, and I've looked at a lot of them to see if my favorite one appears. It doesn't. Not here, here, here, here, here, here, or here.

On the Wikipedia page for Sherlock Holmes adaptations, it is listed...in the external links section, at the very bottom of the webpage; it's only visible by expanding the "screen adaptations of Sherlock Holmes" panel

On here, under the three names it's regularly tagged as, there are a collective 13.9k followers (the breakdown is 5.2-1.9-6.8). In comparison, the "bbc sherlock" tag has 47k followers, "sherlock" has 644k, and "john watson" has 13k followers. Pretty underrated, if you ask me.

And so, you're probably wondering what this adaptation is, and why I think it's the best. Wonder no further!

The best Sherlock Holmes adaptation (at least, to me) that is criminally underrated is called Yuukoku no Moriarty, or Moriarty the Patriot. (and before you ask, yes, it's a manga! with its own anime!)

Now, because this post is already long enough, and because there is going to be A LOT OF BIG SPOILER WARNINGS, I'll be defending my claim under the read-more. But with that out of the way, let me begin...

Reason #1: Wait, Moriarty??

Moriarty is well-known to be the arch nemesis of Sherlock Holmes. He's the big baddie of the original series. So why in the world is this adaptation named after the villain? Because the plot is focused around Moriarty. As far as I am aware, this could be the ONLY adaptation so far that has done this (please correct me if I'm wrong! I'd love to find more). Furthermore, the "James Moriarty" in question is actually three brothers: Albert, Louis, and William (the "main" Moriarty), and the overarching plot follows their schemes as "the Lord of Crime" to... change 19th century England for the better?

Reason #2: The Premise is INTERESTING as FUCK

Yeah, you heard me! The big baddie in this adaptation is trying to do what they deem as "good"! It's called Moriarty the Patriot because William, Louis, and Albert are trying to make England a better country in their own ways; they view the class system of 19th century England to be, quite frankly, shit, and want to lessen the abuse and dehumanization of the lower class caused by the nobles. And, well, they do this by killing corrupt nobles. Or, well, more accurately, they help people commit crimes to kill the nobles, and stage it to look like an accident or make it extremely difficult to solve. It's actually really fun and cathartic to watch imo, especially in the early episodes of the anime and the early chapters of the manga. I'll come back to the plot later, but for now, I think it's time to get back to the characters.

Reason #3: The Gang's all Here!

The three Jame Moriarty brothers aren't the only characters: you also have the baker street gang (Sherlock Holmes, John Watson, and Ms Hudson), the Baker Street Irregulars, Mycroft, Sebastian Moran from the original series, Lestrade, Irene Adler, Herder (another character from the original series), and interestingly enough, Billy the Kid (in the manga). And these characters aren't just one-dimensional name-drops, but characters with so much personality, backstory, and motives. Take, for example, Sebastian Moran: he's a sniper who works for the Lord of Crime, yeah, but it's because he has a long-earned loyalty to William; both of them have a keepsake from the other, and after William's supposed death during this adaptation's version of "The Final Problem", it's the keepsake he gave to William that saves him from a dark path (there's much more to this story in particular, but you'll have to find out more yourself if you're interested). Also, there's Moneypenny in the manga. But why the hell is she here?

Reason #4: His name is James. James Bond (and he's trans!)

NAME ONE OTHER FUCKING SHERLOCK HOLMES ADAPTATION THAT HAS JAMES BOND, I'LL WAIT. YOU CANNOT. But yes, James fucking Bond is in Moriarty the Patriot, and is one of the best characters for many reasons. One of them? We actually meet him as a woman. And who is that woman, you might ask?

Irene Adler.

(note: the version I read calls him James Bond, but from what I've heard, his name is actually spelled "James Bonde" to avoid copywrite issues. However, for this post, I'll use "Bond") It's...incredible. The entire arc introducing Irene Adler and her arc into becoming James Bond is one of my favorite arcs in Moriarty the Patriot. It takes the original "A Scandal in Bohemia" and sprints with it. Like, the entire Bohemian-king-wanting-that-photograph with Sherlock and Watson is just a ploy, so Irene can be under the protection of public-hero Sherlock by tricking him into thinking he blew up her house with his smoke-bomb trick. Because she stole ENGLISH GOVERNMENT DOCUMENTS SO CLASSIFIED, THE GOVERNMENT WANTS HER DEAD. It's just the way the series builds off the original works by Doyle in a way that not only stays true to the original, but is also its own thing. Because yeah, we don't see Irene Adler again after her "scandal" is solved; and that's because she fakes her death as Irene, and starts working under the Moriarty brothers as James Bond, now a man. Additionally, Moriarty the Patriot handles Bond being trans in an amazing way. Him being trans is no joke! The Moriarty group accept him as a man the moment he tells them (except for Sebastian Moran, who's confused about it at first before he warms up to it; in all actuality, it's his confusion and reluctance that's joked about, not Bond's manhood, which is a refreshing thing to see as a queer person myself). Even when reuniting with Sherlock, John Watson, and Ms Hudson, the three are respectful and understanding. Oh my god wait a minute I just realized I haven't even mentioned Sherlock yet-

Reason #5: Benedict Cumberbatch WHO

Sherlock Holmes in this adaptation is the best Sherlock, hands down. Why? Because he's fun, goddammit! So many Sherlock adaptations see the genius personality of Sherlock Holmes and see nothing else. They make him cold, uncaring, calculative. A lot of Sherlocks would shoot a man dead for a lead on a case. But not this Sherlock. Is this the face of a man who's cold and uncaring?

HELL FUCKING NO! And he's literally presented with the opportunity to shoot a man for a lead on a case, and he turns it down! Because he's good! Yeah, he's prideful. Yeah, he can be a prick. He treats Scotland Yard like a joke. But he's also silly. He's kind to the people he cares about. He wants to help people. He's hilarious with Ms Hudson and Mycroft, and his interactions with William Moriarty is one of the best things to read about in this adaptation, because their cat-and-mouse game matters so, so much in this story.

Reason #6: Cat and mouse; puppet and puppeteer; friend and...friend?

Sherlock has a very interesting role in Moriarty the Patriot as a whole. Sure, he's the detective. But he's so much more. When he's introduced (in episode 6 of the anime, mind you!) to the story, the overarching plan of William and his brothers shift to include him: William wants him to be the hero of the play they're setting for the country, because in the end, William plans to be defeated as a common enemy of the people. And so, the game begins. The Lord of Crime starts setting up crimes for Sherlock to solve, so he gains publicity. So he's recognized as the hero. He's the only man smart enough to solve the trail of breadcrumbs Moriarty leaves, after all. Sherlock starts as just a puppet in the plan of things. Led along on strings from crime-to-crime, slowly piecing things together. And Sherlock hates it. But...Sherlock and William meet outside of being a simple detective and criminal. They meet on a ship, and for the first time, William finds his mind not drafting up plans or thinking as the Lord of Crime the first time they speak to each other. And for the first time, Sherlock finds someone with a mind equal to his own. They meet again, on a train, and solve a murder together (one William was NOT behind). And behind this game of cat-and-mouse, behind the puppet and puppeteer, something blooms. When Sherlock learns that yes, the William James Moriarty he's grown to known is indeed the Lord of Crime, he's not mad. He's...glad.

(note: Sherlock calls William Moriarty "Liam", beginning with their meet on the train; he's the only character in the series who does this. Not even the other Moriarty brothers call their brother "Liam")

He's glad it was William; it couldn't have been anyone else, in his opinion. It wouldn't have been worth it otherwise. It all comes to head in this series' version of "The Final Problem", where Sherlock finally confronts Moriarty, once and for all. It's where William plans to be defeated by his nemesis, the hero. Because he's the self-proclaimed villain. "Catch me if you can, Mr Holmes", is what he challenged to Sherlock on the train, after he joked about William being the Lord of Crime. And Sherlock catches him, in the end. But not as a detective. He catches him, as a companion, after William jumps to his death into the river Thames to set his defeat to Sherlock in stone.

Reason #7: What Comes After

The anime ends after "The Final Problem", but the manga continues. And this is where I really, really think this adaptation shines its brightest, with the aftermath of everything the series has been building to. The main reason Moriarty chooses his death is because of the bad things he's done his entire life. He never enjoyed killing people, but felt he had to, and felt his death was the proper "punishment" for it. But through Sherlock, he finds that that isn't the answer. It's obvious that Sherlock would live through the fall into the Thames. But what about William? In most adaptations, he dies. In the original, he died. But in this? They both live. They both survive. Some big ideas floating around before "The Final Problem" involved revenge. An eye for an eye, if you will. Judgement, and delivering it. But afterwards? It's atonement. It's forgiveness, and the lack of it. It's growth, and redemption. They're saved and taken to America to recover and start new lives. William Moriarty finds ways to atone for his actions without choosing death. Sherlock does too, for his own crimes. They decide, together, to begin anew, find new purposes.

and it's beautiful. When they return to England, three years after their disappearances, their growth is obvious and amazing to see; the other members of the Moriarty gang have also chosen their own paths of redemption, and seeing it all come together is something I'll always enjoy rereading over and over. And the redemption and reunion with England is just the end of part 1 of the story. There's more to be made with this series.

Reason #8: Made With Love

It's so, so obvious that Moriarty the Patriot was made with love for the original series. The way details of the original stories are kept and built off of to work flawlessly as it's own story is something I will be continously impressed by. There was so much thought, heart, and soul put into this adaptation, and you can tell it by reading and watching it. There are so, so much more I could go into—like the music in the anime, deeper dives into the arcs of the main cast, how well the relationships between characters are formed and established—but I think it'd be better for you to just find out all of these things by yourself.

So please, if you've gotten this far, give Moriarty the Patriot a try. Let it prove to you how good it is. Let it show you that it really is the best Sherlock Holmes adaptation out there.

[allgremlinart]

hai good friend,, tell me about mai. I don’t think I’ve ever heard of her before… look what we are doing to our beautiful queens 😔

YIPEE I love when me going insane about a character for a day makes you curious about them... especially cus atp I can kind of predict what is going to pique ur interest

ok ok: so, Mai. She's 1/3 of Azula's Evil Girl Group, colloquially known as Ozai's Angels, and thats the context you see her in for most of the show which is why it's important to know. You know how all cartoons in the 2000s HAD to have ONE morose goth chic? Well she is atla's quota. She's a noble, she's an only child (THEE only child. The first only child they made at the only child factory <33), she fights with 🔪KNIVES 🔪!!! she's Zuko's canonical comphet love interest and she has a very understated but underrated arc..

Her role/arc in the show:

I mentioned Ozai's Angels because her interactions with Azula and Ty Lee are the real meat and potatoes of her character. They're like... baby's first toxic yuri love triangle <3333 REALLY can't overstate how toxic yuri love triangle they are. Mai and Ty Lee end up betraying Azula in season 3 which is both the climax (imo) of Mai's arc and the inciting action for Azula's descent (but we're not getting into Azula never ask me to get into Azula please). A lot of people reduce Mai going turncoat to JUST being about saving Zuko - and like partially it IS. She saves Zuko from dying because she loves/cares about him and that's a big part of it.

But it's ALSO about her finding her voice ?? Like throughout the show we NEVER see her voice opinions about something unless it's to say that she's bored, or jaded, or what have you. She never seems to have strong feelings about anything; her stated reasoning for joining Azula's Imperialism Girl Band is because she's bored living with her parents 💀 but it's like. It becomes clear to the audience later in the show that she was raised to never speak unless spoken to, to mask emotions, etc etc LIEKKK SHE'S SOOO REPRESSED ONLY CHILD SHE'S SO WOMAN TM... So her telling Azula "I love Zuko more than I fear you" was THEE cuntiest moment EVER because it's like oh shit ?? this is something pretty unexpected from this character ?? Waow so crazy so cunt ??

A lot of people point out that she and Ty Lee never really got a "ohhhh Imperialism is bad" arc like Zuko did but. imo there wasn't a whole lot of room in the show for it lol. Would have been something interesting to explore in the comics for sure !! but uhmmm I'd rather walk into the ocean than watch Gene Luen Yang try and write about imperialism and colonialism again so maybe its better we never got that.. (no offense to him he's just... not that great at doing it in the atla comics...not his strength..)

Her reception in fandom:

She's usually only ever talked about in the context of being Zuko's love interest (either positively OR negatively) hence my post that you saw. Like. Victim Numero Uno of zutara/kataang shipping wars cus at least a bunch of people LIKE Aang whereas people either ignore or actively dislike her.

There's often discourse about like. Who's the "toxic" one in the Mai/Zuko pairing and it's annoying when she gets flak for it cus like newsflash: they both are. My GOD they both are. They've canonically broken up twice. They're the emo boy/goth girl pairing. They're cute together. They're miserable together. They're both homosexual. You get it.

Also a lot of times people just call her boring or emotionless and it's like congrats !! you have fallen for her facade... in conclusion... sorry this is so long uhm.. your fault for asking me though... how long is it going to take until I've just told you the entire plot of this cartoon piecemeal ask by ask...

[sepublic]

Homesick!

I just gotta say I love the pun of this episode’s title; I thought Homesick would allude to it being about Luz missing home, but it was actually a joke on Hooty being sick!

That said, we DID get what would’ve been our first look at Manny, as well as an early version of Camila lore! Turns out she was going to be a nurse, but in the end I think I like veterinarian better. Still, I remember discussing healing back during S1A as a potential track for Luz because of this, so to see that theme be apparent with both parents was cool!

Manny’s face being shrouded also seems to indicate that the dramatic reveal behind him -the illness- was always planned, at least since the pilots. Luz said he drove an ambulance, past tense, which seems like some dark irony given he probably needed one at one point. Remember how some of us theorized after Reaching Out that the Abomaton alarm reminded Luz of an ambulance siren related to her father? Man… On the plus side! We can guess Camila and Manny met through their professions, so we could try applying that to canon as well! Compassion is such a Noceda trait I love it.

Likewise, I appreciate how these two leaked storyboards have Luz and Eda covering for each other! One sticks their neck out because something means a lot for the other, but the other decides it’s not so important they’d sacrifice the one for it… With this episode, Eda doesn’t want Luz to look like a dunce but Luz is honest and can’t bear to see her mentor be mocked either, and is trying to take responsibility for what she feels is HER mistake too! It’s really sweet seeing Eda inadvertently teach Luz the Healing glyph.

Speaking of, it seems we would’ve gotten individual glyphs for all spells, as the fandom once assumed! I guess the show did glyph combos to explain why Luz doesn’t immediately find everything, as well as create a sort of fun system behind Luz having to mix and match things. And we even got to see what we always wanted; Luz making an ENORMOUS glyph around her enemy! Goes to show my speculation that since glyphs rely on the magic around them, they aren’t physically taxing; Something we see brought up with Eda’s own magic.

Caduceia reminded me of an early Hermonculus, being a teacher who didn’t really care much for the actual students and even seemed to enjoy mocking them! She looks like Raine, so much that I wonder if the design was repurposed for them because it was such a nice one! I dig the play on Caduceus, with Snakeslie as a palisman! Snakeslie looks so much like a worm on a string. Given Luz and Caduceia are both healers, it’s neat they have a snake in common, though Caduceia’s seems to allude to her being a snake (liar); Her palisman’s name is literally Snakeslie. Snakes lie. Glad to see Stringbean with the positive rep!

I also love the gag of King calling himself the King of whatever’s convenient, and it was really cute seeing him want to prove his own worth! Because two witches, it’d be easy to feel like he has nothing to offer, which is part of Sense and Insensivity in canon! There’s parallels between the A and B-plots, with Luz and King feeling ineffectual and their owl friend supporting them, only to be helped as well! Eda and Owlbert are linked and hell so are the demon hunters and Caduceia!

The House Demon lore was neat, even if it was stuff we already figured out with canon; House Demons being like hermit crabs, and also rare! Seeing healing magic be used to make someone sick and even control their mucus/phlegm was disgusting yet fascinating! And I was delighted to see the demon hunters again, they’re underrated side characters imo and we even got a crew nickname for another one of them!

I also like the bit of the moral here; That sometimes, it’s not that a student is bad or isn’t trying, sometimes the teacher is failing them. Maybe some people think this generation is raised too soft and coddled, but I think it’s an important reassurance for a lot of kids who struggle and blame themselves for it; I’ve taken teaching classes before, and we were taught to be vigilant with ourselves as potentially inadequate for students. It’s the onus of the teacher to adapt to a kid’s needs after all, and actually care!!!

What an unexpected delight! I never imagined the crew made storyboards for additional episodes and not just the pilot! This one has no voice alas, but it’s better than nothing and I feel storyboards have such a nice charm to themselves as well! I really thought the pilot would be my last episode review, but I keep getting pleasantly surprised and gifted by this show…!

[rosesradio]

I’ve been seeing this thing around about rating pjo ships so i thought I’d give it a go 🤠 no personal offense if i don’t give your ship a high rating, i’m pretty particular except for when I’m not

Percabeth - 9/10. love them loads, but could have gone without the judo flip + other odd behaviors that are only seen as “cute” because the sexes are flipped, otherwise they’re great

Jercy - 1/10. i can see potential i guess but also there’s just a lot of better options for both of these characters imo, plus i see them as bros

Valgrace - 10/10, to storm or fire the world must fall, best friends to lovers, no notes

Solangelo - 2/10. i can see…the potential. their “significant annoyance” scene gave me the warm fuzzies as a 14 year old looking for rep. but oh my god how they’re written in canon sometimes is just so bad, it ruins fanon for me as well. not to mention the one-dimensional-ization done in order to amplify the “grumpy x sunshine !!!1!” trope. however i will say Some solangelo fans understand that they should Both be freaks (and in that AU it’s a respectable 8/10 from me) and the ship has fantastic fan artists

Shelper - 2/10. no hate i’m just bored…like who is shel?? tell me one thing about her personality. does she get any dialogue?? richard??

Jasper/Jiper - 1/10 the fake memories were cute but the inside of pipers head did not pass the Bechdel test. would love to see them as platonic soulmate roommates though

Jeyna - 1/10 the devotion is admirable but yk. can relate being aroace and latching on to some dude lmao

Theyna - 4/10. not my cup of tea but in a world where either they aren’t hunters or it’s an interpretation where the hunters can be lesbians…it’s a good ship. haven’t really seen much for them but I’m open to it. might prefer them as a platonic buddy cop duo though

Pernico - 4/10 i see them as annoying cousins but i respect the angst potential of unrequited love. i don’t think the ship as endgame would be good for either of the characters. however, again, really good fan artists

Jasico - 10/10 the drinking out of the chalice scene was hot don’t look at me. really good fan artists etc. i should write more with them

Valdangelo - 10/10, yk how i feel about pushing my blorbos together and making them kiss lol. massively underrated, read ceaseless eve, etc 

Pipabeth - 7.5/10 i like percabeth more but it’s my favorite piper ship. I haven’t seen much content with them but i’ve liked what i have seen. I might make some stuff with them

Rachbeth - 2/10, the potential is there i guess but i see them as best friends

Perchel - 8.5/10 i guess i’m in the minority but what makes the pjo love triangle so compelling compared to other YA love triangles is that Both of the ships are really good. idk what to tell you they go well together

Lukercy - 6/10 i see the potential but if you’re going for dark fic vibes i think lukabeth is better

Lukabeth - 9/10 the dark fic potential has me chewing the furniture. wouldn’t ship them as like a fluffy endgame but that’s not the point

Frazel - 0/10 richard please let two people of the opposite sex be friends

Caleo - -100000000/10 nothing could be a better crafted anti-caleo fic than canon itself

[lucienne-thee-librarian]

Sandman fic recs for Underrated Characters and Ships: Lucienne Edition (part 1)

This is a non-exhuastive list of my personal favorite Lucienne-centric and Morphienne fics and series I've found so far. If you can think of any others I've forgotten don't hesitate to add on!

Okay first off: my friend @pratchettfan87 has written a lovely fic I'm helping beta where Lucienne and her comic counterpart meet and bond and you need to go read it rn You Are The Light That Guides the Way. It's also a great exploration of the events of Sandman from the perspective of both librarians. It's not complete but it's rapidly getting put together so pls go give her encouragement and feedback so you can keep seeing more if you want! I'm gonna try to roughly go in order from most to least nsfw as we go down. Part 2 will contain other ships like Gault x Lucienne and Calliope x Lucienne.

Gen fics

And the Darkness Hummed by @navigatorwrongway - one of my all time absolute favorite Lucienne fics in this fandom, period that delves into her backstory before she even met Dream and takes you on a Journey through her life and it's. Mwah. It's art

nosso amor (our love) by marveling_under_an_open_sky is an achingly tender exploration of Lucienne's trauma and her getting comforted for once.

For Morphienne

Literally everything @cosmictapestry (aka cosmicjourney on AO3) has ever written is an instant recommend from me. Seriously. I can't think of one single thing she's written I didn't like. Heed the tags, but if you're old enough to be interacting with the NSFW stuff and it's your thing, do yourself a favor and dive into their delicious Morphienne smut drabbles on tumblr and the longer stuff on AO3. Go do it right now. It can be emotional and painful but all very well written. And his We Divinity series is heartbreaking and beautiful and with all the characters spot-on and the writing poetry like you've never seen.

and take thee up thy nurse's fee by stellerssong, a selkie!Dream au with wonderful atmosphere

It's About Old Friends by JerseyDragons is sweet and funny and a spot on take on a queerplatonic/sort of romantic version of their dynamic.

Wingmanning for Fun and Profit by unseenbox - is an absolutely adorable look at a Morphienne love confession from Matthew's POV.

Jewel by @softest-punk is super lovely and sweet, pure quality fluff.

Stellerssong's red moon series is a really interesting werewolf au of not just Morphienne but also Corintheus. It's on a slow burn but it's definitely worth it imo.

Also stellerssong's OTHER series "through endless revisions" is just a fantastic take on Daniel!Dream adjusting to his new life and everyone who knew and loved him having to do the same, but the specifically Morphienne standouts are as follows: please come back and be (just a little bit), eutropic, a pillar I am upright , room for one more taste , and for just to suffer that hurt. All of these are well worth the read, most but room for one more taste have angst and smut involved as well as sharp writing and characterization. Seriously can't recommend these enough, these are some of the best of the lot and that's saying something.

Dreams Written in Sand by cunticuss very slow burn but lovely and feels very them.

Woolgathering by sunsorbit is ANOTHER slow burn series full of wonderful characterization and pining and includes the library as an observer and character in itself which I'm always a sucker for.

How Vibrant the Color by unnecessary - unfffff. This is peak poetic emotional therapy dream sex. One of my favorites.

Gold by MDWG aka the most tender sex imaginable.

Contrapposto by stuntmuppet - pure smut. My only complaint is how short it is.

[time-is-restored]

by the way this is not gonna do the subject NEARLY enough justice BUT i do really wish there was more keeley appreciation in the main tags... like not only is she an Extremely explicit parallel for ted, but she's also at the heart of SO much of the show's themes - and you'd never know it from reading most of the meta that goes around!

[content warnings for sexism, sexual harassment, Locker Room Talk™]

okay, so like, in no particular order, here some of the criminally underrated + under-explored things we know abt keeley jones:

she has an almost identical social strategy to ted: being earnestly, and oftentimes defiantly herself, regardless of what assumptions it pushes other people to make abt her (i.e.: her description in the pilot, 'used to having her book judged by its cover'). and then, in spite of the ppl around her belittling her/writing her off, she STILL approaches them w genuine intent to connect + get to know them.

i think it was an EXTREMELY deliberate choice in episode 3 for both keeley and ted to give rebecca 'a compliment she's never heard before'. they're not merely skating by on small talk or doing the bare minimum to show their appreciation for killing the photo (which rebecca would be prepared for), they're subverting her expectations by going for genuine (if bemusing) compliments.

then ofc w keeley's s3 arc, you can see how she's trying (and slowly succeeding, judging by that nervous worker guy's attempts to start joking around with her) to get her PR firm's culture to the same, easy-going, more-friends-than-coworkers vibe of richmond. she even specifically asks ted for advice (and, again, i think its relevant that the advice he gives refers to his most effective team building moment - the ghost banishing ceremony). it's very important to her that ppl feel comfortable in her presence, and we can see her getting genuinely distressed whenever she struggles with this.

she says EXPLICITLY in that one exchange w sassy + rebecca that she freaks out whenever she thinks she's being abandoned - she delivers it like a joke, but she's visibly off-kilter and nervous while she says it, apparently still coming down from the anxiety of thinking she'd been ditched. and again, after the gala when she goes to (presmably) get back together with jamie, she says outright that she really struggles to ever break up with people - even people she's no longer interested in, like jamie! - because she second guesses her own judgement so much. on an adjacent note, imo the melt down she has when roy was crowding her was only as abrupt + extreme as it was because she had been repressing her feelings about it for so long. which is SO interesting in the context of her being one of the most upfront and outspoken characters in the show!!!! like. she literally contains multitudes!

and, also, while i do think there's some genuine critical analysis to be done abt the normalisation of what is, essentially, sexual harassment at richmond (it's... extremely uncomfortable to go on such a long tangent about how attractive a stranger's boobs are, even if ur also a woman), i think keeley's active flirtation + general horny-on-main behaviour is ALSO extremely under-explored. bc, in the context of her being a WAG, and also a model, keeley recieves completely unprompted + unwarranted comments abt her body all day every day. when sassy told her that her ex-husband used to masturbate to her photos, she's hardly shell shocked. it's pretty clear that that's something she's used to being known for, and being told about in gratuitous detail. in this context, you can really see how the way she leans in to flirtation, and talking about sex and the hotness of various ppl around her (ie: her entrance in the pilot, making a show + joke out of how she must Obviously want to see all of the footballers naked), is her way of pushing back against the way others don't respect HER boundaries. ie: 'if my body's fair game for everyone to talk about + sexualise, so is theirs!'. it's an extremely interesting coping mechanism, especially in the context of it leading to her oftentimes perpetuating the cycle of harassment herself. and then there's also how the locker room culture OF richmond involves a significant amt of talking about sex, past partners, etc - since she spends so much time in that environment, you can pretty clearly see how that'd influence her decision to go with the current, rather than against.

AND OFC. HOW could i get this far w/o talking about the sheer narrative weight that's given to her relationship with rebecca!!! not only is she arguably the first character to befriend rebecca (beating ted out by several episodes, at least by my count), she is ALSO the reason that rebecca ever tells ted the truth ('it would change how i feel about you'!!!!!!! AGH!!!!), and honestly i think keeley's disappointment in her is what leads her to finally accept that. sabotaging richmond is a cruel thing to do and she doesn't want to do it anymore! like. keeley's unabashed admiration of + love for rebecca, and rebecca's eventual reciprocation is quite literally the driving force for both of their arcs ('thank you for teaching this panda how to be a lion'!!!!!) and i just!!! i care them!!!!!!!!!!!!

tldr; keeley jones is a blorbo of absolutely apocalyptic proportions PLEASE let her into ur heart the next time ur writing analysis + meta....

[inncubus-honey]

fantasy cod au ii

yay!! more military personnel to dream about!!! the characters in this are a mix of specgru and kortac operators; some faves and some underrated faves (imo) but I also did a bit of ooc for them cause we don't that much about a lot of them, so im filing the blanks with some hcs. hope y'all enjoy, feedback is always welcomed <3.

cod operators x gn!reader

Word Count: 6.96k

a/n: also includes poorly google translated sentences and cute original language nicknames <3

gromsko- glaive

due to seeing hussars’ as a child, gromsko always wanted to be one. a strong cavalryman, racing across the battlefield with a polearm in his hand as he was rode in on metal armor and his wings beating against the wind. normally they would sabres, but gromsko thought it was too short for close range fighting, so he ditched it in place of a glaive. they’re like a normal lance, but are forged with a small hook on the other side to catch riders off their horses.

as you gathered vegetables and fruits from your garden for that nights dinner, thundering sounds of hooves alerted you to look up from picking the food. making your way to the entrance of the grounds, the figure on the horse getting closer with clinking metal sounds also reaching your ears.

setting down the basket resting against your hip, the bigger figure came into view with metal wings on the back armor, red coat and twig covered helmet then bringing the horse to a stop. a smile spread across your lips as you raced towards the figure who held their arms out to you.

“sobie!” you would recognize your bear of a husband from anywhere. a soft smile graced his lips as he caught you in his arms, walking towards you and his home. engulfing you in a warm, bear hug that you had missed for the past two weeks made every moment of missing him worth it.

“moje perełko(my pearl)! i’ve missed you greatly…” his thick accent that rumbled into your bones, also made your heart flutter from the comfort it brought. he shoved face in the crooked of your neck, taking in the familiar scent of your skin and hair. closing his eyes and bringing your bodies as close as he could, gromsko took in everything he had missed in the time he was gone at battle.

“i thought you wouldnt be back until next week.” bringing your face out of his shoulder, you gazed upon his still sharp features and atlantic blue eyes. a hand was also brought up to his jaw which he gladly leaned into, resting upon it gently as his strong arms supported your body.

“we won, so we got to come home early. teraz daj mi buziaka, moje perełko (now give me a kiss, my pearl).” whispering upon your lips, you pressed them together and let out a content hum. gromsko secured you closer to his body, he made his way back towards yalls house so he could make up for time lost at battle.

gus- morningstar and shield

seeing royal guards visit through his village as a child, it really inspired him to join the guards to fight and protect his village. but they denied him from joining so he heard about specgru, a mercenary group that would allow anyone and everyone who wanted to join to do so. gus was excited to have found people who wanted to protect people just like him. when they started traveling around to different cities and towns, when he met you thats when he felt complete in his soul.

setting his weapons down by his tent for the night, gus then took a seat by the fire right next to you. he wrapped his arm around your shoulder, bringing you into his as he shoved his face into your hair.

leaning into his touch, you gave a soft sigh as gus traced a pattern into your exposed skin. the rest of specgru were talking amongst themselves around the tents, gus and you were contently eating stew that luna made that night.

“mi corazón de melón(my melon heart); you did wonderful out there today.” a soft whisper graced your ears as gus brushes his nose against your temple. a client had payed for us to track down someone who had stolen from them, under the act of an injured soldier.

unknown to us, the thief had a crew with them which meant they wouldnt had over the stolen goods easily. a soft giggle left your lips as gus brought his lips down your jawline and neck. bringing a hand up to rest upon his open chest as he brought your body to his.

“gus..oso(bear) what if someone sees u-us?” you squeaked as gus left little bites along the column of your neck. leaving one last kiss on your freshly kissed skin, gus pulled away to greet you with a smirk.

“just rewarding my brave warrior for all their hard work on the field.” whiskey colored eyes bore into yours, a hand was brought up to brush away baby hairs from your eyes.

“such a clingy oso…” a giggle left your lips as you stood up and dragged gus towards yalls tent.

“ooh, mi corazón de melón wants to celebrate tonight…” gus smirked, wiggling his eyebrows as you made your way into the tent.

luna- dual kamas

know for her grab and go abilities when specgru needed to find certain people. she also uses them as climbing tools which allows quick up and down movements for quick land surveying. luna kinda liked to keep to herself in specgru, but over time she got closer to everyone. also she does most night watches; she doesnt mind staying for long periods at a time and doing more survey work. (since luna is singaporean and they have four national languages, i went with malay cause its the official language, in case anyones curious.)

“mana matahari saya?! semua orang naik angin!(where is my sun?! everyone is getting on my nerves!)” luna mumbled to herself as she walked through the camp, looking for her partner, you.

after doing another quick survey upon reyes’ request when she was moving down the tree that she had climbed up, a weak branch broke under her causing her to fall the rest of the way. as she couldnt find you all over the camp, luna grumbled to herself as she took a sit at the campfire with zimo and reyes who were talking amongst themselves.

while you were out in the woods nearby, looking for any interesting new herbs for your medicines and just any to restock on other herbs. upon entering back into camp, you see your luna sitting at the fire, crouched over herself with zimo and reyes talking amongst themselves.

“im back.” you announced which caused lunas eyes to snap in your direction, looking over her folding arms that rested on her knees. you walked towards them with a basket full of herbs on your hip, a small smile graced you as saw zimo and reyes chuckle to themselves as they watched luna.

“matahari saya! where were you? Saya bimbang tentang anda?(i was worried about you).” luna jumped up from her spot, bringing you into a hug as she rested her head upon yours. you stifled a laugh as luna whined at you for being gone.

“i was out collecting herbs for more medicines, moony.” smiling up at her, you gently rested a hand upon her jaw as she pouted at how you shrugged it off. zimo and reyes also hid their chuckles from how moody she was acting; this caused her to snap her head their way with a sharp glare to her teammates.

“lets go back to our tent…i wanna hold you.” she mumbled as yall started walking back to yalls tent. she brought you back into her side, an arm around your shoulder, the boys snickers still heard in the background.

upon arriving back in your tent, she took the basket of herbs from you and placed them on the ground near your sleeping bags. she sat both of yall down, placing her head onto your lap and thats when you noticed twigs and leaves in her hair.

“did you fall again, moony?” you chuckled lightly as she sighed into your lap, hiding her red cheeks as you pulled out the twigs and leaves.

“i dont want to talk about it…” she mumbled as you made a small pile of the twigs and leaves next to you.

zimo- trident:

zimo feels like a trident guy, i dont why, but it fits him well that i cant think of anything else for him. he would definitely throw his trident at enemies, but he connected a chain to the end of it so he could pull it back to him. he heard about specgru after witnesses them in a bar fight in his hometown. zimo felt like there was a calling to him as he watched them fight the rowdy bar goers, paying for the damages then leaving like nothing happened.

he circled the chain around his hand as he ripped the trident from the enemies head, leaving them to drop dead onto the ground. zimo heard someone coming up behind him, but before he could raise the trident again, an arrow was lodged into the person's throat. another dropped to the ground like a fly; he turned to see his lover lower their bow with a smile on their face.

“qīn'ài de(dearest), that was an excellent shot.” he nodded as you walked up to meet one another, zimo tucked his trident behind his back and brought you into a quick kiss on your forehead. smirking at one another, your backs touched one another with your weapons drawn up at more enemies.

“well, your recoil was on point as well, lao gong(husband).” you both share a chuckle as enemies fell before yall. zimo made efficient work with his trident while you shot enemies down with your bow and arrow, swiftly pulling arrows from your quiver. your bodies danced like the ballet of swan lake; siegfried and odette dancing in the forest under the light of the moon after her first transformation.

“you flatter me too much, qīn'ài de, but thank you.” you heard the smile in his voice as you heard the chain of his weapon rattle. wind rushed past your ears as you released arrow after arrow into enemies that seemingly had no end. the entire of specgru had soon brought the horde of enemies to an end, thankfully. blood soaked the once bright green fields into a muddy brown with bright red pops, your boots were caked with blood and layered with mud as you took a moment to calm your breath.

you took a seat on a fallen log, your bow sitting next to you as your arms rested on your knees, zimo took a spot next to me with his own weapon next to him on the log. i sighed, placed my head onto zimos shoulder as he also took a moment to catch his breath.

“can we get some meat stew with a lot of potatoes?” zimo softly muttered, above you as his head rested on yours. a small chuckle left you as you nudged his jaw with your head.

“of course, lao gong…” you huffed with a small chuckle, zimo brought you closer into his side as he wrapped his arm around your waist. you felt a soft kiss being pressed to the crown of your head, zimo brushed his nose against your temple as the night slowly started set in, turning the heat of the battle field to a somber gravesite.

reyes- crossbow:

reyes would go hunting with his father when he was younger and his fathers choice of weapon was a crossbow while his father gave him a small dagger to help with gathering herbs and skinning whatever animal of choice they had for dinner. as he got older and started hunting on his own as his father got older; he gave reyes his crossbow. made of rich cherry wood with silver metal plates for a better grip, reyes took great pride in his father giving him his crossbow.

specgru had taken a job that allowed them to stay in a town with a cozy inn for everyone to grab a bed. you had taken a double bed near the back of the inn with the fireplace going upon the moment you entered the room. you took a moment to rest your head as you waited for reyes to get back from the town. zimo and him wanted to take a look around since it was a new town and didnt know what it could offer.

creaking wood alerted you for someone coming towards the door which caused you to open your tired eyes in time to hear a soft knock upon the wooden door. reyes figure tiptoed into the shared room, you sat up and rubbed the sleepiness from your eyes as he gave a small smirk.

“hello my nighttime meadow, did you just wake up from a nap?” his words were soft in the air as he sat next to you on the feather stuffed mattress. you chuckled at his nickname and cheesy actions, thats the kinda lover of reyes was.

“what did you do this time, foxtrot?” you chuckled as reyes gave a fake gasp while placing a hand over his heart. he gave you a silly shocked expression as you giggled and lightly hit his shoulder as he let out a small string of gasp.

“my darling meadow! the fact you accused me of doing something while out and about with our friend, zimo, is such a g-g-ghastly thing to say!” you both shared a smirk as he chuckled and gasped. he pulled something out of his satchel that rested on his hip; you leaned over to try and see what he was holding, but he hid behind his back with a smirk.

“whats that, foxtrot?” you raised an eyebrow at his sneakiness.

“close your eyes and i’ll show you, my meadow.” with a little sigh and roll of your eyes, you placed your hands over your eyes. you heard slight shuffling beside you felt a light metal chain be placed upon your collars bones. a light peck was pressed against your cheek when you felt he was finished.

“now you may open your eyes, my meadow.” removing your hands from your eyes, looking down at your chest you saw a small silver pendant sitting there. it was a tiny lily of the valley pendant; your favorite flower, but you also had so many you couldnt always name a favorite. but one that always came first or second was the lily of the valley.

“o-oh…reyes, darling. i love it…this is one of the best gifts i’ve ever gotten.” leaning closer to him, you pressed a passionate kiss to his lips with his arms wrapping around you. “it…it reminded me of you, meadow. you mean everything to me, darling…” reyes gently cupped your jaw, bringing you into a kiss only to release small giggles and laughs throughout it.

konig- battle axe:

a large double sided axe was always resting upon his shoulder whenever walking into battle. the bleached streaks running the front of his mask, harsh and watching stormy blue eyes piercing through his darkened outfit. his hulking form over the rest of his teammates, konig was unruly on the field then acted like a mouse whenever in their camp. careful movements, his eyes always observing everyone and their actions as not to frighten or hurt anyone

konig held his hands to his front as he moved around the inn, trying to keep small and thoughtful movements as he tried to find a place to sit. many of his teammates were sitting amongst themselves, already eating and talking, so he kinda stood in the middle of everyone as his head kept on a swivel.

“konig, over here!” you called from where you sat with horangi who was eating quietly. konig chest was relieved of the anxious feeling that was bubbling up in his chest, carefully and slowly he made his way over to you. sitting down with you and horangi and his stein of mead, konig let out a small sigh of relief.

“gott sei dank, ich habe euch beide gefunden.(thank god, i found you both.)” he spoke, reaching under the table to hold your hand as you drank your drink of choice. you returned a soft smile as you could tell he was smiling under his hood as it reached his eyes.

“horangi found the table for us while you were getting your drink.” you responded as konig gave a thankful nod to his friend. konig carefully lifted his hood to take sips mead as you talked about the fight that took place just moments before. excitedly, you spoke of what you thought was cool and what techniques you wanted to try again upon the next fight.

konig only stared you down with lovesick eyes as horangi ate his food in peace. konig was content, he had been since joining kortac and meeting you, his liebster(most beloved). upon meeting you when he joined kortac, it's like a puzzle piece that fits perfectly or like he could breathe clearly for the first time in forever. konig would go to the ends of the earth if you had asked him; anything you asked him to do, he would do in a heartbeat.

“-then that cool move nikto did, i asked him to teach it to me later. isnt so cool, konig?” you beamed a smile up at him. he zoned back into reality from his thoughts focused on you when you finished talking, you gave his hand a light squeeze as he shook his head back and looked at you with soft smiles.

“yes, liebster, im listening to you..” he softly told you as he leaned over to softly bump his head against yours. his loving gesture he would always do in public if he wasnt comfortable enough to lift his mask up to kiss you. you leaned against him with a soft hum leaving your lips. your foreheads rested against one another as horangi sighed and rolled his eyes at the pda before him.

“​​토할거야…(i'm going to throw up)” horangi mumbled to himself as his pushed away his unfinished food. you and konig left out chuckles at horangis actions, pulling away for the sake of him.

konig- battle axe:

woldo is traditional korean polearm. it gets its name from its curved blade, meaning ‘moon blade’. horangi handles his weapon with great pride and graced for his heritage, also maybe…to impress you. graceful hits with the woldo and harsh kicks to enemies as he gives subtle glances towards your figure as you did your own fighting. but upon anyone mentioning it, he would absolutely deny it while hiding his flushed cheeks.

“stop shouting, konig! they could hear you!” horangi shushed his excited german friend as they sat in his tent. konig couldnt contain his excitement for horangi as he learned of his secret feelings for you. he told konig hoping he would have some kind of advice on how to ask you out.

“thats so exciting, horangi! im hoping they will say yes to your proposal!” he exclaimed as he walked out, not giving horangi an answer as he let out a sigh and hung his head in defeat. moving to sit on his cot, horangi just decided to deal with it later, he laid down on his cot and got ready to take a nap. until you walk in with a small smile upon your lips.

“horangi? oh, are you sleeping?” you started to walk back out, but horangi jumped up from his position, smoothing out his clothes. he shot you a sheepish smile as you stood at the front of his tent.

“n-no! no…i was just resting my eyes for a moment. anyway what can i help you with?” he rubbed his neck, calming his nerves as he was in such a private place with you. you pulled something out of your satchel that rested on your hip, walking over to him you held out a tassel of red and white thread.

reaching out to take it, horangi inspected it closely. there was nothing much about it until he noticed a small moon pendant hanging along with the thread. looking back towards you as you gave your own sheepish smile.

“its a tassel for your weapon…i remember you saying that your other one had fallen during our last fight. i figured why not make you one to replace it…” you held your hands behind you as looked the ground, not daring to meet his honey orbs that bore into yours.

“i dont know what to say…this is amazing, yeobo(darling).” standing up from where he sat, horangi brought you into a hug with his face resting upon your shoulder. ever since joining kortac and getting closer with horangi, he has called you yeobo and you never knew what it meant.

“horangi, what does yeobo mean?” reluctantly you pulled away from the hug that just felt so natural; horangi once again rubbed his neck to calm his nerves as he thought of an answer to tell you. but he decided that now was finally time to tell you how he truly felt, no more hiding.

“yeobo is…a term of endearment..for couples in korea; it means honey or darling. i've liked you ever since getting to know you on a personal level…i understand if you don-” before he could finish speaking, you cut him off by pressing your lips against one another. his hands coming to rest upon your jaw where you moved your hands to rest upon his broad chest.

the kiss felt like it was forever, but it was only a few moments of gently dancing your lips against one another. horangi never wanted this moment to end with you, it was everything he wished for when it came to you. but soon you both pulled away to have air reenter your lungs, noses gently rested against one another as your breaths fanned across each others skin.

“i love you too, horangi…more than you could ever know.” you whispered to him with a giggle and smile across your lips. you both stood in horangis tent, holding each other in contentment as konig stood outside the tent, a smirk hidden under his hood as he was happy for his friends.

calisto- rapier:

as the house of bourbons only heiress, calisto grew up in a home of luxury and comfort. not having to worry about her next meal, warm bed, clean clothes and the ability to bathe. but she always wanted more to do than just have maids and servants weigh on her hand and foot, so she secretly started training in the rapier, an elegant weapon of choice, she thought. when she and her family were traveling through the countryside, she heard of the traveling mercenary group, kortac. that they traveled across the country and world, taking on missions people asked of them to track down people and recruiting whoever would like to join.

“mes biche…tu as l'air si paisible comme ça.(my doe…you look so peaceful like this)” calisto sat at your side, just coming back from a late night mission. you had stayed back as it was simple intel gathering, just wanting to breathe for the night. by the time calisto had gotten back, you were asleep. cuddling into calisto pillows, soft sighs left your lips as you wished for your girlfriend to be cuddling you.

calisto softly laid herself down the bed next to your sleeping figure, sapphire eyes watched your calm features closely. calming breathing sounds were the only sounds in the inn room, the fireplace had slowly gone out just before calisto entered the room. the soft shuffling of bed sheets and creaking of wood caused you to shift in your sleep, calisto rested a hand upon your hair and gave slow rubs to keep you asleep as she wished not to disturb your slumber.

“calisto…when did you get back, dearest?” softly the words left your lips, turning over to her person as she continued to play with locks of your hair in the quiet of the night. growing up in the house of bourbon, she never took much pride in the name or many things in her life. until she met you; her mes biche, her second hand in battle, the one she lays with at night.

trusting no harm would come to her as she puts her still body next to yours, but shes alright with that. she will take every opportunity to show you off to anyone who takes slight interest in you.

“i got in a few moments ago, darling. do you eat before going to bed?” she cocked an eyebrow at you as you turned your body towards her. calisto smiled back at you as a sleepy smile graced your lips.

“yes, calisto. i used some of my coins to have a meal downstairs before the kitchen closed. what about you, dearest?” she nodded as the comfortable silence returned in the moonlit room. you cupped the back of her head and brought her close to you and pressed a light peck upon her lips, calisto eagerly returned the kiss with a hand coming up to rest upon your cheek.

passion started building up between you two, harsher breaths released from one another's lips, calisto climbed upon your hips as your hands attached themselves to her waist. she rocked her body along yours as you boxed her close to your body.

“mes biche, god you’re amazing. je veux rester comme ça pour toujours(i want to stay like this forever).” her words were breathlessly whispered across your lips. you nodded wordlessly, hugging her closer to you and sucking harshly upon each other's lips.

“i wouldnt have it any other way, dearest.”

fender- two sided sword:

basically a wooden pole with long blades on either side. hes also a fan of molotov cocktails, but only uses those when he has to cause he only carry so many glass bottles without alerting people. growing up he never like he belonged in his mothers village as people stared at him with dirty looks from knowing what happened with his father and mother, so when hearing about kortac, fender took the opportunity to leave home. he left his mother a note then joined kortac for a new life.

fender always dealt with feelings of not fitting in, so he had a tendency to sometimes in his tent and stew in his thoughts. he was doing the same today, after setting up camp for the night, fender went straight to yalls shared tent, hugging his knees to his chest as he mind raced with a million thoughts.

you had been helping calisto set up her tent before noticing he was missing from the group. once she was set, you wandered around the camp that sat at the edge of the forest you had been traveling through. once you opened up the tent flaps to relieve fender in the fetal position, just staring at the wall before him.

“édesem(honey), whats wrong?” walking further into the tent, you slowly approached him and hugged his shoulder as he didnt flinch or make a subtle movement which was nothing new to you. bronze eyes were glazed over as he stared at the wall, unregistered to the world around him; slowly, carefully you lifted a hand up to rest upon his left cheek and turned him to look at you with worry etched into your brows.

“fender? do you want to be alone or can i help you, baby?” you whispered between the two yall. the longer you held fenders face in your hands, the sooner his eyes stopped being glazed over, showing something almost like recognition to your person. taking a deep breath, fenders eyes closed as his tensed body slowly uncoiled and he brought up a hand to rest upon yours.

“sorry, szívem(my heart)…i-i just got into my head too much f-for the moment..” he replied as the worry in your face melted away. the corners of his lips didnt meet the corner of his eyes showing the tiredness in his face. you knew that he was like a burden to the group, to you and he was hiding so he could think through what his mind was screaming to him.

fender felt his body curl into yours, just placing his head upon your chest. you still held his face in your hands, his body releasing all the stress and emotions he has been holding in for the past week or so. he crumpled like a sand castle getting washed away by the sea; just feeling content with warmth and comfort of a familiar person.

after the leaving of his father back to america, his mother was distant(i do believe fenders mother is a good mother, but this just for this scenario), which caused strong feelings of trusting people and opening up about his emotions. when he met you in the small town pub, you were working as a server, upon being served, fender took immediate notice of you as you rushed the crowded pub.

bringing around drinks and food, fender watched in awe as you held all the weight of the trayson your shoulders and wrist. so yall got to talking for the three weeks they would be stationed there. soon he convinced you to join kortac and you didnt need that much convincing to leave the shitty pub you worked in.

soon fender pushed you down onto the dirt floor cot as he hugged your body like he would disappear the next morning or he could possibly forget who you were and that was a fate worst than death for fender. a baby-like whimper left his mouth as cuddled into your body, you pulled the blanket up over both of your bodies.

“you’re okay, fender…im here for you when you need to talk.” you whispered to him, pressing a light peck to his forehead before he drifted into much needed sleep from his restless nights over the past week; fender deserved the good sleep.

stiletto- dire flail:

a double sided fail was her weapon of choice, liking how easily moveable it was and how she could multiple people at once. most people took to her with intimidation at her 6’ stature and the scar that traveled along her face(i like to imagine her 6’) she kept to herself in the group and was alright being by herself. until she met you that is; joining the group at the same time as fender when they visited your village, she was drawn to you upon seeing your bright smile and shining eyes as you laughed at a joke made by horangi.

sal stood behind the rest of the group as you all climbed up the mountain towards you next destination, she kept watch from the rear for the group as konig was at the head. you were near her person which made her content on the trek, she watched over your shorter stature. every so often you took glances behind you to see if stiletto was still behind you, gracing her with a small smile whenever you would see her figure again. (im going to switch between sal, salvatrice and stiletto btw.)

it would be another few hours until you all had reached the village where your next assignment for kortac. you all stopped at the local inn to rent rooms, eat some food and get rest for the night. salvatrice wordlessy followed behind you as you walked up the room they gave you, she had grabbed your hand the moment you both started up the stairs. setting your stuff down in your shared room, sal stood next to you as she watched you flop onto the bed.

“salvatrice, baby, lay with me.” you called out to her as you held your hand to her; softly smiling down at her lover. gently folded her hand into yours, stiletto placed herself next to you on the feather stuff queen sized bed and felt relief in her feet and body from the long trek.

“how are you from the hike, amorino(little love)?” her raspy voice was the only sound to echo between the wooden room, you turned your body towards her and smiled and smiled softly at her.

“im fine, tesoro mio(my darling). just a little sore is all.”.all…how about you, sal?” your hands danced in one another, your fingers tracing the lines that decorated her palm as she watched with glee in her pale blue eyes. soon a idea crossed your mind which caused you to sit up with a bright smile upon your face as salvatrice looked up with slight confusion now crossing her brows.

“lets go walk around town, tesoro! i would love to see what they have here.” you beamed a smile at her, sal chuckled lightly as she watched you drip with excitement. she took your hand in hers, sitting up from the bed and opened up the room for you. an excited squeal left your lips, running up to her taller figure and hugged her neck to which she nuzzled into the side of your head.

walking through the town with sal, you pointed out all the interesting shops to you. from an antique store to the biggest bookstore you had seen in any town yet. she gladly followed behind you in silence as you geeked out from everything you saw from a beautiful choker necklace in the antique store to a hardcover, first edition of one of your favorite books.

but whenever you saw the price of the items, your face fell as you saw how you couldnt afford it. dejected, you would place the respective items back onto the shelf and walked to a different part of the store. what you didnt know was salvatrice would grab the item the moment you walked away, walking up to check out and brought them for you without thinking. you’re her amorino, you only deserve the best in her opinion and she would give it to you.

still you held excitement for walking around the town, you both soon stopped for dinner as it got later in the day; pinks and oranges mixed together with a background of baby blue. as you both sat down and outside at the pub near the antique shop, sal brought your dinner to the table after ordering inside. you both ate in a comfortable silence as you slowly started getting tired from walking around the town.

.“oh man, im tired…thank you for walking around with me, sal.” you flopped back down on the bed with a small as sal took a seat next to you, resting a hand on your knee and gently rubbed your skin under her calloused hand.

salvatrices’ mind wandered to the necklace and book that rest in her leather hip pouch. she tapped your knee to get your attention, doing so successfully, you sat up with a content groan leaving your lips as you felt sleepy from the warm meal you just finished.

“i have something…for you, amorino..” she spoke which made you tilt your head in a slight confusion as you wondered what she had gotten you. maybe a flower or dessert from the restaurant, that would be nice to eat next to the fireplace. looking over at sal with a soft smile, you watched as she slowly pulled out the wrapped up vintage choker placed atop the first edition book that you saw earlier when out on the town.

“sal…tesoro. you shouldnt have…salvatrice, they were so expensive, you didnt have to…” you words were caught up in your throat as you swallowed your tears to the best of your ability. salvatrice held out the presents for you, softly you took the presents from her hands and placed them on your lap, gently opening up the brown wrapping around the necklace.

the firelight bounced off the onyx that was sewn into the velvet band; silver filaments bands surrounded the emerald cut jewel. you gently lifted it up to your eye level and got a good look at it in the soft lighting. before you could say anything to sal, she took it from your hands and moved it down towards your neck and gently clasped around your neck.

“i saw you eyeing it up in the antique store. you deserve it, amorino. my darling deserves all great things…”, salvatrice pressed kisses along the back of your neck, slowly getting to every inch of your skin,”the beautiful necklace that compliments their skin as it drapes oh so nicely along their collarbones.”

you muffled the low sounds leaving your lips as sal held your body close to hers, ravaging your neck, the soft skin of yours.

“s-sal, tesoro…” hot breaths left your lips as your lover showered your skin with hot kisses.

nikto- sodegarami:

a sodegarami was a weapon used in feudal japan. its like a two pronged ‘trident’ with spikes all over the prongs and two blades sticking out of the top of the polearm. nikto stole the polearm off of a body when he walked onto the battlefield after escaping his confinements; also ripping apart the owners clothes and using strips of cloth to hide the scars that decorated his face. he had been kidnapped by the enemy when he accidentally wandered across them burning a body; he was taken, tortured and held prisoner by the scum, when kortac and you heard about what was going on at the compound where they were also holding other people.

nikto always took showers in the dead of night, never wanting anyone to see how disfigured his features had gotten from the torture he endured from the man who kidnapped him. hearing the shuffle of bags and items that were set up inside yalls tent had woken you up to see niktos figure, hunched over and digging through his bag.

“nikto? darling, what are you looking for so late at night?” a yawn escaped your lips as you rubbed the sleep from your eyes, sitting up you pushed the plush quilt off your person as nikto turned his back to you.

“иди спать, не обращай на меня внимания, Пчелка(go back to sleep, dont mind me, little bee).” his voice growled out into the darkness of the tent and night. you made sure to keep your eyes still and trained onto one place, so nikto wouldnt have to keep stressing about you accidentally looking in his direction.

“nikto, obviously its important. let me help, Родна́я(dear). please?” softly your voice reached his stressed out mind. after unrobing to take his nightly shower, when he returned to yalls tent and he was putting on clean clothes. when he reached for his mask that he placed in the pocket of his bag so as not to lose it or get it dirty, he couldnt find it which sent adrenaline down his spine.

if it was the cloth he made from ripped up clothing, he wouldnt had cared so much, but after meeting you and getting to know you, you made him a new cloth mask which was one whole piece in one color. it meant so much to him after yall got to together, that someone would do such a sweet thing for him like this, it was his most cherished item ever.

“i..i lost the mask. i took it o-off to go shower, but when i g-got back, i cant find it. i-i swear i didnt me-mean to lose it-” carefully you reached out to hold his hand in order comfort him. you werent angry or upset, you understand that he didnt do it on purpose.

“its okay, nikto. sometimes we just misplace things, its not a big deal. how about you look on the left side and i'll look on the right and see if we can find it in our things.” you whispered to him, bringing up his hand up to your lips and pressing a soft kiss to the back of his hand. he turned every so slightly which allowed you to see his side profile.

you made out the shape of his nose and lips, those lips that you love to kiss or run your fingers across. nikto nodded at your suggestion and moved to the left and started shifting through yalls bags, looking for any sign of his beloved mask.

you made your way to the right doing the same, shuffling and sifting through everything in the bags. you could hear niktos grunts of frustration and huffing as he looked in one place then put everything back and moved onto the next place. soon under his towel, you found his mask folded up neatly where he left upon some of your clothes.

“Родна́я, i found it over here.” i held it out to nikto with my back to him, so he could allow himself to turn around. you heard a small ‘whump’ from nikto dropping the pile of the clothes he was looking through. his hand brushed against your skin, gently and took the cloth that was neatly folded in your hand.

you could hear the shuffling as nikto secured his face with the cloth again. then before you could say something or turn back around, nikto wrapped himself around you and buried his face in the crook of your neck. despite his nose and lips being covered you feel nikto move his in such a way that let you feel the kisses through the cloth.

“thank you, Пчелка. i-i dont know what i would d-do with you..” his voice was low and tired, returning the kiss on his cloth covered cheek, you moved you both to yalls palette on the forest floor. nikto curled his body around yours as yall got comfortable and drifted to sleep that night.

thank yall for so much love on the first part, im sorry this one took so long to get out as i go to night school 7 days a week, but yay i got this done

[gabzilla-z]

ok quick thoughts, spoilers behind the cut.

Pros:

Halle. HALLE. H a l l e. Her voice, her face, her mannerisms. They took what made Ariel special in the animated movie and built on it and she was the perfect person to pull it off.

Her beauty was distracting.

So glad they finally got a singer for a live action, I couldn’t take another B&B autotuned disaster.

Made me want to get to the nearest rock and play mermaid ngl.

I had my doubts with Jonah but he did a great job with Eric, played the shy, kinda awkward potato prince charming to perfection. Loved that they expanded his backstory and his interest in adventure and the sea. Also A+ for the movie knowing he had a white shirt on while surrounded by water and using every chance it had to drench him.

Eric still being caring and worried about Ariel even under Ursula’s spell? 10/10 no notes.

He came to chew bubblegum and be dreamy and he was all out of bubblegum.

Halle and Jonah’s chemistry was insane, I need them to do ten movies making eyes at each other.

Seriously the movie could have been 2 hours of them interacting in that library and it would have been money well spent.

or just two hours of them being cute smol and tol in a boat idc

TRUE LOVE INDEED

Can’t wait for this movie to be out in D+ so I can reblog all the gifs.

Part of Your World and all reprises were ofc gorgeous. Vanessa’s Trick is haunting and exactly what one would want for a siren song. For the First Time is gorgeous and underrated, felt very Broadway-esque. Eric’s song was corny but in a good way.

The rest of the songs are adequate but are not as good as the original ones.

Gotta said, song aside, the Kiss the Girl scene was more endearing in this version. When she helps him figure out her name?

Melissa was good as Ursula and made the character her own, though I think she was not as scary as she could have been. Better than I expected, though.

The actress that plays Vanessa knew she had 5 minutes to make an impression and used them to the fullest. Delightful.

Cons:

The CGI felt unfinished and so did the color grading/lighting. I edited all the movie images in this post (just played with the saturation and the contrast) and I’m mediocre at best. HIRE TUMBLR EDITORS, DISNEY.

Halle deserved to wear more outfits, I can't believe Disney missed an opportunity to sell more dolls. Would have given her a dress for each day on land and the water dress. Mouse, I thought you liked money.

we could have had it all

Wanted more of her sisters tbh. And less Triton, Javier phoned it in imo. I know Triton and Ariel’s relationship is an important part of the original movie but idk if it was his half assed acting or me wanting more of the sisters, but I wasn’t moved.

Flounder's weird character design was saved by his stellar voice actor and Sebastian grew on me, he was hilarious. Scuttlefina was tolerable but gosh she’s always playing the same character, stop casting her in everything.

Less I say about Scuttlebutt the better. Kids are probably gonna love it, though.

The ending was kinda weird? It felt rushed and the battle with Ursula was disappointing. Which is a surprise because the OTHER stormy scene at night was wonderfully done. 

Up to Ursula taking Ariel back to the ocean it felt really cohesive but the second Triton appears to save her it was like they were trying to speed things up and it got... weird.

Didn’t mind Ariel being the one that killed Ursula, after everything she put her through.

Cannot believe the movie robbed us of Jonah screaming “I lost her once, I’m not gonna lose her again!”

Overall it was a well paced (up to the finale), entertaining, charming movie. Despite its faults, the only Disney live action I want to rewatch (outside MAYBE Cinderella).

8/10 Justice for the foam dress.