#although currently I'm on the other plotline

[writingsfromspace]

Starting to feel like I'm getting back into a writing rhythm (have written two out of the last three days)

[faulty-writes]

HIII!!! My dear, favorite tenya writter.

Could i please request some headcanons of iida with a very poor childhood friend? Like, they met when reader was trying to trade a penny for his whole aah school backpack or something 😭

(By the way, just so you know, i am currently reading every single tenya fanfic you have ever wrote)

((i am so normal about him))

Awe, I'm so glad I can be your favorite Tenya writer. I would love to write another AU one shot featuring him, but I can't think of any solid plotlines. Eventually, I'll get there. But this request sounds adorable. I hope I did it justice.

Tenya took pride in the Iida family name, but he was never one to flaunt his high status until he met you. The ragged clothes you wore caught his attention, as did the way you were staring at him and your attempted trade-off of his backpack and supplies for one yen coin.

"It's quite alright. If I wish to be like my elder brother, I will provide aid to you." His family legacy of heroes was something he took seriously, and as such, he helped provide financial aid for your school supplies, clothing, and on occasion meals.

You tried to repay him for the good deeds he provided by giving him handwritten cards, self-made crafts, and subtle signs of affection. He seemed appreciative of them, but you vowed to repay him more properly one day.

"You are capable of achieving whatever you desire. However, if you need assistance, I would be honored to aid you." Being low-class, you didn't have a lot of dreams because reality was nothing but a nightmare. But Tenya always encouraged you to pursue your ambitions, even if the two of you were small compared to this big world.

While Tenya wasn't popular, he had more friends than you and it was assumed this was because of his high-class status. Still, he always invited you to do activities with his other friends and made sure that they weren't rude to you. If by chance they were, he'd speak up and request they apologize for mistreating you.

"It's quite fine if you require some time to properly express how you feel." On occasion, Tenya would find you isolating yourself and recognized this typically happened when you were emotionally overwhelmed, and he tried to offer comfort and support. Most of the problems were related to your social status and poor home life.

You were grateful that you created memories with Tenya. Although being children, it was hard to tell what the future brought. Still, the days you spent eating lunch together, playing in the sand, and being pushed on the swing were something you knew you would treasure for the rest of your life.

[tossawary]

Thinking about how hard the "Star Wars" prequel films dropped the ball in terms of female representation. Like, looking back on the original trilogy, it kind of sucks that the only main female character is Leia, and while Leia does kick ass and I love her, it also sucks that the last film 1) put her in that bikini and 2) abruptly made her Luke's twin but didn't let her have a lightsaber or use a lot of the cool space magic powers.

When you only have one female character, she often ends up bearing the unintended burden of a lot of hopes and expectations of fans. She's just one person. She's never going to be compelling to everyone.

And then you have the prequels and you'd hope that they'd do a little better with male-female ratios this time? With experience? But the only main female character is Padmé, who's pretty fun, but also ends up 1) desperately in love with a murderer, 2) spending most of the last movie barefoot and pregnant, staring out a window, because they cut the "founding of the Rebellion" plotline, and 3) dying not because she was Force-choked but because she has "lost the will to live" because "fuck them kids", I guess.

(I know there's theories about Sidious siphoning her life force or what the fuck ever, but I don't caaaaare, because I hate the idea that Sidious has that kind of reach for no fucking reason and also it's not actually IN the movies! It doesn't count!)

The Nubian handmaidens are a cool concept, but they're all background characters, who barely get named. We don't get to actually see them and Padmé do a lot of on-screen work together. She doesn't get to confide in them regarding her love or her fears. She speaks to her guard captain more onscreen than her handmaidens.

And while we do see female members of the Jedi Order in the films, they're ALSO all background characters, like Jocasta Nu and Aayla Secura and Yaddle. As opposed to more active Jedi characters like Qui-Gon Jinn or Mace Windu. Like, damn, the prequels are the perfect opportunity to introduce and show off even a female Jedi supporting character, and they just did not do that. That sucks. The careless absence of women in this universe sucks. The careless absence of women as significant characters in these films sucks.

Every other piece of additional material for "Star Wars" has to move to patch this. The "Jedi Apprentice" and "Jedi Quest" novels strive to add and name female agemates and mentors. "The Clone Wars" television shows add Ahsoka as a protagonist and Ventress as a villain and a whole bunch of new female characters.

Yes, given that these are prequels, there are some characters who are not really realistically changeable. (Yes, trans people exist, obviously, that would be very cool; not sure that "Star Wars" was going to go for that back in 1999.) Obi-Wan. Anakin. Yoda. The Emperor. Unnamed Sad Mother of Luke and Leia. You need those ones. EVERYTHING ELSE was up for whatever they wanted to do.

So, anyway, I'm currently thinking about characters you could potentially genderbend without affecting the story pretty much at all. Qui-Gon, obviously. Mace Windu, as well. I think fandom would then hate both of these characters even more then, unfortunately, because fandom is what it is. Whatever legitimate criticisms levied at both of these imperfect characters would have increased tenfold, I am certain of it. But we're talking about the prequels's badly executed stories, not fandom's misogyny. (And misogynoir. A black woman as the leader of the Jedi Order when it was destroyed by the Sith? Fandom would have been even more of a fucking nightmare.) It would suck that they both die, but the prequels are a tragedy anyway, so, eh.

Bail's role in the prequels could have potentially been played by Breha Organa instead. Although, I don't know how well the Extended Universe novels had extended Leia's backstory by that point in time, maybe Bail had already been established as the Senator and Breha as Queen, so maybe not. At the very least, you could have had Mon Mothma in there doing his superspy stuff with him or something. Padmé's guard captain could have been a woman.

Both Darth Maul and Count Dooku could have been women. Yes, they're both evil, and yes, they both die, so it's not perfect on the representation front. But it's something, especially if you balance that out with some good characters, and look, I can't coherently complete this thought, I keep getting distracted by the mental image of hot evil Sith ladies. I think a female Count Dooku would have kicked ass, honestly, as much as I enjoy Christopher Lee in the role.

My main goal with this thought exercise is purely upping the number of plot-relevant female characters, pointing out that it wouldn't have been hard to add more women without changing all that much if anyone involved had actually bothered to think about that.

The original trilogy only mentioned "The Clone Wars", so the clone army didn't all need to be copies of Jango Fett. There could have potentially been a half-dozen genetic donors, with the Kaminoans creating different clone soldiers for different purposes. Some of them could have been clones of women. (I hold the unpleasant headcanon that the clone soldiers are all sterile (or functionally sterile, incompatible with unmodified humans) anyway, because the Kaminoans don't want clients to be able to "steal" their work.) And the clones are actually a fairly minor role in the films themselves, admittedly, not given any more development than any of the droids (it's the show that does the work), but again, it's still something more.

[starrysilvalley]

Time for the secondary protagonist of this tale, Emmet! He may have a familiar face— if only he had the same understanding of himself. He occupies more of a Virgil/mentor archetype, and within the Pokémon games universe he would be the closest to a Professor role.

To emphasize again, this project takes place in distant future of the Pokémon in-game universe. The plotlines of previous games are all considered canon up until Pokémon Scarlet and Violet. Anything past that is considered non-canon within the context of Spectrum. Emmet’s place in particular was based on the context of PLA and my own interpretations/theories on the subject of the twins when playing it (mostly answering questions like “where is Emmet”, “is he in present-day Unova or another time/place entirely”, “what happened to cause the separation”, etc.)

✨⭐️✨

Emmet is an amnesiac and fugitive against the New Unova League, as well as a surrogate father to Una. Despite being a verrry blunt and open book, Emmet remains a bit of a mystery. His earliest memory is waking up in the custody of the Pokémon League with nothing but his ratty coat and hat that just so happened to have his name stitched inside. Interregators told him he was found with illegal possessions (what type of possessions, he still doesn't know) and had been conspiring to eliminate the Champion. It was only through an intervention that he was able to escape with a mysterious little girl in tow. To this day, he still has no idea where he came from before his captivity or if he has any roots somewhere in New Unova. Although there will always remain the desire to know his true self, under the current circumstances, Emmet is focused more on his found family in Una and his business partner Fajra.

Due to his experiences, Emmet has a tendency to be more reserved… at least, sometimes. He is more mischievous than he first appears and typically uses this to his advantage when faced with more sketchy characters. He is very observant, but learned that his commentary can get him into trouble. It also may just be that he has become more restrained with his trickster side in order to show a good example to the young rascal in his charge. If he wants her to follow his safety guidelines, he should probably learn to follow them himself, right?

Emmet currently only has one Pokémon— a Neo Variant Liepard. If he had any other Pokémon prior to his amnesia, he has no way of knowing where they are or what they were. He acquired Liepard during his incarceration, but he’s never spoken on the specifics of how he acquired her. Regardless, their experiences together led to a strong comradery between them. Liepard is almost always out of her pokéball and flanking his side. For whatever reason, Emmet never pursued acquiring more Pokémon and seems to avoid Pokémon battles altogether. He’s never made it clear why this is the case. However, on the rare occasion where he and Liepard do battle, they are notoriously ruthless and almost perfectly in-sync. At the very least, he has shown to have a strong knowledge of battling, even if he doesn't seek it out.

I currently do not have as many sketches of Emmet as I do Una since I'm building Una from the ground u, and I struggle to find a design/style I like for him. This sketch of the pair and their Pokémon is one of my favorites.

My one other drawing I liked was an even chibi-er version of him (I don't usually draw in chibi style, but its proven to be the easiest to use), including some character notes from the time.

I've gone back and forth on a LOT of his character since I wanted to have his character explore a twist in the themes originally given to him by the creators. I know there are theories that Emmet is meant to embody truth while his brother embodies ideals, so its been an interesting challenge to work with this character in the dystopian context where truth is oppressed and often requires characters to abandon honesty. Its also difficult because Emmet is known for his optimism and I don't want to take that from him, even in a dystopian context. I believe his upbeat/mischievous nature helps him stand out from his brother, and quite frankly, I think even dystopian worlds could use some hope. I'm just more use to writing Ingo characters rather than Emmets. I'm hoping I can do this little guy justice :’)

[quasiquack666]

My Gay Agenda aside, it honestly feels really late for Gestella to appear as a love interest for Kayden?

She only first appeared in Chapter 294, which seems like the middle of the comic. And the writers didn't even add backstory for Gestella and Kayden (like they did for Kayden & Kartein or Kayden & Pluton). They clearly don't know anything about each other.

(More detailed spoilers under the break. Screen readers stop now)

There's no way Gestella would believe how sappy those letters were if she knew Kayden, nor would Kayden have been so distrustful of her with Jiwoo if he knew that she had a decent personality (similar to his understanding that neither Kartein or Pluton would likely hurt Jiwoo, which is how he led Kartein to Jiwoo's house and only fought Pluton for jabbing at his ego rather than solely because he discovered their location).

Developing a relationship for KayStella from square one in the middle of the comic sounds like a clusterfuck waiting to fail.

Especially when the whole current basis of their relationship is them being pissed off at each other based on misunderstandings.

The forced romance only feels more jarring when Kartein and Kayden had the perfect romantic setup in contrast. They had a clear background from how they talked to each other, they knew how to get on each other's nerves, they could trust each other (in a bare sense but still), and Kartein was introduced in Chapter 136 which gives readers plenty of time to get to know him. Kartein has several major development arcs since his introduction and only became closer to Kayden. Kartein is a well-developed character whose relationship to Kayden never felt very forced or contrived solely for a romance plot. Kartein is actually a character by himself before he would be romantically inclined.

Therefore, the writers knew how to set up a character to have long-term development alongside Kayden while also getting development by themselves. So if anything, Gestella should have been the one introduced early on so we could get to know her.

I'm just pointing out that it's a mistake logistically for her to be introduced so late, compounded with having no shared background to Kayden. Their relationship will almost certainly be inferior to one that is well-developed over the majority of the comic versus halfway through.

Because personally, I adore Gestella, stupid plotline aside. So the way the writers throw both her and Kayden under the bus for the forced romance plot really pisses me off on so many levels. The plot feels utterly disrespectful to their development. It makes Gestella yet another forced female love interest (which sucks even worse when the only main female characters are made solely for the males). Then randomly shoots a romance plot at Kayden even though he's been fine this whole time as just a cat dad to Jiwoo.

Again, Gay Agenda aside, even my Het Agenda is ruined by this. How am I supposed to ship their canon selves on such a shit foundation? (Although my headcanon ideas for them are still raging; I'm too much of a simp for them separately to not pair them together. Fuck)

Meanwhile, Gay Agenda at full rainbow power, Kartein and Kayden is obviously the queer romance that we will never get in canon. They were the perfect setup and have been since their first chapters. This forced heteronormative nonsense is why queer pairings are the majority of fandom ships, let's not lie.

(Shoutout to @heartrenderscove . Our convos make me realize all this shit)

[janamelie]

Rocky Horror Stage Show Review

As a glance at my blog will tell you, I rarely post about “Rocky Horror” as it’s not my main fandom, but I’ve loved it for 30 years and have just attended a stage show for the first time since the 90s so am writing down my thoughts for my own benefit and sharing here.

I was aware that the current production is somewhat different both from the film and the stage show I saw back in 1994 starring Jonathon Morris.  (Yes, I am a Gen Xer and was heartened to see how many others in my age bracket attended, many in costume.)

If anyone’s curious, this was the earlier Friday performance at Wolverhampton Grand Theatre in the UK.

I’ll get the negative part out of the way first and it’s nothing to do with the actual show.  Unfortunately there was someone near me who had an ongoing argument with someone who was with her throughout the show and at times it interfered with my enjoyment.  (It definitely wasn’t audience participation; I know the difference.)

She carried on doing it after the interval despite being spoken to by staff.  During Columbia’s emotional “I loved you!” speech, “Toucha-toucha-touch me” and other quieter parts it spoiled it a bit for me.  After the show ended a bloke in full Frank drag told her off publicly for “being an arsehole” and I'm afraid to say she deserved it.  If you’re not interested in a show, stay at home and don’t ruin it for the rest of us.

Science Fiction, Double Feature

I love this song and the Usherette’s actress performed it well, getting into the spirit of things straight away with stockings and wiggles.

Dammit Janet

Another really catchy song and the actors handled it well.  They both have strong singing voices which is good as I have seen a Brad who wasn’t that great in that respect.

The Narrator’s first appearance was amusing as he ad-libbed in response to the standard insults thrown at Brad and Janet: “They can hear you, you know!” (The actors were currently frozen onstage so he could do his bit and he joked they weren’t allowed to move or there would be dire punishments.)

The Narrator was a highlight throughout - it really does improve on the film version when the pompous character is actually in on the joke and interacting.

Over At The Frankenstein Place

Well performed again and I enjoyed the audience holding up coloured lights to accompany it.  Riff-Raff’s first appearance got so much applause he just started singing right over it.

The majority of the audience seemed to have seen the show before or at least the film although the Narrator did jokily “spoil” them with his line “Stranger than a sex-crazed transvestite from outer space - whoops, spoilers!”

A word on the audience callbacks which have of course been a staple since the 70s.  There was a reasonable amount but not too much.  I have seen shows which were closer to the film and people would yell after almost every line which got a bit much so this was just about right.

Our hapless couple enter the Castle and are immediately surrounded by Riff Raff, Magenta and Columbia who play it more as pantomime villains than in the film but this doesn’t bother me as theatre doesn’t have close-ups and needs to play to the gallery.  The Eddie plotline is hinted at and then of course it’s…

The Time Warp

What can I say about this one?  Always a showstopper and had everyone on their feet.  Brilliant.  Columbia got to do her tap solo which was a highlight as it is in the film.  And we’ve barely recovered from that before…

Sweet Transvestite

Woohoo.  Frank’s actor was great, as charismatic and confident as you need to be for that part.  He embraced the sensual nature of the role and had physical interactions with practically everyone, even Dr Scott and in the encore, the Narrator by ripping aside his trousers to reveal stockings and suspenders.

The lab scene whizzes by and soon it’s Rocky’s entrance with…

The Sword Of Damocles

Thoughts on Rocky’s characterisation - of course in the film they went for a non-actor who was well-muscled as required for the role and had him only speak when singing.  I actually think Peter Hinwood’s performance works really well as the whole point of Rocky is that he’s just been born and everything is new to him.

But in the stage show Rocky speaks and is more openly rebellious, even telling Frank to piss off twice.  This tends to mean casting a professional actor who isn’t as muscular as Frank’s dialogue implies but that wasn’t an issue here - the actor had both acting chops and muscles.  The relationship between Rocky and Frank is a lot closer to equal.

Rocky compliments Frank on his “good job with the bodywork” and we go into…

I Can Make You A Man

I’m going to be honest, this is probably my least favourite “RH” song which isn’t to say I don’t like it.  I just don’t share Frank’s muscle fetish.  But it was well staged and leads into one of my favourites…

Whatever Happened To Saturday Night?

This song rocks hard and Eddie’s actor did it justice.  Not sure it got quite as much applause as it deserved but I get it - we’ve just met him, he’s taken the focus off Frank and is about to be unceremoniously killed for that.  I adore the way the film stages the song with all the Transylvanians rocking out too.

So Frank chases Eddie offstage with a chainsaw and returns to reprise “I Can Make You A Man”.  I’ll add here that as far as I’m concerned, no production which includes this blatantly queer, unashamedly lustful song is in danger of becoming too “mainstream”.  Frank was all over Rocky, complete with gyrating.  Even this audience which were certainly the most tolerant in that respect that I’ve been in still reacted to the stronger parts.  Mostly with approval though.

I realise that things have changed since the 90s in that respect and as an elder queer myself, it warms my heart.  I do think it’s partly that the plot of “Rocky Horror” is better known now.  And thank God for that as I don’t need to be in another audience who apparently thought they’d come to watch “The Sound Of Music” and nearly walked out.

After the interval, it’s directly into the bedroom seduction scenes which are staged a bit differently from the film and earlier stage shows - we go straight into (strongly) implied oral sex with first Janet and then Brad, both of whom only then find out that it’s Frank rather than their fiance / fiancee respectively.  After which both agree to more sex without too much persuasion needed, as long as Frank doesn’t tell anyone.  

All I’m going to say is that “Rocky Horror” has always been problematic.  It’s basically an X-rated panto and taking it seriously is kind of missing the point.  I enjoy analyses of it though.  But when you’re watching it live the music tends to override all that as it’s such a good time.

The production manages to make the Frank / Brad sex scene even more gay by having Riff Raff pop up next to them. Nothing happens as he’s just there to tell Frank that Rocky’s loose but for a second you think there’ll be a m/m/m threesome.  Which would of course fit the undercurrent in both show and film that Riff Raff at least is attracted to Frank if maybe not vice versa.

I hope I’m remembering this next part in sequence.  Janet enters the lab feeling guilty and upset and meets Rocky who’s hiding from Frank (the aforementioned woman who wouldn’t shut up meant I missed part of the dialogue and it differs from the film.  Grrr).

I think Rocky says something to raise Janet’s suspicions so she uses the monitor to search the Castle’s rooms and gets an eyeful of Frank and Brad getting it on.  I’ve never been clear as to whether her hypocritical shock is due to the fact that Brad’s having gay sex whereas she had straight sex but at least it leads to another of my faves…

Touch-a touch-a touch me

I love this in the film and it was well done here.  My only quibble is that Magenta and Columbia were up in the rafters and just provided a chorus rather than the full-on sapphic frisson which Patricia Quinn and Little Nell treat us to in the film.  But I guess it would be hard to make that work on stage.

Exit Janet and Rocky, enter Brad who also uses the monitor and sees his beloved with Rocky.  I’m not sure how much emotional sense it makes for him to then launch into…

Once In A While

But I don’t care because this was actually a highlight which it’s never been before in stage productions I’ve seen.  I understand it being cut from the film as it would have killed the momentum stone dead.

But in this frantically paced stage production it’s a welcome quiet moment and as I said before, Brad’s actor had the voice to pull it off without the Narrator needing to take the piss out of him to keep audience interest.  

Oddly though, Janet reappears in the rafters and sings along with the latter part of the song which makes no sense since she’s supposed to be shagging Rocky right now.  I suppose it’s a way to indicate she’s having second thoughts about wrecking her relationship which fits how the show leaves Janet and Brad, hinting they’ll reconcile.

Followed by Frank whipping Riff Raff (offstage of course, they don’t want to cause actual bodily harm to an actor) for letting Rocky escape and wailing about Rocky’s betrayal as he finds it out via that extremely convenient plot device, the monitor.  Via which they also notice Dr Scott’s arrival.

Once Scott’s inside, Rocky and Janet reappear and we get that hilarious repeated “Janet!”  “Dr Scott!” etc exchange which was milked for maximum humour, ending in Rocky telling Frank to piss off which was a bit jarring for me being such a film aficionado.  Although Hinwood’s glare does kind of imply that.

Dr Scott brings up Eddie and rather than the film’s “unknowing cannibalism” scene we just get the actors passing a joint of meat around and pantomiming shock which is fine by me as that bit is gross, let’s face it.  

It’s like that meme - I can excuse murder, very dubious consent and incest but I draw the line at cannibalism.  Nah, just kidding, it doesn’t bother me that much.

Eddie’s Teddy

A nice ensemble number which I don’t have much to say about.  Fine.

Planet Schmanet Janet

Good song which delivers the necessary exposition regarding the Floor Show, followed by Columbia snapping and confronting Frank about how he uses people but instead of getting frozen as in the film she’s hit with drugged gas and has a lengthy trip played for laughs.

Not sure about this change as surely it’s enough to have her frozen like the others to explain her continued participation.  It changes the situation from Columbia voluntarily staying in the Castle even though she knows Frank doesn’t love her to her actively deciding to leave until she’s hit with the gas.  Not keen.

Having frozen everyone except Magenta and Riff Raff, Frank reacts to her question about when they’ll return to Transylvania by saying their loyalty will be rewarded and this is interestingly different from the film.  He says “You will discover that when the mood takes me, I can be quite generous” and pulls at her legs (she’s seated) in a way which makes it blindingly obvious he means sexually.

Her retort “I ask for nothing, Master” happens as Riff Raff chases Frank away from her in an obvious nod to their incestuous relationship (yes, we do get the “My most beautiful sister” line).  I really didn’t get the sense that Magenta has any sexual interest in Frank even in this production let alone in the film.  Riff Raff, on the other hand, is jealous as hell of him but also wants him.  (Although I was seated to the far side so may have missed some nuances.)

So, to the Floor Show.  “Rose Tint My World” is such a banger.  It was beautifully staged with stunning costumes and lighting as Columbia, Rocky, Brad and finally Janet pop through the curtains in their basques, stockings and suspenders in rapid succession for their solo verses and then Frank makes his starring entrance for “Don’t Dream It, Be It” and “Wild And Untamed Thing”.  Love it.

Then of course Riff Raff and Magenta crash the party and Frank pleads for his life with “I’m Going Home” which was sung and performed beautifully and again, got so much applause that the actors had to talk over it.   

Frank takes the time during it to have affectionate moments with all four of his most recent paramours which is a nice touch, especially as he seems genuinely upset when Columbia tries to shield him from Riff Raff and is mercilessly shot dead.  For a moment at least, then self-preservation takes over.  But in vain, and he and Rocky also die.  I’m sentimental (sorry Magenta, don’t kill me) so I like the confirmation that Rocky clearly did feel something for Frank even if he was scared of him.

Riff Raff orders Dr Scott to leave but not Brad and Janet.  Clearly an oversight somewhere as the Castle takes off into space in an impressive special effects explosion and there they still are to perform “Super Heroes”.  They first walk away from each other then change their minds, hug and walk off together, hinting all is not lost for their relationship.

The sweetly melancholy tone continues for the “Science Fiction, Double Feature” reprise.  But like the film, they’re nice enough to leave us on a higher note, in this instance by bringing the whole cast back onstage for an encore of the “Time Warp” (this time including Frank which I love) and part of “Sweet Transvestite”.

Excellent decision both to leave us on a musically upbeat note and to (sort of) fix the ending which does kind of fit the “Kill your gays” trope.  I know that’s because the show is a celebration of old sci-fi films which usually did kill anyone even remotely like Frank but these days, who cares how awful he is if considered realistically?  He’s not real, he’s literally an alien and there is no reason he has to die except for drama, so bring him back at the end.  He’s too good to waste.

So that’s it.  I had a great time and as always loved the inclusive atmosphere.

[minecraftrelatedrandomness]

Pirates SMP: POVs by Accessibility

Note that unofficial archiving is generally frowned upon by the creators and unofficially archived VODs are generally distributed in private.

POVs by relative VOD availability

Mostly/Completely officially archived: Acho, Aimsey, Guqqie, Jojo, Martyn, Olive, Owen, Ros, Sausage, Scar, Seapeekay, Will

Partially officially archived with (MOSTLY) COMPLETE unofficial archiving: Bek, Krow, Kyle, Michela, Scott

Partially officially archived with PARTIAL unofficial archiving: Cleo, Shep

Not officially archived with (MOSTLY) COMPLETE unofficial archiving: Apo, Eloise, Eret, Graecie, Oli, Puffy, Reddoons, Shelby, Sniff, Tubbo, Water

Edit: Note that the above information may be subjective to change if/when more VODs, official or unofficial, are uncovered or re-uploaded.

POVs by summarizing adaptations (as of time of writing)

Has adapted or is currently adapting the SMP into episode format: Apo, Martyn, Owen, Ros

Has plans to adapt the SMP into episode format but is currently on the back-burner: Krow, Water, Will

Has plans to adapt the SMP into movie/supercut format but is currently on the back-burner: Acho

Has adapted Day 1 or earliest stream(s) only: Graecie, Sausage, Scott, Seapeekay

Everyone else not mentioned has NO current plans to adapt the SMP into a more accessible format

A brief rant on archiving

Unfortunately, the Pirates SMP runs into the recurring problem that most other livestreamed SMPs face – many of the VODs have been lost to time due to a lack of timely archiving. Some of the creators have either archived their VODs or adapted their POVs into episodes, but the fact remains that many of the POVs have been lost to time, which may affect how you may catch up on the series.

Another unfortunate aspect is incomplete fan archiving. While BlueberryTV started to make a Pirates episodic recap, it has only archived up to the start of Day 3 (Aug 1) so far out of 134 days of the SMP's run-time. Meanwhile, although the Wiki has the overarching plotline summarized across server event pages, last I checked, it hasn't been able to adequately keep up with individual character lore.

TL;DR: The Pirates SMP is not an easily accessible series due to incomplete and inconsistent archiving and adaptation across the 30 POVs. I've spent so long working on the recaps to make it more accessible for newcomers, but even then, I'm painfully aware that us archivists are not infallible either and wish we could have done more.

Additional posts

Overview

POV recommendations based on character lore intensity

Plotline-by-plotline recap

General SMP resources

[general-klumpp]

DuckTales THEORY: 'New Scroogea' Cliffhanger (S4+)

TLDR:

S3 cliffhanger: discovery of unseen continent, New Scroogea

Whether inhabited by Scrooge wannabees, clones or stans, Webby WILL play a part to bring them together, Donald tagalong

Ma Beagle and Rockerduck are almost certainly the main villains

Ending might seem a bit lackluster and must pave way to S5

If they went this far, S5 would have May and June as the main protagonists while tackling the multiverse.

Hello Duckblr! Although I'm currently working on my own take on a hypothetical Season 4 of DuckTales, I just found out a strange tidbit of information from the artbook. Combine that with already existing speculation online and I have a nearly perfect picture.

Courtesy of violetganache42, That's right. Had DuckTales not been canceled, the cliffhanger would be the discovery of an unseen continent known as New Scroogea. It's been speculated that this could be the location the cast could have originally been planned to fall into.

The question is...what is New Scroogea?? Some believe it's a place where everyone dresses up or acts like Scrooge. Some believe Scrooge will colonise the place. Some believe it's a place where its inhabitants idolise Scrooge. Some even believe it was the result of F.O.W.L. dumping treasures, which could substantiate the defeat of Bradford.

Since it's a common word now that S4 was planned to be Webby's season, she could fit the plot with a few of these examples with New Scroogea inhabitants in mind. Scrooge wannabees, or dopplegangers? Webby can help them while solving an internal conflict within Scrooge, seeing that she, May, and June represent his troublesome side. Scrooge stans? Webby can teach them the proper way to follow in his footsteps. Scrooge colonises? Webby gets Hortense for a word or two about ethics. Donald is 100% our adult protagonist because he has May and June.

While we now understand how Webby will fit as the main protagonist, what about the villains? A better question is, what two villains know about owning a new land, and who may be of interest in taking over a new continent? That's right, Ma Beagle and Rockerduck! Ma Beagle makes perfect sense as there was a comic, 'His Majesty, McDuck' which involved the Beagle Boys trying to take over Killmotor Hill which was declared as a separate country from America. Also, Beagleburg and the fact that she never got her season. Rockerduck because we need to see Rockerduck Estates and there was this gift made for John Hodgman depicting him as a lawyer, perfect to defend Ma Beagle. Other than that...maybe there'd even be a New Scroogean gone rogue...

So...how would the New Scroogea plotline end? I'll be brutally honest, (it's not sour grapes because I found out about this after I started DuckTales MMM) I don't really like it. Why? Because it would destroy all this foreshadowing made earlier teasing us about more important ideas. Poe De Spell? Waddlemeyer? Negaduck? What about characters who need to find a new purpose or peace such as Magica, Manny, Gizmoduck, etc? Unless New Scroogea was kinda affected by the Ramrod or something, I believe these ideas would have to be pushed aside for a fifth season, giving it a lackluster or predictable ending where the New Scroogeans just laugh or swim in gold or something... Considering they had at least 87 more ideas in mind, a fifth season would tackle May and June's pursuit of a social network while going into the multiverse plot teased by the Darkwing characters.

So...yeah...what do y'all think?

[esotericas-sims]

The Great Heir Race of 1910

With a new decade on the horizon and the three eldest Spectres now out of the house, it seems the time has come to select who to follow for the next chunk of our story. I have elected to leave Lydie & Celestin out due to their ages, so it's a choice between Jules, Florence, and Olive.

Their respective introduction posts can be found here, here, and here, all of which contain some hints at what their stories will hold. Below the cut I will include a list of potential content warnings for each story, so if you don't mind spoilers, vote with those in mind!

(If you're really early to this post and I've forgotten to link the bios, they can all be found here.)

Also, to note: all of these sims will remain somewhat relevant to the story, and won't disappear entirely. But whoever we select will be the primary focus. Also also, if there aren't a ton of votes (understandable, I'm not a very large blog,) I may make the choice myself.

Now, onto the voting!

Spoilers below!

Potential content warnings

These are subject to change, as I don't fully script out my Sims' stories before they happen, so please don't, be upset if these themes don't show up, or if other ones do.

Jules: World War I, PTSD & general war trauma, potential anger, violence, or physical harm to self or loved ones as a result of said trauma. Will also definitely include a great deal of alcohol in general, although I don't currently plan to depict alcoholism in this plotline.

Florence: US Imperialism, the profound racism of early anthropology, poor archaeological practices of many varieties, especially: white people thinking they have a right to anything they "find," selling artifacts to collectors instead of putting them in museums, and possible destruction of artifacts. Also, power imbalance in romantic relationships, possibly organized crime of some sort.

Olive: Alcoholism, toxic relationships, potential mistreatment of young female celebrities, emotional abuse, emotional manipulation, definitely some toxic parent-child relationships down the line. Generally, the trials and tribulations of the spotlight. Also, specifically, deliberately making use of her albinisim to appear white, & generally colorism / racism in the film industry.

[accirax]

Disventure Camp All Stars Power Ranking (Round 13)

After last week's results, I feel like I could finally be getting into the rhythm of these post merge episodes. However, I'm not sure if this episode's elimination will wind up being something my rankings like...

In case you haven't seen my previous power rankings ( 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 ), the Power Ranking Format is essentially a way of ranking how well each player is doing in the game. So, in essence, this is a long form way of predicting who I think will be eliminated from the competition in the next episode. There will be spoilers for last week's episode (obviously) and its power ranking, so make sure to read that first if you don't want to be spoiled on how I ranked our last boot. If you want more clarification on the rules, that first post will help you out as well. Furthermore, I'm going to be spoiling the preview for next episode, so if you want to go in TOTALLY blind, save this for later. Let's go!

Recap - Yul's Elimination

Current Score: 58 acquired/82 total

(Points versus @venus-is-thinking: 9 acquired/9 total)

I FINALLY DID IT!!! I FINALLY GOT A PERFECT ELIMINATION SCORE!!!! It's about damn time. I was so right to not gaslight myself into thinking that Yul wasn't about to be eliminated anymore.

I think that Yul had essentially worn out his welcome in this season. He worked really well at the beginning, in definite part to being part of the plotline with Emily which pushed extra bullying onto him. But, once that ended, he wound up in a neutral/power position again, which made him way less likeable. Grett was obviously going to get her revenge on Yul at some point during the season, and while I initially thought it might be via sabotaging him in the finale, I think it was a good choice to get him out sooner rather than later. Not to mention, having the villains overpower the heroes three times in a row might have been stale in the short term.

Trailer Analysis

Oh, is that Riya/Ally thing actually going to be relevant? I thought I was overstating things again. I guess now that Riya has been... sort of? separated from her number one, she might need to look into other alliance options to get her further. Ally doesn't have anyone else, and Riya already laid the seeds for a teamup with her, so it makes sense!

Alec and Connor are on speaking terms again (for now). And fishing terms.

This is probably either Aiden struggling to keep the secret of Alec and Riya's kiss in, or him regretting telling it to everyone after he does.

Grett and Gabby are continuing to hang out, and hopefully getting along.

Alec is losing it. I wonder if he sees the burgeoning alliance between Riya and Ally, and is trying to stop it.

Oh, I see! The challenge will be about retrieving a flag from a hidden location behind super dangerous obstacles like sharks and bears!

Yeah, and they have phones that can GPS lead them to the flag, and maybe provide some puzzles along the way!

... Or it's a TikTok challenge? I guess? Seems like the challenge might be more about doing viral dances in dangerous locations, although I have no idea what the flag means in that case. Maybe you can only get the flag once you do all the dances? Or, could it be an immunity totem?

I would imagine that Aiden would have somewhat of an advantage here, given his TikToker boyfriend. Grett also knows a lot about social media, but I don't get the sense that she does many challenges like this. Yul would've known...

Relevantly, this seems like a team challenge, which will probably grant double immunity. Pairs who appear together frequently in the trailer seem to be Alec and Connor, Grett and Gabby, Jake and Ally, and Riya and Aiden. If Riya and Aiden are together, then the pairs are definitely staff-assigned.

"... The things we do for money."

Nothing too serious here, as I imagine this is just about Alec being embarrassed to do viral dances. It did get a laugh out of me, though.

Power Ranking

#1: Ally

From what it looks like, Ally has wound up in a really nice position in the game. (Such is the way of the gamer girl.) She has a working relationship with all of the heroes, and after last episode, might be considered Connor's number one. I suspect that this episode will bring Ally and Jake closer together as opposed to further apart. And, it looks like Riya might be trying to hit her up as well. I don't see any particular reasons why Grett, Gabby, or even Alec would be particularly interested in getting her out.

So... truly, which people would be the ones to want to cast their votes on Ally? Or, even further, who's the one pitching her name in the first place? Pair this with the fact that she's still the only female hero (although that status is more dubious given Grett and Gabby's recent actions) and I would be pretty surprised if Ally went home this episode. It's true that she doesn't really have any plot lines going on right now, but I find it more likely that she's about to be swept up into a new one than that they've left her alone for this long just stalling out before randomly pulling together an elimination.

#2: Grett

and

#3: Gabby

I truly did not know which one of these two to place first, because I find it pretty unlikely that either of them will be eliminated, for a couple of reasons. First of all, they could totally win dual immunity here. Like I said earlier, Grett does have extensive experience with social media, and, just on the surface, Grett and Gabby are the only pair that don't currently have some level of beef with each other. If the moral of the episode is "people who are actually friends work better together," then I could totally see Grett and Gabby winning by virtue of actually being a functional pair.

Secondly-- and this is ultimately the reason why I placed Grett slightly above Gabby-- I don't think they would want to eliminate Grett or Gabby immediately after they eliminated Yul. I felt the same about Jake and Aiden last episode following the Tom boot. I think the writers will want Grett and Gabby to have at least one episode of peace post-Yul before either of them are eliminated. I believe it more strongly for Grett, just because I think it would be awkward for Grett to finally triumph over Yul and then be tossed straight into the Loser's Motel with him again just one episode later. But, in either case, they need some room to breathe.

From a gameplay perspective, they're also in somewhat of a swing position together. To the extent that the heroes versus villains rivalry is still a thing (which, granted, I think that phase will be fading out), Alec and Riya will want to win them back, while the heroes would want to solidly win them over. In either case, no one wants them out.

And, finally, back to meta stuff, I think either of them could be plausible and deserving finalists. I'm sure there are plenty of reasons to justify either of them going home, but I find the reasons to keep them here more compelling.

#4: Connor

Well. Connor goes here because he is still, hypothetically, the villains' number one target. So, in the theoretical case that this vote is still a plain and simple heroes versus villains vote-- I guess one that ends in a tiebreaker?-- Connor could at least be eligible for elimination, assuming he loses the challenge. The villains could also try to entice... I don't know, Aiden over to their side? Yeah, I don't find this argument particularly strong either. Unlike Connor's superpower.

Another big reason why I don't think Connor will be eliminated yet is what I said before: that the narrative will want him to triumph over Riya this time after losing twice before. Or, at the very least, they'd want him to go out in a more dramatic fashion than "I guess Grett and Gabby are totally working with the villains again, along with random person C."

He also still hasn't done anything that critical since returning to the game, in the sense that he hasn't done anything particularly Connor-centric. He did definitely unite the heroes in the Tom boot episode, but Ashley, Lake, James, or even Hunter probably could have done the same. Why bring back Connor specifically? Well, to expand upon his relationships with Riya and Alec. He's definitely going to interact with Alec this episode, but talking with Riya seems like it may not yet be in the cards. For those reasons, I think Connor will survive this episode... even if his ass is NOT winning this challenge.

#5: Jake

RIP Jake, I think this is the lowest I've put him in a while. Although, I still don't have him that close to the bottom, obviously. He's still my current winner pick of the season.

Actually, let me take a quick moment to diverge and share a theory I've been cooking on, as inspired by Venus putting some full-game theories at the end of her last rankings. I think that, to commemorate this large-cast series of All Stars, the finale will have each finalist choose not one, but two assistants. Assuming Jake is there, I think he'll pick Ashley first, and be convinced to take Tom second (given how established it is that Miriam has had medical issues). And, assuming Jake wins, I think he'll split the shiny new prize of three million dollars between the three people on the winning team. After all, the show has already made a point to tell us that Ashley will use the money to rebuild her farm, and that Tom will fund schools in his neighborhood. If either of those virtuous causes went unfunded, it'd be pretty sad.

Anyways, that's the main endgame I'm imagining now, but I obviously don't want to be such a slave to it that I fully disregard the possibility that Jake could be eliminated prior to the finale. It is definitely possible he could be nearing the end of his run soon. He's come a long way in his character journey, so if he got eliminated now, we could be satisfied that he truly grew from this experience.

However, I don't really know who would be voting for him. The villains don't have the power to just executively eliminate whoever they want anymore, so they would have to crowdfund additional votes to (presumably) get up to a dominant five. I think the most plausible scenario is Alec/Riya/Gabby/Grett/Ally votes for Jake, in the case that Ally and Jake grow to hate each other even more over the course of this challenge.

Overall, though, I don't really see why the folks in-game would want to eliminate Jake instead of Aiden. Riya still hates Aiden way more, and that'll probably only increase if Aiden shares the secret of Alec and Riya's kiss. I'll elaborate more on my thoughts on that in Aiden's section, though, so just know that that logic partially contributes to Jake winding up at #5.

#6: Riya

Despite putting Riya this low on the list, I think she'd have to fuck up pretty badly over the course of this episode to be the one getting the axe. She does potentially have negative momentum going for her, though, with the truth bomb that Aiden's about to drop. If that causes Connor to truly, fully lose faith in Riya, it could lead him to strongly push getting Riya out now.

The problem is, I don't know who the fifth is. Possibly Alec, if he were trying to escape his shame, but that seems kinda counterintuitive if he likes her and likes spending time with her. Grett probably has an overall favorable view of Riya, given how she helped her with the Yul situation. I guess the fifth would be Gabby, then-- maybe if Riya goes on to insult Gabby and/or Grett and/or Ellie (somehow?), Gabby would feel okay turning on her? Seems a tad random, though.

A big part of the reason why I put Riya this low is because, as I said in Connor's part, I'm expecting Riya to be eliminated before Connor, so I kinda feel obligated to put her below him. But things are happening with Riya this episode, which could plausibly lead to her elimination. I get the sense that she'll be sticking around for a bit longer yet, but we'll see. Maybe she'll be victimized by a kiss of death.

#7: Aiden

For all those who read my initial thoughts on last episode, you know how confused I was by how revealing the secret of Alec and Riya's kiss was meant to benefit Aiden in any way beyond "get revenge on Riya by blowing up her relationships." It really seems like it could backfire, and, backfire it may.

I could see it as sort of a cautionary tale. While Riya robbing Rosa and sharing James' private messages didn't directly get Riya eliminated, it did make her worse, and ruined the end of the game for her. If Aiden starts exhibiting similar behavior-- being cruel to others on a personal level to "help his game" by really stirring up drama-- I could see it (and an elimination along with it) being a wake-up call and moment of growth for him.

Granted, it's not a moment of growth that's been particularly foreshadowed throughout the season. We saw how strongly the writers chose to demonstrate Disventure Camp worsening Ellie before that was the reason why she was eliminated. If Aiden was eliminated for similar reasons, especially after starting on the same tribe as Ellie, I would imagine that would have been more strongly highlighted.

I also don't really know who the fifth vote would be, again. I could see all the (former?) villains being on board if they want to protect Riya, but... would Connor really be so mad as to fully flip on Aiden? Jake and Aiden seem to be friends now, so I don't think it'd be him. I guess that leaves Ally, if she felt more aligned to Riya now than she does to Aiden? Props to Riya's acting skills if true.

It definitely feels like Aiden's story will be coming to an end soon, but I'm not sure if the cards are in place just yet. Still, I wouldn't be too surprised if this is Aiden's last dance.

#8: Alec

Okay, this time I think it might finally be Alec's time to go. As you can probably tell, I've been operating under the assumption that we won't be heading into a tiebreaker again, and therefore have been trying to figure out how various people would be able to manage receiving five votes this episode. This is not a problem for Alec, because I can genuinely imagine everyone voting for him.

Jake, Aiden, and Ally would certainly jump at the chance to get out a villain, especially their crafty leader who's won a bazillion immunities. Connor would have that rationale as well, even furthered by the fact that Alec has betrayed him twice now (voting him out and kissing his "it's complicated"). It'd be pretty easy to see how Alec is dragging Riya's game down now with his awkward behavior, and given how quick she was to cut Connor for that conduct before, I'm sure she could be ruthless again. As for Grett and Gabby... well.

Here's another theory of mine: with the potential death of the heroes vs villains alliances, I think we're about to see the dawn of the classic women's alliance. Riya already approached Ally over the fact that they were both women who needed to look out for each other. She also inspired Grett to break up with Yul by telling her that she was a strong, independent woman. I think a secret women's alliance could start as early as this episode, and once Jake, Aiden, and Connor have been lulled into voting out their fourth man, it'll already be too late, and the women will have the majority. If this is the case, don't be surprised to see Aiden at the bottom of my next power ranking.

(By the way, I do have issues with the concept of a "women's alliance" in shows like Survivor, because it's unfair how people are always worried about the idea of a women's alliance when no one would call what would be a "men's alliance" by that name. However, the "women's alliance" is a classic trope in Survivor, so I could totally see them wanting to bring that in for DCAS.)

Alec was at his peak, and it seems like he may now be set up to fall. He no longer has numbers nor power. He doesn't even have his backstory to share anymore! All he has is his personal skills and challenge prowess to save him... but god knows Alec and Connor are not winning the fucking TikTok challenge. If this is your final episode, Alec, know it was a pleasure.

And, that's it! Who would have thought that I'd name drop Ellie twice in this power ranking...? Despite the uncertain state of the game, I feel fairly confident about my women's alliance idea. Then again, I've felt that way about other stuff before, and been totally wrong. Should I really have such confidence that I'll get a perfect score for two weeks in a row?

I can't believe that the next episode is only three days away. See you then!

[theminecraftbee]

Hey!! I was wondering, what exactly IS Empires SMP? I keep seeing it everywhere and I have NO IDEA what it is and I saw it on ur account thought I should ask??? Sorry if this is rude I just wanna know what everyone on my dash is talking about

anon i want you to know this made me laugh but i promise i'm not making fun of you, i'm imagining being in the hermitcraft fandom and seeing everyone's current insane rift theories and quietly going "what the fuck" because you have never heard of empires smp before and realizing that the venn diagram of hermitcraft fans and empires fans is perhaps, just barely, not actually a circle,

anyway.

empires smp is a largely youtube series featuring twelve thirteen content creators! the basic premise is that each of them is the ruler of an "empire", which will have unique exports that only they are supposed to trade. they then trade and roleplay together - empires smp is explicitly a roleplay server, with all of the creators explicitly playing characters in the world.

there have been two seasons. the first season ended last year shortly after hc8 ended, and featured a few main plotlines that carry into this season - namely, that it ended in sudden catastrophe, and pearl's general existence. the overarching plot of season one can largely be considered three things: the general feuds between the various empires (especially jimmy's codlands and fwhip's grimlands, along with their respective allies), the demon xonorth and the rise of the corruption after the ender dragon's death, and the crown of all emperors plotline.

this season is currently ongoing! it began about three months ago (i think i'm bad at time). there is yet to be a MAJOR overarching plotline this season, although the rift thing appears to be being touched by everyone, so it may well be a major plot. however, the seeds of various major plotlines are being sewed - pearl/the goddess, sausage's backstory, jimmy versus the world, oli's general existence, false's general existence, and many of pixlriffs's dm exploits all could lead into what the overall story ends up being!

a number of the creators are hermit friends or hermits themselves (which is why so many hermitcraft fans are also empires fans) - most notably to a hermitcraft fan, we have hermit friend pixlriffs (voice of the recap), hermits falsesymmetry and geminitay, and if you're a life series/grian fan, jimmy solidaritygaming, lizzie ldshadowlady, scott smajor, and joel smallishbeans may be familiar to you. shubble, katherine, joey graceffa, fwhip, oli orionsound, and mythicalsausage are all on the server. additionally, pearlescentmoon is no longer on the smp, but was in season one, and is frequently referenced now in season two in several of the other people's lore. she's a goddess now. she's cool.

i hope this is a helpful answer anon!

[danjaley]

The French Revolution from children's perspective - Some historical background

My current plotline is rather strictly dictated by economic considerations: I'm trying to show the French Revolution with the limited cast of a Sims-story. So it was only logic to take the children's perspective, who are kept away from the mass-riots. Now I don't actually know about direct sources about the French Revolution from children's perspective. It would be a great research-topic, but I don't speak enough French for that.

However, I had some great inspo in my PhD project. These are some more works of Christoph von Schmid, whose story The Mute Child I adapted as an autumn-special 2022. He was a catholic priest in rural Germany during the 1790s and when he started writing for children from 1810 onwards, he made the fate of French refugee children one of his main subjects.

I actually researched about that topic before: German priests played a central role in helping French refugees. Lots of them were clergy themselves, and then the village priest was often the only person who spoke any French at all. I do know sources from the clergy's perspective, and some of them sounded really traumatizing.

Schmid's stories are all centred around religion and morality. And he knows better than to confront his young audience with anything downright cruel. In the end, the lost child is always reunited with their family, thanks to their faith and good deeds. On one level, the Revolution provided a perfect background for this, because in Biedermeier times it was much rarer for upper- and middle-class children to get lost. On another level - although Schmid rubs this in comparatively little - there's also the subtle message that trying to abolish monarchy will have dire consequences.

(Title-images digitized by the Bavarian State Library: 1, 2)

In Der Kanarienvogel (The Canary Bird) a family gets separated on their flight. Mother and son end up in Switzerland, father and daughter in Germany, each supposing the other group to be dead. They find each other again because the son teaches the father's self-composed gospel song to a canary bird. The bird gets stolen and sold in Germany where the father and daughter recognize the song.

Ludwig der kleine Auswanderer (Louis the Little Emigrant) is set in a German village where a group of French aristocrats passes through in great haste. They accidentally leave little Louis behind, who gets adopted by a family and tutored by the village-priest. Some villagers are rather xenophobic, and there's a legal squabble over some gold-coins sewn into Louis' jacket. Later he makes himself useful, as war breaks out and there's an injured French soldier to be nursed. Louis, being French can translate for him. In the end Louis' mother finds him again, through hearing about the lawsuit. Everyone gets rewarded or punished for their behaviour.

I also drew some inspiration from Die Himbeeren (The Raspberries), but this doesn't have a good picture to show and may be the most spoilery of the three plots...

* * *

A completely different point is that in my B.A. years I worked for a Jewish museum and helped with research about Jewish children fleeing to Britain. From the British perspective, the Revolution- and Napoleonic wars are often compared to the Second World War, one of the points being the arrival of refugees. Although these were different historical situations, I wanted to show some of the trauma that came with public order turning against one, losing ones home and making a fresh start in a foreign country in wartime. I think that might have been similar to what the French children felt.

[cloud-somersault]

Your fic "The constellations within us" was so perfect, and exactly what I wanted and needed for since I joined the fandom. I wish I had eloquent words but english is not my native language, and I'm struggling with the translator now, but this fic is probably one of the most high quality ones I’ve ever read so i've finally worked up the energy to leave a solid comment.

I love your prose, the descriptions and internal monologues are so immersive and emotional that I need to reread over and over again. The worldbuilding scratches my brain real nice, all contribute to make a really cohesive image that canon still doesn't quite achieve in my opinion. And you did a good job capturing the mood and humor of the show with every little detail but at the same time you’ve added a whole new dimension to the plot and characters. Keep cooking, I beg you but also have mercy on me. I imagine you saying something like: I am going to create an situation that is so emotionally fucked up before writing any chapter.

I really love the way shadowpeach interact in this story. From trying to kill each other to sharing the food. It's kinda crazy that people genuinely thought shadowpeach was a one sided crush until s4.

To be honest, I'm not a fan how the fandom treats shadowpeach but you have successfully kept the characterization of mystical monkeys to perfection while setting up a realistic shadowpeach plotline. I read this quote in another fic but it applies very well to them: "They really embody the pain/comfort thing, except that comfort is understanding and trust."

Sun Wukong is canonically a latent danger that not even the most powerful entities in celestial realm or underworld could subdue him, but he has no self preservation skills whatsoever. He's a bleeding heart. He's the one who sacrifices everything possible to protect the few he loves because, god, he has lost so much. The immortality he achieved with peaches, wine, pills, among many other things, may have made him indestructible on the outside, but inside they made him emotionally vulnerable, lonely and afraid of attachment. This monkey can fit so much trauma and he's holding a lot close to his chest even from the audience. The fandom villainizes him unfairly, but sometimes they also put him on some kind of pedestal, which is also incorrect.

The same happens with Macaque. He's the walking mystery who may or may not realize how much of a prickly capricious hypocrite he is in some things. For example, he feels an apparent resentment at being relegated to being a mere shadow of someone much brighter, but at the same time he seems unwilling to step out of that role. In s1 and s3, he clings so much to the past that he pushes Wukong, the only constant of him in a modern world after his resurrection, to be the version he remembered. Where Wukong advanced, Macaque retreated.

Nonetheless, the motives behind every action of his are more nuanced than him just being evil. He did once he was free from LBD's control was immediately start helping everyone even until s4, as if it were a tacit way of apologizing because he was just trapped under incredibly shitty circumstances, let's remember the part where LBD said she'd kill him if he didn't do what she wanted. Although I don't think he didn’t have fun knocking everyone around a bit (to his ex-husband especially).

It's little funny because I consider that before the perigranation trip, Wukong is a self-proclaimed hero with destructive or villainous tendencies (depending on which side you look at, celestial Realm definitely sees it that way still) while in the current timeline, Macaque is a self-proclaimed villain with heroic tendencies.

I wont keep rambling, but thank you again for pouring your time and talent into this beautifully painful read. I can't wait to chew on the next chapter like a hungry dog ​​with a good steak and also I'll be keeping an eye out for your future works, in case you continue writing about queer monkeys with emotional constipation, but if not, it's such a treat to read what you've already gifted us. Have a good week! and sorry for any translation errors again.

AAAAAH i'm sorry i've taken so long to respond to this. this ask is SO SWEET and i loved just rereading it over and over to suck all the serotonin out of it. Filled me with gleee!!

Thank you so much for taking the time to translate and write out this message! There weren't any errors, it's okay! I'm so glad you liked my story sm and read it and ENJOYED IT YAAAAAY!!!

honestly, I only cackle evilly before posting chapters sometimes. Only sometimes, when I remember. I usually cackle while writing, but then, by the time I've posted it, I've read it so much, it doesn't have that emotional impact on me anymore LOL

I think that's a great way to sum up shadowpeach! It's about understanding and trust. No matter what, that trust has to be rebuilt, and that process is so painful and hard and time-consuming that...it takes such a great amount of effort on both their parts. It's the choice to persevere in spite of that amount of hardship that makes them beautiful, even if what they create together isn't inherently beautiful. What's beautiful is that, in spite of tragedy, these two monkeys want to be together in whatever way they can.

I think with any fandom, people are going to misinterpret characters. I've kind of gotten used to it, but there's definitely a lot of missed nuance and character depth that the fandom chooses to not see or doesn't except. Maybe they like to keep it surface level, but i think critically thinking about the plot and characters is where you can find depth or make depth of your own that's not present in the show.

Wukong is either a trickster villain or a precious soul who has done no wrong and needs to be protected. Macaque is usually a mustache-twirling villain or a sweet, bashful monkey who was just pretending all that time! and has never done anything bad.

A lot of the fandom sees things in a clear black and white way, which is dangerous for several reasons, but it means that their interpretations lack that depth or understanding that people crave. Because no one is black and white. The world doesn't work that way, so it's kind of worrying that they think that's...normal. It's not normal. I see it as a lack of life experience and maturity, but I also don't know these people. Maybe they like their fictional worlds to be black and white, I dunno.

Aaaanyway, you're not the first person to speak about this topic with shadowpeach and how, through constellations, they found some understanding or were pleased with how shadowpeach interacted. and to that I say, thanks! I just like some realism and three dimensional...ness to my characters, please and thanks. Don't even get me started on MK.

But wow! Yes! I'm so honored you'll keep reading whatever I write next. I have no fucking clue what I'm doing, and I'm just smashing my dolls together, but I'm happy to have you here in Constellations AU land! Welcome! Enjoy your stay 💕

[bookworm-center]

Dirtyhands and the Bloodbender: Chapter I- The Girl In His Suit

Author's Note: I started this before season 2 came out, so don't include that plotline into this at all. Season 1 sort of happens, at least the aspects that don't mess with the book events, and what is currently happening in this fic is a short little arc before the SoC storyline. Yes, I will include the ever present flashbacks and different POVs (but mostly Kaz and Y/n) and yes, Y/n has her own backstory. I may have traumatized her too much, but we're rolling with it.

Previous part below:

Dirtyhands and the Bloodbender

Kaz Brekker: The Girl In His Suit

I have begun to let my guard down. Too often, in my opinion. Perhaps that is how one of Rollins' Dime Lions had cornered me and Jesper in an alleyway.

Jesper had his hands resting on his guns but I wanted to know what Rollins wanted.

"What business?" I ask. It was a common response in the Barrel, not as a greeting but straight to the point.

"Rollins wants you to back off of his turf." The Dime Lion was walking forward, and nearly had our backs on the wall. I started to panic, internally, of course. I didn't have a plan to get out of this, but I couldn't let Jesper know that.

"I have never set foot in Rollins turf." I attempt to buy my time, although all three of us know that is a lie.

Two gunshots go off, one bullet hitting the man in the head and the other planted in his chest. He drops to the ground, unmoving, eyes still widened.

I glance at Jesper. His guns weren't smoking. "Wasn't me, boss." He raises his hands in surrender.

Someone jumps from the roof, their footsteps echoing softly on the ground, standing in shadow. I almost assume it's Inej when I remember that she was off doing a job.

"Do you always have to get yourselves in trouble when I'm not around?" The person asks.

Jesper grins and I thought he was about to sweep them off their feet. "Y/n/n!"

"Hey Jes." They step out of the shadows. It's my second in command, Y/n L/n. Her h/c hair was swirled into a hat and her eyes were shining the way they always did after a job. She wore a black suit, nearly the same as my own. Wait. That is one of my suits.

I raise an eyebrow, hoping it doesn't reveal whatever I feel when I look at her, "You took one of my suits? Again?"

She glances down at her outfit, as if she could forget what she wore and shrugged, evidently not regretting it. "Nina had to tailor me to look like you. For a job." She didn't look very different, though Nina may have already tailored her back.

What? No one had told me of that. "Were they fooled?"

Before Y/n can answer, Jesper does it for her. "Of course they were fooled, Y/n/n's the best actress in the Slat. Except for myself and Nina, I suppose."

"Speaking of acting, Pekka Rollins stopped by the Crow Club earlier. He was acting all nice and wanted to speak to you. I told him to talk to me instead. That asshole was looking at me like I'm eye candy in front of the whole Crow Club. But he did tell me what he wanted." Y/n adjusted the suit cuff, barely glancing at me while she spoke. She said it casually, like it happened everyday, but I could tell she knew that this must be important.

"Really? What did he want?" I didn't want my tone to change, but it had, all the niceties gone. He was looking at her like what?

Y/n looks around. "Not here." She sets off back to the Slat.

[slugtranslation-hypmic]

What are your predictions on which team will go against with which team in 3rd DRB? (while assuming we would get some new info during the first round of battle) ( ˊ̱˂˃ˋ̱ )

Jesus, idk. Let me see.

Based on how the last DRB was conducted, while every team is given a compelling reason to win in the drama tracks leading up to the DRB so that their victory will have a satisfying narrative payoff, it seems like one team may have a stronger narrative focus overall. We saw that last time with Fling Posse having higher stakes than the rest of the cast, with one of the characters' lives being threatened. (Naturally, while Ramuda living or dying didn't have anything to do with the DRB itself, dropping information that continually increased the tension in the several-year leadup prior to voting almost certainly influenced many fans to vote a certain way, especially those without prior strong feelings towards any particular team.) Similarly, the previous winning team in the second DRB (Matenrou) was given a less DRB-centric focus in their narrative, probably in an effort to reduce the chances of two successive MTR victories in a row and the backlash that would invariably cause from non-MTR fans. Neither Doppo nor Hifumi's character development had any sort of emotional tie to the DRB, and Jakurai's was loosely connected at best, with his emotional stake in the DRB being dependent on him giving it his best effort, not winning outright or even beating Hitoya.

So with that in mind, I assume FP will take more of a narrative back seat and will probably be paired up against a weaker-performing team to give that team's sales a beast, and that team will likely be BAT or DH. I say weaker-performing in terms of sales, which is largely dependent on these two being newer teams. I think DH generally sells better (overall, not necessarily in DRB results) than BAT by stint of Sasara's popularity, so I see FP vs BAT being the most likely. In terms of the in-series reasoning behind this, because there always needs to be some beef, I'm going to assume it has to do with Ramuda working for Chuuouku and his involvement in ruining Kuukou and Ichirou's friendship in TDD. But to be frank, everyone in 1gumi has at least a somewhat valid reason to have beef with Ramuda, so this isn't set in stone.

In terms of who will likely take narrative preference, I think MTC makes the most sense in terms of its strong sales in Japan (esp. because many of its fans are adult women with salaries, as opposed to the stronger teen demographics in other division fan groups) and lead-up to a high-stake plotline. With the hinting of a future Nemu and Samatoki showdown, Juuto's beef with many of the current and ex-Chuuouku leaders, and Riou's plans to break his major out of prison, they seem like the most currently plot heavy of the bunch outside of FP. So I think we'll likely get a strong focus on them and, to help ensure a chance at a victory, pair them up against a lesser-performing team. This could either be BAT or DH, as I mentioned above, but DH makes the most sense (and also frees up BAT for FP) as there's a natural source of tension between Sasara and Samatoki. Likewise, both BB and MTR are unlikely to be chosen due to already featuring in prior line-ups.

This leaves BB and MTR against one another, which I also see as a very likely option considering they were pitted against one another in the Grasshopper arc post-first DRB which came out before DH and BAT officially joined Hypmic. I have a suspicion that MTR vs BB was originally planned (note that, in this same arc, FP and MTC were pitted together, and this gives the justification for why Juuto and Riou are wanting to/willing to fight Gentarou and Dice) and quietly left on the cutting room floor when the last two teams were added. With this set-up already in place, there's nothing stopping the writing team from using it now. Also, with BB's high sales in the last DRB, this is another way to curtail another MTR victory, although I think this is less of a priority for KR than a repeat FP victory as it'd inspire less fan backlash.

This is all speculation, so don't quote me if it turns out to be horribly wrong.

[roenters]

Thirteen reasons why is a cinematic masterpiece.

**SPOILERS BTW FOR THE ENDING OF THE SHOW AND STUFF SO BASICALLY IF YOU HAVEN'T WATCHED IT MAYBE DONT READ**

Thirteen reasons why is a show that knew exactly what it was doing. Sure, it might've taken me a couple years to get around to watching the last two episodes but I've crossed that line now and I think it's safe to say that I thoroughly love this show with my whole heart.

From the get to they do not shy away from harsh, cruel and upsetting topics that for many people: that is their life. The entire show is about all these devastating experiences and how the characters, how these kids/young adults will deal with the situation presented to them. They look at real responses, real issues. The events happen to the characters, the characters aren't just slotted in. There are real, damaging and lasting consequences. As we see in the finale, the horrific events of season one have continued to carry through the entire story. That central point of what started it all. And it was twisted into a good outcome.

The last episode contains Justin's death. I'll admit, I was having a full on breakdown. That shows you how well they get you emotionally connected to these characters. They make you feel as if they're real people because of how relatable they are and it's not the same sort of relatable as 'haha yeah they like the same things I do'. No. It's: they went through a severely traumatic thing and now they've got depression. They're currently dealing with events bigger than themselves and don't know how to cope. And the show explores that in a way that encapsulates the raw emotions people experience when these things happen. And yet, by the end, they'd managed to show the characters graduating. Living life. Surviving. And the end didn't leave you in tears. Instead you saw two friends connecting with each other again. Rekindling their love that had dimmed due to the events, unable to truly be free from the disasters that plagued their minds and emotions. They could just: be. With no worries that we're too big for them. Able to just be together.

It's unlike TV shows nowadays. There's nothing else really like it. Netflix did not cancel it after the first season (long live Dead Boy Detectives) and they most certainly didn't force the creators to shy away from the topics they wanted to involve. That's the nature of the show. It couldn't be done unless Netflix gave it the time and energy it deserved. The episodes are lengthy. The last episode is at least an hour and a half! But that's exactly the time it needed to take the audience through a fulfilling and satisfying ending. No stone unturned, no plotlines left unfinished. We don't see that a lot these days. They also didn't make it run on for too long - neatly wrapping it up and piecing their puzzle together until they had a full picture.

Additionally, I'd like to add a big part of the show is the amazing diversity they showcase and it is integral to how we percieve the characters. I'm not talking race, or sexuality, (although that is very diverse itself) I'm talking about the character's backgrounds. Some come from rich families, some come from poor families, some are close with their parents while others are pushed away and hurt by them. Things like a good security net and positive influences heavily impact a person and that is clearly shown in the show by making characters vastly different and using their backgrounds to show this. We also look at their own personal struggles and how they make characters individual, shaping them into who they are. How they find help, support or lackthereof and what they do as a result of that. It leaves us with a set of very well developed people who will each want to react differently to the situations presented in the show and many, many strong personalities. Each varying and unique.

I could not recommend this show enough. Of course, it's sad. That's because it's real and isn't scared of digging into the truth. But, at its core, you develop relationships to the characters on the screen, caring for them and relating as you watch them tackle the story one step at a time. They become a flurry of emotion and love and hate and actions and impulse and connections and thought and beliefs. They become people. And I think that is a very special thing.

(However, I will admit I didn't really like Ani in season three but- I digress.)