#and mostly between stuff happening at work...

[lotus--pond]

Isla headcanons!

she is just like. so good at giving cute lil nicknames. especially to her grandchildren. Veah gets all sorts of things like "littlest star" "baby bird" etc etc. a really cute one I had in mind for Dae was "Seastar" y'know because she's a fish and you know what I mean. and Cari gets all the sun themed nicknames, sunbeam, sunshine, etc etc

the pet names do not stop at the kids, literally everyone she meets, even if she doesn't have like a specific pet name for them or even if they're a stranger it is "sweetie" or "darling" or "love" like she just gives that energy

you know that thing where some parents will sometimes cut up fruit and give it to their kids as a gesture of affection? she does that a lot mostly with Rae. like if he's working on something or its been a particularly exhausting day she'll just cut up an orange and leave it at his desk whenever he has the time to eat it. She's making up for lost time.

speaking of time, she arrives early/exactly on time to every event. She's missed out on so many years and moments with her family that she wants to do everything she can to make up for it.

In the time between when she comes back til like last chronicle episode, Icarus's grave is never anything but spotless. The flowers planted around it are never wilted, the headstone is pristine. It's one of the only thing she can do for him now.

She makes an effort to get to know all of the residents of Lodestar Grove because in her words, family to Rae is family to her.

She loves doing hands on stuff. her house is one continuous diy project. The feeling of something tangible is also just helpful for reminding her that she's not in that damned tube anymore listening to stories, she's out and she's in this moment and this is all real.

her garden? immaculate. It's mostly comprised of flowers, each one representing someone she loves and occasionally she'll cut a bouquet of that flower and give it to that person. her and Athena can bond over this because I like thinking about them as a dynamic

Her and Soul are somehow even closer now. bonding over the whole "I was ripped away from my child for years because Fable fucked me over and now I'm back and oh my god my child is so traumatized what even happened while I was gone" best friends<3

[walnutcookie]

Since the craft siblings are enrichment for you do you have any tips for distracting them..

I DO!!!! heres my best attempt at explaining it

First of all, you HAVE to distract them using some sort of object. With distracting most other twisteds, its better to be in an open space, but with the crafts its impossible. objects that are too large or too small are risky; i reccomend something medium sized, of course this varies with each map and machine locations n stuff so just try to pick something decent. and keep a bit of a distance from the object so you dont get caught on edges

Important thing to note, if your team is inexperienced, tell them to be careful around you. tell them to avoid you like the plague actually because distracting these fellers requires you to hide for short periods of time and if anyone happens to stumble in during the short time youre hidden then they can get aggro and it can cause catastrophe </3

Another thing while on the topic of locations, id like to give some brief tips on actually BRINGING them to said location. i cannot tell you how many times ive died because i panicked while trying to move...

first of all, make sure you dont panic lol. Be cautious, if you can ask people to be careful while youre moving. Do NOT wander anywhere thats open or any rooms without objects to hide behind because the second you see their ability activate you need to make sure you duck behind something to avoid getting hit,, I suggest that ive youve been out in the open for over 7 seconds find some object to circle around so you can put them on cooldown again and they cant catch you off guard. Once you have a secure place try your best not to move any more than that because thats the riskiest part. dont go anywhere with machines either because no matter how low your stealth is or how high your teammates stealth is, if anyone is around they WILL steal aggro. CAREFULLY move spots after other machines are done if its absolutely necessary

Distracting only one craft sibling without other twisteds is pretty simple - just keep circling around your object, keep a good chunk of distance between you and the twisted. Try to sprint to the edges when you know their cooldown is about to run out, since the wider parts of the object are more vulnerable. of course you SHOULD be counting down their cooldown in your head but i dont like doing that (adhd brain) so its not like 100% necessary. u start to get into a rhythm of it, just watch for the animation. i also try to keep the same direction because if i switch constantly it throws me off, but sometimes you need to out of necessity. whatever works best for you

You can lose their aggro, either walk the way you came or walk fully around the object, whatevers faster or feels more comfortable for that cycle. a lot of this is just whatever works as youre distracting ngl, dont get comfortable because you may need to switch it up to avoid getting hit!

or

Distracting with multiple twisteds is a little more complicated. Mostly the same thing, but make sure you never stop moving (obviously lol). this one requires a little more patience and you DEFINITELY gotta be careful if your teammates are nearby. Circle around an object, for the non-craft twisteds youll just be distracting as normal.

I would suggest running fully around the object when the ranged cooldown goes off instead of turning back around because its less risky,

but you can do it if you have an area to make a wide turn like this: (bigger than this but my canvas was too small. More circular)

Make sure you have room wherever youre distracting, because regardless youre going to have to make big circles around your object

this would probably work with gigi?? ableit more difficult because of her speed. i couldnt tell you though not gonna lie i just let her take my items so i can treat her like a faster twisted

hope this helps!! Im not sure how well i explained it or if the diagrams are readable ^^"

[tiki-was-here]

Most Valuable Possession Chapter Three

Injured Athlete Homelander x GN Physical Therapist Reader

Word count: 1.4k

didnt have popeyes while writing this so idk how good this will be. also idgaf about continuity i dont remember if i ever said how long his treatment would take but u dont remember either so its fine. hes such a cutie in this gif i need to impregnate him

Ch 1 Ch 2

John had finally started listening. After weeks of tension and near shouting matches, and you throwing your clipboard down, telling him point-blank that he’d never throw a ball again if he didn’t start respecting your expertise.He stopped pushing past your assigned reps. Stopped making offhand comments about "knowing his own body better than any chart ever could." And with the discipline came something you weren’t expecting—camaraderie (i dead ass had to google this word omfg). Maybe even something warmer than that. His walls didn’t so much come down as they shifted, cracked slightly open to let you glimpse through them.

Conversations wandered more often, lingering long after the check-ups were done. He’d ask about your day, your interests, the things you liked to do outside the clinic. You weren’t sure if it was because he was bored or genuinely interested, but you found yourself answering. You told him about your favorite music, the book collecting dust on your nightstand, the diet you kept saying you’d start but never did. 

The more you talked, the more you saw the version of John he didn’t give to the public. Not the towering all-star, but someone older, a little tired, a little unsure. He confessed more than once that the thought of returning made his stomach twist into knots.

“Baseball was never supposed to be forever,” he told you one afternoon, rolling his shoulder carefully while you adjusted the weights. “No one wants to admit that. Especially not the fans. But when you hit your late thirties in this game, you can basically count the days before you get the boot”

“You could always transition to something else,” you offered lightly. “TV personalty. Sports coach. Hell, you could model. You’ve got the bone structure for it.”

He laughed, short and loud, head tipping back.

“Model, huh? Think I’ve still got it?”

You rolled your eyes, grinning. “You know you do.”

That was when his expression turned a little quieter.

“Truth is,” he said, watching you closely, “I don’t really need to work again. I was smart with my money. Got investments in all the right places. If I really wanted to, I could walk away tomorrow and live comfortably.”

You raised a brow. “Then what keeps you in it?”

He shrugged. “Habit, mostly. And maybe…” He tilted his head. “Maybe I was waiting to have someone to walk away with. Makes it easier when there’s something—or someone—waiting for you on the other side you know?”

His voice dropped just enough to change the air between you.

You didn’t quite know how to respond.

—

“You ever think about dating someone younger?” he asked a few sessions later, unprompted.

You blinked. “Uh. Like… how much younger?”

He gave a crooked smile. “I mean, old enough to be an adult. I’m not a creep. But younger. Different phase of life. That sort of thing.”

You grabbed a resistance band from the cabinet and handed it to him, hoping the motion would distract from your flushed face. “I think it depends on the people involved.”

He took it, pulling with practiced motion. “I think it’d be nice, actually. Someone younger. Less jaded. Still soft. Caring.”

You pretended not to notice how his eyes lingered on you as he said it.

As the weeks passed, oddities began piling up.

Patients canceling without notice. Long-time clients of yours suddenly ghosting mid-treatment. Some changed doctors entirely.

“I’ve had some family stuff come up,” one of them told you in a strained phone call, voice rushed and low. “I can’t keep coming in. Don’t worry about it, okay?”

The strange part wasn’t that people left. That happened. But the suddenness of it—the fact that no one said goodbye, the fact that these were people you thought you had a good relationship with.

Still, you tried to shake the unease. It wasn’t like you had any proof. And besides, Johnwas on the cusp of being released. Just a few more weeks, and he’d be officially cleared and you'll surely get an influx of high end clients if all continued to go well/

You told him as much one day, while updating his progress chart , expecting maybe some bravado or excitement.

Instead, he looked almost… sad.

“Well,” he said, fiddling with the hem of his shirt. “Guess that means we should celebrate.”

You raised an eyebrow. “Celebrate?”

“Yeah. Properly. Let me take you somewhere nice. I’m talking about the real deal. Five-star. Wine list you can’t pronounce. Something to thank you for all you've done for me. You deserve it after all.”

The way he said it, the way he looked up at you through his lashes with the slightest tilt of his head, made it so easy to say yes.

You gave yourself a once-over in the mirror before leaving, satisfied with how you'd pulled yourself together.When you arrived John was already there waiting in the lobby.  

 He straightened the moment he saw you, and for a heartbeat, all you could do was stare. He cleaned up well. A dark, tailored suit hugged his frame, and his hair was slicked back in that polished way he rarely bothered with when he met with you. He looked every inch the icon the world saw him as—but the way he looked at you made you feel like the only person in the room.

“You look…” he began, then stopped, his eyes trailing over you. “Stunning.”

You murmured a thank-you, letting him lead you into the restaurant. The table was private of course, tucked in a corner far from prying eyes. Everything about the place screamed luxury—from the velvet-lined chairs to the flickering candlelight reflected in polished silver.

And all the while, John couldn’t stop smiling.(breaking the immersion here but hes just so cute i hate him ugh)

He talked easily, charmingly, but beneath it all, there was a strange nervous energy you hadn’t seen in him before. A giddiness that felt almost… too much.

“I’ve been looking forward to this all week,” he admitted, swirling the wine in his glass. “Felt like I was counting the minutes.”

You smiled politely. “It’s a beautiful place. Good pick.”

He leaned forward slightly. “You deserve it. After everything.”

You tried to laugh it off. “I was just doing my job.”

“No,” he said, voice suddenly deeper. “It was more than that. You pushed me. Believed in me. No one’s done that in a long time.”

You gave a small, appreciative smile, suddenly finding it difficult to maintain eye contact. Something about his tone made your stomach twist.

The two of you talked about random things: food, travel, a few stories from your childhood. He ordered for both of you with ease, swirling his wine glass like he was born doing it. You tried to relax, even laughed at some of his jokes.

But as the courses came and went, so did the mood. He grew quieter, eyes fixed on you like he was studying something delicate.

“I’ve been thinking,” he said, setting his glass down carefully, deliberately. “I don’t know if I want to go back.”

“To baseball?”

He nodded. “I think I’ve done enough. My legacy’s solid. I could walk away right now and still be remembered.”

“That’s a big decision.”

He smiled. “Yeah. It’s not as scary anymore. Now that I finally have a reason.”

You smiled politely, unsure where this was going but letting him continue. 

His eyes locked with yours. “You.”

Your mouth was suddenly dry. “John—”

“Wait,” he said, holding up a hand. “Let me say it.”

He leaned forward, elbows on the table, his voice lower now.

“I’ve never had someone stick by me the way you have. Not just as my doctor, but emotionally. You listened,cared. You didn’t take my shit. You’re smart. Kind. Gorgeous.”

The world seemed to shrink around you. The sounds of the restaurant dulled, faded. 

“I’m serious,” he added, softer now. “I’d give it all up. Baseball. The spotlight. Everything. If it meant having someone like you.”

He reached across the table and gently touched your hand.

“So,” he said, eyes shining with a strange, almost childlike hope. “What do you think?”

You looked down at his hand, warm against yours.Looked at the man sitting across from you. The one who used to scare you. The one who still might. The one who now looked at you like you were the sun.

And you said—

[le-trash-prince]

You were right about blocking people.

I should also do that for the sake of my mental peace but I am so curious to see how they spin things because how the hell did we get to this conclusion??? Did we watch the same show??Did we see the rest of the three seconds of the scene, the ones that came after the screencaps??

Or am I being overly optimistic and biased and blindly believing what the characters are saying and doing??

This is the way LOL

Honestly I think people are just determined to read things a particular way and aren't willing to be graceful or patient with characters engaging in... normal human behavior. I also think there's a tendency in online spaces to want to polarize things into either "red flag or green flag." The Pit Babe official account made this post today that I thought was really interesting

"Because the flags in a relationship aren't just red or green." Like no one here is exhibiting "warning signs" of abusive behavior. They're just being people trying to figure things out, and that takes time. We don't need to be focused on assigning blame or labeling a relationship as toxic or unhealthy especially when it's between two consenting adults who have their own lives and aren't trying to control or hurt each other 😭 God forbid they have emotions about something and not be able to immediately have the "correct" response

And I think people also assume that being together for a year means they've been actively working on communication for that whole time? Like "yes it takes time but they've had time." But couples only learn how to work through their problems when problems actually come up. I think we can assume, based on the fact that the show skipped ahead this far, that there wasn't much going on offscreen between seasons, and things were easy sailing for both AlanJeff and CharlieBabe. But now there's things happening and actual conflict that they have to deal with.

I think it's much better to show this kind of development of their communication onscreen than to just have skipped it all between seasons like "well it's been a year and they're different people now."

Especially because Charlie and Babe did actually talk about stuff! I wonder if Charlie verbalizing to Jeff the way he and Babe solve their problems made him think "well maybe if this is bad advice for Jeff then it's bad advice for me."

Anyways yeah it is best to just block ppl rather than try and wait for them to interpret things the same way. My trip through the tag today was mostly blessedly fun, though I did block a couple extra people who just seem intent on interpreting things in bad faith.

I went off a bit, but I was personally really happy with CharlieBabe in this episode, and also I ate up the AlanJeff angst. I'm sure those two will figure it out soon, but Jeff has got to stop trying to pretend like he's fine all the time because the amount of smiling he was doing this season had me weirded out, like that's not my grumpy little man from season 1. If I was Alan I would absolutely need time to reprocess all of their recent interactions under the lens that Jeff wasn't being forthright about what he was going through.

I just think it's important to be able to witness couples having problems and going through the growing pains of learning how to be vulnerable with each other over and over and over again.

[dungeondevoured]

As Hogni spoke, Bell (pushing himself into more of a sitting position) pulled his arm, the one Heith had worked on, in close to himself. Protective. He'd always been careful with it, but usually he only slept with it pulled in tight to his chest - however, with the dull throbbing of once-pain still echoing like a ghost up and down the bone, he wanted it close, wanted it as far away from potential damage as possible.

Still though. He could feel the difference between before and after. Clenching and unclenching his fist, shifting his arm a bit from where he had it pressed - it already moved better. The... pull, from inside was gone. The sharp little tugs and sensations of overbending had vanished, replaced by an unpleasant stiffness that made him think more of a limb that hadn't been used in a long time, rather than one that had been broken several times over.

"Hate, is... too strong a word." Hate? Oh he didn't hate them. Not when he could see the whys, read the logic, understand why they might not have wanted to leave this decision to his say-so. "Definitely mad. Very mad. But..." He trailed off. He almost wanted to hate them, and it made him feel bad. There was some kind of emotion, some kind of feeling hissing in the back of his mind amid the sensation of betrayal, but he couldn't put a word to it.

'Make sure he gets food' had his stomach rolling though, and he couldn't keep himself from making a face.

"...'I'm not hungry' isn't an option, is it." Not when they were still on him about his weight. Though he appreciated it being his choice. Appreciated that they felt bad about what they'd done. Part of him really wanted something warm.... "Stew, maybe?" He asked, running the hand of his good arm up and down the one that had just been fixed. Self-soothing, telling himself his arm was okay.

It was easy to put stuff in stew that shouldn't be there, but... Bell didn't have a ton of options, and he didn't want to indulge the angry feeling bubbling in the back of his mind. Mostly though, he just really, really wanted something hot. Plus, Now he was aware of the potential of spiked food, he'd know to watch for it. Know to pay attention to off tastes, to things that tasted like there was something in it.

But he didn't blame them, exactly - of course they'd done it this way. Hadn't he told them no, every time? He would have kept telling them no, and none of them would have wanted to just leave him with a break (several breaks!) that had him holding his arm at a cant every day for the rest of his life. Heith alone would have driven herself up the wall knowing she could fix it with little effort.

"If there's a next time, though..." He let the thought hang in the air - though he was mad at them, he understood, able to grasp the whys of spiking his food rather than waiting for a yes he'd never give them. If it happened twice, though... A second time, and Bell imagined he'd just take off. Once was understandable. Two times? Twice meant he wasn't safe.

Maybe he'd go to the Other Manor if it happened a second time.

"I know...I'm sorry...y-you have every right to be," Hogni made sure Bell was aware that they knew his feelings were valid. Hedin was already rubbing Hogni's back, and once Welf was done releasing the straps, he joined in.

He knew he was one of the first to notice Bell's badly healed breaks--but even if he hadn't said anything, the rest would've noticed eventually. They were smart. Lili was extremely observant, too. Heith would've definitely noticed, even if he stayed quiet. It was an inevitability that he had to work with.

"We were...prepared for Master Bell to hate us..." Lili spoke up, finding that her legs were far too weak to try to stand at the moment.

"Hogni," Heith spoke directly to the elf, "take him back to his bedroom, make sure he gets food--"

"Um--!!" Harumime was struggling to her feet. "Whatever he eats should be his choice! E-especially after...what we had to resort to..." It should be the first step for regaining his trust. He was bound to distrust ANY food they gave him now...and even after he'd already started gaining some weight back...

[alackofghosts]

shhhh

[anglerflsh]

updating the Transparency mindmap for how to shorthand what's going on in there

[termagax]

re: "good girl" i think they say it once randomly as a joke and its just one of those things that gets him wayyy more than they expected it would. so now its their secret weapon and they use it very sparingly and every single time he gets super embarrassed about it but it works ill tell you what.

[cheekblush]

SCREAM there are rumors being spread about me at work that i have smth going on with a colleague of mine 😭😭😭😭

[randomnameless]

Re: Almyra, yes! YES! After Nopes especially, I'm so baffled that Claude (and I guess his fiercest stans?) wants to change FODLAN so they welcome Almyra. Like, he really is looking at Fódlan's Locket, its history (all three nations coming together to build it), the very real situation of Almyra constantly attacking and trying to invade Fódlan, as well as (once he meets Cyril) the reality of the Almyran army leaving kids to fend off for themselves on the battlefield/after a loss

And he just shrugs and says it's the Church's fault?

If he ever wanted peace between the two, he'd need to work on Almyra's favorite pastime first. Which I suppose he can only do once he's king, which doesn't seem like a soon-to-come opportunity. Not that he looks interested in changing Almyra, anyway. I don't think he ever mentions changing the Almyrans' mentalities?

It's always "Fódlan needs to open its borders, Fódlan needs to keep an open mind, Fódlan needs, Fódlan needs". We know Fódlan HAS open borders with others, at least enough so that have actual regular trade. (I could buy the Alliance not knowing too much about Brigid, Dagda and all because they're at the other side of the map, but the Empire trades with countries on the east, too. How is Claude not aware of that? It has to leak into the Alliance too.)

Sorry, I have a lot feelings about Claude's obsession with opening up Fódlan to people who regularly attacks it. (Considering he uses Sreng in GW to attack the Kingdom, it looks like a pattern lmao.)

No worries anon, you can rant away!

If it's any indication, after playing two games and looking at the script with more hindsight/in a more neutral way, some other players also noticed how this obsession - even in FE16 lol - was ridiculous lol

Correct me if I'm wrong friends, but iirc, Claude in FE16 isn't the first in line for the throne, or something like this? And it's only after helping Fodlan, and then returning to Almyra, that he can become king?

So much like Dimitri, I'd understand if, during the course of the game, as a random who has no real power in Almyra, he cannot do a lot of things to change their mindsets - even if he is still able to ask for Nader's help, who's far from being a random nobody in Almyra!

Maybe we could have had some scenes where he asks Nader what he thinks of Fodlan, and if he doesn't think it'd be nice if they stop raiding and start to interact and trade under more amiable terms, with Nader accepting after some persuasion (idk, witnessing how the so called Fodlan cowards are brave enough to fight 1 to 10 against an Empire who could fold them in two and uses mutated humans) even if that'd include retconning the Nader the devs had in mind that was revealed in Nopes lol

And when Nader's finally on his side, he can try to convince the GD - maybe some members would straight out refuse to help or ditch him, and have to be recruited later on (or persuaded if they got an A support at least with Claude thus no ditch him), with a special subplot regarding Hilda because she's a member of House Goneril and her House has bled for many decades to fend off against "invasions for funsies" - ultimately bringing more to his friendship speech against Nemesis than, this speech just being a Wedon speech thought in the spur of the moment that sounds cool (Nemesis symbolising, after the infodump, the culmination of Fodlan's rejection of "others", in this case, Nabateans, who weren't considered sentient beings but just "things" to be looted").

But no, instead we have church BaD, Rhea BaD, then Church not so BaD but Rhea's doctrine BaD, to Rhea's not so BaD but she still dies conveniently offscreen, and Church was still kind of BaD since it's ultimately reformed (how?) by King/Queen Billy.

Yay!

In a way, I'm wondering that even if the devs said they re-wrote Claude to fit Nopes, if FE16!Claude's mindset wasn't already that closer to Supreme Leader's than we first thought, especially if they're both wondering, basically "why are those people unhappy that I/we are invading them and fighting to prevent us from getting in?".

Supreme Leader does it when she invades and laments the "useless" deaths from people who die defending their lands, and Claude basically does it when he wants to "open" Fodlan to people who want to invade them (but ultimately manages to convinced them to sign a treaty at the end of his route, off-screen).

Also, anon, acknowledging the Empire, the Kingdom and FFS the Alliance trades with other countries in this verse would remove a part of the Church BaD/Rhea BaD spiel - and we can't have that :(

idk if it was on purpose, and we still don't know what Varley is preaching in Nopes, but I love how Gilbert is the first one who says Varley's teachings are full of shit and is basically the one who tells the cast that Varley's words are nonsense, because if they are close to what Claude is telling us about "uwu isolationism uwu", Dominic, in Nopes, is revealed to trade a lot with Albinea lol

Of course Gustave can't say this loud, otherwise no Church BaD and characters who are supposed to be loved looking like asses wouldn't look that rad (even if Claude already has a moment like this with Barney lol) - but imagine Claude saying "uwu church enforces isolationism and forbids foreign trade" and Annette shuts him up "what are you talking about? We've been trading with Albinea since the days of Loog, and the Central Church never asked us to stop?".

[rearranging-deck-chairs]

anyway so im rewriting the specials to get yaz in there right and you kinda need her out of the way for wild blue yonder so im keeping her in the tardis to do the manual part of the repairs i guess but just the idea of yaz being There but Just out of sight but very much like,,,,Present, as an agent in the story, while this interaction happens:

which is then Immediately followed by the tardis with her inside Disappearing, just lends a whole lot of fuckin,,,,,,,depth of flavour that you really dont even need to do anything for

[redheadedbrunette]

Any headcannons on the hale sisters? Or any of the spy school characters?

they're both incredibly jealous each other for the upbringing they got. trixie is jealous that erica got to be a part of the family legacy and be a hale in a way that, even if she were allowed to start training as a spy, she would never get to be. erica is jealous of trixie because she gets to forge her own identity outside of the spy business. because even though she's good at espionage and doesn't want that sense of identity taken away, she wishes that it could have been a choice, and more and more she's realizing the toll that it takes on her personal relationships and is wondering if it's really worth it.

erica was homeschooled for the entirety of her time leading up to her entrance at the academy, aside from the two weeks she attended second grade when trixie started kindergarten. it was around the time catherine and alexander's marriage was starting to fray at the edges, and they were hoping that if both girls were going to school, then catherine could spend more time working around the world because she felt obliged to stay at home with them when they were young. it went kind of horribly, and while erica herself didn't get into any fights (because she had been warned explicitly not to hurt any of her classmates), it was going pretty bad for her socially speaking and trixie had received no such warnings and was completely willing to release all of her feral energy and bite seven year olds who were being mean to her big sister. erica was pulled out almost right away and went back to homeschooling, and after her suspension was over, trixie went back and finished the year and started going to boarding school the next year. meanwhile, erica was just taken around with catherine most of the time and dropped back with alexander when catherine went on more involved missions and just did her schoolwork there.

[ectoplasmer]

rgrhrgrhgr going insane thinking about how I have felt so much love and affection for a character from a card game anime of all things!! for over two years!!! one of the most frustrating guys ever nonetheless!!!!

[victory-cookies]

coworker at the new job and I were discussing doing a dnd campaign for the staff and it’s great bc I’d love to do that. but the problem is it’s clear neither of us want to dm

[waywardsalt]

:3

[ponett]

Any opinion on the Pokemon Gigaleak or nah?

I think seeing some of the WIP assets from when gen 3 was in development is kinda neat, because Game Freak is normally so secretive about that kind of thing. But beyond that I mostly just find this whole situation tiring.

Fans have a tendency to almost treat scrapped material as "more canon" than whatever actually made it into the finished product, in a way. It's treated as this pure, unfiltered insight into the creators' true vision. In reality, most of the time this stuff gets cut for a reason. Sometimes they very quickly realize it was a bad idea that was never gonna work, and they don't go very far with it. Sometimes it's a pitch from just one guy on the team that was never gonna get accepted. Sometimes they're just spitballing. Experimentation and iteration and knowing when to cut things are integral parts of the artistic process.

And hell, a lot of the time creators will just mess around with an idea purely as a creative exercise, or to get an idea out of their system, or to explore a crazy what-if scenario, or even just as a joke, with no intention of ever actually using those ideas. We recently saw this same thing happened with those leaked Rebecca Sugar sketches, where people were like "OMG Rebecca ships this, this is what they REALLY wanted to do with the show, this is canon, this was happening off-screen!!" And it's like, y'all have no idea how much crazy shit your favorite artists draw with their characters just to amuse themselves. The crew on Clarence had a not-so-secret Tumblr where they redrew scenes from Evangelion with Clarence characters. That doesn't mean they wanted to turn Clarence into Eva. They were just screwing around. This happens all the time, and with way more extreme examples than these. Lord knows how many Disney animators have drawn Mickey Mouse with his dick out over the years. That doesn't mean they ever actually wanted to make an official Mickey Mouse porno.

And, of course, there's the response to those myths that were never supposed to see the light of day. Anyone who's even passingly familiar with mythology from just about any part of the world shouldn't be surprised to hear fables about humans and animals having babies or whatever. But now people are responding to those unused stories and going "OMG Game Freak is a bunch of gooners who want humans and Pokemon to have sex!! This is canon!!!" It's so fucking tiring. So much of the modern internet, particularly Twitter, is driven by people who just want an excuse to whip out their favorite shocked/disgusted reaction image and ham up their reaction to something that isn't actually all that shocking. Everyone just wants to get their funny dunks in and feign moral superiority. It's childish. And it's because of reactions like this that this stuff was never supposed to see the light of day in the first place. But fans feel like they're owed every single shred of info from the development of their favorite franchises, so these leaks happen and people run wild with them.

(It also doesn't help that this is all just sourced back to a 4chan thread, so people were posting fake shit between the real leaks and muddying the waters. And also most of it is in Japanese, so people are just sticking documents through Google Translate and going "whooooaaaa this is canon")