#and on the first day of the screenings they announced season 2

[osomatsustuff]

The official Osomatsu-san movie site has announced the "Osomatsu-san movie's 5th anniversary Alumni Reunion ~We'll do the Selective Screening again~" event where the first movie will be re-screened in 6 major theaters across Japan. A screening festival will be also be held at those theaters and will include the same season 1 episodes + special short shown at the 2017 screening festival.

Depending on the theater and screening they attend, participants will also be able to get a high-five "greeting" from one of the sextuplets and will receive one of 7 types of promotional postcards.

The movie will be shown on March 15th, followed by the screening festival on March 16th to Match 18th (the greetings will take place on the 16th and 17th only).

[disneyprincemuke]

for the girls * fem!driver

she isn't worrying about being on track for the first time - she worries about the media.

pairings: sebastian vettel x fem!driver, f1 grid x reader

warnings: literally a piece of garbage, SO inaccurate, no idea what i’m doing…

notes: this is sOOO BAD PLS I DIDN'T KNOW HOW TO WRITE THIs man

also, please feel free to send it some scenarios for this series! you can send them in here freeflow~ none of these will be posted in chronological order so don’t worry about it

(series masterlist) | (📂 the rookie season)

"here is sebastian vettel's personal addition to the grid, (y/n)," the interviewer grins, turning to face the girl. "welcome to the 2023 formula 1 season. thank you for coming in."

"thank you for having me," she smiles, hands clasped together in front of her. she's been following sebastian around all day - she doesn't want to be left alone in such a tough crowd.

"how does it feel to be the first woman in formula 1 in almost 2 decades?"

"i'm very thankful for the opportunity given to me to achieve this spot on the grid. i hope i'll be good enough to create a difference and be the stepping stone towards more women in the sport," she answers cordially, moving her arms slightly.

interviews, unfortunately, were also a very big part of the job. she didn't really mind it, but she knew the controversy of her being in the sport, and it's been driving her insane since the pre-season testing.

"and of course congratulations on your move from formula 2 to the main league. how do you feel about the doubters or naysayers who are saying you don't belong here?"

"i think it's unfair to assume my placement in the season before it has even started. i have worked as hard as everybody else to get where i am today, so i'm just really hoping that the fact that i am a woman does not overshadow all my achievements."

she's seen all that's said about her. the news articles, the videos criticising sebastian's choice to vouch for her, and the comments under her posts and announcements - it's very disheartening.

sebastian has tried his best to tell her otherwise, telling her time and time again that he wouldn't have vouched for her if he didn't think she had the potential to be here.

"and how are you getting along with everybody else on the grid?"

"very good. i mean, we've already been acquainted for years and that really helped me out a lot," she laughs, locking eyes with sebastian doing an interview right next to her. "but it is still a competitive sport. it's going to be a climb out there from my starting position at 18th. hopefully it will be a good race."

"of course, good luck out there."

"thank you so much."

"just like we talked about. you'll be fine," sebastian folds his arms over his chest, leaning back into the wall.

she's pulling the sleeves of her race suit over her shoulders. "why don't i believe you," she mutters, looking down at her shoes to avoid his eyes. "think about what the media would say if i don't finish in the points today."

"who cares about what the media has to say? just do your best out there today," sebastian repeats, patting her shoulder lightly to get her attention.

he flashes her a grin when she looks up, only to have her roll her eyes as she zips up. "me. i have to face the interviewers later, remember? not you."

"just race like you always have. you're doing this for yourself. not the media, not the insecure guys hiding behind a screen, and definitely not the interviewers." he grabs her shoulders, shaking her just slightly to lighten up the mood. "i'll be in your ears to help you out, okay?"

she sighs, leaning slightly to the side to grab her balaclava off the table. "promise to tell me when i'm being reckless?"

"i'm your race engineer. i've got you."

he turns her around, towards the track where the cars have lined up. "get out there and shut them all up. you're doing this for the girls, remember that."

"right. for the girls," she huffs, wiping her hands on her race suit. she takes the helmet that sebastian is holding out to her and gives him a smile. "okay. i'll talk to you through the radio."

and she does everything she has to do. she’s in the race car, anticipating the formation lap that’s about to start.

days leading up to this moment, she didn’t think she would be so nervous to be behind a wheel. she doesn’t typically let the feeling get to her so much.

but it’s different now that it’s being broadcasted to the entire world. she’s now watched by ten times her normal viewership.

“radio check,” sebastian’s voice comes into her ears. his voice has become a significant point to calming her down behind the wheel. you would be surprised how well he can calm her down just by his voice.

“copy.” she breathes into the mic unknowingly as she exhales, looking up and taking in her view.

her car was surrounded by the engineers, making the final touches on the car and triple checking all the components.

within a few seconds, she can see the sky as they disperse — the sun is shining bright and there are barely any clouds. to her right is yuki, also looking around the grid and the grandstand.

she locks eyes with him as he looks around, her eyes crinkling at the corners to acknowledge him. he returns the gesture with a smile through his eyes then a thumbs up to wish her luck.

she lifts her hand above the halo and returns the thumbs up.

“okay, the first car has taken off for the lap. i’ll check in on you again in a while.”

her grip on the steering wheel is tight despite the engine being turned off. she’s proud of herself for making it through her first race in the league, even parking the car neatly in parc ferme.

“you did amazing.”

“you’re only saying that. i didn’t even finish in the points,” she answers dejectedly, rolling her eyes to herself.

sebastian tries to make light of every situation, even if the normal person would not be able to find that in a frustrating position. but he was also a rookie once. the least he could do is empathise and try to make this experience less daunting for her.

he’s investing in her — her talent is impeccable, but he has to make sure that he fosters and encourages her into the best version of herself. the racer that he knows she is, she just needed someone to actively believe in her.

“the climb from p18 to p11 is good progress. the season just started, kid. the only way is up.”

“sure,” she chuckles. “i’m getting out of the car. see you in a bit, seb.”

taglist: @wcnorris @treehouse-mouse (comment to be added)

[arieslost]

cherry blossoms | ls2

summary: you have a meet cute in japan.

word count: 1,046

masterlist — join my tag list here!

this one is for my sweet mimi @lightsoutletsgo <33 thank you for coming up with this incredible concept, i loved writing it!!

© arieslost 2024. DO NOT REPOST WITHOUT PERMISSION.

being in japan during the springtime was always a magical experience, and it was owed primarily to the beautiful abundance of cherry blossoms. when the 2024 season calendar was announced and you saw that the japanese grand prix would be held during the spring, you wasted no time in procuring tickets and a flight to the country.

the paddock is absolutely stunning this time of year, you realized as you walk through it after qualifying. the teams were either debriefing or preoccupied with working in their garages, so the paddock itself was relatively clear, save for the blossoms that were falling out of the trees and lining the ground in brilliant pink. it’s almost overwhelming, but you and your camera can’t get enough of it.

you wouldn’t call yourself a professional by any means, but taking pictures has always been a fun hobby for you, and the vibrant japanese setting was the perfect subject matter for photos.

you were fully engrossed in your task, taking shots of the blossoms at multiple angles, even getting some action shots of blossoms falling through the air to rest on the ground. the paddock was much quieter than usual, and it was nice to only really hear the breeze against the sound of muted, far off conversation. you could even feel some of the stray blossoms brushing the top of your head and your shoulders. it was peaceful above anything else, and you weren’t bothered by it, gazing intently through your camera’s viewfinder as you walked along the paddock.

in retrospect, you probably should have been paying better attention to your surroundings. one moment you were adjusting where you stood to get a better focus on a specific blossom that you noticed, and the next you were colliding with something warm and solid.

“i’m so sorry— is your camera okay?!”

through the viewfinder, your eye focused on what (or who, rather) you’d bumped into. slowly, you lowered the camera so you could look directly at him. he was blond, and tall, and damn was he cute.

“yeah… it’s fine. are you okay?”

without saying anything in response, he reached out and plucked a stray blossom off of your shoulder that you hadn’t even taken note of. you looked down for a moment, overwhelmed with the gentleness of his touch, and missed him slipping the blossom into his pocket.

“thanks,” you said quietly.

“no problem. and i’m fine too,” he stretched out a hand to you. “i’m logan.”

“oh, right, of course! logan sargeant!” you exclaimed before feeling your cheeks heat up. “i mean… something less weird.”

he laughed. “something like your name?”

“right,” you laughed as well, introducing yourself. “i’m sorry for not paying attention. i just haven’t been here in the springtime in so long, i forgot how beautiful it was.”

“this is my first time here in the spring,” he shared, looking almost shy as he met your eyes. “but you’re right, it’s beautiful.”

“how was quali for you?” you asked, fiddling with the settings on your camera to hopefully still be able to get the photo you wanted.

“could’ve been better.” he shrugged, watching you lift your camera up to the trees. “getting good pictures?”

“amazing pictures,” you nodded, taking a few shots. “here, i’ll show you!”

enthusiastically, you held the camera out to him and started going through the pictures you’d taken throughout the day. eventually, you got back to the experimental ones you’d taken of a few cars on the track.

“hey, that’s me!” logan said suddenly, stopping you when the screen showcased the blue williams with the number 2 on it. “that’s incredible. you have a great eye.”

“hire me.” you said, mostly joking, but you could almost see the cogs turning in his head as he contemplated it.

“listen, i have to run, but… do you think i could get your number? i want to take you out. and maybe you can show me some more of your pictures.” he rubbed the back of his neck, watching you intently as you considered his offer.

“i think i’d like that a lot.” you replied with a smile, biting your lip to stifle the giggle that nearly escaped when he eagerly grabbed for his phone.

two years later, when you’re living with him and you turn over to grab your phone from the nightstand, you see a cherry blossom, pressed and proudly displayed on the wood surface. your whole body grows warm with affection when you feel logan’s arms around you, pulling you back into his soft embrace.

“logan,” you admonish quietly when he refuses to let you reach your hand out for the flower.

“stay,” he grumbles in response, brushing his lips against your shoulder.

“how long have you had this?” you ask, managing to grab the blossom before he pulls you further into him.

“hmm?” his eyes blink open and he looks at you with bleary confusion. “i love you, but why are you trying to wake me up right now?”

“it looks like you’ve had it for a while,” you continue, turning the blossom around in your hand.

“oh, that.” he lifts his head, watching as you inspect it. “i’ve had that since the day i met you.”

your jaw drops. “what?”

“yeah, it was on your shoulder when you bumped into me.” he explains easily. “just sitting there like it belonged there. i had it pressed so i’d always have a reminder of that pretty girl i met in suzuka, just incase i never saw you again.”

well. you weren’t expecting to tear up so early in the morning, but you’re still learning that logan sargeant is full of surprises.

“i love you,” you whisper, overcome with emotion as you set the blossom back on the nightstand.

“i love you so much,” he whispers back, leaving a loving kiss on your cheek. “even though you woke me up.”

“okay,” you giggle, putting a hand on his face and forcing his eyes shut. “let’s go back to bed then, sleeping beauty.”

“don’t need to tell me twice,” he hums happily, snuggling close to you and sighing in content.

you stay awake for a little while longer, admiring the pressed flower and thinking of how pretty a spring wedding would be in suzuka.

note: apologies if this feels rushed. i’m once again drowning in schoolwork as the semester ends this month 🙃 pray for me

my inbox is always open for comments, criticism, and conversation! feel free to pop in!

reblogs are greatly appreciated <33

tags: @venusacrossthestars @67-angelofthelordme-67 @emails-i-can-send @nelly187 @cixrosie @fangirl-dot-com @sainzluvrr @imheretoread @mellowarcadefun @yourbane @monsieurbacteria6 @c-losur3 @papayatori @ssprayberrythings @namgification @maih23 @evlkking @witchycarmen @ilovethispookie @maxverstappenfan79 @sya-skies @sweatrevenge5436-blog @kimis-gloves @mia-rrrs @decafmickey @customsbyjcg-blog @bigheartsthings @tania2748 @scuderiadevils @iloveyou3000morgan @ctrlyomomma @hiireadstuff @daemyratwst @arian-directioner @evelyn-ny @avg-golden-retriever @likedbygaslyy @vintagefucksstuff @piastorys @jisungstuff

[prettyinpwn]

I know I'm gonna sound like a crazy old broken record... but hear me out. Lots of speculation as to the true purpose of the thisisnotawebsitedotcom.com thing beneath the cut.

So... does anyone else feel like the ARG website is... odd? Like it's leading to something more coming? And before anyone screams, "Well, ackshully, Hirsch said he doesn't want to do a Season 3-"

YES. I KNOW. He said no Season 3 a million times. I was there when he told us Season 2 was it for the first time. But what he didn't say, however, was, "No more Gravity Falls anything... EVER.". Hence why we've gotten Journal 3, Lost Legends, and now The Book of Bill. Hirsch is veeerrrrry comfortable making more GF stuff.

And as someone that studied programming in college, I can tell you, this website does not seem like it was easy or cheap to make. It's effectively a single screen point and click game in a browser. Looking at the code, it seems they did use a framework called Bridgetown, lacing in looped animated MP4 files with clickable assets on top that make up the interactive elements (e.g the computer), with a lot of content made for the website itself from image files and text for each prompt a user might type. Sure, it's not the most difficult thing to program, but it's a lot more complex than, say, the searchfortheblindeye site back in the day.

That, and as someone who has worked in the corporate world, I'm sorry, but you don't pour this much effort/money into something that is just "lol cool things after product for funsies". If this was just for The Book of Bill, the smart marketing decision would have been to make the lofi album and the website, tease fans with both of them, and let them lead to an announcement of the book itself to tempt them into buying it, not the other way around. Like... Disney ain't gonna do that just out of love for fans. It's Disney, come on. They do things for money.

It's possible that Hirsch paid for it himself just for the fans, but I doubt it. Wanna know why? Because of the website's security certificate and ownership. Let's take a gander at this:

There are two odd things here. One, the range of the expiration. Most security certs last 1-2 years, at least they did at one of my previous places of employment (and we had like 50+ of them). This one expires November 7th, 2024. Odd, but maybe they only want the website up for a few months? Anyways, as an aside, everyone keep an eye out for November 7th, 2024. Could be nothing, could be something.

The other weird thing is the domain holder. Looking it up on ICANN, it gives this address:

Look that up on Google Maps, and it takes you to a company called Dun and Bradstreet. Long story short, the company does a bazillion things, but the main thing we're talking about here is:

Oh gee, Sales and Marketing. And their Sales and Marketing tools? Basically, they use data to tell companies who their audience is, so that they can market to them. Now, why would Disney care about this for a fandom for a show that's been done for almost a decade, just for a book that was released before said website (so we know they're not gathering marketing data for the book)?

Well, if I were to guess... long story short, all this stuff is a tactic to gauge who the Gravity Falls audience is now. Release the book, make some dough and fans happy, tie in a secret marketing data collection gimmick (AKA the website) using D&B as a vendor to hook the data into your CRM, send fans to a website to collect marketing data, and shabam. Now you know who the target market is all this time after.

And why in the hell would a company care about that? You tell me. Why care about who a target market is if you're not planning on marketing something to them later?

It could be that Disney is planning something similar to Gravity Falls and wants to gauge if there'd still be a market for that kind of show. Or... it could mean that Disney is planning on something more substantial related to Gravity Falls or Hirsch pitched it, and they were like, "Well, wait, let's collect data on this, first, so we'd know if it'd be a good business decision.". Not sure.

I mean, maybe I'm crazy, but doesn't this seem fishy to anyone else? If anyone else has any hypotheses as to why Hirsch and Disney have a Gravity Falls website owned by D&B, let me know, but to me... this smells... very... marketing oriented. And Hirsch doesn't seem like the guy to pour his own money into hiring an outside company to gather marketing data, that seems more up Disney's alley.

[nerdyjournals]

Sweet Sugar

ship: skz x diabetic!reader

Note: i, myself, am a type 2 diabetic. So a lot of these things come from my experience.

WARNING: MENTIONS OF INJECTIONS AND NEEDLES

Hyung Line. Maknae Line.

Bang Chan

Noticed you were super lethargic, like more so than normal. When asking you about it, you just waved him off and said that it probably was your sugar

Obviously, he was as confused until you pulled up an app on your phone. A big 201 took up the top of the screen.

He took your phone - scrolling through the app - as you reached for your bag, pulling out a container of peanuts. He finally understood what was going on.

You explained to him that you get super tired when it gets low as well as high. Diabetes fatigue, you said. You two were about to head out, so you couldn't exactly take a nap.

He offered to cancel and reschedule, but you just said you were used to it. He didn't like that. So he drags you to the living room and sets you on the couch to snack and rest.

He makes you share the app to his phone so he can see when you drop or rise when absolutely necessary.

Lee Know

It all started because you didn't seem excited when he announced what he was making for dinner. You haven't really had beef ribs since your diagnosis.

He was ultimately confused before you explained that red meat has a possibility to shoot up your sugar and leave you feeling off. It's not that you can't have it, but it's been a while.

He can see that you feel guilty as you assure him to still make it since everything was out. An idea clicks in his head before ushering you into the living room and told to wait.

You don't really question him as he goes about working, not even when he answers a delivery at the door.

By the time he calls you in, the table is set with the ribs, sides, and a plate of chicken. Same seasonings and everything. He could see the guilt reappearing on your face, and would have none of that.

He sat you down, placed the chicken in front of you, and took his own seat. He said nothing until you started eating, humming in contempt when you dug in.

It felt nice that he didn't get mad or make you feel like the bad guy. He just accommodated you and still respected you. It was perfect.

Changbin

The loud beeping of your phone caught his attention, making him laugh as you scrambled to turn it off.

You let out a groan and looked around for your bag, pulling out a small insulated bag, and excusing yourself to the restroom.

He said nothing, just a little confused. It was when you came back rubbing at your belly that he spoke up. You had to inject some insulin with all the snacks the two of you had today, nothing too special.

You could see the panic rise to his eyes before quickly assuring him that you were okay. You just didn't account for all your favorite goodies to be in his studio and you went at them like a man starved. You just had to be mindful for the rest of the day.

He immediately asked you if he had to get rid of the snacks and realized you'd rather put his head in a spike than lose access to your favorites...playfully.

A lot of personal stuff had been happening recently and you were the type to eat your feelings. He was too.

The best compromise you could come up with was finding similar snacks to fix the craving and keep you steady while keeping the bad ones under lock and key of which Changbin had.

Hyunjin

It was the clicking coming from the bathroom that caught his attention. He pushed open the cracked door to check on you, only to find you injecting insulin into your stomach.

He quickly backed up out of shock and re-shut the door. Waiting another second before knocking in the door, he slowly opened it. You were rubbing the spot with an amused look on your face.

The two of you were about to have dinner, and you had to prep yourself first. The injections were fairly new, so the two of you would have to get used to it.

He spends the whole meal talking and asking questions about your condition. You do your best to explain and it suffices.

It amazes him that you're able to be so functional after you talk about some of the side effects and handicaps.

In the following days, he does research about what snacks are safe for you and sticks them in the apartment. It throws him for a loop when he sees the bottles of medicine you leave with him as back up. Since when do they make pills that size?!

Tag list: @krisstheidiot @snowyquokka @scarlet789 @tinyelfperson @euphoricaspen @rylea08 @palindrome969 @missmajdastark @michelle4eve @wolfyychan @aelin-sardothien @yongbokwifey @kaiyaba @antisocial-socialbutterfly

(if your name is in blue, i cannot tag you for some reason. Please DM with an alternate name if possible.)

join the tag list

[lgbtpopcult]

What cool WLW projects do we know are coming in 2024?

Drive-Away Dolls

Arguably the most important representation of the year comes from a movie directed by one of the Coen brothers. Ethan Coen directs this wacky comedy that is very much in style for him.

Synopsis:

This comedy caper follows Jamie, an uninhibited free spirit bemoaning yet another breakup with a girlfriend, and her demure friend Marian who desperately needs to loosen up. In search of a fresh start, the two embark on an impromptu road trip to Tallahassee, but things quickly go awry when they cross paths with a group of inept criminals along the way.

Lost Records: Bloom and Rage

A game had to be added to this list and here it is, the best one. From the creators who gave us Life is strange. Lost Records: Bloom and Rage tells the story of four friends who experience a transformative summer in 1995. After 27 years of no contact, Nora, Swann, Autumn, and Kat are reunited by fate and forced to confront the long-buried secret that made them agree to never speak again all those years ago. From the teaser alone it is obvious at least two of them dated.

Pluto

A Thai gl from GMMTV, known for its successful Thai dramas. The story is the telenovela cliche we've always wanted. Two girls in love. One gets in an accident and her twin takes her place to find out who was behind her accident, the other girl is blind. The twin has to fake being the real one so has to be in a relationship with the blind girl and of course falls in love with her. Match made in fanfic heaven.

The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo

It was announced so long ago people are getting frustrated. However, with both a writer and a director now attached to the project, and the strikes over, we have every reason to believe we will finally get to see the hit novel, that centers the love story between two closeted Hollywood actresses, come to life. Whether you loved the novel or were indifferent and didn't see what the fuss was about, it is a very successful wlw romance and we want to see it on screen!

The Paying Guests

The director that brought us Carol adapting a book by the author of Fingersmith? Yes please!

Speaking to Indiewire, Haynes revealed he’s developing an adaptation of Sarah Waters’ 2014 novel The Paying Guests. “It’s a three-part limited series that would need to be a British production, but it’s a really great novel.” Set in post-WWI London, the drama is part lesbian love story and part murder mystery following a down-and-out widow and her daughter, the latter taking up a relationship with one of their lodgers. Waters also wrote Fingersmith, which was adapted into The Handmaiden by Park Chan-wook.

NCIS Hawaii season 3

One of our favorite pairings of last year, Kate and Lucy are the main couple of their show and they carry it well. They look good together, have progress and evolution in their relationship and have fun working together.

The Secret of Us

Thai channel CH3 is expected to hit us strong with this Thai gl. CH3 is big in Thailand so this one is a big deal. The story is the typical exes meet again trope and it's magnificent. It centers Doctor Fahlada, nicknamed Doctor Angel. She is trying to hide the pain after being abandoned by the woman she loved. But then...by chance that woman comes back into her life.

Whisper Me a Love Song

Our resident anime entry has to be Whisper me a love song. Based on a manga it is the story of Himari Kino. On the first day of entering high school, Himari Kino "falls" for her senior, Yori Asanagi, whom she watched singing with a band at the welcome party for new students. When Himari confesses her admiration to Yori, Yori misinterprets Himari's feelings as romantic love. However, before Yori realizes, she comes to fall for Himari anyway, and promises to win her affections for real.

Bad Sisters season 2

Bad Sisters is one of the best reviewed and hilarious shows on this list. Coming back for a season 2 was inevitable. Bibi, the lesbian sister, will keep entertaining us in 2024.

Station 19 season 7

One of the most enduring shows and wlw couples on TV are coming back for a season 7! That is a lot of seasons but Maya and Carina do still have that spark.

About Galaxy The Series

Part of the gl renaissance that is expected to go full force next year, this series is already hugely popular among Asian romance fans.

Synopsis:

‘About Galaxy’ is based on author Zezeho’s yuri of the same name, with a Thai title of “มูลค่าดาวล้านดวง”. The story revolves around Hong Yok, a designer who has a big scar on her face which led her to hide away from the public due to her inferiority complex. But something changed in her life when she met Note, a woman she was measuring clothes, and realized she is the same person who gave her that huge scar! However, despite the incident, she doesn’t outright despise her, and instead… feels safe. What will happen to the two women?

My Ex-Friend's Wedding

Kay Cannon ("Blockers") will direct from a script co-written by Taylor Jenkins Reid? Staring a group of friends trying to stop their friend from getting married? And one of them is queer? We're all in!

Arcane (Season 2)

It seems like forever since we first watched Arcane but we're definitely looking forward to season 2. Needs no introduction.

Dream the Series

We already have enough Asian dramas in this list but we couldn't leave out one of the most anticipated gl, Dream. The story is that of a woman that sees a girl in her dreams every night only to meet her in real life. While in real life they are friends in her dreams they do much more. She thinks her friend doesn't know about that what she doesn't know is that she also remembers everything they do in their dreams.

Harley Quinn the Animated Series season 5

Another season of our favorite criminal duo Harley Quinn and Poison Ivy? Yes please and thank you. These two, and this particular iteration of them, might be the best representation American television has ever given us.

Chaser Game W

Chaser Game W is the first gl produced by TV Tokyo so it has a historic significance for the advancement of representation for queer women in Japan. First episode airs January 8. Based on manga series "Chaser Game" written by Hiroshi Matsuyama & illustrated by Yukitaro Matsuyama

The story:

synopsis: Itsuki has been working in the "Dynamic Dream" game company for five years and is now appointed as the lead for a big Japanese-Chinese collaboration project, which she is fully motivated to work on. However, it turns out the Chinese company team is led by her ex, Fuyu, whom she one-sidedly broke up with back in university! After breaking up with Fuyu, Itsuki never dated anyone else and chose to focus on her work, all while not coming out to her family and coworkers... But when her ex-girlfriend suddenly appeared in front of her, her feelings immediately started to sway. Meanwhile, Fuyu always resented Itsuki for breaking up with her without saying why. She takes charge of the project and pushes impossible tasks onto Itsuki. While Fuyu plots her revenge, Itsuki is rekindling her unrequited love. What will the outcome be for these two opposites?

Vigil season 2

The first couple of episodes of Vigil season 2 will technically be shown in December 2023 (in the UK only) but we'll basically be able to watch it beginning 2024 and we're looking forward to it!

Several upcoming TV shows and movies have cast actors that make it obvious they'll have lesbian and bi characters but until we know whether the representation will be enough to be worth watching we're holding off on making that other, more elaborate, list.

[starryriize]

snap shoot | anton

— ✧ • ˳೫˚ part of my valentine event

೫ pairing: bf!anton and gf!reader

೫ summary: anton takes you to the mall and you both take cute pictures in the photo booth

೫ genre/word count: fluff and just anton being in love! 1k words

೫ author's notes: for my love @chiiyuuvv !! this was genuinely so fun to write tbh semi-proofread!

Exam season has just begun for you. For the past two weeks, you’ve been stressing about your upcoming tests. First, it was two theology exams. Then, your marketing professor announced there would be an exam as well. And to top it all, your accounting and management professors decided they’d put in quizzes right before the exam day. You’d given up on sleep, rationalizing that studying is more important than sleep, and your boyfriend wished to take all your stress away. He'd been cheering you on, Now that it was Saturday though, he had the opportunity to pull you away from your books and notes, to simply relax for a few hours.

“Honey! Are you ready?” Anton’s voice called through the house, as you touched up your hair. It wasn’t that you hadn’t been on a date in forever, but you still get flustered around your boyfriend. After a year of dating, he still makes you blush and have butterflies. That adrenaline rush of being blissfully in love that leaves you stuttering over your words. Fluffing your outfit, you walk down the hallway, making sure to grab your camera.

“I’m coming! Where are we headed anyway? You didn’t tell me.” Smiling, he laces his fingers in yours. It wasn’t like him to not tell you, but you didn’t mind surprises either. The walk from your shared apartment to the mall wasn’t long, the sun shining down on the two of you as Anton laced his fingers between yours.

The mall was filled with chatter, the low sound of pop music could be heard through the many ceiling speakers. You squeeze your boyfriend's hand, happily smiling up at him. He looks down, swearing that you are an angel on earth. Out of the corner of your eye, you notice a photo booth. However, to your surprise, there isn't a long line, or anyone wanting to go to the booth itself. Tugging at Anton's jacket, you excitedly point towards the booth.

"Let's go get some photos! Y'know, immortalize the moment." You giggle between your words, already thinking about all the cute poses you guys will do with each other. Pulling back the curtain of the booth, you step in squealing excitedly when you see that there are props for the pictures. "Ahhh this will be so cute!!" You pick up a giraffe headband and glasses far too whimsically big for either of you. He takes the headband from your hands, gently placing it on your head. Noticing heart glasses on the prop table, he picks it up, putting it on before flashing his iconic smile at you. The kind of smile that made you melt inside and fall for him even more.

Anton chuckles lightly, eyes flicking down at your soft, glossy lips. He sighs contentedly, pulling you in by the waist for an almost kiss. His breath fanned over your mouth before he pulled away to look at you fully, " Aren't you just the cutest giraffe?"

You giggle, smacking him lightly, turning towards the screen. "You love this giraffe!" He rolls his eyes, forcing himself to not focus on how plump your lips looked as you spoke, and instead on the flashing start button in front of the two of you. "Perhaps it'd be helpful if we clicked start, love." Pouting slightly, you laugh, leaning forward to click the button. The screen changes, giving you the countdown for pictures. He knew that you were right, he did love you, and even more, as you practiced making silly faces at the camera.

3...2...1. The camera flashed as you squished your cheeks against Anton's, his heart glasses nearly falling off his nose as he smiled ear to ear. You were grateful for the short pause between the takes, as you admired your boyfriend adjusting his glasses. Hurriedly reaching for the prop table, he takes the glasses off, grabbing a pink cowboy hat before placing it on his head. He knew he looked good in the hat, judging from how you were now avoiding any type of eye contact with him.

The screen again displayed the numbers, signaling to you that the picture would be taken soon. You bring your arms above your head to make a heart pose and your boyfriend, getting the hint, puts his arms up in a half-heart to complete the shape. The camera once again flashes, but your boyfriend wasn’t looking at the camera, rather he was looking at you. Something about the way your eyes sparkled every time you were with him, how your smile seemed to light up his entire world, it made his heart burst in his chest.

"Should we kiss for our next photo?" You quickly turn your head, eyes widening at your boyfriend's suggestion. It wasn't that you were embarrassed but you didn't expect him to suggest it to you. His deep brown eyes were fixated on your lips, and you knew that you only had a few seconds before the camera would flash again.

“Why not?” You say it so quickly, noticing how he poked his tongue out to lightly lick his lips in anticipation. Deciding it was now or never, you place your hands on his shirt, pulling him closer to you. The distance between the two of you closes as he darts his eyes from your lips to your eyes, the world around you starting to slow down as your lips connect. Out of the corner of your eye, you saw the flash of the camera, but the feeling of your boyfriend’s hand on your cheek forced your attention back on him. He kissed you gently, yet fervently as though you were the only meal he’d had in his entire life. You pull away, panting softly as you catch your breath, heat rising to your cheeks. The sound of the pop music through the speakers was faint, but it reminded you that you were in the mall. The camera screen changes, a notification telling you that your photos were finished. A slot opens, your photos falling out as Anton quickly grabs them. There were two of each, and a small smile grew on his face as he noticed the last photo.

“It came out so cute!” You giggle with happiness at how well each photo turned out, as you took off the headband, placing it back on the prop table. He grabs the hat, taking it off as well, a large smile on his face.

You grab your purse and your boyfriend’s hand to leave the booth. He laughs with you, eyes crinkling as he teases, “Don’t worry, you’ll get more kisses later, love.”

[cheritzteam]

[The Ssum] “June” and “Henri” Ending Update Complete! Don’t Miss out on the Commemorative Event Too♡ v.2.1.7 App Update

Hello, dear lab participant.

You can now download the new version of <The Ssum: Love From Today>.

Google Play Store (Android) - linkApple App Store (iOS) - link

This update includes server maintenance, so you will receive 10 Aurora Batteries as Study Support upon accessing the game.

Make sure you access the Lab by 16-AUG-2024 (KST) to get your compensation! *You must collect your reward within 3 days.

The following are the details of the update we have received from the Lab.

< ⓛ Ending Update, “June” and “Henri” Are Waiting for You Lab Participant! >

Ending update has completed all the stories for "June" and "Henri"! What awaits the lab participant in the final chapter? Please join us in helping these two Ssumones find true love through you, the lab participant 💘

< ②The Future of Two Ssumones Changes with the “Choices” of the Lab Participant?>

The Ssum Season 2's exclusive epilogue special support update! What if the lab participant's choices determine the Ssumone's future? Collect the epilogue special support you acquire based on their changed future!

< ③Observe the Ssumones’ Emotions at a Glance Through “Emojis!”>

You can now view cute emojis in the chats with June and Henri. The round and endearing emojis level up the appeal of the Ssumones 🧡 Please look forward to seeing which emojis the two will use to express their love to you, lab participant!

If you're currently matched with someone else, tap the Profile button on the main screen. Tap the arrow button next to your current match's profile picture to match with someone else.

*Chats with your current match will not be deleted and can be continued when you reconnect. When reconnecting, please note the time of your last chat so that you don't miss any chats/calls. *When you match with a new Ssumone, you will need to change your Ssumone at your wake-up time to ensure that all Day 1 chats can take place.

💛Commemorative Event Announcement💛

< X(Twitter) Repost Event >

This August 13, the Update of 💙Henri💙 and 💛June💛 

…and to celebrate, we’re holding a repost event on Cheritz’s official X(Twitter)!

***

💌 How to participate 1) Log in to X(Twitter)🔑 2) Repost the event post(link) on @Cheritz_DL🔁

📆 Event ends on August 13, 2024 (Wed) ~ August 19, 2024 (Mon) KST

🎁 Event prizes - 50 Aurora Batteries (20 winners)

📢 Winner announcement August 29, 2024 (Thu) KST

※Disclaimer※ - You cannot participate with an account set to private. - Winners have 10 days to respond via DM to claim their prize.

We are providing every lab participant with Special Lab Support in celebration of the update!

Make sure to collect the items while they’re available - especially the Aurora Creature Box which can only be acquired through purchase💌

📆 Reward Period ~August 21th, 2024 (Wed) 9 AM KST

🎁 Lab Support Details 5 Aurora Batteries + 1 Aurora Creature Box

The additional update information received from the research institute is as follows.

[New Updates] > Henri's first birthday celebration with you!   Event data for Henri’s birthday has been added. Check out the upcoming event announcements for more details!

[Others] - Minor bugs were fixed.

We hope you hop onto the hype for our newly released Update of <The Ssum>.

We will do our best to provide you with more heart-racing content in the future.

Thank you.

-Cheritz-

[tossawary]

Watching "Star Trek: Strange New Worlds" is a lot of fun. I want to be clear that I'm enjoying myself, perhaps especially because the show suffers from many of the same issues as all previous "Star Trek" shows and I like picking at Doylist versus Watsonian explanations for things.

In one of the episodes of Season 2, all of the characters on the ship are suffering from this supernatural memory loss. They don't remember who they are or what they're meant to be doing. This issue hits the Enterprise over the course of many hours, enough time for senior members of the crew to become aware of the issue and decide that the Enterprise needs to get away from what's probably causing the issue. As a precaution, Spock even hands out datapads with personnel files to remind people of their own identities.

Unfortunately, this doesn't work out, because the memory loss apparently includes the ability to read. And I was immediately like, "Why didn't they ask the computer to periodically remind them of the situation? Why didn't they go into lockdown and set a looping announcement to keep everyone calm?" And it does turn out later on in the episode that the day is saved because the helmswoman accidentally prompts the ship's computer to remind her of who she is and what her role is. And I immediately pointed at the screen and the person I was watching with laughed.

The episode was fun and fairly solid. I find a lot about this show to be comparable to all previous "Star Trek" shows. But it IS amusing that this episode hinges on the idea that the senior officers of the ship who are supposedly pretty good on-their-feet problem-solvers, including a logically-minded Vulcan science officer, would not develop SEVERAL background plans in the event of further memory loss. Like, uh, carrying around datapads with personnel files is a single point of failure? And far less reliable than asking the computer to herd the crew and make announcements? What if someone drops their datapad? Should you not immediately strive to take a variety of precautions for everyone's safety? Your backups should have backups!

It's also amusing that the episode hinges on needing the helmswoman to pilot their way out of an asteroid field or whatever, because that really seems like something that should be trivial for the ship's computer. I don't remember if the episode gave us a sci-fi mumbo-jumbo excuse as to why a person needed to do it. But a human being just doesn't have the same reaction time or field of awareness as a computer, especially one 200 years in the future; maybe we don't want to rely on a computer all of the time, but there SHOULD realistically speaking be some background program that allows the ship's computer to plot a course in the event of an emergency. And it's a little ridiculous from an in-universe perspective to think that an organization like Starfleet would not have those backups already.

Like, I come from a background of more scientifically-minded problem-solvers with a handful of memory issues to their names, so we've adapted with techniques to cope with forgetting shit sometimes, and I just cannot fully suspend my disbelief regarding some of the things the writers has Starfleet do for plot reasons. So much can go wrong in space even before you bring glow clouds into it! Good engineers are paranoid fuckers! What can go wrong WILL go wrong.

(We watched the first episode of "Star Trek: Lower Decks" last night and I found it delightful. It IS set in the era of "The Next Generation", but nevertheless you'd think that Captain Pike and crew should have developed a series of "the entire crew has lost their minds again" protocols by now, and "Lower Decks" is lovingly making fun of that in the same vein as "Galaxy Quest".)

Thankfully, I mostly find this discrepancy for drama's sake funny.

In one of the earlier episodes, it was basically the show doing their own version of / a tribute to "Alien". And I have a great fondness for the original "Alien", so that was kind of fun to see. Nice. But if you do stop to, like, actually think about what's happening, this sequence of events is only really happening because 1a) you didn't send piloted drones in first to try to retrieve any logs about what happened and 1b) search for survivors without recklessly endangering half of the senior bridge crew.

2) None of these people are wearing protective suits or shield generators or whatever. They have BARE FACES when this destroyed ship they're exploring could have been taken down by a plague for all they know. None of the characters are ever even wearing HATS when they go to cold locations, because filmmakers don't like obscuring actor faces or ruining their hair. This episode is, for understandable reasons, prioritizing drama over... uh, indicating that Starfleet has decent safety regulations that include personal protective equipment.

3) They send EVERYONE into the spooky destroyed ship instead of holding various crewmembers back. Like, uh, maybe you should leave someone in the shuttle in case something goes wrong? There's an ion storm preventing transporter use and interfering with communicators again, sure, but... Starfleet hasn't developed a series of communication protocols besides "Aw, fuck, communicator's broke, better wait it out"? There's no alternate radio-esque technology that would allow for short range communication between an exploration crew and a grounded shuttle crew? You don't have a temporary communications machine to drop onto a planet? You can't even have little drones physically carry messages between the shuttle and the exploration crew?

Like, yes, I understand why the writers did things this way. "Star Trek" has such miraculous technology that writers have to fight for their fucking lives every episode to explain why the miracle technology isn't working this time. Nevertheless, when crewmembers start dying because Starfleet apparently doesn't have, like, decent safety protocols and backups, I am going to think in the back of my mind: "Okay, this redshirt's death is kind of on you guys this time. Send in a damn robot first."

[mariacallous]

Earlier this week, after warping across the galaxy for 90 hours in a sentient spacecraft, Twitch streamer John Wissmiller realized that Concord was the best first-person shooter he’d played in a decade.

“The gunplay was crunchy, the movement was smooth, and the progression felt rewarding,” he says. “I was even more enthralled by the world the developers had created when I looked into the lore.”

He wasn’t alone. “One of the biggest perks about the game was the absence of toxicity within the player community,” says Kelle Dees, a content creator at KDeesGamez. “Everything about the game was positive and inclusive.”

On Wednesday, less than two weeks after the game’s August 23 launch, Sony announced it was taking Concord offline and offering full refunds to anyone who had purchased it on PlayStation 5 or PC. “While many qualities of the experience resonated with players, we also recognize that other aspects of the game and our initial launch didn’t land the way we’d intended,” wrote Ryan Ellis, Concord’s director at Firewalk Studios, a division of Sony Interactive Entertainment.

“I was completely devastated,” Wissmiller says. “We’ve never seen a first-party title from Sony get this kind of treatment.”

In fact, we’ve never seen any AAA video game get this kind of treatment—and that’s what could make Concord a horrifying canary in the coal mine for gamers and game workers alike.

“It’s unprecedented for a game of this scale to be shut down so quickly,” says Liam Deane, a video game analyst at Omdia. “Usually publishers keep games that struggle at launch on life support for a while, but in Concord’s case the launch was so bad there was clearly no way back.”

Like Fortnite, Destiny 2, and Valorant, Concord was meant to be a live-service game that constantly released new updates over the course of several years. But while those other games are free to play—and rely on microtransactions to make money—Concord cost $40 up front. “It's just very difficult to break into competitive multiplayer games [and] displace the existing top titles,” says Simon Carless, an industry analyst who publishes the GameDiscoverCo newsletter. “These are the kind of titles that players socialize with their friends in, and they're often not motivated to switch games.”

Sony hasn’t revealed how many copies of Concord sold between August 23 and September 3, but the number of active PC players on the Steam platform peaked at just 697 on launch day. That’s abysmally low for a major release that spent eight years in development; Sony’s previous live-service game, Helldivers 2, had over 155,000 players on its first day, back in February, and later peaked at 458,709.

Helldivers 2, though, was a breakout hit that already had an established fanbase. Concord, on the other hand, was a brand-new franchise that didn’t get much of a marketing push and drew the ire of “anti-woke” snivelers who complained about the game’s use of pronouns on its character selection screen.

“For big companies, it's difficult to work out what bets—and how large bets—you should make,” says Carless. “Some of the corporate overexuberance during Covid and low interest rates has meant that large companies overextended, and the pullback has been—and is going to be—painful.”

Over the past 20 years, the brutal blockbuster-or-bust mentality of Silicon Valley startups has spread to executives across the entertainment industry. Movies with $100 million production budgets are considered dead on arrival after a bad opening weekend and are quickly ripped from theaters. TV series are canceled after failing to meet undisclosed performance metrics in their first seasons.

Now, the quick death of Concord, which officially went offline today, points to a similar mindset in the video game industry that could kill creativity, reduce jobs, and shutter entire studios.

“If you have a stable parent company with a balanced set of single-player and [live-service] releases, you should be in decent shape,” says Carless. But “the middle of the market is disintegrating. The games industry is deprofessionalizing in many ways; games as a stable profession will be tricky for many people in high-GDP countries.”

If studio C-suites keep cutting all the buds that don’t instantly blossom, the golden age of gaming of the 2020s—a mix of AAA blockbusters like Elden Ring, The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom, and Baldur’s Gate 3, alongside smaller-budget gems like Tunic, Chants of Sennar, and the reimagining of 1997’s Riven—could already be over.

“I think innovation is more likely to come from smaller companies with lower budgets that are happier to take risks,” says Piers Harding-Rolls, who leads the games research team at Ampere Analysis. “This has really been true for many years, but the current commercial environment makes that truer than ever.” Still, even the future of indies is uncertain and may be somewhat dependent on funding efforts like Innersloth’s Outersloth initiative.

Concord may have gotten off to a slow start with gamers (most of whom hadn’t heard of it yet) and critics (who didn’t love the initial character designs), but the same could be said of Elder Scrolls Online, which has since made more than $2 billion, or the Destiny franchise, which celebrates its 10-year anniversary this year, or No Man’s Sky, which has become a cult classic.

If those games were released now, would they survive longer than Concord did—longer than the lifespan of a honeybee? The answer lies with the most ruthless beekeepers in the industry, and all they care about is the honey.

[writerblue275]

Pet name headcanons for Jayce/Viktor

My first Arcane headcanon! I FUCKING LOVE THIS SHOW and I hate that it took me so long to watch it, but I can’t wait for next year for season 2!

Inspiration: A. Being a full simp for Viktor. B. Secretly also being a simp for Jayce (LMAO). C. Listening to the beauty that is the Arcane score.

Genre: Headcanon

Category: Fluff!!

Gender: Primarily Gender Neutral reader. Some of Jayce’s definitely are more gender specific but I can’t help but think he’d use them (as long as his partner was alright with it of course).

TW: Swearing because I have the mouth of a damn sailor.

Viktor

(The way this man had me in a CHOKEHOLD the second he walked on screen! LOML.)

Pet names for his partner:

Viktor’s intelligence and you think he’s using boring pet names for you??? Absolutely not.

Come now…you know him far better than that…this man is far too creative to be limited by "babe" or "baby" (no offense meant to anyone who uses those, I also use them for romantic partners so I get it).

Ok, maybe early on in your relationship as he was opening up to you, he used some simple classics. Ones like “my dear” or “honey.” These are the main ones he'll also continue to use in public. He's just a private person and I can't see him using any crazy pet names in public with his partner.

Once he’s settled into his routine with you in it and you two spend more time alone/on dates, he starts to have fun, seeing what reactions he can draw out of you with different pet names. (Viktor is surprisingly adept at flirting and playful teasing. It's that sharp wit. He's just so good at banter.)

He figures out the ones that make you smile and the ones that make you blush. Those are the ones he keeps.

There are a few “traditional” ones that Viktor keeps using for you because he loves how they turn your cheeks pink (especially when he says them with a cute little side smile, smirk, or chuckle).

“My darling,” “my love,” “my heart,” or “sweetheart” are the main ones in that category. (I feel like he is such a romantic under all that workaholic, he just needs to get out of the lab and LET IT OUT.)

Others would be cute, but unique. “My sunshine,” “my owl,” (if your sleep schedule is also fucked) “my sunflower,” “butterfly,” ”my flower,” "otter," or “birdie” would be some examples of what I mean. (LMAO Jayce is never hearing him call you any of those. Viktor is 99% sure he'd never hear the end of the teasing from his lab partner.)

If you’re also in academia/research/work at the academy, Viktor would teasingly call you “my most esteemed colleague” or if you’re in sciences specifically, “my fellow scientific genius.”

Pet names from his partner:

As you and Viktor get more comfortable in your relationship, he'd really come to enjoy pet names from you. He just needs to get used to the affection (I'd imagine he's not the most experienced with romance). I think he'd like the funnier ones earlier before the more romantic ones.

(For those in academia/research/at the academy) You and Viktor really weren't super open to other people about starting a relationship (neither of you felt the need to be, but like you would tell people if they asked).

In these early days, "My most esteemed colleague" was a cheeky way for both of you to very subtly announce your affection in public. (I have such a cute idea for a headcanon/drabble based on this oh my GOD.) Even though more people definitely know about your relationship, both you and Viktor still use the pet name when you walk into each other's lab/classroom/office.

When you go to try and collect him from his desk so he can take care of himself, tease him with "genius," "smarty pants," or "bookworm" (especially if you find him with his nose buried in his notes again).

Viktor is a fairly private person, so "honey" is probably the sweetest one you'd normally use in public. But if you do want to see his ears turn pink, feel free to throw "love" out there every once in a while.

In private? As I said, under all the genius is a romantic, so get as soft and sweet as you want.

It surprises him how much he loves hearing you call him "handsome." He's never been super vain about his appearance (though he always looks pretty put together), but knowing that you find him handsome makes him stand up a little straighter.

Just as Viktor uses "my darling," "my heart," and "my love" for you, he loves it even more when you call HIM those. It's the easiest way to drag him away from the lab when the teasing pet names above don't quite do the trick: Come up behind him while he's at his desk (obviously not while he's doing something dangerous), wrap your arms around him, and softly murmur "my love..." into his ear. You can visibly see his resolve break and you know you've won.

Love love LOVE the idea of using the Russian diminutive of Viktor's name: "Vitya." It makes a lot of sense for a romantic partner to call him that.

Jayce

Pet names for his partner:

Ok, so one of my best friends and I give Jayce quite a bit of shit when we text each other about Arcane (he’s a bit of a himbo, your Honor).

BUT I actually think Jayce would be a great romantic partner and the pet names he uses would be very sweet.

He’d definitely use the classics like “baby” or “babe” for you. I don’t think he’d go mushy classic though (think “my darling” or “my love”). But "babe" and "baby" are definitely the most common ones he'd use when you two are out in public.

Can also see him using cute ones like “sunshine,” “shorty,” or “peanut.” (I mean hey, 6' (as confirmed by Riot) is a pretty good height.) Those last two are loving teases. He never means "shorty" in a mean way.

And when he’s about to envelop you in a hug (I imagine Jayce gives EXCELLENT hugs) he’d call you “squish.” Ex: “C’mere squish….” (When he gets home after a long day of being a councilman.)

“Sugar” or “sweetheart” are also on the table. This very big man has a very soft side. We even saw examples of this during season one.

Now that he’s put House Talis on Piltover’s social ladder, he’s understandably proud. What he’s done doesn’t happen often. Very rarely does high society make room for others to enter at all, and now he's the de facto head of Piltover's Council.

The fact you’re willing to stand with him? He’s honored really. But the way he shows it through pet names is interesting. It’s almost a little….teasing? But the intent is genuine. He never wants you to doubt that.

Here’s what I mean (Heads up: gender-specific language incoming): Jayce would smirk and call you “my lady/m’lady” (think Cat Noir’s nickname for Lady Bug from “Miraculous: Tales of Lady Bug and Cat Noir” and especially how he says it, which is often very playfully) or “m’lord.” He’d also use “(my) prince/princess,” especially when he buys you gifts. (I feel like he'd love to spoil his partner omg.)

Pet names from his partner:

Jayce LOVES when you use pet names for him. Honestly it makes him smile. And he loves how creative you’ve gotten with some of them.

Classics for you to use in public would be “babe,” “baby,” or “honey.” Simple and quick, definitely easy to get his attention with those.

If he’s ever talking about HexTech with you, feel free to lovingly tease him with “smarty pants” or “big brain.” (Please listen to this man talk about HexTech. It’s far more interesting than council shit.)

While Viktor is definitely running the lab now that Jayce is a councilor, Jayce is still the face of HexTech (and Piltover’s “Golden Boy” <- call him that to tease him btw), so he’s the main one who tries to secure funding for the lab’s future. This means rubbing elbows with Piltover’s elite and giving speeches at fancy parties and banquets. Honestly he kinda hates it. He gets really nervous beforehand, but, he’s very good at it. Only you and Viktor know about Jayce’s nerves in these situations.

When he’s successful at this schmoozing, use “superstar,” “hotshot,” or “you charmer.” (Ex: (After he comes back from a speech, you’re straightening his tie after kissing his cheek.) “Way to go, hotshot…I saw potential funders pulling out their checkbooks before you were even finished.”)

Ok listen, we’ve all see the forge scenes…Jayce Talis is physically FINE AS FUCK (though OSHA would have something to say about him being shirtless in there 😂). Being a house known for forging tools comes with its physique benefits, so feel free to feed his ego on this point.

He loves when you call him “sexy” or “handsome.” He does like knowing you find him physically attractive.

Whenever he calls you “shorty” or “peanut” feel free to fire back with “big guy.” (I just…Ex- Jayce: *pulls you into a hug and murmurs* “Hey peanut..” You: *smiles and murmurs back* “Hey big guy..” 🥺 FUCK that is just so cute to me.)

He may not call you “my darling” or “my love,” but he LOVES when you call him those. When you do, he is wrapped around your little finger and ready to do whatever you ask of him.

Thank you so much for reading!!

I had such a blast writing this and I’m sooooo excited to get into writing more stuff for Arcane because I really love the show. Shoutout to my bestie (mentioned in Jayce’s first section lol) for also loving Viktor and being excited to read my writing in all its draft-stages!

[ecargmura]

Wind Breaker Episode 10 Review - Yesterday's Enemies Are Today's Friends

Did you know that only three days have passed in-universe? Episode 1 was a whole day. Episodes 2-4 are the second day and Episodes 5-10 are the third day. Crazy, right? It’s also crazy to have a picnic with your enemies, right? Well, that’s what Umemiya decrees, so it must happen. It’s like that quote, “Yesterday’s enemies could be today’s friends.” Come to think of it, that quote is heavily applied here! Bofurin and Shishitoren are now on good terms with each other!

The picnic scene with Bofurin, Togame and Choji was nice. I guess my only little gripe was that only Togame and Choji were present and not Sako, Arima and Kanuma. I guess it’s a bit more meaningful if the two tops were there and not minions. It was still a missed opportunity for the anime to add the other three, honestly. Anyways, I do like Umemiya’s philosophy on what it means to be the top of a gang. He equates it to eating. He loves eating and wants to be with people as he eats. Having people gathering around him while he eats is the same as being the top of the gang. He gets to do something he likes and do it with others. He’s here because he has people he can count on and people who look up to him. Being the top wasn’t a solo effort, but a team one. It’s a good lesson for Choji as he once had people whom he could count on but chose to leave behind. It’s also a good lesson for Sakura who has always been alone and doesn’t understand what it means to not be alone. It’s a good growing experience for him. 

The scene with Bofurin hanging out at Cafe Pothos was also a nice scene too. Umemiya wanted to know if Sakura was able to convey his words to Togame. However, Sakura never heard a voice or anything. It turns out that Sakura took his words literally instead of figuratively. What Umemiya was trying to get at was for Sakura to feel something for his opponents. I believe it worked because Sakura did try to punch Choji when he kicked Togame. I do believe Togame is the first time he connected with someone through his fists, hence why their bond is rather unique. He’s the reason why Togame was able to make amends with Choji and Shishitoren and deal with that comes after together. No matter how much Sakura denies it, he does like Togame which was why he was very fervent on wanting him to become a cool guy.

Other than the good scenes with Bofurin, I also liked the parts with Choji and Togame. The part where they were prostrating and Sakura scolding them was so cute. However, my favorite part was when the two were sharing anpan together. When Choji was laughing and enjoying the taste of squished anpan, the scene moved Togame so much that he lied about the rain when it was bright and sunny. It reminded me a lot of the scene in Fullmetal Alchemist Brotherhood where Roy cried at Hughes’s funeral and lied to Hawkeye about the rain. Since the anime, Togame has become one of my favorite characters and to see him cry over the fact that his sun has returned got me emotional. I’m so happy for you, Togame.

However, the best part of the episode was Sakura spitting out his coffee at Umemiya and him actually reacting poorly to the coffee in his eyes. That part was the needed comedy in an emotionally heartwarming episode. Then, the part where Sugishita was threatening to throw a chair at Sakura was also hilarious. I’m surprised he hasn’t been banned from Cafe Pothos yet.

Good news for Wind Breaker fans, there are thirteen episodes, which means that there are three episodes left. As a manga reader, I think there’s enough room to have a good conclusion for the first season. Who knows if a second season will be announced? I sure hope it does because next week is definitely the debut of Tsugeura and Kiryu who are also important characters, but it’d suck if they only get minimal screen time despite having high quality voice actors. What are your thoughts on this episode?

[cjstheshethey]

I really wanna talk about Blue Beetle and why it's so important to me. SPOILERS UNDER THE CUT!

Ever since this movie was announced, I was excited because I have familiarized myself with the character of Jaime Reyes for over a decade now. My sister introduced to me to the character when we had our late night Young Justice marathons during a vacation in Mexico back in 2013. Eventually, we got to season 2, where Jaime was introduced. I remember when he would speak Spanish, I would say "Hey he speaks Spanish like us!" And sometimes my non-English speaking cousins would join us watching the show, and when he spoke Spanish, they were able to understand him. As time went on I kinda forgot about DC for a while since I was gaining other interests until Young Justice came back for its 3rd and 4th seasons(This is also your subtle sign that if you haven't watched Young Justice you should do that). Naturally, Jaime is still one of my favorite characters in the show. While I was still in my Young Justice hyperfixation, It was announced that a Blue Beetle movie was happening and even had some concept art shown. Me being the superhero loving Mexican nerd that I am, I was already hyped, and we hadn't even gotten a trailer yet. Then, on April 3rd of this year, the first trailer came out, and I was so excited. DC has been one of my special interests since literally as long as I can remember no joke one of the first shows I ever remember seeing was the original Teen Titans and so combine one of my special interests with one of the most important parts of my identity(my ethnicity) and an excuse to go to the movies? I was stoked. And so I finally saw it a couple of days ago, and I LOVED it. From the family dynamic to the music choices(La Chona in the beginning where Rudy was introduced was the most Mexican introduction ever and I love it.) and even a few references to Mexican culture I didn't expect, Blue Beetle was everything to me. Finally a movie centered around a Mexican family that wasn't afraid to go into topics like immigration and straight up racism towards Mexicans and those topics not taking up the whole story while also not stereotyping any of these characters and treating them like real people. These guys did their research, and it showed. During the part where Jaime comes back to Earth and starts saying something in Spanish, he's saying a prayer. I used to say that particular prayer a lot back when I was a kid, which is a good thing they added that in there because it makes relatable to someone like me. I really wanna make note of one of my favorite scenes from the movie. So after Jaime gets the Scarab and it attaches itself to him, he tries to find a way to get it off him. Once they go to Ted Kords' hidden lab and find out he can't get rid of it safely, he angerly walks out. His uncle Rudy follows him up to the roof. Rudy asks if Jaimes ok and Jaime apologizes for yelling at Rudy. Rudy then starts giving a really good talk about the family and how resilient they are. Then he says this. "I mean, look at your old man. He brought me here from Sonora....when I was 10." No joke, just ask @alextric-overload(Hey dude 😁) and my other friends who came with me, I legitimately gasped in that theater. Why? Because that's where my family is from. Never before did I ever imagine Sonora would even be mentioned in any media let alone a big screen superhero movie but I am so glad it was and I've said it before and I'll say it again: Never in my life have I felt so seen and so represented. The moment those credits rolled, I legit said word for word, "This! This is how you do representation. MORE. OF. THIS. PLEASE." This is why representation is so important because if we continue to make movies like this, more people like me can see themselves in media and feel the way I did. REPRESENTATION MATTERS! So please go support this movie if you haven't already, it's so worth it!

[noona96n]

Yoh & Segasaki's timeline

According to Episode 7 (around the 00:33 minute mark), Yoh and segasaki have only been living together for four months. And Nikke-sensei's tweet, also clarifies that the proposal was made 3 years ago and that they’ve only been living together since March or April; which explains, in part, their shit communication lmao. 

Series timeline: June to July of year zero 

Ep 1: June 3rd (Sat)

The sunny weather forecast with Segasaki and Takatsu Reiko around the 12:30 minute mark in the latter part of Episode 1 is for 6月3日 (土). That means the present timeline, as in the drama, starts at the beginning of June; which tracks with the weather in the current episode and the weather in future episodes. Rainy season (梅雨 tsuyu) in Kanto (that includes Tokyo and Yokohama) usually starts in early June and lasts until mid-July, and, by then, typhoons already started ravaging the nation every two days lol 

Ep 2: June 8th (Thur) 

At the 8:03 minute mark, we find out that Hiyoshi Aika starts her job at EW (AHAHA WHAT A GOOFY ABBREVIATION) on the 8th of June (Hiyoshi Aika starts the broadcast by announcing the date: 六月八日). By June 10th, Yoh full-on became a sad, sulky puppy who’s pouting cutely as he made his sad stir-fry pork dinner (Yoh’s phone screen at the 9:05 minute mark reads ６月10日 土曜日). 

Around 9:56 minute mark the in-universe weather forecast shows forecasts for the 12th (Mon), 13th (Tue), 14th (Wed), 15th (Thur), 16th (Fri), 17th (Sat), and 18th (Sun) in Sapporo, Tokyo, Nagoya, Osaka, Fukuoka, and Naha, suggesting that the day that Yoh resorts to making the Teru Teru Bouzu is June 11th. (Teru Teru Bouzu is a small ghost-like white doll people hang around the house in the hope of stopping the rain and bringing about good weather. Yoh’s desperate for some dicking down lol.) So, the day Yoh got frustrated and masturbated for erotic manga inspiration is at least a day after June 11th. Yoh and Segasaki’s clothes changed by then (the most noticeable is Segasaki’s shirt and tie). 

Since the tail end of Episode 2 probably takes place on June 12th, at the earliest, we can only assume that Episode 3 and 4 take place over the weekend of the 17th and 18th. Or the next weekend after. I’m tempted to even suggest that both episodes take place on the weekend of 24th (Sat) and 25th (Sun) because of how loud the cicadas were in the background in the 4th episode with Man-san. Cicadas in Japan are no joke, guys, they are so fucking damn loud, RIP ears, you will be missed. 

Ep 6: July 24th (Mon) 

*** I think canon dates broke down from Episode 5 onward… Around the 14:47 minute mark of Episode 5, Segasaki and Hiyoshi were presenting the weather for the 7th (Thur). There’s no monthly indication but we can assume that it’s in July; July because we were just in June in the first four episodes but also because (the beginning of) July is when the (awful, terrible, no good) heatwave starts taking Japan by storm (it lasts until fucking August and even spills into September this goddamn year, I kid you not; it was horrible). But, in Episode 6, the weather forecast at the end of the episode (around the 21:33 minute mark) was for 24th (Mon). If the 7th was a Thursday, then the 24th should be a Sunday, not a Monday. 

That’s why I’m just gonna disregard the 7th (Thur) in Episode 5, though I do think it takes place at the beginning of June or the end of July. Also, if we disregard that and count the days from Episode 1 (Saturday, June 3rd), then Monday, July 24th would make sense in Episode 6. So, let's go with that.

By the end of Episode 6, it’s the 24th of July. I know this is a while from Episode 5 but if we consider Man-san’s My Idol Boyfriend manga, then it makes sense. Yoh was ‘offered a job’ by Man-san pretty much immediately after he got dropped by his editor and by Episode 7, their manga was already in print. It would take them some time to finish their manga; less than a month is a very tight time to write, storyboard, edit, and have it approved but let’s make believe lol 

Ep 7: Typhoon No. 5

At the beginning of Episode 7 (around the 00:09 minute mark), Typhoon No. 5 was forecasted to take Tokyo by storm tomorrow. That kinda checks out, to be honest. Typhoon season in Japan could start as early as mid-May and could last until mid-October, depending on how early or late the heat begins and how long it’ll last. So I do think Episode 7 takes place some time after July 24th. 

Interesting tidbit: typhoons in Japan aren’t given names but are usually referred to by numbers. 

Personal (interesting?) tidbit #1: the first year I came to Japan, the super typhoon Hagibis made landfall in Japan. It was the strongest typhoon to hit Japan in decades and it was one of the strongest and biggest ever recorded. It was hella scary, not gonna lie lol and food was all out, even from the convenience stores. Fortunately, I was living in central Tokyo and wasn’t affected. Still scared though…. And, the crazy thing was, an earthquake struck the coast of Chiba before the typhoon hit so the typhoon’s effect was compounded. Wasn’t a fun experience, 0/10, do not recommend. 

Personal (interesting?) tidbit #2: my parents visited me this passing late May to early June, around the time typhoon Mawar wasn’t waging war in the Pacific. It was not a fun experience… we weren’t directly struck by it but the effects were kinda crazy: roads were closed, trains were suspended, rivers were flooded, and shops and restaurants were mostly closed. Felt really bad cause I took my family to Hakone (booked everything ages in advance and couldn’t cancel our reservation RIP) and we were just stranded up there… thankfully the sky cleared by our last day there and we were able to catch a glimpse of Fuji on our Ashi-no-ko’s cruise and on the train back to Tokyo. Still, wasn’t a fun experience, 0/10, do not recommend. 

Japan’s a wonderful place to visit though! Just… pick the right time. (I recommend autumn (Oct-Nov) because the weather’s great, the food’s fucking amazing, and the autumn foilage’s pretty rad.) 

Ep 8: July 28th 

The date after their (mildly) kinky sexy time was July 28th (Fri). The date can be found on Man-san’s phone around the 11:00 minute mark (7月28日、金曜日). 

There’s also another time indication later in the episode around the 17:13 minute mark where Yoh and Segasaki last texted on July 26th. Segasaki was telling Yoh about the rain and Yoh’s responses were pretty frosty if I’m being honest. Their texts go like this:

Segasaki: 今日午後から雨降る (It’s gonna rain this evening) Yoh: ありがとう (thanks) Segasaki: 洗濯物取り込んどけよ (bring the laundry in) Yoh: うん (k) 

It’s… frosty. Bare minimum from Yoh. Ofc he’s just feeling guilty (about the manga situation and stuff) but, y’know… it feels cold to Segasaki. I honestly feel really bad for the guy lol, especially because, from his perspective, Yoh’s only thinking about leaving and Yoh’s touchy-feely with that editor guy, and Yoh smiles happily and fully at and with that editor guy, and Yoh’s tired from being with him. 

Anyway, the series takes place from June to July of year zero and that’s canon. There, I said it. 

Yoh moving in: April of year zero

As you can see from my shittily drawn ‘graph’, I place Yoh’s moving in with Segasaki at April. This tracks with the timeline and Nikke-sensei’s clarification as well as in-universe narrative of them only been living together for four months. But, I’m extra so I’m gonna explain why (I found out about sensei’s tweet after figuring out the timeline lol)... and it’s not just backtracking from July. 

So, in Japan, the year usually ‘starts’ in April; as in the school year and the fiscal year ends in March and starts in April. This applies to leases as well: contracts are usually for 2 years and will likely end in March. Housing is in very high demand during that time and the prices for each unit are also very expensive because of that. Of course, you can rent a unit any time of the year but the good ones are also mostly available and up for grabs in the March-April period. (Renting a unit in Japan is… an experience lol and not a fun one. My being a foreigner does not help one bit because many landlords do not accept foreign tenants no matter who you are, where you’re from, or what you’re in Japan for.) 

Anyways, as Yoh can see, I think that Yoh graduated in year zero… so, that’s a winter graduation some time in February. (People also graduate in summer some time in August but it’s much rarer because most Japanese enter uni in Spring (April). People who graduate in September are either those who extend their uni year or foreign students who enter during the Autumn intake in September because that’s when the English program school year start (in my department, at least… I entered in April and graduated my Master's 3 years later in February but it’s a somewhat special case.)

Anyway!!! Yoh graduates ‘this’ year so, that means his lease will be up too and it makes perfect sense for him to move with Segasaki around late March or early April. 

The proposal: mid-Feb —  late-March three years ago

I place the proposal at the end of Winter, beginning of Spring in year minus-three. Weather-wise, it’s plausible because we know that the day of the proposal was unusually warm for the time and February is easily one of the coldest months in Japan. And, even though Spring starts in March, warmth doesn’t really come around until later in the month or even April. (It snowed in March, once. In Tokyo. It rarely ever snows in Tokyo but it’s been snowing every other year since I came here.) 

I also headcanon that Segasaki graduated (his Master's) that minus-three year while Yoh is only in his second year of bachelor’s. My logic is that because he’s graduating, this could be his last desperate attempt to lock Yoh down and make sure Yoh’s spoken for (Yoh’s just a dumb-dumb who doesn’t recognize a proposal lol). It also makes sense for the proposal to come up at that period if we think about it… Mizuki’s graduating and Yoh could be asking him about his jobs after graduation and whatever else which, in turn, allows Mizuki to start a conversation about Yoh’s plan for the future. It’s also not uncommon for peeps to hang around uni before they start their jobs (for whatever reasons) so it makes sense to me that the proposal was in some time between Mizuki’s graduation in mid-Feb till late-March, when Yoh’s about to start his new school year and Segasaki will have to start his job. (This could be when Yoh finds out Segasaki will be working with EW and starts watching the broadcast religiously.) 

Job prospect-wise, it’s pretty solid. Segasaki’s confident that he’d be working in a high-paying job when he proposed to Yoh. If Segasaki’s graduating in year minus-three, then he’d extremely likely to already have a job lined up for him; he’s just gonna immediately enter the workforce right out of uni. This is very common in Japan. University graduates are socially expected and pressured into working immediately after finishing their studies which is why it’s common practice for them to start their job-hunting process during the second to last or last year at uni. It’s generally advised that they start second to last year in uni (B3 if you’re in your bachelor’s and M1 if you’re in your Master's) because the process is long and drawn out and it could be a very long time before a job is offered. It’s also ill-advised to do your job-hunting in your final year because final year can be very hectic for some; some B4 and M2 students need to write their thesis, do graduation projects, finish up their experiments, etc. it’s not fun to add job-hunting into the mix. So, even if the proposal happened right after Segasaki’s graduation, Segasaki would be confident that he’d be able to support both of them just fine. 

Why I don’t think Yoh did his job hunting 

I honestly don’t think Yoh did his job-hunting because:

As I talked about here, Yoh became anxious about jobs and job-hunting in general in Episode 5 and this could imply that he didn’t go through the process while he was in university. You could do it on your own, but it’s difficult. That’s why many students take advantage of the recruitment offered by universities. Many also make use of other public recruitment services. 

Yoh’s the kind of person who does things at his own pace and does what he wants. I.E. 1; Yoh is a slow walker who has always walked slow. Segasaki made a point of commenting about his pace but instead of increasing his speed to match that of his sempai’s, he continued at his own pace and said he’s been told that before, and Segasaki was forced to match his pace. Yoh’s aware of his snail's pace, he was criticized for it but said fuck all and went about walking at his speed anyway. This is very not-Japanese. I.E. #2; He doesn’t really care to socialize. That’s it, that’s the reason. I.E. #3; my guy used 俺 (ore) with the stranger seniors. Peeps aren’t expected to drop 俺 (ore) and go for 僕 (boku) when talking to seniors anymore but they’re strangers… he should be using 僕 (boku). I.E. #4; he made fucking curry rice for a sick person because that’s the only thing he can make. Curry rice. He could’ve googled how to make porridge but nah, curry rice lol. I.E. #5; arguing with his editor that the ‘I love you’ dialogue is necessary in his 20 pages long porn manga. I don’t man, Yoh’s not afraid to do his own shit and he totally seems like the kinda guy who’d fuck around and find out when it comes to his career. Which I think is why Yoh’s secured that he has a patron in Segasaki and decided not to do his job-hunting. 

Yoh & Segasaki’s first meeting: May —  June four years ago

I think Yoh first ‘met’ Segasaki four years ago; that’s his first year in university, and that would explain why he hasn’t seen Segasaki sooner. I placed their first meeting in May — June mainly because of their outfits. Everyone was wearing a Spring palette when we first saw them at the cafeteria, but they weren’t wearing any thick outer layers so that’s probably very late into Spring and early June. Their clothes also became progressively lighter throughout the flashback and, by the time Segasaki was sick, there were more layers on everyone again, esp. Segasaki, indicating that Autumn could’ve been around the corner. (Though this could just be due to the timing of the filming!)

Also, Segasaki’s friend asked for his notebook, implying that there’s a report/assignment/quiz coming up that he needs to prepare for. So, at least we know it’s definitely not the start of the semester.

On Mizuki’s Master’s level education 

I’ll be real… I’m entirely biased when it comes to Segasaki’s educational level. I have a Master's and I’m an old, I want my fav to be an old too haha. (I’m currently doing my PhD, it’s… going somewhere lmao) 

Anyway, I didn’t make him have a Master's just because… I think Segasaki has a position of seniority in the workplace despite his young age: he led the discussion and (I presume) implemented the new weather reporting system thing. He was also comfortable with rejecting the welcome dinner (歓迎会 kangeikai) for Hiyoshi… and his co-workers, who are obviously his seniors, just accept it as it is. You don’t just reject invitations to after-work dinners/parties, 飲み会 (nomikai), especially not the kangeikai. It’s a party to welcome new members; rejecting it means you’re not a team player and unwilling to bond with your co-workers to cultivate a harmonious workplace relationship, which is a no-no in Japan (please read up on 和 (wa) if you’re interested in learning why), and definitely a no-no if you’re not high-up in position. (There’s a lot of politics going on in the background that I’m not very familiar with. I understand the most basics; like filling superior’s glasses, ‘hanging out’ with superiors, being frank and up-front and coming away unscathed, power-harassment bosses forcing people to drink, etc.) So, Segasaki must’ve entered the workplace in a relatively high position; which is achievable with a Master's. 

Interesting tidbit #1: did you know, you don’t get fired from a workplace in Japan? If the company wanna lay off people, they usually just close the entire department lol crazy, I know, but it’s legit. It’s why people can be employed for life at work.

Interesting tidbit #2: not many Japanese students go for a Master's but when they do, they usually enter right after their Bachelor’s. However, there are certain majors where having a Master’s is advantageous and students are generally encouraged to go for it. I.E. my major, Architecture and Urbanism, and Civil Engineering. These majors typically take 5 years of undergrad for students to qualify as practitioners. In Japan, their Bachelor’s only lasts for 4 years and a 2 years Master’s will put them on the same level as other practitioners from abroad. (I did 5 years of Undergrad in Architecture and Urbanism and another 3 years for my M.Arch degree lol and there are years to go until I get my Doctoral RIP)

wrote this whole thing bcs of this silly lil fic lmao

[jjkeremika]

all or (Formula) n(One)

chapter one: Bahrain Grand Prix

eremika; Ferrari racer! eren jaeger x engineer/mechanic! mikasa ackerman

description: “Big day for Ferrari fans out there, as today is racing driver Eren Jaeger’s big Ferrari Formula One debut. After years of racing for Rodin Motorsports in Formula 2, Jaeger has finally made the biggest and most impressive upgrade of his career!”

“And you know what’s most interesting about his switch, Alex, is that he brought his Rodin mechanic, Mikasa Ackerman, with him! A first for any driver and mechanic, and, frankly, this sport.”

tag/disclaimer(s): this chapter is written as camera screens and commentary from Formula 1 radio hosts (Alex and Martin); eremika; friends to lovers dynamic

ao3

**Opening Day; Bahrain Grand Prix; Race Day**

“And what a gorgeous night it is in Bahrain—the perfect night to kick off the 2024 formula one season. A stunning first qualifying yesterday in Bahrain, where we saw the drivers set their starting order for the race today.”

“Really exciting stuff, Alex. Even more exciting is that—oh, and there he is on camera: Ferrari’s new young and upcoming racing driver Eren Jaeger.”

*camera pans to helmetless Eren Jaeger in the ferrari jumpsuit, walking around and talking to various mechanics on the team. appears to be inspecting his car. zoom in on car number 139. Zooms out to Eren talking to Ferrari team principal Fred Vasseur.*

“Ah, Eren Jaeger, one of the most exciting up and coming talents. the youngest driver in the paddock right now with the most impressive CV.”

“That’s right, Alex, and what an impressive CV it is. Championships left and right in formula 2, podium after podium in formula 3. We can only hope this bright star’s career has really only just begun.”

*camera pans to Eren Jaeger speaking with Mikasa Ackerman, also in a Ferrari jumpsuit (unzipped to expose some of her pale chest, allow some breathing room), pointing to the halo of the car and smiling, laughing. inaudible.*

“For his debut day, probably the highest pressure day of his entire career, he seems to be taking it lightly,” the formula one announcer, Alex, amused.

*camera is still on an inaudible Eren and Mikasa chatting, standing quite close together. their upper arms are grazing. camera zooms in until it’s just them in frame. Mikasa nods in response to something Eren says with a charming smile.*

“Well, we are staring right at his good luck charm, aren’t we?”

“That’s true,” Alex chuckles, “Now, Martin, was it a coincidence or a driver’s contract that brought her from Rodin to Ferrari?”

“Well, Alex, the rumors around the paddock are circling, and it’s been said that Jaeger and his mechanic were a package deal.”

“Said, but not confirmed.”

“No, not confirmed. But with an established, popular team like Scuderia Ferrari, it is strange to get a new addition to the crew. Especially when it pairs with their new driver—“

*camera shows Eren and Mikasa standing in front of the Ferrari car, Mikasa leaned over the front of the chassis, signing the top with a quick circled MK A above the driver number 139 in sharpie. camera zooms in on the signature as eren holds her hand to help her stand upright*

“And here we are seeing the start of a new tradition, or rather, the continuation of an old one. This is what I was referring to, Martin, with this driver-mechanic duo. What we are seeing is Ferrari’s new lead engineer and mechanic for car 139 quite literally signing off on the race car.”

“Now that is interesting, Alex, you really never see the mechanics or engineers physically signing the chassis.”

“They’re an interesting duo, Jaeger and Ackerman, but this tradition has kept the young driver scoring podium after podium after podium. She signed every car Jaeger drove in Formula 3, every car in Formula 2, and starting now it seems all the cars he’ll drive in Formula 1.”

*camera pans to Jaeger pulling his helmet on and getting into the seat; scans to Ackerman joining the rest of the red and white jumpsuited team in the garage. camera returns to the front of Jaeger’s car*

“Now look at that black MKA on that bright red Ferrari. An engineer’s stamp of approval, and maybe even a cast for good luck at winning that podium.”

*camera follows driver 139 as he powers on and pulls into the pit lane. camera zones out and slowly showcases the 20 cars exiting the pit lane*

“For those of us just now joining, what we are witnessing is the start of the formation lap. We have Reiner Braun and Levi Ackerman with the good old 1, 2 for Redbull, followed closely behind by Erwin Smith third with the McLaren and Jean Kirstein with Mercedes in fourth, his best qualifying position in Bahrain. In fifth we have Eren Jaeger in the MKA-signed Ferrari, a magnificent start for his first ever Formula One Grand Prix.”

“Yes, despite that awkward start during qualifying and some complaints about steering, Jaeger seemingly managed to overcome the understeer to place his fifth position. A great accomplishment for a first ever race in formula one.”

“Have to hand it to Mikasa and the team at Ferrari for fixing whatever issues his car was giving him yesterday, as his car performs superbly during the formation lap.”

*cars line up in starting position. the flag is waved behind the safety car. the five lights illuminate red.*

*the lights go out. the cars start down the straight towards the first corner.*

“A brilliant start for Braun there, and a great defense going into the first corner, keeping his own teammate behind him.”

“But with fifty-six more laps to go, we’ll see how well he defends that position and oh, wow! look at that! What a maneuver by Eren Jaeger there, going around the outside like that and succeeding.”

“With that extraordinary overtake Jaeger moves up to fourth position, leaving Kirstein in a trail of dirty air as that Ferrari cruises down the straight, right into turn 5.”

*lap 30. drones follow Ferrari car 139 as it narrows in behind the McLaren and the Redbull*

“Let’s check back in with the podium chasers over here. We have Jaeger with a 0.2 second gap behind Smith, who has a 0.5 second gap to Ackerman.”

“You may be wondering where our race leader Braun is, but he’s safely cruising ahead with a five second gap while Ackerman clings onto second position.”

“And clings onto that corner there. Look how tightly he hug the inner rim. That’s going to cause some damage to the floor of the car.”

“That’s right, Martin, and it looks like we’re seeing the effects of that damage in real time as we are now watching both Smith in the McLaren and Jaeger in the Ferrari cruise right on by Ackerman in the Redbull, who has just found himself in fourth place.”

“As they turn the corner into lap 31 here the crowd watches with anticipation as that red Ferrari closes the gap to the orange McLaren.”

“Jaeger enters the range for DRS, and you can only imagine how Smith feels, having been in that seat for almost a decade, and now having his newly acquired second position threatened by young talent.”

*Car 139 overtakes the McLaren into second position and speeds off. camera cuts to Ferrari team cheering*

“I mean, Jaeger made that inside overtake look easy as he sped right between Smith and turn two, and slipped into second position.”

“That car is a rocketship, isn’t it. Like a racehorse we are watching a Ferrari close that multi-second gap to last year’s championship winner, Reiner Braun.”

*lap 55. Braun in Redbull in first. 0.9 seconds behind is Jaeger in Ferrari. In third with a three second gap is Smith. camera focuses on the Redbull and chasing Ferrari*

“We are nearing the end of the race here, lap 55 out of 57, and world champion Reiner Braun is still evading newcomer Jaeger’s attempts at closing that gap and overtaking into that first place podium position.”

“That ferrari looks to be in DRS range—and we’re seeing Jaeger push on that throttle onto the straight as the two enter their final lap.”

“Oh look at that scarlet Ferrari go wheel to wheel with the Redbull down the first straight. Jaeger tries to cut in front but—oh! the world champion anticipated that and stepped the break a little early, prevented Eren from getting past.”

“Oh, but, Alex, look at how Jaeger immediately tries again in turn two. Looks like there’s hope in the maneuver as Jaeger pulls out of the turn in front but that Redbull accelerates him back into first space. Wheel to wheel again as they approach the next corner.”

Martin laughs. “You can practically feel the frustration from both drivers as they fight for that pole position. Oh, look at this! The scarlet driver refusing to back off from the outside st turn six, Braun’s redbull taking up the curve and almost pushing Jaeger off the track but he manages into the inside—refuses to give up as the Redbull tries to accelerate but Jaeger’s got DRS and fresh air as he speeds away into first place!”

“What an amazing last effort battle for pole position and there’s the checkered flag! Jaeger in the Ferrari takes pole position! An incredible achievement for his first ever Formula One race! An amazing effort and result for his first ever debut! And let’s listen to his radio:”

*camera cuts to Eren Jaeger, Ferrari driver, who has one hand on the wheel and is pumping the other in excitement*

“Great work, Eren, fantastic job,” the race engineer spoke over the radio, to which Eren immediately responded in cheer.

“Woohoo! Yes! Yes! Tell Mikasa: great work! What a fantastic car! Amazing work, team. Incredible support from the fans.”

*Ferrari car 139 pulls into the podium position, the MKA clearly visible in the frame. Eren practically jumped out of the car in excitement, threw his arms into air. The ferrari team flooded onto the track.*

*Eren jumps off the chassis and places his helmet on the driver’s seat. frantically looks around for his lead engineer. camera zooms out to show Mikasa rushing over with the pit crew and Eren pulls her into a massive hug. he’s congratulating her. she’s congratulating him.*

“A momentous occasion for the entire team here. An incredible start to this F1 season. And if this is any indication of newcomer Eren Jaeger’s career in Formula One, this is about to be one win of many Grand Prix. Thank you all for joining us tonight. I’m Alex.”

“I’m Martin.”

“And we will see you at next racing weekend, at the Saudi Arabia Grand Prix.”

[sunhazeheart]

While I understand that they had a lot of ground to cover in the show, I really wish they'd just lengthened the season so we could get move covered in the years between them. I could do this for so many characters, but one person that fascinates me is Alicent in the spaces between time skips.

For example, one thing would be thinking about what basically surrounded her in the days, weeks and months after Viserys announced that he intended to marry her. While I'm sure lots of superficial courtiers flocked to her looking to cozy up to the Queen-To-Be, but there's no way there wasn't also a lot of scorn from others, particularly other girls in court and power-hungry fathers, brothers, etc.

Before this, Alicent is of not practicular importance in court besides the fact that she is the close personal friend of the princess. Her father is Hand, yes, which garners lots of respect, but as far as I know he doesn't have much else besides the station that he's worked for. He's an unlanded second son, and with him having at least one son of his own, while the Hightowers are obviously one of the wealthiest families in Westeros, there would be limitations to her dowery and what else she brings to the table besides prestige and the general good graces of being a young pretty girl supposedly able to provide children. She's slightly removed from the main branch of the Hightower family which will continue down her cousin's line. I'm not saying she doesn't have prospects, BUT she's not exactly worth a King.

So I could see rumors quickly spreading around her about why the King chose her over a Velaryon, or another sister or daughter of a great lord. Honestly, I don't think anyone was thinking there even could be another option besides Laena. Maybe we just didn't see it, but I didn't get the impression of noble families trying to parade their women in front of him. Even with the knowledge Viserys basically has to marry again. If I'm not mistaken, up to this point, no Targaryen King or prince had married outside of the Targaryen or Velaryon families (besides Jocelyn Baratheon who was half Velaryon, and of course Maegor, but he's an outlier is several ways). So imagine the surprise of lords and ladies that young Alicent Hightower, of all people, managed to snag the King. 100% Servants and guards or other people in the Keep saw her in or entering/leaving the King's chambers. In episode 2, the second scene of them together it looks like they're sharing a meal. I would imagine rumors could swirl about her visits to the Viserys being more salacious than they were, and an interesting take could be almost like the reverse of Alicent and Larys talking about Rhaenyra years later in the gardens.

There's the cut scene of Rhaenyra appearing to scream and rage at Alicent directly after the announcement of Viserys' intent to marry her, which imo, completely understandable with the limited information and surprise that Rhaenyra was just dealt. And of course the next episodes showcases Rhaenyra's isolation from both her father and Alicent as her stepmother. But there are the stills of a scene of Rhaenyra helping Alicent dress for her royal wedding and appearing to wipe the blood from around her nails. A few different scenarios could have culminated in this happened, whether Viserys forced her to, as an attempt to reconnect the girls, or this was the first instance of Alicent reluctantly using her soon-to-be rank over Rhaenyra to force her to talk to her, or if Rhaenyra simply chose to etc etc.

But the reason why I bring this up is that in those two poor-ass quality screen caps, Rhaenyra doesn't seem overly angry or hostile. So many the girls had a slight reconciliation at that point? Maybe Alicent tried to explain to Rhaenyra that it was on her father's commands that she became close to the King? Who knows. But then things could turn back very angry and hurt on Rhaenyra's side if, lets say at the feast and celebrations after the wedding, Rhaenyra, who no longer has any friends in court and likely already began to keep to herself, were to begin to overhear the scandalous rumors that Alicent seduced Viserys and visited him in pretty finery as soon as the very night after Aemma's funeral. That could be what broke down again the tentative bridge they may have built and results in Rhaenyra rebuffing Alicent again and again like we see in Episode 3.

Also, how was Alicent when she first found out she was pregnant? She has no mother or really any female figure in her life to speak with her about such things and what to expect, besides the probably very misinformed and clinical maesters. She's very much a child forced to go through the strain and pain of pregnancy, as if the sad truth for most girls in this world. She would have witnessed time and time again Aemma's miscarriages and stillbirths, while not likely physically present at them, seeing the toil of the aftermath on her best friend and her parents would have been terrifying enough.

On top of that, no matter how much remorse and guilt Viserys expresses over what was done to Aemma, I don't think she or anyone could ever 100% believe that he would never put his desire to have children, specifically a son, over her life.

And while I picture her father putting a whole lot of pointless pressure on her for her child to be a boy, and no doubt Viserys as well, I could see her almost wanting it to be a girl. While they're apart, Alicent's personal loyalty and love I would think it still reaching out to Rhaenyra. She wants her friend back, she wants the only person that I believe ever truly loved her for her, besides maybe her own mother. I think that Alicent wouldn't want to take that last thing for Rhaenyra, which she knows how much it means to her.

I wonder how Alicent felt when Aegon was born, a boy and given the name of a conquerer. How she watched Viserys fawn and preen over his new son, while she felt disconnected by the child she never even wanted to have yet. Maybe she expects to feel the mother's love that all women are meant to feel when they first see their child, but when he's laid in her arms she just sees a screaming little babe who is just a point blank reminder of her girlhood being gone and all the different expectations being mounted on her and any child that she has. Like she says later, she'd like to be Lady Alicent, but everyone only sees her at the Queen and now as the Prince's mother.