#blackheart and co

[angry-kid-with-no-money]

How well would your OCs do against a cockroach tag game

🚧Fear Factor Edition⚠️

Tagged by @gummybugg

Rules: rate your OCs by how well they'd do against a cockroach. Bonus: write an entire scene out of it if you want!

i am now realising that i haven't shared these oc's with tumblr yet so this is exciting. Thank you @multifandomgoth who i share custody of these guys with, for helping me hash these out.

Max Blackheart- has a weird fascination with bugs, will pick it up with her bare hands much to the disgust of everyone else. Sometimes likes to dangle it in front of peoples faces for the laughs but will put it outside like a normal person eventually

Ryder Blackheart- back up option to get rid of it if Max isn't there bc my guy is so tired and does not care about this stupid bug

Tyler Quill- attacks it with bug spray. likes to act as if he isn't scared but if it moves he will scream. usually the one to suggest burning the house down and moving

Nixon- climbs on the table and spams the groupchat until someone rescues her

Axel and Phoenix- put a cup over it but need someone else to do the rest. Have been known to forget about the trapped bug and get very upset when they realise it's dead. :(

Siren Blackheart- tries to vacuum it up, very low success rate. usually ends up calling max for help

Midnight Quill- records Siren and Tyler's fails. Otherwise does very little to help.

don't feel pressured to participate espec cause idk if half of yall have ocs, anyway, tagging @jtl-fics @regina-cordium @patchworkgargoylele @multifandomgoth @ihatecoconut @planeoftheeclectic

[xandriagreat]

Modern Nimona

[renthony]

Nimona: a Story of Trans Rights, Queer Solidarity, and the Battle Against Censorship

by Ren Basel renbasel.com

The 2023 film Nimona, released on Netflix after a tumultuous development, is a triumph of queer art. While the basic plot follows a mischievous shapeshifter befriending a knight framed for murder, at its heart Nimona is a tale of queer survival in the face of bigotry and censorship. Though the word “transgender” is never spoken, the film is a deeply political narrative of trans empowerment.

The film is based on a comic of the same name, created by Eisner-winning artist N.D. Stevenson. (1) Originally a webcomic, Nimona stars the disgraced ex-knight Ballister Blackheart and his titular sidekick, teaming up to topple an oppressive regime known as the Institution. The webcomic was compiled into a graphic novel published by Harper Collins on May 12, 2015. (2)

On June 11, 2015, the Hollywood Reporter broke the news Fox Animation had acquired rights to the story. (3) A film adaptation would be directed by Patrick Osborne, written by Marc Haimes, and produced by Adam Stone. Two years later, on February 9, 2017, Osborne confirmed the film was being produced with the Fox-owned studio Blue Sky Animation, and on June 30 of that same year, he claimed the film would be released Valentine’s Day 2020. (4)

Then the Walt Disney Company made a huge mess.

On December 14, 2017, Disney announced the acquisition of Twenty-First Century Fox, Inc. (5) Industry publications began speculating the same day about Blue Sky’s fate, though nothing would be confirmed until after the deal’s completion on March 19, 2019. (6) At first it seemed the studio would continue producing films under Disney’s governance, similar to Disney-owned Pixar Animation. (7)

The fate of the studio—and Nimona’s film adaptation—remained in purgatory for two years. During that time, Patrick Osborne left over reported creative differences, and directorial duties were taken over by Nick Bruno and Troy Quane. (8) Bruno and Quane continued production on the film despite Blue Sky’s uncertain future.

The killing blow came on February 9, 2021. Disney shut down Blue Sky and canceled Nimona, the result of economic hardship caused by COVID-19. (9) Nimona was seventy-five percent completed at the time, set to star Chloë Grace Moretz and Riz Ahmed. (10)

While COVID-19 caused undeniable financial upheaval for the working class, wealthy Americans fared better. (11) Disney itself scraped together enough to pay CEO Bob Iger twenty-one million dollars in 2020 alone. (12) Additionally, demand for animation spiked during the pandemic’s early waves, and Nimona could have been the perfect solution to the studio’s supposed financial woes. (13) Why waste the opportunity to profit from Blue Sky’s hard work?

It didn’t take long for the answer to surface. Speaking anonymously to the press, Blue Sky workers revealed the awful truth: Disney may have killed Nimona for being too queer. The titular character was gender-nonconforming, the leading men were supposed to kiss, and Disney didn’t like it. (14) While Disney may claim COVID-19 as the cause, it is noteworthy that Disney representatives saw footage of two men declaring their love, and not long after, the studio responsible was dead. (15) Further damning evidence came in February of 2024, when the Hollywood Reporter published an article quoting co-director Nick Bruno, who named names: Disney’s chief creative officer at the time, Alan Horn, was adamantly opposed to the film’s “gay stuff.” (16)

Disney didn’t think queer art was worthy of their brand, and it isn’t the first time. “Not fitting the Disney brand” was the justification for canceling Dana Terrace’s 2020 animated series The Owl House, which featured multiple queer characters. (17) Though Terrace was reluctant to assume queerphobia caused the cancellation, Disney’s anti-queer bias has been cited as a hurdle by multiple showrunners, including Terrace herself. (18) The company’s resistance to queer art is a documented phenomenon.

While Nimona’s film cancellation could never take N.D. Stevenson’s comic from the world, it was a sting to lose such a powerful queer narrative on the silver screen. American film has a long history of censoring queerness. The Motion Picture Production Code (commonly called the Hays Code) censored queer stories for decades, including them under the umbrella of “sex perversion.” (19) Though the Code was eventually repealed, systemic bigotry turns even modern queer representation milestones into battles. In 2018, when Rebecca Sugar, creator of the Cartoon Network series Steven Universe, succeeded in portraying the first-ever same-sex marriage proposal in American children’s animation, the network canceled the show in retaliation. (20)

When queer art has to fight so hard just to exist, each loss is a bitter heartbreak. N.D. Stevenson himself expressed sorrow that the world would never see what Nimona’s crew worked so hard to achieve. (21)

Nimona, however, is hard to kill.

While fans mourned, progress continued behind the scenes. Instead of disappearing into the void as a tax write-off, the film was quietly scooped up by Megan Ellison of Annapurna Pictures. (22) Ellison received a call days before Disney’s death blow to Blue Sky, and after looking over storyboard reels, she decided to champion the film. With Ellison’s support, former Blue Sky heads Robert Baird and Andrew Millstein did their damnedest to find Nimona a home. (23)

Good news arrived on April 11, 2022, when N.D. Stevenson made a formal announcement on Twitter (now X): Nimona was gloriously alive, and would release on Netflix in 2023. (24) Netflix confirmed the news in its own press release, where it also provided details about the film’s updated cast and crew, including Eugene Lee Yang as Ambrosius Goldenloin alongside Riz Ahmed’s Ballister Boldheart (changed from the name Blackheart in the comic) and Chloë Grace Moretz as Nimona. (25) The film was no longer in purgatory, and grief over its death became anticipation for its release.

Nimona made her film debut in France, premiering at the Annecy International Animation Film Festival on June 14, 2023 to positive reviews. (26) Netflix released the film to streaming on June 30, finally completing the story’s arduous journey from page to screen. (27)

When the film begins, the audience is introduced to the world through a series of illustrated scrolls, evoking the storybook intros of Disney princess films such as 1959’s Sleeping Beauty. The storybook framing device has been used to parody Disney in the past, perhaps most famously in the 2001 Dreamworks film Shrek. Just as Shrek contains parodies of the Disney brand created by a Disney alumnus, so, too, does Nimona riff on the studio that snubbed it. (28)

Nimona’s storybook intro tells the story of Gloreth, a noble warrior woman clad in gold and white, who defended her people from a terrible monster. After slaying the beast, Gloreth established an order of knights called the Institute (changed from the Institution in the comic) to wall off the city and protect her people.

Right away, the film introduces a Christian dichotomy of good versus evil. Gloreth is presented as a Christlike figure, with the Institute’s knights standing in as her saints. (29) Her name is invoked like the Christian god, with characters uttering phrases such as “oh my Gloreth” and “Gloreth guide you.” The film’s design borrows heavily from Medieval Christian art and architecture, bolstering the metaphor.

Nimona takes place a thousand years after Gloreth’s victory. Following the opening narration, the audience is dropped into a setting combining Medieval aesthetics with futuristic science fiction, creating a sensory delight of neon splashed across knights in shining armor. It’s in this swords-and-cyborgs city that a new knight is set to join the illustrious ranks of Gloreth’s Institute, now under the control of a woman known only as the Director (voiced by Frances Conroy). That new knight is our protagonist, Ballister Boldheart.

The film changes several things from the original. The comic stars Lord Ballister Blackheart, notorious former knight, long after his fall from grace. He has battled the Institution for years, making a name for himself as a supervillain. The film introduces a younger Ballister Boldheart who is still loyal to the Institute, who believes in his dream of becoming a knight and overcomes great odds to prove himself worthy. In the comic, Blackheart’s greatest rival is Sir Ambrosius Goldenloin, with whom he has a messy past. The film shows more of that past, when Goldenloin and Boldheart were young lovers eager to become knights by each other’s side.

There is another notable change: in the comic, Goldenloin is white, and Blackheart is light-skinned. In the film, both characters are men of color—specifically, Boldheart is of Pakistani descent, and Goldenloin is of Korean descent, matching the ethnicity of their respective voice actors. This change adds new themes of institutional racism, colorism, and the “model minority” stereotype. (30)

The lighter-skinned Goldenloin is, as his name suggests, the Institute’s golden boy. He descends from the noble lineage of Gloreth herself, and his face is emblazoned on posters and news screens across the city. He is referred to as “the most anticipated knight of a generation.” In contrast, the darker-skinned Boldheart experiences prejudice and hazing due to his lower-class background. His social status is openly discussed in the news. He is called a “street kid” and “controversial,” despite being the top student in his class. The newscasters make sure everyone knows he was only given the chance to prove himself in the Institute because the queen, a Black woman with established social influence, gave him her personal patronage. Despite this patronage, when the news interviews citizens on the street, public opinion is firmly against Boldheart.

To preserve the comic’s commentary on white privilege, some of Goldenloin’s traits were written into a new, white character created for the film, Sir Thoddeus Sureblade (voiced by Beck Bennett). Sureblade’s vitriol against both Boldheart and Goldenloin allowed Goldenloin to become a more sympathetic character, trapped in the system just as much as Boldheart. (31) This is emphasized at other points in the film when the audience sees Sureblade interact with Goldenloin without Boldheart present, berating the only person of color left in the absence of the darker-skinned man.

The day Boldheart is to be knighted, everything goes wrong. As Queen Valerin (voiced by Lorraine Toussaint) performs the much-anticipated knighting ceremony, a device embedded in Boldheart’s sword explodes, killing her instantly. Though Boldheart is not to blame, he is dubbed an assassin instead of a knight. In an instant, he becomes the most wanted man in the kingdom, and Queen Valerin’s hopes for progress and social equality seem dead with her. Boldheart is gravely injured in the explosion and forced to flee, unable to clear his name.

Enter Nimona.

The audience meets the titular character in the act of vandalizing a poster of Gloreth, only to get distracted by an urgent broadcast on a nearby screen. As she approaches, a bystander yells that she’s a “freak,” in a manner reminiscent of slurs screamed by passing bigots. Nimona has no time for bigots, spraying this one in the face with paint before tuning in to the news.

“Everyone is scared,” declare the newscasters, because queen-killer Ballister Boldheart is on the run. The media paints him as a monster, a filthy commoner who never deserved the chances he was given, and announce that, “never since Gloreth’s monster has anything been so hated.” This characterization pleases Nimona, and she declares him “perfect” before scampering off to find his hiding place.

It takes the span of a title screen for her to track him down, sequestered in a makeshift junkyard shelter. Just before Nimona bursts into the lair, the audience sees Boldheart’s injuries have resulted in the amputation of his arm, and he is building a homemade prosthetic. This is another way he’s been othered from his peers in an instant, forced to adapt to life-changing circumstances with no support. Where he was so recently an aspiring knight with a partner and a dream, he is now homeless, disabled, and isolated.

A wall in the hideout shows a collection of news clippings, suspects, and sticky notes where Boldheart is trying to solve the murder and clear his name. His own photo looks down from the wall, captioned with a damning headline: “He was never one of us—knights reveal shocking details of killer’s past.” It evokes real-world racial bias in crime reporting, where suspects of color are treated as more violent, unstable, and prone to crime than white suspects. A 2021 report by the Equal Justice Initiative and the Global Strategy Group compiled data on this phenomenon, focusing on the stark disparity between coverage of white and Black suspects. (32)

Nimona is not put off by Boldheart’s sinister media reputation. It’s why she tracked him down in the first place. She’s arrived to present her official application as Boldheart’s villain sidekick and help him take down the Institute. Boldheart brushes her off, insisting he isn’t a villain. He has faith in his innocence and in the system, and leaves Nimona behind to clear his name.

When he is immediately arrested, stripped of his prosthetic, and jailed, Nimona doesn’t abandon him. She springs a prison break, and conveys a piece of bitter wisdom to the fallen knight: “[O]nce everyone sees you as a villain, that’s what you are. They only see you one way, no matter how hard you try.”

Nimona and Boldheart are both outcasts, but they are at different stages of processing the pain. Boldheart is deep in the grief of someone who tried to adhere to the demands of a biased system but finally failed. He is the newly cast-out, who gave his entire life to the system but still couldn’t escape dehumanization. His pain is a fresh, raw wound, where Nimona has old scars. She embodies the deep anger of those who have existed on the margins for years. Where Boldheart wants to prove his innocence so he can be re-accepted into the fold, Nimona’s goal is to tear the entire system apart. She finds instant solidarity with Boldheart based solely on their mutual status as outsiders, but Boldheart resists that solidarity because he still craves the system’s familiar structure.

In the comic, Blackheart’s stance is not one of fresh grief, since, just like Nimona, he has been an outsider for some time. Instead, Blackheart’s position is one of slow reform. He believes the system can be changed and improved, while Nimona urges him to demolish it entirely. In both versions, Ballister thinks the system can be fixed by removing specific corrupt influences, where Nimona believes the government is rotten to its foundations and should be dismantled. Despite their ideological differences, Nimona and Ballister ally to survive the Institute’s hostility.

The allyship is an uneasy truce. During the prison break, Nimona reveals that she’s a shapeshifter, able to change into whatever form she pleases. Boldheart reflexively reaches for his sword, horrified that she isn’t human. She is the exact sort of monster he has been taught to fear by the Institute, and it’s only because he needs her help that he overcomes his reflex and sticks with her.

Nimona’s shapeshifting functions as a transgender allegory. The comic’s author, N.D. Stevenson, is transgender, and Nimona’s story developed alongside his own queer journey. (33) The trans themes from the comic are emphasized in the film, with various pride flags included in backgrounds and showcased in the art book. (34) Directors Bruno and Quane described the film as “a story about acceptance. A movie about being seen for who you truly are and a love letter to all those who’ve ever shared that universal feeling of being misunderstood or like an outsider trying to fit in.” (35)

When Boldheart asks Nimona what she is, she responds with only “Nimona.” When he calls her a girl, she retorts that she’s “a lot of things.” When she transforms into another species, she specifies in that moment that she’s “not a girl, I’m a shark.” Later, when she takes the form of a young boy and Boldheart comments on it, saying “now you’re a boy,” her response is, “I am today.” She defies easy categorization, and she likes it that way.

About her shapeshifting, Nimona says “it feels worse if I don’t do it” and “I shapeshift, then I’m free.” When asked what happens if she doesn’t shapeshift, she responds, “I wouldn’t die-die, I just sure wouldn’t be living.” Every time she discusses her transformations, it carries echoes of transgender experience—and, as it happens, Nimona is not N.D. Stevenson’s only shapeshifting transgender character. During his tenure as showrunner for She-Ra and the Princesses of Power (Netflix/Dreamworks, 2018-2020), Stevenson introduced the character Double Trouble. Double Trouble previously existed at the margins of She-Ra lore, but Stevenson’s version was a nonbinary shapeshifter using they/them pronouns. (36) While Nimona uses she/her pronouns throughout both comic and film, just like Double Trouble her gender presentation is as fluid as her physical form.

Boldheart, like many cisgender people reacting to transgender people, is uncomfortable with Nimona. He declares her way of doing things “too much,” and insists they try to be “inconspicuous” and “discreet.” He worries whether others saw her, and, when she is casually in a nonhuman form, he asks if she can “be normal for a second.” He claims to support her, but says it would be “easier if she was a girl” because “other people aren’t as accepting.” His discomfort evokes fumbled allyship by cisgender people, and Nimona emphasizes the allegory by calling Boldheart out for his “small-minded questions.” While the alliance is uneasy, Boldheart continues working with Nimona to clear his name. They are the only allies each other has, and their individual survival is dependent on them working together.

When the duo gain video proof of Boldheart’s innocence, they learn the bomb that killed Queen Valerin was planted by the Director. Threatened by a Black woman using her influence to elevate a poor, queer man of color, the white Director chose to preserve the status quo through violence.

Nimona is eager to get the video on every screen in the city, but Boldheart wants to deal with the issue internally, out of the public eye. He insists “the Institute isn’t the problem, the Director is.” This belief is what also leads the comic’s Blackheart to reject Nimona’s idea that he should crown himself king. He is focused on reforming the existing power structure, neither removing it entirely nor taking it over himself.

Inside the Institute, the Director has been doing her best to set Goldenloin against his former partner. Despite his internal misgivings and fear of betraying someone he loves, Goldenloin does his best to adhere to his prescribed role. As the Director reminds the knights, they are literally born to defend the kingdom, and it’s their sacred duty to do so—especially Goldenloin, who carries Gloreth’s holy blood. This blood connection is repeated throughout the film, and used by the Director to exploit Goldenloin. He’s the Institute’s token minority, put on a gilded pedestal and treated as a symbol instead of a human being.

Goldenloin is a pretty face for propaganda posters, and those posters can be seen throughout the film. They proclaim Gloreth’s majesty, the power of the knights, and remind civilians that the Institute is necessary to “protect our way of life.” A subway PSA urges citizens, “if you see something, slay something,” in a direct parody of the real-world “if you see something, say something” campaign by the United States Department of Homeland Security. (37)

The film is not subtle in its political messaging. When Boldheart attempts to prove his innocence to Goldenloin and the assembled knights, he reaches towards his pocket for a phone. The Director cries that Boldheart has a weapon, and Sureblade opens fire. Though the shot hits the phone and not Boldheart, it carries echoes of real-world police brutality against people of color. Specifically, the use of a phone evokes cases such as the 2018 murder of Stephon Clark, a young Black man who was shot and killed by California police claiming Clark’s cell phone was a firearm. (38) The film does not toy with vague, depoliticized themes of coexistence and tolerance; it is a direct and pointed allegory for contemporary oppression in the United States of America.

Forced to choose between love for Boldheart and loyalty to the Institute, Goldenloin chooses the Institute. He calls for Boldheart’s arrest, and this is the moment Boldheart finally agrees to fight back and raise hell alongside Nimona. When Goldenloin calls Nimona a monster during the ensuing battle, Boldheart doesn’t hesitate to refute it. He expresses his trust in her, and it’s clear he means it. He’s been betrayed by someone he cared about and thought he could depend on, and this puts him in true solidarity with Nimona for the first time.

During the fight, Nimona stops a car from crashing into a small child. She shapeshifts into a young girl to appear less threatening, but it doesn’t work. The child picks up a sword, pointing it at Nimona until an adult pulls them away to hide. When Nimona sees this hatred imprinted in the heart of a child, it horrifies her.

After fleeing to their hideout, Nimona makes a confession to Boldheart: she has suicidal ideations. So many people have directed so much hatred toward her that sometimes she wants to give in and let them kill her. In the real world, a month after the film’s release, a study from the Williams Institute at the UCLA School of Law compiled data about suicidality in American transgender adults. (39) Researchers found that eighty-one percent have thought about suicide, compared to just thirty-five percent of cisgender adults. Forty-two percent have attempted suicide, compared to eleven percent of cisgender adults. Fifty-six percent have engaged in self-harm, compared to twelve percent of cisgender adults.

When Boldheart offers to flee with her and find somewhere safe together, Nimona declares they shouldn’t have to run. She makes the decision every trans person living in a hostile place must make: do I leave and save myself, or do I stay to fight for my community? The year the film was released, the Trans Legislation Tracker reported a record-breaking amount of anti-trans legislation in the United States, with six hundred and two bills introduced throughout twenty-four states. (40) In February 2024, the National Center for Transgender Equality published data on their 2022 U.S. Transgender Survey, revealing that forty-seven percent of respondents thought about moving to another area due to discrimination, with ten percent actually doing so. (41)

Despite the danger, Nimona and Boldheart work diligently against the Institute. When they gain fresh footage proving the Director’s guilt, they don’t hesitate to upload it online, where it garners rapid attention across social and news media. Newscasters begin asking who the real villain is, anti-Institute sentiment builds, and citizens protest in the streets, demanding answers. The power that social media adds to social justice activism is true in the real world as it is in the film, seen in campaigns such as the viral #MeToo hashtag and the Black Lives Matter movement. (42) In 2020, polls conducted by the Pew Research Center showed eight in ten Americans viewed social media platforms as either very or somewhat effective in raising awareness about political and social topics. In the same survey, seventy-seven percent of respondents believed social media is at least somewhat effective in organizing social movements. (43)

In reaction to the media firestorm, the Director issues a statement. She outs Nimona as a shapeshifter, and claims the evidence against the Institute is a hoax. Believing the Director, Goldenloin contacts Boldheart for a rendezvous, sans Nimona. From Goldenloin’s perspective, Boldheart is a good man who has been deceived by the real villain, Nimona. He tells Boldheart about a scroll the Director found, with evidence that Nimona is Gloreth’s original monster, still alive and terrorizing the city. Goldenloin wants to bring Boldheart back into the knighthood and resume their relationship, and though that’s what Boldheart wanted before, his solidarity with Nimona causes him to reject the offer.

Though he leaves Goldenloin behind, Boldheart’s suspicion of Nimona returns. Despite their solidarity, he doesn’t really know her, so he returns home to interrogate her. In the ensuing argument, he reverts to calling her a monster, but only through implication—he won’t say the word. Like a slur, he knows he shouldn’t say it anymore, but that doesn’t keep him from believing it.

Boldheart’s actions prove to Nimona that nowhere is safe. There is no haven. Her community will always turn on her. She flees, and in her ensuing breakdown, the audience learns her backstory. She was alone for an unspecified length of time, never able to fit in until meeting Gloreth as a little girl. Nimona presents herself to Gloreth as another little girl, and Gloreth becomes Nimona’s very first friend. Even when Nimona shapeshifts, Gloreth treats her with kindness and love.

Then the adults of Gloreth’s village see Nimona shapeshift, and the word “monster” is hurled. Torches and pitchforks come out. At the adults’ panic, Gloreth takes up a sword against Nimona, and the cycle of bigotry is transferred to the next generation. The friendship shatters, and Nimona must flee before she can be killed.

After losing Boldheart, seemingly Nimona’s only ally since Gloreth’s betrayal, Nimona’s grief becomes insurmountable. She knows in her heart that nothing will ever change. She’s been hurt too much, by too many, cutting too deeply. To Nimona, the world will only ever bring her pain, so she gives in. She transforms into the giant, ferocious monster everyone has always told her she is, and she begins moving through the city as the Institute opens fire.

When Ballister sees Nimona’s giant, shadowy form, he realizes the horrific pain he caused her. He intuits that Nimona isn’t causing destruction for fun, she’s on a suicide march. She’s given up, and her decision is the result of endless, systemic bigotry and betrayal of trust. Her rampage wouldn’t be happening if she’d been treated with love, support, and care.

Nimona’s previous admission of suicidal ideation repeats in voiceover as she prepares to impale herself on a sword pointed by a massive statue of Gloreth. Her suicide is only prevented because Ballister steps in, calling to her, apologizing, saying he sees her and she isn’t alone. She collapses into his arms, once again in human form, sobbing. Boldheart has finally accepted her truth, and she is safe with him.

But she isn’t safe from the Director.

In a genocidal bid she knows will take out countless civilian lives, the Director orders canons fired on Nimona. Goldenloin tries to stop her, finally standing up against the system, but it’s too late. The Director fires the canons, Nimona throws herself at the blast to protect the civilians, and Nimona falls.

When the dust settles, the Director is deposed and the city rebuilds. Boldheart and Goldenloin reconnect and resume their relationship. The walls around the city come down, reforms take hold in the Institute, and a memorial goes up to honor Nimona, the hero who sacrificed her life to reveal the Director’s corruption.

Nimona, however, is hard to kill.

Nimona originally had a tragic ending, born of N.D. Stevenson’s own depression, but that hopelessness didn’t last forever. (44) Though Nimona is defeated, she doesn’t stay dead. Through the outpouring of love and support N.D. Stevenson received while creating the original webcomic, he gained the community and support he needed to create a more hopeful ending for Nimona’s story—and himself.

The comic’s ending is bittersweet. Nimona can’t truly die, and eventually restores herself. She allows Blackheart to glimpse her, so he knows she survived, but she doesn’t stay. She still doesn’t feel safe, and is assumed to move on somewhere new. Blackheart never sees Nimona again.

The film’s ending is more hopeful. There is a shimmer of pink magic as Nimona announces her survival, and the film ends with Boldheart’s elated exclamation. Even death couldn’t keep her down. She survived Gloreth, and she survived the Director. Though this chapter of the story is over, there is hope on the horizon, and she has allies on her side.

In both incarnations, Nimona is a story of queer survival in a cruel world. The original ending was one of despair, that said there was little hope of true solidarity and allyship. The revised ending said there was hope, but still so far to go. The film’s ending says there is hope, there is solidarity, and there are people who will stand with transgender people until the bitter end—but, more importantly, there are people in the world who want trans people to live, to thrive, and to find joy.

In a world that’s so hostile to transgender people, it’s no wonder a radically trans-positive film had to fight so hard to exist. Unfortunately, the battle must continue. As of June 2024, Netflix hasn’t announced any intent to produce physical copies of the film, meaning it exists solely on streaming and is only accessible via a monthly paid subscription. Should Netflix ever take down its original animation, as HBO Max did in 2022 despite massive backlash, the film could easily become lost media. (45) Though it saved Nimona from Disney, Netflix has its own nasty history of under-marketing and canceling queer programs. (46)

The film’s art book is already gone. The multimedia tome was posted online on October 12, 2023, hosted at ArtofNimona.com. (47) Per the Internet Archive’s Wayback Machine, the site became a Netflix redirect at some point between 10:26 PM on March 9, 2024 and 9:35 PM on March 20, 2024. (48) On the archived site, some multimedia elements are non-functional, potentially making them lost media. The art book is not available through any legal source, and though production designer Aidan Sugano desperately wants a physical copy made, there seem to be no such plans. (49)

Perhaps Netflix will eventually release physical copies of both film and art book. Perhaps not. Time will tell. In the meantime, Nimona stands as a triumph of queer media in a queerphobic world. That it exists at all is a miracle, and that its accessibility is so precarious a year after release is a travesty. Contemporary political commentary is woven into every aspect of the film, and it exists thanks to the passion, talent, and bravery of an incredible crew who endured despite blatant corporate queerphobia.

Long live Nimona, and long live the transgender community she represents.

_ This piece was commissioned using the prompt "the Nimona movie."

Updated 6/16/24 to revise an inaccurate statement regarding the original comic.

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Notes:

1. “Past Recipients 2010s.” n.d. Comic-Con International. Accessed June 10, 2024. https://www.comic-con.org/awards/eisner-awards/past-recipients/past-recipenties-2010s/.

2. Stevenson, ND. 2015. Nimona. New York, NY: Harperteen.

3. Kit, Borys. 2015. “Fox Animation Nabs ‘Nimona’ Adaptation with ‘Feast’ Director (Exclusive).” The Hollywood Reporter. June 11, 2015. https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/movies/movie-news/fox-animation-nabs-nimona-adaptation-801920/.

4. Riley, Jenelle. 2017. “Oscar Winner Patrick Osborne Returns with First-Ever vr Nominee ‘Pearl.’” Variety. February 9, 2017. https://variety.com/2017/film/in-contention/patrick-osborne-returns-to-race-with-first-vr-nominee-pearl-1201983466/; Osborne, Patrick (@PatrickTOsborne). 2017. "Hey world, the NIMONA feature film has a release date! @Gingerhazing February 14th 2020 !!" Twitter/X, June 30, 2017, 3:16 PM. https://x.com/PatrickTOsborne/status/880867591094272000. ‌

5. “The Walt Disney Company to Acquire Twenty-First Century Fox, Inc., after Spinoff of Certain Businesses, for $52.4 Billion in Stock.” 2017. The Walt Disney Company. December 14, 2017. https://thewaltdisneycompany.com/walt-disney-company-acquire-twenty-first-century-fox-inc-spinoff-certain-businesses-52-4-billion-stock-2/.

6. Amidi, Amid. 2017. “Disney Buys Fox for $52.4 Billion: Here Are the Key Points of the Deal.” Cartoon Brew. December 14, 2017. https://www.cartoonbrew.com/business/disney-buys-fox-key-points-deal-155390.html; Giardina, Carolyn. 2017. “Disney Deal Could Redraw Fox’s Animation Business.” The Hollywood Reporter. December 14, 2017. https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/general-news/disney-deal-could-redraw-foxs-animation-business-1068040/; Szalai, Georg, and Paul Bond. 2019. “Disney Closes $71.3 Billion Fox Deal, Creating Global Content Powerhouse.” The Hollywood Reporter. March 19, 2019. https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/general-news/disney-closes-fox-deal-creating-global-content-powerhouse-1174498/.

7. Hipes, Patrick. 2019. “After Trying Day, Disney Sets Film Leadership Lineup.” Deadline. March 22, 2019. https://deadline.com/2019/03/disney-film-executives-post-merger-team-set-1202580586/.

8. Jones, Rendy. 2023. “‘Nimona’: Netflix’s Remarkable Trans-Rights Animated Movie Is Here.” Rolling Stone. July 3, 2023. https://www.rollingstone.com/tv-movies/tv-movie-features/nimona-netflix-trans-rights-animated-movie-lgbtq-riz-ahmed-chloe-grace-moretz-1234782583/.

9. D’Alessandro, Anthony. 2021. “Disney Closing Blue Sky Studios, Fox’s Once-Dominant Animation House behind ‘Ice Age’ Franchise.” Deadline. February 9, 2021. https://deadline.com/2021/02/blue-sky-studios-closing-disney-ice-age-franchise-animation-1234690310/.

10. “Disney’s Blue Sky Shut down Leaves Nimona Film 75% Completed.” 2021. CBR. February 10, 2021. https://www.cbr.com/nimona-film-abandoned-disney-blue-sky-shut-down/; Sneider, Jeff. 2021. “Exclusive: Disney’s LGBTQ-Themed ‘Nimona’ Would’ve Featured the Voices of Chloë Grace Moretz, Riz Ahmed.” Collider. March 4, 2021. https://collider.com/nimona-movie-cast-cancelled-disney-blue-sky/.

11. Horowitz, Juliana Menasce, Anna Brown, and Rachel Minkin. 2021. “The COVID-19 Pandemic’s Long-Term Financial Impact.” Pew Research Center’s Social & Demographic Trends Project. March 5, 2021. https://www.pewresearch.org/social-trends/2021/03/05/a-year-into-the-pandemic-long-term-financial-impact-weighs-heavily-on-many-americans/.

12. Lang, Brent. 2022. “Disney CEO Bob Iger’s Rich Compensation Package Revealed, Company Says Bob Chapek Fired ‘without Cause.’” Variety. November 21, 2022. https://variety.com/2022/film/finance/bob-iger-compensation-package-salary-bob-chapek-fired-1235439151/.

13. Romano, Nick. 2020. “The Pandemic Animation Boom: How Cartoons Became King in the Time of COVID.” EW.com. November 2, 2020. https://ew.com/movies/animation-boom-coronavirus-pandemic/.

14. Strapagiel, Lauren. 2021. “The Future of Disney’s First Animated Feature Film with Queer Leads, ‘Nimona,’ Is in Doubt.” BuzzFeed News. February 24, 2021. https://www.buzzfeednews.com/article/laurenstrapagiel/disney-nimona-movie-lgbtq-characters.

15. Clark, Travis. 2022. “Disney Raised Concerns about a Same-Sex Kiss in the Unreleased Animated Movie ‘Nimona,’ Former Blue Sky Staffers Say.” Business Insider. https://www.businessinsider.com/disney-disapproved-same-sex-kiss-nimona-movie-former-staffers-say-2022-3.

16. Keegan, Rebecca. 2024. “Why Megan Ellison Saved ‘Nimona’: ‘I Needed This Movie.’” The Hollywood Reporter. February 22, 2024. https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/movies/movie-news/megan-ellison-saved-nimona-1235832043/.

17. St. James, Emily. 2023. “Mourning the Loss of the Owl House, TV’s Best Queer Kids Show.” Vanity Fair. April 6, 2023. https://www.vanityfair.com/hollywood/2023/04/loss-of-the-owl-house-tvs-best-queer-kids-show.

18. AntagonistDana. 2021. “AMA (except by ‘Anything’ I Mean These Questions Only).” Reddit. October 5, 2021. https://www.reddit.com/r/TheOwlHouse/comments/q1x1uh/ama_except_by_anything_i_mean_these_questions_only/; de Wit, Alex Dudok. 2020. “Disney Executive Tried to Block Queer Characters in ‘the Owl House,’ Says Creator.” 2020. Cartoon Brew. August 14, 2020. https://www.cartoonbrew.com/disney/disney-executives-tried-to-block-queer-characters-in-the-owl-house-says-creator-195413.html.

19. Doherty, Thomas. 1999. Pre-Code Hollywood : Sex, Immorality, and Insurrection in American Cinema, 1930-1934. New York: Columbia University Press. 363.

20. Henderson, Taylor. 2018. “‘Steven Universe’s’ Latest Episode Just Made LGBTQ History.” Pride. July 5, 2018. https://www.pride.com/stevenuniverse/2018/7/05/steven-universes-latest-episode-just-made-lgbtq-history; McDonnell, Chris. 2020. Steven Universe: End of an Era. New York: Abrams. 102.

21. Stevenson, ND. (@Gingerhazing). 2021. "Sad day. Thanks for the well wishes, and sending so much love to everyone at Blue Sky. Forever grateful for all the care and joy you poured into Nimona." Twitter/X, February 9, 2021, 3:32 PM. https://x.com/Gingerhazing/status/1359238823935283200

22. Jones, Rendy. 2023. “‘Nimona’: Netflix’s Remarkable Trans-Rights Animated Movie Is Here.” Rolling Stone. July 3, 2023. https://www.rollingstone.com/tv-movies/tv-movie-features/nimona-netflix-trans-rights-animated-movie-lgbtq-riz-ahmed-chloe-grace-moretz-1234782583/.

23. Keegan, Rebecca. 2024. “Why Megan Ellison Saved ‘Nimona’: ‘I Needed This Movie.’” The Hollywood Reporter. February 22, 2024. https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/movies/movie-news/megan-ellison-saved-nimona-1235832043/.

24. Stevenson, ND. (@Gingerhazing). 2022. "Nimona’s always been a spunky little story that just wouldn’t stop. She’s a fighter...but she’s also got some really awesome people fighting for her. I am excited out of my mind to announce that THE NIMONA MOVIE IS ALIVE...coming at you in 2023 from Annapurna and Netflix." Twitter/X, April 11, 2022, 10:00 AM. https://x.com/Gingerhazing/status/1513517319841935363.

25. “‘Nimona’ Starring Chloë Grace Moretz, Riz Ahmed & Eugene Lee Yang Coming to Netflix in 2023.” About Netflix. April 11, 2022. https://about.netflix.com/en/news/nimona-starring-chloe-grace-moretz-riz-ahmed-and-eugene-lee-yang-coming-to-netflix.

26. “’Nimona’ Rates 100% on Rotten Tomatoes after Annecy Premiere.” Animation Magazine. June 15, 2023. https://www.animationmagazine.net/2023/06/nimona-rates-100-on-rotten-tomatoes-after-annecy-premiere/

27. Dilillo, John. 2023. “’Nimona’: Everything You Need to Know About the New Animated Adventure.” Tudum by Netflix. June 30, 2023. https://www.netflix.com/tudum/articles/nimona-release-date-news-photos

28. Reese, Lori. 2001. “Is ‘“Shrek”’ the Anti- Disney Fairy Tale?” Entertainment Weekly. May 29, 2001. https://ew.com/article/2001/05/29/shrek-anti-disney-fairy-tale/.

29. Sugano, Aidan. 2023. Nimona: the Digital Art Book. Netflix. 255. https://web.archive.org/web/20240309222607/https://artofnimona.com/.

30. White, Abbey. 2023. “How ‘Nimona’ Explores the Model Minority Stereotype through Its Queer API Love Story.” The Hollywood Reporter. July 1, 2023. https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/movies/movie-features/nimona-eugene-lee-yang-directors-race-love-story-netflix-1235526714/.

31. White, Abbey. 2023. “How ‘Nimona’ Explores the Model Minority Stereotype through Its Queer API Love Story.” The Hollywood Reporter. July 1, 2023. https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/movies/movie-features/nimona-eugene-lee-yang-directors-race-love-story-netflix-1235526714/.

32. Equal Justice Initiative. 2021. “Report Documents Racial Bias in Coverage of Crime by Media.” Equal Justice Initiative. December 16, 2021. https://eji.org/news/report-documents-racial-bias-in-coverage-of-crime-by-media/.

33. Stevenson, N. D. 2023. “Nimona (the Comic): A Deep Dive.” I’m Fine I’m Fine Just Understand. July 13, 2023. https://www.imfineimfine.com/p/nimona-the-comic-a-deep-dive.

34. Sugano, Aidan. 2023. Nimona: the Digital Art Book. Netflix. 259-260. https://web.archive.org/web/20240309222607/https://artofnimona.com/.

35. Sugano, Aidan. 2023. Nimona: the Digital Art Book. Netflix. 7. https://web.archive.org/web/20240309222607/https://artofnimona.com/.

36. Brown, Tracy. 2019. “In Netflix’s ‘She-Ra,’ Even Villains Respect Nonbinary Pronouns.” Los Angeles Times. November 6, 2019. https://www.latimes.com/entertainment-arts/tv/story/2019-11-05/netflix-she-ra-princesses-power-nonbinary-double-trouble.

37. Department of Homeland Security. 2019. “If You See Something, Say Something®.” Department of Homeland Security. May 10, 2019. https://www.dhs.gov/see-something-say-something.

38. University of Stanford. n.d. “Stephon Clark.” Say Their Names - Spotlight at Stanford. https://exhibits.stanford.edu/saytheirnames/feature/stephon-clark.

39. Kidd, Jeremy D., Tettamanti, Nicky A., Kaczmarkiewicz, Roma, Corbeil, Thomas E., Dworkin, Jordan D., Jackman, Kasey B., Hughes, Tonda L., Bockting, Walter O., & Meyer, Ilan H. 2023. “Prevalence of Substance Use and Mental Health Problems among Transgender and Cisgender US Adults.” Williams Institute. https://williamsinstitute.law.ucla.edu/publications/transpop-substance-use/.

40. “2023 Anti-Trans Bills: Trans Legislation Tracker.” n.d. Trans Legislation Tracker. https://translegislation.com/bills/2023.

41. James, S.E., Herman, J.L., Durso, L.E., & Heng-Lehtinen, R. 2024. “Early Insights: A Report of the 2022 U.S. Transgender Survey.” National Center for Transgender Equality, Washington, DC.

42. Myers, Catherine. 2023. “Protests in the Age of Social Media.” The Nonviolence Project. February 11, 2023. https://thenonviolenceproject.wisc.edu/2023/02/11/protests-in-the-age-of-social-media/.

43. Auxier, Brooke, and Colleen McClain. 2020. “Americans Think Social Media Can Help Build Movements, but Can Also Be a Distraction.” Pew Research Center. Pew Research Center. September 9, 2020. https://www.pewresearch.org/short-reads/2020/09/09/americans-think-social-media-can-help-build-movements-but-can-also-be-a-distraction/.

44. Stevenson, N. D. 2023. “Nimona (the Comic): A Deep Dive.” I’m Fine I’m Fine Just Understand. July 13, 2023. https://www.imfineimfine.com/p/nimona-the-comic-a-deep-dive.

45. Chapman, Wilson. 2022. “HBO Max to Remove 36 Titles, Including 20 Originals, from Streaming.” Variety. August 18, 2022. https://variety.com/2022/tv/news/hbo-max-originals-removed-1235344286/.

46. Iftikhar, Asyia. 2023. “Netflix CEO Slammed by LGBTQ+ Fans over Cancellation Comments: ‘They Are NOT Allies.’” PinkNews. January 24, 2023. https://www.thepinknews.com/2023/01/24/netflix-ceo-ted-sarandos-cancelled-shows-lgbtq-fans-reactions/.

47. Lang, Jamie. 2023. “Netflix Has Released a 358-Page Multimedia Art of Book for ‘Nimona’ - Exclusive.” Cartoon Brew. October 12, 2023. https://www.cartoonbrew.com/books/nimona-art-of-book-aidan-sugano-netflix-233636.html.

48. “Wayback Machine.” n.d. The Internet Archive. Accessed June 10, 2024. https://wayback-api.archive.org/web/20240000000000.

49. Lang, Jamie. 2023. “Netflix Has Released a 358-Page Multimedia Art of Book for ‘Nimona’ - Exclusive.” Cartoon Brew. October 12, 2023. https://www.cartoonbrew.com/books/nimona-art-of-book-aidan-sugano-netflix-233636.html.

[doyoulikethissong-poll]

Iggy Pop - Real Wild Child (Wild One) 1986

Johnny O'Keefe's song "Wild One" or "Real Wild Child" is an Australian rock and roll song written by Johnny Greenan, Johnny O'Keefe, and Dave Owens. The release date of the single, 5 July 1958, is considered the birth of Australian rock and roll. It was the first Australian rock recording to reach the national charts, peaking at number 20.

Iggy Pop covered the song on his seventh studio album, Blah-Blah-Blah (1986). The song was co-produced by David Bowie as well as having him on backing vocals. Titled "Real Wild Child (Wild One)", this became a number 10 hit on the UK Singles Chart in January 1987. In Canada it charted for 20 weeks despite never peaking higher than number 65 on the RPM Top Singles chart. It peaked at number 27 on the US Billboard Album Rock Tracks chart. In New Zealand the song reached number 1 in June 1987, becoming Pop's biggest hit there. The Iggy Pop version was featured in the film Problem Child and Problem Child 2, Crocodile Dundee II, and Five Nights at Freddy's, as well as the 2022 series Pam & Tommy. The song was recorded again in 2008 by Iggy Pop who teamed up with Aussie rockers Jet, titled "The Wild One". It was released as a tribute to Johnny O'Keefe and peaked at number 56 on the ARIA Singles Chart.

Other covers include Jerry Allison with Buddy Holly backing him on guitar, Jerry Lee Lewis, Status Quo, Everlife, The Runaways, Joan Jett & the Blackhearts, Brian Setzer, Lee Rocker, Teenage Head, Sarah Harding, and Wakefield. Christopher Otcasek's version appeared on the soundtrack to the film Pretty Woman. It was also covered by the fictional band Josie and the Pussycats in the 2001 film of the same name.

"Real Wild Child (Wild One)" received a total of 68,4% yes votes! Previous Iggy Pop polls: #199 "Lust for Life".

[sunshine-zenith]

This is kinda a part two to this post here, about Ballister’s scar. Specifically I wanted to speculate a bit on Ballister’s relationship with Queen Valerin when you consider the fact that he was a mistreated and vulnerable child when he met her

Like. Look at this moment here

She’s reassuring him. She genuinely believes in him, and it’s clear from the knighting ceremony, when she specifically lowers her voice to tell him how much she’s been looking forward to this moment that her intentions around him a pure. She wants to change things, she wants to give this kid a chance, and she’s killing two birds with one stone by making him a knight

But like Nimona herself says, question everything

Look a little bit closer at this image — the queen is well dressed and already had a statement prepared. Ballister is dressed in rags and looks like he hasn’t even been given the chance to wash his hair. He looks surprised and a little scared when the media erupts with questions. And I don’t think this was the Queen’s doing, necessarily — odds are the Director was the one who was supposed to prepare Ballister, and chose not to, because she probably knew that while the Queen wouldn’t judge him for looking like the homeless kid he was, the media would. Still, it shows that while the Queen has overall say on Ballister’s future, she doesn’t have a lot to do about his present

Ballister says he loves the Queen, but it’s hard to tell if he meant he loves her like you’d love a family member, or if he “loves” her like someone who has been raised to not question authority “loves” said authority. He took a deep breath and looked to Ambrosius during the knighting ceremony, not to her. She realistically probably wasn’t super involved, even if she wanted to be — she had an entire kingdom to run, other knights to knight, and likely spent her days making progressive decisions that were controversial with the conservatives in her kingdom. Plus, if she had been super involved, it could’ve increased bias against him, like she was favoring him above everyone else — Ambrosius seemed overall not sure popular among the knights, and while they respected his authority when he was put it charge, there was definitely a vibe that they resented him for being the “Golden Boy” descendant of Gloreth.

Let’s compare Bal and Queen Valerin to Comic!Ballister Blackheart and one of the Queen’s inspirations, Dr. Blitzmeyer (the other was the king, who was a basically prop that was referenced heavily in relation to Ballister as someone he should kill before dying off screen).

Blackheart and Blitzmeyer end the comic opening a lab together, working as co-scientists. Blackheart clearly thinks of her as a friend, but she thinks of him as a fond colleague for most of the comic — she’s happy to offer help in the form of exposition, and she helps him save the day by giving him a McGuffin That You Just Gotta Read The Comic To Understand, but part of her is worried he’s a rival scientist that wants to steal her ideas. She still welcomes him in her home and offers him team. When he’s at the end of his rope and needs a comfort hug, she awkwardly indulges him

She’s surprised when he puts her down as his emergency contact

Dr. Blitzmeyer is a quirky scientist that hangs out on conspiracy forums and probably practices witchcraft for the sake of scientific study. Queen Valerin is a warm and progressive monarch who makes controversial decisions. And they make big decisions regarding helping Ballister

Remember the reluctant McGuffin handover?

She’s weighing the odds of him lying to her and stealing/tampering with/destroying it, hesitating before trusting him. If she had said no, a lot more people would’ve died in the comic, but she had no way of knowing that. She was barely interested in looking out her window and just worried the thing she spent years on would be wrecked

Now, the Queen — we don’t see her weigh the pros and cons of letting Bal become a knight, but she had to. And consider what she was presented with: a homeless kid with either no family or an abusive one judging from his scars and bruises. He had no adults in his life to protect him. No one to tell her no, making him essentially a child soldier might not be in his best interest. And he jumped a fence into the middle of a knight training session declaring he wanted to be a knight, basically coming to her — essentially the perfect candidate for her semi-social experiment

I can totally see her in another world letting this kid into her home and giving him tea and comfort, but I don’t think she could here. While she meant good, she took in a kid with nothing to lose and gave him everything to lose (a home, education, likely his first friend, safety), while also putting him under unavoidable social pressure. And she did it while the only adult figure other than her in his life, the one who would actually be involved in his upbringing — the Director — openly and defiantly failed him from the get go, and protested letting him join the knights to her face

Y’all I adore Queen Valerin, even if we only got her for like five minutes. Even if it’s in a speculative sense I like that she’s a good person while morally gray actions. She very much improved Ballister’s circumstances by giving him a home and the opportunity to pursue his interests. She clearly cared about him. She’s also a politician who, even if unavoidably, lowkey set him up to be a scapegoat without a backup plan and no outside support

Like. Y’all.

[mostlysignssomeportents]

Nalo Hopkinson’s “Blackheart Man”

I'm OFFLINE UNTIL MID-SEPTEMBER, but you can catch me in person at BURNING MAN! On TUESDAY (Aug 27) at 1PM, I'm giving a talk called "DISENSHITTIFY OR DIE!" at PALENQUE NORTE (7&E). On WEDNESDAY (Aug 28) at NOON, I'm doing a "Talking Caterpillar" Q&A at LIMINAL LABS (830&C).

In Blackheart Man, the new Nalo Hopkinson novel out today from Simon & Schuster, we get a tour-de-force from an author in full control of her prodigious powers: a story that will make you drunk on language, on worldbuilding, and on its roaring, relentless plot:

https://www.simonandschuster.com/books/Blackheart-Man/Nalo-Hopkinson/9781668005101

The action is set on Chynchin, a fantastic Caribbean island(or maybe Caribbeanesque – it's never clear whether this is some magical, imaginary world, or some distant future of our own). Chynchin is a multiracial, creole land with a richly realized gift economy that Hopkinson deftly rounds out with a cuisine, languages, and familial arrangements. Blackheart Man boasts some of the finest "in-cluing" (Jo Walton's marvelous term for the way that sf/f writers can assemble a world in their readers' minds with subtle clues that act as a made-to-be-solved puzzle the reader delights in assembling) you could ask for, and before you know it, you've completely internalized this world, with its racial politics, its cultural institutions (like the colloquium, where every scholar is also a musician and getting your doctorate requires scoring a book to be sung – and thus memorized and preserved by a choir of your fellow students), and its relationships (the stable configuration is a thruple, with most women married to two co-husbands).

Chynchin was founded through a slave rebellion, in which the press-ganged soldiers of the iron-fisted Ymisen empire were defeated by three witches who caused them to be engulfed in tar that they magicked into a liquid state just long enough to entomb them, then magicked back into solidity. For generations, the Ymisen have tolerated Chynchin's self-rule, but as the story opens, a Ymisen armada sails into Chynchin's port and a "trade envoy" announces that it's time for the Chynchin to "voluntarily" re-establish trade with the Ymisen.

The story that unfolds is a staple of sf and fantasy: the scrappy resistance mounted against the evil empire, and this familiar backdrop is a sturdy scaffold to support Hopkinson's dizzying, phantasmagoric tale of psychedelic magic, possessed children, military intrigue, musicianship and sexual entanglements.

Hopkinson's protagonist Veycosi is the kind of flawed hero whom you want to give a hug to half the time, and whose neck you want to wring. An aspiring scholar, Veycosi has the brash certainty of youth, convinced that he's the smartest (and sexiest) man in any room, and he's right just often enough to encourage him in a series of self-inflicted catastrophes that build to a terrible crescendo that sets up one of the most satisfying endings you could ask for.

Hopkinson – a SFWA Grand Master and Macarthur Genius Grant awardee – is justly famed as one of the field's great afrofuturist pioneers. Her prodigious talent has been obvious since her debut novel, Brown Girl In the Ring, and her career is an unbroken string of literary feats that went from strength to strength. I've known her since we were both teenagers working at the same library in suburban Toronto, and I never cease to be dazzled by her talent, her wit, and her warmth. But even by those high standards, Blackheart Man is a triumph.

On SEPTEMBER 24th, I'll be speaking IN PERSON at the BOSTON PUBLIC LIBRARY!!

If you'd like an essay-formatted version of this post to read or share, here's a link to it on pluralistic.net, my surveillance-free, ad-free, tracker-free blog:

https://pluralistic.net/2024/08/20/piche/#cynchin

[yrrtyrrtwhenihrrthrrt]

More headcanons about my comic fanchild Gregor Blackheart! (Mostly about the C! Goldenhearts as parents)

I want to draw him again, esp as a kiddo/baby, but drawing kiddos and babies is hard. Their proportions ain't right

- When Gregor was born, Ambrosius literally did not want to allow anyone else (besides sometimes Ballister) to hold him ever. Having his own baby brought up so many feelings of childhood trauma that he went into full protector-mode, and felt panicky if the baby was anywhere but his arms. Ballister had to put his foot down to not allow Ambrosius to co-sleep for safety reasons, their compromise was to have the crib right next to the bed

- Ballister derived immense enjoyment by planning cute kid-friendly science experiments and doing them together, and watching his son get so excited by the baking soda volcanoes and stuff

- Ambrosius likes to hide little toys in the garden while he's gardening, so as a kid Gregor would spend time with him in the garden looking for "buried treasure"

-Gregor loves science but he's not good at math, so he doesn't plan to become a scientist like his dad or auntie Meredith

- Meredith and Nimona have a friendly argument over who named Gregor. "I gave Ballister the idea in the first place" vs "I called Ballister Gregor which made him realize what a good name it was." Ballister always interrupts the arguments with "My partner and I are the ones that named him. I don't see your signatures on the birth certificate."

-Gregor was a colicky baby and would have long crying fits regularly which stressed his parents out a lot. Ballister was low-key very worried because of Ambrosius's tendency to lose control of his actions when he was under extreme emotional duress that he might accidentally shake Gregor. So whenever Gregor was colicky and Ballister noticed Ambrosius start crying or rocking back and forth or stimming, he'd swoop in to take over and send Ambrosius to go lie down. He never told Ambrosius about his concerns for fear he'd interpret it as Ballister calling him a bad parent. He was unaware that Ambrosius was also, and in fact much more terrified of the exact same thing happening

-As a little kid Gregor loved riding around in Ambrosius's wheelchair on his lap, he thought of it as like a fun ride (Ambrosius started using his wheelchair more on long public outings because it was easier for him to carry his baby than when he was using a cane or crutch)

- Ballister read every baby book. Every. Single. One. He did a library's worth of research before his child arrived and all of it flew right out of his brain the second Gregor was placed in his arms.

-Gregor had much lighter features as a baby than when he got older. His eyes went from blue-green to hazel in his first weeks of life, and his hair went from dirty-blond to dark brown when he was a young child (cue Ballister "who's goddamn white baby is that" /j )

-Gregor was also a chonky baby (I hc Ballister was as well) aside from his coloring and his nose, newborn Gregor was the chubby, bald, spitting image of baby Ballister.

That's all I got rn teehee

[angelkitty54]

Sonic Prime AU time! (coz this has been everywhere in the last month or so.) Basically just some ideas I had for shatterverse versions of Sonic and Shadow, set after the end of the series.

New Yoke City: Based on the idea in SA2 where it's kinda implied Sonic was also made on the Ark like Shadow (which is never brought up again). Basically Nine stumbles across a pod that contains the New Yoke version of Sonic (Spirit) and excitedly wakes him up. However he quickly finds that this is not the Sonic he met before; Spirit has never been out of his bio-tank thingy before, he is basically a newborn in a full grown body, with the mentality of a newborn too. Spirit is a wide-eyed innocent child, sweet, kind and trusting, a stark contrast to the world around him and the people in it. Nine is having a hard time adjusting, especially since Spirit's keeps chewing on all his power cables. He is also constantly being accused of having cloned Sonic. Which he totally did not! He found this Sonic fair and square thank you very much!

Meanwhile, having lost their power source, the Chaos Council has lost a lot of ground to the resistance. In searching for new power sources and weapons, they discover Project Umbra (three guess who this is). Umbra leans a little more into his alien side than Shadow does, he is also less of an angsty teen and more of a scared, grieving child lashing out at a world that hurt him. He agrees to work for the council only due to the distant family connection, but he doesn't particularly like them or care about their goals. He just wants to see the world burn. Of course, things change when he finds out his baby brother survives the raid on the Ark. Tho he is not particularly happy about this strange fox hanging around, acting all buddy buddy with Umbra's brother. Ugh, the nerve of that guy!

Boscage Maze: Got inspiration from movies like Nausicaa and Origin: Spirits of the Past. So the instead of the prism, the massive jungle was actually caused by a bio-experiment gone wrong which set off an apocalypse. There are effectively three groups of survivors, those that escaped into space (mainly GUN people), those that survived on the surface (whose descendants became groups like the scavengers) that live more or less in harmony with the jungle, and those that made it into underground shelters and were put into stasis chambers where they have slept for several hundred years. The latter two group are often at odds with each other, one wanting their old world back, the other wanting the jungle to stay as is. Dr Nightshade Robotnik and his assistant, Sunny, are among the stasis group.

In this universe Gerald went down the road of cybernetics as well as genetic engineering when creating his Ultimate Lifeform, Nightshade. Their Maria got to live her life to it's fullest, becoming a scientist like her grandfather. Nightshade also dedicated his life to science, wanting to follow Maria's dreams of making the world a better place, even after she passed away. Sunny benefited from their research, as it's thanks to their work into cybernetics that he is able to walk (and run) again. Upon waking in the post-apocalyptic world, Dr Nightshade has made it his mission to find out what caused the plants to grow out of control and hopefully reverse the effects. Sunny, someone who sees the benefits of both the old and new world, hopes that he can help the good Doctor find balance between the natural and mechanized worlds. Meanwhile GUN is up to something rather suspicious up there in space...

No Place Sea: Yay pirate AU!! Honestly didn't have a lot of ideas beyond just pirates tho... Shadow is Captain Blackheart and is like super duper cursed. He is captain of a ghost ship, whose crew is also super cursed and/or undead. All save a single member, his navigator Tempest (Sonic), who is immune to the effects curses due to him being half siren. Tempest does not speak much as his voice is imbued with the charming power of a siren, which he lacks much control over. He has a knack for reading the winds and currents making him an ideal navigator in treacherous waters. He is both drawn to and fears the water, as something in those dark depths keeps calling to him, eager to drag him down down down into darkness... However he can't bring himself to stay away despite the danger, and luckily whatever is hunting him seems to steer clear of the ghost ship. In exchange for shelter aboard his ship, Tempest is helping Blackheart track down and decode ancient sea charts that will lead them to a great treasure he's been hunting. One said to be able to grant wishes: the chaos emeralds!

[melodymunson]

Platonic Eddie Munson x Robin Buckley with fem reader oneshot blurb

So In love with 2

Mentions of smut, nsfw. 18+ only. Mentions of strapons, anal play.

ao3 link

You first met Robin during your college years at 21 years old when you were auditioning for her punk rock band Queens Of Noise. The band mainly did original songs but some covers as well of bands like The Runaways, Joan Jett & The Blackhearts, and The Ramones. Through Robin, you met Eddie and Corroded Coffin was still amazing even in their 30's and he thought you were a wonderful drummer. Robin was the guitarist and lead vocalist and Chrissy was the bassist.

The band hit it big when you played Battle of the Bands against Corroded Coffin and many other older as well as new up-and-coming bands in rock/metal and pop/rock. There was stiff competition except you were determined to bring the most rocking drum solo ever. By this time you and Robin were dating writing some songs together about love and romance but also about life experiences. Corroded Coffin placed second and was an honorable mention but Queens of Noise won receiving a huge trophy and magazine cover spread.

To celebrate your victory you had a date together at Enzo's and that night you had celebratory drinks. Robin was so beautiful and gentle with you but in bed, she was dominating and gave you mind-blowing sex. Even though you were 12 years younger than her, she was your girlfriend and you were very much in love with her. Sometimes you would just 69 but other times she brought out her strap and fucked you hard before you did the same to her.

Soon things got even better for you though because you were able to do your photo shoot for the magazine cover. You and Robin dressed scantily clad in the nicest lace black lingerie with her posing with her guitar of course and you were posing with your drums. Many photos were taken and the best ones were chosen which was one of you and Robin entwined in a passionate embrace. In the interview for the magazine, you talked about new music, your inspiration for songs, a bit about your relationship, and what it was like to be a women in rock n roll.

When Robin found out you liked Eddie she was alright with it and if it wasn't for Robin's encouragement you wouldn't have acted on your feelings. The truth was that Eddie was feeling you too. Not only did you tour together but you were able to co-write some songs together. Once Eddie knew of your feelings he was ecstatic and you agreed to go out together with him and Robin as well. The date was nice and at a concert for Judas Priest followed by time at a bar sharing a pitcher of margaritas.

Once everyone was drunk you made your way home with Robin talking more about your arrangement and how things would work. Eddie picked you up on his motorcycle days later and you had a date with him just the two of you spending quality time together riding go-karts and going paint-balling before grabbing some food. This was the first of many dates together but the ones that followed were with the three of you together. Everyone was happy with this arrangement and after Eddie waited for quite some time the right time came and one night you found yourself ready to take things to the bedroom.

It was a great night with foreplay and you bought some new lingerie for the occasion- lacy and in your favorite color. Robin was there too of course and you started by having her eating you out as pleased your breasts. Eddie had you give him a killer blowjob after that as Robin fucked you with your favorite dildo. After that they watched you cum for them over and over again with a vibrator seeing how long you could take it as their bratty submissive.

The next time you hooked up with both of them you had Eddie watch you as Robin fucked you with a vibrating strapon. She was making you cum so many times before you and Robin fucked with a double-headed dildo 12 inches long. After you had Eddie and Robin taking turns eating you out to see who could do it better. It was a tie though and you couldn't choose between the two of them.

As the relationship progressed you would spend most nights tied up and blindfolded as they took turns having their way with you. After you returned the favor to them by eating Robin out as Eddie fucked you from behind. Eddie managed to make you cum three times and you squirted for him. You began filming your sex sessions having it just for the three of you to watch and it was hot content.

On tour you would sometimes take groupies back to the tour bus and some nights it was girls only. Other times Eddie was involved and you would have foursomes. Either you would be fucking Eddie as Robin and the groupie had their way with each other or the groupie would be fucking Eddie as you fucked Robin. All the fans loved the music and both bands especially when you would perform onstage together and tour together.

They bought you a black leather with heart charm choker you wore proudly as their submissive. Whenever you would get high together and share Eddie's weed/joints you would shotgun with them and makeout. Whenever you wore pretty lingerie for them they would be sure to take polaroids especially if you had been bratty and were tied up for them. You would wear either Hellfire club, Corroded Coffin, or Queens of Noise oversized shirts to bed which led to Eddie and Robin finger-fucking you until you passed out from exhaustion.

One day in the recording studio you made a super sexy collab track featuring your moans and cries as Eddie and Robin teased, fingered, and ate you out. The best part about having studio time was having the chance to write and play with the two loves of your life. The way you sang backup vocals and played your drums never failed to impress Robin and Eddie. Hearing Eddie's voice record with no auto-tune was always a treat.

Public affection with Robin and Eddie publicly was never something you shied away from. Sometimes on your dates, you would shamelessly be felt up or fingered by them at the movies, under the table, in the park, at a party even at a concert side stage, or in the audience. They made sure to buy you multiple pairs of vibrating panties and would always fight over controlling the remote even in public. Whenever you would misbehave while you were out, they made sure to punish you at home by tying you up and giving you endless orgasms until you begged for mercy.

One night you went to the sex shop with them and bought so many new toys, a butt plug, lingerie, costumes, restraints such as handcuffs, and a gag ball. Once you got back home with your purchases you tried on the lingerie for the modeling and decided to wear the red lingerie. Not only did they handcuff you and make you use a butt plug, but they administered the gag ball and proceeded to tease you with the new toys they purchases. The toys they used on you included a rabbit vibrator, a magic wand, a G-spot vibrator, a clitoral stimulator, and a rose vibrator.

The next few weeks you did anal training with bigger butt plugs and then some dildos in various sizes and shapes. When they felt you were ready enough Robin used her new vibrating strap on your ass as Eddie used toys on your pussy. You used toys on Robin after that as Eddie fucked your ass with lots of lube and oils beforehand to prepare you for his cock. They provided the best aftercare with warm baths and massages.

They were the best lovers and cherished you never a day going by that was dull for the three of you. Soon you toured the world with Robin and Eddie getting so much attention and love for your music. Soon after that you all moved in together and adopted a black cat and a corgi. Life was perfect and they were to thank for that always putting you first and giving you the best love and affection.

taglist

@corneliuswatkins @jadeylovesmarvelxo @ali-r3n @mrprettywhenhecries @keeryatmosphere

@lovelythoughtfulcupcake @munson-mjstan @espressomunson @veemoon @eddiemunsonfuxks

@seatnights @corrodedcorpses @hcwthewestwaswcn @haceleyes @onegirlmanytales

@thepurplelovewitch @stolen-in-moonlight @hellv1ra @kelseyaparker19 @keikoraven

@loritate7311 @somethingvicked @micheledawn1975 @shichey97 @harringtonfan4

@londonfog-chan @bunnsandroses

[is-the-battlemech-cool-or-not]

Space Oddity

/BEGIN ENCRYPTION

FOR: COMMANDING GENERAL MELISSA HAZEN -EYES ONLY-

AAR FOLLOWS: Time of Report: 0430 hrs TST, D+3 (09/10/3153) Location of Report: Helios moon, Word of Blake Research Outpost Alpha-Phi-42Forces On Station: A Co./2/77th SOG “Blackhearts”, SLSAS (seconded to SLSOC) Objective: Secure Blakist lunar bases (OBJECTIVE COMPLETE)

After-Action Report: ODA 2332, with ODA 2331 as support, conducted a seize-and-clear action against Blakist research outpost Alpha-Phi-42.

No resistance.

No internal atmosphere on-site.

Internal defenses active but non-hostile.

All on-site Blakist personnel deceased prior to SLSAS force arrival.

Most Blakist personnel dead from asphyxiation.

On-site Manei Domini security personnel dead from 20mm cannon fire. ODA 2332 Comms Log: 

Nebula 1-4: Actual, this is fucked.

Nebula Actual: 1-4, describe. What’s fucked?

Nebula 1-4: All these Blakies they-

Nebula 1-5 (distant): It’s like fuckin’ Terminator in here …

Nebula 1-4: They’re all dead, Actual.

Nebula Actual: Describe, 1-4. SLSOC Director is getting a copy of this.

Nebula 1-4: Fuck, uh, shit. Lots of them look like they just… choked. Like someone let the air out. But then the big guys, the Mickey Dees, they uh… well, there’s a bunch of security ‘bots up here, and lotta shell casings.

Nebula Actual: You’re saying the security systems went haywire?

Nebula 1-4: That’s what it looks li-

{COMMUNICATIONS INTERRUPT - 4.52 seconds - unidentifiable signals on following bands: 2182 kHz, 121.5 MHz, 156.8 MHz, 243.0 MHz, 406 MHz for entire duration)

Nebula 1-4: - fuck was that?

Nebula 1-5: Emergency lightings’ up. Why’s it gotta be red?

Nebula 1-4: Nebula Actual, do you read? Some kind of jamming- [sound of internal PA activating] -the fuck?

[UNKNOWN; via internal PA system]: < i6)jsj298Qfg\}Rh8@ >

/END ENCRYPTION

[thegrllldiaries]

+*:ꔫ:*﹤MARI'S INTRO

HI!! my name is mari im an ambivert (leaning towards extroverted) i like music, singing, drama, acting, biology nd horror.

fave bands: nirvana, tears for fears, metallica, kreator, hole, the runaways, joan jett and the blackhearts

singers: falco, madonna and now im lazy to say

interests: american horror story, stranger things, a series of unfortunate events, lockwood and co, fear street

UPDATING...

[marmarbeans]

“Loving you meant letting you go, but I promised I’d follow you anywhere”.

A little ship edit I made of Philo and Garrett. ^^ I always thought they’d be perfect together, so I paired them together! <3

@writerman

@blackheart-beauty

@denalilily

I’m tagging y’all cos y’all fuel my Carnival Row and Twilight hyperfixations >:3

[xandriagreat]

Modern Nimona

Chapter 2: Nimona meets Blackheart

First chapter | Last chapter | Next chapter

Notice/warnings: rain, death (mention), runaway, thunderstorms

Author’s note: a big thanks to the co-writer @vanessafangirl13

▪▪▪

10 years later… June 15th, 2023.

"Today marks the 10th year since the death of Mayor Valerin Boldheart," a news reporter said on the screen, “and the hunt for Ballister Blackheart is still going on.”

While the news was still going on, a 15-year-old teen walked over to look at the screen.

The teen had pink red hair, red side bangs, with a shaved head in the back, pink eyes, and pale skin. She wears only dark pink sweatpants and a light magenta hoodie to hide, with her red backpack on her back and headphones on.

“This man has no place in this city. This man is vile, a murderer, a monster.” the new reporter said with a warning to any viewer watching.

“He’s perfect.” the teen said as she grinds a sharp smile.

"HEY!" A voice was heard which turned out to be the police.

The teen looked at them and then ran off laughing like it’s a game of tag.

The police dogs were already chasing after the teen but the teen was smart enough to know the way out of the cops

The teen jumped over a wired fence out of the city but not near the city wall.

The teen began to get away to the farthest tree until the coast was clear. When the cops investigated the main officer screamed in anger.

"Not again!" The officer said, angrily in defeat "That kid outnumbered us again!"

“We still don’t know how the kid does it.” a nearby rookie said.

Just then a thunder sound came by the wall. The officers looked at the wall before walking away scared.

☆

In a small tiny house in the middle of the woods

Meredith had her hair cut into a shoulder length hairdo, wearing a blue sweater, white jeans and a lab coat. She tested her test tubes while her friend, who now has a full on mustache and goatee, was fixing his new prosthetic arm that he made.

The news was playing in the background.

"Ugh, 10 years.” Meredith said, looking at Ballister. “I still can’t believe it was this long.”

Ballister was quiet as he finished fixing his black prosthetic arm. He was wearing a black shirt and black jeans.

Then it goes to the weather report, which got both Meredith and Ballister’s attention.

It began to show the weekly weather and it's going to rain for half a week.

"Looks like rain again." Meredith said, looking at Ballister.

Ballister nodded as he got his arm on, testing it to see if it works. His arm worked as it moved.

"Hope it works on the human nervous system." Meredith said as Ballister picked up a bottle.

“It does.” Ballister replied as he placed it back down.

But then suddenly they heard a huge thunderstorm, turning off the lights in the process

"I'll get the candles and flashlights" Meredith said who was about to get the candles and flashlights but then they heard the door open.

Meredith grabbed a scalpel while Ballister grabbed a broken bottle as they slowly went to the door, seeing what entered their home.

When they got to the door, they saw it empty, nothing but rain pouring down. Ballister hummed and closed the door, locking it.

"That was weird." Meredith said, looking at Ballister.

“Hey, boss.” a voice said behind them.

Both jumped and turned around to see a teen girl in their home.

'H-how Did you get in?" Meredith asked, placing the scalpel down pointing at the door and then at the teen. "You know you are trespassing on private property."

“And who’s property would that be?” the teen asked and began to look around the home. “This is a nice evil lair here.”

“What?” Meredith and Ballister asked at the same time.

"You mean straight from a comic book?" Meredith asked, knowing her knowledge of comic books.

The teen got a flamethrower on. “Oh nice!”

“Hey, put that down!” Ballister exclaimed, getting the flamethrower away from the teen.

This only made the teen go to another dangerous item as both Bal and Meredith tried to stop the teen from causing any more mayhem or making a mess of their home.

“Careful! Our weapons are dangerous for children!!" Meredith said, putting a weapon away.

“How old do you two think I am?” the teen asked, looking at them.

Ballister shrugged and guessed, “I don’t know, like ten?"

"13 to 15?" Meredith guessed as well.

The teen pointed at Meredith. “Ding ding! We have a winner!” the teen exclaimed with a chuckle.

Meredith smiled a bit while Ballister rolled his eyes. “Ok, kid. You’re a young teen, we get that.” Ballister said as he walked over to the teen. “But why are you here?”

"Yeah. You know we might have to call the police or take you to the station to report you." Meredith said, reaching for the phone.

“We can’t, Meredith.” Ballister said, looking at his friend. “I’m the most wanted right now. If we call the police, not only she is getting arrested but also me.”

"Right…" Meredith said, putting the phone away, but she knew she can't let this teen be alone.

The teen smiled at them. “Well, thank you for not calling the cops.”

"But we cannot let you be running off alone without a parent or guardian." Meredith said." I do install every type of security in this house."

“Oh, to answer why I’m here is that I’m actually here for a job.” the teen answered.

"What do you mean?" Meredith asked "Should you be in school? Your education is important, you know, It can get you ahead in life."

“I don’t go to school.” the teen answered, her arms crossed.

"Are you homeless and homeschooled? I have books in my library if you want to read, but Don't mess anything up with the books" Meredith said, showing her bookshelf filled with books.

“Could we stop talking about school stuff?” the teen asked, sounding annoyed.

"Alright then." Meredith said, popping her lips.

Then the teen looked at Ballister and walked over to him. “I’m here to be his sidekick." she said, pulling Ballister into a side hug.

Ballister gave an uncomfortable look to the teen, not wanting to be touched.

"You mean assistant?" Meredith asked, crossing her arms, knowing there's a difference between assistant and sidekick.

The teen rolled her eyes as she let go of Ballister and said, “No, sidekick. To help him with the evil plans.”

"What?!" Both said at the same time.

The teen looked at both of them. “You two look shocked by this.” she said before something caught her eye. “Oh, what’s that?”

Meredith and Ballister followed the teen. "Do you at least have some resumé?" Meredith asked after the teen. " It’s important if you want to get hired by someone."

“Uh, yeah!” the teen answered, then shoved some papers to Ballister before looking at the thing that caught her eye.

Ballister held the paper that had very disturbing drawings. Meredith was shocked but memorized by the teen's drawings.

"That's a lot of blood." Meredith and Ballister said, looking at the teen.

“You like them?” the teen asked, looking at the grownups.

Meredith and Bal looked at each other before looking at the teen, who was looking at the wall of suspects.

“Oh! Are these your next victims?” the teen asked excitedly. "No, It's not!" Meredith and Ballister answered in unison.

“It’s a suspect wall.” Ballister explained as he walked over. "And completely organized." Meredith added, sounding proud.

The teen’s excited look changed to a confused look. “Wait… are you saying that you’re not a murder?”

“Yes!” Ballister yelled, still holding the broken bottle. He looked at it and then tossed it to the side before looking back at the confused teen.

“But… the news says that you are-”

"HE'S NOT!" Meredith yelled. "I was there when it happened!"

The teen stared at the two grownups before noticed Meredith's lab and went to it, touching everything. "Hey! That's my lab!" Meredith said, chasing the teen as the teen began touching and looking everywhere in the lab.

Ballister grabbed the teen by her hood and put her down in a seat. “Alright!” he said angrily, looking down at her. “If you want to be a sidekick so badly, then could you help me clear my name? If you do, you can be my sidekick.”

The teen’s eyes sparkled and asked excitedly, “You mean it?”

Ballister sighed and rubbed his forehead. “Yes…” he said flatly as he looked at the teen.

"Ok, what's your deal?" Meredith asked, her arms crossed, looking suspicious at the teen. "What's your name and gender pronouns?"

“I’m Nimona.” the teen said, getting up and bowing to Meredith and Ballister. “I use she/her but I use any pronouns.”

"Ok, Nimona." Meredith and Ballister said together, looking down at Nimona, who was smiling big at them.

[thatonelesbianfander]

The Ghost and the Reaper AU Character Refs for Chapters 9-11

Here are the character design and references for chapters 9-11 of The Ghost and the Reaper AU.

Link to character refs for chapters 1-8 // Link to Masterpost

Small trigger warning for cartoon blood on a few of the designs and mentions of death

(Side note: All the character designs are in Gacha Life 2, because I’m lazy rn and I also don’t want my art getting stolen off this site again)

Remus & Janus

Antichrist (Remus Sanders-Kingstone)

they/them pronouns

Age: 26

Antichrist

Manager Janus Martinzon

it/they pronouns

Age: 27

Grim Reaper Manager

Living Spirits Uprising Officers

Roman Sanders-Kingstone (Remus’s Right Hand Man)

he/she pronouns

Age: 26

Human

Thomas Sanders (Resources Officer)

he/him pronouns

Age: 44

Human

Nico Flores (Resources Co-Officer)

he/him pronouns

Age: 44

Human

Logan Croftberry (Planning and Strategy Officer)

he/it pronouns

Death age: 25

Visible Ghost

Patton Hartson (Med Bay Officer)

he/him pronouns

Death age: 22

Visible Ghost

Virgil Blackheart (Recruitment Officer)

he/they pronouns

Death age: 25

Visible Ghost

Bonus! C!Thomas and Creativitwins Fam Casual Outift

How aging works for the different groups:

Humans: age normally

Reapers: immortal (only able to be killed by the Antichrist), age like humans but can choose what age to present as

Ghosts: immortal, don’t age, can choose what age to present as

Antichrist: immortal (only able to be killed by manager reapers), age like humans but can choose what age to present as

[kdo-three]

Joan Jett and The Blackhearts - The Little Drummer Boy (1981) Katherine Kennicott Davis from: “I Love Rock ‘n’ Roll” (LP) "The Little Drummer Boy" / "Victim of Circumstance" (Single) (1983 Promotional 7" Vinyl) “A Blackheart Christmas” (2009 Promotional CD | Various Artists)

Rock | Christmas

JukeHostUK (left click = play) (320kbps)

Personnel: Joan Jett: Lead Vocals / Rhythm Guitar Eric Ambel: Lead Guitar Gary Ryan: Bass / Backing Vocals Lee Crystal: Drums

Will ‘’Dub’’ Jones: Backing Vocals

Produced by Kenny Laguna / Ritchie Cordell

Album Recorded @ Kingdom Sound Studios and Soundworks Studios in Long Island, New York USA June–September, 1981

I Love Rock 'n Roll (LP) Released: on November 18, 1981

"The Little Drummer Boy" (Single) Released 1984

The Boardwalk Entertainment Co. (Single) Blackheart Records Group, Inc.

[snowddeong]

Midzys talking about a Yeji solo lmao

Sometimes I wonder how much blackhearts actually give af about her because with current the current management div 2 has guys... the odds of them making her solo debut a cash grab with a budget of a paperclip some gum and a shoe string is HIGH. So like what are we really wishing for here lmao the music will be good and Yeji will EAT but will it be good for her creatively or even career wise? They can't even let the girls co-write songs ya'll want a solo that doesn't involve her creative input in all facets? We'll even be lucky if they let her contribute to choreo like be serious. Yeji's mentioned being focused on itzy as a group every time JYP mentioned them being ready for solos so what are we not getting lmao. It's weird to be a fan and start rumours about a thing that to your best knowledge your fave isn't focusing on rn and that her shitty boss keeps throwing at her to deflect the fact that his company is doing an awful job