#but it had to do it after i noticed the lost in time dvd on my shelf

[who-exactly]

If the Toymaker loses the game, his world will vanish, but he has the power to build a new one. How? The Toymaker is immortal. He's lasted for thousands of years. Very occasionally, of course, he loses a game, and then he has to pay the price. And that price is the loss of his world? Yes, but he himself is not destroyed. He goes on forever.

The Celestial Toymaker, The Final Test

[dominantslasherking]

Billy and Stu with dominant Male S/o

My Stories are meant for the much more mature audience, 18+. Backstory: You always manage to catch Billy and Stu's eyes on you, whether it be in the college classroom, or when you're purchase horror stuff, they always seem to follow you. Even in your house you still feel their gazes

The dimly lit college classroom was buzzing with chatter, but not loud enough for the professor to call on anyone. Minding your own business as you were taking notes and sketching little side characters on your notebook out of boredom. Eyes were lingering on you, It wasn't the typical glance or side glance.

The lingering eyes were strong and made you feel a cool sensation run down your spine. With a simple turn of the head, you spotted the two. Billy and Stu, how could not know them? Not only did they garner attention all over the college campus. You would always, always catch them staring, although they may be fast to react and look away.

It can't be a coincidence they just always stare at you, not to mention being in the areas you were, your favorite locations, dining areas.

But the really not-so-funny part is, every time you do end up making a friend at this college, they end up disappearing. It had gotten so bad that even your fellow students grew weary of you, believing you were the infamous 'scream' killer.

However after a night in jail and the kills were happening when you were locked up, you were cleared of suspicion but of course not from the college students.

Once the class ended. You made your way out slinging your bag over the shoulder and sighing.

Almost meticulously, with severe calculation Billy had bumped straight into you. He gave a pretty smile as Billy watched you pick up his books. "Thanks, hah," Billy said his eye gleaming with an intense undertone of desire and pure want.

"It's my fault, I should watch where I was going...lost in thought." Your husky voice mutters, stacking Billy's books neatly in your hand before returning them, noticing the subtle hand movement of Billy where his hand brushed against yours.

Turning your gaze to Billy's friend Stu. Stu was silent, his eyes roaming you. The typically loud and humorous friend was silent strange enough, he licked his lips and gave a big smile. "Wow! I love that shirt!" Billy's face fell at Stu's words, elbowing him in the stomach, not enough to cause him severe pain but make him go 'ow'

"What was that for?!" Stu muttered with a pout. "You idiot, his shirt is just plain gray! what do you mean you like it?" Billy scolded, hinting that he knew Stu was checking [Name] out, and now you probably knew that Stu was eyeballing you.

"Ohhh." Stu muttered, as they continued to whisper and bicker among themselves.

Your chuckle made them pause. "sorry, sorry, you guys are just--funny that's all." You spoke softly, you thought they were cute. Bidding them goodbye, you walk out of the classroom.

Billy stared at stu.

"Whattt? Not my fault he's so sexy!" Stu grumbled out.

<<>>><<>>><><><><><<<>>>>

Later that day. You were at the DVD shop, looking through the thriller/horror second, making sure to get your hands on some classics.

With a loud and abrupt clank, your gaze faltered on the row across from you.

"Oops, did I ruin your guy's peeping session?" Randy had asked Billy and Stu. Stu gritted his teeth, Billy gave a urked glare. But the two of them knowing, your gaze was on them resisted doing something they were dying to do. They would just have to get back at him later.

"Wow! [Name], Thriller & horror movies? Nice dude!" Stu cheered pretending as if he didn't already know that about you...

Stu had started to chitter-chatter with you, while Billy was shooing and waving Randy off. Soon after Randy complied (after rolling his eyes and snarky comments) leaving the three of you alone.

"Ehm,--Well Billy and I, we love those types of genres!" Stu happily said as Billy's attention was now drawn to you, his feverish gaze landing on your lips every time you spoke. Taking a pause you spoke, "Really? why don't you two, come over sometime, we can watch them together?" You ask, as the two slashers freeze, slowly turning to look at each other and then back at you.

"What's the matter?...you don't want to---" Before you could finish what you wanted to say, Billy cut you off. "No-! No, we would love to."

Nodding you smiled, "Sure next time in class, we should set up a time and date." After bidding farewell, and purchasing the movies you got, you left, leaving Billy and Stu to celebrate together.

<<>>><<>>><><><><><<<>>>>

Pausing the movie, you itched the back of your neck, a feeling of a sense of dread washed over you. You had it again. Like someone, was watching, analyzing, observing you.

"Fuck." a whisper, under your breath, as you got up to check your popcorn. Walking to the kitchen, you take out the bowl of popcorn, setting it down as the phone rings.

"Hello?" "What's your favorite scary movie, [Name]?"

[nicolesainz]

Timeless (CS55)

Carlos Sainz x f!reader

Warnings: much much fluff, bits of heattbreak, flashbacks

Summary: Carlos has had many supporters, even during his first years in racing. Deep down he knows that only one of them stands truly out and will be by his side until the end of the line.

A/N: The story is from Carlos’s POV :)

Two lovers laughing on the porch of their first house.

“Will you make me wait any longer? I’m bored, let’s go!” Y/N hand’s we’re grabbing my legs, pulling me off of my bed. It was Saturday afternoon and exactly a week after I’d fly to England for two whole months.

Two entire months without being near Y/N. Hearing her voice. Feeling her touch. Being hugged by her and kissed on the forehead. Being encouraged by her praising words. Feeling the butterflies in my stomach every time she is around.

“Okay, fine, fine. You win! Let’s go. We will take my car this time. Yours is always squeaking and I’m afraid we will be stranded.” I gave in on her suggestion of going to see a new romantic movie that had just been released. All our mutual friends had invited her with them, but she always refused to. Two were the main reasons why.

First, they all went as couples and she didn’t want to be third wheeling. And secondly, I wasn’t here. I was in Barcelona for testing. Now it was finally her time to see the movie in the comfort she chose.

I was never planning on going to see that movie. Like Lando has told me, romance movies are not my cup of tea. But I’d sit and admire her passion about those films all day and night.

“I’m so sorry miss, but we are sold out. Maybe come tomorrow morning to check for new tickets?” The cashier tried to sound a little bit hopeful for Y/N’s sake, but that didn’t quite work.

“Oh yeah, sure. Thank you very much!” Y/N put on a fake smile and took my hand in hers, leading us back to my car. Disappointment was drawn all over her face. I couldn’t bare looking at her like this. I felt so bad that I couldn’t do anything.

“I should’ve gone with the guys. Why did I think there would still be availability for tickets? It’s the highest selling movie and has such a big demand.” She was scratching her head, trying to hold back the frustration.

“I’m so sorry amorcito. I would’ve booked you tickets if I knew earlier. We can try again tomorrow. I’m up for it.” Truth be told, I would have fallen asleep on the cinema seat if we went to the next day’s screening, since my father had taken me to practice.

“No worries Carlos. Let’s just go home and we can order something. My parents are out so we can find an old dvd or play a board game.” She wouldn’t even look at me. She was staring at her phone, typing to her girlfriends how in the end we didn’t find any tickets.

What took me by surprise was some of the messages I peeked as I was trying to catch her attention, clearly failing.

“Will Carlos take you anywhere romantic?”

“I bet if you asked him to go to the fun fair he’d speed there”

“TELL HIM THE TRUTH GIRL”

What truth? Did she want to go to the fun fair? Where should I take care? What was she hiding from me?

I turned on the car and took the opposite direction from her house, which lead to one of Madrid’s biggest fun fairs ever. Especially this time of the year, it was really enjoyable and nice.

I wanted Y/N to enjoy her time. Have fun. Live freely. See her happy. I was driving as fast as I could, so she wouldn’t notice where I was taking her.

Comfortable silence had take over the car ride, but after a few moments I heard slight snoring. I looked next to me during the red light to see that she had fallen asleep.

I don’t even know how many hours of sleep she’s lost due to talking with me on the phone, keeping me company, from the other side of the world. While I was warming up her voice was calming me down. It was like a ritual. But I didn’t understand that I was affecting her negatively this much. I had to make it up to her.

I decided not to wake her up until we reached our destination. I turned off the radio so the music wouldn’t bother her and focused on the road.

I would’ve read your love letters every single night.

“Mi guapa, do you mind waking up for a second?” I softly whispered in her ear, not wanting to startle the peace she was in. Slowly, she was rubbing her eyes and only the bright lights of the fair hit her eyes, her mouth fell open in surprise.

"Wha-Carlos what is this?"

"A way of trying to bring your smile back"

Y/N took my hand in hers and squeezed it very tightly, as if I was going to disappear. The sparkles in her eyes gave me hope and her cheeks, even though light was limited, were as maroon as ever.

"What are we waiting for then? Let's go have some fun." I opened her door and she quickly grabbed my bicep and guided us inside the funfair. She was swirling and shouting at all the games she wanted to play or the rides she wanted us to go in.

I am not a funfair guy. Even as a kid, when my sisters brought me here, I would sit out most of the rides with an ice cream on my hand, enjoying the view. I feel like with Y/N being so excited and thrilled, my inner child found what it was looking for.

What excites me is racing and speed. That day, I had found an even better reason to be excited and happy. I didn't mind the noise, the screams, the swearing, or the chilly air. I was purely happy just being alongside Y/N and seeing her with a massive smile plastered on her face.

When we entered the haunted house, we had been warned that actors pop up every now and then. She wouldn't let go of my hand, scared that in the darkness of the room I would run away. But no. I had to stop running away from her. From my feelings towards her.

I was holding her waist firmly, wanting to balance her and prevent any possible accidents. As we were close to the end of the 'tour', a witch actress scared the both of us for the last time with skeletons surrounding us.

Y/N screamed at the top of her lungs. But what she did say, almost made me fall on the ground.

"I do not want to die without having kissed you"

She wanted to kiss me? My Y/N wanted to get a taste of my lips? And as it seemed as badly as I did?

I wasted no time and in utter dark, I held her face against mine, smashing my lips onto hers, bringing the heat of her body closer to mine, wanting to secure her.

The taste of her lips was as I had imagined. The feeling I had in my stomach was levels superior to the thrill Formula One had ever given me. From race win to podiums, I had never felt like this before. It was everything I wanted. Everything I desired.

When I broke the kiss, we walked outside of the haunted house and being confronted with a visible shock on her face, but it being painted wine red. Her fingers were touching her lips, unaware of what had just happened. The other hand was on her chest.

"Is it possible to die from butterflies or being in love?" she whispered softly, coming closer to me and eyeing me directly. My own heart warmed at the sight of her being so shy and innocent. Jesus we were 20 but at that moment I felt like a 15 year old boy again, falling in love with my best friend, with whom I would share irrelevant information about my mechanics on my home's front porch.

"Don't die on me cariño. I haven't even said 'I love you' yet."

[parkerdoeswriting]

Just the Two of Us

(Spencer Reid x GN Reader)

part 1:

category: fluff oneshot

summary: reader and spencer hang out together after a month since reader was held at gunpoint, and a confession occurs

warnings: brief mentions of past traumatic experiences

word count: 0.9k

A/N: sorry for disappearing for a long time LOL, I just recently started school again and I’ve lost all motivation to write and I have no inspiration so PLEASEE IF YOU SEE THIS PLEASE LEAVE SUGGESTIONS IN MY ASK BOX IM BEGGING YOU

“I can’t believe you’ve never watched Sound of Music before” you laugh softly, cuddling up to your best friend as you turn on the tv.

You had invited Spencer over for a movie night, it had been a month or two since the whole incident at the warehouse. You had been required to attend weekly therapy for a while ever since then, and you had just recently been cleared to return to the BAU. Spencer was there for every step of your healing, being the shoulder you could cry on when things got tough.

“It’s just not historically accurate! The Von Trapp’s never escaped over a mountain, and there were ten children, not seven” Spencer starts to rant, his hands gesturing as he speaks.

You smile at him as he spews facts about the inaccuracies, just admiring the way he explains things and how he looks when he goes on and on.

“And Baron Von Trapp wasn’t as disciplinary as he was portrayed in the film!” Spencer finishes, smiling softly.

“Mhm” you say, your eyes practically making goo goo eyes at him.

He catches your gaze and he blushes, swiftly looking away again.

“Um… we could still watch it if you want?” he says quietly, rubbing his neck.

“I’m good” you reply, smiling widely.

“No! I really want to watch it with you” he exclaims, holding your hands together with his.

“Let’s do it then!” you smile, getting up to go through your dvd cabinet.

You locate the disc, giving it a quick wipe down before sticking it in the player. You climb back on the couch, wrapping a blanket around you both.

“We should make popcorn” you add, snuggling against his body, your chin resting on his shoulder.

You can feel his body shake slightly, his face heating up as you do this.

“I’ll- I’ll go make some!” he squeaks, springing up and rushing to the kitchen.

You awkwardly readjust on the couch, wondering if you accidentally weirded him out. Spencer doesn’t know this, but for as long as you’ve known him, you’ve had an underlying crush on him. But you knew dating an FBI agent as an FBI agent wasn’t a good idea, so you backed off.

You smell butter and popcorn emanating from the kitchen, filling the air. You hear rustling in your cabinets, Spencer presumably trying to find a bowl. The faint sound of the ad rolls from the dvd playing in the background.

After a moment, he comes back out with popcorn, buttered and salted to perfection. He hands it to you before sitting down beside you, just in time for the beginning of the movie.

“Thank you, boy genius” you ruffle his hair, smiling.

He smiles back, dipping his hands into the popcorn bowl on your lap.

You rest your head on his shoulder as you watch the opening scenes, the familiar melody

prompting you to sing along. Spencer watches as you sing, his eyes watching you. You don’t notice his gaze, your eyes too focused on the tv to care.

You look at him finally, your eyes widening and your face reddening as you see him.

“Sorry” you laugh awkwardly, pushing some strands of your hair back.

“I like your singing” he confesses, his face also as red as yours.

“Thanks Spence” you smile cheekily.

You guys cuddle together once again, wrapping your blanket around him. You belt out the songs as they play, acting out scenes as well. You chew the popcorn, throwing them up and catching them in your mouth.

“Hey Spence, how many do you think I can catch in a row?” you ask, holding kernels in your hand.

“Hm, 4?” he says, watching you.

You throw the kernels up one by one.

1…

2…

3…

4…

and…

5…!

“Yes!” you squeal, clapping your hands excitedly.

Spencer smiles at your pure joy, giving you a small chuckle.

You turn your attention back to the television, letting yourself absorb yourself in it. You sing happily, putting your legs in his lap as you lean against the sofa’s armrest. His hand rests on your shin, his thumb rubbing circles into it.

“Mm” you sigh happily, smiling softly at the tv.

“Is this alright?” he asks, making sure he’s not making you uncomfortable.

“Yeah” you whisper, your hand reaching for his, trying to place itself on top.

You both stare at eachother for a moment, reveling in the feeling. Your eyes move from his eyes from his lips, lingering on them.

You can see Spencer slowly lean towards you, his head tilting slightly. His lips connect with your cheek, giving you a long and sweet kiss. Your face heats up at the touch, your hands touching his face.

“I like you, Spence” you rub his face with your thumbs.

“I like you too..” he replies softly, his words causing you to lean in.

Your lips press against his, starting out soft as you move closer to him. Your hands grip onto his locks, pulling on them gently.

He cups your face with his hands, practically devouring your lips with his.

“Liked you for so long” he mumbles against his lips, squishing your face as he kisses you.

“Same” you mumble back, your words strained from the pressure on your squished lips.

You crawl into his lap, wrapping your legs around his hips. He holds your waist with his hands, slowly laying you back against the couch as he hovers over you.

You both pull away from each other's lips, smiling dorkishly at the events that happened. You brush his hair back behind his ears as it hangs over you, admiring his gorgeous face.

“Love you”.

[munsonsmixtapes]

Wanna Bet?

tattoo artist!eddie x fem!tattoo artist!reader

word count: 2.7k

cw: MDNI 18+ smut (p in v), Eddie receives a handjob, oral (m receiving), hurt no comfort

Part Four

Your kiss with Eddie had been plaguing your mind since it happened. You couldn’t stop thinking about how soft his lips were and his hand placement. You regretted not taking him up on his invitation to go back to his van, now wishing that you finally knew what he felt like inside you.

You needed him, but there was no way you were going to give up the chance to tattoo the most embarrassing thing on him. It would be on his thigh so when girls pulled down his pants, they would laugh and then leave him alone with nothing but his hand to take care of the job.

Your need to sleep with Eddie was starting to outweigh your need to win and you were starting to feel pathetic. You had only kissed him once and you were already starting to feel hypnotized. Like you'd do anything he asked because the words had come out of his mouth. One look into those pretty brown eyes and you were always a goner.

You entered the shop and made a beeline for Eddie’s office, Steve hot on your heels. He had loaned you a DVD and still hadn’t gotten it back so he had been badgering you about it every time he saw you. If you were being honest, you had no idea where it was and hadn’t even been looking for it because you had been a little distracted.

“Hey, y/n,” he called after you and you turned around just as you were about to knock on Eddie’s office door. Steve made his way towards you and you tried to not seem annoyed. Couldn’t he see that you were busy?

“Hey, Stevie!” You greeted, maybe a little too enthusiastically. You were trying to not seem obvious about what you were doing, but why else would you have gone down the hallway?

“Have you gotten a chance to look for that movie? I’d really like it back.” He crossed his arms over his chest in an attempt to look intimidating, but you just laughed at him. He couldn’t intimidate you if he tried.

“Sorry, no. I’ve been busy with job applications and such, but I promise I’ll get it back to you. I swear.” You were willing to say anything to get him to go away even if that meant lying straight to his face.

“Good, good,” he nodded, then stepped closer to you. “What are you doing back here?” He looked around the very empty hallway and you supposed it was a good question. You never came to the shop and when you did, you didn’t go down that hallway. “The only thing that’s back here is-“ he cut himself off when he turned to Eddie’s office door.

“Oh no, not you too, y/n.” He shook his head in disappointment. He really thought you had been different and now that he knew that you were like every other girl, he was starting to think differently of you.

“What are you talking about?” Your eyebrows furrowed in confusion. Like always, you had no idea what he was talking about, noticing that the man would just say whatever came to mind whenever he was talking to you.

“You’ve been dickmatized,” he rested his hands on your shoulders, looking at you intently. It was as if he was giving you a very serious diagnosis as he was saying the words. “But don't worry, I can help.” He seemed worried, like the idea of you sleeping with Eddie was the worst thing that could have ever happened.

“Dickmatized?” Now you really didn’t know what he was talking about. You had never heard that word in your life.

“Yeah, dickmatized. Hypnotized by his dick.” He was very right. You had been dickmatized and you hadn’t even seen Eddie’s dick. But you were about to and Steve definitely didn’t need to know that.

“Steve, Eddie and I haven’t fucked, not that it would be your business if we had. I’m just here to pay him back for drinks the other night.” You pulled a twenty out of your pocket as your proof and he seemed to believe it.

“Oh.” He let go of your shoulders and let out a sigh of relief. “Thank god. Thought I’d lost another one.” He reached up and clapped you on the back. “Good for you, y/n. You didn’t give into him and I’m proud of you. Well, I should get back to work, but I’ll see you around?”

“Yeah, Steve, see you around.” You waved, trying your best to stay calm. The man had been driving your crazy and you just wanted him to leave you the fuck alone for once.

He turned on his heel and headed to the door that was at the end of the hall. Once it was closed, you feverishly knocked on Eddie’s door, hoping that Steve wasn’t going to come back. The door was ripped open and Eddie’s eyes widened as his locked on yours. Before he could say anything, you pushed him inside and slammed the door behind you.

Before you could stop yourself, you pressed your lips to his and he was quick to return your kiss, the whole thing rushed and messy. Your arms wrapped around his waist while his went to your shoulders, pulling you flush to his body, leaving no space between the two of you.

He licked into your mouth and your lips wrapped around his tongue, giving it a suck, eliciting a whimper to fall from his lips. You gave it one more rough suck then placed your lips back on his, letting one of your hands move around to his front. It slid down his shirt until you got to the top of jeans. You took no time to stick your hand down it, on a search for his dick. Once you found it, you wrapped your hand around it and gave it a few slow pumps.

“Oh,” he moaned and you moved a little faster, only causing him to moan even more. The sounds he was making were so hot, causing your underwear to dampen as you heard them.

“Yeah? You like that?” You asked, moving the fastest you could and his forehead fell to your shoulder as even more moans fell from his mouth.

“So good.” You gave a few more pumps then removed your hand from his pants. Your lips were back on his in a flash and you backed him up until his back hit the desk, his hands resting on it so he wouldn’t fall.

“I can take care of that for you,” you looked down at the tent in his pants and his eyes followed yours. He nodded his head enthusiastically and you dropped to your knees, unbuttoning his jeans and pulling both them and his underwear down, letting them hit his ankles. You stared at his cock that was right in front of you and couldn’t help but notice how big it was. Cum was pouring from the tip and you looked up at him, a flirty look on your face.

“It’s so nice of you to do all of this for me, baby. Practically creamed your pants, huh?” Your hand wrapped around the base and you took him into your mouth giving his dick a suck while your tongue swirled around the head. Eddie’s hands gripped onto the edge of the desk, his knuckles turning white as he threw his head back at the pleasure he was experiencing.

“Shit,” he moaned, his breath becoming heavy. He closed his eyes, trying hard to prevent his knees from buckling.

You continued to suck, taking all of him into your mouth, ignoring the fact that your eyes were watering, desperate to give him the best head of his life. Your tongue swiped along the tip another time as you sucked the hardest you could, eliciting the prettiest sounds from Eddie.

After a few more moans, you removed Eddie’s cock from your mouth and swallowed before standing back up, Eddie pulling his shirt off as you did so. You then moved around to his desk and rifled through the drawers for a condom and found that they littered the bottom left drawer. You grabbed one, not even bothering to close the drawer before you headed back to Eddie. You handed the condom to him and he fiddled with the packet, but eventually got it open. He then went to roll it on, but you stopped him before you could.

“Can I do it?” You asked and without a word, Eddie handed the thing to you. You rolled it onto his cock then quickly removed your clothes before Eddie’s mouth was on yours again, his tongue making its way into your mouth as he pushed you against the wall before slamming his dick into you.

“Shit, Eddie.” No one had ever been that rough with you before and you’d have been lying if you said you didn’t like it. The way his fingers were practically forming bruises with how hard they were digging into your waist.

“I know, sweet thing.” His hands gripped your hips as he pounded into you, causing you to let out the prettiest, loudest moans and Eddie was so grateful that he had finally made the room soundproof so his “meetings” didn’t disrupt the rest of the shop anymore.

“Just so you know, this isn’t part of the bet.” Eddie honestly hadn’t even been thinking about that. The only thing on his mind was how much he was enjoying himself. He had honestly forgotten about the bet until you had brought it up.

“Of course it’s not. Just couldn’t resist me, could you?” He pounded into you once more, this time harder and faster.

“Oh-” you moaned. “And you couldn’t resist me either. Which makes sense, since I’m smokin’, right?” Your hands wound into his hair at the back of his head as you buried your face into his neck and he thrusted and thrusted into you, moans that had fallen from your lips being the only thing that could be heard throughout the room.

“So smokin’, like you have no idea.” His hands moved to your ass and gripped the spot right under it. You took that as an invitation to wrap your legs around his waist which gave his dick more access to your cunt. He continued to pump in and out of you, pumping the hardest he ever could and you moaned louder than you ever have before, vowing to never tell Eddie that it had been the best sex of your life.

Once he had pulled out, you both cleaned yourself up and got dressed, trying your best to make yourselves look like you hadn’t just had sex in Eddie’s office, even though it was going to be pretty obvious to everyone that you had since that was one of the only reasons that people had gone in there.

You pulled your compact mirror out of your back pocket and fixed your hair, making sure it didn’t look like a fucking mess before you left. Eddie watched you as he leaned against his desk, already trying to figure out ways to get you to fuck him again. Outside of the bet, of course. He wanted to keep it going for as long as he could, because he knew that you’d want nothing to do with him as soon as it was over.

He hated to admit it, but he liked spending time with you. He liked your quick quips and how you didn’t fall at his feet like other women did. And he didn’t even see you as a challenge anymore. You were no longer someone who he just wanted to sleep with and never call again. In fact, he wanted you to be the only person he called.

His heart raced in his chest as he had that realization and decided that he needed to call the whole thing off. No fucking way was he falling for you. He couldn’t. That would ruin his whole thing. His whore tendencies had already been put to a halt when he started the whole bet with you and he wasn’t going to let you take the only pleasure he had in life away from him.

“Well, I’m going to head out,” you said, pulling him out of his thoughts. Thank god. He couldn’t look at you anymore without wanting to pull you into his arms for a romantic kiss. What the fuck was wrong with him?

“Okay,” he replied a little too quickly as you buttoned up your shirt and he couldn’t help but want to help you. He was starting to feel disgusted with himself. He was turning into the kind of guys he made fun of. Only pussies fell in love and Eddie was most definitely not a pussy.

He stood from the desk and rested a hand on your back, ushering you to the door, so desperate for you to leave. He couldn’t look at or be around you anymore. He was getting a weird feeling in his stomach and it was making him sick.

“What are you doing?” You asked as he opened the door in a rush. He was acting weirder than usual. Maybe he was just like Steve had accused him of being when you had overheard their conversation. You didn’t know why you cared since you had been using him as well, but you couldn’t help but feel a little hurt that he was so quick to just kick you out.

“I’ve got a client coming in and you don’t want to be here when they get here, do you?” Eddie was definitely patting himself on the back for coming up with that lie on the spot.

“I guess not,” you shrugged as he practically pushed you out of the office. You turned to say something, but you could see the door swinging in your direction.

“Great,” he replied, slamming the door in your face, not even letting you get a word in. What the fuck was wrong with him?

“Dick!” You called after him then stomped down the hall. You pulled the door open and didn’t even bother closing it as you headed to your car. You muttered a bunch of rude things under your breath as you unlocked the door. Once you were inside, you slammed the door and cranked the car before speeding out of the parking lot.

You couldn’t believe that you had been stupid enough to think that he actually liked you. He was so sweet to you at the bar and then after he fucked you, he turned right back into the asshole you knew him to be. You were definitely calling off the bet now. There was no way you were going to see him after that. Not after he practically ripped your heart out of your chest and stomped on it.

You felt like a goddamn idiot for actually trusting him. For thinking that he was anything other than the loser that showered women with his sweet words only to sleep with them and never call even though he swore up and down that he would.

As soon as you were out of the room, Eddie pressed himself against the door and slid down it, falling to the floor. He rubbed his hands roughly along his face, now feeling like an absolute dick for kicking you out like that. You were definitely never going to want to talk to him again and maybe that was a good thing. He couldn’t be your boyfriend. He didn’t do that, even though he kind of wanted to for you.

He found himself wanting to take you out on a date where you laughed at his jokes and shared your meals with each other. He found himself wanting to dress up in a suit and take you to a nice restaurant where he could wine and dine you. Where he could rest his hand on top of yours and tell you just how pretty he thought you were.

But he’d never do that. He was going to deny that shit until the day he died. He’d bury it so deep until he couldn’t even remember that he could even possess those kinds of feelings. The whole thing was so embarrassing and he’d be damned if anyone found out. As far as Eddie was concerned, he was going to take his crush on you to the grave.

[preciousthingsareprecious]

Tumblr Fic List Part 1

Hi everyone! With AO3 currently down, I thought I'd remind you all that almost all of my fics are also available to read right here on Tumblr! For years I've had the habit of cross posting just about everything so if you're looking for a particular fic, you should be able to find it on good old Tumblr.

I tag all my fics with: Precious Posts so you can also use that to find anything newer I haven't added here yet.

This is all my older fics, from my Masterlist. When I get a little more time I'll do a part 2 with my newer stuff.

To Teach a Robin to Cook: Jason teaches Damian how to cook

Baby Bat Vs the Evil Librarian : Steph and Damian take a trip to the library

Grayson’s Guide to Robin Boys Movie Night (IMG): The list of rules Dick wrote for movie night

Guide to Robin Boys Movie Night (FIC): Dick decides to write some rules for movie night, the other Robins have opinions

Movie Night: The Mummy: Jason does not like bugs

Movie Night: Cheeto Bomb: Dick thinks Jason planted a Cheeto bomb in the DVD player. Jason insists otherwise.

Lost Boy: Tim’s mad at Damian (again) and takes a walk to cool off

Fireworks: The Batboys attend a fireworks show for the 4th of July and Jason has flashbacks. Angsty

Baby Teeth: Bruce notices that Damian has lost a tooth, and decides to play Tooth Fairy. Fluff pure and simple.

Talk Yourself Out of This One: Dick get’s kidnapped and is forced to wait for help to arrive.

Kidnapped With You: It’s all Jason’s fault. Or is it Damian’s? Either way both managed to get kidnapped and now have to get along until Batman arrives

Misplaced Mail: Tim decides to go to college and doesn’t tell the other Robin boys.

De-Aged Tim: Timmy gets shrunk down to a six year old and Damian has to help him get back to normal.

Magical Mix Up: Dick, Jason, Tim, and Damian all get body swapped. Will they fight or get along long enough to fix things?

Lights Out: Jason finds himself in a situation when Tim passes out on him while his chest taser is still on

The Hunt: Bruce and Damian go on the search for a missing remote

Prank War: It’s Batboys vs Batgirls

Something in the Tea: Damian drinks hallucinogenic tea and can’t escape the visions of what he wishes his family would be like.

Party Chaos: Duke just wants to survive this party, unfortunately for him the rest of the Batboys are at the party and intent on causing trouble.

Trust: DickBat era fic where Damian gets into some trouble after a fight with Dick.

Karma: Damian’s got the hiccups so Dick tries to help him out on patrol.

Comfort Sweater: Damian get’s caught stealing one of Dick’s sweaters.

Play Lessons: Mindless Fluff as Dick and Dami play Cheese Viking together

Burdens: Written for Dynamic Duo Week 2016 day 6: Leave Me Alone

Discovery: Dick and Damian do a science experiment with Geodes

It’s Called a Hug: DickBat era. Damian doesn’t understand that hugs aren’t just a reward for good work.

Like Any Other Kid: Damian can’t stop having nightmares, finally he decides to go to his father for comfort.

Nightmares and Dreams: Bruce has a nightmare that Damian’s still dead and decides to check up on his son.

Cuffed: Dick and Tim end up handcuffed together and have to rescue Jason

Chosen: Based on a HC where Damian has trouble believing Bruce really wants him.

Album: Tim’s looking through one of his old photo album’s when Dick and JAson find him.

Father Time: Tired from the night before Bruce decides to stay in bed all day. His children decide he needs company.

Favorite Colors: While Dick and Damian are shopping for a new hoodie for Tim Damian makes an interesting purchase.

Lost Not Gone: My version of Damian’s reaction to Tim’s ‘death’

Super Sleepover: Jon sleeps over at the manor

Father Daughter Dance: Bruce and Cass go to the Ballet

Learning to Ride: Bruce teaches Jason how to ride a bike

Adoption: Alfred pushes Bruce to adopt Tim

If I Live to See the Dawn: Jason’s hurt and Damian’s got to get him home

Learning to Ask: Dick takes care of an injured Bruce

Heartbeats: Takes place between Batman Rebirth issues 16-17 and follows Bruce taking care of his kids

Target Practice: Damian and Steph play laser tag

Anxious Heart: Damian deals with some latent fear toxin, Bruce helps him out

Art Show: Tim runs into Damian while going to see one of his photos on display

Family Attire: Dick and Damian go clothes shopping. DickBats era

Unintended Consequences: In trying to hide his own illness Damian ends up getting Tim sick

Always Interesting: Cass buys a waxing kit and all the boys want to try it

Not a Burden: Tim gets hurt on patrol and doesn’t want to bother the family

With Love and Patience: Dick muses over taking care of Damian, there may also be suspenders involved. DickBats era.

Long Overdue: Jason offers to take Damian on patrol with him

Some Kind of Normal: Sometimes Bruce forgets just how young Damian is

Trapeze Training: Dick takes Damian out on the trapeze

Sick Day: Bruce is sick and Damian wants to make sure his father gets proper rest

Haunted Manor: Damian and Jon explore a haunting in the manor

Checking In: The batboys start to worry when Bruce is out of town and hasn’t contacted anyone in a while

Preserved Heartache: Damian sees a video of his own death

Hugs and Cookies: Dick brings a ‘get-along’ rug for the holidays

Like Old Times: Bruce and Dick on a stakeout

Safety Net: Snapshots of Damian learning to trust Dick

Irritating: Damian picks on Dick

This Stupid Family: First person pov. Jason’s little brother’s realize he too is a little brother and act accordingly.

Then and Now: Bruce dealing with Jason’s death juxtaposed with the family now

In Charge: Jason and Bruce make lunch while Alfred is out. Robin!Jason

A Little Craft Project: Damian asks Babs for help cheering Dick up

A Bad Night and Good Tea: Bruce can’t sleep, thankfully Alfred’s there to help

To Pass Through this Night: Dick died during Forever Evil. His brother’s find out and help him deal with it.

Faking It: Damian fakes being sick, Dick reacts to it. DickBats Era

Dreams of Wires: Damian’s feelings on the chip his mother put in his spine

Don’t Get Sentimental: Tiger takes care of Dick

Robin in the Batcave with the Rope: Damian get’s kidnapped by the Riddler and Scarecrow and forced to play clue

Breathe In Breathe Out: Damian gets buried, Dick worries Part 1 2 3

This Weight Off Of Your Shoulders: Damian gets sick, Alfred takes care of him

After Everything We’ve Seen: Dick finds Damian curled in the corner of the couch

Bone Tired: Dick is tired, Bruce is there to help him out

Just to See You: Temporary blind Damian, Big brother Dick

You Won’t Wake Up Alone: Dick knows he’s about to die, he just doesn’t want to do it in front of his little brothers Part 1 Part 2

First Breath After A Coma: Dick ruminates on his death, Damian’s, and all the terrible things that have been happening lately. Angst, no fluff

Your Job or Mine: Bruce gets hurt, Dick takes care of him

New to This: Dick’s getting used to his new busy life, and learning to take time for Damian

Accustomed to Standing Alone: The first time Damian’s kidnapped as a civilian

Bleeding Heart: Damian finds a dying doe and sits with her, Dick helps take care of the rest

Sun Spot: A lazy day with Dick and Damian

Of Baskets and Braids: Dick can’t sleep so he goes to find Bruce, and they get lost watching Youtube videos

As the Years Go By: Dick is growing up, and Bruce isn’t really sure how to deal with it.

A Bird in the Hand: Damian gets turned into a robin…for real. Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4

Those Days We Miss: After Damian picks a fight with Dick, he ends up kidnapped and pretty sure no one is going to come for him.

Stay Here, With Me: Damian gets soaked on patrol, and as a result he ends up sick. Rest and medicine should help, but Damian finds himself getting worse and worse. Thankfully he’s got Bruce (and later Dick) to help sort things out.

You Always Bring Me Home: When Batman is caught by an explosion he calls the person who can always find him, Alfred.

The Care and Yeeting of Robins: Bruce comes home to find Jason in his bed. Jason refuses to move, so Bruce does what he has to in order to stand his ground and decides sleeping on the floor is the only option.

Flash/Prompt Fics:

Damian and Tim: That’s Not a Dog

Dick, Damian, and Cass: No, no, it’s okay, I’ll be your bridge. You can walk all over me

Damian and Dick: I stabbed my last twelve brothers. Why should you be different?

Jason and Steph: Not only am I a late bloomer, I’m late for everything

Young Dick: Not only am I a late bloomer, I’m late for everything

Steph and Damian: I stabbed my last twelve brothers; why should you be any different?

Tim and Damian: Would you mind not setting my stuff on fire every time you get angry

Older!Damian: I find this to be highly illogical, incredibly ridiculous, and absolutely irresistible. Let’s play

Damian and Alfred the Cat

Tim and Damian: Damian attempts to irritate Tim

Tim and Jason: Tim’s tired and saying weird things

Batman Voice: Damian’s got a ‘Batman voice’ and it comes out at the best of times

Shrunken Sweater: Bruce’s sweater has shrunk to the perfect size

Being Sick is Stupid: Robin Dick and Bruce fluff and minor sick fic

Damian gets tricked into sleeping

Dick and Damian angst-fluff

Long Fics:

Super City: Damian and Jon on an adventure in Metropolis

Losing You: Dick loses his memories of Damian and the two try to deal with it while going after the villain responsible (plus Tim and Jason get to help)

Finding Us: The sequel to Losing You. Explores Jason and Tim’s relationship to the Batfam

[mylittleredgirl]

m*a*s*h reaction post released from my drafts!! i don't know why i have been worried about making a Good Post when legitimately everything that could ever be said about this show has been said.

so i will SHARE MY THOUGHTS ABOUT SEASON THREE currently in progress:

ooooh war got a sweet budget increase in the off-season. pyrotechnics! helicopters! ACTIONNN BAYBEEEE

i'm falling more in love with everyone, details to follow

top of the list: trapper my bestie has been promoted to trapper my legit fictional crush 💕

don't get me wrong, in real life i would slap his face, but i'm with hot lips on this one. the hair, the smile, every time he takes off his shirt... take me to the supply tent or lose me forever

HOWEVER, i happened to notice that he is not on the header pic on hulu* and none of you talk about him so i must regretfully conclude that he will eventually leave the show

DON'T TELL ME WHEN

anyway i am cherishing him as one cherishes an old dog not long for this world

*speaking of hulu: i have now joined the henry blake appreciation society thanks to this One Weird Trick (reupping my hulu account for a month because i lost my shit after the dvds cut out at the climax of an episode AGAIN)

i went back to rewatch the episodes that didn't play on the dvds, and turns out a lot of them were henry eps (including the trial of henry blake and the one where he is waiting for news about his new baby...) (and also the one where he fell in love with a cheerleader but you can’t win ‘em all)

just in time to appreciate that scene in "o.r." where he tells hawkeye he doesn't want to be discharged so that he can keep doing real doctoring 🥺

"o.r." had so many good character bits!! even frank got some depth?? or at least an explanation for why he's Like That...

other eps i liked:

"iron guts kelly" -- felt like a follow-up to the one last season where hot lips got wasted and broke up with frank and then hawkeye and trapper had to sober her up, which i also loved! "we hate her but she's OURS to hate" is such a good character dynamic.

also lmao every time she cheats on frank, GET YOURS GIRL 😘

the frank/margaret thing is strangely compelling actually? it's like an inverse ship for real. will-they-or-won't-they but for breaking up. same energy though, like i'm glued to the screen rooting for them to fight instead of kiss.

"check-up" i was sooooo brave you guys making peace with the situation BUT THEN TRAPPER STAYED!!! i feel like my crush has been given a stay of execution

i don't know if i ship it per se but i really hope he and margaret hook up exactly once and literally everyone regrets it

i've seen some more episodes and have more thoughts but i need to lie down a lot first

oh one more thing:

i realize "m*a*s*h actors amazing" is not breaking news, but i'm specifically obsessed right now with how they are always interacting with props. i don't even mean the o.r. tools or scripted things, but how in every scene they're doing comedy while also moving crap around, pouring things, drinking, shaving, changing clothes, handing (or THROWING) things to each other, just making a mess all the time while still hitting their lines and comic beats. it's a master class in whatever that is.

anyway it's so good!!! more to come 💕

[blackswaneuroparedux]

Anonymous ask: What do you think of the new Indiana Jones movie? And of Phoebe Waller-Bridge?

In a nutshell: From start to finish ‘Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny’ is watching Indiana Jones being a broken-down shell of a once great legacy character who has to be saved by the perfect younger and snarky but stereotypical ’Strong Independent Woman’ that passes for women characters in popcorn movies today.

I went in to this film with conflicted feelings. On the one hand I was genuinely excited to see this new Indiana Jones movie because it’s Indiana Jones. Period. Yet, on the other hand I feared how badly Lucasfilm, under Kathleen Kennedy’s insipid woke inspired CEO studio direction, was going to further tarnish not just a screen legend but the legacy of both George Lucas and Steven Spielberg. The cultural damage she has done to such a beloved franchise as the Star Wars universe in the name of progressive woke ideology is criminal. The troubled production history behind this film and its massive $300 million budget (by some estimates) meant Disney had a lot riding on it, especially with the future of Kathleen Kennedy on the line too as she was hands on with this film.

To me the Indiana Jones movies (well, the first three anyway, the less we say about ‘Kingdom of the Crystal Skull’ the better) were an important part of my childhood. I fell in love with the character instantly. Watching ‘Raiders of the Lost Ark’ (first on DVD in my boarding school dorm with other giggly girls and later on the big screen at a local arts cinema retrospective on Harrison Ford’s stellar career) just blew me away. 

As a girl I wanted to be an archaeologist and have high falutin’ adventures; I even volunteered in digs in Pakistan and India (the Indus civilisation) as well as museum work in China as a teen growing up in those countries and discovering the methodical and patient but back breaking reality of what archaeology really was. But that didn’t dampen my spirit. Just once I wanted to echo Dr. Jones, ‘This belongs in a museum!’ But I happily settled for studying Classics instead and enjoyed studying classical archaeology on the side.

I couldn’t quite make sense why Indiana Jones resonated with me more than any other action hero on the screen until much later in life. Looking like Harrison Ford certainly helps. But it’s more than that. I’ve written this elsewhere but it’s worth repeating here.

‘Raiders of the Lost Ark’ is considered an inspiration for so many action films yet there’s a very odd aspect to the film that’s rather unique and rarely noticed by its critics and fans. It’s an element that, once spotted, is difficult to forget, and is perhaps inspiring for times like the one in which we currently live, when there are so many challenges to get through. Typically in action films, the hero faces an array of obstacles and setbacks, but largely solves one problem after another, completes one quest after another, defeats one villain after another, and enjoys one victory after another.

The structure of ‘Raiders’ is different. A quick reminder:

- In the opening sequence, Indiana Jones obtains the temple idol only to lose it to his rival René Belloq (Paul Freeman). - In the streets of Cairo, Indy fails to protect his love, Marion Ravenwood (Karen Allen), from being captured (killed, he assumes). - In the desert, he finds the long-lost Ark of the Covenant, only to have it taken away by Belloq. - Indy then recovers the ark only to have it stolen a second time by Belloq, this time at sea. - On an island, Indy tries to bluff Belloq into thinking he’ll blow up the ark. His bluff fails. Indy is captured. - The climax of the film literally has its hero tied to a post the entire time. He’s completely ineffectual and helpless at a point in the movie where every other action hero is having their greatest moment of struggle and, typically, triumph.

If Indiana Jones had done absolutely nothing, if the famed archeologist had simply stayed home, the Nazis would have met the same fate - losing their lives to ark’s wrath because they opened it. It’s pretty rare in action films for the evil arch-villains to have the same outcome as if the hero had done nothing at all.

Indy does succeed in getting the ark back to America, of course, which is crucial. But then Indy loses the ark, once again, when government agents send it to a warehouse and refuse to let him study the object he chased the whole film. In other words: Indiana Jones spends ‘Raiders’ failing, getting beat up, and losing every artefact that he risks his life to acquire. And yet, Indiana Jones is considered a great hero.

The reason Indiana Jones is a hero isn’t because he wins. It’s because he never stops trying. I think this is the core of Indiana Jones’ character.

Critics will go on about something called agency as in being active or pro-active. But agency can be reactive and still be kinetic to propel the story along. It’s something that has progressively got lost as the series went on. With the latest Indiana Jones film I felt that Indiana Jones character had no agency and ends up being a relatively passive character. Sadly Indiana Jones ends up being a grouchy, broken, and beat up passenger in his own movie.

Released in 1981, ‘Raiders of the Lost Ark’ remains one of the most influential blockbusters of all time. Exciting action, exotic adventure, just the right amount of romance, good-natured humour, cutting-edge special effects: it was all there, perfectly balanced. Since then, attempts have been made to reproduce this winning recipe in different narrative contexts, sometimes successfully (’Temple of Doom’ and ‘the Last Crusade’), usually in vain (’Crystal Skull’).

What are the key ingredients of an Indiana Jones movie? There are only four core elements - leaving aside aspects of story such as the villain or the goal - that you need in place before anything else. They are: the wry, world-weary but sexy masculine performance of Harrison Ford; the story telling genius of George Lucas steeped in the lore of Saturday morning action hero television shows of the 1950s; the deft visual story telling and old school action direction of Steven Spielberg; and the sublime and sweeping music of the great John Williams. This what made the first three films really work.

In the latest Indiana Jones film, you only have one. Neither Lucas and Spielberg are there and arguably neither is Harrison Ford. John Williams’ music score remains imperious as ever. His music does a lot of heavy lifting in the film and let’s face it, his sublime music can polish any turd.

This isn’t to say the ‘Dial of Destiny’ is a turd. I won’t go that far, and to be honest some of the critical reaction has been over-hysterical. Instead I found it enjoyable but also immensely frustrating more than anything else. It had potential to be a great swan song film for Indy because it had an exciting collection of talent behind it.

In the absence of Spielberg, one couldn’t do worse than to pick James Mangold as next best to direct this film. Mangold is a great director. I am a fan of his body of work. After ‘Copland’, ‘Walk the Line’, ‘Logan’ and ‘Le Mans 66’ (or ‘Ford vs Ferrari’), James Mangold has been putting together a fine career shaped by his ability to deliver stories that rediscover a certain old-fashioned charm without abusing the historical figures - real or fictional - he tackles. And after Johnny Cash, Wolverine and Ken Miles, among others, I had high hopes he would keep the flame alive when it came to Indiana Jones. Mangold grew up as a fanboy of Spielberg’s work and you can clearly see that in his approach to directing film.

But in this film his direction lacks vitality. Mangold, while regularly really good, drags his feet a little here because he’s caught between putting his own stamp on the film and yet also lovingly pay homage to his hero, Spielberg. It’s as if he didn't dare give himself away completely, the director seems too modest to really take the saga by the scruff of the neck, and inevitably ends up suffering from the inevitable comparison with Steven Spielberg.

Mangold tries to recreate the nostalgic wonder of the originals, but doesn't quite succeed, while succumbing to an overkill of visual effects that make several passages seem artificial. The action set pieces range from pedestrian to barely satisfying. The prologue sequence was vaguely reminiscent of past films but it was still a little too reliant on CGI. The much talked about de-ageing of Harrison Ford on screen was impressive (and one suspects a lot of the film budget was sunk right there). But Indiana’s lifeless digitally de-aged avatar fighting on a computer-generated train, made the whole sequence feel like the Nazi Polar Express. Because it didn’t look real, there was no sense of danger and therefore no emotional investment from the audience. You know Tom Cruise would have done it for real and it would have looked properly cinematic and spectacular.

The tuk tuk chase through the narrow streets of Tangiers was again an exciting echo of past films, especially ‘Raiders’, but goes on a tad too long, but the exploration of the ship wreck (and a criminally underused cameo by Antonio Banderas) was disappointing and way too short. 

The main problem here is the lack of creativity in the conception of truly epic scenes, because these are not dependent on Ford's age. Indeed, the film could very well have offered exhilarating action sequences worthy of the archaeologist with the whip, without relying solely on the physicality of its leading man. You don't need a Tom Cruise to orchestrate great moments but you could do worse than to follow his example. 

Mangold uses various means of locomotion to move the character  - train, tuk tuk, motorbike, horse - and offers a few images that wouldn't necessarily be seen elsewhere (notably the shot of Jones riding a horse in the middle of the underground), but in the end shows himself to be rather uninspired, when the first three films in the saga conceived some of the most inventive sequences in the genre and left their mark on cinema history. There are no really long shots, no iconic compositions, no complex shots that last and enrich a sequence, which makes the film look too smooth and prevents it from giving heft to an adventure that absolutely needs it.

And so now to the divisive figure of Phoebe Waller-Bridge. 

It’s important here to separate the person from the character. I like Phoebe Waller-Bridge and I loved her in her ‘Fleabag’ series. She excels in a very British setting. I think she is funny, irreverent, and a whip smart talented writer and performer. I also think she has a particular frigid English beauty and poise about her. When I say poise I don’t mean the elegant poise of a Parisienne or a Milanese woman, but someone who is cute and comfortable in her own skin. You would think she would be more suited to ‘Downton Abbey’ setting than all out Hollywood action film. But I think she almost pulls it off here. 

In truth over the years Phoebe Waller-Bridge, known for her comedy, has been collecting franchises where she is able to inflict her saucy humour into a hyper-masculine space. I don’t think her talent was properly showcased here. 

Hollywood has this talent for plucking talented writers and actors who are exceptional in what they do and then hire them do something entirely different by either miscasting them or making them write in a different genre. I think Phoebe Waller-Bridge is exceptional and she might just rise if she is served by a better script.

In the end I think she does a decent stab at playing an intriguing character in Helena Shaw, Indy’s long lost and estranged god daughter and a sort of amoral rare artefacts hustler. Phoebe Waller-Bridge brings enthusiasm, charm and mischief to the role, making her a breath of fresh air. She seems to be the only member of the on-screen cast that looks to be enjoying themselves. 

To be fair her I thought Waller-Bridge was a more memorable and interesting female character than either Kate Capshaw (’Temple of Doom’, 1984) and Alison Doody (’Last Crusade’, 1989). She certainly is a marked improvement on the modern woke inspired insipid female action leads such as Brie Larson (’Captain Marvel’), or any women in the Marvel universe for that matter, or Katherine Waterson (’Alien Covenant’). Waller-Bridge could have been reminiscent of Kathleen Turner (’Romancing the Stone’) and more recently Eva Green, actresses who command attention on screen and are as captivating, if not more so, than the male protagonists they play opposite.

To be sure there have been strong female leads before the woke infested itself into Hollywood story telling but they never made it central to their identity. Sigourney Weaver in ‘Alien’ and Linda Hamilton in the ‘Terminator’ franchise somehow conveyed strength of character with grit and perseverance through their suffering, while also being vulnerable and confident to pull through and succeed. Phoebe Waller-Bridge’s character isn’t quite that. She doesn’t get into fist fights or overpowers big hulking men but she uses cheek and charm to wriggle out of tight spots. She’s gently bad ass rather the dull ‘strong independent woman’ cardboard caricatures that Marvel is determined to ram down every girl’s throat. If Waller-Bridge’s character was better written she might well have been able to revive memories of the great ladies of Hollywood's golden age who had the fantasy and the confidence that men quaked at their feet.

What lets her character down is the snark. She doesn’t pepper her snark but she drowns in it. All of it directed at poor Indy and mocking him for his creaking bones and his entire legacy. It’s a real eyesore and it is a real let down as it drags the story down and clogs up the wheels that power the kinetic energy that an adventure with Indiana Jones needs. ‘The grumpy old man and the young woman with the wicked repartee set off across the vast world’ schtick is all well and good, but it does grate and by the end it makes you angry that Indy has put up with this crap. I can understand why many are turned off by Waller-Bridge’s character. As a female friend of mine put it, we get the talented Phoebe Waller Bridge’s bitter and unlikable Helena acting like a bitter and unlikable man. But it could be worse, it could be as dumb as Shia LaBeouf‘s bad Fonzie impersonation in 'Crystal Skull’.

I would say there is a difference between snark and sass. Waller-Bridge’s character is all snark. If the original whispers are true the original script had her way more snarkier towards Indy until Ford threatened to leave the project unless there were re-writes,  then it shows how far removed the producers and writers were from treating Indy Jones with the proper respect a beloved legacy character deserves. It’s also lazy story telling.

Karen Black gave us real sass with Marion Ravenwood in ‘Raiders’. Her character was sassy, strong, but also vulnerable and romantic. She plays it pitch perfect. Of all the women in Indy’s life she was good foil for Indy.

Spielberg is so underrated for his mise-en-scène. We first meet Marion running a ramshackle but rowdy tavern in Tibet (she’s a survivor). She plays and wins a drinking game (she’s a tough one), she sees Indy again and punches him (she’s angry and hurt for her abandoning her and thus revealing her vulnerability). She has the medallion and becomes a partner (she’s all business). She evades and fights off the Nazis and their goons, she even uses a frying pan (she’s resourceful but not stupid). She tries on dresses (she’s re-discovers her femininity). Indy saves her but she picks him up at the end of the film by going for a drink (she’s healing and there’s a chance of a new start for both of them). This is a character arc worth investing in because it speaks to truth and to our reality.

The problem with Phoebe Waller-Bridge’s character is that she is constantly full on with the snark. Indy and Helena gripe and moan at each other the entire film. Indy hasn’t seen her in years, and she felt abandoned after her father passed, so there’s a lot of bitterness. It’s not unwarranted, but it also isn’t entertaining. It’s never entertaining if the snark makes the character too temperamental and unsympathetic for the audience to be emotionally invested in her.

I think overall the film is let down by the script. Again this is a shame. The writing talent was there. Jez and John-Henry Butterworth worked with James Mangold on ‘Ford v. Ferrari’ and co-wrote ‘Edge of Tomorrow‘ while David Koepp co-wrote the first ‘Mission: Impossible’ (but he also penned Indiana Jones and the ‘Kingdom of the Crystal Skull’, and the 2017 version of ‘The Mummy’ that simultaneously started and destroyed Universal’s plans for their Dark Universe). I love the work of Jez Butterworth who is one of England’s finest modern playwrights and he seemed to have transitioned fine over to Hollywood. But as anyone knows a Hollywood script has always too many cooks in the kitchen. There are so many fingerprints of other people - studio execs and directors and even stars - that a modern Hollywood script somehow resembles a sort of Ship of Theseus. It’s the writer’s name on the script but it doesn’t always mean they wrote or re-wrote every word.

Inevitably things fall between the cracks and you end up filming from the hip and hoping you can stitch together a coherent narrative in post-production editing. Clearly this film suffered from studio interference and many re-writes. And it shows because there is no narrative fluidity at work in the film.

Mads Mikkelsen’s Nazi scientist is a case in point. I love Mikkelsen especially in his arthouse films but I understand why he takes the bucks for the Hollywood films too. But in this film he is phoning in his performance. Mads Mikkelsen does what he can with limited screen time to make an impact but this character feels so recycled from other blockbusters. Here the CIA and US Government are evil and willing to let innocent Americans be murdered in order to let their pet Nazi rocket scientist pursue what they believe to be a hobby. But to be fair the villains in the Indy movies have never truly been memorable with perhaps Belloq, the French archaeologist and nemesis of Indy in ‘Raiders’, the only real exception. It’s just been generic bad guys - The Nazis! The Thugee death cult! The Nazis (again)! The Commies! Now we’re back to Nazis again which is not only safer ground for the Indy franchise but something we can all get behind.

However Mads Mikkelsen’s Dr. Voller, is the blandest and most generic Nazi villain in movie history. At the end of World War II, Voller was recruited by the US Government to aid them in rocket technology. Now that he’s completed his task and man has walked on the moon, he’s turning his genius to his ultimate purpose, the recovery of the ‘Dial of Destiny’ built by Archimedes. Should he find both pieces of the ancient treasure, he plans to return to 1930s Nazi Germany, usurp Hitler, and use his advanced knowledge of rocket propulsion to win the war. In a sense then he was channeling his inner Heidegger who felt Hitler had let down Nazism and worse betrayed Heidegger himself.

So there is a character juxtaposition between Voller and Indy in the sense both men feel more comfortable in the past than the present. But neither is given face time together to explore this intriguing premise that could have anchored the whole narrative of the film. It’s a missed opportunity and instead becomes a failure of character and story telling.

Then there are the one liners which seemed shoe horned in to make the studio execs or the writers feel smug about themselves. There are several woke one lines peppered throughout the film but are either tone deaf or just stupid.

“You trigger happy cracker”-  it’s uttered without any self-awareness by a black CIA agent who is chaperoning the Nazi villain. Just because white people think it’s dumb and aren’t bothered by it doesn’t make it any less a racial slur. If you want authenticity then why not use the ’N’ word then as it would historically appropriate in 1969? The hypocrisy is what’s offensive.

“You stole it. He stole it. I stole it. It’s called capitalism.” - capitalism 101 for economic illiterate social justice warriors.

“[I’m] daring, beautiful, and self-sufficient” - uttered by Helena Shaw as a snarky reminder that she’s a strong independent woman, just in case you forgot.

“It’s not what you believe but how hard you believe.” - Indiana Jones has literally stood before the awesome power of God when the Ark of the Covenant was opened up by the Nazis, and they paid the price for it by having their faces melted off. Indy has drunk from the authentic cup of Christ, given to him by a knight who’s lived for centuries, that gave him eternal life and heal his father from a fatal bullet wound. So he’s figuratively seen the face of God (sure, he closed his eyes) and His holy wrath, and has witnessed the divine healing power of Christ first hand. And yet his spews out this drivel. It’s empty of any meaning and is a silly nod to our current fad that it’s all about the truth of our feelings, not observable facts or truth.

For me though the absolute worse was what they did to Indiana Jones as a character. Once the pinnacle of masculinity, a brave and daring man’s man whose zest for life was only matched by his brilliance, Henry Jones Jr. is now a broken, sad, and lonely old man. Indiana Jones is mired in the past. Not in the archaeological past, but in his own personal past. He's asleep at the wheel, losing interest in his own life. He's lost his son, he's losing his wife. He's been trying to pass on his passion, his understanding to disinterested people. They're not so interested in looking at the past. He remains a man turned towards the past, and then he finds himself confronted by Helena, who embodies the future. This nostalgia, this historical anchoring, becomes the main thread of the story.The film tries to deconstructs Indiana Jones on the cusp of retirement from academia and confronts him with a world he no longer understands. That’s an interesting premise and could have made for a great film.

It’s clear that the filmmakers’ intention was for a lost and broken Indiana to recapture his spirit by the film’s end. However, its horrible pacing and meandering and underdeveloped plot, along with Harrison Ford’s miserably sad demeanour in nearly every scene, make for a deeply depressing movie with an empty and unearned resolution. 

By this I mean at the very end of the film. It’s meant to be daring and it is. There’s something giddy about appearing during the middle of siege of Syracuse by blood thirsty Romans and then coming face to face with Archimedes himself. The film seems to want to justify the legendary, exceptional aura and character of Indy himself by including him in History. Hitherto wounded deep down inside, and now also physically wounded, Indy the archaeologist tells Helena that he wants to stay here and be part of history. 

It's a lovely and even moving moment, and you wonder if the film isn't going to pull a ‘Dying Can Wait’ by having its hero die in order to strengthen its legend. But in a moment that is too brutal from a rhythmic point of view, Helena refuses, knocks out her godfather and takes him back to the waiting plane and back to 1969. The next thing Indy sees he’s woken up back in his shabby apartment in New York.

I felt cheated. I’m sure Indy did too.

After all it was his choice. But Helena robbed him of the freedom to make his own decisions. She’s the one to decide what’s best. In effect she robbed him of agency. Even if it was the wrong decision to stay back in time, it’s so important from a narrative and character arc perspective that Indy should have had his own epiphany and make the choice to come back by himself because there is something worth living for in the future present - and that was reconciling with Marion his estranged wife. But damn it, he had to come to that decision for himself, and not have someone else force it upon him. That’s why the ending feelings so unearned and why the story falls flat as a soufflé when you piss on it.

‘Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny’ feels like the type of sequel that aimed to capture the magic of its predecessors, had worthwhile intentions, and a talented cast, but it just never properly materialised. In a movie whose pedigree, both in front and behind the camera, is virtually unassailable, it’s inexcusable that this team of filmmakers couldn’t achieve greater heights. 

The film was a missed opportunity to give a proper send off to a cinematic legend. Harrison Ford proving that whatever gruff genre appeal he possessed in his heyday has aged better than Indy’s knees. He may be 80, but Ford carries the weight of the film, which, for all its gargantuan expense, feels a bit like those throwaway serials that first inspired Lucas - fun while it lasts, but wholly forgettable on exit.

I wouldn’t rate ‘Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny’ as the worst film in the franchise - that dubious honour still lies with ‘Kingdom of the Crystal Skull’.  Indeed the best I can say is that I would rate this film at the benchmark of “not quite as bad as Crystal Skull”.But it’s definitely time to retire and hang up the fedora and the bull whip.

For what’s worth I always thought the ending of ‘Last Crusade’ where Indy, his father Henry Jones Snr., and his two most faithful companions, Sallah and Marcus Brody, ride off into the sunset was the most fitting way to say goodbye to a beloved character.

Instead we have in ‘Dial of Destiny’ the very last scene which is meant to be this perfect ending: Indiana Jones in his scruffy pyjamas and his shabby apartment. Sure, the exchange between a reconciling Indy and Marion is sincere and touching. But that only works because it explicitly recalls ‘Raiders of the Lost Ark’. That's what Nietzsche would call “an eternal return”.

I shall eternally return to watch the first three movies to delight in the adventures of the swashbuckling archaeologist with the fedora and a bull whip. The last two dire films will be thrown into the black abyss. Something even Nietzsche would have approved of.

Thanks for your question.

[batmannotes]

Super Friends: The Complete Series (DVD & Blu-ray) Box Set

Super Friends: The Complete Collection Box Set comes in two different formats; standard definition DVDs and for the very first time, High-Definition Blu-rays. 

Super Friends 1973 Blu-Ray Screenshot

The Super Friends is an animated television series which ran from 1973 to 1985 on ABC as part of its Saturday morning cartoon lineup. Sadly, kids today will never know the excitement of waking up early on a Saturday morning and watching wall-to-wall cartoons. Back then there was no streaming your favorite animated series on your tv or mobile devices whenever you wanted, however you did get your fill of kids programming on the weekends. 

The All-New Super Friends Hour 1977 Blu-Ray Screenshot

The show was produced by Hanna-Barbera, who was behind tons of cartoons back in the day like the Flintstones and Jetsons. The Super Friends were obviously members of the Justice League from DC Comics that were rebranded in name. Throughout the show’s 12 year run it had slight name variations like The All-New Super Friends Hour, The Challenge of the Super Friends (which was my personal favorite year), and The Super Powers Team: Galactic Guardians, among others. Here is a list of the different name changes through the years. 

Super Friends (1973–1974) 

The All-New Super Friends Hour (1977) 

Challenge of the Super Friends (1978) 

The World's Greatest Super Friends (1979) 

Super Friends (1980–1983) 

Super Friends: The Legendary Super Powers Show (1984) 

The Super Powers Team: Galactic Guardians (1985) 

The Super Powers Team: Galactic Guardians (1985) 

The great news here is that you will find all 9 seasons of the 12-year run in this box set including The Lost Episodes. This release has an amazing runtime of 3142 minutes. The Blu-ray version contains 16 discs and the dvd version has 21. Upon doing a side by side comparison of my old DVDs of the show and the newly released version of DVDs, I really can’t notice any difference, however since the old DVDs are out of print and hard to find nowadays this is a great way of collecting all the episodes in one place if you simply want to collect the show on DVD. 

Comparing the original DVD (left) with the 2024 release (right)

However, my excitement for this release is definitely for the Blu-ray version. This is the first time that fans can add the high-definition version to their home library. Looking at a side-by-side comparison of the original standard defintion DVD version next to the newly released Blu-ray version you immediately notice the beautiful upgrade in color. The animation gets a boast in chroma, unfortunately, that seems to be where the upgrade ends. Little attention was given to cleaning up the film cels that make up the picture here, as spots and other insincerities are still obvious. After so many complaints about how Warner Bros. remastered Max Fleischer's Superman cartoons, the studio is a bit more careful now on how they clean up these older animated titles. Here they were a little too careful … maybe even just lazy.

Comparing the original DVD (left) with the 2024 Blu-Ray (right)

You will also notice this is a very bare-bones release. There is no accompanying booklet or physical extras and NO DIGITAL COPY. On the discs themselves you will find the same extra featurettes that were on the original DVDs such as One-Dimensional Goodness: The Super Friends and the Good Old Days, The Super Powers Collection: The Effect of the Toy Industry on the Super Friends, among a host of others. These featurettes do not receive any upgrades in picture or sound. One of the most annoying things to me is the actual box the discs are in. The discs do not pull out easily from their holder and they certainly don’t pop back into to place without some serious frustration. The bracket on my box set also broke away from the box itself within the first couple times of opening it up. The discs themselves are also extremely basic. No artwork of the characters like most of the original DVDs had on them. That said, the titles are easy to read and presented in an assorted color for each season. 

Shot of open Blu-Ray Box Set/Discs

But let’s face it, the real reason fans are grabbing this release with such delight is for the show itself. For many of us this was an introduction to the superheroes such as Batman & Robin, Superman, Wonder Woman, Aquaman, The Flash and Green Lantern. Long before I picked up my first comic book, I watched the Super Friends each and every Saturday morning, rain or shine. Not only was this how I discovered comic books, but it was also my entry way into superhero toys and collectibles. Last year I was really pushing to get this box set released for the Super Friends 50th anniversary, but I will say it puts a huge smile on my face to own every episode now in HD in this mega box set. The lack of extra aside, this is a must-have for Justice League fans. Check out the link here where you can grab a copy for yourself. 

Check out links below for purchase options

The greatest of the DC superheroes work together to uphold the good with the help of some young proteges. Produced by Hanna-Barbera, Super Friends is an animated TV series, featuring the Justice League of America, that ran from 1973 to 1985 on ABC as part the Saturday morning cartoon lineup.

Blu-Ray Box Set available: https://amzn.to/4d8hfaR

DVD Box Set: https://amzn.to/3Bbi99l

Watch the video review below:

[strangercarla]

Kiss You - Nick Amaro x Fem! Reader

No warnings just completely fluffy! Also this isn't my gif! (Also this was inspired by One Directions song Kiss You)

It was a Saturday night & Y/N was preparing for a movie night with the SVU squad. As it was her first time hosting & having her friends over she was nervous, so she cleaned her apartment a few to many times.

Earlier on she had prepared cupcakes which she was yet to finish with icing, however as she reached for the cupboard with her pipe & ingredients someone had arrived at her apartment.

She realised who she was about to open her door too & her stomach filled with butterflies. A few moments later there was a knock on her door & her stomach tied into a knot.

After a few seconds though that seemed like a lifetime she opened her door & gave her best friend a smile.

She liked Nick for a long while, however as he was her partner at work as well as her best friend she did not want to act on her crush. Little did she know that he felt the same way.

"Nick hey, come in!" She said gleefully & made her way back to the kitchen.

He smiled & entered the apartment. He looked over at the kitchen & smiled at Y/N.

"Have you been baking?"

"Yeah I thought I'd make some cupcakes for everyone. I just need to finish the icing."

Y/N stood on the tips of her toes & extended her arm out to reach what she needed. Nick noticed her struggling & reached up into the counter as she stood underneath his reach.

He passed Y/N the items & grinned as he realised the little to no space between them. He rested his forearm on the inside of the empty cupboard & leaned down to meet her lips but were interrupted by the sound of a buzz.

She giggled as he gently rested his forehead on Y/N's shoulder.

"I should probably get that..." She trailed off & walked towards the speaker.

"Hey, it's us could you buzz us in?" The familiar voice rang.

"Sure thing see you in a second." As she walked away from the apartment door she turned to Nick. He walked towards her & gently held her waist.

"Do you think they took the lift or the stairs?" He questioned.

Y/N wrapped her arms around his neck & leaned in, but were interrupted again by the knock of the door.

"Goddammit." He sighed as he answered the door to Amanda & Sonny.

"Come on in."

Amanda & Sonny made their way into the apartment & greeted Y/N.

-

The apartment soon filled up & everyone gathered in the living room with Olivia, Rafael & Nick on the couch, Fin on a arm chair & Y/N, Sonny & Amanda on the floor around the coffee table.

The group were deciding on a movie to watch & laughed at Y/N's selection of Barbie & Disney movies. Which she argued "in my defence but with the field of work we're in, I need to watch something lighthearted to help me sleep."

The group bickered back & fourth until they decided on an 80s classic 'The Lost Boys.'

-

As it was late the squad left Y/N's apartment leaving Y/N & Nick alone. The two tidied up the apartment by putting spare blankets, cushions & DVDs away.

The pair sat down on the couch, a comfortable silence filled the room, the one noise to be heard was the heartbeats of the two.

Nick extended his arm & rested it behind Y/N playing with the ends of her hair, twirling strands around his finger. He then began to express how much he liked her & how he wanted to kiss her.

"Well we're alone, how bout that kiss?" She said playfully. He did not hesitate & he leaned in & gave her a kiss filled with passion.

[zukadiary]

10 years, 10 top stars

Today is my blog's 10TH BIRTHDAY 🥳🥳🥳

To celebrate, I'm going to do 10 streams showcasing 10 of my all time favorite top stars!

(This will be done over, idk, some amount of time, at absolutely not a regular cadence, because unfortunately I live a busy life).

BUT! We're gonna start this week. In no particular order other than I decided to go recent first...

10 years 10 top stars profile #1: Nozomi Fuuto

A few reasons I love Daimon:

My like, very first glimmer of a zuka crush in the infant beginnings of my fandom, before Takawiki existed, when you had to personally know someone on livejournal or in a yahoo group who recorded physical DVDs off TV while they were on JET to watch anything ever, was Minoru Kou. Circa my 2013 re-entry into fandom, I noticed Daimon because I thought she looked like Noru.

The voice, obviously. If you haven't heard it live, put it on your bucket list (and make sure your long awaited exposure isn't in Theater Orb). It hits you in the chest and reverberates in your mitochondria.

The juxtaposition of the raw talent with a relatable combo of crippling perfectionism and general anxiety. Like, really, you can play a Death good enough to resurrect me from clinical depression, but you can't flirt with a musumeyaku in QR without having a meltdown? Terrible (affectionate).

While she mostly comes off as a lowkey, v. profesh, relatively buttoned-up person, she is afflicted by what one of my friends once called "silly o'clock," i.e., she gets funnier, less inhibited, and more human as she approaches exhaustion. This has manifested in two of the most unexpectedly delightful ochakai I've ever been to (watch Yukigumi College—the thing where she's dressed as Beethoven—for a filmed and preserved example).

Top Daimon memories:

On the 20th Century, IMO her Takarazuka peak, sadly lost to the ages (you can read a scene by scene here if you want)

The way her songs in Gaisenmon made her voice float into the corners of the Grand Theater like butterflies on a gentle breeze

The last Daimon ochakai I ever went to, Bakumatsu Taiyouden, which I'm hoping is beyond the statute of limitations now, where she sang a duet with a recording of Gaori's voice and then burst into tears (wasn't supposed to be the last but alas, global pandemic).

ANYWAY,

Choosing a show was hard because, actually, while I am obsessed with Daimon, I am specifically most obsessed with nibante Daimon, and Chigigumi is peak Yukigumi for me. However, every other fave top is getting their top era streamed, and since my all-time fave Daimon show is lost forever...

Stream #1 will be 『fff / Silk Road』 (Snow 2021)

(fff subbed by adorare)

WHEN: Friday, April 7, 9PM EST (that's NY time, join me while I try to stay awake for Stella Voce but maybe fall asleep after the stream anyway lmao)

WHERE: cytu.be/r/pom-pa-lalala

I'll definitely be shaking up the time zones over the course of these streams, so if this doesn't work for you, stay tuned! Next we'll be going back in time...

[staticshipstation]

Five More Minutes

Pairing: TV Dinner Date (Gex x Static) Word Count: 700+ Summary: Gex gets a little concerned about his overworked partner after "Five more minutes" turns into half an hour.

My first attempt at posting a Ship-Fic here! Hope you guys enjoy! I had a lot of fun writing this.

The crickets outside could be barely heard through the dim glass windows in Gex’s mansion. Crickets Gex would deem as a delicious snack. The gecko hummed as he rewatched some re-runs of some random 90s sitcom. He had been waiting for his once rival now partner to enter the room. Gex was practically dying of boredom as he waited for the sound of hoof steps against the checkered floor. Using his lizard eyes to his advantage, he would occasionally move one to stare at the door that led to the two’s bedroom.

“They said it’d only be five more minutes...” Gex’s tail flicked a little out of frustration. Not because they were keeping him waiting, but because he knew WHAT they were doing while he was waiting.

He started turning his whole head towards the door, watching it more intently than the TV. He had to check. A click of the button had made the TV’s once bright screen turn black.

An opening door had cut through the silence that infected the bedroom. Static’s ears perked up as their yellow eyes glanced over to see the Gecko leaning against the threshold of the door. They let out a slight nervous chuckle... it hadn’t just been five minutes, had it?

“M-Maybe I lost track of time.” They stuttered, adjusting their glasses, feeling the temples between their fingers.

Gex sighed as he walked over to the desk Static was sitting at then putting his hands on the goat’s shoulders. He began to gently massage them, knowing full well the work Static was putting them through.

“You’re overworking again, Toonsy.” He slowly rested his head comfortably between their horns. He always liked how nicely his cheeks felt pressed against the sides of the horns. He always liked how comfortable he was around them.

“I mean... I just REALLY wanted to get this project done. sure maybe my fingers feel like glow sticks and my shoulder aches a LITTLE but-“They could see Gex’s face in the reflection of the computer screen. A yellow muzzle wasn’t scrunched in anger but in concern. Static knew the difference. A sigh practically crawled out of their lips as they finally relaxed their shoulders for the first time in half an hour.

“Alright. I know when I’m making excuses.” They shut the computer, the harsh light disappearing under the top screen.

“It breaks my heart to see you tire yourself out like this, Sugarswirls..” Gex said as he then pressed his face against Static’s. Scales touched messy fur affectionately. “Give it a rest tomorrow, okay?” he brought his face away, tilting Static’s chin up.

Warmth rushed to the goat’s cheeks as they felt the gecko’s fingers against their chin scruff. They leaned into the touch just slightly enough to almost fall out of their chair. They allowed themself to lean because they knew Gex would catch them. Eyes shut as they gave Gex a tired nod.

“Good... because I have some Star Trek DVDs that GOTTA be binged, and I’d want the handsomest goat with me there for it all.” He giggled before he gently booped Static’s nose.

“I thought Star Trek was for nerds.” Static responded, sticking their tongue out playfully.

“Don’t let the adoring public know this but… but I think we’re both nerds, baby.” He whispered as if there was anyone besides the crickets outside their window.

“Oh really? I didn’t notice.” They said coyly. They moved their chair so Gex could see his collection of James Bond posters that hung only a few feet away from his bed right over their shoulder.

Gex playfully huffed as he flicked his tail again. “As if you don’t have the Who Framed Roger Rabbit vinyl on display in the living room…” he rolled his eyes before he sat on the goat’s lap. “Unbelievable! I’m dating a hypocrite! I hope it’s not contagious.” The gecko then proceeded to pretend to faint in Static’s arms.

A few seconds of silence was then followed by affectionate giggling from both parties. Moments like this reminded them of when the two had first met, when banter like this just ended with the two walking away upset. Back when banter like this didn’t end up in a kiss.

Static sighed as their lips parted. They stared into Gex’s eyes affectionately. The world around them seemed to slow down just for this moment. It was almost like the world had just vanished and it was just them.

They really should relax more often, especially if it meant having more moments like this with Gex.

[letkirillfight]

15 people 15 questions

thanks for the tag @babygirlspurgeon, @masonshaws, @giveemgreef, and @babygirlboberrey

1. are you named after anyone?

I share my middle name with my mom.

2. when was the last time you cried?

A couple days ago. The last month has been a bit rough.

3. do you have kids?

No and never will.

4. what sports do you play/have you played?

I played soccer when I in like elementary school and then did a season of tennis in like high school. Low-key hated doing both of them. I'm not really one for playing sports unless it's the sort of casual pick up game with friends. I much prefer to watch.

5. do you use sarcasm?

Yes, religiously.

6. what's the first thing you notice about people?

I'm going to be honest I am not self aware enough to know the answer to this one. But probably their outfit if I had to guess.

7. what's your eye color?

I always say gray.

8. scary movies or happy endings?

To my endless annoyance my brain is absolutely the worst while watching scary movies, like the most obviously built up jump scare will still spook me, so happy endings I guess.

9. any talents?

Uh, I'm really good at packing? And I'm pretty good with horses? I don't know, my mind kind of blanked on anything I have ever been good at when I read this.

10. where were you born?

Michigan

11. what are your hobbies?

I am a huge nerd and also a grandmother (this is not a slight towards grandmothers). I love watching movies and binging tv shows and have an extensive dvd collection because they will tear physical media from my cold dead hands. I also love playing video games and really want to build my own desktop one of these days towards that end. I will read anything that looks half interesting and have also lost many an hour to writing whatever idea pops into my head. I crochet, can technically knit, and am learning how to spin yarn and sew beyond basic mending. I also play sudoku, solitaire (spider specifically), and do puzzles. Plus like hiking and traveling to occasionally get out of the house. Oh and hockey.

12. do you have any pets?

Nope. I grew up with a wide variety of animals but have yet to get one of my own. Someday I'm considering getting a cat or two but we'll see.

13. how tall are you?

I am 5'5".

14. favorite subject in school?

History, followed closely by English. This probably has just as much to do with my teachers as the actual subject material as those classes were really fun.

15. dream job?

None lol. I dream of financial stability not working. If I had to pick something though it would probably be something physical. I like being able to say "I made that" or something with horses. I loved working with them before. Most realistically though it wouldn't be one thing. I like the idea of being a jack of all trades type and bouncing around learning how to do a bunch of things.

tagging: @wildrangers, @eis-hockey,@kirill-kaprizovs-curls,@cecishockeyblogging, @jonassiegenthighler, @lindholmline, @carpehistoryandthepens, @stanleyoffseventh, @couthbbg, @dwisp, @devils-wild, @thecardiackids, @wehaveagathering, @flaticeball, @oetter if y'all want to do it and haven't already done so. Plus anyone else who sees this and is interested consider yourself tagged.

[poupeesdecirque]

Travel Blog: Leipziger Buchmesse Friday

Timcampy's Adventures, meeting Friends & Religious Gold

Day two of the Bookfair. Today I was about to wear the new variant of the Runaway Outfit again, which I had made for the Polaris back last year AND the new Innocence I just made one week before the con.

Day two started very early for me ... I woke up at 3 in the morning and with a cat using me as trampoline and the overstimulation from the day before I was alerted by everything.

But I wanted to cosplay still. And even work with Make up again. I am super unskilled with Make up for Cosplay because aside the curse I haven't used any since my teens and just started doing it in ... October. I have learned quite a bit since then like switching to a different type of make up that doesn't need 5 days to be scrubbed off, that's better for my already sensitive eyes.

I also snapped off one of the nails from the Innocence and learned I need ... assisstance when visiting the bathroom while wearing it. oof.

I'm thankful I was not the driver for this day and just was able to chill for once after being stuck in traffic the evening before.

This time we actually started with taking different photos before the hall got too full, we even made a small video.

For the fair itself the section for comics/manga had started as a part of the fantasy and children's section ages ago and 10 years ago it got its own hall and even was expanded last year to 1 1/2 halls. Hall 1 was mainly artists this time with a HUGE department for artists and several rows of an artists alley along with some merchants. The half of Hall 3 was different publishers like Crunchyroll, Tokyopop, Nintendo and bigger merchants or even other conventions.

I have to say my feeling of hunger was not existent that day but I felt my eyes were getting worse, I even had to put on my glasses for a while, hoping it would be better. Was truly motivated me was that the german DVD/Blu Ray Publisher of D.Gray-man still recognized me and asked me to return with the 1st Uniform to take Photos for promoting the series on their Instagram and I was just .. wow. Still can't believe they asked me.

While we wandered the glass hall several times for finding my DGM Mutuals we decided to give the other sections a visit as Alu had a mission and as we walked through the religious section one vendor gave us a little bible book and ... "real gold" ... uhm.. Mister you know I'm running away from the church yes? :'D

After that we went to one of the big book shops and of course I had to look up some cook books. My guilty pleasure. But this time I didn't end up buying a ton, I only got one.

Back in the glass hall I was finally able to locate my DGM Mutuals and we made a pile of Tims as you can see. Haha. I'm so glad I am brave enough to talk to people again, it was an issue in the past that I just shyly crossed their ways and wished they would notice me, but nope, not this time. I also walked to other cosplayers and told them I love their costumes. Just to brighten up their day.

A few more impressions from the location itself. If you look closely you can spot the D.Gray-man Nendos of Allen, Kanda and Lavi. Oh and I finally got a pocket watch again! Mainly for my past!Allen Cosplay if I will wear it again, the owl reminds me of the bookshop emblem we see in chapter 249.

As we later sat down in the glass hall, we got myself a snack for photos and put aside our stuff and I didn't notice but a friend of a friend took Timcampy and played around with him. Until they complained that parts weren't made to their liking and that was the point I was close to snapping. I can tell my was over everything already with the little sleep I had, my eyes acting up, running around all day long already.

I tried to get lost while we went on another window shopping trip and actually bought a Ramen and an Udon bowl. Just to drop the bag 2 minutes after buying. Then I only had a Ramen bowl and a pile of shards. All went downhill then I didn't want to talk, I didn't want a hug, I sat down and tried not to have a panic-mental-breakdown-whatever. I even went out into the rain just to RUN to get the steam off. I went to my friend Julia who luckily involved me into small talk that calmed me down. But the day was ruined. I returned to my friends but some of theirs popped up and started a conversation, usually they are very lovely and I like them but I just couldn't listen to someone talking anymore. I left them to just walk around.

It was late already and it had started pouring, for now I decided just to stare at the rain running down the glass.

My friends wanted to calm me down, hug me, but I declined. I didn't want to talk. We went back to Schu's place, I had dinner and went to bed, rolling myself into a blanket like a burrito.

[smileweakandwrong]

Sitting outside and reflecting on life as one does and man, maybe I don’t always appreciate how comparatively good things are but I’m feeling extra appreciative today. Just sitting in the backyard of the house I own with the wonderful partner I’m lucky to have spent the last nine years with as we approach our second wedding anniversary. Sitting on the new big deck that my father drove 15 hours to come help build with my father in-law because I’m lucky to not only have a family that supports me, but also in-laws who are just as supportive. I’m lucky that I’ve got a handful of friends that I love fiercely even if I don’t get to see them as much as I’d like (or haven’t had the pleasure of actually meeting in person yet).

But if you had of told me ten years ago that this is where I’d be today I absolutely wouldn’t have believed it. Ten years ago I was two months into living on my own for the first time in a tiny studio apartment smaller than the nice new back deck I’m currently sitting on. I was getting ready to turn 25, had recently gone through a devastating breakup, and was living in a city that was still new to me with no family or friends outside of a few coworkers and my ex-still-best friend who I moved there for in the first place. It was awful but I was too stubborn to go crawling back home and give the people who said I was making a mistake by uprooting my life for a girl the satisfaction of being right.

The shoebox-sized apartment was in a sketchy part of the city and had no AC in a place that hits 40°C in the summer, but they let me move in on short notice with two Great Danes and a cat. I could barely make ends meet, couldn’t afford internet so survived on watching the same dvds over and over. Being alone also let the trauma that I’d spent 8 years suppressing rise to the surface in a god-awful wave of ptsd. I was so hyper-vigilant that I couldn’t bring myself to go into the busy grocery store so got by on whatever I could buy at the corner store next to the apartment. I drank way too much, started self harming again after years of not, and lost a ton of weight. And I was dealing with it alone because I didn’t want to burden anyone with my struggles.

It got bad. Then, eventually, it got a little better. I found a therapist who was well versed in trauma and even though my insurance only covered a handful of sessions it still gave me some tools to break the ptsd pattern. I finally saw that my ex had been right, we weren’t good together but are good as friends. I was able to start taking better care of myself. I embraced my new city. Some months later I met my now wife and was in a position to let myself be open with someone and start a healthy relationship.

Has it always been easy? Definitely not. Do I still battle awful anxiety almost always? Yes, but I’m ten years sh-free and have a life and a partner and a home that I love and that’s worth the hard days.

Basically, as cliche as it is, the bad does get better even if it never fully goes away. If anyone is having a hard time and needs someone to talk to I’m always around. I don’t want anyone else feeling like they have to struggle alone the way I did.

[tiggymalvern]

Burn Notice extras stuff

I’ve been doing my third full watch of Burn Notice on the DVDs with all the extras*

Most of the deleted scenes were cut early during editing, and it shows. The audio’s terrible, the look of it isn’t polished. It’s also pretty obvious why they were cut. A lot of them just weren’t necessary, reiterating something already said elsewhere. Some of them were funny, but didn’t add anything to the story or the characters, and were cut for time.

And then we get to Army Of One, and the deleted scenes are broadcast quality. Look at what we lost! Backstory on Sam and Dixon that expands on a line earlier in the episode. Sam telling Fiona that Michael’s lucky to have her. It obviously killed somebody (presumably Matt Nix) to have to cut that material; they held on to it as long as they possibly could, until the brutal 42 minute network show run time couldn’t be avoided any more.

I love that Sam and Fiona scene. They communicate almost entirely in snark (and I am 100% there for the snark, obviously), which makes those rare moments when they’re actually genuine with each other incredibly sweet. Mostly, we get that side of them through Michael, because they’ll both tell things to Michael about each other that they would never directly say to each other. The development of their relationship over the years is one of the great things about the writing for this series.

One funny thing that comes out of the commentaries is that the cast and crew all interact that way too. Everyone who’s in the room spends 45 minutes taking the piss out of one another. You get serious analysis about the acting choices and writing/directing of the people who aren’t there.

Other interesting stuff coming out of the commentaries – Matt Nix talking in the commentary for Larry’s first episode about Larry as the anti-Sam, the two of them as opposing forces in the battle for Michael’s soul. That’s something that didn’t come out in the show until later. At the time they were doing that commentary, Larry’s second episode had already been written, so they knew something of where they were going with the character, but I’m left wondering how early that thought was in there? Did they realise how great a character Larry was going to be and that they were going to have to keep him when they were first writing him? Or only after they filmed and Tim Matheson did such an amazing job with him?

*Yes, I bought the DVDs even though it’s all on Hulu.

1. Physical media, it’s mine.

2. Residuals – I want the people who made the Crazy Brain-Eating Thing to have my money!

3. Extras, yay! I do wish there were more commentaries, but I also understand the schedule those kind of shows are made on, and yeah, there’s not much time for cast and crew to sit around and do those.