#but these are certainly gorgeously done

[littleeyesofpallas]

[penvisions]

unexpected bloom {joel miller x reader}

Pairing: Joel Miller x Reader

Summary: A single flower and a chance encounter brings color to your life.

Word Count: 965

Warnings: none really, fleeting sexual content, allusions to adult content, kissing, fluff, pre-outbreak / no outbreak au

A/N: this was done to try and shake some writer's block, as a part of the 'flora and fauna' writing challenge by @morallyinept

ao3 link || navigation || joel miller masterlist || ko-fi

A single flower.

That’s how it all started.

And you thanked every lucky star in the universe as you felt the heat of the body you now curled around as you slowly woke from your slumber. The broad back your front was pressed to was bare, skin on skin in the most intimate of ways that turned from barely conscious and sensual to wide awake and desperate.

Grunts fall from the man’s full lips as he presses his hands to the backs of your thighs, his hips moving against yours in a steady rhythm. Your own fingers tangled almost painfully with his as they hold you in the position he’s found you like the best. The one that punches the most wonton and guttural sounds from deep in your chest as he brings you to the shattering crest of pleasure over and over again. His curls may be graying, his hands weathered and callous, his back aching and sore. But he always seemed to find his youth when you smiled at him over the rim of your mug or trailed a hand over his broad shoulders.

He had certainly found his youth when you had approached him in front of your workplace to compliment the flowers he had been contracted to plant all along the buildings entrance. Enough so that he hadn’t even thought of how completely sappy and unfounded his plucking of a single one to deliver to your desk with a handwritten note had been until well after he had done it. The nervous panic setting in once he was back in the safety of his home and the deed had been mentioned by a tittering Sarah as she recounted her first day as an intern in the very same building.

Of how she had giggled and fawned over the move he had made without much thought beyond how you had to be prettier than all the flowers he had been dealing with. He felt embarrassment flood him, his fork suddenly clinking between his teeth and his ears tipped pink as he watched his daughter rave about how romantic and sweet it had been for someone to do that. How no one seems to care about stuff like that anymore and all she gets are text messages she doesn’t even know how to respond to their so dry and unoriginal. He puts aside his embarrassment to tell her that if she doesn’t want to, she doesn’t have to engage. That she deserves only the best because she is the best. His whole world in the most perfect package right across the table from him.

She pauses, her own ears tinging as she smiles brightly before teasing him for being such a dad.

But he takes it in stride, because that seems to be his whole purpose in life. To be her dad, to be the one person she could rely on for anything and everything. But that since she had graduated from her university program and moved from their home into a dorm to get the full experience and now an apartment with her friend Ellie while they worked internships, he didn’t get much of a chance to be that.

His newfound purpose was to be your boyfriend.

Something he took just as much pride in because you were perfect too.

He had taken you another single flower the following day after Sarah’s gushing of how lucky you were and how excited you had been to find the first on your desk. How your eyes kept falling on the gift he had left throughout the day. One each day until your schedules had aligned and he could take you out on a proper date. The once single flowers had turned into bouquets, his once written words became spoken affections. You had smiled so gorgeously and laughed so genuinely that he had fallen even deeper in his feelings for you. The ones you returned with bashful and then teasing words. Wit sharp and endearing as time ticked by.

Something you reminisced on as he laid beside you now, both panting for air. Skin sticky with sweat and hands idly wandering over each other.

“What’re you thinkin’ about?” He rumbles, seeing the way your gaze is both focused and faint. Not wanting him to worry, you press a kiss to his damp temple, rolling over to lay half over him. His arms come to rest on your lower back, anchoring you to him.

“Thinkin’ about flowers,” You grin, teeth catching the sunlight peeking through the thick curtains. Resting your chin atop folded hands over his chest.

“We need to plant some for the season, before it’s too hot.” He touches the tip of his nose to yours, causing your face to wrinkle as you scrunch against the tickle of his moustache across your lips.

“Let’s get peonies.”

“Anythin’ for you, you know that.”

“I think…I think I want those for my bouquet too.” Your eyes trail from his handsome face to the ring that sits on your finger. Warm from your skin, from his.

“Yeah?” His eyes soften as he watches you admire the jewelry. He had been so nervous when he begun to plan his proposal, the whole thing thrown out the window one morning when you had peered at him through the open window of his truck as he dropped you off at work. The words had burst from his chest in one solid breath, shocking you both. Another step with you that felt so natural he had done it without thinking. But it paid off, because here you were with him still.

And to think, he had almost turned down the job for worry of embarrassing his daughter at her first job.

“Yeah.” You pressed the single word to his lips.

[chilumi-shipper]

The Devil's Heaven

Devil!Kaeya x Fem!Angel!Reader (Afterlife AU)

Warnings: Smut, NSFW, First Time, Sensitive Wings, Oral Receiving, Praise Kink, Dirty Talk, Overstimulation, Hand Holding, Squirting, Innocent Reader, Simp Kaeya

Summary: Angel and Devil sex time ⁄(⁄ ⁄•⁄-⁄•⁄ ⁄)⁄ Kaeya wants your first time to be one of the best moments of your afterlife.

~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~

So fucking adorable.

When he gently laid you on his bed, despite the dimly lit room, he saw how your face turned red, your body was shaking in both nervousness and anticipation.

You have no idea how hard it was for him to hold back and not tear your clothes to shred the moment you told him that you've never done this before and...

"I want you to be my first!"

If you wanted all his blood to shoot down to his cock, then congratulations, you've certainly done it. To be the first mate of such a sweet angel like you, Kaeya had to make it special.

It was easy to slip off the nightgown you wore that night, only leaving you in your cute little underwear. The pieces made the devil chuckle, seeing that your bra and panties were matching with dancing pandas scattered all around the garments.

You looked away bashfully, muttering a "I don't have any s-sexy ones... These are the nicest I have..."

Oh, you were just absolutely precious, "I happen to think that these are gorgeously sexy." he whispered into your ear, making you even more bashful, though when he felt up your covered sex with his fingers, he knew you liked that.

"Oh, it seems my little angel likes being praised. Is that what you want?" Kaeya proceeded to push the pads of his fingers on your covered clit, circling a bit. "Want me to say that you're so good and beautiful when I finally fuck you senseless?"

He smirked when he felt your clit twitch and harden, and he seems all too pleased when you let out a whimper that made even you shocked.

"C-Can I have... more?" You were nervous, but you certainly wanted him to keep going, to keep doing the things that made you feel so, incredibly good. You didn't even know exactly what you wanted! You just know that you wanted him...

Shivers ran down your spine when you lowered himself to give you a kiss on the lips, before promptly going down to meet face to face with your clothed pussy.

"Gotta get you ready for me first, babe." He placed a kiss on your clit, smiling against it when he saw your wings lift up and shake. "Then you can have so much more of me."

You've vaguely heard about this before, about how men would use their mouths to pleasure their woman, you've also heard that not all men enjoy it... and despite it being your first time, you wanted Kaeya to enjoy everything too.

"W-Wait..." You grabbed at his attention, making him look up at you again. "Are you sure you want to do that?"

Kaeya sighed, yet again, his precious darling will always take his feelings into consideration, you didn't even think that he was excited for the moment he finally gets to taste you with his tongue.

"I-It's just... I've heard people say that men don't always like this."

The blue haired devil scoffed, "Do you want me to eat your pussy?" He enjoyed the way you gasped at his vulgar words, you were just so cute.

"I... Y-Yes... but, I want you to enjoy it too!" You argued, and Kaeya merely smiled at your answer.

"Good, because I promise you, Y/N, I'm gonna have the time of my life eating up this sweet cunt." His words... they do something to you, and you're not sure what, but it effectively makes it really wet down there.

He began by teasing your pussy, using his tongue to play with the clit whilst his fingers moved up and down against your hole. For some reason, you wanted that cute panda underwear you loved so much to disappear, you wanted him directly on you, and he noticed pretty quickly.

"Babe, did you know that you make some really cute whimpers when you're annoyed about something?" He asked with a chuckle, putting the crotch of your panties aside before he shoved his face back in.

"OHH- Ahhh...!" You were shocked when he finally put his mouth on your bare sex, it felt so good. Your breath hitched at his pace of suckling on your clit and slurping up your juices, your wings raising high to show how much pleasure he was giving you.

The pressure building up made you want to hold onto something, and so, as he was making out with your cunt, you grabbed onto Kaeya's hand with both your own, holding tight as he continued working his magic.

He ate you out with earnest, pressing his face hard against you as he lapped up your juices.

"Kaeya...Kaeyaaa~" You moaned his name, your eyes shutting from the pleasure and your thighs close around his head. The way he kisses between your legs was too much for your innocent self to comprehend, all you knew was that it felt good, and you don't want him to stop.

You held onto his hand for dear life, your thighs squeezing his head as you feel something coming, almost like a buildup of pressure that will soon be released.

Kaeya's head may be spinning from the lack of air, he may be suffocating from being locked between your thighs, with his mouth unable to part from your core, but hearing you moan so deliciously, making a mess of yourself as you go crazy from pleasure... it makes everything so worth it.

"K-Kaeya! T-There's... Ahhh!" You know that something's about to come, but you couldn't put it into words, both from the exhilarating pleasure and the fact that you're inexperienced.

A scream emerged from your lips as you started to squirt onto his face, your cheeks heating up in embarrassment, yet you could not control the rapid flow of juices that escaped your pussy.

Your legs were spread wide, your breathing was heavy as your cunt let out the final drops.

Shame etched itself on your expression when he sat up from between your legs, his face dripping with your orgasm.

"Ohh, Kaeya... I'm so sorry!" You cried, covering your face with your hands. "I don't know what I happened there..."

You hear a chuckle, "Well, isn't that just exciting~" The slyness of his voice remained, and as you took a peek of him, you saw him wiping off your juices with his fingers before popping them into his mouth.

The sight did something to your core, and you felt heat spread through your body once again.

"Are you sure this is your first time, babe?" He smirked, chuckling even more at your confused expression. "Or can all angels squirt just like you did?"

Your wings covered your entire being, shielding you from his eyes. "Kaeyaaaa! It's so embarrassing! It's like I'm peeing on you!"

A laugh emits from his throat, "Darling... that was incredibly... hot..." His voice got low, and you soon felt the tips of his fingers caressing your wings, playing with the soft feathers.

"I wonder..." Despite not being able to see him, you can hear the smirk in his voice. "Will you squirt like that again when I make you cum with my cock?"

The way he talks... it makes...

It makes your pussy throb, and you like it, you find out.

You slowly retract your wings, looking up at him. "Are you gonna...?"

"Am I gonna what, darling?" He definitely knows what you're asking, but he's gonna be a tease, as always. "Tell me what I'm gonna do to you."

"No... bad word..." You stubbornly respond like a child that's scared of getting punished for having a foul mouth.

Kaeya fakes a sigh, getting sitting down at the edge of the bed faced away from you. "I guess you don't want it then..."

As he almost stands up, "WAIT!" You yell at him. "...I want to..."

He removes his shirt, tossing it carelessly to the ground, "You want to what? How can you want something, but can't say it, hmm?"

"I w-want you to... fuck me"

He then unbuttons his pants, before removing it along with his underwear. The sight of him completely bare has you gulping, something that didn't go unnoticed by him.

He placed himself back between your legs, his fingers hooking onto the hem of your soiled panties.

"What was that? Couldn't here you."

"Fuck me..."

He gripped himself as he pulled your underwear down, placing his cock right above your clit.

"Hmm... I really can't hear you, Y/N... Perhaps you want me to eat you out again."

"Please fuck me!" You screamed, embarrassed but still very much eager to have him finally push into you.

Kaeya rubbed his tip with your clit, groaning in delight, "Ahh, so that's what my angel wants. Should have just said so, babe." He couldn't help but laugh when an annoyed whine left your mouth.

He lined himself to ease into your dripping sex. "I would be happy to fuck this sweet cunt."

Finally, he started to thrust himself in, his cock slowly shaping your insides to accommodate it's shape.

There was a burn as he slides in, but with the way you squirted so much earlier, there was enough arousal to help him push into you.

"Ohhh~" Your hands automatically reach for him, signalling that you want to hold his hand again.

Keaya didn't know how he was able to control himself before from just shoving his dick into, but now that he felt you for the first time... it's gonna be hard to not want you all the time.

"Fuck, darling..." You were squeezing him hard, "You're already gonna make me cum, so good..." The way he groans had your pussy throbbing even more, which he obviously felt.

Slowly, he starts to thrust, a steady pase that isn't too overwhelming. You could only close your eyes, your hands intertwined with his as you moan along the thrust of his hips.

It was only gonna be a matter of time until he starts to get greedy.

From slow thrusts, he manages to switch to rough pounds. The way he moans and smiles at you makes you realize that this is what Keaya really wants, he wants to fuck you rough and hard, pound your pussy until his cock fills you up with hot cum.

You're not exactly opposed to that...

"Y/N... fuck!" He groaned, squeezing your hands as he pounds you faster. "I know you're close. Cum for me, baby, cum on my cock."

"Ahhhh! Hahh, K-Kaeya, I'm cumming!" Just like what the devil wanted, you squirted on his cock, your moan dragged out as your cum coated him cock.

"I'm gonna cum inside you, babe..." You nodded frantically, throwing your head back as you feel him thrust as hard as he could to reach the deepest part of you.

You felt the warmth of his cum flowing inside you, you both stayed in that position until his cock emptied all the cum it had in you.

You were about to sit up, but he held you so that you wouldn't. "K-Kaeya..."

"Ohh, baby..." He moved your hair out of your face, looking at your beautiful tired face. "I know you're exhausted, why don't we sleep for the night?"

"Yes, please..." You held onto him when he switched you positions, having you sit on top of him while he lays on his back.

"I like being inside you..." He states, implying to the fact the his cock is still inside your pussy. "Can we keep it like this?"

"Okay..." You answered in a tired voice, nuzzling yourself into his chest as he covers the both of you with a blanket.

Kaeya perked up when he felt you squeeze him down there, "Y/N." He couldn't help but smile at the tired giggle you responded with.

"I'm sorry about the bed..." You say, your eyes closing due to the exhaustion. Kaeya then remembers the big wet spot next to both of you, a result of his mouth working on your pussy, a first of many times, he can assure you.

"It's alright, darling... I wish I could've slurped it all up though. Maybe next time."

~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~

Damnn, I saw this in my drafts from like... almost 2 years ago, then... this happened ¯⁠\⁠_⁠(⁠ツ⁠)⁠_⁠/⁠¯

Hope you guys like it...

You horny bish

[bberetd]

Hey there! Since you also reblogged the post saying you want people to send you asks (actually I even reblogged it from you), here I am to ask you a question. A potentially very tough one. Ready?

If you had to pick only one (1!) favorite Mario character who would it be and why?

I'm just trying to get to know my mutuals a little better, y'know?

But most people seem to be using that 'send me asks' post as another opportunity to say mushy stuff to each other, so let me also do that! I'd like to remind you that I'm very glad that I'm following your blog. You're certainly a fun and kind person, and must say I like you very much 😀❤️ Thanks for always supporting my art, it really means a lot to me.

Also please teach me your ways to draw so fast, I just finally finished sketching my latest fanart today (yeah, that ambitious one) and it took embarrassingly long. And this one is supposed to have a proper lineart too💀

Oh, that reminds me: I'm really excited for your animations! Once I'm done with my current fanart, the next bigger fan project on my list is also one animation I've been thinking of, so I hope we'll be able to motivate each other a bit 😁👊

OH just oneeee? 😩

Whew, okay, well... while Daisy has a huge place in my heart (especially lately, as you can tell 😹), my all-time favorite will always be Luigi.

See, the funny thing is that I hardly cared for him before the movie, and even a little after I watched the movie. My first favorite Mario character was actually Rosalina when SMG came out, because I was SO obsessed with space when I was younger (and still kinda am), and blue was and is my favorite color (such a deep reason, right? :P)

I always tend to lean towards the underdogs of a franchise, yet I don't remember the exact moment that drew me to him. There were just a bunch of edits and videos of him flooding all of my social media pages when the movie hype was still fresh, and I guess one day I decided, "yup. that's my guy."

I think the moment that really solidified my love for him was when I replayed Luigi's Mansion (I kiiinda played it before, but I was 4 and just pressing buttons lol... it's strangely a core memory for me). His bravery throughout the game despite his evident fears and anxieties is just... so inspiring and real to me, genuinely. And a little bit of him shone through his commentary of some of the objects throughout the mansion, which was also endearing 😆 The game gets creepier the deeper I think about it, and I just can't help but give him more flowers for going through it three different times!

plus, he's just so happy and awkward and silly. how could you not love him?!

But in short, he's my favorite because he's relatable to me, and I find his little quirks adorable and endearing.

yet despite all that, he knows when to lock tf IN. that's my hero <3

anywhoooo...

Mugi!!! I couldn't be any happier that we're friends and moots! You've blessed my timeline with your gorgeously detailed art and commentary, and I'm so grateful you support my art just as much ♥️♥️ I admire and like you very much as well, you're amazing <3

as for quick art, basically-

and thank you!! the animation might take longer because classes start tomorrow for me, and year 3 of uni is definitely gonna be more challenging and, er, expensive. 🫠 Hopefully I'll learn to manage my time better so I can make decent progress every day, but I do know where I want to go with the animation. Big yes to motivating each other!! I know that ambitious art will be PHENOMENAL when it's dropped, and I can't wait to see your style in motion! :))

[melvisik]

Film and TV Moments that Give Feels Part 2

Our Flag Means Death Season 1 - Ed's Heartbreak

LOOK at this beautiful sad soul...

Taika. Taika, Taika, Taika. How the hell did you do that? That could be such an overdramatic line, but it was felt. This is just such a scene of utter heartbreak, you can feel how empty and hurt he is. And how he might actually mean it makes it all the more tragic. There's a possibly here that he's literally going to try and go die (which he doesn't, thank god). But later, he absolutely does the reverse: Tries to ‘die'...

...and then curls up into a ball:

(God, my heart)

But goddammit, he was so close to handling it in a more constructive way. Lucius, angel that he is, gently prodded Ed into looking at it with new eyes.

Life goes on, and sometimes you have to pick yourself back up and go along with it. And Ed said yes.

Maybe he got a tiny bit deluded into thinking it's all ok (it's not, and Ed, that’s fine, too), but it was certainly a step in the right direction. Then this bitch started whining...

Ironic, Izzy. Love ya, but that’s rich coming from you. We see you. Who’s the one been ‘pining for his boyfriend’ the entire frickin season? Of the various degrees of handling heartbreak, Ed went from somewhat healthy and skipped the petty 'Izzy’ stage straight into destructive.

Everyone’s talking about it. Izzy thought he was getting something more like himself - a spiteful, disillusioned man who chooses to enjoy the murderous aspects of piracy - but instead, he’s now got to deal with a hardened, trudging shell covering a mushy pulp of pain, one that’s just going through the motions because he’s been pushed too far.

Stede's abandonment certainly wasn’t the only reason Ed’s cracked (Krackened? I know I’ve seen that somewhere…), but it was definitely a contributing factor. And Izzy’s scorn was the last straw, the thing that pushed Edward Teach over the edge.

All of these gorgeously heartbreaking scenes show someone who’s been disappointed one too many times and has just had enough. Ed is done with feeling hurt, so he just wants to feel nothing (even if it’s clearly not possible...)

Well, it’s definitely impossible for us not to feel anything. This gives all the feels. P.S. Not sure if my analysis of the character motivations or symbolism is entirely accurate, but that’s how I initially interpreted them. Also, yes, Ed technically doesn't know what happened to Stede (could be dead for all he knows), but one would assume he totally suspected Stede ghosted him. P.P.S. SO looking forward to seeing everyone grow this coming season. Izzy, Ed, Stede… grow to the stars, babes!

[coeursye]

Who’s afraid of the big bad wolf

༄ — pairing : lucemond

༄ — status : complete (4.7k)

༄ — tags : ABO || Non-Con || Breeding

✨You can either read it here or on ao3

Summary : Lucerys goes to visit his grandfather in the woods, he had no idea he would soon cross paths with the big, bad wolf.

Lucemond Red Riding Hood AU.

“Are you really sure you don’t want one of your brothers to come with you?”

Luke smiled at his mother's concern, but he wanted to go alone. His grandfather had specifically requested for him to bring a basket full of sweets and medicine, and he certainly could not deny his dying grandfather’s wish;

His grandsire Viserys had been living in the woods for many years now. He had chosen to isolate himself in a cabin that felt more like a fortress, a fortress he never left ever since the passing of his mate Aemma.

But there was one thing that kept him from succumbing to the full force of his grief: his grandson Lucerys.

When his daughter and grandsons, specifically Luke, came to visit him, Viserys seemed to forget about his own sorrow and pain. He forgot he was old and feeble, and the sickness that was consuming him little by little and left him bedridden more often than not.

His grandson reminded Viserys of his lost love in a way that no one else, not even Rhaenyra, could. Whenever he gazed at Luke, it was as if his sweet Aemma had been brought back to life just for an instant.

Lucerys often spent hours keeping company to his grandfather by his bedside, a place where Viserys would tell him tales of his long lost youth. Luke knew well enough that these stories weren’t just simple tales; these were, in fact, his grandfather's way of keeping Aemma’s memory, the grandmother he never had the chance to know, alive in his heart, even after all this time.

The bond they both shared was strong and though the visits were all too brief, they were always filled with laughter and joy.

He shook his head at Rhaenyra’s suggestion. “No, Mother. Both Jace and Joffrey are quite busy today so do not bother them, I’ll be fine on my own.“

“But the woods are dangerous, Luke.” his mother insisted. “When I was down at the village earlier this morrow, I heard rumors of a wild Alpha who is roaming those paths, and he is not like any Alphas we know. He is neither human nor truly an animal.“ His mother replied with concern etched on her gentle face. “Please promise me that you will come to no harm.”

Luke felt the tension in his mother's voice as she warned him about the dangers of the woods. He knew that she was only worried about him, but it angered him a little. He had grown up in this village and the woods were his home. He had never encountered any Alphas like the ones his mother spoke of, nor had anyone else he knew.

It was not only for the sake of his grandfathers that he wanted to go; Luke wanted to prove that he wasn’t some meek omega who needed protection at all times and that he could certainly handle himself.

Luke scoffed. “Those are only foolish rumors, rumors that shouldn’t get too much to your head as they’re not true, Mother,” he said with a reassuring smile, he then placed the basket on the wooden table and started filling it with the freshly baked berries and apple tarts, he then placed the lemons cakes he adored so much, his grandfather would certainly insist to share some with him, he then finished by carefully placing the precious medicine inside.

As soon as his task was done, he quickly skipped through the hallway and into the bedroom he shared with his brothers. Light streamed in from the window, casting long shadows across the floorboards. He saw, neatly folded on his bed, his red riding hood - it was his favorite one since it was Jace who had gifted it to him upon his eighteenth name day.

The fabric was delicate yet warm to the touch, a perfect match for his porcelain skin and hazel eyes that sparkled with life. His big brother always said that red contrasted gorgeously with the fair complexion of his face.

“Besides, it’s not the first time that I go out in the woods alone and I’ve always come back without a single scratch. If anything happens I’ll know how to protect myself, I’m not weak,” said Luke as he put his red cloak on, he adjusted the hood's position so that it fell perfectly over his head and shoulders.

Truth be told, Luke was often found wandering into the woods unaccompanied; however, he always stayed close to home, he had never ventured alone far enough to reach the deepest part of the woods where his Grandfather resided. And although nothing ever happened to him, he sometimes had a queasy feeling in his stomach, it felt as if something was lurking in the shadows, watching his every step.

Rhaenyra sighed and still looked hesitant, but she knew better than to argue with her son when he had his mind set on something. She then placed a comforting hand on his shoulder before caressing his cheek.

“I know you’re not weak, my sweet boy. But please, promise me you’ll be careful.”

“I promise,” Luke said with a smile.

“Take this please,” she said, handing him a small pocket knife “ It would certainly ease my mind to know you have something to defend yourself with, just in case. And do not forget; never stray from the path, Luke.”

Luke grinned and tucked the knife into his pocket. “Thanks, Mother. Do not fret too much, for I’ll be back before sunset. ” he kissed her cheek before he grabbed a blanket and covered neatly his basket with it, he then made his way to the door and stepped out into the hot afternoon.

He paused for a moment, looking back at his mother one last time before turning his gaze forward and stepping onto the path that led into the woods, he had a long journey ahead.

•

Luke sighed in pure contentment as the warm sun rays shone through the gaps in between the canopy of the lush trees and on his red cloak. The walk was pleasant as he could spot a lot of robins in the dense foliage, they were usually perched on high tree branches, singing the sweetest of tunes. This sight alone was enough to bring back fond memories of his childhood, how he used to sit under some tree to listen and observe these adorable creatures, trying to whistle along with them.

Then a strange wave of nostalgia hit him, he had always loved this forest ever since he was a child, running around and playing all sorts of games with his brothers.

His mind traveled back to those days when he used to play hide and seek with Jace and Joffrey, laughing out loud every time one of them would find him with ease as he was always hidden behind the same huge tree trunk.

The memories were so vivid that Luke almost expected to hear their childish voices echoing through the forest but instead, all he could hear was a light breeze rustling through the leaves.

Luke smiled fondly as he recalled the long days of hunting and training with Jace and their father Harwin deep in the forest, under the summer sun, lasting until the hour of the wolf. In the Fall, Luke would tag along with his father when he went out to collect firewood for the chimney. Although he wasn’t all that helpful in this task, as he was so little, he enjoyed being with Harwin. Those were some of his most cherished memories, times when they were all together.

He sighed heavily before continuing on his walk through the forest, taking in every detail of it. His steps led him closer and closer to his grandfather's cabin. He still had a long way to go through, and he was starting to feel quite parched.

He stopped in a small meadow, which possessed an even smaller pond, it was the perfect place to refresh himself. He picked up and ate some berries he found in a bush before crouching down and scooping some of the crystal-clear water into his cupped hands. He gasped when, as he drank his fill, he spotted an adorable little family of white bunnies on the other side, drinking alongside him—well aware of his presence and yet, unafraid.

Mesmerized by the sight, Luke stayed still for as long as he dared, not wanting to frighten the little creatures away but then suddenly, they all froze and bolted off into the woods for no apparent reason and left him alone once again.

The bird's song had since stopped in the distance, leaving an emptiness to fill. He looked around but did not notice anything unusual.

He was about to get up when he heard it--a low growl coming from somewhere nearby. It was like nothing he'd ever heard before and seemed to sit in his guts, slowly churning his stomach.

Then he noticed something else; an acrid and bestial stench that seemed almost familiar. His heart raced as he realized what it meant–something was lurking nearby around him.

He slowly got up and retrieved the knife his mother gave him, clenching the handle of the small knife until his knuckles were bone-white.

His eyes darted around, searching desperately for any sign of wild animals. There was no movement, not a single sound anymore—a silence that did nothing to ease the omega’s mind.

He waited a moment before taking a deep breath. With his knife still clutched tight in his hand, Luke quickly resumed his walk towards the path leading to his grandfather’s house.

For a moment, he thought he was safe, out of harm’s way, but then he heard it again, another animalistic growl.

He walked faster, desperate to reach the safety of his grandfather's cabin.

Sweat began to bead across the omega’s forehead and beneath his clothes. He could feel his heart racing in fear.

As Luke rushed forward, his gaze shifted from side to side - searching for any sign of movement or danger in the bushes and among the trees.

There was nothing besides the strong scent that was getting to his head.

Luke swallowed hard before breaking into a run, his cloak catching on branches now and then as he ran for his life.

And even though his head was spinning, Luke continued to run, until he tripped on a tree root and tumbled forward. However, before his face could hit the ground, two strong arms caught him and wrapped around his waist, protecting him from a painful fall.

He recognized the scent now.

It didn't belong to an animal.

It was the scent of an Alpha.

Head still spinning, he froze in fear as he slowly opened his eyes to see the Alpha who had apprehended him. But what he saw shocked him even more than the fear that had coursed through his veins moments before.

The Alpha man– no, it couldn’t possibly be a man as the creature that stood before him possessed features that marked him as not entirely human. The rumors his mother heard and warned him about were true then;

The Alpha had Wolf-like features that surrounded a ruggedly, handsome thin face with a single iris the shade of lilac and cobalt that peered down at Luke with interest and intensity, making Luke tremble with fear, his scent giving away how distressed he was.

All he wanted to do at this moment was run, run back home, and back in the safety of his mother’s arms but it would be futile, thought Luke, the wolf would surely catch him like he just did.

The stranger helped Luke to his feet and gently brushed back a curly brown lock of his hair that had fallen across his face as Luke watched him in horror with big, round eyes.

“You should be more careful, little bunny.” said the creature, the low timbre of his voice and the hungry glare he gave him made Luke shivers.

Luke stayed silent for a moment, his heart pounding in his chest as he stared up at the beast. Finally, finding his voice again, he spoke.

“T-thank you for stopping me from falling.” He said quietly.

The beast only nodded and slightly grinned before taking a step back.

“May I ask why an omega such as you is out here, all alone ?” His lips parted slightly as he spoke, exposing his impossibly sharp and long fangs.

By the Gods, what big teeth he has.

Luke forced himself to remain calm as he faced the wolf, “I'm on my way to my grandfather's house, he lives on the other side of this forest. My mother and I made some treats for him earlier this morning and I was bringing them to him, see-“ He reached out for his basket to show him and realized it wasn’t there anymore, he looked around him to see if it was on the ground.

He quickly bent down, picked up the basket, felt the side of it to make sure nothing had leaked out of the medicines, and checked on the sweets, then sighed as luckily, both the treats and medicine were still intact. Luke also looked around for the small knife he must have let go of when he almost fell.

Suddenly he wasn’t so lucky anymore, he couldn’t see it anywhere on the ground.

The beastly man watched him with an intense gaze as he picked up the basket, seemingly uninterested in the sweets and medicine.

As he dusted himself off, Luke couldn't help but feel a sense of unease.

“You should be careful, little bunny, you shouldn’t be alone.“ the creature repeated, his voice low and ominous. “There are dangerous things lurking in these woods, dangerous things who wouldn’t hesitate to eat you whole, you know.“

Luke's heart sank at the creature's words, feeling as though he was being warned of something far more sinister than just the forest itself. He slowly backed away from the creature, his eyes never leaving its form.

“I’m aware, but I’ll be sure to be more cautious, Mister Wolf.” he stuttered, trying to sound confident despite the fear that was gnawing at his insides.

The creature chuckled at Luke’s response, the sound sending shivers down his spine.

“Mister wolf, huh?” The creature's grin widened. “You can call me Aemond.”

He shivered again at the sound of Aemond’s name.

“Perhaps it would be wiser if I went along with you, just to make sure nothing happen to you.” Aemond said as he took a step closer to Luke.

Luke stumbled back when he felt the warmth of Aemond’s breath on his face.

“N-no, there is no need, really.” Luke’s lemon scent turned even sourer as he rearranged his red cloak. “ It’s not that far away anymore, I’ll be fine. Besides, I do not know you, why would I go anywhere with a stranger? ”

“Ah, but we're not exactly strangers anymore, are we? After all, you know my name, though I do not know yours. ”

“It’s Luke, and I appreciate your… concern, Aemond, but I-I must go now. My grandfather is surely waiting for me and I promised Mother I would be home before nightfall. ”

“No, no, I insist,” Aemond replied. “What kind of Alpha would I be if I allowed an omega to wander in such a hazardous place all by himself, hm?”

Lucerys didn’t like the strange gleam in the Alpha’s amethyst eye, it was making his Omega instinct go haywire.

•

The wolf ended up following him against his wishes.

Luke tried to keep his breathing steady and while he and Aemond strolled along, the wolf’s piercing stare never wavered from him once.

While Aemond hadn’t done anything yet, the omega knew that he was still probably in danger.

How he wished he still had his knife with him.

Nevertheless, he had no choice but to keep moving forward and pray that the Alpha would let him go unscathed once they reached his grandfather's house.

As they walked deeper into the woods, Luke watched Aemond out of the corner of his doe eye, taking in the Alpha's impressive size and muscular frame.

He was massive, easily standing several feet taller than him, while he was lean, he was still quite muscular. He had sharp claws, and his hair and furry wolf ears were pure white and shimmered under the strong sunlight.

Despite the wolfish features, Luke had to admit to himself that yes, the Alpha was quite dashing.

He couldn't help but feel a bit of admiration for the beast- after all, he was an omega, and wasn’t it completely natural for an omega to be drawn to a strong Alpha?

But no.

He had to snap out of this haze.

Luke quickly shook these thoughts away and forced himself not to breathe in his scent too deeply as they continued walking in silence, reminding himself that Aemond was still a total stranger to him and most of all, he was an Alpha and a beast, a potentially dangerous one at that.

He was a predator, he had chased him down earlier after all.

He clutched his heavy basket even tighter against his chest.

Lucerys still didn't know what the wolf exactly wanted from him.

•

As soon as he spotted the hill where Luke's grandfather's old cabin stood, he felt a glimmer of hope. Maybe the Alpha would leave him be, now that he was so close to safety.

Aemond suddenly came to a stop and stared at Luke intently, as if expecting something from him.

“I think this is where we part ways,“ Luke said cautiously as he turned around to face the wolf and took a few steps back. “Thank you for walking me here safely.“ He said before turning away from Aemond.

“Wait. ” Aemond’s amethyst eye glinted dangerously as he grabbed Luke’s arm, his long claws digging into his soft flesh. “ You’re thinking of leaving me so soon when I haven’t had breakfast yet?” The Alpha said before licking his chops and lips.

Lucerys’ eyes widened in horror as he realized what Aemond meant, he tried to get away from the wolf but Aemond released his pheromones, his scent was way stronger than it ever was before, and the intense pheromones assaulted Luke’s nostrils, making his knees buckle and in only one instant, he found himself on the ground.

And Gods, his scent.

It was so deeply intoxicating and enticing.

Feverish and completely disoriented, he looked up at Aemond with wild eyes.

“What are you doing to me?” he demanded, his voice thick and low with a hint of desperation. The omega could start feeling the slick gushing out of his hole and down his brown pants, completely soaking it. “Please stop!”

“You are a pretty little thing, aren’t you?” Aemond said as he bent down and gripped his chin, his voice dripping with malice. “I bet you taste even better than those sweets you were carrying.”

Luke tried to pull away, but Aemond’s grip on his chin was too strong. “Let me go, please.” he whimpered, tears streaming down his face.

Aemond just laughed darkly before he pounced on him and pinned Luke against the warm grass, trapping him beneath him. “No, I don’t think I will. I have waited for this for so long, too long.” He said in a low voice before licking Luke’s neck.

Aemond leaned in closer and inhaled, taking in the sweet scent of Luke’s omega pheromones. “You smell delicious, little red. I cannot wait to taste you.“

Luke’s mind reeled as the Alpha pressed his lips to his neck, leaving a trail of fiery kisses right on his scent glands. “You don’t have a mate, do you? Well even if you did have one, it doesn’t matter, you're all mine now.“

The words sent a chill down Luke’s spine as he heard Aemond’s possessive tone, his heart pounding wildly. Luke wanted to push him off but he felt like he was helpless against the Alpha.

He was a captive in his arms, and there was nothing he could do about it.

The Alpha's fragrance paralyzed him, making him feel like a limp doll, he was unable to budge even if he desperately wished to.

Aemond snarled as he started to pull off his pants and small clothes before ripping off Luke’s, his claws scraping the delicate skin of the omega. Luke whimpered in protest, feeling the Alpha's body press against his own. Aemond captured his mouth and sucked on his cherry tongue, he then began to move rhythmically against him and his soaking wet hole, hissing in pleasure as he felt how slick and ready Luke was for him.

“Would you look at that, you’re already so wet,“ Aemond purred as he continued thrusting against Luke’s body. “You’re such an eager little thing, Luke.“ He added before pressing a hard kiss on Luke’s mouth.

The omega shivered in fear and pleasure at the same time, trying to stop himself from trembling under the Alpha's touch. He wanted to plead for mercy but no words came out of his mouth. He felt like he was hypnotized by Aemond’s scent and pheromones that were overpowering him more and more with each passing second.

Aemond smirked as he felt Luke’s body start to completely relax beneath him and he continued to thrust against him harder and faster. He nipped and licked at the omega’s neck, sending shivers down his spine. Aemond could feel the omega’s body start to heat up in response to his hot touch and he growled in satisfaction.

He purred in Luke’s ear before continuing to ravage his slim and pale neck.

The alpha’s hands moved toward the omega's waist and cupped the soft skin under his shirt, prodding at his hard and hot nipples.

“You like that, don't you?“

Luke’s body betrayed him and he moaned in delight at his touch and arched his back instinctively.

“Yes... Yes, more please!“ The omega moaned softly through the thick haze in his head.

He then completely removed Luke’s cloak and shirt, exposing his chest to the warm breeze, and started suckling on one of his perked nipples while he played with the other with his thumb, making Lucerys quiver in delight with the attention his chest received.

His legs wrapped in a vice grip around the Alpha’s waist as he gasped for air and elicited multiple gasps of pleasure with each flicker of Aemond’s tongue and each touch of his digits.

Lucerys was lost in a trance, slipping into blissful oblivion, nothing else mattered but the Alpha that was above him.

The Alpha beast then stopped his ministrations and Lucerys felt his hands move downwards his body and caress his hips.

“Can you turn around for me?” he whispered in his ear and Luke submitted at his request, mindless. He slowly placed himself on his belly, presenting his ass to the wolf.

“Good boy, such an obedient omega.” the Alpha praised him.

The Alpha grabbed his hips tightly with his huge hands, puncturing the soft flesh, and dragged him towards his bulging crotch, Aemond’s pants only grew louder in response.

Aemond snarled as he tried to bury himself more than once into the omega’s impossibly tiny, slick hole. When he finally sunk half of his length inside Luke’s virgin heat, he groaned in pure delight, he had never felt anything so tight.

Luke buried his fingers in the dirt, he couldn’t help but scream, tears spilled against his temples as he felt his body was on fire, split in two. He started spasming, wincing, and clenching down on his length as he tried to get used to the intrusion.

Aemond was so big, so thick inside of him.

“It’s too much, it hurts!” Luke pitifully said.

“I know you’ll be able to take all of me, it’s going to feel so much better, you’ll see.”

Aemond showed no mercy, he wasted no time and continued to bury himself deep and fast into the omega, a bulge could already be seen inside his belly.

He slammed into him with each thrust, the sound of their slapping skins and Luke’s whimpers echoing through the forest.

Luke keeps babbling nonsense with his eyes squeezed shut and tears trailing down his cheeks while Aemond leans down and begins to suck marks down the expanse of Luke’s back.

Then, Aemond pulls out before flipping Luke on his back so he could face him and presses back in his tight heat harder, his full balls slapping loudly against Luke’s skin.

“You’re going to be the mother of my pups, aren’t you happy, little red? I’m gonna breed you so well” Aemond says as he hikes one of Lucerys’ legs up over his large shoulder while the other one he has is perched against his hip, the position allows him to pistons his hips faster.

“N-No! I don’t…“ Luke sniffles before he can finish what he was going to say and looks up at him with big glazed eyes.

Quite frankly, Aemond didn’t care about what he wanted or not, he then increased his pace, pushing deeper into Luke with each thrust until his knot took and spilled inside.

Lucerys gasped as each of his muscles quivered when he also reached his peak, passing out due to the sheer intensity of what happened.

Still deeply seated inside of him, Aemond took the opportunity to mark Luke, right on his scent glands.

“Wherever you want it or not, you’re all mine now, and I never let go of what belongs to me,” he whispered into his ear, Luke’s blood still trickling down his mouth and sharp chin.

After a while, his knot deflated and Aemond pulled out. He wiped away the blood that was covering Luke’s shoulder with the rags that were once Lucerys’ shirt and longly observed the omega.

At long last, Aemond had accomplished his goal: he had laid claim on the omega that he had seen in the forest walking back home with his family so many moons ago.

He had longed and desired Lucerys for so long and now, he belonged solely to him and him only.

He smirked, quite pleased with what he just did, before getting up and putting back on his clothes.

Luke’s were completely ripped and beyond saving, so he wrapped his naked body into his long red cloak and hoisted him in his arms before leaving with him down a sinister path, bringing him into his well-hidden den.

Leaving nothing but the basket of sweets behind them.

When Rhaenyra didn’t see her son come back home as he promised, she felt a tight knot form in her stomach.

Jace and Joffrey insisted that perhaps Luke had decided on a whim to stay the night at their grandfather’s cabin but Rhaenyra’s maternal instinct was telling her that something had happened to her beloved son, she paced the floors of her chambers, her mind raced with all the possible things that could have happened to Lucerys until daybreak approached and the darkness of the night faded away.

When the morning came and her son still hadn't returned, Rhaenyra determinedly gathered her two other sons and set off into the dark woods, desperate to find her lost child at all costs.

The three of them ventured deep into the forest, following paths and trails that were known only to them. They walked for hours, their steps growing slower and their spirits heavier with each stride.

At last, Rhaenyra and her two sons arrived at the hill where Viserys’ house stood.

The only thing that welcomed them was Luke’s basket sitting there, alongside bits of ripped and bloodied clothes that undoubtedly belonged to her son.

Her worst fear had come true.

Gone was Luke, gone was her sweet boy, vanished without a trace.

Rhaenyra collapsed onto the ground and wept in despair. She believed it was her fault; she should have pushed further when Luke refused to take someone with him.

All they could do now was mourn his loss and cling to the slight, faint hope that maybe one day, Luke would come back home safe and sound.

But he never did, and no one ever truly knew what had happened to the sweet omega.

No one except for the big, bad wolf.

[crownedinmarigolds]

Harmony took a deep breath of the cold January air nervously as she pulled the envelope from her bag. She'd done her best to dress it up well (rolling an astonishing 8 successes on her craft roll, a critical success!); the fine vellum trifold was illuminated in the bingo board's likeness with her brightest inks and foils, and sealed with a red ribbon and wax seal, emblazoned with her own Tremere crest. She'd fit the fragile work of art into a tooled leather pouch to keep it safe and dry- was that too much? She had no idea. The letter's contents were encouraging! She'd hit bingo no less than 5 times. Surely that would achieve a positive result? Her heart beat out of her chest, and for a moment she cursed her devotion to her humanity: a dead heart would be less bothersome here, but perhaps not so excited.

Steeling herself, she slipped the package into the attractive necromancers mailbox, and headed home to await a response.

(@findingtarshish wants everyone to know Harmony actually would've put a heart on "accepting Nythanel is here forever!" <3) Noa was taken aback by such a stunning envelope as an assistant brought her the mail. Her own stationary was personalized and well-made certainly, but nothing so gorgeously handcrafted. What interesting person dedicated such time to a fun little bingo game? Someone devoting themselves to such a project already was enough to make the Kindred remember how to swoon. Using a letter opener, she carefully opened the envelope and read over its contents. Noa once again was utterly delighted by the results, nearly a perfect score, save for very surface level things. The ability to speak Spanish can certainly be taught - being immortal gave them plenty of time for that - and not being able to play an instrument really wasn't so awful either. Dear Harmony may be a bit overwhelmed however if her possible distaste for roses was genuine, because her and Nythanel's home was filled with them. Alas, if that minor thing could be looked over... this could be very nice.

It was very interesting how she wanted a near-living partner... perhaps if Nythanel had different preferences, she'd offer a copy of the card for him to fill out as well. Maybe he'd enjoy it for fun? She smiled as she enclosed her answer in her own rose-scented stationary, ready to return it to Ms. Harmony.

[animebw]

Short Reflection: Fall 2022 Anime

Was Fall 2022 the single most stacked season of anime ever? It’s certainly a contender, at least. Not only were there once again far too many good shows to keep up with, not only were a lot of those shows really fucking good, but there was such a wide variety that no matter your tastes- shonen, slice of life, mecha, political drama, whatever the fuck Akiba Maid War counts as- you were basically guaranteed at least one phenomenal show to stay hooked on. And if you’re someone like me who appreciates pretty much every genre as long as it’s done well? Then my god, I hope you skipped lunch, because this feast never fucking ended. I’ve already given my thoughts on Yama no Susume’s underwhelming fourth season (6.5/10), Mob Psycho 100′s safe but deeply satisfying finale (8/10), and the bonkers roller coaster of Chainsaw Man (8.5/10), and there’s still way too many anime left to talk about. So without any further ado, let’s dive right in to the disappointments, the hidden gems, and the runaway smash hits that closed out this fantastic year for anime.

My Hero Academia Season 6: Unfinished/10

There’s not much I have to say about this one yet, as I’m planning to give it a full review when it’s all over. But I at least wanted to say this: I fucking told y’all My Hero Academia was going to reclaim its crown. I told y’all this show was eventually gonna earn its place back as one of the greatest long-running shonen of all time. But nooooo, you were all busy pretending that a few lackluster fight scenes meant this show was the worst garbage ever and handing out accolades to gorgeously animated pieces of stale cardboard like Demon Slayer for plastering pretty wallpaper all over the vapid nonsense at their core. Well, how does it feel now, huh? How does it feel to remember what an actual great shonen action series looks like? This is the best that MHA has been since season 3, and while it’s gonna fall to the next cours to determine where season 6 ends up on the pantheon, it’s so fucking good to see this show operating at full capacity again.

To Your Eternity Season 2: Unfinished/10

Genuine question: what the absolute fuck happened to To Your Eternity? I still remember when that incredible first episode dropped back in 2021 and everyone was ready to crown it the new patron saint of cry-inducing philosophical fantasy. How did we get from that to this? To increasingly hacky production values that rarely rise above passable and never once manage to capture the awe and wonder this story is so clearly shooting tor? To writing so tonally inconsistent it decides to introduce a cast of wacky over-the-top camera-muggers in this serious and serene fantasy yarn? Didn’t this show used to be good? Didn’t it used to be a genuinely compelling exploration of human nature and immortality and moving on from loss? When did it fall apart so badly that it barely even resembles the show it used to be? And that’s not even getting into some of the most abysmal queerbaiting I’ve seen in a very long time. There were definitely worse anime this year, but nothing else left me feeling so utterly betrayed. I can only pray the slight upswing of quality it’s experiencing in its current arc continues, because otherwise this is going to end up the most crushing disappointment of anime in 2022.

Reincarnated as a Sword: 3/10

Let us all stop for a moment and consider the absolute state of the isekai genre. Here we have yet another story of some personality-deficient schlub transported to another world that runs on JRPG logic, where he instantly becomes the most OP person (or, well, sword) around and never has to struggle for anything. The characters and setting are all as painfully generic as every other entry in the genre. The plot wastes so much time rattling off video game stats to justify its boring OP worldbuilding that it forgets to write any sort of interesting or nuanced personalities for the people in its world. The production values are passably okay without ever showing a single shred of personality beyond the most by-the-basics staples of this watered-down Dragon Quest backwash. There is nothing worth recommending here, nothing you can get from this show that you can’t get in a million better ways elsewhere. And yet, Reincarnated as a Sword has one thing going for it: it doesn’t try and justify slavery. In fact, its real protagonist is an enslaved catgirl who breaks free from her chains and seeks to prove her worth, with the titular sword serving as her paternal guardian. And that alone puts this dull, uninspired, pointless slab of processed anime loaf above a decent chunk of its contemporaries in the isekai genre. Because that is how fucking far the bar has been lowered at this point. God help us all.

My Master Has No Tail: 4/10

The frustrating thing about My Master Has No Tail is that there’s not really anything wrong with it. It’s a cute little historical anime about a tanuki girl learning rakugo from a fox spirit in a time of huge technological upheaval for Japan, a time when all the old spirits are at risk of losing their place in the world and must find some way to adapt to the new era alongside humanity. That premise should result in something really interesting, or at least unique enough for a mellow slice-of-life hobby show with a supernatural twist. And yet despite the lack of things to complain about, I just could not get on this show’s wavelength. It just doesn’t push far enough in any direction to be memorable; the animation is competent but also as basic as it gets, the characters are inoffensive but simple, the comedy is decent but rarely rises above a chuckle. Every single aspect of this show is just a little too underwhelming to really make an impact, and with nothing but average everywhere you look, the whole thing ends up kinda boring. I do like the themes it’s playing with, how art is used as a vessel for spirits and humans to keep their connections strong in an increasingly secular, industrialized world, but it’s not enough to bring this show up anywhere above harmlessly mediocre. What a shame.

Arknights Prelude to Dawn: 4.5/10

I find myself fairly conflicted about the first season of Arknights. On the one hand, it’s a relief to get a gacha game adaptation with some actual gravitas behind it, and the story of a post-infection dystopian world struggling between compassion and justice has some genuinely complex things to say about the morality of living through hellish situations. And its cinematic production ambitions ensure it’s rarely boring to look at. On the other hand, though, I get the sense that whoever was behind the script didn’t take into account the differences between what works narratively in a video game and what works in a TV show. Divorced from their role as an audience surrogate/POV who needs to be explained everything so the player can understand how to play, the mostly silent Doctor comes off as a nothing character who could be cut from the show without changing anything. Ditto the under-explained, underutilized tactical cell phone that probably only existed in the first place to justify how the game’s combat looked and functioned, and the dialogue that’s mostly a series of plot points taking us from one Important Setpiece to the next. I want to like what Arknights is doing, but it’s not until the shockingly great final two episodes that it starts to feel like a proper show and not just a lavishly animated cutscene compilation. Hopefully the second season continues that upward trajectory, and maybe then we’ll be able to call this a truly excellent gacha anime.

Do It Yourself: 5/10

Between this show and Healer Girl from earlier this year, I think I’ve come to the conclusion that I really need more than vibes to keep me interested in a show. Don’t get me wrong, vibes are good! But there’s a whole subsection of cute-girls shows that are basically nothing but vibes, and absent anything else to sink my teeth into, I find myself feeling very little connection to them. You’d think Do It Yourself might have a little more going on, what with its near-future setting, stabs at commentary on the importance of not letting automation fully run everything, and extremely gay undertones. But no, it’s mostly just cute girls doing DIY carpentry for twelve episodes. It’s a show for you to turn your brain off to and just, well, like I said, vibe to the expressive FLCL-esque art style and richly detailed guide to DIY carpentry with a bunch of intermittenly interesting characters. And while I can appreciate those vibes well enough, there’s so little intrigue to anything that I can’t really bring myself to care about it all that much. I dunno, maybe they shouldn’t have kept the one character who actually generates interesting narrative friction at arm’s length for nearly the entire show. And maybe they should’ve let Serafu and Pudding kiss. Actually, no maybes there, they definitely should’ve done that.

Play It Cool, Guys (1st Half): 5.5/10

Here’s a pleasant little surprise I don’t think anyone saw coming. Sure, this slice-of-life about a bunch of clumsy dudes navigating their own awkwardness isn’t gonna set the world on fire, but it’s become one of the more unusually absorbing short anime I’ve encountered in a while. I think what draws me to Play It Cool, Guys is that it’s just very unpretentious; it promises a chill twelve minutes every week of low-key sweet-natured comedy, and that’s exactly what you get. The punchlines aren’t amazing, but they pretty much always hit. The characters aren’t very complex or interesting, but they all carry themselves well enough that you enjoy seeing them on screen. It’s even got a certain kind of confidence to just be so low-key and not try to overextend itself with cheap gimmicks or recycled plot beats to grab your attention, because it trusts that its word and characters are charming enough to earn your investment on their own. And you know what? That confidence is not misplaced. It might not be my favorite thing in the world, but I have a sneaking suspicion it’s just going to keep growing on me as it moves into its second cours. Check back at the end of winter, and I might just end up giving it a much more enthusiastic recommendation.

Urusei Yatsura (1st Half): 6/10

Is there still a point to Urusei Yatsura today? Yes, Rumiko Takahashi’s groundbreaking rom-com about an alien girl falling in love with a philandering douchenozzle invented the anime rom-com as we know it, not to mention possibly starting waifu culture itself with Lum. But fifty years later, with all its component parts iterated upon by basically every romance-adjacent anime that followed it, does the original property have anything left to offer on its own merits? Or is it a relic of a bygone time, no longer useful as anything but a historical artifact for tropes and archetypes that have all been used better by the works it ended up inspiring? Halfway through this modern reboot, I’m still not sure what the answer to that question is going to be. What I can say for sure is that this show makes me laugh more often than it doesn’t, and while not all of it has aged gracefully, it’s oddly refreshing to see just how much more egalitarian the anime rom-com used to be. This is no incel wank fantasy where a loser guy gets all the hot girls by doing basically nothing; this is a show where everyone’s just a little bit nuts, and you’re not so much rooting for anyone to get together as you are just enjoying the chaos that results when all these different flavors of asshole butt heads. That’s far more my speed than any of the wish fulfillment harem slop that learned all the wrong lessons from Urusei Yatsura’s success. Whether or not it’ll end up anything more than a series of mostly amusing episodic sketches remains to be seen, but for now, I’m content to just watch the madness unfold. Plus, it’s got Hiroshi Kamiya and Mamoru Miyano sniping at each other like every episode, you can’t not love that.

Pop Team Epic Season 2: 6/10

Sometimes, you just need a little chaos in your life. That sentence probably sums up the appeal of Pop Team Epic better than anything else I could ever write. Sometimes, you just want to let loose on a stream of consciousness through utterly batshit comedy skits that switch tone and animation style on a dime, packed with references to countless things you’re only vaguely aware of, never quite sure if all this insanity has any kind of point or if the pointlessness is itself the point. Pop Team Epic is just fucking weird, y’all. But it’s the kind of weird that clearly comes from a group of talented people having a blast throwing anything and everything at the wall just because they can, not caring about whether any of it sticks or not because the messy, nonsensical act of creating the damn thing in the first place is reason enough for it to exist. What other show will give you a dating sim spoof, yaoi lesbians, legitimately great mecha action, a final fantasy parody, gratuitous violence, a live action flipbook segment, and a full-on tokusatsu show starring Aoi Shota as a time-traveling sentai hero, all in the space of 12 episodes? If that kind of memetic insanity is your jam, then you need to get this show in your eyeballs yesterday. Pop Team Epic makes no goddamn sense, and god bless it for that.

Spy x Family Part 2: 7/10

Does a show need a plot? Is it enough for it to simply wander through a bunch of random side quests and coast on charm alone? That certainly seems to be what Spy x Family is banking on; after a relatively plot-solid first part where most episodes had at least a little in the way of new developments, part 2 seems content mostly to put the Forger family members in a variety of amusing scenarios and leave all the big picture stuff in the background until the final episode. And it’s a testament to just how damn charming these characters are- and how slick the production continues to be- that it mostly gets away with it. it’s fun watching Loid, Yor, and Anya bumble about as they slowly figure out what it means to live a “normal” life. But I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t impatient for the plot to pick back up. I dunno, after so many episodes of just faffing about, I felt myself getting kind of burnt out on the sitcom hijinks. And it doesn’t help that the biggest new character introduced is basically just a genderswapped Yuri, a.k.a. the worst character in the series. Spy x Family works best when it’s balancing its fluffy and kickass sides, and part 2 just leaned a little too far into fluff for my tastes. I still had a lot of fun, but I’m more than ready for the Ostania-Westalis conflict to be important again.

Blue Lock (1st Half): 7/10

The premise of Blue Lock is one of those immediately head-slapping moments of “Wow, why has no one tried this before?” brilliance: what if you took a shonen sports anime and made it an edgy death game? Sports anime are already full of larger-than-life personalities and conflicts, so taking that over-the-top competitive camp and applying it to a situation where the characters have to destroy each other to get ahead in a winner-takes-all battle royale is such a no-brainer, I’m shocked it’s taken this long for someone to come up with it. Sure, you don’t actually die if you lose Blue Lock, but losing the ability to play competitive soccer ever again might as well be death for a shonen sports boy, so it still counts. Point is, this premise is certifiably genius. Which makes it slightly disappointing that so far, the show isn’t taking as much advantage of it as it could. Don’t get me wrong, there’s some of the skullduggery and backstabbing you’d expect from your typical death game, but for the most part, Blue Lock just plays like a traditional soccer anime. A very good soccer anime, to be sure, but I find myself wishing it was willing to get nastier and edgier and really take advantage of its premise. Hell, it’s not even the best straightforward soccer anime this year; Ao Ashi has it beat in everything but animation. So count me a fan, but also count me hopeful that it leans more into what makes it unique going forward.

Raven of the Inner Palace: 7.5/10

In a fantasy-tinged version of Medieval China, there lives an imperial courtesan known as the Raven Consort. But unlike the other courtesans, her duties do not involve, well, nighttime visits. No, her mission is to put to rest the wandering spirits of the dead, the shades of those who died with regrets or unfinished business that still tie them to the world of the living. As long as anyone can remember, she’s lived alone, existing for nothing but her mission with no bonds to the world around her. But when a new emperor deposes the corrupt regime, he makes it his mission to set right everything his forebearers set wrong... including freeing the Raven Consort from her isolation. Thus begins one of the most absorbing anime I’ve watched all year, a story of the sins of the past as they claw at the fabric of the present, the struggle to untangle eons of societal oppression, and what it truly means to make amends for mistakes that left scars too big to ever heal. Raven of the Inner Palace is a bit of a slow burn, but when it takes off, it fucking takes off. And I know most of you barely even heard about it because it was overshadowed by all the louder, flashier shows this season, so consider this your wake-up call. Don’t sleep on this one, it’s really damn good.

Akiba Maid War: 8.5/10

Honestly, I don’t even want to say anything about this one. I just want to tell you all that you need to fucking watch Akiba Maid War and let you experience its many surprises as deliriously blind as I did. So if that alone is enough to convince you to go watch it, then stop what you’re doing and go watch it before you’re spoiled on anything. But if you need a little extra convincing, then consider the following: what if I told you that this seemingly innocuous maid cafe show is not, in fact, a quaint little otaku-centric slice of life, but a full-on pastiche of yakuza movies that takes all the genre’s bloodshed and mayhem and filters it through maid-colored glasses? A show where maids gun each other down and jockey for power and get in vicious turf battles and yet never once break maid keyfabe? Where the simple joke of “yakuza movie but they’re maids” is played so straight and pushed so far to its absolute limit that it somehow wraps back around to being both a completely ludicrous parody of itself and a completely genuine, 100% heart-on-its-sleeve love letter to both seemingly incompatible sides of its double identity? And walks that seemingly impossible tonal tightrope near flawlessly before bringing it all home in a final episode so pitch-perfect it forced me to pump my score up half a point just from how hard it stuck the goddamn landing? Are you convinced yet? Did I mention there’s a thirty-six year old murder maid who totally kicks fucking ass and doesn’t let anyone shame her for being a middle-aged woman working a cutesy job? What more do you want from me? JUST GO FUCKING WATCH THIS SHOW ALREADY I SWEAR TO GOD

Mobile Suit Gundam: The Witch From Mercury: 8.5/10

I had no idea what to expect going into my first ever Gundam anime. Sure, I was excited to finally get a taste of what this storied franchise had to offer, and the excellent prologue and promise of an interesting female protagonist were certainly reasons to be hopeful, but as someone who’s rarely clicked with mecha as a genre, I wasn’t sure how this first foray into the definitive mecha anime would turn out. What I never expected- what I don’t think anyone could’ve expected- was that The Witch From Mercury wasn’t content to just be the first even female-led Gundam. No, this show decided to be REVOLUTIONARY GIRL UTENA. IN SPACE. WITH MECHA BATTLES. And I don’t think I need to say a goddamn thing more to convince you to watch this show. It’s goddamn Gundam Utena! It’s the queerest, most socially conscious anime of all time re-imagined with a futuristic metal exoskeleton, only with Utena’s symbolism-drenched ruminations on gender and patriarchy replaced with a no-less-compelling grounded portrayal of the evils of space capitalism and the political consequences of corrupt systems. Well, presumably; this first cours has mostly focused on the ground-level school romance antics as it builds up all that big picture stuff in the background. But I say again: GUNDAM. FUCKING. UTENA. I couldn’t have picked a better introduction to the world of Gundam if I tried. And as long as the second cours doesn’t shit the bed, this is going to go down in history as one of the greatest things to over come out of the mecha genre.

Bocchi the Rock: 9.5/10

And yet. Despite all the big shonens and bold anime originals, despite Chainsaw Man and My Hero Academia and Gundam Utena, when all was said and done, one series rose above them all. One series that looked at all those big names with a smirk and sailed past them as naturally as breathing. Ladies, gentlemen, and everyone in between, Bocchi the Rock is a goddamn motherfucking masterpiece. It takes the band-girls coming-of-age majesty, the painfully relatable social anxiety of Watamote, and the sheer animation flexing of Nichijou, and blends them all together into a gut-busting, tear-jerking, jaw-dropping tour de force that raises the bar on what slice-of-life anime is capable of just as thoroughly as K-On did thirteen years ago. Hitori Gotou is a socially paralyzed weirdo who’s never had a real friend because her anxiety’s too overwhelming to make friends, but she knows how to play some mean guitar. So when a chance encounter leads to her joining a band, she resolves to stick with it and try to finally break out of her shell, one hilarious misstep at a time. It’s a wonderful story of overcoming what holds you back and finding a community that accepts you for who you are, brought to life with some of the most astonishingly Extra(tm) animation that regularly left me choking on my own laughter. And the music uniformly kicks ass, and the incredible supporting cast provides a wide array of perspectives of introversion and extroversion, and Ryou is such an asshole and I love her, and fucking hell, I love this show! Other anime may be deeper or more complex or have more to say, but almost nothing else is so consistently charming. Every second of this show is delightful. Every moment is lovable. It’s a new gold standard for animated comedy, for cute girls, for coming-of-age, and for music anime in general. Bocchi the Rock fucking rules, and every single one of you needs to give it a watch. Something tells me this is gonna be one of those shows we’re still going to be gushing over for many, many years to come.

[fourseasonsfigs]

Fierce Husbands

Yesterday's sad Rainy Night Wen was having a tough time of it. But today we're jumping ahead to Episode 16, where we have our two favorites reuniting (again).

I absolutely love this scene. It's incredible.

I remember watching this for the first time and being utterly blown away by how Lao Wen just swoops down and it's like the previous scenes never happened, he's so intent on ensuring A-Xu is alright. And the look on Zhou Zishu's face. That breath Zhang Zhehan takes in is just incredible. They're both so badass and the scene is just tender and gorgeously romantic at the same time.

So of course these two figs are a must have.

That being said, they were definitely not something I could have, at least when they were first produced. The fig maker restricted the sales of this set and two other sets in the same series with some pretty onerous restrictions. In order to purchase these, you had to show proof of endorsement purchases / charitable donations for both actors, provide screenshots of your social media accounts to prove you were a CP fan, and had to have bought at least 6 previous figures from their shop before. I could have done the first two, but the last I had not. At the time these were launched, I had not had the opportunity at that point to buy directly from their shop for more than just a few figs.

So, I resigned myself to tracking these down on the secondary resale market once they were produced and shipped. I figured they'd cost a pretty premium when marked up for their rarity and popularity, but I searched and searched (and searched some more), and luckily didn't end up paying all that much more over original price.

These two arrived in their protective polystyrene cases, but somewhere in the travels home to me, they met with misfortune.

Ahh! Horrible. The stuff of figthusiast nightmares. I yelped when his little head rolled right out of the box.

Luckily, the break was pretty clean. Sometimes, like in this case, the break is the least of all possible problems. What's much worse is chipped paint and / or collateral damage that is caused when the broken pieces bang and scrape against each other. Some super gentle buffing with a Magic Eraser can sometimes help with discolorations. Chipped paint, though, is a whole other story. Speaking of which...

Lao Wen did not escape unscathed either. His poor hairpin! If you read yesterday's post, you saw where the fig maker sent his hairpin separately. It's to prevent exactly this. Now I've had lots of figs with pre-attached hairpins make it to me OK, but certainly not all of them.

If you look closely, you can see where the paint has broken off. There's no mending this one perfectly with this much damage, unfortunately.

Here's Baiyi, and you can see his hand where he can hold the hilt. Thankfully, the sword fit perfectly into his hand. You can also see here that A-Xu's beautiful neck is as good as new, more or less.

You can see here how well A-Xu holds his sword - really nice modeling on the hand. It's snug enough of a fit it won't fall out, but not too tight that I worry about damaging his little fingers.

What a cute angle for these two! I love the flowy motion of their robes as they both head towards each other.

Ah the epic image. I know A-Xu looks a bit taller here, but his high ponytail and weimao are adding some extra volume to his head!

Sadly, this is a good angle to see the damage in the mended hairpin. After the success I had with painting over the damage to Lao Wen's xiao in yesterday's fig, I'm going to mix up some paint and try to do the same for this hairpin.

Oof, this is an even better angle to see the damage in the poor hairpin. I had a hard time getting it to even stick together, as you can see. In happier news, their robes look fantastic here, and Baiyi also looks great. It's well sized for the fig and adds interest while not distracting from the overall scene.

I really love the movement in their robes and their hair.

The modeling on these figs is very true to the show, I've been watching my little clip on a loop and I'm impressed with the fig maker's level of detail.

The little one-sided wrinkle by Lao Wen's left eye just delights me!

And we're back around. Look at how each of them has a foot stepping out front as they walk to each other. I just love them.

Despite the dynamic poses, these figs stand quite well. Normally robe layers like this help to balance the figs, but these figs are a little unusual in that so much of their robes are flowing off the ground.

This show made me fall in love with the weimao. It's such a great look.

I'll come back and post a pic of the painted hairpin when I attempt it. Hopefully this weekend!

These figs came in a plain white box, so no box art, but the box card art is lovely!

The other two sets are just getting stocked in at my warehouse, so it'll probably be a month before they arrive at home. They'll skip to the front of the posting line when they do, though!

Material: Resin

Fig Count: 389

Scene Count: 26

Rating: Fierce and loyal!

[link back to Master Fig Index for more posts]

[denimbex1986]

'Doctor Who has long been known for its chaotic camp energy and nothing encapsulates this better than the musical numbers scattered throughout the iconic BBC sci-fi series.

Returning showrunner Russell T Davies certainly seems to love ensure that a banging soundtrack accompanies the hit British TV favourite: That was made clear early on in the season one reboot when “Toxic” by Britney Spears and Soft Cell’s “Tainted Love” played as “traditional Earth ballads” while the planet burned in “The End of the World”, set in the year five billion.

In recent years the show has had a particular penchant for including needle drops, dance breaks and powerhouse musical scenes for its characters, especially the villains. At this point, it’s amazing that there hasn’t been a dedicated musical episode as some sci-fi fantasy shows such as Buffy the Vampire Slayer – have famously done.

In a recent interview, Davies explained why he loved giving his Doctor Who antagonists a spectacular musical number as they enact their evil plans.

“In all great pop music, there’s a savagery to it… It’s like in the middle of a song, people are being slaughtered. It’s pure Doctor Who, isn’t it?” he said during the episode commentary for “The Giggle”, the third of three 60th anniversary specials.

“I’m always using pop music like that. There’s a darkness in there somewhere. The relentlessness, that’s the word. There’s a ruthlessness to pop music.”...

5. ‘My Angel Put the Devil in Me’ from ‘Daleks in Manhattan’ (2007)

We feel bad putting the only musical number not performed by one of The Doctor’s enemies at the bottom of this list, but it falls just short in the face of some truly stellar – and villainous – competition.

We also apologise because Tallulah Francis’ dazzling cabaret performance of “My Angel Put the Devil in Me” is a standout moment from the season three episode “Daleks in Manhattan”.

The glittering outfits, the sultry (and gorgeously synchronised) choreography and dreamy encapsulation of 1930s New York all blend together to make this a performance to remember.

Kind-hearted, devilishly smart and supremely talented on stage, is there anything Tallulah “Three ‘l’s and an ‘H'” Francis, played by Miranda Raison, can’t do? We think not. Well, aside from topping this ranking, of course.

2. ‘Spice Up Your Life’ from ‘The Giggle’ (2023)

Placing Neil Patrick Harris’ musical number as The Toymaker in “The Giggle” as runner-up was not an easy choice given that his performance is truly spectacular, high-camp and unnerving in equal measures.

The Toymaker was lip-syncing for his (and everyone in the building’s) life as he went on a tyrannical rampage while dancing to 90s classic “Spice Up Your Life” by the Spice Girls, dressed in a classic toy soldier’s uniform. A murderous musical number for the ages.

1. ‘I Can’t Decide’ from ‘Last of the Time Lords’ (2007)

A controversial pick for the win, but just forcing its way to victory is John Simm’s inspired performance to Scissor Sisters hit “I Can’t Decide” in the season four finale “Last of the Time Lords”.

Put simply, “I Can’t Decide” walked so “Spice Up Your Life” could run, and we would be nowhere without it. The song perfectly captures Simm’s maniacal take on The Master opposite David Tennant’s (aged-up) 10th Doctor.

He’s a Teletubbies lover, king of needle drops (who can forget the moment he blasted Rogue Traders’ “Voodoo Child” while the Earth is being ravaged), and the true embodiment of a crazed villain.

It’s camp and crazy, and, tragically, many Whovians have been criminally deprived of the full scene over the years after it was left out of certain streaming versions. Some may think it is dispensable, but we certainly don’t. This is a John Simm stan page only.'

[salemoleander]

VERY interested in creator commentary for the 3rd life webweave (seriously one of the coolest things ive seen made in this fandom, its gorgeously edited AND very funny AND the quotes themselves are all knock-your-socks off material. That Rosencrantz And Guildenstern Line Holy Shit)

Okay so first off THANK YOU that's super kind! It's nerve-wracking posting graphic design that is reconstituted from other sources, bc I've seen it perceived as a 'lazy' or unskilled format, so this is really really encouraging to hear.

I am not a concise person, which is why this has taken so long! I realized as I was initially responding that I was trying to dive into three separate topics:

The actual process I follow, my tips + tricks on making web weaves

Analysis of my 3rd Life web weave

My philosophy towards web weaves and collage as an art form

Only one of those is the question you actually asked, so #2 is what I'll be talking about in this post! However, I am working on a video overview of the other topics, because I think they're worth exploring - I will obviously post that on this blog once it's done.

To avoid jumpscaring anyone with a wall of text, I've thrown my commentary under a readmore.

The one takeaway I'll mention before we dive in is if anyone has a character/narrative web weave request, please hit me up! I have so many I'm working on, having a next topic suggestion is super helpful to narrow things down.

General Creation Comments

I am At All Times collecting images, so it's only a matter of time until I make a webweave for a group/ concept/ person:

(My phone storage is Certainly being utilized. Also I will never be free of making these.)

It just so happened that my Third Life folder filled up fastest/ felt like it was in a good balance to work with, so that's what I started with!

I try to use a mix of text and images, and both serious and funny stuff. Even at its most serious the Life Series is also funny, and it's important to reflect that!

That said, if you compare the jokes I've picked in this piece vs the void falling web weave, you'll notice the jokes on this one trend sharper. The 'How to Detect Misery' and 'How to Tell if it's Over' memes (both from @thatsbelievable, who is a GREAT source of web weave content) are morbidly funny. Surviving horrific circumstances, preparing to suffer, unimaginable violence, eroticism and death, covered in blood - all of the jokes are violent.

As I go, I weed out posts that don't fit, or (mostly) prune text posts out. Too much text ruins the flow, and I LOVE words so I tend to have too much writing and not enough art.

3rd life had only a few things that didn't make the cut, bc I was fairly judicious as I added to that folder, but these were scrapped:

As I added the posts I knew I wanted and split them between panels, I naturally started seeing a 'flow' from early game biomes/bases and the more tender pairings, into violence + devotion, and then ending in.. something. I wasn't sure what I wanted the end to be yet.

I ran out of posts, and knew I needed Wayyy more images to offset the text, so I went looking through the Smithsonian's excellent collection of CC0-licensed art!

That's where I found the Perfect Image - that last picture of the red angel laid low. I knew immediately that it needed to be most of the final scene, with very little obscuring or distracting from it.

Okay, diving into specific panel analysis!

Panel One

It's the beginning, so everything is still fairly light - lots of brown and green tones.

The summary (imo) is that every faction in 3rd Life is in different stories!

Grian and Scar are playing cowboys, an old Western style narrative where they're beholden to each other, out to get the Bad Guys (even if objectively they're the ones being violent little instigators).

Flower Husbands are a greek fucking tragedy, Jimmy's sudden loss and Scott in mourning, trying to cause as much destruction as possible before the gods knock him down too.

Dogwarts are a middle English story of fealty and homosocial bonds and dying for honor.

And the Crastle is like. Shakespeare or Arthur Miller or Stoppard. They are in a theater, they are playing with all of the narratives. Too aware of the trajectory they're on, and entirely unable to stop it.

The images on the first page are the four primary pairings in 3rd Life - top left, in the background of the 'How to Detect Misery' meme, is the desert. The sudden punchline of that meme felt like a good starting point - a creeper-blast of a joke.

The pair to the right represent Scott and Jimmy. I liked the Impressionist and classic myth-inspired stylization. Also, the toga blended near-seamlessly into the desert hill so it looked almost like a wing, implying a tie to angels as well as foreshadowing Jimmy's death AND Scott's partnership with Grian/Scar.

Up in the top right-hand corner is a little Crastle, and the pair embracing on the right side of the page are Bdubs and Cleo. The red hair fit, but it was the old-fashioned clothing and sense of finality that I really liked.

On the left is Dogwarts - Ren and Martyn. I wanted an image that had a very different style, as they were opposed to desert duo + everyone else. I felt the sketchy ink stood out and elicited ideas of worn vellum paper. It felt like a sketch you'd discover sitting in a chest of a long-worn-down enchanting room.

There's a forest and a mostly-occluded castle in the background art on page one, also meant to represent Dogwarts. That forest bleeds into the next page, where the violence really begins.

Panel Two

We've started with a forest, but it's darker than the last one, and wilder.

Bursts of red stand out violently on the page.

'Fallen Angel' is a classic for emotionally fraught blorboposting! There are many, Many Mountain Goats songs that fit, but the way a-doctor-not-a-fangirl paired this line with this painting was striking to me. In particular, I like how 'getting revenge' was something that drove most of 3rd Life, even though Red Lives (come unhinged) were meant to be the driving force of violence. They weren't supposed to have bonds, they weren't supposed to have allies! But it's the bonds that drove the violence.

The 'I heart eroticism and death' cut-out plopped onto the collage was intended to feel like a kind of cheesy tourist stamp - 'I killed my friends in horrible death games and all I got was this lousy t-shirt' vibes.

The 'First off' comment feels like the illogical thought proces all of the doomed players (so, all of the players) were following - "if I just do well enough at murder, this will all be over."

The 'moments of grace' image is probably my most indulgent addition. I wanted a softer, quiet nod to the good parts, to the fun and the joy in between the violence. In particular, the dawn breaking on waves reminded me of the short span Grian and Scar spent tensely placing TNT under sand in the desert. I imagine silent cooperation and the sussuration of sand on sand, and quiet for just a few minutes.

'It's better to know how to let others unmask you and to endure the rule of the game' means: if you are too good, if you survive long enough, you will end up alone. This is about Bdubs and Cleo - kings of roleplay, of being a little overeager and dying for it and getting a mercifully quick ending. It is also about the cactus ring.

Panel Three

The centerpiece of this page is 'G-d's Idea', the beautiful abstract painting of a blood-soaked angel. It makes me insane every time I see it. Grim reaper in mourning kinda guy

I wanted to do something to tie more directly to the end, but didn't want to pull a disembodied-face-in-90s-grad-photo approach to add Scar. So I found a drawing that looked like the Monopoly Mountain build, and carefully added it onto one wing. I really really like this as an addition, it is probably my favorite combination in this post.

The Anne Carson quote is obvs in Minecraft font - I also split up the lines, so that the left and right side loosely create their own sentences/ideas. "There is a theory that watching other people is good for you" and "Unbearable stories may cleanse you of your darkness." I wish I had been more careful with the contrast on 'yourself all', but oh well, we can just call it being difficult to read an experiential facet of the poem.

"Do you want to go down to the pits of yourself all alone?" is a good fucking line, and manages to mirror both the commentary on us the viewers AND the experience of the creators AND the experience of the characters. We get to experience violence vicariously, the creators get to experience it with friends + in safety, and the characters (or character, I should say, just Grian left by the time you're reading this) are experiencing that low point totally alone.

Aside from the obvious fit, the Rosencrantz + Guildenstern lines stand in as a conversation between the viewers and the characters. The appraising description of kiling and dying beautifully makes way for a mournful interruption that no, fuck that, this isn't a game for us (with some obvious irony there).

Finally, I needed it to end funny; the whole thing is already more serious than it probably should've been. I like this joke because it's short, and it implies the aftermath in a comedic way. Picturing everyone spawning back into Hermitcraft, covered in blood, upset, but mostly with a profoundly awkward sense of 'well I fucked that one up. That got a bit more homoerotic than intended, and now every other shopping trip I have to make awkward eye contact with the person I mcMurdered."

Again, thank you so much for your ask and kind words! I'm looking forward to making a general guide video on web weaves one of these days :D

[toskarin]

hi i have a muramasa question. entirely setting aside the question of financial support bc i probably will buy a copy, is there anything artistically that will be lost in the experience of watching a no-commentary playthrough? (also do you know any channels that do those lol) i have trouble with vns but not with watching videos and fmdm looks extremely of interest is why i am asking. Thank You

afaik, barring some awkward early machine translations with missing chunks, there aren't really any full no commentary playthroughs

no spoilers! this is just a very general answer

the main thing you'd lose out on is that you'd need to be experiencing the censored version (if you were gonna do this anyway, no loss there) and you wouldn't get to experience a few really good moments best experienced blind, which play on the reader's interaction with the story

also there were a few points where I, personally, left the game running for a minute or two just to enjoy the music. it's really gorgeously done

another valuable aspect of reading the vn directly is a scrollback log that allows you to view text history and replay audio clips if anything was especially funny or interesting to you

Muramasa is pretty experimental (or was for 2009 anyway) and plays a lot into the fact that you, as the reader, are actively turning each page to see what comes next. while I don't think you wouldn't get the story in full from watching a playthrough, it certainly would prove to be less impactful for the lack of player input you get to exert during it (and the punishment you receive for some of the more tense decisions)

[theharpermovieblog]

#HARPERSMOVIECOLLECTION

2024 MOVIE LIST

www.tumblr.com/theharpermovieblog

I watched Saltburn (2023)

I'm late to the party on this one, but all the better that the hype has died down a bit. But, if you are reading this, you may want to watch the movie first because I might spoil a bit for you.

A poor young man at Oxford befriends a rich student and soon becomes obsessive after being brought to the rich student's home.

A lot was said to me about this movie before viewing, all about how crazy it is. And, while there is definitely some crazy weird shit in here, it's certainly not the highlight of the movie.

"Saltburn" is a gorgeously shot and beautifully directed film, which sports a great cast, all of whom are giving great performances.From a technical standpoint, this is a delight to watch.

The writing is wonderful, the characters are deep enough to be interesting and the lead is a lovely and infatuating villain.

On top of all that, there are individual scenes here which are true bits of perfection. Especially the lunch scene after Oliver's birthday, and of course, that nude dance of triumph is possibly one of the best endings to a 21st century film. These scenes are not just technically well done, they are reminders of the heart of dark humor at the center of "Saltburn".

So many people compare this to "The Talented Mr. Ripley". While it does have similarities to that story, it's the comedy that really puts "Saltburn" in its own category. The film puts the audience in a place where we can revel in the villain's eventual success. Yes, the film has its darker, more disturbing moments, but these moments serve to create a sublimely deranged character who we do end up smiling with in the end. We might not agree with what Oliver has done, but there is a part of us thinking, with an excited smirk, "That cheeky bastard."

And, let's hear it for Barry Keoghan. In a film of great performances, he stands out (as he does in everything he's in.) You even have to wonder if "Saltburn" would work as well without him.

Is this a perfect film? No. Certainly, like a piece of cake, Saltburn is more sugar and fat than nutrition, but I'm not complaining. It's decadent and delicious and the conclusion is worth the interesting journey.

[sinceileftyoublog]

Willi Carlisle Live Preview: 2/9, Schubas, Chicago

BY JORDAN MAINZER

The critters in Willi Carlisle's Critterland (Signature Sounds) aren't just varmints like the one that graces the album's absurd cover, nor the two-headed lamb "too strange to survive." They're anybody--human or otherwise--considered an outcast by the unrealistic standards set forth by society. On his Darrell Scott-produced third album, Carlisle digs into his own personal history and local mythology to paint a picture of an American south that pits the freaks against each other, and where those who dare to be different nonetheless find kinship in one another. With a pared-down instrumental arsenal (most songs contain just acoustic guitar, banjo, steel guitar, and/or harmonica), Carlisle's ramshackle delivery and utmost longing stand tall and beckon you to sing along.

On Critterland, Carlisle gives you anthems right from the start. The album's title track, based on an attempt at living in an intentional community in Arkansas, celebrates those "makin' wagers on the critters that we see crossing the road;" led by propulsive banjo, the song soars in the chorus with celebratory harmonica and expansive steel guitar. Purportedly, Carlisle wanted to let loose on the record, inspired by the ragged rambunctiousness of his live show, and you can see "Critterland" becoming a set highlight for the rest of his career. Critterland is far from a fists-in-the-air record, though. Many songs tackle substance abuse, addiction, and suicide with a mix of earnestness, dark humor, and self-awareness. On the gorgeously finger-picked "The Arrangements", the narrator can't take too much joy in the fact that his horrible father has met his maker, as he's beginning to see himself in his dad, ultimately leading himself to think, "It's still sad when bad men die." "Higher Lonesome", the album's only completely true story, sees a drug-addled Carlisle at first "dreamin' of a country I saw at the rodeo," mistaken in his quest for non-existent perfection. As the song progresses, he toys with his own mortality: "See, I don't want to hit rock bottom, just to see how deep it goes / Shine a light on six feet under so I ain't afraid to go." Eventually, he joins AL-Anon and realizes the pain he's inflicted on himself and others, and his penchant for soul-crushing wordplay shines brightest: "With every coin the joiners get, they're farther from the pain of it / All the hurting that we did, it's a shame no coin'll pay for it."

Carlisle certainly knows how to start a song and hook you. He'll pay tribute to a friend who committed suicide and whose body was never found because his note used words too complex for the cops to understand. His immediate vocal harmonies with Jude Brothers on "I Want No Children" catalyze a fiddle-and-banjo instant folk classic. And as soon as 7-minute spoken word closer "The Money Grows on Trees" begins, you know you're in for Carlisle at his troubadour best, showcasing the lyrical dexterity of your favorite rapper. It's "When the Pills Wear Off", though, that devastates all the way through. "Father forgive me for what I have done / Drove 200 miles for six inches of love," he sings, placing you in a world of neon-lit bars and dingy motels. But the song's big reveal, from both an emotional, plot, and instrumental standpoint breaks you. "It's selfish to fall for yourself in someone," Carlisle opines, the other side of the coin of the mourning narrator of "The Arrangements", before continuing, "I know that I want him and always will / I don't think he could have known that it was fentanyl." At the moment he names the deadly drug, the song's plaintive piano and cinematic strings squeak and warble to a clumsy stop, as if to emulate a life cut short. When the "The Money Grows on Trees" ends--it's a song based on David Mac's When Money Grew on Trees, firsthand accounts of a weed moonshiner and the corrupt sheriff that allowed him to do it--it's clear that Carlisle's use of regional history is far from mere aesthetic cosplay like it is for so many of his contemporaries. He can change endings all he wants, in the stories of his lives and those of others, through his songs, but it's the act of analyzing contemporary ills through bonafide folklore that emphasizes the absurdity of the here and now.

Carlisle headlines Schubas tonight. Nashville folk duo Golden Shoals opens. Doors at 7:30 PM, show at 8. The show is sold out.

[laurkamkitchen]

I've been seeing gorgeously luxurious curries like this all over my Instagram feed, so this was definitely me satisfying a craving. This recipe promised to be creamy and delicious, with simple ingredients, and yet packed with spices and a little extra protein in the almond butter.

I halved this to make two servings, one for freezing. I used ground turmeric, one green chili with the seeds removed, and half the amount of regular chili powder. This together provided the perfect hint of spice for me, weak as I am, so I would definitely keep all that the same were I to make this again.

The only probably that I encountered here was that this really ended up more as a soup than a rich and creamy curry. I definitely should have kept my stove on a slightly higher heat and let both simmer times go for a few minutes longer. My lentils were mostly done in the end, but definitely could have used a few more minutes.

So this was maybe not my best work, but it was still absolutely delicious; I served with one of my chickpea pancakes. I'd certainly like to make this again if nothing else to try and get the texture right, as this truly is a fabulous recipe.

[vickiabelson]

Barbara Feldon Live on Game Changers With Vicki Abelson

The best? Certainly none better. I’m not sure anyone has ever exceeded my very high expectations greater than Barbara Feldon did this day. As much as I admired and adored Get Smart’s Agent 99 for her sophistication, intelligence, knowingness, sly, perfectly delivered humor, demure yet smoldering sexiness, and downright gorgeousness… Barbara is all that, and a truckload of Cheetos. It was so overwhelmingly powerful and thrilling to deep dive with this wise, self-effacing, self-aware, thoughtful, beyond-imagining age-defying beauty, I was filled to the brim with emotion, electricity, excitement, and enlightenment. I got answers to questions I’ve been seeking for years, and I just used more adjectives than I did in my entire novel. That’s what Barbara’s done to me. 

In the middle of her unputdownable just-dropped memoir, Getting Smarter, I had intended to speedread it but found I couldn’t skip a word, and I can’t wait to finish these liner notes so I can return to it and find out how this woman who played a spy, thought she was married to one, a sexy Frenchman named Lucien (or was he), long before she donned his real-life trench coat on TV. Their more dramatic than fiction love story will make a spectacular streaming series someday soonish, I have little doubt.

Of course, we talked Don Adams, Mel Brooks, Buck Henry, and the genius that was Get Smart... how she got it, what led her there––that sexy commercial she purred through, Colleen Dewhurst, George C Scott, The Man From Uncle, what the actual experience was for her, the real rapport between her and Don, and how it shifted 20 years later, Dean Martin––swoon, Laugh-in, and writing––how as a tool it saves and evolves her and how it’s become her life’s work. How love has shaped her life and her work. 

An hour and a half of Barbara was simply not enough. I was so fired up, after the show, I called to say a quick thank you and we ended up chatting for another half hour. She’s such a warm and generous soul. It was an absolute love fan fest with someone I feel like I’ve known forever and hope I will. 

Enough! Back to the cone of silence for me to finish reading Getting Smarter. If you wanna get smarter, hit this bit.ly/3FKjljg and jump into Barbara’s beautifully written, as exciting as a spy novel, memoir. 

As much as I loved and looked up to Agent 99 as a girl, I adore Barbara Feldon even more. Please don’t miss this one. Wow, what a woman!  

Barbara Feldon Live on Game Changers With Vicki Abelson

Wed, March 22, 5 pm PT, 8 pm ET

Streamed Live on The Facebook

Replay here: