#but to have a character I'm actually super invested in getting new conversations is so awesome

[tobiasdrake]

Okay, here we go. It's time to give a new game a go. I've had a lot of people pushing for this one so I'm excited.

I realize those are supposed to be rays of light shining off of whatever the thing is - a star, presumably - but it honestly looks like it's shooting at me. Should I be concerned?

I bet it tastes like lemon. It looks lemon-flavored to me. Though that might just be the black-and-white color scheme.

Hey. Uh. Pro tip, don't stand directly over someone's face when you're wearing a dress. There are better angles you can approach from.

Fortunately for you, I am a, uh... I am a....

...

You know what, I just woke up and I do not have sufficient information at this time to describe myself as "gentleman", "lady", or "person of esteemed character". I will get back to you when I have gathered more information as to my personal gender situation.

Yeah, sorry, I'm coming down from a wild trip. The kind where you can't be 100% sure if the things you just did caused the hallucinations or were part of the hallucinations. I think I actually saw the curvature of time.

It's a serrated crescent. I don't know what to do with that information. But I have it now.

Thank you, I feel like I will be able to hold more coherent conversations when I am more fully awake. And possibly caffeinated. If that is a thing we have.

FUCKING OW

I'M AWAKE

Ugh, that's like rolling over in just the wrong way so that your whole leg cramps up and then you have to throw yourself out of bed and walk on it to make the unbelievably agonizing pain go away. I GUESS I'M DONE BEING ASLEEP NOW.

There we go, information gathered. I have consulted the pocket notes I wrote to explain my gender to me and arrived at a conclusive answer: Masc-leaning non-binary.

Now that this mystery has been settled, I'm ready to face the day.

Well, the maybe/maybe-not hallucinations were fantastic but then it ended in violent agony so I'm gonna say that balances out to a 5.

You are alarmingly invested in my naptime quality. Are you trying to hint that you want me to go away for a couple more hours?

I dunno; I kinda just ruined my appetite for bedtime and I don't want to be that one person in the group who keeps trying to talk for hours and keeps everyone else awake.

Plus we're supposed to go fight the big bad evil guy in the morning and that might not be an appointment that we can show up to sleep-deprived. He might take offense.

Then again, we might be able to intimidate him with our cavalier attitudes and complete lack of regard for the severity of this situation.

OH NO

I didn't mean no! I just meant... we should really consider all the factors first!

...

I might be history's greatest monster.

...ugggggggh how did this become my problem.

Why does Odile get to be a Madame? I want to be a Madame. Super unfair that she gets the cool title and I'm just... uh....

SIFFRIN. I'm just Siffrin. Unfair.

If we're all staying in the same place then what's even the point of calling it a sleepo-- I MEAN I AM DOWN AND VERY ENTHUSIASTIC ABOUT YOUR SLEEPOVER IDEA YES THIS IS A WONDERFUL PLAN.

...

...

...

*quietly shuffles pocket notes back into pocket*

My memory is fine. Perfectly adequate.

OH THANK YOU I wanted one but I was too machismo to ask. You're always looking out for me, Mar... Merma....

Mirabelle! You're always looking out for me, Mirabelle. I appreciate it. ^_^

Now then. We have a fulfilling day ahead of us! Time to carry out the task I was assigned wander aimlessly around the village pokin' stuff.

[yeyinde]

Haha, I also spoil myself intentionally, but for the plot of movies, tv shows, and games I’m not super invested in. If I accidentally spoil myself (especially if I learn a character dies) I’ll cope by telling myself “I don’t know how/when it happened though”

Anyways Major Character Death!!

I’m SO disappointed in them killing off Soap and especially in how they did it! No buildup or anything! To me it was disrespectful to the character and to Neil Ellice. And then the 141 don’t even say anything and it cuts to them spreading his ashes with a simple goodbye! They could have at least made them a little more upset 🥲 also I hate how abruptly the game ended. Makarov gets away, but no mention to that at the end.

I had also initially requested what would become infinity in the palm of your hand (eternity in an hour) as a way to “cope” with 2009 Soap’s death because it’s always been on the back of my mind for years (weird, I know). But now after playing the new MW3 campaign I look like boo boo the fool because of who went and got killed off 😭 now every time I go back to reread it, it will be painful knowing what’s in store for reader for their current reincarnation of Soap.

Tldr I’m kinda not okay with MW3.

From what I've seen, it feels like they pulled it out of a hat. All names went in, but his (amongst others) came out. And I guess it's safe because he died in the OG, so the backlash can easily be deflected from within their own community when other fans come to their defence over this choice. But idk.

I agree with everything you said. It doesn't make any sense. It's jarring and misplaced, and canonically pointless. I'm not against character death. Grief is a powerful thing. But I just hate when it's so contrived and needless. It was definitely done for shock value over plot/character growth and I think they were trying to re-create the massive storm that happened when OG Soap died because they know they don't have much else going for them. It just massively missed the mark because: a) Price and Gaz had no tangible in-game relationship with Soap the same way Ghost did; and b) what does his death really amount to in the end? Nothing. It feels cobbled together and poorly thought out. It's sad when Portal 2 has better writing than your whole remake combined. Honestly, it's kind of impressive how little thought they put into this. I'm getting flash backs to DGG's Halloween.

If it's any consolation, the mythology I based the reincarnation off of in infinity would essentially just be neverending. An ouroboros. The events would happen much the same way. A knock on the door. Spiral of grief. A bog. A deal. Restart. So, you'd just wake up again and live life until whatever the old you made a deal with decides it's time to collect. You're forever stuck in a loop with your soulmate until you get it right.

The rest is just how I kinda wish it went, but this was getting very long because I have more thoughts on this than I anticipated lmao 😅

Personally, I think it would have been much more interesting if they brought in a new passel of characters and slowly chipped off the main cast in a series of horrible decisions that slowly begin to feel hollow and empty. That leave you, the player, feeling emotionally gutted with each new chapter because the choices previously are absolutely impacting the way they move forward, but they're too deep into their own revenge fantasy to see it until the very end when it's too late. Give me actions have consequences and every choice you make is directly responsible for someone's death. The realities of war. And what happens when you give a group of people the power to play god in countries they know nothing about. It would have matched the gritty tone they tried to go for with the trailers and actually served as an interesting conversation about war and how we tend to deify the military when they're just men with too much power in their hands. Instead, we have a death that means nothing. That arguably happened much too early in the series so the payoff is solely meant for clicks and reaction channels. Pointless.

And Makarov. A Russian Ultra Nationalist. I feel like that title alone says everything for me, and yet. They still somehow managed to give a Russian War Criminal so many wins. I'm just so irritated by it all.

[imogenleewriter]

do you currently have time to read fics yourself, and if so, what were the last ones you read and really liked? like something that stuck with you, or where you laughed a lot, etc… :)

I do! I tend to read shorter fics now because I don't have the time or attention span to read long ones at the moment - as a long fic writer, I'm glad other people do! I wrote the summaries below, but the authors' actual summaries are better than mine, so don't let my shitty ones turn you off the fic!

Somebody's Got Your Trainers On (It's You) by @greenblueish (bluegreenish on ao3) Words: 28k. Almost-exes to lovers. Hospital AU.

Louis is a paeds RN and Harry is a paediatrician that used to work at Louis' hospital. Harry leaves, ending his Situationship with Louis. He returns two years later.

My Thoughts: I LOVED this so much that I commented and then messaged Jill. I honestly don't understand how it's only 28k words because it felt like a whole-arse novel! I work in healthcare (and have worked in paeds) and it was the most accurate description of a ward setting, ward life, healthcare, and paeds that I've ever read. Not a single thing made me cringe. It was paced perfectly and had the right amount of tension and resolution. SO good.

you've set my soul to dreaming @so-why-let-your-voice-be-tamed (we_are_the_same on ao3). Word count: 9.2K. Strangers to lovers. Kind of time travel... kind of.

Harry wakes up one Christmas morning expecting to be alone, like he was when he went to be the night before. Instead he wakes up in his bed, but everything else has changed. He quickly falls in love with his new life and is terrified that it won't last.

My Thoughts: Another fic that felt much longer than the WC (9.2k) because it was so in-depth. I have so much respect for writers who can say so much in so few words! It definitely lived up to the fluff and angst tag. I was almost worried it wasn't going to have a happy ending but it did and even included a short but satisfying epilogue.

Love in Conversation by @hellolovers13 Word Count: 4.9k. Strangers to lovers. Baking phone line.

Despite his protests, Louis has been tasked with making a birthday cake for his younger siblings. The problem? He has no idea what he is doing. After some failed attempts, he stumbles across a helpline for baking mishaps. The other voice on the line does their best to help over the phone, but when Louis still can't get it right, they realise that Louis might need a bit more guidance.

My Thoughts: Just like the premise, this one was super sweet. Both characters were extremely lovable. Just a really cute fic.

Just the two of us (we can make it if we try) by @starryhaze28 (starryhaze on ao3) Word Count: 5.9k. Established couple. A/B/O. Mpreg.

Louis is concerned because his omega has been yo-yo-ing between needy and distant and won't tell him why. As time goes by, he gets increasingly worried. Then he founds out his omega is pregnant.

My Thoughts: Established relationships and mpreg aren't usually my jam, however, this one had enough angst and fluff to draw me in. Very, very sweet.

The Space Between by @alltheselights Word Count: 39.9k. Strangers to lovers. A/B/O. Famous/Non-Famous.

Harry Styles is an alpha and famous rockstar who has everything except for the ability to sleep. When he reaches breaking point, Louis Tomlinson, an omega psychology PhD student, is contacted for his professional sleeping skills. Their relationship drifts into unprofessional territory, though.

My Thoughts: As someone very invested in sleeping - because I also lack the ability - I appreciated this fic. It was another "How did they cover so much in so few words" fic. Had the perfect amount of angst towards the end, a satisfying and lovely resolution.

Something To Remember by @parmahamlarrie Word Count: 25k. Strangers to lovers. Soulmate AU. Famous/Non-famous.

Both Louis and Harry find themselves in an Exclusive Resort in Maui for their respective jobs. Living in a universe where tattoos appear on your skin when you see your soulmate, both of them are surprised that tattoos start showing up. As time keeps passing, getting closer to their departures, they start to fear they'll never actually get to meet their soulmate.

My Thoughts: Not going to lie, I got a bit anxious that they weren't going to meet. You know I love a good countdown and this fic had one... and it served its purpose well, lol. But they do meet, and it's beautiful. Another beautiful fic.

Quiet People Have The Loudest Minds by @2tiedships2 Word Count: 38k. Strangers to Lovers. A/B/O.

Louis is a non-verbal omega and is at a Broadway show, but the alpha next to him is stealing all of his attention, and he just wants him to leave. Until the alpha introduces himself as Harry and offers to leave.

My Thoughts: ANOTHER one that felt as though it had a much longer word count because it was so in-depth. I really like the diversity representation. As someone who isn't non-verbal, I can't vouch for the accuracy; however, from the knowledge and experience I do have, it seemed to be handled really well and respectfully. Extremely well-written and another lovely read.

The next two are both by @zanniscaramouche (zanni_scaramouche on ao3):

My Pleasure (to make you mine), Word Count: 6.5k. Strangers to lovers. Piercing. Praise Kink.

Harry decides to get his nipples pierced, and Louis is the right person for the job.

Your Pain (is mine now) Word Count: 5.1k. Stranges to lovers. Tattoo. Pain and praise kink.

Louis decides to get a tattoo done by Harry.

My Thoughts: I'm putting them together as they have very similar vibes (and are written by the same person, lol). Both have light elements of BDSM and are portrayed softly and sweetly. The writing is amazing! You know how people say, "I've read fics where the writing is better than published books?" Well, okay, that IS a lot of fics, but Zanni 100% fits into that category!

Do You See What I See by @allwaswell16 Word Count: 2k. Mix between Strangers/friends to lovers.

Harry just really cares about lost animals. Really, really cares about them. He cares about potentially lost ones too. Ones that, you know, might not actually be lost. Best to take them to the vet, just in case.

My Thoughts: You asked if I have read any funny ones that made me laugh a lot, and I'm still laughing about this one. It's only 2k words, so I don't want to say too much about it. But awkward Harry is my new favourite thing.

Also, whenever I reblog a fic, that is generally a sign that I loved it!

For transparency's sake, I read a lot of questionable smut that is so questionable that I have not included it!

[olderthannetfic]

Having more fandom friends around my age/mindset (context: late 30s, rare fandoms, reads some nsfw but not the type to post about it a lot in my main account) might be nice. I ignored the fandom part of myself a long time due to my RL friends being shitty about it (I dumped the worst of them) and I'm trying to enjoy it more.

But I keep leaving comments on fic and art and don't get any reply, let alone a conversation or follow. When I do get a response, the person stops posting fic in that fandom shortly afterwards. In an earlier more active fandom, I would send requests to people (clearly open for requests!) and 99% of the time I'd be ignored, or they'd draw the request at a level clearly before their usual stuff then delete it because they didn't like it (their words).

I'm not writing anything inappropriate or critical? I try to make my comments more interesting than 'i love this write more thx', maybe they get too confusing and off-putting to read? It certainly isn't because my ship is too weird because even non-shippers ship my current OTP lmao

I am trying to be realistic about it, maybe they aren't replying because they don't have the energy, or they have a life and they can't reply to the comment immediately and forget to, or they moved on, or they think I'm a tit which is totally fine?

The issue is it keeps happening, it's depressing, and the follows I do get are people in the same fandom who only like the parts I'm not invested in at all, have really tired takes and are significantly younger to the point I'm concerned about looking like a creep if I interact with them at 100% of my full power. It feels very much like I'm wishing on a monkey paw.

I have a very small number of friends I can talk to about fandom stuff I will cling onto with both hands. I just wish there were more. This is mainly me venting but if anyone has any suggestions feel free.

--

Hmm... Well, I share your suspicion that if you're the common factor, you're at least somewhat contributing to this situation. It may not be that you're offputting but that you inherently like things most other fans don't like—not just rare ships but also rarer tropes.

Or it may not be rarity exactly but prompt style: while tons of people love found family and slice of life, a lot of prompts for those are so generic and boring that they inspire exactly zero new plotbunnies. Meanwhile filthy kink is not for everyone but often has the seeds of a specific fic in a prompt, so if you do like it, those prompts are super inspiring.

A lot of people are pretty terrible at responding to comments. I'm extremely hit or miss on AO3 myself. I'll respond to a zillion things on tumblr before I remember to actually answer comments on AO3. Partly, it's that I get said comments in my email inbox, not on AO3 itself, so I read them and appreciate them but am not in the space where I'd respond right at that moment.

Sadly, people making one fanwork and moving on just comes with the territory when you're in rare fandoms. It's much easier to make friends who like to vid Asian dramas or who are learning a language for fandomy reasons or who are doing fandom historical preservation than friends who share your exact current taste in blorbos and who will continue to do so.

In my case, I love rare things, but I also love to move from fandom to fandom rapidly, and I find it really stressful to have friends who end up resenting that.

I tend to befriend fans whose overall vibe I find compatible more than people I share ships with: people who will probably be in fandom for life, people who are loud and proud about it, people who are interested in fandom history and pan-fandom meta. I also tend to be drawn to accounts that are not only horny on main but horny for kinky shit that draws haters. It does a wonderful job of weeding out the whiny children and finding me fans with a spine. Hilariously, one of my closest offline fandom friends with whom I share the most character opinions doesn't even like sex scenes. But that's not somebody I'd have gotten to know online.

It's going to vary for the people you're approaching, but that may be one reason they're not as enticed by the sight of another fan of their current rare fandom: they may have totally different types of criteria for fandom friends.

It's hard to know how much of the problem is you without examining your internet presence more, but I get why going "here's my account, plz critique" is not attractive. This ask seems fine. No particular writing style red flags jump out at me.

I've definitely known people who were dicks about my tumblr popularity and wanted to know why I didn't reblog them... but it turns out they interacted with me only once every six months so I don't remember them or their tumblr is entirely shitposts or their writing style is incoherent or they sound angry all the time.

One problem you may be running into is that findable fans in their 30s and 40s are self-selected for Fandom For Life types who already have a bunch of close fandom friends. They're likely doing a lot of socializing in private with people they've known for ages. I like to think of it as people with very full dance cards. They tend to be the most attractive because they're living happy, fulfilling lives, but that same quality makes them too busy. Meanwhile, people who are sad and alone and desperate for friends are often less visible and less compelling. If someone figured out how to connect with them, they'd be a great friend, but fewer people are trying.

It's not that every compatible late 30s fan is too busy for new friends. It's that the fans who are visible enough that you know they exist and know their approximate age are a very specific slice of overall fandom.

As fans age, some of their fandom friends leave fandom or die, so there can be periods where people are going "Shit, I need new friends!" later on, not just in college and such. But I'd say late 30s is a tough-ish period. A lot of people are busy with young kids and/or haven't lost their inner circles from younger years yet.

In general, a lot of my closer fandom friends aren't actually looking for new friends and haven't been in quite a while. Some don't even post publicly anymore. I'm something of an exception because I'm both extremely friendly and always on the lookout for minions to convince to go to Escapade con or take up the banner of fandom preservation yadda yadda. I have a vested interest in remaining open to new people.

Thoughts, everyone? Have you gone through friend-seeking and full dance card phases?

[skylights422]

New X-Men '97 tomorrow! I am very excited! But I also had meant to make more posts reviewing the first three episodes. It was going to be multiple posts over different topics, but I am short on time and organizational energy, so I am just gonna make two posts over the biggest topics: The Romance Drama, and The Plot. Romance drama first! It got Long, so it's under a cut. xD (And a quick disclaimer that any negative opinions on the canon writing of couples doesn't mean I dislike people for shipping any of it; I almost never ship anything personally just as a matter of personal preference, but am very much a Ship And Let Ship/Don't Like Don't Read kind of person)

First, I will just say that the Jean/Scott/Logan drama was...always the most boring and confusing part to me in the 90s show? I just didn't feel like they did enough to show why Wolverine was SO in love with her when it seemed like they never spent any time together normally or had any major bonding moments? So I felt like he was just pining based on appearance and the fact they were teammates, which...is fine I guess but not the sweeping, dramatic unrequited love it was always portrayed as.

(I mean Wolverine was so torn up about them getting married he REFUSED TO ATTEND and instead spent time trying to kill an illusion version of Scott in the Danger Room, that's. Very dramatic! And for what? Maybe they covered it a little bit in an episode I haven't re-watched yet but I remember Past Me at least not finding the explanation impressive enough lollll)

So, I'm not...super looking forward to more of it in this new show, but also expecting it since it was always such a feature. I'd rather not have Jean kinda date Logan just because she's mad at Scott and Logan wants to? But it won't shock me. By and large I have made peace with my dislike for that particular love triangle since I'm otherwise such a fan of both series. (And so far anyways Logan has been a little less weird about his unrequited feelings even if they're still pretty obvious)

THEN we have the Rogue and Magneto romance. This one I have had more mixed feelings on. My kneejerk reaction was confusion and dislike - I didn't know until I looked it up after the episode that they were together in the comics, and since they weren't in the previous show, it felt...really random. (Also I am just not much a fan of couples with large age gaps, obviously Rogue is an adult and can do what she wants, it's just not my cup of tea. Plus Rogue and Gambit is one of maybe, like...five? Couples in media? That I have any investment in AS a romantic couple lol, but mostly I was just not looking forward to more romantic drama in general since it's just not something I tend to enjoy much)

Now I have two opinions. One is simply that I am Over feeling bothered by it and just curious to see what they do with it, since Rogue and Magneto do have some compelling thematic reasons to have scenes together anyways. And Rogue and Gambit definitely COULD have a mature conversation about it, which would actually be pretty neat.

Now my main quibble is that it was introduced so suddenly, and with so little explanation. As a general rule, I do NOT consider 'it happened in the source material' to be a valid excuse for anything in an adaptation unless it also makes sense within the established lore/characterization/etc. of the adaptation itself. A Doylist explanation existing does not remove the need for a solid Watsonian one, and if there just...isn't a Watsonian explanation, then I feel it is lazy writing at best, actually terrible writing if done badly enough.

There's definitely still time for them to give some kind of flashback or explanation for Rogue and Magneto though! You can introduce new aspects to character's pasts, in general. So I am holding out my final opinion to see if they do that, and in what way.

On a smaller, technically still hypothetical note, next for romance drama we have: Morph crushing on Wolverine. I do agree that it's extremely possible, even likely, that Morph seeming Interested in Wolverine in this version is deliberate - I mainly say hypothetical because I have seen some VERY overtly queercoded stories/scenes/etc. be written genuinely by accident, and at this point I'm really not sure how it was intended (like, if it's meant to be anything bigger than the scene itself or not).

And once again, I have mixed feelings on it. On one hand, having an openly gay character in an X-Men cartoon is good! It's nice to see some diversity in orientation. And Morph makes sense since they are the closest to a blank slate as you can get with a pre-established character, only being in nine episodes total of the original series - very spread out ones, as well.

But well, there's two reasons I feel kind of egh about it. One is that nearly all the Established Duos that got a lot of attention in the original show were romantic ones, and as someone who is fundamentally more invested emotionally in non-romances, I really liked the thought of having a best friend duo to fixate on. (We do still have Magneto and Xavier but XAVIER IS DEAD RIGHT NOW SO IT ONLY HALF COUNTS)

The other is that it...would almost definitely be another unrequited crush. Which for one, is just drama that isn't interesting to me. But also I dunno if 'sad gay bravely accepts never getting with the love of their life' is amazing rep for...friendships OR gay people??? Like you could write it so that Morph is genuinely fine being 'just' friends, and maybe in an ideal world that would even kick Wolverine into considering he could maybe be More Normal About Jean. But I worry about their friendship falling apart or it being made out to be 'not enough' to Morph and ultimately just making everyone look bad (and also if they push too hard on the Sad Morph Angle I feel like it could just be another case of villainizing people for not returning affections which I just, REALLY HATE)

SO I'M ON EDGE ABOUT IT. Possibly they won't do much with the concept at all, which I'd frankly prefer. Possibly they'll find a way to write the one-sided romance that is actually considerate to both sides and doesn't destroy their friendship. Possibly they'll even introduce other gay couples somewhere in the show so the rep for it isn't all riding on Morph's shoulders! But I am also very aware how easy it would be to do this wrong. SO WE'LL SEE.

[nugge-is-my-duckie]

I'm sorry random person on ao3 but what do you MEAN "(insert ship) is the only valid ship for (character)"

WHAT DO YOU MEAN???

VALID????

I swear to god I'm not even invested like. At all. In the character they were talking about. I was looking for fics about a different character, but like that pissed me off so much???

VALID?????

Bro, it's two fictional men who a large portion of the fandom decided were actually super gay for each other. It's not that deep. How is it more or less valid than the other fictional guy that other people happen to ship with him??? What the genuine fuck?

The way this isnt even anything new like this is a normal tuesday but like????

One funny part though:

Neither of the characters from the ship this person was talking about actually APPEARED IN THE FUCKING FIC

WHY. BRING. IT. UP.

Look I know it's stupid especially since I don't really care much about these characters but like it rubs me the wrong way.

Like this is a common thing that happens I know. Some people decide that what they personally enjoy about something is actually the only right thing to enjoy about it and if you don't like what they like then you're wrong. Its stupid whatever I try to ignore it because I frankly have nothing special to add to this conversation but I dunno this one just set me off with how stupid it was.

It's like, why can't you just let people enjoy something without trying to rip their heads off for it because it's not the exact same thing that you personally like? Fucking get over it and talk to someone else who actually enjoys the same things as you and have fun enjoying it idk what else to tell you damn.

Anyways, rant over, sorry for that brief exposure of my own thoughts and opinions lol whoopsies

[hrodvitnon]

Since @geminavaju shared I figured I may as well add to that conversation.

I've not actually written a lot of smut. The vast majority has actually been through submissions here- and one of the reasons I have submitted a lot here is just literally cuz I need to practice.

Recently I tried to write an adult scene for my big main writing project that I've invested a lot of time into. It was supposed to be a big payoff moment in that story- but the key word is 'tried' here. I kinda just figured writing smut would just be like writing anything else and it'd be easy for me to hop right into with a little bit of extra vocabulary. I got like 3 lines into it before I legitimately asked myself: "What the fuck am I writing this is awful".

So yeah: turns out writing smut is really awkward at first, especially between characters you had not considered sexual beings previously. Who'da thought? Could be I'm just not used it, could be some weird internalized guilt, could be my inability to not project onto fictional beings, but yeah that shit doesn't come easy to me and still doesn't. I assume it's like a muscle thing where you gotta work it to strengthen it, that how most creative ventures seem to be (like I can't write smut or draw anything for shit but I'm much better at writing action sequences because I've written tons of those). So- I'm getting there I think.

What's helped me the most probably is actually to think of it in terms of characters, similar to what Gem said. This is how I think through basically everything else in writing is to just go back to your characters and ask "What the hell would they do here?". To use Godzilla as an example: if I stuck the head honcho lizard into a situation where he really likes someone else and wants to express that physically- how does he do that? What I really like about this approach is that A. It always gives you something no matter who occupies that second spot and B. The answer is entirely dependent on the author. You can slot anyone- literally anyone- into that second spot and the characters will give you something, even if it doesn't end in le sex. Mothra, Rodan, Ghidorah, Kong, fucking Cloud Strife- put anyone in that spot, let the characters guide you, and just see where it goes. Something will happen every time without fail (this reason alone is why i am also a chronic multishipper- the amount of permeations and alternate relationship paths to explore and facets of a single character to write drives my ass forward). Additionally- the answer to the question "What the hell would they do here?" is 1000% author dependent. Going back to Godzilla; you, me, Gemini, basically everyone on this damn website would answer that question at least a little differently because we've all got a different interpretation of the big pink dinosaur in our heads. It's only exacerbated by Godzilla's personality not being super concrete and able to be interpreted many different ways- but it does stay true for other characters as well.

So yeah, return to the root of the story (the characters) and things start going better.

Yeah, it's very much a back-and-forth between character and writer; in my case it's actually gotten challenging to write Shamhat because it involves beings who've been around for millennia and they know a lot about doing the deed, on top of there a large cast of characters; meanwhile when my SIGNALIS series Liebchen, Komm Zu Mir took a smutty turn it was easier to write because not only was it new and different, both characters are comparatively more relatable (one human and one Replika, which are based on humans). Both are canonical lovers who've known each other for almost a decade if not longer, and it was fun to imagine how an android with no reproductive organs or erogenous zones, who is built for combat and engineering and nothing else, can conceivably experience arousal and an orgasm equivalent. (Answer: a bit of phantom limb syndrome and a heat ventilation system inspired by a fan comic of Ariane wondering What Does This Button Do?)

[shinsua]

I mentioned it briefly when I finished my last stream, but now that I've beaten my first major game, I'm going to spend some time to figure out my comfort zone and update my physical setup!

I've been annoyed with my audio and visuals for awhile, but just toughed it out because I wasn't super invested in my stream at the time. That will change. It's all just a matter of putting the actual work in.

Ignoring the technical stuff,

I want to figure out why exactly it is that I like streaming. Why it's something I want to pursue again. Why does time—so abundant in those moments—feel so well spent?

I've been around online for nearly 20 years, spinning my little web. Talking, in some manner, to people all over.

As time goes on, I find it harder and harder to keep in contact with everyone.

Sites fall apart, people fall off, so on.

And it only gets harder for some of us to cut away at the awkwardness that builds up over time.

No matter how much I don't want to let people slip through, I cannot focus all of my efforts on socializing that way.

I stream to grow and to reach out…

As a means to get better at conversing, opening up.

To share with my close friends.

A way to stay in contact with old friends, and to meet new ones.

But also as a motivator to do things for myself, even when no one's around. To not dawdle and lose track of time.

I feel like I haven't grown much lately—and I won't let that continue.

I have a lot of ideas swirling around in my head that I've never properly fleshed out.

One of those is Shinsua, my little phantom boy.

A character I've been toying around with for as long as I can remember.

I use his namesake often, so I figure I may as well use him as a mascot!

Even if he's a character for stories and games I haven't fully developed; why not put him up on screen?

Using Shinsua as a mouthpiece feels right to me.

I have big dumb goals in mind, a collection of characters and stories that need homes.

I also know creation is a process, to be taken step by step, and those goals won't feel any closer if the journey never starts.

I hope that everything I gain by streaming, I can pour into other pursuits I also love.

There's so much to do, but it'll never be more than scribbles on paper if I don't actually try.





I want to share so much of it in any way I can…

So thank you for reading this out of no where spilling of my guts.

It means a lot to me that anyone wants to hear the nonsense carried by my voice.

[m-s-justice]

The Kids. The Kids in the House. I uh. I have some thoughts about it. This one is going to be a bit shorter than my other ones.(hopefully)

I really wish we could've gotten some characterization for them. Excluding Samantha(and a little bit Eddie) they are just. . Kids. In the House. Kids in The House that are The Old Guys. Am I supposed to just like them as an extension of my Undying Affection for The Old Guys? Or just because they are 'innocent'?(whatever the hell that means)

I don't know about you, but The Kids needed something to make me feel attached. The characters in game have a reason to be invested in their safety: they’re them! But as an audience? At least to me, the children came off as more of a macguffin than actual characters.(why are we killing ourselves? so that we may live in paradise and safety and happiness forever :] !!!) So what would I, a simple Tumblr user, do differently?

Definitely give the kids at least one noticeable trait. Maybe Nikolai is a shy kid and the others have to coax him into talking. Maybe Takeo has trouble pronouncing some words and it's turned into an inside joke. Maybe play up the whole 'Eddie doesn't like to share his toys" thing and make him really possessive and pouty when he doesn't get his way. Dempsey could be mischevious and impulsive, but ultimately well-meaning(he hasn't grown into enjoying killing things yet.) Just little somethings to make them feel like they’re actual children.

But how to properly integrate it? After all, the kids only show up in Revelations. I’d make it so that the kids would shout encouragement to their other selves. Have one of the kids swipe Maxis's microphone and then proceed to mess around for a bit. Or a bit less intrusive, but way more plain, have radios detailing conversations between the kids. Just some sort of way to get us to hear them. The Kids have each other to bounce off of and the general chaos of Revelations to discuss. They can also be a super cheap way to drop lore. Have one of them ask what the hell is going on and Monty can exposition dump all he wants.

Also. Also I was thinking(oh no). Thinking that The Kids should've been tied to their Fracture counterparts. A little bit of their previous life that carried over to their new ones. Maybe Takeo could have arachnophobia and Nikolai could struggle with attachment issues. Eddie can stay the same. He was a kid when collected so he stays. Dempsey is definitely way harder. That Bitch was snoozing. Also freezing. Maybe make him have some circulation problems so he's cold all the time or hell, maybe narcolepsy??? Or just ignore canon and make him do the Eyes Always Closed trope? I'm kind of spitballing here, Dempsey (as always) doesn't have a lot to work off of.

But yeah. This is just some Kiddie Content. We don't have enough of it :(

[overthinkingtaleblr]

Ghost's Parents Masterlist

Since someone asked about the both of them earlier in the week, I decided to give them an actual relationship masterlist.

As fun as this is to make, it's important to mention first and foremost that everything about these characters comes strictly from me. I am not referring to canon unless I want to make sure I am not actively working against anything. For the record, Peewee is imaginary, and Ghost Senior was implied to be Our Ghost's dad as a retcon to what was meant to be Ghost's canon perma-death. So if you want to use anything here, I'd be touched, just know it doesn't come directly from the source, it comes from me.

For the record, I have given Peewee his own non-nickname name-- it's Marion-- and I'm tempted to do the same for Ghost Sr. so he isn't just... Johnny Ghost Senior all the time... He's JGS now. Rolls right off the tongue.

This was supposed to post at a completely different time and is still a little half-baked. I’ll be sure to fix it up a bit later

History HCs

Unlike with Toast and Ghost, since this is entirely my own little thing, it means the story isn't as fluid. I'm able to discern actual points without feeling like I am actively trying to force a liquid to stand on its own.

High School

Neither Marion or JGS remembered their first meeting when they started dating, but before they were together, they were technically bitter rivals. (Only JGS would insist that)

When both Marion and JGS were in high school, they were incredibly active in their school's robotics team, both students much more persistent on winning than the others from their school.

They only had to compete against each other one year, but they were. Very open to the competition. To the point of lowkey annoying the other members of their team. Especially since they were past the point of adding things to their bots.

They only remembered this whole thing because one of them still had the ribbon from when they won that competition, and they realized it was the same one they both competed in as kids.

The Meetcute

While JGS wasn't born in North Carolina, he moved there before high school. He had no intentions of staying long after he turned 18, but after the sudden adoption of Ernest into the family, JGS got invested in helping his new brother and stuck around. The two became joined at the hip.

Additionally, Marion also wanted to break away from his family. He wound up going to a college in his own state for the pay benefits, but intentionally chose one farther from home. He came from a very superstitious family, so choosing a college that was well-known for being super haunted was probably a bad idea, but he dug it.

JGS and Ernest got jobs as mechanics instead of going to college, JGS not being sure what he wanted to do what his life yet, and Ernest not remembering any aspect of his life at all. Meanwhile, Marion found himself frequently visiting the shop in order to get new things for projects.

JGS is on perpetual cashier duty after blowing something up in his first week, and serves Marion almost every single time. Being a tech guy himself, he starts growing curious about what he could possibly be working on, and mentions it to Ernie.

While JGS doesn't pick up on it, Ernie realizes that he's beginning to fall in love with the idea of this guy, so he joins his brother at the register just long enough to ask Marion what he's working on. He listens for a little while, but leaves after JGS starts asking the right questions.

After a couple weeks of the two frequently chatting like this, they finally exchange numbers and begin having talks about meeting up together. Conversations turn from engineering, to other hobbies, to a broader understanding of the world.

When Ernest found out they started dating, the first thing he said was 'you weren't already?'

PIE

Unlike JGS, Peewee was raised very superstitiously, so while he had a healthy interest in the paranormal, it stopped right around where the sage ran out.

The two explored different ways to sense and collect data on the supernatural, putting their heads together to revolutionize paranormal technology as the world knew it. In the process, they caught the attention of T.Casket, an eccentric rich guy with a ambitious goal of making knowledge of the supernatural common international knowledge.

Peewee couldn't get himself to do it, but JGS saw this as nothing but a win, especially since Ernest already agreed to start working with the team ASAP.

Though JGS was often the one credited for the creation of a lot of the tools he used by T.Casket's show, Peewee was incredibly involved where he could be, and his involvement was always very obvious-- Peewee using steampunk imagery like a sign that something was made by him.

When Peewee was feeling brave, he might join the team on a mission or two, or help them do long-term research for solutions to conceptual problems. But most of the time he would prefer to stay home and maybe work the books if needed.

Because of the weird blur between the work-life balance, the two were able to turn long days at work into a date, though it also made some things more stressful than necessary.

PIE became a big part of the couple’s lives, the pair being very involved in making sure thing ran smoothly on a technical and personal level, especially after Gregory came into T.Casket’s life.

Any kind ghosts JGS met, he would introduce to Peewee to try to help his superstition. It wasn’t always helpful, but it helped expand his worldview.

Adopting Gregory

When T.Casket suddenly passed, Ernest was the first person to realize his son was likely missing for a paranormal reason, immediately taking it to his brother. Unlike JGS, he had settled down and started a family, and had a kid at home he needed to take care of, leaving JGS to figure out what the fuck is going on.

Widowed

It sucks to lose your spouse at such a young age, and Peewee didn’t really take it too well, turning away from the rest of the world.

He put more emphasis on his role of a father to ignore the loss of his role of husband. He wanted to make sure that Ghost would be better prepared than his father.

It does not help that not even a year after JGS went and got himself killed, Johnny got himself possessed that same year’s Halloween.

Peewee was the first person to know what happened, but his conflicted feelings about the supernatural made him feel forgiving, and he decided to turn the other cheek for this one since it didn’t seem to be hurting Johnny.

Then whatever it was killed Katrina, and Peewee spent the next week trying to pry Ghost and Casket apart.

Despite what Toast might think, Peewee likely knows more about Casket than any other living person on the planet. Especially since he had to learn where to hide the knife rack so he didn’t get murdered in his sleep.

Song HCs

Guys my music taste is too sad for this. Like. I struggled to find a song for a happy, loving relationship that ends in tragedy because my music taste is the painful ones.

From the bottom of my heart, oops.

[protagonistheavy]

I haven't talked enough about Jackie Chan Adventures. This show is highly underrated imo, at least from the basis that I never hear ANYONE talk about it, even when conversations are especially nostalgic of this time period. For a saturday morning kind-of cartoon, it's super solid and enthralling -- when it has an actual ongoing plot, that is.

The action is standout most of the time, classic Jackie Chan combat that's fun and lively and keeps you guessing. It takes a very special eye for choreography to make up these fights, that utilize the surroundings and situation for exciting effects, all while keeping up the intensity. Jackie is just short of being superhuman in this show, but you wouldn't guess that because of how every combat plays out, where Jackie genuinely feels outmatched by any opponent(s), but uses his wit and reflexes to totally turnaround a fight and clown on people. It's so satisfying seeing thugs surround Jackie, with weapons and everything, and he does some sort of Popeyes bullshit where the thugs are dressed in each others clothes and a broom halfway up their ass while Jackie is sitting on top of a ladder like a monkey. Keeping action sequences fresh is Jade's interference, a noncombatant that is vulnerable, but is more than happy and crafty enough to use magical talismans of experimental technology; Uncle similarly fits the role of a vulnerable character that can still stand on his own from time to time. It's a good chemistry that makes it so no fight is ever guaranteed to go the way Jackie or the audience wants it to.

As for being a comedy, it usually does a decent job. There's a lot of quick jokes here that can fly past you, and there's also a fuckton of animal puns for every talisman. There's a huuuuge list of running gags in the show, but most of them are funny enough and spaced out so that they don't wear out their welcome. I love when Jackie quickly steals something from someone and says he'll bring it back, which he never does; Uncle's "one more thing" is so iconic; it always gets me the ridiculous ways Jade manages to sneak out and follow Jackie, mostly because it's hilarious that Jackie still earnestly tries to tell her to wait at the hotel or something lol.

All of this works wonderfully when the show has an actual plotline to follow. I'm only halfway through season two, which reveals a lot of the show's weaknesses. When the show is about finding talismans or demon gates, there's a ton of fun in figuring everything out, like what the talismans do, where the gate is located, what kind of demon will be summoned, etc. But season two has a loooong stretch of episodes that come after the "finale," all of them being disjointed, independent stories that just... aren't interesting. They very much feel like leftover scripts for what could have been normal episodes involving talismans or whatever, but without that plotline to put it into a greater structure, these episodes just standout as having nothing going on. These episodes bring in new villains and side characters, but it's hard to feel invested when you know they're just gonna disappear right afterwards -- I definitely remember catching these episodes live on tv as a kid and even thinking back then, "damn it's one of THESE episodes."

But otherwise the show is great. Jackie is an adorable protagonist, the dynamics of his family and allies make for extremely compelling television, especially for kids. It's a plot that's just meant to be loved, a beloved actor represented as an adventurous archaeologist, with his wily niece sidekick that gets to join in on his secret agent missions that take them all over the world, discovering ancient magic and myths along the way. It's not the first show to do ever do this, but it's execution is very good, especially for an early-2000s era show.

Also, god I love the Dark Hand. What a perfect group of cartoon villains and henchmen. I love the pecking order, with Shendu > Valmont >>> Tohru or Hak Fu >>>>>> Finn, Ratso, and Chow; there's always someone getting barked at and blamed for everything, and it's especially funny in season two when Shendu has to answer to his siblings, so even he gets brought down a peg. I love how Tohru changes sides which allows Hak Fu to take on a permanent role, a great change in power dynamics that makes everyone feel more human and involved. The plotline with Shendu possessing Valmont is perfect irony, a fantastic way to kick off the second season and make it immediately more distinct from the last. And they're all just so fucking funny, definitely the highlights of any episode.

[tobiasdrake]

Final Thoughts on Iron Man 3

You know. I've defended Killian for a long time. Not from accusations of Asian whitewashing because he definitely did that and there's no excusing it. But his goals. His ambitions. His plan. I've defended him from people who say he's a weak and shallow villain.

I realize now that it wasn't actually Killian I liked. Killian sucks. I just liked the scheme. I thought the scheme was pretty cool. I still think the scheme is pretty cool, even if it does brush up uncomfortably against 9/11 Trutherism.

I don't like Killian. I like A.I.M. I like Extremis. I like the Mandarin's broadcasts. I like the investigation and gradual uncovering of A.I.M.'s dirty laundry. I like the big fights with Brandt and Savin. I like the huge House Party blowout at the end with the President on the line.

I like the movie. Killian's just the cost of admission. And he didn't have to be. This movie could have worked just as well with a better villain, whether that be Maya or a more accurate portrayal of the Mandarin.

Iron Man 3 gives us a rare glimpse at a title superhero actually fighting crime. Tony gets invested in the Mandarin because one of his bombings injures Happy, then does investigative work, follows leads, and unwravels the Mandarin's true plan.

It's some good down-to-earth superheroing. There is so much to like here.

But there's also a lot to dislike. Rhodey gets screwed, getting to spend almost none of the action in his suit.

Pepper gets screwed even harder, with trailers that promise she'll be suiting up at last only for it to be a brief moment. She does get superpowers and get to take down Killian, but then immediately loses those powers. And that's after spending the entire film up to that point being reduced to a pretty toy for Tony and Killian to bicker over like ten-year-old boys.

And I'd be remiss not to mention that the only Asian character in the film, a film about the fucking Mandarin, is Trevor Slattery.

And Tony? This movie can't decide what it wants his journey to be about. It wants to talk about his PTSD from New York. But that's not a topic that connects to Killian in any way. So he just gets over it halfway through the film before setting out to confront A.I.M. It's super disappointing.

The main thing it wants to talk about is a fairly common superhero topic: Who is truly the hero? The man or his powers? Is Iron Man the suit, or is it Tony?

But Tony Stark is a weird character to try and have this conversation about. He doesn't have powers. He built his suit with his own genius intellect. Take it away from him and what do you have left? You have the guy who built the suit. And he can just make another suit. What the hell even is this question?

We already know who Tony is when he doesn't have a suit. He's the guy in the cave with the box of scraps who built the Mk. I. The film spends a lot of time on this question and it feels like time wasted.

And it still doesn't connect to Killian. So Tony and Killian just fight over Pepper.

This movie is divisive, and that is a reputation well earned. I'm generally more positive on it than others (though this watch did sink it in my eyes a bit). But there are a lot of valid criticisms to be levied here.

[mcalhenwrites]

✨Sibling relationships✨ It's a pattern I've noticed! Siblings who are friends! Siblings who are ready to destroy your enemies for you!

It's so obvious to me now, with the pattern in both my stories and in fandoms. It was so much fun writing Hazel dislike Opal only for him to realize he'd always kind of been resentful of her being their father's favorite. She's actually very awesome. She's on his side. She supports his relationship with Ferdinand! The same is showing up in one of my other stories, with the older siblings protecting the younger ones in their abusive household. ;A; In the case of Roscoe and Errol, it's even more awesome, because they've got an age difference that could make them father and son rather than brothers, and Roscoe didn't know Errol ever existed. But then he ends up being super caring toward him, after mostly being like, "I don't know what to do with this half-brother I've only just met, sorry, like... I wish him the best, but I gotta go back to space now." ONLY HE GETS INVESTED IN CARING ABOUT ERROL (even though he doesn't take on custody) In fandom, I've partial to Lauriam/Marluxia and Strelitzia, Cline and Driselle... and I know a big factor is that I'm a huge fan of the girls in this case, so their brothers by default matter, since they care about their siblings! (But also it's good for the soul to have something as fucked up as knowing a brother's boss form resembles his dead sister that he's forgotten all about, and the way he uses that in the end of CoM later is revealed to come from a conversation the siblings had about getting stronger to fight heartless. Can't wait for Sora to find out his new roomie is his former enemy's somebody's little sister!) I'm rewatching a show with two brothers (one is technically a ward) and their sister and my heart is so full whenever they're together! Oh! And my characters, Bertrand and Isadora... Another pair of siblings that barely know each other, but Isadora tries her best when they're clearing out their dead parents' house. And she gives Bertrand awful nicknames. :') I also really love Thaddeus and his acceptance into the Glasser family by the kids. Christine was a little reluctant, and admittedly, the three Glasser siblings were kind of terrible to one another when little but grew up to be closer in adulthood. Thaddeus and Ambrose being instantly found family is one of the reasons I think Ambrose was able to start developing better relationships with Christine and Eugene. (I love Thaddeus and Ambrose, because they kind of go "I guess we're brothers since the Glasser family took him in when he was fourteen, but we're kind of platonic soulmates/brothers/best friends" so their spouses have to accept that.)

[nellie-elizabeth]

The Walking Dead: Faith (11x22)

Y'all, we are so close to this show being over. The end is in sight. I can hardly believe it.

Cons:

I knew we were in trouble when I saw how Negan-heavy this episode was. I just don't feel invested in him and his new wife and the baby on the way. I keep saying it over and over, this is never going to be super compelling to me, unfortunately. There are little sparks of interest with Ezekiel, which surprised me, but ultimately no. This whole plot thread with the work crew standing up to some random evil minion of the Commonwealth whose name I don't even know, just feels like time wasted. There were so many turns here where at first we're supposed to think Negan is going to betray Ezekiel to save his own skin, but of course he doesn't. Then we're supposed to think Negan is going to be killed by firing squad, but of course he isn't. Our other heroes show up just in time to save the day, and I found myself yawning. Shouldn't there be more tension here?

Meanwhile in Alexandria, Maggie is reunited with Hershel but all the other children are still missing so we have to drag out this rescue operation for next week. Again, I'm sorry, I know I sound awful but - I don't care about Hershel and Maggie that much. Maggie has been gone from the show for so long, and honestly it doesn't feel like she ever quite came back, does it? I don't know her anymore. I don't feel connected to her and her emotional journey. I want Judith back, honestly.

I similarly felt absolutely no joy or spark of enjoyment with the Oceanside crew. Aaron and the others randomly find Luke and Jules (I had to look up their names, it's been so long), and we learn that Oceanside is no more, taken over by the Commonwealth. Okay... that's not exactly a plot twist at this point, is it? I'm so tired.

And then we've got Eugene's trial. When you know the whole thing is rigged, spending time in the actual courtroom part of things feels like a real waste of time. I'm normally such a sucker for a courtroom drama, and as I've said, Eugene has really grown on me as a character in recent seasons, but even so, I could not make myself feel invested in this. I knew how it was going to go: things would get real tense, all would seem lost, we'd see Eugene resigned to his fate, and then a last-minute intervention from someone would change everything. Turns out that intervention comes from Mercer. I like him, I'm glad he's helping, but man, couldn't his turn have been at the midpoint of this episode, instead of dragging things out even further?

Pros:

The thing about this show, the thing that the writers should have realized years ago, is that the only people still watching who actually give a shit, are here for the character moments. The things we've been waiting a decade plus to see. I continue to be frustrated and annoyed at how little of the characters I personally care about are being highlighted, but in this episode as in most episodes of late-game The Walking Dead, it was the character moments that I liked. Not all of them, not even most of them: if you couldn't tell, this was not my favorite episode. But still, there were some tidbits.

Connie and Kelly reuniting was really sweet, as was Daryl getting the kill on that random bad guy to save Kelly's life at the last second. As bored as I am of Negan, I did kind of like Ezekiel's bad-ass moment of walking in front of the would-be executed, trying to make a play for peace. I liked the character beat of Rosita realizing Coco was still missing, I thought her whole vengeance killing was really intense and the only visceral reaction I got out of the whole episode was watching her use a Walker as a weapon to kill the man who is keeping her from her daughter. I also liked Carol and Maggie's conversation about whether or not it's selfish to bring kids into this world. I've already said I'm bored with Maggie, but I'm not bored with Carol, so I thought that worked pretty well. And I like Eugene. I like Yumiko. I like Max. The plot was stupid, but I am endeared to these characters fighting for a better future, all the same.

So that's that. This was not a strong episode, I'm tired, I'm bored. Two weeks from now, I shall be free at last.

6/10

[dmclemblems]

the fire emblem gods have fed me so good with all the new rodrigue content

[wingsyliveblogs]

I'm super impressed, if this is the kind of analysis and commentary you can do for what most fans consider a low stakes fun one off episode, I can't wait to see what we will get from you when you cover some of the meatier episodes later in the series! (Complimentary, in case the tone doesn't transfer well)

Wow... thank you so much!! I'm glad to hear that you liked my commentary for this episode; it means a lot. (And don't worry, the tone came across just fine! Though I do appreciate the clarification, since I'm not always great at reading tone.)

To be honest, though, I could say the same thing about The Owl House itself: if this is what we're getting from the Fun Episodic Adventures going forward, I can't wait to see what the big plot episodes have in store!

Speaking of the stakes, though: I think I've said this before, but while I do love a strong plot and a good mystery, the element of a show I always get invested in most is the characters. Even if the stakes aren't high in a given episode, if I'm interested in what's going on with the characters, I'm going to enjoy it (and talk about it a lot).

Partway through this episode, it occurred to me that literally nothing plot-relevant was actually happening. But it took me a while to even notice that, just because I was having so much fun with what was happening. And it was all about those character dynamics! I may not have been worried about Luz and King actually getting cubed, but I certainly felt anxious for them as they struggled with miscommunication over their differing motivations and priorities throughout the episode.

Now, having finished the episode, I can safely say that The Owl House's streak of having at least one new important piece of information given in each episode remains consistent, though this is the second time that said new piece of information has come in the form of one (1) line from Lilith specifically, which amuses me. But I was just as excited to see Eda and Lilith having a genuine conversation for once as I was to get a hint about the Emperor.

I'm looking forward to seeing what I get next - from the characters and the plot. And thanks again!