#but when you put it into perspective it's actually pretty funny ngl

[thewizardingtoad]

Zod Exarion in the novel, my favorite scenes that were left out or not included that much, fun facts and more

Chess chess chess

(Novel chapter: 29)

So the manhwa isn't really telling with Zod's moods throughout the scene, but Desir put him through the gutter with that mach.

Desir thinks a lot about the differences between this Zod and the one from the labyrinth, between their play styles, and how the labyrinth affected him in the long run in small ways. It's also mentioned that the two of them carved out their chess pieces themselves.

Also Zod's pretty upset with Desir, like straight up how dare you suggest your idea worth as much as a sponsorship from the magic tower get out of my sight kind of upset. It's pretty funny actually, especially when Desir shows him just how much his idea is worth, and he straight up cancels all of his meeting that day.

Actually just go read that scene it's not long but it does so SO much to establish these two's relationship for the whole story it's really just amazing.

Fun fact: In universe, there's a book that details all of Zod's accomplishments; it's thicker than most encyclopedias.

Fun fact 2: While in the manhwa he's described as a man in his forties, the novel says that he's at worst 30 which is pretty funny.

Fun fact 3: In universe he has an 'archaic feeling to his word' which I think is pretty cool, like??? Yeah. I can see that.

Who are you really?

(Novel chapter: 84)

So the interrogation scene's also a bit different, Desir is very stressed out while Zod is fucking with him, admitting to not even wanting an answer in the first place, and during that convo Desir describes Zod this way:

Desir only saw Zod acting as the master of the Magic Tower, cold and calculative in all circumstances, and as the Seventh-Circle wizard with an insatiable curiosity in finding the truth of all things.

Which is not really a description that we get in the manhwa, but it definitely puts a lot of things into perspective.

Also, this chapter has a lot of important moments in it regarding some things that will be said later, a few notable mentions:

"My intuition tells me to trust you. And when I gave you all of my power, I decided to believe this groundless intuition."

His intuition as a wise man was telling him that Desir was very reliable.

He would never know the circumstances surrounding Desir but he could see his heart.

Where he admits that he trusts Desir taking the weight of his secret off his chest

"Haha... I'm sorry. But I give you my word. I won't ask about your identity anymore. Everyone has their own secrets that they can't share with anybody. I also have a bunch of secrets that I don't want anybody to know."

Where he reassures him when he sees that Desir isn't handling his little fuckery well

Zod's smile was amazingly warm. It was like the smile of a grandfather looking at his grandson.

And of course this motherfucking sentence which is a gut punch and a half ngl.

So clearly chapter 84 putting down the groundwork for *the scene that the mannwa haven't adopted yet and at this point I'm not sure if they will,* aka: the most painful thing ever

But before that:

Fun fact 3: apparently Zod's a good actor? Lol.

The flying ship of death flag

(Novel chapter: 249)

So of course a lot of things happened between these chapters but this is the one that I want to point out because. Well.

So in the manhwa Desir says 'build a flying ship' Zod builds a flying ship and all's well that ends well right? Not really.

You see The Flying ship Valkyrie is not just any random insane idea that Desir came up with but in fact The Ultimate Dream Project of Zod Exarion - the one from the labyrinth, y'know - and isn't that just great?

There's something poetic about Desir making sure Zod can manage to reach his dream, his ultimate goal, even after death. (Something something the student carrying their master's will something something reaching your parent's goals after their passing to feel closer to them etc. etc.)

Oh, it's also a pretty big death flag, but don't worry about that.

Fun fact: this scene emphasizes the fact that Zod wasn't "just" a magician, a lot. "The ship was the ultimate goal he wanted to reach as an engineer", "he lamented that he couldn't spend his life satisfactorily as an engineer"

Fun fact 2: And he whined about it a lot! No, I'm sorry ranted.

I'm gonna just put his here because god dammit I love this man:

In Desir’s previous life, Zod often lamented over the fact that he couldn’t spend his life satisfactorily as an engineer. When the Shadow Labyrinth arose, he was forced to discard his position of Tower Master and bear his title as the lone Seventh-Circle magician.

Desir recalled these scenes of frustration as clearly as if they had happened yesterday. Most often, Zod would rant while they played chess.

The quiet before the storm

(Novel chapter: 275)

So the fact that there is a traitor is revealed and we get this very cute scene:

Realizing that Desir had immediately jumped to the worst situation, and his mind had consumed itself with the task of discovering who, Zod immediately rushed to calm Desir down.

Zod had always been like this, even in Desir’s previous life. He was Desir’s rock, the one who would support him in his times of need. That was why Desir trusted Zod more than anyone else.

Which again alludes to the *surprise* we will be slapped with in the face soon, but really this is just nice.

“I have some good news. Actually, I only dropped by to share this.”

Zod’s eyes changed. The wise eyes, which seemed to encompass everything, were nowhere to be found, and the eyes of an excitable child appeared within a moment.

‘Here we go again.’

As an engineer, he used to show such eyes when he was discussing things that interested him. No matter how much time passed, Zod Exarion was a reliable constant.

And I'm also just putting my favorite quotes here, don't mind me. There's also a point I'm making, and I will get to that when I reach the end.

Oh hi Priscilla what are you doing with that artifa-

(Novel chapter: 278)

So this is exciting because we get the first second appearance description for Zod which is

He looked as miserable as the smashed tower.

Glossy black hair moved in the breeze.

So that's funny.

Actually I could start describing this scene in great detail, go over every little thing I wish was in the manhwa, but really, you should go read it because it's a lot. This act kind of starts from 275 and is I think the saddest one in the story.

For instance, Zod admits that he's thinking of the battle in chess terms and that makes him think of Desir, how he apparently lost a mach the first time in decades.

He's thinking a lot about his and Desir's relationship, and we get golden lines like this one:

It was no exaggeration to say that Desir was the only one who could share ideas with Zod throughout all the fields of his expertise, and talk casually with him.

The act also really drives home how Zod is THE BEST OF THE BEST when it comes to magic. He holds his ground with only his own mana to help him against Priscilla and 4 swordsmen, whose defense equals the aurora system!

Fun fact: He lost both an arm and a leg during the fight, while the manhwa only showed the loss of an arm

Fun fact 2: Zod's cane, which was a constant in the novel (read: It wasn't changed every time it appeared) had a first tear magic stone in it that was like a national treasure.

Aaand we reached where the manhwa is right now... kinda

I was going to add another segment and a long, Long rant to the "2nd half" of this post, but I don't want to ruin the kind of positive vibe of it, so I'm going to put that one in another post.

First I will go through the things that made That Scene in the novel work, why I'm disappointed how he manhwa's handling it, predictions on how the whole "Helena thing" will play out and then some final thoughts, so that's coming soon.

[jungkookschin]

WTF??

THAT WAS SO GOOD

the way you describe jungkook and oc’s relationships from both their perspectives is so cute 😞 just the way they talk about each other is so?? omg i don’t even have words. “future mother of my kids” OH HES REALLY IN LOVE. also when jungkook was like “she doesn’t need to be a superhero with me” STFU SO CUTE I CANT 😭 it’s really so crazy that they’re really just saving the world but so gentle and normal with eo.

fuck apollo, fuck ares, kinda don’t know how i feel about hephaestus but yeah fuck him too why not, just fuck all the gods tbh

oh? we’re learning more about jungkook’s past hookups? why is that so funny

i love the way you write oc tho. like her thinking is so real and realistic. she’s secure in their relationship but also has doubts about herself that are totally understandable.

jungkook being so protective lowkey had me blushing 🤭 he was thinking how oc should be more aware of her surroundings to protect herself from perverts and then was like wait no that’s why i’m here

smut was explicit but that was hot and sweet ngl. jungkook really just wants to please his girl

i’m curious about the dream tho like?? anticipating the next chapter already

thank you so much for taking the time to write this amazing chapter!! 🫶

AWWW THANK U SMMMMM <3333 again full transparency i use chatgpt to rewrite sentences bc my ass is soo lazy to think of pretty sentence structures.

im sooo happy that u commented on their dynamic just bc i put a lot of effort into making the little things matter. like i COULD just say some shit like "Jungkook is in love with her and wants to protect her blah blah blah" but i TRY to show it thru his actions.. which is superrr fun given that this is an action story and he can like kill monsters and shit hehe

NO FR FUCK THE GODS!! fuck hephaestus too. in greek mythology hes always been up to some STRANGE and WEIRD activities... but in this fic im trying to portray him as a good father bc he's yn's dad 😭✋

And as for oc , i think she's super relatable 😭 like i COULD make her crazy and insane (as we all r sometimes 😌) but i want to show her rational side . lowkey some fanfic readers are kinda women-hating, for lack of a better term. bc if i give my oc's any flaws, they'll go off in my inbox about how much they hate oc 😭 like damnn she's not actually dating jungkook chillll

i lovedd writing the protective aspect, and i love when guys r protective. not FORCEFULL but idk he was kinda forceful in the fic but it's always hot cause he's like "omg wait, im the strongest demigod in the history of the world, i can take care of her", and i can imagine that it gives oc an overwhelming sense of security cause shes gonna be safe foreverrr

AS FOR THE SMUT AHHHH, i recently started to add smut in my fics, but IM so scared of making it too explicit. Like I don't want to make it too obvious because i feel weird writing words like "dick" or "pussy" jkdfsfkldf

furthermore, i have a theory that a lot of my fics would be more popular if i added some delicious smut to it, but then sometimes i think that oh wait jungkook is a real person and if he saw this he might not like it. which is why i try to add the appropriate amount to make the story make sense and not sexualize him too much?? instead just try to convey the intensity of his love .

as for the dream, i think when i wrote it i wanted to portray y/n's paranoia , which is another reason jk wanted to keep her away from the quest

nonetheless, thank u for ur comments <33, i can tell that u really read the story which means so much to me. I hope u have the bestest day ever anon!!

[hoshigray]

Spread love to fanfic writers! Answer these questions about your fanfics then send this to 5 other fanfic writers 💙 Name a fic you loved writing the most. Name a fic that others loved but you didn’t care for as much. Name a fic you had the most fun writing. Name a fic that you are the most proud of. Name a fic that you wish had gotten more recognition. Name your happiest/saddest/most comedic fics!

mona bearrrr !! omg, i appreciate this as this gives me time to look through all the pieces I've worked on. So hmmmm....

Loved Writing the Most: Old Tricks, Same Treats is my pride and joy. Sure, it's my most popular work, but it means a whole lot to me to make a story with my favorite character with my favorite trope and make it come out in the way I actually envisioned! Like I think about it all the time; how it makes me proud that I made that piece and how I wish to make a series for it when I get the time.

Others Loved; I Didn't: mmmmm I'mma be real with you; none really come to mind. but, if I had to really pick, maybe Gotta Have "U" in Sugar??? idk, at the time of writing it, I thought it was a pretty good concept. But now, it was my first long fic and tbh, I think I could do a better job structuring the story or actually have Toji be, well, Toji. i don't know....maybe a concept I can pick up again? who knows.

Most Fun to Write: Omgggg I'd give that to Sink Your Teeth to Drink!! that was my second time writing for Choso (sadddd i love him sm) and it was with a prompt that fit him so well!! I tried to make it as cute and funny as possible, but also hot and steamy, ya know. omg, I just realized I never proofread that one.....might have to fix that ngl, hehe.

Most Proud Of: I'd give that to SMASH or SLASH[er]!! tbh. It was the first fic I got to make after my one or two-month hiatus from fanfic writing. And not only was it my first time writing a threesome fic (holy shit!!), but I believe this was a pivotal point for me in terms and a foundation for how I write fics as of now. I owe this fic a lot for my growth, so I'm still kinda psyched about writing it myself.

Wished Had More Recognition: I'd say I Can Drink Your Sorrow for this one. It was my first time writing a full fic for Gojo, so I kinda get how it didn't get traction. However, I did put a lot of heavy emotion into the story and tried to make it not about the smut. It's a pretty mild yet messy story, esp at the end.

Most "______" Fic:

Happiest: Bear Mine is probabaly it, bc 1) i'd love to have babies with toji lmfaooo, 2) I love having the opportunity to explore toji's vulnerable side when I can. Whenever I go back and read this, I can't stop fighting the smile as I read! Like yes, Toji having happiness in his life which he deserves!?? Sign me up!! and tbh, a close second would be this fic as well...

Saddest: I Can Drink Your Sorrow; again, has a lot of heavy emotion because I wanted the reader to actually feel the goat from Gojo's perspective and what he was doing. I guess I wouldn't say it's "sad," but the way he beats himself up over what he did (which is valid) is a bit heart-wrenching.

Comedic: lol i think that one goes to Seven Hellish Minutes of Heaven; idkkkk i guess it's bc i modleled from conversations with my friends to make the bickering and insults between reader and Gojo seem more realistic, but funny at the same time, ya know? I think writing for him is where I find it easiest to come up with comedy dialogue, so (as of recent) I'd say this is my most funniest.

And that's it, really!! Honestly, this was kinda hard to do as I don't usually go back on the things I write — especially the old ones, lol. But tysm for this, mona dearest, love ya mwah !! 💓

[autumn-sweet-fae]

Honest question, does the 'Emmet is Dawns father' rumor ever die down? 'Cause unfortunately I can kinda see how that could be potentially damaging if it keeps going on for too long.

Emmet's not the kind of person who would sway at random rumors normally, but to be at the forefront of a LOT of media bashing and harmful conspiracies for years before Ingo came back could cause him a lot more mental/emotional distress than it normally would've in the past if people just...don't let up.

Maybe I'm too empathetic but to be accused of having neglecting a kid for so long when you've never even had romantic feelings for anyone in your life, never mind having a whole relationship with some random woman just feels...kinda gross ngl.

I can unfortunately see that if the rumor get really persistent Emmet could involuntarily distance and close in on himself. At that point its just an ingrained defense mechanism to the backlash of misguided angry people who want 'justice' when he didn't do anything wrong.

And from Dawn's perspective, it was funny at first, but then people start taking it way too seriously telling her to turn on her 'Dad' and 'make him feel sorry for all of the years of neglect and abandonment' from him. And getting unsolicited comments/messages of 'if he hurts you and your mom again lets us know and we'll get his a**' from people who mean well but of course don't get its just a joke at that point.

I'm just saying its a meme that could get really twisted really easily, and I'm only hoping it doesn't get to that point in the AU 'cause I think Emmet's been through enough.

I can assure you that once it’s clear that Akari is in fact Dawn then the absent father dad theory absolutely dies down to fringe theory/meme statues.

Anyone with two brain cells to rub together would do the basic maths of 29 - 14 = 15. So even if there are still people who genuinely believe Akari to be his daughter, no one could blame a 15 year old, an actual child, from backing out of fatherhood. If he even knew of Akari’s existence, supposedly. 

The only reason the theory ever got any real traction in the first place was because no knew who Akari was or how old she was. She’s about 5’1/155cm so guesses ranged from 11-16 with the daughter theorist leaning more on the younger side.

At some point a kid challenger legit ask Akari her age, cause that’s one of the top five questions kids always ask new people, and Akari, unaware of her actual age, says 16. Because Captain Cyllene guessed her age to be 15 about a year ago, so logically she should be 16 by now right? (She’s currently 14, she just looked very healthy and well fed at 13 compared to a hisuian 13 year old so it was an easy mistake to make)

Once her alleged age of 16 is publicly known all the daughter rumors die down pretty quickly. No one believes Emmet had at kid a 13. Anyone who tries to ask at this time would get a blunt “I am 29.” And that would usually shut them up.

There would be a small bump in the theory’s popularity once Akari’s identity as Dawn is revealed, but by this point it’s largely just a meme. Most folks who still claim it must be true are either grasping at straws or just trying to stir up drama for attention.

Johanna would also absolutely shut those rumors down very quick. First stating that no, Emmet is absolutely not Akari’s father, and then full on scolding anyone who persist in this speculation. Johann had Akari fairly young but not 15 young. I put her at 2 and a half years older then the twins, so to insist that she had her daughter with someone that young when she was nearly 18 is down right damaging and insulting to her reputation. Also any speculation at all into her personal life at that time is none of anyones business and Dawns father is simply not in the picture and that is that.

After that scathing interview with Ms. Johnna the theory is functionally dead, only popping up as memes or in tabloids.

As for how Emmet handled it during its unfolding, he reaches a point where he honestly had to laugh. Because it’s just so outlandish to him and anyone who personally knows him. Like no one who knows him believed for a second that the rumors were true. Drayden shut down anyone who asked him, Iris laughed in the face of an interviewer, and of course Elesa has her own brand of chaos in how she handles anyone trying to push ridiculous rumors. 

Also, in the months following Ingo and Akari’s return, Emmet does honestly come to see Akari as his family. So Emmet being Akari’s dad is seen more as a family joke in the years to come and never becomes a serious issue. Also anyone with eyes would see that Ingo is the one who just radiates the fatherly vides around Akari. Emmet is solidly the Uncle of this relationship.

[corlds-world]

i feel like i should explain a little bit on why erika won since many people don't understand. i also don't want to get caught up in the controversy but here we are. so top 10 reasons why erika won.

1) the bare minimum requirements to win survivor is to get to the end and have the majority of jury votes. doesn't matter how you do it. it just matters that you do it. which erika did and the rest of the cast didnt. therefore, she deserves to win. like all other winners. 

2) to get these jury votes you need a resume, which isn't a bad way to put it since the final tribal does remind me of a job interview. erika did have a resume so i'll just list it out. 

3) 2 immunity wins. not super important, but still cool. 

4) the naseer vote out. erika and heather read the room. they realized that if naseer had an idol, they could easily use that to their advantage to get him out. and ricard probably didn't want to be on the outs anymore than he already was. shan, who didn't trust erika and heather, still made this move with them to take out naseer. it's all about perspective in survivor, but it's even more about shifting perspective. and erika and heather were able to shift ricard's and shan's perspectives to taking out naseer. it could've been easily heather that went that tribal if erika didn't do anything about it. 

5) the shan and liana split vote. probably the biggest move of her game. erika was always making sure that if something went wrong, it wouldn't be her that went home. so erika made sure that she had deshawn and danny, and that they could split the vote just in case shan played the idol. it's not as easy as it sounds. as the queen says, "as long as it's not me"

6) that endgame, which is the most important part to her game. erika was the one that decided that shan, liana, danny, and ricard to go home. she was in the driver's seat. what's more is that no one realized it. 

7) choosing heather to join her on that final five reward was almost a no-brainer. it's so important to keep your allies close. and since erika had no intention of sitting next to heather at the end, she kept her jury vote closer. yea, it's only one vote, but on a jury of eight, you only need four to tie it up. every vote matters at this point. yes, erika was being genuine about her friendship, but it is also strategy. you can be genuine any time at camp. it's another thing to be genuine on a reward. 

8) i feel like a lot of people are focusing on why xander lost vs. why erika won. i've seen some strange reasons. "erika made no big moves!" or "the jury was racist and wanted a POC to win!" are the two biggest reasons i've seen. making big moves in survivor is not always smart. people who made big moves (like ricard taking out shan) were voted out. sure, xander had that one move at the pre-jury vote, but he didn't make any smart moves after that. he wasn't in control at the endgame. erika was. nor did he make any smart moves before. and for the second reason: wow. that's such a weak excuse for saying that xander deserves to win. i kinda find it funny at this point ngl. no other reason xander lost? okay. sure. 

9) one last thing i've noticed is that people will think that the person with the most confessionals deserves to win. those people have not watched samoa. season 19. it's on prime. it's actually pretty good. go watch it. the winner has 14 confessionals. the person with the most confessionals is not pre-destined to be the winner. you've got to read between the lines. 

10) storyline. i didn't see this coming. i did see that xander, erika, and deshawn were all going to be in the finals, but pre-finale, i thought xander won in that combo. i'm happy that erika won but i didn't realize that erika was going to win until xander took her to the final three during the final four tribal and shan said "i think that's a bad read." that's when i realized that the story is not about how erika won, but how xander lost. sometimes survivor will do this, and it's not my favorite storyline. yes, there are reasons erika won and she was a great player. but the story was focused around xander and his character. i saw rahp and i gotta agree when rob said that xander was going to be the new jungle boy. prepare for xander to be back four times. oh joy. (pls survivor bring evvie back she's the only one i ever want back)

edit: i still want to add that xander played a really good game. he was pretty masterful at using his idol, but i feel like he could’ve done something smarter with the idol that impressed the jury. i just don’t like how some people are saying “xander didn’t do anything at the end” or “erika didn’t do anything at all.” like they both did stuff, and i think some of the jury definitely considered xander going into that tribal, but he had a pretty terrible speech while erika had a very lovely speech. but i saw an interview with danny that the jury didn’t respect xander’s game, but i didn’t really get why which we saw out there. 

[alirhi]

This is oddly fun lol

Let's see how many of these I can churn out before I get distracted or need a break! (pff. like I need an excuse to watch the show again. Despite its flaws, I really, really love TFATWS, guys)

Without further ado, let's get down to it!

Episode 2: The Star-Spangled Man

I'm pretty sure I'm on record when it comes to my undying hate for John Walker, yes? So obviously, Bucky's grumpiness 100% stays 😂

I'm not really a fan of how much emphasis they put on the shield. I can see it as a catalyst for Bucky to go confront Sam, yes, but he wouldn't keep going "shield shield shield" like a broken record. Bucky has consistently been shown to be an empathetic man. I can't believe for a second that he'd be barking at Sam about having no right to give up the shield; he'd ask why. Sam's got shit to do, so he'd get impatient and not answer.

"Why'd you give up so easily? If you were overwhelmed, I could've helped you-" "You've been ignoring me. Like now, how you're ignoring me walking away from you." "Well, you weren't texting me about this." "You think I needed your permission?!" "No, but I was right there with Steve while he was learning what it meant to be Cap. I wouldn't mind helping you get used to-" "Then go teach him." A vague gesture toward the "Cap is back" posters. Bucky makes a face. "Steve passed the mantle to you. You fought with him. You earned it. That little shit didn't." "What do you want me to do about it?" "Just tell me why, Sam. I mean it. I just wanna understand." "Not now, Buck. I've got shit to do. You see me heading for a plane right now, right?" "This is important!" "So is this." Sam tells him about the Flag Smashers, we get our silly Big Three/Gandalf conversation.

I'm sorry, but that whole jumping from the plane scene is funny as hell, and I love all the nods they added in to jokes from the press tours that brought us this show in the first place (like ripping the sleeve off his jacket lol). I don't think I'd change a single thing from the Big Three convo to Bucky joining Sam in the warehouse.

"You're doing the staring thing again." "You're staring at your watch," Bucky points out. He knows it's linked to Redwing, he's just pointing out how dumb that line is in that situation. They're there for recon lol. They're meant to be looking around.

I don't...particularly care about the other common gripe here? Meaning, "Bucky's a civilian, so why is he allowed to randomly jump in on a military mission?" Bucky's also known in this universe as an Avenger, just like Sam, so I don't think anyone would really bat an eye at him joining. Also, I have my own agenda related to Bucky's apparent freedom to walk in and out of military/government things.

What does bug me (as funny as it is) is Bucky's animosity toward Redwing. Again... Bucky is a certified nerd. Always has been. If anything, he'd be fascinated by Redwing and Sam would constantly have to slap him away because he's leaning in too close trying to see the tiny watch monitor. "I don't trust Redwing" is just old man griping "I don't trust your newfangled technology" and that... that's not Bucky.

And that "we're not assassins" dig, and then laughing when Bucky gets upset? That's not Sam. Both of these men have shown a remarkable amount of empathy, and Sam has a background in helping traumatized vets. If he cared enough about Bucky to be texting him after Steve left, he'd care enough not to make callous jokes about his time as The Winter Soldier, whether he knows the full story or not.

The fight on top of moving trucks looks cool, but makes no logical sense. I keep trying to think of a way to explain this from a story perspective, rather than a lazy "it looks cool!" filmmaking one, and I'm coming up blank. Anyone with half a brain would have pulled over, had the fight, and then taken off. It was a fun sequence, though... Eh. I'll leave it.

When Karli breaks Redwing, Bucky doesn't say "I always wanted to do that." Again, it's funny - I love the jabs about that stupid robo bird XD - but not Bucky. In my version, he smirks and says "You're so gonna regret that."

"You were kinda getting your asses kicked before we got there." Is immediately followed by Bucky staring him down and asking, "And... how did that fight end for you?" Sam adds, "I don't see them in custody. Are-are they following in a van?" He looks around, sarcastically searching for another vehicle. Walker and Hoskins grimace at each other, grudgingly conceding that point.

credit to @dailycelebs

Seeing Walker, and having to listen to his stupid pro-government rhetoric, makes Bucky think about Steve. When we cut from the Flag Smashers back to Bucky and Sam and the closeup of Bucky's pensive face, we hear 1940s Steve angrily telling 1940s Bucky about how the higher ups in the army had already written off the POWs and were going to leave them to die. "I love our country, Buck," he laments, "but what do I do when I'm not too sure anymore about the people who run it?"

"What you always do," is young Bucky's answer, "stand for what's right, not who's in power."

Perfect lead-in to the conversation about handling things themselves.

When Sam meets Isaiah, and hears his story, not only is he horrified and heartsick for him, but he also begins to see Bucky in a new light. He's seeing Bucky's face, the way he tries to hide his emotions and not make this conversation about him, and he's putting things together. He's still upset at being out of the loop, but he's seeing more of the situation than just "omg black super soldier". When Bucky says "he'd already been through enough," Sam asks quietly, "like you?"

The racist cop comes back before Bucky can answer, to arrest him for missing his appointment with Raynor.

ngl guys, I was so moved by the difference in how that cop treated Sam (before knowing he's Important) vs how he treated Bucky (knowing that the government views him as a violent, if pardoned, criminal). He approaches Sam with his hand on his gun, eager to defend Bucky; "is this guy bothering you?" Just because they're having a heated conversation. Then, when he sees that there's a warrant for Bucky, he approaches timidly, apologizes, treats him gently and politely. By "moved," btw, I don't mean "it was so sweet." I mean "this is fucking sick, and very, very realistic." White cops see a white guy and treat him with respect regardless of his actual criminal record, while being openly hostile towards an innocent black man without even knowing who he is, just because he's black. Moments like this made me applaud Spellman.

"You, too, Sam - That wasn't a request" is Sam's first sign that there's something off about Raynor.

Look, again... The couples therapy banter is funny because Sebastian and Anthony are funny, but that scene, from a storytelling and a mental health standpoint, is atrocious. Without some underlying reason behind her actions, Raynor is just a pointlessly terrible therapist.

Rather than insulting Bucky from the outset, Sam is angry with Raynor for violating Bucky's privacy by not only introducing herself as his therapist, but forcing a "couples" session without her patient's consent. With his background pre-Avenging, he knows this shit shouldn't fly. He immediately points out how unprofessional she's being.

Raynor doesn't bother listening - the fuck does she care, really? She shrugs and casually admits it's "slightly unprofessional" but proceeds anyway.

"Whatever's eating at him?" Sam scoffs. "Did you really just say that to a WWII veteran and the world's longest-serving POW with complex PTSD? Did I hear that right? I've had, maybe, like five conversations with this man since we met, and even I know he's been through some shit and-" "Sam," Bucky tries to interrupt, looking uncomfortable. With his crushing guilt, he has an easier time dealing with insults than someone coming to his defense. "No," Sam snaps. "If the HIPAA Slayer over here wants to drag me into this, she's damn well gonna hear what I have to say!" He turns back to Raynor and demands, "Is this how you've been treating him this whole time? Downplaying what he's been through and making a grown-ass man sound like a sulking teenager?" Raynor keeps her cool, but barely. Visibly frustrated and annoyed, she ignores Sam's tirade and tries to force the conversation back onto the track she wants it on. Bucky's embarrassed and doesn't know how to react to any of this, so he still makes that little "he would talk less" jab. Sam, seeing that he's not going to get anywhere with him until they're away from this bitch, glowers and plays along. We get our silly/angry banter.

After their argument with Walker, Sam finally confronts Bucky about what really happened to him.

"He meant HYDRA; HYDRA used to be my people." "Were they?" Sam asks, stopping him and looking him in the eye, not letting him look away or deflect. "Steve was under the impression that they were your captors. I was under the impression that the Wakandans spent two years deprogramming you so no one could use you the way HYDRA did ever again." "I-" Startled, not expecting that, Bucky stutters a little and admits, "Yeah, I... That's true, I guess." "You guess?" "Does it matter? Sam rolls his eyes. "I dunno, does it matter that you were a slave for most of the 20th century?" "I doubt it matters much to my victims." "HYDRA's victims," Sam corrects firmly. "Just like you." Bucky fidgets; he doesn't know what to do or say. No one since Steve has even so much as insinuated that Bucky wasn't 100% culpable for what he did while under HYDRA control. "Look," Sam sighs, "I don't particularly like you. I don't hate you, but I'm not your biggest fan." "...Thanks?" "I just need you to know where I stand-" "Yeah, got it-" "-So you know I'm not biased like Steve when I say you had no choice. I don't know your story, but I know no one flips on a dime from docile and plagued with guilt to an unstoppable killing machine and back without some serious psychological damage behind that. I'm not saying you're an innocent little bunny, but I don't think you're a monster." "Thanks," Bucky croaks, more sincerely this time, and a bit choked up. He clears his throat and looks distinctly uncomfortable as he grumbles, "but to catch these guys, we may need to talk to a monster." Sam cringes. "I was afraid you'd say that."

[spacepresidentlance]

I HAVE NOT ABANDONED MY ASTROLOGY SERIES !! I’ve beeeen thinking…Adam shiros loml who IS ALIVE thank you very much 👀 not much is known about Adam so I’m really leaning off of fanon and my own perspective on him.

Sun: I gotta go virgo on this. Like fr Adam just seems hella put together. I feel like Adam is pretty analytical and a facts based person. In the show we saw him and shiro argue about shiro going on the Kerberos mission even with shiros diagnosis. Shiro (a Pisces king) can be driven more by emotion and pride and disregard facts (even with a cap moon) whereas Adam is looking more black and white with the facts. Smh they balance each other out. I do think adam can come across more shy or introverted which is typical virgo bc they often are just stuck in thought with their big Brains

Moon: Adam isn’t just a smart guy tho so this mans has got to have a sag moon. I like to think once Adam warms up to you he’s a firecracker. I do think Adam does have the best sense of humor tbh and ever sag moon know is hella funny. Also adam gives me “I see it I want it I got it” vibes which = sag moon I’m sorry. The moon focuses on the internal part of you and I do think Adam likes having alone time and sags are the free spirit and feed off of being by themselves sometimes

Rising: Adam has a Taurus rising for sure. He’s reliable, pretty level headed, and a very kind hearted person. Like I imagine Adam to be the friend to stay up for the “I made it home” text or has his ringer on in case someone needs him. He likes being there for the people he loves and is loyal to! Also you know Adam has the best taste and style just saying.

Mercury: Ngl I think adams Mercury would be in Scorpio. I do think he’d be a little nosy lol like I knoooow he would want to know all the dirt. Also I do think Adam esp what we’ve seen in show that he’s pretty direct and speaks on what he’s passionate/genuinely thinks he’s right on (ie again with the conversation he and shiro had about Kerberos

Mars: I think that Adam could have a Leo Mars. I think Adam has a lot of pride and to be fair he has a lot to be proud about. I don’t think Adam would be a very shy person actually. I think between the two of them shiro would be more shy tbh. I can see Adam being bold and confident. Again with the Kerberos argument Adam was adamant (lol) about shiro staying. He literally broke up with shiro over it.

Venus: tbh I def think Adam would have a water venus, specifically pieces. With his Mercury and Mars bring the strong and bold parts of adams personality but I do think one on one Adam is softer. He’s very caring and wants to nurture those he has chosen to have close. I also think Adam is the type of guy to remember the little things and his love language is probs quality time come on lol.

Aaaannnnd that’s adams birthchart! This one was kinda difficult bc I wanted to honor to the best I could both fanon and canon! I love Adam and I love when he’s included in art and fics so I had to add him to the series lol!

[gayregis]

tbh i feel like the way ppl approach dandelions sexuality is kinda sus ngl. like oh hes promiscuous and flighty and a serial cheater Obviously hes bi! hed fuck anything lol!! as if thats not grossly biphobic lmao. like im not saying its bad to think hes bi thats perfectly fine but the way people talk abt it and how they get so attached to his womanizing and all when in the books its mostly just kinda gross and unnecessary is like. can you please focus on anything else about him lol

(this is kind of a follow up idk) i also feel like. idk if you remove the Miss Ogeny of the author dandelions whole womanizer schtick is less abt just attraction as is and more abt him being a libertine and treating romance like a game. like it doesnt matter if he actually wants the person hes flirting with it matters that They want Him. idk what im trying to say other than dandelions a horrible narcissist and it doesnt matter if he likes women like hcs are hcs just dont make him het

i agree with this take. a lot of the time, it seems as though fans try to overlook his cheating and rewrite it as him just being polyamorous with open relationships. i think this subject especially is different for everyone on how they feel about cheating - for some, it might be a trigger, and so i feel like everyone should just engage with this subject how they feel is best for them.

for me, i think dandelion’s cheating is representative of his largest character flaws - arrogance and flightiness/noncommitiality. speaking from a canon standpoint, he thinks he’s better than others he engages in relationships with or flirts with (you can see it in how he engages with them thoughout the series), and seems to be never actually emotionally vulnerable with any of the women he dates, and jumps around from partner to partner making promises but never fulfilling them. as you said, “[he treats] romance like a game. it doesnt matter if he actually wants the person hes flirting with, it matters that They want Him.”

to me, it seems like an extension of his stage persona, he flirts using poetic flattery that’s really completely devoid of any true substance. of course, this relates to how sapkowski seems to equate committment in a relationship to true love (again, canonically speaking, yennefer and geralt for instance are not a “good relationship” in the beginning, solely because they can’t commit, and this is where their various behavioral issues stem from). 

it also is of course part of his comic relief, the concept of a poet in poetic love being actually primarily driven by lust and not by love is humorous, on albeit a basic or primal level. additionally, “man gets his comeuppance from his partner for offending her love” is also a comedic trope. this can have a variety of executions and it depends on context to me whether it’s offensive or not - to me, scenes like the beginning of eternal flame are funny because of how the dialogue is comically melodramatic (with insults flying), dandelion is obviously in no position of power over vespula and is not violent at all, and the whole thing is treated comically in a “no one got hurt, this is petty drama with comic supporting characters” sense. i’m able to find humor in this because no one is the butt of the joke, except dandelion, who has wronged his lady and now must face the consequences, which defangs the idea of cheating in my perspective. of course, others might disagree, this is just my personal response to scenes like this. i try not to read too much into dandelion’s canonical love life scenes other than treating them as comic relief, because i feel that is their intended purpose (for example, i have seen takes that anna henrietta sentencing dandelion to execution was abuse on her part... to me this feels extreme and i’d rather just see it as the humor it was intended to be, for reference i just explained why i am able to find it funny and accept that others may not be able to).

but back to the subject - yes, i think that dandelion’s cheating and wronging his partners is more representative of his character flaws, and this is why i think they need to be acknowledged when addressing his character. if you remove the context of cheating and say, “see, he is only ever flirty and sweet,” i think it removes a lot of the imperfections from his character. and these imperfections are significant, because he later demonstrates commitment and humility in other ways -- mainly to geralt, who he follows into brokilon in time of contempt. 

as an aside, i find their dynamic interesting on dandelion’s side partially because of dandelion’s behavior elsewhere - he never gets emotionally attached to the women he engages with, but for geralt, he’d risk his life constantly just to be by his side, and also bare his “true self,” not putting on poetic airs and acting truthfully to who he is? it’s partially due to just the misogyny in the writing and dandelion’s character (like how yennefer never really spends time with geralt so their relationship by the end seems like we skipped 10 years of relationship development), but the dynamics still stand.

for this subject specifically, i think it just needs to be treated with a lot more carefulness than “we can erase this, he’s just very flirty and promiscuous, hey, he’s bisexual now,” because as you said, this is pretty biphobic. i think it’s fine to headcanon dandelion as bisexual, i headcanon him as bisexual, but i think there needs to be more process involved in coming to the headcanons, or the headcanon needs to be entirely divorced from his behavior.

i headcanon him as bisexual for different reasons, not because he’s promiscuous, that factor is besides the point. i’m willing to accept his canon relationships with women and i also read subtext between him and geralt, so, logic has it that i see him in canon holding intimate relationships with both women and men, that’s bisexuality. i think he also represents in the series a great love for people overall, he seems to find beauty in the world where others would rather overlook it. 

tldr dandelion’s love life in canon demonstrates his character flaws and needs to be analyzed with more depth than the biphobic “he’s lecherous, thus bisexual”. as you said, he treats romance like a game, and this is unrelated to his sexuality. derive your sexuality headcanons for dandelion elsewhere than his promiscuity.

[atamascolily]

lily liveblogs Star Trek:TNG 1x11 - “Haven”

aka the “Troi has an arranged marriage” episode.

we get to see Riker smirking as he watches two attractive women in togas play the harp. Oh, Riker.

creepiest message ever for troi: a silvery mask attached to a literal talking cube. Quoth Troi: Oh fuck no.

I don't blame her for being upset; I'm disturbed myself. 

the creepy message box opens up, spilling jewels all over the transporter, and Troi has to inform the oblivious Riker about her upcoming arranged marriage that she very clearly hates

(Item: I cannot tell what is up with her relationship with Riker because the show has given us very little information to date, but I cannot imagine any scenario where this wouldn't be awkward and embarrassing.)

(Left to my own devices, I assume that Troi pegged Riker on the regular and she was the one who broke up with him, but I suspect the writers thought it was the other way around, lol. but it's pretty clear that Riker is dtf aliens and Troi is half-Betazed, so... *shrug*.)

Troi tries to explain her situation to Picard while Riker is mansplaining in the background. RIKER PLEASE CONTROL YOURSELF.  

All Picard wants to know is if Troi is gonna be sticking around or if he's going to have to find a new counselor, lol.

Troi tells him she won't be staying, and Picard is very clearly disappointed and trying to make the best of it, and you can just SEE the moment where Riker realizes he's still in love with Troi and goes all soft, and it's rather endearing.

(For the record, I mock Riker relentlessly, he's often an asshole, and I hate how the writers keep writing him so he's Always in the Right / expect us to identify with him, but I do enjoy him as a character most of the time.)

Riker leans casually against the wall not looking at Troi LOL. He doesn't have to because she can read his emotions.

Troi: "don't ruin your career for me,"

Riker: "babe, but I wanna"

troi: "how ‘bout no"

 Riker: "okay, then, guess I'll die"

troi: how 'bout you stop being a dramatic bitch and dance at my wedding?”

riker’s like "maybe?" and walks STRAIGHT INTO DATA WHO HAS NO IDEA ABOUT THE WRITHING MASS OF AWKWARDNESS HE’S STUMBLED UPON

Deanna's future in-laws arrive OH THE SPACE FASHION LOL

her fiance Wyatt is human (???) gives her a "chameleon rose" that changes color with her moods, I am SURE we will be seeing more of this magic mood ring flower later as a plot point, but 10/10 excellent gift.

(his sweater game is pretty good, Wesley Crusher should take notes)

Troi calls her mother "eccentric" which is a massive understatement

her mom's first act is to scold her for not using telepathy and to make Picard carry her luggage even though she knows he's the captain

(okay, so Troi is half-Betazed, and her MOM is the Betazed and her dad is human? for some reason I thought it was the other way around but w/e)

the other dude with the elder Troi is her valet, so that makes her snub to Picard even worse, and Troi puts her foot down in the corridor

(love how both geordi and data look at that and agree "not gonna touch that shit")

The fact that Troi's mother is such a raving narcissist makes me love Troi so much more. Like, I already loved her, but this just takes it to the next level.

pretty sure the dude playing the valet is the same guy who was the time traveler in "Where No Man Has Gone Before", lol

picard: please accept our humbly awful '70s space future accommodations

I don't know what color white is on a Mood Rose, but that rose has been pure white ever since Lwaxana Troi showed up

Lwaxana Troi believes in radical honesty, which actually puts her roughly on par with Data in terms of social skills, ironically enough.

Troi, who is a professional diplomat, is like, Mom, please, fuck no, humans are complicated, okay?

"Failure to communicate is inherently hostile" - wow, that's this show's philosophy in a nutshell, isn't it?

I love Electorine, the leader of Haven (the planet they’re orbiting) - she looks like how I imagine a grown-up Ozma of Oz

So Troi's fiance is human? I'm so confused about the politics here, especially when Lwaxana is such a snob about Betazed superiority. 

Troi tries to console Wyatt by saying "I'll only be half as annoying" as a Betazoid/my mother. He doesn't laugh, but I think she meant it to be funny? I LOVE YOU TROI.

He wants to know if she can read his thoughts, she says no, but maybe we'll get there, and then she almost spills the beans about Riker, but catches herself at the last possible moment

to his credit, dude picks up on that right away and asks "Do I have competition?"

Troi says NO, but we all know that's a lie.

Turns out Dude also has issues: he's been hearing voices/seeing the face of a woman his entire life, and he just assumed it was Troi because aliens are Like That, am I right?

he says it doesn't matter but he's CLUTCHING THE PORTRAITS HE'S DRAWN TO HIS CHEST AS IF THEY'RE HIS MOST PRECIOUS POSSESIONS so I have Grave Doubts

Picard to his personal journal: am I biased? I'm pretty sure I'm not and this is a legit disaster in the making.

oh hey, there's a strange vessel approaching the planet to investigate, so time for another conference!

(ngl: I realize the conference room scenes are unpopular but I personally love them even though they generally do not work on multiple levels from a writing/viewing perspective)  

turns out the ship is full of plague and heavy-handed metaphors about the nature of humanity

Lwaxana Troi causes a scene at the cocktail party quarreling with her future in-laws, and both Troi and Riker are in their own personal hells

data looks like he could use some popcorn

Love Troi in her non-work outfit here

Data tries to chat up the silent valet about his drinking habits, with hilariously awkward results

RANDOM GONG FOR NO APPARENT REASON

Lwaxana has a pet Tradescantia vine that starts crawling on one of the in-laws and Riker has Had Enough

Everyone is appalled to learn that nudism is mandatory at Betazed weddings.

Troi screams at everyone and storms out and Tasha is amused.

Data believes the proper study of mankind is man: "Could you continue the petty bickering? I find it so intriguing."

awww, riker is brooding in the holodeck, lol

SEARCH YOUR FEEEEEELINGS, RIKER

(why does Troi always have to be the adult in this relationship?)

So "Imzadi" is confirmed to mean "my beloved" and Troi asks if they're beyond that now, and Riker's all jealous and defensive, and... surely they have polyamory in the 24th century??

Rikers like "I'm an all or nothing guy," which, okay, fair. BUT WHY THE HELL DID YOU TWO BREAK UP THEN, I'M SO CONFUSED? Did Troi break up with you because she thought it was interfering with your career (not sure how that tracks but whatever)? Or did Riker instigate the break-up? (In which case, I have less sympathy because he shot himself in the foot there! GROW UP, YOU FOOL, GROW UP)

Wyatt the Betrothed shows up and is like, "oh, hey, your loss" to Riker, which just made me roll my eyes.

Riker responds by stalking off in a dignified huff, lol SO EMOTIONALLY MATURE, Y'ALL.

"So we'll go half naked?" AHAHAHAHA, TROI, I LOVE YOU AND YOUR DEADPAN SENSE OF HUMOR SO MUCH.

meanwhile, the plague ship approaches *jaws theme*

turns out the woman in wyatt's drawings is on the ship, although I admit I would not have made that connection if Troi hadn't pointed it out

Wyatt goes to ask Lwaxana for relationship advice, which goes about as well as you'd expect it would.

he decides to break quarantine and transport over to the plague ship because HIS SECRET DREAM WOMAN IS REAL (and also he's a doctor and this is his life dream to cure the plague)

the ship is decorated with portraits of Wyatt at various ages which is totally not creepy at all

so anyway, that's that!

Lwaxana concludes by flirting with Riker, much to his amusement and Troi's annoyance

it turns out the valet could talk this whole time, he just... didn't want to before now? Or maybe he's come to understand humans better enough to communicate on their level... or just really liked the wet bar at the reception

(oh, and I was totally wrong, that color-changing rose was just a space macguffin that didn't go anywhere, sigh)

at least we'll always have the vine-pet-creature-thing!

I still don’t understand why this episode is called “Haven,” the planet has almost literally nothing to do with anything and nobody even goes there.

so this episode has a lot going for it! lots of fun character moments, even if I’m still confused as hell about a lot of things the show should have explained.

am I entertained? oh, absolutely.

[currentlyreadingmanga]

Toilet-bound Hanako-kun Chapter 17: The Little Mermaid (Part 2)

Previously:  we started a new arc and things get complicated for both Yashiro and Hanako. We met “the other Hanako” and with that, we got a glimpse of Hanako’s backstory (if his reaction is anything to go by). After being so shaken by the encounter, Hanako starts to avoid Yashiro and it couldn’t happen at a worse time since the Mermaid’s followers found her and now are trying to get Yashiro to sever her bond with our ghost boy and to go with them instead. The chapter also brought up the concept of trust and how Yashiro views her relationship with Hanako so far (with Tsuchigomori putting in his two cents and talking a little about how Hanako probably feels), and I really really love how the author is handling it so far.

Now onto the next chapter!

Ohhhhhh!!!!! That’s the image from the anime opening!!! The one that I think made every anime-only go “wait….what???”. This image was pretty disturbing without context, but now knowing that the shadowy figure could represent his brother, it adds another layer of yikes ngl

Ah, right, when we last left off, the fish had forced Yashiro into the water when she declined their invitation. A great way to get her to trust you, guys. Truly a phenomenal job.

………..

I want to be where the people are, I want to see- want to see 'em dancin'~~

Again: that’s fucking rude! Don’t you go dissing my girl like that, she’s a bit ditzy but she’s wonderful!!

I was gonna say “how do you expect her to come with you after trash-talking her like that?” but that’s probably the angle they’re going for. They’re trying to crush her self esteem so that she has no choice but to think that going to their world would be the best thing she could do. Clearly, they’re not above using dirty tactics.

…………..sigh Yeah I was afraid of that. Like, the way I see it, Yashiro’s concern with popularity stems from her own desire for people to like her (it goes hand in hand with her romantic personality), so if these fish tell her “Oh, you’re nothing more than a walking disaster as a human, no one will love you if you stay here. but if you come with us, you will be loved by all”, it doesn’t surprise me that she would be tempted by the idea.

Oh, is Hanako finally here?

There he is!! And as always, he arrives just in the nick of time and rescues her with great dramatic flair. Also, there’s something about fish!Yashiro’s expression that is just really funny to me.

He says “your world may be kind to her...this one my be cruel...but it doesn’t matter” 

Ahhhhhhhhhhhhh ಥ‿ಥ you tell them, Hanako! They have no right to try and take Yashiro away from this world and him. Also, this page is beautiful holy shit, it’s simple yet detailed where needed. “Are you gonna praise the art style every recap?” you ask……...yeah, probably

ಥ‿ಥ  I love them so much ಥ‿ಥ

You know? Sometimes I forget how scary Hanako can look sometimes. But then his eyes go all black and he smiles like that and I remember.  The threat seems to be enough to send the fish packing, though, even if they do say that they won’t give up on getting Yashiro to go with them.

Ahhhh, this makes me so happy! They’re clearly still learning to interact in a more “serious” manner around each other. It’s a slow process but they’re communicating more effectively (Yashiro with her speech to him when she gave him the donuts and Hanako apologizing not only now but also after the confession tree incident) and it’s really nice to see. And just look at how happy that made her! That’s all that she wanted, for him to reach out to her after he avoided her for a while. Another thing that I really appreciate is these rare moments where we get Hanako acting sincerely, no jokes or cheeky smiles, just him laying out his genuine feelings; especially here, since it proves that what the fish said was wrong.

I feel the need to point out that she’s not denying it. Like, yes, she meant it as friends, but the implications are there and don’t think for a second that I don’t see the “badum, badum, badum” and the blush. The romantic chemistry they have is very apparent and I’m living for it.

OH! There it is! Well, I’m glad that the reveal didn’t take very long (even if it was a pretty important thing to be spoiled on).

That’s a nice detail. He’s trying to act naturally but this is clearly a sensitive topic for him……..which makes me think that Yashiro’s assumption last chapter will be right.

……………..yeah, there it is. Can’t say I’m particularly surprised but it’s still a hard pill to swallow. I talked about it last chapter (and maybe during some of the other chapters as well) but with the clues we’ve been given and considering Hanako’s behaviour, the theory that makes the most sense to me so far is that Hanako probably killed his brother in self-defence. Then again, this is still pretty early in the story, so there’s probably a lot we still don’t know. Like I mentioned earlier, Hanako also has moments where he looks/acts scary, so there could be something more to that. It could also just be a side effect of him becoming a supernatural but  ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

Hanako asks her if she really wants to get to know him after learning that, and tells her that if she does, he will tell her everything someday. And this is a great step in the right direction. Not only it puts Yashiro’s concerns ("does he trust me?”) at ease, but also it shows his current feelings ("i’m not ready to share yet, but i need to let het know that) and his willingness to open up and be vulnerable in the future. Character development, gotta love it.

(TдT)(TдT)(TдT)

OH!!!! Are we shifting perspectives to the suspicious girl?? Because I remember that in the anime she was always the one that spread the rumors over the radio, or, well, the intercom, I guess. And since we now know that she’s Hanako’s brother’s assistant, there’s a very high chance of seeing him again. I’m both excited and terrified by the prospect. ALSO what the actual fuck is that on the left. Why are there body parts seemingly floating around??? is this just an artistic choice or are they actually there?? Either way, it’s creepy as hell.

Oh, god, it looks like those things are actually there in the room and just imagining being there gives me goosebumps. But yes, anyway, there she is! And Natsuhiko, too! Gotta say, kinda missed our suspicious person 1 and suspicious person 2. He’s worried about letting Hanako’s brother run off but she says that he wouldn’t have listened to her if she had tried to stop him anyway. Which is interesting, since while Hanako does march to the beat of his own drum, he still seems to take what Yashiro and Kou say into consideration (even if just a little bit).

Oh? “boundaries within cities”? Like, not just within the school? We know that she has knowledge of the boundaries thanks to her conversation with Yashiro in the library but maybe she’s expanding her search to reach a bigger scope?

Natsuhiko is worried about the chance of our wonder trio finding out they’re the ones behind the changes in the rumors. And that’s a valid concern, since Hanako is in charge of maintaining the relationships between humans and supernaturals, and he obviously would have to intervene. 

………...I-I don’t know what I was expecting, but it wasn’t this omfg. She certainly has him wrapped around her finger, huh?

(⚆.⚆)  Oh boy, there he is, oh boy. 

I’m sorry I just have to point out how utterly done she looks. Like, since she slapped Natsuhiko for touching her hand, I’m guessing she’s not a very touchy-feely person, so this must be quite bothersome for her. Still, her expression is wonderful lol Also! It looks like not caring about people’s personal bubbles is something that runs in the family……….oh, is that why she called him a cat? Possibly.

Okay, so he says that this is not his usual outfit (and that explains the more Japanese-style outfit I saw him wearing in the spoiler) but he wore it because he “was seeing Amane for the first time in ages.” So there’s the confirmation about the fact that he hasn’t been at the school for a significant amount of time. And, again, that’s very suspicious.

Okay. Listen. He looks very cute. But Hanako’s terrified expression keeps reappearing in my mind when I think that. So I’m gonna wait and see what’s the deal with this boy because for now I mostly feel….unsettled.

“He looked happy to see me,” he says, while floating around in a childlike manner. I, uh, um. Are you sure about that, honey?? Because it sure didn’t seem like it to me. 

Also: “But I still can’t move around that well yet. They chased me off.” So that’s what happened on the rooftop. He said that she had helped him get here, so maybe his spirit form hasn’t fully “materialized” enough  for him to move around comfortably.

(⚆.⚆) (⚆.⚆)  Remember how I said that I felt unsettled? Well, this really isn’t helping the matter jfc

Wow he’s really clingy, like, even more than Hanako by the looks of it. He’s like my cats when it’s time for me to feed them. Also! Sakura! I’m guessing that’s her name, right? I can finally stop calling her suspicious girl lol

But yeah, quite the trio we have here. Now that Hanako’s brother is here, I’m guessing that their little ensemble is complete since they would work in direct opposition to Yashiro, Hanako and Kou.

Oh! I feel like I’ve said “oh” so much this chapter….oh, well. The fish are back! “We’ve found him” Are they talking about Hanako’s brother? Do they know who he is or maybe they are mistaking him for Hanako?

Ah, no. They saw what happened in the rooftop the other day; they recognize him and they remember how shaken Hanako looked at the time so they want to win him over to be able to fight against Hanako. I mean, it’s not a bad plan. Hanako’s brother doesn’t seem to want to hurt him but by that one interaction they had, we can see that their relationship definitely has some complicated layers.

So what’s been happening with the rumors has reached even the mermaid’s kingdom? That really makes me wonder exactly how interconnected the different worlds are since information seems to travel quite fast.

Natsuhiko spotted the fish and…

*me, remembering his comment about wanting to see how the fish are on the inside*  (⚆.⚆)

(;;⚆_⚆) (;;⚆_⚆)

(ﾟдﾟ；) yeah, I don’t think he’s gonna listen to you, Sakura.  jfc that’s a face that’s gonna appear in my nightmares

Σ(ﾟДﾟ|||)  (ﾟдﾟ；)  Σ(ﾟДﾟ|||)

……………………don’t get me wrong, I wanted the fish to stop interfering but. not like This. I-Well, that’s certainly a way to end a chapter omfg. The fact that Sakura and Natsuhiko, seem to be used to him doing this kind of thing is…...concerning, to say the least.

[bthump]

for the 'send you a character' thing, how abt Max and/or Silver from Black Sails?

Ty! I was hoping for a few non-Berserk ones just for the sake of variety ngl.

Also warning for Black Sails spoilers. I’ll put this under a cut so people who don’t care about the fandom can more easily scroll.

Max

First impression:

Uh pretty much just “wow she’s so hot” lol. Quickly followed by being very sad for her when she was asking Eleanor to leave. She was instantly one of my favourite characters, and I was also immensely glad when her season 1 plot was over bc that was hard to sit through.

Impression now:

I liked her sort of following in Eleanor’s footsteps for a while before eventually reassesing, realizing she’d fucked up, and prioritizing Anne instead. She had a good arc. Refusing to marry a dude to secure her power was such a fist pump moment, especially because she got her power anyway.

Favorite moment:

Honestly her scene on the bench in the snow with Anne. I cried a lot.

Idea for a story:

Idk she had a pretty satisfying storyline, the only thing I really wanted from it was more solid closure with her relationship with Anne. So really anything post-series that explores their relationship as they get back together. Anne coming back to Max after a few months of pirating.

OOH no wait, something more plotty and historical lol. Anne after she gets caught and arrested for piracy, and Max helping her escape execution and running away with her or something.

Unpopular opinion:

A lot of people seem to not like her dialogue? Yeah she talks pretentiously but it’s great, I love it.

Favorite relationship:

Anne. I also really liked her covering for Anne after she straight up murdered two people lol, that was another great moment.

Favorite headcanon:

I actually got nothing. I’m bad at thinking of headcanons at the best of times lol, and idt I’ve got quite enough nerdy passion for Black Sails to come up with something.

SIlver

First impression:

Thought he was funny and entertaining, enjoyed him a lot.

Impression now:

hoo boy. I still think he’s a good fun character and I enjoyed him throughout when I watched the show a second time too, but it’s like, his choice to end the war in the finale didn’t make me retroactively hate everything I liked about him, but man I consider it pretty unforgiveable lol. I have no sympathy for that decision.

Favorite moment:

Curbstomping Dufresne was a fantastic scene. Also revealing that he traded his share in the treasure for his place in the crew. And early on “we might be friends by then,” was great lol.

Idea for a story:

Retelling of Treasure Island from Silver’s perspective, focus on why he’s obsessed with getting the treasure: because regret, just like Flint warned. Also Madi never forgave him.

Unpopular opinion:

I’m too out of touch with fandom to know what’s popular or not lol. I never really shipped him with Flint I guess. I can see it and I’d be into like, a one night stand situation between them in mid season 4 or something, but even in an AU I’m not into shipping them as anything long term.

Favorite relationship:

Flint. Their relationship was fun and intense and interesting and shifted a lot, alternately trusting and mistrustful, and v compelling. Despite my last answer I actually loved the romantic subtext between them too.

Favorite headcanon:

I feel like I should have a take on his mysterious dark backstory here lol but I don’t really have one. Same problem I had with Max, I just don’t have the creative impulse for this show really.

[rerwby]

Volume 5 OST

I don’t normally have such verbose opinions on the RVVBY music (it’s like writing a review for fiberglass insulation) I managed to sit down and listen to this album the whole way through. My feelings on these tracks feels like a culmination of all my feelings of previous RVVBY music. I won’t try to be lengthy about this but I got some solid thoughts.

First of all, can we just collectively agree to stop making every fucking RVVBY song put on Youtube use fan art? Like can we just get a solid fucking static picture of the volume cover art maybe? I’m sick of the mediocre ship art used for goddamn everything and it looks incredibly unprofessional. Also since these are RT fans you know they don’t give a flying fuck about credit.

The Triumph Not to kick this off on such an upbeat note but this is one of my favorite OP’s. Maybe my favorite. Maybe. I could not fully appreciate this song when the episodes were coming out because the opening itself was the biggest trashfire to come out of this show. Like, sorry I can’t get hyped up on 10 seconds of Ruby and Ren and Jaune sitting on a couch. Listening to it alone though? Big improvement.

Jeff Williams does this thing where he’s clearly way too proud of his proud choice and rhymes, and usually lines end with a big focus on stupid vernacular. Trust me, this will come up later. The Triumph manages to avoid that. This Will be the Day does as well because it’s a pretty hammy song with a better, more consistent tone. “Back to reality, back to the show” is an awful, terrible, horribly ironic line in the context of Volume 5, but it’s not as in your face as it could be, so it gets a pass from me. I also think “That’s when you learned you were messing with gods” is awesome, sorry. It could be more awesome if these characters like, seemed more like gods? And they don’t? So eh.

Then the second verse happens and it calls back to the first with “Yeah I’m a girl but I’m also a god” and I’m like, oh, so you’re just gonna- oh, okay then. Yeah let’s just beat the one good part like a dead horse, sure. That really ruins the song for me ngl.

It also manages to avoid the formulaic trend of post-second verse slow sappy breakdown. Time to Say Goodbye and Let’s Just Live do that and it gets old after a while. If you’re gonna give me hype music then stick with it. Not that Let’s Just Live really hypes you up.

Overall it’s like a 7/10 for me because it has a good pace and it doesn’t scream “look at how clever I am!” at every turn.

Ignite The song I was most excited for and the most disappointed by. I wrote about it here and I’ll try not to do anything more than summarize what I said there.

It’s obnoxious and the lyrics are way too dumb. Not funny dumb, not hammy dumb, nope, just dumb. It’s not even in the style of Yang’s usual dumbness, which by all accounts should now be under Armed and Ready’s foot since that is now the prime Yang theme. The major problem is how obvious these issues are. Like you can’t not hear how bad the writing is.

Then Lamar comes in, and I usually enjoy him since, like I said above, he brings with him some hammy, corny lyrics that manage to be fun. But he’s phoning it in here. He’s mumbling and tripping over his own words. God I didn’t even understand what mumbling truly sounded like until I heard that verse.

4/10 and I hate to write that on a Yang theme but this song is everything wrong with these soundtracks.

Path to Isolation Which brings us to my favorite annual game of “Count How Many Times a Weiss Song Uses the Word ‘Mirror.’” Spoilers: it’s a handful.

It’s fine. Weiss songs have always been fine. The worst thing I can say about them is that you have to dredge through their slow-ass, repetitive openings to get to the good part. 5/10

All Things Must Die aka “Slow And Brooding Villain Song That Turns Into a Rock Anthem #5″ aka “Sacrifice And Divide Did It Better But Even They Were Only So Good” aka “We’re Not Even Going For A Subtle Title Here.”

I don’t even know whose perspective this is sung from anymore. Like Cinder is our designated villain song candidate but she has like no autonomy this volume so that falls flat, meanwhile Salem still has no clear motivation. Hazel and Adam might be the most developed(?) bad guys this volume but this song has nothing to do with them. 4/10

This Time (From Shadows Part II) I’m writing about this one before Smile for a reason.

A song called From Shadows Part II deserves better, lol. Also given the fan art uses on the version I found posted, this is a Blake+Sun song? I don’t know. It starts with the beautiful piano solo from the original which was godlike and relaxing and also dramatic.

Lyrics are just shitty but in a shocking twist they’re hard to hear other than THIS TIIIIME in the chorus which...I’m fine with. I’m legit convinced that the fewer lyrics you can make out in these songs, the better. This all sounds rather nice and has a good flow to it. Don’t get me wrong, it’s kinda just trash. Absolute filler. Fluff. Churned-out melodrama to keep the White Fang kindle going.

Also I guess in hindsight it’s weird to have Jeff singing here since this song is supposed to represent Blake moving on with new resolve. Like before it was clearly Blake and Adam singing, but now it’s Blake and...Sun? Adam again? Like some non-canon reformed Adam? Idk. At least it’s tonally a good contrast to Part I. It’s easy to listen to the song without focusing on the lyrics which is rather soothing, but it’s still nonsense. 5/10

Smile (From Shadows Part 0)

No yeah I made that part up, but I think this song is a better From Shadows Part 0 than This Time is a Part II. I’m dead serious. They gave us an Ilia song and made it more interesting than her character is in volume 5, if not extremely on the nose.

Because my god, it’s on the nose. It’s just Ilia’s backstory about blending in to avoid all the pain your oppressors brought you and biding your time until you can rip the smiles off their faces...oh I don’t think that’s how Ilia’s backstory went. This is much darker. Very Count of Monte Crisco and dare I say actually interesting. It makes Ilia sound way more compelling than Blake while also making her out as a foil to her. Except I don’t know why the fucking hell the character presented in Smile would ever join the White Fang, especially under Adam’s authority, and then follow him so blindly. But I guess as of last volume’s OST we should be use to that disconnect between show plot and music lore.

7/10 for being accidentally interesting.

All That Matters

It’s....fine? Fine-ish. Obligatory slow and sappy song because ofc. Casey at least sounds like she’s in her comfort zone. It just doesn’t mean much to me.I guess it’s the theme of the girls being back together but I have my own issues with that, which is mainly that three of them were already reunited halfway into Volume 5 and it was only Blake’s arrival that really pushed them into sappy territory.

5/10 it’s not bombastically terrible enough to merit a lower score and not interesting enough to be higher.

I’m Her Daughter After All - RVVBY Volume 5 Official Score

I don’t know why this song is here because it’s an actual non-lyrical official part of the soundtrack, which is mind-blowing. You’d think Jeff was contractually obligated to have his blood’s voices dip their toes in every track.

It’s a nice medley of Yang’s themes, namely I Burn and Armed and Ready. It also makes you appreciate how Yang’s musical themes have actually evolved, unlike those of the other characters. Why do we have this Western thing going on? Qrow had it too in Bad Luck Charm. I don’t mind it since I think it’s kinda neat, but 6/10 for being a random score track.

Mayday! Lancers! - RVVBY Volume 5 Official Sc- wait

They did the score thing again. I don’t know why. I also forgot the Lancer scene actually happened in Volume 5 until I heard this. Like, Weiss did so little in Volume 4 that I’m attributing stuff that happened in V5 to last volume.

It’s fine? It’s nice to have a non-lyrical Weiss song, actually. 5/10

Armed and Ready ie The Appeal Of The Original Was Lost On Us

This song did not need a remix lol. Armed and Ready is actually damn good, is a great proper evolution of Yang’s theme that successfully moves her out of the shadow of I Burn, and was a really, really good climax to her recovery arc. This turns it into a dance remix, which ironically is the exact sort of thing the original moved her character away from. 4/10

Gold (Acoustic)

As I listened to this I realized it wasn’t just the original vocals played over an acoustic cover; Casey actually re-recorded the song. That’s blowing it out of the park for a RVVBY remix. Also it’s like, good.

I always liked Gold for whatever reason. I just thought it was uplifting and it did the nice thing where the lyrics are simple and flow well. The loud instrumentals had me unsure if it made for a good complement to the lyrics or if it was just a bad choice. This just sounds wonderful. Most importantly, it makes you really appreciate Casey’s singing talent. More than anything, she sounds absolutely comfortable singing this song. No stressed notes, no weird word choices, no ham. This is just a nice song and it’s my favorite on this album. 8/10

Let’s Just Live (Remix) “The Obligatory OP Remix Oh God Triumph Is Gonna Get This Treatment Next Year

It doesn’t go above my expectations but I like the new instrumentals. Reminds me of Stickerbrush Symphony. I think it’s much more fitting than in the original and is a true improvement on it. 6/10

The final issue I have with this album is this, and it involves some statistics. This is a 12-song album. That isn’t strange. But here are some numbers for you:

Ruby Songs: 0 Weiss Songs: 2 Blake Songs: 1 (2 if you count Smile) Yang Songs: 4 Remixes: 3 Scores(?): 2

Just to put that in front of you. Remixes comprise 1/4th of the album, glorified scores are 1/6th, and Yang received 4 whole slots (one-third of the album!) while Ruby, the protagonist, got absolutely none. Nothing in this album is about just Ruby, and I think she kind of deserves that. I mean she did nothing this volume so whatever, but we didn’t even get Glorious Score Track Of Jaune Healing Weiss so that’s super strange. They didn’t even shaft her in lieu of anyone, she was just left out.

[ificouldflytotheclouds]

Youngblood Album First Impressions

These are my initial thought after listening to the album for the first time.

Youngblood

I was at work when the studio version of this song first dropped, I was standing in the foyer as I waited for campus transportation to arrive. I was familiar with the song because I had listened to live recordings to prepare me for my concert, which at the time was three days away. My jaw dropped. The live version was good, but the studio version was a killer. This song is a  deserves to be danced to, HARD. In concert, I don’t feel like this song goes as hard, and for that reason, I prefer the studio version. It’s funny because I thought this song went hard, I WAS NOT PREPARED. 

I think this was an excellent title track and song to start the album. It encapsulates the feel of the entire album from the production, singing, and the lyrics. 

Favorite Lyrics:

“Surrender my everything/'Cause you made me believe you're mine“

This line is so vulnerable and it tugs at my heartstrings.

“When you looking at those strangers/Hope to God you see my face”

I am a sucker for these lyrics after making eye contact with Luke during the concert, but I also relate this to the crush that at had at the time, and the friends that are no longer friends.

Want You Back

When I first listened to  this song I was like wHo iS tHiS bAnD?? I think this was a good lead single (had they known the success of youngblood that might’ve been better, but it might not have gotten as popular if it came out of nowhere) to introduce the new song. Compared to rest of the album this song is fairly tame, I’ve listened to it so many times that ofc this is 5sos. I just wow I’m so proud of them (imma try not to write this through the entire post bc thats basically what I did on twitter all night)

Favorite Lyrics:

Is it tears or just the fucking rain? (who am I liking explicit lines, I am a changed woman)

And the way that I used to make you laugh/'Cause you know every morning I wake up/Yeah, I still reach for you/I remember the roses on your shirt/When you told me this would never work

Lie to Me

Out of the non-singles performed on tour (+valentine, talk fast, moving along), this one is my favorite. I fell in love with it instantly. It makes me think of Come Back… Be Here which is my second favorite Taylor Swift song. Ngl, hearing the studio version was a tad disappointing because I was hoping that there would be piano in the song, even though why would there be? Lol. It’s not like there was piano in the live version. Listening to the studio version made me understand the boys when they talk about the contrast the sad lyrics with the happy beachy vibe instrumental. I still LOVE this song, it was just a bit of a shock because I had unrealistic expectations for the studio version (I think I was thinking closer to Ghost of You vibes), regardless, I will request they release a piano cover of the song. The short clips of Luke on the piano is not enough. The harmonies in this song are so good and my hear hurts over the lyrics. 

There is violin in this song and that needs to be appreciated. There’s also a certain sound at the end of the chorus that sounds like something else but I can’t remember what.

Favorite Lyrics:

And I caught you looking too, but you didn't look twice

Valentine

This song took me a while to get into. 1) The rhythm is very different from anything else I have heard by them 2) The word choices in the chorus, there are some words that automatically turn me off of songs they just sound cringy to me. After listening to the song enough I have gotten us to it and enjoy the song.

I don’t know why it took me so long to realize, well I do, it’s because I had to get used to the lyrics, but this song is HOT. Another good song to perform on tour to introduce how SEXY this album is, literally. It’s funny because I normally am not a fan of albums when they’re too sexual but I am so in love with this album and they also address the topic in a classy, normalizing way, that doesn’t just focus on being horny, there’s an additional psychological dimension within their song.

Favorite Lyrics:

We know we're classic together like Egyptian gold/We love us

Talk Fast

This was the only song they sang on the tour that I hadn’t heard the studio version, my jaw was on the floor (I mean it was for most songs but lol). This was my second favorite non-single song they performed on tour, it has a fun ‘80′s inspired feel. The bass (and the drums) stand out in this song. 

Favorite Lyrics:

Leave all of your indecisions with you at home/Don't see you're doing me a favor

lol me. 

God dammit we look good together

Moving Along

This song also took me a little while to get into, besides the beat, I think it has to do with the more talk quality of the song. And again, the interesting lyrics. But now you see me bopping. I feel like they chose very unique songs to perform on tour and I appreciate that it also gave me the time to love them, so now I can properly enjoy them now that the album is out. 

Favorite Lyrics:

For this song, my favorite lyrics has to do more with what part of the song is the most fun to sing along to.

I know I’m the stupid one who ended it/And now I'm the stupid one regretting it

I've been thinking about you lots, lately/Or are you moving along?

If Walls Could Talk

This is the first new song that I heard and it was so exciting. From the first listen I knew that this is going to be one of my favorite songs. Which makes me scream because this is a straight sex song. This song just makes me smile and makes me want to dance. 

This is the first song that Ashton has a proper feature and it makes me so happy :) I love the drums and the piano in this song. Michael’s guitar part during most of the song brings a lightness during the song but then during the bridge it brings the gritty, we're getting down and dirty aspect to the song. 

-Disclaimer- I will not talk about bass enough through this post bc I do not have the best ear for bass, I am just not as familiar with the instrument. I can tell in some songs, but in others, I have to listen very closely but even then I don’t necessarily hear it (I mean I’m pretty sure Cal will be playing the piano in this song so... it makes sense)

Favorite Lyrics:

Bodies are hoping to get addicted to sound

I love this line. This is a song that makes you want to put your head back, dance and get lost in the music. It is a perfect representation of the song. 

If these walls could talk, I'd hope they wouldn't say anything/Because they've seen way too many things

This lines really brings perspective. I find this song to be very vulnerable. The line is saying that it’s seen everything you’ve done within these walls, the sex, the desire, but also you break down crying, the look of falling in love, anger, and frustration as you hit the wall… The walls know your everything.

Better Man

Another Taylor Swift reference? Lol. But actually, this song reminds me of Ed Sheeran. I even feel like how it’s sung gives me ed vibes, the guitar, down to the mhhh. 

This song is so cute. 

Favorite Lyrics:

New friends again and again, gone when the morning comes/Demons I try to defend, but I couldn't get enough

This line stood out right away it was sad and relatable. 

Wrapped in your arms, I swear I'd die for you

im not emo.

More 

Another fav. This song goes so hard. It reminds me a little bit of ONE OK ROCK. There is a heavy guitar part, Ashton kills the drums at the end, and there's a shaker?? in this song too.

I mean... this is about Luke. It can easily apply to the other boys, but there’s a reason why this is a Luke dominate album. 

Favorite Lyrics:

Enemy lines are drawn, lines are drawn

I love how Calum sings this line

I like a lot of lines in the album, the first verse is a standout, idk, this is a very sad relatable song.

Why Won’t You Love Me

Lol the first few seconds makes me think of Chole by Emblem3 

This was the first song where I was still and entranced while listening to it. This is a very cinematic song, which is very beautiful but also makes me think of someone (cough cough) staring out a rainy window.

While I have never been in a relationship I can relate to this song, specifically to friendship. Sometimes people change or need something better even if nothing actually went wrong. I think this is something important to remember with any relationship, sometimes “It’s not you, it’s me” is as true as it gets. 

The ooh at the end is cute. 

Favorite Lyrics:

You say you can't wait and need to make a change

I check my phone to see your face/Staring back as if to say/Don't worry, you won't be lonely

Woke Up In Japan

I can’t help but think about my time in Japan while I listen to this (Even though I am actually visualizing China bc we were in a hotel for a short time, while the dorm we were in Japan was more like an apartment). This song is good, they lyrics standout the most, but it defs doesn’t stand out as much as other songs. It’s an interesting contradiction that I am trying to wrap my head around. It’s all over the place. The song is about amazing sex, the ecstasy of a night out while being in a bad mental place in another country. (even though japans probs metaphorical in this context)

Favorite Lyrics:

It was more than just a neon weekend

Empty Wallets

This is another song that does stand out too much but it’s still GOOD.

Favorite Lyrics:

Dancing on empty wallets

I love the visual 

Shoulda caught a break/The fluid ain't to blame/For the sugar causing pain

Ghost of You

I’m not dying, I am already dead. This song pulls at my heartstrings so much. I can’t. It also reminds me of songs that they play in ‘00 movies which makes me emo (closest I can think of I’ll be, but that’s not exactly the feel I’m going for).

This is a masterpiece. 

Favorite Lyrics:

The verses. I can’t pick. 

Monster Among Men

Michael starting of the song. Yes.  This song is funky and fun. I really enjoy the instrumental arrangement in this song, Ashton’s drumming goes hard, mikey’s guitar solo, cal on the piano. It’s amazing. This isn’t my #1 but it’s defs up there (as with the next to songs)

Favorite Lyrics:

one, two, three, four 

I love how this switches with the beat. The oh no’s in this song also go hard.

it's time for me to admit/That I'm an asshole, so here I go

boy…wyd? At least you’re being honest. 

Meet You There

The chorus, the beat drop. YESSSS. I also love the attitude of whatever will be will be, the universe will choose our destiny.

Favorite Lyrics:

I would break in bed, if you wanted me to

I. AM. SCREAMING.

Babylon

Calum F it up. The intro to this song. I had heard that a song sounded like FOB, my friend made the direct reference last night, but not until this morning have I finally been able to hear it. Sounds similar to centuries which is one of FOB’s best songs (that I’ve heard).

Favorite Lyrics:

The entire second verse 

I'm tired of the feud, your short fuse, my half-truths are not amused/I wish we had a clue to start new, a white moon, no residue/The color of our mood is so rude, a cold June, we're not immune/But if we're way too faded to fight, you can stay one more night.

And there we have it, folks. I am so incredibly proud of these boys. This album was life-changing for them, their excitement feed off to us, and it followed through. I don’t think I’ve enjoyed an album so much since Made in the AM and that was back in 2015. Well, this will all I will be talking about for a long time. So I am sorry in advance. 

Ranking to hopefully come later in the week.

Album Review/Ranking Masterlist

[cifro]

Ohh, did they change/edit smth in the final volumes of eldlive? I'd really like to hear about the loose ends they managed to end well.

There were a couple iirc, though it’s mostly just expo dumb in the first chapter(?) of the 10th/11th volume

I’m basically writing this from the top of my head, so take it with a grain of salt dear anon haha

So obligatory “spoilers-ish down below” warning 8D

Btw this is in no particular order and mostly random imo haha

Mimi finally got married w/ the Yukimine-guy from vol 7-8-ish (the one where she held a card before Chuta and co got training from Madigan)

Matsutaro and Michiyo actually being part of the “fate-weavers” of Mothers and the reason why they (aside for Gucci ‘cuz he’s more of a collateral damage) had the mountain incident

King’s dead bro (the reason why Heaven Sider (aka King and Alba) started the whole “DESTROY ēlCIVILIZATION” shenanigans) was also part of the “fate-weavers” and the reason why he did that was to see which Monitalien (Drew (aka Chuta) or Migrane (aka King (yeah, that’s what he named it, ‘cuz it gives him headaches lol)) who’ll evolve(?) and be the one who’ll be the seed(?) to help Mothers’ Mother flourish

Chuta was able to “connect” w/ Drew again, ‘cuz Misuzu put some of Drew’s cells(?) in her discarded hair pin (the crescent moon shaped one and was held and buried on Earth by Chuta) and both Chuta and Drew still remember ‘cuz of their previous symbiosis(?)

Also the hair pin can disguise SPH, but we already knew that since she was able to use it to not think Chuta’s SPH as stinky

Also, also, Scarlet actually have one in her arm too

Lane Brick (still a funny name ngl) journey from being a pirate to an big bro officer guy so to help Misuzu avoid her fate as Mothers’ Mother and was the one who demanded her to be an officer like him in exchange the Mothers having his future-seeing right eye

Also they can’t kill him, ‘cuz the eye’ll get bad too (basically working under supervision)

Dr. Love and co surviving a crash via a life-boat and Matsutaro’s SPH (it was defense-related I think) and landed on one his fellow science-friends’ labs

The ēlDLIVE SSD (solar-system district) managed to be revived by Dr. Love ‘cuz Riggs drank an illegal and discontinued(?) motion-sickness medicine that had “pathogen antibody(?)” reactions before the impending “dusting” (aka that time they had a birthday party before the biggest party duster happened) and since the station was air-tight, it wasn’t contaminated w/ anything else (to quote Dr. Love “it’s been a series of lucky events” indeed lol)

Gucci having a deux ex machina (time-space null-thing) to help Chuta fight Heaven Sider, but eventually used it for the final fight w/ Mothers (he got the message from him only near the end lol)

THE FRIGGIN DREW-OOP MECHS FOR GLOCK AND CO

AND THEY’RE IMMEDIATELY ABLE TO SYMPATHIZE AS WELL BUT ONLY FOR LIKE 30 MINS OF ENERGY LOL

Also, that oop mechs was Scarlet’s research when Dr. Love went awol then gave it to him when they meet again later lol

Lane getting his eye back via Misuzu (as Mothers’ Mother) and told him to apprehend Keishi 4 years later (after time skip)

Kieshi (the blue guy, w/ long hair and beads crossing his face) being the semi-big-bad (along w/ Mothers I think and fate too, prolly)

Mothers wanting to killing 1/3, enslaving 1/3, and surviving the strongest 1/3 of ēlCivilization (also why “fate weaving” happened) ‘cuz there’s gonna be a “universe reset” in a couple of centuries and everyone in ēlCivilization’re gonna be wiped out, so they want to raise their survival-rate and made the “seed” (monitalien) to do that lol

Kieshi’s being the one who allowed the SSD died (’cuz “Mothers fate-weavers”) and also killed Scarlet (the old woman professor that Dr. Love met) to emulate the feeling of suffering like Chuta so he’ll “sympathize” w/ his “Drew” like him, ‘cuz of his love for her (he helped her escape from “her fate” before)

Also, he’s apparently the one why the “patogen antibody(?)” motion sickness medicine got banned and discontinued, ‘cuz he knows it could resist(?) the pathogen

Also, also apparently at one time Scarlet-Dr.Love is like Misuzu-Chuta (aka Mother-candidate-monitalien candidate) and the latter is basically the back up ‘cuz of the former(?)

An ēlDLIVE station who’s sent to the “fight destination” at first attacked the SSD, got into video-contact, suddenly signal got cut of video-contact after shouting “TRAITOR”, then when meeting up face-to-face they let them pass ‘cuz “in all the years of being an inspector, I dunno anymore which one to believe” (aka heel-turn moral compas moment, but okay)

Mothers and Kieshi trying to mass-produce “Drew-seed” and select the “surviors” to artificially implant them

Kieshi trying to defeat Chuta-Drew by becoming bigger, but failed ‘cuz the Kieshi-fake Drew duo doesn’t have the same bond/sympathy as Chuta-Drew (it’s an anti-climatic fight, from an action perspective imo)

Misuzu being kinda tsun-tsun abt her wishes and wants

Chuta being the bigger guy to let her go, but everyone in ēlCivilization told them just take her (the time-space-null-thing got cracked and now everyone can see what Misuzu-Chuta-Drew are thinking/projecting), we’ll find another way to survive the Big Wipeout w/ technology and stuff!

Misuzu finally accepting she wants to be w/ Chuta, Mothers basically got dissolved (since she resigned from it lol), and everyone has a happy ending :D

That’s pretty much things I can write atm (it’s arnd 1-2 a.m when I wrote this lmao), sorry if it got derailed a bit anon haha

Anyway even though I write it like that and thought the last two-ish volumes were a bit speedy info-dump-ish, I still enjoy reading them nonetheless -- I still recomend buying the volumes just for the sake of getting more context of my poorly-worded-words haha :”DDD

If you still have questions or smth, just let me know and I’ll try my best to be more eloquent and cohesive next time (and also w/ picture next time) haha (ﾉ´ヮ´)ﾉ*:･ﾟ✧

Also in a not-so-related note: writing this has made me think ēlDLIVE has a womb metaphor and I dunno what to take of this thing...

[a-panda-reads-act-omega]

ACT OMEGA PART 12

THE 02/11/16 UPDATE

Sooo... Funny story, I already worked on this part, then I got LOGGED OUT for some reason, and lost everything I wrote. I got up to page 79. And because I’m a lazy bastard, I’m really gonna half-ass my recreation of what I wrote. So yeah, please forgive me for that. Once I get to page 79, I’ll probably start trying again.

KARKAT: (BUT STILL, THAT’S NOT OUR ONLY PROBLEM.) DAVE: (order now and youll get another mental breakdown absolutely free) DAVE: (two disasters for the low low price of one) DAVE: (what a steal) KARKAT: (DON'T GIVE ME YOUR SASS. I DIDN'T GET THESE DEBACLES FROM THE DOLLAR STORE, YOU KNOW.) KARKAT: (THIS IS SOME LEGITIMATELY TROUBLING SHIT, OKAY?) DAVE: (got it) DAVE: (im not even gonna continue that metaphor im putting on my serious face) DAVE: (youve got waldo the juaggalo on your mind what else) KARKAT: (WELL...) KARKAT: (I'M WORRIED ABOUT VRISKA, I GUESS.) DAVE: (vriska?) KARKAT: (I KNOW. CALL ME CRAZY, BUT MY AGGRAVATION SPONGE HAS BEEN TINGLING WITH GOOD REASON FOR VRISKA FUCKING SERKET.) DAVE: (ok) DAVE: (so whats the problem then) KARKAT: (SHOULD WE WAIT FOR HER TO GET BACK BEFORE WE CLAIM THE REWARD?) KARKAT: (WILL SHE EVEN *BE* COMING BACK?)

She BETTER be coming back, because she’s the greatest. I mean, I hope she will at least. LE’s probably gonna be a pain wrapping up, but now that he’s weakened I think it might be possible. She just needs to get a good roll..

DAVE: (uh) DAVE: (why wouldnt she) KARKAT: (LOOK, I DON’T KNOW ABOUT EVERYBODY ELSE, BUT THE BYZANTINE CHARADES SHE’S ALWAYS FLAUNTING? I KNOW SHE HAS TO FEEL LIKE THE MOST COMPETENT PERSON IN THE ROOM AT ALL TIMES, BUT) KARKAT: (IT’S ALL KIND OF PAPER THIN FROM MY PERSPECTIVE.) KARKAT: (I SPENT AN EMBARRASSING AMOUNT OF TIME TRYING TO CHASE THAT SAME FANTASY, AND I CAN TELL SHE’S STILL DANGEROUSLY CAUGHT UP IN IT.) KARKAT: (IT JUST SO HAPPENS SHE IS WAY BETTER AT CRAFTING SHAMELESS MACHIAVELLIAN SCHEMES THAN I EVER WAS.) KARKAT: (I DIDN’T CARE ENOUGH TO DO ANYTHING ABOUT IT THOUGH, SEEING AS IT WAS WORKING OUT BETTER FOR HER THAN IT EVER HAD FOR ME. OR IT WAS AS FAR AS I COULD TELL, ANYWAY.) KARKAT: (IN FACT, I WAS MORE THAN HAPPY TO DROP THAT FARCE ALTOGETHER AND ALLOW HER TO PICK UP THE SLACK AS SHE SEEMED SO EAGER TO DO.) KARKAT: (APPARENTLY THAT ONLY BECAME OFFICIAL AS OF A FEW HOURS AGO, BUT WHATEVER.) KARKAT: (THE POINT IS) KARKAT: (NOBODY IS EVEN CONSIDERING THE POSSIBILITY THAT VRISKA MIGHT) KARKAT: (*MIGHT*) KARKAT: (NOT ACTUALLY KNOW WHAT SHE’S DOING.) KARKAT: (BEYOND WHATEVER MASTER PLAN SHE COBBLED TOGETHER BASED ON WHAT COULD, FOR ALL WE KNOW, BE ABSOLUTE BULLSHIT, WHAT IS SHE ACTUALLY GOING TO DO?)

He has a point. I mean, her entire plan was basically “fuck the LE up, use the Juju.” but that didn’t work out for her! She clearly overestimated her plan here, against an unkillable god.

DAVE: (i dunno) DAVE: (what she usually does?) KARKAT: (BELIEVE IT OR NOT, BEFORE THROWING MYSELF INTO THE FRAY EARLIER I MANAGED TO SNEAK IN A SHORT NAP.) DAVE: (really) KARKAT: (YES REALLY. DON’T ASK ABOUT IT.) KARKAT: (BUT I GOT TO SEE WITH MY OWN GANDER BULBS HOW FAIRLY FUCK DEEP SHE’S BURIED HERSELF INTO THE FURTHEST RING’S SMORGASBORD OF REALITY-SHATTERING FUCKERY.) KARKAT: (SHE ACTS LIKE IT'S JUST AN EVENING STROLL THROUGH THE VOID, BUT LO AND BEHOLD! WHEN YOU LEAST EXPECT IT, SHE'LL BE BACK, HAULING IN HER FIRED IRONS LIKE WEEKLY GROCERIES.) KARKAT: (BUT HEY, IT’S NO BIG DEAL! NOTHING WE NEED TO KNOW ABOUT, NO WORRIES.) KARKAT: (BUT YOU KNOW WHAT? MAYBE SOME WORRIES!)

Yup, I love this line. I’m gonna use this somehow someday. “No worries! But you know what? Maybe some worries!”

DAVE: (i guess you have a point) DAVE: (but i dont really see what we can do about it) DAVE: (unless you want to put things on hold and look for her?) KARKAT: (NO! FUCK THAT!) KARKAT: (I’M DONE. I JUST WANT THIS TO BE OVER WITH. WHATEVER SHE’S GOTTEN HERSELF INTO, SHE’LL JUST HAVE TO GET HERSELF OUT OF IT.) KARKAT: (IT’S NOT LIKE I’D EVEN BE MUCH HELP.) KARKAT: (IN FACT, THE IDEA THAT I COULD EVER CONCEIVABLY BE OF ANY USE TO HER IS SO LAUGHABLE I MIGHT JUST PISS MYSELF.) KARKAT: (I MEAN, WHERE IS THIS EVEN COMING FROM? WHY AM I WORRIED ABOUT *VRISKA*, OF ALL PEOPLE?) KARKAT: (IF SHE COULD HEAR MY THOUGHTS RIGHT NOW, NO DOUBT SHE WOULD BE GIVING ME AN UNENDING SUPPLY OF SHIT FOR EVER DOUBTING HER.) KARKAT: (HELL, SHE PROBABLY ALREADY HAS. I CAN ALREADY SMELL THE SHIT ROCKETING ITS WAY THROUGH SPACETIME, READY TO BURY ME IN SASS.) DAVE: (i dunno man) DAVE: (like sure) DAVE: (any plan to bail out vriska is about as well founded as the dark carnival) DAVE: (which is not at all) DAVE: (because its pretty much the fakest thing to never ever be real ever) KARKAT: (I’M NOT REALLY IN THE MOOD TO JOKE ABOUT THAT RIGHT NOW.) KARKAT: (YEAH, LET'S JUST PUT EVERYTHING ON HOLD FOR A SECOND SO WE CAN HAVE A GOOD CHUCKLE ABOUT HOW FAKE MIRTHFUL MESSIAHS ARE.) KARKAT: (HARDY HAR HAR.) KARKAT: (WE NOW RETURN TO OUR REGULARLY SCHEDULED BROODING.) DAVE: (you really are far gone) DAVE: (look) DAVE: (sure she makes it kind of impossible to care about her) DAVE: (and i wouldnt be surprised if shes perfectly fine) DAVE: (just off doing her own thing) DAVE: (but the fact that you care anyways) DAVE: (is kind of cool imo) KARKAT: (WHAT.) DAVE: (you actually give a shit about people) DAVE: (even people that probably dont deserve it) DAVE: (ngl vriska is kind of a huge bitch and you would probably be happier if you wrote her off) DAVE: (maybe thats the case for some other people too but not gonna name names)

WELL DAVE, I CARE ABOUT HER. ANd also, who is Dave talking about when he says “other people?” Nobody really comes to mind besides maaybe Gamzee.

Daw, he’s all concerned and shit. That’s kinda cute. Though it’s still odd he’s not teasing Karkat about this. I guess he knows how to show some maturity when it’s needed.

KARKAT: (DAVE...) DAVE: (ok fine) DAVE: (im just trying to say that) DAVE: (from experience) DAVE: (putting aside bitchiness or what anyone might deserve) DAVE: (having people around that actually care about you makes a big difference) DAVE: (and the idea that not caring about anything or anyone is somehow the most ideal way to be is garbage) DAVE: (so instead of beating yourself up about caring too much) DAVE: (do yourself a favor and just focus on whats bothering you)

Yup, that’s some good advice. I hate when people are too busy stressing about other people that they just let themselves fall apart. I wonder how Karkat will take it!

Skepticist Karkat is best Karkat.

KARKAT: (... OK, SURE.)

yay.

KARKAT: (... OK, SURE.) DAVE: (i get that you think vriska might fuck up and get herself killed somehow) DAVE: (but i also get the feeling theres more to it than that) KARKAT: (YEAH. THERE IS.) KARKAT: (WE HAVE NO WAY OF KNOWING IF SHE DOES FUCK UP.) KARKAT: (AND, DAMMIT, TEREZI IS PROBABLY GOING TO TIE HERSELF INTO A FUCKING PRETZEL ABOUT IT TOO.) KARKAT: (WHICH I'M SURE SHE REALLY DOESN’T NEED RIGHT NOW.) KARKAT: (AND NOW *I'M* ALL TWISTED UP WONDERING IF WHATEVER VRISKA IS DOING OUT THERE CAN STILL FUCK US OVER SOMEHOW.)

Oh Karkat, I assure you. Anything anybody does is guaranteed to have the potential to fuck everything over. In this case, she’s supposed to kill a universe destroying god. I think there’s a chance she can fuck you over with that.

DAVE: (hmmm) DAVE: (well) DAVE: (i cant help you with terezi) DAVE: (shes just going to have to work on that) DAVE: (but as far as the the blue winged butterfly effect goes...) DAVE: (im the timeline guy right) KARKAT: (I GUESS??) DAVE: (you guessed correctly) DAVE: (and right now nothing feels off to me) DAVE: (theres been enough outside intervention to convince me that this is the way shit is supposed to go) DAVE: (if somebody from an alternate reality bothers to travel back and give the timeline a thorough heimlich maneuver like im assuming john and roxy did) DAVE: (which causes all the potential roadblocks to fling themselves out of our way and allow the right events to start slotting into place) DAVE: (thats generally a good sign that everything that can go wrong already has) DAVE: (so its pretty much smooth sailing from here) DAVE: (... hopefully)

Dave, you are absolutely talking out of your ass right now. Do you even have the ability to “feel” if something’s wrong? I don’t think that’s a thing.

KARKAT: (DID YOU REALLY NEED TO TACK THAT ON THE END THERE?) DAVE: (just covering my bases) KARKAT: (YOU KNOW, IF THAT WAS YOUR IDEA OF A PEP TALK, I THINK I MIGHT AS WELL FLING MYSELF OFF THIS MISERABLE VICTORY PLATTER AND PERFORM A SUPERSONIC HONKBIRD DIVE INTO SKAIA.) KARKAT: (*HOPEFULLY* I CAN DROWN IN CELESTIAL OOZE AND LAY MYSELF TO REST AGAINST THE BOSOM OF A LITERAL FUCKING UNIVERSE.) KARKAT: (THAT WOULD ALMOST DEFINITELY BE MORE COMFORTING THAN “HOPEFULLY EVERYTHING WILL BE FINE I THINK”.)

Calm down Karkat, that’s just assurance that everything is in no way fine and you’re all going to fuckING DIE UNLESS JOHN OPENS THAT DOOR RIGHT NOW.

Pft, this panel is weird looking.

DAVE: (jesus) DAVE: (alright you got me maybe im talking out of my ass) DAVE: (this whole alpha timeline thing is really something you gotta play by ear and i cant predict whats going to happen) DAVE: (but it just sucks to see you so stressed out) DAVE: (i was kind of hoping we could put all of that crap behind us) DAVE: (at least for a little while) DAVE: (those are really pretty decent things to be worrying about but the crux of the matter is theres just nothing we can actually do) DAVE: (at least not that i can figure out) DAVE: (thats more roses thing and she seems to think everythings fine) DAVE: (and even if something does happen youll probably be in better shape to deal with it if you dont get yourself so worked up) KARKAT: (... YEAH.) KARKAT: (I GUESS YOU’RE RIGHT.) KARKAT: (I THINK I TEND TO LET MYSELF HYPER FOCUS ON ONE POSSIBILITY AND STRESS OVER WHAT USUALLY AMOUNTS TO ABSOLUTELY NOTHING.) KARKAT: (SO I NEED TO TRY AND NOT DO THAT MAYBE.) DAVE: (awesome) DAVE: (think about troll dane cooks unironically hilarious stand up routine or something) DAVE: (and chill out) KARKAT: (I AM. I’M CHILLING.) KARKAT: (THIS IS ME CHILLING. THIS IS MY CHILL FACE.) DAVE: (funny) DAVE: (looks a lot like that face you were making a minute ago) DAVE: (when you were decidedly not chilling)

This is a nice pesterlog right here. And cOME ON karkat, chill out man.

Oh my god karkat stop you weren’t meant to smile

KARKAT: (HOW'S THISH THEN.) DAVE: (pffffft) DAVE: (hahahahahaha) KARKAT: (heh) DAVE: (yeah sure) DAVE: (that works)

No it doesnt Dave stop its horrible.

Alright well, Dave and Karkat have sorta calmed each other down and spooked each other up. [fun fact, every time i type each other i type it as eachother and have to retype it because i forgot that isn’t a fucking word. Why isnt that a fuckING WORD]

And that’s all for this update! So I think I’ll go ahead and make the next post now.