#challenge 03

[snowflakechallenge]

Fandom Snowflake Challenge #3

Apologies for the delay...

Introduction Post* Meet the Mods Post * Challenge #1 * Challenge #2 Remember that there is no official deadline, so feel free to join in at any time, or go back and do challenges you've missed. Imagine there's a fairy godmother (or a fairy at the bottom of your garden), who's out there just looking for little wishes to grant! Or, more prosaically, that an unnamed challenge (can't imagine which one!) is going to have a future prompt about creating things and/or granting wishes, and all kinds of people are going to be looking for ideas for things to make. You never know what could happen! Challenge #3 Create a wish list of fandom things (podfic, graphics, playlists, canon recs translations, research help, vids, sky's the limit!) that you'd like to receive. Post your answer to today’s challenge in your own space and leave a comment in this post saying you did it. Include a link to your post if you feel comfortable doing so. The items in brackets are mere suggestions, as I'm sure you can all think of more creative ideas for fandom things to put on a wish list, but consider it a starting point, a prompt, if you will. One thing, three things, fifteen things, however many you like!

My (very biased) favourite part of this challenge is granted wishes showing up throughout the rest of the fest. Someone made me a whole fanvid once! (No, I'm still not over that being cool. I will never be over that being cool.) Tip: If you're asking for things related to specific fandoms, mention the names of those fandoms when you comment here, to help out with people finding things. Check out the comments for all the awesome participants of the challenge and visit their journals/challenge responses to comment on their posts and cheer them on. (And because we were gifted with paid time for the month of January, you can search comments! So don’t forget to list the fandom(s) in your comment so people can search for it.) And just as a reminder: this is a low pressure, fun challenge. If you aren't comfortable doing a particular challenge, then don't. We aren't keeping track of who does what.

(If you want us to reblog your response here at our Tumblr, we’re tracking: snowflakechallenge2024.)

[multitudeofmuses]

CHALLENGE THREE - @willowvalerp

Character Playlists

GABRIELA SALGADO

Scooby Doo Theme - Best Coast People Are Strange - The Doors W.I.T.C.H - Devon Cole Life is a Highway - Rascal Flatts Antichrist - The 1975 Rabbit Heart - Florence ATM Edge of Seventeen - Stevie Nicks Season of the Witch - Donovan Bohemian Rhapsody - Queen Stuck in the Middle - Steelers Wheel Hello Goodbye - The Beatles

LENNON RUIZ

Nothing Else Matters - Metallica Ugly Crier - Mckenne Grace Younger Now - Miley Cyrus Summer Fling - Nina Nesbitt Human - Rag'n'Bone Man Down Down Down - Charlie Simpson Isn't She Lovely - Stevie Wonder Tiny Dancer - Elton John Shake It Out - Florence ATM Layla - Leonard Cohen Come Together - The Beatles

[slugghee]

I'M FINALLY FREE

(click for better quality bc holy shit tumblr ...)

[mikasleaf]

2003 angel was such a fashion icon for me 🥺💕

@tmaynt

[baxterstockmanisthecenterfold]

best screen adaptation of Baxter?

I mean, to be completely & brutally honest. There aren't really that many options. But as far as best writing goes... I'd have to say 2003 STILL holds up to this day.

Despite all of his own unique differences from his comic counterpart, he's still the best & honestly, the most FAITHFUL version of him outside the comics. Using the mousers for a similar purpose, taking crap from nobody (as much as it backfired horribly), being considered a legitimate threat especially with how he just won't go down so easily no matter how much you throw at him. Or as he puts it, "not so easily dismissed". Scott Williams is still an amazing voice actor & did his thing every time he was in an episode. Not to mention he was the first version to actually HAVE a backstory & development as a villain, person & character in the end. Plus the things this man says still live rent free in my head till this day.

And I do feel like it helps that Peter & Kevin did work on this show themselves from time to time, mostly on being the showrunners go to for approval on certain character designs & stories so it goes to show the 2003 writers truly cared about what they were doing with these characters, Baxter included!

Other options are still gonna be pretty tricky to pick through considering the fact that Baxter isn't in a lot of eras as you probably think he is. And even when he is, he's rarely written with relevance or ANY care at all because most of the writer's go-to source when it comes to adapting him is the 1987 & recently 2012 cartoons. He's only been in 3 movies & 2 original video games & all of them either: weren't really big roles & gave us much to work with or just had him there for the sake of 87 fanservice. As for the other cartoons. I'm gonna be deadass when I say STOCKBOY was also a better adaptation too

Was he 100% accurate to his source material? No not really. Especially from an outside perspective. But he at least had EFFORT put into him! The boy nearly killed people for his own personal needs & then was nearly successful in revealing the turtles to the world a month later because he's petty & it meant more clout & benefits for him. And that is pure Baxter Stockman core if you ask me. Also he's the first cartoon Stockman that WASN'T paired with & made into Shredder's personal sock puppet and that should be followed on with more considering he never met Shredder in the first place in the comics. Stockboy is another great adaptation & we would have most likely seen more proof of this had Rise not been cancelled.

[pinkypastal]

I'm on to something here

[corvid-language-library]

Ughhh I've just realised:

My classes start at 4pm tomorrow

Because it's Summer School, I have to be in the classroom and have my login completed at least 1 hour before classes start, which means I need to be in the classroom before 3pm

It's a 30 minute train journey and a 10 minute walk to the classroom

There is a train that departs at 14:22. Assuming it's on time, I would arrive at the classroom at 15:02. I'd say I could run, but it will be 32ºC tomorrow. Additionally, that train is frequently 3-5 minutes late, and I'd have to start up the tablet and wait for the login page to load, which can take up to 5 minutes sometimes. So basically, it's a no-go.

The train before that departs at 12:16. This means I'll get to the classroom at around 12:56.

It will take me roughly 30 minutes to prepare for my classes

I will finish my classes at 19:40. There is a train at 19:48. It will take me at least 15 minutes to clean up and lock up. The next train is at 20:44.

This means I will have approximately 3h 53m to sit on my arse doing nothing. Add the train ride to that, I will have almost 5 hours where I'm just waiting around doing not an awful lot

Gotta figure out how best to utilise that time, I guess!

[wingsofescape]

So was anybody going to tell me Ed is actually crying when Maria Ross goes to hug him in Lab 5

Or was I supposed to find out during another rewatch myself

Alexa play Baby Mine from the Dumbo soundtrack

[draconicdeityarts]

Hey friends! In celebration of 600 followers (now 650?!?!?!? Where do you guys keep COMING FROM-) I’m hosting dtiys! It’ll be on my other socials as well :)

The idea is to draw this with any version of the tmnt you like- your own iteration or any of the canon ones! You don’t have to do the same special effects, the only thing is doing the same pose!

No prizes or deadline, but if you join don’t be surprised if you get a doodle in return as thanks :) be sure to tag me if you join!

[hummingbird-of-light]

June of Doom 2024 Day 3 (@juneofdoom)

3. “Well, well, well…”                           

| Hiding | Ambushed | Stalking |

~

His heart was pounding in his throat as Pavel Chekov ran through the empty corridors of the otherwise bustling Enterprise. His breathing was frantic and halting.

'I have to reach the emergency bridge!'

Again and again the same thought flashed through his mind. The mission Kirk had given him before he ...

Chekov closed his eyes. Nausea filled him at the thought of the last sight he had caught of his captain when the intruders had pounced on him. Kirk hadn't been able to do anything to stop the creatures from literally tearing him apart.

The smell of blood and death filled the corridors of the Enterprise. Pavel tried his best to block it out. He kept his gaze fixed straight ahead, not daring to take a closer look at the remains of his comrades lying in the corners.

He could only hope that many crew members had barricaded themselves in their quarters when the red alarm had gone off. Although there was probably no hope anyway.

Chekov thought of how the strange creatures had emerged from an ambush in space and effortlessly penetrated the huge Federation ship. Despite the shields being at full power, they had managed to beam onto the Enterprise. It had been the first sign of superior technology. When they had then taken over the engine room in no time at all and deactivated some of the systems, it had been clear just how intelligent and powerful they were.

Chekov swallowed.

His mission was clear. He had to try to reach the emergency bridge and send out a call for help from there. Pavel felt tears filling his eyes. Sending out calls for help was usually Uhura's job, but the young navigator had seen with his own eyes that his colleague was no longer able to do so. And that she never would be again.

He thought of Cmdr. Spock and Dr. McCoy and everyone else who had been on the bridge at the time of the attack. No one but Chekov had made it to the Jefferies tubes in time. And for that reason, he was the only one who could carry out the captain's order.

Another face flashed before Chekov's inner eye, but he quickly suppressed it. He couldn't think about this man now, otherwise he would collapse on the spot and not be able to carry out the order.

The young man's breath caught in his throat as he turned a corner and made out two of the intruders some distance away.

Damn! He couldn't let them see him!

Of course, Chekov could have made his way to the emergency bridge through the tubes, but he had feared that the intruders would somehow manage to seal the shafts and trap him inside.

From where he now stood in the corridor, he had no way of getting to one of the tubes.

One of the intruders made a strange clicking noise and the other reacted to it. Apparently it was the language of the aliens.

Chekov's blood ran cold as he saw more of the creatures approaching, dragging two familiar people with them.

It was Mr. Keenser and Mr. Scott. The two engineers were thrown roughly to the ground in front of the two other beings, who Chekov now realized were slightly smaller than the others.

The navigator heard Scott uttering loud Gaelic curses, but he didn't get far.

One of the smaller creatures lunged at him and bared its razor-sharp teeth. Claws dug into the human's body and Chekov could only watch helplessly as both Scott and Keenser were torn apart by the creatures.

The bodies of the smaller intruders grew quickly and the yellowish fur that adorned the two-legged creatures turned a dark red like that of the others.

'It's the brood!' Chekov thought.

The creatures ... used the crew members as food.

Once again, Pavel's stomach turned at the thought. They were prey for the intruders!

At the final sight of his former mentor, Chekov suddenly could no longer control himself. He sucked in a sharp breath and it happened. The aliens spotted him!

The navigator reacted immediately. He turned on his heel and ran as fast as he could.

He had to survive! He had to find another way to the emergency bridge! He had to follow Kirk's orders!

The blood rushed in his ears as he ran faster and faster ... right into the arms of one of the creatures.

"Well, well, well ... what do we have here?"

Chekov heard the voice, its words translated by a translator that the creature must have stolen from one of the crew members. He thrashed around wildly, but the creature was stronger than him.

Pavel wanted to scream, but he knew it would do him no good.

There was a broad grin on the alien's hairy face as it slid its long tongue across Chekov's cheek. The navigator shuddered at the touch and tried to pull away once more, but the other intruders had long since arrived.

There was no escape.

Clicking noises, which the translator did not translate, sounded and when Chekov turned his gaze to the side, he saw another yellow creature licking its lips with relish. The click must have been its name.

"Time for dinner."

As the creature lunged at him, teeth digging into his flesh, ripping it out piece by piece, Chekov finally allowed himself to think about the man he had been trying as hard as he could to suppress.

'I'm sorry, Hikaru. I tried.'

He had let them all down. He hadn't managed to avenge them. Not even the man who had pushed him into the Jefferies tube, allowing him to escape. He was a failure. And he would die as such.

[snowflakechallenge]

Snowflake Challenge #3

Introduction Post * Meet the Mods Post * Master Post on DW * Challenge #1 * Challenge #2

Remember that there is no official deadline, so feel free to join in at any time, or go back and do challenges you've missed.

Okay, hear me out… I know Snowflake is sunshine and rainbows and singing from the rooftops all the lovely and brilliant that is being in a fandom. But, let’s be honest. Sometimes–like with other things–there are sucky parts, heartbreak parts and just plain UGH parts. Rather than holding onto those slights and resentments, or burying them and pretending they don’t exist, just to have them slowly and almost imperceptibly seep into the rest of the challenges this month, why don’t we just let it all out?

Challenge #3

In your own space, Scream Into the Void. Get it all out. Leave a comment in today’s post at The Fandom Snowflake Challenge on DW saying you did it. Include a link to your post if you feel comfortable doing so.

For those of us who celebrate Festivus for the rest of us, this will be familiar. We call it “Airing of Grievances” and it is actually very satisfying, whether you do it tongue in cheek, get introspective or just literally scream.

Things to note with this challenge. Please do let readers know if you want or need words of encouragement or advice to make it better--some of us don’t, we just want to vent. Also, while we still totally encourage everyone to visit participants journals and spread the love and the cheer, do prepare yourself and don’t feel obligated to spend more time than is healthy for you in other people’s negative. It’s called a void for a reason.

Check out the comments for all the awesome participants of the challenge and visit their journals/challenge responses to comment on their posts and cheer them on.

And just as a reminder: this is a low pressure, fun challenge. If you aren't comfortable doing a particular challenge, then don't. We aren't keeping track of who does what.

(If you want us to reblog your response here at our Tumblr, we’re tracking: snowflakechallenge2023.)

[in-death-we-fall]

Six Feet Down Under

Metal Hammer 112, April 2003

Touring and whoring on the other side of the world, Hammer kept a diary of death with the Murderdolls through their residency at Australia’s Big Day Out festival. Shock horror: Mark Hughes. B-movie hero: Tony Mott.

(drive link)

The Big Day Out. The Australian travelling musical circus that steamrolls its way around Australia and New Zealand every winter with the hottest bands on the planet flying from all over the globe to join down under’s best bands in a mayhem filled fortnight. This year’s line-up, features among others, The Foo Fighters, Queens of the Stone Age, Jane’s Addiction, Jimmy Eat World, The Hard Ons and deathglam monstrosities, the Murderdolls. So far, the Mid West (sic) based five-piece outfit have been the cream of the festival, appropriately headlining the ‘Essentials’ stage. This is the band’s first time in the Antipodes and quizzical music fans have crowded to see the much-talked about live set. With Sydney copping the biggest crowds of all the legs on the tour, the band are preparing something special. But at 3pm in the afternoon you wouldn’t know it. Most of the band are still in bed from the night before, well, actually… the week before.

The ‘Dolls have been in Sydney for five days before their Big Day Out show and not finding much to do early on in the week they’ve just been getting down to the (sic) rock’n’roll’s most popular pastime: hard drinking. Drummer ‘Big’ Ben ‘The Ghoul’ Graves and bass player Eric Griffin are recovering from last night’s binge. While singer Wednesday and guitarist Joey Jordison are recovering from the night before the night before. Acey Slade, who maintains his sobriety, but still stays out ‘til dawn, has been up since !!am and is the only one ready for the show. With the band on stage at 7:15pm, things need doing. Staggering through their beer can and ‘paraphernalia’-strewn rooms to the showers, they’re down in their van and on the way out to the Big Day Out site just after 4pm.

Situated at the same place that hosted the Sydney 2000 olympics, the festival facilities are first rate and the sell-out crowd of 52,000 festival-goers are making the most of it. The temperature’s pushing a blistering 35°C and being the middle of a drought-ridden summer in Australia, everything’s dry, dusty and cracked. It’s a good 40-minute drive from the city to the festival and the sun’s stinging in through the van windows. Not big fans of the sunlight, the Murderdolls have got their leather jackets up over their heads to avoid even the slightest hint of a tan.

In the cool, air-conditioned shade of backstage I get to sit down with Joey Jordison and singer Wednesday 13 to gind out how the band are doing after their meteoric rise over the past eight months. Joey is straight down the line, measured and professional. “This si the first Big Day Out for all of us. Slipknot have only been down here once but not that (sic) this festival. This is something I’ve really wanted to play – something I’ve wanted to do for a really long time.”

For Wednesday, this is another notch on his rise as an international rock’n’roller. “It’s awesome,” he says. “I’ve always wanted to be out on the front of a rock’n’roll band at a festival like this. After struggling doing my own band for six years I actually quit my job back in April and I’ve been touring every since. I’ve done all the things I ever dreamed about. I’ve been to Europe three times, Japan twice and here we are now in Australia and that has all been pretty much in the last six months! Holy shit we’re doing some things that some bands have never done!”

“We just checked out the videotape from the Auckland show the other day and fuck man, it was awesome!” enthuses Joey. “People are saying we are pulling the most people to that stage out of everyone. Our band has been doing really well especially since we’ve only been going for a short time. We hope that after the BDO we’ll be able to come back and do some real headlining shows down here. We are having fun though, thinking about it, we’ve never had so many days off between shows before, it’s more like the Big Day Off!”

The band wasn’t supposed to be so idle. Most overseas bands on the BDO bill play a bunch of satellite shows in various cities around the country and for a month prior, the Murderdolls had been slated to perform a Sydney show with fellow US rockers The Deftones. But with very little warning, the Murderdolls were dumped from the bill just before the show. What really pissed off Joey and the lads was a lot of the Murderdolls fans had bought tickets on the basis that the band would be playing but in the end had to watch the Deftones supported by ex-At The Drive-In chancers, Sparta.

Without much choice in the matter the Murderdolls issued a statement on their website apologising to their fans and kept trying to fly their flag with some instore appearances at local record stores. One in particular at Utopia Records, was insane. There was such a roar when the band turned up, they looked truly surprised at the number of kids who had showed up, most dressed in black and red outfits.

“Someone told us there was only going to be about 150 kids, which was supposed to be a good turn-out for Utopia records for a new band,” retells Joey. “But when we turned up there (sic) almost 500! We talked to fans and signed everything that they had. We were there for a good three and a half hours. And at the Channel V interview it was pretty much the same story. Hordes of kids that wouldn’t let us get away.”

“That’s the cool thing with our fans,” explains Wednesday. “We’re not a radio band or an MTV band with this created army of little kids which I think is more pure than being the Number One radio band or liking it because someone tells you to like it. I know that our fans are real. It is really cool to see these hordes of kids show up, they are dressed like us, they know everything about us, it is just awesome.”

Thinking further ahead fans will be please to know the band are not going to let up on the groundswell already created by the Murderdolls. “I have to go back and finish recording some Slipknot stuff,” reveals Joey. “Then we (the Murderdolls) are going to do some more touring. There’s usually a three to four month sort of break between recording and when an album comes out so we are going to tour pretty much all the way from the end of May all the way to maybe the beginning of October. Which will be good because there’ll be less sunlight at that time of year,” jokes Wednesday raising his non-existent eyebrows and throwing his arms, heavily tattooed with b-grade horror heroes, into the air.

As the hot afternoon drifts into an only slightly less simmering evening, there’s a small problem with guitarist Acey. He’s got indigestion. This amounts to a small crisis because first aid officials must follow procedure and administer the medicine. This takes two St. John’s Ambulance men on pushbikes in a five minute ride from their base at the side of the main stadium. Very un-rock’n’roll indeed.

With the gig just 45 minutes away, the boys are pacing around their trailer, having their pics taken for Hammer. Acey inside in front of the mirror still applying the last of his make-up, Ghoul is getting powdered up, Wednesday’s still with the photographer, while Joey’s nervously pacing around, in the trailer, out the trailer, back in… Eric meanwhile is ready for the stage and cracks open the obligatory bottle of Jack Daniel’s. As a Murderdolls ritual, they’re applying the slap, the band have to listen to Kiss. “Must. Have. Kiss.” stipulates Joey. “‘All American Man’! We sometimes change that to ‘All American Ghoul’,” chimes in the Ghoul.

Just 10 minutes before showtime and the long lanky frame of Ben Graves is stretched spider-like up against the dressing room wall. “I’ll be in pain afterwards,” he explains. Wednesday has by now finished his solo shots with Hamer’s photographer. The day is hot enough anyway, and under the photographers lights the heat is even more stifling. ‘Jesus, it’s fucking hot!” exclaims the frontman. “But I don’t mind… I’m a naturally dead person in front of a camera” he laughs.

More Kiss blares out from the dressing room, this time ‘Dr Love’! Then the moment comes: ground fucking zero at the Big Day Out! The band clamber into the van and head around the back way to the Essentials stage. The bottle of Jack’s being passed around as they approach the stage the band take a quick peak (sic) to see how the crow’s building up. It’s the biggest yet, taking up most of the grassy area out the back of the main stadium. Joey – who regularly suffers from pre-gig nerves as his pre-stage vomiting on Slipknot’s ‘Disasterpiece (sic)’ DVD proves in all its technicolour glory – is bricking it.

Five minutes before the band are due to hit the powerchords and the guys are milling around in the wings. Ghoul is banging on some warm-up pads and everyone is getting psyched. They’ve left the Kiss CD backstage so they have to hum ‘All American Man’ together. Then they make their way to the stage.

A couple of huge Murderdolls logos adorn the stage and in an eruption of noise and energy, the Dolls take the stage and instantly kick off with ‘Dawn of The Dead’. Jordison in black leather Gestapo hat is jumping around stage left, Acey is wailing away stage right while Eric bangs away on the bass doing his best Nikki Sixx impression, while the Ghoul wrecks the trap kit. Wednesday is the last to take the stage and screaming, “We are the dead, coming for you!” And the crowd goes fucking wild.

The kids down the front, dressed up in full glam-goth regalia, know every word and sing along fervently with the band while among the throng watching from the side of stage are some of the biggest names in the Australian music industry. Members of bands like 28 days, Machine Gun Fellatio, Cog, Jimmy Eat World, Pre-Shrunk, and Sparta all stand wide eyed and mouths agape at the outrageous rock revisionism being unleashed onstage.

By the time the band have launched into ‘I (sic) Was a Teenage Zombie’, ‘Let’s Go To War’ and ‘Slit My Wrists (sic)’, the crows know what they’re in for. Most who have showed up for curiosity (sic) sake are still hanging around, but if anything the crowd is building and everyone looks like they are right into it having fun. The intro to ‘Twist My Sister’ is a kid’s nursery rhyme ‘Old McDonald’ which gets the whole crowd singing along.

Unbelievably, some lunatic in the crowd starts throwing bangers at the stage, but the fireworks only make it as far as the front row of fans before blowing up in their faces. Wednesday tries to get the guy to quit while geeing up the rest of the crowd. “All the people down the front tell the people at the back to ‘Die Die Die… my bride!’ he yells as the band grind into the song…

Today’s set includes two new songs, and we can report that both are killer kitsch rock rippers. The first, set for legendary status is called ‘The Devil Made Me Do It… And I’ll Do It Again’ while the second is the set closer, a crowd sing along gem ‘I Love to Say Fuck’. Wednesday grabs his big black umbrella, emblazoned with the word FUCK, Eric, Acey, and Joey are going crazy, jumping up and down in unison, Ghoul is all arms and legs behind the kit while Wednesday is right down in the crowd’s face urging them to stick their fingers in the air and yell ‘Fuck!’. It looks great to watch. “It isn’t choreographed,” says Wednesday later. “Everything’s pretty much spontaneous. There are some things like we all jump on an ascent in the music or whatever but everything else is stuff that just happens on stage.”

They (sic) crowd are almost passing out from the combination of frenzied activity and the extreme heat, but still manage to scream out for more as the band leave the stage. “A lot of people don’t know that’s what drives a show,” explains Wednesday about his relationship with the audience. “You have to make fans feel part of the event and I think we do it better than anyone else.”

The band then jump back into the van for the two minute trip back to their dressing room behind the main stage. When they get back there the guys are all super hyped up. Excitedly buzzing around their dressing room, drinking beers, telling jokes. Joey is busy analysing the gig, and the BDO circus in general. He and Wednesday have got an interview to do with Australian TV scheduled for 8:45pm. It’s almost 9pm and Joey has another issue: “I want to eat! I must eat before I talk!” he exclaims. The interview is postponed for 20 minutes.

Bass player Eric is hanging around, so I grab him for a quick chat. Of all the Murderdolls, Eric seems the shyest but is probably the one most up for anything, especially if it is party related. He may only be small, (even in his Ace Frehley six-inch platforms he’s still barely average height!) but he’s a true rock’n’roller with a party attitude to match. “‘Machine Gun Fellatio’ that’s a cool fuckin’ name,” he squeaks discussing some of the other bands on the BDO bill. And he does squeak, kinda, like annoying Brit ‘comedian’ Joe Pasquale.

I bring up the fact that esteemed record producer, Nick Launey (Silverchair, INXS) was side of stage watching the show and had an interesting story to tell me about Eric. “I think I know where this is going,” smiles Eric slyly. “I met him about two years ago in LA at a party and we were all fucked up. I got dragged down three flights of stairs by my hair and he reckoned it was the biggest rock’n’roll moment of ‘00 for him. First impressions count, man.”

“It was so rock’n’roll!” Launey informs me later. “It was the launch of Orgy’s album and they had these models dressed as prostitutes lying on a bed and Eric jumps up on the bed with them, which of course you weren’t allowed to do. So the bouncers are dragging him out by his hair, kicking and screaming, down the stairs. His head was literally bouncing down each stair like a cartoon character and all the while he’s just got his middle fingers up on each hand and is yelling out ‘Fuck You!’, ‘Get Fucked!’, ‘Fuck you, mind the hair!’ Somehow he got back into the party and I asked him ‘how’s your head?’ and he just said “Whaddya mean?” - it was just so rock’n’roll!”

Eric has pre-arranged with their tour driver to take him over to the Boiler Room, where the BDO’s electronica acts are playing. He wants to see German electronic innovators Kraftwerk. “One of the bands I was in before the Murderdolls was very digital and computer based,” he reveals. “Kraftwerk don’t do a lot of live shows and I don’t think I’ll ever get the opportunity to see them again. They’re pretty important to the genre and even if I catch just 10 minutes of their set I think it will be worth coming over. A short ride through the back entrance, we arrive at the Boiler Room and manage to get in, via a bit of a labyrinth, through the backdoor and into the main arena just at the side of the stage. The Kraftwerk guys are standing robot-like in front of their computers while the huge dome-like venue is dripping with sweat from the 10.000+ strong punters who have basically been locked in the room all day listening (sic) the dance bands. We get a good vantage point but after about five minutes we’re leaving. “Jeez! That was the most boring piece of crap I’ve seen!” exclaims Eric when he gets back to the dressing room. “But it was worth going because I scored some drugs!”

Acey’s just hanging around backstage with his camera and a little doll from The Nightmare Before Christmas. He has a ritual where he takes a photograph of the doll in front of landmarks all around the world. “I have him in front of the Eiffel Tower for instance,” he says. “The other day I took a pic of him in front of the Sydney Opera House.” And with that he takes a photo of the doll sitting in front of a sign that says ‘Sleazy’. Hmmm. Odd man.

Acey and Eric are loving every minute of the Murderdolls ride. They’re both on their first trip to Australia and according to both of them it is (sic) has been “Cool as hell!” “The Gold Coast was really on,” says Eric. “It’s been kinda mellow since we got to Sydney because we’ve had four or five days off before this show so we’ve just been trying to find out what’s been going on. It’s been building gradually… and we’ve been partying a lot – maybe too much,” he adds sheepishly. Rick the tour manager – who’s passing by – agrees: “Yep, they’ve been very naughty boys – they’ve got to go to bed early tonight with no supper,” he jokes.

“He knows we’re the most dangerous band on the tour,” counters Eric. It’s a fact that seems to deter any other bands partying with the Murderdolls too. “The only band that has even reached out to us are the guys in Jane’s Addiction, in particular, Dava Navarro,” offers Acey. “He actually came out of his way to come over and introduce himself. And pretty much comes up and talks to us everyday he sees us along with the drummer, Steven [Perkins]. Everyone else is just kinda like, ‘What’s Up?’ Maybe it’s because we don’t look like we’re the most approachable band. Then again no-one has done anything to piss us off at all.”

No one may be talking to the Murderdolls but there is talk of the Murderdolls all over BDO. Most centres around their appearance with most Australian musical luminaries agreeing the band are the best dressed at the festival. One member of Aussie band the Resin Dogs even goes as far as to say, “The Murderdolls rock the wardrobe”. Acey is kinda flattered but non-plussed by the comments. “What image?” he exclaims. “This is how we are all day! Obviously we knock it up a notch for the show but this is the real thing. We don’t care if people like us as sexual deviants or not, but one thing’s for sure – they’ll fucking remember us.”

Big Ben Graves strides over to join us at the table. “Did I hear the words sexual deviant?” he announces in his deeply rounded US accent. “I’ve always been like that! Some people have a devil on one shoulder and an angel on the other – I just two devils. There is NO voice of reason!”

We ask him if he has had any interesting adventures since he’s been in Australia and then instantly regret it…

“Dude, it has been nothing but interesting adventures. For instance last night, he (indicating Eric) he almost screwed a one-armed girl!”

“She had three tits and one arm,” giggles the dimunitive (sic) bassist.

“Yeah. It was weird,” continues the Ghoul, “one of her arms was like a stump and it looked like it had a nipple on it. I must admit I almost fucked her just for the freakiness of it.”

And with that starter for 10, the Ghoul is off. He starts ranting on with these sick freak jokes that crack everyone up and inside a minute you get a window to his personality. “Our drummer is one bona fide sick fuck,” jokes Wednesday of him later. “He stills (sic) freaks us out. I’ll just look at him sometimes and say to myself, ‘holy shit, dude, what planet are you from?’”

“It was weird on the Gold Coast,” says Eric, picking up on the tour adventure thread. “The girls there were the hottest chicks I had ever seen in my life but by the same token I had never got as much shit for the way I look than I have there as well. It was like two opposite poles. At first it was, ‘hey freak, where’s the funeral?’ and the next was, ‘sit down have a drink with us.”

“As far as people looking at you weird, I found Sydney is where I got the stares,” admits the Ghoul. “Sydney sucks! Although we did have some girls staking out our hotel which was pretty funny and I did have an over-zealous fan thrown out of the bar. The guy was just touching me a little more than he should and I didn’t like it,” he says animatedly. “I was like, ‘man, don’t make me waste this perfectly good bottle of Heineken by breaking it over your head. I’ve done it before’. Eric looks at him and says, “yeah he has!” But he was on something. I remember thinking ‘I want whatever he’s on… times ten!”

“I gotta say though, the Sydney crowd today was one of the best crowds we’ve had so far,” offers Acey as he joins the throng. “It was insane. It is good for us this tour, because the kids don’t know what we are all about yet so we have to prove ourselves. By the end of the set they all had their hands in the air.”

By this time Joey and Wednesday have finished their feed and their hastily re-scheduled interview and are looking for some more mischievous fun for themselves. “First of all, I’m going to go back over to the stage we played because there are a lot of kids hanging around over there still wanting to see us,” explains Joey. “Then after that, I’m gonna go directly where ever (sic) the free drinks are at…” Suddenly, Eric’s doubled over in the doorway of the dressing room. It’s been 45 minutes since he visited Kraftwerk in the Boiler Room and the pharmaceuticals are beginning to take effect. We ask if he’s OK. “Yeah man, I just think I’m gonna spew!” he grins. The rest of the band are baiting him ceaselessly.

“C’mon chuck it up man!” they urge and all crack up laughing together.

In the middle of all the commotion Wednesday is taking a piss in the corner of the dressing room. The place is a wreck: there are empty bottles of booze, food scrapes (sic), squashed fruit, hairdryers, make-up, boots, clothes (black and red if (sic) course) and of course a giant mirror. Wednesday is actually pissing into a bottle of Corona. At the same time I am just about to pick up my freshly opened bottle of Corona from the table which is besides (sic) a now suspicious looking bottle. “Yeah I always piss in the empty bottles,” giggles Wednesday. And then I leave ‘em on the table just to piss off anyone who might want to grab some of our rider or whatever. Just be careful just to get bottles from down there in the ice box, he laughs mischievously. Suddenly the oddly warm bottle in my hand seems less than appealing…

As the clock turns 1am the only people left at the stadium are the cleaners, the roadies and the still-partying Murderdolls. Last to leave, the van is parked just outside the dressing room and all I can see through the opened door is the Ghoul chucking around a baguette, now baked hard as a rock over the course of the stifling hot day. “Look at this - it could be used as a weapon to seriously maim you!” he screams bouncing the French loaf off the wall. A post vomit Eric cracks up, as the two hold a mock baguette joust oblivious to the outside world. They eventually make off back to their hotel room in the city, but don’t hang there for too long. The weekend lights of Sydney beckon and they cruise down William street in King’s Cross, to an underground rock venue called Club 77. It’s glam night, just their crowd and they spend the wee hours of the morning hanging out with fans and getting stuck into the sauce with a vengeance. Australia has officially been Murderdolled!

Blood and Glitter

Gavin Braddeley charts the rise of shock rock

Glam is hard evidence that what goes around comes around. Long dismissed as the definitive climax of 70s bad taste, in recent years glam rock has arisen from the grave, albeit with a veil of cobwebs draped over its original dusting of glitter. Originally a violent reaction to the 60s happy fad for all things natural, worthy, meaningful and drab, glam was all about being deliberately artificial, selfish, throwaway and garish.

In the States Alice Cooper was impaling baby dolls and throwing blood bottles around the stage from ‘70 onwards culminating in the vaudeville theatrics of the ‘Welcome To My Nightmare’ album/tour of ‘76.

Back in the UK, the Glam pioneer was lame pop pixie Marc Bolan (sic), photogenic frontman with T-Rex, who caused a sensation when he took to the stage on Top of the Pops in ‘71 with glitter under his eyes, clad in what looked suspiciously like drag. Never one to miss a trick, the lizard-like David Bowie soon jumped from the hippy ship to take on his otherworldly Ziggy Stardust persona.

The older generation may have thought that smearing make-up on your face and covering your clothes in sequins made you look like a ‘pooftah’. Alice Cooper got around this by replacing Glam’s overt ‘fagginess’ with ghoulish melodrama, prompting one critic to observe that Americans were more comfortable with necrophilia than homosexuality. And then came Kiss. Gene Simmons’ monstrous blood vomiting, fire breathing ‘Demon’ persona enslaved an entire generation of US children crossing Glam’s theatricality with heavy metal machismo to create one of the most influential bands in rock music history.

W.A.S.P. and Mötley Crüe supercharged Kiss’s sleaze and violence quotient to spectacular effect in the 80s, and provide the missing link between Glam and the Murderdolls, who happily cite the back-combed bad boys as a large part of their creative DNA. The chief inheritor of the Glam tradition in the last decade, however, is cross-dressing controversialist Marilyn Manson. Bowie may have metaphorically murdered his creation Ziggy Stardust in the summer of ‘74, while Bolan (sic) died more literally in a car accident three years later, but quarter-of-a-century on, Manson used his own dark arts to conjure their spirit on ‘Mechanical Animals’, his own tribute to pop’s most decadent decade.

Dead… and loving it!

The Murderdolls’ five favourite movie death scenes of all time…

The Murderdolls are proof positive that nothing gets some folks’ creative juices flowing quite so freely as a truly delicious cinematic death scene. Joey and Wednesday have a few favourites – both carnage connoisseurs identifying the ‘74 classic power toolfest The Texas Chainsaw Massacre as the gory cream of the crop – a movie currently being remade with a certain Mr. Manson in the soundtrack composer’s chair. (As a curious aside, you never actually see the girl hung on the hook – just a shadow – but such is the film’s sordid impact that most viewers swear you do!)

Joey 1. Texas Chainsaw Massacre “The girl on the hook.”

2. Friday The 13th Part IV “When the knife comes through the bed and impales the chick.”

3. The Exorcist “When the priest is hucked out through the plate glass window.”

4. A Nightmare on Elm Street “Where the girl is getting dragged across the rooftop.”

5. Necromancy “Where a group of devils and monsters take a girl apart.”

Wednesday 1. The Texas Chainsaw Massacre “The girl on the hook.”

2. Dawn of the Dead “When the spiked ball comes down and rips the guy’s head apart.”

3. Phantasm “A silver ball hits the guy in the head and sucks out all his brains.”

4. Hellraiser “Where (sic) the end sequence where the guy is being chased by all these hooks. They attach themselves to him and rip him apart.”

5. Nightmare On Elm Street “Where Freddy rips out the guy’s veins and uses them like strings controlling a puppet.”

Schlock n’ Roll

B-movie classics that have influenced shock rockers of now and then…

Some horror movies are best watched not so much with your tongue in your cheek, as thrust firmly through it, films that by accident or design are more about fun than fear. The same could be said of numerous horror loving bands, including the Murderdolls, where an ‘everyday is Halloween’ ethos prevails. Here are a few examples of B movie blood fests which may not have won any Oscars, have been paid tribute to by schlock loving bands over the years…

Plan 9 From Outer Space (1957) It is no surprise that the mother-of-all cult movies inspired the mother-of-all cult bands, and when Glenn Danzig created a label to release early Misfits material he dubbed it ‘Plan 9’. Frequently voted the worst movie of all time with its ludicrous script, mind bogglingly bad special effects, cardboard sets, and even more cardboard artistry, Plan 9 From Outer Space is irresistibly entertaining. Directed by the cross-dressing caliph of crap Ed Wood Junior, featuring proto-goth babe Vampira and Bela Lugosi (dying of drug addiction, he was replaced mid production by a stand-in who looks nothing like him).

The Abominable Dr Phibes (1971) Featuring horror cinema’s kind of camp Vincent Price as the fiendish Phibes, avenging the death of his wife using maniacal methods borrowed from the biblical plagues, all against wonderful, strangely psychedelic sets. Also possessed of a strange psychedelic sensibility are punk pioneers the Damned, though in the 80s, lead singer Dave Vanian’s horror sensibilities took centre stage, attracting a goth following. The 80 track ‘13th Floor Vendetta’ is a classic example of the band’s game-topping which, if you listen carefully, is all about ol’ Doc Phibes.

Mars Attacks! (1996) Director Tim Burton’s tribute to the drive-in shockers of the 50s and 60s, Mars Attacks! was actually based upon a ‘62 series of bubblegum cards, discontinued because of their gruesomely graphic pictures of earthlings being exterminated by alien invaders. As such this inspiration might suggest Mars Attacks! has little by way of plot, but for anyone with a weakness for vintage schlock sci-fi it’s a true Technicolor treat. This must certainly include the Misfits and when they reformed, they did so without the blessing of founder Glenn Danzig, but with their monster movie obsessions intact – among a multitude of horror movie tributes on their ‘97 comeback album ‘American Psycho’ was ‘Mars Attacks’ (and even an instrumental coincidentally titled ‘Abominable Dr Phibes’!)

I Was A Teenage Werewolf (1957) The drive-in movies of the 50s and 60s typically featured juvenile delinquents or monsters, and this bargain-basement effort delivered both in one lurid package. Before becoming ‘Pa’ on TV’s Little House on the Prairie Michael Landon stars as a troubled teen – though when he starts growing hair in strange places, it’s more than just hormones to blame. A howl from beginning to end, Teenage inspired a number on ‘Songs the Lord Taught Us’, the ‘80 debut from drive-in movie loving ghoulish rockers The Cramps.

Murder, mayhem and a right old mess

Minging Murderdoll tales from the Big Day Out

Who is the messiest Murderdoll of them all? Wednesday: “That would be Eric and The Ghoul. They are just messy as fuck. But you know you’ve just got to get used to living with these people. We’ve been on the road since July. You live on a bus for six weeks which means you’ve got (sic) live in everyone else’s shit.”

Who is the tidy anal doll? Joey: “No-one. We’re all pretty fuckin’ messy.” Wednesday: “I just took two garbage bags of mess out of my room. And just put it in the hallway. Just full of chicken bones and beer bottles and all sorts of shit like that, it was just smelling really bad so I had to get rid of it.”

So you do that yourself? Wednesday: “I don’t let the cleaning staff come into my room and tidy up. I put the ‘Do Not Disturb’ sign for the whole week I am there.” Joey: “The housekeepers are scared shitless to come into our rooms anyway so we keep it easy for them and put the ‘Do Not Disturb” signs up the whole time. They are going to be so scared to come into our rooms and clean up after we’ve been there for a fuckin’ week!”

[tired-o-fighter]

Does vincent have a favorite dad *Whispers* Don't worry I won't tell anyone if he does.

Please vote for nameless au so we can tie

Vinny never had a favorite dad. All of them were different and cared so much about him in different ways. But it was so obvious that they all loved him unimaginably and so did he. The amount of love he has for each of them is more than her knowledge of words can describe and she doesn't have a favorite because she can't even compare them.

BUT

That's not what y'all are here for.

Although vinny never had a favorite, she always had one that she was the closest with. The most comfy and felt the best to be around. But it depends on which part of her life you're asking

New born and later, baby vinny was without a doubt the closest to leo. He monitored her every second, fearing she's gonna die. Not leaving her alone for a second.

During the time she was the tiniest, he made a baby wrap with his mask to keep her close and later it just became the norm to do daily tasks while carrying her.

He was the first dad vinny named. He's her "bawa" and he did cry for a good hour and half after that interaction, realizing that she's the most precious thing in his life and he doesn't know how to keep her safe forever.

Toddler vinny and raph are best friends.‌ Vinny is filled with energy and curiosity and although they all spend time with her, try to teach her different things, and just make her giggle; Raph surprisingly (to no one but himself) is the best one with kids. He would spend hours playing with blocks and hair clips and go collect more for her every late night so he can surprise her in the morning. Although vinny loves them the same, she prefers to play with raph because he's the cool dad who has secretly taken her to ride on a motorcycle but she can't ever tell leo or they're both dead.

Ever since vinny started school (yes he goes to school thank you online education!) Mikey and vinny got a lot closer. Legally, there should be a guardian who moderates their education and mikey had so much fun helping. He always wanted to go to school and tho he knew a LOT of stuff (thanks to splinter and donny taking education VERY seriously) he has so much fun learning history and science and it makes him incredibly happy.

Vinny's papa is a very important person in their class and the kids love him. No one knows they're a turtle and an axolotl. But they love them and respect that they won't show their faces

Arts and crafts are their favorite and they love making craft together. This specific doodle is from when they made a gift for one of Vinny's classmates for his birthday.

DONNIE HOWEVER gets the angsty teenager. You can't raise a kid away from society and not get an angsty chaotic teenager who decides to trust humans and be cool and gets emotionally DESTROYED by horrible people.

She doesn't want his dads to know about her. She's distant she doesn't want them to know what she's doing. And donny is no doubt the chilleset papa. Leo is going crazy trying to mother hen her to make sure she doesn't do anything stupid. Raph is over protective and wants to fight her negative emotions, her bad feelings, and anyone she talks to. Mikey keeps trying to bond with his little kid and struggles to let go of that closeness.

Donny however knows how to be supportive and keep his distance. To be extra careful of their boundaries and the same time not let her distance herself.

This specific doodle is set after the first time vinny revealed himself to some of his human "friends" and they started hurting him, throwing stuff at him, and calling him mean things. After they left he took his shell cell and called donny, even tho he was supposed to be home and already asleep. Not saying a word just calling and then texting please pick me up.

Donny was there 8 minutes later. Helping her in the car. They had a quiet car ride. No words exchanged. When they came back home and started walking towards their own room donny looked at her with a smile "i love you vinny! I love you and I'm proud of you." He said. "I'm always proud of you and you are the most important thing in my life. I'm so glad i was blessed with you." And then, he starts walking away. She immediately runs to him, hugging him and started sobbing.

"I'm never trusting anyone ever again!" She sobbed trying to catch her breath. "I know honey. I know." He responded in a sad, bitter tone. Did he agree with her? Not exactly. Trusting would be much much harder but not impossible. That's not what she needed to hear tho. He'd help her process and heal later. Right now, he didn't know how bad the situation was, how hurt she was physically. But he knew his feelings were absolutely wrecked. And the best he could do was to support her.

Thank you so much for reading this and thanks for supporting nameless au. There's still time to vote for me so i can tie with big sis leo.

But regardless I'm grateful for you guys. Before this competition i was very insecure about my AUs thinking no one would like them. Specially an oc adoption au? I only shared with a few close friends

But now i have people who actually care for this au. Who care for vinny. Who enjoy my brain coming up with random shit.

I get asks, i made friends and I'm so happy to be in this place. Regardless of winning or loosing or getting a tie, I'm so happy to have come so far.

Hey @turtle-tot-tournament here's my biggest propaganda in hope for a tie. I'm so happy to be in this competition and I'm so grateful for having the most awsome poll master. Being a poll master myself, i can see how hard you've worked and i appreciate you so so much <3

[lotusthekat]

[ID: A digital drawing of Noah from Fullmetal Alchemist smelling three flowers while she looks at the viewer, blushing. The work is colored with a different color palette, so Noah is wearing green clothes, besides the white cloth and yellow jewelry. Each flower she holds has a different color: white, yellow and red/orange, from left to right. The background is green, with a few red/orange and yellow flowers behind Noah. /End ID]

Nasturtiums for Noah (except I can't draw flowers and I drew this while sleep-deprived so their sizes are probably not accurate)

... it's literally the name of the palette btw

Also POV you're Edward Elric and you wonder what you've done to meet such a gorgeous woman

DO NOT REPOST WITHOUT PERMISSION!

Hate will be blocked.

P/roship DNI.

[indira-korr]

Last line challenge

Rules: in a new post, show the last line you wrote (or drew) and tag as many people as there are words (or however many you like)

Thank you for the tags, @marbled-polecat (2x), @brokenphoenix99 and @petrifiedforests! Please consider yourselves tagged right back :3

You get a few lines and my practice with a new brush.

“You know, I heard about this thing,” Helix babbled behind him. “Where you take a fruit—any fruit really but juicy ones are best—and cook it with lots of sugar, and then you can put it on anything… AND it keeps practically forever.”

“Yeah right,” Layne huffed. “It’ll keep exactly five seconds when you’re around.”

Still from the current wip. Finished three chapters, only two more to go. I am determined to finish it before posting. That would be a first, but if Fawkes is capable of personal growth, so am I. Maybe. We'll see. Luckily, I'm also procrastinating on the summary/title/tags, so I can't post it before picking those anyway.

And at some point someone uses the fruit juice for decorative purposes. Thank you, brokenphoenix99 for suggesting that the troopers may build snowmendroids. Now they do :3

Yes, I also made a yellow version because I have the humor of a ten year old.

Additional no pressure tags: @cacodaemonia @seascribbling @trudemaethien @elismor and everyone else who wants to play.

[adenthemage]

6, 28, 36 for the TMNT ask game!

YESSIR o7

6. Do you own any TMNT merchandise?

Hell yeah I do! I have a couple old turtle action figures from after-87-before-03 era, (one is raph in a raccoon hat, one is Don in a wrestling outfit,) a Tales Raph from just after the movie released, and the prize of my collection, one of the elusive 03 Agent Bishop toys! I didn't get any of his weapons to go with, but he's got pretty decent articulation! Not super posable, per se, but the coat is pliable so you can move it around to flow dramatically in the wind, his head and hands can turn, he's pretty neat!

28. What is one thing you would like to see explored more in TMNT art/fics?

Ah that's tough, I feel like the tmnt community has things down-- or at least in the circles I run in. All the character studies and extra adventures a guy could hope for! I suppose all I can really think of is more exploration of the side characters or expanding on one-off episodes, but I get that's a pretty tall order. (and even then, we got a lot on that front with Ms. Morrison, god bless)

36. Which character do you have the hardest time writing/drawing?

HMMM. I guess the 03 turtles were a bit tough for me to get a grasp on, drawing-wise. I think I'm close, but I still need to practice with them a bit more. Writing-wise, uh, I'm not much of a writer, so everyone I guess loL. Takes me a lot longer to study a character to the point where I'm comfortable writing them. Weirdly enough Stockman still gives me trouble, even though he's such a clear personality!