#from impulse's latest episode

[nan0wav]

weezer

[just-aro]

me: a loveless aro

me: introduced to the End Poem of minecraft for the first time literally this week

me: and the universe said i love you because you are love *starts sobbing*

[im-literally-just-sitting-here]

One of my favorites attributes of Pearl is just how good at playing off of others she is. She matches everyone's energy so well and is just so genuinely charismatic that all her interactions and duos end up being incredibly entertaining

Other great attributes include her incredibly silly noises, Amazing use of color and shape in her builds– most other people take a very architectural approach to building but hers is just pure art– and her banger pvp skills

(also i wish we got to see more of her ink art, it's so cool and detailed!!!!!!)

[theminecraftbee]

so, you've been considering getting into hermitcraft.

that's great! welcome! we are an extremely enthusiastic fandom, i admit, but we are very happy to have you watching the hermits! however, with over a decade of existence and twenty-seven current hermits, it can feel very intimidating to get into hermitcraft. luckily, as of the time of this posting--january 31st, 2024--it's also the BEST time to get into hermitcraft, because a new season starts on february 3rd! (and if you're reading this later: don't worry. this is ALSO the best time to get into hermitcraft. don't worry about it i'll get into that.)

the shortest version of this advice is: start wherever you want, with whoever you want. it doesn't matter, you can catch up.

still, it can seem like a lot. so, from someone who's been around since mid season seven, here is a more detailed guide on how to start watching hermitcraft!

what is hermitcraft?

hermitcraft is a collection of people who all play on the same survival multiplayer minecraft server. that server is a mostly vanilla minecraft server; i don't really call hermitcraft "vanilla" anymore, as they rely on a number of largely cosmetic mods, but the things they do on hermitcraft should, broadly, all be possible in vanilla minecraft, and the server still "feels" vanilla, so. vanilla minecraft. they do this in "seasons", which are periods of time between a year and two years, after which they reset and start on a fresh server.

in comparison to something like qsmp or even the life series, hermitcraft leans heavily on the "building cool things and hanging out" side of the spectrum as opposed to the roleplay side. however, at least once a season the hermits like to do a big storyline; sometimes, it's more frequent. many of the storylines are more natural escalations of things like server prank wars or a failing server economy, though, as opposed to things that are clearly in-universe roleplaying. don't worry, though; you'll know a hermitcraft storyline when you see it. by everyone's bad acting. also, by rendog putting on a silly accent.

if your only impression of hermitcraft has been from the fandom, you... probably have a somewhat mistaken impression. my bad. in my defense, i am a horror writer at heart, and in the fandom's defense, a LOT of crossover has happened with the life series fandom, which leads to both sort of leaking into each other. in general, expect things to be on the lighthearted goofy shenanigans side with very few exceptions when you're actually watching hermitcraft, despite the way the fandom tends to be.

where is hermitcraft?

broadly, youtube! hermitcraft is an almost entirely video series, and if you want to watch a hermitcrafter, you will almost certainly need to watch them on youtube. there are only very rarely streamed hermitcraft events, and these are normally announced ahead of time.

what if i prefer twitch?

skip the rest of this and just watch joe hills. i promise i'm not saying that because i'm a joe hills guy; i'm saying it because he's the only hermit that consistently streams from hermitcraft. impulse, tango, cleo, pearl, xisuma, iskall, and hypno all also appear to stream fairly regularly, but it's not always from hermitcraft.

where should i start?

now, that's the real question, isn't it? my answer is simple: start Now. if you're reading this as i post it, that means start this saturday on everyone's episode one. if you're reading this long after i post it, though, just... go ahead and start with whoever you want to watch's latest episode! the nice thing about hermitcraft is that you can GENERALLY jump in wherever you want.

but what about old seasons?

you do not need to watch older seasons of hermitcraft. unless you want to, of course; the world is your oyster and they are very good! however, there's also a LOT of old hermitcraft, and if you want to join in with what hermitcraft is doing now, old seasons aren't necessary. very little carries over from season to season. while sometimes old "lore" or recurring bits can carry references over, and the relationships between hermits will often carry over to some extent (if often not in the same patterns), it is never to an extent that you need the old seasons for context. each season is a clean new slate, and where "lore" carries over, the relevant hermit will almost always explain it to you.

what about helsknight/evil x/hotguy/boatem/convex/some other thing i've been hearing about?

i promise, if they are relevant to this season, they will explain it to you in the relevant episode and/or it will be easy enough to pick up. do not worry about it. each season is a soft reset for a reason, and one of those reasons is to make it easier on new viewers! and if you're here because you WANTED one of those specific things... ask an older fan! they'll be able to direct you to the places they're from.

do i need to watch all the hermits?

absolutely not! in fact, i strongly recommend you don't. there are going to be... hold on let me count... twenty-seven hermits? (i am bad at counting don't quote me on this) in this season alone. keeping up with all those videos is too much for basically anyone! instead, pick a few hermits that you like best, and if you want to keep up with everyone else, go to the hermitcraft recap youtube channel and watch that! it is a vital hermitcraft resource where pixlriffs, zloyxp, and lyarrah all watch every single hermit so that we don't have to. honor their sacrifice and don't try to watch everyone.

but how do i pick someone?

few ways! there exist, if you google, plenty of "choosing your hermit pov" quizzes; if you head over to the hermitcraft subreddit, for example, i'll be SHOCKED if they don't have one, and if you go over to the recap channel, they had one of those for a while too. this is the starting place for many people.

another way is to watch the recap and choose whoever's project interests you most. for early episodes, this may be hard, but since hermits tend to go hard for their first episode, you'll normally at least be able to pick up a sense of pace and build style.

just watching whoever it is your friends are obsessed with is also a tried and true method of finding your first hermit; frequently, like with the recap, this is a good method for then figuring out whose style you like best, and switching to them, if you don't end up clicking with the same people your friends click with.

finally, you can just... click a random hermit's channel! try a few out! maybe you heard about decked out and want to watch tango; maybe there's a storyline you want to start watching because the dash has been rambling about it; maybe you just want to know who this grain character is. clicking around until you find the guy whose editing you click with is a totally valid strategy!

that sounds hard. just pick someone for me.

if you like well-edited shenanigans: grian or mumbo jumbo. (these are also good starter hermits in general, i've found; if you aren't sure where else to start, start with one of them.)

if you like long background noise-type videos: docm77

if you like minigames: tangotek.

if you like a chill video: xbcrafted or, if the texture pack gets you, vintagebeef.

if you like storylines: rendog or grian, again. (i was trying not to double-up, but if you're here from an rp-heavy server, grian remains a great entry point in that regards.)

if you like to see something new and bizarre: zedaph if you prefer highly-edited videos, joe hills if you prefer lightly edited videos.

if you want the best building on hermitcraft: pearlescentmoon or bdoubleo100, special mention to goodtimeswithscar.

if you want someone as new as you: i'll come back and edit in whoever the new hermits are once we know! but them.

if you just want one of my favorites: zombiecleo or iskall85.

thank you! what if i DO want to know what the fandom is always on about?

that, i'm afraid, i don't know how to help you with. you'll just have to watch hermitcraft from here--and maybe read some of the fanworks that have intrigued you--and find out for yourself!

good luck out there, and i hope this has helped someone!

[ratgrinders]

**spoilers for latest episode of junior year**

guys, what if the bad kids are in the astral plane right now?

so at the end of last episode they all end up in some weird, greyscale version of fig's room inside riz's briefcase, right? now, i know this is relying on meta knowledge a bit, but i know that brennan most likely didn't prepare this exact scenario for the event the bad kids all jump inside the briefcase, considering how luck-based that entire scenario was and how impulsive riz's initial decision was to save fig with the briefcase. as a dm you're probably just going to find the best place possible to insert your prepared encounter.

HOWEVER. the astral plane has been built up as a significant location throughout the season, what with it being heavily implied that cassandra being in the synod in the astral sea is what allowed the dead god to get a foothold into her that otherwise would not be possible. plus, the numerous mentions of gods dying and moving to the astral plane (specifically, i think yes! was stated to be on the astral plane after it died?)

and riz's briefcase is a modified bag of holding, a 5e item that has a direct connection to the astral plane, specifically:

"If the bag is overloaded, pierced, or torn, it ruptures and is destroyed, and its contents are scattered in the Astral Plane."

all i know is, at the end of that sequence and the bad kids are done falling there's no mention of the numerous papers riz has stored in his briefcase, which had all been scattering around them before. that sounds to me like the bag of holding was ruptured (possibly from the inside?) and all of its contents shunted elsewhere.

also, if a god was suddenly brought back from the dead (or at least, something significant occurring by adaine uttering its name) then i would imagine there's the possibility that would have significant repercussions on the astral plane where the god currently dwells, and this may be why riz's briefcase suddenly starts freaking out and vibrating afterwards. we also see certain elements of cassandra like her mirrors and baron, with baron specifically being inside the bag of holding. if cassandra is in the same place/plane as this dead god, being dead after being killed by them, then she may have an easier time getting her powers to work in areas that are closer to the astral plane.

brennan ends the episode saying "it is as silent as a graveyard". what could be a more apt description for the astral plane other than a giant graveyard?

[blackmosscupcakes]

I'm fascinated by how this arc of The Wizard the Witch and the Wild One has really flipped the narrative on who's in the right and wrong compared to the first arc, because the key thing is NONE OF THEM are acting differently than they did then--they're all acting incredibly true to character traits that were established from the get go--the only thing that's changed is the surroundings and the context of the backdrop around them.

Out in the world, among ordinary people, Suvi often came across as imperial-minded, deeply indoctrinated, and carrying a feeling of being superior to those who weren't of the citadel. Her feelings and actions were understandable, but the reaction of the audience was often to read her as being overly hostile to the other two and determined to cleave to the Citadel and the beliefs of her upbringing to a degree that was detrimental to their task.

Ame and Eursulon showed a willingness to go off half-cocked and act impulsively based on their feelings in the first arc just as they did in this latest episode, but in the context of the wider world this often came across as deep empathy with ordinary people and spirits and a sense of responsibility to deeper matters beyond the politics of humans. Sure, their actions were a bit reckless and had some negative consequences, but they were acting with their hearts and for the right reasons and everyone was down for Quest Fever!

And then last night we see exactly the same dynamic play out once again--Suvi trying to balance the needs of her adoptive mother and her home and the entire institution in which she grew up against the needs of her friends, while her friends run off and literally blow up the Citadel's shit in absolute defiance of everything Suvi was raised to believe. Now, standing there alone and reeling from a curse as her friends tear off leaving destruction in their wake, she seems understandably hurt, as well as obedient, measured, restrained, sensible, if perhaps a little too blindly trusting in Citadel processes*. And likewise, amidst the context of seeing how the Citadel runs and how generally well it's treated Ame and Eursulon, the two of them seemed reckless, ungrateful, disrespectful, and short-sighted with an unwillingness to play along with the realpolitik of going through the proper channels. Instead they (quite literally) burned important bridges and damaged Suvi's life in the process (though it's also understandable that in light of the revelations about Eursulon's sister they rightly felt unsafe even if Steel was understanding).

It's fascinating how incredibly similar the climactic sequences from these two arcs have been. The characters have followed their natures and it's led them down exactly the same path twice in a row. But the context surrounding their actions is VERY different this time, and each mirrors and recontextualizes the OTHER occurrence. People were largely on Ame and Eursulon's side last time, and they're largely seeing Suvi's side this time. It's been a really complex ethical and practical tangle to navigate both times (and good on Brennan for setting it up that way), but I feel like seeing the two together helps us understand and respond to ALL of the characters in a better way than just having one of these situations would have. It's been really cool to watch, and I've been absolutely loving reading all the thoughts and opinions from people on every side of it. It's already been some of the best fandom discussion I've seen about a TTRPG show.

*I read an interesting perspective from someone who believed they would have had to escape even if they'd trusted Steel, as she already went from "meet me at this time" to "give me more time to talk to the diviners" and they thought she would have continued to delay and delay in order to check all of the Citadel's bureaucratic boxes--I'm not sure whether that's what would have happened but it's an interesting possibility, and one that prevents Steel being used as basically a deus ex machina powerful ally any time they're in trouble.

[leenfiend]

Kissing you on the mouth for your Lance son of Hermes take. I didn't even really have an opinion before but after reading your post I'm immediately sold and so invested in the au

Do you have ideas on what the other characters godly parents would be? Hunk with Hephaestus makes sense to me, and I'm a fan of Keith son of Ares (learning to accept his godly dad could match with his arc about accepting he's part galra, a supposedly evil/violent side of him, + the anger and fighting skills), but not sure about the others...

hello!!! I'm glad you see the vision hehe. I actually sent many a paragraph to heynhay about this only yesterday. I was firmly on the son of Ares Keith headcanon but then... someone reblogged my post saying Keith son of Zeus (I think it was @pidges-lost-robot and i was like WAAAAIT.

Okay so here's my many many paragraphs explaining headcanons for each. Shiro son of Zeus: Okay so in my head Shiro & Keith are both sons of Zeus but for very different reasons. They're like Thalia vs Jason types. Shiro is a great leader, he's ambitious, he's brave, he's a legend. His dad is so proud. He's been on like 20 quests and absolutely demolished all of them. All the kids in camp know he's So Cool and Talented. He can be hot headed sometimes but ultimately he's really adept at setting aside his feelings for the Greater Good etc. Ideal hero type and ideal son to the big guy upstairs. Keith son of Zeus: Keith is all the bad traits of Zeus (sorry to him). He's got a short temper, he's impulsive, he's closed off. He's a prodigy without meaning to be. Everyone pays attention to him but (despite what Lance thinks) it's because they think he's a freak, he's not a big three kid the way you're Supposed To Be. And he doesn't want to be a leader. This really rubs Zeus the wrong way. Keith would rather disappear into the ranks of his fellow campers than be the star of the show and that goes against everything children of Zeus are supposed to be. His dad definitely refuses to claim him for a long time which makes Keith just some weird really powerful kid who doesn't know who his godly parent is. Luckily Shiro takes him under his wing : )) (too bad Shiro doesn't come back from his latest quest tho, no one knows where he went off to and Chiron doesn't want to send out a quest because if something kept Shiro The Legend from coming back to camp it must be really bad). Hunk son of Aphrodite: ANOTHER ONE I'M FIRM ABOUT. I think Hunk's defining characteristic is his love for his friends. Hunk is always looking for peaceful ways to solve problems, he's always forming relationships with people before doing anything else, he really values giving love to those around him. It also doesn't hurt that he's kind of squeamish and particular about a lot of things, as a lot of Aphrodite's children are. But I really think his greatest strengths are the ways he's able to relate to others. I know a lot of people say Lance is the glue that holds everyone together, but I think it's Hunk. I know the fanon is that Aphrodite's kids are all just big flirts but I think both Selena and Piper are great examples that that's not true, and Hunk would absolutely be their brother. Pidge daughter of Hephaestus: I've seen some people saying Athena for Pidge but that's another one where I just can't get behind it. Pidge is so smart in so many ways but so stupid in others. She's too impulsive and single minded to be a daughter of Athena, imo. Her main love is figuring out how things work, what makes them tick, and using that knowledge to help those she loves. Children of Hephaestus are know to hold grudges, fight for their families, and let's not forget Hephaestus spending literally all of his free time trying to play pranks on the other Gods with his little contraptions like that is all Pidge would do all day long. Plus she befriends a robot and that is who she talks to for the first like 3 episodes of Voltron that is so unbelievably child of Hephaestus energy. Anyway thank u for asking this question I've been thinking on it for days. I am also open to the idea of Shiro being a son of Athena, I think that would suit him well. And also in my head I like to think Keith would potentially just remain unclaimed until he stomped his way to Mount Olympus and forced whoever was his parent to fess up.

[cassafrasscr]

Not only is Lilliana full of shit... I think (at least subconsciously) she knows she's full of shit.

Here's thing #1. She claimed in the most recent episode (C3 E92) that she didn't become aware of the heinous crimes committed by the Ruby Vanguard until recently.

If she only just learned that Ludinus' plans involve doing some seriously evil shit... then why would she insist that she's the only one capable of curbing his worst impulses?

Really, Lilliana? If you know Ludinus is doing bad things, and he would do worse things if you weren't around to reign him in, you can't claim ignorance as an excuse for your involvement in his plans.

#2. If you don’t think Predathos is dangerous to mortals, why would you have spent the last 10 years in Imogen's dreams telling her to run away? Why would you be so afraid for Imogen the first time you noticed her attempting to commune with Predathos directly?

I guess it could be argued that communing with Predathos could draw Imogen further into what Ludinus is doing. But even then... if Predathos is really the one in charge, and is just manipulating Ludinus, why not just ask Predathos directly not to involve Imogen in its plans? Does Predathos not care about harming its Ruidusborn children? Do you think Predathos would lie to you, even though you claim to know exactly what it does and doesn't want?

Lilliana KNOWS that the Ruby Vanguard are committing enormous harm to normal people. She KNOWS that Predathos is dangerous to mortals.

As Lilliana herself has said... she's in too deep to back out now. Or at least, that's what she believes. She's spent AT LEAST 10 years (probably longer) following Ludinus and fighting for his cause. She gave up her life with her husband and daughter to pursue this. If she leaves now, all that time and work and pain will have been wasted.

Not only that, but the idea that this mission she's given up her whole life to pursue might be a lie? Lilliana has made this cause her entire life and identity. Imogen and her friends aren't just challenging the plan. They're challenging everything that makes Lilliana who she is as a person. If her cause is a lie, Lilliana herself is a lie.

Plus, the thought that the plan she's been fighting for has already done immense, irreparable harm to thousands of people across Exandria AND Ruidus... and threatens to do even more damage still? It's unbearable. She thought the cause she's devoted her life to and sacrificed so much for was just and beneficial. Now that she's being challenged by someone she loves (her daughter) with undeniable evidence to disprove that idea, she's trying to double down. She can't process the thought that not only is she the villain in someone else's story... they would actually be right to think of her that way.

All this is to say: I think a big part of why Lilliana is such a frustrating, infuriating character... is that she's actually a pretty realistic depiction of a member of an extremist cult. The problem is that deprogramming from those patterns of thought and behavior takes a long, long time. Time that Bell’s Hells may not be able to give her.

(All the negative feelings about Lilliana are, of course, valid. She also makes me Big Mad, lol, especially after the latest episode. That said, she's also a very interesting and compelling character... based on all the meta I've seen written about her since last night, anyway. Good job, Matt Mercer! 😂)

[overanalysingfandoms]

Highlights from Scar's latest episode:

Cleo making an armourstand kid in a wheelchair and Scar tearing up I'M NOT CRYING YOU'RE CRYING

The return of the HotGuy gify shop!!!!

Gem, Impulse and Scar deciding to stage an intervention to make Grian do the back of his base

The intervention crew saying they'll keep Grian up all night to finish the back of his build

Scar treating Grian like he's a strict mum forcing his child to do homework because he's grounded

Grian immediately knowing what will distract Scar and the pair of them instantly bailing while Gem and Impulse shout in the background

Grian and Scar blowing up Doc's redstone

The slow turn Scar immediately did to face Grian (even in moments of disaster this mans comedic timing is on point)

Scar locking all his doors and hiding in the bathroom with Jellie and his Star Wars legos in real life

Scar hiding in the bathroom in minecraft too

The fact Gem and Impulse never appear again in the video

The way they try to fix it but are so bad at redstone and attempt to keep morale up by saying "WE'RE DOING OUR BEST" in a tone that sounds like they hope if they say it enough it'll be true

The 'We're sorry' made out of slime

The diamond pile that's made of cobble on the inside

The escape tunnel they made because they're so (rightly) afraid of Doc

The fact it's 2 am for Grian by the time he logs out

The return of the HotGuy gify shop being delayed because they blew up Doc's redstone

Scar attempting to spice up the diamond pile with Scarland merch and TCG cards

The fact we don't even see Doc's reaction

Not in the video but all of Doc's tweets suddenly having hilarious context

I can't wait to see what his reaction actually was (Grian and Scar are so dead)

[umbrify]

There’s something so incredibly off putting about Ren in his latest episode (HC 9 e18). It’s like, it starts when he breaks off mid sentence and says “it’s really hard to keep up this facade by the way guys” (14:01) and like, I’m sure he means it’s hard to keep up the high energy Intro Voice, and that alone probably wouldn’t be too strange, but it’s combined with everything else that makes this stand out to me.

Then it’s when he’s talking about how he’s preparing all the giga pies, and he kinda trails off and then says “why are we doing this again?” (16:04). Kind of strange, but again, wouldn’t be much on its own.

Then there’s all the stuff with the Impulse head. He just. Carries it around the whole episode. He asks Bdubs to stroke it (6:45). He’s excited by the idea of having a second one to carry around (8:56). He speaks to it, asking it questions and calling it precious multiple times (17:07) (20:41).

Then the strangest part. He finds Cub’s party prank, and is overall excited about it. As he’s saying “Life is wondrous,” the music from the disc drastically slows and distorts, and the camera zooms in on the tiny crown, completely cutting off his face. It then fades to black and opens on the next scene, where the distorted music continues for a short time. He explains that he’s felt he’s losing his grip on his kingdom, but that he’s feeling good now. (20:45)

It’s all so incredibly strange, and I’m sure there’s more subtly weird stuff going on here too. There’s something going on with that there tiny crown.

[lol-jackles]

Walker "The Quiet" review

The episode opens with Cordell and Geri happily bumping into walls while making out before Cordell leaves for work where he ends up bumping inside a runaway tractor trailer driven by a thief the rangers have been tracking for weeks.  James and Trey are also in the trailer though they're only there because Cordell had jumped into the moving trailer, which he claims was inspired by Trey's first case.  Trey doesn't want credit for Cordell's latest impulsive antic, but it all ends well when Cordell does a homerun slide into the baddie's face and just like that, we’re off to a good start.

5 months have passed to explain August’s growth spurt during the real world’s Hollywood strike that delayed Walker’s return by 11 months.  August now looks like a younger clone of the actor that played Sam Winchester’s adult son in the Supernatural finale, which means he has to be hired for the Supernatural revival as young Dean Winchester II. 

The Walker clan pus Geri and Ben are planning Cordell’s birthday with a party bus to a steak eating contest.  That of course gets jettisoned when Cassie Perez, a temp with the FBI, arrives at Ranger HQ to recruit Cordell, James , and Trey s help to help the FBI nab drug operatives.  August suggested moving the steak eating contest to the Walker ranch and just like that, birthday party back on.

But first, Cassie gifts Cordell a pair of alligator cowboy boots that I'm sure she clobbered the alligator herself during her 5-month stint in Florida, and brings Cordell back to Walker ranch for a surprise birthday lunch.   August yeets out of the birthday party early to go to high school senior parties, much to Cordell disappointment who then sneaks away from his own birthday party to look over the latest development of the serial killer Jackal case with Trey.  Hey, like father like son!   

Cordell and Trey gets busted by James' wife Kelly who immediately recognizes the killer's calling card, a set of jackal teeth.  She is upset to learn that the Jackal re-emerged during her re-wedding to James and demands Cordell and Trey to not tell James who is still haunted by the unsolved case.  Speaking of being haunted by the past, Stella and Liam commiserate over being forced to take another human life; Liam killing Clint when he invaded the ranch, Stella killing Witt when he invaded Geri’s house.  Liam assures Stella she will be fine with time. We learn that Witt initially survived the gunshot wound and escaped the house, only to die 2 miles away on the roadside.  The police consider the case closed, but we know it's unsolved as we never found out why he broke into Geri's house.

After a very busy day of taking down thieves, drug dealers, and a steak eating contest, it comes to a screeching halt into “the quiet”. Cordell and Geri spend some quiet quality time and Cordell admits fearing “the quiet” with a daughter at college living away from home and August looking forward to flying the coop.

Trey arrives to update Cordell on the Jackal case and asked him if it was really that bad when James worked on the case.  Flashback showing an unhinged James obsessing over the case, avoiding his family and to the horror of his wife, physically taking out his frustration on Cordell (third time we see Cordell being bumped against walls).  Trey asked if it was the depravity that got to James.  No, Cordell says, it was "the quiet" when the Jackal eluded James.

Besides the normal empty-nest angst by parents, Cordell is also a military veteran who operates at a different level than everyone else.  Veterans’ lows are civilians’ highs so veterans get bored very quickly and seek high risk hobbies or jobs.  Cordell’s job as a Texas Ranger helped fulfill that high risk need and serves as a distraction until a new reality threatens to bring back “the quiet” resulting from absences: his wife’s death and now his children leaving the nest.  Both Cordell and James hated “the quiet '' and Cordell vowed to catch the Jackel before “the quiet” comes back for James again.

Speculation #1: The Jackal heard about the James wedding and wants to mess with James by killing again. 

Side note: Cordell and Cassie discussing the Hawkshadow reboot sounds like the Walker Texas Ranger reboot i.e. "more grounded and focus on the family". I really need Cassie and Cordell to go undercover in a Hawkshadow convention.

My score: 8 out of 10, a solid start to the season with the quiet before the storm.

[just-a-lil-critter]

Bakugo's Apology Analysis :-

(but it's actually just me crying over my dearest bois and their dynamics)

I love Izuku's blatant show of emotional vulnerability throughout the series. yeah he's a crybaby/nerd/impulsive martyr but for someone who's been relentlessly bullied for so many years he is ridiculously open about his feelings and I admire him so much for it

"I am scared for you, for everyone and what risking everything could do to me, so I will stay away even if it costs me my smile, even if it drains me of all life"

Like hello?? this boy is so exhausted, halfway to death's door and fighting off an actual army of frenemies and still, still cannot bring himself to close his heart, the worst he can think to say is "you can't keep up" and apologises for that too. he doesn't even think to push them away like he should and I *ugly sobs*

The apology *manic cackles*

Ohh the relief. the satisfaction. the completion of a circle literally years in the making.

and Izuku's reaction is just the icing on the cake. I was genuinely worried they might downplay this scene after the whole OP fiasco (Bokurano by Eve is a banger btw) but Bones did not disSAPOINT

look at them. look at Katsuki. head bowed, face-to-face in front of everyone, openly admitting to the horrible things he said, things he did to Izuku in the softest voice we've ever heard from him, running to catch him in the rain and not once asking for forgiveness, only that Izuku come home with him, with them all

"I have done terrible things to you, the kind not easily forgiven, so I do not ask. but you are dear to me and I cannot lose you, even if I am lost to you. so come with us, come back, I will hold your shaking hands and broken body in the hailing rain like a testament and save to win as you win to save"

did anyone else notice this?

when Izuku goes vigilante he's so focused on defeating All For One he completely switches from 'save to win' to 'win to save'. ofc he's doing it to protect everyone but that's not the objective anymore, it's the result.

whereas Katsuki is so fixated on bringing Izuku's overworked dumbass back he doesn't even think about AFO let alone defeating him. his defining moral also does a 180 & becomes 'save to win' instead like ASBHSDHSJDKFS DO YOU GUYS SEE WHAT I MEAN IS THE BRAIN BRAINING TO MY BKDKS??!

In summary, I have lost my leftover sanity, 3 boxes of tissues and so much comfort food y'all oh my god-

to this scene. this one moment in a(surprisingly large) list of bkdk being soulmates, platonic or otherwise ಥ_ಥ

Thank you for coming to my Ted Talk, have a good day/night, drink some water and fix your goddamn spine you banana shaped fucks<3<3

Also here's the link to my previous post>>

[elias-rights]

What’s toxic about JonMartin in canon?

It's a really interesting question to get into because there are many factors at play. Under a cut for length.

First of all is the simple fact that they don't know each other. From MAG 159:

PETER

It’s odd, really. You each think you’re so focused on the other, but how much do you really know each other? How much time have you spent together when not working, or bickering, or fleeing from that latest thing that wants to kill you? So. What are you seeking? The image you’ve each created of the other? The people you think you love don’t exist. Not really. And that’s a very lonely place to be.

ARCHIVIST

(cutting off Peter’s echo) Shut up!

Yes, it's a manipulation attempt, but Jon notably doesn't offer a counterargument to his reasoning. Furthermore, it's true: they haven't had the opportunity to get to know each other, at least that we've heard. Not even Jonmartin enthusiasts seem to agree on the question of when exactly Jon started reciprocating Martin's feelings; most of my mutuals share my experience of being completely blindsided by MAG 159/160 and the confirmation of their feelings.

"I need him to be okay" is often cited as proof of Jon caring personally about Martin, but I always viewed it as him clinging to the concept of Martin as his last surviving original assistant; he obviously feels responsible for him and also views him as a symbol of simpler times.

Then there's the fact that they're incompatible. To put a simple example, they don't even get each other's jokes. A brief selection of instances where this happens:

They have the highest ratio of missed jokes I remember seeing between characters in this podcast. This sharply contrasts with, for instance, Gerry, who instantly clicks with Jon's style of communication.

Okay, but this is all about why they're incompatible, which doesn't necessarily imply toxicity. That factor comes in because, throughout season five, Martin is (to put it bluntly) an absolute dick to Jon.

In MAG 181, for example, he joins in on laughing at Jon with Salesa for being powerless, when Salesa at that point was an unknown variable that could've easily been an enemy:

ARCHIVIST

[Compellingly] Tell me what happened.

SALESA

No.

ARCHIVIST

I – uh… W-What?

[DEEP CHUCKLES FROM SALESA]

SALESA

The look on your face! Look, he’s so confused!

[MARTIN LAUGHS A BIT TOO]

ARCHIVIST

Martin!

MARTIN

Sorry. Sorry. Y-You did look kind of funny. It was l-l-l-like you were flunking an exam or something.

Notably, this is after they cross an unknown threshold into the place where an agent of the Web is living, which puts Jon (again, powerless for the first time in a while) in a position where he's at the mercy of the fear that destroyed his childhood. Either Martin is being very insensitive or Jon didn't tell him about Mr Spider, which wouldn't mean anything good re: how well they know and trust each other.

From the same episode:

SALESA

And you?

[SOUND OF A DISGRUNTLED ARCHIVIST]

MARTIN

He’ll behave.

You can make an argument that I'm reaching with everything else in this post, but "he'll behave" is an inarguably disgusting thing to say about your partner, especially when he's in such a vulnerable position.

And then, of course, is the matter of the killing spree.

It starts because Jon impulsively avenges his friend, which he wasn't going to do until the Not-Them basically baited him. (Of course he then felt more secure in his power and part of him enjoyed it. He's in this situation because he was systematically traumatised on purpose by Jonah and forced to read his statement.)

And then, when Jon admits to being ashamed of himself for having these powers, for enjoying them, Martin just bluntly tells him that they should "get their murder on" because "these things" (avatars, of which Jon! Is! One! Nice job implicitly dehumanising him!) are "just evil" (never mind that some of them might have circumstances similar to Jon's). (Also, never mind that revenge fixes nothing, but that's neither here nor there.)

The most egregious example is with Oliver Banks. I know "I'm not going to kill a man just because you're jealous" became a meme line, but it's really not the sign of a healthy relationship.

MARTIN

…Cool, so what’s the problem, then? Take another monster off the hit list; job done.

ARCHIVIST

…It’s not. That simple?

MARTIN

Well, what does that mean. (slight pause, insistent) What does that mean, John? What, what happened to Kill Bill? (barest of pauses) John? John, you said –

ARCHIVIST

I know what I said, and I don’t – (sigh) I don’t know, Martin. I just – I don’t think he’s – (sigh) I don’t know; I don’t think he’s evil.

[Something creaks.]

MARTIN

(really?) Oh, yeah, sure; he’s probably a really kind, benevolent ruler of a hellish fear prison.

I get that Martin is trying to project evil onto every avatar in order to distance himself from them because he's coping badly with having a domain of his own, but maybe don't do that in front of your boyfriend who's struggling with his own avatarhood and whether that makes him a monster. Martin's phrasing even parallels Jon's "all you lose is another monster" line from S4. Tying Jon's worth to some arbitrary definition of humanity that he giveth and taketh away on a whim.

Also, Jon is very notably a person who likes to think things through before expressing them. If Martin can't even be patient while he tries to explain something complex, they're clearly not compatible.

This is from before they kill Jude Perry:

MARTIN

…No. No, I’m not going to choose; I don’t, I don’t think that’s a fair decision to put on me. It’s your revenge; your choice, not mine.

This strikes me as hypocritical. Martin can push Jon to kill the avatars he doesn't like even when Jon clearly isn't comfortable with it, but then places the weight of the whole thing on Jon, as if the killing spree had been his idea. Why isn't it a "fair decision to put on him" when Martin has tried to choose every time until now?

And, I mean, Martin apologises for the pressure, for what it's worth. Except no, the topic comes back, and not in a good way.

ARCHIVIST

What happened to “Kill Bill”?

MARTIN

You weren’t meant to enjoy it this much!

This is about Jon suggesting using his power in a way that would actually make a bit of a difference. Of course it's a fallible suggestion, but Martin's response is just ridiculous. Martin clearly enjoyed the killing spree until it was Jon who put an end to it.

Martin casually dehumanises, dismisses, and belittles Jon on many occasions: treating those Jon's obviously projecting onto like monsters, being whiny and impatient about the statements he needs to survive, or interrupting his train of thought.

Finally (for this post--there were many scenes that I skipped), there's the matter of how the entire crew, Martin included, systematically dismisses Jon's input in the last few episodes. It's like his opinion doesn't even matter, when he's the one arguably best equipped to understand what's happening.

It's genuinely painful to listen to.

[chuckle-lore]

Welcome to Chuckle Lore, the blog that documents all the lore from Chuckle Sandwich.

But what is Chuckle Sandwich (CS) Lore?

CS Lore are events that happened or were mentioned within the podcast. There are some requirements for a event to be considered lore and not just a moment.

Requirements for chuckle lore:

Event must originate from CS. (ex: Schlatt luring a man to his death with bake beans originated from Ted’s channel and will not count as lore)

Event can not happen in real life, member(s) in the podcast recalling a memory will not count as canon (ex: Schlatt stealing Mr.Beast’s diamond play button does not count as lore unfortunately)

Two or more members must agree that an event has happened or at the very least go along with it. Tucker does count as a member and guess that are featured on the podcast will count as members for that episode (ex: Schlatt saying him and Ted murdered two homeless people while Ted wasn’t there in episode 111 doesn’t count BUT Ted and Schlatt both saying they murdered Charlie is canon)

Requirements may change as blog continues and exceptions may be made

What else will this blog document?

Tidbits will be recorded, which are any little facts that are mentioned about the cs! that are too small to be considered lore moments but I think are worth noting

Iconic moments, things that are not lore but are memorable

My opinions for the episode I’m watching and a rating out of ten. This is a brief section but for episodes with less/no lore might have a longer section.

Episodes I will not be watching/analyzing

Chuckle Dungeon will not be included because that’s its own thing

The Wilbur Soot episode will not be included because I do not feel comfortable watching anything he is involved in

The Karl Jacobs episode will not be included simply because I don’t like that episode and you can’t make me watch it again

Things to note

I am going in numerical order kinda. Each week I plan on watching one episode starting from ep.1 and the latest episode up until I catch up to the current episode.

I am only a man and this was made impulsively so expect a few hiccups/missed weeks

If you have CS lore you found on your own, you are more than welcome to submits it. Just please include the episode number and timestamp of the lore event(s) (credit will be given)

[theminecraftbee]

so latest hermitcraft episode (from joe's pov) is completely chaos alright! some highlights:

joe starting the episode by surrounding the rift with cats to motivate grumbot (this doesn't work)

grian, solemnly: "history doesn't repeat itself, but it sometimes rhymes" (immediate cut to the chaos of a group hermitcraft recording)

joe didn't know he needed an elytra so he keeps on trying and failing to ender pearl up onto grumbot's hand with everybody else

scar: "ooh, was i a good mayor in your universe grumbot?" grian, with great pain: "please don't ask him that."

"i may have built an evil robot." - grian, being mildly self-aware for once, i guess?

the bridge to the rift being broken and no one having blocks so it's just being rebuilt out of anything people had on hand. this seems to largely be sculk catalysts. guys.

the empires crew has built a tnt canon.

grian: "wait guys, lets all calm down, lets try to have a normal conversation", proceeded by an argument about whether or not the hermits are allowed to leave and, if they are, will they please remove the evil robot. (they will not.)

bdubs: "i flanked them! i flanked them! look at me i'm flanking them!", loudly, as the fighting resumes

oli killing bdubs and saying in the background "look at me! i've killed god."

joe, on getting back through the rift: "i hope this is the right one, i hope this isn't the hermitcraft where jfk assassinated somebody else or something" (fascinating canon implications)

everyone joking about the rift taking scar again because he stood in it for too long on logging in and got teleported

there's a bat in grian's cave and impulse is just in the background failing to hit it with his weapon during several of joe's shots

"where's cod boy he has some explaining to do"

grian coming back through and saying he heard the emperors talking about following them. everyone going "alright get your weapons". xisuma responding "wait, guys, can't we just greet them nicely?" and everyone immediately shouting that down, of COURSE not, don't be stupid.

the emperors all logging in. none of them have elytra to get out of grian's cave. f.

grian, suddenly: "guys pixlriffs is here impulse! impulse do the thing!"

"this week on hermitcraft... me!"

oli, joe, and cleo trying to figure out how to get all three of them out with two elytra between them. joe uses the trident trick.

THE EMPERORS ARE HERE NOW I GUESS LETS GO

just. this episode is so much chaos. please go watch it.

[uwubeggar]

Idk how to do the "under the cut" thing, so I'll just say, Bad Batch Season 3 latest episodes spoilers below, peeps. You've been warned.

Ok I gotta say it, I think mystery clone that everyone thinks is Tech is a clone of Crosshair. It's a little weird to think of a clone of a clone, but I mean... it makes way more sense based on the way these two latest episodes have been structured.

Clearly they are putting a lot of emphasis on the mystery clone because he is important, meaning, he has to be someone we would recognize. The mind immediately goes to Tech, but, I mean, it really doesn't make any sense. If Tech is alive and being used by the empire, then why would he be a commando clone? Wouldn't he be used as a think-tank kind of thing like what happened to Echo? I don't want them to use that same set up again, but it makes a lot more sense than tech suddenly becoming the ultimate super soldier sniper. Not saying Tech isn't good at that stuff, but it very much isn't his forte.

This leads me into my main point, he's a sniper. They put him in situations that he solves by being a really good shot, AND they create a cinematic parallel between him and Crosshair by giving them multiple one-on-one fights.

He carries a rifle, shoots down ships, he hit the captured clone in the heart from across the room in one shot. He also has the same kind of scope as crosshair does, which doesn't necessarily mean anything because other clones (Rex being one) have the scope too, however, cutting to the scope pov to show the shot and (literal) crosshair has been Crosshair's thing. In fact the show shows both Crosshair and the Mystery clone in that pov in these two episodes.

The mystery clone also seems to know who Crosshair is, which could just be from Crosshair's time in the program. But then why does the mystery clone make it sound so personal? And yet Crosshair doesn't seem to recognize him back? The mystery clone is also extremely impulsive and does not follow orders very well, yet he very much thinks he is superior to everyone. Then he justifies it by going for the mission objective at all costs. One could gather this from the way he defies/ignores Wolffe, attempts to take on the entire batch by himself, and kills other clones without mercy, almost as if he has something to prove.

Not only are his battle tactics similar to Crosshair, but his mannerisms overall mirror him as well. He barely talks, he does stare downs, and he has a low gravely voice. Something tells me that even after re-education Tech wouldn't change every single one of his mannerisms. At least I would hope he wouldn't, because that would suck.

Anyway, I might be wrong. I might be coping because Tech winter soldier sounds stupid to me. I do think Tech isn't out of the picture whether he is alive, or dead but relevant to the plot, I think he'll be back. I hope it isn't this guy tho cuz that shit doesn't make sense.

I mean, no offence but Tech is not exactly the character I would point to when I think about who was most emotionally damaged by Crosshair. I'd say that was Hunter or maybe Wrecker and we've already been shown those conflicts in season 3.

Edit:

Gotta add that I just realized the captured clone from the beginning of the episode recognized Crosshair... whether that only means Crosshair has more to do with this than we thought, or...maybe, just maybe, emphasis on maybe, there is a literal Crosshair double walking around.