#god...am i a meta writer now? shit...

[mysteriouslybluepirate]

Hey,

I just wanted to make sure: have you been in the ofmd fandom during s1 coming out? I'm very interested in meta from that time (I'm not asking for any links, I can search myself, don't want to bother you, unless you would like to recommend something, that would be great of course)

(Forgive any spelling errors for now, im in bed on my phone lol)

Hello! Yes I have! I started watching the show a few days after s1ep7&8 came out, and watched eps 9&10 the moment they came out!

During the early days of fandom meta, you had a lot of straight up show analysis. Songs, motifs, symbols and explaining characters actions and the like. Back then I don't think I ever posted, just reblogged some stuff relating to Ed/Stede.

For that, I'd recommend looking up the topics I listed from lighthouse symbolism, music in certain scenes. Bare bones, but fun stuff! The tags 'ofmd meta' 'Edward Teach meta' or character + meta. That or ofmd symbolism, ofmd mental health, Ed's heart(referencing the red cloth), Oranges, Oluwande's earing.

My biggest draw here is I just love characters and analyzing character arcs in stories. So I have always been on the more meta sides of fandom.

I started posting light meta for Ed and Izzy maybe around June ish of 2022? Maybe? Nothing big, but from then on I focused mainly in the Izzy spaces. FOR ME: I was more intrigued by the meta on the cycles of abuse, classism, refrences to historical piracy, and just sheer angst and heart and emotional honesty of the Meta on this side of the fandom. I grew up and still live in a very red very rural US state and cant safely be visibly queer, so i latched onto Izzy's caution around visable queerness/vulnerability and habit to cling onto the established norm vs. Stede and Ed's story on 'The Love Shack' Carribean eddition. (and the fact Izzy's side treated Ed and Stede like characters that COULD still make mistakes.)

Some fans prefer the romance of ofmd while others prefer the story of family/acceptance/angst. We as a fandom split pretty quickly after ep 10. Trust me.

I sadly can't recommend you anyone specific due to essentially texting this post rn (and if any fans at the time comment down below any notable meta writers they can remember, I'd appreciate it-im drawing a blank besides my mutuals-hell give yourself a shout out if youd like). What i can give you are the disagreements that split meta writing in the fandom during the hiatus. Hell some of these even have trickle-down effects to this day as to how the fandom portrays these characters TO THIS DAY. This is where I see the clear line between what ofmd fandom will call the Izzy 'canyon' of meta vs general fan posting.

1.) Did Izzy influence/order Ed to become the Kraken? [Ed meta: (to be a bit uncharitable) Ed felt like he was alone and he'd only be able to keep Izzy in his life is if he became the Kraken (or Izzy is somehow abusing Ed to make that choice to become the monster he feared)] [izzy meta: izzy wanted blackbeard back, his friend and captain, not the Kraken. He cares about Ed being safe, and for them, that means hiding behind the blackbeard shield. Even if it keeps them both stagnant]

2.) Does Ed want to kill? How does he frame killing? How does he moralize it? How does this trauma affect him as a character? How does he value the lives of his crew ('they're pirates, that's their job' s1ep4 vs his dad or the ship he lit on fire for example)

3.) Is izzy homophobic/racist/a colonist/more of a piece of shit beyond just being an antagonist(if i were you I'd also just stick away from a post if it seems like the writer is framing all of Ed's actions like Izzy is his 'puppet master controlling the strings'.)

4.) Why do Stede and Ed seem to struggle to care about anyone else in their lives beyond each other? (Not really popular outside of Izzy spaces unless discussing ADHD/AUTISM. Honestly I don't know how you'd look for this in a Tumblr search bar, but it's some good stuff)

5.) Edward Teach has Adhd/BPD/Depression or the cycle of abuse, Stede Bonnet has Autism/Adhd/emotional childhood neglect including some amazing meta on masking. I think I even wrote something about Izzy and autism actually....

If I were you this is where I'd start. The mental health discussions in this Fandom are intriguing. S2 did basically confirm the ADHD 100% for anyone who was doubting, and healed Ed's btd with stedes dick, but other than that. There's some really good stuff in there. An easy way to find some good writers!

>) ALSO: Does piracy represent masculinity?? (S1 says maybe, it depends. S2 throws that whole meta out the window, but it was fun to talk about equating Izzy and Ed's leather daddy ship and more masculinity presentations of queerness to traditional masc gender roles)

6.) Do you define Ed and his actions as his own or as that under labels? This one is super frustrating to me personally. It does nothing for me to look at s2ep1 and say 'see that's the Kraken, that's a mask, that's not Ed'. But a lot of the general wider fandom do see Ed masking as somehow putting on a role, like in a play, and carrying out his evil actions under a pseudonym. These people usually will also believe the 'Izzy is manipulating a mentally ill man' stuff. As if Izzy isn't also SUPER fucked up.

THIS lack of character direction affected our fandoms fanfic and fanart too. I look at Ed and see a man who is and has fucked up. But hell, go back to S1 fic and you can read a fic where izzy slaughters puppies and Ed stands by with 'sexy cow eyes' unable to stop him. Then the next read 'Ed/Stede slowburn post s1 where Izzy goes to get Stede and learns to be apart of the crew' in 40k words.

7.) Jim's religious trauma, what is up with Buttons, Lucius/Izzy and Polyamory dynamics, or other topics with side characters that are brushed off. I bet right now if you look at people writing S2 Frenchie trauma Meta, they wrote stuff for s1

8.) Also- was izzy turned on by the toe thing/getting slammed into a wall. Yes. This is still debated. As a con oneill fan, those are not his 'I'm hot for this' faces. But No. You will still see that interpretation today that he wanted Ed to do something to him only because he got off on it. Even after s2. (Izzy being a masochist however? Fan theory that was embraced and made into a refrence in s2 which was fun)

I've just rebloged a post with some meta from a writer I enjoy and I will tag you!! But yeah! OFMD mutuals if you can recommend any meta writers, don't be afraid to!! Thanks for the ask!!! ❤️(I will likely add to this post when I think of more lol)

[shellem15]

Putting my shitposting aside, I really do think that this "turn the gods mortal" plan is the pest possible outcome out of a host of bad options. The most obvious choice (and most reasonable in-text), keeping the god-eater locked up, is fucking boring. Sorry, it just is.

You can't wave a big red button in front of your audience for 60+ episodes and then *not* press it . Now, if the entire narrative up until this point had been "we *have* to stop the button from being pressed," then that's a different story. Your narrative buildup would have been focused around keeping that tin-can tightly shut, and so the other option (opening it) would be completely out of left field and narratively wack.

But that's not what happened in this case. Here, the buildup was about "will they won't they". And at the point Bells Hells were at immediately prior to stepping into that cage, anything else would have been a dramatic letdown. You can't just go "I might press the button" for so long and then *not* press the button at the last second without a damn good (well-developed and character-driven) reason.

But, on the other hand, slamming down that button no-shits given and going "fuck you" to the gods entirely would ALSO be unsatisfying. Why? Because Downfall, that's why.

Downfall made the gods truly *characters* instead of just set-pieces. If you didn't watch cr1 or cr2, you'd have no reason to care about these guys *until* downfall. The audience is invested in them now, and because of that investment we want to see a satisfying conclusion to their stories. Simply going "they're dead/gone now. deal with it" is not satisfying. It feels disrespectful, almost. Like they're just an afterthought and the investment the cast deliberately built up in the audience just doesn't matter.

It's the "rocks fall everyone dies" ending for the gods. And that sucks.

This is why this third option is SO GOOD in comparison. Because it manages to find the best of both worlds! You're pressing the big red button, thereby avoiding the dramatic letdown, while also not screwing over these important characters. It shakes up the world and makes things super interesting going forward, while also allowing the gods to continue *their* stories and develop and grow in ways not previously possible.

You gotta love a "Yes, and" type ending. Its a perfect setup for future campaigns.

...Also, goddlers!!!

EDIT: Can't believe I have to say this but let me clarify. I am a writer. I very often examine media from the perspective of a writer. This post is a meta analysis of why an audience might be/might not be disappointed by something from the perspective *of a writer.* I very highly doubt that the people who like this outcome or think its a fitting end are viewing it though the same lens As. A. Writer.

"The most reasonable choice in-text" I mentioned previous does not equal the most satisfying or engaging choice. If you're in a horror movie, and there's a spooky scary mansion, the "most reasonable choice in-text" would be not going into the mansion. That would also not make for a good story. Does this make sense?

[ernmark]

Juno Steel and the Case Closed (part 1) reaction

It's been a while since I've done one of these, hasn't it?

But it's the last episode, and I wanted to be here for the end. So if you'd like, some thoughts and theories under the cut:

It was a solid choice to have Nureyev go-- to make this final story about Juno and his world and his life, rather than specifically about their relationship. But also, the choices made around Nureyev's leaving-- holy shit.

Because here's a man who's spent the last twenty years entirely defined by his relationship with one man, and now he's cut loose and of course he's flailing to re-establish himself in a different orbit. And you can hear it in his voice, where it rises into something halfway to panic (amazing job, Noah Simes), and you can feel exactly how horribly wrong it's going to go if he goes down that road. And then there's Juno, who's healthy enough to be the voice of reason, even when it hurts him? Who makes it clear he's willing to wait until Nureyev is ready for him? Oh my god, that's perfection. (And Nureyev going maybe back to Brahma-- my little fanfic writer heart did a leap there). Nureyev may very well be back next episode (I suspect he will, if only for the final moments), but I really like this as an ending of their arc-- not the neatly laced up riding off into the sunset together, but looking forward to that sunset and being actually ready for it when it comes. It makes my heart feel so good.

--

And from that happy moment, to have Juno go back to Hyperion, to his office, and immediately start slipping back into his worst self? Oh, that's too real-- in a way that I am very happy with. Because he isn't 'fixed'. Juno 'born-a-sad-baby' Steel won't ever be 'fixed', not by romance or a vacation or a wonderful new family dropping him reminders of how much they love him. What's wrong with him isn't something that can be fixed-- but this time around it's different. This time around, when he yells at Rita she stands up to him (with a small, tremulous voice, because goddamn standing up to people you love is terrifying). I am so proud of her for that, and of him for backing off. It takes a palpable effort for him to rein himself in, but he's making that effort-- and he knows how, in a way that I don't think he did in those early seasons. It's a choice he's making, over and over again, just like it's a choice he makes to keep replaying Jet's wisdom instead of drowning his misery in tequila.

(Another kudos there: that Juno's problem isn't addiction, not the same way it is for Jet-- alcohol isn't a problem for him when things are going well, but it's easier to retreat into a bottle than to deal with his feelings. It's a distinction you don't see very often. Honestly, the way this show has dealt with addiction has been really refreshing to see.)

I've said from the beginning that one of the things that really drew me to this show was how it handles Juno's depression-- as a genuine mental illness that's an inherent part of him. And it's enheartening to see him struggle with it, but now be able to reach out for the tools and the support he needs. And that support doesn't have to be Jet literally talking him away from the bottle, or Rita or Nureyev petting him and making him feel better. He can reach for the pieces of them that they leave behind. And he can wish the Ruby 7 a good journey home, and send Nureyev to find himself, not without pain and grief, but without completely losing himself to it.

That kind of story gives me so much more hope than any kind of 'happily ever after' ever could.

--

And then the designated mystery, which has me so freakin' excited:

Nightmare.

She is the culmination of so many plot threads that I've been picking up on for so long and I'd completely forgotten about, and I am so freaking excited to see it.

I was in such a rough place emotionally when we last visited the most obvious of those threads, I genuinely don't remember if I posted meta about it or not, but it definitely struck some bells:

When Juno rescued Rita from Dark Matters, the safehouse she was in was described as being full of items that were clearly meant for a child. At the same time, Sasha was having Rita destroy all evidence of her own life so thoroughly that not even Rita herself would be able to find traces afterward.

It seemed most obvious to me that she was hiding a child (one that, I didn't realize until Juno remarked on Nightmare's area code, could have been hidden in the suddenly repopulated New Town without anybody asking inconvenient questions about who she was or where she came from). Also her taking care of a child would explain her ever-escalating reactionary tendencies-- she certainly wouldn't be the first parent who descended into authoritarianism in a misguided attempt to protect someone.

So some theories about who and what Nightmare is:

Alessandra's daughter is the most obvious, of course. (I still hold onto that theory that Sasha was either the Worst Client that Juno told Alessandra Strong about, or else that Sasha was the cheating spouse in that story.)

Nightmare could be Annie Wire's daughter-- assuming that Annie survived the factory, grew up, had a child of her own, and then died for real this time, leaving her grieving sister to raise her niece.

Nightmare could be Annie Wire herself-- dead, kept in stasis, revived by Dark Matters technology, and then whisked away to the safe house.

Nightmare could be a clone of Sasha and/or Annie. Honestly, not digging this theory, but I might as well throw it out there.

Nightmare could herself be a Radical, not unlike the Ruby 7, who's taken on Sasha's appearance and stayed that way ever since (after all, Sasha would have been at just about the right age when she was recruited by Dark Matters)

From a narrative standpoint, I'm most fond of the idea of Nightmare either being Annie or Annie's daughter, personally. Because that's literally the second mystery we were given, and it was pointedly never solved. As much as I like the idea that some mysteries just aren't and you have to make peace with that, I'm a big fan of long games like this, and of tugging on threads from the beginning of a story when you're wrapping up the end. That's especially true for Sasha's arc closing here, back in Hyperion City. Sasha's voice was one of the very first that we heard in this series, and Sasha's trajectory has always been a funhouse mirror version of Juno's. She's always been an integral part of his story. It seems fitting that her story gets wrapped up alongside his.

[drconstellation]

More Half-and-Half-A-Miracle Thoughts

Part 3: The Third Archangel

Updated 10 Nov 2023

Part 1: Miracle Power Ranking is here Part 2: The Dark side of Aziraphale is here.

Before I try to put the full picture of the mighty miracle together, there is one other Archangel I want to talk about first, because yeah, if the "little" miracle had an Archangel x an Archangel x (ex-)Archangel in the equation, all working in synergy, that's some pretty serious potential power right there.

S2 has given us much to discuss about Crowley and his past. We know he is different in that he has an imagination. We know he is the only ethereal entity, angelic or demonic, who can stop time, which is no mean feat. I have a list of at least nine, possibly thirteen clues (it keeps growing! 21 clues And yes, I'm counting,) that he was once a

senior Archangel, one of the seraphim, before his Fall (but not which one in particular, for sure, alas. We can debate that later, its not important here. Really. Don't @ me about it, I'm not going to engage in this post.) They (updated link to a new discussion: the idea of Crowley previously being a very powerful angel) have all been mentioned already, none of them are new. This implies there is a huge amount of potential power that Crowley could pull upon to put into the miracle performed on Gabriel. So he is our obvious ex-Archangel in the equation.

And we already have Gabriel, in the middle.

Which just leaves us with Aziraphale, and his green-paneled waistcoat...

I've led you all on thinking he's somehow connected to Hell? Or been associating too long with Crowley? No. (Or maybe, yes? To hanging around a demon, I mean.) On one hand it does show us he is not like the other angels. On the other, it tells us something else altogether.

For all that I've been recently rabbiting on about dark horses pointing mainly to Crowley and Saraqael, we have perhaps been deftly misdirected from the biggest dark horse of all: Aziraphale as our 'missing" seraphim, Archangel Raphael, incognito.

Now, I'm certainly not the first person to suggest this at all. There have been multiple metas about it, even way back from S1. I agree with them, fwiw.

Why am I saying this now? I think this recent post about Aziraphale being present at Sodom and Gomorrah sealed it for me, especially since I had made a recent note about Raphael being the one to be assigned to escort Lot from Gomorrah. And for all that I've just discussed how dark Aziraphale can be, he is still clearly affected by what he witnessed that night, so long, long ago.

"Oh Lord, heal this bike."

Green is also the color primarily associated with Raphael, the healer. I've seen a few other colors mentioned as well (in fact, the more you search, the more confusing it gets) but mostly the color you'll see mentioned is green. And its the color Aziraphale conceals on the back side of his waistcoat. Plus he did heal Anathema (and her velocipede) back in S1 after they collided with the Bentley.

Finally, in the Islamic tradition, Raphael is known as Israfil, and he is essential to announcing the Day of Judgement, with a trumpet constantly poised at his lips, ready to blown when God so orders.

Guess who just got taken back to Heaven to start the Second Coming?

Edit: Since I first posted this, some additional information has come along to add to this. I finally bumped into a post about the wonderful golden collars in the Job minisode (It's so, so important to put at least one or two relevant tags for meta-writers like me to help find your posts readers! Then you can shit-talk in the tags all you like.) and that lead me to a webpage on basic angel symbology and the major angels, which helped to firm up a few things I'd been wondering about. One observation is angels usually go about bare-footed, but Raphael wears sandals when on Earth, as he is chief of the guarding angels, and is the guardian of the young, and watches over pilgrims and travelers. And who was wearing golden sandals during the Job minisode?

Doing some guarding of the young as well...

And Raphael is assigned to the direction of the East.

Now we have three Archangels, three seraphim, no less, side by side.

That's a mighty shitload of potential miracle power, whichever way you want to look at it. No wonder the ol' Metatrash got a bit nervous about what happened and decided to take a personal hand in things.

If your sitting there going "'Hang on, op, hang on just a darned minute - Aziraphale hasn't even been promoted to Supreme Archangel yet and Crowley could just be a Dominion, you don't know, and Gabriel's a drooling idiot, how could he contribute to it - " Just stop. Take a breath. Go back to Part 1 where I discuss the problems with our knowledge about miracle powers and their potential. Their potential. And its frustrating that in the end we just don't have enough knowledge to be certain.

So take this as my personal head-canon. I may not have really answered why the miracle was so strong. But as I said at the start, I don't think we can. Too many factors involved, too many unknowns. Too much hidden.

Bring on S3, I say!

[angst-is-love-angst-is-life]

Can you recommend me some good fics where Barry Allen gets kidnapped :) since in one of your tags you said you read a lot of them lol

I read them, I write them, I live and breathe them. Absolutely anon, allow me to dive into my bookmarks.

Just a reminder, always be sure to check the tags and warnings to know what you're getting into. Stay safe out there folks!

Juncture by @pennflinn may be my favorite fic of all time. Technically he gets kidnapped before the story's events but that's because it's an alternate ending to Escape from Earth-2 (and he is held captive for pretty much the entire fic so). The whump is SUPREME and the overall story is so well written. I will always recommend this fic.

One Second by pennflinn. Another one by penn because she is an incredible writer and HOLY FUCKING SHIT THIS FIC!! It takes my favorite premise for a fic "What if Barry was kidnapped in this scene/episode when he wasn't in canon!" and brings it to a WHOLE nother level. This one is diverges from 1x14 "Fallout" where, instead of everyone getting away semi-safely, Eiling kidnaps Barry and whump ensures. BUT there's another twist to this fic that (in my opinion) makes it stand out from many others-- every once in a while, there's a glimpse of a parallel universe where the events were different and let's just say some of those universes h u r t. Also, I wanted to kill Eiling so bad after reading this that I wrote a ficlet with the sole purpose of murdering him :) Anyways, go read; it's amazing.

Miles Through The Night by @hedgiwithapen. First off, this is an everyone whump fic, Barry is not the only one who is kidnapped but 1. IT HURTS GODS IT HURTS SO BAD I'M DYING. 2. The writing is spectacular, all the characters are super well done, and the story is INTENSE I'M STILL DYING SORRY I'LL STOP NOW. In this one-- actually nvm, the actual summary will do it justice. "With Eobard Thawne dead, life in Central City can go back to normalish. But Barry’s greatest enemy is not a speedster from the future fixated on him, and Eobard’s threat may have been the only thing keeping Team Flash safe from someone who doesn’t consider any meta to be human." THAT'S RIGHT-- AN EILING FIC! Just. Go read it, it's so good and I'm dying.

Lightning Bug by Hedgi. The writing in this was SUPERB and Eiling is a fucking bastard as always (count your days general.). And this time we have another speedster in the mix-- a toddler Wally! Ngl, I just reread this while getting the link and it was SO GOOD-- and once again my words can't seem to do it justice so I'll leave you with the summary "Months after the defeat of Zoom, Barry's main concern (aside from the odd metahuman attack) is helping Joe and Iris raise the four and a half year old Speedster Wally West, Cisco-named "Lightning Bug." And while that's hard, it's nice to have this speedster as family, not an enemy. Things are pretty easy.

Unfortunately, that doesn't last. After all, General Eiling's deal was only good for as long as their mutual enemies were still a threat." Eiling needs to die in a ditch as you can see, but there's some really sweet whump in this and it's because of him soooooo-- anyways, go read; it was fantastic.

Can’t Take That Away From Me by SophiaCatherine (or @sophiainspace on here). DUDE. DUDE DUDE DUDE-- I LOVE THIS FIC. I AM IN LOVE WITH THIS FIC. EVen once the whump passes, the A N G S T is so delicious! From the beginning of the first chapter alone; you'll see the sweet whump AND angst this fic has in store. Oh, and it's Coldflash which I somehow forgot to mention even though that's a foundation of the entire fic lmao. I love it, go read. Also, there is a sequel but it's not Barry being whumped this time... double also; there's a prequel and it's really sweet (no whump in that one fyi)

I Never Told Him by messedupstargazer. I am SCREAMING. THIS. FIC. Fyi, it's Coldflash. SO MUCH ANGST THE WHUMP-- IT'S SO GOOD I HAVE NO WORDS. DYING DYING DYING I AM DEAD I HAVE PERISHED.

Looking through all of these at once has filled me with many emotions and I apologize if some parts were incoherent. I'm probably missing a few and may add more as I find them but for now I'll finish with these two I wrote.

12 hours Barry's kidnapped before the events of the story but I think it still counts. He's trapped in Zoom's lair and forced to run for twelve hours every day :)

Trophy this is my beloved and the entire fic is a Barry whump fest (and angst. a lot of angst.). (or will be, There's one chapter posted atm) Technically we haven't seen the kidnapping yet but in the first scene he is in a cell so. Premise is that Zoom wins in the season 2 finale and everything goes to hell from there. I do feel obligated to warn though that there's not a happy ending for this one.

Thanks for asking! I'm always eager to share Barry whump! :D

[iwtvdramacd18]

No no it's fine. You have your right to be cagey and honestly I have witnessed so much fandom drama in my main fandom regarding this very discussion of race and the things that were said there...oof. I can 1000% understand the need to be cagey. I might have come on too strong and honestly, yeah, now that I am thinking about it all of my questions cannot truly be addressed in one ask. And if one does so, it would take a lot of energy. I really didn't mean to make you uncomfortable. Hope you don't mind ❤

Thanks for coming back to clarify I appreciate it. As a whole I'm happy with how race is handled in the show however I as with most things I think they could have pushed it forward. Writers room could def use more black writers. (EDIT: man I shorted out I meant more writers of color in general) I'm honestly kinda burnt out on talking about stuff rn but in my meta tag are multiple posts about race in the show including my own/ stuff from others. It might be a good place to look for my ideas on it especially since I forget a lot of stuff on the spot.

The books handling of race is abysmal, Anne Rice was greatly influential in the genre and is also undoubtedly one of the reasons its historically still been such a white space. From the orientalism to other types of fetishization to her weird ass mixed race assimilation ass shit it's a nightmare. I guess luckily if you are reading it the vast majority of the characters are white in the books (including Akasha, which people seem to forget when drawing book only fanart which lmao. ok.) so you don't have to suffer seeing a character of color pop up on page and Armand listing off every exotic nut and fruit in the world to describe their skin tone. I think a lot of hardcore book readers tune it out but I can't lmao its so distracting and unnerving. For example no one brings up Gabrielle explicitly wanting to go into the "African jungles" and become god to the "tribes"

LIKE WHAT IS THIS

[serendertothesquad]

Seren's Studies: Odd Squad UK -- "Strictly Odd Dancing" Episode Followup, Part 1

Never in a million years would I have guessed this title was a reference to a show. Specifically, the everlasting, why-the-fuck-has-this-gone-on-for-over-two-decades Dancing with the Stars, or its UK equivalent Strictly Come Dancing.

However, if others' opinions about this episode are any indication...that might be the only good thing about it. I'm terrified.

Let's go below the break and pray and pray hard like the priest is watching.

(Just as a beginning note, though: I do love Captain O's singsong when she reads the title. Nice touch for a musical episode.)

Yep...that's what I dreaded. It was either gonna be an Omar joint or a Rob joint, and I was half-right.

Now I know exactly why people think this episode is bad, and I haven't even gotten five seconds into it yet.

This "thinking out loud" thing really wouldn't be a problem if it weren't for there being too much of an echo. How high are this thing's ceilings?

You laugh, but in America, if this guy were an A-list celebrity, he could, and would, get his own talk show.

Ohhhh bless this man and his delusions of grandeur.

As well as his sheer inability to lift this very tiny sofa.

Then again, he's pushing down on it, so...opposite force.

"I can't believe we're still stuck on this case."

"Orli, we're halfway through the season."

"...Pardon my language, but FUCK."

*long slow wheeze*

Oh God...this is what they choose to use as a framing device? This literal humor??? GTFOH. You could have done better, Omar.

"we've tried everything to get it off"

uses a fucking spatula

Now if this were a cartoon, they could use a jackha- *bonk*

...Oh. That's an agent with hair that looks like Omar's when Omar Khan is writing this episode.

I feel like that really can't be a coincidence. Lest we forget there was a writer with the first name of "Olaf" that wrote an episode. (Or at least I think it was Olaf. Could have been someone else, but I distinctly remember noting the similarity.)

Good thing he's got quick feet, or else Orli would be scraping the skin off his face.

"We used to be a little 'meh' about music."

I see a comment about a Season 2, Season 3, and/or Season 4 soundtrack from the crew somehow got into the script.

flashback time!

no wavy effect

Omar, what the FUCK. YOU HAD ONE JOB DUDE.

...Oh. I was actually expecting it to be a guy. It being a woman surprised me!

SKIPPING OVER THE WHOLE DAMN FREUDIAN EXCUSE MOTIVE RANT LMAOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

"Once I was potty-trained..."

Close enough. Welcome back, 2014 toilet humor.

You know what would really spice up this woman?

A kill count.

A person killed by singing and dancing themselves to death would give her a very nice wake-up call.

"Our gadgets can't reverse the Music Maestro's power."

Out of TEN THOUSAND GADGETS, not ONE has been made to deal with villains who have forced-dance powers?

So they just have to...find her and bring her back?

Sounds stupid. Sounds forced.

See, this is what the wavy flashback effect is good for. Helps to differentiate between past and present.

Just slapping the usual logo transition on there does SHIT.

"What made it worse was that we had never solved a case at that point."

Meta self-awareness in the form of "of course not, we've never seen you before", thy name is Omar Khan.

YEEEEEEEEEEEAH GET SUITE PRECURE ON THAT BITCH.

4 minutes in and we get the first song.

And I mean...mm...it's all right, I guess. But mostly I'm just thinking that there are better ways to do an 11-minute musical episode for this franchise.

"Is this a clue?"

"It's a napkin!"

"Why is this job so hard?"

Ladies and gents, I think we have a winner for "does Omar have any siblings?" And I am talking about the agent, mind, not the writer.

"The Music Maestro is so confident we won't catch her, she's giving us a clue!"

WHAT IS THIS LINE AND WHY THE F U C K DOES IT MAKE NO FUCKING SENSE. IF YOU GIVE THEM A CLUE OF C O U R S E THEY'RE GONNA CATCH YOU BITCH. DO YOU KNOW WHAT SHOW YOU ARE IN??????????????

The shitty flashback effects are not helping. For fuck's sake, USE A WAVE. WHY IS THIS SO HARD???????

They're bringing Ozzie into the story???

Man...man, c'mon. Can't you just make it about Ostin and his partner? Must you include Ozzie, protagonist status be damned?

Funny how last episode we had an idiot woman and a smart guy, and now we're going back to basics with an idiot boy and a smart girl.

...Huh. Y'all were right. The song is trash, and I hate it, and I'm really hating this episode just as much as I was unsure of it when I read the synopsis.

"Prepare for defeat, Odd Squad!"

"Yeah, okay, sure. How'd you get this number?"

"J- i- never mind. Just...never mind! Ugh!"

"Are you calling just to taunt us?"

"Yes. I believe I am!"

...Okay, that got a small chuckle. But it was a mournful chuckle that says this exchange belongs in a much better episode.

Once again, meta self-awareness, thy name is Omar Khan.

(On to Part 2!)

[popculturebuffet]

Finally for Warner Bros Animation, favorite character from their latest animated shows from 2021 onward (though things have been turbulent for them since this is when Zaslav entered the picture to ruin everything): Little Ellen, Yabba Dabba Dinosaurs, Bugs Bunny Builders, Batwheels, Velma, Gremlins Secrets of the Mogwai, My Adventures with Superman, Tiny Toons Looniversity, Kite Man Hell Yeah, and Batman Caped Crusader?

Yup David Zaslav: Warner Brothers Mummy Curse. And okay elemnating some more: LIttle Ellen< YDD, Bugs Bunny Builders, Gremlins and Kite Man Hell Yeah. THe latter i've gone back and forth on about trying as like harley I like the concept, but it feels like they go too broad with it. Could be wrong.

Velma: The final scooby doo show for now, i'm relived and amazed we're getting another one an dfittingly best boy wins again: this is Fred's third win. Fred is just the most consiently entertaining of the group, with fred as a spoiled man baby who can't function somehow working. He also is the first fred we've got proof killed a man. So there's that.

The show itself.. welllll

Yeah having seen part of season 1 with @jess-the-vampire after we put it off, and i'm slow balling it as too much of this show infurates me... this show is bad. Maybe it gets better, big maybe, but the first few episodes are pure torture. Now some of the backlash was just racist dogwhistling. Making the gang not as white as the purest driven snow was a good choice and the cast ofr them are all great: Mindy Kahling has great comedic timing (and didn't write this mess), Constance Wu does her best as Daphne and Sam Richardson isn't great as shaggy, but has been proven elsehwere he's a comedic god

The problem is the writing. The writing falls into ALLLL the traps of adult animation, from stupidly dark jokes just to be edgy, to sexualizing minors. HOly crap does this series not get how to write minors in a way that isn't creepy. We get fanservice stuff with daphne and some other teens at the school, a LOT of jokes about Fred's penis and the infamous bit of velma bragging about her ass. I'm not saying a teen show can't talk about or joke about sex, it'd be dishonest not to at least hint at it, but you shoudln't objectify minors and I don't think that should be that hard a thing to grasp in 2023/2024.

The writing is mean spirited, not funnya nd velma oscelates between way too put upon and kind of an asshole. It's also very clear the creators have not watched anything past where are you. Look am I asking them to do this?

No. You don't have to watch every episode of the franchise ever and I get they probably don't have time for that. Me and jess have binged large swaths of the franchise entirely for fun and at our own pace. But google.. exists. You can google the franchise, comb through the wikis, maybe watch a handful of eps from each series. You can do research to make sure you and your writers don't retread old jokes that have been told a million times. HA HA SHAGGY ISN'T A STONER, isn't funny. Mkaing Shaggy nothign LIKE the character isn't funny. The Franchise has already done most obvservations this series tries. The Scooby Doo Franchise is entirely meta and it's what makes it work: i'ts aware of i'ts own tropes and finds ways to play with them in each series. This is just a good setup, the gang in an adult series with real murders, that wastes it on stupid shit. It's bad and hopefully won't get renewed

My Adventures with Superman: Now this is the shit. Full disclosure a tthe time of this article I haven't watched season 2. Procastinations a bitch. Anyways Jimmy. Clark and Lois are both close, ebing a good soft boy and his excited yet complex partner in both sense of the words, but Jimmy is probably the best version of this character. After in name only attempts form supergirl (Which I need to watch at some point) and batman v superman (Which didn't even name him on screen) this feels like jimmy: Getting into weird shit (If not the todd chavez levels silver age jimmy did), being kinda funny.. but also being a kind vunerable guy. He's a good friend to clark, sharp (him having figured it out is brilliang and i'm tired of jimmy not knowing half the time), and a good straight man to his nervous and overconfident besties, while being just irresponsible and overenthuastic enough at times to still feel like a person.

This show is fantastic, a well done reboot of superman that takes the character to his core to tell a great immigrant story, a story that grows more and more timley. Is the "superman as an alien in both senses" metaphor new? No Superman Smashes the Klan also used this well and I wouldn't be shocked if it was an influence on the crew given the similar narrative of Clark being actively scared of his alien heritage. Is it subtle? no. But given what's going on as I write this, Trump and his beta male making up bullshit about immigrants that's putting lives at risk, it feels entirely warranted and timely.

Having a young clark works as while superman in STAS was starting his career, this clark really feels young, scared of what he is and grappling with questions DCAU clark was more at peace with when he starte dth eplanet. Lois is a good counterpoint, wanting the truth sometimes to ohard and trying to ballance being supportive with her own ambition and Jimmy.. again Jimmy goat. The show has beautiful action, designs and astetic and is a joy to watch, getting the hopeful core of supes down to a science.

The show isn't perfect: The designs for the bulk of the villian are pretty bland and lack color, which makes sense in universe but at the same time... spraypaint exists. Clark keeps his colors flying high, but the villians mostly wear grey tactical gear, with Deathstroke being one of the only ones with an actual costume. I'm not saying yo ucan't anime it up, king kai mxy looks dope, but you can do better and have in the same series. But it's flaws are minor comapred to just how great an adaptation this is and how much a breath of fresh air it feels. Stoked for season 3 and for my boy.

Tiny Toons Loonversity: Plucky. Sweetie was close and I love her.. but making plucky a theater kid was fucking genius, a way to seperate him from his ol dself (basically daffy but a teenager) while still keeping Plucky's ego fully in tact. My punk daughter is a close second though.

Looniversity is a reboot I REALLY need to finish and a great show. The show revamps the setting for college, updates the characters for the 2020s and gives them a fresh coat of paint while keeping who they are: Babs and Buster are still tricksters, Hamilton's still a clean freak, and Plucky's still an egotisit, but the added layers of the two being siblings (Which is still a weird choice but one that somehow works and gives the more more to do), and Hamilton being a legacy student who isn't great at the looney antics. They also take sweety from "not quite as bad but still awful tweety", to " queer punk rocker clearly in love with her roomate whose hilarious and you will repeat everything she says". The series clearly loves the original , it simply takes a more structured appraoch to vary it up and it works. It also gave us the pencil reaper.

Sharpen your pencils with his death blades kids!

Batman Caped Crusader: Clayface. Fun gimmick, great look and a hell of an episode. Caped Crusader is an excellent show and i'm pleased as punch to talk about it before the end of the year list. Caped Crusader is a lot like it's spirtual predecessor BTAS ,having paul dini work on it, a habit for good mostly standalone episodes, and some really big tearjerkers. But it zigs in a lot palces: The setting is the 40's (if one that's more diverse and less homophobic) instead of just using the astetics, the designs rather than boil a character down to their core go back to their roots, and it's allowed to do all the stuff standards wouldn't allow: death, child endagerment and more than implied corruption. The result is dark, moody an dtruly excellent. It's a show that isn't afraid to try new things, a more standofish bruce, even by his standards, a vastly diffrent but still engaging harley, Barbra Gordon not as a vigilante but a defense attorney. It's so damn good and I recommend finding it and watching it.

[amtrak12]

Thinking about this post about the mainstreamification of fandom and it was both too relatable and got me thinking about the early days of fandom going 'mainstream'.

I'd argue Community was one of the earliest fandoms to really become -- if not mainstream, then at least highly visible as the show was still airing. But it was so so different to what's happening now.

I think the main difference, other than it was 2010 and again one of the first fandoms to hit mainstream, is that no one treated what the writers said as the gospel truth. Fans and the showrunner/writers were in a two-way conversation with each other, and usually the format of that conversation was "No but...." It was a mutual rejection, while still inspiring a cult level of adulation from fandom. Because Community writers engaging with fandom was just another fourth wall broken, another genre parody in a show chock full of them. The writers didn't purposefully spite the fans (only the haters). They didn't shift to bashing a character because the wrong people loved them the wrong amount. They didn't stuff plot points down the garbage disposal because fans understood how to read foreshadowing. (Of course, Community was a sitcom that didn't have long term plot points to foreshadow, but still.) At most, the writers lovingly mocked the fans ala spoofing the Jeff/Annie S1 Gravity fanvid with their own Gravity edited montages in a canon episode -- which in turn only spawned more Gravity spoof fan vids by fandom. It was a mutual mocking the way siblings poke at each other.

And vice versa, no one in fandom cared whether the writers would ever make Jeff/Annie (or any ship) canon. If the writers couldn't see it, that was their problem! The fans could see it! And wrote a shit ton of fic about it. That was the point. Most people didn't even get upset when Dan Harmon and company claimed the Jeff/Annie shippers were all teenage girls shipping themselves with Jeff. We just busted up laughing because MOST of the fandom was 30+ year old women. Me at 22 was on the younger end. And sure, most of them did want to date Jeff themselves, but lbr being attracted to a fictional character is 90% of shipping. (And some people like myself were subconsciously shipping themselves with Annie because Alison Brie is absurdly hot.)

IDK what my point is here. I guess just that I was there at the beginning of fandom going mainstream and it's hard to regret that exact moment in time because it was fun! And rewarding! And spawned so so many creative works and discussions just like fandom is supposed to do.

But my god is it depressing that it ended up rotting fandom from the inside out. To the point that I try and say a S4 plot point is connected to S6 in a recent show when there's absolutely nothing to contradict this in canon -- and immediately get someone 'well actually'-ing me about what writers said their intentions for those plot points were in interviews and how that meant I was wrong. And it's not even because that fan preferred the writers' interpretation! They hate it actually! But they're so convinced that what a showrunner says is the absolute, irrefutable truth that they refuse to analyze the show for themselves and draw their own conclusions. Oh they'll complain about it all day long, sure. But engage with the narrative on a structural or meta level? Literally beyond them, and I can't wrap my head around that at all.

Fandom is not bound by writer intentions and never has been. Fandom isn't even bound by canon!!! Why the FUCK would writer intentions that can only be found in outside interviews be binding? Why would you slap shackles on yourself and then get mad that the chains cut into your wrists? Babe, look at me! No chains! I am free and happy not giving a fuck about what a show runner said! So why do you think I'm a problem that needs to be solved instead of your new life goal? Join me over here in headcanon land! Please!

[keysimash]

Hello!!

I do not want to be bothering or rude, I am just curious if you’ve had time or energy to continue Leave, I still love the story so much and am looking forward to find out how it goes!!

But if not it’s ok, I just hope you have a nice day no matter what!! <3

Short answer , it's not discontinued but idk when I will work on it again. Sorry to be a disappointment

Long answer you probably dont want to read

I hate it. I can't even read it. I like my story, I like the plans I HAVE for the story, I just.... cant read my own writing. And this isn't some kind of compliment fishing either, it's gotten to the point I dont even like getting nice comments about it on my ao3 inbox anymore.

I sit down to work on it and I just... can't. All I can think about is how cringy it sounds ... and how bad it is, etc etc

Logically I know I'm actually a pretty good writer. But all I see when I look at this shit is mistakes.

And I come across in my writing as... way too emotional and earnest? If that makes any sense. I've mentioned I never made a plot outline, that shit is sooo obvious when i read it. And how I changed the plot three or four times. And how I changed the plot every time I got upset.

I used to not give a fuck about appealing to other people when I wrote because I didnt have anyone whose opinion I cared about reading it but now I feel like I have to write it not shittily or I'll disappoint everyone and myself. And I'm not capable of writing it not shittily right now because I would

a) have to build off the disjointed skeleton I've already made that's got plot holes and mischaracterizations

b) start over from scratch

And I can't do it right now! I cant!

I keep thinking about how my best friend told me I shouldn't put vent art on the internet at all. I feel disgusting now almost. Like people that take pics of their cuts and post em. I know shes full of shit but I cant shake the feeling. That it's my fault if I trigger somebody. That by writing anything that isnt a joke or fluff I'm doing something gross and self-masturbatory and harmful. "If you interpret the characters in a way the author didnt want you're just wrong..." that's what she said.. Its kirby and Meta knight and magolor for gods sake. What am I doing trying to make a gritty realistic darkfic... from a kids game.... cringe.... (only me tho. Nobody else counts)

Even my other works for other fandoms, it almost feels like they're on a timer as soon as I post them. I go "I like that, that's good" and post, and then a few days later I'm like "oh . That's shit now" and it has nothing to do with engagement or anything, its just like an arbitrary switch flipped in my brain

The only time I was writing well and writing consistently... was when I was being abused... I feel like I've lost my spark ... because maybe the only time I can make anything good is when I'm under so much emotional pressure I feel like I'm about to snap.... but if that were true I should be writing right now haha.

And I can sit here and know all these things, that when I'm stressed my thought process goes all stupid, that I'm actually a good writer, that I'm not hurting anybody by the fic I post, that writing something shit is better than not writing anything at all, but it doesn't do anything to change how I feel.

But. I did say it's not discontinued, didnt I?

If its stressing me out so much well why dont I delete it, well the answer to that is I HATE HATE HATE when authors delete their good shit.... deep down I know a lot of people love my stories and that they have some worth... that's why I haven't deleted them all...

I love writing, still.... writing for cotl feels less bad than kirby cos.. it feels like its expected to be edgy and dark, so I dont feel bad about what I write until later at least... but I still love to write and create....

I just need some time... I miss writing kirby stuff but I just can't face my own writing. I cant face myself. And it order to start writing again -- I think that's my problem. I would have to forgive myself for not being perfect. I would have to admit that , like my writing , its okay to love myself/my writing even with the manymanymany .flaws.

I can't. Not right now. Maybe later tho

I didnt have that last revelation before. Not until I wrote everything out. When I was trying to explain all my feelings to someone else , I ended up explaining it to myself. This post was long overdue anyway

Sorry

[angelshound]

big long genuinely insane rant

there is no me at the center of this. no solid pit to bite on and break your teeth. there's hardly a shell to compensate for the lack of self. i do not know what to think of myself as i do not know what to think at all. ive morphed into every face ive seen like a fun house mirror. there is no me at the center of this. the identity is fragile and unrealized, i am not yet a person and i doubt i will ever be. im much closer to a concept one can only actualize in science fiction because the writer truly doesnt know what hes talking about. how typical of people to speak so confidently of things they cant possibly understand. ive been there with the worms, and the dirt long before language was invented to give these things a label. i find these boxers to be too cramped and yet never small enough to wrap myself in just one. im everything. im nothing. im you and every one youve ever loved, yet im none of these people and none of these things at all.

im nothing. ive never been so free as to have unburdened myself from my own expectations. if only everyone could have come to that realization by now. there is nothing at the center of this. humanity is a lucky break and we look a gift horse in the mouth trying to explain it. your life is so short in the grand scheme of things, why care what happens when you die? youre so caught up in wondering why you cant solve the puzzle you dont even realize you have none of the pieces.

whats the point of it? there is no point. the only point is the one you make up. everyone is their own little god, why pray to anyone but yourself? youre the one who makes things happen you lazy fuck! dont blame the big man for not getting out of bed or being born with low stats. youre roll was shit, so what? grab the dice and roll again. better yet, why care at all about meta, if youre stressed, you arent having fun. the whole point of everything is to find your own happiness, not what other people tell you is good.

god didnt give you hands to cry into, he gave you them to paint and write and strum with. so fucking do it! do it for your own enjoyment. do it to spit him.

he gave you hands to fight with. so fucking do it.

he gave you hands to love with. so fucking do it.

he gave you eyes to look at paintings and ears to listen to music. he gave you taste to eat your favorite foods and a nose to smell a good candle. why torture yourself for something that isnt promised when you have so much that is?

you will be the person you were meant to be one day but it wont happen while youre staring. let that download run in the background while you play another game.

it isnt worth the worry. it isnt worth the stress. not when you can feel better emotions. isnt it so wonderful that you can feel? isnt it so wonderful that you get that chance? isnt it so wonderful?

even all of this is stupid. who gives a shit? you only get famous after you die so why die trying?

all our problems are manufactured. its a hell of our own creation.

religion is dumb. gender is dumb. money is dumb.

no ones gonna give a shit in 10,000 years just like no one gave a shit 10,000 years ago.

its all so inconsequential. its all so stupid.

i dont feel any type of way about anything other than stupid for ever thinking otherwise.

[lee-hakhyun]

shit, there’s. something to be said there about how you can’t just force someone to give you all of them, and how it’s a question; you have to ask someone to take your hand

and there’s been entire meta posts before the side story’s release wherein you can have a happy ending, you just have to. be willing to believe in it, just like hands can be offered to you but you still have to take it

and they were offered two different endings; one where kim dokja came back and one where they chose not to

so what does it mean when han sooyoung forgets that you have to ask, and not force it to happen? what happens when you try to make your loved ones do something supposedly for their sake, and not for yours?

because it’s frustrating that some of kim dokja’s fragments can’t let themself think of a happy ending, yeah, but. that’s still a part of kim dokja. that’s still a fragment that had their own hopes and dreams. and in this story where han sooyoung is trying to force an ending so that kim dokja would stop reading, so that he’d finally return… hurting the fragments in the process…

hahah, isn’t it funny that lee hakhyun ends up sacrificing himself for the other fragments, too? isn’t it. isn’t it funny

*cries*

on one hand, my entire brain is going ‘but… but lee hakhyun existed before orv was ever released…’ but on the other hand my head is going ‘no, no, no, it makes s e n s e . star writer had nothing to do with orv before the side story. keyword being HAD’. so lee hakhyun had nothing to do with kim dokja since he was from a story from before orv even existed, but now he DOES have something to do with orv because now he’s 49. and 49 in fact… ah.

49 was, in orv itself, the part of kdj that remembered everything kimcom adored while retaining nothing of his own preferences,,,, it was also the part that was divorced from kdj’s self-destructive and self-hating tendencies, too? so it makes sense that lee hakhyun found himself loving kim dokja’s story and growing close to jung heewon even though he wishes he could be his own person - and. and he is, now, i personally believe, honestly. kdj fragment is a shorthand for ‘reader’, and there’s quite literally no avoiding being a ‘reader’ even though you aren’t necessarily KIM reader

and. 49’s story was forgotten in the chaotic tumble of trying to get the missing part of him back, so… a. another point for the ‘forgotten stories’,,,,,,

... oh god.

i can understand why they go so far for kim dokja but also, everything is just going wrong han sooyoung, choosing to play the villain. and lee hakhyun, giving his everything to protect the story and that line in 615, as hsy sees lhh dying

「Han Sooyoung knew someone who had sacrificed himself in this way.」

singshong is here to hurt all of their characters. no one is spared. and on lee hakhyun. yeah. lee hakhyun HAD his own story, but it was discontinued. and then he ends up in orv. i'm exploding

to the end, 49 supported kimcom unconditionally,, while believing he wasn't who they actually wanted. also, i have a 49 fic rec

[intrulogical]

Soo!! I just rewatched wtit, youknow, as one does, and founf this in the description- i haven't really seen a lot of us talk about this but I feel like there's a LOT going on here

What do you think? Any thoughts king?

HII THANK YOU FOR THIS ASK!

i wasn't aware that the episode HAD a description before you sent me this, so genuinely, thank you for bringing this into my attention!

and you're right— there ARE some things going around in this desc.

the first one would be the fact that thomas ASKED logan to get his life in order. orb (@/orbmanson7, go follow them too for more meta) shed some light to me about how this fact mostly goes unnoticed within the fandom (even me!). to be fair, it was brushed aside really quickly in the opening, but yes, it is canon that thomas asked logan for help.

orb also informed me how, in an exclusive writer's room discussion with joan, joan mentioned that thomas particularly asked logan to get his life in order. and well, it's a little surprising, isn't it, that thomas would willingly ask logan for help? but it's also not, considering that thomas has been very open with logan's contributions... if and only if he deems them useful.

bottomline for this fact is, thomas only views logan as a utility. what's sad is, i think logan views this more as an opportunity to participate, rather than something backhanded. the end of WTIT shows him insisting that instilling this schedule would be beneficial for thomas. but deep down, we also know that he just feels ignored, because thomas wants logic as a function, not logan as a person.

and now the more interesting aspect of this description would be its last sentences. now, before i get into it, i want to make it clear: the contents of intrusive thoughts has no real substance. most of the time, they prey on our insecurities in order to make us anxious.

but intrusive thoughts may vary in terms of how personal they are. they can be something merely gruesome, but they can also become more specific if you are fixating on a certain situation. in cases like these, the intrusive thoughts STILL have no substance, but they are grounded in the idea that, there is something that is affecting you and you should probably get that checked out.

again, i am NOT saying intrusive thoughts is important. i have heavy compulsions which worsen my intrusive thoughts, and i would rather get rid of it. but the existence of persistent intrusive thoughts can be a warning that, you have some unresolved shit. and in these cases, you can't just stop relying on paying it no mind— you NEED to address the core issue that your intrusive thoughts reap on, or find therapy or a good friend so you can better deal with it.

and, while harsh, the importance of remus as a side is that he serves as an alarm bell or wake-up call for thomas. his methods are incredibly dark, as he uses intrusive thoughts, there's no buts i can provide for that. with how heavily the sides miscommunicate, remus relies on darker methods to make thomas less passive in his struggles, because my god is he struggling. you can read more about this from this post i found a few days ago.

so in a way, remus' contributions are not just Random LOL XD intrusive thoughts he feels thomas should experience. while there is no substance to his threats, i think what remus is trying to prove by using them is that thomas is extremely vulnerable and needs help.

another is, while the threats are empty, we have to acknowledge that the insecurities remus calls attention to are very much real. he does not make thomas' insecurities, just provokes them. another post i saw a few days ago mentions how remus is the beholder of forbidden knowledge. that's why remus is very in tune with not only the insecurities of thomas, but the insecurities of the other sides as well (i made a post talking about this!).

and well, remus isn't necessarily just abusing the fact that he knows what makes the others insecure. his importance, actually, is that he makes this "forbidden knowledge" come to light for others to acknowledge, whether they like it or not. that is remus' purpose, not as intrusive thoughts since i don't wanna give that shit any ounce of a compliment, but as his own side who cares for thomas in his own way. either that, or janus uses him as a tool to deploy his own scheme for thomas to acknowledge his mental health issues.

TLDR; WTIT proves thomas views logan as a convenient utility. another, while intrusive thoughts have no substance, in WTIT, remus specifically deploys them so thomas can acknolwedge his own insecurities about nico. it's harsh, but remus' purpose as a side is to shed light on topics that the sides would usually consider taboo, with taboos usually encompassing suppressed insecurities and concerns.

[arthoure]

I guess with twitter falling apart, the logical step is to move back to tumblr, but I struggle with what to even post! 

Twitter is kind of the LinkedIn of game dev, for casual networking and commiserating about the seven hells of the industry, so it made sense for me to be there to make my little jokes and yell about unions. It’s also more mobile-friendly, so I could post cat pics and be on my way without a fuss. And I always used Tumblr more for fandom meta stuff, which isn’t something I really do anymore because being a narrative designer kind of changes how you engage with fandom and meta -- it starts to feel like your day job instead of your fun hobby, at least in some senses, or it uses the same type of brain energy and at the end of work you’re depleted. And it’s weird to be able to see the seams of games, and have a sense of where their budgeting and schedules and tech restraints were, in a way that completely changes your idea of what “good” is or what something “accomplished” and doesn’t always line up with the ideas of other players. It’s not a good or a bad thing, just different. I read books differently now than I used to, too. (Part of this is also about growing older and developing new neural pathways. Weird shit.) It’s interesting to think about how fandom got me into game dev (literally; the first writing sample that got me hired was fe13 fanfic with the names changed -- but also very directly through the support of the friends who read my writing for years ((often making it better with our discussions)) and encouraged me to apply and etc.) and yet game dev is kind of what keeps me from being in fandom (at least deeply). 

So I kind of had two different networks -- the twitter one of friends plus game dev peers, and the tumblr one of friends plus fandom peers, the latter of whom followed me basically for meta/fanfic/the stuff I reblogged. But friends also keep in touch on discord or other messengers, so I often wonder, what do I even post for, and why? All I really want to post about is my life, but that’s not even really a safe thing to do, and also, why do I want to, besides being a little human who likes to leave her little proofs that she was here? Like, would it be interesting to anyone here to know that I work in AAA now and the fam and I are moving to Germany soon? That’s cool news for me, but I can’t say much of anything about my work (and even the things I am allowed to say are dangerous, lmao. Telling the internet who you work for and on what game title always makes you a target. Target is doubled for every underrepresented identity that you have. But that was a LITTLE different for me in my curated twitter bubble because again, it’s more like LinkedIn on the gamedev side, and I have a small audience so my info doesn’t leave my bubble; my bubble is also small on Tumblr but feels more unfamiliar after I’ve been inactive for so long.). AAA can carry a lot more weight in the industry but it really shouldn’t (what some other VOW writers said is true: God works hard, AAA devs work harder, but mobile romance devs work hardest of all) and tbh I don’t give a shit about commercial game size--I chose this company’s offer because its team was really special (severely anti-crunch, pro-labor rights, inclusive, brilliantly skilled in storytelling and technical design and other things I want to learn from them, kind and warm). But some of you might be happy to know that I’ll finally get real health insurance and sick days and vacation time and I can’t just be randomly laid off at any time (something European game devs enjoy that US devs often do not), and it’s a huge weight off my shoulders, because you might remember how I had to struggle with that for several years. Always so much to say but so much fear around saying it. Rare to find the points where you can view your life as Back Then and Right Now in such concrete terms. Is that worth documenting?

TL;DR I want to use social media for personal things and chatting with friends but The Internet at large makes it difficult to do that. I am of course far from the only one who feels this way. That’s just the update on me while I ponder what else to contribute to this blog! I do owe you some cat pics at least.

[bitchassbucky]

.avi

Word Count: 1.2k

Warning/s: nsfw! (literally) stalkerish themes. dark!bucky x dark-ish!reader. cybercrimes being committed. f & m masturbation. sex toy (vibrator mention). this is kinda meta, tbh.

A/N: the long-awaited part two of .exe mwahaha. we're delving not-that-deep into bucky's little thingy methinks. as always, reblogs and comments are welcomed! <3

follow the CTRL series:

i - .exe

ii - .avi

iii - .raw

iv - .png

v - .zip

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Jesus Christ, you’re insatiable.

Bucky barely woke up when he caught you masturbating with a rabbit vibrator on your bed—laying on your stomach. The towel you thoughtfully laid on was folded halfway. He assumes that you’re a squirmer too when you come. The Friday night show was his favorite though, shame that he didn’t get any footage of it.

His dick is already hard but he’s got no time to waste just yet. Clicking open a screen recording app, he gets to work. Bucky’s already got some footage of you sleeping, cleaning up, and tidying your sheets. In his little mind palace, he’d never let you do any of these things—he’ll be the one to change the sheets, he’d tuck you in bed too.

Bucky let the program run on the desktop as he went to get his breakfast. His mind keeps drifting back to you in his office.

How do you like your coffee?

Do you even like coffee?

You look like a tea kind of person.

Maybe he’ll ask you for breakfast, as soon as he learns how your morning routine goes.

When he came back to his desk, the bed was already made up (again). He got worried for a second until your face came into the frame, your glasses fogged up with vapor.

You bring the laptop with you to the living room, along with a big mug of… something.

He’s gotta learn what you like so he can like it too.

On his side of the things, he sees that you keep your word processor running in the background. More work, perhaps? He hadn’t had the chance to check out your files just yet. He kept himself busy with your pictures and candids. Bucky had his favorites all printed out—he, of all people, knows that technology can’t be trusted, so why were you uploading these pictures of yourself?

There were ones taken in your bathroom, he presumes. On your bed. In the kitchen. By a fucking window, for crying out loud.

He wants to be the one to take these pictures, to imprint them into his memory. Seared in his brain. But not yet.

For now, he just needs to get back at making sure you’re safe in your apartment.

You’ve been staring and smiling at your phone for a while now.

What are you up to?

—

Turns out Mr. IT Guy isn’t very social-media savvy.

All his pictures are out in the open for everyone to see. You wonder what he’s like in private, then.

Maybe he likes posting candids of his new girlfriends and deleting them when it’s over? For a man who has a face of a god, you’d expect to see at least a girlfriend within the past few months.

But he doesn't. No corny pictures, no hashtags of anniversaries, no tagged photos.

You spent your morning working up yourself with your trusty vibe, the image of him fucking you by the kitchen sink fresh on your brain.

Holy shit, does he have that effect on everyone?

What if you wander into his office after a shift and you’d find him stroking his cock? Would you close the door and never speak of it? Maybe you’d smirk and walk over him, sinking down on your knees to suck him off.

God, now you’re all worked up again. Horny, hot, and bothered. That’s good though, then you’d have the energy to finish the chapter you left a week ago.

—

So you’re a writer by choice. Bucky knew that much.

What he wasn’t expecting though, is you write the most explicit things.

The all-white collar girl he met last week likes to get fucked roughly. Overstimulated. Choked. Gagged. Slapped. Spit on.

He’s gotta show you how to make love. Slow, sensual love. Preferably after the roughhousing, that is.

Oh, the things he’d do to you—how he’ll worship your body, head to the tip of your toes. Bucky wants to bury his cock between your lips and praise you for the good girl you are. He wants to let you know that you don’t need to be degraded in order to come.

You just need him.

Bucky’s cock twitches in his sweatpants, still painfully hard. The thick vein on the underside of his shaft protrudes, waiting for him to just fuck something warm.

His hand will do for now.

By the time he got his hand gripping the base of his cock, he’s got you in fullscreen. The recording app still running in the background.

You’re busy. Typing. Researching. Looking for words to replace ‘say.’ Your sleep shirt is loose on your soft frame.

Bucky focuses on you, then. Imagining you on your knees, right here in his apartment. You’d be wearing those glasses you have on. He knew he had a thing for girls with glasses.

He closes his eyes to indulge himself in his own movie.

Your tongue laying flat against his girth, drooling all over the thick base of his dick. He’d let you take your time licking, all the way from his balls to tip. Your lips would close around his leaking head, teasing and tasting his precum.

One of his ties would be around your wrists so you’d learn how to use your mouth.

Bucky swears to God that he felt your mouth closing in on his cock as he pistons his fist faster. A guttural moan spills out of his mouth as his toes curl, the carpet gripping the pads of his feet.

“God, fuck—Y/N.”

Bucky forgoes any kind of underwear last night, only dressing himself up with baggy sweatpants. It was for the better too. He doesn’t think he’d come so much from watching someone—well, not just someone—on the screen.

He sighs, wiping himself clean on the underside of his pants. He needs to do his laundry soon.

Bucky looks at your face longingly from his side of the screen; God, is this how long-distance couples feel?

Maybe he’ll shoot you a text later.

—

Unknown Number: I hope you’re doing well.

Unknown Number: How's your laptop?

Unknown Number: Shit, sorry, it’s Bucky from IT. :)

Your head spun in three different directions as the texts came in.

Hey, Bucky! I’m doing well. The laptop is too.

Was it too curt? Well, you didn’t want to come off too strong. It’s not like he’s been on your mind for the better half of your weekend morning.

Your stomach made a worrying flip as the message status turned Read 10:44 AM. But there was no typing bubble.

Whatever, you’re fine. You’re a busy girl. A strong, independent woman who—

IT Guy Bucky: Good! Just checking on you. We had some downtime due to system maintenance last night.

Oh, it’s work.

No problems on my end! You type in quickly, sending it. To be fair, all you had in common was a band.

Hey, I have a question. It’s not work-related.

—

Oh.

Oh, he fucked up, didn’t he?

Y/N: Do you know any restaurants near the office? I’m sick of eating take-out food. Other than the hipster hideyhole you told me.

Bucky breathed out a sigh of fucking relief when he read your text. He chuckles mostly at himself and composed a reply.

Yeah! I have a non-hideyhole spot a block away from the office. You wanna check it out sometime?

You already got inside jokes.

Is 11:30 good?

Yeah, Bucky types, a smile forming on his lips, 11:30 it is.

[beileil]

Increasingly Improbable Predictions on Time Travel

Let me preface this by saying that I am not the person to go to for OPM meta discussion. There are plenty of people on Tumblr that are far more talented in that regard. My strengths are fanfic and shitposts, and I’m way out of my wheelhouse here. I considered not posting this at all. But I have a lot of thoughts about Chapter 166, and I need to get this into writing, even if no one reads it and it’s only to keep me from going crazy. Manga spoilers below the cut, obviously. Also some Mob Psycho 100 spoilers that I tried to keep sort of vague? Ready? Let’s get stupid!

I have a prediction brewing and I don't know how I feel about it. I'm not alone in thinking that the latest chapter was much darker than usual, nor in finding the chapter 164 redraw jarring. I'm sure I'm not the first person to have this thought either: What if there are multiple timelines and we're being shown the darkest one? We've seen ONE do something similar with the Mogami arc in MP100, so we know he's good at making both his fans and his characters go through Some Shit, even if the events are an illusion or aren't permanent. (Also see: Mob going ??? in “Even Then ~Continue Forward~”, an otherwise lighthearted episode that ends with a cliffhanger so brutal that the first time I watched it, I gasped out loud, explained to my concerned spouse that my reaction was because I couldn’t believe the writer would actually go there, and had to stop watching for the night. Obviously, everything turned out to be a trick, but this moment stuck with me.)

ONE is a great story teller. He doesn’t need to kill anyone to make his audience feel pain, nor to leave his main characters with lasting trauma.

Now that that’s out of the way, let’s get to my stupid time travel theory, which I’m sure is also not very original.

Now surely (and this is the point you may roll your eyes, but stay with me, I promise I'm going somewhere with it) Blast or one of his crew has the ability to send someone back in time. Like seriously, the guy fights with portals and tried to send Garou to another dimension. Let’s say Blast & Co. can send exactly one person back in time. But maybe time travel takes an extreme toll on the person’s body to the point that normal people can’t survive the jump. Hm...do we know anyone who can withstand any amount of physical stress without getting hurt? Oh, I know! How about we send the guy who uses a magma pool as a hot tub!

Scenario #1 (the “immediate fix”): The Blast Crew can only send Saitama back in time by a few minutes. But it’s enough. Enough to stop Celestial Garou’s radioactive attack. Enough to save his disciple. This time, he doesn’t arrive too late. He arrives just in time, like a true hero should.

Scenario #2 (the least bullshit one): Saitama gets sent back just far enough to stop Garou from getting possessed by God (no ID), and instead of continuing their Fistfight to End the World, Saitama (who is the only one who remembers the Worst Timeline and is just so tired) asks Garou if he's done yet, offers to lend an ear…and the chapter ends with a panel of dragon!Garou sheepishly sitting seiza at a low table with Saitama in an abandoned house floating in the sea. It’s odd to me that the Murata would spend so much time on the original, very different version of Chapter 164, only for it to be scrapped three days later. Maybe this scene does happen…just in a different order than expected. In this scenario, nothing is wasted.

Scenario #3 (improbable, confusing, and meta af, but indulge me please): Saitama gets sent back to some point earlier that day. LET’S GET META for a hot second. I remember reading a discussion by @gofancyninjaworld a long time ago (sorry dude, I tried to find it on your blog but no luck) about how the manga is ultimately written for the people who read it in its final, published volume form. But here's an awful, fun thought: What if the redraws are ONE/Murata throwing an extremely meta bonus to the readers who read each update as it comes out? If there's time travel fuckery involved, it explains at least one of the redraws…or all of them if Saitama were to get sent back further than meeting Awakened Garou on the shoreline. I'm imagining something like the scrapped chapters actually being an alternate timeline where Phoenix Man doesn't become chickified, Do-S and Narinki's mercenaries are killed by Sweet Mask, Orochi is killed by a punch instead of a bathtime mishap, etc. Time travel could also create some fun deja vu moments, like Atomic Samurai telling Iaian "I swear I've told you about this before" about the Sun Blade. Maybe he really did!

Scenario #4 (for lulz only, everyone would rage quit the series if it happened): Saitama travels back in time to the meeting that Sitch calls with the S-class to warn them about Shibabawa’s prophecy. Saitama informs him that the prophecy is about Bang’s student going off the rails. The entire Monster Association arc is canceled. Saitama beats up everyone in the subterranean and takes their gold. Garou gets therapy and a job at Fedex.

Pros of time travel being used as a plot device:

Saitama saving the world and no one knowing about it would be very on point for the series.

Saitama retaining his memories ties in with my earlier point: ONE doesn’t need to kill anyone off permanently to leave his main character with lasting trauma. Even if Genos survives this, I guarantee Saitama will be having nightmares about holding his core in his hand for years to come.

Many fans found Saitama’s comment that he’d “rather destroy the world” out of character for him. The comment makes a lot more sense if he’s already seen the people he cares for…you know.

It makes no damn sense to set up future sub-plots (Garou becoming a hero, a fetch quest for a magic sword, etc.) if everyone is just going to die of radiation poisoning anyway. It’s wasted potential, and as much as I’m hurting, I have faith in ONE/Murata to not do that.

Cons of time travel being used as a plot device:

Let's face it. Time travel as a fix-it is kind of a cop out. The only time I've seen it done well is in Steins;gate. (Which is a brilliant show if you haven't seen it.)

The further back in time we go, the less character development everyone gets. The S-class never learns to work together. Fubuki never discovers her healing powers, or stands up to her sister. Waganma never stops being a brat. Sweet Mask never gets to beat a pep talk into Darkshine, and Zombieman never gets to admit that Sweet Mask isn’t as bad as he seems. The Bad Boys don’t get their team-up. Garou doesn’t get to (try to) tell God to fuck off.

We’ve already seen characters we thought were goners come back through the power of magic (looking at you, Tanktop Master), and if it happens too much, it's going to be difficult to truly experience suspense properly again. The stakes just won’t be there. Every time a character dies, it’ll be a case of the boy who cried wolf. (Or rather the boy who cried, "Can't we just have Fubuki/Blast fix it?")

So I’m conflicted. Would a time travel fix-it make you rage quit the series? Would it cheapen the trauma that everyone has been through, or could it be done well? Or can you not see this happening at all? I guess we’ll find out in two weeks.