#got that strict grandpa vibes

[taringill]

Rise girls' families - part 1. Pink family (part 2)

Семьи rise девочек - 1 часть. Семья Пинк (или семья Розовые😅), (2 часть)

Quite a rich family. You can understand what excellent living conditions they have: a large house and servants are available. In principle, the ancestors of the Pink family were distinguished by their wealth and status. And despite the strict dress code, the Mona Lisa still stands out and looks less strict. That's the whole Mona Lisa. She likes to add something of her own:)

Достаточно богатая семья. Можно понять какие у них отличные условия жизни: большой дом и прислуга имеется. В принципе, предки семьи Пинк отличались своим богатством и статусом. И несмотря на строгий дресс-код, Мона Лиза всё равно выделяется и выглядит менее строго. В этом вся Мона Лиза. Она любит добавлять что-то своё:)

Initially, Mona Lisa's surname was Williams, but then I changed my mind. As you understand, the surname is Pink speaking. Like, the color of the Mona Lisa is pink, so why not give her a last name in honor of this color? Cool<3 As you know, the Mona Lisa was named after the painting of the same name by the Renaissance artist Leonardo da Vinci. So I decided to do something similar with Mona's brother. Adam was named after the painting "The Creation of Adam" by the Renaissance artist Michelangelo Buonarroti.

Изначально фамилия Моны Лизы была Уильямс, но потом я передумала. Как вы поняли, фамилия Пинк говорящая (Пинк - Pink - Розовый). Типо, цвет Моны Лизы розовый, поэтому почему бы не дать ей фамилию в честь этого цвета? Прикольно<3 Как вы знаете, Мона Лиза получила своё имя в честь одноимённой картины художника эпохи Возрождения Леонардо да Винчи. Поэтому я решила что-то похожее провернуть с братом Моны. Адам получил своё имя в честь картины "Сотворение Адама" от художника эпохи Возрождения Микеланджело Буонарроти.

These are the closest to the Pink family.

Это самые близкие для семьи Пинк.

Number 1

Mona Lisa and Adam's grandma on Dad's side. She's friends with Mona's mom, they're like friends. Mona Lisa looks most like her grandma Lucy, they have the same vibe💅 Lucy is a widow, as William's dad (Mona and Adam's grandpa) died a long time ago due to heart problems. But William's father was a bad husband and father. He didn't care about his wife and son. He used physical force against them. He raised his son (Mona and Adam's father) cruelly and beat him, because he believed that this was how he would raise a real man and because he believed that children did not understand differently. William's father loved to rule and assert himself at the expense of others. He died after the wedding of Mona Lisa's parents. And since he was a piece of shit, Lucy and William didn't have any emotions. Well, he died and died. They were finally breathing. Lucy, on the other hand, loved her son, showed affection and tenderness, despite her husband's prohibitions. That's why William didn't grow up to be heartless and cruel, but a little cold. Mona's grandparents on her father's side (and on her mother's side too) had a marriage of convenience. This is not uncommon in such families + traditions that have been preserved to this day, because many just got used to it. Well, it's beneficial for wealth and status. A love match was a rarity for Mona and Adam's ancestors.

Бабушка Моны Лизы и Адама по папиной линии. Она дружит с мамой Моны, они как подруги. Мона Лиза больше всего похожа на свою бабушку Люси, у них один вайб💅 Люси вдова, так как отец Уильяма (дедушка Моны и Адама) умер уже давно из-за проблем с сердцем. Но отец Уильяма был плохим мужем и отцом. На своих жену и сына ему было плевать. Он применял физическую силу по отношению к ним. Воспитывал своего сына (отец Моны и Адама) жестоко и бил, потому что он считал, что так он воспитает настоящего мужчину и потому что он считал, что дети по другому не понимают. Отец Уильяма любил властвовать и утверждаться за счёт других. Он умер после свадьбы родителей Моны Лизы. И так как он был куском говна, Люси и Уильям не испытывали никаких эмоций. Ну, умер и умер. Они наконец-то задышали. Люси же любила своего сына, проявляла ласку и нежность, несмотря на запреты её мужа. Потому Уильям не вырос бессердечным и жестоким, но немного холодным. У бабушки и дедушки Моны по папиной линии (и по маминой линии тоже) был брак по расчёту. Это не редкость в подобных семьях + традиции, которые сохранились до сих пор, потому что многие просто привыкли. Ну, и это выгодно, для богатства и статуса. Брак по любви был редкостью для предков Моны и Адама.

As for Barbara's family (Mona and Adam's mom), everything is bad there too. Both parents were violent. Physical and psychological violence was also used. Barbara has 6 siblings. Barbara has a bad relationship with her family. She keeps in touch with her family only when there is some business or if it concerns some traditions. For example, a family holiday. But there is no family atmosphere there. It's just a tradition that needs to be followed and that's it. Naturally, Barbara's parents don't care about their grandchildren. Well, there are and there are. The main thing for them is that they married all their children in a way that was beneficial to them. There are heirs in the form of grandchildren, the family continues, the status increases (or does not decrease) and this is enough for them. So Mona and Adam don't really remember or know their grandparents on their mother's side.

Что касается семьи Барбары (мама Моны и Адама), там тоже всё плохо. Оба родителя были жестокими. Также применяли физическое и психологическое насилие. У Барбары 6 братьев и сестёр. Со своей семьёй у Барбары плохие отношения. Она поддерживает со своей семьёй связь только тогда, когда есть какие-то дела или если это касается каких-то традиций. Например, праздник семей. Но там нет семейной атмосферы. Просто традиция, которую нужно соблюдать и всё. Естественно родителям Барбары плевать на своих внуков. Ну, есть и есть. Главное для них, что они женили всех своих детей так, чтобы им было выгодно. Наследники в виде внуков есть, род продолжается, статус повышается (или не понижается) и этого достаточно для них. Так что Мона и Адам особо не помнят и не знают своих бабушку и дедушку по маминой линии.

Unfortunately, Mona and Adam's parents entered into a marriage of convenience. They had never loved each other. But William and Barbara have a normal relationship. They are just good acquaintances, no one offends anyone. And even if they don't love each other, they have one thing in common, something very important: it's love for their children. Yes, they love them very much, as normal parents should do. But because of their busy schedule, they paid little attention to the children, even though they did not want to. So, who became a kind of parents for Mona Lisa and Adam? Get to know them better.

К сожалению родители Моны и Адама заключили брак по расчёту. Они никогда не любили друг друга. Но у Уильяма и Барбары нормальные отношения. Они просто хорошие знакомые, никто никого не обижает. И пусть они не любит друг друга, но их объединяет одно, кое-что очень важное: это любовь к своим детям. Да, они их очень любят, как должны делать нормальные родители. Но из-за своей большой занятости они мало уделяли внимание детям, хоть им этого не хотелось. Так кто же для Моны и Адама как родители? Знакомьтесь.

Number 2 and 3

Дворецкий Роберт (70 лет) и няня и горничная Мария (40 лет).

Of course, this is not all the servants. There are many of them. There is even a guard. But it is Robert and Maria who are the closest to the Pink family. As I wrote above, William's father (Mona and Adam's grandfather) was terrible and it was Robert the butler who became William's father figure, as he helped raise William from childhood. William loves and respects Robert. Robert has been serving the Pink family for many years since a young age. He taught Mona and Adam defense, basic techniques so they could stand up for themselves. In general, he's a cool man, wow👍 and it's not surprising that Lucy Pink (William's mom) has feelings for Robert. Yes, he is much lower than her status, they are different types of yokai (I don't know how to spell this word correctly, correct me if anything): he is a mammal, she is a reptile. In the families of William and Barbara, it is customary to marry someone who is about your status and of the same species. It's the only way, there's no other way, the other way is frowned upon. Lucy also adhered to this for many years, so she denied for a long time that she was in love with Robert. Lucy herself did not notice how she began to fall in love with her butler. And this is not surprising. While Lucy's husband did not put her in anything, ignored her opinion, behaved rudely towards her, Robert supported and helped her as much as possible, complimented her. He even became a father figure to Lucy's son, for which she is noble to him. Lucy and Robert have always been good friends. Robert is like a father to Mona and Adam, too.

Разумеется это не вся прислуга. Их много. Даже охрана есть. Но именно Роберт и Мария являются самыми близкими для семьи Пинк. Как я писала выше, отец Уильяма (дедушка Моны и Адама) был ужасным и именно дворецкий Роберт стал для Уильяма отцовской фигурой, так как он помогал воспитывать Уильяма с самого детства. Уильям любит и уважает Роберта. Роберт долгие годы служит семье Пинк с молодого возраста. Он обучил Мону и Адама обороне, базовым приёмам, чтобы они могли постоять за себя. Вообще он классный мужик, во👍 И неудивительно, что у Люси Пинк (мама Уильяма) есть чувства к Роберту. Да, он гораздо ниже её статуса, они разного вида йокаи (не знаю, как правильно пишется это слово, поправьте, если что): он млекопитающее, она пресмыкающееся. В семьях Уильяма и Барбары принято заключать брак с тем, кто примерно твоего статуса и одного вида. Только так, по другому нельзя, порицается. Люси тоже долгие годы придерживалась этого, поэтому долго отрицала свою влюблённость в Роберта. Люси сама не заметила, как начала влюбляться в своего дворецкого. И это неудивительно. В то время, как муж Люси не во что её не ставил, пренебрегал её мнением, вёл себя грубо по отношению к ней, Роберт же максимально поддерживал и помогал ей, делал ей комплименты. Он даже стал отцовской фигурой для сына Люси, за что она ему благородна. Люси и Роберт всегда были хорошими друзьями. Для Моны и Адама Роберт тоже как отец.

As for Maria, she used to be a nanny and worked as one from the age of 18-19. She gets along very well with children. But since Mona Lisa is 17 years old, and Adam is 21 years old, Maria is now working more as a maid. She always comforted, gave advice to the children, talked to them heart to heart. If Mona and Adam need to speak out, they turn first to Maria. Mr. and Mrs. Pink treat their employees well and with respect. But Robert and Maria became family members.

Что касается Марии, раньше она была няней и работала ею с 18-19 лет. Она очень хорошо ладит с детьми. Но так как Моне Лизе 17 лет, а Адаму вообще 21 год, то Мария сейчас больше горничная. Она всегда утешала, давала советы детям, говорила с ними по душам. Если Моне и Адаму надо высказаться, то они обращаются в первую очередь к Марии. Мистер и миссис Пинк хорошо и с уважением относятся к своим работникам. Но Роберт и Мария стали членами семьи.

Little lizard siblings :3

As for the relationship between Mona Lisa and Adam, not everything is as good as we would like. They're a little tense, but they love each other.

Что касается отношений Моны Лизы и Адама, не всё так хорошо, как хотелось бы. Напряжённые немного, но они любят друг друга.

As I wrote before, Mona and Adam's parents were raised in strict and conservative families. And this, of course, influenced some parenting methods. Parents didn't beat their children, they bought them almost anything they wanted for good behavior, for example, but there were nuances. The father did not allow his son to show much emotion. After all, he is a boy and therefore he should not cry, he should be tough and not complain + he is the eldest among the children and the main heir, therefore he has more demands. But not everyone followed these parenting methods: Grandma Lucy, Maria and Robert. Parents, especially dad, demanded from his son and put pressure on him, because of this, Adam grew up a little withdrawn. But sooner or later, one would want to escape from this pressure. And in adolescence (from the age of 14-15) Adam began to go out a lot and spend a little less time studying to numb his pain, and he was popular with girls, but by the age of 20 he was tired of it all. But there are still some bad habits. He has been smoking since he was 17, but, to be fair, not often. As a teenager, his relationship with his sister deteriorated. It took a long time before their relationship was restored. Slowly.

P. S. Adam likes to play computer games, he learned to ride a motorcycle and he is doing great, and he knows how to ride horses.

Как я писала до этого, родители Моны и Адама воспитывались в строгих и консервативных семьях. И это, конечно, повлияло на некоторые методы воспитания. Родители не били своих детей, они покупали им почти всё, что они захотят за хорошие поведение, например, но были свои нюансы. Отец не позволял особо проявлять много эмоций своему сыну. Ведь он мальчик и поэтому он не должен плакать, надо быть жёстким и не жаловаться + он самый старший среди детей и главный наследник, поэтому с него больше требований. Но эти методы воспитания соблюдали не все: бабушка Люси, Мария и Роберт. Родители, особенно папа, требовал с сына и давил на него, из-за этого Адам вырос немного замкнутым. Но рано или поздно из этого давления захотелось бы убежать. И в подростковом возрасте (с 14-15 лет) Адам стал много гулять и чуть меньше времени уделять учёбе, чтобы заглушить свою боль, он пользовался популярностью у девчонок, но к 20 годам ему это всё надоело. Но остались, некоторые вредные привычки. Он курит с 17 лет, но, справедливости, ради не часто. В подростковом возрасте у него ухудшились отношения с сестрой. Прошло много времени, прежде чем их отношения восстановились. Потихоньку.

P. S. Адам любит играть в компьютерные игры, учился катанию на мотоцикле и у него отлично получается, и он умеет кататься на лошадях.

Let's move on to the Mona Lisa. Due to the fact that parents paid more attention to their son (I wrote about this above), they work a lot, Mona Lisa felt unnoticed. Mona Lisa is quite emotional and timid) She can play musical instruments: piano, guitar and flute. She likes to dress up in something bright, cute and make up, but not so often. She can sing and dance. And, like Adam, she likes to play computer games, but not often. Sometimes they play together.

Перейдём к Моне Лизе. Из-за того, что родители уделяли внимание чаще сыну (я об этом писала выше), они и так заняты, Мона Лиза чувствовала себя незамеченной. Мона Лиза довольна эмоциональная и пугливая) Она умеет играть на музыкальных инструментах: пианино, гитара и флейта. Она любит наряжаться во что-то яркое, милое и красится, но не так часто. Она умеет петь и танцевать. И, как и Адам, она любит играть в компьютерные игры, но не часто. Иногда они играют вместе.

You may ask (or not, Idk), if parents can't pay enough attention to children, then why did they give birth to them at all? I wrote above that Barbara and William entered into a marriage of convenience and that they have certain traditions. In the families of William and Barbara, it was customary to give birth to many children. This is a sign of wealth and it is necessary to spread your genes, so it was thought. Therefore, Barbara has many brothers and sisters, but William is the only child in the family, because his mother's health did not allow her to give birth to even more. Lucy couldn't get pregnant for a long time and after the first pregnancy she couldn't give birth anymore. Therefore, William was required to have at least three children. But despite the strict upbringing, Mona's parents went a little against the system and traditions (already progress). They refused to give birth to a third child, because they understand that two children are enough for them and they love them. They also refused the physical method of education. They were condemned a lot by their friends or Barbara's family. Due to the fact that it was customary to marry only someone who was of the same status and type with you, Mona Lisa hid her relationship with Raph for a long time. The fact that he is a turtle will not help matters, it is the yokai lizard that is needed. And the fact that he and his brothers and father are half human (mutants, not yokai) and they are friends with people (April, Casey and Casey Jr.) only made Mona Lisa's situation worse. Therefore, she has been hiding who she is communicating with for a long time. After all, Mona (Adam too) doesn't really have any friends and she didn't want to lose them. If you follow me, you know that Norimi and Mona Lisa will become best friends, but Mona became good friends with Mikey even before she met Nori.

Вы можете спросить (или нет, не знаю), если у родителей не получается уделять достаточно внимания детям, то зачем они их вообще родили? Выше я писала о том, что Барбара и Уильям заключили брак по расчёту и что у них есть определённые традиции. В семьях Уильяма и Барбары было принято рожать много детей. Это признак богатства и надо распространять свои гены, так считалось. Поэтому у Барбары много братьев и сестёр, но Уильям единственный ребёнок в семье, потому что здоровье его мамы не позволяло родить ещё больше. Люси не могла забеременеть долгое время и после первой беременности родить больше не смогла. Поэтому с Уильяма требовали минимум трое детей. Но несмотря на строгое воспитание родители Моны немного пошли против системы и традиций (уже прогресс). Они отказались рожать третьего ребёнка, так как понимают, что двоих детей им достаточно и они любят их. Также они отказались от физического метода воспитания. Их очень много осуждали их знакомые или семья Барбары. Из-за того, что было принято заключать брак только с тем, кто с тобой одного и того же статуса и вида, Мона Лиза долгое время скрывала свои отношения с Рафом. То, что он черепаха делу не поможет, нужна именно ящерица йокай. И то, что он, его братья и отец наполовину люди (мутанты, не йокаи) и они дружат с людьми (Эйприл, Кейси и Кейси младший) только усугубляло положение Моны Лизы. Поэтому она долгое время скрывала с кем она общается. Ведь у Моны (у Адама тоже) особо нет друзей и она не хотела их терять. Если вы подписаны на меня, то знаете, что Норими и Мона Лиза станут лучшими подругами, но Мона хорошо подружилась с Майки ещё до знакомства с Нори.

P. S. Phew...Fuck, I wrote a whole essay. Sorry😅 I wonder how many people will read this? Good luck😂 Damn, I've been keeping this in my head for a long time. I had to put it somewhere.

P.S. Фух...Ебать я целое сочинение написала. Простите😅 Интересно, сколько человек это прочитает? Удачи😂 Блин, я долго в голове это хранила. Надо было куда-то выложить.

[nyaagolor]

Paldean Elite Four (+ Geeta) Headcanons

They've been on my mind recently bc of all the asks I got

Rika:

Rika is the office gossip QUEEN. She knows everything about everyone, so if you need or want to know something you ask her. She knows a guy. She also desperately wants to figure out what Larry and Geeta's Deal (tm) is. They bicker constantly, are insanely passive aggressive, but despite their opposing attitudes agree on most fundamental issues. They look like they hate each other, but Larry constantly takes on new responsibilities for the League and Geeta constantly showers him with raises and promotions. Rika has taken to snooping thru their emails and prodding Hassel for info, but he doesn't know anything either. It’s driving her nuts

Paldea had a Region’s Sexiest Man contest. Rika won. Women Want her. Despite this however she can only pick up women accidentally. If she actively tries to flirt she will fuck it up spectacularly. Just the in-universe version of this

Rika is actually on the payroll as the league receptionist and does that Elite Four thing as a side hustle for extra cash. She gets kind of embarrassed when you call her a receptionist during her Elite Four duties though because other regions often use her as an example of why the Paldean league is garbage (i.e. they're so understaffed even a receptionist can be on the E4. They must have grabbed the nearest person, etc etc). She puts on the vibe of someone chill but this in particular is a bit of a sore point for her

She hates dresses / skirts with a burning passion and refuses to wear them. If you give her a REALLY good reason it's a solid maybe, but good luck with that. She needs to stretch

Her Clodsire's name is Pancake :) I like to think all her pokemon are named after breakfast foods (which, btw, is her favorite meal of the day. She is easily bribed with good waffles)

She and Larry are drinking buddies. She does most of the drinking

Poppy:

Everyone in the league is very careful to alter their habits around Poppy. She’s small and cute and sweet and a little baby so the usual informal cursing (like Rika shouting that HR needs to “cut the bullshit”) or the smoke breaks on the roof (yes I think they all smoke) can’t happen when Poppy is around

The league spoils her rotten. Candy? Toys? Help with her kindergarten homework?? Anything for Poppy. Even Larry, who seems too strict or apathetic to care, has her drawings in his desk drawer and lets her decorate his ties. The toys in the lobby are also hers

Her parents are accountants who brought her to take your kid to work day and let her play with their Pokémon outside. Rika challenged her to a match as a joke because they had a cancellation and Geeta watched— but both were shocked that Poppy’s skill with her parents’ steel types and her own Tinkaton were unparalleled by anyone in the building. When another E4 member retired, the league decided to let Poppy battle under her parents’ names just to blow off some steam. Poppy gets to let out energy, her parents make extra money, and the elite 4 has a strong battler. Win win!

Poppy loves to braid and play with hair, so the other elite four members will often let her play with their hair and add clips while they work. Larry is Poppy’s favorite because he sits Very Very Still

If Poppy really likes the battle she had with you, she’ll give you a sticker. Geeta once walked into a meeting with a gold star directly on her forehead because Poppy stuck it there and she didn’t want to take it off where Poppy could see it, forgetting about it by the time she walked in. She later moved it to her jacket

She has nicknames for everyone except Rika, which drives Rika insane. Grandpa Hassel, Mister Larry, Miss Geeta (or Auntie sometimes) but Rika? It’s just Rika. It’s always Rika. When Hassel was babysitting her at his and Brassius’ home in Artazón, Poppy’s eyes went really wide and she asked if she had two grandpas now or if Brassius was just SUPER old. He found that insanely funny

Larry:

I saw a fic that had Larry naming his pokemon after Excel commands and I cannot stop thinking about it. It's canon in my heart. Btw if anyone knows this fic / the name pls lmk I can’t find it again but I remember his Flamigo was named COUNTIF

Larry is actually pretty wealthy, partially because he's raking in cash from his three jobs and partially because he doesn't spend money on anything but food and pokemon products. Considering that the Treasure Eatery feeds him for free and the pokemon products are provided or subsidized by the League, that leaves him with a LOT of extra income, which he uses to help out his friends or gym challengers with financial issues or simply buying them dinner

Someone added this on another post of mine but every single one of Larry’s passwords is some variation on “password”. He’s many things but creative is none of them. Also these tags are canon to me

In contrast to his outward grumpiness and seeming apathy, Larry is incredibly gentle with and good with kids. He is confident the future will be better because of them, and does what he can to encourage them. It's a big part of the reason Geeta picked him for the positions-- they have a pretty similar philosophy regarding children and the future

Geeta has been doing everything in her power to get him to quit his third job (which is not League-affiliated) because he does the best work of anyone around and his other boss is a complete and utter asshole. She's tried promoting him, telling him how valuable he is to the team, using raises, praise, and passive aggression, but nothing is working. At one point she even tried overloading him with hours so he'd be forced to quit something but that didn't work either. She's stumped. The man won't quit

That third job? I'm not actually sure what it is but I do have an AU where he's a hitman. Call that a business casuality ;)

Hassel:

He always keeps candy in his desk (and his coat pockets) because he's a teacher and wants to be prepared. It's the strawberry kind, yall know the ones. This came in handy when Poppy joined the league, so all the other members started doing it too

His family gets traditional tattoos all over, which Hassel likewise has. He'd never remove them, but still keeps them covered most of the time for modesty reasons. Brassius has filled in the gaps in the traditional dragon shapes with various flowers to show how Hassel has grown from but not forgotten his past. They look very cool and Rika is insanely jealous of that

This old man is way more fit than he appears. He's a sensitive sweetheart and prefers the arts to sports or battling, but he's still a dragon tamer and keeps up his workout regime quite meticulously. Peepaw’s fucking shredded

His favorite art medium is paint, and he loves it when the little kids have class so he can finger paint alongside them. His office in the League building is covered in art. Geeta thinks it's sweet how he remembers every piece and how emotional he gets talking about it

Hassel has a hard time turning off teacher mode, which makes his training sessions at the league insanely funny to watch. “Haxorus, we do not Guillotine our friends!”

He can, and frequently does, play classical Paldea guitar. Once his rock career fell flat, he started experimenting with the style of his new home region and fell in love. You can often find him giving impromptu concerts from his balcony in Artazon

Geeta:

As much as she micromanages others, she's more than willing to take any responsibilities herself if she can't find someone else to do them. Plumber cancelled and they need the sink fixed asap? Get her a hammer. Rika is out sick? She'll cover those emails. Part of the reason the league struggles to complain about her is that they know for all the work they're doing, she's doing double. This doesn’t necessarily mean she’s GOOD at it but she’s doing it

I’m not sure how I want to explain it backstory wise but a lot of her skin is crystalline just like the AI professors. She’s got a LOT of connections to Area Zero and her top priority is making sure nothing goes in and nothing gets out. The professor hates her. The feeling is mutual

No one has ever seen her blink

She’s incredible at traditional Paldean dances. When Hassel plays classical guitar, she’ll dance along, and it’s magical to watch

That whole thing about not being able to hold back during battles? It’s a PR thing to make kids feel better. She’s not very good at battling. Geeta is just like (gestures at her Avalugg) I just think they're neat

A huge point of contention between her and her employees is that she takes everything literally and is terrible at reading tone. Her gym leaders are scared of her and try to drop hints about things because they think they’ll be punished if they’re too forward, but all those hints go right over Geeta’s head. The gym leaders then think Geeta is ignoring them on purpose but she’s none the wiser. Everyone is losing.

[imagobin]

🐲Grandpa Zeno HCs🐲

Because Zeno is unironically one of my favorite HxH characters, idk why, this grandpa's vibes are immaculate. So I tried imagining how it'd be like to be his grandkid! Don't judge me fhgjkd I know I got requests to work on but I need to write some sillies for me as well çwç

A new Zoldyck is born:

Zeno prides himself on being a cold blooded assassin, laser focused on his job, but old age has definitely mellowed him out a little when it comes to his daily life.

He's definitely a lot less strict with his grandkids than he was with his own son, just like any old man. Though he has a tendency to play favorites even among his beloved family.

The day you were born, he took one look at you and knew from that moment that you were definitely going to be one of his favorites. Just that peculiar glint in your eyes was enough to activate his caring grandpa side.

Even Silva and Kikyo were surprised at how his personality seemed to flip every time he got to hold you as a baby... it was an odd, but sort of sweet sight to see Zeno behave like an actual grandpa, bouncing you on his knees or telling you stories from his younger days.

Of course, that's not all he ever did. He's a Zoldyck, and his idea of 'fun with his grandchild' went on to include flying on a dragon's back, teaching you what each torture tool does, and showing you where human weak points are. Even when you were a toddler, he was already thinking of useful things you had to know in order to grow up and be a fine Zoldyck.

Once you were old enough to start going on missions, he'd also reward you for your success, way more than your parents ever did. He'd call you to him, and would sneakily place a piece of candy and a couple bills in your hand and gently close your fist, telling you to buy whatever you wanted with that.

In your free time:

Nowadays, grandpa Zeno is a bit more focused on Killua, but you're still his second favorite at least. Naturally, because of your strength, but also because you actually listen to him and not just dismiss him like the other family members do.

You're often busy going on missions, on your own or with your siblings, but whenever you're actually home, he often asks you to get tea with him.

He has a tendency to start rambling about the "good ol' days", talking about his most iconic missions and showing you pictures of past family members.

He may still be a sharp assassin, but his memory isn't as sharp as it used to be, so sometimes he might tell you an anecdote he's already told you. If you bring it up he'll get a little embarrassed and apologize. "Ah... did I tell you already? My bad, my bad"

He tries not to let it get to him, and he definitely wouldn't tell you, but he genuinely hopes that doesn't annoy you, because it's rare to have someone who seems to genuinely enjoy listening to him.

He doesn't go out of the house too much, but when he does, sometimes he asks you to accompany him, not for any reason in particular, he just wants some company while he's out and about, and he finds the butlers quite boring.

Collaborative effort:

Grandpa Zeno doesn't take on many missions unless they're of the utmost difficulty, and he usually teams up with his son, Silva, since they're the two most experienced Zoldycks.

But he's not beyond making an exception. He recognizes your abilities as phenomenal, and compared to some of your other siblings, you're also a great team player, quick to react and synchronize with anyone you're working with. So there have been some rare times, where he's asked you to come on a mission with him.

Seeing your grandfather fight, really makes you understand why he's so feared. Despite his age and smaller build, you would NEVER want to find yourself against him. He attacks with precision and no hesitation whatsoever, like a true veteran.

If there's one frustrating thing about him, is that he's stubborn. He always wants to be the one who gets to do most of the fighting, while you're stuck on support duty.

At first, you believed it was because he didn't trust you to be strong enough, but as it turns out, it's because he enjoys fighting that much. It's not even about the kill, he gets no satisfaction from killing, he's just always looking for a good fight.

He's an old, powerful man, you figure there's not many people in the world who can surpass his strength... he's always looking for a worthy opponent.

The few times he's taken you on a mission with him, it's always been very nostalgic, because after you succeed, he always insists on going to nearby cafes, as if nothing happened, and even though by now you have your own money, he still has that old habit of putting a couple bills in your hand, to go and order whatever you want at the counter.

[nostalgic-woodwind]

Could I request headcanons about Dobie (ACNH) being a caregiver? He radiates such sweet grandpa vibes!!

🐺📚 Caregiver!Dobie Headcanons 📚🐺

📚 Dobie's voice claim is Keith David, same voice actor for Husk from Hazbin Hotel (don’t watch the show if you’re a minor, it’s an adult cartoon). The wolf's voice may be gruff, but it is also very calming to listen to.

📚 Dobie lets you call him “Papa” or “Grandpa/Granddad”.

📚 Dobie has grown up with a sibling, so he has experience in taking care of others (Nookipedia).

📚 Dobie has an authoritative/gentle parenting style. He has grown up with strict, authoritarian parents who were explosive with their tempers. Being a caregiver has given Dobie a chance to break the cycle and validate your feelings while setting fair rules and boundaries (go to bed on time, help with chores because teamwork makes the dream work, etc.).

📚 Whenever it's time to help with chores, he makes them fun by letting you choose what to do (as long as it's safe of course, like helping make the beds, organizing your toys and cleaning up the play area, etc.). He also puts on music or makes chores into fun games.

📚 He's firm but very calm whenever he has to discipline you. He talks about what happened and/or puts you in timeout whenever you misbehave (depending on your headspace age). He also believes in natural consequences.

📚 Dobie has made mistakes from time to time by yelling whenever his emotions got high, but he always apologized for his actions. He’s not perfect, but he wasn’t going to raise you the way he was raised as a pup.

📚 Whenever you watch TV or your iPad, he always gives you limited screen time. He also gives you minute reminders (10 minutes until screen time is over, 5 minutes, etc.).

📚 Dobie always lets you pick out a book (or a few ^^) from his library. He even has his own children's corner for littles to come pick out books, read, and do other fun stuff (puppet shows, arts and crafts, etc.).

📚 Dobie loves reading and telling stories to you. Storytime is a part of your routine. He also reads bedtime stories whenever it’s naptime or bedtime.

📚 He also writes stories for you, whether it be about your toys/stuffies or based on any drawings you draw.

📚 He loves neutral and beige colors and will get you some neutral-colored toys. However, he will also get you bright or pastel-colored toys (whatever you prefer), too, because he's not going to let you grow up as a sad beige kiddo. /lh (If you don’t like bright-colored or pastel-colored toys, it is perfectly okay. It does not make you any less of an age regressor/dreamer /gen)

📚 He teaches you about mindfulness to help you calm down whenever you have big emotions. He also teaches you meditation.

📚 Dobie loves to take you on nature walks. He gives out simple facts about whatever you stumble across (insects, flowers, fish). He’s a Blathers 2.0 /pos ^^

[lablass-2882]

The Son’s of Clones

Part 2 of my crazy crack au plan.

This came together a lot faster than I thought it would......Huh......

Anyway,

Second verse is same as the first. Except for Leo and Rosh, all of these fine gentlemen are the biological sons of Clone troopers. They are all currently soldiers in the Rebellion and have various roles.  

Most of them are in the crackfic I am writing, and I will drop a link below. 

Starting from left to right.

Lieutenant Arrow Fett. Code name Trigger. Like Tally and Nyx, Arrow's biological dad was a clone trooper from the 212th. Arrow grew up in a fairly typical village and had next to no clue who or what his dad was.... until the Empire came knocking. With his world turned upside down overnight, Arrow did the only thing he could think of, pick up his dad's sniper rifle and defend his home. This landed him in a holding cell alongside Gregor, of all people. Who immediately recognized him as a clone kid and practically kidnapped him when the Rebellion busted him out. He's been with the Rebellion ever since. 

Quirks

Amazing shot

Resident conspiracy theorist

Adjusting to being a big brother.

Twig Fett. Code name Due 2. Twig is Branch's twin brother and the son of a clone from the 501st. Like his sister, Twig is half Twi'lek and a stellar pilot. Unlike his sister, Twig isn't one for the spotlight and tends to just "vibe out" in the corner. Honestly, if it wasn't for his sister, Twig really wouldn't be in the Rebellion. When the Empire attacked their home, Twig wanted to run and hide with the rest of his family. But when Branch got captured, Twig went on a one-man mission to save his twin. He ran head first into Numa along the way.... who then later brought back to the Rebellion, and the rest was history. 

Quirks

A bit of a Quiet boy

Loves to cook

Is the accountant behind Branch's betting ring.

Max'sym Fett, or Max for short. Code Name: Fett (He could be more creative.) Max is the biological son of Dogma and a Mirialan woman. Raised in a strict but loving household. Max ran away from home to join the Rebellion after a few of his uncles paid Dogma a visit. Despite what his dad said, Max just felt like he had to help his family, regardless of the consequences. Dogma and Max haven't spoken since. He gets along pretty well with his mom tho.  

Quirks

Gets nervous really quickly. 

He is a Jack of all trades but most work as a mechanic.

Total mama's boy. 

Mako Ikaika Code name Bonito. Mako is one of the oldest of the Clone kiddos and the one who started it all. Mako's Bio dad was the medic for the Wolfpack who spent a wonderfully drunk night with a Zabark spice smuggler. They went their separate ways in the morning and never spoke to each other again. Fast forward to post-Order 66, and Wolffe needs help. This weird Zabark lady demands to talk with his long-dead medic about caring for their son. One very loud argument later, and Wolffe found himself the proud dad of one Mako. Things just exoculated from there. Wolffe deserted the GAR, ran into Rex, and found himself in the outer rim with a bunch of other clone deserters and one small child. Eventually, the group found an old abandoned base from the old republic and decided to make it their home. Wolffe named it "The Den," and Botta-bing botta-boom; the Clone Rebellion had a home base in the outer rim. Most of the Squad Kiddo end up at The Den at some point.

Quirks

Team medic

He is a strong voice. Like STRONG.

Takes after his grandpa Plo

Leo? Code name: Leo. Leo claims their full name is need-to-know, and no one needs to know right now. Yeah, the others don't fully get it, either. No one fully knows where or when Leo showed up in the fulcrum unit he just was just there one day. He works mainly as a code breaker and hacker for different fulcrum teams. Never really settling down with any one group or unit. That was until he met Nyx and Fae. Those two looked at this skinny loner and said, "Oh, we're so keeping him." Within a week, Leo was forcibly adopted by half of the clone units and glared at by the rest. He's not complaining tho. 

Quirks

Hacker voice "I'm in."

Lives off of coffee and Cheetos. 

Secretly loves and respects the entire clone unit but will never admit to it in a million years. 

Rosh Okoye. Code name: Usizo. Rosh is a bit of an odd duck in the clone unit. His family worked as healers, doctors, and medics in different refugee camps through the outer rim but never really crossed paths with the GAR or the Rebellion. That was until Mako showed up at one of the camps. Mako may have gotten a little (cough, cough, a lot) turned around while on a recovery mission. He completed the task, but it would take the squad another two or three days to pick him up. So, he decided to work while he waited; helping Rosh and his family out in the clinic. The two became best buddies, and by the time the squad swung back around to pick Mako up, Rosh decided to tag along. He figured that the Rebellion could always use another medic. 

Quirks

Tall Boy. Like very, very tall.

A bit of an airhead. He spaces out from time to time.

Love spicy food.

And! Now I am done. 

Good lord..... that was a lot.  

Anyway, I hope that you like the boys. And the girls. I plan on drawing them more here soon-ish...... but I need to recharge the old batteries before I do that.  

I should have a new chapter up for the fic here soon too. It's like 90% written, just needs some editing.

 Night Y'all. 

[common-world-domination]

in my heart and soul juste got to be the crazy eclectic wine aunt type grandparent. crazy old cat lady vibes. the grandparent whos simultaneously weirdly interesting and incredibly strict. "i had a boyfriend once" and does not elaborate type grandpa.

mf was in draculas castle literally reorganizing the positioning of furniture because he didnt like how it looked. he saved his bff through the power of matching friendship bracelets. he spent most of his game fencing with a rapier and doing fancy dances to cast spells. they did him so DIRTY!!

[inkyquince]

Thinking about... Old men... 🥰

[cloburon]

A collection of Jon headcanons for my own personal reference:  -Season 1 Jon cuts his hair short before his first day as head archivist as an attempt to come across as more professional and gain a bit of control over the situation. Before that he’s always had long hair. Specifically since he was little and specifically he had hair down to his waist in Uni. (Furthermore: jon is good at complex braids and pretty updos out of convenience)  -Jon’s self identified gender is he/him pronouns out of convenience but he doesn’t personally ascribe himself to any real gender roles. Probably wears professional dresses and skirts to work as he pleases. “Masculine but like a little to the left, you know?” 

-The reason why Jon assumes a lot of statements are from drug induced hallucinations is because he’s had many a drug induced hallucination and is Aware of how terrifying they are.  -I imagine a lot of the reason why Jon and Georgie broke up is bc Jon is total ass at communicating but I ALSO like to think (from experience) that Georgie is a lesbian and got with Jon because he is a somewhat feminine guy (i.e, not incredibly masculine. Shorter than she is and skinny like a piece of hay) Only realized she was gay as the relationship was conveniently falling apart. They ended things in a mutual fight and said incredibly cruel things to each other which is why they don’t talk much up until jon’s a suspect for murder. -Also from experience. I feel like Jon is a person who has never fully grieved the people he’s lost and flip flops between ‘acceptance’ anger, and depression. Also never learned how to communicate his emotions because he wasn’t allowed to like have them. I imagine Gma Sims was pretty strict and intolerant of a 6 year old’s grieving outbursts so Jon just.. never did.  -I think  it’s obvious that Jon enjoys humanity studies but I think he is a numbers person. He understands science and math far more than he does emotions and people. I see him as a chemistry major and I imagine him having wanted to work in forensic science (before the magnus institute happened) All of that being said I believe Jon is also a talented singer (DUH), and painter although he’ll never claim to do so. I think there’s something neat about Jon wanting to solve crimes through violence and bring closure to families.  -Adding on to Jon painting. He works with oils and despite being a person who doesn’t get human emotion he is *very* good at representing what emotions feel like on a human figure and landscape. Before becoming the head archivist he would paint to relax. (Tim respectively owns six Jon paintings)  -Sasha was the only person to know what Jon’s music taste was because she straight up stole his ipod at work (I think he has an ipod still bc it’s convenient) Jon also illegally downloads 98% of his mainstream music but buys albums from underground bands directly.  -Jon dresses like a grandpa but like a grandpa with taste. MAD cottagecore vibes and he’s not even trying. He wears a lot of autumnal colors. Loves a good pair of trousers like nobody’s business. He does however also wear these grandpa clothes with his coveted doc martens that he refuses to stop wearing. 

[fanmoose12]

Hello again, I am sorry for the awkward messages. I hope that you started to look forward to my asks as much as I look forward to your answers. I felt so motivated with your last answers. I hope that does not make you go soft on me in your judgement. Let me tell you that your guessing is right about Dr Ethan but you have to wait a little bit to know how it was. Here is the new part:

I remember I jumped of my bed as soon as I woke up to find Dr Ethan. I wanted to talk to my parents so much that I almost forgot about my burnt hand. After being forced to eat my breakfast by the nurses, I slipped away looking for Dr Ethan whom I found in his office. I shyly entered: Dr Ethan? He gave me the same kind smile: Hana…Good morning! I remember I hugged my favorite book that he gave me: good morning! Can I call mommy please? He got up from his chair. He approached me quietly then held my hand: Hana, let’s go to your favorite place in the garden, shall we? I shouted: NO! I want to ca… He interrupted me with a quiet yet strict tone: I need to tell you something first. Once again, I gave in to his wish and I let me lead me to my spot in the small garden: Dr Ethan, I miss them, I almost died yesterday, I want them to know. He caught my shoulders firmly yet softly: Hana, Listen to me! I was taken by the seriousness in his eyes and voice while he continued: I tried to contact your parents already…and I learned that they got divorced 2 weeks ago. I repeated after him in confusion: Div..orced? He repeated quietly: Do you know what it means? I bit my lip for a moment: it is a bad thing right? I read in one of the books you gave me that it means family is no more together right? He nodded: you parents were getting ready for divorce even before sending you here; they didn’t want you to know because of how bad you were back then. I asked again: Is it because of me? He replied immediately: no no Hana, things are more complicated than that, but the reason why I am telling you this is that you are not going to live with them anymore. I could not respond this time….My brain stopped functioning for a few seconds. The 10 years old me could only think of one thing. Why? As if he heard my thoughts: As far as I understood, it was an arranged marriage Hana, Mom and Dad didn’t get along very well but they tried as much as they could for your sake; after you were sent here, they could not try any longer. I kept listening quietly as he continued: I have been trying to contact them for weeks even before yesterday’s incident because I think you no longer need to be here. I managed to find your father’s contact information and …. I looked at him expectantly as he said: You will be living with your grandfather from now on. I answered as fast as I could: I don’t have grandfather…I never met any. He expected my answer: I know; He is an archeologist; he is always traveling because of his job, that’s why he never managed to meet you. I protested: I am 10 years old! How could he be busy for 10 years? And why do I have to live with him? Is it because mom and dad hate me? He interrupted me: Hana, Your parents made a choice. They chose their lives, their happiness over yours. It is your turn now to make your choice, either you remain here forgotten or you grab this chance for a new life and a new beginning. It was a hard moment for a 10 years old girl who just learned that her parents went separate ways; it was a tough choice to make when the only option I had was someone I never met. Something in the strict look and firm tone of Dr.Ethan reminded later whenever I remember this moment with how fate is. Cruel in its ways yet merciful when everything unfolds manipulating at first yet honest when everything is eventually revealed. On that day, I learned the second lesson that will remain in my mind for as long as I live One day, whoever you meet will leave you for whatever reason they have and you can only accept it and live with it.

Everything happened too fast for me to recall, Grandpa came later that day. I remember that he kept smiling at me while talking to Dr Ethan about the needed procedures to take me in. I didn’t care to listen to what they said. I was busy reading the short message Dr Ethan left to me in the last present he gave me. “A see you later present” he said.

And remember dear stranger that everything happens on a date. Not a moment earlier or a moment late. One day your path will lead you to the house of fate. And there, I will see you again behind the timeless gate. I kept reading it over and over while looking at him hoping for an explanation but he never cared to do it. All he did was to smile and give me a mysterious wink before he goes to meet my new found relative. He was kinder than I imagined him to be, he kept talking about the places he visited, the things he discovered, the different people he met from everywhere in the world, he even managed to make me smile couple of times before I blurt out the question that I could no longer hold inside me: Why did my parents leave me to you Mr Parker?

He stopped talking for a few seconds then said: Call me grandpa, Hana.

When I noticed how he was looking at me waiting for me to do it, I had to do it: Yes, Grandpa.

He continued: Your father was the one who decided to get married and live far away from me and he was the one who decided to end everything too, one day I will tell be able to explain more but until then I want you to know that I need you in my life as much as you need me so let me give you all the love I have for you sweet Hana and I hope you can give this talkative old man the love your parents could never appreciate. I didn’t notice that my tears started to fall already until he dried my cheeks with his rough big hand: Hey Hana?

Yes, Grandpa?

He smiled even more and said: Do you like Ice cream?

And for the first time in my life, I felt that maybe I still have a chance to be accepted and loved as I have always wished. That's it for this time, It is the part where the backstory or the structure of the character's actions is built and I wanted to make it as clear as possible. I hope my writing style didn't bore you. I want to apologize for staying as anon since I am planning for a long fiction that might be considered by some, re-writing attack on titan which will put unnecessary pressure on me and might lead to unpleasant comments. Thank you so much for your time, I really look forward to what you think.

again, sorry for the late answer, i was a very busy bee this morning, but! i read your story just before going to sleep last night and, oh! i liked it so much! i'm so excited to see what will happen to hange (or, well, hana!) next!

and i dunno why, but i kinda got a series of unfortunate events vibe? you know, the part where baudelaires were sent to their uncle montgomery! the grandpa kinda reminds me of him haha

anyways, i love where this is going and can't wait for more!

[fmdseungwoo]

hello! it’s sarah (again) and this is seungwoo’s belated intro! he used to be around over at @seungwoofmd​ like a year ago but, uh, i forgot the e-mail so this is where he lives now! anyways, below the cut you’ll find an updated rundown of all things ahn seungwoo! while i’m writing this, my final due date is on the 15th, so i’m going to be able to actually be online after that! for the time being, if you’d like to plot with seungwoo or would just like to add me on d!sc0rd for some quicker (but still slow) replies, like this post!! i’m super excited for him to be back!!

also thank you everyone for your welcome messages!! i’ll respond asap, but in the meantime i’ll message you all tomorrow (going to bed after this so i can get up early to work) about plotting + to offer disc.ord as an alternative way of contact for the time being!!

content warning for alcohol in one bullet point below!! the bullet point is marked!!

ok so his backstory is way different this time but!! he’s still ended up at roughly the same personality so let’s get into this!!

middle child -- always wanted attention, never really got a lot of it from his parents bc they were busy, but they loved him!! he just ... was a bit of a shithead growing up and they weren’t gonna talk to their 6 yr old son abt how the mortgage was weighing them down so he just continued to be a bit of a shithead.

became really infatuated with soccer!! immediately set out charming people via being a cute kid that was also a good striker. loved it bc hell yeah!! attention!! kept up playing soccer all the way through school, and was definitely kind of a LadTM. 

didn’t care too much for academics but he got decent-ish grades!! figured he’d go to uni, but mostly just to prolong the whole ... not having to get a real job thing. he’d just have some fun, play some soccer, date (f*ck) around and do the bare minimum in the meantime! 

but then he got scouted and his brothers were like (1) you’re never home, (2) you don’t care about uni, (3) you’re a little attention seeking bastard so why don’t you call the number.

so he did.

seungwoo hated dimensions but he hated the idea of crawling back with his tail between his legs more. so he stayed, and he was improving really fast so! every time someone gave him a scrap of praise he was like HELL YEAH

he got skipped over for alien, which bummed him out majorly, but he got promised a spot in their next boy group if he continued working on his personality as much as his skills.

so he did, part 2.

he became a whole new man!! he took care of himself better, he was more responsible, he was more organised, and he genuinely felt better for it too!! maybe he became a little too serious, but not to the point of becoming a totally massive hardass. got thrown more crumbs of recognition by management so he was relatively motivated.

was so pleased when mars started coming together, mr leader dance line vocal line extraordinaire, but then the alien lawsuit happened and they were rushed into their debut, and then he was /: not so happy.

he started doubting like Everything, especially because he had an idea of what he wanted in mind. before becoming a trainee, he would’ve been satisfied with a simple life, but now everything is different?? and?? he can’t just go back either??

still, he tried to go Back kind of by indulging in some S: old bad habits.

TW ALCOHOL + NSFW basically he just started drinking a lot when the opportunity to arose, but worse than that, he was just... being a dickhead. ( maureen from rent vc ) boys, girls, i can’t help it!! except he could help it he just didn’t want to. he never let it effect mars’ schedules though. that’s the one thing he made sure not to do. he just wanted to no thoughts head empty for a while, even if what came out of it looked ugly. he thought it didn’t matter, because it made him feel good. it was opportunistic in nature, which meant his little excursions were usually pretty spread out, just whenever he could. and then he could pretend that maybe he was ahn seungwoo, senior and soccer team captain, who could do what he liked and hadn’t signed his life away. END OF TW.

anyways

after like a year and a half of being a doodoohead fuckboy, seungwoo eventually came to the realisation that hey... you know what... maybe this isn’t making me feel good in any meaningful way and is just me acting out and hurting people because i feel hurt, and that it couldn’t last forever without catching up to him. so he got his act back together over the next little while!! 

nowadays, anyways!

he’s fine now. seungwoo is the type to want to make reparations with people, so there’s that, but most importantly, he’s found a good, natural middle between his strict side and his fun side, and has learned to do things for himself in a healthy way, not in a self destructive way like before, where he was either suppressing his natural self an unholy amount or letting his most basest (? help is that right) take over him. now he plays guitar as a hobby and just likes to vibe, he doesn’t go out much at all really, and prefers a quiet pub to a nightclub any day. 

kind of a worrywart though? and like he really doesn’t like silence!! so he talks a lot. which means he isn’t very good at the vibing that he likes so much. your local fast talking grandpa sweater wearing boyfriend vibes kinda guy who has a hidden side/history that people usually don’t fully believe happened LOL

he likes mars a lot nowadays too, though mostly through extensively training himself not to wander down the paths of what ifs too much, since that’s what’s most damaging for his mental health. rock ur body h8er, chained up enthusiast. 

i’m kinda rambling but!! he’s a good n soft kinda man please love him <3 now i’m going to bed <3

[fallingstarsarentreal]

The Blue-Haired Minnie Mouse/ Purple Hoodie Guy

September 14, 2020 (6 months after Hellish pandemic break loose)

The situation is not getting any better in the Philippines. Everything is just being a huge joke here and we’re not actually getting proper response from the high ranking officials. Hence, I cannot help but feel quite hopeless with the situation. Also, the toxicity of my fandom has been getting to me at one point in time. So I have decided to go away for a bit, and go back to what soothes me at hard times, Music.

Truth be told, I liked his former band’s music, but I’m not in to the point that I will be stanning them as hard as I am doing right now. (I’m really not into KPOP except for Blackpink so I don’t have much reference... And I usually like ballad and relaxing songs.) I didn’t have the time to watch series then because I was too busy in my former job. Also, I have been into writing way before, so I would be satisfied with listening to their music from time to time.

However, by the time that I have fallen in love with their band, 9by9th, I found out that their “End Route” means the end already, no more renewal of contract of 1 year. I was quite devastated with the news and I kinda took it hard and tried to go fan girl over series instead. *SOBS*

(9x9th members: L-R: Thanapob, Ryu, Captain, Porsche ^^, JameyJames, Third, Jackie, Jaylerr, IceParis)

When Trinity debuted, I was really focused on Third and I can remember that I cried over their MV (Hater’s Got Nothing) because I thought that Third will be able to continue with what he’s passionate about. (Third is originally from Kamikaze group but the company disbanded, and his second group is 9x9th but disbanded as well after one year). I kind of followed them for a bit but then I started managing Philippine Fan club bases of my favorite series, with everything that happened, I got too busy... but all I can remember then was the old me crying because I cannot buy the merchandise from before. (Quite a noob then and I didn’t know about pasabuys and stuff.. so yeah). T_T.

(Trinity members: L-R: Jackie, Porsche <3, JMJ, Third)

Before hell broke lose in the whole world, I had the opportunity to go back to Thailand for the second time and I met those artists that I am following. I actually wanted to meet Trinity but there was no opportunity for me to do so because I didn’t even check their schedule then and I think there wasn’t any update regarding their work, so yeah... T_T. (Don’t get me wrong, I really enjoyed my stay in Bangkok)

So yeah.. After probably taking in shit from the govt for about 7 months already, and toxicity from something that I really used to enjoy and made me smile, I started to distance myself for a bit because what I really need now is not stress, but something that will probably lift up my mood. So what I did was to stress myself even further... watch mystery series that will probably make your head burst into thinking... so in the end, I actually stopped watching BL series and stumbled into their first series together as 9x9 boys, In Family We Trust.

So an excerpt from Wikipedia says,

The Jiraanan family is a wealthy ethnic Chinese business family, whose extended family spans three generations. Grandfather (A-gong) and Grandmother (A-ma) have four children. Prasoet, the eldest son, heads the family business, Jirananta Hotel, and manages its main Bangkok location, while Phatson, the only daughter, manages its Pattaya branch. Met, the second son, is a single stay-at-home parent, while the youngest son Konkan lives a playboy lifestyle. Among them (and a deceased fifth sibling), they have nine third-generation children. The family members seem to get along well as they celebrate A-gong's birthday, but when he dies of old age shortly after, and his will is revealed to exclude Phatson from inheritance of the hotel, she gets into an argument with Prasoet regarding its management. Prasoet is then found dead from a gunshot in his bedroom, and Phatson becomes a prime suspect. Prasoet's wife Chris also becomes suspected when it is revealed that Prasoet had been seeing a mistress for twenty years. The grandchildren, especially Prasoet and Chris's son Pete and Phatson's eldest son Yi, become involved as each family tries to prove their innocence and uncover the mystery of the case.

This was the first time that I started to look at him. Porsche played the character of Kuaitiao, the orphaned grandson who lived with Grandpa and Grandma. Kuaitiao is actually an art student here and he’s passionate about his drawings.

What probably captured my attention is his ability to lighten up the mood around him. Even at awkward situations he was able to make me laugh. And probably the fact that he’s close to his grandma and a sweet grandchild even if he’s an adopted one. It kinda got into me. I’ll be honest. There was a scene where Grandma wouldn’t eat, and he pretended to be angry and did not eat as well. I found it cute and smiled at first, but after few moments, I was sobbing already. He made me miss my grandma who passed away last July 15.

Over all, I loved his acting here. Rating 4.5/5

(But please, don’t make him cry because I’ll end up crying as well).

(He’s such a precious person guys, pleaseeeee... make him smile a lot, okay?)

So, of course, once you’re interested in your new bias wrecker’s work, you’re going to check his latest and previous works, right? So what I did next is watched their latest series (still with 9x9 boys, but this time, it was 7/9 only. I just found out that Thanapob cannot join the series anymore because he’s busy filming another series and Ryu is actually an actor of another channel. Hence, his few appearances as Macao in In Family We Trust) entitled as, Great Men Academy.

(Great Men Academy Cast: Porsche as P’Good <3, Third as Nuclear, JameyJames as Love, Jackie as Menn, Captain as Sean, Jaylerr as Tangmo, and IceParis as Vier)

The excerpt of the story is as stated below,

Love (Chanyapuk Numprasop) has always been a fan of the popular guy Vier (Paris Intarakomalyasut) of the famous all boys high school Great Men Academy, but she has never had the chance to meet him. One day, she sees the mystical unicorn rumored to fulfill wishes and wished for her love for Vier to get a chance.

Unfortunately, the unicorn interpreted her wishes in a different way and Love wakes up to find herself in a male's body. She is able to switch between genders under the condition that she must return as a girl before midnight each night. Love attends Great Men Academy as a guy, and works through the complications of winning Vier's heart and meeting new people while trying to keep her identity a secret.

I actually fell in love with P’Good’s character here because he’s such a stern but doting brother. Good is kinda strict when it comes to Love at first because he has to be strong for their whole family because his dad passed away. He’s a very smart guy, yet clumsy fellow. He can also be shy when it comes to Me. (His crush in the series. Why can’t it be “me” instead? Just kidding).

Over all, I loved how he brought to life my favorite glasses ikemen on this series. He made me cry with the way he handled the vulnerability of his sister, Love. His acting for me in this series is a complete 5.0/5.0! *For the love of Good, Please?*

I rest my case. I’m dying again of spazzing to Phi Good. (Okay. I have a huge crush on this character. The character, okay?!) hahaha

Wait... let me breathe for just a bit... *hyperventilates in Good’s name*

Then after watching the said series, I started to rewatch their Elements MV. And that got me hooked. I noticed his talent in rapping, singing and dancing that I wouldn’t have normally seen in the first place because I have a bias of my own before.

It’s like the more that I watch him, the more I fall for this person (in terms of being a fan of his). I kind of accepted that he’s my bias on Trinity now when I saw this video. (ปาว ปาว (Shout) – V.R.P kamikaze)

I’ve been reading articles about him when I came across the interview of Bangkok Post with Third and Porsche regarding their new work. (being 9x9th members and In Family We Trust). I found out that Porsche was actually a member of VRP of Kamikaze and I watched all his previous work. So when I saw the video Paw Paw/ (Shout), I burst into laughter. I knew from that time that he’s such a funny guy and he’s giving me positive vibes.

As I continued watching, I saw him with a Minnie mouse headband, and I lost it... I laughed a lot, which I rarely do these days. So by then, I wasn’t able to help it, I started to love this kid more.

I continued to watch all the showcases, the fancams, the v-live videos, the vlogs about him and goodness gracious, I am really swoon. This kid is such an interesting person and I really regret not knowing him right away.

As I get to know him, the more I admire him. I mean... for real, it’s even funny knowing his quirks. Like he likes to draw stuff, he likes to play the piano, he loves Anime and his favorite anime is Hitman Reborn! (I wonder if he likes Hibari Kyoya too). Anyway aside from his talent, another selling factor of him to me is his positivity towards life.

“Don't worry na krub, all TWILIGHT. No matter what will happen in the future or the situation, we are always TRINITY and we will do better than before krub.” #XXSIVK #PorscheSivakorn 

His positivity and his ambition would inspire you to do well and go on no matter how difficult things may be.

Thank you Porsche, you are indeed a good source of a breather in my life. Things have been quite difficult in the Philippines and no matter how much I wanted to take a vacation now, I can’t. Your music makes me smile a lot and at times, I forget my worries when I watch you dance. It’s like watching someone you idolize do what they love to do and give it all with passion makes you motivated as well and keeps you going.

Truth be told, you remind me of one of my favorite persons. He used to be brimming with life. But covid made things difficult for him... well it made things difficult for everyone. I really hope he gets his footing soon.

PS. I might not be able to get to know you in person in this life, but I really wish you success. I will always be watching from afar. :)

I’ll be waiting for your come back again. Thanks a bunch XX :)

[the-himawari]

A3! Outing Event Translation - Day of the Marigold (6/11)

*Please read disclaimer on blog; default name set as Izumi

---

Izumi: (In the end, we didn’t hear what it was from Masumi and it became the day of the festival of the dead…)

Kazunari: Yay, both the costumes Yukki made and Azamin’s makeup are hyper cute and totally vibe.

Taichi: The town’s decorations are also super lively and it’s really hyped up~!

Kazunari: Exactly! Gotta take lots and lots of pics!

Itaru: The puppy pair are hyped to the max, huh.

Tenma: Aren’t they too excited?

Sakyo: Oi, it's still before the stage so don’t go too wild.

Tsumugi: But everywhere really is beautiful, and exciting.

Izumi: That’s true. There’s still time before the stage, so let’s move around freely for a while and have a look around the festival.

Taichi: Woo! I wanna go check out the stalls way over there!

Kazunari: Me too~! Whatcha gonna do, Massu?

Masumi: Grandma is coming, so I’m going to go pick her up.

Tenma: Alright, see you later then.

Sakyo: The meeting time is strict, alright. You guys got it?

Itaru: That’s our commanding leader Furuichi.

Sakyo: Who’s commanding.

Azuma: What are you going to do, Tsumugi?

Tsumugi: I was thinking of going to a place where I can make marigold bouquets.

Azuma: If that’s the case how about you go together with me?

Do you mind?

Tsumugi: Not at all. Let’s go.

-pause-

Tsumugi: It looks like we can make flower bouquets here.

Azuma: Oh, Masumi and company came here too.

Hatsue-san, good evening.

Hatsue: Good evening.

You two, your costumes and your makeup look very nice.

Tsumugi: Thank you very much.

Hatsue: There are flowers for making flower bouquets over there.

Well shall we go pick some?

Masumi: I’ll pick them for you. Grandma sit here.

…Also Tsumugi, I want to choose the flowers together.

In the meantime, Azuma can you watch over my grandma?

Azuma: Fufu, understood.

Then could I ask you to pick flowers for my share as well?

Masumi: ‘Kay, I’m going.

Tsumugi: We’ll be off.

Hatsue: Sorry, and thank you for the trouble.

Azuma: See you.

Hatsue: …Um, Yukishiro-san.

Somehow recently, I’ve been thinking that child’s behaviour has been strange, but has he remained unchanged at the theatre company?

Azuma: Actually, the Director and I have also been noticing his behaviour.

We haven’t heard the reason for it but…

It seems like another member apart from us understands what is bothering Masumi.

During this time, Tsumugi asked us to wait until Masumi opens up.

Hatsue: So that’s what happened.

It’s not that I meant to force you to tell me, but I’m relieved that there is someone who understands why Masumi’s behaviour has been off.

Azuma: Director also said the same thing.

Hatsue: Tachibana-san, she really watches over Masumi well.

I am very grateful. Yukishiro-san too, thank you.

Azuma: It’s nothing.

-pause-

Masumi: …Thanks for waiting.

Azuma: Ahh, welcome back.

Masumi: I got Tsumugi to choose some well-shaped marigolds.

Hatsue: Thank you, you two. They’re very beautiful.

Masumi: Tsumugi, I’m making a bouquet for my grandpa so I want you to teach me the way to make one beautifully.

Tsumugi: Yes, of course.

Hatsue: Tsumugi-san, are you familiar with things like this?

Tsumugi: I’m only a little more familiar with it than others.

Azuma: The flowers in the dorm’s courtyard too, he’s the one taking care of them.

Hatsue: Oh really.

I also want to offer a beautiful bouquet for my husband, so by all means, please teach me as well.

Tsumugi: Yes, if you’re ok with me then I’d be glad to.

-pause-

Azuma: …

Hatsue: The bouquet that Yukishiro-san made is very beautiful too.

Excuse me for asking, but who is this bouquet for?

Azuma: …It’s for my parents who raised me with great care.

Hatsue: Is that so? Your parents will surely be happy.

Azuma: …Yes, I'm glad if that's so.

---

previous | next

[postsngoblins-blog]

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: 30 Years of T.U.R.T.L.E. Power!! (March 30th, 1990)

While the first live action Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles movie was released across the nation on March 30th 1990, it wasn’t until the afternoon of Sunday April 1st when my Grandpa (I love you!) and I found ourselves circling the parking lot trying to find a spot to make it in time for our matinee showing. The fourth grade was coming to a close, Summer break was looming on the horizon and I was just a few short months away from hitting double digits by turning 10. My friends, this was an era. When we both finally got out of the car and approached the theater, I can clearly remember the line snaking all the way around the block and extending to The Good Guys building on the other side of the lot. The excitement was palpable as hundreds of grade schoolers paced nervously in place like tiny little expectant parents. 

My God, this was actually happening.

Between the years of around 1989 and 1991 (give or take a year for some), myself and many kids my age were sustaining ourselves on a strict pop culture diet consisting of anything we could put in front of us that had a Ninja Turtle on it. Action figures, comic books, themed birthday parties, an animated series, cream pies, cereal, Halloween costumes and of course the arcade and Nintendo games. Our options were not in short supply while we took this stuff any way we could get it and it all seemed to be leading up to this moment: A big budget live action movie. The Ninja Turtles were about to become real. 

Making our way closer and closer to the ticket booth, we became within earshot of the kids exiting their showings who were officially 93 minutes cooler than those of us still in line and now living in the future. The expressions on their faces and the incoherent ramblings said it all: “Dang.” As they stumbled out one by one, eyes wide open and mumbling to themselves, I remember desperately trying to make out the words pouring out of one guy repeatedly over and over again until it finally hit me: “Is that dude saying that Casey Jones is in this frickin’ thing!?” 

So with hopes of greatness sky high, did the movie approach or at the very least achieve a shadow of or even possibly manage to meet those expectations? Well I mean, for me it walked right up to the ceiling and tore the roof off! Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles is one of those movies not unlike Batman the year before where while I can definitely remember the hype building and checking my pulse each day waiting for it, I just can’t not not remember the final product being in my life y’know? Sure, this is likely to do with the 200+ times I’ve seen it since then but that just speaks volumes right there: It was immediately timeless. There’s a remarkable balance between the grittiness of the original comics and the lighthearted vibe of the cartoon and toy line at play and those contrasting tones are mixed just about perfectly. It at once takes a very far fetched and (let’s face it) ridiculous concept and throws it into the “real” world without ever not taking the content completely seriously which subsequently means that the audience aren’t treated like children (I’m pretty sure a Ninja Turtle saying the word “DAMN!” several times in the movie was my first step into manhood*). This of course led to a lot of complaints from parents at the time that they felt the movie was “too dark” and of course “too violent” which resulted in an unfortunate attempt at course correction beginning immediately with the first sequel the following year. 

But hey guys, at least we got this one before anyone “knew better” right? And we always will. It’s with us forever. Time to plug in that NES arcade game for a few rounds before giving the disc yet another spin. Oh and of course...

Tonight I dine on turtle soup some damn pizza!!

*Also, April was kinda hot

[jobethdalloway]

did you watch the PBS Little Women? My mom wanted to for mother's day, and I wanted to check it out with her bc I know how much you love the story but like...I really didn't like it? She and my sister loved it but I kept leaving to like clean up and other stuff. I'm sorry. Did you see it? Maybe it's just a bad version.

UGHHHHHHHHHHH IT KILLS ME THAT THIS WAS YOUR INTRODUCTION TO LITTLE WOMEN!!!!!!

My mom and I also wanted to give this a go for Mother’s Day but we could not make it through the first 15 minutes. We recorded it and later fast-forwarded to see some of Angela Lansbury as Aunt March, and she was (what a relief) great, but Lord have mercy was everything else ATROCIOUS.

In the first scene, I could only tell which sister was which because of the dialogue - I’m familiar enough with the story to know which lines go to who. But in the ensuing scenes, I swear to God I could not tell Jo from Beth from Meg and could only distinguish Amy because she was blonde. The acting was so FLAT. The March sisters are each so distinct, just in the first scene of that novel/other adaptations - making them distinguishable should be a slam dunk but they were all so bleh that I couldn’t tell and what’s more didn’t care which one was which. And the scene we watched with Angela Lansbury didn’t help!! wtf was that, Jo?! SHE WAS SO MUTED AND LEFT NO IMPRESSION WHATSOEVER. I’m not saying Jo should play that scene bouncing off the walls, but there are so many ways to get across the emotions she’d be feeling there - annoyance, discomfort, frustration, impatience, unhappiness - and instead all we get is the equivalence of the “meh” emoji. No, not even that, because “meh” could be construed as an emotion. These actors - with the exception of Angela - were just reading lines. They were not acting. (And this goes for Emily Watson as well, which is surprising because I know she’s talented and I had hopes for her Marmee. DASHED.)

Another problem - I was kinda like “ehhh okay” in the beginning when they show Mr. March writing his letter because in the book/other adaptations we don’t actually meet him until much, much, much later on in the story - and that’s powerful. It underscores his absence in their lives, and his distance is felt. As Marmee is reading his letter to the girls, then we cut to scenes of wounded soldiers and I’m like ?!?!?! wtF IS THIS???!!! Oh did the filmmakers not trust that we would be able to intuit from his letter about the war THAT A WAR WAS GOING ON?? Still I tried to overlook that (like, I think only 5 minutes had passed so far) but then. Then it’s like here’s Laurie, 2017 dreamboat guy, and his grandfather Dumbledore. Look at grandpa Dumbledore!! He’s strict and Laurie just wants to be a free boy :c STOP IT. THERE IS NO NEED TO CUT AWAY TO LAURIE AND INTRODUCE HIM AND GRANDPA LAURENCE LIKE THIS. LITTLE WOMEN. IS ABOUT. THE LITTLE WOMEN. I’m not saying one of them has to be on screen the entire time, but actually MAYBE THAT IS WHAT I’M SAYING. Jo, Beth, Meg, and Amy (and Marmee) are the heart of this story. We learn everything we need to learn about everyone else - their father, the Laurences, whoever tf else - through their relationships with one of those girls.

I have to imagine that cutting away to these other scenes is the show’s way of trying to differentiate itself from other (better) versions. But like, guess what, there’s a reason why the best adaptations don’t do that. Because it’s stupid and unnecessary. I’m not saying adaptations can’t make changes; heck, my favorite one swaps the ages of Beth and Amy - which to some hardcore fans of the book, makes it an unforgivable adaptation. But it’s their loss, because that version captures the heart and soul of the story, of the characters. It gets that Jo is a vivacious spirit, bursting at the seams with a lust for life, someone who - in the words of the novel - “found her greatest affliction in the fact that she couldn’t read, run, and ride as much as she liked.” Where is that Jo’s joie de vivre in this version? June Allyson is perfect. Janet Leigh’s Meg is tempered and desperate for better times; Elizabeth Taylor’s Amy is hilariously snobbish and self-obsessed; Margaret O’Brien’s Beth is so much the tender and cherubic child of the novel; Mary Astor’s Marmee is leagues ahead of any other I’ve seen. PBS did wrong by them all. 

If older movies aren’t your style, I have no qualms about recommending the ‘90s adaptation as well (although I understand if you need some time to get over PBS’ before giving any other film a shot). Winona Ryder captures Jo’s restlessness, enthusiasm, and boyishness so well. Claire Danes is a perfect Beth, shy and quiet but wise beyond her years. Kirsten Dunst is likewise a perfect bratty Amy - she knows just how to toe the line; she is at times a ghastly child but never in an unbelievable or over-the-top way. Trini Alvarado’s Meg is caught between love for her family and frustration with their circumstances, and she does a wonderful job of expressing that tension. Each sister is distinct in appearance and personality, which the PBS version just …. does not establish at all. Susan Sarandon’s Marmee does swing a little too often into ‘90s sensibility, but that’s because of the dialogue. In her mothering moments, she is a lovely Marmee.

From a technical standpoint? OY VEY. Please click this link and listen to the opening music of the ‘94 film. When I revisited this movie as an adult, ready to be skeptical because of my love for the first version I ever saw, this music won me over. Yeah I mean it’s kinda got that ‘90s period piece vibe, but it somehow also captures New England winter and, most importantly, WARMTH. The opening credits music of the ‘49 version is endearing to me as well (click here) in a different way - it has sort of a storybook quality to it somehow; it is sweet but not sickly and again, is warm. 

I found no warmth in what I saw from PBS. I’ve seen a lot of people praising its cinematography and I’m like, what? What. The scenery was shot like it was a Planet Earth episode set in Massachusetts - like sure, the imagery is beautiful, but this isn’t a nature documentary? The interiors/shots of characters are so perfunctory. So basic. So meh. There is no warmth and no love for what’s at play. 

These characters and this story have so much to give. What I saw of this adaptation did not do them justice.

[leocheg]

Okay, harringrove hit me like a train, and now it’s just my naked bones rattling all over the railway.

I’m seriously so torn. I feel sick just thinking about watching season 3 for the very possible pain of it all, you know, Steve getting assigned a new gf, Billy getting killed off, all the antis shitposting under my sweet sweet otp’s tag...

On the other hand, I really want to believe the Duffers are trolling with all that “ohh a textbook enigmatic alt chickkkk! Billy’s just a dumb villainnnn, it’s gonna get worssssse! Everybody who you love from season 1 will DIEEEE!” Is this show really supposed to be that shallow? Does it really need that cheap hype? Frankly speaking, I don’t know what I expect from a Netflix tv pop show. I just hoped that the series made for geeks by geeks would somehow go deeper than “a human villain” esp since that “villain” is a 17 yo with daddy issues, and honestly making a piece of irredeemable trash out of a troubled teen (srsly he didn’t even have a knife or anything on him) is a total dick move on behalf of everyone responsible.

Now it’s time for me to explain why Billy isn’t deserving of all the crap he’s been given by the fandom. And okay, okay, I won’t put I JUST LOVE MAH BAYBEEEEHHHH all over the list.

First of all, I suggest to take a step back and take in the starting point. Billy’s a 17 yo guy, with an okay(ish?) step-mom, his actual mom being most probably dead (I’m not sure but I feel in the US it’s more common for women to get custody after divorce?) and a dad who gives Billy constant shit over the smallest things. Let’s not forget two more things: this 17 yo is supposed to be responsible for a 13 yo (dunno about you, I’d be super pissed off, because girls this age can give you HELL, boys give you HELL a bit later), and for whatever fuck up they both committed he’s exiled from his home place which means no memory of his mom apart from that little thing he always wears on that chain (is that just my hc tho?), no friends, no possible family like caring aunts-uncles-nanas-grandpas, no voice in the family. As I see the situation judging from those little snippets we gather from the conversations, Billy could have fucked up looking after Max, probably big time, probably it had smth to do with Susan’s ex and Max’s dad, so Neil had them packing and moving across the whole country. I just wonder how bad could that fuck up have been that Billy got guilt-tripped so badly he wasn’t able to say no and stay in Cali somehow? HE’S CRAZY LIKE THAT ANTIS HUH? It’s also not a thing a caring parent would do out of the blue, Billy had only a year before graduation. I believe Neil to love his son and care for his future, fight me. BUT. When you are a responsible parent with some skill for communication and actually understanding what you’re doing and that there’s an independent individual in front of you, not an abstract child like whatever that word even means apart from age, you don’t hit them, you don’t shout, you don’t impose. My point being that Neil is freaking out. He’s got two teens on his hands, you gotta be strict not to let them go crazy rebellious, right? He’s desperate to keep his son in line, denying everything he really is at the moment. What is he though? Well, a super lonely teen who wants his dad to be proud of him. I think he tries really hard to follow that “respect and responsibility” mantra: gives Max a lift no problem, tries to come to terms that they are family now, tries to protect her. Which brings me to the question of racism, and no, I don’t think he’s racist at all. I don’t think he cares, he’s got a lot going on already.What he cares about is agitated Max. Remember the way she left the arcade? All confused, angry, bewildered. Billy just was being protective the way his practically non-existent emotional intellect allowed him. Probably he knew there would be a shitstorm coming if Neil found out. I don’t think young girls are allowed bfs in his household. That’s the vibe I got there, fellas.

Why is Billy so lonely though? Just look at that guy, he’s got everything: the face, the ass, the style, the charm, the smile, the wit. He’s unapologetically confident and knows how to get what he wants, so being alone and not making any friends seems to be a choice of his own. Mainly because he’s super pissed about everything. I mean he really has no chill when it comes to emotions, they control him. Moreover, he doesn’t plan on staying longer than is absolutely necessary, so why try. As for a gf, he’s not that into girls, which could be for several reason (my hc is him being gay, no surprises here lol). I think he’s actually a virgin. We see him with a girl once, he didn’t seem nice or caring or at least a little bit amused, so probably that was out of sheer bore. Nothing to do other than date or keg-drink in a small town, huh, Billy boy? Third, and don’t hit me yet, he’s kind of a nerd himself. And here I have to say thanks to a very devoted lady who brought to my attention two details about Billy’s room one of them being a poster for the first Metallica album which only few ppl liked as much (nerds!), and another one being James Thurber’s autobiography Billy had on his table. How’s that for your typical basketball bully Cali boy reading? Nerd! So he’s a bit too picky about all this friends and connections thing. Also I’d like to point out that Max actually found her a whole party of friends, I think that could make Billy kinda jelous? Before that it felt they were in the same boat, sort of a team? In the first scene they appeared I honestly thought they were this cool bro-sis pair fully armed to take on Hawkins ready or not.

So. I feel for my boy. He’s just a lonely kid with daddy issues and zero anger control.

To be continued, cuz there’s also my precious mama teddy bear Steve.

[turqrambles]

I watched all 26 episodes of an obscure Australian cartoon in one week and I’m not okay - My journey with Wicked! (2001) PART 2 - The Actual Review

Hello again! I just checked my watch and I noticed that it was time to talk about the cartoon with the apple-headed guy some more!

When I last talked about this delightful piece of obscure media, I went over the origin story of how the show was created, introduced the cast of characters, and then talked about the main draw of the cartoon that makes it unique of other cartoons of its quality.

And then, at the end of the blog post, I mentioned that I think that the cartoon is merely “Okay” rather than anything Amazing. It has a great idea but ultimately, it really is just an alright show.

So now, after introducing this beautiful cartoon and explaining to everyone just what the hell is going on, it’s time to break this whole thing down.

The Good, The Bad, and The Apple-Flavored

Wicked! is a weird show to grade. The animation itself fluctuates in quality and there’s some very obvious cut corners from how frequently animation is recycled in some of the episodes, scenes can have weird editing or continuity errors, and sometimes they’ll even recycle sound bytes like insults that Dawn and Rory shout at each other or Gramps reminding everyone about Normandy. I feel like I heard The Appleman mention that something was “100% real nightmare” like five times while watching this whole thing in quick succession.

Information for this cartoon is practically nonexistent, but my theory is that this happened because the animation was all produced in a single in-house Australian studio rather than shipping bits of it overseas to get tightened up. Again, I could be wrong, and if anyone has any better information, please send me an ask, but a lot of the techniques that Wicked! use reminded me of Filmation, which also famously kept everything in one studio.

Just be warned, similar to when someone watches He-Man and go “oh hey, I recognize that talking animation from the second episode”, there are shots that get reused often to save time. Get used to that one scene where Appleman is laughing and running across the steel walkway suspending over the refinery vats, it’s used a ton.

That being said, when they give them the budget to add a little polish to the show, they do a pretty good job!

Don’t be fooled by my talk of He-Man - this show actually looks pretty great. Most of the time the animation is pretty fluid and the decision to constantly use shadows to wrap around the characters really works in its favor and gives it an extra layer of moodiness.

It just reuses animation on top of that.

I think that, in many ways, Wicked! is carried more by the strength of its ideas over its actual execution. Even if this show gets super goofy at times (this is a show where the Appleman literally infects the Internet by taking a piper and dropping glowing green goo on a CD-ROM), there is a definite horror undertone to the show that gets carried through its entire season.

Dare I say it, the show actually gets a little scary at times. That scene where the kids discover that their pets are nothing but empty skins with all the organs and bones sucked out in the first episode actually sets the mood really well and feels extremely faithful to the original books.

Plus the concept of The Appleman being able to tinker around with a living virus and create something that can mutate literally anything is a fun as hell idea, even if it doesn’t make sense most of the time and seems like a weird mutation (hah) of the conflict from the books. It’s just fun that this guy can create literally anything out of thin air as a weapon just so long as he goes to his lab and makes something that allows him to do so.

The Pros

*The Appleman. Yeah, there’s a very good reason why the only thing people remember about this show is The Appleman. He’s just a fun character and a fun villain. His design does takes a bit to get used to on account of how uncanny he can be, and there are times when they draw him off-model and make him look just horrendous, but once you see how far they go with the apple-theming, you kinda start to vibe with the apple headed monster.

Sure, he’s basically your run-of-the-mill cartoon villain but with a bonus tragic backstory, but his vocal performance by Bill Conn really sells the whole package. You can tell that he’s greatly unhinged and that he’s not exactly playing with a full deck. It’s only until the last episode that they flat-out say that he’s being controlled by the same virus that he’s been using to infect other creatures, but I’m pretty sure your average cartoon-watching kid is able to guess that just from the small hints that they drop.

Also all of his vehicles are apple-colored and I love a villain that takes the time to make sure he has a proper theme.

(The “starting out with an island with apple trees on Animal Crossing: New Horizons” moodboard)

*The Family. I liked that, since this show is about terrorizing one particular dysfunctional Australian family, all five family members of this show get enough character development that the mom and dad feel like they’re more than “the mom and dad character”. Save for that one episode where Gramps was constantly bragging about how back in his day, he didn’t need electricity, he was a fun, lovable grandpa, and I like that the kids get someone to talk to about mutant frogs and such.

They’re definitely dysfunctional and, as I mentioned in the previous post, Rory and Dawn constantly insulting each other in every single episode can be grating at times, but I like that their level of dysfunction is not because of the mom and the dad having an emotionally abusive relationship. If anything, the mom and the dad have the most stable relationship in the whole show! Eileen and Jack love each other and I hate that I’m at a point where I see this husband and wife genuinely enjoying each other’s company and I go “Yes, this is something refreshing”.

Also, gotta give the show points for having the family be two single parents from past relationships finding each other and getting married and for having Eileen be totally cool with her new in-law Gramps. 

*The Slobberers. Expanded from the first creatures from the books, I like that the apple-headed monster has giant worms for pets (again, gotta aggressively keep to the apple theming) and, while there’s a couple episodes where they’re just something to give The Appleman something to talk to, their designs are fun. Gives the animators an excuse to draw slime.

In a later episode, he mentions that he considers them his only friends and boy...that’s rough, buddy. 

*There’s an episode where characters travel into the Internet and fight a buff video game avatar of The Appleman in a late 90′s dungeon crawler computer game. I looooove late 90′s Internet imagery in cartoons, what can I say. You even see the dial-up pop window and a clunky late 90′s webcam!

*This is a show where a divorced man keeps bugging his own son and ex-wife while sometimes trying to kill his ex-wife’s new husband - all while keeping to a strict apple and virus theme - and honestly, this is a pro on its own. The Appleman is such a petty bitch at times and I love it.

*The Appleman is allergic to medicine. Minor touch, but I like that, since he’s a virus-themed bad guy, they apply “Revive Kills Zombie” logic on this guy and he literally can’t take painkillers because it’ll only cause him more pain and agony. This comes up in an episode where he’s screaming in pain and wishes he could make the pain go away but just can’t.

*The Title Cards. This is one of those shows that freezes on eye-catching artwork for each episode title before they continue with the rest of the episode and they’re really nice.

*The Accents. Forgot to mention this anywhere else, but since this is an Australian produced cartoon that aired primarily in Australia, everyone is rocking a very noticeable Australian accent and say things like “Oi, you two! Come and get a wriggle on!”. It’s fantastic.

They were definitely at the level where, if this show ever did make it to the states, they would’ve dubbed it to sound more American. And probably flip the animation so that the characters are driving on the opposite side of the road.  

The Cons

*The Reused animation and sound clips. This is unfortunately the show’s biggest strike against it. Once your brain picks out which scenes get reused and which voice clips get reused, you’ll notice that some of the episodes have a noticeably smaller polish than others. The episode “Decayed” in particular felt like 50% footage from previous episodes and boy, did it stick out like a sour thumb because of it.

That being said, I didn’t mind too much (watching a lot of B-list anime and Filmation shows will do that to you) and I feel like you would’ve noticed this a lot less if you weren’t blazing through all 26 episodes in a short period of time like I was. But it is definitely a bummer that they had to cut corners like this because again, when they don’t cut corners, this show looks utterly fantastic.

I guess the lesson here is that the animators of this show didn’t get paid enough, but really, you can say that about literally every animated project in existence.

*Weird continuity inconsistencies. This goes into a weird nitpicking “you probably only noticed this because you’re an adult with too much free time/boy I sure hope someone got fired for THAT blunder!” territory, but sometimes this cartoon does a thing where something minor is established and then the cartoon subtly retcons it.

Mostly I’m using this space to complain about how Dawn explicitly mentions that they don’t own a cat, but then in the “character shrinks to the size of an ant” episode, they have a pet cat! They have a pet cat that lasts a grand total of one episode and no one says anything!

What happened to the cat, Rory? What happened to the cat?!

(my theory is, like his father, it ran away from this family)

*Some episodes use stock cartoon plots. There is an episode where the main characters shrink to the size of an ant. There is a camping episode. There is a school dance episode. There is a Halloween episode. There is an episode focused on teeth. There is an episode that talks about the dangers of too much fast food.

Like the reused animation issue, depending on the episode, you end up not minding too much about this on account of how utterly bonkers The Appleman is when he’s concocting his evil schemes. The “characters teleport into the Internet” episode ended up being one of my favorites, as did the school dance episode.

But at the same time, two of my least favorite episodes are the stock episode plot episodes, so it’s definitely a mixed bag.

*They use real photographs in background shots and it bugs me. Come on, guys. Just have the blank wall or scribble in some posters. Anything will look better than this cartoon character standing right next to a still image from Alfred Hitchcock’s North by Northwest, especially when you clearly had the time to draw that cartoon skull on the door.

*The three plot-heavy episodes unfortunately have weaker animation. This just seems like weird planning on their parts, but Episode 1, Episode 4, and Episode 26 are all episodes that deal with backstory of The Appleman and this wacky dysfunctional family and, for some reason, they didn’t bring their A game in regards to actually animating these episodes.

I feel like if you’re dealing with heavy backstory, you need to make the episode look good, because that’s going to be the stuff that the audience remembers. You need to have the flashback of The Appleman’s horrific transformation while he was working at the old refinery look amazing, but instead it just....doesn’t.

(picture unfortunately related)

Just to make a note, the episodes with the most fluid animation are the following: The one with the mutant plants, the one with the mutant sheep, the Halloween episode, the episode with the dinosaur bones, and the episode where The Appleman learns how to make clones. None of these episodes are important to the overarching plot. 

*One of the episodes is unfortunately popular because it depicts animation that caters to the inflation fetish. Just...noting this for posterity. It makes google image searches of this cartoon a bit awkward. I’m not going to elaborate much further.

*There’s a minor transphobic joke in one of the episodes. In the episode “Decayed”, The Appleman dresses up like a nurse, tries to adopt a more feminine voice, and puts on makeup and fake eyelashes. Thankfully, this only happens for like three seconds and is never mentioned again.

The rest of the show otherwise passes the “can this still fly in 2020″ test. I’m just making a note here because it is pretty shitty. 

Closing Thoughts

Wicked! is not the best show in the world, and I struggle to call it “great”, but it is a solid and enjoyable one and honestly, the things that it has going for it are unique enough that I recommend giving it a shot despite its shortcomings.

If anything, my main takeaway from watching this whole show is that this show does not deserve to be as obscure as it is. At the very least, the concepts and characters introduced here are strong ones - the villain is a bitter divorced man transformed by a hate-feeding virus after all - and I feel that, in a more fair world, this show got the small but dedicated fanbase it so woefully needs. It doesn’t deserve a huge following of fans, but I say it definitely deserves a Fanfiction.net tag with 200 fanfics total and a lot more fanart than what it does.

While I’m not sure I could recommend it as one of the great obscure cartoons that everyone missed, I think it’s definitely worth checking out for anyone looking for a fun time. It’s definitely a hidden gem, even if the hidden gem has a few imperfections. If anything, this show is a definite wild ride and I think it’s time for everyone to give this cartoon a shot.

Anyway I got to see The Appleman playing Second Life and moving the muscle slider all the way to the right, so I obviously had a blast.

Next time, I talk about the actual episodes!