#he's very conscious of how feminine it is or isn't appearing

[nativehueofresolution]

lestat + gabrielle's hair

[very-grownup]

Book 10, 2024

"Death's End" is the conclusion to the trilogy Cixin Liu started in "The Three-Body Problem" and it ends strong. He focusses almost exclusively on a single protagonist, aeronautical engineer Cheng Xin, which is definitely to the benefit of propelling the narrative and the reader forward. It was much easier to fall into a rhythm with "Death's End" than "The Dark Forest". Through hibernation, Cheng Xin's story has her witnessing events across hundreds of years of human history, jumping her from climactic event to climactic event.

As has been a constant through the series, the narrative goes through peaks and valleys of hope and despair, displaying a range of human responses to world-altering events and revelations. There are moments of incredible beauty and hope and cooperation that get yanked away to plunge you into some really dark places.

Something that is distinct in "Death's End" is that Cixin Liu plays with different narrative formats for telling his story, with normal novel prose, diary excerpts, and fairy tales. I love a fairy tale and incorporating them into the hard science fiction as a means of multilayered coded message transmission feels like a natural and human way to bring an older kind of storytelling into what is generally seen as a colder, 'serious' genre of fiction. It also meshes well with an overarching theme of how far humanity can change while still remaining human.

Colonization, climate disaster, and the intersection of fundamentally incompatible existences are mixed in, still distressingly relevant as they were when originally published in Chinese fourteen years ago. That combination of subjects also shows there isn't a strict line between 'hard' and 'soft' science fiction the way some shaggy snob gatekeepers try to impose. There's a section of the novel where most of humanity has to relocate to Australia and there's nothing hard or futuristic about the conflicts of resources and individuality versus the group that arise from the situation.

My only criticism -- and perhaps less a criticism and more an observation of what feels more like an incidental expression of the author's unconscious beliefs (in that I don't think it's an intentional theme the way other things are) -- is that there's some weird gender stuff peppering the work. An unquestioned heteronormative binary that feels a bit out of step in the 21st century, a presumed softness in Cheng Xin where her attitude to humanity is positioned as motherly versus Luo Ji, who returns from "The Dark Forest", and Thomas Wade, initially Cheng Xin's boss and later an antagonist of sorts who mirrors her hibernation-enabled progress through the eras. Observations on the trend of men appearing more feminine during a peaceful era of cooperation where humanity is particularly hopeful and pursuing what seems to be the most luxurious and technologically advanced society depicted in the novel. Although this section of the novel also introduces the beautiful diplomatic android of the Trisolarans, Sophon, who is described as being particularly delicate and feminine, almost geisha-like in her dealings with Cheng Xin in a very intentional, constructed way that, now that I'm writing it down, maybe Cixin Liu is saying something about socialized gender assumptions after all.

None of the books in Cixin Liu's series are easy reads, and "Death's End" is no different. It's long, it's dense, and it doesn't have a neat ending in a traditional sense (although in some ways it's as neat an ending as you can have). I think it is, ultimately, a story with a hopeful ending, but one where hope isn't saccharine but a hard, conscious choice that isn't the same as happy.

[horrorslashergirl]

Slasher OC: Alexander Chirilă (Update)

Authors Note: He was supposed to be a supporting character, but my brain developed his character more and decided to make him a full on OC.

Full Name: Alexander Chirilă

Nickname(s): Ally, Alex, Sasha, Black Killer, Panther, Blackburn, Colton

Age: 38

Gender: Male

Nationality: Romanian

Place of Birth: Bucharest, Romania

Current Location: Travels all around the world to find his twin brother to kill him (formerly), Traveling alongside his brother and sister (Currently)

Occupation: Assassin

Languages: Romanian, English, Japanese, Greek, and Belarusian

Appearance:

Height: 6'8

Weight: 240lbs

Body Type: Atheltic

Skin Color: Warm Beige

Hair Color: Dark Brown

Hair Style: Short on the sides and longer on top, unlike his twin brother Decebal, his hair isn't wavy, has a spikier look

Eye Color: Pale Grey, almost white, giving the impression he is blind

Clothing: His clothes are all black, wearing combat gear that consists of black shirts and black jackets, black cargo pants, and black combat boots, black gauntlet gloves. He also wears knee and elbow protection along with a tactical bulletproof vest and utility belt where he carries his weapons. As an assassin, he wears a tactical black skull mask.

Other features: Unlike his twin brother Decebal; Colton has a much darker and scarier appearance, especially the two scars on his face that start from his hairline, down his forehead, and over his eyelids, continuing over his cheeks and neck and stopping at his collarbones.

Weapons: Twin Katana swords, throwing knives, grenades, gloves with metal claws and twin guns strapped on the holsters on his thighs.

Power/Skills:

Murderous expertise

Strength

Skilled usage of weaponry

Skill in hand-to-hand combat

Knifesmanship

Swordsmanship

Ruthlessness

Fearlessness

Marksmanship

Stealth

Superior agility

Impressive Flexibility

Overly High Inteligence

Knowledge about Bombs and Chemistry

Medical/Surgeon Skills

History/Bio:

Alexander Chirilă was the second born son to father Apostol Chirilă, and his mother, Maria Stratulat of Moldovic heritage. He was born after 20 minutes after Decebal was born, during the communist era in Romania, and because the parents couldn't support both children, they passed Alexander to an orphanage only to be sold over the country boundaries for human trafficking.

Before he could be bought for organ trafficking in America, an old lady took him in, raising Alexander, choosing a new identity for him so that he could protect him from his former life.

Until the age of 12, former Alexander, now Colton was raised in America by the old lady who quickly got sick by a severe form of cancer. Before she could die, she decided that Alexander had the right to know about his former life and she told him his story before she died in her bed.

After the reveal, Alexander researched all about the information, finding out what his biological parents did and about Decebal, only to blame his older twin brother for what happened.

As a teenager, Alexander was raised more by the streets, doing everything to survive, drug smuggling, stealing and he even killed a man for trying to steal the drug package he was carrying. That's when a hitman saw the 16-year-old boy and took him in, seeing all the hate and rage in Alexander's white eyes.

The hitman trained Alexander to be a ruthless killer, making him a master of sword fighting and hand-to-hand combat. Spending time along with assassins and hitmen, he meets Yumie Takahashi, a female assassin with prosthetic blade legs that quickly took a fancy for him, following him all around to the point where she fell in love with him, but Alexander doesn't return her feelings and used her blind love for him in his own greedy ways, her being his lap-dog.

Later on, Alexander and Yumie meet Nikita Sergei in Belarus while they tried to track down Decebal. They meet the Belarusian during an ambush between the Belarusian Police and the Belarusian Mafia, Nikita being one of the Mafias hitmen.

Nikita was almost killed during that bullet rain between Police and Mafia, only for Alexander to save him, but for that Nikita had to work for Colton, being his left hand next to the right hand, that being Yumie.

The three continued together, Yumie and Nikita assisting Alexander on his mission of annihilating his twin brother, Decebal.

After a brutal fight between the two brothers which resulted in both of them almost dead, they get on an agreement of peace between them, with the help of their third part, their little sister Nadia.

Personality:

Alexander is the complete opposite of Decebal in the matter of personality. Decebal is a happy-go-lucky, easy-going, charming, seductive, and modest guy, while Alexander is brutal, snarky, comes of as straight-up rude, blunt, and sharp-tongued if provoked, but overall keeps to himself since he has a problem with his 'intimacy'.

The smaller twin brother, unlike Decebal who is all laid-back, Alexander has a bad temper, but the type of temper that comes and goes, like the one of a child. He would be considered passive-aggressive.

Alexander doesn't know how to deal with his strong emotions and usually they manifest into a tsunami of uncontrollable feelings; especially when teased about sensitive topics, and may have outbursts of anger which would be considered 'funny' because he gets all red-faced, voice shuttering and doesn't know what to say or how to react. This part of his personality may also come off as very shy and sensitive, especially if people flirt with him because he is socially awkward and he never was one to be good at smooth-talking.

After making peace with his big brother, Alexander may open up little by little, showing good traits of his personality, but is still the opposite of Decebal.

Unlike Decebal, who is very charismatic, sensual, and opened up about his sexuality; Alexander is the very hard opposite, especially considering he had never been intimate with someone. Alexander is very shy when it comes to his intimacy and sexuality, almost to the point if someone presses him with sexual questions he will get all flustered and defensive.

This is a sign that Alexander is very self-conscious about his complete inexperience in the matter of getting intimate. It's a very big irony, seeing how on the battlefield he is very confident in his combat skills.

A good trait of Alexander is that he is a very big hard worker. He has the mentality that you cannot achieve something for free and have to work hard to earn it, since all his life he had to work to make it through life: As a little kid, he had to take care of the old lady that was his guardian until she died, then he had to do everything his Master said if he wanted to achieve the assassin training.

One thing that he shares with Decebal is the daredevil and competitive side, but Alexander's competitive side takes a very serious turn, finding himself willing to challenge his big brother at all kinds of provocations. It's the brotherly antagonistic demeanor.

His favorite drink: Green Tea

His favorite food: Ramen or Chicken and Rice Casserole

Other Characteristics:

Alexander loves fairytales and all types of mythic legends, mostly because the old lady that was his guardian in the first part of his life always used to tell him these types of stories before bedtime.

He is actually a very good cook. When he went to train with his Master Hitman, he has also signed the duty to do the cooking and clean the Masters' house as a form of payment for the training services. The Master would throw the food on the floor or at Alexander if it wasn't good enough and Alexander had to cook the dish again until it was 'perfect'.

He is an earlier riser in the morning, mostly because that's how he was raised; his assassin training started very early in the morning and before that, he had to prepare breakfast for his Master.

He loves to listen to the birds singing in the morning while he drinks his coffee or green tea.

His scent can be described as on a more feminine edge; giving off floral scents like lotus, orchid, and jasmine, with middle notes of vanilla tobacco, bergamot, and white musk.

Unlike his big brother Decebal who is a heavy drinker, Alexander cannot hold his liquor and is a sad drunk, getting depressed over the fact that he was separated from his siblings at birth, especially Decebal. When Alexander gets drunk he tends to mutter to himself 'I wish I never was born'.

Considering his personality, he would be described as a tsundere.

He is a master at chess due to playing with his Master in their free time. He can sit for hours and play chess, probably the only thing he is the most patient with.

He loves hot springs; immersion in warm water produces hydrostatic pressure on the body that results in reduced joint inflammation and increased mobility, plus it helps him relax his vulcanic mind.

He is a smoker just like his siblings, Decebal and Nadia.

Despite his scars and hard training, he has soft baby skin.

Symbolism for Alexander:

Black Panther- speaks to our soul with the shimmering energy of the Moon; this big cat is the ultimate shapeshifter and the master of disguise. Panther’s sleek black coat cloaks its true identity in the shadows. It isn’t until you are close to a Panther that their illusion falls away and who they really become visible. Alexander may seem like a very cold and harsh individual, hard to approach from the distance, but as you get closer and closer to him, pulling away all the layers that hide him, you learn that he is actually a pretty sensitive and misunderstood guy.

The Black Panther is a loner, hunting solitary. They hunt silently, seeming to appear and disappear in the blink of an eye; this means that Black Panther people can be very elusive. You may have to wait for them to find you. This means that you will have to wait and be patient in order for Alexander to open up to you, which cannot happen in one day. People who have the Black Panther as their spirit animal rarely reveal too much about themselves.

The Lotus flower- is a symbol of purity, enlightenment, self-regeneration, and rebirth. Its characteristics are a perfect analogy for the human condition: even when its roots are in the dirtiest waters, the Lotus produces the most beautiful flower. This shows Alexanders' persona, like a lotus bud, in his earlier life and so on, he was buried deep within lots of responsibilities, hardships, and struggles. We can say that once he made peace with his older brother, his blooming slowly started to take place, Decebal acting more so like the essence to Alexanders blooming. Its journey from a muddy seed to a glorious blossom offers the hope that something beautiful can grow from suffering, that we too will eventually bloom.

[laws-yellow-submarine]

Ok @mysticaltigersorceress let's do this lol, forewarning that this is very much just word vomit at this point and I'm very tired and semi-coherent so if anyone reads this and it doesn't make sense or seems all over the place: you're right!

So like, I mentioned this morning that my Driving To Work Thoughts™ were about Hazel's perception of beauty and how that applies to herself and junk, so I will now share those thoughts in the least spoilery way that I can lmfao

Hazel and Luffy both see "beauty" as a sort of title or a type of person, or something I'm tired and explaining is HARD but we see it in canon when Alvida reappears after eating her devil fruit (Luffy calls her "a beauty" but he doesn't seem to consider her "beautiful", which is weird to explain but makes sense if you don't think about it)

Hazel, having read a lot of stories over the years, can see beauty in certain traits (hard-working, kind, etc. All those fairy tale princess traits lol). For example: Makino doesn't display ideal beauty (she's not like stunningly gorgeous) but she is Hazel's only real example growing up of what a "pretty girl" looks like: someone feminine and clean and not necessarily slim but like, no hard lines (muscle, for example). So in Hazel's opinion, she is not a "pretty girl".

Now granted, Hazel also isn't the type to feel self-conscious about this. She grew up with almost zero feminine influence, she had Garp as a grandfather, Ace, Sabo, and Luffy as her childhood companions, and the mountain bandits plus Dadan as sort of caretakers; beauty just didn't matter in the grand scheme of things, and she would've been the only one who could've cared about it in the first place (Makino did her best to encourage "girliness" when she could, but Hazel has never felt "pretty")

So now as an adult, Hazel isn't overly concerned about beauty, but applying the concept to herself feels...uncomfortable. When she and Ace started dating as teens she figured appearance didn't play a part in it, they were extremely close friends close in age who'd grown up together, she’d read stories with similar relationship structures, it just made logical sense (cause that's a recipe for a spicy romance lmfao). When Sanji fawns over her at first she doesn't know how to react, but seeing him fawn over Nami (who IS a "pretty girl") and every other woman they meet makes Hazel feel more confident that it's just a Sanji thing, and nothing to actually do with her.

None of this is true of course, but she literally can't even picture herself as being "pretty" or "beautiful". She could have beautiful features but she's not a "pretty girl". But that doesn't mean she doesn't want to be. Again, she's read all those fairy tales, she's imagined herself as the heroine in more than one story, and they all have one thing in common: they were undeniably beautiful.

There's a part coming up that I want to show but tbh idk how I'll make it fit yet, or if I'll end up having to cut it, but in chapter 9 Nami was in charge of getting clothes for the both of them. She knows Hazel's style is more practical, so she stuck to things like shorts and t-shirts and tank tops and jeans, while keeping the more feminine styles for herself. But when she's showing Hazel what she bought, there's a dress that catches her eye and Hazel gravitates to it. Nami didn't intend for it to be hers, but once she sees Hazel looking at it (specifically the way she's looking at it) Nami decides that it's hers. Hazel tries to protest since she'll never get a chance to wear it ("and it'll probably look silly on me anyway!") but Nami insists and says she'll make sure to find a time for them to get dressed up (a prospect which both terrifies and excites Hazel lol). She doesn't get a chance to wear it for a LONG time though lol

By the time Hazel does get to dress up, a lot has happened that actually does make her feel self-conscious about her appearance (and it only gets worse from there lol technically I've already spoiled what happens on this blog since I talked about it before I committed to writing Together With Fruit, I'm too lazy to go find and delete the posts lmfao). Putting the dress on, getting dolled up by Nami and Robin, all just makes her feel out of place, like a kid playing dress up - not at all like a princess in a fairy tale. But she goes out anyway and has a good time and just maybe the person she's with helps her feel...pretty.

Cause here's the thing, a certain moss-headed love interest doesn't view beauty in a physical sense. Sure, he can appreciate aesthetics, and the fact Hazel actually looks like a stereotypical girl might make his heart thump a little bit (cause I'm just a sucker for those moments lol), but to him what stands out as beautiful is a person's character. Hazel's kindness, her strength (both physical and emotional), her dedication… these are what attracts Zoro. He can see the things she's gone through, the things she's put herself through for others, and every scar she's gained from it only makes her more beautiful in his eyes…

And the only reason I was even thinking about this today is because a while back I saw a post that asked "what's a common theme that appears in everything you write", and while granted I haven't actually written much, I have a lot of ideas and half-formed plots in my head for various OCs and the one common thing is redemption and reconciliation. One of my favorite things in a romance is when you think a couple is solid and perfect, then something happens to show that things aren't perfect, and the couple has to work to fix that thing so they can be stronger (often with a breakup then makeup scenario lol). I love the idea of being so drawn together that even when you think it's over you find a way to see their side and you come back stronger together. But Hazel and Zoro broke the mold for me when it comes to this theme.

I've played around with ways things might become iffy between them, probably when they reunite after the time skip. After so much has happened, and Hazel has literally been to Hell and back, can he really still see her in that way? And at least for now I think some of that anxiety would center around her physical appearance (her appearance is so drastically different post-time skip, like, so much happens lol), but it's also that she can't be exactly the same person that she was 2 years before. And maybe Zoro is feeling some anxiety too, but on the flip side: can she really still feel that way towards him, when she's been through so much? Did he train enough to be worthy of that strength she carries? At some point his priorities shift to not only become the World's Greatest Swordsman, but also to help lift up his partner the way she lifts him (and everyone else) up.

And I think it's important for everyone to know that Zoro is attentive to every scar, he caresses every muscle, and treats her with such utter reverence...honestly thinking about it right now, think "Take Me to Church" vibes lol

He makes Hazel feel absolutely, stunningly beautiful, and it's the only time it doesn't feel uncomfortable. 

[sir-huffman]

[ 💄 ] [ 📚 ][ 🌟 ][ 🙏 ][ 👻 ][ 🎈 ]

𝐇𝐞𝐚𝐝𝐜𝐚𝐧𝐨𝐧 𝐌𝐞𝐦𝐞𝐬 | meme

[ 💄 ] does your muse have an aesthetic? do they adhere strictly to it?

Unless the aesthetic is an average joe, there really isn't anything that can be ascribed to Huffman - other than being a person from Mondstadt.

This leads to his clothing to primarily be of cotton and leather. His clothing tends to be in an earthy and muted tones ( compared to the brilliant and vibrant colors that Mondstadt can provide ). He tends to wear a lot of creams and browns and may dabble into the blues or greens.

He strives to be a role model and it can be reflected in his physical appearance. Hair combed over properly, clothes always clean and fresh, as well as always smelling like mint and lavender from a distance he looks like a prim and proper knight. As well as getting up close, he has perfected the warm and soft welcoming smile accompanied by a reassuring voice and tone.

It's not necessarily his aesthetic, but rather the role he has embraced ( at least on the surface ).

[ 📚 ] what is your muse’s favourite genre of books, tv, movies, etc.?

Huffman enjoys more fantastical and whimsical pieces of fiction during his times of leisure. He is an avid reader of Vera's Melancholy ( only due to his name appearing the book and it holds a sense of nostalgia for him ) and uses it as a comfort read when he is not feeling so well.

[ 🌟 ] is your muse comfortable in their identity? are they insecure or confident?

Generally, Huffman is comfortable in his own skin although he knows there are many improvements that could be made. He knows his strengths and weaknesses and doesn't get too bogged down on who he is, what he is, and how he is perceived.

That said, Huffman is a very jealous man and has his own bouts of insecurity. He is very self conscious about his weight, mostly because he knows his body gains pounds easily. Which by itself isn't a problem, it's when it starts to drain his energy as well as putting him in a more stressful mood that tells him that he should be more aware of the things he's eating as well as generally liking how he looks when he's slimmer.

Huffman is also very aware that he isn't the most masculine of men. He is very much a 'malewife' who enjoys cooking, cleaning, gardening, as well as keeping everything neat and tidy. He enjoys mending clothes and baking from time to time and even enjoys more feminine clothing. And although, this doesn't matter in the long run, when he's in a very heavily masculinized enviroment...it makes him insecure about not being up to par as he's rather...average.

[ 🙏 ] is your muse religious? what do they believe in, if anything?

Huffman is one of the many knights who isn't that religious despite having close ties with the Church of Favonius.  He has lost faith in the Anemo Archon and has no opinion on the other Archons as they are of no relevance to himself. That said, this is something that Huffman keeps to himself because such a matter doesn't concern others.

That said, Huffman can be perceived as a man who has absolute faith in his Archon. He is more knowledgeable than others of the history of Mondstadt and speaks of great pride and admiration for their God of Freedom. But that is as far as he'd go to praise Lord Barbatos.

Huffman has some resentment for the archons that is very deeply rooted in his personal 'daddy issues' and he views Mondstadt as a city abandoned by their archon. Because of this, he prefers to keep his opinions on the Anemo Archon to just the stories and ballads he has heard as a child

[ 👻 ] if your muse were a fantasy creature, what kind would they be? why?

Human. (*wheezes*) But if I had to choose, probably a Fylgja or an incubus/cambion or something.

Fylgja is, from my understanding, is heavily intertwined with a person's soul and can be described as a spiritual animal representation of a person in their current form. Generally they can be seen within dreams, just before death, and/or by people with second sight. They walk along side the person they are attached to and will disappear and die along with said person as they are linked together.

The reason for this is more that ultimately, Huffman isn't that special enough to be a fancy supernatural fantasy creature in my mind. And would be more of an noninvasive force that may guide once in a while but otherwise not be seen or noted of. He's there, he's always there, and perhaps ( maybe ) he'll show up to give a warning or guidance should you try and seek him out.

As for him being an incubus or a cambion ( or something like that )...

The reason for this is mostly because I would think his mother would be a succubus and thus, well, that would make Huffman an incubus or a cambion. No other thoughts than that, though I just enjoy the thought of incubus Huffman sitting on people in the night and giving them sleep paralysis. Could be an alp variant, but that's crossing various concepts of sleep paralysis from various origins and that gets messy.

[ 🎈 ] does your muse have many regrets? what are they?

No.

Generally, Huffman doesn't have any deep regrets in his life although he may have many momentary regrets. He is very much a person who lives in the moment and doesn't think too hard about the future or the past. This makes him carefree, easygoing, and a little head strong who gives into his impulses easily ( hence his momentary regrets ).

[starship-imzadi]

S3 E16 The Offspring

Red alert! 🖖🏻🚨 This is Jonathan Frakes' directorial debut!

"While commander Riker is away in personal leave..." Uh-huh.

When Troi says "you've never been a parent" of course she can say that with experience from "The Child" which was I'm sure was an odd parental experience. (Also, Nepenthe much!! This whole episode is an important set up in the star trek universe for Picard)

Data tries so hard to be human that he seems to forget some people will only see his end product and not his motivations.

This episode is a great follow up to "The Measure of a Man" and it seems to dance around (or circumvent) similar issues. Since we cannot prove or disprove self aware consciousness there's no real point to continuously dwelling on it in the plot. However, it remains as a central and integral part of any argument which involves synthetic life.

"and I am gender neuter. Inadequate"

This statement suggests that someone must have a gender to be "complete".

Data says "access your data bank on sexuality, level two" this immediately brings up an issues of conflating gender and sexuality, or conversely, the potential for interconnection between gender and sexuality. Would it be possible for Lal to choose a body that appeared as one sex, say female, and than "act" as a male gender? If Lal never chose a physical change would people begin to assign a gender to "it".

This brings up an additional issue since Lal is a synthetic life: even though Data is physically modeled after a male physiology Pulaski and Maddox still refered to Data as "it" not on account of his appearance but on account of being unwilling to recognise his life as more than his machinery. If we are without gender do we lose our humanity? And vise versa?

"[gender] is a decision that will affect how people will interrelate with you"

How true this is.

"I chose your sex and appearance" could Lal conceivably choose Deanna's appearance but not her sex?

I'd like to explore an idea of gender as analogous to language. There's a linguistic term "idiolect" which denotes the specific way a single person uses a language; it's the idiosyncrasies of the way a person uses language that no one, not even family members, share. I might speaks English with a specific dialect but at the most individual level my understanding of the words I use, and how I pronounce them, as a whole are part of my idiolect. Gender could be defined in the same way.

My gender, however it is categorised, is a collection of my actions. The gender I choose, (or the gender society acknowledges) is based in my behaviour, my mannerisms, and my interactions with people around me. However, there is a level of individuality within that. Troi's behavior, that is categorised as gender, is that of a woman and yet it is not exactly the same behaviour that Dr. Crusher exhibits. They are both, however, identify as women and fit within societies parameters for what constitutes "femininity". (Even take it a step from there and ask does Troi's gender as a woman manifest like Marina's gender as a woman?)

Lal however can choose not only sex but also species. I don't know what to say about that.

"Why is the sky black?"

Wait, is that another admiral?

I love that even though Picard isn't fond of children, and he doesn't understand exactly how Data sees Lal as a child, but he will still defend Data and Lal at any cost against anyone who might threaten them.

"I can give her attention, Doctor, but I am incapable of giving her love."

Well hello to Patrick's chest. I think this is the first time we see Picard in pyjamas.

It is odd from a practical stand point that Data never managed contractions.

Data clearly has some gaps on the programming he passed on to Lal... you'd think basic body language would be in there.

Poor Riker. He walks in to ten forward sees someone new (the Enterprise typically has just over 1,000 people. That's like a small town.) He opens the conversation for an introduction and this new person pulls him onto the bar and forcibly kisses him without his consent. I've seen a number of people list this amongst Riker's flirtations and I cannot abide that. You can see him push against the bar trying to get away. Of course Riker is the "adult" in the interaction but Lal is significantly strong and clearly has no understanding of social norms. Also, Riker is clearly embarrassed even before he learns Lal is Data's daughter (at which point he becomes more embarrassed and flustered).

It's interesting that Lal says holding hands is a symbolic gesture of affection. I would argue that this is largely untrue. Sure, you might hold someone's hand to signal to her that you care for her, or to the people around you that you care for her. But this doesn't account for the human physiological response to physical contact. One of the purest examples to demonstrate is "kangaroo care". New born babies, especially premies, have better health and a higher survival rate when they have regular skin to skin contact with their care provider, either men or women. The baby is unaware of the gesture and it's not just because they are being held. The benefits specifically come from skin to skin contact, barriers like cloth in between diminish the positive results. Human benefits from having positive physical contact beyond the self awareness of it.

That shot of the conference room looks new; I don't think anything like it has been done at any point in there aeries up until now.

Data doesn't really address his lack of feeling, it's just stated that he doesn't feel. But even human emotions are not really understood. Emotions present meaaurabo as physiological responses: increased heart rate, change in skin temperature, tears, etc. But science has been unable to identify clearly if 1. the emotion is the physiological response, 2. emotion is initiated by the physiological response, or, if in fact, 3. our perception of emotion is the cumulative phycological interpretation of the physiological response. In some respects it a question of where the brain ends and the mind begins.

"there are times, sir, when men of good conscious cannot blindly follow orders."

Geordi, Deanna, and Wes standing outside look like they're waiting at a hospital.

This admiral is the typical Starfleet arrogant asshole but his admiration for Data once he sees him try to save Lal's life is actually really moving.

Geordi comforting Troi is sweet; they don't typically interact that much.

Jonathan's hair looks amazingly normal at the end. i.e. more like Jonathan less like Riker.

Engage.

Jonathan is known as a director for finding the very human and emotionally authentic aspects of a story and this episode, as his first time in the director's chair, is a wonderful start for that reputation.

[dangan-millie-madness]

WIP Danganronpa OC - Mieko Oe

⚠!STOP RIGHT THERE!⚠

This DanganMillie Madness post will contain spoilers for Danganronpa. Please do not read if you don't know how everything goes in Danganronpa.

Hey everyone it's DanganMillie here with a WIP of one of my OCs, Mieko! I plan on using her in two roleplays on RPN, but I accidentally deleted her old CS. So, I'm making her a new one! It isn't quite done yet, but here is!

---------

Mieko Oe

The Ultimate Super High School Level Comic Artist (lit. The Ultimate Super High School Level Cartoonist)

"A newcomer has taken the stage! It seems that he's bold enough to approach the great Mieko!"

General Information

First name: Mieko

First name definition: Already prosperous

First name pronunciation: Me-eck-oh

First name kanji: 美恵子

First name romaji: Mieko

First name katakana: ミエコ

Last name: Oe

Last name definition: Finish

Last name pronunciation: oh-e

Last name kanji: 大江

Last name romaji: Ōe

Last name katakana: オエ

Side of family last name is from: Mieko's last name is from her mother's side of the family.

Nicknames: Nerd

Reason for nicknames: Mieko is often called a nerd by other people due to her references to different anime, manga, and cartoons as well as her game-ish way of speaking to people.

Aliases: Magical Pretty Girl Mieko ~ ❤

Reason for aliases: Magical Pretty Girl Mieko ~ ❤ is her online alias. It's a reference to a mini game inside of a game called Yandere Simulator.

Age: 17

Birthday: September 9

Zodiac Sign: Virgo

Chinese Zodiac Sign: Rooster (chicken)

Biological Gender: Female

Gender going by: Female

Used Pronouns: She/Her

Sexual Orientation: Bisexual

Romantic Orientation: Biromantic

Closeted/Uncloseted: Uncloseted

Single/Taken: Single

"What?! You can't back down from the challenge! It's time to du-du-du-du-du-du-du-du-du-duel!"

Appearance

Official Character Art:

~ soon to come

Sprites:

WIP

Pixel Sprites:

~ soon to come ~

Anime version:

~ soon to come ~

Height: 5,7"

Weight: 128.9 lbs.

Chest: 34"

Description:

Standing at 5,7", Mieko is a bit of a plain looking young teen girl. She has shorr brown hair with two longer wavy strands of hair that fall in front of her ears and bangs that partially cover her forehead. She wears a shiny black hair clip on the left side of her hair. Her eyes are a very light shade of pale grey and very large, having a very feminine charm to them with the addition of long eyelashes. She wears small, square reading glasses that rest on her nose and seem to not move very much, a perfect fit. Despite looking so plain and a bit nerdy, she does strike quite a bit of attention with the look of her body. Mieko has a very busty and curvy hourglass figure that her slightly right clothes outline very well. She usually wears a skin tight dark blue dress that goes down to the top of her knees in length with a light black cardigan on top. Her shoes are shiny dark blue dress shoes.

"S-sorry, my hobbies slipped in a bit too much.."

Ultimate Talent

SHSL Title: The Ultimate Super High School Level Cartoon Artist (lit. The Ultimate Super High School Level Cartoonist)

SHSL Talent Description: Mieko is a cartoon artist, meaning she draws and animates cartoons. Her cartoon and anime drawing skills are known to be the best of her generation and she takes great pride in her work because of this fact.

Other translations of their talent:

Chinese - The ultimate super high intermediate cartoon artist

French - The ultimate super high school level cartoon artist

German - The ultimate super high school level cartoon artist

Spanish - Best High School-level Cartoon Artist

Swedish - The ultimate super college cartoon artist

"Ick, I feel totally sick right now, he's staring at me like I'm a 5 star meal... freaking creepy man..."

Personality

Likes: Manga

Dislikes: Sloppy artwork

Overall Description: Mieko is a very hyperactive girl caught up in her own world. She often makes multiple references to games and anime that she watches and plays, sometimes even breaking the fourth wall a bit to do so by referencing fandoms that actually exist. When she realizes that she's made a lot of references and is nerding out, she becomes self conscious about it and becomes a bit awkward, apologizing for her nerd out session and calming down. Despite being a bit ditzy to the world around her due to her head being up in the clouds most of the time, she does notice when people stare at her body lustfully and often gets creeped out by how often she gets ogled by people for her looks.

"Ah, a normal conversation...? I don't even think I know what that is at this point. I mean, what else is there to talk about other than games and anime?"

Killing Game Information

Execution

Execution Title: WIP

Execution Video/Images: WIP

Execution Description: WIP

Meaning Behind Execution: WIP

Who they murdered: WIP.

Motive/Reason to murder: WIP

Motives

Motive

-Effectiveness WIP

-Reason behind motive WIP

Presents

Love: WIP

Like: WIP

Dislike: WIP

Hate: WIP

Quote for when they love a gift: "Th-this... uwah, it's even better looking than the food from Food Wars ~~~~~ So inspirational ~~~~~~"

Quote for when they like a gift: "This is great! Ten out of ten dentists approve!"

Quote for when they dislike a gift: "This uh... this isn't very inspirational..."

Quote for when they hate a gift: "..."

Free Time Events

Free Time 1: WIP

Free Time 2: WIP

Free Time 3: WIP

Free Time 4: WIP

Free Time 5: WIP

Skill Unlocked:

A Cartoonist's Secret

This skill allows the player to automatically see all weak points to shoot at. Effective in Non Stop Debates and Mass Panic Debates.

Price of Skill: 10 hope fragments

Ultimate Lab

Images: WIP

Description: WIP

Room

Images: WIP

Description: WIP

"Urgh, I can't stand works of art like this, it looks like what Devie-art throws up on a bad Sunday night! Seriously, the stuff on there can already be bad at 4:00 AM but this takes it to a new level. Get it out of my face alreadyyyyyyy!!!!"