#i do an audience commentary where i point out what all the shit means and how cool it is

[paper-mario-wiki]

alright look i know my following is not the target audience for this kind of post but i wanna at least point something out about a scene in the Fallout show that i haven't actually heard a single person point out or comment on.

spoilers ahead.

in the scene where the ghoul is rewatching his old movie, specifically the scene where he originally protested about killing the villain.

the first layer is the obvious one: he is talking directly to himself. "you were strong, ugly, and you had dignity. i'll give you two out of those three." he remembers what happened at that shoot just as clearly as we did, and after he literally tells himself to his face "you're strong, ugly, and have no dignity" followed by him killing the man he originally wanted his character to save. this, of course, coming DIRECTLY after the person he sold into slavery earlier that day sparing him with life saving medicine while he's on the ground and telling him to his face that he only lives on because someone stuck to their humanity. very heavy! i bet he feels like shit, which he probably should because he's kind of a jerkoff! (but in a cool way that i like to watch)

the SECOND layer is the one i find way more interesting. the phrasing of his final line we didn't hear before was so dripping with importance that it felt like i was reading RPG dialogue and story relevant words were highlighted. "i hope you like the taste of lead you commie son of a bitch". as we'd already seen in episode 3, he despises vault-tec for everything he knows they are responsible for while he was their face. moreover, it's made clear that he doesn't just resent himself for being used for their image, but he resents the fact that he was the face of the propaganda which drove the war fever that caused the end of the world. the wild west ideal caricature of masculine wisdom from the movies as the spokesperson of the company who stood to profit from the purposeful decimation of the human race. he became The Ultimate Jingo.

and i really enjoyed how brief yet informative that detail was! i really enjoyed how the directors tell you what the characters are thinking intuitively and effectively through the camerawork and those little details make the whole thing a lot more fun to mull over and consider as a part of the whole of Fallout! i think it's neat.

[rjalker]

Flatland adaptations

[ID: A version of the "missing the point", meme, showing a purple square shouting in all caps, Holy shit other dimensions exist", while staring at a green sphere that intersects with his plane, while the sphere says, with the words literally going over the square's head, "Racism, ableism, misogyny, and classism are bad.". End ID.]

how come I've watched three full length Flatland movies and many shorter animations but only one of them, which is in Italian, which I don't speak, ever has anything to say about the political themes of the book and instead just goes "woah cool interdimensional theory!"???

[John Crichton voice] Where's my damn political commentary?

Why do people want to just throw out all the criticism of systemic bigotry to focus only on the dimensional stuff?

Edit: Yes, this 1000% applies to the 2007 Flatland film. It is not exempt at all. It is one of the main things I was thinking of while making this. A few seconds of absurdist humor does not mean the 2007 Flatland film is scathing political commentary that forces the audience to think about systems of inequality and question whether they might not be upholding some that are just as absurd and made up to keep people in power.

[ID: The same meme as above, now with a hybercube or tesseract saying, "Racism, ableism, misogyny, and classism are bad.", with the yellow A Sphere from the 2007 Flatland film staring at it in open-mouthed shock, exclaiming, "Wow!! Absurdist humor!!!" while the point flies over his head. End ID.]

Edit August 20 2024: Ladd Ehlinger, the creator of the 2007 Flatland film, is disgustingly fucking racist and misogynistic. He is literally a proud conservative.

He made a political ad in 2011 that's literally so blatantly racist and misogynistic that youtube has literally restricted it so you literally cannot share the link outside of youtube.

Because it's that blatantly fucking bigoted.

I wish I could say I'm shocked but considering how terribly the 2007 film handles the themes of the original novel, I'm not surprised in the least.

The ad literally has Black men chanting, "give me your cash bitch so we can shoot up the street", while a white woman, with the face of the politician the add is against photoshopped over her, pole dances as a sex worker.

He runs a tumblr account so make sure you block him. His username is filmladd.

He's literally a racist misogynistic conservative.

For the love of all that's holy everyone please stop defending this film immediately and make sure people are aware of exactly what kind of person produced it.

[sehtoast]

That episode was insane. I’m getting tired of Firecracker’s ass she needs to get on somewhere. The racism the human centipede references the SA jokes like wtf..? I think that was one of the worst ones in the show.

Yeah, i’m… not entirely sure what the point of that episode even was beyond trying to expand their shock factor?  Hands down my least favorite episode to date, and i didn’t think i’d ever have an episode that stood out like that bc i’m honestly a pretty easy-to-please viewer. Hell, till now i’ve felt like s4 has been pretty strong with just a little bit of wavering in ep 5, but this was just… straight up bad. Sure, it feels like a season of pure filler, but the filler was at least strong– especially episode 4 since it gave us such incredible background on homelander.  Anyway, spoilers for s4e6, talks of SA, etc. following under the cut:

I haven’t been a fan of firecracker’s since she walked on screen, and i don’t think that’s going to change. Her character is incitement for the sake of it, which, given the state of the US irl, isn’t unwelcome commentary.  There was a flicker of hope when she did her little “i say this stuff because this is what the people who have nothing else in life need to unite.” For a fraction of an episode, she was interesting!  She was a strong show of how political grifters prey upon ignorance with outrage to turn otherwise normal, lonely people who are desperately seeking unity into the just… trainwrecks they’ve become today.  And then they dropped it. It’s like she lost the awareness of it just as much as the writers did.  She could’ve been really neat, but she’s nothing more than your average outrage manufacturing machine.  I mean… “jewish space lasers?” C’mon man.  Combine it all with the anti-trans rhetoric and it just is… overall sour (i have many thoughts on the anti-trans and other shit they’ve had homelander say insofar as how little he even believes in the shit he parrots [and i do mean parrots, because he has no idea what to do or say when it doesn't work, which we saw again very clearly in today's episode] for the sake of preserving his demos and appealing to politicians, but that’s for another time– maybe?)

As far as the racism and anti-trans stuff (hell, even the word for word parody of that politician who said “legitimate r*pes can’t become pregnancies because the body has ways of shutting it down,” or whatever it was verbatim)-- i think we’re to the point where the writers and kripke have begun to forget that these are things done and said to real people in real time. I understand the point is to show the audience how foul these things are, but there comes a point where it crosses a line and ricochets back to hurting the audience.  For myself, i’m trans. Every other episode containing a line that directly correlates to the real world dehumanization of us for political points is a stomach dropping moment because we’re being actively reminded that our rights are under constant attack. All three times have had like… non existent context relation to anything going on in the show and just feels… baffling? And then it feels bad.  And then it hurts.  The show has done this a couple times where they try to make commentary on the oppressive and cruel shit said about marginalized people (race, gender, etc) and it falls flat and just becomes a slap in the face to the viewer who it was perhaps trying to represent.

The human centipede deal with splinter, i could cope with. I actually laughed, because i can see people with cloning powers doing wild shit like that.  It didn’t seem far off from the context of the show that superhumans with superpowers will do wacky shit with said superpowers.  What we got in today’s episode was… not that. And it wasn’t good.  What we got today was an episode riddled with sexual abuse via CNC that was played as a joke the whole way through.  No, tek and ashley did not know that hughie was in that suit. However, hughie started yelling random words at one point. I’m not versed in kink culture particularly well, but i would think anyone partaking in that sort of act would recognize that as perhaps the sub has forgotten their safe word and they would call it off. That they’re yelling out random, out of context words would be a major, major red flag to cease. But they didn’t. So what we got was extremely unsettling, especially as it settled in more, and it gets played as a joke until hughie cracks at the very end.  Maybe the goal is to make people understand the gravity of sexual abuse toward men since society does tend to treat it as a joke. Maybe, and that’s strong if so! But i’m finding it difficult to understand how a show that put school sh**ting warnings in Gen V, warned of b*astiality during the Deep’s shit, and even just, y’know, hinted at what herogasm would be, could somehow not manage to warn that viewers were about to see someone sexually abused to such an extent.  I have an extremely strong stomach for media. I’ve seen a lot of fucked up shit online that i wish i could unsee, but it’s never made my gut churn like it did after this episode.

I have… a lot of feelings about this episode. I could even probably go into detail on why i think the whole breast milk thing at the end was less than stellar as well (which i'm almost positive i'm standing alone on), but i don’t want to stray too far off the ask content.  I’m just… yeah. This was hands down the worst episode i think the show has, with like two exceptions for a-train's scene with the kid and how hard i laughed at the webweaver shit (but the thing is, WW WANTED help boofing that stuff!!!! difference!!!). Based off critic reviews, i think the next two will be floating around the same degree of bad as well.  Given the last few episodes set the aftertaste of everything, i think the reviews being so negative are probably based upon eps 6-8 being awful.

As usual, we’ll fix it in fanon.

edit: i also need to know what the fixation is this season in making important things happen off screen. starlight gets pregnant off screen, has an abortion. it is central to the plot of starlight v. firecracker, but we're not shown a lick of that exposition. homelander and sage are plotting internment camps??? but we're TOLD, not shown-- which is the ultimate sin in storytelling. like... what is this season actually trying to do beyond just compound shock value?

[wutheringmights]

can i ask for the hot mess commentary plz?

sure

Before we crack into this, take a moment to read what I said about the neck thing. I write that up a long time ago, but it provides some important context and is a good refresher on the secret history of Spirit's bi awakening.

Also, the director's commentary for this chapter is here, in case you want to review that.

Good? Okay, let's go at it.

So.... they had sex. Yay. Insert jazz hands.

I feel like I actually have way less to talk about here than I did for the neck thing. Granted, a lot of the neck thing is behind the scenes stuff. I guess that's a good place to start.

You may recall the informal hiatus CTB went on after Spirit came back to Warriors's era. I used a lot of that time to actually work out how to end CTB and what character/plot points I would need to hit to have a satisfying conclusion.

During this time, I was listing out things about Spirit and Warriors that I need to return to. Spirit had his codependent histories with the greenhorn and Zelda, or really his strategy for offering himself up as a means of feeling more in control, that needed to be explored. I needed to do some kind of follow-up with Warriors's latent attraction.

The two topics were similar enough to make me want to tackle them at once. But the moment I did, my brain decided that they should hate fuck. (I definitely was also thinking about my old concept of Spirit's unrequited crush-- I still write the characters like that happened, even if it never actually made it into the story.)

Why hate sex? Honestly, it would be kinda funny. Plus, it's a good writing exercise to ask yourself what would happen if your characters in conflict did (not really).

I knew immediately it could only end badly for everyone involved. But I knew I needed Warriors to hit an emotional low point to motivate him to do his Castle Town plan. I knew I wanted Spirit's big speech to come at a time when he and Warriors were emotionally connecting again, and that the response to that speech needed to push him back to Time.

Shit, I thought. This might be what they do.

But, like. I love protecting my peace. I have been skirting around the edges of homo eroticism with Spirit and Warriors as much as I dared. I didn't want to invite angry anons. But then.... did I really care? I understand where people are coming from, but at the same time... this is such a minuscule non-issue. Truly, and with emotion: who even cares?

First off, we already established with the neck thing that whatever fucked up thing these two have going on does not count as shipping. And second, if it does count as shipping, then fine! It's shipping then. This is what the plot is. I've been working on this story for too long to compromise now. I'll reap the consequences, whatever they may be.

I decided to keep it on the books, half believing I would change my mind once the chapter came up.

I was feeling very confident about my choice, up until the day of posting. That was then I got slammed in the face with regret. Luckily, there hasn't been any issues. I may have overestimated as much the general populous care about CTB. If there was ever any confirmation that this story has the world's most niche audience, this is it.

And you all have been great. There's been a lot of encouragement and kind words from you the readers, after you all stopped yelling, of course.

(Though I was prepared to be an obstinate jackass to anyone who tried to complain. I found a loophole and was ready to exploit the hell out of it. I was so ready!)

Funnily enough, everyone's reactions to the past few chapters helped to reassure me the most. There was been a lot of jokes about Warriors and Spirit having the world's worst situationship (lol).

So them having sex turned into an important character and plot moment. Warriors and Spirit got built up and tore down in self-destructive ways. This experience becomes the wake-up call Warriors needed to decide that he was ready to stop being the hero and get his life back.

A lot of people expressed surprise that Warriors and Spirit would go through with it even after talking it out. To be honest, I was a little surprised too! I was half convinced that Warriors had grown enough to stop the self-destructive cycle and turn Spirit down. But when looking at the scenes leading up to them being alone-- from Twilight denounce his friendship with Warriors, Toto turning him away, and Warriors generally in an emotional rut over his intellect and lost beauty--I realized that Warriors was already in the middle of another downward spiral. He would go through with this, if only to feel valued. It was the war all over again.

Also, apparently half of you guessed that Warriors would get cigarette burns from Spirit eventually. I hope you all were happy with the results!

When I posted that snippet from the chapter, apparently all of you knew that a kiss was coming. Ooops. I'm a little glad I surprised all of you with what happened next afterward.

On to funnier things:

I meant for there to be more compare/contrasts between Warriors's nights with Icarius and Spirit. The only one I really managed to do was Link being unable to sleep next to Icarius vs Warriors falling asleep easily.

Because this chapter and the last were supposed to be one, this scene was supposed to come out around Valentine's Day. Could you imagine?

I had the silliest time trying to figure out how to get Warriors and Spirit alone in a room together. I had this grand plan about them needing to get a room in a different inn from the others, whether because they were too tired to walk home after dancing or because they were too drunk to remember the way. Then I realized that Ganondorf could just give the Chain enough money to get more rooms. I realized this way later than I should have.

If you're wondering.... they switched....

I wrote that Warriors thought that sex with Spirit felt like an argument. That is because they are both the bossiest motherfuckers in bed. They both want things done their way or else. It's combative. Unfortunately, they both like the challenge.

I did have an idea for how to end this whole matter in a funny way, both involving someone from the chain finding out.

In my first idea, Time barges into what he thinks is just Warriors's room, in the middle of some kind of rant. Then he sees both of them sitting in bed, pauses, then promptly walks out. Warriors and Spirit quickly get dress before there's a knock on the door. When Warriors opens, Time walks in casually and starts his rant again while pretending none of this had happened. He would wait until Warriors was alone to be like WHAT THE FUCK!!!!!!

My other alternate scenario involves Warriors and Spirit getting a room in a different inn. In the morning, Spirit is hurriedly trying to leave when there's a knock on the door. This time, it's a few members of the chain asking if he's seen Warriors anywhere. He says no. All but one walk away. The one who stays (probably Legend) would lean and discreetly tell him that he knew the room was under Warriors's name, so if they were done, could he tell Warriors to get his ass outside? Cue Spirit burning up in embarrassment.

EDIT: I actually had a third silly scenario idea. Similar to the others, Twilight barges in to talk to Warriors about Midna (they're still friends in this scenario; this was an idea from a long time ago). Warriors is still in the bed, but luckily Spirit is in the bathroom. Warriors tries to have a normal conversation without alerting Twilight that something was amiss. And it almost works until Spirit just walks out of the bathroom, waves, and goes to put his clothes on. Cue Twilight's 404 error.

So, yeah! That's the Hot Mess. As always, it's been really fun to see everyone's reactions. Warriors and Spirit are both extremely polarizing, and I love hearing everyone's hot takes.

Does this count as toxic yaoi? Not until I see an AMV to "Numb" by Linkedin Park. Luckily, Warriors and Spirit will never do this again. Probably.

[trapny]

Had a conversation with a scammer yesterday and it happened at 8 am right before I was going to sleep (I was up very very late due to medical issues that you don't want to hear about and I don't want to talk about)

Anyways here's the entire conversation (with occasional inside commentary ;3)

8:04 AM - Scammer: Hey

8:04 AM - Trapny: Oh my god

(the reason I reacted like this was because I actually had two scammers contact me at the same time. I decided to just talk to this one.)

8:05 AM - Scammer: How are you?

8:05 AM - Trapny: Fine

8:05 AM - Scammer: it seems you are fun to chat with

8:05 AM - Scammer: where are you from ?

8:05 AM - Trapny: Antarctica

8:06 AM - Scammer: really ?

8:06 AM - Trapny: Yeah cause I'm chill as fuck

8:06 AM - Scammer: What do you do for living

8:06 AM - Trapny: I sell trash in an alley to raccoons

8:06 AM - Scammer: okay thats nice

8:07 AM - Trapny: It is very nice

8:07 AM - Scammer: I am a digital marketer with vast years of experience

8:07 AM - Scammer: How can we help ourselves

8:08 AM - Trapny: O shit you're a digital marketer? You think you could help my trash selling business take off?

8:08 AM - Scammer: Can I get to know you more?

8:08 AM - Trapny: Yeah sure bro

8:08 AM - Scammer: yes

8:08 AM - Scammer: did you wanna grow your business

8:08 AM - Trapny: Yeah I'm really tryna grow and reach out to some more raccoons y'know?

8:09 AM - Scammer: yes if you wanna do that I will send you a plan for the task

8:09 AM - Trapny: Uh sure?

8:10 AM - Scammer: IMG-20240406-WA0000.jpg ↓

8:10 AM - Scammer: let me see some stuffs you sell

8:10 AM - Trapny: Ok ok check me out

8:10 AM - Scammer: alright

8:11 AM - Trapny: IMG-20240406-WA0001.jpg (file attached) ↓

8:11 AM - Trapny: IMG-20240406-WA0003.jpg (file attached) ↓

8:11 AM - Trapny: IMG-20240406-WA0002.jpg (file attached) ↓

8:12 AM - Scammer: ok we first need to create a business suite for your business

8:12 AM - Trapny: I already got one in the alley where I do all my trash selling

8:13 AM - Scammer: okay did you have an online store for selling

8:13 AM - Scammer: that will still boost your sales

8:13 AM - Trapny: Nah man I like to be more personal with the customers you know?

8:13 AM - Scammer: yeah

8:14 AM - Scammer: did you have a channel on YouTube ?

8:14 AM - Trapny: No but maybe I should make one to attract more customers

8:14 AM - Scammer: yes you can

8:14 AM - Trapny: And by customers I mean the raccoons I sell trash to

8:15 AM - Scammer: yes i will drive more audience to your channel

8:15 AM - Trapny: Damn bro fr?

8:15 AM - Scammer: but at first we need to create a channel

8:15 AM - Scammer: are you there?

(At this point, exhaustion had just hit me point blank. It was 8 am and I was very very tired. I didn't feel like dragging this out any longer. In hindsight, this jarring break of character probably confused this guy so much. Which is really funny to me.)

8:16 AM - Trapny: Honestly my guy I'm kinda tired. I'm not keeping up the facade anymore man. Just leave me alone.

8:16 AM - Trapny: Do you ever get tired?

8:16 AM - Scammer: yes, sometimes

8:16 AM - Trapny: Do you ever feel like maybe it isn't worth it?

8:16 AM - Scammer: how much did you make daily?

8:16 AM - Trapny: Go eat some chocolate or something bro happiness is good for you

8:17 AM - Scammer: yes thank

[Number blocked]

And that was the end.

He "yes thank"ed right out of my life.

I gotta wonder what was going through his mind when this happened. What did he think was going on here? I'll never know.

[one-of-tankhuns-neurons]

WHAT THE FUCK DO YOU MEAN PIT BABE IS ABO

How did I walk into UNTAGGED ABO IRL this hAs to be a first for me.

I mean, I understand they might've not wanted to market it like that to start a drama, or mAybe I'm just plain stupid and this was public knowledge but anyway here are my thOughts

Imma quote my favorite BL of all time and say "It cOuld be Extraordinary" I mean, it really could.

I believe the first episode was just to set the scene for the show, but let's address specific points

I WANNA MAKE IT CLEAR THAT I DIDN'T READ THE SOURCE MATERIAL THANK YOU

1. The ABO

Let's get this out of the way we knOw it's a difficult topic, and my main concern with it was that they would adapt some random ass manga/manhwa just to establish a bullshit dominant vs submissive horny dynamic that ended up in a very polemic mpreg.

But I encountered either a 'hot omega' - 'dorky alpha dynamic' where both have issues with their second sex traits (specially pheromones) or an alpha-alpha relationship with the same issues, which could lead to a bUnch of social commentary using the ABO social hierarchy.

Apart from that, I believe using those resources for the first big ABO production might have been a good call to ease the general public into it and not dwelling on the full nesting-marking-knotting and whatnot. I mean, it probably might never reach the full power of the genre, but if it works it might crack the door open for this.

2. The story itself

I had this discussion with my best friend (who has recommended me most of the ABO I've read) and we came to the conclusion that this feels like watching something straight out of AO3 fanfiction where the characters are clearly already established (bc the characters come pre built as they're based on ActUaL people) so the point is just telling this story full of made up violence, mafia, infatuation, possessiveness and desire. I kind of love it??? I am obviously not judging it as an ordinary BL, but for what it presented on the first episode it really could be great. I love how we have been introduced to a character like Charlie that will not just be this helpless boy that gets thrown around, he has more agency than we thought.

3 Production and stuff

Oh I love cars and stuff that goes fAst and slicked back hair and blue vs red and ALL the cliches, and I feel like it's done well. We could hate on kinnporsche for many things but it rOse the standards for commercial production. It also has really good actors whose previous work I've seen and liked very much. I also really applaud them for taking this shit seriously, bc many people half ass their acting in strange situation and that shows professionalism.

4. the more I think about it the more I'm excited for the show, and that's bAd because I'm building expectations and that nOt good so here are some point that require attention.

The ABO. This will be an issue until the lAst second of the show, because the way that it is portrayed will be perceived as a direct representation of the whole genre, so they ought to be careful.

The ABO agAin.. what parts are they gonna portray and hOw, because the main couple is not the only one, so I want to know how they will present an (explicitly confirmed) omega and how it will play into the social hierarchy . They already introduced scent and pheromones, and they did it tastefully, so kudos on that.

The ABO.. I'm kidding.

The story, this story might play into some kind of toxic and violent stuff that is becoming a bit problematic for certain audiences, and as I say.. problematic shows and up in problematic situations, so how I want to see how it plays out. But the fact that Charlie is giving 'morally gray that could end up falling' vibes and that gives me hOpe.

The discourse it might start. Oh this world can be a hot mEss and people could start a whole ass battle as this genre that usually was counterculture territory is now brought into this context.

Shit I'm way to nervous about this show... PLEASE IF YOU KNOW MORE let me know, I want to discuss and have a better opinion on it. If you need to call me an idiot in the process I'll take it.

[playcaroplay]

I just finished A Fire in the Flesh and have spoily thoughts

I really wanted to like this book. I want to like this series so badly, but the last four books in this universe have felt so rushed and poorly edited. It has felt like Sera’s story exists solely to retcon plot points to buttress Poppy’s plot inconsistencies. And Sera’s mirror image personality is explained away because of Sotorias soul, and family lineage. They’re the same personality type with different hair.

1) Dialogue - I find the same dialogue being recycled has fallen flat for me. Sera and Poppy’s “tempers” and “stubbornness” feel like an easy way to introduce conflict or tension but it doesn’t often advance the plot or character arc. There are so many stagnant beats where Sera/Poppy and any character have this type of conversation:

Character A: slightly controversial but logical opinion

Sera: NO that is Wrong.

Character A: Rationalizes point

Sera: Do you want me to stab you?

Character A: oh shit

Sera: I’m known for my temper

Character A: I’m impressed/insulted.

(And if it’s Nyktos then you follow up with)

Nyktos: Your anger makes me horny

Sera: Ew, but also same.

Nektas: you two are so funny with your arguing/mean girls mom beat - you guys ok? Want condoms?

Sera: *walks away feeling empowered because she spoke her mind*

I would hope an editor would catch on to these repetitive beats and try to either pare them back or vary them enough that there’s purpose behind it.

2) Secondary characters are just there to watch the scene. You’ll notice in many instances, Sera and Ash have a blow up, and the side characters are there purely to comment on what’s happening and narrate Sera’s character arc. If you took them all away the scene would remain the same.

Ex. Sera fighting Ash in the courtyard in book 2. The secondary characters provide nothing but audience commentary.

Or in FTIF when Rhain is speaking to Sera about her deal and freeing him, and then Ash wanders up and they have another “you don’t know the meaning of the word argue” argument and the side characters literally step away from them and they repeat the age old conversation beat I listed above.

What’s the point in introducing a huge cast of secondary characters if their only purpose is to bear witness alongside the reader. Instead you could have them take an active role in the plot, and have impactful relationships, opinions and action that drive the plot home. They’re just padding.

This entire series could take place in Ash’s bed and you wouldn’t notice the difference.

3) Weak conflict- Using Kolis as the example. We understand from book 2 that he’s a monster. But the stakes are significantly lowered when his and Sera’s opinions stay the same the whole way through FITF.

Consider what the story would have been like if he and Sera found moments of genuine empathy and understanding. What if they shared moments of humour or appreciation for each other? Think of how conflicted Sera would be about destroying him.

Is his kindness just manipulation? Or is there a deeper reason behind his actions that she doesn’t know yet? The fact that Sera is always aware of his tactics makes it hard to invest in her goal of becoming his weakness.

I care less about Kolis seducing Sera or vice versa because I know it won’t actually happen. We already know Sera is devoted to Ash and she’s revolted by Kolis. So her conflict about “becoming nothing” and fulfilling her duty is a nonissue.

4) Show, don’t tell. Seras discoveries while in captivity are quite passive. Either Kolis or Callum just straight up tell her the secrets. She’s in a cage so she has to rely on characters telling her what’s happened. It feels like the plot of the book happened outside the room, and we are just getting reports about it.

Consider Sera manipulating Kolis into giving her time out of the cage where she has opportunity to wheel and deal with other gods and discover secrets in more active ways. (Ex hunting down a revenant and having them talk through their transformation. Or talking to an Ascended about their blood lust and their fight for humanity.)

Even in the final chapters. Ash confesses to Sera that he had visions of her and removed his Kardia after he met her. He tells her that removing the Kardia was irrelevant in the end. Yet again another plot point that’s rendered useless and discussed in a passive manner. Such a let down after all that conflict in book 2. It almost felt like these scenes were drafts of the dream walking beats and JLA added in at the end because she liked them.

Consider those revelations happening at the lake as she’s trying to say goodbye to Ash. The anguish and betrayal she would feel about his decisions, but still clinging to their last moments together.

All in all, I feel like JLA was done dirty in the sense that pumping out these books every year hasn’t given her the time to dig into her own universe.

[zahri-melitor]

Batmen Eternal:

Oh TYNION. (Posits a future Tim at university with Sebastian Ives and Simon Valentine)

Simon Valentine. SIMON VALENTINE. You magnificent bastard sneaking even more Tim & Kon (and Tim/Kon) in here as best you can while Kon still does not, in fact, exist right now.

I also feel I haven't talked about Ulysses Hadrian Armstrong enough in my reviews of this run, and that's partly because the General is not exactly my favourite character, but it is interesting in how he's been twisted to be a Bat superfan in the most creepy manner, in regards to their quasi-paramilitary traits, which does fit in with Ulysses being Ulysses. Also his obsession with Tim, and his lovely little personal cave there full of idolisation of the exact wrong sort of military dictator generals. Ulysses finally getting his General haircut back (with the stars even growing in between issues, which is the funniest shit ever. Tim hallucinating them, Ulysses deciding he needs them in his program?)

I do like that we finally start to get a bit of Tim and Cass's late preboot dynamic returning between them. It's not 2011 level, but definitely is at least 2005ish in terms of the trust they start displaying in each other.

Steph and Cass finally getting more of their own revelations about preboot timelines is of course satisfying, if a little sad in terms of them both being like "they let me be part of the club??" That bit feels a bit more like Doylist commentary aimed at discussions of who counts as 'family' more than what's actually been portrayed on page through this entire run (which is Cass in particular actually inhabiting a LOT of the same spaces she lived in during the 2000s, including having space at the Manor nobody questioned).

And of course we finally get the OMAC payoff that's been teased all this run, because of the themes of control tied up in it via Brother Eye and its previous incarnations. I am enjoying it, if only in a slightly exasperated way, because what is happening here makes a great deal more sense if you're across what goes on with OMACs around Infinite Crisis, and the statements this is making about what Future Tim has done (that is, leant into Bruce's worst paranoia and picked up one of his old projects and modified it), rather than how I think this reads to newbie readers, which is at best "Tim learnt about protocols from Bruce". Because no! This is ongoing commentary on the "do we trust Bruce with protocols" discussion all the way back to Tower of Babel, at least, and Tim's altering position on them over time and what he will and will not do about this.

I like it! But I like it in context, and I worry it loses a lot of meaning when read by an audience who doesn't see Brother Eye show up and go "oh of fucking course, Bruce". This is supposed to get you mad at BRUCE. Even the reveal that Bruce was of course involved doesn't get across enough "BRUCE PLEASE STOP TRYING TO CONTROL EVERYTHING" (he will not).

(This is also to say this thread continues on and gets picked up in the Failsafe arc, which is "hey look Bruce's paranoia's back again, time for a new variation!")

I like where this finished, in terms of setting up potential future storylines of characters to spin out: Luke back out of costume for a while (typical, he does that frequently); Jean-Paul off to Justice League Odyssey; Kate offscreen for another Religion of Crime storyline/the end of her present Batwoman run; Cass set up to have her background with Babs re-established; Tim and Steph heading off to the starting point of Young Justice 2019; Clayface to ???? with Dr Victoria October (presumably to transition back to villain off panel for next time someone uses him). They're nice clear hooks and I enjoyed that it was done.

Was this a perfect run? No. But in terms of getting the characters assigned to it back on track in terms of characterisation and resupplying them with as much of their preboot characterisation as possible? It was incredibly successful. Definitely the best Bat title of the first 2 years of Rebirth (followed by All Star Batman).

[yourtoradorasextendedwarranty]

If I had tp pick one person that I hate, in the most literal sense of the word. And fully mean it with everything I have, that person would be Hasan Piker.

This man is the Nephew of the TYT co-host Cenk Uygur. And when he was up and coming, he was a very frat boy-esc type youtuber. Then at some point, he decided to do political commentary. As to why I have no idea, but if I had to guess, well.

Now what is it about this person I hate? Lots of things. He often goes on smear campaigns where he lies about people or events. He actively motivates his audience to go out and harass people and thinks it's justified. And he claims to be a Socialist, despite the fact he is very much not. I'll explain that one. Hasan is a Crony Capitalist who profits by selling Marxism to maladjusted people in the world. He is pro war, and he is complacent in Corporatocracy & Corporatism. He lives in a multi million dollar home, with several expensive cars, and frequently travels, probably first class or on private jets. And he makes a killing off the US systems in place, while shitting on our country every single day.

Now some people might say that, "Oh well he donates to charity". Ok and? I'm sure Hitler did too. What's your point. And yes donating to charity is a good thing most of the time but often times it's a waste of money in general because most charities are corrupt and only seek to serve their own self interests.

But it's more than that. He's bad faith. He lies frequently. And he profits off of shitting on the country that made him as wealthy as he is. Despite coming from a pretty well off family in general already. And honestly I think he is one of the biggest PoS in the online game if for not other reason then the fact that he preaches lies, profits, and then uses that money to preach more lies. Marxism is a scourge on the US. And he's only rich because of what's left of capitalism in the West. However, he is pro war, pro intervention, pro big brother government, and can't stop gagging on corporate dong.

And this is proven by the fact that when presented with the idea that people are trying to make their own businesses to get away from ESG and companies that comply with Woke ideals, he said, "Why are they being stupid? It's just higher priced stuff at half the quality." First of all, you don't know that because you've never bought any of it. Second, it's funny that you say that because it feels like you are complacent in child slave labor despite being the type to decry that (only in appearance) and yet do nothing about it. Like a good little socialist. Third, it's also funny to realize he's like, "Oh yeah only big companies that use global child slave labor make things worth anything. Made American? PSSHH Ok because I want to pay 2-3 times the price for half the quality". Which frankly is a pro corporate stance. And also anti small business.

Hasan isn't a Socialist. He's a scam artist selling you something he doesn't really believe in, so he can get rich and make you think he's a better person than he really is. Under all that BS he's still that PoS Frat boy who thinks he's better than everyone else. And frankly it makes my blood boil that he's spreading Marxism in the US while not just clearly not practicing it himself, but also helping the downfall of our nation, while figuratively 'Taking a selfie of himself shitting on the US flag while subsequently being showered with money by self hating Americans'.

And to his fans. Kindly get off your knees and stop sucking him off long enough to realize you are being played. If you want to actually live the life where you make a change go spend an off day at a soup kitchen. Make an ACTUAL difference.

[thekimspoblog]

For the record, I did finally see "American Fiction" a few nights ago. I am recommending you watch this movie, so I don't want to spoil it too much, but I wanted to share my thoughts.

When a slice-of-life movie is done well, I can really enjoy it, but if that aspect fails, a movie can become very cloying and tedious. In this case however, it was done well. "American Fiction" is a very cozy, very digestible movie that just follows this one family through the highs and lows of their summer. There are multiple subplots which have little to do with eachother, let alone the main story, but that's okay; it feels more realistic that way and the subplots are quite charming in their own right. The dialogue expresses familiar sentiments from other movies, but in a way that still feels fresh. In a sense, the trailer almost feels like a prank on the audience; white moviegoers were promised a mean-spirited satire on race relations, and instead what we got was 90 minutes of black people existing comfortably with minimal conflict. But if you're disappointed, that's on you. Setting aside the politics altogether, it's just refreshing to - every once in a while - watch a quieter movie about normal people being kind to eachother. Nobody has to die in order for a drama to be good... well... almost nobody.

The A-Story is basically just a rip-off of Spike Lee's "Bamboozled". Like I said, the story we saw in the trailer really only made up less than a third of the plot. And if you're upset about the bait-and-switch, "American Fiction" succeeded at what it was trying to do, but... also if you really wanted a movie about a writer pushing the envelope of prejudice for personal gain, you can still just go and watch "Bamboozled". For that matter, "Bamboozled" was already vaguely the same plot as Mel Brooks' "The Producers". I guess my main question is what it says about the psyche of white people, when you compare "American Fiction" to a movie made 24 years prior which had basically the same premise. Does it represent improvement, that a film can make the same social commentary without resorting to the same extremes to get the point across? Or have we grown more sensitive; is "American Fiction" a more toned-down version of the story simply because you could never make "Bamboozled" in the PC world of today? I hope it's the former. You probably couldn't remake "Bamboozled" today, but more importantly, "American Fiction" couldn't have been made in the 90's; the imagery of Monk's book was so commonplace back then, I don't think it would have occurred to white audiences that anything was even amiss. On the other hand, I think the white people in "American Fiction" are somehow more cartoonish; I remember a few moments while watching "Bamboozled" where I went, "Oh shit! Ok, I have said/done/thought stuff like that IRL", and I never had that moment watching "American Fiction". I call the movie "digestible" and "cozy" because I was able to get through the whole thing and not once did it feel like the movie was attacking me. But again, even if your movie sets out to make white people uncomfortable, that's still centering the story too much around our emotions; "American Fiction" had the more important goal of simply telling a story where black people are allowed to be happy.

The cringe comedy is extremely funny. This is the main reason I'm recommending the movie as lighthearted fun. Half the jokes boil down to "Jeffery Wright is annoyed" (and IMO that itself is enough to sustain a film), but there were also some lines of dialogue which completely caught me off guard. The movie is still more CUTE than it is FUNNY, but for a "cute" movie I was laughing almost all the way through. The other film I'd compare "American Fiction" to is "Dan in Real Life", and I definitely prefer this one, both in terms of likeable characters and quality of dialogue.

Spoilers ahead! I liked how the story had three endings, and like "Clue", the audience is left to pick which one they want. I still won't be spoiling what happens but I did want to talk about this part: It's fine that Ending A was never explained in detail; Monk has made his feelings about the situation pretty clear at this point; anyone with two braincells to rub together can use their imaginations and guess what he would have said at that podium. Ending B is pretty obviously the correct answer. Not only does a "rom-com" ending fit with the tone of the rest of the movie, but I think it gives the best resolution to what the story was actually about. I said none of the racist characters made me embarrassed about my own behavior, but that doesn't mean I didn't see Monk's personality flaws as a reflection of myself. "Tortured artist realizes at the 11th hour that his judgmental attitude has been isolating him from the people he cares about" is a theme I very much relate to, and it's the kind of story I've been wanting to write for years. Ending C was a little bit predictable, but still worked as the climactic punchline. It was the moment the story went from feeling like an unintentional ripoff of "Bamboozled" to a more direct parody of it. Ending D causes the rest of the story to become confusing, but it at least retroactively excuses some of the more contrived/cliched moments which happened at the beginning of the film.

So yeah. In conclusion, good movie, little forgettable but pretty damn funny. Go see it. Jeffery Wright is a DILF and I could watch another 90 minutes of him meandering around the beach, staring soulfully out at the ocean.

[darklydeliciousdesires]

Runaway - Chapter Two.

Thank you so much to all those who offered commentary, reviews and reblogs on the first chapter, beautiful ones! Now that I have the mamoth story of BTBT out of the way, I can pretty much post each chapter of this as soon as the previous one hits 40 notes to unlock, and they’re nice, short reads too, so people aren’t likely to fall behind. If you do require a break, though, just let me know. If not, if you want it, you got it! Your author aims to make her audience happy :)

Previous chapters - Prologue  One

Taglist - In the comments

Words - 2,225 

Warnings - 18+ content throughout, minors DNI!

“So, you’re a rare breed of woman, honestly being so into football. Any other sports out there you like?” Manny asked her, his timing a little off, Hannah taking a gigantic bite out of her burger.

“UFC,” she muffled through a mouthful of cheddar laden beef, ending up with a smear of barbecue sauce at the corner of her lip. He reached forward, wiping it away with his thumb, bringing it to his lips and sucking. It was a tiny action, but god, it made her pulse quicken. “I watch all of it, but I have such an affinity for the female fighters. I might not take crap easily – well, Michael aside, I guess – but those girls? They’re next level tough. I went up to Vegas to watch a match recently, Jennifer Cora versus Lily Romero-Reyes. Shit, Jennifer got her ass handed to her!”

“Yeah, I was there, too. I know Lily, actually. She’s married to one of the guys in my club, and the daughter of another,” he spoke, Hannah swallowing her mouthful of food with widened eyes.

“Get the fuck out of here! Oh my god, that’s awesome! What’s she like? She seems scary as hell!” she cried, picking up a fry and popping it into her mouth. “Actually, now you come to mention it, I’ve seen her being walked out by MC guys, but I didn’t put two and two together!”

“She’s scary in the octagon, but outside of it, she’s the sweetest girl. She and Angel, that’s her husband, by the way, they’re two of my favourite people, and their baby is adorable. She got all of us wrapped around her teeny tiny lil’ pinky finger,” he smiled, thinking of Willow, who he had a definite soft spot for, loving kids as much as he did.  

She finished her mouthful, sipping her drink before nodding in his direction, reaching to tap the patch upon his kutte. “By all of us, I take it you mean the guys in your MC, right?” He nodded through a mouthful of burger. “So, what’s that all about, then? I hear so many differing stories about you guys. Some say you’re all criminals up to your asses in illegal activities, and some say you’re merely a group of motorcycle enthusiasts who happen to run the only scrap metal yard in Santo Padre.”  

He contemplated his options, knowing that she wasn’t stupid, but then again, neither was he. “We sit somewhere between the two.”

“The straight and narrow more of a winding road littered with potholes and razor wire?”

He cocked his head, rolling his tongue around his inner cheek to retrieve a stray piece of tomato. “You got it, darlin’.” It was nice, that she didn’t quiz him over it. She knew what he was, and was smart enough to know that despite her question, he wasn’t going to embellish further any more than she was about to sit and pick for more details, of which she didn’t. “So, what about you, Hannah banana? What do you do to keep yourself in expensive looking shoes?” His eyes cast down to where her legs her crossed, the pointed toe of her stiletto brushing his calf every so often. He knew pricey when he saw it.  

“Bookkeeper. I work freelance from home as opposed to just for one firm. I do smaller businesses, like bars, salons, boutiques, restaurants, places like that. I’m cheaper than keeping someone on staff to do it, but I charge enough that I can indulge my fetish with nice shoes such as these,” she replied, waving her foot in a way that made her legs muscles flex from where she’d hitched her dress up a little, trying to get some air from one of the jaunty old upright fans over in the corner onto them. A fully lined lace bridal gown wasn’t the coolest of items to wear within an establishment with no air conditioning, a sign upon the bar apologising for the fact it was broken. In July of all months.  

“And what do you do to keep those stems looking as mouth-watering as they do?” he then asked, sipping his beer with a wink. Oh, she could get used to this. A man who was complimentary of her. Boy, how she’d missed that.  

“Apart from the ballet, I run, do a little pilates and yoga, too. That’s about as much as I like to put myself through, since my natural happy state involves sitting on my ass.” Grabbing a handful of napkins from the bar, she began to fan herself, finding the heat a little much. “If you’ll excuse me for just a few moments, I’m going to head to the bathroom, and then go up to the small store I saw further on up in the row. I noticed clothes in the window, and I desperately need to get out of this gown!”

“N’aww, shit. And I thought it’d be me getting you out of that dress.” He winked at her, Hannah shaking her head as she slid from the stool, resting her hand to his arm. It was surprisingly firm, his muscles not big, but certainly well formed.  

“You’re bad.”

His grin widened. “But you like it.”

Her eyebrows twitched, licking her top lip in a way that made his insides pulse. “Never said I didn’t.” She left him then, heading to the restroom first before exiting, attracting looks from people parking up along the narrow street, to see her there, resplendent in her wedding gown. That was another reason for wanting to change, since a few more people entering the bar had offered their congratulations.  

In truth, it was starting to eat at her a little bit. Hannah Gray was the furthest thing from a bad-mannered person, and no matter how poorly Michael had treated her in the past, she knew he didn’t deserve to be jilted quite so unceremoniously. Her fear of being alone truly wasn’t enough to justify her actions that morning, but if she knew one thing about herself, it was how impulsive she could be.  

Entering the store, she drew stares from all around, people whispering in hushed tones as she walked to one of the racks and shuffled through the items, finding something perfect and in her size more or less right away. A simple, and very short, black wrap dress. On the next rack, something else she needed, since the slight sheer quality of the fabric would mean her oyster silk bridal lingerie would show right through; black underwear.  

Her outfit choice, she couldn’t one hundred percent say wasn’t borne of wanting to maybe get a little more attention from Manny, crazy as it was that she was even thinking about a dalliance with another man on the day of her would-be wedding. Paying for the items (plus a new crossbody bag with chain straps she decided to treat herself to, she asked to use their changing room, the woman behind the counter offering her a big, sturdy bag to stow her dress in, which she thanked her for before going to change.  

The dress fitted her well, if not a tiny bit risqué in so much that it barely covered her butt cheeks. Hell, she had nice legs. It could be worse. She could be Michael’s wife. As it was, she’d had a lucky escape, on the back of the Harley belonging to the outlaw whose eyes almost fell out onto the bar floor when she walked back in.  

“Yup,” he almost growled, “those are some fuckin’ quality stems.” Oh, what he wouldn’t give to feel those beautiful legs wrapped around him.  

“Why thank you, sir.” She inclined her head to him, jumping back up onto the stool and finishing her drink, Manny immediately ordering her another, turning to see her suddenly wince, reaching to rub at her ankle. “Cramp.”  

He jerked his head back, making a wiggling motion with his hand. “Gimmie your foot, I’m good for this shit. Healing hands, so I’ve been told.” She hesitated only for a second before gently toeing her shoe off and lifting her leg, Manny grasping her foot and resting it a mere inch from his crotch, fingers beginning to softly squeeze her upper ankle. “There?”

“Yeah,” she hissed, the pain shooting up her calf, the muscle tensing. “Thank you.”  

He winked, only pausing briefly to pay the bartender before returning both hands to her leg, squeezing warmth through the taut muscle. Just his hands on her leg, and Hannah felt her skin tingle pleasantly, the action seemingly quite innocent, but definitely charged just beneath the surface. Even more so that she could feel the heat of his crotch against the sole of her foot, knowing that one little move would end up with her brushing against his cock.  

Just the thought of that made her bite her lip, Manny catching her do it, his hands travelling a little higher as he kept eye contact with her. “How’d those hands feel, beautiful?”

“Absolutely perfect. I might have to get your number so I can call you up to do this for me again at any point in the future where cramp easing is required,” she spoke, her voice a little thick, slow like honey for just how good his fingers rubbing over her felt.

He snorted softly, purposefully letting his fingertips drag in tickle over her leg before squeezing once more, easing the cramp away. “If I’m giving you my digits, it’s for more than to come rub out a cramp.”

“I’m sure I could think of a few more places.” His eyes didn’t leave hers as she pulled her leg from his grasp, Manny sliding from his stool, fingers gently resting to her knees as he manoeuvred himself between her thighs.  

He let his lips touch against her ear, his voice steeped in gravel when he finally spoke. “Now who’s bad?” Leaning back, he winked, excusing himself, heading for the restrooms and leaving her so scorching, she was surprised she didn’t pass out from the heat that had begun to blaze between them. This man? He had game in shades, and he knew it, but he wasn’t arrogant with it, not at all. Manny was the exact opposite of Michael, who had never really come back down to earth after his glory days as the most adored high school jock.  

Speaking of jocks, there was a pile of them working their way into the bar loudly just as Manny was returning from the restroom, one not watching where he was going, bumping into a woman carrying a glass of wine back to her table, the glass knocked from her hand and shattering on the floor. The young guy didn’t even acknowledge his fault.  

“Hey yo, you in the yellow shirt!” Manny called, his cadence suddenly filling the bar like a foghorn, yet his voice was barely raised. “You gonna apologise to the lady? You just knocked her glass clean out of her hand, man.”  

He shrugged, turning back. “It was an accident; I didn’t mean it.”

“Be that as it may, it was an accident you caused. Be a fucking gentleman and apologise.”

He scoffed in disbelief. “I don’t need a moral lecture from some scummy biker! Get the fuck out of here.”  

“Seems you do, homie. I said apologise.” Manny suddenly straightened, making himself look much broader than his slight frame alluded to, the guy laughing before balling his fist, his arm shooting out. The punch aimed never made contact, though, Manny grabbing his wrist and squeezing. “Nah, son. I’m gon’ give you this time to reconsider your actions here, save you missing any teeth, because if I swing at you, trust and believe, yo’ bitch ass is going down hard, and those aforementioned teeth are gonna be all over the damned floor. All you gotta do is say you’re sorry.”

Hannah sat rigid in her seat, watching it all unfold, her nerves tingling with excitement at how coolly Manny handled himself, not even raising his voice once.  

The guy considered his options, trying to yank himself free of the iron grip around his wrist. It did not yield, Manny yanking him closer with ease, placing his other hand atop his head and physically turning it in the direction of the woman who was standing there speechless. “Apologise. Now.” His whisper was delivered in a serpent like hiss, the guy gulping.  

“I’m sorry.”  

“Finally,” Manny chirped, letting him go. “Next time, don’t let it be the threat of a better man than you to make you do the right thing, bro.” The man walked away, looking sheepish, Manny sniffing casually before turning to the woman with a megawatt smile. “Chardonnay? You look like a chardonnay girl.”

“Yes, but really, you’ve done enough! Thank you!” she gushed, Manny waving her words away and heading to the bar, where he bought her and her friend a bottle, placing it along with a fresh glass upon their table. “You ladies enjoy.” He winked, the women bowled over by his manner, Hannah smiling softly. He didn’t have to do that, he had absolutely no reason to than out of being a decent human, and it only made her feel pulled into his orbit further.  

Chivalry. Big dick energy. She’d begun to forget what they looked like.  

[atsushishelteredinmoonlitjasmine]

The things I'm reading about the commentary for RW/BY Vol. 9 have made me want to write this post. It's just something I want to say, regardless of how it most likely retreads old ground or shares sentiment with other posts like it. At least it'll be more concise and filled with less angry ramblings than if I decided to write this last night, when I was first reading everything.

(Just to avoid confusion, I'll be referring to the characters/writers via their initials as a way of censoring them from people who don't wish to see this post. This makes it easier for me and is less annoying than having to put slashes everywhere)

I mainly wanted to focus on two things. One was the hacker crew (as I will "affectionately" dub the writers) deciding to off-screen W telling the rest of RBY of what happened to P and J killing her. The other was of ER saying on Twitter that he (and the rest of the hackers) didn't think R would find issue with J killing P. Anything else from the commentary may or may not have a separate post, it just depends on what is said and if it upsets me enough.

Let's address the second point first because I have something to say. I don't understand ER's logic here. Why did he, and by extension everyone else, think R wouldn't be upset/angry at J for killing P? She has every abso-fucking-lute right to feel that way! I mean, one of her closest friends KILLED another of her closest friends! Disregarding how it was P's choice (which I hate, btw), you mean to say R wouldn't lash out at J, berating him for not trying to find another way or doing more to save P? Even if R understood that the situation was complicated or everything was just going a million miles a second, I can't see her not being incensed at him. Shit like that needs time to process and I can't imagine R to be super calm after hearing that bombshell.

Which leads me to the first point. Why in the fuck did the scene of W telling RBY of said bombshell happen off-screen? Why do the hacker crew INSIST on off-screening important scenes like this? Even if fans want to say they didn't want to reiterate information the audience already knows, they could've made it to where W starts the conversation, fade to black or cut away, and come back to RBY's reactions afterwards. It's not that hard! Do they think scenes that are character-oriented are filler? I just can't understand their reasoning for doing this.

It's at this point I'm saying the writers are downright lazy. I've known for years now that they're not good but I know for sure now they're just lazy. ER can Tweet all he wants that he and the team should've been more clear on certain aspects of the story or they should've thought more on other aspects but the truth is, they didn't WANT to put in the work. It's too much effort for them to put in care for decency's sake so they might as well half-ass it or better yet, just shoot the first idea that comes out of their minds, write it into the story without any revising or editing, and call it a day. Let the fans who actually do more for the story than the writers do put in the work to explaining the plot because clearly, they care about the material and aren't thinking they're hot shit for writing nonsensical bullshit.

It must be nice, getting paid to sit on your ass all day while the animators you overwork and exploit the services of do all the work that you underpay them for. Wish I and the other people who create art, fanfics, videos, etc. could get money for all the promo we give you, whether that's our intention or not. But then again, the harassment we may receive for any fuckups on your end wouldn't be worth the blood money.

[buttdawg]

The Learning Tree

I'd like to think that the wrestling business will one day evolve beyond the urge to try to turn "change the channel heat" into something useful.

I get it, it pisses the audience off when Chris Jericho comes out and forces Taz off commentary so he can take his place. Because Jericho sucks and Taz rules. This is supposed to make me want to pay money to see Hook kick Jericho's ass, or something.

Except the net result here is that they're saying "Hi! We're taking away this thing you liked, and now you have to endure this thing that sucks shit!"

And I know Jericho's gimmick is that he sucks shit, but like ironically, like that magically cancels it out somehow. But no. That doesn't work for me, brother. You don't get credit for sucking shit on purpose. It still sucks shit. And now we have to listen to him sucking shit all segment long, and we don't get to listen to Taz complain about it.

I mean, this is what WWE did for... decades, to the point where wrestling promotions think it's a tradition, but I'm pretty sure they could unlearn this if they wanted to. But I think they cling to this idea because it's so easy and lazy. Why bother booking a genuinely compelling villain when they can just suck shit? On purpose.

Yeah, now the crowd is doing a lukewarm "please retire" chant, while Jericho works over Hook with brass knuckles. Truly this has all been worth it.

[mediawhorefics]

Do you have any hot tales about tsn?

tsn hot takes ??? gosh, idk if they're hot takes but i have opinions?

i'm sorry to rpf on main but 'andrew garfield was in love with jesse eisenberg' is a hilll i'm going to die on.

similarly, andrew garfield played eduado as in love with mark and watching the movie through that lens enriches the whole experience. fight me.

tsn deserved to win best picture in 2011. out of all the nominees that year, it's the one that has only gained relevance as time passes and had something to say about our culture, both back then and right now. i think it's almost more relevant now than back then. its social commentary on the way we live our lives on the internet is pretty spot on. i mean 'the internet is written in ink'. give me one line better from another movie that year. we lived on farms then we lived in cities and now we're gonna live on the internet?? damn.

this isnt an opinion, more like an observation? back in 2010, people complained about the harsh depiction of zuck but he's worked so hard to prove the movie not only right but also now it almost reads as mild compared to who that guy actually is. it's fascinating in terms of tsn's cultural legacy. where's that one quote from that article about tsn turning 10 yo? the movie couldn't predict what facebook would turn into (in terms of misinformation and manipulation of information) but it understood that the desire to tear down the establishment is not the same as the wish to build something better in its place? anyways, that.

it has one of the greatest soundtracks ever. i don't think any movie has topped it since. that opening sequence with hand covers bruise? holy shit.

i always wonder if it does enough to condemn the elitist misogynistic culture of those rich harvard guys/those rich tech guys. like... i always joke that it's one of my 'ooops the filmmakers forgot women were people' favourite films (i have a few of those) but at the same time, it feels very pointed and purposeful in its depiction. and we know that fincher has a history of exploring toxic masculinity as a theme without explicitly condemning it and trusting his audience to get the message. which, honey, men are not smart. i mean, we get the iconic erica moment telling us from the start 'it'll be because you're an asshole' and then the movie proceeds to prove that to us. but is that enough? is the movie sexist or is the character? or both? i don't know i kinda go back and forth on this. again not a take, just thoughts.

i read this one letterboxd review like a year ago that said something along the line of: best movie of all time they have him tell us ' i don't want friends' in the first eight minutes and it blew my fucking mind. they literally tell us in the first eight minutes, aaron sorkin i just want to talk.

i love him and would kill for him, but eduardo telling mark 'i was your only friend you had one friend' was not only untrue but kinda manipulative. not that mark didn't deserve it.

high key this is one of the most quotable movies of all time. did you know i sent forty-seven texts???

there are whole worlds of unsaid things in the 'you have no idea what that's going to mean to my father' 'sure i do' i am OBSESSED with their relationship.

eduardo's bitchy 'is he?' when sean says he's wired in before the laptop smash is just as, if not more, iconic than the rest of the speech.

andrew was robbed of both a nomination and an oscar for this performance. i stand by it.

2011 golden globes jesse eisenberg dragging andrew gafield out of his chair top awards moment of all time. you had to be there.

people will bitch about tsn rpf and people writing fic about mark zuckerberg but where would we (tumblr) be as a society without jesse and andrew's 'you didn't know me at 13' 'i really wish i had'. where would your pining web-weaving fandom posts be without mr garfield's embarrassingly public crush on his facebook movie co star? check and mate.

genuinely think it would have solved a lot of their problems if mark and eduardo had fucked. or it would have created other different problems. either way, a win.

we all know it should have ended with mark sending eduardo a friend request. literally the only flaw in this film.

i honestly think the tsn press tour is on like... lotr bts footage level in terms of ~as enjoyable if not more than the original film. and i don't say this lightly. it's one of the highest praise i've got.

i'm a basic bitch but every single scene of mark defending eduardo post-betrayal is like.... [SCREAM]

it IS the greatest divorce movie of our time. marriage story fucking wishes mate.

tsn is 100% a girl movie. like red flag for men green flag for women (& gnc people) kind of stuff.

it's on par with all of shakespeare's best tragedies. for me.

lmao when i read this ask i thought damn i won't have much to say and now i have to stop myself because my food is ready and i'm starting. anyways this is barely scratching the surface. i might come back for a part two?

[gamerkats]

Hey, besties. *heavy hearted sigh* Look....

If, in your reading travels, you happen to stumble upon some cis/het/idiotic toxic trope/shameless depthless book and you go, "Huh, that style kinda looks like gamerkats. Wait. Is... Is that gamerkats trickin' on the other side of Literature Street!?", just go on about your day, 'kay?

Don't tell your friends and try to drive traffic to our curb. Don't live your sleuth truth messaging us saying, "Found you!" Don't rally all the mutuals and stage a "don't write this garbage, you're better than that" intervention in the DMs. 👏 Move. 👏 Along. There's nothing to see at this crime scene.

Girls gotta eat, and that "toxic guy/mean girl I can't believe it's not butter plot twist" money spends.

Even though it's not what we enjoy writing, it's what a massive audience enjoys reading. No shame in their kink game. It makes them happy, and us a little cheddar.

We don't kink shame in this house!

Why are we saying this? Because a couple of you are scary good, and have seen through our street name, and wanna reveal that we're not "cis/het Heather" but actually two Queer cats in a trench coat. Don't. We're not even being polite and saying please. We're straight up telling you to mind your business.

If we wanted you to read what we were doing as a side hustle, we would have been advertising our stuff here. Obviously, we're trying to protect our safe spaces. You don't know the types of readers this stuff brings.... To the point that, we don't even have a socmed account for this shit. It's just a pen name and a quick write/publish into the digital void; where grammar dies on the literary battlefield, clutching originality's fallen corpse.

Trust us. You're not missing out on our stories. It's cheap, greasy fast food, when y'all are getting the home-cooked meals, ok?

We're sharing our Queerest of passions for free with y'all on AO3/Wattpad. Other than obvious fanfic stuff, everything is our IP. We could sell if we wanted. But we just don't like the feeling of paywalling our Queer rep when it's so desperately needed.

No shame to those who do paywall. Support those Queer writers!!!!! Sell your Queer works!!!! This is an "us" thing, not a commentary on Queer writing thing. We have our own pains and traumas and writing Queer fiction for free is how we chose to heal some of them.

The flip is, we also kinda need monies too.

To like, you know, live.

So we made a choice. Free the Queer, paywall the 'Bad Boy Fireman Cowboy Next Door Is Answering A Five Alarm Rodeo In My Bed'.

Surprise.

We're sellouts...like every other writer who wants to eat. We try really hard to mask our style, but it's apparently still there. So, if some found us, others will eventually. Don't make us change pen names and start from scratch.

Here's the exchange:

Y'all get the free real Batman version of us, who's raw, unfiltered, gritty, quirky, Queer as fuck, soul searching, human existence commentary, romance-nightmare diary entry, trauma coping, disability struggling, weirdly poetically surviving, bimbo nerd chic.

And the randos pay for the Bruce Wayne who's a mentally healthy, sassy, fiery feminine icon, living in a cabin by a lake, drinking wine and eating chocolate with her soulmate husband and two dogs.

We don't trick where we treat, ok? So don't snitch and ruin a girl's hustle. You don't ask us why we're there, and we won't ask you the same.

We both didn't see shit.

Ok. Kiss, kiss, love, love. Sorry we're not independently wealthy. Bye. 💋❤

Edit: 😂😂😂😂 Ok, so, by the powers of sheer whining from you beloveds, that you want smutty stuff without plot too, fine. You're right, that's only fair. We're already writing a lot, BUT how about this, all the cutting room floor and unpublished practice scenes will be scooped up, and posted under a fic title called, Miss Kitty's Fabulous Empornium or something. We'll even slap some reader x character, and villain x hero names to hide what books of ours they belong to. 😉

[lunarwarden]

Modern/Heartsteel Thresh and Diana HC

Where did this absurd/strange ship manifest?

Well, I was talking with a friend who felt there wasn’t entirely anyone they could ship Yone with, and I voiced the same about Diana, though pointed out that Thresh would be cute to pair with Yone due to their spirit blossom skins. “Let’s just ship Diana and Yone then!” Was said not too long after that we also threw Thresh into the mix… Needless to say, it originated in the Spirit Blossom universe, but I’ve adapted both Thresh and Diana to Heartsteel and High Noon.

Goodness, I’m so nervous to post this but fuck it. If anyone wants to bitch at me, you can kiss my ass X’D

Heartsteel Thresh Headcanons

Erlok is an ASMR RP/commentary channel that started a few years ago and quickly gained traction thanks to his voice. His channel name is The Warden where he refers to himself as Thresh and tends to refer to his viewers when not doing his roleplay content as “My Precious Souls”.

The content that Erlok puts out has gained him the nickname of “Master” among his fans as his asmr roleplays tend to veer about yanderes. His content tends to be on the darker side, but despite this, he has countless fans flocking to him.

Erlok came up with the name of Thresh in a DND session he was a part of, he’s since sadly stopped hosting that campaign, but it did give him the idea of “what if I brought my ability to roleplay others into a video setting?” an idea that has entrapped many in his content.

Totally has a Patreon where he does NSFW ASMR content that he makes a killing from.

OLD MAN SQUINTS Literally cannot read for shit without his glasses, and even then, he hasn’t updated his prescription in like 5 years? So, it’s gotten worse, and he still squints when he’s trying to read even with his eyeglasses on.

Erlok is a relatively slender man, and maybe has some muscle, but if he does it's lean muscle and doesn’t show too much aside from some minor definition. And even then, he tends to hide his figure behind turtlenecks and coats.

Totally has an abnormally long tongue and at the very least sharp canines (Though sharp teeth be looking spicy). He’s made quite a few past partners choke by shoving his tongue down their throat, apparently not something most people like.

Erlok was born and raised in Germany, he grew up not knowing English but taught himself it when he found there was a larger DND community of people who spoke English. He then further refined his English and his accent so that he could make an ASMR channel and not worry about being not understandable. He’s not ashamed of his accent or anything, just knows he can reach a broad audience with English.

Has a more ‘refined’ or ‘sophisticated’ style. Tends to wear turtlenecks, dress pants, button-ups, and the works.

Also, can see him wearing black eyeliners, maybe lipstick if he’s feeling fancy, but primarily black eyeliner and some concealer to hide the nasty ass bags he has under his eyes. Man, fr be looking like The Walking Dead without it.

Closeted Jew, no one can tell me otherwise haha. (Obviously, this means while he might practice things in the comfort of his home, he doesn’t actively wear his kippa or follow traditions of wearing his Tefillin out and about on days that require it)

Heartsteel Diana Headcanons

Diana is a relatively new Vtuber who has quickly gained fame. Her content tends to be a bit all over the place, but she does focus more on singing and horror games. Her fans seem to enjoy her reactions to the jump scares and scary content.

Her channel name is The Lunar Goddess, though her fans tend to call her “Moon Mom” while she refers to her fans as “Moonbeams”. None of her fans know what she looks like or her real name, and she plans to keep it that way for a bit longer as she doesn’t want to disappoint people with her appearance.

Other content that Diana does is skits, first-person shooters, and relaxing streams where she just hangs out with her chat. Her content is relatively pg-13 but there are times when her foul mouth does get it marked a higher rating.

Diana lives with her sister, Leona, and her sister’s boyfriend, Pantheon. Leona tends to make appearances in her streams as a mod who watches the chat and can sometimes be heard reading the chat out to Diana when she’s really focused on her game. This has gained Leona the nickname “Auntie Sun”.

Was born with naturally white hair, it confused doctors because it at first started as a streak through her sable hair as a kid, but over the course of a few years, her entire head was turned white. At first, doctors thought it was Poliosis, but now they just don’t know what caused her hair to go white.

Diana was born and raised in a very conservative Jewish household in Israel. She’s still Jewish, but not as religious as her mother and father are. She partakes in some of the traditions with Leona, but even then, sometimes misses out on some.

English is a language that came relatively easily to Diana, she also knows Yiddish as it was spoken by her great-grandmother (Even if most other Israelis consider it a dirty gutter language) Her accent isn’t horribly thick, but it is noticeable and the first thing she’s often asked by new viewers is “where do you come from?”

Diana tends to wear either jeans or long skirts that cover the knees, same for dresses, but for tops, she’s fine with showing a bit of stomach and has no qualms about wearing tank tops.

Diana doesn’t wear too much makeup, especially since she works behind a screen away from the view of others. On the days that she does go out, a light lipstick with some mascara and blush works fine for her.