#i looked at what you giffed when i was gone and added those shows to list to watch 🤝🤝

[storge]

WELCOME BACK ZOE :D

😄😄😄🥰🥰🥰🥰😘😘😘😘😘 thanks friendd!!!!

[whateverisbeautiful]

♥️Reveling in Richonne - TOWL

#18: The Broken Bliss (1.03)

gif cred: @riickgrimes

“Bye” ended up being a fitting title for episode 3, both to complete the “Years Gone Bye” thing in homage to the TWD pilot "Days Gone Bye" and also because there were several shocking goodbyes in this episode. Including in this teaser where Rick is forced to kiss his hopes of escaping with Michonne goodbye 😢...

I really enjoy the ride of ep 3 and can now find the humor in things from this episode, but y’all, I wasn't as lighthearted when I first watched. I was so sad for both Michonne and Rick as they had to navigate both the elation and the complications that had come with finding each other again.

Like seeing the way crippling fear was fogging Rick’s perspective and the way Michonne was starting to feel like she’s gonna have to figure out how to bring her family back together all by herself. It was a lot. 🥺 But it was all very interesting. Also, even in an episode where Rick and Michonne spend a large chunk of it in a marital fight, I love that their love for each other is still extremely blatant. 

So first, in the episode one recap that played before episode 2 they start with Okafor talking about how As are sent away and killed and I know they included that because the Civic Republic has now just brought in the most A person that could ever A - Dana Bethune aka Michonne Grimes.

Then, the episode opens with a flashback from years ago as we see a line of consignees' shoes and then we know it’s Rick when we see his signature boots that are hanging on by a thread. That man is loyal to the core, even to his boots. 😋

gif cred: @perryabbott

The CRM says, “This is gonna be your home someday soon” but you know Rick knows this place will never be home.

He walks and takes in the place, turning around to observe some windmills and buildings. This shows how he's an A unlike the other consignees because he's assessing this place rather than just going along with things.

As he turns and walks alone past different booths, I remember just thinking how he would so much rather be walking hand in hand with Michonne and Judith right now. Or, if this wasn’t a place you can’t leave, he’d want to be enjoying this little farmers market cuteness with them. 

gif cred: @andy-clutterbuck

As he walks he hears Jadis ask for a napkin and he turns to her and it’s clear of all the familiar faces he could have been stuck with in the CRM Jadis is not one he’d ever choose.

She’s all smirking as she greets him and is just casually talking about the fries and I was so annoyed to see Jadis acting like she didn’t full-on pluck Rick away from his wife and daughter seemingly for good. Also, Jadis wasting those fries is added to the long list of why she's trifling. 😑 

Rick hesitantly walks with Jadis and she starts to explain how her Heapsters group from s7 would give lost souls who needed saving to the CRM and also they’d give people who are threats to the CRM in exchange for supplies. Jadis says she waited for Rick’s orientation so they could talk which I’m sure he prefers she didn’t lol.

She shares that the CRM keeps asking her what they should ask Rick and she hopes Rick will say he’s looking for someone to follow…but uh he already found someone with a sword to follow years ago at the prison. 😌

Jadis tries to be chummy with Rick saying he can talk to her because the CRM can’t surveil them here and Rick gets straight to addressing the audacity of the matter when he reminds Jadis, “You brought me somewhere I can’t leave.”

gif cred: @ricksmarlene

The way Rick says that first line, you know he feels this is the worst punishment keeping him away from his family. He does not view this as being saved but being trapped. 

(Side note: whatever that rebar recovery process was like for Rick leading up to this point treated him very kindly because they had him looking especially fine in this scene, just saying.😊 Also, for the longest time Season 8 Rick held the title of Rick's finest era to me, but Rick's TOWL era holds the title now without question 👌🏽)

Jadis says she could have chosen to let him die on the riverbed or told the CRM he was a threat. She notes how the CRM doesn’t take chances but she did because she owed him. At least she knows that much. 😒

Rick asks why she’s not also working consignment and idk why Jadis is all smirky but she is and Rick knows she doesn’t have to work consignment because she trafficked him. And they wonder why she’ll never be redeemable in my eyes. Like she basically sold Rick to this place as almost a currency to upgrade her life. Trash in all the ways. 😤🗑

gif cred: @clonecaptains

So Rick has one of those quick pissed smiles and walks away from Jadis but she follows after him to tell him that she’s enlisting in this place and she’s gonna sign up and move up the ranks because she believes in the CRM and its 500-year plan “to recreate the world as it was, better than it was.”

And while the way CRM folk buy into the 500-year plan definitely was giving cult vibes I can at the very least empathize with how they all might feel excited about the idea of the world potentially regaining normalcy after years of an apocalypse. However, their means of regaining normalcy through mass killings is atrocious.

Rick looks like he’s barely listening as Jadis tries to sell why this place is so great and why it’s the future. She says joining this place’s mission to change the world seems like a perfectly fine way to spend a life. But like girl, that may be the case if you didn't have a family and were community-less…but Rick has a whole wife and kid(s) at home and there’s no other way he’d rather spend his life than with them.

Jadis says, “The people that we left behind - their children’s children will have a world.” Can we start first with Rick even meeting his child RJ before people start recruiting him to a life of servitude for the children’s children?? And “people we left behind” is annoyingly phrased as if among those people isn’t Rick’s wife and daughter and as if he willingly left them behind. 😑

gif cred: @perryabbott

I love that Rick gets fed up and stops to look right at her with his steely eyes as he tells her point blank “I’m going home.” Now that was some signature Rick Grimes and I love it. 👏🏽

It makes me happy to see how absolutely determined he was to make it back home and also sad knowing that it would be so much harder than he could have ever expected at this moment.

But also I’m glad that he wanted to make this so clear to Jadis who really seemed to think Rick would just be cool with building some all-new life here. She tried it to capacity but I’d expect nothing less from her. 😪

Jadis knows Rick is serious and that she should back off when she just tells him, “Follow your bliss, Rick. But I did save your life. That is what happened” She really stays ticking me off with each thing she says and does and we haven’t even cut to the present yet where she pisses me off on another level. 🙃

Rick looks at her pissed too as he walks away from her because yes she kept him from dying that day of the bridge explosion but her actions ultimately led to Rick having to endure a far more painful death - the death where you’re still alive but a shell of who you once were, filled only with the ache from being torn from your loved ones. 

gif cred: @andy-clutterbuck

As Rick walks away, Jadis has to put the cherry on top of the tried-it sundae and tell Rick, “You’re welcome.” 🙄

There is a moment when Rick hears this and sorta tilts his head like he’s gonna turn around and say something back. And knowing how willingly petty Rick can be toward Jadis I’m sure he had something real slick and insulting to say. But he smartly decides not to cause a scene as he keeps walking forward.

They also have Rick stop for a moment as he seems to see something ahead and I’d like to think it’s the portraiture booth. After that frustrating encounter with Jadis, I know he could use a palette cleanser so I bet he went straight to that artist Benjiro for his first much-needed images of Michonne and Judith. 👌🏽

Then we cut to hours ago in the present as Rick knocks on Pearl’s door. (See how he actually knocks rather than barging in like some others 🙂) Pearl opens the door and she's been understandably crying over the death of their longtime leader Okafor and Rick is completely unconcerned about that at this moment lol.

While Pearl’s broken up and worried about if Rick’s okay after surviving a traumatic helicopter crash and attack, Rick is like...

Truly Rick's energy is like 'that crash stuff is all old news and there's something far more important on the agenda.'

He immediately and urgently gets into the Dana conversation telling Pearl, “Just listen to me. There’s a woman who saved me.” And I of course love the wording of that because it’s true in every way that Michonne saved and saves him. Also, if I were Pearl I’d be like so now when someone saves you you give them credit for it? 🙃

gif cred: @coolpartytimefan

Rick doesn’t look at Pearl as he speaks at first because I know he knows his face could give him away and reveal just how important this all is to him. He says this heroic mystery woman is in designation intake right now and then he does look right at Pearl to tell the truth that, “She’s an A.”

Then with too much passion in his eyes, Rick says, “And I don’t want them to send her away.” I was like now Rick, yes Michonne is supposed to be putting on an act in the CRM but you are too sir and for as long as Pearl has known you I don’t think she’s ever seen this much light and urgency behind your eyes about anything.

Like before this, Rick was the man who seemed like he didn’t give a damn about anything involving the CRM, and now all of a sudden he's fully activated over this new consignee. 🤭 This was one of the many moments where I was just looking at Rick like babe, change the plan cuz this 'undercover lovers' thing ain’t gonna work. 

Pearl says Rick doesn’t know for sure if this new girl is an A but he knows Michonne is an A more than he knows his own name lol. And I love how even despite years apart he still knows Michonne is an A++.

gif cred: @perryabbott

Rick maintains his urgency saying, “I’m making a call. But if I argue for her they’ll think I’m emotional, indebted.” Which again I know Rick is thinking 'And the CRM would be right in assessing that because I owe that woman everything.'

Then he passionately says, “You gotta make sure she stays.” And that was not an ask, that was an order Rick made because this is something he‘s gonna make sure happens at all costs.

Pearl looks at Rick and squints for a moment finally picking up on the fact that this man in front of her is a different and far more impassioned Grimes than she’s ever seen before as she asks, “Why?” validly wondering why it’s so important to Rick that this new lady stays in this city of thousands.

And the way Rick lays it on thick with the lie as he tries to say with conviction, “For Okafor. Because that’s what this has all been about.” He’s really trying to sell it. 🤭 And I feel bad because Rick thinks he can turn to Pearl as a fellow A but again I’m convinced Pearl is more of a B with a decent enough poker face to try and pretend she's an A, and so she’s not exactly cut from the same cloth as Rick and his wife.

gif cred: @perryabbott

Pearl says, “He’s dead” and again Rick tries to get into his persuasive acting bag as he passionately says, “No he’s not. Because we’re here.” I love seeing him willing to say and do anything to ensure Michonne is protected. Also, it hit me that Rick is using Okafor to help his case in getting Pearl to protect Michonne - the very woman who had a hand in Okafor dying. Rick really said bump Okafor and everyone else when it comes to my wife. 💯

Pearl asks, “Are you here, Rick?” And I was like baby, Rick has never been more here because this is the Rick Grimes I know and love, fighting like hell to protect his family. 👌🏽 But then she clarifies what she means by asking, “Are you a part of this?” Rick looks at her and says, “I understand now. I told him just before.” And he’s able to look her in the eye saying that because it is true that Rick told Okafor he was in just before his wife showed up.

And then Rick looks down when he says, “You were right” because that’s the lie part of it. Pearl asks who brings Michonne/Dana along and Rick says she should because the CRM and Okafor trust her more than him. Pearl is still unsure so Rick says, “Look it took me a long time. You helped me. I’m here. She should be too.”

While I absolutely loved seeing the passion here from Rick I unfortunately cannot give him an A letter grade for his performance as Man Who Is Not Madly In Love With The New Consignee lol. 😋

Like Rick had more energy in his behavior and urgency in his eyes than ever so he’s lucky Pearl didn’t pick up on it since she was still reeling from the Okafor loss and everything else going on. Otherwise, I just know she would've been closing her door like...

So while I thought he was being obvious, Rick did do a good enough job to convince Pearl to go along with his plan and stick her neck out for Michonne. So my baby Rick still gets at least a passing grade for his role as Man Who Is Not Madly In Love With The New Consignee. 😌👏🏽

Rick returns to his apartment and we pick up where we left off from the end of episode 2. Jadis knows Rick well enough to know the way he’s looking at her in this apartment means he's got murder on his mind as she says, “You’re thinking about killing me.”

And then she receives a signature Rick Grimes threat as he says with all the certainty in the world, “I will. But not today.” 👌🏽 And Jadis, girl...

I just know Rick feels like Jadis is overdue to be taken out for playing in his face for years. And if now she at all thinks she's going to mess with Michonne - that makes her death sentence signed sealed and delivered in Rick's book. 

Rick tells her, “It’s funny. I see it. I feel it. Throwing away everything you made happen for yourself. Because you needed to get in the middle of something you have nothing to do with.” I love him saying this. Jadis has tried to throw herself in the mix of Richonne for years and I love that Rick is like 'bowl-cut, you do not need to factor into this equation at all.' And if she doesn’t stay in her lane he’s going to end her and everything she’s worked towards 

Jadis self-centered behind begs to differ saying, “I have everything to do with it. Our fates are bound. You, Michonne, Me.” And y’all, I just happened to pause the scene for a sec and it was on Rick’s face and the way he is looking at Jadis…truly if looks could kill Jadis would be a goner in that very moment. 😬 As Okafor learned, an adversary having Michonne’s name in their mouth is going to get Rick heated like no other.

Jadis explains that if Rick and Michonne were the first two people to ever leave then the CRM would never stop looking for them ever and since Jadis would know where they were she’d be the one to have to destroy ASZ. And again as Rick listens to this he’s so viscerally pissed off and I 1000% get it.

Jadis says she’d have to kill everyone to make sure their arrangement was never discovered and again this woman always acts in self-interest. Rick scowls as he tells her the gospel truth, “This was your mess. This is you. This is you.”

This is all Jadis's doing so she really needed to stop acting like there’s anyone else to blame. Jadis is approaching this as if Rick went out of his way to complicate things by coming to the CRM as an A when she’s the one who roped him into her lies.

It’s hard because as Rick says this you can tell he’s thinking about how so much of his pain and problems trace back to trifling Jadis, like since season 7. 😪

Jadis is still so smug as she tells Rick, “In the event of my untimely demise, I just put a little file among my possessions telling them everything they need to know about you and all the people that you love. And I imagine that a CRM reclamation team would have everybody that you love dead within hours of that file's receipt”

Okay, first of all - Jadis, you beast. 😠 But it is fitting that Jadis has factored in a plan based on Rick taking her out because at least she knows how likely it is that he’ll kill her.

Second of all, this woman is just so cruel. Like she knows Rick has people he loves, not just community members or travel companions but like family family and she’s still so callous and cold when threatening him and them.

gif cred: @riickgrimes

Three; similar to the scene in ep 1 between Okafor and Rick when Rick realizes he really can’t risk going home anymore, this moment with Jadis is another one of those gut punches as he again realizes that he can’t break free with Michonne like he initially really hoped.

Like I truly think before this moment he did think he and Michonne would find a way out together but now he’s right back to feeling convinced that the CRM can’t be beaten and that he’s stuck here forever, which is why we see his mission change from getting them both out of here to just getting Michonne out of here. All that psychological warfare came right back to keep Rick in chains in this scene. 😢

As Jadis talks you can see it - you can see the hope Rick had of escaping with Michonne drain out. Before he was looking at Jadis angry and upset but upon hearing that their escape will get Michonne and their family killed he starts that labored breathing we’ll see much of the next episode, which is a clear indicator of his fear and panic.

Jadis says, “Because you and her leaving with the knowledge of that city and this force? You know that can’t be had.” I can’t believe Jadis is making me miss the days when she spoke in short broken sentences. Like plz...

It’s so hard seeing Rick look so distraught while he paces and gets sincerely emotional as the realization hits him that he might’ve just trapped his wife here along with him.

The way he walks toward the door then stops, it feels like he wants to sprint out of there and get to Michonne ASAP to wrap her in bubble wrap and shield her from everyone. Plus he needs the calmness Michonne provides back as he’s starting to unravel.

Then my heart always melts hearing Rick say with so much sincerity and emotion, “She doesn’t belong here.”

Again, this further cements that this has now become strictly a save-Michonne mission to him because he’s not making a case for the both of them, just her.

And the way he says it is just so extremely caring and protective. Like he is truly talking about his baby and feels utterly awful that Michonne is here because of him. 🥺

gif cred: @riickgrimes

It’s also sad that he only says Michonne doesn’t belong here because the CRM has convinced Rick that he is owned by them. And it’s like he’s accepting that harsh reality but still mustering the strength to at least argue that Michonne should not be stuck with the CRM like him. 

And then y’all, the line that’ll be having me want to swing every time is when Jadis responds to Rick’s heartfelt declaration about his wife not belonging here by saying in her best Karen voice, “Then she shouldn’t have come here.”

Like how much more patronizing and heartless can she be toward both Rick and Michonne. That line is gonna get me heated every time. 😑

Jadis says, “But that was her choice.” And you know hearing that hits Rick hard because he knows that it was not Michonne's choice but his that she’d come to the Civic Republic. Like Rick is already a man who feels so responsible for things and so you know he just feels responsible on another level for bringing her here knowing Michonne trusted to follow his lead. 

Jadis then asks Rick, “So what’s your choice?” And the way Rick looks at her I can literally hear the thought in his head - my wife is my choice. And while it will cause some issues, we do see him choose his wife in his actions that follow.

gif cred: @clonecaptains

Also what is with this CRM and all their dang choices that aren’t choices. 🙄 Like they’re obsessed with referring to things as choices when they are choices people basically have to make at gunpoint.

Rick is quietly seething as Jadis asks, “Will you tell me that you will not try to leave again? If you try with her everyone back home dies.” I do like how at least Jadis knows Michonne being here means Rick definitely got some newfound hope of breaking out of this place after giving up on the idea for a year or so. She knows Michonne would give Rick a renewed sense of strength and motivation that could lead to the two actually successfully escaping. 

And then Rick just breaks my heart yet again as he so emotionally and earnestly asks,“Why? why?” And I have the same question. As well as wanting to ask Jadis...

I was watching this scene just thinking after everything Rick's done for this selfish woman, WHY can’t she just leave him alone? If anything, had they let Rick go home, I think at least for a while he really would have left the CRM alone.

But the CRM done messed up keeping Rick here so long that now his baddie A wife had to show up because Michonne is the one who would be of the mindset they have to teach the CRM a lesson and expose this 'last light of the world'.

Jadis answers that she’s doing all this because of the CRM’s value of “Security and secrecy above all.” And Rick reacts like 'oh brother, not this damn CRM motto again.' Or maybe that was a direct quote from my mind lol.

Jadis again as self-centered as ever says she will not jeopardize everything she’s made happen for herself. She says, “I won’t wait for them to find you and they will find you- and it’ll all blow back on me.” Again, Jadis...

Rick tries to reason with Jadis asking if there’s a deal to be made and if she can clean it up. Hearing that I was like - nawt us still having storylines of making deals with Jadis in 2024. 🙃 Like we needed to stop making deals with Jadis in 2017. The woman is a snake point-blank and so any deal with her is truly pointless.

Jadis says there’s no deal and then she notes that Michonne is “very very lucky” because the CRM suspects that she’s an A but still let her in because Pearl stepped up. Lol, I’m not at all surprised they got the sense that Dana was an A. I thought Michonne actually gave a decent B performance during the vetting process but still, she radiates A energy as other consignees will soon note.

Jadis asks if Rick was behind Pearl advocating for Michonne and when he’s silent Jadis is like “Wow. You pulled that off.” And then she again tries it to capacity when she tells Rick, “So have your life together here.” Wth, Jadis?? 😠 I know she knows good and well Rick and Michonne have a daughter at home so just how ridiculous can she be suggesting they should just leave Judith behind and build a life here. I’d say dpmo but...

Then Jadis has more CRM propaganda to spew as she says, “We’re the last light of the world.” But me personally, I give that description to the Grimes family. 👌🏽

Jadis then stands up and gets in Rick's personal space as she again asks, “What’s your choice?” Rick is teary-eyed as he knows his choice is made. If it comes down to having Michonne with him stuck here or getting her out safe and back to Judith - He’s choosing his wife and daughter every time.

As he looks down defeated Jadis says, “You know I don’t need to hear it.” And it’s interesting because this scene really does a good job of depicting the massive shift in Rick from when he entered the apartment to when Jadis leaves.

At the end of ep 2 when Jadis was in Rick’s face he was lethally staring her down but now when she’s in his face he hangs his head down, beaten down by her threats toward his family. 😢

Rick then says, “You didn’t threaten me or the people I love before when I told you I was gonna get away.” And I’ll say this, Pollyanna very much understood the assignment knowing how infuriating Jadis was meant to be because she again uses a tone that makes me irate as she just smugly tells Rick, “That’s cuz I knew you couldn’t.”

gif cred: @likeafantasy

Honestly, I see why Rick cherishes so much that Michonne believes in him because unfortunately, so many others underestimate him.

However, without his family by his side, Rick was in fact sadly made to feel like he couldn’t fend off the CRM’s oppression forever. 

gif cred: @likeafantasy

Rick asks, “What changed?” and Jadis turns around, sounding oddly enough like she’s a fellow Richonne stan, as she says, “You two together? You can do anything.”

gif cred: @likeafantasy

It’s at least fitting that Jadis knows Rick and Michonne were going to try to be the first two to escape this place and that if anyone could pull it off they could. From the moment she met Richonne in season 7 she saw firsthand that they could do anything together.

And while dialogue-wise I think there perhaps could have been a way to say Richonne can do anything without saying it as on-the-nose, I don’t mind hearing it because it’s an utterly true statement. And I do like hearing this belief in Richonne’s abilities together even if it had to come from the most trifling of mouths.

gif cred: @likeafantasy

I so badly wanted Rick to see that Jadis saying this is her basically admitting she’s scared of him and his wife together. But Rick is understandably scared that any of his next moves could get the woman he loves most harmed and so this moment with Jadis instead effectively deflates his hope of escaping with Michonne. Now Rick is determined simply to get Michonne out of here alive. 

Rick watches the door as Jadis exits and you can see in his face that there’s so much running through his mind. As much as he wants to believe that he and Michonne can do anything he’s also not willing to risk losing Michonne in the process of trying to escape together.

So by the end of this teaser - TOWL's lengthiest teaser, I believe - we know that this whole get-home thing just got a lot messier and a lot harder.

Going home is still the mission but thanks to the evil snake that is Jadis, the “together” part of “going home together” has now changed.

gif cred: @likeafantasy

I called this post The Broken Bliss because Rick felt more hopeful than ever that this would be the time he finally broke out since now his wife is here, but then Jadis shattered the bliss he was trying to follow. 😞 And now when Rick thinks about his wife being here it strictly overwhelms him with fear. 

So with this teaser, we saw a very pivotal development for Rick, and next it was time for us to check in on Michonne. And now, y'all know Michonne has always been a true source of peace for Rick...but that Ms. Dana Bethune on the other hand - she's about to have this man stressing. 😅👌🏽

[maytheleiabewyou]

Analysis of the German gay film #freierfall / #freefall PART 5

For the 10th anniversary (omg! 10 years already!) (11 now because its 2024!) of one of my favorite movies I decided to make an analysis of the film and especially of the scenes between these two great actors.Max Riemelt and Hanno Koffler. Kay and Marc. Marc and Kay. I hope you like it and that above all it serves to encourage the creators to give us that long awaited second part.

HERE IT IS PART 5:

Remember where we left it? :)

Gif de everythingmaxriemelt

Are you ready? I think THIS IS one of the best parts of this review and of the whole film!!!!

[Before going to the scene... have you notice this moment when Marc stops everything just to think or "think" what he is about to do.. (all this after having gone to see Bettina and having tucked her in lovingly)]

BEFORE GOING TO ONE OF THE HOTTEST SCENES, I FEEL WE NEED TO LISTEN TO THE SONG THAT INTRODUCES US TO THE ACTION! I mean this whole part is going to be full of CAPS! HAHA #theEXCITEMENT

gO to track nº10! "The Woods: Love" aaaaaaaaaaaaaa the name!! Its just an instrumental track that introduces us to the passion!!! and makes us our hearts race? ofc!

NOWWW LETS GOOOO!! (*let the gif feast begin*)

Gif de everythingmaxriemelt

They've arranged to go for a run and it's literally pouring. Who do they think they're going to do sport? Well in a way they ARE going to practice some kind of exercise haha

This scene if you ask me makes me so embarrassed (in a good way!) because it is so clear what is going to happen between them, not only because of the clues in the last scenes, but also because the weather is not only telling us what is going to happen but SHOUTING IT OUT!

This scene is not about deceiving the viewer or faking a normal situation, nothing like that, this scene is transgressive in itself. This scene is telling us: this is what you wanted (and the protagonists too, obviously) this is what you got!

<<<<Now our minds can only think about one thing>>>>

Who is going to make the first move?

It should be Marc because Kay was the one proposing this plan, or it should be Kay because Marc already did the hardest part of going there to do what we all know is going to happen? haaaaaaaaa lets see!

I can help it to say that Kay is my favorite. Once again he being the one facilitating everything <3

YAYYY! MARC WAS THE ONE MAKING THE FIRST MOVE & KISSING KAY!

And now the next is simply p-e-r-f-e-c-t

Im adding the video of the whole scene BECAUSE IT IS NECESSARY!

But never in our wildest dreams did we imagine their first scene like this! In the middle of a storm!

lOOk please their looks!!! Again so much information without them saying anything!

Kay's look conveys desire, but also the desire to be playful with Marc. They are going to f*ck in the woods while raining and in PUBLICCCCC! Do you hear me screaming?! Marc is ENJOYING HIMSELF FOR THE FIRST TIME IN THE MOVIE! Marc is determined to have a good time, to enjoy himself and above all to show Kay what he can do!! I can't handle it!!!!!!! AMIGAS THEY ARE BOTH SMILING!

now the uncertainty begins!

Do they like it? Is Marc happy with what happened? (Because we all know that KAY IS HAPPY!) and above all, does Marc regret it?

<<awkward silence fills all the scene>>

Again, my KAY asking Marc if everything is okay.

((AND OF COURSE EVERYTHING IS OKAY)) Or at least that is what we all want to think because it is true that Marc says yes to Kay but he immediately leaves the car without kissing Kay as a goodbye or something!

Kay saying

-it has been good

+ And Marc nodding in embarrassment!

The cutest? YES.

NOW WE ENTER TO THE CUTEST SCENES OF THE MOVIE

NOW WE CAN OFFICIALLY SAY THAT THIS IS THE BEGINNING OF A (CLANDESTINE) COUPLE!

End of part 5.

I want know to dedicate a whole part to some scenes that for me are everything! Those scenes deserve a bunch of posts, parts or whatever all by themselves! Im SO happy!

----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Thanks for all the feedback from the previous publications and to the owners of the gifs I used <3

And here you have the previous parts in case you missed them!

[quinnydoll]

You should watch Eureka Seven

So there's this neat little show I watched before I turned 10 when I couldn't understand a goddamn thing, and it caused me to think about the cool aesthetics of giant robots flying around stylishly on boards as naturalistic trails flow behind them.

I rewatched the show recently with my lovely nesting partner, because I wanted to revisit its world, and I was offered so much more than I remembered. Yes, the show is absolutely what I just described in the previous paragraph/run-on sentence(fuck you this isn't a school assignment) but it's also SO MUCH MORE.

I'm not going to beat around the bush, there's a singular gif I can show people that usually convinces them to watch it with the added info that this isn't just a super highlighted moment, it's just what the show looks like:

(side note: if you haven't seen this show in its entirety, do not, I repeat DO NOT search for gifs of it on this site, never have I ever seen such a dense wall of spoilers)

Still with me? I'd hope so after that display! Also, for non-mecha fans, PLEASE I am begging you to still give the show a chance, it's so worth it!

So we need to start off with this show's worldbuilding. The giant robots can wait, because first we have to address the most glaring thing: everyone seems to have access to these boards that seemingly allow them to levitate and travel in midair on these almost fluid-like trails. These are explained as Trappar Waves, and not much is explained about them early on. I'm going to keep my explanation brief, because it's way more satisfying to watch the mystery unravel through the course of the show.

Basically, the planet this takes place on is full of these waves, and that's one of the main things that everything relies on, and why we can see effectively airships that are just perpetually suspended in the air without need to refuel constantly. This is what allows them to stay up. Also the reason why we see characters with their nifty little boards. Oh yeah, the giant robots have those boards too.

That's the main thing I wanna address about the world of this show, because explaining the rest would genuinely spoil so much of the show, and the experience would be extremely reduced by me explaining. Just trust me, it's really good.

Now, the format of the show is actually masterfully done. The first arc involves the immaturity of the main character, and the format of the show reflects it heavily in the very slice of life format as our main character is enchanted with the conditions he's been put into. At this stage of the series, it's not very serious, and its stakes are pretty low.

As it progresses though, it eases you into a far more coherent overarching narrative in a way that feels really natural and well done. You'll never really "notice" the point at which "shit gets real" or anything, you'll just find yourself way more interested in the bigger picture of what's going on, because the show puts a larger focus on it.

There's a romance story in it too, and it's actually really well done, which is something I haven't really seen effectively done in a lot of action anime, but I think in this case it's because they don't really treat it like a "subplot." They do a really good job of tying it into the main story, and they make it feel pretty real as a romance, and by the end, the payoff is the most satisfying one I've seen of really any romance plot that isn't necessarily the actual main focus of a story. I genuinely feel like they could've conveyed the story they did without the romance plot, but something truly impactful would've been lost had they gone that route.

I think it's not unfair to compare this show to Neon Genesis Evangelion, but at the time, it would be doing both stories a serious disservice. Evangelion is a really effective exploration into nihilism and mental illness, but Eureka Seven feels like a direct response in the way it delivers its story. It feels like it did a Better Rebuild™ before the Rebuild movies even came out.(let it not be said that I don't like the Rebuild series, it's legitimately in my top ten.) Early on, they communicate a lot of the same themes, but then Eureka Seven diverges hard with how it explores the intricacies of interpersonal relations and how people will strive to do better and how people can genuinely be better to each other. I feel like the way it delivers that is genuinely way more effective than even the extremely cathartic conclusion to Evangelion 3.0 + 1.0.

Seriously though, if you're not interested in watching this show, I don't know how to convince you. It's truly a fantastic show, and it's honestly taken the spot of "favorite anime" in my book. I am no longer a Gundam fan, but an Eureka Seven fan who also likes Gundam. You're going to love this show, even if you're not into mecha anime.

[quigonswife8]

Memories: Namor x reader

While you sit with K’uk’ulkan, he looks at the mural, reminiscing of years gone by, of the memories he’s reminded of.

Thank ya'll for all the love on my namor works, it means a lot:)

Also I used the gif above cause even though he’s not painting in this, it still does talk about the mural. Btw I love the mural, he’s so talented

gif creds: @itaintenough

----

"You're cold.". Namor points out as he notes how much you're shivering.

"I-i’m sorry K’uk’ulkan but i'm still not used to this environment."

You rub your arms to try and regain warmth but this attempt turns out feeble.

As a 'surface dweller' you never do get used to visiting K’uk’ulkan’s kingdom. He'd offered you to live there but when he'd seen how much your world meant to you he had agreed to date 'long distance.'

Though with every visit [which is practically everyday] you never get used to the difference of temperature. The water isn't even cold, it's the temperate of the room.

"You don't need to apologise my love."

He stands up and turns, "...I will get you something warm."

Slipping away for a moment to grab the softest blanket. He always keeps it aside for you. He drapes it around your shoulders, sitting back down next to you.

"Better...?"

You glance at him,

"Much better."

He nods, before looking away from you to admire the mural he’d just added onto.

After coming to an agreement with Wakanda everything returned to normal. K’uk’ulkan had gotten started on adding to the mural: a panther fighting someone-Him. and the panther being the queen.

He is a very talented artist. You still wear the bracelet he had hand-made for you years ago, as a symbol of his love. It's like he's with you whenever you're apart.

"It's beautiful my love."

Pulling the blanket more over your shoulders, while scootching closer to K’uk’ulkan.

"Thank you."

He brings a hand up to rest on his knee, his eyes still on the mural. It brings him to think-reminisce of years gone.

The times when things seemed to be just. When he had offered his heart to you and you'd done the same. When all he thought about was ruling his kingdom with you beside him.

When they didn't have to deal with the people trying to mine the vibranium, threatening his people. Looking at this mural reminds him of peace because that's what it is. A peace decided on between his people and the Wakandan's. Something that he has wanted for so long.

That is all he has wanted, and this mural is a representation of that. To some it may not be obvious but to those who know who understand it is obvious.

You look at K’uk’ulkan, wondering what's going on in his mind. The look on his face means he's deep in thought which he often falls into when he has these moments of peace. Not wanting to ruin his peace you simply copy what he's doing by staring at the mural.

It has always fascinated you. When he had brought you to Talokan for the first time it was the mural that caught your eye first. Though back then it didn't include the black panther. Namor had noticed your interest in the mural and began to explain what it had meant.

It became that more fascinating when you'd found out he'd painted this mural himself. The love he held shows in the mural, as well as his skills with a paintbrush.

K’uk’ulkan stands in front of the mural, his hands together behind his back.

"You're very skilled..."

You run your hand along the different lines, different shapes on the wall. "...this is amazing."

It's your first time in K’uk’ulkan’s kingdom. You'd heard stories of a 'feathered serpeant god' but never thought you would ever meet let alone date him. Now as you stand in one of the many rooms in his kingdom it doesn't seem real because you have only dreamt of visiting a place like this.

"Thank you."

He can't help but smile slightly seeing you enjoying his culture, appreicating this mural.

It's nice to know all surface dwellers are not bad which is more often than not. He knew there was something about you the moment you met, he could just tell. That you didn't cower in fear or try and hurt him, you had looked at him with such kindness that he hasn't experienced in so long.

"I'm happy you like it."

"(y/n)?"

"Hmm?" flicking your eyes back to K’uk’ulkanyou catch how he looks at you. A softness in his eyes, a slight smile on his lips. This alone makes you smile.

"Yeah?"

The light reflects in your eyes, making them look that more beautiful. It's captivating- you captivate him.

"I..."

The door suddenly opens, and Namora walks in. She looks your way, and then back to her king.

in her language she says: "can I talk to you, it's important."

K’uk’ulkan nods in reply, and so she leaves to wait outside for him. When his cousin is gone he turns back to you.

"I have to go my love.."

"It's okay..." you lean forward and press a kiss to his cheek. "...i'll see you when you get back."

He adjusts the blanket on you more noticing it had fallen off your shoulders. Lingering with his touch he presses a kiss to your head and then stands.

When he does leave you watch him, pulling your eyes after lingering with your look, and they soon fall back on the mural.

[meiloorunsmoothie]

finding neverland, a review of sorts

hello! this is a sort of an after the fact "live blogging" (except all in one post 💀) of my thoughts as i was watching finding neverland (a.r.t. version). i basically just wrote whatever i was thinking down as i was watching, so this is truly very raw (obviously, i've gone in and cleaned some things up + added gifs to help those who read it (and myself if i come back to this post) figure out what on earth i'm blabbing about).

...read at your own risk! (also, in case it wasn't obvious, spoilers ahead)

act 1

THE SCOTTISH ACCENT

when he sings with it too 😭

i was not expecting this to be as funny as it is for some reason

"i don't know why you talk to that dog like he's a person" XD

"and what precisely is this poor wretch's crime?" "he's my younger brother" - yep, checks out

i'm 13 minutes in and i love it already

can we talk about how thayne jasperson as porthos weirdly works

okay wait, but is jeremy actually kind of doing choreography...?

OKAY BUT THIS RIVER SCENE IS SO CUTE

also when he randomly loses the accent

laura michelle kelly is amazing

uh she just coughed. i'm scared and paranoid...maybe laura actually just needed to cough, but i'm going to keep this here in case it is something... (EDIT: IT WAS AND I WILL NEVER RECOVER)

i'm obsessed with this (retroactively, why doesn't it show up again 😭)

"nice try, but no." jack is me.

this is me every day and it's a problem ⬇️

THIS IS SO FUN HOW HAVE I NOT WATCHED THIS SOONER

"perhaps having fun is more important than everything being perfect" - yes!

okay but the ex-ballerina in me is going crazy for the maid choreography

okay sobbing cause "neverland" just happened—it's weird that i've never listened to him sing this before and i'm unsure whether i should just pause now to recover or rewind and watch it again (edit: i did both)

"well at this rate, we'll also have to imagine that there's an audience" - THEM LOOKING AT THE AUDIENCE AFTER THAT IS ABSOLUTELY GENIUS

sylvia's dress is so pretty lol

...this is interesting choreo

but i love the door merry go round

okay i've seen "hook" and "stronger" before, but this is so much better with context

maybe my boot is just really bad (it is) but did he just pull a stick out of his pant pocket

i can't i have no words

act 2

i would very much like to see what's happening on the other side of the curtain

PRINCESS DIGGORY

SHE'S COUGHING AGAIN

this bar scene reminds me of lotr for some reason but i like it, it's very fun

WHAT YOU MEAN TO ME my beloved

the singing while lying down 😳

i am unwell

oh a kid song, let's go - okay but actually, i love this number

HELP THIS WAS LITERALLY ME AND MY SIBLINGS okay how much will i have to pay them to watch this

NOOOOO WHY

WHY

WHY

i'm so upset i can't even bring myself to put a gif here, but we all know what scene.

aiden gemme is doing a great job as peter.

OK BUT THIS DUET

SOBBING

why is there upbeat music do you not know what just happened.

i love it when the audience is part of the show

this whole scene MY HEART I CANNOT

this is so chaotic but i love it it's perfect

CHILLS

i. love. laura. michelle. kelly.

that was beautiful even though it was sad

"mary, you're outside!" akdfasdhflashdfas

i can't (how many times have i said that). this is such a perfect ending

la fin

(until my next rewatch which could be right now)

[cinematicnomad]

What made you really like interested in the Terror?

the terror is a show that i remember being vaguely aware of existing when it came out, but i had no real idea of how or where to watch it. i knew it starred jared harris, who i'd loved in mad men and chernobyl, so i definitely WANTED to watch it. i had a vague understanding that it had some sort of eldritch horror thing going on, which appealed to me since i was into the magnus archives at the time. but it was just one of those shows that like, i'd occasionally see a gifset for on tumblr or see mentioned on twitter and would go, "oh yeah, i still want to watch that."

anyway, then last like, august 2022?? i was in a weird mood, was watching a bunch of different videos about mysterious histories, and watched a video about the dyatlov pass incident. it happened in russia so i rewatched chernobyl, but it ALSO happened in winter and the combination of the story taking place in winter, the unknown horror elements that people grip onto, and my own rewatch of chernobyl which put jared harris at the forefront of my mind, reminded me of the existence of the terror and i googled where to stream it and lucked out that i happened to look when it was on hulu. i decided to give it a shot, put on the first episode, and then promptly binged the entire season in a single night.

as for why it gripped me so much and why i'm here giffing it daily 1.5 years later? definitely the inherent tragedy of it all. the what-if's that live rent free in my mind. the tuunbaq aspect of it is probably the least interesting to me—i like the added horror elements, but really i'm more preoccupied/interested in the human horror.

i tried reading the book but gave up about halfway through—around the point when fitzjames died? but really i think i gave up on it when i decided that i preferred the show's version of carnivale—the inherent horror of stanley setting himself and the tent on fire as this act of murder/suicide, this demented attempt at saving them all from a fate much worse, the guilt that fitzjames feels for it all...so much more interesting to me than the book's version of tuunbaq showing up to fuck shit up.

fitzier is definitely appealing to me and i've read a good number of amazing fics about them. the fandom itself is wonderful, and i LOVE reading the tags on all the gifsets i post and the ones i reblog from others. i'm not sure if i would have gone out of my way to gif the terror myself if a RL friend hadn't found out i was recently obsessed with it and offered to send me his copies, but i'm v glad he did. it's been fun v slowly re-watching the show while giffing almost every single frame of the season. i also just really appreciate that this is a finite story told in a single season.

✨anonymously ask me one thing you want to know about me✨

[thyme-in-a-bubble]

chamomile, chapter thirteen   

A/N: the gif in the moodboard is by @ropoto

summary:  Y/n thought she was the last one to go home from the office... apparently she was wrong.

warnings: petty/mean reid, love confession, arguing/fighting, tw miscarriage, kissing 

word count: 976

∼ gentle reminder that feedback, but especially reblogs are the way you support writers on here ∽

masterlist | join my taglist

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“Please! Hold the elevator!” you yelped and saw as a brown leather bag quickly got jammed in between the rapidly closing metal doors in order to halt them.

It was late. Almost everyone had gone home, and you were certain that if you had to stand here for another minute and wait for the elevator to return, you’d fall asleep on your feet.

Successfully opening the doors again, you felt a slight sting at the discovery of who was on the other side. 

Surprised to see you as well, Reid’s smile quickly fell, and he let out a deep sigh.

“I thought you left an hour ago.”

“Yeah, well, I didn’t,” you scoffed and got in beside him. Reaching over to press the ground floor button, you retracted it once you noticed that it was already glowing a dull red colour, “I had a mountain of paperwork to get through.”

“Yeah, well if you hadn’t gotten sick, they wouldn’t have added up, now would they?”

Looking over at him in utter shock, “excuse me?”

“Yeah, some of us can work through a little illness,” he hissed, “I got shot in the knee, but that didn’t stop me from showing up and doing my job.”

Looking up at the rapidly declining floor numbers, you wished and hoped for it to move faster, to be over in a heartbeat. Closing your eyes, you took a deep breath, “you know what? I thought I could do this, I thought I could be your friend, or at least just coexist in peace, but I can’t.” blinking your eyes open, you felt a single tear roll down your cheek. Quickly wiping it away with the back of your hand, you glanced over at him, “I can’t do it anymore. I don’t wanna do it anymore, it’s exhausting, you are exhausting.” 

“You’re exhausted? What do you think I am? I tried to be kind to you over and over again, yet you just shut me out.” 

Staring at him a moment, watching his jaw clench, “fine. You want me to let you in?” frustratingly throwing up his hands in response, you stated, “I wasn’t sick.”

“What?” he huffed.

“That’s not why I took time off.”

“Okay, I’ll bite” he crossed his arms, “why did you not come into work? Did you just not feel like it?” he mocked.

Biting your inner cheek, you wrestled with the idea of just not saying it, just keeping your mouth shut, walking out of this elevator and never looking back. 

“I had a miscarriage.”

Blinking hard, he just looked at you for the last few floors till a soft ding was heard and the doors creaked open. As soon as they did, you whooshed out, leaving Reid standing there, completely gobsmacked. 

Hastily walking across the dark lobby, it didn’t take long for you to hear his footsteps quickly approaching. Damn those long legs. 

“Wait,” he called after you, “Y/l/n, I-“

“No, Reid, just don’t, I don’t wanna-“

“I’m sorry, really,” he interrupted, as you pushed the doors open and determinately walked out into the dead parking lot. “I didn’t know. I didn’t even know you were seeing anyone.”

“That’s because I’m not.”

“Wait, Y/n,” he caught up to you and grabbed your arm, yanking you to a halt, “just stop, please, for a moment when I talk to you.”

Whipping around, you yanked your arm free and broke down, “do you really not remember, or do you just regret it so much that you just pretended that it didn’t happen? Am I really that repulsive to you?”

Looking like you had just smacked him clean across his face, he breathed out “what?” 

“Did you black out or are you just a terrible horrible person?”

“I-…” he searched your face, “I thought you didn’t remember,” then catching his breath, “wait, wait, wait, was-, did-… are you saying-“

“Yeah…”

“Why didn’t you tell me?” his eyes glistened. 

“Because I didn’t know till it was too late,” you whispered and felt yourself begin to crumble under his gaze. “Don’t look at me like that.”

Looking deeply into your eyes, he murmured, “like what?”

“Like you love me.”

“That’s because I do love you!” he blurted out.

Letting out a shaky breath, you shook your head lightly and slowly backed up a few steps, “no, no, Spencer, stop it. Don’t say that you love me just because you knocked me up, just don’t. I know it’s not true, I know that you don’t see me like that, so don’t go saying it now just to try and make me feel better. That’s just mean.”

“Y/n,” he tried to catch your hand, but you swung it out of his grasp to gesticulate wildly. 

“I’m not pregnant anymore, so you’re off the hook! You don’t have to settle, you’re free to do as you fucking please!”

“Y/n!” he grabbed your face with both of his hands, “please just listen to me. I love you. I am in love with you.”

“You are?”

“Yeah,” he seized the piece of hair that the wind had caught and tugged it behind your ear. 

“Since when? I didn’t even think you liked me anymore.”

“Y/n, I’ve always liked you, since the moment I met you. But I think I fell in love with you after Emily died. Who knows, maybe even before that, maybe that night or maybe it happened the moment I first saw you, sitting there at my desk. All I know is that I love you.”

“You-…” you felt goosebumps cover your entire body. Steadying yourself, you held onto his blazer for dear life. “You love me?”

“I do,” he stroked his thumb over your cheek, “I really really do.”

Pulling him down, you kissed him like it was the only thing that could pinch you and convince you this wasn’t a dream.

next chapter

© 2022 thyme-in-a-bubble 

[forrkeeps]

MUN QUESTIONS | accepting | consolidated from @legeandary and @novinare's asks

In what fandom did you start? I think I was always a multi. Maybe technically Marvel because I had two muses from there who were the most active ones as I was getting set up and expanding my muse list. Then again, I also knew I wanted to write in the BBC Merlin fandom, it just took me a minute to find other writers and approach them. But nah, I don't think I've ever really had one set fandom during my tumblr rp era. If we're talking way back when I first started rp, it was Percy Jackson or Warrior Cats. I wrote in both of those fandoms on the warrior cats forums in like middle school.

Have you ever started to ship a rare-pair? Yes? But then I find out that the pair usually isn't quite as rare as I once thought. I'm blanking on any past examples, but currently Nick and Greg from CSI is one. I thought I was one of the only ones, but I've been seeing a decent amount of others that ship them too as I look for inspo and gifs/etc for Nick. There are also a good amount of non-rare pairs that I didn't ship until tumblr (eg Buddie from 9-1-1), so. Tumblr tends to sway my shipping, aka making me ship just about anything. Not that I'm complaining!

What was your first blog / URL? I had a couple other tumblr blogs way before I even knew tumblr rp existed, but I've only ever had this blog for rp purposes. I had a different URL for a couple weeks while I tried to find one that felt more multi-friendly, but I've pretty much always been forrkeeps. I think the OG URL was something like scarlett-speedster?? Which is amusing to me because I only chose that URL and added Barry Allen as a muse because I couldn't think of any other blog names and wanted to get started.

What is your favorite fandom in which you write? BBC Merlin. It was the show that got me into tumblr rp and the fandom I've been in the longest on here. It's the one that I always come back to when my muse for everything else is low or gone entirely. It just has a soft spot in my heart.

What are the trends when it comes to writing that you adore? I don't think I really know that many trends. I tend to stay in my little bubble and not pay too much attention to the dash (trying to break that habit!). Maybe crossovers? I feel like that was a thing before my hiatus, but after I returned to this blog this winter it feels more apparent. Like, I'm seeing a lot more fandom and oc crossovers than I used to, instead of people solely writing with characters within a specific fandom. Again, it could just be my own memory and the new people I follow now, but I do like that the community feels much more welcoming to a variety of muses.

Do you have developed dynamics with the OC of another mun that has influenced your OC or Canon muse? Currently, I'd have to say @hcpebled's Darcy has had the most influence on my Orion. Orion's main immortal verse is pretty much the same semi-oc that I started with, but he has a mortal verse now that is very much tied in with Darcy's world's lore. Even the way he thinks and reacts to things is different because of his mortality and the world he's in. I don't think I'd be able to write him as a mortal with anyone else if it's not tied into that world somehow

[dervampireprince]

Any advice for new tumblr accounts? I just joined and I have no clue how to grow a following? -shy anon lol

oh boy this isn't something i've really thought about before.

when i first joined tumblr in 2013 i wasn't looking to grow a following, i just knew some artists i liked were on here and i wanted to see what they were posting. it wasn't until years later i started posting my own gifs and art over on my main blog. follower counts aren't public but i don't mind sharing if it helps so on @emptymasks which i've had since 2013 and at times have posted a lot of gifs, art and fisc too and at other times have gone months and months without posting any of that because i don't see tumblr as a social media to like make money off or anything, it's just fun, i have 2988 on my main blog.

this blog dervampireprince has existed since december 2020 but it was a different blog with a different name until march 2021 when it became dervampireprince. so this blog has existed posting 18+ writing since march 2021 and audios since december 2021 and i have 3682 followers over here. never expected this blog to me my post popular but i'm not complaining.

tumblr isn't like other social medias, you can't see other users follower counts, following counts, and recommended and trending posts don't get thrown at you. you mostly only see posts from people you follow. yes there are recommended posts now but if you're an older tumblr user like myself you may use Xkit which is a 3rd party extension for tumblr that adds a bunch of features (blocking posts with certain words in them, mass tag editor/replacer, an outbox, ad blocker, use tumblr using older themes and layouts, etc) so some people don't get any recommended posts.

there's only one way to get your posts noticed by people on tumblr and that's using tags correctly, and relying on people who check their favourite tags to notice your posts. now a lot of people must not be like me, because i don't check tags for things very often, but clearly a lot of people do or my posts would have no notes. what tags you use though is going to depend on what type of post you're making. you can use up to 20 tags. tumblr will let you type more than 20, but anything above tag 20 won't be searchable, as in if you 21st tag is [marvel], your post will not show up under search results for marvel unless it's tag 20 or lower, not on tumblr general search nor in search results on your own blog.

(sidenote - tumblr's search used to take you to tumblr.com/tagged/[thing you searched for] and years ago they changed it to tumblr.com/search/[thing you searched for]. you can still get to the /tagged page by typing it in the URL bar, /tagged always shows most recent posts first which i prefer and also if you searched for [loki] then /tagged would only show you posts where the word loki is tagged, whereas /search shows you posts that have loki tagged and have the word loki typed in any text in the actual post. which is annoying and you end up with non relevant posts showing up in certain tags)

so for example if i'm writing a nsft writing posts these are the tags i tend to use are: #nsft nsftumblr #nsft concept #nsft fantasy #nsft writing #ftm nsft #mlm nsft #nblm nsft #t4t nsft #trans nsft #trans man nsft #transmasc nsft #lgbt nsft #bi nsft . Now all those tags aren't relevant to every nsft post, some are gender specific, but you can find what other tags exist by just checking the general #nsft and #nsftumblr tags and seeing what other people use as tags when they post.

(and having xkit means i don't have to remember and type these out every time, i just have them saved as a tag bundle and one click and they all go in the tags)

or for example if i'm making a post on my main blog for a sandman drawing i've down i'd use the tags: the sandman #dream of the endless #sandman #fanart #hob gadling #dreamling #dreamgadling #hob x dream #dream x hob #morpheus #lord morpheus #myart #sandman fanart #the sandman fanart . And then people find it through the fandom and ship tags mostly.

Of course if you already have followers then your followers will see your posts no matter if you use any tags or none, but tags are the only way to get people who aren't following you to see your post, and hope that some of them reblog it so their followers can see (unlike social medias like Twitter, like aren't public here, your followers can't see what posts you like, and even if you set your likes to public they can only see them if they go to a specific page on your blog, your likes don't show up in their dashboard/timeline like they do on Twitter).

This is my oldest original piece of writing on here

I had somewhere between 1-10 followers at the time and currently it stands at 52 notes. I didn't use many tags, I didn't know about the existence of many tags, but I used the few I knew about and specific kink tags and people noticed it.

And as always it's the posts you spend ages writing that get fewer notes than one silly sentence you post at 2am thinking no one will notice

Because that still sits at my post popular post on this blog. And despite this blog having much more followers than my main, my post popular post ever is a Loki themed edit I did where I just posted 9 photos from fashion editorials, recoloured them to be green and black and gold, and it got to over 15k notes within a few months and none of my posts here are close to getting that many. Follower count doesn't reflect how popular a post can get.

Basically tags are your best friend on this site, use them wisely, don't use more than 20. It doesn't hurt to follow and interact with other blogs who are posting similar content to you, your followers are going to see any posts you reblog as well as your original posts. I've never approached another blog trying to be mutuals or friends before, if I end up getting to know anyone it just sorta happens from us seeing each others names a lot in our notes and sending asks to each other. Like with with aspiring-house-husband for example, I never sent them a message saying 'can we be friends' because that's kinda creepy, I just was reblogging a lot of their writing, chose to engage by sending them some rp asks, complimenting their writing, and then i realised they'd reblogged from me, small world, and speaking of Fawn, in less than a year they got almost 7k followers which is insane and goes to show how talented at writing they are. If you're really only doing it for the followers then finding a niche can help, if you're wanting to write nsft stuff you could focus around certain kinks or creatures or something. I ended up focusing around royalty kink stuff, and I hadn't even heart of it until a couple months into making this blog so.

I hope some of that was helpful? My goal with my main tumblr was just to be able to see art other people posted, making this tumblr yes I did hope for people to reblog my writing and I liked the idea of being a nsft blog people followed, but I didn't have any plans that I would make audios and end up making income off this stuff, it just happened that by the time I wanted to make audios I was lucky that 1. people were already following me and 2. I was making them for a new fandom that was really popular at the time (Arcane).

Yeah that was long, hope it helped, I don't know what sort of content you want to make and tumblr isn't like other socials, there's no 'tumblr influencers' and you can't get sponsored or monetized posts or get payed to host ads on your blog or anything like that so I can only tell you so much.

EDIT: I remembered something else! There are some blogs called source blogs, these blogs are normally centered around a fandom, character, actor, ship, etc. For example marvelgifs is a blog that reblogs Marvel gifs. These blogs will check posts tagged with their username, not @ ing them in the post, but putting their username as one of your tags etc #marvelgifs . You can tag source blogs as a way to help get your posts potentially reblogged. Most of these blogs only post and reblog gifs and edits but some do also reblog fanart, fics and other content for example I also run a blog @europeanmusicals where I reblog and post all content about European musicals that I can find including fanart and writings, and I check the #europeanmusicals tag to see if there's posts people want me to notice to them reblog to that blog. I was able to set up that blog as I'd already been posting about European musicals on my main emptymasks blog for a year or two at that point and surrounded myself with others who like that content.

[apple-grass-and-smiles]

Hello! The ever-sweet and wonderful @marthaskane tagged me to share eight shows that define me/help you get to know me. Without further ado, the shows!

Alias (2001-2006)

Alias has taught me the value of old LiveJournal pages and the Wayback Machine more than any other show I've ever loved. I discovered this show in 2013 when it was on Netflix and then I spent a few months in Germany, where I spent too much money buying almost the entire show on iTunes because I could not comprehend going more than a day without Sydney Bristow with me.

2. The Clone Wars (2008-2013, 2014, 2020)

I remember when this show first aired and my siblings and I had a square dance at our school (very American, I know) so we had to DVR it. The next morning we snuck down early to watch it with the volume super low so we wouldn't wake up our parents. Few shows have continuously come back into my life the way this one has. I can track a lot of how I've changed as a fan through the different ways I've viewed this show over the last 15 years.

3. Fringe (2008-2013)

I've been rewatching this show since January of this year and can confirm: it is still a nearly perfect 100 episodes of TV. Fringe manages to perfect a lot of the plot lines and dynamics that appear in Alias (both are J.J. Abrams/his collaborators projects). It manages to walk the line between a procedural and a mythology-driven show beautifully and so clearly knows what message and themes it wants to share from the very first shot. If you like exploring messy family dynamics, action, and the X-Files, Fringe is a good option for you.

4. Gotham (2014-2019)

I historically have no cared much at all about Batman. He struck me as pretty boring in comparison to every other person he interacted with. Gotham change that for me (turns out he just needed to be put next to any even more boring guy, but I digress...). Loving this show is a lesson in looking past weird choices, wacky inconsistencies, and learning to just trust that writers will give you a fun ride, even if you understand less that 15% of it. It helped me remember that the sentence "I love this show" does not always mean "here is a perfect example of perfect storytelling" and just how freeing that can be. It also gave me a beautiful little group of friends who continue to make me smile on a regular basis.

5. Blindspot (2015-2020)

While this show may not be one I post about often, it was foundational for how I interact in fandom now. It was one of the first times I was active in a fandom from the start of the show. It was the first time I was in a fandom group chat and my Tumblr friends broke containment into being people I followed on Instagram and texted. I organized a Secret Santa. It was the first time I remember actively freaking out of promo photos (1x09 IYKYK) and synopses. Almost all the confidence I have when interacting in fandoms is from these experiences. And the plot is stellar.

6. Iron Fist (2017-2018)

I can't tell you how I ended up watching this. I do not know what prompted me to turn it on but I'm really glad I did. This show has so many amazing nuggets of amazingness and its shortcomings brought me together with two of my favorite people as we tried to understand what had gone wrong and where. (This is not a good ad for the show.) I love getting to play with stories and characters that have seemingly infinite potential and getting to do it with other people who are just as committed to the story as I was meant the world.

7. The Rookie (2018-present)

I fought against this one so hard. I did not want to get into it, but as my dash filled with those gifs of Lucy in the green dress and I had my wonderful friend pitching the show to me over and over, I caved. And I'm really glad I did. The experience of watching a long season over months, one week and one episode at a time, is so different than streaming or rewatching shows and I'd forgotten how much I missed it until I got to do it again for this show. My Tuesday livestreams with my lovely friend single-handedly pulled me through so many rough spots over the last year. For a procedural dramedy, The Rookie continues to serve up some of the best characters on TV right now and consistently delivers some of the best cold opens.

8. Prodigal Son (2019-I'm in denial)

The show that owns my heart and soul. The show I'd sell my organs to get new episodes of. Returning to this show, whether I'm writing fic, doing a TED Talk in my head about the psychology in the show, or actually watching an episode, consistently feels like coming home. I did not know it was possible for someone to stick their hand in your head and pull out a show custom-made for you, but that's what this is. The characters are all so perfectly imperfect and desperate to be better. The plots are just the perfect amount of bonkers. The show being a drama pretending to be a procedural is beautiful. If you'd told me in 2019 that a show about a profiler whose dad is a serial killer and they solve crimes together would be the show that would leave an indelible mark on my life, I would have rolled my eyes because that's so cliche. 2019!me had no idea what she was on about. But I'm glad she figured it out and randomly put on this little show one night that had continued to pull me through good days and bad days and everything in between.

As for tagging other people, anyone is welcome to join but I’ll specifically tag some people I know who haven't been tagged (I think): @electricbluebutterflies, @chenlucys, @shinythinx, @rojaswarren, @meandmyechoes, @padme-deserved-better, @whitesunlars, @harrows-bones, @bpdanakins, and @violetsandmagpies.

[whateverisbeautiful]

♥️Reveling in Richonne - TOWL

#11: The One & Only  (1.02)

gif cred: @rcsitastark

IMO there’s just no better way to start these episode 2 revelings than by saying - ladies and gentlemen…her. 👑🙌🏽

Michonne Grimes is back and better than ever in The Ones Who Live. I love the attention and thoughtful exploration she got in this miniseries. 🥰

With ep 1, I was so excited to have Rick Grimes back after six long years and to finally learn what happened to him after he was carted away on a helicopter. And now ep 2 was going to give us the highly anticipated return of Michonne and finally learn what happened to her after she (and I) left TWD.

I was so stoked to have her on-screen again. I remember in Michonne's final TWD episode when she was walking to that mysterious caravan with those two travelers I was so sad knowing we weren’t going to get to go with her right away. But now the time had come for us to see her journey continue. And within seconds she reminded us all that Michonne still is and always will be the baddest chick in the game. 💯

So "Gone" opens with a gasman walker making his way through a horde. The gasman wears a shirt that says “Let me help you” and in a way, he does actually end up helping. Because the way he complicates things leads events to play out in a manner that ultimately leads Michonne to Rick. Once again this walker is proof that sometimes things have to burn to bring these back.

gif cred: @taiturner

It’s a quick ambiguous teaser and we can hear those signature weapon sounds before cutting to that beautiful theme song. And I like how every time you hear the missile sound you just know Michonne is near. 

So then we go to six years after the bridge and I like how “after the bridge” is sorta there bc/ad time marker. It was that impactful.

We get a closeup of the beautiful Michonne and it's a nice contrast from how episode one started with Rick facing away. I feel like the contrast helps illustrate the way Rick's circumstances have held him back while Michonne has had to keep marching forward.

Also, I love how TOWL knows how good-looking Michonne and Rick are so they stay giving them ultra close-ups. And as they give us this closeup of Michonne straight away the show was saying 'I know it’s been some years since you’ve seen Michonne so the first order of business is making sure y’all remember that the face card never declines.' 💁🏽‍♀️

gif cred: @chaoticroad

She says “My name is Michonne.” The one and only. And then she says “I lost someone years ago.” Then they cut to Rick just before he pulls the trigger and blows up the bridge and then again we hear Michonne scream his name. TOWL also said it's going to remind everyone of that painful tragic bridge moment several times no matter how much it hurts to see it. It’s an effective reminder of how much both Rick and Michonne hurt from having to live with the memory of that day. 

Then I love the part when Michonne says “But I just found out that he might…I just found out that he’s alive.” as we see clips from her final ep when she found Rick's boots, the phone, and some indication of Rick’s potential location. I love that she corrects herself that he is alive.

She’s choosing to believe in that feeling she’s carried all these years of thinking he was alive, and now that she’s got some evidence she’s declaring he’s alive outright. She knows it. As his soulmate, she knows he’s alive out there. And I love how Michonne always understands the power of words and of belief so she’s choosing to speak it out loud as a statement that he is alive. 

Michonne explains that she saw two people who needed her and she helped them because they needed help, no other reason, and no agenda. That's my Michonne. 🥰 Loyal and helpful and with a heart of gold. 👌🏽

Michonne says she sees what this group has and she still has a long way to go so she needs to ask for some help. But she says she also understands and will just be on her way if they aren’t in a position to give the help she needs.

See how Michonne is so understanding?…And yet when she wanted to keep the communities more separate for their protection and because she’d been severely traumatized, the people who were supposed to be her friends and family couldn’t offer her this same understanding. 😒 (Yes I know that whole s9 arc was several years ago but I just had to bring it up real quick cuz when people disrespect Michonne they have beef with me...

So then the leader Elle starts off by thanking Michonne and Michonne says, “I appreciate that. Could I have a horse?” You can tell she’s not interested in any pomp and circumstance and just wants to be on her way to find Rick and get home to their babies.

Then Elle is taking up Michonne’s time and acting like Michonne is here for a job interview or something as she says she wants to get to know more about her and tell her about the community.

Michonne is kind saying thank you and that she’s impressed with what they have and then she says “But that ‘someone’ - I’m eager to go because I just found out that he’s…” I love this because while Dream Michonne teased that she’s not eager, Real Michonne has no qualms saying she's eager to get to Rick. 😊

She’s honestly being so patient, having just recently got the major news that her true love is alive. I know she’s itching to go but this Elle lady is like girl let’s just gab some more.

Elle at least is a little keen because she immediately knows Michonne is a gem saying, “You could be an asset to this place if you don’t find this person…” I like how in TOWL everyone Michonne comes across knows she’s something special. As they should.😋

gif cred: @perryabbott

And so then Elle is cut off by King Bach who tells her to just give Michonne a horse and like exactly because Michonne has places to be and Elle was nawt getting it.

Michonne gets up saying she could just go because she’s getting to Rick, horse or no horse. Elle gives Michonne credit for saving her sister's boyfriend and her sister and is again told by her sister to just give Michonne a horse.

Elle says, “I meant to say if you do find him you could be part of this community. Both of you.” Michonne says, “We have a community. We have kids” and y’all, when I tell you I let out a yelp of joy hearing her say that the first time. 🤩

Like even despite knowing for several years now that Rick and Michonne have kids, hearing her say "we have kids" just made me so happy lol. Their parents fr. Something about it just felt like she knows she and Rick will be raising these kids together soon enough. 

Michonne continues showing that Mama Michonne is in the building when she says, “Kids who need to see their father. Kids who I need to see. So I have to find him and I have to go now.”

Michonne is on this mission both as a wife and as a mother and she is not returning to her kids empty-handed. And that emphasis she puts on “now”... Michonne was trying to be patient with Elle but you could tell she was ready to get into her “step back” energy if this lady kept delaying her. Also, it's sweet how she says "I have to find him" because it's like she knows it has to be her. She knows Rick needs her specifically.  

Elle asks, “Go where?” And Michonne says Bridgers Terminal. (Side note: I always love seeing the ring prominently displayed on Michonne's necklace.) The caravan folks explain that there are a lot of walkers in the direction Michonne is heading and Elle again not reading the room is all cavalier like just stay awhile and get to know us. Which um, Elle, can you not tell this woman very eagerly wants to find her husband and get home to her kids?? Like ma'am plz...

Michonne lets Elle know she already knows enough about their group to read them a little bit as she notes how this group doesn’t stop for anyone ever, not even Elle’s own sister. Elle defends the community’s rules of not stopping for anyone and Michonne says, “That doesn’t sound like a community.”

Elle gets a little defensive saying, “Well this is how we survived” and Michonne, still as quick on her feet and unafraid to set the record straight as we remember, says, “But not everyone right?” Period. And Elle knows Michonne has a point as she finally doesn’t have words to respond back.

gif cred: @perryabbott

Michonne is over it as she says, “If you don’t want to give me a horse, I’m good” and prepares to leave. But just as she’s gonna go, the best bestie Michonne has had since Carl arrives - Nat. 👏🏽

Nat comes in hot and he’s also over this place for leaving Bailey and Aiden behind. Nat says he keeps this place going and he knows their community is strong enough to stop and save people and he questions what’s the point if they don’t do that. This quickly shows he has a similar mentality to Michonne.

Then Nat sees that his friends are in fact okay and it’s sweet to see the joy on his face as he hugs them. It’s also so sweet to see Michonne smile as she takes all of this in. They explain that Michonne saved them and Nat turns to Michonne as she just looks regal and says, “Hi.”

gif cred: @perryabbott

Nat says, “And you just…brought them back?” And Michonne, knowing that’s just who she is, simply answers, “They asked for my help so I helped them.” She’s just the best. 😊 And Nat knows it because he then offers Michonne her own VIP wagon.

I love that Nat is an instant Michonne fan. Same, Nat. And I love hearing Michonne’s laugh as she then says, “Thanks but, even if I didn’t have somewhere to be, I don’t leave people behind.”

gif cred: @perryabbott

Nat says he doesn’t either and again Michonne “Never Afraid To Tell You About Yourself” Grimes says “But you’re here.” And it’s a valid point yet again. Because by staying with this group it does make you a bit compliant with their ways of leaving people behind. I’m telling you the “Michonne is always right” streak continues. 💯

gif cred: @perryabbott

Nat asks where she’s headed and when she answers he too thinks it’s a bad idea because of the walker migration. But as Rick knows, Michonne is stubborn. 😋 Wonderfully stubborn. So she says, “I’m going” as she’s done hearing anyone else try to stop her.

Nat knows she’s serious so he says, “Looks like you are” and tells her he’ll give her a horse and she can have her pick. Elle tries to stop him but Nat becomes an instant fav as he cuts Elle off and makes it clear his decision is final and that Michonne can have her pick.

And then I so love Michonne’s silent but super-expressive response to that whole moment. The beginning of her and Nat's bond was born in this moment and it’s great to see. 😊

gif cred: @riickgrimes

So Michonne takes her walkie and finally gets out of that room with the group. She follows Nat outside as he asks if she’s waiting for a call. A true mother Michonne says, “Just trying to be home some way until I can.”

I love how she’s so determined to maintain contact with her babies while retrieving her other baby from his CRM misery. And you can tell her determined mindset believes she’ll be home ASAP.

gif cred: @perryabbott

It's so clear that Michonne misses Judith and RJ every second she’s away. Especially when we then see her on the walkie-talkie trying to speak to Shoto but getting no response. When Judith doesn’t answer she says, “Love you. I love you both.” And it’s just precious. 🥲

Any slander toward Michonne as a mother could never be tolerated around these parts. The sacrifice of being away from them right now is so clearly painful for her but, being the devoted mom she is, she's willing to do whatever she can to bring her kids' father back to them,.

Also thinking about Michonne and Judith both trying to speak to each other on those walkie-talkies even tho they can't reach each other...cue my internal tears. 🥺

gif cred: @perryabbott

So then Nat comes back as Michonne lets him know she’s ready to get out of here pronto and wonders where the horse is because it’s been an hour. Nat pitches the idea of Michonne staying with them one night before she embarks on what he deems “a suicide mission” But after he says this, Bailey and Aiden walk up to bring Michonne a top-tier horse and Michonne looks very happy to finally be able to get her horse and go.

Nat is sad and disappointed as he says, “There you go Michonne. You can bounce right now. But if you give us a night. Give us a chance to equip you, tell you how some said equipment works well, maybe you’ll survive 30 more seconds of your trip once you hit the Delaware border.”

Michonne has this sweet big smile as she lets them convince her to stay one night. She charmingly says, “One night. And I’m leaving at dawn.” And I love the way Nat and them then respond like mom just agreed to let them have a sleepover. 😊

Nat excitedly gives Aiden and Bailey orders and wants Michonne to have the best and “something custom” which Nat is a king among men for wanting to give Michonne the best of the best.

Michonne is all looking at Nat confused and amused and she asks, “Measure what? And what are scream sticks?” I know Nat saw Michonne and was immediately like 'now this is a fashion muse that I just have to dress.' 😋

gif cred: @nerd4music

Michonne is told that she’ll find out what it all means and she’s just like “Really?” Which was cute. And then next we see her slaying in the corseted armor. Nat (and the actual wardrobe department) ate with the armor. 🔥

gif cred: @perryabbott

As Michonne rides her horse alongside her new friends, she thanks them for the armor, horse, and everything else. Then Aiden says, “Michonne, you’re gonna find him. I know it.” I love seeing them encourage her. I was super glad that Michonne got to experience some sincere supportive friends in TOWL after it had become a rather rare occurrence in the latter seasons of the main show.

Then Nat wants to get some things straight saying, “Rick blew up on a bridge and it’s been years?” You can tell he’s thinking 'Sis, your man might be gone onto glory by now.' 😬

But Bailey reminds Nat to tread lightly and Michonne co-signs saying, “What he said.” That golden rule of don’t try Rick in front of Michonne still holds true. 👌🏽

Nat admits he likes Michonne and doesn’t like many people so he doesn’t exactly want to lose her company. Michonne smiles and then gives the group something to think about as she questions why they stay with a group that leaves people to die. She says she thinks they’re smart enough to find another way and Nat says, “I guess we’re surprisingly stupid Michonne.” And Bailey says, “or afraid” which is the truer reason.

Michonne says she’s glad she met those three and then wishes them good luck. They wish her good luck too and the way Aiden looks at Michonne as they walk away on the horse, it seems part of her worries that Michonne won’t be so lucky on her travels. 

gif cred: @richardgrimes

Michonne immediately turns on her walkie trying to reach her kids again. Nat notices and says, “You said your kids were in Virginia right?” I like that this shows she clearly opened up to Nat more the night before, telling him about Rick and his name and where her kids are.

Nat says the walkie-talkie will be out of range soon and then hands her the notebook we saw her using to write letters to Judith in the TWD series finale.

In a sweet gesture, Nat says, “You can still talk to them. Then you can show it to them when you get back” as he gives Michonne an encouraging smile. Michonne says, “I thought this was suicide” and Nat’s face falls as he says, “It is. I was just being nice.” Hearing that has me like dang he really was just trying to have them land on a nice note before she went off to what he believes is certain death. 😅 But baby, this is Michonne the one and only so if anyone can make it it’s her.

gif cred: @perryabbott

Also, it’s interesting how Rick was dealing with a more internal threat of suicide while Michonne was confronting a more external risk of ‘suicide’ according to Nat. And I love how writing letters to loved ones is something both Rick and Michonne found solace in while dealing with inward and outward trials and tribulations.

Michonne and Nat go their separate ways as Michonne again tries to reach her baby girl on the walkie to no avail, and you just know she longs to hear her kids’ voices on the other end.

And while Michonne is going her separate ways from Nat and co now, it won’t be the last of them in her story, as Nat is destined to play a very impactful role in Michonne’s life. 😌👌🏽

[overtake]

can i ask how you color and sharpen your gifs? they’re so vibrant 👀

Of course! I don't know how helpful I can be because I don't do anything special, so this is mostly an incoherent ramble and offers absolutely no insight. There's so many amazing coloring tutorials out there, so I would recommend any of those rather than reading the jumble of words below the read more lmao. The best resource ever is this blog. You can find tutorials for everything ever.

First, I crop by using width x height x resolution rather than just plain cropping and then resizing the image. I have no idea if that actually makes a difference in the quality, but I've gaslit myself into believing it's a difference maker. My settings are usually 542 px x 400 px at 135 px/in. The reason I do 542 is because then I go into canvas size and do 540 x 398 to cut off those tiny transparent borders that always show up after you crop (I don't think it's noticeable at all when you upload a gif but I'm just in the habit of doing it). Once it's cropped, I flatten my frames into layers and use a sharpening action. I have no idea what tutorial and specific sharpening action I downloaded because it was years ago, but there's so many out there. Here's just some random ones I found, but there's a lot if they don't work for you [x, x, x].

As for coloring, I color every gif from scratch each time. I know a lot of people use PSDs, and then might alter them slightly based on the gif. That looks great and is faster and works very well, and it can be a great option for you to seek out. I'm just a control freak who wants to manually adjust everything.

Gifs with a dark or solid, colorful background are my favorite to color because it's so much easier to make the person stand out. I can just talk you through my mindset for this gifset.

I used exposure, brightness/contrast, selective color, color balance, vibrance, and levels. Exposure was +.53 and offset was -.0015 (I like using offest and gamma correction when I have a very dark background I want to emphasize, but I keep them at very very very low levels). Brightness was 9, contrast 7. I don't really like using brightness/contrast too much, but a little contrast in the right color conditions does sometimes make things more visually interesting. Selective color in black under the black subheading was +26. I go wild to make a dark background darker. If it had been a pretty blue background, however, I would've been in the blue and cyans section just messing with the sliders until I got a nice shade of blue I liked, and then I would've gone to the blues under hue/saturation to make it even brighter. I didn't use any 'selective color: neutrals' on this gifset, and I kind of avoid them because it's really easy to wash someone out or give the gifset a kind of ugly color tone if you're not very cautious.

Specific color balance numbers would be annoying for you to read through, but make sure you work with all 3 of the shadows, midtones, and highlights. I almost never go more than a +/- 5 on any of the sections, and I always hide the layer after to make sure I actually like the colors I added because you might accidentally take a totally normal gif and suddenly, all the blacks are looking magenta toned because you went too wild in color balance. I just added a tiny bit of vibrance (+8) to make sure I wasn't washing him out, and then I finished off messing with levels to once again emphasize the dark background.

90% of the gif coloring I do is done in exposure, selective color, and color balance. Those three are the backbone of my gifmaking. I spend so much time messing around in selective color with all the standout colors in the gif. I wish I could drop a magic secret here, but I really just go through and adjust the sliders until I find a balance I like.

I think color balance is so important to making sure the person isn't a weird shade after you mess with other colors - it ensures sure they're not super yellow or overly cool-toned. When I have a colorful background that isn't a red/yellow/orange (because messing with those colors will mess with a person's skintone), I also usually make it brighter through selective coloring and hue/saturation. I cannot emphasize enough how much selective coloring changed my life. It's my world. When I finally do upload my gifs, I always save them to my drafts and view them from mobile and desktop to see if there's anything that looks super weird that I need to fix. Sometimes a gif will look great in photoshop but suddenly the person is bright red on mobile, so it helps me make adjustments.

I used to be very conservative in adding lots of color and I tended to wash people out and was too afraid to make a colorful background even brighter or a dark background darker. For example: this old gifest I made on my main just looks so .. dull? There's no life in that skin. What I would do differently now, just as a basic starting point, is brighten the blues and the reds in his skin through selective color + hue/saturation, add more exposure, and use color balance to make his skin tone more human. With just those adjustments alone on top of the gif (which did already have coloring on it!), it looks way better and brighter. I mean, does it look good? No, it's a screenshot of a gif from almost 2 years ago and I spent 30 seconds on it, but it's better!

My advice is just to not be afraid to mess with colors and make them stand out. I have zero comprehension of color theory and no artistic background, so I was flying blind when I started adding all these adjustment layers and was very timid about them. I really just think the best thing to do is to mess around in photoshop working on gifs with different colored backgrounds so you practice how you want to mess with those colors. I seriously spend so much time making gifs that will never see the light of day because it's fun to do and it helps me learn the adjustments. My understanding of color also significantly improved when I started trying to make more edit-y style gifsets, because I'd try to recolor the background of the gif with the brush tool and changing the blend mode and wouldn't understand why the color I'd painted over top an orange background wasn't turning out exactly how I wanted when I changed the blend modes.

I'm sorry that this is an absolute mess with no real advice besides "I like these adjustments" and "just mess around!" I know that's not particularly helpful, but I'm honestly too busy being flattered that I was even asked for advice.

[kaeda-the-wolf]

Diego Jimenez x Lauren Wolffe (OFC)

Word Count: 1,454

Part 6: Means To An End

In which Lauren finally gets home from work and has more than a bit of trouble quieting her mind.

Let me know if you would like to be added to the tag list!

Warnings: Language

Any gifs used in any posts for this story do not belong to me.

It's late by the time Lauren gets home. She climbs slowly up to her fourth floor apartment, trying to process the day's events. Her mind bounces back and forth between the image of Antonio Reyes’ lifeless, battered body and Jiemenez's feral grin, intermixed with the blood spattered home they'd been called to when she'd returned to the precinct. As soon as she'd gotten back to her desk, Sergeant Albrecht had stepped out of his office, telling Lauren and Marcus that they had another case; a patrol officer had been called to do a welfare check by a family member of the homeowner, and he'd stumbled upon a total blood bath with no dead body. 

Marcus had spent more of his time on the scene trying to chat her up -poorly attempting to be funny and asking where she had gone earlier- than he had actually trying to do any work. Lauren was in no mood for it, and hadn't bothered to entertain him in the slightest. She was tired and she felt oddly numb, now that the anger and adrenaline of the day had finally petered out. 

Sliding her key into her apartment door, Lauren cranks the handle and steps inside. Immediately, her eyes scan the main space of the small apartment, moving from the kitchen on the left, over to the living room. Ellie’s babysitter, Mrs. Anne, sits on the couch watching the evening news. 

“Welcome home, Lauren,” Anne says softly, smiling. Lauren gives her a half hearted smile and quietly says hello. 

“Ellie is asleep,” Anne continues as she moves to stand up, knowing that Ellie would be the first thing she would want to know about. She explains that Ellie's homework is done, that she'd had dinner, brushed her teeth, and was now in bed. 

“Thank you for looking after her. I appreciate it,” Lauren replies quietly, pulling her service weapon from its holster and placing it on the kitchen counter, grateful that Anne isn't skittish about guns like most were. “I didn’t intend to be home this late.”

Anne simply waves a hand, telling Lauren not to worry about it and that she knew it was a busy day. Lauren chuckles bitterly at that. ‘Busy' wasn't exactly the word she would use. 

Infuriating. Exhausting. Confusing.

Those were all much more apt.

“You didn't let Ellie watch, did you?” Lauren asks, moving to sit at the kitchen counter. Anne always kept a close eye on the news as a way of having an idea of what Lauren might have been dealing with throughout the day. She meant well, she really did. The problem was that Ellie understood exactly why. “She always gets so worried.”

Anne shakes her head.

“No, I know how she is. She would have been worried to death to hear about the pursuit for the bastard that killed that Reyes boy.”

Lauren winces before she can stop herself, picturing the boy's broken face once again. The picture she had shown Jimenez was still in her jacket pocket. For a moment, she considers being vindictive, considers showing Anne the photograph of the boy in her pocket and saying  ‘this is what I deal with,’ but she quickly shoves that feeling down.

“You want to talk about it?” 

Lauren is quick to shake her head.

What exactly could she tell her? That she had caught Muñoz when he'd fled out the back door of the house, only for him to be bonded out a few hours later, and that she had made a deal with a cartel boss to ensure that he ended up back in jail?

“There's not much to talk about,” Lauren says, and though she's almost certain the older woman knows she's lying, she doesn't push the issue.

“It's  just so sad, though,” Anne concedes somberly. “To lose your only child and have to move on without them…” 

Lauren braces herself as Anne trails off, knowing that she's about to go off on a tangent. It doesn't happen often, but Lauren hates it when she does. Other than upsetting her child, it's another reason Lauren isn't a fan of Anne watching the news so closely. 

Usually, she is looking for some sort of scrap of information that is positive to hold on to, or she's looking for some kind of tidbit that gives her some kind of understanding for the madness. 

Lauren rarely has any solace or explanation to offer.  

“Meanwhile,” Anne starts again, “that bastard gets to live out the rest of his life. Quite frankly, I think a bullet would be a cheaper solution, don't you?” 

Lauren’s stomach turns.

How about a pissed off Cartel boss stringing  him up by his vital organs?

If only justice were as black and white as Anne made it sound. 

It would be better for Marcella Reyes to see her son's killer go to prison. It would.

‘Says you', Jimenez's words echo again, and she desperately wishes that she could just get him out of her head. His voice, the image of him with his back to the wall, staring down at her with black, lust glazed eyes as he tangled his fingers into her hair-

A chill runs down her spine. 

“Anyways,” Anne says, and Lauren realizes she hadn't heard a word of what the older woman had said. “I'm sure you're tired.” 

Anne makes her way to the door, and Lauren moves to follow. She chatters away as she goes; she gives a string of goodbyes, mentions buying Ellie some new clothes, asks Lauren about whether or not she's found someone to watch Ellie in a few weeks, because she would be traveling to Maine for a week to see her family. 

Lauren gives the bare minimum as far as responses go, too tired to do much else, until Anne is finally out the door. 

Once it closes, the silence is crushing.  

Ellie is asleep in bed with her favorite stuffed frog, the front door and windows are locked, and all the madness that lurks beyond them is effectively shut away.

The apartment was just as it should be; everything was peaceful and quiet. 

Everything except her mind. 

Realization had set in about what she had done today, and now in the quiet and dim light of her apartment Lauren can't deny it. She can't deny that the deal with Jimenez for Muñoz's life had been a little too easy to make, can't deny that she had enjoyed the lust in his dark eyes and the way he'd made her feel. 

In that alley with Jimenez, for once, her mind had finally quieted. All of her worries, her stress, her fears, they had all melted away. 

It was the strangest thing to be craving that feeling now.

Moving quietly through the apartment, Lauren makes her way to her room, and then into the bathroom. The water takes forever to heat up, so she cranks the shower on, wincing when the handle squeaks. Stripping out of her jeans and t-shirt, Lauren drops them to the floor and kicks them aside. Running a hand through her long, blonde hair, she leans against the bathroom sink, taking in a deep breath before slowly exhaling. 

Her whole body is sore and tight with tension, and breathing does little to help. She'd hit the ground hard when she'd taken down Muñoz, scraping both her elbow and her right knee, but she’d barely noticed until now. Glancing into the mirror, Lauren can't deny that she's tired. It's plain to see in the way that her blue-grey eyes are dim and red around the edges.

“Let me see those pretty eyes.” 

Lauren shakes her head, chasing Jimenez’s voice out of her thoughts. Again. 

Stepping into the now warm shower, Lauren immediately dips her head under the spray of the water and revels in it. Finally -finally- her muscles start to loosen up some. 

Some. 

She tries everything she can think of that might help. She rolls her head, her shoulders. She stretches her arms. 

It's not enough. No matter what she does, she simply cannot- 

Lauren closes her eyes, and finds Jimenez staring back at her. He reaches out to touch her, fingertips brushing gently against her cheek and she chokes out a breath. His touch -even imagined- is a spark that lights a fire, and Lauren can't help but waver. 

It would be completely harmless to give in the blaze, to chase that feeling that she'd felt earlier.

What she envisioned with Jimenez, it would live only in her head; he would never know about what sort of things she'd imagined in the hopes of silencing her inner demons. 

He was just a means to an end. 

So, Lauren lets her mind wander. 

Part 5

@1zashreena1

[aubrey-plaza]

tutorial below the cut!

How to fix orange-washed characters

recently I’ve been seeing a lot of this

and not enough of this

and I get it, I really do.

Making vibrantly coloured gifs with black and brown actors can sometimes present unique challenges, doubly so when the source material is lit with a candle one scene and with disco lights the next.

A lot of the time, in an effort to avoid whitewashing actors, gifmakers will instead (accidentally) over-saturate them and end up with orange-washed actors.

so I thought I’d share two quick methods I learned while giffing Lovecraft Country (aka a show with a black cast varying in shades, and with the most random and worst lighting I’ve ever had the pleasure of giffing)

They’re both super simple and can be used almost universally (together or individually) to tone down the orange hue when making vibrantly coloured gifs.

Method 1: using the Hue/Saturation adjustment layer

This is my go-to adjustment.

I’ve gone ahead and made my gif, sharpened and put some basic colouring on there (my usual mix is curves-selective color-hue/saturation).

This is what I’m left with:

You can see that he looks way more orange that he should

what I do than is go in with my hue/saturation layer and isolate the Reds. I lower the saturation down (in this case all the way to -30) and sometimes I even fiddle with the lightness (just to keep the gifs true to skintone).

If their features become a little washed out in terms of colour, instead of upping the red again or the overall saturation, I like to use a vibrance layer. It doesn’t add colour so much as it makes it pop a little bit more.

So my coloured gif, with these settings:

gets you this:

and here’s a side by side with no adjustment layers:

another example: (without the adjustment on the left, and with on the right)

I know there will be scenarios in which your actor is in a very red scene and lowering the red saturation can affect the entire gif. In those cases I like to use layer masks and a soft brush to only remove the reds from skin (instead of the entire gif).

And if it doesn’t work, then it doesn’t work. I think especially when it’s clear that the scene is incredibly red, people will be more understanding and at the end of the day, it’s up to you to decide what looks best!

Method 2: using the Selective Colour adjustment layer

I like using this method for more subtle cases; where the colouring looks alright but adding a selective colour layer to it will just push it that last bit to looking Great.

Take this gif, for example:

It’s pretty good but look what happens when I add a selective colour layer with these values:

It’s a minor change but it looks much more true to the actor’s skin colour.

So there you have it. The quick and easy way to make sure you don’t make your actors look orange! Be sure to play around with the settings to see what suits your gif the best, since no two actors are the same, and more than anything be sure to have fun!

(if this tutorial helps you in any way, please REBLOG it)

And if you have any questions or if there’s anything confusing in this tutorial, my inbox is always open! :)

[rainbowsprinkledpirate]

Soldier Of My Past

Pairing: Bucky Barnes x Male!Reader

Summary: Years go by, and nothing changes. You remain trapped under the remnants of HYDRA. Forced to do unthinkable things. And clean up after one particular Super Soldier. Which makes you wonder about him often. You had heard them call him the Winter Soldier. But you're not sure the name fits.

Chapter IV: Empty Blue Eyes

gif from thatscarletflycatcher, got it from google now it's here

Please, please don't.

I don't want to. I'm sorry.

I can't stop.

Whatever they put in my bloodstream turned me into a merciless monster.

It's like I'm trapped behind a glass wall. Watching everything happen yet being unable to stop my finger from pulling the trigger or swinging the blade.

Somebody... help.

I don't want to kill these people.

They haven't done anything wrong.

"Good job, soldier. Another problem was taken care of. But you're too slow, once again." Doctor Rot's voice never failed to solidify that glass wall.

"Maybe we'll use you for something else?" He leans forward. I could feel their blood staining my hands as he tapped the side of my head.

We'll make good use of you yet, little soldier.

- December, XX 1991 -

It took a while, but that glass wall is gone now. It has been for some time. Though that doesn't mean what I did has left my mind. All those people I killed.

The children.

Their screams keep me awake at night. Yet another thing added to a long list that reminds me why I can't give up.

Not yet.

After a while, they made me some other soldiers clean up guy. It became my job to make sure not a single piece of evidence was left that could be traced back to HYDRA.

Oddly enough, I was good at it.

Especially when I did well picking up after the Winter Soldier as he was called. But it's like I know every move he'll make. So, it's easy to clean up what he leaves behind.

This particular scene, however, was messier than the others.

I glance over the scuff marks that show where a body was dragged. They would hint that this wasn't a typical car accident. Alongside the tire tracks from the Winter Soldier's bike. And his footprints.

Every little thing would point out that these poor souls didn't die a normal death.

Which honestly would have been a mercy. If the muffled scream being abruptly cut off was anything to go by.

After a few seconds, the fire hissing from the smashed front end of the car became the only sound permeating the still air of the surrounding forest.

That and the slow, steady steps of the soldier.

He doesn't even spare me a glance as he moves back to his bike.

It was at times like this. Standing in the soldier's aftermath, I wanted to stop him. Just to ask why he went along with HYDRA's plans. Wasn't he strong enough to fight back?

But the glint of his metallic arm always warned me off.

That and the fact that he would kill any who got in the way of finishing his mission.

"Oh, James. What am I gonna do with this guy? The Winter Soldier, what kinda name is that anyway? Clearly, they don't know how to come up with good names."

Lately, I've found myself speaking aloud. When no one else but me and the Winter Soldier were around.

It helped to think James was somewhere listening to me. It soothed the screams I constantly heard.

And it wasn't like the soldier was going to tell anyone. From what I knew, he didn't speak.

At all.

Huffing, I notice the soldier pause. Every bone in my body locks in place when he slightly turns his head my way.

Shit, this is new.

Why the hell is he looking at me?

Is he going to kill me?

Doctor Borisyuk, who took over for Doctor Rot, wouldn't be too happy if he did.

But surely, he knew I was also part of HYDRA.

I did trail after him for nearly every mission he went on. Keeping an eye on him. And making sure his missions were a success.

Well, most of them.

There had been a point where things got messy when I tried to escape after learning Herr Schmit had been killed. They ended up locking me up and torturing me for a few days. But it wasn't anything new and I learned Doctor Zola lied about the explosive device planted in my head.

I examine the side of the soldier's face. Meeting the single empty blue eye that peered at me from over his shoulder for a split second. Before he focused back on the dirt road and took off.

The roar of his motorcycle cut through the stifling silence before fading away. Leaving nothing but the crackling fire in its place.

Weird.

But now wasn't the time for me to be worried about such. I have to clean up the scene and get out of here.

I sigh before making my way closer to the car. Inside were the bodies of Howard and Maria Stark. I never knew the man personally, but I remember seeing him and his first invention flop. It was a fond memory I held close.

Wordlessly I lean forward to rest my hand on Howard's shoulder.

"Find peace in the afterlife, friend." I glance at the woman next to him. A dull ache spread through my chest as I pull away from Howard.

If only I had died with James that day. Like these two who died together.

Shaking my head, I hiss, "Enough."

There's no point agonizing over the past. Focus on the here and now. Until HYDRA is completely wiped out, I can't stop.

Yet everywhere I look, there seems to be something to remind me of the past.

I glance at Howard again.

Focus. Damn it.

Not much information was passed around about these missions. Yet I made sure to keep myself updated as much as I could about the years they woke me up in. It let me clean up the scenes a bit better.

Scanning the surrounding area, I note the camera high up in one of the trees close to the scene. Or what remained of it.

When had he shot that?

Scoffing again, I make my way over to the tree. This was going to take a while. I knew I'd hear about it later.

- XX Hours Later -

"You're finally back," Doctor Borisyuk eyes me from his perch. "You have leaves in your hair."

It takes everything in me not to lunge forward.

This guy took after Doctor Rot a lot. From the unnerving grin to his unsympathetic eyes. Oddly enough, I didn't mind his presence as much as Doctor Rot.

Maybe it was because he let others do his dirty work? And I never saw him when they woke me up or put me to sleep.

The room around me stilled when fingers fluttered up to my hair. It was odd to have someone touch my hair so lightly after all this time. Especially when there was no ill intent behind it.

For a moment, all I could see were empty blue eyes before Doctor Borisyuk pulled back.

A single golden-brown leaf was held up between us.

"You should be more careful."

Or maybe it was for moments like this that I didn't mind him as much as Doctor Rot. With him being offhandedly kind.

That didn't stop me from wanting him and all the other HYDRA people dead.

"It would be a shame to lose someone like you. I rely on you a lot, you know?" He moved to hop back up on the desk. The taupe-colored wood contrasted starkly with his black uniform making him stand out more so than he already did.

"Go get some rest. You've earned it." He crossed one leg over the other. The stiff black boots he wore creaked with the movement.

"But do be back by oh four hundred hours, will you? There's no rest for the wicked, I'm afraid."

I bobbed my head towards him. Then make my way back into the long, desolate halls of HYDRA's headquarters. Empty blue eyes will haunt me for the rest of my life. Just like the cries of those people.

Next Chapter -> Here

Here <- Previous Chapter

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