#i never had any problem with like. reading subtext and such. i love subtext

[allbuthuman]

i am actually none of the official types of neurospicy but a secret new one that they made just for me

[madlori]

Ship dysphoria

Ok so a bit of time has gone by, and the 9-1-1 fandom is settling into a bit of an...existential crisis?

Because 90% of this fandom is built on Buddie. Buddie has always been the strongest driving force. We love our other blorbos, but it's Buddie that usually drives us feral.

Except...Buck/Tommy. OMG. It is WORKING for a lot of fans. (and JFC we cannot settle on a ship name. Tevan? Kinley? I'm gonna stick with Buck/Tommy)

A LOT of fans are having a "I'm a devoted Buddie shipper, why do I like this so much??" moment and it can almost feel like a betrayal, or that you're deserting the ship (the ship that, remember, Oliver told us to stay aboard).

And I think I can probably speak for everybody when I say that the last thing we want or need is a ship war in this fandom, something we haven't ever really had but which has torn other fandoms apart.

So I'm gonna put on my veteran-of-many-fandoms hat for a second and tell you a thing:

It's okay to ship Buck and Tommy. It's ok to do that and still ship Buddie. It's also okay to leave Buddie behind if it's not working for you anymore. It's okay to just tolerate Buck and Tommy and not really care about it, and stay focused on Buddie. You are allowed to ship however it works for you, and you are not limited to one and only one ship. If you decide you don't think Buddie will happen and you're going to cut your losses, that's okay, too. It is not a reflection on your character or something. You don't swear an oath of fealty to a ship.

We don't know how long Tommy will stick around, but Buck will still be bisexual. He may date another man. He may date a woman again. You can ship those things too.

But why is this ship hitting me so hard? I never thought I'd like Buck with another man! I'm so confused!

I get that. There are some reasons why that might be.

There is something very appealing about a ship that's canon. Some of you might never have had a canon queer ship, but the pull is strong. There's no guessing, no interpreting, no subtext-examining. It's there, it's real, you don't have to wonder if you're just overinterpreting things. Yes. Buck and Tommy kissed and are going on a date. Even if that's all it ever is, you'll never be accused of "seeing things that aren't there." Don't discount that.

Tommy, even in just 1.5 episodes, is a LOT more integrated into the firefam than any of Buck's previous girlfriends. Tim talked about not wanting him to be "siloed off" away from the main cast and that was exactly the problem with his prior girlfriends. Tommy is friends with Eddie. He knows Christopher and has hung out with him. He spent most of that loft conversation reassuring Buck that his place in Eddie's life was secure. He feels more like part of the gang than any other ones. That makes it easier to see him in Buck's life.

The mere fact of Buck's queer awakening is so monumental for so many of us that the character who helped him get there is going to naturally earn our affection immediately, and it's going to make you want that relationship to succeed, even if it's ulitmately not endgame for Buck. You want to see Buck have a good experience the first time out with a man. Of course you do.

And we just want to see Buck make out with a hot beefy firefighter. That is so valid of us.

Anyway. There is no need for a crisis. You can love Buddie with your whole heart and still be excited about this pairing, and want to see how it goes, and read fic about it. I may be writing a lil something myself.

You're good, fam.

[nerd4music]

I think overall there’s one of two „big“ problems happening for people who have a problem with TOWL (racists and the likes aside… 🙄).

1- The misunderstanding that this was truly much more a Rick and Michonne story than a TWD one. This was not TWD S12. It was about telling the story of these 2 characters and being able to put a dot at the end (or a dot dot dot). And you’ve laid all of that out perfectly. Like yes, in TWD, Beale (& the CRM) would have been draaaaagged out. But this was much more of a Terminus approach than a Saviors one if we will…

2- TWD was never the most ..subtle show. They tended to hit the audience over the head with stuff. And I’m not sure I would go as far as calling TOWL subtle outright either (idk, didn’t think about this until right this moment lol -obviously elements of it are, sure -just as elements on TWD could be on the subtler side) but compared to TWD, it certainly is lol. And there has been a very big „media literacy“ and „basic comprehension skills“ problem happening for a minute now. And I really don’t say this to be mean or make fun of people or anything but these are just facts. Some people really struggle with getting the information when they are not being hit over the head with it, over and over and over again. After the finale I saw several posts on my tl of people wondering why this, that or the other was not addressed or how/why this, that or the other did happen… and I was utterly confused because those things they claimed were missing were very much shown? I was like, there was literally a scene dealing with all of this? And it didn’t require any reading between the lines to be honest, no subtext, it was very much the text of the scene?! So it seems like some people just didn’t get a lot of things that were happening 🫤

(BTW I don’t mean that even if someone didn’t have these specific problems with the show, they MUST love it then. Likes and dislikes etc etc. As much as I really loved the show as a whole, if I decided to put down the Richonne-colored glasses I wanted to and did watch to the show with.. I’d definitely have a few complaints lol, though still very much enjoyed the show even then)

That's definitely what happened. And to some extent, I get why, considering Rick and Michonne are 2/3 of the main show's Big Three. But when the press and promos started, and people were still talking about some Marvel-style meet-up, I was like...oh they're definitely not listening to what's being said, because it's six damn episodes, and also The Richonne story, not the Team Family jamboree. And then acting as if it's somehow 'insulting' to the rest of the characters if Rick and Michonne didn't talk about them. The man had PTSD so bad, he couldn't remember his own son's face. Why would you think it would be good time for him to pause in the middle of his wife telling him about a traumatic moment during her pregnancy to ask about anyone else? Please be fr.

I feel you on the comprehension thing, which is nothing new for this fandom. The fact that so many people legit thought Rick didn't know how to drive stick and questioned the 'realism' of it but never stopped to think that it was because he only has one damn hand. Y'all were fine with every silly ass moment that happened in the main show, that was either sheer dumb luck or handwaved away, but now we need a complete breakdown from experts on how Rick managed to fight off walkers one-handed. Now y'all want the realism, when you've been so giddy for weeks because you need one of them to die for the show to be 'interesting'.

I'm really not listening to people who need the narrative to hold their hand through everything, or need to see every piece of the plot onscreen for it to be considered 'legitimate'. (I'm officially banning the phrase 'plot armor' for the foreseeable future).

People didn't get things, because they don't take a minute to sit with the damn material anymore. From live reactions videos to live tweeting/blogging, people are just watching TV to make content and have an online moment, not for what's actually being shown. And yeah, TOWL isn't perfect, but the minor criticisms I have for it doesn't take away from the fact that it is very enjoyable and easily the best material from the TWD landscape in a long time.

(sidenote: I will say one of my favorite things from these past six weeks is everyone struggling to figure out the overall TWD timeline, lmao.)

[potatogirlll]

so, jojos and autism

Since it's 7 am and i have nothing else to do, I've decided to compile a list of Jojo characters that i think may be autistic. Because there are. A LOT.

Part 3

Jotaro: dude. He is literally THE most autistic anime character I've ever seen in my entire life. How he gets upset over stupid shit but remains calm during actually distressful situations. How he's mostly quiet and his expression is always the same. HOW HE THINKS EVERYONE ELSE KNOWS WHAT HE IS THINKING. and also that one clip with koichi where he is UNABLE to make small talk. Yeah

kakyoin: Self isolated masking child prodigy that memorizes random trivia he finds and uses it as a conversation starter. Literally feels like he is alone in the world and no one can understand him because no one tries and no one can, he also has an extremely internalized displeasure and apathy towards the world... This is mostly subtext but if you pay attention its there, i love my boy

Part 4

Kira: extreme anxiety over his nails, masks all the time, kind of infodumps, lack of empathy, obsession with his routines, etc. This one i am not so sure about, as he definetely has antisocial personality disorder and his obsessions with his routine and his nails could be interpreted as OCD. just some thoughts

rohan: OK HEAR ME OUT. No social awareness, has a very specific way of writing his manga, DOESNT CARE WHEN HIS HOUSE IS BURNING DOWN AND WANTS TO KNOW HOW JOSUKE CHEATED. Licks a fucking spider and doesnt see the problem!!!!!!! ik yall hate him (affectionately????) but i just had to say this.

Part 5

Giorno: usually monotonous voice, thinks outside of the box, always the same expression, socially distant. This one is mostly a gut feeling, but it could also be interpreted as him being a very traumatized kid.

Part 6

Weather Report: RAPTOR HANDS? ONLY WHISPERING TO PEOPLE HE TRUSTS IN FRONT OF PEOPLE HE DOESNT KNOW? TIPTOEING??? yeah

Anasui: (disclaimer: i hate jolysui i hate him as a person i hate how the manga did him i hope he just stays in his little queerplatonic relationship with weather while taking care (very horribly might i add) of emporio and never is exposed to the outside world. i love him. ughhhhh) lack of social cues, especially with jolyne, obsession with dismembering things, extreme emotional outbursts,,, the signs are there, but it could also be interpreted as ocd, ocpd and intermittent explosive personality disorder, respectly. whatever.

Pucci: uses prime numbers as stimming mechanism, kind of sees social interactions unconventionally, lack of empathy (but not as much as kira, also no clear malicious intent, so i dont think hes coded as a psychopath?). Again, could be interpreted as OCD.

not gonna add foo fighters because theyre literally plankton but they do have autistic traits

i havent finished part 7 and havent started part 8. as of writing this, part 9 currently just released its first chapter, and i dont see any autistic traits in any of the characters rn. might edit this in the future and add anyone that i might have missed or just discovered through reading the later parts. Thats all i wanted to say, thanks 4 reading

[pippin-katz]

FirstPrince Author AU

I mulled it over and decided that I could post at least a little bit of what I have from the first draft I did last semester. Let me know what your thoughts are, and if you're interested in reading more!

Untitled WIP

Alex lets out another frustrated sigh as he reads through yet another fan analysis that completely missed the point. With an eyeroll, he stretches his hands and starts typing rapidly. It's moments like these that he despises his favorite author.

H. Fox is the author of several successful fiction novels, and most recently, a fantasy series, the third installment of which was just released earlier that week. Alex is a picky reader, but there's something about Fox's work that draws him in like a moth to a flame. The passages are skillfully and elegantly strung together to create stories that make it nearly impossible for him to put the book down once he starts reading. He has multiple copies of each book, one that he keeps in pristine condition, and the other that he's filled with scribbles, highlights, post-it notes, and other markings denoting moments that stand out to him, sentences that spark a strong feeling in his chest, and subtext of underlying themes and analogies Fox carefully crafts in. Alex would be thrilled to meet the author, for the chance to ask them questions about parallels he's found, and what their inspiration was for their stories and characters.

The problem is that no one knows who they are.

H. Fox is an anonymous writer. They are faceless, an unseen genius that provides nothing but a few facts about themselves in their bio at the end of each book. All Alex and the rest of their readers know is that they love dogs and have a passion for the poetry of Lord Byron. Fox never does press. They never offer pictures or even descriptions of what they look like. It's a point of constant debate and speculation within the community of readers.

What gender do they identify as? Where are they from? How old are they?

All very simple questions with no answers. Some are positive Fox is a man, while most others are adamantly opposed to the idea. The majority of the readers who had been following the author are almost positive they are from a country where English is the primary spoken language, but certain word choices and phrases generate doubt around which. The age range they are believed to fall into is twenties to thirties, but there is no way to know any of these things for certain, since they are essentially a phantom.

And that is part of Alex's problem at the moment.

[sunwarmed-ash]

Heyoooo Happy Monday!

Did yall read last nights Sinful Sunday update? its here if you didn't get a chance yet!

I also got tagged by @lizzy0305 for WIP Wednesday Monday!

WIP MONDAY

Detroit Become Human, Hurt/Comfort, Sad Gavin Reed, HankCon established, previous Hankvin, eventual Hankconvin

My love language is misery: (Ch 3 preview)

It's silent in the car since Connor and Hank left the station to go check on Gavin.  According to Detective Chen, the younger Detective had left work shortly after their ‘interaction’ outside the breakroom. Mentioning something about needing a change of clothes before walking out. Hank and Connor were quick to follow him out the doors and Connor’s earlier worry only compounded the longer they traveled.  “To answer your question from earlier, about me and Gavin having a relationship. sorta.”  “Sorta how?” Connor asks, needing to know everything to sort out a best course of action to help Gavin.  Hank exhales through his nose and keeps his eyes forward out the windshield.  “Before everything went to shit, and before me and Annie got together again. When we were both young and single, and fuckin’ everythin’ that moved… We hooked up, few times. But I thought- He never mentioned…” Hank huffs a little, struggling to find the right words, “I didn't think it was more than that… Always thought we were just playin’ but, what he said yesterday… haven't been able to get it out of my head since.” Connor analyzes Hank's increase in blood pressure and stress and places his hand on Hank’s knee in comfort.  “What did he say?”  Hank takes one hand off the steering wheel to squeeze it before returning his hand to its previous position on the wheel.  “That I only want him when I can’t have him. Specifically, when I’m already with someone else. I don't know, I guess, now that I look back and think about it, I can see why he said it. I’ve never been very good at maintaining personal ‘relationships.’” “I don't know, I'd say this relationship is going quite well,” Connor smiles. It eases enough of the tension hanging in the car and Hank chuckles.  “Yeah, I think that’s sorta the problem.” “He perceives me as a threat,” Connor interprets. “Big time.” “I see.” “We’ve always had a, complicated, relationship, Gav and I. But he's got some of his own additional demons on board. I think that might be what’s fucking him up now. Especially since uh, we aren't doing to much to hide our relationship at work.” “Yes, perhaps we have been playing a little ‘fast and loose’ with that line,” Connor agrees.  “Mmm,” Hank agrees. A few moments of silence pass in the car and then Connor has to ask,  “What happened to him?” Hank’s next exhale is obviously conflicted.  “Can’t tell ya that, I’m afraid. Sorry Con. It's his business, nothing personal. I just wouldn't feel right.” “I understand,” Connor says, because he does. No unintended subtext. PTSD is something Connor is intimately familiar with now, and he wants to come across as non threatening as possible tonight. “Are there any general things I should be aware of? I don't want to unintentionally set off an attack.”  “Just, follow my lead. And let him come to you. When he’s dissociating, he can’t always see what's going on in front of him.” More pieces slid into place for Connor with that confession.  “Like this morning, in the breakroom.” “Yeah, exactly.” It’s quiet another moment and then Connor says,  “He’s lucky to have someone like you Hank,” because he means it. Gavin doesn’t have a lot of friends at the DPD thanks to his almost 24/7 sour mood. And after today, he could probably use one.  Hank scoffs a little disbelievingly at Connor’s praise but meets him in the middle with,   “Yeah well, hopefully we can at least convince him to accept our help.”

@sweeteatercat @treeffles @disdaidal @tradedsymmetry @covenscribe @advictoriams @negative-citadel @writerwhowritesao3 and anyone else who wants to!! Have a great day everyone, I'm gonna try and get some sun today!

[punkeropercyjackson]

Remaster of my post saying Margo should be the one to turn Miles/Gwen/Hobie into an ot4 instead of Pavitr because i want to get into detail:Miles liking both Gwen and Margo is canon,yes?And Hobie flirting with Gwen and her enjoying it is also canon,no?So we got almost all the m/f basis covered here but as we've all discussed,Hobie's interactions with Miles also almost textually read as flirting in addition to his already present queer-coding(Being designed after irl black trans punks + 'I hate labels')and it should be common sense that if two girls are pitted eachother against a boy despite having reasons to get along,then they should be spiteshipped too and for Margo and Hobie,their interactions may not have had romantic subtext but-And y'all are gonna get pissy at me for this-His and Miles' interactions with Pavitr didn't either

Pavitr has zero queer subtext to him other than being easy to read as a trans boy.He has a girlfriend he's obsessed with(positively and non-creepily),no genderconforming traits because being peppy and goofy is not inherently feminine and saying it is is gender essentialism and neither Chaiflower nor Chaipunk are NEARLY on the same level of gayness as Punkflower-Like OBJECTIVELY.Hobie dosen't have official girlfriend like Pavitr does,Pavitr wasn't as touchy or feely with Miles as Hobie was and Miles didn't admire Pavitr as much as he did Hobie and frankly,he's just not as close to him as he is to him.You can ship whatever you want but if it weren't for the fact that the crew has never given any indecation they tried to make Punkflower look canon,Miles and Hobie's relathionship would literally be queerbaiting

And back to Margo,her being black is already enough of a reason for Hobie to be into her and i don't wanna hear 'tokenism' accusations seeing as PAVITR put an extra emphasis on Ghostflower's respective genders being why they like eachother in his shipping them scenes so if you got a problem with that,you should have as much of a problem when it's a white girl too.Margo deserves to be aknowledged as one of Miles' canon love interests as much as Gwen and Hobie do.She deserves it more than Pavitr does.Gayatri deserves better than to be ignored.Gwen deserves to be included IN HER OWN FUCKING FRIEND GROUP instead of being made into a fourth wheel in fan content because of y'all's obsession with the 'chaos boys trio' trope.Hobie deserves to date a black girl and so does Miles and Gwen and Margo and PENI,don't you DARE think i'd forget about her,deserve to have female friends instead of being just 'one of the boys' seeing as they're two woc and one literal trans girl.Include Margo or don't fucking bother-And while you're at it,stop making your 'black' Gwen designs blonde haired and blue eyed,they look nothing like me or any other black biracial person i know and i bet y'all don't even know causes albinism or it's effects on people with it other than making them light so stop using it as an excuse instead of for representation

[inevitably-johnlocked]

Hi Steph. I have some... Mary thoughts, specifically in regards to her shooting Sherlock. This is, taking TST at face value (although one weird moment to me was Mary asking Sherlock if she ever told him she liked him and he said yes, when she only said it in front of John, which could support the s4 is in John's head theory).

Her reaction to Ajay being shot, the way she screamed, changed the way I thought about her shooting Sherlock. I always thought she meant to kill him, but I never considered Mary could genuinely like and even love Sherlock and still be willing to shoot to kill.

She said AGRA was family, she was excited to see Ajay and yet she did threaten to kill him. And I believe she meant it. I think in her mind, killing to keep John around, or to save John (in regards to Ajay) is... justified?

I don't know how to feel about her yet, I can like her on the surface level if I don't think about her too much? But some things (one that always stood out to me was in the TAB plane scene where she is weirdly smirking and almost reveling in others' pain?) I know others picked up on it to, liking Mary at first and then beginning to find her suspicious upon rewatches and with new context was a very common fandom experience.

I guess I am sharing thoughts and kind of asking for your opinion? I chose to go off anon, and I am fine with it being public. Just saying that, because sometimes when I sent asks off anon people would assume it is like a private message. Still new to Tumblr etiquette, sorry -AA

Hey Lovely!

OOOOOOF I have SO many thoughts about Mary.... my blog was pretty well-known back in the hey-day for all the ridiculous amount of meta I wrote about her and coining 'the mary problem'...

I actually personally found her character interesting and fascinating up until S4, within which I feel they did a complete 180 on her character and instead went with a SHITTY "redemption arc" that was anything but.

As for her killing Sherlock, I have to disagree, she ABSOLUTELY meant to kill him. John was a trophy to Mary, and Sherlock threatened that prize being taken away from her. Ajay threatened to also upend her life, so he had to die. Mary cares about no one but herself. That much was clear even on the surface level of S4. She literally ran off without as much as a goodbye and abandoned her NEWBORN CHILD AND depressed husband. Like, she's a HORRIBLE person even if you're not reading any of the subtext, so I'm BOGGLED how Mofftiss thought that Mary doing an impossible jump in front of a bullet was supposed to redeem her character when... *waves all over* ALL THAT happened before the final moments of T6T.

ANYWAY, I wrote a LOT about Mary... you can check out the majority of my writing on these posts here:

Mary is a Femme Fatale

The Problem with John x Mary

Mary’s Brand of Abuse

Mary Meant to Kill Sherlock

Mary’s Gaslighting

The True Sociopath: People Fail to See It Unless It Happens to Them

And of course there's a TONNE to read in my 'the mary problem' tag too :)

Thanks for this ask!!! I like griping about how they ruined an amazing villain that could-have-been!

[aihoshiino]

quick heads up for canon typical discussions of sex & underage sex specifically in this post

not necessarily a meta so much as a general ramble (<- shout out to the me of 1 Hour Ago who started typing an Ai post sincerely believing this would be true), but an aspect of Ai's character I'm always really sort of fascinated and saddened by that the text (understandably) doesn't as much go into is her fucked up relationship with her own sexuality. the consistency with which she refers to herself as 'dirty' specifically sticks out to me a huge amount and it reads so strongly to me as Ai perceiving herself as being dirty/impure or somehow Bad for being like... an person with healthy sexual desires and a sex drive.

there's a lot of subtext-adjacent stuff to suggest the twins' dad wasn't her first sexual partner and i do think that's the interpretation that both interests me the most and makes the most sense to me - I don't imagine a girl who wasn't taught what a door chain was for was given the best sex education - to imagine Ai, lonely and unsure of how to connect with people, stumbling into intimacy too quick as a stopgap or a shortcut to the thing she really wanted; warmth, affection, love.

is this necessarily Good Or Healthy? no, but it's also not the shameful, dirty thing that the idol culture's obsession with purity has led her to believe. it's just another way the environment she's in has forced this impression on her that her normal, achingly human problems are things she has to cover up and hide like dark secrets.

i also don't think the ways she was subjected to constant objectification and misogyny as she grew up can be discounted as influences here, either. B-Komachi is specifically identified in Viewpoint B as "[...]a group focused on romance above all else", "[...]promoting that sort of intense romantic fixation...". Specifically, the word gachikoi is used in Japanese, which is used to describe fans with intense and explicitly romantic fixations with the object of their fandom.

Ai was twelve years old when B-Komachi debuted and was being sold to and evaluated as an object of romantic (and implicitly, sexual) desire by adult men old enough to be her fucking father. At the same time, it was drilled into her that she was expected to be eternally pure, eternally available, eternally loving, eternally virginial and to never betray those fans. Is it any wonder that she ended up with such a completely fucked up relationship to her own body and sexual desires that she was apologizing for them with her dying breaths to a man who had just murdered her for having them?

i don't really have a closing argument for this post honestly lol just. whoof! ai really is so endlessly sad and fascinating to me. every time i rotate her a bit i find some new facet to her character that i can spend hours turning over in my head.

[amewinterswriting]

So, I've been playing the remaster of Baten Kaitos lately and for a JRPG of it's time (2003, originally) I'm actually quite amazed by how the narrative subtext frames disability. Major spoilers after the read more, and I will explain everything so you should understand even if you know nothing about the game.

In the world of Baten Kaitos, islands are kept aloft in the sky and the people live on them because of a disaster that poisoned the earth. Most of these people have wings on their back that they can make appear and disappear at will. They are referred to as 'Wings of the Heart' and their appearance is unique to each person, symbolizing their hopes and dreams and personalities. The people of the Empire do not have wings (? or perhaps choose not to use them, according to the prequel) but compensate with mechanical 'winglets'. It's also worth mentioning that the Empire is a major antagonistic force for about half the game, so even though there are friendly characters who come from the Empire, the association of no natural wings is predominantly 'evil'.

The protagonist only has one natural wing, and a prosthetic wing to compensate. It is shown that he has faced prejudice because of this - people treating him with suspicion and hatred because if his wings are deformed, it follows that his 'heart'/soul must be deformed as well.

In fact, this is a major motivation for him deceiving the rest of the party and the player themselves, aligning himself with the evil god we were trying to prevent from being resurrected the whole game. His 'payment' is a second, natural wing to match his existing one.

The plot then follows a secondary protagonist who eventually manages to confront him with a magical artifact that disrupts the evil god's power for long enough that he can choose a different path. And he does so, physically ripping off the wing he was 'gifted' and returning to the good guys and using his prosthetic (which the second protagonist had kept safe for him in the hope that he would one day rejoin them and he might need it).

While I have a lot of criticism for some elements of that plot (the one-winged protagonist should definitely have had more of a 'redemption' arc after deceiving the whole party and the player in a way that nearly destroys the entire world, but five minutes after he's rejoined the party it is almost as if it never happened), it is interesting that a game of this age does address the fantasy of 'what if I could just be magically fixed' and reject it. It actively frames the use of the prosthetic (something crafted for him with love and care from his family, later protected and cared for by the party in the hope that he'd come back to them) as something positive and better than a magical cure for him.

It's definitely not a perfect story (I would have loved to see some kind of connection between the party members - even at the end of the game, it does feel a lot like a group of strangers just happened to be going the same way and tagged along with each other), and I can't bring myself to decide whether the 'prosthetic' plotline is helped or hindered by the idea the the prosthetic is not a physical inconvenience in any way (never seems to need maintenance and works just as well as a natural wing, even adjusting as the protagonist grows) and only a social one (characters comment on it, some in negative ways and he admits he's faced that kind of prejudice his whole life). On the one hand, it's nice that he only actually faces any problems because of other people - it's a fantasy story, why shouldn't his inventor grandfather be able to make the perfect prosthetic for him? On the other hand, not having any physical ramifications (that the player is aware of) really does make his flip flop to the darkside and back for an hour seem a little cheap. Like, you've been bullied a bit, that sucks, it's still not worth screwing everyone else over, including all the people who have actively fought beside you to prevent the very thing you're doing?

But overall, the handling of his disability and the fact that the game doesn't just hand him a magical 'cure' as his happy ending? That feels pretty good to me.

[gudvina]

SEVEN KINGS MUST DIE OPINIONS

This post is a series of various ramblings about the movie!!! please do not read the extended version of this post if you want to avoid spoilers! last warning: THIS POST IS BASICALLY ONE SPOILER AFTER THE OTHER!!!!

I had an inkling this movie wasn't going to be incredibly thorough as the series was (and even the series was often a little rushed), but i feel it maintained a strong tie to the series, and while a little rushed it managed to give us some kind of closure.

OPINIONS:

the opening was amazing, loved how it took scenes from the movie and rendered it in the usual opening

Ingrith and Finan were so sweet, i was incredibly saddened that they didn't show them having kids or having more happy moments. Finan's reaction at her death was very sad, and i think it was unfair that we didn't get to know anything about his life post the events of the movie. Good though that it is implied at the end that Finan survives Uhtred.

what about Sihtric's wife/children???? again, we were left wondering about them but not only didn't she appear, his children weren't even in the picture. We are left wondering about them, unfortunately. Good thing though that he survived!!!

We knew baby Uhtred is in Rome; again, where is Stiorra????

Eadgifu's character was put to test this season but i am glad she was consistent with her s5 characterization. she is truly an amazing woman!

Eadgifu and the subtext with Uhtred was something i did not expect but liked! She matched Uhtred's maturity, and I liked the way they supported each other for their children.

Athelstan!!!! okay, while i am disappointed it wasn't Osbert the one to be coupled up with him, i really liked his arc. I love how they explored his feelings over his homosexuality, his guilt and how it tied directly to the story. He acted out of desperation at first, but then came around to his duty and a newfound purpose that wasn't anymore a means to get away from his sins, but something he truly wanted for himself and his people. His complex relationship with Uhtred was shown in a way that for once didn't involve Uhtred behaving stupidly, showing he's definitely grown from the man he once was.

No Hild disappointed me but good for her for getting away from these problems once again!!!

Aldhelm's death:((((

Astrid & Arnalf: now i think this is where the movie threw away its chances of developing a bit more the Dane antagonists! In this season particularly Astrid didn't have any other purpose other than to be the cause of Aldhelm's death, and serve as a plot device to further the story. Arnalf's motivation could have been better explored too.

Osbert's character wasn't very fleshed out, and i disliked that it wasn't even mentioned a conflict between him and Uhtred for the abandonment. Not an explanation, nothing. I do like him though, he reminds me of a younger Uhtred, and I find heartwarming his friendship with Edmund (though even that one is briefly shown).

The end of the movie wasn't bad, though it was interesting. in a way i felt like it was incredibly satisfying, since it didn't show us exactly what happened to Uhtred in the end, though it implied him entering in Valhalla. We don't know what happens after to him, but we know he was loved and he existed, and this series + the movie gives us a glimpse to a secret only we know. Despite it being a rushed ending, i will say that it was a good and satisfying one, and seeing Brida and Ragnar the Fearless truly warmed me. I wished we could have gotten a glimpse of Gisela but oh well, i understand Peri Baumeister was probably busy.

In the end I feel like the main problem of the movie was how rushed it was, and how poorly fleshed out were the characters we were following. That didn't hinder my enjoyment of it, though, and as i said it was very satisfying and in a way i love that we are left filling the gaps they left open.

Is it the best closure to TLK? maybe not, but unfortunately a 2 hour movie would never be able to give all we needed as fans of the serie, so what we got in comparison to many bad movies/sequels out there was a very well made final product.

I feel like upon rewatching both the serie and the movie i will come to love it fully! I have other thoughts, but for now these are my face value disconnected opinions.

I will miss these characters so much, they accompanied me all these years and brought me close to so many people! Hoping to continue enjoying them through the amazing fanwork this fandom continues to create!!!

[gbee-writes]

Henchman pushed open the door to the boss’s office with her hip, trying not to tip the tray in her hands too far. The last thing she needed was to spill the tea balanced on top.

As per usual for the mid-afternoon Villain was lazily reading through slogs of paperwork. When he heard the door creak open Villain trailed his eyes up before jolting upright with a bright, sunshine smile.

“Henchman! Thank God, I needed a break.” Villain was quick in clearing a spot on the desk for the tea tray. “Hero has been driving me up the wall with the new surveillance attempts. She’s so bad at being sneaky, you know what I mean?”

She hummed as she poured a cup for Villain and turned to leave. “Make sure to let that cool a bit before-”

“Where are you going?”

“I have a lot of applications for the guarding position to go through.” Henchman took a step away from the desk but, as per usual, Villain was having absolutely none of it.

“You've been working hard all day Henchman. I admire your dedication but I need you to sit down and let yourself rest a little, okay?”

She held her own against his puppy eyes for a solid three minutes. Somehow she always found herself backing down when it came to Villain and his oddly caring nature towards her. He managed to light up further as she sat down and poured herself a cup of tea as well.

They drank in silence for a while. Or as silent as it could be with Villain humming his appreciation of the drink. Henchman would be lying if she said she didn’t find it gratifying. Of course, she wouldn’t admit it out loud.

Soft sunlight streamed in from the floor to ceiling windows. Villain had chosen a beautiful forested area for his base, right next to a river that he could be occasionally found fishing in.

Memorably one of those times was in the dead of winter with no protective gear. He had laughed off her lectures on hypothermia and frostbite. The cold was ‘refreshing’ he had claimed before promptly getting sick. Like a moron.

A contented sigh escaped her. Immediately her superior was turning his attention over to her. “I gave you some extra vacation days. You deserve a nice long break from everything. I don’t think you’ve even taken a sick day since I hired you on!”

She chewed the inside of her cheek. “Thanks boss but I’m fine. You’d probably get arrested if I left for an hour.” Her flat tone did nothing to dampen Villain’s jovial nature.

“We could go on a vacation together! It’s been ages since I’ve gone on one myself and I would be overjoyed to have such wonderful company.”

Henchman might have blushed if she weren’t trained to keep her emotions down so well. How was he always saying things so sweet about her? Without any sarcasm? It was unfamiliar...it was...well it was kind of nice actually. Then her heart stuttered.

A vacation with her boss? Maybe he just didn’t think of the implications when he offered. Yeah, probably that; he wouldn’t think of the subtext behind a suggestion like that.

...Would he?

Either way she wasn’t sure how to decline without sounding rude.

“Well Sir, I suppose I could accompany you on your vacation if you wanted.”

Villain looked as though he’d conquered the world. His eyes shone in a triumphant way she hadn’t seen before. “Where would you like to go? I know a beautiful beach resort, or a cabin in the woods? You always seem more at peace near the trees.”

“Oh! I feel you would love the big city; so many different food stops. You always bring interesting foods for lunch so I’m pretty sure you wouldn’t mind a cuisine tour, huh?”

Henchman blinked a few times. He wasn’t going to choose a place based on his own interests? “Oh...uh, whatever you want boss.”

For a moment he stared at her expectantly.

Of course.

He never took away a choice he had given her. The problem with that was that she hadn’t ever taken a vacation and wasn’t remotely sure what she would enjoy. After a pause spent scrambling for an answer Henchman shrugged. “Uh...I’ve never been to a beach before?”

“Have you been swimming?”

Recreationaly? No. For survival training in a pool that simulated devastating storm conditions? Yes.

Maybe agreeing was a mistake...was it too late to back out?

“I know how to swim, yes.” Why did she say that?

Why did she say that?!

---

Henchman really wished she could go back to the day she agreed to this vacation and slap herself.

She had to buy a swimsuit (a mortifying ordeal with overly giggly workers that were more than happy to try and put her in the least fabric possible after hearing she was going with a man. Why did she tell them that?), she needed to arrange someone to keep the place running while her and Villain were gone, and most awful was that Villain had so much excitement over taking a trip with her that he looked about ready to pop with it.

“I can’t wait for you to see the waters at this beach. They’re so clear it’s like looking into glass, you can see all the fish and coral. The reef is stunning.”

Henchman forced a weak smile. “I’m sure.”

Villain finally seemed to notice something was wrong. His brows knit together tightly. “Do you not want to go?” A wounded tone. She couldn’t help her flinch at it. His eyes widened. “Oh, no Henchman I’m not trying to guilt you. I just, if you felt like you had to go with me you really didn’t.”

“Saying no would have been rude.”

“No, it would be setting boundaries. If you want we can head back or you can go by yourself and I’ll head back. I won’t be upset with you.”

The thought of going was awful in the first place, the thought of going alone? Henchman’s skin prickled. “No! No, I don’t want to be by myself there.”

Villain studied her face, his own bursting with concern.

Something seemed to click.

“Have you...never gone on vacation before?” Henchman didn’t need to speak for him to know the answer. “Oh. Overwhelmed?”

“A...a bit, yeah...”

“How about this,” His gentle tone eased the tensions she hadn’t noticed building in her shoulders. “We can give it a shot and if you don’t like it we can go back. Yeah?”

Henchman nodded. Villain’s smile could have blinded her. “Okay, because I was really hoping to spoil you this trip, give you the thanks you deserve for being the only thing keeping my base together.”

Maybe it was her already shaken nerves that caused her blush to make it through her defenses. If Villain noticed her burning cheeks he didn’t comment on it, thank god.

---

Villain had been right.

The reef was stunning.

Henchman stared at the colors rippling beneath the waves in a strange sort of trance. She barely noticed Villain stepping up beside her. His arms lazily draped the balcony of her frankly overly luxurious hotel room.

A part of her had been worried he’d book only one room, but no, a gentleman as always he had booked two. Well, gentleman with her at least. He was still a villain after all.

The wind held traces of flowers and saltiness. Henchman couldn’t breathe in enough of it.

Her skin prickled and she turned to see Villain watching her. The expression on his face was completely unfamiliar. Half lidded gentle brown eyes, a soft subtle upturn of the corner of his mouth. Her heart skipped.

“What are you staring at me like that for boss?”

“You’re so beautiful when you look this way.”

Henchman flapped her mouth uselessly. “Li-like what?”

“Tranquil. Happy.”

With that statement Villain pulled himself off the railing and went to go to his own room. She couldn’t call him back. Did she want to? No of course not, why would she want to, he was just being nice...right?

Oh god.

He had definitely known the implications of inviting her with him.

Her heart pattered a little bit. Perhaps...perhaps there was a chance he even meant them.

No. No god no. She wasn’t about to get sucked into this fantasy. Henchman was a subordinate, not a potential romantic partner. Her job was to do paperwork, keep heroes off Villain, and hire more goons.

Somehow she managed to get her legs to budge again. She went to the bed (those covers were fine silk, how much money had he spent on her?) and was startled to find a gift box at the foot. There was a small card tied to it with a yellow ribbon. Her favorite color.

‘Got you something to wear to dinner. Only if you want though, wear what you’re comfortable in! ~Villain’

Henchman was met with yellow fabric as she slid the lid open. When she pulled it out to see what it was better her breath caught.

A beautiful 50′s style sundress.

Her dream dress.

She vaguely remembered offhandedly mentioning liking them around Villain at one point, bringing up their lack of practicality in her chosen field as to the reason she didn’t have one. He had remembered...

After absorbing that revelation Henchman changed into the dress. A part of her was deeply worried it wouldn’t fit. Most dresses didn’t accommodate for larger muscle mass and she certainly had plenty. It took her a moment to remember Villain had her measurements from getting her uniform fitted and that almost guaranteed the dress was tailored to her.

A flutter of giddy joy popped into her chest as Henchman looked in the mirror. Maybe she had chosen a less feminine field but that didn’t mean she wasn’t a lady, or at least didn’t want to be. She just didn’t have reason to dress up really.

A glance back at the box revealed matching flats. She was quick to put those on as well. Then she took the ribbon that was on the note and tied half of her hair up into a bun, letting the ends dangle into the rest of it.

She wished she had jewelry to match. Oh well, she was just happy to break away from her work wear or at-home sweat pants for once.

A knock at her door caught her attention.

Henchman opened the door to Villain. Her face nearly caught fire when she saw that he was wearing a very fine button up shirt that was definitely a few buttons open lower than an appropriate professional amount.

Ignore that, ignore that.

“Time for dinner boss?”

“Call me Villain while we’re here, yeah?”

“Okay.” Henchman definitely didn’t make a weird wheezing squeak, she was very collected as always. “Uh...time for dinner then...Villain?”

His smile sent butterflies loose in her insides. God what was this vacation doing to her? “Yes it is, Querida*.” She took his offered arm with a nervous smile.

Was that a pet name? It sounded like Spanish, regrettably a language she didn’t know (she knew French, German, and some Italian but hadn’t the time for Spanish yet), and the way he said it was so warm.

“You look lovely by the way.” Villain pulled her from her thoughts. “I’m glad you liked the dress.”

“I can’t believe you remembered.” Henchman had managed to gain composure back.

A soft chuckle, “Of course I remembered. You seemed so sad about it, I just couldn’t forget. I’ve been waiting for a good chance to have one made for you.”

And with that her composure was gone again.

---

Dinner had gone well enough, though Henchman had to really struggle not to stare at Villain too much. She had seen him comfortable back home plenty of times but this vacation brought a whole new level of relaxed that she found dangerously distracting.

If he noticed her jerking her eyes away several times he didn’t mention it.

Thank god.

Before she knew it they had ended up sitting on a towel together on the beach as the sun bathed the sky in blankets of orange, reds, and pinks. The gentle lapping of the waves was so serene.

“You’re wonderful Henchman, you know that?” Villain’s words were barely a whisper but they seemed to boom in her ears.

She turned to him with a start. “Bo-...Villain?”

“You are.” He pushed. “You’re brilliantly smart, strong and dependable, you’re capable of moving mountains if you wanted to. It’s wonderful.”

Henchman didn’t know how to respond. She’d gotten compliments before but none that felt quite like this, even coming from Villain. This felt more like he was baring his soul than just appreciation of her work.

Villain smiled and her head spun. The way he looked at her was so overwhelmingly, startlingly impassioned. No one looked at her this way.

“Villain-” Her words caught.

“Thank you. For applying at my base, for staying, for tolerating my...eccentric-ness.”

A moment.

“For coming with me here.” His eyes were filled with an odd longing sadness that she hadn’t realized was for her.

She’d seen that look before of course. He made it when he lost fights and she bandaged him up, or when she shared food with him that she’d made for herself if he forgot his own, or when she would use herself as a shield fighting against the heroes without a second thought-

His hand brushed her cheek. Henchman’s lungs faltered as Villain’s face came so tenderly close to hers. “May I?” He breathed out.

Slowly she pushed forwards and their lips connected in a gentle kiss. Villain let her chose when to pull away, ever the gentleman. Even though it was so small a kiss Henchman’s lips tingled a little. Was that normal?

...Oh she was blushing.

She was blushing hard.

Embarrassment swept over her. Henchman was normally so much better at controlling her emotions, why was she struggling with it now?

“You don’t need to be composed and professional here Querida.” Villain rubbed his thumb along her cheekbone. “It’s a vacation; please let yourself enjoy it with me.”

Henchman forced a deep breath. Gentle as she could she took his hand from her cheek. For a split second he looked worried but she only shifted so she was leaning back into his chest, keeping his hand in hers so that his arm wrapped her shoulders.

It felt a little strange with the gifts and the tender words. Henchman didn’t understand why her...but maybe she didn’t have to. Maybe she could just let herself be loose around someone for once, enjoy the unfamiliar but not unwelcome attention.

Yeah, maybe she could let herself be happy with him there.

“Thank you Villain.”

“Of course, Querida.”

____________

**Querida is a spanish term of endearment. Thank you so much to @/redbircl for giving me the proper word to fit the context!

I don’t write romance much? And I don’t know how well I did honestly but I think I’m pretty proud of this. I was going for Sunshine Villain (who adores henchman) and Emotionally Constipated Henchman (who secretly enjoys the attention) so hopefully that’s what it comes off as.

(Edited to fix translation error, changed “Estimado” to “Querida”, and to add a read more because I don’t like long posts clogging my blog lol)

[lestatthebrat]

About the Racists, Homophobes, and Purists Reviewing amc’s “Interview with the Vampire”

To put it bluntly: the people giving this show bad reviews are racists and homophobes. This is a damn good show that breathes new life into an old story, and the fan reviews claiming that this adaptation is “horrible” and a “disgrace” to Anne Rice’s work are simply bigots who cannot stand to see two men kissing on screen and/or who are ridiculously offended that Black actors are playing Louis and Claudia. 

Don’t believe me? Look at what fan reviewer joshua g had to say on Rotten Tomatoes: “Of course they would take a classic that does not need change, and turn it into a homosexual love story.” Obviously, his 0.5-star rating (the lowest rating possible on Rotten Tomatoes) was not motivated by the quality of the show but by his own homophobia. P W is another fan reviewer who gave the show a whopping 0.5 stars, because he has a problem with People of Color playing some of the leading characters. He says: “At some point, the intentional casting of minorities in reboots is going to end. History will look unfavorably at the practice.” Fan reviewer Rich G says it even more bluntly: “I dislike this show for one very specific reason. The race swapping of Louis and Claudie” (the misspelling of Claudia’s name is his mistake, not mine). Meanwhile, a fan reviewer on IMDb, GeorgeWHAMMYBush, gave the show a 1/10 (the lowest possible rating on IMDb) and this review: “They made the whole thing a dismally shot propaganda piece and it's painful to sit through… The plot gets obliterated completely in this and it's barely about vampirism at all and is now about race and sexual orientation. The whole thing is a waste of time. They then go after religion because while it was touched on as offensive to vampires in the books here it is clearly the target of the hacks who made this abomination. This could be studied in school as a part of a series on why American media failed when it had every chance to succeed. Whoever made this should be banned from the media industry entirely. Do not bother watching this. It will just aggravate you.” Most of the very low reviews on Rotten Tomatoes and IMBb are reminiscent of these examples, and it’s cringingly obvious these people just hate the show because they are racist and homophobic.  

It amuses me that some of these bigots are attempting to use their alleged “love” for the source material as a mask for their racism and homophobia. Like “HOW DARE THEY CHANGE ANNE RICE’S BOOK AND MAKE LOUIS A BLACK MAN INSTEAD OF A SLAVE OWNER!?” or “HOW DARE THEY MAKE LOUIS GAY JUST TO SEEM WOKE!?” But if these so called “avid fans” actually read any of Anne Rice’s books, they must have stopped after book one, because if they got even to book 2 they would have known that Louis and Lestat have ALWAYS been an LGBT couple. If you read book 1, “Interview with the Vampire,” and missed the pretty-hard-to-miss subtext, go re-read it. To recap: Louis talks about how Lestat “had me mesmerized, enchanted” (direct quote); Louis explicitly compares Lestat turning him into a vampire to sex; he and Lestat live together for over sixty year; and they adopt a child together. By book 2, “The Vampire Lestat,” Lestat has male lovers both before and after becoming a vampire, and he confirms that he and Louis were lovers. He and Louis also have a heartfelt reunion in the 80s, and they kiss multiple times on the mouth. (I know, too gay for people who didn’t get past the Neil Jordan film.) By the time we reach the final book in of series, “Blood Communion,” Louis and Lestat are again living together, and in the final chapter of the book, they dance together at a ball, embrace, kiss multiple times on the lips, and profess their undying love for one another. Sorry, homophobes, but these vampires ain’t never been straight, and you’d know that if you actually read the books.  

Aside from the raving racists and homophobes, there are some fan reviewers who seem to genuinely love Rice’s “Vampire Chronicles” but have a problem with the amc series diverging from the source material. Again, the “race swapping” is commonly mentioned, so I wonder how many of these people are also motivated by prejudice, but they have other problems too, such as changes in the time period, the ages of the character’s, the dialog (come on, what tv show preserves all of the dialogue from the books?), and even tiny unimportant details like the vampires “spilling blood” when they kill people. I understand when you passionately love a book series (and I myself passionately love “The Vampire Chronicles”), you imagine the story and characters a certain way, but what these people need to realize is that it is not unusual, uncommon, unfair, or disrespectful for tv reboots or movies to make changes from the books. “Interview with the Vampire” was already made into a very successful and well-known movie in 1994, and most remakes/reboots that do NOT try anything new but simply repeat what has already been done fail miserably. “Psycho,” “Nightmare of Elm Street,” “Carrie”... these are all movies that took a classic and remade it more or less the same as the original, and all of these films were brushed off and forgotten because they offered nothing new and exciting, nothing updated and relevant, nothing thought-provoking that would allow the audience to think of things in a different way or see things in a new light. In simply repeating the original with different actors, they failed to live up to the original. The same thing has happened when books have been made into movies and then later into tv series: look at “The Shining.” Most people don’t even know the inferior miniseries exists, even though it is more accurate to the book and Stephen King wrote it himself. On the contrary, some of the most successful remakes, the kind of remakes that make people say, “This is better than the original!”—which, by the way, the majority of critics and fans ARE saying about amc’s “Interview with the Vampire”—are remembered and beloved because they do not just rehash the same old material but because they put a spin on old characters and content; they make changes and updates; they offer the audience something new, exciting, current, and relevant, something more and something deeper. Some examples: “The Fly,” “The Thing,” “Invasion of the Body Snatchers.” This is what amc is doing with “Interview with the Vampire.” 

So, if you earnestly love the original books, that’s wonderful, but you have the books, and you can read them as many times as you want. You also have the Neil Jordan film which you can re-watch to your liking. Now, the amc series is remaking/rebooting this series, and it is not a crime for production teams to take creative liberties, and I honestly do not see this as a disrespect to Anne Rice’s work either. She SOLD the rights of her work for this television series, which means the production team can make whatever changes they want. That’s how it goes for any author whose book is being made into a movie: they sign the contract, they get paid (and Anne Rice most likely got paid millions of dollars for this series) and they don’t have any say over what changes are made to the production. Even most script writers who spend months or years creating characters and writing a story, if they are lucky enough to sell their script to a production company, they lose creative control over that story. That’s just the way it works. It’s nothing new. It’s nothing shocking. And it’s not a “disgrace.” This has been going on literally always since movies and television shows have been made based on books. Have you ever seen the “original” 1931 “Frankenstein” movie? Ever compare it to Mary Shelley’s book? So like I was saying, movies/tv shows departing from the source material is nothing new and nothing to be “furious” or “disgusted” about. 

Now, if you love the show, please go leave a review on IMDb and Rotten Tomatoes, because it’s being review-bombed by racists and homophobes and purists who want to see it tank! But we won’t let that happen because they dumbass bitches and love wins! ♥️ 

[shenanigans-and-imagines]

Hellooooo

Could I have, for your lovely Evie/Tav:

General: 2, 4 & 9

Story: 2, 3, 11, 13 & 17

Romance: 7

Thank you kindly, and I hope you have a nice day!!

(a different picrew because I can't draw. Just imagine blue eyes)

Astarion x Evie (Ace!Tav) Masterlist (for context)

General

2. Do the other companions have special comments or reactions upon recruiting your Tav?

Answered here

4. What sort of general actions raise or lower their approval?

Raise approval:

Taking her out of camp

Compliment her music

Being nice to children and animals

Respecting her wishes

Remembering things from her dialogue

Engage to playful banter

Lower approval:

Leaving her behind in camp

Insulting her profession and music

Deceptive pick up lines

Solving problems only with violence

9. Does your Tav have any escalating conflicts with one of the other companions, like Lae’zel and Shadowheart’s knife-fight?

I want to say no. Evie is keeping mostly towards the background, especially in the first act and doesn't want to cause waves.

Although, I do think she'd have plenty of background bickering with Astarion. Also Gale would start to grow more and more frustrated with her lack of understanding of her own magic outside of the fact it works. I would want part of her quest to touch on the fact that she can't read.

Story

2. How do they advise the player character on Raphael?

Evie: "The devil you do or the devil you don't". The Hells probably had a field day when that line was first spoken. I suppose they were all rather proud of themselves.

Evie: Perhaps I'm being a bit obvious, but maybe we shouldn't trust a literal devil. He compared himself to a literal cat trapping a mouse. Not exactly subtext is it.

Evie: I'm not saying his power isn't real. I have no doubt he can do exactly what he said, but that gives us all the more reason not to trust him. We know he has an ace up his sleeve, best not play at all.

3. How do they react to Astarion biting the Player Character?

Evie: A vampire? Well, I supposed I should have seen that coming. There's pale and then there's...whatever Astarion has going on.

Evie: You let him bite you? Did it...did it hurt? I mean, of course it hurt, but you know, everybody has their preferences.

11. What do they say if the PC tries to force them to go up on stage with Dribbles the Clown?

Evie: Believe it or not there are certain rules I follow when it comes to performances. Number one, never work with clowns.

Evie: I will eviscerate you in fiction when this is all over.

13. How do they react to the PC either allowing Astarion to ascend or convincing him to spare the 7000 spawn?

Allowing Astarion to Ascend:

Evie: All those people...you-- helped him kill 7000 people? For what? For power? For protection? I understand being afraid. Trust me, I do. But to lead to this? How are you not terrified?

Convincing Him to Spare the 7000 Spawn:

Evie: He'll never believe me if I said this, but what he did was brave. Denying himself that power, risking never being able to see the sun, all for the chance at real freedom? That takes courage. I hope he comes to understand that someday.

17. If romanced, how do they react to the Dark Urge trying to kill them in Act 2?

Evie: I'm up love, promise. I just need to... *eyes open wider and she sits up* Are you alright? Has something happened? You don't look well.

Evie: Protect me from what? Start at the beginning.

Evie: Alright that's...bad. I can safely say that is very bad. Truth be told I rather like living. Why didn't you tell me sooner? I know I'm not the best at understanding curses or compulsions or whatever this is, but I could have helped. I'm here for you, you must know that by now.

*Durge knocks out and wake up tied up*

Evie: Easy now love. It's alright. Nothing is going to hurt you, I promise.

Evie: I'll try not to take that personally. I know you're in there, just hold tight. I'm not leaving.

Evie: This looks like it's hurting you more than me. Don't lose focus now. I'm right here.

*night passes sick and sweating, but bloodlessly*

Evie: Good to see you back to yourself, can't say I'll miss that feral look in your eye. Now will you please tell me what's going on?

Romance

7. What questions can Zethino ask the PC about Tav in the Love Test? 

If she were an animal, what would she be?

What brings her joy when the world goes dark?

What true fear lingers in her heart?

Companion!Tav Asks

[napneeders]

//unorganized rambling about both stuff I loved and hated in s2

ANYWAY!!! Ed and Frenchie so tragic and all the more so because there's never any kind of closure. their dynamic in 1-2 is so masterful because they have a pre-existing personal relationship and that never goes away no matter how much they're both wearing their masks. they could have had a friendship, but after his heartbreak, Ed needs to destroy that chance along with everything else. it's tragic!! he picked probably the two Revenge crew members he could most easily identify with, only to turn them against him.

but imo Frenchie feels for Ed to the end. he's sad for him in the impossible birds scene. he feels good when Ed expresses confidence in him - even in the fraught circumstances of hiding Izzy and not being sure he's fooled Ed - it's better to let himself feel good, live the reality that Ed is setting - because Frenchie knows about making reality himself, but he also knows when to concede that power (that's his defining strength if you ask me, not his ability to scam or please but the ability to assess the situation and choose from his strategies) - the cheerful little musical interval that starts as Ed's talking to Frenchie, continues as Frenchie walks through the ship, and ends abruptly with the overpowering reality of the hidden room is so good to me, a little creepy, a little sad.

and to go from that to the disappointment and hurt of Frenchie escorting Ed off the ship - still the messenger - and Ed lashing at him in such an impersonal way. to Frenchie's unimpressed expression and unenthusiastic clapping (but he still starts clapping when he sees everyone around him but the trauma crew do it - ugh my baby boy) after Ed's apology. it's only a glimpse but it's so raw. but for that to be it? it's not even an unreasonable reading that after a) Ed's horrors (which arguably Frenchie might be happy to put in the box if Ed offered him anything real) & b) Ed's inability to address them in any meaningful way, Frenchie's just done with him - like the crew are as a whole - rebuilding with each other instead - that's a good storyline! but there's also the missed opportunity of revisiting that relationship. not just for its own sake (or to satisfy my particular taste) but because it would be a SORELY needed opportunity for Ed to interact with the crew, and to face some of the themes of the early season - like that paternal role Ed takes on as part of his suicide mission. sure, partly that's addressed in the gravy basket, but the trouble is, no one else was there.

for the midseason in general, I love that they spend so much time on the crew negotiating how to be with each other in the post-horrors era. it's just that any progress in Ed's relationship with the crew is massively glossed over. to the point that I'm not even sure how we're meant to read that relationship in 6-8; cursory suggestions that all is fine now aren't exactly contradicted, iirc, but they're not backed up by anything either. I assume the core problem is trying to do too much in too little time, but it feels like some massive miscalculations were made in regards to what can be left to implication. and then possibly the implications were left to implication.

anyway. I'm well aware not everyone might read as much into Ed and Frenchie's relationship as I do, but that's kind of the point - season 1 managed a balance of text and subtext, including avenues for interpretation, really well, and that continued in the early second season, but then it just kind of fizzles out. even new threads I thought were picked up in the later season - Stede's real pirate arc - are just dropped. it's frustrating.

[dreamtydraw]

Hello from the Fishbowl!

Oh I’m so glad you and plant anon agree with me on my vn red flags/icks! Like I said a lot of the red flags and icks I tend to have are really subjective so I get that some people will love what I kinda hate but it’s nice to see I’m not alone on stuff :)

Also, is it bad that I kinda wanna hear more about Heir to Love and Lie? I’ve never played any Fictif games but this sounds like some hot gossip I want in on, tell me more about how bad of a game it is lol. From an outsider perspective I think it’s kinda funny how it’s like “Yes the Fictif app has a bunch of great and fun stories with a ton of good content- NO DONT LOOK AT THAT STORY ITS HIDEOUS-” I know the stories are probably made by different teams so it makes sense that there’s differences in quality but still

Last Legacy and now Roadkill have peaked my interest since I’ve seen you talk about it here (I had never heard of Fictif at all before) but I’ve been a little hesitant to give the games a try because they’re mobile games and frankly I’m not the biggest fan of playing vn style games on mobile, I used to all the time but the grinding for stuff like story keys just to get content that may or may not be good kinda grated on me so I stopped and haven’t looked back. But idk maybe I’ll decide to give Fictif a chance when I have the time, your love for the games are definitely convincing me to give it a shot :)

Also I hope you get better soon and you’re not sick with anything too serious! Take care of yourself!

-🐟

( ok i’ll do proganda about the good game of fictif ask me about htlal on another ask )

Ok so i’ll start by saying that you should def play roadkil, last legacy and monster manor on the fictif app, WITH A CRACKED VERSION! If you have an Android play with a mod app and you won’t have to pay for the special choice ( you still have to wait for keys tho but it’s manageable) I personally use Modyolo. With the mod there is no grind, you just wait for your keys to regenerate to play the chapters.

Why you should play last legacy ? Last legacy is a really well written fantasy romance made by queers, for queers with good queers characters. The narrative is limited but realize that fans of this game haven’t had update in 2 years and we all still love this, that how good the game is for us. What I really appreciate is the approach of the romance, the well-written worldbuilding, and the interesting plot and evolution of the li throughout the story + bonus points the art is really pretty + the music is awesome

This is an otome where you feel the passion of the dev because of all the details and care they put into the characters. It sad that we’ll never get an ending but just because it’s my second favorite otome after Our life i really recomand.

Now another wonderful story on the app is Monster manor. It’s a reviseted tale of beauty and the beast where mc is a reparator that come helps the resident of the manor to fix the place and also fix their issue. Again it’s very well written and although you can get subtile subtext on romance this one is very axed on exploring the character's mental health and their story of self-improvement. ALSO IT HAS A CANON TRANS DRAGON CREATURE WHO’S THE SWEETEST I LOVE HIM HE’S SO WHOLESOME-

Bonus the music is so good i even added it on my spotify- and good art

Monster Manor is one of those stories that leave a very specific feeling in you. I don't know how to describe it but it just has a lot of wholesomeness and character going troughs sad but relatable problems that you see get better and makes you happy that they're healing.

now.... my guilty pleasure.... Roadkil !

THE BROMANCE OF THIS GAME IS SO GOOD I swear

Objectively: This game feels like a wild mess of fan fiction with random scenario after scenario and cliché horror moments, but oh man the ambiance. The best trio of Li, they are close friends, and in the 3 routes the group is just such an amazing friend group. The characters are lovely and it's like reading a bad yet good wattpad fanfic : well written ? no ? But the ideas ? good !

Like i said, this game is based on cliché of horror movies but also on american culture ( which I learned trought this game lol ). It has longer chapters than the other two games (except Tess but Tess got hit by the sexism of a greedy company that wants shirtless men in dating sim to attract gurls ) BUT they all shine.

Poe's route had me ugly crying in the end, Howie's ending is AWFULL but I had a great time, Tess is actually a superbe F Li even whith the dev having to cut her short and ruin her ending, she shine very britgh in the other routes and her own ( for ex she's the one with a shotgun and the one that won you and howie a teddy bear )

I really need more people to play roadkill because it's an underated banger in my opinion and it has many great scenes in the mess of scenarios ( the intro is really good for ecxemple )

Like, when I say not all game needs to be well written? That's what I'm talking about, this one is a hot delightful mess

ANYWAY! My rambling was long but I hope it was interessing !