#if anybody reads this = <3

[shinakazami1]

TapeMan theory (TSP ramble)

Quick ramble before sleep

In the original Tape Ending, the discussion of the nature of the Narrator is brought in. He says that it's ridiculous we would find him to be just a recording but then...Why is he still in the game post-epilogue?

In my opinion, where TSP shines most is ambiguity. The main source of the information we get is from a man who constantly shows that the game doesn't quite care about.

But - this is supposed to be about the TapeMan, right? Why am I talking about this? You will see in a sec.

One of the important details is that the tape recorder is hidden behind a vent. And you know what else is hidden behind it?

That's right - The Memory Zone. Narrator's safe spot from everybody else but also, his subconsciousness. A storage of good memories.

The Tape too, is in a hidden part of a warehouse, nicely paralleling the Memory Zone. For a moment, let's go to the Bucket - a symbol of confidence, progress and comfort. But also, of madness and obsession. It changes people's psyche - or, more likely, enhances some parts.

TapeMan character shows something we see often in the game:

1) Loss of time concept - on one hand, he says what day it is and we even get the tape number but when we look more into his dialogue, it's visible the time passage is becoming a foreign thing.

2) The need to keep having it with him but also to monetize it - just like the people at the New Content presentation, or Narry with the 3rd swimming pool. But it's THE Bucket - even if there is a replacement one, this single one holds all the power. Interesting.

3) He knows who Gambhorra'ta is. They got only mentioned in the Out Of Bounds, this ending and the Bucket Museum but I will try to not retour too much here - WHY and how would Tape know about a supposed evil wizard from a war a long time ago?

My main headcanon is that - TapeMan is a character, just like the Wife that Narrator is playing.

Think about it - 295 days is less than a year. But in the Parable universe, time is weird and the only real passage we get is Countdown and... the Skip Button. I have my own headcanons as to what happened during the latter but for now, I will spare those details.

However - a detail I will discuss is the name of the tape.

Evidence #252.

TapeMan says it's "tape number", not evidence. And while it's a small nitpick - I think it's an important one. Because between the days and tape numbers, we are missing around 40 days. It's plausible that he first found the Bucket and only later realised that something was up. But also - it is possible that someone else named this tape.

You have to remember that the tape recorder is the same and it still says Narrator on it. For me - the day, while showing that the maddening process took time - it's supposed to also be like "Hey wait a minute, there is time in here???".

Sure - the Narrator himself knows when the first game got released but the passage of time is very wonky in the place. So - for it to be the first thing, to mimic a typical recording...huh. Isn't that something the Narrator already did in a normal version of the ending?

Tapeman to the Narrator is a commentary on how something so cherished gets taken and how greed consumes people. The Bucket here can symbolise many things but here, it might be his game. And that sickening madness, waiting for the Player to come back is what TapeMan might be.

Or maybe it's just another recording. Or it's a man losing his mind over an everyday object that somebody poured their whole heart and being into.

But who am I to judge.

[cheesebrackers]

I’m getting better at drawing robots :3

[lazycranberrydoodles]

modern AU where they meet again at the fast food place Xie Lian works at and Hua Cheng has to figure out how to romance a customer service employee

[ventiswampwater]

Favorite Living Dead Dolls

Maggot / Elisa / Frozen Charlotte / Alison Crux / Toxic Molly / Cuddles / Dawn / Revenant / Isabel

[spooky-activity]

[twotailednekomata]

Yes, I did backtrack through the comic. This is my liveblog, I do whatever I like.

You know, this panel reminds me of a post I saw about how Damian would be the one more lax about nicknames on patrol whereas Jon would be more strict.

If Damian really is as tight on nicknames as believed, then I doubt that he would call Jon 'J' since, from an outside perspective, where would he get the J from? Superboy's name does not contain a 'J' and that could be a potential hint to his identity.

I know that this is just one panel but still something to think about.

[autumngracy]

Not me creeping up to the wordcount of the fourth longest book ever written

[mattodore]

perks of having a strong boyfriend

[bardicious]

BAHAHAHAHAHA!

Chris Hemsworth, please, honestly GO FUCK YOURSELF. LMAO.

Okay, so, listen, this is honestly going to be the last I ever talk about this, but the fact that I've been proven right about this jackasses involvement in this whole affair has got me laughing!

In 2017, or the year previous, who the fuck knows, Chris Hemsworth got his friend, Taika Waititi to direct Thor 3. Thor Ragnarok, which heavily diverged from the cinematography and the lore of the previous two Thor movies. Chris Hemsworth decided Thor was too boring. He didn't like playing him anymore. He wanted to play someone new and fun. He wanted to play himself. And he got just that.

I'll give Ragnarok enough credit, that aye, I might be fooled into thinking there was some interest the title character. But after Love and Thunder? No, now I know I've been fooled into watching a costume party by Chris Hemsworth, his family, and his friends. Ding ding ding! What do we have here, Johnny?

A bottom tier celebrity making a franchise that not only was all about him - his character, but all about him!!! He's playing himself!

His daughter at the end of Thor: Love and Thunder, is his daughter in real life (she's cute, no diss). His two sons played younger versions of him. His wife was a wolf woman he made out with! His best friends Matt fucking Damon and Taika Waititi both star in the role and the latter directs it.

I'm sorry, but at what fucking point did I sign up for a lazy written fanfiction? Because that's sure as hell not what I thought would happen in Thor 1 or 2, or Avengers. And you know, I am still mad, because I enjoyed the OG Thor, I enjoyed the OG Loki, and Marvel and, wow, did it not pay off.

Alas, it's on me for watching any new Thor films (aye, listen, I gotta family here!), but I just wanted to tell anyone who ever said Thor is a walking self insert nowadays. You are completely and utterly spot on.

Applaud yourself.

PS. Full Review* -> Here

Have fun!

[charlesemersonwinchesteriii]

Medical log, stardate 18935.15. Once more have I seen the tailor go out in his lizard fashion—

[uncanny-tranny]

Your influence in this world doesn't need to be all-encompassing and World Changing. It can be small ripples. It can be gentle and easily missed.

Let yourself do small things. So often, people have this idea that to do "good things," it must be a grand gesture that changes every little thing. Honestly, that can be so intimidating and scary. We weren't meant to carry the world by ourselves. We each contribute, often in small ways, often in ways that aren't seen by everybody. But the people you affect might just take that kindness you gave them and let it light them home. Let yourself be that in whatever way you want. You don't need to carry the world alone.

[mayfriend]

incorrect avatar quotes (6/?)

[m1d-45]

-Pari Anon

What if Zhongli ended up finding Creator! Pari! Reader?

They were hovering close to where Xiao was fighting when Zhongli ran into them. He, sensing they were some sort of threat, took them with him.

When they don’t return to Xiao after his fight, he gets worried and starts looking for them. They’re typically nearby, out of danger.

Did they get eaten? Are they okay? Poor Xiao is panicking, calling for his little friend.

He finds them with Zhongli. Locked in a cage made of Geo.

Do you think he can convince Zhongli that his little friend isn’t a threat?

(please note that i know nothing about pari lore or behavior-)

i imagine xiao is rather picky about you accompanying him on patrols, always making sure you’re far away from the battle. you’re not to be where monsters can see, where you can get hurt, always at or near where he leaves you.

and you, to your credit, follow this rule fairly well! you watch from afar, typically either playing with butterflies or looking at the flowers around where he left you. you know how he worries, and have been fretted over by him many times, and you’re not keen on stressing him out further.

zhongli had been sensing disturbances in liyue, how the earth is rearranging, leylines shifting and ebbing, as if a restless child finally being out to rest. however, a change in the leylines is never anything safe, not when they’d been utilized by the abyss before. he’d trusted the adepti with it at first, knowing xiao would never allow such a danger to roam liyue unchecked, but it had been too long. he excused himself from the funeral parlor, approaching the area of disturbance himself.

it was… mundane. or, more accurately, par for the course. he heard the sounds of battle, the burning smell of ozone signaling the use of xiao’s vision, but there was no leyline blossom he could see or sense. the hilichurls weren’t stained with curse nor karma, and he decided to ask xiao after he was done. he was confident in his abilities to fight off the enemies, and he might as well get a head start on the search.

nothing. a few chitters from a bird or perhaps squirrel, but nothing disturbed. no marks to the earth, no upturned stones or deep pits, no abnormal elemental flow. and yet, he was certain this was where the cause of the disruptance was from…

he crossed his arms, frowning at his surroundings. it wasn’t xiao, it wasn’t the monsters.. perhaps some infected wildlife?

the birds chirped again. this time, he followed.

a few birds had gathered beneath a tree, surrounding a… pari? he wasn’t aware they even lived in liyue, let alone..

the pari seemed to be playing with the birds. batting a small stone between it and the birds. zhongli approached, uncaring of how the birds flapped away, focused on the twist of the pari looking up at him.

he crouched. “and what are you doing here, hm?”

the park backed away from his hand when he slowly reached out, and his eyes caught on how the grass in front of them seemed to grow quicker, weaving into a sort of shield.

everything clicked at once.

“so you’re the one doing this.”

his hand shot out, folding in the pari’s wings, grip tight. it squirmed and chirped, as if crying for help, but he paid it no mind. his free hand waved, a cage of geo sprouting from the ground, and he locked it inside with little hesitation. he’d have to alert xiao, so he knew why the leylines were acting up-

“rex lapis? what are you doing?”

that was convenient.

zhongli grabbed the top of the cage, turning as he stood. xiao still had his polearm in hand, eyes wide. he seemed frantic… perhaps he did know that this pari was the source of elemental dissonance?

“ah, xiao. i was simply collecting this strange pari-“ he waved at the cage, and the pari flapped its wings almost angrily “-as i believe it is the cause for the disruption of liyue’s balance. i assure you that i am more than equipped to handle this myself.”

“no, that’s not- that-..” xiao seemed to be lost for words, face twisting the longer he looked at the pari. “they’re not a threat.”

he was ready to protest, when he noticed the way the pari was acting. pressed against the side of the cage not to flee, but that was closest to xiao? how odd, he didn’t know that pari were that social-…

“have you been cursed, xiao?”

[aroaceleovaldez]

...Has anyone else noticed that everyone defending Will"s characterization in this book. Hasn't actually hit upon any of the things people are upset about? I keep seeing people talking about how he always was portrayed with anxiety and, yeah, we're not contesting that; I'm upset about how he inexplicably won't let Nico shadow travel despite the fact that he shadow travels with Nico all the time, and I'm upset that the book fails to differentiate between constantly trying to "fix" Nico and trying to get him to rest because he was literally going to die that one time.

I honestly did not at all get the feeling from this book that Will was supposed to have an anxiety disorder. As someone with an anxiety disorder. When we're in Will's head it... doesn't feel like an anxiety disorder. Ever. Maybe some normal level anxiety at best? But it literally just feels like dread and apprehension because they're going on a quest to literal superhell. Not an anxiety disorder.

I definitely agree that Will constantly trying to "fix" Nico is incredibly annoying, and is one of my major gripes too, especially since the narrative keeps trying to prove Will right and validate Nico being in the wrong constantly. And yeah I totally agree the mischaracterization of Will fussing over Nico when he's literally one foot in the grave in misinterpreting that to be Will never allowing Nico to use his powers (and conversely, when Nico attempts to do the same thing paint it as Nico being harmful and not knowing what's best for Will, despite Will apparently being entirely in the right for Nico according to the narrative. The book just can't stop infantilizing Nico and making him completely helpless. grrrr.)

The main mischaracterization issue I take with Will is that they made him an asshole. Just an absolute insensitive huge asshole. This isn't even like low-empathy/autistic Will not realizing he's being rude, it's him actively being mean and the narrative never showing repercussions of that, only validating him. Will is a complete and total asshole, particularly to Nico, and the book says he is right about it. Which is HORRIBLE. And this is completely atypical to how we've seen Will in the past! In TLO, Will is serious but empathetic. In most of HoO, he's chill and lax and helpful. In TOA he's both. The only time Will is somewhat rude is in BoO when he's actively trying to keep Nico from keeling over and also this is the first time we see them interact significantly, so we can chalk up this discrepancy to just them trying to find their footing talking to each other. It's absolutely not the kind of dynamic they'd have one year into their relationship (especially not when we literally never see this in TOA). The book also completely retcons the fact that Will actually has an incredibly strong stomach due to being a medic, if not actually finding typically "gross" stuff kind of amusing. The closest acknowledgement we get to that in TSATS is Will liking true crime podcasts, but that honestly just feels like more of a joke poking fun at millennials/gen z kids being really into true crime. At every other point he gets so easily off-put, disgusted, and revolted by absolutely everything. I mean, heck, there's the whole bug house thing - Apollo is literally the god of midges and locusts! That's not a joke, that is a legitimate thing. He's also the father of the god of bees. Give me Will seeing the bug house and going "Oh shit that's epic." We should have gotten Will stumbling through the entire Underworld going "Oh, gross! I love it!" (I've heard others also compare Will's disgust towards the Underworld as feeling coded like someone refusing to respect their partner's culture, which I think is also a very accurate comparison and particularly notable given Nico canonically immigrated to the United States).

Besides the anxiety disorder thing, heck, I asked the PJO discord if anyone could check their ebooks/pdfs and it doesn't seem like the book even references ADHD/dyslexia, which is the literal foundations of the entire series. And throughout the entire book we never get any notes about it, or do Will or Nico ever show any traits of it. The closest we get is Will bounces his leg like one time. They couldn't even get that much right. Not to mention them referencing Nico's eating disorder at the beginning of the book and then immediately forgetting about it and it being implied to be "cured" by the end, and them only remembering Nico's autistic traits when it was to infantilize him, and in general them handling PTSD and depression extremely poorly. Basically the only neurodivergence/mental health topic they touched upon that actually seemed to be done somewhat well was Will have a very overt seasonal affective disorder metaphor/coding. And admittedly, it's kind of hard to fuck that one up with how they coded it.

Literally the only reasons I can think for them characterizing Will as they did in this book are:

a.) They completely mixed him up with Michael Yew, aka basically the only other Apollo kid with a fleshed out personality (and that personality is "asshole") b.) the book was blatantly going for a Percabeth 2 dynamic, and so tried to make Will some awkward fusion between Percy's snark and Annabeth's stubbornness and know-it-all attitudes, resulting in him just being a Huge Jerk c.) Solangelo had too healthy of a dynamic in previous books and to create conflict that would inevitably be overcome within the book they had to completely change Will and Nico's characters to insert it into the story for narrative purposes or d.) they were entirely drawing upon popular "fanon" for solangelo, particularly back from pre-TOA (circa 2014-2016), and because Will in that era was usually characterized as somewhat of an asshole due to his behavior in BoO and everybody was still trying to figure out what to do with him, that interpretation of his character was put into the book.

Whatever the case, it's definitely disappointing and they really didn't succeed in trying to code Will as having an anxiety disorder at all.

[the-dark-abyss]

So im scrolling and I see a bunch of posts like "aw yeah new life series tomorrow, can't wait here's some [art/writing/other creative things/normal post] :D <3" and I'm just like.

HOW. CAN YOU BE. SO CALM.

I AM GOING INSANE.

I WAS SHAKING EARLIER AFTER WATCHING JIMMY'S UPDATE VIDEO (which is a whole other can of worms like buddy. yes I know I know internet sucks. but. the thought of there possibly being no Jimmy Solidarity in the life series is. does not compute. (dw dw he was able to record Jimmy life series equals yes :D)) WHICH WAS DEFINITELY OVERREACTING NOW THAT I THINK ABOUT IT AND IM JUST.

I AM SO MENTALLY ILL.

GODDAMMIT

PLEASE SEND HELP /hj

[aweisz]

i want to vaguepost so bad