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imonthinice · 3 years

Text

The Criminal Psychology Majors, Jason Todd x Fem!Reader Part 9/?

Word Count: 1.7k

Author’s Note: Y/N- Your Name, A/N - Any Name (Your Best Friend’s Name)

I am sorry. lmao.

Half of my links are glitched tf out fuck this shit, touched grass yesterday but that grind don’t fuckin stop babey

Warnings: Angst - Injury, Description of said injury, Mentions of Jason’s past, Swearing, Dark Themes, no beta bitch we die like Jason Todd

(Part 1) (Part 2) (Part 3) (Part 4) (Part 5) (Part 6) (Part 7) (Part 8) (Part 9) (Part 10) (Part 11) (Part 12) (Part 13) (Part 14) (Part 15) (Part 16) (Part 17) (Part 18) (Part 19) (Part 20)

Jason clutched his right side as he gasped for a long breath of the cold, rainy air surrounding him. Everything hurt and he could barely move enough to text Dick that he was down. He would hold and add pressure to the stab wound sitting directly on his waist, but he could feel the blood seeping through the gaps in his fingers as he held it. His hands were covered by the blood and he was losing it fast.

He wasn’t going to walk this off by any means, he was going to need Dick to go get him and bring him back to the hospital wing of the Batcave because he couldn’t move and he felt his eyes drooping as he waiting and tried to keep his breathing in check, while Dick was scrambling to go get him.

There would be a few questions he would have to answer to Y/N. Not even just Y/N, to Lian, his Goddaughter, who he was planning on seeing in the morning since Y/N was going to a dance competition, or at least he thought she was.

But in that moment, so many memories flew back into his head, the hopelessness as he sat there for a few seconds, bleeding out after the explosion that Joker had set off on him. And then the minutes in the Lazarus Pit as he drowned himself back to life, the water filling his lungs as he cried and screamed. But no one came.

This time, however, Dick came.

Dick swooped his baby brother up and onto his back and he tried to run to the Batmobile as fast as he could, knowing time was of the essence for saving Jason’s life. Jason had broke off from Dick for a few seconds before this moment, and it was the only thing Dick was worried about. That Dick had said to come back to him, alive.

In the car, Dick put his hands on Jason's gaping wound, trying to press his hands into it as well to slow the bleeding, the Batmobile had the ability to drive itself, and Dick thanked whatever God was watching that it did. Jason was struggling for breath at this moment, and Dick was terrified.

“You’re going to be oaky, Jase. I swear. Please. Don’t die on me, it feels like yesterday that I got you back,” he leaned into Jason’s face, “Not again, please,” Dick begged and begged as he rushed Jason to Alfred, who was waiting to operate on Jason.

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

Y/N woke up as always, this time, without a text from Jason. She thought nothing of it, thinking he was safe in his house with his loving family. She went to go get coffee to kick start her day, and A/N wasn’t in the kitchen. She, still, thought nothing of it, since A/N’s lover was over the night before and she had to turn up her music to ignore the sounds coming from the other side of the house. She sent Jason a quick text,

Good morning, Jay. I hope you slept well.

And she returned to her room, coffee in hand, to write some quick little stories about what she had placed in her journal. Not many of the ideas in there were able to be built off of, but she still tried her best with every idea she had, to see if it could be something more.

It normally never was, but it was always something she craved. The ideas of writing a book always enticed her, but she never thought she was talented enough to do so.

She heard her roommate’s door open and then the front door as A/N waved off her lover. It was a quiet Saturday morning, and Y/N loved that as she dove further and further into her work, immersing herself in the story of two lovers who were destined to meet after one moved to the hometown of the other to pursue criminal psychology.

She couldn’t get her mind off of Jason. They hadn’t even known each other for a week but she knew he was worth her time. A few hours passed by from when she sent the first text.

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

Dick held Jason’s hand as he was hooked up to many different machines, he could breathe on his own, but the IV and the blood bags were hard to keep Dick’s eyes off of. If only I had been watching a little closer, he thought.

Jason fumbled in his pain-induced sleep, moaning and groaning as he did so when he opened his eyes to find a worried, sleep-deprived and very rough-looking Dick at his bedside, to which, Dick collapsed on Jason in a hug.

“Thank God,” Dick breathed.

“What... what the fuck.... what the fuck happened?” Jason stuttered, like a blanket of sleep and drugs had limited his mobility and brain function.

“I don’t know, Jase. That’s what I was hoping you’d tell me, but then again, your blood alcohol level was suspicious.”

“I... I didn’t drink... drink that much.”

“No, you didn’t. But you did drink, who was with you?”

“I don’t... know.”

“I think you were roofied so they could get the upper hand on you. You almost died, Jase.”

“Come...c’mere,” Jason managed to say, and when Dick came to him, he moved on of his hands onto Dick’s cheek, “Big... big annoying... big little annoying brother.”

“Shhhhhh, little wing,” Dick comforted his little brother, “You weren’t supposed to grow that much taller than me,” he laughed, “Dickhead,” he laughed again, then sighed, and stepped back from Jason to pace back and forth, he was stressed, “I told Roy-”

“Will.”

“Will, sorry. I told Will that you won’t be able to see Lian today, he asked what happened, he might drop by.”

“He should... shouldn’t have to... see me this... this way,” Jason said, eyes pooling with tears, “No one... should.”

“Don’t know how we’re going to explain this to your little girlfriend.”

“Oh... Man... I like... I like her.”

“I know you do, and that’s an issue when you’re high as a kite in a hospital bed, bleeding out, Jase,” Dick tried to explain, “Especially when she doesn’t know you’re Red Hood, dumbass.”

“Oh,” he said.

“I know, Jase. If it was me and Barbara didn’t know, I wouldn’t know what to do,” he sighed, “Haven’t even met this girl,” he laughed.

“It’s... it’s only been... 5 days,” he stuttered.

“and 3 back-to-back, multiple hour, spanning days, worth of dates. You don’t do that with someone you don’t think should meet your family.”

“You’re... stubborn.”

“And you’re my brother. It doesn’t take blood to exhibit the same traits.”

“The meds... are... are wearing off.”

“Do you need more?”

“Not... yet,” he struggled with his words, “Phone?”

“I mean, yeah I can give you your phone,” Dick said as he went to go unplug and hand Jason his phone, realizing that Y/N had texted Jason he said, “Guess you have someone who wants to know where you are more than Will does.”

“Will cares,” Jason said as he took the phone and read Y/N’s text,

I guess it isn’t morning anymore, huh.

Well that’s on me for texting you at 6 in the morning after I know you’ve been working late.

And I’m going to see my Goddaughter today, so I’ve been sleeping in to preserve energy for her.

Can’t forget that she’s what, 1 year old? Girl must have a lot of energy.

Her name’s Lian, and yeah. She’s a ball of energy.

He said as Lian and her dad, Will, formerly known as Roy, walked into the hospital wing of the Batcave. The secret wasn’t hidden to the little girl yet because she couldn’t remember a lot. But, she sure did recognize her Uncle Jay when she screamed her name.

Will brought his daughter up and put her beside her Uncle, and she cuddled into him, he would hold her back.

“Hey... Will.”

“You look like shit, Jaybird.”

“I feel... feel like shit.”

“You’re also talking slow, bud.”

“Drugs... do that... Will.”

“At least you’re not dead, I have no idea how I’d cope or even explain that to Lian.”

“She... she has your... eyes.”

“She’s growing into my nose too.”

“Your nose... looks like shit... on your face.”

“Okay, dickhead. You’re bedridden but yeah, attack me like you used to, I’ll just pull the plug.”

“Lian... would hate you... you for that,” he groaned as he said it.

“Do you need more drugs? I can tell Dick,” Will asked.

“Yeah... I think-”

“Don’t worry about finishing that, Jaybird. I got you.”

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

The wet ground surrounding the house Y/N lived in was a representation of what she considered, the bad things, washing away from her life as she got to know Jason more. She wished they could talk more that day, but she did not want to take away time from him and his Goddaughter. Family matters a lot to Y/N, so a thought like that just seemed selfish for her to think when she knew that little girl needed him.

She didn’t think he got injured or anything from the Office, it was a safer place than the fuckin Wayne Manor hallways. She texted Artemis,

So, you’re Wally’s girlfriend, and Wally is Dick’s best friend? Am I hearing you right?

That’s basically the intertwine we have here, yes.

So once you’re in this family, you’re IN, huh?

Nervous?

Not a chance.

The thrill of flipping off pap hasn’t left you yet?

Does everyone know about that? And yes, it’s still massively fun to do.

Wally says Dick is the only one who doesn’t think its that funny.

Lame.

C’mon now, that’s my best friend, but yeah, that’s pretty fucking lame.

You’re the fun best friend, then. You see the fun in making a fool of the pap.

You know it.

Artemis knew of what happened on patrol between Jason and his unknown attacker. Dick had told Artemis to distract Y/N from wondering why Jason seemed drunk, if he seemed drunk. The extents they went to to hide the fact that they were the vigilantes protecting the city, they didn’t know if she was going to be able to keep the secret.

Jason would talk to her after that message,

That storm last night was terrible.

I wish that we were together when it happened. I hate lightning.

Well, you were in Cali.

Did I not tell you? My competition was cancelled because the entire country is fucked with weather.

Oh. That sucks.

Do you want to spend the night here?

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

Do you want to spend the night here?

Jason stared at that text for a while. He did, he wanted to spend the night with her, but he was in pain, hooked to machines, with obvious wounds and bandages. He couldn’t spend the night with her.

I can’t. I’m in Metropolis with Will and Lian. Can we reschedule?

Of course we can. As long as you make sure we actually get to spend the night together.

He asked Dick in that moment, “How... how long... long til I heal?”

“Depends. You’ll be okay-ish in 5 days, but in 7-10 we have to take out your stitches if you’ve been taking care of them,” he said.

“That... that long? Damn.”

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kimberly-spirits13 · 4 years

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Enemies HC:

Warnings: Abuse, attempted kidnapping, anxiety attack, and overall, terrible parents

K’halder:

· You were the child of Ocean Master

· You had been abandoned and the guards found you around the palace one day

· After gaining the good graces of the King, you had been trained and then sent to join the team where he hoped that you and K’halder would get along

· He hated you

· Figured that you had gotten to the king to betray him and he did not trust you one bit

· Everyone on the team liked you but him and you tried to brush it off like it was no big deal but it sucked

· It wasn’t until one day after training that you were sick of everything and confronted him

· You were tired of being treated so terribly and not respected

· You made him know this and he started to respect you after that

· Once he got over himself, you guys started hanging out more and after proving yourself on a mission where your father showed, he confessed his feelings

· Once he saw you fight for the team like that, he was hooked

· You were one of the most elegant and wise person he had ever met and you were so kind to everyone

· It’s like a breath of fresh air every time that he glances your way

· He loves talking to you often either in your room, the library, or the cave water entrance

Wally West:

· You were the child of Heat Wave

· Once you went to flash freaking out about your dad and his plot to set a massive nuclear facility on fire

· After that, he decided that maybe he was not best to help you master your powers, but he would be more than willing to help

· You joined the team after around a year and Wally was not happy

· The rest of the team loved you

· I mean you were smart and very likeable

· M really liked having someone to talk to and just have a good friend despite your powers being very dangerous to her

· Wally on the other hand was terrible to you

· The moment you walked into a room you could see him crap talking you or glaring daggers at you

· You knew that your father was a bad person but you had never done anything wrong in your life

· It was unfair but you just bit your tongue and moved on with your life not saying anything

· M knew it bothered you and told Wally off a few times

· Everyone knew it bothered you but he hated that maybe in some way he was falling for you and he hated you for that reason

· One day, on a mission, your father showed up and recognized your powers

· During the end, without hesitation, he picked you up to kidnap you

· You screamed, fought against him, kicked him, bit him I mean you were literally fighting for your life

· It took all of that for Wally to kick into high gear and completely shatter the man

· It wasn’t until he saw you start to hyperventilate that he stopped and caught you right as you passed out

· You were in the med bay for a day and a half, him at your side the entire time till you woke up

· “Wally what are you doing here?”

· “Look, I know that you just woke up and I know that you’ve had a hard few days, and I know that I was a complete piece of trash and I am so so so so so so so so so sorry for it. I just... didn’t really like that I actually really really like you.”

· “Wait what? I thought you hated me?”

· “I’m so sorry I j-“

· You kissed him and then slapped him for being a piece of garbage but now he is like the greatest boyfriend ever

· He is really upset he acted like that and never has ever again

Dick Grayson (This is a bit cliché but it makes sense so here we go):

· You were the child of *drum roll* the Joker and Harley

· One day you went to Batman asking for help away from your parents saying that they had planted 9 bombs around Gotham to go off during the night and you gave him the literal keys to the safe house

· He was very skeptical until you showed the various scars on your jaw or arms from them

· And then he understood

· He took you back to the cave and you got cleaned up and wrapped into a blanket with tea after he gave you a comm so that you could tell him everything you knew piece by piece

· You had had some training on top of immunity to like every toxin for every supervillain

· After a few more months of training, he put you on the team

· Dick was not okay with it and was very distant and cold from you

· The rest of the team was very accepting and you were so sweet

· It was a sin that someone like you had to go through what you did back there

· You and Artemis became really good friends, at first bonding over terrible dads

· You guys hung out a lot and often you ranted about Dick to her

· Meanwhile, he about you to Wally

· God, he didn’t understand what Batman was doing

· You were the child of their greatest enemy and he just let you in

· One night, you guys were on a mission and he was there

· You stopped dead in your tracks the moment you saw him

· He threatened you team, everyone was down but you

· The team had never seen anything like it, it was like a switch flipped and suddenly you were the most ruthless fighter they’d ever seen

· Everything you’d felt for the past 14 years was because of him so you took all of it out on him

· You were screaming at him, cursing his name to the wind after he said that your mother, Harley, hated you and wished she killed you as usual

· Aqualad came and pulled you off of him and everyone was silent the rest of the trip home

· You went straight to the showers and then to your bedroom for the next day

· Then gradually you came out

· Dick had gained so much respect for you after that and was ashamed he judged you so harshly

· You were talking to Artemis one night in her room

· “I feel like the only reason I might be of any value to this team is because I’m good bait. Anyone acting up from Gotham? Send out Y/N. Poison Ivy has a killer plant? Send her out” “I swear I’m purely judged by my father and mother even though I had nothing to do with what they were doing. I was designed to lose and life will always be like that for me no matter what because of the blood running through my veins.”

· Dick heard every word and was horrified but eventually, the next day apologized so much you kissed him for him to shut up

· Now you guys are inseparable and either watching movies or just talking

· If you ever are in a situation where your parents are brought up, he is just by your side faster than one could blink, a hand on your back tracing patters or just keeping your anxiety at bay

Conner:

· You were the child of Maxima (had to pick a normal one who’s not Lex... ew)

· He was cold to you and often popped off at you for nothing

· You had gone to Wonder Woman instead of Superman and she took you in

· One night, you got back and everyone could tell that there was something off about you

· You were lost in your thoughts when you bumped into him and he went off

· “Pardon me, sorry”

· That was when he got mad and all you were trying to do was leave for your bedroom

· You popped off

· “I am sick of you talking to me like this. What have I ever done to you to make you feel the need to just start acting like a freaking mad man every time I breathe. If you have such an issue with me, I suggest that you get over it and grow up because I’m not leaving to go back to my mother.”

· The team was shocked and you went into your bedroom without another word

· The next day he came to apologize

· You were skeptical at first

· “Where are the cameras? Am I being punked?”

· “No, I am actually here to say sorry.”

· After a few weeks, one day before a mission, he kissed you and you were floored the rest of the mission

· Then you got back and hit him in the arm

· “What was that for?”

· “You kissed me before a mission and expected me to pay attention to anything?”

· *smirks smugly*

· Now you guys are partners in crime

· Then he got Wolf and it was even better

· Needless to say, he can be frustrating but he gets over it pretty quickly

283 notes · View notes

hadesglance · 5 years

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All hail the new queen... - 29 (Hades Original Story)

You fought your way through the maze of the underworld to make a deal with the King…intrigued the lonely king listens…

Part One Part Two Part Three Part Four Part Five Part Six Part Seven Part Eight Part Nine Part Ten Part Eleven Part Twelve Part Thirteen Part Fourteen Part Fifteen Part Sixteen Part Seventeen Part Eighteen Part Nineteen Part Twenty Part Twenty-One Part Twenty-Two Part Twenty-Three Part Twenty-Four Part Twenty-Five Part Twenty-Six Part Twenty-Seven Part Twenty-Eight

I DID IT! OH MY GOODNESS!! IT’S REALLY HERE GUYS A NEW CHAPTER...it’s a bit short, but it’s a start! I hope you enjoy!

The sound of chirping birds woke you up. You winced when you opened your eyes seeing the sun pouring through the window a small breeze blew the curtains. You tensed a little feeling a cool arm wrap around out.

As you began to turn his voice reverberated through your back, “I do love watching you sleep.”

“Hades…” You placed your hands on the sides of his face. His smile was infectious and it made your heart flutter. Your thumb caressed his cheek as you whispered, “I had the worst dream.”

He sighed heavily as he took one of you hands in his giving it a longing kiss before he spoke, “I’m afraid you weren’t dreaming…”

You felt the sharp intake of breath as you sat up looking around the room. It was Olympus…but it’s was wrong, things were misshapen, dark in areas where there should be substance, pieces disjointed from others. It was sunny out but you could hear a violent storm outside.

His voice moved your attention back to his face, “You are dreaming now, I’m able to reach you because of our bond, and I do not have much time.”

“Wha..where are you? Are you okay?” Your hands searched over him trying to see if he was hurt.

“There isn’t time…” He took your hands gently kissing your fingers reverently, “Cronus has taken me to Tartarus, and he only wants one thing…to break me.”

“We’ll come get you...your brothers they…” You were cut off by him.

“You are not to come to Tartarus.” You stared at him for a long time as his order washed over you, “Do you understand? Do not come after me…”

“Hades please…” You shook your head feeling your throat tightening as you desperately tried to defy his order.

“Y/N…do not come to Tartarus.” He repeated before he smiled watching you struggle, “I love you…I love so much…”

“Don’t go…” You could feel him slipping away as you felt yourself beginning to wake up, “Hades…please…I need you…”

Despite your pleading tone you felt yourself moving away from him. Floating away, fingers straining to remain entwined with his. His hands held onto yours as he stared up into your eyes, “I love you…never forget that. No matter what the Fates have planned, I love you.”

“Hades!” You screamed as his fingers slipped from yours plunging yourself into the cold night. You sat up in bed shaking terribly.

The door flung open and Percy ran inside over to you. You stared into lap still feeling his hands over your own as she wrapped her arms around you tightly. Tears fell over your numb face spilling on to the sheets staining them with the unspoken desires you couldn’t speak.

Later that day you sat in a room full on gods. Enraged that one of their own had been taken. Despite that there were still two sides. One wanted vengeance, to attack one was to attack all. The other side to let the great Cronus keep Hades in hope that he would be appeased until a better plan could be reached.

All the while you watched the one god who held the final call, and at the moment his face was blank as he listened to each complaint. You were angry he wasn’t saying anything. You wanted to yell at him to say something. Anything! Hades was his older brother, didn’t that mean anything?

“Hades asked for this the moment he began meddling with living humans in an unconventional way. We are there to guide and bestow blessings…not in fact making relations.” Your eyes snapped over to the person speaking. Hephaestus…you had always pitied him. Forced to marry in order to prevent a war, considered inferior when in fact he was a genius and one of the many reasons we had the beauty of art.

Right now, he was spiteful. He was always bitter that he was never graced with good looks, and it seems that he never got over not being wanted. It was sad.

“Enough.” The room fell silent as Zeus stood to his feet, “Your complaints only hinder the main issue…Cronus is back and he seeks to destroy us. Athena…can you tell us anything?”

Everyone’s eyes shifted to the goddess of wisdom. She sat toward the end of the table, face bandaged arm in a sling. Yet despite her state she stood up with such power and dignity, “He took my brother Ares and I to Tartarus. He raving like a lunatic…like all the stories you’ve told us. He wanted…he wanted to use us to open the other cells. We wouldn’t do it and he fell into a rage.”

“And what of Ares?” Poseidon leaned forward brow furrowing.

Athena looked at him a moment of frailty flashing in her eyes, “He…he made sure I was able leave. He held the door open for me to escape…told me to run. It was the only option…”

“No one is blaming you for anything, Athena.” Apollo stepped toward her with his sister Artemis to show support and protection.

“Father, if there had been any other way…” Athena looked at Zeus who held up his hand to silence her.

“You are the wisest of all of us, Athena.” He spoke firmly to everyone as he stepped away from the table, “You are the only one Ares would ever listen too, I know your bond took a long time to forge, disputes in these halls still hold the scars. Even though we know him as unbalanced and cruel, Ares is not one to just abandon all options and fall on his sword. He saw something in letting you go…”

“Information…” Athena nodded slowly looking up to him as stepped nearby, “Cronus wants to release the other Titans, and he’s going to make Hades do it.”

“Hades would never do that.” Zeus shook his head as he crossed his arms while others nodded in agreeing full heartedly.

“Cronus intends to break him…like before. Ares and I were just practice.” She looked away ashamed.

The room began to murmur in small worried conversations. Finally, you could take it no more. You stood to your feet slamming your hands on the table, “Then we go get him.”

Once again, the room fell silent. All eyes fell onto you. Your face was burning as you went on, “There are more of you then there was back then. Old gods, new gods, and demi-gods in between. That must be enough to get Hades back. You cannot leave him there.”

“You get no say-” A voice began to speak before Zeus boomed in.

“Silence! She has every right!” Zeus glared across the room, “Anyone who doesn’t recognized Y/N as the Queen of the Underworld can leave this room and expect nothing from Olympus ever again. Do I make myself clear?”

Zeus gently reached down squeezing Athena’s hand before moving away, “Y/N, has all the authority Hades does in his absence. As for your request, Y/N, it’s not that simple.”

“Why not?” You could hear Hades’ voice echoing in your mind not to come, but you defied it with every ounce of strength you could muster.

“The only one who can enter Tartarus is the ruler of the Underworld. Not even I can get in without extreme measures and deals with the Fates. Hades was given the ability to chain his abuser and his cohorts, to maintain the security of those cells only the guards and Hades would be allowed inside.” Zeus frowned shutting his eyes, “Hades wouldn’t even go in himself. He’d leave the souls of those chained outside the door to be dealt with once he was gone…”

“The how did Cornus bring in Athena and Ares?” You clenched your jaw looking between him and Athena, “He had to have some way…”

“As I said it is complicated…” Zeus’ frustration was becoming evident.

“But it’s not.” Your eyes flashed over to Apollo. His eyes were bright with revelation, “Tartarus…it’s not just a place, it’s a being.”

“Father you sentenced me there for a time. I try not to think of it, but you’re correct when you said Hades wouldn’t go in…he left me with giants who locked me away.” Apollo explained paling a little, “Tartarus is the epitome of misery and despair. I was there long enough to begin seeing and hearing things. When I asked who was there…it was Tartarus who answered.”

“Tartarus has never had a side or stake in anything we have done past, present, or future. It’s a primordial force for chaos and only strives to make people suffers.” Apollo frowned looking at everyone, “It wouldn’t be a stretch to think once Cornus was out of his cell he convinced Tartarus to allow him free access and control…”

This got everyone’s attention. You spoke above them, “Does that change the rules for everyone?”

“No, I’m afraid not.” Zeus spoke softly as everyone’s anxiety began to rise.

You clenched your fist feeling the bones and tendons crack from tension, “Then I’ll go. If I have the same rights and authority of Hades, then I can go in. I’ll get him.”

“You…alone?” Poseidon shook his head before looking at Zeus who didn’t seem against the idea, “Zeus…”

“I didn’t want to suggest it. Hades’ will kill us if something happens to her.” Zeus crossed his arms staring at you, “While she’ll go alone…she won’t be without defense.”

“How’s the chains feel son?” Hades felt himself shaking as his arms stretched in unnatural angles. Cronus lifted his face by the chin smirking, “Are they as comfortable as you remember?”

Hades didn’t answer him which gained him another crack across the face as he fell to his knees. He shut his eyes trying to picture himself far away from here. In a place where he could find peace.

“No no no…” Pain seared into his back from what he didn’t know, but it would no doubt be another scar to add to the numerous ones Cronus had given him, “No slipping away…no rest…but I can give it to you if you just give me what I want…”

Hades groaned as he pulled himself to his feet looking into Cronus’ eyes, “Never…”

Cronus smiled at him as he chuckled, “I do believe you will live to regret those words…”

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smokeybrand · 4 years

Text

What Comes Next

My brother posted something about the new Wonder Woman from Didio’s failed 5G initiative, Yara Flor. New Wondy is, apparently, a literal Amazon; She’s from the Amazon in South America. I think she’s Brazilian, specifically. My brother, who doesn’t even give a sh*t about comics like that, had no kind words for this odious turn of events. Didio’s fever dream of a live wide reboot, the third one in a decade, was rightfully killed and he, himself, fired when the ATT buyout went through. Look, i love comics. I think they are one of the purest forms of storytelling outside of actual novels, that we have today. They’re an infinite well of creativity and inspiration so it boggles my mind why the two major comic houses can’t seem to write a compelling f*cking narrative to save their lives and always resort to this reboot bullsh*t. Marvel is much less guilty about this, the less said about All New-All Sh*t, the better, but three times in ten years? Really? What the f*ck was Didio doing?

I mention All New, All Different because DC’s Future State, the re-branded moniker of 5G, is exactly the same goddamn thing but with a DC twist. That means it’s going to be worse. We already see this sh*t happening. New Wondy. Johnathan is replacing Clark. Batman is presumed dead but is really on the run, like in the vastly superior Court of Owls arc, replaced by an unknown vigilante wearing his symbol. It’s Luke Fox. DC already spilled the beans about that sh*t. Force that diversity directly into your books because that sh*t worked SO well for Marvel, right? It’s not like that disaster didn’t take until now for them to get back to good, even if sales don’t reflect the good will because comics are a whole ass dying industry. It’s dying because no one tells great stories anymore and companies rely too heavily on desperate, ill conceived reboots like this or thousands of variant covers. Future state is doomed to fail. DC has no faith in it, no faith in the actual work, proven by the fact that Jim Lee announced the books will be returnable. Who the f*ck makes comics returnable?? When has that ever been a thing?

I give DC so much sh*t because their product is sh*t. It’s been terrible for a long while now, with the exception of a few Flash arcs, DCeased, most of Earth-2 before it got canned, and The White Knight run. I’ve written at length about my love for that sh*t. Hell, even Joker War turned out to get it’s sh*t together in a hurry and end on a ridiculously compelling note. I even found myself intrigued by where Punchline was left and i hate that b*tch. I also hate The Batman Who Laughs. This Gary Stu ass mass of originality is everything wrong with DC and comics as a whole. Dude is a try hard, edgelord, OC character getting an unearned push, forcing him down our throats as readers. It’s f*cking ridiculous. Marvel is dong this same sh*t with f*cking Knull but he’ll eventually be forgotten. TBWL is around to stay because casuals love this f*ck. We’re in the middle of another Crisis event that he orchestrated which is the lead-in to the entire Future State slate. The biggest boner in recent DC history is going to be the direct result of the worst character DC has pushed in twenty years. If that isn’t the most flaccid poetry, i don’t know what is.

I know I'm giving this Future State a lot of sh*t, and it might be fully warranted, but there aspects of this nonsense that i do, in fact, like. I like that Cassandra Cain is Batgirl again, even if that means the other one i don’t like, Stephanie Brown, gets the same treatment. I like the look of Latina Wondy and that Gotham City seems to be super Cyberpunk now. I don’t think I've ever seen that in the books before. Gothic Cyberpunk? Can it really be everything i dream of? Manta’s kid is, apparently, taking the Aquaman mantle with Curry’s daughter inheriting the Aquagirl title. Luke Fox shouldn’t be Batman, Damian Wayne should be. If Artemis can be Egyptian, then Latin Wondy is fine. I’m even borderline okay with John Kent being “Superman.” I like the fact that there is more diversity coming to DC’s books, overall, i just don’t think this is the way you go about doing it. Non of this feels organic or competently executed. This sh*t feels so goddamn miserable, it hurts. Everything i just said. I've seen before. Cass had an entire series to herself as Batgirl, same as Stephanie. Gordon was the first to don a high tech Batsuit when Bruce was missing, not Luke. F*cking Nubia is a thing. I watched Aqualad hit all of these same beats in the Young Justice show and Johnathan is literally Superman in DCeased. That book may or may not still be running alongside these Future State titles, man! That’s my biggest issue with all of this; It’s just more of the same, but worse. Even f*cking Red X, that asshole identity Robin took on when he worked for Slade in the old Teen Titans cartoon, has a part to play in these books. If that doesn't clarify my problems with this event, I don't know what can.

Future State is the most transparent, unoriginal, corporate pandering effort i have ever seen. It smacks of desperation. I know that because, aside from the return policy, instead of this being an entire line wide reboot like Didio wanted, it’s only supposed to be a two month run. Two months and then the status quo returns. This tells me that, the only reason we’re seeing any of these books, is because DC lacks content. The Wuha f*cked up A LOT of sh*t and it seems DC was wounded more than we thought. Before Didio's firing and the jumbling of the comic hierarchy, work was already complete on some of the 5G sh*t. I imagine, maybe, speculation on my part, about two months worth of content? Sub-par content at that? It’s insane to me that DC is floundering this much. Marvel is killing it with their X-Titles and Thor is gaining ground quickly but there is nothing currently being published but DC that even comes close to those books. Rehashing a failed idea that was already canceled once, ain’t the answer. As much as i what the comics industry to be okay, as much as i want DC to tell great stories, and as much as i want to see Cass back behind that symbol, this ain’t it, chief. I would love to go into this event with cheery optimism but, if DC’s recent history has proven anything, it’s that optimism in their content is for fools. This entire run seems like an obvious mistake.

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miserelysia · 4 years

Text

“I Watched the Artemis Fowl Movie and It Made Me Very Upset” Liveblog!

So I decided I had to subject myself to this movie despite being Extremely Aware that it’s a massive pile of firey garbage. It was about as painful as expected, so I liveblogged to keep my sanity. Here’s basically what happened in my head while I was watching:

Josh Diggums: I feel so bad for Josh Gad's voice because it's painfully obvious they just didn't want Olaf showing up so they forced him into some terrible Bale-Batman voice that keeps cracking

why is this movie taking itself so seriously

Book Artemis: eternally unathletic dweeb

Movie Artemis: SURFING MASTER

the fuck, Branagh

THIS VOICE IS SO DAMN BAD, JOSH PLEASE STOP TALKING

okay Artemis is appropriately a little shit for EXACTLY ONE SCENE

FUCK OFF WITH FRIDGING THE MOM, BRANAGH

"ur mom's dead and ur dad's gone so ur a little shit" WHAT A GREAT COUNSELOR

fuck's sake

Book Artemis: immediately falls off whatever this hover thing is

COLIN FARRELL. SEXY MAN.

I ALMOST FORGIVE THEM FOR BRINGING HIM BACK EARLY

AND..... KNOWING ABOUT MAGIC

SDJFKSDF

WHATEVER

I WAS PREPARED FOR THIS

this voice is still terrible, Josh. I'm sorry

this kid is a pretty good actor

"all i really want is to believe in you" that was actually well-delivered

"Arty"

OKAY IT'S NOT ACCORDING TO THE BOOK BUT FUCK ME THEIR RELATIONSHIP IS WELL DONE

i desperately need Butler to show up soon tho

I SPOKE TOO SOON

"DOMOVOI" ??!!?? YOU FUCKS

why

are his eyes

fucking ELECTRIC BLUE

HIS LITERAL FUKDFSUCING NAME IN THE BOOKS IS 'BUTLER' IT'S PART OF BEING AN INSANELY GOOD SECRET AGENT GUARDIAN HE'S NOT AN ACTUFL FUCKING BUTLER AND LITERALLY NO ONE EVER CALLS HIM "THE BUTLER" BUT HIS NAME IS BUTLER BECAUSE HIS REAL NAME IS SECRET HE'S FUCKING SECURITY FUCKING DID YOU READ THIS FUCKING BOOK SERIES AT ALL BRANAGH OR DID YOU JUSTDSJFKLDSHFSD:LFSEFAGH

i'm sorry

Butler is my absolute favorite character of the entire damn series and they fucking

can't even get OOOONNNNNEEEEEEEEE CHARACTER CORRECT

SCREAMS

did they think calling him "Butler" would be weird because they cast a black guy?????

AGAIN WHY WITH THE FUCKING ELECTRIC BLUE CONTACTS THEY'RE SO OBVIOUSLY FAKE IT LOOKS SO BAD. IF YOU MAKE THE DECISION TO CAST AN AFRICAN AMERICAN MAN JUST FUCKING OWN THAT HE HAS DARK EYES DON'T DO THIS

THE "OWL STAR"???? REALLY???? WHY NOT FOWL STAR

WHY

NOT

IT'S JUST SUCH AN ARBITRARY DUMBASS CHANGE IT MAKES NO SENSE

PLEASE DID I JUST MISUNDERSTAND THE REPORTER MAN

DID THE CAPTIONS JUST MISUNDERSTAND HIM?????

NOPE IT'S LITERALLY THE O W L S T A R

fuck off

i'm sorry

stuff like that just bothers me a lot

it makes ABSOLUTELY no sense to change it

Fowl Star made sense bECAUSE IT'S OWNED BY ARTEMIS FOWL

artemis has a lot more emotions than i remember him having

i will not forgive them for destroying the Butler/Artemis relationship in favor of a Dad they fucking fridge in the first half hour of the movie

oh boy nursery rhymes as codes

GROUNDBREAKING

i think the fairies would have something to say about you hiding their own shit from them, MISTER SENIOR

it's still a bad voice, Josh, I'm so sorry

okay Haven is pretty nice

"Haven" not "Haven City"

pretty sure

holly being a 13 year old girl is disconcerting

that was mentioned in a review

they're supposed to be Child-Sized not ACTUAL CHILDREN

also "small person = higher pitched voice" is such a stupid trope please stop

i like the Being diversity around the city

like lots of different types of humanoids

josh desperately wants to do the Olaf voice

i'm so sorry Josh

okay aside from the shit voice Diggums is pretty good

lol Cudgeon's already in jail

okay then

i know this is Opal Koboi

meh

i hate her in the books so they can fuck her up all they want

judi dench is batman too i guess

how many cigs you smoke judi root

OH BOY HOLLY HAS MISSING DADDY ISSUES TOO

fucking shit

"you're 84" and you look like a fUCKING THIRTEEN YEAR OLD

such bad choices

every time they say "Domovoi" i--

HISDFHSDHFH

JULIET

SHE'S

HIS

FUCKING

NIECE?????????!!!!!!!!!!!!!!??????????

SDFJLS:DKF FUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUCCCCCCCCCCCCKKKKKKKKKKK YYYYYYYOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUU

FUCK YOU

FUCK

FUCK YOU KENNETH BRANAGH

SHE'S

HIS

FUCKING

SISTER

HIS BABY SISTER HE LOVES AND CARES FOR EVEN MORE THAN ARTEMIS AND THAT'S A COMPLETELY DIFFERENT RELATIONSHIP THAN UNCLE AND NIECE

HOW COULD YOU LITERALLY DESTROY EVERYTHING ABOUT BUTLER AND STILL SLEEP AT NIGHT

eoin colfer i hope you made so much money off of this SHITSTACK

(genuinely tho that's literally the only consolation; now he can write more Good Books)

Juliet is cute but i know about all she does is make sandwiches

so fuck this

judi dench is Good

foaly is Okay

why's he wearing clothes tho

the chutes are a lot more... open than expected

BEECHWOOD SHORT THE TRAITOR

FUCK OFF

WHY IS HOLLY’S CHARACTER DEFINED BY HER FUCKING FATHER

THIS IS SO MUCH WORSE AN OUTCOME THAN I EVEN EXPECTED GIVEN THEY EVISCERATED HER CHARACTER'S DRIVE BY MAKING THE L.E.P. ALREADY HAVE FEMALE OFFICERS AND COMMANDERS

"get out cudgeon before i throw you out" okay they got Root completely right at least

aside from making him a her

but that's okay

because it's Judi Dench

awwwww happy flying scene bUT HOLLY YOU'RE SUPPOSED TO BE SHIELDED GOt DAMN

“any update?” "yes. i'm freezing" amazing, Butler

i mean dOmOvOi

HOLLY YOU'RE STILL NOT SHIELDED

CGI isn't too bad in this but honestly that's not impressive anymore

awwwww cute wedding scene

troll is about as ugly as possible

LOL JUST FUCKING THROW TIME FREEZE UP LIKE IT'S NOTHING

OKAY

LOL HOLLY GO DEAL WITH THE TROLL DON'T FOCUS ON ONE SMALL CHILD

THAT'S NOT HOW A TIME FREEZE WORKS

i mean it's COOL

i love the little Men in Green zipping around

but it doesn't make ANY sense

LOL SO WHY DO THE PEOPLE THINK THE PLACE IS TRASHED

lol gently floating troll

Hollyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyy

Judi Root continues to be amazing

ok tbf Opal Koboi would be after the Aculos if it existed

OP MacGuffin plots are so tired tho like really Branagh

i love the wings on her suit

ARTEMIS WHEN DID YOU GET TO THE TREE

holly ur a bad 84-year-old officer

LOL CUDGEON IS RIGHT ON

AND JUDI ROOT CONTINUES TO BE

"Not Happy!" lol wat

who wrote that bit of dialogue and said "yes this a perfectly good thing to have her say when she wakes up in a cage"

"mesmerism"

boy i love these exposition dump convos between Mr. Sr. and Arty

LOL "most human beings are afraid of gluten, how do you think they'd handle goblins" is a great line

out of touch, but still funny

...why does the time freeze take forever to generate now when you did it in TWO SECONDS BEFORE

calm down holly damn

foaly's very pretty

sO DID THEY FREEZE THE *ENTIRE WORLD*????????

I THOUGHT THE POINT WAS TO FREEZE THINGS INSIDE SO YOU HAVE MOONLIGHT LONGER

AND

whatever

i love this fucking ARMY coming out of literally everywhere

"TOP OF THE MORNIN'" OH MY FUCKING GOODNESS

whole movie is worth it

for that line

i love that they're entirely in green

and no one ever Shields

ever

they mentioned Shields once but NO ONE IS SHIELDED

BUTLER WOULD NEVER LET ARTEMIS INTO A FIGHT

SCREAMS

"TAKE THE SHOT"

WHY IS THE TIME FREEZE SO EASILY DESTABILIZED

FOALY

ARE YOU TELLING ME NO ONE HAS EVER SHOT YOUR FUCKING ENORMOUS DEVICE

omg no U GAVE OPAL KOBOI LEGITIMATE REASONS FOR DOING WHAT SHE'S DOING

YOU GAVE HER A SAD FRUSTRATING BACKSTORY

SHE'S SUPPOSED TO BE AN ARROGANT SELF-SERVING BITCH AND NOTHING ELSE

TWENTY SEVEN MINUTES??????

hOW DID ARTEMIS KNOW ABOUT MULCH DIGGUMS SPECIFICALLY

lol that is 100% a completely inhumane prison what the fuck, fairies

why does Holly have human music

well i'm glad we didn't have to watch mulch almost eat a dude's head

"My father was kidnapped."

"My father is dead."

"Can I trust you?"

"You'll have to."

BUT WHY

WHAT IS THIS DIALOGUE

WHAT IS THIS CHARACTER PROGRESSION

THERE's NO REASON TO TRUST HER

OR TO NEED TO TRUST HER

THIS IS COMPLETELY UNEARNED AND STUPID

glad holly's entire character REVOLVES AROUND A MAN NOW, BRANAGH

LOL THEY JUST DIDN'T GIVE ROOT A FIRST NAME???

JUDI ROOT CONFIRMED

"listen to us, grunting at each other like a pair of hippos with a throat infection" LMAO

i hope that was Josh Gad improv

LOL HE JUST FUCKING DESTROYS EVERYTHING IN HIS WAY WHILE TUNNELING

YOU DIDN'T EVEN REALLY TUNNEL IN, MULCH

HOW DID YOU COME OUT OF A PAINTING

DO THEY HAVE PAINTINGS IN A BASEMENT???

WHAT HAPPENED TO THE SHEETROCK OR WHATEVER

IT WOULD HAVE BEEN SO EASY TO JUST

UGH

FOLLOW THE BOOK

COME ON

MULCH YOU ARE THE WORST BURGLAR

"what would your parents be" THEY'D BE CENTAURS MULCH

is... is Mulch on the second floor

HE TUNNELED THROUGH THE WALL ONTO THE SECOND FLOOR

artemis... just.. lets holly out

ok cool

LOL HIS NOSE HAIRS GROW AND MOVE LIKE TENTACLES

stupid and... funny? i guess

at least Cudgeon is the piece of shit he is in the book lol

oh boy troll time

BUTER WOULD NEVER LET MULCH DIGGUMS PICKPOCKET HIM

"jam all magic" OMFG THAT'S NOT POSSIBLE

BUTLER WOULD NEVER LET ARTEMIS FACE DOWN A FUCKING TROLL

LOL THEY JUST FIRE THE TROLL LIKE A BULLET

A TROLL-ET

DOMOVOI YOU ARE COMPLETELY USELESS WHAT THE FUCK

i wonder if kids even like this movie

omg butler couldn't even jump

i don't understand

he literally DOESN'T HELP AT ALL

IT'S HIS WHOLE THING

IS BEING ABLE TO KICK ASS

FUCKING COME ON BRANAGH

yeah fuck you branagh

are... are the fairies just DYING TO THE TIME FREEZE COLLAPSE???

"goodbye my friend. i'm sorry i was FUCKING USELESS"

branagh you're trying to activate my feelings with this Sad Death Scene(TM) but i am IMPERVIOUS because artemis has had NO RELATIONSHIP WHATSOEVER WITH THIS """DOMOVOI"""

COOL HE'S BACK NOW I’M SO GLAD ACTUAL FULL ON DEATH HAS ZERO CONSEQUENCES NOW THANKS TO OP FAIRY MAGIC

WHAT GREAT WRITING THIS IS

"i didn't cry did i" FUCK OFF

WHY IS IT SO DANGEROUS WHEN THE TIME FREEZE ENDS

WHY IS YOUR TECH SO SHITTY, FOALY

TIME FREEZES AREN'T SUPPOSED TO BE DANGEROUS TO THE OCCUPANTS

THAT GOES AGAINST ALL OF FAIRY RULES

...okay and then it just ends..........?

Domovoi: "you have to try!"

Artemis: "i can't, tho"

Domovoi: "it's too dangerous!"

WHAT IS THIS DIALOGUE

WHO WROTE THIS ABSOLUTE DRIVEL

"the aculos for my father"

THE L.E.P. DOESN'T EVEN HAVE YOUR FATHER YOU ABSOLUTE DOOF

holly how do u know how to do this

the... the aculos is just the fucking Book?

i feel slapped in the face

she just recites the words and. and.

whatever

i'm done

GO FIND YOUR DAD WHO'S MAGICALLY BACK

WHY WOULD HE BE IN THE BED ARTEMIS

YOU'RE SUPPOSED TO BE A GENIUS

this girl who plays Holly cannot act

i'm sorry girl

MAGICALLY BACK DAD

HOORAY HOLLY'S CHARACTER CONTINUES TO BE DEFINED BY HER FATHER

FUCK

YOU

WRITERS

AND BRANAGH

BUTLER WOULD NEVER CRY, DOMOVOI

i like the cool earpiece they gave Judi Root to maybe? disguise her hearing aid?

Haven does look pretty cool

too much water above tho it’s not Atlantis guys come on

"i'm a criminal mastermind" LITERALLY WHEN DID YOU SHOW ANY SORT OF MASTERMIND BEHAVIOR OR CRIMINAL BEHAVIOR

BESIDES BRIEFLY KIDNAPPING HOLLY AND THEN IMMEDIATELY LETTING HER OUT

LMAO THAT LAST SHOT OF JULIET JUST LOOKING EXCITEDLY OUT OF THE WINDOW AT THE HELICOPTER WHILE EVERYONE LEAVES HER BEHIND

WHAT'S THE POINT OF THAT EVEN

THIS POOR GIRL YOU’RE JUST LEAVING HER ALONE

WOW THIS PRISON/INTERROGATION PLACE HAS LIKE

NO SECURITY

HI HOLLY WHY ARE YOU HERE??????

THIS WHOLE ENDING IS JUST THE STUPID CAP ON TOP OF A STUPID SUNDAE

i need to go listen to the books again now

#artemis fowl #artemis fowl movie #liveblog #spoilers #flaming hot garbage #disney seriously who the FUCK did you make this movie for #cause it sure wasn't the fans

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taiblogcomics · 4 years

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The Land Before Tim Drake

Hey there, stale Cheetos. We're finally past The Culling and can get on with the more regular, non-crossover terribleness of the series. And despite me teasing at it, I've decided to go ahead and do the next issue of Teen Titans rather than sub in Ravagers. The reason mostly being that the temptation to make Jurassic Park jokes was too strong~

Here's the cover:

Solstice and Kid Flash in a race? Yeah, I think Kid Flash wins. This isn't a Superman/Flash thing. Anyway, I see that "Walking With Dinosaurs" show has updated for a modern audience and become "Running With Dinosaurs". Maybe it's a crossover with "The Amazing Race"? Does anybody even remember either of these shows~?

Also, don't expect me to be able to name these dinosaurs on sight. Like, I was into dinosaurs as a kid, but I haven't kept up, and I barely knew more that the superficial famous ones anyway. Like, these in the foreground are obviously some sort of Ornithomimus variation, and the two in the background are carnosaurs. But that's about the best I can do~

The comic begins where the previous one left off, with the Titans washing up on the shores of Isla Nublar or wherever. Kid Flash is the first to wake up, with one of those Orithimimids looking in his face. We then get a two-page splash of Kid Flash tying up the dinosaur with vines. He also makes a bunch of quips the whole time, and none of them are funny. He then recaps the crossover for the audience in a huge text bubble while he rescues Tim Drake, Solstice, and Bunker from off the beach. Cassie and Superboy, meanwhile, have a different sort of bunker, a trap door underneath the beach. While the rest of the Titans speed away from the beach, Cassie gets out and helps the tied-up dinosaur, which will undoubtedly lead to a "rescued animal appears at the last minute to protect the heroes" moment later.

Apparently the comic is still expecting you to read Superboy independently of this comic, which is the explanation why he and Cassie are separate from the rest of the team. Tim goes off flying to scout the area, while being casually dismissive of the rest of the group. Bunker follows him, using a very Looney Tunes method of making his bricks into a sudden wall for Tim to plow into to stop him, then gives him a dressing-down about his attitude. Basically it amounts to "stop pouting and be a leader", and further illustrates why Bunker continues to be the best character in this whole series. Fortunately, any tension is quickly dealt with because Cassie and Superboy suddenly spot them and fly over.

The group reunites and takes a shower in a nearby idyllic waterfall. While Tim contemplates disbanding the group, Kid Flash and Solstice go for a run with the dinosaurs, reveling in being able to just use their powers. They also throw up some romance flags that never trigger on-screen. While Bunker reassures Tim that just because he didn't rescue everybody doesn't mean he failed, Superboy stops by to point out this island is weird. No, you think?? Bunker goes off and uses his bricks as a pool raft to relax, which I mean, psionic, fair enough. But that still doesn't look super comfortable. Bricks is bricks is all I'm saying. Anyway, he gets attacked by a pterodactyl, leading him to discover other bricks in the same pond. Okay, why are these ones floating?

It turns out these are the remains of Danny the Street, who got kind of blasted by Harvest at some point. All that's left is a small pile of bricks and some broken signage. Danny offers to teleport them home as a last act, which Tim objects to, since Danny might not survive that kind of energy output. Cassie tells him that it's really not up to him how someone spends their last moments, and Danny teleports them back to civilsation. The heartbreaking moment of them mourning in what is now Danny the Alley is ruined with Solstice and Kid Flash making out in the background. The comic ends with a cutaway to Amanda Waller, who requests someone be dispatched to apprehend the Titans. Oh good, more crossovers!

So, not content with killing off Artemis and writing out Skitter, the comic decides to write out Danny the Street without even really exploring his character or explaining a damn thing about him. Thankfully, he would survive this and go on to be used to much better effect in Gerard Way’s run on Doom Patrol. As for the whole plot of this comic being about “Mystery Island”, it basically seems to exist to say “Hey, we can do scenes set during the day”. Which, admittedly, it does look a lot better than the eye-searing orange hell that was The Culling. But in all honesty, the scenes here could’ve taken place anywhere else in the world and changed nothing. Despite these failings, at least the character stuff (particularly Bunker’s) was good and probably needed to happen.

Look, next time we’ll probably do an issue of Ravagers just to get it out there. Unless there’s something even cooler on the next cover, like skeletons. Or dinosaur skeletons. Or skeletons riding dinosaur skeletons.

#comics #reviews #teen titans #taiblog

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wolfgangisdead · 5 years

Text

Under the Moon Ch. 5

Apollo wasn’t all too keen on finding his sister, especially since it meant either leaving Naomi earlier than he had wanted, or he could take her with him when he goes to find Artemis. But one thing was for sure, he wasn’t all too certain his face would make it out without a few bruises.

They walked home to get the puppy, who Naomi affectionately named Hyacinthus, all settled in. (He wanted to name him something else, but Naomi was settled since the puppy’s eyes reminded her of a hyacinth.)

“So, what’s the whole deal with your sister? Aren’t twins supposed to be inseparable?” Naomi asked once she had managed to get everything set up for the puppy.

“We were, once. If you hadn’t noticed, I have a terrible habit of making a mess of things and that’s exactly what I did with her.” He looked down, recalling the events that led him to live so far away from his sister. “I took something nice, something strong, something brave and then I ruined it. I ruined her.”

“Apollo, don’t say that. I’m su -”

“Naomi, please. I understand you wanting to keep me from destroying myself, but this was my fault. It’s my fault and nothing can ever fix it.” He shook his head, taking a seat besides her on the couch. “Do you know the tale of Orion?”

“The constellation? Or is there more to it?” She questioned quietly, turning to face him.

“Sort of. You see, a long time ago there was a man. This man was named Orion. Skipping through a lot of details, long story short, he had gained the attention of my better half. Now, she swore an oath of maidenhood, she swore off love too. She wanted no man, nor woman. She was independent. Fearsome. Loved the hunt, the rush of adrenaline. I don’t have an excuse for why I did what I did.” He didn’t look at her, often changing his gaze to look at everything else except for her. “I had no reason to kill Orion. Just that he made me angry. He made me angry that he made my sister happy. That my sister loved him more than she could ever love me, more than she did love me. I wanted him dead because he stole Artemis. Because he made her happy when I didn’t. I tricked her. I tricked her and got her to murder him herself. I was a coward. I couldn’t even do it myself. Upon realizing what I had made her do, I had seen such fury that none had seen before. She tore me a new one. She hurt me and to say I didn’t deserve it would be a lie. To say the spear she drove into my heart was undeserved would be a blatant lie. I tried to reconcile, tried to make better of my mistakes, but how could I? Even my own mother looked at me with such regret. She didn’t birth a son, she birthed a killer. I decided then that nothing in the world could ever fix what I had done. Not even my own death would repair what wounds I created. I lost my sister that day, and one could say I even lost my own mother. I’ve avoided them both ever since, opting to being the coward I really am than facing them again. I know just seeing my face will spark bad memories so if it was ever necessary, I’d alter my looks. I’d alter them so much even I forgot who I was. I can’t find her, Naomi. I can’t.”

Naomi, the absolute saint, sat there and just soaked everything in. She took a moment to register his words before letting out a small sigh.

“So, you’re just scared she’ll actually kill you this time? Isn’t that impossible?” She reached out to grab his hand, giving it a light squeeze. “You’ll be alright. I’m sure of it. We can have date night some other time. You need to find your sister, dude. Family drama is not good.”

“It is somewhat impossible, but we still feel pain, Naomi. It’s not just oops I’ve been impaled let me just remove this spear.” He kissed the back of her hand. “It still hurts like a son of a bitch and it’s the healing that always gets you. I’d rather just stay here with you than find her.”

“Apollo, you can’t run from your issues, dork. I know you want to, but if you’ve been tasked with finding her, you should go and find her. If she hurts you, you’re a big boy. You can just come back here and I’ll take care of you until you’re better like you do with me.” She ran her free hand through his hair, knowing that he was getting anxious at the thought.

“I don’t deserve you, but I’m glad I have you.” He sighed, leaning his forehead against hers for a moment. “If I don’t go out right now to find her, what will you do?”

“I’d be mad and a little disappointed, but I’d still love you.” She murmured, brown eyes meeting his blue.

“Promise that you’ll always love me?” He whispered, voice cracking under the tightness of his throat.

“You bet your cute ass I’ll always love you. I don’t promise it, I swear it.” She smiled at him, running a thumb across his freckled cheeks.

“I’m glad you love my butt so much.” He chuckled, rolling his eyes lightly. “Don’t make it so hard to leave.”

She let go of him and pushed him away playfully. “Go on, then! Get outta here, nerd!”

“What? No goodbye kiss?”

“You only get a kiss for when you come back. Come back unharmed and in one piece and I’ll give you a lot of kisses.” She chirped.

“I could get used to this.” He sighed softly, smiling.

Apollo stood up reluctantly, and made his way to the door despite everything in him telling him not to. He sighed and turned back to look at her.

“Naomi, I plan on marrying you some day. I hope you know that.” And with that, he had made his way out, beginning his quest of locating Artemis.

#cezn's writing #my writing #greek mythology #cezn's stuff #angsty

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youngjusticeslut · 6 years

Text

and with you I’m whole again

Fandom: Young Justice Links: FF.net // AO3 Characters: Roy Will Harper, Kaldur’ahm Ships: N/A Summary: Will meets Kaldur for the first time since returning from being undercover.For Kaldur’Bomb appreciation month. Rating: T Word Count: 1769 Disclaimer: I don’t own any of these characters.

There were a few things that Will could still pride himself in.

Fatherhood was one of them. From the moment he’d first held her in his shaky arms, he was smitten. The baby wasn’t even a year old and she had him wrapped around every one of her tiny fingers. Will had made many mistakes in his life, but none of them seemed to matter when he was with Lian. So long as she continued to smile up at him, he would be just fine.

Will could still shoot an arrow with pinpoint accuracy. That was something that hadn’t changed, and probably never would. Even when he was in the thick of his depression, he could still count on his marksmanship to take care of a few worthless thugs. On nights Lian fell asleep early, Jade would put her in a carrier and let her sleep as they sparred in a warehouse. His hand-to-hand still needed work, but he couldn’t deny the rush of satisfaction when an arrow just grazed his wife’s head. Even she had looked amused.

There were a couple other things, too. Honesty. A dry sense of humor. The ability to cook. Those came and went, but the one that did always stay was his penchant for timeliness. Until today, that was.

He glanced down at his phone and cursed, checking the time. Lian had started crying just minutes before he was due to leave the apartment. Jade had promised to calm her, but his daughter seemed adamant on wanting him. By the time she’d settled, Will was already ten minutes late to his meeting with Kaldur. While Jade distracted Lian with some well-timed cookies, he snuck out the door and all but ran to the address Kaldur had texted him.

When he was just minutes away, Will slowed. He’d make a terrible impression if he showed up panting within an inch of his life. While Kaldur had spent the past few years training and becoming stronger, Will had done the opposite. As soon as he’d thought it, he wished he hadn’t. Will couldn’t even imagine what Kaldur had been through.

When news of Kaldur’s true plan spread, Will had expected a call. A message. Anything, really. But the Atlantean maintained radio silence from his former friend, and Will didn’t press. He had an inkling of what Kaldur was going through, so he chose to let things happen as they were. They met for the first time at Wally’s funeral. Briefly, but it was enough for Kaldur to extend an invitation. A few days later, and the invitation was cemented in text with a time and an address of a cafe in Star City.

Will smoothed his hair back before he opened the door to the cafe. He didn’t even need to look, he knew Kaldur would be there waiting for him. Brushing past the hostess, Will found him in the back, already holding a mug in his hands.

“Chamomile or Jasmine?” Will asked as he slid into the booth.

Kaldur didn’t startle, instead he raised a brow. “Common decency is to apologize when one is so late.”

“I know,” Will sighed. “I’m sorry. I got a little tied up,” he admitted, rubbing the back of his neck. “I understand.” Kaldur drank from his mug before meeting his friend’s eyes. “Neither, by the way. It is coffee.”

“Coffee?” Will crossed his arms. “I thought you hated the stuff.”

Kaldur shrugged, tugging at the turtleneck he wore to hide his gills. “It was all we had on the submarine.”

If it were any person other than Will, they might have made a face. They might have tried to console Kaldur, or even ask if he wanted to talk about it. But Will knew better. He knew what it was like to make mistakes, to make impossible decisions that would forever haunt him. So instead of doing any of that, he just nodded and grabbed a menu. “I could use a coffee.”

Kaldur didn’t speak again until Will had his coffee in front of him and they’d both ordered some lunch. Tuna melt for Will, turkey on rye for Kaldur. Despite the time that had passed, Will was glad that some things had stayed the same.

“I am sorry.”

Will added sugar to his coffee, debating on whether or not to add creamer. “For?”

“For everything. The deceit. The betrayal. For not helping you find Speedy. Of all people, I should have been by your side. I promised that I would help you, instead I just… I was so focused on myself, and the mission that I… I am sorry, Roy,” Kaldur choked, his voice strained.

The former arched exhaled, stirring his coffee until the sugar dissolved. He’d known the apology was going to come up at some point, and it bothered him that he still hadn’t thought up an appropriate response. A long time ago, Will had blamed him for giving up. Fueled on no sleep and copious amounts of heroin, he’d said some horrible things to him, things he would never be able to take back. And yet here Kaldur was, apologizing to him.

“Kal,” he said, his voice as soft as if he were talking to his daughter. “If there’s anyone you don’t need to apologize to, it’s me.”

“I was not there for you.”

“I didn’t let anyone be there for me. It wasn’t your fault,” Will swore. “There’s nothing to apologize for. Not to me, anyways. Jade… might require a bit more apology,” he admitted, trying to smile. His wife still hadn’t completely forgiven the Atlantean for faking her sister’s death.

Kaldur squeezed his mug. “Not just Jade. I do not think I could ever stop apologizing for what I did in my absence.”

“You and me both, Pal. And by the way, it’s not Roy anymore,” Will admitted. “I am afraid I do not follow.”

“I changed my name. Didn’t feel right anymore, now that Roy is walking around. At least, I assume he’s walking around. The kid has more anger issues than a volcano in Hawaii,” Will muttered into his coffee.

Kaldur allowed himself to smile. “Sounds familiar.”

Will rolled his eyes but smiled. With Kaldur smiling, how could he not? “Yeah, I’ll give you that. Just this once, though, so don’t get used to it, Kal.”

The waiter arrived with their sandwiches. Will started eating before Kaldur, having realized just how hungry he’d gotten. He’d been so busy feeding Lian this morning that he’d forgotten to eat anything himself. Will was so lost in his sandwich that he barely heard Kaldur’s next question. “Sorry?” he mumbled, trying to swallow a mouthful of tuna salad.

“You did not tell me what you go by, now. How am I to address you?”

“Oh. Yeah, that’s probably important.” He swallowed whatever remained in his mouth and then grinned. “Will.”

“Will?”

“Yeah, William is Roy’s middle name. I don’t know, I liked it, and I figured it was a way to keep him a part of who I want to be,” he explained, cheeks tinging pink. “Jade thought it was a good idea.”

“No, I agree,” Kaldur said, plucking a french fry from his plate and swirling it in ketchup. “Will. It suits you.” He popped the fry in his mouth and hummed in satisfaction.

“When’s the last time you’ve had fries?” Will asked, unable to keep the amusement off his face as he watched his friend.

“Far too long. Far, far too long,” Kaldur groaned, years melting off his face from the simple action. Will chuckled but let him eat, both of them enjoying each other’s silent company in the way that always seemed so natural to them. Will had gotten along with Dick and Wally because he could play the older and wiser one, the one they could look up to. But he didn’t have to play anything with Kaldur; with him, he could just be.

“So,” Kaldur began again, dabbing his mouth with a napkin once he’d had his fill. “Is it true?”

Will knew exactly what Kaldur was referring to, and yet he played oblivious anyway. He’d make him work for it a little bit. “Is what true?”

“That you have a daughter.” Will wanted to continue the act, and yet the moment he thought of the baby he left at home, a smile betrayed him. Instead of answering, he dug out his phone from his pocket and pulled up a picture. He’d taken it yesterday, while Lian was playing with her blocks. He handed the phone to Kaldur, resting his chin in his palm. “Lian.”

Kaldur’s face softened. “She looks just like you.”

“You think so? Everyone says she looks like Jade.”

“I can see both of your resemblances in her,” Kaldur mused before handing the phone back. “I cannot believe it. You are a father.”

“I am,” Will grinned. “She changed my life, Kal.”

“So it seems someone finally got through to you,” Kaldur said. “I am happy for you, Will. Lian is a lucky girl.”

“Well, time will tell on that matter,” Will admitted, chuckling nervously. “I’m still not the perfect dad. Pretty sure I’ve given her diaper rash more times than I can count. Jade swore she’d strangle me if I did it again.”

“Nobody is perfect.”

“Yeah. I love her, more than anything. Figured that has to count for something.” Will pushed his plate away and crossed his arms. “You can meet her, if you want.”

“Oh, I do not think-”

Will waved him off. “She’ll love you, Kal. It’s about time she met her Godfather.”

“Godfather?”

“Yeah, who else would I have picked?” Will asked, raising a brow. “Jade wasn’t happy with it, but she picked the Godmother, so.”

“Artemis, I presume.”

“Naturally.”

“Well…” Kaldur hummed. “Artemis and I worked well together before.”

“That’s the spirit,” Will said. His phone vibrated on the table and he glanced at it. “Shit, that’s the time? I really am running behind today. Lian and I have parents’ group today.” “Parents’ group?”

“Yeah, Iris started it,” Will explained. “Just somewhere all the parents with kids can gather to hang out for a little while. Lian loves seeing the other kids, we never miss it.” His face dimmed, realizing how rude he was probably being. “We could miss it this one time, though.”

“Absolutely not. I will now allow it,” Kaldur scoffed. “We shall see each other again soon enough.”

“You promise?” Will asked, already pulling out some cash from his wallet. “You can’t go disappearing on me again, Kaldur.”

“I won’t,” he promised. “I am here to stay.”

#young justice #roy harper #kaldur #kaldur'bomb #young justice fanfiction

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fpandaliceriverdale · 6 years

Text

Missy and Moony

When Gladys Jones comes to the Cooper House, Alice expects a certain kind of reckoning.

Inspired in part by a post I read by @antoinettexcheryl in which she mentioned the possibility of Alice/FP/Gladys as an OT3. Hope you enjoy!

It was a Tuesday evening at 9:50 and Betty’s weeknight curfew was in ten minutes. Reading a book in her bedroom, Alice was keeping the faith. After Jughead’s first appearance as an official boyfriend, Alice had expected Betty’s respect for her curfew to disappear but while there had been a few issues, Alice was pleasantly surprised that Betty had in general kept to the curfew or called well in advance for an extension. Weekends were another story, but Alice was taking the wins where she could get them. Almost on cue, the door opened and Alice could hear Betty laughing. Betty said something and an older female voice Alice couldn’t immediately place laughed in response.

“Mom!” Betty yelled, “Can you come downstairs?”

Alice set down her book and slid into her slippers, curious. She was momentarily self-conscious about her pajamas but after a split-second, internally shrugged. Hal was a serial killer, what did it matter if someone knew she wore an old Pop’s shirt and oversized flannel pants to bed. Besides, no one aside from their former owners would know where she had gotten them. As she moved down the hall, Alice silently hoped it wasn’t Hermione. As much as she had come to accept Veronica, Alice still couldn’t quite deal with Hermione and Hiram. When she rounded the corner at the top of the stairs she saw a dark head of hair that she immediately recognized but couldn’t quite believe was really there.

“Honey, I’m telling you, he was the fattest baby I’ve ever seen.” the woman said, “Jug would eat anything.”

The woman turned when Alice’s next step creaked on the stairs and Alice came face to face with Gladys Jones.

“Gladys?” Alice said, still not quite believing her own eyes. Gladys smiled in response behind her dark bangs. Nostalgia, shame, and a certain joy rushed through Alice all at once. She wasn’t sure if she was going to throw up or hug the woman in front of her. Gladys’ smile didn’t waver in the face of Alice’s confusion and Alice was struck by the gesture. Her smile was so comforting and familiar but so unexpected, so undeserved.

“What are you doing here?” Alice asked, confused enough for her voice to carry an edge.

“Mom!” Betty reprimanded, eyes flaring, “Don’t be rude. Mrs. Jones just got back into town and she wanted to come say hello. She had dinner with Mr. Jones and Jellybean and Juggie and I and it was really nice.” Betty said, looking pointedly at her mother.

“Well, hello. Come in.” Alice managed. She knew Betty meant well but her daughter still didn’t know much about her Southside connections both past and present. Betty had no idea about Alice’s current relationship with FP, let alone her history with Gladys. As the three sat down on the sofa, Alice braced for a standoff. She figured Gladys must have heard about she and FP and she was waiting for the opening salvo. It didn’t come.

“I was just telling Betty about Jug as a baby. Did you ever see him when he was little, Alice?” Gladys said. Alice shook her head. “He was a monster, biggest chunk of kid I’ve seen to this day. Still eats like that but somehow stays rail thin.”

Gladys face was a blank slate. Her small smile was still in place so she seemed fine but something told Alice she knew about FP. Why else would she be at the house? Alice’s rational brain couldn’t come up with any other reason. Whether she did or she didn’t know, Alice wasn’t sure how long the pleasantries would last and didn’t want to take the chance that Betty would be in the room if anything painful or private was brought up.

“Betty, you should get ready for bed. I know you’ve got an exam tomorrow.” Alice said, motioning to the stairs. Betty rolled her eyes.

“Mom, I can stay down here for a few minutes, that won’t be the difference between an A and B.”

Before Alice could respond, Gladys hopped in. “I was actually hoping to talk to your mom alone if that’s alright. We have some stuff to talk about between the two of us.” Gladys said, tipping her head to Alice. Alice took a deep steadying breath. So she did know.

Betty looked confused as she stood to leave, and eyed them both with the suspicion she was so famous for. Alice was readying herself for a fight with Gladys and couldn’t handle full-snoop Betty at the same time so she tried another pointed dismissal to hurry her along.

“Elizabeth, we are adults. We don’t need to explain ourselves to you. I’ll see you in the morning, sleep well.”

Betty’s eyes stayed on the two of them until she disappeared upstairs and Alice waited for the sound of Betty’s door closing before turning back to Gladys.

“Thank you for bringing Betty home.” Alice said, voice even and measured.

Gladys didn’t respond. Instead, Alice felt Gladys’ gaze move slowly over her, starting at the top of her head before meandering across her face and ending at her ringless left hand. Alice felt herself squirm and waited for the leather clad woman across from her to speak.

“Do remember Mrs. Ramirez? Fifth grade?” Gladys said finally.

Alice had looked down out of the pure desire to escape Gladys’ observation but her eyes snapped up at the out of the blue comment. She couldn’t imagine where the other woman was going. She paused before responding, trying to figure out what tact Gladys might have been taking.

“With the terrible haircut?” Gladys prompted, as if memory was Alice’s problem.

“Yes, of course.” Alice replied, surrendering out of confusion, “The tiny little curls, we called her Medusa because you were reading that Legends and Myth book.” Gladys nodded, looking almost relieved.

“We tried to get her to call you Artemis and me Luna but she just plain refused.” Gladys said with a laugh. Alice raised an eyebrow but sensing no ill will, played along. If laughing about the past was all that Gladys was here to do, Alice was all too happy to oblige.

Alice scrunched her nose in an imitation of the old woman they’d grown to love as a teacher. “‘Alice, Gladys, you have wonderful god-given names. I won’t hear another word about calling you anything else.’ Didn’t stop us. How long did we call each other Artemis and Luna?”

“Oh up through middle school.” Gladys said fondly. Her voice changed only slightly as she went on. “Alice, I know about you and FP. He told me, when Jellybean and I came home.”

Alice’s temporary relief was gone and panic rushed through her.

“Gladys,” Alice began but faltered. There had been no anger in Gladys’ voice, Alice realized, just weariness.

“Alice, can I ask you a few things? I know you love to talk, you’ve always loved to talk, but I think you owe me just a little bit of space to speak? When I’m done, you can say whatever you need to.” Again, there was no anger. Thrown off a bit, Alice nodded. She wasn’t sure there was a better choice than just letting Gladys continue.

“Remember the night I turned 16 and we were initiated at the Wyrm? You’d waited two extra months to join so I could join with you and we were both so excited to get our official serpent names. I knew Mr. Jones had heard us playing between the trailers growing up but I never thought he’d remember our stupid names. I can still hear him chuckling to himself when he gave us our jackets after the dance. ‘Missy and Moony snakedancing together, my my, my girls grew up.’ We almost got M&Ms tattooed on our wrists that night. Reena Fogarty smacked us across the face when she saw FP with the tattoo needle above our wrists.”

Gladys glanced down at her folded hands and softly rubbed the spot in question just inside her wrist, lost for a bit in their old world. Alice noticed the small action and caught herself brushing a finger over the same space on her own body. The shared intimacy of the absent minded touch seemed to Alice to bring the memories of their old friendship surging into the room. Today they sat across from each other almost strangers but for years they had known each other better than anyone else in the world. Even as Alice noticed the lines in Gladys’ face and the softness around her hips, she recognized the same energy in her old friend. She had aged, certainly, but her spirit was the same. Alice wondered if the same was true of herself. Gladys studied her hands as she continued.

“I still think about the day you told me you were moving to the Northside. I thought nothing would change, and for a while nothing did. FP was already there and I was stuck on the Southside but school wasn’t everything. Even when you and he started dating, I didn’t care. You could have him that way if I could keep you both in my life. But then out of nowhere you dropped him. And then you dropped me.” Gladys voice broke over the last sentence and Alice found herself reaching out a hand across the coffee table.

“Gladys, it wasn’t that-” Alice began, but Gladys drew back from Alice’s extended hand and looked up, face wet.

“Alice, I don’t know what happened, but you leaving destroyed us. You left a crater in our world. I didn’t have my Missy and FP didn’t have his Allie.”

“I had to get out, I had other people to think about,” Alice tried to explain. Gladys ignored her.

“We lived inside your absence, there was no space or moment free of you. The Wyrm was you. The trailer park was you. Hell even each other, we reminded each other of you. He looked at me sometimes like I’d driven you away and I can’t blame him. Some days I hated him because I thought the exact same thing about him.”

Alice had never heard anything about the wreckage she’d left behind in the Southside. She’d told herself that she’d never looked back out of service to her unborn child but part of her had always known it had been out of fear. If she looked back, she might have gone back. Seeing the people she’d loved in pain would have pulled she and her baby back across the tracks.

“One of my younger sister’s friends got out of The Sisters of Quiet Mercy a few months later and she was telling us about all the crazy people there. She told me about people who tried to hurt her and scary nuns but also a pregnant girl named Alice who punched a boy who wouldn’t leave her alone. I was only half listening from another room but I heard your name and I ran in and demanded to know everything. Was she blonde? Did she have a snake tattoo? What was her last name? Of course, it was you. You were pregnant and you hadn’t told me. I started crying, Alice, and I swear I don’t remember stopping. FP pulled me off the floor of the Wyrm six hours later and carried me home, I swear I was still crying. I couldn’t form sentences. I just kept saying your name.”

Tears were streaming unchecked down Gladys’ face now.

“I never told him about the baby. I was almost sure it was his but if it wasn’t… well I couldn’t imagine inflicting either pain on him in that moment. That night FP sat me down on the sofa when we got back to his trailer and put his hands on my shoulders. He was crying as hard as I was when he made me look him in the eye.” Gladys steadied herself and stood up. She walked over to Alice’s sofa and sat right beside her, reaching one hand out to rest on Alice’s shoulder. Alice didn’t flinch or move away from the contact, she couldn’t. Gladys wiped her cheeks with her other hand and placed it on the opposite shoulder, pain-filled eyes rising to meet Alice’s. “‘He looked me dead in the eye and said ‘She isn’t coming back Moony, we gotta figure out a way to live without her.’”

The pain in Gladys’ eyes was alive and that moment it devoured Alice. All the guilt and shame of the suffering she’d caused hit her like a tidal wave. She’d been able to push it all away when she could keep the reminders out of sight but Gladys was the living breathing proof of the wreckage she’d left behind. Alice already had tears to match Gladys’ but she felt her composure slipping even further. Before the sob Alice could feel growing in her gut could break, Gladys’ hands fell from her shoulders.

“Then I kissed him. And he kissed me back. And we were both thinking of you. But we kissed again, and again, over and over for weeks. Eventually we weren’t thinking of you. Eventually we were with each other. In the beginning, we’d talk about you and grieve together. It was just like you died. But we grew together and life happened. We moved in together and you faded a bit. We got married and you seemed just a little further away. After Jug and Jellybean were born, you were almost a ghost. Almost.”

Alice had had no idea how Gladys and FP had gotten together. When she had heard about it after she’d left them behind, she’d felt betrayed. Her best friend and her boyfriend had seemed to have wasted no time moving on with each other. She couldn’t have been more wrong.

“Missy,” Gladys said her Serpent name in a half-whisper. “As crazy as it sounds, some part of you was always with us. I found a best friend, but he was never going to be anything like you. He found a way to love me, but it was never going to be the way he loved you.”

Alice broke then, 20 years of pain coming for her all at once. She had never allowed herself to think about Gladys and FP, to remember the only real family she had on the Southside, she’d never let herself imagine their pain. To hear of theirs reminded her of her own and she realized what a disaster she had wrought. Alice had tolerated Hal and loved Betty and Polly with every part of her being but it was never the way she had loved FP and Gladys. And, it appeared, they had never loved anyone quite the same either. How had she been so stupid? How had she thrown them away? She sobbed, deep, body shaking sobs and in the midst of her grief she felt Gladys’ arms surround her. She only shook harder. She didn’t deserve the comfort, least of all from one of the two people she’d hurt the most.

“Shhh.” Gladys whispered, “Come back.” Alice tried to stop the tears and slow her breathing but suddenly all she could smell was cinnamon gum and hairspray. It was Gladys but so too it was the scent of 16, of being folded up in a booth on the same side as her best friend with her feet in her boyfriend’s lap. It was the smell of being young, of being carefree, of being happy.

“I’m so, so-” Alice began, trying to pull back and meet Gladys’ eye between sobs. Gladys pulled her tighter.

“Just cry Missy. You can apologize later.”

So Alice did. She cried for the girl she had been, for the decision she’d made, for the people she’d hurt. She’d cried remembering the day she’d met Gladys in the second grade, the night she first kissed FP, their last night all together at the drive-in. It was all too much. And nothing she could do now would ever be enough.

“Missy, come back to me.” Gladys said softly, kissing Alice’s hair. The old comfort of Gladys’ head kisses brought a watery smile to her face and she spoke without thinking.

“Don’t leave. I don’t deserve to ask, but I will. Just stay for a while.” Alice whispered. She felt Gladys’ arms tense around her and as the other woman pulled back a new wave of tears threatened. She had already chased her away. Alice felt a finger under her chin and she looked up to find Gladys’ eyes full of fear but also the tiniest bit of hope.

“Missy, if you’re back, I need you to be back.” Alice felt Gladys tremble as her next breath came in shaky. “I can’t lose you again.”

There was a moment of silence, of stillness, and it seemed to Alice that a million bad decisions had led her to a moment where she might make one final good or bad decision. She threw her arms around Gladys and buried her face in the familiar dark hair.

“I’m done running.” Alice said, surprising herself with the certainty in her voice. “You two have been my family since I could walk. I’m never leaving you again.”

#falice #riverdale #Alice Cooper #fp jones #gladys jones #ot3 #betty cooper #parentdale #fanfic #riverdale fanfiction

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raphpanda21 · 6 years

Text

Hecate’s Family Counseling Session 7

Hecate having arrived at her patients abode rang the doorbell waiting patiently.

A few moments later the door is answered by a less than friendly looking Apollo

Apollo: You’re late.

Hecate who always prided herself on her punctuality raised a skeptical brow at this glancing at her watch.

Hecate: Nope! I was exactly on time but we can discuss you inability to tell time later . Come along .

Brushing past him she headed into the living room settling herself into the only chair as Apollo settled on the couch by his waiting twin.

Hecate: Well then let’s just get to it since Apollo looks especially excited.

Hecate’s smile widens at the glower this earns her from Apollo.

Hecate: So how would you describe your current relationship .

Apollo rolled his eyes earning himself a sharp jab to the ribs from Artemis

Artemis: It is as tolerable as ever.

Apollo rubbed his side glaring at Artemis

Apollo: Sure tolerable.

Hecate nodded tapping her fingers on the chair arm.

Hecate: Lovely, but I sense a lack of twinsey closeness . What would you say is causing this tension in your relationship?

Apollo: She is a over competitive man hating bitch for starts.

Artemis: Better a bitch than a desperate horn-dog constantly looking for a leg to hump.

Hecate’s eyes widened just slightly at the exchange but she quickly recovered.

Hecate: Lets try to be mature adults if possible. Artemis why would you say your brother feels that way about you.

Artemis: Well he knows I am better than him at pretty much everything so there is that jealousy.

Apollo scoffed muttering something under his breathe that sounded like you wish but Artemis ignores him

Artemis: He also has an ego much larger than his brain and I may delight in tearing him down now and then.

Apollo: Now and then? It is more like every opportunity she can get.

Hecate looked to Artemis for confirmation

Artemis just shrugged innocently

Hecate: Interesting, so Artemis what in your opinion is the cause of the tension between the two of you ?

Artemis: It is definitely his dick and the fact that he wants to put it in every female I know.

Apollo threw his hands up in frustration

Apollo: I enjoy sex. Bitches enjoy it. Why does it bother you ?!

Hecate: That is a valid question Artemis would you care to elaborate?

Artemis smiled sweetly in response to Hecate’s request

Artemis: I would be happy to. It is quite simple 90% of the females I know are virgins, committed to staying virgins and super uninterested in him. 9% are not into men and the remaining 1% are down for the dick. He knows all of this or should since I have told him it a million times but he continues to sniff around the percentage that want nothing to do with him!

Apollo: That is some bull! I have never heard any complaints. Besides that 9% is hot and if they gave me a chance I guarantee I could change their sexual preference. Plus more than half of those virgins don’t know what they have given up. I am really doing a service by giving them the choice they never got.

Hecate and Artemis both look at him with deadpan stares.

Hecate: I want to think you are joking but I know you aren’t so now it is time for hard truths.

Hecate holds up one finger

Hecate: One, not even Zeus can make a lesbian turn straight due to mighty wiener prowess. That isn’t how it works.

She holds up a second finger

Hecate: Second, sacred virgins are off limits. Period. Would you want some creep making moves on your sister?

Apollo glanced st Artemis brows knitting in contemplation.

Apollo: I would be honestly surprised if a man did. Either way Artemis can handle herself so my feelings don’t matter.

Artemis: That isn’t the point Apollo. The point is men should respect a woman’s choice and not try to convince or manipulate them into changing their mind.

Hecate: She got the basic idea across all be it nicer than I would have.

Apollo: I do not have to convince or manipulate anyone. I am not Hephaestus for fuck’s sake. I am good looking with a pedigree to match. Women come on to me.

Artemis’ face flushed with her anger as she listened to his self promotion

Artemis: Nope, I cant keep it in. Fun fact Apollo women kiss and tell just as much as men and that dick that you think is tantamount to a tidal wave of pleasure and able to out perform any male is instead known as the quickie King and about as enjoyable as having sex with a cactus.

Apollo: Whatever! That sounds like a bunch of my past conquests that have their panties in a twist because I wouldn’t become exclusive with them.

Before Artemis can respond back Hecate does

Hecate: Enough! Apollo there is a lot of self improvement I think you need with regards to females. Conquest alone is a terribly sexist way to refer to females. Therapy is all about establishing where we are though and how we can move on to someplace better. You both have a lot of things you need to work on if there is any hope whatsoever for this tension to lessen. So not unlike when you shared a womb together I am going to pair you up together to spend a good portion of your free time doing activities together.

Artemis: So our therapy homework is to hang out together.

Hecate: In a way yes. For example the two of you will go to the female empowerment meeting that you already attend three times a week. On three of the other days you will train tougher without your competitive spirit getting in the way. You will help one another improve and I will have my spies watching so don’t think you can blow this off. The last day will be yours to do as you see fit. Again I will have tabs on the two of you. You both know where the issues lie and I want to see progress made in fixing the behaviors before our next session.

She points to Apollo her eyes narrowing with her seriousness

Hecate: That means keep your dick to yourself unless it is blatantly requested and find other women to make moves on. There are millions of them Apollo. Leave the small pond around your sister and swim far far away.

Her finger moves to Artemis

Hecate: You on the other hand need to work on living in the moment. Everything shouldn’t be a competition. My challenge to you is to be more humble and not constantly compete to affirm your greatness. If the both of you work on these things and the other homework I have assigned there may be a chance things get better. Ultimately though, it is up to the two of you. If you both choose to be stubborn and refuse to listen no amount of therapy will ever work.

Artemis and Apollo look at one another briefly before Artemis speaks on behalf of them both

Artemis: We will give it a chance but no promises. Like you said we are both pretty stubborn.

Apollo: And set in our ways.

Hecate: The first step is to be willing to make that step so you are both on the right track. I will touch base with you in a few weeks and see what progress you have made.

Getting up she bids them goodbye and lets herself out.

#greekgods #loreolympus #inspired #drabble #artemis #apollo #hecate #lore olympus

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atleastputinsomeeffortinuroc · 6 years

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Rant/Review: Ready Player One --aka-- Just Watch Wrinkle in Time Instead...

I don’t usually hate movies.

I know that seems backwards considering that this blog is me complaining and ranting incoherently about movies I don’t like, but very few movies leave me seething. Even all of the Detective Conan movies, which are mostly terrible pieces of garbage, I don’t necessarily hate. Red Crimson Letters is a terrible waste of time and energy, but I wasn’t insulted or felt talked down to. It was just a really bad movie I wanted to talk about.

In my life, there have only been three movies who have truly enraged me. “Batman v Superman,” “Joy,” and “War for the Planet of the Apes.”

Objectively, there are aspects that are genuinely good in all of them and are definitely better than I probably give them credit for...but I doubt it, but they just flare up an anger in me for one reason or another. They’re permanently on my “fuck that movie” list. And now…now there’s another entrant to that prestigious list.

Ready Player One.

My GOD. THIS was the book everyone’s been talking about? THIS is supposed to be the fucking bible of pop culture?! THIS MOVIE?! THE ONE THAT UNIRONICALLY HAS THE PHRASE SPOKEN BY HUMAN VOCAL CHORDS “FANBOYS ALWAYS KNOW A HATER?!!” ARE YOU GUYS--…ok. Ok, I need to calm down.

There are several, several, SEVERAL parts about this movie that don’t work, and I could go into a lot of the problems, but instead I’m going to try to talk about three aspects of the film. And for the sake of me not swearing up and down, we’re not going to talk about that godawful dialogue. Just know that it sucks.)

1) The ham-fisted arc

2) The protagonist and his trophy waifu

3) References over content

There are spoilers ahead, and I’m going to write this with the assumption that you’ve already seen the movie. If you haven’t, you’ve been warned. Anywho, let’s get started. Put on some “a-ha,” break your nostalgia goggles and join me as we go down this road where I collectively shit over Spielberg’s attempt to adapt a supposed “beloved classic.” (CAN YOU TELL I’M MAD?!)

1) The arc

Here’s the thing with arcs in narratives, and more specifically films.

They need to feel earned.

Your central character has gone through a life-altering change or point of view since the beginning of the film due to the adventures and trials had throughout the film. Good examples include “Mad Max: Fury Road” where Max finally lets others into his life and sees the value in not going through life alone as described by the part where he donates his own blood and tells Furiosa his name. Another good example is actually from the Oscar nominee Spielberg had LITERALLY LAST YEAR, “The Post.” In it, Kay Graham finally put her foot down and shows authority by stepping out of her comfort zone to release the Pentagon Papers—damn what the powers that be say. This is important to any narrative because it shows the flaws of your characters through their insecurities and hesitations to make them human rather than movie characters. Even if you have paragon characters like Superman, Wonder Woman, or Batman, they still have to overcome some kind of personal issue that is keeping them from achieving what they’ve wanted.

Now, if you look over to the main character, you can see that his arc was…what is it that was his arc?

He’s…he’s the same at the beginning as he was at the end.

“OH BUT HE HAS A PENTHOUSE AT THE END,” yeah that’s not a change. One could argue that the (even though the catalyst for change has no fucking relation to it) arc is about unplugging and enjoying the real world. The bits at the end with Easter Egg man where he starts going on and on and on about how he missed reality or something, and the VERY BRIEF bits at the beginning where you see people all over the VR systems, one of which is the mother neglecting a fire in the house and one where an Asian man almost commits suicide after losing all of his stuff in the game (it’s played for comedy, so THAT’S also pretty fun, because it’s not like Japanese suicide rates are a serious issue or anything OH WAIT.) So it’s about being close to reality and unplugging. Ok. Coolio.

But here’s the thing, similar to “War for the Planet of the Apes”…YOU HAVEN’T EARNED IT. There are brief moments where it kind of alludes to it (see the middle challenge with ‘oh yes, I should have kissed the girl during the Shining’ and the small bit at the middle where the main two are sitting there and the main dude has ONE HALF-ASSED LINE about how “it’s nice here. It’s slower,”) but that’s IT. It doesn’t actually give you a reason to think that staying in the Oasis and avoiding reality is a BAD thing. Sure you have abusive father obsessed with getting high scores but he’s just one dimensional asshole dad who dies and you don’t give a shit about it one second later after his parental figures are killed.

There are no real CONSEQUENCES to spending too much time in the Oasis, it’s just because he’s good at the game. And if there are, they sure as hell aren’t focused on in favor of mindless spectacle (which looks REALLY BAD by the way. I know it’s supposed to look fake because video game, but do the main characters have to use the ugliest models in existence?!) As such, the ending and central arc of learning is lost.

So what’s the arc? Well…there is none. Nothing is really learned, nothing is really gained that MATTERS aside from the keys to Willy Wonka’s goddamn chocolate factory.

Z or Perzival or Wade or generic-white-gamer-boy learns all of fucking NOTHING by the end. (As such, it makes the ending where he says “EVERYONE HAS TO BE OFF ON TUESDAYS AND THURSDAYS” come off as BULLshit.)

But no, this is clearly the Spielberg classic. It’s not like Indiana Jones learned anything in the Last Crusade as a character only he totally fucking DID, HE LEARNED TO RESPECT AND LOVE HIS FATHER WHO HE PREVIOUSLY DESPISED AND THE IMPORTANCE OF—sorry. Sorry I’m getting a bit mad again.

Anywho, due to a lack of a real arc, it makes you think that the entire fucking plot was pointless. It was just inevitable that the good guy win because…well he’s the main character. He doesn’t say anything about anything but is instead dumb fluff, which would be fine…but here’s the thing. It also affects the main characters. And it affects them HARD.

2) Tweedledee and Tweedledumbass

The two main characters have no personality or character due to this lack of an arc.

The main man, Wade, his personality is…what exactly? He’s just generic hero-boy who is obsessed with the 80s. “He’s like a regular Star-Lord!” I hear you say, only he totally fucking isn’t. Starlord has baggage, has character has points and instances that stretch BEYOND just quoting 80’s movie and saying the actual phrase that a screenwriter actually wrote down and didn’t immediately delete that went “FANBOYS ALWAYS KNOW A HATER” NO I AM NOT OVER IT.

...Point is, the references don’t make Star-Lord who he is, it’s the character of Peter Quill himself. Cocky, brash, and in many ways, a child running from his past.

As for Wade, he’s got nothing. I’ve looked over this sometimes, depending on the writing or the situation, so maybe it wouldn’t bother me so much, but the actor who plays him isn’t doing a good job. I know I don’t talk about acting a lot, but the man…the man is just whining through his lines. He comes off as insufferable with his needless 80’s knowledge that I was genuinely rooting for the one-dimensional villain to kill that fucking brat.

Then we have Artemis or Samantha or Sam or its-the-pixie-cut-rebel-chick.

There are several scenes that are etched into my brain now (including a FUCKING NUT-SHOT AND A PASSWORD FOR A HUMAN ADULT THAT IS “B055MAN69.” IN A SPIELBERG MOVIE. THE MAN WHO MADE INDIANA JONES AND SCHINDLER’S LIST.), but one of the big ones is the final image of the film in which the main character in his 80’s man-boy cave spins around with his beautiful woman sitting in his lap as they suck face as the line “reality is pretty awesome anyway” or something like that. Aside from the main character not earning that statement as previously stated…fucking let’s look at it for what it is.

The man just won a real-life walking-talking waifu. A trophy wife that he wins at the end of the game.

She’s what probably made me see through the movie the most honestly. She makes this big fucking deal about “oh, but I’m not who you think I am on the outside, I’m not pretty” and then when you go outside to the real world, of course she’s the fucking gorgeous Hollywood white girl—she just has a goddamn birthmark on her eye to be her “blemish.”

“Oh but she’s insecure about it,” I hear you say--I’m sorry, but you mean to tell me NOBODY told her she’s fine and beautiful with the eye-mark BEFORE Wade? You mean to tell me she’s insecure, but not insecure enough to feel the need to buy fucking MAKE-UP!? I’m not saying that she needs it, I’m saying that the character’s central flaw is the WEAKEST FUCKIN FLAW I HAVE EVER SEEN. YOU WANNA CHANGE THE GAME, QUASIMODO THAT SHIT.

THEN, and this part was just fucking HILARIOUS to me, she mentions about how the ioi company fucking KILLED HER FATHER in a workshop and she has to stop him for revenge…and then it’s totally dropped. Like it’s never mentioned by the end. At all. She chucks a grenade into Mechagodzilla to kill the bossman but fuck me if it ain’t satisfying and adds physically NOTHING to her character.

Her character exists for one purpose. She is the love interest who sets the main character off on his journey. Nothing more. And I say that, because SHE’S THE CATALYST FOR HIM FINDING THE FIRST KEY. She tells him something that reminds him of something that solves the puzzle. And what’s more, I am willing to bet that THAT’S the reason they kept her Hollywood pretty. Because you need to have an attractive romantic love interest to keep the audience pleased.

Now apparently, she does more in the movie than she does in the book. And that’s great. That’s super. She’s the one breaking in to destroy the d20 of doom. Hell yeah I guess. But I also don’t care. You wanna know why? BECAUSE I AM NOT READING THE BOOK. Superficial changes that improve certain aspects doesn’t make the movie better than it is. It’s like polishing a fucking turd. Yeah, it’s nicer than what you had, but you are still making me hold this piece of dogshit.

They don’t have characters. They don’t have chemistry BECAUSE they don’t have characters. It’s a fucking wash.

3) Drowning in References

But now we talk about the big one. The big fucking thing that everyone and their mother is obsessing about this movie over. And the thing that has gotten me from not liking this movie to fucking DESPISING it.

The references.

To quote from people who will be seeing the movie in the theater *ahem*...

“OHMYGOD IS THAT TRACER?! OH AND IT’S HARLEY AND THE JOKER! OH! OH! OH! IRON GIANT! HALO! BORDERLANDS! BACK TO THE FUTURE! BATMAN—FUCKING IT’S THE BATMAN! THEY MENTIONED THRILLER! THAT’S PRINCE! STREET FIGHTER! MECHA-GODZILLA FIGHTING GUNDAM! MINECRAFT! NINJA TURTLES! FAST TIMES AT RIDGEMONT HIGH! STAR TREK! FIREFLY! THE SHINING! IT’S FUCKING CHUCKY!!!”

…Ok? So what?

Not to be a snob, but seriously—so what? Why does it matter?

Listen, I like crossovers too. I remember the Avengers and what a big goddamn deal it was, and how it made everyone’s jaw drop to the ground, and how in some ways, it still does. But whereas with those it felt organic, Ready Player One with its ninety thousand references felt…empty.

I’m going to bring out two comparisons to the table that do the same thing that Ready Player One did, “Who Framed Rodger Rabbit?” and “Wreck-It Ralph.” Both had pop-culture icons throughout them. One had all of the classic cartoons all spliced together—where you saw Daffy Duck and Donald Duck in the same shot having a dual piano-off. One of them had all of these video game characters that you loved and embraced since you were a kid, running around and hanging out ala “Toy Story.” These big names are all in the background, just like Ready Player One, but they’re clearly different in terms of execution. Why is that?

Well it’s because the movies weren’t reliant on them. Sure, Rodger Rabbit had fun moments with these big names, but if you took them out and animated totally new characters with similar personalities, what would you lose? Nothing. The plot is the same, the dynamics are the same, and it can still be seen as a salute to the classic animations from back in the day to also an allegory for the Jim Crowe era just as the book intentionally was. Same goes for Wreck-it Ralph, the character goes through a fundamental change that has him accepting who he is and how “there’s nobody else I’d rather be, than me” ALL THE WHILE paying respects to classic arcade video games.

The same can’t be said for Ready Player One. The instant you take away the pop-culture references, the movie loses its protective suit of armor to reveal it’s about…nothing.

It is.

Nothing.

The generic quest, the generic corporate baddie, the generic love interest, the main character has nothing to say, and the conflict is revealed to be flat—nothing about it sticks out or makes an impression.

And if you fail to make an impression without a fucking suit pop-culture references then, well, if I may use a pop-culture quote myself...“If you’re nothing without the suit, then you shouldn’t have it.”

Plain and simple.

But then…there’s the one thing I can’t really debate.

“It’s just fun though, right?”

Yeah sure. I’ll admit around that third act, even though it was long overdrawn, I had fun watching the violence and references I understood while they blasted “We’re Not Gonna Take It” in the background.

But y’know what? It was just about as enjoyable as seeing someone adapt a piece of shitty fanfiction, because both have one thing in common for everything that they do: It’s just there for fan service. If you make the statement “well the Oasis is cool,” then you’ve clearly missed the point because you don’t like the movie, you like it’s gimmick. And it’s gimmick exists—it’s called VR Chat.

Meanwhile, screenwriters of different backgrounds, ethnicities, genders and religions from everywhere across the world are actually putting EFFORT into their screenwriting and directing. And while their action scenes for their blockbuster idea may not be perfect, they at least tried and did something new with it.

I went to see “Wrinkle in Time” today after I’d seen Ready Player One yesterday, needing to see literally anything good. And yeah, it’s not perfect. It’s got some stilted dialogue and some questionable acting on nearly all fronts at points and the conflict can be about as cliched as you can imagine, but the visuals, the costume design—you could tell everyone cared and put a goddamn effort into everything put forth. It’s much more gorgeous than the downright UGLY CG that was in the Oasis world in Ready Player One, and I guarantee you nobody had the phrase “B055MAN69” anywhere. It didn’t pander to kids or guys who wanted to feel validated for knowing a couple references. It wanted to tell the story of fighting back evil and hatred by embracing love. It’s cheesy and sappy…but fuck me, if it didn’t try to say something while having fun.

But fuck that movie right? We have Iron Giant fighting Mechagodzilla.

If you have that, then why bother putting in effort?

That’s what kills me. It’s lazy and people praise it because it just stuck pop-culture words in a fucking blender. Don’t call it innovative. Don’t call it original. Don’t call it anything than what it is.

80’s. Prepubescent. Fucking. Fanfiction.

You can love it and enjoy it if you want, I mean I don’t like not liking movies. It sucks. And in some aspects, I can see why you can if you turn your brain off but…I’m not gonna lie, to see this get away with murder insults me.

Listen, I love Spielberg. There is nobody I respect more in the business. His work in AI, and the reason why he did so to keep a dying friend’s vision alive will always keep him as one of my personal heroes but…sometimes you gotta call people out when they make shit. And I am.

I don’t care what anyone says, don’t see Ready Player One. Watch something worthwhile. Go to Netflix and watch “Stranger Things” if you’ve got that need for an 80′s kick, or hell--”Blade Runner 2049″ is a visual goddamn MARVEL. Go see “The Post” or “Jaws” if you want some good Spielberg. Just PLEASE! Go see something that isn’t just a bunch of references that almost feel as though it’s a remake of “ctrl+alt+del.”

(Random aside, people have told me to read the original book...but if that fucking thing is ANYTHING like this movie, I’d rather BURN IT than let it get one inch into my house. So no, I’m not going to read the book even if there are claims that it’s “better.” (Even though I believe that it’s impossible to say a book is better than it’s adaptation or vice versa because it’s two different mediums and as such it’s hardly fair, but that’s a whole other thing.) Point is, I’ve never been more turned off to a book in my godddamned life and I ain’t gonna bother.)

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usaghinanami99 · 7 years

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Answering some unasked Sera Myu questions

…I know, no one actually tagged me or asked to do this meme, but @sailorzakuro invited anyone who wants to take part in this challenge and I’m very eager to, so let’s start!

1) You are a Myu fan since…? Short answer: since 2012, aged 13. Long answer (beware, when I say long, I mean very long): you can find a fully detailed axplanation of how I got into Myu somewhere in this post, in the second reblog https://usaghinanami99.tumblr.com/post/170867407508/myucornerorg-usaghinanami99-myucornerorg

2) The first musical you saw? I always watch and read things in strict chronological order, so that was Gaiden. I think you can see how I went on.

3) Your favourite musical? OMG Eien Densetsu Kaiteban is the best musical ever, it’s got such a great soundtrack and the Senshuraku recording is especially touching!

4) Your favourite Sailor Moon actress? QUEEN ANZA FOR LIFE!!!!111!!1

5) Say one positive thing about every Moon actress. Anza: OMG QUEEN I mean: best singer, best actress, best everything… Should I really go on? Fumina: A nice singer and perfectly in-character for a post-manga Usaghi, very calm and compassed compared to others. Miyuki: If there is a queen in Myu (see before), then Miyuki is the princess, she’s so good at everything she does and I love her dearly… and of course I miss her so much! ;( She’s just so skilled that I think of her as a performer who would definitely deserve to be #1, if only there weren’t someone who is even better… this is without diminishing Miyuki’s ability at all! Plus, she’s the one who made me undestand that nasal voices aren’t necessarily terrible, quite the contrary with her case. Marina: WOW like was she really 12 when she started? I could think of many ways to praise her singing, but the most important thing I think about Marina is just “too good for her age” XD Satomi: I respect her very much because I think she’s the one Myu actress who improved awesomely during the course of time. I mean, I have to admit I’m not a fan of her singing and acting from LR through UNV, but when she returned in LMF she literally blew me away and I couldn’t believe she was the same person considering how much she improved. Hotaru: I can really see how she put her whole heart into her performance and that she loved it to death. I find her very relatable because she’s so fangirly she low-key reminds me of myself!

6) Is Sera Myu your favourite version of Sailor Moon? Er… actually, not at all ‘XD While I am absolutely convinced that the manga is the best version of the franchise and the first anime is the worst one, I’m much more torn apart among the other version… It is very hard for me to do a ranking, because I just can’t decide which I love more amongst Crystal, PGSM and Myu!

7) Who is your favourite cast member? ANZAANZAANZAANZAANZAANZAAAA…

8) Are your first favourites your actual favourites? Oh, yes! Anza, Ayako and Yuta have always been my Top 3 and will forever be. I have changed my mind over many actors, in the sense that I’ve come to like many whom I really didn’t care about at first view, but my best favourites will always stay the same

9) If you could say one sentence to your Myu favourite, what do you want to say to him/her? Nothing in particular, really. I’d rather have her sing Usaghi’s lines from Tabidachi for me to enjoy and worship!

10) Which Sailor Moon story do you want on stage? The manga stories which didn’t make it to the stage so far! I get that the short stories would be almost impossible to adapt, but between the Shining Princess’ Lover and the whole of Sailor V there is enough material to go on for at least three years! After that, they could start with some original material… maybe some story set during the Silver Millennium era?

11) Tell me your Top 3 underrated actors. 1: Tomoko Inami 2: Akiko Miyazawa 3: Miki Kawasaki

12) Give 3 actors new roles. Er… Does Anza as Cosmos count? Because, apart from that, I can’t really think of anything else: it’s because the actors I like have always been cast perfectly spot-on, while the ones I don’t… I’d rather have them have no parts at all XD

13) Combine classic and revival Myu: what does it look like? YES YES YES this is actually my greatest fantasy, I would kill to have a musical which combined the strong plotting and characterization of New Myu with the awesome soundtrack and casting of Old Myu

14) Revival Myu song you want in classic myu? Er… None? I’d rather have the exact opposite XD I mean, there are New Myu songs I do like, but they couldn’t ever even dream to compare to the work of goddess Akiko Kosaka.

15) Tell me an unpopular opinion you have about Myu. (Lightly whispering): I actually dislike Yuka Asami both in terms of singing and acting… I have tried to make myself like her to no avail. Now please don’t kill me! Apart from that, there are also some typical fan-favourites like Nao, Yuka and Chieko whom I love but are just number 2 for me because I think there’s someone even better than them… does this count as unpopular?

16) Ai no Starshine or Music of the Spheres? We hear the music of the spheeeeres… Speaking of New Myu songs I enjoy, this is definitely one of the best for me!

17) The Last Change or its XXI Century version? …Can I answer “both”? Lol, this is still another case of two things that are both so good it’s difficult to choose between them… I love both arrangements, Miyuki is QUEEN in both (yes, Marina is also good, but nowhere near her level IMO) and I am both into slow songs and upbeat ones. Actually, this reminds me very much of the issue I’ve got with Dolce Melodia (a song from the Italian dub of Mermaid Melody which you have to listen to NOW), where, after 11 long years, I still can’t understand if I prefer the original upbeat version or the more emotional carillon arrangement… But, while I am a sucker for both genres, slow love songs are definitely my cup of tea - in fact, my best favourite song in the whole freaking world is the main ballad theme from Beauty and the Beast. And while The Last Change is no love song, the original version has go tthis kind of feel to me, so that’s the one I’ll peek… but that’s been a very hard choice! XD

18) Cho Bi Uranus to Neptune or Harsh Saint Cry? Oh, this is much easier? While I do like both very much, the thing is that First Stage >>> everything else IMO ‘XD So it must be Cho Bi.

19) Is that something about Myu that annoys you? THE FREAKING UNRELEASED MATERIAL I freaking want to have tapes of the four unreleased musicals so much that I’d die for them! Not to mention the reunion concert that Anza & Akiko made in 2015… Also yes, the speaking over the fankans. That’s pretty common, but there’s a reason if everyone is deeply pissed off by it. And the fact that some of the performances were only shown in snippets

20) What do you expect from the 2019 musical? A lot of things, lol. Actually this is getting pretty long, so if you’re really dying to read my opinion about this (I doubt it’s the case, but still), I’ve already made a complete list of my hopes on the purpose which you can find following the link up there.

21) How important are dancing abilities of the actors for you? …I actually don’t even pay attention to them, and even if I did, I’m far too uncompetent for it to matter much for me. Sorry for the horrible answer ‘XD

22) Which Myu merchandise do you want? FREAKING VIDEOTAPES OF THE UNRELEASED MATERIAL Also official soundtracks for the New Myu and a more complete collection of the instrumental versions of all Myu songs

23) Are you sad that Luna and Artemis disappeared after Gaiden? You can bet on it! I’m also bitter for this because I was sure they would include them when La Reconquista was announced XD

24) An interesting (non-existing) HaruMichi couple? San’ae x Tomoko is my dream, what with them being the best Uranus and best Neptune for me? As for actually existing ones, my favourite is Shu x Sayaka.

25) Your favourite Moon x Tux couple? Anza x Yuta for eveeeer And I’ve also got this forbidden dream of seeing some Miyuki x Yu, I think they would be perfect together for some reason… sadly that’s not possible :(

26) Your favourite musical-only character? Kyaosu. You can beat me now. Also Space Knight, I wonder how it is possible that it didn’t come to my mind first. And yes, I have that sense of humour.

27) Which character would you play in a musical? …No one. I’m definitely not qualified enough to even dream of something like that XD But if I had to choose, than it would surely be my queen Usaghi

28) Something else you want to say about Sera Myu? Sera Myu is awesome, okay? I love it so much and it’s such an important part of my life and it gives me happiness when I’m feeling down and all those things… I sould probably stop now!

Now that this challenge is officially over for me, I tag @myucornerorg into doing it! :)

#sera myu #sailor moon #pretty guardian sailor moon #sailor moon musical #old myu #new myu

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thrashermaxey · 6 years

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Ramblings: Early Concerns; Updates on Jones and Pettersson; Game Recaps – October 23

We have a few lineup and injury notes to get through so let’s start there.

Seth Jones should be in the lineup for Columbus on Tuesday. He skated in a full practice (again) on Monday and coach John Tortorella said after practice he’s likely to return for the team’s home game against Arizona.

Where Jones slots with the power play is uncertain. The beat writers that I saw intimated that he was practicing with the PP units, but not which specific PP units.

Which PP unit is important if only for ice time. While the forward mix has changed since the start of the season, it’s still Artemi Panarin earning 4:30 of PP ice time per game. That’s over a minute more than other regular forwards. An extra minute per game for 75(ish) games could be 6-7 PPPs. I guess we’ll know for sure once Columbus takes the ice for their game.

Cody Ceci looks ready to return to the lineup after skating with the team on Monday. He said after practice that the official decision would come sometime Tuesday, but it should be sooner rather than later.

With the production from Max Lajoie and the superlative play of Thomas Chabot, not to mention good days from Chris Wideman, Ceci may never see the power play. On the other hand, he’s not drafted in fantasy leagues for point production anyway. All this does is limit his upside. As long as the even strength and PK minutes are there, so too will his peripherals.

The Kings have sent rookie Jaret Anderson-Dolan to the AHL. The second-round pick from 2017 had one assist and six shots in five games.

Los Angeles needs their young players to pan out soon because their depth is horrid. All the same, this is likely the right move. He had his chance playing higher in the lineup and nothing materialized. Let him go get some big minutes in the minors and try again next year.

Boo Nieves was skating in a non-contact jersey with his teammates on Monday. He looks close to returning after suffering a concussion a month ago.

Not that there’s much fantasy relevance here immediately but he could take the spot of a Rangers forward who is fantasy relevant right now. Keep an eye out for line combinations.

It appears as though Elias Pettersson could be back very soon for the Canucks. He took part in the game-day skate on Monday and is expected to talk to the media on Tuesday. That’s a very good sign for him, his team, and fantasy owners. And just fans of hockey in general; the game is at its best when its young stars are flourishing.

The Coyotes should have Alex Galchenyuk back very soon, maybe as early as Tuesday, as he skated on the top line with Clayton Keller in practice on Monday and the coach said he is a game-time decision. Lawson Crouse was on the left wing.

This is big news for Arizona. It’s no secret the team has had trouble scoring in the early going and that’s definitely an area where Galchenyuk can help. It’ll be fun to watch he and Keller develop chemistry.

Sometimes, the puck just doesn’t want to seem to settle for you. The Philadelphia Flyers had their chances in a home matchup with Colorado, but mostly couldn’t finish. Nolan Patrick redirected one shot past Semyon Varlamov but the Avalanche netminder stopped 37 others in Colorado’s 4-1 win.

Naturally, it was Colorado’s top line that did nearly all the damage. Mikko Rantanen had two goals, Gabriel Landeskog had another, and Matt Nieto scored the fourth.

Jakub Voracek once again skated on the second line and assisted on Patrick’s goal. Voracek now has 12 points in 9 games this season.

The Red Wings got dragged up and down the ice by Carolina in their home game Monday. At one point in the first period, the shots were 13-0 Hurricanes and they were 36-12 after the second. Thankfully, Carolina slowed down in the third period. Unlike previous iterations of the Hurricanes, this team managed to score and win 3-1.

Ironically, after the team managed just two power play goals in their first eight games, their first two goals in this contest came with the man advantage. The first from Justin Faulk and the second from Micheal Ferland (look for a bit on Ferland in Cam Metz’s Eastern Edge posted Tuesday morning). Andreas Athanasiou replied for the Wings while Jordan Martinook put away the empty netter.

Those hoping this would be the year for Jack Roslovic’s breakout, I’m afraid I’ve got some bad news:

Jets fourth line icetime at 5v5 through 40 minutes: Perreault: 3:00 Roslovic: 2:01 Lemieux: 1:52

Perreault has 2:20 on the power play as well but, on a night where the top two lines aren't going, I'd argue Winnipeg's depth could help more.

— Murat Ates (@WPGMurat) October 23, 2018

The rest of the games will be updated in the morning.

Last week in these Ramblings I covered a few early stats that fantasy owners should keep an eye on, specifically focusing on line stats and individual shot rates. Again, this is still very early in the NHL season. For evaluation purposes, I don’t touch my fantasy rosters until October, with exceptions being injury or demotion. It’s a delicate balance in fantasy leagues; owners need to wait until we have a decent sample to work with before making decisions, but wait too long and someone else in your fantasy league will get the first bite at the apple. In general, I favour aggressiveness over passivity, but I would wait until we have a few more games of data to work with for each team.

Let’s say, hypothetically speaking, I had to make a decision today, whether on a team or a specific player. Maybe I had a waiver move to make or a trade offer to consider. Maybe there’s a close race developing at the top of my league and aggressive moves need to be made to separate myself.

Regardless the reason, there are some emerging storylines that, at the very least, should be monitored. Here are some that stick out for me. Data via Corsica as of Monday afternoon.

There’s something wrong with the Jets

The line of Kyle Connor, Mark Scheifele, and Blake Wheeler has been absolutely torched by the opposition to start the season. In nearly 110 minutes together, the trio has controlled 45.9 percent of the adjusted shot share at five on five, their expected goal share is under 43 percent, and their actual goal share is abysmal. That last part doesn’t matter too much for evaluation purposes but the first two points sure do.

This is a deviation from last year. The line was over 52 percent and 54 percent, respectively, in those first two categories in 2017-18. For fantasy purposes, having such a poor shot share is not in and of itself a significant issue. There are players from bad teams or skating on bad lines aren’t automatically disqualified from fantasy relevance; just think of the Tavares or Eichel line from last year. The problem for Connor-Wheeler-Scheifele is they are generating absolutely no offence, clocking in at 45.1 shot attempts per 60 minutes. Among the top-12 most-used lines in the NHL this year, they’re last in this regard, and a distant last at that as no other team is below 50 shot attempts per 60 minutes.

It’s not as if they’ve had a brutal schedule to start the year, either. Their eight games have been in STL, in DAL, vs. LAK, at NSH, vs. CAR, vs. EDM, vs. VAN, and vs. ARI. It’s possible we see one playoff team emerge from that group, and the Jets are basically mid-pack in adjusted shot share, coming in below 50 percent as a team.

If the Winnipeg top line can fix their woes, this team can turn around things in a hurry. But it’s been a brutal start to their year for the top line, even if Connor has seven points to lead the way. Fantasy owners need to decide whether this start portends things to come or is just a 100-minute blip, because now would be the time to either trade them away or trade for them, depending on your view.

The Ducks are terrible

Injuries played a factor early in the Anaheim season undoubtedly. They lost Corey Perry, Ondrej Kase, and Ryan Getzlaf early on. They recently got Getzlaf back but lost Jakob Silfverberg. I was thinking to myself, “ok things are bad, but once Getzlaf is back, they’ll start to turn things around.”

Not quite.

They got Getzlaf back on the weekend and got absolutely thrashed by the Golden Knights on Saturday. The score was just 3-1 but Anaheim’s shot share came in just over 42 percent at five on five in that game. Not to mention that Vegas has their own significant injuries and suspensions they’re dealing with.

Sunday wasn’t much better as the Ducks lost 4-2 to Buffalo and the Sabres scorched them to the tune of a shot share over 60 percent. So yes, they got Getzlaf back, and then they got dominated on the road to a team missing Paul Stastny and Nate Schmidt, then got dominated at home by the Sabres, at best a middle-of-the-road team.

Sure, they’ll be a bit better once they get their wingers back but adding a couple second-line wingers won’t turn a 40 percent shot share team into a 50 percent shot share team. John Gibson owners will need him to play out of his mind in order to put up respectable win and goals against totals.

Tampa Bay lines will be an issue

We’ve already seen it so far this year: JT Miller has been moved to the fourth line, Brayden Point is skating with Steven Stamkos, the Triplets line has been reunited, and Yanni Gourde is skating top line minutes. We’ve also seen Alex Killorn take the top PP spot away from Point. All this and we’re still over a week away from Halloween.

A lot of fantasy owners like to draft pairs or entire lines. This can work out very well if a line stays together most of the year. Many people probably targeted JT Miller to pair with Stamkos or Kucherov for this exact purpose. The power play correlation is still there, at least. For now, anyway.

This is a team facing significant pressure. It’s a team built for a Stanley Cup. Not a playoff appearance, not win a round. It’s Stanley Cup or bust. As we’ve seen already, if the smallest thing starts to go wrong, we will see changes, some of them being significant. I wager we’ll see this all year long.

What do you fantasy owners and readers say? Are these situations where you agree or disagree? Even though it’s still very early in the season, what situations are raising a concern for you? Let us know in the comments.

from All About Sports https://dobberhockey.com/hockey-rambling/ramblings-early-concerns-updates-on-jones-and-pettersson-game-recaps-october-23/

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taiblogcomics · 6 years

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A Jerkass at the Circus

Hey there, spicy Gushers. Well, let's do one of our things on the back burner. But which should we do? I dunno. Want to base it solely on the cover? Okay, we got a boring team pose as usual on Suicide Squad, and Red Hood is an annual. You know what, let's do the annual, we don't gotta worry about continuity that way~

Here's the winning cover:

Hey, it's Nightwing! Will he be the newest Outlaw? Well, considering he has his own ongoing series and doesn't appear outside of this annual, I highly doubt it~! It's a cool, dynamic sort of cover at least, so that's good. What is that last word on Ma Gunn's sign, though? "Criminally Infirmed"? Is that a thing? Maybe this comic will tell us if that's a thing~

This comic takes place before the events of issue 12, but it waits until page 5 to tell us this. So you can fit it into continuity if you want to, presumably~

So we open on a big cruise-looking ship. A yacht of some kind, I dunno. It's got a huge deck with a lot of people on it. One is clearly the captain, since he's wearing white and has a hat (he might also be a milkman, but I'm betting captain). Another is an old guy with his grey hair in a ponytail, who's smoking. His name is Dimitri, and he's hired the captain here to pilot this boat out in the middle of the Baltic Sea to meet a fellow he wants to hire. Because the middle of the sea is a great place for a clandestine meeting. Dimitri got shown up by Red Hood at some point (he's too generic for me to remember, if it ever even appeared in a previous issue), and now he's hiring KGBeast for revenge. The captian panics as soon as Dimitri reveals who he's meeting, and for good reason. KGBeast blows up the boat and shoots everyone but Dimitri. Now they can talk privately.

So, where do you go from there? Well, how about a circus in Russia, where Dick Grayson, AKA Nightwing, is watching the performance. And what a performance it is: Jason Todd as a combination trick-shooter and motorcycle stuntman, Artemis as a more traditional horse-mounted bow-based sharpshooter, and Bizarro as the strongman. Buy T-shirts, kids! Anyway, after the performance, Nightwing (who we'll refer to by his supranym, since unlike Jason and Roy, we actually respect Dick Grayson and think he's cool) goes seeking out Jason's trailer, since apparently he got a text more or less requesting a meeting. Bizarro serves beans while Jason explains the situation. So, those Russians Jason threw out of Gotham back in issue 7? The ones we long forgot? Well, they're back, and they're using this circus as a front or something. Anyway, the long and short of it is that basically Jason wants to hang out with Nightwing, but is too much of a dope to come out and say it~

And just because Jason and Nightwing have made up enough that Jason doesn't want to murder him anymore, he may just have had a flashback revealing he admired Nightwing ever since they were both kids and Jason went to one of his circus performances, but he still enjoys taking the piss out of him. We may respect him, but Jason doesn't: Nightwing will be filling in as "Flippy-Flop the Acrobatic Clown" while undercover here. And so, the undercover work begins by integrating themselves with the circusfolk around a bonfire that night. While Artemis is charmed by Nightwing, Jason instead encourages Bizarro to pursue a circus performer playing the violin. Artemis is more interested in Nightwing's shared backstory with Jason, though, but Bizarro hits it off with Angelique, who reveals herself to be a bearded woman. Bizarro sees nothing wrong with this, and she finds him very sweet for that.

Another circus worker expresses a notion of gratitude towards Jason, as Angelique is his daughter and he's clearly sent someone kind her way. Since he's been kind to his daughter, he decides to let them in on his secret: he can help them get extra work, work that doesn't involve the big top. He'll let Jason in on it if he comes to see him during their friend's performance. And speaking of friends, Nightwing exposits some backstory to Artemis, mostly involving how he joined the Bat-team. Their first real meeting comes when Jason returns one night from being Robin, collapses into bed--only to find Nightwing already in it. Apparently after Nightwing moved out, Alfred just gave his old room to Jason. Apparently he neglected to tell him someone else was using it now when he came back home to visit~

Artemis is deeply amused by the stories, though she thinks perhaps things could have gone differently and led to friends instead. She tells Nightwing not to let the past define him, and Nightwing thinks Jason's lucky to have her watching his back. They part amicably, and everyone goes to bed. We open the next day, already midway into Nightwing's act as Flippy-Flop. Fortunately, despite the terrible clown outfit, he's not wearing a wig or makeup or even a red rubber nose. In other words, the least horrifying clown ever made. So, while that's going on, the Outlaws instead go down with Jason's new friend, who shows them a mysterious pool in the middle of the circus. Diving down, they find a cavern off to the side, wherein a whole load of explosives are being stored. And who's down there taking inventory on all the munitions? Why, our previously foreshadowed friend KGBeast~

Apparently this whole thing ties back to events in Detective Comics Rebirth, which I didn't read. The long and short of it is, a military group was formed to destroy the Batman, but they lost. This seems to be one of their weapons caches, which I'm not sure does them a lot of good hidden in Russia and not Gotham, but what do I know~? The guns in this thing are energy weapons strong enough to push back Bizarro, so it might be a little overkill for Batman. Fortunately, Artemis always brings an axe to a gunfight, and she cleaves his new toy apart. Jason leaps at KGBeast, and both begin exchanging point-blank gunfire. They both must have really good body armour. Jason's are non-lethal, though, given that promise he made to Batman at the beginning of the series--which he even states out loud--but KGBeast is under no such obligation. I guess he's just a terrible shot~

Artemis, instead, chooses to fight him more hand-to-hand, and indeed chops off his wrist-mounted gun. That's KGBeast's thing, if you didn't know: he's missing a hand, so he has an elaborate gun instead. KGBeast encourages them to drop their loyalty to any particular nationstate and be their own person, which might be inspiring if it wasn't coming from a crazed gunman. He's growing a bit tired of the fight, and comments that he's seen through their ruse. Their "Outlaws" thing is just an excuse to get crime out of Gotham. And apparently they've been in Gotham the whole time, it's just the circus that's Russian. Sorry, the context was ambiguous. There really was no "Meanwhile, in Gotham" sort of label to establish any of these scenes. We need those, guys!

KGBeast prepares to give the Outlaws a quick death, but Nightwing suddenly jumps on him from behind. KGBeast attempts to throw him off, but Nightwing just uses Bizarro as a set of parallel bars and rebounds. He and Jason team up and both punch KGBeast in the face. This is then followed by Artemis and Bizarro doing the same, and they're much stronger, so KGBeast is knocked out. And so the comic wraps up with Nightwing putting in with his contacts at ARGUS to arrest the other criminals at the circus, while he and Jason share an amicable handshake, with Nightwing basically saying that he's proud of the work Jason's doing as an Outlaw now. Artemis is a little bummed that she wasn't given an equal goodbye, but Bizarro's really pleased he got to kiss the pretty bearded lady. He even made sure to get her number: eight. Jason sighs and leads Bizarro inside to explain a few things~

So, other than me getting confused about the location for half the comic, this issue was not too bad. They say “before the events of issue 12″, but probably before that whole storyline works better. It’s nice to see Nightwing and Jason actually respect each other, though the idea that perennial street orphan Jason Todd happened to visit the circus and see a young Dick Grayson (age 12) perform is a bit contrived if you ask me. Otherwise, it’s just kind of a fun romp with a classic Batman villain like KGBeast. He’s going by just “the Beast” now, given also his new declaration of not allying himself with a particular nation, but I’d rather not confuse him with Hank McCoy of X-Men fame, you know~? Plus Bizarro’s just kind of a delight, like always~

#comics #reviews #Red Hood and the Outlaws #Red Hood and the Outlaws Annual #Taiblog

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