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i-am-just-a-kiddo · 4 years ago

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favourite male fictional characters

Thank you @vishcount for tagging me, this was a lot of fun! 💞 I originally planned to follow your example and put ten characters here but suddenly it became a lot more oops. also i hope you forgive me for following your format, it’s neat

I am tagging @isabellaofparma , @the-cloud-whisperer and @sassyassassy!

I chose the characters that impacted me deeply on a personal level throughout my life (often shown by how long my love lasts over the years and if i was inspired to write for them).

In no specific order under the cut:

Legolas

The Lord of The Rings, J.R.R. Tolkien.

I think it’s only fitting I start off with this magnificent guy. Maybe I gotta admit, i’ve just had a crush on him ever since I was like, nine years old? He’s the character I will fight tooth and claw for (though I guess he doesn’t need me to do that). I love Orlando Bloom’s portrayal of him, eventhough he is vastly different from the books. Book Legolas is such a delight as well, he feels so whimsical and playful and his banter with Gimli is just gold. I was sad when The Hobbit trilogy came out and I was so disappointed by how they butchered his character, it just did not feel authentic anymore (maybe I am also just bitter about the forced hetero storyline for him. makes no cents, this elf is GayTM your honour. and he will meet his soulmate Gimli in a few decades). Either way, Legolas is the love of my life, thanks for coming to my tedtalk,

Peter Pan

Peter Pan, J. M. Barrie

Another childhood crush of mine. The gif I chose if from the 2005 movie because we always used to watch it and it is to this day one of my favourite movies. It’s so dreamy, so magical, yet also incredibly sad and sweet. I have this very strange fascination with Peter Pan. There is something incredibly unsettling about him, especially in the book. He represents something every child wants - who doesn’t want to escape their bedroom and fly away to experience magical adventured far from the adult world? And yet he also represents the impossibility of it, the curse he carries around with himself because he will forever stay alone, no matter how many lost boys he gathers around himself. And Wendy - it’s a love that was never meant to grow and mature, it’s a fleeting dream for the both of them. I have seen many different adaptations of Peter Pan and I have my favourites, though I want to give a special mention to the book Peter Darling by Austin Chant. It’s a retelling of the story how we know it, in which Peter returns to Neverland after having finally grown up BUT the main points I want to highlight is trans Peter? Heck yes. Gripping and compelling gay love story with our favourite original lost boy Captain Hook? YES.

Snufkin

Moomins, Tove Jansson.

I have discovered Snufkin for myself only last year, and yet I know he will stay with me forever. In short - I vibe with him, he vibes with me. His anxieties about being with people and longing for solitude? His fear of being loved and being important to someone to a point he doesn’t know what to do with himself? This man just wants to roam freely with his own mind and yet he always returns for something that captures him. Mum, I love him because I have rarely felt this seen before. Also, Snufkin said ACAB.

Prince Jing - Xiao Jingyan

Nirvana in Fire (2015)

This too is a darling I have only discovered recently. I watched Nirvana in Fire this year and let me tell you, it’s the best show I have seen in a long while. It’s absolutely amazing and it also ripped my heart out. All the characters are absolutely amazing and I am still not over it.

To be honest, I contemplated between Xiao JIngyan and Mei Changsu, because character-wise I think the latter is a lot more interesting and compelling. He makes for a fantastic heartbreaking and flawed protagonist.

However I have to admit - it was love at first sight with Prince Jing for me and I’m still lowkey mad abt it rip. Seems like I am not immune to Pretty Prince Propaganda. But apart from that, I adore him for his genuine

goodness,

his almost naive drive to be better and seek justice. He lost everything, and for the longest time did not have anything to fight for. So alone and lost and bitter, it makes me sad how much it hardened him. He is heartbreak and clumsy kindness hidden under a skin of scars that was inflicted by his father and many others. I see his sad cat-eyes and I cry, that’s just how it is.

Edmund Pevensie

The Chronicles of Narnia, C. S. Lewis

I grew up with these books and movies - they have always been part of my life and it will probably always stay that way (only last night I rewatched the first movie and sobbed). Imagine my surprised when I finally watched the last movie about five years ago and was incredibly impressed by how they adapted the book; also imagine my brain suddenly going CASMUND in bold letters at Skandar Keynes’ and Ben Barnes’ performance in that movie. From there, I rediscovered this story completely anew for myself. My favourite Pevensie sibling has always been Lucy (and still is, because I identify with her so much and she feels like home to me); however this new discovery of Edmund’s character was overwhelming. It’s interesting to see characters you’ve grown up with from a more grown up point of view. I don’t want to lay out all my thoughts here, just know I am so heartbroken for him, and so so proud as well. His character arc is amazing and maybe that’s how the last movie makes me even more emotional. Seeing Edmund and Lucy still holding on to Narnia but knowing that that door was closing for them? Not to mention what happens in the later books (we don’t talk about that). Also did I mention Casmund. Here, have my incredibly emo and depressing take on Edmund’s character that I started writing four years ago and which will forever stay a WIP.

Nie Huaisang

The Untamed (2019)

My son. My soul. My bane of existence. The tragic thing about him is, that he does not really exist in canon as I have created him for myself. He’s a secondary character in the show, always so relatable yet still brings the ultimate twist of the story, yet he still remains this incomplete shadow. The movie

Fatal Journey

gave him a lot more and I cried tears of joy and devastation. I don’t know why I latched on to him so much, but apparently he is the one that I project on, the one that feels like he sits somewhere inside my chest. I don’t know what else to say - this year he has been everything to me. I spend a lot of time in his head while writing, and maybe that’s how he’s there forever now. Nie Huaisang saw my brain and went it’s free real estate. All my love for you, you dramatic art hoe.

Sherlock Holmes

Sherlock Holmes, Sir Arthur Conan Doyle

Ah, another lifelong companion. There are many adapations that I adore - starting from the origin of it all, the books and stories which I have all devoured; the 80s adaptation with Jeremy Brett which was incredibly wonderful; to BBC Sherlock which shaped and traumatised me (I still like the first three seaons but I am too hurt to think about it); to the numerous movies - but by far my most favourite performance is Basil Rathbone as Sherlock Holmes. Somehow he manages to capture the Holmes I see in my head when I read the books, the sharp yet polite eccentric detective, who loves his companion so much and who has desire to help others. Sherlock Holmes will always stay special to me, in so many different ways. He shaped my youth and I know he will stay with me. (also what would you say when I told you he helped me discover that I can, in fact, be queer AND ace at the same time? thanks pal). What else is there to say? Sherlock Holmes is a universe that you can dive into and find many amazing treasures.

Isak Valtersen

SKAM (2015)

There he is, the boy that changed my life. SKAM changed my life. All of the characters did. However, Isak is special for many, as I imagine. I remember winter 2016, when tumblr was flooded by these norwegian white boys kissing in a pool and cuddling and I was like ‘nah’, this doesn’t look convincing. I don’t know what changed my mind but I remember sitting down at last and watching all that was released of season three and it was only downhill from there. I remember starting to follow the real life updates religiously while watching the other previous seasons in between. The one clip that completely wrecked me was when Isak went to the school nurse about his struggles with sleep - it felt like for the first time I saw someone on screen that could understand me on so many different levels. The entierty of seaons three is so personal, I would tell you to go watch it if you don’t know what I mean. The entire show in fact. It’s a masterpiece and it feels so real. This show impacted my life in a way that no show has managed to do before. I miss it so much. I miss Isak too sigh.

Shang Xirui

Winter Begonia (2020)

Technically, for me personally, Shang Xirui is the nonbinary, gay and ace representation I need in my life (or at least that’s my own personal take on him), but since that is not official, he’s still here on this list. Of course he is because wow, it’s been a long while since I’ve seen such a compelling character on screen. I went from disliking him to being absolutely heartbroken over him. I don’t think any other character in this show captured me as much as he did. There are so many layers to him and discovering all of his sides is a wonderful, heartbreaking, painful and also beautiful journey. I’m not sure I understand all of him yet, but I am willing to try and dig and just ponder his existence. This too, is a perfect example for a flawed yet authentic protagonist. Also he is the most beautiful thing on this planet, or at least that’s how I have been feeling ever since I watched this. I wish to write more of him in the future.

Aang

Avatar: The Last Airbender (2005)

I grew up watching ATLA and my favourite characters have always been Toph, Zuko and Uncle Iroh. In recent years however, I completely fell in love with Aang all anew.

I think especially in the past, I had these prejudices against main characters and found them all the most boring personalities ever. In recent years this changed a lot and especially Aang is a prime example for that. Watching him from the perspective of older me, I find so much wisdom in this young boy. Somehow he represents all I wish to be in my life but at the same time he shows his flaws, he carries this sadness with him that will accompany him all his life. This inner battle and chaos that he has to face day to day and in the end - he is just a young boy. So much has been taken from him and yet he learns how to not let it overtake him, that anger and hurt. He tries his hardest to be better than the day before, even if sometimes the world crashes down on him and he gets overwhelmed. He is a child recruited by adults to manage their mistakes and play into the hands of predestined fate and in this essay I will -

Harry Potter

Harry Potter, J.K. Rowling

I am surprised myself. I thought I would put Fred and George here, or Remus and Sirius, however I realised that none of them quite capture this feeling of lifelong change, of personal, deep impact that Harry had on me.

As with Aang above, I used to think Harry was the most boring protagonist, yet my opinion took a 180° turn in the past years. Many of the things I wrote for Aang apply to him too - the fact that he was a child, that lost so much, and was always faced with challenges that a child should never have needed to face. Something I want to address is how my favourite book, The Order of the Phoenix, lays all of this out. Harry is just as flawed, just as vulnerable and angry as anyone else. I know some people did not like his ‘emo behaviour’ in the fifth book but for me it just showed how human he is, how he was just a teen like myself at that time. As for many, this boy shaped my entire life, shaped a generation, and I will forever be grateful. I’m sad and angry at how J*R behaves, and how she puts us in the position of doubting our love for these stories. I know I will always love them, but I will not turn a blind eye on all the problematic shit is carries with itself and what the author piles upon us.

Lan Wangji & Wei Wuxian

The Untamed (2019)

I will try and keep this short, because if you want to read my thoughts about Wangxian just go to my ao3 and find the over 70k i wrote for them. I decided to put them here together because I can’t seperate them and I can’t choose between them. Each of them carries something I recognise in myself, and each of them is the opposite of me. They each own my heart and soul and I know there will never be a fictional couple like this for me ever again. They’ve snuck their way into my heart and have never left. They deserve to be here, together, because my love for them is indescribable. Bless them. + Bonus:

The Doctor

Doctor Who (1963/2005)

Technically, the Doctor doesn’t count as a “male” character, but since he has been presenting as male up until recently, I needed to include him. I chose the Tenth Doctor because he is the one that broke my heart the most. I adored Nine but he was there too short, and I do love Eleven and Twelve a lot, and Thirteen absolutely owns my heart, Ten has just always been the one that made me cry the most. I loved this era of Doctor Who, I loved how sad and hopeful he was, how heartbroken and yet determined to help wherever it was needed. Doctor Who is always that show, when I return to it, I am reminded that maybe, humanity and the universe isn’t all that bad.

phew, this took ages damn. but i had so much fun! i decided to leave out honorable mentiones because we would be sitting here until tomorrow lol.

#gosh this was nice #a lot of incoherent rambling here #thanks dear #tag game #personal

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tigerkirby215 · 5 years ago

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5e Tahm Kench, the River King build (League of Legends)

(Artwork by Pan Chengwei. Made for Riot Games.)

I guess I’ve still got demons on the mind after Halloween. Truth be told while I do hope to someday make a build for every champ I’m very hesitant to make builds for the “monsterous” champs. Cho’Gath, Kog’Maw, and Tahm Kench were all on that list for one reason and one reason alone: you can’t say “I puke on / eat / lick the enemy” without drawing a few strange glances. But the good folk over at Doran’s & Dragons did a Tahm Kench build and while I get where they were going for I’m personally not the biggest fan.

D’s&Ds tries to capture the flavor of the character much more than their abilities, which I can greatly appreciate. I think if you want a smooth-talking demon who swindles people out of everything, including their lives, than D’s&Ds’ build for Tahm is great. But I’m more interested in the mechanics of Tahm Kench: with literal thick skin to absorb incoming damage, a tongue that can leave our opponents stunned, and the ability to... vore your friends to keep them out of harm’s way.

No there aren’t vanilla rules for eating your friends alive! It’s all going to be reflavoring! See this is exactly why I didn’t want to do Tahm.

GOALS

I am enthralled by your class and refinement - Tahm Kench is a demon of greed, luring in unsuspecting hopefuls with promises of prosperity. We’ll need a tongue as sharp as a sword, and a sword as sharp as our tongue.

You have succeeded only in ruffling my attire! - To walk around looking like a Disney Caricature you need to have some thick skin. While other champs wear armor Tahm just has Thick Skin.

All the world's a river; and I'm its king - With a mouth that big you’ve gotta put it to good use, helping your allies across the river... regardless of if they want to go. (Well, most spells that target allies in D&D have to be willing...)

RACE

While I appreciate D’s&D and their take by making Tahm Kench a Locatha they were made for a Second Life charity module, which means they’re not officially endorsed at Adventurer’s League or other such gatherings. Also the friend who shares content with me on D&D Beyond doesn’t own Locatha Rising.

Also technically this build isn’t AL legal since it uses multiple sourcebooks (Mordenkainen's + others) so uhhhh...

Also this build is going to use a subclass that wasn’t available when D’s&D made their build.

With that being said Two-Coats is a demon so we’ll go for the demon race: Tiefling! More specifically we’ll get acquainted with the icy depths of the river as a Levistus Tiefling. Levistus Tieflings see their Charisma score increase by 2 and their Constitution increase by 1 for some protection thanks to the cold. Additionally you get some innate spells thanks to Legacy of Stygia, which I’ll cover when they come up.

All Tieflings have 60 feet of Darkvision, Hellish Resistance to Fire damage, and the ability to speak Common and Infernal. The only thing that changes with your Tiefling subrace is your ability scores and your innate spellcasting, and truly your brand of demon doesn’t matter much. "Call me king, call me demon - water forgets the names of the drowned."

ABILITY SCORES

15; CHARISMA - For a truly delicious meal you need to soften them up a little first. Take it smooth and let them relax before going in for the kill.

14; CONSTITUTION - Kench is a chunky lad who can take quite a beating. It takes more than a blade to slay the king.

13; STRENGTH - You need quite the strong stomach to hold down tougher meals. “Needs salt!”

12; WISDOM - You need a bit of natural intuition to know how folk tick.

10; INTELLIGENCE - Live long enough and you learn quite a bit. At least enough to promise knowledge to anyone looking for it.

8; DEXTERITY - As said before the river king is a large demon of a man, who can take as much time as he wants to get a meal.

BACKGROUND

No surprises here: Tahm Kench is a Charlatan, swindling folk all across Runeterra out of everything they once owned... including their lives.

Well, maybe a few surprises. You will still be taking Deception but instead of Slight of Hand take Persuasion proficiency, because you’re more of a smooth talker than a con artist. I’m also going to suggest taking two Languages instead of two Tools: take whatever language you think you may need, but to talk your way to your next meal they’ll have to be able to understand you.

Regardless you can’t have them knowing your a demon, so take a False Identity as the king. Most folk think you’re a kind soul, with plenty to back you up. And you can always get any papers they may desire.

(Artwork by Alex “alexplank” Flores. Made for Riot Games.)

THE BUILD

LEVEL 1 - FIGHTER 1

Starting off as a Fighter because funny Constitution saving throws, among other things. "My constitution is unflappable!" Regardless you get proficiency in two skills from the Fighter list so take Insight and Athletics to know who’s ready to be carried down river.

You also get a Fighting Style of your choice and while I’d love to get a Reach weapon or indeed any two-handed weapon one of Tahm Kench’s best assets is the Protection he can provide his allies. For this you’ll need a shield (and you can take a regular Strength weapon along side it) but if an attack is coming their way you can grab them in your maw to give the attack disadvantage... Or you could not vore your allies, and take the Defense Fighting Style instead to get more AC.

Well at least if anyone gets mad at all the vore comments you can tank it with your Thick Skin and regenerate it with Second Wind. (The Fighter ability, not the rune in the Resolve tree.) And to fight back with a lashing of your tongue Ray of Frost from Legacy of Stygia will do some damage at range and slow down your foes. It’s not a stun yet... not yet.

LEVEL 2 - BARD 1

What? Did you think we wouldn’t have some tricks of the charmer’s trade? As a Bard you get one proficiency in any skill and one instrument proficiency. Choose Intimidation because my what big teeth you have! (But truthfully take whatever proficiency works for your party, as Tahm Kench can be whatever you want him to be.) As for instrument I’m going to have to go for Lute: it’s the closest you’ll get to a tongue guitar, and don’t you dare say “tongue guitar” at your D&D table.

Regardless Bards get Bardic Inspiration at first level, to make sure you fulfill the support role through the use of honeyed words and sweet nothings. You get a pool of d6s that you can give to an ally to add to their attack rolls, skill checks, or saving throws. You can give a d6 as an action and have a number of them equal to your proficiency bonus, and regain them all at the end of a long rest.

But wait! There’s more! You also get Spellcasting as a Bard: you get two cantrips from the Bard list. A man of fine tastes needs to keep his outfit in check, so take Mending to do that. Vicious Mockery meanwhile will let you use that trademark Tahm Kench sharp tongue (not the literal sharp tongue) to taunt your foes and make it harder for them to hurt your allies. "The baseness of your appetite repulses me!"

As for leveled spells you can pick four of them at first level: naturally you’ll need Charm Person to tempt mortals with pleasing bargains. To worry them that you’re coming to collect Dissonant Whispers will fill their minds with unease. To open up your foes for your friends to take them down Bane will loosen their resolve. And to make sure everyone laughs at your jokes? Tasha’s Hideous Laughter.

LEVEL 3 - BARD 2

Second level Bards are Jack of All Trades, letting you add half your proficiency bonus to any skill you’re not proficient in. Tahm Kench is a demon, and he needs to be able to help wherever he can to tempt others to ask him for help.

Speaking of help you also get Song of Rest to give allies an extra d6 of healing during short rests. Since I doubt Tahm Kench is much of a singer, consider this more of him telling stories of grandeur that only the king of river would know. Or perhaps you’re cooking everyone some food? Who knows.

And finally you can learn another spell, but I’m actually going to wait for next level since we’ve gotten all the first level spells we really need already. But you do get Armor of Agathys thanks to Legacy of Stygia, for some Thornmail to boost your defenses.

LEVEL 4 - BARD 3

Third level Bards get Expertise in two skills to double your proficiency bonus: naturally we’ll go for Deception and Persuasion to have little trouble striking up a bargain.

But much more importantly you get to choose your Bardic College, and I think it’s safe to say that Tahm Kench is a self-taught master of the College of Eloquence. Eloquence Bards have a Silver Tongue, making any roll below a 10 on a Persuasion or a Deception role default to a 10. Notice how we just gave ourselves Expertise on those checks? This means that the lowest you can get on one of these checks is a 17, which for most folk is an automatic success! "How delectable!"

Additionally, your works make it harder to resist the effects of magic. Unsettling Words lets you spend a Bonus Action to roll Bardic Inspiration on an enemy. The next saving throw they make they have to subtract the number you rolled on the Inspiration die. This has synergy with both yourself and your friends. Honey your words before charming folk to hear you, or soften up a foe for some crazy mage to take them down.

Speaking of crazy mage: more spells! The great part about a character like Tahm Kench is that I am completely justified taking utility / roleplay spells like Gift of Gab, letting you backtrack in case you say something silly during a conversation. (With a small royalty fee to the good folk over at Acquisitions Incorporated, of course.) But if you want something more immediately useful then Hold Person will let you stun foes with your words, keeping them in place for allies to cut them down.

LEVEL 5 - BARD 4

Fourth level Bards get an Ability Score Improvement but I’m going to suggest something a little different. Old Yawn-Belly is a demon with a hunger for fine clothes so there shouldn’t be much issue taking the Eldritch Adept Unearthed Arcana feat, soon to be in Tasha’s Cauldron of Everything! With a Mask of Many Faces you can cast Disguise Self at will. This will let you wear a fine jacket while still being in heavy armor. "How did I leave my jacket pocket unadorned for so long?"

I really like unlimited Disguise Self for Tahm Kench for a number of reasons. It’s said that he can take whatever form he desires to lure in his victims, which makes sense given the nature of his character. Unlimited Disguise Self also obviously has use for a charmer, letting you get away with a lot more discussion than normal. But the most important thing is that while Tahm Kench doesn’t wear anything heavy in-game he’s far from stealthy. But disguising your armor doesn’t make it any quieter, which is unironically perfect for our affairs.

Regardless you can learn another spell at this level, along with another cantrip. For your cantrip Prestidigitation is great for life’s simple pleasures, recreating simple things like heating food, chilling drinks, or making things taste like whatever you desire.

For leveled spells may I make a suggestion of the Suggestion spell? It’ll let you make simple suggestions for things that folks should do, and they’ll be inclined to do it. They won’t do anything dangerous like stand in the jaws of a demon, but asking them to walk alone down river is a pretty harmless ask. Oh and to top it off a Tiefling gets Darkness at 5th level, thanks to Legacy of Stygia.

(Artwork by robynlauart on DeviantArt)

LEVEL 6 - BARD 5

5th level Bards get Font of Inspiration to recover their Bardic Inspiration at the end of a Short Rest, which is good because your Bardic Inspiration also increases to a d8.

Additionally you can learn third level spells like Sending to check up on some old deals. If you can’t tell it’s really hard to translate Bard spells onto Tahm Kench, but we kinda need a few more levels in this class.

LEVEL 7 - BARD 6

6th level Eloquence Bards get Unfailing Inspiration. If an ally uses your Bardic Inspiration but still don’t succeed on their roll, they get to keep the die. Simple! You also get Universal Speech, allowing you to choose a number of creatures equal to your Charisma modifier to understand anything you may say. There’s no reason you can’t strike a deal with the local wildlife. And finally you get Countercharm for some Tenacity against Charms and Frightening effects, or you could not do that.

Unfortunately you can’t understand them when you use Universal Speech, but that’s where the spell Tongues comes in. Along with ha ha Tahm Kench Tongue you can make sure anyone understand what you or an ally might be saying. Keep Universal Speech for the simpletons of the world. "You're strong like bull, and smart like cow."

LEVEL 8 - BARD 7

7th level Bards finally get 4th level spells, and as we know "It is my mouth into which all travels end." Take Dimension Door to grab a friend (in your mouth... or not) and go far and wide.

LEVEL 9 - BARD 8

8th level Bards get an Ability Score Improvement and seeing as our last ASI went to getting a top hat we may as well increase that uneven Strength and Charisma.

You can also learn another spell and there are quite a few nice ones at 4th level. Confusion and Compulsion will let your words do the fighting for you, and Locate Creature will help you find anyone looking for a bargain. Or of course you could take your own spell, since these builds are only suggestions after all.

(Artwork by MirthSpindle on DeviantArt.)

LEVEL 10 - FIGHTER 2

Now that we can get people to sign a contract it’s time to take what’s rightfully ours. But firstly Fighters get Action Surge at second level to take two actions on a turn. Perhaps a Hail of Blades, or maybe a mix of words to sully the mind?

LEVEL 11 - FIGHTER 3

Third level Fighters can choose their Martial Archetype and to master your tongue in more ways than one (not like that you perv) look no further than the Battle Master Fighter. You get d8 Combat Superiority Die that can fuel a variety of manuevers:

To stun a foe with your lashing tongue take Trip Attack, for a little more than just stopping them in their tracks.

To grab an ally in your mouth (or preferably not doing that) Maneuvering Attack will let you get them to move somewhere safe without being in danger of getting attacked themselves.

And to play the tank role of the party Goading Attack will taunt your enemies so that they can only concentrate on you. You can take it: you have Thick Skin!

But of course most importantly you are a Student of War, granting proficiency in an Artisan’s Tool of your choice. If you’re going to write contracts you’re going to need good penmanship, so grab proficiency in Calligrapher’s Supplies as the pen is mightier than the sword and Tulok the Barbrarian memes shall live on eternally.

LEVEL 12 - FIGHTER 4

4th level means more Ability Score Improvements and... you know? I don’t think we’re nearly tanky enough! Infernal Constitution is a feat exclusive to Tieflings that grants resistance to Cold and Poison damage, as well as the poisoned condition. And it increases your Constitution by 1 as well. "My visage was already flawless, now it just has more vigor."

LEVEL 13 - FIGHTER 5

5th level Fighters get an Extra Attack for two attacks instead of one, or four with Action Surge! Quick and easy!

(Artwork by benlo on DeviantArt.)

LEVEL 14 - FIGHTER 6

Hey more Ability Score Improvements! You know despite intending to swing a sword around your Strength is rather subpar, so perhaps increase that. (This also finally lets you put on Platemail.)

LEVEL 15 - FIGHTER 7

A friend is an enemy who hasn’t shown their true self yet, so you can know your friends with Know Your Enemy. By spending a minute studying someone you can learn if they’re worth bargaining with. You can learn their Strength, Dexterity, Constitution, Armor, Hit Points, Level, and Fighter level. Most NPCs don’t have class levels, but knowing how hard you need to hit them could help the whole party.

You also get two more Maneuvers: Evasive Footwork will let you dash off to safety, and while disarming isn’t common in Runeterra Disarming Strike seems quite in flavor for someone as... dexterous as yourself.

LEVEL 16 - FIGHTER 8

Isn’t Fighter fun when you increase your abilities every other level? Your Strength is still kinda godawful so good for that if you’d please.

LEVEL 17 - FIGHTER 9

9th level Fighters get Indomitable. If you fail a saving throw you can reroll it. You only get one of these per Long Rest so use it on a save you’re likely to succeed on like Strength, Constitution, Charisma, or... well yeah basically those three.

(Artwork by davicomodo on DeviantArt. They deactivated their account though: sad.)

LEVEL 18 - FIGHTER 10

10th level Fighters get Improved Combat Superiority. Now your d8s are d10s!

You know what else that means? More Maneuvers! To absorb even more damage Parry will give you some Bone Plating for absorption. If however by this point an ally of yours can do a lot more damage with their weapon then Commander’s Strike will let you set them up for the Pentakill!

LEVEL 19 - FIGHTER 11

11th level Fighters get another Extra Attack for 3 attacks per round. That’s enough for your three-hit passive!

LEVEL 20 - FIGHTER 12

12th level Fighters get our final Ability Score Improvement: for stronger charms and more smooth-talking to both ally and foe, take Charisma. For a different type of stronger tongue with deadlier maneuvers grab Strength instead. And if you just want to be a chunky tanky conman then Constitution is also an option!

FINAL BUILD

PROS

Every heart has its own hunger - Despite not maxing out your Charisma you’re still the king of speech. +16 in Deception and Persuasion with your lowest possible roll being a 10. That means the lowest you can get on these rolls is a 26! Not to mention that Jack of All Trades as a Bard makes you plenty good at any skill the party may need help with, and unlimited Disguise Self letting you take whatever role is needed.

Every river ends in me! - You are also a very good team player. Bardic Inspiration that never fails, tons of different ways to hold the enemy down, and several options to help your friends while they’re in a jam. "Travel awaits."

You have succeeded only in ruffling my attire! - Wow who would’ve guessed that building a tanky character to be a tank would make them tanky? You should have quite the solid healthbar and resistances to three very common damage types is nothing to scoff at, not to mention that you can wear Heavy Armor and a Shield for crazy high AC.

CONS

Are you the waiter of this establishment? - Most of your abilities rely on charges of some kind. While Maneuvers and Bardic Inspiration comes back on a Short Rest spell slots only come back after a Long one, and you don’t have many spell slots to spare.

I wonder who might like to bargain for a little freedom - This build is very ASI greedy which means a lot of your abilities are very subpar. Your low DEX score in particular is rather harsh as many dangerous spells require DEX saving throws.

Might be savory - Because this build is so ASI greedy your stats still aren’t maxed out. +3 to CON and +4 to CHA are great and all but they aren’t +5, ya know? And even with Jack of All Trades your skill checks aren’t going to beat out a specialist.

But you don’t need to be a god to sign a deal; a demon does it just as well. Master your articulation so that you can be sharp with your tongue in whatever means necessary. Bargain with your allies and seal the deal on your foes, and for the love of all that is good in the world don’t vore anyone! Jeeze!

(Artwork by Pan Chengwei. Made for Riot Games.)

#dnd #dnd 5e #dnd build #dnd guide #League of Legends #League of Legends Tahm Kench #Tahm Kench #river king #dnd fighter #dnd bard

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kirathehyrulian · 6 years ago

Photo

♥• Obsession: Dark Desires Art Master Post•♥

Please do not repost or alter. At the very least, please give me credit.

Spn Eldritch Bang | Author | Illustrator | Fic- Ao3 | LJ

Title: Rating: Explicit Wordcount: 17,321 Pairings: unrelated Dean/Sam, Fic Warnings: Gore/Violence, dark!Dean, bottom!Sam, top!Dean

Summary: Sam and Dean have always been close. Their fathers had gone on many hunts together, so the boys had grown up around each other. When Sam goes to Stanford, Dean stays behind to hunt on his own. But when Dean can't stand being away from Sam any longer, he goes to see Sam at Stanford. And what he finds sends him into a downward spiral no one could have been prepared for.

Art Warnings!!!: (The Rest of the art below this cut are depictions of major fic spoilers and some gore. Please, only click the “Keep Reading” link if you are mentally prepared and have already read the fic.)

Artist Commentary: (scroll down some more if you just want the art)

I struggled a lot with coming up with what I wanted to do for this fic. My author gave me a free rein to do whatever scenes and styles inspired me. They only asked for obsessed!Dean, innocent!Sam, and concerned fathers Bobby and John.

I chose not to focus on John or Bobby. I threw the idea around for a bit, but I’m not really adept at drawing them so I didn’t want to obsess, hah, about how it doesn’t look like them enough. So, all the art is mostly about Sam and Dean.

Again, I wanted this story’s art to be creepy. I wanted most of it to come off unsettling. So I looked at horror games. “Dreaming Mary” was the first one I looked at. It was a cutesy, very disturbing and triggering game. It had two-faced characters, warped reality, chibis, and some silhouettes. I figured it was a good direction to go in.

But, then when I started sketching out silhouette ideas, my friend ended up saying it reminded her of “Fran Bow”’s cut scenes. I’m not really a fan of Fran Bow. It was too random for me, but I probably did subconsciously draw inspiration from that game too. And, I decided to visit that game some more. So I combined the thoughts that I got from both games.

At first, I was thinking about black and white silhouettes with a black and white film feel. But, I already did black and white in suffocation. I wanted these illustrations and style to be different because it’s an entirely different story. So, red is the new white.

I did the title card first. I drew inspiration from old turner classic movie intros before you see the main feature film with the spotlight and text font and placement. I made a bunch of hearts that stare at you to convey obsession. I drew skulls to showcase death and to be creepy. The patterns I made were supposed to be unsettling. I completed the rest of the illustrations in this order, scene: 1, 4, 2, 5, 6, 3. And, all the scenes are supposed to be the world through Dean’s twisted lens.

Scene 1: they’re in an alleyway with Sam yelling. I tried to make him look young here, to convey innocence. Light is coming from the back of Sam to show that the alleyway is vaguely dark.

Scene 2: Lol. I tried. It ended up looking goofy and oddly enduring to me. I love my drooling boy. He’s not drooling, he’s bleeding. Lee here has lost his hands, has a broken jaw, and is getting his eyes poked in with Dean’s thumbs.

Scene 3: Dean is happy to finally get close and personal with Sam. I tried to make Sam look innocently at Dean in shock, and Dean more sultry, whatever. There is a wall behind Sam. The arm that is caressing Sam’s hair is a different shade of red to make it stand out so it doesn’t get lost in their combined silhouette and that it looks like it’s further in the background. The light here is so you don’t get to distracted by all the empty space to the left. And, it's because of my sleep-deprived mind, but when I stare at the area around their noses for long enough they look like they are moving towards each other.

Scene 4: I was really excited about drawing this idea. So, this is Dean’s reality finally breaking down. To him in the roadhouse, these are all the monsters trying to take Sam away from Dean. John, Bobby, and Victor from left to right. The monster designs were me trying to connect the title heart faces to how Dean sees everyone that’s not Sam. In everyone else’s reality, Sam’s pissed at Dean. It is the Sam that jabbed Dean in the side, watched his fiance get killed, got kidnapped, know about Lee getting killed, probably had dubious sex with unrelated Dean, and so on. So, while the silhouette Sam is gasping, or yelling in innocent concern, reality Sam is less innocent and more pissed. Lol, Real-Sam's frown might be too exaggerated to be taken seriously....sigh.

Scene 5: I was actually very proud of how real-Dean turned out here, I doubt I’ll ever get it that good again in this style. I tried to make Real-Dean rougher and more disturbed looking, and like he will gut everyone not-Sam. The shiny glass looking thing behind Dean is a swot member arresting Dean. The arms are Dean’s view of the swot members. They don’t get real bodies because they are not important in Dean’s view here andIgotlazy.

Scene 6: Remember when I said earlier when I don’t think I’d get it that good again. Well, I didn’t. It’s not bad, but this Dean didn’t come out as good, which really bummed me out. It’s good enough, but not what I wished it could be. Dean the stalker is stalking Sam here. I’m happy with my car (even though I can’t draw a steering wheel to save my life) and fuzzy background though, and I normally hate cars and backgrounds. Bad Dean for not wearing his seat belt though. Do not emulate, kids.

Overall, I’m happy or okay with what I did here depending on what we’re pointing out.

Enjoy, if you can!♥♥♥

Musical Inspiration (Things that I listened to this time to get in the mood to draw, but not meant as an accompaniment to the fic):

I listened to a lot of the same stuff for this project as I did for “Suffocation” but here are some ones that I didn’t list before | Dark Piano - Waiting for Sunrise | Little Nightmares OST "A Feeling for Meat" | Dark Piano - Witch | HANNIBAL OST MEDLEY | Emotional Music - A Nostalgic Dream |

#spneldritchbang #wincest #dean/sam #sam/dean #sam winchester/dean winchester #unrelated wincest #sam winchester appreciation #dean winchester appreciation #myart #spn event #2019 #tagging for the squeamish #cw: gore #eldritch moods #spn art #spn fic #fic spoilers

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fuse2dx · 5 years ago

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June '20

Trials of Mana

Maybe not the highest profile remake Square-Enix have put out in recent memory, but one that was pretty exciting for me. I played a fan translation of the Super Famicom original some 20 years ago, so while it's not particularly fresh in my head, there's just enough there to enjoy some infrequent little pangs of nostalgia. The move to 3D has made for some welcome changes to to combat - jumping adds a vertical element to combat that wasn't present before, and enemy specials being clearly telegraphed and avoidable puts a little more control in your hands. There's still a good amount of 16 bit jank though - combo timing feels unreliable, the camera's often a pain, there's plenty of questionable hit detection, and you definitely wouldn't want to leave your fate solely in the hands of your party's AI. Willing to put most of this aside, what actually mattered more to me was that it still had the kind of playful, breezy nature, it looks and plays nicely, and that it progresses at a nice clip. Party selection will change the way you fight moment-to-moment, but only provides minor and very brief deviance from the main storyline, most of which is the kind of schlocky cartoon villainy that will have you looking for a skip button before it would illicit any kind of emotional response. But you know what? Overall, I still enjoyed it a lot.

So while it may not be revolutionising the action RPG, what it does show is that Square-Enix is capable of acknowledging their history of previously untranslated works, and that they also now have a pretty good template for getting a B-tier remake of such titles out in a reasonable timeframe. Where do I send my wish list in to, team?

Sayonara Wild Hearts

As a one-liner found on the back of the box, 'A pop album video game' is about as on-the-nose as it gets. The old "it's not for everyone" adage is definitely applicable, and its defiance of traditional video game metrics is not in any way subtle. How sophisticated is the gameplay? Not particularly. How long is it? Not very. But how does it make you feel? Now you're talking. It presents a simple but deeply relatable story of a broken heart, and leads from there with a catchy tune into a fast and colourful onslaught of new ideas, perspectives, and concepts. That is to say: it has the potential to make you feel all kinds of things.

One especially celebratory note was how well the game is structured to fit into the album structure it boasts about. Stages flow quickly into one another, and while shorter, more compounding numbers are often about introducing new ideas and themes, moving on to the next is a few simple button presses and a brief, well-hidden loading window away. Inevitably there are more standout stages, those that feel like the hit singles; the longer, verse-chorus-verse type joints that grant the space for more fleshed out visual story telling, and that smartly synchronise their percussive hits, soaring vocals and the like to appropriate beats of play. A lot of the gameplay can easily (and cynically) be reduced to "it's an endless runner", but to liken this to a cheap re-skin of a confirmed hit-maker is to wilfully dismiss so much of what it does better and so much beside. You can play it on damn near everything, and for the time it takes, it's well worth doing.

Twinkle Star Sprites

I've meant to play this countless times before. I've almost certainly passed it by while strolling through arcades, the Saturn version has never been hoovered up into my collection, and the PS2 collection this particular version belongs to - ADK Damashii - is no longer a cheap addition to anyone's library. The digital version of it for PS4 however was however recently on sale at a point that saw me receive change from a fiver. David Dickinson would be proud.

Having now credit-fed my way through the game's brief arcade mode, there's no doubt in my mind that the nuance of its systems are going to be glossed over in this rather ham-fisted appraisal. At least at face value, there's plenty of character and charm to appreciate in its colourful and cutesy style. As a two-player, vertically split-screen title, its a pretty clean break from a lot of a shooter's typical characteristics - rather than 6(ish) stages of hell, its a series of one on one battles - and all the better suited to 2 players for it. As enemy waves come at you, taking them out in chains can generate attacks to the other player; however if these attacks are too small then it's entirely possible they'll be killed off again, and an even bigger attack will come straight back at you. Think of a bit like competitive Tetris, but with shooting rather than puzzling. It's a neat and curious little game, that's likely best experienced properly, with a friend on the other side of the sofa to hurl abuse at.

Blasphemous

Let's get the lazy-but-effective description out of the way: it's a 2D MetroidVania Souls-like. You've got "that" type of map, definitely-not-bonfires and definitely-not-Estus Flasks. You are encouraged to return to your body upon death, the combat system is very reliant on parries and dodge-rolls, and there's even a dedicated "lore" button to use on every item you pick up.

While this likely sounds dismissive, it's more about addressing the elephant in the room. To give some context, these are both types of games that I love, and the end product here has done a pretty good job of bringing them together. The exploration is pleasantly open - gatekeeping is typically done less by specific items and abilities, and more by just which areas you're brave enough to poke your head into. It's a little bit of a shame that most of the new abilities have to be switched out for others rather than adding to a core arsenal of moves, but at the same time its base setup gives you plenty of ways to deal with any number of combat scenarios. This is of course best demonstrated by the boss encounters, which are wonderful affairs - big, gruesome, thoughtful variations on approaches to combat, which drop in at a nice pace to keep you from ever getting too cocky. The theming in general is wonderful, and the name is certainly appropriate - there's a lot of deep catholic inspiration in its gorgeous backdrops and environments, but then layered on top are some chilling elements of religious iconography, along with a cast of disturbing devotees and martyrs to sufficiently unsettle you. It's arguably a small intersection of the gaming population that it'll appeal to, but if you're in there, it's a real treat.

Death Come True

The first thing you see upon starting is the game's central character breaking right through the fourth wall to tell you directly not to stream the game or to share anything that might spoil the story. The first rule of Death Come True, and so on. I consider myself fairly well versed in such etiquette, so to then have the screenshot function entirely disabled for the whole game felt a little like being given a slap on the wrists for a crime I had no intention of committing. I don't envy the team trying to market it, that's for sure.

The reasoning behind this is clear at least - it's a game that is in total service of its plot. Consider a mash-up of a 'Choose your own adventure' book and a series of full-motion videos, and you're mostly there. Unless you were to walk away from the controller or perhaps fall asleep, there seems very little chance that your play time will deviate from the 3 hour estimate - which will certainly put some people off, but is understandable given the production values, and personally, quite welcome in the first place. In terms of replay value, there are branching paths that a single route will obviously skip: as an example of this, in looking up a screenshot to use in lieu of taking my own, I found a promotional image of the central cast, only to not recognise one of them at all. One thing that such a short run-time does ensure though, is that minute-for-minute, there's plenty of action; without wanting to speak about the story itself (rather than in fear of reprise for doing so, I might add), it kicks off with plenty of intrigue, shortly thereafter switching to full-on action, and then strikes a pretty fine balancing act between the two for its run time. It doesn't get quite as deep or as complex as I would've hoped given the team's pedigree, but I do like it, and think it'd actually be a pretty fun title to play with folks who normally don't concern themselves with games. By the same token, it's probably not for the 'hardcore' types looking for something to string out over dozens of hours.

Persona 5: Dancing in Starlight

After the generous main course that was Persona 5 Royal, I figured that I'd follow up with dessert. I did however wait until a weekend where I knew my girlfriend would be away, so as not to trigger any unpleasant flashbacks to looped battle themes, and the chirpy, indecipherable voices of Japanese schoolkids that made it so painful to endure as a non-gaming cohabitant.

Immediately, it's clear that very little has changed since Persona 4's take on the rhythm action genre. The core game, while still functional and fairly enjoyable, hasn't changed a lick. Perhaps the most notable improvement to the package as a whole is in scaling back on a dedicated story mode, and instead just having a series of uninspired but far less time-consuming set of social link scenes that pad things out. The biggest flaw is repeated wholesale though, in that trying to stretch out noteworthy tracks from a single game's playlist into a dedicated music game leads to repetition - and there is a much less prolific gathering of artists involved in remixes this time. I'd be willing to wager that it's a very similar story once again with Persona 3: Dancing in Moonlight, but I'm not about to ruin a perfectly good dinner to start with the sweet just to find out, if you'll excuse a second outing of the metaphor. Still, again compare these to Theatrhythm though - where Square-Enix plundered the Final Fantasy series in its entirety, along with spin-offs and other standalone titles to put together a library of music worthy for the one single game. Cobble the tunes from Personas 3-5 together into one game, and you're still coming up very short by comparison.

#trials of mana #seiken densetsu 3 #sayonara wild hearts #twinkle star sprites #blasphemous #death come true #persona 5 dancing in starlight

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kp-alice · 6 years ago

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Monsta X Reaction to their romance writer s/o

Hi! Thank you so much ♥ You’re not bothering at all, I’m happy for every request I get! This was supposed to be out a month ago, but here we are... I’m really sorry, I’m annoying to myself too...I hope you like it nonetheless! And to anyone who wants to request anything - if you don’t mind me being 4000 years late then go for it!

Shownu:

Even though Hyunwoo was always really supportive, you couldn’t help but be shy about showing your work to him. He was very understanding, making you feel a lot better.

What you didn’t know was that under a pile of clothes in the closet, there was a small box filled with all the books you ever published. Reading them whenever he had free time on tours, he became your secret number one fan. He always got really invested in the story, so when he started to notice the similarities between the book and your own love story, he was pleasantly surprised, to say the least.

He couldn’t tell you that he knew of course, but he was very flattered either way. Would definitely try to make some new fond memories with you, hoping he will get to read about them in the future.

Wonho:

You were always nervous to show him your writings, knowing how much he liked to tease you about them. But you definitely weren’t prepared for the teasing that was about to come with this one. You thought it wasn’t that obvious that the book was inspired by the two of you, but Wonho connected the dots immediately. He decided to wait until he finished the whole story though, just so he could prepare as much teasing material as he could.

As you were cooking one evening, he walked up behind you, deciding it was the best time to strike. With your book in hand, he flipped to the bookmarked page and began reading out loud, a grin on his face the entire time.

“We laid there, looking into each other’s eyes, trying to find our answers in one another.”

“Hoseok, what exactly are you doing?”

“But as I let myself drown in his dark brown eyes, I knew that-”

“Can you not?”

“I knew that I didn’t need any. As long as I had him, everything was going to be alright.”

“I hate you.”

“Why? I just wanted to provide you with a romantic scene where your loving boyfriend reads you a beautiful love story! Won’t that make it into your next book?”

Minhyuk:

Making sure to always support you and your writing, Minhyuk definitely made it onto your top fan list. And even though your book came out while he was on tour, you knew he would manage to get a copy of it anyway. And he sure did.

As you were slowly falling asleep, the ringing of your phone woke you back up. Answering the call, your ears were blasted with loud fanboying from the other side, making you smile. Amazed by how beautifully you managed to describe him and your relationship, Minhyuk decided he had to call you right now, too excited to wait until he came back.

Once he did, the two of you called your friends to ask about their opinions on the book, trying to see if anyone else realized the hidden meaning to the main characters. This resulted in the both of you making bets on who will figure it out the fastest, making everything that much more thrilling.

Kihyun:

As much as he loved your work, he couldn’t help but feel a bit anxious when he found out the story was about the two of you. What if others noticed too? He couldn’t let other people know how awkward he was in the beginning! Hell, he’s still awkward now! You, on the other hand, had no idea, thinking he just really enjoyed it judging by the way he read certain parts over and over again. It all started to unsettle you a bit though, so you finally decided to confront him about it.

“Kihyun, are you really liking the third chapter that much that you’re reading it for the fifth time now?”

“You don’t understand, (Y/N)! Other people will see this and laugh at how awkward I was when I asked you out!”

“Okay, first of all, they won’t notice, because nobody knows the exact details about our relationship to figure it out. And secondly, it wasn’t awkward, it was actually really cute how shy you were.”

“That’s not what I meant and you know it!”

“Ugh, alright then, everyone will totally notice how I described the way you blinked in chapter 17 and laugh at you for the rest of your life because of how miserable you were during the beginning of our relationship. Is that better?”

“Yes.”

Hyungwon:

When you finally gave Hyungwon permission to read your newest work, he started reading the second he had the book in his hands. Realizing the story was about the two of you, he was beyond excited. But as he kept reading on, he started to notice some parts which he didn’t remember happening. He blamed himself for forgetting these beautiful moments between the two of you, but after the third time he couldn’t recall a scene from the story, he knew it wasn’t just his imagination. After that he decided to put the book down, feeling his heart ache with guilt.

When you asked him for his opinion, he decided to be honest.

“I liked it, I really did, it’s just that some moments were a bit more ‘relatable’ than others..”

“What do you mean?”

“Well, I don’t really remember us ever going to a fair together and watching the stars at night, you know? And I feel bad because I never did that with you.”

“Hyungwon, don’t feel bad, I put it there just to make it feel more dramatic, nothing more! It’s all just fiction, the reality meant so much more to me than that! You know that, right?”

“Right...”

Jooheon:

Being still a bit self-conscious about your writing skills, you were hesitant to let Jooheon read the books you wrote, especially the latest one. Luckily for you, it seemed that he was too busy to read it anyway, putting you at ease. But to your surprise, Jooheon came back from work the very next day, your newest book in hand. Rushing over and taking it from him immediately, you thought that was it. But when you saw him pull out a second one from his bag, you sighed in defeat, knowing there was really no way of stopping him.

That evening as the two of you laid in bed, you on your phone and Jooheon reading next to you, you suddenly heard a high-pitched squeal, making you jump from your spot.

“What the hell, Jooheon? I almost had a heart attack!”

“I’m sorry, but this is just too cute! How can you make everything sound so amazing?”

“I don’t know, maybe it’s because I have such an adorable relationship with my adorable boyfriend?”

“Is that so? We better make a lot more memories then so you can put them all in your future books!”

I.M:

You thought you didn’t have to worry about him reading your books, seeing that he never really talked about them anyway. Unbeknownst to you, he has read all of them while on tour, some even twice. Knowing you for quite a long time, he always picked up on the hints faster than anyone else, making it that much easier to spot the parts of your own love story in your new novel. It wouldn’t be fun to just confront you about it casually, so he decided to mess with you instead by giving you small hints that he knows.

You were lying on the couch, scrolling through your phone when you felt a presence. Putting the phone down, you saw Changkyun in front of you, raising his eyebrow at you while posing.

“And what exactly is it that you are doing?”

“Oh, nothing, just ‘cocking my eyebrow questioningly’.”

“I...what..”

“Don’t worry about it, you’ll understand one day.”

“I swear, you keep getting weirder and weirder by the day.”

“That’s the plan.”

#kpop #monsta x #reaction #wonho #minhyuk #shownu #kihyun #jooheon #joohoney #hyungwon #i.m #im #changkyun #masterlist #scenario #k-pop #bts #exo #got7 #monsta x masterlist

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skygirl5 · 7 years ago

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Launch Party Interlude

This story is part of the #CastlePornado - as such is “M” rated!

Thanks to @inkstainedcoffeecup for the prompt that she probably does not remember :)

This takes place during When The Bough Breaks

Strolling through the crowded floor of the unfamiliar book store Kate Beckett felt uncomfortable—very uncomfortable. She had chosen to wear the sexy dress (okay, the extra sexy dress) to make an impression and she didn’t regret it, but it certainly did not add any level of relaxation to her mood that evening. She was used to dealing with the public and in general she didn’t mind that part of her job at all, but there was something about that night that made her feel so…exposed.

The release of Heat Wave certainly did not make Kate feel relaxed in any way. Though the writer insisted the title character was only “inspired” by her, she had read the book draft and saw just how much of herself was on print. True, someone who did not know her intimately (and, to be honest, there weren’t many people like that in the world) would never pick up on as many comparisons as she had but…still, knowing millions of people would read the book… The notion was, at best, slightly unsettling.

Kate had arrived at the launch party that evening with the intent to stroll around in her dress, make the writer’s eyes bulge out a little bit (because that was always fun), and then make an early exit. She still had intentions to make her exit as soon as was appropriate, but she knew she could not leave without speaking to the man of the hour. To that point they had only smiled at each other from across the room and of course she understood how busy he was that evening, but he was proving surprisingly hard to track down.

Biting down on her bottom lip, Kate gazed down at the novel clutched in her hand. A sufficient amount of time had passed to the point where she was almost over the nude silhouette on the cover (almost because she would never be fully over it), but now it was the dedication throwing her for a loop. Dedicating the book to the Twelfth Precinct certainly made sense and, okay, if she really thought about it she would not have been totally shocked by her name appearing—especially if he had listed Ryan and Esposito’s names as well. Maybe even along with Captain Montgomery, but listing her as the main dedicatee? That was…well, she imagined it would take her several days to process fully what that meant. She knew, though, that the kind—and yes, she would admit it, sweet—gesture needed to be met with a thank you before anything else was said between them that evening.

A few minutes later Kate felt as though she had circled the entire party and had yet to see the writer. Thankfully, she spotted Paula not too far away and figured she might be a good source for the writer’s whereabouts. Considering the dark-haired woman already wore quite a scowl, Kate plastered on her sweetest smile as she approached and said, “Excuse me, have you seen Ca—Rick?”

Paula threw up her hands, clearly irritated. “No I have not—and I’ve been searching for ten minutes. This is unbelievable. He said he only needed a few minutes and that was half an hour ago! This is his party.”

Despite the fact that it seemed as though Paula was yelling at her, Kate’s feathers did not ruffle, for she was used to such treatment from victims. Instead, she kept her tone even as she asked, “What did he say he needed a few minutes for? The restroom?”

Paula waved her hand flippantly. “No, no—something about a headache. He said he just needed a few minutes of quiet and went into the greenroom. If he slipped out the back I swear to god I’ll-”

“I’ll just go check on him, okay?” Kate interjected before any threats could be issued. She placed the book she held down on the nearest table and then walked back towards the direction Paula gestured. If the writer said he needed a few minutes of quiet, his headache must have been quite uncomfortable. She sympathized with that and wondered if the reason he had not yet reappeared was because he developed some sort of migraine.

After ducking through an open doorway labeled, “Employees Only”, Kate traversed a narrow back hall until she stopped in front of a door marked with a small black and white plaque displaying the word “Office.” As the door was shut, she rapped her knuckles against it twice in quick succession then called out, “Castle?” as her hand hovered just above the doorknob.

“Beckett? Don’t—Don’t come…in…”

She heard his moan, but as she had already begun to twist the handle when she heard her name, she had too much momentum to halt her progress. With the door now open, she craned her neck around the other side to see the author curled up in a near fetal position on a futon on one side of the office. As he looked as pale and sickly as she’d ever seen him, she gasped with concern. “Oh—oh my gosh, are you okay? What happened to you?”

In response he merely groaned and shook his head while tucking his arms tighter around his torso.

As she had never seen him in such a state, Kate wasn’t sure what to think. Given how miserable he seemed, her guess that he might have acquired a migraine could have been accurate, but the lights in the room were on. She did not have many experiences with migraines thankfully, but she knew sensitivity to light was one of the main symptoms, which led her to think the writer did not have a migraine. If he didn’t, the list of potential ailments was endless, but given how clammy he looked she felt quite concerned for his condition.

Rushing forward, she crouched down beside the futon. “Oh Castle.” She lay a delicate hand on his forehead and found it to be quite sweaty, though not immediately indicative of a fever. “What’s going on? Do you think you have food poisoning?” she guessed as an alternative to the migraine.

“No, no; not that.” He managed, though he still clearly seemed in agony.

Feeling the need to check for herself, Kate began to peel one of his arms away from his body. “Where does it hurt? You might actually—Oh! Jesus!” Kate cursed, dropped his arm, and looked away immediately when she caught sight of the front of his trousers. The contrast of the black fabric of his pants against the denim-like fabric of the futon did not make it difficult at all to see how aggressively tented the pants were. Though there was only one explanation for that image, Kate remained baffled as the level of illness to which he appeared to be suffering seemed genuine.

“No, no,” he moaned and shook his head when she took a half step away from him, sure revulsion was written all over her face. “’s not…it’s…Mother…”

Her eyes widened as a fresh onslaught of horror washed over her. “Your mother did this!?”

“No! Fuck!” He cursed when he twisted his body quickly upright. Taking in a few calming deep breaths, he leaned back against the futon and rushed out, “Mother…gave…Viagra…”

“What?” she retorted dumbly. Why in the hell would Castle’s mother have given him Viagra during his book release party? Of all the things he’d ever told her, that probably made the least sense—and that truly was saying something!

When his next words were, “Pill…but Viagra…” Kate was finally able to connect the dots.

“Shit!” she cursed. “Your mother gave you Viagra thinking it was an aspirin?” When he nodded his head vigorously, she tried to make a sympathetic noise, but it came out as a bit of a laugh. “Oh…Castle.”

“Not funny!” he growled at her.

Fighting to straighten her lips and failing miserably, Kate said, “No, no of course it’s not funny, but… Why does she have aspirin and Viagra together in her purse? Why does she have Viagra in her purse at all?”

He let out a noise somewhere between a moan and a wail. Again, she could not help but crack a smile at how pitiful he sounded—particularly now that she knew he wasn’t actually sick or in danger. “And here I thought you might have had a migraine.”

“I’d rather…have that…” He grunted. Then moaned again. “God…this is awful.”

Taking in a deep breath and keeping her eyes trained on his crumpled expression, Kate said, “Okay, just to be sure—you took a small blue pill?”

“Didn’t look at it; just swallowed. God…I don’t know what hurts worse—my dick or my head.”

That time, Kate did let out an audible chuckle, which earned her a glare from Castle. “Not funny,” he snipped. “It made my headache worse!”

“Okay, um…Well, I guess I’d better go get Paula so-”

“No!” He cried out. “God, no; she’ll never, ever let me hear the end of this.”

Kate quirked an eyebrow at him. “And you think I will?” She responded, as she had absolutely no intentions of doing so. In fact, she intended to bring it up at every possible opportunity.

“I can’t stop you from knowing about this, but we don’t have to tell—ugh!—others.” Clearly still suffering, he slid back down onto the base of the futon so he was laying flat, his pants now tented directly upwards.

“But Castle, that’s why I’m here. She’s looking for you, so you can give a speech about your book.”

“Jesus Christ! I can’t go out like this!”

“Well, obviously. About how long has it been since you took the pill?”

“Uh…” He lifted his head enough to look at his watch and then said. “’bout forty-five—ah shit! I…I have to take my pants off.”

“What?!” Kate squeaked in response, though Castle clearly had absolutely no cares about her comfort level with the situation, because he immediately began unbuckling his belt.

Spinning around so she wouldn’t see him naked, Kate shook her head and cursed herself for even getting involved with trying to find the writer. She should have just texted him a thank you and walked out of the party. Now she was involved in this nonsense—which, really, was probably more trouble than it was worth if she was only gaining the ability to tease him about an accidental erection.

Thinking back to the situation he faced, she voiced he thoughts aloud. “Okay, forty-five minutes. I guess that means you have a few hours until it wears off, right? Have you ever taken Viagra before?”

“No. Why would I have?”

“I dunno…I heard some guys take them recreationally to-to…you know, increase their stamina.”

“I assure you that—ah!” he whimpered so pathetically that Kate actually winced. “I will never, ever take one of these again. Ah, shit—you have no idea how uncomfortable this is. God, Beckett…what if it doesn’t go down in four hours? That’s what those commercials say, right? Four hours?”

“Yeah you’re supposed to call your doctor. Or, I suppose, in your case—go to the ER.”

He moaned again. “God, then I’ll be in Page Six for having a hard-on at my release party.”

“Think of the bright side—it might boost sales,” she added as an attempt a humor, though, clearly, he would not be laughing any time soon.

“Boost sales—right. That’ll make up for total humiliation. Do you even know what’ll happen to me at writer’s poker? I’ll never be able to show my face again. My mystery writer cred will be done—kaput!—all because of my mother. I knew she’d be the end of me one of these days.”

Rolling her eyes, Kate said, “Oh, don’t be so—Oh! Shit!” Without thinking, she’d turned her head to look at him, and instead got a full-frontal view of his erect penis. She’d tried to cover her eyes and turn back around, but from just her quick glance she immediately realized the women who joked about him being the “white whale” weren’t joking one bit.

“Beckett!”

“Sorry! Sorry! It was a reflex to look at you.”

“’s okay… why don’t you just, um, just tell Paula you couldn’t find me and that you think I left with someone. That’ll be the answer that’ll make her the least mad…probably.”

Kate took two steps towards the door and then stopped, considering. She felt bad about lying and making him look bad, particularly when his situation was (mostly) not his fault. What they needed was a quick way to get him looking back to normal. In her mind, the only way to do that was to use the pill for it’s intended purpose. Turning her body slightly but listing her chin so she looked at the landscape painting on the wall hang above the futon, she suggested, “Maybe, um, maybe if you took care of that you’d be able to come out and do your speech.”

“Took care of what?”

“Your penis.”

“What?”

Huffing out a breath, she said, “Masturbate, Castle; have an orgasm. That should get rid of your erection, right?”

“Wha…um…you want me to do that…in here?”

Forgetting to keep looking at the ceiling when she had to have a typical Castle conversation—as in one that raised her blood pressure—she moved her gaze to his face and snipped, “Well we can’t take you out there—we established that!”

“Don’t yell at me, Beckett! I realize I cannot go out there like this, but I…” He hesitated and looked around the office. “This is someone’s place of work…”

“And your naked ass is already on their couch!”

He gazed down at his lap as though he’d just connected those dots in his mind. “Oh. Right.”

“Just…use your mind—I’m sure you can…you know.” She gestured with her hand towards his crotch where his penis could be seen beneath the tails of his shirt and, Jesus!, it looked even bigger from that side-on angle. Clearing her throat, she turned to go again. “I’ll do my best to stall Paula.”

“Okay—ah! God!”

“What?” she asked, a little wary, but unable to stop herself since he sounded rather tragic.

“It…shit! It doesn’t even feel like my dick. What the hell is in those pills?!”

“I…don’t know,” she said a bit dumbly, not sure how else to respond. She took two steps forward and reached out for the door handle, but then stopped, frozen. Her brain told her to go back, find Paula, and then get the hell out of that party before anything else insane happened, but her heart reminded her that this was her partner and her friend, and despite the rough patches they’d had, he had been kind, helpful, fun, and a piece of her life she never expected to want, but now—god help her—she didn’t want him to go.

“This is a terrible idea,” she muttered beneath her breath, but then she flipped the lock on the office door so no one could burst in on them, and spun around to see Castle with his right hand wrapped around his penis with such delicacy, she would have thought it was recently burned.

Without saying a word, she knelt down on the floor and flipped up the tails of his shirt to get them out of the way. With the cloth gone, she discovered a trimmed patch of hair (not at all surprising that he manscaped) and a dick impressive in both length and girth. “This,” she began, reaching out to slowly peel his hand away from himself, “is a professional courtesy.”

“Profes…” His voice drifted off as he gazed at her with the most wide-eyed expression she’d ever seen.

“Yes. Everyone thinks we’re partners, and if Page Six calls you a perv, I’m going to look bad, too. Besides; this isn’t your fault.”

“But Beck—ohh,” he breathed in sharply when her right hand closed around his shaft. Kate, too, let out a small gasp for he was rock hard and practically throbbing beneath her fingers. She began to stroke very delicately until he called out her first name, clearly hesitant.

She pulled her hand away and looked at him. “Do you want me to stop?”

“No, but, um…be careful. Please.” He practically begged.

She merely nodded and encouraged, “Close your eyes; relax.” Clearly, he was already in an agitated state, which, honestly, was probably making his situation worse. His discomfort was obvious and thus she had no intention of aggressively jerking him off, but she was going for efficiency more than prolonged pleasure.

Returning her right hand to his shaft, she gave it a few more gentle strokes before moving her left between his legs to cradle his balls. He moaned almost pleasurably for a moment, but then suddenly opened his eyes and gasped, as though she’d clawed him with her fingernails, though she hadn’t, so she asked, “What? What’s wrong?”

“Sorry, ‘s just…lot of friction. Maybe, um—does that desk have lotion on it?”

Kate got up and looked over the top of the desk, seeing only a bottle of hand sanitizer in addition to the regular pens, paperclips, and file folders. She tried to pull open the one drawer, but it was locked, and the second drawer only had a bunch of papers, plus a bag of trail mix. “No, sorry; I don’t see anything.”

“Okay, well, um—sorry would you mind just spitting on your hand a bit? Works for me sometimes in a pinch,” he added, quirking his lips to the side.

Kate walked back to the futon slowly, considering. There was one obvious solution to the friction problem, and it would certainly rocket-launch their partnership to a new level. Then again, she was already giving him a hand job—what was one more fractional step forward? Well, okay, it was probably more of a leap, but if it would help end this insanity, it seemed a justifiable tradeoff.

“Just relax, Castle,” she told him as she knelt beside the futon once more. Then, after she watched him shut his eyes, she grasped the base of him with her right hand again, only that time she hovered her face over him and used her hand as leverage to guide the tip of him into her mouth. He reacted the moment her tongue grazed his tip.

“Fuck! Beckett!”

Ignoring his curse, Kate swirled her tongue across his tip again before rounding her lips and taking the entire head of his cock into her mouth. He cursed again and she felt his hips thrust off the futon. She pressed her forearm gently down across his hips so she could maintain control as she bobbed her mouth over the first two inches of him several times before she relaxed her mouth and throat and slowly, centimeter by centimeter, took as much of him into her mouth as she could. Castle’s response was unintelligible noises, which made her smile; it was about time she was the one leaving him speechless.

From almost the very start Kate would have been lying if she said she never thought about having sex with her shadow-turned-partner. Mostly, her musings involved him going down on her and using his troublesome mouth for a better purpose. She’d also thought on more than one occasion about how wild and aggressive their inaugural coupling might be—particularly if it was after one of their many disagreements. She imagined him picking her up, pinning her against a wall, and fucking her until they were both senseless.

Kate was not shy to admit she liked to take control in relationships and in bed and considered herself highly skilled in reducing a man into a simpering puddle just by using her mouth on his cock. She had done it before, and doing it to Castle seemed almost too enjoyable—particularly considering the circumstance they found themselves in.

Alternating bobbing her head up and down and using her tongue to swirl against his tip, it didn’t take Castle long to reach his peak. To his credit, he panted out, “Shit! I’m gonna—I’m—god,” giving her a few seconds of warning to pull her mouth away and finish him off with her hand.

As he lay on the futon looking positively spent, Kate grabbed two tissues from the box on the desk and then dropped them onto his chest so he could clean himself up. “Better?”

He blinked up at her, still appearing rather stunned. “Jesus…that was amazing.”

She smirked down at him. “Just consider it a thank you for the dedication.”

“Well you are definitely extraordinary.”

She gave a soft smile and then turned her body back towards the door, feeling it was prudent now that she had, ah, completed her professional courtesy. “I, um, I guess I’m going to get back out there. I’ll ward Paula off for a few minutes so that you can, um, collect yourself.”

“Y-yeah. I really apre…oh…oh no, no, no…”

At how pitiful he sounded, Kate could not help but turn around as she asked, “What’s wro…” though her voice drifted off the moment her eyes fell on his lap. She stared for several moments longer than she should have, but she was simply too shocked to avert her eyes. His dick was still completely perpendicular to his body; it was like he never came at all! Shaking her head with slight amazement she concluded, “Wow, you are really susceptible to those drugs.”

“That’s not helpful!” He groaned, then stared down at himself with almost disgust. “Oh my god, I’m going to be stuck like this forever!”

She rolled her eyes. “Don’t be dramatic.”

“If you were me right now, you’d be dramatic!”

Kate said nothing as she supposed she would be, particularly since he, in all likelihood, could not even sneak out of the event without being seen in such a state. “Do you think it would go down if you came again?”

“Um, I don’t know. Maybe. It’s not like there are instructions for—wait! What!?”

She stepped forward and gave a little shrug. She could already feel the wetness seeping out of her panties—a situation she had intended to take care of once she was home—but as long as Castle was there and—quite literally—up for the challenge, she figured she might as well through all caution to the wind.

“I was just thinking…maybe it could be my turn now…”

“Jesus.” He breathed out, gazing at her as if she truly was an angel that had descend from heaven.

Never breaking eye contact, Beckett reached her hand up under her already skin-tight skirt, hooked the edge of her thong with her index finger, and then shimmied her hips while pulling the item down her thighs. Once the item reached her knees, it dropped to the floor and she stepped out of it before quirking her eyebrow in his direction.

“Fuck,” he breathed, reaching his hand out for her. He grabbed her hip, bumped their noses together and said, “Extraordinary doesn’t even do you justice,” before crushing his mouth against hers.

Without even realizing it, Kate found herself kissing him back—really kissing him back—and…Shit. She liked kissing him. She liked the feel of his hands splayed across her hips and backside. She liked the smell of his aftershave or cologne when she stood that close to him. And she really liked the delightful way in which his mouth was just as talented as she hoped it would be.

“Mmm Kate.” He groaned against her and she felt heat pulse between her legs. Fuck, she wanted him.

With her hands flat against his chest, Kate gave Castle a little shove to push him back down against the futon. She moved her right leg to climb into his lap but found her skirt far too tight to let her complete the move. “Ah—hold on,” she grumbled, reaching down for the hem of the item, but his hands soon joined hers.

“Let me help.” He said as he helped her scoot the skirt upwards. As he pulled his right hand away, he let it drift between her legs and groaned. “God, you’re wet.”

She hummed and climbed on the futon, putting a knee on either side of his thighs. Using her left hand on his shoulder to steady herself, she reached down with her right to guide him into her channel.

“Fuck, Beckett,” he groaned out as she sunk down on his length.

She smirked at him. “That’s the general idea.”

He looked scandalized for a moment, then delighted before kissing her again. She began to grind her hips against his, feeling his amazing length as it slid in and out of her. God, this was not at all what she had in mind when she had fantasized about them being together, but it certainly didn’t disappoint!

She closed her eyes and carded her hands through the hair at his name as she rolled her hips again and again until his rock hard tip hit at just the right spot that she groaned out, “Ah…yes…right there.”

“Don’t stop Beckett…”

“I’m not, I’m not, I….God!” She yelped out when her body tumbled over the edge and her walls began contracting around him. A moment later he let out a curse and buried his face in her cleavage, their hips continuing to rock together as they both came down from their high.

She sat there for another thirty seconds before climbing off him and waddling back to the desk to grab the tissue box that rested there. She kept two for herself and then handed the box to him. Knowing they had both been gone from the party for far too long she kept her clean up routine efficient and didn’t look at him again until she was trying to pull the skirt of her dress back down. Only then did she see that he sat in mostly the same position, his eyes quite wide, but thankfully his penis seemed to be returning to a more flaccid state.

“You okay there, Castle?”

He blinked at her as though she was an angel descended from heaven. “That was….it was really…”

She quirked her lips. “I know.” Given the underlying sexual tension they had in their relationship, it was not at all shocking that their first coupling had been quite intense—not hat she had any complaints about it. Turning back towards the door, she raked her fingers through her hair and said, “I guess I’ll-”

“Wait.”

She turned back to face him, curious.

Castle stood from the couch and his shirt tails fell down enough to cover his manhood, though his legs were still fully exposed, which was an amusing sight. Despite this, his tone sounded rather serious. “What, um, what if we did this again sometime—without the Viagra, obviously.”

Feeling the irresistible urge to continue teasing him, she folded her arms over her chest and gazed at him pensively. “Well. That depends: how’s your stamina without it?”

He smirked. “Would you like to find out?”

She dragged her teeth over her bottom lip and casually shrugged one shoulder. “Maybe I would.” Then, before the smile that was about to explode on her face could betray her, she turned towards the door to leave. Though she had no idea how any sort of relationship with Castle would go, another hot, sweaty, and naked round with him was certainly an intriguing concept—especially if it wasn’t in the tiny office of some poor bookstore manager who would have no idea how his or her couch had been defiled.

“Kate.”

She ignored the whine in his tone and simply threw a casual, “Goodnight Castle,” over her shoulder as she left.

Thanks for the prompt Lou

Hope everyone enjoyed!

#castle #caskett #castle fanfiction #castle pornado #castlepornado #my fic: Launch Party Interlude

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swordstrider · 6 years ago

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Epilogue Thoughts

Well, throughout the clusterfuck of meme reblogs, it’s finally time for me to pull up a velvet cushioned chair and discuss the “tales of dubious authenticity”. As such, there will naturally be spoilers pertaining to both the meat and candy routes, although I’ll focus more on meat, since I actually read a hell of a lot more there than I did with candy. Continue under the cut if you wish.

Since it’s the shortest possible spiel I have to offer, I’ll get the candy route out of the way first. My read-through of the epilogues began with this one, although I only lasted through eight chapters before promptly giving up. The reason for this, is, well... The candy route is just a mess, as it is 100% likely supposed to be. What I had expected from it was what some in the fandom have naturally ascribed to Homestuck’s candy metaphor; Fluff, romance, friendship, happiness, low plot, and so on.

However, it’s clear to me that candy itself extends into something more... sour, if you will, and I suppose it should have been blatant from the get-go, what with trickster mode being apparent in the comic. I only have remnants of memories from those few chapters, as well as commentary from fans which I took into account, and it’s naturally fucking insane. I don’t think I necessarily have to prattle too long on the matter, but, wow. It really does seem like the next edition of trickster mode, and that’s just too far for me, for various reasons. Although I didn’t spend much time preoccupied with the candy route, I’m essentially summarizing it as maximum craziness to a very disturbing degree, and as such, I’m not going to involve myself any further with it. As far as I’m concerned, it never “really” happened from my own point of view, despite it being an option likely disposed to... some potentially canon element to it? I don’t even know anymore. All I can truly attribute to this particular route is a metaphorical, sugarcoated mess on my lawn that I never really wanted in the first place, let alone anticipated.

Moving on to the meat route, there’s naturally a fucking lot that I can talk about here. I suppose you could say... this one will be the real meat of this post. Haha, funny.

Anyway, as you may have guessed, I continued onward with this route a bit after clawing my way through barely eight chapters of the candy route. I did it this way since, if I remember correctly, this particular order was recommended by V, or someone else involved with the production of the epilogues. I think such an order was... an okay choice? I didn’t feel particularly affected by it in hindsight, but I feel as though the upgraded prose and general non-wackiness made me feel somewhat better after the sinister experience of the candy route.

I’ll progress by listing the things that I enjoyed or liked about the meat route first.

1) As I mentioned before, I’m quite sure the prose and convoluted narrative were toned up quite a lot here, along with being linear and not feeling like a mess beyond rectifying. It’s more comprehensible, in spite of about forty six chapters worth of content and so many details to catch on to. There seems to be some sort of purpose within this route, rather than the capricious nature of its complement, which is something I can respect. It still feels sort of unstable, since there’s just so much shit to grasp, but I guess I’ll let that one slide.

2) Just like Homestuck was about honesty when inspecting the struggles, conflicts, and inner workings of teenagers, I feel as though the meat route did nicely in continuing that pattern. The characters clearly still continue having conflict through their adult years, and this is especially shown throughout Terezi and John, as well as the drifting relationship of Rose and Roxy, and the isolated state that Rose and Kanaya were in with each other; Likely being so entangled with their relationship that they distanced from others slowly, yet surely. I have no experience in the range of my early twenties yet, but I have heard other people comment that this captures the particular stage well. I feel like it does, too, since individuals can naturally go through general conflicts such as distance/isolation, mental illnesses, physical or emotional ailments, and so on during any stage of their life, whether it be as a young child, a teenager, or an adult. The depictions of John’s depression felt very, very realistic, and, on a more personable level for me, relatable. The numbing of emotions, the isolation from others, his self loathing, all just... very much captured what depression is really like, in a sense. Not everyone’s experience with depression is the same, but this felt very... close to me. It feels like the first time I’ve ever seen a character depicted with such an authentic struggle with depression, and even a character with such a genuine, visible struggle as a whole. I can’t put into words how reality-based this felt. The sheer fact that even in the epilogues, the honesty that life is difficult and filled with conflict is an amazing expansion to Homestuck’s already in-depth examination of such a thing itself.

3) The relationships are yet another point I’d like to make here, particularly Dave/Karkat and John/Terezi. Dave and Karkat still have this romantic bond, even if they were cagey when admitting it for a bit. They still love each other just as much, joke around with each other, support each other, feel good with each other, understand each other, and are happy with each other. That’s a lot of fucking “each other”s, but I’ll be damned if I can’t get the point across. It’s made very clear cut that they’re still very much in love, even in spite of growing political tensions and other conflicts. As for John and Terezi, it’s shown that they have this very unique bond that no other characters quite have with each other. Sure, they joke around and poke fun at each other, but most of all, they have this deep, innate connection in sort of relating to each other, in a way. They both had experiences with numbness, sadness, depression, and their own forms of trauma, and they were able to discuss some of this with each other on a very vulnerable level during that time. They discussed things that were important to them. Their relationship is also another thing that feels very authentic; Two young adults emotionally supporting each other and just having hope that the other has their back, especially in such trying, traumatic times. This particular bond was so strong that it even went into a romantic area, which also feels realistic, because couples supporting each other, especially under such dismal circumstances, is really fucking important. Although their former forms of communication were essentially two people having fun with each other and just fucking around with each other, this showed us that John and Terezi can reach such a wonderfully vulnerable point, to the area that they just connect so much that they’re in love with each other, whether it be redrom or blackrom.

4) As for the closing positive note on the meat route, I loved alternate Calliope’s role in this. She takes on this role that is to be expected of a fully fledged Muse of Space, what with taking command over the story in lieu of Dirk, at some points. She’s become a true conductor yet again, and she’s putting one of her sole hobbies, storytelling, to work just like before, although in a more expansive way. I think it was quite creative, having her narrate many areas of the story and involving herself in efforts to protect others as much as she could.

And now, I come to the areas in the meat route that I didn’t particularly enjoy or like.

1) For starters, I do really dislike this whole “horny Jade” concept that’s enacted in this route. I realize this is because of her dog hormones, but I find it... very perturbing and disgusting that she’s forcing herself in the midst of Dave and Karkat’s relationship, likely just wanting it to deteriorate so they can provide her with... services, and such. It’s especially horrid when you consider how uncomfortable Dave and Karkat respectively seem to be when she brings such awkward topics up. They stutter, flee, and whatnot, yet she still continues, as if none of it is a blatant warning sign. I don’t really know how hormones or even dog hormones work, but... I’d appreciate a sense of social awareness for her if possible, at least down the road. It feels... off of Jade to be doing such a thing, when, even if not the most selfless of people, she is generally quite courteous and respectful of others and their boundaries. Perhaps the hormones are the cause of her seemingly nonexistent cognizance of their discomfort around her during these times, but it still... unsettles me. I suppose we’ll have to find out later, if they happen to expand upon the topic.

2) Then, there’s my... sort of antithesis to my second positive, if you will. While I did particularly enjoy the realism that this route had to offer, it feels a little too unhappy, dismal, hopeless, what have you with your dejected adjectives and the like. Certainly there are some good things, such as Dave/Karkat and John/Terezi bonds, but I feel as though, at this point, the negative state of the meat route’s narrative outweighs the positives greatly. Jane is likely a new threat to Earth C’s society, seeing as she’s this Condesce-inspired fascist and a xenophobe now in office with likely unwell schemes of her own, John is very likely dead for good and died on a very depressing note due to his mental state, Dirk is in his Ultimate Self mode and seems to have quite the advantage at the moment along with Rose as his hostage, Terezi is still depressed and conflicted, Dave and Karkat wallowed in losing the election by nearly consuming alcohol, but also by going back to their typical shut-in lives, nobody knows about John and never seemed to have supported him, aided him, or cared for him much at all in the beginning and the end, Davepetasprite^2 died, and... overall, everything is looking extremely grim. Not to say that I don’t invite conflicts, challenges, and the like to be apparent in media that I like, but it feels... empty. Hopeless. Like nothing is left, nothing is redeemable. It just felt... Too depressing, too poignant, and angsty for me. Naturally, nobody is going to resolve issues such as these overnight, and not everyone or everything in a story will necessarily be happy and perfect in the end, but this feels like such an overdrive to me. Especially since I’m going through a very troubling time in my life at the moment, it makes me feel bitter; Like none of this can be ameliorated whatsoever, and the story is doomed to be depressing and dismal forever. I simply hope it will end on a slightly better note than this in finality, even though not every single problem will be solved right away, and isn’t bound to be solved in the end. I just want some sort of hope for all of these characters.

3) I’m not sure I’d consider this a negative due to reformed views I’ve had from other posts, but... Man. Dirk, y’know? I’ll include my original thoughts and post-reform thoughts here anyway. Initially, I thought this particular Dirk was extremely OOC; Only inserted into the narrative just for last minute villain perks, or some shit like that. It felt like such a shell of Dirk’s former self in the sense that I thought this development came completely out of nowhere for no discernible reason. I thought that it was a complete oxymoron, since Dirk’s arc was supposed to detail a young man with self-loathing issues attempting to cope with his toxic alternates; To, perhaps, create a new slate for himself even in the wake of his flaws and the actions of his other iterations of himself. But I realize now that Dirk is likely undergoing a very advanced and more self-restrained form of this so called Ultimate Self. This means his original self is sort of merging consciousness with that of his alternate selves, such as Lil’ Hal, Bro Strider, ARquiusprite, and a potential sliver of Caliborn, since ARquiusprite was a part of that particular soul. These conditions considered, it very well would make for an actual villain of himself, an intimidatingly cognizant and even powerful one, too. I suppose that, as fan speculation detailed, Dirk’s Ultimate Self is not necessarily going to be the most courteous, amicable being ever. Quite the contrary, in fact. And his mannerisms begin to make sense when considering the Dave/Karkat segment Dirk had, along with his odd commentary on gender discussion. Seems very Caliborn-esque, although it may be a combination of others, too, since his consciousness is merged with multiple Dirk splinters.

4) And for my final negative, I’m going to discuss Roxy’s gender identity. A very welcome surprise, I’d say, because I also said trans rights. Anyway, my essential issue with this topic is how it’s treated within the narrative and within dialogue. It almost feels like this sort of joke from the producers of the epilogue, in a sense. Maybe the shitty “Check Your Privilege Dave” joke is still nagging at me, but I just have this odd... feeling that this isn’t being treated seriously, especially with how Terezi seems to instantaneously point the pronoun change out almost in this shitty method of humor, and how Roxy is experimenting with pronouns quite often and comes off as hesitant when they first come out as nonbinary. I’m going to take this judgement with a huge grain of salt for now, because it’s not outright offensive, and seems to have well intentions. I suppose I could easily be being a pedantic fuck, looking too hard into things and having too much apprehension. Although, if it is a joke, I’d be very disappointed to learn so, seeing as V affirmed that the crew consisted of LGBT+ people who intended to make the reading experience safe and open for the community. Still, I’m going to presume I’m being just a bit too skeptical for the moment.

That’s pretty much all of the points that stand out to me for now. I’m honestly unsure of how this epilogue will turn out or where it will go for the most part, but I’m certain there will be a continuation at some point, perhaps even with a third choice that may combine both meat and candy in a healthy way somehow, or maybe avoid both concepts altogether. Either way, I hope things turn out okay in the end, or at least that the epilogue will end on some sort of happy note, even if some conflicts and issues are still ongoing.

EDIT: Do I consider any of this to be canon, including the meat route, within my own head? No, I really don’t. It’s just... a little too far gone for my tastes, but power to ya if you like it and consider it canon. It’s also sad to see that Dirk stans are hurting from this new development within him, so honestly, I give y’all a collective pat on the back. You deserve it.

#epilogue spoilers #hs epilogue #homestuck

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akocomyk · 6 years ago

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Top 10 Books I Read in 2018

2018 is a year of fantasy for me. I say that because I read a lot of fantasy books this past year. Fourteen out of the 27 books that I read in 2018 is classified under that genre. Why that much fantasy books? Blame it all on Harry Potter and Tiffany Aching.

Unfortunately, the top spot for my 2018 list didn’t go to a fantasy book. It would’ve been great to see a fantasy book rank first since I started turning into a bookworm because of fantasy. But in order for that to happen, I have to be really moved by such book. I have to laugh and cry. I have to remember a lesson from it. I have to have a hangover or some sort. You know, those things that Narnia and A Monster Calls gave me.

YA reigned supreme this year, yet again. Although honestly, I’m middling with that genre as a whole. Sometimes a YA book can be really inspiring, relevant, and very impactful, other times they’re just plain stupid and reminiscent of awkward puberty stages.

Fourteen books were shortlisted for this Top 10. Initially, I had more books than that because for most of the 27 books, I felt like they deserve to be in the Top 10 after I finished reading them. Eventually, I removed some of them for various reasons—and I also cut it to one book per series.

Honorable Mention: The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern (2011)

This book is very commendable for its amazing “production value”. You know, like if this was made into a decent film, it would probably snatch an Oscar for Achievement in Art Direction or Production Design. The circus in the novel was so vividly explained, it made me wish that it was a real place and that I can go there.

Unfortunately, that was the only beautiful thing about that book.

10. A Wrinkle in Time by Madeline L’engle (1962)

SCORE: 4.015

If I had been younger—say for example, thirteen years old, when I started my love for reading—I would’ve been very amazed by this book.

But it makes me sad that I was only able to read it now. Being an adult takes away most of the magic of this book—at least, I think that’s what happened with me.

Fortunately, nostalgia recuperates with that dilemma. I got into reading because of the Chronicles of Narnia, and reading this books reminds me so much of that. When Narnia is full of magic and fantasy, A Wrinkle in Time is full of scientific wonders.

9. The Strange Fascinations of Noah Hypnotik by David Arnold (2018)

SCORE: 4.070

David Arnold has a special place in my heart… the same way all indie folk music has. To me, he’s like my literary indie folk author. That’s what I love most about his books, they attach themselves to me effortlessly because of their quirkiness, simplicity and marvelous character development—one thing I wish Night Circus had.

This one is very different from his first two novels. It’s the most ambitious, and, to me, it felt like it totally flew out from my indie zone. This novel is like a full-on, contemporary YA novel with a bit of a sci-fi and paranormal undertones. And I really, really love it.

8. A Knight of Seven Kingdoms by George R.R. Martin (2013)

SCORE: 4.100

If you’re tired of waiting for the next book in the A Song of Ice and Fire series, this is a good I’ll-read-this-for-the-meantime replacement for it—especially because it happened in the same world and story, just a few hundred years before.

It’s the first published compilation of the Tales of Dunk and Egg. I will no longer dig further into what it is since you can freely search about that on Google.

Anyway, this book reminded me of why I fell in love with the series in the first place. It contained the same amount of intrigue, nobility, and bravery, just without much of the gorey brutality and sensuality of the main series.

7. Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban by J.K. Rowling (1999)

SCORE: 4.120

THIS IS OFFICIALLY MY FAVORITE HARRY POTTER BOOK. I just love the complexity of all the characters, and how that paved way to the whole plot of the novel, and how that affected the series as a whole. And… it’s just the perfect length, the right amount of magic, plot twists, and, all in all, the adventure.

One magical experience for me here: despite the fact that I already know how the entire story will go, I can still feel the natural urge to read further.

6. Call Me By Your Name by André Aciman (2007)

SCORE: 4.275

This is one of the most lyrically beautiful books I’ve ever read. The way it was written was so poetic. Though I do agree to some people who say that this lags the book a little bit, I don’t mind. It’s not everyday that you read a book written this beautiful.

And like... E.L. James should definitely learn a thing or two from Aciman on how to properly write a love scene. Grey felt like it was written to arouse the sleeping sex life of old women. It was so tacky and eerily repulsive, bordering on downright hilarious at some points.

In Call Me By Your Name, the love scenes felt like it was really scenes about love. You can feel the beauty of the romance seeping through the words. You won’t get aroused—not unless you fancy this kind of stuff—you will instead feel awed. And you will feel the love that resonates between the two characters, and the hurt that results from the unrequitedness of it.

5. Wintersmith by Terry Pratchett (2006)

SCORE: 4.495

For quite a long time, this novel topped my list. Still, I wasn’t contented by the thought that this would take on the first spot. It’s not that the book was not good. It’s just that I kept on asking myself, “This is it?”. Thankfully, I was able to read great books that I think is better than this one.

This is the third Tiffany Aching book, AND IT IS MY FAVORITE out of all the five. I love the tinge of romance in it. A little bit creepy, but it is what drove me to read on further.

What I love about Tiffany Aching is that… In the story, Tiffany was growing, and that makes sense since she was a few years older after every book. I love that the foundations of her personality remained the same, but as she grew, these personality stemmed out to build a better, more mature Tiffany. The way she grew up to be was written so well, it made me think that Tiffany is one of the best characters in literature.

4. A List of Cages by Robin Roe (2017)

SCORE: 4.505

This is another book with amazing characters, although actually, the book is unnerving because of its blatant and honest themes about child abuse and mental illness.

Still, it’s very touching. The horrendous stuff that it tried to address was handled pretty well, it made the book wonderful. It reminds us that no matter how bad life turns out, you’ll always, always have a reason to be hopeful.

This book is not for the faint-hearted because there are unsettling parts in the story that will really tear your heart out.

But you know me, that’s what I love about books. Prepare a box of tissues if you’re planning to read this.

3. The Wise Man’s Fear by Patrick Rothfuss (2011)

SCORE: 4.540

Second book of The Kingkiller Chronicle, and a sequel for The Name of the Wind—which ranked fifth in my last year’s list. It deserves to have a higher rank this year. I just think the story’s a lot better than the first book. It’s more exciting, and it’s more fun to read. And lemme just say that Patrick Rothfuss is such a literary genius. There are parts in the book that I’m thoroughly wowed.

Kvothe is probably one character that I can never forget—the way I can also never forget Tiffany Aching. Kvothe is like the perfect hero who can do whatever it is that he wants to do, and he just doesn’t get it from nowhere. He learns them. You can feel his struggles in the story when he wants something achieved. He’s a hero, but you can also tell that he’s human.

It sucks that I still don’t know when the last book in this trilogy will be released. The wait is as agonizing as the wait for the next A Song of Ice and Fire book.

2. They Both Die at the End by Adam Silvera (2017)

SCORE: 4.575

IT WAS TOTALLY FINE WITH ME IF THIS BOOK GOT FIRST PLACE. But it didn’t. Of all the books in here, this is the only one that I actually wrote a review of and then posted it in my blog. Because why wouldn’t I review this book??? It completely shattered my soul. Some of the scenes still haunt me to this day.

Why rank second, though? It has a lower score in Goodreads—I incorporate the Goodreads ratings and my personal ratings, and then get a total. The one that took first place has a significantly higher Goodreads rating. Don’t get me wrong, I both gave them the same personal rating, so I’m okay with any of them bagging the first place.

(Here’s my original review for this novel)

1. The Hate U Give by Angie Thomas (2017)

SCORE: 4.780

I love a book that’s not afraid to address difficult themes… and that’s what I adore about this book. I think this is probably one of the most relevant novels in this century. It reminded me so much of To Kill A Mockingbird—which is one of my favorite books of all time.

Reading this wasn’t as painful as They Both Die at the End, but it is more enlightening. To me, They Both Die is more about seizing the day, The Hate U Give is more than that. Bigotry. Prejudice. White Privilege. Bullying. Stereotyping. Injustice. And, of course, RACISM.

And to think that the novel was able to tackle these stuff gloriously makes me love it even more.

Another thing that I like about this book is its characters, particularly Starr who is the main character. She’s so real and relatable. You will root for her to the very end, and you will sympathise with her when things didn’t go the way she wanted them to be.

Reading this opens your eyes to the sour realities of our world. There are people who die simply because of the color of their skin, or what they are perceived to be based on the stereotype. And they don’t even get justice. They’re left to the dirt. Forgotten. And then we stay silent about all of this as if it’s okay because we’re already so used to it. And we don’t speak up about it as much as we should.

Why can’t we try to speak up more?

#Top10books

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grigori77 · 6 years ago

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2018 in Movies - My Top 30 Fave Movies (Part 1)

30. MANDY – easily the weirdest shit I saw in 2018, this 2-hour-plus fever dream fantasy horror is essentially an extended prog-rock video with added “plot” from Beyond the Black Rainbow director Panos Cosmatos. Saying that by the end of it I was left feeling exhausted, brain-fried and more than a little weirded-out might not seem like much of a recommendation, but this is, in fact, a truly transformative viewing experience, a film destined for MASSIVE future cult status. Playing like the twisted love-child of David Lynch and Don Coscarelli, it (sort of) tells the story of lumberjack Red Miller (Nicolas Cage) and his illustrator girlfriend Mandy Bloom (Andrea Riseborough), who have an idyllic life in the fantastically fictional Shadow Mountains circa 1983 … at least until Mandy catches the eye of Jeremiah Sand (Linus Roache), the thoroughly insane leader of twisted doomsday cult the Children of the New Dawn, who employs nefarious, supernatural means to acquire her. But Mandy spurns his advances, leading to a horrific retribution that spurs Red, a traumatised war veteran, to embark on a genuine roaring rampage of revenge. Largely abandoning plot and motivation for mood, emotion and some seriously trippy visuals, this is an elemental, transcendental film, a series of deeply weird encounters and nightmarish set-pieces that fuel a harrowing descent into a particularly alien, Lovecraftian kind of hell, Cosmatos shepherding in one breathtaking sequence after another with the aid of skilled cinematographer Benjamin Loeb, a deeply inventive design team (clearly drawing inspiration from the artwork of late-70s/early 80s heavy metal albums) and a thoroughly tricked-out epic tone-poem of a score from the late Jôhan Jôhannsson (Sicario, Arrival, Mother!), as well as one seriously game cast. Cage is definitely on crazy-mode here, initially playing things cool and internalised until the savage beast within is set loose by tragedy, chewing scenery to shreds like there’s no tomorrow, while Riseborough is sweet, gentle and inescapably DOOMED; Roach, meanwhile, is a thoroughly nasty piece of work, an entitled, delusional narcissist thoroughly convinced of his own massive cosmic importance, and there’s interesting support from a raft of talented character actors such as Richard Brake, Ned Dennehy and Bill Duke. This is some brave, ambitious filmmaking, and a stunning breakthrough for one of the weirdest and most unique talents I’ve stumbled across a good while. Cosmatos is definitely one to watch.

29. THE GIRL IN THE SPIDER’S WEB – back in 2011, David Fincher’s adaptation of Stieg Larsson’s runaway bestseller The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo became one of my very favourite screen thrillers EVER, a stone-cold masterpiece and, in my opinion, the superior version of the story even though a very impression Swedish version had broken out in a major way the year before. My love for the film was coloured, however, by frustration at its cinematic underperformance, which meant that Fincher’s planned continuation of the series with Millennium Trilogy sequels The Girl Who Played With Fire and The Girl Who Kicked the Hornet’s Nest would likely never see the light of day. Even so, the fan in me held out hope, however fragile, that we might just get lucky. Seven years later, we have FINALLY been rewarded for our patience, but not exactly in the fashion we’ve been hoping for … Fincher’s out, Evil Dead-remake and Don’t Breathe writer-director Fede Alvarez is in, and instead of continuing the saga in the logical place the makers of this new film chose the baffling route of a “soft reboot” via adapting the FOURTH Millennium book, notable for being the one released AFTER Larsson’s death, penned by David Lagercrantz, which is set AFTER the original Trilogy. Thing is, the actually end result, contrary to many opinions, is actually pretty impressive – this is a leaner, more fast-paced affair than its predecessor, a breathless suspense thriller that rattles along at quite a clip as we’re drawn deeper into Larsson’s dark, dangerous and deeply duplicitous world and treating fans to some top-notch action sequences, from a knuckle-whitening tech-savvy car chase to a desperate, bone-crunching fight in a gas-filled room. Frustratingly, the “original” Lisbeth Salander, Rooney Mara, is absent (despite remaining VERY enthusiastic about returning to the role), but The Crown’s Claire Foy is almost as good – the spiky, acerbic and FIERCELY independent prodigious super-hacker remains as brooding, socially-awkward, emotionally complex and undeniably compelling as ever, the same queen of screen badasses I fell in love with nearly a decade ago. Her investigative journalist friend/occasional lover Mikael Blomkvist is, annoyingly, less well served – Borg Vs McEnroe star Sverrir Gudnasson is charismatic and certainly easy on the eyes, but he’s FAR too young for the role (seriously, he’s only a week older than I am) and at times winds up getting relegated to passive observer status when he’s not there simply to guide the plot forward; we’re better served by the supporting cast, from Lakeith Stanfield (Get Out, Sorry to Bother You) as a mysterious NSA security expert (I know!) to another surprisingly serious turn (after Logan) from The Office’s Stephen Merchant as the reclusive software designer who created the world-changing computer program that spearheads the film’s convoluted plot, and there’s a fantastically icy performance from Blade Runner 2049’s Sylvia Hoeks as Camilla Salander, Lisbeth’s estranged twin sister and psychopathic head of the Spiders, the powerful criminal network once controlled by their monstrous father (The Hobbit’s Mikael Persbrandt). The film is far from perfect – the plot kind runs away with the story at times, while several supposedly key characters are given frustratingly little development or screen-time – but Alvarez keeps things moving along with typical skill and precision and maintains a tense, unsettling atmosphere throughout, while there are frequently moments of pure genius on display in the script by Alvarez, his regular collaborator Jay Basu and acclaimed screenwriter Steven Knight (Dirty Pretty Things, Locke) – the original novel wasn’t really all that great, but by just taking the bare bones of the plot and crafting something new and original they’ve improved things considerably. The finished product thrills and rewards far more than it frustrates, and leaves the series in good shape for continuation. With a bit of luck this time it might do well enough that we’ll finally get those other two movies to plug the gap between this and Fincher’s “original” …

28. ISLE OF DOGS – I am a MASSIVE fan of the films of Wes Anderson. Three share placement in my all-time favourite screen comedies list – Grand Budapest Hotel, The Life Aquatic With Steve Zissou and, of course, The Royal Tenebaums (which perches high up in my TOP TEN) – and it’s always a pleasure when a new one comes out. 2009’s singular stop-motion gem Fantastic Mr Fox showed just how much fun his uniquely quirky sense of humour and pleasingly skewed world-view could be when transferred into an animated family film setting, so it’s interesting that it took him nearly a decade to repeat the exercise, but the labour of love is writ large upon this dark and delicious fable of dystopian future Japanese city Megasaki, where an epidemic of “dog flu” prompts totalitarian Mayor Kobayashi (voiced by Kunichi Nomura) to issue an edict banishing all of the city’s canine residents to nearby Trash Island. Six months later, Kobayashi’s nephew Atari (newcomer Koyu Rankin) steals a ridiculously tiny plane and crash-lands on Trash Island, intent on rescuing his exiled bodyguard-dog Spots (Liev Schreiber); needless to say this is easier said than done, unforeseen circumstances leading a wounded Atari to enlist the help of a pack of badass “alpha dogs” voiced by Anderson regulars – Rex (Edward Norton), King (Bob Balaban), Boss (Bill Murray) and Duke (Jeff Goldblum) – and nominally led by crabby, unrepentantly bitey stray Chief (Bryan Cranston), to help him find his lost dog in the dangerous wilds of the island. Needless to say this is as brilliantly odd as we’ve come to expect from Anderson, a perfectly pitched, richly flavoured concoction of razor sharp wit, meticulously crafted characters and immersive beauty. The cast are, as always, excellent, from additional regulars such as Frances McDormand, Harvey Keitel and F. Murray Abraham to new voices like Greta Gerwig, Scarlett Johansson, Ken Watanabe and Courtney B. Vance, but the film’s true driving force is Cranston and Rankin, the reluctant but honest relationship that forms between Chief and Atari providing the story with a deep, resonant emotional core. The first rate animation really helps – the exemplary stop-motion makes the already impressive art of Mr Fox seem clunky and rudimentary (think the first Wallace & Gromit short A Grand Day Out compared to their movie Curse of the Were-Rabbit), each character rendered with such skill they seem to be breathing on their own, and Anderson’s characteristic visual flair is on full display, the Japanese setting lending a rich, exotic tang to the compositions, especially in the deeply inventive environs of Trash Island. Funny, evocative, heartfelt and fiendishly clever, this is one of those rare screen gems that deserves to be returned to again and again, and it’s definitely another masterpiece from one of the most unique filmmakers working today.

27. VENOM – when Sam Raimi’s Spider-Man saga came to a rather clunky end back in 2007, it felt like a case of too many villains spoiling the rumble, and it was pretty clear that the inclusion of bad-boy reporter Eddie Brock and his dark alter ego was the straw that broke that particular camel’s back. Venom didn’t even show up proper until almost three quarters of the way through the movie, by which time it was very much a case of too-little-too-late, and many fans (myself included) resented the decidedly Darth Maul-esque treatment of one of the most iconic members of Marvel’s rogues’ gallery. It’s taken more than a decade for Marvel to redress the balance, even longer than with Deadpool, and, like with the Merc With a Mouth, they decided the only way was a no-holds-barred, R-rated take that could really let the beast loose. Has it worked? Well … SORT OF. In truth, the finished article feels like a bit of a throwback, recalling the pre-MCU days when superhero movies were more about pure entertainment without making us think too much, just good old-fashioned popcorn fodder, but in this case that’s not a bad thing. It’s big, loud, dumb fun, hardly a masterpiece but it does its job admirably well, and it has one hell of a secret weapon at its disposal – Tom Hardy. PERFECTLY cast as morally ambiguous underdog investigative journalist Eddie Brock, he deploys the kind of endearingly sleazy, shit-eating charm that makes you root for him even when he acts like a monumental prick, while really letting rip with some seriously twitchy, sometimes downright FEROCIOUS unhinged craziness once he becomes the unwilling host for a sentient parasitic alien symbiote with a hunger for living flesh and a seriously bad attitude. This is EASILY one of the best performances Hardy’s ever delivered, and he entrances us in every scene, whether understated or explosive, making even the most outlandish moments of Brock’s unconventional relationship with Venom seem, if not perfectly acceptable, then at least believable. He’s ably supported by Michelle Williams as San Francisco district attorney Anne Weying, his increasingly exasperated ex-fiancée, Rogue One’s Riz Ahmed as Carlton Drake, the seemingly idealistic space-exploration-funding philanthropist whose darker ambitions have brought a lethal alien threat to Earth, and Parks & Recreation’s Jenny Slate as Drake’s conflicted head scientist Nora Skirth, while there’s a very fun cameo from a particularly famous face in the now ubiquitous mid-credits sting that promises great things in the future. Director Ruben Fleischer brought us Zombieland and 30 Minutes Or Less, so he certainly knows how to deliver plenty of blackly comic belly laughs, and he brings plenty of seriously dark humour to the fore, the rating meaning the comedy can get particularly edgy once Venom starts to tear up the town; it also fulfils the Marvel prerequisite of taking its action quota seriously, delivering a series of robust set-pieces (the standout being a spectacular bike chase through the streets of San Fran, made even more memorable by the symbiote’s handy powers). Best of all, the film isn’t afraid to get genuinely scary with some seriously nasty alien-induced moments of icky body horror, captured by some strangely beautiful effects works that brings Venom and his ilk to vivid, terrifying life. Flawed as it is, this is still HUGE fun, definitely one of the year’s biggest cinematic guilty pleasures, and I for one can’t wait to see more from the character in the near future, which, given what a massive success the film has already proven at the box office, seems an ironclad certainty.

26. SOLO: A STAR WARS STORY – the second of Disney’s new phase of Star Wars movies to feature in the non-trilogy-based spinoff series had a rough time after its release – despite easily recouping its production budget, it still lost the $100-million+ it spent on advertising, while it was met with extremely mixed reviews and shunned by many hardcore fans. I’ll admit that I too was initially disappointed with this second quasi prequel to A New Hope (after the MUCH more impressive Rogue One), but a second, more open-minded viewing after a few months to ruminate mellowed my experience considerably, the film significantly growing on me. An origin story for the Galaxy’s most lovable rogue was always going to be a hard sell – Han Solo is an enjoyable enigma in The Original Trilogy, someone who lives very much in the present, his origins best revealed in the little details we glean about him in passing – but while it’s a flawed creation, this interstellar heist adventure mostly pulls off what was intended. Like many fans of The Lego Movie, I remain deeply curious about what original director duo Phil Lord and Chris Miller could have achieved with the material, but I wholeheartedly approved Disney’s replacement choice when he was announced – Ron Howard is one of my favourite “hit-and-miss” directors, someone who’s made some clunkers in his time (The Da Vinci Code, we’re looking at you) but can, on a good day, be relied on to deliver something truly special (Willow is one of my VERY FAVOURITE movies from my childhood, one that’s stood up well to the test of time, and a strong comparison point for this; Apollo 13 and Rush, meanwhile, are undeniable MASTERPIECES), and in spite of its shortcomings I’m ultimately willing to consider this one of his successes. Another big step in the right direction was casting Hail, Caesar! star Alden Ehrenreich in the title role – Harrison Ford’s are seriously huge shoes to fill, but this talented young man has largely succeeded. He may not quite capture that wonderful growling drawl but he definitely got Han’s cocky go-getter swagger right, he’s particularly strong in the film’s more humorous moments, and he has charisma to burn, so he sure makes entertaining viewing. It also helps that the film has such a strong supporting cast – with original Chewbacca Peter Mayhew getting too old for all this derring-do nonsense, former pro basketball-player Joonas Suotamo gets a little more comfortable in his second gig (after The Last Jedi) in the “walking carpet” suit, while Woody Harrelson adds major star power as Tobias Beckett, Han’s likeably slippery mentor in all things criminal in the Star Wars Universe, and Game of Thrones’ Emilia Clarke is typically excellent as Han’s first love Qi’ra, a fellow Corellian street orphan who’s grown up into a sophisticated thief of MUCH higher calibre than her compatriots. The film is dominated, however, by two particularly potent scene-stealing turns which make you wonder if it’s really focused on the right rogue’s story – Community star Donald Glover exceeds all expectations as Han’s old “friend” Lando Calrissian, every bit the laconic smoothie he was when he was played by Billy Dee Williams back in the day, while his droid companion L3-37 (voiced with flawless comic skill by British stage and sitcom actress Phoebe Waller-Bridge) frequently walks away with the film entirely, a weirdly flirty and lovably militant campaigner for droid rights whose antics cause a whole heap of trouble. The main thing the film REALLY lacks is a decent villain – Paul Bettany’s oily kingpin Dryden Voss is distinctive enough to linger in the memory, but has criminally short screen-time and adds little real impact or threat to the main story, only emphasising the film’s gaping, Empire-shaped hole. Even so, it’s still a ripping yarn, a breathlessly exciting and frequently VERY funny space-hopping crime caper that relishes that wonderful gritty, battered old tech vibe we’ve come to love throughout the series as a whole and certainly delivers on the action stakes – the vertigo-inducing train heist sequence is easily the film’s standout set-piece, but the opening chase and the long-touted Kessel Run impress too – it only flags in the frustrating and surprisingly sombre final act. The end result still has the MAKINGS of a classic, and there’s no denying it’s also more enjoyable and deep-down SATISFYING than the first two films in George Lucas’ far more clunky Prequel Trilogy. Rogue One remains the best of the new Star Wars movies so far, but this is nothing like the disappointment it’s been made out to be.

25. AQUAMAN – the fortunes of the DC Extended Universe cinematic franchise continue to fluctuate – these films may be consistently successful at the box office, but they’re a decidedly mixed bag when it comes to their quality and critical opinion, and the misses still outweigh the hits. Still, you can’t deny that when they DO do things right, they do them VERY right – 2017’s acclaimed Wonder Woman was a long-overdue validation for the studio, and they’ve got another winner on their hands with this bold, brash, VERY ballsy solo vehicle for one of the things that genuinely WORKED in the so-so Justice League movie. Jason Momoa isn’t just muscular in the physical sense, once again proving seriously ripped in the performance capacity as he delivers rough, grizzled charm and earthy charisma as half-Atlantean Arthur Curry, called upon to try and win back the royal birthright he once gave up when his half-brother Prince Orm (Watchmen’s Patrick Wilson), ruler of Atlantis, embarks on a brutal quest to unite the seven underwater kingdoms under his command in order to wage war on the surface world. Aquaman has long been something of an embarrassment for DC Comics, an unintentional “gay joke” endlessly derided by geeks (particularly cuttingly in the likes of The Big Bang Theory), but in Momoa’s capable hands that opinion has already started to shift, and the transition should be complete after this – Arthur Curry is now a swarthy, hard-drinking alpha male tempered with a compellingly relatable edge of deep-seeded vulnerability derived from the inherent tragedy of his origins and separation from the source of his immense superhuman strength, and he’s the perfect flawed action hero for this most epic of superhero blockbusters. Amber Heard is frequently as domineering a presence as Atlantean princess Mera, a powerful warrior in her own right and fully capable of heading her own standalone adventure someday, and Wilson makes for a very solid and decidedly sympathetic villain whose own motivations can frequently be surprisingly seductive, even if his methods are a good deal more nefarious, while The Get Down’s Yahya Abdul-Mateen II is more down-and-dirty BAD as David Kane, aka the Black Manta, a lethally tech-savvy pirate who has a major score to settle with the Aquaman; there’s also strong support from the likes of Willem Dafoe as Curry’s sage-like mentor Vulko, Dolph Lundgren as Mera’s father, King Nereus, the ever-reliable Temuera Morrison as Arthur’s father Thomas, and Nicole Kidman as his ill-fated mother Atlanna. Director James Wan is best known for establishing horror franchises (Saw, Insidious, The Conjuring), but he showed he could do blockbuster action cinema with Fast & Furious 7, and he’s improved significantly with this, delivering one gigantic action sequence after another with consummate skill and flair as well as performing some magnificent and extremely elegant world-building, unveiling dazzling, opulent and exotic undersea civilizations that are the equal to the forests of Pandora in Avatar, but he also gets to let some of his darker impulses show here and there, particularly in a genuinely scary visit to the hellish world of the Trench and its monstrous denizens. It may not be QUITE as impressive as Wonder Woman, and it still suffers (albeit only a little bit) from the seemingly inherent flaws of the DCEU franchise as a whole (particularly in yet another overblown CGI-cluttered climax), but this is still another big step back in the right direction, one which, once again, we can only hope they’ll continue to repeat. I’ll admit that the next offering, Shazam, doesn’t fill me with much confidence, but you never know, it could surprise us. And there’s still Flashpoint, The Batman and Birds of Prey to come …

24. THREE BILLBOARDS OUTSIDE EBBING, MISSOURI – filmmaker brothers Martin and John Michael McDonagh have carved an impressive niche in cinematic comedy this past decade, from decidedly Irish breakout early works (In Bruges from Martin and The Guard and Calvary from John) to enjoyable outsider-looking-in American crim-coms (Martin’s Seven Psychopaths and John’s War On Everyone), and so far they’ve all had one thing in common – they’re all BRILLIANT. But Martin looks set to be the first brother to be truly accepted into Hollywood Proper, with his latest feature garnering universal acclaim, massive box office and heavyweight Awards recognition, snagging an impressive SEVEN Oscar nominations and taking home two, as well as landing a Golden Globe and BAFTA for Best Picture. It’s also the most thoroughly AMERICAN McDonagh film to date, and this is no bad thing, Martin shedding his decidedly Celtic flavours for an edgier Redneck charm that perfectly suits the material … but most important of all, from a purely critical point of view this could be the very BEST film either of the brothers has made to date. It’s as blackly comic and dark-of-soul as we’d expect from the creator of In Bruges, but there’s real heart and tenderness hidden amongst the expletive-riddled, barbed razor wit and mercilessly observed, frequently lamentable character beats. Frances McDormand thoroughly deserved her Oscar win for her magnificent performance as Mildred Hayes, a take-no-shit shopkeeper in the titular town whose unbridled grief over the brutal rape and murder of her daughter Angela (Kathryn Newton) has been exacerbated by the seeming inability of the local police force to solve the crime, leading her to hire the ongoing use of a trio of billboards laying the blame squarely at the feet of popular, long-standing local police Chief Bill Willoughby (Woody Harrelson). Needless to say this kicks up quite the shitstorm in the town, but Mildred stands resolute in the face of seemingly overwhelming odds, refusing to back down. McDormand has never been better – Mildred is a foul-mouthed, opinionated harpy who tells it like it is, no matter who she’s talking to, but there’s understandable pain driving her actions, and a surprisingly tender heart beating under all that thorniness; Harrelson, meanwhile, is by turns a gruff shit-kicker and a gentle, doting family man, silently suffering over his own helplessness with the dead end the case seems to have turned into. The film’s other Oscar-winner, Sam Rockwell, also delivers his finest performance to date as Officer Jason Dixon, a true disgrace of a cop whose permanent drunkenness has marred a career which, it turns out, began with some promise; he’s a thuggish force-of-nature, Mildred’s decidedly ineffectual nemesis whose own equally foul-mouthed honesty is set to dump him in trouble big time, but again there’s a deeply buried vein of well-meaning ambition under all the bigotry and pigheadedness we can’t help rooting for once it reveals itself. There’s strong support from some serious heavyweights, particularly John Hawkes, Caleb Landry Jones, Peter Dinklage, Abbie Cornish and Manchester By the Sea’s breakout star Lucas Hedges, while McDonagh deserves every lick of acclaim and recognition he’s received for his precision-engineered screenplay, peerless direction and crisp, biting dialogue, crafting a jet black comedy nonetheless packed with so much emotional heft that it’ll have you laughing your arse off but crying your eyes out just as hard. An honest, unapologetic winner, then.

23. RED SPARROW – just when you thought we’d seen the last of the powerhouse blockbuster team of director Francis Lawrence and star Jennifer Lawrence with the end of The Hunger Games, they reunite for this far more adult literary feature, bringing Jason Matthews’ labyrinthine spy novel to bloody life. Adapted by Revolutionary Road screenwriter Justin Haythe, it follows the journey of Russian star ballerina Dominika Egorova (Lawrence) into the shadowy world of post-Glasnost Russian Intelligence after an on-stage accident ruins her career. Trained to use her body and mind to seduce her targets, Dominika becomes a “Sparrow”, dispatched to Budapest to entrap disgraced CIA operative Nate Nash (Joel Edgerton) and discover the identity of the deep cover double agent in Moscow he was forced to burn his own cover to protect. But Dominika never wanted any of this, and she begins to plot her escape, no matter the risks … as we’ve come to expect, Jennifer Lawrence is magnificent, her glacial beauty concealing a fierce intelligence and deeply guarded desperation to get out, her innate sensuality rendered clinical by the raw, unflinching gratuity of her training and seduction scenes – this is a woman who uses ALL the weapons at her disposal to get what she needs, and it’s an icy professionalism that informs and somewhat forgives Lawrence’s relative lack of chemistry with Edgerton. Not that it’s his fault – Nate is nearly as compelling a protagonist as Dominika, a roguish chancer whose impulsiveness could prove his undoing, but also makes him likeable and charming enough for us to root for him too. Bullhead’s Matthias Schoenarts is on top form as the film’s nominal villain, Dominika’s uncle Ivan, the man who trapped her in this hell in the first place, Charlotte Rampling is beyond cold as the “Matron”, the cruel headmistress of the Sparrow School, Joely Richardson is probably the gentlest, purest ray of light in the film as Dominika’s ailing mother Nina, and Jeremy Irons radiates stately gravitas as high-ranking intelligence officer General Vladimir Andreievich Korchnoi. This is a tightly-paced, piano wire-taut thriller with a suitably twisty plot that constantly wrong-foots the viewer, Lawrence the director again showing consummate skill at weaving flawlessly effective narrative with scenes of such unbearable tension you’ll find yourself perched on the edge of your seat throughout. It’s a much less explosive film than we’re used to from him – most of the fireworks are of the acting variety – but there are moments when the tension snaps, always with bloody consequences, especially in the film’s standout sequence featuring a garrotte-driven interrogation that turns particularly messy. The end result is a dark thriller of almost unbearable potency that you can’t take your eyes off. Here’s hoping this isn’t the last time Lawrence & Lawrence work together …

22. WIDOWS – Steve McQueen is one of the most challenging writer-directors working in Hollywood today, having exploded onto the scene with hard-hitting IRA-prison-biopic Hunger and subsequently adding to his solid cache of acclaimed works with Shame and 12 Years a Slave, but there’s a strong argument to be made that THIS is his best film to date. Co-adapted from a cult TV-series from British thriller queen Lynda La Plante by Gone Girl and Sharp Objects-author Gillian Flynn, it follows a group of women forced to band together to plan and execute a robbery in order to pay off the perceived debt incurred by their late husbands, who died trying to steal $2 million from Jamal Manning (If Beale Street Could Talk’s Brian Tyree Henry), a Chicago crime boss with ambitions to go legit as alderman of the city’s South Side Precinct. Viola Davis dominates the film as Veronica Rawlings, the educated and fiercely independent wife of accomplished professional thief Harry (a small but potent turn from Liam Neeson), setting the screen alight with a barely restrained and searing portrayal of devastating grief and righteous anger, and is ably supported by a trio of equally overwhelming performances from Michelle Rodriguez as hard-pressed mother and small-businesswoman Linda Perelli, The Man From UNCLE’s Elizabeth Debicki as Alice Gunner, an abused widow struggling to find her place in the world now she’s been cut off from her only support-mechanism, and Bad Times At the El Royale’s Cynthia Eriyo as Belle, the tough, gutsy beautician/babysitter the trio enlist to help them once they realise they need a fourth member. Henry is a deceptively subtle, thoroughly threatening presence throughout the film as Manning, as is Get Out’s Daniel Kaluuya as his thuggish brother/lieutenant Jatemme, and Colin Farrell is seemingly decent but ultimately fatally flawed as his direct political rival, reigning alderman Jack Mulligan, while there are uniformly excellent supporting turns from the likes of Robert Duvall, Carrie Coon, Lukas Haas, Jon Bernthal and Kevin J. O’Connor. McQueen once again delivers an emotionally exhausting and effortlessly powerful tour-de-force, wringing out the maximum amount of feels from the loaded and deeply personal human interactions on display throughout, and once again proves just as effective at delivering on the emotional fireworks as he is in stirring our blood in some brutal set-pieces, while Flynn help to deliver another perfectly pitched, intricately crafted script packed with exquisite dialogue and shrewdly observed character work which is sure to net her some major wins come Awards season. Unflinching and devastating but thoroughly exhilarating, this is an extraordinary film (and if this was a purely critical list it would surely have placed A LOT higher), thoroughly deserving of every bit of praise, attention and success it has and will go on to garner. An absolute must-see.

21. JURASSIC WORLD: FALLEN KINGDOM – Colin Trevorrow’s long-awaited 2015 Jurassic Park sequel was a major shot in the arm for a killer blockbuster franchise that had been somewhat flagging since Steven Spielberg brought dinosaurs back to life for the second time, but (edgier tone aside) it was not quite the full-on game-changer some thought it would be. The fifth film, directed by J.A. Bayona (The Impossible, A Monster Calls) and written by Trevorrow and his regular script-partner Derek Connolly (Safety Not Guaranteed and JW, as well as Warner Bros’ recent “Monsterverse” landmark Kong: Skull Island), redresses the balance – while the first act of the film once again returns to the Costa Rican island of Isla Nublar, it’s become a very different environment from the one we’ve so far experienced, and a fiendish plot-twist means the film then takes a major swerve into MUCH darker territory than we’ve seen so far. Giving away anything more does a disservice to the series’ most interesting story to date, needless to say this is EASILY the franchise’s strongest feature since the first, and definitely the scariest. Hollywood’s most unusual everyman action hero, Chris Pratt, returns as raptor wrangler Owen Brady, enlisted to help rescue as many dinosaurs as possible from an impending, cataclysmic volcanic eruption, but in particular his deeply impressive trained raptor Blue, now the last of her kind; Bryce Dallas Howard is also back as former Jurassic World operations manager turned eco-campaigner Claire Dearing, and her His Girl Friday-style dynamic with Pratt’s Brady is brought to life with far greater success here, their chemistry far more convincing because Claire has become a much more well-rounded and believably tough lady, now pretty much his respective equal. There are also strong supporting turns from the likes of Rafe Spall, The Get Down’s Justice Smith, The Vampire Diaries/The Originals’ breakout star Daniella Pineda, the incomparable Ted Levine (particularly memorable as scummy mercenary Ken Wheatley) and genuine screen legend James Cromwell, but as usual the film’s true stars are the dinosaurs themselves – it’s a real pleasure seeing Blue return because the last velociraptor was an absolute treat in Jurassic World, but she’s clearly met her match in this film’s new Big Bad, the Indoraptor, a lethally monstrous hybrid cooked up in Ingen’s labs as a living weapon. Bayona cut his teeth on breakout feature The Orphanage, so he’s got major cred as an accomplished horror director, and he uses that impressive talent to great effect here, weaving an increasingly potent atmosphere of wire-taut dread and delivering some nerve-shredding set-pieces, particularly the intense and moody extended stalk-and-kill stretch that brings the final act to its knuckle-whitening climax. It’s not just scary, though – there’s still plenty of that good old fashioned wonder and savage beauty we’ve come to expect from the series, and another hefty dose of that characteristic Spielbergian humour (Pratt in particular shines in another goofy, self-deprecating turn, while Smith steals many of the film’s biggest laughs as twitchy, out-of-his-comfort-zone tech wizard Franklin). Throw in another stirring and epic John Williams-channelling score from Michael Giacchino and this is an all-round treat for the franchise faithful and blockbuster fans in general – EASILY the best shape the series has been in for some time, it shows HUGE promise for the future.

#mandy #the girl in the spider's web #isle of dogs #venom #solo a star wars story #aquaman #three billboards movie #red sparrow #widows #jurassic world fallen kingdom #2018 in movies

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omeletsforpepper · 6 years ago

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If They Liked This, They Might Also Like...

Over at @reactingtosomething we wanted to get into the holidays in a way that was more or less on brand. So in the spirit of a Netflix recommendation algorithm, here are some book suggestions for what to buy friends and family who may have liked some of the same movies I did in 2018.

If they liked Wildlife or Widows: The H-Spot: The Feminist Pursuit of Happiness

As I say in my Amazon review, this is the best applied ethics text I was never assigned. In fairness to my professors, attorney-turned-journalist Jill Filipovic hadn’t written it yet when I was a philosophy student. Filipovic is also not a philosopher. But she is a brilliant writer and a rigorous thinker, and The H-Spot is fundamentally and explicitly an Aristotelian ethical project. That is to say, it takes the starting position that political organization should be aimed at the goal of human flourishing (as opposed to, say, economic growth). From there Filipovic builds a case, or maybe it's better to say several cases, for specific ways in which American policy fails women and disproportionately women of color in this aim, and concrete ways in which it could address this failure. She does so largely through first-hand accounts of several women across America, in a wide range of socioeconomic circumstances. Although the institutions and less formal systems in play are complicated, the questions at the heart of all this are simple: What do women want? What do women need?

Filipovic asks these questions without pre-judgment, and without assuming that any answers are too unrealistic to consider. Not that anyone she talks to asks for anything "unrealistic." Partly this is because they often speak from too much experience for the unrealistic to occur to them as something they deserve to ask for, but also, the idea that woman-friendly policy is unrealistic is a Bad Take to begin with. Filipovic doesn't need to be pie-in-the-sky utopian to show how things could be much better for women (and by extension, it should but still doesn't go without saying, for everyone).

I left academic philosophy over five years ago, but I really think each chapter (built around topics like friendship, sex, parenting, and food) is brimming with potential paper topics for grad and undergrad students of ethics and/or political philosophy. Whether you’re philosophically inclined or not, if you think “women should be happy” and “the point of civilization is to make happiness easier for everyone” are uncontroversial claims, The H-Spot is the book for you -- and for your friends who loved the several underestimated women of Widows, or Carey Mulligan’s captivating portrayal in Wildlife of a woman doing the best she could within the restrictions of her era.

If they liked Black Panther: A Nation Under Our Feet

Though it helps to have some familiarity with the Avengers storylines that led up to Ta-Nehisi motherfucking Coates’s first year on the Black Panther comic -- as well as with the excellent opening arc of Matt Fraction’s Invincible Iron Man -- here’s all that even a new comics reader really needs to know before jumping into Nation: King T’Challa, the Black Panther, was recently unable to prevent several consecutive disasters in Wakanda. Both as a cause and as a result of these disasters, T’Challa worked with the so-called “Illuminati” (Tony Stark, Reed Richards, Stephen Strange, and other intellectual and strategic heavyweights) to prevent the end of the multiverse itself. That crisis averted, T’Challa has returned to Wakanda to resume his royal duties.

Coates takes as a starting premise that Wakanda, the most advanced nation on earth, would only still have a hereditary monarchy if the monarch was uniquely suited as a protector of the people. In the wake of the Panther’s failures in this regard, Nation opens with a rebellion against T’Challa’s rule on two fronts: domestic terrorists with an unknown agenda on one hand, and on the other, former officers of the Dora Milaje (the all-female royal bodyguard corps beloved by fans of the movie) rallying Wakandan women who have suffered great injustices unaddressed by the crown. The leaders of the latter, lovers Ayo and Aneka, are nominally antagonists to T’Challa, but to the reader they’re parallel protagonists. You root for both T’Challa and the Dora Milaje, even though their agendas are in tension, not unlike the way one might have rooted for both Tyrion Lannister and Robb Stark in early Game of Thrones. (Shuri’s around too, though she’s quite unlike her movie counterpart.)

When he’s not fighting or investigating, T’Challa does a lot of soul-searching and debating about his responsibilities as king, the ways it conflicts with his career as a globetrotting superhero, and whether and how the government of Wakanda must evolve. Though Wakanda is too small to be considered a superpower, the domestic terror angle, an interrogation of historical injustice, and the struggle between moral idealism and political reality make Wakanda a proxy in some important ways for modern America. (You may have noticed that Ryan Coogler did this too.) Coates’s meditation on leadership and political power made A Nation Under Our Feet not only a great superhero comic but -- this is not an exaggeration or a joke -- my favorite political writing of 2016.

Nation is illustrated mostly by Brian Stelfreeze and Chris Sprouse, with colors by Laura Martin; some of Stelfreeze’s designs clearly influenced the movie.

If they liked Thoroughbreds: Sweetpea

When a clever, mean-spirited would-be journalist with airhead friends learns that her boyfriend is cheating on her, old traumas bubble to the surface and she becomes a serial killer who targets sex offenders. Darkly, often cruelly hilarious, Sweetpea is what you’d get if American Psycho was set in southwestern England and for some reason starred Amy from Gone Girl. Protagonist Rhiannon is a self-described inhabitant of an Island of Unfinished Sentences, de facto Chief Listener of her “friend” circle, and a maker of lists. Lists of the things her friends talk about (babies, boyfriends, IKEA), signs she’d like to put up at work (please close doors quietly, please do not wear Crocs to work), and oh, the people she wants to kill. Like her boyfriend, at the moment. Or ISIS, when news coverage of a terror attack pre-empts her beloved MasterChef.

Author C.J. Skuse smartly chooses not to have Rhiannon wallow in her traumatic past as many superheroes do. We get glimpses for context, but Rhiannon is committed to moving forward, to escaping her demons rather than being defined by them. It matters that she wants to get better, even if she also hates that she’s bought into society’s definition of “better.” (#relatable)

It’s worth noting that Sweetpea leans seemingly uncritically into a lot of dated gender tropes, in Rhiannon’s assessments of the women around her. (Body positive she is not.) Then again, she’s an unreliable narrator -- one of the best demonstrations of this is a scene in which she’s convinced of her ability to fool the world into believing she’s normal, then overhears her dipshit co-workers talk about how unsettling she is -- so arguably we’re supposed to laugh at how terrible she is without necessarily agreeing with her. This is, I think, a perfectly legitimate approach to a protagonist, even if some find it unfashionable.

The book is not quite as thematically rich as it first appears, at least on the topic of sexual violence; it indulges a “stranger danger” picture of rape that doesn’t feel entirely contemporary. (For a more nuanced treatment of rape culture, see the sadly short-lived but wildly entertaining vigilante dramedy Sweet/Vicious.) But as a portrait of a vibrant, layered, genuinely Nasty-and-you-kinda-love-her-for-it woman -- given Oscar-caliber-portrayal-worthy life by Skuse’s wickedly sharp voice -- Sweetpea is too fun to pass up.

Upgrade or Infinity War: The Wild Storm

Castlevania showrunner Warren Ellis helped redefine superhero comics with 1999’s The Authority, which at DC’s request he's given a Gritty Reboot (along with the WildCATS, whom some of us remember from this extremely 90s cartoon) in The Wild Storm. Ellis has always been interested in The Future, both its potential wondrousness and its probable horror. Fans of Upgrade’s refreshingly unsanitized (and unsanitary) take on human enhancement through body modification will find much to like in Ellis’s spin on the trope of second-skin powered armor. (He semi-famously wrote Extremis, one of the comic arcs that inspired Iron Man 3.)

art by Jon Davis Hunt, from The Wild Storm #1

Angela Spica, a reimagining of Ellis’s old Authority character The Engineer, is a cybernetics expert who stumbles onto a sort of shadow government conspiracy related to her employer, and goes on the run with the armor she’s designed for them. (When not deployed, the armor is stored inside her body.) Angela is quickly targeted by multiple covert organizations, one of which rescues (?) her and brings her in on a secret history of technological arms races and contact with extraterrestrials. The Wild Storm is full of big action and bigger ideas, and for smart, generally curious superhero movie fans who find the decades-long continuities of the DC and Marvel universes intimidating, it’s a great entry -- with a blessedly planned ending -- into sci-fi-comics.

Happy holidays, and have fun shopping! Hop over to the full post for @supersnarker3000’s gift guide.

#holiday shopping #gift guide #recommended reading #Jill Filipovic #Ta-Nehisi Coates #CJ Skuse #Warren Ellis #The H Spot #Black Panther #Sweetpea #The Wild Storm

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siverwrites · 6 years ago

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Trick or Treat Letter

Ao3 - Siver

Dear Creator

Thank you for taking this on! Here there are some general prompt details if you want them and if you already have some idea of your own, awesome. I can’t wait to see what you come up with.

All requests are for fic or art.

Art: Interactions of some sort: emoting at each other, talking, sharing some activity, taking a walk, hugs are always welcome, soft things, whatever suits the pair/group

Likes: fluff, hurt/comfort, comfort, missing scenes, friendships, long-term friendships, close relationships of any sort whether romantic or platonic, familial bonds, found family, sickfic, fandom crossovers or fusions, angst with a happy or at least bittersweet end, bonding, cuddling/hugs/holding, banter, mutual care and support, emotional bonding, loyalty, pre-canon, post-canon, reuniting, slice of life, supernatural stuff, mystery, adventure, worldbuilding, creepy or unsettling atmospheres

DNW: NSFW, non-con, dub-con, underage relationships, unrequested ships, infidelity, explicit gore

Any combination of tags within each fandom is cool. Heck, any crossover/fusion between any of these fandoms is welcome too, go nuts.

For treats you can’t go wrong with fluff! Friendship, familial bonds, found family, romance for the few ships listed here.

On the trick end I like it atmospheric. Unsettling atmospheres. Unresolved mystery. Making use of the stranger environments the game may already provide. The surreal. The strange. The supernatural.

Ghost Trick

Cabanela (Ghost Trick)

Sissel (Ghost Trick)

Jowd (Ghost Trick)

Alma (Ghost Trick)

Kamila (Ghost Trick)

Missile (Ghost Trick)

Pigeon Man (Ghost Trick)

Lovey-Dove (Ghost Trick)

Mino (Ghost Trick)

Lynne (Ghost Trick)

Amelie (Ghost Trick)

Ships I’m good with: Alma/Jowd/Cabanela, Alma/Jowd, Cabanela/Jowd (where the focus is there but without infidelity to Alma), Alma/Cabanela (with assumption of Jowd’s involvement, again just the focus landing there)

I love this game, its characters and pretty much everything about it, so whatever you want to do will be great I am sure. New timeline mysteries and missing memories are always welcome where it makes sense. Alternate timelines and what-ifs are cool to explore. Fluff, comfort, family found or otherwise and friendships are always a go. Spooky ghost shenanigans, mysteries in the night. Any combination of these characters is more than welcome too!

Any combination of Jowd/Cabanela/Alma or Jowd & Cabanela & Alma is always welcome.

Always down for various combinations of Pigeon Man with Cabanela, Jowd and/or Kamila. Or PM with someone less expected like Alma! Or Sissel! Or Missile!

Animal shenanigans and fluff is great.

Final Fantasy VI

Edgar Roni Figaro (FF6)

Cyan Garamonde (FF6)

Relm Arrowny (FF6)

Sabin Rene Figaro (FF6)

Terra Branford (FF6)

Gogo (FF6)

Mog (FF6)

Strago Magus (FF6)

Celes Chere (FF6)

Phantom Train

No ships here please.

Any gen combination of characters is welcome here. Always down for some found family opportunities. All that travelling time is ripe for more interaction or character exploration in either world of balance or ruin, but particularly interested in world of ruin moments. Also interested in what they might be doing after the world is saved too.

Anything with the Phantom Train is ripe for the trick side of things either during the Phantom Train stuff in-game, or maybe they somehow run into it again in the Word of Ruin...

Pyre

Jodariel (Pyre)

Ti'Zo (Pyre)

Sir Gilman (Pyre)

Big Bertrude (Pyre)

Volfred Sandalwood (Pyre)

Tariq | The Lone Minstrel (Pyre)

Celeste | The Gate Guardian (Pyre)

Ships I’m good with: Volfred/Tariq (and Oralech involvement is good too)

Found family joys. Daily activities while they travel? Post Peaceful revolution activities? Any combo here is great. I’m good with Volfred/Tariq or Volfred & Tariq. Volfred and Bertrude friendship gives me life. Snakes doing snake things. Imps doing imp things. More adorable moments with Ti’zo and Volfred. Heralds doing herald things.

Chrono Trigger

Nu (Chrono Trigger)

Lucca Ashtear (Chrono Trigger)

Belthasar (Chrono Trigger)

Robo (Chrono Trigger)

Maou | Magus (Chrono Trigger)

Sara | Schala (Chrono Trigger)

No ships here.

Lucca: Lucca’s just cool. Anything with Lucca: tinkering, planning, another hobby she might have? Lucca and Robo doing stuff together.

For Magus and/or Schala I’d be interested in anything Zeal related.

Nu: The world begins and ends with Nu. I honestly don’t even know. Just Nu. Whatever Nu may inspire I’m interested in seeing.

Belthasar: End of Time stuff? Or before he was sent there. Early days there?

The Last Guardian

The Boy (The Last Guardian)

Trico (The Last Guardian)

Give me all the cat-dog-bird fluff/shenanigans/playfulness/warmth/coziness. Anything while they’re together. Barrel feeding, snuggle time, riding, flying. Sweet or silly (Trico has his moments for sure) or something else. I adore Trico. I adore the boy and Trico’s companionship.

Alternatively something in the future. The boy grown up reuniting with Trico. A flight with Trico. A temporary willing return to the nest. Meeting Trico babies!

英雄伝説 VII | The Legend of Heroes VII (Video Games)

Randy Orlando (LoH VII)

Alex Dudley (LoH VII)

Zeit (LoH VII)

Campanella (LoF VII)

Tio Plato (LoH VII)

Sergei Lou (LoH VII)

Lloyd Bannings (LoH VII)

Elie MacDowell (LoH VII)

KeA (LoH VII)

No ships here please.

Bonding and found family is the name of the game here! Tio and Zeit spending time together. Lloyd and Randy having bro time or Lloyd trying to remind Randy that he does indeed belong with SSS. KeA and “Uncle” Sergei time! What might they do together, or what does KeA get Sergei to do with her? Lloyd and KeA spending time together, Lloyd spoiling KeA, KeA being a comfort to Lloyd. KeA turning on the charm on Dudley. Dudley and Sergei interaction. Any combination of any of the SSS related characters is great if you want a bigger SSS gathering. I love them all.

As for Campanella have fun. Go for the strange or unsettling. Ouroboros activity or out for a wander doing his own thing. Whatever it is Campanella does...

Traills in the Sky

Renne Hayworth (Sora no Kiseki)

Julia Schwarz (Sora no Kiseki)

Olivier Lenheim | Olivert Reise Arnor (Sora no Kiseki)

Kloe Rinz | Klaudia von Auslese (Sora no Kiseki)

Cassius Bright (Sora no Kiseki)

Tita Russell (Sora no Kiseki)

Ries Argent (Sora no Kiseki)

Joshua Bright (Sora no Kiseki)

Mueller Vander (Sora no Kiseki)

Kevin Graham (Sora no Kiseki)

Estelle Bright (Sora no Kiseki)

Ships I’m good with: Kevin/Ries, Olivier/Mueller, light Estelle/Joshua

Ries &/ Kevin: Anything in 3rd or after, pre-Ao no Kiseki, or after Ao no Kiseki. Give them some much needed soft times. Or could expand on a moment in Gehenna if you want to do something creepier, or really anything in Phantasma in particular or another Gralsritter mission.

Any combination of the Brights and those they adopt: Really feeling the family/found family vibes strongly with any combination of the Brights and Renne. Please give Renne some warmth, peace and happiness, or at least 2 out of 3. Father daughter bonding time with Estelle. Father/Grand(?)father new bonding time with Renne.

Tita & Renne: Girl time! Bonding time! Give these girls some joy. Send them plushy shopping or engineering nerding. Spooky story telling.

Olivier & Cassius: I’m just really interested to see more interaction between these two whether while they’re still planning or something before Olivier goes back to Erebonia after Sky SC. Cassius can’t help himself when it comes to giving advice…

Always welcome close friendship moments between Julia and Kloe.

Friendship between Mueller and Julia is cool.

I’m great with Olivier/Muller or Olivier & Mueller stuff.

Trails of Cold Steel

Olivier Lenheim | Olivert Reise Arnor (Sen no Kiseki)

Mueller Vander (Sen no Kiseki)

Laura S. Arseid (Sen no Kiseki)

Fie Claussell (Sen no Kiseki)

Emma Millstein (Sen no Kiseki)

Alfin Reise Arnor (Sen no Kiseki)

Celine (Sen no Kiseki)

Ships I’m good with: Olivier/Mueller

Always great with anything either Olivier/Mueller or Olivier & Mueller. Alfin and Olivier are fun siblings with or without the beleaguered Mueller. Alternatively in CSII on the Courageous, Olivier is only a call away; some quiet talk between Alfin and Olivier would be good, share some worries and comfort.

School times are fun for those who are applicable. I’d also be interested in seeing something with Emma and Laura while they’re in Legram during the month between CS I and II. Further exploration of Lohengrin Castle?

Or with Fie while she’s with Machias and Elliot. Emma and Fie or Fie and Laura or all three is great too.

Unexpected combos are more than welcome to if you can make it work. Olivier and/or Mueller coming across Celine on one of his trips to Thors? Celine and Fie times? Alfin and anyone else here? Etc.

Dragon Quest XI

Seña | Serena (Dragon Quest XI)

Sylvia | Sylvando (Dragon Quest XI)

Graig | Hendrik (Dragon Quest XI)

No ships here please

Adventure! Exploration! Missing scenes are always great. All those campfires are ripe for interactions or singular character activity or introspection. Other characters are welcome to make appearances if desired.Interested in any gen combo of these three, but in particular Sylvando and Hendrik, or Sylvando and Serena.

#trick or treat #exchange #letters #letter

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girl-next-door-writes · 7 years ago

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A Dangerous Game - Part 8

Characters: Tony, Reader, Bucky.

Summary: East meets West in a tournament to end all tournaments but with so much on the line for everyone involved is anyone truly going to come out of this a winner?

Word Count: 2309 words

Inspiration: The musical Chess.

A/N: A massive thank you to the wonderful and amazing @iwillbeinmynest and @littlemisssyreid for letting me bounce this idea around and reading each and every word I have written for this and making it better.

Masterlist - Start from the beginning.

Karpov was not happy. Bringing the redhead here was supposed to knock Barnes right off his game but so far there hadn’t been any fireworks or even a hint of discomfort from his former charge. There had to be a weak link, had to be a chink in that man’s armor. Maybe his wife hadn’t been the way in but as Karpovs eyes roamed the hotel bar he saw you swiftly walking through the foyer and it was as if the lights had suddenly got brighter. He’d been focusing on the wrong woman. An unpleasant smile spread across his face as he realised that you were his way in.

Stark had a spring in his step as he walked into the hotel bar. His controversial commentary was proving popular and he wondered why he hadn’t made the move sooner. “Whiskey please, my good man.” He grinned at the man behind the bar brightly as he took a seat.

“Allow me to pay for that.” A thick Russian accent caught his attention and immediately soured his mood.

“I can get my own drinks.” Stark snarled as his eyes met Karpov’s. He had some sort of respect for Barnes, at least he could play even if he was a red. The asshat in front of him, however, was one of those ‘political’ types. A puppet master. Tony had come across men like him before and he’d hated them just as much.

“Simply trying to offer the hand of friendship. I have no animosity towards you Mr Stark.” Karpov’s voice was as smooth as silk, almost hypnotic and although Tony’s hand gripped his freshly poured drink his eyes hadn’t moved from the man now standing to his left.

“You mean I am no longer in your way.” Tony eyed him suspiciously and brought his glass to his lips.

“That may be a very astute way of looking at things,” Karpov chuckled, nodding his head. The man reminded Tony of a snake. Something about the way he moved andhis seemingly unblinking eyes. It was unsettling to say the least. “That being the case I do believe we have an adversary in common.” Karpov turned to the barman and ordered himself a drink.

“Adversary? I have no clue what you are talking about.” Tony turned to leave, already feeling the need to go take a shower after talking to Karpov for more than a minute.

“That’s a shame Mr Stark. I’d have thought you would still want the best for your former second but if her welfare is no longer your concern…” The words hung in the air and Tony felt an icy chill slide down his spine. Turning slowly, he glared at the Russian.

“Whatever you are thinking, don’t fucking dare.” He growled. “You want to take down Barnes? Your player not up to the task? Find another way to do it andleave her out of it.” Downing his whiskey he slammed his glass down on the bar and shot Karpov a look made of pure venom before storming out.

Standing outside the door to the practice room, Tony repeated his mantra in his head. ‘She needs to know, she needs to know, she needs to know’, before knocking a little more forcefully than he had intended. Upon hearing Barnes call out for him to enter, he took a deep breath and pushed open the door with a broad smile on his face. This was gonna hurt like hell but he’d be damned if he let Barnes see that.

Looking up from the board on the desk, James’ eyebrows raised in surprise as Tony entered. “I wasn’t expecting to see you.” He said, honestly.

“Yeah, well… I wasn’t expecting you to take my title and my second but shit happens.” He pulled a chair up to the desk and sat opposite Barnes, wondering just where to begin.

“Careful Stark, your bitterness is showing.” Barnes smirked as his eyes returned to the board.

“So… I spoke to your former boss earlier.”

James’ eyes immediately filled with panic and shot up to meet Stark’s. His body tensed and all the old emotions came flooding back. Stark was offering up this information but did that mean he was now working with Karpov and attempting to earn his trust by saying that? The familiar feelings of paranoia swept over him, putting him on edge.

“I’m sure that was a riveting conversation.” He offered. The sudden tension did not go unnoticed by Tony who now wondered just how deep Karpov had sunk his hooks into Barnes.

“Highlight of my year.” Stark shot back, heavy on the sarcasm. “Look, he mentioned… just… is she okay?”

Barnes got to his feet, his eyes narrowed. “The way you treated her and you have the balls to come in here and ask that? We are not friends Tony. We are not rivals or even colleagues. We are nothing to each other, never will be. You really think you can use her to throw me off my game? Go back to Karpov and tell him to go fuck himself.”

“Hey, I don’t work for that cock weasel-”

“Don’t give me that shit Stark. You’ve obviously bent so far over for him he’s got his hand up your ass. Shove your fake concern and go back to the organ grinder. I don’t deal with monkeys.” With that insult Tony got to his feet and slammed his hands down on the desk. Both men were practically nose to nose, snarling at each other.

“How can you only think of your own selfish ambition and not of her position? Or would you rather watch her world collapse just so you can win a stupid competition?”

“I think you have me confused with yourself.” Barnes spat, balling his fists so tight his knuckles were turning white. “Get. Out.”

“Oh, don’t worry. I’m gone.” Stark glowered as he pushed himself back and strode out of the room. If Barnes wasn’t going to listen to him then maybe you would.

He wasn’t sure he could do it, talk to you. Seeing you hurt his heart in a way he hadn’t previously known existed, and to speak to you… he wasn’t sure he could do that and keep everything together. He had been deep in thought, working on the courage to go find you, when a familiar scent wafted past him. You were wearing that perfume he always used to complain about, it had been so distracting, and he closed his eyes tobreathe deeply for a moment. A peacefulness descended upon him and he heard his voice calling out your name before the nerves kicked back in. His rich chocolate eyes met yours and he almost froze. “I was an idiot.” His voice was small and you took a few steps towards him, curiosity written on your face. It was a very rare thing to hear the great Tony Stark admit he was an idiot. “I was stupid to ever let you walk away.” Tony frowned, this wasn’t what he had been planning on saying to you but he just couldn’t stop himself. “Please come home. I… There’s nothing that we can’t talk out, this is me and you.” He reached out and took your hand, a gesture that used to be so familiar now felt strangely new.

“Tony..?” You whispered, this had completely blindsided you. All day you had been dealing with the fall out of Natasha’s arrival. That and avoiding James. The man stood in front of you now was a shadow of his former self, stripped back and raw somehow.

“We were great together. Me and you and the game, that was all we needed right? That, and Rhodey, and maybe a bottle or two? Leave him. Come back with me and we will pretend like none of this ever happened.”

“Are you sick Tony?” You wondered if this change in him was because there was some medical problem, that he needed someone to look after him and after exhausting all other avenues he had become desperate enough to ask you.

“No, I’m… I want you back.” He looked at you in confusion.

“Oh. I see. You want me back. Well, let me just go pack my things right now.” The sarcastic edge to your tone cut him deeper than he would care to admit. “Are you crazy? You talk about us being good together? When, Tony? When were we good because most of my memories are of clearing up after your mess and standing there while you had a go at me. You could have asked me last year and perhaps I would have considered it but now… I loved you, Tony Stark. I loved you with everything I had and that wasn’t enough. My thing with James may not be perfect - I might not even have a position with him after this tournament - but you don’t get to come here and ‘reclaim’ me as if I am something you own. You say you want me back? Did you even consider what I might want? What I might need? This is all about you, as usual. Goodbye Tony.” You turned on your heel and strode towards the elevator leaving him to watch slack-jawed. He knew you were right. It was completely selfish of him to pour all that out to you but it was the truth. He missed you. He missed all the little things like the way you would roll your eyes at him and the way you wouldn’t let him get away with shit. You quick comments and the way you would quickly change from frustrated with him to gentle as you read his mood. He had well and truly fucked up and now you were in Karpov’s sights he couldn’t even protect you.

Rhodey had been looking for his friend all evening. On his fourth sweep of the bar he felt his shoulders relax as a familiar figure was propped up at the far end, staring into a glass of whiskey as if it might hold the solution to all of his problems. Taking the seat next to Tony, Rhodey looked up at the bar tender and ordered another round. “Penny for your thoughts, although yours look pretty heavy so I may have to offer you a dollar for them.” He joked as two glasses were placed in front of them.

“I fucked up” Tony muttered, still staring at his drink.

“You’re gonna have to be more specific man because I have a whole list of things you might be referring to here.” Rhodey swirled his own drink before raising his glass only to pause at Tony’s next words.

“I saw her.” Starks voice was emotionless, a fact which worried his friend immensely.

“And?” Rhodey said slowly, drawing out the word. It obviously hadn’t gone well or they wouldn’t be sitting here.

“I told her I was an idiot.” There was a pause before Rhodey nodded, rolling the words around his head.

“Well, that is definitely true.” He agreed.

“I told her I miss her.” Again, Rhodey nodded thoughtfully.

“Again, true.” He brought his glass up to his lips and was about to take a sip when Tony next spoke.

“I asked her to leave him.” Rhodey carefully put his drink down and turned to look at Tony with a raised eyebrow.

“You are a fucking idiot.” He sighed.

“I thought we already covered that.” Tony chuckled although there was little humor in it.

“You seriously asked her to leave him? I can just imagine what she said to that.”

“I fucked up. I am just so used to people overlooking me or laughing at me or just… not being good enough. Having to prove myself every fucking day is just exhausting. My dad, I was just a perpetual fucking disappointment there. The arguments between him and my mother about how much of a screw up I am… I used to just lock myself away in my room, turn up my music, pretend I couldn’t hear. That’s how I found chess. That’s where I started. Nine years old and the only person whose company I could just be myself in was my own. I taught myself how to play. It wasn’t like I could ask anyone else was it Not like I had anyone else.” Rhodey watched the swirling amber liquid in his glass. The story of Tony’s childhood was one he didn’t tell often but it didn’t get easier no matter how many times he heard it. “I realised I was good, I had ambition, knew what I wanted to do, I wanted to be the best. I joined the chess club at school and was told that I played ‘wrong’. That I didn’t fit the system. Can you imagine that? All I had ever wanted to do was play and I was told at the age of 11 that I didn’t fit into that world either. You know, my father never came to a single match. He’s dead and I am still trying to prove myself to him and… and in doing that I’ve fucked up possibly the only healthy relationship I ever formed. I love her, Rhodey. I love her, and I only realised after I’d lost her, how fucked up is that? She was right there in front of me and now… Now Karpov’s gunning for her, sees that she’s the way to Barnes.he’s gonna get hurt and I can’t do a damned thing about it.” He ran a hand over his face and sighed heavily. The feeling of helplessness he had felt as a child settled deep into his stomach. Rhodey reached over and placed his hand on Tony’s shoulder. He knew there were no words he could offer that would make this any better for his friend; he simply had to be there for him.

Tag: @themcuhasruinedme @palaiasaurus64@deanxfuckingadorablexwinchester @littleblue5mcdork@sunskittlex @delicatecapnerd @callamint @ohmyjack@rashinyx2002 @thinkwritexpress-official @delicatecapnerd

#myfic #something I wrote #A Dangerous Game

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recentanimenews · 5 years ago

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FEATURE: How Behind The Scenes Decisions Changed The Course of Digimon Adventure 2020

In the Digimon Adventure: opening, there's a little bit that's always stuck out to me. Just before it teases Greymon's evolution into MetalGreymon, protagonist Taichi performs a standard battle hero pose — the ol' "Yell while I have got my arms slightly bent and my hands are curled into fists." You've probably seen it in another anime produced by Toei Animation, Dragon Ball Z, as it's a pose Goku has struck a few times when charging up or reaching a new level of Super Saiyan. It's a classic anime mannerism, signifying increasing strength through physical turmoil. It's super interesting when applied to Digimon Adventure:, as it seems indicative of the entire direction of the series.

Digimon Adventure: is a reboot, one that bears almost the exact same name as its predecessor. So, there's an expectation for it to hit certain beats, for it to reach a certain quota of homage — which it does almost immediately. Taichi spinning rapidly as he plummets through the digital space that contains the name of the series at the beginning of the opening immediately recalls the Digi-Destined doing the same thing in the original theme song. But whereas in the opening for the 1999 anime, Taichi was soon followed by the rest of his friends, the 2020 anime sees him spinning alone. And most of the sequences that follow also see him alone, hanging out with Botamon, Koromon, and eventually Agumon. They pal around, take naps together, and most importantly for Digimon — a franchise built on the ethos of "What if digital pets, but fighting?" — they battle together.

The original opening saw the kids often staring in awe of their evolved Digimon partners, barely able to comprehend their supernatural majesty. The 2020 opening has Taichi and Agumon standing back to back, equally battered, amid a field of flames and ruin. They are friends, destined to have found one another in order to save multiple worlds, but they are also action heroes. The episodes that make up the series so far — 24, at the time of this writing — make good on the opening's promise. Yes, there are multiple Digi-Destined kids, and yes, they all have their distinct personalities and lovable relationships with their monsters. But the focus is mostly on Taichi and Agumon, whether they're clashing with villains or inspiring one another to grow stronger.

To fans of the original series, this might seem a bit unsettling.

See, 1999's Digimon Adventure is chock-full of, well, adventure. Nearly every episode ends with some kind of climactic battle against a villainous Digimon, often correlating with some new bit of emotional growth for its protagonists. But it's also, surprisingly enough, kind of a hang out show. Rewatching it will reveal that the kids and their Digimon spend a lot of every episode talking and eating and debating and joking. You get to know them all pretty well — their likes and dislikes, how they bounce off of one another, their expectations for each other, etc.

And this was very much by design. Digimon Adventure producer Hiromi Seki and series director Hiroyuki Kakudou knew that even though Taichi was the main character, he wasn't "the only main character there." Kakudou intentionally wanted children to see that "even the child who sits at the back [of the classroom] is still a member of the class." This approach to developing every character on an almost equal basis would also help with ratings, as it ensured that when Taichi wasn't there, people would still tune in to watch everyone else.

However, keeping this in mind calls into question Digimon Adventure 2020's value as a remake. Did the producers somehow flub and instead of creating Digimon Adventure, they landed on Digimon: The Adventure of Tai? This is an opinion I see online often, and I totally understand it. Because if you go into the 2020 series hoping for the spirit of the 1999 incarnation, you probably won't be satisfied. But it's not because the people involved forgot the original recipe. Rather, they intended from the beginning to cook up something new.

Well, turn something old into something new. Back in 1999, as the toy company Bandai was eager to expand the various mediums that Digimon could appear in, manga artist Tenya Yabuno was contacted to create a one-shot for V Jump magazine. The one-shot would be extended and the series Digimon Adventure V-Tamer 01 would eventually become the longest-running Digimon manga ever — and its main character was Taichi. Not the same Taichi you see in the anime. Whereas the Taichi on TV was someone working to be a part of a team, the Taichi on the manga page was mostly a solo act, a kid who grows up as the central, lone hero.

It's this Taichi that provided a huge influence on the one we see in the 2020 anime. Lead writer Atsuhiro Tomioka, who'd previously worked on Dragon Ball Super, admitted that "the core of new Taichi is directly based off V-Tamer 01" and he set out to make Taichi someone who is "always with his Digimon, fights together with him, gets hurt together with him, and gets through dangerous situations together with him. Of course, he still works together with other allies, but we want him to be a heroic figure with a strong sense of responsibility and dependability." He'd been directed to make "the battle aspects more prominent," an order that goes hand in hand with the character objective.

Yabuno also recognized that the 1999 series addresses "human weakness a little more" when it comes to Taichi than in his manga. This is somewhat echoed in an interview with Taichi's voice actor Yuuko Sanpei, who referred to Taichi as "a flexible and talented character. Like a super person." To watch Taichi face near death as he's thrown around with Greymon by ridiculously powerful villains, you can kinda see what he's going for.

The people behind the production are in full-support of this creative mission. A reboot is something that Toei had been considering since the days of Digimon Adventure tri., and one of the reasons producer Hiroyuki Sakurada appointed Masato Mitsuka as director was Mitsuka's proficiency with action scenes. Mitsuka isn't shy about his desire for them, even admitting that he did some things that were a bit "unreasonable" for a TV anime in order to show off "Omegamon fighting in a cool manner" in the third episode.

In fact, Mitsuka and his team re-thought the whole approach to Digimon fight scenes. I've often referred to some of them as "Digi-MMA," but Mitsuka wanted to "directly apply the principles of human action scenes" to Digimon. Thus, the titanic monsters often engage in punching, headbutting, tail-whipping, kicking, and general fisticuffs in a way that the creatures in 1999 never did. When it came to giving directions for the creation of the opening, two of the three Mitsuka listed were "the pairing of Taichi and Agumon" and "the battle aspects."

To put it simply, Digimon Adventure 2020 isn't really trying to be Digimon Adventure 1999. Rather, it's doubled down on the aspects that the creators have found to be the most appealing, namely the idea of Taichi as a hero and the Digimon as combatants. Personally, I really enjoy it (while also really, really enjoying the original Adventure) but I understand it if isn't everyone's cup of tea. But that's one of the best things about Digimon. The franchise is so sprawling you should find at least one incarnation that checks off your boxes, whether it's a series, a manga, or the digital pets that spawned this whole thing. Digimon Adventure: is just one more story being told among many great ones, and I can't wait to see what it has in store for me next.

Daniel Dockery is a Senior Staff Writer for Crunchyroll. Follow him on Twitter!

Do you love writing? Do you love anime? If you have an idea for a features story, pitch it to Crunchyroll Features.

By: [email protected]

#Anime #News #Latest in Anime News by Crunchyroll!

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