#leery the fox

[catragemiau]

Halloween party 🎃✨

Dressing up my kids as characters from things I enjoyed recently!

[dreaminginthedeepsouth]

* * * * *

LETTERS FROM AN AMERICAN

September 10, 2024

Heather Cox Richardson

Sep 11, 2024

Former president Trump has always approached debates as professional wrestling events in which the key is not to explain policies or answer questions, but rather to demonstrate dominance over your opponent. In 2016 the Democratic nominee, former secretary of state Hillary Clinton, had a hard time countering this strategy effectively because of the many expectations of what was appropriate behavior for a female presidential candidate. In 2020 and then again in the June 2024 “debate,” Democratic candidate Joe Biden’s stutter made it difficult to counter Trump’s scattershot attacks.

The question for Democratic presidential nominee Vice President Kamala Harris in tonight’s presidential debate was not how to answer policy questions, but how to counter Trump’s dominance displays while also appealing to the American people.  

She and her team figured it out, and today they played the former president brilliantly. He took the bait, and tonight he self-destructed. In a live debate, on national television. 

The Harris campaign began the day trolling Trump with a new campaign ad featuring the pieces of former president Barack Obama’s speech at the August Democratic National Convention that concerned Trump. “Here’s a 78-year-old billionaire”—the ad cuts to a photo of Trump in a golf cart—“who has not stopped whining about his problems.” Then a clip of Trump shows him complaining about Harris’s crowds, before Obama notes Trump’s “weird obsession with crowd sizes,” complete with Obama’s hand motion suggesting Trump’s sizes were small. “It just goes on, and on, and on,” Obama says, before the ad shows empty seats and people yawning at Trump’s rallies.

“America’s ready for a new chapter,” Obama says to the overflow crowd cheering at Chicago’s United Center during the Democratic National Convention. “We are ready for a President Kamala Harris!” At the end, even Harris’s standard statement, “I’m Kamala Harris and I approved this message,” sounds like a challenge.

This morning, the Harris campaign began running the ad on the Fox News Channel. 

At the same time, they began running Philadelphia-themed ads across the city on billboards, in the Philadelphia Inquirer, and on food trucks and taxi cabs, sidewalk art, and digital projections making fun of Trump’s fascination with crowd sizes. They showed, for example, a full-sized Philadelphia pretzel labeled “Harris” alongside a piece of one that looked like an upside down U labeled “Trump.”

The taunting might have been behind Trump’s demand for loyalty from Republican lawmakers this afternoon, telling them to shut down the government if he doesn’t get his way on the inclusion of a voter suppression measure in the bill to fund the government. The right has often relied on threats of government shutdowns to try to get their way, but such shutdowns are never popular, and even moderate Republicans are leery of launching one just before an election.

Nonetheless, Trump tried to lock them into such a shutdown, reiterating in a post this afternoon the lie that undocumented immigrants are voting in presidential elections. “If Republicans in the House, and Senate, don’t get absolute assurances on Election Security, THEY SHOULD, IN NO WAY, SHAPE, OR FORM, GO FORWARD WITH A CONTINUING RESOLUTION ON THE BUDGET. THE DEMOCRATS ARE TRYING TO ‘STUFF’ VOTER REGISTRATIONS WITH ILLEGAL ALIENS. DON’T LET IT HAPPEN—CLOSE IT DOWN.” 

Throughout the day, the Harris campaign placed posts on social media showing Harris looking crisp and presidential and Trump looking old and unkempt. And then, for ten minutes in the hour before the debate, the Harris campaign held a drone show over the Philadelphia Museum of Art showing campaign slogans and then turning the words “MADAM VICE PRESIDENT” into “MADAM PRESIDENT.” 

Hugo Lowell of The Guardian reported today that Trump’s advisors were concerned ahead of the debate about whether they would get “happy Trump” or “angry Trump,” worrying that a frustrated Trump would engage in the vicious personal attacks that turn voters off. They expressed relief that having the microphones muted when it was not a candidate’s turn to speak would prevent Harris from irritating him with fact checks and snark of her own. Conservative lawyer George Conway noted that it was “[i]nteresting how one campaign is extremely concerned about the emotional stability of its candidate, and how the other is not.”

Harris’s attacks on Trump, including her campaign’s subtle digs at his masculinity, appeared to have accomplished what they set out to. When the two came out on stage, he went straight to his podium, while she strode across the stage, moved into his space, held out her hand, introduced herself and wished him well: “Kamala Harris. Have a good debate.” He muttered in response, “Nice to see you.” Then she took her own spot at the podium. When the debate opened, it was clear that Harris was the dominant figure and that her opponent was “angry Trump.” He would not look at her during the debate.

In her first answer, Harris tried to set out both her own story as a child of the middle class and how she intended to build an opportunity economy for others, lowering food and housing costs and opening the way for more small businesses. It was a lot, quickly, and she looked a little nervous.

Then Trump spoke and it was clear he was going off the rails. His first comment was to suggest Harris was lying, and then to insist that his proposed tariffs will solve everything, although he has the way tariffs work entirely backward: they are paid by the consumer, not by foreign countries. As he followed with a long list of his rally lies, Harris started to smile.  

From then on, he continued to produce rally stories full of wild exaggerations and attack Harris with lies in what CNN fact-checker Daniel Dale called “a staggeringly dishonest debate performance from former president Trump.” "No major presidential candidate before Donald Trump has ever lied with this kind of frequency,” Dale said. “A remarkably large chunk of what he said tonight was just not true. This wasn't little exaggerations, political spin. A lot of his false claims were untethered to reality." As Harris spoke directly to the American people, growing stronger and stronger, Trump got wilder and angrier and told more and more crazy stories. 

And then, about ten minutes into the debate, Harris baited him. She invited the American people to go to one of his rallies, where “he talks about fictional characters like Hannibal Lecter, he will talk about ‘windmills cause cancer.’ And what you will also notice is that people start leaving his rallies early out of exhaustion and boredom.” 

Trump lost it. He defended his rallies, said Harris couldn’t get anyone to attend hers and has to bus in attendees (in reality, her rallies are packed and he is the one who reportedly hires attendees), and then, in his fury, repeated the lie about immigrants eating pets. When a moderator fact-checked that story, he fought back, saying he heard it on television.

And from then on, Harris kept baiting him while explaining her own policies directly to the camera, and he took the bait every single time. He ran down every rabbit hole and appeared unable to finish a thought. Notably, he refused to say he would not sign a national abortion ban and admitted that after nine years of promising one, he had no health care plan (he has, he said, “concepts of a plan,” and if they pan out, he’ll let us know in the “not too distant future”). 

He threatened World War III and repeated that the U.S. is “a failing nation.” He told a long story about threatening “Abdul,” the leader of the Taliban; in fact, the leader of the Taliban since 2016 is Mullah Hibatullah Akhundzada. In response to Harris’s statement that foreign leaders thought he was a disgrace, Trump answered that Hungarian prime minister Viktor Orbán, who destroyed his country’s democracy and replaced it with a dictatorship, says he’s a good leader. New York Times columnist David French wrote: “It's like she's debating MAGA Twitter come to life.”

The debate moderators, David Muir and Linsey Davis of ABC, asked solid questions and corrected the most egregious of Trump’s lies. But as he continued to interrupt and yell at Harris, they increasingly gave him leeway to do so. This meant he spoke more often and for more time than Harris; MSNBC’s Stephanie Ruhle reported that he spoke 39 times for a total of 41.9 minutes, to her 23 times for a total of 37.1 minutes. But the extra time did him no favors.

By the end of the evening, Harris had delivered a clear message about her hopes to move the country forward beyond years of using race to divide people who have far more in common than they have differences. She promised to develop an economy that will build small businesses and support a growing middle class, while protecting rights, including the right to make reproductive decisions without the intrusion of the state. And she showed the nation that Trump can be baited, that he lies freely and incoherently, and—perhaps crucially—that he is no longer the dominant politician in America.  

Immediately after the debate, the Harris campaign continued their demonstration of dominance. Harris-Walz campaign chair Jen O’Malley Dillon released a statement recapping Harris’s strength and Trump’s angry incoherence. She concluded: “Vice President Harris is ready for a second debate. Is Donald Trump?”

Then things got even worse for Trump. 

Music phenomenon Taylor Swift endorsed Harris, telling her 283 million Instagram followers that she felt she had to because of Trump’s earlier reposting of an AI image of her seeming to endorse him. That, she said, “brought me to the conclusion that I need to be very transparent about my actual plans for this election as a voter. The simplest way to combat misinformation is with the truth. I will be casting my vote for Kamala Harris and Tim Walz in the 2024 Presidential Election.”

After explaining why she was supporting Harris and Walz and urging her fans to do their own research, Swift signed off: “Taylor Swift, Childless Cat Lady.”

LETTERS FROM AN AMERICAN

HEATHER COX RICHARDSON

[000marie198]

Beats till the song disappears

......

Classic era, Sonic 2's bad ending timeline but I made it better. Or worse. Leaving for you to decide. Enjoy :)

...........

He trudged through the dark zone, silent and windless akin to a closed, lifeless chamber.

The place was littered with systematically arranged crystal blocks that would've looked aesthetically pleasing if it were daytime. For now, they just made the place more eerie as he waited for Robotnik to show up.

After what felt like an eternity of worried pacing to the speedy hedgehog but in reality was barely a couple of minutes, two of the structures nearby split apart, revealing a camouflaged panel sliding in the ground.

Sonic stopped, facing the opening to see the Eggmobile rise from the underground, hovering a meter or so above the inclined floor leading into the depth.

The doctor looked composed, unworried, his spectacles glinting with a previously absent touch of confidence, of victory.

"Did you bring them?" He asked, addressing the frustrated hedgehog.

Sonic revealed four emeralds without a word, pulling them away as the other tried to grab for them.

"Tails?"

"Hand them over first."

Sonic was about to retaliate but paused at seeing the other hover a finger over the mobile's control panel, staring straight at him with the unspoken threat clear in his body language. He could kill the kit if Sonic wasn't careful.

His thoughts conflicting with one another and the concern for his little brother chiming in, he finally relented, holding out the gems for the mobile's claws to grab.

"Now tell me where he is."

"Careful, hedgehog, you don't get to make demands here. I believe we had an agreement that he'll be spared only if you brought all five Chaos Emeralds, hmm?"

Silence fell over the terrain, the hero shooting a venomous glare at Robotnik. It would be too much of a gamble to attack him when he had a link open to wherever he was keeping Tails. His lack of acknowledgement to the earlier question was answer enough. He hadn't been able to collect the required number of emeralds on time.

"I see," the scientist murmured.

Sonic gritted his teeth, high strung, on edge. He was aware he had failed but he needed to know...

"Just tell me if my brother is alright."

"He is," the other sighed in an exaggerated display of disappointment, "I would've gotten rid of him by now provided your ineptitude-"

"You know I can't locate them all this fast!" Sonic snarled, looking seconds away from jumping at his throat.

"But I am feeling rather... merciful today," the man continued on without even reacting to the interruption, his demeanor betraying he held all the cards. "I propose another deal, hedgehog. If you agree, I promise that no harm will come to Tails."

Sonic shouldn't trust him. Didn't trust him. But if it meant Tails would be safe...

He nodded, signalling to Robotnik that he was listening. Said scientist smirked under his mustache.

"Become part of my legion. Surrender yourself to me, and your little friend will go unharmed."

His legion. The hero had fought against him enough times, had seen enough horrors and rescued enough critters being used as test subjects to read between the lines, to know what Robotnik meant. The mere mention of that thing still makes him sick. Robotnik wasn't asking him to just give up his freedom. He was demanding for Sonic to give up his mind and body, his free will, in the worst way possible.

Sonic's life or Tails' safety?

It took him less than a second to choose.

"Well?" Robotnik's voice prompted, already knowing his nemesis' decision.

"If you hurt Tails-"

"Oh don't be so leery. I gave you my word. Your fox friend will not be harmed. Now, do we have a deal or do I signal my bots to neutralize that menace?"

Sonic squeezed his eyes shut, shaking with a plethora of emotions he couldn't bring himself to grasp and process as they came and went in waves. He gasped in a breath and stilled, before coiled tension leaked away from his body and he sighed. Surrendered.

"Deal."

"Excellent!" He could hear the victorious grin in Robotnik's voice but he didn't react, unable to bring himself to look up, gaze fixed on his red and white sneakers as he willingly sealed his fate. His iconic shoes held his focus, shoes that allowed him his freedom to run as fast as his heart desired. The same freedom which he was now volunterily giving up for his brother.

It felt like just yesterday when he had met the little guy, his shoes very smilar to Sonic's own, a matching color scheme. Something he had never paid attention to before but was now a glaring memory. He hadn't even told Tails how much he cared for him, how much proud he was, had he?

If he were to be given a chance to speak with Tails, he'd never remain silent again.

His feet moved without his consent, following the rotound man into the underground base until he blinked out of his thoughts and found himelf in a lab, facing a tall glass cylinder strung up in the center of the circular space.

It stood empty, it's front open, waiting to be occupied. Sonic stared on, unable to look away.

"Now don't be shy, step into the capsule. Chop chop!"

A hair's breath pause and he stepped forward, inside the glass confinement and upon the platform inside, fully resigning himself to what he had agreed on. His breath shuddered with anguish and dread as Robotnik moved around it to the front and pressed a switch.

The glass sealed behind him with a decisive click.

Adrenaline shot through his veins as the machine hummed to life, lights glowing awake below the platform he stood on and the welded hatch above him.

His heartbeat began to thunder in his ears, quills pricking up but he held still, letting the titanium clamps reaching for him seal around his ankles and wrists.

He saw Robotnik clicking away at a nearby screen and then he felt a subtle jerk, the machine's hum increasing in volume and intensity, the platform under him rising up.

With one final click at the keyboard, sleek contraptions that looked suspiciously like a sci-fi mixture of scanner and blaster surrounded him and pulsing rays shot out from their openings.

Sonic grunted as he felt the energy strike him, the clamps keeping him still.

2%

It started from below, at the legs. Of course it fucking did. Sonic wanted to scream, wanted to yell and kick and bang his fists against the glass, feeling cold numbness slowly spreading up his most powerful weapons, his legs, his speed, stripped from him painstakingly slowly as flesh turned to metal.

All he did was clench his fists and grit his teeth in anguish, his whole being screaming at him to move but he held still. He couldn't move, not if it placed his first friend, his best friend, at risk.

28%

The titanium bands securing his ankles and wrists seemed to tighten, restricting the little bit of movement he had as the rays slowly climbed up to his torso, inches below his heart.

He didn't let the tears show.

For Tails for Tails for Tails for Tails

His thoughts chanted like a mantra, placing all his being into not moving, letting himself be turned into a machine, until his ears swivelled at the swoosh of a panelled door sliding open, urging him to look up.

His breath caught in his throat, each cell freezing up in a mixture of shock, rage and despair.

No. No no no no no no no no NO!

"TAILS!" The anguished wail left his chest just as his heart stopped beating, an engine's hum replacing its frantic rhythm.

He payed it no mind. It didn't matter when it was ripped to shreds anyway the moment his blurry gaze met his brother's.

Glowing red optics stared back.

He tried to move, tried to break free but it made no difference, half his body frozen on the spot, under the control of the Chaos forsaken monster who did this.

65%

The bands on his wrists burned, something warm and damp flowed down his palms and dripped from his fingers. Sonic was numb to it, struggling and shaking in the glass confine, his own screams becoming muffled to his ears.

"You promised! YOU FUCKING PROMISED YOU WOULDN'T HURT HIM!"

A screen beeped, the vitals' charts on it going haywire as the progress bar reached 78%.

The mustached scientist just stood there grinning, unconcerned and victorious.

"And I kept my promise. He is unharmed, well and alive." The words seemed to echo in his head, reverberating as if imprinting on the walls of his mind, the machine's buzz and hum drowned out by them. "Just as you asked, rodent."

He couldn't take his pained eyes off of the small yellow robot and his captor noticed that, turning to address Tails with a deceptively encouraging smile.

"Isn't that right, Metal Tails?"

The little robot finally moved, startled beeps escaping it as it's mechanical gaze shifted away from hyperfocusing on Sonic and towards what it's systems told it to be it's creator.

The familiar innocence in that small gesture, even though seeing it on a roboticized mecha, broke something in Sonic.

He tried to call out to his brother but realized he couldn't speak. He couldn't feel his muzzle or mouth anymore. Oh...

The screen read 96%.

As the metal climbed up his quills and ears and the world began to fade into static, Sonic drowned out Eggman's smug grin and droning of the roboticizer's rays, putting all that was left of his mind and strenght into focusing on Tails.

He wanted his last memory to be of his brother, even if no longer flesh and blood but mere metal and wires, he was still Tails. His Tails. That much was clear from its demeanor alone, the innocence, the curiosity, the intelligence, it was all there. Sonic would be able to tell his kid apart from a thousand other Tailses if he had to.

The tears he'd been holding back finally slipped down, the last piece of his humanity used into conveying to Tails that he was sorry, that he loved him.

99%

His eyes closed, the metal covered up the last of the organic cells and Sonic finally went still.

............

Metal Tails gazed upon the powering down capsule, his processors showing the progress bar having reached 100%.

He couldn't take his focus off of the inactive hedgehog; organic, mechanical, irrelevant, Metal Tails was drawn to him even before the roboticization was completed.

Something suspiciously illogical was recorded in his archives during the process. He had sensed what organics refer to as emotions being conveyed to him earlier by the same being. It seemed to be a combination of concern, remorse and affection.

How could he do that without any working signal and communication link to Metal Tails?

The roboticized hedgehog suddenly beeped awake, internal fans whirring as his systems rapid-fire processed the new programming and commands. He jerked within the bonds and stilled again, hanging limp for a long beat.

Metal Sonic lifted his head up, optical processors switching on to reveal glowing red optics staring straight into Metal Tails' own.

It appeared the other robot was finally awake.

Metal Tails couldn't calculate why the organic hedgehog had seemed to know about him but he had felt drawn to the blue being just the same.

Perhaps it was a satisfactory calculation on his creator's part as Metal Tails' tended to get lonely and this arrangement made him most pleased.

Another robot companion made for the perfect promised gift.

.................

No characters were killed in the making of this story, just as I promised :]

[otdiaftg]

When Wymack dismisses them for break Andrew immediately sets off down the length of the court wall. Renee glances at Neil. Neil isn't sure it is an invitation until he turns toward her and gets an approving smile. He is keenly aware that they are attracting attention as they set off after Andrew, but Neil doesn't look back at anyone.

There was a good chance the others didn't want him hanging out with the goalies, and it wasn't because it meant he and Kevin were still on the outs. The Foxes might be leery of Andrew and Renee's friendship, but there was over three hundred dollars in the pot on their would-be relationship working out. Neil distracted them from each other. Neil harbored no such illusions about Renee's chances. Besides, Renee did a good enough job distracting herself. She faded out of the conversation several times to check her phone and tap out quick messages. Neil picked up a little of the slack because they were planning evacuation routes and critical supply stops in case of a zombie invasion. Surviving on the run was Neil's forte and, even though it was a ridiculous scenario, it was interesting to see how his priorities compared with theirs. Renee stressed the importance of collecting survivors, which Andrew shot down immediately. "You wouldn't go back for anyone?" Renee asked. Andrew turned his hand over. "I can count them on one hand." "I think Coach would be good in a fight," Renee said as they passed the benches again. Wymack glanced their way, hearing his name, but only needed a moment to realize they weren't talking to him. "He's got a weapons permit, too." "He sold the gun when I kept breaking into his apartment," Andrew said. "What about Abby?" "What use is she to me?" Andrew asked. "You can't bandage a zombie bite and she wouldn't let us execute the infected. Besides, Coach wouldn't let her leave his sight. Let him keep her safe as long as he can." Renee conceded the point with a nod, and the conversation moved on to less crazy ideas. It stuck with Neil, though, and he tuned out their next debate. He wondered what he'd do if an invasion really happened. Neil was used to cutting all ties and hitting the ground running. Chances were it'd be instinctive to abandon all of them if the undead put in a ravenous appearance. It wasn't exactly an uplifting realization, but Neil could accept the ugly truths about himself.

Day: Tuesday, January 16th Time: 4:45 PM EST

[bestfictionaldinosaur]

Brackets Are Here! (Repost)

I made a pretty significant oversight in my last version of this post; I had to make a few more cuts to the lineup, but it should be good to go now! The final (hopefully for real this time) list can be found here!

If you submitted a candidate please verify that the image and name that I used are correct and suitable!!!! (Ctrl+F is your friend!)

If you find a mistake please let me know, and I will either explain or correct it. Additionally, you are welcome to suggest a replacement image of OFFICIAL art!

I will leave it open for a week or so for everyone to review, after which voting will begin and everything will be locked in! So verify that everything looks good with your candidates, reblog if you haven't yet, and get ready to vote!

Oh, and blacklist "saurnament promotion" if you don't want to see repeated reblogs from me!

Text version of bracket lineup under the cut (it's a lot!):

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

Ornithischian Bracket (Round 1)

Ulti [One Piece] Styraco [Dinosaucers]

Pepperoni [Teenage Mutant NInja Turtles] Tri-Tip [Skylanders]

Horrorsteed Iguanadon [Dinosaur Arcade] Sabersaurus [Yu-Gi-Oh!]

Bix [Dinotopia] Bastiodon [Pokemon]

Spike [Extreme Dinosaurs] Parry [Parry and Carney]

Heavy Tank [Final Fantasy] Territorial Hammerskull [Magic the Gathering]

Rampardos [Pokemon] Gwangi [Valley of Gwangi]

Corythosaurus [Paleo Pines] Iguanador [Flight Rising]

Parasaurmon [Digimon] Tricky the Triceratops [Donkey Kong]

Pachy Zord [Power Rangers] Gulp [Spyro the Dragon]

Zog [Teenage Mutant NInja Turtles] Scrut [Banjo-Kazooie]

Tricky [Star Fox] Slug [Transformers]

Scrit [Banjo-Kazooie] Tootsie the Triceratops [Duck Tales]

Boulder [Transformers] Hypsilophodon [The Dinosaur's Diary]

Tricero [Dinosaucers] Dimitri [The Legend of Zelda]

Aladar [Dinosaur (2000)] Parasaurzord [Power Rangers]

Green Torch [DC] Reese [Dinosaurs for Hire]

Craig [Dinosaur Office] Tortoceratops [Dragon Quest]

Trixie [Toy Story] Monochromon [Digimon]

Ducky [Land Before Time] Lambeo [Fossil Fighters]

Lady Margaret [Jurassic Park] Paris [Dinosaur King]

Woog [We're Back: A Dinosaur's Story] Aggron [Pokemon]

Nizbel [Chrono Trigger] Reptil [Marvel]

Armadon [Primal Rage] Chomp [Dinosaur King]

Styracavus [Flight Rising] Riff [Barney]

Triceratops [Dinotopia] Renzor [Super Mario]

Lucky [Paleo Pines] Guiledart [Transformers]

Bakhita [Jurassic Park] Ouranosaurus [Paleo Pines]

Gatling Gun Dino [Spyro the Dragon] BJ [Barney]

Old Buck [Deadsound's Dinosauria/Sauria] Trizaur [Bakugan]

Drip [Tyrannosaurus Drip] Eema [Dinosaur (2000)]

Patchi [Walking With Dinosaurs] Zalmoxes [Prehistoric Planet]

Trixie [Night at the Museum] Scrat [Banjo-Kazooie]

Theo the Triceratops [Prehistoric Park] Psittacosaurus [Paleo Pines]

Babycerasaurus [Yu-Gi-Oh!] Quackpot [Dinosaucers]

Armored Kincaller [Magic the Gathering] Ardun [Xenoblade]

King Dodongo [The Legend of Zelda] Scrotty [Banjo-Kazooie]

Maisuke [Doraemon] Jurrac Iguanon [Yu-Gi-Oh!]

Nasaur [Fossil Fighters] Triceratops Dinozord [Power Rangers]

Rodger Blair [Dino Squad] Dweeb [We're Back: A Dinosaur's Story]

Triceratops [Dinosaur Arcade] Rhenoplos [Monster Hunter]

Salada [Fossil Fighters] Kestodon [Monster Hunter]

"Triceratops" [Simba the King Lion] Baby Bop [Barney]

Wonderdon [DC] Cera [Land Before Time]

Pervatasaurus Leeri [The Onion] Treyzer [Bakugan]

Professor Steg [Fortunately, the Milk] Aptonoth [Monster Hunter]

Wuerhosaurus [Paleo Pines] Stego Cyber [Yu-Gi-Oh!]

Url [Dinosaur (2000)] Darkyloseid [DC]

Ankylo Hammer Zord [Power Rangers] Snowflake Stegosaurus [Dinosaur Arcade]

Umasou [You Are Umasou] Bellowing Aegisaur [Magic the Gathering]

Scelidosaurus [Paleo Pines] Ankylomon [Digimon]

Stegmutt [Darkwing Duck] Stego [Dinosaucers]

Dromosaur [Magic the Gathering] Stegosaurus [Fantasia]

Stego Spike Zord [Power Rangers] Hard Rock [Extreme Dinosaurs]

Anguirus [Toho/Monsterverse] Bargasaurus [Banjo-Kazooie]

Lowjaw Minmi [Flight Rising] Ankylo [Dinosaucers]

Chase [Transformers] Bumpy [Jurassic Park]

Saberback [Transformers] Tank [Dinosaur King]

Stegz [Extreme Dinosaurs] Spike [Land Before Time]

Lorenzo [Dinosaurs for Hire] Dorothy the Dinosaur [The Wiggles]

Apceros [Monster Hunter] Slobber Tooth [Skylanders]

Stogg [My Singing Monster] Stegomon [Digimon]

Snarl [Transformers] Dazzle [Dazzle the Dinosaur]

Erwin Caruso [Dino Squad] Black Stego [Yu-Gi-Oh!]

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

Saurischian Bracket (Round 1)

Jurrac Guiaba [Yu-Gi-Oh!] Stegosaurus [asdfmovie]

Jurrac Brachis [Yu-Gi-Oh!] Mechazaurus [Mega Man]

Borun-tosaurus [Kirby] Chomposaur [Earthbound]

Meganium [Pokemon] Denver [Denver, the Last Dinosaur]

Titanus [Power Rangers] Alpha [Dinosaur Planet]

Heatwave [Transformers] Molly [The Amazing World of Gumball]

Chomby [Neopets] Infected Argentinosaurus [Primal]

Kommo-o [Pokemon] Littlefoot [Land Before Time]

Magmasaur [Magic the Gathering] UltimateBrachiomon [Digimon]

Sauropod Brachion [Yu-Gi-Oh!] Diplodocus [Walking With Dinosaurs]

Larinoth [Monster Hunter] Beylene [Dinosaur (2000)]

Queen [One Piece] Todd [Dinosaur Office]

Bob [Dinosaur Bob] Arlo [The Good Dinosaur]

Dino [The Flintstones] Bronto Thunder [Dinosaucers]

Gertie the Dinosaur [Gertie the Dinosaur] Aurorus [Pokemon]

Dippy [Teenage Mutant NInja Turtles] Ultimate Humungousaur [Ben 10]

Yobby [Tumblr User @iguanamouth's Dream] Tropius [Pokemon]

Dippy [Banjo-Kazooie] Brachiosaur [Final Fantasy]

Humungousaur [Ben 10] Frigi [Fossil Fighters]

Supersaur [DC] The Dinosaur [Danny and the Dinosaur]

Millesaur [Xenoblade] Sludge [Transformers]

Firecracker [Jurassic Park] Slog [Transformers]

Dink [Dink the Little Dinosaur] Brachio [Dinosaucers]

Wetnosaur [Earthbound] Isisaurus [Prehistoric Planet]

Jurrac Gallim [Yu-Gi-Oh!] Scorn [Transformers]

Duna [Fossil Fighters] Jokerzard [DC]

Yoshi Kid [Super Mario] Zuum [Monster Rancher]

Jurrac Spinos [Yu-Gi-Oh!] Flashraptor [DC]

Fiona Flagstaff [Dino Squad] Etali, Primal Conqueror [Magic the Gathering]

Blue [Jurassic Park] Rudy [Ice Age]

Doug Jones [The Velocipastor] Avinychus [Dinosaur Simulator]

Souleating Oviraptor [Yu-Gi-Oh!] Anchovy [Teenage Mutant NInja Turtles]

Compsognathus [Paleo Pines] Mr. Conductor [Dinosaur Train]

Page One [One Piece] Cyber Gallimimus [Dinosaur Arcade]

Jurrac Stauriko [Yu-Gi-Oh!] Birdetta [Super Mario]

Indoraptor [Jurassic Park] Amped Raptor [Magic the Gathering]

Aquanyx [DC] Spino Zord [Power Rangers]

Yoshi [Super Mario] Ozzy and Strut [Land Before Time]

Voodoo Microraptor [Dinosaur Arcade] Raptor Red [Raptor Red]

Utahraptor [Quantz Comics] Spinosaurus [Jurassic Park]

Dr. Dinosaur [Atomic Robo] Gunfighter Dino [Spyro the Dragon]

Spinoraptor [Jurassic Park] Mutant Niptor [Neopets]

Dromiceiomimus [Quantz Comics] Tzitzi-Ya-Ku [Monster Hunter]

Chaos Therizinosaurus [Dinosaur Arcade] Diego Brando [JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure]

Sunrise Troodo [Flight Rising] Mononykus [Prehistoric Planet]

Old Lace [Marvel] Mr. Robustus [Reverse Jurassic Park]

Great Wroggi [Monster Hunter] Talon [Primal Rage]

Dinobot [Transformers] Smoking Utahraptor [Walking With Dinosaurs]

Spinomon [Digimon] White Tip [Dinosaur Planet]

The Raptor [Toronto Raptors] Kyraptor [Coromon]

Spino [Fossil Fighters] Jellysaur [Cookie Run]

The Big One / Clever Girl [Jurassic Park] Pantalaza [Magic the Gathering]

Skateboarding Coelophysis [Walking With Dinosaurs] Hook [Bakugan]

Helovolk [Nexomon] Riptor [Killer Instinct]

Tree Creeper [Primeval] Menou [Naruto]

Mr. Pilkington [The Critic] TNT Dino [Spyro the Dragon]

Great Izuchi [Monster Hunter] Night Feeder [Primal]

Jurrac Giganoto [Yu-Gi-Oh!] Alex [Tekken]

Chaos, Limbo, and Grim [Jurassic Park] Jurrac Herra [Yu-Gi-Oh!]

Emperor Hugo Khan [Dinotopia] Princess Dei [Dinosaucers]

Deinocheirus [Prehistoric Planet] Rhedosaurus [The Beast from 20,000 Fathoms]

Therizinosaurus [Paleo Pines] Burnsaurus [Princess Connect Re:Dive!]

Spiny [Dinosaur King] Seikret [Monster Hunter]

Pod [Dinosaur Planet] Black Veloci [Yu-Gi-Oh!]

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

T-Rex and Friends Bracket (Round 1)

Ultimate Tyranno [Yu-Gi-Oh!] Geno Breaker [Zoids]

Anjanath [Monster Hunter] Dino-Rang [Skylanders]

Ultimate Conductor Tyranno [Yu-Gi-Oh!] Lava Lizard [Spyro the Dragon]

Burn Dinorex [Mega Man] Giganta [DC]

Tyranno Infinity [Yu-Gi-Oh!] Toro [Jurassic Park]

Carney [Parry and Carney] SkullGreymon [Digimon]

Tyrannosaurus Dinozord [Power Rangers] Chote [Teenage Mutant NInja Turtles]

D-Rex [Kirby] Tyrantrum [Pokemon]

Dino [Monster Rancher] Devil Dinosaur [Marvel]

Traumador the Tyrannosaur [The Tyrannosaur Chronicles] Hank [Prehistoric Planet]

Indominus Rex [Jurassic Park] T-Rex [Google Dino Run]

Tyrannomon [Digimon] Rockstar [Inazuma Eleven]

Tyranniqueen [Persona] Heart [You Are Umasou]

T-Rox [My Singing Monster] Roberta/Rexy [Jurassic Park]

Buddy [Dinosaur Train] Doodle Beast Tyranno [Yu-Gi-Oh!]

Mechagodzilla [Toho/Monsterverse] Scorpius Rex [Jurassic Park]

Dino Agito [Beyblade] Atrocitaurus [DC]

Archie [Dinosaurs for Hire] T-Rex [Astrobot]

Bonehead [Dinosaucers] Fang [Primal]

Tyrano [Chrono Cross] Tyrranax [Magic the Gathering]

Greymon [Digimon] Jurrac Titano [Yu-Gi-Oh!]

Broken Jaw [Dinosaur Revolution] Matilda the T-Rex [Prehistoric Park]

Taurox [Deadsound's Dinosauria/Sauria] Chomper [Land Before Time]

Little Das [Dinosaur Planet] Afsan [The Quintaglio Ascension]

Ace [Dinosaur King] Reptar [Rugrats]

MetalGreymon (Virus) [Digimon] Rex [We're Back: A Dinosaur's Story]

Magnificent Digalus [Xenoblade] RustTyrannomon [Digimon]

Trypticon [Transformers] Megavore [Dinosaur Simulator]

T-Rex in F-14 [Calvin and Hobbes] Rex [Toy Story]

Rosie [Neopets] Colossal Dreadmaw [Magic the Gathering]

Igno [Fossil Fighters] Tyrannosaur [Final Fantasy]

Mr. Patch [Banjo-Kazooie] Freezy Rex [Kirby]

Chopper [Skylanders] T-Rex [Tomb Raider]

T-Rex [Doraemon] Carnozord [Power Rangers]

Grimlock [Transformers] Diablo [Primal Rage]

Tyregg [Nexomon] Vastatosaurus rex [King Kong]

Tina Rex [The Amazing World of Gumball] Black Tyrrano [Chrono Trigger]

Goodsie [Dinosaurchestra] Ferocisaurus [Dragonball]

Speckles [Speckles the Tarbosaurus] Rolf Maxwell [Dino Squad]

Allo [Dinosaucers] FrostBaron Tyrannosaurus [Dinosaur Arcade]

Gorosaurus [Toho/Monsterverse] Iris [Overlord]

Rankar Dragon [Xenogears] Agumon [Digimon]

El Dinosaurio Anacleto [31 Minutos] Godzilla [Toho/Monsterverse]

Skeleton Rex [Castlevania] T-Bone [Extreme Dinosaurs]

Cyclops [Dino Crisis] Deviljho [Monster Hunter]

Bat Walker [DC] Guilmon [Digimon]

Vampire T-Rex [With Animation You Can!] Speega [Teenage Mutant NInja Turtles]

T-Rex [Super Mario] Barney [Barney]

Rexy [Night at the Museum] General Scales [Star Fox]

X Drake [One Piece] Sharptooth [Land Before Time]

Torakor [Neopets] Baby [Dinosaurs]

Carnotaurs [Dinosaur (2000)] Momma Dino [Ice Age]

T-Rex [Quantz Comics] Trox [Bakugan]

Albino Terror [Dinosaur Simulator] Gergoth [Castlevania]

Galem Darkhand [Neopets] Odo [Live A Live]

Tyrannomon X [Digimon] T-Rex [Fantasia]

Bio Rex [F-Zero] Gon [Gon]

Tiny [Meet the Robinsons] T-Rex [Xiaolin Showdown]

Theodore Rex [Theodore Rex] Baby T [Crash Bandicoot]

Hauzer [Red Earth] Stumpy [Dinosaur Revolution]

Kaosseffexx Ultimasauria [Ben 10] Cosmic Allosaurus [Dinosaur Arcade]

Terry [Dinosaur King] Taurox's Carnotaurus [Deadsound's Dinosauria/Sauria]

Quincy (Dream) [Foxtrot] Quantasaurus Rex [Power Rangers]

Mecha Drago [Earthbound] Tinkerbelle [Dinosaur Revolution]

[cecilysass]

I just saw your tags on the fanfiction asks about your favourite tropes and took it as an invitation to send you one as well. 😉

So, I'd love to hear your thoughts on 13, 14, and 16 from the fanfiction asks. No pressure, of course. Only if you want to.

All of these asks are from the angst section, which is fitting because it is probably my favorite genre.

13. Has a fic ever made you cry? Okay here's the thing: fics make me cry constantly. I will say a fic I remember especially making me cry is Song of Innocence by Christy. Emotionally destroyed, even though it ends happily. I also remember crying a lot with The Fox Mulder Phonetic Alphabet by storeybycorey. That last chapter: get out of here. I probably cried most recently with one of @oohnotvery's fics.

14. What tropes/elements/scenarios get you the worst? I like an emotional revelation of any kind---probably best of all elements in fanfic. And I'm such a basic girl with jealousy, okay? I just like it as a catalyst so much. (Although I'm not as much a big "revenge on Diana" girl; that doesn't push any buttons for me.) I like jealousy to hurt quite a bit. Like Pilgrims Creeping Towards the Dawn, Scully-hears-Diana-in-the-background-of-a-phone-call-when-she's-calling-because-he's-late-for-a-date pain. Yesssss. But I do like there to be a MSR catharsis at the end. I also like misunderstanding. I like separation for several years and difficult reunion fics, too. I wish there were so many more marriage of convenience fics because I would ALWAYS read those. I don't like "happy ever after" suburban domestic fics, but I will certainly do fics having to do with kids if they're complex, which the show sort of lends itself to.

16. How do you feel about character death in fics? Well, first, without tags, I haaaate it. Should always be tagged. If it's tagged, I am not entirely closed minded about it. Some fics, where it is used in unexpected ways, I love. (See: And if I make my bed in Sheol by three guesses.) I'm definitely leery of major character death, though, since it's not something I want to experience with the characters. I'll never say never though.

[kits-shrine]

The growl got a little louder.

The intern hesitated looking a lot more leery "Its not rabid is it?"

"No." Ralph's eye twitched.

Looking unsure he went back to reading and loading a syringe. Then... just stared at them unwilling to try giving it the shot.

Sigh the body guard took the needle "I'll be pissed if you bite me." he informed the fox before injecting the medicine into it's neck scruff.

[misfitwashere]

September 10, 2024

Heather Cox Richardson

Sep 11, 2024

Former president Trump has always approached debates as professional wrestling events in which the key is not to explain policies or answer questions, but rather to demonstrate dominance over your opponent. In 2016 the Democratic nominee, former secretary of state Hillary Clinton, had a hard time countering this strategy effectively because of the many expectations of what was appropriate behavior for a female presidential candidate. In 2020 and then again in the June 2024 “debate,” Democratic candidate Joe Biden’s stutter made it difficult to counter Trump’s scattershot attacks.

The question for Democratic presidential nominee Vice President Kamala Harris in tonight’s presidential debate was not how to answer policy questions, but how to counter Trump’s dominance displays while also appealing to the American people.  

She and her team figured it out, and today they played the former president brilliantly. He took the bait, and tonight he self-destructed. In a live debate, on national television. 

The Harris campaign began the day trolling Trump with a new campaign ad featuring the pieces of former president Barack Obama’s speech at the August Democratic National Convention that concerned Trump. “Here’s a 78-year-old billionaire”—the ad cuts to a photo of Trump in a golf cart—“who has not stopped whining about his problems.” Then a clip of Trump shows him complaining about Harris’s crowds, before Obama notes Trump’s “weird obsession with crowd sizes,” complete with Obama’s hand motion suggesting Trump’s sizes were small. “It just goes on, and on, and on,” Obama says, before the ad shows empty seats and people yawning at Trump’s rallies.

“America’s ready for a new chapter,” Obama says to the overflow crowd cheering at Chicago’s United Center during the Democratic National Convention. “We are ready for a President Kamala Harris!” At the end, even Harris’s standard statement, “I’m Kamala Harris and I approved this message,” sounds like a challenge.

This morning, the Harris campaign began running the ad on the Fox News Channel. 

At the same time, they began running Philadelphia-themed ads across the city on billboards, in the Philadelphia Inquirer, and on food trucks and taxi cabs, sidewalk art, and digital projections making fun of Trump’s fascination with crowd sizes. They showed, for example, a full-sized Philadelphia pretzel labeled “Harris” alongside a piece of one that looked like an upside down U labeled “Trump.”

The taunting might have been behind Trump’s demand for loyalty from Republican lawmakers this afternoon, telling them to shut down the government if he doesn’t get his way on the inclusion of a voter suppression measure in the bill to fund the government. The right has often relied on threats of government shutdowns to try to get their way, but such shutdowns are never popular, and even moderate Republicans are leery of launching one just before an election.

Nonetheless, Trump tried to lock them into such a shutdown, reiterating in a post this afternoon the lie that undocumented immigrants are voting in presidential elections. “If Republicans in the House, and Senate, don’t get absolute assurances on Election Security, THEY SHOULD, IN NO WAY, SHAPE, OR FORM, GO FORWARD WITH A CONTINUING RESOLUTION ON THE BUDGET. THE DEMOCRATS ARE TRYING TO ‘STUFF’ VOTER REGISTRATIONS WITH ILLEGAL ALIENS. DON’T LET IT HAPPEN—CLOSE IT DOWN.” 

Throughout the day, the Harris campaign placed posts on social media showing Harris looking crisp and presidential and Trump looking old and unkempt. And then, for ten minutes in the hour before the debate, the Harris campaign held a drone show over the Philadelphia Museum of Art showing campaign slogans and then turning the words “MADAM VICE PRESIDENT” into “MADAM PRESIDENT.” 

Hugo Lowell of The Guardian reported today that Trump’s advisors were concerned ahead of the debate about whether they would get “happy Trump” or “angry Trump,” worrying that a frustrated Trump would engage in the vicious personal attacks that turn voters off. They expressed relief that having the microphones muted when it was not a candidate’s turn to speak would prevent Harris from irritating him with fact checks and snark of her own. Conservative lawyer George Conway noted that it was “[i]nteresting how one campaign is extremely concerned about the emotional stability of its candidate, and how the other is not.”

Harris’s attacks on Trump, including her campaign’s subtle digs at his masculinity, appeared to have accomplished what they set out to. When the two came out on stage, he went straight to his podium, while she strode across the stage, moved into his space, held out her hand, introduced herself and wished him well: “Kamala Harris. Have a good debate.” He muttered in response, “Nice to see you.” Then she took her own spot at the podium. When the debate opened, it was clear that Harris was the dominant figure and that her opponent was “angry Trump.” He would not look at her during the debate.

In her first answer, Harris tried to set out both her own story as a child of the middle class and how she intended to build an opportunity economy for others, lowering food and housing costs and opening the way for more small businesses. It was a lot, quickly, and she looked a little nervous.

Then Trump spoke and it was clear he was going off the rails. His first comment was to suggest Harris was lying, and then to insist that his proposed tariffs will solve everything, although he has the way tariffs work entirely backward: they are paid by the consumer, not by foreign countries. As he followed with a long list of his rally lies, Harris started to smile.  

From then on, he continued to produce rally stories full of wild exaggerations and attack Harris with lies in what CNN fact-checker Daniel Dale called “a staggeringly dishonest debate performance from former president Trump.” "No major presidential candidate before Donald Trump has ever lied with this kind of frequency,” Dale said. “A remarkably large chunk of what he said tonight was just not true. This wasn't little exaggerations, political spin. A lot of his false claims were untethered to reality." As Harris spoke directly to the American people, growing stronger and stronger, Trump got wilder and angrier and told more and more crazy stories. 

And then, about ten minutes into the debate, Harris baited him. She invited the American people to go to one of his rallies, where “he talks about fictional characters like Hannibal Lecter, he will talk about ‘windmills cause cancer.’ And what you will also notice is that people start leaving his rallies early out of exhaustion and boredom.” 

Trump lost it. He defended his rallies, said Harris couldn’t get anyone to attend hers and has to bus in attendees (in reality, her rallies are packed and he is the one who reportedly hires attendees), and then, in his fury, repeated the lie about immigrants eating pets. When a moderator fact-checked that story, he fought back, saying he heard it on television.

And from then on, Harris kept baiting him while explaining her own policies directly to the camera, and he took the bait every single time. He ran down every rabbit hole and appeared unable to finish a thought. Notably, he refused to say he would not sign a national abortion ban and admitted that after nine years of promising one, he had no health care plan (he has, he said, “concepts of a plan,” and if they pan out, he’ll let us know in the “not too distant future”). 

He threatened World War III and repeated that the U.S. is “a failing nation.” He told a long story about threatening “Abdul,” the leader of the Taliban; in fact, the leader of the Taliban since 2016 is Mullah Hibatullah Akhundzada. In response to Harris’s statement that foreign leaders thought he was a disgrace, Trump answered that Hungarian prime minister Viktor Orbán, who destroyed his country’s democracy and replaced it with a dictatorship, says he’s a good leader. New York Times columnist David French wrote: “It's like she's debating MAGA Twitter come to life.”

The debate moderators, David Muir and Linsey Davis of ABC, asked solid questions and corrected the most egregious of Trump’s lies. But as he continued to interrupt and yell at Harris, they increasingly gave him leeway to do so. This meant he spoke more often and for more time than Harris; MSNBC’s Stephanie Ruhle reported that he spoke 39 times for a total of 41.9 minutes, to her 23 times for a total of 37.1 minutes. But the extra time did him no favors.

By the end of the evening, Harris had delivered a clear message about her hopes to move the country forward beyond years of using race to divide people who have far more in common than they have differences. She promised to develop an economy that will build small businesses and support a growing middle class, while protecting rights, including the right to make reproductive decisions without the intrusion of the state. And she showed the nation that Trump can be baited, that he lies freely and incoherently, and—perhaps crucially—that he is no longer the dominant politician in America.  

Immediately after the debate, the Harris campaign continued their demonstration of dominance. Harris-Walz campaign chair Jen O’Malley Dillon released a statement recapping Harris’s strength and Trump’s angry incoherence. She concluded: “Vice President Harris is ready for a second debate. Is Donald Trump?”

Then things got even worse for Trump. 

Music phenomenon Taylor Swift endorsed Harris, telling her 283 million Instagram followers that she felt she had to because of Trump’s earlier reposting of an AI image of her seeming to endorse him. That, she said, “brought me to the conclusion that I need to be very transparent about my actual plans for this election as a voter. The simplest way to combat misinformation is with the truth. I will be casting my vote for Kamala Harris and Tim Walz in the 2024 Presidential Election.”

After explaining why she was supporting Harris and Walz and urging her fans to do their own research, Swift signed off: “Taylor Swift, Childless Cat Lady.”

—

[jacksgreysays]

Fake Fic Title: Seven, For a Secret--Never to be Told.

— Oh shoot I forgot fake fic titles included character and themes. I was going to say Shisui for our favorite Crow adjacent character but honestly any Crow adjacent character for the counting corvids title, and theme chromatic aberration; itsv style.

SHISUI!!!! <3<3<3<3 Also, hello damnsmartblueboxes! Also, also, sorry for the late response, work truly broke me these past few days

Okay, so if we’re doing Into The Spider-verse, but Crow Edition, possible Crows either canon or fanon or AU: Shisui, Amano, Sai, Shikako (because of course there’s an AU out there for this) … oof, who are the other three?

Uzume in an AU in which neither Shisui nor Amano are around to be ANBU Crow T_T

Aoba, maybe?

Which then could do a similar Anko version in an AU in which Aoba isn’t around to be ANBU Crow—although maybe that’s too repetitive of the Uzume one. Maybe it’s just that, in a world where Konoha trusts her (maybe because she sleuths around and is integral in ripping Danzo out of his hole in the ground, thereby saving the Uchiha clan who now have way more political clout, or at the very least, are back to the clout that they had before?) Anko becomes an ANBU and she gets Crow and Aoba—because I will give up ANBU training buddies only when I’m dead—chooses to be ANBU Snake even though everyone is leery of that mask (like everyone is leery of the Fox mask)

… Or is that, maybe, too much of an offshoot/spinoff?

I mean, I always headcanon Mikoto has having been ANBU, though not usually Crow.

… BUT ALSO, in the Spider-verse there are multiples of the same person—with, obviously, Peter Parker being the most common Spiderman—so maybe just different versions of Shisui, Amano, and/or Sai and then the lone Shikako is the outlier? OR it could be that these are distinct Crows, but for the most part, each of them know who the other are—at least by reputation if nothing else—and the fact that no one has any idea who Shikako Nara is (or, bleakly, the ROOT brainwashed non-Shikako version of herself) is the Miles Morales-esque outlier part. SHE’S THE ANOMALY IN THE CROW-VERSE! (But instead of angry, its angsty O_O… or existential?)

Okay, okay, let’s get these Crows in their respective numbers according to the poem, I’m gonna do some logic puzzle nonsense:

Sorrow, Joy, Girl, Boy, Silver, Gold, Secret Never To Be Told

Obviously Shikako is a Secret Never Told. I feel like Uzume would be either Sorrow or Girl, meaning Amano would be the matching Joy or Boy because I want them to be complementary. Then Aoba, Mikoto, Shisui, Sai… let’s see… if Uzume is not Girl, then we could do Mikoto as Girl in a “young Mikoto becomes ANBU Crow because it’s the only way she can see any action because the Uchiha clan is being weirdly gross and misogynistic and are blocking her from taking any risky missions because they want her to marry Fugaku and have extremely powerful heirs with him” kind of way

And while not EXACTLY matching as nicely as Uzume and Amano, I feel like I could then explore my Aoba headcanon as a partial!Uchiha with Boy. And, boy, do I have a weirdly specific headcanon about partial!Uchiha Aoba stumbling into both the Crow summons (he reverse summoned himself!) and the Crow mask—both very Uchiha flavored inheritances—only after the Uchiha Massacre when he is an adult and 1) wouldn’t use the name, but also 2) wouldn’t be able to rub it in the face of the clan that rejected him and his non-Uchiha parent, especially if he was like… a bastard Uchiha child who was never claimed. ( @loveelemental and I had a discord brainstorming session about an Aoba centric fic in which his partial Uchiha heritage makes for a fascinating post-Jashin Sharingan activation, which is where we came up with a lot of details for this partial!Uchiha theory)

Which then leaves Silver and Gold for Shisui and Sai… which feels pretty good? I’d probably—because I’m biased—make Shisui Gold and Sai Silver because even if they are both (maybe) Uchiha, Shisui just FEELS more sun coded even though his Sharingan is “unbreakable genjutsu”, while Sai is moon coded (and also you can get into his brother Shin, the silver of his hair, the shine of moon on blades, and similes of second place and how even as Hikaku no one really wants him first and foremost the way that his brother Shin did T_T sad boy)

So I guess the fic would be these different ANBU Crows somehow interacting with each other, and honestly the easiest way to do this would be Crow!Shikako does a sort of seal space/pocket dimension/temporary mission team using the ANBU Crow mask as a cornerstone. An “I’ve gathered you all here because we all need to murder our respective Danzos, and together we can all help each other do that. Also, imagine the satisfaction of killing Danzo seven times… or more, if he already has Izanagi”

Another way is a more contemplative/abstract “echoes/ghosts of possible timelines” thing in which, again, the ANBU Crow mask is, like, a liminal space. But wearable. Haunted or cursed? And to make it even more angsty the echoes/ghosts only appear when you’re about to die… which, to be fair, ANBU, probably pretty often?

I guess what my brain is trying to do is more of a multi-versal Sense8 than an Into The Spider-verse thing… hm… I don’t hate it at all… it could be fun to puzzle out some more…

... I also realized, for all that I was very excited about your Shisui mention, I literally mentioned him the least, lolol

Anyway, I hope this makes sense and is interesting to you, damnsmartblueboxes :D

[guiltyidealist]

IMPORTANT UPDATE

Please bear this in mind for the rest of the post (I've left the rest unedited)

I feel leery toward this game "The Cenozoic Era" on Steam.

Much like WolfQuest, it's an animal survival sim.

As you can see, it has most of the animals WolfQuest does (and more) and uses all of the same models for them, from the elk to the foxes to the cougars to the bears to the wolf pups (which they use as fox kits lmao??) to the mule deer and even the planned bighorn sheep. Which is fine-- WQ doesn't own those models and others can purchase and use them too.

But its adult wolf models.

They aren't the exact WQ models -- you can tell by proportions and the places where the legs meet the body -- but they are clearly heavily referencing them. This matters because WQ DOES own the sole rights to their adult wolf models. These look like if you prompted an artist to make a wolf model from scratch, but instructed them to make it as identical to the WQ model as legally reasonable.

Even the skins on 'em look strikingly similar to WQ's coats. They aren't direct steals, but nonetheless seem to take after Dave & company's work.

The first wolf calls the NPC coat Frosty to mind, the second is fairly unique but bears some resemblance to the Luna & NPC Eyebrows coats, and the third looks a bit Boltz-inspired.

It feels cheap, as though they're trying to cash in on WolfQuest's success by mimicking its look, and it makes me feel irritated.

[darkmaga-retard]

By Monica Showalter

President Trump came out the clear winner in the presidential debate, presenting the case for his re-election, laying out the Harris-Biden failures, and confidently going on Fox News to comment on his performance afterwards, as the Kamala Harris camp threw out the possibility of a second debate, in October. Candidates who are losing are the ones who like do-overs.

The moderators -- ABC's David Muir, and Linsey whatshername stunk, with unusual bias seen in both, fact-checking Trump while giving Kamala a pass on obvious and tired whoppers, pushing the abortion-as-health-care narrative, they were vile, and shouldn't be allowed to ever moderate again.

Sure, there were a few things Trump could have done better -- I would have liked more discussion on inflation and its impact on groceries, gas stations, rent, mortgages, car insurance, health care, 401(k)s, credit card debt, college, vacation spending, car parts, and the like, which are all the direct byproduct of four years of Kamala Harris and Joe Biden's money spending on green garbage projects, crony handouts, warbucks, and handing welfare cash out to illegals and fraudsters. I would have liked a stronger defense of free markets and build-your-own health insurance. I was very leery of his tariff talk, which does drive up the prices of goods, though if it is carefully done may be minimally harmful -- why so much time on it, and who's talking about tariffs when the 401(k)s are shriveling? I wish he would have spent more time with Elon Musk who understands these things in debate preparation.

[catragemiau]

The saloon dwellers 🔆

[annwrites]

We need Gwayne's story, there aren't that many stories of him and Freddie Fox is too handsome to be ignored (except when he wears that red hair wig as Gwayne, he looks like jelly barely curdling with that wig).

I have the thing fully plotted, tbh. And chapter one is the majority of what I put on my little 'idea' post.

I just don't know that I should start posting actual chapters yet, because I'm leery to begin another fic when I have so many others going at the moment, lol.

[wifegideonnav]

thoughts on the sunshine court news? I found your blog on Boop Day :)

hi!! im… cautiously excited lol. i was never that into jean as a character (or jeremy for that matter) but that was mostly because he’s a not very fleshed out tertiary character in aftg, so im going in with an open mind. its uhhh very intriguing that nora deleted the extra content a few weeks ago, bc that’s the main thing im feeling leery about: whether and how she will canonize certain things from the ec and how much the foxes are going to show up. ideally, she would mostly leave the foxes entirely out of it besides a few mentions or cameos (except obviously kevin and mayyybe a little neil). hopefully the fact that she deleted the ec means that she’s learned better since then and will let the foxes’ stories be over. the only exception is robin im gonna be honest i do want robin to be canon lol. however given that she doesn’t show up until neil’s 4th year it’s def unlikely that she’d be in the time frame that the duology covers sooo mostly im just praying that nora has had the good sense to leave well enough alone. im also VERY curious to see how her understanding and depiction of mental health have evolved lmfao although im not expecting much 💀 so yeah overall im excited but i do think there are a lot of potential places where nora could have fucked up and accidentally written a bad book lmao. we will see!!

[otdiaftg]

Kevin grabs him for night practice and Neil thinks about Matt's offer the entire ride to the stadium. He doesn't bring it up though. Kevin isn't the right person to start with, though Neil figures he'd agree if there is a court close enough.

Nicky would be the easiest person to convince, maybe. Neil could only imagine how Aaron would react, but since none of them had family it might be worth a shot. Neil was a little leery of meeting Matt's mother, but after Thanksgiving he was curious to see how normal people spent holidays. As normal as the Foxes could be, rather.

Day: Wednesday, November 29th Time: 10:00 PM EST

[aita4makingachickensmoothie]

New name and pfp! :D If I'm honest, I was getting a liiiiiiiittle leery of having a username with a swear implied in it on a site that disallows swearing (I think?), so I just smashed together two of the types of pets I like to collect :D Also look at my cute lil rainbow fox!! The fox litter this month has made me SO happy ♥