#like is it just cat bias? is that what it is? is it the myth that cats can never be loyal to their ppl?

[helianthologies]

i think part of the reason tbk were so quick to jump on kalina "betraying" cassandra and conspiring against her is probly bc of the ankarna plotline with porter and her other followers betraying her only to kill her but like..... i think the key difference is that porter was just some fucking guy who wanted power and kalina was cassandras Familiar. her most loyal confidante. like im sure kalina DID want power but i think her trying to bring back the nightmare king was more a desperate move to save her goddess. and maybe a misguided idea that shed be "safer" and more able to protect herself from her followers if she was the nightmare king instead. bc it WASNT kalina that killed her! it was the mortals! kalina just followed her where she went!!

[simjaexy]

Where Stars Meet

Pairing: Idol Bf! Yang Jungwon x Gn! Reader

Synopsis: You and Jungwon decided to have a date at the park.

Genre: Fluff

Warnings: None!

Notes: Jungwon has been bias wrecking me so I made a drabble.

The sun was beginning to set, casting a golden glow over the park where you and Jungwon had decided to meet.

It was a rare evening where both of you had some free time, and you wanted to make the most of it.

As you hugged him, you noticed he had a bag with him, “What’s with the bag?” You asked.

Jungwon gave you a teasing smile, “Just for later.” He responded.

As you walked along the path lined with cherry blossom trees, Jungwon reached out and gently took your hand. His touch was warm and reassuring, and you felt a flutter in your chest.

“How has college been?” Jungwon suddenly questioned.

“It’s been nice, me and my friends planned on hanging out at the library to study.” You said. Jungwon hummed in response.

“What about you?” You said.

He looked at you with his cat like eyes, “I’ve been getting there with the members.” He responded. You giggled at his response.

You understand how hard working he’s been lately, so you don’t pressure him that often anymore.

You could tell that he’s tired, but he wanted to spend time with you as much as possible until their next comeback. You were grateful that Jungwon didn’t forget you.

The two of you strolled in comfortable silence, enjoying the beauty of the moment and each other's company.

Eventually, you found a cozy spot by the lake, where the water reflected the hues of the setting sun.

Jungwon spread out a blanket he'd brought along, and you both sat down, leaning against each other.

He pulled out a small box from his bag, revealing a selection of your favorite snacks.

"I thought we could have a little picnic," he said with a shy smile.

You couldn't help but smile back, touched by his thoughtfulness.

As you shared the snacks and talked about everything and nothing, the world seemed to fade away, leaving just the two of you in your own little bubble of happiness.

As the sky darkened and stars began to appear, Jungwon wrapped an arm around you, pulling you closer. "I'm really glad we could spend this time together," he whispered. "It feels like everything is perfect when I'm with you."

You looked up at him, your heart swelling with affection. "Me too, Jungwon. This is perfect."

Under the starlit sky, you both felt an unspoken promise of many more beautiful moments to come.

The night grew cooler, and Jungwon noticed you shiver slightly. Without a word, he took off his jacket and draped it over your shoulders.

“I don't want you to catch a cold," he said softly, his eyes filled with concern.

"Thank you," you replied, snuggling into the warmth of his jacket. "You're always so thoughtful."

Jungwon's cheeks flushed slightly, and he looked away, a small smile playing on his lips. "I just want to make sure you're comfortable and happy."

You leaned your head against his shoulder, feeling a sense of contentment wash over you. "You always do," you murmured.

As the evening went on, you both lay back on the blanket, gazing up at the stars.

Jungwon pointed out constellations, sharing stories and myths associated with them. His voice was soothing, and you found yourself getting lost in his words.

"Did you know," Jungwon began, "that some people believe if you see a shooting star and make a wish, it will come true?"

You looked at him, intrigued. "Really? Have you ever made a wish on a shooting star?"

He nodded, a distant look in his eyes. "I have. And some of those wishes have come true."

Just as he finished speaking, a shooting star streaked across the sky.

You both gasped in unison, and without thinking, you closed your eyes and made a wish.

When you opened them, you found Jungwon looking at you intently.

"What did you wish for?" he asked, his voice barely above a whisper.

You hesitated for a moment, then decided to be honest. "I wished for more moments like this with you."

Jungwon's eyes softened, and he reached out to gently cup your cheek. "I wished for the same thing," he admitted.

In that moment, it felt as though the universe had aligned just for the two of you.

The connection you shared was deep and undeniable, and you knew that this evening was something you won’t forget.

As the night wore on, you both reluctantly decided it was time to head back. Jungwon helped you up and packed away the picnic items.

Hand in hand, you walked back through the park, the cherry blossom trees now bathed in the soft light of the moon.

When you reached your house, Jungwon walked you to your door.

He paused for a moment, looking into your eyes. "Thank you for tonight," he said sincerely. "It was perfect."

"Thank you, Jungwon," you replied. "I had an amazing time."

He leaned in and placed a gentle kiss on your forehead. "Goodnight," he whispered.

"Goodnight," you echoed, watching as he walked away, a smile on your lips.

As you closed the door behind you, you couldn't help but feel that same feeling of warmth across your chest.

With Jungwon by your side, you knew that many more romantic evenings awaited.

[dailydemonspotlight]

Barong - Day 25

Race: Avatar

Alignment: Light-Neutral

April 24th, 2024

I'd like to start this daily demon spotlight with an admittance of bias. Barong is my favorite demon in the series, bar none. In celebration of making it to 25 (!!) days of this series, I've decided to let the holy cat out of the bag. Barong is the demon that introduced me to Balinese mythology, has saved my hide several times throughout the series, and has an adorable and unique design to boot. He stands right next to, if not above Black Frost and Chernobog in my book. Past that, though, I would also like to say- thank you all for sticking with me for 25 days! It's been so damn fun, and I plan on continuing this series for months, if not years to come. I know it's a little early for the ivories, but the small community that has been built up over time has given me so much life and energy!

With that sappy stuff out of the way...

Today's demon of the day lies in the form of the great panther, protector of mankind, and host of all things good, Barong. Bali mythology is surprisingly easy to look through, having solid roots and foundations, as well as its origin being in a somewhat small subset of Indonesia, though this isn't to say it's not complex. Balinese mythology takes a unique form, one similar to the worship of Ame-no-Uzume, wherein several of its stories aren't plays nor grand tales, but rather, fascinatingly hypnotic dances. Barong's appearance in these dances is that of a glamorously decorated (and very ambiguous) animal that I would personally say looks somewhat, vaguely similar to a lion?

However, the type of animal it is isn't that important, and admittedly just makes me confused. What is important is Barong's role in Balinese mythology, that being of a protector of humanity itself- in the mythos surrounding Barong and its eternal rival Rangda, Barong represents good health, good fortune, and has reign over all the spirits that inhabit the small province. The most prominent myth featuring the great avatar is recanted in the famous Kris dance, a dance representing Barong battling with Rangda. During the hypnotic trawl, dancers bring swords dangerously close to hurting themselves, though they emerge unscathed, watched over by two dancers in an ornate harness holding up the avatar of Barong who dances furiously behind them.

The dance begins with two monkeys and Barong engaging in dance, though quickly escalates as witches sent by Rangda attack the frolicking group. The dance-drama escalates from there as Barong tries to reign back control over the kingdom, which had found itself under siege by Rangda, eventually leading to the most iconic scene of the play, wherein two palace guards stab themselves with kali daggers in a desperate trance under Rangda's control- though they emerge unscathed as Barong comes to the rescue and engages in battle with the witch, protecting the guards with his holy magic. After a long and fraught dance between Barong and its rival, eventually, the holy avatar emerges victorious, and the kingdom is returned to peace and prosperity.

Barong is not just an artefact of the dance, though- he's an important figure in Balinese tradition, one held in reverence and good spirits, and the dance is simply held to represent the eternal struggle between good and evil, as well as celebrate the triumph of the love and goodness that Barong represents. People equipped in Barong costumes even, on occasion, parade around Balinese towns in order to ward off evil spirits and bad luck. Barong is locked in a never-ending battle against Rangda and the forces of darkness, yet never gives up hope; As a Bali volunteer in the Bali Volunteer Program puts it, "Once the trance is over, Barong and his supporters finally overthrow Rangda. But she does not die. Instead, she reincarnates and Barong must defeat her again. The fight never stops. It is symbolic of light’s eternal strife against darkness."

In the SMT series, Barong is depicted faithfully, though far more blue than red. Decorated in jewels and studded in silver, the Balinese lion dances in combat, easily connecting to the dance-dramas the beast is so frequently depicted in. Interestingly, a common series staple is that of Rangda and Barong's fusion leading to Shiva, and while unconfirmed, I have an idea as to why this may be the case. While Barong and Rangda are from completely different mythologies, they both represent opposing forces of light and dark, something that Shiva, a god of destruction who is not evil, is an inherent blend of- Shiva is both light and dark, good and evil, while Barong is good, light, and Rangda is evil, dark.

All in all, Balinese myth's hypnotic dances and beautiful performances lend to an amazingly designed demon that truly fulfills all it sets out to do, represents an underrepresented mythology, and stands out as my personal favorite demon in the series. Next to Chernobog and Black Frost, of course. And also Parvati. And Mother Harlot. Am I just edgy?

[juyeonszn]

💌 moot game: assign your moots with their bias x romantic tropes (and tell us why!)

whthjwbdr IVE ALWAYS WANTED TO GET ONE OF THESE ASKS!!! i have a good amount of moots that i don’t know all that well so bear with me pls ☝️

— first we have miss @winterchimez and her man sangyeon!!! i think they would fit the mutual pining trope sooooo well. like they’ve been friends for years and have always been attracted to each other, but both are scared of rejection and the thought of ruining their friendship 💔 but then when they finally confess it’s just Perfect.

— okay next would be obvi @sungbeam and the man the myth the legend, ji changmin 🚨 they give academic rivals to lovers sO HARD1!3!2!!2 like always trying to one up each other and be better than the other. but the reason why, is bc they just wanna impress each other and crave their attention 🤭

— alright so i had a bit of trouble deciding with this, but eventually settled on @zzoguri and sunwoo 🫶 moni always talks about how sunwoo will always be their man no matter what, which totally fits the childhood friends to lovers trope imo… like sandbox type love yk??? sunwoo proposed with a ring pop on the playground when they were like 6 and he never looked back bc even though he was a child, he knew they were the one for him forever.

— OK FOR BFF POOKIE WOOKIE @itsbeeble i totally absolutely without a doubt see hyunjae and the one bed trope LMFAOOOO like i’m picturing it now… ur on a trip with ur friend group and ur stuck sharing a room AND a bed… but they can’t stand each other 😭 and then well… sharing a bed changes that

— NEXT IS @mosviqu AND ERIC !!!! i know we aren’t super close yet bar, but based on millennium bug, i think u would so fit the brother’s best friend trope 😎 like eric being so doting and taking care of u bc he has the biggest crush on u and wants u to see him as someone u can always rely on.

— obvi…. @heemingyu and chanhee… be fr sana is the only chanhee stan ever???? LOLLL JK but they fit the best friends to lovers trope <3 like they do everything together, from gossiping about everyone to visiting new restaurants every weekend. when their friend group points out how normal best friends don’t usually cuddle on the couch to watch movies every sunday, that’s when u both realize mayyyyybe u want something more..

— and then @littleroaes and juyo!!! u’d be perfect for the strangers to lovers trope!! ok so picture this; dora, ur walking down the sidewalk and u spot this cute little kitten in the window of a pet shop and ur like omg i need that cat, but then JUYEON ALSO SEES THE CAT AND ALSO WANTS THE CAT… so u argue over who gets the cat until eventually, u decide to just share the cat— despite not even knowing each other. so now ur coparenting a cat with a complete stranger but it’s okay… bc he’s kinda cute…

AND THATS ALL IVE GOT chat lmk in the comments below how u feel about these ‼️

[corvicarum]

@paramythas asked: gimme the ship bias for La Creatura (wuya), kayn and che'nya-

technically already answered here. but. some others id like to explore:

ortho ( besties,, lil pranking pals )

jade ( platonic )

malleus ( platonic )

rook ( buggs bunny & elmer fudd fr )

jamil ( one sided crush lets go )

not a ton. im rlly... rlly picky with kayn actually.

gwen/kayn: oh... oh mythe you already know. you've got me rlly in deep on these two okay. i love the aesthetic, i love the dynamic. especially what we have going right now for hearsteel. i definitely wanna dive into main canon at some point too, because i do think kayn would enjoy her personality a lot? idk, people tend to overlook gwen a lot or misunderstand her as a goody feelsy doll. girl legit runs around with a pair of giant scissors and jokes about cutting people into bits. like?

yone/kayn: this isn't even related to heartsteel tbh. i havent dove a TON into yone's lore but i do like the feeling of the pairing. i think kayn just pairs best with characters who are as ruthless as he is. i like them in their heartsteel au too though...

zoe/kayn: if i see anyone shipping these two romantically im going to strangle someone seriously. but these two as friends? oh my GOD fuck me UP! zoe is just a goofy, cosmic little kid- she's deeply terrifying sure, but! i think she could take the edge off for kayn a bit. plus her being the new aspect of twilight? hello?? theres way more chemistry with them as besties- and even found family. you know, instead of shipping kayn romantically with a fucking child. LOL.

chenya is kinda hard to ship with ngl. he's too carefree, too loosy goosy, and really is just out here doin whatever he wants.

idia/chenya: listen. come on. this is... this is a no brainer. seriously though i do love the potential here, and not just because he's a cat. chenya, at least how i write him anyway- is so whimsical and quirky. he isn't necessarily extroverted, but he isn't a big introvert either. like, he is genuinely a cat through and through. not a beast man, not a fae-- something else. i love the idea of idia having sb who doesn't push him to go way outside his comfort zone-- but wont let him just shut himself off from the rest of the world for too long. dunno. at least with my take on him, this one is a fave.

riddle/chenya: so i could really see these two going p much any direction. i love the two of them just... interacting, regardless of the relationship. chenya has known riddle since they were kids. and a bit like trey, i like to think he knows how to push riddle without him blowing up. there is also the added factor that chenya definitely knows at least in some way, what riddle's home life is like. it's the sort of thing that would make their potential bond that much better. i could rlly go in depth on it but then i'd be here making an entire meta on it lmao.

jade/chenya: funny enough. i think jade and chenya might click really well in long term, more than you'd expect. and yeah, i could see this developing from friends, to more given the appropriate amount of time. chenya would be sooo fascinated by how weird and how deeply fucked up jade actually is. and jade likewise would be really intrigued by chenya's strange and uncanny nature... good stuff.

others i've considered but not given a ton of thought to yet:

chenya/floyd

chenya/vil

chenya/trey

[smokeybrandreviews]

Smokey brand Reviews: Force Sensitivities episode II

I shill for Star Wars hard. I have for years, easily since i was a wee lil Smokey. I say that every time i start one of these essays or reviews because i want to be completely transparent about my bias. Darth Vader is easily one of, if not the, best cinema antagonist, ever, in my opinion. I love this cyborg asshole and everything about him. That first introduction in the beginning of Episode IV was everything. The second James Earl Jones' brilliantly dubbed voice boomed onscreen was it for me. Darth Vader as my dude and my love affair with the franchise began. I say all of this because i am part of the Fandom Menace. Absolutely i am. I cherish Star Wars so watching Kathleen Kennedy decimate my galaxy far, far, away in the name of her own ego, is practically debilitating. And it’s not even like i am averse to the ideas of her changes, you know? I like the idea of Rey. I loved Adam Driver and his Vader-lite, Kylo Ren. I love Oscar Issac so his Han Solo replacement, Po Dameron, already had my heart and Boyega's Finn had all the hallmarks of being something really special. And then Kennedy let Rian Johnson f*ck that sh*t all up.

And then she f*cked up Solo. And then she f*cked up Rise of Skywalker. And then she f*cked up everything else. So little of Star Wars has been good or original on Kennedy’s watch and it’s insane to me people defend this chick because she IS a chick. Bro, she is, objectively, bad at her job. It’s a wonder anything good has come out of Lucasfilm in her tenure. One of those things was Sear Wars Visions. That sh*t slapped hard and, coming off Netflix’s excellent anthology series Love,Death, + Robots, Visions was primed to ravage my senses. And it did. I just found out that the second season dropped to little fanfare, probably because this isn’t really a Kennedy production, much like he first, and her ego refuses to acknowledge anything that doesn’t have her name on it. Anyway, i finally got to check out these brand new takes on an old myth that is struggling to survive.

Sith

What a way to start off your anthology! This one was much stronger than The Duel from last season, in my humble opinion. I loved the use of color and negative space. The combination of such a vibrant palette against those stark whites, or the subtle contrast by those blacks at the climax; Simply brilliant. More than that, the sound design went a long way to setting the tone of this short. It did so much heavy lifting, i was flabbergasted, especially considering how dope the animation turned out. Seriously, Sith is a work of art and masterclass in tension. I was on the edge of my seat with that final duel and it was less than i expected but much more than i needed. El Guiri Studios really gave us something special. Here's hoping Hollywood takes notice and let's these cats really do there thing with a proper budget and creative license.

Screecher's Reach

Another banger right after the first? Yessir! Admittedly, while I like the aesthetic of Screecher's Reach, it was nowhere near as beautiful as The Sith. That said, this one had much, much, more emotional impact. That short, thirteen and change, gave me some of the best character development I've seen out of Disney Star Wars to date! That's not to say the animation and art design wasn't lovely. Cartoon Saloon really brought their A game with this one. The overall short was gorgeous and far more impactful than it had any right to be. Plus, that twist ending! Yo, I don't know who or what that Sith was at the end but I love the look! So deceptive. So insidious. I feel so bad for Daal but so glad I got to see her story.

In the Stars

Not gonna lie, I didn't care for this one. I respect the gumption, for sure, to make a claymation short because they are always so fun to watch but there are several practical limitations to creating animation this way. I'm immediately struck by the lack of color and fluidity in the overall animation. Coming off the first two shorts, this really took away from my viewing experience. On top of that, there is a lot of “Tell, don't show” in this fifteen minutes. Way to much exposition dumped early on. It's like Punkrobot Studios didn't trust the audience to infer all of that from the natural plot progression. It doesn't help that our main protagonist, the one we're supposed to be rooting for, is a reckless ass child. It's such a stark contrast the kids in Screecher's Reach. Yeah, there are merits to In the Stars, they're just not for me. I know this is supposed to be a metaphor of colonialism or whatever but it's just so poorly executed. Plus, I mean, everyone is still dead, the f*ck?

I Am Your Mother

And as if to drive my point home about the claymation thing, I am Your Mother comes along and absolutely puts In The Stars to shame with the same goddamn technique! Aardman really put together something4 special with this short and I mean short. I Am Your Mother is only ten minutes and change but it uses every second of that run time to tell a really heartfelt, coming-of-age, narrative. The overall plot might be a bit derivative but I'm a softy for these types of narratives so I had a great time with it. It's nuts because this is basically the same, overall, plot as In The Stars but Mother does it so much better. More than anything, this feels like Star Wars. You can plop this thing right in with the Prequel era of films and it wouldn't feel out of place at all.

Journey to the Dark Head

So I really, really, liked this on. I think I liked it as much as The Sith and that's saying a lot because that one is probably my favorite of the season. Dark Head is the first traditionally animated short and Studio Mir really put their best foot forward. This f*cking thing was epic! I'm a sucker for anime and, while this technically isn't proper anime, they pay solid homage to that aesthetic. It feels a lot like Avatar in that way and lord knows I love me some Misadventures of Aang and Friends. Probably because Mir is the studio who did Korra. My affection for Korra is much less but I'd be lying if I said that animation wasn't solid. This one was the longest of the lot so far, eighteen minutes, but they used that time to tell a strong story. It's wild to think they'd be able to pack in so much character development, in such a short amount of time, and entire, theatrical length, Star Wars films can't do the same. Rogue One, I'm looking at you.

The Spydancer

Yo, what the f*ck was that?! Holy sh*t, was that solid storytelling! Look, the emotional weight of this sixteen minute was incredible. I mean, of the top, I love the look of the art. The animation was fluid, particular the dancing, and the sound design was everything but the goddamn story, man! How the f*ck did Studio la Cachette do so much, in much little time? Seriously, this was a straight up roller coaster of emotion and I didn't expect that at all. I thought Journey to Dark Head told a complete narrative but The Spydancer does all of that and so much more. Seriously, it's hard not to put this up there with the best of Disney Star Wars and thy did it in sixteen goddamn minutes!

The Bandits of Golak

Another miss for me. Look, I love the Indian inspiration and the CG animation is solid but I don't particular care for the story being told, especially coming off something as emotionally weighty as The Spydancer. Still, 88 Pictures really made the most of their sixteen minutes. I can see why so many people enjoyed this short, even if I, personally, didn't really care for it. That final duel was solid as f*ck, though.

The Pit

Black folks in Star Wars? Let's go! Seriously, there is a distinct lack of color in a galaxy far, far, away so anytime I can get some melanated representation, I'm all in. What do we have so far? Mace, Finn, and Lando? Three prominent black characters over, what is it now? Four goddamn decades? Almost five? Motherf*ckers should be ashamed of themselves. Still, The Pit goes a long way to bridging that gap. Now, I support the f*ck out of D'ART Shtajio but I'd be lying if I said this wasn't the weakest of the shorts in season two. That, and I kind of really hate the Lucasfilm co-sign. None of the other studios needed it. This feels like a Kennedy thing. Gotta take as much credit for the diversity hire as possible, you know? If you didn't now, D'ART Shtajio is the first black owned anime studio. Thy do a lot of support animation for a ton of anime series but this is their first stab at a recognizable franchise like Star Wars where they are allowed to fully do their thing. All that said, The Pit is easily the weakest entry into this season. The narrative is solid and it does a great deal with it's sixteen minutes but this thing doesn't leave nearly the impression of every other short the anthology. Seriously, this thing has a strong message that is kind of undermined by the lack of quality when stood against the rest of the shorts presented.

Aau's Song

Auu's Song closes out this season's entries and, just like the opening, it was a strong choice. Aau's Song feels like a quiet story, intimate and personal, awash in a sea of stars. We  should be fortunate that her tale was told to us with such reverence and respect by Triggering. I was a little suspect at first, being that the two other stop-motion entries were hit-and-miss, but Auu's Song was definitely a hit. I am in love with this aesthetic. It feels like Final Fantasy IX and, if you know me, you know IX is top five for me. I loved the look, but I loved the sound design even more. Auu's song was lovely. Just the vocalizations, alone, were enough to catch my attention but couple that with the underlying tribal drums when sh*t got hairy, and you have a complete story told through your ears. Seriously, you can close your eyes and just listen to this story without missing a narrative beat. I find that absolutely amazing. It's wild to think that Aau's Song can be so god with absolutely no conflict. There are no Sith here, no Empire, no malevolence, just redemption and I kind of love that. The Sith, and to a lesser extent the Empire, were so prominent throughout this season but arguably the second strongest short of the lot, was devoid of anything resembling the dark side, outside of bled Kyber. Absolutely spectacular watch.

[smokeybrand]

Smokey brand Reviews: Force Sensitivities episode II

I shill for Star Wars hard. I have for years, easily since i was a wee lil Smokey. I say that every time i start one of these essays or reviews because i want to be completely transparent about my bias. Darth Vader is easily one of, if not the, best cinema antagonist, ever, in my opinion. I love this cyborg asshole and everything about him. That first introduction in the beginning of Episode IV was everything. The second James Earl Jones' brilliantly dubbed voice boomed onscreen was it for me. Darth Vader as my dude and my love affair with the franchise began. I say all of this because i am part of the Fandom Menace. Absolutely i am. I cherish Star Wars so watching Kathleen Kennedy decimate my galaxy far, far, away in the name of her own ego, is practically debilitating. And it’s not even like i am averse to the ideas of her changes, you know? I like the idea of Rey. I loved Adam Driver and his Vader-lite, Kylo Ren. I love Oscar Issac so his Han Solo replacement, Po Dameron, already had my heart and Boyega's Finn had all the hallmarks of being something really special. And then Kennedy let Rian Johnson f*ck that sh*t all up.

And then she f*cked up Solo. And then she f*cked up Rise of Skywalker. And then she f*cked up everything else. So little of Star Wars has been good or original on Kennedy’s watch and it’s insane to me people defend this chick because she IS a chick. Bro, she is, objectively, bad at her job. It’s a wonder anything good has come out of Lucasfilm in her tenure. One of those things was Sear Wars Visions. That sh*t slapped hard and, coming off Netflix’s excellent anthology series Love,Death, + Robots, Visions was primed to ravage my senses. And it did. I just found out that the second season dropped to little fanfare, probably because this isn’t really a Kennedy production, much like he first, and her ego refuses to acknowledge anything that doesn’t have her name on it. Anyway, i finally got to check out these brand new takes on an old myth that is struggling to survive.

Sith

What a way to start off your anthology! This one was much stronger than The Duel from last season, in my humble opinion. I loved the use of color and negative space. The combination of such a vibrant palette against those stark whites, or the subtle contrast by those blacks at the climax; Simply brilliant. More than that, the sound design went a long way to setting the tone of this short. It did so much heavy lifting, i was flabbergasted, especially considering how dope the animation turned out. Seriously, Sith is a work of art and masterclass in tension. I was on the edge of my seat with that final duel and it was less than i expected but much more than i needed. El Guiri Studios really gave us something special. Here's hoping Hollywood takes notice and let's these cats really do there thing with a proper budget and creative license.

Screecher's Reach

Another banger right after the first? Yessir! Admittedly, while I like the aesthetic of Screecher's Reach, it was nowhere near as beautiful as The Sith. That said, this one had much, much, more emotional impact. That short, thirteen and change, gave me some of the best character development I've seen out of Disney Star Wars to date! That's not to say the animation and art design wasn't lovely. Cartoon Saloon really brought their A game with this one. The overall short was gorgeous and far more impactful than it had any right to be. Plus, that twist ending! Yo, I don't know who or what that Sith was at the end but I love the look! So deceptive. So insidious. I feel so bad for Daal but so glad I got to see her story.

In the Stars

Not gonna lie, I didn't care for this one. I respect the gumption, for sure, to make a claymation short because they are always so fun to watch but there are several practical limitations to creating animation this way. I'm immediately struck by the lack of color and fluidity in the overall animation. Coming off the first two shorts, this really took away from my viewing experience. On top of that, there is a lot of “Tell, don't show” in this fifteen minutes. Way to much exposition dumped early on. It's like Punkrobot Studios didn't trust the audience to infer all of that from the natural plot progression. It doesn't help that our main protagonist, the one we're supposed to be rooting for, is a reckless ass child. It's such a stark contrast the kids in Screecher's Reach. Yeah, there are merits to In the Stars, they're just not for me. I know this is supposed to be a metaphor of colonialism or whatever but it's just so poorly executed. Plus, I mean, everyone is still dead, the f*ck?

I Am Your Mother

And as if to drive my point home about the claymation thing, I am Your Mother comes along and absolutely puts In The Stars to shame with the same goddamn technique! Aardman really put together something4 special with this short and I mean short. I Am Your Mother is only ten minutes and change but it uses every second of that run time to tell a really heartfelt, coming-of-age, narrative. The overall plot might be a bit derivative but I'm a softy for these types of narratives so I had a great time with it. It's nuts because this is basically the same, overall, plot as In The Stars but Mother does it so much better. More than anything, this feels like Star Wars. You can plop this thing right in with the Prequel era of films and it wouldn't feel out of place at all.

Journey to the Dark Head

So I really, really, liked this on. I think I liked it as much as The Sith and that's saying a lot because that one is probably my favorite of the season. Dark Head is the first traditionally animated short and Studio Mir really put their best foot forward. This f*cking thing was epic! I'm a sucker for anime and, while this technically isn't proper anime, they pay solid homage to that aesthetic. It feels a lot like Avatar in that way and lord knows I love me some Misadventures of Aang and Friends. Probably because Mir is the studio who did Korra. My affection for Korra is much less but I'd be lying if I said that animation wasn't solid. This one was the longest of the lot so far, eighteen minutes, but they used that time to tell a strong story. It's wild to think they'd be able to pack in so much character development, in such a short amount of time, and entire, theatrical length, Star Wars films can't do the same. Rogue One, I'm looking at you.

The Spydancer

Yo, what the f*ck was that?! Holy sh*t, was that solid storytelling! Look, the emotional weight of this sixteen minute was incredible. I mean, of the top, I love the look of the art. The animation was fluid, particular the dancing, and the sound design was everything but the goddamn story, man! How the f*ck did Studio la Cachette do so much, in much little time? Seriously, this was a straight up roller coaster of emotion and I didn't expect that at all. I thought Journey to Dark Head told a complete narrative but The Spydancer does all of that and so much more. Seriously, it's hard not to put this up there with the best of Disney Star Wars and thy did it in sixteen goddamn minutes!

The Bandits of Golak

Another miss for me. Look, I love the Indian inspiration and the CG animation is solid but I don't particular care for the story being told, especially coming off something as emotionally weighty as The Spydancer. Still, 88 Pictures really made the most of their sixteen minutes. I can see why so many people enjoyed this short, even if I, personally, didn't really care for it. That final duel was solid as f*ck, though.

The Pit

Black folks in Star Wars? Let's go! Seriously, there is a distinct lack of color in a galaxy far, far, away so anytime I can get some melanated representation, I'm all in. What do we have so far? Mace, Finn, and Lando? Three prominent black characters over, what is it now? Four goddamn decades? Almost five? Motherf*ckers should be ashamed of themselves. Still, The Pit goes a long way to bridging that gap. Now, I support the f*ck out of D'ART Shtajio but I'd be lying if I said this wasn't the weakest of the shorts in season two. That, and I kind of really hate the Lucasfilm co-sign. None of the other studios needed it. This feels like a Kennedy thing. Gotta take as much credit for the diversity hire as possible, you know? If you didn't now, D'ART Shtajio is the first black owned anime studio. Thy do a lot of support animation for a ton of anime series but this is their first stab at a recognizable franchise like Star Wars where they are allowed to fully do their thing. All that said, The Pit is easily the weakest entry into this season. The narrative is solid and it does a great deal with it's sixteen minutes but this thing doesn't leave nearly the impression of every other short the anthology. Seriously, this thing has a strong message that is kind of undermined by the lack of quality when stood against the rest of the shorts presented.

Aau's Song

Auu's Song closes out this season's entries and, just like the opening, it was a strong choice. Aau's Song feels like a quiet story, intimate and personal, awash in a sea of stars. We  should be fortunate that her tale was told to us with such reverence and respect by Triggering. I was a little suspect at first, being that the two other stop-motion entries were hit-and-miss, but Auu's Song was definitely a hit. I am in love with this aesthetic. It feels like Final Fantasy IX and, if you know me, you know IX is top five for me. I loved the look, but I loved the sound design even more. Auu's song was lovely. Just the vocalizations, alone, were enough to catch my attention but couple that with the underlying tribal drums when sh*t got hairy, and you have a complete story told through your ears. Seriously, you can close your eyes and just listen to this story without missing a narrative beat. I find that absolutely amazing. It's wild to think that Aau's Song can be so god with absolutely no conflict. There are no Sith here, no Empire, no malevolence, just redemption and I kind of love that. The Sith, and to a lesser extent the Empire, were so prominent throughout this season but arguably the second strongest short of the lot, was devoid of anything resembling the dark side, outside of bled Kyber. Absolutely spectacular watch.

[daja-the-hypnokitten]

Jukebox reviews part 28! For context, see my post “A Project”     under this same tag. If you want to see a full list of his EMCSA   stories, they can be found here, sorted alphabetically.And if you want to see some of his drabbles, check out his blog at @jukeboxemcsa

Double Vision

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1/2/2016                                       mc ff

First - ok, do the Ljosalfar also exist in the world of this story? (then again, are the Ljosalfar even a distinction from the Dokkalfar that existed pre-Christian influence? I dunno, the mythology is fairly incomplete as it stands, and none of this has anythign to do with the story so why am I spending so much time on this anyway?) Second, why does getting hit on the head give Jo the Second Sight? Or did she always have the capacity for it, and the hit just catalyzed it? REGARDLESS, as none of that has anythign to do with the actual control part of the story, moving on. It's a good story. Very fantasy, but I grew up LOVING mythology, so even though I'm a little rusty on it, seeing something drawing on myth is lovely. And the idea of control that most folk dont' notice, and that even though she *does* notice it Jo can't resist? It works within the context of the story. The actual control we see is fairly pedestrian by EMCSA standards, but the worldbuilding done around it means I like this story much more than I might have otherwise. 8/10 spirals 

 Wide Awake

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1/2/2016                                       mc mf md

This falls into the therapist abusing trust trope I strongly dislike, but outside of that it's well done and put together. If you like the trope, give this one a read! 

 Take Me Home Tonight

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1/9/2016                                       mc mf md

I don't know what to say about this story. It's so far out of my general realm of control I like that I have no frame of reference for it. It's half possession, half mind control of a different sort, and just not my style. But If you like dream and possession magic, give it a go? 

 Forever Your Girl

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1/16/2016                                     mc mf md cb rb

Huh, from the title I was expecting this to be a Girls(tm) story, not a superhero story, and not such a tragic one at that. Oh, it has its moments of heat, during the transformation that takes place, but the end of it is just tragic. To be forced to continue loving someone who's dead, unable to truly mourn, No matter how much heat is in the rest of the story, I can't find it hot on the whole with that layer of tragedy underlying it. it's a GOOD story, just ... another one that isn't really erotica to me. 5/10 spirals 

 Trust and Obey

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1/23/2016                                     mc ff hu

This story feels like a cross between Green Eggs and Ham and The Cat in the Hat. I get distracted by the couplets, especially the occasional slant rhyme, and honestly Dr Seuess-esque language in an erotica story is just offputting. 3/10 spirals 

 X, Y and Zee

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1/30/2016                                     mc ff

... There is no IRB in the country that would approve this story, so this isn't just self-funded, but there can't be any meaningful oversight either. Also, her work needs more footnotes. Also, she clearly needs to review what we've learned from the Stanford Prison experiment; any time a researcher directly involves themselves in the experiment, as she did, it skews objectivity, and makes it less generalizable. We also ought to be presented with the method of recruitment; the nature of the recruitment can bias who is likely to apply. Further, any experiment of this sort should have included a boiler plate "you may revoke consent at any time" clause. Which clearly X was not provided. Putting the design/framing of the story aside, this is ... well, clearly it bothers me a little bit, given my science background, in the ways that it betrays the doctor's intentions with it. Which makes sense in context, but I get distracted considering how I'd improve the experiment. And it's a solid experiment for the goal of "how can I make girls want to have sex with me," rather than "how can I test response to authority?" - they *are* two different questions. The external view of the shifting mindset is less to my taste, and X's clear distress makes this less hot than it would be otherwise. 5/10 spirals 

 Kissing Disease

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2/6/2016                                       mc ff mf fd md

Nope, I had to nope out of this one. I can't with stories of a pandemic spreading and people minimizing it until it's undeniable that it has to be worse that they say it is. I just can't. 

 Skeleton Key

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2/13/2016                                     mc mf md

This one is a lot more magic than my preference, though the sudden internal changes are fascinating and add some heat for me. And Merrion acknowledging that he's being unethical actually makes me feel better, in some ways? I at least have more hope that he'll treat Paula right after this. And she clearly is getting something out of it, too, which helps. But it does come down to just being too magic for my tastes - though if you like magical artifacts driving the control, give this one a look. 6/10 spirals 

 The Bigger They Are, The Harder They Fall

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2/20/2016                                     mc mf ff fd hm

I never quite understand how pleasure is that overwhelming for folk. It can be fun to play with, sure, but to make me completely let go around someone who puts me on edge? I don't get it and never will. Especially given the context of their interaction here. Maybe I'm just too ace to ever truly grok it, though. But the way she uses the sensation to take control, to build an effective overload induction as she does? It's well done and well written, if a bit cold for my personal preferences.  7/10 spirals 

 Zone Out

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2/27/2016                                     mc

Another induction, and one that would be *really* good for folk who have trouble staying completely focused on a hypnotist, if it were a recording rather than a text induction, as it was clearly written to be read aloud.  The way it uses the idea of focusing on something other than the hypnotist, and letting their voice (and I want to say her, because I'm hearing Lady Ru'etha's voice reading it in my head, for all it's Jukebox's words) just slip past the conscious awareness. It does, of course, include arousal and orgasm suggestions, so be aware of that if you're susceptible to text inductions, but I also recommend hypnotists read this one and take some inspiration for if playing with folk who are easily distracted when trancing. 9/10 spirals

[imthepunchlord]

What did you mean that your own bias makes you want to deport the ladybug? Sorry I just didn’t understand that.

In my own belief, I think those that are most powerful should be animals that have a lot of presence worldwide. They traveled the most and engaged the most. As the most powerful, they left an effect to their presence and influenced a bit on how the world sees certain animals. That in general is how I like to headcanon miraculi, they weren't the cause of every myth, but they helped influence views.

Ladybug does not have that big presence worldwide. When I look up ladybugs in mythology and culture, I just find stuff in Europe. I type in ladybugs in other countries to see what can come up and nothing, its only Europe that I find stuff for ladybugs in mythology and culture. Its almost exclusively just European in significance.

With what I've found, in my eyes, the Ladybug is not fitting to be one of the most powerful as its so European exclusive in its role of mythology and superstition. It shouldn't even be with the Chinese Box. The most it has going for it to be apart of the Chinese Order is that its red and that's a color of fortune.

Otherwise it should be tied to a European Order (like say, an Irish, French, or could even do the lost Celtic Order or something). I'd also not have Ladybug be Creation anymore as in symbolism, ladybugs are just exclusively luck and love, and they aren't actual creators either (while the Bee is). I'd just have Ladybug be a symbol of Luck, which includes good and bad as Marinette has experienced both when having it. Could even be a nod to Tyche/Fortuna, who represents both good and bad luck.

Another factor that makes me want to bring down Ladybug's significance lies with my bias, and my growing dislike of Tikki.

As she's more of a mouthpiece for the writers than an actual character, she drives me up the wall. Even more so that what we have, she's not an easy kwami to have. Having her runs a risk of developing an Atlas complex as she pushes her humans to prioritize others over themselves, take on more tasks than they're physically able to do so, and to become a symbol of excellence for all humans to follow by example.

For those that want a kwami villain, as of now, I'd say Tikki is the closest to it as she comes with a lot of pressure and expectation and she has no consideration for the human she's with. A lot of times I even wonder how much she even really cares about Marinette as individual.

But that's more my personal salty feelings.

Ladybug I want to bring down as the research I did shows me that its not a very iconic animal worldwide or well traveled. I find stuff that's just exclusively European and there's no reason for it to be apart of the Chinese Order. It shouldn't be there at all. Even Bee is kind of a stretch to be there as I've seen more for it in India, Egypt, and Europe (specifically in Greece; though you could apply it to the Celts as well as bees are big nature animals and they regarded nature highly).

There's no reason for it to even be the Miraculous of Creation. It should be Luck instead, especially working off symbolism and what it's largely known for.

Now if there's a European Order that's specifically tied around luck, it can be elevated as one of the most powerful there (though I wouldn't put Cat there as I don't regard it as the symbol of bad luck, that's a very recent view in history; and I'd rather all miraculi that would be apart of the Lucky Box be a mixture of good and bad luck, that to me would be more fitting). Otherwise, I just don't see the Ladybug as a very vital or big miraculous. It doesn't even need to be elevated to most powerful.

If you play off that certain miraculous match ups can do certain things, you can do a set up that Ladybug + Butterfly can change fate. Gabriel can still pursue Ladybug and offer a reason why he's not as invested in Cat. He has one miraculous he needs, he just needs the other.

[nikkoliferous]

Nikko, I just want to say, that latest check-fact post is both hilarious and awesome! Tbh I silently hope more Anti-Loki's would start their argument just so I can watch you murder them😂 That being said, stories, i.e myths, do seem to like villain-washing characters just bc they don't fit in the Society™. And people just follow the narrator to the end-comma without giving a damn. Now the first thing I do if I find a myth-based book is to check who is the villain and why they are the villain

Haha. I sort of feel like a cat playing with a dead mouse. Like, it's fun for a little while, but eventually you get bored because you're not really being stimulated in any way. But I did have a lot of fun doing the fact check format. Made me feel all official somehow. Lol

And yes! Hero characters are, by definition, defenders of the status quo. And consequently, villain characters are, by definition, challengers of it. Their behaviours are often either temporarily (as in the case of Loki) or chronically immoral, but it's always worth looking at why they are considered villains. Especially when their history is, more often than not, no more bloody than that of many characters who are allowed to claim the mantle of "hero". What would it take for Loki to be widely accepted as a hero? Simply not doing evil things? He hasn't filled the role of the "villain" in nearly a decade, and yet he is still considered by many people to be one. So surely, it's not that. Perhaps if he were to finally prostrate himself before our heroes, consent himself to being judged by—in his own words—people who are no more virtuous than he is. In other words, if he too were to become an agent of the status quo. Then he might be worthy. Then he might be redeemable. Loki's greatest crime, not only in Odin's eyes but in the eyes of many consumers of media, has always been non-conformity. Even when he was being a "good boy" for the one thousand years prior to the events of Thor (2011), it is clear he failed to conform on some level to Asgardian social norms. Even while struggling to measure up to Odin's impossible demands, he retained his spirit of individuality. His descent into "villainy" only amplified his persistent quest for independence, for agency, for his own identity. And that's just not okay. Humans need the world to be able to be broken down into neat categories like "good" and "bad". It is how they make sense of the world. It is how they protect themselves. It is an understandable impulse. And it should be resisted.

What is most troubling, I think, is that I suspect many of the people who think this way do not even realise it. Many of them believe they are objective. Many of them believe they do think critically. But their behaviour and their inability to recognise narrative spin says otherwise. Something my former pastor used to say often was, "The only true objectivity is subjectivity rendered conscious of itself." Meaning, there is no such thing as a truly objective person. We all have biases. We are all susceptible to spin and propaganda. The best that we can do is to be aware of what our specific biases are and be willing to challenge them by asking ourselves hard questions. My bias is that I identify with and empathise with Loki. Why do I connect with him? What is it in him that calls out to me so strongly? Why is it important to me that he be defended? Why does it matter that people see him the way I do? Am I being overly merciful to him? If I am, what's compelling me to do that? Am I not being merciful enough? If not, why? How has my perspective been skewed to this point? What does my perception of Loki say about my core values? Am I satisfied with what it says about my core values? And on and on.

This got way longer and ramblier (not sure that's a word? lol) than I intended, but TL;DR it's always a good idea to take the time to ask why a villain is a villain and a hero is a hero, even if you ultimately come away with the conclusion that they indeed are one. The value is in the question as much as it is in the answer.

[n1ghtm3ds]

I recommend reading the introduction to Invisible Women by Caroline Criado Perez, she talks about the importance of language in fighting misogyny and the overwhelming bias toward males found throughout language. For instance, she compared countries with super gendered language (where every word has a gender), countries like America where words aren’t all gendered but can denote gender (like actor, actress) and countries where the language is almost completely genderless (so like actor only.) And you know what she found? The second type of country, countries where the language isn’t all gendered but gender can be specified - are more equal than countries where gender can’t be specified. Because if you can’t specify that it’s a woman, everyone assumes it’s a man. You can’t correct the hidden bias towards men unless you can emphasize the presence of women. Men try to tell us that ‘he’ is the default, that it includes women. (Perez mentions a Greek myth where a man claims this.) They’re lying. Male language always denotes men, and gender neutral language also often denotes men because we aren’t used to it referring to women. The simple act of using she/her can be a meaningful act of rebellion under the patriarchy. Job vacancies, particularly in leadership, tend to use male language. Male is the default, women is other. Except that’s utter crap. Don’t let men erase us, and they will try their best. Did you know the first writer we have a record of was a woman? Her name is Enheduanna. One of the first movie makers was a woman, named Alice Guy-Blache, only her husband tried to steal credit for her work. 135 years before the Brothers Grimm, Madame d’Aulnoy coined the word ‘fairy tales.’ Most people at least know that Mary Shelley wrote the first science fiction story, Frankenstein, and it’s not a coincidence that her mother Mary Wollstonecraft was one of the first feminist philosophers. They’re realizing now early cave paintings were probably done by women. “Man’s” first calendar was almost definitely a woman tracking her menstrual cycle. Plus, any time a woman has wanted to exist outside of her cage, they’ve questioned whether she was a woman. They made jokes about Sappho being a man. They pretend warriors that were clearly women must actually have been men. They want to make women a tiny little box that no person would be able to breathe in, and they pretend that’s what it meant historically. They. Are. Lying. Our maternal ancestors always always always fought this bullshit. There’s discourse from I shit you not, the 1500s, about all the women dressing in “male” attire. In the beginning of the 1900s sexual harassers and cat callers were called “mashers” and women were praised for stabbing them with their hat pins. I could go on for a while lol - the point is, they will always try to disparage and erase anyone who we’d refer to as She/Her. But, a She created superheroes, She discovered sex chromosomes, She single handedly freed 70 slaves. She went to prison to get women the vote. On International Women’s Day a bunch of men always ask about the male equivalent. It exists. But no one cares. Because the first IW Days were 15,000 working class American women protesting for their rights and tens of thousands of Russian women protesting for theirs, and over a million women in Europe protesting for theirs. IWD means something. It wasn’t easy, but they did it, and often they did it thinking of us. That’s the heritage they’ve given us. Don’t listen to misogyny when it tries to get you to reject it, when it tries to redefine and limit it and belittle it. You know the quote ‘Well-behaved women rarely make history?’ It’s often misunderstood. It’s not just that rejecting patriarchical bullshit helps us achieve. It’s also that a man could be perfectly ‘well-behaved’ and still “make history,” while our maternal ancestors wouldn’t. They’d be erased. Don’t let them erase you. She can be and do anything. All we share is our biology and an amazing history. Help us fight to make it heard. Existing and embracing yourself is a radical act.

thank you so much for haring this, this is fascinating

[normal-thoughts-official]

Fandom racism anon here and yeah absolutely (I didn't realise I had anon on lol)

Because while LOTR has problems within its themes (ie the orcs can be seen as to be coded as people of colour, especially since they ride elephants) the explicit message of the book is evil bad

Because the only people who work for sauron are evil. There are no morally grey people, they aren't misguided or tricked they just are evil and want to take over the world

And yeah I totally agree that this is more of a literal take on like empirical war (is that the word) and that makes total sense considering Tolkiens history

Whereas I would say that the allegories in shaowhunters is way more based on racial conflict within a country itself especially slavery, I can't remember if this is show Canon but is it that they have the warlock tropheys? I remember that in the books magnus talks about shadowhunters hanging warlock marks on their walls? (sorry to bring the books up)

Idk it's very hollow to me, unlike with LOTR though it's a different allegory it's totally irritating to show many of these supremecists as morally misled. LOTR says bad guys are bad guys, shadowhunters says well yeah they did follow a guy which thinks that downworlders are subhuman and should be eradicated but they just made a mistake

I want to compare this to tfatws which while it isn't really fantasy I just feel like it shows how the priorities of the writer can impact the message of the show so powerfully (I know u aren't up to date so I'm gonna be pretty vague)

There's a scene in tfatws where the new white perfect captain America does something bad and doesn't pay for the consequences - done to comment on white privelege and how America condones white supremacy and how Sam is in comparison to that

Mayrse and Robert revealed to be part of the circle! And paid no consequences Shock horror my parents were the bad guys (even rho they were either implicitly or explicitly extremely racist the entire time) also I haven't finished the seires but do the lightwoods ever try to get their parents to face the consequences?)

Only one actual really critiques the situation and the reality behind it whereas the other one is just to centre the white characters once again and present them in a further sympathetic light

AND ANOTHER THING! I was mostly talking about show Canon here and I'm sorry to bring up the books but I literally can't believe I hadn't picked up in this before.

So like downworlders = people of colour, Simon is a vampire so is coded as a person of colour. However in the books in the last one he stops being a vampire and becomes a shadowhunters instead, coincidentally that's also when he starts dating Izzy HOW IS THIS ABLE TO HAPPEN!!????

I mean I know cassandra clare is lazy right? The original seires is by far the worst of all her writings but come ON!!!!! By the allegory has he become the white man!????? These books made no fuckin sense when I read them at 15 and they make no sense now I'm digressing anyways

I don't know man I wrote this ask because I was trying to find some fantasy book recommendations on booktube and SO MANY of them were about slavery or general ly extrême préjudice with à White protagonist to save this 'poor souls'.

Also I was watching guardians of the galexy the other day and realised nearly every movie set in space is just bigger stakes imperialism - planets instead of countries. Literally star wars, star trek, guardians of the galexy 2, avengers infinity war - all are facing genocidal imperialistic villains without actually paying much, if any attention to those effected

Just writing this ask made me exhausted I'm so tired of lazy writing and exploiting other people's struggle. I'm white and I'm trying to be more critical about the movies, shows and books I watch and read but let me know if I said something off here❤️❤️ you gotta get up to date with tfatws man, Sambucky nation is THRIVING!!!!

i'm not sure i agree that the whole "the evil people are evil" thing is a good thing, because i feel like more often than not making the bad characters just like... unidimensionally evil just means that the reader will be like "lol i could NEVER be that guy" and when it comes to racism that is a dangerous road to take because white people already believe that racism is something that Only The Most Evil People, Ergo, Not Me, Can Do, which makes discussions of stuff like subconscious racial bias and active antiracist work become more difficult because people don't believe they CAN be racist unless they're like, Lord Voldemort

which is not to say that racism should be treated as morally ambiguous, just that the workings of racism should be represented as something that is not done only by the Most Hardcore And Evil, but rather as a part of a system of oppression that affects the way everyone sees the world and interacts with it and lives in it

yes the warlock trophies are mentioned in the show, albeit very quickly (there is a circle member who tells magnus that his cat eyes will make "a nice addition to his collection" and then it's never mentioned again because this is sh and we love using racism for shock value but then not actually treating it as a serious plot point or something that affects oppressed ppl). and you are absolutely right, shadowhunters (and hp, and most fantasy books) has genocide as its core conflict and treats it, like you said, in a very hollow way, treating racism as both not a big deal and not something that is part of a system of oppression, but really the actions of a few Very Bad People. it's almost impressive how they manage to do both at the same time tbh

i think you hit the nail right on the head with this comment, actually. for most of these works, racism is SHOCK VALUE. it's just like "lol isn't it bad that this bad guy wants to kill a gazillion people just because they are muggles? now that is fucked up" but it's not actually an issue. in fact, when this guy is defeated, the whole problem is over! racism is not something that is embedded into that world, it's not a systemic issue, it's not even actually part of what drives the plot. the things that led to this person not only existing but rising to power and gathering enough followers to be a real threat to the whole world are never mentioned. it's like racists are born out of thin air, which is dangerously close to implying that racism is just a natural part of life, tbh

anyway my point is, it is never supposed to be questioned, it is never part of a deeper plot or story, its implications are barely addressed except for a few fleeting comments them and there; so, it's not a critique, it's shock value, even though it is frequently disguised as a critique (which is always empty and shallow anyway. like what is the REAL critique in works like hp or sh/tsc other than "genocide is bad"? wow such a groundbreaking take evelyn)

about simon and the book thing: i actually knew about this and the weird thing about this is that, like... simon is jewish, and he's implied to be ashkenazi (calls his grandma bubbe which is yiddish, which is a language spoken by the ashkenazi ppl), and it seems like cc is always toeing the line between him being accepted by shadowhunters and then not accepted by them, which sounds a lot like antisemitic tropes and history of swinging between (ashkenazi) jewish ppl being seen as the model minority myth and thus used as an example by white christians, and being hated and persecuted. i'm not super qualified to talk about this since i'm not jewish and i'm still learning about/unlearning antisemitism and its tropes, and i don't really have a fully formed thought on that, tbh; it just reminds me of the whole "model minority" swinging, where one second simon is part of the majority, the other he's not, but always he is supposed to give up a part of himself and his identity in other to be "assimilated" by shadowhunter culture. this article (link) covers a book on jewish people and assimilationism into USan culture, this article (link) covers british jews' relationship with being considered an ethnic group, and this article (link) talks a bit about the model minority myth from the perspective of an asian jewish woman

it just really calls to my attention that cc chose to make her ashkenazi jewish character start off as a downworlder and then become a shadowhunter. i don't think she made that decision as a conscious nod to this history, because it would require being informed on antisemitism lol but it's incredible how you can always see bigoted stereotypes shining through her narrative choices completely by accident. it just really shows how ingrained it is in our collective minds and culture

and anyway, making a character go from the oppressed group to just suddenly become the oppressor is just. wtf. not how oppression works, but most of all, really disrespectful, especially because she clearly treats it as an "upgrade"/"glowup" that earns him the Love Of His Life

also, out of curiosity, are you french? it seems like your autocorrect changed a few words and i'm pretty sure extrême and préjudice are the french versions of these words, and since u said ur white, that's where my money would be lol

[derpcakes]

So we watched (nay, Experienced) the BBC/Netflix Dracula series

Brought to us by everyone’s favourite team, Steve Moff and Mark Gatiss, promising to be an innovative and exciting new vision of the classic novel

Boy it was definitely something!!!

First I will say: obviously Moff is not my favourite TV writer and my fam and I did go into this with a bias. I’m happy to report, though, that it’s going to be one of these shows that haunts me forever, because if it had just been bad I could have said “bleh” and deleted it from my brain. But because parts of this were genuinely cool, interesting, and fun, and parts of it genuinely had potential, all the bits that were bad stand out as so much worse and the whole thing feels as cursed as a 500 year old undead count. 

Things that were enjoyable and well put-together:

Van Helsing has been gender-swapped into a vampire-hunting nun and her cat-and-mouse game with Dracula is rife with belligerent sexual tension. I was ready to hate this, and ready for like, Sherlock and Irene Adler 2.0, but their dynamic was actually pretty fun to watch! Their power balance is kept even throughout most of the show, and Helsing is never struck down because of ~womanly failings~ or infantilised. She’s consistently really clever and, even if there are some cringey one-liners, I found her and Draccy’s playful quest to murder each other one of the most fun parts of the show. It could’ve been better, but it was enjoyable! (I also like how Helsing isn’t Young and Hot, but is a capable older lady, and her actor and Draccy’s even seem about the same age. Amazing)

The second episode is a spooky murder mystery/horror mini-movie on a ship, with a cast full of interesting characters who all had different things going on and different relationship dynamics that were compelling to watch. There’s even an interracial gay couple! And they’re like, written pretty sympathetically and to be layered and flawed in ways that didn’t feel too stereotypical! And they don’t die first!! Wack! I understand the bar is on the ground, but it’s still worth a mention

Some fun with vampire lore: Draccy absorbs knowledge and traits from people he drinks blood from (which is how he learns languages. Get Duolingo, dude, stop eating people), leading to the intriguing suggestion that myths like “vampires will die in sunlight” and “vampires are afraid of holy symbols” have kinda become real to him even if they don’t literally work, because he’s swallowed so many people to whom these superstitions and beliefs were law. I’m sure this isn’t the first time this has been done, but groundbreaking or no it was kinda neat

Things that were not enjoyable and well put-together:

EVERYTHING ELSE

Episode 1: a weird speedrun of most of the original novel, feat. weaponised nuns and a weird fixation on whether or not Jonathan Harker and Draccy boned. They did not. Dracula pops out of the body of a wolf and he’s Whole Ass Naked. Him and Van Helsing have a power play where she stands just on the threshold of a convent and calls him a little bitch, knowing he can’t come and get her. A knife is licked. 

Episode 2: aforementioned cool ship horror story. Definitely the best ep. It really makes me think about hbomb’s critique that Moff is pretty good at doing standalone stories (and pilots), but when things are tied into a bigger narrative things get zonkers. 

Episode 3: Things Get Zonkers!!

Let me just. Okay. I have the most to say about this one because this is where things really got batshit. And yet, also really boring? How does that figure? Anyway:

Dracula emerges from under the sea and finds that 123 years have passed and he’s now the star of a Modern AU. Upon setting foot on British sand he is immediately accosted by what appears to be an anti-vampire task force. There’s a helicopter. It is later explained how they knew to pounce on him at this exact moment, but holy god it was wild to watch the entire British Secret Service descend on this one wet bastard in a suit

The editing shifts aggressively in the direction of Sherlock. Mark Gattis is there playing an amazingly annoying character. There’s a fuckign.... Underground Secret Society devoted to studying vampires and they put Drac in a Designated Glass Prison for Smug Geniuses (also as seen in Sherlock). Van Helsing is dead but her great-great-grand-niece is played by the same actress and. Okay. Van Helsing, vampire hunting nun, possesses her descendent and rises through the ether to roast Drac one last time, and he’s DELIGHTED TO SEE HER AGAIN. 

And she has cancer, right, so her blood is poisonous when Draccy tries to bite her, but in the end, right, the end of the episode, right, the final shots of the show, he comes to a place where he’s willing to die, and she’s already dying, and so he drinks her blood and they die together on a table while cinematic metaphor vision shows them having sex in the middle of the sun

There was a badly CGI-ed vampire baby. Jonathan Harker falls from a tower and a scene later they flash back to this event by reversing the footage of him falling down, meaning we just see him go VWOOP up through the air, bouncing off the wall on the way. Van Helsing says the words “come boy, suckle” when she’s goading Drac into drinking her blood. The show sits in a weird middle ground where the characters talk about sex a lot (”dID yOu HaVe sExUaL iNterCOURSE with COUNT DRACULA?”) and Drac is clearly meant to be super magnetic and sexy but the characterisation and cinematography is not horny at all. People have these sexy-type dreams of their lover of choice when Drac is drinking their blood but even those are very boring and weirdly chaste, except of course for the final one where, if I  can take the chance to remind you, Van Helsing and Dracula have symbolic Mind Palace sex inside the centre of the solar system

I can’t speak too much on its quality as an adaptation since I actually haven’t read the book, but splitting the story so that some characters (the Harkers, Van Helsing) existed in the time the story is set, and some (Lucy, Dr Seward) exist in The Modern AU felt very strange. Was there any reason to set the third episode in modern times, apart from the fact that I guess they wanted to do their Sherlock thing again? Or, perhaps, because they wanted to do their Jekyll thing again?? Oh my god, that’s what the editing reminds me of - the small clips of Jekyll I’ve seen. The zooming. The slow-mo. The emphasis on The Monster Man’s weird goddamn teeth

(Also, I don’t really feel qualified to dig too deep into it, but I will say there felt something a bit uncomfortable about Lucy being black in this version, while also being written to be very promiscuous and vain. idk. Also, since it happened in an ep of Sherlock as well, “weedy white Nice Boy rescues the Very Cool woman of colour he has a tragically unrequited crush on” is now an official Moffattis trope)

Count Moffatula is an experience. Its pacing is buck wild. The speeding through the original plot and the mish-mashing of elements in the Modern AU section feels like another expression of contempt for the source material on Moff’s part. Someone says “reality is overrated” in a show set in the 1890s. Draccy quotes a Beatles song. He also makes quippy allusions to having eaten various famous figures and basically winks at the camera every time. Granted, this wasn’t as obnoxious as I was maybe expecting, but there are still too many lines of dialogue where you think “oh, the writers high-fived each other after they wrote that one, huh”. The fact that Moff has such vitriol against fan fic writers is more and more grating every day because this is so, so clearly a zany-ass fanfic that he happens to be getting paid for. The costumes are nowhere near as nice as they could have been, and Dracula’s cape looks like his mum made it for him for the school play in which he is playing Dracula. 

This show is So Much. Watch it to share in this fever dream. Or don’t, and save approximately 5 hours of your life. God. 5 hours. Who was I before Count Maffatula. Who am I now. Why was his cape so bloody ugly. Why did they bone in the centre of the sun

[goodbysunball]

Quarantine Rock, pt. II

In this continuation of the riveting Quarantine series: mostly new, 2020 releases.

Black Curse, Endless Wound LP (Sepulchral Voice)

There’s a lot of repetition in metal band name imagery, but Black Curse might be one of the laziest monikers in recent memory. No matter: the band’s debut LP Endless Wound is an absolute crusher, a swirling mass of death metal bile accented by riffs that violently snap your head back and forth for you. The guitar player handles bass duties for Primitive Man, and there are definitely some similarities between the two groups, not least of which being filthy tone and gargantuan riffs (see the plodding “Lifeless Sanctum”). But Black Curse can thrash around with the ferocity of Salvation-era Funeral Mist, and hit a mid-tempo groove like peak Beherit, as on closer “Finality I Behold.” Those are some pretty big names to drop, but Black Curse more than deliver - Endless Curse feels methodical without sacrificing manic intensity. Real deal shit right here. My favorite metal album of the year so far. Ajna Offensive had some copies of the LP in stock for a split second, and I imagine they’ll get more eventually; alternatively, one can reserve a copy from Dark Descent now.

Femme, Ruderal Exotique LP (Bruit Direct Disques)

Femme’s Chroma from the tail-end of 2017 took over my turntable for a good many months in early 2018. The French duo’s short vignettes of noise rubbing up against each other in confined spaces and somehow, despite all the jarring changes in volume, comes together for a rather cathartic listen. Ruderal Exotique follows the same formula, though this time around they’re coming at you at 45 rpm. I’m not sure if Femme’s changed things up or I’m just accustomed to power drills and blaring, bassy synths now, but all the sounds within Ruderal Exotique hit some pleasure center in my brain. Even though they’re still arriving in jagged shards, cutting into each other abruptly or dropping out into silence on a whim, when the album’s on it’s like it’s plastering drywall all over this miserable time and giving me permission to do, think or say nothing. It’d be fair to say that most of us need that regularly, but perhaps now more than ever. Gorgeous and abrasive, these 15 wordless tracks have been a balm recently, but Ruderal Exotique is also one of the most captivating listens of the year. Surrender yourself and cop yet another winner from Bruit Direct Disques, who have kindly opened up a USA e-shop run by The Business Anacortes.

Primo!, Sogni LP (Upset the Rhythm/Anti-Fade)

The Melbourne four-piece Primo! captured my heart in 2016 with the release of Primo Cassetto, a compact release bristling with tension and full of wry observations and wiry guitar lines. The follow-up LP, Amici, was as svelte and dry but twice as breezy; the playing was peppier and the vocals were softened and harmonious. I liked Amici fine, but little was imprinted on my memory after several listens, except the songs that had already appeared on Primo Cassetto. The band’s latest LP, Sogni, presses the best parts of the earlier two releases together into the grooves. Amici lacked the slower tempos of certain tracks on the debut, and Sogni brings them back with great success: “Comedy Show” is a particular standout, musically and lyrically reminiscent of latter-day Terminals, and closer “Reverie” is a drumless and haunting send-off. “Machine” and “Love Days” are the band at their most confident, the sound fuller than ever without dumbing down the lyrics or losing the scrappiness that makes this band so goddamn charming. Part of the fuller sound is thanks to the flourishes of Al Monty on various instruments throughout the album, but the band’s songwriting overall is stronger, looser - several tracks on the B-side even include extended outros (”1000 Words,” “The Present”), the band so stuffed to the gills with lean guitar lines that they had to make some room for more. Overall Sogni is the best Primo! album to date, placing the band firmly in the lineage of bands like Animals + Men and Look Blue Go Purple, responsibly self-aware post-punk sharp as nails and threatening to dance. Perfect for spring. Stateside people should look to Forced Exposure for the LP - they’ve even got some of the limited orange vinyl from Upset the Rhythm coming in.

DJ Screw, Bigtyme Volume II All Screwed Up 2xLP (Sinecure Press)

Yes: DJ Screw remains a larger-than-life presence that, along with Pimp C, has transformed how I, and many others, approach and listen to rap - but mostly I just wanted to highlight how sublime the versions of UGK’s “Tell Me Something Good,” and especially Point Blank’s “After I Die,” are on here. (The very pricey Houston Rap deluxe bundle including this 2xLP is still available.)

Anhedonist / Spectral Voice, split 7″ (Dark Descent/Parasitic)

Highly anticipated split between two death-doom titans: the dearly departed Anhedonist, and Spectral Voice, the modern scene’s torchbearer. Anhedonist’s “Abject Darkness” is an unreleased track recorded sometime during their tenure. It’s good, full of the killer “augh!” moments I prize, but it seems to tread water and repeat itself. You can kinda see why such a meticulous band left this one on the cutting room floor. On the flip, Spectral Voice turn in a devastating seven minutes on “Ineffable Winds,” eschewing any ornate arrangements and instead loading up on 10-ton riffs. I was disappointed with this record at first, mostly because the Anhedonist side left me a bit cold, but it’s encouraging to have the newer material by Spectral Voice be the better half. A few copies of this 7″ are still available from Parasitic Records.

G2G, s/t 7″ (self-released)

Snarling, sarcastic garage punk from this Sydney trio (plus drum machine), so stern and pockmarked that it’s off-putting at first blush. The opening track “Animated Satisfaction” is dripping with contempt, needling guitar lines combining in nauseating fashion, and it’s one of my favorite songs of the year. Can you deny a line like “I’m itchy and particular with my time”? You cannot. The band utilizes group vocals but they’re uneven, the guitars reek of grunge, and the lyrics are biting and delivered in a taunting manner. The shambling "You Don’t Say Shit Right” gives a lesson on how to say “Nietzsche” properly, the masked melancholy resulting in the best garage rock ballad I’ve heard since the Whines’ “It’s Raining.” “Wrong Way Corrigan” is the only track I’m not super keen on, but the chorus of “I rode it like a dump truck/all the way to your house” is pretty catchy. Overall, a fantastic debut. Limited to 166 hand-numbered copies: unleash the beast.

M. Quake, Fall In Love With Yourself 7″ (Purely Physical)

Martina Quake put this 7″ out on Valentine’s Day this year, and it’s a pretty dope sentiment to drop on that holiday. I blindly threw this in an order from Low Company on the strength of the title alone, and I haven’t been disappointed. The A-side features snippets from an interview with Eartha Kitt, while gauzy, swirling synths play underneath her arguments against self-compromise in relationships. It’s a fine appetizer for the B-side “Dub,” those same woozy synth samples brought to the fore and getting drunk on themselves, the track transformed from instructive to indulgent, decadent. The beat never locks, both sides remaining off-kilter but lush. A mysterious and powerful little record, one I keep returning to as a sort of palette cleanser, or night cap. The 7″ is readily available in Europe from Boomkat and various other retailers; not sure if ordering from Forced Exposure will net you a copy, though.

The Native Cats, Two Creation Myths 7″ (Rough Skies)

It’s true that the Native Cats are my favorite modern band, so my bias is going to be evident, but their last two 7″ records on Rough Skies, Spiro Scratch and now Two Creation Myths, have been nothing short of brilliant. “Run With the Roses” is the best Native Cats song to date, and will almost definitely stand as the best song of the year. Chloe Escott is in fighting form, sneering and powerful, then vulnerable, then resplendent. The track is startling in its starkness, buoyed by Julian Teakle’s bass and peppered with some of Escott’s electronics, staring you down and refusing to flinch. Oof, what a dominating, masterful track; gives me chills every time. The flip is “Sanremo,” a lush ballad that the Native Cats excel at creating, akin to “C of O” and “Cowboy Builder” but bolstered by Escott’s self-assured vocal performance, theatrical without a whiff of the maudlin. Lulu’s recently reviewed the record, and I think they said it best: 

“Few bands releases feel quite as consistently considered as those of The Native Cats. Never a second wasted, nor element unslaved over, their voice is one of the most unique, engaging, and resolute of the contemporary Australian underground.”

You’re gonna need Two Creation Myths. It’s limited to 300 copies - buy it, along with everything else available, from Rough Skies.

[forehead-enthusiast]

A Buncha Tag Games (and yet not all of them)

tagged by: @eggyukhei mwah

tagging: this is a LOT of games so i’ll only tag @atinyphobe @nsheetee and @veonjun for the SECOND (2nd) game. if they or anybody wants to do any of the other games, absolutely go for it and say i tagged you <3 i’d love to see what you guys say!! (also, tk if you felt like you wanted to answer my questions from the second game i’d be interested to see!)

One:

tell me the first song that made you stan your current fave group and why did your faves attract you so much?

ok SO the song that probably got me into rv 100% (also yes ik this blog is 99% nct but rv is my forever fave no question) was probably ice cream cake!! i had been a casual listener of many groups up until that point and had never really stanned anyone, but icc was so infectious i found myself watching it over and over. i had heard happiness and be natural before but hadn’t really listened too closely, so icc was the song that captured me. after that, dumb dumb only cemented my love for them more, and the red is still one of my favorite kpop albums to date. rv attracted me primarily because of their incredible vocals and their versatility in genres and concepts. i still get so excited wondering what they’ll tackle next!! they’re just soooo unique and have one of, if not the best discographies of any group. i cannot stress enough, I. Love. RV!! also they’re funny and gay so. anyway stream monster once it drops uwu

Two:

rule: answer the ten questions and write your own!

1. what is your favorite song that’s been released during quarantine? ooooo honestly??? probably something off of Sawayama. literally every song bangs so hard i highly recommend that album to anyone!! i can’t pick a favorite off it but who’s gonna save you now is awesome and xs is just,,, chef’s kiss

2. what is your greatest mishap when you tried cooking? (or something you’ve witnessed) one time, while making soup at my late grandmother’s house on her like gas stove, i put a lid on a pot and somehow that led the pot to be engulfed in flames. IN MY DEFENSE i was like 7, and i’m great at cooking/baking now

3. what’s your go-to outfit or article of clothing? oh i love a nice dress. they can be casual or formal, and you look like you put effort into your outfit except i didn’t because i didn’t have to match anything yo!!!! also shorts have trouble fitting me cause i’m a weird body type so dresses tend to be very comfy for me

4. what is your comfort food? am i allowed to say like all food??? eating in itself is comforting,,, that sounds depressing but also i just like eating yummy food. i guess i’d say like my dad’s fried rice?? its my fave and no one makes it like him soooo

5. what singular moment in your life would you like to relive? i couldn’t tell if this meant like, a good moment you want to re-experience or go back in time and redo a moment and fix it. it’s kind of a hard question so i might cop out and go with a bit of a silly answer: i want to relive the hi touch with astro...... i wanna look at rocky’s beautiful eyes and touch moonbin’s hand ok,,,,

6. what is your favorite line and/or character from a movie, show, or book? i got a bunch but a few off the top of my head are genie lo (the epic crush of genie lo), ty lee, suki (atla), klaus, and ben (umbrella academy) 

7. if you could only choose one ice cream flavor and pizza topping/style for the rest of your life, what would it be? ice cream flavor: this very specific one from a local store that is banana ice cream with strawberries and oreo mixed in. it is heaaaavenly. as for pizza topping, i love a breakfast type pizza with an egg on top and like sausage and stuff!!!

8. what is the worst injury you’ve ever had or witnessed? funny enough, i’ve actually gotten badly injured quite a few times, and always on the face!! god hates me. the worst was probably when i hit a metal bench with my face and it took a chunk out of my cheek. i still have the scar! as for “witnessed” i accidentally broke a grown man’s rib once as a child, so i guess that would count.

9. would you rather explore the unknown of space or the bottom of the ocean? oceaaaan!! i answered this in some other game, but i like how mysterious and yet close the ocean is. like proximity wise it’s so near, yet there’s an insane amount we know nothing about. that’s so frightening but so intriguing

10. if you could be any cartoon character, who would you be? my first thought was literally “kirby. eat fast” GOD my followers are gonna think i’m just a glutton and they’re not even gonna be wrong im dying. but uhh idk mulan or smth?

my questions:

what is your go-to feel good movie?

are you the type of person who’s indecisive about buying, or the type to impulse buy once you see something you like?

do you prefer chocolate-y or fruity candy?

what idol do you think is most similar to you? (not your bias necessarily)

do you have any silly dealbreakers? if so, what are they?

what do you do to unwind?

what is a small thing you like to do for people you love? (be it sending memes, remembering their favorite shows, etc)

what’s/who’s your favorite myth/mythological being?

what is a non-typical pet you would want to have?

do you say pronounce data as day-ta or dah-ta?

THREE

rule: bold the statements that apply to you, italicize your aspirations, then tag nine people. 

AIR ༉⋆͙̈

i have small hands / i love the night sky / i watch animals and birds when i pass them by / i drink herbal tea / i wake to see the dawn / the smell of dust is comforting / i’m valued for being wise / i prefer books to music / i meditate / i find joy in learning new truths from the world around me

FIRE ༉⋆͙̈

i don’t have straight hair / i like to wear ripped jeans and overalls / i play an organized sport / i love dogs / i am not afraid of adventure / i love to talk to strangers / i always try new foods / i enjoy road trips / summer is my favorite season / my radio is always playing

WATER ༉⋆͙̈

i wear bracelets on my wrists / i love the bustle of the city / i have more than one set of piercings / i read poetry / i love the sound of a thunderstorm / i want to travel the world / i sleep past midday most days / i love simply lit dinners and fluorescent signs / i rewatch kids shows out of nostalgia / i see emotions in colors not words

EARTH ༉⋆͙̈

i wear glasses or contacts / i enjoy doing the laundry / i am a vegetarian or vegan / i have an excellent sense of time / my humor is very cheerful / i am a valued advisor to my friends / i believe in true love / i love this chill of mountain air / i’m always listening to music / i am highly trusted by the people in my life

AETHER ༉⋆͙̈

i go without makeup in my daily life / i make my own artwork / i keep on track of my tasks and time / i always know true north / i see beauty in everything / i can always smell flowers / i smile at everyone i pass by / i always fear history repeating itself / i have recovered from a mental disorder / i can love unconditionally

FOUR

the ultimate tag: answer whichever ones you want to because there are a lot and then tag a few blogs you’d like to get to know better! 

PERSONAL

name: sarah

nickname: bells

birthday: april 17th

zodiac: aries

nationality: chinese american

languages: english, some spanish, some korean

gender: female

sexuality: baby bi bi bi~

height: 5′10

BLOG STUFF

inspiration for muse: i suppose nct since i write for them the most?? but i feel like sometimes i come up with the idea before i think of a member so sometimes the muse is just my own fantasies oops

meaning behind my url: i made it at a time where loads of idols were getting bangs and honestly i believe most of them look infinitely better without them, thus i was and still am enthusiastic about foreheads.

blog established: like winter of 2018...?? i think

followers: over 2.5k but most deactivated/left during my hiatus lol

FAVORITES

favourite animals: sharks, chickens, snakes, cats, penguins

favourite books: the epic crush of genie lo and then iron will of genie lo, PERIOD

favourite colour: pink and purple!!

favourite fictional characters: lol, again, genie lo, ty lee, suki, klaus, ben, and just a few more: richard and evelyn o’connell (the mummy), dave (dave), michael (the good place)

favourite flower: sunflower

favourite scent: baking chocolate, heating butter, blackberry, wisteria

favourite season: probably spring! i like warmth but not HEAT

RANDOM

average hours of sleep: ugh idek i sleep horribly

cats or dogs: both, but unfortunately i’ve never had either

coffee, tea or hot chocolate: tea but then hot chocolate

current time: 5:29pm

dream trip: go to paris and eat loads of pastries and enjoy the fashions and beauty of the city, and also learn to bake better maybe?

dream job: actress

hobbies: making jewelry, drawing, singing, reading comics

hogwarts house: according to the quizzes, all of them. people who have just met me think slytherin or gryffindor, people who i’m friends with think ravenclaw or hufflepuff, people who know me really well know you can’t box a person into oversimplified archetypes :’) in my assessment of myself, it varies by the day, but i think perhaps gryffindor today?

last movie watched: hot fuzz (a classic)

last song listened to: summer breeze by sf9

no. of blankets you sleep with: like 2

random fact(s): i won lego building competitions as a child, one of my dream roles is anastasia from the musical named after her, i played violin for a very short time, i bake the cakes for all my family and friends’ birthdays, i have strangely strong grip strength

SIX

10 songs i can’t stop listening to:

love me 4 me- rina sawayama

cherry- rina sawayama

in & out- red velvet

crush culture- conan gray

manic- conan gray

the king- conan gray

summer- pentagon

told you now- jeremy jordan (originally sung by sam smith)

fuck this world (interlude)- rina sawayama

someone who loves me- sara bareilles

[margridarnauds]

XVI. The Tower and XXII. The Fool please!

Thanks!

XVI. The Tower: Do you easily change your opinion on matters? What makes you lose faith in other people? Is there anything, or anyone you feel safe with?

Do you easily change your opinion on matters?

I don’t really think I change my opinion TOO much, at its base, if that makes any sense? When I’m around people, I do find myself molding myself into what the conversation requires, or at least shutting myself up unless it’s something that I find truly deplorable/can back up easily, but I think it takes a lot for my own personal opinion to change. Except for that one day or so when I woke up a conservative Methodist and went to bed as a liberal (alright I was “libertarian” but that went down the drain fast) atheist. That was a fun time. In my research, I try to keep an open mind, but I’ll own to my own confirmation bias. I can say “This is a good paper, you make good arguments,” but…do I fully accept it in my mind? No. But also I tend to see things more in shades of gray to a potentially annoying extent as it is, so when I change my opinion, it’s…not necessarily a matter of saying “This thing has some bad points” it’s “This thing’s bad points now outweigh its good points in my mind.” Part of why I ultimately chose lit over history as my focus was that I like that there’s not really a press for an Ultimate Truth in lit, in the sense that everything’s much more open to interpretation, whereas history tends to pressure more for definite ARGUMENTS. 

What makes you lose faith in other people?

It’s odd, because losing faith in people, for me, is rarely a matter of ONE single thing. I try to give people second and third chances, I tend to brush off that little niggling, “Something’s not right here” feeling, etc. So, when I finally lose faith, it’s a Big Thing, but it’s also not one that I can solidly put down to a single thing, which also makes it very hard when I’m trying to build a timeline in my head. Betrayal, lies, cruelty (though I do TRY to understand that people can have bad days, but…it doesn’t ERASE it, you know?), willful ignorance, finding out that they support things that I find personally deplorable, all the things that you’d really expect. 

(Funny story there: For ages I didn’t get crushes. Not one. Then, I got a strange…thing on a guy in my German class. Not a straight-up crush, but I LIKED him in a way that was slightly more than platonic. And I was like, “Okay, I’m bi instead of ace after all.” Then, I found out he supported Trump and he made some insanely transphobic and biphobic comments under the guise of “debate” because he was That Guy. /Crush, and that was basically the last time I got a crush on a guy. My brain just went “nein.”) 

It’s also really, really hard if I’d previously really trusted and looked up to someone and that happens. That’s really when I start wondering if there’s something wrong with *me* or if I’m over-exaggerating things to suit my own narrative. 

Is there anything, or anyone you feel safe with?

My dogs, my cats, my mom, for the most part, though she does have the little habit of telling my aunt things in the name of “family unity” when I had meant for it to be a personal matter. See: When I begged her not to tell my aunt I’m an atheist because my aunt is REALLY STAUNCHLY conservative, when I begged her not to tell her that I wanted to get out of the country because of the situation at home + politically, etc. 

Safety is a generally relative concept, anyway; I can trust that my mom and aunt won’t abandon me to be raised by wolves and will be there for me when I need them barring a huge catastrophe, I can trust that my mom can help me work through an anxiety attack and keep a solid 80% of my secrets, I can trust that my friends can handle my various eccentricities and questionable sense of humor, and I can trust that my dogs and cats will be with me no matter what because I’m the one who feeds them and gives them scritches. 

It’s all much less depressing than it sounds. 

XXII. The Fool: How much weight do you give to other people’s opinion? What is an adventure you were part of - or you wish you could be part of? Is there something you have an endless passion for? 

How much weight do you give to other people’s opinion?

I blame it on the bullying, but I have this odd…thing where I simultaneously have an “I don’t give a fuck” and “I give every fuck” attitude to people’s opinions. Like, on one hand, there’s probably not been a single feature of mine that’s not been ripped to pieces at some point. I mean, I had comics drawn of me having sex with my cats by my best friend at the time when I was 12 years old. It was a lovely, lovely period in my life. And, as a result, I think I developed a very self-deprecating sense of humor, as well as the idea that, well, I’ll be ripped to shreds no matter what, so I might as well express myself and damn the consequences. 

Well…that and being homeschooled for most of my high school years. It’s astonishing how much your opinions and interests can diverge if you’re not under the pressure to necessarily conform.  

But, at the same time, it also made me sensitive to personal criticism, as I have this idea that everyone hates me and is just being polite, that I’m really annoying, etc. One of the things that actually devastated me in college was reading teacher feedback, because even though I knew they were just trying to help me become a stronger academic, the thought that they might find me…wanting in some way stung. Especially when it was teachers that I really respected and looked up to. (Which, tbh, was all my teachers because I have a painful…thing when it comes to authority figures and trying to appease them and-Oh God I’m actually Peyrol minus the homicide, erratic temper, and questionable BDSM. That and our faculty was lovely.) I legit had to have my mom read the feedback, because I wanted to have it filtered and I was, like, worried one of them would say, “Rachel, you are a disgrace to the Humanities program and this school. This paper is shit. Goodbye” or something. 

I’Il often find myself softening my opinions or keeping silent if I feel like it could be dangerous, or if it might affect someone’s view of me, and I’m hyper-sensitive about, say, pauses in a conversation, because I’ll be like, “Oh, I’ve done it now.” And then in the next second, I’ll reblog, “FUCK OFF ANTIS” on my blog because, again, it’s a strange duality…thing with me. 

What is an adventure you were part of - or you wish you could be part of?

Oh, God, I’ve had some wild times. There’s the time that we were moving and ended up driving over a thousand miles overnight in a fifteen passenger van because we had 17 cats, two birds, and a bunny with us. And then had to travel BACK the next day because we had business to attend to back in our old place. 

OR the time that my late uncle lost his keys on a rollercoaster at Busch Gardens and so we ended up having to travel over three hours from where we live to rescue him, which is how we ended up meeting his boyfriend for the first time. 

OR the time that we picked up the youngest of our three dogs, Riley, when we ran into a curb less than ten minutes out, encountered various and assorted technical issues during the ~4 hours of the rest of the trip, and THEN when we were going back I had my hands nearly nibbled to death by an overeager puppy who was excited by the prospect of new friends. (This is how we met the nice old lady who gave me the money for the Toho 1789 + Riley is a sweet dog once he’s settled, so it was #WorthIt)

I really, really want to get out of the States, travel to different places around the world…see more musicals. Definitely see more musicals. I’m very aware of how limited my experience is, not having ever been out of my own country. (Unless you count briefly being over Canada when I was en route to Alaska, which I don’t.) I would love to go to Ireland and see some of the places mentioned in the various myths that I’ve read so much about, possibly embarrass myself by crying over Bres’ grave; I’d love to hit up the Tower of London or Versailles; go to either a Toho or Takarazuka musical in Japan (If and when my Japanese improves beyond「 アメリカ人です 」since I’d really rather be able to show my face in public). See snow again, maybe, since I do miss it.

 My old college offered study abroad trips to Oxford over the summer and I REALLY wanted to go, but, alas, it was insanely expensive + I wasn’t entirely sure about how much I would be able to enjoy myself if I had schoolwork to do, since I’d end up focusing on making that perfect rather than actually appreciating the trip. 

Alternatively: The Ghost Tour at Saint Augustine. I want to go on it SO MUCH. 

Is there something you have an endless passion for? 

Any of the musicals I’ve been lucky to get into (Especially. The one. You know the one. The one that I don’t even need to mention given that it consumes about 80% of my brain power at any given point), anything related to Irish Mythology, especially when it comes to my boy Bres, the French Revolution even though it also scares me because the scope of it’s so large and I never really feel like I make progress in it, female villainesses who can kill me and I would thank them (which is…a disturbingly large amount, actually). 

In general, I’m the type of person who develops special interests where I’ll become OBSESSIVE over learning everything I can about something and kind of latch onto it, so anything I’ve developed that for kind of goes here by default. 

And my dogs. Because they’re Good Bois (+ one Good Girl) and I honestly am not sure where I’d be atm without them. And my cats for tolerating my shit for this long.