#love villains who are hilariously off theme

[wisteria-lodge]

I LOVE the version of Lucius in your fic Prison of the Phoenix. He's different from a lot of portrayals I've seen. Why did you decide to write him how you did?

A lot of the fun of writing a book-accurate fix-it fic comes from taking the events of the book, and removing JKRs (simplistic, misleading, sometimes just weird) narrative framing. Slytherins = baddies, Gryffindors = goodies, you know. 

This is especially fun with Lucius Malfoy, who just like… isn’t very evil? Chamber of Secrets is his most villainous book, and I’ll get to that, but otherwise? He tries (unsuccessfully) to get the animal that attacked his kid killed. He donates to hospitals (but in like, an evil way.) He is a hilariously incompetent Death Eater, and then he's Voldemort’s punching bag. 

That’s kind of the point of Lucius. He looks the part. He commits to the aesthetics of the thing, with the hair and the peacocks and the snake-wand-cane. He likes the mystique of walking into a room and knowing that you know (but can’t prove) he’s a dark wizard. It allows him to be… kinda lazy. He can coast on his family name, money, reputation, privilege. I really think that if you sat Lucius Malfoy down and asked him to walk you through all the wizard-supremacy talking points he wouldn’t be able to do it. He’ll toss around words like “mudblood” and “mudblood-lover” no problem, but in the end he doesn’t really care. Lucius is not a true believer. The way the world is set up benefits him tremendously and he doesn’t want Voldemort back. That’s just text:

“Use your brains, Ron,” said Bill. “If they really were Death Eaters… I bet they’d be even more frightened than the rest of us to see him come back. They denied they’d ever been involved with him when he lost his powers, and went back to their daily lives… I don’t reckon he’d be over-pleased with them, do you?”

Lucius and friends had too much to drink at a sporting event, put on the old outfits (again with the aesthetics) and started levitating muggles. Which obviously isn’t GOOD, but they’re not killing or torturing, or furthering any kind of agenda. It’s important that Barty is so insulted and pissed off by the way they’re basically playing Dark Wizard that he casts the Dark Mark to “show [them] what loyalty to the Dark Lord meant, and to punish them for their lack of it.” Which kicks off most of the events of the book. 

Prison of the Phoenix is going to have a companion, parallel fic told from Harry’s POV (tentatively titled Harry Potter and Malfoy’s Suspicious Interest in Werewolves.) Lucius does show up in that one, and I was honestly surprised by how much more frightening and intimidating he is when filtered through Harry’s perspective. Because with a Severus POV… when Severus is used to spending time around Voldemort, Greyback, Bellatrix, honestly Dumbledore and Sirius Black…. Lucius is not scary. Lucius wants to buy presents for his son, go to high-profile events with his beautiful wife, and wear a variety of snake-themed accessories and extravagant hats. 

I wanted a kind of college-roommates-who-stayed-friends feel for the Severus + Lucius relationship, because they are friends. Sirius calls Severus Lucius’ “lapdog,” and Narcissa calls him Lucius’ “oldest friend.” Lucius is also part of the welcoming committee when Severus is first sorted into Slytherin. He’s five years older (I think Jason Isaacs is the only Harry Potter adult the same age as the character he plays), which would have affected the dynamic between him and Severus a lot in school. Personally, I think it makes sense for Lucius to be a little protective of this brilliant half-blood kid with no money. And as an adult, there’s some guilt mixed in there as well. Severus probably would not have been sucked into the Voldemort thing nearly as deep or nearly as fast if it hadn’t been for Lucius, and the war kind of destroyed him. Lucius remembers a younger Severus who was modding potions, inventing spells, coming up with cheeky nicknames for himself, and that person is gone. That’s a big part of the reason he’s so invested in the Severus/Remus relationship in Prison of the Phoenix. Something about Remus has managed to wake up parts of that younger Severus, and Lucius thinks that’s fantastic.

I also think Lucius might be the character who knows Voldemort the best. He’s one of the only Death Eaters who Voldemort calls by their first name (Bellatrix, Severus, and Draco are the others) and he’s weirdly familiar with his “slippery friend” Lucius, addressing the whole speech about how/why he returned to him, for some reason? Anything that helps Voldemort make sense as a person I’ll take, and to me it makes sense that young Tom Riddle charmed Abraxas Malfoy, Lucius’ father, first. The dates are right, and he’s exactly Tom’s type - rich, pureblood, probably easily flattered (let’s be honest) and sitting on a pile of magical artifacts. It’s very Hepzibah Smith vibes, is what I’m saying. And rich, posh, popular seventeen year olds don’t join cults. But if Lucius’ father was already in a cult… 

It also makes sense to me that Tom Riddle got sort of stuck when he killed Marvolo Gaunt, and made his first horcrux at sixteen. He has this fascination with sixteen year old pureblood wizards (so Barty, Draco, and Lucius would have fit this profile.) He sort of wants to be them, but also sort of wants to break them? It’s messy, and complicated. It’s creepy and compelling, that Lucius is aging but this spectre that’s dominated his life isn’t. 

And so when Lucius gives Ginny the diary in Book 2… it makes sense that he’s just trying to get rid of it. He was just at Borgin and Burkes selling dark artifacts, but knows that the diary is worse. He needs to make sure it can’t possibly be traced back to him. So he gives it to the daughter of the head of the Misuse of Muggle Artifacts office. (It is an enchanted muggle artifact, after all.) If Arthur Weasley finds it and deals with it, fine. If Ginny is discovered with it in a way that blows up in Arthur’s face, also fine. If it does get to Hogwarts and does open the Chamber of Secrets - well Draco is going to be fine, and it might undermine Dumbledore. If it was really important to Lucius that the diary rid the school of muggleborns… he would have given it to Draco had him use it. Or given it to Draco, and told him to leave it somewhere for an enemy to find. But Lucius doesn’t do that, because he doesn’t want Voldemort back and his politics just aren’t that important to him. 

The one trait I did give Lucius that doesn’t go back to the books is just being madly in love with Narcissa. Lucius is an unrepentant wife guy. (And I mean… it doesn’t contradict anything. There isn’t anything in the books to suggest that he isn’t a wife guy.)  I honestly did that for structural reasons. I’m writing a romance with Severus, who has the emotional awareness of a stack of roofing tiles. He just really, really needed a friend he could ask for relationship advice. 

[sanaserena]

I just had a thought, after seeing a meme. Now I wonder.... which would you most willingly suffer through? xD

After writing up the poll, I mayyyyy have a choice, even if it's not my overall favourite character. So, who is yours? Feel free to interpret as you like 😉

(And yes, you can probably see a theme on my tumblr on which characters I tend to use... 😅😅)

Post-poll: The results omg. Okay, I did kind of anticipate it. Since I had similar thoughts, but it's nice to see every other character get some love despite their "characteristics" xD

Here are my thoughts when I asked myself the same (in the undercut):

Doffy: Sorry, you might be my favourite villain but there's such a thing as personal space and no, that bit of personal space does not have your name on it!

Aokiji: You are one of my absolute faves, but I hate the cold. So I'll have to pass thanks! (I only realised after posting the poll that I was just thinking vaguely that it was 5°C but it could be interpreted as 5°F. But the poll is so limited in character spaces that I left out the C/F and left it for interpretation. Both are cold anyway xD)

Rosi: You are my second option, if I can bear to have my things broken that is. Maybe if I puppy proof everything, it might be okay, get super protective bubble wrap on my laptop and delicate things, it'll be fine!

Kid: As a fave, you're great, but I need sleep, and you also don't take no for an answer. So, no thanks. I mean if you took yes as an answer, sure, maybe, but no means no!

Ace: You're my all time fave, but even my tolerance for heat has its limits. I don't think we can afford all the icebags and you might break the cooling.

Killer: He would be my first pick, because he literally has the least problematic traits. Though, if he only cooks spaghetti and as someone who doesn't like wasting food, I might have a problem with a full spaghetti diet. BUT this is tolerable, I'll just put him on heavy exercise regime or something, so he eats as much as he cooks. Then I can cook what I like. *Looks at helmet* Fine, don't show, keep your face to yourself.

Drake: I would be fine with his pets. I like lizards and tortoises. But snakes? No thanks. And the space bit... I do like my personal space... don't care if his side is stacked to the ceiling though.

Well that was fun, thanks for the votes xD the reblog tags were hilarious to read.

[phoenixcatch7]

Every so often I drift back to the overlord anime but I can never stay for long because it's a good 70% smut with the succubus and 20% side character drama that never goes anywhere. It's a similar premise to svsss, in that a modern guy accidentally gets sucked into a fictional fantasy world he was obsessed with as the villain with a group of people and a place he rules over and wants to protect, and his paranoia/procrastination combo strategises his way to victory.

So of course I thought, 'let's get our dear old scum villain (affectionate) in here'.

Cuz i'mma be real sy would make an infinitely more interesting panicking lich king. Take off that emotion nullification, for starters.

A) pidw was a vr mmorpg with a vast, overarching storyline of the rising emperor lbh, whom players could battle or wed for rewards. A respawning final boss of such strength it took a world wide unified invasion of top players to fell. When sy gets pulled into pidw and all the npcs come to life, so too does lbh, who is very confused as to what happened but remembers sy as one of the players who fronted the invasion (having dug up every nugget of lore on lbh and using that vast knowledge in strategy) and carries an immense grudge that eventually turns into love as he gets to know sy. Sqh is there too, of course, the uncredited game dev who made lbh and his right hand man mbj, who's own base in the north got retaken when mbj also resurrected and is having his own worrisome love story.

B) sy and sqh are in the same guild, named cq, and the demons are sqhs overly detailed npc. Lbh works as the guardian overseer, aka the head npc, and as they wait for the game to shut down sy sneakily makes a joke in lbhs character sheet about him loving sy. They get sucked in, the characters come to life, and sy spends the time he isn't using panicking about the situation, five dimensional politicking, or protecting the base being in denial about the whole lbh thing (and his no homo) and feeling DEEPLY guilty (and hiding it from sqh). Lbh, of course, now having free will, thinks about it a bit and decides to fall madly in love with his kind, gentle, soft hearted lich king boss in spite of his loyalty to his creator. Sqh goes 'dude, wtf' and so goes a very long back and forth as sy tries and fails to come up with the right code of ethics to deal with this insane situation he inadvertently created, meanwhile lbh is strategising how one could feasibly get railed by a skeleton and being the Best Housewife Right Hand Man Ever. And get headpats in the process.

C) sy was part of the xianxia themed cq guild, and everyone (the peak lords) got sucked into either ygddrassil (overlord world) or pidw (svsss). Basically, all the peak lords are millennials old friends running around trying to deal with the consequences of their role play and finally getting to try out the fancy food and drink. I love this one because everyone would be really comfortable with each other, lots of slang and in jokes, a well oiled team stuck in a crazy situation together with ridiculously powerful characters each and every one, and you could have sj as a member! Sy could be the beast tamer peak lord. It'd be so interesting to see what they'd class and subclass as. Sy might still be a lich, but Yqy would be a really interesting choice! Him and sj would definitely still have history though... Hulijing, wood elf, bamboo spirit, human, who knows!

D) sy spent a few years as the lich king guild leader in ygddrassil (I'm definitely not spelling it right), bored by the lack of anything interesting, before the system intervened (maybe as a remnant of the original game interface?) and whisked him off to svsss. Post canon he gets either revealed as an imposter or there's some past life wife plot (some animal that was a boobacious beauty in its past life getting cursed to switch between them?) that turns sy into his old big bad lich overlord form, which is hilariously incongruent with his personality but utterly terrifying and anathema to the jianghu, but lbh is now having to crane his neck back and desperately trying to figure out how to get dommed. Everyone is fully convinced this is sy's og body, and not some modern human one they don't even get to see.

E) sy gets yoinked by system and when lbh (and maybe some others?) catch up a few years later he's in the skeleton body in ygddrassil dabbling in world domination and very eager to see them. The npcs get introduced and draw many incorrect conclusions.

[moon-swag-tourney]

The Final Match

Propaganda below!

Usagi Tsukino / Sailor Moon

In the name of the moon she'll punish you 

SHE IS THE ONE! SAILOR MOON! 

Fights for love and justice, the quintessential magical girl

IN THE NAME OF THE MOON, SHE WILL PUNISH YOU!

She is the Moon Princess. "In the name of the moon, I'll punish you!"

She's Sailor MOON. Of the moon, in the sky.

I love her

she is simply iconique …. the pretty guardian who fights for love and justice … princess of the moon deeply in love with humanity … also id be kinda mad if some kind of magical girl didnt win this tournament

Possibly the most iconic moon themed character in existence 

Moon Knight

Moon Knight is an underrated character who's been around since the mid-70's, but has only recently gotten the more attention he deserves since the Disney+ adaptation. However, I am a firm comics supremacy believer and can attest he is even cooler in the comics. The current run (Moon Knight 2021) is the best he's been written in quite some time for example, as it's friendly to veteran fans and new fans alike!

Moon Knight is not your friendly neighbourhood Spider-Man; he will fuck you up if you deserve it, and benefits from the fact that many villains are terrified of him.

Moon Knight is canonically Jewish, and though he is non-practising, it plays a major part in his story and identity.

It's also worth noting that Moon Knight has DID, with three identities: Marc Spector (host), Steven Grant, and Jake Lockley.

He's such an interesting and compelling character. The comics have spawned countless hilarious memes (I know you're here Dracula you big nerd wheres my money; random bullshit go; etc). The show was amazing, and Oscar Isaac acted his ass off

They are so cool; they're both canonically Jewish and have DID

One of the most unique superheroes out there due to being plural. Really cool, too.

I love him, your honor. I'd like to say more but the truth is I only watched the show and I will leave the propaganda to comics fans.

[thegreymoon]

The Story of Minglan

Nice 💛

***

LMAO, "chief of a brothel" 🤣🤣

Madam Wang is brutal. Poor Gu Tingye, he will never shake his poor reputation.

***

Who is she again?

***

Sis, you are so barking up the wrong tree.

No amount of calling Gu Tingye "Second Uncle" and being mad your brothers don't follow suit will make him interested in you.

***

Who the hell are all these new people?

I can't keep up.

***

She really does love making a fool out of herself.

***

Wait, what?

They STOLE it from her?

***

Was the stepmother the one stealing her things?

***

Why are everyone's siblings such assholes in this drama?

I need to call my brother and tell him I love him because he's awesome.

***

Not drunk, just a selfish imbecile.

***

OH MY GOD 😐😐

LIKE, THE SHIT YOU WILL GET HER INTO, DUDE.

***

I know we're supposed to be on her side here, but I'm already sick of her whining. SHE ALLOWED THE PIN TO GET STOLEN AND LOST. AND NOT JUST THE PIN, BUT MULTIPLE ITEMS.

She seems incompetent and dumb and they are making the sister evil just to generate this fake drama. The Sheng siblings are much more nuanced, even when they are bad, we see reasons for their behaviour. This just plays on, "Hurr durr, children of the second wife are mean to the poor orphan!"

It's annoying because the main storyline is already all about that and they are not doing anything new here, they're just regurgitating the same theme, only worse and with a less sympathetic heroine.

***

I mean!!!

Cartoon villain behaviour.

If this was Molan and Rulan being petty and one-upping each other just because, I could buy it, because we have precedent for their bickering that feels realistic, and they are actual rivals because of their mothers' rivalry. They are both equally at each other's throats, they match each other's energy. But this? There is no conflict here. Yanran is such a soggy doormat of a person, she is no threat to the sister, she's just insignificant, so we end up with this situation where the sister seems to be having a one-sided feud with her for no reason except that she can. They are artificially upping the stakes with "But it's her dead mother's heirloom!!" to make us care, but it isn't working because the whole thing feels so contrived. If it had been ANYONE ELSE playing against her for the pin, I would have found it more believable and the tension for the purpose of this whole scene would still have been there, because she can't just go up to a random woman and demand that she surrenders her prize if she wins.

Recently I learned a hilarious Chinese idiom, "draw snake, add feet", which warns against overdoing things. This is a prime example.

***

LMAO, shows how much you know the woman you claim to love.

***

His stupid face 🤣🤣

Go fuck yourself, Qi Heng.

***

This spineless coward.

Also, there is no chance Gu Tingye won't let Minglan win, he's so amused by her and already interested in Yanran. The evil sister set herself up here.

***

LOL, stanning madam Wu!

***

OMG, DUDE, STAY IN YOUR FUCKING LANE

***

SO TAKE A FUCKING HINT!!

Everyone in this episode is being so stupid and annoying, except for Minglan and maybe Tingye (but the jury is still out on him).

***

Oh, fuck all the way off.

***

Oh, Jesus Christ 🙄

I haven't been this annoyed by so many people at the same time since this drama started. I want to stab them all. Gu Tingye is the only one who gets a pass (OK, and Rulan too, because she was the only one there genuinely having fun).

[phantasmiafxndom]

Out of all the animes you’ve watch what ones are your favorites

...you know what, you get the serious answer. I used to track my anime watching, so out of the 450+ completed ones on my list, here are some of my top recommendations! (In terms of quality, more so than what I've spent the most time dwelling on.)

. . .

One Piece — I haven't technically watched all of this one, but after falling back into the fandom after an 8-ish year break, I really can't understate the quality. One Piece's story is amazing, and I'm consistently impressed by the author's characters/worldbuilding.

Dominion Tank Police (1988) — I have FEELINGS about the villain in this one... Overall, 80s sci-fi vibes mix with themes of ethical responsibility and societal peacekeeping, and the "don't you just want to go apeshit? :)" protagonist (who's also extremely aromantic-coded) is a hilarious, yet wonderfully earnest little menace!

Kyousougiga — I've been rewatching this one recently, and the sheer detail in every scene is STUNNING. I keep having to pause to mentally scream about the symbolism, and tbh, knowing the plot from my original watch is only improving the experience.

Tekkon Kinkreet — This one's a movie, not a series, but SKLJKHS IT HAUNTS ME. Absolutely chilling, by the time the big plot twists roll around... Beyond that, the overall aesthetic/vibe is impeccable, and the exaggerated, messy art style only adds to that.

Kemonozume — Monster/human forbidden romance with stunning art and a great soundtrack. The plot started out a bit confusing, but all of the scattered story elements came together nicely in the end!

The Tatami Galaxy — The "get your shit together and start enjoying your life" anime. It's plenty good as just a story, but I got some excellent life lessons out of it too. Solid mix of comedy, drama, and charismatic-yet-extremely-bizarre characters interacting.

Monster — Excellent slow-paced, psychological horror packed with ethical dilemmas, traumatic backstories, and so many Extremely Depressed Men. In other words, there's a very good reason why Johan Liebert used to end up on so many "best anime villains" lists.

Paranoia Agent — I have nothing but praise for Satoshi Kon's work, in general, and Paranoia Agent has been my favorite of the ones I've seen so far. Compared to his movies, it really benefits from the extra space for plot development, and the big emotional twist hits hard.

Revolutionary Girl Utena — A true classic. <3 There are enough tumblr essays about this tragic yuri masterpiece that I won't go into detail myself, but yes, it's every bit as good as you've heard.

Black Lagoon: Roberta's Blood Trail — The entire Black Lagoon series is excellent, but Roberta is my special girl. Unfortunately, the OAV adaption compresses the manga's version of her arc pretty heavily (and the altered ending is kind of dumb), but I still have to recommend it. Babygirl's breakdown is a REAL mess kjshghs

Claymore — Excellent pseudo-medieval fantasy with badass female characters, lots of body horror, and top-tier monster design. The manga is MUCH better than the anime after a certain point, however.

Kuuchuu Buranko — An episodic series about an eccentric psychiatrist interacting with his troubled patients. The mixed-media animation style and bizarre characters are what sold it for me, along with the exploration of mental health through storytelling tropes.

Cannon Fodder — An artistic short movie that's twenty minutes of aesthetic experience and fascinating worldbuilding implications. I love the vibe, and the "one, long horizontal frame" style is neat.

Flowers of Evil — The art style. The VIBES. The whole thing is incredibly eerie and off-putting, with a plot that's pretty much: "congrats! two shitty teenagers are tearing each other's lives apart!".

[boyrobott]

i fully get it bc i know what u mean about original astro boy manga being silly with it vs pluto being relentlessly sad. but i do think it's really important to say that pluto's themes draw on a LOT LOT LOT of stuff present in the original manga! like, the stuff about hate making a robot closer to a human/allowing them to kill a human despite most robots being physically unable to is pulled directly from the blue knight story. the original greatest robot on earth story that pluto is based off is about pluto struggling with not wanting to be a robot made only for killing bc he had a nice time hanging out with uran and doesn't wanna make her sad. epsilon still dies saving his adopted human son, and atom ends the story mourning for all the robots who got killed for goji to prove a point. the moral (which multiple characters say) is that what makes a robot OR a person strong is their love and humanity not their killing power, and it is both stupid and perpetuating the cycle of violence to force robots to hurt each other. the robot hate group man in pluto is inspired by the villain of a segment in astro boy tales part 2&3 where he literally is in a group wearing kkk hoods and does a whole pr attack about robots killing his son because he is campaigning to remove their rights.

and it's not just the stories pluto references! hell, in basically half the stories at minimum a robot is forced by a human to do a crime, the police go 'dang i guess we gotta take the rights of all robots away and destroy them for scrap :(' and atom has to find the human responsible so that doesn't happen (the third magician, electro, and his highness deadcross are some good examples). the plot of the story robot land is atom struggling with wanting to save a bunch of robots being beaten up and worked to the bone by their creator, but he can't because robots are still technically property and helping them escape would be stealing and therefore illegal. in the little intro comics tezuka drew in the collection, he literally says 'yeah this is about the vietnam war being awful' about like fully three different stories. and that's just off the top of my head!!

'what makes a person, where is our empathy, why do we quest for vengeance when it only sucks us into a cycle, have we lost our humanity' are literally the most important core themes of astro boy, which is why it's so so impressive for kids comics that are still broadly super super cute and funny!

legitimately sorry for putting a huge wall of text in ur inbox because i know it's unsolicited and probably uncool. but astro boy is super important to me and so is the idea that a story can be goofy silly child adventures and also explore dark and serious themes? so i had like. a moment when i saw ur post lol. i get it if u dont wanna read all this etc but i wanted to i guess encourage u to give the manga a second pass even if u aren't into pluto at all. there's an insane amount of stuff there that really really legitimately is that deep

Okay, may I just say, I'm absolutely loving your impassioned defense of the manga here. You're bringing so much ride-or-die energy to the table right now, and I'm loving it. But I've been slowly reading through the manga over the past few years, so I... kind of already know all this??? That's pretty much the whole reason I made the joke in the first place -- because there are so many similar storylines and themes between the original manga and the Pluto series, but the individual tones literally could not be more different. The fact that a grim dystopian anime about the horrors of war and the true meaning of humanity is saying the same exact things as a fun, lighthearted, campy manga series?? Sorry, but that's just hilarious to me.

I can definitely see where the misunderstanding came from, but I promise, you do not need to defend the manga to me, LMAO.

[klevxander]

Watching Nimona for the 2nd time after reading tons of posts and the comic. A thread:

[SPOILERS AHEAD SO GO WATCH THE MOVIE ALREADY]

* Knowing how things play out in the end really captures just how ridiculous the title sequence mythologizes these kids and what fear really does to people

* originally when the squire comes up to Ballister I thought that he wanted a selfie with him and was nervous about it. The facial expressions show that he's confused about handing the "sword" off to him and Ballister's face in response just ahfhsjbd. Also I noticed immediately that Ballister could just /feel/ something was off.

* "Ballister, today the kingdom will see you for who you really are" was SUCH A DAMN TWOFACED COMMENT FROM THE DIRECTOR YOU EVIL EVIL SHITFUCK

* Nimona's face as they discover someone that has been shunned just as they were just MMMMMPH *chef's kiss*

* Nimona's expressions are wonderful and when they ask about Ballister keeping the arm just makes me giggle in the weirdest way. I need screenshots at some point because emotes at some point are going to become a must

* THE DRAMA AND ENERGY NIMONA BRINGS

* "This guy looks extremely punchable" "You're right. He is actually extremely punchable."

* I kinda love the transition from the comic to the movie from Blackheart to Boldheart. A villain on purpose to a villain by someone else's doing. The similarities and parallels and themes!!!!

* We just threw the murderer in jail. "Wanna get some lunch?" "Yeah! I love lunch!"

* Nimona the rat sneaking into the cell as the Director leaves Ballister

* "Wait. How did you get out?" "I know the code."

* Nimona's intro to the escape music. I love this beatboxing gremlin. And then just breaks stuff while following after Ballister who is trying to sneak out carefully. "He is a murderer!... of fun"

* "Something something something... we win!"

* The way Nimona lands in the hero pose and stands triumphantly while Ballister slides in on his face, defeated by the overwhelming everything that just happened

* "Metal"

* Nimona absolutely loves fucking with Ballister. Just messing with his head because he's just so gullible. Making the lair more evil lair-y with lights on strings and making tacos. THE HANDS AS NIMONA SAYS MEATBALL!!!

* Comic Ballister is definitely more clearly defined as a scientist, and the only reference we get to movie Ballister being scientific is just that he MAKES HIS OWN ARM. It's a little more understandable to see where he's coming from. He's a man of science. Science has reason and explanation and definition and Nimona... Does not. Not to say that any of his actions are necessarily forgivable, as he definitely hurts Nimona by being this way. Nimona gives him one question out of his million, and thankfully, he chooses the correct one. "Why are you helping me?"

* "You need the squire? Then let's go kill- Get him"

* The way Nimona Super Mario hops bouncing off the couch AND KEEPS TELEPORTING FOR COMEDIC EFFECT

* "rhinoperos"

* "Would you please unclench your mustache?"

* Nimona constantly questions all of Ballister's actions and tries to have him question things for himself. Question everything. Including the system.

* Something therapeutic for Ballister in the way Nimona portrays him.

* "He hates freestyle jazz"

* pizza rat pizza rat pizza rat

* The random commercial transition with Dragon Krisps

* "Easier to be a girl? You're hilarious" Nimona is all about expressing who they are and questioning the status quo. Questioning what everyone else wants you to be. What is normal? Fuck being normal. I'm Nimona.

* The wishing well story in the movie vs the witch in the hole in the comic.

* Ballister and his constant puppy dog eyes

* The squire has such Kuzco energy. "Ohhh nooo. Let me go ahead and pass this problem on to someone else."

* Nimona's slander on pineapple pizza. How dare

* Comparisons to other memes and media are EVERYWHERE. "There's an arrow in your (butt) leg!" Also, the arrow in the leg from comic to movie makes such a defined difference. "I'm not a people." That's right sweetheart. You're a Nimona. I also love this scene because of the character growth from Ballister and the recognition of said growth from Nimona. He's got these assumptions and expectations that are constantly breaking around Nimona and they just watch him make mistakes and learn and grow. And BECAUSE Nimona can SEE this growth and change, they decide to share something a little more personal about themselves.

* "Who'd protect Todd?" Bro. I know.

* The squire dabbing in Ballister's armor. Secondhand embarrassment at an all-time high.

* "ARM-CHOPPING IS NOT A LOVE LANGUAGE" and then because of his training and his love BALLISTER PROCEEDS TO DEFEND THE GUY WHO CHOPPED OFF HIS ARM

* The parallels, the comparisons, the brainwashing, the questioning of everything!!!!

* Ambrosius watching as the future he could have had being wiped away quite literally depicted by a billboard being painted over, as he sits in the car with the person who's fears caused the incident in the first place. AND THEN THE FREAKOUT ABOUT EVERYTHING that only happens in his mind as he just simply responds with, "I'm fine, Director."

* Another person already said this, but the "devil and angel" over Ballister and Ambrosius comparison is just wonderful. "Says the miscreant, whispering in his ear." Bitch who the fuck are you!? Look in a goddamn mirror and reflect for fucking 2 seconds!!!

* They give Ambrosius a chance to do the right thing and trust the man he supposedly loves. Instead, he asks the wrong question, escalates the situation, and ends up with his hair looking like a paintbrush, getting booped on the nose by a gorilla. Also DINGING THAT KNIGHT IN THE DINGDONG WITH ARMADILLO NIMONA THEN USING THE KNIGHT'S SHIELD THAT IS STILL ATTACHED TO THE POOR GUY!?!? "Sorry not sorry" "Of horse I do" The pure elatement and joy Nimona expresses while fighting the Institution. *chef's kisses everywhere*

* The confusion over what kind of otter Nimona takes form as a callback

* This movie subverts expectations CONSTANTLY jumping rope with drama and comedy.

* THE SEVERE TRAUMA THAT NIMONA HAS over saving the little girl's life and having her in turn raise a sword at Nimona. The parallel to Gloreth just broke them.

* "I don't know what's scarier. The fact that everyone in this kingdom wants to run a sword through my heart... or they sometimes, I just wanna let 'em."

* The way Nimona lights up when Ballister says that they are together. "You changed the way you see me."

* The director bases all of her fears on a myth and old papers and nightmares. Projecting her fears in a way that only hurts the people around her.

* The DRAMA that Nimona exudes after being STABBED in the form of Ambrosius. It's also not exactly explained in the movie, but in the comic, the reason Nimona apparently heals so fast is because every time they change forms, the old body (cells) dies and the new one takes its place. Which is why Nimona just questioned what the fuck Ballister was doing when bandaging their leg and being all worried about the arrow.

* "You didn't tell me you could breathe fire." "Ohhh" "Metal" love how he just accepts Nimona at this point. The board game, Nimona shape-shifting into the Director to spook Ballister and so many other bits from the comic, either being pulled directly or inspiring new ones. It's all just so good.

* "Nachos! And hold the olives. He's allergic"

There is so much to this movie. I love the stories it speaks for and that so many people connect to it. So many other conclusions to be drawn and analysis to be made. Definitely one of my new favorites.

[sonjuponju]

now YOU tell me about YOUR ocs...!!! (if you want) is your pfp enix...🧡

IT IS IT IS!!! that drawing turned out so good i just stick it everywhere now 😭

the thing about my ocs is that i hardly get anything done with them if i don't have someone to constantly validate my choices and help me build ideas and stuff so most of my stories are pretty incomplete and all over the place 🥲 but i do have some bits and pieces that i can share!!

ima put everything under a read more cus there's gonna be a LOT of stuff. you really don't have to read all of it if you find it longwinded, i just really love rambling about my dudes (but only if someone asks 😭)

ENIX, he/him - he's actually one of my older ocs, i created him way back in 2017 when i was like 11 😭 fun fact! his original name was vixen but due to the definition of the word bugging me i recently changed his name to enix :3 another fact but kind of an embarrassing one - he used to have DID, and my 11 year old ass played RIGHT into the "evil alter" trope, so yeahhhh... the only good thing to come out of that was that the "evil alter" eventually became a wholly separate blorbo, named feliks! who we will get into now B)

FELIKS, he/him - my fucking sweet baby. my angel. he has gone through so many transformations it's hilarious

here he is in his "evil alter" days. already got the black eye to signify his "evilness". though i don't think it took very long for me to decide that he was actually the host of the body, not enix. in any case his usual day-to-day activities included pissing everyone around him off and trying some evil schemes every now and then

in like 2018 i got REALLY into this visual novel called "the arcana" and feliks was the ex best friend of the MC my friend cooked up for our version of the story. i didn't want him to be a cyclops for this iteration because i thought it didn't fit the theme, so he had to get a human design. he didn't have DID in this version, but he did have an identical twin brother, named vance. in this story feliks killed vance and became the boyfriend of the villain of the story, also becoming one of the villains in the process. his ex best friend ellis ended up defeating him and he got hanged with his boyfriend for their crimes

now here's where the story gets really juicy. feliks reincarnated in the modern world, and i think i ditched him having DID and instead the "alters" turned out to be the fragmented parts of feliks' dead brother's personality. vance had basically come back to haunt him in a form that was kind of comparable to alters, but also not really

the main arcana characters alongside ellis also reincarnated and ended up finding feliks (who was still evil btw). they were kind of like a friend group for a while until shit hit the fan when everyone found out that feliks killed his brother way back in their past life (they had no idea up until now). ellis became incredibly angry with him and him being a magician turned feliks into water and put him in a vase so he wouldn't be able to hurt anyone ever again

before this happened though i think ellis and his also magician boyfriend were able to piece vance back together and give him a body, so he was reincarnated too. after receiving a second chance at life, vance got himself a boyfriend, and even got married with him. the happiness didn't last for long though when feliks was able to sneak himself in his water form into vance's husband's water bottle. the husband drunk the water and ended up possessed by feliks 🙃 feliks killed vance AGAIN, was able to return to his own body by also killing vance's husband, annnnddd... then ellis caught up to him and beheaded him with his scythe. (god i still love this story)

after death feliks became a demon in hell, and that's basically where his story ends. idk i must've gotten another interest at this point because i didn't get any further with the story

in 2020 i decided to revamp him AGAIN, this time making my own fantasy universe for him. i got a couple of my friends involved with it too (this was basically a species i made specifically for that thing and my friends made ocs of that species). the story for it was really juicy too but im not gonna be telling about it cus it's almost identical to my current project with him and i might wanna make it into a real thing one day so.. SPEAKING OF WHICH

HIS CURRENT DESIGN. MORE PHOTOS.

I AM SO NORMAL ABOUT HIM!!!!!!! GAAGAHAJJSDJDKSK

anyway. yeah, there isn't much i can tell about the story, but i can tell you about how SHIT it is trying to come up with fantasy clothing. i am no fashion designer, not by a longshot, so my boy has his tits out 24/7 because i can't think of anything he could wear (and also i just love seeing him bare chested ❤️). i kinda don't even know where to start with the clothes cus i don't want them to be the generic european medieval stuff you see in fantasy CONSTANTLY and i am awfully lazy at researching anything that isn't my number 1 interest so. yah. to combat not being able to draw him with a canon design, i made a domestic modern au 🫶

here's feliks and his roomie clancy :3 they are my biggest blorbos rn and i would REALLY love to talk more about them but um. yeah this post is long enough especially considering there is still one oc i wanna mention

here's valo!! she is feliks' sister. you might think wait you didn't mention feliks having a sister? no i didn't because she is his BROTHER. I GENDERBENDED VANCE. BECAUSE IT WOULD FUCK. and yeah she is absolutely incredible i love her from the bottom of my heart. valo and feliks still have kind of a complicated relationship but at least in the au feliks doesn't kill her :D she's just kinda chilling with her gf until i come up with a story for her too

so ya that's all i wanted to talk about for now!! if you read this far then thank you 😭🫶 i had so much fun writing this. i was busy the whole day today but i just kept thinking about how much i wanted to answer your ask haha. i didn't plan for it to get so long though but im super grateful if you read this far 🥹

[crusherthedoctor]

Favorite sonic males?

10. Metal Sonic - My luck with hedgehog characters in this hedgehog-adjacent franchise is so unlucky that my favourite of the lot is the mute robot based on one of them. Metal in himself may not be much of an actual individual, aside from when Heroes decided to try changing it in the worst way possible, but like with Ariem, I just think he's neat, and after all the milking with Shadow's overhyped backstory, I kind of appreciate Metal's simplicity. Plus, OVA Metal is a bad motherfucka. I think it's more than possible to expand on Metal without making him an usurper or giving him inappropriate dialogue.

9. Erazor - Proof that I don't instantly dislike non-Eggman villains, the reality is that the vast majority of them are genuinely shite. This guy isn't though: he's what Mephiles isn't, a cunning yet sadistic force who does a good job antagonizing Sonic, and his connection with Shahra has the double whammy effect of making you feel for her while also wanting to beat his ass. He's what a good villain should strive to be.

8. Whisker - Why do I keep saying he's a better Eggman Nega than the actual Eggman Nega? Because he is. Despite his appearance, Whisker actually has his own personality, and was at least built by Eggman rather than being another guy from another world who inexplicably looks like him. He also has a banger of a boss theme that too many fans sleep on, because I guess they forget that non-vocal boss tracks exist.

7. Zor - Legitimately funny dialogue, I won't hear otherwise. You know what happens when it gets lumped in with the critiques surrounding the other D6 members? You get IDW's unironic edgelord Zor in an effort to "improve" him. Thanks for nothing, fandom.

6. Gamma - Gamma walked so that Shadow could get shilled to the point of exhaustion.

5. Heavy Gunner, Heavy Shinobi, and Heavy King - What I said about the other two applies here. I've said it so many times, but how is it that these guys were able to show so much character despite having no dialogue, whereas many other characters struggle with dialogue?

4. Vector - He's one of those characters who has an inherently fun atmosphere. Also has a surprising amount of lore and depth for the guy who gave us "DON'T GO THERE... YET".

3. Omega - He's continued going upwards in my favourites as time has went on, because he's one of the most low-key hilarious and cleverly written characters in the series. When he said "That's a load off my back", I felt that.

2. Tails - Another character who doesn't get (the right) shit in most adaptations. Tails deserves to be just as badass as Sonic, and he doesn't need to sacrifice his friendly tech-loving persona in order to let that happen. All you need to do is stop relying on super form hedgehogs for everything. *glares at Frontiers*

1 . Eggman - AKA the main character.

[wwwwaaaaazzzzzaaaapppp]

Hopefully making this post will help me find more people in my situation, so here’s my TV adventure of me being forced to watch shows only with actors that I am familiar with. This all started about 2 years ago when I started watching the Afterparty a hilarious mystery show that I will forever love, this show introduced me to the actor Ben Schwartz I loved his character he was funny he was very interesting as *SPOILER* the villain and I wanted to watch more stuff with this actor.

This was when TikTok introduced me to Rise of The TMNT. I remembered seeing a comic of the show when I was younger so I was already intrigued during this time my parents had also decided to start watching Our Flag Means Death as a family during dinner and I was super thrown off when I found out that the lead actor in OFMD Rhys Darby played one of the main villains in ROTTMNT and it was really cool and I found it intriguing.

Just to quickly say this might become a little out of order because my brain struggles with keeping 3 years perfectly accurate in my brain.

Later on after finishing both of these shows I then watched the I think sitcom (if that is the accurate way to describe it) Fresh Off The Boat with my mom because I kept seeing clips of it on TikTok and it looked really good and I was completely shocked when Rhys Darby randomly ended up playing a character in an episode in the show the main focus is a family moving to Florida and if you watch the show you will know that there is a son in this family named Emry. Keep him in mind for later in this story he becomes important.

After a while of watching random shows that are not important to this story like Owl House I came across another show on TikTok that looked good and had just come out on Netflix due to it being said to have a movie on the way weirdly enough just like ROTTMNT This show is called Community, I started watching it and I became obsessed I loved the characters I was constantly making references to it and accidentally got my family hooked too. I think in season 5 there was an episode where it was entirely GIJoe themed and there were fake commercial breaks where there would be kids playing with the toys from the show including one very familiar boy by the name of Forrest Wheeler aka EMRY FROM FRESH OFF THE BOAT. I know it doesn’t sound that interesting but it felt very weird at the time. Community also has a reoccurring joke which is a parody show in the universe called Inspector Spacetime poking fun at the show Doctor Who somehow this was my first time getting an idea of what Doctor Who is and I just kind of laughed it off. Considering community has 6 seasons it lasted me along enough time without having to look for another show to watch.

I think a very long time after I finished Community I started getting clips from a show that I recognized. Good Omens was finally getting a new season after 5 years. I wasn’t very interested because when the first season came out I was young, apparently stupid, and had a short attention span I was also discovering the idea of having a phone for the first time if that’s an excuse. But I was spoiled on the fact that there was going to be a kiss seen and I was very excited because I desperately wanted find a show with LGBTQ+ representation and I was actually interested in so I convinced my family to watch. And the season was great and after finishing it I was constantly looking at good omens stuff online. During this I was slowly becoming more interested in the happenings of the actor David Tennant so I ended up stumbling upon a treasure trove of new shows to watch and I started it with watching staged which I was having a fun time with until I felt like I had experienced whiplash and saw Ben (mister blue man) Schwartz goofing around on my screen and I had no idea what was happening but it was fun and everyone was funny and entertaining.

If only I had know what was in store for me coming in the form of aquatic birds.

FREAKING DUCKTALES

ALMOST ALL OF THE ACTORS THAT I LOVED WERE THERE. Dani Pudi aka Abed from community was playing Huey Duck, Ben Schwartz was was Dewey Duck , Bobby Moynihan who I knew from SNL but didn’t really care about at the time was playing Louie Duck, and the crown jewel, the focus of it all ✨David Tennant✨ was playing the adventuring Scrooge Mcduck. I was driven mad this was getting too much I can’t just watch a show immediately because of these actors. This was very much a kids cartoon I can’t humiliate myself like this…

So I watched it anyway

and

I

LOVED IT

I thought it was funny weirdly angsty at points and it was perfect and even better there were so many more people from Community in it. But it was always supposed to come to an end so I finished it and continued my hunt for content.

That was months ago but David Tennant’s acting still has a chokehold on me so I am now a self proclaimed Whovian and watched of anything David Tennant related that my parents will let me watch and my Mom is along for the ride.

I have also found a deep love of Newsies because I am now playing Albert in my school production just to put it out there for people to know how far my love of random stuff goes.

Thank you for reading.

[ecargmura]

Bucchigiri?! Episode 6 Review - The Gang War

This was a heavy action-packed episode! But there was a satisfactory conclusion. It makes me wonder what will happen now as it’s Episode 6—the halfway point. The main villain, supposedly, has been defeated and Arajin is now respected by everyone. What’s next for him? We still haven’t explored Ichiya’s role in the story and Mitsukuni has yet to make his official debut. I feel like the second half will be about that?

Anyways, shout out to the Arajin defenders because your boy finally did something substantial for once! I respect those who defend him and his writing! However, I’m still not viewing him favorably. The fact that he went to the scene of the fight, saw Matakara and others get beaten up and still wouldn’t involve himself in the scene and even thought about leaving when Mahoro rejected him once again was a bit frustrating to watch. You won’t help out even as a decent human being? Is getting Mahoro’s heart all that matters to you? What if someone dies because of your inability to act? It was nice for him to finally take action, it was only when Akutaro smacked Mahoro that he did something as he didn’t want a rehash of what happened with Matakara during his childhood—Arajin, maybe you should’ve done that when Matakara was down?

I did like seeing the flashback of how Siguma came to be and how Marito’s ultimate goal is to defeat Kenichiro in a fight. It was nice seeing Marito and Outa as freshman and how his mind worked back then and now. Marito wants a good fight, all in all. Though, knowing that Kenichiro is a frequent school repeater because he wants Marito (or someone) to defeat him is hilarious. Why go to such lengths to stay in school?

Mahoro was cool for standing up against Akutaro. She has more balls than Arajin, to be honest. I love how her sharp tongue is one of her defining traits as she used it to reject Arajin and now to tell Akutaro off. She’s not wrong about the things she said to him, though. Akutaro is a coward and practically nothing without weapons and cheats. Since Arajin protected her, will their relationship change? I think it’ll change it a bit? She probably won’t fall for Arajin immediately, but maybe she’ll view him a bit more favorably?

Speaking of Akutaro, can I mention how much of a banger the NG Boys’ theme song is? Like, I was bopping my head during the scene of him fighting everyone with his whip. Akutaro did feel like a final boss of sorts, but given that this is Episode 6, he’s practically a disc-one/first arc boss; it seems that Ichiya, the genie possessing Akutaro is the real final boss. While Akutaro did reveal that he knows Arajin has Senya possessing him, he refuses to elaborate too much. Whether his actions are being done on his own or by Ichiya are still yet to be elaborated. I have a feeling that it’s the latter. If Akutaro is battered and no longer useful, it’s the perfect set up to find a new host—which is most likely Matakara as hinted in the opening.

I have seen theories about how the next half of the story will be a bit of a downfall as Arajin got everything he wanted in the first half with him getting a genie, the “princess” (Mahoro) and to be seen as strong by his peers as it ties to the original story of Aladdin and the Lamp. This intrigues me a lot. I can’t wait to see what Ichiya does to make the story more engaging as he has yet to make a true appearance. He has a voice actor reveal, however. The official Twitter page of Bucchigiri revealed that his voice actor is Tetsuharu Ota, who is known for voicing Yamazaki from Gintama.

I can’t wait to see what the second half of the show has to offer. There won’t be a new episode next week due to a table tennis match; instead, there will be a recap episode narrated by Arajin’s voice actor Genki Okawa. This means Episode 7 will be aired on March, so I’ll see you guys in two weeks! What are your thoughts on this episode?

[violet-coyote]

My thoughts on Edward because idk I’ve got that type of autism ._.

Watching him the first time was actually so amazing. He reminds me of a slasher because how scary and foreboding he is in a lot of those scenes. And don’t even get me STARTED on the lighting! That scene in Arkham where only one eye is illuminated, the way the clear glasses reflect light- it’s all completely amazing. I also really love the home brew look and aspects. It makes him feel so much more real which in turn makes him scarier! And lemme be real for a sec… I kinda… maaaaaayybe agreed with him a little bit. Only a little cause he killed a bunch of civilians (obviously). He really does bring up a relevant, very real issue with a crazy amount of important officials. Also- he basically wins! The Batman didn’t figure things out in time and the plan completely went off. The shooting was a little iffy, but even then his plan WORKED. My dad jokes about this Batman being a terrible detective which I think I may agree with, though that just gives him more space to grow as a character. Maybe Edward didn’t get recognized in the end, but he did essentially win that movie which is such a fresh take for Batman and I love Matt Reeves.

Paul Dano is also just a really amazing actor and I am SO glad he was cast and is now getting bigger roles cause he totally deserves it. And I don’t know how to describe it, but I can’t imagine Edward with anyone else’s face, y’know? It’s like round and unassuming and like soft. But then he’s the main, crazy antagonist. That reveal of him being this weird little guy was actually hilarious and a bit chilling at the same time. Paul also just really deeply understands the characters he plays which is shown in his writing for the comics.

Now, the COMICS! I know people hate on it and I know it’s partially deserved, but Steven Subick was a really good pick for the artist. The muted tones, messy panels- It’s grimy and messy and perfect for the ~vibes~ I imagine Edward has. It’s also really good at reflecting the sort of rot and disease in his mind. Absolutely amazing- though I think Dave Mckean would’ve been even better.

The story and mind that Paul Dano shows is so interesting. It shows his complex motivations and how he got to the point where he’d literally flood an entire city. The issue about his childhood is chilling and sympathetic. I love a sympathetic villain. It also really sets up a lot of themes for his character like drowning the rat and his love of chemistry and puzzles. The 5th issue was a fantastic stylistic choice with so many interesting details and elements. It also has some really funny (if not dark) moments. In that 6th issue, he is SO BADASS WTF? He gets a guy chomped in half by a fucking saltwater crocodile (which it’s so big that must be the species)! Then he fucks with his own boss so hard he hangs himself like OMG?? And he saves that lady! That might be one of the most pivotal moments just because it shows that he does have good in him. And yeah some of those final panels are goofy as hell, but cope ig. I really loved the comic and looked forward to it each month once I discovered it.

Also, although it’s never outright stated, it’s very VERY clearly implied that he’s autistic. He starts talking later, is very smart otherwise, has trouble with social skills, and literally gets called “Rain man” by his coworker. I feel like making the Riddler allistic would be completely stupid. At his base, hes a guy who likes riddles and puzzles (usually to an obsessive degree), and feels the need to prove his intelligence to those around him. That screams neurodivergency! Like bro I get it fr.

I also like the short novel, even though it is simple and made for a younger audience. It’s interesting to see a teenage Edward Nashton (Edweird 😭) delivering food on his ratty old bike. It also mentions that he’s pretty bad in school which I would definitely not have guessed considering his whole thing is being super fuckin smart. And I absolutely LOVE how he burns down the orphanage. It’s a huge character moment and tbh just makes me very happy cause it shows us one of his first crimes which is fun.

For Batman ll, I’m really interested to see where that takes his character. Paul Dano already said he would reprise the role for it so he will be in there- even if only for a short while. They clearly set something up between him and the Joker. Now I’m very curious how that will turn out. On one hand, I can see him being manipulated by the Joker for his own selfish gain and ending up as another rat in the gutter. But that writing also wouldn’t really makes sense for the character. The Riddler’s point in the rogues gallery is to reflect his intelligence. He’s often shown as being even smarter! The only thing that gets him is the obsession with leaving little puzzles and games that inevitably lead to his arrest. Obviously though, Reeves has his own spin on basically everything so this might not be the case with this iteration. Basically, I don’t know where Matt Reeves is gonna take this character. I HOPE and PRAY that with Paul Dano beside him they will do him justice, but only time will tell. I’ll probably be off the grid by the time the movie comes out but I’ll make sure to pop by a theatre just for that lol.

TL;DR- I love my blorbo

-small rant regarding the fandom-

I hate hate HATE how people make him a twink! NO! Have you seen Paul Dano? That man has the DEFINITION of a dad bod. Obviously they can be different, but they literally almost share a BIRTHDAY. That man is NOT A TWINK. He’s not skinny. He is a weird, stinky accountant that sits in his house most of the time. And if you like the character, why would you want to change that? If you change that part of him, he’s a COMPLETELY different character. You can’t make him a twink without destroying his characterization in the process.

Also, I’m a riddlebat hater

-rant over-

[just-jae]

Just binged Earthspark

Fucking hilarious

Astronomical.

Animation is so yes- like visually effective, like, I actually was creeped out by the villain.

So many DADS AOGH

SO MANY MOMS

Blatantly addressing how a grey situation and grey characters were narrated into black and white, good and evil type stories.

Kids with personalities and relatable/familiar diversities. Like. They based those characters off of real people dude.

It also got so dark! Like- I love that. I love that they showed that the world is both beautiful and dangerous, kind and cruel. Even the kid who was like "racism is no big deal its fine" didn't immediately flip es attitude, but it didn't take any more arguing, just time to process/digest things. They literally showed that it's dangerous to go off with strangers bc of trafficking. Like, these were based on real people and real dangers.

Even the situation where they're working for the very people they're hiding from is just great. Like. Yes it be like that sometimes.

The whole, embracing family, finding family, working through conflicts instead of just being distracted from them- mwah

The story and themes are great, the Cybertronians AND the Humans are great, the violence and choreography are great. They do so many things justice.

Except- idk Wheeljack could have been nerdier, the bots could have been more scuffed up when they took hits instead of just bouncing back until the literal last episode, the approach to non-binary portrayal could have been more graceful (like, they did so well handling Jawbreaker's slowness but were so stiff and to-the-camera about Nightshade's identity thing- but it think that's just a matter of cybertronians being a poor way to explore gender identity- considering the closest they get to explaing why an asexual race has binary genders is that the "female" bots came from a different planet with different norms- except some came from cybertron.... yeah not the best species to explore gender with- it's like trying to explore sexuality- romance yes- sexuality will just... never work with them imo....)

Loved Arcee's Hula Guy. That like, brightened up my world though. Like, i'm so serious this show was so great. Megatron was a BEAST who was definitely scratching that "powerhouse perfect for protecting your kids" scratch dude, like they milked that bear for all the Megatron lovers and I had a great meal thank you.

[gimmequeerbooks]

Carry On by Rainbow Rowell (review/rec)

Genre: Fantasy

My rating: 9/10

I feel like Tumblr is well aware of these books already, but I figured it was a solid start as any.

Carry On and its subsequent books was such a pleasant surprise! Years ago, I had read Fangirl, another book by Rowell. And I loved it! I also recommend that one, but there are no LGBTQ+ characters or themes from what I remember. In it, the main character, Cath, was writing a fanfic from her favorite book series from childhood, Simon Snow. Simon Snow evidently involved a teenage boy named Simon whom attended wizarding school. Oddly, some sort of event or disaster would happen at this school every year, with Simon and his friends (but mostly Simon), being at the center of it. Simon would appear to be some sort of “chosen one”. Sound familiar?

Carry On, is the fanfic that Cath was working on. From Fangirl, we already knew that it followed Simon through his last year at wizarding school and that Cath possibly made the best enemies to lovers story known to the world of fanfiction. I actually avoided reading Carry On for a long time because I usually really hate Harry Potter fics. Not to mention that I thought it was going to be a lot like other spin-off books that end up just being boring. Eventually, out of desperation to find more queer stories, I caved, and I found out that my assumptions were absolutely wrong. It turns out that Cath really did write an excellent enemies to lovers story!

The characters are extremely relatable, and over the series we get to see how these characters develop from teenagers to young adults. I love that we also get to see how they react emotionally to the things that have happened to them as well. Unlike a lot of Chosen-One stories where the main trio can just take on challenge after challenge and make it out seemingly unfazed, it feels like Carry On pulls back the curtain on what these sorts of characters would actually be dealing with after facing huge, life-altering events. I’d like to say more here, but I’m afraid that I will spoil them!

The world of Simon Snow is also pretty hilarious. Every once in a while, Rowell will seemingly poke fun at Harry Potter’s plot holes or stupid rules. These books had me laughing when it didn’t have me in Deep Introspection Mode. What with its tongue-twisters of spells taken from nursery rhymes and the main villain being named “The Insidious Humdrum”. That being said, while Carry On perhaps has its roots in Harry Potter, it is a complete story in its own right. Instead of being about the up-and-coming Chosen One and the chaos that ensues, Carry On is more-so about how people can and do move on and grow after their world was turned upside-down. Most Chosen-One stories, and really most young adult fiction books, end with high school, and I can't tell you how much I appreciate the Rowell gave Simon and his friends a future beyond just high school. I love how she shows how at every age there are new challenges to face. Life goes on beyond high school!

Of course, I don’t want to forget the reason that these books have made it onto my blog! Where is the gay content!? The main characters, Simon and Baz fall in love, and it’s adorable. Simon doesn’t realize at first that he may be into men, so he has to have a bit of self-discovery there. Meanwhile, Baz thinks he’s pining for a straight boy who could never fall in love with his enemy and rival and hates vampires, like him. It’s like if Malfoy and Harry were to fall in love, except Malfoy actually has some redeeming qualities and proves that he’s quite nice. I feel like this comparison still doesn’t do Simon and Baz justice though. Rowell also shows the awkwardness between first loves and how it may not always be smooth sailing throughout the books. In addition, I have a headcanon that Penelope, another one of the main characters, may be somewhere on the demiromantic and/or demisexual spectrum.

If your in the mood for laughing, some crying (or both at once), discussions about change, and the feeling that you just want to reach into the books to give a hug to people that don’t exist I highly recommend the Simon Snow trilogy.

[travllingbunny]

What is your favourite episode of Buffy The Vampire Slayer and favourite episode of Angel and what are some reasons why?

I can never choose just one.

Once More, With Feeling is, in spite of being unusual because it's a musical (and a rare musical episode that managed to pull it off perfectly) in a way an epitome of Buffy as a show with its mix of humor and darkness, and with its themes and focus on character arcs.

The Wish is one of the best AU stories ever made on TV, and the finale with the multiple deaths is one of the best sequences on the show.

Of the season finales, the greatest ones are the Becoming two-parter and The Gift - both epic, incredible episodes.

And then there's Restless, which is not your typical finale, but it weird, quirky and also full of meaning, a great character study and one of the best portrayals of dreams on screen (as it's one of the very few where dream sequences actually feel like dreams as they are in real life).

Who Are You? is a great character study of Faith, who's one of my favorite characters (and does the body switch trope perfectly). The Body is of course a harrowing realistic portrayal of loss.

But there are several episodes that don't get mentioned that much in the 'best episodes of Buffy' but that are among my favorites: Lie to Me (a perfect episode, and the one that first made me realize Buffy wasn't just a good show but a great show); I Only Have Eyes For You (makes me bowl my eyes every time); Anne (I'm so so about the Sunnydale parts, but the LA parts are the essence of Buffy Summers); Fear Itself (great little Halloween episode with a lot of character insight and an ending both funny and effective); Something Blue (hilarious but also with a lot of foreshadowing and character insight into Willow); Intervention (also hilarious but with real character development for both Buffy and Spike); Dead Things, Villains (very dark and very daring and brilliant episodes that epitomize season 6); Conversations with Dead People (I love the atmosphere in this one - I wish the rest of season 7 had lived up to it).

I probably forgot quite a few. I just love so many episodes of BtVS.

With Angel, If I had to pick, it would probably be either Are You Now Or Have You Ever Been? or Darla. (Reunion, The Trial and Reprise are right there too; I love the Darla season 2 arc.) Sleep Tight and Lullaby are also among my favorites - season 3 is hit and miss, with too many bad standalones, but I love the main arc with Holtz. I also love the season 4 finale, Home. Five by Five is my favorite season 1 episode (Faith tends to be in the best episodes of both shows).