#maddy is a character I originally invented

[bexorok]

Poorly written Sonic Movie 3 pitch/outline

I’ve never really written anything in a script format, but I had so many thoughts about the next movie that I had to write them out otherwise my brain would actually explode. I’m kind of bouncing around with scenes I think should be in the movie as well as character introductions. Hope people find some enjoyment out of these!

This is the first couple of scenes I wrote out. I also had a little blurb about the opening credits, but it’s kind of just what the rumored trailer for Sonic 3 reviled at cinamacon was, so there’s not much point of it. Basically, Robotnik now looks like his original game design, and that’s all you really need to know

Introduction Scene

interior, prison island

Sirens are blaring and red lights are going off. We see automated doors closing, followed by an explosion. When the smoke settles, we see Stone and Robotnik together in a walking mech, destroying all doors that close in front of them. Military robots fight back but can do nothing against him.

They enter a final room at the end of the corridor. Inside we see a capsule that’s completely sealed.

Robotnik: We've hit the jackpot, Stone! Right inside this capsule is the key to ultimate power, and finally destroying that pesky hedgehog and his friends once and for all! I will finally have the power to rule over this world, and even more!

(Insert gay pining from Stone, we all know it’s canon)

Robotnik instructs Stone to search the files for the password to enter. He scrolls through the data for a moment before he comes across something.

Stone: M-A-R-I-A … really? A 5 letter password is protecting the key to ultimate power?

Robotnik: Remember Stone, this dusty bucket of bolts is over 50 years old. They were simpler times. Password decoders weren’t even invented, and our current program probably wouldn’t run on this hunk of junk.

He pauses a moment, seemingly thinking back.

Robotnik: Maria, huh? Haven’t heard that name in a long, long time. Still, I wouldn’t have thought of my grandfather as the sentimental type.

He walks over and types in the password. The capsule opens with a cloud of smoke, and an orange light reveals a figure not unlike Sonic’s. His eyes open and glow red as the restraints around him detach.

Robotnik and Stone stare in awe as he steps out. He kneels to the ground on one knee.

Shadow: I am Shadow, the ultimate lifeform, created by doctor Gerald Robotnik. You have awakened me, which can only mean you seek the ultimate power.

Robotnik yells in exasperation: Yes! Finally, a creature who knows its master! Welcome to the team, Shadow the hedgehog

The camera zooms back, revealing prison island, going further until it shows the entire earth, zooming further to reveal space colony ARK. The rendition of “live and learn” from the original trailer plays as the logo for the movie is finally revealed, with ARK shown just underneath.

Cut to an overview of Green Hills, where we see the blur of sonic, quickly followed by tails and knuckles, all laughing and whooping. They go through the forests and mountains of Green Hills, eventually getting to the peak of a mountain top, where Sonic jumps off and is caught by tails. Knuckles follows, gliding next to them. They fly over a house, where we hear Tom shout to them.

Tom: Dinner is ready! Get here quick, before all the burgers and hotdogs are gone!

They all fly down, landing in the backyard, where Tom has the grill set up. At a table nearby, we see Maddie, Rachel, Randel, JoJo, and Ozzy sitting down. Tails quickly flies to a tree house connected to the garage.

Tails: Just have to grab something!

Knuckles steps to the side of the yard, opening what looks like a cellar door.

Knuckles: I will join you all in a moment. I must double check the emeralds status.

Tails flies back from a window in the tree house, carrying with him a gadget.

Tails: It's fine, Knux, we would have gotten an alert if anything happened to the emerald.

Knuckles: Fox, I trust nothing but my own eyes to confirm if the emerald is safe or not.

He opens the doors and goes down a dark flight of stairs.

Maddie: Let him go sweetie, you know how he gets when he’s away from the emerald too long.

Tom: Sonic, do you mind getting the plates from the kitchen?

In a flash, sonic runs inside the house and back again, setting a plate in front of each person at the table.

Tom: Thanks pal!

Maddie nudges Rachel, nodding her head.

Rachel: Alright, I’ll admit it, the weird little alien things are starting to grow on me, especially considering how much JoJo likes spending time with them. But I still don’t know if I want to move to this town.

Sonic: aw, come on, Green Hills is the best town ever! Pulse as long as we're here, it’ll be the safest town ever.

Tails: That's right! We’re patrolling every day, looking for signs of danger! And for the chaos emeralds, of course.

JoJo: Oh yeah, have you guys found any yet?

Tails: (laughs awkwardly) well, not yet. But as soon as I’m done with my tracking device, we’ll be able to use it to hunt them down!

He shows them the device in his hands. It has a radar map on it with a single, large blinking light next to the yard.

Tails: right now it can only detect the master emerald, but once we find a chaos emerald, I can use its energy frequency to find other similar frequencies.

JoJo: Wow! That’s so cool! Mom, can I help them look for the emeralds too?

Rachel: Woah, woah, woah. No way young lady, I can not have you running around the world, you’re still just a kid.

JoJo: but mom! Tails is, like, 8! I’m two whole years older than him! Why can’t I go on cool adventures?

Randal: because, you’re still a *human* kid. You can get hurt a lot more easily than these guys can.

Rachel: hold up, do you mean to tell me that that little scientist who makes bombs and guns is only 8?

Maddie: We were surprised too. You’d have no idea any of these guys were so young if you didn’t ask.

Sonic: mom! We aren’t that young! I’m 14 now, I’m basically a grown up.

Maddie: Okay, Mr. grown up. But most grown ups don’t like getting tucked into bed every night.

Sonic: MOM!

Everyone at the table laughs, and Tom comes to the table with a plate of hot dogs and burger patties. Maddie looks over at Tails, who is still tweaking with his tracker.

Maddie: Miles Prower-Wachowski, what did I say about gizmos at the dinner table?

Tails: oops, sorry mom!

He puts the radar down, where the camera zooms in on the blinking light. We then fade to the room in the cellar. An automated door with an eye scanner blocks the way, and we see Knuckles take the last few steps down the staircase. He approaches the door and puts his eye near the scanner. A red laser appears and scans his eye, confirming his identity and unlocking the door. It opens, and inside the room we see a small shrine (designed after the shrine from sonic adventure 1) and resting on it is the master emerald. Knuckles nods in content.

Knuckles: as long as I am here, no harm will come to the emerald ever again.

[secretly-an-automaton]

WELCOME TO…

random shit that most of this fandom collectively deluded into being canon, regardless of if it a) wasn’t explicitly stated in the show, b) contradicts actual lore, or c) was just straight up made up with no real basis! Also half of the bullet points end in rants; there are no words to describe this phenomenon but I’m a fanfic writer so that sure as hell didn’t stop me from trying

Ghost cores—not only the different types but also just their existence in general apparently—was pretty much entirely invented by the fandom. Like bro that’s the entire basis of ghost biology, how tf were we supposed to believe it worked in the show??

To expand on that, ghost biology.

Someone just decided Danny has freckles and that they glow in ghost form and we were all like. yeah.

Wesley Weston’s entire character. Nuff said.

Jack and/or Maddie always seemed to have grown up on a farm? Although I suppose with Maddie’s sister that could maybe be considered an educated guess

All the townsfolk refer to Danny’s ghost form as just ‘Phantom’ - oh wait, no they don’t.

Valerie’s alter ego is called the ‘Red Huntress’ - oh wait, no it’s not.

That one’s especially funny cause originally this list just included “Phantom calls Valerie ‘Red’” but then I learned the whole title was fanon and now I question everything I’ve ever thought beknownst to me.

Amity Park is a small town (not according to the background shots in the actual show).

I don’t remember how much of ghostly obsessions/Danny’s specifically was pulled out of the fandom’s ass but I imagine a fair amount of it considering the show wasn’t big on world building.

Phantom’s voice is echoey and/or staticky.

Danny smells like ozone and possibly citrus?

This one might just have to do with number psychology, but everyone seems to agree Phantom is a “level 7” on all of the arbitrary ghost rating systems invented by the Fentons?? Which were also made up tbf cause the Fentons never even invented that.

Danny bleeds both blood and ectoplasm, usually dependent on form, has a low heart rate and body temperature in human form, and possibly fangs. Aside from the latter these are mostly just logical inferences but it felt like they belonged here anyway.

Blob ghosts maybe?? I only think they might’ve been made up because I couldn’t find a proper photo reference of them one time and like I said, I question everything now. Maybe Jazz was never even real and the fandom just made her up so Danny could have one tiny thread of stability to support the massive load of trauma that we also dumped on him. Who the hell knows anymore, this fandom was the original Goncharov.

Accident with a capital A.

As far as I can tell, ectoblasts aren’t actually referred to as such. Admittedly I didn’t rewatch the whole show just to confirm, but according to the wiki, they’re actually called ghost rays.

Danny’s signature nervous tick is rubbing the back of his neck. I honest to god accidentally picked this habit up from reading fanfic and it is marginally embarrassing.

Danny blushes green in ghost form (admittedly this is a relatively obvious leap from “bleeds ectoplasm”.)

Ghost speak.

Danny’s middle name is James and Lancer’s first name is William (or maybe Edward.)

In all the AU’s I’ve read that involve Danny moving to Amity from somewhere else, it’s always Chicago. Admittedly I’ve only read two, but to paraphrase Dr. Heinz Doofenshmirtz, it’s still weird that it happened twice.

Ghost ice doesn’t melt? Was that a thing? I don’t think so(?) This fandom is so bad at distinguishing canon from fanon and that does not exclude me, I haven’t seen the show in three years.

What else do y’all got? I’m sure there’s plenty more to go around

[astra-galaxie]

“I have… Unconventional ways of getting information.” - Misha Zima

Biographical information

Full Name: Misha Zima

Alias(es): Pieces

Gender: Male

Sexuality: Bisexual

Status: Alive

Age: 30 (season 4)

Birth: 1860

Race: Human

Nationality: Russian

Origin: Yakutsk, Sakha Republic, Russia

Residence:

Concordia, USA

Yakutsk, Sakha Republic, Russia (formerly)

Profession(s): Agent

Family:

Unnamed wife

Viktoriya Zima (granddaughter) (deceased)

Aleksey Zima (great-grandson) (deceased)

Vukašin "Vuk” Zima-Valt (great-grandson)

Marina Romanova (great-great-granddaughter)

Affiliation(s): G.I.A.

Profile

Height: 6”1’ Age: 30 (season 4) Weight: 179lbs Eyes: blue Blood: A+

Misha is a tall man in his thirties with a broad build and fair skin. His black hair is short, with strands of silver beginning to grow from its roots. He has a clean-cut beard and black-framed glasses over his blue eyes. He wears a white dress shirt with a teal necktie, dark gray slacks, a black trench coat, and black dress shoes.

He owns a gold pocket watch that features a wolf’s head framed by a crescent moon on the front cover. On the back is the symbol of Pisces with “Zima” written below it in Cyrillic.

As per his suspect appearance in Ring In The New Death, it is known that Misha eats panettone and drinks champagne.

Synopsis

Hailing from Yakutsk, Misha debuted as a suspect in the murder of Romulus Fabbri on New Year's Eve. A few years back, he immigrated to Concordia with his wife for work and has been enjoying his life in the city. However, he does miss the cold of his home country.

During Ring In The New Death, Misha becomes a suspect after his pocket watch is found at the bakery the victim visited. When questioned whether he had seen the victim, Misha answered that he had, but he didn't know who Romulus was.

Later in the case, Isaac and Maddie found Misha's khanjali at a crime scene. When confronted with the weapon, Misha said he carried it to protect himself and his wife from criminals like Romulus. After the detectives demanded he expand on the statement, Misha told them that Romulus had sold his wife a defective coffee maker he'd invented. The coffee maker had exploded when Misha's wife first used it, burning most of her hair.

Thankfully, besides her hair being ruined, Misha's wife was unharmed. But that doesn't mean Misha wasn't furious at Romulus for conning his wife. He confronted Romulus at the bakery and used his dagger to scare him away, but that was as far as he went.

Following the killer's arrest, in the additional investigation, Isaac and Maddie discovered that Misha was investigating the exploitation of Irish immigrants. His wife was friends with an Irish woman who told her of the horrible conditions her husband was working in for poor pay. Misha used some of his connections to find evidence of the illegal deeds and found a ledger detailing the price someone was receiving by “selling” Irish immigrants for cheap labour.

Sadly, Misha couldn't uncover who the mastermind was behind it all. Still, he provided Isaac and Maddie with everything he knew about the illegal dealings and promised to update them if he discovered new information. In the meantime, Misha will get back to his real job. He can't talk about it, but let's just say it's a… New endeavour for Earth. One that will hopefully lead to a better world and more inclusive universe one day.

Organization(s)

G.I.A.

Branch: Earth

Rank:

Agent

Founder

Story Information

First appeared: Ring In The New Death

Trivia

He’s named after an old IRL classmate of mine. While my friend isn’t Russian or of Russian descent (as far as I know), I’ve always liked his name

He is one of the founding members of the G.I.A.'s Earth Branch. He founded it alongside 11 other humans from across the globe, each of whose codenames are one of the 12 Zodiac signs

He's recently gotten into studying psychology

He loves reading and always has a book on the go

Disclaimer: Character design was created using Rinmarugames Mega Anime Avatar Creator! I have only made minor edits to the design! Background courtesy of CriminalArtist5

Links to my stories:

The Case of the Criminal (Ao3/Wattpad) Killer Bay (Ao3/Wattpad) Where in the World are the Killers? (Ao3/Wattpad) Murders of The Past (Ao3/Wattpad)

[izzyspussy]

Tagged by @words-after-midnight to share my characters' name meanings. Some of these names were chosen for their meanings, some for their associations. I also chose a lot of names based on the character's ethnicity (i.e. Anca instead of Anna, Piero instead of Peter, etc) and also how they sounded together with characters they would interact with a lot.

The Stranger series ("witch noir")

Eddie: "wealth, fortune". Chosen for its common use as a noir detective protagonist, and specifically Eddie Valiant. Fred: "peaceful ruler". Chosen for similar commonality in noir detectives. Jessica: Fucking. Hello? Shakespeare invented this name apparently, presumably based on Iscah. Iscah means "to behold". Chosen for its association with Jessica Rabbit. Evan: "God is gracious". Chosen for my own personal associations. Lily: references the flower, a symbol of purity. Chosen for the association with the H4rry P0tter character and through that association with JK/R. Angel: "messenger". Chosen for the meaning. Dido: meaning unknown. I don't remember why I chose it. Maddie: "tower". I don't remember why I chose it. Ferris: "man of vigor". I don't remember why I chose it. Anca: "favor, grace". Chosen for the meaning. Raf: "God heals". Chosen for the meaning. Kapua: "flower child". Chosen for the meaning. Wâpo: I fucking lost my reference for what language this is and I don't remember like a tool and my search engine is failing me as usual. I think it's in the Algonquin family of languages, and it's a word for a raccoon. But since I can't find my source I'll probably have to change it. Luckily, he already has other names that I do still have the sources for. But this is the one he's been known as on this blog so far, so this is the one I'm listing. Clara: "clear, bright". Chosen practically at random because she needed to be called something other than What She Is. Nine: after a cat's nine lives. Obviously I made that one up, so yeah it's chosen for the meaning lol. Antonia (Toots): Chosen to fit the nickname, which was chosen for being a derisive endearment in the time period associated with the noir genre. Piero: "stone". Chosen for its association with the disciple Peter.

Vanilla

Vana: "God is gracious" (has the same etymology as Evan, actually). Chosen for its sound; it's the most similar name to the word "vanilla" that I could find. Dara: "fruitful, fertile". Chosen because he's Irish and hot.

Any Publicity

Asher: "happy, blessed". Chosen for the ethnicity and its ability to have a one-syllable nickname. Jordan: "descend". Chosen for the ethnicity and its ability to have a one-syllable nickname. Gwaine: "hawk" + either "May" or "field". I don't remember why I chose it. Brittany: etymology from Briton (as in the people), which means "tattooed people". Chosen for its similar sound to another name. Candy: "queen". I don't remember why I chose it. Mason: "to make". Chosen for its similar sound to another name. Beth (Rory, they go by their surname): "house of figs". Chosen for being a nickname-in-common with another name. Keahi: "the fire". Chosen for the meaning. (St.) Pat: "noble". Chosen for its ability to be turned into a nickname/title that is a holiday.

Not Just Us

Milo: "gracious soldier". Originally was Milivoj [mee-lee-voy] and was chosen for the ethnicity and because I Just Like It, but I changed it for easier pronunciation for English readers. The two names have the same etymology. Ken: "humble, modest" + "trust, believe". Chosen for the meaning and its ability to have an English-sounding nickname (baby is assimilated 😔). Topher: "bearing Christ". Chosen for the meaning. Lol. Buzz: unknown meaning. Chosen for its similar sound to a certain company when paired with his last name. Lmao. Virgo: "maiden". Chosen with inspiration from Persephone "Sephie" Valentine.

I tag @evangelinewriting @asablehart @violetcancerian and @kittensartswriting.

[calicohyde]

Tagged by @winterandwords to share my characters' name meanings. I already posted this on my main, but I didn't repost it when I moved my writing to this sideblog, so I guess I'm doing it now!

Some of these names were chosen for their meanings, some for their associations. I also chose a lot of names based on the character's ethnicity (i.e. Anca instead of Anna, Piero instead of Peter, etc) and also how they sounded together with characters they would interact with a lot.

The Stranger series ("witch noir")

Eddie: from Eduarda. "wealth, fortune". Chosen for its common use as a noir detective protagonist, and specifically Eddie Valiant. Fred: from Frederica/Frederico. "peaceful ruler". Chosen for similar commonality in noir detectives. Jessica: Shakespeare allegedly invented this name, presumably based on Iscah. Iscah means "to behold". Chosen for its association with Jessica Rabbit. Evan: "God is gracious". Chosen for my own personal associations. Lily: references the flower, a symbol of purity. Chosen for the association with the H4rry P0tter character and through that association with JK/R and through that the political movement she's allegorical to. Lol. Angel: from Angelito. "messenger". Chosen for the meaning. Dido: meaning unknown. I don't remember why I chose it. Maddie: from Madeline. "tower". I don't remember why I chose it. Ferris: "man of vigor". I don't remember why I chose it. Anca: "favor, grace". Chosen for the meaning. Raf: from Rafael. "God heals". Chosen for the meaning. Kapua: "flower child". Chosen for the meaning. Wâpo: I fucking lost my reference for what language this is and I don't remember like a tool and my search engine is failing me as usual. I think it's in the Algonquin family of languages, and it's a word for a raccoon. But since I can't find my source I'll probably have to change it. Nine: after a cat's nine lives. Obviously I made that one up, so yeah it's chosen for the meaning lol. Toots: from Antonia. Chosen to fit the nickname, which was chosen for being a derisive endearment in the time period associated with the noir genre. Piero: "stone". Chosen for its association with the disciple Peter.

Vanilla

Vana: "God is gracious" (has the same etymology as Evan, actually). Chosen for its sound; it's the most similar name to the word "vanilla" that I could find. Dara: "fruitful, fertile". Chosen because he's Irish and hot.

Any Publicity

Asher: "happy, blessed". Chosen for the ethnicity and its ability to have a one-syllable nickname. Jordan: "descend". Chosen for the ethnicity and its ability to have a one-syllable nickname. Gwaine: "hawk" + either "May" or "field". I don't remember why I chose it. Brittany: etymology from Briton (as in the people), which means "tattooed people". Chosen for its similar sound to another name. Candy: from Candace. "queen". I don't remember why I chose it. Mason: "to make". Chosen for its similar sound to another name. Beth (Rory, they go by their surname): from Bethany. "house of figs". Chosen for being a nickname-in-common with another name. Keahi: "the fire". Chosen for the meaning. (St.) Pat: from Patricia. "noble". Chosen for its ability to be turned into a nickname/title that is a holiday.

Not Just Us

Milo: "gracious soldier". Originally was Milivoj [mee-lee-voy] and was chosen for the ethnicity and because I Just Like It, but I changed it for easier pronunciation for English readers. The two names have the same etymology. Ken: from Kenshin. "humble, modest" + "trust, believe". Chosen for the meaning and its ability to have an English-sounding nickname (baby is assimilated 😔). Topher: from Christopher. "bearing Christ". Chosen for the meaning. Lol. Buzz: unknown meaning. Chosen for its similar sound to a certain company when paired with his last name. Lmao. Virgo: "maiden". Chosen with inspiration from Persephone Valentine.

I tag @ceph-the-ghost-writer @thewardenofwinter @vhwrites @nvjackwrites and @justsome-di.

[dearlittlefandom-stalker]

I posted 670 times in 2022

That's 342 more posts than 2021!

189 posts created (28%)

481 posts reblogged (72%)

Blogs I reblogged the most:

@she-is-amused

@officialyourdailyinspiration

@niyana-the-ambiguous-mobian

@applestruda

@raz-b-rose

I tagged 657 of my posts in 2022

Only 2% of my posts had no tags

#hermitcraft - 216 posts

#bible - 131 posts

#bible verse - 109 posts

#star trek - 87 posts

#leonard mccoy - 62 posts

#star wars - 51 posts

#bones mccoy - 45 posts

#spock - 32 posts

#tos - 29 posts

#jim kirk - 27 posts

Longest Tag: 136 characters

#spock inventing a new method of storing coffee so that mccoy and kirk can have fresh coffee is just such a lovely detail thank you diane

My Top Posts in 2022:

#5

Obi-Wan is just great at getting people to hate him enough to devote their entire lives to the single goal of destroying him

I mean-

Darth Maul

Darth Vader

Inquisitor Reva

Asajj Ventress (not anymore, but at one point...)

General Grievous (rip)

So yeah. Lots of people have had it out for one guy in particular and that one guy is Obi-Wan

128 notes - Posted June 4, 2022

#4

Bones is always ready to rush towards you for a frantic embrace

136 notes - Posted January 28, 2022

#3

One of my favorite things from the Sonic 2 movie (that I haven’t seen anyone talk about yet) is

(mild spoiler below cut)

THE WAY TOM JUST. okay. so. You know that scene where he is trying to play volleyball with the other guys and gets pummeled and is just generally the guy on the outside looking in at the others being all chummy?

You know how those scenes usually go in movies? The guy getting pummeled usually gets all “I’mma get ’em back” or huffy or something.

But Tom? No. His first thought at seeing the squad all congratulating each other is “I wish my son had a friend group of his own.” I really liked that. It really shows what a Dad he is, good for him. ALSO I just wanna point out how Relationship Goals Tom and Maddie (Maddy?) are! They are so cute and sweet and good for each other. I mean, we saw that already in the first film, but man do I love healthy relationships being portrayed in media. Love them.

I love how the Sonic movies, while not taking away time from the title character and the original Sonic gang, can create genuinely good secondary characters that each get their own moment (hah!) to really shine through.

Quality writing, there 👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏

269 notes - Posted April 9, 2022

#2

This is one of my favorite gifs of this man. It’s just- the softness of it. He’s so, so fond of these knuckleheads he’s surrounded himself with and you can see it plain as day. Look at that little head shake! Perfection!

395 notes - Posted January 22, 2022

My #1 post of 2022

Yoda is unpredictable and chaotic, honestly I don’t even know if he knows which one he’d do at any given moment.

452 notes - Posted March 18, 2022

Get your Tumblr 2022 Year in Review →

[picascribit]

The next thing I’m working on is a rewrite of a fic I originally write 10 years ago, called The Education of Madeleine Yaxley. It’s a story I know can be much better than it is, and there are some more themes I want to explore with it. The characters are mainly OCs, but the Lestranges will feature prominently. I don’t expect it to be a runaway hit, but I’m looking forward to writing it all the same. Once I get going on it, I’ll take down the old version and replace it with the new.

I wrote an opener for it a while back that I am still pretty happy with. Call it a teaser. If you like what you see here, go subscribe to the old version, and you’ll get updates on the new one.

Madeleine Yaxley was reading. She was not generally much of a reader, but this book was different. Three more like it were stacked on her nightstand, jewel-bright covers glowing in the afternoon sunlight.

"Just try them," her cousin Ravenna had urged, pushing them into her hands. "They're brilliant."

They were. Maddy had already devoured two of them in a matter of days, and was deeply engrossed in a third.

"No!" cried Estelle, colour flushing her delicate cheeks. She pointed her wand at Maximo with a trembling hand. "I will never marry you! You murdered my father!"

Maximo tore his gaze away from her heaving bosom to fix on her crystalline eyes, bright with fury. Merlin, but she was attractive when she was angry!

"I did not kill your father," he said, voice deep and rough. "He was already dead when I arrived. I would have saved him if I could. All I can do now is protect his only daughter. You must wed me, and the marriage must be consummated by midnight tomorrow, or I will have no choice but to hand you over to your father's enemies."

Estelle eyed the tall, broad-shouldered wizard contemptuously. It did not matter how handsome and well-built he was, or that his eyes were the colour of the sea before a storm. She could never wed such a rogue, or yield her maidenhead to him, not even to break her family's curse....

Maddy sighed with rapture and rolled onto her back, squirming into a more comfortable position on the worn velvet coverlet, already anticipating what would happen next. Estelle might resist for another fifty pages or so, but ultimately, she would succumb to Maximo's charms, and realise that they were meant for one another. And then they would go to bed together. That was the sort of story Freya Lovelace wrote, and the sort of story that kept Maddy turning pages.

At fifteen years of age, Maddy identified passionately with the virginal young heroines of Lovelace's novels. Like them, she saw herself as strong-willed, but ultimately good and deserving. Perhaps if she were as beautiful as they, she, too, might one day be swept off her feet by a tall, handsome rogue with a troubled past, finally tamed by the love of a good woman.

A light knock sounded on Maddy's bedroom door, and her mother entered. Maddy sat up, closing The Maiden's Curse on her finger to hold her place.

"I hardly knew you were home, you've been so quiet." Cartimandua Venuti Yaxley smiled, sitting down on the bed beside her daughter. She picked up one of the colourful novels from the nightstand, and examined it, brow creasing. "Where did you get these?"

"I borrowed them from Ravenna," said Maddy eagerly. "They're so good and --"

Her mother pursed her lips. "These kinds of books aren't appropriate for well-bred young witches."

"But Ravenna reads them," Maddy objected. "And Auntie Boudica too. I think they're hers."

"Ravenna is older than you, Maddy," said Cartimandua gently, "and my sister's family takes a different view of such things than we do in this house, as you well know."

Maddy pouted, hugging the book she held to her chest. "They're just stories, Mum. And they're good. I like them."

Her mother set the book back down on the nightstand with a sigh.

"I know you do, Sweetheart. We all like things that aren't good for us sometimes. When you're older, you can decide for yourself whether or not you want to read these kinds of books. But for now, I would prefer that you don't. You're still very young, with a lot to learn about life. These books will fill your head with ideas and expectations that will only cause confusion and unhappiness, because the real world isn't like that."

"I know it's not real," sulked Maddy, though she did not truly believe it.

People fell in love and lived happily ever after all the time. Perhaps not her mother, but that did not mean it was all just wishful thinking.

"It's natural for a girl of your age to be curious about sex," her mother continued kindly. "But it's not healthy to dwell on those thoughts and feelings. Thinking too much about it can lead to temptation. Someday, you'll have a husband who will teach you everything you need to know." Cartimandua smiled and winked at her daughter. "Until then, be patient, Sweetheart."

Maddy blushed. She already knew all about sex. When she was small, she had thought babies were made by magic, until she realised that Muggles had them, too. Her mother had gently explained the truth: how a man put his "wand" into a woman's sacred place, to make a baby together. That it was part of a woman's duty to her husband. How good pure-blood girls like her must keep themselves pure before marriage, if they wanted to win the love and respect of a good pure-blood man.

"I'm going to put these away," said Cartimandua, gathering up the books. "We'll return them to Ravenna next time we see her."

"Yes, Mum." Maddy swallowed her disappointment.

She knew that Estelle and Maximo were destined to fall in love and live happily ever after, but she still wanted to read about how it happened. Maddy wondered how scandalised her mother would be if she knew that the dark secret of Maximo's past was that his grandmother had been Muggleborn. Fictional characters going to bed together was one thing; pure-blood girls going to bed with half-blood men was something else entirely.

[chrysalis-the-butterfly]

Sonic and the Jewel Fairies

Another day, another potential crossover.  

If you’re on this blog, I’m assuming you’ve heard of Sonic the Hedgehog.  But who are the Jewel Fairies?  

They’re the stars of the fourth series of Rainbow Magic books.  India, Scarlett, Emily, Chloe, Amy, Sophie and Lucy are responsible for making sure different types of fairy magic are working.  In their story, the seven magical gemstones in Queen Titania’s crown are stolen by Jack Frost, and it’s up to Rachel and Kirsty (the human protagonists) to find and return them before all the fairies of Fairyland lose their magic powers forever.  

Here are the seven gemstones, their colours, and their corresponding magic: 

Moonstone (white and pink): Dream Magic

Garnet (red): Growing and Shrinking Magic

Emerald (green): Seeing Magic (i.e. looking into the future)

Topaz (orange/yellow): Changing and Transforming Magic

Amethyst (purple): Appearing and Disappearing Magic

Sapphire (blue): Wishing Magic

Diamond (cyan and white): Flying Magic

The gemstones are white, red, green, orange/yellow, purple, blue and cyan.  Where have we seen those colours before?  

The Chaos Emeralds.  

Imagine if the individual Chaos Emeralds could bestow unique magical abilities.  That would be pretty cool.  

But it gets cooler.  

I’m a big fan of the Chaos Emerald Theory.  Originating with @birdsareblooming​ and developed by @autisticshadowthehedgehog​, the theory states that Sonic Wachowski has powers similar to Chaos Control because he himself is a Chaos Emerald, and that six other Sonic characters make up the remaining emeralds.  

The current roster includes Sonic, Tails, Amy, Cream, Shadow, Silver and Blaze.  

(Amy’s here because the green emerald has been turned pink to differentiate it from the Master Emerald.)  

Now let’s see how their colours and abilities match up with the Jewel Fairies’ magical gemstones: 

Cream = cyan = Diamond = Flying Magic.  Cream flies with her ears.  That lines up nicely.  

Amy = pink (formerly green) = Emerald = Seeing Magic.  Amy reckons she can use her tarot cards to see into the future.  Again, it’s a pretty good fit.  

Blaze = purple = Amethyst = Appearing and Disappearing Magic.  Blaze can make fire appear, and Issue 4 of the IDW comic implies she can put flames out too.  If this ability could be expanded to other elements and objects, she’d match the Amethyst fairly well.  Plus, the Amethyst Fairy is quite shy, which would align with Blaze’s more reserved personality.  

Tails = orange/yellow = Topaz = Changing and Transforming Magic.  This one is a bit more of a stretch, but Tails is an inventor, and inventing is all about taking the materials you’ve got and turning them into something new.  So why don’t we just make Tails a sorcerer?  

Silver = white = Moonstone = Dream Magic.  Silver’s theme from Sonic 06 is called “Dreams of an Absolution”, and that is literally the only reason I’m putting him here.  

Shadow = red = Garnet = Growing and Shrinking Magic.  Definitely the most tenuous link of the bunch.  All I can say is that Black Doom is able to separate his third eye from the rest of his body to create Doom’s Eye, which is a bit like shrinking?  Maybe?  

Sonic = blue = Sapphire = Wishing Magic.  Now this is where it gets interesting.  Modern Sonic’s character doesn’t change massively from game to game, but he frequently inspires character growth in others.  Shahra and Merlina are the most notable examples.  He motivates people to better themselves, and gives them whatever they need when they’re struggling.  In other words, he grants their wishes.  

Plus, I saw these cute little posts from @welcome-to-green-hills​ about the headcanon that Tom and Maddie had been trying for kids and then were blessed with Sonic Wachowski, and I’m in love with the idea.  

So there you have it.  An AU of an AU in which the Sonic characters are basically fairies.  

[nastyburger]

its a dp spiderverse au! more about each character under cut

Danny B. Fenton: mirror of peter b in the movie obvi, older version with a different hair color. very tired, broke, and burnt out on the whole hero thing but still maintains his secret identity human life. works as a teacher in casper high, but not a core subject so he’s super lenient and staff doesnt care too much about how he teaches his classes. basically astronomy and intro to robotics, those fun side elective classes people take before doing the real thing in college.

considered one of those “cool teachers” because of how laid back his teaching methods are, rarely gives out assignments or homework too (”less for me to grade”). the students respect him so if he randomly walks out of class for a “smoke break” they wont snitch. honestly, this danny actually gets more out of teaching than his hero work at this point in his life

when he gets sent to the “canon dimension” and has to be the adult among a group of 6 kids, he often unintentionally uses his “teacher methods” against them (*clap clap* “alright guys listen up” / “did he just teacher clapped us???”)

Dex: based on peni parker, the only one out of the dimensional group who actually isnt a halfa. he was kinda sickly growing up so he spent a lot of time at home around his parents and the lab, taking more of an interest in the inventions and robotics as a result. he helped build/design the portal, so the button isnt as far inside like every other iteration of it (its still inside but instead near the entrance).

because of this, he was only partially shocked by the portal, his right arm being lost after taking most of the damage. the incident wasnt enough to get ghost powers, but it was enough to give danny a sort of affinity/psychic link to all technology using ectoplasm. he can mess with any gadget that uses the substance within range and view, and if he focuses hard enough he can even manipulate nonsentient ectoplasm on its own. controlling technology is his main link though, especially with the tech in his arm partially extending his reach to things that use electricity as well

this danny’s parents knows about the mutation and his ghost fighting is no secret to the masses. jack and maddie were actually the ones to make dex’s prosthetic and mech in the first place (that does mean the occasional embarrassing protective parent program in them though).

he goes by dex because of his prosthetic arm. the tech is called “The Fenton EX-J9 14″. tucker was the one who coined the nickname, taking danny’s first initial and combining it with “ex” to make “dex”. the name eventually just stuck

Sam Mourner: mirrors gwen, universe is loosely based on the reverse trio au, its all mostly self explanatory. although, since her story reflects gwen, her danny is actually dead in this universe. like canon, sam and tucker were with danny during the accident but this time sam goes in WITH danny. danny activates the portal like normal, but he doesnt survive. sam somehow makes it through and gains ghost powers. like gwen, sam doesnt “do” friends anymore after losing danny, she and tucker has a bit of a strained relationship with her pushing him away so he doesnt get hurt helping her fight ghosts. tucker still does his best to stick around and keep in touch with her despite sam’s wishes

she wore a purple hazmat suit (at danny’s insistence for safety) that gets inverted to green, she later layers some other clothes on top of the it to more suit her style. I imagine this sam actually wears purple contact lenses instead of literally having purple eyes, she was wearing them at the time of the accident so it gave her ghost form’s eyes a little bit of weirdness.

Tucker Ghouly: not really based on anyone in the original spiderverse movie, really just his own character so there isnt as much to explain in this one since its basically just the inverse trio au (tuckers got powers, sams the nerd, dannys the goth and general love interest blah blah blah).

embarrassingly enough, tucker did “die” in his superhero pjs. the accident occurred during a sleepover at danny’s house. danny having checked out the portal earlier that day and not being able to find the problem with it, so tucker offers to go down there himself and do his techno geek business after danny relays the story to his friends. while rewiring the button to the portal, the thing turns on and the rest is repeated history

[welcome-to-green-hills]

Sonic the Hedgehog Movie 2: POTENTIAL TEST SCREENING

 A couple weeks ago, a Reddit User under the name “Madethis4Sonicmovie2” created a post discussing their test screening experiences on the second Sonic the Hedgehog film. Throughout the discussion post, the Reddit user explains that they are not a Sonic fan. Most of what the user writes was how they’ve interpreted the scene and their understanding of the lore through some games that they’ve played. That, and they also try to compare some of the scenes to DBZ, a franchise that they’re much more familiar with. The user also make it a point to state that they view themselves as a “harsh critic,” though do apologize for it. They’re also not used to critiquing children’s media, which they also state a few times in their post. If they’re not clear on what they saw in their test screening, they ask for the reference meaning to the Sonic Community. The Reddit user also says that they did see the first film and greatly enjoyed the second one better.

Even though they believed for the film to be a generic kid’s film, they believe that this film will appeal to fans and non-fans more than the first one did. 

There wasn’t much of a summary to go other than reading about the emotions and some of the trivia that they’ve seen. Most of the film was still in its post-production stage. Some scenes were not complete while others needed tweaking on lighting and shading on the CGI characters. The overall impression that they’ve received from the film was that it was very enjoyable with much more world building. Because it’s done a good job with explaining certain scenarios to the audience, the Reddit user believes that it wouldn’t be hard for outsiders of the fandom to understand. The only thing that some audience members would struggle with in the film were the inside jokes that long-term fans would understand.

With this in mind, this is what the Reddit post detailed. Keep in mind that these are spoilers.

Key Notes:

The moral of the movie is “if you believe in yourself, then anything is possible!” On a side note, the Reddit user believes that this theme applied more to Tails rather than Sonic, stating that Tails has a moment where he gains enough courage to help Sonic fight.

Though the Reddit user does debate that Sonic has more confidence in himself than he did in the first film. He’s still the “Sonic” seen in the first film, him being a kid, but he’s learning to understand the role of being a superhero.

There is placeholder music and licensed music in the film as well. No mention so far of Crush 40 appearing in the film.

The Reddit user explains that Jim Carrey nailed the role! They also explain that Dr. Robotnik is a complete maniac.

(This is an open definition to viewers. It could range from comical to something darker).

Dr. Robotnik invents a teleportation device.

Dr. Robotnik also dresses in black clothing like he did in the first film.

The Reddit user supports this remark by detailing a scene where Dr. Robotnik loses his cool a bit when returning to Earth and complains about how he was outsmarted by a “rejected Dr. Seuss character.”

Dr. Robotnik does create Badniks and references them as “Badniks.”

The Reddit user gave the example of the motorbug looking like a motorcycle with a ladybug exterior. Buzzbombers look more like wasps.

There is a “robot version of Eggman.” 

Metal Sonic does not make an appearance. The Reddit user does believe that G.U.N. may have hinted that they’re building Metal Sonic.

It’s also important to note that there were no mentions of Silver and AmyRose in their screening.

There are heavy nods to Sonic Lore, specifically with the echidna tribes. Most of the lore is explained in either flashbacks and/or with echidna lore.

Most of the time is spent on Earth, but we do see other planets. Sonic and Tails do travel all around the world.

The Reddit user also says that we see more of Sonic’s world when Dr. Robotnik tries to teleport back to Earth.

There are heavy nods to both inside and outside references of the Sonic Franchise. Due to their experiences with the franchise, they inform other Reddit users that they couldn’t share and explains all of the references.

However, they were very happy with Sonic fans when hearing their feedback and learning what some references are.

At this time, the voice actor/actress for Tails is still undetermined. The Reddit user said “it was like Tom Holland, but with a higher-pitched voice.”

Sonic makes a remark saying, “You’re too slow!”

Sonic makes a remark saying, “I’m not a rat! I’m a hedgehog!”

Knuckles makes a remark saying, “Knock, knock scrambled egg.”

(The Reddit user explains that this scene in the movie was also very enjoyable).

Sonic and Tails bond over how they know Longclaw in the film. The Reddit user explains that this is their favorite scene in the movie.

Knuckles has an American-like accent, not a British one.

Sonic encounters Tails on a run, but “freaks out” when he sees another alien creature like him. Sonic also freaks out when he sees that Tails can almost match his speed while running.

There is a funny scene of Sonic enjoying his alone time at home, even showing a montage of all the things that he shouldn’t do when Tom and Maddie are at home.

(Think of the montage scene from Home Alone (1990′s).

The Reddit user explains that Knuckles was exiled from the clan for freeing Longclaw as a prank with friends.

There is an artist in the movie that tries to draw Sonic. To Sonic’s discovery, he sees that the artist drew his 2019 design and plays “Gangster’s Paradise” on the radio.

The Reddit user states that they believe that this is the crew’s nod to the original design.

The Reddit user says that there were scenes in the movie that they felt like were more of a placeholder in the film. The reference to Gremlin Sonic being one of these scenes.

Tom and Maddie do go to Rachel and Randall’s wedding.

There are several action scenes, but the Reddit user explains that the most enjoyable ones are when Sonic and Tails fight Knuckles a couple of times.

And with the action scenes, there are many Quicksilver references that Sonic does as well.

On top of that, the Reddit user explains that each character has their own unique abilities. (For example, Sonic is associated with having powers cater to the element of lightning).

Longclaw is alive in the film, but she’s aged and weak.

Longclaw sends Tails to Earth to retrieve Sonic due to her wanting him to safe.

Sonic stays at home on planet Earth, but is supplied with many rings to travel back and forth to visit Knuckles Tails, and Longclaw.

Sonic being a living chaos emerald could be true, but the Reddit user explains that an emerald was sealed inside of Sonic after being born.

Chaos emeralds are not referenced as “Chaos Emeralds” in the film, they were referenced as just “emeralds.”

However, the Reddit user does recap that there might be a name and they didn’t catch it.

Super Sonic is not referenced as “Super Sonic” in the film, but as something else.

Super Sonic can fly in the film and doesn’t need all seven Chaos Emeralds to go “super.”

Sonic references Tails as “Miles” a few times that they meet, but later gives him the nickname “Tails.”

There is a post-credit scene. The Reddit user believes that it’s a heavy nod to Shadow the Hedgehog due to the there being multiple clones modeled like Sonic that G.U.N. has made.

Due to this post-credit scene, the Reddit user holds hopes that there will be a third movie soon.

As of now, the Reddit post is still available for you to read. The Reddit user is mindful of the NDA and purposely phrased some of their spoilers to be vague, but knows that their thread may be removed soon. I know that these may sound fake, however, there have been individuals in the past who have viewed the first film and proved to be right. Like many of you, I hope that this is a real but I will remain cautious. If these facts resurface as being false, let’s not attack the individual. The only that should matter is that we’re excited for the second film. Be mindful that they’re a human being as well. Treat others the way that you would like to be treated.

What are all of your thoughts so far of the film? Share your thoughts and opinions! And if you’ve spotted something that I’ve missed, please share with me! I’m very excited to know!

((SOURCE)).

[thesoulspulse]

Regarding Flynn Fenton...

(Updated 12/17/2020)

Alright so, confession time. I wasn’t planning on joining the bandwagon on this new character Butch ‘supposedly’ came up with all on his own apart from sharing a few thoughts or giving replies here and there, but now I just have to come out and say it. Most of his backstory makes no sense.

Also, let’s be honest here, the canon Butch gave him is borrowed from so many Marvel characters its not even funny and I have some serious questions about why Danny’s parents would happily keep experimenting with a ghost portal if they knew their FIRSTBORN CHILD was sucked into it! And even if they did they’d be treating the whole thing much more seriously if they were planning to mount a rescue mission into the Ghost Zone...

Next, lets talk about his design.

Now, we already know that while Maddie has reddish brown hair, normal red hair and green eyes does run in her family so let’s compare Flynn to Maddie’s older sister Aunt Alicia, which I might add is the ONLY named character we know of that’s indirectly part of the Fenton family through her younger sister Maddie after she married Jack. But we don’t actually know what their original maiden name was or what their parents might have looked like:

After that there’s one of the more obvious comparisons you can make which is Jazz, who definitely takes after her aunt more than her mom. By the way, I’m using a screenshot of her as a kid because I think when Flynn was still around she was supposed to be like six years old while Danny is only two:

So with that in mind, as far as genetics are concerned I think Flynn actually could have been born as a red-head just like his younger sister while Danny takes more after his dad with the black hair and blue eyes (borrowing Amethyst-Ocean’s version since I couldn’t find any good quality screenshots of Danny as a baby/toddler):

But here’s the real kicker, as soon as I actually SAW Flynn in Butch’s latest video after hearing everyone in the phandom talking about him, do you want to know which character I ACTUALLY think he looks like the most...?

Wes Weston, the random background character that the phandom adopted from the episode “Shades of Gray” that has since become a fully fledged character in his own right and recently you guys have even given him one or two brothers based on other red-headed background characters.

So you want to know my honest to god opinion here? I seriously think Butch is just pulling stuff from the phandom and taking credit for coming up with the idea of Flynn ‘randomly’ since it came from his show which we all know has only become a source of click-bait for him since he doesn’t legally own the rights to it anymore. Nickelodeon does.

That said, while I’ll admit some of Butch’s newer ideas are decent, most of them are uninspired and it’s the show’s fans who have turned these ideas into something more inventive and created this whole Danny Phantom universe with its very own lore with things such as ghost cores, spirits that only exist in the Ghost Zone vs ghost who were in fact once dead people or animals, the list goes on and I couldn’t be prouder of our community as a whole.

Either way, I look forward to seeing more cool ideas for Flynn gradually come out and I’ve already added at least one of my own too based on something another phan wrote. But I’m sure there are more to come since there are so many amazing authors and artists in the phandom that I truly admire even though this show ended all the way back in 2007. So there you go, I’ve added my two cents to get it out of my system so take from it what you will...

P.S. I still think Flynn’s ghost hero design is kinda uninspired too personally since he just looks like a red-headed version of Dan to me.

[whirligig-girl]

Yo Danny Fenton he was just an ensign, when his starship found a very strange invention, an alien stargate to another dimension.

(He’s gonna boldly go ‘cuz he’s Danny Phantom)

It’s kinda nice how it works out that most of the main characters would pretty much wear uniforms that correspond roughly to the division uniforms I think they’d wear. Danny’s white and red shirt, Tucker’s yellow shirt, and Sam’s black and violet shirt; Jack’s orange jumpsuit and Maddie’s blue.

Ensign Tucker Foley, not the only starfleet engineer to be named Tucker. Ensign Samantha Manson, botanist. Ensign Daniel Fenton, pilot/helmsman. Lt. Cmdr Jack Fenton, weapons technician. Cmdr Maddie Fenton, science officer. Counselor Lt.Jr. Jasmine Fenton. Not pictured because the color theory doesn’t work out: Security officer Lt. Dash Baxter.

I’m thinkin’ some more since i drew these... maybe Sam is a joined Trill? She and Tucker and Danny knew each other at the academy. Sam’s original host died, but when she gets herself assigned to Fenton’s ship, Danny is overjoyed to find out his buddy ol’ pal is still alive! I don’t know who the captain of the ship is or what the ship is called. It’s an Oberth Class science ship, but with an experimental designation, so perhaps it was intended for ghostly experiments. I also don’t know how Vlad fits into all of this... maybe a corrupt admiral? Star trek has a ton of those. 

Also section 31 can be the guys in white if they want to be.

[five-rivers]

Hi! I'm sorry I don't mean to be rude but I was wondering if you could tell me what mortified is about? I keep seeing updates for it but im not sure if i can get into it since im not sure what is happening. i remember enjoying the first few chapters though.

Mortified was originally my attempt to squeeze as many DP fanfic tropes into one fic as possible, primarily the ‘into the mind’ and ‘field trip to the GZ’ plots, by blending them together.  It has since expanded.  (I don’t think it’s quite to the level of a kudzu plot, but...  That’s more a matter of opinion than anything else.  I know I have some dangling plot threads that I’ve forgotten about.)

It begins with Maddie hitting Danny with an invention that forces him to relive the portal accident, complete with the creation of a portal.  The portal sucks in everyone who happened to be nearby and (luckily?) deposits them in Danny’s ghostly lair, which reflects his subconscious to some degree.  The plot then follows Danny’s attempts to get them all out, along with glimpses of the GIW’s short-sighted plan to end the world and Ghost Zone politics.  That’s about the first seventy or so chapters.  Right now Mortified is on chapter 224.  

Mortified also includes: a reveal plot, the Observants being jerks, Clockwork adopting Danny, the Fentons facing consequences, redemption arcs for (almost) everyone, the Ghost Zone legal system, numerous references to Greek and Sumerian mythology, time travel shenanigans, the Ghost Zone being sentient, Danny getting beaten up constantly, amnesia gambits, Amity Park being weird, Wes Weston being heroic, Ghost King Danny, Vlad attempting to be sneaky, ghost psychology and sociology, and more.  

And it’s all ~romance free~!  At least among the main characters.  There’s some teasing, two background characters get together, and, of course, Jack and Maddie are together, but that’s it.  (IDK if this is important to you, but I know it’s important to some people.)

The current plot is Jack and Maddie being on trial for breaking Ghost Zone law, with a healthy side helping of Amity Park being under siege and the GIW getting their comeuppance.

[thedannyphantomcookbook]

The Phantom Origins

Okay, so I know probably a bunch of people have already done this, but I wanted to rewrite Danny Phantom, from just before he got his powers to maybe when he tells his parents.

 I’m tired of waiting for a reboot that may never come, so here is what I picture the reboot would look like. 

I’ve always thought it would be darker and more horrific, that the ghosts he fights are more monstrous and demonic.

 That there would be a little bit more of a medical concern for Danny’s humanity being affected by his ghost half. Is he becoming more ghost like? Is he gradually getting sicker and sicker, and his ghost DNA ravages through his body like cancer? 

Would Vlad be not only a sexist, creepy, abusive old man, but contains a thirst for deception and power that he poses a real, apocalyptic threat on Earth and the ghost zone?

Are ghosts actually the spirits of the dead? Or are they a different breed of human that lives in a completely separate dimension, that’s is layered and hidden within ours?

What about Danny’s mental health. He has to keep this big secret from his parents because he absolutely FEARS what would happen if they found it to the point he’s scared they wouldn’t believe he was their son and try to kill him as a result, or keep him hostage in the basement, slowly torturing him and dissecting him until he’s dead? What would the world think of him? A prophet? A demon? Would they accuse his parents for experimenting on their own children? He would have so much fear and anxiety that he’d have to be on edge all the time, falling into depression, panic attacks - not to mention the PTSD he’d get from it all while battle nightmarish monsters and the hanging question over his head of what he is now. 

These are just SOME of the questions I’ve had that Butch Hartman will never answer. He set up such a great plot and characters but carried it out pretty poorly over the show (which may or may not be his fault since they wanted to keep it kid friendly.)

I hope to get into the deep and dark and nitty gritty details of Danny Phantom we’ve imagined but never get to see. I wrote the first chapter below, and I plan to write much more. :)

I hope you guys enjoy it!

Follow me over at Ao3 

Summary:

Dr. Madelyn Fenton and her husband, Dr. Jackson Fenton, have just built the world's first portal to the Ghost Zone - an alternate dimension where undead linger for all eternity. The only problem is no one believes in what they are doing. The townspeople call them the Fenton Freaks and the rejection letters from the National Science Foundation are piling up. Not even their own children can tolerate their ghost obsession. Their 14 year old son, Danny, does what he can to separate himself from his parents. Mocked by his peers and judged by his teachers, he keeps his head down and stays out of the spotlight. 

It comes as no surprise to Danny when his parents' machine fails to work on the first test run. Discouraged, they leave empty handed for the weekend to go to the Ghost Hunter's Expo, where they were expected to present their portal during their panel. As soon as his parents leave, Danny invites his friends over to give a tour of yet another one of his parents' failed experiments. When he gets dared to walk inside the machine, he triggers something that turns it back on, and for the first time ever, his parents have an invention that works. But that's the least of the surprises when Danny emerges from the portal himself...

To Whom It May Concern,

To the esteemed members of the National Science Foundation, myself, Dr. Madelyn Fenton, PhD., and my husband, Dr. Jackson Fenton, PhD., write to you today to consider us for the New Exploratory Scientific Research Grant Award. Our combined decades worth of research within paranormal scientific research fields have led us to believe that the “ghost” entities that haunt our very Earth, could in fact be the missing link to creating new technology, curing human illnesses, and prolonging human life on Earth.

The term “ghosts” is defined as a religious or spiritual being, or the hypothetical soul of the human body, separated from physical forms, usually that of a person recently deceased. Dr. Jackson Fenton and myself have a different theory about the “ghostly” entities that visit our Earth. We have sufficient evidence to prove that ghosts are in fact not the spirits of the dead, but an entirely new species of the human race. We believe they exist in an alternate dimension - a separate plane of existence that is not unlike ours. Recent developments have also shown the possibility of dimensional travel -  we believe ghosts are able to pass through into our plane of existence for a temporary amount of time. Through our rigorous research, construction, and experimentation, Dr. Jackson Fenton and myself have created what would be a “portal” to this plane of existence, to the “Ghost Zone.” By exploring and studying the ghost zone, we could collect a limitless amount of research and data that could be used to benefit humanity for the rest of our existence.  

We have provided within our application our twenty years of research and development, along with video recordings of our experiments as evidence of our work in progress, as we humbly request your consideration for the New Exploratory Scientific Research Grant  Award.

Sincerely,

Dr. Madelyn Fenton, PhD. in Quantum Physics and Paranormal Studies

Dr. Jackson Fenton, PhD. in Theoretical Science and Paranormal Studies

From the Grants and Admissions Office of the National Science Foundation

To Dr. Madelyn Fenton and Dr. Jackson Fenton,

Thank you for your interest in applying for the New Exploratory Scientific Research Grant Award. The New Exploratory Scientific Research Grant Award (NESRGA) is an esteemed scholarship opportunity that looks to provide funding for ground-breaking scientific research to scientists working within small and local laboratories. After carefully reviewing your application and research, we have come to the regretful decision to decline your request to receive the NESRGA.

We unfortunately could not approve your request due to the following issues:

Insufficient or lack thereof evidence or proof of scientific research of ghostly entities and/or undiscovered species, the “Ghost Zone” dimension in which these entities exist, or possible travel to said “Ghost Zone.”

Insufficient of lack thereof peer review research and laboratory data.

Paranormal entities and alternative dimensional research is not recognized under the National Science Foundation as factual scientific work.

We are thrilled to hear that you share such enthusiasm, passion, and ambition in the pursuit of scientific exploration, research and development. You are a part of a wonderful community, and through your tireless efforts, you will help bring our Earth into the future.

We welcome you to apply for the NESRGA again next year.

Sincerely,

Barbara Keaton,

Director of Grants and Admissions

National Science Foundation

GHOST HUNTERS EXPO - THIS LABOR DAY WEEKEND

To Drs. Maddie and Jack Fenton,

We are excited to have you return to speak at the Ghost Hunters Expo this coming labor day weekend. We have reviewed your Ghost Zone Theory and we anticipate your presentation of your research.

Please note: due to new regulations we cannot allow the following into the convention center:

Ecto-infused food, inanimate objects, or animal mutations of any kind.

Alarm or defense systems that release a form of knock out gas, ectoplasmic goo, ectoplasmic foam, spoiled meats, or  live rodents. All alarms and defense systems must be turned off while inside the convention center.

Samplings or gifts of homemade cookies or other food, beverages, or gifts to bribe the judges.

Disclosed weapons that are not a part of your presentation and/or not approved by the convention prior (we will have metal detections at all entry points of the convention hall)

Asking for audience volunteers unless approved by us prior your scheduled presentation time.

Ghost claims targeted towards convention guests, judges, or other presenters.

All presentations and inventions must have been tested and approved by a judge prior to your presentation time (i.e. no last minute or surprise inventions).

Fighting or displays of physical aggression.

Destruction of convention hall equipment, the building’s foundation itself, or other presenters equipment and or inventions.

We thank you in advance for your compliance and full understanding of the new regulations.

We look forward to seeing you!

Best,

Trevor Martin

Ghost Hunters Expo Coordinator

“Did you see this?” Jack Fenton asked, waving the notice from the Ghost Hunters Expo. He scoffed. “New regulations...I wonder who were the bimbos that made them enforce these rules.” He crumbled up the notice and threw it carelessly on the floor.

“How’s that portal coming, sweet cheeks?” he asked his wife.

Maddie Fenton was deep within a hexagon shaped chamber carved out of her laboratory converted basement wall. The interior was lined with a colorful array of wires and tiny blinking lights. At the end of the chamber, sheets of metal and hardware fanned in on itself. Maddie was kneeled on the floor, wrestling with a few cords.

“I’m just struggling to connect these last couple of wires,” she answered, pinching the two cords together. With a last bit of strain, the cords connected with a satisfying click.

Wiping the sweat off her brow, she came out of the chamber. “Hopefully that will stabilize the gravitational pull of the Ghost Zone once we get the portal running.” She briefly thought back to a dark memory from their college days when their first Ghost Zone prototype had malfunctioned and the toxins from the Ghost Zone leaked out of the portal, resulting in displacing one of her lab partners for the remainder of their college career.

“We got it this time, baby,” Jack said confidently. “There is no way we could make the same mistake twice.”

Maddie sighed as she walked over to the control panel to record the ecto-readings. “I just wish we knew for certain what had gone wrong that day. All of this guess work is driving me crazy.” She picked up her notebook and briefly reviewed her meticulously hand written notes before adjusting some dials.

“Okay,” she huffed, satisfied. “I think we’re ready for a test run.”

Jack clapped his hands. “Excellent! I’ll go grab the kids!” He ran to the basement steps and shouted, “Jazzy-pants! Danny! Get down here!”

A few minutes later both of their teenage children shuffled down the basement steps.

“Is this gonna take long?” Danny asked, disinterestedly. “Tucker and I were in the middle of planning our next battlefield strategies for Doomed. There’s only a few days left of summer vacation and we still have so much planning to do if we want to beat the other online players and achieve the seven Keys of Destiny.”

“And I was in the middle of an important breakthrough in my self therapeutic psychology research,” their daughter, Jazz promptly stated. In her hands she clutched an open copy anxiety and phobias workbook. “Did you know that high functioning anxiety in adulthood is caused by childhood trauma from never feeling safe in your own home? This would explain so much about me and Danny -” she paused in her speech when she saw the machine her parents were working on.

“Oh, no.” She snapped her book shut and pinched the flesh between her eyes. “ Please do not tell me you called us down here to witness another one of your experiments. Don’t you remember what happened last time?”

“Oh, Jazz, relax,” Maddie said, waving her off. “Those burn marks from the last ectoplasmic gun experiment healed eventually. And look!” She walked over to a closet in the back of the room and pulled out two polyester jumpsuits. “We made you both your own custom fitted, lab safe, jumpsuits!”

Jack appeared beside Maddie. “And we matched them with ours! Jazzy-pants, yours is teal to match your mother’s. And Danny, yours would have matched mine but the store didn’t have orange.” he held out a plain white jumpsuit with black gloves and boots.

“And I haven’t even shown you two the best parts!” he grabbed the jumpsuits from Maddie and spun them around. Crudely pressed onto the fabric of the jumpsuit was a cutout of Jack Fenton’s smiling face, emblazoned on the chest.

“Pretty cool, huh?” Jack grinned.

Jazz was the first to respond. “Dad there is no way you’re going to get me to wear that,” she said while backing away and shaking her head. “How about Danny and I will just go upstairs and you can call us down after  you’ve tested it? That way we’ll be safe and not have to wear those hideous jumpsuits.”

Danny silently agreed with her while struggling to conceal his own disgust at the suits. It was one thing to be forced to wear a jumpsuit like his parents but it was an entirely different level of lame to have to wear his father’s face across his chest. What if his parents insisted he wore it all the time, like they did? Involuntary images of him becoming the laughing stock at his new high school was surfacing in his mind, more than he already was for being the son of the city’s eccentric ghost hunting husband and wife team. He was already struggling to stay above the pathetic nerd social ring in his class. They’d have to create an entirely new category of nerd just for him if he wore that suit. The thought of it made him want to crawl away in a hole and be left there to die.

“Mom, Dad, I have to agree with Jazz,” Danny said. “The suits are kinda...lame.”

“Oh, nonsense,” Maddie dismissed. “These jumpsuits are the latest fashion that every ghost hunter wants.”

“And when we reveal these babies with my face on them, everyone will be scrambling for one. We’ll be rich!” Jack stated proudly.

Jazz snorted. “Um, I somehow doubt that. Look, we’ll just go back upstairs and you two can let us know when it’s safe, okay?” She looped a hand around Danny’s arm and started pulling him away.

“Oh, no you don’t!” Jack clamped a hand on both of them  and spun them back around. “You two are being given the chance to witness scientific history! And we are not going to let you pass up on this.” He tossed the jumpsuits to Jazz and Danny. They unwillingly caught them.

Jazz glowered at Danny. “If you take any photos and post them on the internet, I will kill you.”

Danny held out his suit reproachfully. His dad’s smiling face seemed to be laughing at him, like all of the students as Casper High will be if they ever found out about this.

“Don’t worry about it.”

A few minutes later, Jazz and Danny stood alongside their parents in their matching jumpsuits. Jazz stood with her arms crossed, silently fuming, her foot tapping impatiently. At her mother’s insistence, Jazz was forced to tuck in her long, red hair and wear the hair sealing head cover and thick, dark eye protection goggles that came with it. At equal height, Jazz and Maddie were identical in their suits.

At least Danny couldn’t match his dad. Jack’s suit was bright orange and about twenty sizes larger than Danny’s, due to his father’s obsession with Maddie’s homemade fudge and cookie inventions. Danny’s own white suit was slightly too large for him, and hung in odd places due to his skinny frame. He didn’t have to wear a hood and goggles like his sister either - another thankful shortage from the ghost hunter’s clothing warehouse. He picked at his dad’s pressed on face design on his chest as he waited for his parents to get the machine ready for its test run. His dad had tried ironing it on, but had done it poorly, so that with a bit of a tug, it was already beginning to peel off.

Jack and Maddie Fenton ran back and forth across the lab, double checking last minute calculations. Machines whirred and beeped around them, the hum of electricity warm in the stagnant air.

Danny had a good idea of how this was going to go. If this would be like any of their past experiments, it would fail miserably. The experiment would go haywire, probably spout ectoplasmic goo everywhere or accidentally giving ecto energy to the nearest food item. One year, their parents had tried making the Christmas Turkey in their newly invented Ultra-fast Instant Pot and instead infused it with demonic ghostly energy and reanimated it. Danny remembered hiding underneath the kitchen table as Jazz had to beat it back with a pastry roller, screaming for their parents.

The ghost zone portal was their most ambitious project yet. For most of Danny’s life, they had dinner table discussions, weighing mathematical equations and scientific chemical balances in hopes of being able to one day engineer the world’s first ghost zone portal. He was fairly surprised when he found out at the beginning of the summer that they were finally constructing it, and even more so when they claimed last night it was completed. They had been rushing to get it done in time to present it at the Ghost Hunters Expo this weekend.

He glanced at the table beside him looking at the pile of papers his dad had haphazardly stacked among the beakers and ghost weapons. Sitting on top of the stack was the rejection letter from the National Science Foundation.

“It means that they don’t think what they’re doing is science,” Jazz had interpreted for Danny after reading it when their parents’ back was turned. “And who could blame them? There is zero evidence supporting the existence of ghosts. It’s just superstition.”

That’s all it was. Superstition. And  yet, his parents had at some point in their youth latched on to the idea that ghosts were more than a myth, and even though they’ve never actually seen one in person themselves, they were determined to prove ghosts were real. What amazed Danny the most is the amount of people who also believed in the same theory. In the years past when his parents had dragged him and Jazz to the Ghost Hunter’s Expo, the crowds always seemed to grow bigger and bigger. Scientists, hunters, enthusiasts, and even ghost cosplayers gathered under the same roof for a full weekend, exchanging theories, stories and footage of what they thought were ghosts. The most ridiculous rumor he had heard at the last ghost hunter’s convention was one of a young, blue haired female musician, who became an overnight sensation after one performance at a local carnival. She had also disappeared quite suddenly after the performance, which raised a lot of speculation. Ghost hunters claimed her unusually pale skin and hypnotic vocals were a part of her ghostly powers. Jazz had stated that it was simply because she was a successful female in the patriarchy they had to deem her as a ghost to explain it.

Danny didn’t want to say anything else after that.

“Jack,” Maddie called from across the room, typing away at a computer. “Did you remember to pour in the ecto-purifier?”

“On it, baby!” Jack cried while fumbling with a control panel. Danny watched as grabbed a can of diet cola, which sat next to the similar sized gray cylinder labeled “EP.”

“Uh, Dad?” Danny called. “I don’t think that’s the ecto-purifier.”

“What’s that?” Jack asked. He turned to look at the object in his hand and barked out a chuckle.

“Thanks, son! That was a close one.” He placed the can of diet cola down and picked up the correct cylinder. “Who knows what would have happened if we purified the toxic ghost energies with diet cola. Could you imagine?” He poured the bright green liquid into the appropriate chamber.

In the corner of his eye, Danny saw Jazz shake her head. “Idiot,” she whispered.

Jazz believed she was the only mature Fenton in the family. At some point during her high school career, she had decided it was up to her to convince her parents that ghosts were not real, and to force them to change their careers to something more normal or socially acceptable. She had tried to get them interested in just about any other scientific field she could think of, such as deep sea diving to discover creatures living on the ocean floor, to NASA’s space engineering program. When those didn’t work, she tried to build a case proving the psychological damage they were causing to her’s and Danny’s upbringing. Over the summer, when she wasn’t preparing herself for the SATs she’d have to take later that school year, she poured over every psychological book she could get her hands on from the library. No matter how many times she argued about the permanent damage her parents were inflicting on their amygdala by creating an unsafe environment for her and Danny to grow up in, their parents would say it’s all worth it for the sake of scientific advancement.

Danny tried desperately to stay out of their fights. Most days, he was too focused on trying to survive a day without being called “that ghost geek” by his peers, no matter how many times he told his classmates he didn’t believe in his parents’ work. Maybe it was because of his small, bony limbs that made it so easy for his classmates to mock him. Or the fact that his only two friends in the entire world were also considered a variety of nerd within the social climate. His best friend Tucker was a little too obsessed with the latest technology and his other friend, Samanatha - Sam for short - was the only school’s goth girl, who filled her entire personality and outlook with dark and depressing outfits and literature. In a weird way, it did make sense that the girl who loved to read about the dead, and the boy who loved technology, would want to be friends with the kid whose parents called themselves ghost scientists. Still, they were his best friends and he wouldn’t trade them for anyone else.

He had been telling them about the portal his parents were building all summer. Just like he was, his friends were also doubtful it would work. They deliberated about what the inventions would actually do. Tucker still brought up the time Danny’s parents were testing out an anti-ghost gravity spray, to temporarily make a ghost lose their flight ability. The morning they were testing it out, Danny had woken up in a hovering bed. It had shocked him so much, he fell off his bed and face-planted onto his bedroom floor, breaking his nose. At some point, Tucker and Sam started placing bets about the outcome.

“Maybe the portal will just blast a hole through the wall and you’ll send up in the Amity Park Sewer System,” Sam guessed last night after he told them his parents were getting ready for their first test.

“Bet you five bucks that Danny will lose all of his hair this time,” Tucker had joked.

He absentmindedly ran a hand through his exposed hair and briefly wished he had a head cover and goggles like Jazz. He couldn’t help but notice there was something different about his parents this time. They didn’t have the same, bubbly and excited energy they usually had when showing off a new invention. They seemed more focused this time. Even his dad’s goofy banter towards Maddie had taken a back seat as his dad frowned over the controls. It was weird to see his dad actually concentrating. Maybe it was the hundredth rejection letter they received from the National Science Foundation, or the pressure to present this weekend at the Expo, but it seemed like they were seriously trying to make this thing work. They did not want to fail.

“Okay everyone!” Maddie ran over and started waving her hands. “Backs up against the wall.”

Jazz sighed and turned to walk over to stand behind the boxed in yellow line, the “safe” spot in the lab. Danny thought  a metal containment center with a viewing screen would have kept them safer, but supposedly his parents didn’t have time to build one. Danny followed his mother and sister.

“Almost…” Jack muttered at the controls, typing away. Suddenly there was a loud click that echoed off the basement walls. Machines roared to life and lights winked on. Inside the portal, the metal fans began to spin.

“YES!” Jack punched the air, triumphant.

“Jack!” Maddie called to her husband, gesturing towards the safe zone. He jogged over and squeezed himself in between his two kids.

“This is it!” he shouted over the noise, which was gradually becoming deafening.

All around the room, machines and computers turned on. Attached beakers and graduated cylinders filled up with green, bubbling liquid. A wall lined with dialers bounced up and down. Puffs of smoke expelled out of exhaust pipes. The portal itself began to crackle with electricity, its interior fans spinning faster and faster until it started emitting a bright green glow. The pressure in the room changed, popping Danny’s ears. He felt the tips of his hair begin to rise with the electric waves.

The whirring of the fans inside the machine began to ring out a high pitch squeal as the machine glowed brighter, and brighter, blinding Danny’s naked eyes. He squinted and held out a hand over his eyes, peeking through his fingers. The air around them grew warm and staticky. His father clamped a hand tightly on Danny’s shoulder, as if to hold him back from running away.

It was working. Danny couldn’t believe it. Not once in all of their years of inventing ghost machines and hunting equipment, they may have actually been able to build something that worked like they wanted it to.

What would this mean? That ghosts actually existed? That his parents were not the crackpot fools the town took them for? And if they did exist, there was the one question that no one has been able to answer.

Were ghosts dangerous?

He looked up at Jazz. Her expression was unreadable through the head covering. He looked at his parents, wild and furious excitement in their eyes.

Then, when it seemed like Danny’s ears couldn’t take much more of the screeching noise, a BOOM exploded from the portal. Light poured out of the machine and flooded the room. Danny yelped and turned away. Jack stepped in front of his family and hid them with his massive torso from the explosion. Then, very suddenly, the room went dark. Every light and machine that had been just buzzing with life, died. Danny’s hearing rang in the abrupt silence.

“What the heck?” Jack was the first to say something.

“I got a flashlight, hang on,” Maddie said next. Danny heard her fumbling around her utility belt and a small light winked on. She shined it around the room. Curls of smoke rose up from the machines. The glow from the ecto-purifier had also faded.

“I don’t understand,” Maddie said, dumbfounded as she gazed around the room. “This should have worked.”

“We checked every calculation,” Jack said, equally mystified.

“And tested every single machine.” She threw up her hands. “I even made sure the damn computers turned on!”

“Well, obviously, this wasn’t going to work,” Jazz suddenly said, her anger returning. “You guys were trying to open a portal to nothing . Because ghosts don’t EXIST.”

She ripped off the hood and goggles. “I’m going back upstairs to change and burn this stupid jumpsuit, and work on processing this trauma that you have inflicted on us, yet again.” Without waiting for her parents to respond, she stomped back upstairs, her footsteps echoing off the silent basement walls

Jack shook his head. “What is her deal?”

“Oh, never mind her, Jack,” Maddie said. “We need to figure out what went wrong. We only have a day until the expo and we promised to present this.”

Danny’s parents turned their back on him and began working to restore the power, jumping right into a deep discussion. Danny took the moment to quietly slip away back upstairs.

The second he was back into his room, he let out a long exhale. Suddenly remembering he was wearing the jumpsuit, he hastily ripped it off and then threw it in the trash bin in the corner of his room.

He flopped back onto his bed, and lay in the stillness of his room for a few minutes to collect his thoughts. He stared up at the plastic, glow in the dark stars and planets stuck on his ceiling.

He couldn’t believe there was a moment back there where he thought the machine was working.

He didn’t want to imagine what would happen if ghosts were real. There were no real scientific facts about them. All those convention attendees at the ghost hunters expo all had different theories about what ghosts are - the religiously damned, aliens, spirits with unfinished business, souls that died before their time, another species - no one could settle on a single argument.

But if they did exist, what would happen then? Would they swarm the Earth, like cicadas after their years long sleep? Would they haunt each and every home and building in towns and cities, and try to claim it as their own? Would the world be plunged into a ghost apocalypse, where every human had to fight for their own human survival and soul? Were ghosts malicious or peaceful?

His parents might be arrested for creating the portal in the first place, if it did turn out bad. Or the government might force them to work alongside them to rid the Earth of the ghost population. What would happen to him and Jazz? Would they be put into juvie, just for being the kids of the Fenton Freaks? Would they be put into foster care, once the government decided Jack and Maddie were unfit parents for him and Jazz?

What if the human population adopted a sick fascination of ghosts? Businesses would try to profit off the ghosts by selling fake anti-ghost protection devices or offer tours inside “haunted” houses. There might even be a community in which some would fall in love or even want to become a ghost themselves.

The world would become absolute chaos.

Danny shuddered at the thought. He didn’t understand what his parents saw in trying to prove their existence. What good would proving the undead existed bring to the world?

His anxious, spiraling thoughts were interrupted when his computer dinged. Danny got up and sat down at his desk. He wiggled his mouse to wake up his computer. Tucker had sent him a message.

Still have all of your hair?

Danny chuckled and wrote back.

Yep. Nothing happened though. But the power in the basement blew.

Damn ,  was Tucker’s response. And I had just invested in a 25 pack of markers to color your head in Lancer’s class when you fall asleep.

Danny laughed out loud. I can only imagine all the pensises you’d draw.

I had planned no less than 50. Two for each color.

Well I hope you kept your receipt cause I still have a full head of hair. Unlike you. Danny made a jab at Tucker’s own buzzed haircut. He had tried growing out dreads for the school year, but his mother forced him to shave it off after he got caught staying up on the computer way too late one night. She paid the barber to give him a military buzz cut.

Shut up, dude, Tucker typed back. While you were away not getting your hair fried off your scalp, I was devising up a new battle plan to defeat Chaos.

Danny smiled. Oh yeah? Lay it on me.

[popculturebuffet]

Danny Phantom Road To Reign Storm Reviews: Prisoners of Love or Danny Phantom Said Fuck The Police

Hello all you happy people and welcome back to my look at Danny Phantom and the episodes building up to my faviorite episode of all time, Reign Storm. This one’s a bit of a schedule change: I originally planned for the next one up to be Public Enemies but eventually realized it just didn’t feel quite right covering it while entirely skipping Walker’s first episode: Sure i’d skipped Skulker’s introduction despite him showing up twice in this arc,.. but with Skulker while he’s a great character and vital to several episodes, his first apperance really isn’t important to getting why he obsses over danny. He saw a powerful, unique ghost and wants to mount him on his wall. It’s not a bad motive, there’s a reason why Kraven the hunter is one of the most beloved spider-man villians and one of the villians i’ve seen the most expies of in animation by a wide margin and Skulker’s a great take on the concept that makes it wholly the shows own. But his history with Danny dosen’t really impact the story or cause any big changes. In contrast while Walker only has three starring episodes, his actions in his second with Public Enemies upend the status quo and utterly change things for our hero in a way that’s never undone entirely. And he does all of that BECAUSE of what happens in this episode, so it felt weird to just skip it so here we are: i’m adding an episode to the arc and doing two in august to help make up for it. 

So with that we pick up a few episodes before last time: no real story beats to get into, so join me under the cut as our hero does a jailbreak while his dad whizzes on his sister-in-law’s rhubarb. 

We open in the Fenton Lab as Danny walks in and, as he tends to do, Jack shows of his latest invention: the Specter Speeder, a flying car designed for traveling in the Ghost Zone. And for getting some nachos from the convience store at 2am when you don’t want to wake your wife for keys to the RV. It has weapons, scanning equipment and a jumbo cupholder. 

But while Jack was working on his sweet ride he forgot something important: his anniversary. Maddie TRIES to clue him in on it, but this being Jack that’s about as effective as putting Garfield on a diet and she’s soon rightfully pissed at him, saying there’s more to life than ghosts.

Now normally i’d hate this kind of plot: The “I forgot our anniversary” plot is such a fucking trite cliche, especially in shows like this that have a dumbass his more attractive and capable wife. This episode however.. makes it work shockingly well. For starters, it’s couched more in character than just banking on Jack being stupid and Maddie not being stupid. Jack has a tendency series wide to get obessed with whatever new gadget he’s made to catch ghosts and really get showy with it, so him forgetting their annviersary not out of malice or stupidity but just because he was hung up on his latest neat toy makes perfect sense. Likewise Maddie has a decent reason to be angry as while it is a cliche to forget your wedding annviersary in media it dosen’t make it any less of a dick move to, and SHE remembered it despite being as obessive about their work and ghosts in general. In fact she comes in nice, it’s only when i’ts both clear he forgot and dosen’t seem to care he forgot she gets pissed and that’s fair. It’s set up realistically as this show can manage and it works. 

We’ll get more on that in a second but first Danny accidently triggers the speeder during his parents fight and ends up in the Ghost Zone. We get our first good look at it too and it’s majestic and haunting: it has all the weird structures and shapes you’d expect but a nice touch that couldn’t of been easy to pull of is that it feels like the zone itself is alive: it’s always moving in some fashion, the parts don’t all feel like structures.. it just hs the unearthly, spooky feel you’d expect from an otherwordly realm filled with ghost. 

It’s here Danny meets our antagonist, Walker. Walker is played by James Arnold Taylor aka...

I never would’ve guessed honestly either: the guy is a fucking chamelon when it comes to voice work and is really damn talented, and the fact he can voice a mildly whiny himbo, obi wan freaking kenobi, Harry Osborn, and so much more without sounding the same most of the time is freaking amazing. Don’t get me wrong there are still awesome va’s like John DiMaggio that have maybe two versions or Kristin Schaal and Jason Mantzokus who have about one, but can use said range or single voice in a variety of ways and contexts, i’m just saying it’s just as if not more impressive to be able to be a chameleon like James. 

Walker is your standard hardass southren jailer type, and really represents most police as a whole: a stubborn, rules obessed, white faced ghoul whose willing to bend said rules to suit him and prosecute people who did nothing wrong, in this case Danny who just stumbled in. Danny wisely runs the fuck away but into more problems

Not with the plot though as this part only enhances what I was talking about:  Maddie’s leaving but not because of the argument, though that helps, but because she has to visit her sister for “the divorce” and even left a cassarole. It’s also noticable that while she’s still understandably cold to Jack during this scene she’s not yelling at him any more: she knows better than to try and escalate things and that they can finish this when she gets back. 

Hearing divorce scares the shit out of Danny thoguh who dosen’t have context for the fact that, unsuprisingly she’s not talking about divorcing jack, and is worried about his parents fighting. And this is the piece that truly pulls it all together: by putting poor Danny in the middle scared of his parents possible separation. It’s a relatable fear: while my parents divorce smacked me in the fucking face iwth how sudden it seemed, it’s just as likely for a kid’s parents to try and stay together for them and only make things worse, or to worry that some fighting means your parents might break up even when they really won’t. 

Jazz asssures Danny he dosen’t have to worry but  assumes Jack will do nothing and make it worse before it gets better. I... SO do not miss pre-my brother’s keeper jazz. I talked about this in my Bitter Reunions review, but she’s so fucking insufferable: I don’t MIND her having an ego and getting knocked down a peg by the fact she really DOSEN’T know everything, but the series did it far better once it stopped being her only character trait most of the time. 

Thankfully this one is about her having a mental breakdown from the fact she’s WRONG: Jack is in fact rushing to go see Maddie and fix this... which from experince sometimes not letting a problem breathe IS an issue.. but this one was caused by Jack not being attentive or seeming to care about maddie, so rushing to her with a thoughtful gift in a big romantic gesture is a genuinely smart move. It also helps this work: unlike a lot of sitcom husbands who’d scramble to save their ass for saving asses sake, Jack GENUINELY cares he fucked up and wants to fix it, and is willing to go to great lengths to do so, AND already had a thoguhtful gift for her planned he just forgot about it. So he didn’t forget the annviersary all together, he just forgot it was today. 

Danny decides to try and compensate by cleaning the house, leading to Jazz going to study at the library. Granted he’s vacuming on the ceeling but still he means well. He hits the lab next and finds it a wreck as you’d expect and after accidently hitting a thing with the ghost ray into the trash can, realizes he can use his rays to move stuff easily and just finger guns his way through it: it’s a fun sequence and clever too. Naturally though as you’d expect he accidently messes up and knocks a present into the ghost portal he left open because shut up and finds it was Jack’s. Oh boy. 

Danny’s still rattled the next day at school, Tucker not helping by saying if they said divorce then it’s a problem though his attempt to walk it back after realizing they DID say it is hilarious “Did they say it twice?” It’s just so delightfully half assed. He decides that after school he HAS to go in after it.

So before we get to that it’s time for the subplot of Jack and Maddie in the south which as I tend to do when the two plots of an episode don’t intersect till the end, i’m going to cover all of now: We meet Maddie’s sister for the first and sadly only time. I won’t lie it is kinda disapointing we not only never see her sister again, but that Alicia is the ONLY family of the Fentons we see. It’d be intresting to see what say Jack or Maddies parents or any other siblings or any of their kids would think of the ghost stuff.  It dosen’t help that Alicia is pretty one note: your standard bitter divorced woman who don’t need no man sterotype whose trying to convince Maddie her husband sucks. What’s telling is that despite Jack’s inesntivity she still loves him and defends him from her sister.. and shows that the ghost obession isn’t at all just jack as she attacks a sheet thinking it’s a ghost only to find jack just got caught. 

This segment is admitely the weaker part of the episode: while i’ts NOT without good stuff, including a running gag about whizzing on rubarb tha tprimarly works because rubarb is a funny word, it’s just kinda flat with Alicia again being a pretty common and annoying sterotype and the runtime being padde dwith Jack having to pee instead of talking with his wife. Just.. putting them in the south isn’t as funny as the writers thought it was is what i’m saying. Not a bad subplot, I just feel it could’ve been bettter and feels like wasted poteitial that the one time we see the Fenton’s extended family... i’ts Maddie’s sterotype of a sister in the generic backwoods complete with tabacco spitting.. though to their credit they DO combat the bad teeth stertoype by havnig one of the guys at the local corner store chastise anothe rwith them for making them look bad. It’s just weak stuff.’

So in the plot people actually care about, Danny decides to go into the unknownnnnn to find the gift, with Sam and Tucker working as mission control and Danny on headset, a setup we’d see a lot after this.

So Danny goes in and we get a better look at how awsome the place is and also find out a key characteristic when he opens a door: There’s near infinite realms here, which makes his quest daunting until Tucker, fiddling with the controls, finds out the Crusier has a “real world item” detector and uses it to help guide danny.

It’s here he finds out another key and wonderful characteristic: most of the realms are in fact the personal domains of various ghosts, where they go when he throws them back in. It’s a nice addition to the lore: it makes sense they wouldn’t just float around and it makes the ghost zone that much more dangerous: there’s no telling if he could run into one of his most dangerous eneimes where they have home field advantage. Thankfully instead he finds MY BOY The Box Ghost. Seriously I fucking love this guy, from Rob Paulsen’s doofy voice for him to his lame but endearing gimmick to his longshoreman outfit. He’s just an awesome example of the kind of c-list villian you’d scrape up from the bottom of marvel, but with the same endearing charm a lot of marvel’s c listers have.

Naturally the box present ended up in BG’s domain, but before danny can get it he’s caught off guard as some ghost cops pick Box Ghost up.. and then danny with some restraints, with Walker arresting him and taking his headset.

Danny of course isn’t pleased by this: his parents might get divorced, he’s going to jail, and he’s with a comedy character whose great to me but I can get would be a lot to put up with. THen he finds out the rest of his Rogues so far, Skulker, The Lunch Lady, Technius and Deserie are all there. The latter two don’t talk.. with Desriee I get it as her actress likely costs a decent amount , but Rob Paulsen is on the main cast so I don’t get why Techinus dosen’t.

Regardless Danny is processed with Walker generally being the smug controlling dick you’d expect and not you know, letting him simply take what’s rightfully his out despite the contraband being a problem., even making it illegal simply because it suits him. It shows who Walker REALLY is: like far too damn many real people in law informcent and the prison system he’s not in this for good reason, to keep dangerous people off the street or help the innocent.. he just wants to lock people up because he feels the Ghost Zone has no order, and someone has to impose it wether they want it or not. And the Ghost Zone HAS a natural order: each ghost has their own realm and genuinely sticks to it when their not bothering earth. If he really was a true student of order he’d of been rounding up the ghosts THERE and then imprisoning them. But he couldn’t give less of a shit about earth: all it does is give hi ma pretext to do what he’d do anyway: lock away any ghost he finds so he can have a sense of control. Just like so many corrupt assholes lock people away and use the fact they did something, even if it was an accident or a mistake, to abuse the shit out of them. I’m not sure if the commentary on prison or the police was intentional but boy does it feel fucking relevant even today and boy is it sad things have changed so little it’s still relevant.

So while this is going on Tucker decides Screw it, we need to go in after him and Sam is cautious, given how dangerous the ghost zone is.. but the prospect of Jazz wanting to go over her own personal notes convinces her right quick. The two procede to wonder around till the scanner picks up the present though we get a nice bit of them running into the dragon princess from the third episode.

Meanwhile Danny gets thrown in with his Rogues, who prepare to do what you’d expect and pummel him.. except Danny points out the obvious: He’s not the enemy here. Sure he put them back in the ghost zone.. but Walker’s the one who put them in jail. Beating up Danny won’t change that, but working with him will.. THEN they can get him next time or go to earth to get him. Skulker agrees to this, which I like: it shows while he may be an obessive hunter he’s not a moron. It’s also likely tied into said obessive nature: he could get Danny in here: but there’d be no challenge and he woudln’t get to KEEP danny’s remains to mount proudly. It’d be pointlness.

So they do indeed team up, with Skulker and Danny faking a fight so Danny can get the guards near him, then Danny takes one of their capture batoon things and uses it, and proceeds to cause a riot, an awesome sequence where our protagnists plow through these assholes and eventually escape. Danny still has to go back for the present though, and finds himself against Walker.. who easily flattens him, showing off WHY he’s been able to capture anyone and clearly intent to kill.

I kid... it is last minute but this is set up as Sam and Tucker accidently phase thorugh the prison wall> It’s also clever: the two’s arrival reveals that in the ghost zone Humans and Human objects take on ghost traits: not all the powers mind you just phasing. And while they likely can’t control it Danny’s had a month or two to practice and thus simply switches into human, grabs the present and stays intangible with it while Walker impotently grabs at him before heading out, having wrecked the prison, Walker’s sense of control and his day. Sadly though.. this is only the begning and while Walker swearing vengance isn’t NEW for a villian of the week.. how he does so will have massive effects on Danny’s life.

But first the wrap up. Danny arrives as Jack gives an earnest heartfelt speech to maddie about he am who he am but he does love her and is sorry, and in time to save his ass with the present. He also gets double allowance for this and gives teh donald duck esque reaction of “I had an allowance.

Danny thankfully also finds out the Divorce thing was not his parents getting a divorce: it’s merley his mom and the locals celebrating the 10th anniversary of his aunt’s divorce. Everyone celebrates, the present has been hollowed out by the box ghost, with Maddie and Jack naturally accepting that and we end on another whiz joke when Jazz offers Danny some rhubarb pie. Good stuff.

Final Thoughts:

Prisoners of Love is a Solid Episode> While the subplot is just okay, it’s not bad and has one or two good gags, and the emotional core is excellent. Danny’s struggle with divorce, Jack being genuinely repentant, Maddie showing she genuinely loves and is comitted ot jack> it’s all great. I do wish we could’ve gotten more with Danny’s other foes so far, they mostly focused on Skulker and Lunch Lady, but what we got was a classic all the same

Next Month on Road to Reign Storm: Walker returns and makes good on his revenge with a scheme that destroys Danny’s life as ghosts are outed to the public.

Next Time on This Blog: it’s Donald Duck’s birthday so we’re having another special!  Everybody Dance!

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So... What do you think about revisiting Danny phantom in general? Revisiting the fandom I've noticed a lot of fanfic that have Danny's parents finding out his deal rather violently, or generally having more violence/angst than the original show..

I’m assuming you’re sending me this ask because of my recent burst of Danny Phantom art, so, it’s probably not a surprise to say I’m doing a certain amount of revisiting myself, and certainly not about to shame anyone else for it. It was a very dear cartoon to me in many ways and left some enduring hallmarks on my own writing, and I can absolutely understand people feeling the same way.

That said, as someone who’s been in this fandom for a while, albeit quietly- there certainly is a thread of macabre interest in fandom spaces, one I don’t always know that I agree with, especially when it comes to the Fentons.

My personal verdict on the Fenton parents specifically is I think they are not handled fairly by canon. This is a problem that Danny Phantom as a show shares with Fairly Odd Parents, though I would argue the Turner parents in FOP are quite a bit worse at this.

Roughly, I think how the Fenton parents are canonically depicted suffers from a phenomenon that affects many parts of the show: DP, as a series, has a bit of a sense of confused priorities between comedy and drama, and as a result, what’s 'real’ in-universe and what’s “just supposed to be a joke”. The kind of humor that DP tends to spring for is exaggerated or shocking behavior- it also tends to be a humor that hinges on the idea that other people are generally inconvenient to the main character. So humor-characterization is inconsistent here- Jack is negligent until it’s more inconvenient to depict him as overbearing (see: Girl’s Night Out and other cases he desperately wants to bond with Danny) he’s a recluse only loved by his wife until it’s more inconvenient to depict him as having an active social life (Masters Of All Time and that he and Maddie are going to a themed party so they’re dressed ‘weirdly’ in public)

A big victim of this is Jack’s sense that ghosts aren’t people and his desire to dissect them. Because here is the thing: it’s all talk, in the worst way. It hinges on the idea Jack- someone who knows enough of what he’s doing that along with Maddie and, in the past, Vlad- ripped two different holes in reality hard enough to permanently alter someone’s relation to undeath- has never seen a ghost before the series as he says in Mystery Meat.

The series has a big problem where it hinges on the Fentons’ inventions and expertise but also wants to treat them like idiots constantly. And if you notice how much I’m talking exclusively about Jack- that’s part of the problem. Maddie, in many ways, outside of episodes that throw her a bone, despite constantly being told by people she’s too good for Jack, is really treated as an extension of Jack. Masters Of All Time even suggests that her choosing Jack in the first place was just a path of least resistance between her two college friends, and she’d have married whichever one stuck around. 

The Fentons are not respected as experts, so Jack is given his ignorant line about dissecting a ghost. The Fentons need to remain exaggerated, ridiculous, an inconvenience to Danny- so they threaten his alter ego and point guns at him, but this is funny and not serious and not a reason to be worried about them as parents, because they are not on Danny’s level. Nobody is ever on Danny’s level. There is literally an episode called The Ultimate Enemy. The antagonist is an evil future Danny. The only person who could ever be Danny’s ultimate nemesis is Danny himself. 

And when the series stops milking the Fentons for jokes about how they’re so stupid and how Jack is an idiot and Maddie married that idiot but even she doesn’t respect him even though she loves him and dutifully follows him everywhere and god how can these people care about ghosts they’re so ignorant and out of their league- 

-then it kinda shuffles its feet awkwardly and goes, yeah. the Fentons love each other, and love their kids.

Yeah, Jack has framed photographs of Maddie, Jazz, and Danny on his personal workstation.

Yeah, in Mystery Meat Jack was seriously debating walking away from his lifework because it upset one of his kids. 

Yeah, every time in canon the Fentons find out Danny’s secret they’re immediately all in supporting him.

Yeah, even not knowing it’s Danny, Jack has an amiable conversation with him in Million Dollar Ghost and the ghost containment units designed by the Fentons get some jokes about that they’re a little cramped but they aren’t horrifying prisons of inhumanity- and as soon as Danny Phantom the ghost boy has a good point, Jack lets him go on purpose. 

Yeah, Jack is a competent ghost hunter who can take on Skulker and win as well as beat down the giant lake monster Skulker brought with him in Girls’ Night Out and would do this in a heartbeat, no jokes and no sidetracks, because that monster just chewed on his baby boy and nobody does that to his baby boy.

Yeah, Maternal Instinct is an entire episode of Maddie throwing hands with (or deceiving and manipulating) literally anything she thinks was responsible for getting Danny in this dangerous situation.

...And then the series says “but that’s not funny! Here, have jokes about the Fenton Stockades, that exist and have spikes and Jack wants to put his kids in them for time out, when the spikes apparently don’t hurt given Jack is not injured for being put in there. Here, have a joke about Jack attacking Jazz with a vacuum cleaner because he gets hellbent on the idea she’s possessed for no good reason. Here, have an uncomfortable joke about how badly Jack Fenton wants to vivisect a ghost while it screams. Funny funny funny. Why- why are you flinching?”

It basically creates a comedic situation where the show is constantly winding up like it’s gonna punch you- with the idea that the Fentons are bad parents and this has consequences for Danny and Jazz personally- and then laughs in your face if you flinch. It’ll never actually punch you- but it will sure keep swinging its hand really close to your face and laughing at your reactions.

This is, I’m just gonna say- one of the worst elements of the series, this weird relationship it has with “hahaha are we depicting an abusive family or not? ;)” where its actual point is that Jack Fenton is a person who should be shamed for being overzealous, for caring about this niche field, because nobody cares about ghosts! (unless the entire premise of the show does) Nobody wants to think about ghost science! That’s LAME! (unless Vlad does it)

So I think ultimately this creates a polarizing experience in the fandom. What part of this information do you take?

Do you take, say, my personal approach, which is: 

“Hey, so it’s pretty clear and consistent that the Fentons love their kids and wouldn’t hurt them. The Fentons are nice people. They can be obsessive or headstrong but there’s nuanced and salient ways to examine this in the basic framework that they care, both about their family specifically, and in general- and while I think they can have flaws or conflicts with their kids, and with ambient ghosts in the world, I really don’t think they’re in danger of torturing a sapient entity in their basement and it frustrates and annoys me that canon ‘makes a joke’ of them doing these things because it thinks they’re so incompetent that these things are not really malicious actions, when- whether or not you successfully shoot them, it takes a certain kind of person to point a weapon you know is dangerous at something that looks, and talks, like a fourteen-year-old, especially when you’re a parent who has probably at least once in your life worried about something happening to your kids, and the ghost of a teenager means something happened to someone’s kid, in a general sense.

So my end conclusion on the Fentons is I think they are being depicted in a kind of metatextual bad faith, that they are not cruel or malicious people, and in my personal take or understanding on the series, I’d massively dial down those elements, and if any remain, take them seriously as problems they have in their relationships with other people.”

Or do you take an approach more rooted in,

“If the Fentons are shown to be negligent parents they are negligent parents, I’m going to examine and depict them as that, and I find this very hard to forgive, so it’s going to have real and nasty consequences.”

Both are basically valid. The place where I tend to get a little uncomfortable is twofold:

First, I think sometimes people just really want some fictional tragedy to either create or consume, and to that end, you aren’t going to get much juicy drama out of the Fentons being reasonable people. This isn’t evil or unforgivable, but for me, it’s definitely my least favorite fannish content to create or consume. I’m no fan of angst for angst’s sake, and I feel like there’s enough misery and heartbreak in the world that I’m not interested in wallowing in it unless it’s got something interesting to say.

Second- and this is a point I’m gonna be saltier: A lot of abusive Fenton fics that refuse to forgive them for the poorer-taste jokes the series makes, simultaneously give Vlad a blank check, when he has done targetedly malicious things to Danny. 

Now- do I also have a more sympathetic read on Vlad, and feel like canon also gives him a bad rap? Yeah! But you can’t have it both ways. You can’t say, “I can’t forgive the Fentons for stuff that was tagged onto them because canon thought it was funny, but I’m gonna editorialize Vlad’s depiction to lionize him as the ideal parent figure for Danny to run into the arms of.”

And the main reason I get so worked up in this, is I feel like Jack in particular (when Maddie is characterized as subordinate to Jack, following his cues, etc., and that’s its own demon) is... characterized as kind of a mocking caricature of traits that I personally recognize as an autistic and ADHD person.

Because the reality is? In many practical ways, I am Jack Fenton.

I like a bunch of weird stuff people find unacceptable or gross, like bugs

I’m hyperlexic (that means I talk, a lot)

Scatterbrained, forget words or where I left something or, sometimes, to do something important

Passionate and excitable including and especially in situations where it’s not normal, or expected, to have this much energy

I absolutely can forget birthdays, even for people I love dearly that mean the world to me! It’s horrible! There’s almost nothing I can do about it! My brain refuses to hold onto this information reliably and no amount of caring fixes it.

And being this way, living like this? My worst nightmare has always been that people think I either don’t care or that I’m just too much of a stupid, flippant buffoon to get right.

The thing about Jack is he’s “a person like me” and he’s “a person like me” who was designed to be a joke. We’re clearly expected to view him as untrustworthy, stupid, just like a big dumb dog of a man who barks in the wrong directions, who sometimes, when it counts, fetches a stick like he’s supposed to. Good job, Lassie. You got little Timmy out of the well.

And I am going to say with certainty and confidence that feeling like this is how people see me is the most unbelievably crushing feeling I have ever experienced in my life. That my excitement and passion means I’m unprofessional, stupid, don’t know what I’m talking about. It’s nearly painful for me, as an adult, to watch Danny Phantom because the show can never get off Jack’s case. And the few times it does, he hauls overtime arduously to make a difference, to help, to build something that will protect others, to put his own life on the line to stop hostile ghosts.

And immediately, then he goes back to being stupid stupid dog man. ha ha. why does his wife love him? no wonder his kids don’t ever want to be seen with him. no wonder his best friend is trying to kill him and he doesn’t even know, the big idiot.

(never mind that we see a scenario where he does know. and admits he would’ve forgiven Vlad anyway. but he can’t forgive Vlad hurting Danny.)

So to rein in this wild tangent: I’m not saying all must love Jack Fenton and despair. I’m not even telling people to hide their angst. If I have a sincere request, it’s this:

If you’re inclined to thinking of Vlad as a cool, troubled, complex person (as I do!) and are haunted by the implications of The Ultimate Enemy specifically for Vlad, that when Danny lost everyone else in his life that Vlad really genuinely tried to help, and was not gloating and happy and victorious to have Danny as his protege, and when that went badly, he was haunted to the end of his days by not having been able to help-

-but immediately turn around and think Jack is just a rotten awful person who’d absolutely hurt his own kid in spite of canon to the contrary (when there’s just as much, if not more, canon of Vlad being willfully hostile)

It might be good to examine why you’re feeling this way, and if this might not come down to the fact that even when canon has people call Vlad a desperately lonely fruit loop, it has a lot more respect for him than it does for Jack, and this isn’t because it’s actually taking a stance against any of the qualities it gave Jack that someone might find disagreeable- it’s because Jack’s just “a big old fat idiot nobody likes, right?”

and that’s... not something comfy to buy into.