#mainly bc of vol 4

[henriiiii-1001old]

help i think im giving puppet too much spider symbolism /pos (aka i have two theme songs for him that both center around spiders. and it works)

EDIT: the two songs are "キラースパイダー" by ピノキオピー and "Spider on the Wall" by GHOST (specifically the remaster w/ yuma it's so fucking good) btw. yes i need to spread more vocaloid propaganda around here /hj

[deus-ex-mona]

kinda thinking about t h e m again…

[gem-de-lune]

New Jeans Tarot Reading/Prediction

09/16/2024

I decided to do this because I was seeing weird and biased readings on tiktok and twt that truly reeked of personal bias when describing what would happen to this group. There was no substance to a lot of them and it was mainly as if they read what they wanted to see. So I decided to take matters into my own hands after hearing the news about the NewJeans issue and all the context. Let's see what's going on and what will likely transpire.

This is my first time sharing a reading like this as I usually do video ones...so bare with me here. I will not be posting pics unfortunately but will be sharing the pulls.

Deck used: Book of Shadows Tarot Vol. 2

Energy/Permission pulls (I went by order of who I connected with first, not age order)-

Hanni - Very hesitant yes by 2 of Swords

Danielle - Tired yes by 4 of Swords

Haerin - Very open yes 8 of Wands

Hyein - Reserved and kind of scared yes so I decided no, Ace of Swords (just seemed super shy very jumpy and very snappy)

Minji - Yes, 2 of Pentacles

With that being said, since i did not have Hyein's permission, I skipped a group energy draw and their individual feelings- just wanted to go on to the rest of the reading bc it didn't feel necessary atp.

HYBE (General energy)-

Knight of Chalices & King of Pentacles

Here we have a sort of relaxed laid back vibe. But like a severe internal disconnect. The general consensus is that Hybe as a company feels as though things flow easily and very well. They have great outer connections and not many issues related to that. They are slow moving and let things run their course by simply doing things as needed when they need attention. However, they are not very attentive and see themselves sort of like a higher figure....big egos here OR rather an extreme dependency on in their luck and power/ability. The people with ideas are too exciteable and overlook things without paying attention. This can be seen in: How they choose group and Fandom names just for example. They do not consider a lot of things and just basically have a lot of spelling errors in their essay metaphorically. The feeling is like "We've got it handled" and they usually do. They do generally try to empathise with their employees and artists, but as stated it is very very general. They overlook a lot and believe they are doing the best anyone could ask for; state of the art facilities, perks, nd reputation for success and money. But people will expect even more as time goes on because of them overlooking details time and time again. Not JUST a great employee cafeteria, but also you should make sure there are food options for people who are allergic to something- that kind of vibe. Internally, there is a big lack of accountability, structured creativity, and making sure things do not overlap and interfere. Imo there seems to be a need to have a department that oversees all the labels and ensures there is no stepping on toes- because that is a major issue. Overall HYBE are wealthy, social, arrogant, and inattentive.

How does HYBE see NewJeans

As children. I pulled the World, and clarified with the Queen of Wands and Death. Hybe views NewJeans as a cultural phenomenon and something they need to protect. Somewhat like an asset. They may be contemplating if they have the ability to maintain this asset or if they may just let it go. Either way, they see New Jeans as a bit naive and in need of guidance/protection because it is almost as if they are putting themselves in harm's way in their eyes. They also simply see them as extremely desireable artists that could reach a world scale. There is a lot of admiration, but the way a greedy person looks at a Birkin Bag they aren't sure if they can afford. In their reach in literal terms but unable to truly make it theirs without pulling morally ambiguous strings.

How does NewJeans see HYBE

They feel a very restricted and contained. I pulled the Moon clarified by 3 of wands and 9 of swords. Mainly it's almost like they had a certain clarity and comfort before, but it was ripped away and they were left in the dark on decisions unsure of what was going on. Putting this into context it is possible they had more of a voice and more communication towards them about their plans and group activities/concepts before, but now it's as if they sit around waiting until everything is predecided for them with no input whatsoever. It's very nightmarish and uncomfortable for them. To add more context to this, this is a similar way other groups are treated. But because it is entirely new to NJZ, this is uncomfortable like some kind of borderline punishment for them even though HYBE is basically just doing what they are used to doing. For example Lesserafim are just now getting a full break after this cb, but NJZ apparently had month breaks after each of theirs. Enhypen also haven't had an official break since debut and are about to go on another world tour after just wrapping one up. This all seems normal to maybe most popular idols and HYBE. So i get the sense HYBE genuinely sees this as a juvenile overreaction.

What will happen by the 25th

It seems that by the deadline set by the girls, there will still be a lot of internal conflict. I pulled 5 of Wands, 5 of Swords, and 10 of Swords. There will be a pending compromise at hand but mainly conflict resolution and internal craziness. Legalities will be involved but the consensus is that a huge change will be made on HYBE'S end. I do not really see NJz being the ones having to do a lot of work with this, it's more internal rearranging. Some people will be losers and winners. Clarified this again with Judgement card when i asked about maybe Belift being involved in this as their CEO is involved with the internal management of Ador currently. It seems Belift is going to be on the losing end of this deal. When i asked a little more about this, it just seems like Belift wanted to absorb NJZ's identity?? I dont think in a good way. I don't think this will happen, though so no need to worry. Belift seem to be extremely intrigues and interested in NJZ creative direction though to an obsessive level. It's giving "I need that to be me" very envious vibes.

Overall outcome of the conflict

So this is actually very good news. I pulled King of Chalices, 10 of Chalices, and the Empress. There is going to be a new person involved here. Ultimately I do see the situation having a happy ending and it is due to the efforts of a woman. This woman's job is "someone who does it all" as clarified by the Magician. She is a bridge between HYBE and the girls. Very empathetic, caring, but also like a teacher and guides the girls with their decision making in a way that doesn't diminish their feelings. She is very lively and bright- has a soft spot of younger people she cares for but is still very confident and not one who is pushed around or pressured, which is a must. This person is NOT Min Heejin. Her relationship with the girls is what ultimately will save the situation because it seems that what NJZ truly want is a caring company, and to feel seen and heard, they do not necessarily need MHJ. I see this woman collaborating with the girls in a similar way to come up with their concepts, but this is her main job and to manager their relationship with upper management. She is not involved in higher duties other than creative production and relationship management to make sure ideas are properly conveyed as HYBE just doesn't seem to be able to gain the girl's trust as they treat them like naive kids lol. Regardless, this outcome will be good, and I do see New Jeans staying with Hybe for the time being. But I do see that there is a possibility Ador will be dissolved as a subsidary and NJZ will be moved. If this happens they will be moved under BigHit. However I don't think they will renew with Hybe at all. I am pretty sure they will move companies after their contracts expire. Their general attitude towards Hybe after resolution will be 2 of Wands and 10 of wands. They will feel too many things to stay there. They will go on to another company to continue, though.

1, 2, 3, 4 Months in the Future

Pulled 8 of Chalices, 4 of Chalices, 7 of Wands, and Knight of Swords respectively. So it is going to be around the 4 month mark that things find a stable place and the bug changes truly take effect for them. The first three months will be full of talks and negotiations. It's possible during this time the new woman is building a relationship with NJZ and that is the main priority so HYBE can communicate with them better and negotiate terms. It will only be after this has been settled that things will move quickly towards stability. I also think this will have a major effect on all other HYBE groups. Maybe they will also get a staff member with a similar relationship management role.

What of Min Heejin?

Now I did not really want to pull for her but i did just to clarify things. I will not go too deep into it nor share all the cards because I am lazy and because i don't care about this lady but I know someone will ask so:

She will be loved by NJZ at least for right now. They are almost like family. But it is a codependent relationship where she expects them to do stuff for her as she has been there for them. Like a contractual relationship but all ate emotionally invested and work together to keep the tocix cycle going. Eventually though as they spend time apart she will realize her hold on them will weaken. This happens around the time the new woman comes in. Heejin is too abrasive and hostile towards the situation she gets put in and eventually gets bitten by her pets (NJZ) this is a turning point and she essentially drops everything and gives up. After this i specifically pulled Justice and 8 of Swords. She has her own legal worries to go about and focuses on those. Eventually she has not even the desire to go back to NJZ or HYBE, she just kinda falls off the face of the earth for them and that is that.

Imo i dont think she is a major player here. She is just the only solulu NJZ had to get back to a normal working environment. But seeing as she groomed them to defend and pity her- a grown adult, it's unhealthy and weird. It will not last. I just wanna state that she is simply irrelevant and to not give her or her actions attention when thinking about NJZ and their hurt because in reality she is simply not a player in this game and will be gone soon.

Ending Notes

Altogether I think there's nothing to worry about here. The girls will likely go on to do great things, and I see this entire situation shifting what is appropriate for a K-pop idol, especially minors, in terms of working conditions and expectations. It can have a positive effect on all K-pop groups and prioritizing health and mental well-being as well as a good working relationship over anything else like profits.

Hope yall enjoyed this!

[ghost-bard]

I have a theory that the first 5 vols of majo to yajuu are gonna get animated

Mainly bc thats a good stopping point (imo) for the anime, and it’s when we get properly introduced (well sort of) to Angela, yknow. The main antagonist.

It wouldn’t make sense for us to see Guideau and Angela meet for the first time in however long, and then end, bc there’s not really any sort of fight between them, given Guideau’s condition, but it also doesn’t make sense for us to not see her at all.

plus it leaves a decent amount of material for a s2 if it gets greenlit for it.

WHAT MY HOPEFUL THINKING LEADS TO HOWEVER IS ASHAF TELLING GUIDEAU THAT HE WANTS TO TEACH THEM WHAT LOVE IS AND THAT BEING ANIMATED MIGHT JUST KILL ME

Its such a turning point (imo) for their relationship

Like ik for a fact that the 4 levels below arc wont get animated (in s1), if we’re lucky we’ll get a sneak peak of it, but goddddd im really hoping we see Ashaf and Guideau meeting at the least

[which-star]

Hi! I just reread the Spider-Women crossover and was wondering if you recommended any of the Spider-Verse events for Cindy/Gwen friendship content?

Another related question, do you recommend any of the Spider-Verse events for any specific Cindy Moon content?

Hi ink! I've been refreshing my memory on the spiderverse events for you and I have a relatively long answer that's honestly a really short TLDR: none of them are must-must-reads 😭 I'm going to go through every spidey event Cindy was apart of (that I could think of) so, if any of these interest you, you can check them out for yourself or ask me to summarize/condense in another ask because I would be happy too! Long post ahead!

For Silk specifically, she played the biggest role in the original spiderverse event where she was introduced. That's where she meets Gwen and Jess for the first time, so you get the background of the Spider-Women dynamic and there's some fun back and forths in the middle of all the running. Fair warning: this is before her solos so the Cindy/Peter undertones are still there and she's not really the Silk we know now. She's fresh out of the bunker, just became a hero, immature and reckless... and still being underestimated and babied --- just really different. (I can do more meta but I won't make this ask a ten page essay bc I love you guys). Still, I think it remains to be the spiderverse event where Silk plays the biggest role.

For that event, Spider-Woman Vol.1: Spider-Verse (Spider-Woman 2015 #1-4) will get you into the thick of it. It's right after the big group breaks off into a bunch of tie-ins and missions (The Amazing Spider-Man 2014 #9-10) so we get to focus on a narrower cast. I don't think you particularly need to read TASM when the Cindy-writing is... not great, but if you want further background on the event itself that's the starting point for the whole event. If you find yourself wanting to know the end after the Spider-Woman tie-in: TASM 2014 #12-15 is your answer!

Otherwise, I can't really name a particular big spidey event where Silk is particularly relevant. You can skip Spider-Geddon (the sequel event to Spider-Verse) since it's mainly centered around Otto Octavius and Miles Morales, but Cindy does pop up throughout Spider-Geddon #0-5 to say. like. two-three lines total. Peter had a mini spidey team-up for the Sins of Norman Osborn/Last Remains arc that Cindy participated in with the other 616-adjacent spideys + Gwen. Not a must read but you get to see them team up again! It's not the best Spider-Man run, but when the spideys show up it's right as it finally starts picking up so it's not as much of a slog like it would be if you were reading the whole Kindred arc.

Last Remains you can start reading at TASM 2018 #48, TASM: The Sins of Norman Osborn #1, TASM #49 and then TASM #50LR-54LR with #55. The issues denoted with LR follows the spidey team-up while the regular #50-54 just follows Peter.

The Edge of Spider-Verse 2022 event leads into the End of Spider-Verse event and issue #5 shows an alternate universe Silk from Earth-71490, which is fun! Marvel Voices: Spider-Verse 2023 has a Cindy short that was interestingly done even if the ending fell a bit flat for me. Spider-Verse Unlimited Infinity Comic (2022) is also, surprise, not really required reading but for the sake of being thorough her solo episode is #40 and she is part of the final act in episodes #49-53. I liked ep.51's paneling and you get a good grasp of the storyline Cindy's a part of with just reading the episodes mentioned above.

Oh! Speaking of Edge of Spider-Verse, Cindy does play a relatively big-ish role in the End of the Spider-Verse (Spider-Man 2022 #1-7) when they explore a world with Silk as the main character and Peter as her guy in the chair. BUT the writing is soo 2D, plot paper-thin, and it manages to mischaracterize everyone involved. Slott doesn't even touch Cindy till she becomes a plot point and even then it feels like he's scared of writing her after the backlash of him creating her (as he should be tbh). It's not worth reading but there are certain things established that might play a larger part later like Cindy being retconned into being the Queen totem instead of the Bride. If you wanna get mad at all the spider-girlies characterization, read this event LOL, just keep in mind that it's not a good representation of anyone and boooo Bailey.

Now as for the ones I'd recommend... to be honest, there's a lot where I liked the ideas there but not particularly enough to say you should go through the trouble to read. I would definitely recommend Edge of Spiderverse #5 because it's fun and cute and the Marvel Voices short since it's unique and both of those are easy to find/read. Events where Gwen and Cindy actually exchange a line or two are in Spider-Verse, Last Remains, the Infinity Comic (I think, either that or they share a panel lmaoo) and the End of the Spider-Verse where Gwen calls Cindy bossy pffft. I liked seeing what would've happened if Silk was the main spider-character in EotS and there's a Felicia cameo in LR where silkcat shares one panel and two lines ragging on Peter. As much as I don't like Silk's early depiction, I do think the original Spider-Verse event shares some interesting nuggets about Cindy so if you are a brave soldier you can tread the waters there. And if you made it this far... thanks for reading; you get a medal!!

[caatws]

Yondu's death and how it was handled in the following gotg projects is the main reason I think how Gamora's been treated is unforgivable. A funeral and two other follow ups to your death/to honor your importance vs "you're not dead, you just can't remember". It would take 2 minutes tops to have Mantis, Drax and Rocket say 2 sentences to eachother about missing Gamora. They don't even had to shed tears if that would be too much. Drax already hated Thanos for killing his family once before. Where was his anger.

vol 3 reduced Gamora from a fully realized character who was an equal partner in the story and interacted with the others and guided them, to mainly someone only Peter really knew. Carrying over her relationship with Nebula from Endgame is the only saving grace. Worse is that Peter talking about it is the only time the canon gives Gamora credit for being essential to the family's origins and by extension the franchise.

Also it makes me really sad that Zoe has probably given the best performance of the bunch throughout her entire mcu run and because Gamora's arc is such a mess it completely overshadows that by the time you get finished vol 3. In fact, imo, vol 3 was fire performance wise for but hits rock bottom plot and arc wise. Without her death or if they had ressurected her, I think she easily would have had one of the best arcs in the mcu.

yeah, when i was comparing the treatment gamora's death to nat's that was already Oof but now comparing with yondu is just...OOOOOFFFFFF. it's just sad seeing the characters not get a chance to rly express their grief for her ever :'( and i think only rly exploring peter's grief makes it seem like gamora rly just existed to be his gf, which i know is a whole nother can of worms of discourse happening in starmora land rn (and given all the circumstances in the film, i honestly think the way starmora as a relationship was handled was pretty solid)

tho we had the holiday special (and i did enjoy it!), i kinda wish we'd had some other gotg project (love & thunder doesn't count since they were just there for 2 secs to support thor LOL) between endgame and vol 3 to actually explore the fallout from iw/endgame a lot more, not just for the gamora situation, but, like, everyone else too. like i mentioned earlier, i think there's a gaping hole in rocket's arc (and nebula's but to a lesser extent) given where his arc left off in vol 2, then the 4 years that passed offscreen between that and iw, and then the 5 years that passed offscreen during endgame, and then ANOTHER 2 years passed offscreen between endgame and the holiday special/vol 3 (i think). i'd imagine losing all of the gotg would've affected rocket a LOT (like remember when he literally shot gamora so she wouldn't risk her life to save peter like lol) and then when they returned, surely that would shift the way he approached his relationships with them

similarly with nebula, i'm assuming she only stuck around with the gotg bc after endgame bc she'd become rocket's bestie for the restie (which i love) and also idk helped the avengers defeat thanos (? idk it also seems like the gotg were just kinda absorbed into the avengers for those 5 years and then became separate again after endgame, which would've been cool to establish more explicitly in canon) but given how uninterested she was in hanging around the gotg at both the end of vol 1 and vol 2, i think we needed to see more of how she went from that to practically being a de facto leader of sorts for the team in the beginning of vol 3

like i said before, i do think much of vol 3 was still very much firing on all cylinders, including the performances, but some of these holes in the arcs were still hard to look past. i know gunn said he wanted the film to be something you could watch on its own without all the context of the previous gotg films/iw/endgame (which makes me wonder how much that informed the way he approached things like the gamora situation) but i think including more story elements and references to past works that would've made vol 3 more dependent on the previous gotg appearances would've fixed quite a few of these problems

[cty-search]

ermm info & stuff because i got a little too silly

Info!!

The actual name of this AU is Mandela county's Post-traumatic manifesto bc technically it is a crossover AU between tmc and song series the post traumatic manifesto(TPTM) by weevildoing.. Shortened ver is Mandela Manifesto.

County search is technically another name for it? idk but it's gonna be the name of the game I make for this AU !!1

AU was made when there was only 3 installments of TPTM so I doubt I can include any more newer songs sadly :( The AU was made before Vol 4 came out but most of the stuff in that wouldn't change much anyway lol

Content/Trigger warnings!!

Most of these will only be referenced and not explicitly shown. Many of these will also only be relevant in character and relationship studies which are optional for viewing. I'll try to keep most of this out of the main story ^^'

Toxic relationships

Verbal and physical abuse

Substance abuse

Religious trauma

Racism

Eyestrain (mainly in Jonah and Adam's art)

Rules

Just for anyone that interacts with anything on this blog.

No shipping u goofy clown!! ESPECIALLY Cesar and Mark shippers.

If you fit the basic dni criteria get your ass outta here already..

Most of the cast is over 18 yes but still no weird comments on them ☹ i know how you Cesar simps act like./lh

Errm that's about it!! Other than the stuff mentioned in the rules, have at it n do whatever with this!!

This js just general info abt the AU not individual characters yet lol

[ankulometes]

The Travellers, Vol 12, Pt 1: The Arrival

This was the mission that the variants had been waiting for; the one for which they had really been preparing for so many thousands of years now. It was also likely to be their last. They planned to stay in this time branch for about 8,000 years but, after that, they had intentions of retiring from the Traveller’s life. Or, at least, attempting something completely different.

[[MORE]]

The tropical year was that which we would think of as 6,000 BC. The variants would refer to it as year zero. The initial mission team of 4 had been travelling back in 500 year intervals, remaining at each point for around 50 years to counter the effects of the jump, survey the current global situation, and collect any data or items they needed.

As had long since become standard practice, they have landed back in Chauvet Cave before jumping again into a region of the British Isles known to us as Cornwall. Neither the islands nor the region will bear these names in this time branch, but it still offers them an excellent combination of resources in a compact area defended by the sea. And it is as close to a blank slate as they want to get.

The variants are not alone on this island though. They will be sharing it with a few thousand other humans. The existing residents are hunter-gatherers who generally move seasonally between two or more different places of occupation. They are not completely primitive: they build settlements with homes and other facilities, hunt with domesticated dogs, forage for grains, fruits, and roots, use spears, barbed hooks, and other tools and weapons of all kinds that they craft with great skill. There are both stupid and clever individuals among them and they have beliefs, emotions, and motives both good and bad like anyone else. They are modern humans in every respect.

Nevertheless, most of the current population mainly prefer to occupy the eastern and northeastern coastal regions where there are good flints to be found and abundant wildlife to hunt among the post-glacial wetlands that have been created over the past few thousand years by the warming climate and rising sea levels. In years gone by, they would have lived and hunted on the plains of Doggerland. However, they had been shrinking for a long time until, quite recently, and really rather suddenly as such massive changes in the natural world go, what remained was completely inundated and Britain was separated from the continental mainland and became an island.

To all intents and purposes, the environment was practically unaffected by the few humans who were dotted about. The variant team had seen and lived in it for a brief period only 500 years later. They knew what to expect and it had barely changed over the intervening period.

While arboreal cover had re-established itself quickly after the Ice Age and was very extensive, the landscape was not entirely dominated by trees. The image of deep and dark primordial forest blanketing the land from shore to shore is a figment of the modern imagination from MOT. Land cover in the British Isles consisted in many places of groves of trees surrounding the migration paths of the larger remaining herbivores whose numbers prevented arboreal spread by feeding on the saplings and the protective shrubbery they needed to survive.

These trails often traversed between the more expansive areas of moorland and heath such animals used as mating grounds. They were and always have been devoid of trees for reasons of altitude, soil conditions, or exposure to harsh weather conditions or salt-laden winds. Such regions included much of the southern downlands as well as Dartmoor and the most northerly of the highlands of Scotland among others. Understandably, the human inhabitants also tended to visit these game-rich lands during mating season.

Grasslands, as distinct from moorland and heath, were primarily concentrated in the migration corridors of the herbivores that were drawn to them. Large areas of open grassland did exist but were rare. Whether “open” or “closed”, they were dominated by local strains of seeding grasses and plants. Also widespread, especially on the margins beneath and within the canopy of the trees, other important plants flourished, such as stinging nettles and a diverse range of rosaceae shrubs.

Beyond the paths and grazing lands of large herbivores, especially on the more inaccessible slopes, one would quickly find oneself within the dense forest that more closely accords with romantic modern images. Their dark, leaf-strewn underbrush was home to a dizzying array of mosses and fungi.

The species of trees that populated these varying types of woodland would be recognisable to a contemporary observer, consisting of Birch, Aspen, Willow, Scots Pine, Hazel, Alder, Oak, Lime, Elm, Holly, Ash, Beech, Hornbeam, and Maple. As a pioneer species, ‘quercus robur’, commonly known as the English or European Oak, was prominent but by no means dominant. However, the dense, dark forest that cloaked many of the less hospitable regions was dominated by ‘quercus petraea’, or Sessile Oak.

The inexorable trend over the past few millennia since the end of the Ice Age had been in favour of tree cover. Already, the sparse and open landscapes of first-generation pioneer species such as Birch and Scots Pine were giving way to more densely populated woodland of Oak and Ash with thick understoreys of Hazel that promoted smaller mammals at the expense of some of the larger fauna. Nevertheless, dwindling herds of large game still clung on in the ever-diminishing open grassland spaces.

In terms of fauna, the king of the grassland migration corridors was the legendary aurochs. They were both larger and far more dangerous than most modern domesticated bovines, especially the bulls. They existed throughout post-glacial Europe.

As a species, aurochs exhibited a high degree of sexual dimorphism. Bulls generally grew to stand around 1.8 metres tall at the shoulder and cows around 1.5 metres. The former were almost universally black with a white eel stripe down the spine whereas the latter were reddish-brown. Both sexes possessed long legs, a short trunk and dewlap, a large, long, and straight skull with distinctive forward-facing horns that were especially massive in males. An S-shaped backline with high shoulder splines and a slim belly and slender waist was also a feature of both sexes but was especially emphatic in bulls. A healthy, fully-grown aurochs was safe from any predator except man. However, grey wolf packs, widespread at this time, would hunt the young, elderly, and injured among the herd.

Brown bears were solitary and less common than wolves in the British Isles yet could potentially take down a young auroch. They almost never did so, but would scavenge on wolf kills. The risk of being gored was unnecessary given that this landscape was in many ways ideal for them. Foraging, and smaller, safer kills were both plentiful in the groves and thin woodland that skirted and pockmarked the grassland migration corridors, and fish were abundant in the numerous wetlands, rivers, and lakes.

In addition to herds of aurochs were wisent, or European Bison, and vast numbers of spritely red and roe deer and nimble mouflon. Alongside them ran herds of tarpan. Wild boar, badgers, stoats, weasels, polecats, red squirrels, wild forest cats, and pine martens scuttled within the skirting woodlands. Upon the moorlands and uplands especially, elk were also still found in large numbers, along with smaller mammals such as the mountain hare. Here too, between the forest and moor, were red fox and lynx.

For most intents and purposes, the types of small bird species and songbirds were the same as those that would adapt to inhabit contemporary suburban gardens in MOT. Many of the same types of eagles, hawks, kites, buzzards, ospreys, owls, and corvids hunted them in addition to fish or small mammals. The most magnificent of these was the white-tailed sea eagle which ranged freely over the northwestern regions of the archipelago especially, often feeding on the large colonies of seabirds among which could be found the likes of the Great Auk.

Among the upland elk and hare lived moor-dwelling birds such as the ptarmigan. Elsewhere, vast and vibrant wetland areas provided an ideal home to a wide array of species including beaver, otter, woodcock, duck, moorhen, and crane. In addition to the coastal marshes that were gradually being consumed by rising sea levels, many inland areas that would later become grassland or forest were currently wetland habitats centred around lakes left by retreating glaciers that were particularly favoured by the few hunter-gatherer groups in the British Isles.

The team had arrived with a “survival kit” similar to that which they had used during previous missions, although it was heavily customised to their current situation and plan. Certainly, things like money would be of no use to them here. Along with two time chests and four nanosatellites, they had another chest packed to the brim with the refined elemental ingredients required to create a range of useful tools, weapons, and other supplies, stored in their most compact and stable form.

They were wearing clothes of furs, leather, and linen, and were equipped with recurve bows, knives, and walking staves. However, they had little need to concern themselves with appearing “contemporary”. While they had no intention of introducing anything that we might think of as “modern” technology, their aim was to bend this time to their will immediately, rather than attempt to blend in. So long as the materials they used were sufficiently biodegradable, almost all physical evidence of their futuristic presence at this point in time would be long gone before any non-variant even thought to look for it.

Nevertheless, the variants did not look completely out of place. In later years, should anyone uncover the bones of one of their physical forms and conduct a DNA analysis, it would appear as though they had migrated from the Middle East somewhere around Syria. They had wavy black hair, chocolate skin, and blue or hazel coloured eyes. And they were all absolutely gorgeous. Pimped out with an array of genetic enhancements and infused with nanites, they were lean, muscular, and athletic with great strength and stamina, well-formed symmetrical features, and flawless skin. The enhancements they had made did not make them superhuman but would give them and many of their descendants a fairly significant advantage.

Having transformed their packed elemental resources into a collection of tools and supplies, dispatched the nanosatellites into orbit, and jumped the time chests into their secure storage within the craton beneath Greenland, the variant team of four headed off to find a suitable place in which to camp. They had a decent idea where to look.

Fairly near to where they had landed was a little isthmus or spit of land consisting of marsh and woodland with some rocky outcrops that linked to a raised headland containing a few small areas clear of trees and a nearby game trail along which animals travelled to a stream that ran through a narrow valley. It ticked all their boxes. The stream provided fresh water. The sea was full of fish. The salt marsh and rock pools attracted birds and marine life of all kinds. There was a plentiful supply of wood. Although the patches of grassland on the headland were not as fertile as the heavily forested valley areas around the streams, they were more than fertile enough for growing crops on, and the surrounding woodland and nearby game trail provided superb foraging and hunting potential. There was a little rocky hillock at the head of the spit that could be easily defended should anyone turn up with hostile intent. Last, and by no means least, the whole area sat at the head of some rich veins of ore, and you could even find gold in some of the streams if you looked.

It was St. Michael’s Mount and the area around Marazion.

[dip-the-stick]

All my knowledge of stranger things comes from you and the five long paragraphs my sister texted me last month about what was happening

you're welcome and im so so sorry. i hope she let you know there are characters other than steve eddie and dustin bc i rlly just talk abt them most of the time lmao

[henriiiii-1001old]

fuck it im going a lil insane for mandela catalyst,,,,,

ramblings + technical spoilers under the cut

so i was thinking like. i may be a lil biased from my au but the remaining human main characters are kinda resembling the three wise monkeys (i will explain their names that i mention at the end bc i'm a language nerd for japanese)

i personally hc evelin to become the next mandela prophet due to her being under dave's "guidance" aka working for him at mandelatech, so i think she'd start getting visions and stuff. in her case, she'd be mizaru, or see no evil. i also assigned her to mizaru because i just realized she is in the same position in the vol 4 teaser to the image of the three wise monkeys, where the first monkey is see no evil. she even went to go see adam after sarah had texted her, only believing things with her own eyes.

which leads me to the next monkey in the middle of the image, kikazaru, or hear no evil. alt thatcher was in their place on the teaser (which literally EVERYONE INCLUDING ME was real thatcher when it first came out... in which my drawing that i made before its release accidentally predicted that DFVGBHNJM), so thatcher will be the one to take this one. the fact that he's now hearing words from gabriel really sends this home for me tbh.

and finally, speak no evil. dave was originally in the place of iwazaru, or speak no evil, but since he's. well, yknow DEAD, sarah will have to take his place. mainly due to her (possibly) not being honest about adam's current state, and while i dont think she knows about the whole "he's an alt" situation, i do believe she's denying the thought that her somewhat friend would be in danger, trying to mask it as her not actually caring for him.

however, i am adding "be no evil" bc why tf not even though it's not part of the original concept, but this one DEEEFINITELY goes to adam. he's realized that he's literally technically on the side of evil (being an alt and whatnot), but he chooses not to be. he chooses to be no evil, at least from what we can see from him basically suffering in mandela catalyst.

ok now for the name explanations: mizaru is derived from the verb 見る (miru/to see) conjugated into its negative form, 見ない (minai/not see), and the literal word for monkey, さる/saru (also written as 猿). the "s" changes to a "z" due to being put next to another kanji (though this is my assumption based on what i've seen with other kanji). same happens with the other two names, kikazaru derived from from 聞く (kiku/to listen) conjugated to 聞かない (kikanai/not listen) and slapping さる and iwazaru derived from 言う (iu/to say) conjugated to 言わない (iwanai/not listen) and slapping さる. idk i just think it's so cool how the names got put together :D

the full phrase in japanese would be 見ざる聞かざる言わざる (also written as 見猿聞か猿言わ猿), which would just be all their names put together. the three wise monkeys symbolize turning a blind eye to things, with these three methods being the ways we do it.

however, in the context of tmc, seeing, hearing, and speaking no evil would not be turning a blind eye to the alternates' efforts but looking towards them to stop it.

if anyone has ANY questions i will be happy to answer to the best of my ability! :DDD

[tearsofsaudade]

https://archiveofourown.org/works/40127340

Familiar. That was Will’s first thought as he fell. The cold, the silence, the dark. He knew where he was heading. Will had been seeing the Upside Down for years, but he hadn’t been back since that first week, when everything began.

No. He had gone through hell and back to avoid that place. I won’t. He knew that he had a stronger connection to it than anyone realized, but that didn’t matter. Not right now. The only thing that mattered was that he wasn’t going back. Not ever again. Don’t touch me.

Will wakes up in the future.

(A will-centric stranger things/marvel crossover, mostly featuring tony stark, peter parker, and harley keener, and, of course, will byers.)

ch 5 now posted

[madaboutmunson]

Spoiler heavy blurb for Stranger Things 4 Vol 2.

Please do not read any further if you haven't seen the episodes

I am absolutely devastated by the episodes today, so I wrote something to comfort myself, using a character from a completely different show that I love. I mainly write this to help myself, but if it helps anyone else to today, that would be cool too 💚💚

I understand the world is going through much bigger problems right now, but my heart is broken to its very atoms. I must have cried about this sporadically through the day. Maybe sleep will help later. Honestly I never thought I'd ever feel like this about a fictional character.

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

Welcome to Paradise

"Aaaaaaaaaaaaahhhh" Eddie screamed as he seemed to fall for eternity.

He felt something slip around his body, and his feet planted firmly to the floor, "Sweetheart?" He says with tears of joy in his eyes, looking at the exquisite BC Rich Warlock slung about his person. He gently strokes the head, and along the neck of the guitar, it vibrates under his touch, "It is you! I thought..." His eyes well up, "I thought I'd never see you again" he strums the guitar lovingly, and it responds with its signature growl.

Eddie looks around....he's on stage, not just on any stage. He's in one of the most famous arenas in the world. Madison Square Garden, he'd made it.

An audible pop and a table appears. On it a hat, gown, diploma and a framed picture of him flipping the principal the bird. He chuckles to himself.

He sees his shadow grow on the floor as lights flicker behind him. It's a movie playing on the stage backdrop. It's Hellfire. Dustin, Mike and Lucas have their arms around some younger-looking kids in the cafeteria and invite them to their table.

The movie cuts to the hellfire club, but the person at the head of it repeatedly changes, cycling through each member sitting in his throne-like seat.

He feels proud, smiling, and as Dustin hits the screen, he mutters quietly, "Don't ever change."

He wipes his eyes with the back of his leather jacket.

"Hey now, no time for tears in utopia, babe", he hears from behind him.

He turns around, but no one is there, they must be in the darkness of the stalls, but he can't quite see as a spotlight beaming down onto him.

"Hello?" He says nervously, "Is someone there?" He holds his hand up to his eyes to shield them from the spotlight.

An angular face moves into the light, with wavy brown hair and a very bohemian-type outfit. They wave, keeping their distance, "Welcome to your hereafter, Eddie the Brave."

Eddie has a sudden realisation. He remembers lying on the ground, looking up at Dustin now. He smiles, but it's tinged with worry, "Some of these things...aren't real. Does that mean it's all not real?" He waves at the table and then rests his hands back on his guitar.

"Most of what you see here is your own creation, yes", The man approaches carefully, "but some of it is happening, has happened, will happen?" He says with a questioning inflexion at the end, "I'm not sure of all the technicalities. I'm still working it all out. I'm Klaus". He extends a hand to Eddie.

Eddie smirks and clasps his hand shaking it enthusiastically, "Well, you already know my name, even if you got it slightly wrong", he says, pacing in a little circle.

"Wrong?" Questions Klaus. He puts his hands on his hips, "I don't think so. Not here. I'm usually right, even though no one listens."

Eddie laughs, "You remind me of someone I know....knew...yeah knew" he finishes a little sadly, kicking at the ground.

Eddie looks at Klaus from underneath his hair, "They called me Eddie the Banished, not the Brave." He smiles a little, fond memories racing around his mind, "Are they all ok?" He asks tentatively.

Klaus gives Eddie a big grin and shakes his head, "I mean, it's not good out there, and they are all licking their wounds. Be they physical, mental or emotional. But you know...they are still there. Well, you know...after you left...they are in that time, but not now, because if now was then, I wouldn't be born yet." He puts his hand to his mouth, "I'm not even born yet."

Eddie's eyes are wide for a moment, then squinting in confusion.

Klaus reassures him with a few pats on the shoulder, "Time is weird here...well anywhere where my family is concerned...but here it doesn't behave exactly correctly."

Eddie still looks confused, "Well, I guess it isn't the craziest thing I've heard or seen this week."

Klaus smiles, "That's the spirit... talking of which, " he clicks his fingers, and two mojito cocktails appear. He takes one for himself and offers one to Eddie, which he accepts very quickly.

Klaus waves his hand at the wall, and a window appears. It's Eddie's trailer. His uncle is placing his plectrum necklace around a framed picture of Eddie and placing a gentle kiss on the image.

A second location appears to their left, a basement room. He sees a kid he doesn't know with Mike, Dustin and Lucas. They are gathered around an easel.

"No, no can you make him look more like buff," says Dustin

"I...I mean, I can..." The painter says

"Yeah, exactly, in his vest holding his guitar", Mike adds

"On a mountain of skulls!!" Lucas chimed in enthusiastically

Klaus waves Eddie around to see the painting, and Eddie grins hugely, saying, "It looks like a Dio album cover."

"It sure does," says Klaus smiling happily at Eddie, "Very Metal." Klaus throws up the devil horn metal hand sign at Eddie.

Steve races into the room with Eddie's battle vest, "This is it, Will", he offers gently and carefully, hanging it up on the wall. Robin and Nancy shortly follow in, their eyes in awe of the painting.

"Now, it's not finished yet," Will says quickly, trying to calm everyone down.

"I'm sure if anyone can make Eddie look like his true heroic self, it's Will the Wise" Dustin smiles through tears, clapping his hand on Will's back.

Klaus turns to Eddie, who has tears streaming down his face, "See, I told you...you're a hero...you'll be immortalised in art and in hearts forever as Eddie The Brave".

[ectonurites]

Dose kon have friends ousted yj / at school

Yes! Not quite as many as like Tim had (someone had asked me for a list of Tim’s civilian friends a while ago and i never finished it bc damn that boy knows a lot of ppl. i’ll get around to that one day) but he’s got at least a handful of friends from each kinda era/location of his stuff! this is not the most comprehensive guide there's def some people left out here but i'm tryina give an Overview and also there's a limit on how many images i can include

in Hawaii/that first era of his solo:

Roxy Leech who is his agent’s daughter and someone he grew to think of as his sister! 💕 One thing later canon decided to forget about is the fact that they actually do become related on a genetic level when Roxy is used as a template to re-stabilize Kon when he was dying bc of stuff the Agenda did to him

(Superboy Vol. 4 #81)

Hillary Chang & Robert Lai from the high school he went to in Hawaii (he literally went to school as Superboy this is back before he had a secret ID!)

(Superboy Vol. 4 #16)

Tana Moon who is unfortunately a whole ass adult that dated him but was a friend for a while nonetheless

(Superboy Vol. 4 #1)

The Wild Men (Howler, Growler, Gorr, and King Tuftan who’s not present in this screenshot but again i can only put in so many pictures) who are these funky guys from some abandoned Cadmus experiment that lived on an Island Kon had gotten stuck on for a while

(Superboy Vol. 4 #75)

The Ravers were a team Kon led, who went on some adventures! I am still currently reading this so I can't really speak to who his closest friends from here would be but I'd prob say Sparx since she's who got him involved in the Rave in general. She's a cool electric gal

When he joins Cadmus:

Serling Roquette the 16 year old geneticist who starts working at Cadmus around the same time Kon starts living there & Tekka the apprentice of the Guru who is super skilled with machinery

(Superboy Vol. 4 #76)

Guardian (Jim Harper) who works at Cadmus and becomes pretty close with Kon! Jim helps Kon train when he looses his powers and then at a point where Jim dies and gets reborn as a baby Kon goes total parent mode and protects him it's adorable (that is mainly in Superboy #88 for anyone curious)

(Superboy Vol. 4 #82)

When he briefly lives in Metropolis:

Trixie, a girl from the Slaughterhouse Six who decided to turn her life around after meeting Kon

(Superboy Vol. 4 #100)

Cooper who initially was a bad guy pretending to be Kon’s friend to take him down and get revenge but in the end changed his ways (but unfortunately died in Kon’s arms after saving a bunch of people)

(Superboy Vol. 4 #97)

When he lives in Smallville:

Lori Luthor, Conner’s kinda cousin on the Luthor side who Kon saves a few times

Simon Valentine, a kid from school Kon becomes close to who likes to experiment with frogs

Sujan Mehra aka Psionic Lad who is a hero from the future that comes back for Reasons

(Superboy Vol. 5 #11)

[vicsdeangelis]

Its funny to me that anon said the new tour vlog reminded them why they like the band so much bc for me it left a bittersweet aftertaste. Måneskin wasn't a band I got into because I saw a video titled "Måneskin funny moments part 4" I got into them bc I fucking loved Teatro d'ira vol 1. It made me excited about modern rock music in a way I have never been bc it's just THAT GOOD. Watching the vlog reminded me of my 1d & 5sos days bc looking back on it, i liked those band mainly for their personalities and looks, less for their music. not that those bands music isn't good (i will dance to and sing those songs so loudly with no shame) but like,,, They Dont Know About Us & Heartbreak Girl aren't the greatest songs of their generation djdjdjsk

And for me, Må's off stage personalities that they present to the public are just bonuses. Idk if that makes sense, if you get what I'm trying to say but likejehdkdbdkdndk idk it was just like, oh we're here again.

it's that bittersweet aftertaste that i'm scared of, tbh. and you're not the only one i've seen saying they felt this way

i also got into them because of their music (tho what made me check their music out in the first place was that photo of damiano with his leg up at the winners conference, you know the one, so his personality led me down the music path, in a way), and yeah, their dynamic is a bonus

maybe for me it will be like remembering why i like them. maybe it will leave a bad taste in my mouth due to recent stuff. i don't know and i'm not that eager to find out

but maybe i'll watch it this weekend

[caatws]

Hi there! I have just seen gotg vol 3 and stumbled upon your blog and a few of your comments about Gamora and Nebula. I am enjoying reading your thoughts so much! I have been feeling like I'm in a pretty lonely minority because I went to see vol 3 spoiler free with an open mind and walked out more disappointed than I was expecting. Mainly because of the female character side of things. Gamora and Nebula's relationship has been a constant thread from vol 1 thru EG and vol 3 had the most amount of material to work with and yet vol 3 has the least amount of focus on their relationship out of all the movies. I have felt similarly about Mantis too. She spent 4 years with Gamora and having a certain vibe on the team. I was expecting at least some exploration of what a huge shift change Gamora being gone would bring. Or even being someone Nebula could confide in. But generally the women's relationships seemed to get shortchanged in ways that weren't a problem before from what I remember.

I admit I don't keep up with the entire MCU so maybe lack of female dynamics is an ongoing problem. I just didn't expect it from gotg with the set up they had coming from vol 2 and EG. At the end I was kind of sad to see Mantis going off on her own, Nebula staying on Knowhere and Gamora going back to the male dominated ravagers. I wanted all three of them to go on a road trip or something. Or even have Gamora stay on Knowhere to get to bond with her sister more. I don't want to come across as being pessimistic about the whole movie. It really wasn't bad. It's just vol 2 and EG seemed to be building up to an even more inclusive female character story with 3 women on the team getting to become closer and that didn't really happen. I'm actually kind of frustrated Gamora and Nebula didn't get to spend much time being guardians together. That seemed like the direction they were headed in and very important for both of them.

That said I'm going to go read your Gamora and Natasha fic! I'm glad to see someone playing with ideas for them and their sisters. I think they could have had some interesting interactions on screen if given the chance.

aw thank you anon! i hope you enjoyed the fic hehe 🫶🏼 your ask made me think of a lot of different things that i wanted to talk about so sorry in advance for the long response 😭

but yeah i totally agree with you! the shift in focus away from gamora and nebula's relationship in vol 3 was kinda sad for me too, esp bc i don't think that vol 1 thru eg rly fully resolved their storyline at any point? like it was clear that gamora and nebula grew closer in the 4 years between vol 2 and iw, but we didn't rly get to see much of that beyond gamora and nebula's reactions to each other being in danger or killed. like the trauma from that hello???

i must say though, i think nebula's overall arc from vol 1 all the way to now has shocked me the most, in a good way. i never would've thought nebula would've gotten the focus and chances to be central to the narrative in the ways she has in her appearances—in fact, i was afraid she was gonna be killed off in iw to "resolve" her arc, so to see that at least she got to live beyond that and find a home within the gotg even without her sister is actually pretty fucking awesome and i love it.

and with mantis in general, i feel like there was more i wanted for her too! in addition to more of her relationships with gamora and nebula (though it was fun watching mantis and nebula yell at each other at times but also </3 it's brutal out here being a mantis/nebula shipper), i feel like canon rly underutilized her being peter's bio sister after the holiday special made it canon. if mantis had to leave the team at the end of vol 3, i almost wish she just went with peter, not just to support him but also so they could continue getting to know each other better as brother and sister, especially since peter seemed so happy to find out mantis was his sister in the holiday special!

now i'm just going beyond what your ask was about specifically haha but i think in general, i don't usually love endings where the main cast of characters has to split up, unless it feels necessary or earned by the narrative. i feel like an example of this type of ending done well was the end of my little pony: friendship is magic where, after 9 seasons, the protagonist has to move onto a completely different job/lifestyle and break away from the friend group, but the finale is entirely focused on the emotional fallout of that and shows how the group also makes an effort to stay in touch regularly so that we know they aren't split up for good.

with gotg, i think this ending would've worked better if it had been built up more from the beginning of the film—maybe i missed some foreshadowing since i only watched once, but sowing some seeds of Wanting To Leave Or Retire within some of the characters in the first act (an example of this sorta happening was mantis talking to peter about his grandpa)—and if it felt like we'd gotten more time with these characters.

like, bc vol 1 and 2 take place within months of each other, and then 4 years passed off screen between vol 2 and iw, and then 5 years passed off screen for rocket and nebula in eg, and then another 2 years passed off screen between eg and the holiday special/vol 3, it feels like we only got the core gotg together for like, a few months tops lol. and then to go from that straight to their finale where they split up 10 YEARS LATER is just crazyyyy

[that-thing-that-feeling]

I loved it but there are some massive plot holes, I hope they’ll be explained in vol 2.

I’m v surprised I liked it too, mainly bc even though I thought there were big flaws in pacing and it being over crammed, & some choices made (I could go into that lol); I really liked El’s plot and ep 4 and ep 7, and Nancy and the Hawkins plot (Ronance and the Core group). And while Cali needed way more time, I liked some of what was there (minus Suzie’s fam lol).

But let’s go over the plot holes—which stood out to you? I’ll put some that stuck out for me behind the cut for now bc of the big spoiler (which I thought/hoped would be true):

One that stuck out to me involved the UD—would the murder sites be in the past UD which is supposedly frozen on Nov 6, 1983? (Edit: actually that makes sense with gates ig.) I also tech thought Nancy’s room was frozen with things that wouldn’t be from when El opened the gate.

But the main one is we know that gates were opened earlier, so why didn’t it freeze then? Like shouldn’t the UD have frozen in 1979 in the lab massacre, at least?

Also with Henry Creel being 001 (a plot twist I always thought made sense so was happy was accurate lol), they didn’t give enough explanation abt how he assumed powers and how it connects to the MF? They’re basically (in that killer monologue from JCB—I loved his performance!) like: oh yeah I loved predatory spiders and hated rules. It’s like okay, lol, but how did he as a kid get the power to kill his fam and raise their memories like that? Like if Vecna is the MF’s “five star general,” is that connection only forged after Peter/Henry/001 is sent into the UD by El? I was also still surprised he works for the MF instead of the other way around, but that makes sense based on how long the UD has existed.

I also still want more of an explanation of how the mindscape works within the UD (Nancy getting pulled into it from the UD was alarming). Ig this goes back to how Henry developed his mindscape powers.

And not as a plot hole, but I’m super curious why Nancy was given access to Creel history and also how they’ll get her out of the trance—music? A big cliffhanger for her.

I did also find it satisfying to have vecna’s motives for killing (to open holes), but don’t get why he’d suddenly start to enact that plan.