#meg makes bad memes

[feyhunter78]

Slight spoiler for part 2 of Think I’m Gonna Call it Off in the form of a meme:

Cregan Stark at the door listening to his soon to be wife dump a literal Prince of the realm:

[lord-squiggletits]

Something I keep seeing when I speak to others about MTMTE Megatron is basically the idea that he's going on a personal journey to become a better person, that the point isn't for him to be "redeemed" but for him to get a chance to do good and die as a person he can live with again. That MTMTE presents a unique take on this because being away from Cybertron gives Megatron a chance to be a person rather than a political figure and this is how it gives him more depth as a character. Or just generally pointing out in a narrative sense that Megatron being in MTMTE limits his story options so of course his story is going to be more focused on a personal journey than on politics of him dealing with the Decepticons/Earth/etc and that just because JRO made a choice to take that path with Megatron doesn't mean that it's inherently bad.

And I'm just, mmm like I understand all of those points and acknowledge that they all contributed to the MTMTE Megatron we got. I even think that without JRO writing Megatron we wouldn't have had his lore be as fleshed out and 3D as it ended up becoming.

(Post starts out as a sort of meta analysis or at least me giving a reasoned explanation for my interpretation of the story, ends up being petty bitching in the last 1-2 paragraphs)

I just..... I just personally don't agree with the "he's becoming a better person by getting a chance to relax and experience happiness and trust after a life of trauma" as being the best choice for his character? Because the problem is that maybe if he were a random Decepticon foot soldier that would be appropriate, but he was literally the leader of the Decepticons that made them Like That and has political/cultural/societal responsibility for why things are the way they are? To be completely frank, I don't care about him going on a personal journey for self-peace, I think that he should become a better person by helping to un-fuck all the things he actually screwed up???

Like idc about the debate of whether he can be "redeemed" or if he should've been killed/imprisoned/etc at the ending. It just comes down to the fact that for me personally, I feel that since Megatron's wrongdoings were at a social level, him "being a better person" would've been better shown by him engaging with those people who he wronged instead of just going on a frigging personal journey for his legacy and self-peace???

Especially since in other series (exRID, possibly Windblade) we literally got plots like "the neutrals hate Autobots but they hate Decepticons even more" and "the Decepticons have been taken over by Galvatron and are now invading earth 2 electric boogaloo" and "yeah the Decepticons are literally living in slums because people hate them so much and won't give them any work." It just leaves me wondering why in the hell people are like, "oh Megatron got to be happy and have a chance to be a normal person." I don't want him to be normal! I want him to repay his debts to the people he actually wronged! Like if you want to cast Megatron as a hero of the people so badly (which so many of his stans do as if he actually cared about the Cons) then how do you reconcile the fact that Megatron just fucked off and left the Decepticons to suffer on Cybertron? Including some of them attacking during his trial and getting killed and Megatron is basically like "sorry, I'm not coming with you and this isn't going to work." And then Megatron complains about "toxic Decepticon loyalty" as if he didn't literally make them that way? Like I get that MTMTE Megatron is still an asshole but if you've read something besides MTMTE and know what the Decepticons are going through, it just ends up being really grating.

I just don't see Megatron as being a particularly good hero or having a particularly fulfilling story if he's completely isolated from all the bad things he did on Cybertron/the way the Decepticons are suffering until LL#25 where it's like "ah damn I'm going to trial now, well this is what I deserve so it's fine." Why could we not have seen something like Megatron trying to deradicalize the Decepticons or change their public image so they could integrate into normal Cybertron again? They were living in SLUMS and getting gunned down by Starscream's badgeless enforcers!

The best we got was the Functionist Universe but like.... I'm sorry, but JRO inventing a whole alternate universe for Megatron to save doesn't do jack shit to save or fix the people he left behind in this one. It was especially grating to read because JRO literally wrote in someone saying "you saved billions of lives from the Functionists" as if he was trying really hard to show how good Megatron is because he saved people (and also if not for Megatron existing Cybertron would be even worse and half of your faves would be enslaved or dead, also the Functionist Council was going to genocide organics too so technically they're WORSE than Megatron since they hate organics AND want to enslave their own race).

I read Barber's, JRO's, and MScott's series concurrently using the omnibus + a release order list for phase 3, and after all that I'm kind of puzzled why the fandom seems to ardently love MTMTE Megatron and think he's so well written but then also shit on Optimus for things that he did during the same points in the story? Because, and I know this is a blazing hot take, I honestly think that Optimus makes a better hero of his story than Megatron does for his, and Optimus' personal journey combines his personal and political identities into a narrative that's a lot more gruelling and questioning of his goodness than we got for Megatron in MTMTE. Which is fucking saying something considering Megatron committed crimes against sapient species and Optimus is the guy who tried to stop him from doing that and has always been pro-equal rights for all beings. But people pretty much just cherrypick things like Optimus annexing Earth or beating up Prowl and go "he's bad" and I'm like no??? IDW OP isn't a bad person or a bad character??? It's just that unlike MTMTE Megatron he's placed in a narrative that actually suits the nature of his actions and has themes that match. To the point that IMO sometimes Barber's narrative shits on Optimus excessively or paints him mainly in the most unflattering ways.

But like. It's just funny to me because Optimus spent his entire part of the story doing things like trying to stop Earth from being invaded/colonized yet again. Grappling with his identity as Prime and dealing with the fact that people literally worship him vs. the fact that his upbringing made him see the Primacy as nothing more than a facade of authority/leadership. Having people get mad at him for prioritizing politics over friendship/relationships with other people. Even getting shit on for being a cop a decent amount so people can STFU about IDW OP being "copaganda" or "not held responsible for his actions". The problems that Optimus dealt with were personal because they had to do with his self-doubt, culpability for the war as a leader of one of the armies, distance from his soldiers, etc. But all of these are also POLITICAL struggles. Because Optimus gave up on the chance to just be a normal person having personal struggles when he chose to become a LEADER, which also means that he's held to extremely high standards that he regularly fails at in the eyes of others.

That's why, to me, MTMTE Megatron falls flat in comparison and really as a "hero" or heel-face character in general? Because he also made a decision to be a leader, and IMO once you do things like become the commander of an army and start your own galactic empire, you lose the right to prioritize your personal problems and instead are obligated by the power you've chosen to wield to focus on your POLITICAL problems. If Megatron's power, influence, and crimes are of a social-political nature, then his heel-face turn arc and ways of showing that he's a better person/helping to heal what little damage he possibly can should have been shown with actions that help on a social-political LEVEL. That's why I'm not particularly impressed with his character arc and feel as if it was overhyped by other people in this fandom: sure, the extra character depth and emotion is nice, but I'm not really going to see him as extraordinary or even particularly good when the extent of him "becoming a better person" happens entirely on a random road trip to fuck-off nowhere. Especially not when the ending of LL tried to sell me a "they lived happily ever after" ending while basically leaving the freaking MUTINY as just Rodimus going "oh it's okay you're forgiven, we're all together again" and I guess everyone was fine with Megatron and wanted to spend an eternity on a ship with him just because Getaway died.

This is why I like (the concept/themes of) exRID/OP and the way Optimus' character arc was handled a lot more. Because for Optimus, the personal and the political were as one. He was held accountable for his actions towards others and the disruptive effects they had on a social level, sometimes to a ridiculous extent (the fucking "oh Megatron is an Autobot so now that makes the Autobots colonizers" plot and that stupid colonist screaming about how Optimus is "literally fascist" my beloathed). Even his very personal issues like his relationship with Zeta were still cast in a wider lens of, yeah this is a personal struggle that Orion faced, but he was still part of a Society TM and his actions were sometimes ill-informed or harmful to others. Even if I had a lot of problems with the way Optimus' story was written by Barber (plot holes, little meaningful character interaction, forced conflicts), at least the BASELINE of it was way better than Megatron's in MTMTE. Especially since Optimus' struggle was explictly about things like struggling with responsibility and how he feels he HAS to intervene in political affairs because has to save people/make up for his past mistakes. That's something that a good leader/good person actually does, so I found Optimus to be a better hero (even if his actions weren't all "good") because he was trying to be a good person by actually getting involved with Cybertron/Earth and subjecting himself to something he hates (leadership, war) and dealing with a shitload of criticism instead of just going on a fuckin "personal journey" lksdlkfsd.

Which just makes me extra salty that people hold up MTMTE Megatron as the pinnacle of Megatrons and literally the best Transformers writing evar! while turning up their nose and ignoring or outright despising IDW Optimus. Like okay. I guess since Megatron got handled with silk gloves on while Optimus got put through the wringer of being shit on by every other person in the story, it's easier for you to pretend that Megatron is a poor uwu boy who just needs friendship and love while Optimus is literally the worst bastard to ever exist. Or maybe it's just that since Optimus' story involves him sometimes fucking up, being criticized, or making things worse, that makes him morally bad. As opposed to Megatron who disrupted a lot of other characters' stories in MTMTE, had to have an entire alternate universe invented so that he could "save lives," and got to sail off on a quantum Lost Light happily ever after, so since he's happy and the story says he saved people that means he's a good hero.

[yooniesim]

So, I may be a day late, but I still want to make a little post for Simblr Gratitude Day 💜

To start off, my memory is pretty bad, so I just know I'm gonna miss tagging people... and honestly, there's way more people on here I'm grateful for than tumblr's limit of 50! So I'm starting out addressing everyone.

To everybody that likes or reblogs my posts, sends comments or asks, shares their sims with me, or uses my cc: I love you. Yes, you! I may be bad at answering back sometimes, but I cherish every interaction I get- a lot of the times they have me kicking my feet and giggling, or sometimes I'm barking and scaring my cat. Asks really make my day and even when I don't reply so fast, they warm my heart. Asks I've gotten on here have genuinely helped me in my dark times, and renewed my faith in this community as a whole, because some of you are just so freaking amazing and kind. Especially now with everything I've been going through, sims and being here has remained a comfort for me because of you all. Even if there's speed bumps from time to time, I truly believe there's more good here than bad, and y'all should be proud of yourselves and your capacity for endless kindness. Thank you!

Now, I'm going to address a few specific precious people I'm grateful for.

@wastelandwhisperer - Moon, my precious mom friend, I adore you. The joy, comfort, and hilarious memories you give me can't be understated. You deserve all the love and light in the world.

@neverheresims - God's eepiest soldier, what would I do without you? Thank you for always being genuine, reliable, and a true friend.

Vi - Thank you my sheriff, my paggro detector, my master of copypastas, my right hand catboy. Even though you're untraceable, I couldn't leave you out. I love you!

@divinedionym - Thanks for always being straight with me and taking NO shit. I truly admire you and your attitude, friend.

@dyoreos - We may not both be active at the same time anymore, but I still think of you, friend! You've always had my back and I'll always have yours.

@nucrests - I'm so grateful to be your friend, and every time you share your beautiful content and gorgeous sims with me, it really makes my day. I adore you.

@cinamun - You probably don't know this, but in certain times when I was feeling low, your comments and kindness really lifted my spirits and made me feel like I belong. You're a lovely person and deserve all the love you receive, friend.

@woosteru - You won't see this bc you're retired so I can be sappy as I want, so there!!! I adore you, your sweet personality, and your sense of humor that matches just right with mine. (Nobody tell them)

@superflare - Lulu, you're an incredibly creative and intelligent person. I can tell you're going to go far in life and do great for the world. Be proud of yourself, always!

@fiftymilehighclub - Thank you for always being yourself, Manda! You're such a hardworking person that's kind but firm with your opinions and what matters to you. You're amazing.

@nicatnite88 - Tay, you're someone that's always empathetic, understanding and kind, yet hilarious at the same time. I look up to you as a person and admire your skills as a parent.

@pluto-sims - What do I say about Eli? Despite being unfortunately bri*ish, you've exceeded expectations in all other areas as a friend. I genuinely appreciate your presence and kindness in my life.

@bloody-soda - As one of my longest and dearest mutuals, peachy, my love for you can't be understated! I think of you whenever I see cute meme pics lol and you're so lovely as a person.

@wubblesgonefishin - Beautiful wubs, you're such a wonderful person with so much love to give! My day brightens every time I speak with you and I'm so glad you're back.

@toastie-sim - Meg! One of my few brain cells, I don't know what I'd do without you! You're so helpful all the time and unbelievably patient. I appreciate you.

...Phewph. Now that that's o- wait. You thought I was done??? Nuh uh, the king of long ass texts posts is not done that fast. Here's some more beautiful people I'm grateful for and love seeing grace my dash 💜

@simandy @void-imp @therichantsim @adelarsims @marsosims @shysimblr @1-800-cuupid @xldkx @xiuminuwu @hexcodesims @cassymblr @lotusplum @rebelangelsims @denzellion @strawberrylattesims @anachrosims @cowplant-snacks @fierce-trait @simanin @ghostwoohoo @llama-head @aghilasims @janjumjam @jellyfish-tea @bbdoll @puppycheesecake @mwvwv-sims

[scribe-of-hael]

What would happen if ES Optimus and Megatron ended up in the Transformers Prime AU?

What are the TFP characters reaction to a seemingly nicer Megatron?

In reality ES are pretty small since they kind align with g1 size! Its not their fault tfp are stupidly big. Tfp megs i believe is like 30ft tall, KO is about 21ft in comparison. But for their sake I'll bump them up to a tfp kinda height xD we grow during dimensional travel for science reasons.

ofc Tfp Optimus knows somthing up cause they are there and takes them back depsite knowing that one is a Megatron but clearly isn't his megs.

who's sus? Rachet sus ,because rachet is rachet and that is what he do lol the prime team are weary of Megs. But it comes very clear that this Megs isn't at all like theirs. Its kinda wierd for them to talk to him but God is ot nice to have a Megatron who's not trying to kill you. I think Arcee and Racehet are sus and weary. Which Meg i think would understand he's had to deal with this hesitation by others bots for a while of think.

How do I think the bots would be less inclined to avoid ES megs. The kids ofc! And megs knows how to talk to the kids and has some good practice with Moe and Robbie. He's acutally happy the kids (looking at Ralph and Miko , and eventually Jack) come to talk to him.

Seeing his gentle nature alrund the kids when their megs wouldn't even think twice about crushing them sets everyone at Ease.

Miko is fighting for a ride in his alt mode , she's so exicted. I think its adorable.

Bee , arcee , Bulkhead and yes you too raceht come around to Megs a bit.

Optimus is already very happy to see that yes, a megs can change. And he enjoys tlaking to him and the other op.

oh God I'm now seeing that tfp seeing megs might just fuel his thoughts of "My Megatron can change, I can help him change!" No sweetheart you can't and both ES megs and op agree that their megs is CRAZY.

don't let THE MEGS. MEET. PERIOD. DO NOT. it would such an epic fight let's be real. ES megs is just utterly disgusted that this who who he is here. Who he probably could have become the damage he caused. It makes Megs angery.

Though tfp megs is also disgusted that ES would change, give up the war and join Optimus of all people. The shame ES megs feels seeing Starscream get basically beat up by Megs. (Oof megs maybe you should properly apologize to your star because YEAH IT DOENST LOOK GREAT FROM THE OUSTIDE DOES IT?)

But when comes to TFP op, its a bit harder. Cause ofc tfp op is light hearted here and there but he's a very serious individual, he very much a noble leader and we don't get to many light hearted moments because of how serious the situation is in prime. But ES is extremely more light hearted, dare I say goofy, he's an old man/dad. Some of ES jokes go over tfp head but its ok. He gentle explains and TFP learns lol

See the difference in personality is one scene.

"Hey Optimus wanna see somthing funny?"

Tfp: No (being honest and not trying to be hurtful he just don't wanna that ok, but he seriosu )

ES: Oooo! Of course ! Is it the monkey video? I love that one ! (Interested, indulges even if he may not understand, he wants to see funny meme)

Optimus is having a fun time seeing different versions of himself while Megs is reminds ...right...I'm still bad most of the time in other universes and I still have alot to work on.

[duckapus]

Curtain Call

So the fight against Showtime at the top of the tower isn't exactly going well given how powerful she is, but thanks to the war down on the ground the tides are about to turn, because a stray barrage of Missile Megs from Bowser misses Metal Overlord and hits the tower about halfway up instead, doing enough damage to make everything above start to fall. Everybody realizes that their only chance of maybe surviving is to jump out the window, and, well, Kamek and Cubot are the only ones who can fly and they're obviously not strong enough to carry everyone else, so all they can really do is hope for a miracle (or at least for Meme Energy to decide it'd be funnier for them to survive the fall).

And with a roar and a call of "YYYYEEEHHHHHAAAWWW!" a miracle does arrive, as they all land on something mostly solid far higher up than they expected.

"Need a lift, piss-ants?"

"Anti-Shroomy!?" The 4 then looks down at what exactly their savior rode in on, "you tamed Draco Piranha!?"

"Yep! Turns out he's not so bad once you show him who's boss."

It's at that point that Showtime reminds us that she can just ignore gravity, and she starts throwing attacks at them, prompting a chase down towards the ground.

...okay, I'll level with you, I've got a few small scenes figured out for all this but not a coherent story to stitch them together, and at this point I just want this done so bear with me. Eventually the fight reaches the ground, the group is still on the back foot, the chaos of the battle raging around them is messing with both sides, at some point Ice Melony and Mecha Desmond show up while fighting each other and Showtime gets caught in their crossfire and blasted elsewhere on the battlefield and the main group (plus the rest of the converted crew members who've managed to come over to either help or attack depending on which conversion they have).

At this point Metal Overlord seemingly manages to overpower Castle Bowser and tries to merge with him to become even more powerful...but it takes a lot more willpower than Metal has to overwrite Bowser's, so instead we get Heavy Metal Bowser.

(not my best work or even colored in but this is what you get. junior for scale)

The good new is that now the Robot converted characters are now under Bowser's control and helping the good guys. The bad news is that Showtime had a front row seat for this.

"Well now, there's an idea." she looks over the battlefield and spies a certain royal Siren fending off a frozen king and his army almost single-handedly, and in an outfit that's almost just her style to boot, "Jackpot."

She flies over, sending out a wave of energy that knocks away everyone besides Old King Winter and Sonata. Sonata levels her trident at the newcomer, "Your energy...you're the source of all this madness, aren't you."

She laughs haughtily, "Clever as always, kiddo. Now, both of you hold still." she raises her arms towards the two and they begin to feel something being torn out of them as painfully as possible.

Streams of colored energy pour out of them and into Showtime, gradually causing all three to glow. eventually it gets so bright that they can't be seen at all, and when it dies down only one titanic figure remains.

"Alright! Goodby Queen Cutie and he-llo Empress Sexy~!"

"Two down, five to go. Now, where's the mushroom girl?" She flies off towards Toadstool Tangle.

Meanwhile, the Ice and Undersea converted people start to undergo some rather horrific transformations, with Creep growing out of them at all angles. 4 unfortunately gets a front-row seat when it happens to 3. This continues with the Mushroom conversions (so really just Draco Piranha and the Tangle itself), then the Muppets and soon after the ghosts, and finally everyone gets to witness the battle between Heavy Metal Bowser and an even more powerful version of Fusion Showtime with features added from the other three trigger characters (I unfortunately did not draw the later Fusion Showtime stages. I might in the future but for now you'll just have to use your imaginations). It's a close match, but eventually even Bowser falls, and Wonder Showtime is born while the Group stands alone once again.

It seems as though all hope is lost, especially since most of them quickly get pinned down by the horribly mutated versions of literally everyone, but 4 gets an idea, "Wait, we still have the seeds, right?"

Mario manages to yeet Luigi away and pulls out a few of their collected Wonder Seeds, "Yeah, but they don't exactly do anything besides sit in your inventory."

"Not on their own, but they're part of a meme, right? And they're a new enough one that they've got way more Meme Energy than most things at that scale. Maybe I can turn them into something we can actually use!"

Meggy looks over from where she's trying to get what might be Saiko and Tari off of Ferb, "Can you even get a meme to that kind of power on your own?"

"..." he looks to a particular section of the battlefield, eyes full of determination, "No, No I can't." he runs in the direction he was looking, tackling the mutated Admiral 3 to the ground and pulling a tentacle that used to be an arm into a death grip.

"SMG4, what are you doing!?"

"My...job!" he's assaulted by the all-too-familiar sensation of the Creep burrowing into his body, his brain, along with the horrible memories that come with it, but he holds firm, "3, if there's anything left in there that can hear me, I need you!"

There's a long few seconds where 4 can't help but think he's just thrown his life away for nothing before the seven Wonder Seeds rise up and start to morph into raw Meme Energy spheres, "work...fast...ba...ka"

The two work in tandem to merge the energy into a single sphere, which then transforms into...

A Wonder Flower. Because what else could it possibly be? This one has the strange grey-with-yellow-accents color scheme of the Special World wonder flowers.

"You've got-erhf-one shot! Make it...count!"

Whoever's left of the group nods in understanding and rushes towards the flower in the hopes of reaching it before one of the mutants, and two hands grab its petals at the same time, one gloved, the other not...and something unexpected happens.

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

YsOwUiRnEgAyKoIuDrYaOrUmRsEfArSoQmUsIiDdYeOtUoRsEiAdKeIcDoYmOeUoRnEiAtSsQtUiImDeYtOoUgRoE-

wYoAoHmOyOwYoAoHmOyOwYoAoHmOyOwYoAoHmOyO-

waitifyourehereandimherethenwhosflyingthepingaswhatthehellamwetalkingabout

A single figure sits on a rooftop, looking out at the sun setting over a city that no longer exists.

They are alone.

They are together.

A living monument to a bond forged in Ink and Fire.

An experience made flesh.

The moment seems to stretch on forever, as they revel in simply Being...

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

But when they open their eyes, not even a second has passed.

"Holy shit."

They look down at the awestruck face (or, well, eyes) of Marcy, discovering that they're now significantly taller than either of them were before.

"I knew something crazy would happen but this..."

They grin, "I know, right? I...we?...Yeah, I feel amazing! Like I could do anything! Like-"

The earth shakes, and they look up to find that Showtime's definitely noticed the commotion, "-Liiike I'm wasting time. Let's-a go!"

They run towards the titanic villain, soon discovering that their fusion was only part of the Wonder Effect as an obstacle course of combined Super Mario and Splatoon elements springs up around them, forming a path up to their target. Obviously Showtime doesn't just sit and wait for them, attacking with everything she's got, but they tackle any challenge that comes their way with a combination of Meggy's athletics and skill and Mario's platforming prowess and Avatar powers, as well as some of the greatest reoccurring memes of both (of particular note is when they weaponize Meggy's poor cooking skills to turn an oven they found into a rocket to help them reach a higher level).

Soon enough, they reach the top of what's left of the Tower, nearly at eye level with Wonder Showtime. She leers down at them.

"And just what are you supposed to be, you little freak?"

"It's-a me, Marggy, and I'm not 'supposed' to be anything. But as long as we're both here, I guess I'll be the one to take you down."

She laughs at this, then gives them a sharklike grin, "Real cute, kids. But it's gonna take a lot more than two midgets in a trenchcoat to beat a goddess."

Marggy shrugs, "I dunno, eight on two seems like pretty good odds to me."

More laughter as she brings up her ice-covered arm, "Okay, okay. Now you die."

A blast of ice the width of an ocean liner barrels towards them, but rather than show any fear they simply activate a certain something they grabbed on their way up here: a Killer Wail Canned Special.

"NIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIINTENDOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!"

The beam of sound and ink cuts through the ice magic like it's nothing, badly cracking the ice arm and, after she moves it out of the way in pain, continuing on to blast a hole in the eye on her chest. They waste no time after that, continuing along the Wonder Effect's path towards the prone titan.

She can tell what they're doing, but at her size with her injuries doesn't have the speed or strength to get away in time. Instead, she directs every last one of her mutated minions, Creep tentacles, shadow arms, and whatever else she can muster at them, "JUST DIE ALREADY!!!"

Marggy continues to be able to outrun and outfight everything thrown at them, eventually diving into the hole they made and finding themselves in a massive chamber made of creep. And right in front of them is a face they've been hoping to see all day.

She's beat up, covered in Creep, her dress ripped to shreds and crown nowhere to be seen, and just barely conscious, but when she looks up at them her eyes are as bright as ever, and she doesn't look the least bit surprised to see them, "Hey honey. How was your trip?"

The bravado Marggy's been keeping up crumbles away, and they start to tear up, "Mom..." They run towards her, pulling her into a hug as best they can given her bindings.

They stay that way for a short while, then it's back to business, "Okay, Let's finish this." they look around the room, which seems to be slowly becoming active, for some kind of weak point, eventually spotting yet another massive eye directly above Emulator, "That looks about right."

They pull out Mario's Code Bow, which apparently merged with Meggy's Splattershot so become a futuristic Tri-Stringer, and aim it up at the eye. It's at this point that Showtime starts fighting back again, lashing out from the walls with more tendrils, but it's too late, and an inky, binary-covered arrow flies straight and true clean through the eye's pupil, and the entire room becomes enveloped in blinding blue light as Showtime screams in agony.

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

Back outside, Showtime's outer shell is glowing just as much as the rest of her, and a shockwave of Wonder Power blasts out from her, destroying any Creep it touches and transforming the Mushroom Kingdom and its people back into their original selves. Everyone present begins to celebrate the fact that it's finally, finally over.

In the meantime, the Crew and the airship group all do their best to get their bearings and start heading towards the now rapidly shrinking glow. Which, of course, leads them right back to the old castle grounds.

Before anyone gets there, a small shape falls out of the sky and lands with a comical squeaky toy sound in the grass, standing up to reveal that it's Old Man Hobo back to his usual self "Does anyone know where I li-"

*WHAM*

Suddenly, Bowser crashes shell-first on top of him, clutching Lily to his chest. When the trigger characters had reformed up in the air, he'd made sure to grab onto her so he could break her fall. Giant superpowered turtles can handle falling from the sky, human children usually can't.

Next to land is Kermit, who hits the ground with a splat before immediately standing up, "Well. That was traumatic. Goodbye everyone, don't bother inviting me to the next arc." With that, he walks off with that G-Mod "Move doll up and down" walk that most characters use.

Peach, Floyd and Metal Sonic can all just float down, so they do so.

And finally, there's Marggy and Emulator, who use the last of the Wonder Flower's power to gently touch down right on the moat bridge, with her leaning on them once they're on solid ground and gravity takes effect.

After this there'd probably be an actual reunion scene and maybe an epilogue (plus the scene about Showtime's fate that I detailed in this post) but I am done with this arc. Duck is out, peace!

[sparklyop]

I WAS DRAWING THIS AT NIGHT

brought some meme drawings of tfp. Maybe I'll make Megs and other bad guys :D

(I LOVE THE WAY I DREW OP HAHAHA)

[yournightowl]

Your NightOwl #049

You would think that there was a big shift in how people talked about "medications not prescribed to you by your doctor" after the big decriminalization push.

You would think.⸜( ´ ꒳ ` )⸝

But that's not what i see, looking over the records. There's a little bump on the heart monitor, yeah. For a while after the Big Bill passed in 61, there was definitely an uptick in memes about it.

But people got used to the new paradigm pretty fast. All the anger they used to direct towards big government or the cops over who was telling them what they could or couldn't put in their bodies (´ ε´ )-

That all got redirected to their insurance companies, telling them what they could or couldn't expect help paying for. ヾ(ヘ´)ﾉﾞ Insurance is designed to suit peoples needs- the need for a car, or a house, or to not die waiting for a space in the emergency room. Recreational drugs are just that- recreational. Not needed.

So good luck getting the megs to lend you so much as a nickel.(￣▽￣*)ゞ (A nickel is 0.05 USD, not adjusted for inflation. If you think that's bad, look up what a Penny is (￢_￢;))

But insurance is just one half of the deal; the other part's getting your doctor to sign on. People who were used to just being able to pay a dealer for what they want had to learn how to convince their doctor that what they wanted was valid. o(TヘTo) And not everyone's gonna be good at making that argument.

People hate megs, and hate insurance companies especially- but they're faceless to a fault. You communicate with them through messages and phonelines and arbitration that feels damn near litigation. Your doctor? That's just a person. Someone who at some point has to meet face to face with you, usually twice a year, and put a stethoscope on your chest. A mere person like that is easy to take your frustrations out on.

(ノ°益°)ノ If you swing your fist, you might actually hit them.

Fortunately for us all, doctor-patient-confidentiality rarely comes to blows (ha-ha) Because wherever there's a gap in the open market You can count on the black market to step in (￢‿￢ )

So nowadays, unless your drug of choice was invented in a lab last week, you probably don't have to worry about getting arrested over it But you do have to worry about some pharmaceutical meg hiring a security firm to push out your supplier For cutting into their territory ┬┴┬┴┤(･_├┬┴┬┴

micro-dosing on perspective, your nightowl

[hugsqueeze]

Hi hi Jesse!! I hope all is well and that your day is going amazingly 🥰✨️ I was just wondering-- who is the blue bunny critter in your OC meme? Their design is so so cute and I'd love to know more about them if you have any spare facts to share!! 💕

EEEK HIIIII MEG!!!!!!! :DDDD <33333 💕💕💕💕💗💖💖 HELLO HELLO!!!! THANK U SO SO MUCH FOR ASKING, I always love talking about my OCs!!!!! :9 And I'm super happy that he caught your eye!!!! 💕💕‼️‼️‼️ I'd be more than happy to give you more info about him.....

THE BLUE BUNNY CRITTER is BLINKER!!!!! My wonderful Blinker...... He is actually just a regular guy in a BUNNY COSTUME funnily enough HAHA!!! His actual name is Pascal Howell! And Blinker is the name of the character he plays, which is strangely ironic in an intentionally cruel way 🙁 Because he can't see. Not just that he can't see out of his costume but he literally has no eyes. I FEEL BAD BECAUSE YOU SAID HE HAS A CUTE DESIGN BUT . His circumstances are 😭😭😭 contrastingly horrific ACK!!!

He's a performer at an extremely unethical circus/stunt show in which the performers are being purposely mistreated for """comedic""" purposes (though the audience doesn't know this). Blinker (as a character) is advertised as perpetually dizzy, clumsy, and endearingly confused. He is always bumping into things. But the real reason why Blinker is so poorly coordinated is because he HAS NO EYEBALLS. His EYEBALLS were forcibly removed and he isn't used to walking around without sight, so naturally he is very clumsy. ☹️☹️☹️☹️ Eventually, he gets used to navigating without sight, though! And this is how he wins... It just takes him a little while to figure out...

He is often very sullen/melancholy and panicky because of his maltreatment (which is a somewhat jarring contrast from the appearance of his perpetually grinning mask/costume).☹️ He tries to be unobtrusive, as to not attract attention to himself. But he's really quite a sweet guy with good intentions. He isn't an antagonist/slasher type character... I guess he's like a protagonist of horrible circumstances more than anything, if that makes sense!!!!!

AND I HOPE IT'S OKAY IF I MENTION ANOTHER CHARACTER FROM THIS SAME STORY: PRETTY KITTY!!!!! Who is a fellow performer with Blinker, though I haven't figured out their deal yet!!! The story is rather OLD and probably worth a little revision, but they're basically people in mascot costumes!!!!! ^_^ EEK SORRY FOR ALL THE WORDINESS AS USUAL!! I hope this answers your question!!!!!!! 💖💖💕💕💓💓💕💘💘💗💗💗💗 THANK YOU SO SO SUPER MUCH AGAIN FOR THIS ASK, I had a LOT of fun talking about them so thank you again for the opportunity!!!! <333333 AND I HOPE YOU'RE HAVING AN ABSOLUTELY AMAZING DAY MEGGG!!!! This ask genuinely made my day heehee T_T <333333 !!!!!!!!

[readerwithsalt]

I remember criticizing Percabeth's dynamic in HoH, but this book.... seems even worse than that. I do not know what to say (well, I have plenty of things to stay), but even Percabeth, while their portrayal was severely flawed, was much better written as a couple dynamic. And it sounds like they made Will a Calypso2.0, just like how Calypso couldn't understand or appreciate Leo in the Apollo series. Yes, couples sometimes argue and they are teenagers, they will have lows and ups, they sometimes won't get along. But making it this stereotypical.... they killed any interest or positive feelings that i had toward Solangelo. It's pretty bad and they do not even function as a team at all. They are portrayed as stereotypical dark and sun, instead of two complimentary people who, despite their differences, come together and function as a team. I honestly even liked Meg and Apollo's dynamic better than this.

Honestly exactly how I feel. The writing was poor as well. And randomly having your characters spew cringe memes out of their mouth is lazy writing. No soul in this book, just out there for fanservice crackfic points ig instead of being about a story of a couple that HAPPENS to be gay. They literally made a checklist of all the sexualities going into the book like??😭😭 just focus on making a good story. And I wish Riordan would’ve written the story with input from a queer author rather than co writing.

[cyber-neptune]

The Megs (cringe) headcanon list, it’s a long one so get ready for some cringy/edgy stuff

And some Megsound-

- Can’t swim, throw him in either a lake, pool or ocean and he’ll start panicking

- He/She (bi-gender) , will probably afore you if you use fem pronouns on her

- Lives in a messy-depression room (First time Orion came to visit him it was the equivalent of the “Damn bitch you live like this” meme )

- Has no idea how to socialize normally. Can do speeches but small talk is pretty bad lol

- Depressed hoe with a sprinkle of ‘tism and BPD. Along with some PTSD because have you seen him???

- Likes girly stuff but only Soundwave knows about this (Most stuff includes dolls, mlps, magical girls and ig makeup-)

- Created her “Warlord persona” out of fear of being hurt emotion/mentally and it basically turned into self loathing

- Tried to overdose on Dark En, twice. Soundwave managed to find him on time

- Can’t stand to look at his reflection for too long

- gender dysphoria go brrrr✨

- Intense meltdowns in private, too tired/lazy to clean and fix stuff in her room

- ✨Abandonement Issues✨

- Likes sweet stuff, has sneaked late at night to get a midnight snack multiple times

- Self destructive

- Has basically gave up on being seen as a good person. Every story needs a villain and as much as she hates it, she’ll play the part until she dies

- (damn that last part was edgy) Has a box with feminine clothes he stole borrowed. Wears them in his spear time.

- To everyone’s shock and surprise, she isn’t that old

- Has a pile of soft blankets and plushies he sleeps in

- thicc

- Has been dragged out of bed by Soundwave multiple times, mostly to make sure he’s still alive

- Soundwave is one of the only bots capable of touching (holding hands, hug, pat on the back, etc) her. Anyone else gets a glare and/or slapped away

- Bottom

[feyhunter78]

Gabi: Giving reader puppy dog eyes and making her promise to never take her gift off.

Miguel, who put a camera and tracking device in said gift without his daughter's knowledge:

[roboromantic]

episode 16.

Is this Cube? /j

wait a sec all the captions on that page are Destiny related sdjfhsdjkfhskjdfh

SAY THE LINE, STARSCREAM!

That’s……………………not quite how that went when Alex told the story 🤔 It seemed pretty obvious in his telling that Megatron was still leading the Decepticons when the spacebridge got destroyed. I know they pointed out that he was really simplifying things at the time but still. the order of events seems kinda important to get right

Also I guess Soundwave never really looked like his G1 version in this continuity? Seems like a bit of a weird choice but maybe they just didn’t wanna have to make another model

Megs also seems surprised by the fact that the bridge got blown up so 👀 blease I wanna know everything

Hgdjkfhgfjghjd

HSJLFDHLJKFHSDLJDFGLHJSDE MEGATRON’S THERE?????????????? *shrek voice* he doesn’t even get to play himself 😔

PLEASE LET THE MAN SPEAK

HASHTAG THIS IS NOT THE TIME!!!!!!!!!!!

oh shit they’re referencing the spark flowers from IDW1, damn

maybe there’s a message here but it looks to be mostly gibberish and I ain’t gonna take the time to go through all of it just in case.             At least not right now

I’ve already seen a post comparing Blitzwing to the pointing wojak meme but I mean. It really does look like that sdjfhgsjdhfs

It woulda been neat if the graffiti was this ↓ but that mighta been a bit much to hope for

The text here is the same gibberish but upside-down and mirrored I guess for variety? But the fact that it now looks right-aligned just makes it look super out of place imo

Also it’s getting squished at the bottom (top?) instead of cut off, which is interesting

Your darkest hour, you say 👀

SDHFGDSJHFGSJH YOU CALL THAT SNEAKING???

Why is Shockwave’s head so dang small

“We began this war so none would kneel” OH? DO TELL 👀👀👀

I mean I don’t really wanna rehash the “Cybertronian government was corrupt and both the Autobots and Decepticons wanted change but the Decepticons were more ~violent~ about it” but then again without the idea of a frame type it’s a bit less.   Bad

He did this at the beginning too obviously but Why exactly is Bee apologizing to Skrapnel. Was he with the Autobots for a bit???

Why are they replaying the whole dang thing. To fill time???

“I get why it started, but once it became Autobot vs Decepticons-“ PLEASE…………..DEETS…………..

JKSADHFSJSDKLJGHFDJKGHKSJKDFH “WHO DID THIS?”

man comes up here like “At last we meet again” and then refuses to believe any significant amount of time has passed? Lmao

hmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm there’s a Lot I could get into there but it’s late and I got a finale to watch so

OH NO WHY DOES IT MAKE THEM GRAY D:

Alien crab mech tank thing seems to be the standard Shockwave alt nowadays but once again I do wish Gun was an option

“ugly giant bags of mostly water”

………………………….I know what he meant but the way Thrash worded it made it sound like he did in fact shit himself, he just doesn’t wear pants

“Do better” is really not helpful like. I get that they’re kids and all but more concrete info on what the differences were between the factions and how they got exacerbated to the point of potentially killing their entire planet and advice on how to stop things before they escalate that far would be a Lot more useful.

this episode gave us a lot but still somehow managed to not answer anything satisfactorily aaaaaahhhhhh

--

actually I think I’m gonna save the finale for tomorrow I’m getting tired

[burstingsunrise]

2022 Writing Evaluation

thanks for the tag bella @clumsyclifford​! thinking about writing and stats is weird for me in a lot of ways right now but I thought this might be a nice way to try to reflect on it in a constructive way.

1. number of stories posted on ao3: 21

2. word count posted for this year: 341,517

3. fandoms i wrote for: 5sos

4. pairings: cake, muke (I know what I like)

5. story with the most kudos/bookmarks/comments: 

Kudos - for real

Comments - this city screams your name (which makes sense because chapters) but then there’s a massive drop to a ton of fics that all have about the same amount.

Bookmarks - new shapes and for real are tied

6. work i’m most proud of (and why): 

hmm. I think probably for real? It’s the longest fic I’ve ever written and one of the few this year that generally came fairly easily for me overall. i really thrive in a world where I can just describe Luke in a way that feels very true to actual Luke but also am scared of canon friends to lovers, so famous aus are a sweet spot.

And I guess maybe interlude too, because I hadn’t really done a “big” muke fic in a long time, and it was challenging, but in an overall rewarding way.

7. work i’m least proud of (and why): 

I guess I don’t often feel good about a fic before I post it these days, but there’s not necessarily one that stands out here as something I’m least proud of. 

I’ve posted a few fics this year that have just been lingering wips I managed to wrap up, and they tend to feel the most incomplete to me, like lowercases and capitals and keep these dreams. I feel like you can tell that I originally wanted more for them and just didn’t have the inspiration to make it happen.

8. share or describe a favorite review you received:

Meg read my muke! And made a meme!

9. a time when writing was really, really hard:

It’s been hard all year. Especially the second half of it, there were multiple times I wasn’t sure I’d ever finish another fic. And I’m still kind of in that space of…I’ll keep trying to write, but I can’t guarantee anything will get done. 

I think some of that is just because after writing for the same fandom for a certain amount of time, it’s kind of hard not to just feel like you’re repeating yourself, which saps inspiration. There’s also so little engagement with fic these days that it’s hard to actually tell if your writing is any good, which makes motivation difficult for people like me who don’t write specifically for engagement but DO have a strong desire to Be Good.

That said, I’ve still managed to post a lot of content, so the way my brain is processing this isn’t necessarily in sync with reality, and that’s something I can try to be aware of and try to reframe when I get in my head about it.

Above paragraph brought to you by meg encouraging me to be positive and celebrate the work I’ve done this year.

10. a scene or character you wrote that surprised you: 

Maybe comfortable silence Luke. He really turned into something a lot more nuanced than I expected. 

that fic in general became a lot different and more than i expected. it wound up being maybe the most “real” thing i’ve ever written and ever will write.

11. a favorite excerpt of your writing: 

Oh god. um. That would require me to remember what I write. I literally have no idea. There are some scenes that stand out, like the beginning of for real when calum and luke meet for the first time at the coffee shop, and the porch scene in new shapes.

12. how did you grow as a writer this year? 

I’m not sure that I did. And I don’t mean that in a bad way necessarily. I just feel like I fell into a groove in 2022 and have not really grown but am also quite comfortable in my groove.

13. how do you hope to grow next year? 

I think to grow as a writer I need to work on my perspective in terms of what counts as “success,” what are reasonable expectations to have for myself, and learning how to be better about dealing with the times I don’t feel inspired. Figuring out how to do that in a more constructive way mentally.

And, in answering the next question, I thought of another thing - I tend to assume people don’t want to hear about my writing unless they ask directly. So I stew in things a lot. I get stuck, I get frustrated, and I feel like no one cares, so I just don’t talk about it. But when I do manage to talk about it with the right people (see below), it’s always helpful. so maybe trying to get out of my own head more and be more proactively open about my writing.

14. who was your greatest positive influence this year as a writer (could be another writer or beta or cheerleader or muse etc etc)?

Meg @kaleidoscopeminds​. It’s meg. In so many ways. Not just in terms of supporting and encouraging my writing and helping me through sticky spots, but also being my audience. Like even if no one else reads a fic, I know meg will, and that makes it worth posting.

Aria @calumthoodshands​ has also been a key influence here by being an idea machine, always prepared with suggestions. Not to mention the moodboard she made for comfortable silence before it was finished, which ended up inspiring several scenes in the fic.

15. anything from your real life show up in your writing this year? 

there’s at least one fic that’s very specific to personal experiences in many ways, but I think generally the way real life sneaks into my fics is through little details. Things that have happened to me, things that have happened to someone I know, or just things that I talked about with someone. Like in the spirit is the direct result of a “real” conversation with meg, even if nothing in it is remotely real.

16. any new wisdom you can share with other writers? 

I think last year I talked about writing something even if it means writing out of order or jumping between docs. And I still think that’s good advice for a lot of writers.

Beyond that though…this year has been all about learning to create in an environment where it doesn’t feel like the content is really being consumed. Finding ways to be okay with sending a fic out into the world and not really knowing how it’s received. Which is something I’m still working on.

17. any projects you’re looking forward to starting (or finishing) in the new year? 

This is going to sound more negative than it is - but not really, no! I have a couple WIPs that I might at some point get inspired to finish - including podcast cake! But I have no big ideas for new fics, and I don’t have anything I’m currently working on that I feel enough strong inspiration about that I’m confident I’ll finish. 

But you never know when something will hit, and there’s something nice about the sense of possibility there.

18. tag some writers whose answers you’d like to read: 

@ashtcnirwin @calumthoodshands @daydadahlias​ @crossedwiress​

[cyarskj1899]

https://m.facebook.com/story.php?story_fbid=pfbid0zp3u6BRUKxwuW1rVKRebpDZWvpYi1jMZFxoxNj9kVXYYWSMv4d37NdAD71TnqT79l&id=68771922854&mibextid=ncKXMASkip to content

I’ll never forget or forgive anyone who has re traumatized her. Ever. Not mine to forgive, I’m not meg that’s her choice.

FOLLOW US ON 

Summit 2022

Back to School

Ambassadors

Newsletter

Listen

Watch

Misogynoir Did Tory Lanez’ Dirty Work During His Trial

BY KENYATTA VICTORIAPOSTED ON DECEMBER 28, 2022

Tory Lanez’s trial following the 2020 shooting of Megan Thee Stallion uncovered the rampant misogynoir in the hip-hop community.

On Friday, December 23, Tory Lanez was found guilty on all three charges, including assault with a semi-automatic firearm, possession of a concealed, unregistered firearm, and negligent discharge of a firearm, following his 2020 shooting Megan Thee Stallion. The rap artist, legal Megan Pete, first declared Lanez as her shooter on Instagram live during the summer of 2020. She testified during the trial, saying Lanez fired a gun at her feet while shouting “dance b-tch” after a party in California. 

The shooting incident created a massive conversation, but more specifically, pointed out the misogynoir that runs deeply in hip-hop and its online communities. Misogynoir is misogyny aimed toward Black women, so race and gender both play a part.

Read ‘The Treatment of Megan Thee Stallion Further Exposes Society’s Hatred of Black Women.’

During Pete’s testimony, she revealed the damage the incident had done to her mentally and emotionally. “I wish he would have just shot and killed me [rather than] have to go through this torture,” she told the jury. The digital harassment that Megan endured came from various sources, including fellow rappers making fun of the traumatic incident and hip-hop blogs and commentators spreading false information about the situation and the trial. 

“It feels like every man that’s in a position of power in the music industry, even people who are not even rappers, they never cared about what my side of the story was. They immediately took the side of this man and have been giving me hell for the last going on three years,” Megan testified.

During the trial, rap artists such as Joe Budden and 50 Cent (who have been accused of domestic abuse and charged with domestic violence, respectively) shared their thoughts on Pete. This fueled countless comments from outsiders who gave their opinions on the shooting. Since 2020, countless memes, conspiracy theories and hateful commentary about Megan became common on social media, proving why less Black women decide not to come forward about abuse than their white counterparts. The gaslighting and hate that follows their openness becomes too much to bear. 

For Gabby Bulgarelli, senior producer on NPR’s podcast “Louder Than a Riot,” reporting on the trial and seeing the immense amount of false information showed that the hip-hop community does not value Black women. 

“The [m]isinformation that has been reverberating around the internet during this trial is really dangerous because a lot of it is steeped in misogynoir, Bulgarelli told GU. “We have repeatedly seen unreliable sources push narratives aimed at delegitimizing the victimhood of the Black women in this trial [Megan and Kelsey] and reinforcing the power and protection of the Black man who is now the convicted aggressor [Tory]. These narratives have consistently — and could continue to — lead to violence and harm against Black women most notably the rampant cyberbullying both women faced.” 

Tigidankay “TK” Saccoh uses her platform to combat the misogynoir of the trial as much as she can through her Instagram account Darkest Hue. “It was important for me to debunk the claims going around during this trial because there are so many blogs doing the exact opposite,” Saccoh said. “There were so many blogs vilifying Megan for her sex life and portraying her as a liar and a bad person.” 

Some of these blogs and commentators shared false information without fact-checking, which led to thousands of people sharing the posts. Platforms such as RaphouseTV, No Jumper and Say Cheese has had to clarify their tweets due to them being factually incorrect. 

Even now that the jury reached a verdict for the Tory Lanez trial, Say Cheese!, a YouTube account with a hefty following across the video platform, Twitter and Instagram, has shared a petition created by Tory Lanez’s supporters. Lanez’s fans are looking to appeal the ruling and the petition has received over 40,000 signatures. 

“Under the comments, supporters of the petition are misgendering Megan Thee Stallion, accusing her of lying, and calling her misogynistic slurs,” Saccoh says. “A blog like Say Cheese would never share a petition supporting a cop who shot a Black man. These blogs enthusiastically wield misogynoir to pander to their pro-Black man, but anti-Black woman audience members.” 

Kat Tenbarge, a tech and culture reporter at NBC News, found through her coverage of the trial that the desire for virality online has grown to a dangerous place. Spreading misinformation is viewed as just one way to grow acclaim. 

“We’re seeing more and more misinformation play into the public understanding of legal cases, especially ones that involve celebrities,” Tenbarge told GU. “Social media is partially to blame, because blogs will adhere to popular opinions regardless of fact in order to go viral and make money. They are essentially incentivized to spread misinformation to succeed on these platforms. This puts the onus on the people being defamed or being hurt to take action because social media platforms don’t take responsibility for misinformation spread by users.”

Tory Lanez’ trial amplified the necessity of Black women having allies when they are vocal about violence. The trial also made it obvious why women are fearful of speaking about their experiences, as an army of misogynorists waits to tear them down. Now that the trial has reached a verdict, it’s time for more accountability and advocacy for Black women. Our lives are at stake. 

About Kenyatta: Kenyatta Victoria is an entertainment and culture reporter passionate about music, pop culture, and marginalized stories. She has bylines in publications such as Chicago Reader, INSIDER, Girls United, TransLash Media, and the Chicago Tribune.black womenMegan Thee Stallionsocial justicesocial mediaTory Laneztrial

New Year’s Eve Party Style Guide

BY KENYATTA VICTORIAPOSTED ON DECEMBER 27, 2022

Get into the looks!

New Year’s Eve is the last occasion to pop out and wear your best for a kickback or a full-blown party. Knowing what vibe you’re going for when it comes to a look is essential because you want to be picture ready for that countdown into the new year.

Your outfit depends on the dress code on your party invitation. It could range from a complete glam party that calls for a cocktail dress and pumps or a casual friend’s gathering with jeans and a sweater.

Regardless of the event, check out some of our staple pieces that keep you looking stylish and snatched for any New Year’s Eve party.

The Classic Champagne Gold Gown

Gold always stands out for New Year’s Eve because it represents royalty and regalness, so you could never go wrong with a simple gold dress and shoes. 

A Renaissance Style Metallic Dress

As we head to the numerous New Year’s Eve parties, we’re bound to hear some “Cuff It” or “Alien Superstar” by queen Bey, so you might as well embody her fully and wear the shiny metallic dress to show off the entire event. 

Fierce Catsuit

You can never go wrong with a sleek and sexy catsuit, which adds flair to your look with less effort, so you can give body and face and turn heads once you step into the party. 

Sequin Galore

Nothing says fun like sequins, any color will be sure to have you as the center of attention as you dance the night away. 

Corset and Pants Look

A corset will always keep you snatched and comfortable for any occasion, and the pants add a more casual look that keeps you warm and cozy. 

Sweater Dress and Thigh High Boots

The classic New Year’s look is the sweater dress and thigh-high combo, also adding a classic bag that matches the boots help bring the look together. 

Bodycon Dress

The staple bodycon dress is consistently a go-to for the new year because it doesn’t take much thought and pairs well with any shoe. It always stands out when the dress comes in patterns and bright colors. 

About Kenyatta: Kenyatta Victoria is an entertainment and culture reporter passionate about music, pop culture, and marginalized stories. She has bylines in publications such as Chicago Reader, INSIDER, Girls United, TransLash Media, and the Chicago Tribune.black fashionblack womenclothinglookbookmood boardwinter

GU Jams: Ar’mon Warren Is Preparing for Bigger and Better In 2023

BY KENYATTA VICTORIAPOSTED ON DECEMBER 27, 2022

The R&B singer credits real-life experiences to motivation in music.

For Ar’mon Warren, music fell into his lap way before YouTube. He began singing at three years old and playing the piano and drums with his little brother Trey. Church laid the foundation for his passion for the technical side of music, like the importance of tone and the difference between sopranos, altos and tenors. 

In his hometown of Detroit, Michigan, he reflected on the limited opportunities for music and decided to take matters into his own hands. Back then, iPhones were expensive and out of reach, so Warren and his brother used to record and post content from a Samsung Galaxy until they finally convinced their mother to purchase an iPhone so they could post their content on Vine (yes, Vine). 

Being in his teens, Warren had no clue that singing on the internet would catapult him into a long career and presence in the public eye where he could do what he truly loves: music. But his story does not end there. The 25-year-old has been in the YouTube game for about 10 years, becoming a veteran, and his new chapter has begun. 

He also became a father to his daughter Legacy, preparing him to fully branch out as an independent artist. “We’re doing our solo thing right now,” Warren told GU. “Different moments in our [lives] led us to write songs that we feel are personal.”

Through those personal experiences, the genre that keeps him motivated to tell his story is R&B. Now, of course, there is a meaningful conversation surrounding the topic of the state of the genre. Still, Warren is definitely on the side of knowing it’s not dead, but it keeps him inspired. 

“If you understand music, you could never get bored with R&B,” he said. “I love the production, how singers can put backgrounds [and] the way it’s melodic.” 

He’s always open to everlasting learning, which encouraged him to make as much music as possible, leading him to score his first Billboard hit No. 11 for digital sales for his song “Hol’ It Down,” featuring his muse Reginae Carter. 

While Warren was in the studio creating music, his producer Dwayne “D2” Washington, knew he found the right song for him. “He called me and was like, ‘Yo, I think I got it, I think I got the one,” he said. At that moment, he realized that was the type of hands-on collaboration that kept him inspired and encouraged when creating new music. 

Warren knew he wanted the song to start with Carter expressing her wants and needs within a relationship, “I need you to reciprocate the energy that I’m going to reciprocate, because if you don’t, then I’m gonna be mad all the time, ‘cause I’mma be like ‘dang I wanna do this for him,’”  she said in the song. 

That intro leads to the rest of the song’s flow, sharing his perspective of how he will hold down his relationship. He reflected on how in the past, he was not inspired to get into the studio before. Still, once he started dating Carter, she brought that spark back into what he loved about making music: real-life experiences. 

“She allowed me to be an artist,” Warren told GU. “She doesn’t push me to be anything but myself.” 

Through his musical journey, he’s been able to find confidence in the work he puts into every melody and hook that prepped him for the music industry. “I feel like God put me through a developmental stage to where I know that I can’t just drop a song and think [that’s it],” he said. 

Warren realizes now that it takes more, and with the work, a proper roll-out, and his fans’ massive support, anything is possible. “I challenged myself to be a better father, person and artist,” he said. Now he’s ready to be bigger and better. 

About Kenyatta: Kenyatta Victoria is an entertainment and culture reporter passionate about music, pop culture, and marginalized stories. She has bylines in publications such as Chicago Reader, INSIDER, Girls United, TransLash Media, and the Chicago Tribune.musicnewsReginae Carterrelationshipsstyletiktok

Are you interested in being a part of the Girls United team? We’re accepting applications for ambassadors, as well as writing contributors. See below.

AMBASSADOR

Think you’d be a good fit for our ambassadors' program? 

APPLY

CONTRIBUTOR

Girls United is looking to build a team of dedicated contributors.

APPLY

Summit 2022

Back to School

Ambassadors

Newsletter

Listen

Watch

FOLLOW US ON

Privacy Policy

Terms of Service

© 2023 Essence Ventures

Sent from my iPhone

[nyamcot]

Woah-oh-oh-oh-ohhhhhh

Oh-oh-oh-ohhhhh

Oh-ohhhhh-oh

Story of Family Guy

Quagmire, Cleveland, Joe

Those are my best bros

Welcome to the show

Story of Family Guy

I work at Pawtucket Brewery

When I'm at home I'm with the family

As you can see

The show is all about me

Every night we go to the clam

Joe in a wheelchair, that's half a man

That's who I am

Can't walk, but I wish I can

Should I stay with Jerome?

Or should I go home?

I think I'll take just another beer...

Lucky that there's a family guy

Making us all laugh and cry

(Woah-oh-oh-oh-ohhhh)

The dog can talk, and write and read

Baby Stewie's got a time machine

I just drank a keg

Fell and broke my leg

Shut the hell up Meg

Story of Family Guy

Quagmire's a card, he likes to bone

Make sure not to leave your lady alone

He'll make her moan 😏

Giggity all the way home

Cleveland Brown, he is a black guy

Had his own show, and it would be a lie to deny

That it's worse than Family Guy

Should I take my place.... and fart on Meg's face...?

I think I'll put her face to my ass....

Lucky that there's a family guy

Making us all laugh and cry

(Woah-oh-oh-oh-ohhhh)

The dog can talk, and write and read

Baby Stewie's got a time machine

Woah-oh-oh-oh-ohhhhhh

Oh-oh-oh-ohhhhh

Oh-ohhhhh-oh

Story of Family Guy

Woah-oh-oh-oh-ohhhhhh

Oh-oh-oh-ohhhhh

Oh-ohhhhh-oh

Story of Family Guy

Lois, Chris, Stewie

That's the family

Come and watch and see

This is Family Guy

Bad jokes, mid memes

Please bring back Seth Macfarlane

I am gonna die

If I watch more Family Guy

Crazy antics, is what we get up to

Cutaway gags, that is all that we do

Reference humor, lazy drawn out gags

But we're better

THAN MODERN FAMILY GUY

Lucky that there's a family guy

Making us all laugh and cry

(Woah-oh-oh-oh-ohhhh)

The dog can talk, and write and read

Baby Stewie's got a time machine

DIE

[goddesspharo]

combining a couple of your latest ask memes: top 5 blockbuster movies, and your favorite scene from #4!

So hard to narrow down my love of big dumb blockbusters to just five so I will specifically go with big dumb summer blockbusters of the 90s so it'll be easier.

Speed: The greatest action movie of all time. That's right, I said what I said. No one will ever be able to convince me otherwise of this.

Jurassic Park: This movie amazed me the first time I saw it in theaters as a kid and it still does. No one can create that sense of wonder the way Spielberg can.

Independence Day: A must watch at least once a year on July 4th. It never gets old. I never stop cackling at Will Smith ranting to the dead alien he is dragging across the desert that he could've been at a barbecue instead! I always get verklempt at President Bill Pullman's inspirational speech! I will always pretend that shitty sequel with the lesser Hemsworth does not exist.

Twister: I'm fudging it a little bit on this one since I think it came out in May but spiritually it is a summer blockbuster and it is certainly big and dumb! A few years ago, it seemed like AMC showed this movie at least once a month (as it should) and I was incapable of changing the channel whenever I encountered it even after all these years.

Armageddon: Is this movie extremely stupid? Yes. Does it make sense that the only people who could save the planet were these dudes? Not at all. Is Ben Affleck's DVD commentary about how stupid it is still the greatest thing he has ever done? You know it. And yet, this movie is infinitely watchable and that Aerosmith song still bangs.

And favorite scene from #4 (Twister) is a toss up between the "we got cows" scene ("Cow. Another cow." "Actually, I think that was the same one.") because everyone's deadpan was award-worthy and the scene at Aunt Meg's house when they're talking about the Fujita scale and how an F5 would be like the finger of God right before Lisa Loeb's "How" kicks in. UGHHHHH, SO GOOD. (I want to support Glen Powell's bad choices as evidenced by the fact that I've watched most of his terrible filmography but making an unnecessary sequel to a perfectly dumb movie only this time it has none of the wonderful cast of the original is SO unnecessary. Choose another weather disaster and make a movie about that!)