#no actually that's not true i have like an absurd number of thoughts on this actually

[kindahoping4forever]

📸: Ryan Fleming

[thedensworld]

I Can Fight | J.Ww

Pairing: Wonwoo x reader

Genre: fluff

Summary: Since you married Jeon Wonwoo, you always considered to not wear revealing clothes. Honestly, Wonwoo doesn't care.

Maestro is definitely Wonwoo's era. My love from him escalates from hundred to limited🤍 god, i need him in my life. However, enjoy this fluffy fluffy wonuuuu🥰

It hasn't even been a year since you tied the knot with Jeon Wonwoo, the heir to a vast conglomerate. He possesses everything one could desire: a top-tier education, a lucrative career, and a prominent place in society. Yet, despite his wealth and status, he insists that you are the center of his universe. You, a mere lecturer at a university owned by his father, never imagined you'd capture the heart of someone like Wonwoo.

Your paths crossed at an event where you represented the university as its youngest dean. Wonwoo's attention was drawn to you instantly, captivated by the calm grace you exuded. The following morning, you were taken aback to find him at the university, seeking you out.

"I have something to discuss with you," he said, his eyes filled with a mixture of determination and something else, something softer.

As he proposed an internship program to benefit the students, the conversation effortlessly shifted from professional to personal. It became evident that his true motive was to get closer to you, to unravel the layers of your being.

You couldn't deny the flutter of excitement in your heart as Wonwoo confessed his ulterior motive. How could you resist someone who pursued you with such sincerity and charm?

Wonwoo's pride in you knew no bounds. He loved to showcase you to his friends and colleagues, boasting about your intelligence and beauty at every opportunity. Being by his side at elite events was both an honor and a responsibility, one that required the perfect attire to match his prestigious status.

As you surveyed the two gowns laid out before you in the bedroom, the weight of the upcoming event pressed upon you. Your current formal attire had already made its rounds, and you couldn't bear the thought of causing Wonwoo any embarrassment by appearing in the same outfit again.

With a heavy sigh, you reached for your phone, dialing Seungkwan's number without hesitation. He was your trusted friend, the one whose fashion sense you relied on for such occasions. But as you questioned his choices, your finger instinctively pointed towards the more daring of the two gowns—a black off-shoulder number with a thigh-high slit.

"What were you thinking with these options?" you inquired, your voice laced with a mix of frustration and concern. The other gown, a deep red wine hue, was equally alluring, with its backless design and knee-high slit, presenting a different kind of challenge.

"I thought that's what rich people wear to events like that! It's straight out of the pages of those fancy books!" Seungkwan's voice came through the phone, his defense ringing with a hint of sheepishness.

You took a moment to collect yourself, inhaling deeply before responding. "Do you honestly think I usually wear something like these?" You couldn't help but chuckle, the absurdity of the situation washing over you.

Seungkwan's laughter echoed through the phone. "Of course not. Last time you wore something revealing was when you danced to '10 Minute' at Jeonghan's birthday party in college."

A wistful smile tugged at the corners of your lips as you recalled the carefree days of youth. "And I was so drunk that I slit my skirt and cut my sleeves," you added, shaking your head at the memory.

Seungkwan's tone turned more serious. "Just wear it. You won't embarrass your husband by wearing it. Trust me."

You nervously bit your lip, the weight of Seungkwan's words sinking in. "He's a respected person, Seungkwan. And I'm an academic. Last time I wore something tight, someone actually talked about him."

"No way! What did they say?" Seungkwan's curiosity piqued through the phone.

You let out a weary sigh, memories of the unpleasant encounter resurfacing. "Just that I looked too hot for a professor, and my look didn't match Wonwoo. It was awful, really. I wish I could have stood up to them at the time."

Seungkwan's voice came through with conviction, urging you not to let others dictate your choices. "Darling! Don't let them stop you. What if you are actually too hot? It's their fault they couldn't handle your fire! Stand up to them if someone talks to you like that."

A soft laugh escaped your lips at Seungkwan's fierce encouragement. "You know I can't fight," you admitted, resigned to your non-confrontational nature.

Before you could dwell further on the conversation, the sound of the bedroom door being pushed open interrupted your thoughts. Your heart skipped a beat as you turned to see your husband standing there, his presence filling the room with warmth and reassurance.

"Wonwoo just got back from work, I'll let you know my choice. Thanks for getting me these dresses, though," you informed Seungkwan.

Seungkwan hummed in acknowledgment. "Say hi to Wonwoo. I believe he'll choose the black one."

You couldn't help but chuckle at his teasing remark. "Shut up," you retorted playfully before ending the call.

As Wonwoo entered the room, his presence instantly filled the space with comfort and affection. His tie was discarded, and he loosened his blazer before casting a glance at the dresses laid out on the bed.

"Seungkwan got me these for tonight," you explained, gesturing towards the gowns. Wonwoo nodded in understanding as he wrapped his arms around your waist, resting his chin on your shoulder.

"He has great taste," he murmured softly, his warm breath sending shivers down your spine.

A tender smile graced your lips as he pulled you closer, his embrace providing solace and reassurance. "You'll look good in everything," he added, his words washing over you like a comforting embrace.

You gently touched his arms, leaning into his embrace. "But don't you think they'll be too revealing? I could just wear the one I've already used."

Wonwoo shook his head, a gentle smile playing on his lips. "If you want to wear these, then wear them. I think you'll look absolutely gorgeous, whether in revealing clothes or not."

A surge of warmth flooded your chest at his words, his unwavering support comforting you. "However, I would love to see you in them," he added, his eyes sparkling with anticipation.

You raised your eyebrows in surprise, turning your head to meet his gaze. "Really?"

Wonwoo nodded, his expression earnest. "Let's show them that you're hot, just like what Seungkwan said."

Your astonishment grew as you realized he had overheard your conversation with Seungkwan. "From which part did you hear us?" you asked curiously.

"From the start. I actually wanted to surprise you, but you were talking to him," Wonwoo confessed with a sheepish smile.

A moment of silence passed between you before he spoke again. "Actually, I want to thank him for getting you these dresses. I can't wait to see you wear it," he added, his excitement evident in his voice.

He gently withdrew his arms from your waist, turning your body to face him. His hands tenderly moved from your hair to your face, cupping your cheeks and stroking them softly. "I'd love to see you in the black one tonight," he murmured, his voice filled with affection as he pressed a soft kiss to your lips.

A warmth spread through you at his touch and words, reassurance flooding your senses. "Your friend knows me so well," he remarked, planting another kiss on your forehead before trailing down to your shoulder.

His gestures of love and appreciation enveloped you, melting away any lingering doubts or insecurities.

***

You approached Wonwoo where he sat on the couch in the living room, a hint of uncertainty in your gaze. "Isn't it too revealing?" you asked, your voice tinged with self-doubt.

His breath caught in his throat as he took in your breathtaking appearance. The black dress hugged your curves in all the right places, accentuating your beauty in a way that left him speechless. The subtle yet alluring makeup only enhanced your features, drawing his eyes irresistibly to you. And the scent of your perfume, a familiar fragrance that never failed to captivate him, enveloped him in a heady mix of calm and desire.

As your hand moved to cover the revealed thigh, a part of you that he found utterly captivating, Wonwoo couldn't tear his gaze away from you. His heart raced with a jealous fervor, envying his own eyes for having the privilege of beholding your radiance.

"Is it not working?" you questioned, disappointment evident in your tone as he remained silent.

Unable to contain himself any longer, Wonwoo reached out to gently grasp your hand, pulling it away from your thigh. "No, it's not that," he finally managed to say, his voice filled with reverence and admiration. "You look absolutely stunning, beyond words."

Wonwoo sensed your apprehension and immediately shook his head, stepping forward to take your hand and press a tender kiss to it. "I can't believe I'm married to you. You look amazing, love," he murmured, lifting your hand and encouraging you to spin to showcase your dress.

As you twirled, a hint of uncertainty lingered in your mind, but Wonwoo's gasp of awe and promise to buy you countless dresses like the one you wore washed away your worries.

"You can wear anything you want, love. I can fight.," he declared, his words echoing your own inner resolve.

A smile graced your lips as you leaned in to peck his cheek, feeling reassured by his unwavering support. "I'll fight them with my whole life. But kiss me again, here and now," he requested, tapping his lips playfully.

You obliged, landing another gentle kiss, but before you could pull away, Wonwoo's grip on your head tightened, deepening the kiss into a passionate embrace. Lost in the moment, your hands instinctively found their way to his neck, reveling in the intimacy of the kiss that ignited a fiery passion between you.

"Should we skip the event?" he suggested with a mischievous smirk, tempting you with the idea of spending the evening wrapped up in each other's arms.

You playfully slapped his chest, chuckling at his suggestion. "Let's wipe your lips and let me fix my makeup. Seungcheol is going to kill you if we skip his birthday party," you reminded him, handing him a wet wipe.

Wonwoo chuckled as he wiped his mouth clean of your lipstick. "He loves me, he won't kill me," he mumbled before turning his gaze back to you. "So, what do you think?" he asked, anticipation dancing in his eyes as he awaited your response.

[velvetvexations]

Okay, so like.

Someone can say they're not saying transmascs have it easier, but you are actually still saying that even if the way you're actually phrasing it is "transfems have it harder."

The thought-terminating cliché that AFAB people are allowed more room to navigate the way they express themselves in a gendered way is bobolynery. People who spread this to make themselves feel like even more a righteous victim are annoying and piss me off. That goes without saying. But the argument that AMAB kids will have less chances to explore options is equally ridiculous, because even if it may be true that in some areas and contexts women are allowed to wear pants, that is not and has never been a major component of egg cracking to begin with.

You can't simultaneously argue that this is not a gendered act yet also somehow something that helps an AFAB person identify with masculinity. Like, countless millions of women wear pants every day without being transmasc. If it's truly NBD, how does that work? How, might one imagine, are transmasc eggs cracked by wearing pants if they're surrounded by women doing the same thing every moment of their lives?

If anything, by this logic, it should be harder for transmasc eggs to crack! If the line keeping AMAB people from being women is so thick, wanting to paint your nails is an instant signal you might prefer identifying as a woman, whereas a short haircut is not that in any place where you propose the line keeping women from masculine presentation is thin.

But the idea that trans women would even need something like that is absurd. It is also, I suspect, tied into those chugging the radfem juice who call sissy kink (trans)misogynyistic for treating being a woman as degrading. Like, an absolutely massive number of people with a sissy kink are in fact actual trans women, because they grew up understanding that they wanted to be women but non-consensual degrading situations being their primary outlet for that.

I'm not saying it isn't great things are different now. Of course it's a beautiful, wonderful sign of progress that "haha cartoon where boy forced to wear lipstick" is no longer the only thing trans girls have to turn to. The point, however, is that an AMAB child understanding their desire to be seen as a girl has always been extremely common. I do not have the data to suggest it's overwhelmingly the majority, but it is certainly not rare compared to the amount of transmascs who have that same understanding of themselves. Even many transitioning for the first time as adults report having always known.

Maybe there are simply more transmascs than transfems because there just are? Have you considered that? That maybe there are just more transmascs than transfems and it's not because transmascs get the red carpet rolled out for them?

[brujamala-aka-gigi]

what's keeping you away from genuine ways of expressing yourself?

this is a pick a pile tarot reading inspired by the new moon in leo, but is not specific to this particular moment in time. in astrology, the moon represents the unconscious mind, your emotions and in which ways your intuition works, while the zodiac sign leo is more oriented towards the ego, creativity and social relations. all of those things that tend to characterize this sign, usually means that some level of efficient and assertive communication is valuable for keeping away drama and misunderstandings, therefore, i thought about making this general reading to see what advice the cards have for something quite difficult for almost everyone: remaining true to our essence and being able to communicate that in a way that is genuine to us, our identity, our desires and our feelings, no matter who is listening.

pile 1 pile 2 pile 3

images from pinterest and dividers by @fairytopea

꒰ঌ ✦ scroll down for the results ໒꒱ ༘*.ﾟ

-ˋˏ ༻ ❁ Masterpost and Tarot Menu ❁༺ ˎˊ-

˚ ༘ ೀpile number one ⋆｡˚

Your card for this reading is the King of Swords. What this tells me is that you value intellectual honesty, and you’re willing to go against your own emotions if that means that you’ll find the truth and that you are very likely to be perceived as someone who doesn’t have a filter or is too honest. It’s key that you understand that even if you don’t allow yourself to be guided by emotional attachments, other people do. Being highly logical or highly sensitive are both valuable, and both ways of thinking and acting have their pros and cons. But this card wouldn’t pop up if the logical ways of approaching things wasn’t causing some issues. Although holding yourself to a high standard of rationality when it comes to manifestations of the unconscious or the way you naturally relate to others can be beneficial, I feel as if that is also causing you to react coldly to your own emotions, instead of embracing them. You need to let go of the idea that things must be coherent and make sense all time, we are humans, and many of what makes us human doesn’t make too much sense or doesn’t work according to logic. Seeking order, patterns and structure in places where there’s not a big need for those, is not going to give you the truths that serve your personal development. It’s key that you take some time to embrace what seems absurd about yourself, without looking for logic, but looking for experiences that will guide you to the answers you need.

˚ ༘ ೀpile number two ⋆｡˚

The card for you on this reading is the Six of Wands. What I see here, is a lot of well deserved feelings of pride that you are protecting at all costs. There’s absolutely nothing wrong with being proud, and I don’t even think this is the actual issue here. What’s blocking your most honest expressions is the fact that you are not allowing yourself the possibility of making a mistake, as you might feel this could take away from all the achievements you’ve had before. It’s key to know, when to be vulnerable, when to take a risk and where you are safe to try things out for the first time, but you are still not comfortable enough to embrace things about yourself that make you insecure, which is completely valid and understandable. In your case, I think that is okay if you want to preserve a sense of control over how others perceive you, yet it wouldn’t be healthy to allow others to expect things from you that are far too demanding to keep up with sometimes. It is necessary that you start setting honest boundaries with others and with yourself, in order to preserve a healthy sense of worth. Your value as a person is not defined by your achievements, or your failures, it is defined by how and why you do what you do no matter the result. When your intentions are honest and you are trying to better yourself or help others, it doesn’t matter what the final outcome is.

˚ ༘ ೀpile number three ⋆｡˚

Your card is the Chariot. The meaning of this card has to do with life experiences, movement and some level of chaos that is necessary in order to grow. I see that you are capable to maintain a certain level of peace of mind even when things around you are hectic, and this is something that might attract some people who are either amazed or envious of this.  In your case, I think that being all over the place (socially, spiritually, intellectually, emotionally) means that you are not quite sure yet on where you stand in relation to certain aspects of your life. This might seem like a problem, because some people are more settled on their beliefs or have more stable lives than you, but in reality, the fact that you are willing to try everything you can before committing is actually something that makes your life something richer. It’s completely normal to feel uncertain, confused and lost, but this shouldn’t keep you away from giving yourself the credit you deserve for the way you have chosen to experience life. Take some pride on what makes you different, and take pride on the process of self exploration you are, even if you are far away from finding a solid philosophy or stability in your life, embrace the fact you are capable of experiencing things without many attachments.

-ˋˏ ༻ ❁ Masterpost and Tarot Menu ❁༺ ˎˊ-

[bottombaron]

So after staring into the middle distance for a couple days I'm ready to start discussing some theories I have before the season finale destroys us. They are all very wide-ranging in absurdity but I'll start with the one that I think has the most substance and therefore I think is most likely to happen. Also, I haven’t caught up with the tag yet so if someone already posted these theories, sorry! 

So here is Theory #1, known otherwise as,

Why (I think) I know how Laszlo is going to unfuck Guillermo

The solution, I believe, was stated at the very end of The Roast by Laszlo himself: 

FIRST THOUGHT, BEST THOUGHT

Laszlo has spent weeks deeply committed to solving a problem. He's wasted precious time trying to outthink his first (and probably best) solution – and I'm not just talking about his book sorting. Neither was Laszlo, not entirely at least. I actually do think he was focused at least a little bit on his books because that's kind of what happens when you're stuck on a problem. Your brain wanders to other much less taxing ordeals. Usually, as you solve that smaller problem, you find the solution to the thing you really want to solve. 

So what was Laszlo’s first idea?

All along Laszlo had the answer but Guillermo told him that he didn't think it would work, so Laszlo just didn't pursue it further. (We don't even know if Laszlo knows the circumstances of the test and why it didn't work. Just that Guillermo didn't approve that idea.) So then Laszlo wasted valuable time and energy trying to ~Science~ this problem instead of using his true best skill that was showcased in episode one of the season: his charm. His powers of persuasion (the classical art of bullshitting, as it were) is his true super power. (Sadly, it’s not science. He doesn't really have the patience for science tbh).

But, no, rly, he should bullshit his way thru this. That's what he does best. He can outthink Nandor easily. (well….maybe. with the time spent on his experiments, Nandor could have the advantage of several weeks, if not months, to figure things out beforehand, as dense as he is) He should concoct a bullshit so impenetrable that it unfucks Guillermo from Derek and refucks him to Nandor. 

Further foreshadowing of this you ask?

(this whole season is dedicated to ‘plans’ it’s crazy how much A Plan pops up. maybe i’ll dedicate a separate post to collecting them all)

But alas! The test that The Baron did proved this wouldn’t work, right!?

Well here's some free additional theories to how Laszlo could solve that hiccup:

1. Laszlo figures out (and solves) the reason why The Baron/Neighbor test didn't work in the first place.

There could be any number of factors of why The Baron's neighbor blew up. It could be that The Baron is all that more powerful than the average vampire and so his bite gives an extraordinary fill of uh...vampire-ness? and Derek, being so young and weak, doesn't do much at all. Maybe it has something to do with The Sire. If The Baron was turned by the first being ever affected by vampirism, then maybe that vampirism is slowly depleted the further down the line you go. Derek is probably very far removed from The Sire which means he cannot transfer much of that affliction onwards. Nandor, if he was turned by The Baron (one removed from The Sire) or someone similar, explains how he is so powerful, hopefully tho he wouldn’t have too much power to possibly overwhelm Guillermo's half-a-virgin body (and yes I did like how kinky that sounded when I wrote it). It doesn't really matter the exact reason as long as Laszlo can convince Guillermo to try it and he has a relatively decent chance of surviving it. (convincing Guillermo to go thru with this plan overall is probably going to be the most trouble actually. you don't easily forget a guy exploding in your face)

2. Something to do with the experiments. (or the Nadja’s bait-and-switch tactic she used to catch The Baron/Guillermo from The Roast)

I have a larger theory on the experiments and why I think there's still one in the house, but that's for later. During The Roast, Nandor is pretty convinced that the mutant Guillermo is the real one (despite one pretty big glaring error: he has no glasses. none of the experiments need glasses...), Laszlo might have been testing this theory by having The Baron bring his body to Nandor in the first place in order to see how convinced Nandor would be by it. This might be enough for Laszlo to try to use a duplicate of Guillermo for Nandor to bite. The duplicate will not explode (probably?) due to only being a hybrid of Guillermo's blood and an animal…or something(one) else pretending to be Guillermo… (and if it does, maybe Laszlo plans to shoo Nandor out of the line of sight in order for him not to see. And then you get the angst and drama of Guillermo literally using a scapegoat to take his 'sin' despite his reluctance to hurt innocent creatures)

But will the fake Guillermo actually convince Nandor? It's hard to say, and I love that threat of Nandor realizing that it's not the true Guillermo he bit and feeling even more betrayed. Maybe Laszlo concocts a whole ambiance to the event in order to sell the lie. It has to be special right?

So there's dim lights and candles and (fake) Guillermo is laid out in Nandor's coffin and there's this whole presentation element to it that was left out of Guillermo's turn with Derek. It's more like the fantasy that Guillermo probably always had of being turned by Nandor. It plays out like a romantic love scene. But Guillermo is asleep or has his eyes closed and won't talk or maybe only makes small noises and Nandor's very upset abt this. Laszlo is probably hovering too and Nandor doesn't like that either but Laszlo insists he must be there and it's now it's all awkward and wrong, kind of like how Guillermo felt before he was bit by Derek. (now it’s like Nandor is the bull cucking Laszlo in front of him) Nandor goes thru with it and bites Guillermo and is rushed by Laszlo so he doesn't get to drink or drink too much of his blood and there's fumbling with trying to get his own blood into Guillermo's unresponsive mouth.

Or maybe Nandor finds out because Guillermo's blood is disgusting and he either knows or had hoped it would be good tasting*. or that Guillermo just lays there and there's no reciprocation of desire. But maybe he just doesn't find out and once it's over he expects to be able to lay with Guillermo or otherwise be there for his turning but Laszlo quickly rushes him out of his own room and closes the door behind him.

So now Nandor feels all the same despondency that Guillermo had felt with his turn with Derek. Like this big special moment he's built up for years was a complete dud. Like he missed out on something truly magical and he doesn't know why. And Guillermo will feel like shit too, for tricking Nandor. Laszlo isn't happy either. But it worked and they all just have to live with it. Meanwhile this act that was meant to make Nandor's and Guillermo's bond stronger, only serves to create even greater distance between them. 

Re*: evidence that Guillermo's blood might taste 'different':

3. ANYWAYS. that was theory two. lets talk about theory 3.

WITCHES.

I actually think there's good reason Laszlo has divorced Science and is now going to have an affair with Magic. It's exactly when Nadja says 'has this hex turned me into an uggo' that Laszlo comes to life and exclaims ‘that's it!’. If science wasn't the solution, maybe magic is. It's not like they don't know some witches, or that, at least to a degree, witches actually have some power. (specifically the power to look, vaguely, like someone else.) I'm not certain of the specifics but there's a chance Laszlo could be turning to magic to solve his problems. This would also bring Nadja's storyline more relevant and in focus for the season. The thing I like the most about this theory? Episode 9 describes being invited to a manor owned by someone named Morrigan. Morrigan is a Celtic goddess of war and fate that was probably the inspiration for Arthurian legendary sorceress, Morgan le Fay. (Laszlo's name may also be connected to Arthurian legend, Lancelot. but that probably doesn't mean anything.)

So! That's my three extra theories attached to this one big theory that Laszlo is going to go 'back to the beginning' and use his first thought to solve this. Go with his gut. His first solution was his best solution, all along.

…He simply needs to convince Nandor to turn Guillermo.

The, uh, details of this plan may be a lot more complicated than it suggests.

[playdoughtiny]

Nap time, Leon 💤

caregiver!Luis Serra & little!Leon Kennedy

Rate: Teen up audiences

Characters: Luis Serra Navarro & Leon Kennedy (Resident Evil 4 Remake - 2023)

Warnings: PTSD (?), Anxiety, Light Swearing.

Tags: Fluff, Hurrt/Comfort, Coping, Leon Kennedy has PTSD, Protective Luis Serra, AU — Canon Divergence, Babytalk, Pacifiers, Cuddling, Sleeping.

Reblogs are appreciated!

...

Finger fidgets on the ocean blue blanket, pinching at it's soft fabric. A dim soft light stand is the only source of light in the room. The digital alarm flashes red with pairs of numbers, separated by just a colon.

00:10

Agonized with so much fatigue, Leon lies on his stomach, huffing and mumbling incomprehensible murmurs into his pillow. How many nights would he need to stay awake before he could finally sleep? The hours passed torturously slowly, the minutes lasted months. Leon stared into the darkness of the room, his eyes filled with slumber.

His wrist rests upon his forehead, voice low like a whisper. "What I've done to deserve this..."

That was the question that tormented him. What had he done to be... Like this? How many lives could he have saved, how many people would have been spared if Leon just did the right thing?

Did he actually did what was the best option? Or he's just selfish? His heart pumped in his chest faster. Could he be so egoistic to let people die just to stand by his reasons? Fingers twitched and spammed.

"Damnit!" He hiss under his hands that covers his face. Nobody sees Leon crying. Not even close ones. No, he doesn't give them the luxury of seeing his "weaker" side. It's just a passing thing, bullshit. Why does someone need to see someone sobbing? That's futile. At least, in his mind, that's how the world goes.

Knees draw into your belly, elbows above them. Why was he crying so much? Come on, Leon was a man! He's been through absurd and chaotic things, and come out of them with just a few cuts or scratches! Now's he's crying like a damn child!

His thumb nail slips to his front teeth, wearing away the surface. Eyebrows wrinkle. He feels his eyes burning. Are those... Tears?

"Please make this stop!"

He rocks himself back and forth, failing miserably to sooth himself.

"Please

Please

Please—"

A thic accent voice surprises Leon. "Cabron?"

Luis. Oh yes, he forgot he was here. After the events in Spain, Leon opens the doors of his home for him. He basically saved his life so it's some sort of repay.

Leon gasps stupidly loud for a grown man. He turns his back at the spaniard, considering that he already knows he's awake. The blonde plays dumb and closes his eyes.

Luis chuckles at the sight of Leon, shaking his head and making his way into the bedroom. "Ay no need to play dead mi amigo." He sits at the edge of the bed, hands laced, voice incredibly calm. "What's wrong cowboy?"

Leon hasn't gained too much intimacy. He considered Luis as a... Colleague. A roomate. He was a nice person, weird most of the time and annoying, but nice. Luis is the type of person that you can trust just by looking in his eyes. Like a random stranger that you suddenly meet in your life and feels that you can trust your darkest secrets to him.

"Can't sleep. That's all." He says. Technically true, but that's not all.

"Shouldn't be up this time." Luis convenently sighs.

"But you're too." True.

"Unforeseen. I had to use the bathroom." He chuckles. Leon mirrors his smile.

"Y'know," Leon sighs, sits up straight, hand in his hair. "M'just... Tired of all of this... Can't remember the last time I slept well."

Luis observers the soldier, like an owl. Baggy eyes, fuzzy blonde hair. Leon looks lost and hopeless. He has see this look before. The same when he dismissed Ada. The same when he thought that Luis was dead. The same when the Illuminados captured Ashley. He knows what Leon has been through. He feels it.

"It must be very difficult for you Leon," Luis looks down for a second and immediately turns his eyes back on the agent. "But that's all over. You, me, we are all safe now."

Blue eyes flush with realization. Safe. He repeats that out loud. Luis affirms. Leon is safe. There were times that he thought he wouldn't last, he would let his companions down, fail his purpose. But no. He did it. He's safe now.

"Leon." He calls.

Luis tucks the golden hair behind his ear. How did he got so close to Leon? Not that it was bothering him, quite the opposite. Leon looked back at Luis, as if he had all the answers in the world. Luis was kind. A shelter for all the cruelty and horrors of the world. He opens a smile. What a beautiful smile, Leon thinks. There is no malice, no playfulness here. Luis actually seems to be worried about the state of Leon.

"If there's anything you want to tell me, or if you just want a friendly shoulder to cry on, I'm here." He cups the side of his face. "I'm here for you Leon."

Lips quiver. There's no turning back now. Leon throws his arms around the spaniard, who welcomes him in his arms. He breathes in and sobs. Sobs loudly. Muffling against his chest. Luis pats his back, a calming hand runs on his hair, lips giving him small kiss on top of his head.

"There there," Luis coos. He can feels his nose on his scalp. "Cálmate, está bien. Estás bien." His voice as relaxing as a lullaby.

...

Leon finally composes himself, backing away from his chest as he wipes away his tears. Never does anyone look as serene as he's right now. "Thanks." He nods.

Luis smiles, as if he has nothing to be thankful for. "Feeling better?"

Leon hums a "Mm-hm."

Both remained in a comfortable silence, just the sound of his breaths hanging in the air.

"Do you think you can sleep now?" Luis asks.

"Mmm..." Leon bites his nail, shrugging while responding "Dunno" behind his teeth.

"Do you want me to stay here? I can... Tuck you in." He grins.

Leon spots him suspiciously, a light pink shade forming on his cheeks. "Tuck me in?" He scoffs. "What you think I am, five?"

"That's not what I said." Luis answers teasingly. "But you expect me to leave you awake? At this time?"

"I'm fine Luis..." Leon shakes his head. "Nonsense!" Luis spits. He extends his arms, fingers calling him. "C'mon." Leon raises his brow.

He whistles in, tapping one of his thighs. "Come here!" Leon never looked so confused. Why is he— did he actually just whistled?

"Absolutely not." Luis smirks with a cocky look. "Look you gotta sleep now, so you either sit here or I'll drag you myself."

At this point he got it. Leon felt himself slipping. It wasn't the first time he felt like this either. Something in his past made him feel this way. Sometimes he felt small. As if his clothes were too big for him. He didn't want to work or act like an adult. He wanted to hide under the covers and read a book. She wanted to take her teddy bears that she got as a gift and play with them. But it's okay because everyone wants to be child again!

Right?

"C'mon Leon. Let Tío Luis put you to sleep." He calls him one more time, in a husky voice.

Leon curl up in his shoulders, knees navigating to the man's lap. He clungs on him like a koala. "Muyyy bien..." He whispers. Leg bounces Leon, while he melts in Luis' arms. He doesn't want to admit this is actually working. He can't slip. He's not a child! Eyes widened with this thought. This should end.

"Are you sure this is-"

"Shh..." Luis get back to run his hands on his blonde hair. "Quiet. Close your eyes."

Leon is in no space to complain. He would but- well he's too exhausted. He will talk to him in the morning.

He clears his throat. "Luis..."

"What now, mi vida."

"Can you uh..." Nails dig into the man's shirt. He feels his face warming, so he tries to hide in his chest. "Take... My paci?"

He chuckles. "Your what? Your paci?" Luis stares at Leon amusedly. The blonde snorts, turning his eyes away. The other man laughs and forgives himself. "Aww I'm sorry mi amor! Sure I'll get your binky!" Leon gets surprised at how easily he accepted.

Carefully holding the boy in his arms, Luis pulls the drawer of his nightstand and finds a adult pacifier, blue shield with a paw print on the middle. Leon lightly parted his lips so that the plastic nipple could enter his mouth. Luis smiles proudly at how adorable Leon looked.

"There we go. Feeling good buddy?" He asks. Leon nods.

Luis gently wraps his arm under the boy's shoulder, other holds his knees while slowly rocking the already sleepy baby in his chest. "Good boy."

His head rests on top of his clavicle, secure chest keeps his torso close to him. Luis adjuts himself against the pillows, his back resting on them. He rocks the baby in his arms, slowly. He looks down at the boy. So calm in his sleep. Chest rising and falling with each breath, paci pecked in his lips bouncing. Eyelashes kissing his cheeks. What could possibly Luis ask more than this. He couldn't be more grateful.

Finally, comfort. All the solution for his problems were right here. Luis would look after Leon, like he always did. Keeping him safe in his arms scaring away all the bad stuff in the world. His eyes fluster until there was no left strength, and they eventually close. Luis smiles proudly of his boy. His sweet and lovely boy.

Luis brushes a strand of hair from his face, leaning down to leave one last kiss on his crown.

"Sweet dreams mi angelito."

...

[runabout-river]

Thoughts on JJK Chapter 250 (spoilers)

This chapter is marked by us getting to know Yuta's DE and Sukuna being pushed around in it. Next chapter will most likely be about Sukuna finding a counter against the trio and maybe destroying Rika.

That's one hell of a Sukuna face up there.

We learn that Yuta's DE provides him an infinite number of CTs he can draw from with the only weakness that he doesn't know which CT is in which sword. Holding more than two swords would also hinder him from fighting and blocking but he might put one sword in his mouth in a pinch

Sukuna is still weakened by the fight against Gojo (RIP Kashimo) and can't use his DE. His RCT is also sluggish and his total amount of CE is on par with Yuta right now. Which is still much of course, Yuta had always been known as the sorcerer with the most CE

Yuji being thrown by Rika is hilarious, absurd and fitting because he's tough in a HR kind of way.

This chapter is also the first one where rescuing Megumi actually feels like a possibility and sth the good guys want to do primarily. Yes, we had that short moment with Gojo but his fight had a different focus most of the time.

It's also worth noting that Sukuna speaks about himself as a cursed object inside Megumi. In case he meant that literally then they're not as fused together as I always thought. That might be sth that only applies to Yuji, Megumi and Hana though. For every other vessel, we know that their consciousness gets erased.

Even Sukuna asks how they trained in the last month because of the sophisticated way Yuta's Domain barrier is constructed as well as the defences of the others. While Yuji answers with good old discipline, Yuta slips up and says that they cheated.

HOW? Was this the body swapping technique that Yuji had used? Or some other way where they collectively powered up? Did the evil trio train too? Probably not.

French boy gets a moment to shine after not being seen for... 100 chapters? I'm baffled at the 3rd CT that Sukuna mentions though. I don't remember a sorcerer like that and who knows how many more CT there are in Yuta's arsenal.

My thoughts on Yuta's DE deleting the copied CT isn't the case apparently, except that kind of drawback will be revealed after the domain collapses and Yuta survives long enough to use his CT again

Yuji is loath to admit it, but Sukuna is The Strongest Sorcerer on Earth now and even when Gojo comes back, that title will be lost for him forever

And Cleave on Sukuna! It's not annihilating but it still gave him some deep cuts. Yuta probably hoped for more damage but their strategy to chip away at Sukuna is working until now.

But what about Megumi? I can't even imagine how this will play out. Even if he is roused from his Bath, will he want to take control? He feels responsible for Tsumiki's death and that won't be different for Gojo.

Tsumiki's soul is with him but I don't think they're able to communicate at all. As far as Sukuna knows, Megumi was also completely dormant in the last month, however much that is true we'll hopefully see in the next few weeks.

Some thoughts about Megumi from the last year:

Sukuna will put his hands together to finally expand his domain again but instead of his hand seals, the hand seal for Chimera Shadow Garden will form and Megumi will expand his domain

Inside the domain, Megumi forms a clone of himself and faces off against Sukuna face-to-face.

Megumi might also have gained the collective knowledge of everything that Sukuna and Gojo know. For Sukuna by having a reverse memory grab like how Sukuna knows Megumi's memories. For Gojo because of his Unlimited Void hitting Megumi 5 times with every piece of information Gojo imparted into his technique.

[mywingsareonwheels]

I think it's often useful to remember that however terrifying, horrifying, vicious, and generally hateful bigotry is, it's also really really silly.

I mean, what do transphobes think they're DOING. Making all of this enormous, disgusting fuss just because a small number of us have genders they don't automatically understand and would like to get on with living in a way that's true to ourselves?!?!!?! It's *absurd*. I mean. The state of them. [/Clare Devlin voice]

It's fucking scary being trans in the UK right now and I can't claim I'm seeing the funny side of any of this, but I am trying to keep that sense of how ridiculous the "gender criticals" are being because I find it powerfully validating.

Also they want to hear from people who are *actually* critical of gender, as in critiquing it from a place of knowledge and understanding and engaged thought, they should try listening to actual trans people. (I originally said "talking to trans people" but no, they need to stop doing that entirely until they have learned better.)

[devastatinglygreen]

hmmm, after seeing these rumours (I'm choosing to disregard those rumours about 7&8, they seem a little absurd) about a potential carriage scene pt2, I remembered some filming leaks about a potential stunt double for LN on a horse that was theorized to be his big return in episode 1, but now I'm thinking it might be Colin chasing down Pen's hack for the LW reveal!! Or the stunt guy lied about who he was a double for lol. Or that was a planned sequence that got cut for whatever reason?

idk what's going on anymore, the polin brainrot is real- so I think the responsible thing to do is to simply walk into the ocean until pt 2 drop day o7

i feel like there's been a few cut scenes so it very well could be something they cut but i also feel like i heard luke newton say something about a horse. not being on one or i don't know tbh, they started showing polin kissing and and i let go of all info held in my head before that moment.

gonna put the 7 & 8 stuff under the cut so people can skip if they want:

so, here's the thing about the 7 & 8 nonsense that i know. it looks like a mix of 3-4 different things. none of which have any proof to be what people have assumed.

there was a twitter thread of someone saying they thought this new ambrosia character would be a sex worker, added in with that interview that he would go to a brothel after the fight. they also posted or commented on on reddit when the info was found months ago that they thought she'd be a sw. there's nothing to suggest this so far and the only thing we know is she would be opposite of luke. apparently both luke and the guy who plays will follow her on ig.

here's the reddit thread of spec saying that she was actually part of the reshoots under the director for 7 & 8. also the winking, garden party, probably a brothel scene or both, idk, a lot was reshoot for pod person colin apparently.

add in the girl saying she has seen things through someone (this is hotly debated because obviously, i have no idea if she's given any sort of proof yet but it's just her word at the moment) but she doesn't say he cheats, she said people will be mad at him and it takes half an episode for colin to come around, people will be mad at some other bridgertons, and micheal is a girl (also hotly debated because for fran's story would be extremely changed if that was the case and people have said that the actor they're saying is micheal plays a different character (not sophie tho)). i can't say if they're wrong or right because there's no proof to say anything about any of it. grains of salt are needed.

followed by an interview where one sentence made everyone decide that he must do something. listen, i get why the framing of the sentence sounds off. it could be any number of things, a scene reshot later, added later, something totally unrelated, it was about the first half and it was worded badly, etc.

so you know, i know we're all sensitive to stuff but also let's remember how people flipped out with the brothel stuff and how sensationalized it was. they acted like he was going out every night to take part in a threesome. they literally had context for why he was doing it and still managed to be totally wrong in the scenes themselves.

remember how many theories of red flags came out about colin after that info and he was the literal worst only to be met with "demisexual colin is true actually"?

that's just my take on it anyways.

[runwayrunway]

No. 36 - Riyadh Air

No, they are not changing their name to Saudi Arabian Airways, but there is a new development on the Saudi Arabian flag carrier front.

That's right, Saudia is dead, sayonara you w-

No. That isn't true, that was a joke. But what isn't a joke is that Riyadh Air is a planned second flag carrier for Saudi Arabia.

That's mostly a joke. Other countries have multiple flag carriers, though that comes with a couple caveats. Usually when this happens one is full-service and international while the other is domestic and/or low cost. The UAE has two flag carriers, but one is Dubai's and the other is Abu Dhabi's, which feels like an important distinction.

Saudi Arabia, on the other hand, just has decided they want to operate a second airline instead of doing the normal thing and putting all their resources into one really good airline. I don't understand it. The plan is to keep Saudia based in Jeddah while Riyadh Air is based in Riyadh...again, plenty of airlines have multiple hubs, so I don't see the point. They claim to be the first "digital-native airline", which is shaped like words yet means nothing (also, take that up with David Neeleman and Breeze). They've nabbed Etihad's old CEO and bought a bunch of 787s, and the stated goal is to become the largest carrier in the Gulf region at an unprecedented blistering pace in order to increase tourism. Given Emirates's numbers...well, it's probably still more likely to happen than a startup airline operating exclusively A380s managing to turn a profit, but that's not saying much.

Anyway, they've got a livery! Apparently this is the first of two, so expect a follow-up post when the second one drops, but for now there's plenty to talk about as is.

Unlike many - nay, most - of the subjects I cover, Riyadh Air has made me do absolutely zero research. You do get modern liveries like jetBlue and Lufthansa with little style guides to weakly attempt to back up their relatively mundane graphic design choices and things like condor and Icelandair's lovely little webpages, but Riyadh Air has done them all at least one if not several better by not only explaining in detail where they got their inspiration but also giving me a high-res 3D model of their airplane that I can rotate and zoom in and out on.

Take care; my computer is fairly underpowered and I do have an absurd number of tabs open most of the time, but this did crash my browser multiple times. Even just opening the main page of their website makes my CPU sound like it's spooling up for takeoff.

Okay. First I want to discuss the logo. They've got a video up on their thought process. I had transcribed it, but it looks better in motion, and thankfully they've stopped making it autoplay (presumably because, as I mentioned, this website absolutely guzzles processor as is) and in the process made it possible for me to simply left-click it off their website and into this post. Don't worry about it killing your browser. It's a normal video in a normal tumblr post without a 100 million dollar website chugging along in the background.

(I've taken some screenshots in case anyone does have trouble with the video.)

Now this is how you design a logo. The airplane window thing feels, in retrospect, so obvious I can't believe nobody had done it yet. I think it pairs gorgeously with the R, and I love that they chose to take inspiration from Arabic calligraphy, which is not only a massive point of pride for cultures which utilize the script but also just generally gorgeous. (It looks a bit like a stretched backwards hamza to me.) The shape of the bird's wing is the part I have the most trouble actually connecting to what I'm seeing, but sure, I'll give it to them. What the heck. This logo is nice.

I mentioned when discussing China Airlines that very few airlines use lavender as a primary color. Well, here's one that does! They actually discuss this on their website as well:

Inspired by the lavender blossoms that carpet Saudi Arabia, we've chosen this color because it symbolizes Saudi generosity and its authentic hospitality.

And this is, again, pretty fantastic. This is a thoughtful choice which isn't lazy or arbitrary. It has the potential to really pack a visual punch, and it does the thing I love when flag carriers do - references a feature of its home nation.

An upside to the fact that the livery page takes eons for my computer to chew on is that I get shown this lovely loading screen, which demonstrates the fantastic combination of blues and purples which make up the full scheme of this airline's colors. I love the combination of these colors. Light saturated colors are rare enough, but to see extremely dark blues and purples together like this is a rare delight. It definitely has the potential to get eyestrainy, but if done well it could look absolutely breathtaking.

But will it be done well? After all, a good idea isn't always well-implemented - see condor - and China Airlines's livery fails for me because it's barely got any lavender! So does Riyadh Air fall into the same pit? Let's check the browser-destroying 3D model they've lovingly provided us.

I love that 3D model, by the way. Instead of looking for a bunch of pictures of airplanes that happen to be in the correct lighting and at the right angle to demonstrate the exact thing I'm attempting to discuss I can just...zoom in while putting the plane at the specific angle I want. Normally I actually try not to rely too heavily on things like style guides because a piece of flat-colored concept art isn't actually going to communicate how a plane looks in motion and with light on it, but this is a really really robust model. Sure, it's not quite as maneuverable as I'd like it to be, it's still not a perfect representation of real life, but it's really well made. It even sways side to side a bit and if you zoom in close enough you can see they bothered to model the external sensors and the engines are even turning! Don't worry about the fact that if you zoom in even further you can tell the engines are just a fan suspended floating in a cowling. They even added ambient engine sounds. This model is so cool it legitimately took me several minutes of turning it around and muttering "wow..." under my breath before I realized the environment it was sitting in was just some very stretched and crunchy jpgs.

Mmm, those reflections.

To be honest, I also just enjoyed playing with this thing. It's almost like having a real model plane, but doesn't cost more money than I have! But enough of that.

So they definitely didn't chicken out when it came to the lavender. This plane is as purple as a Breeze Airways plane is blue (it is very purple). It's not just a purple tube, though. Even from a distance you can see that there's added detail here.

I love the wordmark, first off. They've really committed to the billboard look with this gigantic text in both English and Arabic. I love it. With such an overwhelming main body color it feels prudent to make sure the name is as visible as possible so it doesn't get lost in the shuffle.

And with this gigantic, recognizable logo plastered on the bottom you'd be able to identify it just as well from below (and this is zoomed out as far as the website let me!). In fact, the depth of the design really shines best from below. That's not necessarily a good thing, because your plane does have to be parked sometimes, but it's not a dealbreaker either. I just need to say that this is probably my favorite design for an engine nacelle, ever. It's gorgeous, and you can see in the first picture how well it flows into the main design. They don't go together quite as well from the bottom, and from below the plane does look a bit rear-heavy and the wordmark peering in is a bit awkward, but none of those ruin it. I would be stunned if I saw this fly overhead.

The website provides a few details about the design if you zoom in and click little black dots. It took me ages to realize this. It's neither intuitive nor accessible and I truly despise it, so I've taken the liberty of transcribing the bits that matter.

You can turn this plane in any which way you'd like, zoom in and out, and the details on the bottom never stop being beautiful and coherent. It truly does remind me of calligraphy. As they describe it:

Rooted in our Heritage The controlled, smooth linear profiles make up our signature "Canopy Twist". A perfect balance of our rich local culture and our modern global outlook, connecting the city of Riyadh to the world.

I love the name 'Canopy Twist', to be honest. And I love the design, too. My one criticism of it is the colors. They already have an established secondary shade of purple. That they used the text color for the highlights makes sense, but why couldn't they have used their lavender instead of a third shade of purple? In the quantity used for the underside it feels disconnected from the rest of the livery and they could have fixed that very easily by just...using their already existing secondary shade of purple? I think it would make for a very nice bridge to the tail as well, and it just feels like a colossal missed opportunity.

You may have noticed that the bulk of the fuselage body is a color a bit darker than what might conventionally be considered 'lavender'. This, too, is noted.

Indigo Livery Inspired by the ever-changing colors that paint the sky from dusk till dawn. A symbol of tranquility, harmony and integrity.

(This color is obviously purple, not indigo, but I will not belabor that point.)

I love the description, the idea of the transition between dusk and dawn. Much like the window as a basis for a logo, this makes me go "why in the world has nobody thought of that before? That's brilliant!"

It makes me think a bit more could have been done in the details. Maybe the canopy twist could be a gradient, like the gradient of the sky while the sun is rising? Just a thought.

And ultimately it's the canopy twist that is my only real sticking point with this livery. It is beautiful and unique and well-designed and it is simply a color that sticks out like a sore thumb. It's the only warm thing creeping into a design otherwise full of beautiful cool tones, it has gorgeous flow within itself but breaks up the feeling of consistency through the airframe as a whole, and I just...I really wish it were lavender.

If that's my main issue you can do a lot worse. And overall I do like the Riyadh Air livery. If that one detail was changed, this would easily be an A. This review would be all but uncritical. Except for the fact that it could use a bit of canopy twist up top, too (maybe just a tiny bit on the top of the nose, flowing in the same direction) in order to make the plane feel less rear-heavy (though it already beats out the vast majority of liveries in that sense), the issue with the color is my only big criticism. But it's the main detail of the design, isn't it?

It's wild. So much of the time my reviews are "good details, bad when you step back". But this is the opposite. Fantastic, but there's that one detail that sticks with you. And the details by and large are far from bad too. I mentioned the nacelles, and I think it very elegantly transitions the tail into the body. It would be more elegant if the design on the body was the same lavender, though!

A few more nitpicks: the centering of the logo on the tailfin is a little strange, the tail would look better if it had a bit of a gradient to make it less matte-seeming, and the combined effect of those is very luxury-hotel-towel-monogram. Okay. I'm done complaining.

So it falls short of being one of the best I've ever reviewed, but I still really, really like it. The calligraphy inspiration creates these elegant sweeping lines that are perfectly at home on the 787. The deep purple looks luxurious despite the fact that Riyadh Air doesn't plan to offer first class. It's eyecatching. It's stylish.

And, now that I've covered all this, let's look at the colors in person! That's right, they've already had a plane delivered in full Riyadh Air colors.

The deep purple with the lighter canopy twist, combined with the tiny white dots of the various probes and such, make this plane look like an animal camouflaging itself against the night sky in a place untouched by light pollution. The light lavender contrasts sharply in this particular image, sharply enough that it feels like a slice cut out of the plane.

This continues to be an issue from other angles and in other lightings, but the cool-toned light makes this purple look like true indigo and the blueish cast improves the look, giving an almost fluorescent appearance to the transition between the twist and the tail. The way the light reflects off the dark paint makes it look rippling and shifting and alive in a way it never could off white.

In shadow, the plane looks as dark as a city sky. In light, the vibrant purple of a fresh eggplant. This paint job adapts wonderfully to its environment. Much like Vietnam Airlines's, each light brings out a unique beauty.

And sometimes, the tail, detached though it may look, does so in the way a shining arm of a spiral galaxy neatly transitions into the black expanse around it.

Riyadh Air's planes range from ultraviolet to supervoid, but they are never lost in their environment. The principles behind the design remain consistent, and beautiful, and alone in a sky full of planes which refuse to embrace the dark skies they fly in on red-eye journeys.

Ultimately, I think Riyadh Air's livery feels a bit overdesigned. They added one color too many, and a few decisions feel like they don't belong together in the same picture. Just think about the amount of colors here, the balance of major features, and think about Vietnam Airlines, and you'll see what I mean. I'm not a fan of minimalism, but sometimes the only way to keep a story straight is to minimize loose ends. A secret becomes exponentially more likely to be exposed with each new person who learns it.

But before I looked closer, before I zoomed in and out on a little 3D model while my computer screamed, I saw this livery for the first time and my jaw hit the floor. And the average person isn't going to think about this the way I do. Ultimately, my critical eye is usually something I defer to, but I can't argue with the fact that this livery is going to be to someone else what China Airlines is to me. And, like China Airlines, when they come back and look closer at it they'll notice it wasn't as perfect as they thought, but...we've come so far, if this is someone's China Airlines. And as much as I nitpick at details the package counts, too. If you asked me why China Airlines got a C- instead of a D+, my honest reason would be...it struck me enough that I singled it out to begin with, even though that started to fall apart when I looked closer.

Why am I giving Riyadh Air an A- instead of a B+? Because this plane will stun people 5,000 feet below it, and they'll think to themselves that it's the prettiest plane they've ever seen.

[idkhow-but-im-here]

OK OK OK OK OK

I finally finished Good Omens season 2 and I have so many fucking thoughts which I will list in no particular order:

The Doctor Who references are always golden. (somewhat related: that part when Crowley was bullshitting about war regulations in front of Shax & co in the bookshop? super reminiscent of Ten’s speedy sci-fi jargon)

The music, as always, fucking slaps, especially at the end of each episode when the theme is played in a related style I love it so much

Nina and Maggie!!! I do really like them as a ship (coffee shop + record shop? that’s a built-in au fic) but I also like how they’re not actually together at the end. I love how they’re so healthy in how they go about their potential relationship, both acknowledging how messed up it was for Aziraphale/Crowley to meddle with their lives and how dumb it would be to rush into something headfirst regardless of all the shit they had been through both togther and as individuals. Also Fuck Lindsay all my homies hate Lindsay, as much as I liked what they did with visualising her shitty messages (the blackboard and crumpled notepad sheets? because of coffee shop reasons and how Nina’s work and love life was suffocatingly forced together by the incessant behest of Lindsay)

<The dancing/ball/Jane Austen vibes3

Beezelbub and Gabriel!?!? When I first came across this ship on ao3 I thought this ship made somewhat sense but would stay in the realms of fanon yet here I am disproven and I can’t lie… they’re kinda cute together. I was caught off guard (like every other character) but fair dues to them. Their parallels with the ineffable husbands are just ughh *chef’s kiss*

^alpha centauri!!!^

Peter Davison and Ty Tennant??? Their appearances did make me giggle for meta’s sake. Perhaps a Georgia Tennant appearance in season 3? (if they make it please please please say they’ll make it)

WAS CROWLEY ACTUALLY RAPHAEL??? I thought it was just a headcanon/fan theory (which I did fall in love with after watching this beautiful animatic years ago) but Crowley having access to classified files and the Metatron mentioning that an archangel being cast out has happened before??? it’s becoming more and more plausible.

AND JUST PRE-FALL CROWLEY IN GENERAL HE LOOKS SO HAPPY all he ever did was ask valid questions goddamnit (literally). nebulae are very pretty I would also be indignant if they weren’t gonna stick around for long. AND THE PARALLEL TO THE FIRST EPISODE WITH THE WINGSSS

Crowley just being a good nice decent person all throughout time (the goats, children, helping out elspeth, ect) it makes me happy

ANDD Aziraphale’s reactions (both positive and negative) to aforementioned deeds create a great moral foil to Crowley and perfectly builds up to what we see at the end (I’ll probably write about s2 Aziraphale in a different post because man I have so many thoughts)

Crowley’s callbacks to the date lunch at the Ritz!! Him talking to Nina and Maggie about taking Aziraphale to the Ritz again to him pointing out the lack of a nightingale (idk if that was leaning into meta a little but it didn’t bother me) just HURT so damn much

“Emotional damage support angel” you’re damn right he is/was

The battery-powered candles lmfaooo and literally any reference to the fire, including the absurd number of fire extinguishers, had me giggling

Muriel is a goddamned (or not so in some sense) treasure, a little ray of sunshine with a heart of gold and dumb of ass. I adore her and found Aziraphale and Crowley humouring her hilarious.

THE SECOND COMING??? I’m sorry wHAT WE ALREADY HAD THE ANTICHRIST NOW WE’RE DEALING WITH CHRIST CHRIST? YOU CAN’T LEAVE US WITH JUST THAT MR. GAIMAN

and of course the bloody

K I S S

THAT WHOLE SEQUENCE OF CROWLEY FINALLY FINALLY OPENING UP AND JUST BEING WHOLEHEARTEDLY HONEST (going against his predisposition and entire NATURE to lie/omit or walk around the truth)

CONFESSING HIS TRUE FEELING AFTER COUNTLESS MILLENNIA OF PINING EVEN AFTER AZIRAPHALE DROPPED THAT BOMBSHELL

AND HALF STORMING OFF BEFORE GOING BACK TO KISS THE SHIT OUT OF HIM AND THEN FULLY STORMING OFF

with aziraphale clearly unsure of how to react BUT STILL TOUCHES HIS LIPS IN SHOCK AS HE WATCHES CROWLEY LEAVE

That shit had me fully standing up on the sofa, arms in brace position, gasping, screaming, close to tears, indignantly repeating “NEIL GAIMAN!” every couple of seconds

Truly a brilliant scene and a brilliant season overall.

As always the cast, the writers, the set designers, the effects artists, the costumers, the camera crew, everyone who had a part in creating go2 was fucking fantastic.

[reviewinghiccup]

HAPPY ANNIVERSARY HTTYD FANDOM! | HTTYD TALKS | DRAWING PARALLELS

Can you imagine? It's has been 13 years since the world of Berk and the archipelago opened up to us. Since we entered this crazy, viking village 12 degrees north from hopeless and a few degrees south of freezing to death.

I reckon the HTTYD anniversaries might kick off a little differently for fans all over the globe depending on its opening, because DreamWorks commemorated the HTTYD's 13 years on the 22nd of March on Instagram, though I distinctly remember it opening where I was on the 27th because it was also my birthday and I wanted to watch a movie.

Which means, yes, guys, I'm turning 24 today! HAHA! To mark this double celebration, I thought of doing something fun and a little different from my usual posts just to get the ball rolling. So, question, have you guys ever watched She's Out of My League?

She's Out of My League is a Jay Baruchel movie. A rom-com produced by Paramount Pictures AND (wait for it...) DreamWorks Pictures. It was released in March 2010 which meant that our Hiccup-voice-actor here had two movies playing at the cinema simultaneously.

I remembered that I wasn't allowed to watch the movie, but my older brother (10 years older than me) snuck me into the theatres to watch. I remember him covering my eyes for a bit and not understanding a lot of the humour back then, but I did remember the premise, so here goes...

Premise:

Kirk (Jay Baruchel) is your everyday, average Joe. Coupled w the fact that he is somewhat a pushover and insidiously insecure, he tries to get back with his manipulative ex-girlfriend Marni. After that failed, he stumbles onto the path of the beautiful Molly, who by beauty standards, personality and life-style choices is considered a hard 10, while he is rated a mere 5.

When Molly seems to take an interest in Kirk, the whole world is put out of balance and their friends smell impending doom by virtue of their different "social ratings." However, are these standards real, or just a social construct that needs debunking?

______________________________________

I'm not here to criticise the movie. I'm sure we all have our thoughts. Nor am I saying that this movie or the romantic storyline holds a candle to the HTTYD franchise or Hiccstrid, but, it was hilarious to discover a number of parallels between these two worlds.

DRAWING PARALLELS

THE CHARACTERS

Kirk Kettner (Jay Baruchel) - The awkward underdog, highly underestimated by everyone including himself and doesn't see that he is, in fact, more than his make.

Molly (Alice Eve) - The beautiful, blonde and determined love interest. Lawyer turned successful events planner. Independent, fiercely confident and a real go-getter.

Devon (Nate Torrence) - The nicer friend in Kirk's friend group. An adorable, huggable sweetie pie who still believes in magic and romance.

Dylan (Kyle Bornheimer) - The guy you'd love to hate. He is Kirk's overbearing older brother who bullies Kirk to mask his own insecurities.

Stainer (T.J. Miller) - The quick talking, witty side-kick whose crazy ideas propels the storyline into an absurd direction. Who is actually, also Tuffnut.

Katie (Kim Shaw) - Molly's younger, dimwitted sister who is just getting by.

Patty (Krysten Ritter) - Molly's best friend and business partner. Strong-willed, independent and fiercely loyal.

THEME, MESSAGE & STORYLINE

(1) IT ISN'T ABOUT HOW YOU LOOK LIKE, BUT WHO YOU ARE ON THE INSIDE

It's a cliche to say, beauty is from within. But it doesn't make it less true. I think what makes Molly attractive is because she is a really nice person, adaptable. Her beauty is an aspect of it. Imagine if Molly had Marni's personality. The story would've turned differently.

This is also Kirk's selling point. The pinnacle of his entire personality is the nice guy card, it's what attracts Molly.

Likewise w Hiccup, he is a genuinely good guy. You can't fault him for his courtesy. Though Kirk's personality seems more like a caricature of Hiccup's, ironically. And, Hiccup's strength and leadership is not something you'd notice on his person but in him.

(2) YOU NEED TO BE GOOD ENOUGH FOR YOURSELF

I loved Portrait of Hiccup as a Buff Man [Episode 8, Season 1 (Riders of Berk)] for many reasons, but mainly because it was the episode Hiccup proves to himself that he is worthy.

She's Out of My League was a movie about Kirk learning that he is worthy. That he isn't just a five, that this whole rating system is nonsense. He was always good enough for Molly, he was never good enough for himself.

DON'T FORGET TO VOTE FOR YOUR FAVOURITE EPISODES FROM RIDERS OF BERK. THE LIST IS OPENED ALL WEEK!

Which is your favourite ROB episode (Part I)

Which is your favourite ROB episode (Part II)

Though She's Out of My League didn't dive into Kirk and Molly's relationship and life after they got back together, I am assuming Kirk found his courage in someways. He ends up flying a plane, which is a life long dream of his, he dreamt of becoming a pilot. And well, we all know that if Hiccup existed today, and was a real person, he would've been a pilot too. Maybe in the AirForce, on a jet black plane named Toothless.

HICCSTRID MOMENTS

No review of mine is complete without Hiccstrid.

Kirk and Molly have roughly the same hair colour as Hiccup and Astrid. My favourite scenes in She's Out of My League are the romantic montages of them going out. This is one of my favourite shots from the show:

I crushed hard on Jay Baruchel. I mean, the dude has got some game. I mean, awkward af, but still, he's pretty cute. I mean... let me show you...

I'm still smiling!

THE ROMANTIC MONTAGES IN SHE'S OUT OF MY LEAGUE FELT LIKE A HICCSTRID AU FAN FICTION GOT PRODUCED INTO A MUSIC VIDEO!

I'm not recommending you guys watch this show by the way. If you haven't that is. If you're not used to this type of adult-comedy, you might not like it. The pacing is a little choppy, and it does slap you w many cringy moments. But sometimes, its just so ridiculously hopeless you can't help but laugh.

I don't remember if the show did well, but its not a bad movie (to me). It was underrated for what it was trying to accomplish, but it could definitely do w some refining . Like, I would've loved it if they developed the characters and the romance more.

But at the time the movie was released, I think a lot of people related to Kirk. The whole, "on a scale of 1 to 10" thing has messed w a lot of confidences.

As a teenager, I reckon that's more of a problem. I remember that popular girls in school were always pretty and the hot guys were always good looking. And well, it's hard to not believe that looks don't play a part.

But, once I grew out of it, I honestly found those attributes to come in second to many other qualities of a person. Looks just happen to be a bonus. Hahaha, look at me, a day older and already issuing unsolicited advice.

HAPPY ANNIVERSARY HTTYD FANDOM!

[qqueenofhades]

out of sheer curiosity, what are your thoughts on (if you've seen it) the movie "the death of stalin"?

I have seen it -- a few times in fact-- and honestly, I think it's brilliant. It plays fairly fast and loose with the history and condenses events over weeks/months into a matter of a few days, but a) it's not presenting itself as a historical documentary by any stretch of the imagination and b) in this case, the black comedy/satire is an especially effective approach. Russian humor, especially political humor, is generally very dark, possibly for obvious reasons, and that fits well in terms of the subject material. Secondly, what it does very well is to demonstrate the essential absurdity of life under an absolute dictatorship run by a guy who can either make a joke with you or kill you (as Nikita Khrushchev, played by Steve Buscemi in the film, had an actual quote about in re: what dinners were like with Stalin, and how you were never exactly sure what was going to happen at the end of the night; he could call a car to take you home or straight to prison).

See, for example, the opening scene where Stalin wants a recording of the performance and they have to all rush around madly, kidnap another orchestra conductor, and shove in people off the street to make the acoustics sound right, because if they don't fulfil the request perfectly, there is a very real chance that they will be sent to the gulag. The depiction of a bunch of random people getting arrested for literally no reason at all (and then hastily un-arrested) is also accurate. The Stalin-era NKVD were literally given target numbers of how many people they were supposed to arrest in any given city or region, regardless of whether those people had done anything wrong. It was a completely arbitrary and nonsensical system run by a man who, thanks to being called "Uncle Joe" in the American press during WWII, is still often generally treated as "not that bad" or less than the equally murderous and capricious dictator that he was.

What this does is to demonstrate the sheerly ludicrous ways in which people are forced to act to please an aging tyrant, and the consequences if they don't. As well, so many movies portray the Nazis/the Red Army/insert stereotypical baddie here as maybe evil, but also cool and competent and dashing and serious and otherwise really good at their job. And that is... not true. Hitler was regarded as a clownish loser both before and while he was in office, the Nazis were losers who also happened to be really good at killing people on an industrial scale, and these glamorous, serious portrayals give them a gravitas they don't deserve.

The saying about the banality of evil is also applicable here: we always want to assume supervillains have some grand complicated intellectual plot, but nope, it's just "kill people, steal their stuff, and take over the world." By treating the last years of Stalin's rule as the shitshow that they were, and exposing the essential absurdity of the Soviet system, the film relentlessly demystifies the idea that authoritarian regimes, despite (or even sometimes seemingly because of) their cruelty, are actually smart, well-organized, or highly functional. Instead, they're just a bunch of corrupt idiot cronies trying to keep their homicidal boss happy, get their share of the pie, stay out of trouble, and so forth, and a film that actually shows them as such, rather than evil but competent and cool and good at their jobs, is particularly relevant in this dangerously once-more-authoritarian-curious day and age.

(Also, of course, Jason Isaacs obviously stole the show.)

[raddocwrites]

SNW drabbles

Did I miss the wedding bells?

Ortegas breathed a sigh of relief and was about to enter their cell when the hairs on the back of her neck rose. She turned slowly and saw a solitary figure watching her from the shadows. She squared her shoulders and held her head up as the Klingon uncrossed his arms and casually pushed himself off the cave wall. He slowly ambled over.

Ortegas eyed him suspiciously as she took several steps forward. He was old for a Klingon, with a shock of white hair and an ample paunch around the middle. He smiled at her, which with Klingons, could mean several different things.

“You did well today, little warrior,” the Klingon rumbled in a deep, gravelly voice.

Ortegas blinked. She stood her ground and lifted her chin. She felt her hackles rise just looking at him. The sound of Klingon battle cries and screams and explosions flashed through her mind.

The Klingon chuckled and held out his hands showing he was no threat. (Like she was going to believe that). He slowed his approach and stopped several feet from ortegas and the entrance to their alcove.

“I mean it. Many do not survive their first day here. Congratulations on keeping all your mates alive.”

Ortegas eyebrows rose so high they nearly disappeared. But the Klingon kept going. “It must be hard with so many wives. But you kept them all safe, even from themselves. ESPECIALLY from themselves, yes?”

Ortegas blinked again, not sure what to say. “Right,” she said noncommittally.

“It was honorable to see how you care for your youngest companion. She is injured, but anyone with eyes can see how beautiful she is.”

Something in his tone irked ortegas. She bristled. “She is an OFFICER in Starfleet,” she said sharply.

The Klingon exclaimed happily, “Agh! So she is smart as well. Truly a lethal combination.” He winked. “Almost as lethal as the small but ferocious one. Keeping her in line must be a full-time duty. Full time duty of…pleasure.” The Klingon actually winked at her.

Ortegas couldn’t decide if she should be offended or scoff at the absurdity. “No one controls la’an.” Except for maybe number one, ortegas thought, but didn’t add.

The Klingon laughed again. “As you say,” he declared, clearly not believing her. “Your tall spouse may think she is in command. But I see true. You, are the heart.” He eyed her up and down again. “Though coupling with her must be most entertaining. As you are tiny.”

Ortegas squared her shoulders and scowled. This had gone on long enough. “I am not anything but someone with experience being held prisoner. Except, this time, my captors aren’t Klingon.” Her nostrils flared and she clenched her fists. She blew out several breaths trying to stay calm.

The Klingon seemed to show actual regret. “Ahh,” he said slowly. “This is true. I understand, little warrior. It appears your wife in white, also understands. I am happy you have someone to share your grief with.” He patted his belly absently. “As I grow old and weak, it strikes as a fine thing. To have more than coupling. To have friendship as well.” He looked longingly beyond ortegas into their hovel. “I am jealous of your family,” he said with a sad tip of his head.

Ortegas still didn’t know what to say so she just watched him turn and walk away. After several seconds she shook her head and turned.

[nithringthekobold]

"What is an apple?"

"It's... A fruit."

"That is true. That is one of the many things an apple is. But that isn't what an apple is. A lot of things are fruits. Not all of them are apples."

"It's a small, round, red fruit that grows on a tree."

He nodded. "Yes, yes, you're certainly describing what an apple is. That might also describe a cherry. But I'm asking you to define one."

The theatre was silent.

"An apple is a piece of food. A fundamental piece of food. So fundamental, it's right up there with bread in terms of things that come to mind when we picture food. If you ask someone to think of a fruit, a majority will think of an apple first - they might not say it was their first thought, they might pick another fruit just to be awkward or to try to avoid sounding average, or to flaunt their knowledge of obscure exotic fruits. But it's like asking someone to think of a number, and most of them default to seven.”

No response.

Professor Blackmore continued. “An apple is a symbol. It's used in many different contexts to represent many different things. It might represent life, because of how fundamental a food it is. It might represent health, because of how nutritious it is and its notorious efficacy as a doctor repellant. It might represent knowledge, or free will, or temptation, or passion; all because of Adam and Eve, and the forbidden fruit. We'll just ignore the fact that the forbidden fruit was never specified to have been an apple and was more likely to have been a fig. Isaac Newton didn't begin to theorise about gravity because an orange fell on his head. The apple is the culprit at fault for burdening all those poor physicists with the terrible inconvenience of trying to explain what gravity is and why it is and how it works. A humble piece of fruit inspired one of the most brilliant minds in history into beginning to explain a fundamental building block of the universe."

He had crossed his arms in the midst of his rant, and begun pacing across the stage, looking into the eyes of various students without any particular pattern or intent. He was silent for a moment, as if to build suspense.

"Is gravity a more important or more fundamental concept in our universe than an apple? Is it a more complicated one?"

A few voices could be heard passively giggling, the sort of laugh one gives out of politeness when something is said that's strange or absurd enough to be a joke without actually being funny.

"That was neither a joke nor a rhetorical question. I was hoping someone would give an answer." 

No one was laughing now, as if for fear of drawing attention to themselves and being involuntarily selected to debate the topic. "Anyone?"

"Yes," someone said, after an awkward pause. 

"Yes what?"

"... Yes," she continued, "gravity is a more fundamental part of the world than apples. Gravity is more complicated than apples are."

"And why is that? Hm? Who are we to decide that?" 

He strode back to his podium, reached beneath its surface, and produced an apple from where it had been hiding on the shelf inside. 

"Gravity may be a grandiose, omnipresent thing in our world, something brilliant minds struggle to comprehend and explain. We can describe it, we can see its effects on the world and put them into words, but pinning down the what and the why of gravity is far from easy. But we can also describe an apple. We can put its physical traits into words, call it small, call it red, setting aside the fact that many are green or even yellow. We can categorise an apple as being a fruit, just as we can categorise gravity as being a physical force. We can take our understanding of these concepts and put them into words. But we cannot put the concepts themselves into words. If someone didn't know what an apple was, and you told them it was a small, round, red fruit, what's to stop them picturing a peach? Or a tomato?” 

The only reply from the crowd was a single, awkward cough.

“I can describe gravity, but can't define it. Earlier, you all showed me you could describe an apple, but fell silent when asked to define one. We can all conceive of what an apple is. The descriptors, even the word apple itself, are all labels we give to something that exists clearly in our minds. We can perfectly imagine the image of one, the taste, the scent, the feel of one in our hands. We know what an apple is. And it may be just a combination of traits, but that combination forms a whole greater than the sum of its parts, and something that is fundamental and indivisible. The core concept of an apple, if you'll pardon the pun, exists separately to the concept of what is "small" or what is "round" or "red". You can have a small apple, or a round apple, or a red apple, but all of those are two compound concepts. Two separate ideas brought together, but each able to exist alone. If you make an apple large, or blue, or square, we'd still recognise it as an apple, just with an extra concept tacked onto it. An apple is something you cannot reduce to a simpler idea. If you describe it as just a combination of its traits, you lose the quintessence of what makes it what it is. You really, simply, cannot divide an apple." 

He took a small knife from the podium shelf, cut the apple into slices, and took a bite of one. 

"Now, segueing from all that. Can anyone explain to me Plato's Allegory of the Cave?" 

[brown-little-robin]

hellooooo time for the JoJo half of this ask >:]

1: what got you into this story?

honestly, in a word? rebelliousness. I'd been told I wouldn't want to watch JoJo's Bizarre Adventures several times. The thing that pushed me over the edge was that my uncle saw me looking at his bookshelf entirely filled with JoJo and said I probably wouldn't like it, and I wanted to decide for myself. Also, I've been told not to watch JJBA while learning Japanese because the Japanese in it is really weird, and I can confirm this is true! But what am I learning Japanese for if not to know exactly how people misuse it?? I mean, I'm learning the language primarily to watch anime with. Come on.

what hooked me on JoJo was the absurdity. It employs clown-style humor—exaggeration past the bounds of even typical comedy which forces you past the edge of what you can consciously accept as real. watching JoJo requires ego death, and I kind of love that <3

5: do you have a favorite character? who?

oh this is so hard because JoJo has an enormous cast and I have many favorites (Jotaro, Kakyoin, Dio, Okuyasu, and Kars are the ones that come to mind), but overall, I'd say that Jotaro Kujo (JoJo number three) is the character who got deepest into my heart.

He's seventeen years old when he manifests a physical expression of his soul and thinks it's an evil spirit. He willingly goes to jail to protect everyone from it. While he's in jail, the "spirit" brings him creature comforts including blankets, manga, and cigarettes. Everyone in his cell is terrified of him because he's surly, silent, and exudes an aura of intense danger. Meanwhile, he's just reading his manga in silence and missing his mom. This is Jotaro Kujo in a nutshell: a self-aware manga main character, a guy whose affect comes off like a stone cold killer but who is actually just a quiet, awkward nerd trying to protect everyone he loves from dangers principally including himself. CRIES FOREVER. Jotaro.....

6: do you have a LEAST favorite character? who?

oh, man, well, there are a lot of really horrible and really horribly written characters in JoJo. But the one I have the most visceral loathing for is the villain Alessi, who likes to turn people into kids and humiliate them for fun. That creep deserved what he got.

7: how does the story compare to your initial impressions of it? has it surprised you yet? how?

Yeah, it's surprised me. For one thing, JJBA kind of has a reputation online that made me expect it to be... gayer. Not that it's not playing around with gender and sexuality, but it's weirdly a lot more subtle than I thought it would be. The way that JJBA examines masculinity is surprisingly complex, what can I say!! It exaggerates and heightens masculinity to the point of the absurd, to the point of looping back around into femininity, to the point of questioning our ideas of masculinity and femininity themselves; although maybe that's just me reading too much into it. Sometimes it's hard to tell, lol. but I'm getting a lot of excellent thoughts out of examining JJBA and gender and sexuality in critical but non-judgmental earnest :]

13: tell me an out-of-context piece of worldbuilding or lore!

oh boy.

okay, so, get this: Rhythmic Breathing is the opposite of vampires, because breathing puts OXYGEN in your BLOOD CELLS, whereas vampires take your blood OUT of your YOU. and FURTHERMORE oxygen lights tiny FIRES in your cells, which is like THE SUN, which famously KILLS VAMPIRES. so, through the power of breathing techniques, humans can kill vampires with their bare hands. <3

did I mention that JJBA starts out as a gothic vampire story? an 1880s vampire hunting story? :)))

14: how likely do you think this story is to break a reader's heart?

If you're the kind of person to get attached to side characters, quite likely!!! however, it's fundamentally un-serious, so it's not necessarily going to leave you with a gaping hole in your chest for the rest of time like a lot of tragedies do.

The whole idea of JoJo's Bizarre Adventure is that it's a generational epic. Every Part (there are Parts 1 through 6 in the original timeline) follows a different main character (all nicknamed JoJo) from the Joestar family; it spans six generations. and, uh, not to get too spoiler-y, but. a lot of the characters die. including the main characters and the secondary characters that people get most attached to. so. yeah. like half of my favorites are dead at this point.

19: pitch an idea for a sequel or spinoff novel for this story!

alsdkfjslkdfss like JoJo's isn't already a series of sequels and spinoffs <333 but I did write this ask game, so I brought this upon myself.

how about this: I'd like to see a spinoff novel that's just straight-up slice of life about Jotaro getting his PhD in marine science while living with trauma <333 (the crowd continues fidgeting idly, unsurprised that Robin, local plotless trauma story enjoyer, wants another plotless trauma story about her favorite character)

22: FREE SPACE: say anything you want about the story!! <3

Here's a short bit of musing on why I'm willing to immerse myself in a story that has so many things that make me feel uncomfortable (including gore, crude language, and sexualization of both women and men), speaking to the best of my ability:

First of all, no one has to do this. Of course not. But. it can be a growing experience to expose yourself to fiction that makes you uncomfortable. Personally, I have a tendency to get defensive and shut down when I'm uncomfortable, which doesn't help anything and just makes me unavailable to connect to people. And fiction is a guide, showing people how to process things through fiction before they feel safe/confident enough to approach them in real life. Exposing myself to stuff like JJBA has been helping me to learn to process fear, revulsion, moral conflict, confusion, and absurdity. In other words, watching JJBA is giving me the cognitive tools and experience to be able to listen to and dialogue with people who are different from me. I'm experiencing the world in a more vulnerable, yet resilient way. And that's—that's priceless.