#see the problem with these twins is they both have like 30 titles

[humming-fly]

sometimes self care is putting excessive amounts of detail into excessively silly shitposts

[farenmaddox]

pick my WIP

yo whats up everyone

I opened up my huge folder of unfinished WIPs (all Tsubasa-related) and lo and behold, I feel energized and interested in working on (at least) one of them. Which one to work on, this is the problem.

if anybody is still following me who CARES about my writing fanfiction, you should help me pick the WIP I should make some progress on. I actually have more than what I put on the poll, but I've only listed the ones I feel like I would want to work on, not every WIP I've ever had.

*Kurogane has two hands, etc.

**Ghost story: It's literally the first scene, so this is not really a spoiler: Kurogane dies in a fight before Tomoyo can send him on the journey. She and Yuuko connect with Holitsuba-verse because that's the only one where there's a healthy and sane version of Kurogane available, and they need HIM to go on the journey in place of ninja!Kurogane. He's like "I am a gym teacher and you want me to help you save the multiverse with what??? My dodgeball skills????"

***Raise Me Up (please god let me think of a better title, this one no longer feels right) is like, probably 30% already written??? I had six complete chapters and a huge pile of other scenes done when I abandoned it?)

ETA:

btw, forgot to say this, but the already-written parts of Drinks and Aníron are both available at my AO3 account if you want to poke at them and see if it influences your decision.

Drinks and Subtle Things

Aníron

[mywifeleftme]

128: Swearin' // Swearin'

Swearin' Swearin' 2012, Salinas (Bandcamp)

I never saw Swearin’ at a house show (though the bar I did see them at held maybe 30 people), but in the same way the smell of Sambuca makes my saliva queasily thicken, the second the needle drops on their s/t I get notes of Pabst, cigarette-couch/carpet, hot scalp, the wine of an overworked fan, giggling, keys jingling on carabiners, floor-lamp lighting, amp sizzle. (Pinning this idea for a band name here: Dirty Madeleine.)

Inane tag cloud ideas: loft apartment indie; park drinking punk; bike messenger affirmations; co-opcore; foragestyle; couch surf rock.

Me, as a YouTube commenter in nine years: I made out for the second time with the first girl I ever moved in with at a Swearin’ show! We don’t talk anymore, but I hope she is well.

Anyway, Swearin’ was always my fav of the Crutchfield twins’ many projects, emerging from the breakup of Birmingham, Alabama’s fondly remembered P.S. Eliot when Allison decided to pursue her own voice as a songwriter and move to NYC. She ended up dating and forming a band with Kyle Gilbride of Big Soda, and that band was Swearin’, so now you’re caught up.

The Crutchfield Twins’ Many Projects

Pre-2007: The Ackleys (Allison + Katie) 2007-2011: P.S. Eliot (Allison + Katie) 2011-present: Waxahatchee (Katie) 2012-2015, 2017-present?: Swearin’ (Allison) 2014-2017?: Allison Crutchfield solo 2022: Plains (Katie)

Robert Christgau said of P.S. Eliot, “Always there is the sound of becoming that the young treasure for one reason and the ex-young value for quite another,” and I think he’s on to what makes both Katie and Allison’s ‘00s and early ‘10s music so appealing—though the diaristic lyrics are angsty, sometimes irritable, or glum, there’s a comforting sense that they’re cool young people who are going to be Alright in the end. Even though the people in these songs may not have the details figured out, they know what the life they want feels like—and that translates into the aesthetics of the music. For Swearin’, it’s a form of comfortably broken-in indie rock with its influences (Breeders, the Merge Records catalogue, ‘90s pop punk, Julianna Hatfield etc.) so thoroughly subsumed that it sounds whole. Gilbride’s a big vocal presence here as well, his adenoidal whine a welcome contrast to Allison’s unfussed ‘90s alternative vibe. He takes lead on one of the self-titled’s real winners, the irresistible problem-party-guest narrative “Crashin’,” complete with a riff and solo that’d get a goofy thumbs up from the boys in Superchunk.

An album that is top-to-bottom charming like this one only needs a single stone classic to stay in the rotation for the long haul, and Swearin’ has one in “Just.” It’s an all-time romantic song in my personal canon, headlong as a crazy kiss in an alley, popping ‘60s girl group poses in the verses, with a chorus as elemental as they come. Crutchfield’s lyrics don’t miss either, mingling hesitation (“Closed off from love / I didn’t need the pain”) and dizzy desire (“I knew you had me the night we met / my empty room dripping wet / make believe we’re in my bed”).

Other Choice Words:

“Tennessee River, a drunken relapse / And her new girlfriend, she’s got a new girlfriend now.” (“Movie Star”) “Kings of the Airwaves / deprive and depraved / Fruit from the market / Demo tape cassette” (“Hundreds & Thousands”) “An artist’s mind / is stimulated by the aesthetic / I don’t know about art / but I think your music’s shit.” (“Fat Chance”)

Swearin’ cut a second very good record before calling it quits when Gilbride and Crutchfield broke things off, but they had a fine comeback with 2018’s Fall into the Sun, and I surely wouldn’t mind more from them. Consider this a call for like, Steve Malkmus to dial them up next time Pavement needs an opening act. Let’s do this.

128/365

[animecreator3000]

About the Boueibu iceberg

@delphoxqueen asked me to explain about my list for the iceberg so here it is. I might update this from time to time with links and stuff if I stumble across the original posts. This is all from what I know so feel free to add new info. Also, spoiler warning for RobiHachi and the Boueibu manga and novels. (This is like a masterpost it’s very long)

1. There’s a theory in tumblr about which decade the series is set in, using data like the friday the 13th calendar in s2 ep11. In HK we got a second number for when the next monthly Pretty Boy Contest was happening and using the one from Love it was theorized that around a decade had passed since then, which ended up being true.

2. The stage play had a few original songs and characters exclusive to it so unless you watched the full performance, you probably weren’t able to witness all of them. One of the characters is called “Robato Deniro”, as romanized in the stage play booklet I own.

3. The nurse and the cafeteria staff from the s1 mobile game appear in the background in around the first half of s2 ep3.

4. S2 had an unfinished manga that was only available online and was never released on physical format; it was centered around the defense club and sometimes the conquest club and Beppu brothers. All that’s left from what I know are the scans linked on magicalgirlsandcerulean’s blog.

5. This isn’t that obscure because it’s talked about in the anime, but I’m mentioning it because I think many people dropped it before the ova, where right at the beginning it is revealed that the alien that resucitated Mr. Tawarayama twice was, as described by Io, a “mulberry-colored naked mole rat-looking thing”, and was nicknamed “Moley-san” by Yumoto. At least in the anime, we had never heard before of who this was and it never appeared on screen nor was mentioned again.

6. In HK ep8, Karurusu promises the knights to grant a wish if they show him how earthlings spend summer. Kyoutarou reveals at the end of the episode that he wished that summer lasted one more day so he could spend it doing nothing, which prompts Ichiro to theorize that it’s the 32nd of august, and the next day is the second 1st of september.

7. The stage play was was held from march 10th to 13rd, of which the latter is Ryuu’s birthday. There’s an additional recording of a small celebration with cake focused on Ryuu and Io.

8. Atsushi mentions his older sister in the flashback at the beginning of s1 ep4, but she never appears or is mentioned again.

9. There’s a few posts on tumblr theorizing about what happened to the Hakone parents since Yumoto only says in s2 ep3 that according to Gora, “they are busy with their hot springs tour”. En mentions that it’s a bit suspicious, but it’s all the information we have from the anime. Posts talk about the parents perhaps passing away from an accident or an illness, thus the reason why Gora was so worried about Yumoto’s cold in s1 ep10, but from another post I think it’s implied in the second novel that they actually left their home when Yumoto was still a toddler.

10. It’s no secret that the surnames of the characters are all real onsens in Japan that even the seiyuus have visited, but apparently the Arima onsen has two different kinds of water, “kinsen (gold hot spring)” and “ginsen (silver hot spring)”, with different properties each, and the Kusatsu onsen water also has certain properties, both that were used to build the characters. Additionally, Ryuu’s favorite food are Sato Nishiki cherries, which are grown in the same prefecture, Yamagata, as his onsen, Zaou.

11. The press club lose relevance after s1, with only Kinosaki and Tazawa reappearing briefly in s2 ep2 to interview the Beppu twins after they arrive at the school. Tazawa doesn’t even have lines. Hireashi is mentioned by Zundar in ep11.

12. What the heck

13. Exclusively in the manga we see that Arima met Kinshiro and Atsushi when they were little and they were good friends, but when they met again as adults, Kinshiro seemingly didn’t remember Arima. Atsushi, however, stated that Kinshiro’s talent is remembering people’s faces and names, so Arima wonders if he’s just trying to distance himself from him. He also explains to Akoya that he follows Kinshiro and obeys him because as a child, he was fascinated by his radiant smile. This is never talked about in the anime.

14. Like the previous point, the anime never shows Akoya being bullied, at most just a slight dislike of his full name, but the manga shows that he was made fun of for it and how he actually hates his surname, to the point of introducing himself formally to the president and vicepresident of the student council as “Holy Angel Akoya”.

15, 16, 17, 19. Batonama lives were the livestreams done through the franchise by the defense club seiyuus on youtube and niconico. They’re all on youtube, without any kind of translation.

Love-ko is a girl with a shell bikini drawn on a piece of cardboard that was used as a girlfriend in the Batonama Love! lives, acted by the seiyuus themselves.

RobiHachi has one episode full of official Boueibu artwork and a parody of the series too, a Love-ko doll appears, and Wombat appears as well, named “The Don”. It received an english dub, so for a bit, people were excited that Wombat was going to speak in english too. Also, various mechas appear in both Boueibu and RobiHachi.

18. The director of Fairy Ranmaru (Masakazu Hishida if I’m not wrong) revealed in an interview that he was inspired by Boueibu and aimed to make a show like that.

20, 21. The website super-groupies.com has results for defense and conquest club lingerie sets, dc and VEPPer tote bags, the Beppus’ scarf rings, dc bath sets and the pumps magicalgirlsandcerulean mentioned. I’ve found the s1 Loveracelets and Caerula Adamas’ ring on different sites, the True Loveracelets on TheChara’s twitter and the Happybraces (apparently called “Hapibure”) on broccoli.co.jp but I’m not sure where exactly they were all announced and sold, so I’ll just drop that.

22, 33. Boueibu was originally pretty much a copy of Sailor Moon, I think they were all going to be called “Lackluster Moon” and that stuff and be literally Sailor Moon genderbent. They were all different from color palettes to physical features (except Yumoto’s), and Ryuu was a shota, even smaller than Yumoto. Their names were also very reminiscent of the five Sailor Senshis’. Even if they made it more original, the show is still clearly inspired by Sailor Moon (just look at Caerula Adamas lol) and Pretty Cure. It has also referenced, very blatantly, animes like Doraemon, Detective Conan, Aikatsu and even Vocaloid, when Kyoutarou tries to guess what Karurusu is saying with ““Just Google It, Asshole”?” in ep1.

23. Wombat’s real name and the name of his planet sound like gibberish to the earthlings and ends up being named after the Earth animal, but Zundar, Dadacha, Karurusu and Furanui all have original names. And I think Hireashi means “goldfish”?

24. If you google “zundar technology”, it’s actually a company in Shanghai, China. Aren’t Wombat and Zundar always talking about “advanced alien technology”?

25. Zundar and Dadacha are siblings, so are Karurusu and Furanui, and so are their father King Kamopapa and their uncle minister Wao, but neither are the same species and, except the first two, not even the same color. But they are supposedly related because they share birthmarks or something like that...

26. Everyone who’s in this fandom knows about the pixel blur and voice pitch censor from s1, but I’ve added it anyway because it’s so rare for mahou shoujo and shounen animes to explain why the heroes aren’t recognized when transformed.

27. A good while of s2 ep11 is spent discussing Zundar’s ex-wife and his problems to give child support. Naturally, he gets mad at this.

28. “Money doesn’t betray” (s1 ep6) and “The despair hidden behind your smile that comes from not being understood” (s3 ep11) are sentences that came out of nowhere and implied that the people they were said by (Io) or about (Taiju) respectively had some kind of angst going on but were never explained at all. They’re famous for just that.

29. The Beppu twins’ house in Andromeda shown in flashbacks had strange green circles that apparently are from another anime I don’t know but honestly I didn’t get it very well... It was revealed on a tweet from Takamatsu.

30. Alien language mostly appeared in s2 due to the many flashbacks of Aki and Haru in Andromeda, but in Boueibu s1, it appears on the Zundar Needle before it is shot on the human. It appears a lot through RobiHachi as well, due to being a story about travelling through space. There might be an alphabetical chart somewhere, but I can’t assure it exists, I might even have dreamed it.

31. Hikaru Midorikawa as the melon monster, Kousuke Toriumi as the bishounen monster, Yoshitsugu Matsuoka as the kotatsu and panda monsters and Takuya Eguchi as the remote controller monster in s1 and 2, before going on to voice the main cast in HK. Keisuke Koumoto voiced Hatchi Kita in RobiHachi as well as Akihiko in Boueibu, and the characters look similar.

A new addition is that so far Boueibu is the only anime I’ve seen where children weren’t voiced by female seiyuus, but by actual children. Personally, it’s charming and makes it so much more realistic, specifically since no women appear in the franchise at all either (not counting Protag-chan in the game).

32. Speaking of seiyuus, Can I Destroy The Earth? had a dub shown in ep11/12 (?) that made Gora the villain that wanted Earth to stay the same and not progress, against the monsters that supposedly wanted to bring good things to earthlings. Aki and Haru quickly dismissed this dub as fake. (I made a mistake in the title in the previous post btw)

34. As seen in the glossary in the Boueibu Mook (I think, but might not be the mook), Caerula Adamas’ speeches are based on an old japanese detergent commercial that went “Gold, silver, pearl, gift”.

35. In the manga there’s a short parody of the first chapter of Sailor Moon with “Pretty Boy Guardian Gakuran Akoya”. The conquest club manga was released before the anime, so I remember reading somewhere that a fake website appeared for the Gakuran Akoya manga, before turning into the conquest club manga website in the day of its release.

36. Cgi was used a few times in the anime: s2 ep10 for a short sequence of the defense club on a rollercoaster and the carousel monster, ep11 for a cenital shot of the Battle Lovers singing, and HK ep12 for the Honyalaland soldiers and the Wao mecha.

37. The toothbrush incident in s1 ep7. (It’s definitely well-known but it’s so weird lol)

38. “We hope we can see each other again someday!” Something along those lines was the last text to appear in the last episode of HK, implying a s2. We all know how that went.

[sab-teraa]

Rate AMI ep 13 😐😂

Hi hi. This is super long, I apologize!

On the surface, since we have to start with the good:

1111/10 for Ozan’s outfits + hair.

11/10 for that 40 seconds where Ozan finally communicated how he felt after Esra left.

11/10 for Ilhan and Burcus acting + chemistry! They killed it as always.

11/10 for Esra’s pink suit.

11/10 for how well Esra carried herself + that 2 seconds of intikam (revenge) Esra got over Ozan.

9/10 for Ozan doing something kinda funny.

As an episode:

My rating for the episode is a 4/10. In my opinion, this episode was just as bad, if not worse than episode 12 (with regards to editing). It was absolutely inconsistent. Like episode 12, we literally jump scenes, and no one knows how we got to this specific point? Or what drove the character down this path?

There was very little EsZan content, which is expected given the trajectory, but there were also very few Ozan or Esra scenes as a whole. At no point in this episode did we get a clear focus or understanding of Ozan or Esra's pov (okay we got like 2 seconds of Esra's pov). This was reflected not only in the minimal dialogue (which gave Esra + Ozan max 30 seconds to communicate their feelings) .... but also in the camera angles - the camera's focused very little on their faces, emotions, reactions, and body language. Despite not having Ozans pov previously, we could still understand his emotions from his body language … but now we have nothing. Plus, imo, the music which usually adds charm and emotion to a scene is missing! Even the scenes in the neighbourhood were just so flat? Menekshe + Zumrut were written so bleh?? Nor did we get to see any family bonding or a proper Zeyno-Esra scene. Plus, the little scenes Ozan had with Musa were so short. It was uncomfortable to watch!

I'm extra annoyed because they took a well-articulated and intelligent man like Ozan and turned him into a naive idiot. An idiot that is unable to even articulate his business proposals in a proper manner! A company he knows like the back of his hand. Also, this really upset me because we know this company is a symbol of Esra, she is his biggest motivator for this proposal and yet he failed/failed to see that he was sabotaged?? Maybe it's meant to be symbolic/foreshadowing … but at this point, I’m over it. Plus, the reasoning for him going down this wedding path + what he is currently doing to Esra is absolutely dumb. I've seen better fan theories.

ALSO, they have turned Ozan into a man that is unaware of peoples true attentions! This man used to read people (other than Esra in the early episodes + end of their marriage) like a book ... and yet he is now unable to see people manipulating/using and betraying him?? As I've said, maybe it's symbolic/foreshadowing, but I am over it.

Like the previous episode, we have a ton of breakdowns from the twins + their family. Yet, they have purposefully left out Ozan’s reaction to the secret + how he felt after Esra told him everything at the shore. Nor did we get to see Esra reaction after finding out Ozan's answer or why Ozan decides to still pursue Esra despite everything she said to him at the shore … yes he loves her …. but why is he still adamant… even he knows love is not enough given what he has done!?? Is it love or guilt like esra says??? I JUST WANT A REFLECTION OF THEIR THOUGHTS! At this point, we don’t even have the content to judge/critic/defend Ozan for his behaviour. As @batterydeaddotdot mentions “ its like Ozan is being written our of relevance, and if you didnt watch the early episodes you wouldnt know he was the lead” and at some point I feel like they are going to do the same to Esra. I mean, like Ozan, the narrative has also been unfair to Esra! We don’t see her come to terms with being in love with Ozan, express her love properly to Ozan or deal with her insecurities.

I feel a major disconnect from the characters, to the point that I don’t properly sympathize or celebrate with either of them anymore. For example, I felt like we missed a major chunk of Esra’s career journey?... so I wasn’t as invested in her career (i.e. move to Antalya/proud of her promotion) ...  like I was when I watched episode 3, 4, 5, and 9. Nor did I feel my usual despair/sadness for Ozan when he expressed his vulnerabilities in those 30 seconds. 

In the earlier episodes I could see myself in both Esra and Ozan. They were realistic, they were flawed, they were individuals with complex emotions + insecurities and a heavy past + are shaped by their family problems/parents marriage. Now I don’t even recognize them, and sadly it’s not because they’ve grown/changed. Maybe I’m being dramatic ... ik they are the protagonists.. but it’s upsetting that the mains are being turned into a plot device.  

Is2g if you want the gist of the episode, just watch the two trailers. That's the most EsZan or Ozan/Esra scenes + storyline you’re gonna get. Other than that, be prepared for Keeping up with the Yilmaz.

Anyway, call me a clown but I am hopeful for the next episode. This is based of the fact that we didn't get a trailer today. I feel like whenever we got a trailer straight after the episode it was to appease the audience + calm us down. But now that we are getting a trailer on Sunday (i think), I'm more hopeful that it's gonna have some of the earlier charm?plus the episode ended with the title song, super similar to the earlier eps 🥺I don't know anymore… but I’m hopeful

[ayuuria]

Yashahime Translation: Animage Magazine September 2020 Issue

Please do not repost this translation without my consent! This includes screenshots of any type and amount. If you wish to share this translation, simply link to this post.

For more information regarding the use of my translations, click here.

This is an old article that was published back in August of 2020, before Yashahime began airing so please keep that in mind as you read this. I never translated this article until now so this is not a reprint or anything like that.

The Half-Demon Girls 2020 autumn SPOTLIGHT!

The feudal and modern era, the fantasy adventure that traverses the two time periods has started once again in the Reiwa period. The curtains will finally rise this fall on the feudal fairytale full of mystery and romanticism spun by three half-demon girls.

“Inuyasha” (original work by Takahashi Rumiko, published in Shōnen Sunday Comics) is an action adventure that was unfolded by a half-demon living in the feudal era named Inuyasha and a modern girl who time traveled to the feudal era named Higurashi Kagome. The anime ran from 2000 – 2004 and the depicts complex, jumbled human drama between humans and demons and the struggle for the Shikon Jewel. “Inuyasha The Final Act” was broadcasted from 2009 – 2010 which concluded the series and brought the curtains to a close.

Continuing that world and depicting a new adventure is “Hanyō no Yashahime”. Living in two different eras while still being twins are Towa and Setsuna, Sesshōmaru’s (Inuyasha’s elder brother) daughters. Then there’s Inuyasha and Kagome’s daughter, Moroha. These three girls who have both human and demon blood are the protagonists of this work. Why did these girls end up moving together? Who is Towa and Setsuna’s mother? Why are the three of them living separately from their parents?... Currently, the full story is wrapped in mystery.

This month, we went directly to Sumisawa Katsuyuki-san who was the series composition writer and script writer for “Inuyasha” and “Inuyasha The Final Act” and now for this current work as well. For the anime staff too, the feelings for the Inuyasha series seems to have strongly taken root even now.

Higurashi Towa Sesshōmaru’s daughter and Setsuna’s elder twin sister. She slipped through time when she was little and was raised as Sōta’s (Kagome’s younger brother) daughter. She tends to get into fights easily.

Setsuna Sesshōmaru’s daughter and Towa’s younger twin sister. However, she does not remember Towa whom she was separated from when they were little. She is a member of the demon slayers headed by Kohaku.

Moroha Inuyasha and Kagome’s daughter who has lived on her own since early childhood. She spends her days slaying demon bounties and takes the alias of “The monster killing Moroha”.

Sesshōmaru’s Two Daughters

Cool and beautiful, the proud and cool-headed Sesshōmaru was a prominently popular character in “Inuyasha”. His daughters, Towa and Setsuna, also have traces of him about them. “Setsuna and Towa strongly inherited Sesshōmaru’s “Yin” and “Yang” respectively. For that purpose, when thinking about their image, Rumiko-sensei also stated, “Please forget about the mother’s existence for now” (Sumisawa)

Behind the Character Creation

The character designs for Towa, Setsuna, and Moroha were done by Takahashi Rumiko-sensei. “At the beginning, Rumiko-sensei told us “I can’t draw a character if I don’t understand them”. The designs depicted here are the result of finally getting the OK after presenting many setting plans from our end.” (Sumisawa)

The Characters of “Inuyasha” Too

Sōta, who is the parent who raises Towa, is a familiar existence to “Inuyasha” fans. In addition, Kohaku, who is the head of the demon slayer group that Setsuna is a part of, is the little brother of Sango who is Inuyasha’s comrade. He was also an important character who held the key to the struggle for the Shikon Jewel. Will other characters from “Inuyasha” make an appearance besides them?

The Feudal Fairytale Going Between Two Eras Series Composition: Sumisawa Katsuyuki

— First, please tell us the details of how this work came about.

Sumisawa: Over 3 years ago, the producer for anime “Inuyasha”, Suwa Michihiko, said to me “I want you to write a continuation for “Inuyasha””. I thought “Goodness, what is this person saying” (laughs). Afterall, “Inuyasha” was concluded. Takahashi Rumiko-sensei is a perfect original creator so there wasn’t a single unanswered thing. I don’t think there are many mangas that conclude so beautifully and properly that it’s deeply moving. On top of that, I wrote the script for the anime called “Inuyasha The Final Act” and brought it to an end myself, so depicting something beyond that is impossible.

— What sort of story direction did Suwa-san come up with?

Sumisawa: When I also asked back “Inuyasha and Kagome don’t have any problems, the Bone Eater’s Well (which connects the modern and feudal era) can no longer be traversed, Naraku was defeated and the Shikon Jewel is gone. What sort of story would we make?” and he responded, “Coming up with (a story) is your job isn’t it” (laughs).

— That is a very unreasonable request (laughs).

Sumisawa: Yes. That’s why I put it on the backburner for over 2 years after that. It’s just that when I was invited to and attended an anime event in Washington D.C, there was a person there cosplaying the Great Dog Demon (Inuyasha and Sesshōmaru’s father). That person said to me “Please hurry and make a sequel to “Inuyasha”!”. It seems that even now, they felt that “Inuyasha” was still a passionate real time work. With that, what I came up with after rethinking “Maybe I can write something with this” was “the story of Sesshōmaru’s daughter”.

— Why Sesshōmaru’s child instead of Inuyasha and Kagome’s child?

Sumisawa: When the work features the child of the protagonist as the main character, the parents steal show when they make an appearance. Even Rumiko-sensei analyzed that “Even if you make it a story about Inuyasha’s son confronting some incident, you can’t surpass the method in which the problem was resolved in the work “Inuyasha”, so it’s impossible”. In that case, I suggested to Rumiko-sensei “If it’s Sesshōmaru’s daughter, it would be a different development”.

— What was Takahashi-san’s reaction when she heard that idea?

Sumisawa: At first, she was unsure like “Hmm” for a long time. It’s only natural. Among the characters that Rumiko-sensei created, Sesshōmaru was a character that she had a strong emotional attachment to. However, she told me “But if it’s Sumisawa-san, it might be doable” and I said, “Please allow me to do this!”. I was grateful that Rumiko-sensei trusted me. I strongly felt that I had to live up to that trust. Actually, I thought of an idea where the setting would be the “modern era” and Sesshōmaru’s daughters would fight demons with Sesshōmaru being mostly uninvolved. However, that didn’t work at all. Now, I’m embarrassed at myself for coming up with that plan.

— That sounds entertaining in it of itself.

Sumisawa: No. First, the atmosphere wouldn’t be serious. Also, if you don’t have the component of going between the feudal and modern eras, it wouldn’t be the “Inuyasha” world. If you only have one (era), it wouldn’t be “a feudal fairytale”.

— Then, how was the title “Hanyō no Yashahime” decided?

Sumisawa: We didn’t really struggle to come up with this title. Rumiko-sensei invented the word "half-demon” (half human and half demon), so “HANYO” is understood overseas. Thus, we purposely put this globally understood word “half-demon” into the title. “Yashahime” is used in other (works) as well, so our aim was to put something in front. The “feudal fairytale” in the logo “Is like what “mobile suit” is to “Gundam”” as Sunrise’s Ogata Naohiro-san put it.

— So it becomes a new feudal fairytale with the half-demon girls as the main characters.

Sumisawa: The thing is, I said earlier that “Inuyasha” was a manga that didn’t leave a single thing unanswered, but actually, there’s a little bit of content that wasn’t shown in the anime. For example, when Rumiko-sensei did a one-time revival of “Inuyasha” for the Great East Japan Earthquake revitalization support project, “Heroes Come Back”. This was published in volume 30 of the “Inuyasha” Wide Edition comics. That and to show “Inuyasha The Final Act” within the episode limit, we ended up not touching some of the episodes (within the manga). So I thought I had to write those in.

— Currently, the two biggest questions fans have been focused on are “Why are Inuyasha, Kagome, and Sesshōmaru not raising their children?” and “Who is Sesshōmaru’s wife?”

Sumisawa:

Yes. I can’t answer that here, but under Takahashi Rumiko-sensei’s supervision, there’s no way we would leave out those very important topics. Of course, these are properly shown in the main story so look forward to seeing it. Please be at ease.

[texanredrose]

Okay, to put some limitations on this, I’m only including the WIPs that I’ve done more than a synopsis for... that I can remember... that’s on Google Drive... that I actually think I might post one day... but haven’t posted yet because my posted WIPs are fairly easy to identify... okay... I got tagged by @unsteadyshade and I’m tagging @faunusrights and @alexlayer69

1) Across Time - Inuyasha AU where Weiss gets thrown back in time to the ancient past, where she meets two demons (Yang and Blake) warring against each other over a misunderstanding.

2) Alpha’s Devotion - Omega’s Strength, but from Winter’s POV.

3) Bears, Oh My - An exhausted Winter, lost on a hike, comes across a cabin where Yang lives with her three pet bears.

4) Brave New World - Continuation of the Dishonored AU where Ruby and Winter reflect on the new Mantle.

5) Bruised - Third installment to the ace!Yang AU. 

6) Coming Home - Based on Dash’s Tiny Knight AU, Princess Blake is betrayed and stranded far from home and must rely on a reticent knight named Weiss to return to her kingdom.

7) Complications Always Arise - Papa Schnee is demanding Weiss marry before he’ll allow her to take his place as head of the SDC, so Yang volunteers to pretend to be Weiss’ beloved. No one else knows the relationship is fake, least of all Blake and Winter, and it’s just a bunch of pain.

8) Divided - Continuation of the By Moonlight AU where Whitley returns to the castle and Winter’s not upset by that- and Winter’s upset by the fact she’s not upset and has to figure out why her inner wolf is cool with this when she should, by all rights, be furious.

9) Dragonsbane - Mage Knight Winter hears tale of a dragon in the countryside that the local villages wish to see vanquished. Winter, however, has other plans.

10) Eye of the Beholder - Blinded and near death after a battle, Winter is rescued by the mysterious Yang and is nursed back to health despite her protests otherwise. (It’s a Medusa!AU.)

11) Fabled - Fable 3 AU where Princess Ruby and Princess Yang are forced to confront the fact that Queen Raven has lost her fucking mind, only to discover that fear drove the woman insane- a fear they must confront themselves.

12) Fields of Love - Farmer Yang offers a job and housing to apparent single mother Winter and her young daughter Penny. What starts as a kind gesture grows into something so much more.

13) Full Circle - Van Helsing (2004) AU, Winter and Weiss, amnesiacs employed by the church to handle all manner of unholy problems, are sent to discover what happened to King Taiyang. Along the way, they become wrapped up in a centuries spanning prophecy and a bloodline hanging in the balance.

14) High Bar, Low Blow - Yang owns a bar where the gimmick is that everyone’s an out of work actor and the staff is staging an ongoing drama on par with a soap opera to keep their customers coming back. Winter joins the staff and then things get a bit real.

15) Hoodlums and Hijinks - Robin Hood AU where Princess Winter and Princess Weiss are just as in favor for overthrowing the king as the group of bandits run by Ruby, Yang, and Blake. 

16) Last One 2: Electric Boogaloo (title subject to change) - a sequel to Last One where the haunt continues.

17) Lexical Access - Sequel to Tip of the Tongue, where Yang gives her girlfriend a bit of roleplaying payback.

18) Little Red - Carmen Sandiego AU where Ruby was kidnapped adopted by a group of thieves and raised to become the world’s greatest thief, but a chance meeting with Penny via a stolen phone opens her eyes to the wider world, and she meets the rebellious heiress Weiss, street smart Blake, and brawler Yang, creating a team that works to foil Ruby’s former friends while eluding capture by mysterious operatives with a somewhat familiar white color scheme...

19) Long Term Investment - Yang, a fae who lives in the woods, makes a deal with Princess Winter to save the Queen. The price? Winter’s firstborn. Winter misunderstands how she’s expected to get pregnant and Yang’s never actually intended to collect. Next thing Yang knows, Winter’s moving into the clearing beside her tree home.

20) Miscalculation - Another Omegaverse AU where Weiss is an omega and Blake and Yang are alphas, except Weiss lied and said she was an alpha when enrolling in Beacon and now she’s locked in a room with Blake and Yang on the verge of starting her heat. Sharing is caring.

21) More Than Words Can Say - Winter, rendered mute by a military accident early in her career, is honestly the best girlfriend Yang’s ever had. However, tonight’s the night they’ve decided to get intimate, and that includes showing some scars that they don’t show often. It’s less about sex and more about trust and intimacy.

22) Music of the Night - Phantom of the Opera AU where the mysterious, disfigured shade of the opera house, Weiss, finds herself at odds with the rich, jovial Yang in a competition for Blake’s heart. Then there’s Adam being a dick, too, and the opera house has never seen so much drama.

23) My Heart Will Go On - It’s the Titanic, but double the rich, unwilling-to-marry ladies and triple the won-a-ticket-to-a-ship ruffians. Penny’s there too; she, like Ruby, just really likes ships.

24) One Fucking Favor - Winter’s due for a long assignment and wants to make a sex tape for stress relief purposes. Yang doesn’t ask questions; she’s just the one with the camera. But then, Winter’s partner for the vid doesn’t show up. What’s Yang going to do about it?

25) Prophecy - Star Wars AU where Ruby, Yang, and Blake are trained as Jedi, Winter and Weiss are part of the clone army, and Ruby’s the chosen one. That’s a lot of pressure to put on someone, but Senator Salem is there to lend a helping hand...

26) Propositioned - Faunus experience bouts of heat; sometimes, they can safely ignore it and go about their lives, but every now and again, they really can’t. Concerned for Blake’s health as she’s skipped too many heats to be healthy, Yang sets up a partner for Blake’s heat. Blake’s not a fan but she does like the idea of banging Weiss Schnee.

27) Proven - ARK: Survival Evolved AU where Winter, after being ‘won’ by Yang, is taken into the bowels of the earth to learn how the underground tribes who inhabit the area survive in such an unforgiving environment. As she acclimates to the tribe’s ways, she finds herself carving out her own path, culminating in facing off against the Queen and proving herself worthy.

28) Reaping What You Sow - When Winter escaped to the countryside with Penny to start a farm, she knew she had her work cut out for her. In need of help and facing a harsh cold season, she hires Yang, a one armed drifter, to help her. The two end up needing the other more than they could’ve imagined.

29) Tear My Heart Open - Blake thought she understood how the world worked. As a member of the White Fang Gang, all she needed to do was keep everyone motivated to continue their ongoing street war against the police and authorities bent on keeping them down. But while running from the cops, she’s offered sanctuary in the home of one Weiss Schnee and her girlfriend, Yang. From there, her perception of the world is completely upended.

30) The Duel - After her father offered her hand in marriage to the winner of a tournament, Winter opted to assume a disguise and fight for the prize herself. In the final match, she faces Yang Xiao Long, a competitor she’s come to know quite well, and she finds her conviction to win wavering slightly. Is it enough to lose her the fight?

31) The Lies We Tell Ourselves - Weiss has made it; she’s opened her tattoo shop in Vale, well away from her father, and aside from a bad first impression with the florists across the parking lot, everything’s looking up for her- until her father finds her. Luckily, Blake’s been through some shit and doesn’t mind helping Weiss drive daddy dearest up the wall, even if it means letting her own parents think she’s dating Weiss. It’s not like either of them is going to catch feelings... unless...

32) The Princess’ Bride - After losing her fiancée to the dreaded White Fang Pirates, Yang vows to take to the sea herself and exact her revenge. Princess Weiss finds herself falling madly in love with Yang, who still loves Blake, and all this is thrown into even more chaos when Yang gets kidnapped and Blake comes back from the dead! 

33) Two for One - Yes, another Omegaverse AU. Five years after the fall of Beacon, Yang and Blake cross paths, each believing the other has spent the time keeping their mutual mate, Weiss, safe. When they realize Weiss is with neither of them, old wounds are torn open, but before they can resolve their dispute, Winter captures the both of them and hauls them to a remote part of Atlas where an SDC facility has been turned into a fortress. There, they find a mortally wounded Weiss clinging to life and raising twins daughters; she gives her mates until her death to endear themselves to their children, else the twins might opt to stay with Winter and be kept from Blake and Yang for good. Between learning about their kids, Blake and Yang navigate their complicated feelings and try to reconnect with Weiss, all while a sinister force gathers to destroy the fortress and steal the prize within.

34) Weaknesses - Loosely set in the Glamour AU, Yang is being forced to assume her mother’s position as leader of their vampire coven. Her fellow vamps disapprove of Yang’s werewolf girlfriend. Winter, of course, doesn’t care.

I got lazy and cut a bunch out. No, fuck you, I don’t have too many AUs, I will add more if I want. Also, some of these, the first chapter is posted on my Patreon. Don’t ask me which ones; I genuinely have no idea. I’m bad at this, y’all.

[crowdvscritic]

round up // NOVEMBER 20

Hi, I’m tired. Actually, my friend Celeste created a piece of art that puts the emphasis needed on that sentiment:

I’m very tired. November felt like it was three years and also felt like it went by in a blink and also I’m not sure where October ended and November began—how does time work like that? (I’ve yet to see Tenet, but maybe that will explain it.) But like Michael Scott, somehow I manage, and lately it’s been like this:

Late-night Etsy scrolling. Browsing beautiful, non-big-box-store artwork is very calming just before I go to bed. I’d recommend Etsy stores like Celeste’s chr paperie shop, which I know from experience is full of great Christmas gift ideas. 

Taking a day off of work to do laundry. I’m not sure if it’s more #adulting that I did that or that I was excited to do that.

Eating Ghiradelli chocolate chips straight from the bag. I actually don’t recommend this as a healthy option, but this is also not a health blog.

Watching lots and lots of ‘80s movies. One day I’ll ask a therapist why this decade of films is so comforting for me despite its many flaws, but for now I’m just rolling with it.

Reading. Have you heard of this? It’s a form of entertainment but doesn’t require screens—wild!

Memes. All good Pippin “Fool of a” Took jokes are welcome here.

Leaning into the Christmas spirit by ordering that Starbucks peppermint mocha, making plans to watch everything in that TCM Christmas book I haven’t seen, and keeping the lights on my hot pink tinsel tree on all day as I work from home.

This month’s Round Up is full of stuff that made me smile and stuff that sucked me into its world—I think they’ll do the same for you, too.

November Crowd-Pleasers

Sister Act (1992)

If in four years you aren’t in an emotional state to watch election results roll in, I recommend watching Whoopi Goldberg pretend to be a nun for 100 minutes. (Though, incidentally, if you want to watch that clip edited to specifically depict how the results came in this year, you’ll need to watch Sister Act 2.) This musical-comedy is about as feel-good as it gets, meaning there’s no reason you should wait four more years to watch it. Crowd: 9/10 // Critic: 7.5/10

Nevada Memes

Speaking of election results, Nevada memes. That’s it—that’s the tweet. Vulture has a round up of some of the best.

SNL Round Up

Laugh and enjoy!

“Cinema Classics: The Birds” (4605 with John Mulaney)

“Uncle Ben” (4606 with Dave Chappelle)

RoboCop (1987)

I’m not surprised I liked RoboCop, but I am surprised at why I liked RoboCop. Not only is this a boss action blockbuster, it’s an investigation into consumerism and the commodification of the human body. It’s also a critique of institutions that treat crime like statistics instead of actions done by people that impact people. That said, it’s also movie about a guy who’s fused with a robot and melts another guy’s face off with toxic sludge, so there’s a reason I’m not listing this under the Critic section. Crowd: 9/10 // Critic: 8/10

Double Feature – ‘80s Comedies: National Lampoon’s Vacation (1983) + Major League (1989)

The ‘80s-palooza is in full swing! In Vacation (Crowd: 9.5/10 // Critic: 8/10), Chevy Chase just wants to spend time with his family on a vacation to Wally World, but wouldn’t you know it, Murphy’s Law kicks into gear as soon as the Griswold family shifts from out of Park. The brilliance of the movie is that every one of these terrible things is plausible, but the Griswolds create the biggest problems themselves. In Major League (Crowd: 8.5/10 // Critic: 6.5/10), Tom Berenger, Charlie Sheen, and Wesley Snipes are Cleveland’s last hope for a winning baseball team. Like the Griswolds, mishaps and hijinks ensue in their attempt to prevent their greedy owner from moving the Indians to Miami, but the real win is this movie totally gets baseball fans. Like most ‘80s movies, not everything in this pair has aged well, but they brought some laughs when I needed them most.

This Time Next Year by Sophie Cousens (2020)

They’re born a minute apart in the same hospital, but they don’t meet until their 30th birthday on New Year’s Day. So, yes, it’s a little bit Serendipity, and it’s a little bit sappy, but those are both marks in this book’s favor. This Time Next Year is a time-hopping rom-com with lots of almost-meet-cutes that will have you laughing, believing in romantic twists of fate, and finding hope for the new year.

Double Feature – ‘80s Angsty Teens: Teen Wolf (1985) + Uncle Buck (1989)

In the ‘80s, Hollywood finally understood the angsty teen, and this pair of comedies isn’t interested in the melodrama earlier movies like Rebel Without a Cause were depicting. (I’d recommend Rebel, but not if you want to look back on your teen years with any sense of humor.) In Teen Wolf (Crowd: 8/10 // Critic: 5/10), Michael J. Fox discovers he’s a werewolf.one that looks more like the kid in Jumanji than any other portrayal of a werewolf you’ve seen. It’s a plot so ‘80s and so bizarre you won’t believe this movie was greenlit.

In Uncle Buck (Crowd: 8/10 // Critic: 7.5/10), John Candy is attempting to connect with the nieces and nephew he hasn’t seen in years, including one moody high schooler. (Plus, baby Gaby Hoffman and pre-Home Alone Macauley Culkin!) This is my second pick from one of my all-time fave filmmakers, John Hughes (along with National Lampoon’s Vacation, above), and it’s one more entry that balances heart and humor in a way only he could do. You can see where I rank this movie in Hughes’s pantheon on Letterboxd.

Lord of the Rings memes

This month on SO IT’S A SHOW?, Kyla and I revisited The Lord of the Rings, a trilogy we love almost as much as we love Gilmore Girls. You can listen to our episode about the series on your fave podcast app, and you can laugh through hundreds of memes like I did for “research” on Twitter.

Nothing to See Here by Kevin Wilson (2019)

Most adults are afraid of children’s temper tantrums, but can you imagine how terrified you’d be if they caught on fire in their fits of rage? That’s the premise of this novel, which begins when an aimless twentysomething becomes the nanny of a Tennessee politician’s twins who burst into flames when they get emotional. The book is filled with laugh-out-loud moments but never leaves behind the human emotion you need to make a magical realistic story.

An Officer and a Gentlemen (1982)

Speaking of aimless twentysomethings and emotion, feel free to laugh, cry, and swoon through this melodrama in the ‘80s canon. Richard Gere meanders his way into the Navy when he has nowhere else to go, and he tries to survive basic training, work through his family issues, and figure out his future as he also falls in love with Debra Winger. So, yeah, it’s a schamltzier version of Top Gun, but it’s schmaltz at its finest. Crowd: 8.5/10 // Critic: 7.5/10

November Critic Picks

Double Feature – ‘40s Amensia Romances: Random Harvest (1942) + The Ghost and Mrs. Muir (1947)

Speaking of schmaltz at its finest, let me share a few more titles fitting that description. In Random Harvest (Crowd: 8/10 // Critic: 8.5/10), Greer Garson falls in love with a veteran who can’t remember his life before he left for war. In The Ghost and Mrs. Muir (Crowd: 8.5/10 // Critic: 8.5/10), Gene Tierney discovers a ghost played by a crotchety Rex Harrison in her new home. Mild spoiler: Both feature amnesiac plot developments, and while amnesia has become a cliché in the long history of romance films, Harvest is moving enough and Mr. Muir is charming enough that you won’t roll your eyes. You can see these and more romances complicated by forced forgetfulness in this Letterboxd round up.

The African Queen (1951)

It’s Humphrey Bogart and Katharine Hepburn directed by John Huston—I mean, I don’t feel like I need to explain why this is a winner. Bogart (in his Oscar-winning role) and Hepburn star in a two-hander script, dominating the screen time except for a select few scenes with supporting cast. The pair fight for survival while cruising on a small boat called The African Queen during World War I (in Africa, natch), and the two make this small story feel grand and epic. Crowd: 8.5/10 // Critic: 9/10

Kind Hearts and Coronets (1949)

A young man’s (Dennis Price) mother is disowned from their wealthy family because she marries for love. After her death, he seeks vengeance by killing all of the family members ahead of him in line to be the Duke D'Ascoyne. The twist? All of his victims are played by Sir Alec Guinness! Almost every character in this black comedy is a terrible person, so you won’t be too sorry to see them go—you can just enjoy the creative “accidents” he stages and stay in suspense on whether our “hero” gets his comeuppance. Crowd: 8/10 // Critic: 8.5/10

Bluebeard’s Eighth Wife (1937)

What would you do if you found out you were to be someone’s eighth wife? Well, it’s probably not what Claudette Colbert does in this screwball comedy that reminds me a bit of Love Crazy. This isn’t the first time I’ve recommended Colbert, Gary Cooper, or Ernst Lubitsch films, so it’s no surprise these stars and this director can make magic together in this hilarious battle of the wills. Crowd: 9/10 // Critic: 8.5/10

The Red Shoes (1948)

I love stories about the competition between your life and your art, and The Red Shoes makes that competition literal. Moira Shearer plays a ballerina who feels life is meaningless without dancing—then she falls in love. That’s an oversimplification of a rich character study and some of the most beautiful ballet on film, but I can’t do it justice in a short paragraph. Just watch (perhaps while you’re putting up your hot pink tinsel tree?) and soak in all the goodness. Crowd: 8/10 // Critic: 10/10

The Third Man (1949)

Everybody loves to talk about Citizen Kane, and with the release of Mank on Netflix, it’s newsworthy again. But don’t miss this other ‘40s team up of Joseph Cotten and Orson Welles. Cotten is a writer digging for the truth of his friend’s (Welles) death in a mysterious car accident. Eyewitness accounts differ on what happened, and who was the third man at the scene only one witness remembers? 71 years later, this movie is still tense, and this actor pairing is still electric. Crowd: 8.5/10 // Critic: 9/10

The Untouchables (1987)

At the end of October, we lost Sean Connery. I looked back on his career first by writing a remembrance for ZekeFilm and then by watching The Untouchables. (In a perfect world I would’ve reversed that order, but c’est la vie.) In my last selection from the ‘80s, Connery and Kevin Costner attempt to convict Robert De Niro’s Al Capone of anything that will stick and end his reign of crime in Chicago. Directed by Brian De Palma and set to an Ennio Morricone soundtrack, this film is both an exciting action flick and an artistic achievement that we literally discussed in one of my college film classes. Connery won his Oscar, and K. Cos is giving one of the best of his career, too. Crowd: 9/10 // Critic: 9.5/10

Remember the Night (1940)

Fred MacMurray and Barbara Stanwyck in my favorite team up yet! Double Indemnity may be the bona fide classic in the canon, but this Christmas story—with MacMurray as a district attorney prosecuting shoplifter Stanwyck— is a charmer. I’ve added it to my list of must-watch Christmas movies—watch for some holiday cheer and rom-com feels. Crowd: 8.5/10 // Critic: 8.5/10

Photo credits: chr paperie. Books my own. All others IMDb.com.

[ratingtheframe]

Why Armie Hammer’s Scandal Is More Than Kink Shaming

The 34 year old actor has had numerous allegations thrown his way this past month, from cannibalism to an obsession with BDSM. But do these allegations go beyond a widely accepted community of kink lovers and venture into deeply rooted misogyny?

Warning: this article contains mentions of cannibalism and sexual assault. 

For those of you who aren’t aware of Armie Hammer’s presence on screen, you may be scratching your head and wondering what on earth people are talking about, seeing the cannibalism aspect to this all as face value without making the connection between Hammer’s past behaviours and current allegations. The actor who rose to prominence in Aaron Sorkin and David Fincher’s The Social Network (2013) playing both of the Winklevoss twins, has become quite the favourite amongst the film industry. His role Oliver in Luca Guadagnino’s Call me by your name (2017) has sent Twitter into a permanent frenzy as memes and daily adoration for Chalamet and Hammer’s on screen romance continue to thrive even 4 years after the film's release. As well as Call me your name, Hammer is known for roles in Sorry to Bother You (2018), Rebecca (2020), On the Basis of Sex (2018) and soon to be released, Death on The Nile (2021). He currently has another film due to be released and a Call me by your name sequel in development. Sounds as if he’s got a lot going for him and despite him not being the biggest star to be churned out of Hollywood today, the recognition is still there and with that, he’s still being paid. 

The Allegations

At the beginning of the year, an account emerged under the handle of @houseofeffie, that was created to expose some lurid and unpleasant communication between several women and Armie Hammer. Some of which he had relations with whilst married to his now ex wife Elizabeth Chambers. The nature of these dms are incredibly disturbing and worrying considering that Hammer not only has children but as an actor, spends a proportionate time around women.

These are just a few of the messages that were exposed that led the media to brandish Hammer as a “cannibal”:

Hammer:

 “You are the god damned standard I hold women to in terms of kink and enjoyment of fucking the[n]...”

“I need to drink your blood, why the distance?” “...thinking of holding your heart in my head and controlling when it beats”

“I am 100% a cannibal...I want to eat you....Fuck...that’s scary to admit..”

“I’ve cut the heart out of a living animal before and eaten it while still warm”

“You were the most intense and extreme version [that I’ve ever had]. Raping you on the floor with a knife against you. Everything else seemed boring”

“You [were] crying and screaming, me standing over you.  I felt like a god. I’ve never felt such power or intensity.”

“You just live to obey and be my slave”

“Would you come and be my property till you die? If I wanted to cut off one of your toes and keep it with me in my pocket so I always had a piece of you in my possession?”

“I want to see your brain, your blood, your organs, every part of you… I would definitely bite it...100%”

...O-kay. Lots to unpack here. First and fore mostly, I’d like to address the kink shaming element to all of this. I personally don’t see any harm in kinks, BDSM, pornography, as long as people are consenting and aren’t inflicting unsolicited pain upon people. Therefore, kink shaming and finding Hammer’s taste in sexual preferences isn’t what we are here to discuss. In fact when I first read the allegations, that wasn’t even my initially thought. CNN posted an article two days ago titled “Armie Hammer May Be Disturbed, But Is Shaming Him the Answer?” an opinion based article by Aaron Weaver that explores the allegations and believes Hammer shouldn’t be shamed for his kinks. But this begs the question whether Hammer was actually being shamed? I didn’t see much evidence for this seeing as people were mostly horrified by his taste in human flesh than anything else, a kink that is uncommon in the BDSM community and is only practiced by the most extreme. 

Kinks aside, the most worrying thing about the DMs above is the way in which he views women and their bodies. It’s clear to see that he might not have much respect for women seeing as he proudly states his willingness to cut them up and drink their blood. And funnily enough, the sexual objectification of women’s bodies for one's own sexual pleasure without considering their comfortability is classed as misogyny. A reddit user made an extremely good point on a thread about Hammer’s scandal stating:

“To me, the problem is not that he’s into rough sex, or that he has kinks some people find scary. It’s not about yucking his yum, so to speak. I’m more concerned that he may have ignored safe words and pushed his partners beyond their limits. I feel like the media is focusing so much on his kinks and sexuality as opposed to his ignoring of consent, which is a complete and utter inversion of priorities”

Past Relationships

Another example of Hammer disrespecting the boundaries of women and sexual pleasure would be his past girlfriend Paige Lorenze. Lorenze is a 23 year model and former professional skier who has shone a light on Hammer’s worrying behaviour and his involvement in BDSM activity. The sources of Lorenze’s allegations are highly unreliable, which is one of the most frustrating things about this entire charade. The BBC BRIEFLY covered the fact that Hammer dropped out of his latest film amid the allegations, without fully going into detail about the allegations or the abuse subjected towards his former partners. It just goes to show we’re rubbish at taking abuse seriously enough to the point where people are punished for their wrongdoings. Had a more reliable news source covered this story, then it’d make it more viable to the public. Even though this scandal is in its early days, that doesn’t necessarily mean it's unimportant or should be swept under the rug along with the hundreds of other scandals that Hollywood refuses to expose.

Only the Daily Mail, The Sun and Page Six seem to have gone in depth with the accusations, making the entire story rather murky for the reader. Anyhow, Paige Lorenze said to the Daily Mail that Hammer had carved an ‘A’ above her groin without her consent and licked it whilst it bled. He had also reportedly tied her up and hit her with paddles to fuel his BDSM obsession and sexual desires. Lorenze was quoted saying 'Any man who is fantasizing about crushing bones, eating them, having sex with female limp bodies is a danger to all women'. Hammer insisted to Lorenze that his behaviour was normal, and that there was an entire community of people that carried out the same things he did on her. This is partially correct seeing as the global sex play market is worth over $30 billion, with practices in such activities dating back to the mid 19th century. However, the one thing the BDSM community doesn’t condone is not giving consent, which is where the fine line is drawn in between Hammer’s sexual preferences and the BDSM community. His choice to carve that ‘A’ into Lorenze isn’t backed up by a wider community of people who enjoy a variety of sexual pleasure. Lorenze claims he also DMed nude photos of her being tied up to people without her consent, further perpetuating Hammer’s lack of respect towards people’s boundaries. This is a serious incident, that sees someone with more power (Hammer is 6’5 and Lorenze is 5’6 btw) assert their dominance and by doing so, degrades and harms someone else. We shouldn’t be kink shaming Hammer, but shaming him for thinking that this behaviour is acceptable.

Hammer’s previous relationships can also draw some light into his lack of respect for women. He and his wife Elizabeth Chambers divorced in July 2020 after a decade of marriage. Though it's unknown what triggered the separation, these recent allegations may have something to do with it. Furthermore, two other women have come forward to express their distaste towards Hammer and his questionable fantasies. Entrepreneur and ex-girlfriend of Armie Hammer, Courtney Vucekovich, told Page Six that Hammer wanted to “break [her] rib and barbecue it and eat it”. She also expressed how easy it was for Hammer to charm his way through into getting women, especially young women into doing what he wants through “active manipulation and making you feel like he’s never felt this way about anybody.” Lorenze was also subjected to similar retort after reporting that Hammer too wanted to barbecue one of her ribs because she “didn’t need it”. Writer Jessica Ciencen Henriquez took to twitter last summer after a lunch date with Hammer and expressed that she had blocked him on Instagram. She later went on to tweet this:

“If you are still questioning whether or not those Armie Hammer DMs are real (and they are) maybe you should start questioning why we live in a culture willing to give abusers the benefit of the doubt instead of victims”

Exactly my point here. There’s not much to this scandal other than the fact that several people were hurt and undermined and someone else caused it. Someone who is societally above everyone because of their race, class, status and gender, with a well connected and dominant family support system. 

His background and past 

Hammer comes from a very powerful and wealthy family. Hammer’s great grandfather, Armand Hammer, was the chief executive officer and president of the Occidental Petroleum company founded in 1920. Now if you’re wondering the exact scale of such a company that is still running today, they are the 4th largest oil and gas acquisition in the entire world worth over $100 billion. ONE HUNDRED, BILLION, DOLLARS. Not all actors in Hollywood can say that their great-grandfathers were worth that much, which gives me little hope in seeing Hammer be held accountable for what he’s done. He was also kicked out of UCLA after apparently not “being able to do it”.  Just another rich white male with enough power, malice and money to work his way around any struggle.

Now that we’ve established Hammer’s allegations, it’s worth looking back to see whether the signs of such behaviour were already prevalent in the numerous interviews he partook in over the years. Complex highlighted an episode of The Late Show with Stephen Colbert from 2017, where the host brought up Hammer’s obsession with knots, to which he laughed off and claimed that “knots make sense” that they are a “language” and referenced how man used knots before the wheel. Valid points but ones that are debunked in light of his interest in BDSM. during a 2013 interview with Playboy (appropriate) Hammer expressed that his “sexual appetites changed'' when he married his wife and that hair pulling used to be something he enjoyed but could no longer do now that he was married “even though he wanted to”. This is quite the backwards comment when we’re talking about respecting boundaries and it's clear to see it was only a matter of time before his desires could no longer be repressed.

Since this whole shit storm began to travel Hammer’s way, he has since dropped out of the film The Billion Dollar Spy, which would’ve seen him star alongside Jennifer Lopez. BBC News reported that this move was made as Hammer stated that “I cannot in good conscience now leave my children for four months to shoot a film in the Dominican Republic” following the ‘vicious’ online abuse he’s been subjected to. Hammer was again put in the firing line by Grand Cayman law enforcement for lying about a woman provocatively shown in a video was Miss Cayman of the Miss Cayman beauty pageant that’s held on the island. He and the woman were warned for their misconduct and had confirmed the matter is now closed. 

Final Thoughts

There are enough red flags in Hammer’s behaviour to open up a flag store, and I would go as far as to say that this isn’t the end of it. For someone who’s grown up having the majority of things they want, it's easy to want more beyond morality and despite the discomfort of others. Hammer’s move to drop out of his latest film was an attempt to lessen the blow of hate being turned towards him as opposed to the benefit of those he’s hurt. So far, him and his lawyer have denied all allegations and further action hasn’t been taken against the Hollywood star. He’s apologised for the DMs and brandished his actions a “foolish attempt at humour”. 

Wrapping his own behaviour up in humour is an attempt to detract from the severity of the behaviour itself, whilst excusing it, something he can get away with because of his status. 

Major media outlets haven’t done much in even attempting to expose this man’s behaviour and have left it up to unreliable sources to piece together the true persona of Armie Hammer. Though innocent until proven guilty, common sense is widely available to the general public meaning we should be delving into the past a little and comparing it to these allegations. Along with Hammer’s character, family and unnerving Instagram posts of cutting up meat and eating raw steak, there doesn’t seem to be much in the actor’s favour. 

All I would say is as a director, producer, writer or actor, would you feel comfortable in being associated with someone who believes they're a cannibal and marvels at the idea of drinking human blood? Or someone who goes as far to objectify women to the point where they become nothing but sexual fulfilment and pieces of meat? 

That’s all I’ll say and those who do feel comfortable doing such a thing means that Hammer may still have a career at the end of the day. One point to Hollywood, no points to political correctness and respecting women. 

[ladykatibeth]

“Missing”

Fandom: Sander Sides

Rating: Teen for swearing

Summary:The crown prince of the kingdoms goes on a quest to find his brother, meanwhile a famers kid meets up with a friend.

A/N: Will be continued,if you want to feel free to ask questions about the characters! I have my inbox open. Feel free to reblog.

Remus was Missing.

Remus was missing and Roman didn’t know where he was. Remus was missing, and he was gone for good this time, and Roman didn’t know what to do.

Remus was missing--his twin was missing. His twin was missing, Remus was--

Roman should have done something, noticed sooner. Or even noticed at all. Remus had always been loud, obnoxiously loud, Roman had remarked a couple of times. Remus had been a bit quieter than usual, the past week. But Remus had always had his ups and downs, despite what it might have seemed Remus couldn’t keep up his high energy forever. Every once in a while he ended up crashing.

Roman should have known though. Should have picked it out. Should have noticed. But he had been so busy last week. Well, busier than usual. There's always lessons, boring parties where adults talked about stupid things, and other such duties. But that week he had been preparing to do a speech, anxiously prepping and preparing. He had been so stressed, being crown prince was no easy task, honestly sometimes he just wanted to get away.

Maybe that's why Remus left.

Maybe that's why Remus left.

Maybe--

Roman could feel his breath hitch in his throat, his eyes were wet, why was he crying? Why couldn’t he breathe?

Roman felt a hand on his shoulder. He tensed as he suddenly remembered where he was. His hands were gripping the bed. The breath slowly returned to his lungs, maybe he had been cursed. Cursed by some breath stealing fairy. That would actually be a good idea for a story, he’d have to return to that later.

“Roman?” Right. Later. He looked up to see Logan looking down at him with a concerned expression on his face. Roman could almost find it in himself to smile. Logan would know what to do. Logan always knew what to do.

“Are you okay?”

“Do I look like I'm okay?” Roman threw his arms around, nearly hitting Logan, who had started to sit down next to Roman.

Logan frowned. “I don't understand, you and I both know disappearing is not out of the realm of your brother's usual behavior. He runs off somewhere, every third week.” His frown deepened. “You both do, actually, no matter how hard I try to stop you.”

Logan had become Roman and Remus’s court companion, by nature of being literally the only other child that lived in the castle. The title wasn't exactly official, but that's what everyone had taken to calling him, almost affectionately. And Logan did the job as best as he could. Making sure neither one of them got themselves killed.

Logan also happened to be the son of Roman and Remus’s tutor. He excelled in almost everything, math, science, geography even English, though he struggled with the metaphors. Out of the three of them, Logan had always gotten the best scores. Roman might have called it favoritism if he didn’t know Logan so well.

Roman passed Logan the note he held crumpled up in his hand. In his despair he had almost forgotten it had been there. Logan carefully read over the material, his face changing only slightly, so slightly Roman wouldn't have caught it if he hadn't known what to look for. He squinted adjusting his glasses.

Of course, knowing what was in the letter himself helped. Roman had reread it over and over again, after finding it on his nightstand that morning.

Ro,

I'm leaving. For good this time. Don’t blame yourself, don't try to come after me, because I don’t want to come back. I don't know what I'll do next, maybe become a pirate? Or live in the woods in a cave,like a bear, and run around naked and eat wild plants! Who knows. I’ll decide later. Anyway, I’ll write to you if I find a way to from wherever I’m going. Say goodbye to Lo for me.

Ps. Don't show this to Mom.You know she’ll come after me.

Pps. If you show this to Mom I'll come back to the castle and bludgeon you. I am not above fratricide.

Roman had quickly hid that note under his pillow. And then he pulled it out to read it again, before sticking it back. He had been doing that all morning. He had at first felt angry, how dare he leave him to do this by himself, that hadn’t been the plan! That's what twins were for! So you didn't have to do things like stealing cookies from cooks, or running kingdoms, alone!

So that was that then. His brother was gone, he left, purposefully disappeared. Roman was going to tackle him if he found him. When he found him. Determination flooded into him.

Logan looked up at him. Probably seeing something in his eyes, he said “You’re going to go try to find him.” He looked at him disapprovingly.

Shit.

“I have to--!” Roman said. Roman drew short, and quickly looked around. He lowered his voice, “I'm going, and you can’t stop me!” Logan glared at him.

Roman glared back, harder. Logan maintained his gaze for a second then looked away, sighing. “Fine, then, I will accompany you.”

“You don't have to-” Roman said. Logan raised an eyebrow.

“I know I don't have to.” He walked over to Roman’s closet and grabbed a bag. “Pack some clothes, I’ll make a list of things we need, and draft a plan.” He placed the bag down next to Roman.

For the first time today Roman smiled. He could almost taste the adventure coming up on the horizon.

-----

Patton couldn’t wait to see his friend! He had said they could meet up today. Patton was so excited he sped through his chores. And boy, there were a lot!

Not that Patton ever really minded that much. He loved the animals on the farm. And he liked getting up early, and getting to watch the sun rise. The only problem was that he had finished too early. By the time he had gotten back it was already twelve O’clock and he still had two more hours to wait.

It was currently 1:30. He still had thirty minutes to wait, but his friend was rarely on time. Sometimes he came early, but mostly he came “fashionably” late as he had called it once. Patton had laughed.

Patton was sitting by the edge of the forest, near his house. The grass underneath Patton's hands was soft, and the sun shone brightly through the trees. The wind felt breezy, tousling through his hair. Patton giggled.

Patton's thoughts wandered to when he met his friend. It was almost a year ago, Patton had been playing around near the woods. His mama had told him to never to go in them. So Patton stayed around them, sure to never get too close to the trees. But Patton had thought he heard crying.

At first he was able to convince himself it was nothing, just the wind rustling through the trees, but the sound grew louder until it could not be classified as anything but sobbing. All thoughts of getting in trouble fled him. Someone was hurting, he needed to help them.

He had wandered slowly into the woods, holding his breath. Barely making a sound. He walked on the path, trying to listen from where he thought he had heard the sound. If somebody was hurt he had to help. Nevermind the fear slowly creeping up his spine.

As he journeyed farther and farther into the woods, the volume of the crying would cycle. Just as he thought he was about to reach the person, it would decrease again. Patton was just starting to think that he’d been tricked when he heard movement in the trees.

He turned around.

Nobody was there.

He slowly turned forward.

A snake was hanging down from the tree, right by him. Patton screamed. He fell backwards and froze. The black and yellow snake drew up close to him. So close he could see the wrinkly outline of its scales. Its eyes were cat-like. The snake's head nodded to the side, an expression that, on a human, would certainly be read as amused curiosity.

Patton got up and ran.

He could feel air rushing past him. He was running on autopilot, passing through trees and ducking under vines. Low hanging branches and thorny bushes nicked at his skin. He nearly avoided tripping over a couple of twigs and branches. He slowed down to a light jog, before stopping and sitting on a log to catch his breath. Patton looked around.

Nothing looked familiar. Patton thought he had come out from his left side. He walked back that way. Trying to go the way he remembered coming from, turning left and right. Just as he thought he would never make it out of these woods, he saw light. Light! Patton ran toward it.

Only to find himself back in the same place he started.

He tried again, and again, changing directions, taking lefts where last time he took rights. But every time he found himself in the same place. It didn't help that the tree markers seemed to flip and change randomly. And Patton couldn't shake the feeling that he was being watched. “Why cant you just leaf me alone?” He tried to joke, but his punning fell flat.

He sat back down on his log, and started to cry.

He heard something move in the trees. His breath hitched, and he looked up. A boy about his age was sitting on a branch and looking down at him, lazily dangling a leg off the side of the tree.

His clothes were dark. Pretty fancy for the woods, Patton thought. The boy had a button down shirt, and a cloak wrapped around him. He had yellow gloves, and a hat Patton had never seen before. Patton thought he looked like a storybook villain.

“Crying is, absolutely, one of the best, most productive, responses one could have to getting lost in the woods.” Patton whipped his face with his sleeve. That was kind of a mean thing for him to say.

“Hello!” Patton said, trying to make himself seem happier than he felt. “My name is Patton!”

The boy looked sharply down at him and hissed a half-whisper, “Could you be any louder? I’d love for you to make it known to the whole world that I’m up here!”

Patton frowned. This convo wasn’t going well at all. He pushed forward, and half-whispered “Sorry, it's nice to meet you, what's your name?”

The boy tipped his hat. “You can call me Deceit.” They sat in silence for a minute.

“Well…” Patton began.

“Well?” Deceit said.

“Well, It's just, I'm kinda lost….”Patton trailed off.

“Clearly.”

“And you seem to know these woods a bit…..” Deceit’s expression didn’t change.

“So maybe,” Patton paused, “Maybe you could help me out?” The end of his statement went high.

Deceit must have seen the desperation on his face. Because he said, “Look, I'm not in the habit of doing favors for people, but I am willing to make an exchange.”

Patton gasped. A snake had appeared where Deceit once was. It slithered up the branch and down the tree. As soon as the snake hit the ground, Deceit reappeared.

So he was the one that scared him earlier!

“Here's the deal, I will help you home, if you agree to do me a favor.” Deceit held out his hand to shake it. Patton reached for it, automatically. Stopping just short of shaking it.

“Wait.” Patton had said tilting his head curiously “What favor?”

“You’ll know it when the time comes.” Patton hesitated for a moment, and then stood up and shook Deceits hand.

And in the end that had turned out to be a great decision! Patton had gotten a new friend! A friend that was running towards him right now. Now that’s a bit weird. Deceit doesn't runs, he just slithers all over the place. Patton giggled a bit at the joke.

His smile became tented with concern when he noticed Deceit had a look of panic on his face. Patton grabbed him by the arms. “Hey, hey, what's the matter, kiddo?”

“Patton, you have to hide me!” Deceit said.

[toooldforfandom-liveblogs]

Gravity Falls S02E12 - A Tale of Two Stans

I have nothing to say before starting the episode. I want _all_ the answers and the title sounds really promising. Let's do this!

For some reason they sound exactly like young Carl from Up.

Poor unfortunate kids looking like they are already fifty.

I see that "Blendin was here." I wonder if that R + S is also a reference to something.

This has to be Grunkle Stan, right?

Enter the creepy triangle.

So, they _had_ a good relationship. What happened?

THEY ARE BOTH STAN.

Oooh, that's new.

Holy shit, is that J. K. Simmons?

THANK YOU MABEL

A NEW NAME.

A bottle episode! Perfect for loong very clarifying explanations!

Ah Mabel, you read my mind

I don't know why I expected the brother (Stanford!!!!) to have a better personality than Stan.

That's the best joke of the show, right there

I'm already dreading finding out how it all went wrong.

Huh, Stan lied to the agents saying that Dipper had a "sweating" problem. Did he get the idea from his childhood bully?

They are too cute. TOO CUTE.

He's so proud of his brother!!

oh no oh _no_

Did Stan screw up Stanford's chances of going to college and that's how their rift started? But Stan was so proud of him! Did he feel betrayed by the brother he had always defended and supported?

This is heartbreaking.

Oh. Wait. Did Stanford end up going to college and Stan decided to escape his town with the boat and that's how he ended up in Colombian prison and with all those fake ids?

It's very weird to hear J.K. Simmons trying to do a younger voice.

I keep flipflopping with what's going to happen because this really sounds like Stan is going to sabotage the experiment.

Okay. Okay. It wasn't on purpose and he immediately felt bad about it.

I know he's a jerk in the present but intentionally sabotaging his brother's project felt so out completely out of character for this young Stan.

All this while I was thinking it was going to be Stan who rejected his brother (because that would explain the seed of jealousy/betrayal that Bill could exploit later on, if it was Bill who convinced Stan to turn on the machine) but maybe Stanford is the one who's going to reject him after thinking he ruined his future.

But how did they meet again in Gravity Falls then?

there you go

OH. Is that baby the twins' grandmother?

THAT'S WHY STAN IS A GRIFTER

This episode is like having a big bag of puzzle pieces falling very neatly into their places.

Is the boat why Stan wanted to fish with other people? Because he never could do it with his brother?

This hurts my soul. Standford's reaction is completely valid (unlike their dad's) but poor Stan.

Mabel continues to read my mind.

THE FAKE IDS

Isn't this too dramatic of a way to record his studies considering he has a PhD.?

I can't believe Gravity Falls is a prequel for Prey (2017).

Bill's dimension! That's why the abnormal is going to become the norm, it's all going to escape again! But why Gravity Falls?

Wow. Just wow.

AAAAAAAH

AAAAAAAAAAAA THE INTRO

I know I haven't said much this episode but I'm loving this dump truck of lore.

Wait. WAIT. Isn't this the house that appeared in Time Traveler's Pig (but with a lot more barbed wire)? IT WASN'T A YOUNG STAN, IT WAS A YOUNG STANFORD. THIS GODDAMN SHOW.

Thank you for acknowledging what everyone was thinking.

I thought Bill had to be directly involved to manipulate Stan or Stanford but they managed to make their anger to each other so real that I'd totally believe it if Stanford ends up falling into the portal by accident during the fight with the whole thing exploding afterwards.

THE TATTOO

Stan's life is even more tragic than I thought. I thought he disliked the mystery thing but he was doing it because of his brother but he _hated_ the mysteries because he felt they took his brother even before he did it.

And that's how the glasses end up in this room. Is he going to decide to assume Stanford's identity in the room with the body-switching carpet? THIS SHOW

OH MY GOD

OF COURSE. I thought he was faking Stanford's death but he had to fake his _own_ death. AAAAAAAAAAA

They can only pay one expensive and famous VA at a time. Goodbye Nick Offerman, you will be missed.

C'mon, now it's the time for Stanford's crazy adventures in Hell.

My heart.

And of course Mabel would worry because she's the only one with emotional inteligence in the entire house.

A STUBBORN TOUGH NEW JERSEY NATIVE

FILBRICK WASN'T TOO CREATIVE

HAVING TWINS WAS NOT HIS PLAN

SO HE JUST SHRUGGED AND NAMED BOTH STAN

Wow, they even answered my "what were their parents thinking" question.

---

Answers. The episode. Wow.

We didn't learn anything _vital_, it just filled-in all the missing pieces from Stan's past and behavior. His entire thing makes sense now.

Stanford's a dick but an understandable one. He _did_ spend 30 years in a dimension populated by everything weird in Gravity Falls. His dream got destroyed by Stan and then, in his eyes, his brother wasn't even able to see how important was the task he was giving to him. The world was in Stan's hands and he repaid that trust by shoving Stanford into an extra-dimensional portal. And then he broke that trust again by reopening the portal, stealing his house and life in the process. Yeah, I can see where he's coming from even if it's frustrating to watch.

I hope their relationship improves by the end of the show. Not asking for them becoming best friends or anything like that because those are some _deep_ wounds but some acknowledgment from both parts that the past sucked and maybe they could do better in the future would be nice.

I wonder what's going to happen in the next 8 episodes. They tried to reset to the status quo by confining Stanford to the basement but if any plot they do doesn't involve him in some way I'm going to be thinking "THE AUTHOR IS IN THE BASEMENT! WHO CARES ABOUT THESE GOBLINS OR WHATEVER!"

And the end of the world is coming.

Until next time!

PS: What should I watch after Gravity Falls?

[crazy-loca-blog]

Personal thoughts on… 2019 releases (Part II)

Note: As the title says, these are just personal opinions on Choices books and chapters. Of course, you may agree or disagree with them, I only use this platform to express my thoughts on what I read every week.

Welcome to the second part of this three-part post. As I said in the first post, I will include current releases and books that were released on 2018 but finished in 2019. The list is organized in alphabetical order and it doesn’t include the VIP Books (as I don’t have access to the feature) or the seasonal books (as I’ll talk about them in another post, after all of them have been fully released). You may see Part I here.

PS: I’ll do my best to upload Part III today (Dec. 31), but I can’t make any promises because I won’t be home on New Year’s eve.

Desire & Decorum, Book 3 (August 4, 2019 - December 1, 2019): This is the only wedding book that made real sense to me this year… and it’s definitely my favorite wedding book of the year. It was the perfect closure for a series that didn’t convince me that much at first, but that I learned to love over time. We had this whole new plot with Harry that was a little weak, but at the same time it was a smart move, as it helped to keep a balance and to not overcharge things with the wedding. But can we just talk about the final chapter? It was simply adorable, I loved every part of it (honestly, I haven’t heard of anyone complaining on the final chapter yet). If I have to criticize something, I’d say the writers went too far with Mr. Sinclaire. The man went through hell in the first two books, I thought they would give him a break in the third one… I was so wrong! But overall, I really liked this book, the new characters such as Harry, Briar’s mom and Hamid’s mom gave some fresh air to the story and new plots such as matchmaking Luke and Anabelle’s sister were a nice twist. I’m pretty happy with this book.  

High School Story: Class Act, Book 1 (October 8, 2018 - January 14, 2019): New cast, same school. I couldn’t actually say if I like or dislike this book more than the previous series because I actually feel it’s just impossible to compare them. The writers had a very difficult work to do, as they needed to make this cast different from the HSS one within the same environment, and I’d say they succeeded. Not only you can see the problems are different, but also the way they address their relationships is different, and it’s quite evident that they are younger kids that are transitioning into their teenage years more than teens thinking about graduating and going to college. We also went from this super popular MC and being prom king/queen to a MC who embarrasses himself/herself quite often and whose friends (except for Rory) are probably amongst the most unpopular kids in school. Finally, the fact that the story focuses in one specific school area (the theatre club) was a pretty smart move to not make this story a mess. So overall, it’s not one of my favorite books, but I enjoyed reading it and I appreciate the writers’ effort to make this series different from the first one.

High School Story: Class Act, Book 2 (February 11, 2019 - May 20, 2019): This is the theatre book where theatre is not seen anywhere. I’m not sure if this is the weakest book in the series (I think I still need to realize how Book 3 will end in a few weeks), but I admit I had to review the chapters’ summary because I couldn’t even remember what the book was about. The plot was simply lame, there are no big highlights in the story, we spent like half of it in the middle of a fight between Rory and our twin because they both want to be school president (can we talk about the fact that Maria is graduating?) and we appeared on TV. Our MC simply didn’t shine or did anything truly remarkable during this book. If it weren’t for Ajay’s parents’ divorce and the role our MC played on supporting his/her friend, this book would have been easily forgotten.  

High School Story: Class Act, Book 3 (October 30, 2019 - Present): Honestly, I’m not a fan of mixing both HSS gangs in Book 3. It feels weird not to be able to control a MC that I was able to manage in the past. I also understand all the hype for going to London, but did we really need as many people as we see in this book? Where are people like Natalie or Danielle? I mean, I don’t like them, but they’ve belonged to this group since day 1. Anyway… I’m guessing this is the way the writers found for us to say goodbye to this series. After six books, I think it’s the perfect time to put High School Story to rest for a while, before it becomes a mess. Even though there are some chapters left, I can already tell what my favorite thing about this book (and this series) is: the issues these kids have to face in their personal lives are serious stuff. In the past, Rory’s mom had cancer and Ajay’s parents got divorced, and now we talk about Skye coming from an abusive family and our twins trying to find their roots. That was enough. I don’t think we needed Rory and Ajay facing new problems in this book. Instead, I would have preferred to see Rory working with Maria or Ajay dealing with the fact that he became “the man of the house” after his parents’ divorce. The idea was to see them “growing” throughout the series; unfortunately, this hasn’t happened yet.

It Lives Beneath (October 10, 2018 - January 30, 2019): This is the only book in the list I haven’t read… and there is a very specific reason for it. When It Lives In The Woods was first released, I noticed that a lot of the screenshots people were posting included spiders… a lot of them. As an aracnophobic myself, I just couldn’t even begin the first chapter of that book. Then, It Lives Beneath was released and I noticed that there were some characters from the first book, so I said “mmm… maybe I do need to read the first book because it might be linked to the second one”, so I never read it. However, I have to agree with the fandom on the fact that we need more mystery and horror books in the app. Sure, I’m a sucker for romance books, but at the same time, I’m totally capable to understand that we need more diversity in terms of books. So I’m totally waiting for this series to be revisited in the future, the fans deserve it.  

Mother Of The Year (August 30, 2019 - Present): This God-tier book is one of those gifts that you don’t expect to be that nice, but it ends up being a treasure. It definitely climbed up in my personal list and went straight to the Top 2 of my favorite books in the app. Nobody had much hope on this story, but we ended up meeting an adorable daughter, a mom that was a warrior, three LIs that were simply adorable, one of the best BBFs that Choices has given us and Luz Mendez, probably one of the best characters in the app. Overall, the plot and the characters (even the evil ones!) were so real and relatable that I have to admit I went through every single possible feeling while reading the book… I laughed, I cried, I screamed, and I got mad at times. And of course, my heart broke when we realized that this was a standalone book. But do I really want it to become a series? I’m not that sure. There is a part of me who wouldn’t like to see a second book because the ending was so precious that I wouldn’t like it to be ruined with a second book. On the other hand, I love the story so much that it makes me sad to realize we won’t be getting anything new from these beautiful people. However, I think the story is perfect to make a Christmas or a Halloween special, focused on the kids… maybe even a summer book! This book definitely deserves to be revisited in the future.  

Nightbound (April 24, 2019 - July 31, 2019): I’m not surprised by the end of Nightbound, but I’m definitely sad. I had problems trying to understand the book at first because I’m not the type of person who’s into supernatural and magical stuff (I have to admit this also causes me some problems even when trying to understand the plots in books such as Bloodbound and The Elementalists, despite I think those are good series). I may even have to replay it to fully understand it. But there are some things that are pretty clear to me: the book is well written, the book is good, the book has awesome characters and most importantly, the book is DIFFERENT, something that this fandom has been asking for a long time now. So I was quite shocked when the writers said the book wasn’t doing as good as they thought. Does this book deserve a sequel? Absolutely! Even though I think it got a proper closure, I also think the plot has a lot of potential that could be explored. As that won’t be happening, I really hope to see some of these characters in Bloodblound 3, just as we saw Cal in Bloodbound 2.  

Open Heart (February 22, 2019 - June 7, 2019): Sorry, but right now I think my opinion will be completely biased because this is my absolute favorite book in the app. There’s just nothing I don’t love about it. The balance between the romance and the professional stories is one of the bests (if not the best) in the app, the characters are well written, the medical plot is interesting and it addresses many of the current conflicts in health care… it’s just a masterpiece. On the romantic side, it doesn’t matter if you go straight to Bryce or Jackie or if you preferred the slow burn with Rafael (actually, can he be considered a “slow burn”?) or Ethan, the writers took their time for the MC to befriend them, we got to deeply know these people (except for Bryce and Jackie… I’m so waiting to know more about them!) before making a choice, and not all of the romance stories ended up with happy endings and fairy tails, so yeah… it’s my perfect book. Can’t wait for the second one!

Passport to Romance (March 20, 2019 - June 19, 2019): Probably my biggest disappointment of the year. The idea behind this story seemed nice, we could have learned about so many places, we could have laughed about so many of the troubles that people travelling on a budget face, we could have had a series instead of a standalone book. Instead, we got a MC who was always late, who seemed to be quite irresponsible with her job, who lived a life of luxury and who suddenly became BFF with people he/she had just met. Come on, they were nice people (even though at some point I just wanted to make Elliot disappear), but again… we had just met, it’s not like you can’t live without them. On top of that, I can’t even remember how many times this gang violated some rules… sure, Yvette was happy, but it might have cost you an expulsion from Europe, which is not nice if you’re a travel blogger. Let’s add up the non-sense of some situations. I know that books are supposed to be a mix between fiction and reality, but I think they went too far this time. I mean… why would the coach allow Ahmed to travel with a group of strangers instead of travelling with the rest of the team? Especially if he’s a professional athlete and he’s competing in an important championship... sorry guys, but there’s nothing I can rescue from this book.

Platinum (May 30, 2019 - September 19, 2019): This is definitely one of my favorite stories this year, and sorry… but I will never get over the fact that this is a standalone book. This book is so unique in so many ways… for the first time, we heard voices and we heard people singing… we also got Avery and Raleigh, two LIs that were gender customizable… the secondary characters were gold… the plot was so cliché but so attractive at the same time… and I could continue. Reading it every week was a real pleasure, you were actually waiting to find out what would happen the next week, and at some point, it seemed like it was the only book that people talked about. However, creating this book was expensive, and well... that just sucks. It would have been so nice to see our MC touring with her friends, taking new risks, visiting new places, and receiving the rock star treatment that she deserved. This book still has a solid fanbase (especially in Tumblr), so it’s just sad it won’t be revisited in the future.

[reese-weasley]

 about - reese weasley

the voice of the intellect is a soft one, but it does not rest until it has gained a hearing.

basic information.

Full name: Harrison Reese Weasley Nickname(s) or Alias: Reese; he chose to go by his middle name when he was older due to his first name being too similar to his uncle’s. Gender: Male Species: Half-blood wizard. Age: 30 Birthday: July 1st. Zodiac Sign: Cancer. House: Slytherin Patronus: Hawk. Army Affiliation: The Resistance. Sexuality: Heterosexual. Nationality: English City or town of birth: London. Currently lives: London Languages spoken: English, really any other language because he picks them up easily. Native language: English Relationship Status: Married to Marcie Bloem-Weasley.

physical appearance.

Height: 6′2. Hair colour: Auburn. Hairstyle: It’s longer in the middle and shorter on the sides. He keeps it styled because his hair is naturally extremely curly and he hates it. Facial Hairstyle: Neatly trimmed. Eye colour: Blue. Tattoos: he’s got a few - a bird tattoo matching his brother’s on the right side of chest, his vows to Marcie are tattooed on the left side of his chest. the twin’s birthdates are tattooed on the inside of his bicep. Piercings: Scars/distinguishing marks: a medium-sized one running along the left side of his back from a quidditch injury he had when he was 16. Preferred style of clothing: business casual, button downs, suits, ties, sweaters - but always tries to sneak in sneakers mostly Converse, even in suits (unless it’s a formal.) Frequently worn jewelry/accessories:

health.

Smoker?: Drinker?: Occasional drinker, not enough to ever get drunk. Recreational Drug User? Which?: Addictions: Work, being the smartest one in the room. Allergies: strawberries. Neurological conditions: OCD probably, he’s a borderline caffeine addict. Sleeping habits: he has an awful sleep schedule. Eating habits:  he tries to eat healthy, but can forget altogether when he’s working. Exercise habits: daily when his work schedule allows. Emotional stability: very high. Sociability: extroverted introvert. prefers one-on-one and smaller groups but he has no problem taking the lead or public speaking. Body temperature: Hot.

personality.

Label: The Catalyst. Positive traits: ambitious, determined, intellectually gifted, persuasive.   Negative traits: arrogant, closed-off, know-it-all, stubborn . Character Alignment:  Lawful Good –  acts as a good person is expected or required to act. He combines a commitment to oppose evil with the discipline to fight relentlessly. Goals/Desires: to be a voice for people in the wizarding world who don’t have one. Likes: reading, quidditch, fall, Halloween, being right, teaching, traveling. Dislikes: not getting his way, not being in control, being told no. Fears/phobias: failure. Favourite colour: gray. Hobbies: reading, flying, piano, quidditch. Habits: rambling, generally can’t sit still, can make other people around him feel intimidated, can come across as being arrogant. his mind is always a few seconds ahead of his mouth. Taste in music: it’s honestly all over the place.

eating habits.

Favourite food(s):  varies, he tends to be a picky eater. Favourite drink(s): Coffee, with inhuman amounts of sugar. Disliked food(s): again, varies. he’s a picky eater.

career.

Level of education: Hogwarts / studied law at Cambridge. Current job title and description: lawyer / part-time law professor. Name of employer: Department of Magical Law Enforcement.

family, friends, & foes.

Parents names: Ron Weasley and Hermione Granger-Weasley. Are parents alive or dead? Alive. Is the character still in contact with their parents? He’s close to both, but he’s closest to his mother due to them being so similar. Siblings? Relationship with siblings? He’s the oldest of three. He’s close to Rose and Hugo. Important Relatives: The Potters, the Weasleys. Partner/Spouse: Marcie Bloem-Weasley, wife. Exes/Past Partners: - Children: Toby and Gene Bloem-Weasley, twin boys. Best Friend: Jasper Travers Other Important Friends: Alice Davies Pets: olaf bloem-weasley; samoyed. pumpkin, beagle mix. henry; marcie’s cat. shakespeare, tawny owl. Enemies: in his line of work, he’s got more than a few.

backstory.

Reese was always ahead of other kids his age intellectually. He could already read and write by an early age, and taught himself piano, not because he’s musically gifted, but because of the patterns music made. Even before he went to Hogwarts, he’d already read his way through most of the required reading for his first year’s curriculum. 

When he arrived at Hogwarts, the Hat wanted to put him in Ravenclaw initially, given his high IQ, but his drive for ambition won out. While at Hogwarts, he was prefect and eventually Head Boy. Reese always hung around the older kids at school, and kept to himself most of the time, preferring to be around a smaller group of close friends. It wasn’t because he was anti-social, it was because he had a hard time getting his brain to actually turn off. He finally found an outlet in Quidditch. It gave him a distraction, even though his goal-scoring skills came more so by mental mathematical equations, probability and reasoning, rather than actual athletic ability - though he he had that as well.

After graduation, Reese went to muggle university, Cambridge to study law. He went through the coursework fairly quickly and teaches law classes part-time when he’s not working as a lawyer. Since his mother is a muggleborn, Reese focuses more on taking cases dealing with half-blood and muggleborn injustice, or those involved with Death Eater attacks, etc. He’d never represented a formally convicted or possible Death Eater until he took the Malfoy case. His views shifted after taking it, seeing how negatively the wizarding world (mostly the Ministry) treated reformed Death Eaters. Reese doesn’t mind taking high-profile cases and actually jumps at the chance to because he thrives under the pressure and publicity. 

[demon-animatronic]

Perfectly Perfect: Prologue (Self-insert fic)

Title: Perfectly Perfect

Rating: General for the time being. Maybe Teen and up later for possible swearing(Most likely) and sexy times(I doubt it though) but for now it’s G.

Relationship: Steelbeak x Self Insert Lexi

Genre: Family/Friendship and eventually Angst and Hurt/Comfort

Chapter Summary: Just a bit of backstory for my oc. Steelbeak will appear in chapter 1.

Other: This takes place shortly after the Double O Duck episode and in the year 2019. So the kids are 12 years old. Launchpad should be about 32 years old. I know Steelbeak is in his 20s but I’m going to bump him to be LP’s age. 5 year age difference(roughly) is a lot better to me than like 10 years. Since I think Donald and Della are about 36 or 37 now and she’s the same age as them.

Author’s Note: 

Here’s the other dumb idea I came up with when I was suffering from insomnia the other night. 

I was going to make her a bird but stuck with dog since the main family is all ducks and Duckworth is the only canine honorary family member/friend that I can think of. 

Also the title was between Perfectly Perfect and Lucky One both by Simple Plan. After listening to both several times on loop, I felt PP was the better choice. So there’s a fun fact.

Prologue(You’re here!) - Next Chapter 

During the summer and after her 6th Birthday, Lexi Lulu, a Dognose, moved from Ohio to Duckburg, Calisota.

Her and her family were fully moved in by the time she started Kindergarten at an expensive private school.

Lexi was always super shy and likely has social anxiety. But she still had friends back in Ohio. So having to make new friends at a new school that she never went to before was making her anxious.

To make things worse, she had to do speech classes due to her speech impairment. And as such, would leave during one of her classes every week to meet with the speech teacher. Usually it was during something fun like Gym or Art Class. But it was only once a week.

It was still the first week of school when a duckling named Della came up to her to see if she wanted to play. As the girls walked over to the little kitchen area, they introduced themselves.

“My name’s Della Duck!” Della said. “You weren’t in my preschool class, right? Or were you in the other one?”

“I’m Lexi. And no. I moved here during the summer.” Lexi replied.

“Oh cool! You’ll like Duckburg!” Della grinned.

As the two continued to talk and play, Della couldn’t help but notice something familiar to her.

“Hey do you do speech classes or something?” Della asked.

“Not yet. I think I’m suppose to start next week.” Lexi said.

“Okay. Maybe you’ll have that with my twin brother! He has a speech problem too. But you talk better than him. He’s in the other Kindergarten class though. I don’t know why they split us up both this year and last year.”

“I don’t know either. Does he have lunch at the same time as us?” Lexi decided to ask.

“Uh huh! You can eat with us and I’ll introduce you to him. You already have something in common!” Della nodded.  

Later at lunch, Lexi and Donald met and instantly hit it off. As they expected, they had the same speech class together too. It made them both feel better that someone else had a similar problem and insecurity.

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

The years went by and they continued to remain best friends. She was actually at their Uncle Scrooge’s mansion so often that he took to calling her his niece too and allowed her to call him uncle.

When they were teens, she started going on all kinds of adventures with the three of them.

Donald started college about a year or two after high school and met Panchito and Jose. But Lexi and Della chose to keep going on adventures instead of college for a while. Scrooge decided to let Lexi move into one of the rooms in the mansion since she was going on adventures so often.

At one point, Lexi was in a relationship with Jose, but they mutually broke it off when they knew they couldn’t move permanently from their respective countries. So he moved back to Brazil sometime later.

A few years later when she, Donald, and Della were about 25, Lexi decided to go to college and take a break from adventuring. During that time, Donald had joined the Navy and even started going on adventures again while Panchito returned to Mexico.

The summer after her first year, Lexi’s niece was born. Months later in the following year, Della had three eggs. 

Fortunately, nothing happened to her brother or sister-in-law. Yet she was always watching her niece when they needed her to. Della took to helping more often when she found out about her own kids.

But when Della went missing after going into space, Lexi quit college.

The Ducks and McDucks had become like another family to her. With Della gone, Lexi knew Donald would need help raising the boys.

She tried to talk to Scrooge for months but he gave her the silent treatment. Or started yelling and threatening her. Simply misplacing his anger for what happened and taking it out on Lexi, especially after Donald took the boys and went no-contact.

Duckworth helped her move in with Donald for the time being since she was no longer welcomed to the mansion. But it made it easier to help Donald out while being under one roof.

As the kids grew up, she started being called Aunt Lexi by them. It started when her niece, Hailey, was over to play and called her it to get her attention. The boys asked if they could do the same since she was helping raise them and was basically their aunt despite not being related by blood or through marriage. Of course, they were fine with this. Lexi even saw them as her nephews too.

When the boys were about 5 or 6 and going to school, Lexi felt it was time to move out since the house boat was getting smaller as they grew older and bigger.

Lexi found a house nearby and began working from home so she watched the kids after school at her place since Donald, her brother, and sister-in-law worked until 5 or 6 PM.  

They were still mourning Della and Lexi was still upset at how her friendship with Scrooge ended. But overall, everything was fine now.

At one point, they noticed the boys introduce Hailey as their ‘cousin’ just like how Donald and Della did with her. So knowing the kids were getting along great was enough to make them happy.

Sure there were fights, but nothing more than the usual sibling or other relatives fights.

That said, they struggled with money since even though they weren’t living together, she was still paying Donald child support to help out. After all, she lived with herself and her turtle. That was barely two mouths to feed compared to his four. And Donald struggled with keeping jobs.

When the kids were 10 years old, Lexi had gone out of town to visit family back in Ohio with her parents and her brother’s family. So Donald needed a babysitter since she wasn’t home at the time. His only option? The uncle they haven’t spoken to in 10 years.

She was surprised when she returned home and found out that they had reconnected and Scrooge allowed them to move in with him. Especially after the house boat blew up.

Lexi went to visit one day when she was off work and her and Scrooge had a talk that they both knew needed to happen. He apologized for taking his anger out on her all those years ago. And even offered her old room to her so she can officially join the family again.

She gladly took it and moved in shortly after Donald and the boys did.

Soon, she discovered that she would quickly gain another niece that year in Webby. The following year after Lena was brought back, she started considering her as another niece too.

It was now 2019 and about a month or two after the Moonvasion happened. The aliens that stayed on Earth are living peacefully now.

After finding out she quit college to help raise her boys, Della more or less forced her to go back to school despite being in her mid-30s now.

So here she was at the library. Hailey, Huey, and Violet joined her since they made their own little book club. So while they looked for a new book to read and sat at a different table in her line of sight, she sat at a computer to do her homework.