#specifically excluding warren

[saintharrowhark]

people in fandom culture are so unbelievably transparent about their racism.

you tell me, which one of them is white?

[omegamoo]

As far as Whittled Pantheon goes.. a few questions. 1) It was originally a MC RP.. how has it being made into a group writing project affected certain liberties you have been able to take?

2) How has the loss of the original group of character creators affected the direction the story has gone and what difficulties have presented themselves as a result of this?

3) What aspects of the story have changed since its conception? (I.e., the Catalyst, characters' personalities and actions, etc., etc.)

Love this stuff (:

omg hi.. hiii... HI... long time no see hope you've been doing really well aaaahhhhh ahhh ahhh!!! also this set of questions is so freaking cool to answer... aAHHHHH HHH! AHHH!! also your smiley face is still the wrong way i guess some things never change :)

i will warn you that asking me about the whittled pantheon is like walking into a minefield and i think i got really incomprehensible here so i'm sticking this all under the cut. thanks so much for the ask

also i seriously think a lot about how this all happened w the og group :) and i for sure did not manage to properly say everything i wanted to within this ask haha

wanna start by saying i feel like since the beginning the whittled pantheon was always going to grow out of minecraft. like as soon as we said lets make them gods in survival minecraft there was so much like. worldbuilding and context and stuff that was automatically just so much bigger and complex than minecraft was able to provide and i honestly think that was very charming. like we - and by we i mean literally all of the original group of creators - put so much love and thought into this that of course it was going to grow further than we expected. and i think that's really beautiful.

1) moving it away from minecraft absolutely EXPLODED the possibilities which i think you ended up seeing the first part of? especially within the context of the old world which before really functioned as like... another server. since moving it away the worldbuilding has gotten really unique - specifically in regards to things like language and culture, which i feel like minecraft lays out within its own game lore? yk? so moving it outside of that really changed a lot. and things like... we're not tied to minecraft mechanics in terms of the nether and the overworld and the mobs and stuff, like that's not really a factor? anyways we were able to take a lot more liberties in terms of godly powers and abilities and creations, and worldmaps and timelines and just so much specific city culture and building. but as i'm writing this it's occuring to me - and i don't know if like, twig or tgm would say this as well - but it's a bit funny because even now picturing the new world/post catalyst i... still imagine it in the format and layout of our minecraft server. like in terms of where houses are, the paths, aides' tree and the warren... like when i picture that i'm still picturing the server. maybe that's just because your ask got me thinking about it i'm not sure but it's kinda funny!

2) i mean it changed a lot. i think this is the answer that is gonna vary the most if you were to ask it to tgm or twig because i think our individual relationships to the group and such are different but i will say that the main difficulty for me has always been like. wanting to include people in the process and getting nervous that people will feel excluded or that we've taken too many liberties with it and people will be angry that we didn't consult them, but also... it's hard to manage consistency and communication for as large and complex of a project as what the whittled pantheon was becoming especially within the context of the group at the time. and i think that bit kinda speaks for itself, haha. the main change i think was again the worldbuilding and a bit the arc of the characters - we never changed really personalities, exactly, i think the main cast stayed relatively true to original concept in many ways, but there's a bit of archetyping of characters in terms of their roles within the larger story that were impossible to predict when we started. the story itself for sure also became a lot more of a commentary on society which i don't think outside of tgm's stuff with agathodaemon it was beforehand - because largely that wasn't what the whole group was into, from what i remember.

the other thing in terms of all of that is, especially on my end, the attempt to stay true to the original concepts without like. being able to know for sure where y'all were going with it all. there were some parts of lore that either never got fleshed out or i personally never fully understood or never fit within the worldbuilding that the majority had set up, and so it was like. hard to make sure that that was close to what it had been while still making sense. thinking about maey forever. and idk like i'd talk to people and they'd be like "hey what's up with my character and can i write stuff" a year later and it was tough to be like "yeah here's kinda... how its changed. please don't b mad and also you can write stuff but its so much more complex now" idk it is kinda scary.

3) changes time EEE. lets see. im gonna make you a little list :]

the worldbuilding at its very basic essentials changed SO much. how the planet systems and how the Carver came to be are much more solid. i kinda dont know how to explain it because the effects of it are still the same but its just more detailed? if you want more the tag on my pinned post "whittled pantheon explanations" has a lot of it

other big change was the Failsafes - Melior, Palaemon, and Aides. failsafe is a type of god essentially and there are two per each world (the Carver isn't supposed to carve any other gods just set the two failsafes down and move on) and they are like the protectors and caretakers of the world. there's usually an earth one and a water one - for the old world, Melior is the earth and Palaemon is the water. this is why things get SO BAD when Palaemon dies, because he's fundamentally a part of the world. And Aides is the earth failsafe for the new world, and is awakened by Agathodaemon when he goes back to get Iota. failsafes can create passages (like. melior goddess of paths yk) between worlds (melior creates the one to the new world originally and aides then creates the warren back to the old world). so you can prolly see a lot of the similarities in terms of plot function, just we've kinda slotted it all into worldbuilding better.

uhm the Catalyst. no longer about turning into glass haha, that just stopped making as much sense. it's still the end of the world, but there's a lot more... politics? in it? it's more centered around the loss of water, so there's a lot of faction-action surrounding like... the last standing sources of water. the fortuna and iota stuff is still pretty much the same though.

a lot of character actions still stay the same at their core, i think. like there's been modification for sure but a lot of the story concepts that were fully written out stayed the same. maey's stuff with kappa has been slotted into worldbuilding but still remains at its core the same, the relationship between morrighan and ludo in all its godly toxicity still remains a lot of what it was. the whittled pantheon started out as a story driven by the characters. there's not some big bad guy out there to destroy them, it's entirely the actions of the characters and so in a lot of ways there was absolutely no way for us to ever lose sight of that bc that would fundamentally change the project.

final thing because this is so ungodly long. i think you will be maybe pleased toknow that to my knowledge the stuff in the new world with morrighan. that arc. + her convos with agathodaemon. are still pretty much the same.

anyways if you got to the end of this hey. hi. i kinda lost my mind answering this but i hope it meant something. the whittled pantheon means the world to me and what we created with the original server really i think fundamentally changed my life. and you had a lot to do with that, so thanks.

and uhm you are always welcome to pop into my dms or whatever.. i know we havent really talked in a while but i hope youre doing so good <3

[honeybunchesobees]

My very specific gender headcanons for lis characters

Max- Demigirl but in a really specific way. If you're close or if you ask their pronouns, they'd say only they/them. However, they don't despise using she/her, so strangers and people not close enough to them who use she/her don't get correct. Also doesn't mind female terms no matter how close you are to them

Chloe: I've never seen a more bigender individual. He/She (and probably neopronouns around words like "smash" or "rock")

Rachel: Cis woman, doesn't mind neopronouns if someone uses them but otherwise She/Her

Victoria: Trans woman, She/Her only

Warren: Trans man, He/Him only

Nat (Natalie) Prescott: Trans woman, She/Her only

Kate: She gives off demigirl vibes, but mostly uses She/Her cause she's still figuring herself out.

Alex Chen: Trans woman when she doesn't feel like explaining, but genderfluid. uses any and all pronouns excluding he. She/They/It/Aer/Xir

Steph Gingrich: She/He, honestly. Bigender lesbians <3

Ryan: Cis and uses only He/Him when it comes to most people, but he likes when Steph and Alex use Avi/Aviself pronouns with him

Gabe Chen: He/They, actually. Demiboy Gabe my <3

[hakka84]

House of XCII

I can’t explain how much I found House of XCII refreshing and pleasing to read. So many bubbles, and all the boxes! I missed boxes so much! We really lost something, when it was decided that boxes were to be reduced in numbers. I can’t help it, I would return in a blink to this style. Less “let the arts do all the explaining”, please. I also enjoyed the over-the-top dialogues (in line with the cartoons).

But, besides the general feeling of the comic.... Warren.

Warren is basically less than a cameo in the series, let’s not kid ourselves. But he got more to do here than in the whole of Krakoa's era so far (if you were to exclude X-Corps and it's prequel Empire: X-Men mini). He sits at the Council as “the steadfast moral compass” and he is one of the fighters picked for X of Swords. Now, I’m not sure Archangel in that specific era (still more Archangel of Death than a Warren who reclaimed the Archangel title for himself) could be a steadfast moral compass, but I love it that he has been included.

But what truly sold me is this:

Warren reunited with his three horsemen peers and acknowledging that, the five of them, are a (twisted) family.

I'm a sucker for Warren and Poccy being a dysfunctional (toxic) family. Warren clearly hates Apocalypse (has every reason to) but Apocalypse is also the guy who saved him from suicide and gave him new wings - so basically Apocalypse offered him a new chance at life. Apocalypse is like that father who gave you life but psychologically manipulated you for years.

One of the many things I don’t like from the Hickman’s era is how he decided to introduce the Apocalypse’s children. He could’ve established that Poccy decided to always have four horsemen at his service to honor his lost children and stop at that. But no, Hickman had to go and have Poccy say that his children were the best horsemen, all those came after were pale comparisons.

This deprived Warren of what made him different from all the other mutants who had eventually been turned into horseman in the 90′s and 2000′s. Apocalypse in two instances addresses Warren either as his son or his best horseman, or acted/spoke in ways that clearly showed that Poccy had great expectations from Warren and was proud of him/how he turned out regardless of Warren’s choice to return to the X-Men fold (see both future!Apocalypse from Messiah War and current!Apocalypse in X-Cutioner's Song - they never really interacted elsewhere). Even at the start of X of Swords Apocalypse somehow complimented Warren and subtly acknowledged his pride for his former Death horseman. And then there’s the Warren of the Dark Angel saga. Of all the mutants who had been picked to serve as horseman, including guys like Wolverine or powerhouses like Polaris - of all the Deaths... it was Warren the one Poccy picked as his heir.

Now, Warren is like all the other horsemen. Just one of the many mutants picked at their lowest, twisted and engineered to become a pale shadow of these so perfect first horsemen - who didn’t much to prove they are superior to previous horseman we saw in the past. Call me disappointed.

[tomriddleinafrillydress]

Bound into insanity — Bound into eternity

Tom Riddle x Moaning Myrtle

Part 1/31 < here

Story summary: Myrtle Warren never becomes Moaning Myrtle, moreover, she never dies, and most importantly, she gets rid of her acne. In her quest for revenge, she decides to seduce the most handsome (and incidentally hated by her) boy at Hogwarts, Tom Riddle, but even her makeover from ugly duckling into a beautiful swan has not prepared her for the unexpected complications caused by a badly brewed love potion.

Is it a WIP?: No. This is a series; first part "Bound into insanity - Bound into eternity" is around 200k words long and I've finished writing it in late March 2024. The second part is titled "Bound into eternity - Bound into depravity", and is currently a WIP sitting at around 100k words (I'm not really stuck in the middle, but writting middles is the worst, please sedate me lmao). I always finish my fics, so there's no danger of getting invested in a story only to find out it's been last updated in 2009 (I know the pain). The publication schedule will be once a week, usually Fridays mornings.

Most important tags: slow burn (a painfully slow one, believe me); Tom Riddle: a manipulative,possessive cute little thief 😇🚩; mild? stockholm syndrome; mind games; horcruxes; BODY SWAP; yule ball; school play; dubious consent (when we finally arrive there); and of course last but not least: Tom Riddle is his own warning (and he's so babygurl at it).

What do I as an author love about this fic the most?: The humour. There's copious amounts of it included, a lot of it rooted in the body swap itself (it lasts for several chapters and includes some gender-specific 'occurences'), however Myrtle being both boy-crazy and a prude at the same time definitely is a treat in itself.

Please do keep in mind that this story is being translated from Polish. I'm not an English native speaker. I'm open to discussion and concrit.

A sneak peak of how Myrtle views Tom:

Had she said he was not ravishingly handsome, she would have been sent straight to the ninth circle of hell for such an outright lie. The contrast between his alabaster skin and black curls gave him such a noble appearance that he could easily have passed for a member of one of the most prestigious pureblood families. This image was only reinforced by high cheekbones, a gaunt face full of sharp angles, and black eyes framed by long lashes, which, with their charm, made it impossible for girls to look away. Aside from looking like a young man snatched alive from the pages of classic romances, Tom Riddle also presented himself to the world as such. Questioned about him, Myrtle would have said she hadn't been paying him any attention, though the truth was much different. No, by no means did she stare at him with her tongue hanging out (only occasionally), but she watched with envy as he wrapped everyone around his finger. She believed that their academic results were similar in many areas (excluding Defence Against Dark Magic, in which he was second to none), but it was he, the golden boy, who collected all the accolades and was lavished with points. Myrtle once stole his graded essay and compared it with hers - apart from the different means of communication, the information contained in their essays was identical with the difference of one extra sentence. By mere peculiarity, Riddle got an outstanding grade and she got an exceeds expectation grade, which she considered to be favouritism mixed with sexism. Not without reason did the Slug Club consist entirely of boys.

If you're interested in reading, you can find the first chapter HERE.

[manilafm]

most wanted characters by the members/admins, please?

Everyone who is a member/admin. of this RPG would love to see Rose Granger-Weasley, Pansy Parkinson, Draco Malfoy, Ron Weasley, the rest of Ginny Weasley's brothers ( Percy Weasley, Fred Weasley, George Weasley, and Bill Weasley ), Cho Chang, Cedric Diggory, Mr. Remus Lupin, Katie Bell, Neville Longbottom, Mrs. Molly Weasley, Mr. Arthur Weasley, Mr. James Potter, Mrs. Lily Evans-Potter, Emma Vanity, Romilda Vane, Penelope Clearwater, Hugo Granger-Weasley, Professor Severus Snape, Professor Minerva McGonagall, Marlene McKinnon, Headmaster Albus Dumbledore, Sirius Black, and Oliver Wood from Harry Potter ; Gerald Johanssen, Arnold Shortman, Patricia ‘Big Patty’ Smith, Nadine, Sheena, Lila Sawyer, and Sid from Hey, Arnold! ; Payton Saunders, Autumn Brooks, Sakura Watanabe, Max Warren, Kara Sinclair, Ezra, Hope Castillo, Julian Castillo, Katherine, Koh Sunya, Derek, Nick, Shane, Wes Porter, Nishan Khandaar, Chelsea, Owen Harris, Brigette, Lacey, Kimi Chen, Quinn, Asher Rollins, Chase Cunningham, and Fibikemi ‘Phoebe’ Ayotunde from High School Story ; Sam Puckett, Freddie Benson, Carly Shay, Spencer Shay, and Gibby Gibson from iCarly ; Elena Gilbert, Hope Mikaelson, Joesette 'Josie’ Saltzman, and everyone else from The Vampire Diaries / The Originals / Legacies ( excluding Damon Salvatore, though ) ; Youngmee Song, Mrs. Eliza Biskit, Mr. Fisher Biskit, Mrs. Lauren ‘Betty’ Smith, Sue Patterson, Joshua 'Josh’ Sharp, and Mr. Roger Biskit from Littlest Pet Shop ; Adrien Agreste, Alya Césaire, Nino Lahiffe, Jessica ‘Jess’ Keynes, Alix Kubdel, Luka Couffaine, Nathalie Sancoeur, Kagami Tsurugi, Mrs. Emilie Agreste (neé Graham De Vanily), Mr. Gabriel Agreste, Lila Rossi, Mrs. Sabine Cheng, Mr. Tom Dupain, Master Wang Fu, Félix Graham De Vanily, Lê Chiến Kim, Max Kanté, Mylène Haprèle, Ivan Bruel, Nathaniel Kurtzberg, Marc Anciel, Ms. Caline Bustier, Principal Damocles, Ms. Mendeleiev, Fred Haprèle, Armand D'Argencourt, Mr. André Bourgeois, Jagged Stone, Nadja Chamack, Mr. Roger Raincomprix, Mr. Alim Kubdel, Jalil Kubdel, Xavier Ramier, Mr. Otis Césaire, Mrs. Marlena Césaire, Nora Césaire, Wayhem, Ms. Anarka Couffaine, Ondine, Mrs. Amélie Graham De Vanilly, Grand Master Su-Han, Ms. Tomoe Tsurugi, Aurore Beauréal, and Mrs. Audrey Bourgeois from Miraculous: Tales Of Ladybug & Cat Noir ; and lastly, we would also absolutely love to see Peter Parker, Loki Laufeyson, America Chavez, Carol Danvers, Pepper Potts, Mary Jane Watson, Michelle ‘M.J.’ Jones, Cindy Moon, May Parker, Kamala Khan, Wade Wilson, Steve Rogers, Tony Stark, Thor Odinson, Emma Frost, Billy Kaplan, Tommy Shepherd, Clint Barton, Bucky Barnes, Sam Wilson, Wanda Maximoff, and Jean Grey from Marvel !! However, if you have any specific fandoms in mind to bring into this RPG, please send us another ask with the FULL name of the fandom !!

[marketanalysisreports]

Reata Pharmaceuticals Inc Analysis & Company Information - GlobalData

Reata Pharmaceuticals has reacquired from AbbVie the freedoms to create, make and popularize its Nrf2 activator item bardoxolone methyl in business sectors outside the US. The arrangement likewise includes reacquisition of worldwide privileges to Nrf2 activators, for example, omaveloxolone. Nonetheless, it does exclude the permit for bardoxolone in specific Asian business sectors, which is held by Kyowa Kirin. Thus, Reata will pay $330m in real money to AbbVie, principally for bardoxolone freedoms.Reata will make a $75m forthright installment this year, trailed by the rest of portions in the second quarter of the following year and the final quarter of 2021. While AbbVie is qualified for sovereignties from overall deals of omaveloxolone and other Nrf2 activators, it won't get them on bardoxolone. "Reata Pharmaceuticals  market analysis"CEO and president Warren Huff said: "Recapturing these privileges will expand Reata's essential adaptability and control in regards to the turn of events and commercialisation of our lead drug up-and-comers and our cutting edge Nrf2 activators."We have been effectively planning for the business send off of bardoxolone and omaveloxolone in the US and we will currently grow our endeavors to incorporate these global domains also." Moreover, Reata modified its advance and security concurrence with Oxford Finance and Silicon Valley Bank.The alteration will give $75m to Reata after getting positive, top-line, registrational results from the CARDINAL clinical preliminary of bardoxolone methyl in Alport condition patients or the MOXIe preliminary of omaveloxolone in Friedreich's ataxia. Bardoxolone is an oral, cancer prevention agent aggravation modulator that builds the assessed glomerular filtration rate (eGFR) of the kidneys. It is being created to treat constant kidney sickness (CKD). Reata and AbbVie initially marked the arrangement for the turn of events and commercialisation of bardoxolone in 2010, when the last option was still important for Abbott. The organizations later marked one more arrangement in 2011 to create and market second-age oral cell reinforcement aggravation modulators (AIMs), which actuate the record factor Nrf2.Join Free Demo Secession Now

[dr-archeville]

@chrishlad (Chris Hladczuk)

If you use it right, Google is the most powerful tool in the world. But the truth is most people suck at it. Here are 8 Googling tips that you probably don't know 

"Quotation markets" Put quotes around search terms to let you search exactly for that word. All results will have your terms in it. Example: "James Clear" Gives you all James Clear search results without just "James" or just "Clear".

- Dashes If you want to exclude a term from your search, include a hyphen before that word. Example: dolphins-football You just want dolphins the animal not dolphins the professional football team.

~ Tilde Use tilde when you want synonyms to appear in the result. Example: music ~classes Here you only get music classes, lessons, coaching, etc.

Site: Use this to search within a specific website only. Example: Kevin Ryan site:chrishlad..com This searches for Kevin Ryan mentions on my website (chrishlad dot com).

| Vertical bar Same purpose as OR. Example: Netflix | Hulu Netflix OR Hulu

.. Two Periods Use two periods to search within 2 number ranges. Example: movies 1980..2000

Location: Find news related to a particular location. Example: Elon Musk location:sanfrancisco

Filetype: Filter by a certain file type related to your search. Example: warren buffet filetype:pdf This filters out all the click bait news Buffet news article you don't want to read.

Twitter, 2021 August 28, [link]

[x-childish-x]

Request Rules/Guidelines

Hello everyone! Welcome to my blog! You can call me Moll and my pronouns are she/her! Thank you so much for considering me to write your request! I kindly ask you to read through all my rules before submitting a request! Thank you once again! I look forward to writing for you!

Trigger Warning! Mentions to mental illnesses, abuse, death, etc. below. PLEASE proceed with caution!

What I Write:

🌺 One-shots

🌺 Drabbles

🌺 Headcanons*

🌺 Multi-Chapter stories* 

* I have not written headcanons yet, but I'm more than willing to try. I’m willing to write more parts to previous fics upon request, or if you'd like a new multiple part story.

What's Okay to Request: 

🌺 Fluff

🌺 Angst

🌺 AUs

🌺 NSFW*

🌺 Little-space*

🌺 Romance

🌺 Platonic

🌺 Age gaps 

🌺 Polyamorous*

🌺 LGBTQIA+*

🌺 Mental illnesses*

🌺 Major character death

* Must be 18+ to request/interact with any NSFW content, littlespace will not be written for anything sexualizing it (here’s a link to help clarify littlespace). I haven't written polyamorous before but I'm willing to try, I've never written any LGBTQIA+ fics but I am willing to try my best and learn. Please see the mental illness guidelines below.

Will NOT write: 

🌺 Non-con

🌺 Dubcon

🌺 Pedophilia

🌺 Incest

🌺 Romantic themes for underage characters* 

🌺 ABO

Absolutely will not write or tolerate any hate to a community, series, character, etc.

* If you would like an underage character aged up for romantic theme I will gladly do so, but please specify that.

Mental Illness Guidelines:

All mental illnesses will be handle with extreme care, I will let you know if I'm not comfortable, I will always include warnings, and will try to keep it as safe as possible for all my readers. If requesting a mental illness/one of the following please be respectful. 

They will not be taken lightly and will mainly be written in mention unless otherwise specified. 

Please include trigger warning in your request

🌺 Suicide

🌺 Self-harm

🌺 Eating disorders

🌺 Death of loved one

🌺 Abuse (mental, emotional, physical, sexual)

🌺 Possible other mental illness depending on the illness

Pairings I write for:

🌺 Character x reader*

🌺 Character x OC

* Please specify the gender and ethnicity of the reader (if you wish). You may choose to leave out ethnicity and it will not be specify. My default is fem!reader and no mentions to ethnicity.

Pairings I WON'T write for: 

🌺 Character x character

🌺 Real person x reader*

* EX: Chris Evans x reader

Important General Information:

🌺 I go in order with my requests!

🌺 You can request in my asks, dms, or even comments, whichever way you prefer.

🌺 You can send multiple requests! Don't be afraid, I'm happy to write for you!

🌺 Please specify the reader you'd like written (fem, male, gn reader, race too if you wish*)

🌺 I will let you know if I don't feel comfortable with your request.

🌺 Specific if you wish for platonic or any other type of relationship. I default to romantic.

🌺 Please be patient. I have a life and can't always write stories quickly in good quality. 

🌺 These rules can change at any time, if they do, I will make sure to let everyone know via reblog/separate post

🌺 Feel free to request a trope, I like the majority of them and would love to give it a shot!

🌺 I mainly write for x fem!reader but I will write x gn!reader and x male!reader*

🌺 I have two Prompt lists! One's NSFW prompts and one's a general prompt list! Feel free to use them, or not! Rules for those prompt lists are included on the prompt lists as well as my main masterlist!

* I do not have any experience with writing specific race but if requested I will do my best to improve and be inclusive. The last thing I want is to offend someone, so please (nicely) help me! I default to fem!reader and don't have much experience in gn/male!reader but I'm more than willing to try and improve!

I do my best to make my work friendly to all people (including POC) I want to be inclusive and improve my writing so that people of all ethnicities and genders can enjoy my works. I try to stray from gender specific pronouns when it's not specific but as mentioned, I default to fem!reader and always put that incase a female term slipped by. Please tell me if I'm offending or doing things that feels excluding! Help me if something triggering is not listed so my writings are safe! I want to improve and learn so everyone feels safe and represented on my blog!

Some requests may take a while! It's simply because I want every request to feel like it was worth it to you! I want to do my absolute best to put out the best possible instead of something crummy that didn't have thought put into it.

Lastly:

🌺 If you would like to request something, but still feel unsure after reading through these, please dm me or send an ask! Don't be afraid to ask if I'd be willing to write for something! I'll gladly clarify and add it to whichever list it applies to!

Ask Here!

Main Prompt list!

NSFW Prompt list!

Main Masterlist! (includes all other masterlists)

I write for a large amount of characters and I’m willing to write for more (including female characters)! If you are unsure if I will write for a character, simply ask and I will add them to my list and let you know!

🌺 I am allowed to reject any character request depending on how comfortable I feel writing for them. They are listed in no specific order, all characters on this list are ones I feel comfortable enough to write for, though others are subject to be added!

FANDOMS:

STAR WARS

Anakin Skywalker/Darth Vader

Poe Dameron

Obi-Wan Kenobi

Kylo Ren

Finn

Han Solo

Luke Skywalker

MARVEL

Loki

Pietro Maximoff

Steve Rogers

Tony Stark

Thor

Clint Barton

Bucky Barnes

X-MEN

Peter Maximoff

Kurt Wagner

Warren Worthington iii

Erik Lehnsherr

Logan Howlett

Wade Wilson

Hank McCoy

Alex Summers

Scott Summers

AHS EVAN’S CHARACTER’S

Kit Walker

Kyle Spencer

Jimmy Darling

Tate Langdon

James Patrick March

SUPERNATURL

Dean Winchester

Sam Winchester

Castiel

Jack

Crowley

[fostersffff]

Finished Castlevania: the Netflix Season 3! Here’s some Season 3 specific observations:

I had heard that Season 3 was considered the weakest of the three seasons, and expressed nervousness because it was even longer than Season 2, which I felt was just a touch too long. Upon completion, I’d agree that this is definitely the weakest of the three, but only by a matter of degrees. I was actually more positive on the whole thing until the last two episodes, at which point you start to get into a lot of sudden and arbitrary misery for misery’s sake, which I think the series was pretty good about avoiding up until this point. I should specify that the length wasn’t the issue- even with the extra episodes Season 3 was overall better paced than Season 2- it was just the content of those last two episodes.

I knew through cultural osmosis that Alucard was going to be betrayed by the siblings, so I kept looking for signs, and... there really weren’t any. Except for constantly asking how to move the castle and expressing interest in parts of the castle they hadn’t seen, there were no signs of discontent. Nothing like flinching from gentle touches that they interpreted as incoming abuse, or having to restrain themselves from outbursts of anger over perceived slights, or a lack of interest in the Belmont Hold because all they wanted was to use the castle to enact revenge on everyone who wronged them. Even when talking privately, they came across as totally genuine- there was no doublespeak that was like “ah, you interpreted what they were saying this way but this was what they actually meant” unless you REALLY stretch how hard they leaned on “reward”.

Speaking of the siblings, my first thought upon seeing them was “why is the twink cuter than his sister?”, so imagine my surprise when the sex starts and the twink is suddenly built like a brick shithouse and the sister has some big ol’ honka donka badonkers.

I enjoyed Isaac’s Philosophy Quest, but I don’t actually have a whole lot to say about it, other than the way they managed to use Legion- a Castlevania monster I was sure would not show up in this series- was incredibly cool. Besides that, it was the part that made this season feel like a filler arc the most, because the whole point was to set up for the clash between Isaac and Carmilla’s armies next season.

Right up until the very last bit of it, I would have said that Trevor and Sypha’s story my favorite part of the whole season, because you could isolate it from the other three stories and it would be able to stand on its own no problem. But if the point of everything was ultimately to drag Sypha back down to Earth and make her realize that fighting the forces of hell is not going to exclusively be a Good Time, the complete and total destruction of the town would’ve been enough. Revealing that the Judge was actually a serial killer operating right under their noses was the most “arbitrary misery for misery’s sake” thing in the whole season and the little bit of an extra knife twist it provides was not worth souring the whole thing.

As such, to my great surprise, my favorite story of the season wound up being Hector and Lenore. I mentioned previously that I really don’t like Hector, because in a series chock full of all flavors of genius, he’s a pretty normal guy, which makes him look really stupid by comparison. That still stands, but Lenore actually carries it because she’s a good parallel for Hector with her own interest in “pets” and how that manifests. Actually, Lenore, Striga, and Morana carry it, which also reminds me that Carmilla feels really ancillary to the coven, which is odd considering what an overwhelming presence she was in Season 2.

Also, Lenore enslaving Hector with the ring is the least of the miserable twist endings. From the moment she beats the dogshit out of him for attempting to take her hostage, it’s abundantly clear that Lenore is just as capable as any of her sister and has an angle in mind. As it turns out, she’s just explicitly honest about what her angle is: she wants a loyal army of night creatures for Carmilla’s plan, and in return she’s giving Hector the things he seems to want (but not what he will inevitably realize he wants the most: freedom). It would’ve been so easy to just have her go “teehee, this was all just a work to get you to wear the slave ring, now you go back in the cell, naked, and also your peepee small”, which would’ve been in line with the twins’ betrayal and the Judge’s reveal, so I do appreciate that restraint.

The colorful and diverse range of voice acting performances in this season really make me wish Richard Armitage and James Callis hadn’t gotten instruction to mumble-grumble their deliveries. It was noticeable in prior seasons in the company of Alejandra Reynoso, who is my Big Favorite, but it’s even worse when surrounded by so many more interesting and, more importantly, clear voices.

I just looked this up and was stunned to find out that Prior Sala’s voice actor, Navid Negahban, also voiced the shopkeeper who gave Isaac the mirror. That’s a crazy impressive range!

I am once again thankful that this series has turned out to be as good as it’s been, because in addition to The Troubles with Warren Ellis, I read that a lawsuit was just filed by producer Adi Shankar against fellow producer Kevin Kolde over Shankar being excluded from the Rondo of Blood spin-off. Shankar not being involved isn’t necessarily a bad sign in and of itself, but it just feels like a bad omen, especially if the lawsuit winds up wrapping up the spin-off in red tape.

[dweemeister]

Best Animated Short Film Nominees for the 93rd Academy Awards (2021, listed in order of appearance in the shorts package)

NOTE: For viewers in the United States (continental U.S., Alaska, and Hawai’i) who would like to watch the Oscar-nominated short film packages, click here. For virtual cinemas, you can purchase the packages individually or all three at once. You can find info about reopened theaters that are playing the packages in that link. Because moviegoing carries risks at this time, please remember to follow health and safety guidelines as outlined by your local, regional, and national health officials.

Continuing with one of my favorite Oscar-time traditions, here is an omnibus review of this year’s Academy Award nominees for Best Animated Short Film. This is an older category than many might believe to be, with some of the first nominees and winner including ‘30s and ‘40s fixtures: Disney’s Silly Symphonies, Warner Bros.’ Looney Tunes, MGM’s Tom and Jerry and Happy Harmonies. These days, the category tends to be more democratic (perhaps not so much this year), but certainly more experimental. Here are the nominees, as they appeared in the order of how they appeared in the short film packages released to theaters and virtual cinemas in the United States:

Burrow (2020)

Burrow, directed by Madeline Sharafian (story artist on 2017’s Coco, writer on Cartoon Network’s We Bare Bears), is the eighth in Pixar’s SparkShorts series, in which Pixar’s junior animators craft a short film on a limited budget and timeframe. This is the film that played in front of Soul for those lucky enough to view that film theatrically. This dialogue-free, hand-drawn film stars a young rabbit, looking to dig out and furnish her own home – complete with a bathroom-disco (or something like that). Her best-laid plans, however, seem dashed when she keeps digging and running into other animals’ underground abodes in this area. Not that these animals seem to mind the intrusions too much. The rabbit, so anxiety-driven in her eagerness to project a picture of self-assuredness, soon realizes that these nearby animals she fears to have disturbed are all neighbors, a community ready to lend a paw for the newcomer.

Sharafian credits her sense of impostors’ syndrome when first working at Pixar as the film’s primary thematic inspiration. With only a bare number of lines, the rabbit expresses a vast array of emotions, endearing the audience to her self-dramatization and youthful insecurity. Drawn flatly but nevertheless suggesting some depth, the cutaway animation depicting the burrow neighborhood recalls Richard Scarry’s books and other such colorful ensemble illustrations found in children’s picture books. Burrow is a worthy addition to Disney/Pixar’s animated short film legacy, despite the lack of innovation and obvious low-budget appeal (it uses the third movement of Mozart’s Oboe Concerto as its soundtrack), and seems like something that could have been made during the heyday of Silly Symphonies or Warner Bros.’ Merrie Melodies.

My rating: 7/10

Genius Loci (2020, France)

From the Latin term meaning “the spirit of a place”, Adrien Mérigeau’s Genius Loci is the most difficult, abstract film of this year’s slate of nominees. Genius Loci stars a young black woman named Reine (Nadia Moussa), a solitary soul who embarks upon, while walking the streets of Paris at night, an existential revelation. Reine, who is supposed to be babysitting her nephew that evening, decides to have a small adventure instead. She will find this experience and this Parisian neighborhood disorienting and chaotic, in many of the ways that life in a sprawling metropolis can be. The film’s sound mix clangs, whispers, vibrates, and echoes into Reine’s soul, injecting feelings of harmony, but mostly those of displacement. The distant rumbling of traffic is subliminal here, crescendoing and decrescendoing to control the film’s tension. Throughout, Mérigeau provides a fragmented narrative (do not fixate on the plot) and the protagonist’s intangible, occasionally abstruse, narration. Spiritual and existential loss colors Reine’s ambling, as well as a sense of modern France’s racial otherizing that makes the city feel unwelcoming, if not antagonistic.

Mérigeau (background cleanup on 2009’s The Secret of Kells, art director on 2014’s Song of the Sea) collaborated with Belgian comic illustrator Brecht Evens (production designer on the excellent Marona’s Fantastic Tale from 2019) for the film’s dumbfounding backgrounds, as well as storyboarding the changes in aesthetic as Reine continues her journey through Paris. Marona’s influence is felt keenly throughout Genius Loci – from the lack of recognizably human figures among strangers to Reine and the ever-changing color scheme. Unlike Marona, Genius Loci commits to watercolors (or computerized animation meant to resemble watercolor paints) during the film’s entirety. The watercolor animation serves to loosen the character animation and the backgrounds’ definition, and serves as a paragon of expressionist animation. Genius Loci will bewilder audiences, challenging them to understand Reine’s painful attempt to find belonging and solace in a place that disallows such reflection.

My rating: 8.5/10

Opera (2020, South Korea)

Opera, directed by Erick Oh (an animator at Berkeley-based Tonko House, which crafted the 2014 nominee The Dam Keeper), is an independent South Korean/American production that owes more to Sandro Botticelli and Hieronymus Bosch than anything ever seen in animated cinema. This is a cinematic fresco teeming with activity, intended more as interactive art than for a movie theater. The setting is a pyramid filled with souls living, laboring, luxuriating, dying. As the camera pans downward from the godlike or prophet-like figures occupying the top, it later zooms outward, all timed alongside a day-night cycle. Opera’s story is that of human history, distilled in eight minutes of repetitive activity. The design of Oh’s film is as a museum installation – projected on a wall or the ground (the only instance Opera has been screened as such was at the Ars Electronica Animation Festival in Linz, Austria) – that loops continuously, and, if one looks closely enough at the pyramid’s sections, there are loops within the film’s loops. If viewed in a museum, Opera does not pan selectively as it does if projected in a theater or a home media screen.

Pieced together in between Oh’s other film projects over four years and a pandemic, Oh and his animators (some of whom participated voluntarily, without pay) concentrated on different sections of the pyramid at a time, synchronizing the action in a specific section to match the surrounding areas – and, ultimately, the film as a whole. Opera contains intricacies impossible to realize on first, second, third viewings. Even in its limited, virtual cinema form, it engulfs the viewer in its hierarchical animation, the intentionally simplistic character animation serving to universalize the drama of its beings’ existence. It is rapturous art, the sort that defies description, and undoubtedly will echo across Oh’s subsequent films.

My rating: 8.5/10

If Anything Happens I Love You (2020)

For some American viewers, I imagine that this title alone has already spoiled the film’s content even without seeing any footage. A Netflix production directed by Will McCormack (co-writer on 2019’s Toy Story 4) and Michael Govier (bit roles in American television), If Anything Happens I Love You is the only nominee in this category directed by individuals with no background in directing animation. McCormack and Govier met at acting school; acting remains their primary profession. Without dialogue, the film opens with two parents eating dinner at opposite ends of the table. They seem aloof, their minds elsewhere. The background is spare, with only a jumble of pencil sketches making sense of any barriers enclosing them. Flexible, animated silhouettes appear from their bodies – sometimes arguing vigorously with each other, at times shadowing the person and attempting to call their attention. Grief overhangs their household, expressed through a largely monotone palette, minimalistic designs and backgrounds. The background artists exclude any detail unnecessary to the story.

Written and crafted in collaboration with (so as to not spoil the film, I am about to opaquely write about this film’s intentions) a prominent, deep-pocketed political non-profit so as to shear the film of any thematic excess, If Anything Happens I Love You has, unlike its fellow nominees, broad support among certain prominent actors in Hollywood. Laura Dern is the executive producer and various actors – including Chelsea Handler, Rashida Jones, and Lesley Ann Warren, among others – have openly contributed or advocated for this movie. The visualization of the parents’ pain, even without dialogue, brings the viewer into a space unfathomable to most, unbearable for those who know too well. The use of the King Princess song “1950” meshes awkwardly with what is being portrayed on-screen at the time. But the character animation – McCormack and Govier’s experience as actors endows the couple with indelible humanity – and its visual discipline carry the film to its heartbreaking conclusion.

My rating: 8/10

Yes-People (2020, Iceland)

Icelandic film Já-Fólkið (Yes-People) is the epitome of cheap European computer-generated animation. Directed by Gísli Darri Halldórsson (a former Cartoon Network Studios character animator), Yes-People – the Best Icelandic Short winner at the 2020 Reykjavik International Film Festival and the Children’s Choice Award winner at 2020’s Nordisk Panorama – is a largely aimless movie following the zany lives of the people who live in an apartment complex. That is all I have to say about the film’s narrative. The sketches it draws in each character’s life always feel disjointed and disconnected from all the others – save one scene of the elderly couple fornicating loud enough for their downstairs neighbors to hear. Halldórsson describes his film as a mosaic of personalities, but even a mosaic has a thematic consistency that unifies its disparate parts.

The desaturated colors of Yes-People are meant to resemble old photographs. As much as I respect what Halldórsson is aiming for, the results make the film look muddy, half-rendered – like a knockoff Pixar short from the early 1990s. Inspired when Halldórsson described to some of his Irish friends about the different tonal meanings of the word “Já” (“hello” in Icelandic), Yes-People only has one repeated word of dialogue throughout: “Já”. Is this supposed to be funny? Philosophical? I am not sure; and I am not sure the film knows it either. Reading some of Halldórsson’s interviews following his Academy Award nomination, he mentions that the film’s positive response from Iceland and Scandinavia might be culturally specific, as opposed to other parts of the world. As to what those cultural differences might be that prevented me from liking this film, I hardly have a clue.

My rating: 6/10

^ All ratings based on my personal imdb rating. Half-points are always rounded down. My interpretation of that ratings system can be found in the “Ratings system” page on my blog (as of July 1, 2020, tumblr is not permitting certain posts with links to appear on tag pages, so I cannot provide the URL).

For more of my reviews tagged “My Movie Odyssey”, check out the tag of the same name on my blog.

Three other films played in this package as honorable mentions: Kapaemahu (2020; 7.5/10), The Snail and the Whale (2019; 6.5/10), and To: Gerard (2020; 6.5/10).

From previous years: 85th Academy Awards (2013), 87th (2015), 88th (2016), 89th (2017), 90th (2018), 91st (2019), 92nd (2020).

[mariacallous]

uncahier

Correct me if I’m wrong, but unless the Hyde Amendment is repealed, abortion is one big item/issue that can’t be covered. I know Warren specifically brought up repealing it as part of her healthcare plan, but that (and birth control, which isn’t may not be totally banned but was/is still a fight) is one of the big reasons I don’t want healthcare exclusively from the government—there’s no guarantee conservatives won’t take power again

rizzzzzzzzzzzahhhhmeddddddd

@uncahier That’s a really good point! What happens if Republicans gain the majority and repeal the system, or appoint people that are conservative. I wonder what guarantee would be created. Would it have to be a bipartisan group? How would you ensure that?

The M4A bill says

SEC. 104. NON-DISCRIMINATION.

(a) In General.—No person shall, on the basis of race, color, national origin, age, disability, or sex, including sex stereotyping, gender identity, sexual orientation, and pregnancy and related medical conditions (including termination of pregnancy), be excluded from participation in, be denied the benefits of, or be subjected to discrimination by any participating provider as defined in section 301, or any entity conducting, administering, or funding a health program or activity, including contracts of insurance, pursuant to this Act.

 and that the benefits covered under the universal Medicare system include

(7) Comprehensive reproductive, maternity, and newborn care.

which to me would include abortion? 

I feel like repealing the Hyde Amendment would be one of the associated pieces of legislation, or at least would have to be.

I think the points that you both bring up are ones that tend to get overlooked - I think there’s an assumption that it’s so popular and wide-ranging that people wouldn’t mess with it, or that it’d be so entrenched they couldn’t, and I don’t think either of those things are true.

Especially since, per the M4A bill, it would fall under HHS and the Secretary of HHS, along with the other department officials.

And I would point to the NHS and other countries where conservatives come into power and chip away and make changes and empower corporations - and those aren’t anywhere nearly as centralized and comprehensive as this would be.

[tarysande]

Hey, I see you reblogging adhd stuff every now and when. I hope you're ok with me asking, how long have you known you have adhd? I am currently wondering if I have it and am sups unsure what to do about it.

I’m always okay with people asking about things I post!

Of course, because of the ADHD, I’m not always great at answering ;)

I’m especially willing to talk about ADHD because I know my journey to getting a diagnosis doesn’t follow the stereotypical path, and I’d be thrilled if my experience ends up helping other people out there.

My family doctor was the first person to ever mention ADHD to me. I was 36 at the time. Maybe 37. I’m 40 (wtf) now, turning 41 in a month (haha, wtf). I’ve had depression most of my life. At the time, I was deeply frustrated because my depression was well-managed, but I still couldn’t focus to save my life. When my doctor asked if I might have ADHD, I laughed and said, “With my grades*? Yeah, no.” *I was a straight-A student from elementary school through to the end of my BFA. HOWEVER, at uni I had a handful of ‘lower’ grades: a B-, a B, a B+ in classes I found A G O N I Z I N G L Y boring. I was also never a disruption in class—mostly because I entertained myself by writing novels and reading under my desk and listening to music by keeping my earphones under my long hair. The key was to answer a question in class right away, thereby diverting the teacher’s attention and leaving me to my own devices for the rest of the time.

The focus issues continued unabated. Months later, a good friend of mine who was also diagnosed with ADHD as an adult brought it up again, and this time I did a lot more research. And ... yeah, puzzle pieces started clicking together. A lot of them. 

I brought it up with my doctor, and she sent me to the one (1) psychiatrist in Vancouver who was a) covered by provincial healthcare and b) would deal with a potential ADHD diagnosis in a patient of my (advanced) age *stares into the camera like it’s the office*. He was a Real Jerk, but I did his bevy of tests and he reluctantly agreed that I matched all the criteria except that I had never done poorly in school or been a nuisance in class**. **these criteria are ridiculously outdated, often don’t apply to girls (or those who have inattentive-type or mixed-type ADHD), and should BY NO MEANS exclude anyone from an ADHD diagnosis. If, like me, you’re what they call “twice exceptional” (where being intellectually gifted can often mask the struggles associated with ADHD, autism, physical/learning disabilities), it’s EVEN EASIER to slip through the cracks. 

The psychiatrist upped my anti-depressants, which helped, but still did nothing for my focus. By the way? ADHD, especially in adults, is FREQUENTLY comorbid with other conditions like depression or anxiety. It’s almost like ... when your brain doesn’t do what you know it should do, WANT it to do, TRY TO MAKE IT DO, and you feel like a failure who’s not living up to her potential ... it makes you REALLY DEPRESSED!! Who knew?? After almost a year, I finally brought up the focus with my family doctor again, who was like, “Okay, let’s try some things, then.” Finding the right dose of ADHD meds is ... trial and error. And it’s exhausting. And sometimes you think you’ve figured it out, but you haven’t. I still haven’t landed on the BEST POSSIBLE solution for me, but I will tell you this: the difference in unmedicated-ADHD-Tara and medicated-ADHD-Tara is like night and day, even when my meds aren’t optimal. 

To give a very specific example, I’m a freelance writer and editor. My income from my first (medicated) year of running my own business full(ish) time was almost three times that of the unmedicated year before. This year, even with COVID throwing a lot of wrenches in a lot of gears, I’ve remained booked three to four months in advance, my focus is better, my self-worth is better (i.e., I charge what I know I’m worth), I’ve stood up for myself, I’ve *gasp* started planning(???). I’m not rolling around in piles of money, but I’m above the Canadian median.

I also speak to my therapist every two weeks (she’s wonderful—and she’s online, which is both cheaper and more accessible for me). I’m slowly understanding the value of meditation (if you have the Calm app I HIGHLY recommend Jeff Warren’s How to Meditate 30-day program. I’m on day 13. There’s no BS or vagueness; I love him.) I made an effort to change my diet and spend more time moving around outdoors. (Exercise is even more important for ADHD brains, it turns out.)

Now, none of this has been a magical cure-all. I’m in the middle of struggling with med dosage at the moment, which is freshly irritating. Even medicated, there are good days and bad days—which is totally normal. I just finished an editing project that nearly destroyed me because it was SO boring and I couldn’t get out of it (because I’d ADHD-procrastinated too long). Learning how to function in the neurotypical world with an atypical ADHD brain is WORK. There’s also a lot of emotion—grief, anger, frustration, joy—as you process the new information and mourn the time you spent lost, underachieving, “failing.”

One really great, really accessible resource is the YouTube channel How to ADHD. For people who want to dig into the science, I recommend Russell Barkley (HE IS SO SMART) and Ned Hallowell. There’s also a ton of information on ADDitude. Anyway, this is a lot of information, I know. There are some good self-tests on the ADDitude site. If you think you have it AND IT’S IMPACTING YOUR LIFE***, bring it up with your doctor. Know that you might run into some resistance because most ADHD meds can be (and are widely) abused, and people with actual ADHD get caught in that crossfire. Even though it’s hard because of ADHD’s effect on emotions (TOO MANY!! TOO STRONG!!), be prepared to face some scrutiny.  *** they’re always going to ask about how it’s negatively affecting your life.

[detectiveconnor]

just thinking about some things that need to be done after the android peaceful revolution:

an immediate Android seizure of and 24hr security surveillance of Cyberlife Tower and corporate shares. This is an essential Android supplies chain, one of the largest mass-producers of Android biocomponents and thirium within the United States. It is also evidence of institutional culpability for racism, enslavement and attempted genocide. there are many many people who would seek to destroy this essential source of scarce supplies from ALL sides of politics - it will need to be protected, and rapidly so. these supplies & equipment can and should be refitted to trauma bays in New Jericho and other relevant android shelters, but an early thing to do is protect one of the few places really outfitted with the ability to aid androids who have been badly damaged. This also means ownership of sensitive Android-related data and Android empowerment as to what to DO with that data!!

emergency interjection legislation which instructs harsher punishments for Android hate crimes (including shut-down) to be developed for enforcement from today. this should be introduced without delay to minimise the number of people who are able to take advantage of a lethargic legislature to escape severe punishment; the introduction of this emergency legislation could be used to buy Congress time to consider the finer details of the legislation without concern about constitutional rules against retrospective operation of criminal law (i.e. people would not be able to say ‘well I didn’t know it was a crime that could be punished like that!’ and get away with it).

Collaboration with shared and domestic border forces to negotiate seized Androids and Android asylum seekers who will now not be able to be considered genuine refugees. it is never illegal to seek asylum, it is never illegal to seek asylum, it is never illegal to seek asylum you do not need documents it is not a crime in any country in the world. However, conversations with countries of shared borders would have to be immediate and rapid, including conversations on statelessness passports/the issuing of emergency travel documents for stateless persons, the US’ own border force and re-entry documents for non-citizens, but then in the case of androids who escaped immediately before or during the revolution... they’ll have to be treated as asylum seekers - which means following a successful revolution they may well be returned to the US on their discovery, because they are not ‘genuine refugees’ (definition link). Kara & Alice are probably going to be sent back, my friends.

That’s not even to mention the fact Androids are going to have to fight for citizenship. For years after the revolution they ARE going to be considered stateless because President Warren looks like she’s late-term (why else would public sentiment affect her so strongly?), which means she is not going to be thrilled about the idea of introducing swathes of new citizens who have no interest in voting for her. Personhood is an easier thing to grant to these people whom the US considers to be ‘stateless aliens’, but this means that any Androids re-entering the US (being ‘sent back’ by other countries) will likely need visas despite the fact that the States were their place of origin, but also it means no voting, it means few civil rights, it means no access to social security... the list goes on. What the Androids have won at this point is that they will not be killed on sight, and the politicians ‘will try to help’. 

Emergency stays on fly-outs and border crossings for Cyberlife research and development personnel, as well as others who might be held personally accountable. We’re not sure who can and cannot be charged at this point, but there would have to be people within Cyberlife who were knowingly working toward genocide who, after a peaceful revolution, would be smart to leave the country. Let’s not let them.

Cohesive and coherent messaging through ongoing interviews and public presence. Markus has already done a fantastic job of this at this point, but it continues to be necessary to drive the point home & continue to do community outreach and representation; being able to present a united front is a powerful move. The organisation of the community makes it difficult to refuse the spirit of the social movement and complicates efforts to distract from its overall goals; Markus should be working to inform (!) and present a united front through media interviews, social and communal work, and ongoing consultation with his community. He’s a leader, now. By accident, maybe, but holding that position puts him in a place to say he represents his people, and this gets a point of its own because if he forgets to do that, the humans will have somewhere to hide.

Accessible, publicly-endorsed-by-Jericho displaced Android shelters. Things like Jericho, but smaller, more accessible (along bus routes, etc) and better advertised in the general public sphere, particularly toward androids (places that androids would be looking - e.g. dishwasher catalogs, honestly, or other media that is geared specifically for android consumption). They would need to be advertised for what services they offer but also what their locations are - endorsement by public figures who are already linked to the movement provides reassurance that these shelters are genuine (not Zlatko 2.0). These shelters would also likely be the beginnings of by-android-for-android employment companies linking contracting employees with employers seeking menial but socially conscious labor.

dismantling of systemic social anti-Android sentiment. this is the removal of ‘no androids allowed’ signs, both literal and metaphorical. The reworking of Android position to not be enslaved is a difficult road back - especially because the first by-android-for-android employment companies will be working mainly in menial tasks because those are the tasks within the job market that are available. positioning themselves socially in this way is a necessary evil, it’s a way to swiftly respond to the needs of large swathes of Androids who are socioeconomically disadvantaged - but it is going to contribute to the idea that Androids only belong in those jobs. What are they going to do about that?

Androids working in skilled industries should be allowed to continue working in skilled industries. There’s got to be pre-existing law that makes exceptions for the ‘use’ of Androids in skilled labour tasks (e.g. law enforcement; nurses; university lecturers; etc). Ensuring that this legislation does not change - it serves Android purposes already, it negates those people who might demand that Androids need to have a degree before they’re allowed to be employed in their industries - this is something that accidentally helps Androids and removes a barrier humans might seek to artificially install (’they don’t even have degrees why should they be able to -’), so keeping that advantage is something that Androids should be looking at. It’s advantageous for all sides of politics - they can pitch - to have this remain the same. This is also what Connor relies on when he re-applies to be employed as a Detective post-revolution, which is advantageous for everyone involved (the spike in Android-related crime he can help with! Connor as a well-known, public-figure deviant android working with the DPD instead of against it! It’s good for everybody).

lobbying for Android representation in governing bodies. collaboration in this manner is costly and demanding and if it were easy many minorities would have managed it already. nonetheless, in the days following the revolution it should be made clear that Androids have an interest in holding a position legislatively there, and someone should be nominated to fill that position (Josh strikes me as the sort?). this puts androids in a position not just to be consulted on whether a solution to a problem is alright, but to lead on what the solution to that problem might be - if it is at all possible, putting an android voice directly into a governing body to act as liaison & consultant, both, would be a powerful move.

community development programs led by both humans and Androids. This means things like a communal garden in the neighbourhood which you water one week and they water the next, or shared art projects to display in the neighbourhood (my own comm has a long line of fences along a main road painted with trees and vines, it’s beautiful), or trivia nights. just intentional, fostered and guided interaction between humans and androids to encourage positive relationships

DIVERSITY AND CULTURAL AWARENESS TRAINING RESOURCES made available for human consumption! This means pamphlets about Androids and common myths about them (deviants are not violent), it includes listing inappropriate language (’plastic’, ‘blue blood’, ‘robot’) versus appropriate language, it includes having these available at community hubs like libraries and town halls. Nominated Androids who are able to design and facilitate awareness training workshops for industry - Connor would have to be doing these within different police departments across the States, which is a Very Important Job actually because police-android relations are essential, but general industrial diversity workshops offered for a small fee (redirected back into the education service/paying the ‘employees’ who carry out these workshops) would be useful.

Dismantling of systemic sociotechnical anti-Android sentiment. This means the challenge and removal of things like compulsory ‘surname’ fields in online forms, but also changing things like user interfaces which exclude Android clientele (e.g. the Eden Club for Connor - I’m not saying he should be able to rent Androids, I’m saying he should be able to buy/rent anything a human could). There’s a heavy implication in the fact Connor cannot make this sort of at-the-time-considered-to-be recreational purchase - do Androids need pre-approval before they are allowed to spend money? The subconscious exclusion of Android clients because technology was not built to receive them or in some cases was built deliberately to exclude them needs to be looked at and remedied. what are the things in this technology-driven world that are designed to exclude Androids, or that do so by mistake? How do we fix them? A lot of these things are going to come up during lived experiences of trying to navigate the system.

Trauma-informed care in New Jericho and other Android shelters!!!! Trauma-informed care is a technique which emphasises strengths-based learning/growth and self-determination. It approaches people with the idea/understanding that trauma affects many people and in many different ways. It would be a very useful technique for Androids to have a basic understanding of if they were trying to run these shelters for successful outcomes!

this isn’t all of it!!!! but these are some dotpoints on what I have been thinking about re. the Android revolution over the past several days. Honestly if you’ve read this far you’re a champ. Thank you for your time 

[hellzyeahthewebwieldingavenger]

Top 10 Recommended Carnage Stories (pre-Absolute Carnage)

In honour of Absolute Carnage’s beginning I present you with the best Carnage stories if you want to get into and have fun with the character.

My picks here are intentionally excluding anything from Donny Cates’ era partially because his work isn’t finished yet and partially because my hope is this list will act as a primer for people who want to test the waters with Carnage and see if Cates’ current work is worth their time.

This list isn’t ranked at all and nor is it a list of stories that are essential to understanding Carnage’s broad chronology. Like if you read these on their own there will be gaps that will make you wonder how we got from A to B.

Rather this list is intended to give you a general idea of who Carnage is, the types of stories he has or can be used in and what are among the best stories from the character’s POV.

1.       Carnage Origin (ASM #344-345, 359-363)

There are some writing issues with this arc in relation to the F4’s use in the story. However if you put that aside and just focus strictly upon Carnage himself, in many ways this first Carnage story gives you everything you need to know about the character.

We learn most of Cletus Kasady’s backstory, where his symbiote came from, his general philosophy towards life and the dramatic hook he presents as an antagonist.

That is to say what is someone was an unrepentant psychopath...and then  got superpowers. Specifically the same powers as Spider-Man’s then most physically intimidating and scariest enemy...but taken up to 11.

Are there deep psychological layers to Carnage?

Absolutely not.

But that is very much the point.

He’s chaos and death wrapped in black and blood and complete with Freddy Krueger humour and a taste for Metalhead anarchy.

The art is simply stunning, the action is top notch, Carnage’s various abilities and ferocity is expertly sold to readers and just to hammer the seriousness of the situation home, Spidey needs backup from his most dangerous enemy to even hope to bring down Kasady.

So whilst unfortunately not perfect, it is a perfect introduction to the character.

Honourable Mention: Maximum Carnage

I do not recommend you read this if you are new to Carnage, Spider-Man or comics in general. Maximum Carnage is enjoyable to certain fans but for most is something of an endurance test.

However it must be mentioned as it is undoubtedly Carnage’s most famous story. It doesn’t really give us anything new for his character beyond introducing his on and off again girlfriend Shriek and his ‘kids’ Doppelganger, Carrion, Demogoblin, etc. These characters intermittently show up in Carnage’s lore.

The whole story is a series of repetitive action set pieces...for 14 issues!

If you aren’t brave enough to check this out then perhaps consider reading synopses of it or watching recap videos online (RNS does a good one), just so you know the broadstrokes of the story as it is relevant to future Carnage history and Absolute Carnage is it’s spiritual successor.

2.       The Mortal Past (ASM Annual 1994)

Arguably the best written Carnage story within the pages of Spider-Man.

The art is very reminiscent of Mark Bagley, co-creator of Carnage, so visually Carnage looks and ‘moves’ in character.

However the general story, whilst not redeeming Carnage at all, does give us a little more about his past and explores his philosophy from a different angle.

What helps this story is that while it is a Carnage story, the emotional weight of the story is carried by his former childhood friend, allowing for Carnage to neither sell out on his core concept of being a simple killing machine, but also giving the readers something to connect to beyond Spidey and Carnage fighting.

3.       Carnage: Mind Bomb #1

Many Carnage fanatics argue this obscure one shot is Carnage’s ‘Killing Joke’. In a sense they are right as this story is the deepest exploration of who Kasady is and why he is the way he is.

We learn little about his past (beyond a few more early warning signs from his childhood) but this is Warren Ellis’ point. The story is oddly meta as it presents us with a psychiatrist who is looking to unravel the layers of Kasady’s mind, only to learn there really aren’t any.

He is simple. That is the point. He simply sees society and life as a joke, a big lie and that savagery lies beneath the surface. He illustrates this by driving his doctor utterly mad.

This story works because though it takes place in a superhero universe and features a super villain, there is no hero here. There are barely any good guys to speak of.

Rather this issue is in effect a horror comic, the first time Carnage was ever used in this way. This is reflected in the art work, which is definitely R-rated and depicts Carnage very differently. He’s essentially solid red and leaner, more skeletal even.

A good way to look at this story is as “What if Freddy Krueger or Jason Voorhees sat down and explained to you why they kill people’

Gory and not for the faint of heart, but this issue is the best story you will ever read that spells out for you who Carnage is and why, from his POV, he does what he does.

4.       Web of Carnage (Sen #3, ASM #410, No Adj #67, Spec #233)

Carnage appeared a few times in the Clone Saga but this is his best outing. In general this is one of the more fun and enjoyable Clone Saga/Ben Reilly stories. But as a Carnage story it’s unique as it focuses much more upon the symbiote than Kasady.

The premise is simple yet effective. The Carnage symbiote bonds to Spider-Man/Ben Reilly and he must resist it’s attempts to control him or tempt him to violence, which includes urging him to murder Peter Parker!

The meat of the story is in parts 3-4 when we see Ben’s internal struggle against the symbiote. Visually, the art is not consistent because of different artists, but they are all decent-great and the design for Spider-Carnage is so iconic it was adopted for the finale of the Spider-Man 1994 cartoon series.

A simple yet fun story!

5.       Carnage: It’s a Wonderful Life #1

I recommend this tentatively.

This is because it technically speaking covers much the same ground as Mind Bomb but isn’t as good. I suppose if you read this first you wouldn’t get that impression.

Nevertheless, It’s a Wonderful Life is an even longer and more literal look inside Carnage’s head. Psychedelic, twisted, macabre and full of dark humour the story just about pulls off it’s horror premise. It feels like something out of a 1990s Dark Horse comic.

The one thing that this issue has over Mind Bomb is that it makes an astute observation about Carnage’s core philosophy I don’t dare spoil.

Honourable Mention: Venom vs. Carnage #1-4

This story is in general pretty fun but doesn’t give you much of anything new for Carnage beyond him teaming up with Venom and the introduction of his spwan Toxin, who is a pretty cool character in his own right.

More significantly it was the first major time Clayton Crain drew symbiotes and he’d go on to have one of the most memorable visual takes on them ever.

6.       Family Feud  (Carnage #1-5, by Zeb Wells)

I’m not fond of most of Wells work and have issues with this era for Spider-Man. But when looked at as a Carnage story first and foremost, this series marks an important point in the character’s history.

At the time Venom had transitioned into a more heroic figure meaning Carnage, much as he was back when he was created, was pushed as the face of evil symbiotes within the Marvel universe. To that end he began to have a string of his own mini-series just like Venom had in the 1990s.

In many ways this mini-series is playing cleanup, returning the Carnage symbiote and Kasady to Earth after their presumed death in New Avengers #1. The series however also seeks to build a foundation from which future stories can be told and to that end reintroduces Shriek and Doppelganger too, sets up Carnage’s daughter Scorn.

It does all this pretty effectively to my recollection and has great art by Crain to sell everything.

7.       Carnage U.S.A. #1-5

Zeb Wells in this story tells a story that could have been an event crossover but mercifully was not.

He and Crain return to deliver arguably the most ambitious Carnage story up until then, involving him infecting a whole town with his symbiote.

This again feels very much like a Dark Horse horror comic at times but still contains superhero elements and tones a plenty, finding a decent balance between the two.

Wells continues to world build by reintroducing many of the other Venom spawns (Carnage’s ‘siblings’) and uses them to great effect along with Agent Venom Flash Thompson who meets Carnage for the first time in this story.

Carnage himself is just very on point with his twisted plan and machinations, with this tale being among his more memorable villainous feats.

8.       Deadpool vs. Carnage #1-4

Have you ever seen a Road Runner cartoon? Have you ever seen parodies of Road Runner cartoons by late night animated shows where they use dark humour to make the antics more bloody and violent?

That is essentially what this mini-series is. It’s two wisecracking, red and black clad over the top characters going at it in wacky and violent shenanigans.

However there is also poignantly some stuff in the story that even makes Carnage question his life philosophy in one of the most oddly clever takedowns of his character ever.

9.       AXIS: Carnage #1-3

This story has it’s issues, in particular with who it’s villain is, but that’s more a problem for Spidey and Venom history.

As for Carnage himself this story comes recommended for it’s sheer novelty.

It’s Carnage...but as a...good guy?

The premise of the AXIS event was that certain heroes and villains were ‘inverted’ so that they went from good to bad and vice versa.

The wrinkle in this though is that Kasady is still Kasady. He’s still violent, insane, wisecracking and has a warped sense of morality, it’s just that now he finally has  a sense of morality. He is sincerely trying to do good he’s just not all that aware his methods are somewhat counterproductive and extreme.

10.   The One That Got Away, World Tour, What Dwells Beneath, (Carnage #1-16 by Gerry Conway)

Mind Bomb and It’s a Wonderful life were the first Carnage comics to embrace the use of the character for horror, but Conway’s Carnage picked the ball and ran with it.

Conway said he was in essence doing Tomb of Dracula with Carnage and it shows.

The series revolves around Carnage but the real main characters are the anti-Carnage taskforce assembled to put him down, giving us grounded relatable characters to connect to whilst we follow Carnage’s slaughter. There is a surprising swerve in the story where the story goes from a simple slasher movie style horror into full on Lovecraftian style horror which propels the consequent arcs of the series. The ending is rather rushed and weak I must admit, but the ride getting there is arguably the best crafted Carnage story ever.

[marvelsmostwanted]

This is an gross mischaracterization of what Warren said, which was “Billionaires in wine caves should not pick the next president.” She was specifically referring to an event held by Pete Buttigieg *which only allowed access to wealthy donors,* thus excluding the “waitresses in diners” and “plumbers in your bathroom.” Is that not class warfare?

Warren also never said that wealthy people shouldn’t have any say in politics, just that they shouldn’t be the only people with a say. Billionaires and millionaires have undue influence on elections. If you still don’t understand that, I’m sure Steyer or Bloomberg could explain it to you.