#they're just goofy and i enjoy the friendship very much

[dailykugisaki]

Day 114 | id in alt

Kugisaki is horrid at English and honestly? Don't blame her. It's not too worth it.

[pocketjoong]

ATEEZ REACTIONS TO YOUR FRIEND ABANDONING YOU AFTER THEY FIND AN S/O | ot8 x reader

GENRE | reaction, headcanons, angst, fluff

WARNINGS | Kinda sad. Mentions of bad friends. Mentions of friends abandoning you and acting like you don’t exist anymore. Self-indulgent. Lmk if I missed something.

NOTES | Just a little something bc I’m kinda sad and angry lol. These are based on a situation I found myself in recently, and this is how I’m coping ig lol.

Hongjoong

☆ Hongjoong is furious, but he reigns in his anger and instead, focuses on being there for you. That doesn’t mean that he will not express his frustration at your so-called “friend, though. He will definitely tell you what your friend did is wrong and that you deserve to be treated better.

☆ Hongjoong says things you want to hear in such a situation and validates your feelings of hurt, anger, and confusion. But, he also says things that you need to hear, telling you things like, “Don’t let other people’s actions define your self-worth. You are an amazing person, and you should not let someone like that make you feel like you were a bad friend.”

☆ If you want to, he will help you write a diss track so that you can channel your frustration and anger into something that will allow you not to feel sorry for yourself.

☆ By the end of this little collaboration, as you watch Hongjoong's proud smile from where he's seated in front of the studio equipment on the other side of the window, you will definitely feel a teensy bit better.

☆ If he has a personal SNS account (and if your “friend” follows him in said account), he'll post a bunch of pictures of you both enjoying convenience store snacks and of you laughing with a passive-aggressive caption. Something like, “Some friendships are like a bag of chips in the aisle of a convenience store—they're there one moment and gone the next. But our friendship is a timeless classic, always on the shelf, waiting to be enjoyed, and never going out of style.”

Seonghwa

☆ Seonghwa is going to be angry, too, but he prioritises your well-being and emotions above all else. 

☆ So, as much as he wants to have a word with your “friend”, he lets it go in favour of hugging you as you cry out the feelings of hurt, anger, and betrayal that have been building inside of you. Seonghwa rocks you back and forth in his arms, gently patting your back and handing you tissues when needed. He even makes sure to have a bottle of water nearby and prompts you to drink some from time to time so you don't get dehydrated.

☆ When you’re done crying, he wraps you in his softest blankets with a mischievous grin and brings out snacks before turning on the TV and watching sappy movies with you.

☆ If you’re not in the mood to watch movies, expect him to bring out a new Lego set for both of you to build together, seizing the opportunity to create a relaxing atmosphere so you’re distracted from your pain.

☆ While the two of you work on building the set, he makes funny sounds with a character he has finished and acts all goofy, especially when you become too silent or daze off. Sometimes, he smiles at you sweetly, gently encouraging you and reminding you that he is there for you, no matter what.

Yunho

☆ When Yunho learns that your friend has basically abandoned you, his protective instincts kick in. He is positively murderous, and he is very vocal about how he feels about your friend acting like a jerk.

☆ “How dare that idiot act like this?!” His words might be coloured with anger, but he really wants you to know that he stands firmly by your side and that he won't tolerate anyone mistreating you.

☆ He will drive you around the city because he knows how much a change of scenery can help and also because you love driving with no particular destination in mind. Yunho plays soothing music at first, slowly changing the mood of the songs until both of you are basically screaming the lyrics to Guerrilla as you drive past the city streets.

☆ If by any chance you happen to cross paths with your friend while you are out with Yunho, he does everything in his power to gently guide you away (ideally, you don't even notice said “friend” as Yunho jokes around, gently guiding you to his car while blocking your view of them).

☆ If he’s alone, though, he definitely confronts your friend. He uses his intimidating presence to subtly tell them that he doesn’t approve of what they did, “If I ever see you near y/n, I'll make sure you never have your kneecaps.” His words hang heavy in the air as he walks away, a stark reminder that he is willing to go to great lengths to protect you from any harm.

Yeosang

☆ Yeosang will be there for you, but silently. He gives you time and space to process your feelings, but he is there as a quiet yet reassuring presence because he won't leave you on your own when you need someone to be there. But he also waits for you to go to him and talk when you are ready.

☆ Though Yeosang doesn't push you to share your feelings, his presence gives you the comfort you need. Him just bring there serves as a reminder that you don’t need to face this painful situation on your own.

☆ His care for you manifests in subtle ways: snack delivery, random funny text messages, or him telling you something ridiculous the other members did. But the most noticeable thing is that he is around a lot more.

☆ He makes sure that you know he’s available for hanging out or just talking. He will mention it in passing that he’s free lately and use his busy schedule in the past few months as an excuse to see you. He arrives at your door, smiling widely, “I was free, and I haven't seen you in a while because of the tour. So, I wanna hang out. Let's get fried chicken?” (And how can you say no when he asks so nicely?)

San

☆ San is also very livid at how your friend treated you and is one of the members to let you know his take on the matter. His first reaction is to confront your friend directly. You will have to stop him from calling the friend or marching up to their house to give them a piece of his mind. You can feel his simmering anger as you tell him to let it be, but he agrees with your wishes (reluctantly).

☆ When it comes to comforting you, he provides you all the emotional support you need, letting you cry in his arms. But he also says cheesy things like, “Why are you crying over someone who doesn't know the difference between a gem and a lump of coal?” His attempt at being funny elicits a weak smile from you, causing him to smile as well.

☆ San is also someone to take you out on a surprise outing to stargaze, especially if he knows that a meteor shower is supposed to take place. As you both are laid out on the blanket, watching the stars, he softly reminds you of your worth. “You know, you shouldn’t waste tears on meteors that pass through your life when you have a bunch of stars in your galaxy.”

Mingi

☆ Mingi is sad when he learns about how your friend had treated you, and he is genuinely concerned despite his awkward attempts to comfort you.

☆ He pats your head or your shoulder as you cry, but at the same time, says something deep like, “I know you have a kind heart and that this situation has hurt you, but some people don’t deserve the love you carry within you.”

☆ Instead of assuming, he directly asks you what you need and how he can help, and he does it with no questions asked. Even if that means he has to pay unreasonable shipping to get you your favourite chocolates as soon as possible.

☆ He also orders takeout so that he knows that you’re eating properly and then puts on an old comedy show he knows you have watched countless times. By the time the sun sets, the weight on your shoulders lifts and you find yourself quoting the show line-for-line with Mingi while laughing into the night.

Wooyoung

☆ Wooyoung goes attack-mode but also protect-mode because he’s not one to let anyone mistreat someone he cares about.

☆ In attack mode, he calls your friend and tells them exactly what he thinks of them. He won't hold back, and says something like, “Don't mess with me. Because I can and will make your life hell, and I'm not scared of people like you who think it’s okay to treat people badly, especially if they have treated you with nothing but kindness.” His words, though playfully exaggerated, are stern enough to deliver the warning to your friend.

☆ Then, because he knows how much you are hurting, he does everything to comfort you. He cooks your favourite meal, knowing the recipe like the back of his hand. While cooking, he cracks jokes, hoping to get you to smile.

☆ With the meal prepared and the table set, Wooyoung opens a bottle of soju, and lets you get tipsy enough to relax. He listens as you say not-so-nice things about your friend, allowing you to vent without judgment. And if you are feeling up to it, he might put on some music and dance goofily, smiling when you laugh and encouraging you to join him.

Jongho

☆ Jongho, like Yeosang, is a silent supporter. He gives you the space you need to process your emotions but also lets you know that he is there. “I’m here whenever you want to talk or if you need anything.”

☆ He will be the pillar when you need him to be. Jongho lets you curl up next to him even though he’s not very fond of skinship and eventually starts humming under his breath, and when he notices you relaxing, sings gentle melodies to lull you to sleep. He smiles to himself when he feels the way you relax against him, forgetting the hurt, even if for a little while.

☆ To alleviate some of the pain and anger that you are feeling, he makes witty jokes and humorous comments to lighten the mood. In a moment of lightheartedness, Jongho might playfully break an apple in two pieces and hold it up for you to see, saying, “Hey, isn't this,” and show you the two pieces of the apple, “that idiot who let go of one of the most amazing friends he could ever get?”

[lunar-years]

Okay. Let's talk Jamie and Roy getting beers and being idiots.

I know we are all still processing that whirlwind of a finale. I'm understanding that a lot of people hate the Roy & Jamie scene because it is 1) backslide-y (true) 2) they treat Keeley like a prize to be won (true) and 3) it's OOC (I actually disagree with this one, but I can understand why it's complicated). I want to start off by saying I completely see where this opinion is coming from and I respect everyone who just hates the scene because it shows normally kind characters being very unkind to each other etc. This is less me arguing against that as it is me trying to articulate (at great length, sorry) why it not only worked for me, but I genuinely liked it.

I like to think I strike a balance between loving everything the show has done and hating overwhelmingly on a show I claim to enjoy, but sure, you could definitely argue that I'm just giving my favorite characters the benefit of the doubt, or making excuses for them, because they're my favorite characters. I'll admit I'm historically very forgiving of all the main characters' many fuck-ups on Ted Lasso, but that's because I think the show works best when it emphasizes how kindness, forgiveness, friendship and love can still operate between imperfect, flawed people. I like seeing them make realistic mistakes much more than I like everyone handling everything perfectly, I'll bite.

So, back to Jamie and Roy. I enjoyed their finale plot because despite them making a world of mistakes, the regression felt very, very human. I don't agree at all with the take that this somehow erased all the progress they've made this season or the friendship the show has lovingly crafted between them. In fact, I think this actively reiterated it! (Note: I am operating with my ot3 goggles on at all times, so I'm going to write this with that at least partially in mind, but I think the gist of it works even if you ignore the bits that get a little shippy.)

For both Jamie and Roy, Keeley and their love for her is a major beacon guiding them. I think that is the crisp, clear thing in both of their heads this episode: Keeley is the love of my life. And they both believe that wholeheartedly, and they both want to be with her. (and it's goofy to pretend this came out of nowhere for Jamie/since when is Jamie still in love with her/etc. because he literally told her and us this last season and nothing that has happened since has indicated otherwise, btw.) But there's also something else now, which is their relationship with each other, battling with their Keeley thoughts. It's like, in Roy's head, for instance, I imagine there are two wolves: on the one hand he loves Keeley, and wants to be with her, and plans to win back her heart. On the other hand, there's his love and care for Jamie Tartt, which is much less defined and inarticulate and maybe still a little repressed, but just as overpowering. His love for Keeley feels so simple and clear in comparison, while his love for Jamie is something complicated and unsure, and in this episode, he's leaning hard into the first to avoid unpacking the second.

So Roy starts off strong. He sees Jamie with Keeley in the hallway and he doesn't flip out!! Instead, he approaches Jamie calmly, and invites him out for beers. Think about how different this is from his reaction to Jamie's love confession to Keeley in season 2. This is Roy's growth in action, and it's a resounding sign of just how important Jamie is to Roy now. Even when he is feeling jealous of the woman he loves potentially leaving him behind for a man he loves (a completely natural reaction, let's be so real, if not a "good" one), he also knows that for as much as he wants to be with Keeley, he doesn't want to lose his friendship with Jamie.

As for Jamie, I know some people took his reaction and subsequent response to Nate's question as like, shock at the realization that he and Roy are actually friends now, which I agree is something that had to have come earlier in the timeline (what was Mom City if not that) and would seem very out of place at this point. What I saw it as instead was Jamie's brain more just. sort of short-circuiting? Because: holy shit isn't this the best day ever? First Keeley agreed to go to Brazil with me and now Roy is asking me on a date for beers? this is so sound. This invite is out of place behavior from Roy even within the parameters of their friendship, because they still have a match to win and Roy has banned Jamie from beers as part of his training and despite them being close now I find it hard to believe that Roy often comes up to him right there in dressing room to ask him to grab a beer with no pretense.

Therefore, they're already walking into that bar in completely different head-spaces. Jamie isn't planning to discuss Keeley, and for Roy that is his major intention behind the evening. Jamie is nervous and downing his beer, and Roy is internally panicking, I'm imagining, over when and how to bring Keeley up. I think Roy is thinking: Well, I don't intend to stop pursuing Keeley, I genuinely don't want Jamie's feelings to be hurt when I get back together with her (and yes, it is a huge presumption for him to assume Keeley's going to eventually take him back. But I think it's also an understandable one), so I've got to tell Jamie I care about him, and that I'm going to keep going after Keeley, and he needs to be okay with that so that this won't get in the way of our friendship, which I also desperately need and am unwilling to give up. In his mind, Jamie is of course going to accept all of this, because Roy and Keeley are soulmates, which Jamie will clearly recognize deep down because it is so obvious and right and anyway, Jamie always does what Roy tells him to do (again, this is all misguided thinking. But we can see how Roy's anxious little brain that's bad at processing feelings and holding space for emotions could get himself here, can't we?).

So again, we start off strong with Roy saying he's proud of Jamie and them both thanking one another. But then Roy's blurting out nonsense about how Jamie just needs to pull himself out of the running and just let Roy be with Keeley. Which is obviously not on. And Jamie responds, simply, with No. I'd argue this is also a huge step for Jamie. Jamie really doesn't tell Roy no anymore, he doesn't tell anyone no. Jamie has spent so much of his time since coming back to Richmond working to be the person everyone around him wants and expects him to be. This is him fighting for something he wants for once, doing what is best for him. It was a fabulous progression to see. In the moment, boy does it work Roy up, because why is Jamie not agreeing with me, Jamie always agrees with me? but obviously at this point, Jamie is in the right. His relationship with Keeley was no less meaningful than Roy's just because Roy says it was, Roy doesn't have any claim on her, and there's no real reason Jamie should not try and shoot his shot with Keeley if Roy is going to do the same.

Here's where things start to spiral. Established flaws we know about Roy: he's competitive. He's bad at voicing his feelings productively. And he is territorial about the people he loves, a category that safely includes both Jamie and Keeley at this point in time, for better and sometimes worse. Yes, his next actions are grossly possessive over Keeley, yes Roy has made a lot of effort over the past year to do and be better than that, to break free of that cycle. But look, it's not a linear process. He's going to still mess up, and he does here. In fact he's downright mean, weaponizing Keeley against Jamie and throwing having sex with Keeley a month ago into Jamie's face, bragging about it, boasting. Same old cycle, same old patterns of ego-driven, prideful mistakes.

Which promptly prompts Jamie to also fuck up by bringing up the leak. It's a concentrated response intended to get a suitable rise out of Roy, because Roy has really, genuinely hurt him here, and Jamie knows bringing up that video is the one thing that will hurt Roy just as much in turn. It's not the right thing to do, obviously, but again, it's such a human thing to do. Hurt the person who's hurt you right back, even if you're hurting someone else (Keeley) by extension. Mind you, Jamie came here expecting a hangout (/date) with Roy over a rare beer, and instead he got Roy being a complete asshole and lecturing nonsense at him out of seemingly nowhere. He reacts to this change-up, well, not greatly. There is something so messy and emotionally complicated happening here and it hinges on how very much Jamie and Roy care about each other, not negates it.

Keeley, queen that she is, rejects them both out of hand and kicks them out not the curb immediately because they're both being complete idiots, acting like they're so gracious in giving her the honor and privilege of choosing between them. Not to mention they've clearly got something going on between them they haven't worked through and that sure as shit isn't her problem, is it? Keeley (presumably, and I wish we had seen this) calls them out their shit and tosses them right back out the door.

Which leaves Jamie and Roy to lament how they've let their egos get away from them, they've been idiots (which they acknowledge immediately) and decide that now they should go for kebabs, presumably to actually hangout this time, not to interrupt themselves with inflated talk about who "deserves" Keeley more. They both screwed up, they acknowledge it, and all they can do is try again tomorrow, and in the meantime, go on that kebab date.

I guess....I can just see where both of them are coming from? it's not mature behavior, obviously, it's maybe not what we would have liked to have seen from them in the finale episode of the show. But it was regression that I didn't feel impeded their overall progress. Roy in particular was being a complete dick about it, but that's why the very next morning he's finally knocking on the Diamond Dogs' door. And honestly, that conversation was heartbreaking. When Roy admitted he'd expected, after a year of putting in the work, to be a whole new person...god. This is a man who still completely hates himself, to the point where he can't quite grasp that he can be better where he's at now, that he doesn't have to transform magically into someone new in order to do right by himself and others. And so he has to consciously determine, once again, to do better, be better.

The message is: change isn't linear, you're going to fuck-up, and fall back into old patterns. What matters is trying every day to do better together, and be better for one another, than you were the day before. That is the meeting point all three sides of the royjamiekeeley triangle were heading towards by the end of the episode.

So yes, it was rushed, because no one gets much screen time in a finale (and the overarching issue with this season anyway is god awful pacing. The last three episodes could've easily been the second half of the season, while the first half of the season was stretched out and largely extraneous). And yes, I would've liked a more thoughtful follow-up conversation between Roy and Keeley or all three of them. My biggest issue was that we didn't get to hear Keeley's voice hardly at all. I would at the very least have liked to have seen her setting them straight at her kitchen table, because turning both of them down signifies very important growth in her, too, and I would've liked exploring that more explicitly. So it wasn't perfect. But I still liked it, I really did.

[bunni-v1]

Congrats on the 500 followers!!<3<3 may i request full list of the sfw abecedary for azul maybe?? 🧚‍♀️🧚‍♀️

🍓YAY!!! I love Azul sosososososososo much. I've been politely waiting for this for a while, and since you're the only one who requested sfw for Azul, I get to do yours first. God, though, writing out the whole Alphabet has been such a challenge for me...

A - Affection: See, Azul is a private man. He enjoys his time alone and his personal space, so it might shock you when I say he is a very affectionate man. He adores you so much, he can't help himself. He's also incredibly touch-starved, so he very much needs this affection. He won't be caught cuddling up to you in public, but goodness he's all over you when you're alone.

B - Best friend: Honest to god friendship with him feels like a business transaction. He's constantly on edge acting like you're holding a knife to his throat to get him to do something for you, but you're just vibing. Still, he's quite fun to be friends with. You hear all the latest gossip, and he's very sassy and goofy - casually dropping the funniest jokes you've ever seen.

C - Cuddles: Oh he loves cuddles (in private). He loves to be held and snuggles up into your chest without a care in the world. If you want to do the same, be his guest. Please let him hold you, he feels so big and strong. He runs cold, however, so you'll never quite get a comfy warm snuggle, but he's very comfy to lay on so it's not a big deal.

D - Domestic: Azul? Settle down? Please. He has a business to run... starting a family with you does sound nice though. He wants both power and love, so he has to find a balance between both -- he'd love to include you in his business schemes if you'd be willing. Makes things easier on him. Furthermore, at home, he is such a good househusband and father. Attentive husband, takes care of cooking and cleaning when needed, and spends all the time he can making sure his little ones know they are perfect to him as they are.

E - Ending: He SUCKS omg. He's so awful, and you won't even know it. If he doesn't want to be with you anymore, he doesn't really care about how much it hurts you (he does). He finds a way to twist the situation so that you're the problem. He picks and prods until either you break up with him, or you force his hand to make him do it. Afterward, he really doesn't feel relieved, but he's glad it's all over.

F - Fiance(e): Like I said earlier, he has a complicated relationship with commitment... but he does want to have that commitment. He does want to get married one day - for love, and he only wants to do it once. So it takes a long time for him to propose, but when he does you don't have to worry, because he's been locked in for a long time this is just his final sign that you're the one.

G - Gentle: He is so gentle with you. He has quite an iron tongue and is known to be sly as well as condescending, but not with you. Yes, he's sassy and a bit sarcastic, but he's soft on you. Everything he says is playful and light, and he makes you feel as though you are the most important thing in the world. (You are, in his eyes).

H - Hugs: As I've said, Azul loves all affections. Hugs, however, may be his least favorite? Surprisingly. It's not that he dislikes them, but once he gets to hold you he doesn't want to let you go. Hugs are brief, they end too soon. He wants you as long as he wants you. On another note, his hugs are amazing. He doesn't give them out to anyone but you and they are heavenly. They engulf you fully into his body, and they're perfectly tight and snug, and - ugh I want him to be real so badly.

I - I love you: Azul and "I love you," do not have a good history. He is so afraid to commit to you, so saying that he loves you takes a long time. It's not that he doesn't, it's just that he doesn't want to commit too fast. He doesn't want his hearts to be hurt. He waits a long time, and he has a huge plan on how he'll first say it, and then... he flubs it and says it out of the blue (we'll talk about it later).

J - Jealousy: Jealous, jealous little octopus man. When he was younger he didn't have much that was his, so now when he has something for himself he needs to keep it to himself. He gets huffy and grumpy and watches you from a distance as you talk to someone who is clearly coming onto you without a care in the world. He won't intervene as it's happening, but the person you're talking to quickly makes it to the top of his list of victims-- I mean, clients.

K - Kisses: Goodness, Azul is quite the kisser. He'll kiss you all over, all the time, whenever he feels like it. Is he good? Eh, it's fine, he'll get better. Kissing is a odd ritual that humans have, but he's become obesses with it since you started him on it. He favorites are cheek kisses, because he can give them quick and in passing without others drawing attention to it.

L - Little ones: As I eluded to earlier, Azul wants kids. He likes kids, believe it or not. He knows they can be cruel, but he also knows that they can be just like him, and he feels for them. They didn't pick the way they are, so why should they be outcasted. He drifts toward the quiet ones, and makes them feel seen and adored. It's quite cute to watch.

M - Morning: Azul's mornings are busy. He not only has morning classes, but he has to ensure his dorm is up and running before that. He gets up early to start everything, and he dressed and ready by 6:30 am the earliest. He makes sure not to disturb you, and actually has breakfast made and ready for you every morning when you wake up. While you hardly get to see him, he makes sure you're happy and well rested in his own way.

N - Night: Nighttime with Azul is considerably better than mornings. He's got a lot going on still, but it's things that he can sit down and do like paperwork or homework. Frequently you spend your nights in his office doing a number of different things quietly alongside each other. It's peaceful and sweet, especially when you doze off and he carries you over to his bedroom <3

O - Open: Azul is not an open man. He's too nervous you won't like who he actually is, so he puts on airs for a very long time. You sort of have to chip away and the front he puts up, and eventually he will crack. And once he cracks, he shatters, and he tells you everything all at once. All his feelings, his stressors, and his dreams get entrusted to you.

P - Patience: Azul has a lot of patience, he has to for his line of work after all. He can keep a level head through a lot of situations, but dear god can he get annoyed. He's easy to poke and prod at if you know how he ticks, and you know how he ticks. If you pick on him enough, he'll get all grumpy and huffy, but he won't really get angry at all. It's when you cross boundaries or really get in the way of his goals that he blows up - which is rare, anyway.

Q - Quizzes: Azul has like... a file on everything there is to know about you. He writes every single thing that he finds important about you down and stores it in a little file he can look back on for date ideas. It's part of why the two of you got so close, he just memorized everything you liked and made sure that he knew enough about it to talk to you.

R - Remember: It was the first time he said I love you. He'd been planning a huge date for months on months, ready to make the moment perfect, and you went and screwed everything over with your cute face and charming personality. You were reading in his office while he was working, it had gotten late - much later than he wanted, and you had come to his side to try and urge him to sleep. You were massaging his shoulders, talking about how sleepy you both were, and he just let it slip. You just... returned the sentiment, and continued to try and get him to go to sleep.

S - Security: Goodness, Azul is so very protective. You're an easy target to get to him, and lord knows how many people hate his guts. He can't do much but wave a contract over their head... but he has a secret weapon... It's the twins, duh, of course, it's the twins. They keep an eye on you - because he asked, but also because they like you. If someone goes too far, they have a nice little meeting with Azul later that day. He also wants you to stand up for him and his honor, it makes his heart soar that you love him so much.

T - Try: He's mister above and beyond. He makes sure every date is a standout and tries to outdo himself every single time. He wants you to know how much he listens to you and how much effort he puts into caring for you. He's so attentive and sweet and makes you feel like you are the most loved person on earth.

U - Ugly: He's very picky... about everything. He picks at food, his own appearance, and the way other people act and hold themselves. He likes things a certain way, and he sticks to his brand hardcore.

V - Vanity: Azul cares about his looks a lot. Not in the way it would get in the way of a relationship, but he's just very concerned about what people think about him. His appearance is one of his main concerns, and he pays very close attention to ensure that he remains attractive and good-looking.

W - Whole: Azul doesn't exactly feel incomplete without you, but he really does miss you when you're not around. You are, in his opinion, his second half, and of course, he misses you when you aren't around. However, he views you as two very separate people with different lives dreams, and ideas and he would never try to push the idea that you are half of him. Half of his heart, surely, but most certainly not of him.

X - Xtra: Azul takes great care to cover up the... less than human aspects of himself. See he's got a lot of octopus-esque traits about him that he would rather die than let other people know of. He's got three hearts, ovular pupils, and absolutely horrific eyesight above water (hence his glasses). He wears gloves to hide the fact that he has, uhm, what can only be described as suction cups on his fingers. He finds all of this so humiliating that he hides it as much as possible.

Y - Yuck: Too naive. He cannot handle having someone who has no grasp on other people at all. Sure, his partner can be a little dumb and not always understand other people's motives -- that's okay, that's what normal people are like. But if they can't ever read people's intentions and get themselves into bad spots he can't stand it. He's your partner, not your lawyer.

Z - Zzz: He is SO CUTE when he sleeps. He curls up into himself, and he sleeps in a tight little ball. He got used to doing that underwater, and he does it subconsciously on land because it's what's more comfortable for him.

[gillyweedgrl]

You should be watching Pit Babe! - A Brief Review

Saddens me to think how many people are missing out on a great show because they think it’s not worth more than a trash watch, if that.

I mean, realistically, is it the most amazing cinematic work of all time? No, not unless pretty-boy power bottoms with daddy issues are your thing, which in my case they are, so let's talk about Pit Babe!

Note: I've tried to keep the spoilers to a minimum, they're mainly in the tags and links so follow them at your own risk, you've been warned.

Honestly, Pit Babe is a pretty damn good show, especially if you A) pretend the Omegaverse factor doesn’t exist and take the show for what it is and B) you don't mind not knowing what's going on half the time, just sit back, relax and enjoy the ride.

Overall, Pit Babe has got a good production value, a slightly absurd yet entertaining plot, a great choice of cast with amazing chemistry and pretty decent acting skills amongst the mix of seasoned actors and newbies.

For a totally biased fair and balanced review: There are some details that are left vague instead of being explained in depth or at all (yet), but that’s to be expected when you adapt a novel into a movie or series. It would get boring for the audience if the pace was interrupted to explain all those little details that we’re likely to find out along the way anyways (shout out to those who've watched the latest episode; finally!).

There are also some scenes that feel like they’re not as necessary and some background/plot devices that made a little more sense in the novel but I personally don’t feel like they detract too much from my viewing experience.

Babe (played by Pavel) and Charlie (played by Pooh) as the main leads do a really good job at shouldering a large percentage of screen time. Charlie comes across as happy-go-lucky, a bit clumsy/goofy, entirely fearless and a little naive, which is mostly true, but there's clearly more to him than that. Right from the start Babe is clearly someone guarded, detirmined and skilled at what he does (racing cars and having sex) and he has a very tight cirlce of people he trusts. There's a winning combo right there, quite tsundere/sunshine from the outside but definitely more breath the surface that gets exploded as they go.

Way (played by Nut) is Babe's best friend and racing companion, they've been racing together at Team X-Hunter for years but there's clearly more than friendship on the mind for Way, though the feelings appear to be one sided.

Alan (played by Sailub) is the owner of Team X-Hunter and an all-round cool Uncle (which the whole team call's him (despite barely being in his mid 30's). He's kind but firm, he cares for his team like they’re his family and it does seem as though they’re his only family.

And the rest of the cast consists primarily of:

Team X-Hunter:

Dean (played by Lee); a junior racer with slight douche vibes

North and Sonic (played by Michael and TopTen); everyone’s babies, they’re junior racers and content creators

Jeff (played by Pon); the newest member of the team, he’s a part time mechanic and full time conspicuous

Pete (played by Ping); the money guy Alan brings on board to sponsor the team

Team Red Racing (the rival team):

Winner (played by Pop); the guy who never seems to win against Babe

Kim (played by Benz); the new racer they hired to beat Babe

Tony (played by S Vorarit); Red Racing's newest benefactor and *shock horror* Babe's former foster father (try saying that ten times fast)

Kenta (played by Garfield); Tony's right hand man

Then, there’s the 🌶🔥🤯

I, personally, enjoy a little spice/heat in my shows. It’s not necessary for every show, of course, but I do think that when it serves a purpose to the story and it’s done well then it can be quite enjoyable and this cast/production team is doing it really well.

As I said, the chemistry between the cast really is amazing (both on and off the screen, if you're interested in that kind of thing) and although the spicy scenes aren’t nearly as abundant as they are in the novel, there are some really good ones. I decided to bite the bullet and binge read the novel over the past couple of weeks, I blame @pharawee’s breakdown posts for those sleepless nights, and it was worth it for me but not necessary for watching the series.

Lastly (as if this post isn't long winded enough as it is) there are a handful of things in this series that we don't see too often in BL's and make it worth watching even more:

It's got race cars, murder attempts, mafia influence and supernatural powers (at least half the characters have one).

There's no evil ex-lover out to get revenge or get back together with one of the mains (thank the BL gods).

It's got a Soft Top/Dominant Bottom dynamic where the title character is both super masc and a pretty princess.

And we can't forget, it is technically an Omegaverse series (or rather, it's Omegaverse-lite) which none of us saw coming!

Anywho, to conclude; yes, you should be watching Pit Babe. No, you don't have to read the novel to understand what's going on because none of us understand what the hell is going on at any given time. Charlie and Babe are fucking around and finding out, the rest of us are just long for the ride, Alan and Jeff are having a whole ass rom-com-drama in the corner, the babies are making their content and having a blast and the others aren't quite on the map yet (or are they? *wink, wink*), but I sure hope they will be soon!

If you made it this far, thank you and are you okay? Do you need to have your brain checked?

[a-scary-lack-of-common-sense]

Aah! I just love your Au so much, sorry for spamming it, but it's just so good!! What's Felix relationship like with Ralph? Does he still have the same insecurities like the OG characters had together, or does Ralph seek him out actively?

And speaking of, What is his relationship like with Turbo? From that one post, they seem to get along a bit well, and I was wondering if that's just how they act or if they're actually good friends?

Sorry for the hard hitting questions, but I got brain gummy worms about it!! Have a wonderful day!

THANK YOU, I'm so glad you're liking my AU!! I love ur questions, Anon, because Felix' dynamic with the others is so funny to explore, mostly because of how cranky I made his AU personality!

Ralph and Felix are pretty close friends (altho the latter adamantly refuses to admit it), and they regularly hang out with each other! Ralph doesnt give two dimes that they are hero and villain, so he's the one that reaches out most of the time, much to Felix' dismay (he learns to enjoy the company dw dw).

As I said before, I like to describe their relationship similar to a cat & dog one, but more in a way an extrovert adopts an introvert, however unwillingly that happens. Felix, on the other hand, is a lot more anxious and hyper-aware of their hardwired hero/villain differences, so much more reluctant of their friendship. Ralph likes to push Felix to socialize more, but with how stubborn the latter tends to be, it's uhhh... a challenge. They make it work tho :)

(Sorry these are so messy ahdbwif, I speedran them)

TURBO AND FELIX' FRIENDSHIP IS SOMETHING I CHERISH VERY DEARLY. They are so silly to me, so so fun...... .... <3

Felix and Turbo have a love-hate relationship, and by that, I mean Felix harbors like 99% of the hate in the relationship. Whether or not that hate is genuine is a mystery even to him, but he hasn't killed Turbo yet, so that's an A-okay in Turbo's book! He loves to pester Felix just for the heck of it because he knows Felix is all bark, no bite (he'd feel too bad to actually follow up with his threats). They're a goofy slapstick duo that I paired up just for the funsies tbh, they argue and banter a lot and make me happy :)

Turbo also likes to annoy Felix by swearing a lot- because I wanted to keep the "no swearing" personality trait from the OG Felix! That was just a fun fact I threw in last minute.

Thank you for your questions!! Always a pleasure to answer them :)

[bunnakit]

what shows are you currently watching? (shows that are airing weekly rn, no older shows)

for each one, list two things that you love about them and one thing you would like to see in future episodes!

ohohoo what a treat (finally getting to some of your amazing prompts anon, i assume its the same person but i apologize if im wrong)

Bake Me Please - I absolutely love the aesthetics of this show. They show off some of the most beautiful cakes and pastries and it's just gorgeous. I also love the way each person in the show is broken in one way or another; generational trauma, childhood trauma, dreams that feel out of reach, etc.

After my rant today I think we all know the one thing I want, NEED, to see is Shin apologize to Peach. I cannot stand the idea of Peach bearing all the emotional work for this relationship.

Cherry Magic 30 - So I'm coming at this from a place of knowing nothing about the originals. I'm really enjoying Karan just in general, his thoughtfulness, his care, all of it. He reminds me of a quote from episode 3 of The Last of Us: "Paying attention to things is how we show love." I'm also really enjoying the importance the show is putting on consent as well as Achi's care to make sure he isn't taking advantage.

I'm really going into this right now with no opinions, no theories, I'm just along for the ride. I hope we see some more cat thoughts, I guess.

Cooking Crush - I really wasn't sure if I was going to stick this one out. It's a little too goofy for my tastes but OffGun's chemistry is doing a lot of heavy lifting for me, so that's one of the things I'm enjoying. I'm also enjoying the playfulness of Ten and Prem and this cute courtship they have going on.

I hope Fire's mom explodes.

Last Twilight - You guys have seen my meta posts. I could wax poetic about this show all day long. Thus far I ADORE how they're treating Day's disability and showing how important him maintaining his agency is. I'm also really enjoying Mhok's perspective as a caretaker and the way he adapts and learns every day. I've been both - I'm currently disabled and I was a caretaker for five years. This show is so near and dear to my heart already.

I really hope we see what the hell is going on between Night and Day. Like, we have to, right?

Pit Babe - I'm an omegaverse bitch. I'm sorry, it's my guilty pleasure. One of the first things I do when I get the brainrot for something is go see if there are any good omegaverse fics (I'm very picky, we don't like misogyny or thinly veiled transphobia in this house, no thanks.) I'm enjoying seeing the worldbuilding of this show so far as well as each of the characters and their personalities. Everyone, even North and Sonic, feel like fully fleshed out people and I'm very much enjoying that.

I hope Way explodes - No, I hope we see them build more on the omegaverse aspect of things. I wanna see a man get pregnant. I also want to see a woman, just one woman, just a single one. Where are the women?

Playboyy - BOY HOWDY. Listen, I'm mostly watching this to avoid FOMO. I'm asexual, the sex is doing nothing for me really. The wet noises make me scream and throw my headphones off. I AM enjoying the mystery aspect of the plot a lot, I'm very curious where that is going. I'm also very much enjoying the exploration of different sexualities, like the hints that Soong and Zouey might be demisexual.

Obviously I want to know what the fuck happened to Nant, but I also just want to see more Prom. Also wanna see Aob become soft for Puen.

The Sign - My absolute beloved. I'm obsessed, I'm going to be obsessed forever I fear. The mythology is just fucking superb, the yearning is incredible, the action is great, the friendships phenomenal. I could go on and on about everything I love about this show. It's everything to me and I know I'm going to be a WRECK when it inevitably ends.

I can't wait for Phaya and Tharn to fuck, sure, but I can't wait for them to be in love. I can't wait to see them hold each other gently, look for reassurances in each other, and I hope they each regain at least some memories of their past selves and maybe how much they loved each other.

[juni-ravenhall]

sso and "its just a kids game!", "its not that deep!"

ive been thinking a lot about how there are things you really can and should excuse sso for "because its a kids game". those are things like the silly tone in serious situations, when carl and a DC goon just want to eat ice cream instead of doing villain things, or when mr anwir says "so anyway back to my evil speech", or when avalon/druid says :O, or when katja puts on an evil playlist and we change it to a less-evil playlist during a not-really-canon event quest. the goofy tone of the game makes it less scary despite having some dark and scary elements in the story.

(the goofiness shouldnt mess up the logic of the story, though, which i think the dark riders and DC really have an issue with, but thats a bit too much of a tangent.)

or things like making sure you know that nobody died when you and the soul riders did a thing, or seeing someone blast off in a goofy way after being struck, so you dont feel bad about it, or take away the lesson that killing bad guys is fine. making sure to spell it out to you if theres a lesson to be learnt sometimes, or shoving the magic of friendship in your face (although in a shallow way).

or having non-punishing and laidback gameplay (except economically) to suit the youngest players, like not having to lose anything if you fail, or giving the player very clear instructions for quests, or having NPCs not be very hard to defeat compared to games targeted to older teens and adults. (but accommodating young players that barely read and have never played a game before, or players with disabilities that can't always play in the most hardcore gaming manner, and so on - accessibility - shouldnt in any way relate to having bad or clunky gameplay or game design. sso doesn't actually do a good job of being accommodating, it would be much better if there was genuinely fun, well-designed, challenging gameplay for those who seek it, while allowing those who dont to take their time and play the same thing at their own pace without failing - having properly designed races and champs and overhauling the scoreboard system and testing every race until they're at the quality they should be; having rewards like more js for reaching higher scores while still allowing players to earn okay js if they aren't aiming for the gold medal times or highscore boards. having fun and challenging gameplay mechanics with different difficulties. etc. the concept of "adaptive difficulty" is also interesting.)

theres things that are very reasonable to excuse in kids media. theres just also parts that i dont excuse and dont think its appropriate to excuse. when ppl do the "its a kids game!" thing, its not always about what i described above.

should you excuse low-quality game design and gameplay functionality just because its a kids game? no, not at this price point, anyway - there are kids games for free or for a couple $€ out there that might be validly priced. however, this is also *especially* bad in "girl games" (fuck gender and sexism, but society exists). girl games are notorious for being low quality and not comparable in quality to "boy games" at the same price points. perpetuating this - trying to get girl game audiences' money without providing quality girl games - is a problem of misogyny and exploitation. not excusable.

should you excuse bad writing just because its a kids game? i certainly dont. i dont like badly written kids books, or picture books, or cartoons, and i didnt prefer low quality content over high quality content when i was a kid, either (but quality means different things in different circumstances and to different people). your ability to tell if something is crappy or great improves as you age, but even if its definitely possible for a kid to enjoy the hell out of an objectively low quality piece of media, there are problems that often arise from bad writing and bad design... because where low quality writing comes from, there is often also a lack of care for important issues and topics, and a lack of respect for the target audience.

should you excuse racial or sexist stereotypes, or fatphobia and harmful beauty standards in general, or ableism, or cishet normativity, lack of diversity, just because its a kids game? isnt it *even more important* in a kids game, since kids are still learning so much about the world and starting to form perspectives and opinions and feelings about it for the first time?

if you think "but sso doesn't have much of that!", i think you might have played the game with a very different perspective than i did. what about how courtney, the summers sister, is framed as a joke because of how she looks - you're supposed to find it funny (and sweet though!) that carl franz thinks she's beautiful and perfect, because that's not how the game assumes you reacted to her. the brothers obviously also are meant to be seen as goofy looking but i don't remember if it was handled in such a direct way as with courtney. the game also assumes that you find xin scary or strange-looking when you see him without his mask (it's in ydris' dialogue); which is especially fucked up since he's a person of short stature (and also part of the "circus freak" stereotype!), but also always fucked up regardless - people just exist, man. we are born looking some kind of way. it's fucked up to think xin or courtney are ugly. it's fucked up that we were supposed to find a disabled little girl scary during an old halloween event (i think her back was hunched and she walked differently?). it's fucked up to think pi is ugly, or mrs holdsworth, or the GED workers. i want the world to stop thinking of normal human traits as "ugly" no matter how unusual or usual those traits are, or how symmetrical or not, or how popular or not, how old or young you look, how sick or healthy you look, or whatever the fuck. its all ridiculous and should be stopped. we should think of people in terms of kindness, in terms of shared interests and shared joy, in terms of healthy relationships, in terms of caring and loving and making the world a good place to live in for everyone.

and thats just the aspect of beauty standards and shit. i havent even gotten started on the shallow idea of diversity they executed in the production of this game. on how there were lots of random npcs of colour suddenly, but without bringing poc in as important key characters with interesting and engaging continuous presence in the story. how the dark riders feature the most buff and masculine female character, a physically threatening and masculine woman of colour. how they were going to have 3/4 poc in the dark riders while the soul riders are 1.5/4, and the remaining dark rider appears to have albinism which makes it another harmful ableist stereotype. how so many of the important characters were designed as white - yes, its a swedish game, but the game is not from the 1950s, is it? when sso was released, sweden's population was more than 10% foreign-born. today it's even higher. can you guess if there is a class issue and if rich white game studio owners and directors didn't really think about people who weren't blond and light eyed and white?

or the lack of body diversity in anyone else than 40+ year old characters. sure, it's good there was anyone fat or beefy or differently shaped at all. and it's understandable that they didn't have the resources at the time of release to make the player character more customisable (doesn't excuse the lack of diversity in skintones though) and went with their typical fatphobic misogynist 2000's cartoon look they'd already created before sso (dont get me wrong, i love the old art, we can enjoy aspects of things while also criticising them). but they already *did* create npcs with different bodies and faces on and off - especially the 40+ yos - and there was nothing stopping them from spending a little more time on creating a fat young adult npc, or one with an androgynous body, or a beefy female npc, or other diverse bodies and faces, rather than spending it on putting together 10 more generic skinny background npcs (have you ever thought about just how fucking many random unnecessary npcs are in this game?).

those are a lot of things that are pretty serious and that you have to kind of be woke and analytical to think about in the first place (most players - esp if they themselves dont feel especially oppressed irl - arent ever going to really think about these issues, or might actively be *for* some of the issues, such as in the case of fatphobia directed towards the player model update). other things like the game design and quality of the gameplay, inconsistent writing and design and graphics and so on, are things more players might notice since it can make the game just feel more boring or frustrating compared to other games you play, even if you dont think too hard about the whys and hows.

but the fact that kids might not realise that theres ableism or racism or fatphobia or misogyny or that theyre being pushed into spending money on something that isnt really up to the standard - thats not really a reason to excuse those things. and if someone says "the writing is really bad" or "this makes no sense" or "why did they design these characters this way" or "this horse game sucks and is boring and inconsistent", rather than just saying "its just a kids game", "why do you take it so seriously", "its not that deep", maybe its worth considering this, that there are things you absolutely should excuse kids media for, and other things you really, really shouldnt.

[cosmica-galaxy]

Do the main trio get on particularly well with their mimic species counterparts? Like, does Camron particularly enjoy hanging out with Buddy, for example? Or is it more like the units prefer to be with other units and the mimics prefer to be with other mimics? (Though I get the impression they all prefer to be with the human!)

Deciding to answer two asks in one! Buddy and Camron can tolerate each other, especially since Camron would mostly do it out of fear, but inwardly they would both have a jealousy toward each other for how the human treats the other. Buddy is confident and scary, while Camron is practically goofy and reliable. They both can understand that they adore the human and that the human loves them, but they are equally as greedy. They will work together, as long as one doesn't claim the human for themselves. DJ and Pal are actually very well acquainted and even have a strong friendship between the two! They share music, sounds, and even their own tunes from time to time. They both understand that fighting won't benefit anyone and will work together when things call for it without any issues. They both understand that they love the human and the human loves the both of them equally, so why fight? Protect the ones that you love and two protectors are better than one after all! Teamwork makes the dream work!

Vee and Fiend would annoy the crap out of each other if they got stuck together. Fighting would break out almost immediately as the pair would argue about their status with the human and how they love the other more. Vee would be more mature about it while Fiend would take digs at him to try and get Vee to react. But once it gets too much, Vee just turns to him and flips him the bird before teleporting away with a parting comment about how he doesn't understand how the human can endure such an annoyance as him, since all he's trying to be is a bootleg version of himself. It cuts Fiend deep and the two struggle to get along in most cases. The human would find that those two have a difficulty being around each other and can only imagine the reasons why they don't like each other. As for the titans, as long as the mimics respect the human in the base, they will remain passive to them. Plus, being the biggest units that alliance has, it helps keep the mimics in check. As they always stop whatever it is that they're doing and become on their best behavior when the titans are around. It's just natural for mimics to be submissive to larger units and the titans are the biggest of them all...other than it.

[littlefoxwithbighat]

Dynamics/ Team-ups I want to see in the life series!

Etho & Gem

You've seen their dynamic on Hermitcraft together. Do I need to elaborate. It'd be so funny. Gem is entirely unimpressed by his shanigans (shes an Ethogirl at heart). They would do really well.

Mumbo & Lizzie

I honestly feel like they would mesh so well together. Mumbo and Lizzie both have quite similar, awkward "I-don't-know-what-I'm-doing and-I'm-afraid-but-I-enjoy-the-chaos" energies. I think they would be so much fun. Would they be an effective team? Probably not. But would they have the most shenanigans? Yes.

Gem, Cleo, Pearl & Lizzie

TEAM GIRL TEAM GIRL i honestly think this would be the most amazing friendship it'd be so fun. Guys please.

BigB & Grian

They're friends irl and it shows in their dyanmic chemistry on screen. BigB likes to hang back and Grian likes to be the centre of things, and I think in this regard they'll help balance each other out. Also Grian has wanted to team qith BigB since 3rd life, they'd both enjoy it!

BigB & Martyn

Also friends irl. Martyn likes being witty and starting bits and BigB is genuinely really talented in yes and-ing and continuing bits. They both match each other in terms of being very forthright and very myterious all at once.

Scott & Tango

I just feel like Tango and Scott would match each other's energies and playstyles quite well. They're both interested in the technical aspects of the game and playing to win, but neither are afraid to take a break for bits. Scott's building and Tango's redstone would be a terrifying force together.

Skizz & Grian

I refer you to GIGS phasmophobia streams.

Martyn, Etho & Joel

This team would be a huge disaster. I can see the in-fighting from here. They would come up with the stupidest schemes known to man. They would all be besties. They would have at least 3 divorces. I have got to see this happen it would be brilliant.

Martyn & Gem

Both really like being witty and come-backs. They would be so smart together. Both of them are super competitive but also love the shenanigans and improv. I think they would also yes-and each other till the end.

Martyn & BDubs

BDubs doesnt get enough credit for his wit and improv, hes so talented! Martyn is the witty improv guy. They would be an absolute force together. They wouldn't get anything done, and would probably spend too much time spying together. But the shenanigans and rp would be fantastic.

Pearl & Grian

They would be the absolute worst. Theyd probably die horribly and fight all the time. Itd be really funny though.

Mumbo, Tango & Skizz

They just seem like they all get along really well. A good mixture of chilling and silliness. :DD

Mumbo & BigB

I want to see them hang out more they seem like they would be best friends itd be really wholesome. I don't think they'd win. I think it would be an excellent vibe.

Scar & Lizzie

They both have very similar senses of humour. They both love running with particular characters (see Fairy Queen Lizzie and Wizard Scar). They are both goofy and silly and loveable and threatening to blow your house up. Peak dynamic. It'd be amazing.

Scar & Bdubs

I refer you to HC s7. Trust me itd be good.

[house-of-tykayl]

Is there a mandate in Teen Titans Go where they say Robin and Starfire are never allowed to be an actual couple in the show?

I don't understand why they don't want them to be together they make Starfire reject Robin.

I don't think it would cause any problem if they become a thing, they can still make comedy jokes in the show while being in a relationship at the same time.

i think TTG is a low effort parody show, so to change something fundamental to the original concept (having TTG robin chase TTG starfire) would take too much effort. the show would have to replace the conflict of unrequited(?) love with another conflict funny enough to move an episodic story forward for an infinite number of seasons.

so yeah, there probably is a mandate/rule (in the show bible or something) to prevent TTG robstar from becoming "official"

(also if you dont find the idea of TTG robstar being unrequited funny, then tbh i feel like TTG's kind of humor and even the original concept of TTG just isnt for u... it's not the 2003 cartoon v2, it's a parody and always was. by this point i feel like it (TTG's parody elements at least) are such a specific kind of humor that 89% of people won't enjoy it, and thats fine)

anyway there's also how TTG had more sincerity in season 1 when it was more like a really weird sitcom, where the titans' relationships (while still subversions of the 2003 cartoon) were mostly genuine bonds even if they acted like lobotomy patients sometimes. the comedy had limits and the characters had empathy. so if TTG robstar would ever have a chance at becoming anything near canon, it would have been back in s1, though still unlikely

but later seasons of TTG can be very mean spirited, overly cynical and deconstructive, depending on who is writing the episode (assuming the episode is even character focused at all, which became less common over time). the show went from a parody of the 2003 cartoon to a parody of everything besides the 2003 cartoon lol. sometimes i feel like post season 1 some of TTGs writers took the mob hate to heart and let negativity poison the original sitcom premise before slowly selling out

so i dont think genuine relationships between the TTG titans can happen anymore, some of the writers hate the characters enough to have broken up their friendships (someone even messed with cyborg & BB once omg), let alone the romantic relationships. except maybe that doesn't matter either because TTG resets most of its continuity every episode?? ironically TTG could still turn the ship around in terms of the series' tone and direction, though i doubt they will if the current direction makes more money

weirdly enough whenever TTG shits out another AU thing, like the big 2018 movie or the night begins to shine universe, suddenly theres unironic robstar shipping/hints in it that are soooooooo cute. besides being shipper bait this is probably because those TTG AUs feel removed from the main TTG series, so their stories feel more free like they're allowed to be sincere again, like the main show's original season 1.

unless the romance is supposed to be a joke, it needs sincerity in order to work. and its impossible to write sincerely when youre a contractual writer buried under 300 layers of irony and cynicism who doesn't even like the show youre writing for... and thats what i feel happened to the main TTG show ,compared to some of its AU stuff

tl;dr i just cope and pretend like TTG is still the goofy sitcom it used to be, partially coz season 1 TTG robstar had the (admittedly very low) potential to be real, and even if it didnt happen at least their friendship was consistently sincere. and very cute

[ladyloveandjustice]

Spring 2023 Anime Overview: Skip and Loafer and Birdie Wing Season 2

Skip and Loafer

Mitsumi comes from a small, under-populated town and her dream is to become a government official and help her town out. After getting into an elite high school in Tokyo, she moves there and finds that there are a lot of challenges in the big city and new people to meet. Her new friend, Sousuke, is a nice, popular guy, but he also has a troubled past. But Mitsumi is determined to face anything life throws her way!

Skip and Loafer is just one of those shows that’s like a warm hug. Mitsumi is an instantly endearing protagonist- dorky, earnest, and driven. She's overwhelmed moving from her small town to Tokyo, and a little naive about some things, but she's  a can-do gal determined to make it work! There's an overwhelming kindness to Skip and Loafer that permeates every inch of it. Characters that would just be a simple antagonist or "mean girl" in other anime have their struggles explored and become whole, realized people with good points and bad points.

Sousuke is a troubled former child star who experiences some conflict, but it's not like Mitsumi 'fixes' him-  he simply learns and grows through his experiences with her, both through their conflicts and moments of connection. There's some great female friendships too, and they focus on girls from different social spheres working to find real connection to each other and trying to look past stereotypes and misconceptions. It shows why labels like 'popular girl', 'nerd girl', and so on, are no reason to judge someone.

There's also some nice trans representation with Mitsumi's aunt, Nao, who is a trans woman. Nao-chan's a fun character, who tries to guide her overwhelmed s niece and forms a surprising connection with one of her friends, while still showing off her own sweet and goofy quirks and giving hints about her own life story and how it shaped her outlook. She is also truly wise:

Some brief transphobia towards Nao is shown in the form of people whispering about her on the train, but Mitsumi immediately holds her hand and shows support. Skip and Loafer's kindness extends to the treatment of Nao-chan, and we're clearly meant to cheer for her as she thrives.

All-in-all, Skip and Loafer is a relaxing, entertaining and funny- it has a light touch and a focus on relationships, treating the conflicts and complications high schoolers can face with nuance and empathy. The characters are loveable and the setting is fully realized. The animation is very cute and delivers a couple of beautiful moments. It was the most consistently excellent show I watched this season (even if it didn't reach the highest highs of some other shows) and I think anyone who enjoys slice of life shows, or just wants something that's pleasant to watch but has enough depth to remain entertaining, should definitely check it out.

Birdie Wing Season 2

Premise: Season 2 of the saga where two girl golf geniuses just want to face each other one the green and have their homoerotic sports rivalry like they were MEANT TO, but weird family drama and the actual mafia keep getting in the way.

In my review of Birdie Wing's first season, I completely enjoyed the show's absurdity, but was worried it could all come crashing down in the second season. Fortunately, it did not! Birdie Wing: Golf Girls' Story remains a bombastically absurd sports anime that is fun to watch all the way through. Please come watch these girls get ridiculous sports injuries, scream their super golf attacks, and be ten times more intense than your average shonen sports show.

Birdie Wing also pulled some great moves this season, like having Eve's caddy from golfing high school be pulled into the absurd world of the golf mafia and react to it with the same panicked confusion the audience might. "They're going to KILL you if you LOSE A GOLF GAME? Why is the golf course like this? How much does this cost?" she cries while Eve just shrugs everything off.

Meanwhile, the show finally brings in the bread and butter of sports anime- injuries and diseases that the main characters are going to ignore for the love of sport. But the tired trope becomes wonderfully absurd and almost verges on pointed commentary when it's GOLF, the sport of retirees, causing these ridiculous injuries. Seeing Eve gets covered with bandages because she golfed too fucking hard, or having this line:

...It really throws into perspective how ridiculous sports anime is when it glamorizes people destroying their bodies for the 'love of the game'. I don't know if that was intentional, but it is very funny.

I am immensely grateful that the plot twist I was fearing didn't come to fruition in the show- instead, in classic Birdie Wing fashion, they teased that terrible plot twist, but instead gave an explanation that was a thousand times more soap opera-esque and ridiculous. I have to to applaud that moxie.

But what's important is that the true believers made it through. We're okay. (If you want to know what I'm talking about and don't mind spoilers, please enjoy this meme I made based off a famous tweet by Crunchyroll).

I must share an anecdote- I had to watch the finale while on vacation with my Mom. When she overheard all the yelling, she was like "are you watching a magical girl show?" "no it's a sports anime- they're playing golf" "Oh...why does it sound like a magical girl show?"

Sadly, the finale was a little bit of a let down- it was rushed compared to other parts of the show and felt like less than it could be. (Considering G-witch had the same problem, I wonder if it was a Bandai wide issue).

But it was still fun. While Aoi and Eve sadly do not kiss or become an explicit couple (despite Aoi very much wanting to!), there is at least absurd golf team up moment you could read as being a Super Deep metaphor for their love. Not much of an excuse, but it's something. The end of the show didn't go as hard as it could have (or, I think, should have) but it was still ridiculously, wonderfully Birdie Wing.

 I was disappointed Aoi and Eve were separated this season so much (and unlike the first season, did not pine for each other nearly as much during separations since they were busy contending with ridic plot stuff), but on the plus side, there weren't really many 'sexual menace' or jarringly mature moments like the first season had. 

Overall, I think it was a really solid follow up, and I can now wholeheartedly recommend Birdie Wing as a show. Just heed the content warnings I left in my first review so you too don't get killed by golf! Once you're ready, let the glorious golf wash over you. You won't regret it.

[karl-raccoon-in-a-teacup]

kunikida, oda, mushitaro, and a fella of ur choosing :3

Kunikida!

Sexuality Headcanon: Bi, I'm not sure he knows about the being attracted to men part yet.

Gender Headcanon: Honestly your transmasc headcanon for him is slowly seeping into my own headcanons, so...

A ship I have with said character: I like most Kunikida ships I've seen, but soft spot for the specific flavor of Kunichuu that's popped up in my Agency Chuuya AU. By accident. Did you know they can be so domestic. And they have a dog.

A BROTP I have with said character: Kunikida and Katai's dynamic does indeed warm my heart, and thank god it's canon. But Kunikida and Atsushi are also so iconic...

A NOTP I have with said character: Nothing comes to mind? As I've said I like most Kunikida ships I've seen.

A random headcanon: I think delinquent Kunikida is a fairly popular headcanon, but I do adore it, whether full-on delinquent or just him being a lot more crass/rude in high school. I also think the scheduling is something he did not have when he first met Katai, developing that over the years and being in full force by the time he joined the Agency.

General Opinion over said character: A very solid character all around, and one of the ones I think is the most difficult to morally corrupt. I want to see more of him coming into his role as the Agency's future leader, and just... more of him, honestly.

Oda!

Sexuality Headcanon: He's never thought about it. Very possibly pan though.

Gender Headcanon: He's a guy and he's pretty chill with that, not all that complicated.

A ship I have with said character: Odango... the inherent tragedy of it compels me so...

A BROTP I have with said character: Buraiha Trio, and all the friendships he has in it, and I will never stop thinking about them until the day I do.

A NOTP I have with said character: Od.azai, onesided or otherwise, isn't my cup of tea.

A random headcanon: Unlike what the old accountant claimed, Oda would have been much happier in the information department than out on his usual missions. Maybe in other timelines, he would transfer to there, and live a much more peaceful life- even if he still wouldn't become a writer.

General Opinion over said character: Excellent narrator of the Dark Era and a very well-executed character.

Mushitaro!

Sexuality Headcanon: Gay.

Gender Headcanon: Pretty sure he's just a cis guy but check in later

A ship I have with said character: Mushiango would you like to hear about Mushiango-

A BROTP I have with said character: Off the topic of my head his dynamic with Kyouka is really funny. They should continue to have that goofy ass interactions in the future.

A NOTP I have with said character: Nothing I've seen has been a particular yuck.

A random headcanon: Thanks to this fic by @feralshadowdemon my beloved sibling, his highschool fantasy was to have his first kiss under a sakura tree with the petals falling down.

General Opinion over said character: My little meow meow of a man I love him so much.

Fella of my choosing: YOSANO! Because I miss her and want to talk about her!

Sexuality Headcanon: Aro-ace Yosano is a concept that compels me more and more as time goes on.

Gender Headcanon: She's a very big fan of being a woman.

A ship I have with said character: None, really?

A BROTP I have with said character: Ranpo and her are so... they have such a long history...

A NOTP I have with said character: I'm not a huge fan of Ko.usano, but considering the amount of female characters I understand why it's a thing, so you guys stand strong and have fun out there.

A random headcanon: One of the first things Ranpo and her bonded over all those years ago was their mutual love of sweets. Even now they both like nothing more than to have a good chat over sweets- and neither feel the need censor the gritty details of their cases or operations just because they're enjoying a nice treat.

General Opinion over said character: I love her so much and her character is so compelling and hey, have you ever thought about the parallels between her and Kyouka? Have you? Please?

[quidfree]

Your katsuki, shouto and todobaku pet peeves respectively (If you like reading them too)? And my sincere thanks for providing such precious gems called your fics 💖

honestly i don't read much bnha fic or even that much fic in general bc i'm usually too busy writing it. and when i do read fic it's for weird very niche/dead fandoms or pairings i feel like lol.

but my pet peeves are always just any measure of OOC, with differing levels of tolerance for certain choices. let me see what's some questionable stuff i've come across uhhh

katsuki:

aggro sexy dom daddy vibe... especially when it involves any kind of pet names. no this guy would not be calling anyone 'baby girl'. he is not a tiktok mafia au trend.

on the other end of the spectrum, complete soft baby blushy tsundere. he told midoriya to jump off a roof bc he had no future in middle school okay he is... not that.

either way too dramatically brooding/'emo' or completely lacking self awareness. bonjour nuance

also just get his friendships right please. you should be able to make him part of a solid friend group without it feeling like a completely different person. like i think he'd be a very good friend down the line but that doesn't mean i can see him being #goofy besties with everyone.

shouto:

well similar to above either making him too cutesy soft and fragile (todoroki shouto? certified bad motherfucker todoroki shouto? backtalks cops and throws people out of arenas via icebergs? nah) or making him just like. extremely bland stoic. he has a personality y'all.

trying too hard to make him like.. #relatable or sassy is also always a bit too obvious. like if it sounds like a joke someone on tiktok would made realistically shouto would not be making it yk. 'it's the trauma for meeee' i don't think so....

gotta strike the right balance for the family drama. it's bad for him but he's also really emotionally resilient.

todobaku:

when they're not funny/don't banter. have you met these mfs their every interaction is comedy gold.

like just OOC in general!!!!!! relationship content tends to warp either or both characters to fit a trope instead of bending a trope to fit the characters, which is just a waste. if it's not fundamentally a relationship of equals instead of one strong/one needy chara i'm not interested and that's that.

them having very... 'basic' relationship dynamics where they're netflix romcom vibes and have like normal dating progression. first of all adapt romance to the people involved, but also i just do not believe that like. todoroki would be out there texting anyone 'baby ily sm <3333' yk what i mean.

either party being angst central dramatics for the other person to sentimentally ~fix~ as if they don't share the vast bulk of their trauma / have similarly stoic ways of dealing with angst. i'm all for h/c but not melodrama. especially don't enjoy when people add random shit to canon to justify drama like sexual abuse. just not for me

this isn't even about todobaku specifically but i've never seen a good ABO fic in my life. and i do say 'see' because i admittedly tend to not get past the descriptions.

ok that's all i can think of off the top of my head. but please feel free to tell me about the worst ones you've encountered i love to hear people's horror stories.

[i-less-olivia]

Continuing the Blazing Saddles streak. I’m hyperfixating right now, so here I am, overthinking and overanalyzing an old comedy movie.

I love the upside-down exchange they have in the prison cell because, behind all the satire, slapstick and absurdity that defines Mel Brooks’ movies, the writers and actors still managed to paint a portrait of two characters who are believable as complex, tangible human beings, with issues, wants and needs.

The first few times I watched this scene I didn’t really take in its full impact, mostly because the serious topics it implies tend to remain shielded by the humour of the dialogue. Of course, the obviously significant racial themes are discussed, but there might also be other potential aspects hidden in the dialogue. The understanding of each other’s true nature, the beginnings of a close friendship, perhaps some past experiences resurfacing?

Let’s start, shall we? Keep in mind, most of this is just me trying to interpret their reactions, so it might be speculation on my part.

“Are we awake?“

Bart has taken his role as Sheriff seriously and is up to the task. He’s cautious, yet professional. If the city itself is a piece of work, who knows what the local prisoner might do.

“We’re not sure... are we... Black?“

Straight to the point, but, even when plastered, Jim is never unkind or disrespectful. Just from this simple exchange, you can perceive he’s different fron the rest of the morons of Rock Ridge. He’s the first (and probably only) white person in the movie who doesn’t use the n-word when talking to or about Bart. He’s not afraid, disgusted, outraged or offended. Just surprised, because he knows what the public opinion regarding people of colour was at the time (even though we later see he definitely doesn’t agree with it), and he never thought he’d see a black man become a Sheriff in such a backward place.

“Yes we are.“

A mere statement of fact. Such a simple line, yet so effective. Poor Bart’s probably used to any kind of reaction by this point, almost universally negative. His response is neutral enough, but his expression is dead serious. For a moment, gone is the goofy guy wearing the Gucci purse who was elated to become the town Sheriff, who took himself hostage and later complimented himself for it, who was singing “The Camp Town Ladies” until 30 seconds ago. He’s testing Jim, perhaps even daring him a little. He’s prepared for the worst. The lack of n-word from the prisoner is promising enough, but Bart knows, and so does Jim in that little pregnant pause, that this is a crucial moment for both of them.

"Then we're awake, but we're very puzzled"

And Jim passes the test. This is also a good time to go back and point out the obvious: while this exchange takes place, they've been bantering, in a prison, with one of them stuck upside down. A delightful first indication of how in sync their personalities and respective natures are. They're both chaotic creatures with a soft center, who found a kindred soul. Bart's wicked sense of humour bounces off Jim's quite naturally and with synergy, and they must notice and enjoy it as well.

"I think I better straighten myself out"

"Do you need any help?"

"... Oh... All I can get"

I'm such a sucker for the respect they show each other from here onward. The Sheriff knows the prisoner's situation is delicate and doesn't ask any questions, just helps straighten Jim out. Jim crowns the exchange with a grateful smile and genuinely thanks him. He also seems vaguely surprised at the notion of someone helping him, but I might be reading too much into it at this point. What's certain is that the slight tension that had been there before has now dissipated.

This moment was crucial for Bart to define the basis of their friendship, similarly to how their heart to heart after the chess match mattered to Jim. Those exchanges made them realize there was someone else who understood them and liked them for who they were, and who they could rely on in a world that could often be cruel.

It helps flesh them out as people and characters in a subtle, but very poignant way.

[legionofpotatoes]

Hi Legion! Long time lurker and lover of your art and tags here. I always read your tags and I'm really interested in your thoughts & views on love and relationships, so I'm curious to know where you got those ideas from. Are there any videos, terms, or books you could recommend? It really resonated with me and since I'm a huge nerd my first instinct is to find more sources haha. Thank you so much!

This ask genuinely made me sit with myself and think long and hard about how my views on that stuff really formed, something I maybe took for granted a lil bit. So thanks, and I'm sorry that I can't give a nerdy answer here! It is difficult to point to specific sources, it's more of a lived-experience type thing. It truly is The Question Of All Time lmao. And boy did it get me thinking back.

I'll put my ramble under the cut if this is not interesting or what you're after, but I enjoyed the introspection still! Thank you!

My context is entirely unremarkable (middle class cishet white guy from eastern europe), but if I had to point to one thing that is the bottleneck of my views on love and relationships, I genuinely think it could be traced to my insane early childhood nat20 roll to avoid toxic masculinity pipelines. I truly believe in my bones that if I had been seduced by that stuff - and legitimately all but maybe two of my childhood friends were - I'd be a completely different, colder, worse person today. I credit only luck in that.

Where I'm from, boys of my generation were set on a very specific path very early on that was pointed veeeery far away from "love". All wrapped up in warped orthodox christianity and crypto-nationalist sentiments, stemming from our incredibly disillusioned post-soviet parent figures constantly running in survival mode. So like, I legitimately don't remember how I managed to avoid those circles and behavior patterns, and the truth is that I probably sometimes didn't? I certainly made stupid mistakes in my early teens, but I had the luxury of making them outside of the public eye of social media. More luck.

There's other alchemy of course - as a child of divorce I got a real early up-close look at the ugly results of mistrust and toxic "love", and a lot of my life back then was rebelling against that. Not that the parenting itself was always bad - my mother turned me to the arts and to stories, which eventually led me to fandom that I can now identify as a much healthier outlet for my frustrations than whatever my peers were doing with their nighttime brawls. It led me to a very crystallized idea of what I really wanted from life - not glory or patriotism or ambition, but a quiet life with the ones I loved.

That is also around the time when I let go of teenage lust as my north star and started fostering friendships instead; because like, relationships are bonds and connections, nothing more or less. Sexuality and romantic love can take as big or as small of a role in that as the parties desire, and they're entirely ornamental to the value of linking your experience with another living, breathing human. Realizing the divinity and beauty in that changes almost everything in an instant. And it is such a goofy-ass thing to say, but yeah, for a lost idiot dude like me, fandom helped me see that. Even the raunchiest fics were ultimately about belonging and emotional nakedness, and I learned to desire that more than anything else. I am trying so hard to point to something specific here, but I honestly don't know with way back then. Bioware's found family-ass games/fanfics were a big one later on, but there were so many other communities before. My memory's just bad.

But knowing I wanted love was one thing, and being a healthier, more empathetic person ready to actually get that was a whole other trek. Made a few more dumb interpersonal mistakes. And then I met my current partner, now over twelve years ago, and realized there was a version of me reflected in her eyes that I could truly chase and grow into. This all sounds super melodramatic but it was more of a terrifying thought at the time, stoking self-doubt and real worry that I was leading her into a mistake. But of course that was all a symptom of terminal self-awareness. We were in our early 20s, mature enough not to play childish emotional games, and young enough to go on that growth journey together. More luck. Found that gentle peace I had yearned for with her., and I count my lucky stars to this day.

In short, everything about my understanding of love and relationships is rooted in personal circumstance + massive amounts of luck, and especially that early course-correction away from toxic dudeness. Nothing extracurricular. And then just more and more luck piled on with time, culminating with my lovely bean. So in that sense I'm the worst person to ask this question! And times have really changed irt internet culture and fandom so I can't even point at that part as an action point either.

But if nothing else, I believe that storytelling is the ultimate shortcut in getting our dumb teenage brains over the precipice of pride and control, and towards the gentle pursuit of love in all its forms. I think that's worth articulating over and over again. Thanks for reading this long and I promise I usually interpret asks like a normal person! This is an exception!!! a big question if there ever was one