#they're pretty accurate tbh

[marinsawakening]

I can't wait to see your opinions on Twilight Princess tbh /genuine

I can't wait to see MY opinions on Twilight Princess tbh

[imunbreakabledude]

seeing this poll makes me wonder how many of the people who voted yes really did "catch" someone or just think they did bc they believe it was about them but it really wasn't.

bc personally i've never 'caught' anyone (i have those anxious moments from time to time but tbh if I suspected someone was being snide/passive aggressive about me i probably just wouldn't follow them?)

but I can never stop thinking about this one time several months ago here on tumblr that someone reblogged one of my vagueposts with a very angry, hurt response and i was like, I'm sorry, but this was not even about you? but I'm sorry you read it and assumed it was and felt hurt by it?? and then they never acknowledged my reply. really strange behavior lol and i can never forget it, alternating between feeling quite bad that the person was hurt even if it wasn't intended, and feeling frankly a little annoyed that they were egotistical enough to assume it was about them and have this big "call out" moment when it literally was NOT about them

[isekyaaa]

If you don't know me well and you've heard my opinions abt people talking shit, I probably seem like the person that enjoys talking shit about others. To which the truth of the matter is that I don't. Tbh, I feel I do something worse. When I talk about a person to someone else, I break them down from the bottom up by analyzing what makes them so irritating, but also what makes them so great, and I share that analysis with the person I'm talking to. It quickly escalates to bringing up a person's personal issues, traumas, insecurities, etc, and analyzing them under a lens.

[superfallingstars]

Jily circa 1977, for @moonstainn's marauders era 70s outfit challenge! I had sooo much fun with this - I think this is the first time that James has made an appearance on this account, and I actually based his shirt and jacket on a photo of my dad in the 70s, which was super fun. Love a contrast stitching moment!

The other reason this was so fun is that I'm like one of those annoying historical fashion people but only for like, the 70s thru 90s, lol. I think late 70s fashion can sometimes get lost in the shuffle between the groovy early 70s and the neon 80s, so I really wanted to showcase it here, since that's the era in which James and Lily come of age. From what I've seen, late 70s fashion is less bell bottoms and fringe, and more cuffed jeans, knee-high boots, and furry jackets with big shoulders (perhaps a precursor to the shoulder pads of the 80s...?).

I can't resist rambling on about this, but I'll do everyone a favor and put it (as well as all of my references/inspo!) under the cut:

These are street style pics from 1977 London, taken by Derek Ridgers, and they're such a big influence on how I imagine Lily. You can see that the styles are starting to shift from the hippie fashion of the late 60s/early 70s – at this point there were a lot of these huge fuzzy jackets, cowl neck sweaters, layered zip-ups, and knee-high boots under midi skirts.

A few photos of some women whose fashion specifically inspired me for this drawing. The top row is all Kate Bush – there are a ton of photos of her from around this time and she looks quite similar to how I imagine Lily – and she rocks those tall boots (+ midi skirt combo). The bottom row is Isabelle Huppert (who I have considered as a time-accurate Lily fancast lol, although I'm uncertain of the exact dates of these photos). Her jacket in the first pic definitely inspired me for Lily, and I don't think I've ever seen someone look so cool in a scarf before...!

The other big trend I noticed (from looking through a million pictures of bands I like from this time) is the proliferation of cuffed jeans! What was up with these giant cuffs? Once I started looking for them, I noticed them everywhere. Tbh they're a nice way to add a fun little extra detail to a character's outfit. And I must mention that in the second photo (featuring the Buzzcocks), the guy on the right (John Maher) is pretty much EXACTLY how I imagine James to look. There's like no other pictures of him in those glasses tho! So unfortunate.

Anyway! I adore 70s fashion, and even though there are definitely similarities throughout the whole decade, late 70s fashion has its own unique trends that I hoped to bring some attention to here. Especially because it's basically the golden age for Marauders fans lol. Of course this is not comprehensive (far from it!), but I wanted to share my thoughts, and I hope it was at least a little informative or inspiring. Thanks if you made it this far through my rambles :-)

[arinzu]

My Headcannons for Yoichi Isagi, Rin itoshi and Alexis Ness💕

Part 1 l part 2

Might not be accurate

💗💗💗

Yoichi Isagi :

✿He took a photo once of his hair slick back and his fan went absolutely feral.

✿He time to time stalks Rin to observe what he does.

✿Isagi probably stares at the ceiling when he's about to sleep and think about all of the opportunities he missed.

✿If he played any other sports it would be chess, since his vision is great for mental games.

✿Tbh is he was a sin he would be greed/gluttony.

✿If he could ask anything from his parents, it would be to have a little sis.

✿Does skin, body and hair care every few days.

✿Swears in videos games often. Those little brats think they're so gOoD but once isagi finishes his puzzle he'll devour them

✿Tried to hit Kaiser in the head with the ball after a practice match, but Noel Noah was there

✿Gossips with kurona and hiori about kaiser and ness, It's perfect since kurona doesn't know what they're doing but hiori has a lot of dirt on them.

Boyfriend Headcannons💤

♡Plays football w/ u and teaches you by beating you, not even to destroy your self esteem.

♡ such a sweetheart while you are on your menstrual cycle (if you're a girl)

♡ gossip about every teammate with you, like a whole book of players he wants to gossip to you about

♡ once you were sick, he drove to the local store at 2 am just for you. He's so sweet.

♡ Cooks very well like he'll cook food decently

♡ Not that toxic? Maybe that's probably up for debate

♡tells you about his problems like it's the national news to be discuss

♡ Has that romantic playlist he made just for you and him to enjoy.

♡Due to being in blue lock he hasn't texted you often so in return he tries to send gifts every month

♡ Calls you darling and sweetheart multiple times a day

Rin itoshi

✿Drools in his sleep (Me too Rin)

✿I feel like he'll stand awkwardly in a party not even interacting with anyone

✿Is good at cleaning, not barou level but up there

✿Perfect grammar, also TOP at his English

✿Never uses any gen-z/alpha slangs or any type of slang infact

✿Dry ass texter...

✿Gets really weirded out by any of his THOSE fangirls/fanboys... Like wdym you wanna have the reproduction LIKE HE'S ONLY 16

✿Knows knife play at some point, don't ask him why (he doesn't know)

✿Artistic in secret... Like he'll paint the beach or anything that shows the happy times of him and sae

✿Gets nightmares of that day... (Pretty sure everyone has that headcannon by now)

Boyfriend Headcannons💤

♡Cuddles every time he gets a chance with you. That kinda prevents him from getting those dreams....

♡ even if he's not as romantic as the others, you guys still go on weekly dates and THEY are expensive or just casual date like movie date🫶

♡After getting traumatized by sae, he almost broke up with you, Thank goodness, that you manage to make him snap out of it.

♡ After getting convinced by your and his parents he went to couple counseling and saw his mistakes

♡One of his favorite things to do with you is Playing football, I mean two things he loves in one? Count him in!

♡ Bring extra clothes with him whenever you're around, just in case it gets cold and he doesn't need to give you his hoodie.

♡Does not have much of a soft spot for you BUT, his eyes sparkle whenever he sees you like the good old times

♡ Almost made you cry when you both were on a movie date, it was those scary ahh movies that you don't know what's coming next.

♡Has a separate Love notebook from his early days of middle school that he reads when he misses you.

♡Calls you lukewarm as a word of affection when he sees you

Alexis ness

✿Would probably be in good terms with isagi if it didn't end like this

✿Has a mental breakdown every few days because of kaiser paying too much attention to isagi

✿Makes Kaiser a birthday cake every year and even bought him EXPENSIVE stuff from his hometown

✿Keeps the magician outfit he had when he was just a child, he cherish it like it's the most valuable thing in the whole universe

✿Would be friends w/ Charles if they interacted more, I mean like opposite friends, Ya'k

✿If richer than his awful siblings back home, if not then... It's because of the plot.

✿If he didn't met kaiser he'll probably be better than what he is now.

✿Has surprisingly good fashion taste, It's better than most blue lockers I can tell you

✿Has that changing color book lamp at the side of his bed he use when he's upset or just sad

✿He would like science if it weren't for the fact of his childhood

Boyfriend Headcannons 💕

♡Is actually quite the gentleman to you and your family members, since he a very toxic household

♡Always makes your favorite dish, if he doesn't know the recipes he'll find it by your guardian/ by how you like it.

♡Gives you a lot of gifts, I MEAN A LOT like everyday you'll find things that you enjoy at your doorstep

♡Due to being away from blue lock, he gets awfully jealous of the boys around you. Even if it's just a friend

♡Husband material frfr

♡ Punch a dude that was making you uncomfortable, and then ran with you to flee the scene.

♡Prefers the value of affection than the materialistic value of a gift you give him

♡ Loves being the small spoon but if you want, he can be the big spoon, anything for his precious angel.

♡Yandere tendency!!! Whether a girl or boy, he will get jealous if you spend more attention on them than him!

♡Call you angel or any kind of German words of affection, he will use it

That's it y'all💋

Thank you for reading this! It too me longer than expected!

So thank you for staying till the end even tho it was just 3 blue lock characters!

💕💕💕💕💕💕💕💕💕💕💕

[seonghwaswifereal]

OT8 SKZ

(I'm putting this at the start of every list, so ignore it if you want)

Just wanna say that this is pretty much just for me to catalog all the fics and random things that I like, so idk, just enjoy it if you want lol

Full Name

Calling them their full name in bed, VERY mixed reactions, a little icky tbh I still like it tho

Subspace

Some INTENSE fucking in the beginning, soo so fluffy, this Bin has me in Literal tears lol

Fave Way Of Getting You Off

Thigh riding *cue foaming at the mouth* toys, and much more

Virginity

Kind of it, Chan's is super duper cute, Seungmo being surprisingly soft lol

Kinks

Public stuff, begging, kinda what you'd expect tbh

Live

Givin' em brain while they're live, Min singing a song??? like??

Calling Him Daddy

Himbo Binnie, I really like Chan's, rough, cute lil drabble

Hyung Line X Virgin Reader

Nosy ass Hyunjin, Riding Binnie bc of course

Maknae Line X Virgin Reader

Sweet Jisung :( rough Min, Innies is in public lol

Perv Maknae Line

Jisung w. a chewing(?) kink, Jisung that likes to get pegged, hairband-stealer Lix??? Seungmo w. a breeding kink, wet dreams-Innie has me in a literal CHOKEHOLD

Munch

MunchSKZ needs more fics fr

Personal Time

How and what they use to jack off, SeungIn's is my fav

Lingerie

Sending them texts of you in lingerie, it's so mmm but so fluffy at the same time

TwT Links

*Gasp* A masterlist in another list???? lol

Pullout

Binnie being a respectful boy, Innie being a worrywart, Hannie can't control hisself

Car Ride

Sooo... this one is a little, uh yeah, tw for... piss, please don't judge meeee, literally so hot thooo, Hannie's basically a toilet

Sub Sandwich Hyung Line

Your first time subbing, Chan's could quite literally send me to the psych ward if I let it, hair pulling, overstim, and dacryphilia, yum

Contact Names

Honestly made me chuckle, cutie patootie Bin

Sharing Is Caring (MeanRacha)

Double pen. in one hole, my favorite hehe, Innie's BIG, cnc bracelet except it's not really

Can I Kiss You?

So cute God, nervous Minho :( lmao you're already fucking Binnie before kissing him? sure, Innies is so, just, domestic it's adorableee

Favorite Positions Hyung Line

STRONG Bin, ass guy Min, cuddling Jin, and riding Chan. Perfection

Appearance

The Most accurate headcannons on how their schlongs look imo

When You Struggle To Eat

Super adorable drabble, 2Min's are my favorite

Reward

Who and why the think that getting/ giving head is a reward

Choreo

It's so fucking funny istg

Favorite Place To Kiss You

Gaahhhh tummy kisses with Binnn, also Min's is so like.. surprisingly romantic, I'm in love

TwT Links And Descriptions

I honestly just saved this one for the links

With A Sleepy S/O

Cute and pretty short, it's here to give you a little dopamine boost :)

Mice

Guys, I- this genuinely made me chuckle

Mishaps

Snapshots of them making mistakes in bed lol, ex. banging your head against the wall...

[ladyloveandjustice]

Say what you will about TV Tropes, and I've said a lot, but they blew my mind with this entry on Zuko:

They're so right, he is??? How did I never realize this?? Zuko would bond so much with Fate and Rue and pretty much every antagonist-turned-Precure. They're the same.

(though tbh I don't think most magical girls that have dark magical girls as foes fit the "running away from duty" thing--Nanoha doesn't, Ahiru doesn't (except for ten minutes at the end but Rue's already normal by that point), Precure protagonists don't, even Usagi has developed past running away from her duty by the time Black Lady and Sailor Saturn/Mistress Nine come along.

I think more accurate would be that while a magical girl will have a life outside her duty--she'll have friends, she'll enjoy relaxing, having fun, goofing off and she'll have goals and things she likes to do outside her mission--dark magical girls generally don't have those things, and the only thing they're living for is their mission and/or pleasing their abusive parent. Which is also pretty perfectly Aang and Zuko for season one and a good chunk of Season 2. Capturing the Avatar and earning Ozai's approval is the only thing Zuko thinks about, he repeatedly refuses to have any life outside his mission of hunting Aang, including just relaxing and socializing for five minutes. Meanwhile, Aang has friends, has fun, can socialize and live a full life and think of other things besides being the Avatar).

Aang really is so magical girl coded when you think about it too. His personality, his vibes, pulled into his destiny when he'd rather just be normal, the way he advocates forgiveness and tries to help even his enemies see the light...elemental powers...he even has animal mascots! It was right there in front of me the whole time.

[ecrivainalene]

Leviathan Panel at Otakon 2024

I was OVERJOYED to be at the Leviathan panel during Otakon 2024! I'll do my best to recap it below, but if you want a more coherent play by play, this Twitter user did an excellent job.

I've got a handful of photos, recap of Sharp Gender Discussion, plus misc. things I remember.

Not everyone was up for the entire time, but I snapped this photo near the end when everyone was on stage! From left to right: Waki Kiyotaka (Studio Orange), Yoshihiro Watanabe (Studio Orange), Scott Westerfeld, Christophe Ferreira (Quibic Pictures), Justin Leach (Quibic Pictures), Katrina Minett (Quibic Pictures), and Diana Garnet (ending theme vocalist).

New concept art! Looks like Dr. Barlow, Klopp, Alek, and Sharp, right before the Germans attack the Leviathan.

More under the cut!

Alternative shot of that art bc I couldn't get my lighting right:

Clanker and Darwinist technology designs. Watanave explained that Studio Orange's early days were spent doing contract work on Gundam anime, so I can't wait to see how that translates to the Clanker machines.

Some more concept art:

By the way, the entire series is being adapted at once - so we'll get the complete story at once! That in mind, the second image here makes me think of that maneuver near the beginning of Goliath to pick up the cargo.

Sharp!!! Look at them!!!

I don't have much to say about these but I'm fairly sure I hadn't seen them before. I am wondering if they downsized Alek's crew for the sake of the story, or perhaps we just haven't seem Bauer and Hoffman yet.

We got some new character art! The panel was very cryptic about who the character designer is. Apparently they're pretty well known, but they can't share it yet!

Volger I am so sorry your photo was unfocused. Forgive me.

The panel jokingly described him as "Alek's dad," which feels accurate. And maybe I misunderstood, but it sounds like he plays an even more important role in the anime than he does in the books. I've always considered Volger to be a pretty important character, so I wonder what else he'll do in this new series.

Klopp looks exactly like how I pictured him in my mind!! They said if Volger is Alek's dad, then Klopp is like his mom. Which is very fair but also made me laugh a lot.

Dr. Barlow!! She looks amazing. There was a lot of talk about the dynamic between her and Volger and how they're often playing mental chess games with each other. I'm really glad they're leaning into that dynamic.

And one more concept art:

This looks like the visit to Istanbul, which I'm desperately hoping means we'll see my favorite chaotic bisexual, Lilit.

That's all of the photos I have! They also showed us a preview of the show plus a live performance of the ending song with Diana Garnet. No video recording was allowed and I don't break rules, but believe me when I tell you it was stunning. The world feels so full of life and adventure and I can't wait to see the final show.

Tbh I was too busy holding back tears of joy but one thing I remember distinctly is there's a shot of Sharp getting ready for the day, and we see a sheet of paper with a bunch of names written and crossed out before finally (I think) "Dylan" is circled.

Which actually brings me to the Q&A part. TLDR, between the use of "Sharp" for Deryn's name, Scott referring to Sharp as "she/he/they" during the panel, and the scene I mentioned earlier, I feel really hopeful about how they're approaching Deryn's gender and identity in this adaptation.

I asked a question about this at the Q&A and voice recorded it, so I'll try to transcribe it here as best I can because the audio is not great lol. I stumbled through my question so I trimmed it down here but I'll transcribe the response as clearly as I can!

Me: I just finished re-reading [the series] for the first time since I was probably in high school, and one of the things that interests me about this adaptation is the approach to Sharp's character... I guess I'm just interested, like, was there a lot of thought put behind, or what kind of thought was put behind how to approach their character in the anime, I guess as a chance to re-approach the story however many years after it was originally written.

Scott Westerfeld: Yeah, there's a lot to that. The "girl dressing as a boy" as a trope was something completely different in 2007 when I started writing this than it is now. And so we really approached Deryn's identity as what was at stake rather than just... rather than just her being in disguise, it's about their recreating themselves and becoming a different person and transitioning and, and so... but it's always been interesting to me that the words that I wrote back in 2009, 10, 11, y'know, as an old guy who grew up in Texas in the 70s - who was David Bowie fan! - but otherwise didn't have a lot of access into issues of gender, I'm amazed at how many people have been [able to?] adopt Deryn/Dylan as one of their own. I just got an email a week ago from a trans boy whose chosen name is Dylan. So it is amazing to me how whatever imperfections or whatever problematics there are in the text, people still find their way into what they need from a character. And as a writer, I can say that I always respected that character, I always respected their choices, I always respected who they were. I never tried to stick them into a dress and have everyone go "Ooh now you're pretty 'because 'cause you're in dress!" We didn't do that, and I think that what may be important for people and I think that's why it's still what's gonna work here, but it's been fun to be able to update it and everybody on the team's been really great about understanding that.

TLDR I don't want to get anyone's hopes up too high, but I'm really appreciative of the care that's being taken with Sharp's story and identity in this adaptation. It seems like Scott and the others on the team are taking that into account, and I'm excited to see how it plays out.

Other random things I remember:

THERE WAS AN ALEK COSPLAYER. I took a photo with them but I won't post it without their consent. Just trust that they looked fantastic.

Scott said one of the first things he was told was that Alek can't actually kill Nikola Tesla because he's too well loved by people in Japan, which I think is the funniest possible reason for a change to be made in an adaptation.

Diana Garnet (they/any) mentioned how much they love Sharp (don't we all) and also how they used to work at a Barnes and Noble and remembers selling lots of Westerfeld books!

Scott said his approach in writing Leviathan was taking everything he'd always wanted to write about and basically throwing it together, because he was just coming off of the success of Uglies and figured he could get away with it.

If I remember anything else I'll add on to this post! Overall, it was a wonderful panel and I'm incredibly excited for this project.

[followthebluebell]

entirely random question, if you happen to have any thoughts on it: why are cats so terrible at fetch when dogs aren't? even kitties who enjoy the "chase-and-return" concept usually don't actually fully return the toy when it seems like dogs work that part out pretty quick.

Because we bred dogs to do it, basically. A lot of dog breeds are retrievers, which do exactly what it says on the tin: they retrieve things. Teaching my poodle to play fetch didn't require much 'teaching' because those instincts are right there at the surface. He wants to fetch things the same way an artist wants to create. It's what he was born to do.

Even dogs that aren't retrievers are still dogs and are, in general, hardwired to listen and learn from people. People can and will make an argument about 'oh, but this breed is STUBBORN' (ie, huskies, salukis, a lot of hounds tbh, pretty much every primitive breed, etc; I'm not going to sit here and list all the breeds that are deemed 'difficult to train'), but I don't think that's fully accurate. Primitive breeds that are 'hard to train' are STILL going to learn from humans. They just don't always learn the things we're trying to teach them, but that's an entirely different kettle of fish.

I also want to emphasize that I FULLY believe that dogs changed us too. I don't think humans would be what we are today if it wasn't for our fully unique relationship with dogs. There's no other animal that we've domesticated the same way we have dogs, and there never will be. They fulfill so many roles in the development of human kind that it's astonishing. They were our hunting companions, our guardians, our trackers, our food, they even supplied wool (the salish wool dog is an extinct breed that was raised for wool similar to sheep), and our friends. Because of them, we became human. Because of us, they became dogs.

i'm sorry i'm getting really emotional about dogs. It's just that there's such a deep relationship between the species. Over our centuries, dogs became so incredibly attuned to us, to the point where they have the ability to communicate with and understand us more than any other domesticated species and we have the same with them. There's no other species on earth that inherently understands what a human means when we point a finger, but dogs DO.

basically dogs fetch because we bred them to want to retrieve, they want to learn things from us, and we want to teach them. Cats don't have any of these instincts. This doesn't mean they're any lesser or greater. They're just different and that's fantastic.

[tbhimnoteasyonmyself]

Who is White?

If it is not I, your friendly neighbourhood non-binary deranged literature major, once again to tell you about stuff that the voices™︎ have prompted me.

This time, let's talk about the elephant in the room, the odd one out: Mr. White, a.k.a the fandom's babyboy.

(me as Fluke in this GIF, walking in ready to dissect this bitch)

So, what do we factually know about this man?

From what we're directly told in the show:

He's Tee's boyfriend, at least, since 12th grade, meaning they have been together for about 3 years, maybe 4 (depending on when exactly we are in terms of time in the present and when exactly during 12th grade they started dating).

He's younger than the rest of them, according to Por and Top in episode 1.

He studied at a different school from the main gang AND from Phee (yes, despite the embroidery having a similar colour, the writings where the institution's name should be are nothing alike, thus, not from the same place)

He cares a lot about his appearance (he does skincare when Por is literally dying downstairs and he sees a rash on his body while under the effect of New's absynthe - idk if it's absynthe or not but my friends and I have been calling it that since we saw them drink the green drinks so it's absynthe for me and there's that).

He's generally a very respectful person (he always speaks formally and nicely to everyone, even when people are hostile to him, like Tee or Fluke).

His fear doesn't seem to paralyze him in high-pressure situations (he strikes people with a tripod twice to save himself and others when he thinks they're in danger).

Another source could be the Yearbook, which, now, we have to be a bit more skeptical about because, as seen in New's case, it's not 100% accurate. One can argue that it is accurate because the yearbook would have Tan's info, since that's who he's living as and no one knows any better than that, including the institutions and, sure, yeah, fair. But while we don't know that White is hiding anything from us as well, we can't be sure of it. So, take the following with a grain of salt:

(translated with Google Translate)

His legal name is Watcharin Siriphan

He was born on the 25th of February 2005 (which confirms what Por and Top say)

His blood type is A (which according to the Blood Type Personality Theory means he is shy, stubborn, a perfectionist, polite and hard-working, apparently. tbh this thing is super shifty, no source seems to agree on the meaning of each type and, of course, it's a pseudoscience and all, so... yeah. take it as you will)

He's studying Software Engineering

He likes cakes

He dislikes cockroaches

He plays games and programs in his free time

So... We don't know much. He's the most generic person ever. Like... I too, and half the world's population, like cake, dislike cockroaches and like to play games. It's not exactly very special. Which is exactly why he is so intriguing. After all, we had 5 whole episodes so far, which were just the backstory of the people we see together in the mansion in the present. We've seen their personalities, their qualities and flaws, what they did and what they didn't do. We've been given a reason as to why they're here. Not just in the more direct sense of "they agreed to come here for Jin's goodbye party" but of why exactly they needed to be put all together in these conditions for this story. All except White. White is just... Barely an afterthought. We're shown when he comes into this story for the group (when he becomes Tee's boyfriend), but we're not given a reason so far as to why the narrative wants him there.

Because, sure, IRL people sometimes end up in random places and things can be pretty meaningless but this is a work of fiction. One that, evidently, has been greatly focused on details (Non's framed apple picture and Phee eating an apple alone, for example, or the correlation between the group and the colour blue). So why would it just throw us a character that is, seemingly, irrelevant to the story?

And to this, there are 2 possibilities my friends: either White is a narrative tool to get to the audience or White is not who we think he is. So let's explore it, shall we?

White = Narrative Tool

Let's start by assuming, possibly the most likely outcome, that White is exactly just a guy who ended up there due to his connection to Tee. Why would this narrative need that character?

Glad you asked. Because he's the only person who's 100% innocent. If he's just some guy who, as we've seen, keeps being respectful and nice and trying to always do the right thing, then he's got nothing to do with the others who, in different degrees are all guilty of something. He's the odd one out.

Because, yes, this is not a show of villains (at least, not in which concerns the main characters). They're all morally grey. But they have some drop of black that makes them grey.

Por is arrogant and a liar and selfish.

Tee is aggressive and manipulative and a control freak.

Top is an overall asshole and a coward.

These 3 actively bully Non. Por steals his work. Tee and Top blame him for shit he didn't do which puts in the situation where he owns Por and they spy on him. Tee manipulates him into mafia money laundry and threatens him.

Fluke is selfish and refuses to take action even when he knows it's the right thing to do.

Jin's doesn't have the capability to realize that the peaceful passive way with which he normally carries himself with won't solve the issue. Plus he's overly emotional. And a bit selfish too.

They didn't help Non when it was their moral obligation to do so. And Jin records him being abused by their teacher and possibly posts it online (though that's still up for debate).

Phee is too stubborn and also overly emotional and even overly empathic.

New is obsessive and vengeful.

Phee never really helps Non because all the ways he offers Non help are the wrong ones. He almost tries to control him. And he fails. And then he tells him awful things and breaks up with him in a terribly vulnerable moment for Non. And even when he regrets it and tries to bring justice to him, he fucks Jin because he wanted to and tries to cover it up as if it was part of the plan. Sure, they were broken up, technically, but Phee himself seems to have had "take-backies" over that breaking up. So, in his mind, at least, it's fair to say he cheats on him, which is very hypocritical after how he reacts to Non being abused. And New... He tries to help sincerely because he feels guilty but he only makes things worse. Nothing is solved and their father curses them both before committing public suicide at their mom's funeral.

Non (which may be even more relevant if he's still alive) is overly independent and uncommunicative.

He doesn't tell Jin he has a boyfriend when it's clear Jin's trying to make a move on him, event though Non's not interested. He hides very important things from Phee. He commits fraud (understandably, but yeah). And yeah, he's justified in his rage and attack but... Does he ever think of how his actions affect other such as Jin, for example, who, in his eyes, is innocent? Not really.

"Oh but White won't die!", I hear you say. "The innocent people never die in slashers!! Only the people who did the killer wrong do!" And that's exactly where I have to disagree.

So, amidst a sea of grey characters, White is, funnily enough: white. He's just good. He's done nothing wrong. And the narrative needs him because, when the others die, we'll feel (to different degrees, sure, but still, we will) that there's a reason. Even if we like the characters, those deaths will make sense. But what happens when an innocent man dies? What happens when you kill the man who wasn't even supposed to be there (he joined the trip at the last minute)?

As @syrena-del-mar says in this post: "DFF is more than just a 90s slasher film imitation". It "sits at a novel intersection of genre: horror slasher on the one hand and BL on the other hand" as @brifrischu puts it here and, for that, it bends expectations and rules and subverts what are natural tropes and events of the slasher archetype. White dying is the sort of thing this narrative, and our inventive genius Sammon, would do. Because... Do you really think they're giving us grey characters instead of black ones because we're supposed not to question this revenge? Because we're supposed to be happy about this? No. Of course not. That would be dumb. If we're meant to 100% side with the killer, then why give us likeable characters as the targets? Because, and this is as much speculation as it is reading the room, we're not.

This story, I don't know how it will end, but regardless I'm pretty confident it's supposed to tell us something important about cycles of violence: that they're neverending until someone chooses peace instead. That aggression and bloodshed and revenge... They won't bring time back, they won't undo the mistakes we make, they won't restore that which is lost, they won't make the grief go away... That they won't make us feel better. More even: that they will only hurt more people, create more injustice and prompt more revenge. And, thus, perpetuate the cycle.

So what's White's role? Being the final drop into our collective cup of realization (and perhaps the characters' as well) that this revenge mission is pointless and won't solve anything. White's role is to die.

"Oh, but uncle Dang was also innocent! Is his death not enough??", I hear you ask. And well... Maybe, maybe not. I think, honestly, his death is too impersonal for us to feel too deeply about it. Like, sure, yes, it is the death of an innocent, but it's a distant innocent. It doesn't make our blood boil because we don't know shit about that man. But, for all we don't know of White's past, we've seen him cry, we've seen him scared, we've seen him fight for his life, we've seen him be a good boyfriend and a good friend. He might just be some dude but we like him. He's the fandom's babyboy, as I said. It is more impactful and it tells the story better.

But this is just a hypothesis. And it might not convince you. And that's fair. So, because I'm a persistent obnoxious fucker with a little too much free time, I'm bringing you a second theory. For this one, though... You might need a little tinfoil hat... Be prepared.

White ≠ Who He Says He Is

So, if you think just having a character be hollow and pure good in a show of very fleshed-out and grey characters is weird, even if he might be narratively relevant, then we can only assume there's something important to White's character we don't know about yet. (I'm adding this in retrospective because I forgot but this idea came to me partially from @yellingaboutkp and their great analysis of horns in the show that you can find here)

But what could that be? We've seemingly seen all the flashbacks we needed from everyone, White doesn't seem very relevant to anyone's storyline but Tee's but... We'd assume if there was something directly connected to Tee's actions and White that we needed to see, we would've. Admittedly, the next episode seems to be on its way to tell us what Tee knows about what happened to Non and Keng while they were captured by the mafia and he could be there but I think, honestly, that it goes deeper than that. And here's why: because there's a person who's even more of an odd one out then White: whoever Perth's character is.

Now, he would've been completely unsuspicious if it wasn't for one thing: Perth's presence in the promotion of this series. He's just... Always there, somehow? Like, his character has only really appeared last episode massaging Tee's uncle but he's constantly talking about this series. Plus, his name is very well credited. AND, the absolute cherry on top, his character appears in THIS poster:

Now, yeah, I understand Marketing and Publicity (it's part of my Master's, you don't have to explain it to me). So, I know this could very well just be a strategy to sell the series. After all, Perth did get a lot of attention after The Hidden Character, I know, I know. It's also a way to put his name out there for other future roles, kinda like a soft launch. Plus, this is the show that killed Us's character first when he was one of the most popular actors in the cast. HOWEVER, I'd argue that, considering the previously mentioned attention to detail, they would not have given one of their rising stars a role in this series if it wasn't important. Like... No other background character without lines (so far) was given an important actor to play it. So pardon me, but I don't buy it. Perth's character's gotta matter somehow. And, back to what I was saying, I think the next episode will be exactly where.

See, I made a poll here on the hellsite asking what y'all think happened to Non. It's this one. And it shows that, overwhelmingly, we all think Non is alive BECAUSE he was helped by the man himself:

"Okay, Dante, but, even if that's true, where does White fit in all this?" Glad. You. Asked.

Now, if we're assuming Perth's character's the one that's gonna help Non (and possibly Keng or maybe not, idk and it really doesn't matter for now), we've gotta assume he's a possible suspect for the murderer. And even more so under this optic that Non is alive. Who more than a person whose whole reality seemed to be the mafia and who might've escaped it would be okay with murdering people? Right? Or, on the contrary, that he took a liking to Non and is trying to prevent him from further digging himself a hole in life and is trying to save him from himself.

You see, I didn't watch The Hidden Character (and those who did apparently recommend it stays that way). I didn't know any of these people before except those who were in Kinnporsche. And you know what that led me to? Curiously enough, dear reader: confusing Fuaiz with Perth. So, yeah, you know where this is going... White and Perth's character might be related. Brothers, probably.

"All because you think they look alike?" Well, if you ignore the way I just explained how it would tie some very loose ends... Yeah, kinda. BUT, in my defence, it makes a lot of genetic sense.

See, no other characters in the show really look this much alike. Believe me, I tested it.

For this purpose, I tried many different sites but the one that seemed to give me the most reliable results was FaceShape. Most characters got no more than 10%, some even got 0% (e.g. New and Perth's Character). And you wanna know how much White and Perth's character got? Nearly 50%.

For comparison reasons, New and Non who are CANONICALLY brothers, got about 30%.

BUT, if this is not convincing enough, my sister and I (who share EXACTLY the same 2 parents) got lower than them.

(pls ignore the picture, I was trynna make it as accurate as possible so I took a front pic with a neutral expression. also, my sister is censored for privacy reasons)

Now... Will I claim this is irrefutable proof? No. Not at all, but think about it: if White and Perth are related that might maybe explain how Tee and White met. It might also explain that really weird scene in the pre-release trailer (albeit all scenes in that are rather odd) where White-

Yes, thank you, Obi-Wan. And Anakin Tee is looking up at him, as if White has more power than Tee does. Because then, it could probably mean that White knows something and is probably there to do something. What exactly? Idk, man. He could be there to ensure the group remains clueless/confused or that they remain where they need to be for things to work... Or he could be there to try and prevent stuff from happening much to the likeness of what I stated for Perth's character's case.

"Oh, but if he knows something, wouldn't he know what happened to Non? Why would he be curious to watch the recording??"

Well, not necessarily. We know Non is not communicative and that he doesn't typically share his problems with anyone (the exception being Keng, obviously, but then again, the exception confirms the rule). And sure, Keng might be more talkative but idk if he would say something if Non asked him not to. I have a feeling he probably wouldn't (since he has that weird thing JJ mentioned about how he "loves Non" and, therefore, even if he's an abuser, he doesn't perceive himself that way and wouldn't do something he actively thinks would hurt Non). So, while Perth's character would know what happened to Non while he was being held by Tee's uncle and even some things about why he is there, he probably wouldn't know the rest.

But then why would he date Tee? Well, this is a narrative so... Foils are something that can happen. Having White and his relationship with Tee be a parallel to that of Phee and Jin is not weird and, in fact, has happened in the very first episode when both couples arrive at the room where the singles are, in pairs. Therefore, it wouldn't be weird to think of White as someone who maybe also fell in love with the guy that was supposed to be a means to an end or, alternatively, and perhaps more interestingly, have White NOT be in love with him and actually succeed, unlike Phee. Thus, drawing the comparison that, while Tee and White are in a relationship, White didn't fall in love and, inversely, while Phee and Jin aren't in a relationship, Phee did fall in love.

And this would mean that all we've seen of White's fear might, in fact, be an act to throw suspicion off of him. Or even more justified because he knows exactly what's lurking in the woods... After all, why would he suddenly join Jin's goodbye party if he's not a friend of Jin's? What reason better than to tag along your boyfriend's getaway with his friends if not to protect him from the terrible consequences of his actions?

But I get it. It's an extremely convoluted theory and, in all honesty, maybe makes the show more dull and boring if it's true because... Why would they repeat this "secret brother" twist? Or the dating with second intentions trope? It could be a narrative parallel, yes, but I can also definitely see how people could point that out as uncreative or lazy writing.

Either way: these thoughts were circling around my head and, before the next episode confirms or destroys them, I wanted to get them out into the world for y'all to, maybe, hopefully, join in on the hype for it, as it's less than 24h 'till it airs. Hope in that I was successful, at the very least.

Anyway... As usual feel free to (politely) argue with me, tell me I'm wrong, tell me I missed this and that, add to it, etc... Because if there's one thing I currently love more than DFF itself, it's definitely the fandom and I want us to make the most of it!!

I'll see y'all tomorrow when we're freaking out about episode 10!!!

All the love! 💜💜💜

[toastedjeans]

Siren Tower AU!

I wanna keep this more on the silly side, but here's the basic gist of it.

There's a huge tower submerged in the ocean where many sirens and other sea creatures have found a home, and somehow humans have discovered it. They want to study and explore this tower, and the sirens are NOT happy about it, not wanting their home to be potentially destroyed. Pretty reasonable. But now, this random middle aged pizza baker somehow gets roped into this whole mess.

And here's the characters! (I tried to keep their heights accurate but idk if i succeeded)

And down there is some more info about everyone!

HUMANS (and Brick)

Peppino

He still has his pizzeria, but it's located a little closer to town. While business is slightly better than in game, he still has debts. But hey, he has his own apartment!! No more sleeping in the back of the pizzeria or on the floor!!

Peppino will sometimes just come to the shore or the port in the evening or at night to clear his head or be alone with his thoughts. Depressed guy. Will sometimes talk to himself when he thinks he's alone. He isn't necessarily afraid of the ocean, but because he can't swim, once he's in water the fear kicks in and he starts panicking.

He doesn't believe in sirens, mermaids, or other such creatures. Thinks they're just made up to tell scary stories of the sea. Jokes on him, he's about to meet the jolliest shark gnome man he's ever seen.

Brick

A gigantic rat that lives with Peppino, who didn't get a say in this. Just appeared one day, and no matter how many times Peppino tries to get rid of him, Brick always comes back. After a while Pep reluctantly accepts him and sometimes even takes him for a walk.

Brick actually loves to swim, but doesn't stay in the water for too long cause Pep won't join him. Like, he'll just leave if Brick stays too long. Kinda rude if you ask me.

Mr. Stick

Tax and debt collector, and a friend of Peppino. He often comes over for a pizza, then proceeds not to eat much, and rarely pays (he either says he's deducting it from Pep's debts or he lets someone else pay). He's kind of a piece of shit but outside of the whole money business he can be pretty nice.

He strikes me as a gambler tbh, either he's extremely lucky or extremely unlucky. Likes playing poker, and invites Peppino and Hazel to play after work from time to time.

Doesn't believe in sirens, but if he ever saw one he'd try to exploit it for money. He wouldn't kill it or anything though, mainly because he's too weak and he doesn't know how to handle guns.

Noisette / Hazel

She runs a little cafe near Peppino's pizzeria, and is good friends with him, but can sometimes be a little annoying. They hang out after work from time to time. When she notices that Peppino is having a rough day, she'll sometimes bring over a free cup of coffee or a slice of cake for him. Sometimes experiments with... interesting... food combinations, which are strangely popular.

She has loved mermaids and sirens since she was young and is very fond of them. Once she discovers they're real, she becomes even more fascinated and obsessed with them. You better believe she wanted to be a mermaid when she was young.

SIRENS

Gustavo

A little round shark man who is perfect in every way. He's curious and adventurous, and even though sirens and humans are enemies since, uh. A long time. He doesn't believe that humans are inherently evil. He'll help out whenever and however he can, but can get very aggressive when his friends or brethren are threatened. You will regret it if you anger him.

Noise annoys him often but they don't harm each other. He isn't really friends with Noise, but he will defend him if he's threatened or attacked.

One day he saves Peppino from drowning, which makes other sirens sceptical of him, especially those who think humans are evil. He will later try to learn human language to be able to communicate with Peppino better.

Noise

Goblin shark. He can theoretically go on land for a bit, but needs some water nearby. He's a little sceptical about humans, but not outright hostile. He likes annoying pretty much everyone, especially Peppino once they meet (he thinks his reactions are funny).

He throws sea urchins and pufferfish at others like bombs, as he (like most sirens) is immune to their poison / venom. While he's usually an unhinged gremlin, he just about melts when with Hazel. But of course he tries to hide this from others.

Fake Peppino

Created by Pizzahead from DNA of frogs, newts, and Peppino (obviously). He was meant to be a weapon for sirens against humans, and thus is supposed to be hostile. Unfortunately, he turned out to be extremely affectionate, and he loves hugs. Much like Gustavo, when friends are attacked, he can get downright deadly. He can also regenerate body parts like an axolotl, unless his brain has been damaged. Like, you can rip both his arms off and they'll grow back within a day.

He becomes close friends with Gustavo, and is kind of fascinated by Peppino (other humans too, but mostly Peppino). He would play in the water with Brick once they meet, and become friends with Hazel. Can go on land as well, but prefers the water. He communicates with croaks, gurgles and other noises, and can speak very limited human language (very few fractions of words or sentences, it just sounds like gibberish), taught to him by Pizzahead.

Pepperman

Lumpfish (idk either just roll with it). He's kind of indifferent to humans, but he does think he's better than them. I could see him making a brush or something out of seaweed to draw. And then always getting upset that his drawings never stay cause of the water, but he keeps drawing anyway. Blames Noise for destroying his art even if he knows it's the water (Noise thinks it's funny). "Borrows" seaweed from Vigi's farm to make new brushes. But he'll also make statues out of various rocks and other things he finds laying around. Mostly of himself. Some humans think they're built from ancient civilizations, while others think it's some sort of elaborate hoax. Nobody recognizes Pepperman's talent :(

Vigilante

Sea slug. He genuinely believes humans want to kill sirens for nefarious reasons, possibly cause he's a little older i guess. Hands just appear when he needs them.

He has an underwater equivalent of a farm (like, he grows and tends to seaweeds, anemones, corals, etc), that he inherited from his grandpa. He'd love to just tend to the farm all day, but feels obligated to punish anyone who does wrong. Unofficial officer / sheriff of the sea. He still has his cowboy hat because i said so let me be silly on main.

Pizzahead

Ribbon eel. He can give others a little shock as if he had like a hand shocker thing. It mostly just hurts a bit and isn't lethal cause cartoon logic. He does not like humans, but mostly because he grew up with everyone around him telling him they're evil. Actually he's very curious and fascinated by humans, which is why he decided to clone Peppino. Mostly cause he sees him the most on the shore. Somehow. How he actually got his DNA is a mystery.

Later on he decides / attempts to make Fakey into a weapon after witnessing how strong Peppino is. He obsessively learns human language and tries to understand as much about human culture as he can. But he'll twist things around and tell others that he does it to "better understand their weaknesses". Right.

Pizzaface

Stingray. The leader of sirens in the elusive Siren Tower. He HATES humans, especially after some divers discovered the tower and continuously come there to explore. Basically just doesn't want his and his fellow sirens' home discovered or threatened. He's disappointed in Pizzahead because he taught himself human language, even after given an explanation (or excuse).

SPECULATION CORNER

Aka characters i can't quite figure out what to do with yet

Burton

A whale shark bc I can't get enough of sharks apparently. Sharks are cool okay

Alternative: just Mr. Stick's husband who sometimes comes with him to Peppino's

Gerome

A sentient rock and John's older brother, who always took care of him and helped him with the tower. Now just does maintenance and keeps John company.

Alternative: Peppino's janitor, but still made of rock because that's silly

John

A sentient rock that used to carry the tower around through the oceans but somehow got cursed and is now part of the foundation and can't move anymore. Was he a siren before? Or just a pillar? Or maybe a fish made of stone? We don't know.

[fairyhaos]

seventeen as seventeen songs

requested by @nishloves

notes: honestly this was hard to do 😭 i kept thinking about songs that are most iconic for that member rather than which song they fit, but hopefully it's still somewhat accurate <3

[the spotify playlist with these songs in too]

masterlist

seungcheol

clap. if there's any song that screams "i'm the leader of seventeen and we're better than any of your lazy asses", then it's clap. it's also such an iconic song, and the hypeness and brightness and the coolness and suaveness it radiates all at once is very very seungcheol, if you ask me. it also doesn't hurt that he looked so so good with his silver hair in the mv.

jeonghan

snap shoot. okay, this one sounds really unusual, but hear me out. snap shoot gives encore song vibes, goodbye song but not quite goodbye, "today was fun and i hope to see you soon" vibes. it's like standing back and watching everyone have fun because of something that you did. it's being happy n having fun by seeing that you made others have fun. and that's jeonghan.

joshua

falling for u. it's such a delicate song, all polite and sweet and delicate and therefore it's just very very much joshua. the youthful, almost playful edge to the melody reminds me of him, along with the kind of naive, "you're so pretty so i fell in love" kind of loving that the song feels like makes me think of josh. also a bonus that he has tons of lines in this song, since it's just a duet w him and jeonghan haha

junhui

my my. the hope!! the sweetness!! the little funky music in the intro that adorably reminds me of junhui's voice!! it's all just so him. the way this song just encapsulates feelings of youth and life and being forever young and forever going towards your dreams... that never-failing optimism is so junhui it almost hurts

hoshi

hit. if you don't think the constant "woah woah woah woah woah"s and "let me drop the 음악" aren't the most hoshi things ever then idk what you're on, man. it's hype, it's powerful, it's "im better than you and even you know it" and so cocky but also so True that you can't even refute it. it's about always doing better, always going further, and that's just so hoshi.

wonwoo

lean on me. jazzy, chill, dependable vibes are a very very wonwoo thing, actually, and that's what this entire song is about. it's laid back, and yet loving at the same time, caring and comfortable and ready to be by your side. it feels like a song you'd listen to while on a walk with him at night, his camera up to his eyes, his hand wrapped around yours.

woozi

247. it's romantic, but also a little wistful at the same time? elegant, yet nostalgic, thoughtful and sweet and like dancing across a glass lake. it's what woozi feels like, with his intelligence and how delicately he feels things. to be honest, a lot of the ballad-style, romantic earlier songs of svt fit him rlly well, but 247 even more so

minghao

hit song. it's a smooth feeling song, like running a cloth over a black marble countertop. honestly, finding a minghao vibe song is really hard for me, but some of their gentler songs seem to fit him, full of devoted, almost shy love that feels very minghao to me. that devotion, that softness and yet the determination also present feels like him

mingyu

boomboom. purely based on the vibes of the song tbh, and the prominent drums and chromaticism of the melody feel like mingyu, along with the brass accents and the confidence and coolness is just all so very very there that it makes me think of mingyu practically almost instantly.

dokyeom

kidult. not only because his vocals in this song are both iconic and utterly incredible, but even its message is very dokyeom. it encapsulates his innate urge to help people, to heal people, to make sure they smile and that they know they're loved. it's a precious song, and a song about letting others know they're precious, and has me crying and smiling, just like dokyeom does.

seungkwan

'bout you. it's a devastatingly romantic song, like a simple, easy love. it's like the type of love with zero complications, just full of two people laughing and running through fields hand in hand and hearts full of love for one another. the entire song feels so fresh, almost citrusy, and never ever fails to bring a smile to my face. just like seungkwan, actually.

vernon

crush. im gonna be real with u i have no idea how to explain this one but yeah. crush gives me vernon vibes and idk, maybe it's the funky vibes of the song with its mild chromaticism that give me a vernon feeling, but yeah. vernon is crush. (maybe it's because that's what i have on him-)

chan

domino. it's a light song, like floating but not quite. almost as if bouncing on your feet in midair, leaping across clouds which just gives me chan vibes. it also gives me movie ending credits song vibes after a bright, high school-set rom com learning-to-grow kind of movie which is very very chan in my opinion

request guidelines

reactions tags: @jeonginssa @magicaltonaru @weird-bookworm @minhui896 @turningcarat @zarara @bunnyiix @slytherinshua @haowrld @belladaises @iheartyujin @summery-bat @newgirlygirl @moonlitskiiies @ejspencer14 @mirxzii @wonranghaeee @saythename-chess @yonabutnotyuna @youthoughtiwasfeelingyou @crackedpumpkin @wqnwoos @sunshinekyeom-sang @ocyeanicc @zozojella @thesmellofcoffeeandrain @kthstrawberryshortcake-main @kawennote09 @a-wandering-stay @icyminghao @nananacomeonnnn @valenhui @sweet-like-caramel @hansolaria @gam3bo1z @marisblogg @evasaysstuff @odxrilove @kyeomyun @chansburgah @pepperonijem @jeonride @kellesvt @butiluvu @sakufilms

[brokendoor16]

Okay. First up HI Y'ALL, I'M BACK AND I'M BRINGING THE BRAINROT!! And secondly I have a Theory (please read this in the same way that Aziraphale says 'a Clue').

RIGHT so I've seen a lot of debate on why Crowley was punished so severely for asking question, when other angels have done MUCH worse things without Falling. There's a ton of theories that I've seen, like the staffing shortage in Heaven, the rules relaxing after the great war, or God just not caring as much anymore. And tbh I think they're all fab and honestly very likely BUT I would like to offer an idea:

Personally, I think the criteria for Falling is less about what you DO and more about what you THINK- or, more accurately, believe.

We can see pretty clearly that Crowley, even as the starmaker, doesn't have the faith in God that other angels have. He actively questions her decisions, both to Aziraphale and presumably to her, but I don't actually think that's the worst part.

I reckon that the real problem comes about when he says 'if I was in charge...' because, in doing that, he's comparing God to himself. And whilst he and the other angels are on a higher spiritual level than us humans (😭😭) he is not EVER expected to compare himself to Her. And as we already know, Crowley is one of the most nuanced, and therefore HUMAN characters, and was presumably the same way as an angel.

So what he's actually done here, deliberately or otherwise, is make God seem less Divine and more-well, HUMAN. He's made Her sound human, and therefore FAILABLE, and capable of mistakes.

So overall, my theory is that to Fall, you have to not just doubt or question God, but view her as failable. Which, as is pretty fucking obvious from the way he prays and the level of faith he has in Her, Aziraphale has never done.

So. Erm, yeah. That's my Theory- hope you enjoyed my mini-rant and maybe have something to add ❤️❤️

[james-stark-the-writer]

alright, let's keep moving with that DCEU watch bc i have the time today. time for David F. Sandberg's Shazam! Fury of the Gods (2023). here's to hoping this has retained the spirit and heart of the original and improved the superhero aspects because they were the worst part of Shazam! (2019).

i've been trying to get a more accurate video player setup working for like 2 hours, i was using basically stock MPC-BE for the most part but some of the images looked a little soft to me even compared to something basic like a VLC (which i only really keep for its subtitle downloading feature bc it's the easiest to use, and tbh it could've been using sharpening filters, i didn't really check) and Potplayer (which is the only way i can get two subtitles to display simultaneously for media with multiple subs like fansubs or different translations or something, and also it's got like pretty good video output). i tried to look into MPV and the amount of work and scripts everyone was recommending kind of broke me, so i'm just using like the base form of mpv.net bc it's got a GUI, with like GPU decoding turned on which was the one common thing everyone recommended from my research.

hopefully this is better image quality then like standard VLC stuff and my previous MPC-BE setup though i obviously haven't sat through entire movies to compare frame by frame, so beware that if i say anything about the visuals it might not be the most accurate. MPV is supposed to be the most accurate and flexible option around but i don't know how much futzing around people do with it and there's a lot of like upscaling and downscaling scripts for no fucking reason, which is kind of antithetical to the entire point of accuracy to me, but it's fine. i'm just sticking to the base options and hoping it's good and better than what i had. the image does look just a tad sharper to me than in VLC and MPC so i don't know if they have sharpening filters on or something, but this is like the most base form with nothing changed (except the subtitle font) so i cannot imagine they are messing with the video signal with too much filtering. i tried to look into madVR and MPC-HC and got them installed and almost lost my mind trying to get it set up bc there's no real guides anywhere so don't fucking tell me to go look up madVR bc i will kill you. maybe some other day when i have 15 hours to dedicate to going through forums to try to find something that works for me and get enough knowledge to understand what the fuck everybody's talking about, maybe i'll check it out. i cannot believe there's not like some fucking guide for some anime noob because you know those anime people are on the cutting edge of video tech and playback for accuracy, that there's not some fucking guide for people that don't know what they're doing. i mean it's not that i don't know what i'm doing, it's that there's so much fucking shit to sort through that it would be nice if somebody narrowed it down for me. there's nothing even on YouTube or like some shitty github page or an old reddit comment or something, trust me i've like checked fucking everywhere i could think of but if i missed something, please feel free to link it somewhere in the comments or something, i don't know.

anyway, that is entirely an aside, that's just a forewarning that if i do say something about the visuals and you think it's not accurate to what the movie looks like or is not properly representative of the movie, feel free to take it with a grain of salt. i'm trying out something new.

[catboybiologist]

Weird ramble and asking for advice here.

When talking about biology, I sometimes run into a problem where I don't even realize that the level I'm talking about is beyond what most people think about. That isn't supposed to be a brag, its literally this often-memed xkcd:

I have a point/vent here.

I'm kinda prepping to come out to my parents in probably about a week and a half. I'm terrified, tbh. I'm kinda realizing that this is me with gender too.

What I'm trying to say is that I'm going to be coming out to two people who are on the borderline of boomer and gen X who have never extensively interacted with a trans person in their life. I wrote a document to come out to them, and I'm trying to emphasize that their acceptance shouldn't be contingent on understanding. But I also know that they'll want to understand, even in an accepting, "get to know me" kind of way.

Thing is, I'm a decade or more into self exploration and realization, theory and rabbit holes about gender, synthesis of biology concepts with the way I understand gender, and they, well... they're not.

So what I'm doing now is going back to a lot of video essays, online resources, and the like, and trying to think about what would both accurately describes my experiences, but is also at a level where they won't just understand- but they won't write it off as being "overcomplicated" or "wishywashy". And that's.... hard. Because the video I want to show them is this:

(btw, I love Lily Alexandre to death, please check her out)

I don't think this'll go over their heads, but I do think they just won't pay attention because of how.... "not set in stone" it is? Thing is, this video, especially the early parts, are pretty much exactly what I want to get them to understand. If you saw my vents earlier, both of them (but my dad is louder about it) have said that people transition to "escape" something, or as a result of some kind of mental health crisis, and usually have regrets.

But I don't know how to get that through to them.

Idk. The thing I'm trying to emphasize is that I'm a biologist, and an adult, with a light sprinkling of "you have 0 financial control over me", but I'm worried about them worrying. About them making an enormous deal in their heads about something that they think is a cry for help, or a sign of something else.

Idk. I guess I'm asking for advice. Which is- what are the best "intro to trans" videos or resources for parents of adults? Most of the things I can find are explicitly aimed at parents with children much, much younger than me, and talk about things like support in schools and such. I don't even need my parents to support me, I just need them to not work actively to hurt me or themselves.

[positivelybeastly]

Hey again, since you've once again brought up the idea of Hank and fatherhood, thought I'd try again to bring up his romantic history ( first comes love then comes marriage, Yada Yada and all that)

For a guy so down on himself and his appearance his got a pretty good dating history, and that's not even counting the people he's been teased with that the writers haven't pulled the trigger with yet

* cough*wonderman* cough*

How do you think Hanks romantic history in comics reflects on him as a romantic partner, both good and bad?

It's not my fault Hank's got such dad energy that people want to talk about how good of a father he'd make all the time. ;)

So, I think that Hank's romantic history is. Interesting. Because there's the surface level perception of Hank, and then there's the actuality of Hank as a romantic partner.

The surface level is largely dictated by the only non-comics source that ever bothered to give him a romance (no, I emphatically do not count the Mystique bullshit from the movies), which was the 90s animated series and the continuation of that theme in '97 this year.

Yep, it's time to talk about Carly Crocker!

Now, Carly is a completely original creation for the 90s show, and she doesn't quite fit any of the archetypes of Hank's other notable comics paramours, so I'd hazard a guess that they just kinda freestyled it here because, well, Hank's other romantic partners up to this point (Vera Cantor and Trish Tilby) wouldn't have fit the interracial romance/literal Beauty and the Beast angle that this episode is going for.

Carly's cute! I like her dynamic with Hank. They're very soft and tender with one another - she's not what I'd call frightfully complex, but she's a good woman with a nice dynamic that tugs at the heart strings a little, and especially given that the original 90s cartoon was aimed at kids, I feel like this is the right level of romantic interest to give a similarly relatively un-complex version of Beast.

Neither of them have any real negative qualities because if they did, well, it would detract from the tragedy of their denied romance and the unfairness of it all. It's very clear that the makers of the show want you to come away from this thinking that it's complete bullshit that Hank and Carly can't be together because other people are so small minded, and that would be muddied if Carly was, idk, kinda rude, or if we more faithfully transcribed some of Hank's neuroses to screen. So instead, it's very idealised.

This is where a lot of people get their idea of what Beast is like. He is a perfect saint who literally cures the blind on his time off from being a superhero, and his paramour is an angelic blind woman who is completely free from prejudice or rough edges. I think it's fine for what the show is going for, but it's not quite accurate to what Hank and his romantic history is like - to the point where I've seen some people (usually Redditors) say, UGHHHH, Beast was never the saint you think he was in the 90s cartoon, he's ALWAYS been morally grey, you fools! The fun blue uncle never existed in the comics!

And it's like, my guy. Yeah, the 90s show embellished a little bit, but this is not a million miles away from who Hank is. He's simplified, but Hank was absolutely a fun blue uncle jokester with a heart of gold for most of his existence. Maybe it wasn't exactly who he was in the comics, but neither is he what certain later writers think he is.

But. I digress.

We do, of course, have the '97 romance to consider, but we'll get to that, because that's a lot to unpack . . .

Comics!

Vera Cantor!

Ugh.

So, like . . . teenage Hank is just obnoxious. I don't enjoy him, tbh. He occasionally has good lines, but I'm basically just sitting around flicking his annoying head like

But in this instance, the 'do something' is turn blue. He's so much less obnoxious and annoying when he's blue . . .

Even filtering out the 60s misogyny, which isn't a particularly interesting flaw to try and give Hank, he's just not a great romantic partner because he's too stuffy and bookish. He's inattentive to Vera's needs and it really does read like he's only here because, well, it's something to do and Bobby needs a wingman. Vera states that she likes Hank because he's refined, which I suppose is true enough, but that's not enough to build anything more than a flirtation out of, tbh.

He's just. Not ready yet, for a fulfilling romance. The stuffiness and the blowhard vocabulary are all a smokescreen for a lot of insecurity, and that's just not someone who's ready to have a relationship.

Then again, when has that ever stopped a teenager?

They survive for longer than they should have done, honestly, given that Hank and Bobby are literally ALWAYS being called away to do X-Men things, which naturally puts a damper on dates, and they're on decent enough terms when she shows up again in Amazing Adventures, needing his help in dealing with Mimic's whole deal in Incredible Hulk.

It's a comic book romance (derogatory). It is what it is. Not really all that complex, not a lot to write home about.

Where it gets interesting is when J.M. DeMatteis enters the picture.

There's something very . . . performative, about Hank's romance with Vera, under DeMatteis. And I don't say that analytically, I mean that completely, utterly literally.

Silence. Uncertainty.

Guys, if I have to tell you that this is a bad foundation for a relationship, then I'm worried for you and your significant others. You can't be with someone because they're safe. That's part of a good reason to be with someone, but if you look at someone, and the best you can think of when you look at them is, you remind me of when my personal life was a little less scary because it was being dictated by a stern Professor Xavier, that's. Probably a sign???

It's also not great that Vera hasn't discovered feminist literature yet, so she keeps falling for being lovebombed because Hank is a bad boyfriend.

And this scene is just a big fuckin' WOOF.

Kid? Is that . . . really how you want to talk to your girlfriend, Hank?

Like . . . in the end, this is not the worst relationship in the world. Hank, when he's around, is charming. He's a good man. He writes good poetry, he'll take you dancing, he's handsome, he's great in bed, and he's a goddamn superhero. He is a fundamentally good man.

But.

He is inconsistent. He is prone to making decisions without consulting you. He is prone to showboating and revelling in attention from his fans because he has self-esteem issues. And, in the end? He's just not that into you, Vera. The base problem is still kind of the same - he's immature. He hasn't grown up yet. He's working on it! He's showing some self-awareness! But it's gonna be a bit before he's really good for anything beyond a fling.

Thankfully, Vera grew up and out of it quickly. Good for her!

The fact that they're still friendly means Hank didn't completely fuck this one up. I think both of them realise they had a lot of growing up to do, and I think that's the kind of sin you forgive people for a lot more when they're actually working on it, which Hank did.

Now, let's compare and contrast . . . with Jennifer Nyles.

I fucking love Jen.

Introduced in 1991's Marvel Presents as a flashback character who was Hank's first proper girlfriend (there's a character called Mindy that appears to have been a less serious relationship before Jen), Jennifer is a clever clogs like Hank, and even more feisty.

Hank remarks multiple times that if it hadn't been for his choice to join the X-Men, he likely would have stayed with Jen for the rest of his life, and I can see it. In a world where Hank didn't go with the X-Men, he lives a quiet, happy life with Jen in Illinois. Maybe he wins a Nobel Prize for biophysics. They have kids. They're good.

But, instead, Xavier wipes her mind of Hank's existence, and it shifts her entire world's axis - she commits her genius to the task of working out what the gap in his mind is, and becomes an expert in the field of techno-organic cybernetics.

As you do.

They find each other again. They have their moments together. And then, because Hank is a superhero, and they live dangerous lives, and Jen is reckless enough to get involved in dangerous endeavours to try and work out what was stolen from her, she nearly dies.

Nearly.

Hank and Jen are incredibly compatible, to be honest. They're a great match, and it's interesting to compare her to Vera, who is identified as a librarian, an 'intelligent' profession, but whom Hank seems disinterested in, whereas Jen, who is explicitly on Hank's level, enraptures him, and in the end, he's forced to let her go for her safety.

In the end, Hank doesn't want someone who'll just hold his hand, he wants someone who can challenge him intellectually, someone who will hold him to account, who can match his wit, and Vera . . . can't.

Not really.

It's partly a foible of when they met, partly a case of Vera being who she is and Hank who he is, but in the end, it all comes down to how Vera reacted when she received those flowers and poetry. She folded. She was charmed. She fell for Hank's charming exterior. And that's. Kinda. Not interesting to him? I don't even think he realises that's what's going on, but it is what happened. She showed him that she would put up with his shenanigans, and that's not what Hank wants. Not really.

You could almost see it as a game that Hank plays, a challenge to see if you can scratch the surface and get at who he really is, under the surface, if you're dedicated to getting at him. Maybe that's unfair of him to do, but again, I don't think it's something he even realises he's doing. He has walls up for a reason, and if you break through them, then you clearly want him - he can believe that, because you just fought him, to get to him. It all comes back to that insecurity . . .

It's also worth noting here that Hank and Jen have another encounter in X-Men Unlimited vol. 2 #10, in a way that contradicts Marvel Presents. It's hard to reconcile, since she remembers Hank here when she shouldn't, but I like both stories too much to really fight over which one I have as canon, so I kinda just don't think about it too much.

"What would you think of me if I was to tell you how terrified I am of everything right now?"

"You've never been scared of anything in your life. I think we should both be brave and go take a look at what might be hiding in the cemetery."

That touch, that tenderness . . . ouahhghhhh . . . the timelines are screwy, and these are all written years apart from one another, but I do think it's significant that Hank spends entire issues of Amazing Adventures and Incredible Hulk hiding his beastly appearance from Vera under a mask, and yet, he willingly unwraps his bandages for Jen.

I think that tells you all about how willing he is to be his true self around Jen versus Vera. Hank literally says he doesn't know who he is sometimes around Vera, and she tells him, I'll help you find out if you let me. Helpful, but it doesn't fix the problem. Meanwhile, Hank is in the midst of the worst depression and fear of his life, reeling from his worst ever mistake, and Jen tells him that she'll be brave with him, and they'll confront the unknown together. He finds catharsis that way. Vera is supportive. Jennifer is proactive. Hank appreciates both, of course, but only through one can he achieve growth.

But, that's no real surprise, because . . . she's the one who tells him this, too . . .

Jennifer Nyles, you have, like, 9 appearances in all of Marvel Comics, but I would die for you. Genuinely one of the most influential characters in Hank's life, tbh.

. . . SPEAKING OF INFLUENTIAL CHARACTERS.

So . . . in the interests of a fair analysis, Trish is an interesting character. She believes in transparency, the democratisation of information, she is eminently heroic, she is self-sacrificing, she is intelligent, and she is strong.

You can see why Hank would be attracted to her. She can cut through the flip attitude and get at the Hank underneath. If we're going with the theory that Hank is playing keep away with his real feelings so that the only people who get close to him are the people who work to get there and he can believe that they're there for him, then Trish will succeed, because she'll put in the work.

But, the problem is, the Hank she met was human Hank, and even though she claims not to have a problem with the fur - and maybe, at this point, she doesn't! - we know that Hank's mutation becomes a problem for her.

Man, if I had a penny for every time I posted these panels, I wouldn't have to work.

But. In the interests of fairness. I have to point out that the problem here is not that Trish found it hard to get used to Hank's changing face - I've talked about this before, that it's understandable it would become an issue for her, in a romantic relationship, faces and bodies and the tangible aspects of a person are more important than ever - but that she thought this was in any way an acceptable way to do it.

Trish's insecurity made her lash out and 'fix' the problem in a way that saved her career and severed the tie that would drag her down. That is. An understandable reaction. It's hurtful, but in the end, she's prioritising herself, and that's. Understandable. That being said?

She had no fucking right to even try this.

Like. No??? You don't get to do this??? Fuck off??? You exited from his life in a way that saved your career and your reputation, you do not get to try and dip back in because you feel bad - and, I'm going to be incredibly fucking honest, that's if that's even the reason she's doing it. I suspect, maybe maliciously, but maybe not, that she had ulterior motives, because of past behaviour.

Because do you want to know what the worst thing Trish Tilby ever actually did was?

Meet Dennis Hogan. He is a mutant. His power is to look like a lizard. That's it. He also was infected by the Legacy Virus, making him incapable of controlling those transformations. He is a perfectly harmless, innocent young man, who is trying to find medical help for a disease that he had no way of avoiding contracting.

Trish Tilby is directly responsible for his death in a hate crime.

And Trish's response, when Hank brings this up?

Just throw the whole fucking woman out. She's septic garbage.

How does this reflect on Hank? It reflects badly that he ever took her back after this. After she sold out his fucking race, got an innocent man killed, deflected blame, physically assaulted her partner, and acted as if she, somehow, were the wronged party in this.

"If you were doing your job as well as I'm doing mine, there'd be one less dead mutant to mourn!"

Hank is currently working on a cure for the Legacy Virus, Patricia. Thank you for implying that he's not doing enough, while you sit around, hocking news stories that will tangibly improve your position at your job, that directly lead to hate crimes, because you have decided that people just NEED TO KNOW things that will make them act irresponsibly, hatefully, and cruelly.

Yes, there is such a thing as freedom of the press. There is such a thing as the democratisation of information.

And then there's this asshole, who was storming into Angel's hospital room with a camera, recording him with his ruined wings, chasing a story because it was the right thing to do, and damn the consequences.

Who cares who gets hurt, so long as Patricia Tilby gets her story?

It reflects badly on Hank that he ever went out with her. it reflects badly on Hank that he ever took her back. It reflects badly on everyone involved that they didn't have the heart to tell Hank to just fucking NOT.

This is who she is. It's who she's always been, since her first appearance, and it is stark how awful a woman she is.

The X-Men '97 adaptation of her was kind. Think about that for a moment. Think about the fact that turning this woman into a fucking Prime Sentinel couldn't make her do as much damage as she did with her own free will and bad judgement.

. . . Blech.

So, this is an incomplete history, because I've run out of images? Heh. If you want to hear more about Hank's other relationships, most notably Cecilia Reyes, Abigail Brand, and Simon Williams, feel free to send another ask, and I can link them together. Hope you found this informative and not as rambly as it feels.

Also, if I remember correctly, Cerebrocast is gonna do an episode on Trish Tilby soon? I have no intention of listening/watching to it, but keep all of this stuff in mind and see if it gets mentioned when that episode happens. Because that podcast's hate boner for Hank McCoy means I genuinely think they'll find a way to excuse Trish's poor behaviour just because it's Hank. It honestly wouldn't surprise me.