#they're so revolver cover here

[pennielane]

THE BEATLES in the PAPERBACK WRITER music video, 1966

[peachesofteal]

Through Me (The Flood) - secret baby fic Simon Riley / female reader

Simon is silent.

He should be focused. He should be going through the plan, the optics, over and over in his mind until it's memorized.

He should be Ghost, but he's stuck on Simon.

Simon has a baby, and you. He has a family now. A family that will need him.

And you need him.

You didn't say it outright. You didn't ask for anything, actually. You only asked what he wanted, how involved he wanted to be, what he wanted to do. You told him he was welcome in Orion's life, as much or as little as he wanted, and you promised you could continue on without him, if that's what he decided. You talked about the baby's life, custody and trading off and everything else, all while he nodded along, watching the way the sun refracted in your eyes, how it shimmered across your skin.

You don't understand yet, but you will. You and the baby, you're it now. You're the only things that matter.

You're his.

"Alright, LT?" Johnny shouts over the roar of the plane, and Simon can only nod, still lost in the morning stretched to early afternoon, the memories he's so desperately trying to scar into his brain. They're fleeting, and short, and he holds onto the hope that he'll get more of them, more moments, more time.

A buzzer sounds. A light turns green. He takes a deep breath, rolls his shoulders-

and stands as Ghost.

He waits patiently at your door.

His bones ache, still decompressing from the last two weeks, mind and body trying to slowly slink out of fight or flight into something else, something new and unsteady.

Into being... this, whatever it is. A stranger to his child and future wife.

He triple checks his phone on the way to your flat, ensuring he's following the plan, the meeting time, the invite to a T.

Come for a late breakfast, maybe we can take a walk? You're more than welcome to come see him, anytime, and we can chat.

Anxiety crawls up his throat and back down, settling in his stomach like hot stones, tipping him over from one side to the next, nearly making him unsteady on his feet. He trips over his doubt, his fear, his worry again and again, brows creased together as he tries to push it all from his mind.

How is he supposed to leave you two here, again? How will he make sure you're safe? He'll need to move you to a secure home, somewhere in the country, most likely. A small town, where-

"Simon, hey." The door swings open and there you are, Orion on your hip, a soft hand supporting the juncture of his head and neck. He's grown in the two short weeks Simon has been away, the agonizing reminder that he's missed so much.

"G'morning." He rasps, and you smile shyly.

"It's good to see you."

"You too." 'You too' doesn't even begin to cover it, he thinks wryly. Doesn't even begin to encapsulate the breadth of emotion he's holding now, the obsessive circle of thoughts that revolve around you and the baby, his family.

Just standing in front of you, seeing the two of you whole, soothes an ache in his heart, a bleeding hole from a wound that only you could heal.

It's too much, and not enough.

C'mon in. I'll make some tea."

[topazadine]

Writing Post Masterlist

All my posts about writing - plus some I absolutely loved by other writers.

Masterlists by Other People (all good)

"Writing Tips Masterpost" by @deception-united - Deception-United has an incredibly wealth of resources available, far more comprehensive and detailed than mine. Go check it out!

"WQA Post Master Lists" by @writingquestionsanswered - Another fantastic and wonderfully comprehensive resource that covers damn near everything you need to know about writing. Genuinely one of the best free resources on writing that you could find on the internet.

General Advice for a Happy Writing Life

"The Myth of the Martyr Artist" - An incredibly important post, perhaps my most important one ever, that discusses why mental illness is a burden, not a benefit. I have no idea why this even needs to be said, but it does, apparently.

"Advice to Beginner Writers: The Good, the Bad, and the Unpleasant" - How long it takes to become a good writer, what to focus on when learning, and why fanfic is such a useful tool.

"Mindset Shifts: Fanfiction -> Original Fiction" - What fanfic writers should know about deciding to take on original characters and stories.

"Defeating Protracted Writer's Block" - What to do when you find it impossible to write for days, weeks, or months at a time.

"Five Common Anxieties of Newbie Writers, Demystified" - Explorations of five mindsets that can set younger writers back as they learn their craft, including overcompetitiveness, overdescribing, and fearing they're "too old."

"Good Motivations for Continuing to Write" - Why it is crucial to have a passion for writing beyond fame and fortune.

"Extremely controversial writing opinions that will make you mad (but I'm going to say them anyway)" - Things you really don't want to hear, but need to be said. A bit of tough love, including the insignificance of ideas, the cold hard truth about how non-writers react to your writing, and the essentiality of having a well-rounded life.

"Why Mindfulness Is a Key Practice for Writers" - On the need to slow down and let our brain rest - plus some options that are categorically not sitting there in dead silence (boring).

"Writing When Happy" - Wherein I hijack someone's question to discuss the Myth of the Martyr Artist, why we might self-limit because of it, and how to do the impossible: write when we're happy.

"The Neurodivergent Writer’s Guide to Fun and Productivity" by @bookishdiplodocus - Excellent advice on how enjoying the process and reminding yourself that writing is supposed to be fun can help you stay motivated and productive, even when your brain is not cooperating.

"The Glorification of Self-Deprecation in Art/Writing Spaces" by @nicolkoutoulakiauthor - I've discussed before how crucial it is to have a healthy self-esteem when writing, but Nicol does it even better here. Nicol also includes some excellent reframing tactics so you can stay motivated.

Generalish Writing Advice (multifactorial)

"'How Do I Start Writing?'" (Or; A Psychoanalysis of Newbie Writer Fears) - Inspired by the dozens of Reddit posts that ask this exact same thing, often with useless responses. So why do people ask this? I offer my theory.

"How to improve your writing style : a 5-steps guide" by @writer-logbook - Especially great information on why reading widely is so helpful for your craft!

"Some Writing Advice" by @whispers-whump - Especially great discussion of why you shouldn't write what you mean.

"Practical Writing Advice Part 2" by @so-many-ocs - Does what it says on the tin. Simple, easy-to-follow advice that can break you out of writer's block.

"25 Prose Tips for Writers" by @thewriteadviceforwriters - I absolutely love the emphasis on sound and harmony here. As someone whose entire book series revolves around the magic of poetry, of course I think this is incredibly important advice!

"Pacing and Show Don't Tell" by @mylordshesacactus - Two for one deal! First, learn more about why pacing is important; then, look at some examples of the classic advice "show, don't tell." The post does a great job on breaking down what show don't tell actually means and what is not a violation of this guideline so that newer writers aren't confused.

Writing tools

"How to Build a Sustainable Writing Habit Through SCIENCE (Fuck Off, NaNoWriMo)" - Why NaNoWriMo doesn't actually motivate young writers and how to do better through a spreadsheet (yes, really, a spreadsheet). It also explains the importance of intrinsic motivation!

"'I've Outlined Too Much and Now I Can't Write!' (Or: the Double Outline Method for Overanxious Plotters)" - Some of us tend to go absolutely ham on our outlines, to the point where they're practically their own books. But then we also tend to not actually do the writing attached to said outline. Does this mean outlining is useless? Of course not. My method lets you have your outline and eat it too. (.... Wait.)

Worldbuilding

"Stop Making Everything So Damn Complicated!" - Why fantasy (and scifi) does not need to be dizzyingly intricate to be enjoyable.

"Grounded vs. Airy Fantasy" by @aethersea - Excellent breakdown of different levels of groundedness in fantasy and why it's important to understand your own approach.

"Fantasy Guide to Building a Culture" by @inky-duchess - Thorough and methodical analysis of what can create a compelling fantasy culture, including those things that many fail to think about when writing.

"Writing tip - Research" by @pygmi-cygni - Fantastic assessment of the importance of research, including for fantasy stories. As Pygmi-Cygni said, a lot of people claim that they don't need to do any research for fantasy novels, which isn't true! Any parallels to IRL need to be realistic, or you will lose credibility.

Plotting

"How to Find a Plot When All You Have is Characters and Setting" by @rheas-chaos-motivation - This is a common problem for many writers, when you have cool characters or an intriguing setting. This short post can help you kickstart your ideas for how to create an intriguing plot that has built-in tension.

Description

"Remembering Perspective When Writing Descriptions" - Key factors to think about when describing other characters or settings from your POV.

"Description, Momentum, and Tension; Or, How Not to Bore a Reader" - Why, when, and where to put description so that people don't skip over it. Hopefully.

"Writing Notes: Seasons" - Each season has both benefits and downsides. In this post, we look at the negatives and positive aspects of each so you can decide how a particular season may strengthen your themes - plus some descriptions to help inspire you.

"How to Write Smut?" by @unfriendlywriter - Wonderful examples of how to write heartstopping smut.

"How to pull off descriptions" by @fictionstudent - Fictionstudent has a ton of great posts, both about film analysis and about the art of writing. I especially liked this one because it discusses how important perspective is for descriptions and the importance of filling in the details as a character would rather than just throwing it all at the reader at one time.

"How to avoid White Room Syndrome" by @writerthreads - Fantastic and focused advice on how to ensure you're offering readers just enough setting to help them envision the world.

Characterization

"Writing Relatable Characters; Or, Using Human Failures to Your Advantage" - Explaining how you can use character flaws and human needs to create a relatable character. Also explains the basic development of a plot, which is about equilibrium.

"How NOT to Write a Character" - Wherein I give you some examples of annoying characters we want to punt off a cliff so you can watch yourself.

"Writing Strong Female Characters" - Why you should give your female characters a secret goal, as well as how to avoid common 'strong female' stereotypes.

"Writing Compelling Trauma in Fiction: Dos and Don'ts" - How to avoid melodrama and create intriguing emotional wounds for characters.

"Quality Assurance Checks for Character Development" - Thought exercises that can help you differentiate characters, prune down unnecessary characters, develop true chemistry between LI and MC, and avoid having too many POVs.

"Developing Character Agency (Or; Cutting the Plot Strings)" - A discussion of character agency and how to ensure your characters are not bound by the narrative.

"Writing Notes: Thought Distortions" by @literaryvein-reblogs - Some psychological concepts you can use in your writing to add depth to characters.

"Questions about your character’s perspective on love and relationships" by @luna-azzurra - Excellent questions that can help you delve into your character's attachment style, what baggage they may bring to a current relationship, and how to create conflict through mentality.

"How to Write a Confession of Love," also by luna-azzurra - Perfect discussion of how to create tension, the utility of setting, not making it perfect, and including the other character's response.

Revisions

"Common Writing Issues that Reduce Readability" - Examples of fixes for four common issues: double describing, long sentences, overexplaining, and head hopping.

"Differential Diagnosis When Your Writing Is Getting Worse" by @ariaste - Fantastic explanation by a professional writer about why you might feel like your writing is getting worse and what to do about it.

"How to Make Your Writing Less Stiff Part 3" by @physalian - Physalian's whole blog has some excellent advice, so definitely give it a look!

"How to Improve Your Writing" - Also by literaryvein-reblogs, this offers some excellent exercises to help with sentence-level issues, such as modifiers, parallelism, and details.

Publishing

"How to promote your book online : a discussion about social media (and few tips)" by writer-logbook - Great tips about how to get more interest in your book. I especially enjoyed the emphasis on patience and consistency. Writer-logbook has some excellent info overall about the nitty-gritty of writing, so I definitely recommend poring through their blog in general. (That's why they're included here twice!)

Specific Research Advice

"Assassination Methods Through the Decades: A Writer’s Handbook" by @hayatheauthor - A thorough review of different assassination methods, including a section discussing common assassination methods by region!

"How to Write Someone in a Wheelchair" - A group effort! This is a reblog chain discussing body language in manual wheelchairs, the mechanics of power wheelchairs, wheelchair propulsion methods, and a reminder that just because someone is in a wheelchair doesn't mean they can't walk short distances.

"Writing Research Notes: Caves" - Oh caves how I love them. Caves. Let me tell you about them if you want to write about caves. Blessed.

"Writing Research Notes: Horses" - A beginner's guide to horse mindsets, whether horses like working, approaching horses, how to ride, and tips on training.

"Writing Research Notes: Bipolar Disorder" - Written by me, a writer with bipolar disorder! This shares basic facts about bipolar, offers a list of symptoms you can use, and cautions you against spreading misinformation through poor characterization or myths.

"Stop Doing This in Injury Fics!" by @pygmi-says-hi - Discusses some common errors when writing whump/angst. The fever part was especially helpful for me!

"Writing US Military Characters" by @lookbluesoup - An explanation of the habits and mentality of US military characters. Many of these were quite helpful for my fantasy military characters, so you can get a lot of mileage out of these for soldiers in other militaries too!

Little Funsies

"What Painting Style Is Your Writing?" - A short exploration of different writing styles to help you better understand your own approach.

I'll be adding onto this as I continue to scroll through my old likes and, of course, as I find more resources.

[ckret2]

Any mention of shape segregation

Nope.

Here's what we know about how his dimension handled shapes and how it compares to canon Flatland:

Bill mentions rhombuses and trapezoids when talking about his home and that they're wasting his oxygen. In Flatland, rhombuses & trapezoids would never be allowed to live—only squares are regular quadrilaterals, and any deviation from regularity so great it can't be fixed in childhood (about 1º) is grounds for execution or imprisonment. So the mere existence of rhombuses & trapezoids in great enough numbers that Bill can comment on them means his dimension was MUCH more tolerant of irregularity than Flatland.

A triangle suggesting quadrilaterals are wasting his air could mean that quadrilaterals don't outrank triangles in his dimension—or, that could just be Bill's ego talking. On the other hand, a regular(ish?) triangle suggesting irregular quadrilaterals are beneath him could be prejudice against irregularity... or, again, could just be Bill's ego talking.

When Bill claims to be geometrically perfect, he tells the reader to stop staring at his "hypotenuse." Only right triangles (triangles with a 90º angle) have a "hypotenuse," while equilateral triangles are 60º/60º/60º An irregular that's 30º off of regularity is unheard of in Flatland, and would be MILES beyond grounds for execution, never mind wasting time surgically correcting it. IF Bill really had a hypotenuse, the mere fact that he's alive means his dimension is incredibly different from Flatland. (Or: it could mean that Alex is playing fast & loose with what he remembers from geometry class and he just used "hypotenuse" to mean "the longest side.")

When he claims to be geometrically perfect, he doesn't say that all his angles/sides are the same. Only that they add up to 180º, which is true of every triangle.

Bill seems to be very proud of being a triangle, at odds with how low-ranked they are in Flatland; again, this could mean triangles WEREN'T low ranked in his world, or it could just be Bill's ego.

His fake magazine cover says "FEELING OBTUSE? Get acute for the summer!" This could be only a joke about fad diets in magazines: but IF we decide to take it seriously, obtuse angles are anything over 90º, so that suggests ideal triangles have all acute angles, but that having an obtuse angle is something that can be address through a fad diet rather than through infant surgery or execution. (This would only apply to triangles: a regular quadrilateral would have all right angles, not obtuse or acute; and any higher regular shapes are supposed to have all obtuse angles.)

One of the hidden codes in the book says "IRREGULAR," that's it, no further context. It stands to reason, though, that this means the concept of irregularity exists in Bill's dimension, and it's a sore point. (But we have no context yet for what "irregular" means in the Gravity Falls setting; maybe it has nothing to do with a shape's sides/angles, and just refers to other disorders or mutations like Bill's ability to see the third dimension.)

Another hidden code says "HIS DIMENSION NOW DECEASED SCALENE AND EUCLID REST IN PEACE". We don't know who/what "scalene" and "euclid" are yet. Another couple codes suggest "Euclidia" might be the name of his dimension and/or homeworld, so "Scalene and Euclid" might be the names of worlds; another theory is that Scalene and Euclid are his parent's names. At any rate, "scalene" means a triangle with no matching sides/angles; Flatland allows for isosceles triangles with two matching sides, but not scalene. It seems unlikely that a person or planet would be named Scalene unless being scalene was normal and accepted in society.

The codes mention a fair amount of medical trauma in baby Billy's childhood, but it all seems to revolve around his eye, not his shape. If he was a right triangle and became equilateral, either he got surgery too young to remember; got medical interventions he could remember that were not traumatic; or had no medical interventions at all, and maybe in his dimension a growing triangle can naturally develop from a 90º angle into a 60º angle.

tl;dr:

NO mention of segregating shapes

NO mention of a hierarchy based on how many sides you have

extreme irregularity seems to be tolerated and NOT grounds for execution

there's evidence to suggest that, at minimum, ideal triangles have all acute angles; this implies the possibility that regularity was still preferred to irregularity, even if irregularity is tolerable

evidence suggests they believed you could change your angles via personal decisions (i.e. diet) and therefore your shape isn't permanently set or a reflection of your intrinsic morality

medical interventions for irregular angles were either milder compared to Flatland or non-existent

"irregularity" in their society might refer to mutations unrelated to their geometric shapes

And that's everything we know about how shapes are treated in his dimension.

Let me know if I missed any mention of angles or shapes in his dimension.

[missrosiesworld]

Starlight Flutters

Here are some cute headcanons for Billy Kid when he has a crush:

Starlight Hero Persona: Billy adopts a more heroic persona around his crush, often quoting lines from "Starlight Knight" and trying to emulate the show's protagonists.

Billy: "In the name of justice, I vow to protect you! No harm shall come your way while I'm around!"

Crush: "Are you quoting Starlight Knights again?"

Billy: "Maybe, but I mean every word!"

Over-the-Top Gestures: He tends to make grand, dramatic gestures to show his affection, like showing up with a bouquet or performing a flashy stunt to grab their attention.

Billy, arrives with a dramatic flourish, bowing slightly: "For you, a token of my admiration!" hands over a bouquet of holographic flowers.

Crush, laughs, clearly amused and touched: "You didn't have to go all out, but thank you!"

Billy, his voice warm and sincere: "Anything for my favorite person."

Nervous Energy: Despite his confident exterior, Billy gets nervous around his crush. He fidgets with his hands and his voice may rise a notch higher when he's excited or flustered.

Billy, fidgeting with his hands: "So, um, do you... like movies? I mean, of course you do, who doesn't, right?"

Crush, smiling: "Yeah, I do. Got any recommendations?"

Billy: "Oh, totally! I've got a list! Uh, maybe we could watch one together sometime?"

Show-Off Moments: Billy loves to showcase his skills, especially with his custom-made revolvers, "the girls." He might challenge others to friendly duels or display impressive marksmanship to catch his crush's eye.

Billy, pulls off a perfect trick shot: "Not bad, huh? Just a little something I picked up from Starlight Knight."

Crush: "Wow, that's impressive! You're really good."

Billy, trying to act casual: "Oh, it's nothing. Just, you know, a hobby."

Special Attention: He gives special attention to his crush, remembering small details about their likes and dislikes. Whether it's their favorite snack or a specific hobby, Billy tries to incorporate these into his interactions with them.

Billy: "I remember you mentioned liking spicy food, so I brought you this hot sauce. It's got a kick, just like you!"

Crush, surprised: "You remembered? That's so sweet. Thank you, Billy."

Billy: "Of course! Anything to see you smile."

Protective Stance: Billy becomes protective of his crush, always positioning himself in a way that he can keep an eye on them. He wants to ensure they're safe and will step in if he senses any danger.

Billy steps in front of his crush: "Hey, stay close. I’ve got this covered. No one's getting past me."

Crush: "You don't have to do this, Billy."

Billy: "I know, but I want to. It's my job to keep you safe."

Clumsy Sweetness: When Billy gets flustered, he can become adorably clumsy, sometimes tripping over his own feet or dropping things. He laughs it off, hoping his crush finds it endearing rather than awkward.

Billy, stumbles slightly, almost dropping a package: "Whoops! That was... not supposed to happen."

Crush, giggles: "Are you okay?"

Billy, laughing nervously: "Yeah, just distracted by... something, or someone."

Secret Glances: He often steals glances at his crush when he thinks they’re not looking. 

Crush, catches Billy staring: "What is it? Something on my face?"

Billy, his voice faltering slightly with a hint of nervousness: "No, no! Just... admiring the view."

Crush, teasingly: "Smooth."

Confiding in Nicole: Billy confides in Nicole, seeking her advice on how to approach his crush. 

Billy: "Nicole, what do I do? I can't stop thinking about them, but what if I mess it up?"

Nicole, smirking: "Just be yourself, Billy. And maybe tone down the Starlight Knight lines a bit."

Acts of Service: He goes out of his way to do small, helpful things for his crush. Whether it's fixing a malfunctioning gadget or finding something they’ve misplaced, Billy is always eager to lend a hand.

Billy: "Hey, I noticed your bike was making a weird noise, so I tightened the chain and oiled the gears."

Crush: "You did that for me? Wow, thank you so much!"

Billy, rubbing the back of his neck: "It's no big deal, really. I just wanted to help."

[silassinclair]

Hi!

Can I request Maddox with a darling who lives to read, maybe he catches her reading some old romance books in an abandoned house they shack up in or something like that

Btw I live your writing ♥️

As someone who loves to read I am obligated to write for this req 😤🫡 Thanks for the request tho!! Hope you like it :-)

Yandere Wild West Outlaw x Bookworm Reader

CW// Maddox is annoying, Reader being a little perv Masterlist Here!!

The new house Maddox found was lovely. It had decently okay furniture and a vast collection of old books on the shelf. It's small with only two bedrooms and one bathroom but it was charming. But what caught your interest was the big oak wood bookshelf. You couldn't even remember the last time you picked up a book. Being on the run with Maddox made time fly.

"Who would leave all these books behind? They're all in great condition." You mutter to yourself as you take a blue and purple book with gold trim off the shelf. Tracing your fingers down the spine of the hardcover novel you appreciate the craftsmanship. It was clearly expensive, something you could no longer afford. Your Dad bought you many books like these but now you were pretty much broke. You only had Maddox to rely on now.

Speaking of Maddox you had no clue where he was. Which you didn't really care, he always disturbed your peace. Cracking open the book you sit down on the loveseat and start reading. It was a romance book about a huntsman who fell in love with a duchess. The story was beautiful as it was exhilarating.

"Oh wow, you into that kinda stuff?"

You snap the book shut instantly, a mini cloud of dust poofs from the pages. Maddox chuckles huskily behind you, leaning down and resting his chin on the back of the loveseat.

"Oh don't be embarrassed princess, it was getting to the good part. What did it say again? Oh! Ahem-"

Maddox coughs into his hand and smirks. Deepening his voice he quotes the passage in a deep, British-like accent,

"He caresses the duchess' milky thighs, her womb felt of silk wrapped around his ma-"

"OH HUSH!" You whip around and smack the outlaw's head, his hat nearly flying off. But he only laughs at your flustered state.

"You're filthy." You groan and put the book back on the shelf where it was. But Maddox follows behind you and takes the book into his own hands and opens it up. Skimming through the pages he smirks.

"I'm filthy? Sweetheart you're the one readin' this junk." Maddox shuts the book and puts it back. Putting his hand up on the shelf he leans against it while looking down at your shorter self.

"Well it is a romance book." Rolling your eyes you choose a different book. This time you pick a title you're familiar with, Pride and Prejudice.

"Now leave me alone you brute. I'd like to relax for once." With that you walk away and go outside. Finding a nice tree you sit beneath it and read the book. Reading reminded you of home, the home that was ripped from you. In a way it was escapism which is unhealthy but a girl can dream right?

Hours pass and the sun begins to set, casting an orange glow across the cloudy sky. The words on the page become harder to read as the sun sinks lower and the moon rises. You didn't want it to end. You know you could read inside but that damn outlaw was inside. You just wanted to stay out here forever with the natural ambience of wind and birds.

Footsteps approach you and you already know who it is. Looking up you see him. Black denim jeans, a burgundy vest, twin revolvers around his waist, and a dark brown cowboy hat on his head. And of course that bandana covering the bottom half of his face. Anytime you asked him about his face he got ticked off so you avoided the subject. But you couldn't help but be curious.

"You're starin' sweetheart." His husky voice breaks the silence. There’s a hint of a Spanish accent mixed in with his Southern drawl. You can't help but think about what it would be like if you and him met under different circumstances. Would he save you from bandits? Offer to buy you a drink at the saloon?

Would you two have a storybook romance just like in the books you adore?

"Hey."

He's right in front of you now, crouched to your height. His gloved hand pets your hair and you're frozen. He has you in a trance that you make no effort to free yourself from. His dark amber eyes are crinkled in slight concern over your unusual silence.

"What..?" You say softly.

"It's gettin' dark. Unless you wanna be dinner for the coyotes then I suggest comin' back in. I'll cook up some beans so hurry your little bum up."

Well there goes the moment. You groan and get up off the grass, your back cracking as you stretch. Your eyes watch as Maddox walks back into the house. His hips sway as he walks, you never really payed attention to that before. His ass looks pretty round in those pants to-

"Ugh, what is wrong with me.." Groaning, you follow after him.

[murasaki-cha]

Ok I finally read the Jester x Witch manhwa that has grabbed the entire manhwa twitter community by the throat and I LOVE IT!! I want at least 5 seasons of this and 50 side story chapters. Also I read that it's also thriller and mystery and I am SEATED!! GIMME MORE!!!

Ok to explain some stuff

First of all this is not an official manhwa. It's for a competition on Naver and it will only get published if it wins. So far it has only one chapter.

The name is "어느 마녀의 회고록/ A Witch's Memoir"

It's set in the 16th century, and revolves around Lily, a witch who was captured as a young girl, during a witch hunt and is used by the king. She is contemned and feared by everyone in the castle while the (bastard) king keeps her captured to use her power to his advantage, as she is the last witch left alive after the hunt.

The only person who doesn't hate her is the new court jester, who always approaches her to mess with her and compliment her calling her beautiful. Lily has no idea why he does that and even when she tries to ignore him, he still continues with his compliments.

The genre of this webtoon is mystery-thriller-romance and it will have 3 chapter for the duration of the competition. It really intrigued me because, first of all the character designs are to die for LOOK AT THEM! And second of all, right of the bat, it gives the eerie mystery vibe and leave a lot of things unanswered which make you look forward to the next chapter.

First, is Lily actually a witch? From the moment she was captured and when she was presented to the king, she kept denying she was a witch. It was only because she saw the little boy she lived with that she did admit it. Is she actually a witch? Was the little boy a witch and she did it to protect him? There was a moment where magic is shown to be used when they're both playing but you can't tell who is using it.

Is Jester the little boy? I'm pretty sure he is. Lily noted that he is the only person who doesn't fear her, when she is literally molded into and object of fear by the king. Even the webtoon synopsis brings his favor towards her into question. It would make sense if he was the boy. And even in the cover, we see Jester in a portrait, standing in front of a covered up black haired boy. That person does not look like the king to me. (but it would be tragic if it means we will lose his beautiful teal colored hair for some generic black please never change your hair your character design is so unique babygirl)

Anyway if I managed to get you as hooked as I am into this, then use THIS LINK HERE to go to Naver webtoon, follow it and like the episode. So far it's one of the top competitors in the contest.

Edit: Also I'm gonna be completely honest, when I first saw this I had major Heartless flashbacks AND WE ALL KNOW HOW THAT ENDED (happily ever after of course obviously)

[reyadawn]

Foolish Games - Part 2

*image not mine, credit goes to owner*

Summary: Reader is a reporter who has been tracking Noah Sebastian, crime Lord and lead singer of Bad Omens. After getting kidnapped during a shoot out at the Red Door, she gets more than she bargained for and is sucked into the life of crime...and where falling in love can be even more dangerous.

Pairings: Noah Sebastian x OFC

Warnings: 🔞+, blood, violence, smut (kissing, hair pulling, unprotected sex, creampie)

Word Count: 🤷‍♀️😅 (it's a long chapter so buckle up)

DO NOT READ IF YOU ARE UNDER 18

Enjoy! 😉❤️

Part 1 can be found HERE

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Noah slowly pulled his cock from my still overly stimulated pussy, our mixed juices sliding down my ass to soak the sheets below us. I was out of breath, chest heaving as I watched him slide back one of his closet doors and it took me by surprise a little that both of them were covered ceiling to floor with mirrors.

I watched as he yanked a solid black t-shirt and black joggers from hangers and quietly got dressed. I moved to cover my body with the sheet, sitting up to reach for a half empty bottle of water on the nightstand and stopped mid-reach when Noah shoved a revolver in the back waistband of his joggers.

He rounded on me, coming over to kneel in front of me as he placed both hands on the side of my face. Even in the dark, his eyes glittered with worry and determination.

"Stay here, pretty girl. No matter what you hear, stay here. This is one instance where you cannot and will not be glued to my side. I can't protect you if you don't follow my instruction, do you understand me? Do. Not. Move. From. Here", he said, voice hard.

"I can use a gun, Noah. I'm not incapacitated", I argued. Noah's grip on my head tightened slightly before steeling me with a look so irritated I would have laughed under different circumstances.

Another singular knock.

Noah released me to go to the bedroom door before quietly slipping out. I let loose the air from my lungs I didn't realize I was holding and scrambled to put my clothes back on, fishing my cell phone from the inside pocket of my blazer. I dialed my sister's number, ignoring the slew of missed calls and text messages, and it barely even rang before she picked up.

"WHERE IN THE FUCK ARE YOU?! ARE YOU OK?! WE'VE BEEN WORRIED FUCKING SICK! WHAT HAPPENED?!", Aubrey screamed, as I held the phone away, flinching.

"Aubs, calm down before you hyperventilate and have a stroke. Are they ok?", I half-whispered, referring to Bay and Tan.

"Yes, you dumb bitch, they're fine. A man named Jolly got them out of the lounge when bullets started flying and they came here to lay low but Jolly got grazed in the leg. Bay and Tan are trying thier best to patch him up. What the fuck happened, sis?", Aubrey explained, voice laced with worry.

"I went to Red Door to have a drink after work not knowing Bad Omens were there. Jolly manhandled me--", I began when I heard Bay and Tan laughing in the background. I shot the phone a scowl. "Look you damn hyena's".

"Sorry, bestie", Tan said, voice dripping with laughter.

"Wait, Bad Omens? I know you've been trying to interview Noah for months now but what were they doing there?", Aubrey asked.

"Apparently, they own the lounge. Not only that, thier headquarters is located directly beneath it and Noah knew I was a reporter for the Marquis. When the lounge started taking fire, he dragged me outside, shoved me into a limo with a couple other guys and drove to this house in the middle of the fucking woods but it wasn't a long drive so I'm guessing we're right outside of town", I explained, keeping my voice at a whisper as I rummaged around in Noah's closet until I located a 9mm under a stack of neatly folded clothes on a shelf.

"Headquarters as in mafia headquarters? That's just perfect. Singers by day, cartel by night. Jesus fucking Christ, sis", Aubrey growled. "Stay safe. According to Jolly just now, men are inside the house. Stay low and be smart. If I find out you took a bullet, I'm kicking your ass off this planet". I ended the call and walked to the window to peek out of the cracked curtain but not moving it.

There were two mid-sized Sedans in the driveway next to the limo. At most, that's eight men. Eight against three unless Noah or Nick called for backup. Obviously, the odds were absolute shit. Taking a deep breath I quietly made my way out of the bedroom, stepping into the hallway. Everything was dark...and quiet. Until it wasn't. I took one step and all hell broke loose from downstairs.

The sounds of gunfire piercing the air was damn near deafening as flashes of light illuminated the dark house. It gave me the temporary light I needed to crouch my way to the landing at the top of the stairs, coming face to face with who I could only assume was this Marcus guys' henchman. Raising the 9mm, I fired a single shot into the man's chest, blood spraying from the wound. He fell backwards, head over feet down the stairs.

"WHAT THE FUCK?!", Noah shouted from below. Ignoring how pissed I knew he was, I continued down the stairs, staying low and out of sight. Coming to the entrance of the kitchen, I quickly looked around before entering, hiding behind the island. I heard foot steps and I slowly peeked around the island enough to see another man in a suit enter on the other side.

CRACK!

I fired another shot, this one taking up residence in the man's belly, blood immediately dripping and spraying to pool on the floor as he hit the ground, unmoving. A hand suddenly latched onto my arm, hauling me to my feet, dragging me down a hallway before I was shoved into a room, the door slamming behind me.

I had no time to respond to Noah before his hands were in my hair, lips crashing to mine in a battle of teeth and tongues. I could smell the metallic scent of blood on him, praying to God he wasn't hurt.

There were no words spoken as Noah grabbed my leggings, yanking them down my legs and over my feet. He tapped my thigh once and I jumped, locking my legs and thighs around his waist. Reaching between us, he swipped the head of his cock through my soaked folds before shoving himself inside me to the hilt in one fluid motion. I cried out at the feeling of being stretched and full, my head hitting the wall, as Noah's lips rained open mouthed kisses down my neck.

"You fucking disobeyed me, pretty girl. Next chance I get, I'm tanning your goddamn hide", Noah snarled, crashing his lips to mine again. I tightened my thighs around his narrow waist, my arms wrapping around his muscular shoulders as he relentlessly pistoned his cock in and out of my dripping pussy. My orgasm was just within reach as Noah snaked a hand between us, rubbing circles over my swollen clit and the dam burst. Throwing my head back, I screamed as my walls suddenly clamped down on Noah's cock, coating him in my release as it dripped down his balls. Noah grunted into my neck as he stilled himself deep within my body to empty rope after thick rope of hot come.

Coming down from my high, I disentagled myself from his hold to slip my leggings back on over my legs. Noah straightened his own clothes before raking a hand through his hair and giving me a pointed look while reaching to his ear.

"Status report, Nicholas. What do we got?", Noah snapped, reaching a hand out to me which I gladly took and letting him pull me to his chest. He, too, was catching his breath.

"We got'em all, boss. Five in total but it's fucking messy. We need Bryan and Davis on clean up. It's going to take several days, maybe a week or two at most to make sure this house is spotless. You're talking black lights, forensic dust, anything and everything brought in to help cover our tracks. Not to mention the show starts in a few hours", Nicholas replied, voice coming through Noah's earpiece that he held in his palm.

I sighed, looking up at Noah who simply responded by kissing my temple.

"Nice work, Nicholas. See that it's done. Call Jolly, make sure he's ok", Noah replied.

"You got it, boss", Nicholas replied. Noah turned to me then before leaning down, giving me a slow kiss.

"Let's go, pretty girl".

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

@concreteemo @concreteangel92 @bluestdai @collidewiththesavannah @artificialstardust @amagentarose8 @amourtoken @alloraiona @bloodylullaby @darling-millicent-aubrey @doomhands-jr @dsireland86 @exitwoundsx @fadingintothegrey @iamamatus @iluvmewwwww75 @kaliforniahigh @lma1986 @lilhobgobbler @lolitasangel @lovexsleepyhead @like-a-omen @livingdeceasedgirl @philomenie @sorrowsofsilence @sacredthefran @thatchickwiththecamera @tikosblogg @thisbicc @yarasdead ❤️❤️

[inkdemonapologist]

My BatDR Take That Used To Be Hot But I Left It Out On The Windowsill To Cool So You Should Be Able to Eat It Now Without Burning Your Tongue

its not actually that hot, is what im saying

Anyway my BatDR hot take is that BatDR's story is not fundamentally worse than BatIM with one exception; an exception that, for BatIM, covers a multitude of sins:

BatIM has a theme.

I can't presume the intentions of the creators, but if I had to write an essay on the themes in BatIM, it wouldn't be hard to pick one out: the cost of obsession, or even just, the ruin Joey brought on the studio. In the very first chapter, Henry asks "Joey, what were you doing?" and every single thing in the rest of the game revolves around that central question: what WAS Joey doing? Each audiolog is a snippet of the studio's path to this messed up state; each character you meet is someone ruined by Joey. The major antagonists echo Joey's flaws -- obsession with Bendy as more than a cartoon, obsession with perfection, obsession with fame and greatness and legacy -- but even without that, they're also each a picture of how the lives of people caught in the path of Joey's dream were ruined by it. Bertrum, for example, doesn't match the concept of rubberhose cartoons, but as yet another person screwed over by Joey, he fits the central question of the story, so he feels like he belongs here. Ultimately, in a narrative sense, the Ink Demon isn't the story's monster -- Joey is; the Ink Demon is just the consequence of his reckless ambition.

But what's the theme or central question of BatDR?

You can... try to pick out a theme. There's some promising options, because it feels like the story WANTED a theme, stating its emotional intentions more overtly -- "there's always a choice" to leave the darkness and chose hope; family and the struggle of living in a heavy legacy's shadow; or even just good old mewtwo-brand The Circumstance's Of One's Birth Are Irrelevant, It Is What You Do With The Gift Of Life That Determines Who You Are.

I think, even WITH the clumsy execution of Joey's "arc" and Audrey's lack of real choices, any of those could work about as well as BatIM. But unlike BatIM, the majority of the game doesn't tie in. Joey's tour can be considered relevant -- a picture of the family legacy and the "darkness" that Audrey doesn't yet know she's inheriting -- but like, the audiologs and hints and environment of BatDR are mostly teasing the question of What Is Gent Up To, and the takeover of Gent is detached from Audrey's choices, her family, her legacy, and Gent never really becomes a relevant threat to those things in this game. The Cult of Amok and the Ghost Train have nothing to do with any of these ideas. It might've been neat if Audrey had ever considered, "Did my father really drive all these people insane?", a hint of actually having to wonder about the darkness in her past. Even Wilson only barely brushes against these concepts; he doesn't like Joey and he also is trying to escape his family's heavy legacy, but it doesn't really reflect on his actions and we don't find that last part out until he's about to be dead.

There's also the question Wilson poses of "real" people versus ink creations, and what counts as valid "life." It would be an interesting theme with a lot to build off of in this setting, it ties into Wilson more as Wilson seems to represent the opinion that Inky Things Aren't Really Alive, which could've tied to Audrey (as an ink-person who has yet to accept that part of herself) and maybe given Wilson a reason to think it's fine to sacrifice her, it could've even tied to Gent (who don't even seem to value human life) -- but after Wilson asks the question, it doesn't tie into the direction things go. He smooshes a little Bendy, we see hints of his disregard for Betty, and then everyone continues with their plan to destroy the Ink Demon without any further moral quandaries about inky life.

The thing is, when you compare an element like, say, audiologs, there's a lot of differences you can point to -- but I don't actually think Lacie Benton's audiolog is notably better, taken on its own, than Grace Conway's or Kitty Thompson's, and yet tons of people were intrigued enough to flesh out Lacie. None of them are big plot points or compelling characters on their own; Lacie and Grace both give us a little note on what it's like working in the Studio, and Kitty shares a little bit on how Gent's expansion is affecting people. But when Lacie talks about Bertrum trying to make a creepy animatronic, that ties back into Joey's ill-fated schemes that are the point of the whole story. The question we're asking through the whole game is "what happened here?" so the fandom is interested in who Lacie is and what her life was like and extrapolates a whole person out of a couple sentences. But that's not the question in BatDR -- what has Wilson done to the Cycle and the Demon? Why? Who is Audrey really, and why is she here? Telling us new things about the Studio's fate seems strangely irrelevant to those questions, just an attempt to create a Mystery To Speculate On like the previous game did... but what question you're asking and how it fits into your story's main theme, like, matters. I absolutely believe that one clock animator guy would've been in EVERYONE'S crew if he'd been introduced in BatIM, but the context makes a difference; fleshing him out feels less relevant here.

The explanations of how and why Wilson did everything he did are baffling and handwavey, but in and of itself that's not a worse problem than anything else in the franchise -- I STILL don't understand why the Ink Machine needs pipes in the walls or even how it works, there's no good reason for Sammy to believe the Ink Demon will "set him free," most of Alice's motives don't make sense, etc etc etc. But the thing is that in BatDR, the wibbly bit is the closest thing to a central question we have! Wilson, what were you doing? The theme doesn't really explore or connect to that question, so the explanations that are finally tossed our way feel lacking in a way that BatIM's handwaved elements don't. There's a lot about Joey's motivation in BatIM that we can't know, but the heart of it resonates -- Joey wanted something, he was willing to exploit people to get it, and he became obsessed and prioritised that dream at any cost. We'll weather a thousand logistical inconsistencies if it's got heart.

But all of that said.... to be honest, I don't think Lacie overtly fits that theme anyway. Even, like, Sammy is iffy -- we don't really know what happened to him, only that he didn't used to be made of ink and worship Bendy, and now he does. We assume Joey's nonsense had something to do with what happened to him (though the books later assert his influence was indirect at best), because when there's a pattern, we can fill in the blank. So many fan creators found a place for Lacie, Grant, and Shawn in the cycle as butcher clones or lost ones, so many people imagined that Wally must be the Boris we meet, because that would've fit the pattern, the idea that the point of what we're seeing is the downfall of the studio. It's not actually that BatIM did a great job tying everything together -- it's that BatIM gave us a compelling idea and that was all it took to make everything else SEEM like it could find a place to fit. This is what I mean when I say BatIM's theme covers a multitude of sins. There's a LOT of characters in BatIM that don't make sense. There's a lot of inconsistencies and things that just sort of happen without any real reason. Characters don't really have "arcs" so much as different states they happen to be in at different times. But because there's a central question and the story doesn't wander away from it, our pattern-loving human brains will slot in all the pieces and do all the work to make the story feel at least somewhat coherent.

The things that happened in BatDR aren't a whole lot less coherent than BatIM imo, they just don't tie into a bigger theme or any of the questions the story's asking, making "how do they fit into all this" feel irrelevant, making it easier to forget entire sections and harder to get invested in audiolog characters. I think a lot of the other criticisms people have for BatDR's story are very valid, but I also suspect that if BatDR had a more successful theme/central question, then a lot of its flaws would be easier to overlook -- just like BatIM.

[imsobadatnicknames2]

What's OSR? I've seen you mention it several times in your RPG posts. Is it like a genre of rpg or...?

Hey, sorry I took so long to reply to this lol you probably already just googled it by now.

But like. Anyway.

OSR (Old-School Revival, Old-School Renaissance, and more uncommonly Old-School Rules or Old-School Revolution, no one can really agree on what the R means) is less like a genre and more like a movement or a loosely connected community that seeks to capture the tone, feel and/or playstyle of 70's and 80's fantasy roleplaying games (with a particular emphasis on old-school editions of Dungeons and Dragons, particularly the Basic D&D line but pretty much anything before 3e falls under this umbrella), or at least an idealized version of what people remember those games felt like to play.

There isn't exactly a consensus on what makes a game OSR but here's my personal list of things that I find to be common motifs in OSR game design and GM philosophy. Not every game in the movement features all of these things, but must certainly feature a few of them.

Rulings over rules: most OSR games lack mechanically codified rules for a lot of the actions that in modern D&D (and games influenced by it) would be covered by a skill system. Rather that try to have rules applicable for every situation, these games often have somewhat barebones rules, with the expectation that when a player tries to do something not covered by them the GM will have to make a ruling about it or negotiate a dice roll that feels fair (a common resolution system for this type of situation is d20 roll-under vs a stat that feels relevant, a d6 roll with x-in-6 chance to succeed, or just adjudicating the outcome based on how the player describes their actions)

"The solution is not on your character sheet": Related to the point above, the lack of character skills means that very few problems can be solved by saying "I roll [skill]". E.g. Looking for traps in an OSR game will look less like "I rolled 18 on my perception check" and more like "I poke the flagstones ahead with a stick to check if they're pressure plates" with maybe the GM asking for a roll or a saving throw if you do end up triggering a trap.

High lethality: Characters are squishy, and generally die much more easily. But conversely, character creation is often very quick, so if your character dies you can usually be playing again in minutes as long as there's a decent chance to integrate your new PC into the game.

Lack of emphasis on encounter balance: It's not uncommon for the PCs to find themselves way out of their depth, with encounters where they're almost guaranteed to lose unless they run away or find a creative way to stack the deck in their favor.

Combat as a failure state: Due to the two points above, not every encounter is meant to be fought, as doing so is generally not worth the risk and likely to end up badly. Players a generally better off finding ways to circumvent encounters through sneaking around them, outsmarting them, or out-maneauvering them, fighting only when there's no other option or when they've taken steps to make sure the battle is fought on their terms (e.g. luring enemies into traps or environmental hazards, stuff like that)

Emphasis on inventory and items: As skills, class features and character builds are less significant than in modern D&D (or sometimes outright nonexistent), a large part of the way the players engage with the world instead revolves around what they carry and how they use it. A lot of these games have you randomly roll your starting inventory, and often this will become as much a significant part of your character as your class is, even with seemingly useless clutter items. E.g. a hand mirror can become an invaluable tool for peeping around corners and doorways. This kind of gameplay techncially possible on modern D&D but in OSR games it's often vital.

Gold for XP: somewhat related to the above, in many of these games your XP will be determined by how much treasure you gather, casting players in the role and mindset of trasure hutners, grave robbers, etc.

Situations, not plots: This is more of a GM culture thing than an intrinsic feature of the games, but OSR campaigns will often eschew the long-form GM-authored Epic narrative that has become the norm since the late AD&D 2e era, in favor of a more sandbox-y "here's an initial situation, it's up to you what you do with it" style. This means that you probably won't be getting elaborate scenes plotted out sessions in advance to tie into your backstory and character arc, but it also means increased player agency, casting the GM in the role of less of a plot writer or narrator and more of a referee.

Like I said, these are not universal, and a lot of games that fall under the OSR umbrella will eschew some or most of these (it's very common for a lot of games to drop the gold-for-xp thing in favor of a different reawrd structure), but IMO they're a good baseline for understanding common features of the movement as a whole.

Of course, the OSR movement covers A LOT of different games, which I'd classify in the following categories by how much they deviate from their source of inspiration:

Retroclones are basically recreations of the ruleset of older D&D editions but without the D&D trademark, sometimes with a new coat of paint. E.g. OSRIC and For Gold and Glory are clones of AD&D (1e and 2e respectively); Whitebox and Fantastic Medieval Campaigns are recreations of the original 1974 white box D&D release; Old School Essentials, Basic Fantasy and Labyrinth Lord are clones of the 1981 B/X D&D set. Some of these recreate the original rules as-is, editing the text or reorganizing the information to be clearer but otherwise leaving the meachnics unchanged, while others will make slight rules changes to remove quirks that have come to be considered annoying in hindsight, some of them might mix and match features from different editions, but otherwise they're mostly straight up recreations of old-school D&D releases.

There are games that I would call "old-school compatible", that feature significant enough mechanical changes from old-school D&D to be considered a different game, but try to maintain mechanical compatibility with materials made for it. Games like The Black Hack, Knave, Macchiato Monsters, Dungeon Reavers, Whitehack, etc. play very differently from old-school D&D, and from each other, but you generally can grab any module made for any pre-3e D&D edition and run it with any of them with very little to no effort needed in conversion.

There's a third category that I wouldn't know how to call. Some people call then Nu-OSR or NSR (short for New School revolution) while a small minority of people argue that they aren't really part of the OSR movement but instead their own thing. I've personally taken to calling them "Old School Baroque". These are games that try to replicate different aspects of the tone and feel of old-school fantasy roleplaying games while borrowing few to none mechanics from them and not making any particular attempts to be mechanically compatible. Games like Into the Odd, Mörk Borg, Troika!, a dungeon game, FLEE, DURF, Songbirds, Mausritter, bastards, Cairn, Sledgehammer, and too many more to name. In my opinion this subsection of the OSR space is where it gets interesting, as there's so many different ways people try to recreate that old-school flavor with different mechanics.

(Of course, not everything fits neatly into these, e.g. I would consider stuff like Dungeon Crawl Classics to be somewhere inbetween category 1 and 2, and stuff like GloG or RELIC to be somewhere imbetween categories 2 and 3)

The OSR movement does have its ugly side, as it's to be expected by the fact that a huge part of the driving force behind it is nostalgia. Some people might be in it because it harkens back to a spirit of DIY and player agency that has been lost in traditional fantasy roleplaying games, but it's udneniable that some people are also in it because for them it harkens back to a time before "D&D went woke" when tabletop roleplaying was considered a hobby primarily for and by white men. That being said... generally those types of guys keep to themselves in their own little circlejerk, and it's pretty easy to find OSR spaces that are progressive and have a sinificant number of queer, POC, and marginalized creators.

[asherashedwings]

Hey chat, remember when I did that one charting pattern analysis on Pico and Darnell?

Well I'm doing that again. But with EVERY FNF CHARACTER.

Girlfriend

Girlfriend, shocker, doesn't really have a pattern. This is mainly due to her being featured in only one song, and it's the tutorial. If we ever get any action from her in the future, then maybe we can find something then, but for now: no pattern.

Daddy Dearest & Mommy Mearest

Okay, so they do have a pattern, and it's a shared pattern. I mean, makes sense, since they're kind of a package duo. It's kinda hard for me to explain, but they have patterns that tend to focus on the left and right notes?? If that makes sense. Good examples I can think of are Satin Panties, High, and Cocoa. Mearest more so than Dearest, but Dearest's base charts are also rather simple due to his week being so early. BUT! These patterns are apparent in his Erect songs! Namely Bopeebo. But yeah, patterns that are left and right note focused. Which -- and I don't know if this is just a coincidence or not -- seems rather fitting given the colors of those notes: red and purple.

Spooky Kids

Another set of characters that don't really have a set pattern that I can distinguish. Although, I do find that rather fitting for them. Their lack of pattern matches their rather chaotic nature that's displayed in their show. They're just silly unpredictable guys.

Monster

Okay, so Monster is just already so different from everyone else that it's just hard to hold him to the same standard. But he does have his own patterns! Namely a LOT of hold notes. Which makes sense due to the lingering nature of his songs. He's slow and eerie, so of course his charting would reflect that

Pico

Okay, so I've covered Pico before. He does a lot of back and forth patterns. .... I could turn this into a super complex character analysis that is completely just my brainrot talking but I don't know if I should go there. I'm going there. Okay, so Pico's entire character in FNF revolves around him going back on the various jobs he's been given to protect Boyfriend and Girlfriend. Week 3? Backing out of his job to rap with BF instead. Week 7? Denying his mission yet again to save BF and GF. He's constantly going back and forth between his job and his morals. And it's not always clear which is the correct option. This same logic can also be applied to Weekend 1, except it's not him choosing BF and GF over his job -- it's him choosing them over his friends: Darnell and Nene. His character is just a constant cycle of back and forths.

Senpai

Okay, so this fucker was the reason I first wanted to make a full analysis on all the characters. So, this guy I noticed, uses a lot of trail notes. And in my brain it does tie into his character and. Like. The only way that I can explain it is like. You know those videos of people arguing with misogynists, and the misogynist keeps cutting off the other person before they can make their point, and keep repeating the same thing over and over again cuz they think that's how arguments work? That's the same vibe I get from Senpai's trail notes. It feels like he's just. Repeating the same things over and over again cuz he thinks he's making a point. And just going on and on so BF can’t speak Idk. If that makes sense.

Tankman

Tankman uses a lot of stairs. I had no idea what to make an analysis out of here, so to quote the wise words of @braveboiart ; "He's a bitch and I hate stairs." ACTUALLY! That is half right. Came up with this while replaying Week 7 for this post. Tankman is explicitly shown to be able to break the fourth wall, so it is entirely possible that in Ugh and Guns, he is purposefully using an egregious amount of stairs to just. Be a pain in the ass. This would also perfectly explain his switch up in Stress. He's taking BF and the player a little bit more seriously, so he starts to be a bit more genuine. Also, I would like to point out that he also uses back and forths a ton. Tankdad canon. ALSO I WOULD LIKE TO MAKE NOTE OF A LIL DETAIL I NOTICED WHEN PLAYING PICO ERECT

Pico Erect shares charting from Stress. Realistically, this is likely just a lil reference to Stress since Pico made in appearance in that song but FUCK YOU, TANKDAD CANON.

Darnell

Okay, so I've already gone in depth on Darnell, so this is mostly gonna be me repeating myself. Good to have everything in one place, yknow? Darnell has a progression of charting throughout Weekend 1. In Darnell, he starts out almost identical to Pico's charting, before slowly transition to his trail and double heavy charting through Lit Up and 2Hot. My analysis of this was the idea that he starts out the week mocking Pico; making fun of the fact that Pico chose to rap battle BF instead of killing him. But as the week progresses, he gets more into it and starts having fun with it, slipping into his own style.

And last but not least

Boyfriend

Okay, so, surprise surprise: Boyfriend doesn't really have a pattern. But it's not cuz he just repeats everyone! There's actually a lot of moments where he freestyles, namely in the Erect tracks. But when analyzing those bits, there isn't really any set pattern. Which makes sense! BF is a go with the flow kinda guy. The charting he uses depends on what the moment calls for; what will outshine his opponent the most. I mean, his charting kinda needs to be versatile, given the variety of his challengers. So yea.

Uhhh... Hope y'all enjoyed my analyses. I'm gonna go pass out now (It is 4:36am at the time of writing this rn)

[brucebocchi]

Winter 2024 anime roundup, Pt. 1: Ongoing/returning shows and the trash heap

hey y'all, this is also up on my ko-fi! it's free to read both here and there, but i'm struggling financially rn so i could appreciate if you'd throw a few bucks my way if you liked it!

I wasn't expecting to watch nearly this much anime in just the past three months, but life completely failed at getting in the way. So here's everything I either watched or tried​ to watch for the Winter 2024 season, and a short review for each.

I'm not going to bother with trying to rank them, so instead they're sorted by category, as follows:

Continuing series from Fall 2023

Returning series

What I dropped

Mixed reactions

On hold

New series that are actually good

With this first entry, I'll be covering the first three, with the back half arriving in another couple of days. As with the 2023 rankings, the OP for each show is linked in the corresponding title.

Here we go.

Ongoing shows:

The Apothecary Diaries

Looking back at my 2023 rankings, I think my placement of The Apothecary Diaries’ first cour at #11 may have belied how much I love this show and believe it to truly be one of last year’s greats. If anything, it was hampered by its status as an ongoing show making it incomplete by nature, and I worried myself over the possibility of recency bias taking over my top ten (Frieren is in the same boat, so its top overall ranking should really highlight how damn good it is). Make no mistake, though: The Apothecary Diaries fucking rocks, and it continues to fucking rock. 

It’s largely more of the same, and that’s what you would want from another cour of this show. At the same time, though, more and more is uncovered about Maomao’s background and Jinshi’s status as the proverbial camera continues to pull back and the mysteries adorning the edges of the frame become clearer. I got a sense at the end of the Fall 2023 cour that the show was moving on from its episodic nature into something more serial and plot-driven, and I was mostly right: While several episodes of the Winter cour still revolve around various mysteries of the week, they all start to converge before you even realize it. It’s the same flywheel-effect approach to plot development that Kaguya-sama did so well: While so many of the events seem like one-off curiosities in the moment, these almost-imperceptible movements eventually barrel forward into an unexpected but perfectly logical momentum. The show teases out several plot threads that may not seem relevant at first, and it trusts you to be patient enough to see them play out.

I’m not at all exaggerating when I say that, along with the next entry on this list, The Apothecary Diaries is one of the best anime of the past five years. I had a feeling that this could end up being the case as 2023 came to a close, but I’m sure of it now. Watch this show.

Frieren: Beyond Journey’s End

Last year’s best anime continues apace into 2024 as we get an honest-to-goodness story arc: Frieren, who has been around too long to bother taking any magical governing bodies seriously, needs a certified mage in her party order to continue on the journey north. She decides to take the necessary exam to be certified as a First-Class Mage, a rarefied status in this world, and has Fern tag along to do the same in order to double their chances. 

And it’s still incredible! Great action, brilliant animation, wonderful character moments, and a beautiful score. It is still the top-rated anime ever on MyAnimeList, and by a significant margin. I’m not sure I agree, necessarily, but I can say with all sincerity that this has been a perfect season of television and my Fridays now feel empty without it. 

That’s all I’ve got on this one. What else do you want from me? I’ve already written nearly 2000 words about this show alone since it premiered. You’re asking me for more? I’ll kill you.

Shangri-La Frontier

If the low placement on my 2023 list was any indication, I was pretty fed up with Shangri-La Frontier by the end of its first cour, and the first couple episodes of 2024 being little more than plot set-up had me teetering on the edge of dropping it entirely. But I’ll be damned if it didn’t reel me back in once shit actually started happening and the plot really began to move forward.

Well, for a bit, at least. The height of the series so far has been the Wethermon arc, in which Sunraku teams up with his fellow shit-gamers, Pencilgon and Katzo, as they vie to be the first to take down a notoriously difficult unique boss. As the fight plays out, we get to see the feeling-out process of a tough action-RPG boss, rife with attack pattern memorization, skill timing, and buff stacking as the margin for error grows ever thinner. As always, the animation is on point, the soundtrack rules, and the action sequences are exhilarating.

But my major gripe with the series remains: There’s hardly any actual story here, even after 25 episodes. There are broad gestures towards a larger plot (“the truth of this world,” as the NPCs call it), but they are too vague to even resemble anything enticing. Everything in between the major fights is just set dressing, and there’s a lot of in between. There’s decent stuff in there, to be fair; the adorable rabbit NPCs are always a delight, and I love the commitment to depicting our top-level gamers as smug, preening shitheels. These are long walks for short drinks of water, though, and much of the main cast isn’t likable enough to make the downtime tolerable, to the point where watching the many set-up episodes feels like more of a grind than the actual grinding in the show. Even in the best fight sequences I still had moments where I found myself yelling “STOP TALKING ALREADY” at the screen. Internal monologues are a constant in battle shonen, I know, but if there’s any demographic whose internal monologues I want to hear the least, it’s gamers.

I kept watching this show despite myself, and six months later I’m still not sure how much I actually enjoy it. I haven’t seen any of the lousy VRMMO anime that people favorably compare it to, so at least it isn’t Sword Art Online. Yay, I guess? Yet here I am, still plugging away at a show I can’t strongly recommend to a lot of people. Shangri-La Frontier has turned me into a Steam reviewer.

Undead Unluck

The stakes continue to rise exponentially in one of last year’s more underrated shonen hits (or it would’ve been a hit if Disney gave a fuck about marketing the anime on its own platforms). The Union neutralizes a threat, gains a new Roundtable member, and then shit hits the fan.

The scope of this series goes into absolutely buckwild directions, and all I will say is that “Kimi no Todoke predicting the future” was not a piece of worldbuilding I would have ever expected. But at the same time, it never loses focus on the human element, which only gets more poignant as it goes on. There’s a really beautiful message in the last arc about how people can live on through the memories of others, well past their bodies dying, which hits nice and hard considering this season aired at the same time as Frieren.

This is a show that I tended to watch sporadically (because I just plain forget to open Hulu just to watch one show every week), and I would say that it was the ideal way to watch it, except the pacing issues from the first cour only got worse during a monumentally consequential sequence in the middle of the second. There was an episode that had, I shit you not, 90 seconds of new content in the first seven minutes of runtime, and at the exact point in the series where you’re salivating for something, anything new. In a season where so much goes on in just 24 episodes, I’m baffled that they felt the need to pad the runtime so much.

That’s the worst of it, though, and the momentum fortunately builds up from there and barrels downhill until the end. The story becomes incredibly meta, which was a very ballsy move for a Shonen Jump series that was still relatively early into its run. The gamble pays off, though, and the debut season ends on several incredibly strong episodes, and now I want more. I’ll be hopping on the manga soon.

It also struck me towards the end of the season just how goddamn cute everyone looks. For all of the spraying blood and grim marching towards Armageddon, it says a lot that I still wanna pinch everyone’s fat little cheeks.

Returning shows:

The Dangers in My Heart, season 2

The first season was absent in my 2023 rankings but I decided to pick it up while the second was still airing, and I’m so glad I did: The Dangers in My Heart is an almost-too-precious middle school romance that is endlessly endearing and bluntly honest (if a little exploitative) about what middle schoolers are actually like, warts and all. Insecurities are amplified, they struggle to figure out their identities, and mental and physical development run on different schedules from one kid to the next. And amidst all this raging hormonal nonsense, we have ourselves a lovely little romance story.

Kyotaro has (mostly) kicked his chuuni tendencies and realized that he’s madly in love with the beautiful, cheery Anna. He’s as aware as anyone of what a mismatched couple they’d be, though, and continues to self-sabotage any progress in the name of maintaining her good social standing. To pile onto his loner’s perspective of middle school politics, Kyotaro also gets a front-row seat to Anna’s part-time work as a model-slash-actress and he wonders if an underdeveloped shrimp like him should be seen anywhere near someone so obviously more mature. At the same time, though, he’s a growing boy, and we see lovely moments of progress as Kyotaro takes initiative both for her sake and to achieve what he wants. To both ameliorate and complicate these situations, Anna reciprocates his feelings towards her, and we creep ever closer towards what we want to see, in increasingly awkward and precious fashion.

So much of this anime is just gorgeous. Even setting aside the visuals and music (which are on point at all times), there are really lovely themes in here about insecurity, teenage perceptions of maturity, and self acceptance. On top of all of that, though, this is just a delightful slice-of-life romance story. You can probably guess where we’ve ended up by the end of the second season, but it’s the getting there that makes it all worth it. The manga is still running (and I plan to pick it up), so there’s clearly plenty more of the story to tell, but if this is where the anime ends, it ended perfectly.

Holy shit, though, did the first season really air at the same time as Skip and Loafer and Insomniacs After School? Dentists must have made a mint that season because every single one of these shows is so unrelentingly sweet that my teeth start to itch. Not that I’m complaining.

Mashle: Magic and Muscles, season 2

I honestly think I might’ve been too hard on Mashle in my 2023 rankings. I gave up on it a few episodes in when it’d initially aired, but I eventually came back to finish out the season and ended up having a pretty good time. I’ll cop to having forgotten that latter part when I mapped out those rankings, but that enjoyment quickly came back to me when I picked up season 2... even if the season begins with a ton of table setting.

Plenty of battle shonen take time to find their voice, both in manga and anime, and Mashle really seemed to hit its stride fairly quickly into the second season. Mash Burnedead’s lack of magical quality is no longer a secret, and now magical society has to find a way to deal with it, so the series’ initial stakes are raised and Mash HAS to become a top-level sorcerer lest he lose his life. Also, the bad guys are back. Unfortunately, just as I started to genuinely appreciate the ensemble cast, most of Mash’s friends took a backseat to the larger plot (Lemon is nowhere to be seen almost all season) as the villains raise the stakes with increasingly JoJo-esque magic abilities. There’s still plenty to like, though, and some of the new characters help. Props for having an openly nonbinary character play a major role.

The music is a real highlight here; a surprising amount of hip-hop paints the backdrops during dialogue, and any show with an OP by Creepy Nuts will immediately grab my attention. "Bling-Bang-Bang-Born" actually turned into a bona fide hit single, much like Oshi no Ko's "Idol" and Jujutsu Kaisen's "SPECIALZ," and I'd say it's well earned (seriously, it fucks, please click the link above). The animation has also started to really pick up where it felt like it kept falling short in the first season as well, and I found myself looking forward to action sequences more as the season went on.

And hey, it might’ve taken 21 episodes to get there, but I finally laughed at a cream puff gag!

Urusei Yatsura (2022), season 2

I really don’t have much to say other than it’s more Urusei Yatsura, and that’s just swell. We continue the modern adaptation of the classic gag manga as the OG anime babe and her piece-of-shit “darling” get caught up in yet more bizarre hijinks. Despite the 48-episode run being touted as an “Urusei Yatsura all-stars” cherry-pick from Rumiko Takahashi’s 34-volume opus, not all of the segments hit on the same level, but the stories that last entire or even multiple episodes have been killer. Lum and Ataru, despite their myriad flaws, genuinely do care for one another, and this series is at its best when those feelings get to shine through. Takahashi remains a legend for her expert balancing of comedy and heart, and while this particular adaptation doesn’t have the built-in benefit of 300+ chapters of familiarity, those moments still feel earned.

It’s Urusei Yatsura. It’s a classic for a reason. Watch it.

Dropped:

Gushing Over Magical Girls (dropped after one episode)

For the TL;DR version, consult the image above.

All I’d heard about this show going in was that the manga it’s based on was good and that there would be boobs. I wish I’d known more than that before watching, though, because if I’d known that said boobs would belong to middle schoolers, I wouldn’t have bothered with even the one episode I did end up watching.

I was drawn in by the initial premise, too: The protagonist, the conspicuously-named Utena (who looks enough like Bernadetta from Fire Emblem that I was immediately endeared to her), is an enormous fan of the magical girls who keep her city safe, so when an adorable maho shoujo mascot approaches her with an offer, she immediately takes him up on it. As her sinister-looking (and unnecessarily revealing) costume suggests, though, Utena doesn’t get to live out her magical girl dreams; she actually got roped into—and blackmailed into keeping—a role as a villainess. The magical girl team she idolizes quickly finds her, and to stave off their assault, Utena is forced to summon a monster to bind them. As they continue to struggle and squeal, Utena goes further with it by ripping their clothes and spanking their bare bottoms red, because it turns out that she’s actually into this stuff, sexually. The title, it turns out, is a double entendre.

Credit where it’s due for a clever concept: On paper, this is really goddamn funny! My issue is with the execution: I don’t really care to see someone’s sexual awakening if it involves repeated violations of consent, and much less so if I have to see nudity of ostensible middle schoolers (Japanese middle schools are the equivalent of seventh through ninth grade, meaning these girls are 15 at most). After 100 Girlfriends, I thought I could handle whatever trashy bullshit any anime could throw my way, but the longer I chewed on Gushing’s premiere, the worse it sat with me. I have no intentions of playing morality police here, but I can’t bring myself to watch any more of this than I already have. 

Early teenage sexuality is a very difficult subject matter to handle delicately, especially in a comedy milieu, and I can levy plenty of criticisms on that matter towards series I otherwise enjoyed, like Call of the Night and the aforementioned Dangers in My Heart. And although there appear to be some coming-of-age elements here, Gushing doesn’t seem interested in handling it without being exploitative. Maybe it gets better, but I don’t plan to find out for myself. 

I just feel like it’s a shame that in a season with some actual halfway decent LGBT representation, the breakout yuri hit is about middle schoolers performing dubiously-consensual BDSM on each other. And maybe that speaks to something for some sapphic viewers, and I have no intention of speaking over them, but I do know that this isn’t for me. I would’ve gone fucking feral over this show when I was like 13, but I haven’t been a 13-year-old boy for a long, long time. 

I may not have a leg to stand on here as someone who watches Mushoku Tensei (and frankly, that one’s on strike two with me), but I have to put my foot down somewhere. For me, that “somewhere” is borderline pornography involving 13-15 year olds. I try to meet media where it is, even the squicky stuff, but I cannot put myself at the level Gushing Over Magical Girls sets for itself. 

Sasaki and Peeps (dropped after eight episodes)

This show is frustrating to even process postmortem. After a mildly intriguing hour-long premiere that introduced a whole lot of concurrent concepts, Sasaki and Peeps somehow managed to not only continue heaping new ideas onto the pile, but also fumble every single one of them in a way that wasn’t even entertaining to watch.

Sasaki, a lonely 40-something salaryman of modest means, decides that instead of living vicariously through adorable animal photos on social media, he should pull the trigger and get a pet of his own. He settles on a reasonably-priced and suitably adorable fat little Java sparrow, who as it turns out speaks human language and is actually named Piercarlo the Starsage (Sasaki settles on calling him Pii-chan, or Peeps in English). The bird was reincarnated from another world, where he is able to take Sasaki at will, and the man realizes he can use the other world’s relative dearth of technology to his advantage and sets up an interdimensional trade full time so he can make coin on his own watch and help Peeps try the delicious beef he heard is the best food in Sasaki’s world. To the latter end, he also invests in a restaurant. Peeps also helps teach him magic, which Sasaki is forced to use in a pinch in the real world. He is quickly found out and gets roped into a secret government bureau of psychics, because the agent who caught him using ice magic decides he’d be a perfect complement to her water powers (think Kanne and Lawine from Frieren, but stupider). Sasaki now has to balance these multiple lives, which hardly ever interact with one another, as the stakes rise in Peeps’ world in the form of palace intrigue and in Sasaki’s world in the form of a growing threat of evil psychics or something. Also, there’s magical girls, because why the fuck not at this point.

If you actually managed to process all that and went “wow, that’s a lot, I wonder how they can tie all that together,” it brings me no pleasure to report that Sasaki and Peeps completely fails at that task. This is a work of fiction with entirely too many ideas, to the point where it feels like it has no ideas. There’s a saying in football that a team with two quarterbacks is a team with no quarterback, and Sasaki and Peeps has, like, six on its depth chart. You ever hear a band that managed to cram multiple genres in the same song and you get whiplash every time it switches up? Those are bands with a lot of influences, but no identity or vision to call their own, and that is Sasaki and Peeps to me: It is the Twenty One Pilots of anime. A lot of shit got thrown at the wall, and none of it stuck: This show, conceptually, is shit-stained drywall with a pile of turds adorning the moulding. 

For a show about a 40-year-old man, it gave me serious pause that there was not a single named adult woman in any of the episodes I watched, and I grew even more frustrated waiting for one to show up. Sasaki’s partner, Hoshizaki, seems to be a driven, professional young woman, but it turns out she’s a 16 year old high school student, for some reason. The daughter of the viscount doing business with Sasaki is a young girl who likes to tag along with him, and Sasaki’s neighbor is a latchkey high school girl who may or may not have a yandere-ish fixation on him. The magical girl we meet is also definitely a kid. The female psychics they face off against don’t appear to be older than teenagers, though the one who appears to grow fond of him turns out to be several hundred years old, which especially gave me pause because we all know that unfortunate trope and the type of person who hides behind it. Before progressing any further, I found out that the light novel series upon which this show is based was written by someone with the pen name “Buncololi,” which told me the rest of what I needed to know.

That part made me increasingly uncomfortable, and I became less and less convinced that this show was capable of sticking the landing as it continued to pile on new, contrived ideas. This was a waste of an excellent voice cast, but more than that, a waste of time.

Tales of Wedding Rings (dropped after nine episodes)

I can’t believe how much goddamn isekai I ended up watching this season. That Tales of Wedding Rings wasn’t the worst one (see above) was a minor miracle, because boy howdy was this one a dud.

Satou is just a normal high school boy, blah blah blah, his childhood friend he’s in love with is actually a princess from another world and she has to go back to fulfill a political marriage, he follows her into the portal to pull a Benjamin Braddock. But then, gasp, the palace is under attack, so the princess (her native name is Krystal, but growing up in Japan she was known as Hime, which means… princess) instead decides to marry Satou, bestowing upon him her kingdom’s ring, which gives him powers that he uses to fight back the demons. It turns out that her ring enables him to use one elemental affinity out of five, so of course now Satou has to collect the rings held by the other four kingdoms in order to become the Ring King and save the world, and to do so he has to also marry each corresponding princess.

This is basically Tolkien’s Rings of Power but as a harem isekai with bonus nudity. What I saw of the season was basically a MacGuffin hunt that had waifus of various fantasy races attached. Fine character designs for each, to be fair, but it wasn’t enough to keep me interested.  It’s funny on paper that (to paraphrase Geoff Thew) our protagonist’s power level scales with the size of his harem, but Tales didn’t do enough to make me actually care what was happening. And I wanted to! There were elf titties and I didn’t care. That’s criminal.

What makes Tales especially difficult to watch is that this show is fuck ugly. The color palette is muddy and unappealing, everyone looks uncannily shiny, and there’s a smudgy Vaseline filter over everything. The action sequences are uninspiring, the animation is lousy, and every character looks terribly off-model unless they’re naked. Watch the OP I linked if you don't believe me; that's the best of it. The aural element isn’t much better; ecchi scenes are punctuated by a Cinemax-caliber smooth jazz score that I pray was chosen ironically, and most of the show’s humor consists of “an old guy is screeching.” And if you’re wasting Shigeru Chiba’s talents on that one lousy joke, you’ve fucked up catastrophically.

What completely pushed me out of wanting to see any more of this show, though, was how hard it doubled down on the worst elements of harem anime by having Protag-kun be a wishy-washy little ninny even though he’s openly declared his love for and is literally married to Hime/Krystal. And I wanted to care about her; the narrative made me want to care about her, and her jealousy of the other princesses is warranted, but alas, the harem demands bodies. To his credit, Satou recognizes her mixed emotions and makes extra time for her to make it clear that she’s forever number one in his heart, but every single time their shared romance and emotions actually push them towards consummating their (all caps for emphasis) MARRIAGE, the show goes Rent-a-Girlfriend on us and finds a cheap excuse to ruin the moment. No thanks, I’m out. Nothing else about this show is good enough to make me wade through that shit.

Honestly, the only thing that had me coming back after my Persona 3-induced hiatus was that I wanted to see the dragon girl, and that alone was almost worth it, but there really isn’t much of a draw otherwise. There were better isekai, better romances, better fantasy settings, and even better uncensored harem shenanigans this season. I might pick this back up as the second season approaches, but I’m not in any hurry.

[cutestkilla]

It's Wednesday and I have something to share! Thanks for the tags today @artsyunderstudy and @facewithoutheart, I'm so so excited by what you're both working on, two of my favourite WIPs in the game right now!

It's been a while, but I've finally finished up my draft of Chapter 4 of Hiding Out In The Open. Hoping to post by the middle of this month once my lovely beta readers have a chance to help me make it better. For now, here's a snippet of Baz POV. Perhaps you'll recall the premise revolves around post-Watford Snowbaz bonding over a psychology podcast; they're discussing an episode about the psychology of disgust here. Under the cut because, well, it's a bit disgusting (your CW is this: the real life Hidden Brain ep this references is called Crickets and Cannibals 😂).

I curl my lip. “Just because lobster was once considered the vermin of the sea doesn’t mean I’m going to eat a bloody chocolate covered cricket.” My diet is gruesome enough as it is—I chugged the blood of four solidly-built London alley rats on the way here alone—which I suspect is the subtext of this whole display.  Snow basically confirms it. (He practically winks at me.) “Don’t yuck my yum, Baz,” he says breezily, popping another “chocolate” into his mouth with a flourish. (This time he chews with his mouth closed at least. I shudder at every crunch.) He swallows. “And I won’t yuck yours.” It’s all incredibly confusing. Before last week, every allusion and innuendo seemed to indicate that he found my unique nutritional requirements to be utterly loathsome. (Which they, of course, are.) I roll my eyes. “Where do we draw the line then, Snow? Andes plane crash victim crisps?”  He screws his face up. “First off: Gross. And”—he pauses to lick chocolate off his fingers—“you know full well I said I’d be okay with being eaten, not the other way round.” (Crowley below, how did I get here?)

Tagging: @hushed-chorus @ivelovedhimthroughworse @shrekgogurt @creepyspice @iamamythologicalcreature @you-remind-me-of-the-babe @fatalfangirl @whatevertheweather @moodandmist @whogaveyoupermission @bookish-bogwitch @aristocratic-otter @captain-aralias @thewholelemon @ileadacharmedlife @onepintobean @j-nipper-95 @raenestee @youarenevertooold @best--dress @brilla-brilla-estrellita @chen-chen-chen-again-chen @confused-bi-queer @emeryhall @erzbethluna @forabeatofadrum @ic3-que3n @larkral @letraspal @martsonmars @messofthejess @mooncello @nightimedreamersworld @orange-peony @palimpsessed @prettygoododds @rimeswithpurple @run-for-chamo-miles @shemakesmeforget @stitchyqueer @technetiumai @urban-sith @valeffelees @blackberrysummerblog @theearlgreymage @nausikaaa @that-disabled-princess

[rainbowsky]

Perspectives on a debate

I see a lot of people still steeped in the debate about GQ.

There are a lot of claims being spread around about GQ, including:

They are huge GG antis

They posted hateful slander about GG

They were one of the primary agents of 227 and GG's cancellation

They boycotted GG

They keep bringing up 227 to hurt GG

Here are the primary pieces of 'evidence' of these claims:

Two articles published by GQ, one in 2020 shortly after 227, and one a year later. Both consist of interviews with a media/culture scholar who specializes in danmei and fan culture, discussing the phenomenon of 227 and some other related sociocultural topics.

I urge every fan to read these articles and draw your own conclusions about whether they constitute 'anti-GG slander'.

Initial article

Follow-up a year later

Once you've done so you can read on if you're curious to hear my thoughts on the issue. (Please don't read my thoughts until you've read the articles and formed your own perspective.)

My thoughts

These articles are overall pretty rational, intellectual and inquisitive. The conversation primarily revolves around fandom and fan culture, and GG isn't even the central focus. Particularly the second article, which only mentions him briefly at the beginning.

Instead, the articles cover a broad range of entertainment business and cultural topics, and ponder the factors that played into 227.

They are not critical of GG, so much as they are critical of his fans, which is why his fans are so angry about the articles. It's not 'slander against GG', it's a critique of fandom and fan behavior.

I suspect this is why XFX have been so vocal about spreading the rumor of a GQ vendetta against GG. Because saying, "GQ has been critiquing XFX" wouldn't garner nearly as much sympathy or outrage.

Most people don't actually bother digging into or examining these claims. Instead, they take it all at face value and assume the claims to have at least some merit, and buy into the narrative that GQ is out to get GG. They in turn spread the word about GQ's supposed vendetta against GG, thereby doing free XFX legwork.

The reality is that 227 was a very big deal at the time. A massive cultural phenomenon. Of course those interested in culture would reasonably want to discuss and examine it. It's been discussed all over the world, not just in China.

It's not unreasonable for a magazine to do this type of examination. We can agree or disagree with some of the opinions presented in the article, but they're not anything unusual for that region of the world. However, in my view, characterizing them as anti-GG slander is just a bridge too far.

[storytellerwhims]

Introduction:🗒️

Welcome to the Tragic Tales of Life Legacy Challenge. This legacy challenge is a realistic story and goal-oriented legacy challenge. That revolves around real life tragedies and drama that happen. This is a more simplified written and less heavy on goals legacy challenge. This legacy challenge was inspired by the Crybaby Whims Legacy Challenge and the Joy of Life Legacy Challenge! I hope you enjoy this tragically fun legacy challenge!

Before You Play:🔞

This legacy challenge is for players who are eighteen and older. This legacy challenge covers heavy topics. That could be triggering or uncomfortable for some people. This legacy challenge uses most of the packs. And also, is a modded legacy challenge so you can’t play it on console. But I have other legacies that are un-modded so if you want to check them out! I would really appreciate it. I hope you enjoy the legacy challenge!

Each generation will specify if there are required mods or not! Here are some mods that I recommend to enhance your gameplay!

Recommended Mods:🖥️

MC Command Center/Mc Woohoo

https://deaderpool-mccc.com/

(18+) Wicked Whims/Wonderful Whims 

https://wickedwhimsmod.com/manual-mod-installation

Basemental Drugs (18+)

https://basementalcc.com/adult_mods/basemental-drugs/

Lumpinous Relationship and Pregnancy Mod

https://lumpinoumods.com/woohoo-wellness-and-pregnancy-overhaul/

Realistic Childbirth Mod by: Pandasama

https://www.pandasama.com/realistic-childbirth-mod/

Rules:🗡️

-Must play on Normal lifespan

-No cheating money etc. unless it’s at the beginning to start the legacy challenge.

-Must complete all the goals to move onto the next tragic tale.

-If you enjoy the legacy challenge please share and give proper credit! 

📲(Use the hashtags #sims4tragictaleslegacychallenge or #sims4ttollg) If you play this legacy challenge and share it on social media, I'd love to see your sims!🥰

___________________________________________

The Tragic Tales (The Generations)☠️

 Gen.1 Single Parent Who Has a Drinking Problem👩‍👦🍺

You're someone who hoped for a beautiful love life like the one you always saw on tv. But that wasn’t your reality. You fell in love with the wrong person and now you're stuck. Living alone with your child/children that reminds you of your tragic romance. You try to pick up the pieces and work a regular job as a teacher but that still was tiring. So after a long day of reprimanding kids you come home to your own child/children. As a person who didn’t want children it’s rough so when they're asleep. You start to sip on alcohol and it becomes a habit. After a while you start to realize you have a problem and try to fix it. To at least become a better version of yourself for you!

Gen.1 Requirements: 

Lifestage: Young Adult

Traits: Hates Children, Romantically Reserved and Bar Drinker 

Aspiration: City Native

Colors: Light Brown and Red

Career: Education

Required Mods:

Basemental Drugs (18+)

https://basementalcc.com/adult_mods/basemental-drugs/

Bar Drinker Trait by: KiaraSims Mods

https://kiarasims4mods.net/2020/05/08/bar-drinker-trait/

Starting Out:

-Start out living in an old apartment in San-Myshuno. Or in a one-star apartment building with the filthy lot trait. 

-Start out with Zero Simoleons

-Have the basic amenities in your apartment

Goals:

As a Young Adult-Elder

-Live in an old apartment or apartment building.

-Be in the Education Career and reach level five of the career.

-Max the Research and Debate and Mixology Skills. 

-Have a child with someone you fall in love with and become a single parent.

-Have a bad relationship with the other parent.

-Start drinking once you become a single parent. (with the basemental drugs mod.)

-Have a negative relationship with your child/children.

-Decide as an Adult to quit drinking for yourself.

___________________________________________

Gen.2 Neglected Child As an Adult Develops Anger Issues🚫😡

As a child you were neglected while your parent got buzzed. Through the pain of feeling unwanted you grew up bitter. At everyone and everything you started to have tantrums on people. That’s when you knew you needed to direct your anger into a career. So you become a Detective throwing criminals in the slammer. Which made all your rage fade away and you start to become a great cop, one that people admire. So much so you get asked out by someone who likes your uniform. You date and marry them, have kids. Life seems good till they realize what a hot head you are! They love you but you severely trouble them but you both stay together. You try to keep calm for them and your kids but your past precedes you.

Gen.2 Requirements:

Lifestage: Young Adult

Traits: Hot Headed, Nosy and Ambitious

Aspiration: World Class Detective

Colors: Dark Blue and Black

Career: Detective 

Required Mods:

World Class Detective Aspiration by: KiaraSims Mods

https://www.curseforge.com/sims4/mods/world-class-detective-aspiration

Goals:

As a Young Adult-Elder

-Move out of your parents house to any world you want.

-Join the Detective Career and reach level ten of the career.

-Max the Charisma and Photography Skills

-Have five enemies from throwing tantrums on people.

-Have a Bad Reputation

-Date, Marry and have kids with someone who you meet who likes you in your uniform.

-Have at least two children

-Gain the Workaholic lifestyle

-Have problems with your spouse but stay married.

___________________________________________

Gen.3 Art Student That Gets Into an Abusive Relationship🎨💔

You grew up in a home full of anger, but you refused to subdue that behavior. So when your parent got mad you shut down and kept quiet. To avoid having problems but as time went on that began to stress you out. So you focused your negative emotions into art. Which led you to graduate high school and get to go onto college. As an art student your world was filled with color and nude models. Whose bodies were art and you painted them beautifully. One day though you never knew could change everything in a terrible way. You meet someone who you think understands you. You date them after a while their true colors shine through and they're dark! You both argue day and night and to not start a fight. You let them seduce you till they get tired and pass out next to you. Your grades start to suffer so you start to avoid them to do what’s best for you. But all that gets thrown out the window when you find out you're going to be a parent! Your narcissist partner reels you back in because of the baby. So you stay but you fear for you and the baby/babies life! Once the baby arrives you make your escape with the baby/babies. Leaving your abusive ex behind you, move into a small home just right for you and your baby/babies. Then you go back to college and finish and become a freelance painter.

Gen.3 Requirements: 

Lifestage: Young Adult

Traits: Lovebug, Creative and D.V.S 

Aspiration: Academic

Colors: Soft Pink and Maroon

Career: Fine Arts Degree University Student/Freelance Artist

Required Mods: 

Trauma Bonding Mod by: Wicked Pixxel 

https://www.patreon.com/posts/trauma-bonding-106764079

D.V.S Trait by: Muva Simmer

https://www.patreon.com/posts/d-v-s-trigger-54622043

Goals:

As a Young Adult-Elder

-Move out of your angry parent's house to go to university.

-Be in the Fine Arts Degree at Foxbury or Britchester University

-Max the Painting and Romance Skills 

-Meet someone who’s toxic become their partner and date them.

-Argue and make up by woohooing with your terrible partner.

-Have a baby/babies with your narcissistic partner.

-Drop out of university to focus on your relationship and family.

-Move in with your abusive partner.

-Leave your awful partner after the baby/babies are born.

-Have a negative relationship with your toxic partner

-Move to a new world far away from your ex-partner.

-Go back to college as an Adult graduate and become a freelance painter.

-Have an art studio in your home where you find comfort.

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Gen.4 Geek Tries to Fit In and Becomes a Pill Popper👾💊

You're a true geek as they call you in high school. You learned from your parents horrible love life. To steer clear, not let raging hormones get the better of you! But yet after the popular kids called you out. You start to think differently you want to show them. You can be a true party animal! So you stop caring about school so much and hangout with the jocks! They show you how to be bad but still be adored! You all go to the nightclubs and sneak past the bouncers at bars. Get drunk and taking pills not prescribed  partying all night! One day they give you a makeover to make you look like one of them. You feel weird but excited taking it all in! Before you know it you're living the teenage dream! But it all ends when you find out that you/person you slept with. One wild night is pregnant! You never planned on your high school years turning out this chaotic! But now the popular teens left you spreading gossip about the pregnancy. So you're left on your own pregnant/going to be a teen parent. What happens now you stop being this pill popper and be yourself again. Starting a podcast about all the pill problems and teen parent struggles you went through. Now it’s up to you if you go and find someone but you have overcome so much at a young age!

Gen.4 Requirements:

Lifestage: Start as a Teen 

Traits: Geek and Party Animal 

Aspiration: Psychonaut

Colors: Purple and Yellow 

Career:  Podcast Host

Required Mods: 

Basemental Drugs (18+) 

MC Command Center/MC Woohoo (linked above)

Lumpinous Relationship and Pregnancy Mod (linked above)

Podcast Host Career By: KiaraSims4 Mods

https://legacy.curseforge.com/sims4/mods/podcast-host-career

Techie trait by KiaraSims4 Mods

https://legacy.curseforge.com/sims4/mods/techie-trait

Goals:

As a Teen

-Live with your parent still or move out on your own at an early age. 

-Have a B grade in high school before you try to fit in with the popular kids.

-Max the Gaming Skill

-Make friends with Popular Teens 

-Go to nightclubs and bars with your popular friends.

-Drink, Smoke and Do Pills at the nightclub/bars (Using the basemental drugs mod.) 

-Get a “cool” kid makeover with new clothes that look like ones the jocks would wear! 

-Get addicted to pills and keep doing them till you become a Young Adult.

-Have woohoo with one of your popular friends and end up pregnant/or get them pregnant! (Using Mc Command Center/Mc Woohoo Mod!) 

-Become a Teen Parent 

-Don’t do well in high school after you become a teen parent!

-Become enemies with your popular friends after you become a teen parent! 

As a Young Adult-Elder

-Decide to quit doing pills and go to rehab

- When you age up add the Techie trait by KiaraSims4 Mods

-Make money being a Podcast Host talking about your experience you had as a teen having a drug addiction, being a teen parent and being bullied.

-Reach level Five of the Podcast Host career

-Max the Charisma and Media Production Skills.

-You can decide if you want to date and get married when you're a Young Adult and older or not!

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I'm still writing this legacy challenge so future gens will be added. And also, past gens may change a little bit if I need to edit them! Thank you for reading the legacy challenge!! 💜 @ts4challengehub

[ancientphantom]

A little late but never gone forever, the July roundup!

The Phantom's Veil by Roger Carroll-May is an interesting one; it's definitely featuring our favorite masked fiend, here imagined as a sort of pan-Paris Phantom who haunts multiple important landmarks instead of just the Opera Garnier, but it's part of a larger series revolving around a pair of investigators operating in Paris as they look into apparently supernatural phenomena. It's got a whiff of that pulp-French-fiction focus, like the Shadowmen series, and is definitely worth investigating.

Guarded by the Phantom by Layla Fae is one of those monsters/humans romances, except that the monster here is our very own Phantom, reimagined as part of a group of monsters that sell their services as bodyguards to exclusive clients (and, because this is a romance series, generally fall in love with them). It looks like they're going very hard into the death's-head imagery - if you like spicy, this one might be for you!

The Phantom of the Opera from Harrap's School is a French-language reduction of the original story, designed to help English-learners read a familiar story at an appropriate level. It's gone through some weird twists and turns, though - it's based on the Lloyd Webber musical, not the Leroux novel, and is an English version of the French novel designed to help French people learn English. Sometimes this is a weird world.

Phantom Manor by Olivia Baptiste is this month's most questionable entry - it's a sort of Gothic western, with a scary sort-of-haunted mansion lording over an old west town, and it's missing the musical elements we normally associate with the Phantom, but it's also got a young woman getting ready for her wedding who seems unaware of the fact that a supernatural force is obsessed with and stalking her, and the cover is more than a little evocative of Lloyd Webber's musical, so... if anyone (who speaks French, as this is a French-language one!) finds out, let me know!

And that's it for our toasty summer month! Off to August, which traditionally doesn't see a lot of new entries, but hope springs eternal.